Electrical connectors – With coupling separator – Including retainer or joiner
Reexamination Certificate
1999-09-27
2001-04-03
Sircus, Brian (Department: 2839)
Electrical connectors
With coupling separator
Including retainer or joiner
Reexamination Certificate
active
06210186
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to electrical connectors and more particularly to a captured connector position assurance component thereof.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Referring to
FIGS. 1 through 5
a prior art female electrical connector is depicted, which is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,957, issued on Jul. 7, 1998 to Fink et al, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference. This patent describes a female connector
15
and a male connector
20
which are mutually mated via sliding movement of a slide assist cover
12
.
The general structural details are set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,957 and need not be recounted in detail herein. However, with reference to
FIGS. 1 and 2
, an overall description of the electrical connectors will be derived therefrom (see generally Column 3, line 41 through Column 4, line 16).
To mutually mate female and male connectors
15
and
20
, a U-shaped slide
14
is first snapped into position into the slide assist cover
12
. A connector position assurance (CPA) component
10
is also snapped in place in a CPA holder
60
molded on the exterior of the slide assist cover
12
. With the slide
14
, CPA component
10
and the slide assist cover
12
so assembled, the slide is inserted into slots
62
and
64
in an outer housing
28
from the end
66
thereof, and then slid in place until the front surface
68
of the slide assist cover
12
bumps against the front of a CPA lock feature
70
, located on a cantilever arm
72
on the top of a wire shroud
18
. In this position, the male connector
20
is ready to be mated to the female connector
15
, wherein four slot inlets of the slide
14
are aligned with four slots of the outer housing. The slide assist cover
12
is now at its prestaged position relative to the outer housing
28
and the wire shroud
18
.
The male connector
20
is then aligned so that the tabs
4
,
6
,
8
and
11
enter the slots, beginning engagement of the male terminals
22
to the female terminals
40
. Force is then applied on the assist cover
12
to move the slide more into the outer housing
28
. Deflection of the cantilever arm
72
is necessary to allow the front surface
68
past the CPA lock feature
70
. Through the resulting motion, four inner slot ramps of, respectively, the slot inlets of the slide
14
act on the tabs
4
,
6
,
8
, and
11
, forcing the male connector into full engagement with the female connector. The slide assist cover
12
is now at its staged position relative to the outer housing
28
and the wire shroud
18
.
During this process, the CPA lock feature
70
is forced underneath the side
82
of the slide assist cover
12
through cantilevering action of cantilever arm
72
. The male/female connectors
20
and
15
are not fully engaged until the CPA lock feature
70
pops into an opening
84
in the slide assist cover
12
, wherein a locking port
75
thereof is aligned with the slide axis of the CPA component
10
. Once in this position the CPA component
10
can be slid forward from its engagement position in the CPA holder
60
to a snap-lock position in the locking port
75
of the CPA lock feature
70
, whereat the CPA component is also lodged in a docking port
85
(see
FIG. 3
) of a CPA docking feature
86
of the side
82
of the slide assist cover
12
.
If the CPA component
10
cannot be slid forward and snap into the snap-lock position in the CPA lock feature
70
, then the male and female connectors
20
,
15
are not completely mutually engaged. Once the CPA component
10
is slid and locked into position in the CPA lock feature, the male and female terminals are in contact and the male and female connectors are locked in place. The male and female connectors will remain locked in place and cannot be disengaged from each other until the CPA component
10
is slid out from the CPA lock feature
70
.
FIGS. 3 and 4
depict the functioning of the CPA component
10
to assure connector assurance when it is slid from its prestaged position, shown at
FIG. 3
, to its staged position, shown at FIG.
4
.
As shown at
FIG. 3
, the CPA component
10
has a pair of opposed CPA bosses
24
which are received into respective CPA indents
30
of the CPA holder
60
. The slide assist cover
12
is shown fully slid into final position as shown at
FIG. 2
, wherein the CPA lock feature
70
is received up into the opening
84
. The CPA component
10
is at its prestaged position.
Now, as shown at
FIG. 4
, the CPA component
10
has been slid through the locking port
75
of the CPA lock feature
70
and partly into the docking port
85
of the CPA docking feature
86
. The CPA component
10
is locked in the staged position via the CPA bosses
24
interferingly abutting respective CPA bossments
26
of the CPA lock feature
70
.
While the function of the connector
15
is very admirable, it suffers from the possibility of the CPA component
10
becoming separated from the slide assist cover
12
when the CPA component
10
is prestaged at the CPA holder
60
and the slide assist cover is at its prestaged position, as shown at FIG.
1
. This untoward situation is depicted at
FIG. 5
, wherein the CPA component
10
has been dislodged from the CPA holder
60
. Because only the opening
84
is adjacent the CPA holder
60
(the CPA lock feature
70
being absent from the opening), the CPA component
10
can fall free of the female connector
15
.
Accordingly, what is needed is to prevent the CPA component from being separated from the female component.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is a female electrical connector having a CPA component which is permanently captured thereto.
A female electrical connector is substantially as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,957, wherein the improvement thereto is a prestage CPA lock mechanism composed of a lock seat formed in a CPA component interfaced with a torsional lock of the female electrical connector. The torsional lock is composed of a prestage lock finger, a prestage lock release finger and a torsion pivot connected with a slide assist cover of the female electrical connector and joined with both the prestage lock finger and the prestage lock release finger.
In operation, when the CPA component is prestaged in a CPA holder of the slide assist cover, a lock boss of the prestage lock finger is seated interferingly into the lock seat of the CPA component, thereby preventing it from sliding out of the CPA holder. As the slide assist member is slid relative to an outer housing of the female electrical connector, an abutment surface thereof strikes the prestage lock release finger, causing the torsional lock member to rotate via torsioning at the torsion pivot. Upon the slide assist cover reaching its staged position, the lock boss is moved out of interference with the lock seat. Now the CPA component can be slide through a CPA lock feature in the manner known in U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,957.
Accordingly, it is an object to permanently capture a CPA component onto an electrical connector.
This, and additional objects, advantages, features and benefits of the present invention will become apparent from the following specification.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5569040 (1996-10-01), Sumida
patent: 5775957 (1998-07-01), Fink et al.
patent: 5938458 (1998-06-01), Krehbiel et al.
Cummings Mike P.
Fink Randy L.
Delphi Technologies Inc.
Jones Richard A.
Nasri Javaid
Sircus Brian
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