Connector with built-in coil component

Abstract

To provide a connector with a built-in coil component capable of suppressing a decrease in product reliability while simplifying a configuration.SOLUTION: The coil component built-in connector 20 includes a housing 21, a terminal 22 held by the housing 21, and a coil component 24 built in the housing 21. The terminal 22 includes a first terminal 221 and a second terminal 222 paired with the first terminal 221, and the coil component 24 includes a helical coil portion 241 and a core portion 243 disposed inside the coil portion 241. The coil portion 241 includes a first coil portion 2411 formed integrally with the housing 21 and electrically connected to the first terminal 221, and a second coil portion 2412 formed integrally with the housing 21 and electrically connected to the second terminal 222.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a connector with a built-in coil component. [Background technology]

[0002] A conventional connector with a built-in coil component of this type is disclosed in Patent Document 1. In Patent Document 1, a common mode choke coil as a coil component is built into the connector portion of an interface cable, thereby providing an interface cable with a noise suppression effect. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-190412 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in the connector with a built-in coil component described in the above-mentioned related art, the common mode choke coil is installed on a substrate and incorporated into the connector portion. The common mode choke coil is then electrically connected to the cable and connector terminals via this substrate. Therefore, the connector with a built-in coil component described in the above-mentioned related art has a large number of parts, which may result in a complex structure.

[0005] Furthermore, in the connector with a built-in coil component described above in the related art, the common mode choke coil is electrically connected to the cable and connector terminal via a substrate. Therefore, when the common mode choke coil is built into the connector, many connection points are formed. When the number of connection points formed when the common mode choke coil is built into the connector increases, resistance occurs at the connection points, increasing the overall resistance value and potentially reducing the reliability of the product.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the problems inherent in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a connector with a built-in coil component that is capable of simplifying the configuration while preventing a decrease in product reliability. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] A connector with an integrated coil component according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a housing, a terminal held in the housing, and a coil component incorporated in the housing, wherein the terminal comprises a first terminal and a second terminal that pairs with the first terminal, and the coil component comprises a coil portion having a helical first coil portion formed integrally with the housing and electrically connected to the first terminal, and a helical second coil portion formed integrally with the housing and electrically connected to the second terminal, and a core portion arranged inside the coil portion. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a connector with a built-in coil component that can suppress a decrease in product reliability while simplifying the configuration. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a connector fitting including a connector with a built-in coil component. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a front view showing an example of a connector with a built-in coil component. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a connector with a built-in coil component. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of a connector with a built-in coil component. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a graph showing the common mode insertion loss (SCC21) of an example of a connector with a built-in coil component. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] The connector with a built-in coil component according to the present embodiment will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Note that the dimensional proportions in the drawings are exaggerated for the sake of convenience and may differ from the actual proportions.

[0011] In the following description, the direction in which the connector portion of the cable is fitted is defined as the front-to-rear direction, the direction perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction and approximately coincident with the longitudinal direction of the housing is defined as the width direction, and the direction perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction and the width direction is defined as the up-down direction.

[0012] In addition, the side of the housing where the cable connector is mated is defined as the front side in the front-to-rear direction, and the up-and-down directions of each component are defined in the description assuming that the cable is inserted with the locking piece of the connector positioned at the top.

[0013] In the following, a cable used for Ethernet communication is exemplified as the cable, and an RJ45 connector to which a cable used for Ethernet communication is connected is exemplified as the connector with a built-in coil component, and an RJ45 connector using a common mode choke coil as the coil component is exemplified.

[0014] As shown in FIG. 1, the connector 20 with a built-in coil component according to this embodiment has a housing 21, and the connector portion 32 of the cable 30 is inserted and fitted into a fitting space 211 formed in the housing 21 to form the connector fitting body 10.

[0015] The housing 21 can be made of, for example, an electrically insulating synthetic resin and has a generally rectangular parallelepiped shape. The housing 21 is formed with a fitting space 211 that opens forward and into which the connector portion 32 of the cable 30 is inserted and fitted.

[0016] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the connector 20 with a built-in coil component is provided with terminals 22, which are held in the housing 21 with a portion of the terminals 22 exposed to the fitting space 211. In this embodiment, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, eight terminals 22 are formed so as to be aligned with a space therebetween in the width direction.

