Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
397
TITLE
ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR
FOR FLEXIBLE CIRCUIT BOARDS
s
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This device relates to an i~proYed
electrical connector for the purpose of connecting
lead wives such as those of printed wiring eircuit
boards in a 6imple way.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many connector for printed wiring circuit
boards have been developed in recent years and there
haze been disclosed Japanese patent and utility
yodel cegi6tration applicationB 6uC~ as Patent Early
Di6clo~ure No. 55~1980]-69979. Utility Model Dis-
closure No. 55tl980~-108689, Patene Early Di6closure
No. 56[19811-91384, Patent Public Disclosure No.
56tl981]-1753 and Utility Model Di6closure No.
58tl9B3]-63~0.
Representative examples of these devices
will be descLibed subsequently in detail by reference
to the figure. They are long and narrow, box-6haped
frame device6 formed of an electrical in6ulating
material and consi6ting ox an as6emblage ox a part
having numerou6 insertion chamber6 arranged in a row
in the direction of the length at equal intervals
from each other and a pressure insertion component
jade of the 6ame electrical insulating material and
which has a dovetailing projection arranqed in a
comb-~haped pattern that fit into each insertion
chamber. A resilient connecting device that holds
the connecting lead wires is installed in each
EL-7003 35 insertion chamber of the fra~e-shaped component. The
.
3~7
pressure insertion component have dovetailing
projections that correspond to the aforementioned
in6ertion chamber. When they are ;n6erted-into the
in6ertion chambers, they have a part what affixes the
~e~ilient connecting device. and a6 a result of
bringing the two component6 toqether, multiple
connecting lead wire6 can be easily connected at one
time.
A type that ha been in wide ufie ~06t
recently it one whereby the connecting lead wile are
printed at equal interval fcom each other in
parallel patterns on flexible printed wiring circuit
board6, with the circuit boards being in6erted
between the aforementioned ~rame-~haped component and
ere~sure in6ertion component Jo that the leacl wire6
become connected.
The dovetailing projections of the prefigure
in6ertion component Jay be formed independently or
they Jay be formed a a ridge Pacing the backplate.
However, in the type of apparatus
represented, for example, in Japane6e Utility yodel
Disclo6ure 58[1~83]-63B0, the dovetailing projec~ion6
of the pre66ure in6ertion component are all of equal
length and their front edges are parallel to the top
6urface of the frame-~haped component. When a
pre66ure insertion component of this shape is
inverted into the frame-6haped component, a
discrepancy occur6 in the adjustment between the
dovetailing projection and the insertion chamberfi.
In addition, because the contact between the
dovetailing projections and the ~came-6haped
component via the connecting lead wire begins
simultaneously, an abrupt increa6e in the pre66ure
load occur6 80 ehat operational difficulties ari6e.
3~7
SUMMARY OP THE INVENTION
This device is intended to eliminate the
drawbacks of existing technologies. By means of this
device, an electrical connector is proYided for the
pureose of connecting lead wire. The connector
consi6ts of a flat part which it a long and narrow,
frame-shaped component formed of an electrical
insulating material and which has insertion chamber6,
set in a row in the direction of the length, a equal
intervals prom each other. A resilient component
which is formed of a conductive cpring material it
inserted into and affixed in each insertion chamber.
The ~e~ilient component hold the connecting lead
wires. A pressure insertion component formed of an
electeical insulating material and which has
dovetailing pro3ections that fit into the insertion
chambers of the aforementioned frame-shaped component
in eositions ~orrefiponding to said insertion chambers
alto holds the connecting lead wire by affixing the
resilient connecting component which holds the
CQnneCting lead wice. This connector is
characterized by the fact that the front edges of the
t;ps of the dovetailing projection of the
aforementioned pres6ure in6ertion component do not
for 6traight lines parallel to the front edge6 of
the openings of the insertion chamber, as a ~e6ult
of which, sudden increase in pre66ure load does not
occur when insertion i6 begun at the time the
pressure insertion component it inserted into the
eame-shaped component 60 that insertion can be
accomplished smoothlyO
Within the broad concept of this device, the
front edges of the dovetailing projection6 need not
form straight lines that are parallel to the front
edges of the opening of the insertion chamber6.
~2~3~
That i6, all of the dovetailing projection may be at
least of two different lengths. However, ideal modes
of execution include one in which the dovetailing
proiections at the two end6 are the longest and one
in which the dovetailing projection6 become
~ucce6~ively shorter. In connector6 fox the purpose
of connecting extremely large number6 of connecting
lead wire&, the row can con~i~t of repeated cycles of
dovetailing projection6 that become 6ucce6sively
6horter fcom the longest to the 6hor~est. In this
ca6e, the dovetailing projections at the two end6 of
the pre~ure insertion component 6hould be the
longe6t.
The lead wire connector of this type can be
applied to ca6e6 in which the dovetailing projections
have a backpl~te and to ace in which they do not.
It can be applied to ca6es in which multiple
connecting lead wire6 are wired by printing to
circuit boards and to ace in which they are held by
a 6uitable 6upport device.
BRIEF EXPLANATION Ox THE DRAWINGS
In the drawing, Figure 1 i8 a perspective
view showing the shape of a typical connecting lead
wire connector ba6ed on conuentional technology and
which wa6 the forerunner of this device.
Figure 2 i6 a cro66-6ection showing the mode
of connecting printed wiring connecting lead wire by
the connector shown in figure 1.
