U.S. patent number 3,896,535 [Application Number 05/505,809] was granted by the patent office on 1975-07-29 for contact terminal extraction tool.
This patent grant is currently assigned to AMP Incorporated. Invention is credited to John James Tucci.
United States Patent |
3,896,535 |
Tucci |
July 29, 1975 |
Contact terminal extraction tool
Abstract
An extraction tool for removing and inserting individual
terminals is used with a multi-contact electrical connector. The
connector employs mateable connector halves with terminals located
in side-by-side relationship. The terminals are held in position in
the connector housing because of their inherent spring action
against appropriate surfaces of the connector. The extraction tool
first engages the end of the terminal and frees the terminal from
its secured position. It is then used to partially push the
terminal from its normal position in the housing. The terminal can
then be completely removed and another inserted. The extraction
tool is designed to be used with either half of the mateable
connector. It is also designed to prevent damage to other terminals
when one terminal is removed.
Inventors: |
Tucci; John James
(Winston-Salem, NC) |
Assignee: |
AMP Incorporated (Harrisburg,
PA)
|
Family
ID: |
24011931 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/505,809 |
Filed: |
September 13, 1974 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
29/747; 29/758;
29/426.2; 29/426.5; 29/762 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01R
43/22 (20130101); Y10T 29/49817 (20150115); Y10T
29/53209 (20150115); Y10T 29/49822 (20150115); Y10T
29/53257 (20150115); Y10T 29/53274 (20150115) |
Current International
Class: |
H01R
43/22 (20060101); H01R 43/20 (20060101); H01r
043/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;29/23H,23HM,23HC,206,270,427 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Hall; Carl E.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Raring; Frederick W. Pitts; Robert
W. Seitchik; Jay L.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A tool for extracting and inserting individual terminals from
multi-contact connector housings, said tool comprising:
a bar with first and second ends,
guide support means, proximate to said first end and fixed to said
bar, said bar extending across one surface of said guide support
means, said surface defining the top of said guide support means
and the top of said tool,
guide arm means extending from said support means on the end of
said guide support means nearest said first end of said bar, said
first end protruding slightly above said arm,
notch means on said first end of said bar, whereby upon positioning
said guide arm means against an appropriate surface on said
connector housing and engaging said notch means against one end of
a terminal in said connector, said terminal can first be freed from
its normally secured position in the connector and can then be
pushed partially from the housing.
2. A tool as set forth in claim 1, said notch means comprising a
ledge perpendicular to the axis of said lever, with said first end
of said bar having a rounded portion between the top of said bar
and said ledge, the width of said first end being substantially
equal to the width of one of said terminals.
3. A tool as set forth in claim 1, said bar being pivotally fixed
to said guide support block with a spring between said pivot and
said first end of said bar, so that said first end may be rotated
against the action of said spring toward said guide support means
when said tool is used to free said terminal from its normally
secured position.
4. A tool for extracting individual terminals with contact ends
from mateable multi-contact electrical connector housings in which
said terminals are arranged in side-by-side relationship in two
parallel rows, said tool comprising:
a lever with first and second ends,
a rectangular guide support block fixed to said lever, proximate to
said first end of said lever, said lever extending across one
surface of said guide support block, said surface defining the top
of said guide support block and the top of said tool,
a rectangular guide arm extending from said guide support block on
the end of said block nearest said first end of said lever, said
guide arm being thinner than said guide block, said guide arm
extending at an angle to said lever with said first end of said
lever protruding slightly above said arm,
a notch in said first end of said lever, said notch forming a ledge
perpendicular to the axis of said lever, said ledge being above
said arm, the width of said first end being substantially equal to
the width of one of said terminals,
a curved portion on said first end of said lever,
said curved portion extending from the top of said lever to said
ledge,
a knife-edge on said second end of said lever, said knife edge
being perpendicular to the axis of said lever, the length of said
knife-edge being small enough so that said knife-edge can be
inserted into a slot in said terminals, whereby
upon positioning said guide arm against an appropriate surface on
either of said mateable connectors and positioning said ledge
against the contact end of a single terminal in said connector,
said terminal can first be freed from its normally secured position
and then pushed practically from its normal position in the
housing.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The instant invention relates to a tool for removing terminals from
an electrical connector such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.
