Electrical Connector Shielding via Ground Terminal Extraction

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing electrical connectors face challenges in preventing short-circuiting and ensuring proper assembly, leading to reduced shielding effectiveness and increased manufacturing complexity due to differences in structure between signal and grounding terminals.

Innovation Solution

An electrical connector design featuring a body with conductive ground and signal accommodating holes, an insulating member with corresponding accommodating portions for signal terminals, and ground terminals with positioning portions that contact the inner surfaces of ground accommodating holes, allowing for same-structure terminals and simplified assembly.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If signal terminals are designed with extending portions to contact shielding members, then shielding effect is improved, but structure complexity increases and manufacturing difficulty increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveshielding effectVSAvoidstructure complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts the extending portion feature from signal terminals and applies it exclusively to ground terminals. This allows ground terminals to contact shielding members for effective grounding without requiring signal terminals to have complex extending portions, thus maintaining shielding effect while reducing overall structure complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies different structural features to different terminal types based on their specific functions. Ground terminals have extending portions for contacting shielding members, while signal terminals have flush mounting surfaces. This local differentiation optimizes each terminal's performance without unnecessary complexity elsewhere.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

2Reliability

If ground terminals and signal terminals have different structures, then shielding effect is achieved, but manufacturing difficulty increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveshielding effectVSAvoidmanufacturing difficulty

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts the extending portion feature from the general terminal design and applies it only where needed (ground terminals). This selective application maintains the shielding effect while minimizing the number of components requiring complex manufacturing, thereby reducing overall manufacturing difficulty.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

3Ease of manufacture

If signal terminals are designed without extending portions, then manufacturing is simplified, but shielding effect deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemanufacturing simplicityVSAvoidshielding effect

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces ground terminals with extending portions as intermediaries between the signal terminals and the shielding members. These ground terminals make contact with the shielding members to establish the shielding effect, while signal terminals remain simple without extending portions, thus maintaining both manufacturing simplicity and shielding effectiveness.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

4Reliability

If operators must differentiate between ground terminals and signal terminals during assembly, then proper assembly is ensured, but assembly complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveassembly accuracyVSAvoidassembly complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent employs asymmetric design where ground terminals have extending portions and signal terminals have flush mounting surfaces. This structural asymmetry creates visual and tactile differences that guide operators during assembly, ensuring proper placement without increasing assembly complexity through complex procedures or additional components.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #4Asymmetry

Data Source

PatentUS10236635B2Electrical connector with shield structure

Publication Date: 2019.03.19 LOTES

AI summary

An electrical connector includes: a body provided with multiple ground accommodating holes and multiple signal accommodating holes running through the body vertically. The inner side surfaces of the ground and signal accommodating holes are electrically conductive. An insulating member is separately formed from the body, and is provided with multiple accommodating portions corresponding only to and accommodated in the signal accommodating holes. Multiple signal terminals are respectively provided with at least one positioning portion positioned correspondingly to one accommodating portion so that the signal terminals are not in contact with the signal accommodating holes. Multiple ground terminals have the same structures as the signal terminals, and the positioning portions of the ground terminals are positioned on the inner side surfaces of the ground accommodating holes, so that the inner side surface of each ground accommodating hole has a contact area in contact with the positioning portion of one ground terminal.