Plug connector of an electrical plug connection device

Abstract

The invention relates to a plug connector of an electrical plug connection device, comprising a plug connector and a mating plug connector which is associated with the plug connector as a mating part and to which the plug connector can be plugged in a plug direction (S), wherein the plug connector has a housing and a plurality of electrical plug contacts which are arranged at least partially in the housing and each have a plug section which is configured for mechanical and electrical contact with a mating plug contact of a mating plug connector, wherein the housing has a contact chamber for receiving a plug-in section of the plug-in contact, and wherein the contact chamber at least in the region of the plug-in section arranged therein has a side wall which delimits the contact chamber on the circumferential side.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a plug connector for an electrical plug connection device, the electrical plug connection device having a plug connector and a mating plug connector associated with the plug connector as a counterpart, the plug connector being able to be plugged into the mating plug connector in a plugging direction, wherein the plug connector has a housing and a plurality of electrical plug contacts at least partially arranged in the housing, the plug contacts respectively having plug sections, the plug sections being configured for mechanical and electrical contact with mating plug contacts of the mating plug connector, wherein the housing has a contact cavity for accommodating the plug sections of the plug contacts, wherein the contact cavity has side walls which circumferentially bound the contact cavity at least in the region of the plug sections arranged therein. Background Art

[0002] Such a plug connector is known from EP 2 953 213 B1. Summary of the invention

[0003] The invention is based on the object of further improving such a plug connector of an electrical plug connection with regard to universal applicability and flexibility for the user.

[0004] The object is achieved in a plug connector of the type mentioned at the outset in that the plug connector has at least one first fastening element, which is configured to fasten the functional element to the housing outside the contact cavity, and the plug connector has at least one second fastening element, which is configured to fasten the functional element to the housing inside the contact cavity. Accordingly, it is proposed that at least one internal fastening element and at least one external fastening element are provided at the plug connector at the same time.

[0005] The plug connector has the advantage that the possibility of fastening the functional element to the housing is extended by providing fastening elements for fastening in and outside the contact cavity. In principle, any type of functional element can be fastened to the second fastening element and the first fastening element. For example, if a coding element is fastened there as a functional element, the extended fastening possibility can achieve an increase in the coding possibility by doubling the coding positions. In particular, in the case of plug connectors with a small number of poles, the coding possibility can be significantly increased as a result.

[0006] At least one second fastening element and / or the first fastening element can be arranged at the housing or constitute an integral part of the housing. For example, at least one first fastening element can be arranged outside the contact cavity, the at least one first fastening element being configured to fasten the functional element to the housing, and at least one second fastening element can be arranged inside the contact cavity, the at least one second fastening element being configured to fasten the functional element to the housing.

[0007] The plug connector according to the invention provides the user with the possibility of equipping the plug connector with one or more functional elements as required in a significantly more flexible manner than in the prior art. Thus, in individual cases, the plug connector can be adapted to a greater extent according to the wishes of the customer or end user without this being associated with great effort. Furthermore, advantages in terms of production technology result, since a uniform plug connector is provided for a large number of applications, which can be adapted by the customer or end user by mounting one or more functional elements on at least one second fastening element and / or the first fastening element.

[0008] At least one second fastening element and / or the first fastening element can be configured as a form-fitting fastening element, a force-fitting fastening element or a combination thereof, i.e., a form-fitting and force-fitting fastening element. Thus, the functional element can be fastened to the housing of the plug connector by means of at least one second fastening element and / or the first fastening element.

[0009] At least one second fastening element and / or the first fastening element can be designed as a recess in the corresponding housing wall, i.e. as an area, for example in the form of a blind hole, a receiving groove or another receiving recess, which is lowered relative to the horizontal plane of the surface of the housing wall. At least one second fastening element and / or the first fastening element can also be designed as a protrusion relative to the corresponding housing wall, i.e. as a fastening element, for example in the form of a fastening projection, a fastening rail or another fastening protrusion, which protrudes relative to the surface of the housing wall. The second fastening element can be designed identically or differently to the first fastening element, i.e. the second fastening element and the first fastening element can each be designed independently of one another according to one of the embodiments explained above.

