Electrical connectors – With supporting means for coupling part – Flange on coupling part
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-15
2001-12-11
Bradley, Paula (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
With supporting means for coupling part
Flange on coupling part
C439S083000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06328600
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a connector adapted for use with printed circuit boards and capable of being surface mounted thereon.
2. Prior Art
The known connector of this type for use with the printed circuit boards comprise each an elongate rectangular box as an insulated housing. The latter generally has an upper opened connecting portion for reception of conductive parts or elements leading to the circuit board. Leads integral with contacts held in the housing protrude outwards therefrom so as to be soldered to a circuit pattern printed on the board. Reinforcement metal pieces are fixed in the both sides of said housing are to be soldered to a fixation pattern that is also previously formed on each printed circuit board. Those prior art connectors are grouped into the so-called ‘top’ type and the so-called ‘side’ type. In the former type, a bottom of the housing will rest on the upper face of the printed circuit board so that the connecting portion opens upwards. In the latter type of the connectors, either a front side or a rear side of the housing will lie on said board so as to dispose the connecting portion to face sideways.
If those two types of the connectors are manufactured independently of each other, their insulated housings, their contacts and their reinforcement metals will differ between said types. This will not only raise manufacture cost and but also increase the number of constituent parts, noticeably rendering intricate the stock control of them. Therefore, the present applicant has developed and put into practical use a certain convertible type of connectors having their housings and reinforcement metals compatible with both the types. The contacts in such novel connectors already proposed by the present applicant need only be changed in position of their leads between the types, and relative to bodies of said contacts (see the Specification of Japanese Patent No. 2628002).
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A primary object of the present invention is to provide a further improved connector adapted for printed circuit boards and having a feature that all of insulated housing, reinforcement metal pieces and contacts of the connector can take as a whole a top type position, with a possibility of alternatively taking a side type position on demand without any change made in their shape. This improvement will be useful to raise manufacture efficiency (and reduce facility investment, by decreasing variety of constituent parts of the connectors as a whole). Such a further improvement will lower manufacture cost to a remarkable degree and will render much easier the stock control of parts.
Another object of the present invention is to provide such a connector for printed circuit boards that it can be ‘surface mounted’ on a reduced area of the circuit board, thus enhancing density of various electric parts and devices mounted thereon. The reinforcement metal pieces in the connector has now to be more firmly fixed on the circuit board and be never peeled off accidentally and unintentionally, thus improving reliability thereof.
In order to achieve these objects, a connector proposed herein does comprise leads that are integral with contacts held in an insulated housing, the leads protruding outwards therefrom so as to be soldered to a circuit pattern printed on the board. The connector further comprises reinforcement metal pieces are fixed in both sides of said housing so as to be capable of being soldered to a fixation pattern formed on the circuit board, wherein all of these housing, contacts and metal pieces are convertible between an upright standing posture (viz., the top type position) and a lying-on-one-side posture (viz., the side type position) which the connector may selectively assume.
In detail, the lead extending from each contact has characteristically a first solderable surface portion and at least one second solderable surface portion, wherein the former surface portion extends in parallel with a bottom of the housing so as to be used where the standing top-type position is taken, with the latter surface portion extending in parallel either with a front wall or a rear wall of said housing for use in an alternative case of the lying side-type position. Also characteristically, each reinforcement metal piece has a first solderable surface zone and at least one second solderable surface zone, wherein the former zone extends in parallel with the housing bottom for use where the standing top-type position is taken, with the latter zone extending in parallel either with the front or rear wall of said housing for use in the alternative case of the lying side-type position.
Each reinforcement piece preferably and generally consists of a metal sheet or plate having rim portions, one of these rim portions serving as the first solderable zone and another one serving as the second solderable zone. Each reinforcement piece fixedly fits in one of slots or apertures that are formed in side walls of the insulated housing.
Preferably, each contact may have two second solderable surface portions respectively along the front and rear walls of the housing, and each reinforcement piece may also have two second solderable surface zones, similarly along the front and rear walls of the housing. In this case, either the front wall or the rear wall may selectively be laid on the upper face of the printed circuit board, further increasing freedom in the manner of ‘surface mounting’ the connector.
It is preferable that one and single layout of the circuit pattern and fixation pattern does suffice by matching both the arrangement of the first solderable portions and zones in the top type position and the other arrangement of the second solderable portions and zones in the side type position of the connector.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4509811 (1985-04-01), Amano et al.
patent: 4645287 (1987-02-01), Olsson
patent: 4668040 (1987-05-01), Matsuzaki et al.
patent: 6022244 (2000-02-01), Chiu
patent: 6109952 (2000-08-01), Jaag
patent: 2628002 (1997-04-01), None
Fujiki Akihiko
Masaki Katsuyuki
Ushiro Yutaka
Antonelli Terry Stout & Kraus LLP
Bradley Paula
Harvey James R.
J.S.T. Mfg. Co. Ltd.
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