Abstract:
A cable end connector assembly ( 1 ) has an insulative housing ( 10 ), a number of contacts ( 20 ) received in the insulative housing, a number of cables ( 40 ) electrically connecting with corresponding contacts, a cover ( 50 ) over-molded with the insulative housing and the cables, and a pair of locking members ( 60 ). Each locking member includes at one end thereof a housing retention section ( 62 ) retained in the housing, a cover retention section ( 61 ) extending from the housing retention section and retained in the cover, a spring section ( 63 ) extending from the cover retention section, a pushing section ( 64 ) extending outside from the spring section, and a latch section ( 66 ) at another end thereof for locking with a complementary connector.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to a cable end connector assembly, and particularly to a cable end connector assembly having a locking member for locking with a complementary connector. 
   2. Description of Prior Arts 
   There exists in the art a cable end connector assembly known as a Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (Serial ATA) connector which is generally used for disk drives and storage peripherals. Especially, the Serial ATA connectors according to the Serial ATA standard are featured in fewer electrical contacts than other conventional electrical connectors and are relatively tiny in configuration. It is desirable for the Serial ATA connector to have latch means for providing a reliable mechanical and electrical connection with a complementary connector. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,565,383 and 6,585,536, having the same inventor and the same assignee with the present invention, each disclose a Serial ATA connector equipped with a locking member for locking with a complementary connector. The locking member comprises a middle portion retained on a connector housing, a pushing portion extending rearwardly from the middle portion, and a locking tab extending forwardly from the middle portion for locking/releasing the Serial ATA connector with/from the complementary connector. 
   With the developing of the Serial ATA standard, the next-generation serial storage interface effort expands the base Serial ATA 1.0 capabilities to address additional markets segments, including the server and networked storage markets. A cable end connector assembly based on Serial ATA II standard is designed to connect with more devices and cables. As the connector is probably applied to a wider profile, the locking member of the Serial ATA connector disclosed in the above-mentioned patent is not fitable. 
   Hence, a cable end connector assembly having an improved locking member is desired. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   An object of the present invention is to provide a cable end connector assembly having an improved locking member for locking the cable end connector assembly with a complementary connector. 
   To achieve the above object, a cable end connector assembly in accordance with the present invention comprises an insulative housing, a plurality of contacts received in the insulative housing, a plurality of cables comprising a plurality of conductors electrically connecting with corresponding contacts, a cover over-molded with the insulative housing, and the cables, and a pair of locking members. Each locking member comprises at one end thereof a housing retention section retaining in the housing, a cover retention section extending from the housing retention section and retaining in the cover, a spring section extending from the cover retention section, a pushing section extending outside from the spring section and a latch section at another end thereof for locking with a complementary connector. 
   Other objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present embodiment when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a cable end connector assembly in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  is a view similar to  FIG. 1 , but taken from a different aspect; 
       FIG. 3  is an exploded, perspective view of the cable end connector assembly of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 4  is a view similar to  FIG. 3 , but taken from a different aspect; 
       FIG. 5  is an enlarged view of a locking member shown in  FIG. 3 ; 
       FIG. 6  is a view similar to  FIG. 5 , but taken from a different aspect; 
       FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view taken along line VII–VII of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 8  is a cross-sectional view taken along line VIII–VIII of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 9  is a cross-sectional view taken along line IX–IX of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 10  is a cross-sectional view taken along line X–X of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 11  is a cross-sectional view taken along line XI–XI of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 12  is a cross-sectional view taken along line XII–XII of  FIG. 1 ; and 
       FIG. 13  is a cross-sectional view taken along line XIII–XIII of  FIG. 1 . 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
   Referring to  FIGS. 1 to 4 , a cable end connector assembly  1  in accordance with the present invention comprises an insulative housing  10 , a plurality of contacts  20 , a spacer  30 , a plurality of cables  40 , a cover  50  and a pair of locking members  60 . In a preferred embodiment, the cable end connector assembly  1  is typical a Serial ATA II connector. However, in alternative embodiments, the electrical connector could be provided as other types. 
   Particularly referring to  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the insulative housing  10  comprises an upper wall  100 , a lower wall  101  opposite to the upper wall  100 , and a pair of side portions  102  connecting with the upper wall  100  and the lower wall  101 . The insulative housing  10  further comprises a front end (not labeled) and a rear end (not labeled) opposite to the front end. Between the upper and the lower walls  100 ,  101 , the housing  10  defines a plug receiving space  103  and a spacer receiving space  104  for respectively receiving a complementary connector (not shown) and the spacer  30 . The plug receiving space  103  extends from the front end of the housing  10  towards the rear end of the housing  10  and communicates with the spacer receiving space  104 . A block  105  is formed on the upper wall  100  and protrudes into the plug receiving space  103 . The block  105  defines a plurality of passageways  106  extending therethrough and communicating with the plug receiving space  103  and the spacer receiving space  104 . The plug receiving space  103  is divided into an L-shaped first port  108  and a rectangular second port  109  by a vertically extended partition wall  107  for receiving complementary connectors with different profiles. Each side portion  102  defines a retention cavity  111  therein for engaging the locking member  60 . A baffle  112  is provided on the upper and lower walls  100 ,  101  and adjacent to the rear end of the insulative housing  10 . 
