Electrical connector

• US 6,050,852 A
• Filed: 03/23/1998
• Issued: 04/18/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Wu, Kun-Tsan
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, KHIEM M
• Application Number:
  US09/046,782
• Time in Patent Office: 757 Days
• Field of Search: 439/607-610, 439/97, 439/101, 439/108, 439/362
• US Class Current: 439/607.02
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/7047 with a fastener through a screw hole in the coupling device
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/629 Additional means for facilitating engagement or disengagement of coupling parts, e.g. aligning or guiding means, levers, gas pressure electrical locking indicators, manufacturing tolerances separate tools or apparatus H01R43/26
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6582 with resilient means for engaging mating connector

Abstract

An electrical receptacle connector includes a dielectric housing having a body portion receiving a number of contacts therein and two ears each defining a central hole with a hexagonal upper section and a round lower section and two elongate slits. A shielding/grounding shell is formed with a body portion covering the body portion of the housing, and two wings each formed with four mounting tongues fittingly positioned on four mounting seats defined in the hexagonal upper section of the hole of the corresponding ear and two grounding feet extending through the corresponding slits. Two conductive posts are each formed with a domed upper section located above the body portion of the shielding/grounding shell, a middle hexagonal section positioned on the corresponding tongues of the shielding/grounding shell, and a lower cylindrical section received in the corresponding round lower section of the corresponding hole and defining a threaded portion therein. When screws are inserted through a printed circuit board to threadedly engage with the threaded portions to fix the connector on the printed circuit board, the hexagonal sections of the posts tightly urge the tongues against the mounting seats to fix the shielding/grounding shell to the housing of the connector.

Claims

1. An electrical connector comprising:

a dielectric housing having a first face for engaging with a mating connector, a second face opposite the first face, a number of contact passageways defined between the first and second faces for receiving a number of contacts therein, a first hole and a mounting seat beside the first hole;

a conductive shielding/grounding shell covering the housing and having a second hole and a mounting tongue beside the second hole; and

a conductive post having an upper section located above the first face of the housing, a middle section fittingly received in the first and second holes and urging the mounting tongue against the mounting seat, and a lower section defining a threaded hole therein forming a bottom face flush with the second face of the housing for contacting grounding circuitry of a circuit board, on which the connector is mounted.

2. The connector in accordance with claim 1, wherein the conductive shielding/grounding shell further has a grounding foot extending beyond the second face of the housing.

3. The connector in accordance with claim 1, wherein the middle section of the post has a polygonal configuration.

4. The connector in accordance with claim 1, wherein the middle section of the post has a hexagonal configuration.

5. The connector in accordance with claim 1, wherein the upper section of the post has a domed configuration.

6. A combination of a connector and a printed circuit board, comprising:

a connector comprising;

a dielectric housing having a first face for engaging with a mating connector, a second face opposite the first face, a number of contact passageways defined between the first and second faces for receiving a number of contacts therein and a mounting ear having a first hole and a mounting seat beside the first hole;

a conductive shielding/grounding shell covering the housing and having a mounting wing with a second hole and a mounting tongue beside the second hole; and

a conductive post having an upper section located above the first face of the housing, a middle section fittingly received in the first and second holes and urging the mounting tongue against the mounting seat and a lower section defining a threaded hole therein;

a printed circuit board contacting the second face of the housing; and

a screw extending through the printed circuit board to threadedly engage with the threaded hole of the post and causing the middle section of the post to tightly urge the mounting tongue against the mounting seat thereby simultaneously fixing the shielding/grounding shell to the housing and the connector to the printed circuit board.

7. The electrical connector in accordance with claim 6, wherein the printed circuit board has a grounding circuit electrically connecting with the post.

8. The electrical connector in accordance with claim 6, wherein the shielding/grounding shell has a grounding foot extending beyond the second face of the housing to electrically connect with a grounding circuit on the printed circuit board.

9. The electrical connector in accordance with claim 6, wherein the middle section of the post has a hexagonal configuration.

10. An electrical connector, comprising:

a first dielectric housing having a first face for engaging with a mating connector, a second face opposite the first face, a number of first contact passageways defined between the first and second faces;

a second dielectric housing having a third face engaging with the second face, a fourth face opposite the third face and a number of second contact passageways defined between the third and fourth faces and in alignment with the corresponding first contact passageways;

a number of contacts interferentially received in the first and second contact passageways;

a conductive post having a domed upper section located above the first face, a polygonal middle section fitting received in the first housing, and a lower section received in the second housing and defining a threaded hole therein.

11. The electrical connector in accordance with claim 10 further comprising:

a first conductive shielding/grounding shell covering the first housing; and

a second conductive shielding/grounding shell covering the second housing and having an engaging jaw engaging with the second housing, sandwiched between the second and third faces and in contact with the post;

wherein the polygonal middle section of the post urges a part of the first conductive shielding/grounding shell against the first housing.

