Abstract:
An electrical connector provides terminal position assurance and wire cover features in a single integrated structure. The connector has a body defining a cavity for receiving one or more terminal carriers having aligned terminal receiving passageways opening at an end surface. A slide member cooperates with the connector body to positionally fix the terminal carrier and to integrally support the wire cover to overlay the end surface to dress conductors emerging there from in a preferred orientation.

Description:
RELATED PATENT APPLICATION  
       [0001]     The present application claims priority to provisional application U.S. Ser. No. 60/648,666, filed 31 Jan. 2005, entitled “Integrated TPA and Wire Cover.” 
     
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD  
       [0002]     The present invention relates to electrical connectors, and more particularly to electrical connector assemblies employing connector body, terminal position and wire dress position assurance features.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     Electrical connectors for vehicles and the like are often comprised of separate housings that are engaged through pressure, or “snap-fit”, upon installation. Snap-fit connectors are desirable because of their ease of installation. However, in order to ensure proper installation, various complexities must be taken into account.  
         [0004]     For example, the housings must be securely fastened so that they do not come apart after installation. Additionally, they must be properly aligned so that an electrical connection is made upon installation.  
         [0005]     In order to attempt to resolve these and other difficulties, various mechanisms have been used. One especially desirable mechanism is a connector position assurance (CPA) mechanism. CPA mechanisms, placed externally to the housings, are used to assure locking and/or positioning of connector housings.  
         [0006]     Use of a CPA may lead to further difficulties when designing a connector. An external CPA may increase the space required for the connector, so that a CPA may be unavailable for a connector to be mounted in a confined space. Accordingly, it would be beneficial to have a small, effectively integrated CPA mechanism for use in electrical connectors.  
         [0007]     Multi-pin/contact electrical connectors have a number of terminals and are typically configured in a separate cavity for each terminal. An array of cavities are often closely arranged to conserve packaging space and facilitate assembly. This tends to increase complexity, part count and cost.  
         [0008]     Standardized components, such as terminal carriers, can be employed within complex connector assemblies to reduce application specific tooling and assembly costs as well as to provide an integrated terminal position assurance (TPA) feature. It would be desirable to have sub-assemblies of such standardized components.  
         [0009]     Current design multi-conductor electrical connectors typically allow wires, which are connected to individual contacts or terminals, to exit directly out of the back of the connector. Routing or dressing the wires, either individually or in a bundled harness form, typically requires the use of additional discrete wire position assurance devices such as tape, clips and the like.  
         [0010]     Wire routing is particularly problematic in certain applications such as automobile environments where components are closely packed together. One solution has been the use of wire dress covers, which are formed separately and are attached to the connector assembly to control and guide the exiting wires in a particular orientation.  
         [0011]     Although providing certain advantages, wire dress covers add complexity, part count and cost.  
         [0012]     U.S. Pat. No. 6,837,751 granted to Mark J. Vanden Wymelenberg, et al. on 4 Jan. 2005 depicts an electrical connector including a connector body, a slide, and a pair of terminal carriers with a plurality of terminals seated in respective terminal seats of the terminal carriers.  
         [0013]     With regard to terminal carriers, the superimposed stacking of the terminal carriers with integrated TPS, allows high density row terminal packaging. Furthermore, a large variety of cable/conductor gauges can be accommodated. The removability of the terminal carriers and the flexible arms of the TPA feature described in Vanden Wymekenberg et al. facilitates repair without damage. The TPA feature allows manual or automated plug and unplug features.  
         [0014]     Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a compact, multi-conductor electrical connector which provides terminal position assurance and wire cover without adding to part count, manufacturing complexity and cost.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0015]     Generally, the present invention fulfills the forgoing needs by providing, in one aspect thereof, the combination of both TPA and wire cover features in a single, integrated structure.  
         [0016]     The presently inventive electrical conductor defines a connector body forming a cavity therein, one or more terminal carriers which define a plurality of terminal receiving passageways therein which open through an end surface of the terminal carrier. A slide member cooperates with the connector body to positionally fix the terminal carrier with respect thereto. Finally, a wire cover is disposed to substantially overlay the terminal carrier end surface and acts to dress conductors emerging from the openings in a preferred orientation. The wire cover is integrally formed with and depends from the slide member. This arrangement has the advantage of affording precise dressing of the emerging wire bundle without adding to part count, manufacturing complexity or cost.  
         [0017]     According to an aspect of the invention, the wire cover serves to precisely offset the wires emerging from the terminal carrier passageways. This arrangement allows preassembly and pre-dressing of the wires prior to final installation and to avoid nearby obstructions.  