[0010] With respect to the second receiving groove mentioned below, this describes an embodiment of the second fastening element in the form of a groove-shaped recess. With respect to the first receiving groove mentioned below, this describes an embodiment of the first fastening element in the form of a groove-shaped recess.

[0011] The at least one second fastening element and / or the first fastening element can be designed in particular as a universal fastening element or as a universal fixing element for fixing different functional elements that can be selected by the user. By means of the at least one second fastening element and / or the first fastening element, different functional elements can be fastened, for example, near the plug-in face of the plug connector. The plug-in face of the plug connector is the area that points toward the mating plug connector in the plug-in direction and is plugged together with the mating plug connector.

[0012] The functional element can constitute different functions for the plug connector, for example as a coding element for coding the plug connector, as a locking element for locking the plug connector with a mating plug connector to prevent accidental disconnection, as a marking element or other functional elements. In this context, coding means that a specific combination of coding elements is fastened to the plug connector, which combination is associated with a corresponding mating coding at the mating plug connector, so that due to the coding, the plug connector can only be plugged into a mating plug connector with a corresponding mating coding.

[0013] Another advantage of the present invention is that the arrangement and position of the functional element fastened to the second fastening element and / or the first fastening element are not permanently fixed, but can also be changed later if necessary. Thus, for example, a recoding of the plug connector or a change of the locking type can be performed later.

[0014] The contact cavity of the plug-in section provided with the plug-in contact portion can have a bottom wall with a through opening, through which the plug-in contact portion extends from another area of ​​the housing of the plug connector into the accommodating cavity. Here, the contact cavity can be open on the side facing away from the bottom wall. The side walls of the contact cavity can extend from the bottom wall to the free end of the contact cavity in the plug-in direction. As long as a plurality of side walls are mentioned in this regard, the side walls can be configured as continuous side walls or side walls with interruptions. The side walls can extend annularly around the contact cavity, so that a unified surrounding circumferential wall can be formed. The contact cavity is configured to accommodate a part of the housing of the mating plug connector. Therefore, in a state where the plug connector and the mating plug connector are plugged together, a part of the housing of the mating plug connector is arranged in the contact cavity, wherein in the state where the plug connector is plugged together, the plug contact portion of the plug connector contacts the mating plug contact portion of the mating plug connector.

[0015] The plug connector can have a plurality of plug contacts which are arranged next to one another in the row direction A. The plug contacts can be arranged next to one another in a single row or in a plurality of rows in the row direction.

[0016] The at least one first fastening element can be arranged, for example, on at least one outer wall of the housing, which is arranged outside the contact chamber. The at least one first fastening element can also be arranged, for example, on the outer side of a side wall of the contact chamber.

[0017] According to an advantageous design of the present invention, at least one second fastening element is arranged at a side wall of the contact cavity, in particular at the inner side of such a side wall. As a result, the functional element can be mounted at the second fastening element in a simple manner and by means of a reliable fixing device. For example, the functional element can be plugged into the second fastening element in the plugging direction S. Alternatively, at least one second fastening element or another second fastening element can also be arranged at the bottom wall of the contact cavity.

[0018] According to an advantageous design of the present invention, at least one second fastening element is configured as a second receiving groove, in particular as an internal receiving groove, in particular as a receiving groove with an undercut. This allows the functional element to be reliably fastened to the second fastening element. The second receiving groove can, for example, have a profile with an undercut, such as a mushroom head profile, a dovetail profile or a T-shaped profile.

[0019] According to an advantageous design of the present invention, the second receiving groove extends in its longitudinal direction along the plug-in direction, which allows the functional element to be simply and quickly plugged into the second receiving groove, and also allows the functional element to be simply released again.

