Electrical connector

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2017069986-A1
Application number	US-201514844674-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Sep 3, 2015
Priority date	Sep 3, 2015
Publication date	Mar 9, 2017
Grant date	—

Abstract

An electrical connector includes a housing stack comprising a front housing and a rear housing coupled to the front housing at a seam. The housing stack defines plural contact cavities that extend continuously through the front housing and the rear housing between mating and mounting ends. A lossy spacer is disposed at the seam between the front and rear housings. The lossy spacer has plural contact cavities aligned with corresponding contact cavities of the housing stack. Signal and ground contacts are disposed in corresponding contact cavities of the housing stack. The signal contacts extend through the lossy spacer such that the signal contacts do not directly engage the lossy spacer. The ground contacts extend through the contact cavities in the lossy spacer such that the ground contacts are coupled by the lossy spacer.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . An electrical connector comprising:
a housing stack comprising a front housing and a rear housing, the front housing defining a mating end of the housing stack configured for mating with a mating connector, the rear housing defining a mounting end of the housing stack configured for mounting to a circuit board, the mounting end being opposite the mating end, the rear housing disposed rearward of the front housing and being coupled to the front housing at a seam, the housing stack defining plural contact cavities that extend continuously through the front housing and the rear housing between the mating end and the mounting end; a lossy spacer disposed at the seam between the front and rear housings, the lossy spacer having plural contact cavities aligned with corresponding contact cavities of the housing stack; signal contacts disposed in corresponding contact cavities of the housing stack and being provided at or near the mating and mounting ends for electrical connection to the mating connector and the circuit board, respectively; and ground contacts disposed in corresponding contact cavities of the housing stack and being provided at or near the mating and mounting ends for electrical connection to the mating connector and the circuit board, respectively; wherein the signal contacts extend through the lossy spacer such that the signal contacts do not directly engage the lossy spacer, and wherein the ground contacts extend through the contact cavities in the lossy spacer such that the ground contacts are coupled by the lossy spacer.

2 . The electrical connector of claim 1 , wherein the lossy spacer includes a plurality of strips separated by gaps, the strips having the contact cavities, the ground contacts extending through the strips and engaging the strips, the signal contacts extending through the gaps.

3 . The electrical connector of claim 2 , wherein portions of the housing stack are received in the gaps.

4 . The electrical connector of claim 1 , wherein the front housing and the rear housing each have an inner end facing each other at the seam, at least one of the front and rear housing having pockets at the inner end thereof, the lossy spacer being received in the pockets.

5 . The electrical connector of claim 1 , wherein the signal contacts are arranged in signal rows along corresponding row axes and the ground contacts are arranged in ground rows along corresponding row axes, the lossy spacer being aligned with each of the ground rows.

6 . The electrical connector of claim 5 , wherein the lossy spacer includes a plurality of strips separated by gaps, the strips being aligned with the ground rows, the gaps being aligned with the signal rows.

7 . The electrical connector of claim 5 , wherein the lossy spacer connects the ground contacts in same ground rows and does not connect the ground contacts in different ground rows.

8 . The electrical connector of claim 1 , wherein the lossy spacer includes a plurality of strips arranged generally parallel to each other, the lossy spacer comprises removable connection bars attached to ends of the strips, the connection bars hold a spacing of the strips, the connection bars are removed after the lossy spacer is disposed between the front and rear housings.

9 . The electrical connector of claim 1 , wherein the lossy spacer is manufactured from a lossy material that absorbs at least some electrical resonance propagating through the electrical connector between the mating end and the mounting end.

10 . The electrical connector of claim 1 , wherein the lossy spacer is manufactured from a lossy material having conductive particles in a dielectric binder material.

11 . The electrical connector of claim 1 , wherein the lossy spacer includes a plurality of strips separated by gaps, the strips having inner edges facing the signal contacts, the inner edges being nonplanar.

12 . The electrical connector of claim 11 , wherein the inner edges have ribs and pockets, the ribs along the inner edges being coplanar and the pockets along the inner edges being coplanar.

13 . The electrical connector of claim 11 , wherein the ribs and the pockets of a first of the strips are aligned across the corresponding gap with the ribs and the pockets of a second of the strips.

14 . The electrical connector of claim 11 , wherein the inner edges of a first of the strips define a first inner edge and a second inner edge, the first and second inner edges facing different gaps, the ribs of the first inner edge being aligned with the pockets of the second inner edge, the pockets of the first inner edge being aligned with the ribs of the second inner edge.

15 . An electrical connector comprising:
a housing stack comprising a front housing and a rear housing disposed rearward of the front housing and being coupled to the front housing at a seam, the front housing defining a mating end of the housing stack configured for mating with a mating connector, the rear housing defining a mounting end of the housing stack configured for mounting to a circuit board, the housing stack defining plural contact cavities that extend axially through the front housing and the rear housing between the mating end and the mounting end; signal contacts and ground contacts disposed in corresponding contact cavities of the housing stack and being provided at or near the mating and mounting ends for electrical connection to the mating connector and the circuit board, respectively, the signal contacts being arranged in signal rows along signal row axes and the ground contacts being arranged in ground rows along ground row axes; a lossy spacer having a plurality of strips disposed at the seam between the front and rear housings, the strips being generally parallel to each other and separated by gaps, the strips being aligned with the ground row axes, the gaps being aligned with the signal row axes; wherein the signal contacts extend through the gaps in the lossy spacer such that the signal contacts do not directly engage the lossy spacer, and wherein the ground contacts extend through the strips of the lossy spacer such that the ground contacts are coupled by the lossy spacer.

16 . The electrical connector of claim 15 , wherein the signal contacts are arranged in signal rows along signal row axes and the ground contacts are arranged in ground rows along ground row axes, the lossy spacer being aligned with each of the ground rows, the strips being aligned with the ground rows, the gaps being aligned with the signal rows.

17 . The electrical connector of claim 15 , wherein the lossy spacer comprises removable connection bars attached to ends of the strips, the connection bars hold a spacing of the strips, the connection bars are removed after the lossy spacer is disposed between the front and rear housings.

18 . The electrical connector of claim 15 , wherein the strips have inner edges facing the signal contacts, the inner edges being nonplanar.

19 . An electrical connector comprising:
a housing stack comprising a front housing and a rear housing disposed rearward of the front housing and being coupled to the front housing at a seam, the front housing defining a mating end of the housing stack configured for mating with a mating connector, the rear housing defining a mounting end of the housing stack configured for mounting to a circuit board, the housing stack having opposite first and second sides and opposite first and second ends extending between the mating and mounting ends, the housing stack defini

Assignees

• Tyco Electronics Corp

Inventors

• Horning Michael James
• Graham Leo Joseph
• Davis Wayne Samuel
• Champion Bruce Allen
• Helster Dave
• Morgan Chad William

Classifications

• H01R12/7076 Primary

  for connection between PCB and component, e.g. display · CPC title

• H01R12/716

  Coupling device provided on the PCB · CPC title

• H01R12/73

  connecting to other rigid printed circuits or like structures · CPC title

• H01R13/6599

  Dielectric material made conductive, e.g. plastic material coated with metal · CPC title

• H01R13/6588 Primary

  with through openings for individual contacts · CPC title