Amp LLC

The Whitaker Corporation

Friedrich J Kourimsky

Gheorghe Hotea

Lothar H Nix

Kurt P Baderschneider

Harald M Lutsch

Paul E Romak

Werner Lothmann

Heinrich R John

Johann Kilzer

Klaus G Seidel

Improved locking lance structure for an electrical contact having a body portion from which a locking lance is cantilevered from a base where the base is resiliently interconnected to the body portion to provide sufficient resiliency for easier seating of the contact within a passageway of a housing and sufficient resilience so that the locking lance may function to position the contact within the passageway.

Electrical contact having improved locking lances

A multi-stranded electrical conducting wire has conducting strands surrounded by an insulative jacket. The strands have serrations around the circumference thereof to inhibit slipping movement between adjacent strands. This is particularly advantageous when used with IDC contacts whereby the reduced slipping increases the contact pressure and therefore electrical conductivity of the connection, in particular for connections subject to vibration or thermal contraction and expansion movements.

Stranded electrical wire for use with IDC

A receptacle terminal comprises a conductor connection section and a contact section for receiving a male tab terminal therein. Reversely bent pairs of contact arms extending from forward and rearward ends of a cover wall are provided. Free ends of the contact arms rest upon a ledge struck from side walls of the contact section for prestressing the contact beams. The latter increases the contact pressure of contacts against the mating male tab terminal whilst nevertheless reducing the mating insertion forces thereof. The reversely bent-in and opposed contact arms provide for a compact design with a large number of contact points thereby enabling passage of high electrical currents.

High current receptacle terminal

An electrical connector assembly for electrical connection to an electromagnetic valve assembly subject to large amplitude vibratory movements, comprises a casing and a plurality of connectors mounted thereto via spring means. The connector assembly also comprises a cover and a sealing member therearound whereby the casing, connectors, seal and cover can be assembled together as a single unit which is then matable to the magnet valve assembly comprising a plurality of corresponding magnet valves mounted in a casing. When the connector assembly and the valve assembly are mated together, the connectors are pushed against the valves with a sufficient spring force to ensure that during large vibratory movements, terminals of the magnet valve mated with the terminals of the connector do not move relative to each other in order to avoid fretting corrosion and fatigue thereof.

Magnet valve connector

A fuse box for an automobile comprises assembly modules mountable therein for connecting electrical devices of the vehicle to power supply lines via fuses. Certain fuses are connected to a single electrical devices via conducting wires and other fuses are connected to a plurality of electrical devices by electrical wires. Power is supplied to the other terminal of the fuse via one of various power terminals mounted to the assembly modules and mated to power lines. The plurality of electrical cables for connection to a common fuse, are connected to an IDC branch terminal mounted in a connector module housing, the connector module then pluggable into the assembly module at the vehicle assembly line.

Fuse box connector assembly

An electrical connector comprises an electrical receptacle terminal 10 enclosed in an insulating housing 8. The terminal 10 is enclosed in a passageway 64 in the housing 8, the passageway 64 having a flexible wall section 80. Camming surfaces 176, 174 on the housing of a mating connector 6 compress the flexible wall section 80 to produce an interference fit between the flexible wall section 80 and the terminal 10. Movement of the terminal 10 within the passageway 64 is thereby avoided when the mating connectors are subjected to vibration. Latch arms 116 (FIG. 4) on the housing are connected by a U-shaped resilient strap 118 at their rear ends to provide a pivot point about which the latch arms 116 are pivotable between a normal position in which they engage a projection 178 on the mating connector 6 in a latching position. Molding of the housing is also facilitated and the latch arms 116 are protected against damage when the housing is being handled. In another embodiment (FIGS. 16-24), a transversely slidable locking plate 224 is used to move locking lugs 278 on the plate against rearward shoulders 295 of the terminals 238 and through camming surfaces 269, 282 causes rubber members 266 to press against each terminal 238 to reduce vibratory effects. A sealing grommet 9 and grommet retaining ring 11 are also disclosed.

