Glenair, Inc.

Electro Adapter, Inc.

Sunbank Electronics, Inc.

Joslyn Corporation

Thomas Frederic Young

David W Tonkiss

Wayne B Wolcott

Nestor R Fuertes

A backshell adapter assembly includes an adapter body, a coupling nut and a one-piece shuttle mechanism. The one-piece shuttle mechanism is formed as a tubular member and is adapted to be received in a retaining groove on the adapter body. The one piece shuttle mechanism includes a thrust bushing and one or more concentrically formed spring arms that are adapted to provide axial loading in the direction of an electrical connector shell when the basketball adapter assembly is assembled to an electrical connector.

G-load coupling nut

A backshell adapter assembly includes a clamp body and one or more extending strain relief arms, pivotably connected to the clamp body. The strain relief arms are adapted to receive a pair of opposing saddle clamps or cable tie to provide radial clamping of a wire bundle relative to the backshell adapter assembly to prevent axial movement of the cable in response to axial forces thereupon. The extending strain relief arms are adapted to be rotated between various positions including &minus;90&deg; to &plus;90&deg;. Provisions may be provided for securing the extending arms at various detent positions relative to the axis of the clamp body. As such the need for separate tooling for different configurations is eliminated, thus lowering the cost of the device. In addition, the use of such backshell adapter assemblies is greatly simplified.

Strain relief for electrical connectors

A backshell adapter assembly includes an adapter body, a coupling nut, a retaining ring and a one-piece shuttle mechanism. The one-piece shuttle mechanism is formed as a tubular member and is adapted to be received in a retaining groove on the adapter body. In order to facilitate loading of the one-piece shuttle into the retainer groove on the adapter body, the one-piece shuttle is cut along its length to enable the cut ends of the device to be spread apart in order to load the shuttle mechanism into the retaining groove on the adapter body. The one piece shuttle mechanism includes a thrust bushing portion and one or more concentrically formed spring arms that are adapted to provide axial loading in the direction of an electrical connector shell when the backshell adapter assembly is assembled to an electrical connector. In accordance with another feature of the invention, the one-piece shuttle design is amenable to being formed from high temperature composite materials which eliminates the corrosion problem and minimizes damage during various extreme conditions such as extreme vibration conditions to portions of the backshell adapter assembly which are normally formed from aluminum. Another important aspect of the invention is that the one-piece shuttle assembly minimizes the number of parts required and thus significantly reduces the manufacturing costs of such backshell adapter assembles.

A two-piece retaining ring assembly axially secures a coupling nut to a tubular sleeve and includes a C-shaped retaining ring and a keeper, both formed from a non-metallic composite material. An annular groove is formed on the inside surface of the coupling nut for receiving the retaining ring. The width of the gap defined between the ends of the retaining ring is such to allow the retaining ring to be pulled apart enough slipped over the annular shoulder on the tubular member and resilient enough to spring back to be received in an annular groove formed on the inside of the coupling nut. A keeper is received in an annular space between retaining ring and the tubular member. A tab, formed on the keeper, is received in the gap between the ends of the retaining ring. Anti-rotation means are also provided to restrict rotation of the coupling nut with respect to the backshell. One end of the tubular member is formed with an annular shoulder having ratchet teeth. A leaf spring, attached to the inside of the coupling nut, is provided with one or more radially inwardly extending teeth having slopes which cooperate with the ratchet teeth formed on the annular shoulder of the tubular sleeve.

Two-piece retaining ring

A band clamp having an integral buckle includes an elongated band; a buckle member at one end of the band and having a base in the plane of the band, side portions and a top portion connecting the side portions forming a loop for retaining one or more passes of the band; and a tongue member extending in the plane of the base opposite the band, a pair of notches extending into the base at the sides of the tongue. When tension is applied the band with the band extending through the buckle and enclosing the sleeve, the tongue member is deflected toward the sleeve by the band for permanently deforming the base and portions of the sides of the buckle in conformity with the sleeve when the sleeve has an equivalent diameter of less than about 20 times the thickness of the band.

Band clamp with formable buckle

A banding tool and method of operation for tightening and securing a band about an article within predetermined tension limits and for automatically locking that tension once the predetermined tension has been attained, which tool includes a receiver element, a first gripping element for incrementally advancing the banding material through the tool, a second gripping element for securing the banding material within the tool as the banding material is being tightened about the article, an actuator unit for predetermining tension limits and for precisely determining when that predetermined band tension about the article has been reached and which automatically locks the tension into the band once that tension is attained about the article, a bending element for bending the banding material after the predetermined tension has been locked about the article, and a cutting member for severing the excess banding material from the band while maintaining the predetermined tension.

Tool for applying clamping bands

A clamping band for affixing an electromagnetic shielding sleeve to an electrical cable or the like, which band may be positioned around the connector and tightened by a pulling force, and which band can be removed and replaced. The band comprises a single strip of metal with a strap section and a buckle section, with the buckle section having an opening for receiving the strap section to form a circle for positioning about the shield and connector. The band is tightened by pulling to the desired size, after which it is folded over to lock the band in place and cut to an appropriate length.

Clamping band for electromagnetic shielding band cable connector

A split shell connector accessory for electrical cables comprising a pair of shell halves having a passage therethrough for receiving and holding a cable. An adapter is mounted at each end of the passage. One shell half has an elastomeric sealing member extending continuously along each side of the cable holding passage and the other shell half has a complementary groove. Each adapter has an O-ring which fits into complementary grooves in the adapters. The O-rings extend in a plane transverse to the plane of the elastomeric sealing members. When the shell halves are tightened together, the adjacent portions of the elastomeric members and O-rings are compressed into engagement with each other to form a complete environmental seal. Complementarily engaging ridges and grooves on the shell halves and adapters provide complete RFI/EMI (radio frequency interference/electromagnetic interference) shielding.

Growing community of inventors

Simi Valley, CA, United States of America

Thomas Frederic Young