Socket and pin contacts for coaxial cable

• US 4,280,749 A
• Filed: 10/25/1979
• Issued: 07/28/1981
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/1979
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Amphenol Corporation
• Original Assignee: The Bendix Corporation (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Inventors: Hemmer, Valentine J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Abrams, Neil
• Application Number:
  US06/088,429
• Time in Patent Office: 642 Days
• Field of Search: 339/177 R, 339/177 E, 339/258 R, 339/258 P, 174/89
• US Class Current: 439/578
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 2103/00 Two poles
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 24/40 specially adapted for high frequency

Abstract

An electrical contact for a coaxial cable (3) includes a tubular shell (17, 35) forming an outer contact element (19, 37) and an inner socket (13) or pin (31) type contact element having a pair of laterally spaced resilient fingers (49, 63) housed in a tubular insulator (15, 33). As the tubular insulator (15, 33) is inserted into the tubular shell (17, 35), wedge blocks (85, 107) extending laterally through slots (95, 113) in the walls of the insulator, compress the resilient fingers of the contact element against the center conductor of the cable. The cable shielding (7) is splayed back over a resilient sleeve (115) at one end of a bushing (21) which slides onto the end of the cable. This sleeve is split longitudinally and is resilient such that it may be compressed radially to insert it into the tubular shell (17, 35) where it expands to press the splayed back cable shielding into contact with the tubular shell. The bushing (21) includes a second sleeve (117) split longitudinally into two halves (130, 131), each of which is joined to the first sleeve (115) in axial alignment therewith by a web (119). Outward projections (135) on each half of the resilient second bushing sleeve snap into holes (139, 141) in the tubular shell (17, 35) to lock the contact together as a unit. The insulators (15, 33) are split longitudinally into two identical halves (a and b) which are molded integrally with the wedge blocks (85, 107) and snapped together to form the housing for the inner contact (13, 31).

Claims

1. An electrical contact for a coaxial cable having a center conductor surrounded by a sleeve of shielding material with insulation between the conductor and the shield and around the shield, said contact comprising:

an outer contact including an electrically conductive tubular shell, said shell including first and second ends;

a center contact having means for gripping and making electrical contact with the center conductor of the coaxial cable;

an insulator supporting said center contact within said outer contact with said center contact accessible from the first one of said tubular shell; and

a bushing comprising a tubular body and radially compressible locking means for engaging and disengaging said tubular body within the second end of said tubular shell, said tubular body comprising a first sleeve which constitutes the first end of the tubular body, a second sleeve and a flexible web joining the two sleeves in axial alignment, said locking means being affixed to said second sleeve, said tubular body being first slipped over the end of the coaxial cable with the shielding sleeve of the cable splayed back over the first end of the tubular body and the tubular body then being inserted, said first end first, and locked by the locking means into the second end of the tubular shell with the splayed back shielding sleeve in electrical contact with the interior wall of said tubular shell, said locking means on the second sleeve not engaging the shield of the cable.

2. The electrical contact of claim 1 wherein said bushing is resilient, said one end of the tubular body is provided with a longitudinal slot extending through the wall thereof and the outer diameter of said one end is proportioned such that said one end is compressed radially to insert it within the tubular shell where it expands radially to mechanically press the splayed back portion of the cable shielding sleeve into engagement with said tubular shell.

3. The electrical contact of claim 2 wherein said one end of the tubular body is grooved on its outer surface.

4. The electrical contact of claim 2 wherein said second sleeve is split longitudinally into two spaced apart halves each connected to said first sleeve by a web and wherein said locking means comprise radial projections on the outer surface of each half of said second sleeve which engage recesses in the inner wall of said tubular shell.

5. The electrical contact of claim 1 wherein:

said center contact comprises an electrically conductive contact element having a mating portion at one end and a wire receiving portion at the other end, said wire receiving portion comprising a pair of laterally spaced resilient fingers which extend longitudinally rearward from the mating portion and are compressible laterally to mechanically and electrically engage and hold the center conductor of a coaxial cable which is inserted longitudinally between said fingers;

said insulator comprises a cylindrical housing having an interior cavity housing the wire receiving portion of said contact element and having portions which urge said resilient fingers of the contact element towards each other to engage the center conductor of the coaxial cable as the cylindrical housing is inserted into said tubular shell; and

the portion of said cylindrical housing which urges said resilient fingers of the contact element toward each other comprises a pair of wedges movable in diametrically opposed transverse slots extending through the walls of said cylindrical housing into the interior cavity thereof.

6. A bushing for securing a coaxial cable in the end of a tubular electrical contact comprising:

first and second resilient sleeves joined in axial alignment by a flexible web, said sleeves being slidable over the end of a coaxial cable with the cable shielding splayed back over said first sleeve, said first sleeve having a longitudinal slot extending through the wall thereof such that said first resilient sleeve functions as a C spring which is compressed radially to insert said sleeve in the tubular electrical contact and then expands to press the splayed back shielding into electrical contact with the inner wall of the tubular electrical contact and to mechanically secure the cable in the contact, said second sleeve having locking means which engage and lock the bushing to the tubular contact.

7. The bushing of claim 6 including a projection extending radially inward from the inner wall of said first sleeve and axially toward the free end of said first sleeve to engage the coaxial cable and preclude its being pulled out of the contact and bushing.

8. The bushing of claim 7 wherein said second sleeve is split longitudinally into spaced apart halves each joined to said first sleeve by a web, and wherein said locking means include radially outwardly directed projections adjacent each edge of each resilient second sleeve half which engage holes in the walls of the tubular contact to lock the bushing in the contact, said second sleeve halves being compressible to permit said projections to slide inside the tubular contact into alignment with the holes in the walls thereof.

9. The electrical contact of claim 6, 7 or 8 wherein said first sleeve is provided with an irregular outer surface.

10. An inner contact assembly for an electrical contact having a tubular outer contact, said inner contact comprising:

a contact element including a mating portion and a wire receiving portion, said wire receiving portion including a pair of laterally spaced, electrically conductive, resilient fingers extending longitudinally from the mating portion of the contact element which can be deflected laterally toward each other to mechanically and electrically engage a wire inserted longitudinally between said fingers, the end of said laterally spaced resilient fingers being bent inwardly toward each other and then backwardly upon themselves with at least one of the reversely bent portions having undulations therein; and

a cylindrical insulator for electrically insulating and supporting said contact element concentrically within and from the tubular outer contact,

said insulator comprising a tubular housing having an interior cavity for housing said wire receiving portion of the contact element and wedge members movable within diametrically opposite slots extending through the walls of the tubular housing into the interior cavity, said insulator being insertable into the tubular outer contact where the wedge members bear against interior walls of the tubular outer contact and urge the resilient fingers of the contact element toward each other to mechanically and electrically engage a wire inserted therebetween.

11. The contact assembly of claim 10 wherein said cylindrical insulator is split longitudinally into two mirror image parts, each having a projection extending transversely towards the other part to aid in alignment of said two parts, and wherein the surfaces along which the insulator is split are provided with channels which, when the two parts of the insulator are mated, form said interior cavity and said slots.

12. The contact assembly of claim 11 wherein one of said wedge members is formed integrally with each half of said insulator and is joined thereto by a flexible web.