Automotive RF connectors

Abstract

An automotive radio frequency connector includes an outer conductor. A front section of the outer conductor, forming a hollow tube, is covered with an insulating core containing a central conductor. The central conductor is coupled to a conductive copper wire of a coaxial cable to form an electrical connection for signal transmission. A rear section of the hollow tube is covered with a crimp sleeve and an outer sheath of the coaxial cable. The crimp sleeve is crimped onto a mesh conductor exposed at one end of the coaxial cable. A free end of the mesh conductor forms a folded section at an outer edge of the crimp sleeve that contacts the outer conductor, thus forming a grounded electrical connection between the outer conductor, the crimp sleeve, and the mesh conductor. The connector is characterized in that a rear section of the insulating core has a recessed annular portion for fitting a metal ring, which contacts the outer conductor to adjust the distance between the outer conductor and the central conductor.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This case relates to a connector, particularly an automotive radio frequency connector. Prior Technology

[0002] Electrical connectors are commonly found in electrical products. Their main purpose is the transmission of power or signals. Therefore, electrical connectors are widely used in the connection of information products and are an indispensable component.

[0003] In practical applications, electrical connectors are not limited to the aforementioned electrical products; they are also widely used in the electrical systems of automobiles and motorcycles for wiring connections. For example, FAKRA (Fachkreis Automobil) connectors were initially used for connecting car radio antennas, but today the FAKRA standard has become a universal standard for radio frequency connectors in the automotive industry and is widely used.

[0004] Please refer to Figures 1 to 3, which show an exploded perspective view of an existing automotive RF connector, an assembled perspective view, and a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in Figure 2. As shown in Figure 1, the automotive RF connector includes a coaxial cable 10, a crimp sleeve 20, a center conductor 30, an insulating core 40, and an outer conductor 50.

[0005] The coaxial cable 10 includes a conductive copper wire 101 located in the center and a mesh conductor 102 covered by an outer sheath 103 on the outer periphery. The crimp sleeve 20 is crimped to the exposed mesh conductor 102 at one end of the coaxial cable 10, and a free end of the mesh conductor 102 forms a folded section at an outer edge of the crimp sleeve 20. The center conductor 30 is coupled to the conductive copper wire 101 to form a signal connection. The insulating core 40 is used for the fitting and positioning of the center conductor 30. The outer conductor 50 uses bending and crimping processes to cover the center conductor 30 and the insulating core 40 with the front section of a hollow tube. The rear section of the hollow tube covers the crimping sleeve 20 and the outer sheath 103 of the coaxial cable 10, so that the outer conductor 50, the crimping sleeve 20 and the mesh conductor 102 form an electrical connection, thus completing the assembly of the automotive RF connector as shown in Figure 2.

[0006] The outer circumferential surface of the outer conductor 50 is provided with a first rib 501, a second rib 502 and a third rib 503, so as to facilitate the insertion of the automotive radio frequency connector into a connector socket (conventional, not shown). As shown in Figure 3, the third rib 503 extends into a tapered slope 503a towards the coaxial cable 10. It can be clearly seen from the figure that the lower end of the tapered slope 503a contacts the mesh conductor 102, forming a gap G between them. The dielectric constant of the air inside the gap G (equal to 1) is inconsistent with the dielectric constant of the insulation layer of the coaxial cable 10 (approximately between 4.2 and 4.7), causing impedance mismatch in the wave impedance of the coaxial cable 10 at this point. This results in considerable return loss and insertion loss before 6 GHz, making it impossible for the characteristic impedance bandwidth of the existing automotive RF connector to reach 6 GHz, thus failing to meet the specifications of USCAR (United States Council for Automotive Research LLC). This is a problem that relevant manufacturers urgently need to overcome. Summary of the Invention

[0007] The main objective of this invention is to provide an automotive radio frequency connector that minimizes impedance mismatch by reducing the void inside an outer conductor and adjusting the distance between the outer conductor and a center conductor, thereby enabling the characteristic impedance bandwidth of the automotive radio frequency connector to reach the 6 GHz required by USCAR.

[0008] To achieve the aforementioned objective, the technical means adopted in this case is to provide an automotive radio frequency connector, which includes an outer conductor. The front section of the hollow tube formed by the outer conductor is covered with an insulating core having a central conductor. The central conductor is coupled to a conductive copper wire of a coaxial cable to form an electrical connection for signal transmission. The rear section of the hollow tube is covered with a crimping sleeve and an outer sheath of the coaxial cable. The crimping sleeve is crimped to a mesh conductor exposed at one end of the coaxial cable. A free end of the mesh conductor forms a folded section at an outer edge of the crimping sleeve that contacts the outer conductor, thereby forming a grounded electrical connection between the outer conductor, the crimping sleeve, and the mesh conductor. The key feature is that the rear section of the insulating core has a concave ring portion for fitting a metal ring, wherein the metal ring contacts the outer conductor to adjust the distance between the outer conductor and the central conductor.

