Electrical connector

Abstract

The invention relates to an electrical connector with at least one plug contact and at least one spring-clamp terminal connected to the plug contact for clamping an electrical conductor by means of spring force, wherein the connector has at least one connection contact connected to the plug contact for electrically connecting the connector to an electrical circuit board, wherein the electrical connector has at least one housing that at least predominantly surrounds at least the plug contact and the spring-clamp terminal, wherein the housing has at least one opening and the electrical connector has a cover part for at least partially closing the opening. Such a connector with a connection option to an electrical circuit board can also be referred to as a circuit board connector.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to an electrical connector with at least one plug contact and at least one spring-clamp terminal connected to the plug contact for clamping an electrical conductor by means of spring force, wherein the electrical connector has at least one housing that at least predominantly surrounds at least the plug contact and the spring-clamp terminal, wherein the housing has at least one opening and the electrical connector has a cover part for at least partially closing the opening. Such a connector with a connection option to an electrical circuit board can also be referred to as a circuit board connector.

[0002] Such a printed circuit board connector is known, for example, from DE 20 2016 101 387 U1. The invention is based on the objective of providing a further improved printed circuit board connector.

[0003] This problem is solved with an electrical connector according to claim 1.

[0004] The electrical connector may have one, several or all of the following features a), b), c): a) a first actuating device and / or a second actuating device for actuating at least one clamping spring of the spring-clamp terminal is arranged on the cover part, b) the cover part has at least one conductor stop for limiting the insertion depth of an electrical conductor to be connected to the spring-clamp terminal, c) the cover part extends from a conductor insertion opening of the connector, into which an electrical conductor to be connected to the spring-clamp terminal can be inserted into the housing, to a clamping point of the spring-clamp terminal or beyond the clamping point.

[0005] The electrical connector according to the preamble of claim 1 is already a multifunctional component that allows an electrical conductor to be clamped by spring force via its spring-clamp connection. Additionally, a mating connector of a counterpart connector can be plugged into the at least one plug contact, so that the electrical connector forms an electrical connection with the counterpart connector. The plug contact is thus not occupied by the clamped electrical conductor. Furthermore, the connector can have at least one additional connection option, i.e., besides the plug contact and the spring-clamp connection, a third connection option, via which the electrical connector can be connected to an electrical circuit board. For example, the connection contact can be a pluggable contact, e.g., a contact pin.The connection contact can be a solder contact, e.g., a solder pin or a solder pad in the sense of an SMD solder contact. The electrical connector thus allows an electrical connection of a printed circuit board to be connected to a mating connector and to an electrical conductor clamped to the spring-clamp terminal.

[0006] According to feature a), such an electrical connector is further developed by the fact that a first actuating device and / or a second actuating device for actuating at least one clamping spring of the spring-clamp connection is arranged on the cover part. This has the advantage that the electrical connector has its own integrated operating device for operating its spring-clamp connection, or can even have two operating devices. By actuating the first and / or the second actuating device, the clamping spring of the spring-clamp connection can be manually actuated in such a way that a clamping point is opened. For example, a clamping leg of the clamping spring can be deflected accordingly by a respective actuating device.Opening the clamping point allows for the easy removal of an already connected electrical conductor or the effortless insertion of a new one. When the manual actuation of the respective device is released, the clamping point closes, and the electrical conductor is clamped to the spring-loaded terminal.

[0007] According to feature b), the electrical connector is further developed such that the cover part provides a conductor stop to limit the insertion depth of the electrical conductor. Accordingly, other elements of the connector do not need to be designed with such a conductor stop. This function can thus be performed by the cover part. This simplifies the design and assembly of the individual parts of the connector.

[0008] According to feature c), the connector is further developed such that the cover extends relatively far in the conductor insertion direction of the electrical conductor, namely from the conductor insertion opening to at least the clamping point. The cover thus spans a large longitudinal section of the electrical connector, which is advantageous for a stable center of gravity of the connector during the soldering process to a printed circuit board. Due to the favorable center of gravity, there is no tendency for the connector to tilt when soldered to the circuit board. The conductor insertion opening can, for example, be formed on the connector housing.

