Method of Manufacturing an Electrical Connector

This invention relates to connectors and methods for manufacturing the same.

The connectors of the kind referred to find their utility specifically when used at a multiple-wire connecting section in various types of wiring systems.

For the connector of the kind referred to, an example has been disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Utility Model Publication of A. Shimada, in which one of a pair of housings made of a synthetic resin is formed to have a projecting wall while the other housing is provided with a recess for accommodating the projecting wall so that the both housings will be engageable with each other, contactors of bar-shaped conducting metal material are provided on both sides of the projecting wall and opposing side walls of the recess, and the corresponding ones of the contactors are mutually contactable upon the engagement of the both housings.

In this instance of the known connector, the contactors are provided in the identical configuration throughout the ones on both sides of the projecting wall of the one housing and the ones on the opposing side walls of the recess of the other housing, so that these conductors are embedded at their base end portion in the housings while they are respectively provided with a tapered face slanted toward free end portion and swelled at the free end to be a contacting part by means of an expanding work or the like, corresponding ones of the contactors come into contact with each other at two points when the pair of the housing are engaged to each other so as to attain a highly reliable connection between the contactors of the both housings.

In the engagement of the both connector housings, however, the swelled contacting parts are caused to simply slide along the tapered face, so that it has been uneasy to clearly determine with finger tip of the like tactile sense and, if the contactors are inserted beyond a proper contacting degree between the contactors, there arises a problem that the housings are thereby caused to be damaged. While it may be possible, on the other hand, to arrange the contactors so that corresponding ones of the contactors are properly brought into contact at two points with each other when the pair of the housings are intimately engaged to each other, the tapered faces of the respective contactors are required to be so controlled as to be constant in the tapered angle, whereby it is made necessary to execute the expansion work or the like with a highly controlled amount of the working, and there arises a problem that the manufacture becomes extremely complicated. This tendency becomes more remarkable as the contactors are made smaller and, when the contactors are formed through the expansion work, it becomes more complicated to deal with expansion fins as the contactors are made smaller, so as to render the manufacture to be difficult in general, to be detrimental in elevated costs.

A primary object of the present invention is, therefore, to provide a connector which is capable of allowing the connecting and disconnecting operation to be smoothly performed, providing a reliable clicking action upon completion of the connection to assure a clear tactility of the connection completion, and rendering the manufacture to be extremely easy and inexpensive while still allowing the size of the connector to be sufficiently minimized.

According to the present invention, this object can be established by a connector in which a pair of housings are provided for being mutually engageable, and contactors made to have an elasticity are secured at their base portions to each of the housings to be mutually resiliently brought into contact at contacting parts formed at free ends, wherein the contactors are provided respectively with a sloped step between the secured base portion and the free end for providing a clicking action.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention shall be made clear in following description of the invention shall be made clear in following description of the invention detailed with reference to accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows in a cross section of an embodiment of the connector according to the present invention, shown in mutual engaging state of a pair of housings;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of one of the housings of the connector shown in FIG. 1, with a part of the housing shown as removed;

FIG. 3 shows in a perspective view one of contactors employed in the connector of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view for contacting state between the contactors of the both housings forming the connector of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view for a state in which the clicking action is attained in the connector of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a diagram for showing the relationship between the engaging strength and the engaging stroke of the contactors in the connector of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 are explanatory views for the sequence of the contacting operation between the contactors of the both housings of the connector shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 shows in a cross section of one of the housings in another embodiment of the connector according to the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a plan view of the housing of the connector shown in FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a side elevation of the housing of the connector shown in FIG. 8 with a part of the housing shown as removed;

FIG. 11 is a bottom view of the housing of the connector shown in FIG. 8;

FIG. 12 shows in a cross section of the connector shown in FIG. 8 with the both housings in engaging state;

FIGS. 13 and 14 are fragmentary sectioned views of dies employed for manufacturing the connector of FIG. 8;

FIG. 15 is a fragmentary sectioned view of the dies of FIG. 14 taken along line XV-XV;

