Electrical connector

• US 20030171024A1
• Filed: 02/12/2003
• Published: 09/11/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CommScope Technologies, LLC (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: ADC GmbH (TE Connectivity Ltd. (United Kingdom))
• Inventors: Mossner, Frank, Nad, Ferenc, Gwiazdowski, Michael
• Granted Patent: US 6,953,362 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 439/404
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/506 assembled by snap action of the parts
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/5804 comprising a separate cable clamping part H01R13/5841 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/582 the cable being clamped between assembled parts of the housing
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/5837 specially adapted for accommodating various sized cables H01R13/5825 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6599 Dielectric material made conductive, e.g. plastic material coated with metal
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 24/64 for high frequency, e.g. RJ 45
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 4/2429 mounted in an insulating base
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 4/2433 one part of the base being movable to push the cable into the slot
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 4/2445 the contact members having additional means acting on the insulation or the wire, e.g. additional insulation penetrating means, strain relief means or wire cutting knives
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 9/031 for multiphase cables, e.g. with contact members penetrating insulation of a plurality of conductors insulation penetrating contact members in general H01R4/24
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 9/2416 Means for guiding or retaining wires or cables connected to terminal blocks

Abstract

An electrical connector includes a connector housing (2) and a printed circuit board (3) with two sets of contact elements (7, 8). The first set of contact elements (7) is located on the front face of the printed circuit board (3) and protrudes into an opening in the plug connector housing (2). The second set of contact elements (8) is located on the rear face of the printed circuit board (3). The contact elements of the second set (8) are configured to form insulation-displacement contacts (8). The plug connector (1) also includes a cable manager (5) which has a continuous opening (13) and is configured on the front face (16) with guides (19) for cores or wires which are intended to make contact with the insulation-displacement contacts (8). The guides (19) in the region of the insulation-displacement contacts (8) are configured with recessed receiving elements or holders (20) for the insulation-displacement contacts (8), and the cable manager (5) can be latched to the plug connector housing (2).

Claims

1. An electrical plug connector, comprising a plug connector housing, a printed circuit board with two sets of contact elements, with the first set of contact elements being arranged on the front face of the printed circuit board and projecting into an opening in the plug connector housing, and the second set of contact elements being arranged on the rear face of the printed circuit board, and the contact elements of the second set being in the form of insulation-displacement contacts,

wherein

the plug connector (1) comprises a cable manager (5) which has a through-opening (13) and is formed on the front face (16) with guides (19) for cores which are intended to make contact with the insulation-displacement contacts (8), in which case the guides (19) in the region of the insulation-displacement contacts (8) are formed with recessed holders (20) for the insulation-displacement contacts (8), and the cable manager (5) can be latched to the plug connector housing (2).

2. The electrical plug connector as claimed in claim 1, wherein a guide cross (17) is arranged in the opening (13) in the cable manager (5).

3. The electrical plug connector as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the guides (19) run radially with respect to the opening (13).

4. The electrical plug connector as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the guides (19) run parallel, with two guides (19) being arranged in each quadrant of the cable manager (5).

5. The electrical plug connector as claimed in one of the preceding claims, wherein the rear face (15) of the cable manager (5) is formed with an incline (18) on one side.

6. The electrical plug connector as claimed in one of the preceding claims, wherein a hold-down device (4) is arranged between the cable manager (5) and the printed circuit board (3) and allows the printed circuit board (3) to be fixed with respect to the plug connector housing (2).

7. The electrical plug connector as claimed in one of the preceding claims, wherein the guides (19) of the cable manager (5) are arranged at offset levels with respect to one another.

8. The electrical plug connector as claimed in one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a cable grip is arranged above the cable manager (5).

9. The electrical plug connector as claimed in claim 8, wherein the cable grip is designed with a number of parts, with the first part (21) being designed with two jaw parts (26) which flex jointly and whose joint flexing can be limited in an adjustable manner by means of a spring (30) which engages around the jaw parts (26), and with a third part being designed as a closure element (31) which can be latched in an adjustable manner to the first part and/or to the spring (30), such that a cable (36) which is to be attached can be centered in a defined, force-fitting manner.

10. The electrical plug connector as claimed in claim 9, wherein the first and the third part of the cable grip are in the form of metallized plastic parts which can be connected to a ground plate (6) in the plug connector housing (2).

11. The electrical plug connector as claimed in one of the preceding claims, wherein the electrical plug connector (1) is in the form of a socket for an RJ-45 plug.

18. A method for assembly of an electrical plug connector as claimed in one of claims 5 to 11, comprising the following method steps:

a) The printed circuit board (3) is inserted into the plug connector housing (2),

b) The cores of a cable with which contact is to be made are passed through the openings (13) in the cable manager (5) from the rear face (15) to the front face (16), with the cores being pressed into the associated guides (19) and being cut off at the side edges,

c) The cable manager (5) is aligned with respect to the insulation-displacement contacts (8) on the printed circuit board (3), and

d) A bracket-like tool (21), which has a guide edge (25) complementary to the incline (18) on the rear face (15) of the cable manager (5) and has a guide (23) formed parallel to the plug connector housing (2), is pushed on so that the sliding movement is converted into a travel movement of the cable manager (5) and plug connector housing (2) toward one another, with the insulation-displacement contacts (8) making contact with the cores, and the plug connector (2) and the cable manager (5) being latched to one another.

19. A tool for assembly of a plug connector as claimed in one of claims 5 to 11,

wherein

the tool (21) is essentially U-shaped, with parallel-running guides (23) being arranged on the lower face of the limbs (22), which guides (23) point inward, run at right angles to the rear wall (24) of the tool (21) and, in the upper region, are designed with an obliquely running guide edge (25) on the inside of each of the limbs (22).

12. A cable manager for an electrical plug connector,

wherein

the cable manager (5) has openings (13) which extend from the rear face (15) to the front face (16) and is designed with guides (19) on the front face (16) for cores which are intended to make contact with insulation-displacement contacts (8), with the guides (19) in the region of the insulation-displacement contacts (8) being designed with recessed holders (20) for the insulation-displacement contacts (8).

13. The cable manager as claimed in claim 12, wherein a guide cross (17) is arranged in the opening (13) in the cable manager (5).

14. The cable manager as claimed in claim 12 or 13, wherein the cable manager (5) is designed with a cylindrical attachment (14) in the region of the opening (13) on the rear face (15).

15. The cable manager as claimed in one of claims 12 to 14, wherein the guides (19) run radially with respect to the opening (13).

16. The cable manager as claimed in one of claims 12 to 14, wherein the guides (19) run parallel, with two guides (19) being arranged in each quadrant of the cable manager (5).

17. The cable manager as claimed in one of claims 12 to 16, wherein the rear face (15) of the cable manager (5) is formed with an incline (18) on one side.