Electrical connector

Abstract

An electrical connector includes an insulating body provided with a accommodating hole, and a terminal and an electrical conductor accommodated in the accommodating hole and separately provided. The terminal includes a base provided in the corresponding accommodating hole, and two elastic arms respectively formed by bending and extending from the base. Each elastic arm extends to form a contact portion. Each contact portion extends to form an extending arm. Each extending arm has a first side edge, a second side edge and an end edge. Each first side edge has an abutting portion for abutting the corresponding electrical conductor. Each first side edge has a first guide portion extending between a corresponding contact portion and a corresponding abutting portion, and a second guide portion extending between the corresponding abutting portion and a corresponding end edge.

Claims

1. An electrical connector, configured to electrically connect a mating assembly to a matching assembly, the electrical connector comprising: an insulating body, provided with at least one accommodating hole; at least one electrical conductor, correspondingly mounted to the at least one accommodating hole; and at least one terminal, correspondingly mounted to the at least one accommodating hole, wherein the electrical conductor and the terminal mounted to a same one of the at least one accommodating hole are separately provided, and each of the at least one terminal comprises: a base, provided in a corresponding accommodating hole of the at least one accommodating hole; and two elastic arms, respectively formed by bending and extending from the base; two contact portions, wherein each of the contact portions is correspondingly formed by extending from one of the two elastic arms, one of the two contact portions is exposed upward to the corresponding accommodating hole to be in contact with the mating assembly, and the other of the two contact portions is exposed downward to the corresponding accommodating hole to be in contact with the matching assembly; two extending arms, formed by respectively and correspondingly extending from the contact portions, wherein each of the extending arms has a first side edge and a second side edge opposite to each other in a left-right direction and an end edge connecting the first side edge and the second side edge; two abutting portions, respectively and correspondingly provided at the first side edges of the two extending arms, and configured to abut the corresponding electrical conductor, wherein the two abutting portions are located between the two contact portions in a vertical direction, and each of the abutting portions is respectively provided to be away from the second side edge of a corresponding extending arm of the extending arms in the left-right direction relative to a corresponding contact portion of the contact portions and the end edge of the corresponding extending arm; two first guide portions, respectively and correspondingly provided at the first side edges of the two extending arms, wherein each of the two first guide portions extends between the corresponding contact portion and a corresponding abutting portion of the abutting portions; and two second guide portions, respectively and correspondingly provided at the first side edges of the two extending arms, wherein each of the two first guide portions extends between the corresponding abutting portion and the end edge of the corresponding extending arm.

2. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the two abutting portions and the corresponding electrical conductor are located in front of the base.

3. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the two abutting portions are aligned in the vertical direction.

4. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein each of the extending arms has a width gradually increasing at a portion from the corresponding contact portion to the corresponding abutting portion in the left-right direction, and a width gradually decreasing at a portion from the corresponding abutting portion to the end edge of the corresponding extending arm in the left-right direction.

5. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein each of the first guide portions is an arc-shaped structure.

6. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein each of the second guide portions is an inclined plane structure.

7. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the electrical conductor has one side close to the terminal, an upper end and a lower end of the one side of the electrical conductor are respectively provided with two oblique portions respectively provided corresponding to the two abutting portions, and when the mating assembly and the matching assembly respectively and correspondingly abut the contact portions, the second guide portions are correspondingly guided by the oblique portions.

8. The electrical connector according to claim 7, wherein each of the second guide portions and a corresponding oblique portion of the oblique portions have a same inclination angle.

9. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the terminal and the corresponding electrical conductor are sequentially mounted to the corresponding accommodating hole along a same direction.

10. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the terminal and the corresponding electrical conductor are mounted to the corresponding accommodating hole along opposite directions.

11. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the electrical conductor is located between the two contact portions of the corresponding terminal in the vertical direction.

12. The electrical connector according to claim 11, wherein when the terminal and the electrical conductor are sequentially mounted into the accommodating hole, the electrical conductor and one of the first guide portions of the terminal guide each other.

13. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the second side edge of each of the extending arms is a vertical plain surface.

14. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the accommodating hole has two side walls in the left-right direction and a front wall and a rear wall in a front-rear direction, a protruding block is formed by protruding from one of the side walls, and the protruding block matches with the front wall to fix the electrical conductor.

15. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the insulating body is provided with an upper surface, one of the contact portions of the terminal in contact with the mating assembly protrudes out of the upper surface, a projecting portion protrudes upward from the upper surface at a lateral side of each of the at least one electrical conductor, and the electrical conductor is provided not to be higher than the corresponding projecting portion in the vertical direction.

16. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the two elastic arms of the terminal are provided to be vertically symmetrical with respect to the base.

17. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the end edge of each of the extending arms is an arc-shaped structure.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The accompanying drawings illustrate one or more embodiments of the disclosure and together with the written description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosure. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like elements of an embodiment, and wherein:

(2) FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an electrical connector according to certain embodiments of the present invention.

(3) FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the electrical connector in FIG. 1 being rotated ninety degrees counterclockwise horizontally.

(4) FIG. 3 is a partial enlarged view of a portion a in FIG. 2.

(5) FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a terminal in FIG. 1 from another viewing angle.

(6) FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the terminal and an electrical conductor in a compressed state of FIG. 1.

(7) FIG. 6 is a front view of the electrical connector in FIG. 1 when the electrical connector is not mated with a mating assembly or a matching assembly.

(8) FIG. 7 is a sectional view of FIG. 6 along a line A-A.

(9) FIG. 8 is a partial enlarged view of a portion b in FIG. 7.

(10) FIG. 9 is a schematic view of the electrical connector in FIG. 6 when the electrical connector is mated with the mating assembly and the matching assembly.

(11) FIG. 10 is a sectional view of FIG. 9 along a line B-B.

(12) FIG. 11 is a partial enlarged view of a portion c in FIG. 10.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(13) The present invention is more particularly described in the following examples that are intended as illustrative only since numerous modifications and variations therein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Various embodiments of the invention are now described in detail. Referring to the drawings, like numbers indicate like components throughout the views. As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “a”, “an”, and “the” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Moreover, titles or subtitles may be used in the specification for the convenience of a reader, which shall have no influence on the scope of the present invention.

(14) It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being “on” another element, it can be directly on the other element or intervening elements may be present therebetween. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly on” another element, there are no intervening elements present. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

(15) Furthermore, relative terms, such as “lower” or “bottom” and “upper” or “top,” may be used herein to describe one element's relationship to another element as illustrated in the Figures. It will be understood that relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in addition to the orientation depicted in the Figures. For example, if the device in one of the figures is turned over, elements described as being on the “lower” side of other elements would then be oriented on “upper” sides of the other elements. The exemplary term “lower”, can therefore, encompasses both an orientation of “lower” and “upper,” depending of the particular orientation of the figure. Similarly, if the device in one of the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements would then be oriented “above” the other elements. The exemplary terms “below” or “beneath” can, therefore, encompass both an orientation of above and below.

(16) As used herein, “around”, “about” or “approximately” shall generally mean within 20 percent, preferably within 10 percent, and more preferably within 5 percent of a given value or range. Numerical quantities given herein are approximate, meaning that the term “around”, “about” or “approximately” can be inferred if not expressly stated.

(17) As used herein, the terms “comprising”, “including”, “carrying”, “having”, “containing”, “involving”, and the like are to be understood to be open-ended, i.e., to mean including but not limited to.

(18) The description will be made as to the embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in FIGS. 1-11. In accordance with the purposes of this invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, this invention, in one aspect, relates to an electrical connector and an assembly method thereof.

(19) FIG. 1, FIG. 6 and FIG. 9 show an electrical connector 100 according to certain embodiments of the present invention. The electrical connector 100 is used to electrically connect a mating assembly 200 to a matching assembly 300. In this embodiment, the mating assembly 200 is a chip module, and the matching assembly 300 is a circuit board. In other embodiments, other components may be used. For example, the mating assembly 200 and the matching assembly 300 can be both circuit boards. The types of the mating assembly 200 and the matching assembly 300 are not limited thereto, as long as the mating assembly 200 and the matching assembly 300 match with the electrical connector 100.

(20) As shown in FIG. 1, the electrical connector 100 defines a front-rear direction X, a left-right direction Y and a vertical direction Z. The front-rear direction X, the left-right direction Y and the vertical direction Z are perpendicular to one another.

(21) As shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 6 and FIG. 9, the electrical connector 100 includes an insulating body 1, and multiple electrical conductors 2 and multiple terminals 3 provided in the insulating body 1. One end of each of the terminals 3 elastically abuts the mating assembly 200, and the other end elastically abuts the matching assembly 300.

(22) As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the insulating body 1 has an upper surface 11 and a lower surface 12 provided opposite to each other. Multiple projecting portions 13 are protrudingly provided upward from the upper surface 11. The insulating body 1 further has multiple accommodating holes 14 running through the upper surface 11 and the lower surface 12. The accommodating holes 14 are arranged in a matrix, and are arranged in multiple columns in the left-right direction Y. Each column has multiple accommodating holes 14 arranged in the front-rear direction X. Multiple accommodating holes 14 in two adjacent columns are provided staggeredly in the front-rear direction X.