FIGS. 16 and 17 are explanatory views for a couple of parts of manufacturing steps of the connector shown in FIG. 8;

FIG. 18 shows in a perspective view one of the housings employed in a further embodiment of the connector according to the present invention;

FIG. 19 is a side elevation of the connector of FIG. 18 in the engaging state of the both housings;

FIG. 20 is a front view of the connector of FIG. 18 in the engaging state;

FIG. 21 shows in a fragmentary perspective view in still another embodiment of the connector according to the present invention, with the both housings shown as disengaged from each other; and

FIG. 22 is a fragmentary sectioned view in locking state of locking metal fittings employed in the connector of FIG. 21.

While the present invention shall now be described with reference to the preferred embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings, it should be appreciated that its intention is not to limit the present invention only to such embodiments shown but rather to include all alterations, modifications and equivalent arrangements possible within the scope of appended claims.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, a connector 10 according to the present invention comprises a pair of housings 11 and 12, which are formed with a synthetic resin material mutually into an identical configuration, preferably in a box shape. In their endwise view, the housings 11 and 12 respectively comprise one longitudinal half 11a or 12a and the other longitudinal half 11b or 12b, which two halves 11a and 11b or 12a and 12b are defining between them a groove 11c or 12c, the one half 11a or 12a is formed relatively smaller than the other half 11b or 12b, and the both housings 11 and 12 are formed to be mutually engageable, with the respective halves disposed to interdigitate so that the one half 11a of the one housing 11 will be disposed inside the other half 12b of the other housing 12 while the other half 11b of the one housing 11 will be disposed outside the one half 12a of the other housing 12.

In the respective housings 11 and 12, two arrays of contactors 13 and 14 are provided as disposed along the inner side wall of their one halves 11a and 12a, as seen in FIG. 1, while these contactors 13 and 14 are formed as punched out of flat and thin metal plate and formed substantially into a bar shape with such conducting metal material as a copper alloy and the like, as shown in FIG. 3. The respective contactors 13 and 14 are secured at their base portions 13a and 14a as urged into holding holes 15 and 16 made in bottom wall parts of the one halves 11a and 12a while extended ends 13b and 14b out of the bottom wall parts are bent outward into an L-shape. Along the inner side walls of the other halves 11b and 12b of the both housings 11 and 12. Further, along the inner side walls of the other halves 11b and 12b of the both housings 11 and 12, further two arrays of contactors 17 and 18 formed in the same manner as the foregoing contactors 13 and 14 are provided, so that the contactors 17 and 18 are also urged at their base portions 17a and 18a into holding holes 19 and 20 made in bottom wall parts of the other halves 11b and 12b of the both housings 11 and 12 while extended ends 17b and 18b out of the bottom wall parts are bent outward also into an L-shape.

The foregoing arrays of the contactors 13, 14 and 17, 18 are respectively made to be the same number of the conductors, so that a concurrent connection of multiple wires may be realized (since the arrangement of the respective arrays of the contactors 13, 14, 17 and 18 are substantially the same and, in FIG. 2, the housing 11 and the contactor array 13 disposed along the one half 11a of the housing 11 only are shown in FIG. 2). In this case, the extended ends 13b, 14b and 17b, 18b bent into the L-shape are disposed to extend mutually in opposite directions on the bottom wall parts of the housings 11 and 12, that is, adjacent to non-open side of the housings, so as to allow the connector to be easily mounted to, for example, a printed circuit substrate (not shown). Further, at both longitudinal end portions of the housings 11 and 12, there are provided upward and downward projections 21a and 21b for positioning the connector to the printed circuit substrate, as well as fixing metal terminals 22a and 22b, preferably, for mounting the connector to the printed circuit substrate (while FIG. 2 shows only the one housing 11, the other housing 12 is formed substantially in the same manner).

