Electrical connectors – With insulation other than conductor sheath – Plural-contact coupling part
Reexamination Certificate
2002-06-05
2003-09-09
Feild, Lynn (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
With insulation other than conductor sheath
Plural-contact coupling part
C439S862000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06616485
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to an electric connector such as a connector for use in a card, a connector for use in a printed wiring board, and the like, particularly to an improvement of bellows type contact mounted onto the electric connector.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The connector onto which bellows type contacts have been mounted has such problems that the height of a housing of the connector (hereinafter referred to as connector housing) is substantially affected by the amount of displacement caused by the elastic deformation of the contact when each contact contacts another contact, so that there is limitation in the reduction of height of the housing in the direction of displacement of the contact, thereby enlarging an accommodating space of the connector housing so that there has been a problem of realization of a low-profile connector.
For example, FIGS.
14
(A) and
14
(B) and FIGS.
15
(A) and
15
(B) are respectively sectional views showing a connector having a housing into which a bellows type contact is mounted. The connector shown in
FIGS. 14
(A) and
14
(B) is a type wherein the connector has an elastic contact
100
which is bent downward at its tip end at a given angle, and an tip end thereof enters a housing wall while the connector shown in FIGS.
15
(A) and
15
(B) is a type wherein a contact
200
is folded back upward and bent downward at its tip portion at a given angle.
The bellows type contact
100
shown in FIGS.
14
(A) and
14
(B) is made of substantially a belt-like conductive elastic contact member, and comprises a belt-like flat part
101
and a contact part
103
formed by bending the flat part
101
upward, and the tip end
105
of the contact part
103
enters the interior of a housing wall
110
. The housing wall
110
is formed on both sides surfaces of an elastic contact member (one housing wall
110
alone is illustrated and the other housing wall
110
is omitted) wherein the height of each housing wall
110
is determined such that the contact
100
is displaced between the housing wall
110
and an upper face
112
, and the tip end
105
is brought into contact with a bottom face
114
. The length of each housing wall
110
is substantially the same length as the contact
100
in the longitudinal direction, wherein an inclination part is provided at the corner between an edge face
113
and the upper face
112
through which another contact is easily inserted.
In a state where the bellows type contact is mounted in the connector housing, the flat part
101
of the contact
100
is positioned between both housing walls
110
and the tip end
105
extended from the contact part
103
is set close to the edge face
113
of the housing wall
110
, and is positioned lower than the upper face
112
(see FIG.
14
(A) In this state, if another contact (not shown) provided on the printed wiring board is inserted substantially horizontally from the left side in the same figure, a tip end of another contact is brought into contact with the inclined face of the contact part
103
, and it slides on the inclined face and presses the same. When another contact is further inserted or pushed inward, it displaces and moves the flat part
101
and contact part
103
downward against elasticity of the flat part
101
and contact part
103
of the contact
100
so that a flat face of another contact covers a space between both housing walls
110
, and the contact part
103
is displaced until it becomes substantially flush with the same plane as the upper face
112
while the tip end
105
of the contact
100
is brought into contact with or brought close to the bottom face
114
, thereby maintaining a connecting state between two contacts (see FIG.
14
(B)).
Further, the bellows type contact
200
shown in FIG.
15
(A) has a contact part
203
which is formed by folding back one end of a flat part
201
upward and bending downward it. Depicted by
210
is the housing wall,
211
is a bottom face,
212
is an upper face and
213
is an edge face. The contact
200
has an inclined face formed by bending the contact part
203
upward. When the contact
200
contacts another contact (not shown), a tip end of another contact is brought into contact with the inclined face and slides thereon and it displaces and moves the flat part
201
and contact part
203
downward to the bottom face
211
against an elasticity of the flat part
201
and the contact part
203
so that the end of the flat part
201
is displaced to be brought into contact with or brought close to the bottom face
211
(see FIG.
15
(B)). At this time, the inclined face of the contact effects a strike preventing function relative to another contact.
With the bellows type contact having the foregoing construction shown in FIGS.
14
(A) and
14
(B) when another contact is inserted into the contact
100
while the tip end
105
extended from the contact part
103
is set close to the edge face
113
of the each housing wall
110
and is positioned lower than the upper face
112
, the tip end of another contact is brought into contact with the inclined face of the contact
100
to effect a strike preventing function of the contact
100
. That is, if the tip end
105
of the contact
100
is positioned over the housing wall
110
, the tip end of another contact is brought into contact with the tip end
105
of the contact
100
when another contact is inserted into the contact
100
. However, the tip end
105
is not always moved downward and there is a possibility that the tip end
105
is pushed upward. Accordingly, the contact
100
is deformed abnormally or perpetually so that a normal contact relative to another contact cannot be obtained. Therefore, it is necessary that the bellows type contact has a strike preventing function such that the tip end
105
extended from the contact part
103
is set close to the edge face
113
and it is positioned lower than the upper face
112
. Accordingly, when the contact of this type is mounted in the connector housing to obtain an elastic contact pressure by deforming it elastically by a given amount of deformation, it is necessary that the height of the housing wall
110
has to meet the requirement that the tip end
105
is brought into contact with or brought close to the bottom face
114
and the contact part
103
is substantially flush with the upper face
112
of the housing wall
110
. As a result, the contact
100
requires a given height, and hence when it is mounted in the connector housing, it is necessary that the housing wall
110
has a height satisfying the displacement of the contact
100
, causing a problem to thin the connector.
The bellows type contact
200
shown in FIGS.
15
(A) and
15
(B) has the contact part
203
which is formed by folding back one end extended from the flat part
201
bending upward and bending downward it. Because of the bending portion, the reduction of height of the contact
200
has limits in the direction of displacement of the contact in the same manner as the contact
100
shown in FIGS.
14
(A) and
14
(B) so as to elastically deforming the contact
200
by a given amount of deformation. Accordingly, it is necessary that each housing wall has a given height when the contact is mounted in the housing, causing the same problem to thin the connector as the contact shown in FIGS.
14
(A) and
14
(B).
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention has been developed to solve the foregoing problems of the prior art, and it is an object of the invention to provide a contact capable of achieving the reduction of height of the contact in a direction of displacement, and of obtaining excellent contact pressure. It is another object of the invention to provide a contact capable of achieving further reduction of height of the contact in a direction of displacement, and of obtaining excellent contact pressure. It is still another object of the invention to provide a contact capable of eliminating damage at a contact part when manufacturing the contact, of reducing the height of the contact in a direct
Harasawa Masaaki
Tomonari Yozo
Armstrong Westerman & Hattori, LLP
Dinh Phuong K T
Feild Lynn
J.S.T. Mfg. Co. Ltd.
LandOfFree
Contact and electric connector onto which the contact is... does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Contact and electric connector onto which the contact is..., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Contact and electric connector onto which the contact is... will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3031629