CONNECTOR WITH A LATERALLY MOVING CONTACT

• US 20110306251A1
• Filed: 06/14/2010
• Published: 12/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TE Connectivity Corporation (TE Connectivity Ltd. (United Kingdom))
• Original Assignee: Tyco Electronics Corporation (TE Connectivity Ltd. (United Kingdom))
• Inventors: Mulfinger, Robert Neil, Hamner, Richard Elof
• Granted Patent: US 8,251,755 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 439/733.1
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/91 allowing relative movement between coupling parts, e.g. floating or self aligning for coupling devices not specially adapted for printed circuits, flat or ribbon cables, or like generally planar structures, H01R13/6315 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/2407 characterized by the resilient means
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/2421 using coil springs
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6315 allowing relative movement between coupling parts, e.g. floating connection for coupling devices specially adapted for printed circuits, flat or ribbon cables, or like generally planar structures, H01R12/91 takes precedence

Abstract

A connector includes a housing, a contact, an angled interface, and a resilient member. The contact is disposed in the housing and includes a mating end and an interface end. The angled interface includes a sliding surface that is oriented at an oblique angle with respect to the longitudinal axis. The resilient member is coupled with the contact and the housing and is configured to apply a force to the contact in a direction that is angled with respect to the longitudinal axis. The mating end of the contact engages a conductive element of a mating connector and the interface end of the contact slides along the sliding surface of the angled interface when the contact is moved in a mating direction toward the conductive element. The angled interface translates movement of the contact in the mating direction into lateral movement across the conductive element.

Claims

1. A connector comprising:

a housing comprising a front end with a channel inwardly extending from the front end;

a contact disposed in the channel, the contact elongated along a longitudinal axis and including a mating end and an interface end;

an angled interface slidably coupled to the interface end of the contact, the angled interface comprising a sliding surface oriented at an oblique angle with respect to the longitudinal axis; and

a resilient member coupled with the contact and the housing, the resilient member configured to apply a force to the contact in a direction that is angled with respect to the longitudinal axis, wherein the mating end of the contact engages a conductive element of a mating connector and the interface end of the contact slides along the sliding surface of the angled interface when the contact is moved in a mating direction toward the conductive element, the angled interface translating movement of the contact in the mating direction into lateral movement with respect to the mating direction across the conductive element.

2. The connector of claim 1, wherein the force applied by the resilient member moves the contact in a direction oriented opposite of the lateral movement when the contact is retreated away from the conductive element.

3. The connector of claim 1, wherein the interface end of the contact includes a side that is angled with respect to the longitudinal axis, the side sliding along the sliding surface when the contact moves in the mating direction and engages the conductive element.

4. The connector of claim 1, wherein the resilient member is compressed between the housing and the contact when the contact laterally moves across along the conductive element.

5. The connector of claim 1, wherein the resilient member is a first resilient member, further comprising a second resilient member coupled to the contact between the mating end and the interface end, the second resilient member applying a mating force on the mating end toward the conductive element when the interface end slides along the angled interface.

6. The connector of claim 1, wherein the resilient member is a spring.

7. The connector of claim 1, wherein the angled interface is electrically coupled with the contact through engagement between the interface end of the contact and the sliding surface of the angled interface.

8. The connector of claim 1, wherein the mating end of the contact removes surface contamination of the conductive element when the contact laterally moves across the conductive element.

9. The connector of claim 1, wherein the resilient member is an upper resilient member, and the contact is separated into a mating section and a sliding section separated by a gap, further comprising a lower resilient member coupled to the mating section and applying the force to the mating section, the upper resilient member coupled to the sliding section and applying the force to the sliding section.

10. The connector of claim 1, wherein the channel of the housing extends between opposing end walls interconnected by opposing side walls, with the contact disposed between the end walls and moving parallel to the side walls as the contact laterally moves across the conductive element, wherein the side walls are separated by a width dimension that is sufficiently large to permit the contact to laterally move across the conductive element toward one of the end walls and the width dimension is sufficiently small to prevent movement of the contact in a direction that is angled with respect to the lateral movement of the contact.

11. The connector of claim 1, wherein the angled interface translates longitudinal movement of the contact in the mating direction into simultaneous lateral movement of the contact across the conductive element.

12. A connector comprising:

a housing;

a contact coupled with the housing, the contact having a mating end and an interface end; and

an angled interface disposed within the housing and arranged for sliding engagement with the interface end of the contact, wherein when the housing is moved in a mating direction toward a mating connector and the mating end of the contact engages a conductive element of the mating connector, further movement of the housing in the mating direction causes the interface end of the contact to slidably move along the angled interface, whereby the angled interface imparts translational movement of the contact with respect to the housing and the mating end of the contact moves laterally across the conductive element.

13. The connector of claim 12, further comprising a resilient member disposed within the housing and coupled with the contact, the resilient member imparting a force on the contact in a direction that is oriented opposite of lateral movement of the contact.

14. The connector of claim 13, wherein the force applied by the resilient member moves the contact in a direction oriented opposite of the lateral movement when the contact is retreated away from the conductive element.

15. The connector of claim 13, wherein the resilient member is a first resilient member, further comprising a second resilient member coupled to the contact between the mating end and the interface end, the second resilient member applying a mating force on the mating end toward the conductive element when the interface end slides along the angled interface.

16. A connector comprising:

a body;

a mating array including a contact; and

a rotating arm coupling the mating array with the body, the rotating arm rotating toward the body when the body is moved toward a mating connector and the contact engages a conductive element of the mating connector, the rotating arm translating movement of the body toward the mating connector into lateral movement of the mating array and contact, the contact laterally wiping across the conductive element of the mating connector.

17. The connector of claim 16, wherein the mating array includes a plurality of the contacts, the rotating arm translating movement of the body toward the mating connector into lateral movement of the plurality of contacts across a plurality of the conductive elements of the mating connector.

18. The connector of claim 16, wherein the mating array moves toward the body when the contact engages the conductive element of the mating connector.

19. The connector of claim 16, wherein the rotating arm includes a resilient member that moves the mating array away from the body when the body is moved away from the mating connector.

20. The connector of claim 16, wherein the mating array includes a substrate with a plurality of the contacts joined to the substrate.