         [0018]     According to another aspect of the invention, the wire cover can be configured to selectively dress subsets of wires emerging from the terminal carrier passageways in two or more discrete orientations. The advantage of this arrangement is that each wire can be directed or routed immediately toward its intended interconnection circuit element to minimize wire used while protecting it from adjacent obstructions.  
         [0019]     According to yet another aspect of the invention, a second slide member is disposed substantially parallel with the first slide member. Both slide members are integrally formed with the wire cover and each is separately engagable with the connector body, resulting in an extremely robust design, which can provide strain relief for the wire bundles.  
         [0020]     These and other features and advantages of this invention will become apparent upon reading the following specification, which, along with the drawings, describes preferred and alternative embodiments of the invention in detail.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0021]     The present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:  
         [0022]      FIG. 1 , is a perspective view of the mounted male and female portions of a connector assembly of one embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0023]      FIG. 2 , is an exploded, perspective view of the connector assembly of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0024]      FIG. 3 , is top plan view of the connector assembly of  FIG. 1 , with the wire cover and integral slide members removed;  
         [0025]      FIG. 4 , is a cross-sectional view of the connector assembly of  FIG. 1  taken on line  4 - 4  of  FIG. 3 , illustrating the engagement of the wire cover and integral slide members with the connector body;  
         [0026]      FIG. 5 , is a cross-sectional view of the connector assembly of  FIG. 1  taken on line  5 - 5  of  FIG. 3 , illustrating the details of the interconnecting terminal sets respectively disposed within the male and female connector portions;  
         [0027]      FIG. 6 , is a side plan view of an alternative design wire cover and slide members for another embodiment of the invention;  
         [0028]      FIG. 7 , is an end plan view of the alternative design wire cover and slide members illustrated in  FIG. 6 ;  
         [0029]      FIG. 8 , is a top plan view of the alternative design wire cover and slide members illustrated in  FIG. 6 ;  
         [0030]      FIG. 9 , is a bottom plan view of the alternative design wire cover and slide members illustrated in  FIG. 6 ;  
         [0031]      FIG. 10 , is a perspective view of a second alternative design wire cover and slide members for still another embodiment of the invention; and  
         [0032]      FIG. 11 , is a perspective view of a third alternative design wire cover and slide members for yet another embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0033]     The present invention is intended for application in automotive vehicle systems and will be described in that context. It is to be understood, however, that the present invention could also be successfully applied in many other applications. Accordingly, the claims herein should not be deemed as limited to the specifics of the preferred embodiment of the invention as described hereunder. The preferred application of the present invention involves the interconnection of electrical or fiber optic conductors in an automotive system and represents an extremely robust, low cost, compact design, which can be easily configured to accommodate application specific packaging requirements. Furthermore, the connector configuration and arrangement enables use of simplified design and manufacturing processes, increasing turnover and lowering cost without adversely impacting quality and reliability.  
         [0034]     Referring to  FIG. 1 , an electrical connector assembly  10  is illustrated in-circuit with a plurality of insulated electrical conductors  12  forming part of a wiring harness  14 . Connector assembly  10  includes mating male and female connector portions,  16  and  18 , respectively, configured to self-align and nestingly engage to establish a plurality of discrete circuit paths through pairs of isolated conductors.  
         [0035]     In application, wiring harness  14  extends from male connector portion  16  toward other system components (not illustrated). Additional electrical conductors (see  FIG. 5 ) likewise extend from female connector portion  18  toward still other system components. Female connector portion  18  may depend from a related segment of wiring harness or be affixed to a housing of an electrical load or associated vehicle structure to assume a fixed design intent orientation.  
         [0036]     Referring to  FIG. 2 , male connector portion  16  includes a connector body  20 , a terminal carrier  22  and an integrated slide member/wire cover  24 . Connector body  20 , terminal carrier  22  and slide member/wire cover  24  are each constructed of plastic or other suitable non-electrically conductive material.  
         [0037]     Connector body  20  assumes a generally rectangular configuration, defining a rear wall  26 , left and right side walls  28  and  30 , respectively, a front surface  32 , a bottom surface  34  and a top surface  36 . When matingly engaged, the connector body  20  of male connector portion  16  is slip fit within a similarly dimensioned upwardly opening cavity  38  formed in the top surface  40  of female connector portion  18 . Opposed pairs of front lateral extensions  42  and rear lateral extensions  44  integrally depend from the outer surfaces of side walls  28  and  30 , respectively. The lowermost surfaces  46  of extensions  42  and  44  abut top surface  40  of female connector portion  18  to delimit insertion of connector body  20  therein.  
