Patent Publication Number: US-9413098-B2

Title: Waterproof electronic receptacle connector

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This non-provisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) on Patent Application No. 103203362 filed in Taiwan, R.O.C. on Feb. 26, 2014, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The disclosure relates to an electronic receptacle connector, and particularly to a waterproof electronic receptacle connector. 
     BACKGROUND 
     USB, universal serial bus, is a common electronic connector interface applied to electronic devices. In order to be smaller and portable, a micro USB electrical connector is developed, which is usually equipped with a connection hole and a corresponding transmission line for various portable electronic apparatuses such as a smart mobile communications device and a digital camera. 
     Conventionally, a Micro USB electronic connector includes an insulation housing and a tongue plate structure formed at the front portion of the insulation housing, a plurality of terminals is configured on the insulation housing and the tongue plate structure, and a hollow shell encloses the insulation housing and the tongue plate structure. In order to prevent moisture entering from one side of the hollow shell into another side of the hollow shell, a sealing material, such as a waterproof adhesive bulk with large area, is applied to cover the rear portion of the insulation housing, so that the sealing material is filled into the gaps between the hollow shell, the insulation housing and the plurality of terminals, to ensure the electronic connector is waterproof. 
     However, the cost of the conventional sealing material is high; additionally, the sealing material is commonly available in a liquid form, for forming the waterproof adhesive bulk in larger areas, so the sealing material requires a drying procedure for a longer time, resulting into additional costs for the manufacturer. Consequently, there is an urgent need for the manufacturers of the electronic connector to solve the drawbacks raised by the conventional. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In view of this, the disclosure provides a waterproof electronic receptacle connector in which the amount of the sealing material is reduced and moisture is prevented from entering the interior of the waterproof electronic receptacle connector, to solve the problems met by the conventional. 
     The disclosure provide a waterproof electronic receptacle connector including a plastic-core housing, an insulation housing, a plurality of terminals, a waterproof ring gasket and a sealing material (for example, waterproof adhesive bulk). The plastic-core housing includes a through hole. The insulation housing is configured in the through hole, and includes a base and a tongue plate. The base includes an inner side plane and an outer side plane. The inner side plane faces toward the through hole, and the outer side plane faces toward an outside of the through hole. The tongue plate is extended from the inner side plane. The plurality of terminals is passing through the base. Each of the plurality of terminals includes a contacting end and a welding end connected to the contacting end. The contacting end is extended from the tongue plate, and the welding end is extruded from the outer side plane. The waterproof ring gasket is abutted between the base and an inner wall of the through hole. The sealing material is formed on parts of the outer side plane to fill gaps between the plurality of terminals and the base. The area of the sealing material formed on the outer side plane is smaller than the area of the outer side plane. 
     The disclosure also provides a waterproof electronic receptacle connector including a plastic-core housing, an insulation housing, a plurality of terminal grooves, a plurality of terminals, a waterproof ring gasket and a sealing material (for example, waterproof adhesive bulk). The plastic-core housing includes a through hole. The insulation housing is configured in the through hole and includes a base and a tongue plate. The base includes an inner side plane and an outer side plane. The inner side plane faces toward the through hole, and the outer side plane faces toward an outside of the through hole. The tongue plate is extended from the inner side plane. The plurality of terminal grooves passes through the base to communicate with the inner side plane and the outer side plane. The plurality of terminals is configured in the plurality of terminal grooves, respectively. Each of the plurality terminals includes a contacting end and a welding end. The contacting end is extended from the tongue plate, and the welding end is extruded from the outer side plane. The waterproof ring gasket is abutted against the base and an inner wall of the through hole. The sealing material is formed on parts of the outer side plane to fill gaps between the welding ends and the plurality of terminal grooves. The area of the sealing material formed on the outer side plane is smaller than the area of the outer side plane. 
