Patent Publication Number: US-7905753-B2

Title: Coupler connector

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims benefit, under 35 U.S.C. §119(e), of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 61/139,786, filed on Dec. 22, 2008. All documents above are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a coupler connector. In particular, the present invention relates to coupler connector for interconnecting cables comprising twisted pair conductors. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     In order to enable inter- or cross-connection between telecommunications equipment, telecommunications connections often use patch panels to which a plurality of jacks may be mounted to allow rapid connection and disconnection between two jacks in the same patch panel or in adjacent patch panels. Electrical cables terminated by plug-type connectors are typically inserted into the jacks and it is sometimes desirable to provide electrical coupling connectors that enable two plugs, and accordingly two cables, to be connected in electrically conducting relation to one another. For this purpose, such connectors comprise a housing with a pair of plug-receiving openings at each end thereof. 
     Such prior art connector designs however do not prove flexible as each one of a pair of cables is inserted into a given connector along a line of insertion which is at a fixed angle (e.g. collinear for a back-to-back configuration) relative to the other and it is therefore not possible to vary such an angle if desired to make cabling installation faster and more efficient. Also, the connector is typically limited to a specific length which cannot for example be adjusted if it is desired to increase the physical distance between coupled cables. Such designs also typically increase the complexity of cable termination in addition to providing limited functionality. 
     In addition, a major drawback of prior art designs is that they fail to meet signal transmission performance requirements, especially when high frequencies are involved. In particular, as new cable standards are introduced, more stringent specifications for alien crosstalk and system noise are featured. For instance, the latest Category 6a (or Augmented Category 6) standard defined in February 2008 provides performance at frequencies up to 550 MHz, or twice that of Category 6. It then becomes critical for telecommunications connections and connectors in particular to meet such enhanced performance standards, which conventional designs currently have difficulty achieving. 
     What is therefore needed, and an object of the present invention, is an improved connector, which allows for flexibility in the design of the connector as well as fast and efficient installation while reducing the complexity of termination and maximizing performance. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In order to address the above and other drawbacks, there is provided in accordance with the present invention a coupler connector for coupling a first cable and a second cable in electrically conducting relation to each other, the first cable and the second cable respectively terminated by a first modular plug and a second modular plug each comprising respectively a first plurality of contact terminals and a second plurality of contact terminals. The connector comprises a terminal assembly comprising a flexible printed circuit board, the flexible printed circuit board comprising a first plurality of contact elements provided at a first end of the flexible printed circuit board, each of the first plurality of contact elements electrically interconnected with a respective one of a second plurality of contact elements provided at a second end of the flexible printed circuit board, a first plug-receiving opening adapted to receive the first modular plug therein, wherein the first plurality of contact elements is disposed within the first plug-receiving opening such that when the first cable is inserted into the first opening, each of the first plurality of contact terminals comes into contact with a respective one of the first plurality of contact elements and a second plug-receiving opening adapted to receive the second modular plug therein, wherein the second plurality of contact elements is disposed within the second plug-receiving opening such that when the second cable is inserted into the second opening, each of the second plurality of contact terminals comes into contact with a respective one of the second plurality of contact elements. 
     There is also provided a cross talk reducing network for interconnecting a first cable and a second cable in electrically conducting relation to each other, the first cable and the second cable terminated respectively by a first modular plug and a second modular plug each comprising respectively a first plurality of contact terminals and a second plurality of contact terminals. The network comprises at least one cross talk reducing portion, each portion comprising a first pair of conductors and a second pair of conductors arranged side by side and in parallel, all of the conductors having substantially the same length, the first pair of conductors crossing over one another substantially at half way along the length and the second pair of conductors crossing over one another substantially half way between half way along the length and each end of the second pair of conductors, wherein the first pair of conductors and the second pair of conductors interconnect respective pairs of contact terminals of the first plug and the second plug. 
