Cable connector

Abstract

 A cable connector according to the invention includes: contacts (3) connected to core conductors (2a) of coaxial cables (2); an insulating member (1a) for supporting the contacts; and substantially flat-plate-shaped metal upper and lower shells (4 and 5) for contacting with shielding outer conductors of the coaxial cables with continuity and enclosing the insulating member from above and below. For preventing expansion of the shielding shells so that the thickness of electronic equipment including the cable connector can be reduced, engaging lock members are provided on both sidewalls of the lower shell. The engaging lock members (5d) are deformable in the direction perpendicular to the core direction of the coaxial cables and parallel to a flat plate surface of the lower shell when pushed by engaging projections of a shell of a board connector with which the cable connector engages such that the upper shell does not engage with the shell of the board connector nor is deformed when pushed by the engaging lock members.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a cable connector for connecting extra-fine coaxial cables, for example.

[0002] Currently, in electrical equipment such as a cellular phone, for example, extra-fine coaxial cables are used for connecting circuits on a printed board to electronic components so as to eliminate noise. In this case, a plurality of coaxial cables is connected to a cable connector, and synthetic resin frame is covered by a metal shell to which outer conductors of the coaxial cables are soldered for shielding.

[0003] By fitting the cable connector to a board connector fixed on the printed board, contacts of the cable connector come into contact with contacts of the board connector, so that electric connection between the coaxial cables and the circuits on the printed board is made. Also, a shell of the cable connector contacts a shell of the board connector so that the coaxial cables can be connected to the ground of the circuits on the printed board. The cable connector of this type has been disclosed in JP-A-2002-15818, for example.

[0004] For achieving high packaging density, the thickness of the structure for providing engagement between the cable connector and the printed board connector is reduced as much as possible in the direction perpendicular to the printed board surface. The male and female contacts of both the connectors slidingly contact with each other in the direction perpendicular to the circuit board surface. Since the thickness of the engagement structure is reduced, the effective length of engagement between the connectors in the direction perpendicular to the circuit board surface is small. Thus, a locking mechanism used during the engagement is required so as to prevent engagement separation, and such a locking mechanism is provided by forming a projection on one of the shells of the cable connector and the board connector and a concave on the other of the shells and bringing the projection and the concave into engagement.

[0005] According to a conventional cable connector as shown in Fig. 9, projections 22a, for example, are formed on a shell 22 to cover an insulating frame 23 of a board connector 21. Concaves 25a in the same size as those of the projections 22a are formed on an upper shell 25 of a cable connector 24 at the positions corresponding to the positions of the projections 22a. The cable connector 24 is locked within the board through the engagement between the concaves 25a and the projections 22a provided at the right and left ends of the board connector 21. The locking engagement structure of the cable connector 24 is provided on the sidewall surface of the upper shell 25, because the upper shell 25 covers a frame and a lower shell 26 of the cable connector 24 so that the upper and lower shells 25 and 26 come into contact with each other. The lower shell 26, which is provided within the frame of the cable connector 24 by insert molding, has a flat-plate shape so as to be easily placed on a die.

[0006] However, according to this shell structure, when the cable connector 24 is fitted to the board connector 21 mounted on the printed board 20 as shown in Fig. 9, the upper shell 25 is compressed in the left-to-right direction. As a result, the center region of the upper shell 25 expands upward and pushes other electronic components in some cases. There is at present an increasing demand for reduction in the connector thickness necessary for miniaturization of electronic equipment and high packaging density, and the expansion of the shell in this case still increases the connector thickness.

[0007] It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a cable connector not having the above-mentioned drawbacks and contributes to reduction in the thickness of electronic equipment.

[0008] In order to achieve the object, a cable connector according to the invention includes: contacts connected to cores of coaxial cables; an insulating member for supporting the contacts; and substantially flat-plate-shaped metal upper and lower shells for contacting with shielding outer conductors of the coaxial cables with continuity and enclosing the insulating member from above and below. Engaging lock members are provided on both sidewalls of the lower shell. The engaging lock members are deformable in the direction perpendicular to the core direction of the coaxial cables and parallel to a flat plate surface of the lower shell when pushed by engaging projections of a shell of a board connector with which the cable connector engages such that the upper shell does not engage with the shell of the board connector in the right and left directions nor is deformed when pushed by the engaging lock members.

