Floating board-to-board connector

Abstract

A floating board-to-board connector comprises a plug connector and a socket connector, the plug connector comprises a plug rubber core and plug terminals, and the socket connector comprises a socket inner rubber core, a socket outer rubber core and a socket terminal set. The socket terminal group comprises a plurality of socket terminals, two ends of each socket terminal are respectively fixed on the socket outer rubber core and the socket inner rubber core, the two rubber cores are connected through elastic arms of the socket terminals, and a plurality of socket contact parts of the socket terminal group are symmetrically arranged and clamp the sheet-shaped plug contact parts; the plug connector floats in the X direction by means of deformation of the elastic arm, and floats in the Y direction by means of sliding contact between the plug contact part and the socket contact part. The floating board-to-board connector can comprehensively cope with multi-direction position deviation of a circuit board, the assembly fault tolerance rate is improved, the overall conductivity of the connector is not prone to being affected by floating factors, the contact stability is high, and stable transmission of large current can be guaranteed.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of connectors, specifically a floating plate-to-plate connector. Background Technology

[0002] With the rapid development of the new energy vehicle industry, the level of module integration continues to increase. A single module requires the assembly of multiple PCBs, and key requirements such as signal transmission, power supply, and current conversion between these PCBs all rely on connectors, thus placing higher demands on their performance. In actual assembly, if the connectors between PCBs are not properly aligned, it can lead to loose connections and misalignment of terminals, thereby damaging the contact performance of components. In severe cases, poor contact can even cause overheating or high temperatures, affecting the overall reliability of the module. Floating connectors effectively solve this problem. They utilize a built-in floating structure to adjust the position, effectively compensating for mating deviations, ensuring precise contact between the two ends, and guaranteeing connection stability. Existing floating connectors have significant limitations: they mainly rely on the deformation of elastic terminals to achieve floating in the X and Y directions, resulting in a small floating range, making it difficult to adapt to scenarios with large deviations, such as vibration environments; and they require more installation space for the elastic arm, deviating from the trend of "miniaturization" in module integration.

[0003] Therefore, it is necessary to improve the structure to solve the above problems. Utility Model Content

[0004] This invention provides a floating board-to-board connector that achieves floating in the Y direction directly through sliding contact between terminals. This method is not only easier to implement, eliminating the need for an additional elastic lever arm, but also significantly saves installation space. The purpose of this invention is achieved through the following solution:

[0005] A floating plate-to-plate connector includes a plug connector and a socket connector. The plug connector includes a plug core and plug terminals. The socket connector includes an inner socket core, an outer socket core, and a socket terminal group. When the plug connector and the socket connector mate, the plug terminals and the socket terminal group form an electrical connection. The socket terminal group includes multiple socket terminals. One end of each socket terminal is fixed to the outer socket core, and the other end is fixed to the inner socket core and has a socket contact portion. The two ends of the socket terminal are connected by an elastic arm located between the inner and outer socket cores. The plug connector floats in the X direction due to the deformation of the elastic arm. The plug terminal has a sheet-like plug contact portion. Multiple socket contacts of the socket terminal group are symmetrically arranged and clamp the plug contact portion. The plug connector floats in the Y direction through sliding contact between the plug contact portion and the socket contact portion. The two ends of the socket terminal are respectively installed in the outer and inner cores of the socket. The outer core is fixed to the circuit board, and the inner core is elastically connected to the outer core via an elastic arm. When the plug and socket connectors are assembled, the coligand formed by the plug and the inner core can float relative to the fixed outer core in the X direction. This floating is dominated by the deformation of the elastic arm. A single plug terminal can accommodate multiple socket terminals. The plate-shaped plug contact of the plug terminal is held by multiple symmetrically arranged socket contacts. The planar characteristics of the plug contact allow it to slide along each socket contact, thereby achieving floating of the plug and socket connectors in the Y direction. The flat contact surface of the plug contact maintains continuous contact with the symmetrically distributed socket contacts. During floating in the Y direction, only planar sliding occurs without disengaging the contact, forming a multi-point continuous and stable contact. The contact resistance does not fluctuate significantly, making it suitable for high-current transmission scenarios. The sliding floating eliminates the need for reserved space for terminal deformation, compressing the overall size of the connector and freeing up more installation space for densely packed PCB layouts, meeting the miniaturization requirements of equipment.

