Abstract:
A low-profile D-subshell connector system is provided with interlocking components that can be used where space limitations are required. The system comprises a connector plug that has a connector; a backshell that houses a portion of the connector and is affixed to the connector; and a latch that is affixed to the connector and backshell. The latch comprises an angled tab that is resiliently pivotally mounted to a front portion of the latch. The tab comprises a wide region, a narrow region, and a release protrusion extending perpendicular from a top surface of the tab. A catch assembly engages the tab of the latch, the catch comprising a front portion having a notch therein. A part of the catch front portion serves to engage the wide region of the tab, thereby forcing the tab to pivot when the connector is partially inserted; and the narrow region of the tab resides in the catch notch when the connector is fully inserted.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to a connector system with interlocking components and specifically to a low-profile D-subshell connector system with interlocking components. 
   2. Description of Related Art 
   Connectors that used some form of locking mechanism to ensure that the two halves of the connector remain joined to one another are known. In certain circumstances, however, space limitations have historically prevented the use of reliable locking mechanisms that are strong, efficient, yet easy to use. Although certain connector locking mechanisms utilizing some form of a resilient tab are known, such as the industry standard RJ-45 connector, this concept has never been applied in the context of a low-profile D-subshell connector. What is needed is a locking mechanism that can be used with a low-profile D-subshell connector that is inexpensive, easy to manufacture, reliable, strong, and easy to use. 
   SUMMARY 
   The present invention is directed to a low-profile D-subshell connector system with interlocking components that can be used where space limitations are required. Embodiments of the invention could be used, e.g., when mounting a video display unit (VDU) within a recess on an aircraft, where space is at a premium, and close fitting components are necessary for maximizing space. 
   Accordingly, a D-subshell connector system is provided, comprising: a connector plug, comprising: a connector; a backshell that houses a portion of the connector and is affixed to the connector; and a latch that is formed as a separate piece and is affixed to the connector and backshell, the latch comprising: an angled tab that is resiliently pivotally mounted to a front portion of the latch, the tab comprising a wide region adjacent to the pivot, a narrow region on a side of the wide region opposite the pivot, and a release protrusion extending perpendicular from a top surface of the tab at a distal end of the tab; and a cutout through which the connector extends; the connector system further comprising: a catch assembly, comprising: a body portion having a mounting surface; and a catch extending in a generally perpendicular direction from the front surface, the catch comprising a front portion having a notch therein; wherein: a part of the catch front portion serves to engage the wide region of the tab, thereby forcing the tab to pivot when the connector is partially inserted; and the narrow region of the tab resides in the catch notch when the connector is fully inserted. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and constitute part of this specification, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the invention, and together with the general description given above and the detailed description given below, serve to explain features of the invention. 
       FIG. 1  is an isometric view of an exemplary low-profile D-subshell connector according to an embodiment of the invention; 
       FIG. 2  is an exploded isometric view of the connector shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIGS. 3A-E  are various views of the connector latch for the connector shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIGS. 4A-4D  are various views of a catch assembly that mates with the connector latch shown in  FIGS. 3A-E ; 
       FIG. 5  is an isometric view illustrating how the elements of the latch and catch are interrelated; 
       FIG. 6  is a side view illustrating the low-profile D-subshell connector positioned within a limited-space channel. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     FIGS. 1  (assembled view) and  2  (exploded view) illustrate an exemplary embodiment of the low-profile D-subshell connector  10 . The connector  10  is broken down into several major components, including a backshell  11  comprising a top section  13  and bottom section  30 , a connector section  50 , and a latch  80  that is used to affix the connector  10  to a mating catch  200 ,  210  ( FIGS. 4A-5 ). 
   In detail, the top section  13  and bottom section  30  are fastened together in order to make the connector backshell  11 . These may be fastened together using screws  122  that extend through holes  18  in the top surface  16  and are received in threaded mounting holes  36  of the bottom section  30 . However, the backshell sections  13 ,  30  could easily be joined via other mechanisms, such as snap fittings, etc. 
   The bottom section  30  comprises front portion  38  having a connector receiving area  42 . In the exemplary embodiment, this receiving area  42  is U-shaped in order to receive a D-subshell connector  54 . However, the invention is not so limited and could comprise any shaped connector, ranging from long and flat connectors to those that are round. The top section may have, e.g., an angled front edge portion  20 . 
   The bottom section  30  also comprises a bottom portion  32  that contains a wire hole portion  34  that, when the bottom section  30  is joined with the top section  11 , forms a hole in combination with the top section wire hole portion  14  through which a cable can be provided. In a preferred embodiment, and as illustrated in the drawings, the cable and connector are at right-angles with one another in order to help minimize the depth of the connector plug  10 . In the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the 26-pin D-connector has dimensions of roughly 2″ in width, 1″ in depth, and 0.5″ in height. 
