CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application claims the benefit of Chinese Patent Application No. CN202110295761.4 filed on Mar. 19, 2021 in the State Intellectual Property Office of China, the whole disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a connector and a connector assembly.
Description of the Related Art
In the prior art, in order to realize the rapid electrical connection between cables or between cable and electrical equipment, a plug connector and a socket connector suitable for rapid matching with each other are usually adopted. In the prior art, in order to prevent the separation of the matched plug connector and socket connector, an elastic latch is usually arranged on the housing of the plug connector, which is suitable for locking to the housing of the socket connector. Generally, the elastic latch is capable of being unlocked so that the plug connector and socket connector can be separated and reused.
In the prior art, in order to prevent the elastic latch from being accidentally unlocked due to wrong operation, it is necessary to set a latch safety mechanism on the socket connector, which can be moved between a safety position and a pre-locking position (or called an initial position). After the plug connector is inserted into the socket connector, the elastic latch can be kept in the locking position by moving the latch safety mechanism to the safety position, so as to avoid the accidental unlocking of the elastic latch due to wrong operation.
In the prior art, before inserting the plug connector into the socket connector, the operator must ensure that the latch safety mechanism has been reset to the initial position (pre-locking position) at which the latch safety mechanism does not interfere with the elastic latch, otherwise the plug connector cannot be inserted, and even lead to collision damage between the elastic latch and the latch safety mechanism. Therefore, in the prior art, there is a risk of damage to the plug connector and socket connector due to wrong operation.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been made to overcome or alleviate at least one aspect of the above mentioned disadvantages.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector assembly, comprising: a first connector comprising a first housing; and a second connector adapted to mate with the first connector and comprising a second housing. The first housing is adapted to be partially inserted into the second housing along an axial direction of the second housing, and an elastic latch for locking the second housing is formed on the first housing; a latch safety is installed on the second housing and movable along a circumferential direction of the second housing between a safety position to prevent the elastic latch from being unlocked and a pre-locking position to allow the elastic latch to be unlocked, a pushing part is formed on the first housing and adapted to push the latch safety to the pre-locking position at which the first housing is allowed to be inserted into the second housing.
According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a guide slope inclined to the axial direction is formed on the pushing part, and the pushing part adapted to contact and push the latch safety through the guide slope, so as to drive and guide the latch safety to move from the safety position to the pre-locking position along the circumferential direction.
According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a guide slot extending along the circumferential direction is formed on the outer wall of the second housing, the latch safety is slidably installed in the guide slot, and the guide slot is configured to guide the latch safety to move between the safety position and the pre-locking position along the circumferential direction.
According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the latch safety comprises: a sliding plate slidably installed in the guide slot; and a limiting part connected to the sliding plate. An opening is formed on the second housing, and the limiting part extends into the second housing through the opening; front and rear edges of the opening in the axial direction are slidably held between the limiting part and the sliding plate to limit the movement of the latch safety in a radial direction of the second housing.
According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the elastic latch comprises: an elastic cantilever connected to the first housing and adapted to move between a locking position and an unlocking position; and a locking portion formed on the elastic cantilever and adapted to lock the second housing. The latch safety includes a tongue connected to the limiting part; the tongue is adapted to be inserted into a gap between the elastic cantilever and the outer wall of the first housing to prevent the elastic cantilever from being moved to the unlocking position.
According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the guide slope of the pushing part is adapted to contact and push the tongue part of the latch safety to move the latch safety from the safety position to the pre-locking position.
According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the fixed end of the elastic cantilever is connected with the pushing part and is fixedly connected to the outer wall of the first housing through the pushing part.
According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the elastic latch also includes a pressing part connected to the free end of the elastic cantilever, the pressing part is exposed to the outside of the second housing when the first housing is inserted into the second housing.
According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, two positioning grooves extending along the axial direction are formed on the bottom wall of the guide slot, and a positioning rib extending along the axial direction is formed on the inner surface of the sliding plate; when the latch safety is installed in the guide slot and moved to the safety position, the positioning rib is positioned in one of the two positioning grooves; when the latch safety is installed in the guide slot and moved to the pre-locking position, the positioning rib is positioned in the other of the two positioning grooves.
