This non-provisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) on Patent Application No. 201420080065.7 filed in P.R. China on Feb. 25, 2014, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
Some references, if any, which may include patents, patent applications and various publications, may be cited and discussed in the description of this invention. The citation and/or discussion of such references, if any, is provided merely to clarify the description of the present invention and is not an admission that any such reference is “prior art” to the invention described herein. All references listed, cited and/or discussed in this specification are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties and to the same extent as if each reference was individually incorporated by reference.
The invention relates to an electrical connector assembly, and more particularly to an electrical connector assembly for magnetic connection.
An existing cooperative receptacle and plug connector assembly includes a plug connector and a receptacle connector. The plug connector includes a body, the body extends to form a tongue, and multiple terminals are disposed on the tongue. A case covers on the periphery of the tongue, and a buckling portion is provided on the case. The receptacle connector includes a receptacle body. A metal case is disposed on the periphery of the receptacle body to form an insertion space, and an elastic buckling arm is disposed on the metal case. The tongue of the plug connector is inserted in the mating space and engaged with the elastic buckling arm through the buckling portion on the case, which ensures electrical connection between the plug connector and the receptacle connector.
However, because the plug connector and the receptacle connector are cooperatively mated through the buckling structure of the buckling portion and the elastic buckling arm designed on the cases thereof, it is rather difficult to connect and separate the two connectors and the operation is inconvenient. Besides, with the developing trend of a smaller product, the space is getting smaller and the buckling structure is becoming thinner, so that the buckling structure is easy to be damaged. Moreover, unintentional touch of a cable terminal of the plug connector in use may cause poor contact of the plug connector and the receptacle connector, but the buckling portion and the elastic buckling arm cannot be disconnected immediately, which results in poor signal transmission, affects information transmission, and even causes the danger of electric sparks.
Therefore, a heretofore unaddressed need exists in the art to address the aforementioned deficiencies and inadequacies.
In one aspect, the present invention is directed to a connector that is simple in structure, easy in operation, and stable in electrical connection.
In one embodiment, the electrical connector assembly includes a plug connector and a receptacle connector mated in a forward and backward direction. The plug connector includes a body and at least one first magnetic element. The body has a first mating surface and a front surface disposed at a front end of the first mating surface. The at least one first magnetic element is disposed on the front surface. The receptacle connector is located in front of the plug connector, and includes a seat and a second tongue. A second magnetic element is disposed on the seat and magnetically attracted to the first magnetic element, so that the plug connector and the receptacle connector are fixed. The second tongue extends backward from the seat and has a second mating surface. The second magnetic element is located at a front side of the second mating surface. The first magnetic element is magnetically attracted to the second magnetic element by crossing the second mating surface, so that the second mating surface is electrically mated with the first mating surface.
In one embodiment, the front surface is perpendicular to the first mating surface.
In one embodiment, multiple first terminals are disposed on the body, and the first magnetic element is located at front ends of the first terminals.
In one embodiment, each first terminal has a first contact portion, the first contact portion is perpendicular to the first magnetic element, and when the plug connector is mated with the receptacle connector, the insertion depth of the first magnetic element in the receptacle connector is greater than that of the first contact portions.
In one embodiment, the first contact portion is disposed on and exposed out of the first mating surface, the first contact portion is bent forwardly and downwardly and extends to form a bent portion, and the bent portion is disposed in the body.
In one embodiment, the first magnetic element is plated on a front end of the bent portion.
In one embodiment, the second tongue is provided with second terminals, each second terminal has a second contact portion, and the second magnetic element is located in front of the second contact portions in a forward and backward direction.
In one embodiment, the second terminals and the second magnetic element are disposed on the same side of the second tongue.
In one embodiment, a shielding case is disposed on the periphery of the seat, the shielding case has a back flange, and the back flange is covered on a back end of the second tongue.
In another aspect, the present invention is directed to an electrical connector assembly.
In one embodiment, the electrical connector assembly includes a plug connector and a receptacle connector mated with the plug connector in a forward and backward direction. The plug connector includes a body, multiple first terminals, and at least one first magnetic element. The body has a first mating surface and a front surface disposed at a front end of the first mating surface. Each of the multiple first terminals has a first contact portion. The first contact portion is disposed on the first mating surface. The at least one first magnetic element is disposed on the front surface. The receptacle connector includes a seat having a second tongue and multiple second terminals. Each of the multiple second terminals has a second contact portion. The second contact portion is disposed on the second tongue. When the plug connector is mated with the receptacle connector, the first magnetic element is magnetically attracted to the second magnetic element by crossing the second contact portions, so that the first contact portions electrically contact the second contact portions.
