Electricity: electrical systems and devices – Housing or mounting assemblies with diverse electrical... – For electronic systems and devices
Reexamination Certificate
2002-07-26
2004-06-29
Vu, Phuong T. (Department: 2841)
Electricity: electrical systems and devices
Housing or mounting assemblies with diverse electrical...
For electronic systems and devices
C439S064000, C439S136000, C439S142000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06757173
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a card connector assembly having a slot into which cards such as PC cards or the like are inserted. More specifically, the invention relates to a card connector assembly having a slot and an anti-dust shutter that prevents foreign matter from entering the connector.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
There has been a rapid increase in the use of PC cards in electronic equipment such as personal computers as a result of the establishment of standards for PC cards such as PCMCIA. PC cards according to PCMCIA standards consist of three types of cards classified according to use, i.e., type I cards are used as semiconductor memory cards, type II cards are used as modem cards, and type III cards are used as hard disk cards. The types of PC cards also have different thickness. Type I and type II cards have almost the same thickness, and type III cards have a thickness that is almost twice that of the type II cards.
Especially in the case of portable personal computers, card connector assemblies are generally equipped with a slot into which PC cards are inserted and a connector that receives the PC cards. Although all three types of cards can be used in common connector assemblies, the method of insertion varies according to the card thickness. Because type I and type II cards have almost the same thickness, these cards can be used in common and each card takes up a single slot. Because type III cards have a thickness that is almost twice that of type II cards, an accommodating space equal to two slots for type II cards is required. Accordingly, so-called double slot type card connector assemblies in which two slots for PCMCIA PC cards are overlapped have been commercialized.
In a double slot type card connector assembly, dirt may enter the interior of the slot or connector and adhere to the connector. Accordingly, an anti-dust shutter is disposed at the card insertion end of the slot and is used to prevent the adhesion of dirt. For example, the mechanism shown in
FIG. 15
is known as a conventional anti-dust shutter mechanism for a double slot type card connector assembly (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H7-282204).
FIG. 15
shows an anti-dust shutter mechanism, a first card slot
101
b
into which a first card
106
is inserted, and a second card slot
101
c
into which a second card
107
is inserted. The slots
101
b,
101
c
are disposed in two tiers (above and below) inside an electronic device main body
101
. The first and second card slots
101
b,
101
c
open to the outside via a single opening part
101
a.
A first connector
108
receives the first card
106
, and a second connector
109
receives the second card
107
. The first and second connectors
108
,
109
are disposed in a stacked configuration on the opposite side of the electronic device main body
101
from the opening part
101
a.
The first card slot
101
b
and second card slot
101
c
communicate with each other, so that a third card (not shown) with a thickness that is twice that of the first card
106
or second card
107
can also be inserted. The card connector assembly is arranged so that when the third card is inserted into the first and second card slots
101
b,
101
c,
the third card is connected to the first connector
108
.
A first shutter main body
102
is rotatably shaft-supported by a pivoting shaft
102
a
in the vicinity of the opening part
101
a
(i.e., in the vicinity of the card insertion end) of the first card slot
101
b.
A second shutter main body
103
is rotatably shaft-supported by a pivoting shaft
103
a
in the vicinity of the opening part
101
a
of the second card slot
101
c.
The first and second shutter main bodies
102
,
103
are disposed like folding doors. When no cards
106
,
107
are inserted, the shutter main bodies
102
,
103
are spring-driven in the direction that closes the opening part
101
a.
When the first card
106
and/or second card
107
are inserted, the shutter main bodies
102
,
103
are pushed by the cards
106
,
107
, and pivot so that the shutter main bodies
102
,
103
are retracted into the interiors of the first and second card slots
101
b,
101
c.
As the first and/or second cards
106
,
107
are inserted into the respective first and second card slots
101
b,
101
c,
the first and second shutter main bodies
102
,
103
are pushed by the cards
106
,
107
. The first shutter main body
102
pivots in the direction A, and the second shutter main body
103
pivots in the direction B, as shown in FIG.
15
(B). The first shutter main body
102
and second shutter main body
103
retract into the interiors of the first card slot
101
b
and second card slot
101
c.
When the first card
106
and second card
107
are pushed in even further, the first card
106
and second card
107
are respectively received in and connected to the first connector
108
and second connector
109
. When the first card
106
and second card
107
are respectively connected to the first connector
108
and second connector
109
signals from the respective cards can be transmitted to circuit boards connected to the first connector
108
and second connector
109
, or signals from the circuit boards can be conversely transmitted to the respective cards.
Additional PCMCIA standards have been added for cards which handle card busses requiring a ground to be formed on one of the two surfaces of the PC card.
FIG. 16
shows a conventional PC card
200
that handles a card bus. The PC card
200
comprises a metal plate part
201
that covers a surface of an insulating housing (not shown), and a metal ground plate part
202
that is disposed on a tip end portion of one surface of the insulating housing. The ground plate part
202
is insulated from the metal plate part
201
, and a plurality of protruding contact projections
203
are formed at a specified pitch in the direction of width on the surface of the ground plate part
202
. For example, when the PC card
200
is received in the card connector assembly disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H8-241764, the contact projections
203
have the function of reducing noise by making contact with ground parts disposed in the card connector assembly.
When the PC card
200
for handling a card bus shown in
FIG. 16
is used in the anti-dust shutter mechanism shown in
FIG. 15
, the contact projections
203
formed on the ground plate part
202
interfere with the free end of the spring-driven first shutter main body
102
or second shutter main body
103
when the PC card
200
is withdrawn from the first card slot
101
b
or second card slot
101
c,
as shown in
FIG. 17
(
FIG. 17
shows only a case in which the PC card
200
is pulled out of the second card slot
101
c
). Because the contact projections
203
interfere with the free ends of the first and second shutter main bodies
102
,
103
, the first and second shutter main bodies
102
,
103
can be damaged when the PC card
200
is withdrawn.
It is, therefore, desirable to develop a card connector assembly which prevents projections on the surfaces of cards, such as PC cards that handle card busses or the like, from interfering with anti-dust shutters provided on the card connector assembly when the cards are withdrawn from the card connector assembly.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a card connector assembly which makes it possible to prevent raised portions on the surfaces of cards, such as PC cards that handle card busses, from interfering with an anti-dust shutter when the cards are withdrawn from the card connector assembly. This and other objects are achieved by a card connector assembly having a slot for inserting a card that has raised portions and a connector that receives the card that is inserted into the slot. An anti-dust shutter that pivots into an interior of the slot when the card is inserted. The anti dust-shutter having an interference avoiding means in the form of a cut-out or a projection that enables the card to be with
Barley Snyder
Tyco Electronics AMP k.K.
Vu Phuong T.
LandOfFree
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