[0020] According to an advantageous design of the present invention, at least one first fastening element is configured as a first receiving groove, for example, as an external receiving groove, in particular as a receiving groove with an undercut. This allows the functional element to be reliably fastened to the first fastening element. The first receiving groove can, for example, have a profile with an undercut, such as a mushroom head profile, a dovetail profile or a T-shaped profile.

[0021] According to an advantageous design of the present invention, the first receiving groove extends in its longitudinal direction perpendicularly to the plug-in direction and / or perpendicularly to the arrangement direction of the plug-in contacts. This allows the functional element to be plugged into the first receiving groove simply and quickly, and also allows the functional element to be easily released again. In this case, the first receiving groove extends substantially perpendicularly to the one or more second receiving grooves.

[0022] According to an advantageous design of the present invention, the plug connector is configured as a pin row, wherein the plug section of the plug contact portion is configured as a contact pin extending into the contact cavity. Correspondingly, the plug connector is configured as a male plug connector. The mating plug connector may have a female plug contact portion, i.e., a socket contact portion.

[0023] The contact chamber can be designed as a continuous contact chamber in which the plug sections are arranged without being separated from one another. The contact chamber can also have partition walls between individual plug sections or groups of plug sections.

[0024] According to an advantageous design of the present invention, the plug connector has a plurality of second fastening elements and / or a plurality of first fastening elements, thereby further improving the feasibility of fastening the functional element to the plug connector.

[0025] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, it is proposed that for one, more or all of the second fastening elements, the second fastening elements are respectively spatially associated with the plug contacts of the plug connector. This can be achieved, for example, by arranging the respective second fastening elements in the plugging direction aligned with the electrical plug contacts associated with the second fastening elements. In this way, good use of the structural space is achieved for mounting a large number of functional elements on the housing of the plug connector, thereby resulting in a large number of possible combinations of the functional elements.

[0026] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, it is proposed that for one, more or all of the first fastening elements, the first fastening elements are respectively spatially associated with the plug contacts of the plug connector. This can be achieved, for example, by arranging the respective first fastening elements in the plugging direction aligned with the electrical plug contacts associated with the first fastening elements. In this way, good use of the structural space is achieved for mounting a large number of functional elements on the housing of the plug connector, thereby resulting in a large number of possible combinations of the functional elements.

[0027] According to an advantageous design of the present invention, at least one second fastening element and / or at least one first fastening element is configured as a universal fastening element for fastening different functional elements to be selected by a user to the housing. Accordingly, the user can select a functional element or a combination of functional elements suitable for his or her specific application from a preset assortment of fastening elements and install it at the second fastening element and the first fastening element of the plug connector.

[0028] According to an advantageous design of the present invention, at least one first fastening element is arranged in a plug-in direction aligned with a second fastening element associated with the at least one first fastening element. In this way, the second fastening element is spatially associated with the first fastening element.

[0029] According to an advantageous design of the present invention, at least one second fastening element and / or at least one first fastening element has a locking element for locking a functional element mounted on the corresponding fastening element, thereby ensuring a fixed fit of the functional element on the fastening element.

[0030] The second fastening element and the first fastening element advantageously do not influence each other, so that the fastening elements can be used independently of each other. In particular, it is possible to attach the functional element simultaneously to the second fastening element and the first fastening element, respectively.

[0031] According to an advantageous design of the present invention, the second fastening element and the first fastening element can be separated from each other and do not intersect with each other.

[0032] If, for example, at least one second fastening element and at least one first fastening element are used to code the plug connector, the second fastening element is particularly suitable for coding during implementation (device application). The first fastening element is also clearly visible in the plug connector and the mating plug connector when plugged together and is accordingly suitable, for example, for a free connection.