     The disclosure further provides a waterproof electronic receptacle connector including a plastic-core housing, an insulation housing, a plurality of terminals, a waterproof ring gasket and a sealing material (for example, waterproof adhesive bulk). The plastic-core housing includes a through hole. The insulation housing is configured in the through hole and includes a base, a tongue plate, a plurality of protruding blocks and a gluing slot. The base includes an inner side plane and an outer side plane. The inner side plane faces toward the through hole, and the outer side plane faces toward an outside of the through hole. The tongue plate is extended from the inner side plane. The plurality of protruding blocks is configured on the base. The gluing slot is configured on the base and includes a plurality of extended recessions respectively corresponding to two sides of the plurality of protruding blocks. The plurality of terminals passes through the base. One faces of the plurality of terminals respectively abutted against the plurality of protruding blocks. Each of the plurality of terminals includes a contacting end and a welding end connected to the contacting end. The contacting end is extended from the tongue plate, and the welding end is extruded from the outer side plane. The waterproof ring gasket is abutted against the base and an inner wall of the through hole. The sealing material is formed in the gluing slot and the plurality of extended recessions to enclose the plurality of terminals. 
     The disclosure further provides a waterproof electronic receptacle connector including a plastic-core housing, an insulation housing, a plurality of terminal grooves, a plurality of terminals, a waterproof ring gasket and a sealing material (for example, waterproof adhesive bulk). The plastic-core housing includes a through hole. The insulation housing is configured in the through hole and includes a base, a tongue plate, a plurality of protruding blocks and a gluing slot. The base includes an inner side plane and an outer side plane. The inner side plane faces toward the through hole, and the outer side plane faces toward an outside of the through hole. The tongue plate is extended from the inner side plane. The plurality of protruding blocks is configured on the base. The gluing slot is configured on the base and includes a plurality of extended recessions respectively corresponds to two sides of the plurality of protruding blocks. The plurality of terminal grooves passes through the base to communicate with the inner side plane and the outer side plane. One faces of the plurality of terminals respectively abutted against the plurality of protruding blocks. Each of the plurality of terminals includes a contacting end and a welding end connected to the contacting end. The contacting end is extended form the tongue plate, and the welding end is extruded from the outer side plane. The waterproof ring gasket is abutted against the base and an inner wall of the through hole. The sealing material is formed in the gluing slot and the plurality of extended recessions to enclose the plurality of terminals. 
     As above, in this disclosure the waterproof ring gasket is abutted against the base and the inner wall of through hole so as to prevent the moisture from entering into the interior of the electronic device from the outside of the base and the gaps between the inner wall of the through hole, and the sealing material, such as the waterproof adhesive bulk, is formed on the outer side plane to fill in the gaps between the welding ends and the plurality of terminals. Additionally, even if the area of the sealing material formed on the outer side plane is smaller than the area of the outer side plane, the moisture is prevented from entering into the interior of the electronic device through the through hole. A relative less amount of sealing material is applied to form on the outer side plane as compared to conventional to provide the waterproof function; additionally, the drying time for solidifying the sealing material is reduced. Alternatively, instead of forming on the outer side plane, the sealing material is applied in the gluing slot of the base to fill the gaps between the plurality of terminals and the base, thereby preventing the moisture from entering into the interior of the electronic device through the through hole. 
     The detailed features and advantages of the disclosure are described below in great detail through the following embodiments, the content of the detailed description is sufficient for those skilled in the art to understand the technical content of the disclosure and to implement the disclosure there accordingly. Based on the content of the specification, the claims, and the drawings, those skilled in the art can easily understand the relevant objectives and advantages of the disclosure. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The disclosure will become more fully understood from the detailed description given herein below for illustration only and thus not limitative of the disclosure, wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a waterproof electronic receptacle connector of a first embodiment of the disclosure; 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the waterproof electronic receptacle connector of the first embodiment of the disclosure; 
         FIG. 3  is another exploded view of the waterproof electronic receptacle connector of the first embodiment of the disclosure; 
         FIG. 4A  is a lateral cross sectional view of the waterproof electronic receptacle connector of the first embodiment of the disclosure; 
         FIG. 4B  is another lateral cross sectional view of the waterproof electronic receptacle connector of the first embodiment of the disclosure; 
         FIG. 5  is a lateral cross sectional view of a waterproof electronic receptacle connector of a second embodiment of the disclosure; and 
         FIG. 6  is a front cross sectional view of the waterproof electronic receptacle connector of the second embodiment of the disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Please refer to  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 2 ,  FIG. 3 , and  FIG. 4A , which illustrate a waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100  of a first embodiment of the disclosure and are respectively a perspective view, an exploded view, another exploded view and a lateral cross sectional view of the waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100 . The waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100  is a Micro USB or a Mini USB electronic connector, but embodiments are not limited thereto. 
