Abstract:
A protection cap for an electrical connector with several terminals extending from a first end thereof. The cap includes a body having a cavity for releaseably receiving a second end of the connector which is opposite the first end, at least one arm extending from the body for wrapping partially around the connector, and a terminal retainer arranged on the free end of the arm for engaging at least some of the terminals.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention generally relates to retainers for the terminals on an electrical connector, and, more particularly, to a cap for protecting the terminals on an electrical connector module during shipping, storage, and installation. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     FIG. 1 illustrates a typical connector module  2  fitted with a conventional tie bar  4  on the ends of the terminals, or contact tails,  6  for protecting the terminals during shipping and storage, and for maintaining tail registration and co-planarity during installation of the connector  2  onto a circuit board. The tie bar  4  is preferably made from brass in order to allow it to be easily fitted to the terminals  6  and to minimize the effects of static electricity on the connector module  2 . 
     During manufacturing, the tie bar  4  is crimped onto the end of the terminals  6  with pliers or other crimping tools. During subsequent installation of the connector, the terminals  6  are soldered to a circuit board, or other device, with the tie bar  4  in place. The free ends of the terminals  6  between the solder connection and the tie bar  4  are then trimmed in order to remove the tie bar  4  and terminal stubs from the soldered connection. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Such conventional tie bars have several drawbacks. For example, they are not reusable. The narrow width of the tie bar  4  also prevents it from adequately covering the entire length of the terminals  6  while the crimping process can otherwise bend or stress the terminals. Furthermore, since the tie bar  4  is fixed to the ends of the terminals  6 , it can only be removed by pulling the terminals against the solder or trimming the ends of the terminals after the connector module  2  has been soldered onto the board. Often the connector module  2  must be installed in an inconvenient position relative to other components on the board. Consequently, removing the tie bar  4  after the connector  2  has been installed requires a significant amount of time and skill to complete without damaging the connector module  2 . 
     These and other drawbacks associated with the prior art are addressed by providing a protection cap for an electrical connector having a plurality of terminals extending from one side of one end. The cap includes a body having a cavity for releasably receiving a second end of the connector which is opposite from the first end. At least one arm extends from the body for wrapping partially around the connector. A terminal retainer is then arranged on the free end of the arm for engaging and at least some of the connector terminals. 
     The cap may be formed from a contiguous sheet of material having hinges or folds which rotatably separate the body, arm, and terminal retainers from each other. The terminal retainer may include a plurality of wells, slots, holes, or terminal receiving cavities which each receive and protect one, or more, of the terminals. These slots may also extend all the way through the walls of the terminal retainer for providing access to the terminals through a wall in the retainer. 
     In another embodiment, the cap may further include means for releasably securing the terminal retainer to the connector. For example, the securing means may include a fastener arranged on the side or top of the terminal retainer for attaching to the side or top of the connector. The fastener may include a tab, latch, snap-clamp, adhesives, or other easily-releaseable devices. Alternatively, the terminal retainer may be secured to the connector without a fastener by the frictional force created between the terminals and the walls of the slots inside the terminal retainer. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The invention will now be described with respect to the following drawings wherein the numerals have been used to identify the similar features in each of the figures, and wherein 
     FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a connector module with a conventional tie bar; 
     FIG. 2 is an exploded isometric view of a connector module and protection cap assembly with the protection cap open; 
     FIG. 3 is an isometric view of a connector module and protection cap assembly with the protection cap closed; and 
     FIGS. 4 through 15 are isometric views of alternative embodiments for a protection cap. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate an assembly including a connector module  7  and a protection cap  8 . Although a variety of other connector modules could be used with the protection cap, the connector module  7  shown in FIGS.  2  and three is particularly well-suited. 
     In FIG. 2, the protection cap  8  is in an open configuration where the arms  10 A and  10 B on each side of a body  12  are fully extended from the sides of the body. The arms  10  form a living, flexible hinge which may be creased or scored to help control its movement. Other hinging devices may also be used. 
