Patent Publication Number: US-2016226204-A1

Title: Electrical connector

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The application claims priority from Taiwan Patent Application No. 103218337 filed on Oct. 16, 2014, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a Universal Serial Bus (USB) connector, and particularly to a USB type-C electrical connector. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     The USB connector is currently one of the commonly used types of connectors. An existing USB connector includes a plastic insulating body with an insertion slot arranged thereon. Inside the insertion slot are arranged several conducting terminals which are disposed on the surface of the insulating body evenly or zigzag aligned, or with variable intervals. A metal casing covers the insulating body to strengthen the structure of the connector, so that the connector will not easily deform under external force. However, such a metal casing may only cover around a circumference of the insertion slot on the insulating body. Besides, the trend of minimizing the size of connectors and maximizing their overall functions further demand downsizing of their components. Consequently, components of connectors are fragile and thin. Particularly, in the case of a compact USB type-C connector, when a male connector and a female socket connect to each other, a rim opening of the insertion slot on the insulating body which receives force is entirely unprotected. If force is inappropriately exerted or the angle of the opposing connection is deflected, the connector may easily crack or be damaged at the rim opening of the connector. As a USB connector is a transmission interface between electronic devices, it has to endure tens of thousands of plugging, unplugging, and oppression during its service life. Without a stable structure and proper protection, a connector will have reduced overall durability. After repeated plugging and unplugging, the insulating body and the casing may start to loosen, fall off, and be damaged. If conducting terminals for transmitting signals are arranged on a circumference of the insulating body, the stability of signal transmission will be seriously affected. As circuit layouts of connectors get more and more complicated and their functions gradually improve, increasing demand in stability and convenience cannot be ignored. With appropriate and practical components, the present invention may achieve an advantage of keeping signal transmission stable. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In view of the foregoing considerations, a primary purpose of the present invention is to provide a connector for application to various electronic devices that may be installed on a circuit board to perform high-speed signal transmission with such advantages as stable signal transmission and durability. 
     To achieve the foregoing purpose, the electrical connector of the present invention includes at least an insulating body with an insertion slot for other connectors to be correspondingly inserted thereinto. On two sides in the insertion slot are respectively arranged a set of a plurality of conducting terminals of a same specification, with positive and negative terminals opposing each other. The insulating body is covered with a metal casing with a front edge at its one end backbending inwards to form an engagement part for covering a rim opening of the insertion slot and for fixedly engaging a recession formed on an inner side of the insertion slot from the rim opening inwards. 
     Compared to the prior art, the present invention provides a metal casing covering around a circumference of the insulating body which extends in a direction of a rim opening at a front edge of an insertion slot and backbends inwards into the insertion slot. The metal casing covers a rim opening at a front edge of the insertion slot and strengthens the durability and crashproofness of a connector. In addition, a circumference of the insertion slot is arranged to nestle closely to the metal casing. Support of the metal casing keeps a plurality of conducting terminals disposed on two sides of the insertion slot stable and ensures stable signal transmission. Preferred embodiments according to the present invention are described below in conjunction with the accompanying figures. The accompanying figures are only for reference and description without limiting the scope of the present invention. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a three-dimensional exploded view of a first preferred embodiment according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an assembly schematic view of a first preferred embodiment according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a cut-away schematic view of a first preferred embodiment according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a three-dimensional exploded view of a second preferred embodiment according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is an assembly schematic view of a second preferred embodiment according to the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Please refer to  FIG. 1 . A three-dimensional exploded view of a first preferred embodiment according to the present invention is shown. Refer to other figures too. As the figures show, the present invention includes primarily an insulating body  1 , a plurality of conducting terminals  2 , and a metal casing  3 . An end of the insulating body  1  has an insertion slot  11  in the shape of a mouth for other connectors to be correspondingly inserted thereinto. On two side walls in the insertion slot  11  is a terminal slot  12  for accommodating a plurality of conducting terminals  2 . The terminal slot  12  communicates with the insertion slot  11 . A recession  14  lower than the inner side surface of the insertion slot  11  is arranged inside the insertion slot  11  from a rim opening  13  inwards. The recession  14  of the present embodiment is arranged to indent in a completely annular shape along the rim opening  13  on a circumference of the insertion slot  11 . The plurality of conducting terminal  2  is made of metal pressed and tailored into shape. Each of the conducting terminals is formed in the shape of a straight bar for being arranged to form two juxtaposing rows of sets of conducting terminals. The plurality of conducting terminals  2  conform to a specification of terminals of a standard USB Type-C female electrical connector. The metal casing  3  is a hollow annular structure made of metal that may cover a circumference of the insulating body  1 . At a front edge at an end of the metal casing  3  is disposed an engagement part  31  that backbends inwards in a direction of the hollow annular shape. The engagement part of the present embodiment is arranged to backbend inwards in a completely annularly shape to correspondingly engage the recession  14  arranged to indent in a completely annular shape along the rim opening  13  on an inner side of the insertion slot  11 . 