     Additionally, there is provided a method for reducing cross talk when interconnecting a first cable and a second cable, the first cable and the second cable terminated respectively by a first modular plug and a second modular plug each comprising respectively a first plurality of contact terminals and a second plurality of contact terminals. The method comprises interconnecting a first pair of the first plurality of contact terminals with a first pair of the second plurality of contact terminals using a pair of conductors and interconnecting a second pair of the first plurality of contact terminals with a second pair of the second plurality of contact terminals using a second pair of conductors, the first pair of conductors and the second pair of conductors arranged side by side and in parallel, all of the conductors having substantially the same length, and crossing the first pair of conductors over one another substantially at half way along the length and crossing the second pair of conductors over one another substantially half way between half way along the length and each end of the second pair of conductors. 
     Also, there is provided a coupler connector for coupling a first cable and a second cable in electrically conducting relation to each other, the first cable and the second cable terminated respectively by a first modular plug and a second modular plug each comprising respectively a first plurality of contact terminals and second plurality of contact terminals. The balanced connector comprises a first plug-receiving receptacle adapted to receive the first modular plug therein and a second plug-receiving receptacle adapted to receive the second modular plug therein, and a terminal assembly comprising a first plurality of contact elements disposed in the first plug receiving receptacle, a second plurality of contact elements disposed in the second plug receiving receptacle and a flexible printed circuit board comprising a plurality of conductive traces, the traces interconnecting respective ones of the first plurality of contact elements and the second plurality of contact elements. When the first cable is inserted into the first receptacle each of the first plurality of contact terminals comes into contact with a respective one of the first plurality of contact elements and when the second cable is inserted into the second opening, each of the second plurality of contact terminals comes into contact with a respective one of the second plurality of contact elements. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       In the appended drawings: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a coupler connector in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the coupler connector of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a first housing member being mounted to a mated terminal assembly and second housing member of a coupler connector in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of an outer housing being mounted to the mated first and second housing members of a coupler connector in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is an exploded view of a terminal assembly of a coupler connector in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  is a top perspective view of the terminal assembly of  FIG. 5 ; 
         FIG. 7  is a bottom perspective view of the terminal assembly of  FIG. 5  with one retainer being mounted thereto; 
         FIG. 8  provides a plan view of alternative embodiments of interconnectors and the respective bends introduced into the flexible printed circuit board; 
         FIG. 9  is a schematic diagram of a compensating network of the coupler connector of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 10  is an exploded view of the compensating network of  FIG. 8 ; 
         FIG. 11  is a schematic diagram of the path taken by a signal in a first conductor pair combination from one end of the coupler connector of  FIG. 1  to the other; 
         FIG. 12  is a diagram of a compensating conductor configuration in accordance with two alternative embodiments of the present invention; 
         FIGS. 13A and 13B  together provide a schematic diagram of a transmission line network design for the coupler connector of  FIG. 1 ; and 
         FIGS. 14A and 14B  together provide a schematic diagram of the transmission line network of  FIGS. 13A and 13B  for a rotated coupler connector. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS 
     The present invention is illustrated in further details by the following non-limiting examples. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 1 , a coupler connector, generally referred to using the reference numeral  10 , will now be described. The coupler connector  10  comprises a housing  12  having a front end  14  and a rear end  16 . A receptacle socket or plug-receiving opening  18  is provided at each one of the front and rear ends  14  and  16 , each plug-receiving opening  18  being disposed in an opposed mirror-image configuration for receiving therein a mating modular plug  20  (e.g. of the RJ-45 standard, not shown) terminating a communications cable  22  which, at an opposite end, may for example be terminated by networking equipment  24  such as switches, hubs, routers, repeaters and the like (all not shown). The cables as in  22  may illustratively comprise the same number of twisted pairs of conductors (not shown). Insertion of the plugs as in  20  into the respective plug receiving openings as in  18  of the connector  10  thus enables for two (2) cables as in  22  to be coupled in electrically conducting relation to each other. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 2  in addition to  FIG. 1 , the housing  12  of the connector  10  illustratively comprises two substantially identical housing members  26  and  28  with at least one of the housing members (illustratively housing member  26 ) having moulded or otherwise formed on a bottom outer surface thereof a tab  30  and on an upper surface thereof a resilient cantilever latch member  32 , which enable the connector  10  to be securely mounted and retained within a connector-receiving aperture  34  of a patch panel  36 , thus enabling interconnection between the various telecommunications equipment as in  24 . The housing members  26  and  28  are illustratively manufactured from a suitable rigid non-conducting material such as plastic and are snap-fitted to a terminal assembly  38  along the direction of arrows A, as will be detailed further herein below. An outer housing member  40  is then illustratively slid over the mated housing members  26  and  28  along the direction of arrow B to complete assembly of the connector  10 . 
