Patent Application
20240178609
This application claims the benefit of the filing date under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a)-(d) of Indian Patent Application No. 202241066186 filed Nov. 26, 2022.
The present invention relates to electrical devices, and more particularly, to a seal for a flat flexible cable.
Flat flexible cables (FFCs) or flat flexible circuits are electrical components consisting of at least one conductor (e.g., a metallic foil conductor) embedded within a thin, flexible strip of insulation. Flat flexible cables are gaining popularity across many industries due to advantages offered over their traditional “round wire” counter parts. Specifically, in addition to having a lower profile and lighter weight, FFCs enable the implementation of large circuit pathways with significantly greater ease compared to a round wire-based architectures. As a result, FFCs are being considered for many complex and/or high-volume applications, including wiring harnesses, such as those used in automotive manufacturing.
A critical obstacle preventing the implementation of FFCs into these applications includes the need to develop quick, robust, and low resistance termination techniques which enable an FFC to be mating with various components. Moreover, these applications often subject the FFCs and their associated connectors to harsh environmental contaminants, such as dirt and moisture. Accordingly, reliably terminating the FFCs includes sealing their connectors from these elements. However, reliably creating a seal about an FFC, as well as sealing the mating connectors associated therewith, has proven challenging. In particular, forming the small sealing features on an internal surface of the seal needed for reliably sealing against the thin FFC has shown to be difficult.
Accordingly, cost effective and reliable solutions for sealing FFC assemblies are desired.
In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a flat flexible cable (FFC) seal comprises an elastomeric body defining a generally hollow interior space. The body includes a first seal portion surrounding the interior space and defining an outwardly extending first sealing rib. A cavity is formed into the first seal portion in an axial direction and is sized to receive a portion of a connector component. The body further includes a second seal portion surrounding the interior space and defining an outwardly extending second sealing rib. The second seal portion extends in the axial direction of the body from an end of the first seal portion. The second seal portion is foldable into the interior space of, and generally under, the first seal portion such that the second sealing rib extends inwardly into the interior space.
The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying Figures, of which:
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.
Referring to
The assembly 100 further includes a cover 110, which may comprise a monolithic, polymer element formed via a molding process. The exemplary cover 110 defines at least one elastic latch 112 extending in a mating direction for engaging with a corresponding catch 132 formed on the header 130, and selectively fixing the cover 110 onto the header. The cover 110 further defines a slotted opening 117 on a front end thereof that is sized to receive the FFC 10 therethrough, and a rear opening 118 adapted to receive the header 130. See
It should be understood that the connector assembly shown in
Prior art seals are typically molded with sealing features (e.g., ribs) facing externally to engage with a portion of a connector (e.g., the inside of the header 130), as well as internally for engaging with the surface of a cable (e.g., the FFC 10). However, as an adequate seal with the thin, flexible FFC requires much smaller sealing features, as well as different properties of the surrounding sealing material (e.g., less thickness, rigidity, etc.), effective seals molded in this manner are difficult to achieve. This is in part due to the tooling difficulties accompanying accurately forming the relatively small internal FFC sealing features.
Referring to
The body 202 defines two distinct seal portions or zones. A first seal portion 210 is formed with external sealing ribs 212 extending about an exterior perimeter thereof. In the exemplary embodiment, each sealing rib 212 tapers in a radially outward direction for defining a sealing surface or tip. Either circumferentially about the body 202, or merely in sections, the first seal portion 210 defines cavities 214 therein which open in an axial direction. The cavities 214 are adapted to receive portions of a connector component therein, such as the cover 110 (see
A second seal portion or zone 220 is formed adjacent the first portion 210, or extends from an end of the first portion in an axial direction. The second seal portion 220 comprises sealing ribs 222 about its periphery that are dimensionally smaller than the sealing ribs 212 of the first seal portion 210. The wall thickness of the second seal portion 220 is less than that of the first seal portion 210, as shown in
As shown in
According to embodiments of the present disclosure, after molding or otherwise manufacturing the seal in the form shown in
Referring now to
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 disclosure 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.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 202241066186 | Nov 2022 | IN | national |
