Patent Grant
10170877
The present application is a national stage entry of PCT/NL2014/050090, filed 13 Feb. 2014, and claims priority to NL 2010294 filed 13 Feb. 2013. The full disclosures of NL 2010294 and PCT/NL2014/050090 are incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention relates to a connecting device, more specifically an audio jack plug or audio jack.
The invention is further related to an assembly of a connection cable and such a connecting device, as well as a method for connecting such a connecting device to a connection cable.
Electronic devices such as media (audio, video) players, computers and (smart) phones normally comprise audio jacks for providing audio generated by said electronic device to an audio output component (headphones, speakers, etc.) coupled to the device.
Audio connectors comprise several conductive pads operative to contact audio plug contact portions to provide electrical paths through which audio signals, power signals, and data signals can be transferred.
A common audio connector is a TRS connector, also known as phone plug or jack plug. TRS is an acronym derived from the names of the three conducting parts of the plug: Tip, Ring, and Sleeve. The sleeve portion usually functions as the ground, whereas—for stereo signals—the ring is normally used for the right-hand audio channel and the tip is normally used for the left-hand audio channel. TRS plugs are also applied as balanced mono plugs.
A common audio connector with an additional electrical path through which e.g. data signals can be transferred is called a TRRS connector. TRRS is an acronym derived from the names of four conducting parts of this kind of plug: Tip, Ring, Ring and Sleeve. The extra conductive ring provides an additional electrical path compared to TRS connectors.
Dimensionally, the TRRS and TRS audio plug have the same overall length, consistent with standard TRS three-contact audio plugs, which allows it to be plugged in both three-contact and four-contact audio jacks.
Common (audio) connectors comprise a longitudinal inserting member that is receivable in and connectable to a connection jack arranged in the housing of an electronic device. This connection jack is provided with a receiving cylinder part adapted to receive the inserting member of the connection plug.
When the audio connection plug is coupled to an electronic device, the inserting member thereof is received in the housing of the electronic device. The audio connection plug also extends with a plug body thereof outside the housing of the electronic device. This connection plug body houses a number of connectors inside. Said connectors are in electrical connection with respective conductive parts of the inserting member, and the different conductive wires of the audio cable are electrically connected to these connectors inside the plug body.
Malfunction of audio connections is mostly caused by excessive force being applied from the cable to the plug still plugged into the jack. For unplugging a plug from a jack, there is a need to apply a pulling force in the appropriate direction, i.e. in the longitudinal direction thereof. However, in many cases where excessive force is applied on the plug from the cable, the force is not applied in the desired unplugging direction.
Another source of excessive forces results from outside forces applied directly to the plug body, e.g. due to successive relatively small forces against the plug body when situated in a jacket or pants pocket, or a larger bump force against the plug body.
Both types of excessive forces might result in malfunction of the cable-plug connection, but could also result in malfunction of the jack connection in the electronic device. For manufacturers of electronic media devices, malfunction of the connection jack results in warranty costs.
There is a need for an improved connection plug, and in order to allow an improved connection plug to be used in combination with existing electronic devices, it would be advantageous if the improved plug has an inserting member with identical outer dimensions as the connection plugs, e.g. audio jack plugs, that are currently on the market.
An object of the present invention is to provide a connection plug, that is improved relative to the prior art and wherein at least one of the above stated problems is obviated.
Said object is achieved with the connecting device, more specifically an audio jack plug, according to the invention, said connecting device comprising:
The conductive wires of the cable are connected both mechanically and electrically by means of compression to the connection plug inside the space enclosed by the outer surface of the inserting member, wherein “mechanically” indicates that the physical connection is also arranged inside said space enclosed by the outer surface of the inserting member.
Because all connections can be arranged inside the inserting member that—in use—is inserted into an electronic (audio) device, an external bulky plug body as known from prior art audio jacks is absent. In prior art audio jacks, the connections between the audio cable and the inserting member are arranged in this bulky plug body.
The absence of a bulky plug body greatly reduces the risk that outside forces are applied directly to a rigid part of the connecting device that in use is arranged outside an electronic (audio) device. Such external forces might be caused by a bump force against this rigid part. Hence, the connecting device according to the present invention reduces the risks that a bump against connecting device leads to malfunction of the connection jack in the electronic device.
Because all components of the connection plug are connected by means of compression, there is no need for conventional connection techniques as soldering or welding. The connection plug is easy to assemble in a healthy environment, and is therefore environmentally friendly.
The different components fit together by means of interference fit or compression. An ‘interference fit’ between parts refers to the first part slightly interfering with the spatial location of the other part, and commonly includes arrangements referred to as press fit.
