Receptacle connector

Abstract

The application provides a socket connector, which comprises two terminal modules matched with each other in up-down direction, wherein the terminal module on the upper side and the terminal module on the lower side are arranged in central symmetry, each of the terminal modules comprises an insulating body, a plurality of conductive terminals and a shielding sheet embedded in the insulating body, and the conductive terminals and the shielding sheet are arranged in up-down direction in a spaced manner. The socket connector of the application not only saves the process of assembling the shielding sheet, but also greatly improves the product assembly efficiency due to the same structure of the upper and lower terminal modules and the central symmetric arrangement.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a socket connector, and in particular to a socket connector with a simpler assembly process. Background Art

[0002] To facilitate manufacturing and installation, in existing Type-C socket connector designs, the upper row of terminals and the upper body are generally embedded to form an upper terminal module, and the lower row of terminals and the lower body are embedded to form a lower terminal module. A shielding sheet is then assembled on the lower terminal module, and the upper and lower terminal modules are finally assembled together. However, this assembly method is too cumbersome and the product assembly efficiency is low.

[0003] In view of this, it is necessary to improve the existing socket connector to solve the above problems. Summary of the Invention

[0004] An object of the present invention is to provide a socket connector with a simpler assembly process.

[0005] In order to achieve the above-mentioned purpose of the invention, the present invention provides a socket connector, including two terminal modules that cooperate with each other in an upper and lower manner, wherein the terminal module on the upper side and the terminal module on the lower side are arranged in a centrally symmetrical manner, and each of the terminal modules includes an insulating body, a plurality of conductive terminals and a shielding sheet that are embedded in the insulating body, and the conductive terminals and the shielding sheet are arranged at intervals in the upper and lower directions.

[0006] As a further improvement of the present invention, the shielding sheet is arranged on one side of a horizontal center line of the insulating body along the transverse direction.

[0007] As a further improvement of the present invention, the shielding plate has a docking surface protruding from the surface of the insulating body, and the insulating body is provided with a recessed portion on the other side of the horizontal center line along the transverse direction, and the recessed portion is used to accommodate the docking surface of the shielding plate of the other terminal module.

[0008] As a further improvement of the present invention, the insulating body has a positioning hole that is arranged to penetrate along the up-down direction and is located between two adjacent conductive terminals, and the shielding sheet has a positioning portion exposed to the outside of the insulating body along the lateral direction.

[0009] As a further improvement of the present invention, the shielding sheet has a recess for accommodating the positioning hole.

[0010] As a further improvement of the present invention, the shielding sheet has a locking portion located at the front end of the positioning portion for locking with the docking connector.

[0011] As a further improvement of the present invention, the locking portion has a through hole extending vertically, the through hole extending vertically through the insulating body, and the socket connector further comprises an insulating member embedded with the terminal module and filling the through hole.

[0012] As a further improvement of the present invention, the insulating body includes a docking portion at the front end and a main body portion connected to the docking portion, and the locking portion protrudes from the front surface of the insulating member.

[0013] As a further improvement of the present invention, the socket connector also includes a shielding shell arranged outside the terminal module, and fixing holes are respectively provided on the left and right sides of the shielding shell. The shielding sheet has a fixing portion protruding laterally to be fixed to the fixing hole, and the fixing portion has a guide portion located at its front end to facilitate the installation of the shielding shell from front to back.

[0014] As a further improvement of the present invention, the shielding shell has harpoon soldering feet extending backward from its rear end to be soldered to the upper and lower surfaces of the circuit board.

[0015] Beneficial effects of the present invention: The upper and lower terminal modules of the socket connector of the present invention are arranged in a centrally symmetrical manner. The terminal module includes an insulating body and a shielding plate embedded in the insulating body. This not only saves the process of assembling the shielding plate, but also the upper and lower terminal modules have the same structure and are arranged in a centrally symmetrical manner, which greatly improves the product assembly efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the socket connector of the present invention.

