Patent Publication Number: US-11664623-B2

Title: Plug connector having a latch and a rod slidable to release the latch

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a plug connector comprising an insulative housing, a conductive module received in the insulative housing, a rod mounted to the insulative housing, a latch mounted to the insulative housing, and a pulling tab connected to the rod, wherein the rod is operable by the pulling tab to release the latch from a locked position with a mating connector. 
     2. Description of Related Arts 
     China Patent No. 208797273 discloses a plug connector comprising an insulative housing, a conductive module received in the insulative housing, a latch mounted to the insulative housing, and a pulling tab directly connected to the latch, wherein the pulling tab extends through a hole provided on the insulative housing and the latch is operable by the pulling tab to release the latch from a locked position with a mating connector. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A plug connector comprises: an insulative housing having a front mating end and a rear terminating end; a conductive module received in the insulative housing and exposed to the front mating end; a rod mounted to the insulative housing; a latch mounted to the insulative housing, the latch including a securing portion, a latching portion movable between a latched position and a released position, and an operating portion operable by the rod to move the latching portion to the released position; and a pulling tab connected to the rod, wherein the insulative housing includes a pair of grooves and the rod is slidable in the pair of grooves by the pulling tab to operate the operating portion of the latch to move the latching portion to the released position. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
         FIG.  1    is a perspective view of a plug connector in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG.  2    is a view similar to  FIG.  1    but from another perspective; 
         FIG.  3    is an exploded view of  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  4    is an exploded view of  FIG.  2   ; 
         FIG.  5    is a view similar to  FIG.  4    but from another perspective; 
         FIG.  6    is a view similar to  FIG.  5    but shown in cross-section from another perspective; 
         FIG.  7    is a view similar to  FIG.  6    but shown in assembled state; 
         FIG.  8    is a cross-sectional view similar to  FIG.  7    but taken along line A-A in  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  9    is a perspective view of a plug connector in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG.  10    is a perspective view of a plug connector in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG.  11    is an exploded view of the plug connector in  FIG.  10   ; 
         FIG.  12    is a view similar to  FIG.  11    but from another perspective; 
         FIG.  13    is a view similar to  FIG.  12    but from another perspective; 
         FIG.  14    is a view similar to  FIG.  13    but shown in cross-section from another perspective; 
         FIG.  15    is a view similar to  FIG.  14    but shown in assembled state; and 
         FIG.  16    is a cross-sectional view similar to  FIG.  15    but taken along line B-B in  FIG.  10   . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring to  FIGS.  1 - 8   , a plug connector  100  comprises an insulative housing  1  having a front mating end for mating with a complementary connector and a rear terminating end for accommodating one or more cables, a conductive module such as a printed circuit board (PCB)  2  received in the insulative housing  1  and exposed to the front mating end, a rod  4  mounted to the insulative housing  1 , a latch  3  mounted to the insulative housing  1 , and a pulling tab  5  connected to the rod  4 . The pulling tab  5  is used for moving the rod  4  to press down the latch  3  so that the latch  3  may be released from the complementary connector in a manner generally known in this art. 
     The latch  3  includes a securing portion  31  secured to the insulative housing  1 , a latching portion  32  resiliently movable relative to the securing portion  31  between a latched position and a released position with respect to the complementary connector, and an operating portion  33  operable by the rod  4  to move the latching portion  32  to the released position. The latching portion  32  has a pair of protrusions  321  for locking to features such as holes on the complementary connector. The insulative housing  1  includes a pair of grooves  10  and the rod  4  is slidable in the pair of grooves  10  by the pulling tab  5  to operate the operating portion  33  of the latch  3  to move the latching portion  32  to the released position. The operating portion  33  has a hole  331  for the pulling tab  5  to extend through. The pulling tab  5  has a connecting portion  51  and a holding portion  52 . When the pulling tab  5  is not operated, the latching portion  32  is at the latched position and the rod  4  is urged by the operating portion  33  of the latch  3  to be confined attends of the pair of grooves  10 . In other applications, if desired, the rod  4  may not be urged and confined when the pulling tab  5  is not operated. The rod  4  may be fit in dimension and slides smoothly in the grooves  10 . The operating portion  33  is angled relative to the latching portion  32  so that the pulling tab  5  may be pulled along a front-to-back direction or under a wide range of angles relative to such direction conforming to the angled operating portion  33  while maintaining smooth movement of the rod  4  in the grooves  10 . 
     The insulative housing  1  may include a front housing part  11  and a rear housing part  12 . The front housing part  11  has a front opening  110  and a rear opening  111 . The rear housing part  12  has plural protrusions  121  and the front housing part  11  has corresponding holes  112  engaging the protrusions  121 . The PCB  2  is mounted to the rear housing part  12  and extends in the front opening  110 . The PCB  2  has a front mating part  21  extending forward beyond a front end face  122  of the rear housing part  12 . The mating part  21  has conductive pads  211  on two opposite surfaces thereof. Cables are terminated to a rear end of the PCB  2  and extend rearward beyond a rear end face  123  of the rear housing part  12 . The latch  3  is secured to an upper side of the front housing part  11 . The upper side of front housing part  11  further has a pair of protruding walls  113  defining a receiving space  114  therebetween for accommodating the operating portion  33 . The pair of grooves  10  are formed at inner surfaces  1130  of the protruding walls  113 , respectively, and open rearward through rear end faces  1131  of the protruding walls  113  to form a mounting opening  1132  for mounting the rod  4  in the grooves  10 . The pair of grooves  10  extends in the front-to-back direction and is located above a rear section of the latching portion  32 . The rod  4  is preferably a metallic cylinder for performing a smooth sliding movement in the grooves  10 . The upper side of front housing part  11  has a receiving channel  115  in front of the protruding walls  113  for receiving the securing portion  31 . A pair of protrusions  1151  are formed in the receiving channel  115  for engaging corresponding holes  311  of the securing portion  31 . A mounting opening  1152  continues the receiving channel  115  rearward for mounting of the securing portion  31 . 
     In the first embodiment, the operating portion  33  of the latch  3  has a pair of side arms  3311  and an upper cross arm  3312  connecting the side arms  3311 . The cross arm  3312  has a curved section  3313  for blocking a further rearward movement of the pulling tab  5  and therefore the rod  4 . The rod  4  has a middle section  41  for coupling to the connecting portion  51  of the pulling tab  5 , two side sections  42  for bearing against the side arms  3311  of the operating portion  33 , and two end sections  43  for engaging the grooves  10 . A diameter of the middle section  41  is less than a diameter of the side section  42  so that the connecting portion  51  of the pulling tab  5  is kept at the middle section  41  stably. 
     The second embodiment in  FIG.  9    shows a plug connector  100 ′ including an operating portion  33  which has a pair of side arms  3311  and a cross arm  3312  but not a curved section. Therefore, in the second embodiment, the cross arm  3312  functions as a limiting end for blocking a further rearward movement of the pulling tab  5  and therefore the rod  4 . 
     The third embodiment in  FIGS.  10 - 16    shows a plug connector  100 ″ including an operating portion  33 ′ which has a pair of side arms  3311 ′ and a notch  331 ′ therebetween but not across arm. Rather, each side arm  3311 ′ has a curved section  3313 ′ for blocking a further rearward movement of the rod  4  and therefore the pulling tab  5 .