Electrical connector with terminal position assurance

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10218124-B1
Application number	US-201715789391-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Oct 20, 2017
Priority date	Oct 20, 2017
Publication date	Feb 26, 2019
Grant date	Feb 26, 2019

Abstract

An electrical connector includes a first housing with a plurality of first terminal slots. Each first terminal slot includes a first terminal lock. Each first terminal slot also includes a first end stop. The first end stops are part of the first housing. Each first terminal slot is configured to retain a first electrical terminal between the first terminal lock and the first end stop. The electrical connector also includes a first terminal position assurance. The first terminal position assurance includes a first terminal position assurance body. A plurality of first lock retainers extend from the first terminal position assurance body. The first lock retainers prevent the first terminal locks from moving to a release position. The first terminal position assurance body is located in the same plane as the first end stops.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An electrical connector comprising:
a first housing;
a first terminal position assurance attached to the first housing and including a tower that extends from a tower base to a tower outer end;
a second housing; and
a second terminal position assurance attached to the second housing and including a plurality of guide walls that extend from a tower opening to guide outer ends;
wherein the second housing is engaged with the first housing such that the outer end of the tower passes through the tower opening and toward the guide outer ends, and
wherein one of the tower and the plurality of guide walls is tapered so that an amount of space between the tower and the guide walls decreases along a length thereof.

2. The electrical connector of claim 1 , wherein both of the tower and the plurality of guide walls are tapered so that the amount of space between the tower and the guide walls decreases along the length thereof.

3. The electrical connector of claim 1 , wherein the tower includes forward walls and substantially perpendicular cross walls.

4. The electrical connector of claim 3 , wherein both of the tower and the plurality of guide walls are tapered so that the amount of space between the tower and the guide walls decreases along the length thereof.

5. The electrical connector of claim 1 , wherein the tower extends from the first terminal position assurance in a direction and the guide walls extend from the second terminal position assurance in the direction.

6. The electrical connector of claim 1 , wherein the tower and the guide walls cooperate to position the first terminal position assurance in alignment with the second terminal position assurance.

7. The electrical connector of claim 6 , wherein both the tower and the guide walls are tapered.

8. The electrical connector of claim 7 , wherein the tower includes forward walls and substantially perpendicular cross walls.

9. The electrical connector of claim 8 , further including a first terminal slot on the first housing defined in part by assurance slot walls on the first terminal position assurance and configured to hold a first electrical terminal; and
a second terminal slot on the second housing defined in part by assurance slot walls on the second terminal position assurance and configured to hold a second electrical terminal to mate with the first electrical terminal when the second housing is in the seated position relative to the first housing.

10. An electrical connector comprising:
a first housing including a plurality of first terminal slots and a plurality of first terminal locks configured to retain one or more first electrical terminals in one or more of the first terminal slots;
a first terminal position assurance attached to the first housing and including a plurality of first lock retainers that prevents the first terminal locks from moving to release positions, and further including a tower that extends therefrom generally parallel to an insertion direction;
a second housing including a plurality of second terminal slots and a plurality of second terminal locks configured to retain one or more second electrical terminals in one or more of the second terminal slots;
a second terminal position assurance attached to the second housing and including a plurality of second lock retainers that prevents the second terminal locks from moving to release positions, and further including a plurality of guide walls that extend therefrom generally parallel to the insertion direction;
wherein the second housing is engaged with the first housing such that the tower passes between the guide walls, and
wherein one of the tower and the plurality of guide walls is tapered relative to the insertion direction.

11. The electrical connector of claim 10 , wherein both the tower and the plurality of guide walls are tapered relative to the insertion direction.

12. The electrical connector of claim 10 , wherein the tower extends from a tower base adjacent to the first terminal position assurance to an outer end, and wherein the tower is tapered so that the outer end has a cross-section that is smaller than a cross-section of the tower base.

13. The electrical connector of claim 10 , wherein the plurality of guide walls extends from a tower opening in the second terminal position assurance to a guide outer end, and wherein the plurality of guide walls are tapered so that a space at the guide outer end has a cross-section that is smaller than the cross-section of the tower opening.

14. The electrical connector of claim 13 , wherein the tower extends from a tower base adjacent to the first terminal position assurance to an outer end, and wherein the tower is tapered so that the outer end has cross-section that is smaller than the cross-section of the tower base.

15. The electrical connector of claim 14 , further including a plurality of assurance slot walls on the first terminal position assurance that define portions of the first terminal slots and a plurality of assurance slot walls on the second terminal position assurance that define portions of the second terminal slots.

16. An electrical connector comprising:
a first housing including a plurality of first terminal slots, wherein a first electrical terminal is located in one of the first terminal slots and is retained in the first terminal slot by a first terminal lock;
a first terminal position assurance attached to the first housing and including a first lock retainer that prevents the first terminal lock from releasing the first electrical terminal, and further including a tower that extends therefrom generally parallel to an insertion direction;
a second housing including a plurality of second terminal slots, wherein a second electrical terminal is located in one of the second terminal slots and is retained in the second terminal slot by a second terminal lock; and
a second terminal position assurance attached to the second housing and including a second lock retainer that prevents the second terminal lock from releasing the second electrical terminal, and further including a plurality of guide walls that extend therefrom generally parallel to the insertion direction;
wherein the second housing is engaged with the first housing, the tower is located in a space between the plurality of guide walls, the first electrical terminal is engaged with the second electrical terminal, and the tower is located in a space between the guide walls with less space between the tower and the guide walls.

17. The electrical connector of claim 16 , further including a plurality of assurance slot walls on the first terminal position assurance that define portions of the first terminal slots and a plurality of assurance slot walls on the second terminal position assurance that define portions of the second terminal slots.

18. The electrical connector of claim 17 , wherein the tower and the plurality of guide walls cooperate to position the first electrical terminal in alignment with the second electrical terminal.

19. The electrical connector of claim 18 , wherein the tower includes forward walls that are substantially perpendicular to the insertion direction and substantially perpendicular cross walls that are substantially perpendicular to the insertion direction.

Assignees

• Lear Corp

Inventors

• Probert Deborah
• Pusch Reinhard
• Menzies David
• Rangi Bhupinder
• Glick Michael
• Canol Yasin

Classifications

• H01R13/62966

  Comprising two pivoting levers · CPC title

• H01R13/4367

  Insertion of locking piece from the rear · CPC title

• H01R2201/26

  for vehicles · CPC title

• H01R13/62955

  Pivoting lever comprising supplementary/additional locking means · CPC title

• H01R13/62933

  Comprising exclusively pivoting lever · CPC title