GB1580679A - Electrical connector assemblies - Google Patents

Description

(54) IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR ASSEMBLIES (71) We, SIEMENS AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT, a German Company, of Berlin and Munich, Federal Republic of Germany, do hereby declare the invention, for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: The present invention relates to electrical connector assemblies.

In electrical engineering, particularly telecommunications, lines incorporating plugtype connectors often have to be protected against accidental separation. To this end it has been known for a long time that two halves of a plug-type connector can be so designed that a form-locking connection can be made between the halves of the plug-type connector which prevents any accidental separation of the halves of the plug-type connector.

Moreover increasing use is being made nowadays of so-called dual-in-line units to house circuits to be connected to circuit board wiring. These are strip-like synthetic resin units which house the circuit and exhibit along each long side a row of connecting organs that can be inserted in a grid of holes in a circuit board. Instead of a circuit, the unit or housing of synthetic resin material can be fitted with two rows of contact springs for example, each contact spring being linked to one of the connecting organs. One thus obtains a plug socket exhibiting the dimensions of a dual-in-line unit for connection purposes and, like the latter, being solderable with grid holes of a circuit board. Such a plug socket allows easy access to the conductor paths of the circuit board. To this end for instance one only needs another synthetic resin housing having protruding contact pins or contact blades which are inserted into the contact springs of the plug socket. The contact pins or contact blades of the second plastic housing can be connected to the wires of a strip cable for example. In this way connection to strip cable conductors and the conductor paths of a circuit board is made possible without complication. It is often desired to secure the two parts of the plug-type connector of this kind against separation when plugged together. In other cases such securing is a nuisance however.

An object of the invention is to provide an improved connector assembly.

According to the invention, there is provided an electrical connector assembly comprising a first and a second housing each of electrically insulating material, the first housing having at least two removable protruding arms which can be flexed apart resiliently and which cooperate to engage the second housing therebetween, wherein each arm includes a respective plug-in tongue which is insertable in a plug-in direction in a respective recess provided in the first housing each recess having at least one recess wall provided with a step extending at right angles to the insertion direction, which step is engageable by an elastically deformable nose provided on a said tongue, and is formed by an edge of a window-like aperture in the relevant recess.

Expediently, a cross-piece extending at right angles to the insertion direction is provided between each plug-in tongue and the remainder of the respective retaining arm such that said remainer is offset relative to its tongue.

Preferably, each tongue, where provided, extends generally parallel to said remainder and is provided with a relatively rigid extension piece which extends at an obtuse angle to the retaining arm.

For a better understanding of the invention and to show how the same may be carried into effect reference will now be made by way of example to the accompany ing drawings in which: Figure 1 shows schematically a frontal and side view of a retaining arm with a plug-in tongue; Figure 2 shows part of a plug-type connector schematically, constituted as a plug socket with the dimensions for dual-in-line connection in a partial view, the narrow sides of the connector part each exhibiting a recess to receive a plug-in tongue; and Figure 3 shows schematically two halves of a plug-type connector which are connected together by a locking device.

It can be seen from Figures 1 and 2 that in one connector half 1, which basically exhibits a strip-shaped housing made of electrically insulating material, connecting organs in the form of connecting pins 2 are secured parallel with its long sides. The connecting pins 2 are linked with contact springs 3 disposed in apertures 4 in the connector half 1. The contact springs 3 can make contact from a side 5 of the connector half 1 facing away from the contact pins 2.

By soldering the connecting pins 2 in grid holes in a circuit board (not shown) and with the metallising of these holes being connected to conductor paths on the circuit board, contact springs 3 are therefore connected to conductor paths on the circuit board.

At its narrow sides 6 the connector half 1 has two recesses 7 running parallel with the narrow sides 6 and extending in the direction of insertion of the contact springs 3 (in Figure 2 only one of the two narrow sides is shown, the other it constituted in the same way). Each recess 7 is accessible through a window-like aperture 8 in the narrow side 6 of the connector half 1 in addition to an insertion aperture 9 created in the side 5 of the connector half.

The recess 7 is provided to receive a plug-in tongue 18 (Figure 1) the dimensions of which are matched to those of the recess 7. A retaining arm 16 is linked to the plug-in tongue 18 by means of a cross-piece 17 running parallel with the side 5. When the plug-in tongue 18 is inserted in the recess 7, the cross-piece 17 rests against the web 10 dividing the insertion aperture 9 of the recess 7 from the window-like aperture 8. In this way the cross-piece 17 forms a stop limiting the depth of insertion of the plug-in tongue 18. The plug-in tongue 18 also has an elastically distortable nose 19 which, when the plug-in tongue 18 is inserted in the recess 7, is initially compressed by the web 10 but can regain its original shape in the area of the window-like aperture 8 and thus rests against the side of the web 10 facing the window-like aperture 8. In this way the plug-in tongue 18 is locked in the recess 7 by the cross-piece 17 and the nose 19. With the aid of a tool acting through the window-like aperture 8 against the nose 19, the nose can however be distorted again until the plug-in tongue 18 can be drawn out of the recess 7.

