Abstract:
An electrical connector includes a housing ( 1 ) defining a mating cavity ( 13 ) in a mating face thereof; terminals ( 2 ) loaded in the housing and each having a contact portion ( 21 ) exposed in the mating cavity; a shutter ( 4 ) covering the mating cavity and capable of sinking into the mating cavity to expose the contact portions of the terminals; and an elastic means ( 3 ) disposed between the shutter and the housing and provided with a elongated shaft member ( 33 ) aslant extending into the mating cavity to support the shutter. The shaft member is capable of rotating to a state substantially flatly lying between the housing and the shutter by pressure of the sinking shutter and will urge the sunk shutter to return to cover the mating cavity.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0002]     The present invention relates to an electrical connector with a shutter for use with a peripheral device or the like for a computer.  
         [0003]     2. Description of Related Art  
         [0004]     In peripheral devices for connection to computers, the connector portions of the peripheral devices are often exposed to the outside. It presents a problem that foreign matter may enter the exposed connector portion and adhere to electrical contacts therein. In addition, the electrical contacts in the connector may come into contact with the hands, in which case static electricity or the like can cause damage to electronic circuits, chips and the like in the peripheral device. To protect the electrical connector from foreign matter or static electricity unexpected, it may be provided with a shutter to cover connector.  
         [0005]     U.S. Pat. No. 6,733,311 discloses such a connector with a shutter. In this connector, a shutter is provided to cover the connector, and this shutter slides inside the connector under pressure when the connector is plugged. The shutter of this connector covers the front surface of the connector by support of a coil spring erected between the shutter and the housing when not plugged in. As the spring is erected, it will still perform a sizable height between the shutter and the housing even after being compressed. That can&#39;t meet the ever-increasing requirement of minimization of electrical components.  
         [0006]     To overcome above-motioned problems, a new connector with shutter having an improved mechanism for elastically supporting the shutter is desired.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0007]     An object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector having a shutter and an elastic means for supporting the shutter, the elastic means occupying a very small space in height when compressed.  
         [0008]     Accordingly, to achieve the above object, an electrical connector of present invention includes a housing defining a mating cavity in a mating face thereof; terminals loaded in the housing and each having a contact portion exposed in the mating cavity; a shutter covering the mating cavity and capable of sinking into the mating cavity to expose the contact portions of the terminals; and an elastic means disposed between the shutter and the housing and provided with a elongated shaft member aslant extending into the mating cavity to support the shutter. The shaft member is capable of rotating to a state substantially flatly lying between the housing and the shutter by pressure of the sinking shutter and will urge the sunk shutter to return to cover the mating cavity.  
         [0009]     Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0010]      FIG. 1  is an exploded perspective view of an electrical connector having a shutter and an elastic means for supporting the shutter in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0011]      FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view of the connector of  FIG. 1  taken from a top perspective;  
         [0012]      FIG. 3  is an assembled perspective view of the connector of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0013]      FIG. 4  is a partial magnified view of the connector of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0014]      FIG. 5  is a partial magnified view of the connector of  FIG. 2 ;  
         [0015]      FIG. 6  is a view similar to that of  FIG. 5 , but the spring means is removed;  
         [0016]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view showing the spring means of  FIG. 1 ; and  
         [0017]      FIG. 8  shows the shutter of  FIG. 1  from two opposite perspectives respectively. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0018]     Reference will now be made to the drawing figures to describe the present invention in detail.  
         [0019]     Referring to  FIG. 1 , an electrical connector  100  in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises a longitudinal housing  1 , a plurality of terminals  2  loaded in the housing  1 , a shutter  4  to cover the housing  1 , an elastic means  3  for supporting the shutter  4 , and a shielding shell  5  to be attached to a periphery of the housing  1 .  
         [0020]     The housing  1  comprises a main portion  11  and two end portions  12  along the longitudinal direction. Each end portion  12  defines a guiding hole  120  therein for guiding a mating connector. The main portion  11  defines a mating cavity  13  therein for receiving a mating portion of the mating connector. The mating cavity  13  has a pair of tongues  14  integrally protruding from a bottom  130  (shown in  FIG. 5 ) thereof. The pair of tongues  14  parallel to each other along the longitudinal direction. Each of the terminals  2  loaded in the housing  1  has a solder foot  22  (shown in  FIG. 3 ) extending down to be soldered to a printed circuit board (not shown), and a contact portion  21  attached to the tongue  14 . The contact portions  21  are arranged on the side faces of the tongues  14 , spaced from each other. In the mating cavity  13 , there is a space by each longitudinal end of the tongues  14  to form a receiving room  131  for accommodating the elastic means  3 .  
         [0021]     Referring to  FIG. 7 , the elastic means  3  comprises a retaining portion  31 , an elastic portion  32 , and a shaft member  33 . The elastic portion  32  is a coil spring lying down in this preferred embodiment. Coiling of the coil spring  32  comes to a halt in the middle to form a II-shaped shaft member  33  which is straight protruding therefrom. That is to say that the coil spring  32  is configured into two coiled parts joined by the II-shaped shaft member  33 . The retaining portion  31  is a pair of retaining legs parallel coming from two ends of the coil spring  32 . The shaft member  33  and the retaining legs  31  are disposed at the same side of the coil spring  32 , but the shaft member  33  aslant protruding upwards from a top of coils, the retaining legs  31  flatly coming from a bottom of coils. Each retaining leg  31  is bent into two parallel sects, wherein the end sect  312  is leveled upper than the foot sect  311  to a level of the top of the coils.  