[0009] The cover part can thus be designed as a multifunctional component of the electrical connector with multiple functions. This allows the electrical connector to be composed of relatively few components, simplifying the assembly process. The invention therefore enables a compact design of a printed circuit board connector with a detachable conductor connection, i.e., the ability to detach the electrical conductor from the spring-clamp terminal, and with an integrated conductor stop.

[0010] The cover part can be formed in one piece with the aforementioned individual functional elements, such as the first actuating device, the second actuating device, and / or the ladder stop, as a single component, e.g., as a plastic component. Alternatively, individual functional elements can be designed as separate components that are assembled with a basic component of the cover part, e.g., by snapping or other connection.

[0011] According to the invention, the second actuating device for actuating at least one clamping spring of the spring-clamp connection is designed as a component separate from the cover part and is mounted so as to be displaceable relative to the cover part. This has the advantage that the second actuating device can provide a different actuation method for the spring-clamp connection, independent of the first actuating device. In particular, the second actuating device can provide a different direction of manual actuation compared to the first actuating device. For example, the first or the second actuating device can provide a horizontal and an independent vertical release option for the clamped electrical conductor with respect to the conductor insertion direction.The two different release mechanisms are thus actuated from two directions, preferably perpendicular to each other. The second actuating device can, for example, be slidably mounted relative to the cover part, e.g., linearly and / or along an arc-shaped contour. For example, the second actuating device can be designed as an actuating push button.

[0012] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the second actuating device is movably mounted on a bearing contour of the cover part. This has the advantage that the cover part can perform an additional function, namely the mounting of the second actuating device. Therefore, no additional component is required for mounting the second actuating device.

[0013] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the second actuating device is slidably mounted essentially parallel to a conductor insertion direction, through which an electrical conductor to be connected to the spring-clamp terminal can be inserted into the housing. In this way, the second actuating device can be arranged in the housing in a space-saving manner. Despite the second actuating device, the connector can thus be designed compactly. Furthermore, manual actuation of the second actuating device can be implemented on the conductor insertion side of the connector, where the conductor insertion opening is located. For example, an end-side manual actuation area of ​​the second actuating device can protrude from the connector housing. This allows for simple and ergonomic manual operation of the second actuating device.Alternatively, a manual actuation area can also protrude from the housing of the connector on a housing side parallel to the conductor insertion direction, so that the second actuation device can be designed as a sliding actuation.

[0014] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the cover part has the conductor entry opening. This has the advantage that the cover part can perform an additional function, namely providing a defined conductor entry opening, e.g., with a funnel-shaped section, which facilitates the insertion of the electrical conductor. The area of ​​the cover part containing the conductor entry opening can also be formed integrally with the other elements of the cover part.

[0015] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the cover part is at least predominantly surrounded by the housing. The cover part can, for example, be placed onto the contact insert before the contact insert elements are inserted into the housing and then inserted into the housing as a single unit. This allows for easy assembly of the connector. This is also necessary for a compact design of a printed circuit board connector.

[0016] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the first actuating device is arranged between the ladder insertion opening and the ladder stop. The first actuating device is thus arranged at a relatively central location on the cover part. The ladder stop can, for example, be arranged at the end of the cover part furthest from the ladder insertion opening.

[0017] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the housing has an actuating opening beneath which the first actuating device is arranged within the housing. This makes the first actuating device easily accessible for manual operation, even though the cover part is otherwise largely enclosed by the housing. For example, the first actuating device can have a manual actuating area with a recess into which a tool, such as a screwdriver, can be inserted for manual operation.