[0006] Preferably, the socket terminal includes a base plate portion, the upper edge of which extends to form an insert portion for fixing the socket terminal to the inner core of the socket; the lower edge of the base plate portion is bent in the opposite direction to form a connecting portion, which extends to form the socket contact portion; the side edge of the base plate portion adjacent to the upper edge extends and is bent multiple times to form the elastic arm; a pin portion and a solder portion are respectively formed on both sides of the free end of the elastic arm, the pin portion for fixing the socket terminal to the outer core of the socket. Through the aforementioned insert portion and pin portion, the two ends of the socket terminal are respectively installed on the inner core and outer core of the socket; wherein, the solder portion of the outer core and the socket terminal are both fixed to the circuit board, the inner core of the socket is used for plug connector mating, and can float relative to the outer core and the circuit board in the X direction through the deformation of the elastic arm.

[0007] Preferably, the socket terminal group consists of four socket terminals, which are independently configured.

[0008] Preferably, the socket terminal group consists of two first socket terminals, each consisting of two transversely symmetrically arranged socket terminals, with the soldered portions of the two socket terminals integrally connected. The two first socket terminals are located at the front and rear ends of the contact portion of the tab plug, respectively.

[0009] Preferably, the socket terminal group consists of two second socket terminals, each consisting of two longitudinally symmetrically arranged socket terminals, with the connecting portions of the two socket terminals integrally connected. The two second socket terminals are respectively located on the left and right sides of the contact portion of the strip plug.

[0010] Preferably, the socket core is provided with an insertion groove for the plug contact to extend into. Each side of the insertion groove has a receiving groove, and multiple socket contacts of the socket terminal group are symmetrically distributed within the two receiving grooves. The insertion groove and the receiving groove are connected. After the plug contact extends into the insertion groove, the symmetrically distributed socket contacts within the receiving groove can stably hold the plug contact in the insertion groove, providing a reliable structural foundation for the Y-direction sliding and floating of the plug connector and the socket connector.

[0011] Preferably, the plug core has baffles on both sides, and the outer core of the socket has corresponding mounting grooves on both sides, with stops at both ends of the mounting grooves. The gap between the inner core of the socket and the edge of the mounting groove allows the plug connector to float in the X direction, and the gap between the baffles and the stops allows the plug connector to float in the Y direction. When the plug connector is assembled to the socket connector, the baffles extend into the mounting grooves, providing protection for the inner core of the socket between the two baffles. When the connector floats in the X direction, the inner core of the socket moves towards the edge of the mounting groove, and the distance between them gradually decreases until the inner core of the socket touches the edge of the mounting groove. At this point, the inner core of the socket is limited by the outer core of the socket and cannot continue to move in the original direction. When floating occurs in the Y direction, the baffles slide within the mounting groove until the end of the baffle touches the stop, at which point the plug connector is limited by the outer core of the socket and cannot continue to move.

[0012] Preferably, the socket contact portion of the socket terminal group is a double-contact structure composed of two staggered arc-shaped protrusions. Each socket contact portion uses a double-contact structure, and the socket terminal group includes four socket contacts, forming a total of eight contacts. The two staggered arc-shaped protrusions can clamp the plug contact portion at different heights, improving the connection stability between the plug connector and the socket connector.

[0013] Preferably, the top surface of the inner core of the socket is provided with a protrusion on each side, and the bottom surface of the inner core of the plug is provided with corresponding grooves on both sides. The protrusions and grooves provide a guiding function during the interaction between the socket connector and the plug connector. The protrusions inserting into the grooves also limit the movement between the plug core and the inner core of the socket.

[0014] Preferably, the inner and outer cores of the socket are connected by a removable connecting beam. The inner and outer cores form a single integral structure through the connecting beam, which reduces the number of molds and assembly steps. After the socket terminal group is assembled, removing the connecting beam will not affect the floating performance of the socket connector.

[0015] The beneficial effects of this utility model are as follows: It provides a floating plate-to-plate connector that floats in the X direction through the deformation of the socket terminals and in the Y direction through the sliding contact between the plug terminals and the socket terminal group. It can comprehensively cope with multi-directional positional offsets during docking and improve the assembly fault tolerance rate. During the floating process in the Y direction, the symmetrically distributed socket contact parts can form continuous and stable multi-point contact on the surface of the sheet plug contact parts. The overall conductivity of the connector is not easily affected by the floating factors, and the contact stability is higher. Moreover, the sliding floating does not depend on the elasticity of the terminals, which can save the space occupied by the elastic lever arm. Attached Figure Description

[0016] Figure 1 This is an overall schematic diagram of a floating plate to plate connector according to an embodiment of the present utility model;

[0017] Figure 2 This is an exploded view of a floating plate to plate connector according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0018] Figure 3 This is a cross-sectional view of a floating plate to plate connector according to an embodiment of the present utility model;

[0019] Figure 4 This is a cross-sectional view of a floating plate to plate connector according to an embodiment of the present utility model;