         [0038]     A resilient engagement tab  48  is integrally formed on the outer surface of rear wall  26  of connector body  20  and is aligned for snap action engagement with a mating abutment member  50  integrally formed on the rear surface of a rear wall  51  of female connector portion  18 . Tab  48  and member  50  collectively constitute a connector position assurance mechanism which reliably rotationally positions the male and female connector portions,  16  and  18 , respectively, as well as maintains them in the fully inserted (assembled) condition as illustrated in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0039]     Terminal carrier  22  assumes a generally rectangular configuration and is dimensioned to slip fit within a cavity  52  formed within connector body  20  along an insertion axis designated by arrow  54 . Terminal carrier  22  defines a plurality of parallel terminal receiving passageways  56 , typically arrayed by rank and file, to maximize compact design and facilitate automatic insertion of electrical terminals  58  which are pre-affixed to individual electrical conductors  12 . Passageways  56 , as well as any electrical wires  12  contained therein, emerge through the top or end surface  60  of terminal carrier  22 .  
         [0040]     Cavity  52  opens through both the front surface  32  and top surface  36  of connector body  20 . When in the assembled position, an elongated tongue  62  integrally extending from the outer surface of at least one side wall  64  of terminal carrier  22  is disposed within a mating groove  66  formed in the adjacent inwardly facing surface of a side wall  28 ,  30  of connector body  20  as best viewed in  FIG. 5 . When assembled, end surface  60  of terminal carrier  22  is flush or co-planer with top surface  36  of connector body  20 .  
         [0041]     As will be described in detail herein below, electrical terminals  58  are retained within their respective passageway  56  by cooperating self-engaging features. Terminal carrier  22  and electrical terminals  58  collectively constitute an integrated terminal position assurance feature.  
         [0042]     When assembled, the outer surface of the rear wall  68  of terminal carrier  22  is in an abutting relation with the inner surface of the rear wall  26  of the connector body  20 . Thus positioned, the terminal carrier  22  is contained entirely within the cavity  52  defined by connector body  20 . Terminal carrier  22 , as well as associated electrical terminals  58  and conductors  12  are locked into a final assembled position (refer  FIGS. 3-5 ) by the integrated slide member/wire cover  24 .  
         [0043]     Integrated slide member/wire cover  24  comprises an inverted generally “U” shaped integrally formed structure including a semi-cylindrical wire cover portion  70 , a front slide member portion  72  and a rear slide member portion  74 . Front and rear slide members  72  and  74 , respectively, are generally planar and are spaced parallel to one another by a dimension substantially equaling the nominal diameter of wire cover portion  70  and extend downwardly there from. Outwardly extending front and rear steps  76  and  78 , respectively, integrally depend from slide member/wire cover  24  at the transition point of wire cover portion  70  and front and rear slide member portions  72  and  74 , respectively. The lower faces of steps  76  and  78  define coplanar abutment surfaces  80  and  82 , respectively, which, in the final assembled position (refer  FIGS. 3-5 ), abut the top surface  36  of connector body  20 .  
         [0044]     Connector body  20  defines opposed, inwardly opening vertically extending slots or grooves  84  and  86  formed in the inner surfaces of side walls  28  and  30 , respectively, of connector body  20 . Furthermore, connector body  20  defines an upwardly opening, laterally extending slot  88  in the rear wall  26  thereof. Opposed slots  84  and  86  are dimensioned and cooperatively configured to receive by slip fit the front slide member portion  72  of slide member/wire cover  24 . Likewise, slot  88  in rear wall  26  of connector body  20  is dimensioned to receive by slip fit the rear slide member portion  74  of slide member/wire cover  24 .  
         [0045]     As best viewed in  FIGS. 2 and 5 , the male connector portion  16  of electrical connector assembly  10  is preferably assembled as follows. Ends of individual conductors  12  are stripped of insulation and mechanically and electrically affixed to a corresponding electrical terminal  58 . Terminals  58  are illustrated as female spade type terminals. However, various other terminal types such as pin connectors or fiber optic connectors could be applied. Each terminal  58  is then inserted downwardly into an associated passageway  56  through top surface  60  of terminal carrier  22  until an integral tang formed in each terminal  58  registers with and releasably engages a recess feature formed within the associated passageway  56  to lock terminal  58  in its illustrated position. The individual conductors  12  are then gathered into generally parallel arrangement to form harness  14 .  
