Related Application

This application claims priority from US Provisional Patent Application No. 62/144,671 titled "Terminal Block" filed 08 April 2015 at Attorney Docket No. 14-1332-P, which priority application is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.

Field of the Disclosure

The disclosure relates to terminal blocks with molded plastic bodies. The blocks are mounted on circuit boards and are used to form electrical connections between conductors inserted into the blocks and pins on pin headers and circuitry in the circuit boards supporting the blocks.

Background of the Disclosure

US Patent No. 8,794,994 discloses a terminal block where an arm is rotated to compress a spring and permit insertion of a conductor into the block. The spring is released to form an electrical connection with the inserted conductor.

Brief Summary of the Disclosure

The disclosed terminal block has a one-piece molded plastic body with a number of connection assemblies spaced along the block. A metal contact member is located on a wall in a contact recess in each assembly for forming an electrical connection with a conductor inserted into the recess and an electrical connection with a pin on a pin header or, if desired, circuitry in a printed circuit board supporting the terminal block. A spring member in each contact recess holds an inserted conductor against the contact member.

The molded plastic body includes an integral connector insertion member for each connection assembly. Each connector insertion member has a large area push button on the top of the body and push arms which extend through the wall and into the body recess to engage the spring member in the recess when the push button is depressed. The arms engage the sides of the spring member to elastically move the spring member away from the contact member and permit free insertion of a conductor into the recess. Preferably, the conductor insertion member has two spaced push arms which extend to either side of and past the contact member to engage two push members on opposite sides of the spring member and compress the spring member. The push arms extend past and straddle the contact member to permit free insertion of a conductor into the space between the contact and spring members .

The molded plastic body of the terminal block includes a protective bar which extends over and protects the spring arms from injury or displacement. The push arms extend through openings in the top of the body to prevent lateral displacement of the connector insertion member.

The push buttons each have a large area on the top of the terminal block body for easy compression of the spring members during insertion of conductors into the body.

Description of the Drawings

Figure 1 is perspective view illustrating a low profile terminal block;

Figure 2 is a view of one side of the block shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view of the opposite side of the terminal block shown in Figure 2 with one conductor insertion member depressed;

Figure 4 is a top view of the terminal block;

Figure 5 is a rear view of the terminal block;

Figure 6 is a bottom view of the terminal block taken in the direction of arrow 6 shown in Figure 5;

Figures 7, 8 and 9 are sectional views taken respectively along lines 7—7, 8—8 and 9—9 of Figure 5;

Figure 10 is a bottom perspective view of the terminal block; Figure 11 is a broken away partial perspective view of the contact members, spring members and insertion members in the block;

Figure 12 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the terminal block;

Figures 13 and 14 are perspective views showing the connector block and pin headers for forming electrical connections with the block;

Figure 15 is a sectional view showing a pin header to be mounted on a terminal block; and

Figure 16 is a bottom perspective view of a second embodiment terminal block.

Description of the Preferred Embodiments

First embodiment the terminal block 10 includes two like side-by-side connection assemblies 12. Each assembly 12 can form electrical connections between a conductor (not illustrated) inserted into the assembly, a contact pin 14, which may be mounted on a header board, and circuitry on a circuit board supporting the block .

Block 10 includes a one-piece rectangular molded plastic body 16 having opposed parallel side walls 18, front wall 20 and rear wall 22. Top wall 24 overlies the tops of walls 18 and 22 away from front wall 20. Elevated protection bar 26 extends above top wall 24 a distance in from front wall 20. Bar 26 has a vertical surface 28 extending above wall 24 and facing rear wall 22. Spaced hinge openings 30 are formed in surface 28.

Interior vertical wall 32, shown in Figure 6, extends between the front and rear walls 20 and 22 to define two like side-by-side contact recesses 34 in body 16. Conductor insertion openings 36 extend through the top of rear wall 22 and communicate with recesses 34. Figure 8 illustrates the openings 36 have wide mouths 38 on the outside of wall 22 and inwardly tapered central portions 40 leading to small area inner ends 42 at the top centers of the recesses 34.

