Waterproof connector

Aug. 7, 1956

W. V. RICHARDS

2,758,291

WATERPROOF CONNECTOR

Filed Sept. 10, 1952

Sheets-Sheet 1

<img file="US2758291A_D0001.tif" />

Aug. 7, 1956

2,758,291

W. V. RICHARDS

WATERPROOF CONNECTOR

Filed Sept. 10, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2

<img file="US2758291A_D0002.tif" />

<img file="US2758291A_D0003.tif" />

United States Patent Office 2,758,291

Patented Aug. 7, 1956

2,758,291

WATERPROOF CONNECTOR

Wayne V. Richards, deceased, late of Union City, Mich., by Myrtle. L. Richards, administratrix, Union City, Mich., assignor to Kingston Products Corporation, Kokomo, Ind., a corporation of Indiana

Application September 10, 1952, Serial No. 308,866 10

Claims. (CL 339—94)

This invention relates generally to separable connectors and particularly to a separable connector having component parts assembled in a novel manner in which certain of the parts are arranged to provide a water-tight seal when the connector is placed in assembled relationship.

According to the general principles of the present invention, a waterproof connector is provided including a plug and a socket having intermating current carrying means, a grommet is provided on the plug and abuts against the ends of the socket to provide a first seal joint between the socxet and the plug. The grommet is made of resilient elastic material such as rubber or neoprene and includes a protruding skirt portion which is generally in the cross-sectional configuration of an 0 ring and which is received in the socket to provide a second seal between the longitudinally extending surfaces of the socket and the plug.

The current carrying means of the plug and socket preferably comprise male and female members having mtermating means. tending to draw the plug and the socket together against the bias of the resilient grommet. There is thus provided a very effective form of seal between the plug and socket so that no liquid will penetrate the enclosure in which the current carrying means are housed.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved waterproof connector which is formed of a reduced number of greatly simplified parts and which will be effectively sealed against fluid infiltration.

Another object, of the present invention is to provide a simplified multi-wire terminal connector which is inexpensive to manufacture and which is completely waterproof when assembled.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a separable connector having a plurality of waterproof joints forming a seal between the separable elements of the connector.

Many other features, advantages and additional objects of the present invention will become manifest to those versed in the art upon making reference to the kr detailed description which follows and the accompanying sheets of drawings in which a preferred structural embodiment incorporating the principles of my invention is shown by way of illustrative example.

On the drawings: ₆θ

Figure 1 is an elevational view of a two-wire connector incorporating the principles of the present invention;

Figure, 2. is an end elevational view of the two-wire connector shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially 65 on line III—III of Figure 2 with parts shown- in elevation revealing additional details- of structure of the twowire connector shown in Figure 1;

Figure 4 is. an exploded view showing additional construction details of some of the elements utilized in ac- ⁷³cordance with the principles of the present invention;

Figure 5 is a cross sectional view with parts shown in elevation of a three-wire connector provided in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

Figure 6 is an end elevational view of the three-wire connector shown in Figure 5;

Figure 7 is a four-wire connector provided in accordance with the principles of the present invention; and

Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view of a modified grommet provided in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

As shown on the drawings:

In Figure 1 a two-wire connector is indicated generally at 10 and comprises a socket member 11 receiving a first plug member 12 in one end and a second plug member 13 in the other end. Each of the plug members 12 and 13 is identical insofar as structural detail is concerned and, accordingly, only a single set of reference numerals will be applied in further describing same.

Referring now to Figures 3 and 4, it will be noted that the two-wire connector 10 comprises a generally tubular housing 14 made of insulating material and having an open ended bore 16 provided with an internal medial shoulder or annular rib 17.

