Connector with fuse and fuse status indicator

Abstract

A connector includes a first part and a second part that are releasably connected together. The first part has a body, a first contact, and a fuse electrically coupled to a first fuse contact and the first contact. The second part has a body connectable to the body of the first part, a second contact engageable with the first contact when the first part is connected to the second part, and a second fuse contact engageable with the fuse when the first part is connected to the second part. The fuse is received partially within a first fuse recess of the first part and the fuse has a portion exposed from the first fuse recess, and when the first part and the second part are connected together the fuse engages the second fuse contact of the second part to complete a circuit including the fuse.

Description

CONNECTOR WITH FUSE AND FUSE STATUS INDICATORTechnical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to a coupler with a fuse and which may have a fuse status indicatorBackground

[0002] Programmable Logic Controllers and similar system devices may include multiple connectors for various inputs and outputs. Such system devices include a cabinet in which the connectors are received and may be coupled to one or more fused terminal blocks, which requires additional space and a larger cabinet.

[0003] To service the connectors / connections or the fused terminal block requires access to the interior of the cabinet and it can be difficult to determine which connection needs servicing and then the actual servicing of the connection can be made difficult by the space and system constraints.Summary

[0004] In at least some implementations, a connector includes a first part and a second part that are releasably connected together. The first part has a body, a first contact carried by the body, and a fuse electrically coupled to a first fuse contact and the first contact. The second part has a body connectable to the body of the first part, a second contact engageable with the first contact when the first part is connected to the second part, and a second fusecontact engageable with the fuse when the first part is connected to the second part. The fuse is received partially within a first fuse recess of the first part and the fuse has a portion exposed from the first fuse recess, and when the first part and the second part are connected together the fuse engages the second fuse contact of the second part to complete a circuit including the fuse.

[0005] In at least some implementations, both fuse contacts are provided in or carried by the same part of the connector. The fuse may be carried by either the first part or the second part when the first part and second part are not connected together. The fuse may be exposed at a front face of either the first part or the second part when the first part and second part are not connected together, and the fuse may be manually removable in at least some implementations.

[0006] In at least some implementations, the first part includes a cavity and the first contact is exposed within the cavity and the first fuse recess is open to the cavity. In at least some implementations, the first fuse contact is located at least partially within the first fuse recess and is engaged by the fuse. In at least some implementations, the cavity is open to a front face of the body of the first part and is partially defined by one or more walls of the body of the first part. The fuse when fully received in the first fuse recess can extend beyond the front face. In at least some implementations, the first fuse recess is parallel to the first contact or within 10 degrees of parallel to the first contact. The fuse may be mounted or oriented at other angles, too.

[0007] In at least some implementations, the fuse includes a first end with a first metal end cap and a second end with a second metal end cap, and the first metal end cap engagesthe first fuse contact and the second metal end cap engages the second fuse contact when the first part and the second part are connected together.

[0008] In at least some implementations, the first part includes multiple contacts spaced from the first contact and the second part includes multiple contacts spaced from the second contact with the multiple contacts of the first part being connected to the multiple contacts of the second part when the first part and the second part are connected together, and wherein the fuse is spaced farther from an inner surface of the peripheral wall than at least one of the multiple contacts of the first part.

[0009] In at least some implementations, an indicator is carried by the first part and electrically connected with the fuse, where the indicator provides an output when the fuse is blown that is detectable from an exterior of the first part. The indicator could be carried by the second part instead of the first part, as desired. In at least some implementations, a circuit board is carried by the first part and connected to the first contact, the fuse and the indicator. In at least some implementations, the circuit board is connected to an additional connector body that is carried by the first part, where the additional connector body provides a passthrough connection from the first contact, the circuit board or both.

[0010] In at least some implementations, the body of the second part includes a second fuse recess with the second fuse contact being received at least partially in the second fuse recess, and when the first part and the second part are connected together, the fuse is partially received within the second fuse recess and is electrically coupled to the second fuse contact.

