Electrical connectors – Contact comprising cutter – Insulation cutter
Reexamination Certificate
2000-10-10
2001-11-06
Vu, Hien (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
Contact comprising cutter
Insulation cutter
C439S495000, C439S864000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06312280
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to a connector for making electrical contact with a planar conductor of a flexible circuit board, and more particularly to a flexible circuit board connector that automatically removes an insulation layer covering the planar conductor.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Flexible circuit boards have commonly been used in the electronic industry to provide convenient multi-wire interconnects between rigid circuit boards and other fixed components. Flexible circuit boards can similarly be used to form an extended bus for supporting multiplexed communications among remotely located electronic modules, so long as provision is made for electrically coupling to the bus conductors at various locations along the length of the flexible circuit. In a motor vehicle application, for example, it would be necessary to couple numerous remote devices to the bus, and to leave open the possibility of adding further remote devices to the vehicle at a later date. However, the flexible circuit conductors are encased in an insulating medium, and it is necessary to remove the insulation overlying the conductors before a connector may be mated to the flexible circuit. This is a time-consuming operation that must be performed with care and precision in order to remove the insulation without also breaking through and removing the planar conductors, which can be as thin as 75 micrometers. Accordingly, what is needed is a connector that makes electrical contact with an insulated flexible circuit conductor without requiring prior removal of insulation overlying or underlying the conductor.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to an improved connector for establishing an electrical connection between an external conductor and an insulated flexible circuit board conductor, the connector including an automatically deployed cutting mechanism for removing insulative material overlying the flexible circuit conductor when the electrical connection is established. The connector includes an insulative housing having a slot for receiving an interconnect stub of the flexible circuit, and a compliantly mounted cutting mechanism electrically coupled to the external conductor. The cutting mechanism extends partially into the slot, and is compliantly displaced away from the slot as the interconnect stub is inserted into the slot. When the interconnect stub is partially extracted from the slot, the cutting mechanism forcibly engages the stub, removing a portion of the overlying insulative material, and electrically contacting the flexible circuit conductor to establish the connection between it and the external conductor.
In a preferred embodiment, the cutting mechanism is defined by a threaded cylinder electrically coupled to the external conductor by a spring. The cylinder is supported in a tapered recess of the housing, and the spring biases the cylinder toward a narrow portion of the recess, in which position the cylinder extends partially into the housing slot. When the flexible circuit interconnect stub is inserted into the slot, the spring yields as the cylinder moves into a wider portion of the recess and away from the slot. When the interconnect stub is partially extracted from the slot, the spring biases the cylinder back into the narrow portion of the recess, whereupon the cylinder threads engage the stub and remove the overlying insulative material to establish the electrical connection between the flexible circuit conductor and the external conductor.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3579283 (1971-05-01), Welburn et al.
patent: 3824529 (1974-07-01), Dorell
patent: 4522460 (1985-06-01), Beck, Jr. et al.
patent: 5961344 (1999-10-01), Rosales et al.
patent: 6036532 (2000-03-01), Feistkorn
patent: 758921 (1956-10-01), None
General Motors Corporation
Grove George A.
Sedlar Jeffrey A.
Vu Hien
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