Patent Publication Number: US-8986041-B2

Title: Connector and mating connector

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     An applicant claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 of Japanese Patent Application No. JP2012-107832 filed May 9, 2012. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to a connector having a shield structure. 
     For example, this type of connector is disclosed in JP-B 4541999 (Patent Document 1) and JP-A 2009-43704 (Patent Document 2), contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     The connector of each of Patent Documents 1 and 2 is configured to be connected to a mating connector. The connector comprises a shell and a signal contact while the mating connector comprises a mating shell provided with a contact portion which is resiliently deformable. When the connector is connected to the mating connector, the contact portion of the mating shell is brought into contact with the shell so that the shell and the mating shell are electrically connected with each other. Accordingly, the signal contact is electrically shielded from the outside. 
     As shown in  FIG. 16 , the connector of Patent Document 1 comprises a housing which is formed with a slit. The slit is formed on a sidewall of the housing so as to extend to a front end of the housing. Accordingly, a front side of the housing is separated into an upper part and a lower part by the slit. The contact portion of the mating shell moves in the slit to be brought into contact with the shell so that the mating shell is electrically connected with the shell. 
     As shown in  FIG. 17 , the connector of Patent Document 2 comprises a housing which is formed with a slender through hole. The through hole pierces a sidewall of the housing. Although the through hole extends long toward a front end of the housing, the through hole does not reach the front end of the housing. Accordingly, the front end of the housing is not separated into two parts. The contact portion of the mating shell brought into contact with the shell through the through hole so that the mating shell is electrically connected with the shell. 
     The front side of the housing of the connector of Patent Document 1 is divided into the two parts. Accordingly, the housing has a low strength. 
     The front side of the housing of the connector of Patent Document 2 is not divided into two parts. However, when the connector is mated with the mating connector, the contact portion of the mating connector surmounts the housing to enter the through hole. Accordingly, the housing tends to be shaven by the contact portion. The shavings might remain on the shell so that the contact portion of the mating shell might not be properly brought into contact with the shell. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a connector having a structure which is preventable a contact failure caused by shavings, foreign bodies and contaminations. 
     One aspect of the present invention provides a connector comprising a housing and a terminal assembly. The housing has an accommodation portion, two sidewalls and a coupling portion. The accommodation portion is located between the two sidewalls in a lateral direction. Each of the sidewalls has a through hole, an upper sidewall and a lower sidewall. The through hole pierces the sidewall in the lateral direction to reach the accommodation portion. The upper sidewall is located on the through hole in an up-down direction perpendicular to the lateral direction. The lower sidewall is located under the through hole in the up-down direction. The coupling portion is located at a front side of the through hole in a front-rear direction perpendicular to both the lateral direction and the up-down direction. The coupling portion couples the upper side wall and the lower sidewall to each other. The terminal assembly is accommodated in the accommodation portion along the front-rear direction. The terminal assembly has a shell. The shell has two side surfaces. Each of the side surfaces has a body portion and a protrusion. The protrusion protrudes outward in the lateral direction from the body portion. The protrusion is visible through the through hole from outside in the lateral direction. 
     An appreciation of the objectives of the present invention and a more complete understanding of its structure may be had by studying the following description of the preferred embodiment and by referring to the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing a connector according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the connector is connected to a coaxial cable. 
         FIG. 2  is a side view showing the connector of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a front view showing the connector of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 4  is a side, cross-sectional view showing the connector of  FIG. 1 , taken along line IV-IV, wherein the coaxial cable is shown in a side view. 
         FIG. 5  is a plan, cross-sectional view showing the connector of  FIG. 1 , taken along line V-V, wherein the coaxial cable is shown in a plan view. 
         FIG. 6  is a partially-enlarged, perspective view showing about a through hole of the connector of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 7  is a partially-enlarged, front view showing about the through hole of the connector of  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view showing a housing of the connector of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 9  is a side, cross-sectional view showing the housing of  FIG. 8 , taken along line IX-IX. 
         FIG. 10  is a perspective view showing a terminal assembly of the connector of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 11  is a side, cross-sectional view showing the terminal assembly of  FIG. 10 , taken along line XI-XI, wherein the coaxial cable is shown in a side view. 
         FIG. 12  is a perspective view showing a mating connector mateable with the connector of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 13  is a front view showing the mating connector of  FIG. 12 . 
         FIG. 14  is a side, cross-sectional view showing the mating connector of  FIG. 13 , taken along line XIV-XIV. 
