HOUSING FOR A HIGH SPEED ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR

• US 20140273557A1
• Filed: 03/13/2014
• Published: 09/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/13/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amphenol Corporation
• Original Assignee: Amphenol Corporation
• Inventors: Cartier, Marc B. Jr., Gailus, Mark W., Cohen, Thomas S., Dunham, John Robert, Sivarajan, Vysakh
• Granted Patent: US 9,520,689 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 439/78
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/585 Terminals having a press fit or a compliant portion and a shank passing through a hole in the printed circuit board
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/724 containing contact members forming a right angle
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/737 Printed circuits being substantially perpendicular to each other for printed connections H05K3/366
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/514 composed as a modular blocks or assembly, i.e. composed of co-operating parts provided with contact members or holding contact members between them
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6476 by making an aperture, e.g. a hole
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 43/16 for manufacturing contact members, e.g. by punching and by bending
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 43/24 Assembling by moulding on contact members
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49208 by assembling plural parts

Abstract

An electrical connector designed for high speed signals. The connector includes one or more features that, when used alone or in combination, extend performance to higher speeds. These features may include compensation for tie bars that are used to hold conductive members in place for molding a housing around the conductive members. Removal of the tie bars during manufacture of the connector may leave artifacts in the conductive members and/or housing, which may be addressed by the features. The conductive members, for example, may include regions, adjacent tie bar locations, that compensate for portions of the tie bar that are not fully removed. Alternatively or additionally, a housing may include openings around tie bar locations such that a punch may be used to sever the tie bars. These openings may be filled to avoid performance-affecting artifacts.

Claims

1. An electrical connector, comprising:

a plurality of conductive members, each comprising a contact tail, a mating contact and an intermediate portion joining the contact tail and the mating contact;

an housing, the housing comprising a first portion and a second portion, wherein;

the intermediate portion of each of the plurality of conductive members is disposed within the housing;

the first portion has a first surface, the first surface comprising a plurality of recesses formed therein;

the second portion has a second surface, the second surface comprising a plurality of projections, the projections being aligned with the recesses; and

the plurality of conductive members extend through the first surface and the second surface.

2. The electrical connector of claim 1, wherein:

the plurality of recesses in the first surface are disposed between conductive members of the plurality of conductive members extending through the first surface.

3. The electrical connector of claim 2, wherein:

the second portion comprises a plurality of openings therethrough, the plurality of openings being aligned with the plurality of conductive members extending through the second surface.

4. The electrical connector of claim 3, wherein:

the projections are disposed between openings of the plurality of openings.

5. The electrical connector of claim 1, wherein:

the second portion has a third surface, opposite the second surface; and

the contact tails of the plurality of contact tails extend from the third surface.

6. The electrical connector of claim 1, wherein:

the contact tails of the plurality of conductive elements are arranged in a plurality of parallel columns; and

the projections are arranged in a plurality of columns parallel to the columns of contact tails.

7. The electrical connector of claim 6, wherein:

the projections comprise projections of a first size and a second size.

8. The electrical connector of claim 6, wherein:

the first portion comprises a plurality of subassemblies, each subassembly comprising a single column of contact tails.

9. The electrical connector of claim 8, wherein:

the connector further comprises a member holding the plurality of subassemblies in a module; and

the second portion comprises a unitary member.

10. An electronic assembly comprising the connector of claim 1, in combination with a printed circuit board, wherein:

the printed circuit board comprises signal vias;

at least a portion of the plurality of conductive members comprise signal conductors;

each signal conductor is connected to a signal vias; and

the second portion has a dielectric constant that is different than a dielectric constant of the first portion, the dielectric constant of the second portion reducing impedance discontinuity between the intermediate portion of the signal conductors and the vias.

11. A method of manufacturing an electrical connector, the method comprising:

molding a housing around a lead frame, the lead frame comprising a plurality of conductive members, the plurality of conductive members being joined by a plurality of tie bars;

subsequent to the molding, with at least one punch, severing the tie bars, the at least one punch passing through open areas of the housing to access the tie bars; and

inserting insulative members in the open areas.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein:

the lead frame and housing form a first subassembly;

the method further comprises;

forming a plurality of subassemblies, each subassembly comprising a lead frame, a housing and a plurality of open areas in the housing; and

forming a module by attaching the plurality of subassemblies to a support structure; and

inserting insulative members in the open areas comprises positioning a unitary component comprising a plurality of projections into the open areas of the plurality of subassemblies.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein:

molding the housing comprises molding the housing with the openings exposing the tie bars.

14. The electrical connector of claim 13, wherein:

severing the tie bars comprises inserting the punch and a corresponding die in openings of the housing such that the ties bars are severed without removing housing material.

15. The electrical connector of claim 13, wherein:

molding the housing comprises molding the housing in a multi-shot molding operation, with one shot injecting insulative material and a second shot injecting lossy material.

16. An electrical connector, comprising:

an insulative member comprising a plurality of openings therethrough;

a plurality of subassemblies, each of the subassemblies comprising;

a housing having a first surface and a second surface opposing the first surface and at least one edge perpendicular to and joining the opposing first and second surfaces;

a plurality of conductive members partially disposed within the housing with a portion extending through the edge;

wherein;

the subassemblies are positioned with the edges of the subassemblies adjacent the insulative member such that, for each subassembly, the portions of the conductive members extending from the housing extend through openings in the insulative member;

the edge of each of the plurality of subassemblies comprises recesses therein; and

the insulative member comprises projections extending into the recesses.

17. The electrical connector of claim 16, wherein:

the insulative member comprises a first, flat surface and a second surface, opposing the first surface; and

the projections extend from the second surface.

18. An electronic assembly comprising, the connector of claim 17, in combination with a printed circuit board, wherein:

the printed circuit board comprises a third surface; and

the first surface of the insulative member is mounted against the third surface of the printed circuit board.

19. The electronic assembly of claim 18, wherein:

for each subassembly, at least a portion of the conductive members are configured as differential pairs, with each differential pair comprising a center-to-center spacing within the housing, providing a first impedance along the differential pair;

the third surface of the printed circuit comprises signal vias organized in signal via pairs, with a spacing between signal vias of the signal via pairs providing a second impedance of the signal via pair;

the portions of the signal conductors of the signal conductors extending through the edge engage corresponding signal vias of the signal via pairs; and

the insulative member has a dielectric constant higher than a dielectric constant that provides an impedance on the differential pairs intermediate the first impedance and the second impedance.

20. The electronic assembly of claim 19, wherein the second piece has a thickness of less than 2 mm.

21. The electronic assembly of claim 19, further comprising:

electronic components transmitting and/or receiving signals through the connector with signal speeds in excess of 20 Gbps.