AU742223B2 - Coaxial cable connector - Google Patents

Description

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT r o r r Applicant(s): CENTERPIN TECHNOLOGY, INC.

Invention Title: COAXIAL CABLE CONNECTOR r r The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me/us: 1 Ai.

COAXIAL CABLE CONNECTOR 1 BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 2 3 The present invention relates to electrical 4 connectors and especially to electrical connectors for coupling to insulated electrical coaxial cables 6 without stripping the end of the insulated coaxial 7 cable.

8 In the past, a wide variety of electrical wire :°oooo 9 connectors have been provided for connecting to wire 0 ends. In a typical connector, the end of the wire is o 11 stripped of insulation and the bare wire is inserted 12 into a connector where it can be soldered or clamped 13 or otherwise attached to the connector. It is also 14 common to tin the wire ends by coating the wire end 15 with solder and a wide variety of connectors have been 16 provided which removably hold the wire to the 17 connector.

18 Typical connectors are used in audio systems, 19 such as in hi-fi speakers, in which a wire end is 20 stripped of the insulation and is inserted in an 21 opening and a threaded nut is threaded onto the wire.

22 The nut can be loosened for removing the wire. Other 23 audio speakers include spring clamps which allows a 24 wire end to be stripped of insulation and inserted into an opening while lifting the spring connector 26 clamp and then releasing the spring connector clamp 27 onto the wire. Relifting of the spring connector 28 clamp allows the removal of the wire end. Other 29 commonly used connectors allow a stripped wire end to be inserted into a connector or into both ends of a 31 connector and then clamped with pliers to 1 collapse a conductive sleeve onto the wire. This type 2 of connector can be insulated or not since it is made 3 of a malleable metal which collapses onto a stripped 4 wire end to provide the necessary electrical contact.

In contrast to these various types of wire 6 connectors, the present invention deals with a wire 7 connector that does not require the insulation to be 8 stripped and also provides, in some embodiments, for 9 the insertion of the insulated wire end in a manner to lock the wire end in place inside the bore of a wire 11 connector.

12 Prior wire connectors can be seen in the 13 following U.S. Patents. The Chang patent, 14 No.4,013,333, for a wire connector having two 15 concentric sockets adapted to be assembled one into 16 the other and in which the inner socket has a 17 '-conductive needle mounted therein for sliding a wire 18 end into each end of the connector and which also uses 19 a spike pressed in two holes in the sleeves to penetrate the coating of the wire ends. In the U.S.

21 patent to Danner, No. 3,860,320, a dangler cathode 22 cable assembly is connected to a ball-like cathode 23 member by stripping the end portion of the cable and 24 inserting the end portion into a sleeve which is pressed into an undersized tapered socket that has a 26 pointed pin therein. In the U.S. patent to Friedhelm, 27 No. 4,786,760, a cable connector for piezoelectric 28 cable has an insulated cable end which is inserted 29 'into a sleeve. In the U.S. patent to Berman, No.

4,091,233, an electrical connector and a method of 31 connecting an electrical cable to the connector is 32 provided for connecting one or more insulated 33 electrical cords or cables together. The 34 1 insulated cable ends can be inserted into the 2 receptacles on either end and onto a prong of 3 electrically conductive material so that the prong is 4 an electrical contact with the wire of an insulated cord end. A container of adhesive material on the 6 end of the receptacle is released from the container 7 to create a physical bond between the cord and the 8 connector to hold the cord within the connector. In 9 my prior U.S. patent No. 5,403,201 an electrical connector is coupled to an insulated electrical 11 conductor without stripping the end of the insulated 12 conductor. The insulated wire is held with a spring 13 clamp which allows the wire to be released. oooo 14 Other U.S. patents can be seen in Homolka patent No. 5,052,946 for a plug connector for a high voltage 16 coaxial cable which uses a plug in contact for the 17 'connection with the central conductor. In the Komada 18 U.S. patent No. 4,352,240 a method of connecting a 19 coaxial cable to an electrical connector is provided which drives a pin shaped positive terminal into the 21 center conductor. The S. Gerhard patent Nop.

