CONNECTOR FOR ZERO-FORCE CONTACTING ON A PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD

Abstract

A connector for installation on a printed circuit board a contacting part has which includes at least two contact elements, each of which can be connected, on the connection side, to an individual conductor and, on the plug-in side, to a conductive track of the printed circuit board, wherein the connector a connection part which encloses the individual conductors and, in the region of each individual conductor, has a recess, into each of which a contact element engages for the electrical connection between individual conductor and contact element. The contacting part is formed in an injection molding process, wherein at least two contact elements having an insulation-displacement connector are inserted or engaged in the contacting part or are directly encapsulated, and the connection part is formed in an injection molding process, wherein at least two individual conductors, each having a cable sheath, are thus placed in an injection molding tool and are encapsulated.

Claims

1. A connector for installation on a printed circuit board, wherein the connector comprises a contacting part which includes at least two contact elements, each of which can be connected, on the connection side, to an individual conductor and, on the plug-in side, to a conductive track of the printed circuit board, wherein the connector comprises a connection part which encloses the individual conductors and, in the region of each individual conductor, has a recess, into each of which a contact element engages for the electrical connection between individual conductor and contact element.

2. The connector as claimed in claim 1, wherein the individual conductors are encapsulated in a plastic material and the plastic material, in combination with the individual conductors, forms the connection part.

3. The connector as claimed in claim 1, wherein the contact elements are designed, on the connection side, as an insulation-displacement connector or as a piercing.

4. The connector as claimed in claim 1, wherein the contacting part comprises at least one guide segment, by way of which the connection part is oriented with respect to the contacting part in an accurately fitting manner.

5. The connector as claimed in claim 4, wherein the contacting part comprises at least two guide segments, each of which is situated at one end.

6. The connector as claimed in claim 1, wherein the connection part and the contacting part are connected to each other via at least one screw.

7. The connector as claimed in claim 6, wherein the connection part and the contacting part are connected to each other via two screws, wherein the screws are each situated at one end.

8. The connector as claimed in claim 6, wherein the connection part and the contacting part are connected to each other via precisely one screw and the screw is situated in the center.

9. The connector as claimed in claim 4, wherein the screw or the screws comprise an unthreaded region and a threaded region and, as a result, orient the connection part with respect to the contacting part in an accurately fitting manner and simultaneously reversibly connect the connection part and the contacting part to each other.

10. A method for producing a connector, comprising the steps of: a contacting part is formed in an injection molding process, wherein at least two contact elements having an insulation-displacement connector are inserted or engaged in the contacting part or are directly encapsulated, a connection part is formed in an injection molding process, wherein at least two individual conductors, each having a cable sheath, are thus placed in an injection molding tool and are encapsulated.

11. The method for producing a connector as claimed in claim 10, wherein in the connection part, recesses are formed in the region of the individual conductors by inserting sucker pins in the injection molding tool.

12. The method for producing a connector as claimed in claim 11, wherein the sucker pins prefabricate the cable sheath of the individual conductors.

13. The method for producing a connector as claimed in claim 10, wherein the contacting part is fastened on a printed circuit board, and the contacting part is joined with the connection part, whereby one contact element is electrically contacted with an individual conductor in each case.

14. The connector as claimed in claim 5, wherein the screw or the screws comprise an unthreaded region and a threaded region and, as a result, orient the connection part with respect to the contacting part in an accurately fitting manner and simultaneously reversibly connect the connection part and the contacting part to each other.

15. The connector as claimed in claim 6, wherein the screw or the screws comprise an unthreaded region and a threaded region and, as a result, orient the connection part with respect to the contacting part in an accurately fitting manner and simultaneously reversibly connect the connection part and the contacting part to each other.

16. The connector as claimed in claim 7, wherein the screw or the screws comprise an unthreaded region and a threaded region and, as a result, orient the connection part with respect to the contacting part in an accurately fitting manner and simultaneously reversibly connect the connection part and the contacting part to each other.

