Electrical connectors – Preformed panel circuit arrangement – e.g. – pcb – icm – dip,... – With provision to conduct electricity from panel circuit to...
Reexamination Certificate
2000-02-22
2001-08-21
Paumen, Gary F. (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
Preformed panel circuit arrangement, e.g., pcb, icm, dip,...
With provision to conduct electricity from panel circuit to...
C439S515000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06276941
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a board to board connector, and particularly to a board to board connector which provides a plurality of improved conductive contacts.
Board to board electrical connectors have been widely used and, referring to
FIG. 4
, a conventional board to board connector
5
comprises an insulative housing
10
defining a plurality of channels
102
(only two shown), and a plurality of conductive contacts
12
(only two shown) received in respective channels
102
. Each contact
12
comprises an arced resilient portion
13
retained in a respective channel
102
, an arm
14
extending upward from an upper end of the resilient portion
13
, and a mounting portion
16
horizontally extending from a lower end of the resilient portion
13
. The mounting portion
16
has barbs (not shown) fixedly engaging with the housing
10
. A tail portion
17
is horizontally and outwardly extending from the mounting portion
16
and located below the mounting portion
16
. The tail portion
17
is used for soldering to a respective pad on a lower PC board (not shown) by Surface Mounting Technology (SMT). The arm
14
forms an arced engaging portion
15
at its upper free end for contacting a respective pad on an upper PC board (not shown). When the conventional connector
5
connects the two PC boards, a downward pressing force on the engaging portion
15
is wholly exerted to the resilient portion
13
, causing a great stress concentration at such place. Therefore, after a period of use, the resilient portion
13
becomes fatigue, resulting in an insufficient force for the engaging portion
15
to reliably electrically connect with the upper board. Furthermore, as the connector
5
lacks any structure which can effectively retained the tail portion
17
, the tail portion
17
may leave its desired horizontal orientation, resulting in poor quality regarding soldering the tail portion to the lower PC board by SMT. Finally, the signal transmitting path from the engaging portion
15
to the solder tail
17
is relatively long, which is unfavorable in view of high frequency transmission since the resistance and inductance are proportional to the length of the signal travel path.
Hence, a board to board connector with improved conductive contacts is required to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A first object of the present invention is to provide a board to board electrical connector having a plurality of improved conductive contacts which can reduce stress concentration therein during use.
A second object of the present invention is to provide a board to board electrical connector having a plurality of improved conductive contacts which can reduce the length of travelling path of signal therethough.
A third object of the present invention is to provide a board to board connector having improved coplanarity regarding soldering portions of contacts of the connector so that the connector can be well soldered to a PC board by using surface mounting technology (SMT).
A board to board electrical connector of the present invention comprises an insulative housing defining a plurality of channels at both sides thereof and a plurality of conductive contacts received in the respective channels. Each channel is defined by an upper wall, a lower wall, a rib connecting the upper wall to the lower wall and two laterally-extending adjacent partitions defining a pair of slits in opposite inner faces thereof. Each contact comprises an arced resilient portion retained in an inner portion of each channel, an arm extending upward and outward from an upper end of the resilient portion and a mounting portion extending horizontally from a lower end of the resilient portion for mounting on the lower wall. The arm forms an engaging portion at an outer end thereof for contacting a pad on an upper board. A free arm then bends backward and downward from the engaging portion for supporting against the mounting portion when the contact is under compression. A soldering portion extends from the mounting portion and is retained by a lower portion of each channel for soldering to a lower PC board. Finally, a free end extends from an outer end of the soldering portion and is retained in a pair of slits of corresponding partitions.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present embodiment when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4362353 (1982-12-01), Cobaugh et al.
patent: 4647124 (1987-03-01), Kandybowski
patent: 5879169 (1999-03-01), Wu
patent: 5980323 (1999-11-01), Bricaud et al.
patent: 5984693 (1999-11-01), McHugh et al.
patent: 6019611 (2000-02-01), McHugh et al.
patent: 6027345 (1999-03-01), McHugh et al.
Chung Wei Te
Hon Hai - Precision Ind. Co., Ltd.
Paumen Gary F.
LandOfFree
Board to board connector does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Board to board connector, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Board to board connector will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2545231