   The backshell is preferably made of metal in order to enhance its shielding capability and enhance its durability, although plastic or other material could easily be used where cost is an issue. 
   The connector section  50  comprises the connector itself  54  and a flange  52  comprising a mounting hole  56  that permits the connector section  50  to be affixed to the backshell  11  via e.g., screws  120 . A rear portion  58  of the connector  50  extends through the reception portion  42  of the bottom section  30 . As noted previously, the 26-pin D-connector is illustrated in the drawings, but any form of connector could be utilized. 
   The latch  80  portions are defined as follows, although the functioning of the latch  80  elements will become more apparent when considered with respect to the catch  200  elements and functions, as illustrated in  FIG. 5  and described in more detail below. 
   Referring to  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the latch  80  is designed to be placed on the front of the connector section  50 . It comprises two mounting holes  89  in respective legs  82  of the latch  80  that align with the connector flange mounting holes  56  and the bottom section mounting holes  40  using, e.g., screws  120  that help join the assembly together. The connector latch  80  is preferably formed of a resilient plastic material, although other resilient and semi-resilient materials may be used as well, including metal. In a preferred embodiment, the connector latch  80  is formed of injection molding polycarbonate with fiber reinforcement—this provides a cost effective process and a device with enough strength to sustain repeated plug-unplug cycles. 
   Referring to  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the latch  80 , in addition to the mounting portions  82 - 89 , further comprises a latch tab  90 . The latch tab  90  cooperates with the catch  200  ( FIGS. 4A-D ) in order to secure the connector  10  when it is plugged in. Advantageously, the tab  90  is readily accessible and easily operable to secure the connector plug  10  when it is plugged in. 
   The tab comprises a front fastener  102  via which the tab  90  connects the tab  90  with the front part of the latch  80 . The tab  90  further comprises an angled surface  100  adjacent to the front fastener  102 , and a tab stop  96  on an opposite side. The tab stop  96  comprises a stop edge  98 , the function of which is described below. Next is a tab neck  94  that connects a release protrusion  92  to the remaining portion of the tab  90 . In a preferred embodiment, the tab  90  is angled θ with respect to a plane defining a top portion surface  86  by about 7°, although this angle could easily be adjusted. The width of the tab stop  96  and the flat portion  102 , in a preferred embodiment, is 0.34″, and the width of the neck  94  and release protrusion  92  is 0.27″. The tab  90  is designed to pivot about the point at which it joins with the front portion of the latch  80 , although the pivot angle is generally small and approximately correlating with its angle with respect to the top portion surface plane. When activated by a user, the tab  90  is stopped by contacting the top surface  16  of the connector plug  10 . 
   Referring to  FIGS. 4A-4D , a catch assembly  200  is shown that is used to mate with the latch  80  in order to form a releasable locking mechanism. The catch assembly  200  comprises two assembly legs  202  that each comprise a mounting hole  204 , permitting the catch assembly  200  to be mounted on a device to which the plug  10  will be inserted. The catch assembly  200  comprises a cutout  208 , which may be generally U-shaped (for a D-connector) to allow the connector  54  to be inserted into a mating connector (not shown). 
   The catch assembly also comprises the catch  210  itself, which comprises two sides  212  extending perpendicular to a planar surface of the leg  202  that may be angled as illustrated in  FIG. 4A , each having an inner wall  214 . A center wall  216  is provided in a middle region of the catch  210  and also may be angled as well. In a preferred embodiment, the center wall and sides are angled at approximately 6°. The catch  210 , in an embodiment, may be approximately 0.5″ wide, and 0.485″ in length. 
   The catch  210 , on a distal end (away from the portion containing the legs  202 ) comprises a front portion  220  that extends downwardly in a plane parallel to the planar surface of the legs  202 . The front portion  220  comprises a notch  222  in its center portion. 
   The interaction between the latch  80  and the catch assembly  200  can best be illustrated by  FIG. 5 , in which the two components  80 ,  200  are shown spaced apart prior to their engagement. Clearly the latch cutout  88  and catch assembly cutout  208  are aligned to permit the connector  54  to extend through them. 
   As the latch leg  82  and the catch assembly leg  202  are brought closer together, at some point a bottom surface of the catch front portion  220  contacts a top surface of the latch tab stop  96 , due to the angle of the tab  90 . The tab  90  is wider than the notch at the tab stop  96  portion, and thus, as the respective legs  82 ,  202  are brought closer together, the tab  90  angle becomes less while the resilient force exerted by the tab  90  on the front portion  220  surface becomes greater. 