In one embodiment, the first magnetic element is perpendicular to the first contact portions.
In one embodiment, the second terminals and the second magnetic element are disposed on the same side of the second tongue.
In one embodiment, each first contact portion is bent forwardly and downwardly, and extends to form a bent portion, and the first magnetic element is plated on a front end of the bent portion.
Compared with the related art, certain embodiments of the present invention, among other things, have the following beneficial advantages.
(1) In the electrical connector assembly, magnetic attraction between the first magnetic element and the second magnetic element enables electrical connection between the receptacle connector and the plug connector, which is easy for mating and convenient in operation.
(2) By using connection through magnetic attraction between the magnetic elements to replace connection through engagement of buckling members, the structure is simple, and the simplified structure of the connector is more suitable for the developing trend of being smaller and thinner.
(3) By using connection through magnetic attraction between the magnetic elements, unintentional touch of the plug connector and the receptacle connector in use may cause immediate disconnection easily, which avoids problems of poor contact such as intermittent contact.
These and other aspects of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiment taken in conjunction with the following drawings, although variations and modifications therein may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the novel concepts of the disclosure.
The accompanying drawings illustrate one or more embodiments of the invention and together with the written description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like elements of an embodiment.
The present invention is more particularly described in the following examples that are intended as illustrative only since numerous modifications and variations therein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Various embodiments of the invention are now described in detail. Referring to the drawings, like numbers indicate like components throughout the views. As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “a”, “an”, and “the” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Moreover, titles or subtitles may be used in the specification for the convenience of a reader, which shall have no influence on the scope of the present invention.
It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being “on” another element, it can be directly on the other element or intervening elements may be present therebetween. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly on” another element, there are no intervening elements present. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.
Furthermore, relative terms, such as “lower” or “bottom” and “upper” or “top,” may be used herein to describe one element's relationship to another element as illustrated in the Figures. It will be understood that relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in addition to the orientation depicted in the Figures. For example, if the device in one of the figures is turned over, elements described as being on the “lower” side of other elements would then be oriented on “upper” sides of the other elements. The exemplary term “lower”, can therefore, encompasses both an orientation of “lower” and “upper,” depending of the particular orientation of the figure. Similarly, if the device in one of the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements would then be oriented “above” the other elements. The exemplary terms “below” or “beneath” can, therefore, encompass both an orientation of above and below.
As used herein, “around”, “about” or “approximately” shall generally mean within 20 percent, preferably within 10 percent, and more preferably within 5 percent of a given value or range. Numerical quantities given herein are approximate, meaning that the term “around”, “about” or “approximately” can be inferred if not expressly stated.
As used herein, the terms “comprising”, “including”, “carrying”, “having”, “containing”, “involving”, and the like are to be understood to be open-ended, i.e., to mean including but not limited to.
To facilitate description and understanding, it is defined that in a three-dimensional coordinate system in the figures, an X-axis represents a forward direction, a Y-axis represents a rightward direction, and a Z-axis represents an upward direction; the invention is not limited to the directional description.
The description will be made as to the embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in
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When the plug connector 10 is mated with the receptacle connector 20, the body 11 is inserted in the receiving space 244, and the first magnetic element 13 is magnetically attracted to the second magnetic element 23 by crossing the second contact portions 221, so that the first contact portions 121 and the second contact portions 221 are in stable electrical contact.
In view of the above, the electrical connector assembly according to certain embodiment of the present invention, among other things, has the following beneficial advantages.
(1) In the electrical connector assembly, magnetic attraction between the first magnetic element 13 and the second magnetic element 23 enables electrical connection between the plug connector 10 and the receptacle connector 20, which is easy to operate and convenient to use.
(2) By using connection through magnetic attraction between the magnetic elements to replace connection through engagement of buckling members, the structure is simple, and the simplified structure of the connector is more suitable for the developing trend of being smaller and thinner.
(3) By using connection through magnetic attraction between the magnetic elements, unintentional touch of the plug connector and the receptacle connector in use may cause immediate disconnection easily, which avoids problems of poor contact such as intermittent contact.
The foregoing description of the exemplary embodiments of the invention has been presented only for the purposes of illustration and description and is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching.
The embodiments are chosen and described in order to explain the principles of the invention and their practical application so as to activate others skilled in the art to utilize the invention and various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. Alternative embodiments will become apparent to those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains without departing from its spirit and scope. Accordingly, the scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims rather than the foregoing description and the exemplary embodiments described therein.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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201420080065.7 | Feb 2014 | CN | national |