Electrical connector assembly

Abstract

An electrical connector assembly includes a mating plug connector and a receptacle connector. The plug connector includes a row of plug terminals, a ground lead frame, an insulator fixing the row of terminals and the ground lead frame, and a cable. The ground lead frame includes multiple ground terminals aligned with and located between the plug terminals. The cable connects to the plug terminals and the ground terminals. The receptacle connector includes an insulating body and a row of receptacle terminals and a grounding element fixed to the insulating body. The insulating body extends with a tongue, and the receptacle terminals are exposed on the tongue. The row of receptacle terminals includes multiple signal receptacle terminals and ground receptacle terminals. The grounding element is electrically connected to the corresponding ground receptacle terminal. The grounding element includes at least one contact finger, which electrically connects to the ground lead frame of the plug connector when the plug connector is inserted into the receptacle connector. The ground lead frame of the plug connector of the present invention further includes a contact beam portion, and the grounding element of the receptacle connector includes a contact finger portion, establishing a grounding path when the two connectors are mated, which can effectively improve the high-frequency performance of the electrical connector assembly.

Description

Electrical connector assembly This invention relates to an electrical connector assembly having a grounding structure. US Patent 9,692,183 discloses an electrical connector including signal terminals, ground terminals, and a ground bus. The ground bus is connected to the ground terminals, which are generally arranged in the same plane as the signal terminals. Two or more ground terminals are integrally connected to the ground bus, and the signal terminals have bends to facilitate the passage of the ground bus. US Patent 10,944,215 discloses a plug connector where the terminal unit includes a pair of signal terminals and a ground plane. The ground plane provides ground terminals, and a shield is connected to the ground plane. A pair of wires of a cable passes through the shield and connects to the signal terminal pair. The ground portion of the cable is connected to the shield and the ground plane. However, the above grounding structures are relatively complex and cannot meet the performance requirements in increasingly high-frequency signal transmissions. Therefore, it is indeed necessary to provide an improved electrical connector assembly to solve the above problems. The purpose of this invention is to provide an electrical connector assembly and its plug connector and socket connector, which can provide high-frequency electrical performance. The objective of this invention is achieved through the following technical solution: an electrical connector assembly comprising a mating plug connector and a socket connector. The plug connector includes a row of plug terminals, a grounding lead frame, an insulator fixing the row of terminals and the grounding lead frame, and a cable. The grounding lead frame includes multiple grounding terminals, which are aligned with the plug terminals and arranged in a row between the plug terminals. The cable connects the plug terminals and the grounding terminals. The socket connector includes an insulating body and a row of socket terminals and a grounding element fixed to the insulating body. The insulating body extends with a tongue plate, and the socket terminals are exposed on the tongue plate. The row of socket terminals includes multiple signal socket terminals and ground socket terminals. The grounding element is electrically connected to the corresponding grounding socket terminals. The grounding element includes at least one contact finger, which is electrically connected to the grounding lead frame of the plug connector when the plug connector is inserted into the socket connector. The objective of this invention is achieved through the following technical solution: a plug connector comprising an insulating base and at least one plug terminal assembly; the insulating base having a mating cavity, the mating cavity having two opposing inner side surfaces and an inner bottom surface; the plug terminal assembly comprising a row of terminals, a grounding lead frame, an insulator fixing the row of terminals and the grounding lead frame, and a cable; the grounding lead frame comprising a plurality of grounding terminals, the grounding terminals being aligned with the terminals and arranged in a row; the cable connecting the terminals and the grounding terminals; wherein the row of terminals and the grounding terminals are arranged on the inner side surface of the mating cavity; the grounding lead frame having a plurality of contact beams, each contact beam integrally connected to an adjacent grounding terminal, and the contact beams being exposed on the inner bottom surface of the mating cavity. The objective of this invention is achieved through the following technical solution: a socket connector, comprising an insulating body, a row of terminals fixed to the insulating body, and a grounding component, wherein the insulating body extends with a tongue plate, the terminals are exposed on the tongue plate, the row of terminals includes signal terminals and grounding terminals, and the grounding component is electrically connected to the corresponding grounding terminals, wherein the grounding component includes contact fingers, and the contact fingers are exposed on the top surface of the tongue plate. Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects: the grounding lead frame of the plug connector of the present invention is further provided with a contact beam portion, and the grounding component of the socket connector is provided with a contact finger portion, so as to establish a grounding path when the two connectors are mated, which can effectively improve the high-frequency performance of the electrical connector assembly. This invention discloses an improved structure for a plug connector and a socket connector, which improves high-frequency performance, especially impedance matching, by modifying its grounding structure and path. Referring to Figures 1-16, which show the first embodiment, the electrical connector assembly 100 of the present invention includes a socket connector 20A and a plug connector 50 mating with each other. The rear end of the plug connector 50 is connected to two rows of cables 90, which are in the form of a cable connector. The socket connector 20A is mounted on a circuit board 200, which are in the form of a board-end connector. Referring to Figures 4 and 8-11, the socket connector 20A may include an insulating body 22, with a tongue 222 extending from one side of the insulating body 22. One or more rows of terminals 24 are fixed to the insulating body 22 and exposed on the tongue 222. Each row of terminals 24 includes multiple signal terminals 242 and ground terminals 244. A grounding member 26A is disposed within the insulating body 22 and has multiple fingers, or connecting fingers, for connecting to the corresponding ground terminals 244. The socket connector 20 may further include a cover 28 covering the insulating body 22 and a socket housing 29 surrounding the cover. Figure 4 clearly shows that after the cover 28 is assembled with the insulating body 22, it forms the seat of the socket connector, with the tongue 222 located therein. The cover 28 and the socket housing 29 may further be provided with a fixing structure. In this embodiment, the socket connector 20A is provided with two rows of terminals 24, which are fixed to the insulating body and exposed on two opposite surfaces of the tongue plate 222, and the two grounding members 26 are attached back to back. Figure 6-7 shows the external outline of the socket connector 20A. The cover 28 is generally longitudinally rectangular and may include a pair of opposing end walls 282 with openings 284. The two openings 284 are aligned with each other in the longitudinal direction but offset from the tongue plate 222. The inner bottom surface 2842 of the opening is at the height of the bottom edge 226 of the tongue plate. The end walls 284 extend upward beyond the corresponding part of the socket housing 29. The grounding member 26A includes a plurality of first fingers 264 and a plurality of second fingers 266. In this embodiment, each first finger includes an upper finger 2641 and a lower finger 2642, which are aligned vertically with each other. Thus, the same grounding terminal 244 contacts two first fingers 264, providing two grounding points. The second fingers 266 are used to electrically connect to the grounding lead frame 14' of the plug connector. The second fingers 266 extend upward beyond the top surface / butt surface 2221 of the tongue plate. The second fingers 266 have an arcuate portion 2661 that protrudes upward from the butt surface 2661 to abut against the grounding plane of the grounding lead frame 14' of the plug connector, achieving an electrical connection, as will be described in detail below. Referring to Figures 12-16, the plug connector 50 includes a plug terminal assembly 60, with a cable 90 connected to its rear end. As shown in Figure 5, the plug connector 50 has an elongated mating cavity 501 for the tongue plate 222 of the socket connector 20A to be inserted and electrically connected. The plug connector 20A may include an upper cover 72, a lower cover 74, and a locking element 76. The upper and lower covers are assembled together to enclose the plug terminal assembly 60, forming an insulating base 502. The insulating base forms the mating cavity 501. The locking element 76 fixes the insulating base 502 and can be detachably locked onto the socket housing 29 of the socket connector. The plug terminal assembly 60 includes a front terminal unit 62 and a rear terminal unit 64, which can be further fixed by an insulator. Each terminal unit includes a row of terminals, a grounding lead frame, and an insulator 16 that fixes the row of terminals and the grounding lead frame. Referring first to Figures 17-19, a modified plug terminal assembly 60B according to a second embodiment is shown, which has a structure substantially the same as the plug terminal element 60. The plug terminal assembly 60B includes a row of terminals 12, a ground lead frame 14, an insulator 16, and a plurality of cables 90 connected to the terminals 12 and the ground lead frame 14. The insulator 16 secures the row of terminals 12 and the ground lead frame 14, and the cables 90 connect to the row of terminals 12 and the ground lead frame 14. The ground lead frame 14 includes a plurality of ground terminals 142, which are aligned with the row of terminals 12 to form a row, with the ground terminals 142 located between adjacent pairs of signal terminals 12. The tail 121 of the terminals 12 can be appropriately thinned for impedance matching. Referring to Figures 17-19, the grounding lead frame 14 is a one-piece structure, comprising multiple first beam portions 144 and second beam portions 146. The first and second beam portions are located on opposite sides of the grounding lead frame 14, and each beam portion is integrally connected to an adjacent grounding terminal 144. A pair of terminals 12 pass through the corresponding first beam portion 144. It can be seen that the first beam portion 144 is a connecting beam portion 144, connecting the grounding terminals 142 together to form an integral grounding lead frame. The second beam portion 146 is a contact beam portion 146, extending to the mating cavity 501, used to achieve electrical connection with the grounding component 26A of the socket connector. Referring to Figure 19, the terminal 12 has a recessed end face 122, through which each cable 90 passes and is disposed on the recessed end face 122. Returning to Figures 13-16, in the first embodiment, the grounding lead frame 14' is substantially the same as the grounding lead frame 