Claims
- 1. A bayonet type connector assembly comprising a body and a sleeve, said sleeve having at least one elongated opening therein, a spring washer and an open end washer between said body and said sleeve, shoulder means against which one end of said spring washer abuts, the other end of said spring washer abutting against said open end washer, said spring washer being firmly anchored between said open end washer and said shoulder means to allow relative movement between said sleeve and said body, said body having a forward portion and a rear portion, the forward portion being of lesser diameter than the rear portion, said spring washer, shoulder means and open end washer being mounted on said forward portion, said spring washer being slit on one side thereof to permit installation of said spring washer onto said body, said open end washer being slit at one side and being provided with at least one notch cut at a point spaced from said slit a distance sufficient to permit the open end washer to have an opening large enough to permit the said washer to be mounted on said connector body.
- 2. The bayonet type connector according to claim 1 wherein said shoulder means comprises an open end washer.
- 3. The bayonet type connector according to claim 1 wherein there is one said notch cut located opposite said slit.
- 4. The bayonet type connector according to claim 1 wherein said open end washer is made of metal.
- 5. The bayonet type connector according to claim 4 wherein said open end washer is sufficiently weakened in the area of said notch cut to permit the washer to sustain plastic deformation in the area of said notch cut when said open end washer is moved from one of said positions to the other.
Parent Case Info
This is a divisional of application Ser. No. 672,136 of Mar. 31, 1976.
This invention relates to connectors and more particularly to cable connectors having a bayonet sleeve. The invention also relates to special washers which can easily be installed on the connectors.
The term connector is used in this specification in its broadest sense and includes any item which can perform a connection function such as adapters of all kinds, panel mount receptacles, terminations, T-adapters, bulk head receptacles, hollow tubing or any crossectional shape, or solid rod or fibers etc. The construction of these units is in principle the same as for the particular connector selected for description in this specification i.e. a body to which a sleeve may be mounted. Accordingly, such other types of connectors have not been illustrated herein.
Bayonet connectors have been available commercially for a long time. They are generally made in two parts, one being the connector body, the other being the sleeve. The sleeve is provided with an elongated opening in its surface which receives mating pins or other engaging means located on the cable for engaging the opening. Generally, the cables inserted into these connectors are provided with mating connectors. A simple twist of the sleeve or cable forces the mating pins or other engaging means solidly into the sleeve to lock it in position in one or more detents that are provided at the end of the run of the elongated opening.
Typical bayonet type connectors are rather difficult to assemble. The sleeve is assembled to the body via a spring and washer assembly. This permits the sleeve to move slightly with respect to the connector body against the force of the spring when inserting the mating member. This permits the mating member to engage the detents, and it also permits the mating member to be disengaged from the detents and removed from the sleeve.
Conventional bayonet assemblies use a split circular spring which is installed on the connector body and against a shoulder. The springs used are generally circular in shape, like a washer, and in side view have the appearance of a bow, substantially as shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings. In order to provide for a second shoulder to support the other side of the spring, a pair of half washers have been employed. These half washers are extremely difficult to install, are generally installed by hand and require a high level of skill. Although a circular cross-sectional connector is described herein, the connector can assume any other shape such as square, hexagonal, etc.
Hand installation of the half washers also makes it necessary to complete the assembly of sleeve to connector body by hand, since the half washers must be held in place as the sleeve is slipped over the body.
To overcome the above deficiencies, a new type of open end washer is provided in which the open end washer is slit at one side and preferably cut back somewhat at a point removed from the said slit to permit the washer to be opened and placed on the body of the connector and then closed. This new open end washer retains its integral nature and once installed, does not have to be held in place by hand. This will permit the use of automated methods of assembling the sleeve to the connector body. In addition, the use of skilled labor so essential to installing the half washers of the prior art may be eliminated by the appropriate design of automatic equipment for installing the new open end washers.
US Referenced Citations (2)
| Number |
Name |
Date |
Kind |
|
3665371 |
Cripps |
May 1972 |
|
|
3754206 |
Obeissart |
Aug 1973 |
|
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
| Number |
Date |
Country |
| 1,401,373 |
Jul 1975 |
UK |
Divisions (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
| Parent |
672136 |
Mar 1976 |
|
Patent Grant
4068911