[0017] 3, the coil component built-in connector 20 is mounted on a circuit board 40. When the coil component built-in connector 20 is mounted on the circuit board 40, the eight terminals 22 are electrically connected to a circuit pattern (not shown) formed on the circuit board 40.

[0018] On the other hand, the cable 30 comprises a cable portion 31, a connector portion 32 formed at the tip of the cable portion 31, and a locking piece 33 connected to the upper surface of the connector portion 32 and releasably locking the connector portion 32 engaged in the engagement space 211.

[0019] The connector portion 32 also includes a housing 321, which is formed using, for example, an electrically insulating synthetic resin. Although not shown, the housing 321 holds mating terminals in a partially exposed state, and these mating terminals are formed to correspond to the eight terminals 22, respectively. When the connector portion 32 is inserted and fitted into the fitting space 211, the mating terminals are electrically connected to the corresponding terminals 22, respectively.

[0020] At this time, by connecting the connector portion 32 to the housing 21 mounted on the circuit board 40, the mating terminal is electrically connected to the circuit pattern (not shown) formed on the circuit board 40 via the terminal 22.

[0021] This allows wired digital communication (Ethernet communication) to be performed. That is, the connector 20 with a built-in coil component according to this embodiment is a member that constitutes part of a device for Ethernet communication.

[0022] In such wired digital communications, a differential transmission method is generally used to achieve high-speed communications while being resistant to noise. Therefore, among the multiple terminals 22, there is at least one pair of terminals 22 that constitutes a differential pair. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, a first terminal 221 located on the far right side in a front view and a second terminal 222 located immediately to the left of the first terminal 221 constitute a pair of terminals 22 that constitute a differential pair. In this manner, in this embodiment, the terminal 22 includes the first terminal 221 and the second terminal 222 that pairs with the first terminal 221.

[0023] When communicating using a differential transmission system, common mode noise may occur due to differences in electrical length between lines and stray capacitance between the signal and the power supply or ground. To eliminate this common mode noise, a coil component 24 called a common mode choke coil is sometimes used. A common mode choke coil is a component that has the function of eliminating only common mode noise.

[0024] Therefore, in this embodiment as well, a common mode choke coil is used as the coil component 24 so as to be able to remove common mode noise.

[0025] In this case, if a common mode choke coil serving as the coil component 24 is mounted on the circuit board 40, the mounting space on the circuit board 40 for other components will be reduced.

[0026] Therefore, in this embodiment, the coil component 24 is built into the housing 21, and the coil component built-in connector 20 is equipped with the coil component 24, thereby more reliably ensuring space for mounting other components on the circuit board 40.

[0027] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the coil component 24 built into the housing 21 can be electrically connected to the terminals 22 without the need for other members such as a substrate. In this way, by eliminating the need for other members such as a substrate, an increase in the number of components in the coil component built-in connector 20 is suppressed, and the configuration of the coil component built-in connector 20 can be simplified.

[0028] The common mode choke coil serving as the coil component 24 is connected to each differential pair. Therefore, in this embodiment, the coil component built-in connector 20 is exemplified, in which one common mode choke coil (coil component 24) is built into the housing 21 while being electrically connected to a pair of terminals 22 (first terminal 221 and second terminal 222) that form a differential pair.

[0029] However, if there are multiple pairs of terminals 22 that form differential pairs, it is preferable that a common mode choke coil (coil component 24) electrically connected to each differential pair be built into the housing 21.

[0030] The specific configuration of the coil component 24 included in the coil component built-in connector 20 will be described below.

[0031] In this embodiment, the coil component 24 includes a coil portion 241 formed integrally with the housing 21 and a core portion 243 disposed inside the coil portion 241. The coil portion 241 includes a first helical coil portion 2411 formed integrally with the housing 21 and electrically connected to the first terminal 221. The coil portion 241 also includes a second helical coil portion 2412 formed integrally with the housing 21 and electrically connected to the second terminal 222.

[0032] This makes it possible to minimize the number of connection points when electrically connecting the coil component 24 to the terminals 22 (the first terminal 221 and the second terminal 222). This also makes it possible to prevent an increase in the overall resistance of a product (such as a wired digital communication device) that uses the coil component-integrated connector 20. In this way, in this embodiment, by preventing an increase in the overall resistance of the product, it is possible to more reliably prevent a decrease in the reliability of the product (such as the communication performance of a wired digital communication device).