[0011] In at least some implementations, a connector part includes a body having a first fuse recess that is open at one end, a first contact carried by the body, a first fusecontact received at least partially within the first fuse recess, and a fuse. The fuse is electrically coupled to the first fuse contact and the first contact, and the fuse is received partially within the first fuse recess and the fuse has a portion exposed from the first fuse recess. The fuse has a first state wherein current passes through the fuse and the fuse has a second state in which current does not pass through the fuse.

[0012] In at least some implementations, an indicator is electrically connected with the fuse, wherein the indicator provides an output when the fuse is in the second state and the output is detectable from outside the body. In at least some implementations, a circuit board carried by the first part and connected to the first contact, the fuse and the indicator. In at least some implementations, the circuit board is connected to an additional connector body that is carried by the first part, where the additional connector body provides a passthrough connection from the first contact, the circuit board or both.

[0013] In at least some implementations, the body includes a cavity and the first contact is exposed within the cavity and the first fuse recess is open to the cavity. In at least some implementations, the cavity is open to a front face of the body and is partially defined by one or more walls of the body. The fuse when fully received in the first fuse recess can extend beyond the front face. In at least some implementations, the first fuse recess is parallel to the first contact or within 10 degrees of parallel to the first contact.

[0014] A fuse may be provided in a passthrough connector having multiple electrical contacts or pins. One or more and up to all of the pins may each be associated with a separate fuse, as desired. The fuse or fuses are carried by the connector and are not accessible from the exterior of the connector when the connector is in a connected state, but is accessible from the exterior of part of the connector when the connectors parts aredisconnected from each other. Such a connector may be used outside of a cabinet of a system device, like a PLC, and the fuse may be serviced and the connection troubleshooting accomplished without having to access the interior of a cabinet of the system device. The connector may include a fuse status indicator that has one state when the fuse is functional within a closed circuit and a second state when the fuse has been blown. In one example, the indicator is a light and light is emitted by the indicator when the fuse has been blown but is not emitted when the fuse is functional.

[0015] The fuse may be received between and among multiple contacts of a connector. The fuse may be carried by a first part of the connector and automatically electrically connected with a second part of the connector when the first part and second part are connected together. A spring may define part of the electrical connection path of the fuse and may provide a force on the fuse to ensure sufficient electrical contact of the fuse with fuse contacts arranged in both parts of the connector.Brief Description of the Drawings

[0016] The following detailed description of preferred implementations and best mode will be set forth with regard to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0017] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a fused electrical connector in a connected state having a first part coupled to a second part;

[0018] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the electrical connector of FIG. 1 in a disconnected state;

[0019] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the second part of the electrical connector;

[0020] FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of the first part and the second part of the electrical connector, shown in a disconnected state;

[0021] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of the electrical connector;

[0022] FIG. 6 is a representative view of the traces for the electrical connector pins; and

[0023] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of part of a cabinet, such as for a programmable logic controller, including multiple electrical connectors coupled thereto.Detailed Description

[0024] Referring in more detail to the drawings, FIGS. 1, 2 and 4 illustrate an electrical connector 10 having first part 12 and a second part 14 that are releasably coupled together to define an electrical connection between the parts, with one or more fuses 15 included within the connector 10. The first and second parts 12, 14 of the electrical connector 10 may include mating engagement features, which may include male and female structures, and associated first and second electrical contacts 16 (labeled in FIGS. 4 and 5), 18 (FIGS. 2-5) that are electrically coupled together when the two parts 12, 14 are connected together. To facilitate description of the connector 10 parts, the first part 12, which is shown as having a female insert will be called a bulkhead 12, and the second part 14, which is shown as having a male insert will be called a coupler 14. An electrical power connection, as well as signal / data connection, may be established between the bulkhead 12 and coupler 14 of the electrical connector 10 when the two parts are coupled together, and the connection is / connections are terminated when the two parts are disconnected, which occur in a direction of connection / disconnection noted by arrow 20 in FIG. 1. The bulkhead 12 andcoupler 14 may be coupled to separate components, like cables 21, 22 (FIG. 1) or other parts of a circuit (e.g. a circuit board) to electrically connect the components through the connector 10, such as to complete the electrical circuit when the connector 10 is in a connected state, as shown in FIG. 1.