(23) As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 3, a lateral side of each of the accommodating holes 14 is correspondingly provided with one projecting portion 13. Each of the accommodating holes 14 includes a front wall 141 and a rear wall 142 opposite to each other in the front-rear direction X, and two side walls 143 connecting the front wall 141 and the rear wall 142. Each of the side walls 143 is depressed at a position close to the rear wall 142 to form a groove 144. The groove 144 runs upward through the upper surface 11, and does not run downward through the lower surface 12. One of the side walls 143 protrudes at a position close to the front wall 141 to form a protruding block 145, and the protruding block 145 and the front wall 141 are respectively depressed inward at positions close to the corresponding side wall 143 to form a position limiting slot 146. The position limiting slot 146 runs upward through the upper surface 11.

(24) As shown in FIG. 2, FIG. 3 and FIG. 6, the electrical conductors 2 are correspondingly accommodated in the accommodating holes 14. Each electrical conductor 2 is fixed between the protruding block 145 and the front wall 141 in the corresponding accommodating hole 14, and each electrical conductor 2 is provided not to be higher than the corresponding projecting portion 13 in the vertical direction Z, and not to be lower than the lower surface 12. In this embodiment, each projecting portion 13 is located at the left side of the corresponding electrical conductor 2, and each projecting portion 13 and the corresponding electrical conductor 2 are provided to align each other in the left-right direction Y.

(25) As shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 5 and FIG. 8, the upper and lower ends of the electrical conductor 2 are respectively provided with two oblique portions. The oblique portions are provided on a side 2a of the electrical conductor 2 facing the corresponding terminal 3. The oblique portion at the upper end of the electrical conductor 2 is defined as an upper oblique portion 21, and the oblique portion at the lower end of the electrical conductor 2 is defined as a lower oblique portion 22. In this embodiment, the upper oblique portion 21 and the lower oblique portion 22 are respectively a plain surface provided obliquely. That is, each of the upper and lower ends of the electrical conductor 2 has a wedge shape.

(26) As shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 3 and FIG. 5, the front and rear sides of the electrical conductor 2 are respectively provided with two position limiting portions 23 protruding outward, and the position limiting portions 23 are located between the upper oblique portion 21 and the lower oblique portion 22 in the vertical direction Z. In this embodiment, the position limiting portions 23 are provided close to the upper oblique portion 21, and the position limiting portions 23 form an interference fit with the corresponding position limiting slots 146, such that the electrical conductor 2 is stably retained to the insulating body 1. Further, the position limiting portions 23 are simultaneously stopped by the position limiting slots 146, thereby preventing the electrical conductor 2 from moving downward.

(27) As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 6, the terminals 3 are correspondingly accommodated in the accommodating holes 14. Each of the terminals 3 has a base 31 accommodated in the corresponding accommodating hole 14. The base 31 abuts the rear wall 142, and the left and right sides of the base 31 are respectively accommodated in the corresponding grooves 144, thereby preventing the terminal 3 from moving downward excessively.

(28) As shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 9, the top end of the base 31 is provided with two strip connecting portions 32 symmetrically to be connected with a strip (not shown). Two elastic arms are formed by bending and extending respectively from a top end and a bottom end of the base 31. Each of the elastic arms extends to form a contact portion, and each of the contact portions extends to form an extending arm. The elastic arm formed by bending upward and forward from the top end of the base 31 at a position between the two strip connecting portions 32 is defined as a first elastic arm 33a. The contact portion formed by extending from the first elastic arm 33a is defined as a first contact portion 34a. The first contact portion 34a is exposed upward to the corresponding accommodating hole 14 to abut the mating assembly 200, and the first contact portion 34a bends and extends forward to form a first extending arm 35a. The elastic arm formed by bending downward and forward from the bottom end of the base 31 is defined as a second elastic arm 33b. The first elastic arm 33a and the second elastic arm 33b are vertically symmetrical with respect to the base 31. The contact portion formed by extending from the second elastic arm 33b is defined as a second contact portion 34b. The second contact portion 34b is exposed downward to the corresponding accommodating hole 14 to abut the matching assembly 300, and the second contact portion 34b bends and extends forward to form a second extending arm 35b.

