Socket

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10840620-B2
Application number	US-201916289693-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 1, 2019
Priority date	May 30, 2018
Publication date	Nov 17, 2020
Grant date	Nov 17, 2020

Abstract

A terminal unit assembly in which a plurality of terminal units extending in a longitudinal direction are arranged in a lateral direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction, and a frame member including an assembly accommodating recess for accommodating the terminal unit assembly; wherein the terminal unit includes a longitudinally extending terminal holding part, a main body held by the terminal holding part, a plurality of terminals including contact parts protruding above the top face or below the bottom face of the terminal unit and contact arms connecting the main body to the contact parts, and a housing wall extending in the longitudinal direction; and the terminal holding part includes a plurality of laterally protruding protrusions, and at least one of the protrusions abuts against a housing wall of an adjacent terminal unit.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A socket, comprising:
a frame member, the frame member having a first pair of frame parts which extend in a longitudinal direction and a second pair of frame parts which extend in the lateral direction, the longitudinal direction being orthogonal to the lateral direction, the first pair of frame parts and the second pair of frame parts being connected to one another such that the frame member has a generally rectangular configuration, the frame member defining an assembly accommodating recess between the first and second pairs of frame parts; and
a terminal unit assembly that is configured to be substantially positioned within the assembly accommodating recess, the terminal unit assembly comprising a plurality of terminal units, each terminal unit extending in the longitudinal direction, adjacent terminal units being arranged in the lateral direction,
wherein each terminal unit includes a terminal holding part extending in the longitudinal direction, each terminal holding part spanning the assembly accommodating recess and being configured to be engaged with the second pair of frame parts, each terminal holding part includes a plurality of protrusions which protrude in the lateral direction,
wherein each terminal unit includes a housing wall extending in the longitudinal direction, the housing wall and the terminal holding part of each terminal unit being arranged to be adjacent to each other in the lateral direction, at least one of the plurality of protrusions of each terminal holding part abutting the housing wall of an adjacent terminal unit, and
wherein each terminal unit has a plurality of terminals held by the terminal holding part, the plurality of terminals including contact parts protruding above a top face and/or below a bottom face of the terminal unit.

2. The socket of claim 1 , wherein the at least one of the plurality of protrusions abuts the housing wall of the adjacent terminal unit via an adhesive.

3. The socket of claim 1 , wherein the at least one protrusion of the plurality of protrusions is deformed by abutting the housing wall of an adjacent terminal unit.

4. The socket of claim 1 , wherein one or more of the plurality of protrusions are adhesive pieces having distal faces abutting the housing wall of the adjacent terminal unit via an adhesive and wherein one or more of the plurality of protrusions are contacting pieces having distal faces deformed by the abutting housing wall of the adjacent terminal unit.

5. The socket of claim 4 , wherein an extent of lateral protrusion of each contacting piece is larger than an extent of lateral protrusion of each adhesive piece.

6. The socket of claim 4 , wherein a gap exists between adjacent protrusions.

7. The socket of claim 4 , wherein the protrusions are arranged alternately between contacting pieces and adhesive pieces in the longitudinal direction.

8. The socket of claim 4 , wherein the contacting pieces of the terminal unit and the contacting pieces of the adjacent terminal unit are in different positions in the longitudinal direction.

9. The socket of claim 8 , wherein the contacting pieces of the terminal unit assembly are staggered in plan view.

10. A method of manufacturing the socket according to claim 4 , wherein the terminal unit assembly is assembled by compressing a plurality of terminal units arranged side by side in the lateral direction and deforming the distal faces of the contacting pieces against the housing walls of adjacent terminal units.

11. The socket of claim 1 , wherein the first pair of frame parts and the second pair of frame parts each having top surfaces which are planar with one another.

12. The socket of claim 1 , wherein the assembly accommodating recess is bounded in the longitudinal direction by the second pair of frame parts and is bounded in the lateral direction by the first pair of frame parts.

13. The socket of claim 12 , wherein the assembly accommodating recess has a generally rectangular configuration.

14. A terminal unit assembly which is configured to be held in a frame member to form a socket, the terminal unit assembly comprising:
a first terminal unit, the first terminal unit having a first terminal holding part and a first housing wall, the first terminal holding part having an elongated first beam and a plurality of first terminals, the elongated first beam extending in a longitudinal direction and having opposite longitudinal ends the first terminal holding, part having, a plurality of first terminal holding grooves which are accessible in the lateral direction away from the first housing wall, the plurality of first terminals held by the elongated first beam in respective first terminal holding grooves, each first terminal having an upper contact part which protrudes above a top face of the elongated first beam, the elongated first beam having a plurality of protrusions which protrude therefrom in the lateral direction away from the first housing wall, each protrusion being disposed between adjacent first terminal holding grooves; and
a second terminal unit, the second terminal unit having a second terminal holding part and a second housing wall which are arranged to be adjacent to each other in a lateral direction, the second terminal holding part having an elongated second beam and a plurality of second terminals, the elongated second beam extending in the longitudinal direction and having opposite longitudinal ends, the plurality of second terminals held by the elongated second beam, each second terminal having an upper contact part which protrudes above a top face of the elongated second beam,
wherein the plurality of protrusions of the elongated first beam abut the second housing wall.

15. The terminal unit assembly as defined in claim 14 , wherein the first housing wall and the elongated first beam being arranged to be adjacent to each other in the lateral direction, the plurality of protrusions protruding from the elongated first beam protrude therefrom in the lateral direction away from the first housing wall.

16. The terminal unit assembly as defined in claim 14 , wherein the elongated second beam has a plurality of protrusions which protrude therefrom in the lateral direction away from the second housing wall.

17. The terminal unit assembly as defined in claim 16 , further comprising a third terminal unit, the third terminal unit having a third terminal holding part and a third housing wall which are arranged to be adjacent to each other in a lateral direction, the third terminal holding part having an elongated third beam, a pair of third engaging parts, and a plurality of third terminals, the elongated third beam extending in the longitudinal direction and having opposite longitudinal ends, the pair of third engaging parts connected to the longitudinal ends of the elongated third beam, the plurality of third terminals held by the elongated third beam, each third terminal having an upper contact part which protrudes above a top face of the elongated third beam, wherein the plurality of protrusions of the elongated second beam abut the third housing wall.

18. The terminal unit assembly as defined in claim 14 , wherein the first terminal unit has a pair of first engaging parts, the pair of first engaging parts being connected to the longitudinal ends of the elongated first beam, wherein the second terminal unit has a pair of second engaging parts, the pair of second engaging parts being connected to the longitudinal ends of the elongates second beam, and wherein the pair of first engaging parts of the pair of secon

Assignees

• Molex Llc

Inventors

• Kawabata Masato
• Shimoyama Hiroshi

Classifications

• H01R13/24

  resilient; resiliently-mounted · CPC title

• H05K3/301

  by means of a mounting structure (H05K3/325 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H01R12/58

  terminals for insertion into holes · CPC title

• H01R12/57

  surface mounting terminals · CPC title

• H01R13/502

  composed of different pieces (H01R13/514 takes precedence) · CPC title