WO1995026582A1

WO1995026582A1 - Non-opaque electrical connector visual status indicator

Info

Publication number: WO1995026582A1
Application number: PCT/US1995/003710
Authority: WO
Inventors: Philip George Hunt
Original assignee: Xedia Corporation
Priority date: 1994-03-25
Filing date: 1995-03-24
Publication date: 1995-10-05

Abstract

The present invention is a visual status indicator for indicating the status of an electrical connector which includes a light source (30) positioned within the socket (22) of an electrical connector which shines through a non-opaque connector plug (40) and the socket (22) to indicate the status of the electrical connection. The present invention also includes a method of placing a light source (30) in an electrical connector to provide visual status indication by shining through the non-opaque connector plug (40).

Description

5 NON-OPAQUE ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR

VISUAL STATUS INDICATOR

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

•

10 This invention relates to electrical connectors and mdre particularly to an electrical connector that provides a visual indication of its connection status.

Electrical connectors are used in a wide variety of devices and application. An electrical connector

15 generally comprises two components: a socket, which is typically connected to a device, outlet or wiring network, and a plug, which fits into the socket and, upon being placed therein, establishes the electrical connection. Electrical connectors are manufactured from

20 a wide variety of materials, including many that are non- opaque. For example, ordinary telephone connectors and RJ-45 data communications connectors are typically manufactured from clear plastic which encases a number of electrical conductors.

25 It is often desirable to indicate to the user of a device incorporating an electrical connector some status associated with the connector, preferably with a visual indicator. For example, it may be important for the user to know whether an electrical conne tion is complete,

30 whether signals are being transmitted through the connector, the like. Status indicators are also useful in the maintenance and troubleshooting of systems using multiple electrical connectors.

However, in many devices and applications,

35 particularly in the data communications industry, on- device panel space is extremely limited; and manufacturers of such devices are generally unable or _» unwilling to provide visual status indicators for each electrical connector. For example, as shown in Figure l, „ 40 prior art communications interface cards 10 used in local area networks, which are inserted into a slot in the back of a hardware cabinet (not shown) , often include six or more connector sockets 12 arranged side-by-side. A plug 14 is then inserted into each socket 12. Visual status indicators could indicate to the user whether the plug to socket connection is complete. Moreover, if there is a failure, it may be necessary to test each connection, and if visual status indicators such connectors were available they would be valuable in enabling users of the cards to quickly determine the status of the connections. The space available for indicators on such cards is limited by the relatively limited size of the slot. Most electrical connectors are not designed to accommodate connector status indicators due to these space constraints.

Alternatively, manufacturers who provide visual status indicators on such cards must give up a certain amount of space. This space might otherwise be used for additional connector ports or other features.

Another problem with visual status indicators for devices having multiple electrical connectors is that of "correspondence", i.e., it must be clear to the user which indicator corresponds to which connector. Thus, placing all indicators in a group away from the connectors is typically not the optimal design. Indicators must be placed within relatively close proximity to the appropriate connector in order to effectively and rapidly convey information about the status of that connector.

It is therefore a principal object of the present invention to provide a visual status indicator for use in conjunction with a non-opaque electrical connector.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a visual status indicator which is small enough so that it covers no (or a small percentage of) surface space on the device on which it is incorporated. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention includes a light source positioned within a connector socket so that, when indicating the status of the connector, it shines through the non-opaque connector plug and is visible to the user. The present invention thus provides visual status indication for electrical connectors that takes up no surface space on a device and eliminates all problems of correspondence between the indicator and connector. These and other objects and features will be more fully understood from the following detailed description which should be read in connection with the accompanying drawings in which corresponding reference numerals refer to corresponding parts throughout the several views.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a top plan view of a prior art communication card having six connectors.

Figure 2 is a perspective view of an electrical connector socket which includes the visual status indicators of the present invention.

Figure 3a is a schematic diagram of the status indicator of the present invention, prior to the mating of the plug and the socket. Figure 3b is a schematic diagram of the status indicator of the present invention, after the plug and socket have been mated.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the present invention showing electrical connections. Figure 5 is a perspective view of the present invention showing electrical connections and multiple light sources.

Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the status indicator of the present invention, showing circuitry to indicate link status of an Ethernet lOBaseT network to the user. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to Figure 2, a card 20 having six connector sockets 22 is shown. In a preferred embodiment, the sockets may be RJ-45 sockets, such as model number 555169-1 available from Amp Corp. A hole 24 approximately 0.12 inches in diameter is drilled or otherwise formed in the bottom of each socket 22. A light-emitting diode (LED) 30 is inserted partially through each hole 24, such that the LED 30 does not protrude into the socket 22. LED 30 may be any visible light LED, and in a preferred embodiment, the LEDs and LEDs sold by Dialight under the designation 521-9210.

Referring to Figure 3a, a circuit illustrating the operation of one of the LEDs 30 of a socket 22 of Figure 2 shown. Non-opaque plug 40 is suitable for mating to socket 22. Non-opaque plug 40 may be an RJ-45 plug such as the model number 555764-1 manufactured by Amp Corp. As shown, socket 22 and non-opaque plug 40 each have eight corresponding pins. The terminals of LED 30 are connected to pins 32, 34 of the socket 22 in parallel with the connection of pins 32, 34 to a network device (not shown) . Non-opaque plug 40 is connected to a standard data communications cable 50 loaded with a resistor 52 of approximately 330 ohms to protect against shorts and connected to a data communications network (not shown) . The voltage supplied over the network is typically 5 volts.

Referring to Figure 3b, when non-opaque plug 40 is inserted into socket 20, if pins 32, 34 of socket 22 are electrically connected to the corresponding pins of plug 40, then the circuit from cable 50 through plug 40, socket 22 and pins 32, 34 will be completed, causing current to flow through and activate LED 30. When LED 30 activated, its light will shine through hole 24 and the non-opaque material of plug 40 and indicate to a user that the circuit is complete. Referring to Figure 4, socket 22 is shown with LED 30 inserted into hole 24 of the socket 22, and with pins 32, 34 of socket 22 are connected to the leads of LED 30. Thus, in the preferred embodiment shown, a user inserting non-opaque plug 40 into socket 22 will see the back of non-opaque plug 40 become illuminated if the connection between the network (not shown) and the device (not shown) is made through pins 32, 34.

Referring to Figure 5, a preferred embodiment of the invention having more than one light source is shown.

Connector socket 74 contains two holes, 60, 62 into which two differently colored LEDs 50, 52 are inserted. Lead pairs 70, 72 of connector socket 22 are connected respectively to the leads of differently colored LEDs 50, 52.

Another preferred embodiment of the present invention used for indicating "Link" status of a lOBaseT Ethernet connection is shown in Figure 6. The circuitry shown in Figure 6 is designed to detect and interpret link status pulses transmitted over an Ethernet network (not shown) using lOBaseT connections (not shown) and to cause LED 140 to illuminate when link status is achieved for the Ethernet network. Leads 110, 112, 114, 116 of a non-opaque plug 100 are connected to socket 102 of an Ethernet network. When non-opaque plug 100 is connected to socket 102, leads 110, 112, 114, 116 of non-opaque plug 100 will transmit signals respectively to leads 120, 122, 124, 126 of socket 102; and leads 120, 122, 124, 126 of socket 102 will transmit signals respectively to pins 200, 202, 204, 206 of filter/transformer 130, which may be a Valor SF 1020 filter. Non-opaque plug 100 and socket 102 may be components of an RJ-45 electrical connector.

Filter/transformer 130 will convert the signals received by pins 200, 202, 204, 206 into 0 to 1 V signals received by embodiment. These signals will be carried from leads 210, 212, 214, 216 of filter/transformer network 130 to network interface chip 150. Resistors 132, 134, 170, 172, 174 and 176, which are used for biasing and current-splitting, may be set at 1,210 Ohms, 100 Ohms, 61.9 Ohms, 422 Ohms, 422 Ohms and 61.9 Ohms, respectively. Network interface chip 150 may be an

Am79c940 chip manufactured by AMD. When link status is indicated by a low voltage on the (LNKST) pin 164 of network interface chip 150, current will flow from voltage source 182 (5 V) , through biasing resistor 182 (330 Ohms) and LED 140 (contained inside socket 102) . This current flow will cause LED 140 to illuminate and shine through non-opaque plug 100, indicating link status to the user.