L-shaped mounting bracket 44 extends across the bottom of rear wall 22 below recesses 34. Front wall 20 of body 16 includes a vertical two-contact receptacle 46 located in front of each contact recess 34. Each receptacle 46 has two vertical pin passages ' 48 extending from the top to the bottom of the receptacle. As illustrated in Figure 6, each passage 48 has a cross width, as measured in a direction perpendicular to side walls 18 _/ greater than its transverse width, as measured in a direction perpendicular to end wall 22. The two passages 48 in each receptacle receive contact pins 14 for establishing electrical connections with stamped metal contact members 50 mounted in recesses 34. The wide passages 48 permit mounting a pin header with pins extending into passages 48 but with the plane of the header at an angle to assembly 12 during mounting. Electrical connections are formed between the individual pins on the header and contact members 50 in recess 34. See Figures 13, 14 and 15.

Bar 26 at the top of body 16 forms a vertical extension of interior cross wall 52 which extends across body. The lower end 54 of interior wall 52 is spaced a distance 56 above the bottom of the body, as shown in Figure 7. Vertical mounting slits 58 extend up into wall 52 in front of each contact recess 34. See Figure 7. Vertical contact recesses 60 are provided on the front sides of interior wall 52 and open into the adjacent pin passages 48 at the lower ends of the passages on opposite sides of the contact receptacles 46. See Figure 7. Contact retention slits 62 are located above recesses 60. Ά contact probe opening 61 is provided in each receptacle at the bottom of each passage 48 to permit a test probe to engage contact arms 100 in the passage.

As shown in Figure 9, the upper portions 66 of mounting slits 58 at the sides of the slits have enlarged widths to accommodate mounting tabs 68 and 70 on contact members 50 and metal spring members 64 to lock the members in the body.

Molded plastic body 16 includes integral contact insertion members 76 for compressing the spring members 64 in each contact recess 34 to permit insertion of the stripped lead end of an insulated conductor into the recesses through an opening 36. Each insertion member 76 includes a button or panel 78 located above a recess 34, two push arms 82 and a spring arm 80. See Figures 8 and 9. The button 78 is connected to body front wall 20 by flexible S-shaped spring arm 80 extending from the forward edge of the button to the front wall. Each arm 80 extends through an opening 30.

Two downwardly extended push arms 82 are located on the sides of the button and extend below the button, through openings 84 in top wall 24 and into a recess 34. Insertion member 76 is normally located in an as-molded position shown in Figure 8 with arms 82 above recess 34. Manual lowering of the button 78 flexes arm 80 and moves the two push arms 82 into the respective recess 34. The insertion member 76 returns to the as-molded position shown in Figure 8 when the push button 78 is released.

The blocks 10 are small. The buttons 78 each extend about one-halfway across the width of block 10 and extend about one-half along the length of the block. The large area of each button provides a large target for a technician wishing to compress the spring members 64 to permit insertion of conductors into recesses 34. The large areas of the buttons 78 are illustrated in Figure 4.

Each connection assembly 12 includes a contact member 50 and a spring member 64. Spring member 64 is preferably formed from metal strip stock having high yield strength for holding the end of a conductor inserted into a recess 34 against contact member 50 in the recess to form a reliable electrical connection. Contact member 50 is formed from highly conductive metal and may have conventional conductive plating. Member 50 includes a flat contact strip 96, a rectangular mounting plate 98 with tabs 68 formed in the outer edges of the plate, a central mounting arm or latch 100 extending downwardly from the top of the plate 98 and a pair of laterally spaced contact arms 102 extending upwardly from the bottom of the plate 98 to upper ends 103 located at the top of plate 98 and spaced forwardly from the plate. A board latch 104 is provided on the lower end of the arm 100.

Spring member 6 is shown in Figure 12 and includes a flat rectangular mounting plate 86 with lock tabs 70 on the opposite edges of the plate. Plate 86 extends upwardly from one end of a flat base strip 88. Angled contact arm 90 extends upwardly from the other end of the base strip and back over the base strip to position central conductor contact 92 over the base strip 88. Two rounded push member followers 94 are located on opposite sides of conductor contact 92.

