EP-4740272-A1 - ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR AND METHOD OF FORMING SAME

Abstract

An electrical connector includes a plug assembly and a header assembly configured to electrically couple thereto. The plug assembly includes an insulative housing forming an open ended pocket, a conductive member mounted therewithin, and a lock and release assembly. The lock and release assembly includes a lock housing movably mounted within the insulative housing, a compression spring between the lock housing and the insulative housing, and a latch movably mounted on the lock housing. The latch is configured to move out of and into the pocket upon contact with the header assembly. A method of coupling the plug assembly with the header assembly is also provided.

Inventors

• CS, SANDEEP

Assignees

• Molex, LLC

Dates

Publication Date

20260513

Application Date

20240703

Claims (20)

1. 1. An electrical connector comprising: a plug assembly including an insulative housing forming a pocket having an open lower end and a passageway in communication with the pocket, a conductive member mounted within the pocket, and a lock and release assembly mounted within the insulative housing, the lock and release assembly including a lock housing movably seated within the passageway, a compression spring within the passageway and between the lock housing and the insulative housing, and a latch movably mounted on the lock housing, wherein the latch seats within the passageway and is configured to move out of and into the pocket; and a header assembly configured to electrically couple to the plug assembly, the header assembly including a header and a conductive male terminal, wherein the header assembly seats within the pocket and engages the latch to cause the movement of the latch out of out of the pocket during engagement with the plug assembly, and wherein the male terminal seats within the conductive member when fully engaged with the plug assembly.
2. 2. The electrical connector of claim 1, wherein the latch includes an elongated slot therein and the lock housing includes a projection which seats within the elongated slot, wherein the projection slides along the elongated slot during movement of the lock and release assembly.
3. 3. The electrical connector of claim 2, wherein the elongated slot is parallel to a longitudinal axis of the insulative housing when the header assembly is disengaged from the plug assembly and when the header is fully engaged with the plug assembly, and the slot is angled relative to the longitudinal axis of the insulative housing during seating of the header with the plug assembly.
4. 4. The electrical connector of claim 2, wherein the latch includes a second projection, wherein the second projection seats within an opening of the housing and the latch rotates around the second projection.
5. 5. The electrical connector of claim 4, wherein the second projection defines a vertical axis, and the projection of the lock housing defines a vertical axis.
6. 6. The electrical connector of claim 1, further comprising: a locking portion on the header; and wherein the latch is connected to the lock housing via a projection within a slot, and wherein during a mating operation, the locking portion applies force on the latch thereby displacing the latch angularly and the lock housing linearly, and in turn compressing the compression spring.
7. 7. The electrical connector of claim 6, wherein once the locking portion moves past the latch, the compression spring applies a force onto the lock housing to move the lock housing and the latch to an initial position.
8. 8. The electrical connector of claim 6, wherein during disengagement of the header assembly from the plug assembly, an external force is applied to the lock housing, thereby compressing the spring and angularly displacing the latch.
9. 9. The electrical connector of claim 6, wherein the slot is parallel to a longitudinal axis of the insulative housing when the header assembly is disengaged from the plug assembly and when the header is fully engaged with the plug assembly, and the slot is angled relative to the longitudinal axis of the insulative housing during seating of the header with the plug assembly.
10. 10. The electrical connector of claim 6, wherein the locking portion is integrally formed with the header.
11. 11. The electrical connector of claim 6, wherein the locking portion is a separate component attached to the header.
12. 12. The electrical connector of claim 1, wherein the header is formed of an insulative material.
13. 13. The electrical connector of claim 1, wherein the compression spring engages with a housing portion of the insulative housing, the housing portion being a separate component from the insulative housing and coupled thereto.
14. 14. The electrical connector of claim 1, wherein the pocket is separated by a wall into a recess within the wall and a circumferential space surrounding the wall, wherein the passageway is in direct communication with the circumferential space, and wherein the header seats within the circumferential space and the conductive contact seats within the recess.
15. 15. The electrical connector of claim 1, wherein the header has a passageway therethrough in which the male terminal is mounted.
16. 16. The electrical connector of claim 15, wherein the header has a flange extending outwardly therefrom.
17. 17. The electrical connector of claim 1, wherein the male terminal has a coupling portion configured to couple to a printed circuit board or busbar.
18. 18. A method of coupling an electrical connector comprising: inserting a conductive male terminal of a header assembly into a pocket of an insulative housing of a plug assembly; engaging the conductive male terminal with a latch of a lock and release assembly of the plug assembly, the lock and release assembly including a lock housing coupled with the insulative housing, the latch connected to the lock housing via a projection within a slot, and a compression spring positioned between the lock housing and the insulative housing, the latch being positioned within the pocket in a first position prior to engagement with the conductive male terminal and the latch is connected to the lock housing, and further engaging the conductive male terminal with the latch thereby displacing the latch angularly to a second position, displacing the lock housing linearly, and compressing the compression spring; and engaging the conductive male terminal with a conductive contact of the lock and release assembly, and wherein upon the latch engaging with a reduced section of the male terminal, the latch is automatically returned to the first position by expansion of the compression spring.
19. 19. The method of claim 18, wherein the conductive male terminal engages with the conductive contact simultaneously with engagement of the conductive male terminal with the latch.
20. 20. A method of coupling and decoupling an electrical connector comprising: inserting a conductive male terminal of a header assembly into a pocket of an insulative housing of a plug assembly; engaging the conductive male terminal with a latch of a lock and release assembly of the plug assembly, the lock and release assembly including a lock housing coupled with the insulative housing, the latch connected to the lock housing via a projection within a slot, and a compression spring positioned between the lock housing and the insulative housing, the latch being positioned within the pocket in a first position prior to engagement with the conductive male terminal and the latch is connected to the lock housing, and further engaging the conductive male terminal with the latch thereby displacing the latch angularly to a second position, displacing the lock housing linearly, and compressing the compression spring; engaging the conductive male terminal with a conductive contact of the lock and release assembly, and wherein upon the latch engaging with a reduced section of the male terminal, the latch is automatically returned to the first position by expansion of the compression spring; pressing on the lock housing to displace the lock housing linearly and compress the compression spring, thereby causing the latch to move the second position; and moving the plug assembly and header assembly relative to each other until the male terminal is removed from the pocket.

