FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to connector assemblies, either electrical connector assemblies, optical connector assemblies or opto-electrical connector assemblies.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Connector assemblies comprise a first and a second connectors which are complementarily pluggable and connectable. As a consequence, the mating of the connectors allows connection between two appliances.

In the following, the disclosure of the invention is based on an electrical connector assembly, but could be easily transposed to optical connector assemblies or opto- electrical connector assemblies.

For some kind of electrical connectors, electrically conducting terminals, each connected to a cable, are inserted in a corresponding receptacle or cavity of an electrically insulating housing. During insertion, each electrical terminal deflects a flexible part (i.e. a latching projection) of the housing, which will then spring back to a rest position when the electrical terminal is fully inserted. In this fully inserted position, the terminal is locked in its respective receptacle. For optical connector assemblies or opto-electrical connector assemblies the terminal may be an optical fibre ferule.

So-called ^x terminal position assurance devices or TPA devices' have also been developed for improving the reliability of connectors. This TPA device allows detecting whether the flexible part is still in its deflected state and, thus, whether the electrical terminal is not fully inserted. Such a TPA device can take two distinct states: authorization position and prevention position. The conception of the TPA device is such that, when the electrical terminal is fully inserted, the TPA device is also in its authorization position. In this authorization position, it does not prevent the mating of the two electrical connectors of the assembly. However, in its prevention position, the TPA device interferes with the mating movement of the two electrical connectors, to thereby prevent their full mating. When the electrical terminal is only partly inserted, the TPA device is also in its prevention position. Therefore, it is possible to detect whether it remains a terminal which is not fully inserted because it is not possible to fully mate the two electrical connectors. Hence one makes sure that an improper operation of the connector assembly is impossible.

Example of such an electrical connector assembly is known from WO2009120333.

There is a constant need to reduce the number of parts and the bulk of such electrical connector assemblies.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Thus, according to the invention, it is provided an electrical connector assembly comprising first and second connectors. The first connector for instance has a first mating locking feature and at least one first mating prevention part. The second connector comprises a housing having a second mating locking feature. This housing comprises a wall defining at least one receptacle or cavity designed for receiving a terminal. This receptacle has advantageously a first terminal locking feature and a second mating prevention part adapted to take an authorization position and a prevention position.

At least one electrical terminal is adapted to be inserted in the receptacle along an insertion direction. Advantageously it comprises a second terminal locking feature. The terminal is also adapted to take an assembled position relative to the housing, in which position the first and second terminal locking features, when present, engage one with other for maintaining and locking the terminal in the receptacle.

The terminal is able to take a pre-assembled position relative to the housing. In this pre-assembled position :

* the first and second terminal locking features, when present, do not fit with one another, thereby not retaining the terminal in the housing,

* the second mating prevention part is in its prevention position, and

* the terminal and the second mating prevention part engage one another to prevent the second mating prevention part from being moved from its prevention position to its authorization position.

When all the second mating prevention parts of the first connector are in their authorization position, the first connector is movable, with respect to the second connector, to a mated position. In the mated position, the first and second mating locking features, when present, fit with one another to retain the first and second connector together,

When at least one of the second mating prevention parts is in its prevention position, upon movement of the first and second connector toward one another, the first mating prevention part and said at least one second mating prevention part abuts one into the other to prevent the first connector from being moved to the mated position.

In fact, the wall defining receptacle ( s ) having a second mating prevention part comprises a wall basis. Then, the second mating prevention part is integral with the wall basis, and is bendable with respect to the wall basis between its prevention and authorization positions about an axis which is normal to the insertion direction.

With these features, the housing itself includes the terminal position insurance device. Further, the insurance device is somehow integrated in the existing receptacle wall, so that the solution requires little added space compared to the same connector assembly without any insurance device.

In some embodiments, one might also use one or more of the features as defined in the dependent claims.

Among advantages of some of these embodiments, it should be noted that, in case of a plurality of receptacles, this solution is highly scalable, which provides a better quality of terminal locking detection.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will readily appear from the following description of three of its embodiments, provided as non- limitative examples, and of the accompanying drawings.

On the drawings :

Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a connector assembly according to a first embodiment,

Fig. 2a is a sectional view along line II-II of Fig. 1 of a part of electrical connector for the embodiment of Fig. 1 in an outer position of the terminals,

Fig. 2b is a view similar to Fig. 2a in a pre assembled position of a terminal, also showing the complementary connector,

Fig. 2c is a view similar to Fig. 2a, with a terminal in assembled position, and the complementary connector in mated position,

Figs. 3a to 3c are views similar to Figs. 2a to 2c, respectively, for a second embodiment of a connector assembly having two rows of terminals,

- Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3b for a third embodiment, and

Fig. 5 is a sectional view along line V-V of

Fig. 1.

