Electrical connector

DETAILED DESCRIPTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an electrical connector which eliminates the above drawbacks with the prior art connector.
According to the present invention, an electrical connector includes a male assembly and a female assembly which matingly receives the male assembly.
Each of the assemblies includes a protective member which covers the corresponding electrical terminal when the assemblies are separated and which exposes the corresponding terminal when the assemblies are mated in order to allow the terminals to electrically contact each other, thereby protecting the terminals from dust and/or oxidation.
In a first preferred embodiment, the protective members take the form of a slider slidable along the corresponding one of male and female members of the male and female assemblies and biased to normally cover the corresponding one of the male-side and female-side electrical terminals.
When the male assembly is inserted into the female assembly, the male member pushes the female-side slider into a housing of the female assembly against the biasing action imparted to the slider.
When the slider of the male assembly is fully inserted into the housing, the male-side slider is stopped by a shoulder provided in the housing.
As the male member is further inserted into the female-side housing, it engages the inside surface of the housing.
In that case, both of the terminals of the male and female assemblies are exposed from the corresponding sliders and electrically engaged.
In a second embodiment, the protective members take the form of a cap provided at the open ends of each of the male and female members.
The caps are capable of closing and opening the open ends and normally biased to close the corresponding open end.
When the male assembly is inserted into the female assembly, first, the cap of the female member is opened by the male member and then the cap of the male member is opened by abutting an electrical insulator provided within the female member and extending toward the open end of the female member