Pluggable connection housing with anti-kink element

Details Pluggable connection housing with anti-kink element Pluggable connection housing with anti-kink element

2003-06-20

2004-05-11

Paumen, Gary F (Department: 2833)

Electrical connectors

With or having flexible guard or support for cable or conductor

Reexamination Certificate

active

06733322

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a pluggable connection housing with a boot element which maintains the minimum bending radius of a cable attached thereto.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A combination of pluggable connection housing and booted or anti-kink element of this type is known from DE 44 12 571 C1. In the known pluggable connection housing, a contact passageway or duct is provided for an optical fibre cable and a contact passageway duct for a metal cable. Corresponding male and female members for the respective cable are arranged in the contact passageways and connected to one another while producing a pluggable connection.
In order to retain a minimum bending radius when leaving the pluggable connection housing, in particular in the optical fibre cable, the pluggable connection housing has a boot or anti-kink element. According to DE 44 12 571 C1 this is formed in two parts from a mount and a latching cap. The mount is formed integrally with the pluggable connection housing and the latching cap is latched thereto with the cable inserted therein. Accordingly, the boot is to be fastened at least partially detachably to the pluggable connection housing, the detachable part being the latching cap.
The connection of latching cap to the mount or pluggable connection housing can be easily accomplished by various methods known in the art. However, the construction is relatively complex as the mount is formed integrally with the rest of the pluggable connection housing. In addition, due to the fixed orientation of the mount only a correspondingly orientated delivery of the optical fibre cable is possible when the latching cap is unlatched. The latching elements are arranged on the latching cap or pluggable connection housing to correspond to this single possible orientation of latching cap relative to pluggable connection housing and the latching cap itself is shaped specifically to be arranged in its orientation relative to the pluggable connection housing.
SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE
The object of the invention is to improve a pluggable connection housing with the boot as described herein so that both pluggable connection housing and boot are constructed more simply and can be handled more easily and, at the same time, can be varied in their orientation relative to one another.
This object is achieved in conjunction with the features of the preamble of claim
1
in that the boot is substantially tubular and has peripheral undercuts spaced in the peripheral direction at one plug-in end. A respective undercut engages with at least one undercut element arranged in the plug-in aperture when the plug-in end is in an inserted or plugged-in position.
The boot is configured such that the corresponding curvature thereof prevents the bending radius of a cable, in particular an optical fibre cable, from falling below a minimum bending radius. The tubular design of the boot, insures that a corresponding cable can be securely guided and received therein without a further counter-element. The boot, like the pluggable connection housing, can be handled separately and both can be easily connected together. An undercut is provided at the plug-in end of the boot for reciprocal detachable connection. This can, for example, elastically deform during insertion into a plug-in aperture of a corresponding contact passageway and can then elastically reform after engaging behind the undercut element. The plug-in position of the boot is fixed by the engagement of undercut element and undercut.
Due to the shape of the boot and its connection to the pluggable connection housing, the orientation of the boot is variable relative to the pluggable connection housing. Consequently, there is a plurality of possibilities for leading the cable relative to the pluggable connection housing. As a result, there are more possible applications for the pluggable connection housing and the boot, in particular for use in assembly sites which are difficult to access or when there is little space, as is the case, for example, in a motor vehicle.
The pluggable connection housing can have two or more contact passageways extending, in particular, parallel to one another. The contact passageways can be used for metal cables, optical fibre cables or other cable-type line systems of both male and female configurations. The boot can also be designed in such a way that a specific radius can be set when leading a corresponding cable from the pluggable connection housing, such that the cable is relieved of tension owing to the boot or pluggable connection housing or else a certain degree of axial movement is possible.
In a simple embodiment, two substantially opposing latching lugs can be arranged in at least one plug-in aperture of a contact passageway as an undercut element. When inserting the plug-in end of the boot, the undercut formed there latches with the two latching lugs. The plug-in position of the plug-in end is thereby fixed. The boot can be detached from the pluggable connection housing by removing the plug-in end from the plug-in aperture. Undercut and/or latching lugs are designed in this case so as to be elastic enough to allow the detachment when a sufficient force is applied.
The boot can have a slot to simplify insertion of a cable and, in particular, of an optical fibre cable. As a result, an elasticity is produced in a simple manner in the region of the plug-in end for latching to and unlatching from the pluggable connection housing.
The undercut on the boot can, for example, be formed by a peripheral flange projecting radially outwards or by latching elements on the outside of the boot. In a preferred embodiment, the undercut of the boot is formed by a latching groove extending at a distance from the end face of the plug-in end. The corresponding latching lugs or the undercut element in the plug-in aperture can engage therein in the plugged-in position. It is noted that more than two latching lugs can be arranged as undercut elements in the plug-in aperture.
In order to hold the boot in the plug-in aperture in a relatively secure manner when it is in the plugged-in position, compensating projections can project radially outwards from the boot or else radially inwards inside the plug-in aperture. These compensating projections accordingly contact the inside of the plug-in aperture or the outside of the plug-in end and ensure that the boot is held in position with relatively little play.
The latching lugs can project from an inner wall of the plug-in aperture or the contact passageway. However, to avoid the need for excessive deformation of the corresponding plug-in end of the boot to latch with the latching lugs, a latching lug of this type can be designed as a latching slope extending obliquely inwards with an adjoining offset radially outwards in the inner wall of the contact passageway. As a result, the undercut on the boot can reform, or resiliently return toward its unstressed state, into the offset radially outwards with respect to the inner wall of the contact passageway.
The offset can be formed by a corresponding depression in the inner wall. In a preferred embodiment, the offset can be formed by a housing aperture extending radially outwards.
An offset of this type can be formed during the manufacture of the pluggable connection housing, which is preferably made of plastic material, by a corresponding core, which holds the outwardly extending housing apertures open during shaping of the pluggable connection housing. Another option for manufacturing the offset, a longitudinal groove extends along an inner wall of the contact passageway from a visible side of the contact of the pluggable connection housing.
The latching lugs can have identical configurations to simplify construction.
In order to emphasise the plug-in aperture visually and simultaneously to also make it more accessible, the contact passageway can project upwards relative to the rest of the pluggable connection housing with an end portion comprising the plug-in aperture. As a result, it can, on the one hand, be easily ascertai

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