         FIG. 15  is a plan, cross-sectional view showing the mating connector of  FIG. 13 , taken along line XV-XV. 
         FIG. 16  is a side view showing an existing connector. 
         FIG. 17  is a perspective view showing another existing connector. 
     
    
    
     While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the drawings and will herein be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit the invention to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims. 
     DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 to 5 , a connector  100  according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises an outer housing (housing)  200  made of an insulating material and a terminal assembly  300 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 8 and 9 , the outer housing  200  has a front end  204  and a rear end  202  in a front-rear direction (X-direction). The outer housing  200  is provided with an accommodation portion  210 . The accommodation portion  210  extends forward (i.e. along the positive X-direction) from a rear end  202  of the outer housing  200 . The outer housing  200  has a front wall (coupling portion)  220 . The front wall  220  is located in front of the accommodation portion  210 . The front wall  220  is formed with an insertion hole  222  and a hole  224 . The hole  224  is located under the insertion hole  222  in an up-down direction (Z-direction). Each of the insertion hole  222  and the hole  224  extends between the front end  204  of the outer housing  200  and the accommodation portion  210 . In other words, each of the insertion hole  222  and the hole  224  pierces the front wall  220  in the front-rear direction (X-direction). 
     As shown in  FIGS. 3 ,  5 ,  8  and  9 , the outer housing  200  has two sidewalls  230 . The accommodation portion  210  is located between the two sidewalls  230  in a lateral direction (Y-direction). The two sidewalls  230  are coupled by the front wall  220  to each other at a front side (i.e. positive X-side) of the accommodation portion  210 . Each of the sidewalls  230  has a through hole  240 , an upper sidewall  242  and a lower sidewall  244 . The through hole  240  pierces the sidewall  230  in the lateral direction (Y-direction) to reach the accommodation portion  210 . Accordingly, the accommodation portion  210  communicates with the outside of the outer housing  200  via the through hole  240 . The through hole  240  according to the present embodiment is a slender hole having a rectangular shape. In detail, the through hole  240  is long in the front-rear direction (X-direction) and short in the up-down direction (Z-direction). The through hole  240  according to the present embodiment does not reach the front end  204  of the outer housing  200 . The upper sidewall  242  is located on the through hole  240  in the up-down direction (Z-direction). The lower sidewall  244  is located under the through hole  240  in the up-down direction (Z-direction). The front wall  220  is located at a front side (i.e. positive X-side) of the through hole  240  in the front-rear direction (X-direction). As can be seen from the above description, the upper sidewall  242  and the lower sidewall  244 , which are parts of the sidewall  230  of the outer housing  200 , are coupled to each other by the front wall  220 . Thus, a part of the front wall  220  serves as a coupling portion which couples the upper sidewall  242  and the lower sidewall  244  to each other. 
     As can be seen from  FIGS. 6 ,  8  and  9 , each of the sidewalls  230  is formed with an inner ditch  246  and a guide ditch  248 . The inner ditch  246  extends forward (i.e. along the positive X-direction) from the rear end  202  to the front end  204 . The guide ditch  248  extends rearward (i.e. along the negative X-direction) from the front end  204 . As shown in  FIGS. 5 and 9 , the inner ditch  246  is formed on an inner surface  232  of the sidewall  230 . On the contrary, as shown in  FIGS. 6 to 8 , most of the guide ditch  248  is formed on an outer surface  234  of the sidewall  230 . As can be seen from  FIGS. 6 and 8 , according to the present embodiment, an overlapped part of the inner ditch  246  and the guide ditch  248  constitutes the through hole  240 . In detail, according to the present embodiment, each of a part of the inner ditch  246  and a part of the guide ditch  248  constitutes, at least in part, the through hole  240 . Moreover, a part of the inner ditch  246  constitutes, at least in part, the guide ditch  248 . If viewed from a different angle, a part of the guide ditch  248  pierces the sidewall  230  of the outer housing  200  in the lateral direction (Y-direction) to constitute, at least in part, the through hole  240 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 4 ,  5 ,  10  and  11 , the terminal assembly  300  is configured to be connected to a coaxial cable  50 . The terminal assembly  300  has a contact  310  made of a conductive material, an inner housing  320  made of an insulating material and a shell  330  made of a metal. As shown in  FIG. 11 , the coaxial cable  50  has an inner conductor  52 , an insulator  54 , an outer conductor  56  and an outer jacket  58 . The inner conductor  52  and the outer conductor  56  are connected to the contact  310  and the shell  330 , respectively. 
