EP0061614A1 - Positioning device for an object - Google Patents

Abstract

The adjusting device is used to move an object from a starting position via a not exactly known or variable starting position by a certain amount into an end position, e.g. a circuit module (12; 108) for inserting the contact pins into a socket (136). For this purpose, a spring (40, 42; 100) is first tensioned between a stop (18, 20; 90) and a pressure piece (48; 106) until it comes into contact with the object and this is moved by an undefined adjustment path (a, b , c) reaches the initial position in which an opposing force outweighs the spring force when, for example, the contact pins reach the spring bushings. While maintaining the spring tension, the pressure piece (48; 106) is then moved into the end position by a defined amount, e.g. until the contact pins are inserted. Here, a wedge piece (64; 124), which is adjusted via a lever linkage, maintains the spring tension.

Description

The invention relates to an actuating device for the relative adjustment of an object from an undefined, that is to say not exactly defined or known, starting position by an amount predetermined in relation to a reference point into an end position. The invention is preferably intended for use in testing and in the assembly or disassembly of electronic circuit components, so-called modules. Such modules are provided with a large number of contact pins which are inserted into sockets with sockets of an appropriate arrangement.

However, other applications of the invention are also possible, such as. B. in brakes and clutches, in which a certain travel range is required by a not known or changing position over time due to wear, as well as in the valve actuation of internal combustion engines, when closing and sealing bottles, for example for containers of different sizes, and other applications where the initial position of a travel path is not uniform or not constant.

With regard to the plug connections of electrical components, such as circuit modules or boards, with the progressive increase in the number of switching elements on a module, for example a semiconductor chip in integrated circuit technology, and the corresponding increase in the number of electrical switching connections, the number of external connections, i.e. the Connector pins, always bigger. The pins are plugged into a base or a socket strip a printed circuit card is a difficult task because additional forces are required to insert a large number of pins into corresponding friction bushings, especially since the pins are not exactly the same length and the arrangement of the bushings relative to the pins is not completely identical. On the other hand, it is necessary with plug connections of this type that the often very small contact pins establish a safe and reliable electrical contact connection with the associated plug sockets. The production of such plug connections requires different forces during the insertion process, as is shown graphically in FIG. 1 of the accompanying drawings. First, as area A shows, only a very small force is to be exerted from a starting position when the pins approach until the contact with the contact surfaces begins. Now the required force rises sharply due to the spreading of the contact springs, as can be seen in region B in FIG. 1. If the spreading force for the pins, at least for most pins, is applied, the further insertion force is reduced and then remains constant, as the area C shows. The end of the maximum possible path is now reached at the beginning of area D.

1 makes it clear that it is desirable to end the insertion movement as soon as all the pins have reached the region C. However, in practice there are certain differences between the pins and between the sockets the course of the forces to be applied when inserting the pins is also different, and the curve shown in FIG. 1 therefore shows a typical course, but not the same for all pins applies moderately. It is important that a variable path (VAR. In Fig. 1) is to be covered from the - known - starting position to the first contact with the contacts, corresponding to area A, and that the aim is to insert the pen, starting at the beginning of the area B to lay about to the middle of area C.

Various ways have been described to achieve the desired insertion path of contact pins in applications of this type. For example, US Pat. No. 3,784,954 shows a solution in which a circuit module or a printed circuit card has bolt-like elements which have a precise position relative to the pin ends, and for inserting or removing the modules, actuating arms which are pivotally mounted on the frame are also included the actuating cams interacting with the bolt elements. In other versions, precisely positioned pin elements are attached to the module, which interact with actuating pins on an assigned rocker arm. However, such measures cause higher module costs and also undesirably limit the space on the substrate that is available for the circuit elements and the contact pins. On the other hand, various arrangements are known to reduce the counterforce effective when inserting the pins into the sockets, such as. B. in IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin, Vol. 10, No. 11, page 1656 and Vol. 12, No. 8, pages 1210/11. However, these devices do not concern the control of the insertion path of the contact pins.

The invention has for its object to provide a device with which without special requirements for the dimensional accuracy of the workpiece and its individual parts such as B. the pins of modules of the type provided, a travel of a defined length can be achieved without the starting position being known or having to be defined. In the present context, the "starting position" is the position from which the actuating movement begins, and the "starting position" is the position whose position is not exactly known or can vary from case to case and at which the desired movement of predetermined length begins.