(29) As shown in FIG. 4, FIG. 5 and FIG. 8, each of the first extending arm 35a and the second extending arm 35b is respectively provided with two side edges opposite to each other in the left-right direction Y, and an end edge connecting the two side edges. The two side edges of the first extending arm 35a are defined as a first side edge 351a and a second side edge 352a, and the end edge of the first extending arm 35a is defined as an upper end edge 353a. The two side edges of the second extending arm 35b are defined as a first side edge 351b and a second side edge 352b, and the end edge of the second extending arm 35b is defined as a lower end edge 353b. In this embodiment, the first side edge 351a is located at the left side of the first extending arm 35a, the second side edge 352a is located at the right side of the first extending arm 35a, the first side edge 351b is located at the left side of the second extending arm 35b, and the second side edge 352b is located at the right side of the second extending arm 35b. Each of the second side edges 352a, 352b is a vertical plain surface, and both are located on a same vertical plane. Each of the upper end edge 353a and the lower end edge 353b is an arc-shaped structure.

(30) As shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 8, each of the first side edges 351a, 351b is provided with an abutting portion to abut the electrical conductor 2. The abutting portion on the first side edge 351a is defined as a first abutting portion 3511a, and the abutting portion on the second side edge 351b is defined as a second abutting portion 3511b. The second abutting portion 3511b and the first abutting portion 3511a are aligned in the vertical direction Z.

(31) As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 8, the first abutting portion 3511a is provided away from the second side edge 352a in the left-right direction Y relative to the corresponding first contact portion 34a and the upper end edge 353a. The first extending arm 35a has a width gradually increasing at a portion from the corresponding first contact portion 34a to the first abutting portion 3511a in the left-right direction Y, and a width gradually decreasing at a portion from the corresponding first abutting portion 3511a to the upper end edge 353a in the left-right direction Y. The first side edge 351a is provided with a first guide portion 3512a extending between the corresponding first contact portion 34a and the first abutting portion 3511a, and the first guide portion 3512a is an arc-shaped structure. The first side edge 351a is provided with a second guide portion 3513a extending between the corresponding first abutting portion 3511a and the upper end edge 353a. The second guide portion 3513a is an inclined plane structure, and the second guide portion 3513a and the corresponding upper oblique portion 21 have a same inclination angle.

(32) As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 8, the second abutting portion 3511b is provided away from the second side edge 352b in the left-right direction Y relative to the corresponding second contact portion 34b and the lower end edge 353b. The second extending arm 35b has a width gradually increasing at a portion from the corresponding second contact portion 34b to the second abutting portion 3511b in the left-right direction Y, and the second extending arm 35b has a width gradually decreasing at a portion from the corresponding second abutting portion 3511b to the lower end edge 353b in the left-right direction Y. The first side edge 351b is provided with a first guide portion 3512b extending between the corresponding second contact portion 34b and the second abutting portion 3511b, and the first guide portion 3512b is an arc-shaped structure. The first side edge 351b is provided with a second guide portion 3513b extending between the corresponding second abutting portion 3511b and the lower end edge 353b. The second guide portion 3513b is an inclined plane structure, and the second guide portion 3513b and the corresponding lower oblique portion 22 have the same inclination angle.

(33) As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, in the embodiment of the present invention, after the terminal 3 is firstly mounted into the corresponding accommodating hole 14 downward from top thereof, the electrical conductor 2 is then mounted into the accommodating hole 14 downward from top thereof. During the mounting of the electrical conductor 2, the electrical conductor 2 is guided by the first guide portion 3512a of the first extending arm 35a to facilitate the mounting of the electrical conductor 2 into the accommodating hole 14. At this time, the first abutting portion 3511a, the second abutting portion 3511b and the corresponding electrical conductor 2 are located in front of the base 31, and the electrical conductor 2 is located between the first contact portion 34a and the second contact portion 34b in the vertical direction Z.

(34) As shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 11, the mating assembly 200 presses on the first contact portion 34a. When the matching assembly 300 is in contact with the corresponding second contact portion 34b, the first elastic arm 33a is elastically deformed under the force, such that the first contact portion 34a moves downward relative to the insulating body 1. The second guide portion 3513a of the first extending arm 35a slides downward along the upper oblique portion 21, such that the first abutting portion 3511a stably abuts the electrical conductor 2. The second elastic arm 33b is elastically deformed under the force, such that the first contact portion 34a moves upward relative to the insulating body 1. The second guide portion 3513b of the second extending arm 35b slides upward along the lower oblique portion 22, such that the second abutting portion 3511b stably abuts the electrical conductor 2. Finally, the first abutting portion 3511a and the second abutting portion 3511b stably abut the corresponding electrical conductor 2. At this time, a first conductive path is formed via the mating assembly 200, the first contact portion 34a, the first elastic arm 33a, the base 31, the second elastic arm 33b, the second contact portion 34b and the matching assembly 300, and a second conductive path is formed via the mating assembly 200, the first contact portion 34a, the first abutting portion 3511a, the electrical conductor 2, the second abutting portion 3511b, the second contact portion 34b and the matching assembly 300. The first conductive path and the second conductive path are in parallel, thus reducing the electrical impedance during the telecommunication transmission between the mating assembly 200 and the matching assembly 300, and thereby ensuring good electrical conduction and telecommunication transmission performance between the mating assembly 200 and the matching assembly 300.