According to a preferred embodiment, the connecting device comprises an abutment member arranged in line with the inserting member and that does extend in the transverse direction outward of the outer surface of the inserting member, and wherein an extending surface that is directed towards the inserting member forms an abutment surface.
According to a further preferred embodiment the abutment member comprises a guide slot for guiding a connection cable to the space enclosed by the outer surface of the inserting member.
According to an even further preferred embodiment the electrically conductive wires of the connection cable, in a state wherein the connecting device is connected to the connection cable, diverge away from each other within the space enclosed by the outer surface. Because the separate wires of the connection cable diverge away inside the inserting member that—in use—is inserted into an electronic (audio) device, a bulky plug body as known from prior art audio jacks can be absent.
According to a further preferred embodiment the electrically conductive wires are electrically and mechanically connectable to the at least two electrically conductive parts by means of a compression connection such as an interference or press fit within the space enclosed by the outer surface of the inserting member. Because all components of the connection plug are connected by means of compression, there is no need for conventional connection techniques as soldering or welding. The connection plug is easy to assemble in a healthy environment, and is also environmentally friendly.
According to a further preferred embodiment the inserting member comprises:
According to a further preferred embodiment the tip member insulator comprises:
According to a further preferred embodiment, the connecting device further comprises a second through bore configured for passing there through at least the electrically conductive wire of which the wire end is reversed and arranged on the surface or in said inner slot. The second through bore of the tip member insulator allows the wires to pass with intact insulation around the electrically conductive wires.
The projection in the inner slot is preferably wedge shaped, so that the compression force is gradually and securely applied.
According to a further preferred embodiment the first conducting member is substantially close-fittingly arrangeable around the part of the outer wall of the tip member insulator, wherein the first conducting member forms a second electrically conductive part of the outer surface of the inserting member.
According to a further preferred embodiment the connecting device comprises one or more further insulation members are close-fittingly arranged, said insulation members comprising:
The principle according to the invention allows for a large number of connections, i.e. even more than the four contacts of a TRRS configuration. However, with a TRRS connection, left-hand and right-hand audio channels, as well as an additional electrical path through which e.g. data signals can be transferred, are available. This is sufficient for most applications. It is however conceivable that the present invention is applied with more than four contacts.
According to a further preferred embodiment the connecting device comprises a circumferential groove that is provided for receiving scraped off insulation material. During the assembly process, the wires may comprise insulation material, i.e. there is no need to remove the insulation beforehand. When the different portions are press fit together, the wire ends are automatically stripped, and the insulation material is pushed forward and into the circumferential groove.
According to a further preferred embodiment the abutment portion is a closing member through which the connection cable is guidable in a non-sliding way. For example, the connection cable can be attached to the closing member using glue, or alternatively be attached by means of guiding the connection cable through a labyrinth arranged within the closing member.
According to a further preferred embodiment the outer surfaces of the tip member insulator, the one or more conducting members and the one or more insulation members together form a substantially flush outer surface of the inserting member. This substantially flush outer surface allows for easy insertion of the inserting member into a connection jack of an electronic device.
According to a further preferred embodiment the tip member insulator, the one or more conducting members and the one or more insulation members are ring shaped and together form a substantially flush rotation symmetric outer surface of the inserting member. A rotation symmetric shape allows for orientation independent insertion of the inserting member into a connection jack.
It is however conceivable that the inserting member is assembled using members of a non-round cross section, e.g. polygonal cross section, which could allow for even more electrically conductive parts. If the (polygonal) cross section is furthermore rotation asymmetric, the inserting member can only be inserted in a specific orientation, which can be beneficial if a large number of connections is to be arranged within a limited space.
According to a further preferred embodiment the connecting device is an audio jack plug, and wherein the outer dimensions of the outer surface of the inserting member are substantially identical to the outer dimensions of a conventional audio jack plug, e.g. according to the national Chinese standard YDT 1885-2009 and/or the RC-5325A standard of the Japanese Electronics and Information Technology industries Association (JEITA).
The invention is further directed to an assembly of a connection cable and a connecting device as described above, wherein the electrically conductive wires of the connection cable branch out within the space enclosed by the outer surface of the inserting member, and are each electrically and mechanically connected to an electrically conductive member of the inserting member of the connecting device in this enclosed space.
The invention is further directed to a method of connecting a connecting device according to a first embodiment as described above to a connection cable, said method comprising the steps of:
According to a preferred embodiment one or more further sets of an insulation member and accompanying conducting member are arranged between the closing member and the tip member in order to electrically and mechanically connect further wire ends to an accompanying conducting member by means of compression.