[0018] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the actuating opening is arranged on a side of the housing facing away from the terminal contact. This places the actuating opening in an easily accessible location. This allows for simple and ergonomic actuation of the clamping spring using the first actuating device, even when the connector is already connected to the circuit board. For example, the first actuating device can be actuated through the actuating opening in a direction perpendicular to the circuit board surface, with an actuating movement towards the circuit board.

[0019] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the ladder stop forms a support and / or a pivot point for the first actuating device, at least when the first actuating device is manually operated. In this way, the cover part or its ladder stop assumes an additional function for realizing an actuating mechanism for the spring-loaded clamping connection. For example, when the first actuating device is operated, the cover part can be elastically deformed, and the ladder stop can be pivoted slightly in the process.

[0020] The conductor stop can be supported on any part of the conductor terminal, e.g. on a metal part of the contact insert or on an area of ​​the housing.

[0021] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the conductor stop is supported on an inner side of the housing. This has the advantage that the conductor stop is securely fixed and can be supported in one or more spatial directions by appropriately shaping a support area on the inner side of the housing. For example, the conductor stop can be supported on the inner side of the housing opposite to the actuating movement of the first actuating device, e.g., in a direction vertical to the printed circuit board surface or perpendicular to the insertion direction of the electrical conductor. Alternatively or additionally, the conductor stop can also be supported on the inner side of the housing in the direction of conductor insertion. In this way, the conductor stop is supported by the housing against an electrical conductor abutting it.

[0022] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the cover part has at least one connecting pin for locking the cover part to the housing. This allows for simple and space-saving attachment of the cover part to the housing. For example, the cover part can have the at least one connecting pin in the area of ​​the conductor entry opening, or, for example, one connecting pin each symmetrically to the left and right of the conductor entry opening. The connecting pin(s) are preferably inserted into corresponding recesses or connecting slots on the housing in a form-fit and / or force-fit manner.

[0023] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the connecting pin extends longitudinally parallel to the conductor insertion direction. This allows the cover part to be easily attached to the housing by inserting it into the housing in the conductor insertion direction. This makes assembly of the connector components very simple and quick.

[0024] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the connection contact is designed as a first solder contact connected to the plug contact for soldering the connector to an electrical circuit board. This allows a reliable mechanical and electrical connection of the connector to the circuit board.

[0025] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the connector has at least a second solder contact connected to the plug contact for soldering the connector to an electrical circuit board, with the cover extending at least from the first solder contact to the second solder contact. This is also advantageous for a stable center of gravity of the connector when soldering it to the circuit board. Furthermore, the at least two solder contacts ensure a particularly stable mechanical connection between the connector and the circuit board, which can easily absorb the forces acting on the plug contact when the mating connector is inserted.

[0026] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the first solder contact and / or the second solder contact is designed as an SMD solder contact. This allows for advantageous soldering of the connector to the printed circuit board by a surface soldering process, so that the connector is also suitable for the mass production of electrical assemblies.

[0027] Alternatively, it is also conceivable that the connector has no connection contacts for, for example, soldering to a circuit board, so that it can be used, for example, as a so-called flying connection.

[0028] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the spring-loaded clamping connection comprises two spring tongues arranged at an angle to each other, each with a clamping edge at its free end. The electrical conductor can be clamped between these clamping edges. The clamping point is then formed between the clamping edges. This allows for the simple clamping of an electrical conductor with sufficient rigidity by simply inserting the conductor in the conductor insertion direction. Furthermore, the electrical conductor can be clamped symmetrically between the spring tongues. The clamping edges ensure a secure and permanent clamping of the electrical conductor.

[0029] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the first and / or the second actuating device for opening the clamping point is configured by spreading the spring tongues apart. In this way, the actuating kinematics for opening the clamping point can be designed to be very simple and space-saving.

[0030] The spring tongues can have actuating tongues that project from the end faces of the spring tongues facing the first actuating element. These actuating tongues can be bent out of the plane of the adjacent spring tongue section, particularly adjacent to the free end of the respective spring tongue. For example, the actuating tongues can be bent away from each other (outwards), i.e., away from the clamping point. In this way, the actuating tongues form a funnel shape, creating a receiving funnel for the first actuating element. Accordingly, the first actuating element can have a wedge-shaped design on its side facing the actuating tongues.