[0009] In one embodiment, the outer peripheral surface of the outer conductor is provided with a first rib, a second rib and a third rib, and the two sides of the ribs are vertical surfaces perpendicular to the outer peripheral surface of the outer conductor. Simple Explanation of the Diagram

[0010] To further reveal the specific technical content of this case, please first refer to the drawings, in which: Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view of an existing automotive RF connector; Figure 2 is a perspective view of the assembled automotive RF connector shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in Figure 2; Figure 4 is an exploded perspective view of the automotive radio frequency connector in this case; Figure 5 is a 3D view of the assembled automotive RF connector shown in Figure 4; Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in Figure 5; Figure 7 is a comparison of the impedance of the automotive RF connector in this case with that of existing automotive RF connectors; Figure 8a is a comparison chart of the insertion loss of the automotive RF connector in this case and the insertion loss of existing automotive RF connectors; and Figure 8b is a comparison of the return loss of the automotive RF connector in this case with the return loss of the existing automotive RF connector. Implementation

[0011] Please refer to Figures 4 to 6, which disclose an automotive radio frequency connector that is the same specification as the existing automotive radio frequency connector. Therefore, the automotive radio frequency connector of this case includes a coaxial cable 1, a crimp sleeve 2, a center conductor 3, an insulating core 4, an outer conductor 5, and a metal ring 6.

[0012] The coaxial cable 1 includes a conductive copper wire 11 located in the center and a mesh conductor 12 covered by an outer sheath 13 on the outer periphery, for signal transmission and grounding.

[0013] The crimp sleeve 2 is crimped onto the exposed mesh conductor 12 at one end of the coaxial cable 1, and a free end of the mesh conductor 12 forms a reverse fold section at an outer edge of the crimp sleeve 2, so that the crimp sleeve 2 and the mesh conductor 12 form a grounded electrical connection.

[0014] The center conductor 3 is coupled to the conductive copper wire 11 of the coaxial cable 1 to form an electrical connection for signaling, such that one side of the center conductor 3 is connected to the coaxial cable 1 with the crimp sleeve 2.

[0015] The insulating core 4 is used to fit and position the center conductor 3, so that the center conductor 3 is housed in the insulating core 4, and the insulating core 4 provides insulation between the center conductor 3 and the outer conductor 5.

[0016] The outer conductor 5 is formed by bending and crimping a hollow tube. The front section of the hollow tube is covered with the insulating core 4 containing the central conductor 3, while the rear section of the hollow tube is further covered with the crimping sleeve 2 and the outer sheath 13 of the coaxial cable 1, so that the outer conductor 5, the crimping sleeve 2 and the mesh conductor 12 form a grounded electrical connection.

[0017] The overall structure of this automotive RF connector differs from existing automotive RF connectors in that the outer conductor 5 has a first rib 51, a second rib 52, and a third rib 53 on its outer peripheral surface. The two sides of these ribs 51, 52, and 53 are vertical surfaces relative to the outer peripheral surface of the outer conductor 5. This effectively reduces the internal gaps of the outer conductor 5, thereby lowering the high-frequency impedance caused by the presence of dielectric material. Furthermore, the rear section of the insulating core 4 has a recessed ring 41, which is further fitted with a metal ring 6 (see Figure 6). The metal ring 6 makes contact with the outer conductor 5, thereby adjusting the distance between the outer conductor 5 and the center conductor 3, thus reducing the influence of electromagnetic fields on high-frequency transmission.

[0018] Therefore, by designing the vertical surfaces of the protrusions 51, 52, and 53 on the outer conductor 5, and the metal ring 6 added between the outer conductor 5 and the central conductor 3, and then performing the aforementioned assembly process, the perspective view of the automotive RF connector shown in FIG5 can be completed, which facilitates the insertion of the automotive RF connector into a connector socket (conventional, not shown). Furthermore, the internal structure and component configuration of the automotive RF connector are shown in the cross-sectional view shown in FIG6.

