Connector

• US RE41,224 E1
• Filed: 01/18/2006
• Issued: 04/13/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Japan Aviation Electronics Industry Limited
• Original Assignee: Japan Aviation Electronics Industry Limited
• Inventors: Kuroki, Yoshihide, Watanabe, Masahide, Kubota, Yoshifumi
• Primary Examiner(s): Gushi; Ross N
• Application Number:
  US11/334,820
• Time in Patent Office: 1,546 Days
• Field of Search: 439/680, 439/681, 439/677, 439/607, 439/609, 439/610
• US Class Current: 439/677
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/75 connecting to cables except for flat or ribbon cables
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/629 Additional means for facilitating engagement or disengagement of coupling parts, e.g. aligning or guiding means, levers, gas pressure electrical locking indicators, manufacturing tolerances separate tools or apparatus H01R43/26
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 43/16 for manufacturing contact members, e.g. by punching and by bending

Abstract

A connector including a first connector element and a second connector element that are coupled into a single unit, in which the first connector element has an engagement projection that projects interior of the first connector element and extends in the direction of the depth of the first connector element so that the front end of the engagement projection is spacedly apart from the front edge of the first connector element, and the second connector element is formed with an engagement slit that extends in the direction of depth of the second connector element and engages with the engagement projection of the first connector element.

Claims

1. A connector comprising a first connector element and a second connector element that are coupled together, wherein

said first and second connector elements are each formed with a metallic shell;

said first connector element is formed with an engagement projection that projects toward an interior of said first connector element and extends in a direction of depth of said first connector element, a front end of said engagement projection being spaced apart from a front edge of said connector element by a predetermined distance;

said engagement projection is formed by cutting a C-shape slit in a top surface of said metallic shell of said first connector element and bending a tongue formed downwardly, an engagement edge of the tongue extending by a first length in the direction of depth of said first connector element; and

said second connector element is formed with an elongated engagement slit in said metallic shell the elongated engagement slit having a second length that starts at a front edge of the metallic shell of the second connector element and extends in a direction of depth of said metallic shell of said second connector for engaging with said engagement projection formed in said metallic shell of said first connector element,

wherein, the engagement projection and the elongated engagement slit are configured such that when pushing the second connector element into the first connector element, the engagement edge of the tongue of the engagement projection engages the elongated engagement slit at the front edge of the metallic shell of the second connector element to provide for straight alignment, and wherein, the first length of the engagement edge of the tongue slides along the second length of the elongated slit to guide the sliding movement as the second connector element is pushed in the direction of depth and toward a rear of the first connector element.

2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein said engagement projection is provided at two locations of said first connector element so as to be parallel to side edges of said first connector element, and said elongated engagement slit is provided at two locations of said second connector element so as to be parallel to side edges of said second connector element and to correspond to said two locations of said engagement projections of said first connector element.

3. The connector according to claim 1, wherein said engagement projection has a predetermined length in said depth direction and said elongated engagement slit has a predetermined length in said depth direction which is at said predetermined length of said engagement projection.

4. An electrical connector system comprising:

a first electrical connector including;

a body having a metallic top plate, a metallic bottom plate, a first side and a second side, the body having a width W1 and a depth D1, wherein the first and second sides are smaller relative to the top and bottom plates providing a substantially flat body;

an array of electrodes extending in the direction of the depth D1 inside the body; and

first and second projections, each projection being formed by cutting a C-shaped slit in the metallic top plate and bending a tongue formed downwardly, each projection longitudinally extending along the depth D1, the first and second projections being formed at about the same distance from the first side and the second side, respectively; and

a second electrical connector including;

a body having a metallic top plate, a metallic bottom plate, a first side and a second side, the body having a width W2 and a depth D2, wherein the first and second sides are smaller relative to the top and bottom plates providing a substantially flat body;

an array of electrodes extending in the direction of the depth D2, the array of electrodes being positionally secured by insulating material to an interior surface of the body; and

first and second elongated slits formed on the metallic top plate of the body, the first and second elongated slits starting from a front edge of the metallic top plate and longitudinally extending in the direction of the depth D2, the first and second elongated slits being formed at about the same distance from the first side and the second side of the body, respectively,

wherein, the engagement projection and the elongated engagement slit are configured such that when inserting the second connector element into the first connector element, the engagement projection engages the elongated engagement slit to provide for straight alignment and to guide the sliding movement as the second connector element is pushed in the direction of depth and toward a rear of the first connector element.

5. The electrical connector system of claim 4 wherein the array of electrodes of the second electrical connector are positionally secured to the metallic bottom plate of the body, leaving an insertion cavity in the interior of the body of the second electrical connector between the array of electrodes and the metallic top plate.

6. The electrical connector system of claim 4 wherein the second electrical connector further comprises at least one raised springy holder that is raised upwardly from the top plate of the body of the second electrical connector, the raised springy holder providing for compressive action against the body of the first electrical connector when the first and second connectors mate.

7. The electrical connector system of claim 4 wherein each of the first and second elongated slits in the second electrical connector has a length that is about two thirds of the depth D2 of the body of the second electrical connector.

8. The electrical connector system of claim 4 wherein each of the first and second projections in the first electrical connector has a length that is about two thirds of the depth D1 of the body of the first electrical connector.

9. The electrical connector system of claim 4 wherein the first elongated slit in the second electrical connector is formed adjacent to and at a predetermined distance form the first side of the second electrical connector, and the second elongated slit is formed adjacent to and at a predetermined distance from the second side of the second electrical connector, and wherein the outermost electrodes in the array of electrodes in the second electrical connector are formed between the first elongated slit and the second elongated slit.

10. The electrical connector system of claim 4 wherein the first projection in the first connector is formed adjacent to and at a predetermined distance form the first side of the first connector, and the second projection is formed adjacent to and at a predetermined distance from the second side of the first connector, and wherein the outermost electrodes in the array of electrodes in the first electrical connector are formed between the first projection and the second projection.