ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR UPPER AND LOWER CONTACTS MADE FROM A SINGLE CONTACT CARRIER AND INCLUDING TWO OUTERMOST CONTACTS WITH INTEGRAL LATCHING PORTIONS

• US 20200136291A1
• Filed: 10/28/2019
• Published: 04/30/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Foxconn Computer Connector Company Limited (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.), Foxconn Interconnect Technology Limited (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Foxconn Computer Connector Company Limited (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.), Foxconn Interconnect Technology Limited (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: ZHAO, JUN, ZHANG, CAI-YUN
• Granted Patent: US 11,245,216 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/72 coupling with the edge of the rigid printed circuits or like structures
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/725 containing contact members presenting a contact carrying strip, e.g. edge-like strip
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/405 Securing in non-demountable manner, e.g. moulding, riveting
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/502 composed of different pieces H01R13/514 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/504 different pieces being moulded, cemented, welded, e.g. ultrasonic, or swaged together
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6581 Shield structure
• 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 4/02 Soldered or welded connections H01R4/625, H01R4/723, H01R12/59 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 43/16 for manufacturing contact members, e.g. by punching and by bending
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 43/20 for assembling or disassembling contact members with insulating base, case or sleeve
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 43/24 Assembling by moulding on contact members

Abstract

A method of making a contact module of an electrical connector which includes a tongue and plural contacts exposed to two opposite surfaces of the tongue is characterized by the steps of: forming the contacts from a single contact carrier to have one contact thereof with a first contacting portion oriented reversely-symmetrically with respect to a second contacting portion of another contact thereof and to have two outermost contacts each with a respective integral latching portion; insert-molding the contacts with a first insulator while exposing front ends thereof and the latching portions; severing a carrier strip from the front ends of the plurality of contacts; and over-molding a second insulator to the first insulator and embedding the front ends of the plurality of contacts.

Claims

1. A method of making a contact module of an electrical connector which includes a tongue with two opposite surfaces and a plurality of contacts with contacting portions exposed to the two opposite surfaces of the tongue, characterized by the steps of:

forming the plurality of contacts from a single contact carrier to have one contact thereof with a first contacting portion oriented reversely-symmetrically with respect to a second contacting portion of another contact thereof and to have two outermost contacts each with a respective integral latching portion;

insert-molding the plurality of contacts with a first insulator while exposing front ends thereof and the latching portions;

severing a carrier strip from the front ends of the plurality of contacts; and

over-molding the first insulator and embedding the front ends of the plurality of contacts with a second insulator to form the tongue.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the insert-molding step comprises molding a part of the top surface of the tongue to be leveled with a top surface of the outermost contact.

3. An electrical connector comprising:

an insulative housing having a front tongue with two opposite surfaces; and

a plurality of contacts with contacting portions exposed to the two opposite surfaces of the tongue;

wherein

the plurality of contacts are formed from a single contact carrier to have one contact thereof with a first contacting portion oriented reversely-symmetrically with respect to a second contacting portion of another contact thereof and to have two outermost contacts each with a respective integral latching portion; and

respective front ends of the plurality of contacts are embedded in the tongue.

4. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 3, wherein a part of the top surface of the tongue is leveled with a top surface of the outermost contact.

5. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 3, wherein the first front ends of the contacts are at a mid-level of the front tongue.

6. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 3, wherein the integral latching portion is located at a mid-level of the front tongue.

7. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 3, wherein said one contact further has a first securing portion connected to the first contacting portion in a coplanar manner while said another contact further has a second securing portion connected to the second contact portion with a bend therebetween.

8. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 7, wherein said one contact further has a first soldering portion and said another contact further has a second soldering portion coplanar with the first soldering portion.

9. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 7, wherein the first securing portion and the second securing portion are not located at a same level while a front end of said one contact and that of said another contact are at a same level.

10. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 3, wherein the integral latching portion is embedded within a side locking protrusion of the tongue and sidewardly exposed to an exterior.

11. An electrical connector comprising:

an insulative housing including a rear base and a front tongue forwardly extending from the base in a front-to-back direction, said tongue defining opposite first and second surfaces in a vertical direction perpendicular to the front-to-back direction;

a plurality of contacts stamped from and unitarily formed between opposite first carrier strip and second carrier strip of a same sheet metal, each of said contacts including a contacting portion exposed upon the front tongue, a securing portion retained in the base, and a soldering portion exposed outside of the housing;

the contacting portion of all contacts except at least one contact being exposed upon the first surface while that of said at least one contact being exposed upon the second surface;

wherein

the soldering portions of all the contacts are located at a same plane.

12. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 11, wherein except said at least one contact, all securing portions are coplanar with the corresponding contacting portion while in said at least one contact, a bend is formed between the securing portion and the corresponding contacting portion.

13. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 11, wherein front ends of all contacts are located at a same level.

14. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 13, wherein said level is higher than said horizontal plane.

15. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 13, wherein said level is a mid-level of the front tongue in said vertical direction.

16. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 13, wherein the housing includes a first insulator and a second insulator, and the front ends of all the contacts are embedded within the second insulator.

17. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 11, wherein there are twelve positions in each surface of the tongue for the contacts, and all the contacts except said at least one contacts are located at positions one, four, five, nine and twelve on the first surface, and said at least one contact is located at position five on the second surface.

18. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 17, wherein each of the contacts at positions 1 and 12 is further equipped with an integral latching portion outwardly exposed to an exterior.

19. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 18, wherein the integral latching portion is located at a mid-level of the tongue in said vertical direction.

20. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 18, wherein said integral latching portion is embedded within a side locking protrusion of the tongue.