Electrical connector for broadside coupled or edge coupled mating with mating connector

An electrical connector (100) includes a housing (1) and a number of contacts (2) mounted on the housing. The housing includes a mounting portion (11), and a receiving room (10) on one side of the mounting portion. Each of the contacts (2) includes a body portion (21) mounted on the mounting portion, and a mating portion (22) extending form the body portion and projecting into the receiving room. The mounting portion includes a number of mounting slot (14) each including a first slot (15) and a second slot (16) crossed with the first slot. The contacts are selectively mounted on either the first slots or the second slots.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an electrical connector, and more particularly to an electrical connector for communication applications.

2. Description of Related Arts

In communication applications, a header connector and a receptacle connector mating with the header connector are widely used for transmitting high speed signal. Generally, the header connector comprises a plurality of header contacts each having a flat shape, and the receptacle connector comprises a plurality of receptacle contacts each having a bifurcated shape for mating with the header contact. There are two mating types between header contacts and receptacle contacts, namely broadside coupled and edge coupled.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,390,219, issued on Jun. 24, 2008, to Pan discloses a receptacle having mating contact ends of edge engagement type. According to the disclosure, the receptacle comprises a plurality of contacts disposed in a vertical plane. Each of the contacts comprises a bifurcated mating portion defining a mating slot. The bifurcated mating portion comprises a pair of contact surfaces facing to the mating slot for edge engagement or coupling with the mating contacts, and a pair of side faces perpendicular to the contact surfaces. The contact surfaces having a first width, and the side surface having a second surface larger than the first width. Therefore, this mating fashion is called edge coupled.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,331,802, issued on Feb. 19, 2008, to Rothermel et al. discloses a receptacle contact and a header contact broadside coupled with the receptacle contact. According to the disclosure, the receptacle contact comprises a mating surface to abut against with the header mating contact. Therefore, this mating fashion is called broadside coupled. The insulative housing of the header defines only one type of receiving holes such that the header only may broadside coupled with the receptacle. If the header were to be edge coupled with the receptacle, a new insulative housing having a different type or orientation of receiving holes is required. Therefore, the cost is increased.

Hence, an improved electrical connector is desired to offer advantages over the related art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector which can be selectively provided with broadside couple or edge side couple with a mating connector.

To achieve the above-mentioned object, an electrical connector comprises a housing and a plurality of contacts mounted on the insulative housing. The insulative housing comprises a mounting portion and a receiving room on one side of the mounting portion. The mounting portion comprises a plurality of mounting slots each comprising a first slot and a second slot crossed with the first slot. Each of the contacts comprises a body portion mounted on the mounting portion, and a mating portion extending form the body portion and projecting into the receiving room. The contacts are selectively mounted on either the first slots or the second slots.

According to the present invention, the housing defines a first slot and a second slot. The contacts are selectively mounted on either the first slots to form a broadside coupling or the second slots to form a edge coupling with or according to contacts of a mating connector.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Reference will now be made in detail to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Referring toFIGS. 1 and 3, an electrical connector100comprises an insulative housing1, a plurality of contacts2mounted on the insulative housing1and arranged in a plurality of columns and rows. Referring toFIG. 1, the contacts2are mounted on the insulative housing1and arranged in a first fashion. Referring toFIG. 3, the contacts2are mounted on the insulative housing1and arranged in a second fashion. The electrical connector100may mate with a mating connector and transmit signals through broadside couple when the contacts2are arranged in a first fashion. The electrical connector100may mate with the mating connector and transmit signals through edge couple when the contacts2are arranged in a second fashion. Referring toFIG. 2, the contacts2extend along a first direction A1-A1.

Referring toFIGS. 1 to 4, the insulative housing1has a “U” shape from a side view. The insulative housing1comprises a mounting portion11, a first side wall12extending from a first end of the mounting portion11upwardly, an opposite second side wall13extending from a second end of the mounting portion11upwardly, and a receiving room10defined between the first side wall12and the second side wall13for receiving a mating connector. Referring toFIGS. 2,5and6, the mounting portion11defines a plurality of mounting slots14. Each of the mounting slots14comprises a first slot15extending along a second direction A2-A2, a second slot16extending along a third direction A3-A3perpendicular to the second direction A2-A2. The first direction A1-A1is perpendicular to the second direction A2-A2and third direction A3-A3. The first slot15shares a common portion140with the second slot16. The first slot15has a first width W1, and the second slot16has a second width W2equal to the first width W1.

Referring toFIGS. 1 to 4, the contacts2are generally of blade types and are mounted to the insulative housing1along the first direction A1-A1. Each of the contacts2comprises a body portion21received in the mounting portion11, a mating portion22having a flat shape extending from a first end of the body portion21and projecting into the receiving room10, and a tail portion23extending from a second end of the body portion21opposite to the first end and beyond the mounting portion11. The body portion21has a flat shape. The body portion21has a width W3and a thickness T3smaller than the width W3. The body portion21comprises a first projecting tab211disposed adjacent to the mating portion22and projecting outwardly along a widthwise direction, and a second projecting tab212disposed adjacent to the tail portion and projecting outwardly along the widthwise direction.

Referring toFIGS. 2 and 3, the body portion21is selectively mounted on the first slot15or the second slot16. The first projecting tab211and the second projecting tab212are selectively mounted on the first slot15or second slot16to assemble the contact2to the insulative housing1. When the contacts2are mounted on the first slots15, the contacts2are arranged in a first fashion, e.g. with reference to the locations of the two side walls12and13, to broadside couple with mating contacts. When the contacts2are mounted on the second slot16, the contacts2are arranged in a second fashion, e.g. with reference to the locations of the two side walls12and13, to edge couple with the mating contacts. The electrical connector100could use the same insulative housing1and the same contacts2to realize broadside couple or edge couple, through the contacts2selectively mounted on the first slots15or the second slots16. Therefore, the electrical connector100could be used in different applications.