Housing for an electrical plug

Abstract

Housing (4) for an electrical plug (2), which • has at least one plug contact (6) for making an electrically conductive plug connection with a mating contact (8) of a mating plug (10), as well as • an electrically conductive connection (16) between the plug contact and an electrical conductor (12) of a cable, characterized in that surfaces (16, 18) made of plastic of the housing form at least one conduction surface (16, 18) by • are coated with at least one layer of metal and • each of at least two contact areas (20) electrically connect to each other, one of which (20') is configured to establish an electrical contact with an electrical conductor (12) by means of at least one first contact (22') and the other contact area (20'') to establish an electrical contact with a plug contact (6) by means of at least one second contact (22''), and • are surrounded by other plastic surfaces (30) of the housing other than the at least one conductor surface (16, 18) that are not coated with metal.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a housing for an electrical plug, which has at least one plug contact for making an electrically conductive plug connection with a mating contact of a mating plug, as well as an electrically conductive connection between the plug contact and an electrical conductor of a cable.

[0002] Electrical connectors, plugs, or simply plugs according to the present invention are fundamentally defined by at least one plug contact, which serves to establish an electrically conductive connection with a mating contact of a mating plug, and by an electrically conductive connection between this plug contact and an electrical conductor, a "core" of a cable. In other words, plugs serve to electrically connect a cable with at least one core, i.e., a cable with at least one electrical conductor, to a specific number of contacts of a mating plug (the aforementioned mating contacts).

[0003] The at least one electrically conductive connection in the plugs between their (at least one) contact and (at least) one conductor of the cable to which the plugs are to establish an electrical connection via a plug connection is typically formed by (at least) one sheet metal part, which is arranged in an insulating housing, usually made of plastic. This allows the housing made of insulating material to be handled safely from the outside, while inside the housing the at least one electrically conductive connection between (at least) one contact and (at least) one conductor of the cable is installed, thus establishing an electrical connection – in the form of the aforementioned sheet metal parts, usually stamped and bent, but also, for example, in the form of cable sections that run through the plug between the contact and the cable.

[0004] In every known form, these electrically conductive connections in the plugs are complex to manufacture in every respect: Creating the required shape of the connection elements, especially in mass production, is technically complicated, as is the appropriate shape of the housing and, last but not least, the assembly.

[0005] The present invention is based on the objective of creating a housing for an electrical connector that is as simple as possible in manufacture and assembly and reduces the aforementioned disadvantages. This objective is achieved by a connector with the features of independent claim 1. Preferred embodiments are specified in the dependent claims.

[0006] According to the invention, a housing for an electrical plug is provided. Such a plug, for which (and in particular all its elements) the housing according to the invention is designed, has at least one plug contact for establishing an electrically conductive connection with a mating contact of a mating plug. Furthermore, in order to connect the mating plug contact to an electrical conductor of a cable, such a plug also has an electrically conductive connection between its (at least one) plug contact and an electrical conductor of a cable.

[0007] According to the invention, a housing is characterized in that it has surfaces made of plastic. Preferably, the entire housing is made of plastic. And certain of the plastic surfaces of the housing form at least one (continuous) conductive surface – for establishing the conductive connection – by being coated with at least one layer of metal.

[0008] Furthermore, these specific metal-coated surfaces qualify as conductor surfaces because they continuously connect at least two contact areas in an electrically conductive manner. One of these two contact areas is designed to establish an electrical contact with an electrical conductor (of the cable) by means of at least one first contact (for example, made of stamped and bent sheet metal, in particular a clamping and / or spring-loaded contact). The other contact area is designed to establish an electrical contact with a plug contact of the connector by means of at least one second contact (also made, for example, of stamped and bent sheet metal, in particular a clamping and / or spring-loaded contact). Alternatively, these contacts can also be made, for example, by resistance welding or by screwing.

[0009] The specific metal-coated surfaces that form the conductor surface are surrounded by other plastic surfaces of the housing (as the at least one conductor surface) that are not metal-coated, and delimit the conductor surface - also electrically insulating.

[0010] This design according to the invention has significant advantages over a conventional connector: the conductor elements typically used in such connectors (between the at least one mating contact and the at least one conductor of a cable, which are to be electrically connected by the connector via its contact) are conventionally complex, as described above. However, according to the invention, they are almost as easy to manufacture (especially in mass production) as injection-molded components, because this technologically advanced forming and production method is used for the housings according to the invention – across the entire range of possible geometries of complexity. Furthermore, the product according to the invention requires only the (particularly partial) coating of structurally selected housing surfaces with metal. Technologies for this are known (see below).The expensive production step of stamping and bending conductive sheet metal elements is obsolete according to the invention.

[0011] The conductive surfaces according to the invention can be used for various technical aspects and tasks. For example, in addition to the conductive surfaces described so far for guiding a certain number of "wires" or "poles" – mutually insulated conductors – through the connector, conductive plastic surfaces according to the invention, coated with metal, are also used for electrical shielding (by means of which the so-called shield current is conducted).

