Typical electrical connector assemblies include a pair of connector housings of dielectric material, such as male and female connector housings, which mount complementarily interengaging terminals so that the terminals complete electrical circuits when the housings are fully mated in some applications, the male and female connector housings are relatively easy to separate or unmate to disconnect the electrical circuit. In other applications, it may be desirable to prevent separation or unmating of the connectors if at all possible.
For instance, in automotive applications, it may be desirable to unmate a pair of electrical connectors for purposes of servicing a vehicle, but unintentional separation of the connectors could lead to serious consequences. Similarly, in various appliance applications, such as refrigerators or food freezers, again it may be desirable to separate or unmate the connectors for purposes of servicing the appliances, but unintentional separation of the connectors could lead to loss or spoilage of the appliance contents.
Consequently, various approaches have been made to design mating electrical connectors with security locking systems which prevent separation of the connector housings of a male and female connector assembly.
For example, many electrical connector assemblies employ latching devices between the housings of the male and female connectors. The latching devices often are provided in the form of flexible latch arms on one connector housing for snapping into engagement with latch bosses or detents on the mating connector housing. It has been found that such flexible latch arms, themselves, can be unintentionally separated through handling or by other means. Consequently, security locking keys have been employed in conjunction with such latching devices to prevent the latching devices, themselves, from becoming disengaged.
Heretofore, one of the problems with security locking key systems has been that the locking keys are difficult, if not impossible, to remove should it be desirable to separate the connectors, without destroying the keys or associated portions of the connector housings. It would be desirable to provide a simple security locking key system wherein the locking keys can be easily removed to separate the connectors if desired.
Another problem with security locking key systems in electrical connector applications is that the keys often are misplaced or simply difficult to handle while manipulating the connector housings of the connector assembly.
This invention is directed to providing a simple, yet effective security locking key system for electrical connectors, wherein a locking key can be readily removed without destroying the key or associated portions of the electrical connectors, and also to providing a security locking key system wherein the locking key is tethered to the electrical connector assembly so that it cannot be misplaced and is readily available for use.