ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR WITH HEATING DEVICE

• US 20160033198A1
• Filed: 07/29/2015
• Published: 02/04/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Foxconn Interconnect Technology Limited (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Foxconn Interconnect Technology Limited (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: HSIAO, Yu-San, CHEN, De-Jin
• Granted Patent: US 9,429,360 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: F26B 3/28 by radiation, e.g. from the sun
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/5202 Sealing means between parts of housing or between housing part and a wall, e.g. sealing rings
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6608 with built-in single component H01R13/68, H01R13/70 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 2107/00 Four or more poles
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 24/60 Contacts spaced along planar side wall transverse to longitudinal axis of engagement
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 43/20 for assembling or disassembling contact members with insulating base, case or sleeve

Abstract

An electrical connector includes an insulative housing with a plurality of contacts therein and a metallic shell enclosing said housing to form a mating cavity in which the contacting sections of the contacts are exposed upon a mating tongue of the housing, which extends in the mating cavity. A heating device is retained in the housing and located adjacent to the contacting sections of the contacts to expel humidity therefrom and away from the mating cavity.

Claims

1. An electrical connector comprising:

an insulative housing including a base and a mating tongue extending forwardly therefrom in a front-to-back direction;

a plurality of contacts disposed in the housing with contacting sections exposed upon the mating tongue and connecting legs exposed outside of the housing; and

a heating device embedded within the housing and including a heating fin located adjacent to the contacting sections to heat the contacting sections and remove moisture therefrom.

2. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 1, wherein the heating fin is spaced from the contacting sections in a vertical direction perpendicular to said front-to-back direction.

3. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 2, wherein the mating tongue defines opposite first and second surfaces thereon in the vertical direction, the contacting sections are exposed upon the first surface and a metallic reinforcement plate is located upon the second surface, and the heating fin is located between the contacting sections and the reinforcement plate in the vertical direction.

4. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 3, wherein the heating fin is closer to the reinforcement plate than to the contacting sections in the vertical direction.

5. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 4, wherein said heating fin is electrically isolated from the reinforcement plate in the vertical direction

6. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 2, wherein the mating tongue defines opposite first and second surfaces thereon in the vertical direction, the contacting sections are exposed upon the first surface and a metallic reinforcement plate is located upon the second surface, and the heating fin is essentially positioned upon the second surface and coplanar with the reinforcement plate.

7. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 6, wherein the reinforcement plate defines a recession to receive said heating fin.

8. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 1, wherein said heating device includes a pair of connecting legs exposed outside of the housing beside the connecting sections of the contacts.

9. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 8, further including a seal covering a back side of the housing through which both said connecting legs and said connecting sections extend.

10. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 9, further including a metallic shell enclosing the housing, wherein the seal is attached to an interior surface of the shell around the back side of the housing.

11. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 8, wherein said pair of connecting legs are spaced from each other in a transverse direction perpendicular to both said front-to-back direction and said vertical direction.

12. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 11, wherein said pair of connecting legs are spaced from each other in said transverse direction with a distance essentially similar to a width of said mating tongue in said transverse direction.

13. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 8, wherein the connecting legs and the connecting sections are arranged in one row in a transverse direction perpendicular to both said front-to-back direction and said vertical direction.

14. An electrical connector comprising:

an insulative housing;

a metallic shell enclosing the housing to form a mating cavity to forwardly communicate with an exterior in a front-to-back direction;

at least one contact disposed in the housing with a front contacting section exposed in the mating cavity and a rear connecting section exposed outside of the housing; and

a heating device retained by the housing and including a heating fin close to the contacting section to heat the contacting sections for removal moisture therefrom.

15. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 14, wherein the heating fin is spaced from the contacting section in a vertical direction perpendicular to the front-to-back direction.

16. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 14, wherein said heating device further includes a pair of connecting legs exposed outside of the housing and beside the connecting sections.

17. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 14, wherein said housing includes a mating tongue on which both the connecting section and the heat fin are mounted.

18. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 17, further including a metallic reinforcement plate mounted upon the mating tongue opposite to the connecting section.

19. A method of making an electrical connector, comprising steps of:

providing an insulative housing with a base and a mating tongue extending forwardly therefrom in a front-to-back direction;

providing a plurality of contacts in the housing with front contacting sections exposed upon the mating tongue and rear connecting sections exposed outside of the housing; and

providing a heating device with a heat fin retained in the mating tongue and close to the contacting section, and a pair of connecting legs exposed outside of the housing beside the connecting sections.

20. The method as claimed in claim 19, further including of a step of providing a metallic reinforcement plate retained by the mating tongue opposite to the contacting sections.