The contact members 50 are mounted in the assembly before the spring members 64 are mounted in the assembly. Each contact member is extended up from the bottom of body 16 to position the mounting plate 98 in a mounting slit 58 with the plate on the forward front side of the slit. See Figures 8 and 9. During insertion of the plate into the slit, tabs 68 are compressed and snap back into portion 66 to lock the plate in the slit. During insertion of the plate, strip 96 is moved up into recess 34 along vertical slot 107 and is positioned on the lower surface of top wall 24. With the plate 98 latched in position, mounting arm 100 extends down from the top of the plate with latch 104 located a distance below the bottom of body 16. The two contact arms 102 for each contact member 50 are located in slots on the outer sides of the two pin passages 48 of each receptacle 46. See Figure 6. Contact pins extended down into passages 48 engage and deform arms 102 to form reliable electrical connections with the arms . Passages 48 have a lateral width greater than the diameter of the pins to permit insertion of pins into the passages at an angle, if desired, as indicated in Figure 15.

Each spring member 64 is mounted in body 16 by extending plate 86 up from the bottom of the body with strip 88 and arm 90 below a recess 34 to extend the plate 86 into a mounting slit 58. During insertion tabs 70 are compressed and then snap back into slot upper portion 66 to lock the spring member in place as shown in Figures 8 and 9. With the spring member inserted into the body 16 as described, the upper ends of the followers 94 are located under openings 84 in the body 16 below the lower ends of push arms 82.

Manual depression of a push button 78 lowers the push arms 82 into the respective recess 34 to straddle and extend past strip 96, engage followers 94 and lower contact 92 below the contact strip of the contact member 50 to permit free insertion of the stripped end of a conductor through opening 36 and into the recess. The tapered portion of opening 36 guides the conductor through inner end 42 and into alignment with the contact member. Release of the button 78 permits spring member 64 to bias contact 92 up against the conductor and hold the conductor tightly against contact member 50 to form a reliable electrical connection with the contact member.

The protection bar 26 at the top of block 10 extends in front of the push buttons 78 and overlies the spring arms 80. Bar 26 protects the insertion members 76 and spring arms from contact with objects during assembly and used to assure proper operation of the block. Further, as illustrated in Figure 3, the back of the body 16 at rear wall 22 forms a stop to prevent over rotation of member 76 during insertion of conductors into recesses 34 and injury to the insertion member . The assembled block 10 is mounted on a circuit board (not illustrated) . Mounting bracket 44 is extended through a narrow slit in the board following which the assembly is rotated down to a position resting flush on the top surface of the board with the end of bracket 44 engaging the lower surface of the board. The two board latches 104 are extended through openings in the board and latch back under the board to hold the block in place on the board. If desired, the board latches may be soldered to circuitry on the board to form electrical connections between the circuitry and the contact members in each assembly 12. In this way, electrical connections may be established between circuitry on the board and conductors extended into the block through engaged contact members 50 and pins extended into pin passages 48.

The molded plastic body 16 for block 10 has two connection assemblies 12 with a contact member 50 and spring member 64 associated with each assembly. If desired, a terminal block could have any desired number of side-by-side assemblies 12 spaced along the block.

Figure 16 illustrates a second embodiment terminal block 108 which is like block 10 with the exception that the mounting bracket 44 has been replaced by a pair of cylindrical mounting pins 110 extending downwardly from rear wall 22. A plurality of deformable axially extending insertion ribs 112 extend out from the pins and are spaced around the pins .

Block 108 is mounted on a supporting circuit board by extending pins 110 into cylindrical holes in the board having a tight fit diameter. During insertion of the pins, the ribs 112 are compressed to form tight, elastic connections holding the block on the circuit board. The block is moved down onto the board to extend board latches 104 into holes in the board, as previously described. The board latches may be soldered to circuitry on the board to form electrical connections, as previously described.