Abstract: A female electrical terminal has a contact end and a terminating end. The contact end includes a pair of opposing walls for receiving a male terminal therebetween. A flexible element is disposed in the contact end for pressing against the male terminal. The flexible element includes a mounting section with spaced wall portions juxtaposed inside the opposing walls of the contact end. Complementary interengaging latches are provided between the opposing walls and the spaced wall portions of the mounting section of the flexible element. An abutment is provided in the contact end to prevent inward collapsing of the spaced wall portions and, thereby, to maintain the latches in interengagement.

Abstract: An applicator tool is provided for applying an electrical connector having a plurality of insulation piercing terminals onto a multi-conductor flat cable. The tool includes a frame having a press ram drivable through a working stroke toward and away from an anvil for supporting the connector. A fixed connector-positioning peg projects from the anvil and is adapted for abuttingly engaging one side of the connector. A spring-loaded yieldable peg projects from the anvil and is adapted for yielding to a retracted condition to facilitate positioning the connector between the pegs.

Abstract: A portable hand tool is provided for applying at least a two-part electrical connector having insulation displacement conductive elements to an insulated electrical cable. The tool includes a manually grippable frame, with a loading die on the frame for receiving and holding the two-part electrical connector in spaced relationship. A compression die is movable relative to the loading die into pressure engagement with the electrical connector. A shaft is threaded through the frame and is connected to the compression die to effect movement of the compression die relative to the loading die in response to rotation of the shaft. A manually grippable torque applying handle projects outwardly of the shaft for rotating the shaft. A second manually grippable handle is retractably mounted on the frame for projecting outwardly therefrom and for retraction to an inoperative position alongside the frame.

Abstract: A method of fabricating a pin tip is provided by a cutting and coining operation which first forms a pin tip which has a generally rounded configuration defining 4 slightly curved convex sides joined at 4 edges converging at a pin end. Thereafter the pin tip is coined again thereby overlapping portions of the conductive plating layer over the sharp edges of the pin tip.

Abstract: An electrical terminal pin is provided with a pin tip for insertion into a mating electrical female terminal, a hole in a printed circuit board or the like. The pin has an electrically conductive core plated with an electrically conductive layer. The pin tip is formed of a generally rounded pyramidal configuration defining four slightly curved convex sides joined at four edges converging at a pin end. Two opposite sides of the pin tip are non-plated. The other two opposite sides of the pin tip are plated with the conductive layer. Portions of the conductive plating layer overlap the edges of the pin tip in a smooth or rounded configuration to eliminate any sharpness thereof and to provide additional plated areas over the exposed core material. The pin tip is formed by a cutting and coining operation to form the configuration of the tip and to coin the overlapping portions of the conductive plating layer over the sharp edges of the pin tip.

Abstract: A multi-conductor electrical connector for mounting on a printed circuit board which includes two rows of staggered insertion holes. The connector includes a housing having an elongate cavity. A contact strip is formed with a continuous carrier and laterally extending contacts gang-mountable in the elongate cavity of the housing. Each contact includes a conductor receptacle positionable in the cavity, and a pair of laterally spaced terminal tails projecting through the housing from the cavity. The terminal tails are independently severable whereby a terminal tail of any contact can be inserted into a hole in either row of staggered insertion holes in the printed circuit board. The contact receptacle is formed by an anvil portion and a spring finger portion. The terminal tails are stamped and formed out of the anvil portion and the spring finger portion of the contact.

Abstract: An electrical terminal pin with a compliant portion adapted to be inserted into a plated-through hole of a circuit board. The compliant portion has a generally S-shaped cross-section with a width which gradually increases from a first axial end toward at least the middle of the axial length of the contact section. The pin has a mating portion joining the compliant portion for connection to another circuit element. Stiffening means are formed on one side of the compliant portion extending from the juncture with the mating portion to prevent breaking of the mating portion from the compliant portion when a transverse force is applied to the mating portion. The compliant pin is mass produced by using a strip of material having a generally uniform thickness throughout. The material is stamped in a given configuration and formed at successive stations to produce the S-shaped cross sectional compliant portion.

Abstract: In an electrical commoning arrangement including a printed circuit board with at least two parallel rows of conductive pins mounted therein, a removeable shunt connector for electrically commoning two pins is disclosed. The shunt connector includes a terminal defining at least three colinear pin receiving portions whereby the shunt connector can be selectively mated with two adjacent pins of the same row, or with two corresponding pins of different rows.