A current continuing member indicated generally at 18 is inserted into the housing. The current continuing member 18 preferably comprises a formed cylindrical tube having opposed struck-out ears indicated at 19 which engage opposite sides of the shoulder 17, thereby to retain the current continuing member 18 firmly in place within the housing 14. The current continuing member 18 is preferably made out of an electrically conductive metal embodying sufficient resilience so that insertion of the current continuing member 18 into the housing 14 may be effected even though the tongues 19 extend radially outwardly beyond the inner diameter of the annular shoulder 17. Thus, as the current continuing member 18 is inserted into the housing 14, the tongues 19 will be depressed in passing the shoulder 17 and will snap in behind the shoulder 17 so that the oppositely disposed tongues 19 will engage opposite sides of the annular shoulder 17.

On each end of the current continuing member 18 is provided a generally cylindrical socket portion 20 which is surrounded by a sleeve 21 adapted to improve the resilience of the respective socket portions 20.

Each of the socket portions 20 is provided with a radially inwardly extending embossment or struck-out portion providing an ear 22 which is adapted to cooperate with a plug member received in the socket portion 20 as will be more fully described hereinafter. Each socket portion 20 is longitudinally split to- resiliently engage the plug member.

In connection with the housing 14, it may be noted that each end of the housing 14 is provided with a transverse sealing face 23 which lies on a plane normal to the axis of the tubular housing 14. Additionally, each end of the, housing 14 is provided with a tapered mouth 24 which not only assists in locating a plug member inserted into the housing 14 for cooperation with the current continuing member 18 but also which forms a sealing face lying on a plane intersecting the plane of the sealing face 23 and also, intersecting the longitudinal plane including the axis of the tubular housing 14.

.Each of the plug members 12 and 13 comprise the terminal ends of a conductor wire indicated at 26. The conductor wire 26 is preferably covered by a layer of insulating material forming a cylindrical sheath 28. In making up the plug members 12 and 13, the conductor wire 26 is bared near the· terminal end thereof by removing a portion of the cylindrical sheath 28 whereupon a generally tubular current carrying member 29-is swaged to the con2,758,391

29. There is also provided a recess 47 in the open ended bore which corresponds in configuration to the enlarged annular rib 32 and which is adapted to snugly receive the rib 32. It will be noted that the recess 47 includes a shoulder 48 and a shoulder 49 at the opposite respective ends thereof, which shoulders engage corresponding shoulders 50 and 51 respectively on opposite sides of the annular rib 32 so as to lock the grommet 38 and the current carrying member 39 in fixed longitudinal alignment.

The open ended bore of the grommet 38 further includes a reduced neck portion 52 which snugly engages the insulation sheath 28 immediately behind the annular rib 32. As shown in Figure 4, the reduced neck 52 diverges outwardly as at 53 and terminates in a generally cylindrical recess portion 54.

After the grommet 38 has been assembled on the plug member 12 or the plug member 13, insertion of the plug member 12 or 13 into the socket 11 can be effected whereupon the sealing faces 23 and 39 will cooperatively engage one another, the sealing faces 42 and 24 will cooperatively engage one another, and the sealing face 41 and the inner bore 16 of the housing 14 will cooperatively engage one another. Thus, effective seal will be provided between the socket 11 and the plug 12 precluding the entry of fluid into the interior of the housing 40 between these two components.

The fitted relationship of the grommet 38 on the current carrying member 29 and the sheath 28 will also preclude leakage of fluid axially along the peripheral surface of the plug member 12.

According to the principles of the present invention, the cooperation between the groove 37 and the embossments or tongues 22 may develop an additional function in drawing the plug member 12 and the socket member 11 together axially. It will be noted that the groove 37 provided in the body portion of the current carrying member 29 is arcuately shaped in cross section. This particular configuration provides a camming surface which, upon engaging the embossments or tongues 22 develops a 40 wedging action tending to draw the plug member 12 and the socket member 11 together axially, thereby urging the housing 14 against the resilient bias of the grommet 38 in promoting a particularly efficient water tight seal at the sealing surfaces 23, 39, 24 and 42.

In many uses in the field, it is desirable that one terminal be the so called “hot” terminal and in order to designate same, the appropriate grommet 38 affixed to the “hot” terminal may be made of a different colored resilient elastic material.

