Connector

• US 20030176111A1
• Filed: 02/25/2003
• Published: 09/18/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/25/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Electric Works Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Asahi Matsushita Electric Works Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Iida, Mitsuru, Takeyama, Hidetoshi, Tanaka, Hirohisa, Hoshino, Narutoshi
• Granted Patent: US 6,821,158 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 439/660
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/592 connections to contact elements
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/79 connecting to rigid printed circuits or like structures

Abstract

A connector has a connector plug and a connector receptacle for connecting a cable and a substrate. The connector plug has a shell made of a conductive material with both sides open, and an insulator made of a resin molding. The insulator has a first fitting part on a first side for mating with the connector receptacle, a second fitting part on the other side for mating with the cable, and a plurality of contacts disposed on the second fitting part side. The shell has flexible parts for flexibly contacting a connector receptacle shell mated with the first fitting part. The insulator is fit into the shell from an opening on one side of the shell.

Claims

1. A connector having a connector plug and a connector receptacle for connecting a cable and a substrate,

the connector plug comprising:

a shell formed of a conductive material and being open on both sides thereof; and

an insulator made of a resin molding and having a first fitting part on a first side thereof for mating with the connector receptacle, a second fitting part on a second side thereof for mating with the cable, and a plurality of contacts disposed on the second fitting part side;

the connector receptacle comprising a shell;

the shell of the connector plug having flexible parts for flexibly contacting the shell of the connector receptacle mated with the first fitting part; and

the insulator being fit into the shell of the connector plug from a first opening on one side of the shell of the connector plug.

2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the insulator has recesses substantially U-shaped in section and formed on a surface of the insulator so as to extend toward the first fitting part from a base between the contacts, and the flexible parts are disposed inside the recesses.

3. The connector according to claim 1, wherein a shoulder for holding the cable to the contacts is formed on the second fitting part side on an inside surface of the shell of the connector plug opposite the contacts.

4. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the cable is a flexible printed circuit board.

5. The connector according to claim 4, wherein a pressing part for pressing and positioning the flexible printed circuit board to the inside surface of the shell of the connector plug is formed at an edge of a second opening of the shell of the connector plug on the second fitting part side.

6. The connector according to claim 4, wherein the shell of the connector plug has stops formed on both sides of the second opening thereof for preventing removal of the flexible printed circuit board, and the flexible printed circuit board has a protrusion formed on both sides at an end thereof, wherein when the end of the flexible printed circuit board is inserted to the second opening of the shell of the connector plug that is then provisionally positioned at a first position with respect to the insulator and when both the shell of the connector plug and the flexible printed circuit board are slid toward the first fitting part side from the first position to a second position where the insulator and the shell of the connector plug engage, the contacts flexibly deform to hold the flexible printed circuit board between the contacts and the inside surface of the shell of the connector plug.

7. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the connector receptacle comprises a plurality of contacts for conductively contacting the contacts of the connector plug, a support frame made of an insulation material for supporting and arraying the contacts of the connector receptacle, a first shell made of a metal extending in a direction in which the contacts of the connector receptacle are arrayed, and a second shell made of a metal extending in a direction in which the contacts of the connector receptacle are arrayed, wherein the first and second shells engage with each other so that the contacts of the connector receptacle and the support frame are disposed therebetween, and an insertion opening for inserting the connector plug is formed therebetween, and wherein a plurality of recesses enabling free insertion and removal of the contacts of the connector receptacle are formed to the support frame along an open edge of the insertion opening.

8. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the connector receptacle comprises a plurality of contacts for conductively contacting the contacts of the connector plug, a support frame made of an insulation material for supporting and arraying the contacts of the connector receptacle, a first shell made of a metal extending in a direction in which the contacts of the connector receptacle are arrayed, and a second shell made of a metal extending in a direction in which the contacts of the connector receptacle are arrayed, wherein the first and second shells engage with each other so that the contacts of the connector receptacle and the support frame are disposed therebetween, and an insertion opening for inserting the connector plug is formed therebetween, and wherein the support frame has a fitting hole into which is press fit a first tab projecting from one of the first and second shells to the other shell.

9. The connector according to claim 8, wherein the tab is welded to the other shell.

10. The connector according to claim 8, wherein an insulation member for insulating between the first shell and each of the contacts of the connector receptacle is formed integrally to the first shell, and the insulation member has a press-fitting part to which is press fit a second tab projecting from the second shell toward the insulation member.