According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, an indication arrow is formed on the outer surface of the sliding plate, and a safety position identification and a pre-locking position identification are formed on the outer wall of the second housing; when the latch safety is installed in the guide slot and moved to the safety position, the indication arrow points to the safety position identification; when the latch safety is installed in the guide slot and moved to the pre-locking position, the indication arrow points to the pre-locking position identification.
According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the guide slot is surrounded by a first end wall and a second end wall opposite to each other in the circumferential direction and two side walls opposite to each other in the axial direction; the latch safety is adapted to move between the first end wall and the second end wall of the guide slot along the circumferential direction.
According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the sliding plate comprises a first end and a second end opposite to each other in the circumferential direction and front and rear sides opposite to each other in the axial direction; the first and second ends of the sliding plate respectively correspond to the first end wall and the second end wall of the guide slot, and the front and rear sides of the sliding plate respectively correspond to the two side walls of the guide slot.
According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the connector assembly further comprising: a first terminal provided in a first terminal hole of the first housing; and a second terminal provided in a second terminal hole of the second housing and suitable for electrical contact with the first terminal.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector comprising a housing in which a terminal hole for placing a terminal is formed, the housing is provided with an elastic latch suitable for locking a mating housing; when the housing is inserted into the mating housing along an axial direction of the mating housing, the elastic latch cooperates with a latch safety to hold the housing and the mating housing in a mating position; the housing is provided with a pushing part, which is suitable for pushing the latch safety to a pre-locking position before the housing is inserted into the mating housing, so as to allow the housing to be inserted into the mating housing.
According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the pushing part is provided with a guide slope inclined to the axial direction, and the pushing part is adapted to contact and push the latch safety through the guide slope, so as to drive and guide the latch safety to move from a safety position to the pre-locking position along the circumference of the mating housing.
In the above exemplary embodiments according to the present invention, in the process of mating the first connector and the second connector, the pushing part can push the latch safety to the pre-locking position at which the latch safety does not interfere with the elastic latch. Therefore, in the present invention, before mating the first connector and the second connector, the operator does not need to check whether the latch safety has been reset to the pre-locking position. Thus, the mating operation of the first and second connectors is very simple and safe.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The above and other features of the present invention will become more apparent by describing in detail exemplary embodiments thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a connector assembly according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 shows a partial longitudinal sectional view of the connector assembly shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 shows a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the first connector in FIG. 1;
FIG. 3A shows a partially enlarged schematic diagram of the first connector in FIG. 1;
FIG. 4 shows a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the second connector in FIG. 1, in which a guide slot on the second connector and a latch safety installed in the guide slot are shown;
FIG. 5A shows a partially enlarged schematic view of FIG. 4 when viewed from the top, in which the guide slot on the second connector and the latch safety not yet installed in the guide slot are shown;
FIG. 5B shows a partially enlarged schematic view of FIG. 4 when viewed from the bottom, in which the guide slot on the second connector and the latch safety not yet installed in the guide slot are shown;
FIG. 6 shows the assembly diagram of the second housing and latch safety shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B;
FIG. 7 shows a partially enlarged schematic diagram of the connector assembly shown in FIG. 1, wherein the latch safety is in the pre-locking position;
FIG. 8 shows a sectional view of the connector assembly shown in FIG. 7;
FIG. 9 shows a partially enlarged schematic diagram of the connector assembly shown in FIG. 1, wherein the latch safety is in the safety position; and
FIG. 10 shows a sectional view of the connector assembly shown in FIG. 9.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described hereinafter in detail with reference to the attached drawings, wherein the like reference numerals refer to the like elements. The present disclosure may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiment set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that the present disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the concept of the disclosure to those skilled in the art.
In the following detailed description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the disclosed embodiments. It will be apparent, however, that one or more embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are schematically shown in order to simplify the drawing.
According to a general concept of the present invention, there is provided a connector assembly, comprising: a first connector comprising a first housing; and a second connector adapted to mate with the first connector and comprising a second housing. The first housing is adapted to be partially inserted into the second housing along an axial direction of the second housing, and an elastic latch for locking the second housing is formed on the first housing; a latch safety is installed on the second housing and movable along a circumferential direction of the second housing between a safety position to prevent the elastic latch from being unlocked and a pre-locking position to allow the elastic latch to be unlocked, a pushing part is formed on the first housing and adapted to push the latch safety to the pre-locking position at which the first housing is allowed to be inserted into the second housing.