     Each arm  10  is provided with a terminal retainer  14  on its free end. The terminal retainer  14 A on arm  10 A has a securing means or fastener  16  on each end of the terminal retainer  14 A. Although each of the fasteners  16  are illustrated in the drawings as tabs or latch-type fasteners having a barb  18  which engages a corresponding post  20  on the opposite terminal retainer  14 B, a variety of other releaseable fasteners may also be used, such as hook and loop fasteners, snaps, buckles, and/or adhesives. In a preferred embodiment, the post  20  includes an inclined surface  22  for urging the barb  18  over the top of the post  20  and allowing the fastener  16  to snap into place when the terminal retainers  14 A and  14 B are secured together in a closed configuration as described in more detail below and shown in FIG.  3 . 
     As noted above, FIG. 2 also illustrates one embodiment of a connector module  7  which is particularly well suited for use with the protection cap  8 . However, a variety of other connectors with terminals may also be used. The connector module  7  includes a housing  24  which is preferably sized to fit snugly inside the cavity  26  in the protection cap  8 . In a preferred embodiment, the top and bottom surfaces of the housing  24  are provided with a ridge and trough pattern  28  which corresponds to a similar pattern in the side walls of the cavity  26  for use in aligning the housing  24  inside the cavity  26 . A variety of other surface patterns and/or alignment devices may also be used. 
     The connector module  7  also preferably includes two T-shaped shoulders  30  arranged on each end of the housing  24  and extending over the terminals  6 . As illustrated in FIG. 3 showing the connector module  7  assembled inside of the protection cap  8 , the tab  16  on each end of the terminal retainer  14 A slides over the top of the shoulders  30  on the connector module  7  and latches against the post  20  on the end of the terminal retainer  14 B. In the closed configuration shown in FIG. 3, the terminals  6  are hidden from view and protected inside the cap  8  where they are pressed between the terminal retainers  14 A and  14 B. 
     In a preferred embodiment, the terminal retainers  14 A and  14 B are provided with a plurality of slots, wells, or contact tail cavities  32  which each receive one terminal from the connector module  2 . Each slot  32  may also receive more than one terminal  6 , or no terminals at all, depending upon the number of slots  32  and terminals  6 . As is alternatively shown in FIG. 3, the slots  32  may also be in the form of holes  32 A and/or  32 B which extend through the top walls  34  and side walls  36  of the terminal retainers  14 A and/or  14 B for providing access to the terminals  6  through the walls. In addition, a window  33  may be provided in the walls  34  and/or  36 . Although the openings  32 A,  32 B, and  33  are shown on only one portion of the walls  34  and  36  in terminal  14 A, they may also be arranged along the entire portion of one or both walls  34 ,  36 , and/or along any portion of the corresponding outer walls in the other terminal retainer  14 B. Such holes and/or windows provide a visual inspection path which is useful for inspecting the terminals  6  while the assembly is in a closed configuration in order to ensure that each slot  32  receives the proper terminal and that terminals are not missing from the connector module  7 . 
     In a preferred embodiment, the protection cap  8  is molded out of plastic, such as an amorphous thermoplastic polyethermide (PEI) resin like Ultem 1000™ brand unreinforced, available from GE Plastics, or an equivalent thereof. Other materials and different plastics may also be used. However, the material is preferably chosen so that the arms  10  form living hinges which may plastically, and/or elastically, deform when the protection cap is closed, but do not fracture or otherwise catastrophically fail during closure, or when the protection cap is reopened and the connector module  7  is removed. Although the protection cap  8  is illustrated as being formed from a single material, different materials, or composite materials, may also be used for different parts of the cap. 
     FIGS. 4 through 15 illustrate other embodiments for a protection cap  8  which were considered while completing the preferred embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3. In FIG. 4, the protection cap  8  is formed from a solid block and has a plurality of holes  38  in one side for receiving the ends of the terminals  6  in the connector module  7 . This embodiment is preferably used with connector modules having terminals which are substantially straight so as to more easily fit inside the holes  38 . Nonetheless, in this embodiment, the terminals  6  (not shown) can be difficult to align with the holes  38 . 
