Abstract:
An electrical connector ( 10 ) includes an insulative housing ( 12 ), a number of electrical contacts ( 18 ), a pair of dielectric spacers ( 22 ), a pair of latches ( 24 ) and a pair of board locks ( 30 ). The latches and the board locks are assembled to the insulative housing. The insulative housing has a body portion ( 120 ) defining a receiving slot ( 121 ) and the electrical contacts are received in the insulative housing to be exposed to the receiving slot. The insulative housing has a pair of end blocks ( 125 ) and an intermediate block ( 126 ) each formed with mechanisms for retaining the dielectric spacers therebetween.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to an electrical connector, and particularly to an electrical connector having a dielectric spacer. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     A dielectric spacer is usually provided in an electrical connector for alignment of electrical contacts of the electrical connector so that tails of the electrical contacts can be correctly inserted into corresponding holes in a printed circuit board on which the electrical connector is mounted. As is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,601,438 and 5,709,556, each of most spacers used with the electrical connectors includes a plate with several through-holes therein and fastened to an insulative housing of the electrical connector by means of retaining latch devices generally positioned at two ends of the plate. The retaining latch devices of the dielectric spacer and structures formed on the insulative housing to correspond to the retaining latch devices are always complicatedly constructed for ensuring a mechanical retention therebetween. For general electrical connectors whose dimensions are not so small, those structures are acceptable. 
     However, some electrical connectors have very small dimensions and either insulative housings or dielectric spacers of the electrical connectors are so tiny that it is nearly impossible to form such complicated latch structures. 
     So-called floating spacers as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,116,917, which are not retained to the insulative housings of the electrical connectors, have been proposed to solve the above problems and they do, to some extent, work in many applications. Nevertheless, the tails of the electrical contacts of the electrical connector are often bent with respect to contact portions of the electrical contacts before inserting into the through holes of the spacers. These bent tails are subject to residual stress and subsequent stress relaxation problems which tend to move the tails of the electrical contacts together with the floating spacers, thereby adversely affecting the positioning of the tails with respect to the holes of the printed circuit board. Therefore, an improved electrical connector is desired. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A major object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector having a dielectric spacer which has simplified latching structures with respect to an insulative housing of the electrical connector to reliably ensure positions of tails of electrical contacts of the electrical connector. 
     An electrical connector in accordance with the present invention comprises an insulative housing, a plurality of electrical contacts, a pair of dielectric spacers, a pair of latches and a pair of boardlocks. The latches and the boardlocks are assembled to the insulative housing. The insulative housing defines a receiving slot and the electrical contacts are received in the insulative housing to expose to the receiving slot. The insulative housing comprises a pair of end blocks and an intermediate block each formed with means for retaining the dielectric spacers therebetween. 
     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 DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an electrical connector in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention but a dielectric spacer thereof is disengaged therefrom and some electrical contacts thereof corresponding to the dielectric spacer are removed; 
     FIG. 2 is a partly enlarged perspective view of the electrical connector of FIG. 1 taken from another perspective; 
     FIG. 3 is a partly enlarged view of the electrical connector of FIG. 1 without the presence of electrical contacts thereof; 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the dielectric spacer of the electrical connector of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 5 is a front view of the dielectric spacer of FIG. 4; 
     FIG. 6 is a bottom plan view of the dielectric spacer of FIG. 4; 
     FIG. 7 is a partly enlarged view of an electrical connector in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention without the presence of electrical contacts thereof; 
     FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a dielectric spacer in accordance with the second embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 9 is a partly enlarged view of an electrical connector in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention with the absence of electrical contacts thereof; and 
     FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a dielectric spacer in accordance with the third embodiment of the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     It will be noted here that for a better understanding, most of like components are designated by like reference numerals through various figures in the embodiments. 
     Please refer to FIGS. 1 and 2, an electrical connector  10  in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention comprises an insulative housing  12 , a plurality of electrical contacts  18 , a pair of dielectric spacers  22 , a pair of latches  24 , and a pair of boardlocks  30  (only one shown). 
     The insulative housing  12  comprises an elongated body portion  120 , a pair of parallel shoulders  122  extending at two opposite longitudinal ends of the body portion  120 , a pair of end blocks  125  extending rearwardly from the body portion  120  and adjacent to the shoulders  122 , respectively, and an intermediate block  126  extending rearwardly between the pair of end blocks  125 . The body portion  120  defines a receiving slot  121  extending along a length thereof for receiving a card or module (not shown), a plurality of passageways  123  extending along two opposite sides of the receiving slot  121  and a plurality of openings  124  each exposing a corresponding passageway  123  to the receiving slot  121 . 
