Patent Publication Number: US-2022224064-A1

Title: Hybrid electrical connector and electrical connector assembly

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of Chinese Patent Application No. 202120103087.0 filed on Jan. 14, 2021, in the State Intellectual Property Office of China, the whole disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a technical field of connectors, in particular to a hybrid electrical connector and an electrical connector assembly. 
     Description of the Related Art 
     In the prior art, an electrical connection is generally achieved by electrical connectors. With the rapid development of electronic products, the requirements of electrical connection are becoming more and more diversified. In particular, in some electromechanical products, such as automobiles, it is necessary to transmit a variety of electrical signals. Because the existing electrical connectors are difficult to transmit a variety of electrical signals, it is necessary to set a variety of electrical connectors, which will undoubtedly greatly increase the production cost and assembly efficiency. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention has been made to overcome or alleviate at least one aspect of the above-mentioned disadvantages. 
     According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a hybrid electrical connector, comprising: a connection body having a mating end, a connecting end, and a mating connection part; and a plurality of connection terminals provided on the connection body, the mating connection part is provided with a mating cavity with an opening at the mating end, one end of the connection terminal extends to the mating end, and the other end extends to the connecting end, the plurality of connection terminals include a first connection terminal and a second connection terminal, the first connection terminal is configured to transmit Ethernet signals, and the second connection terminal is configured to transmit non Ethernet signals. 
     According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the mating connection part forms a single mating cavity, and the plurality of connection terminals are arranged in the mating cavity. 
     According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the mating connection part is protruded at the mating end and adapted to mate with a single mating connector. 
     According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the connection body has a plurality of mating connection parts for mating with different mating connectors, the plurality of mating cavities of the plurality of mating connection parts are separated from each other. 
     According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of mating connection parts are protruded at the mating end and separated from each other; all the first connection terminals are arranged in one of the plurality of mating connection parts and configured to transmit Ethernet signals, and the second connection terminal is configured to transmit at least one of power supply signals and ordinary electrical signals. 
     According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the connection body is provided with two mating connection parts, and the first connection terminal and the second connection terminal correspond to the two mating connection parts, respectively. 
     According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the hybrid electrical connector further comprises a shield provided on the connection body and at least partially surrounding a part of the connection terminals for transmitting Ethernet signals. 
     According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the connection body is an integral molded part which is molded on the connection terminal and the shield in an embedded injection molding manner. 
     According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the shield is U-shaped or ring-shaped in a transverse direction. 
     According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the shield is provided with a ground terminal, and one end of the ground terminal extends to the connecting end. 
     According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the shield is provided with a positioning notch. 
     According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the connection body further comprises a mounting part which protrudes in a radial direction to be fixed on a electronic device; the hybrid electrical connector further comprises a bushing provided on the mounting part, the bushing is used to cooperate with a locking connection component to fix the mounting part on the electronic device; the connection body is an integral molded part which is molded on the bushing in an embedded injection molding manner. 
     According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the hybrid electrical connector further comprises a sealing ring provided on the mounting part, the sealing ring is arranged at the connecting end and around the plurality of connection terminals and the shield. 
     According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electrical connector assembly, comprising: a circuit board; and the above hybrid electrical connector, one ends of the plurality of connection terminals protrude from the connecting end to be connected with the circuit board. 
     According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the electrical connector assembly further comprises a mating connector connected with the hybrid electrical connector at the mating end. 
     Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effect of the hybrid electrical connector provided by the present invention is that the hybrid electrical connector of the present invention is provided with a first connection terminal for transmitting Ethernet signals and a second connection terminal for transmitting non Ethernet signals, so that the hybrid electrical connector of the present invention can transmit a variety of electrical signals, and the compatibility of hybrid electrical connector is improved. 
     Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effect of the electrical connector assembly provided by the present invention is that the electrical connector assembly of the present invention includes the above hybrid electrical connector, and the hybrid electrical connector can transmit a variety of electrical signals. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The above and other features of the present invention will become more apparent by describing in detail exemplary embodiments thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is an illustrative three-dimensional structural view of an electrical connector according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an illustrative exploded structure view of an electrical connector according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is an illustrative cross-sectional structural view of an electrical connector according to an embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 4  is an illustrative structural view of an electrical connector assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     wherein, the reference numerals in the figures are: 
       100 —connection body;  110 —mating connection part;  111 —mating cavity;  130 —mounting part;  131 —sink;  200 —connection terminal;  210 —first connection terminal;  220 —second connection terminal;  300 —shield;  310 —ground terminal;  320 —positioning notch;  400 —bushing;  500 —sealing ring;  600 —fool proof structure;  700 —mating connector. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described hereinafter in detail with reference to the attached drawings, wherein the like reference numerals refer to the like elements. The present disclosure may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiment set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that the present disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the concept of the disclosure to those skilled in the art. 
     In the following detailed description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the disclosed embodiments. It will be apparent, however, that one or more embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are schematically shown in order to simplify the drawing. 