[0025] In the example shown in the drawings, the bulkhead 12 includes a main body 24 with an insert 26 at one end and defining at least part of a front face 25 (FIG. 4) of the body 24, at least a portion of which may be arranged perpendicular to the direction of connection and disconnection of the connector parts 12, 14. The electrical contacts 16 are carried by the bulkhead 12 and provided in any desired number and arrangement, and may extend into the insert 26. In at least some implementations, the bulkhead’s electrical contacts 16 are accessible via and may be exposed within one or more openings 27 extending to the front face 25. The contacts 16 may be tubular or otherwise arranged to receive the pin-shaped contacts 18 of the coupler 14, although other arrangements maybe used as desired. Several openings 27 may be provided in the body 24, and each opening may be associated with or open to any desired number of contacts including zero, where an opening in the front face 25 might be provided for a reason other than to permit access to a contact 16. While the periphery of the insert 26 is generally rectangular (e.g. a rectangular prism) in the embodiment shown, the insert 26 may have any desired shape suitable for use with a coupler 14 having a corresponding cavity 28. Likewise, the bulkhead’ s main body 24 may also have a shape different from that shown and a connecting component, like the cable 21, may be arranged differently than that shown, as desired for a particular application. It is noted that FIG. 1 illustrates a cable-to-cable hood as a connection point between cable 21 and cable 22.

[0026] Further with regard to the example shown in the drawings, the coupler 14 includes a main body 30 that has the cavity 28 that is formed in a front face 32 of the coupler 14 body 30. Referring to FIG. 4, the cavity 28 has an interior 34 defined by surfaces of the body 30 that are arranged to receive at least part of the insert 26 of the bulkhead 12. The cavity 28 may have a depth defined between a rear wall 36 and the front face 32 of the coupler 14 body, where the cavity 28 is open to / through the front face 32, and the cavity is partially defined by the inner surface 38 of a peripheral wall 40 that bounds the cavity 28 and which may have a shape corresponding to the exterior of the bulkhead insert 26. The wall 40 may be solid, without perforations or openings, so that the cavity 28 is surrounded by the wall 40 with the only exterior opening to the cavity being at the front face 32. The cavity 28 is shown as being a rectangular prism, open at the front face 32, but may be formed otherwise to cooperate with an insert 26 of any desired size and shape. The cavity, of any shape, may be enclosed other than at the front face 32 by the wall, which may be imperforate to fully enclose the contacts 16 and 18 when the connector 10 is in the connected state. The electrical or other passthrough contacts 18 of the coupler 14 may be carried by the coupler 14 main body 30 in any desired number and arrangement, and may extend into and may be exposed or accessible within the cavity 28 for bulkhead 12-in coupling with the insert 26 (e.g. via openings 27), in known manner. The coupler 14 main body 30 may have a shape different from that shown and a connecting component, like the cable 22, may be arranged differently than that shown, as desired for a particular application.

[0027] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the electrical connector 10 may include a retainer46 arranged to selectively retain the connector in the connected state. As shown in FIG. 1,the retainer 46 may have a latched position in which disconnection of the bulkhead 12 and coupler 14 is inhibited or prevented. As shown in FIG. 2, the retainer 46 has a released position permitting disconnection of the bulkhead 12 and coupler 14. In at least some implementations, the retainer 46 includes a latch 48 carried by one of the bulkhead 12 and coupler 14, and a retention surface 50 carried by the other of the bulkhead 12 and coupler 14, where the latch 48 is movable so that the latch 48 overlaps the retention surface 50 in the latched position of the retainer 46, and the latch 48 does not overlap the retention surface 50 in the released position of the retainer 46.

