Universal connector assembly and method of manufacturing
DCFirst Claim
1. A connector assembly, comprising:
- a substantially unitary molded housing having a plurality of plug-receiving ports formed in a front face thereof, said plurality of ports being disposed within a first lower row, and a second upper row, said ports of said lower row comprising a substantial mirror image of said ports of said upper row, said housing further comprising at least one rear cavity configured to receive one or more insert assemblies at least partly therein; and
at least one insert assembly comprising;
at least one support element having a component receiving space formed therein;
at least one electronic component disposed substantially within said space;
an upper substrate disposed substantially horizontally atop said at least one support element;
a plurality of upper conductive terminals communicating between said upper substrate and said at least one component;
a plurality of lower terminals for interfacing with a host device substrate; and
a lower substrate disposed substantially horizontally below said at least one support element and having apertures formed therein through which said lower terminals penetrate.
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Litigations
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Accused Products
Abstract
An advanced modular plug connector assembly incorporating an insert assembly disposed in the rear portion of the connector housing. In one embodiment, the connector has a plurality of ports in multi-row configuration, and the insert assembly includes a substrate adapted to receive one or more electronic components such as choke coils, transformers, or other signal conditioning elements or magnetics. The substrate also interfaces with the conductors of two modular ports of the connector, and is removable from the housing such that an insert assembly of a different electronics or terminal configuration can be substituted therefor. In this fashion, the connector can be configured to a plurality of different standards (e.g., Gigabit Ethernet and 10/100). In yet another embodiment, the connector assembly comprises a plurality of light sources (e.g., LEDs) received within the housing. Methods for manufacturing the aforementioned embodiments are also disclosed.
77 Citations
40 Claims
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1. A connector assembly, comprising:
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a substantially unitary molded housing having a plurality of plug-receiving ports formed in a front face thereof, said plurality of ports being disposed within a first lower row, and a second upper row, said ports of said lower row comprising a substantial mirror image of said ports of said upper row, said housing further comprising at least one rear cavity configured to receive one or more insert assemblies at least partly therein; and at least one insert assembly comprising; at least one support element having a component receiving space formed therein; at least one electronic component disposed substantially within said space; an upper substrate disposed substantially horizontally atop said at least one support element; a plurality of upper conductive terminals communicating between said upper substrate and said at least one component; a plurality of lower terminals for interfacing with a host device substrate; and a lower substrate disposed substantially horizontally below said at least one support element and having apertures formed therein through which said lower terminals penetrate. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A connector assembly comprising:
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a connector housing comprising a plurality of plug-receiving recesses; a plurality of terminal insert assemblies, each comprising a plurality of sets of conductors disposed at least partly within respective ones of said recesses; and a plurality of application-specific insert structures, each of said plurality of application-specific insert structures comprising; a horizontally disposed substrate having a plurality of electrically conductive pathways associated therewith, and at least one electronic component disposed substantially thereon; at least two insert body elements that form an electronic component receiving space, each of said body elements comprising; a top surface with upper conductive terminal portions protruding therefrom; and a bottom surface with lower conductive terminal portions protruding therefrom; wherein said pathways of said horizontally disposed substrate interface with said conductors to form electrical circuits comprised of at least said conductors, said at least one electronic component, and said upper conductive terminal portions; and wherein said assembly is adapted to receive either of two variants of said application-specific insert structures in pairs without altering the area of an external substrate consumed by said assembly when said assembly is mounted on said external substrate. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A connector assembly comprising:
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a connector housing comprising a plurality of plug-receiving recesses and a cavity, said cavity being disposed substantially in a rear portion of said housing; a plurality of terminal insert structures, where a given one of said terminal insert structures is received at least partly within at least two of said plug-receiving recesses simultaneously, each of said terminal insert structures comprising; an upper and a lower plurality of conductors; and an upper and a lower polymer carrier, wherein said upper and said lower plurality of conductors are disposed at least partly within said upper and said lower polymer carriers respectively, said upper and said lower polymer carriers being arranged in a substantially mirror-image configuration when assembled with one another; wherein said upper and said lower plurality of conductors are configured to interface electrically with respective ones of a modular plug; and an application-specific insert assembly comprising a substrate having a plurality of electrically conductive pathways and a plurality of electronic components associated therewith, with one or more of said electronic components disposed on said substrate; wherein said electrically conductive pathways of said substrate interface with respective ones of said upper and lower plurality of conductors to form a plurality of conductive paths from at least a portion of said upper and lower plurality of conductors to said plurality of electronic components; and wherein said substrate interfaces with at least one of said plurality of terminal insert structures via a surface mounted electrical connection on two opposing surfaces of said substrate. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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30. A connector assembly comprising:
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a connector housing comprising a plurality of plug-receiving recesses and substantially defining at least a portion of an outer perimeter of said connector assembly; a plurality of terminal insert assemblies, each comprising; a first and a second plurality of conductors; and a first and a second polymer carrier, supporting at least a portion of said first and second plurality of conductors, respectively; wherein said first and second polymer carriers are arranged in a substantially minor-image configuration; and at least one indicator assembly comprising a plurality of light pipes, at least a portion of said indicator assembly being mounted substantially along a rear face of said connector assembly and configured to provide one or more indications visible from a front face of said connector assembly; and a plurality of application-specific insert structures, each of said plurality of application-specific insert structures comprising; a substrate disposed horizontally atop at least two insert body elements, said substrate having one or more electronic components disposed substantially thereon and a plurality of conductive traces that are configured to interface with at least one of said plurality of terminal insert assemblies via a surface mounted electrical connection on at least two surfaces of said substrate; wherein said at least two insert body elements form an electronic component receiving space, each of said body elements comprising; a top surface with one or more upper conductive terminal portions protruding therefrom; and a bottom surface with one or more lower conductive terminal portions protruding therefrom; and wherein said at least two insert body elements and said horizontally disposed substrate are removable as a single unit from said housing. - View Dependent Claims (31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40)
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Specification