     Referring now to  FIG. 3 , in order to mate the housing members  26 ,  28  to the terminal assembly  38 , each housing member  26 ,  28  is provided on opposite sides thereof with a pair of tab receiving indentations as in  42  adapted to receive therein a pair of raised tabs as in  44  provided on opposite internal surfaces of the terminal assembly  38 . As both housing members  26  and  28  are to be mated over the terminal assembly  38 , the latter is illustratively provided with a first pair of tabs as in  44  adjacent a front face (not shown) of the terminal assembly  38  for engaging the indentations as in  42  of housing member  26  and a second pair of tabs as in  44  adjacent a rear face (not shown) of the terminal assembly  38  for mating with the indentations as in  42  of housing member  28 . In this manner, the housing members  26 ,  28  are securely held in place over the terminal assembly  38  to which they are mounted, with the terminal assembly  38  being illustratively fully covered by the housing members  26 ,  28  (as illustrated in  FIG. 1 ) so as to provide protection to the terminals (not shown). 
     Referring now to  FIG. 4 , the outer housing member  40  illustratively comprises an upper wall  46  and two side walls as in  48  extending downwardly from opposite edges of the upper wall  46  at substantially right angles. The outer housing  40  is adapted to be slidably mounted over the mated housing members  26 ,  28  and terminal assembly (reference  38  in  FIG. 2 ) along the direction of arrow B for better retaining the housing members  26  and  28  in place relative to one another. For this purpose, the upper wall  46  is illustratively shaped and sized so as to conform to the shape of the upper outer surface of the mated housing members  26  and  28  (see  FIG. 1 ) such that, when the outer housing  40  is mounted over the assembled housing members  26  and  28 , the upper wall  46  snugly fits on the upper outer surface of the assembled housing members  26  and  28  while the side walls as in  48  abut against the side surfaces of housing member  28 . The upper wall  46  also illustratively has formed therein adjacent a front end thereof a latch receiving aperture  50 , which is adapted to accommodate the latch member  32  of housing member  26 , thus easing access thereto for insertion of the connector  10  into the connector-receiving aperture (reference  34  in  FIG. 1 ) of the patch panel (reference  36  in  FIG. 1 ), as discussed herein above once the connector  10  has been fully assembled. In order to ensure that the outer housing member  40  is securely mounted to the mated housing members  26  and  28 , each side wall  48  is further provided with a raised tab  52 , which is adapted to be received in a corresponding slot  54  formed adjacent the rear face of housing member  28  on opposite sides thereof. 
     Still referring to  FIG. 4 , although the connector  10  has been shown as a keystone type connector, the snap-in housing design discussed herein above equally applies to other types of connectors, such as MDVO and industrial type connectors (not shown), which may then be snap-fitted over the terminal assembly (reference  38  in  FIG. 2 ) along the direction of arrows A ( FIG. 3 ) in a manner similar to the one discussed herein above. 
     Still referring to  FIG. 4 , a smart latch lock feature may be provided to avoid removal of the connector  10  from the patch panel (reference  36  in  FIG. 1 ) when a cable (reference  22  in  FIG. 1 ) has been inserted into the plug-receiving opening  18  disposed on the rear end (reference  16  in  FIG. 1 ) of the connector  10 . In particular, when downward pressure is exerted on the cable  22  and associated plug (not shown), the extremity of the latch receiving aperture  50  presses against the latch member  32 . In this manner, the pressure exerted on the latch member  32  locks the cable  22  in place and prevents inadvertent disengagement thereof from the connector  10 . 