14, but its mating end 1422 extends out as an insulator. A grounding plate 18 is installed inside the plug connector 50, which has multiple fixing slots 182. The mating end 1422 is inserted into and fixed to the grounding plate 18. Thus, when the plug connector 50 is inserted into the socket connector 20A, the arcuate portion 2661 of the second finger 266 contacts the grounding plate 18, thereby establishing an electrical connection / grounding path between the grounding lead frame 14' and the grounding member 26A. It can be seen that the grounding lead frame 14' is connected to the grounding member 26A through the grounding plate 18. The mating end 1422 is equivalent to the second beam or contact beam. The first beam 148 connects adjacent grounding terminals 142 together as a single unit, serving as the connecting beam 148. As can be seen, in the deformed plug connector, the second beam portion 146 extends directly into the mating cavity 501 and is exposed on the inner bottom surface of the mating cavity 501. The second finger portion 266 can directly contact the second beam portion 146, thereby achieving an electrical connection. Referring to Figures 20-22, a modified socket connector 20 according to a third embodiment is shown, whose structure is substantially the same as that of socket connector 20A. In socket connector 20, the insulating body 22 has a tongue plate 24 extending from one side and a receiving cavity 224 recessed on the opposite side. The row of terminals is fixed to the insulating body 22 and exposed on the tongue plate 222. The row of terminals includes multiple signal terminals 242 and multiple ground terminals 244. The ground terminals are exposed in the receiving cavity 224, and the grounding member 26 is accommodated in the receiving cavity 224. Multiple fingers 262 and 263 of the grounding member 26 are connected to the corresponding ground terminals 244. In this embodiment, the socket connector has two rows of terminals 24, which are fixed to the insulating body 22 and exposed on two opposite surfaces of the tongue plate 22. Two grounding members 26 are attached back-to-back. The finger 262 is a downward extending structure with a lower scoop at its lower end, and the finger 263 is an upward extending structure with an upper scoop at its upper end. The upper scoop is positioned higher than the lower scoop. The two rows of grounding terminals are aligned one-to-one with each other, and the signal terminals are aligned one-to-one. Thus, the finger of one grounding member contacts the grounding terminal in one row of terminals, and the finger of the other grounding member contacts the grounding terminal in the other row of terminals. When the material tape 260 is connected, the two grounding members 26 are first attached together and then inserted into the receiving cavity 224, and the fingers 262 and 263 elastically contact the corresponding grounding terminals. In this embodiment, a row of terminals is first fixed to the insulator body by a first injection molding process, and then the insulating material is injected onto the insulator and terminals by a second injection molding process to form an insulating body, at which point a receiving cavity 224 is formed. Subsequently, two grounding components are inserted into the receiving cavity, and the material strip 260 is removed. In summary, since the industry commonly uses the same terminology for terminals, signal terminals, and grounding terminals of plug connectors and socket connectors, this terminology is adopted for simplicity when there is no confusion. However, when there is a risk of confusion, the prefixes "socket" and "plug" are added to distinguish them, such as "socket signal terminal," "socket grounding terminal," "plug grounding terminal," and "plug terminal." In summary, an electrical connector assembly includes a plug connector and a socket connector. The socket connector includes a grounding component, which is formed by stamping and bending a copper plate. When two grounding components are assembled back-to-back, the fingers form an arc-shaped protrusion. The socket connector includes two rows of socket terminals, each row including socket ground terminals and socket signal terminals. These socket terminals are first formed into terminal injection molding assemblies through a first injection molding process. The two terminal injection molding assemblies are then formed into an insulating body that fixes the two rows of terminals within them through a second injection molding process. Multiple channels are provided on the inner side of the insulating body. During assembly, the channels are used for the fingers of the grounding component to pass through and contact the socket ground terminals. The grounding component is in close contact with the socket ground terminals, thus enabling multiple grounding contact points for the socket ground terminals. The plug connector includes a grounding terminal, which is integrally stamped from a metal plate to form a grounding lead frame. The grounding lead frame includes an upper beam, a lower beam, and a die-cast area (or die-cast tail area). At the cable end in the tail area, capacitance increases before hot melt adhesive is applied; after applying hot melt adhesive, although strength increases, capacitance drops to the expected value. Another cable end design involves attaching the cable to a crescent-shaped structure at the end of the lead frame, with the shielding wire soldered to the top to establish a common ground for signal integrity (SI) purposes. Another common grounding element is located at the bottom, where the spring arm of a grounding element only contacts the grounding lead frame, but the upper beam is laser-welded to the grounding lead frame. This design achieves different contact points, and adjusting the length of the spring arm improves SI performance. Simultaneously, to better control cable end SI, an air pocket is provided at the cable connection end to improve performance in this area and allow for thinner construction. The body can have