17. The connector as claimed in claim 8, wherein the screw or the screws comprise an unthreaded region and a threaded region and, as a result, orient the connection part with respect to the contacting part in an accurately fitting manner and simultaneously reversibly connect the connection part and the contacting part to each other.

18. The method for producing a connector as claimed in claim 11, wherein the contacting part is fastened on a printed circuit board, and the contacting part is joined with the connection part, whereby one contact element is electrically contacted with an individual conductor in each case.

19. The method for producing a connector as claimed in claim 12, wherein the contacting part is fastened on a printed circuit board, and the contacting part is joined with the connection part, whereby one contact element is electrically contacted with an individual conductor in each case.

Description

EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENT

[0027] One exemplary embodiment of the invention is represented in the drawings and is described in greater detail in the following. In the drawings:

[0028] FIG. 1 shows a perspective representation of a first embodiment of a contacting part soldered on a printed circuit board,

[0029] FIG. 2 shows a perspective representation of the contacting part soldered on a printed circuit board including a first embodiment of a connection part,

[0030] FIG. 3 shows a perspective representation of a connecting process of the contacting part including the first embodiment of a connection part,

[0031] FIG. 4 shows a perspective representation of a second embodiment of a connection part,

[0032] FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectional representation of the second embodiment of the connection part in the connecting process including a second embodiment of a contacting part (shown here without the plastic body),

[0033] FIG. 6 shows a perspective representation of a connector according to the second embodiment, and

[0034] FIG. 7 shows a schematic representation of a method for producing a connection part for a connector according to the invention.

[0035] The figures contain partially simplified, schematic representations. Identical reference numbers are used, in part, for elements that are similar but that may not be identical. Different views of similar elements could be scaled differently.

[0036] FIG. 1 shows a printed circuit board 2 on which a contacting part 3 has been soldered. The soldering points are located on the underside of the printed circuit board 2 and are not visible in the figures shown here. Contact elements 4, which are formed as insulation-displacement connectors on the connection side, are engaged in the contacting part 3. This is also referred to as an insulation-displacement contact. The contacting part 3 comprises a screw 5 at each of its ends. The screws 5 each comprise an unthreaded region and a threaded region.

[0037] In FIG. 2, a connection part 6 is shown in addition to the contacting part 3. A plurality of individual conductors 7 has been embedded in the connection part 6 in an injection molding process. The individual conductors 7 can be designed differently and can have different diameters, for example. The connection part 6 can be produced individually by way of the installation of individual conductors 7 thereon. The cable sheath of the individual conductors 7 is bonded with the plastic material of the connection part 6 by means of the injection molding process, and therefore the individual conductors 7 are situated in the connection part 6 in a captive and non-displaceable manner. The connection part 6 contains recesses 8 at the ends thereof, which align with the screws 5 of the contacting part 3 during the process of joining the connection part 6 and the contacting part 3. Recesses 9, which are provided in the region of the individual conductors 7, are formed in the connection part 6. These recesses 9 are produced in the injection molding process by means of so-called sucker pins which engage into the injection mold. The cable sheaths of the single individual conductors 7 are prefabricated by means of the sucker pins. This means that the cable sheaths of the individual conductors 7 have already been slightly nicked in advance or have been provided with initial nicks in the region of the recesses 9.