     As best shown in  FIG. 11 , the contact  310  is a female contact connectable to a mating contact which is a male contact or a pin contact. The contact  310  is held by the inner housing  320 . In detail, the inner housing  320  has an accommodation portion  322  formed therewithin and an insertion hole  324  formed at a front end thereof. The mating contact is insertable into the accommodation portion  322  through the insertion hole  324 . The contact  310  is accommodated in the accommodation portion  322  so as to be connectable to the inserted mating contact. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 10 and 11 , the shell  330  covers, at least in part, the inner housing  320 . The shell  330  is formed from a single metal plate which is punched and pressed. The shell  330  has a front surface  332 , two side surfaces  334  and a bottom surface. The front surface  332  of the shell  330  constitutes, at least in part, a front surface of the terminal assembly  300 . More specifically, the front surface  332  extends from the bottom surface of the shell  330  so as to cover a part of a front end of the inner housing  320 . Each of the side surfaces  334  has a body portion  336  and a protrusion  340 . The protrusion  340  protrudes outward in the lateral direction (Y-direction) from the body portion  336  of the side surface  334 . The protrusion  340  roughly has a slender, rectangular shape which is long in the front-rear direction (X-direction) while short in the up-down direction (Z-direction). 
     As shown in  FIG. 4 , the terminal assembly  300 , which has the aforementioned structure, is inserted forward (i.e. along the positive X-direction) from the rear end  202  of the outer housing  200  to be accommodated in the accommodation portion  210 . As can be seen from  FIGS. 5 to 7 , when the terminal assembly  300  is accommodated into the accommodation portion  210 , each of the protrusions  340  passes through the inside of the inner ditch  246  to move forward (i.e. along the positive X-direction). In other words, the inner ditch  246  allows the protrusion  340  to move forward when the terminal assembly  300  is accommodated into the accommodation portion  210 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1 to 3 , the protrusions  340  are located in the through holes  240 , respectively, under a state where the terminal assembly  300  is accommodated in the accommodation portion  210 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1 ,  2  and  6 , the protrusions  340  are visible through the through holes  240  from the outside in the lateral direction (Y-direction), respectively. Moreover, according to the present embodiment, each of the body portions  336  is also partially visible through the through hole  240  from the outside in the lateral direction (Y-direction). 
     As described above, the outer housing  200  according to the present embodiment is provided with the guide ditch  248  extending along the front-rear direction (X-direction) from the front end  204  to the through hole  240  (see  FIG. 8 ). Accordingly, as shown in  FIGS. 3 and 7 , the protrusion  340  is visible from front (i.e. the positive X-side) of the outer housing  200  through the guide ditch  248 . 
     As best shown in  FIG. 5 , the protrusion  340  according to the present embodiment is located inward of the outer surface  234  of the sidewall  230  of the outer housing  200  in the lateral direction (Y-direction). Accordingly, the protrusion  340  is protected by the outer housing  200 . 
     Moreover, as best shown in  FIG. 5 , according to the present embodiment, a shortest distance between the two guide ditches  248  in the lateral direction (Y-direction) is shorter than a shortest distance between the two side surfaces  334  of the shell  330  in the lateral direction (Y-direction). Accordingly, as best shown in  FIG. 7 , a front end of the body portion  336  of each of the side surfaces  334  is also visible from front (i.e. the positive X-side) of the outer housing  200  through the guide ditch  248 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 4 , the insertion hole  324  of the inner housing  320  of the terminal assembly  300  and the insertion hole  222  of the outer housing  200  are arranged on a common straight line in parallel to the front-rear direction (X-direction). Accordingly, as shown in  FIG. 7 , the contact  310  is visible from front (i.e. the positive X-side) of the connector  100  through the insertion hole  222  and the insertion hole  324 . Accordingly, a mating contact, which is a male contact or a pin contact, is able to be inserted through the insertion hole  222  and the insertion hole  324  to be brought into contact with the contact  310 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 3 and 7 , the hole  224  according to the present embodiment is located in front of the front surface  332  of the shell  330 . Accordingly, the front surface  332  of the shell  330  is partially visible from front (i.e. the positive X-side) of the connector  100  through the hole  224 . Moreover, the hole  224  according to the present embodiment reaches the front surface  332  of the shell  330  in the front-rear direction (X-direction). In other words, the front surface  332  of the shell  330  is connected with the outside of the connector  100  via the hole  224 . Accordingly, when a static electricity is applied to a front end of the connector  100 , the static electricity may be grounded to the shell  330 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 12 to 15 , a mating connector  500  according to the present embodiment is configured to be mounted on and fixed to a circuit board (not shown). The mating connector  500  is mateable with the connector  100  along the front-rear direction (X-direction). The mating connector  500  comprises a mating contact  510  made of a conductive material, a mating housing  520  made of an insulating material and a mating shell  550  made of a metal. The mating connector  500  further comprises a mating end (i.e. the negative X-side end) configured to be mated with the connector  100 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 14 , the mating contact  510  has an L-like shape. In detail, the mating contact  510  has a held portion  512 , a contact portion  514  and a terminal portion  516 . The held portion  512  is held by the mating housing  520 . The contact portion  514  has a pin-like shape which extends in a horizontal plane (according to the present embodiment, along the negative X-direction) from the held portion  512 . The terminal portion  516  extends downward (i.e. along the negative Z-direction) from the held portion  512 . 