3,760,335. The connector disclosed therein houses multiple
terminals in mateable connector halves. The terminals are located
side-by-side in two parallel opposed rows. One end of each terminal
has a structure for retaining a wire while the other end
establishes contact with the terminals in the other connector
half.
Connectors of this type contain many small, relatively fragile
terminals, within a confined space. Fifty terminals might be
contained in one connector with an overall length of less than 3
inches. Damage to any one terminal could easily destroy the
usefulness of the entire connector assembly. It is clear that
replacement of the few damaged terminals, resulting in the salvage
of the entire connector, could be of substantial importance when
the large volume is considered. A tool for extracting single
terminals from a connector would be of use when employed with a
housing in which the terminals are held in place by their own
resilient spring action rather than being imbedded in the housing.
Of course, it would be essential that adjacent terminals not be
damaged when a defective terminal is removed. Incorporation of a
means of the tool for inserting the new terminal in place of the
old would also be desirable. The tool could also be used to inspect
individual terminals without damaging them.
The extraction tool disclosed herein can be utilized with both
halves of a connector of this type. In use, the extraction tool
first frees the contact end of an individual terminal from a
suitable stop on the connector housing. Once the terminal has been
freed, it may be partially pushed from the connector. The terminal
may be completely removed by using the end of a suitable bar or rod
which can be integral with the extraction tool. A new terminal may
also be inserted for the one which has been removed.
The object of this invention is to provide a tool for removal and
insertion of specific terminals from multi-contact electrical
connectors without damaging adjacent or opposing terminals. A
further object is to provide a tool which may be easily used with
both halves of the mateable connector. Another object is to provide
a tool which may be used either when the terminals are loaded with
wires or when no wires are attached. A still further object is to
provide a tool which can be used when the terminals are contained
within a relatively small, confined space, without deforming or
damaging either the terminal being removed, or the other terminals
in the connector.
These and other objects of the invention are achieved in the
embodiments thereof which are briefly described in the foregoing
abstract, which is described in detail below and which is shown in
the accompanying drawing in which:
FIG. 1 shows a sectional view of one connector half with the
extraction tool in position to free a terminal.
FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 with a terminal partially
removed.
FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 1 showing the extraction tool
employed with the other mateable connector half.
FIG. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view demonstrating use of the
tool for completely removing a terminal.
FIG. 5 is a view of an alternate embodiment of the tool.
The preferred embodiment of the tool 2 is shown in FIG. 1. This
tool essentially comprises a bar or rod 4 with a guide or support
block 6 attached near one end. The bar 4 acts essentially as a
pivoted lever. The guide or support block 6 is basically
rectangular in shape in the embodiment shown here. The bar 4 passes
across the top of the support block. A guide arm 8 extends at an
angle from one end of the support block 6. The guide arm 8 is
adjacent to end 12 of the bar and extends at an angle to both the
bar 4 and the support block 6. This angle is large enough so that
end 12 protrudes above the top of the guide arm. A notch or ledge
14 in end 12 is located just above the top of the guide arm 8.
Although not shown, the width of bar 4 at end 12 is substantially
equal to the width of any one of the terminals. It can be seen in
FIG. 4 that each of the terminals 22 lies in a trough or recess 29.
End 12 must be narrow enough to also fit within that recess. It can
be seen that in FIG. 1, the guide arm 8 is thinner than the guide
or support block 6. This results in the formation of a shoulder 10
at the intersection of the underside of the guide arm and the guide
block. The guide arm is rectangular in cross-section so that it
will fit in the cavity 34 on the connector shown in FIG. 1.
The connector half 20 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 contains terminals 22
and 22'. These terminals are contained in rows which face each
other across a cavity 34, the cavity 34 extending along the contact
or shank portion 30 of the terminals. In use, this cavity would
receive two rows of terminals on a mating connector half. A grip or
barb 28 on the contact end of terminals 22 engages a surface 32 on
the connector housing, thus securely holding the terminals in
place. The other end of terminals is adapted to receive a wire. The
wire-receiving portion 24 has a U-shaped end 25. A wire receiving
slot 26 extends through each branch of the U-shaped terminal end.