On the different Figures, the same reference signs designate like or similar elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Fig. 1 shows an electrical connector assembly 1 comprising a first electrical connector 2 and a complementary mating second electrical connector 3. The assembly 1 may comprise an interfacial sealing joint 4 between the first and second electrical connectors.

The first connector 2 comprises for example a housing 10 (made of an insulating material) which defines a plurality of receptacles electrically insulated from one another and in which extend electrical terminals (not visible) . Such electrical terminals are for example made of electrically conductive parts which extend in receptacles. These terminals are attached to electrical cables or wires extending outside of the electrical connector 2 (to the right of Fig. 1) through a grid 31 having a plurality of corresponding passageways 31a.

According to a first embodiment, the electrical connector assembly 1 comprises two electrical connectors having a single row of terminals spaced apart from one another along a direction Y. The first electrical connector further comprises a first mating prevention part 8 which is an abutment part close to the front face of the housing 10.

The housing 10 further comprises a first mating locking feature 11, which is part of a locking device able to lock the first connector 2 to the second connector 3 upon mating of these two connectors. For example, it is a protrusion .

The second electrical connector 3 comprises a housing 5 which in the present example, is made of an outer

5a and an inner 5b parts which are attached to one another.

The outer part 5a comprises a skirt having an external surface which carries a second mating locking feature 9 designed for engaging the protrusion 11.

The rear part of the second connector 3 comprises a mat sealing joint 6 and a grid 7, respectively having passageways 6a and 7a which correspond to the passageways 13 of the inner part 5b.

As the housing 10 of the first electrical connector, the inner part 5b of the second connector comprises a wall 12 which defines a plurality of receptacles 13, each one of which respectively corresponding to a receptacle of the housing 10. Thus, in this embodiment, the receptacles 13 are disposed as a single row spaced apart from one another along the direction Y. It should be noted that all these receptacles do not necessarily have exactly the same shape, nor do they house exactly identical electrical terminals. Such electrical terminals, not shown, are of a similar construction as those of the first housing.

The internal geometry of each receptacle 13 is now described in relation to Fig. 2a. On Fig. 2a, a terminal 14 is shown in an outer position. This terminal is displaced along an insertion direction (direction opposite to direction X) from this outer position, through a pre- assembled position to an assembled position, which will be described in more details below. The terminal 14 comprises a terminal locking feature 15. The wall 12 has a bottom portion 12a and a top portion 12c which extend in parallel along the insertion direction. The bottom portion 12a comprises a housing locking feature 16 which is for example performed as a protrusion of complementary shape to that of the terminal locking feature 15. The bottom portion 12a is of sufficient thickness and/or has material properties enabling it to be considered rigid upon normal operation, assembly and cabling process of the electrical connector 3. The top portion 12c comprises a wall basis 17, which can also be considered rigid, and a second mating prevention part 18, integral with the wall basis, extending along the insertion direction between two portions of the wall basis 17. The second mating prevention part 18 is movable with respect to the wall basis 17 and is shown on Fig. 2a in its rest condition.

The second mating prevention part 18 comprises a central body 19 extending between a first arm 20a and a second arm 20b. Each one of these arms extends from a first end 20al, 20bl connected to the body 19 to a second end 20a2, 20b2, connected to the wall basis 17. The mobility of the second mating prevention part 18 with respect to the wall basis 17 is performed, in the present embodiment, by bending about bending axis located at the second ends 20a2, 20b2 of the arms about an axis which is parallel to direction Y, i.e. which is normal to the plane of the drawing. Grooves 30 extending along the bending axis parallel to the axis Y can for example be performed at each of these ends to enable this bending.

The second mating prevention part 18, and in particular the body 19 comprises an actuation portion 21 which protrudes inside the receptacle 13 with respect to the inner face of the wall basis 17 and is for example slanted toward the central axis of the receptacle along the insertion direction.

The second mating prevention part 18, and in particular the body 19, further comprises an abutment surface 22 (see Fig. 2b) oriented opposite to the direction X. In the position of Fig. 2a, the abutment surface 22 does not protrude from a plane parallel to the direction X and comprising the external surface 29 of the second part 5b of the housing.