[0028] In the example shown in FIGS. 1 and 2: a) the latch 48 is carried by the coupler 14; b) the retention surface 50 is carried by the bulkhead 12; c) the latch 48 is pivoted for rotation about pivot pin or axis 51; and d) the retention surface 50 is fixed and does not move, and may be defined by an outward projection like a tab or flange on the periphery of the bulkhead main body 24. When the bulkhead 12 and coupler 14 are connected together, the retention surface 50 is within a path of movement of the latch 48, and is overlapped by the latch 48 when the latch 48 is advanced toward the retention surface 50, to define the latched position of the retainer 46. The latch may include an inclined or ramped surface that acts as a cam surface to pull the bulkhead and coupler 14 together, to ensure that the bulkhead 12 and coupler 14 are fully coupled when the latch is moved to the latched position. In this latched position, the overlap of the latch 48 and retention surface 50 opposes movement of the connector parts 12, 14 away from each other, and keeps the connector 10 in the connected state. When the latch 48 is rotated away from the retention surface 50, as is shown in FIG. 2, the bulkhead 12 and coupler 14 may be separated.

[0029] As shown in FIGS. 2-5, the connector 10 includes a fuse 15 that is carried by one or the other of the bulkhead 12 and coupler 14, and is electrically coupled through both the bulkhead 12 and coupler 14 when the connector 10 is in the connected state. In the example shown, the fuse 15 is carried by the coupler 14 and has a portion exposed within the cavity 28 and that is received at least partially in the bulkhead 12 when the bulkhead and coupler 14 are coupled together. Of course, the fuse 15 could instead be carried by the bulkhead 12 to engage or be received in the coupler 14 in the connected state of the connector 10, if desired.

[0030] In at least some implementations, as best shown in FIG. 4, the coupler 14 includes a first fuse recess 52 of a size and shape to receive a corresponding part of the fuse 15. In one example, the fuse recess 52 and fuse 15 are cylindrical, and the fuse 15 has a first end 54 received in the fuse recess 52 and the fuse 15 extends out of the recess 52 so a second end 56 of the fuse 15 is exposed within the recess 52. The fuse 15 and fuse recess 52 may be oriented parallel to the second contacts 18 within the cavity 28, or within ten degrees of parallel thereto, and the fuse 15 may extend into the cavity 28 a similar distance as the second contacts 18. For example, the fuse 15 may extend into the cavity 28 between 75% and 125% of the distance into the cavity 28 that the second contacts 18 extend, where that distance is measured from the rear wall 36 to a free end 54 of the second contacts, and where an average distance may be used for the second contacts if they do not extend the same distance in the cavity 28. In at least some implementations, the fuse 15 does not extend beyond the front face 32 of the coupler 14, and is recessed within the cavity and front edge of the peripheral wall 40 that partially defines the cavity 28.

[0031] In at least some implementations, the fuse 15 may include a glass body 58 and metal end caps 60, 62 at each end 54, 56 that are electrically connected to an internal fuse member. Thus, to electrically connect the fuse 15 within the connector 10, corresponding fuse contacts are provided in the bulkhead 12 and coupler 14, where the fuse contacts are electrically conductive and, when the connector 10 is in the connected state, the fuse contacts are engaged with the fuse end caps 60, 62.

[0032] In the example shown, the coupler 14 includes a first fuse contact 64 that is within or defines a bottom of the fuse recess 52. Thus, the metal end cap 60 at the first end 54 of the fuse 15 is in direct contact with the first fuse contact 64. The first fuse contact 64 is in turn connected to another portion of the electrical circuit, such as via a wire which is part of or connected to a wire of cable 22. Also, in the example shown, the bulkhead 12 includes a second fuse contact 66 that is arranged to engage the metal end cap 62 at the second end 56 of the fuse 15. The second fuse contact 66 may be defined by or include a biasing member, such as a spring 68, that may yieldably urge the second fuse contact 66 against the metal end cap 62 of the fuse 15 when the connector 10 is in the connected state, to provide a force on the fuse 15 that ensures a sufficient metal -to-metal contact by both fuse contacts 64, 66 with the end caps 60, 62 of the fuse 15. The spring 68 may be coupled to the second fuse contact 66, like a metal plate or terminal, that may in turn be coupled to a wire of the cable 21 or other circuit component. In the example shown, the spring 68 is a cylindrical, coil spring and is received within a second fuse recess 70 formed in the bulkhead main body 24, that is aligned with the first fuse recess 52 in the coupler main body 30. The first fuse recess 52 and second fuse recess 70 may be coaxial (in the connected state of connector 10), and the recesses 52, 70 may be parallel to the first contacts16 and second contacts 18 of the bulkhead 12 and coupler 14, in at least some implementations.