[0020] Figure 5 This is an overall schematic diagram of the socket connector in an embodiment of this utility model;

[0021] Figure 6 This is an exploded view of the socket connector in an embodiment of the present utility model;

[0022] Figure 7 This is an exploded view of the socket connector in an embodiment of the present invention from another perspective;

[0023] Figure 8 This is an exploded view of the plug connector in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 9 This is an overall schematic diagram of the socket terminals in an embodiment of this utility model;

[0025] Figure 10 This is an overall schematic diagram of the first socket terminal in an embodiment of this utility model;

[0026] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of the second socket terminal in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0027] The reference numerals in the accompanying drawings include:

[0028] Floating board to board connector-1;

[0029] Socket connector-2, socket inner core-21, insertion groove-211, receiving groove-212, boss-213, socket outer core-22, mounting groove-221, stop part-222, connecting beam-223, socket terminal group-23, socket terminal-231, base plate part-2311, insert part-2312, connecting part-2313, socket contact part-2314, elastic arm-2315, pin part-2316, soldering part-2317, first socket terminal-232, second socket terminal-233;

[0030] Plug connector-3, plug core-31, retainer-311, groove-312, plug terminal-32, plug contact-321. Detailed Implementation

[0031] This application provides a floating board-to-board connector that can compensate for deviations during docking, ensuring precise contact between the terminals of the two connectors and meeting the requirements of high-current transmission scenarios.

[0032] The technical solution in this application is to solve the above-mentioned technical problems, and the overall approach is as follows:

[0033] A bidirectional floating design addresses installation misalignment issues between plug and socket connectors: in the X direction, the elastic arm deformation between the inner and outer cores of the socket compensates for the misalignment; in the Y direction, the sliding contact between the plug terminals and the socket terminal group compensates for the misalignment. The combined effect of these two floating structures effectively prevents terminal contact failure due to positional misalignment. Furthermore, the terminal contact structure is optimized: the plug terminal's contact portion is designed as a sheet, while multiple socket contacts in the socket terminal group are symmetrically arranged and clamp this sheet-like plug contact portion. This ensures continuous and stable contact between the terminals during Y-axis floating, preventing significant fluctuations in contact resistance and ultimately meeting the requirements of high-current transmission scenarios.

[0034] To make the above-mentioned objects, features, and advantages of this utility model more apparent and understandable, the specific embodiments of this utility model will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Many specific details are set forth in the following description to provide a full understanding of this utility model. However, this utility model can be implemented in many other ways different from those described herein, and those skilled in the art can make similar modifications without departing from the spirit of this utility model. Therefore, this utility model is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed below.

[0035] like Figures 1 to 11 The image shown is an embodiment of a floating board-to-board connector according to this application:

[0036] A floating board-to-board connector 1 includes a socket connector 2 and a plug connector 3 that are mated together, and the socket connector 2 and the plug connector 3 are respectively fixed on a circuit board.

[0037] The socket connector 2 includes an inner socket core 21, an outer socket core 22, and a socket terminal assembly 23. The outer socket core 22 has four surrounding walls that together enclose and form a hollow receiving space in its center. The inner socket core 21 is placed within this receiving space and maintains a certain distance from the outer socket core 22. The two cores of the socket connector 2 are connected into a single structure by a connecting beam 223. The connecting beam 223 is removed after the socket terminal assembly 23 is assembled, reducing the number of molds and assembly steps.

[0038] A single socket terminal group 23 includes multiple socket terminals 231. One end of each socket terminal 231 is fixed to the outer socket core 22, and the other end is fixed to the inner socket core 21. The two ends of the socket terminal 231 are connected by an elastic arm 2315 located between the inner and outer socket cores. This elastic arm 2315 is responsible for connecting the two cores of the socket connector 2. Specifically, the socket terminal 231 includes a base plate portion 2311. The upper edge of the base plate portion 2311 extends to form an insert portion 2312, which is used to fix the socket terminal 231 to the inner socket core 21. The insert portion 2312 can be configured as an L-shape to limit the socket terminal 231 in multiple directions and prevent shaking. The lower edge of the base plate portion 2311 is bent in the opposite direction to form a U-shaped connecting portion 2313. The other end of the connecting portion 2313 extends obliquely upward to form a socket contact portion for mating with the plug contact portion 321. 2314; The side edge adjacent to the upper edge of the substrate portion 2311 extends and is bent multiple times to form an elastic arm 2315. The elastic arm 2315 can be a V-shaped structure, W-shaped structure, I-shaped structure or S-shaped structure, etc., and is selected according to actual needs and space size. The two sides of the free end of the elastic arm 2315 are respectively formed with a pin portion 2316 and a solder portion 2317. The pin portion 2316 is used to fix the socket terminal 231 to the socket outer core 22, and the solder portion 2317 is used to fix the socket terminal 231 to the circuit board.