[0031] The connector may have the following additional features: a) a conductor entry area in which two opposing side walls, a bottom section connecting the side walls and a cover section opposite the bottom section are present, b) wherein the side walls, the bottom section and the cover section define a conductor entry channel, c) each of the side walls has at least one spring tongue freed from the first bottom section and the first bottom section, which forms a clamping point for clamping an electrical conductor by means of spring force.

[0032] This creates a connector that can be manufactured very compactly and is therefore also suitable for connecting electrical conductors in devices where little available installation space is available.

[0033] At least one of the plug contacts can be male or female, e.g., a socket contact (perhaps in the form of a fork contact), or a blade or pin contact. The housing can be made of an insulating material, e.g., plastic.

[0034] The connector can have two or more adjacent plug contacts. Each plug contact can have its own spring-clamp terminal. Alternatively, each plug contact can have its own terminal contact.

[0035] For the purposes of the present invention, the indefinite term "a" is not to be understood as a numeral. Therefore, when, for example, reference is made to a component, this is to be interpreted as "at least one component". Where angles are specified in degrees, these refer to a circle of 360 degrees (360°).

[0036] The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to exemplary embodiments and drawings.

[0037] They show Fig. 1: an electrical connector in a side sectional view, Fig. 2: the connector of the plug connection according to Fig. 1 in a perspective view, Fig. 3: the plug connection according to Fig. 1 In a perspective view, Fig. 4: an enlarged detail view of part of the connector according to Fig. 1 In a side sectional view, Fig. 5: a contact insert of a connector with attached cover part; in a side sectional view, Fig. 6: the arrangement according to Fig. 5 in a perspective view, Fig. 7: another embodiment of a connector in a side sectional view, Fig. 8: the contact insert and other individual parts of the connector according to Fig. 7 in lateral sectional view, Fig. 9: the arrangement according to Fig. 8in perspective view, Fig. 10: the connector according to Fig. 7 in a view of the conductor entry side, Fig. 11: the connector according to Fig. 4 in a view of the conductor entry side.

[0038] The Figure 1 This section first provides a general overview of an electrical connector comprising an electrical connector 1 according to the invention and a counterpart connector 2 (mother connector) associated with this connector 1. Each of the connectors 1, 2 has a spring-clamp terminal 4 to which an electrical conductor can be clamped by means of spring force. Each of the electrical connectors 1, 2 is designed for electrical connection to an electrical circuit board and has connection contacts for soldering to the circuit board for this purpose. Figure 1The figure on the right shows that connector 1, which is actually designed as a printed circuit board connector, can also be used without soldering to a printed circuit board by inserting it into an outer housing 3. This housing covers the connection contacts intended for connection to the printed circuit board and thus provides electrical insulation. In this embodiment, the outer housing 3 has a strain relief device 5 for an inserted electrical conductor.

[0039] The Figure 2 Figure 1 shows the connector 1 with the outer housing 3 and a connected electrical conductor 9, e.g. a two-core cable, if the connector 1 is designed as a two-pole connector as shown.

[0040] The Figure 3 shows the electrical connector according to Figure 1, i.e., connector 1 with housing 3, connector 2 attached to it, and conductor 9 connected to connector 1.

[0041] Based on the Figures 4 to 6The internal structure of connector 1 will be explained using an example. The explanations also apply analogously to the corresponding connector 2, which has a different type of plug contact. Connector 1 has a housing 10. Inside the housing 10 are an electrical plug contact 12, a spring-clamp terminal 4 connected to plug contact 12, two connection contacts 13, 14 for connecting connector 1 to an electrical circuit board, and a cover 11. The spring-clamp terminal 4, the plug contact 12, and the connection contacts 13, 14 form elements of a contact insert of connector 1, which are at least predominantly enclosed by the housing 10. The housing 10 can also at least predominantly enclose the cover 11. An electrical conductor 9 can be inserted through a conductor entry opening 20 and clamped to the spring-clamp terminal 4.