The contactors 13, 14, 17 and 18 shall now be detailed with reference to FIG. 3 but, since they are substantially all in identical formation, only one of the contactors 13 will be explained here as an example. That is, the contactor 13 is formed to have at a free end portion 13c a contacting part 13d bent into an L-shape at a relatively shallow angle and provided with a plating of such a noble metal as gold or the like which is excellent in the electric contact stability. Between the base portion 13a and the free end portion 13c, there is provided a slanted step 13e formed at an angle of about 30 degrees, preferably, so as to allow a reliable clicking action to be attained upon completion of the connection between the respective contactors of the both housing. It is preferable that these contacting part 13d and slanted step 13e are formed by means of a bending process with proper dies or the like since, according to such process, the required working can be easily executed even when a sufficient size minimization is attempted, with a higher precisioned work stably executed, in contrast to conventional expanding work. At the base portions 13a of the contactor 13, further, there are provided such projections 13f that will frictionally engage with inner face of the holding hole 15. All other contactors 14, 17 and 18 are formed in the same manner as the contactor 13 and their respective portions are denoted with the same suffixes as given to the contactor 13 in the drawings.

Now, as the housings 11 and 12 formed in a pair as has been described are engaged to each other, the respective arrays of the contactors 13 and 18 as well as 17 and 14 are also brought into resilient engagement with each other while mutually being caused to bendingly deform so as to come into a reliable contacting state at two points through their contacting parts 13d and 18d as well as 17d and 14d. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the mutually opposing pair of the contactors 13 and 18 or 14 and 17 are made to engage at their contacting parts 13d and 18d or 14d and 17d with a portion closer to the base portions of the opposing contactors, while being resiliently bent by one another, so that, as represented by a solid line curve x of the relationship between the engaging strength and the engaging stroke of FIG. 6, in particular, by a portion between two points B and E of the curve, with the engaging strength between the opposing contactors varied relatively gradually so as to allow the both housings 11 and 12 to be engageable smoothly simply with finger tips or the like. During this engaging operation, the mutually sliding contacting parts 13d and 18d or 14d and 17d are caused to hit and pass the sloped steps 18e and 13e or 17e and 14e (see FIG. 5), upon which the mutual engaging strength is caused to become abruptly large to reach the maximum value and again abruptly smaller as is evident from a portion of the curve x adjacent a point E of FIG. 6, whereby a clicking action is provided to the finger tips so as to allow the completion of the contacting operation sensed by the operator.

Referring more in detail to the contacting operation of the connector according the present invention with reference also to FIGS. 7(A) to 7(F), a gradual engagement of the pair of the housings 11 and 12 with each other causes the opposing contactors 13 and 18, for example, initially to hit each other at their contacting parts 13d and 18d as seen in FIG. 7(A), then to be slightly bent in mutually separating direction while keeping mutual engagement as seen in FIG. 7(B), and thereafter to once flex back after passing through the contacting parts 13d and 18d so as to mutually resiliently with each other at two points as seen in FIG. 7(C). Up to this moment, the engaging strength is caused to vary as represented by a portion between points A and C of the solid line curve x in FIG. 6, in which the engaging strength in initial period of the contacting operation is once increased abruptly as is evident from a portion adjacent the point B of the curve x to allow the operator to sense the initiation of the contacting operation. Further, as the engaging strangth applied to the both housings 11 and 12 is increasingly continued, the tip end contacting parts 13d and 18d of the contactors 13 and 18 come to ride on the sloped steps 18e and 13e as shown in FIG. 7(D), and the contacting parts 13d and 18d slidingly passed through the sloped steps 18e and 13e as in FIG. 7(E) are brought into resilient contact with the contactors 18 and 13 at their portions closer to the base portions as in FIG. 7(F) so that the contactors 13 and 18 are brought into contact with each other mutually at two points with a high resilient contacting force, during which the engaging strength will vary as represented by a part following the point C and between points D and F of the solid line curve x in FIG. 6, as will be readily appreciated. Further, the variation in the engaging strength between the both housings of the connector of the present invention, as represented by the solid line curve x in FIG. 6, is more abrupt than that of a known connector as represented by a broken line curve y also shown in FIG. 6 so that, as will be also readily appreciated, an excellent clicking action can be attained.