     The mating housing  520  has a receive portion  530 . The receive portion  530  receives the front end  204 , which is a mating end of the connector  100 , when the mating connector  500  is mated with the connector  100 . The receive portion  530  has two sidewalls  532 . Each of the sidewalls  532  is formed with a window  534 . The window  534  pierces the sidewall  532  in the lateral direction (Y-direction). As can be seen from  FIG. 14 , the window  534  according to the present embodiment occupies about a half of the sidewall  532 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 13 to 15 , each of the sidewalls  532  is provided with a guided portion  536  having a rectangular block-like shape. In other words, the mating connector  500  comprises the two guided portions  536 . The guided portion  536  is formed on an inner surface of the sidewall  532 . The guided portion  536  is located forward of the window  534 . The guided portion  536  protrudes inward in the lateral direction (Y-direction). A size of the guided portion  536  in the up-down direction (Z-direction) is slightly smaller than a size of the guide ditch  248  of the connector  100  in the up-down direction (Z-direction). A distance between the two guided portions  536  in the lateral direction (Y-direction) is longer than a distance between the two protrusions  340  in the lateral direction (Y-direction) while shorter than a distance between the two outer surfaces  234  of the outer housing  200  of the connector  100 . Thus configured guided portions  536  are guided by the guide ditches  248 , respectively, when the mating connector  500  is mated with the connector  100 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 14 , the receive portion  530  has a rear wall  538 . The rear wall  538  is provided with a holding portion  540 . The holding portion  540  is a hole which pierces the rear wall  538  in the front-rear direction (X-direction). The held portion  512  of the mating contact  510  is inserted in and held by the holding portion  540 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 12 and 14 , the mating shell  550  covers the positive X-side part of the mating housing  520 . The mating shell  550  has two side plates  552 . Each of the side plates  552  is provided with a contact portion  554  having a resiliency. In other words, the mating shell  550  has the two contact portions  554  each resiliently deformable. Each of the contact portions  554  has a dogleg shape. In detail, the contact portion  554  has an end fixed to the side plate  552  and another end formed with an end portion  556 . The end portion  556  is supported so as to be movable. 
     As shown in  FIG. 14 , the contact portion  554  and the guided portion  536  are arranged to correspond to each other. More specifically, one of the guided portions  536  is provided between one of the contact portions  554  and the mating end of the mating connector  500 , and another one of the guided portions  536  is provided between another one of the contact portions  554  and the mating end of the mating connector  500 . Each of the contact portions  554  is located at nearly the same position as each of the guided portions  536  in the up-down direction (Z-direction). A size of the guided portion  536  in the up-down direction (Z-direction) is larger than a size of the contact portion  554  in the up-down direction (Z-direction). However, as shown in  FIG. 15 , a shortest distance between the two contact portions  554  in the lateral direction (Y-direction) is shorter than a shortest distance between the two guided portions  536  in the lateral direction (Y-direction). Accordingly, as shown in  FIG. 13 , a part of each of the contact portions  554  is visible when the mating connector  500  is seen from the mating end (i.e. positive X-side end). As shown in  FIG. 15 , the end portion  556  of the contact portion  554  is located outward of the guided portion  536  in the lateral direction (Y-direction). In other words, a distance between the two end portions  556  in the lateral direction (Y-direction) is longer than the shortest distance between the two guided portions  536  in the lateral direction (Y-direction). Accordingly, as shown in  FIG. 13 , the end portion  556  of the contact portion  554  is hidden by the guided portion  536  to be invisible when the mating connector  500  is seen from the mating end (i.e. positive X-side end). As can be seen from the above description, according to the present embodiment, the end portions  556  of the contact portions  554  are protected by the guided portions  536 , respectively. It is therefore possible to prevent the contact portions  554  from being damaged. 