[0033] In at least some implementations, at least one-third of the length of the fuse 15 between its ends is exposed within the fuse recess 52. With a cartridge style fuse having metal end caps as described, the metal end cap may be fully received within the fuse recess 52, in at least some implementations. In at least some implementations, there is at least 1.5mm of clearance between the fuse 15 and any of the electrical contacts 16, 18, to facilitate installing and removing a fuse 15 from the fuse recess 52 and / or to electrically isolate the fuse from adjacent contacts. A snap-fit retainer or other retainer, such as a metal tab or clip, may be provided in the recess 52 to releasably retain the fuse 15, as desired, and to, in at least some implementations, prevent the fuse from simply sliding or falling out of the recess during handling of the connector.

[0034] The fuse 15 has a first state wherein current passes through the fuse and a second state in which current does not pass through the fuse (commonly referred to as the fuse being “blown”). The fuse 15 is useful to prevent damage to components that may occur if, for example a short circuit, power overload, mismatched loads, or device failure occurs, and once the fuse 15 is blown it defines an open circuit and power transmission through the connector 10 ceases. To provide an indication of an open circuit in the fused connection, the connector 10 may have a fuse status indicator 72 that provides an output when there is an open circuit in the fused connection. In the implementation shown, the indicator 72 provides a visual output, such as light emitted from an LED 72 or other light source. Actually, after the fuse 15 blows, the power transmission through the connector 10 does not completely ceases. As a matter of fact, there is still about 2-5 mA of leakagecurrent from the LED 72 still transmitting to the equipment. The LED 72 may be detectable (e.g. visible) from the exterior of the connector 10, which may facilitate determining which connector includes the open circuit in applications involving many connectors. In at least some implementations, the LED or other indicator 72 may be exposed at an exterior of the main body 30 and may be wired in parallel with the fuse 15 in a path that has higher resistance than the fused path when the fuse 15 is conducting but, when the fuse 15 is blown, the indicator 72 is powered. While the indicator 72 and fuse 15 are shown as being carried by the coupler 14, one or both could be carried by the bulkhead 12 if desired.

[0035] FIG. 7 shows an implementation of multiple connectors 10 associated with a housing 74 for a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) 76. The PLC housing 74 includes an access panel or door 78 at its front side, an opposite rear side which maybe mounted to a wall or rack, if desired, and peripheral left, right, top and bottom sides. The bulkhead 12 of each connector 10 may be mounted to the housing 74, with the main body 24 of each bulkhead received partly through a separate one of multiple openings in the housing (one opening per connector 10), and with an outwardly extending flange 80 (FIGS. 1, 2 and 4) overlying an outer surface of the housing 74. The flange 80 may be secured to the housing 74, such as by screws, if desired. In such an implementation, the indicator 72 is very useful to indicate the connector out of many that has a blown fuse 15 / open circuit, to facilitate troubleshooting and / or fuse replacement.

[0036] The cross-sectional view of the connector 10 in FIG. 4 and the schematic diagram of the connector 10 in FIG. 5 illustrate several passthrough connections, the fuse 15, the indicator 72, as well as a circuit board 82 and a second connector body 84 that may be included in the coupler 14 (in this example). The bulkhead body 24 is coupled to ahousing 74 and may be electrically coupled to a circuit board or other component 86 (FIG. 5), as desired. The connector 10 may have any desired number of contacts 16, 18, and the illustrated example has five. The pins or contacts mate with each other to define passthrough connections which will be described with regard to one implementation and with specific reference to FIG. 5 and accompanying trace plot of FIG. 6.