[0017] Figure 2 It is a three-dimensional exploded view of the socket connector of the present invention.

[0018] Figure 3 yes Figure 2 Further exploded view of the middle terminal module.

[0019] Figure 4 It is a top view of the conductive terminal and shielding sheet.

[0020] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the outer surface of the terminal module.

[0021] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the terminal module assembly surface. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings. However, the embodiments do not limit the present invention, and any structural, methodological, or functional changes made by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments are all within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0023] Please refer to Figures 1 to 6 The figure shows the receptacle connector of the present invention. The X-axis is defined as the front-to-back direction, the Y-axis is the left-to-right direction (also known as the lateral direction), and the Z-axis is the up-down direction. The receptacle connector in this embodiment is a Type-C receptacle connector, which is used to electrically connect to a plug connector (not shown) for operation.

[0024] The socket connector includes two terminal modules 10 that cooperate with each other in the upper and lower directions, wherein the upper terminal module 10 and the lower terminal module 10 are arranged in a centrally symmetrical manner, and each terminal module 10 includes an insulating body 1, a plurality of conductive terminals 2 and a shielding sheet 3 that are embedded in the insulating body 1, and the conductive terminals 2 and the shielding sheet 3 are arranged at intervals in the upper and lower directions.

[0025] For details, please refer to Figures 1 to 3 As shown, in this embodiment, since the terminal module 10 on the upper side and the terminal module 10 on the lower side are arranged in a centrally symmetrical manner, that is, the structures of the terminal module 10 on the upper side and the terminal module 10 on the lower side are exactly the same, the lower surface of the terminal module 10 on the upper side is the upper surface of the terminal module 10 on the lower side, and the upper surface of the terminal module 10 on the upper side is the lower surface of the terminal module 10 on the lower side.

[0026] The insulating body 1 includes a main body 11 and a docking portion 12 provided at the front end of the main body 11. The main body 11 is a flat elliptical cylindrical structure, wherein the main body 11 is more bulged than the docking portion 12. The left and right sides of the main body 11 are provided with ribs 13 protruding upward from the upper surface thereof, and a downwardly recessed limiting groove 14 is provided between the left and right ribs 13. In this embodiment, the number of the limiting grooves 14 is two, and the ribs 13 and the limiting grooves 14 are symmetrically arranged about the horizontal midline of the insulating body 1 in the transverse direction. Of course, in other embodiments, the number of the limiting grooves 14 of the ribs 13 is not limited, and the ribs 13 and the limiting grooves 14 can also be asymmetrically arranged.

[0027] The insulating body 1 further includes a recessed groove 15 recessed downward from the main body 11. The recessed groove 15 is located behind the retaining groove 14 in the front-to-back direction and between the ribs 13 in the transverse direction. When the receptacle connector is soldered to a circuit board, during the high-temperature soldering process, the solder paste flux turns into liquid and rises along the conductive terminals 2. The recessed groove 15 increases the surface area for the flux to rise and spread, preventing the flux from spreading along the main body 11 to the mating portion 12, or even onto the conductive terminals 2, which could cause poor electrical contact with the mating connector.

[0028] Please refer to Figure 5 and Figure 6 As shown, the insulating body 1 further has a positioning hole 16 extending vertically and located between two adjacent conductive terminals 2. This positioning hole 16 allows the insert in the injection mold to be located between the two adjacent conductive terminals 2 during injection molding of the conductive terminals 2 and the insulating body 1, thereby preventing the conductive terminals 2 from moving laterally. The docking portion 12 also has a laterally protruding support portion 17 at a position adjacent to the main body 11.

[0029] The lower surface of the insulating body 1 is provided with a recessed portion 18 along one side of the horizontal centerline in the transverse direction. The recessed portion 18 is used to accommodate the shielding sheet 3 on the other terminal module 10. The lower surface of the insulating body 1 is provided with positioning posts 111 and positioning grooves 112 on both the docking portion 12 and the main body 11, so as to facilitate assembly with the other terminal module 10.

