Patent Application
20240235131
This application claims the benefit of European Patent Application No. 22150350.1 filed on Jan. 5, 2022, the whole disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention relates to a panel mount connector configured to be mounted to a panel.
Panel mount connectors are often used for power and/or signal transmission in electric appliances. Thus, they enable communication between a front of the panel and a rear of the. Traditional fixation systems make use of screws to fix the panel mount connector to a mating connector clamping the panel. However, the assembly of such a connection system is more complicated due to the use of screws, since more parts need to be handled during the assembly operation. For maintenance purposes, simple mounting and dismounting of the panel mount connector is desired.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a panel mount connector adapted to be mounted to a panel comprises a housing and snap-fit clip module. The housing includes a collar adapted to abut against the panel and a receptacle. The clip module is arranged within the receptacle and has at least one latching element adapted to generate a snap-fit with the panel.
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.
With reference to
A gasket 10 is provided, extending around the housing 2 adjoining to the collar 4, such that the gasket 10 is supported on a surface 12 of the collar 4 facing the rear end face 6. The gasket 10 may be electrically conductive. For example, the gasket 10 may be formed from a fluorosilicone that is charged with aluminum and/or silver. In this case, the gasket 10 may further serve as an electromagnetic shield improving the shielding efficiency of the connector 1.
The housing 2 further comprises a receptacle 14 for receiving a snap-fit clip module 16 arranged adjacent to the collar 4, as can best be seen in
A radially inwards protruding flap 20 of the gasket 10 may be configured to be received in the receptacle 1 for securing the gasket 10 to the housing 2. Preferably, a second receptacle 14 is located on an opposite side of the housing 2. The second receptacle 14 may be formed identical to the first receptacle 14. In each receptacle 14, a separate snap-fit clip module 16 may be inserted. Preferably, the snap-fit clip modules 16 are structurally identical. When the snap-fit clip module 16 is inserted into the receptacle 14, the flap 20 of the gasket 10 may be received in the receptacle 14 between the snap-fit clip module 16 and the collar 4.
An exemplary embodiment of the snap-fit clip module 16 is shown in a schematic perspective view in
The latch structure 24 may preferably be cantilevered, protruding from one side of the frame structure 22 facing the opening 28. In other words, the latch structure 24 may extend from one beam 26 into the opening 28. For abutment with the panel, the latch structure 24 may comprise at least one latching element 30. In this exemplary embodiment, two parallel latching elements 30 are shown, which are connected to one another in a motion transmitting manner. In order to achieve the motion transmitting coupling between the two latching elements 30, a web 32 is provided. The web 32 extends from one latching element 30 to the other. The latching elements 30 may extend obliquely from a base 33 attached to the beam 26 into the opening 28 to a free end 34 such that the latching elements 30 project radially out of the opening 28. Preferably, the free end 34 does not reach the beam 26 arranged opposite the base 33, such that said beam 26 does not interfere with the deflection of the latching elements 30.
The latching elements 30 may be rigid in a direction parallel to the mounting direction S, in comparison to a direction parallel to the radial direction R. Therefore, the latching elements 30 may press against the panel with a high pressing force without strong deformation. To do this, the latching elements 30 may enclose a volume 36, which is preferably solid. The volume 36 may have a triangular cross section in a plane spanned by the mounting direction S and the radial direction R. In particular, the latching elements 30 may each comprise a material thickness 38 in the radial direction R, which gradually increases towards the free end 34. The latching elements 30 may thus each comprise a front face 40 facing the collar 4, when the snap-fit clip module 16 is inserted into the receptacle 14. The front face 40 has a width 42 essentially parallel to the peripheral direction U and a depth 44 essentially parallel to the radial direction R, wherein the depth 44 is smaller than the width 42 but at least half the size of the width 42.
The snap-fit clip module 16 may be clipped in the receptacle 14 as is shown in
The latching elements 30 may project out of the receptacle 14 in the radial direction R with an increasing depth towards the free end 34. The latching elements 30 may be elastically deflectable, such that they can be pushed into the receptacle 14 in the radial direction R, when a force is applied. Preferably, the latching elements 30 may project out of the receptacle 14 in an initial, undeformed state 45 as is shown in
To allow the latching elements 30 to be deflected, the receptacle 14 may be provided with a depression 46. The depression 46 may preferably be arranged to receive the front end 40 and may act as a support for preventing an excessive deflection of the latching elements 30. A through hole 48 may be provided in the receptacle 14, adjacent to the depression 46 in the mounting direction S. The through hole 48 may allow access to an inner volume surrounded by the housing 2, so that hooks of a complementary connector can reach into the through hole 48 locking the complementary connector to the housing 2.
The housing 2 and the snap-fit clip module 16 may particularly be formed from the same material. At least the snap-fit clip module 16 may be electrically isolating. It may, for example, be formed from a dielectric material, particularly a thermoplastic material.
In various applications, specific performance requirements have to be met. For example, the application may have specific requirements concerning the shielding effectiveness and/or surface transfer impedance. To achieve this, the housing 2 may be provided with a plating 50, particularly a multi-layer plating. The housing 2 may be plated with a copper plating and a nickel plating on top of the copper plating. Particularly, the entire outer surface of the housing may be plated. Preferably, the receptacle 14 may be plated.
The snap-fit clip module 16, on the other hand, is preferably not plated. As the snap-fit clip module 16 and the housing 2 are separate components, plating of the housing 2 may be facilitated. If the housing 2 and the snap-fit clip module 16 were formed integrally with one another, additional provisions would be required in order to plate the housing but not the snap-fit clip module.
The fixation of the snap-fit clip module 16 in the receptacle 14 is further elucidated with reference to the second exemplary embodiment of the panel mount connector 1 shown in
The snap-fit clip module 16 comprises a pair of catch elements 52 in the form of protrusions 54 protruding parallel to the mounting direction S from the frame structure 22. Particularly, the catch elements 52 and the latch structure 24 may extend from the same beam 26, wherein the latch structure 24 extends into the opening 28 and the catch elements 52 to the outside. The two catch elements 52 are arranged in the respective corner of the beam 26 and spaced apart from one another. The housing 2 comprises complementary catch elements 56 in the form of slots 58 opening into the receptacle 14. In an initial position 60 as indicated in
As can be seen in
With reference to
As can be seen in
The panel 74 may have a predetermined material thickness 82 that is greater than the gap 80 between front face 40 and the gasket 10. Therefore, the gasket 10 may be compressed, further ensuring proper sealing of the opening 76. For example, the predetermined material thickness may be 1.6 mm and the panel mount connector 1 may be configured such that when mounted to the panel 74, the gasket 10 is compressed by 0.09 mm.
In addition, those areas in which it is believed that those of ordinary skill in the art are familiar, have not been described herein in order not to unnecessarily obscure the invention described. Accordingly, it has to be understood that the invention is not to be limited by the specific illustrative embodiments, but only by the scope of the appended claims.
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 the 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.