[0033] In the sense of the present invention, the indefinite article "a" is not to be understood as a numeral. That is, when, for example, one component is mentioned, it is to be interpreted in the sense of "at least one component". Whenever an angle is specified in degrees, it relates to the size of a circle of 360 degrees (360°). BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0034] The present invention will be explained in detail below based on exemplary embodiments using the accompanying drawings.

[0035] The accompanying drawings show:

[0036] Figure 1 The plug connector is shown in a perspective view,

[0037] Figure 2 A plug connector is shown in a perspective view in another embodiment.

[0038] Figure 3 In a side cross-sectional view, the Figure 1 Part of the plug connector,

[0039] Figure 4 In a side cross-sectional view, the Figure 2 Part of the plug connector. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] The figures show a plug connector 1 having a housing 2. The plug connector 1 is configured for plugging together with a mating plug connector 6, which is designed as a counterpart to the plug connector 1. In the plugged together state, the plug connector 1 and the mating plug connector 6 form an electrical plug connection. The plug connector 1 has a plurality of electrical plug contacts 3 in the housing 2, which are at least partially arranged in the housing 2. The plug contacts 3 each have a plug section 30, which is configured for mechanical and electrical contact with a mating plug contact 7 of the mating plug connector 6 when the plug connector and the mating plug connector 6 are plugged together. In the illustrated embodiment, the plug contact 3 is designed as a male plug contact, which has a contact pin as the plug section 30. Correspondingly, the mating plug contact 7 is designed as a socket contact, which is designed to accommodate at least a part of the plug section 30.

[0041] The plug connector 1 can be plugged together with a mating plug connector 6 in particular in a plug-in direction S. In an arrangement direction A, the plug contacts 3 are arranged next to one another.

[0042] The housing 2 has a contact chamber 20 which is arranged on the plug-in face side of the plug connector 1. The contact chamber 20 is designed as a substantially hollow chamber which is delimited circumferentially by side walls 21, 22, 23, 24. The plug contact 3 projects into the contact chamber 20 with its plug section 30.

[0043] The plug connector 1 has a plurality of first fastening elements 4, which are configured to fasten the functional element 9 to the housing 2 outside the contact cavity 20. The plug connector 1 also has a plurality of second fastening elements 5, which are configured to fasten the functional element 9 to the housing 2 inside the contact cavity 20. The second fastening elements 5 can be formed, for example, at the inner side of the side walls 21, 22, 23, 24, for example, as elongated receiving grooves extending along the plug-in direction S.

[0044] Figure 1 Here, it is shown that the plug connector 1 is respectively equipped with a functional element 9 on its second fastening element 5. Figure 1 , no functional element 9 is arranged on the first fastening element 4 . Figure 2 A mounting situation is shown, in which functional elements 9 are additionally mounted on the plug connector 1 on the first fastening elements 4. Here, the user can arbitrarily specify whether one, more or all second fastening elements 5 are equipped with functional elements 9 and / or whether one, more or all first fastening elements 4 are equipped with functional elements 9. Correspondingly, it is also possible to mount functional elements 9 only on the first fastening elements 4, for example.

[0045] Figure 3A part of the plug connector 1 and a part of the mating plug connector 6 are shown in a side sectional view. Figure 3 , the functional element 9 is neither mounted on the first fastening element 4 nor on the second fastening element 5, so that the fastening elements 4 and 5 can be clearly seen. Figure 4 By way of example, a functional element 9 is respectively mounted both on the first fastening element 4 and on the second fastening element 5 .

[0046] The first fastening element 5 can be arranged on the outside of the housing 2, in particular, outside the contact cavity 20. Figure 3 and Figure 4 As can be seen in the figure, the first fastening element 4 can also extend completely or partially through the housing wall of the housing 2 and, if necessary, into the area arranged in the contact chamber 20. It is also possible that the functional element 9, which is mainly arranged outside the contact chamber 20 and fastened to the first fastening element 4, extends, for example, with a fastening section into the interior of the housing 2 or at least into the interior space of the contact chamber 20.

