Flat/round cable connecting device

Abstract: The flat/round connecting device provides connection between conductors of a flat-ribbon, flat-conductor cable having at least two flat conductors to the round conductors of a round cable having at least two round conductors. The device comprises a plurality of individual connectors, each having two portions extending along a straight line or disposed at an angle of 90° relative to each other. One of the portions has a flat conductor crimping zone with crimping tongues arranged at a mutual spacing for crimping to the flat conductors and the other portion has a round-conductor crimping zone with crimping tongues arranged at a mutual spacing for crimping to the round conductors and to the insulation of the round conductors.

Description: FIELD OF THE INVENTION The invention concerns a flat/round cable connecting device for connecting elongate flat conductors of a flat-ribbon flat-conductor cable having at least two flat conductors to discrete round conductors. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION There are a number of procedures for connecting the individual wires or conductors of electric cables. In accordance with one procedure the conductors are soldered together while another procedure provides that they are crimped together. Metal connectors essentially comprise two portions which are connected together by a transition and of which one portion has a flat-conductor crimping zone and the other portion has a round-conductor crimping zone. In one embodiment the transition is of such a shape that the two crimping zones include an angle to each other, preferably 90°. At least two crimping tongues are disposed in each crimping zone. The crimping tongues are pressed onto the conductors, pushed through them and/or crimped around them. Increasingly smaller or thinner flat and round conductors are used in the course of miniaturization or because an increasing number of electric conductors have to be disposed in the same space. Therefore, when multi-conductor cables are being connected, the dimensions of the connectors also decrease therewith. Accordingly, when using the crimping procedure, the spacing between the individual connectors is also more and more reduced. There is a corresponding reduction also in the distance between the crimping zones of the connectors used for connecting the various conductors. Finally, the crimping zones with their crimping tongues are so close together that the air gaps or clearances between them become too small and leakage currents begin to flow. PRIOR ART A flat cable connector is known from JP-A-63 269 465, in which connector the associated contact tongues of adjacent contacts are aligned rather than staggered. The contact tongue of one contact is at the same longitudinal position with respect to the associated contact tongue of the next adjacent contact. Different contact tongues are also longitudinally aligned with the associated tongues of the adjacent contact. A connector for connecting a flat conductor to a round conductor is known from EP-A-0 371 310. In this known connector, the contact tongues of one contact are at the same longitudinal position with respect to the contact tongues of the adjacent contact. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention relates to a connecting device having a plurality of individual connectors, which devices are designed for crimping procedure. The object of the present invention is so to design a connecting device that even flat-ribbon flat-conductor cables involving a smaller pitch dimension or a smaller spacing from one flat conductor to another and with smaller flat-conductor cross-sections that hitherto can be connected to each other or to a round-conductor cable. In a connector of the general kind set forth in the opening part of this specification, that object is achieved in accordance with the invention in a surprisingly simple manner in that the flat-ribbon flat-conductor cable and the round conductors include an angle of 90°, said flat conductor cable having an end cut at a 45° angle with respect to length of the flat conductors, said device comprising a plurality of identical connectors each having two portions disposed at an angle of 90° relative to each other, one of the portions of each connector having a flat-conductor crimping zone with crimping tongues arranged at a mutual spacing for crimping to the flat conductors and a round conductor crimping zone for crimping to the round conductors, the flat conductor crimping zones being aligned such that the crimping tongues, provided for the flat conductors, of the individual connectors are in mutually displaced relationship upon crimping said tongues to said cut end of said cable. The present invention is designed to be terminated to a flat cable which is cut on a 45° angle so that the ends of the flat cable progressively extend along a diagonal. Each conductor of the cable is progressively longer than the next adjacent conductor. The identical contacts may then be terminated to the flat cable in a manner such that the portions engaging the round conductor are each aligned. This disposition places the contact tongues of one contact in a position which is longitudinally spaced from the tongues of the next adjacent contact. This is all achieved by cutting the end of the flat cable at a 45° angle. Thus, the associated contact tongues of one of the contacts when terminated are at a different longitudinal position with respect to the tongues of the adjacent contact. For the purposes of connecting a multi-conductor flat-ribbon flat-conductor cable to another multi-conductor flat-ribbon flat-conductor or round-conductor cable, the manufacturers must produce the individual connectors in that way, and the user or the person making the connection must fit the flat-conductors, in displaced relationship in the longitudinal direction, in such a way that the crimping tongues of respectively adjacent connectors are aligned with gaps between other crimping tongues. Although the individual flat conductors and therewith also the flat-conductor crimping zones of the individual connectors are only at a small spacing from each other, the crimping tongues are sufficiently far apart to prevent leakage currents. In that respect it is to be borne in mind that the crimping tongues are disposed at the mutually adjacent longitudinal sides of the flat-conductor crimping zones and are of a considerable gauge or thickness. Accordingly they are those parts of a flat-conductor crimping zone which, by virtue of the length and shape thereof , are at the smallest spacing relative to an adjacent flat-conductor crimping zone. The invention permits the satisfactory connection of flat-ribbon flat-conductor cables with a spacing between longitudinal center lines of down to a minimum of 1.27 mm between the individual flat conductors. It was hitherto not possible for such flat-ribbon flat-conductor cable to be connected together by way of the crimping procedure. It is recommended that the center-to-center spacing between two crimping tongues disposed on one side of a flat conductor is equal to the center-to-center spacing between two round conductors. Advantageously, the crimping tongues provided for a flat conductor, as viewed in the longitudinal direction of the flat conductors, are displaced with respect to the crimping tongues of an adjacent flat conductor by the center-to-center spacing between two crimping tongues. In a desirable configuration, two outer and two inner crimping tongues are provided for each flat conductor. As, in accordance with the invention, the crimping tongues are sufficiently far apart, the crimping tongues of adjacent flat conductors are sufficiently far apart, even when using four crimping tongues for each flat conductor. A total of four crimping tongues for each flat conductor. A total of four crimping tongues per flat conductor afford a higher level of mechanical strength and low electrical transition resistances. The invention is described hereinafter with reference to example of a flat/round cable connecting device with which a four-conductor flat-ribbon flat-conductor cable is connected to a four-conductor round cable and in which the two cables include an angle of 90°. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING This flat/round cable connecting device is illustrated in the sole drawing figure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Reference numeral 12 indicates a round conductor which is shown diagrammatically. Four such round conductors 12 form the four-conductor round cable. The four-conductor flat-ribbon flat-conductor cable which is shown in detail is indicated by reference numeral 14. The connecting device which is disposed between them and which connects them is identified by reference numeral 16. In the final condition the connector portions are disposed in an insulating body. This is not shown for the sake of enhanced clarity of illustrating the invention. Because four round conductors 12 are connected to four flat conductors, the connecting device 16 comprises four individual connectors which are identical to each other. Each of those connectors has a round-conductor crimping zone 18, a flat-conductor crimping zone 22 and a transitional portion or transition 20. The latter is of such a configuration that the four-conductor round cable and the flat-ribbon flat-conductor cable 14 include an angle of 90° to each other. The four flat conductors 24 are enclosed in insulation 26. Between the individual flat conductors 24, the insulation forms webs or lands 28. In the flat-conductor crimping zone or zones 22, two outer crimping tongues 30 and two inner crimping tongues 32 are associated with each flat conductor 24. In the round-conductor crimping zone or zones 18, associated with each round conductor are two crimping tongues 34 for the round conductor itself and two crimping tongues 36 for insulation. For the above-described example, four individual connectors 16 are required and produced by the manufacturer. The user or the person making up the connection fits it to the four round conductors 12 and the four-conductor flat-ribbon flat-conductor cable 14 in such a way as to product the configuration shown in the drawing. The crimping tongues 32 and 34 are pushed through the flat conductor 24 and crimped, which is not shown. Then, the connectors 16 are enclosed in an insulating body, but this is not part of the subject-matter of the invention. The drawing shows that the inner crimping tongue 32 of a flat conductor 24 and an outer crimping tongue 30 of an adjacent flat conductor 24, which both adjoin the same web portion or land 28, are disposed apart by a diagonal. The diagonal is longer than the spacing by which those crimping tongues would be disposed apart if they were to be arranged in the same transverse plane, as in the state of the art. The preferred embodiment described herein is intended to be illustrative rather than limiting, the true scope of the invention being set forth in the claims attached hereto.

