Abstract:
A plug connector ( 15 ) has several contact elements ( 11 ) which are provided inside a housing ( 21 ). Each contact element having a first connecting end ( 18 ) and a second connecting end ( 19 ) for connection to bores ( 17 ) of a printed circuit board ( 14 ). The second connecting end is slit to have radial resiliency. A travel limitation element ( 23 ) is provided on the housing. The second connecting element is preferably arranged at right angle with respect to the first connecting element via an adapter element ( 20 ).

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a plug connector. 
     Such a plug connector, known from DE 297 04 161 U1, is linearly embodied and is provided on its connecting end with the printed circuit board with a collar surrounding it acting as a travel limitation element. This known plug connector is connected with the printed circuit board in the direction of its longitudinal extension and of the longitudinal extension of the contact element, and therefore perpendicularly in respect to the plane of the printed circuit board, This way of connecting a plug connector with a printed circuit board requires a great amount of space above the plane of the printed circuit board, not only for the connection per se, but also for the plug-in process. This apace, or respectively room, is not available, or respectively provided in many cases. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is the object of the present invention to create a plug connector of the type mentioned at the outset which, for the pluggable connection with the printed circuit board, requires less space above the printed circuit board, but nevertheless results in a dependable connection with the printed circuit board. 
     It is achieved by means of the steps of the invention that the insertion movement of the plug connector toward the printed circuit board required for connecting can take place in a direction parallel with and slightly above the surface of the printed circuit board, so that the plug connector extends less far above the surface of the printed circuit board. The travel limitation element provided on the housing or the printed circuit board leads to a dependable connection and short distances between the housing of the plug connector and the printed circuit board. 
     It is achieved by means of the characteristics that plugging the plug connector, or respectively its contact elements, into the bores of the printed circuit board can take place without a tilt moment, which possibly could affect the plug connector disadvantageously. 
     In a preferred development of the present invention, an angle plate is provided on the housing, which rests on the appropriate surface of the printed circuit board and in this way assures an exact and dependable contact, and which can also absorb forces acting on the plug connector during the insertion of the plug. 
     A further improvement and simplification of the mounting, or respectively pluggable connection of the plug connector on a printed circuit board, along with the simultaneous simplest possible design of an appropriate mounting tool, is achieved. 
     The contact element can be of one piece, which is possible up to a defined minimal distance between the plug connector and the printed circuit board, since in this case the contact element can be designed to be appropriately angled by simply bending it. 
     If this said distance between the plug connector and the surface of the printed circuit board falls below a minimum, it is practical to design the contact element in several pieces. Even lower structural heights can be achieved by means of this than is possible with bending the contact elements. This is of particular importance in connection with the increasingly greater packing densities in electronic components. Moreover, this makes it possible to realize different structural heights, since the connecting element on the plug side remains the same and only the structural height, or respectively structural length, of the connecting ends on the printed circuit side is changed. A further advantage lies in realizing different surfaces of the connecting ends, so that they can be matched to the respective functions and requirements. This also applies to a correspondingly optimum selection of the materials on the respective connecting ends. Finally, a variety of combinations is possible, depending on the required design of the shapes of the connecting ends. The engagement area in accordance with the characteristics of claim  4  can be realized in a variety of ways, for example by a transverse bore with or without a pin, by an circular groove with or without a ring, by a cone-shaped collar at the circumference, by surfaces parallel with the surface of the printed circuit board, or the like. 