(35) In other embodiments, after the terminal 3 is firstly mounted into the accommodating hole 14 downward from top thereof, the electrical conductor 2 is then mounted into the accommodating hole 14 upward from bottom thereof. At this time, the first guide portion 3512b of the second extending arm 35b is in contact with the upper oblique portion 21, and the first guide portion 3512b serves as a guide to facilitate the mounting of the electrical conductor 2 into the insulating body 1.

(36) In other embodiments, after the electrical conductor 2 is firstly mounted into the accommodating hole 14 downward from top thereof, the terminal 3 is then mounted into the accommodating hole 14 downward from top thereof. At this time, the first guide portion 3512b of the second extending arm 35b is in contact with the upper oblique portion 21, and the upper oblique portion 21 serves as a guide to facilitate the mounting of the terminal 3 into the insulating body 1.

(37) In other embodiments, after the electrical conductor 2 is firstly mounted into the accommodating hole 14 downward from top thereof, the terminal 3 is then mounted into the accommodating hole 14 upward from bottom thereof. At this time, the first guide portion 3512a of the first extending arm 35a is in contact with the lower oblique portion 22, and the lower oblique portion 22 serves as a guide to facilitate the mounting of the terminal 3 into the insulating body 1.

(38) Compared with the related art, the electrical connector 100 according to certain embodiments of the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

(39) 1. The terminal 3 is provided with the two elastic arms 33a, 33b formed by bending and extending from the base 31. The elastic arms 33a, 33b respectively extend to form the contact portions 34a, 34b, and the contact portions 34a, 34b respectively extend to form the extending arms 35a, 35b. The extending arms 35a, 35b are respectively provided with the first guide portions 3512a, 3512b, the second guide portions 3513a, 3513b and the abutting portions 3511a, 3511b. The first guide portions 3512a, 3512b are provided to facilitate the sequential mounting of the electrical conductor 2 and the terminal 3. The second guide portions 3513a, 3513b are provided to allow the extending arms 35a, 35b to guide the electrical conductor 2 when the contact portions 34a, 34b are applied with the force, such that the abutting portions 3511a, 3511b abut the electrical conductor 2. Moreover, the terminal 3 has multiple electrical paths from the mating assembly 200 to the matching assembly 300, which can satisfy the high frequency requirements of the terminal 3.

(40) 2. When the mating assembly 200 presses downward on the first contact portion 34a, and the matching assembly 300 abuts the second contact portion 34b, the upper oblique portion 21 and the lower oblique portion 22 of the electrical conductor 2 and the second guide portion 3513a of the first extending arm 35a and the second guide portion 3513b of the second extending arm 35b guide each other, thus facilitating movement of the first elastic arm 33a and the second elastic arm 33b without damage.

(41) 3. When the first elastic arm 33a is elastically deformed while the first contact portion 34a moves downward relative to the insulating body 1, and the second elastic arm 33b is elastically deformed while the second contact portion 34b moves upward relative to the insulating body 1, the upper end edge 353a and the lower end edge 353b are respectively arc-shaped structures, thus preventing from scratching in the process in which the upper end edge 353a and the lower end edge 353b are in contact with the electrical conductor 2.

(42) 4. The second guide portion 3513a of the first extending arm 35a and the upper oblique portion 21 have the same inclination angle, and the second guide portion 3513b of the second extending arm 35b and the lower oblique portion 22 have the same inclination angle, such that the upper oblique portion 21 and the lower oblique portion 22 of the electrical conductor 2 and the second guide portion 3513a of the first extending arm 35a and the second guide portion 3513b of the second extending arm 35b guide each other.

(43) The foregoing description of the exemplary embodiments of the invention has been presented only for the purposes of illustration and description and is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching.

(44) The embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain the principles of the invention and their practical application so as to activate others skilled in the art to utilize the invention and various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. Alternative embodiments will become apparent to those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains without departing from its spirit and scope. Accordingly, the scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims rather than the foregoing description and the exemplary embodiments described therein.