Terminal module, method of manufacturing the same, and electrical connector having the same

Abstract

The application discloses a terminal module, a manufacturing method thereof and an electric connector with the terminal module. The terminal module comprises a plurality of terminals arranged in a row along a first direction, an insulating member for holding the terminals, and a metal sheet arranged on one side of the terminals. The terminals comprise a contact portion for mating with a mating connector, a tail portion arranged apart from the contact portion, and a connecting portion connecting the contact portion and the tail portion. The metal sheet is electrically connected with some of the terminals. Each of the terminals is provided with a plurality of conductive members mechanically and electrically connected with the metal sheet. The terminal module, the manufacturing method thereof and the electric connector with the terminal module have good stability in high-speed signal transmission.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This invention relates to a terminal module and its manufacturing method, and an electrical connector having the terminal module, and more particularly to a terminal module for transmitting high-speed signals, its manufacturing method, and an electrical connector having the terminal module. [Background Technology]

[0002] During high-speed signal transmission, a longer grounding path increases grounding resistance and inductance, leading to increased electromagnetic interference and noise, which affects the stability and reliability of signal transmission. Shortening the grounding path can reduce these interferences and improve signal integrity and electromagnetic compatibility. In practical applications, a reasonable grounding design is one of the key factors in ensuring high-speed signal transmission.

[0003] U.S. Patent Application No. US20220352675A1 discloses a terminal assembly having a corrugated plate that may be disposed on the top surface, bottom surface, or both of the terminal assembly. The corrugated plate is electrically coupled to a grounding conductor and may be made of a conductive material or a lossy material.

[0004] US Patent No. 11322869B2 discloses a terminal module for an electrical connector. The terminal module includes a terminal block comprising signal terminals and ground terminals. Each terminal includes a mating cantilever portion and a tail portion, a front retainer for fixing the mating cantilever portion, a rear retainer for fixing the tail portion, and a ground bridge extending between each ground terminal to ground the ground terminals. The ground bridge is integrally formed with the ground terminals and includes a plate located in the middle portion. The plate of the ground bridge extends across the middle portion of the signal terminal, i.e., parallel to and spaced from the middle portion of the signal terminal, and closely close to the signal terminal, for resonant control of signal transmission by the signal terminal.

[0005] In the aforementioned cases, there is room for improvement in the stability of high-speed signal transmission of electrical connectors. Therefore, an improved electrical connector is needed to overcome the shortcomings of the existing technology. [Summary of the Invention]

[0006] The main objective of this invention is to provide an improved terminal module that can enhance the stability of high-speed signal transmission.

[0007] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention can adopt the following technical solution: a terminal module that can be used in an electrical connector, the terminal module comprising a plurality of terminals spaced apart along a first direction, an insulating member for holding the row of terminals, and a metal sheet disposed on one side of the row of terminals, the row of terminals comprising a contact portion for mating with a connector, a tail portion spaced apart from the contact portion, and a connecting portion connecting the contact portion and the tail portion, the metal sheet being electrically connected to a portion of the terminals in the row of terminals, and each of the portions of terminals being provided with a plurality of conductive members that are mechanically and electrically connected to the metal sheet.

[0008] Another major objective of this invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a terminal module, wherein the terminal module manufactured by this method has stable signal transmission.

[0009] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention can adopt the following technical solution: a method for manufacturing a terminal module, comprising the following steps:

[0010] A plurality of terminals are provided in a row arranged at horizontal intervals, and some of the terminals in the row are provided with a plurality of spaced through holes;

[0011] Provide conductive plastic materials;

[0012] Conductive plastic material is directly injection molded onto the terminals through through-holes;

[0013] Provide insulating material and integrally mold the insulating material onto the plurality of terminals;

[0014] A metal sheet is provided, the metal sheet having a plurality of through holes;

[0015] Conductive plastic material, injection-molded onto the partial terminals, is passed through corresponding through holes in the metal sheet, and the partial terminals are mechanically and electrically connected to the metal sheet by hot riveting.

[0016] Another primary objective of this invention is to provide an electrical connector having the terminal module, wherein the electrical connector provides stable high-speed signal transmission.

