Electrical connectors – With insulation other than conductor sheath – Plural-contact coupling part
Reexamination Certificate
1999-02-23
2001-03-20
Donovan, Lincoln (Department: 2839)
Electrical connectors
With insulation other than conductor sheath
Plural-contact coupling part
C439S141000, C439S155000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06203378
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a card connecting adapter for relaying and connecting an information equipment such as a personal computer and a card for expanding the feature of the information equipment.
2. Description of Related Art
In recent years, a PC card slot has been generally provided in a notebook-sized personal computer. The feature of the notebook-sized personal computer can be expanded by mounting a PC card on the PC card slot. Examples of the PC card include a flash memory card, a modem card, and an SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) card.
The PC card adheres to a standard set by PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card International Association), and its external form is a rectangle having a width of 54.0 mm and having a length of 85.6 mm as viewed from the top. There are two types of PC cards; one having a thickness of 3.3 mm (type I) and the other having a thickness of 5.0 mm (type II).
On the other hand, in a small-sized information equipment which is represented by a portable information equipment, a digital camera, and an electronic notebook, a PC card cannot be used as it is due to a strict request for miniaturization. Therefore, a smaller-sized CF (CompactFlash (trademark)) card may, in some cases, be used. A representative of the CF card is a flash memory card. The CF card containing a flash memory is used for storing data representing an image picked up by the digital camera or data representing a schedule or an address in the electronic notebook.
The CF card adheres to a standard set by CFA (CompactFlash Association). Conventionally, a CF card in an external shape of a rectangle having a width of 36.4 mm and having a length of 42.5 mm as viewed from the top and having a thickness of 3.3 mm has been generally used.
A small-sized information equipment does not necessarily have sufficient data processing capabilities. Therefore, for example, a digital camera is often under the necessity of accepting and editing data representing collected images in the notebook-sized personal computer, and an electronic notebook is often under the necessity of exchanging data representing a schedule or an address between the electronic notebook and a notebook-sized personal computer.
If an attempt to mount a CF card on a notebook-sized personal computer is made in order to accept data in a small-sized information equipment in the notebook-sized personal computer, the CF card cannot be mounted as it is because the PC card slot is constructed in accordance with the standard set by PCMCIA.
A card connecting adapter for connecting a CF card to a PC card slot has been conventionally provided.
The card connecting adapter has at its front end a first connecting portion connected to the PC card slot, and has at its rear end a second connecting portion connected to the CF card. The construction thereof in the vicinity of the second connecting portion is illustrated in FIG.
14
.
Metal cover plates
302
and
303
for discharging a static charge from the human body are respectively provided on an upper surface and a lower surface of a card connecting adapter
301
, similarly to a PC card. A plurality of terminals
306
are provided in parallel in a second connecting portion
305
. The metal cover plates
302
and
303
respectively extend to positions where they can cover, from above and beneath, the plurality of terminals
306
. By this construction, the terminals
306
are protected from deformation due to an external force.
The card connecting adapter
301
is constructed in imitation of a PC card of the type II, for example, and the distance between the surfaces of the metal cover plates
302
and
303
(that is, the thickness of the adapter
301
) is set to 5.0 mm. In this case, a CF card
307
having a thickness of 3.3 mm enters a portion between the metal cover plates
302
and
303
, so that it can be connected to the terminals
306
.
A CF card
307
and the card connecting adapter
301
are thus integrated to form a PC card of the type II as a whole, which can be mounted on a PC card slot.
In a CF card containing a flash memory, a request to increase its storage capacity is strong. In order to meet the request, a CF card
310
adhering to a new standard which has the same plane shape as that in the conventional example and has a thickness of 5.0 mm has been proposed, as shown in FIG.
15
. The CF card adhering to the proposed standard shall be referred to as “a CF card of a type II”.
The CF card
310
of the type II has a thickness of 5.0 mm, which is the same as that of the card connecting adapter
301
. Since the CF card
310
of the type II cannot enter the portion between the metal cover plates
302
and
303
, it cannot be mounted on the card connecting adapter
301
.
The increase in the thickness of the card connecting adapter
301
is not allowed because it does not meet the type II standard of the PC card. Therefore, it is considered that the CF card
310
of the type II is allowed to be mounted by eliminating projected parts
302
a
and
303
a
of the metal cover plates
302
and
303
to make the terminals
306
bare.
If the terminals
306
are bare, however, the terminals
306
may be deformed upon receipt of an external force under the circumstances where a CF card is not mounted.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide a card connecting adapter so constructed that terminals can be effectively prevented from being deformed even when the thickness of the card connecting adapter and the thickness of a card mounted thereon are equal to each other.
A card connecting adapter according to the present invention is used for connecting, to a card slot adhering to a predetermined first standard (for example, a type II set by PCMCIA), a card adhering to a second standard different from the first standard (for example, a CF card of a type II). The adapter comprises a first connecting portion adhering to the first standard, a second connecting portion adhering to the second standard, a plurality of terminals provided in the second connecting portion for electrical connection to the card adhering to the second standard, shutter mechanism having a shutter member provided so as to be displaceable between a protecting position where the plurality of terminals are protected from the exterior and a connecting position where the plurality of terminals are exposed, and interlocking mechanism for displacing the shutter member from the protecting position to the connecting position in synchronization with an operation for mounting the card on the second connecting portion, while displacing the shutter member from the connecting position to the protecting position in synchronization with an operation for removing the card from the second connecting portion, and locking mechanism which enters an unlocked state where the displacement of the shutter member is allowed in synchronization with the operation for mounting the card on the second connecting portion, while entering a locked state where the displacement of the shutter member is inhibited in synchronization with the operation for removing the card from the second connecting portion.
According to the above-mentioned construction, the shutter member is displaced from the protecting position to the connecting position in synchronization with the operation for mounting the card, so that the terminals in the second connecting portion are exposed. Therefore, the card can be connected to the second connecting portion irrespective of the thickness of the card. Even when the thickness of the card connecting adapter and the thickness of the card mounted thereon are equal to each other, therefore, the connection therebetween is not interfered with.
On the other hand, the shutter member is displaced from the connecting portion to the protecting position in synchronization with the operation for removing the card. In a state where the card is removed, therefore, the terminals in the second connecting portion are protected from deformation due to an exte
Shobara Yoshitaka
Washino Kiyoshi
Donovan Lincoln
Japan Solderless Terminal MGF. Co., Ltd
Rader Fishman & Grauer
Webb Brian S.
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