Each receptacle has one such second mating prevention part 18, which is performed independently from the others, i.e. which is movable with respect to their respective wall basis independently from one another. This independence could be performed by slots 32 performed between walls as shown on Fig. 5. As shown on Fig. 2b, when the electrical terminal is moved from its outer position, shown on Fig. 2a, to its pre-assembled position, shown on Fig. 2b, an actuating portion 24 of the terminal 14 is brought in contact with the actuation portion 21 of the second mating prevention part 18. In fact, this can for example be due to a slight lateral displacement of the terminal 14 along the direction Z due to a sloped surface 25 of the housing locking feature 16. This causes the displacement, and in particular the bending, of the second mating prevention part to a prevention position visible in Fig. 2b. As shown on this figure, the first arm 20a is bent along an axis normal to the direction X at its second end 20a2 and the second arm 20b is bent about an axis parallel to the direction Y at its second end 20b2. Further, complementary bendings occur at the first ends 20al, 20bl of the body 19 relative to the respective arms. The second mating prevention part 18, and in particular the body 19 are thus in a prevention position wherein the body 19 protrudes along direction Z from the plane parallel to the direction X and comprising the external surface 29 of the second part 5b of the housing.

When the second mating prevention part 18 is in this prevention position shown on Fig. 2b, upon mating the first and second electrical connectors, the first mating prevention part 8 abuts on the abutment surface 22 of the body 19 before the first and second electrical connectors take a mated position. Thus, the first electrical connector is prevented from moving to its mated position with respect to the second electrical connector by this abutment. The two electrical connectors cannot be locked to one another by way of the first and second mating locking features 9 and 11.

On Fig. 2c, the electrical terminal is its assembled position, in which the locking features 15 and 16 engage one another to lock the electrical terminal in the receptacle. In this assembled position, the second mating prevention part 18 moves, in particular springs back from its prevention position (Fig. 2b) toward its rest position, in particular to an authorization position, shown in Fig. 2c. For example, the authorization position corresponds substantially to the rest position. This could for example be performed thanks to the recess 26 which is shaped to receive the part 27 of the body 19 protruding in the receptacle in the rest position of the second mating prevention part.

Thus, this protruding portion forms an optional supplementary locking feature 27 which engages the corresponding terminal locking feature (surface of the recess 26) to further lock the electrical terminal in its assembled position in the receptacle.

In the authorization position of the second mating prevention part 18, this part, and in particular the body 19 does not anymore protrude beyond the plane parallel to the direction X and comprising the external surface 29 of the second part 5b of the housing. Upon assembling together the first and second electrical connectors, moving them to their relative mated position, the first mating prevention portion 8 does not abut on the abutment surface 22. Thus, the second mating prevention part 18, in this position, does not prevent a movement of these two connectors toward their mated position.

Since all receptacles have their own independent second mating prevention part 18, which operate in a similar way, it will be noted that the electrical connectors will be able to be locked to one another only when all the second mating prevention parts 18 are in their authorization (or rest) position. As soon as one such part 18 is in its prevention position, even if all the others are in their authorization (or rest) position, the mating of the two connectors will be impossible. In this way, it is possible to detect that one of the electrical terminals is not fully inserted, and thus to prevent any mating of the two electrical connectors before this problem is fixed.

It will be noted that, in the configuration of Fig. 2b, where the second mating prevention part 18 is in its prevention position, it abuts against the electrical terminal, so that it is prevented to move back to its rest position or to the authorization position.

Figs. 3a to 3c now show a similar operation for an electrical connector having two parallel rows of receptacles. On Fig. 3a, one receptacle of each row is represented. In such an example, the embodiment of Fig. 2a will be symmetrically reproduced with respect to the wall 12 of Fig. 2a, which now becomes a partition wall 28. Thus, each receptacle extends between the partition wall 28 and a respective wall basis 12c. In this way, it is ensured that each receptacle has a second mating prevention part which, in its prevention position (shown on Fig. 3b for the right hand side receptacle) protrudes beyond the plane parallel to the direction X and comprising the outer surface 29 of part 10b.

Fig. 4 now shows a third embodiment for a two row electrical connector assembly. This embodiment differs from the second embodiment in that the second mating prevention part 18 is connected through only one arm 20a to the wall basis 17. Thus instead of using a second arm 20b such as in the previous embodiments, the body 19 is not connected to the frontal part of the wall basis 17.

Of course, a single row embodiment could be obtained from the embodiment of Fig. 4, by keeping only the right hand side receptacles of Fig. 4.