         [0046]     Next, the terminal carrier  22  is inserted into cavity  52  of connector body  20  along axis  54  until the outer surface of rear wall  68  of carrier  22  abuts the inner surface of the rear wall  26  of connector body  20 . When so installed, the carrier  22  is held in its design intent position by the interaction of the tongue  62  and groove  66  and substantially fills cavity  52  as is best illustrated in  FIG. 3 . Wiring harness  14  is then positioned or dressed in its design intent orientation. Lastly, the slide member/wire cover  24  is inserted downwardly into its assembled position wherein front slide member portion  72  fits within grooves  84  and  86  and rear slide member portion  74  fits within slot  88  until abutment surfaces  80  and  82  contact top surface  36  of connector body  20 . Thus positioned, carrier  22  is locked into its illustrated position in the direction of axis  54  by the rear wall  68  of the carrier  22  abutting the rear wall  26  of the connector body  20  and the front wall  92  of the carrier  22  abutting the inwardly facing surface  94  of the front slide member portion  72 .  
         [0047]     Referring to  FIGS. 6-9 , the details of the integrated slide member/wire cover  24  are illustrated. Both slide member portions  72  and  74  define vertically extending through slots  90  positioned near the outer edge surfaces  96  thereof to define resilient flexure beams  98 . An engagement tab  100  integrally formed with an associated flexure beam  98  at an intermediate location there along extends outwardly there from defining a ramped surface  102  and an abutment surface  104 . In the preferred embodiment of the invention, there are four such flexure beams  98  and associated engagement tabs  100 . However, there could be more or less such structures. Furthermore, the above described tab  100  latch features could be provided with asymmetries to ensure only a single assembly configuration, preventing misassembly, mispositioning or misalignment of various components, especially placement of the wire cover portion  70  vis-à-vis the connector body  20 .  
         [0048]     Referring to  FIGS. 5 and 6 , wire cover portion  70  of integrated slide member/wire cover  24  defines first and second open ends  106  and  108 , respectively, for selectively routing wires  12  emerging from the upper surface  60  of terminal carrier  22 . As will be described in connection with alternative embodiments of the invention, a fewer or greater number of such openings can be provided without departing from the spirit of the present invention.  
         [0049]     Outer and inner reinforcing bosses or thickening bands  110  and  112  are integrally formed with wire cover portion  70 , extending radially outwardly there from. Outer bands  110  are axially disposed adjacent open ends  106  and  108 , and inner bands  112  are axially spaced there between to collectively ensure that inadvertent contact with wires  12  dressed to extend there through does not result in deformation of the wire cover portion  70 . This permits use of a relatively thin wall section for wire cover portion  70  to conserve material and reduce cost while maintaining a robust design.  
         [0050]     Referring to  FIGS. 2 and 4 , upon initial insertion of slide member/wire cover  24  into connector body  20 , slide member portions  72  and  74  freely slide within grooves  84  &amp;  86  and slot  88 , respectively, until the ramp surfaces  102  of the four engagement tabs  100  initially contact the top surface  36  of connector body  20 . Thereafter, upon further insertion of slide member portions  72  and  74  into connector body  20 , the ramp surfaces  102  of the engagement tabs  100  momentarially resiliently displace flexure beams  98  as is illustrated in phantom.  
         [0051]     An additional wire harness  14  strain relief feature can be provided by a radially inwardly directed crimping extension  168  illustrated in  FIG. 5  in phantom integrally formed with wire cover portion  70  which, upon final assembly mechanically engages wire harness  14  by compression.  
         [0052]     Once the slide member/wire cover  24  is fully inserted into its final assembly position wherein abutment surfaces  80  and  82  contact the top surface  36  of connector body  20 , engagement tabs  100  spring outwardly, returning flexure beams  98  to their initial relaxed position. Insodoing, tabs  100  project into side openings  114  and  116  formed in rear and front lateral extensions  44  and  46 , respectively, of connector body  20 . When slide member/wire cover  24  is in the fully inserted position as illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 4 , abutment surfaces  104  of engagement tabs  100  contact respective mating abutment surfaces  118 , preventing removal of any portion of slide member/wire cover  24  from its assembled position.  
         [0053]     Upon installation of slide member/wire cover  24 , the wire cover portion substantially covers the top surface  60  of the terminal carrier  22 , as well as the terminal receiving passageways  56  and any wire segments emerging there from. Each terminal receiving passageway  56  has a characteristic line of elongation designated L-L. As individual electrical conductors  12  are gathered to form harness  14 , they are offset to follow a line of elongation designated R-R of wire cover portion  70  and exit assembly  10  through second open end  108 . Line of elongation L-L is substantially angularly offset from line of elongation R-R. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, this offset is a right angle. However, other angular offsets could be employed depending upon the application.  
