Cable arrangement

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cable arrangement comprising a cable that has an outer conductor, and an outer-conductor contact element that is electrically connected to the outer conductor and has a diameter change. In a region of the diameter change, the cable arrangement also has a filling element, which is electrically conductive. The filling element is configured to reduce an air inclusion in the region of the diameter change.

Claims

1. A cable arrangement, comprising: a coaxial cable; a first conductive sleeve; a second sleeve; and an electrically conductive, elastic element, wherein said first conductive sleeve comprises a first portion, a second portion and a transition portion intermediate said first portion and said second portion, said first portion has a first diameter, said second portion has a second diameter smaller than said first diameter, a first end of said second sleeve is situated inside said first portion, an outer conductor of said coaxial cable extends through said second sleeve and folds back at said first end, a folded back portion of said outer conductor is situated between said first conductive sleeve and said second sleeve, and said electrically conductive, elastic element is situated between said first end and an interior surface of said transition portion.

2. The cable arrangement of claim 1, wherein: said transition portion has said first diameter at a junction with said first portion and has said second diameter at a junction with said second portion.

3. The cable arrangement of claim 1, wherein: said electrically conductive, elastic element and said outer conductor collectively fill substantially an entirety of a space bounded, in an axial direction, by said first end and said interior surface and bounded, in a radial direction, by an insulator of said coaxial cable and said first conductive sleeve.

4. The cable arrangement of claim 1, wherein: said coaxial cable comprises an insulator between an inner conductor of said coaxial cable and said outer conductor.

5. The cable arrangement of claim 4, wherein: an outer diameter of said insulator is substantially identical to said second diameter.

6. The cable arrangement of claim 5, wherein: an inner diameter of said electrically conductive, elastic element is substantially identical to said second diameter.

7. The cable arrangement of claim 1, wherein: an interior circumference of said second portion abuts an outer circumference of an insulator of said coaxial cable.

8. The cable arrangement of claim 1, wherein: said folded back portion of said outer conductor is sandwiched between an interior circumference of said first portion and an outer circumference of said second sleeve.

9. The cable arrangement of claim 1, wherein: said electrically conductive, elastic element has a generally annular shape.

10. A cable arrangement, comprising: an insulator; an inner conductor; an outer conductor; a first conductive sleeve; and an electrically conductive, elastic element, wherein said inner conductor extends through said insulator, in a first region of said cable arrangement, an inner circumference of said outer conductor abuts a first portion of an outer circumference of said insulator, in a second region of said cable arrangement adjacent said first region, an inner circumference of said electrically conductive, elastic element is substantially adjacent a second portion of said outer circumference of said insulator, and in a third region of said cable arrangement adjacent said second region, an inner circumference of said first conductive sleeve abuts a third portion of said outer circumference of said insulator.

11. The cable arrangement of claim 10, wherein: said electrically conductive, elastic element is situated inside said first conductive sleeve.

12. The cable arrangement of claim 10, wherein: said inner conductor, said insulator and said outer conductor constitute a coaxial cable, and a portion of said coaxial cable is situated inside said first conductive sleeve.

13. The cable arrangement of claim 10, comprising: a second sleeve, wherein a first end of said second sleeve is situated inside said first region, an outer conductor extends through said second sleeve and folds back at a first end of said second sleeve.

14. The cable arrangement of claim 13, wherein: a folded back portion of said outer conductor is situated between said first conductive sleeve and said second sleeve.

15. The cable arrangement of claim 13, wherein: a folded back portion of said outer conductor is sandwiched between an interior circumference of said first conductive sleeve and an outer circumference of said second sleeve.

16. The cable arrangement of claim 13, wherein: said second sleeve is situated in said first region.

17. The cable arrangement of claim 10, wherein: said electrically conductive, elastic element has a generally annular shape.

18. The cable arrangement of claim 10, wherein: a diameter of said first portion is substantially identical to a diameter of said second portion and to a diameter of said third portion.

Description

SUMMARY OF THE DRAWING

(1) The present invention is explained in greater detail in the following on the basis of the exemplary embodiments indicated in the schematic figures of the drawing. There are shown therein:

(2) FIG. 1A a cross-sectional representation of a connector arrangement having a plug-in connector realized as a plug connector,

(3) FIG. 1B a cross-sectional representation of a connector arrangement having a plug-in connector realized as a coupler,

(4) FIG. 2A a top view of a filling element,

(5) FIG. 2B a cross-sectional representation of a first variant of the filling element, and

(6) FIG. 2C a cross-sectional representation of a second variant of the filling element.

