Electrical connectors – With coupling separator – Including retainer or joiner
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-19
2001-12-11
Luebke, Renee (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
With coupling separator
Including retainer or joiner
C139S423000, C139S352000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06328582
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a lever-type electrical connector.
BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION
In order to facilitate the fitting together of a pair of male and female housings of an electrical connector, one of the two housings is provided with a pivotable lever. A cam groove is provided on the lever in order to guide a corresponding housing, and a pin protrudes from the corresponding housing, this pin being inserted into the cam groove. When the two housings are to be fitted together, the lever is pivoted with the pin in an inserted state within the cam groove. When the lever reaches the final position, the two housings are completely drawn together.
However, the operator may believe that the two housings are completely fitted even though the lever has not reached the final position, and may stop pivoting the lever part-way through the operation. In that case, the two housings will remain in a half-fitted state.
The present invention has taken the above problem into consideration and aims to present a connector in which the operation of rotating the lever to the correct position can be used to detect whether the pair of male and female housings are in the fully fitted state.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the invention there is provided a lever type electrical connector comprising male and female connector housings adapted for mutual engagement, one of the connector housings having a lever engageable with the other connector housing and latchable thereto by first latch means provided on the housings, said lever being pivotable from an open to a closed position to draw said housings together, characterised in that one of said housings further includes a detecting member movable thereon from a first position to a second position. said detecting member having a resilient arm engageable with an abutment of said one of said housings in an open condition of said lever, said lever further including a releasing member adapted to bend said resilient arm in the closed position of said lever, thereby to release engagement of said arm and abutment and to permit movement of said detecting member to the second position.
The detecting member of the invention permits a half-fitted state to be readily detected since the detecting member can only be moved to the second position when the lever is in the closed condition.
Preferably symmetrical resilient arms are provided on the detecting member, these arms being engageable with abutments of one of the housings, but adapted to be deflected out of such engagement on movement of the lever to the closed condition.
In a preferred embodiment the detecting member protrudes in the first position.
The detecting member may include additional latch means to engage and hold the lever in the closed condition when the detecting member is moved to the second position.
In the preferred embodiment a resilient latch is provided to retain the lever in the closed position. and a resilient latch is also provided to retain the detecting member in the second position. Such latches are conveniently moulded in resilient plastics material and typically comprise a resilient arm engageable with a recess or protrusion of a relatively fixed component, which in the preferred embodiment is one of said housings.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5172998 (1992-12-01), Hatagishi
patent: 5178553 (1993-01-01), Hatagishi
patent: 5238417 (1993-08-01), Hatagishi
patent: 5562465 (1996-10-01), Taguchi et al.
patent: 5672068 (1997-09-01), Tsuchiya et al.
patent: 5910028 (1999-06-01), Tsuji
patent: 6012933 (2000-01-01), Katsuma
patent: 6019618 (2000-02-01), Nakata
patent: 6126480 (2000-10-01), Kawase et al.
Banner & Witcoff , Ltd.
Hammond Briggitte R.
Luebke Renee
Sumitomo Wiring Systems Ltd.
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