The retaining arm 16 linked in a resilient pivotable fashion by means of the crosspiece 17 to the plug-in tongue 18 exhibits a barbed locking projection 21 at its free end, which projection (as can be seen in Figure 3 in particular) hooks around one edge 25 of the housing of the other connector half 11 when the two halves 1 and 11 of the plug-type connector are brought together.

By appropriate shaping of the barb of the projections 21, the locking action of the retaining arms 16 can be adjusted so that either connector half 11 is released automatically on applying a tractive force exceeding a specific level through the separation of the two retaining arms securing the connector half 11 to the connector half 1, or so that connector half 11 can only be released by pressing the locking projections 21 back from the edge 25. Such a releasing operation can be realised advantageously for example with the aid of retaining arm extension pieces 23 (Figure 1) which are extensions of retaining arms 16 extending in substantially the same direction as the plug-in tongue 18 but making an obtuse angle with the retaining arm 16. By making the retaining arms 16 and the retaining arm extension pieces 23 relatively rigid and making the cross-pieces 17 relatively elastic, the retaining arm 16 can be swung out of its position parallel with the plug-in tongue by applying pressure on the retaining arm extension piece 23 and thereby moving the retaining arm extension piece 23 towards the plug-in tongue 18, so that the barb-shaped locking projection 21 releases the connector half 11.

To ensure that the facing sides of the two halves 1 and 11 of the plug-type connector can be brought together without interference from the locking device, the web 10 is set back from the side 5 of the connector half 1 somewhat so that the cross-piece 17 runs flush with the side 5 of connector half 1.

Thus advantageously the locking device essentially consists of parts that are independent on the halves of the plug-type connector. Recesses taking up no additional space are provided in the housing of one half of the plug-type connector.

In other embodiments provision is made for a section (cross-piece) running at right angles to the direction of insertion to be located between plug-in tongue and retaining arm such that the retaining arm runs offset relative to the plug-in tongue, for the retaining arms essentially parallel with the plug-in tongue to be fitted with a relatively stiff extension piece, for the extension piece to be disposed so as to make an obtuse angle with the retaining arm and for the step in the wall of the recess to be formed by the edge of a window-like aperture in the recess.

Advantageously the retaining arm extension pieces running essentially parallel with the plug-in tongues form a lever with the aid of which the retaining arms can be brought into the unlocking position. Finally the window-like apertures make it possible to press in the retaining noses of the plug-in tongues from the outside and thus facilitate the extraction of the plug-in tongues from the recesses of one half of the plug-type connector.

WHAT WE CLAIM IS: 1. An electrical connector assembly comprising a first and a second housing each of electrically insulating material, the first housing having at least two removable protruding arms which can be flexed apart resiliently and which cooperate to engage the second housing therebetween, wherein each arm includes a respective plug-in tongue which is insertable in a plug-in direction in a respective recess provided in the first housing, each recess having at least one recess wall provided with a step extending at right angles to the insertion direction, which step is engageable by an elastically deformable nose provided on a said tongue, and is formed by an edge of a window-like aperture in the relevant recess.

2. An assembly according to Claim 1 wherein a cross-piece extending at right angles to the insertion direction is provided between each plug-in tongue and the remainder of the respective retaining arm such that said remainder is offset relative to its tongue.

3. An assembly according to Claim 2 wherein each tongue extends generally parallel to said remainder and is provided with a relatively rigid extension piece which extends at an obtuse angle to the retaining arm.

4. A connector assembly substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims (4)

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. wall of the recess to be formed by the edge of a window-like aperture in the recess. Advantageously the retaining arm extension pieces running essentially parallel with the plug-in tongues form a lever with the aid of which the retaining arms can be brought into the unlocking position. Finally the window-like apertures make it possible to press in the retaining noses of the plug-in tongues from the outside and thus facilitate the extraction of the plug-in tongues from the recesses of one half of the plug-type connector. WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

1. An electrical connector assembly comprising a first and a second housing each of electrically insulating material, the first housing having at least two removable protruding arms which can be flexed apart resiliently and which cooperate to engage the second housing therebetween, wherein each arm includes a respective plug-in tongue which is insertable in a plug-in direction in a respective recess provided in the first housing, each recess having at least one recess wall provided with a step extending at right angles to the insertion direction, which step is engageable by an elastically deformable nose provided on a said tongue, and is formed by an edge of a window-like aperture in the relevant recess.

2. An assembly according to Claim 1 wherein a cross-piece extending at right angles to the insertion direction is provided between each plug-in tongue and the remainder of the respective retaining arm such that said remainder is offset relative to its tongue.

3. An assembly according to Claim 2 wherein each tongue extends generally parallel to said remainder and is provided with a relatively rigid extension piece which extends at an obtuse angle to the retaining arm.

4. A connector assembly substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.