According to a further preferred embodiment the one or more further sets of insulation members and accompanying conducting members are threaded on the connection cable before the tip member insulator is threaded on the connection cable.
The invention is further directed to a method of connecting a connecting device according to a second embodiment as described above to a connection cable, said method comprising the steps of:
According to a preferred embodiment, the method further comprises the step of arranging one or more further sets of an insulation member and mating conducting member. In this way a desired configuration of e.g. a TRS or TRRS connector can be assembled.
According to a further preferred embodiment, the method comprises the step of concluding the assembly with a conducting member that is a tip member.
According to an even further preferred embodiment, the connection cable is guided through the closing member in a non-sliding way, and the connection cable is attached to the closing member.
According to a still further preferred embodiment, first the closing member is arranged on the connection cable, followed by the abutment member being arranged on the closing member.
According to a still further preferred embodiment, the abutment member is removed from the closing member after the final conduction member has been arranged.
In the following description preferred embodiments of the present invention are further elucidated with reference to the drawing, in which:
The prior art audio jack plug 6 shown in
When this prior art audio jack plug 6 is inserted with its inserting member 10 into the connection jack 4, the plug body 8 is arranged outside the housing 2 of the electronic device 1.
The plug body 8 is a rigid part that houses the connections between the electrically conductive parts of the inserting member 10 and the wires 14, 18, 22 of the audio connection cable 12. The connection between cable 12 and plug body 8 can be guided through a connection member 30 that protects the wires against excessive bending.
When an external force F is applied to the rigid plug body 8, the inserting member 10 will apply a moment force M on the connection jack 4 that is arranged in the housing 2 of the electronic device 1. The moment force M is one of the sources responsible for malfunctions of a connection jack 4 of an electronic device 1.
The connecting device according to a first embodiment of the present invention comprises an inserting member 36 comprising an outer surface 38 with at least two electrically conductive parts 40, 60, 80, 100 with insulating material arranged there between. An abutment member 34 connected to the inserting member 36 forms an abutment surface 35 that abuts against the housing 2 and prevents that the inserting member 36 can be pushed too far into the connection jack 4.
Because the inserting member 10 is configured to mechanically and electrically connect the at least two electrically conductive parts to wire ends of a connection cable 12 within the space enclosed by the outer surface 38, a rigid plug body as the plug body 8 of the prior art audio jacks shown in
The only rigid part extending outward of the housing 2 of an electronic device 1, when the connecting device is inserted into an electronic device 1, is the abutment member 34. Since the abutment member 34 that is formed by the closing member 110 only comprises a very limited height outside the housing 2 of the electronic device 1, the risks of bump forces to this rigid part are very limited. Moreover, the moment arm would be very short due to the limited height, therefore resulting in a significantly lower moment force M applied to the connection jack 4 than would be the case with the audio jack plug 6 according to the prior art.
The process steps of assembling a conducting member according to the present invention is now elucidated in more detail with reference to the
The connection cable 12 comprises four wires, the first wire 14 having a first wire end 16, the second wire 18 having a second wire end 20, the third wire 22 having a third wire end 24 and the fourth wire 26 having a fourth wire end 28.
For clarifying reasons, the different wire ends 16, 20, 24 and 28 are shown in their final position relative to the shaft 44 of tip member 40. Tip member 40 further more comprises an electrically conductive tip 42.
In the first process step, the tip member insulator 50 is arranged around the shaft 44 of the tip member 40, after the first wire end 16 of first wire 14 has been arranged in contact with the shaft 44.
A perspective view of the tip member insulator 50 is shown in
After the first wire end 16 has been arranged in electrical contact with the shaft 44 of the tip member 40, the tip member insulator 50 is slid over the shaft 44 towards the tip 42 of the tip member 40. The first wire 14 is guided through the inner slot 54. In the final position, wherein the tip member insulator 50 contacts the tip 42 of the tip member 40, the projection 56 electrically and mechanically connects the wire end 16 with the shaft 44 (
Starting from the situation shown in
After the first connection member 60 has been arranged around the tip member insulator 50, a first insulation member 70 is slid over the shaft 44 and brought into contact with the first conducting member 60. The second wire 18 passes through the open space 62 (
The perspective views of the first insulation member shown in
The steps of
After a second insulation member 90 has been slid over the shaft 44, and the fourth wire end 28 of fourth wire 26 has been arranged in an outer slot 96 of the second insulation member 90 (
It is remarked that the first insulation member 70 and second insulation member 90 are preferably identical parts (both shown in
After the desired number of conducting members 60, 80, 100 and insulation members 50, 70, 90 being arranged around the shaft 44, a closing member 110 is brought into contact with the last conducting member, here conducting member 100, and attached thereto.
