Hoodless electrical socket contact

• US 6,250,974 B1
• Filed: 09/14/1999
• Issued: 06/26/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/25/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Carlisle Interconnect Technologies Inc. (Carlisle Cos., Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Tri-Star Electronics International Incorporated (Carlisle Cos., Inc.)
• Inventors: Kerek, Leslie Laszlo
• Primary Examiner(s): Sircus, Brian
• Assistant Examiner(s): NASRI, JAVAID H
• Application Number:
  US09/395,515
• Time in Patent Office: 651 Days
• Field of Search: 439/843, 439/851, 439/856, 439/845
• US Class Current: 439/843
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/111 co-operating with pins having a circular transverse section
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/187 with spring member in the socket

Abstract

A connector terminal is disclosed including a cylindrical socket body with a spring contact inserted therein. The spring contact has a distal portion that establishes a press fit with the socket body. The socket body may be crimped over the distal portion to more securely hold the spring contact in the socket body. The spring contact further has a plurality of fingers which taper forwardly and inwardly to resiliently grab a male pin as it enters the socket.

Claims

1. A two piece hoodless female contact for engaging a male pin comprising:

a socket body forming one piece of the contact, the socket body having a first tubular portion and a second portion extending alone a longitudinal axis, the first portion having an axial hole therein defining an open free male contact receiving end, the second portion having an open wire-receiving end for connection with an electrical conductor; and

a separate spring forming another piece of the contact, the spring being located in the axial hole defining the male contact receiving end of the first tubular portion, the spring including a forward portion and rear portion, the forward portion having a plurality of forwardly and inwardly extending fingers which terminate near the free male contact receiving end of the first tubular portion for resiliently grasping a male pin in close proximity to the free male contact receiving end.

2. The contact defined in claim 1 wherein the socket body further includes a third portion in the form of a solid generally cylindrical section disposed between the first and second portions and wherein each of the fingers includes a male pin engaging surface and wherein the male pin engaging surfaces of the fingers are arranged to grasp the male pin at a distance along the longitudinal axis within a range of about 0.025 to 0.045 inches from the free male contact receiving end of the socket body.

3. The contact defined in claim 2 wherein each of the fingers flare outwardly and forwardly of the respective pin engaging surface thereof for facilitating insertion of the male pin in between the fingers.

4. The contact defined in claim 1 wherein each of the fingers has an inwardly disposed dimple which forms the pin engaging surface for engaging the male pin.

5. The contact defined in claim 4 wherein the dimples are staggered along the lengths of the individual fingers with the dimples being positioned at different axial distances from the free male contact receiving end of the first tubular portion of the socket body.

6. The contact defined in claim 1 wherein the first tubular portion of the socket body is crimped onto the rear portion of the spring.

7. The contact defined in claim 1 wherein the forward portion of the spring terminates axially inwardly of the free male contact receiving end of the first tubular portion of the socket body and wherein the free end of the first tubular portion of the socket body is rolled over to extend radially inwardly beyond the forward portion of the spring to prevent removal of the spring from the hole and to center a mating pin contact.

8. A two piece female contact comprising:

a cylindrically shaped socket body member formed as a single part comprising one piece of the contact, the socket body member having first and second tubular portions separated by a solid center portion extending along a longitudinal axis, the first tubular portion defining a first axially disposed blind bore with a free end for receiving a male contact, the second tubular portion defining a second axially disposed blind bore sized and shaped to receive an electrical conductor; and

a separate male contact engaging spring forming another piece of the female contact, the spring being seated entirely in the first bore, the spring having front and rear portions, the front portion of the spring having a female coupling portion adjacent to the free end of the first tubular portion of the socket body member and the rear portion of the spring and the first tubular portion of the body member having cooperative securing means for securely holding the spring in fixed position within the body member.

9. The contact defined in claim 8 wherein the first tubular portion of the socket body member defines a tubular wall and wherein the cooperative securing means comprises a selected portion of the tubular wall being roll formed into the rear portion of the spring.

10. The contact defined in claim 8 wherein the first blind bore has an inwardly projecting shoulder, the rear portion of the spring seating against the shoulder to inhibit rearward movement of the spring within the first blind bore of the body.

11. The contact defined in claim 8 further comprising a male pin adapted to be inserted into the front female coupling portion of the spring, the female coupling portion having a plurality of forwardly projecting fingers which are arranged to engage the male pin inserted therebetween in close proximity to the free end of the first blind bore.

12. The contact defined in claim 11 wherein the fingers have male pin engaging surfaces which are arranged to engage the male pin at a distance of within the range of about 0.025 to 0.45 inches from the free end of the first blind bore.

13. A male/female contact system for coupling a male pin contact to a female socket contact, comprising:

a male pin contact;

a female socket contact formed in two separate pieces, the first piece being in the form of a tubular socket member having a first blind bore therein with an open free end and having a second blind bore therein sized and shaped for receiving an electrical conductor, the tubular socket member consisting of a single part; and

the second piece of the female socket contact being a spring member in the form of a sleeve seated in the first blind bore of the tubular socket member and establishing a press fit therein to prevent movement of the spring member relative to the tubular socket member, the spring member having a forwardly extending female coupling portion terminating adjacent the open free end of the first blind bore, said male pin contact being inserted into the open free end and grasped by the female coupling portion.

14. The male/female contact system defined in claim 13 wherein the tight fit between the socket and spring member is established by burrs on one of the members which dig into the other member.

15. The contact defined in claim 13 wherein the spring member has an indentation and the tubular socket member has a cooperative indentation seated therewith for securely holding the two members together.

16. The contact defined in claim 13 wherein the female coupling portion grasps the male contact at a distance within the range of about 0.025 to 0.045 inches of the open free end of the first blind bore.

17. A method for making a two piece female socket contact comprising the steps of:

forming a sleeve spring member having a rear end and a female coupling portion at a forward end;

forming a separate one piece socket body having first and second tubular portions separated by a solid center section, each of the first and second portions having a wall surrounding a blind bore therein, the blind bore in the first tubular portion having a free open end for receiving the spring member and the blind bore in the second tubular portion adapted to receive a conductor;

inserting the spring member entirely within the blind bore in the first tubular portion of the socket body to form a press fit with the female coupling portion being positioned adjacent to the free open end of the blind bore in the first tubular portion;

providing an electrical conductor; and

inserting the electrical conductor into the blind bore in the second tubular portion and crimping the wall of the second tubular portion onto the electrical conductor.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising the step of:

providing a male contact; and

inserting the male contact into the spring contact female coupling portion establishing an electrical coupling therebetween.

19. The method of claim 17 wherein the female coupling portion of the spring member is formed with a plurality of resilient fingers which are spread apart upon the insertion of a male contact.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the plurality of resilient fingers of the spring member have a proximal end positioned adjacent the free open end of the blind bore in the first tubular portion of the socket body and further including the step of rolling the wall of the first tubular portion of the socket body adjacent the free open end of the blind bore in the first tubular portion to form an inwardly projecting shoulder which limits the outward movement of the spring member and and inhibits damage to the spring member by an oversize mating male pin.