USB Type-C Connector Elastic Arm Protrusion Grounding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing USB Type-C electrical connectors suffer from unstable contact between the elastic arm and the ground terminal, leading to inadequate grounding and shielding, which results in poor high-frequency transmission performance due to assembly gaps and instability in the grounding effect.
Innovation Solution
The electrical connector design includes an insulating body with a base and tongue, featuring an elastic arm with a protrusion portion that presses the ground terminal and metal shell, ensuring stable contact and improved shielding by having the protrusion portion higher than the base, allowing the metal shell to interfere and push the elastic arm downward for enhanced grounding.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the elastic arm is used to connect the metal member and ground terminal, then grounding function is provided, but the contact is unstable and assembly gaps exist leading to poor grounding effect
Solution Approach 1:
The elastic arm is designed to be deformable, allowing it to dynamically adapt to assembly variations. The elastic arm can bend and deform to maintain stable contact between the metal member and ground terminal, eliminating assembly gaps and ensuring reliable grounding effect through its dynamic adjustment capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The cross-sectional dimensions of the elastic arm are optimized to achieve the desired balance between flexibility and stability. By carefully selecting the thickness and width parameters, the elastic arm provides sufficient elasticity to accommodate assembly tolerances while maintaining stable contact pressure for reliable grounding.
2Ease of manufacture
If the metal member and metal shell are assembled with gaps, then assembly is easier, but the shielding impact on terminals is poor
Solution Approach 1:
The protrusion portion height is precisely controlled to create optimal interference with the metal shell. This parameter optimization ensures that the metal shell is pushed sufficiently to close assembly gaps and achieve complete contact, providing effective noise shielding while maintaining ease of assembly through the self-adjusting mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The protrusion portion acts as an intermediary element between the elastic arm and metal shell. It transfers and amplifies the elastic arm's pushing force to the metal shell, ensuring complete contact and effective shielding without requiring complex assembly procedures.
3Reliability
If the protrusion portion is higher than the base, then the metal shell is urged effectively, but the elastic arm structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The elastic arm is divided into distinct functional sections: a base portion integrated with the metal member, a protrusion portion extending upward to contact the metal shell, and a connecting portion that provides the elastic connection to the ground terminal. This segmentation allows each section to perform its specific function while keeping the overall structure relatively simple.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design stabilizes the electrical connection between the metal member and ground terminal, enhancing shielding protection and reducing resonance, thereby achieving good high-frequency transmission performance.
Implementation Method 1
The elastic arm bends and extends backward to press the ground terminal
Implementation Method 2
the metal member is used for shielding noise signals at the surrounding of the terminals
Data Source
AI summary
An electrical connector includes an insulating body, multiple terminals, a metal member, and a metal shell. The insulating body has a base and a tongue extending forward from the base. The terminals are fixed in the base and exposed to upper and lower surfaces of the tongue. The terminals include at least one ground terminal. The metal member is fixed on the insulating body. The metal member bends backward and extends to form an elastic arm. The elastic arm presses the ground terminal. The elastic arm has a protrusion portion, and the protrusion portion is higher than the top surface of the base. The metal shell wraps a periphery of the insulating body and the metal member. The protrusion portion urges the metal shell, to enable a stable electrical connection between the metal member and the ground terminal, so that the electrical connector has good high frequency transmission performance.