     The waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100  is applicable for mobile telecommunication devices, notebooks, digital cameras or other electronic devices. In this embodiment, the waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100  includes a plastic-core housing  11 , an insulation housing  21 , a plurality of terminal grooves  25 , a plurality of terminals  41 , a waterproof ring gasket  51 , and a sealing material  61  (such as a waterproof adhesive bulk). 
     The plastic-core housing  11  is a plastic hollowed housing. A through hole  12  is formed inside of the plastic-core housing  11 . The through hole  12  includes a front inserting hole  121  and a rear inserting hole  122 . The diameter of the front inserting hole  121  is smaller than that of the rear inserting hole  122 , or a cross sectional area of the front inserting hole  121  is smaller than that of the rear inserting hole  122 . Additionally, the plastic-core housing  11  further includes an abutting plane  14  configured on an inner wall of the through hole  12 . Here, the abutting plane  14  is formed by the different height between the front inserting hole  121  and the rear inserting hole  122  with different diameters, or is formed by the cross sectional area differences between the front inserting hole  121  and the rear inserting hole  122  with different cross sectional areas. 
     The insulation housing  21  is configured in the through hole  12 , wherein the insulation housing  21  includes a base  22  and a tongue plate  23 . The tongue plate  23  is extended from one side of the base  22 . The tongue plate  23  and the base  22  are formed integrally as a whole. The front portion of the base  22  includes an inner side plane  221 , and the rear portion of the base  22  includes an outer side plane  222 . The inner side plane  221  is faced toward the through hole  12 , and the outer side plane  222  is faced toward an outside of the through hole  12 . The tongue plate  23  is a plate with long and flat outline and extended outwardly from the inner side plane  221 . Additionally, the base  22  further includes an indentation  224  configured on an outer periphery between the inner side plane  221  and the outer side plane  222 . In this embodiment, the plurality of terminal grooves  25  is passing through the base  22  to communicate with the inner side plane  221  and the outer side plane  222 . 
     The plurality of terminals  41  is configured in the plurality of terminal grooves  25  respectively. Each of the plurality of terminals  41  includes a contacting end  411  and a welding end  412  respectively formed at two ends thereof, wherein the contacting end  411  is connected to the welding end  412 . The contacting ends  411  are extended from one face of the tongue plate  23 , and the welding ends  412  are extruded from the outer side plane  222 . 
     The waterproof ring gasket  51  is a plastic O-ring and is abutted between the base  22  and an inner wall of the through hole  12 . In this embodiment, the waterproof ring gasket  51  is fitted in the indentation  224  of the base  22  with parts thereof received in the indentation  224  and rest parts thereof exposed out of the indentation  224 . 
     The sealing material  61  is formed on the outer side plane  222  and fills gaps between the plurality of terminal grooves  25  and the welding ends  412 . 
     When the sealing material  61  is going to be formed on the outer side plane  222 , the outer side plane  222  is placed horizontally, and the liquid sealing material  61  (when the sealing material  61  is not solidified yet, the sealing material  61  is in liquid form) is applied in the gaps between the welding ends  412  and the plurality of terminal grooves  25 . After the liquid sealing material underwent a drying process, the sealing material  61  is formed on the outer side plane  222  with the shape thereof being confined. The area of the sealing material  61  with confined shape formed on the outer side plane  222  is smaller than the area of the outer side plane  222 . Thereby, when the outer side plane  222  is placed vertically along with the sealing material  61  having confined shape, the sealing material  61  does not move freely to expose the gaps between the welding ends  412  and the plurality of terminal grooves  25 . Additionally, because of the sealing material  61  filled in the gaps between the welding ends  412  and the plurality of terminal grooves  25 , outer moisture cannot enter into the interior of the electronic device to which the waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100  is connected with, through the gaps between the welding ends  412  and the plurality of terminal grooves  25 . That is, the moisture can now only enter into the interior of the electronic device through the path between the front inserting hole  121  and the rear inserting hole  122 . 