[0033] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the housing 21 is formed with a space 23 in which the core portion 243 is accommodated. In this embodiment, the housing 21 is formed with a substantially cylindrical space 23 that opens downward. A wiring pattern 242 is formed helically on the inner surface (inner circumferential surface) 231 of the housing 21 that defines the substantially cylindrical space 23, thereby allowing the wiring pattern 242 to function as the coil portion 241. Note that, as shown in FIG. 4 , the housing 21 may be formed with a substantially cylindrical space 23 that opens rearward. In this manner, the space 23 can be formed in a position that makes it easy to insert the core portion 243, taking into consideration the shape of the housing 21 and the positions of the components to be disposed. Furthermore, the shape of the space 23 does not need to be substantially cylindrical, and various shapes, such as a substantially rectangular prism, can be used. Note that the shape of the space 23 is preferably set appropriately depending on the shape of the coil component 24 and the shape of the core portion 243.

[0034] This allows the coil portion 241 to be mechanically integrated with the housing 21, and allows for a more stable electrical connection between the coil component 24 and the terminal 22. This further improves the reliability of the electrical connection between the coil component 24 and the terminal 22.

[0035] Furthermore, in this embodiment, by opening the space 23 to the outside of the housing 21, the core portion 243 can be removably disposed inside the coil portion 241. In this embodiment, the approximately cylindrical core portion 243 is removably disposed inside the coil portion 241.

[0036] In this way, if core portion 243 can be detachably placed inside coil portion 241, it becomes possible to replace core portion 243 with one of a different size (diameter) or shape, thereby changing the inductance of coil component 24. In other words, it becomes possible to select the size (diameter) of the common mode choke coil (coil component 24) within the range of the dimensions of housing 21, and it becomes possible to set the diameter of core portion 243 to a coil diameter that is not available in existing common mode choke coils. It becomes possible to obtain an inductance according to the selected size (diameter).

[0037] Therefore, by appropriately setting the coil diameter of the common mode choke coil (coil component 24), it is possible to adjust it so that the common mode noise suppression effect in the desired frequency band is obtained. Note that the same effect can also be obtained by appropriately changing the shape of the core portion 243.

[0038] In this way, in this embodiment, the characteristics of the coil component 24 (for example, the noise filter characteristics of the common mode choke coil) can be changed, thereby further improving the versatility of the coil component built-in connector 20.

[0039] In this embodiment, the wiring pattern 242 has a first helical wiring pattern 2421 that is formed integrally with the housing 21 and electrically connected to the first terminal 221. The wiring pattern 242 has a second helical wiring pattern 2422 that is formed integrally with the housing 21 and electrically connected to the second terminal 222.

[0040] The first wiring pattern 2421 and the second wiring pattern 2422 are formed on the inner surface (inner peripheral surface) 231 of the housing 21 so as to be alternately wound around each other. Therefore, in this embodiment, a bifilar-wound coil portion 241 is formed inside the housing 21. By accommodating the core portion 243 inside the space 23, the core portion 243 is disposed inside the coil portion 241, and the coil portion 241 and the core portion 243 form a common mode choke coil (coil component 24).

[0041] The wiring patterns 242 (first wiring pattern 2421 and second wiring pattern 2422) can be formed by partially plating or printing a metal pattern on the inner surface (inner circumferential surface) 231 of the housing 21. The core portion 243 can be formed using a magnetic material such as ferrite.

[0042] At this time, it is preferable that core portion 243 is disposed inside coil portion 241 in a state in which core portion 243 is electrically insulated from first terminal 221 and second terminal 222 and separated from coil portion 241.

[0043] This makes it possible to prevent the core portion 243 from coming into contact with the coil portion 241, which may cause the position of the coil portion 241 to shift or damage the coil portion 241, when the core portion 243 is disposed inside the coil portion 241. As a result, it is possible to further improve the reliability of the electrical connection between the coil component 24 and the terminal 22.

[0044] Furthermore, by not electrically connecting core portion 243 to first terminal 221 and second terminal 222, there is no need to ensure contact pressure of core portion 243, and there is no need to increase the connection accuracy of core portion 243. As a result, core portion 243 can be more easily disposed inside coil portion 241.

[0045] In this embodiment, the wiring pattern 242 (first wiring pattern 2421 and second wiring pattern 2422) is electrically connected to the circuit pattern via the mounting terminals 25 (first mounting terminal 251 and second mounting terminal 252).