22 3,444,507 is for an electrical connector for semi- 23 solid conductors and the Caulkins patent No. 3,951,503 C 24 is a cable splice assembly for multiconductor cables and the W.C. Gourley et al patent No. 3,317,883 is for 26 a high voltage wire coupling having a pair of prongs 27 for coupling to the center conductor of insulated 28 wires.

29 The present invention utilizes an electrical connector for coupling to an insulated electrical 31 coaxial cable end in which the coaxial cable is 32 inserted into a bore in the connector housing to 33 drive a prong into the cable end. The cable is them 34 releasably clamped through the insulated cable with 4 conductive clamps which extend into the conductive sheath to thereby form a coupling to the center conductor and separately to the concentric conductive sheath or braiding.

STATEMENT OF INVENTION In accordance with the present invention there is an electrical connector for coupling to a coaxial cable of the type having an inner electrical conductor enclosed with an inner insulation and a conductive sheath around the inner insulation and enclosed in an outer insulation, said electrical connector comprising: a housing having an electrically conductive ortion and a bore portion; 15 an electrically conductive pin, said conductive pin attached to the housing and having an end portion protruding axially into the housing bore portion for receiving an end of a coaxial cable; at least one electrically conductive arm electrically connected to said electrically conductive portion of said housing and insulated from said *o *electrically conductive pin, said at least one electrically conductive arm having a pointed end sized for driving through the outer insulation and making electrical contact 25 with the conductive sheath of the coaxial cable; a closure member having an aperture for receiving the electrical conductor and which is attachable to the housing, and adapted for engaging the at least one electrically conductive arm and to maintain the at least one arm in electrical contact with the conductive sheath of the coaxial cable.

The connector may be of the type for attaching to an antenna be of the type for attaching to an antenna of a television set. A second embodiment replaces the cap with a heat shrinkable insulation.

H:\lauraw\Keep\29340-97.doc 11/10/01 5 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the written description and the drawings in which: Figure 1 is an exploded view of an electrical connector and a portion of a coaxial cable in accordance with the present invention; Figure 2 is an exploded view of the electrical connector of Figure 1 having the coaxial cable inserted into the locking cap; Figure 3, is a sectional exploded view of the electrical connector of Figures 1 and 2; Figure 4 is a sectional view of the electrical 15 connector having coaxial cable end attached thereto; Figure 5 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a coaxial cable connector in accordance with the present invention; Figure 6 is an exploded sectional view of the connection of Figure o o*oo Figure 7 is a sectional view of the embodiment of ooo.. Figures 5 and 6 having the cable attached thereto.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to Figures 1-4 of the drawings, an electrical connector 10 for a coaxial cable end 11 is illustrated. The coaxial cable 11 has a center conductor 12 having a concentric insulation 13 and a H:\Ieurw\Keep\29340-97.doc 11/10/01 1 concentric conductive wire braid or sheath 14 around 2 the insulation 13 and having an outer insulation layer 3 15 covering the conductive sheath 14. The connector 4 10 connects various types and sizes of coaxial cable to a variety of plugs, jacks, and connectors, all 6 referred to herein as an electrical connector.

7 Connection to the connector 10 is made without solder 8 and without the stripping of the insulation covers 9 from the cable. The coaxial cable 10 may be connected to an electrical apparatus, such as a television set 11 and requires that the center conductor 12 be 12 electrically coupled to another connector or 13 apparatus. The outer sheath 14 be connected separately oooo oo 14 but insulated from the center conductor 12. The 15 connector 10 has a connector housing 16 having a 16 generally cylindrical cable attaching portion 17 17 -having external threads 18 and an internal bore s 18 A connector prong or pin 21 extends axially into the 19 bore 20 and is mounted to an insulation base 22 having 20 a prong 23 extending therefrom. The prongs 21 and 23 21 are one continuous conductive member. Prong 23 22 extends into a bore 24 of a cylindrical housing 23 portion 25 having internal threads 26. Electrically :2 24 conductive clamps 27 have clamping or pointed tips or contacts 28 and are connected to the housing 26 electrically conductive portions 17 of the housing 27 16. A plurality of clamping members 27 are 28 contemplated even though a single clamp can perform 29 the operation of attaching the coaxial cable end portion 11. A locking cap 30 is a generally 31 cylindrical metal or conductive member having internal 32 tireads 31 adapted to be threadedly attached to the 33 threads 18 of the connector body portion 17 and has an 34 annular angled or wedging portion 32 formed therein.