Approximately midway between the ends, the terminals extend through
gaps 38, 38' in the housing 20.
A terminal 22 is shown in FIG. 4 after it has been removed from the
housing 20'. On this terminal, the U-shaped conductor receiving
portion 24 and the terminal barb 28 are not only on opposite ends
of the terminal but are also on opposite sides. The terminal used
in connector-half 20 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is not the same
however. There the U-shaped portion 24 and the barb 28 while still
on opposite ends are located on the same side of the terminal. In
each case the terminal is shaped so that when inserted into the
appropiate housing the terminal itself will act as a spring biasing
the terminal against the wall of the housing and thereby insuring
that barb 28 engages securing surface 32 when the terminal is in
its normal position. The extraction tool must free the terminal by
rotating the barb 28 and shank portion 30 against this inherent
spring action. The terminal, which may be made of a metal such as
beryllium copper, must not be rotated too far against this spring
action or the terminal might be permanently deformed and become
unusable. The design of the extraction tool guards against the
possibility of such deformation. As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, the
notch or ledge 14 is first positioned so as to engage the barbed
terminal end 28. The guide arm 8 is thin enough so that it may be
inserted into either cavity 34 in FIG. 1 or cavity 42 in FIG. 3. By
applying pressure to the extraction tool 2 the barb 28 can be moved
away from the securing surface 32. The extraction tool 2 can then
be pushed into the cavity 34 in FIG. 2. As the forward end of the
tool moves into this cavity the curved top 16 of protruding end 12
will rest against the connector housing in the neighborhood of
securing surface 32. This curved top 16 then acts as a fulcrum
causing the entire extraction tool to rotate in a clockwise
direction as shown in FIG. 2. This rotation continues until the end
of guide arm 8 comes to rest against the opposite side of the
cavity. The curved top 16 and the guide arm 8 are dimensioned so
that, when used with either connector half, excessive deflection of
the terminal cannot occur as the terminal is removed in this
manner.
FIG. 3 shows that in the other connector half 20', the terminal
shank portions 30 no longer face each other across an open cavity.
Instead, both rows of terminals are mounted on a ridge 44 which
runs along the length of the connector. The outer casing 40 of
connector half 20' forms a cavity 42 which completely encircles
this ridge and both rows of terminals. In this particular
connector, the dimensions of this cavity are on the same order as
those of cavity 34 in the first connector half. It can be seen from
FIG. 3 that the extraction tool 2 is used in much the same manner
with both connector halves. In connector 20', the guide arm 8 is
merely positioned against the outer casing 40 as the notch 14
engages the terminal.
The fragmentary perspective view shown in FIG. 4 shows the rows of
terminals employed in this connector. One of the terminals, 22, has
been partially removed. A knife-edge 18 on one end bar 4 has been
inserted into the wire-receiving slot 26. It can be seen that the
knife-edge is small enough to be inserted completely into the slot.
The terminal 22 may be removed and discarded by simply using this
knife-edge of the extraction tool to pull the terminal from the
connector. If insertion of a new terminal is desired, one can be
pushed into position in much the same manner. It should be noted
that when the terminal is pushed into the connector, the force
required for insertion will act not upon the U-shaped terminal end
25 but rather upon the terminal shank portion 30. This prevents
damage to the wire-receiving end of the newly inserted
terminal.
FIG. 5 represents an alternate embodiment of the extraction tool.
In this embodiment, bar 4 is not rigidly attached to the guide
block 6. Instead, the bar 4 is pivoted about a suitable point 11 on
the guide block. A spring 13, attached to the bar 4 and to the
guide block 6, is located between the pivot 11 and the guide arm 8.
The spring 13 normally biases this end of the bar away from the
guide block 6. When the guide arm 8 is positioned against an
appropriate surface on one of the connector housings and the notch
14 engages a terminal, the terminal can be dislodged by merely
rotating the bar against the action of spring 13. The terminal can
then be pushed out as before.
* * * * *