Electrical connector (cut-off through the cover)

Abstract: An electrical connector for connecting telephone cables (5) wherein an end of each wire is connected to a part (31, 41) of the connector and then cut through cutoff holes (25) in the connector cover (2), and when the connector parts (1) are assembled to splice the cables said cover (2) has portions (26) to cover the cutoff holes.

Description: Background of the Invention 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to a connector for splicing telephone cables and, in particular, to a connector suitable for splicing telephone cables comprising copper wires whose diameters are in the range from 0.3 mm to 0.9 mm inclusive. 2. Description of the Prior Art US-A-4,445,737 discloses a connector for an electrical distribution system for an electric lighting system. The connector includes a body having plural contact elements held in the body, the contact elements having a U-shaped wire receiving portion at one end, and a hinged cover for the body. Wires are cut to length and inserted into holes in the cover such that when the cover is closed the insulation of the wires is pierced by the U-shaped wire receiving portions. This reference requires surplus portions of said wires to be cut off before insertion into the cover. Among many prior art connectors for splicing telephone cables one is well known in which the telephone cable wires are placed on the body of a connector and the surplus portions of said wires are cut off using a tool before mounting a cover. Others also well known include one whose body has cutoff blades embedded on the prescribed position so as to enable automatic cutting of the wires when the cover is pressed onto the body after the wires are placed on said body. When using the prior art connectors above described, it is required in the former one to cut off the wires before mounting the cover, and as such its handling is complicated. The latter one, on the other hand, is complicated in structure since its cutoff blades are built in the body. The present invention intends, by solving these problems, to provide a connector for telephone cables which is simple not only in structure but also in handling. Summary of the Invention According to the present invention there is provided a connector for splicing telephone cables each having at least a pair of wires therein, said connector comprising a body having at least a pair of contact elements held in said body, said contact elements having a U-shaped wire receiving portion at one end thereof, and a cover to be placed on said body, characterised by: a plurality of wire cutoff pads respectively disposed adjacent to each of said wire receiving portions in the path of a wire extending through said U-shaped wire receiving portions; said body being formed with wire paths for receiving said wires adjacent said wire receiving portions and said wire cutoff pads; and said cover being formed with a plurality of wire cutoff holes which are arranged adjacent an edge portion such that when said cover is placed on said body one cutoff hole is located above each of said wire cutoff pads, whereby surplus wire on one side of said contact element may be cut off through said cutoff holes. Thus the cover is formed on its edge portion with holes through which wire cutoff blades can extend so that even after the cover has been mounted to the body such holes make it possible to cut off the lengths of surplus wires with ease. Brief Description of the Drawing Figure 1 is a sectional view of a connector according to the invention; Figure 2 is a plan view of one body for the connector shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a front view of the body shown in Figure 2; Figure 4 is a bottom view of the body shown in Figure 2; Figure 5 is an enlarged perspective view showing essential portions of the body shown in Figure 2, in which (a) shows one end portion and (b) shows the other end portion of the same body and also an end portion of the other body; Figure 6 is an enlarged view of a female contact element mounted to the body shown in Figure 2, in which (a) is a front view and (b) is a side view; Figure 7 is an enlarged view of a male contact element mounted to the body shown in Figure 1, in which (a) is a front view and (b) is a side view; Figure 8 is a plan view of a cover mounted to the body shown in Figure 2; Figure 9 is a side view of the cover shown in Figure 8; Figure 10 is a rear view of the cover shown in Figure 8; Figure 11 is a plan view of a connector having a pair of bodies connected respectively to a pair of covers; Figure 12 is a side view of the connector shown in Figure 11; Figure 13 is a rear view of the connector shown in Figure 11; Figure 14 is a bottom view of the connector shown in Figure 11; Figures 15, 16, and 17 are enlarged views jointly showing a sequence for connecting as shown in Figure 11 the bodies and covers each other, Figure 15 being a sectional view of one connector half, Figure 16 being a sectional view of the other connector half, and Figure 17 being a sectional view showing the connector constructed by mutually connecting the connector halves respectively shown in Figure 15 and Figure 16; and Figures 18 and 19 are enlarged views jointly showing a sequence for splicing telephone cable wires by the invention connector, Figure 18 being a sectional view of one connector half, and Figure 19 being a sectional view of the other connector half. 1 body 2 cover 3 female contact element 4 male contact element 5 wire 5A surplus wire 6 blade 11 pad 22 edge portion 23 leg 25 hole 26 hole covering portion 31 wire receiving portion 33 terminal 35 recess 41 wire receiving portion 43 terminal 45 wall Description of the Preferred Embodiment In the following, a preferred embodiment of the invention will be described with