According to another general concept of the present invention, there is provided a connector comprising a housing in which a terminal hole for placing a terminal is formed, the housing is provided with an elastic latch suitable for locking a mating housing; when the housing is inserted into the mating housing along an axial direction of the mating housing, the elastic latch cooperates with a latch safety to hold the housing and the mating housing in a mating position; the housing is provided with a pushing part, which is suitable for pushing the latch safety to a pre-locking position before the housing is inserted into the mating housing, so as to allow the housing to be inserted into the mating housing.
FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a connector assembly according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 shows a partial longitudinal sectional view of the connector assembly shown in FIG. 1.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in the illustrated embodiment, the connector assembly mainly includes a first connector 10 and a second connector 20. One of the first connector 10 and the second connector 20 is a plug connector, and the other is a socket connector suitable for mating with the plug connector. In the illustrated embodiment, the first connector 10 is a plug connector and is connected to one end of the cable 1. The second connector 20 is a socket connector and is installed on electrical equipment (not shown). When the first connector 10 and the second connector 20 are mated together, the electrical connection between the cable 1 and the electrical equipment can be realized, so that power can be supplied to the electrical equipment through the cable 1.
FIG. 3 shows a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the first connector 10 in FIG. 1.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, in the illustrated embodiment, the first connector 10 includes a first housing 110 and a first terminal 101 arranged in the first housing 110, and the first terminal 101 is arranged in the first terminal hole of the first housing 110. The second connector 20 includes a second housing 210 and a second terminal 201 arranged in the second housing 210. The second terminal 201 is arranged in the second terminal hole of the second housing 210. In the illustrated embodiment, one end of the first terminal 101 is crimped on the conductor of the cable 1, one end of the second terminal 201 can be electrically connected to the electrical equipment, and the other end of the second terminal 201 is inserted into the other end of the first terminal 101, so that the electrical connection between the cable 1 and the electrical equipment can be realized.
FIG. 3A shows a partially enlarged schematic diagram of the first connector 10 in FIG. 1; FIG. 4 shows a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the second connector 20 in FIG. 1, in which a guide slot 211 on the second connector 20 and a latch safety 220 installed in the guide slot 211 are shown.
As shown in FIGS. 1-4, in the illustrated embodiment, the first housing 110 is adapted to be partially inserted into the second housing 210 along an axial direction of the first housing 110 or the second housing 210, and an elastic latch 111 suitable for locking the second housing 210 is formed on the first housing 110. A latch safety 220 capable of moving along a circumferential direction of the second housing 210 is installed on the second housing 210.
FIG. 7 shows a partially enlarged schematic diagram of the connector assembly shown in FIG. 1, wherein the latch safety is in the pre-locking position (or referred as an initial position); FIG. 8 shows a sectional view of the connector assembly shown in FIG. 7; FIG. 9 shows a partially enlarged schematic diagram of the connector assembly shown in FIG. 1, wherein the latch safety 220 is in the safety position; and FIG. 10 shows a sectional view of the connector assembly shown in FIG. 9.
As shown in FIGS. 1-4 to 7-10, in the illustrated embodiment, the latch safety 220 is adapted to move between the safety position (the position shown in FIGS. 9-10) to prevent the elastic latch 111 from being unlocked and the pre-locking position (the position shown in FIGS. 7-8) to allow the elastic latch 111 to be unlocked. In the illustrated embodiment, when the first connector 10 and the elastic latch 111 are pre installed on the second housing 210, the latch safety 220 is in the pre-locking position, and the elastic latch 111 is allowed to be unlocked.
FIG. 5A shows a partially enlarged schematic view of FIG. 4 when viewed from the top, in which the guide slot 211 on the second connector and the latch safety 220 not yet installed in the guide slot 211 are shown; FIG. 5B shows a partially enlarged schematic view of FIG. 4 when viewed from the bottom, in which the guide slot 211 on the second connector and the latch safety 220 not yet installed in the guide slot 211 are shown; FIG. 6 shows the assembly diagram of the second housing 210 and latch safety 220 shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, a pushing part 112 is formed on the first housing 110, the pushing part 112 is adapted to push the latch safety 220 from the safety position to the pre-locking position at which the latch safety 220 does not interfere with the elastic latch 111 during the insertion of the first housing 110 into the second housing 210, so that the plug connector 10 can be inserted smoothly, and there will be no collision and interference between the elastic latch 111 and the latch safety 220.
