Electrical device module

Details Electrical device module Electrical device module

1998-09-10

2001-01-30

Gaffin, Jeffrey (Department: 2841)

Electricity: electrical systems and devices

Housing or mounting assemblies with diverse electrical...

For electronic systems and devices

C361S788000, C361S796000, C361S803000, C361S752000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06181570

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a module of an electrical device, and more particularly to an electrical device having a printed circuit board which can be pushed into the device and plugged onto a backplane of the device.
Electrical or electronic devices such as data processing devices, for example, usually comprise a number of modules which are inserted as push-in units into a device chassis and are connected to a backplane of the device by means of connectors. The printed circuit boards to be pushed in have a number of different standardized formats. It has also become common practice to construct certain units or modules using printed circuit boards in a particular format. If such modules with printed circuit boards in different formats are to be used in a device, then appropriate guides for such differently sized modules have to be provided in the device chassis. In devices with different fittings, this leads to increased production costs owing to the chassis being constructed differently, and usually hampers accessibility of the modules for maintenance purposes.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One object of the invention is to provide a module wherein printed circuit boards or cards of different formats can be inserted into a standard device chassis. Another object of the invention is to provide such a module wherein the printed circuit boards or cards may be fitted or inserted and removed easily from the standard device chassis.
The invention achieves these and other objects in that a cuboid cage is connected to the printed circuit board. The cage has a backplane arranged perpendicular to the printed circuit board and electrically connected to the latter by means of connectors. The backplane of the cage has its own connectors for electrical connection to push-in units, in the form of cards or boards, which can be inserted into the cage.
Like any other printed circuit board, the printed circuit board with the cage attached can also be pushed into and withdrawn from the device chassis. The cage preferably has guides for inserting the push-in units in a direction parallel to the device printed circuit board. This means that the push-in units can be withdrawn from the cage from the same side that the printed circuit board are withdrawn from the device chassis. However, the push-in units can therefore also be withdrawn from or pushed into the cage without the device printed circuit board having to be withdrawn from the device chassis.
The push-in units can be formed from boards which are positioned inside the cage parallel to the printed circuit board. The cage can, however, also have at least one push-in unit compartment for holding a subsidiary module having a module backplane, which is positioned perpendicular to the device printed circuit board and to the backplane of the cage. The module backplane can be plugged onto the backplane of the cage. The subsidiary module can also have one or more module boards which can be plugged onto the module backplane and are positioned parallel to the printed circuit board and perpendicular to the backplane of the cage. The subsidiary module is pushed into or withdrawn from the cage as an entity parallel to the direction in which the device printed circuit board is inserted. In contrast the insertion direction of the module boards for connection to the module backplane when the modules are installed is perpendicular to the direction in which the device printed circuit board is inserted.
The subsidiary module preferably has a box-shaped open casing with a rectangular base, two mutually parallel side walls and an end frame positioned transversely with respect to the side walls. The module backplane is arranged in the casing parallel to the base and has connectors at the top for connection to the module boards. The module boards have, on one longitudinal edge, a mating connector for connection to the module backplane and, on one edge perpendicular to the latter, a front panel, so that the front panels of the module boards plugged onto the module backplane close off the end frame. Hence, the module can be pushed into the cage as an entity, the closed metallic wall formed by the front panels completing the shield provided by the cage. Construction of the invention described above permits PC AT Standard cards to be pushed into the cage and therefore into the device chassis. These PC AT Standard cards are typically pushed in or inserted in a direction essentially perpendicular to the direction in which the printed circuit board is pushed into the device chassis. This construction also permits these PC AT Standard cards to be pushed into the cage and therefore into the device chassis in the form of a position subsidiary module.


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patent: 4742477 (1988-05-01), Phillips et al.
patent: 5296748 (1994-03-01), Wicklund et al.
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patent: 5603044 (1997-02-01), Annapareddy et al.
patent: 5668696 (1997-09-01), Schmitt
patent: 26 52 933 (1978-05-01), None
patent: 42 23 935 (1994-01-01), None
patent: 44 06 520 (1995-04-01), None
patent: 44 09 024 (1995-08-01), None

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