Northern Telecom Limited

Northern Electric Company Limited

John D Lee

Sharanjit S Aujla

Frederick Caldwell Livermore

James E Anderson

Robert Brian Dunn

Morley Scott MacKenzie

Louis Donald Charron

Andrew Philip Dooley

A connector for connecting at least two insulated conductors, for example telephone line conductors, comprises a hollow body and a hollow cap, the cap, in a typical example fitting into the body to form an enclosure. The front of the body has apertures and guides for admission and guidance of conductors thereinto and the cap has insulation displacing terminals set in a top web. When body and cap are pressed together the terminals make contact with the conductive cores of the conductors. Terminal arrangements permit of butt, bridge and tap connections. A modified form of body permits a tap to be made to a continuous conductor. The cap and body can be provided in a partially assembled or first stage assembly which permits insertion of conductors, the cap and body then being pressed to a fully assembled or second stage assembly for connection of the conductors.

Connectors with insulation-displacing terminals

An overvoltage or surge protector, particularly for telephone lines, has two electrodes in opposition in a housing. The gap between the inner ends of the electrodes is set by a layer of dielectric material on the center portion of one or both end surfaces of the electrodes. Breakdown occurs with assistance from dielectric stimulation of the arc, resulting from an electrical field across the dielectric. The center portions are surrounded by annular grooves, which are also covered with a dielectric layer. The end surfaces external to the center portions can be convex, and also roughened.

Overvoltage protector for telephone lines

A retaining member for retaining cylindrical members, such as rods and wires, has a base and a pair of cantilevered dual action beams extending from the base, the beams having parallel opposed spaced apart inner edges, each beam having an upper and a lower portion, the lower portion having an upwardly and inwardly inclined outer edge and the upper part having an upwardly and outwardly inclined outer edge, the conjunction of the two portions forming a neck, and an entrance portion defined by a downwardly and inwardly inclined upper edge on each beam, the upper edges merging with the inner edges by a radius. Insertion of a cylindrical member deforms the upper portions to a large extent the portions bending about the necks. The lower portions are deformed to a lesser extent and have substantially uniform stress distribution. The members are particularly useful as contacts for insulation conductors, the insulation being crushed and during passage between the upper portions of the beams and removed on passage past the necks. The conductor is deformed while being pushed down between the upper portions and past the necks, to give a highly effective connection.

Retainer member with dual action cantilever beams

An insulation slicing terminal, stamped from electrically conducting sheet material, has a base portion and two cantilevered legs extending from the base portion providing opposed side edges between which a conductor is positioned. The top edge and side edge of each leg intersect at an abrupt angle to form insulation slicing edges, the two top edges forming a shallow Vee formation. An initial small gap is provided between the side edges by a first swage on one leg near the junction with the base portion. A further swage on one of the legs nearer the top of the leg acts to prevent movement of the conductor out of the terminal once the wire is inserted past the further swage. As a further feature, the shallow Vee formation, of the top edges, has an apex prior to slitting which is a radiused flat, permitting off-center tolerances on slitting without detrimentally affecting the insulation slicing edges.

Insulation slicing terminal

A connector for electrically connecting electrical conductors having a housing within which is a holding member containing a preloaded spring, with an insulating cutting edge on the spring and an insulation cutting edge on the holding member, the cutting members acting in opposition on a conductor. Release of the spring, as by flexing the housing causes the cutting edges to cut through the insulation, into electrical contact with the conductor. A similar arrangement of cutting edges is provided for each conductor and a conductive path from one conductor to another is via the spring and/or holding member.

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Manotick, Canada

John D Lee