Flippable electrical connector

• US 9,525,227 B2
• Filed: 08/08/2014
• Issued: 12/20/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/21/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Foxconn Interconnect Technology Limited (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Foxconn Interconnect Technology Limited (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Little, Terrance F., Cheng, Chih-Pi, Sedio, Stephen, Chang, Chun-Yi, Tsao, Pei, Su, Wei-Hao
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Phuongchi T
• Application Number:
  US14/454,737
• Publication Number:
  US 20150044886A1
• Time in Patent Office: 865 Days
• Field of Search: 439/660, 439/626, 439/374, 439/377, 439/79, 439/733
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/724 containing contact members forming a right angle
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/75 connecting to cables except for flat or ribbon cables
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6273 comprising two latching arms
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/642 by position or shape of contact members
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6582 with resilient means for engaging mating connector
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 24/60 Contacts spaced along planar side wall transverse to longitudinal axis of engagement
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/117 Pads along the edge of rigid circuit boards, e.g. for pluggable connectors
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/184 Components including terminals inserted in holes through the printed circuit board and connected to printed contacts on the walls of the holes or at the edges thereof or protruding over or into the holes
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/09063 Holes or slots in insulating substrate not used for electrical connections
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/10189 Non-printed connector

Abstract

A plug connector includes a mating tongue defining top and bottom surfaces thereon. Each surface is provided with a plurality of conductors in one row wherein the characters/categories of the conductors on the top surface are sequentially arranged to be same with those on the bottom surface with a pair of power conductors in two notches at two lateral side edges. The corresponding receptacle connector mounted upon a printed circuit board, defines a receiving cavity to receive the mating tongue therein. Opposite top and bottom rows of contacts are respectively located by upper and bottom sides of the receiving cavity and categorized essentially in a same sequence with the conductors of the plug connector for respectively connecting to the corresponding conductive pads, respectively. A pair of power contacts are located by two lateral sides of the receiving cavity to couple to the corresponding power conductor portions in the notches.

Claims

1. An electrical connector assembly comprising:

a plug connector defining an external mating tongue with two opposite first and second surfaces thereon;

a plurality of first conductors formed on the first surface;

a plurality of second conductors formed on the second surface;

both said first conductor and said second conductor categorized with at least power pads, differential pads and grounding pads;

wherein the mating tongue defines a pair of notches with corresponding conductor portions therein for both electrical connection and mechanical retention;

a receptacle connector defining an insulative housing with a receiving cavity therein, wherein two rows of contacts are disposed respectively upon an upper interior surface and a bottom interior surface, and a pair of power contacts are respectively located on two opposite lateral side interior surfaces for coupling to the corresponding conductor portions in the corresponding notches;

wherein the mating tongue defines a pair of raised ribs formed on two opposite side region of each of the opposite surface thereof, wherein a first vertical dimension is defined between the opposite surface on an area with the pair of ribs thereon, and a second vertical dimension is defined on another area without the pair of ribs thereon, said second vertical dimension being smaller than the first vertical dimension; and

the receptacle connector defines a pair of slots formed in the housing beside each of the opposite upper and bottom sides and adjacent to two opposite lateral sides thereof, wherein during mating, the mating tongue is received in the receiving cavity and the raised ribs are received in the corresponding slots with the contacts coupled to the corresponding conductors, respectively;

a different type receptacle connector defining another receiving cavity with a transverse direction larger that that of the mating tongue, and a third vertical dimension between the first vertical dimension and the second dimension, so that the pair of ribs prevent the mating tongue from being inserted into said another cavity.

2. The electrical connector assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the mating tongue comprises a first insulator with the plurality of first conductor, a second insulator with the plurality of second conductors and an internal printed circuit board snugly sandwiched between the first insulator and the second insulator.

3. The electrical connector assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein a pair of wedged structures are formed on two opposite lateral sides of the mating tongue around a front end for guidable insertion of the ribs into the corresponding slots.

4. The electrical connector assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the conductor portions in the notches are of power transmission.

5. The electrical connector assembly as claimed in claim 4, wherein said conductor portions are formed on two opposite sides of a single U-shaped metallic plate.

6. The electrical connector assembly as claimed in claim 5, wherein said metallic plate surrounds an internal printed circuit board which is sandwiched between a first insulator to which the first conductors are attached, and a second insulator to which the second conductors are attached.

7. An electrical connector assembly comprising:

a first connector including;

a first insulative housing defining therein a cavity forwardly communicating with an exterior along a front-to-back direction;

upper and lower rows of first contacts disposed in the first housing along a transverse direction perpendicular to said front-to-back direction and respectively located by opposite upper and lower sides of the cavity in a vertical direction perpendicular to both said front-to-back direction, each of said contacts extending along the front-to-back direction;

a pair of large deflectable contacts disposed in the first housing by two opposite lateral sides of the cavity in said transverse direction;

a second connector matable with the first connector and including;

a second insulative housing defining a mating tongue with opposite upper and lower surfaces thereon;

opposite upper and lower rows of second contacts disposed in the second housing and exposed upon the upper and lower surfaces, respectively;

a pair of conductor portions formed on two opposite lateral sides of the mating tongue;

wherein each of the conductor portions defines a latching structure so as to latch the corresponding large deflectable contact when the mating tongue is received in the cavity during mating;

said conductor portions are unitarily formed on two lateral sides of a U-shaped metallic plate;

wherein

said U-shaped metallic plate transmit power and surrounds an internal printed circuit board on which the second contacts and a cable are mechanically and electrically connected.

8. The electrical connector assembly as claimed in claim 7, wherein said latching structure is located around a notch in the mating tongue.

9. The electrical connector assembly as claimed in claim 7, wherein the first connector is mounted upon a printed circuit board while the second connector is connected to a cable.

10. The electrical connector assembly as claimed in claim 7, wherein the first housing defines guiding slots communicating with the cavity, and the second housing defines a raised ribs received in the slots, respectively.

11. The electrical connector assembly as claimed in claim 7, wherein the mating tongue defines a wedged structure at a front edge region.

12. The electrical connector assembly as claimed in claim 7, wherein each of said large deflectable contacts forms a bulged contour to couple to the latching structure of the corresponding conductor portions for mechanical retention therebetween.

13. An electrical connector comprising:

an upper terminal module including a plurality of upper contacts embedded within an upper insulator with corresponding contacting sections upwardly exposed to an exterior;

a lower terminal module including a plurality of lower contacts embedded within a lower insulator with corresponding contacting sections downwardly exposed to the exterior;

a metallic reinforcement plate sandwiched between the upper terminal module and the lower terminal module;

wherein

the upper terminal module, the lower terminal module and the reinforcement plate commonly form a mating tongue, and the metallic reinforcement plate forms a pair of latching sections on two opposite lateral sides exposed outside of the mating tongue for respectively latching with a pair of deflectable retention pieces when said mating tongue is received within a cavity of a complementary connector;

said mating tongue forms a pair of notches in two opposite lateral sides with the pair of latching sections exposed therein, respectively.

14. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 13, wherein the upper contacts and the lower contacts are connected to corresponding wires, respectively.