Waterproof Electrical Connector With Spaced Mating Surfaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electrical connector assemblies lack an efficient waterproof mechanism during mating, as seen in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2019/0237889, which fails to provide a reliable sealing solution.
Innovation Solution
The electrical connector assembly features a plug connector with a bulged mating surface and a set of rings that, when mated with a receptacle connector, creates a snug fit within a mating cavity, utilizing waterproofing sealing members and alignment slots to prevent humidity and vacuum interference, ensuring a secure and waterproof connection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the plug mating portion is received within the receptacle mating cavity with spaced mating surfaces, then waterproofing performance is improved, but the sealing mechanism complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
A set of rings is introduced as an intermediary sealing element between the plug mating portion and receptacle mating cavity. These rings fill the gap created by the spaced mating surfaces and provide the actual sealing function, preventing humidity invasion while maintaining the beneficial spacing for vacuum prevention.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing function is segmented from the mating surfaces themselves and assigned to dedicated ring elements. This allows the mating surfaces to be spaced apart for vacuum prevention while the rings provide concentrated sealing at critical locations, dividing the sealing task into manageable segments.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the mating surface is spaced from the mating face during mating, then vacuum effects are prevented, but waterproofing reliability may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The rings serve as intermediary sealing elements that bridge the gap between spaced mating surfaces. They maintain waterproofing reliability by sealing around the plug contacts while the spacing prevents vacuum effects during unmating operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing is applied locally at specific locations where the rings contact the mating cavity, rather than requiring complete surface contact. This localized sealing is sufficient to prevent humidity invasion while maintaining the overall spacing for vacuum prevention.
Data Source
AI summary
A plug connector includes an insulative plug housing with a plurality of plug contacts retained thereto. The plug housing forms a plug mating portion with a mating surface thereon. The plug contacts include front blade contacting sections extending beyond the mating surface and are arranged along the first direction with one another. Viewed along the first direction, the mating surface is curved with a bulged middle section. The receptacle connector includes a receptacle housing with a plurality of receptacle contacts retained thereto. The receptacle housing forms therein a mating cavity in which a receptacle mating portion extends along the mating direction wherein the receptacle mating portion forms a mating face behind which the receptacle contacts are located. During mating, the plug mating portion is snugly received within the mating cavity with the mating surface of the plug connector is spaced from the mating face of the receptacle connector.