     When the waterproof ring gasket  51  is fitted on the base  22 , parts of the waterproof ring gasket  51  are exposed out of the base  22 . Thereby, the insulation housing  21  is inserted into the front inserting hole  121  from the rear inserting hole  122  with an installing direction P 1 , as shown in  FIG. 3  and  FIG. 4A , so that the abutting plane  14  of the plastic-core housing  11  is abutted against parts of the inner side plane  221 , and the waterproof ring gasket  51  is abutted between the base  22  and the inner wall of the through hole  12 , thereby ensuring the waterproof ring gasket  51  which is securely attached with the base  22  prevents the moisture from entering into the interior of the electronic device through the path between the front inserting hole  121  and the rear inserting hole  122 . 
     In this embodiment, the base  22  includes the indentation  224  for sleeving with the waterproof ring gasket  51 , but embodiments are not limited thereto; in some implementation aspects, the plastic-core housing  11  further includes a groove  15  configured on the inner wall of the through hole  12  to fit with the waterproof ring gasket  51 , as shown in  FIG. 4B . After the base  22  is configured in the through hole  12 , the waterproof ring gasket  51  is securely attached with the base  22  and the inner wall of the through hole  12 . Additionally, the waterproof ring gasket  51  is assembled in the groove  15  of the plastic-core housing  11 , or is formed on the inner wall of the through hole  12  upon injection-molding the plastic-core housing  11 . 
     The waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100  further includes a casing  71 . The casing  71  encloses the tongue plate  23  of the insulation housing  21  and is configured in the through hole  12 . The casing  71  reduces the electromagnetic interferences when the plurality of terminals  41  is transmitting signals. Furthermore, the casing  71  includes a plurality of buckles  711  bent therefrom and fastened with the base  22  of the insulation housing  21 . 
     In the previous embodiment, the plurality of terminal grooves  25  is provided and the plurality of terminals  41  is configured in the plurality of terminal grooves  25  and passing through the base  22 , but embodiments are not limited thereto; in some implementation aspects, the insulation housing  21  and the plurality of terminals  41  are formed integrally as a whole. The method, such as insert molding, over molding, other molding techniques or the combinations thereof, can be used for forming the components integrally, which is not used to limit the present invention. In this case, the plurality of terminal grooves  25  is omitted, and the plurality of terminals  41  is directly passing through the base  22 . However, since the thermal expansion coefficients between the terminal  41  made of metal and the insulation housing  21  made of plastic are different, when the waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100  is heated during manufacturing processes, for example, during the tin furnace procedure, gaps are generated between the plurality of terminals  41  and the insulation housing  21 , thereby providing insufficient waterproof performance. Therefore, the sealing material  61  mentioned above, such as the waterproof adhesive bulk, is also applied to form on the outer side plane  222  of the waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100  with the insulation housing  21  being integrally formed with the plurality of terminals  41 , wherein the sealing material  61  is filled in the gaps between the welding ends  412  and the base  22 , and the area of the sealing material  61  formed on the outer side plane  222  is smaller than the area of the outer side plane  222 . 
     Please refer to  FIG. 5  and  FIG. 6 , which illustrate a waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100  of a second embodiment.  FIG. 5  is a lateral cross sectional view of the waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100  of the second embodiment, and  FIG. 6  is a front cross sectional view of the waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100  of the second embodiment. The structure of the second embodiment is approximately the same as that of the first embodiment, except that in the second embodiment, the sealing material  61  is formed on the base  22  to fill gaps between the plurality of terminals  41  (but not at positions of the welding ends  412 ) and the plurality of terminal grooves  25 . Here, the insulation housing  21  further includes a plurality of protruding blocks  26  and a gluing slot  27 . The plurality of protruding blocks  26  is configured on the base  22 . One faces of the plurality of terminals  41  are respectively abutted against the plurality of protruding blocks  26 . The gluing slot  27  is configured on the base  22 . The gluing slot  27  is inwardly formed on a top plane  22   a  of the base  22  after the base  22  is injection-molded, as shown in  FIG. 5 , but embodiments are not limited thereto; in some implementation aspects, the gluing slot  27  is inwardly formed on a bottom plane  22   b  of the base  22  after the base  22  is injection-molded. 
