Horizontal USB Type-C Connector Balanced Force Mating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing USB Type C connectors lack a balanced force arrangement during mating due to the absence of additional signal contacts on one mating surface, leading to instability when using complementary plug connectors.
Innovation Solution
A horizontal USB Type C connector design featuring a terminal module with an insulative housing and mating tongue, where first contacts are fully exposed on one surface and a pair of signal contacts are exposed on the other, with protrusions acting as dummy contacting sections to balance forces during mating.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If additional signal contacts are added to the second mating surface, then the connector achieves balanced force arrangement and stability, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses protrusions on the second mating surface that replicate the contacting sections of the first contacts. These protrusions act as dummy contacting sections that provide the necessary mechanical interface without requiring additional functional signal contacts, thus achieving symmetry and stability while avoiding increased complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The protrusions serve multiple functions: they provide mechanical support for balanced force distribution, enable dual-orientation insertion stability, and replicate the contacting functionality without requiring separate dedicated components. This multi-functionality resolves the contradiction by achieving reliability without proportional increases in device complexity
2Manufacturing precision
If protrusions are added as dummy contacting sections, then force balance and alignment are improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The protrusions are integrated directly into the housing structure as an inherent feature rather than being separate components. This merging of the dummy contacting sections into the housing itself simplifies manufacturing by eliminating additional assembly steps and reducing the number of parts, thereby improving ease of manufacture while maintaining alignment precision
Data Source
AI summary
A horizontal type electrical connector includes a terminal module having an insulative housing with a base and a mating tongue extending forwardly from the base wherein the mating tongue forms opposite first and second mating surfaces. The plurality of contacts are integrally formed within the housing, and including a plurality of first contacts having corresponding contacting sections exposed upon the first surface in a full manner while only a pair of second contacts having corresponding contacting sections exposed upon the second surface at a center region. The second mating surface forms a plurality of protrusions aligned with the corresponding contacting sections of the first contacts in the vertical direction so as to performing dummy contacting sections for providing a balanced force arrangement for the inserted complementary plug connector.