     In order to make the technical problems to be solved by the present invention, technical solutions and beneficial effects more clear, the present invention is further described in detail below in combination with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present invention and are not used to limit the present invention. 
     It should be noted that when an element is called “fixed to” or “provided on” another element, it can be directly or indirectly on another element. When an element is called “connected to” another element, it can be directly connected to another element or indirectly connected to another element. 
     It should be understood that the orientation or positional relationship indicated by the terms “length”, “width”, “upper”, “lower”, “front”, “rear”, “left”, “right”, “vertical”, “horizontal”, “top”, “bottom”, “inner”, “outer” and so on is based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the attached drawings, only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and it cannot be understood as a limitation of the present invention. 
     In addition, the terms “first” and “second” are only used for descriptive purposes and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of indicated technical features. Thus, the features defining “first” and “second” may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of the present invention, “multiple” means two or more, unless otherwise specifically defined. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 to 3 , the embodiment of the present invention provides a hybrid electrical connector, comprising a connection body  100  and a plurality of connection terminals  200 . The connection body  100  has a mating end, a connecting end, and a mating connection part  110 . The mating connection part  110  is provided with a mating cavity  111  with an opening at the mating end. A plurality of connection terminals  200  are provided on the connection body  100 , one end of the connection terminal  200  extends to the mating end, and the other end extends to the connection end; The plurality of connection terminals  200  include a first connection terminal  210  and a second connection terminal  220 , the first connection terminal  210  is configured to transmit Ethernet signals, and the second connection terminal  220  is configured to transmit non Ethernet signals. 
     Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effect of the hybrid electrical connector of the embodiment of the present invention is that the hybrid electrical connector of the embodiment of the present invention is provided with a first connection terminal  210  for transmitting Ethernet signals and a second connection terminal  220  for transmitting non Ethernet signals, so that the hybrid electrical connector of the present invention can transmit a variety of electrical signals, and the compatibility of hybrid electrical connector is improved. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIG. 4 , the mating connection part  110  is formed with a single mating cavity  111 , a plurality of connection terminals  200  are arranged in the mating cavity  111 , and the mating cavity  111  is used for mating with a mating connector  700 . By inserting the mating connector  700  into the corresponding mating cavity  111 , the connection terminal  200  can be electrically connected with the corresponding mating connector  700 . 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIG. 4 , the mating connection part  110  is protruded at the mating end to facilitate plug-in connection with the single mating connector  700 . With this structure, the hybrid electrical connector is easy to connect with the mating connector  700 . 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIGS. 1 to 3  and in combination with  FIG. 4 , the connection body  100  has a plurality of mating connection parts  110  for mating with different mating connectors  700 , respectively; A plurality of mating cavities  111  of the plurality of mating connection parts  110  are arranged separately from each other. In this structure, by setting a plurality of mating connection parts  110  in the connection body  100  so that the mating cavities  111  of the mating connection parts  110  are separated from each other. The connection terminals  200  can be classified to facilitate the insertion of the corresponding mating connector  700  as required to realize the transmission of the corresponding electrical signals. It should be noted that the hybrid electrical connector shown in  FIGS. 1 to 3  differs from the hybrid electrical connector shown in  FIG. 4  only in the number of mating connection parts  110 . Both hybrid electrical connectors can be mated with the mating connector  700  shown in  FIG. 4 . 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIGS. 1 to 3  and in combination with  FIG. 4 , a plurality of mating connection parts  110  are protruded at the mating end and separated from each other to facilitate plug-in connection with the corresponding mating connector  700 . With this structure, the hybrid electrical connector is easy to connect with the mating connector  700 . 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIGS. 1 to 3  and in combination with  FIG. 4 , all the first connection terminals  210  are arranged in one of the plurality of mating connection parts  110  and configured to transmit Ethernet signals, and the second connection terminal  220  is used for transmitting at least one of power supply signals and ordinary electrical signals. It can be understood that the types of electrical signals transmitted by the first connection terminal  210  and the second connection terminal  220  can be appropriately adjusted according to the selection and specific needs of the actual situation, and are not uniquely limited here. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIGS. 1 to 3 , the connection body  100  is provided with two mating connection parts  110 , and the first connection terminal  210  and the second connection terminal  220  correspond to the two mating connection parts  110 , respectively. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIGS. 1 to 3 , the hybrid electrical connector also includes a shield  300 . The shield  300  can be, but is not limited to, a metal part. The shield  300  is arranged on the connection body  100  and at least partially surrounds a part of the connection terminals  200  for transmitting Ethernet signals, so as to prevent interference when transmitting Ethernet signals. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, the connection body  100  is an integral molded part which is molded on the connection terminal  200  and the shield  300  in an embedded injection molding manner. That is, the connection body  100  is injection molded, and during the injection molding of the connection body  100 , the connection terminal  200  and the shield  300  are directly fixed on the connection body  100 . Therefore, the connection terminal  200  and the shield  300  and the connection body  100  do not need to be assembled together through additional assembly steps. There is no gap at the connection between the connection terminal  200  and the shield  300  and the connection body  100 , which will not lead to dust accumulation. It can effectively improve the electrical connection capacity of the electrical connector and reduce the signal transmission error. 
