US3639890A - Locking connector assembly - Google Patents

Abstract

An electrical connector assembly for use between a cable and stationary device, the improvement being in the locking mechanism of the connectors.

Description

0 United States Patent [151 3,639,890 Stevens et al. 5] Feb. 1, 1972 my LOCKING CONNECTOR ASSEMBLY "[561 Rc fer egc es;i1efl [72} Inventors: William P. Stevens; George M. Hubbard; UNITED STATES PATENTS Wlliam D.W I] fF agmra 2,853,690 9/1958 Madison ..339/91 R [73] Assigneez The Bendix Corporation 3,136,366 6/1964 Brown et aL. ....285/3l9 22 Filed: June 9 7 3,160,457 12/1964 Fischer "339/91 R PP N05 1,662 7 Primary Examiner-Joseph H. McGlynn Altomey-C. F. Arens and Flame, Arens, Hartz, Smith and [52] U.S.Cl. ..339/91 R,285/3l9,285/DIG. 22, ThOmPSOn 287/l19 R v M M [57] ABSTRACT [51] Int. Cl ..H0lr 13/54 An le t al connector assembly for use between acable and [58] FieldofSearch ..339/45,46, 74-79, stationary device, the improvement being in the locking 339/91; 285/319, DIG. 22; 287/119 mechanism of the connectors.

1 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures LOCKING CONNECTOR ASSEMBLY BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Electrical connectors provide the normal means for communication between instruments and associated circuit devices. If communication or connection is lost for only a few seconds, some veryv critical information may not be received. To reduce the human error of accidentally knocking or shaking a connector loose, previous connector assemblies have employed some type of locking means. One common type of locking means was a threaded connection whereby the outer shell of the cable connector was screwed on the stationary connector. Though this was satisfactory once connected, it did not have the ease of connection needed for equipment that may be connected and disconnected a number of times, and yet remain securely locked once connected.

Another common locking device is a pin and camming surface whereby the stationary connector has one or more pins located on its outer shell, and the cable connector has a slot in its shell to match each pin of the stationary connector. When the connectors are mated, the cable connector shell is twisted so that the pin moves along the slot in a camming action to draw the two connectors securely together. At the end of the slot is located a groove whereby the pin may seat to lock the two connectors in a mating position. During normal connection of cables, it is very common that the pin maynot be securely seated in the groove. Unless the pin is securely seated in the groove, the cable connector shell may twist slightly from vibration or cable movement causing the pin to no longer be located over the groove. Therefore, if a sudden pull or jerk was accidentally exerted on the cable, the two connectors may pull apart.

Attempts to minimize, if not eliminate, the human factor of accidental disconnections have been numerous. The present invention represents a new locking device over the previous locking mechanisms shown. It has ease of operation, simplicity of design, and high reliability not present in the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of this invention to provide a connector assembly with a better locking mechanism.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a connector assembly that may be easily connected and disconnected, but is very difficult to accidentally pull loose.

It is a still further object of this invention provide a connector assembly locking mechanism whereby a ridge of a locking sleeve of the cable connector is pressed into an undercut groove of the housing of the stationary connector to provide a retaining force when the two connectors are mated together; but after being mated, if a pull is exerted on the cable, a wedge surface of the cable connector will provide an outward force on the locking sleeve to securely lock the ridge in the groove so that the connectors can only be disconnected by physically gripping the sleeve and sliding it along the connector assembly to remove the wedging action and retaining force.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention will be more fully understood by the following detailed description when taken together with the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a cable connector assembly with a cable connected thereto.

FIG. 2 is a partially exploded view of the structure shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view of the structure of FIG. 1, showing the parts enlarged to better illustrate the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION With reference to the accompanying FIGS., there is shown in FIG. 1 a sectional view of two connectors mated together with the stationary connector being designated generally by reference numeral and the cable connector being designated generally byreference numeral 12. The stationary connectorconsists generally of ahousing 14 for containing themale connector pin 18 which is surrounded by insulation 16. Aguide 20 helps position thecable connector 12 so that it will be easier to assemble the twoconnectors 10 and 12.

The cable connector consists generally of afemale contact 22 surrounded byinsulation 24 contained within Thebody 26. The center part of thebody 26 is encircled by a freely rotatinglocking'sleeve 28. Aretaining nut 30 pulls thecable nut 32 against theclamp 34 to hold thecable 36 in rigid position. Theclamp 34 is separated from thecontact 22 by aninsulating washer 38.