[0012] Preferably, the other surfaces not coated with metal – serving as a gripping area for the plug or as contact protection – can spatially cover and / or surround at least partially the at least one (continuous) conductor surface. Particularly preferably, however, they also form the outer surface of the housing according to the invention: thus made of (insulating) plastic and therefore safe to touch.

[0013] In particular, the other, non-metal-coated plastic surfaces of the housing each separate two of the conductor surfaces from each other – namely, if at least two of the (continuous) conductor surfaces on the housing according to the invention are formed by a metal coating (and these also each have two contact areas). Thus, a housing possibly designed in this way according to the invention can then electrically connect two conductors of a cable with respective plug contacts without requiring conventional electrically conductive connections in the plug, for example, as sheet metal elements.

[0014] These at least two conductor surfaces are therefore completely separated from each other (either by a gap between two separate housing components, more on that shortly, or) by other, non-metal-coated plastic surfaces of the housing. The other, non-metal-coated surfaces thus serve as insulation, electrically separating the at least two conductor surfaces from one another. The metal-coated surfaces, the conductor surfaces—each electrically conductive throughout—therefore do not touch each other at any point and / or do not merge into one another at any point.

[0015] If the housing according to the invention has at least two conductor surfaces, these surfaces can each be (at least) a separate housing component. The insulation (of each of these conductor surfaces) can then be achieved quite simply by means of housing components arranged between them that are not coated with metal.

[0016] According to the invention, the conductor surfaces are thus created by specific plastic surfaces coated with metal. Both electroplating and chemical coating are possible methods – with a layer thickness of approximately 20 µm.

[0017] They can be coated differently in different areas, with different metals and / or with varying numbers of metal layers, for example with nickel and / or copper and / or silver and / or tin and / or an alloy thereof. Nickel as a layer in direct contact with the plastic has proven particularly effective, as it adheres very well to various surfaces and can be applied both electrolytically and chemically. Furthermore, nickel is compatible with many other metals and is therefore very well suited as a base layer for further electroplated layers. Copper is particularly suitable as a second layer due to its high electrical conductivity. This second layer then forms the actual current-carrying layer.An oxidation barrier (especially in the contact areas made of a contact material such as silver or tin) can then be applied, which has a low contact resistance and ensures a stable electrical connection.

[0018] The two contacting areas of the conductor surfaces can therefore be coated differently than the other conductor surfaces - for example with an outer layer of silver, which is also abrasion-resistant, advantageous for contacting with clamping and / or spring contacts, especially if the construction is exposed to vibration.

[0019] The other surfaces of the housing that are not coated with metal can either be affected during the manufacturing of the metal layer(s) of the housing. • covered with a galvanically inactive lacquer or • separated from the electroplated surfaces by means of a closed dividing line made of electrostatically inactive lacquer or • (especially by means of multi-component injection molding) made from a different type of plastic or • Surfaces of a separate housing component.

[0020] Further aspects, features, and technical advantages of the invention are described below with reference to the figure. The figure shows embodiments of the invention in which the features depicted therein and described here are also, individually and independently of the respective illustrated embodiment, in accordance with the invention. Specifically, one figure shows Figure a cutaway schematic side view of a plug according to the invention with a housing according to the invention in a mating plug.

[0021] The figure shows an electrical plug 2 with a housing 4. The plug 2 has two contacts 6 for making an electrically conductive connection with each of its mating contacts 8, 26 of a mating plug 10 (only the openings of the mating plug 10 are shown in phantom lines – everything else of the mating plug, to the right of the openings in the figure, is cut out). To connect each of these two mating plug contacts 8, 26 to an electrical conductor 12, 24 of a cable 14 via the plug 2, such a plug also has an electrically conductive connection 16, 18 between each of its two contacts 6 and the respective electrical conductor 12, 24 of the cable 14. The housing 4 is made entirely of plastic and provides a shield 18 for the elements of one of the two electrically conductive connections (namely, for the through-line 16 through the connector between one cable conductor 12 and its associated central contact 6 of the connector): The housing 4 is characterized by the fact that certain 18 of the plastic surfaces of the housing 4 form a (continuous, electrically conductive) shielding surface 18 – for creating the (shield current-conducting) shield 18 – by coating these plastic housing surfaces 18 with a layer of metal. And the housing 4 is further characterized – correspondingly – by the fact that certain 16 of the plastic surfaces of the housing 4 form a (continuous, electrically conductive) conductor surface 16 – for creating the through-line 16 – by also coating these plastic housing surfaces 16 with a layer of metal.

[0022] In order to form the shielding 18 geometrically (or spatially), the metal-coated surfaces 18 (which form the shielding surface 18 of the housing 4) surround an area of ​​the housing 4 which is designed to accommodate all (mentioned above) elements and surfaces of the through-line 16 in the connector 2 (which, according to its intended purpose, electrically connect at least one mating contact 8 by means of a plug contact 6" and an electrically conductive connection 16 in the connector 2 with at least one conductor 12 of a cable 14) accordingly - in order to shield these elements electrically.