     The production method of the electrical connector according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises steps of: providing a mold for producing the connection body  100 ; placing the connection terminal  200  and the shield  300  in the mold; injecting molten raw material into the mold; pressuring the molten raw material in the mold to compact the molten raw material and increase the plastic density to compensate for the shrinkage behavior of the plastic; Finally, cooling and opening the mold to obtain the connection body  100  fixed with the connection terminal  200  and the shield  300 . 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, the shield  300  is U-shaped in a transverse direction. Of course, according to the selection and specific needs of the actual situation, the shield  300  can also be ring-shaped in the transverse direction, so as to improve the shielding capacity of the shield  300 . 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 3 , the shield  300  is provided with a ground terminal  310 . One end of the ground terminal  310  extends to the connecting end. With this structure, the ground terminal  310  is used for grounding, so as to reduce the impact of strong interference on Ethernet signals. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 3 , the shield  300  is provided with a positioning notch  320 . With this structure, when the connection body  100  is injection molded, the positioning notch  320  of the shield  300  can cooperate with a positioning column of the mold, so that the shield  300  is fixed at the corresponding position of the connecting body  100 , so as to avoid the dislocation of the shield  300  and effectively improve the production efficiency and product yield. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 3 , the connection body  100  also includes a mounting part  130  protruding along the radial direction, the mounting part  130  is used for fixing on an electronic device. The hybrid electrical connector also includes a bushing  400  arranged on the mounting part  130 , the bushing  400  is used to cooperate with a locking connection component to fix the mounting part  130  on the electronic device. In this embodiment, the locking connection component can be, but is not limited to, a screw which passes through the bushing  400  and is screwed on the electronic device, so as to fix the electrical connector on the electronic device. It can be understood that according to the selection and specific needs of the actual situation, the hybrid electrical connector can be fixed on the electronic device by other means, which is not uniquely limited here. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, the connection body  100  is an integral molded part which is molded on the bushing  400  in an embedded injection molding manner. That is, the connection body  100  is injection molded, and in the injection molding process of the connection body  100 , the connection terminal  200 , the shield  300  and the bushing  400  are directly fixed on the connection body  100 . Therefore, the bushing  400  and the connection body  100  do not need to be assembled together by an additional assembly step, which simplifies the production process. It is conducive to improving production capacity. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the electrical connector also includes a sealing ring  500  provided on the mounting part  130 . The sealing ring  500  is arranged at the connecting end and around the plurality of connection terminals  200  and the shield  300 . With this structure, when the hybrid electrical connector is installed on the electronic device, the sealing ring  500  is interference fit between the mounting part  130  and the electronic device, so that the hybrid electrical connector is hermetically connected with the electronic device, which is conducive to improving the stability of the electrical connection capacity of the electrical connector. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIG. 3 , the mounting part  130  is provided with a sink  131 , and the sealing ring  500  is partially arranged in the sink  131 . With this structure, the sink  131  can position and fix the sealing ring  500 , which is conducive to improving the assembly efficiency of the electrical connector. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIG. 3 , a fool proof structure  600  is provided in the mating cavity  111 . With this structure, it can avoid the damage of the electrical connector or other adverse consequences caused by the operator&#39;s assembly error. In this embodiment, the fool proof structure  600  is convex. Of course, according to the selection and specific needs of the actual situation, the fool proof structure  600  can also be a groove, which is not uniquely limited here. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 to 4 , the embodiment of the present invention also provides an electrical connector assembly. The electrical connector assembly comprises a circuit board (not shown) and a hybrid electrical connector as described above. One end of the plurality of connection terminals  200  protrudes from the connecting end to connect with the circuit board. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in  FIG. 4 , the electrical connector assembly also includes a mating connector  700 , which is inserted into and mated with the hybrid electrical connector at the mating end. 
     It should be appreciated for those skilled in this art that the above embodiments are intended to be illustrated, and not restrictive. For example, many modifications may be made to the above embodiments by those skilled in this art, and various features described in different embodiments may be freely combined with each other without conflicting in configuration or principle. 
     Although several exemplary embodiments have been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes or modifications may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the disclosure, the scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents. 
     As used herein, an element recited in the singular and proceeded with the word “a” or “an” should be understood as not excluding plural of said elements or steps, unless such exclusion is explicitly stated. Furthermore, references to “one embodiment” of the present invention are not intended to be interpreted as excluding the existence of additional embodiments that also incorporate the recited features. Moreover, unless explicitly stated to the contrary, embodiments “comprising” or “having” an element or a plurality of elements having a particular property may include additional such elements not having that property.