Battery connector assembly with improved contacts arrangement

• US 6,340,315 B1
• Filed: 08/15/2000
• Issued: 01/22/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Chang, Jen Jou
• Primary Examiner(s): Paumen, Gary F.
• Application Number:
  US09/639,391
• Time in Patent Office: 525 Days
• Field of Search: 439/660, 439/79
• US Class Current: 439/660
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/2428 using meander springs
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/26 Pin or blade contacts for sliding co-operation on one side only for modular jack type connectors H01R24/62

Abstract

A battery connector assembly 1 has a plug connector 2 and a receptacle connector 3 mated with each other. The plug and receptacle connectors are similar in structure. Each has an insulative housing 20, 30 and two sets of conductive plug contacts 4, 5 and 7, 8 engaged in each respective housing. Each housing 20, 30 respectively has a side 22, 81 having a step-shaped surface, and forms a lower step 28, 86 and an upper step 25, 88. Each step forms a row of partitions 220, 280, 810, 880 and defines a row of slots 221, 281, 811, 881 separated from each other by the partitions. The row of slots in each lower step is horizontally offset from the row of slots in each upper step. The amount of offset is half a pitch, the pitch being the distance between adjacent contacts. The sets of conductive contacts in the lower and upper steps of the plug connector are mated with complementary sets of contacts in the upper and lower steps of the receptacle connector, respectively. The assembly permits a great number of conductive contacts within a compact space.

Claims

1. A battery connector assembly, comprising:

a plug connector comprising;

an insulative housing having a first side having a generally stepped shape and a second side opposite to the first side, said first side defining a first row of slots and a second row of slots, and

a set of conductive first plug contacts and a set of conductive second plug contacts being received in the first and second rows of slots, respectively, each of the first and the second contacts to comprising a contact portion, the contact portions of the set of first and the set of second contacts being spaced a different distance from the second side of the housing; and

a receptacle connector mateable with the plug connector, said receptacle connector comprising;

an insulative housing having a first side having a generally stepped shape and a second side opposite to the first side, said first side defining a first row of slots and a second row of slots, and

a set of conductive first receptacle contacts and a set of conductive second receptacle contacts being respectively received in the first row of slots and in the second row of slots of the receptacle connector, respectively, and being engageable with the set of conductive second plug contacts and the set of conductive first plug contacts of the plug connector, respectively;

wherein the first side of the housing of the plug connector forms a lower step and an upper step, and the first row of slots and the second row of slots are respectively defined in the lower step and in the upper step;

wherein the lower and upper steps of the plug connector comprise a row of lower partitions and a row of upper partitions, respectively, for separating the slots in the first row of slots and the slots in the second row of slots from each other;

wherein the slots in the first row of slots in the lower step are offset from the slots in the second row of slots in the upper step by a distance of a half pitch, where a pitch is the distance between two adjacent first plug contacts;

wherein the first side of the plug connector defines two elongate indents at opposite ends thereof, and wherein the first side of the receptacle connector forms two latching members at opposite ends thereof for engaging within the indents of the plug connector;

wherein the housing of the plug connector forms a guiding rib projecting into each indent thereof and the guiding rib forms a slanted tip surface at an end thereof for guiding the latching members of the receptacle connector to mate with the indents of the plug connector;

wherein the second side of the housing of the plug connector defines a recess along one side thereof;

wherein a plurality of openings are defined in a peripheral wall defining one side of the recess and the set of first contacts of the plug connector extend through corresponding openings and abut against a lower surface of the recess;

wherein the first and second plug contacts of the plug connector form horizontal solder tags coplanar with the second side of the housing of the plug connector for soldering to a printed circuit board using surface mount technology;

wherein the first side of the housing of the receptacle connector forms a lower step and an upper step both extending along elongate sides thereof;

wherein the lower and upper steps of the receptacle connector comprise a row of lower partitions and a row of upper partitions, respectively, for respectively separating the first row of slots from each other and the second row of slots from each other;

wherein the slots in the first row of slots of the receptacle connector are offset from the slots in the second row of slots thereof by a distance of half a pitch, where a pitch is the distance between two adjacent first receptacle contacts;

wherein a notch is defined in a lower end of each slot of the receptacle connector for retaining a first receptacle contact or a second receptacle contact;

wherein each first receptacle contact and each second receptacle contact have a similar structure and each comprises a resilient portion, a contact portion extending from one end of the resilient portion and a retaining portion extending from the other end of the resilient portion;

wherein the contact portion of each first contact forms an apex at an uppermost point of the first contact, which extends a shorter distance from the second side of the receptacle connector than does an apex formed by the contact portion at an uppermost point of each second contact.