Claims: A flat/round cable connecting device (16) for connecting elongate flat conductors (24) of a flat-ribbon flat-conductor cable (14) having at least two flat conductors (24) to discrete round conductors (12), the flat-ribbon flat-conductor cable (14) and the round conductors (12) including an angle of 90°, said flat conductor cable (14) having an end cut at a 45° angle with respect to length of the flat conductors, said device (16) comprising a plurality of identical connectors each having two portions disposed at an angle of 90° relative to each other, one of the portions of each connector having a flat-conductor crimping zone (22) with crimping tongues arranged at a mutual spacing for crimping to the flat conductors and a round conductor crimping zone (18) for crimping to the round conductors (12), the flat conductor crimping zones being aligned such that the crimping tongues (30, 32), provided for the flat conductors (24), of the individual connectors are in mutually displaced relationship upon crimping said tongues (30, 32) to said cut end of said cable. A flat/round cable connecting device according to claim 1, wherein the center-to-center spacing between two crimping tongues (30, 32) disposed on one side of a flat conductor (24) is equal to the center-to-center spacing between two round conductors. A flat/round cable connecting device according to claim 1, wherein the crimping tongues (30, 32) provided for a flat conductor (24), as viewed in the longitudinal direction thereof, are displaced relative to the crimping tongues (30, 32) of an adjacent flat conductor (24) by the dimension of two crimping tongues (30, 32), relative to each other. A flat/round cable connecting device according to claim 1, wherein two outer crimping tongues (30) and two inner crimping tongues (32) are provided for each flat conductor (24).

Inventors: LANGE MANFRED, ROEDER JUERGEN, LANGE, MANFRED, ROEDER, JUERGEN, Röder, Jürgen
Applicants: THOMAS & BETTS CORP A NEW JERS, THOMAS & BETTS CORPORATION (A NEW JERSEY CORPORATION)
Application year: 1995
Main classification: H01R9
IPC codes: H02G15, H01R12, H01R4