Thecable 36 is prepared for theconnector 12 by removing a portion 10f the covering 40 andshield 42, and a smaller portion of the insulation 44 whereby thewire 46 can be inserted into theconnector contact 22 with the insulation 44 abutting thecontact 22 and the covering 40 andshield 42 being forced against theclamp 34. To assemble the connector first put thecable nut 32 on thecable 36 and then slide theclamp 34 under covering '40 and shield 44. Put theinsulating washer 38 over the cableinsulation 44 and against theclamp 34 before inserting thewire 46 in thecontact 22. Upon inserting thewire 46 in thecontact 22, solder is applied through anopening 48 to the cavity SOIinto which thewire 46 was inserted.Contact 22 is then inserted into the body assembly 51 (shown in FIG. 2) with ashoulder 52 of thecontact 22 abutting ashoulder 54 of theinsulation 24. All the subcomponents shown in FIG. 2 are securelyfastened into place by screwing theretaining nut 30 over the cable nut'32. It is important that thecable nut 32 remain stationary with respect to thecable 36 and that theretaining nut 30 be turned, otherwise thesquare cut edges 56 of thecable nut 32 will break thecable cover 40 and/orshield 42 when forcing them against the clamps cone-shaped section 58. Theinsulating washer 38 is designed to insulate thecontact 22 from theclamp 34 which is pressed against the outwardly protrudingflange 60 of thebody 26.

Thebody 26 andinsulation 24 are joined together by inserting theinsulation 24 into thebody 26 and crimping them togetherat the slottedportion 62 of the body. Thelocking sleeve 28, is slid over thebody 26 and theretaining nut 30 is butted against theshoulders 64 of thebody 26 in the position as shownsThe end of thebody 26 inside the retaining nut is bent outward to form aflange 60 which holds the body assembly 51' together.

Thestationary connector 10 is, for the most part, a standard plug receptacle. Thepin 18 is embedded in the insulation 16 withpoint 66 electrically mating thespring pins 68 ofcontact 22. Thelead portions 70 and 72 ofpoint 66 andspring pins 68, respectively, are conically shaped to provide an easier mating connection. The insulator 16 has aforward cylinder portion 74 to protect thepoint 66 and ensure the necessary electrical insulation.Shoulder 76 of the insulation 16butts shoulder 78 of theguide 20 with theflange 80 of the housing holding theconnector 10 together. Theguide 20 is physically attached to thehousing 14 by some type of bonding. The forward portion 82 of theguide 20 is arcuate to conform to beveledrim 84 of the extension 86 bybody 26. The arcuate shape 82 andbeveled rim 84 provide an easy mating of the twoconnectors 10 and 12. Thehousing 14 is screwed into a chassis or bolted to a chassis by means ofthreads 88 with theflange 90 pressing against the panel surface.

Referring to the enlarged sectional view of FIG. 3, thelocking sleeve 28 hastines 92 extending toward the left ofconnector 12. Each of thetines 92 have outwardly extendingridges 94 with two oppositelybeveled surfaces 96 and 98. The insideleft portion 93 of thetine 92 is arcuate. Thehousing 14 ofconnector 10 has undercut 100 into which theridge 94 of thetines 92 will seat. Theundercut 100 is beveled so thatsurface 102 matches the correspondinglybeveled surface 96 in the ridge-94.Beveled surface 98 of theridge 94 facilitates assembly of thecable connector 12 to thestationary connector 10. It is not necessary thatbeveled surface 98 of theridge 94 have a corresponding cut as doesbeveled surface 104 in thehousing 14.