[0042] The connection contacts 13, 14 are formed on the underside of a base section 24 of the contact insert. Side walls 29 project upwards from the base section 24, i.e., on the side facing away from the connection contacts 13, 14. The side walls 29 surround a conductor entry channel, i.e., the side walls form a left and a right side wall. A spring tongue 16 projects from each of the side walls 29 in a conductor entry direction L. The spring tongues 16 form clamping springs for clamping an electrical conductor. The spring tongues 16 terminate at their free end facing away from the side walls 29 with a respective clamping edge 21, between which the electrical conductor can be clamped. The spring tongues 16 are free-floating from the base section 24, allowing them to deform freely and elastically. On the upper side of the spring tongues 16, facing away from the bottom section 24, there is an actuating tongue 25 in each case.The bottom section 24 can be positioned at an angle to the conductor insertion direction L, at least in a certain area, in order to guide an electrical conductor inserted through a conductor insertion opening 20 to the clamping edges 21.

[0043] The plug connector 12 is shown here as an example of a fork connector with two contact forks 12. The contact forks 12 can be formed integrally with the base section 24 and be bent upwards relative to the base section 24.

[0044] The connector 1 has the aforementioned cover part 11. The cover part 11 has a material area on the conductor entry side of the connector 1 that forms the conductor entry opening 20. The conductor entry opening 20 is thus integrally formed with the cover part 11. From the conductor entry opening 20, the cover part 11 extends to a first actuating device 15 for actuating the clamping springs of the spring-clamp terminal 4, i.e., the spring tongues 16. The first actuating device 15 can, for example, when deflected downwards towards the actuating tongues 25, come into contact with them and thereby spread the spring tongues 16 apart. To ensure reliable manual actuation of the first actuating device 15, the cover part 11 can have a recess 30 on its upper surface facing the housing 10. The housing 10 can additionally have an actuating opening 22.The first actuating device 15 and the recess 30 are arranged in alignment with this actuating opening 20, so that they can be easily operated manually.

[0045] In the further course, the cover part 11 forms a conductor guidance slope 28 that tapers downwards towards the base section 24 in the conductor insertion direction L. The conductor guidance slope 28 also guides the electrical conductor in a desired direction behind the clamping point, i.e., behind the clamping edges 21.

[0046] Further along, a conductor stop 19 is formed on the cover part 11 in the conductor insertion direction L. The conductor stop 19 can be arranged, for example, at the free end of the cover part 11 facing away from the conductor insertion opening 20, e.g., as a material tongue pointing downwards towards the base section 24. The conductor stop 19 limits the insertion depth of the electrical conductor inserted into the connector 1. The conductor stop 19 can be supported on the inside of the housing 10. Figure 4Figure 1 shows that the ladder stop 19 is supported both downwards towards the base section 24 at a contact point 26 in the vertical direction and additionally at a contact point 27 in the horizontal direction. If the first actuating device 15 is deflected in the direction of the actuating tongues 25 by an actuating force exerted from above through the actuating opening 22, the cover part 11 in the area of ​​the ladder stop 19 is supported at the contact points 26 and 27 and can perform a slight pivoting movement.

[0047] The Figures 7 to 9 show in comparable views such as the Figures 4 to 6Another embodiment of a connector 1, in which, in addition to the features described above, a second actuating device 17 is provided, which can also be used to actuate the clamping springs 16 of the spring-clamp terminal 4. The second actuating device 17 is designed as a push button that is displaceable in the conductor insertion direction L and is mounted in a bearing slot 18 of the cover part 11 with respect to its longitudinal movement. The second actuating device 17 is, for example, latched to the cover part 11 by means of detent elements 31. The second actuating device 17 has a manual actuation area 33 that projects from the housing 10 opposite to the conductor insertion direction L.At its end opposite the manual actuation area 33, the second actuation device 17 has a plunger section 32 with which the spring tongues 16 and / or the actuation tongues 25 can be actuated when a compressive force in the conductor insertion direction L is exerted on the manual actuation area 33. The plunger section 32 then spreads the spring tongues 16 apart, thereby opening the clamping point.