[0017] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention can adopt the following technical solution: an electrical connector that can be used to mate with a mating connector, the electrical connector including a terminal module, the terminal module including a first terminal assembly and a second terminal assembly, the first terminal assembly and the second terminal assembly together forming a mating area to mate with the mating connector, the first terminal assembly including a plurality of terminals spaced apart along a first direction, an insulating member holding the row of terminals, and a metal plate disposed on one side of the row of terminals, the row of terminals including a contact portion that mates with a mating connector, a tail portion spaced apart from the contact portion, and a connecting portion connecting the contact portion and the tail portion, the metal plate being electrically connected to a portion of the terminals in the row of terminals, each of the portion of terminals being provided with a plurality of conductive members that are mechanically and electrically connected to the metal plate.

[0018] Compared with the prior art, the advantages of the present invention are as follows: the terminal module and its manufacturing method of the present invention, and the electrical connector having the terminal module, effectively shorten the grounding path and significantly reduce the grounding impedance by setting multiple conductive elements on the grounding terminal and connecting them with the metal sheet, thereby reducing electromagnetic interference and improving the stability and reliability of high-speed signal transmission. [Attached Image Description]

[0019] Figure 1 This is a perspective view of an electrical connector conforming to the present invention.

[0020] Figure 2 This is a perspective view of the terminal module conforming to the present invention.

[0021] Figure 3 yes Figure 2 A perspective view of the terminal module shown from another angle.

[0022] Figure 4 yes Figure 2 The terminal module shown is a cross-sectional view along the AA direction.

[0023] Figure 5 yes Figure 3 A further exploded view of the terminal module shown.

[0024] Figure 6 yes Figure 5 An exploded view of the terminal module shown from another perspective.

[0025] Figure 7 yes Figure 5 A further exploded view of the first terminal assembly of the terminal module shown.

[0026] Figure 8 yes Figure 7 A further exploded view of the first terminal assembly shown.

[0027] Figure 9yes Figure 8 A further exploded view of the first terminal assembly shown, in which the metal sheet has been removed.

[0028] [Explanation of Key Component Symbols]

[0029] Terminal module 500 First terminal assembly 100

[0030] A row of terminals 110 and contact portion 111

[0031] Tail 112 Connecting part 113

[0032] Signal contact 1111 Grounding contact 1112

[0033] Signal tail 1121 Ground tail 1122

[0034] Signal connection part 1131 Ground connection part 1132

[0035] Bypass contact 1113 Bypass tail 1123

[0036] Bypass connection 1133 Horizontal section 141

[0037] Vertical part 142 Inclined part 143

[0038] Signal terminal 1101 Bypass terminal 1102

[0039] First insulating component 121 Second insulating component 122

[0040] Third insulating component 123, protrusion 124

[0041] Through holes 1134, 135, metal sheet 130

[0042] Through hole 131 Rear extension 1314

[0043] Electrical connector 1000

Detailed Implementation Methods

[0044] Please see Figures 1 to 9 The diagram shows a terminal module 500 conforming to the present invention. The connector having the terminal module 500 can be a socket connector mounted on a circuit board, or a plug connector or socket connector for connecting to a cable. Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of an electrical connector 1000 having a terminal module 500 in this embodiment.

[0045] like Figures 2 to 5As shown, the terminal module 500 includes a first terminal assembly 100 and a second terminal assembly 200, which together form a mating area that mates with a mating connector. Specifically, the first terminal assembly 100 includes a plurality of terminals 110 spaced apart along a first direction, an insulating member 120 for holding the row of terminals 110, and a metal sheet 130 disposed on one side of the row of terminals 110.

[0046] like Figures 6 to 8 As shown, the row of terminals 110 includes contact portions 111 that can mate with a mating connector, tail portions 112 that are spaced apart from the contact portions 111 and arranged at intervals along the first direction, and connecting portions 113 that connect the contact portions 111 and the tail portions 112. The contact portions 111 include signal pair contact portions 1111 for transmitting differential signals and ground contact portions 1112 for transmitting ground signals, disposed on both sides of the signal pair contact portions 1111. The tail portions 112 include signal pair tail portions 1121 for transmitting differential signals and ground tail portions 1122 for transmitting ground signals, disposed on both sides of the signal pair tail portions 1121. The connecting portions 113 include signal pair connecting portions 1131 for transmitting differential signals and ground connecting portions 1132 for transmitting ground signals, disposed on both sides of the signal pair connecting portions. Further, the contact portions 111 include a plurality of bypass contact portions 1113 for transmitting other signals such as low-speed, power, and control signals. The tail portion 112 includes a bypass tail portion 1123 corresponding to several bypass contacts 1113 for transmitting low-speed, power, control, and other signals. The connecting portion 113 also includes a bypass connecting portion 1133 connecting the corresponding bypass contacts 1113 and the bypass tail portion 1123. The signal pair connecting portion 1131, the ground connecting portion 1132, and the bypass connecting portion 1133 each include a horizontal portion 141 connected to the corresponding contact portion, a vertical portion 142 connected to the corresponding tail portion, and an inclined portion 143 connecting the horizontal portion 141 and the vertical portion 142. In this invention, the row of terminals 110 includes eight pairs of signal pairs 1101 and four bypass terminals 1102. The eight pairs of signal pairs 1101 are evenly divided into two groups and respectively disposed on both sides of the four bypass terminals 1102. In other embodiments, the number of signal terminals 1101 can be designed to be no less than one pair, depending on specific needs, and the number of bypass terminals 1102 can also be increased or decreased, or even eliminated, depending on specific needs.