[0039] The socket core 21 has a through-hole 211, and a receiving groove 212 is provided on each side of the 211, with the 211 and the receiving groove 212 communicating with each other. Multiple socket contacts 2314 of the socket terminal group 23 are symmetrically distributed within the two receiving grooves 212. The plug contact 321, which extends into the 211, is held by the socket contacts 2314 on both sides. This symmetrical holding structure not only provides stable support for the plug contact 321 but also directly adapts to the floating requirements in the Y direction. Furthermore, the socket contact 2314 is a double-contact structure composed of two staggered arc-shaped protrusions. This design creates staggered clamping points on the surface of the plug contact 321, ensuring that there are always contacts adhering to the sheet-like plug contact 321 during floating by effective clamping at different heights.

[0040] This design incorporates three terminal structures, and correspondingly, the socket terminal group 23 also has three combination forms:

[0041] The socket terminal group 23 consists of four aforementioned socket terminals 231, which are independently set and have no structural connection with each other. The four socket terminals 231 are arranged in a centrally symmetrical manner, and two socket terminals 231 are installed in each of the two receiving slots 212.

[0042] The socket terminal group 23 consists of two first socket terminals 232. Each first socket terminal 232 is composed of two aforementioned socket terminals 231 arranged laterally symmetrically, and the welding parts 2317 of the two socket terminals 231 are integrally connected. The two first socket terminals 232 are arranged symmetrically front and back and are respectively installed at the front and rear ends of the insertion slot 211. A single first socket terminal 232 is simultaneously assembled in two receiving slots 212.

[0043] The socket terminal group 23 consists of two second socket terminals 233. Each second socket terminal 233 is composed of two aforementioned socket terminals 231 arranged longitudinally symmetrically, and the connecting part 2313 of the two socket terminals 231 is integrally connected. The two second socket terminals 233 are arranged symmetrically from left to right, and each of the two receiving slots 212 on both sides of the insertion slot 211 is equipped with a second socket terminal 233.

[0044] The plug connector 3 includes a plug core 31 and a plug terminal 32. The plug terminal 32 is provided with a sheet-shaped plug contact portion 321. The plug core 31 has a retaining wall 311 on each side and a groove 312 on each side of its bottom end face. Correspondingly, the outer core 22 of the socket has mounting grooves 221 on both sides that match the retaining wall 311, and the inner core 21 of the socket has bosses 213 on both sides of its top end face that match the grooves 312. The boss 213 and the groove 312 form a guiding function during the assembly of the socket connector 2 and the plug connector 3 through mutual mating. After the boss 213 is inserted into the groove 312, it can limit the two connectors and prevent lateral displacement after assembly. The retaining wall 311 of the plug core 31 is inserted into the mounting groove 221 of the socket outer core 22. The retaining wall 311 protects the socket inner core 21 between the two retaining walls 311 from being damaged by external forces. The sheet-shaped plug contact part 321 of the plug terminal 32 extends into the insertion groove 211 and mates with the socket contact part 2314. Through the close fit of the two, the two connectors form a stable electrical connection.

[0045] When the plug connector 3 and the socket connector 2 are mated, if a positional deviation occurs or the terminals are not properly mated due to vibration, the built-in floating structure can be used to adjust and ensure accurate contact between the terminals of the two connectors: the floating in the X direction is achieved by the deformation of the elastic arm 2315. The plug connector 3 and the inner core 21 of the socket form a coligand. By means of the deformation capability of the elastic arm 2315 between the inner core 21 and the outer core 22 of the socket, the coligand floats in the X direction relative to the outer core 22 of the socket fixed on the circuit board, thereby compensating for the mating deviation in the X direction; the floating in the Y direction is achieved by the sliding contact between the plug contact 321 and the socket contact 2314. The flat plug contact 321 is clamped and kept in continuous contact by the socket contact 2314 symmetrically arranged on both sides of the insertion groove 211. When it is necessary to compensate for the deviation in the Y direction, the flat plug contact 321 can slide along the contact surface of the socket contact 2314. The Y-direction mating deviation can be compensated through this relative sliding action.