In FIGS. 8 to 12, there is shown another embodiment of the connector according to the present invention, in which the respective arrays of the contactors are secured as integrally molded with the respective housings. In these drawings, the substantially identical constituent members with those in the foregoing embodiment of FIGS. 1-7 are denoted by the same reference numerals as used in FIGS. 1-7 but as added by 100. Referring more specifically to the present embodiment, the four arrays of the contactors 113, 114, 117 and 118 are formed as bent substantially into a Z-shape at their part from the base portions 113a to the externally extended ends 113b, 114b, 117b and 118b, and are integrally molded along the respective halves 111a, 111b, 112a and 112b of the both housings 111 and 112 as embedded therein at an intermediate portions of the Z-shape bent parts. Further, the contactors 113, 114, 117 and 118 are so arranged that their parts including the free end portions 113c, 114c, 117c and 118c having the shallow L-shaped contacting parts 113d, 114d, 117d and 118d as well as the sloped steps 113e, 114e, 117e and 118e are extended along the inner side faces of the housing halves 111a, 111b, 112a and 112b while the other extended ends 113b and 117b out of the housing 111 as well as the extended ends 114b and 118b out of the housing 112 are disposed to extend mutually in opposite directions, for ready mounting of the connector to the printed circuit substrate (not shown).

In the bottom wall parts of the housings 111 and 112, further, there are provided through holes 123a, 123b, 124a and 124b at positions adjacent to securing positions of the contactors 113, 114, 117 and 118, so that these through holes will function as discharge ports for a cleaning liquid.

In the present embodiment, too, the mutual engagement of the both housings 111 and 112 causes the mutually opposing arrays of the contactors 113 and 118 as well as 117 and 114 to resiliently bend each other and eventually to be brought into the reliable contacting state as optimumly resiliently contacted at the two points with each other, throught the substantially the same sequences of the variation in the engaging strength as shown in FIG. 6 and providing the excellent clicking action upon the completion of the connecting operation (as seen particularly in FIG. 12). In addition, according to the present embodiment, the Z-shaped bending of the respective contactors will be effective to soften any shock applied when the opposing contactors are mutually engaged upon the engagement of the housings 111 and 112. Further, with the integral molding of the contactors 113, 114, 117 and 118 with the housings 111 and 112, it is made possible to render the length of a range for which the contactors directly contact with the housings to be larger, so as to be able to firmly secure the respective contactors to the housings. On the other hand, the contactors are to be partly embedded in the housings as integrally molded therewith, so that a reinforcement can be provided to the housings. Further, since the contactors are to be firmly secured to the housings while an effective reinforcement of the housings can be realized at their portions where the contactors are molded integrally with the housings, it is made possible to render the thickness of the bottom wall parts of the housings 111 and 112 to be smaller though the through holes 123a, 123b and 124a, 124b are made in the portions, and thus to effectively reduce the entire height of the connector.