the reference to the accompanying drawings. The invention connector comprises two bodies 1 as seen in Figures 1 to 5 and two covers 2 mounted respectively to the two bodies as seen in Figures 8 to 10. Each of the bodies 1 is provided with a female contact element 3 as shown in Figure 3 and a male contact element 4 as shown in Figure 7. The female contact element 3 is configured generally L-shaped and comprises a U-shaped wire receiving portion 31 at one end thereof and comprises at the other end thereof a terminal 33 having an opening 32. And, the female contact element 3 has a portion thereof bent to define a testing tab 34. The male contact element 4 is also configured in a generally L-shape and comprises a U-shaped wire receiving portion 41 at one end thereof and comprises at the other end thereof a terminal 43 of a thickness fitting dimensionally to the opening 32 of the female contact element 3, and said male contact element 4 has a portion thereof bent to define a testing tab 44. The female contact elements 3 and male contact elements 4, structured as above described, are alternately arranged on the body 1 so as to be capable of respectively engaging with the similarly structured mating contact elements of the other body 1. At the frontal face of the body 1, the terminal 43 of the male contact element 4 is surrounded by a square wall 45 of an insulated material and the terminal 33 of the female contact element 3 is positioned within a recess 35 formed between the adjacent walls 45. Each wall 45 approximately corresponds in its outer configuration to that of each recess 35 so that the wall 45 of one body may be guided into the recess 35 of the other body so as to be positively fitted therein. At the upper portion of the body 1, the wire receiving portions 31, 41 of the female and male contact elements 3, 4 project in a zigzagged manner toward each other. And, adjacent to these wire receiving portions 31, 41 are formed wire paths 36, 46 in which wires 5 (see Figures 17, 18) can be placed. Further, said paths 36, 46 are formed on the respective front lateral end portions thereof with wire cutoff pads 11 against which wire cutoff blades 6, to be later described, may strike. Within the interior of the body 1, a passage 13 (Figure 19) is formed which extends from the space around the male terminal 43 to a grease distributing hole 12 in the vicinity of the wire receiving portion 41. Through this passage 13, as described later, grease may be supplied to the wire receiving portions 41, 31, etc. Further, the body 1 is formed with openings 14 which can receive therein legs 23 described later of a cover 2. Furthermore, on one end portion thereof, the body 1 is formed with locking claws 15 and, on the other end portion, formed with projections 16 which can complementarily engage with the claws 15. Besides, the body 1, on its bottom portion, is formed with openings 18 through which the respective tabs 34, 44 of the female and male contact elements 3, 4 can be exposed so as to allow inspection of the state of the wires 5 which have been mounted. Now, an explanation will be made of the connector cover 2, referring to Figure 1 and Figures 8 to 10. The cover 2 comprises a planar cover body 21 capable of covering the main portion of the body 1 and a rather thin-walled edge portion 22 extending along said cover body 21. The cover body 21 is provided on the lower portion thereof with a number of the legs 23 insertable into the openings 14 defined in the connector body 1. Each leg 23 has a projection 24 made thereon so as to be engagedly held by the projection 16 (Figures 14 to 16) formed in the opening 14 of the connector body 1. On the edge portion 22 of the cover 2, there are wire cutoff holes 25 formed along the edge of the cover respectively at the places which will come above the wire cutoff pads 11 when the cover 2 is assembled to the connector body 1. And, on the outside of the wire cutoff holes 25, there are left, along the edge of the cover 2, hole covering portions 26 for respectively covering similar holes on the counterpart cover constituting a pair with the cover 2. Further, the edge portion 22 is divided nearly at the center thereof into two portions 22A, 22B of an almost same length, one portion 22A, as seen from Figure 8, being made lower than the other portion 22B by the distance corresponding to the thickness of the edge portion 22. Thus, when two similarly structured covers 2, 2 are assembled together as shown in Figure 10, the lower portion 22A of one cover 2 is capable of being inserted to the under side of the higher portion 22B of the other cover 2 so that the top surfaces of two covers 2, 2 may become substantially coplanar and moreover the respective hole covering portions 26 may positively block the other cover holes 25 from the upper or under side thereof. Figures 11, 12, 13, and 14 show the state of the connector when its pair of bodies 1, 1 and pair of covers 2, 2 have all been connected to each other. In these drawings, however, the illustrations of telephone cable wires are omitted. To connect as noted above a pair of similarly structured bodies 1, 1 and a pair of similarly structured covers 2, 2 to each other, first of all, as shown in Figure 15, onto one body 1 is placed one cover 2, which then is subjected to a strong pressure so that the projection 24 of the leg 23 on the cover 2 is engagedly locked by the projection 16 of the body 1 thereby achieving integral connection thereof. In the preferred embodiment, each leg 23 is provided, in addition to the projection 24 for final locking of the cover 2, with rather smaller projections 24A for temporary locking of the cover 2. Similarly, to the other body 1 is connected the other cover 2 by way of a step shown in Figure 16. Thus, by then mutually pressing as shown in Figure 17 two