Figure 3 also shows an insulation covering 29 which 36 provides 1 extra security against contact of the conductor .14 2 with the connector body 16 metal portions in the event 3 a stray strand of wire from conductor 14 extended from 4 the cable 11.

In operation, the tip of the coaxial cable 11 6 does not have any of the insulation stripped from the 7 conductors as is normally required to connect a 8 coaxial cable to a connector. The end of the coaxial 9 cable 11 is inserted between the clamping members 27 and into the bore 20 and onto the prong 21 and into 11 the center conductor 12 to make an electrical 12 conductive contact. This provides the electrical 13 continuity through the prong 23. Prong 23 can be oooo oo 14 attached to an electrical apparatus, such as a 15 television set or the like, or to another coaxial 16 cable. Once the coaxial cable 11 is pushed into the 17 ',bore and attached, the cap member 30 is slid over the 18 clamps 27 and threaded onto the threads 18 of the 19 housing portion 17. The annular wedging portion 32 20 drives against the ends of the clamp 27 to drive the 21 pointed contacts 28 into the outer insulation 15 of 22 the coaxial cable 11. The clamps 28 are sized so as 23 to drive through the insulating layer 15 and into the 24 concentric conductive sheath 14 to make an electrical contact with the sheath 14. This in turn electrically 26 connects the cable 11 to the conductive housing 16 and 27 to the apparatus that the connector is electrically 28 connected to without having to strip the insulation 29 from the coax cable 11. The cable is rapidly attached to the connector 10 simply by placing the cap over the 31 cable and inserting the coaxial cable portion 11 in 32 the bore and then threading the locking 33 1 cap 30 onto the housing. The connector can also be 2 removed at a later time by removing the threaded cap 3 30 and lifting the prongs 27. The clamp arms 27 can 4 be spring loaded so as to pull themselves back if desired, when removing the cable end 11.

6 Turning now to Figures 5, 6 and 7, another 7 embodiment of a coaxial cable connector is illustrated 8 in which an electrical connector 35 has an 9 electrically conductive connector body 36, having coaxial cable 11 attached to one end thereof. The 11 other end of the connector has internal threads 37 oooo 12 with a protruding center conductor 38. In this 13 embodiment, a heat shrinkable insulating sleeve 14 extends over and is attached to the conductive connector housing portion 41. The bore 42 has a 16 center prong 43 for insertion into or adjacent the 17 center conductor 12 of the coaxial cable 11. A 18 plurality of clamping extensions 44 are connected to 19 the metal housing 41 and each has a pointed prong extending from the end thereof. Coaxial cable 11 has 21 electrical insulation 13 therearound followed by the 22 concentric conductor or metal braid 14 wrapped in 23 insulation 15. In operation, the coaxial cable 11 is 24 inserted into the insulation 40 between the clamping members 44 and onto the prong 43.