12. The connector in accordance with claim 11, wherein the first housing comprises a recess on the second face and the second housing comprises a protrusion on the third face, said protrusion fittingly extending into the recess.

13. The connector in accordance with claim 12, wherein the engaging jaw engages an engaging block defined by the third face below the protrusion.

14. The connector in accordance with claim 11 wherein the second shielding/grounding shell comprises a grounding foot extending beyond the fourth face.

15. The connector in accordance with claim 11 wherein the second shielding/grounding shell consists of two identical pieces each having two mounting edges on two literal ends thereof, respectively, said mounting edges extending into mounting grooves defined in two lateral ends of the second housing.

16. The connector in accordance with claim 10, wherein the lower section of the post has a bottom face flush with the fourth face of the second housing.

17. A combination of an electrical connector and a printed circuit board, comprising:

a connector, comprising;

a first dielectric housing having a first face for engaging with a mating connector, a second face opposite the first face and a number of contact passageways defined between the first and second faces;

a second dielectric housing having a third face engaging with the second face and a fourth face opposite the third face;

a conductive post having an upper section located above the first face, a polygonal middle section fittingly received in the first housing and a lower section received in the second housing and defining a bottom face and a threaded hole therein;

a printed circuit board having a fifth face in contact with the fourth face, a sixth face opposite the fifth face, and a grounding circuit located on the fifth face and extending to electrically connect with the bottom face of the conductive post;

a number of contacts received in the contact passageways and having terminal portions soldered to the printed circuit board; and

a screw extending from the sixth face through the printed circuit board to threadedly engage with the lower section of the post to connect the first and second housings together to the printed circuit board.

18. A combination of an electrical connector and a printed circuit board, comprising;

a connector, comprising;

a first dielectric housing having a first face for engaging with a mating connector, a second face opposite the first face and a number of first contact passageways defined between the first and second faces;

a second dielectric housing having a third face engaging with the second face, a fourth face opposite the third face and a number of second contact passageways defined between the third and fourth faces and in alignment with the first contact passageways;

a conductive post having a domed upper section located above the first face, a polygonal middle section fittingly received in the first housing and a lower section received in the second housing and defining a threaded hole therein;

a conductive shielding/grounding shell covering the second housing and having an engaging jaw engaging with the second housing, sandwiched between the second and third faces and in contact with the conductive post, and a grounding foot extending beyond the fourth face;

a printed circuit board having a fifth face in contact with the fourth face, a sixth face opposite the fifth face, and a grounding circuit electrically connected with the grounding foot of the shielding/grounding shell;

a number of contacts interferentially received in the first and second contact passageways and having terminal portions soldered to the printed circuit board; and

a screw extending from the sixth face through the printed circuit board to thrededly engage with the lower section of the post to cause the first and second housings and the shielding/grounding shell to be fixed together to the printed circuit board.

19. The combination in accordance with claim 18, wherein the shielding/grounding shell is formed as a single piece.

20. An electrical connector assembly including:

a first dielectric housing having a first face for engaging with a mating connector, a second face opposite the first face and a number of first contact passageways defined between the first and second faces;

a first shielding/grounding shell enclosing said first housing;

a second dielectric housing having a third face engaging with the second face of the first housing, a fourth face opposite the third face and a number of second contact passageways defined between the third and fourth faces and in alignment with the corresponding first passageways, respectively;

a second shielding/grounding shell enclosing said second housing; and

a conductive post extending through the first and second housings, having an upper section located above the first face of the first housing, a middle section urging a mounting tongue of the first shielding/grounding shell against the first housing, and a lower section defining a threaded hole therein forming a bottom face thereof flush with the fourth face of the second housing and contacting grounding circuitry of a circuit board, on which the connector assembly is mounted; and

a screw extending through the circuit board and threadedly engaging with the threaded hole of the conductive post.

22. The electrical assembly in accordance with claim 20, wherein the second shielding/grounding shell comprises a pair of separate identical pieces, each having two mounting edges on two lateral ends thereof.

23. The electrical connector assembly in accordance with claim 22, wherein each separate piece comprises a pair of long engaging jaws extends from a top edge of two lateral portion thereof, and a pair of short engaging jaws between the long engaging jaws.

24. The electrical connector assembly in accordance with claim 22, wherein each separate piece comprises a pair of grounding feet extends downward from a bottom edge thereof.

21. An arrangement of eliminating electro-magnetic interference of a connector assembly, comprising:

a first housing defining a first hole;

a first shielding/grounding shell enclosing said first housing;

a second housing defining a second hole in alignment with said first hole;

a second shielding/grounding shell enclosing said second housing; and

at least one conductive post including a first section received within the first hole of the first housing and contacting said first shell, and a second section opposite to said first section, received within the second hole of the second housing and contacting the second shell.