Furthermore, since it is desirable that the “hot” terminal not be subject to inadvertent or accidental removal with the consequent possibility of grounding against an adjacent metal part, it may be desirable to modify the groove 37 provided in the current carrying member 29 as is indicated on the right hand side of Figure 3. It will be noted that the annular groove provided in the shoulder portion of the current carrying member 29 on the right hand side of Figure 3 includes a recess 37α havv . · mv .e m u.uxuu.u ....________ — ing ^a shoulder 56 at one end thereof so that the embossalinx face 42 abuttingly engages the corresponding @o ments cr tongues 22 can snap in behind the shoulder to ductor wire 26 as at a plurality of circumferentially spaced points indicated generally at 30.

The current carrying member 29 has -a closed tapered finding end 31 and a generally cylindrical body portion which terminates in an enlarged annular rib indicated at 32. The current carrying member 29 is provided with a recess 33 receiving the wire conductor 26, which recess is enlarged in the rib 32 as is indicated at 34 so as to accommodate not only the wire conductor 26 but also a portion of the insulating material or sheath 28 covering the wire.

A medial annular groove 37 is provided in the body portion of the current carrying member 29 and is longitudinally aligned in predetermined spaced relation to the rib 32. The groove 37 cooperates with the embossments or tongues 22 which are formed in the socket portion 29 of the current continuing member 18, thereby to exert an additional retaining force on the current carrying member 29 which supplements the forces tending to retain the current carrying member 29 in inserted assembly with respect to the current continuing member 18.

Since each of the socket portions 20 takes the form of a split cylindrical tube surrounded by the sleeve 21, it is preferred that the mating parts are proportioned to resiliently engage one another when the current carrying member 29 is inserted into the socket portion 20 of the current continuing member 18.

In order to isolate the current carrying components of the connector 10 in a water tight sealed relation within the housing 14, each of the plug members 12 and 13 carries a grommet indicated generally at 38 which is made of a resilient and elastic material such as rubber or an oilresistant material such as “neoprene,” or the like.

In Figure 4, the particular details of construction of the grommet 38 are shown. The grommet 38 preferably takes the form of a generally cylindrical tube having a first sealing face 39 lying on a plane generally transverse to the axis thereof and which is adapted to engagingly abut the corresponding face 23 of the housing 14 of the socket member 11.

Protruding from the sealing face 39 is a skirt or bead portion 48 shaped to conform generally with the shape of the open ended bore extending through the housing 14 in the socket member 11 and received in the bore 16 to sealingly engage the walls of the bore 16, thereby providing a second sealing face 41 which is generally longitudinally disposed with respect to the axis of both the grommet 38 and the housing 14. It will be appreciated that for best sealing results, the bead 40 may be made slightly larger than the bore 16 so as to be deformably 50 compressed against both the current carrying member 29 and the housing 14, thereby forming a tight seal between the plug members 12 and 13 and the socket member 11. In cross section, the bead 40 resembles an O ring.

The grommet 38 additionally provides a tapered sealing 55 surface 42 which lies generally between the sealing face 39 and the head 40 and which is angularly disposed so as to lie in a plane intersecting the plane including the sealing face 39 and the plane including the sealing face 41. The set „ _ _ tapered throat or sealing face 24 of the housing 14 of the socket member 11.

In the particular embodiment herein disclosed, the sealing face 39 is provided on one side of an annular rib 43 located adjacent one end of the grommet 38. Such em- θ:; bodiment further includes a skirt portion 44 of somewhat smaller size which extends away from the annular rib 43, the skirt portion 44 being adapted to surround and engage the insulation sheath 28 surrounding the conductor wire 26.

The grommet 38 is provided with an open ended bore extending therethrough and which is somewhat complexly shaped, one end of the open ended bore including a generally cylindrical recess portion 46 adapted to snugly sur35 retain the “hot” terminal in assembly therewith. The annular groove 37α is further provided with a tapered camming surface diverging away from the shoulder 56 which is indicated at 57. Such camming surface operates to tend to draw the plug and socket together against the resilience of the grommet.