[0046] 5 shows a graph obtained by calculating the common-mode insertion loss (SCC21) using electromagnetic field simulation when the sizes of the components of the connector 20 with a built-in coil component according to this embodiment are set to predetermined values. The sizes of the components are set so that the coil diameter of the coil component 24 is 3 mm, the wire pitch of the coil portion 241 is 0.5 mm, and the number of turns of the coil portion 241 is a bifilar winding of 8. The length of the core portion 243 is set to 9 mm, the diameter of the core portion 243 is set to 3 mm, and the relative permeability of the core portion 243 is set to 300.

[0047] The graph in Figure 5 confirms that common mode noise is attenuated in a specific frequency band, demonstrating its operation as a common mode choke coil. For example, the attenuation of common mode noise at 100 MHz is approximately -20 dB, which is roughly the same as the characteristics of common mode choke coils for commonly available communication lines. Therefore, it can be confirmed that the connector 20 with a built-in coil component according to this embodiment also achieves performance roughly equivalent to that of common mode choke coils for commonly available communication lines.

[0048] [Actions and Effects] The following describes the characteristic configurations of the coil component built-in connectors shown in the above embodiment and its modified examples, and the effects obtained thereby.

[0049] The connector with a built-in coil component 20 shown in the above embodiment and its modified example includes a housing 21 , terminals 22 held by the housing 21 , and a coil component 24 built into the housing 21 .

[0050] The terminal 22 includes a first terminal 221 and a second terminal 222 that pairs with the first terminal 221 .

[0051] The coil component 24 includes a coil portion 241. The coil portion 241 has a first helical coil portion 2411 that is formed integrally with the housing 21 and electrically connected to the first terminal 221, and a second helical coil portion 2412 that is formed integrally with the housing 21 and electrically connected to the second terminal 222.

[0052] Furthermore, the coil device 24 includes a core portion 243 disposed inside the coil portion 241 .

[0053] As described above, in the connector 20 with a built-in coil component shown in the above embodiment and its modified example, the coil portion 241 (the first coil portion 2411 and the second coil portion 2412) is formed integrally with the housing 21. The core portion 243 is disposed inside this coil portion 241, so that the coil component 24 is built into the housing 21.

[0054] This allows the coil component 24 built into the housing 21 to be electrically connected to the terminal 22 without the need for any other member such as a substrate.

[0055] This makes it possible to minimize the number of connection points when electrically connecting coil component 24 to terminal 22. As a result, it becomes possible to prevent an increase in the overall resistance of a product (such as a wired digital communication device) that uses coil component-integrated connector 20. By preventing an increase in the overall resistance of the product in this way, it becomes possible to more reliably prevent a decrease in the reliability of the product (such as the communication performance of a wired digital communication device).

[0056] Furthermore, since there is no need to insert other components such as a substrate, the number of components in the connector 20 with built-in coil components is prevented from increasing, and the configuration of the connector 20 with built-in coil components can be simplified.

[0057] In this way, by using the coil component-integrated connector 20 shown in the above embodiment and its modified example, it is possible to simplify the configuration of the coil component-integrated connector 20 while preventing a decrease in the reliability of products using the coil component-integrated connector 20.

[0058] Furthermore, if the coil component 24 is built into the housing 21, there is no need to mount the coil component 24 on the circuit board 40 on which the coil component built-in connector 20 is mounted. This makes it possible to further reduce the mounting space for the coil component built-in connector 20 on the circuit board 40. As a result, it becomes possible to reduce the size of the circuit board 40 and mount more other components on the circuit board 40, which also makes it possible to reduce the size of products that use the coil component built-in connector 20.

[0059] Furthermore, with the coil component-integrated connector 20 shown in the above embodiment and its modified examples, there is no need to assemble a substrate for fixing the coil component to the housing 21, as is the case when a pre-assembled, finished coil component is built into the housing 21. Furthermore, it is also possible to omit the step of electrically connecting the finished coil component to the terminals 22 using an electrical connection member such as a conductive resin. In this way, with the coil component-integrated connector 20 shown in the above embodiment and its modified examples, it is possible to simplify the manufacturing process for the coil component-integrated connector 20, making it easier to manufacture the coil component-integrated connector 20.