As shown in FIG. 3A and FIGS. 6-10, in the illustrated embodiment, a guide slope 112a inclined to the axial direction of the first connector is formed on the pushing part 112, and the pushing part 112 contacts and pushes the latch safety 220 through the guide slope 112a to drive and guide the latch safety 220 to move from the safety position to the pre-locking position in the circumferential direction.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, a guide slot 211 extending along the circumferential direction is formed on the outer wall of the second housing 210, the latch safety 220 is slidably installed in the guide slot 211, and the guide slot 211 is used to guide the latch safety 220 to move between the safety position and the pre-locking position along the circumferential direction.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, the latch safety 220 mainly includes a sliding plate 221 and one or more limiting parts 222. The sliding plate 221 is an arc plate extending in the circumferential direction. The limiting part 222 is connected to the bottom surface of the sliding plate 221. An opening 212 is formed on the second housing 210, and the limiting part 222 extends into the second housing 210 through the opening 212. In the illustrated embodiment, the opening 212 is located on the bottom wall of the guide slot 211 and is completely covered by the sliding plate 221.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, the front and rear edges of the opening 212 opposite to each other in the axial direction are slidably held between the limiting part 222 and the sliding plate 221 to limit the movement of the latch safety 220 in the radial direction of the second housing 210. In this way, the latch safety 220 is allowed to move only in the circumferential direction in the guide slot 211.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, the elastic latch 111 mainly includes an elastic cantilever 111a and a locking portion 111b. The elastic cantilever 111a is connected to the first housing 110 and is adapted to move between a locking position and an unlocking position. The locking portion 111b is formed on the elastic cantilever 111a and is suitable for locking the second housing 210. The latch safety 220 includes a tongue 223 connected to the limiting part 222, which is adapted to be inserted into the gap between the elastic cantilever 111a and the outer wall of the first housing 110 to prevent the elastic cantilever 111a from be moved to the unlocking position. In this way, the risk of accidental unlocking of the elastic latch 111 caused by the operator's misoperation can be avoided.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, the guide slope 112a of the pushing part 112 is adapted to contact and push the tongue 223 of the latch safety 220, so as to move the latch safety 220 from the safety position to the pre-locking position.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, the fixed end of the elastic cantilever 111a is connected with the pushing part 112 and is fixedly connected to the outer wall of the first housing 110 through the pushing part 112. However, the present invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiment, and the pushing part 112 may be separated from the elastic cantilever 111a.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, the elastic latch 111 also includes a pressing part 111c connected to the free end of the elastic cantilever 111a, which is exposed to the outside of the second housing 210 when the first housing 110 is inserted into the second housing 210 to allow human fingers to press the pressing part 111c. In this way, after the latch safety 220 is moved to the pre-locking position, the elastic latch 111 can be unlocked by pressing the pressing part 111c with a finger.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, two positioning grooves 211g extending along the axial direction are formed on the bottom wall of the guide slot 211, and a positioning rib 221g extending along the axial direction is formed on the inner surface of the sliding plate 221. When the latch safety 220 is installed in the guide slot 211 and moved to the safety position, the positioning rib 221g is positioned in one of the two positioning grooves 211g. When the latch safety 220 is installed in the guide slot 211 and moved to the pre-locking position, the positioning rib 221g is positioned in the other of the two positioning grooves 211g. The design of the positioning rib 221g and the positioning grooves 211g can not only enhance the operating hand feeling of the operator, but also position the latch safety 220 in the safety position and the pre-locking position respectively.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, an indication arrow 221f is formed on the outer surface of the sliding plate 221, and a safety position identification (for example, a closed lock identification, indicating that the elastic latch 111 cannot be unlocked) and a pre-locking position identification (for example, an opened lock identification, indicating that the elastic latch 111 can be unlocked) are formed on the outer wall of the second housing 210. When the latch safety 220 is installed in the guide slot 211 and moved to the safety position, the indication arrow 221f points to the safety position identification. When the latch safety 220 is installed in the guide slot 211 and moved to the pre-locking position, the indication arrow 221f points to the pre-locking position identification. Therefore, when the indication arrow 221f points to the pre-locking position identification, the pressing part 111c of the elastic latch 111 can be pressed by fingers to unlock the elastic latch 111.