[0047] Each grounding connection portion 1132 is provided with a plurality of conductive elements 150 that are mechanically and electrically connected to the metal sheet 130. In this embodiment, the conductive elements 150 are made of conductive plastic material. Each grounding connection portion 1132 is provided with a plurality of spaced through holes 1134. On the plurality of grounding connection portions 1132 of the row of terminals 110, the plurality of through holes 1134 are arranged in a row. The conductive elements 150 are directly injection molded onto the grounding connection portion 1132 through the through holes 1134, and each conductive element 150 is not connected to the others. The metal sheet 130 is provided with a plurality of rows of through holes 131 aligned with the through holes 1134. The conductive elements 150 extend through the through holes 131 and are connected to the metal sheet 130 by a hot riveting process to form a common ground connection. In this embodiment, the grounding connection portion 1132 of the first terminal assembly 100 is provided with ten rows of through holes 1134, with ten through holes 1134 spaced apart on each grounding connection portion 1132. The distance between every two through holes, i.e., grounding points, is 2.7 to 3.0 mm. The grounding connection portion of the second terminal assembly 200 is provided with nine rows of through holes. In practical applications, the arrangement of the through holes 1134 can be flexibly adjusted according to the length of the terminal or SI requirements, and this application does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0048] like Figures 6 to 8 As shown, the metal sheet 130 is a sheet-like metal plate, extended and bent according to the shape of the row of terminals 110. A plurality of grounding tails 1122 are integrally formed on the metal sheet 130. In other embodiments, the grounding contact portion 1112 is integrally formed on the metal sheet 130. The dimensions of the metal sheet 130 in the first direction are all greater than or equal to the outermost dimensions of the contact portion 111 and the tail 112 in the first direction, and it can cover the entire first terminal assembly 100 in the first direction, providing good shielding. The metal sheet 130 also includes a suspension feature for impedance control, for example, a rear extension 1315 located between every two grounding tails 1122.

[0049] The insulating member 120 includes a first insulating member 121 disposed at the horizontal portion 141, a second insulating member 122 disposed at the vertical portion 142, and a third insulating member 123 disposed at the inclined portion 143. Each of the first insulating member 121, the second insulating member 122, and the third insulating member 123 has a plurality of protrusions 124, and the metal sheet 130 has a plurality of through holes 135 that cooperate and are fixed to the protrusions 124. The protrusions 124 cooperate with the through holes 135 to fix the metal sheet 130 to the insulating member 120. Figure 9As shown, the signal pair connection portion 1131 does not have a consistent width. The width of the signal pair connection portion 1131 at the position where the first insulating member 121, the second insulating member 122, and the third insulating member 123 are fixed is smaller than the width at other positions of the signal pair connection portion 1131.

[0050] The structure of the second terminal assembly 200 is similar to that of the first terminal assembly 100. The main difference is that the size is relatively shorter and the direction of the protruding contact portion is opposite to that of the first terminal assembly. The other structures are almost the same as those of the first terminal assembly 100, so they will not be described in detail.

[0051] The manufacturing method of the terminal module 500 includes the following steps:

[0052] A plurality of terminals 110 are provided in a row arranged at horizontal intervals. The row of terminals 110 includes a plurality of signal terminals and a plurality of ground terminals. A plurality of spaced through holes 1134 are provided on the ground connection portion 1132 of the ground terminals.

[0053] A conductive plastic material is provided, and the conductive plastic material is directly injection molded onto the grounding connection part 1132 through the through hole 1134.

[0054] An insulating material is provided and integrally formed onto the row of terminals 110.

[0055] A metal sheet 130 is provided, and a plurality of through holes 131 are provided on the metal sheet 130 at positions corresponding to the through holes 1134.