(7) The accompanying figures of the drawing are intended to provide a further understanding of the embodiments of the invention. They illustrate embodiments and serve to explain principles and concepts of the invention in the context of the description. Other embodiments and many of the stated advantages will become apparent from the drawings. The elements of the drawings are not necessarily shown to scale relative to each other.

(8) In the figures of the drawing, elements, features and components that are identical and that have the same function and the same effect are—unless otherwise stated—in each case denoted by the same references.

(9) In the following, the figures are described in a coherent and comprehensive manner.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

(10) The connector arrangement 10, represented schematically in FIG. 1A, which is realized as a plug-in connector arrangement, comprises a connector 20 and a cable 30 connected thereto. The connector 20 is realized as a plug-in connector, which in turn is in the form of a plug connector. The connector arrangement represented in FIG. 1A is a coaxial connector arrangement composed of a coaxial plug-in connector and a coaxial cable. Alternatively, non-coaxial connector arrangements, composed of a non-coaxial connector, or plug-in connector, and an associated non-coaxial cable, are also covered by the present disclosure, as already mentioned above.

(11) The cable 30, realized as a coaxial cable, has an electrical inner conductor 31, an insulator element 32 coaxially enclosing the electrical inner conductor 31, an outer conductor 33 coaxially enclosing the insulator element 32 and composed of a wire braid or a conductive foil, and a cable sheath 34 enclosing the outer conductor 33 and composed of an electrically insulating material such as, for example, plastic.

(12) As can be clearly seen from FIG. 1A, the electrical inner conductor 31 of the cable 30 is stripped at its end that faces toward the connector 20, i.e. it is exposed with respect to the insulator part 32. The insulator part 32, at its end that faces toward the connector 20, is also exposed with respect to the outer conductor 33. Finally, the outer conductor 33, at its end that faces toward the connector 20, is also exposed from the cable sheath 34.

(13) The cable end of the cable 30 that faces toward the connector 20 is received in a sleeve-shaped outer-conductor contact element 35. The inner diameter of the outer-conductor contact element 35 corresponds substantially to the outer diameter of the cable sheath 34, such that the cable end of the cable 30 including a certain portion of the cable sheath 34 can be inserted into an opening of the outer-conductor contact element 35, and a subsequent crimping or pressing-together process, between the outer-conductor contact element 35 and the cable 30, is possible.

(14) As already mentioned, the crimping, or pressing-together, process between the cable 30 and the outer-conductor contact element 35 is effected in three different portions of the outer-conductor contact element 35:

(15) In a first portion of the outer-conductor contact element 35, which in FIG. 1A is denoted by A, the outer-conductor contact element 35 is fixed to the cable sheath 34 by means of an insulation crimp. Due to the insulation crimp, the outer diameter of the cable sheath 34 is slightly reduced, or pinched, in the region of the insulation crimp, as can be seen from FIG. 1A.

(16) In a second portion of the outer-conductor contact element 35, which in FIG. 1A is identified by B, the exposed shielding braid of the outer conductor 33 is folded back around a support sleeve 36. The inner diameter of the support sleeve 36 corresponds substantially to the outer diameter of the outer conductor 33 in the non-pressed state, to allow easy insertion of the cable 23 with its outer conductor 33 into the bore of the support sleeve 36. Following insertion of the outer conductor 33 of the cable 23 into the support sleeve 36, the support sleeve 36 is fixed to the outer conductor 33 of the cable 23 by means of crimping. The outer conductor 33 which, because it is realized as a shielding braid or conductive foil, can be easily folded back around the fixed support sleeve 36, is of such a length that it can be folded back over the entire longitudinal extent of the support sleeve 36. Since the outer conductor lies on the support sleeve 36 radially outside the support sleeve 36, along the entire longitudinal extent of the support sleeve 36, a best possible holding force can be realized between the outer conductor 33 and the outer-conductor contact sleeve 36.

(17) In order that the cable 30, with its outer conductor 33 folded back around the support sleeve 36, can be easily inserted into the opening of the outer-conductor contact element 35, the outer diameter of the outer conductor 33 folded back around the support sleeve 36 corresponds substantially to the inner diameter of the outer-conductor contact element 35. The support sleeve 36, which is surrounded both radially inside and radially outside by the outer conductor 33, enables the outer-conductor contact element 35 to be fixed in a more stable manner to the outer conductor 33 of the cable 30 during the crimping, or pressing-together, process. The support sleeve 36 additionally prevents damage to the electrical inner conductor 31 in the case of such a conductor crimp. In particular, owing to the conductor crimp, the portion of the outer conductor 33 located radially inside the support sleeve 36 has a slightly reduced, or pinched, outer diameter in the region of the support sleeve 36, as can be seen from FIG. 1A.