connector halves in each of which the body 1 has been connected to the cover 2, the wall 45 of one body 1 is caused to fit into the recess of the counterpart body 1 and the lower edge portion 22A of one cover 2 is inserted into the under side of the higher edge portion 22B of the other cover 2 so that the holes 25 of the covers 2 are covered as previously described. Naturally, at this time, into the opening 32 of each female terminal 33 is inserted each male terminal 43 corresponding to the latter so that each of the contact elements 3, 4 can be subjected to mutual electric connection. Besides, the claws 15 of the body 1 are caused to be engaged with and locked by the projections 16 of the counterpart body 1 thereby assuring their positive connection. Next, a method of splicing telephone cable wires using the connector of this invention will be explained referring to Figures 1, 18, and 19. Firstly, as shown in Figures 18 and 19, the wires 5 are placed respectively in the wire receiving portions 31, 41 of the bodies 1 with surplus portions 5A of the wires 5 being retained respectively on the wire cutoff pads 11. Then, the covers 2 are respectively pressed onto the bodies 1 as previously described. As a result, the wires 5 are electrically connected to the respective contact elements 3, 4 in the manner well known in the art. In such condition, through the wire cutoff holes 25 of the covers 2 the wire cutoff blades 6 are pushed down to the pads 11 using a desired tool (not shown), thereby the surplus portions 5A of all the wires 5 are cut off. Then, these two bodies 1 are connected each other as shown in Figure 1, which completes the electrical connection for the wires 5. At this time, if the space defined by the wall 45 of the male terminal 43 has been preloaded with grease or the like, two bodies 1, when urged, cause a pumping operation by which the grease is driven out onto the upper surface of the body 1 automatically from the hole 12 through the passage 13, thus enabling effective sealing thereby. On the other hand, the grease within each of the recesses 35, 45 about the respective terminals 33, 43 is distributed onto the upper portion from the openings 14 through the gaps around these terminals. In the foregoing, the pressing of the covers 2 onto the bodies 1 was described as an operation independent of that for pushing down the blades 6. The connector, of the present invention, however, also makes it possible to complete the two kinds of operations in a single handling. Effect of the Invention As noted above, according to the invention connector, the surplus portions of the wires can be cut off even after the connector bodies have the covers mounted thereon.

Claims: A connector for splicing telephone cables each having at least a pair of wires therein, said connector comprising a body (1) having at least a pair of contact elements (3, 4) held in said body, said contact elements having a U-shaped wire receiving portion (31, 41) at one end thereof, and a cover (2) to be placed on said body (1), characterised by: a plurality of wire cutoff pads (11) respectively disposed adjacent to each of said wire receiving portions (31, 41) in the path of a wire extending through said U-shaped wire receiving portions (31, 41); said body (1) being formed with wire paths (36, 46) for receiving said wires adjacent said wire receiving portions (31, 41) and said wire cutoff pads (11); and said cover being formed with a plurality of wire cutoff holes (25) which are arranged adjacent an edge portion (22) such that when said cover is placed on said body (1) one cutoff hole (25) is located above each of said wire cutoff pads (11), whereby surplus wire on one side of said contact element may be cut off through said cutoff holes (25). A connector according to claim 1, wherein said wire cutoff holes (25), provided along the edge portion (22) of said cover (2), are spaced from the edge such that a hole covering portion (26) remains on the edge portion of the cover, such that when mated with another connector of the same type the cutoff holes of each connector are blocked by the hole covering portion (26) of the other connector. A connector according to claim 2 wherein said body is provided with a passage (13) for a sealing medium, opening in the vicinity of said wire receiving portions whereby the cutoff wire ends may be sealed. A connector according to claims 2 or 3, wherein the edge portion including the wire cutoff holes (25) and the hole covering portions (26) is divided into at least two portions of an approximately similar length, one of these divided portions being disposed in a plane offset from the other by the distance substantially corresponding to the thickness of said edge portion of the cover. A connector for telephone cables characterised in that a pair of bodies (1) and covers (2) as defined in claim 4 are adapted to be connected to a plurality of wires respectively, and that said contact elements (3, 4) include a terminal portion (33, 43) at the end opposite said wire receiving portion (31, 41), that said terminal portion on the contact elements on one body are adapted to mate with the terminal portion of the contact elements on the other body, and that the edge portions of one cover (2) are identical with the edge portions of the other cover (2) such that when placed in mating position with the terminals of the contact elements in mating position, the hole covering portion (26) of one cover closes the cutoff holes (25) in the other cover.

Inventors: MARKWARDT TERRANCE L C O MINNE, MARKWARDT, TERRANCE L. C/O MINNESOTA MINING &, Markwardt, Terrance L. c/o Minnesota Mining &amp;
Applicants: MINNESOTA MINING & MFG, MINNESOTA MINING AND MANUFACTURING COMPANY
Application year: 1988
Main classification: H01R23
IPC codes: H01R13, H01R9, H01R24, G01R1, H01R4