[0023] Furthermore, these specific metal-coated surfaces 16, 18 qualify as conduction surfaces 16 or shielding surfaces 18 by electrically connecting two contact areas 20 to each other.

[0024] One of these two contact areas 20' – ​​initially the shielding surface 18 – is configured to establish an electrical contact with the shielding 24 of the cable 14 (to be connected) by means of at least one first contact 22' (made of stamped and bent sheet metal, for example of (spring-resistant) copper alloy, clamping and spring-loaded). The other contact area 20'' is configured to establish an electrical contact with the shielding 26 of the mating contact 8 of the mating connector 10 (to be connected) by means of a second contact 22'' (also made of stamped and bent sheet metal, for example of (spring-resistant) copper alloy, in particular clamping and / or spring-loaded).

[0025] One of the two contact areas 20''' – now the through-line surface 16 – is configured to establish an electrical contact with the actual conductor 12 of the (to be connected) cable 14 by means of at least one third (also made of stamped and bent sheet metal, for example of copper, clamping and spring-loaded) contact 22'''. The other contact area 20'''' is configured to establish contact with its associated plug contact 6'' of the plug 2 by means of a direct press fit.

[0026] The two contacting areas 20 of the shielding surface 18 and the conductor surface of the through-line 16 are coated differently than the conductor surfaces 16, 18 otherwise - namely with an outer layer of silver which is particularly abrasion-resistant, advantageous for contacting with clamping and spring contacts 28 of the contacts 22, especially when the construction is subject to vibration.

[0027] The specific metal-coated surfaces 16, 18, which form the shielding surface 18 and the conductor surface of the through-line 16, are surrounded by other housing surfaces 30 made of plastic, which are not metal-coated. They also enclose the conductor surfaces 16, 18 – and are electrically insulating.

[0028] In particular, these other (non-metal-coated) surfaces 30 spatially cover and surround the shielding surface 18 – as an area for gripping the connector 2, thus also acting as contact protection. They also form the outer surface of the housing 4 made of (insulating) plastic and are therefore safe to grip and touch – specifically the outer part of the housing 4 – because the housing is in two parts: the two conductor surfaces 16, 18 (the shielding and the conductor 16) are each surfaces of a separate housing component 4', 4'', which are nested together to form the connector 2 and touch each other via surfaces, at least one of which is a non-metal-coated surface 30. Reference symbol list 2 plugs 4 cases 6 plug contacts 8 Counter-contact 10 mating plugs 12 wires of a cable 14 cables 16 Electrically conductive connection in the plug, housing surface coated with metal 18 Shielding, metal-coated housing surface 20 Contact area 22 Contact 24 cable shielding 26 Counter-contact shielding 28 Clamping and spring contact of a contact 30 Non-metal coated housing surface

Claims

[1] Housing (4) for an electrical plug (2), which • has at least one plug contact (6) for making an electrically conductive plug connection with a mating contact (8) of a mating plug (10), as well as • an electrically conductive connection (16) between the plug contact and an electrical conductor (12) of a cable, characterized by , that plastic surfaces (16, 18) of the housing form at least one conductor surface (16, 18) by • are coated with at least one layer of metal and • each of at least two contact areas (20) electrically connect to each other, one of which (20') is configured to establish an electrical contact with an electrical conductor (12) by means of at least one first contact (22') and the other contact area (20'') to establish an electrical contact with a plug contact (6) by means of at least one second contact (22''), and • are surrounded by other plastic surfaces (30) of the housing other than the at least one conductor surface (16, 18) that are not coated with metal. [2] Housing according to claim 1, characterized by , that the other surfaces (30) as an area for touching at least partially cover and / or surround the at least one conductor surface (16, 18). [3] Housing according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the plastic surfaces of the housing (4) form at least two of the conductor surfaces (16, 18) and that the at least two conductor surfaces are completely separated from each other by other plastic surfaces (30) of the housing other than the at least two conductor surfaces which are not coated with metal. [4] Housing according to claim 3, characterized by , that the at least two conductor surfaces (16, 18) are each surfaces of a separate housing component. [5] Housing according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the conductor surfaces (16, 18) are coated differently in some areas. [6] Housing according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the contacting areas (20) of the conductor surfaces (16, 18) are coated differently than the rest of the conductor surface. [7] Housing according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the conductor surfaces (16, 18) are electroplated and / or chemically coated, and / or with nickel and / or copper and / or silver and / or tin and / or an alloy thereof. [8] Housing according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the plastic surfaces (16, 18) of the housing are coated with metal in a layer thickness exceeding 20 µm. [9] Housing according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by, that the other surfaces (30) which are not coated with metal are either • covered with a galvanically inactive lacquer or • separated from the electroplated surfaces by means of a closed dividing line made of electrostatically inactive lacquer or • made from a different type of plastic or • Surfaces of a separate housing component are.

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