The closing member 110 functions for guiding the cable 12 through a through hole thereof, after which the separate wires 14, 18, 22, 26 branch out in different directions inside the space enclosed by the outer surface 38 of the inserting member 36.
The closing member 110 extends in a transverse direction outwards of the outer surface 38 of the inserting member 36, and forms an abutment surface 35 with its surface extending outwards of the outer surface 38 and directed towards the inserting member 36 (
The slots are configured for engagement and electrically contacting the wire ends 16, 20, 24, 28 with their respective electrically conducting parts of the inserting member 36, wherein the conductive wire ends of the cable 12 are connected both mechanically and electrically by compression. In the slots, the wire ends are pressed against one of the electrically conductive parts of the inserting member 36. In this way, the wire ends are electrically and mechanically connected to their respective electrically conductive parts.
A further preferred embodiment is shown in
The tip member insulator 150, the first insulation member 170, the second insulation member 190 and the closing member 210 all comprise one or more additional through bores 154, 173-176, 193-196 and 213-216 for passing through the wires 14, 18, 22 and 26 of the connection cable 12 (
A further (not shown) synthetical wire may be provided and e.g. pass through the central through bores 152, 172, 192 and 212, where it is clamped with the shaft 144 of the tip member 142 and in this way provides extra tensile strength to the connecting device when a user pulls on the connection cable 12.
As a consequence of the wires 14, 18, 22 and 26 comprising a reverse bend, the assembly of the connecting device is reversed as well, as will be explained below. This reverse bend is shown for first wire 14 and second wire 18 in
Successive steps of assembling the connecting device of
The fabrication method starts with the step of arranging the closing member 210 on the connection cable 12, wherein said closing member 210 receives an abutment member 134. The connection cable 12 is guided through the closing member 210 in a non-sliding way, and the connection cable 12 is attached to the closing member 210.
The wires 14, 18, 22 and 26 respectively pass through the through bores 214, 216, 213 and 215 of the closing member 210.
Wire end 28 of wire 26 is bend in outside direction, so that the third conducting member 200 will bend the second wire end 28 further backwards when slid over the closing member 210 before clamping it in a reverse direction between the inner wall of the third conducting member 200 and the outer wall of the closing member 210. The clamping results in a mechanical and electrical contact with the third conducting member 200 by means of compression. Please note that the location where wire end 28 of wire 26 and wire end 24 of wire 22 are mechanically and electrically connected by means of compression with their respective conducting parts, i.e. third conducting member 200 and second conducting member 180, lies outside the section plane shown in
In the next step, the third conducting member 200 is slid over the closing member 210 until it abuts the abutment member 134. In this way it is ensured that the third conducting member 200 is perfectly arranged with respect to the closing member 210.
The wires 14, 18 and 22 pass through the central open space 202 of the third conducting member 200 and the wires 14, 18 and 22 are then further guided through a series of aligned through bores.
As shown in the section plane of
In a similar way, the second wire 18 is successively guided through the through bore 216 of the closing member 210, the through bore 196 of the second insulation member 190, and the through bore 176 of the first insulation member 170 (
In
As shown in
A surface or an inner slot 153 is arranged in the wall of the through bore 152, and is configured for receiving the wire end 16 of the first electrically conductive wire 14 of the connection cable in order to electrically and mechanically connect the shaft 44 and the wire end 16 by means of compression.
After the tip member 140 being inserted in the through bores 152, 172, 192 and 212, the abutment member 134 is removed from the closing member 210, and a shrink-sleeve or other suitable connection may be arranged around the closing member 210 (
Although the wire ends 16, 20 of the first wire 14 and second wire 18 are stripped, i.e. the insulation material being removed before assembly, this is not necessary.
Although they show preferred embodiments of the invention, the above described embodiments are intended only to illustrate the invention and not to limit in any way the scope of the invention. It is particularly noted that the invention is not limited to audio jacks, and that the cross section of the connecting device might also be rotation asymmetric and/or polygonal instead of the circular cross section shown in the figures.
The skilled person can combine technical measures of the different embodiments. For example, the embodiment of
The scope of the invention is therefore defined solely by the following claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010294 | Feb 2013 | NL | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/NL2014/050090 | 2/13/2014 | WO | 00 |
| Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| WO2014/126467 | 8/21/2014 | WO | A |
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| 49-93384 | Dec 1947 | JP |
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| Entry |
|---|
| International Search Report and Written Opinion, PCT International Application No. PCT/NL2014/050090, dated May 15, 2014. |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20150364881 A1 | Dec 2015 | US |