Figure 3 i8 a perspectiva view 6howing the
shape of the pre~6ure in6ertion component of the
connecting lead wire eonnector of this device.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Figure 1 6how6 an existing connector of the
type to which this device belon~6. The connector
con6i~t~ of the frame-shaped component 1 and the
3L2~13~1~
s
pre66ure insertion component 6, both of which are
jade of insulating materials. Multiple--.in6ertion
chamber6 2, for the purpose of inverting the
re~ilie~t connecting component (the component 9 6hown
S in figure 2~ are set at equal interval from each
other, being separated by the pareition~ pa and 4b
which are formed a6 ridge from the long walls 3a and
3b. The groove 5 or the purpose of receiving the
printed wiring circuit board i6 provided along the
direction of the length of the ~rame-6haped component
1 between the partitions 4a and 4b. The dovetailing
projections 8. which fit into the in6ertion chambers
2 of the frame-6haped component 1. are set like the
teeth of a comb in the pre~6ure insertion component
6. In the mode 6hown in the figure, the dovetailing
pro3ections 8 are wormed into a single entity with
the backplate (hereafter called the working plate~7
a a ridge. A gap i6 provided in the frame-haped
~o~ponent 1 between the lonq wall 3a and the
partition 4a for the purpo6e of inverting the working
plate.
The flexible pla6tic insertion 6top devices
12 are installed at both ends of the pressure
in6ertion component 6 and the stop frame devices 11
that receive and 6top the aforementioned plastic
insertion top devices 12 are in6talled on both ends
of the frame-~haped component 1.
Figure 2 i6 a crow ection 6howing a state
in which termination of connecting lead wire has
been achieved by placing the printed wiring circuit
lead wire 13 between the aforementioned frame
component and the pres6ure in6ertion component. The
resilient connecting component 9, which was mentioned
previou61y, it a fine metal band bent into an S
6hape. A fir6t end i8 extended in a ~traighe line Jo
~139~
a to come into resilient contact with the convexly
curved pOltiOn 9a of the I. The second end alto ha
a shape that is extended parallel Jo said straight
line. The second end pierces the bottom of each
S insertion chamber 2 of the frame-~haped component 1
and lead to the outside. The initial convexly
curved portion 9a, which it continuous with thi6
6econd end, it inverted and fixed so that it faces
the inneL wide of the frame-sAaped component 1.
When the printed wiring lead wire 13 i6
connected with this type of connector, the lead wires
aye printed in parallel and ae equal inter~al~ on the
printed circuit board. It qoes without 6aying that
the in6ertion chambers 2 ox the frame-~haped
component 1 are jet at interval congruent with those
of the pcinted wiving lead wirefi.
ln order to connect the printed wiring lead
wire 13 with a connector 6uch as described above, the
printed wiring board (which 6hould be lexible) 13 i8
inserted Jo that the wiring come6 into contact with
the convexly curved portion ga of the ~e~ilient
connecting component 9. Following that, the pre~6ure
in6ertio~ component 6 is in6er~ed 50 that the
dovetailing projections 8 with lead in edgeR 14 fit
into the in6ertion chambers. Since the thicknes~e~
ox the dovetailing projection6 are jet Jo a6 to be
e66entially equal to the thickne~es of the
paLtition~ 4a of the frame-fihaped component 1, the
doveeailing p ojection~ compresses the extended
porLion of the first end of the resilient connecting
component into which the printed wiring circuit board
is in6~rted from the bask. In order to complete the
contact between the lead wire and the elastic
connecting component, the small projection 9b. which
~5 face6 the convexly curved portion, i6 jet in the
Z~3~
re~ilien~ connecting component 9 at the point at
which the extended portion of the first end comes
into contact with the convexly curve,d portion that is
continuous wit the second end. Further the 6mall
projection 9c is jet on the oppo6ite 6ide near the
tip, i.e., Pacing the dovetailing ~roject;on.
Con6equently, contact between and fixing of the lead
wise and the resilient connecting component are
completely achieved by inserting the pre6sure
in~eetion component into the frame-6haped component.
However, a wa6 indicated previously, when
connection is performed u6ing thi6 apparatus, contact
between all of the dovetailing projection6 and (the
6mall projection6 9c of) the elastic connecting
components begins at the tame time, the force
required for insertion increa6e~ abruptly, with
difficulty in operation occurring. when the working
plate (backplate 7) i6 not pre6ent, a discrepancy
occur6 in the adjustment between the dovetailing
projection6 and the in6ertion chambers at the time of
insertion. Thi6 device i8 one in which the
aforementioned drawback of the conventional
technology i8 eli~ina~ed.
The di6tinctive characteristic of this
device i6 the shape of the pressure insertion
projection6. In other re~pect6, it is es6entially
the tame as the conventional technology described in
the foregoinq text. Figure 3 it a per6pective view
6howing the 6hape of a pressure insertion component
of an apparatu6 thaw i8 a suitable mode of execution
of thi6 device. Thi6 pre sure insertion component i8
e~eneially identical in 6hape to that explained by
Leference to Figure 2. However, the two end
projections Ba end Bb of the dovetailing projections
are made a the longest, with the projections
~Z~L~ 397
- becoming shorter from projection 8c. which is next Jo
8b.
Thy frame-~haped component corr2~ponding to
it i6 identical to that shown in Figuce 1. By
providing a structure of this kind, the long
dovetailing projections 8a and 8b with the lead in
14a a the two end6 function as guides when the
pre6sure insertion component i6 inserted into the
frame-~haeed component. Insertion begin in 6equence
from 8c, with overall insertion proceeding extremely
6moothly. Thu6, occurrence of twitting due to high
inserti.on pressure forces and damage to the
components as a result of twisting are prevented.
The foreqoing concrete example ifi a 6uitable
mode of execution However, this device i6 not
limited to this mode, being limited only as described
in the claims.
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