[0056] Conductive plastic, which is injection molded on the grounding connection part 1132, passes through the corresponding through hole 131 on the metal sheet 130 and is connected to the grounding terminal and the metal sheet 130 by a hot riveting process.

[0057] In this invention, conductive plastic is directly injection molded at multiple points on the grounding terminal and then connected to a metal sheet via a hot riveting process. This effectively shortens the grounding path, significantly reduces grounding impedance, thereby reducing electromagnetic interference and improving the stability and reliability of high-speed signal transmission. Furthermore, it effectively improves terminal resonance and delays the resonant frequency. In practical applications, the number and location of grounding points can be flexibly adjusted according to SI requirements.

[0058] However, it is understood that although many features and advantages of the invention have been mentioned in the foregoing description, including some structural and functional details, this disclosure is illustrative and many details may be changed, especially in terms of the shape, size and arrangement of components within the scope of the principles as indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms set forth in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A terminal module for use in an electrical connector, the terminal module comprising a plurality of terminals spaced apart along a first direction, an insulating member holding the terminals, and a metal plate disposed on one side of the terminals, the terminals comprising a contact portion for mating with a connector, a tail portion spaced apart from the contact portion, and a connecting portion connecting the contact portion and the tail portion, the metal plate being electrically connected to a portion of the terminals in the terminal block, characterized in that: Each of the terminals is provided with multiple conductive elements that are mechanically and electrically connected to the metal sheet.

2. The terminal module as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The contact portion includes a signal pair contact portion for transmitting differential signals and a ground contact portion for transmitting ground signals disposed on both sides of the signal pair contact portion. The tail portion includes a signal pair tail portion for transmitting differential signals and a ground tail portion for transmitting ground signals disposed on both sides of the signal pair tail portion. The connection portion includes a signal pair connection portion for transmitting differential signals and a ground connection portion for transmitting ground signals disposed on both sides of the signal pair connection portion. The plurality of conductive elements are arranged in multiple rows and are not connected to each other on the plurality of ground connection portions.

3. The terminal module as described in claim 2, characterized in that: The conductive components are made of conductive plastic material, and the grounding connection part is provided with multiple through holes. The conductive components are directly injection molded through the through holes.

4. The terminal module as described in claim 3, characterized in that: The metal sheet has multiple rows of through holes aligned with the through holes, and the conductive element extends through the through holes and is connected to the metal sheet by thermal riveting.

5. The terminal module as described in claim 2, characterized in that: Multiple grounding contacts are integrally disposed on the metal sheet.

6. The terminal module as described in claim 2, characterized in that: Multiple grounding tails are integrally disposed on the metal sheet.

7. The terminal module as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The dimensions of the metal sheet in the first direction are all greater than or equal to the outermost dimensions of the contact portion and the tail portion in the first direction.

8. The terminal module as described in claim 2, characterized in that: The insulating component includes a first insulating component that holds the contact portion of the signal pair, a second insulating component that holds the tail portion of the signal pair, and a third insulating component that holds the connecting portion of the signal pair. The first insulating component, the second insulating component, and the third insulating component are provided with a plurality of protrusions, and the metal sheet is provided with a plurality of through holes that cooperate with and are fixed to the protrusions.

9. A method for manufacturing a terminal module, characterized in that: Includes the following steps: A plurality of terminals are provided in a row arranged at horizontal intervals, and some of the terminals in the row are provided with a plurality of spaced through holes; Provide conductive plastic materials; Conductive plastic material is directly injection molded onto the terminals through through-holes; Provide insulating material and integrally mold the insulating material onto the plurality of terminals; A metal sheet is provided, the metal sheet having a plurality of through holes; Conductive plastic material, injection-molded onto the partial terminals, is passed through corresponding through holes in the metal sheet, and the partial terminals are mechanically and electrically connected to the metal sheet by hot riveting.

10. An electrical connector for mating with a mating connector, the electrical connector comprising a terminal module, the terminal module comprising a first terminal assembly and a second terminal assembly, the first terminal assembly and the second terminal assembly together forming a mating area for mating with the mating connector, the first terminal assembly comprising a plurality of terminals spaced apart along a first direction, an insulating member holding the row of terminals, and a metal plate disposed on one side of the row of terminals, the row of terminals comprising a contact portion for mating with a mating connector, a tail portion spaced apart from the contact portion, and a connecting portion connecting the contact portion and the tail portion, the metal plate being electrically connected to a portion of the terminals in the row of terminals, characterized in that: Each of the terminals is provided with multiple conductive elements that are mechanically and electrically connected to the metal sheet.

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