     Referring back to  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 3  in addition to  FIG. 4 , the plug receiving opening  18  of the housing member  26 , whose description will suffice as a description of the housing member  28 , comprises a bottom wall (not shown) along which a plurality of channels or keyway slots as in  56  extend rearwardly from the front end  14  of the connector  10 . These channels as in  56  form a latch groove, which enables mating of the appropriately keyed modular plug  20  with the plug receiving opening  18 , the plug  20  having a plurality (illustratively eight(8)) of spaced terminal contacts  58  exposed along a forward face  60  of the plug  20 . The contacts as in  58  terminate individual conductor wires (not shown) of the cable  22  secured to the plug  20  and are brought into contact with complementary contact elements (not shown) provided in the connector  10 , thereby providing a conductive path between the plug  20  and the connector  10 . 
     Referring now to  FIG. 5 , each one of a pair of spring elements as in  62 , which are enclosed in a corresponding housing member (references  26 ,  28  in  FIG. 4 ) when the latter is assembled to the terminal assembly  38 , is illustratively secured to a T-shaped rigid terminal support structure  64 , for example manufactured of non-conductive material such as plastic. The support  64  comprises an elongate and substantially horizontal support member  66  having a substantially vertical support member  68  extending downwardly therefrom at a substantially right angle. A tine (reference  74  in  FIG. 6 ) of a spring element  62  illustratively presses against contact elements (not shown) of a flexible printed circuit board (flex PCB)  70 . As known in the art, using a photo mask and an etching process, the PCB  70  can be fabricated to include a plurality of non-intersecting conductive paths (traces) between various points on or between either surface (upper and lower) of the PCB  70 . Once a spring element  62  has been slidably mounted to the support  64 , the spring element  62  is further protected by a retainer  72 , which may be removably attached to the support  64  over the spring element  62 , as will be described in further detail herein below. In this manner, there is provided a countering force tending to ensure a reliable contact between contacts of the PCB  70  and the contacts (reference  58  in  FIG. 1 ) of a mating cable plug (reference  20  in  FIG. 1 ) when the plug  20  is inserted into a plug-receiving aperture (reference  18  in  FIG. 1 ) of the connector (reference  10  in  FIG. 1 ). 
     Referring now to  FIG. 6 , the spring elements as in  62  are illustratively bent to form tines as in  74  extending obliquely from intermediate portions as in  76  and having free ends as in  78 . When the spring elements as in  62  are slid over the support  64  along the direction of arrows C, each intermediate portion  76  of a spring element  62  sits between an adjacent pair of alignment channels as in  80  extending along an outer edge of a terminal alignment plate  82 , a pair of such terminal alignment plates as in  82  being provided at opposite ends of the horizontal support member  66 . The tines as in  74  and the free end portions as in  78  project downwardly away from the terminal alignment plates as in  82  at an oblique angle thereto with the free end portions as in  78  of the spring elements as in  62  abutting against opposite sides of the vertical support member  68 , as will be further described herein below. In order to better secure the spring elements as in  62  to the support  64 , each spring element  62  is further illustratively provided with a locking tab  84  adapted to engage a corresponding slot  86  on an edge of each terminal alignment plate  82 . Once the spring elements as in  62  are fitted over the horizontal support member  66 , each tab  84  is then inserted into the slot  86  in a conventional manner to lock the spring elements as in  62  in place. 