[0060] Furthermore, the housing 21 may be formed with a space 23 in which the core portion 243 is housed. The coil portion 241 may be a wiring pattern 242 formed on an inner surface 231 of the housing 21 that defines the space 23.

[0061] This allows the coil portion 241 to be mechanically integrated with the housing 21, and enables a more stable electrical connection between the coil component 24 and the terminal 22. As a result, the reliability of the electrical connection between the coil component 24 and the terminal 22 can be further improved.

[0062] Furthermore, the space 23 may be open to the outside of the housing 21 .

[0063] This allows core portion 243 to be detachably disposed inside coil portion 241, and therefore allows the inductance of coil component 24 to be changed by replacing it with a core portion 243 of a different size (diameter) or shape. As a result, it becomes possible to change the characteristics of coil component 24 (for example, the noise filter characteristics of a common mode choke coil) depending on the application, further improving the versatility of connector 20 with built-in coil component.

[0064] Furthermore, core portion 243 may be disposed inside coil portion 241 in a state in which core portion 243 is electrically insulated from first terminal 221 and second terminal 222 and separated from coil portion 241.

[0065] This makes it possible to prevent the core portion 243 from coming into contact with the coil portion 241, which may cause the position of the coil portion 241 to shift or damage the coil portion 241, when the core portion 243 is disposed inside the coil portion 241. As a result, it is possible to further improve the reliability of the electrical connection between the coil component 24 and the terminal 22.

[0066] Furthermore, by not electrically connecting core portion 243 to first terminal 221 and second terminal 222, there is no need to ensure contact pressure of core portion 243, and there is no need to increase the connection accuracy of core portion 243. As a result, core portion 243 can be more easily disposed inside coil portion 241.

[0067] [others] Although the present embodiment has been described above, the present embodiment is not limited to this, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the gist of the present embodiment.

[0068] For example, in the above embodiment and its modified example, one coil component 24 is built into the housing 21, but it is also possible to build a plurality of coil components 24 into the housing 21.

[0069] Furthermore, in the above embodiment and its modified examples, the core portion 243 is disposed inside the coil portion 241 in a removable state, but it is also possible to configure the core portion 243 to be disposed inside the coil portion 241 in a non-removable state. For example, it is possible to seal the space 23 with the core portion 243 housed in it using a sealing resin or the like. It is also possible to embed the coil portion 241 and the core portion 243 in the housing 21 by insert molding.

[0070] Furthermore, in the above embodiment and its modified examples, a common mode choke coil is exemplified as the coil component 24, but a pulse transformer can also be used as the coil component 24. In this case, it is also possible to provide a coil component built-in connector that incorporates at least one common mode choke coil and at least one pulse transformer.

[0071] Furthermore, in the above embodiment and its modified examples, an RJ45 connector to which a cable 30 used for Ethernet communication is connected is shown as an example of the connector 20 with a built-in coil component, but the present invention can be applied to various connectors. For example, the present invention can be applied to connectors used for signal transmission such as USB, IEEE1394, DVI, and LVDS.

[0072] It is also possible to change the housing, terminals, and other detailed specifications (shape, size, layout, etc.) as appropriate. [Explanation of symbols]

[0073] 20. Connector with built-in coil components 21 Housing 22 terminals 221 1st terminal 222 2nd terminal 23 Space 231 Inside 24 Coil parts 241 Coil section 2411 First coil section 2412 Second coil section 242 Wiring Pattern 243 Core

Claims

1. Housing and a terminal held in the housing; a coil component housed in the housing; Equipped with The terminal is A first terminal; a second terminal that pairs with the first terminal; It is equipped with The coil component includes: a coil section including a first helical coil section formed integrally with the housing and electrically connected to the first terminal, and a second helical coil section formed integrally with the housing and electrically connected to the second terminal; a core portion disposed inside the coil portion; Equipped with Connector with built-in coil components.

2. The housing has a space formed therein for accommodating the core portion, The coil portion is a wiring pattern formed on an inner surface of the housing that defines the space. The connector with a built-in coil component according to claim 1 .

3. The space is open to the outside of the housing. The connector with a built-in coil component according to claim 2.

4. the core portion is disposed inside the coil portion in a state in which the core portion is electrically insulated from the first terminal and the second terminal and is spaced apart from the coil portion; The connector with a built-in coil component according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

Images