     During assembly, the plurality of conducting terminals  2  are respectively secured in the terminal slot  12  on two sides of the insertion slot  11  on the insulating body  1 , with positive and negative terminals opposing each other. The metal casing  3  accommodates and covers the insulating body  1  in its hollow annular shape. The engagement part  31  of the metal casing  3  that backbends inwards in a direction of the hollow annular shape precisely and correspondingly covers the rim opening  13  at a front edge of the insertion slot  11  (as  FIG. 2  shows) and fixedly engage the recession  14  that is arranged to indent inwards from the rim opening  13  on an inner side of the insertion slot  11  on the insulating body  1 . The depth in which the recession  14  indents in a direction of the insulating body  11  is equivalent to the thickness of the engagement part  31 . The surface of the engagement part  31  that backbends and is secured to the recession  14  of the insertion slot  11  is approximately parallel and of a same height as the surface of an inner side of the insertion slot  11  (as  FIG. 3  shows). 
     In the present invention, the metal casing  3  covering a circumference of the insulating body  1  is arranged to wrap around the rim opening  13  on the insulating body  1  and backbend inwards into the insertion slot  11 . In this manner, the metal casing  3  covers the rim opening  13  on a front edge of the insulating body  1 . Because the rim opening  13  at the most front edge of the insulating body  1  is protected via the covering of the metal casing  3  made of metal, the insulating body is desirably rigid and bears repeated plugging and unplugging. When connecting with other male connectors, even if a user oppresses an electrical connector of the present invention with inappropriately exerted force or the opposing connection is performed at a deflected angle, the electrical connector of the present invention will not easily crack or be damaged. Additionally, because the metal casing  3  does not only cover annularly a circumference of the insulating body  1  but also covers a front end of the insulating body  1  with an engagement part  31  that is arranged to backbend at a front edge of the metal casing  3 , the plurality of conducting terminals  2  located on two sides of the insertion slot  11  may be more solidly positioned on the insulating body  1  and will not easily loosen or come off. Contact among the plurality of conducting terminals  2  is thus ensured to keep signal transmission stable. 
       FIG. 4  shows a three-dimensional exploded view of a second preferred embodiment according to the present invention. The present embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that the recessions  14  on the insulating body are respectively and opposingly disposed on two sides of an inner wall in the insertion slot  11  instead of being arranged in a completely annular shape. The recessions  14  of the present embodiment are located in a position relatively closer to the rim opening  13  at a front of the terminal slot  12 . The engagement parts  31  of the metal casing  3  are respectively formed via having a top and a bottom sides at one end of the metal casing  3  backbend inwards (as shown in  FIG. 5 ) to correspondingly engage the recessions  14  on two sides of an inner wall in the insertion slot  11 . Other assembling methods and utilization efficiency of the present embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment and are therefore not repeated here. 
     As the foregoing description shows, in an electrical connector according to the present invention, a metal casing covering an insulating body extends in a direction of a rim opening at a circumference of the insertion slot and backbends inwards into the insertion slot. In this manner, the metal casing covers the rim opening of the insertion slot and strengthens the durability of the electrical connector. In addition, a circumference of the insertion slot may be closely connected with the metal casing, so that the plurality of conducting terminals on two sides in the insertion slot are kept stable to ensure stable signal transmission among the conducting terminals. In terms of its functions and assembling, an electrical connector according to the present invention is simpler and more convenient than a conventional one.