Patent ID: 6966788
Filing Date: 2005-11-22
Classification: H01R

Abstract:
1. An anti decoupling mechanism for solid or tubular circular cross section assemblies having a rotating coupling nut or nuts which when used on circular electrical connectors the assembly comprises: i) a tubular electrical connector shell having an external radially extending annular flange; ii) a tubular coupling nut having a threaded portion and having an internal radially extended flange that is mounted on the shell and such nut can fully rotate about the shell and can slide along the shell between two axial stops that engage the coupling nut by a variety of normal means and secure it to the shell; iii) the anti-decoupling mechanism which can provide some portion of the axial stops of (ii) in a usual way, but more particularly provides a differential in the torque necessary to rotate the coupling nut about the shell as its anti-decoupling feature; iv) the threaded mating connector; in this assembly the anti-decoupling mechanism consists of a simple and compact arrangement of the following few types of components: a) a ring of a multiplicity of symmetrically or asymmetrically shaped, compound sloped detent teeth solidly fixed to the coupling nut—such teeth arranged on the external surface of a truncated cone with the small end of the truncated cone pointed towards the mating connector; b) a circumferential arrangement of a multiplicity of independent or semi-independent flexible detent tooth engaging members—numbering from one up to one for each tooth—solidly fixed to the shell of the connector and pointed towards the small end of the above mentioned truncated cone such that a number of the detent teeth equal to the number of flexible detent tooth engaging members are simultaneously engaged by them or will be simultaneously engaged by them during operation of the mechanism with an individual force provided by the individual flexible detent tooth engaging member engaging each individual engaged tooth; c) a set of two especially shaped rotation and sliding motion tolerant seals—one between the shell and coupling nut and the other between the ring of detent teeth and the shell that finish getting this special shape during installation into the circumferential groove in the shell in which they fit by means of contact with a central mound in the groove, these two seals acting in concert with a third ordinarily designed fixed seal (if required) between the ring of detent teeth and the coupling nut—all with high environmental resistance so as to seal and protect the interior of the anti-decoupling mechanism from solid or liquid contaminants while allowing for pressure equalization between the interior of the mechanism and the ambient barometric conditions with low consequential wear on the seals; such that the design and arrangement of the above components produces: 1) a small mechanism—such as one example being just 0.300 inches in axial length from the outer surface of item 2) an adequately sealed mechanism resistant to the transport of solid and liquid contaminants across the seals; 3) a mechanism with a small rotational angle between high torque “locked” positions of the coupling nut since a tooth pitch of 0.040 inches allows 47 locked positions on a 0.6 inch average diameter tooth ring; 4) a mechanism wherein the above simultaneous engagement of all the flexible detent tooth engaging members can allow them to be reduced in cross section as their number increases (an approximately 0.030 inches in diameter circular cross section flexible detent tooth engaging member can have a robust fit in 0.040 inch pitch teeth that are 0.015 inches tall) because the combined strength of the flexible members is great enough to perform the anti-decoupling function while having an individual force of the flexible members low enough to produce low forces at the individual tooth contact points so as to reduce wear on the mechanism and wherein; 5) the flexible detent tooth engaging members apply both axial and radial position restorative forces to the coupling nut because of their radial flex as the coupling nut moves under environmental forces such as vibration by means of the above mentioned conical sloping of the detent teeth with respect to the axis of the shell since this conical shaping splits the contact force into axial and radial components, and; 6) since all anti-decoupling mechanisms of this type must experience some axial motion of the coupling nut with respect to the shell which must be limited in at least the direction towards the mating connector, this mechanism, by means of the special shape and arrangement of parts given above along with the usual axial motion limiter or limiters, produces a beneficial, controlled, and limited increase in the torque required to turn the coupling nut as the mechanism approaches its final locked position after the two mating connectors have essentially come to a stationary axial position with respect to each other by means of mutual motion blocking contact by progressively increasing the degree of the required radial flex of the flexible detent tooth engaging members away from the shell because of the movement of the conically arranged detent teeth toward these flexible detent tooth engaging members and; 7) the mechanism stops this axial coupling nut motion when the detent tooth ring in moving towards the mating connector with the coupling nut to which it is solidly attached contacts the motion stop structure on the shell which contact eventually prevents further motion of the coupling nut in this direction and, 8) if the internal radial flange of the coupling nut is removed leaving only the motion limiter that stops coupling nut motion towards the mating connector, the coupling nut in some assembly designs because of the simple and secured nature of the mechanism's internal components can be removed from the rear of the connector shell for inspection and servicing of the anti-decoupling mechanism and other parts of the assembly.