different features to better position the grounding element contacts. Figures 23-26 show a modified plug connector according to the fourth embodiment, wherein the plug terminal assembly 60C includes a front terminal unit 62 and a rear terminal unit 64. The front terminal unit includes a row of terminals 622, an insulator 624 for fixing the terminals, and a grounding element 66. The rear terminal unit 64 includes a row of terminals 642, an insulator 6244 for fixing the terminals, and a grounding element 68. Each terminal unit may further include a retaining structure for fixing the terminals and the grounding element. Cable 90 is a biaxial cable. The terminal 622 of the front terminal unit 62 includes a tail portion 6221 and a resilient contact portion 6223 at both ends. The tail portion has a recessed end face 6222. The two signal cores of the cable are fixed to the recessed end face 6222 of the corresponding signal terminal's tail portion. The shielding wire 91 of the cable is located within the recessed end face 6222 of the grounding terminal's tail portion. The grounding member 66 includes multiple first fingers 662 and multiple second fingers 664. The first fingers 662 are fixed to the upper surface of the tail portion 6221 of the grounding terminal, and the second fingers 664 resiliently contact the contact portion 6223 of the grounding terminal. Similarly, in the rear terminal unit 64, the first finger 682 of the grounding member 68 abuts upward against the lower surface of the tail portion 6421 of the grounding terminal, and the second finger 684 resiliently abuts against the contact portion 6423 of the grounding terminal. The second point is that 664 and 684 are elastic structures, which can adjust their mechanical contact with the contact part, and at the same time, their length can be increased to improve SI performance. The above description is only a partial embodiment of the present invention, not all embodiments. Any equivalent changes to the technical solutions of the present invention made by those skilled in the art after reading the present invention specification are covered by the patent scope of the present invention. 100: Electrical connector assembly; 200: Circuit board; 12: Terminal; 121: Tail; 122: Recessed end face; 14, 14': Grounding lead frame; 142: Grounding terminal; 1422: Mating end; 144: First beam, contact beam; 146: Second beam, contact beam; 148: First beam, connecting beam; 16: Insulator; 18: Grounding plate; 182: Fixing seam; 20A, 20: Socket connector; 22: Insulating body; 222: Tongue; 2221: Top surface, mating surface; 224: Receiving cavity; 226: Bottom edge; 24: Terminal; 242: Signal terminal; 244: Grounding terminal; 26A, 26: Grounding element; 260: Material tape; 262, 263: Finger; 264: First finger, connecting finger; 2641: Upper finger. 2642: Lower finger 266: Second finger 2661: Arc-shaped part 28: Protective cover 282: End wall 284: Opening 2842: Inner bottom surface 29: Socket housing 50, 50B: Plug connector 501: Mutation cavity 502: Insulating base 60, 60B, 60C: Plug terminal assembly 62: Front terminal unit 622: Terminal 6221: Tail 6222: Recessed end face 6223: Contact part 624: Insulator 66: Grounding part 662: First finger 664: Second finger 64: Rear terminal unit 642: Terminal 6421: Tail 6423: Contact part 68: Grounding part 682: First finger 684: Second finger 72: Top cover 74: Bottom cover 76: Locking part 90: Cable 91: Shielding wire Figure 1 is a perspective view of the electrical connector assembly according to the first embodiment of the present invention, wherein the socket connector and the plug connector are mated together, and the socket connector is mounted on a circuit board. Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of Figure 1 along dashed line II-II. Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of Figure 1 along dashed line III-III. Figure 4 is a perspective view of the socket and plug connectors of Figure 1 separated from each other. Figure 5 is a perspective view of Figure 4 from another angle. Figure 6 is a top view of the socket connector in Figure 4. Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view of Figure 6 along dashed line VII-VII. Figure 8 is an exploded perspective view of the socket connector in Figure 4. Figure 9 is an exploded perspective view of the insulating body and terminals in Figure 8. Figure 10 is an exploded perspective view of the terminals and grounding element in Figure 9. Figure 11 is a cross-sectional view of Figure 8 along dashed line XI-XI. Figure 12 is an exploded perspective view of the plug connector in Figure 4. Figure 13 is an exploded perspective view of the plug terminal assembly and ground plane in Figure 12. Figure 14 is an exploded perspective view of the plug terminal assembly in Figure 12. Figure 15 is a rear view and a partial enlarged view of a plug terminal assembly. Figure 16 is a side view of a plug terminal assembly. Figure 17 is a perspective view and a partially enlarged view of a modified plug terminal assembly according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Figure 18 is a side view of Figure 17. Figure 19 is an exploded perspective view of the plug terminal assembly of Figure 17. Figure 20 is a perspective view and a partially enlarged view of a modified socket connector according to a third embodiment of the present invention, wherein the cover and socket housing are removed. Figure 21 is an exploded perspective view of the terminals and grounding member in the socket connector of Figure 20. Figure 22 is a perspective view showing the grounding member inserted into the insulating body. Figure 23 is a side view of a modified plug terminal assembly according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. Figure 24 is an exploded perspective view of the front plug terminal assembly in Figure 24. Figure 25 is an exploded perspective view of the rear plug terminal assembly in Figure 24. Figure 26 is a side view of the modified plug terminal assembly of Figure 23. 18: Flooring 501: Docking cavity 266: Contact finger 74: Bottom Cover