Vibration proof electrical connector housing

An electrical terminal assembly comprising an electrical terminal has an insulation displacement contact having a base portion from which extend a pair of coplanar arms defining a slot for receiving an insulated lead. A restraining flange projecting from the top of each arm at right-angles to its plane terminates in a foot which is received in a well in a housing having a cavity receiving the terminal assembly. The well is dimensioned to allow the foot to move parallel to the plane of the arms but not at the right angles thereto. The arms cannot, therefor, twist about their longitudinal axes under the lead insertion force, but can move in their own planes to accommodate the metal cone of the lead as it is forced into the slot.

Insulation displacement electrical terminal assembly

An electrical terminal is shown having a contacting section, a locking section, a slidable sleeve and a wire connecting section. The locking section is defined as a cylindrical base out of which are stamped locking lances from the cavity area. The terminal is inserted into the cavity of an associated electrical connector housing. Prior to insertion, a slidable sleeve encompasses the locking lances thereby resiliently biasing them into the cavities, the locking lances therefore flush with the base of the locking section.

Electrical terminal with means to avoid locking lance damage and

Optical waveguide terminating device

An electrical connector is disclosed having pin terminals positioned within an insulating housing where the terminal includes a cylindrical contact portion having an inner diameter formed at which carries a plastic cylindrical bead. The terminal also includes a serrated portion positioned within a converging bore portion of the housing passageway. A printed circuit board can be positioned against the lower portion of the housing and when wave soldered causes the serrated portion to form corresponding grooves in the housing through hole and causes the plastic bead to melt and fill the seam between the edges of the serrated portion.

Stamped and formed sealed pin

An electrical terminal is shown which includes an insulation displacement type slot which is useable with stranded wire. The insulation displacement slot has two plates at each end of a base portion which are folded up to face one another. The plates form open slots for the receipt of the insulated stranded wire, and the plates are rotatable one towards the other, to bring side edges of the plates through the insulation and against the individual conductor strands for termination therewith. The side edges of the plate portions are formed into arcuate sections which prevent lateral movement of the strands within the slots.

Electrical terminal

Electrical connector assembly comprises first and second housing assemblies containing first and second terminals. The terminals are of the type which are mated by locating a plug terminal in offset parallel relationship to a socket and then moving the terminals laterally towards each other. The two connector parts are mated and unmated by means of separate keys which have eccentrics on their ends that cooperate with camming surfaces on one of the connector assemblies. The key which is used for mating the connector assemblies is incapable of disengaging them and the disengaging key is incapable of engaging the connectors with each other. Rigid control of the mating and unmating of the connector assemblies is thereby achieved.

Electrical connector assembly having mating and unmating removable keys

An electrical edge connector suitable for Liquid Crystal Displays has contacts arranged at a housing slot with contact tails extending in a row, transversely of the slot, the tails being connected to the contacts by resilient bight portions of U-form arranged in a row to allow for resilient flexure between the tails and the contacts.

Electrical edge connector

A two-part electrical connector assembly (11, 12) has a channel-shaped latching arm (26) mounted with its limbs (27) straddling one connector (11) and slidable in a slot (25) between walls (16, 33) of the connectors (11, 12). Ends of the limbs (27) are formed with apertures (31) adapted to engage resilient detents (35) on the other connector (12) when the latching member (26) is retracted about the connector (11) to latch the connectors together. The limbs (27) having slots (28) engaging projections (23) on the one connector (11) to permit movement of the latching member (26) from the retracted latching condition to an extended position, remote from the detents (35) where it serves as a handle for manual disengagement of the connectors (11, 12).

Electrical connector assemblies

A junction box assembly for an automobile comprising a main junction box releasably coupled mechanically and electrically to an auxiliary junction box, the main junction box comprising an insulating housing enclosing at least one circuit board providing distribution networks for electrical supplies to main appliances and having plugs or sockets for connection to sockets or plugs terminating main appliance leads, and the auxiliary junction box comprising an insulating housing enclosing at least one circuit board providing distribution networks for electrical supplies to auxiliary appliances, the housing of the main junction box having means projecting from a rear face to attach the main junction box to the bulkhead of an automobile engine compartment.

Growing community of inventors

Bensheim, Germany

Friedrich J Kourimsky