     Further details of the invention can be taken from the following description, in which the invention will be described and explained in greater detail by means of the exemplary embodiments represented in the drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 a plug connector connected with a printed circuit board in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention in a schematic view from above, 
     FIG. 2 a partially broken open lateral view in accordance with the line II—II, 
     FIG. 3 a contact element used with the plug connector in FIGS. 1 and 2 in a perspective exploded view, 
     FIGS. 4A and 4B representations of a contact element corresponding to FIG. 3, but in accordance with two variations, 
     FIG. 5, a representation corresponding to FIG. 3, but in accordance with another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and 
     FIG. 6 a perspective representation of a contact element in accordance with a further exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The installation  10  represented in FIGS. 1 and 2 has a plug connector  15 , which is provided with one-piece or multi-piece contact elements  11 ,  11 ′,  11 ″,  12 , or respectively  13 , represented in several exemplary embodiments, one end of which is used as a connection with a printed circuit board  14 , and the other end as connection with an external plug, not represented. The plug connector  15  extends in a direction parallel with the surface  16  of the printed circuit board  14  and can be connected with the printed circuit board  14  via the contact elements  11 ,  11 ′,  11 ″,  12 , or respectively  13 , which are embodied to be angled. 
     The several, three in the exemplary embodiment, contact elements  11 ,  11 ′,  11 ″,  12 , or respectively  13 , of the same kind, which are arranged next to each other, of the plug connector  15  have connecting ends  18  on the plug side, which are aligned, or respectively extend, horizontally, i.e. parallel with the printed circuit board surface  16 , and on the printed circuit board side have connecting ends  19  which extend, angled 90° by means of adapters  20 ,  20 ′,  20 ″,  30 , or respectively  40 , i.e. perpendicularly in respect to the connecting ends  18 , which can be fitted in a pluggable and releasable manner into bores  17 , through which contacts extend, of the printed circuit board  14 . 
     To facilitate the description, applicant has provided arrows F, R to represent front and rear directions, arrows U, D to represent up and down directions, and arrows L to represent lateral directions. The circuit board surface  16  may be considered to be the circuit board upper face. The contact elements such as  11  may be considered to extend generally forward F from the connector housing. Each connector element connecting end  18  is a rear portion or part that extends forward from the connector housing. The connecting end  19  is a front portion or part that extends downward U to the circuit board. Of course, the circuit board and connector can be used in any orientation, but the arrows indicate relative orientations of the parts. 
     As can be seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, the plug connector  15  has a housing  21 , in which the connecting ends  18  on the plug side of the contact elements  11 ,  11 ′,  11 ″,  12 , or respectively  13 , are held in the axial direction and secured against twisting. The connecting ends  18  on the plug Side, which can be designed pin-like or bushing-like, are here fixed in place in a body of molded material, not represented, fixed in place in a housing element  25 . the housing element  25  is arranged in a set-back portion, or slot  22 , in an edge of the printed circuit board  14 , can be plugged into bores  24  of the printed circuit board  14  and lockingly held by means of two elbows  60 . The two elbows  60 , which are fastened on side flanges  26  of the housing  21 , are used as travel limitation elements when inserting the connecting ends  19  on the plug side of the contact elements  11 ,  11 ′,  11 ″,  12 , or respectively  13 , into the bores  17 , through which contacts extend, of the printed circuit board  14 , so that a press fit corresponding to FIG. 2 is assured at the correct local spot of the connecting end  19  on the side of the printed circuit board. The connection between the plug connector  15  and the printed circuit board  14  takes place in a movement directed perpendicularly in respect to the printed circuit board surface  14  for inserting the connecting ends  19  on the printed circuit board side into the bores  17 , through which contacts extend, until contacting, or respectively meeting the appropriate ends of the two angular-shaped travel limitation elements  23 . After placement, a rivet or the like for the firm connection between the printed circuit boards  14  and the travel limitation elements  23  can be put through their corresponding bores. In this case, FIG. 2 shows that in the inserted state the structural height of the plug connector  15  above the printed circuit board surface  16  is very low because of use is made of the thickness of the printed circuit board and the required overhang to the other side. 
     FIG. 3 shows the contact element  11  used in FIG. 2 with the plug connector  15  in an exploded view. The contact element  11  has two parts, i.e. in this exemplary embodiment the connection end  19  on the side of the printed circuit board with the adapter  20  is made of one piece, and the connection end  18  on the plug side is a component which is separate from it and can be connected with the adapter  20 . For this purpose, the adapter  20  has a transverse bore  23 , which is perpendicular in relation to the axial direction of the connecting end  19  on the side of the printed circuit board, into which a pin  31  can be inserted with clearance fit or press fit, if required with additional riveting, soldering or a comparable mechanical electric connection. At approximately the longitudinal center, the connecting end  18  on the plug side has two annular collars  32 , arranged at a distance from each other, via which this component is installed in an axially secure manner in the said body of molded material in the housing element  25 . This securing against twisting can be designed as a flattening  50  on one of the annular collars  32 , as represented in FIG. 6, so that the contact element  13  cannot turn in the body of molded material. 