   Referring to  FIGS. 3 ,  4  and  13 , the contacts  20  are received in the passageways  106  of the insulative housing  10  and each contact comprises a contact portion  21 , a tail portion  22  and a housing retaining portion  23  connecting the contact portion  21  and the tail portion  22 . The contact portions  21  extend into the L-shaped first port  108  and the rectangular second port  109  of the plug receiving space  103  of the housing  10 , respectively. The housing retaining portions  23  are secured within the passageways  106  of the housing  10  by an interference fit. The spacer  30  is mounted to a rear end of the insulative housing  10 , and comprises a plurality of through holes  31  for allowing the tail portions  21  of the contacts  20  extending therethrough. The spacer  30  can prevent plastic from entering into the passageways  105  of the insulative housing  10  during the molding of the cover  50 . The contacts  20  and the spacer  30  can be integrally formed before mounting to the insulative housing  10 , if desired. 
   The cables  40  comprise a pair of first 4-lane cables  41  and a second flat ribbon cable  42  located between the 4-lane cables. The second cable  42  is divided into two groups. The first cable  41  and the second cable  42  are respectively designed to transit high-speed signal and low-speed side-band signal. Each cable  40  comprises a plurality of conductors  43 , 44  exposed outside and extending towards the spacer  30  for soldering to corresponding tail portions  22  of the contacts  20 . 
   The cover  50  is over-molded with the rear end of the insulative housing  10 , the spacer  30  and the cables  40 , and comprises an upper plate  51 , a lower plate  52  opposite to the upper plate  51 , and a pair of side portions  53  connecting with the upper plate  51  and the lower plate  52 . A receiving cavity  54  is defined inwardly between the upper and the lower plates  51 ,  52  for receiving the insulative housing  10 , the spacer  30  and the cable  40 . Each side portion  53  comprises a depression  58  and a retention cavity  55  communicating with the retention cavity  110  of the housing  10  for receiving the locking member  60 . A plurality of channels  56  are defined on a rear face of the cover  50  for allowing the cables  40  extending therethrough. 
   Referring to  FIGS. 5 and 6 , each locking member  60  is stamped and formed from a metallic plate and comprising an elongate, housing retention section  62  extending along a front-to-back direction, a cover retention section  61  extending rearwardly from the housing retention section  62 , a spring section  63  extending slantways from the cover retention section  61 , a flat pushing section  64  extending forwardly from the spring section  63 , an L-shaped positioning section  65  extending forwardly from the pushing section  64 , and a latch section  66  extending forwardly from the positioning section  65 . The housing retention section  62  comprises a pair of retention tabs  621  protruding therefrom and a pair of recesses  622 . The cover retention section  61  defines a pair of retention tabs  611  extending into the cover  50 . The pushing section  64  defines a plurality of protrusions  641  for handling. A pair of stopping section  67  extend towards the cover  50  from opposite sides of the pushing section  64 . The positioning section  65  comprises a pair of positioning tabs  651  and a pair of recesses  652  for assuring fixed assembly. The latch section  66  extends along a same direction to and projects beyond the housing retention section, and comprises a protrusion  661  and a locking tab  662  bent and extending outwardly. 
   Referring to  FIGS. 7 to 12 , in assembly, the housing retention section  62  is received in the retention cavity  111  of the housing  10  with the retention tabs  621  being interfered therein. The cover retention section  61  received in the retention cavity  55  of the cover  50  with the retention tabs  61  extending to and securely retained in the cover  50 . The pushing section  64  and the stopping section  67  are located in the depression  58  of the cover  50 , and the stopping section  67  extends towards the cover  50 . The latch section  66  is received in the retention cavity  111  of the housing  10  and the locking tab  662  projects outside the housing  10 . When the cable end connector assembly  1  mates with the complementary connector, a pressing force is firstly exerted on the pushing section  64  of each locking member  60  to drive the latch section  66  move inwardly. The stopping section  67  abuts against the side portion  53  of the cover  50  to prevent an immoderate deflection of the latch section  66 . Once the pressing force is released, the latch section  66  restore to its original position due to their own elasticity and thus locks with the complementary connector through the locking tab  662 . The positioning tabs  651  of the positioning section  65  abut against the baffle  112  of the housing for assuring a reliable mating between the cable end connector assembly  1  and the complementary connector. When the cable end connector assembly  1  is to be disengaged from the complementary connector, a contrary operating procedure is applied. 
   It is to be understood, however, that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.