[0047] The first fastening element 4 can be designed, for example, as a first receiving groove, which extends in its longitudinal direction perpendicularly to the plug-in direction S and / or perpendicularly to the arrangement direction A. For example, the functional element 9 can be inserted into the receiving groove from above the housing 2 and then guided toward the side wall 24 delimiting the contact chamber 20 until it is locked at the first fastening element 4 by means of a locking element.

[0048] As can be seen from the figures, the first fastening element 5 can merge into the associated second fastening element 4. It is also possible that the second fastening element 4 and the first fastening element 5 are separate from one another and do not intersect or overlap.

[0049] Reference numerals list

[0050] 1 Plug connector

[0051] 2 Housing

[0052] 3 Plug contacts

[0053] 4 First fastening element

[0054] 5 Second fastening element

[0055] 6 Mating connector

[0056] 7 Mating contact

[0057] 9 Functional elements

[0058] 20 contact cavity

[0059] 21 Sidewall

[0060] 22 Sidewall

[0061] 23 Sidewall

[0062] 24 Sidewall

[0063] 30 plug-in section

[0064] A Arrangement direction

[0065] S plug-in direction

Claims

1. A plug connector (1) for an electrical plug connection device, the electrical plug connection device comprising the plug connector (1) and a mating plug connector (6) associated with the plug connector (1) as a counterpart, the plug connector (1) being pluggable to the mating plug connector in a plugging direction (S), wherein the plug connector (1) comprises a housing (2) and a plurality of electrical plug contacts (3) at least partially arranged in the housing (2), the plug contacts each comprising a plug section (30) configured for mechanical and electrical contact with a mating plug contact (7) of the mating plug connector (6), wherein the housing (2) comprises a contact cavity (20) for accommodating the plug section (30) of the plug contact (3), wherein the contact cavity (20) comprises side walls (21, 22, 23, 24) which circumferentially delimit the contact cavity (20), at least in the region of the plug section (30) arranged therein, and characterized in that The plug connector (1) has at least one first fastening element (4), which is configured to fasten the functional element (9) to the housing (2) outside the contact cavity (20), and the plug connector (1) has at least one second fastening element (5), which is configured to fasten the functional element (9) to the housing (2) inside the contact cavity (20).

2. The plug connector according to claim 1, characterized in that The at least one second fastening element (5) is arranged on a side wall (21, 22, 23, 24) of the contact cavity (20).

3. The plug connector according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The at least one second fastening element (5) is designed as a second receiving groove, in particular as a receiving groove having an undercut.

4. The plug connector according to claim 3, characterized in that The second receiving groove extends in its longitudinal direction along the plug-in direction (S).

5. The plug connector according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The at least one first fastening element (4) is designed as a first receiving groove, in particular as a receiving groove having an undercut.

6. The plug connector according to claim 5, characterized in that The first receiving groove extends in its longitudinal direction perpendicularly to the plug-in direction (S) and / or perpendicularly to the arrangement direction (A) of the plug-in contacts (3).

7. The plug connector according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The plug connector (1) is designed as a pin strip, wherein the plug section (30) of the plug contact (3) is designed as a contact pin which projects into the contact chamber (20).

8. The plug connector according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The plug connector (1) has a plurality of second fastening elements (5) and / or a plurality of first fastening elements (4).

9. The plug connector according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that One, a plurality or all of the second fastening elements (5) are respectively spatially associated with a plug contact (3) of the plug connector (1).

10. The plug connector according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that One, a plurality or all of the first fastening elements (4) are respectively spatially associated with a plug contact (3) of the plug connector (1).

11. The plug connector according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The at least one second fastening element (5) and / or the at least one first fastening element (4) are designed as universal fastening elements for fastening different functional elements (9) to be selected by a user to the housing (2).

12. The plug connector according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The at least one first fastening element (4) is arranged in alignment with a second fastening element (5) associated with the at least one first fastening element (4) in the plug-in direction (S).

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