Claims
- 1. An electrical connector unit comprising:
- a first insulator having a plurality of bores therethrough extending from a forward face to a rearward face, each of said bores having a central axis; and
- a second insulator having a front face mounted against the rearward face of the first insulator, said second insulator having a plurality of passages therethrough, each axially aligned with the central axis of a respective bore in said first insulator, each of said bores and passages adapted to receive an electrical contact, which is insertable from the rear of said second insulator, each of said contacts having an enlarged section defining a rearwardly facing shoulder and a forwardly facing shoulder, said second insulator further including:
- a plurality of rectangularly shaped contact retention members disposed in each of said passages, said members having a front end, a rear end, and an adjacent side between front and rear ends which is integral with said second insulator so that said retention members extend from the walls of said second insulator passages, each of said rear ends tapering inwardly from the wall of said passage towards said central axis in the direction of said first insulator, each of said forward ends including a forwardly facing surface which faces in the direction of said first insulator, said forwardly facing surface being generally parallel to the front face of said second insulator and integral with said passage wall at the end furthest from the axis of said passage, each of said forwardly facing surfaces being equally distant from said second insulator front face, each of said retention members being resiliently expandable away from said central axis to permit said enlarged contact section to pass into said passage and past said retention members upon forward insertion of the contact into said passage and respective bore from the rear of said second insulator, said retention members contracting behind the rearwardly facing shoulder on the contact upon insertion so that the forwardly facing surfaces of said retention members engage the rearwardly facing shoulder of the contact to limit rearward movement of the contact in said passage, said contact retention members being substantially rigid in the axial direction when in their contracted position behind the enlarged portion of the contact so as to provide a positive stop against rearward movement of the respective contact.
- 2. The electrical connector unit recited in claim 1 wherein the plurality of contact retention members comprises four retention members, each of said retention members forwardly facing surfaces having a substantially uniform cross-sectional area, each of said retention members being perpendicular to at least one other member so as to provide a generally square shaped opening adapted to receive that portion of said contact which extends rearwardly from the rearwardly facing shoulder of the contact.
- 3. The electrical connector unit as recited in claim 1 wherein each of the bores in said first insulator are sized so that the enlarged portion of a contact cannot pass through said bore, whereby said first insulator provides means for stopping the forward movement of a contact inserted into said bore.
- 4. The electrical connector unit as recited in claim 2 wherein each of the bores in said first insulator are sized so that the enlarged portion of a contact cannot pass through said bore, whereby said first insulator provides means for stopping the forward movement of a contact inserted into said bore.
- 5. In the combination of an electrical connector of the type having a plurality of electrical contacts retained by an insert, the improvement wherein the insert comprises:
- an insulator having a front face, a rear face, and a plurality of passages therethrough extending from the front face to the rear face, each of said passages having a central axis, each of said passages adapted to receive a respective electrical contact which is insertable from the rear of said insulator, each contact having an enlarged section defining a rearwardly facing shoulder; and
- a plurality of contact retention members disposed in each of said passages, each of said retention members integral with said insulator and including a forward portion and a rearward portion, each of said rear portions tapering from the wall of said passage inwardly towards the central axis in the direction of said insulator front face, each of said forward portions of said retention members including a forward facing surface which faces in the direction of the front face of said insulator, said forward facing surface being generally parallel to the front face of said insulator and integral with said passage wall at the end furthest from the central axis of said insulator, each of said forward facing surfaces being equally distant from said insulator front face, each of said retention members being resiliently expandable away from said central axis to permit said enlarged contact section to pass into said passage and past said retention members upon forward insertion of the contact into the passage from the rear of said insulator, said retention members contracting behind the rearwardly facing shoulder on the contact so that each of the forward facing surfaces of said retention members engage the rearward facing shoulder on the contact to limit rearward movement of the contact in said passage, said contact retention members being substantially rigid in the axial direction when in their contracted position behind the enlarged portion of the contact so as to provide a positive stop against rearward movement of the respective contact.
- 6. The electrical connector unit recited in claim 5 wherein the plurality of contact retention members comprises four retention members, each of the forwardly facing surfaces of said retention members having a substantially uniform cross-sectional area, each of said retention members being perpendicular to at least the other member so as to provide a generally square shaped opening adapted to receive that portion of said contact which extends rearwardly from the rearwardly facing shoulder of the contact.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 433,965 filed Jan. 16, 1974, now abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (5)
Continuations (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
433965 |
Jan 1974 |
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