(18) In a third portion of the outer-conductor contact element 35, which in FIG. 1A is identified by C and is located between the axial end of the outer conductor 33 and an end of the outer-conductor contact element 35 that faces toward the connector 20, there is a so-called waist crimp. In the case of this waist crimp, the outer-conductor contact element 35 has a radial constriction. In the region of its narrowest radial constriction, the outer-conductor contact element 35 lies on the exposed insulator part 32 of the cable 30.

(19) Since there is no outer conductor 33 of the cable 30 present in the portion of the high-frequency signal path between the axial end of the outer conductor 33 and the connector 20, the outer-conductor-side high-frequency signal path is formed by the outer-conductor contact element 35. Without the realization of a radial constriction of the outer-conductor contact element 35, the distance between the outer-conductor-side and the inner-conductor-side signal routing, and thus the impedance in this portion, would change compared to the portions of the high-frequency signal path in which, respectively, an outer conductor 33 of the cable 30 is still present. This mismatch of the impedance disadvantageously causes reflections of higher-frequency signal components and impairs the transmission characteristic of the high-frequency signal path. Owing to the radial constriction of the outer-conductor contact element 35, the inner diameter of the outer-conductor contact element 35 in the region of the narrowest radial constriction is reduced to the inner diameter of the outer conductor 33 of the cable 30. In this way, the impedance of the high-frequency signal path in the region of the narrowest radial constriction of the outer-conductor contact element 35 is again matched to the impedance of the high-frequency signal path within the cable 30 and in the region of the outer-conductor contact element 35 up to the axial end of the outer conductor 33.

(20) As can also be seen from FIG. 1A, the outer-conductor contact element 35 has a portion, identified by D in FIG. 1A, in which, on the one hand, there is no outer conductor 33 of the cable 30 and, on the other hand, the distance between the outer-conductor contact element 35 and the electrical inner conductor 33 does not correspond to the adjusted distance between the outer-conductor-side and the inner-conductor-side signal routing. On the one hand, this is due to the fact that the diameter change of the outer-conductor contact element 35 is not effected abruptly, i.e. discontinuously, but in a steady transition over a certain axial longitudinal extent. On the other hand, this portion D results from manufacturing tolerances of the individual components, for example of the outer conductor 33, the support sleeve 36, the outer-conductor contact element 35, the connector 20 etc., and of the individual assembly steps, for example of the conductor crimp and the waist crimp.

(21) The distance between the axial end of the outer conductor 33 and the beginning of the narrowest radial constriction, in which the outer-conductor contact element 35 lies on the insulator part 33, is typically less than 2 mm, for example less than 0.5 mm. According to the prior art, a cavity, filled only with air, is formed in this region of the high-frequency signal path between the axial end of the outer conductor 33, the outer-conductor contact element 35 and the insulator part 33. Within this region, the high-frequency signal path exhibits a discontinuity in its impedance profile, which impairs the transmission characteristic, in particular for higher-frequency signal components in the two- or three-digit gigahertz range.

(22) To overcome this technical disadvantage, an electrically conductive and elastic filling element 37 is arranged in this region, which is adjacent to the axial end of the outer conductor 33. Due to the elasticity of the filling element 37, the cavity formed between the axial end of the outer conductor 33, the outer-conductor contact element 35 and the insulator part 33 can be filled as much as possible with the filling element 37. In this way, it is also possible for the electrically conductive filling element 37 to fill the region up to the insulator part 33, and thus a substantially constant outer-conductor-side inner diameter is realized from the outer conductor 33 of the cable 30 in portion B, via the electrically conductive and elastic filling element 37 in portion D, up to the narrowest radial constriction of the outer-conductor contact element 35 in portion C. The high-frequency signal path thus has substantially no discontinuities in its impedance profile in these portions, and enables optimized transmission behavior for high-frequency signals up to the two- and three-digit gigahertz range.

(23) The electrically conductive and elastic filling element 37 encloses the insulator element 33 and thus has a rotationally symmetrical shape, for example an annular or sleeve-shaped shape, as shown in FIG. 2A.