[0019] Please refer to Figure 6 again. The automotive RF connector includes an insulating core 4 covering the front section of the hollow tube of the outer conductor 5, which is equipped with the central conductor 3. The central conductor 3 is coupled to the conductive copper wire 11 of the coaxial cable 1 to form an electrical connection for signal transmission. The rear section of the hollow tube further covers the crimping sleeve 2 and the outer sheath 13 of the coaxial cable 1. The crimping sleeve 2 is crimped to one end of the coaxial cable 1 that is exposed. The mesh conductor 12 has a free end that forms a folded section at the outer edge of the crimp sleeve 2 that contacts the outer conductor 5, so that the outer conductor 5, the crimp sleeve 2 and the mesh conductor 12 form a grounded electrical connection; wherein the rear section of the insulating core 4 is provided with a concave ring portion 41 for sleeved with the metal ring 6, so that the metal ring 6 contacts the outer conductor 5, thereby adjusting the distance between the outer conductor 5 and the center conductor 3.

[0020] Furthermore, the two sides of the ribs 51, 52 and 53 of the outer conductor 5 are designed to be vertical relative to the outer peripheral surface of the outer conductor 5, so as to reduce the gap inside the outer conductor 5, thereby minimizing the impedance mismatch of the coaxial cable 1 and significantly improving the characteristic impedance bandwidth of the coaxial cable 1.

[0021] Please refer to Figure 7, which shows a comparison between the impedance Z1 of the automotive RF connector in this application and the impedance Z2 of the existing automotive RF connector. As shown in Figure 7, the impedance mismatch of the impedance Z2 results in 70 ohms and 63 ohms, which are much higher than 50 ohms; while this application can significantly reduce the impedance mismatch and suppress the impedance Z1 to below 55 ohms.

[0022] Additionally, please refer to Figures 8a and 8b. Figure 8a shows a comparison of the insertion loss IL1 of the automotive RF connector in this application with the insertion loss IL2 of the existing automotive RF connector; Figure 8b shows a comparison of the return loss RL1 of the automotive RF connector in this application with the return loss RL2 of the existing automotive RF connector. As shown in Figure 8a, the insertion loss IL1 of the automotive RF connector in this application is less than the specified insertion loss IL0 within a 6 GHz bandwidth, while the insertion loss IL2 of the existing automotive RF connector is higher than the specified insertion loss IL0 after approximately 3.7 GHz; and as shown in Figure 8b, the return loss RL1 of the automotive RF connector in this application is lower than the specified return loss RL0 within a 6 GHz bandwidth, while the return loss RL2 of the existing automotive RF connector is higher than the specified return loss RL0 after approximately 3.7 GHz.

[0023] Based on the above explanation, this case offers the following advantages: The automotive RF connector of this invention can minimize impedance mismatch by reducing the gap inside the outer conductor and adjusting the distance between the outer conductor and the center conductor, thereby enabling the characteristic impedance bandwidth of the automotive RF connector of this invention to reach the 6 GHz required by USCAR.

[0024] The embodiments disclosed in this case are preferred embodiments. Any partial changes or modifications that originate from the technical ideas of this case and can be easily deduced by those skilled in the art are not outside the scope of the patent rights of this case.

[0025] 1: Coaxial cable 11: Conductive copper wire 12: Mesh conductor 13: Outer skin 2: Crimped sleeve 3: Center conductor 4: Insulating core 41: Recessed ring portion 5: External conductor 51: First protruding rib 52: Second protruding rib 53: Third protruding rib 6: Metal ring 10: Coaxial cable 101: Conductive copper wire 102: Mesh conductor 103: Outer skin 20: Crimped sleeve 30: Center conductor 40: Insulating core 50: External conductor 501: First protruding rib 502: Second protruding rib 503: Third protruding rib 503a: Conical inclined plane G: Gap

Claims

1. A vehicle-mounted radio frequency connector, comprising an outer conductor, the front section of which forms a hollow tube covered with an insulating core having a central conductor, wherein the central conductor is coupled to a conductive copper wire of a coaxial cable to form an electrical connection for signaling; and the rear section of the hollow tube covered with a crimp sleeve and an outer sheath of the coaxial cable, wherein the crimp sleeve is crimped to a mesh conductor exposed at one end of the coaxial cable, and a free end of the mesh conductor forms a folded section at an outer edge of the crimp sleeve that contacts the outer conductor, thereby forming a grounded electrical connection between the outer conductor, the crimp sleeve, and the mesh conductor; characterized in that: The outer circumferential surface of the outer conductor is provided with a first rib, a second rib, and a third rib, and the two sides of the ribs are vertical surfaces relative to the outer circumferential surface of the outer conductor; and a concave ring portion is provided at the rear end of the insulating core to fit a metal ring, wherein the metal ring is located between the second rib and the third rib and forms contact with the inner wall of the outer conductor, thereby adjusting the distance between the outer conductor and the center conductor.

Images