US 4,070,086 AGranted

Variable length electrical connector

AssigneeGeneral Signal Corporation

InventorLarry F. Trafford

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Abstract

An electrical connector means comprising a plurality of individual units which may be coupled end-for-end to provide a multiple-conductor connecting means of any desired length. Each of the individual units comprises an outer housing of an electrically non-conductive material and defining on its outer surfaces male and female dovetail coupling means so that a plurality of such units can be mechanically connected together. The outer housing defines an axial bore for receiving a metallic connector which includes a conductor clamping means. The housing further defines a transverse bore extending through one sidewall, other than the one defining a dovetail coupling means, into the axial bore. An electrical conductor can be inserted into the transverse bore so that the end of the conductor can be received into and clamped by the clamping means which includes a clamping screw. The conductor clamping means at the end thereof opposite the screw includes a projecting pin which fits into an axial aperture in the housing communicating with the axial bore, thereby permitting such pin to extend out of the bottom of the housing and be inserted into a corresponding aperture in, for example, a printed circuit card.

Claims8

Dependent claims

Electrical connector means comprising in combination:

an elongate electrically conductive conductor clamping element defining a longitudinal bore extending therein from one end and also a transversely extending bore,
securing means in said longitudinal bore and movable along the axis of said longitudinal bore for bearing against a conductor inserted into said transverse bore,
a pin projecting axially from said element at its other end,
an elongate electrically insulating housing having an internal elongate substantially blind bore extending from one end for slidably receiving said element in the direction of the axis of said blind bore and with said axis of said blind bore being parallel to said longitudinal bore, said housing defining therein a bore transverse to said axis and extending through one sidewall thereof so as to communicate with said internal blind bore of said housing and being also aligned with said transverse bore in said element,
an axial aperture in the other end of said housing extending into said blind bore in said housing through which projects said pin when said conductor clamping element is slidably inserted into said internal bore of said housing to permit external electrical connection thereto and thus to a conductor inserted into the aligned transverse apertures in said housing and said element.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.