     With all contact elements  11 ,  11 ′,  11 ″,  12  and  13 , the connecting end  19  on the printed circuit board side is double-slit in the insertion area, so that several, here four, radially elastically movable fingers  33  result. On the outside, these fingers  33  are provided on the free front end with a bezel, on the rear end with a waist  35  and in the center with a contact bulge  44 . As can be seen in FIG. 2, the press fit of the connecting end  19  on the side of the printed circuit board in the bore  17 , through which contacts extend, is such, that the radially prestressed fingers  33  make contact in their area  44  of the greatest diameter in the center of the bore  17 . 
     FIGS. 4A and 4B also show two-part contact elements  11 ′, or respectively  11 ″, wherein the difference between the contact element  11 ′ in accordance with FIG.  4 A and the contact element  11  in accordance with FIG. 3 only lies in that the adapter  20 ′ is not embodied cylinder-shaped, but cube-shaped and is provided on its free end with an axial slit  36 , so that the legs  37  of the adapter  20 ′ created in this way can be pushed apart in the course of inserting the pin  31  of the connecting end  18  with fit. With the contact element  11 ″ in FIG. 4B, a pin  31 ″ is provided on the adapter  20 ″, while the corresponding transverse bore  29 ″ is provided on a flattened end of the connection  18 ″ on the plug side. 
     The contact element  12  represented in FIG. 5 is made in three parts, i.e. it is put together from the connecting end  18  on the plug side, the adapter  30 , angular-shaped here, and the end  19 ″ on the printed circuit board side in a twist-proof, pluggable press fit or push fit connection. In the represented exemplary embodiment, the angular-shaped (90°) adapter  30  has through bores or blind bores  38 , or respectively  39 , at the end, into which the pin  31  of the connecting end  18  on the plug side, or respectively the pin  31 ″ of the connecting end  19  on the printed circuit board side can be plugged, fixed against twisting. It should be understood that the angular-shaped adapter  30  can also be replaced by a cube-shaped element with appropriate bores. 
     FIG. 6 shows the contact element  13  formed in one piece, whose adapter  40  is formed by the 90° arc between the connecting end  18 ′″ on the plug aide and the connecting end  19 ′″ on the printed circuit board side. 
     The contact elements  11 ,  11 ′,  11 ″,  12 , or respectively  13 , are provided with engagement surfaces for introducing a mounting force essentially perpendicularly in relation to the printed circuit board surface  16 . This engagement surface is in particular intended to offer a driving surface for a mounting tool. Thus, the contact elements  11  and  11 ′ are provided with a front face  41 ,  41 ′ at the upper end of the adapter  20 ,  20 ′, and the contact element  11 ″ with a flat surface  41 ″ on the flattened end of the connecting end  18 ″ on the plug side, for example. Similar is true for the contact element  12 , whose adapter  30  Is provided with an upper face  42 . A shoulder  43  is provided between the adapter  40  and the connecting end  19  on the printed circuit side of the one-piece contact element  13 . It should be understood that these engagement surfaces can also be formed in another shape. 
     With the exemplary embodiment represented in FIGS. 1 and 2, the travel limitation element  23  is provided on the housing  21  of the plug connector  15 . It should be understood that it is also possible to provide one or several travel limitation elements on the printed circuit board  14 . By means of a guide, the travel limitation elements are intended to prevent that the plug connector  15  could be subjected to a tilting moment in the course of being attached on, or respectively inserted into the printed circuit board  14 . 
     It should furthermore be understood that instead of being right-angled, the contact elements can also be obtuse-angled.