26 Center conductors 12' on coaxial cable is 27 sometimes a single conductor wire and sometimes is 28 formed of multiple strands so that the prong 43 will 29 ,sometimes be driven into the multiple strand wire and at other times be directed adjacent to the single wire 31 conductor 12. Once the cable 11 is inserted and 32 33 34 attached to the prong, the heat shrinkable insulation is heated and shrunk onto the cable 11 and onto the clamps 44 to push the clamps and the pointed prongs into the outer insulation 15 of the cable 11. The prongs pass through the insulation 15 to make contact with the conductor 14. To assure proper contact, the insulation 40 canbe pressed down using one's fingers to press the clamp members 44 to properly set the prongs 45 into the insulation 15 and into the conductor 14. The insulating sleeve 40 thus holds the connector 35 to the cable 11 and insulates the tip of the cable. The clamps 44 also are engaging the insulation 15 to hold the cable in place with the conductor 43 making contact with the conductor 12 of the cable to provide a center conductor 38 with an electrical contact with the cable 11. The prongs 38 ,and 43 are mounted to an insulating member 47, which is attached to the body 36. By replacing the cap of Figures 1-4 with the heat shrinkable insulation the cable 11 is provided with more flexibility and an insulated cover over the connection of the cable and the connector.

It should be clear at this time that an electrical connector for a coax cable has been provided which advantageously allows the coax cable to be attached to the connector without stripping or removing any of the insulation on the end of the cable while making separate electrical connections with the Scenter conductor and the conductive sheath. However, the present invention is not to be considered as limited to the forms shown which are to be considered illustrative rather than restrictive.

Claims (11)

1. An electrical connector for coupling to a coaxial cable of the type having an inner electrical conductor enclosed with an inner insulation and a conductive sheath around the inner insulation and enclosed in an outer insulation, said electrical connector comprising: a housing having an electrically conductive portion and a bore portion; an electrically conductive pin, said conductive pin attached to the housing and having an end portion protruding axially into the housing bore portion for receiving an end of a coaxial cable; at least one electrically conductive arm 15 electrically connected to said electrically conductive portion of said housing and insulated from said electrically conductive pin, said at least one electrically conductive arm having a pointed end sized for driving through the outer insulation and making electrical contact with the conductive sheath of the coaxial cable; oo~a closure member having an aperture for receiving *o*the electrical conductor and which is attachable to the ••co housing, and adapted for engaging the at least one electrically conductive arm and to maintain the at least 25 one arm in electrical contact with the conductive sheath of the coaxial cable.

2. The electrical connector according to claim i, wherein the closure member is a housing cap.

3. The electrical connector according to claim 2, wherein the housing cap is threadably attachable to the housing.

4. The electrical connector according to claim 3, wherein said housing cap has a tapered portion therein for maintaining said at least one electrically conductive arm in electrical contact with the conductive sheath of the coaxial cable. The electrical connector according to claim i, wherein said electrical connector comprise a plurality of H:\1auraw\Keep\29340-97.doc 11/10/01 11 electrically conductive arms.

6. The electrical connector according to claim i, wherein said electrically conductive pin is attached to an electrically insulated housing portion.

7. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein said housing comprises a second bore and a second end portion of said electrically conductive pin extends into said second housing bore.

8. The electrical connector according to claim 7, wherein said housing has an attaching portion adjacent said second bore for attaching said second end portion of said pin to another electrical connector.

9. The electrical connector according to claim 8, wherein said housing attaching portion includes a threaded 15 portion for threadably attaching said electrical connector to the other electrical connector. The electrical connector according to claim 9, so wherein said housing comprises an insulating plate having S" said pin attached therethrough attached inside said housing between said first and second bores. S11. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein said at least one conductive arm is attached to the conductive portion of the housing.

12. The electrical connector according to claim i, 25 wherein the closure member is an insulating sleeve.

13. The electrical connector according to claim 12, wherein the insulating sleeve is a heat shrink insulating sleeve.

14. The electrical connector according to claim 13, wherein said sleeve is a generally cylindrical hollow sleeve attached to said housing and extending therefrom. H:\lau-aw\Keep\29340-97.doc 11/10/01 12 An electrical conductor substantially as described herein with reference to and illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Dated this 1 1 th day of October 2001 CENTERPIN TECHNOLOGY, INC. By their Patent Attorneys GRIFFITH HACK Fellows Institute of Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys of Australia S* So H:\lauraw\Keep\29340-97.doc 11/10/01