Low profile electrical connector assembly and terminal therefor

Abstract

A low profile electrical connector assembly has terminals attached to insulated electric cables that are disposed in topless slots of a connector base. Each terminal has two longitudinally spaced retention slots. The connector base has two transverse grooves that extend through sidewalls of the topless slots to provide terminal retainers that engage the forward retention slots to retain the terminals in a longitudinal direction. The connector base has a third transverse groove that extends through the sidewalls of the topless slots with selected sidewalls having undercuts for retaining a bottomless connector cover. The connector cover has a face plate that has a plurality of apertures that align with the topless slots, a lower ledge, and a depending lock bar. The lock bar is disposed in the third transverse groove and extends through the rearward retention slots to further retain the terminals in the longitudinal direction. The depending lock bar has a lip engaging the undercuts and the lower ledge of the cover is located in a bottom face groove of the connector base to hold the connector cover down on the topless slots. The connector cover is held in an assembled position by engaging portions of the face plate and the connector base.