[0037] In FIGS. 5 and 6, the wires or terminals noted to the left of the bulkhead 12 will be described with regard to the electrical power or signal pass through associated therewith, in one non-limiting example. In this example, a first pin 88 provides a power pass through (of any desired voltage, with 24VDC being one option); a second location, nominally called a second pin 90 including the fuse 15 in a line that may passthrough a data signal, a third pin 92 providing a reference voltage, a fourth pin 94 providing a signal pass through and a fifth pin 96 coupled to ground. These connections are established when the bulkhead and coupler 14 are coupled, and are passed through to the circuit board 82 in the coupler 14, which, in the example shown, includes the LED indicator 72 and is also coupled to the second connector body 84 which provides an easy coupling interface for the cable 22 which includes a mating connector. Of course, these pins or electrical contacts are merely representative and any number of contacts and fuses may be used, in any desired arrangement. In at least some implementations, not every pin / contact is fused, but each pin or contact could be fused, if desired. This provides flexibility for different applications and efficiency for each application.

[0038] Accordingly, in at least some implementations, the fuse 15 is accessible from the front face of one of the connector parts 12, 14, for example from the front face of the second connector part 14, when the connector 10 is disconnected, but the fuse 15 is notaccessible when the connector 10 is connected. That is, the fuse 15 in at least some implementations is spaced from and not accessible via an exterior of the connector 10, other than from the front face of a connector part 12, 14 when the connector 10 is disconnected. And with the fuse 15 arranged so that a center axis 98 (FIG. 5) of the fuse 15 is parallel to the direction of connection and disconnection of the connector 10, and of contacts 16, 18 the fuse 15 may be easily removed and installed in the connector part. In at least some implementations, the fuse 15 may be removed and installed without any tools, although tools may be used if desired, or other implementations may be designed for use of tools in removing or installing a fuse. The fuse 15 may be located between multiple pins or contacts 18 of the connector part 14, and may extend in a direction parallel to at least the exposed portions of the contacts 18, or the portions of the contacts 18 that are overlapped by contacts 16 of a mating connector part 12 (for example, the contacts may be bent somewhere along their length, but may be straight along the portion that is overlapped by a mating contact of a mating connector part).

[0039] In at least some implementations, the fuse may be oriented at any desired angle including perpendicular to the contacts 18 or center axis 98, or within 10 degrees of perpendicular thereto. The above noted range of plus or minus 10 degrees of parallel to the contacts 18 or center axis 98 may be used in some implementations, with implementations up to 45 degrees of parallel to the center axis 98 being used in some implementations and implementations plus or minus 20 degrees from parallel to the center axis 98 in some implementations.

[0040] Additionally, while certain implementations are described with reference to a fuse having a glass body and metal end caps in a cylindrical, cartridge form, other types offuses may be used, as desired. By way of non-limiting examples, spade, plug-in fuses (for example, as used in automotive systems) which may be generally C-shaped, and SMD fuses or axial fuses may be used,

[0041] Further, PLCs 76 may include fused terminal blocks within a housing or cabinet, to provide fused connections therewith. The terminal blocks require a larger cabinet, and troubleshooting and servicing the fused connections can be costly and time consuming as the interior of the cabinet must be accessed and work performed therein. The connector 10 having the fuse 15 therein can be readily accessed from the exterior of a housing or cabinet, permits a smaller cabinet to be used and does not require accessing or working within an interior of the cabinet.

[0042] While the forms of the invention herein disclosed constitute presently preferred embodiments, many others are possible. It is not intended herein to mention all the possible equivalent forms or ramifications of the invention. It is understood that the terms used herein are merely descriptive, rather than limiting, and that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. In this regard, certain features are directly noted with regard to specific implementations but may be used in combination with other features where not mutually exclusive or where the connector is rendered not functional or unsuited for its intended use.

[0043] All terms used in the claims are intended to be given their broadest reasonable construction and their ordinary meanings as understood by those skilled in the art unless an explicit indication to the contrary is made herein. In particular, use of the singular articles such as “a,” “the,” “said,” etc. should be read to recite one or more of the indicated elements unless a claim recites an explicit limitation to the contrary.

Claims

CLAIMS:What is claimed is:

1. A connector, comprising: a first part having a body, a first contact carried by the body, and a fuse electrically coupled to a first fuse contact and the first contact; and a second part having a body connectable to the body of the first part, the second part having a second contact engageable with the first contact when the first part is connected to the second part, and the second part having a second fuse contact engageable with the fuse when the first part is connected to the second part, wherein the fuse is received partially within a first fuse recess of the first part and the fuse has a portion exposed from the first fuse recess, and when the first part and the second part are connected together the fuse engages the second fuse contact of the second part to complete a circuit including the fuse.