[0009] Notches formed on the side walls at both ends of the upper shell in the right and left direction engage with the projections of the shell of the board connector so as to prevent upward separation of the cable connector in the direction perpendicular to the flat plate surface of the upper shell when the cable connector is fitted to the board connector in the direction perpendicular to the flat plate surface of the upper shell.

[0010] According to the cable connector of the invention, in the condition where the cable connector engages with the board connector, the upper shell is not compressed nor deformed in other way in the right and left direction, that is, in the direction perpendicular to the core direction of the coaxial cables and parallel to the flat plate surface of the lower shell. Thus, the flat-plate-shaped portion of the upper shell does not expand outward. Accordingly, problems such as pushing other electronic components disposed with high packaging density do not occur, and thus it enables to provide suitable connectors serving requirements to make thin-shaped electronic equipment.

[0011] Additionally, the notches provided on the upper shell prevent upward separation of the cable connector while the cable connector is under engagement with the board connector. Since the lower shell fixes the position of the cable connector in the right and left direction and the upper shell prevents the upward separation of the cable connector, the functions of positional fixation and prevention of separation under engagement can be separately performed by the upper shell and the lower shell.

[0012] The invention will be more fully explained hereinafter by means of the following detailed description referring the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figs. 1A, 1B and 1C are plan view, front view and right side view, respectively, showing a cable connector in an embodiment according to the invention;

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the cable connector taken along a line A-A in Fig. 1A as viewed in the direction of arrows;

Figs. 3A, 3B, 3C and 3D are front view, bottom view, rear view and right side view, respectively, showing an upper shell of the cable connector;

Fig. 4A is a cross-sectional view of the cable connector taken along a line B-B in Fig. 3B as viewed in the direction of arrows, and Fig. 4B is a cross-sectional view of the cable connector taken along a line C-C in Fig. 3B as viewed in the direction of arrows;

Figs. 5A, 5B and 5C are plan view, front view and right side view, respectively, showing a lower shell of the cable connector, and Fig. 5D is a cross-sectional view of the cable connector taken along a line D-D in Fig. 5A as viewed in the direction of arrows;

Figs. 6A and 6B are rear view and plan view, respectively, showing the lower shell of the cable connector;

Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing the cable connector being fitted to a board connector;

Fig. 8 is a detailed enlarged view showing a condition of engagement between the cable connector and the board connector at the left end; and

Fig. 9 is a detailed enlarged view showing a condition of engagement between a cable connector and a board connector at the left end in the related art.

[0013] As shown in Figs. 1A through 1C and Fig. 2, in a cable connector 1 (hereinafter abbreviated as "connector 1"), core conductors of coaxial cables 2, which are extra-fine cables (outside diameter: approx. 0.3mm, for example), are connected to contacts 3. Shielding outer conductors of the coaxial cables 2 contact substantially flat-plate-shaped metal upper and lower shells 4 and 5 with continuity, which the shells 4 and 5 enclose an insulating member 1a from above and below for shielding.

[0014] As shown in Fig. 2, the insulating member 1 a made of synthetic resin and the contacts 3 are formed integrally with each other using a die, and the lower shell 5 is press-fitted to the integral components. The upper shell 4 is a component to be attached to the connector 1. An end of a core conductor 2a of the coaxial cable 2 is fixed to the contact 3 by soldering 6. A plate-shaped grounding bar 7 connected with a plurality of outer conductors of the coaxial cables 2 in the transverse direction by soldering is mounted on the lower shell 5 and fixed thereto by soldering. Then, the upper shell 4 is attached to the insulating member 1 a. A part of the upper shell 4 is soldered to a part of the grounding bar 7, whereby the upper shell 4 is fixed to the connector 1.

[0015] As shown in Figs. 3A through 3D and 4A and 4B, side walls 4a and 4b enclosing the side walls of the insulating member 1 a and extending toward the bottom surface thereof are provided at one and the other ends of the upper shell 4, respectively, in the right and left direction. The side walls 4a and 4b have notches 4m and 4n, respectively, and end faces 4c and 4d of the notches 4m and 4n, respectively, are positioned and extend in the front-to-rear direction.