While the foregoing invention has been described with respect to its preferred embodiments, various alterations and modifications will occur to those skilled in the art. For example, the indicator could light to show that a connection has not been made, or that a connection has been made between different numbers or combinations of pins. It can also be used with other connectors having a different number of leads. In addition, the socket as well as the plug could be non- opaque to allow viewing of the indicator light from the side as well as the back. In addition, any number of light sources could be used in conjunction with a single connector, depending on the respective sizes of the connector and the light sources. All such alterations and modifications are intended to be within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A visual status indicator for an electrical connector comprising: a connector socket and a corresponding non-opaque connector plug, a light source positioned inside said connector socket, status detection means for detecting a status of the electrical connector, means, connected to said status detection means and light source, for causing the light source to shine light through the non-opaque connector plug upon the achievement of one or more preselected statuses.

2. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the light source is a light- emitting diode.

3. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the status detection means causes the light source to provide light when an electrical signal passes throτ?h the connector, from the connector socket to the non-opaque connector plug.

4. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the status detection means causes the light source to provide light when an electrical signal passes through the connector, from the non-opaque connector plug to the connector socket.

5. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim l wherein said status detection means further comprises means to detect a logical combination of inputs to the electrical connector which are indicative of the status of the electrical connector.

6. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the connector socket is non- opaque.

7. A method of indicating the status of an electrical connector comprising positioning a light source inside a connector socket, inserting a corresponding non-opaque connector plug into the connector socket, detecting a status of the electrical connection between the non-opaque connector plug and the connector socket; causing the light source to shine light through the non-opaque connector plug upon the achievement of one or more preselected statuses.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the light source is a light-emitting diode.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein the status detection means causes the light source to provide light when an electrical signal passes through the connector, from the connector socket to the non-opaque connector plug.

10. The method of claim 7 wherein the status detection means causes the light source to provide light when an electrical signal passes through the connector, from the non-opaque connector plug to the connector socket.

11. The method of claim 7 wherein the status detection means causes the light source to provide light based on a logical combination of inputs to the electrical connector.

12. The method of claim 7 wherein the connector socket is non- paque.

13. A visual status indicator for an electrical connector comprising: a connector socket and a corresponding non-opaque connector plug, a light source positioned nside said non-opaque connector plug, status detection means for detecting the status of the connector, means, connected to said status detection means and light source, for causing the light source to shine light through the non-opaque connector plug upon the achievement of one or more preselected statuses.

1 . The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the light source is a light- emitting diode.

15. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim l wherein the status detection means causes the light source to provide light when an electrical signal passes through the connector, from the connector socket to the non-opaque connector plug.

16. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim l wherein the status detection means causes the light source to provide light when an electrical signal passes through the connector, from the non-opaque connector plug to the connector socket.

17. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim l wherein the status detection means causes the light source to provide light based on a logical combination of inputs to the electrical connector.

18. The visual status indicator for an electrical connnector of claim 1 wherein the connector socket is non-opaque.

19. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector comprising: a connector socket and a corresponding non-opaque connector plug, a plurality of light sources positioned inside said connector socket, status detection means for detecting the status of the connector, means, connected to said status detection means and light sources, for causing the light sources to independently shine light through the non-opaque connector plug upon the achievement of one or more different preselected statuses.

20. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the plurality of light sources are light-emitting diodes.

21. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the status detection means causes at least one of the plurality of light sources to provide light when an electrical signal passes through the connector, from the connector socket to the non- opaque connector plug.

22. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the status detection means causes at least one of the light source to provide light when an electrical signal passes through the connector, from the non-opaque connector plug to the connector socket.

23. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the status detection means causes at least one of the light sources to provide light based on a logical combination of inputs to the electrical connector.

24. The visual status indicator for an electrical connector of claim 1 wherein the connector socket is non- opaque.