     Still referring to  FIG. 6 , the flex PCB  70  is illustratively comprised of a shield feature (not shown) for protecting the spring elements as in  62  and is sized and shaped to conform to the latter. For this purpose, the flex PCB  70  comprises a central portion  88  and a pair of end portions as in  90  extending away from a lower surface of the central portion  88  at an oblique angle, which is substantially the same as the bent angle of the spring elements as in  62 . Each end portion  90  of the flex PCB  70 , and accordingly the shield feature provided therewith, thus covers the plurality of tines as in  74  of a spring element  62  to provide a conductive path between various points thereon or between either surface thereof, as discussed herein above. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 7 , the retainers as in  72  are illustratively mounted to the support  64  to retain the spring elements as in  62  against the support  64  and limit the range of movement of the support  64 . It should be noted that, for illustration purposes, only the retainer  72 , which is adapted to be mounted to the rear side of the vertical member  68  along the direction of arrow D and subsequently covered by the outer housing member (reference  40  in  FIG. 4 ) is shown in  FIG. 7 . Each retainer  72  comprises a base member  92  having edges (not shown) from which a pair of side walls as in  94  extend upwardly at substantially right angles. A post  96  extends from an upper edge of each one of the side walls as in  94  and is adapted for engagement with a corresponding post receiving bore  98  moulded or otherwise machined in the horizontal support member  66 . A projecting member  100  is further provided on an outer surface of the base  92  and is adapted to be received in a corresponding slot  102  formed on the vertical member  68 . This ensures that, once mounted, the retainer  72  is firmly secured to the support  64 . 
     Still referring to  FIG. 7 , a comb-like structure  104  comprising a plurality of raised tongues (not shown) is mounted to the base  92  of each retainer  72  between the side walls as in  94  and has teeth (not shown) which are adapted to mate with the teeth (not shown) of a corresponding one of a pair of comb-like structures as in  106  mounted to opposite sides of the vertical member  68 . Each comb-like structure  106  is adapted to receive therein the free end portions (reference  78  in  FIG. 6 ) of the spring elements (reference  62  in  FIG. 6 ). In particular, once the spring elements as in  62  have been fitted over the horizontal member  66  of the support  64 , the free end portions as in  78  abut against a corresponding side of the vertical member  68  and each free end portion  78  is retained between an adjacent pair of teeth of a comb-like structure  106 . The retainers as in  72  are then mounted to the vertical member  68  of the support  64  along the direction of arrow D such that the teeth of the comb-like structure  104  engage corresponding teeth of the comb-like structure  106 , thus protecting the free end portions as in  78  and the tines (reference  74  in  FIG. 6 ) of the spring elements as in  62  as well as limiting travel thereof. 
     Referring back to  FIG. 6  in addition to  FIG. 7  and in accordance with an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the flex PCB  70  may be used to link the free end portions as in  78  of both spring elements as in  62 . In this case, the end portions as in  90  of the flex PCB  70  would be connected and the conductive traces would illustratively extend the length of the tines as in  74  to provide a conductive path between the free end portions as in  78  of both spring elements as in  62 . 
     Although the present illustrative embodiment as described with reference to  FIGS. 1 through 7  discloses a back-to-back connector, the ductile nature of the flexible printed circuit board  38  of the present invention allows for manipulation of the interconnection and therefore a variety of advantageous alternative illustrative embodiments. Referring to  FIG. 8 , embodiments (A) through (E), with appropriate modifications to the housings  12 , the flexible printed circuit board  38 , shown in an unbent back-to-back configuration in (A), may be bent in order to provide interconnection of modular plugs (B) reversed, (C) at right angles, or (D) side-by-side. Additionally, referring to (E) the length of the flexible printed circuit board  38  may be extended to flexibly interconnect housing parts  12   A  and  12   B , and therefore modular plugs (not shown), positioned at some distance from one another. Of note is that the arrows A and B indicate the direction of insertion of the modular plug into the housing  12 . 
