Communication card extension and adapter port

Details Communication card extension and adapter port Communication card extension and adapter port

1999-05-28

2001-01-16

Nguyen, Khiem (Department: 2839)

Electrical connectors

With insulation other than conductor sheath

Plural-contact coupling part

C439S946000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06174205

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to electrical connectors and, in particular, to connectors for electrically coupling communication equipment to electrical devices.
2. Description of Related Art
Electrical devices, such as personal computers (PCs), laptop computers, portable computers, notebook computers, palmtop computers, cellular telephones, personal information managers (PIMs) and personal data assistants (PDAs), are becoming increasingly dependent upon their ability to electrically communicate or share information with other electrical devices. To facilitate this electrical communication, a variety of different types of electrical couplers have been developed. In general, these electrical couplers include a plug and a corresponding jack. The jack typically includes an aperture or socket and when the plug is inserted into the jack, an electrical connection is established.
These known electrical couplers are frequently designed for use with devices such as cards that are made in accordance with standards established by the Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA). These cards, often referred to as PC cards, can be designed to perform a variety of different functions and a circuit board located within the card provides the necessary circuitry to perform the intended function. For example, the PC card may allow the device to receive and transmit information over the telephone lines. Alternatively, the PC card may allow the device to receive and transmit information over a network system such as a local area network (LAN).
PC cards have become increasingly used in portable computers because the cards are ready interchangeable and they have a small size. Additionally, PC cards are very popular because they allow a user to relatively quickly and easily link a computer to a modem and obtain information and data from a remote computer. Thus, users can transmit and receive data from various locations, such as at home, during business meetings, on vacation, while traveling, in satellite offices, etc.
In general, PC cards have a thin, elongated structure which is inserted into an opening or slot in the body of a computer. The PC cards have a connector at one end which is configured to be coupled to the computer and the other end of the card has a connector configured to be coupled to communication equipment such as a telephone line. Typically, a standard RJ-11 telephone jack is used to connect a telephone line to the PC card. These PC cards are typically designed to be readily connected or removed from the electrical device.
In greater detail, as shown in
FIG. 1
, a conventional adaptor assembly
10
connects a telephone line
12
to a portable computer
14
. In greater detail, the adaptor assembly
10
includes an electrical connector plug
16
that is inserted into an input/output (I/O) connector
18
of a PC card
20
and a line
22
that connects an external module
24
to the connector plug
16
. The external module
24
includes a housing
26
with an aperture
28
configured to receive an RJ-11 type telephone jack
30
connected to the telephone line
12
. Disposed within the PC card is a printed circuit board (PCB) that provides the necessary circuitry to perform the intended function of the PC card.
Disadvantageously, the adaptor assembly
10
is awkward to use because it requires the use of both the PC card
20
and the separate structure including the plug
16
, line
22
and module
24
(often referred to as the “dongle”). The dongle is required for connecting the adaptor assembly
10
to the telephone line
12
and if it is lost, misplaced or damaged by the user, the connection to the telephone line cannot be established. If the dongle is lost or damaged, this results in unnecessary delay and expense because a new dongle must be purchased or the damage dongle repaired. Additionally, because the dongle is separate from the PC card, it requires additional space and it is susceptible to being dislodged from the computer. Further, the dongle is aesthetically displeasing and it is subject to being damaged or broken because it is a separate component that is external to the computer.
Another conventional jack used for connecting a PC card to a telephone line is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,183,404 issued to Aldous, et al. and assigned to the same assignee as the present application. The Aldous patent, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, discloses a PC card
32
with a slidable thin plate
34
. The plate
34
includes an aperture
36
adapted to receive a telephone jack and a plurality of short contact pins are rigidly mounted to the thin plate. Each contact pin has a first end that is freely exposed within the aperture and an opposed second end mounted to the plate. A flexible wire ribbon has a first end that is soldered to the second end of the contact pins and an opposing second end that is soldered to contacts on the circuit board within the PC card. The thin plate
34
can selectively slide between an extended position and a retracted position. In the extended position, as shown in
FIG. 2
, the aperture
36
is exposed such that an RJ-11 telephone plug can be inserted. The plug pushes against the contact pins to establish electrical communication between the plug, contact pins, flexible wire ribbon and the PC card. When not in use, the thin plate
34
is retracted within the PC card
32
and the aperture
36
is not exposed.
As shown in
FIG. 3
, another known device used to attach a standard telephone jack to a PC card is disclosed in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/271,620, filed Mar. 17, 1999, listing Oliphant et al. as inventors and assigned to the same assignee as the present application. The Oliphant application discloses a PC card
40
that includes a physical/electrical modular connector
42
which is configured to physically and electrically couple a media plug, such as RJ-11 standard telephone jack, to the PC card. More specifically, the jack is mounted to a slide plate that is movable between an extended position wherein an aperture configured to receive a telephone jack is exposed and a retracted position wherein the slide plate is positioned within an opening in the PC card. The jack includes a number of pins which are configured to be electrically connected to a plug inserted into the opening. The pins are electrically connected to the PC card when the jack is in the extended position and the pins are insulated from electrical communication with the PC card when the jack is in the retracted position.
Another conventional device used to connect a PC card to a telephone line is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,811 issued to Homic. The Homic patent discloses an RJ-11 telephone socket that is physically and electrically connected to a PCMCIA modem card that it is recessed a predetermined distance “X” within the computer housing. The telephone socket and the modem card are mechanically and physically connected by a connector block. The connector block includes a body portion that is mounted flush to the exterior surface of the computer enclosure. The connector also includes an end cap that protrudes downwardly and outwardly from the body portion. The end cap has a thickness “X” that is the same as the predetermined distance “X” that the modem card is recessed into the computer so that the exterior surface of the modem card is flush with the outer surface of the computer housing. Disadvantageously, this device requires that the modem card be recessed a predetermined distance “X” inside the body of the computer and it allows only RJ-11 telephone jacks to be connected to the modem card. Thus, the modem assembly cannot be coupled to other communication systems. Additionally, because the RJ-11 telephone socket is integrally connected to the modem card and both the PC card and the connector block are recessed inside the computer, the socket is not readily replaceable, interchangeable or repairable.
Another conventional device is disclosed in U.S.

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