Electrical connector, in particular for a cutaneous device

• US 10,213,594 B2
• Filed: 05/12/2015
• Issued: 02/26/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/19/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Commissariat a L'Energie Atomique (French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission)
• Original Assignee: Commissariat a L'Energie Atomique (French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission)
• Inventors: Perraud, Simon, Emieux, Fabrice, Karst, Nicolas, Pantigny, Philippe
• Primary Examiner(s): Gilman, Alexander
• Application Number:
  US15/311,802
• Publication Number:
  US 20170095656A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,386 Days
• Field of Search: 439660
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/0476 Array electrodes (including any electrode arrangement with more than one electrode for at least one of the polarities)
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/048 Electrodes characterised by a specific connection between lead and electrode
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/0492 Patch electrodes A61N1/0412, A61N1/0428 take precedence

Abstract

An electrical connector, in particular for a medical device that is intended to be secured to the skin of a user, is disclosed. The connector includes a base for solidly connecting to the device and a plug for solidly connecting to an electric conductor. The plug includes a connection means and the base includes a plurality of connection means, each being adapted to engage with the connection means of the plug in order to establish a connection between the base and the plug.

Claims

1. An electrical connector for a device configured to be fixed on the skin of a user, comprising:

a base secured to the device; and

a plug configured to be secured to an electrical conductor, wherein the plug comprises a first connection means and the base comprises a plurality of second connection means, each of the plurality of second connection means being individually configured for cooperating with the first connection means of the plug to ensure a connection between the base and the plug, the plug and the base including magnetic means on the plug and corresponding magnetic means on the base, the plurality of second connection means of the base including a plurality of holes and the first connection means of the plug including a protuberance, the magnetic means exerting attractive magnetic forces causing an insertion of the protuberance of the plug in one of the holes of the base.

2. The connector of claim 1, wherein a center-to-center distance between adjacent second connection means included in the plurality of second connection means of the base is between 1.5 and 10 times a diameter of one of the plurality of second connection means.

3. The connector of claim 1, wherein the plurality of second connection means of the base are distributed uniformly over a surface of the base.

4. The connector of Claim 1, wherein the plug comprises an annular part protruding on the base and extending around the protuberance, the base comprising, around each hole, an annular opening to receive the protruding annular part of the plug.

5. The connector of Claim 1, wherein the plug includes the protuberance having a flared shape becoming narrower as it moves away from the base, the holes of the base including a corresponding shape to receive the protuberance.

6. The connector of Claim 1, wherein the protuberance of the plug has a flared shape becoming wider as it moves away from the base, the holes of the base having a corresponding shape to receive the protuberance.

7. The connector of Claim 1, wherein the protuberance of the plug performs an elastic function.

8. The connector of claim 1, which includes a plurality of plugs, the number of which is smaller than that of the plurality of second connection means of the base.

9. A medical device intended to be fixed on the skin of a user, comprising an electrical connector of claim 1.

10. The device of claim 9, wherein the plurality of second connection means of the base are advantageously distributed so as to occupy more than 1% of the total surface area of the device.

11. The connector of claim 1, wherein the base is made up of a stack of at least two layers, one of the at least two layers performing at least a mechanical support function, wherein the at least two layers also performing an electrical function and optionally a magnetic function, wherein the plurality of holes of the base traversing at least the one of the at least two layers acting as mechanical support, and wherein the plug comprises a base and the protuberance performing the electrical function and optionally the magnetic function.

12. The connector of claim 11, wherein the layer of the base performing an electrical function is made up of two separate parts that are not electrically connected, the protuberance or the base of the plug making it possible to electrically connect these two parts when the plug is connected to the base.

13. The connector of claim 11, wherein the stack making up the base comprises a first layer performing the mechanical support function and a second layer performing the electrical function and optionally the magnetic function, wherein the plurality of holes are traversing the stack, and wherein the electrical function and optionally the magnetic function of the plug is performed by the base of the plug.

14. The connector of claim 13, wherein a layer traversed by the holes is a discontinuous layer.

15. The connector of claim 11, wherein the stack making up the base successively comprises a first layer performing the electrical function, a second layer performing the mechanical support function and optionally a third layer performing the magnetic function, the holes traversing the third layer performing the magnetic function, wherein the third layer cooperates with any magnetic function of the plug being performed by the base and the electrical function of the plug being performed by the protuberance.

16. The connector of claim 15, wherein the second layer performing the mechanical support function also performs the magnetic function.

17. The connector of claim 11, wherein the stack making up the base comprises a first layer performing the electrical function and a second layer performing the mechanical support function, the first layer performing the electrical function also being able to perform the magnetic function, the holes only traversing the second layer performing the mechanical support function, the electrical function and optionally the magnetic function of the plug being performed by the protuberance.

18. The connector of claim 17, wherein the protuberance of the plug comprises two parts performing the electrical function and optionally the magnetic function, separated by an insulator, the layer of the base that performs the electrical function being designed to transmit electrical signals.

19. The connector of claim 17, wherein the layer of the base that is not traversed by the holes is a discontinuous layer, having a form of a grid or independent parts that are not electrically connected.