Next, the steps for integrally molding the contactors 113, 114, 117 and 118 with the housings 111 and 112 shall be described with reference to one of the contactors 113 as an example. That is, as shown in FIG. 13, an upper molding die 125 is provided with a recess 125a for accommodating therein the free end part 113c of the contactor 113, a partition 125c is provided to the die 125 between the recess 125b for integrally forming the half 111a of the housing 111 and, along bottom end face of this partition 125c, a so-called parting line, there is provided a groove 125d substantially of an identical width with that of the contactor 113 at its intermediate portion bent into the Z-shape (see FIGS. 15 and 16). The contactor 113 is thus inserted at the intermediate portion into the groove 125d, and a lower die 126 is fitted to the upper die 125 with a corner of the lower die 126 engaged to a part of the intermediate portion in the base portion 113a of the contactor 113 inserted in the groove 125d of the upper die 125 to thereby close the recess 125a, as shown in FIG. 14. Then, the base portion 113a of the contactor 113 inserted in the recess 125b of the upper die 125 and exposed out of the lower die 126 is bent at a proper position, and a synthetic resin is poured into the recess 125b and into a cavity defined between a slide core 126a and the lower die 126, whereby the housing 113 and the intermediate portion at the base portion 113a of the contactor 113 can be integrally molded. In this event, the other recess 125a of the upper die 125 is closed by the lower die 126 and base portion 113a of the contactor 113 so that no synthetic resin will enter therein. Thereafter, the extended end 113b of the contactor 113 is subjected to a bending work at a position closer to the bottom wall face of the housing 111. Provided at this time that a distance between the bottom wall face of the housing 111 and the bent position at the extended portion 113b of the contactor 113 is kept small, it is made possible to execute reliably a soldering work of the extended end 113b with respect to the printed circuit substrate 127 as shown in FIG. 17 even when the solder 127a is apt to flow upward along the extended end 113b of the contactor 113, without causing a so-called wicking phenomenon as restricted by the bottom wall face of the housing 111. Further, the extended ends 113b and 117b as well as 114b and 118b of the respective arrays of the connectors 113 and 114 as well as 114 and 118 respectively disposed to oppose each other are extended mutually in opposite directions so that a space between these extended ends can be well utilized as a vacant space and, in mounting the connector to the printed circuit substrate 127, a highly dense wiring can be provided onto the substrate 127 immediately below the connector.

In the above described embodiment with reference to FIGS. 8 to 17, other constituent elements and their function are the same as those in the foregoing embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 7.

In FIGS. 18 to 20, there is shown still another embodiment of the connector according to the present invention, in which the both housings 211 and 212 are provided at their both longitudinal end faces with each of a pair of engaging metal fittings 222A and 222B, as secured thereto by means of, for example, an integral molding. Each of the metal fittings 222A and 222B comprises a notch 222Aa or 222Ba and a projection 222Ab or 222Bb, so that the projection 222Bb of the metal fitting 222B will engage in the notch 222Aa of the metal fitting 222A while the projection 222Ab of the metal fitting 222A will engage in the notch 222Ba of the metal fitting 222B, whereby, when the both housings 211 and 212 are mutually disconnected, they can be effectively guided in their separating direction by means of the projections and notches even when any twisting force of the like external force is applied, so as to prevent any twisting or the like stress from being given to the housings 211 and 212. Consequently, soldered parts between the connector and the printed circuit substrate can be prevented from being impaired or damaged by the twisting or the like stress.

Further, it is preferable that the foregoing engaging metal fittings 222A and 222B are made to function also as grounding terminals. Further, it is also preferable that fixing metal terminals 230 and 230a for mounting the connector to the printed circuit substrate are provided to the both longitudinal ends of the housings as divided to both side edges at each end, so as to allow part 228 of printed circuit pattern on the printed circuit substrate 227 can be disposed between the both-side divided metal terminals 230 or 230a, as shown in FIG. 18, and the effective surface area of providing the circuit pattern can be increased.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 18 to 20, all other constituent elements and their functions are the same as those in the foregoing embodiments and, in these drawings, the same elements as those in the embodiments of FIGS. 1 to 7 are denoted by the same reference numerals as the ones used in FIGS. 1 to 7 but as added by 200.

In FIGS. 21 and 22, there is shown still another embodiment of the connector according to the present invention, in which engaging metal fittings 322A and 322B are secured to the respective longitudinal ends of the both housings 3111 and 312, while one 322A of the metal fittings is provided with a projection 322Aa and the other metal fitting 322B is made to have a receiving hole 322Ba, so that the projection 322Aa will engage in the receiving hole 322Ba upon engagement of the housings 311 and 312 with each other. Accordingly, the both housings 311 and 312 engaged with each other are made into locked state with such engaging metal fittings 322A and 322B, and the connecting parts or the like of the connector with the printed circuit substrate can be prevented from being affected by any externally given stress applied to the housings 311 and 312 and concentrated in particular to the extended terminals of the contactors. All other constituent elements and their functions in this embodiment are the same as those in the respective foregoing embodiments, and the same both-side divided provisions of fixing metal fittings 330 and 330a as in the embodiment of FIGS. 18 to 20 can be also adopted in the present instance.