     In another embodiment (not shown), the tips of the terminals  6  may be covered with a disposable coating material such as an epoxy or a plastic resin (including thermoplastic injection molded resins), putty, or sealant so as to mold a box, plate, or other shape, over the ends of the terminals. The terminals may also be covered with a tape. With such embodiments, the terminals  6  do not have to be aligned with any openings in the protection cap  8  as shown in FIG.  4 . Prior to installation of the connector module  2 , the coating or tape could be mechanically, thermally, an/or chemically removed from the terminals, or the protected terminals could be soldered to the board and then trimmed in order to remove the coated portions from the ends of the terminals. 
     FIG. 5 shows a protection cap  8  which is similar to the protection cap shown in FIG. 4 except that it has a hinge  40  arranged at one end and a latch  42  at the other for securing the two halves together. In FIG. 5, the holes  38  extend through the protection cap  8 . This configuration allows the terminals  6  to be more easily positioned inside the holes  38  before each half of the device is latched together. The hinge  40  is preferably a live hinge consisting of a thin piece of material joining the two halves. 
     FIGS. 6 and 7 illustrate an embodiment for a protection cap  8  which is similar to the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 except that the holes  38  have been replaced with slots  52  in FIG.  6  and teeth  54  in FIG.  7 . In addition, the embodiments shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 have been provided with openings  56  on each end for securing to the shoulders  30  on each end of the connector module  7  (not shown in FIGS.  4 - 15 ). 
     FIG. 8 illustrates another embodiment where dividers  58  extend between the terminals  6 . A groove  60  is arranged on one side of each divider  58  near the top of the divider and a tab  62  is arranged on the other side of each divider near the bottom for support the outside edges of two adjacent terminals  6 . The grooves  60  and tabs  62  may also be arranged on the same sides of the dividers  58 . 
     FIG. 9 illustrates another embodiment for a protection cap  8  in the form of a flexible clip including two handles  44  for opening the clip to receive the terminals  6  on the module connector  7 . The front side  46  and back side  48  the clip-type protection cap shown in FIG. 9 are preferably formed to match the contours of the terminals  6 . FIG. 10 illustrates an alternative embodiment for a clip in which the back face  48  may be formed in a different shape, such as substantially planar, while the front face  46  maintains substantially the same contour as the terminals  6 . Other curve shapes may also be used. The front face  46  of the clip-type protection cap shown in FIG. 10 is divided by a plurality of slits  50  for increasing the flexibility of the front face  46 . The slits  50  eliminate the need for any handles, such as handles  44  in FIG. 6, in order to open the clip. However, handles may also be provided for each section which is separated by the slits  50 . 
     FIGS. 11 through 15 illustrate various embodiments for a protection cap  8  which is formed from a contiguous sheet of material having hinged, folded edges. In FIG. 11, the left and rear walls of the sheet form body walls or surfaces  12  which are separated from, and hinged to, the arm wall or surface  10  by a fold. A second fold separates and hinges the arm wall  10  from the terminal retainer wall or surface  14 . Other types of hinge mechanisms may also be used. 
     The terminal retainer wall  14  in the embodiment shown in FIG. 11 includes flexible teeth  54  formed by slots  52  in the front edge of the wall. The teeth  54  may also be rigid. The body walls  12 , arm wall  10 , and terminal retainer wall  14  wrap around a cavity space  26  for receiving and supporting a connector module  7  inside the cavity with the terminals  6  (not shown) extending through the slots  52  between the teeth  54  in the terminal wall  14 . 
     In the contiguous sheet embodiment shown in FIGS. 12 and 14, the arm wall  10  and terminal retainer wall  14  are separated by additional wall  15  and an additional fold or hinge for providing greater flexibility in arranging the terminals  6  (not shown) inside the slots  52 . The slots  52  may be lengthened so that they extend to the edge of the retaining wall  14  so as to form rigid or flexible teeth (not shown) for separating the terminals  6 . In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 13 and 15, the terminal retaining walls  14  are folded in the opposite direction for allowing the protection cap  8  to accommodate wider connectors in the cavity  26 . In FIGS. 14 and 15, the body wall  12  has been replaced with a finger or tab fastener  62  for securing the connector module  7  against the arm wall  10  and accommodating thicker connectors. The tab  62  may be an adhesive tab and/or may extend farther underneath the arm wall  10 . 
     Although described with respect to preferred embodiments of the invention, it should be readily understood that various changes and/or modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. In general, the invention is only intended to be limited by the scope of the following claims.