The present invention generally relates to an electrical connector apparatus with a male housing and a female housing having a terminal position assurance device (TPA). More particularly, the invention is directed to ribs and other protective features provided on the male housing and the female housing to prevent the TPA from moving from a pre-set position to a final lock position.
The present invention generally relates to an electrical connector apparatus having a male housing and a female housing, the male housing having a terminal position assurance device (TPA) for connecting thereto at least a set of terminals, and the female housing having a terminal position assurance device (TPA) for connecting thereto at least a set of terminals.
At least a terminal is provided into each of the male housing and the female housing, when each of their respective TPA is at a pre-set position. The set of terminals provided for the male housing is secured thereto when the TPA thereof is placed at the final lock position. Similarly, the set of terminals provided for the female housing is secured thereto when the TPA of the female housing is placed at the final lock position. Thereafter, the male housing and the female housing may be engaged together.
To ensure that the TPA provided in the male housing and the TPA provided in the female housing of the electrical connector apparatus is not moved from a pre-set position to a final lock position during shipping and/or handling, the male housing and the female housing are provided with ribs to protect the TPA from physical contact. These ribs create a physical protective barrier to prevent the TPA from being moved from the pre-set position to the final lock position.
The electrical connector apparatus of the present invention is assembled and packaged in bags in bulk and shipped with the TPA in the pre-set position. This way, the operator can insert terminals into the electrical connector apparatus immediately upon receiving the electrical connector apparatus.
However, since the electrical connector apparatus is packaged and shipped in bulk, various parts can make contact with the TPA during shipping and/or handling which can cause an unprotected TPA from being moved from the pre-set position to the final lock position. If this occurs, the operator of the electrical connector apparatus will have to reset the TPA from the final position to the pre-set position in order to insert the terminals. This causes an inconvenience to the operator as well as wastes time when inserting the terminals into the electrical connector apparatus.
Additional features, advantages, and embodiments of the invention are set forth apparent from consideration of the following detailed description, drawings, and claims. Moreover, it is to be understood that both the foregoing summary of the invention and the following detailed description are exemplary and intended to provide further explanations without limiting the scope of the invention as claimed.
Ribs 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 are provided on the male housing 2 in order to protect the TPA 4 from any physical contact. Therefore, when the TPA 4 is set in the pre-set position during shipping, the ribs 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 will prevent the TPA 4 from moving to the final lock position. Furthermore, the ribs 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 are located on the periphery of the TPA 4 so as to protect the TPA 4 from all sides.
Furthermore, as can be seen in
In the second embodiment of the present invention, the male housing, the female housing, the TPA, and the ribs operate identically to the first embodiment, as detailed above.
Specifically,
The female housing 103 is also provided with ribs 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 118, 119 and 120, to protect the TPA 105 from being moved from a pre-set position, as shown in
As can be seen in
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