         [0054]     In the preferred embodiment of the invention, although all conductors  12  are dressed in the same direction along line of elongation R-R, they could alternatively be separated into two groupings or harnesses, with one grouping exiting first open end  106  and the second grouping exiting the second open end  108 .  
         [0055]     Referring to  FIG. 5 , the female connector portion  18  of assembly  10  includes a base portion  120 , integral side wall portions  122  and  124 , front wall portion  126  and rear wall portion  51  collectively defining cavity  38 . Base portion  120  defines an array of through passageways  128  which register with related similarly dimensioned through passageways  130  in bottom surface  34  of connector body  20  as well as related through passageways  56  in terminal carrier  22 . Through passageways  128  and  130  each have characteristic lines of elongation, which are mutually aligned with L-L. Thus, upon assembly, passageways  56 ,  130  and  128  cooperate to form an array of through passageways for each electrical terminal  58 .  
         [0056]     As best viewed in  FIG. 5 , male spade type electrical terminals  132  are each mechanically and electrically affixed to the end of an associated individual electrical conductor  134  which has its end stripped of insulation. Each terminal  132  is then inserted upwardly into an associated passageway  128  through the bottom surface  136  of base portion  120  until an integral tang formed in each terminal  132  registers and releasably engages a recess feature formed within associated passageway  128 . The individual conductors  134  are then gathered into a generally parallel arrangement to form a harness (not illustrated).  
         [0057]     Male terminals  132  are elongated and extend upwardly above base portion  120 , each passing through an associated passageway  130  in bottom surface  34  of connector body  20  and entering registering passageway  56  of terminal carrier  22 . Insodoing, the uppermost end of male terminal  132  electrically couples with its associated female terminal  58  to place electrical conductor  12  in circuit with electrical conductor  134 . It is contemplated that watertight seals (not illustrated) can be provided.  
         [0058]     Referring to  FIG. 10 , an alternative embodiment of an integral slide member/wire cover  138  is illustrated which is similar in structure and function to slide member/wire cover  24  described hereinabove in all material respects, but for the following exceptions. Slide member/wire cover  138  comprises two discrete spaced parallel slide member portions  140  and  142  integrally formed with a semi-cylindrical wire cover portion  144 . One end  146  of wire cover portion  144  defines an opening similar to opening  108  of the preferred embodiment of the invention but which is the sole routing available for exiting electrical conductors. The opposite end  148  of wire cover portion  144  is sealed by a quartered spherically shaped closure portion  150  integrally formed with wire cover  144 .  
         [0059]     Referring to  FIG. 11 , an additional alternative embodiment of an integral slide member/wire cover  152  is illustrated which is similar in structure and function to slide member/wire cover  24  described hereinabove in all material respects, but for the following exceptions. Slide member/wire cover  152  comprises two discrete spaced parallel slide member portions  154  and  156  integrally formed with a semi-cylindrical wire cover portion  158 . A first end  160  of wire cover portion  158  defines an opening similar to opening  108  of the preferred embodiment of the invention and an opposed second end  162  of wire cover portion  158  defines an opening similar to opening  106  of the preferred embodiment of the invention. A third opening  164  is formed in the outer surface of wire cover portion  158  intermediate its ends  160  and  162 . The third opening  164  has a characteristic axis of symmetry designated by arrow  166  which, in application, is angularly offset from the terminal receiving passageway  56  axis of elongation L-L described hereinabove.  
         [0060]     It is to be understood that the invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments and variations to provide the features and advantages previously described and that the embodiments are susceptible of modification as will be apparent to those skilled in the art.  
         [0061]     Furthermore, it is contemplated that many alternative, common inexpensive materials can be employed to construct the basic constituent components. Accordingly, the forgoing is not to be construed in a limiting sense.  
         [0062]     The invention has been described in an illustrative manner, and it is to be understood that the terminology, which has been used is intended to be in the nature of words of description rather than of limitation.  
         [0063]     Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. For example, although the preferred embodiment of the invention has been described as interconnecting pairs of insulated electrically conductive wires, it could also be employed to join fiber optic cable pairs, fluid carrying conduits and the like. Additionally, although the use of two self-locking slide members integrally formed with the wire cover is preferred, it is contemplated that a single slide member integrally formed with the wire cover could be employed in certain applications. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, wherein reference numerals are merely for illustrative purposes and convenience and are not in any way limiting, the invention, which is defined by the following claims as interpreted according to the principles of patent law, including the Doctrine of Equivalents, may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.