[0016] As shown in Figs. 3A and 3B, the upper shell 4 includes bottom plates 4f extending from the lower ends of the side walls 4a and 4b and bottom plates 4h extending from the lower ends of rear side walls 4g such that the right and left side walls of the insulating member 1 a are enclosed. An engaging projection 4i provided at each end of the bottom plates 4h engages with the lower shell 5 for locking. As shown in Fig. 3B, soldering portions 4j formed on a flat-plate-shaped portion 4e of the upper shell 4 are inclined toward the insulating member 1 a and soldered to the grounding bar 7 of the coaxial cables 2.

[0017] As shown in Figs. 5A through 5D, an engaging piece 5b to be press-fitted into a press-fit hole of the insulating member 1 a stands from each of the right and left side walls of a flat-plate-shaped portion 5a of the lower shell 5. Also, an engaging lock member 5d extends in the horizontal direction from a standing portion 5c provided on the rear part of each sidewall of the flat-plate-shaped portion 5a. By the engagement between the respective engaging lock members 5d and corresponding engaging projections of the shell of the board connector, the cable connector 1 and the board connector engage with each other in the right and left direction perpendicular to the core direction of the coaxial cables 2. As a result, the cable connector 1 is releasably fixed in position without separation from the board connector.

[0018] As shown in Fig. 6B, soldering portions 5f provided on the flat-plate-shaped portion 5a of the lower shell 5 are inclined toward the insulating member 1 a, and soldered to the grounding bar 7 of the coaxial cables 2.

[0019] When the cable connector 1 is assembled and fitted to a board connector 21 as shown in Fig. 7, the projections 22a of the shell 22 come into contact with the engaging lock members 5d provided at the right and left ends of the cable connector 1, whereby the position of the cable connector 1 is fixed in the right and left direction. In this condition, the engaging lock members 5d are pushed inwardly and deformed in the right and left direction as shown in Fig. 8, but the flat-plate-shaped portion 4e of the upper shell 4 is not deformed in the right and left direction. Thus, the flat-plate-shaped portion 4e of the upper shell 4 does not expand out of the connector 1 under the engagement condition.

[0020] The end faces 4c and 4d of the notches 4m and 4n provided at both ends of the upper shell 4 in the right and left direction engage with the projections 22a of the shell 22 of the board connector 21 in the vertical direction which is perpendicular to the core direction of the coaxial cables 2, i.e., in the direction perpendicular to the flat plate surface of the upper shell 4. Thus, upward separation of the cable connector 1 from the engagement with the board connector 21 is prevented. Also, in this condition, the sidewalls 4a and 4b and the notches 4m and 4n are not deformed when pushed by the connector 1 in the right and left direction or by other cause similarly to the flat-plate-shaped portion 4e of the upper shell 4. Thus, engagement in the vertical direction can be securely provided.

Claims

1. A cable connector comprising contacts (3) connected to core conductors (2a) of coaxial cables (2), an insulating member (1 a) for supporting the contacts, and substantially flat-plate-shaped metal upper and lower shells (4 and 5) for contacting with shielding outer conductors of the coaxial cables with continuity and enclosing the insulating member from above and below, characterized in that:

engaging lock members (5d) are provided on both side walls of the lower shell, the engaging lock members (5d) being deformable in the direction perpendicular to the core direction of the coaxial cables and parallel to a flat plate surface (5a) of the lower shell (5) when pushed by engaging projections of a shell of a board connector with which the cable connector engages such that the upper shell (4) does not engage with the shell of the board connector in the right and left directions nor is deformed when pushed by the engaging lock members.

2. A cable connector as set forth in claim 1, wherein notches (4m, 4n) formed on the side walls (4a, 4b) at both ends of the upper shell (4) in the right and left direction engage with the projections of the shell of the board connector so as to prevent upward separation of the cable connector in the direction perpendicular to the flat plate surface of the upper shell when the cable connector is fitted to the board connector in the direction perpendicular to the flat plate surface of the upper shell.

Drawing