METHOD FOR CONTROLLING CONNECT AND DISCONNECT FORCES OF A CONNECTOR

• US 20100028076A1
• Filed: 10/09/2009
• Published: 02/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/21/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bal Seal Engineering Incorporated (Kaman Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Bal Seal Engineering Incorporated (Kaman Corporation)
• Inventors: Balsells, Peter J.
• Granted Patent: US 8,166,623 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 403/326
• CPC Class Codes: B23P 17/00 Metal-working operations, not covered by a single other subclass or another group in this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 2200/10 Details of socket shapes
• CPC Class Codes: F16L 37/084 combined with automatic locking
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49826 Assembling or joining
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/53613 Spring applier or remover
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/53622 Helical spring
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 403/59 Manually releaseable latch type
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 403/60 Biased catch or latch
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 403/7018 including separably interposed key

Abstract

A connector includes a housing having a bore with a housing groove disposed on an inside surface of the bore with a groove establishing a release angle between a housing groove bottom and a bore inside surface. A retainer defines a spring cavity between a retainer and the release angle and a circular radial canted coil spring is disposed in the spring cavity. A pin having a tapered end and a body diameter sized for sliding engagement with the bore is provided which includes a circumferential groove in the pin body for receiving the coil spring upon insertion of the pin into the bore. A circumferential groove includes a load angle for rotating the coil spring in an orientation in which the major spring axis is parallel to the release angle upon initial withdrawal of the pin from the bore. The coil is further compressed along the spring minor axis and expands radially upon continued withdrawal of the pin from the bore.

Claims

1. A method of connecting a pin to a housing of a connector with a connect force, which is less than a disconnect force to disconnect the pin from the housing said method comprising:

providing the housing with a bore and a housing groove, said housing groove comprising a bottom surface and a release surface that forms an angle to the bottom surface, wherein said angle between said bottom surface and said release surface is between 5° and

89°

;

providing a coil spring for use with the housing, said coil spring comprising a major axis, a minor axis, and a passage in between two coil sections;

providing the pin with a longitudinal axis, a tapered end, and a pin groove comprising a groove bottom surface and a load surface that forms an angle to the groove bottom surface, which is less than ninety degrees;

wherein the connect force is controlled by selecting the major axis of the coil spring to have a concave orientation to the longitudinal axis of the pin when the pin is moved in a first direction relative to the housing to connect the pin to the housing;

wherein the disconnect force is controlled by selecting the angle of the release surface to bottom surface and the angle of the load surface to groove bottom surface that cooperate to force the major axis of the coil spring to rotate from a first position relative to the longitudinal axis to a second position relative to the longitudinal axis upon removing the pin in a second direction relative to the housing, which is opposite the first direction, to disconnect the pin from the housing; and

wherein the disconnect force is at least one time greater than the connect force.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of controlling the disconnect force comprises selecting the angle between the bottom surface of the housing groove and the release surface to be between 25°

and 65°

.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of controlling the disconnect force comprises selecting the angle between the groove bottom surface of the pin groove and the load surface to be larger than about 40°

.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising selecting a spring coil width to coil height ratio of 1.04 or below.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the pin groove comprises a load point and wherein the load point is located below a centerline of the coil spring.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of selecting the angle of the release surface to bottom surface to be smaller than the angle of the load surface to groove bottom surface.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of selecting an angle of the tapered end of the pin relative to the longitudinal axis so that the angle is parallel to the major axis of the coil spring.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the bottom surface of the housing groove is spaced from the coil spring when the pin is connected to the housing to permit radial expansion of the coil spring.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the housing is held steady relative to the pin while the pin is moved in the second direction to separate from the housing.

10. The method according to claim 1, in the spring second position, the ma or axis is parallel to the to the release surface.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the angle of the bottom surface and the release surface is selected of an amount cause the coil spring to deflect upon disconnect.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the disconnect force is from about eleven times to about thirty times greater than the connect force.

