Thermally efficient connector system
AssigneeMolex Incorporated
InventorKent E. Regnier
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A connector assembly can be provided. A receptacle includes terminals that can be positioned in a card slot on a 0.60 mm pitch (or greater). A biasing element can be provided in the card slot to engage a mating paddle card. The receptacle can be configured to allow air to flow from a front face to a rear face, the air passing through a middle wall. A plug assembly can be provided that includes a conductive body and is configured to generate some amount of heat. The body can include a surface that has cooling grooves. The cooling grooves allow air flow over the plug assembly so that the plug assembly can be cooled directly.
Claims6
A plug connector, comprising:
- a housing having a top surface and a bottom surface and a front end, the housing being formed of a thermally conductive material;
- and
- a paddle card positioned in the housing, the paddle card extending toward a front end of the plug connector, wherein one of the top surface and the bottom surface has cooling grooves extending along a length of the plug connector to form a grooved surface, the grooved surface having troughs in the surface of the housing formed by the cooling grooves, the cooling grooves configured, in operation, to allow air to flow along the grooved surface of the housing toward the front end when the housing is inserted into a receptacle port.
A connector system, comprising:
- a receptacle including a cage that defines a port and a housing positioned in the cage, the cage having a front face and a rear wall, the housing providing a card slot aligned with the port, the card slot including a plurality of grooves, wherein the housing supports a first plurality of terminals that have contacts positioned in the grooves;
- and
- a first plug connector positioned in the port and having a paddle card with pads that engages the contacts, the first plug connector including a body with a plurality of cooling grooves that extend along a length of the body to form a grooved surface, the grooved surface having troughs in the surface of the body formed by the cooling grooves, the cooling grooves configured to allow air to flow through the connector from the front face toward the rear wall so as to help directly cool the first plug connector.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.