     Referring now to  FIG. 9  in addition to  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 6 , as the plug-receiving openings as in  18 , and therefore the tines as in  74  positioned therewithin, are illustratively positioned in a back-to-back relationship due to the mirror-image configuration of the housing members  26 ,  28 , each tine  74  extending within the plug-receiving opening  18  of the first housing member  26  is illustratively interconnected with a respective one of the tines as in  74  of the plug-receiving opening  18  of the second housing member  28 . Moreover, the order of the tines as in  74  of the plug-receiving opening  18  of the first housing member  26  is illustratively reversed versus the order of the tines as in  74  of the plug-receiving opening  18  of the second housing member  28 . It is then desirable to etch onto the surfaces (illustratively upper and lower, not shown) of the flex PCB  70  conductive traces as in  108  used to interconnect the tines as in  74  in such a manner that the traces as in  108  traverse from one end of the flex PCB  70  to the other and are reversed. In particular, the traces as in  108  are etched as two halves  110  and  112  (illustratively etched onto the upper and lower surfaces of the end portions as in  90  of the flex PCB  70 ) interconnected with a transmission line  114  (illustratively etched onto the upper and lower surface of the central portion  88 ), with the second half  112  being a replication of the first half  110 . 
     Still referring to  FIG. 9  in addition to  FIG. 6 , a compensating network  116  illustratively comprised of a series of selectively interconnected capacitive and/or inductive compensating elements (not shown) may be integrated into the connector (reference  10  in  FIG. 1 ) to ensure that signal transfer at the interface between the plug (reference  20  in  FIG. 1 ) and the connector  10  is improved. Indeed, in this illustrative embodiment, standards for the connector interface provide that when a plug  20  is inserted into a corresponding plug-receiving opening (reference  18  in  FIG. 1 ), the four (4) twisted pairs (not shown) of the network cable  22  are separated into eight (8) single conductors (not shown) numbered 1 to 8 and connected to the eight (8) terminal contacts (reference  58  in  FIG. 1 ) of the plug  20 . Specifically, the standard pair arrangement provides for wires  4 - 5  comprising pair  1 , wires  3 - 6  comprising pair  2 , wires  1 - 2  comprising pair  3 , and wires  7 - 8  comprising pair  4 . Use of the compensating network  116  then counters the parasitic capacitances and reactances generated by insertion of the plug  20  into the plug-receiving opening  18  of the connector  10 , thus significantly improving the overall performance thereof, especially at high frequencies, in terms of reduced crosstalk, reduced noise, etc. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 10  and  FIG. 11  in addition to  FIG. 8 , a first forward loop of compensation A 0 ″ for countering parasitic crosstalk at pair combination  1 - 2  (i.e. between wires  4 - 5  and  3 - 6 ) is introduced into the first half  110 . The loop of compensation A 0 ″ illustratively has a phase opposite to that of the offending signal A 0  from the plug (reference  20  in  FIG. 1 ) and advantageously does not introduce any additional unwanted signal, unlike traditional compensation techniques. Moreover, the compensation is illustratively applied directly underneath the contact point (not shown) between the plug  20  and the connector (reference  10  in  FIG. 1 ), thus reducing the amount of crosstalk (DNEXT) within the plug  20 . A second reverse loop of compensation A 1 ″ having the same phase as the offending signal A 0  in the plug  20  is further introduced. 
     Still referring to  FIG. 10  and  FIG. 11  in addition to  FIG. 9 , compensation is similarly introduced in region A 0 ″ for other pair combinations, such as pairs  2 - 3  (i.e. between wires  3 - 6  and  1 - 2 ) and pairs  2 - 4  (i.e. between wires  3 - 6  and  7 - 8 ), underneath the area where the plug  20  mates with the connector  10 . Identical and symmetrical compensation (A 1 ″ and A 0 ″) is then applied for pair combinations of the second half  112 . Accordingly, in following the path of the electrical signal from one end (i.e. the point where the plug  20  is inserted into the plug-receiving aperture, reference  18  in  FIG. 1 , of a housing member  26  or  28 ) to the other, the overall applied compensation can be represented as a series of successive compensation signals with varying polarity (as illustrated in  FIG. 11 ), namely a positive signal (forward loop A 0 ″), followed by a negative signal (reverse loop A 1 ″), a negative signal (reverse loop A 1 ″), and a positive signal (forward loop A 0 ″). 