13. A method of connecting a pin to a housing of a connector with a connect force, which is less than a disconnect force to disconnect the pin from the housing, the method comprising:

inserting a pin into a bore of a housing by moving the pin in a first direction so that a canted coil spring is positioned between a pin groove and a housing groove to connect the pin to the housing;

wherein;

the pin comprises a longitudinal axis, an insertion end comprising an acute tapered surface relative to the longitudinal axis, and a body having an outside diameter and the pin groove, said pin groove comprising a groove bottom surface being generally parallel to the longitudinal axis and a load surface that forms an angle to the groove bottom surface and wherein the angle is less than ninety degrees;

the housing comprises a bore having the housing groove disposed on an inside surface of said bore, said housing groove comprising a groove bottom surface being generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the pin and a release surface that forms an angle to the groove bottom surface and wherein the angle is less than ninety degrees;

the canted coil spring comprises a major axis and a minor axis;

removing the pin from the housing so that the canted coil spring is no longer positioned between the pin groove and the housing groove by moving the pin in a second direction and causing the major axis of the spring to rotate from a first angle relative to the longitudinal axis to a second angle relative to the longitudinal axis; and

wherein the disconnect force to disconnect the pin from the housing is one or more times greater than the connect force to connect the pin to the housing.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the step of controlling the disconnect force comprises selecting the angle between the bottom surface of the housing groove and the release surface to be between 25°

and 65°

.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein the step of controlling the disconnect force comprises selecting the angle between the groove bottom surface of the pin groove and the load surface to be larger than about 40°

.

16. The method according to claim 13, further comprising selecting a spring coil width to coil height ratio of 1.04 or below.

17. The method according to claim 13, wherein the pin groove comprises a load point and wherein the load point is located below a centerline of the canted coil spring.

18. The method according to claim 13, further comprising the step of selecting the angle of the release surface to bottom surface to be smaller than the angle of the load surface to groove bottom surface.

19. The method according to claim 13, further comprising the step of selecting an angle of the tapered end of the pin relative to the longitudinal axis so that the angle is parallel to the major axis of the coil spring.

20. The method according to claim 13, wherein the bottom surface of the housing groove is spaced from the coil spring when the pin is connected to the housing.

21. The method according to claim 13, wherein the second angle is the same as the angle between the release surface and the groove bottom surface.

22. The method according to claim 13, wherein the coil spring is a canted coil spring.

23. The method according to claim 13, wherein the angle of the bottom surface and the release surface is selected of an amount cause the coil spring to deflect upon disconnect.

24. The method of claim 13, wherein the disconnect force is from about five times to about thirty times greater than the connect force.

25. A connector having a pin and a housing structured to have a connect force to connect the pin to the housing being less than a disconnect force to disconnect the pin from the housing, said connector comprising:

a pin longitudinal axis, a pin insertion end comprising a tapered surface relative to the pin longitudinal axis, and a pin body having an outside diameter and a pin groove, said pin groove comprising a groove bottom surface being generally parallel to the pin longitudinal axis and a load surface that forms an angle to the groove bottom surface;

a housing bore comprising a housing groove disposed on an inside surface of said housing bore, said housing groove comprising a groove bottom surface being generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the pin and a release surface that forms an angle to the groove bottom surface;

a canted coil spring comprising a major axis and a minor axis located in both the pin groove and the housing groove when the pin is connected to the housing;

wherein said major axis of said canted coil spring forms a concave orientation relative to the pin longitudinal axis prior to connecting the pin to the housing to control, at least in part, the connect force;

wherein the angle of the groove bottom surface and the load surface of the pin is larger than the angle of the groove bottom surface and the release surface of the housing groove to control, at least in part the disconnect force; and

wherein the disconnect force to disconnect the pin from the housing is greater than the connect force to connect the pin to the housing.

26. The connector of claim 25, wherein the angle of the groove bottom surface and the load surface of the pin is at least forty degrees to about eighty nine degrees.

27. The connector of claim 25, wherein the angle of the groove bottom surface and the release surface of the housing groove is about five degrees to about eighty nine degrees.

28. The connector of claim 25, wherein the groove bottom surface of the housing groove is spaced from the canted coil spring when the pin is connected to the housing to permit radial expansion of the coil spring.

29. The connector of claim 25, further comprising a retainer forming part of the housing groove.

30. The connector of claim 25, wherein the connector is structured so that the pin is connectable to the housing when moving in a first direction and disconnectable from the housing when moving in a second direction.