Electrical connectors – With coupling movement-actuating means or retaining means in... – For dual inline package
Reexamination Certificate
2003-05-21
2004-02-17
Ta, Tho D. (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
With coupling movement-actuating means or retaining means in...
For dual inline package
C439S073000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06692279
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to land grid array (LGA) connector assemblyies, and particularly to an LGA connector assembly adapted for receiving an LGA central processing unit (CPU) therein and electrically connecting the CPU with a printed circuit board (PCB).
2. Description of the Prior Art
Referring to
FIGS. 3 and 4
, a conventional LGA connector assembly
9
is adapted for electrically connecting an LGA CPU (not shown) having a multiplicity of metallic contact pads with a PCB (not shown). The LGA connector assembly
9
comprises an insulative base
91
receiving a plurality of electrical contacts
94
, and a lever
92
and a metal clip
93
pivotally mounted to two opposite ends of the base
91
respectively.
The lever
92
comprises a pair of locating portions
921
, an offset securing portion
922
between the locating portions
921
, a medial portion
923
extending perpendicularly from an end of one of the locating portions
921
, and a handle portion
924
extending perpendicularly from a free end of the medial portion
923
. The clip
93
comprises a lip
931
at a free end thereof, and a pair of mounting portions
932
extending arcuately from an opposite end thereof.
The base
91
is substantially rectangular. The base
91
defines a rectangular cavity
911
in a middle thereof, and has two opposite sidewalls
915
. A portion of the base
91
under the cavity
911
defines a plurality of passageways
916
, the passageways
916
receiving a corresponding number of the contacts
94
therein. A pair of slots
912
is defined in one end of the base
91
. The mounting portions
932
of the metal clip
93
are received in the slots
912
to pivotably mount the clip
93
to the base
91
. A trapezoidal recess
913
is defined in an opposite end of the base
91
, and a chamber
914
is defined in said opposite end of the base
91
in communication with the recess
913
. The locating portions
921
of the lever
92
are pivotably received in the chamber
914
, and the securing portion
922
of the lever
92
is received in the recess
913
. An ear
917
is formed on one of the sidewalls
915
of the base
91
.
In use, the base
91
is mounted to and electrically connected with the PCB. The metal clip
93
and the medial portion
923
of the lever
92
are oriented perpendicular to the base
91
, with the securing portion
922
disposed above the locating portions
921
. The CPU is mounted in the cavity
911
, and the metallic contact pads of the CPU are loosely attached on the corresponding contacts
94
of the base
91
. Then the metal clip
93
is rotated down to loosely contact the CPU. The handle portion
924
of the lever
92
is rotated downwardly, thus rotating the medial portion
923
downwardly. When the securing portion
922
reaches the lip
931
of the clip
93
, it engages the lip
931
and drives the lip
931
downwardly. When the medial portion
923
reaches a top of the ear
917
of the base
91
, the handle portion
924
is rotated further downwardly until the medial portion
923
is engaged under the ear
917
. The ear
917
thus holds the medial portion
133
at a horizontal position. In this position, the securing portion
922
of the lever
92
tightly presses on the lip
931
, which in turn tightly presses the metallic contact pads of the CPU on the contacts
64
. The LGA connector assembly
9
thus electrically connects the CPU with the PCB.
Conversely, when the handle portion
924
of the lever
92
is rotated upwardly from the horizontal position, the medial portion
923
is released from the ear
917
of the base
91
. The handle portion
924
is continued to be rotated upwardly, and the securing portion
922
of the lever
92
releases from the lip
931
of the clip
93
. When the medial portion
923
has reached the position perpendicular to the base
91
, the clip
93
can be rotated up to the perpendicular position, and the CPU can be taken out from the cavity
911
of the base
91
.
At present, with the prevailing trend toward miniaturization of computers, the sizes of LGA connector assemblies used in computers are steadily becoming smaller. In contrast, the number of contacts used in LGA connectors is increasing to meet the need for more signal transmission. These considerations bear on the conventional LGA connector assembly
9
as follows. During the rotation of the lever
92
to force the metallic contact pads of the CPU on the contacts
94
of the base
91
, the metal clip
93
and the lever
92
exert forces on the base
91
. The forces acting on portions of the base
91
near the slots
912
and at the chamber
914
are greater than those acting on other portions of the base
91
. Therefore the base
91
is liable to deform and warp. When deformation or warpage occurs, some contacts
94
cannot firmly contact the metallic contact pads of the CPU, which disrupts the electrical connection between the CPU and the PCB.
In addition, during the above-described operations, the medial portion
923
of the lever
92
exerts force upon the ear
917
of the base
91
. The ear
917
is relatively thin, and is typically made of insulative material such as plastic. Thus, the ear
917
is liable to be broken when the lever
92
is operated repeatedly over time. When the ear
917
is broken, the lever
92
cannot be retained at the horizontal position. Instead, the lever
92
accidentally rotates up from the horizontal position, leaving the metallic contact pads of the CPU only loosely engaged with the contacts
94
. This easily leads to disruption of the electrical connection between the CPU and the PCB.
In view of the above, a new LGA connector assembly that overcomes the above-mentioned disadvantages is desired.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a land grid array (LGA) connector assembly for electrically connecting an electronic package such as an LGA central processing unit (CPU) with a circuit substrate such as a printed circuit board (PCB), wherein the LGA connector assembly has a base that resists deformation and warpage.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an LGA connector assembly which has a lever and an ear for reliably retaining the lever, the ear being configured to resist breakage even after repeated operation of the lever.
To achieve the above-mentioned objects, an LGA connector assembly in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises an insulative rectangular base receiving a multiplicity of electrical contacts, a metal reinforcement covering the base, a lever and a metal clip. The base defines a cavity in a middle thereof, and a plurality of holes near the cavity. The clip is mounted to one end of the base. The lever comprise a pair of locating portions received in an opposite end of the base, an offset securing portion between the locating portions engaging the clip, and a medial portion extending perpendicularly from an end of one of the locating portion. The reinforcement comprises a top portion, and two opposite sidewalls depending perpendicularly from the top portion. An ear is formed at one of the sidewalls for orienting the medial portion of the lever. Eight projecting members depend perpendicularly from the top portion. Each projecting member is fittingly received in the corresponding hole of the base. Thus, during rotating the lever to tightly attach a CPU in the cavity of the LGA connector assembly or release the CPU from the contacts, the base and the ear are enough hard to withstand forces from the clip and the lever.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
REFERENCES:
patent: 5344334 (1994-09-01), Laub et al.
patent: 5482471 (1996-01-01), Mori et al.
patent: 5647756 (1997-07-01), Twigg et al.
Chung Wei Te
Hon Hai - Precision Ind. Co., Ltd.
Ta Tho D.
LandOfFree
Land grid array connector assembly having reinforcement with... does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Land grid array connector assembly having reinforcement with..., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Land grid array connector assembly having reinforcement with... will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3343874