Printed circuit board assembly

Details Printed circuit board assembly Printed circuit board assembly

2000-02-15

2001-11-13

Gaffin, Jeffrey (Department: 2841)

Electricity: electrical systems and devices

Housing or mounting assemblies with diverse electrical...

For electronic systems and devices

C361S736000, C361S737000, C361S790000, C361S796000, C361S804000, C439S074000, C257S723000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06317330

ABSTRACT:

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
The present application is related to co-pending application Ser. No. 09/504,304, entitled “A Removable Visual Indication Structure For a Printed Circuit Board” filed on the same day and assigned to the same Assignee as the present application.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to computer components and specifically to an improved technique to assemble and stack printed circuit boards.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Computer systems continually require more functionality, more memory and faster operational speeds, and in many cases they need it in smaller physical packages. Consequently to meet those requirements the packaging density of the Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) of those computer systems increases accordingly. Additionally, there are many standard industry specifications that place additional dimensional constraints on the size of the PCBs as well as greatly increase tolerance to shock and vibration.
FIG. 1
shows a conventional PCB assembly
10
comprising a cover plate
12
and a bottom plate
16
. The PCB
14
is mounted in a chassis in between the cover plate
12
and the bottom plate
16
.
While this type of conventional configuration is within standard industry requirements, it is not desirable for four reasons. First, it does not maximize the space available on the printed circuit board. The PCB is designed to fit inside the chassis with an air-gap separating the PCB and chassis, thus the usable area of the PCB is reduced. Second, the traditional design does not provide adequate support for PCBs which are subjected to high levels of shock and vibration. This lack of support contributes to an unstable PCB assembly. Third, the lack of adequate support limits the number of PCBs which can be stacked based on their relative instability. Fourth, it does not provide precise separation and alignment between the PCBs when the PCBs are joined together with a stacking data connector. This is of a significant concern since the mechanical stability of the assembly is crucial to maintaining electrical integrity of the stacking data connector.
Accordingly, what is needed is an assembly that deals with each of these concerns. The present invention addresses these needs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An improved printed circuit board assembly is disclosed. The printed circuit board assembly comprises a first plate, a second plate attachably coupled to the first plate, and at least one printed circuit board sandwiched between the first plate and the second plate, the at least one printed circuit board extending over the entire area of the first and second plate.
By utilizing an assembly in accordance with the present invention, the available space on each of the plurality of printed circuit boards is maximized. By maximizing the available space, more electronic circuitry can be incorporated onto the board. Furthermore, the exterior spacer design together with interior spacer elements firmly secures each printed circuit board while maintaining a constant separation between each board. This facilitates the ability to stack more printed circuit boards, while maintaining the mechanical alignment and structural rigidity necessary for the stacking data connectors to function properly in the event the assembly is subjected to a sudden shock or vibration.


REFERENCES:
patent: 4226491 (1980-10-01), Kazama et al.
patent: 4695872 (1987-09-01), Chatterjee
patent: 4733461 (1988-03-01), Nakano
patent: 5107404 (1992-04-01), Tam
patent: 5373104 (1994-12-01), Brauer
patent: 5499164 (1996-03-01), Hill-Lindsay et al.
patent: 5583749 (1996-12-01), Tredennick et al.
patent: 5644277 (1997-07-01), Gulick et al.
patent: 5856915 (1999-01-01), Weinberg
patent: 5864463 (1999-01-01), Tsukada et al.

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