         [0022]     As the housing  1  is of a symmetrical structure, we will take one half thereof in the right to detailedly describe the arrangement of the elastic means  3  in the housing  1 . Referring to  FIGS. 4-6 , the elastic means  3  is placed into the mating cavity  13  with the coil spring  32  disposed in the receiving room  131  to lie perpendicularly by the end of the tongues  14 , the shaft member  33  extending into the space between the two tongues  14 , and the retaining legs  31  respectively extending into spaces between tongues  14  and sidewalls of the mating cavity  13 .  
         [0023]     As best shown in  FIG. 6 , for fitly receiving the elastic means  3 , the bottom  130  of the mating cavity  13  defines a pair of elongated slots  31 ′ for accommodating the retaining legs  31 , and a recess  33 ′ for receiving the shaft member  33  after the shaft member  33  rotated to lying down. Each of the elongated slots  31 ′ is of a step-like shape comprising a deep sect and a shallow sect respectively corresponding to the foot sect  311  and the end sect  312  of the retaining leg  31 . As it is the end sect  312  that abuts against the housing  1  thereunder to take the pressure when the shaft member  33  is under a pressure, to dispose the end sect  312  in the shallow sect to be a little remoter from an under surface of the housing  1  will prevent the housing  1  thereunder from breaking in some sense. Wherein the deepness of the shallow sect of the elongated slots  31 ′ is just right to make the end sect  312  received therein be flush with the bottom  130  of the mating cavity  13 . Alike, the recess  33 ′ has a size of deepness to make the shaft member  33  lying therein be flush with the bottom  130  of the mating cavity  13 . Otherwise, the receiving room  131  is deepened a little from the mating cavity  13  to make the coil spring  32  lying thereon be flush with the bottom  130  of the mating cavity  13 . Thus, as best shown in  FIG. 5 , the elastic means  3  is disposed as if it is embedded in the bottom  130  of the mating cavity  13  only to expose a top surface while the shaft member  33  thereof lying down. That makes a whole bottom surface of the mating cavity  13  approximately be a flat surface. So that when the shutter  4  sinks in the mating cavity  13  to the bottom  130  thereof, the shutter  4  can abut upon the bottom  130  closely, detail of which will be described hereafter.  
         [0024]     In addition, for preventing the coil spring  32  from rolling, there is a pair of brackets  32 ′ formed in the receiving room  131  for holding the coil spring  32 . For strengthening the coil spring  13 , an elongated axis  34  is inserted from a through hole  111  in one side of the housing  1  into the hollow center of the coil spring  32  defined by the coils thereof to be retained in the other side of the housing  1 , as best shown in  FIG. 4 .  
         [0025]     Referring to  FIG. 1  again, the shutter  4  is a longitudinal, flat plate comprising a main plate  41 , two pairs of middle-ears  43  extending sideward from middle part of the main plate  41 , and two pairs of end-ears  42  respectively extending sideward from ends of the main plate  41 . The main plate  41  defines a pair of passageways  44  for the tongues  14  to pass through. Corresponding to the ears  42 ,  43  of the shutter  4 , the housing  1  defines guiding apertures  112 ,  113  in the sidewalls of the mating cavity  13 . The guiding apertures  112 ,  113  communicate with the mating cavity  13  and have the same deepness with the mating cavity  13 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , when the shutter  4  covers the mating cavity  13  of the housing  1 , the ears  42 ,  43  are respectively received in the guiding apertures  112 ,  113 .  
         [0026]     Referring to  FIG. 8  together, the forming of the passageways  44  divides the main plate  41  into three stripes. A bottom surface  411  of the middle stripe serves as a slideway for the free ends  331  of the shaft members  33  while the shutter  4  sinking. On the surface  411  there is a pair of ribs  412  formed at ends thereof. The ribs  412  hold the free ends  331  of the shaft members  33  to stop them from sliding when the shutter  4  is covering the mating cavity  13  before sinking.  
         [0027]     Now we can see that the shutter  4  supported by the shaft member  33  of the elastic means  3  is covering the mating cavity  13  of the connector  100  primitively. Then when the mating connector is brought to engage with this connector  100 , a mating portion of a mating connector is plugged into the mating cavity  13  to press the shutter  4  to sink into the mating cavity  13  to the bottom  130  thereof, to expose the contact portions  21  of the terminals  2  on the tongues  14  to electrically contact conductors of the mating connector. In this process, the shaft member  33  is pressed to rotate down till it flatly lie in the recess  33 ′ on the bottom  130  of the mating cavity  13 . The shaft member  33  flatly lies thereon, occupying a very little space between the sunk shutter  4  and the housing  1  thereunder, until the mating connector is withdrew. When the mating connector is withdrew, the mating cavity  13  is not plugged in, the shutter  4  and the shaft member  33  of the elastic member  3  return to the primitive state. During the whole process, the ears  42 ,  43  respectively moving up and down in the guiding apertures  112 ,  113  corresponding to floating and sinking of the shutter  4 .  
         [0028]     Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 3 , the connector  100  further comprises a shield shell  5  attached to exterior sides of the main portion  11  of the housing  1  with its legs  54  and notches  55  respectively engaging with slots  116  and tubers  117  on the housing  1 . The shield shell  5  has a plurality of hook-like fingers  52 ,  53  to hitch the housing  1  respectively at recesses  114 ,  115  on the housing  1 , and two pair of bars  51  respectively at ends thereof, bending over the apertures  112  of the housing  1  to stop the end ears  42  from jumping out while the shutter  4  being urged to float up by the shaft member  33 , thereby to secure the shutter  4  to cover the mating cavity  13  of housing  1 .  
         [0029]     The disclosure is illustrative only, changes may made in detail, especially in matter of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention. For example, the elastic portion  32  of the elastic means  3  would be simply a flexible arc or the like joining the retaining portion  31  and the shaft member  33 .