     Referring now to  FIG. 12 , in order to provide an compensation for differential mode (DM) and common mode (CM) signals on pairs adjacent of conductors P 1  and P 2  arranged in parallel and all having a length L, for example as conductive traces on the surface of a circuit board, the conductors of the pairs cross over one another along their length. Referring to (A) in  FIG. 12 , in a first illustrative embodiment the cross over of the conductors P 1  are located at L/ 4  and  3 L/ 4  whereas the cross over in P 2  is located at L/ 2 . Referring to (B) in  FIG. 12 , in a second illustrative embodiment the cross over of the conductors P 1  are located at L/ 4 , L/ 2  and  3 L/ 4  whereas the cross over in P 2  is again located at L/ 2 . 
     Still referring to  FIG. 12 , in a printed circuit board of the present invention the crossovers are typically implemented by piercing the circuit board and continuing one of the traces on the opposite side of the circuit board. Additionally, the above formulas A and/or B may be repeated in interconnected sections, for example by interconnecting P 1  and P 2  of a first section respectively with P 1  and P 2  of a second section. 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 13A and 13B , the transmission line  114  is illustratively modeled as a plurality (e.g. four (4)) of trace sections as in  118  with a minimum of 2n+1 reversal points as in  120  (i.e. the points where individual traces, reference  108  in  FIG. 9 , of a pair—or alternatively trace pairs—cross). The number n of reversal points as in  120  is illustratively a positive integer starting from 0 and the number of reversal points is accordingly odd. For example, for a connector (reference  10  in  FIG. 1 ) comprising four (4) conductor pairs (not shown), pair  3  (i.e. wires  1 - 2 ) illustratively comprises three (3) reversal points as in  120 , namely reversal points a 1 , a 2 , and a 3 , pair  2  (i.e. wires  3 - 6 ) comprises one (1) reversal point  120 , namely reversal point b 1 , pair  1  (i.e. wires  4 - 5 ) comprises one (1) reversal point  120 , namely reversal point c 1 , and pair  4  (i.e. wires  7 - 8 ) comprises three (3) reversal points as in  120 , namely reversal points d 1 , d 2 , and d 3 . Also, the reversal points b 0 , b 0 ′, c 0 , and c 0 ′ provided in trace halves (references  110  and  112  in  FIG. 9 ) are illustratively not part of the transmission line  114  but rather implemented as part of the compensation described herein above with reference to  FIGS. 10 and 11  for the pair combination  1 - 2  (i.e. wires  4 - 5  and  3 - 6 ). 
     Still referring to  FIGS. 13A and 13B , on a parallel transported signal, compensation in both DM CM may be introduced by crossing the conductive traces (reference  108  in  FIG. 9 ). In this case, it is desirable to maintain the same distance between the crossing areas in order to improve compensation of CM and DM signals. In particular, for two conductor pairs, one crossing of the traces  108  of the second pair may be introduced between two (2) consecutive crossings of the traces  108  of the first pair in order to compensate for crosstalk according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Alternatively, according to a second embodiment of the present invention, one crossing of the traces  108  of the second pair may be introduced at the second of three (3) consecutive crossings of the traces  108  of the first pair. 
     Referring back to  FIG. 2  in addition to  FIGS. 13A and 13B , in a minimum configuration, sections  118   1  and  118   6  of the trace halves  110  and  112  could be joined together, thereby eliminating the need for sections  118   2 ,  118   3 ,  118   4 , and  118   5 . As a result, there is provided flexibility to extend the transmission line  114  to include as many sections as in  118  as required to span a physical distance between the plug receiving openings as in  18 , as desired for a given connector design. The flex PCB  70  (and accordingly the terminal support structure  64 ) may further by designed such that an angle between the line of plug insertion X drawn through the plug receiving opening  18  of housing member  26  is angled between 0 and 360 degrees from the line of plug insertion Y drawn through the plug receiving opening  18  of housing member  28 . Indeed, although the lines X and Y are shown for illustrative purposes as being collinear (see  FIG. 2 ), i.e. the connector  10  is inline, it will be understood that lines X and Y may intersect, e.g. at right angles, such that the plug receiving openings as in  18  are angled relative to one another, thus enabling front-to-side configuration (instead of back-to-back). Alternatively, a Flame-Retardant 4 (FR4) PCB with copper covering may be used to connect the two (2) halves  110  and  112 , thereby enabling for a front-to-front configuration (instead of back-to-back), in which the flex PCB  70  does a U-turn such that both plug receiving openings as in  18  are provided on the same end of the connector, illustratively the front end (reference  14  in  FIG. 1 ). In this manner, the connector  10  may be provided with plug receiving openings as in  18  and accordingly lines of plug insertion X and Y, which are angled relative to one another so as to facilitate coupling of cables (reference  22  in  FIG. 1 ) and thus make the connector design of the present invention advantageously adaptable to any desired configuration. 