[0030] Please refer to Figure 3 As shown, the shielding sheet 3 is arranged on the other side of the horizontal center line of the insulating body 1 along the transverse direction, and the shielding sheet 3 includes a base 31, a positioning portion 32 located on the front side of the base 31, a locking portion 33 located on the front side of the positioning portion 32 for locking with the docking connector, a through hole 34 passing through the locking portion 33 in the up-down direction, a clearance groove 35 passing through the shielding sheet 3 in the up-down direction, and a fixing portion 36 protruding from the base 31 in the transverse direction.

[0031] The base portion 31 is embedded in the main body portion 11 and the docking portion 12, and the positioning portion 32 is exposed on the outside of the insulating body 1 in the lateral direction. This configuration facilitates positioning of the shielding sheet 3 during injection molding of the shielding sheet 3 and the insulating body 1. The through hole 34 extends through the insulating body 1 in the vertical direction, that is, the through hole 34 is partially exposed on the outside of the insulating body 1.

[0032] The clearance groove 35 is provided at the positioning hole 16 to make way for the positioning hole 16. In this embodiment, the clearance groove 35 is formed by being recessed outward from the inner side of the shielding sheet 3. This configuration can save material and thus reduce costs. Of course, in other embodiments, the clearance groove 35 can also pass through the shielding sheet 3 in the vertical direction and be a hole-like structure with inner walls on all sides, as long as it does not block the positioning hole 16. The fixing portion 36 has a guide portion 361 at its front end.

[0033] The shielding piece 3 also has a docking surface 37 protruding from the surface of the insulating body 1. The docking surface 37 is the lower surface of the shielding piece 3 on the upper side and the upper surface of the shielding piece 3 on the lower side. When the terminal module 10 is docked with another terminal module 10, the docking surface 37 is accommodated in the recessed portion 18 of the insulating body 1 of the other terminal module 10.

[0034] Please refer to Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, in this embodiment, twelve conductive terminals 2 are provided in the insulating body 1, and each conductive terminal 2 includes a retaining portion 21 fixed in the main body 11, a contact portion 22 extending forward from the retaining portion 21 and exposed on the upper surface of the docking portion 12, and a welding portion 23 extending backward from the retaining portion 21 to be welded to the upper and lower surfaces of the circuit board.

[0035] The contact portion 22 is used to contact and conduct with the docking connector. The two outermost terminals of the conductive terminal 2 in the horizontal direction are grounding terminals 24. The front end of the grounding terminal 24 has a bending portion 241 bent toward the shielding plate 3. The bending 241 extends forward from the contact portion 22. The bending portion 241 contacts the shielding plate 3 to enhance the shielding effect.

[0036] The grounding terminal 24 further includes a transverse arm 242 that protrudes in a transverse direction and bends toward the corresponding grounding terminal 24 on the other terminal module 10. The transverse arm 242 is formed by bending the support portion 17 on the docking portion 12. The transverse arm 242 contacts the transverse arm 242 of the corresponding grounding terminal 21 on the other terminal module 10. With this arrangement, the upper and lower grounding terminals 24 are respectively electrically conductive with the shielding sheet 3, and the upper and lower grounding terminals 24 are electrically conductive with each other, that is, the three are electrically conductive, thereby greatly improving the shielding effect.

[0037] The receptacle connector also includes an insulating member 4 injection-molded with the terminal module 10. The locking portion 33 protrudes from the front surface of the insulating member 4. The insulating member 4 is injection-molded outside the docking portion 12 and connected to the main body 11. During injection molding, the insulating member 4 covers the locking portion 33 and fills the through-hole 34, thereby further strengthening the fixed connection between the shielding sheet 3 and the insulating body 1. The support portion 17 also prevents excessive bending and damage caused by the insulating member 4 pressing on the cross arm 242 during injection molding.