[0048] The Figures 10 and 11 The described embodiments of the connector 1 illustrate the advantageous attachment of the cover part 11 to the housing 10. The cover part 11 can have connecting pins 23 arranged to the left and right of the conductor entry opening 20, which can be inserted into corresponding connecting recesses in the housing 10. In this way, the respective cover part 11 can be connected to the housing 10, e.g., by snapping it into place.

[0049] It is also apparent that in a multi-pole embodiment, the connector 1 can have a separate cover part 11 for each of the plug contacts 12 or each of the spring-clamp terminals 4. Alternatively, a common cover part 11 can be used for several spring-clamp terminals 4 or plug contacts 12. Reference symbol list

[0050] 1 Connector 2 Connector (mating connector) 3 Outer housing 4 Spring-loaded clamp connection 5 Strain relief device 9 Electrical conductor 10 Housing 11 Cover part 12 Plug contact 13 Connection contact 14 Connection contact 15 Actuating device 16 Clamping spring / spring tongue 17 Actuating device 18 Storage slot 19 Conductor stop 20 Conductor entry opening 21 Clamping edge 22 Actuating opening 23 Connecting pin 24 Bottom section 25 Actuating tongue 26 Contact point 27 Contact point 28 Conductor guide ramp 29 Side walls 30 Recess 31 Detent elements 32 Plunger area 33 Actuating area L Conductor entry direction

Claims

1. Electrical connector (1, 2) with at least one plug contact (12) and at least one spring-loaded clamping terminal (4) connected to the plug contact (12) for clamping an electrical conductor (9) by means of spring force, wherein the electrical connector (1, 2) has at least one housing (10) that at least predominantly surrounds at least the plug contact (12) and the spring-loaded clamping terminal (4), wherein the housing (10) has at least one opening and the electrical connector (1, 2) has a cover part (11) for at least partially closing the opening, characterized by the fact that A second actuating device (17) for actuating at least one clamping spring of the spring force clamping connection (4) is arranged on the cover part (11), wherein the second actuating device (17) for actuating at least one clamping spring of the spring force clamping connection (4) is designed as a component separate from the cover part (11), which is mounted to be displaceable relative to the cover part (11).

2. Connector according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that the second actuating device (17) is movably mounted on a bearing contour (18) of the cover part (11).

3. Connector according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that the second actuating device (17) is slidably mounted essentially parallel to a conductor insertion direction (L), in which an electrical conductor (9) to be connected to the spring force clamp connection (4) can be inserted into the housing (10).

4. Connectors according to any of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that the cover part (11) has the ladder insertion opening (20).

5. Connectors according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that the lid part (11) is at least predominantly surrounded by the housing (10).

6. Connectors according to any of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that the ladder stop (19) is supported on an inside of the housing (10).

7. Connectors according to any of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that the cover part (11) has at least one connecting pin (23) for locking the cover part (11) to the housing (10).

8. Connectors according to any of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that the connector (1, 2) has at least one connecting contact (13, 14) connected to the plug contact (12) for electrically connecting the connector (1, 2) to an electrical circuit board.

9. Connectors according to any of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that The spring-loaded clamping connection (4) has two spring tongues (16) arranged at an angle to each other as clamping springs, each having a clamping edge (21) at its free end, wherein the electrical conductor (9) can be clamped between the clamping edges (21).

10. Connector according to claim 9, characterized by the fact thatthe second actuating device (15, 17) is provided for opening the clamping point by spreading apart the spring tongues (16).

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