[0038] The process of joining the contacting part 3 and the connection part 6 is shown in FIG. 3. The connector 1 according to the invention is formed by way of the joining process. The contacting part 3 and the connection part 6 are oriented with respect to each other in an accurately fitting manner by means of the unthreaded region of the screws 5 which engage into the corresponding recesses 8. During the screwing-together of the contacting part 3 and the connection part 6 with the aid of a simple screwdriver 10, the insulation-displacement connectors 4 of the contacting part 3 are guided into the recesses 9 of the connection part 6 assigned to the individual conductors 7. Due to the above-described prefabrication of the individual conductors 7, only a small amount of force is required to pass the insulation-displacement connectors of the contact elements 4 through the cable sheaths of the individual conductors 7. The electrical contacting of individual conductor 7 and associated contact element 4 can take place in an approximately zero-force manner. The force that is necessary during the joining of the contacting part 3 and the connection part 6 is completely absorbed by the contacting part 3. The printed circuit board 2 is not mechanically loaded during this process, which substantially increases the service life of the connector 1. By means of this design, it is also possible to fix a new connection part 6 onto an old contacting part 3, when necessary.

[0039] An alternative embodiment of the connector 1 according to the invention is represented in FIGS. 4 to 6. This embodiment differs from the first embodiment essentially in terms of the fixing mechanism between the contacting part 3 and the connection part 6. The connection part 6 comprises lateral segments 11. The contacting part 3 comprises, on the sides thereof, L-shaped fastening arms 12, in each of which a guide groove 13 has been formed. The actuating arms 12 are movably mounted on the contacting part 3.

[0040] FIG. 5 shows the way in which the connection part 6 is joined with the contacting part 3. The lateral segments 11 of the connection part 6 engage into the particular guide groove 13 of the actuating arm 12 of the contacting part 3. The insulation-displacement connectors 4 are guided into the recesses 9 of the connection part 6 by pivoting the actuating arms 12 inward, in the direction of the arrows 14 and 15. Thus, the prefabricated individual conductors 7 are guided into the insulation-displacement connector region of the assigned contact elements 4, whereby an electrical contacting is generated between the contact elements 4 and the associated individual conductors 7. The embodiment according to FIGS. 5 and 6 is entirely implemented without any further tools and, therefore, is particularly easy for a service technician to install. Removal takes place by pivoting the actuating arms 12 outward (counter to the arrows 14 and 15). Due to the actuating arms, the force for installing and removing the connection part 6 is fully supported by the contacting part 3. The printed circuit board 2 is mechanically protected as a result.

[0041] A method for producing a connection part 6, which is used in the connector 1 according to the invention, is schematically represented in FIG. 7. Individual conductors 7optionally having different thicknesses and electrical propertiesare mounted on rollers 14. In a first process step A, a desired number of the individual conductors 7 are gathered together and bundled. A flat ribbon cable is explicitly not formed, however. The individual conductors 7 can be arbitrarily permuted by the rollers. The number of individual conductors 7 can also be arbitrarily selected. The process proprosed here is therefore particularly flexible. The individual conductors 7 are situated in parallel next to each other. In a subsequent process step B, the bundled individual conductors 7 are placed into an injection mold and are encapsulated in a plastic material. A connection part 6 according to the invention is produced as a result. In the process step C, the bundled individual conductors 7 are trimmed. The length of cut can vary, in this case, depending on the field of use of the connector 1.

[0042] In one alternative variant, in the process step B, two plastic bodies, which are spaced slightly apart from each other, are injected onto the bundled individual conductors. The second plastic body is used, in this case, as a second plug-in option, when, for example, a service technician has used up the insertion/withdrawal cycles of the first plastic body. As a result, it is ensured that all individual conductors do not have to be exchanged at once. This solution not only prevents maintenance, it is also particularly environmentally friendly, since less waste is produced.

[0043] The contacting part (3) is also produced in an injection molding process. Such a process step can take place in parallel to the aforementioned process steps. Subsequently, the contacting part (3) is soldered on a printed circuit board 2.

Connector for Zero-Force Contacting on a Printed Circuit Board

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

[0044]

TABLE-US-00001 1 connector 2 printed circuit board 3 contacting part 4 contact element 5 screw 6 connection part 7 individual conductor 8 recess 9 recess 10 screwdriver 11 segment 12 actuating arm 13 guide segment 14 roller 15 16 17 18 19 20 A, B, C process step