(24) In a first variant, the electrically conductive and elastic filling element 37 according to FIG. 2B is made of an elastomer having integrated electrically conductive particles, for example metallic particles. The number, size, shape and arrangement of the individual electrically conductive particles within the filling element 37 made of elastomer is to be selected so that the electrically conductive and elastic filling element has sufficient electrical conductivity for high-frequency signals up to the two- or three-digit gigahertz range.

(25) In a second variant, the electrically conductive and elastic filling element 37 according to FIG. 2C is made of an elastomer having an integrated electrically conductive wire that is braided three-dimensionally. The three-dimensional braiding of the electrically conductive wire may be completely random or in a specific order structure. For the second variant, also, the length, diameter, type of braiding and density of the electrically conductive and three-dimensionally braided wire is to be selected so that the electrically conductive and elastic filling element has sufficient electrical conductivity for high-frequency signals up to the two- or three-digit gigahertz range.

(26) According to FIG. 1A, the outer-conductor contact element 35 is connected to the outer-conductor contact 21 at its end facing the connector 20, at which it has the same diameter as at its end facing the cable 30, for example by means of a welded joint. This welded connection between the outer-conductor contact element 35 and the outer-conductor contact 21 of the connector 20 in the form of a plug-in connector may, as shown in FIG. 1A, be realized radially inside the outer-conductor contact 21, but also radially outside the outer-conductor contact 21 of the connector 20. As an alternative to the two-part solution composed of an outer-conductor contact element 35 and an outer-conductor contact 21 of the connector 20, a one-part solution is also conceivable, in which the outer-conductor contact element 35 and the outer-conductor contact 21 of the connector 20 together form a single component.

(27) At the cable-side end of the connector 20, realized as a plug-in connector, the electrical inner conductor 31 of the cable 30 is connected to the inner-conductor contact 23 of the connector 20, via a crimped connection 22, in an electrically and mechanically stable manner. Instead of a crimped connection between the electrical inner conductor 31 of the cable 30 and the inner-conductor contact 23 of the connector 20, a soldered connection is also conceivable. The inner-conductor contact 23 is arranged coaxially with the outer-conductor contact 21 within the connector 20 via at least one insulator part 24.

(28) In the variant represented in FIG. 1A, the connector 20 in the form of a plug-in connector is realized as a plug connector. The inner-conductor contact 23 is thus shaped like a pin at the interface-side end of the plug-in connector, within the socket-shaped outer-conductor contact 21.

(29) In the variant of a connector arrangement 10 shown in FIG. 1B, the connector 20 in the form of a plug-in connector is realized as a coupler. At the interface-side end of the connector 20, the inner-conductor contact 23 of the connector 23 is thus in the form of a socket. The socket-shaped outer-conductor contact 21 of the connector 20 in the form of a coupler is realized as a spring cage, or spring sleeve, in order to realize on the interface side an elasticity that forms the necessary elasticity for a plug-in operation using a connector 20 in the form of a plug connector.

(30) The other elements of the variant of a connector arrangement 10 shown in FIG. 1B correspond to those of the variant of a connector arrangement represented and already described in FIG. 1A. Description of these elements is therefore not repeated here, and reference is made to the pertinent description of FIG. 1A.

(31) It should be mentioned again at this point that the cable 30, with the outer-conductor contact element 35 attached to it, forms a cable arrangement. The outer-conductor contact element 35 does not necessarily have to be connected to a connector 20 in a connector arrangement 10. Alternatively, the outer-conductor contact element 35, at its end that faces away from the cable 30, may be fixedly connected to another cable, for example a high-frequency cable, in a non-disconnectable connection. Finally, a non-disconnectable connection, for example a soldered connection, of the outer-conductor contact element 35 to an outer-conductor-side contact terminal, or ground connection, on a printed circuit board or in a housing is also possible. In this case, the electrical inner conductor 31 of the cable 30 may be connected, via a soldered connection, to an inner-conductor-side contact terminal on a printed circuit board, or in a housing.

(32) Although the present invention has been fully described above on the basis of various embodiments, it is not limited thereto, but may be modified in a variety of ways.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

(33) 10 connector arrangement 20 connector 21 outer-conductor contact 22 crimped connection 23 inner-conductor contact 24 insulator part 30 cable 31 electrical inner conductor 32 insulator part 33 outer conductor 34 cable sheath 35 outer-conductor contact element 36 support sleeve 37 filling element