     As described above, the guided portions  536  are guided by the guide ditches  248 , respectively, when the connector  100  is mated with the mating connector  500 . Moreover, the guided portion  536  and the contact portion  554  are located at nearly the same position as each other in the up-down direction (Z-direction). As can be seen from the above description, when the connector  100  is mated with the mating connector  500 , the contact portions  554  according to the present embodiment are also movable in the front-rear direction (X-direction) through the guide ditches  248 , respectively. In other words, each of the guide ditches  248  allows the contact portion  554  to move in the front-rear direction (X-direction) without riding on the sidewall  230  of the outer housing  200  (i.e. without riding on the outer housing  200 ) when the connector  100  is mated with the mating connector  500 . According to the present embodiment, the shortest distance between the two guide ditches  248  in the lateral direction (Y-direction) is shorter than the shortest distance between the two contact portions  554  in the lateral direction (Y-direction). Accordingly, it is possible to more securely prevent the contact portions  554  from riding on the outer housing  200 . 
     When the connector  100  transits to a mated state where the connector  100  is mated with the mating connector  500 , the contact portions  554  which move in the guide ditches  248  are brought into contact with the protrusions  340  located in the through holes  240 , respectively. According to the present embodiment, the shortest distance between the two contact portions  554  in the lateral direction (Y-direction) is smaller than a size in the lateral direction (Y-direction) of an outline defined by the two protrusions  340 . It is therefore possible to obtain a good contact. More specifically, under the mated state, the two contact portions  554  are pressed against and apply predetermined force to the two protrusions  340 , respectively, so that the two contact portions  554  sandwich the shell  330 . Accordingly, it is possible to obtain a good contact between the contact portion  554  and the protrusion  340 . 
     According to the present embodiment, a size in the lateral direction (Y-direction) of an outline defined by the two body portions  336  of the shell  330  is smaller than the shortest distance between the two contact portions  554  in the lateral direction (Y-direction). Moreover, a shortest distance between the two guide ditches  248  in the lateral direction (Y-direction) is shorter than the shortest distance between the two side surfaces  334  of the shell  330  in the lateral direction (Y-direction). Accordingly, it is possible to obtain a cleaning effect of the contact portions  554 . In detail, when the connector  100  and the mating connector  500  transit to the mated state, the contact portions  554  are brought into contact with and ride on the protrusions  340  from the body portions  336 , respectively. Even if the outer housing  200  is shaven, the shavings attached to the contact portion  554  are removed when the contact portion  554  rides on the protrusion  340 . Accordingly, a contact failure may not be caused by shavings, foreign bodies and contamination. 
     A shell of an existing connector is not provided with the protrusion  340 . Accordingly, the contact portion  554  of the mating connector  500  slides on the shell by a long distance until the mating connector  500  is completely mated with the existing connector. The long distance sliding severely abrades the contact portion  554 . Especially, when the mating connector  500  is repeatedly inserted in and removed from the existing connector, the sliding part of the contact portion  554  is largely shaven so that the life of the mating connector  500  becomes short. According to the present embodiment, the contact portion  554  of the mating connector  500  does not slide on the body portion  336  so that the sliding distance of the contact portion  554  is short. Accordingly, the abrasion of the contact portion  554  may be suppressed. 
     According to the present embodiment, the protrusion  340 , which is configured to be brought into contact with the contact portion  554  of the mating connector  500 , is visible through the through hole  240  in the lateral direction (Y-direction). Accordingly, it is possible to properly arrange the contact portion  554  in consideration of the position of the protrusion  340 . More specifically, it is possible to arrange the contact portion  554  at a position where the outer housing  200  is not easily shaven. 
     The connector  100  according to the present embodiment is configured to be attached to the coaxial cable  50  so that the connector  100  has the single contact  310 . However, the present invention is applicable to various connectors regardless of a type of cable and a number of contacts. For example, the connector may have a plurality of the contacts. For example, the connector may be attachable to a twinax cable or a cable having three or more signal lines. 
     The present application is based on a Japanese patent application of JP2012-107832 filed before the Japan Patent Office on May 9, 2012, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     While there has been described what is believed to be the preferred embodiment of the invention, those skilled in the art will recognize that other and further modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit of the invention, and it is intended to claim all such embodiments that fall within the true scope of the invention.