In Figure 5 is shown a three-wire connector indicated generally by the reference numeral 60. A housing 61 comprises a housing member 62 having a flange 63 at one 70 end adjacent a shoulder 64. A second housing member 66 is provided with a flange 67 complementary in configuration to the flange 63 and arranged to be telescopically received therein. It will be noted that the peripheral _______________ _______ ______„__________surface of the flange 63 and the peripheral surface of round the body portion of the current carrying member 75 the body member 66 lie flush with one another after

2,758, the body members 62 and 66 are assembled together. In order to retain the body members 62 and 66 in firm as-, sembly, a suitable cementing compound or adhesive may be provided at the flanges 63 and 67.

It will be noted that the body member 62 is provided 5 with a plurality of protruding boss portions which are indicated at 68. Each of the boss portions 68 has a generally cylindrical recess 69. formed therein and opening outwardly thereof so as to receive a socket portion 70 of a current continuing member 71. 10

The current continuing member 71 is. preferably formed from a sheet like material made of metal or the like and may comprise a stamping having the socket portions 70 formed as cylindrical portions having a longitudinal slit therein. Each of the socket portions 70 is surrounded by 15 a sleeve 72 which enhances the, resilient assembly of a plug member indicated generally at 12,

The body member 66 is provided with a reduced neck 73 having a recess formed therein indicated at 74 receiving a socket portion 76 provided by the current con- 20 tinning member 71. The socket portion 76 is longitudinally split as at 77 and is surrounded by a sleeve 78 which enhances the electrical connection between the socket portion 76 and the plug member 12 received therein. 25

In Figure Ί, a four-wire connector is indicated generally by the reference numeral 80. A first body member indicated at 81 has a flange 82 at one end thereof receiving a complementary shaped flange. 83 of a. second, body member 84. Each of the housing members 8.1 and 84 30 is provided with a plurality of bos.s portions 86 each being provided with a recess 87 adapted to receive a socket portion 88 formed on the corner portions of a stamped current continuing member 89. The respective socket portions 88 are each surrounded by a metal sleeve 35 90 which operates to improve the electrical contact between the socket portions 88 and each of the plug members 12 inserted into the socket portions.

In each of the embodiments, shown, the various Slug members 12 are sealed with, respect to. the housing mem- .to bers in the same manner as has been described in detail in connection with the embodiment shown in. Figures 1-4. Body members 62 and 66 of Figure 5, and body members 81 and 84 of Figure 7 provide the sealing faces 23 and 24 at the end of the recesses 69, 74, 87 and these sealing 45 faces cooperate with each of the grommets 38 so as to isolate the current continuing members. 71 and 89 against leakage within the housings..

In Figure 8 is shown an. embodiment of the principles of the present invention suitable for use with a. single 50 connector. The current carrying member is indicated at 29α and is carried on the end pf a conductor wire covered by an insulating sheet 28α, The current carrying member 29α is swaged as at 30α and includes a closed tapered end 31α at one end and an enlarged rib. 32α at the other end. 55 A medial groove 37α is provided on the body portion of the current carrying member 29α. The sealing- grommet is indicated at 38α and structurally is very similar to the grommet 38 described in connection with the other embodiments of the invention. Similar reference numerals θθ bearing the suffix “a” have been applied to the grommet wherever the structural features are identical, however, it will be noted that the grommet 38α is provided with an additional structural feature which comprises an enlarged flexible skirt portion 96 which extends axially away from 65 the shoulder 43α so as to provide a recess 97 around the end of the current carrying member 29α.

The end of the skirt 96 is indicated at 98 and it will be noted that the end portion 98 extends beyond the end of the current carrying member 29α. 70

A pocket member indicated in phantom and identified by the reference numeral 100 will be received in the skirt 96.

Although various minor structural modifications might be suggested by those versed in the art, it should be under- 75

291 (&gt;

stood that I wish to embody within the scope of the patent warranted hereon all such modifications as reasonably and properly come within the scope of my contribution to the art.