Electrical connectors – Including or for use with tape cable – With mating connection region formed by bared cable
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-26
2001-05-01
Bradley, Paula (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
Including or for use with tape cable
With mating connection region formed by bared cable
C439S260000, C439S329000, C439S467000, C439S073000, C439S331000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06224418
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electrical connector for flexible printed board called FPC (Flexible printed board).
2. Description of Related Art
There has been known to the art the connector of this type which includes a synthetic-resin housing having an opening adapted to open upward, a plurality of fork-shaped contacts which are arranged to face the opening of the housing and each of which has a fixing piece and a resilient piece in vertically opposed relation, and a synthetic-resin cover adapted to open/close the opening of the housing.
The cover is integrally formed with a pair of support shafts as resin projections at opposite ends of one edge thereof. As born on pivotal support portions of the housing (or members retained by the housing), these support shafts permit the cover to pivot between an opened position and a closed position.
An alternative arrangement is made such that support shafts provided at the housing are fitted in U-shaped notches of the cover thereby to support the cover in the pivotal movement. The support shafts may be formed of resin as an integral part of the housing or may be composed of metal pins independent from the housing (see, for example, Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Gazette No. 6-77186).
The cover is provided with a pressure portion at one edge thereof. When the cover is moved to the closed position, the pressure portion is clamped between a flexible printed board on the resilient pieces and the fixing pieces while pressing the flexible printed board against the resilient pieces.
In this case, the fixing pieces of the contacts receive a resilient counter force from the resilient pieces of the contacts via the FPC and the pressure portion. However, it is relatively easy to secure a contact pressure between the FPC and the resilient pieces because the contacts are formed of metallic members, the fixing pieces of which have high rigidity.
However, the cover has been decreased in thickness in order to satisfy the recent demand for connectors with smaller height. Thus, the cover is more susceptible to deformation such as warpage. When warpage occurs in the cover, the plural contacts contact the FPC at non-uniform pressures so that some of the contacts suffer instable electrical continuity. Where the pivot shafts are formed of resin as the integral part of the housing or cover, a fear exists in the connector assembly process that the pivot shaft may break when fitted into the pivotal support portion.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the foregoing, it is an object of the invention to provide an electrical connector for flexible printed board which is less prone to breakages, presents high contact pressure on the FPC and achieves height reduction.
For achieving the above object, an electrical connector for flexible printed board of a preferred mode of the invention is provided, which comprises a synthetic-resin housing having an opening, a plurality of fork-shaped contacts which are arranged to face the opening and each of which has a fixing piece and a resilient piece in vertically opposed relation, and a synthetic-resin cover rotatable around a predetermined pivotal axis to open/close the opening of the housing. The electrical connector for flexible printed board further comprises a pressure portion which is disposed at one edge of the cover, the edge being close to the predetermined pivotal axis and which, with the cover closed, is clamped between a flexible printed board on the resilient pieces and the fixing pieces while pressing the flexible printed board against the resilient pieces, and a metallic wire which is partially embedded in the cover during the molding of the cover.
The wire includes a pair of opposite ends and an intermediate portion between the opposite ends. The pair of opposite ends project from lateral sides of the cover along the predetermined pivotal axis and are supported by corresponding pivotal support portions. The intermediate portion is spaced from the predetermined pivotal axis and is at least partially embedded in the cover during the molding of the cover.
According to the mode of the invention, the opposite ends of the metallic wire serve as the pivot shafts of the cover, which are rigid. Since the deflection of the cover is prevented by the metallic wire extended through a width thereof, a sufficient contact pressure is attained between the FPC and the resilient pieces while the cover is prevented from disengaging from the housing. Further, the intermediate portion of the wire is spaced a distance from one edge of the cover where the pressure portion exists, so that the pressure portion may be decreased in thickness. This permits a small distance between the fixing piece and the resilient piece. As a result, the height of the connector can be decreased to, for example, about 1.3 mm. Since the wire is inserted in the cover during the resin molding thereof, the wire has such a high adhesion to the cover that the deformation of the cover is more positively prevented.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5401186 (1995-03-01), Nozaki et al.
patent: 5474468 (1995-12-01), Chishima et al.
patent: 5904586 (1999-05-01), Takayasu
patent: 5911597 (1999-06-01), Oshitani
patent: 6056572 (2000-05-01), Matsumoto et al.
patent: 6089905 (2000-07-01), Shimmyo et al.
patent: 6116947 (2000-09-01), Takayasu
patent: 6126466 (2000-10-01), Inadama
Miura Kazuto
Miyao Taichiro
Uchida Shinji
Bradley Paula
J.S.T. Msf. Co., Ltd.
Leon Edwin A.
Rader Fishman & Grauer
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