As shown in FIGS. 4 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, the guide slot 211 is surrounded by a first end wall 211a and a second end wall 211b opposite to each other in the circumferential direction and two side walls 211c opposite to each other in the axial direction. The latch safety 220 is adapted to move in the circumferential direction between the first end wall 211a and the second end wall 211b of the guide slot 211.
As shown in FIGS. 4 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, the sliding plate 221 includes first and second ends opposite to each other in the circumferential direction and front and rear sides opposite to each other in the axial direction. The first and second ends of the sliding plate 221 respectively correspond to the first end wall 211a and the second end wall 211b of the guide slot 211, and the front and rear sides of the sliding plate 221 respectively correspond to the two side walls 211c of the guide slot 211.
As shown in FIGS. 4 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, when the latch safety 220 is moved to the safety position along the guide slot 211, the end face of the first end of the sliding plate 221 abuts against the first end wall 211a of the guide slot 211, and the top surface of the first end wall 211a of the guide slot 211 is higher than the outer surface of the sliding plate 221, so that human fingers cannot contact the end face of the first end of the sliding plate 221. In this way, the operator cannot push the end face of the first end of the sliding plate 221 with his fingers to realize the reset of the latch safety 220, which avoids the false or accidental reset of the latch safety 220 and improves the use safety.
As shown in FIGS. 4 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, the outer surface of the sliding plate 221 is a smooth surface, and in the illustrated embodiment, it is a smooth arc surface, so that the friction force between the human finger and the outer surface of the sliding plate 221 is not enough to push the latch safety 220 to move. In this way, the latch safety 220 can be further prevented from being wrongly or accidentally reset, thereby further improving the use safety.
As shown in FIGS. 4 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, a slot 221a is formed on the end face of the first end of the sliding plate 221 or on the inner wall surface of the first end wall 211a of the guide slot 211. The slot 221a is arranged so that adult fingers cannot be inserted, but the corresponding tool (not shown, for example, a screwdriver with a flat head) can be inserted. Thus, the latch safety 220 can be moved from the safety position to the pre-locking position by a tool inserted into the slot 221a. Therefore, in the present invention, in order to realize the reset operation of the latch safety 220 from the safety position to the pre-locking position, a tool must be used, which cannot be realized by human fingers. Therefore, the invention can effectively prevent the latch safety 220 from being wrongly or accidentally reset due to the misoperation of the operator, and improve the use safety.
As shown in FIGS. 4 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, the front and rear sides of the sliding plate 221 respectively abut against the two side walls 211c of the guide slot 211, and the top surfaces of the two side walls 211c of the guide slot 211 are higher than the outer surface of the sliding plate 221, so that human fingers cannot contact the front and rear sides of the sliding plate 221. In this way, the human hand cannot realize the reset of the latch safety 220 by grasping the sides of the front and rear sides of the sliding plate 221, which can further avoid the false or accidental reset of the latch safety 220, so as to further improve the use safety.
As shown in FIGS. 4 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, a notch 2110 is formed on the second end wall 211b of the guide slot 211; and/or the top surface of the second end wall 211b of the guide slot 211 is lower than the outer surface of the sliding plate 221, to allow human fingers to contact the end face of the second end of the sliding plate 221. In this way, the sliding plate 221 can be pushed from the pre-locking position to the safety position by fingers.
As shown in FIGS. 4 to 10, in the illustrated embodiment, when the latch safety 220 is moved to the pre-locking position, the second end of the sliding plate 221 rests against the second end wall 211b of the guide slot 211. In this way, the latch safety 220 can be limited to the pre-locking position.
It should be appreciated for those skilled in this art that the above embodiments are intended to be illustrated, and not restrictive. For example, many modifications may be made to the above embodiments by those skilled in this art, and various features described in different embodiments may be freely combined with each other without conflicting in configuration or principle.
Although several exemplary embodiments have been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes or modifications may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the disclosure, the scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.
As used herein, an element recited in the singular and proceeded with the word “a” or “an” should be understood as not excluding plural of said elements or steps, unless such exclusion is explicitly stated. Furthermore, references to “one embodiment” of the present invention are not intended to be interpreted as excluding the existence of additional embodiments that also incorporate the recited features. Moreover, unless explicitly stated to the contrary, embodiments “comprising” or “having” an element or a plurality of elements having a particular property may include additional such elements not having that property.
Patent Application
20220302643
