Electrical connectors – Metallic connector or contact having movable or resilient... – Spring actuated or resilient securing part
Reexamination Certificate
2001-12-18
2003-04-22
Bradley, P. Austin (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
Metallic connector or contact having movable or resilient...
Spring actuated or resilient securing part
C439S083000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06551149
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates a terminal to be connected onto a circuit board (hereinafter referred to as connecting terminal) and a method of mounting the same onto the circuit board, particularly to a connecting terminal which is effective in cases where the circuit board is grounded to another circuit board, sealing plate, a chassis, a case frame, and the like so as to prevent an electromagnetic field produced from a high frequency circuit used in a portable telephone and the like from influencing upon other devices, and a method of mounting the connecting terminal onto the circuit board.
2. Description of the Related Art
A grounding terminal has been already known since it has been disclosed, e.g., in Japanese Patent No. 3,068,557 and Japanese Utility Model Registration No. 3,064,756, wherein a grounding terminal is mounted onto a circuit board, i.e., printed circuit board and it comes into compression contact with a grounding conductor, thereby grounding the printed circuit board.
FIGS. 6 and 7
show a grounding terminal as disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3,068,557, wherein
FIG. 6
is a plan view showing a state where the grounding terminal is mounted onto a printed-circuit board, and
FIG. 7
is a side sectional view taken along the line A′-A′ in FIG.
6
. In
FIG. 7
, designated by
100
is a grounding terminal,
140
a contact part,
141
a restriction part,
160
a wall-like part,
161
a pawl part,
300
a printed-circuit board,
250
a
,
250
b
conductive patterns,
260
a soft solder, and
400
a grounding conductor. The grounding conductor
400
is omitted in FIG.
6
.
As shown in
FIG. 7
, the grounding terminal
100
is formed by bending a thin strip metal member. A junction part
120
to be joined to the printed-circuit board
300
is provided on the metal member at substantially the center thereof in the longitudinal direction. The metal member is bent at the junction part
120
in the longitudinal direction so that it has a shape of mountain in cross section and a groove is formed in one surface of the junction part
120
. Two junction faces
120
a
,
120
b
are formed on both sides of the mountain. The groove is formed in the junction part
120
at the portion remote from the central position thereof in the longitudinal direction by a given interval so that one junction face
120
a
is smaller than the other junction face
120
b.
The metal member is bent at both ends of the junction part
120
in a direction opposite to the junction faces
120
a
,
120
b
. One end of the metal member which is bent at both ends of the junction part
120
is folded back at the end of the junction part
120
to form the contact part
140
and the restriction part
141
. The contact part
140
comes into compression contact with the grounding conductor
400
and elastically deformed about a folded back part, namely, turnup part
130
by a given amount in a state where the grounding terminal is soldered to the printed-circuit board
300
.
FIG. 7
shows a state where the contact part
140
comes into compression contact with the grounding conductor
400
and is elastically deformed. A state where the contact part
140
does not come into contact with a grounding conductor
400
is illustrated by two-dotted one chain line. The contact part
140
comes into compression contact with the grounding conductor
400
by a repulsive force caused by the elastic deformation thereof and becomes conductive to the grounding conductor
400
so that the printed-circuit board
300
is grounded to the grounding conductor
400
.
With the construction of the grounding terminal
100
, the restriction part
141
is formed on the grounding terminal
100
while continuously connecting to the contact part
140
of the grounding terminal
100
so that the contact part
140
does not exceed an elastic limit when the contact part
140
is elastically deformed. The restriction part
141
comes into contact with the opposite side of the junction face of the junction part
120
at its tip end when the contact part
140
is elastically deformed by a given amount so that the amount of elastic deformation of the contact part
140
is restricted.
With the grounding terminal having such a construction, since the tip end of the restriction part
141
comes into contact with the opposite side of the junction part
120
every time the contact part
140
comes into compression contact with the grounding conductor
400
, there arises a possibility that the opposite side of the junction part
120
with which the restriction part
141
comes into contact is injured to induce inferior connection at the junction part
120
. Further, since the tip end of the restriction part
141
comes into contact with the opposite side of the junction face when the contact part
140
comes into compression contact with the grounding conductor
400
, the moving range of the contact part
140
is restricted, thereby making it difficult to obtain a repulsive force owing to the elastic deformation of the contact part
140
, namely, to obtain a given contact pressure between the grounding conductor
400
and the contact part
140
.
There occurs a so-called wicking phenomenon where solder is sucked up to the portion close to the turnup part
130
about which the contact part
140
is elastically deformed so that solder is stuck to the portion close to the turnup part
130
, thereby impeding the elastic deformation of the contact part
140
to induce the deterioration of spring performance. To cope with such a deterioration of spring performance, the turnup part
130
about which the contact part
140
is elastically deformed is formed at a position remote from the junction part
120
having a small junction area by a given interval. As a result, a solder
260
a
supplied to the junction face
120
a
having a small junction area is not sucked up to the turnup part
130
of the contact part
140
, thereby preventing the solder
260
a
from sticking to the turnup part
130
. Since the turnup part
130
is formed at the position remote from the small junction face
120
a
having a small junction area by a given interval, the contact part
140
is to be formed in a specific shape, causing a problem in the formation of the contact part
140
. Further, since the solder
260
a
is stuck to the portion close to the turnup part
130
, a peeling force is applied to the solder fixed part every time the contact part
140
is elastically deformed. If the contact part
140
is repeatedly elastically deformed, the solder fixed part is peeled off and cracked, thereby making it difficult to maintain the conduction.
FIG. 8
shows a grounding terminal disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Registration No. 3,064,756. The grounding terminal comprises a substrate part which is mounted on a grounding pattern of a printed-circuit board
350
, a spring contact
311
which is protruded integrally from one side of the substrate part to a side confronting the substrate part, and an engaging wall
360
integrally standing upright on the substrate part and engaging with the tip end of the spring contact
311
. Since the grounding terminal has the engaging wall
360
engaging with the tip end of the spring contact
311
, the engaging wall
360
functions as a stopper relative to an irregular external force which is produced when fingers and the like strike against the spring contact
311
, thereby restraining the deformation of the grounding terminal. As a result, it is possible to eliminate such drawbacks that inferior contact is made between the deformed spring contact
311
and a chassis and the like and a storing operation is obstructed which occurred when the spring contact
311
is caught by the chassis when the substrate is stored in the chassis.
However, in cases where the grounding terminal comes into compression contact with a sealed panel and the like from the above when the grounding terminal contacts the sealed panel and the like, the spring contact
311
is not irregularly deformed. However, when the s
Armstrong Westerman & Hattori, LLP
Bradley P. Austin
Gilman Alexander
J.S.T. Mfg. Co. Ltd.
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