[0046] The gap between the inner core 21 of the socket and the edge of the mounting groove 221 allows the plug connector 3 to float in the X direction. When the connector floats in the X direction, the inner core 21 moves towards the edge of the mounting groove 221, and the gap between them gradually decreases until the inner core 21 touches the edge of the mounting groove 221. At this time, the inner core 21 is limited by the outer core 22 of the socket and cannot move further. The maximum floating distance dx in the X direction is 0.7mm. The gap between the retainer 311 and the stop 222 allows the plug connector 3 to float in the Y direction. When the connector floats in the Y direction, the retainer 311 slides in the mounting groove 221 until the end of the retainer 311 touches the stop 222. The plug connector 3 is limited by the outer core 22 of the socket and cannot move further. The maximum floating distance dy in the Y direction is 0.7mm.

[0047] In summary, this utility model relates to a floating plate-to-plate connector, which has different floating structures in the X and Y directions to effectively compensate for the terminal position deviations that occur when the connectors are mated. The Y direction adopts a sliding floating structure, which does not rely on the elastic deformation capability of the terminals and can save the space occupied by the elastic lever arm. At the same time, the sheet-like plug contact part can form continuous and stable multi-point contact with multiple socket contact parts to meet the needs of high current transmission scenarios.

[0048] The technical features of the above embodiments can be combined in any way. For the sake of brevity, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.

[0049] The embodiments described above merely illustrate the implementation of this utility model, and while the descriptions are relatively specific and detailed, they should not be construed as limiting the scope of the patent. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various modifications and improvements without departing from the concept of this utility model, and these all fall within the protection scope of this utility model. Therefore, the protection scope of this utility model patent should be determined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A floating board-to-board connector, comprising a plug connector and a socket connector, the plug connector comprising a plug core, plug terminals, the socket connector comprising a socket inner core, a socket outer core, a socket terminal set, characterized in that, when the plug connector and the socket connector are matched with each other, the plug terminals and the socket terminal set form an electrical connection; the socket terminal set comprises a plurality of socket terminals, each of which is fixed at one end to the socket outer core and at the other end to the socket inner core and is provided with a socket contact part, the two ends of the socket terminal are connected through an elastic arm located between the socket inner core and the socket outer core, and the plug connector realizes floating in the X direction by deformation of the elastic arm; the plug terminal is provided with a sheet-shaped plug contact part, the plurality of socket contact parts of the socket terminal set are symmetrically arranged and hold the plug contact part, and the plug connector realizes floating in the Y direction through the sliding contact between the plug contact part and the socket contact part. The socket terminal comprises a base plate part, the upper edge of the base plate part extends to form an embedded part for fixing the socket terminal to the socket inner core; the lower edge of the base plate part is reversely bent to form a connecting part, and the connecting part extends to form the socket contact part; the side edge adjacent to the upper edge of the base plate part extends and is bent multiple times to form the elastic arm; the two sides of the free end of the elastic arm are respectively formed with a pin part and a welding part, and the pin part is used to fix the socket terminal to the socket outer core. The socket terminal set is composed of four socket terminals which are independently arranged. The socket terminal set is composed of two first socket terminals, each of which is composed of two socket terminals arranged horizontally symmetrically, and the welding parts of the two socket terminals are integrally connected.

2. The floating board-to-board connector of claim 1, wherein, The socket terminal set is composed of two second socket terminals, each of which is composed of two socket terminals arranged vertically symmetrically, and the connecting parts of the two socket terminals are integrally connected.

3. The floating board-to-board connector of claim 2, wherein, The socket inner core is provided with an insertion slot for the plug contact part to extend into, and each side of the insertion slot is provided with a receiving groove, and the plurality of socket contact parts of the socket terminal set are symmetrically distributed in the two receiving grooves.

4. The floating board-to-board connector of claim 2, wherein, Both sides of the plug core are provided with a retaining wall, and both sides of the socket outer core are correspondingly provided with a mounting groove, and both ends of the mounting groove are stop parts; the gap between the socket inner core and the edge of the mounting groove is used for the plug connector to float in the X direction, and the gap between the retaining wall and the stop part is used for the plug connector to float in the Y direction.

5. The floating board-to-board connector of claim 2, wherein, The socket contact part of the socket terminal set is a double-contact structure composed of two arc-shaped protrusions staggered in height.

6. A floating board-to-board connector according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein Both sides of the top end face of the socket inner core are provided with a boss, and both sides of the bottom end face of the plug core are correspondingly provided with a groove, and the boss and the groove form a guiding action during the matching process of the socket connector and the plug connector.

7. The floating board-to-board connector of claim 6, wherein, The socket inner core and the socket outer core are connected through a removable connecting beam.

8. The floating board-to-board connector of claim 7, wherein, ​ 9. The floating board-to-board connector of claim 7, wherein, ​ 10. The floating board-to-board connector of claim 7, wherein, ​

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