Claims

1. An electrical connector assembly comprising a mating plug connector and a socket connector, the plug connector including a row of plug terminals, a ground lead frame, an insulator fixing the row of terminals and the ground lead frame, and a cable, the ground lead frame including a plurality of ground terminals, the ground terminals being aligned with the plug terminals and arranged in a row between the plug terminals, the cable being connected to the plug terminals and the ground terminals; the socket connector including an insulating body and a row of socket terminals and a grounding element fixed to the insulating body, the insulating body extending with a tongue plate, the socket terminals being exposed on the tongue plate, the row of socket terminals including a plurality of signal socket terminals and ground socket terminals, the grounding element being electrically connected to the corresponding ground socket terminals; wherein... The grounding element includes at least one contact finger that is electrically connected to the grounding lead frame of the plug connector when the plug connector is inserted into the socket connector.

2. The electrical connector assembly as described in claim 1, wherein, The grounding lead frame includes multiple contact beams, each of which is integrally connected to an adjacent grounding terminal and is used to directly abut against the contact finger of the grounding component.

3. The electrical connector assembly as described in claim 1, wherein, The grounding lead frame includes multiple contact beams, each of which is integrally connected to an adjacent grounding terminal. The plug connector is further provided with a grounding plate, and the contact beams are fixed to the grounding plate. The grounding plate is used to directly abut against the contact finger of the grounding component.

4. The electrical connector assembly as described in claim 3, wherein, The contact finger extends and protrudes from the top surface of the tongue plate.

5. A plug connector comprising an insulating base and at least one plug terminal assembly; the insulating base having a mating cavity having two opposing inner side surfaces and an inner bottom surface; the plug terminal assembly comprising a row of terminals, a grounding lead frame, an insulator fixing the row of terminals and the grounding lead frame, and a cable; the grounding lead frame comprising a plurality of grounding terminals, the grounding terminals being aligned with the terminals in a row, and the cable connecting the terminals and the grounding terminals, wherein... A row of terminals and the grounding terminal are arranged on the inner side of the docking cavity. The grounding lead frame is provided with multiple contact beams. Each contact beam is integrally connected to the adjacent grounding terminal, and the contact beam is exposed on the inner bottom surface of the docking cavity.

6. The plug connector as described in claim 5, wherein: Each of the terminals has a recessed end face at its tail.

7. The plug connector as described in claim 5, wherein, The contact beam is laid flat on the inner bottom surface.

8. The plug connector as described in claim 5, wherein, A grounding plate is laid flat on the inner bottom surface of the docking cavity, and the contact beam protrudes vertically from the inner bottom surface and contacts the grounding plate.

9. A socket connector comprising an insulating body, a row of terminals fixed to the insulating body, and a grounding member, wherein the insulating body extends with a tongue plate, the terminals are exposed on the tongue plate, the row of terminals includes signal terminals and ground terminals, and the grounding member is electrically connected to each corresponding ground terminal, wherein... The grounding element includes a contact finger that is exposed on the top surface of the tongue plate.

10. The socket connector as described in claim 9, wherein, The contact finger has an arc-shaped portion that protrudes from the top surface of the tongue plate.

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