Description

ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR AND METHOD OF FORMING SAME RELATED APPLICATION [0001] This application claims priority to Indian Provisional Application No. 202321044413, filed July 3, 2023, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. TECHNICAL FIELD [0002] This disclosure relates to an electrical connector provided for coupling to a single conductor assembly for use in high power connections, such as for use in battery applications of electric vehicles (EV) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEV). The electrical connector includes a header assembly and a plug assembly for providing a wire-to-board connection. The plug assembly easily connects to and disconnects from the header assembly. DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART [0003] Wire-to-board connectors are provided with a header assembly mounted to a printed circuit board or busbar and which is matable with a plug assembly which is coupled to a wire. Some prior art wire-to-board connectors provide for an easy connect and disconnect between the plug assembly and the header assembly so that the power source can be plugged and unplugged without unplugging the entire connector. SUMMARY [0004] In an embodiment, an electrical connector includes a plug assembly electrically couplable with a header assembly. The plug assembly includes an insulative housing forming a pocket having an open lower end and a passageway in communication with the pocket, a conductive member mounted within the pocket, a lock and release assembly mounted within the insulative housing. The lock and release assembly includes a lock housing movably seated within the passageway, a compression spring within the passageway and between the lock housing and the insulative housing, and a latch movably mounted on the lock housing, wherein the latch seats within the passageway and is configured to move out of and into the pocket. The header assembly includes a header and a conductive male terminal. The header assembly seats within the pocket and engages the latch to cause the movement of the latch out of out of the pocket during engagement with the plug assembly. The male terminal seats within the conductive member when fully engaged with the plug assembly. [0005] The latch includes an elongated slot therein and the lock housing includes a projection which seats within the elongated slot. The projection slides along the elongated slot during movement of the lock and release assembly. [0006] The elongated slot is parallel to a longitudinal axis of the insulative housing when the header assembly is disengaged from the plug assembly and when the header is fully engaged with the plug assembly. The slot is angled relative to the longitudinal axis of the insulative housing during seating of the header with the plug assembly. [0007] In an embodiment, the latch includes a second projection which seats within an opening of the housing, and the latch rotates around the second projection. The second projection defines a vertical axis, and the projection of the lock housing defines a vertical axis. [0008] The header may include a locking portion on the header, and the latch is connected to the lock housing via a projection within a slot. During a mating operation, the locking portion applies force on the latch thereby displacing the latch angularly and the lock housing linearly, and in turn compressing the compression spring. Once the locking portion moves past the latch, the compression spring applies a force onto the lock housing to move the lock housing and the latch to an initial position. During disengagement of the header assembly from the plug assembly, an external force is applied to the lock housing, thereby compressing the spring and angularly displacing the latch. [0009] The slot is parallel to a longitudinal axis of the insulative housing when the header assembly is disengaged from the plug assembly and when the header is fully engaged with the plug assembly, and the slot is angled relative to the longitudinal axis of the insulative housing during seating of the header with the plug assembly. [0010] In an embodiment, the locking portion is integrally formed with the header. In another embodiment, the locking portion is a separate component attached to the header. [0011] The header may be formed of an insulative material. [0012] In an embodiment, the compression spring engages with a housing portion which is separate from the insulative housing and is coupled thereto. In an embodiment, the housing portion includes flexible arms which snap-fit to the insulative housing. [0013] In an embodiment, the pocket is separated by a wall into a recess within the wall and a circumferential space surrounding the wall. The passageway is in direct communication with the circumferential space. The header seats within the circumferential space and the conductive contact seats within the recess. [0014] In an embodiment, the header has passageway therethrough in which the male terminal is mounted. [0015] I