     Still referring to  FIGS. 13A and 13B , a plurality of regions, illustratively three (3),  122   i ,  122   ii , and  122   iii , may further be defined which correspond to adjacent sections  118   1  and  118   2 , adjacent sections  118   3  and  118   4 , and adjacent sections  118   5  and  118   6  provided between adjacent connectors as in  10   1 ,  10   2 ,  10   3 . The design of the transmission line  114  is such that each section as in  118  comprises at least one (1) reversal point  120 , as discussed herein above, while each region  122   i ,  122   ii , and  122   iii , comprises at least two (2) reversal points as in  120  between any adjacent pairs of traces (reference  108  in  FIG. 9 ). In order to increase the design&#39;s flexibility, the distance (not shown) between the reversal points as in  120  may further be varied from one pair of traces as in  108  to another. 
     Still referring to  FIGS. 13A and 13B , the reversal points as in  120  advantageously enable mapping of the polarity of the signal from the position of the plug (reference  20  in  FIG. 1 ) at one end of the connector (reference  10  in  FIG. 1 ) to the corresponding position of the plug  20  at the opposite end. The reversal points as in  120  further allow to substantially cancel out electromagnetic coupling, such as alien crosstalk, between a first conductor pair of a first connector  10   1  and a second conductor pair of a second adjacent connector  10   2  within regions  122   i ,  122   ii , and  122   iii . For example, in region  122   i , pair  4  (wires  7 - 8 ) from the first connector  10   1  and pair  3  (wires  1 - 2 ) from the second connector  10   2  have two (2) reversal points as in  120  in sections  118   1  and  118   2 , namely reversal points d 1  and a 3  respectively. In addition, the reversal points as in  120  cancel out crosstalk between adjacent conductor pairs within a given connector  10   1 ,  10   2 , or  10   3 . This is achieved by locating the reversal points as in  120  at specific locations along the transmission line  114 . For example, for region  122   ii  of connector  10   1 , pair combinations  3 - 6 / 1 - 2 ,  1 - 2 / 7 - 8 , and  7 - 8 / 4 - 5  comprise two (2) reversal points as in  120  located in sections  118   3  and  118   4 , respectively reversal points b 1  and a 2 , d 2  and a 2 , and d 2  and c 1 . 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 14A and 14B , the design of the connector  10  and in particular the predefined location of the reversal points as in  120  is such that even if the connector  10  is rotated by 180 degrees around a center point (not shown) thereof, the reversal points as in  120 ′ of the rotated connector  10 ′ advantageously occupy the same physical location in space as the initial reversal points as in  120  of the non-rotated connector  10 . As a result, the connector  10  can advantageously be flipped over or otherwise rotated without affecting the electromagnetic coupling between pairs of adjacent connectors (references  10   1 ,  10   2 , or  10   3  in  FIGS. 13A and 13B ) as well as between adjacent trace pairs within a connector  10 . 
     Referring back to  FIG. 1 , as discussed herein above, the connector  10  of the present invention advantageously provides maximum design flexibility and reduces the complexity of pre-terminated cabling solutions by simplifying installation. Overall, the connector  10  allows for fast and efficient installation of cabling systems, thus improving the reliability of the assembly by maximizing performance. 
     Although the present invention has been described hereinabove by way of specific embodiments thereof, it can be modified, without departing from the spirit and nature of the subject invention as defined in the appended claims.