Connector with low force socket contact having an integral hood

A printed circuit receptacle connector mateable with a plug connector comprising:

• an elongated body of dielectric material having a front face engageable with the plug connector, a rear face and a pair of sides;
• means defining a plurality of contact receiving cavities in said body extending between said front and rear faces and having openings at said front and rear faces and in one of said sides to form with said one side a forward abutment, each of said cavity means comprising a pair of serially extending walled sections respectively having smaller and larger generally rectangular cross-sections and a transition section connecting said walled sections with said larger enclosure opening at said front face and at said side and said smaller enclosure opening at said rear face, said transition section including a pair of opposing ledges and a pair of opposing inclined ramps perpendicularly placed with respect to said ledges;
• a plurality of single-piece electrically conductive socket contacts placed respectively in said cavity means, each said contact comprising stamped and formed terminal and body portions,
• said terminal portion having a rectangular cross-section and extending through and in non-rotatable contact with said smaller walled cavity section, a pair of spurs facing towards said front body face and extending outwardly from said terminal portion into gripping engagement with said body material for axially retaining said contact tightly within said cavity means,
• said body portion including a back support having opposed ends and sides and connected at a first of said ends to said terminal portion and extending therefrom at the second of said ends towards said front body face, a retention tab extending outwardly from said back support and into the opening through said body side to latch with said abutment and to retain said contact in said cavity body, a pair of parallelly placed tuning-fork configured tapered tines extending towards said front body face and having surfaces facing said terminal portions and resting on said ledges, said tines being secured perpendicularly to said back support at said first end to form with said back support a generally rectangular cross-section to said body portion fittable in close contact with said larger enclosure;
• and a hood secured perpendicularly to said second end of said back support to cover said tines and to close the cavity opening at said front face, said hood having means defining an oval-shaped bevelled opening therein, with the major axis of said oval-shaped opening means lying generally parallel to a line extending from one to the other of said tines to permit easy entry of an off-axis mating pin contact into electrical contact with said tines, said hood being moveable by said mating pin contact in a direction along the minor axis of said oval-shaped opening means through flexure of said back support.