   However, when the legs are sufficiently close together the tab stop region  96  completely passes the front portion  220  of the catch  210 , thereby causing a top surface of tab neck  94  to engage the front portion  220 . However, the tab neck  94  is narrower than the notch  222 , thereby causing the angle of the tab  90  to relatively abruptly change, while releasing some of its energy. 
   Once the latch  80  and catch  200  are in this positional relationship to one another, and the tab  90  has increased its angle so that the neck  94  is within the notch  222 , a tab stop edge  98  is in an interference fit with an inner edge of the front portion  220 , thereby preventing movement that would separate the latch  80  and the catch  200 . This therefore holds the connector  54  securely in place. 
   When the connector is plugged in, outer edges of a latch top protrusion  87  contact catch side inner walls  214  to ensure a solid fit. Furthermore, the catch center wall  216  serves as a stiffening web for the catch assembly  200 . 
   In order to release the connector latch  80  and catch assembly  200 , a user simply presses on the tab release protrusion  92 , which reduces the angle of the tab  90  sufficiently so that the tab neck  94  no longer remains within the notch  222 . In this configuration, there is no longer an interference fit between the tab stop edge  98  and the inner edge of the front portion  220 , thereby permitting the latch  80  and catch assembly  200  portions to be easily separated from one another and the connector portion  54  to be removed from its mating connector portion. 
     FIG. 6  illustrates an exemplary use of the connector plug  10  that is located within a limited-space channel  5 . An exemplary embodiment might be a connector plug  10  used to attach to a flat-panel display of an aircraft that is surrounded by such a limited-space channel  5 . As can be seen, the connector latch tab  90  may easily be depressed in order to disengage the connector, provided that access from a side region of the channel  5  is available. 
   Thus, according to various embodiments of the present invention, an easy mechanism is provided for securing a D-subshell connector when space is limited. 
   For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention, reference has been made to the preferred embodiments illustrated in the drawings, and specific language has been used to describe these embodiments. However, no limitation of the scope of the invention is intended by this specific language, and the invention should be construed to encompass all embodiments that would normally occur to one of ordinary skill in the art. 
   The present invention may be described in terms of functional block components and various processing steps. Such functional blocks may be realized by any number of components configured to perform the specified functions. The particular implementations shown and described herein are illustrative examples of the invention and are not intended to otherwise limit the scope of the invention in any way. For the sake of brevity, conventional aspects of the mechanism (and components of the individual operating components of the mechanism) may not be described in detail. Furthermore, the connecting lines, or connectors shown in the various figures presented are intended to represent exemplary functional relationships and/or physical or logical couplings between the various elements. It should be noted that many alternative or additional functional relationships, physical connections or logical connections may be present in a practical device. Moreover, no item or component is essential to the practice of the invention unless the element is specifically described as “essential” or “critical”. 
   The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural. Furthermore, recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. Finally, the steps of all methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. 
   The word mechanism is intended to be used generally and is not limited solely to mechanical embodiments. Numerous modifications and adaptations will be readily apparent to those skilled in this art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. 
   TABLE OF REFERENCE CHARACTERS 
   
       
         10 - 199  connector plug assembly 
         11 - 49  backshell assembly 
         50 - 79  connector assembly 
         80 - 119  connector latch assembly 
         90 - 109  connector latch tab assembly 
         200 - 249  catch assembly 
         5  channel 
         10  connector plug 
         11  backshell 
         12  backshell side of top section 
         13  backshell top section 
         14  backshell top section wire hole portion 
         16  backshell top section top surface 
         18  backshell top section fastening hole 
         20  backshell top section top surface front edge 
         30  backshell bottom section 
         32  backshell side of bottom section 
         34  backshell bottom section wire hole portion 
         36  backshell bottom section mounting hole for top section 
         38  backshell front of bottom section 
         40  backshell bottom section mounting hole for connector section 
         42  backshell u-shaped reception portion for connector section 
         50  connector section 
         52  connector flange 
         54  connector 
         56  connector flange mounting hole 
         58  connector section rear portion 
         80  connector latch 
         82  connector latch leg 
         84  connector latch lip 
         86  connector latch top portion 
         87  connector latch top protrusion 
         88  connector latch cutout 
         89  connector latch mounting hole 
         90  connector latch tab 
         92  connector latch tab release protrusion 
         94  connector latch tab neck 
         96  connector latch tab stop 
         98  connector latch tab stop edge 
         100  connector latch tab angled surface 
         102  connector latch tab flat portion 
         104  connector latch tab lower protrusion 
         120  connector front fastener 
         122  connector top fastener 
         200  catch assembly 
         202  catch assembly leg 
         204  catch assembly mounting hole 
         208  catch assembly cutout 
         210  catch 
         212  catch side 
         214  catch side inner wall 
         216  catch center wall 
         218  catch center wall lower edge 
         220  catch front portion 
         222  catch front portion notch