Female and male electrical connectors requiring low insertion forces
AssigneeUnited Technologies Automotive, Inc.
InventorsDhirendra C. Roy, Zenon Hotra, Steven K. Heckman
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A female electrical connector has a wire attachment segment and a receptacle segment. A pair of apertures are juxtapositioned within the receptacle segment circumferentially separated from one another by solid portions of the receptacle segment therebetween. A male electrical connector has a wire attachment segment, a bulged segment and a shaft segment. The male electrical connector has a longitudinal channel positioned within the shaft segment. Considered individually or together, these electrical connectors substantially reduce required insertion forces.
Claims21
A male electrical connector electrically coupled with an electrically conductive wire, said male electrical connector comprising:
- a wire attachment segment securely affixed to a predetermined portion of said conductive wire;
- a pedestal segment having a substantially cylindrical shape electrically coupled to and extending from between said wire attachment segment;
- a constricted segment being disposed against said pedestal segment;
- a bulged segment electrically coupled to and extending coaxially from said constricted segment, said bulged segment having a larger peripheral wall as measured transversely to a longitudinal axis than said constricted segment;
- a shaft segment electrically coupled to and projecting coaxially from said bulged segment, said shaft segment having a cylindrical wall of smaller diameter than said transverse measurement of said peripheral wall of said bulged segment, said shaft segment further having a longitudinal channel with a trough substantially parallel to said longitudinal axis, said trough of said longitudinal channel being coincidental with a seam longitudinally extending along said shaft segment and said longitudinal channel having a substantially V-shaped cross sectional configuration such that said shaft is radially compressible, depending walls defining said trough projecting internal from and being turned from said cylindrical wall of said shaft segment;
- and
- a head segment having a tapered configuration pointing away from said shaft segment.
An electrical connection comprising:
- a female electrical connector comprising:
- a wire attachment segment securely affixed to a predetermined portion of said wire;
- a receptacle segment electrically coupled with said wire attachment segment, said receptacle segment being substantially hollow;
- and
- a pair of apertures each being defined by an inner edge longitudinally juxtapositioned within said receptacle segment, said pair of apertures each being circumferentially separated from one another on all edges by solid portions of said receptacle segment;
- a male electrical connector comprising:
- a wire attachment segment securely affixed to a predetermined portion of said wire;
- a bulged segment electrically coupled to said wire attachment segment, said bulged segment having a peripheral wall;
- and
- a shaft segment electrically coupled to and projecting coaxially from said bulged segment, said shaft segment having a cylindrical wall of smaller diameter than a transverse measurement of said peripheral wall of said bulged segment, said shaft segment further having a longitudinal channel with a radially extending wall inwardly turned from said cylindrical wall, said longitudinal channel having an internal bottom trough substantially parallel with said longitudinal axis;
- and
- a portion of said shaft segment of said male electrical connector being insertable within said receptacle segment and past said pair of apertures of said female electrical connector such that said male and female electrical connectors are electrically connectable to each other, said pair of apertures within said female electrical connector and said longitudinal channel of said male electrical connector allowing said male electrical connector to be easily insertable within said receptacle segment of said female electrical connector.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.