Selective plating apparatus

Claim 1

An improved apparatus for plating interior surfaces of electrical terminals that are spaced apart and attached to a carrier strip comprising a strip feeding means for feeding the strip, a strip guide which guides the terminals through a plating zone while they are being plated, a source of electrolytic plating solution and a source of electrical potential for supplying an electrical current flow from an anode through the plating solution to a cathode, the strip guide being a mandrel that is continuously rotated as the strip of electrical terminals are continuously fed to the mandrel partially wrapped against the mandrel and fed from the mandrel, the improved apparatus being characterized in that the anode has a plurality of anode extensions which are located around the mandrel's axis of rotation, said anode extensions being movable into and out of the interiors of the terminals that are against the mandrel, the mandrel has a plurality of nozzles located around the mandrel's axis of rotation, said nozzles being associated with but separate from said anode extensions a conduit is provided which carries plating solution under pressure through the nozzles and upon the anode extensions, whereby the nozzles inject plating solution into the interiors of the terminals in which the anode extensions have been received, the electrical current flows from the anode extensions through the plating solution to the cathode, and the interior surfaces of the terminals are plated.