     Each of the shoulders  122  comprises a pair of arms  127  spaced from each other by a groove  128  therebetween. As is shown in FIG. 2, bottom faces  129  of the shoulders  122  and of the body portion  120  are flush with each other to be located in a plane. The shoulders  122  extend forwardly beyond the body portion  120  and the end and the intermediate blocks  125 ,  126  and the intermediate and the end blocks  126 ,  125  extend rearwardly beyond the shoulders  122  and the body portion  120 . 
     Referring also to FIG. 3, each of inner walls  132  of the end blocks  125  and each of the outer walls  133  of the intermediated block  126  of the insulative housing  12  are formed with a step portion  134  adjacent to a lower section thereof and a pair of channels  135  extending in the step portion  134 . Bottom faces  130  of the end blocks  125  and of the intermediate block  126  are flush with each other to define a plane having an acute angle with respect to the plane defined by the bottom faces  129  of the body portion  120  and the shoulders  122 , whereby when the electrical connector  10  is mounted to a printed circuit board (not shown), the card or module could be slantedly inserted into the receiving slot  121 . Each end block  125  defines a slit  131  recessed from the bottom face  130  thereof. 
     Each of the electrical contacts  18  comprises a contact portion  180  received in a corresponding passageway  123  of the insulative housing  12  and protruding through a corresponding opening  124  into the receiving slot  121  to electrically contact with the card or module, and a tail  182  bent with respect to the contact portion  180  and extending beyond the bottom faces  129 ,  130 . Since the electrical contacts  18  are the same as are used in conventional electrical connectors, a detailed description thereabout is omitted herefrom. 
     Referring also to FIGS. 4-6, each dielectric spacer  22  is generally a longitudinally extending plate and defines three rows of through holes  220  extending vertically therethrough, a pair of ribs  221  extending upwardly along a length thereof from a top face thereof and located between every two adjacent rows of through holes  220 , and a plurality of bumps  222  protruding downwardly from a bottom face thereof. 
     The latches  24  are configured in ways known to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent art to be movably assembled in the grooves  128  between the arms  127  of the shoulders  122  of the insulative housing  12  to latch the card or module in the receiving slot  121  when desired, so detailed descriptions therefor are omitted herefrom. Furthermore, the electrical connector  10  can also be formed without the latches  24 , when the card or module needs not such a retention to the insulative housing  12 . 
     The boardlocks  30  are also configured in ways known to persons skilled in the pertinent art and are assembled in the slits  131  of the end blocks  125  in ways also known to persons skilled in the pertinent art for retaining the electrical connector  10  to a printed circuit board (not shown), detailed descriptions therefor are thus omitted herefrom. The boardlocks  30  can also be omitted on the condition that the electrical connector  10  is reliably mounted on the printed circuit board. 
     In assembly, the tails  182  of the electrical contacts  18  extend through the through holes  220  of the dielectric spacers  22  and two opposite ends of the dielectric spacers  22  engage with the step portions  134  of the end and the intermediate blocks  125 ,  126  while the ribs  221  are interferentially fitted against the channels  135 . 
     Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, an insulative housing  12 ′ in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention is similar to the insulative housing  12  of the first embodiment but defines cavities  134 ′ in lower sections of the end and the intermediate blocks  125 ′,  126 ′ (not shown) instead of the step portions  134  with the channels  135 . Accordingly, a dielectric spacer  22 ′ of the second embodiment is similar to the dielectric spacer  22  of the first embodiment except that a pair of extensions  223 ′ extend outwardly from two opposite ends thereof to engage with the cutouts  134 ′ of the insulative housing  12 ′ to provide a retention between the dielectric spacers  22 ′ and insulative housing  12 ′. 
     Referring to FIGS. 9 and 10, an insulative housing  12 ″ in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention is similar to the insulative housing  12  of the first embodiment but is formed with protrusions  134 ″ in lower sections of the end and the intermediate blocks  125 ″,  126 ″ (not shown) instead of the step portions  134  with the channels  135 . Accordingly, a dielectric spacer  22 ″ of the third embodiment is similar to the dielectric spacer  22  of the first embodiment except that a cutout  223 ″ is defined in each of two opposite ends thereof to engage with the protrusions  134 ″ of the insulative housing  12 ″ for providing a retention therebetween. 
     The positions of the tails of the electrical contacts of the electrical connecter are ensured since the dielectric spacers  22 ,  22 ′, and  22 ″ are retained to the insulative housing  12 ,  12 ′, and  12 ″ by the engagements between the opposite ends with the ribs  221  and the step portions  134  with the channels  135 , between the extensions  223 ′ and the cavities  134 ′, and between the cutouts  223 ″ and the protrusions  134 ″, respectively, which are comparatively simple and are easy to form in producing. 
     It is to be understood, however, that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the forgoing 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.