[0038] The socket connector also includes a shielding shell 5 arranged outside the terminal module 10, and fixing holes 51 are respectively provided on the left and right sides of the shielding shell 5. When the shielding shell 5 is installed from front to back, the shielding shell 5 can move backward along the guide portion 361 of the fixing portion 36 until the fixing portion 36 completely enters the fixing hole 51.

[0039] The shielding shell 5 has harpoon solder legs 52 extending backward from its rear end to be soldered to the upper and lower surfaces of the circuit board. The lower and upper surfaces of the shielding shell 5 also have inwardly bent protrusions 53. When installing the shielding shell 5, the protrusions 53 are blocked by the limiting grooves 14 of the main body 11, which can prevent the shielding shell 5 from being over-installed. The ribs 13 of the main body 11 can also form an interference-enhancing fixing effect with the inner wall of the shielding shell 5. The front end of the shielding shell 5 has a flat oval docking port, which can be used for forward and reverse insertion and mating with the docking connector.

[0040] In summary, the receptacle connector of the present invention forms the terminal module 10 by embedding the shielding sheet 3, the conductive terminals 2, and the insulating body 1. The shielding sheet 3 is positioned on one side of the horizontal centerline of the insulating body 1 along its transverse direction, and the upper and lower terminal modules 10 are centrally symmetrically arranged, i.e., the upper and lower terminal modules 10 have identical structures. This not only reduces the number of steps required to assemble the shielding sheet 3, simplifying the production process, but also, because the upper and lower terminal modules 10 have identical structures, only one set of injection molds is required. Only two of the molded products need to be randomly selected for assembly, significantly reducing production costs.

Claims

1. A socket connector comprising two terminal modules that fit together in an upper and lower manner, characterized in that: The terminal module on the upper side and the terminal module on the lower side are arranged in a centrally symmetrical manner. Each of the terminal modules includes an insulating body, a plurality of conductive terminals and a shielding sheet embedded in the insulating body. The conductive terminals and the shielding sheet are arranged at intervals along the up and down directions. Each shielding sheet is located on one side of the horizontal center line of the insulating body along the transverse direction. The insulating body has a positioning hole that is arranged through the up and down directions and is located between two adjacent conductive terminals. The shielding sheet has a positioning portion exposed to the outside of the insulating body along the transverse direction. The shielding sheet has a clearance groove for making way for the positioning hole, and the clearance groove is formed by being recessed outward from the inner side of the shielding sheet.

2. The socket connector according to claim 1, wherein: The shielding piece has a docking surface protruding from the surface of the insulating body. The insulating body is provided with a recessed portion on the other side of the horizontal center line along the transverse direction. The recessed portion is used to accommodate the docking surface of the shielding piece of another terminal module.

3. The socket connector according to claim 1, wherein: The shielding piece has a locking portion located at the front end of the positioning portion for locking with the docking connector.

4. The socket connector according to claim 3, wherein: The locking portion has a through hole extending vertically, the through hole extending vertically through the insulating body, and the socket connector further comprises an insulating member embedded with the terminal module and filling the through hole.

5. The socket connector according to claim 4, wherein: The insulating body includes a docking portion at the front end and a main body portion connected to the docking portion, and the locking portion protrudes from the front surface of the insulating member.

6. The socket connector according to claim 1, wherein: The socket connector also includes a shielding shell arranged outside the terminal module, and fixing holes are respectively provided on the left and right sides of the shielding shell. The shielding sheet has a fixing portion protruding laterally to be fixed to the fixing hole, and the fixing portion has a guide portion located at its front end to facilitate the installation of the shielding shell from front to back.

7. The socket connector according to claim 6, wherein: The shielding shell is provided with harpoon soldering feet extending backward from the rear end thereof so as to be soldered to the upper and lower surfaces of the circuit board.

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