     The gluing slot  27  includes a plurality of extended recessions  271  configured on a bottom wall thereof. The plurality of extended recessions  271  is extended toward the bottom plane  22   b  of the base  22 . Distance between bottom walls of the plurality of extended recessions  271  and the bottom plane  22   b  of the base  22  is smaller than distance between the plurality of terminals  41  and the bottom plane  22   b  of the base  22 . Furthermore, the plurality of extended recessions  271  corresponds to two sides of the plurality of protruding blocks  26 , respectively. Thereby, after the liquid sealing material  61  was applied in the gluing slot  27  and underwent the drying process, the sealing material  61  which is solidified and formed in the gluing slot  27  and the plurality of extended recessions  271  to enclose the plurality of terminals  41 . That is, the one faces of the plurality of terminals  41  are respectively abutted against the plurality of protruding blocks  26 , and the other three faces of the plurality of terminals  41  are enclosed by the sealing material  61 . Consequently, the gaps between the plurality of terminals  41  and the plurality of terminal grooves  25  in the gluing slot  27  are filled with the sealing material  61 . 
     Similar to the previous embodiments, in the second embodiment, the plurality of terminal grooves  25  is provided and the plurality of terminals  41  is configured in the plurality of terminal grooves  25  and passing through the base  22 , but embodiments are not limited thereto; in some implementation aspects, the insulation housing  21  and the plurality of terminals  41  are formed integrally as a whole. The method, such as insert molding, over molding, other molding techniques or the combinations thereof, can be used for forming the components integrally, which is not used to limit the present invention. In this case, the plurality of terminal grooves  25  is absent, and the plurality of terminals  41  is directly passing through the base  22 . However, since the thermal expansion coefficients between the terminal  41  made of metal and the insulation housing  21  made of plastic are different, when the waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100  is heated during manufacturing processes, for example, during the tin furnace procedure, gaps are generated between the plurality of terminals  41  and the insulation housing  21 , thereby providing insufficient waterproof performance. Therefore, the liquid sealing material  61  is applied in the gluing slot  27  firstly to undergo the drying process so as to be solidified, so that the sealing material  61  which is already solidified is formed in the gluing slot  27  and the plurality of extended recessions  271  to enclose the plurality of terminals  41 . That is, the one faces of the plurality of terminals  41  are respectively abutted against the plurality of protruding blocks  26  and the other three faces of the plurality of terminals  41  are enclosed by the sealing material  61 . Therefore, the gaps between the plurality of terminals  41  and the base  22  are filled with the sealing material  61 . 
     In this disclosure, the waterproof ring gasket  51  is abutted between the base  22  and the inner wall of through hole  12  so as to prevent the moisture entering into the interior of the electronic device from the gaps between the outside of the base  22  and the inner wall of the through hole  12 , wherein the waterproof electronic receptacle connector  100  is assembled to the electronic device. The sealing material  61 , such as the waterproof adhesive bulk, is formed on the outer side plane  222  to fill in the gaps between the welding ends  412  and the plurality of terminals  41 . Furthermore, even if the area of the sealing material  61  formed on the outer side plane  222  is smaller than the area of the outer side plane  222 , the moisture is prevented from entering into the interior of the electronic device through the through hole  12 . A relative less amount of sealing material  61  is applied to form on the outer side plane  222  as compared to conventional to provide the waterproof function; additionally, the drying time for solidifying the sealing material  61  is reduced. Alternatively, instead of forming on the outer side plane  222 , the sealing material  61  is applied in the gluing slot  27  of the base  22  to fill the gaps between the plurality of terminals  41  and the base  22 , thereby preventing the moisture from entering into the interior of the electronic device through the through hole  12 . 
     While the disclosure has been described by the way of example and in terms of the preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention need not be limited to the disclosed embodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims, the scope of which should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar structures.