The locking of the two connectors and 12 occurs in the following manner. Whencable connector 12 is pushed intostationary connector 10, thetines 92 are forced inwardly bybeveled surface 98 sliding along the beveled surface 106. Once theridge 94 reaches the undercut 100, thetines 92 spring outwardly. The outward force of thetines 92 securely seats theridge 94 in the undercut 100. Thereafter, if a pull or jerk is exerted on thecable 36, thebeveled surface 96 of theridge 94 will press against thebeveled surface 102 of thehousing 14. This interference between the correspondingbeveled surfaces 96 and 102 causes thelocking sleeve 28 to slide along themoving connector 12 until thewedging surface 108 of thebody 26 engages thearcuate portion 93 of thetines 92. The wedgingsurface 108 tends to force thetines 92 outwardly so that theridge 94 cannot unseat from the undercut 100. This wedging action ofsurface 108 stops the moving ofconnector 12 within thesleeve 28 because thebody 26 cannot pass through thetines 92 which have a smaller internal circumference than the external portion ofbody 26. Since thetines 92 are secured in the undercut 100 ofconnector 10 andconnector 12 is secured to thelines 92; thereforecable connector 12 is secured tostationary connector 10. The greater the force exerted on thecable 36 the tighter the wedge becomes. After theridge 94 has been seated in the undercut 100, the only way the twoconnectors 10 and 12 can be disconnected is by pulling the lockingsleeve 28 toward theretainer nut 30 to remove the interference betweensurfaces 96 and 102. Due to the fact that the bevel angle ofsurface 96 is greater with respect to the longitudinal axis of the connectors than the bevel angle of wedgingsurface 108, the connector 12 (excluding the locking sleeve 28) may have to move to the left a slight amount if the wedgingsurface 108 is against thearcuate portion 93. If no pulling force is being exerted on thecable 36, the force of the pull on the lockingsleeve 28 will slide thearcuate portion 93 along the wedgingsurface 108 thereby moving theconnector 12 slightly to the left which allows the lockingsleeve 28 to move to the right and depress thetines 92 inside thehousing 14. After the interference betweensurfaces 96 and 102 has been removed, theconnectors 10 and 12 are free to separate. Upon separation, thetines 92 spring outward into their normal position.

From the foregoing it may be seen that applicants have invented a novel mechanism for locking two connectors into their mating portions. Though the present locking mechanism is shown in conjunction with a particular type ofstationary connector 10 and a particular type ofcable connector 12, it may be used in other mating connectors. There is no limitation on the type of cable being connected. A coaxial cable, multiconductor cable, or any other type of cable could use the locking mechanism as described in this disclosure or some variation thereof.

We claim:

1. A connector locking means for a first connector having a housing, insulation, and contact pins; and a second connector having a cable clamp, insulation, contact pins, and body, comprising:

an undercut in said housing of said first connector;

a slidable sleeve around said body of said second connector, said slidable sleeve having tines with a ridge for seating in said undercut; and

a wedging surface on said body of said second connector to retain said ridge in said undercut;

said wedging surface, said undercut, and said ridge being beveled;

said tines being forced inwardly by a leading slope on said tines and ridge when said first and second connectors are pushed together;

said undercut and ridge being matchingly sloped on the rearward edge of said ridge os that when said ridge is seated in said undercut the two matchingly sloped surfaces are flat against one another; said matching slope causing interference which forces said sleeve to slide along said second connector when force is applied to separate the two connectors unless said ridge has first been unseated by a ull on said sleeve; said wedging surface avrng a lessor angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of said connectors than the angle of said matching slopes, the sleeve moving along said second connector until said tines contact said wedging surface upon attempted separation other than pulling on said slidable sleeve thereby forcing said ridge to remain seated in said undercut and stopping the separation of the connectors;

the mating end of said body being of greater diameter than said sleeve, the cable end of said body having an extension that is bent outwardly to form a flange which secures a retaining nut, said retaining nut holding said cable clamp to said second connection, said retaining nut providing a stop for said slidable sleeve.

Claims (1)

1. A connector locking means for a first connector having a housing, insulatiOn, and contact pins; and a second connector having a cable clamp, insulation, contact pins, and body, comprising: an undercut in said housing of said first connector; a slidable sleeve around said body of said second connector, said slidable sleeve having tines with a ridge for seating in said undercut; and a wedging surface on said body of said second connector to retain said ridge in said undercut; said wedging surface, said undercut, and said ridge being beveled; said tines being forced inwardly by a leading slope on said tines and ridge when said first and second connectors are pushed together; said undercut and ridge being matchingly sloped on the rearward edge of said ridge os that when said ridge is seated in said undercut the two matchingly sloped surfaces are flat against one another; said matching slope causing interference which forces said sleeve to slide along said second connector when force is applied to separate the two connectors unless said ridge has first been unseated by a pull on said sleeve; said wedging surface having a lessor angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of said connectors than the angle of said matching slopes, the sleeve moving along said second connector until said tines contact said wedging surface upon attempted separation other than pulling on said slidable sleeve thereby forcing said ridge to remain seated in said undercut and stopping the separation of the connectors; the mating end of said body being of greater diameter than said sleeve, the cable end of said body having an extension that is bent outwardly to form a flange which secures a retaining nut, said retaining nut holding said cable clamp to said second connection, said retaining nut providing a stop for said slidable sleeve.

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