Cable connectors with modular shielding

• US 6,354,872 B1
• Filed: 09/05/2000
• Issued: 03/12/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: CommScope Inc. (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Avaya Technology Corporation Miami Lakes FLA US
• Inventors: Miller, Frederick H., Lilienthal, Peter F. II
• Primary Examiner(s): Sircus, Brian
• Assistant Examiner(s): Prasad, Chandrika
• Application Number:
  US09/655,626
• Time in Patent Office: 553 Days
• Field of Search: 439/578, 439/501, 439/502, 439/503, 439/536, 439/460, 439/676, 439/941
• US Class Current: 439/578
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/514 composed as a modular blocks or assembly, i.e. composed of co-operating parts provided with contact members or holding contact members between them
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6471 by special arrangement of ground and signal conductors, e.g. GSGS [Ground-Signal-Ground-Signal]
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6585 Shielding material individually surrounding or interposed between mutually spaced contacts
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/65915 Twisted pair of conductors surrounded by shield
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6599 Dielectric material made conductive, e.g. plastic material coated with metal
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 43/01 for connecting unstripped conductors to contact members having insulation cutting edges

Abstract

A modular type electrical connector comprises multiple unit connectors which again may be divided into multiple sub-units. Multiple number of unit connectors are attached together for the multiple wires of a cable making the modular type connector. The number of the unit connectors being used depends on the number of the wires of a cable. Each of the unit connectors is shielded with a highly conductive material. As a result, upon being attached together, each of the signal conducting paths, i.e. the wires of a cable, IDCs, contact blades, are separated from each other by a highly conductive coating material on the surface of the unit connectors thereby reducing near end cross talk of the modular type connector while providing flexibility in configuration and assembly.

Claims

1. A modularizable electrical connector component comprising:

a first housing constructed to accept at least one pair of wires of a cable having at least two twisted wire pairs;

a second housing substantially identical to the first housing constructed to receive the other pair of the at least two twisted wire pairs of the cable and configured to be attached to the first housing; and

a conductive material disposed between the first and second housing thereby electrically separating the at least two twisted wire pairs so that when a signal propagates through one of the at least two twisted wire pairs and the conductive material is grounded, the conductive material will reduce near end cross talk caused by the signal in the other of the two twisted wire pairs.

2. The electrical connector of claim 1 further including a contact contained within the housing and connected to at least one of the wires of the at least two twisted wire pairs.

3. The electrical connector of claim 2, wherein the contact further includes a retainer to fix the contact inside the housing when assembled.

4. The electrical connector of claim 2, wherein the contact is constructed to provide strain relief for one of the wires of the at least two twisted wire pairs of the cable.

5. The electrical connector of claim 1, wherein the conductive material is at least one of aluminum, gold or silver.

6. A modularizable electrical connector for a cable having at least two twisted wire pairs comprising:

a first conductive contact configured to mount one of the at least two twisted wire pairs;

a second conductive contact configured to mount another of the at least two twisted wire pairs;

a first housing constructed to receive the first conductive contact; and

a second housing configured to be attached to the first housing and constructed to receive the second conductive contact,

wherein at least one of the first or second housing having a surface, at least a portion of which is coated by a conductive material, and wherein the conductive material is disposed between the first and second housing.

7. The electrical connector of claim 6, wherein each of the first contact and the second contact further includes a retainer to fix the contact inside the housing when assembled.

8. The electrical connector of claim 6, wherein each of the first contact and the second contact is constructed to provide strain relief for one of the wires of the cable.

9. The electrical connector of claim 6, wherein the conductive material is at least one of aluminum, gold or silver.

10. A method of assembling a modular type electrical connector having two or more unit connectors, the method comprising:

a) connecting one pair of wires of a cable having at least two twisted wire pairs to one of the unit connectors, the unit connectors having a surface, a portion of which is coated with a conductive material;

b) connecting another pair of wires of the at least two wire pairs to another unit connector;

c) attaching the unit connectors together such that the conductive material is disposed between the unit connectors so as to create a shield between the wire pair of the one unit connector and the other wire pair of the other unit connector.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein b) is repeated for each of the wire pairs of the cable.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising coating the portion with the conductive material by at least one of plating, sputtering, vacuum evaporation, glueing or pasting of conductive ink.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the attaching includes ultrasonic welding of one of the unit connectors to another of the unit connectors.

14. A cable assembly comprising:

a cable having at least two twisted wire pairs;

a first housing constructed to accept at least one twisted wire pair of the cable;

a second housing substantially identical to the first housing constructed to receive the other twisted wire pair of the at least two twisted wire pairs of the cable and configured to be attached to the first housing; and

a conductive material electrically separating at least the two twisted wire pairs so that when a signal propagates through one of the at least two twisted wire pairs and the conductive material is grounded, the conductive material will reduce near end cross talk caused by the signal in the other of the at least two twisted wire pairs.

15. The electrical connector of claim 14, further including a contact contained within the housing and connected to at least one of the twisted wire pairs.

16. The electrical connector of claim 15, wherein the contact further includes a retainer to fix the contact inside the housing when assembled.

17. The electrical connector of claim 15, wherein the contact is constructed to provide strain relief for one of the wires of the cable.

18. The electrical connector of claim 14, wherein the conductive material is at least one of aluminum, gold or silver.

19. A modularizable device comprising:

a cable having at least two twisted wire pairs;

a first conductive contact constructed to mount one of the at least two twisted wire pairs of the cable and to provide strain relief for one of the at least two twisted wire pairs, and the first conductive contact including a retainer to fix the first conductive contact within a housing;

a second conductive contact substantially identical to the first conductive contact;

a first housing constructed to receive the first conductive contact; and

a second housing configured to be attached to the first housing and substantially identical to the first housing, at least one of the first or second housings having a surface, at least a portion of which is coated by a conductive material, the conductive material being disposed so that when the first and second housings respectively contain the first and second contacts and the twisted wire pairs are mounted to the contacts and the first housing is placed adjacent to the second housing such that the conductive material is disposed therebetween, a signal propagating through one of the at least two twisted wire pairs, the conductive material will reduce near end cross talk caused by the signal in the other of the two twisted wire pairs when the conductive material is grounded.

20. A modularizable electrical connector component comprising:

a first housing constructed to accept only one wire of a cable having at least two wires;

a second housing substantially identical to the first housing constructed to receive the another wire of the at least two wires and configured to be attached to the first housing; and

a conductive material coated on a portion of the first housing electrically separating the one wire from another wire of the at least two wires so that when a signal propagates through the one wire and the conductive material is grounded, the conductive material will reduce near end cross talk caused by the signal in the another wire of the at least two wires.

21. A cable assembly comprising:

a cable having at least two wires;

a first housing constructed to accept only one wire of the at least two wires of the cable;

a second housing substantially identical to the first housing constructed to receive the other wire of the at least two wires of the cable and configured to be attached to the first housing; and

a conductive material coated on a portion of the first housing electrically separating the at least two wires of the cable so that when a signal propagates through the one wire and the conductive material is grounded, the conductive material will reduce near end cross talk caused by the signal in the other of the at least two wires.