2. The connector of claim 1, wherein the first part includes a cavity and the first contact is exposed within the cavity and the first fuse recess is open to the cavity.

3. The connector of claim 2 wherein the first fuse contact is located at least partially within the first fuse recess and is engaged by the fuse.

4. The connector of claim 2 wherein the cavity is open to a front face of the body of the first part and is partially defined by one or more walls of the body of the first part.

5. The connector of claim 1 wherein the first fuse recess is parallel to the first contact or within 10 degrees of parallel to the first contact.

6. The connector of claim 1 wherein the fuse includes a first end with a first metal end cap and a second end with a second metal end cap, and wherein the first metal end cap engages the first fuse contact and the second metal end cap engages the second fuse contact when the first part and the second part are connected together.

7. The connector of claim 4 wherein the first part includes multiple contacts spaced from the first contact and the second part includes multiple contacts spaced from the second contact with the multiple contacts of the first part being connected to the multiple contacts of the second part when the first part and the second part are connected together, and wherein the fuse is spaced farther from an inner surface of the peripheral wall than at least one of the multiple contacts of the first part.

8. The connector of claim 1 which also includes an indicator carried by the first part and electrically connected with the fuse, where the indicator provides an output when the fuse is blown that is detectable from an exterior of the first part.

9. The connector of claim 8 which also includes a circuit board carried by the first part and connected to the first contact, the fuse and the indicator.

10. The connector of claim 9 wherein the circuit board is connected to an additional connector body that is carried by the first part, where the additional connector body provides a passthrough connection from the first contact, the circuit board or both.

11. The connector of claim 1 wherein the body of the second part includes a second fuse recess with the second fuse contact being received at least partially in the second fuse recess, and when the first part and the second part are connected together, the fuse is partially received within the second fuse recess and is electrically coupled to the second fuse contact.

12. A connector part, comprising: a body having a first fuse recess that is open at one end; a first contact carried by the body; a first fuse contact received at least partially within the first fuse recess; and a fuse electrically coupled to the first fuse contact and the first contact, wherein the fuse is received partially within the first fuse recess and the fuse has a portion exposed from the first fuse recess, and the fuse has a first state wherein current passes through the fuse and the fuse has a second state in which current does not pass through the fuse.

13. The connector part of claim 12 which also includes an indicator electrically connected with the fuse, wherein the indicator provides an output when the fuse is in the second state and the output is detectable from outside the body.

14. The connector part of claim 12 which also includes a circuit board carried by the first part and connected to the first contact, the fuse and the indicator.

15. The connector part of claim 13 wherein the circuit board is connected to an additional connector body that is carried by the first part, where the additional connector body provides a passthrough connection from the first contact, the circuit board or both.

16. The connector part of claim 12, wherein the body includes a cavity and the first contact is exposed within the cavity and the first fuse recess is open to the cavity.

17. The connector part of claim 16 wherein the cavity is open to a front face of the body and is partially defined by one or more walls of the body.

18. The connector part of claim 16 wherein the first fuse recess is parallel to the first contact or within 10 degrees of parallel to the first contact.

19. A connector, comprising: a first part having a body, a first contact carried by the body, and a fuse electrically coupled to a first fuse contact and the first contact; a second part having a body connectable to the body of the first part, the second part having a second contact engageable with the first contact when the first part is connected to the second part; anda second fuse contact carried by either the first part or the second part so that the fuse is within a circuit including the fuse, the first contact and the second contact, wherein the fuse is received at least partially within a cavity formed in the first part and part of the fuse is exposed when the first part and second part are not connected together.

20. The connector of claim 19 wherein the second part includes the second fuse contact and the second fuse contact is engageable with the fuse when the first part is connected to the second part, wherein the fuse is received partially within a first fuse recess of the first part and the fuse has a portion exposed from the first fuse recess, and when the first part and the second part are connected together the fuse engages the second fuse contact of the second part to complete a circuit including the fuse.

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