Electrical connectors – Preformed panel circuit arrangement – e.g. – pcb – icm – dip,... – Within distinct housing spaced from panel circuit arrangement
Reexamination Certificate
1999-04-16
2001-04-03
Sircus, Brian (Department: 2839)
Electrical connectors
Preformed panel circuit arrangement, e.g., pcb, icm, dip,...
Within distinct housing spaced from panel circuit arrangement
C439S946000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06210178
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates in general to computers and, more particularly, to an extender card for use with computers. While the present invention is generally applicable to extender cards for computers, it will be described herein with reference to a PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card International Association) extender card which provides access to a laptop computer having a PCMCIA slot for port replication through the PCMCIA slot.
Unlike desktop computers, laptop computers are made to be readily portable. To facilitate portability, laptops include limiting characteristics which are tolerated when traveling. Such characteristics include smaller screens, smaller keyboards, less useful pointing devices, printers which while portable are limited in capability, and the like. Since these limiting characteristics are not tolerated when one is at a home location, oftentimes users have a desktop computer at a home location and a laptop for travel.
To get around laptop limitations and eliminate computer duplication, full sized peripherals can be purchased and connected to a laptop so that the laptop functions as the processor at a home location but is accessed via a conventional keyboard, uses conventional pointing devices, uses a standard sized monitor, has access to more conventional printers, and the like. One means of connecting full sized peripherals to a laptop computer is a docking station to which the laptop is connected for use of the full sized/capability peripherals. Another means of connecting full sized/capability peripherals to a laptop computer is a port replicator. Unfortunately, most docking stations and port replicators are compatible with only a single make and model of laptop computer. And for many laptop computers, no docking stations or port replicators are available from the manufacturer at all.
To accommodate users of such laptop computers and in the interest of making access to full sized peripherals universally available to laptop users regardless of the makes or models of their laptops, universal port replicators are now commercially available. For example, an attractive universal port replicator is available from CNF, Inc. under the name “theBUS”. This port replicator connects into a laptop or other computer via an available Type II PCMCIA slot using an extender card which has a first end sized to be received within the slot and connect to the internal PCMCIA connector and a second end which extends beyond the outer surface of the computer and has a cable extending therefrom to “theBUS”.
To make such port replicators reliable, the extender cards which connect the port extenders to the computers must be strong to avoid breakage as they extend beyond the outside of computers. Preferably, the extender cards are also inexpensive to reduce the overall cost of the port replicators. Since the extender card occupies only one Type II PCMCIA slot, it would be desirable to enable a person using the port replicator to also use another PCMCIA card or PC card in another available PCMCIA slot immediately adjacent the one occupied by the extender card. For example, the user may have a network or modem PCMCIA card in the laptop and want to use that card for communications when traveling and when at a home location.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved extender card which can be used for connecting a laptop computer to a port replicator as well as for other computer applications.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This need is met by the invention of the present application wherein an extender card is formed from first and second plastic clamshell halves which are intermated with one another and ultrasonically welded. The first clamshell half is sized to be received within an outer periphery of the second clamshell so that, once welded, the resulting extender card housing body is strong and attractive in that the weld is internal and hidden from view. A cable tie is secured to a cable extending from the extender card and received within a collar of the extender card housing body to provide strain relief for the cable. One or more apertures are formed through the extender card body to allow access to a PCMCIA card or PC card installed adjacent to the extender card, for example, to a modular jack receiving structure of a PC modem or network card.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, an extender card comprises a first plastic clamshell half having a first end and a second end, and a second plastic clamshell half having a first end and a second end. The first clamshell half mates with and is ultrasonically welded to the second clamshell half to form an extender card housing. The extender card includes a multiple pin connector mounted in the first ends of the first and second clamshell halves, and collar halves formed in the second ends of the first and second clamshell halves. The collar halves form a collar when the first and second clamshell halves are mated together for receiving a cable having multiple conductors coupled to the multiple pin connector. The multiple pin connector may comprise, for example, a 68-pin PCMCIA connector.
A printed circuit board having a first end connected to the multiple pin connector and a second end connected to the multiple conductors may be used to couple the multiple pin connector to the multiple conductors. The multiple pin connector preferably comprises a straddle mount connector with the first end of the printed circuit board having a first plurality of circuit paths on the first side of the printed circuit board, a second plurality of circuit paths on the second side of the printed circuit board, and being received in the straddle mount connector. In an illustrated embodiment, the second end of the printed circuit board has a third plurality of printed circuit paths on the second side thereof, the third plurality of circuit paths having a first portion thereof connected to the first plurality of circuit paths on the first side of the printed circuit board and a second portion thereof connected to the second plurality of circuit paths through the printed circuit board between the first end of the printed circuit board and the second end of the printed circuit board.
For cable strain relief, the interior of the collar defines a recess for receiving a cable tie secured to the cable at the second ends of the first and second clamshell halves. The recess comprises a generally annular recess with a cavity formed in one of the first and second clamshell halves for receiving a head of the cable tie. The first clamshell half may include a periphery which is sized to be received within a periphery of the second clamshell half so that an ultrasonic weld securing the first and second clamshell halves to one another is substantially hidden from view. For this embodiment, the periphery of the second clamshell half defines a shoulder extending away from the second clamshell half and the first clamshell half defines an outer peripheral edge which faces the shoulder when the first and second clamshell halves are mated with one another. The second clamshell half further defines a channel extending into the first clamshell half juxtaposed the shoulder and the first clamshell half defines a rib juxtaposed the outer peripheral edge, the rib being spaced and sized to be received within the channel when the first and second clamshell halves are mated with one another. The rib includes a plurality of projections thereon, the projections engaging a bottom of the channel when the first and second clamshell halves are mated with one another and defining ultrasonic energy directors.
The extender card may be a PCMCIA extender card designed to be received within a first PCMCIA slot of a computer. The extender card may include at least one aperture to enable access to a PCMCIA card received within a second PCMCIA slot of a computer. At least one aperture is particularly advantageous where the PCMCIA card in a second slot includes structure for receiving a terminal connector at the end of a transmission med
Killworth, Gottman Hagan & Schaeff LLP
Patel T. C.
Pen Cabling Technologies LLC
Sircus Brian
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