The actuating device according to the invention is characterized by a simple structure, requires no special elements on the object to be adjusted and furthermore does not make any particular demands on its dimensional accuracy. A preferred application of the invention is seen in the insertion of circuit modules with a large number of contact pins into corresponding sockets of a base or a socket strip.

• Fig. 1 ein Diagramm zur Darstellung des Verlaufs der Kraft P über den Verstellweg von Steckerstiften beim Einschieben in die zugeordneten Buchsen,
• Fign. 2A, 2B Draufsichten auf eine Stellvorrichtung und 2C zur Verstellung eines Schaltungsmoduls zum Einschieben der Kontaktstifte in Buchsen, in drei aufeinanderfolgenden Betätigungsphasen,
• Fig. 3 eine Seitenansicht einer Stellvorrichtung ähnlicher Funktion-wie nach den Fign. 2A bis 2C, jedoch in einer Ausbildung für quadratische Schaltungsmoduln zum Einschieben in und Herausziehen aus dem zugehörigen Buchsensokkel,
• Fig. 4 eine vereinfachte Draufsicht in kleinerem Maßstab auf eine Vorrichtung in der Ausbildung nach Fig. 3 und
• Fig. 5 eine vergrößerte, teilweise geschnittene Teilansicht in der Ebene 5-5 der Fig. 4.

Such an application is described below with reference to the drawings in two exemplary embodiments. Show it:

• 1 is a diagram showing the course of the force P over the adjustment path of plug pins when inserted into the assigned sockets,
• Fig. 2A, 2B top views of an actuating device and 2C for adjusting a circuit module for inserting the contact pins into sockets, in three successive operating phases,
• 3 shows a side view of an actuating device having a similar function — as in FIGS. 2A to 2C, but in an embodiment for square circuit modules for insertion into and removal from the associated socket socket,
• Fig. 4 is a simplified plan view on a smaller scale of a device in the embodiment of Fig. 3 and
• 5 is an enlarged, partially sectioned partial view in the plane 5-5 of FIG. 4th

The in Figs. 2A, 2B and 2C is used for the horizontal insertion of a circuit module 12 equipped with a plurality of pins (not shown), hereinafter referred to as a module, into a corresponding socket socket (not shown). The module 12 has a rear edge surface 14, against which a corresponding force is exerted by the adjusting device 10 for inserting the pins.

The actuating device 10 contains a base plate 16 made of rigid material, such as. B. metal. On the base plate 16, a pair of rectangular contact angles 18, 20 with horizontal contact surfaces 22, 24 and vertical contact surfaces 26 and 28 are attached. Furthermore, on the base plate 16 there are slidably mounted support plates 30, 32 - which can also be designed as a single plate - which bear against the contact angles 18, 20 in the starting position shown in FIG. 2A. The support plate 32 is inclined Edge surface 34, the purpose of which will be explained later. The support plates 30, 32 are provided in their upper regions with bores 36, 38 designed as a sack lock, which receive the lower ends of coil springs 40, 42. The upper ends of these springs protrude into correspondingly aligned bores 44, 46, which are likewise designed as blind holes, in a pressure piece 48 which is likewise displaceably mounted on the base plate 16. The pressure piece 48 has the shape of a T with a yoke part 50 with a front edge surface 52 for contacting the module 12. A shaft part 54 protrudes downward from the yoke part 50 and contains parallel side surfaces 56, 58 which bear on the adjacent edges of the support plates 30, 32 with only a slight tolerance. A transverse arm 60 is formed on the lower end of the shaft part 54, the upper surface 62 of which has a right angle to the vertical edge surface 68 of the shaft part 54.

As the fig. 2A, 2B and 2C, the inclined edge surface 34 of the support plate 32, the side surface 58 of the shaft part 54 and the upper surface 62 of the arm 60 form a triangular chamber, within which a wedge piece 64 acting as a cam element lies movably. Wedge piece 64 includes an inclined edge surface 66 to cooperate with inclined edge surface 34 of support plate 32, a vertical edge surface 68 to cooperate with side surface 58 of shaft portion 54, and a horizontal edge surface 70 which cooperates with top surface 62 of arm 60. A pin 72 is fastened on the wedge piece 64, on which an actuating lever 76 is rotatably and longitudinally guided by means of an elongated hole 74. A bolt 78 on the contact bracket 20 or another part fixed with respect to the base plate 16 forms the fulcrum for the actuator supply lever 76. The opposite, outer end 80 of the actuating lever 76 is pivotable between stop pins 82 and 84, the contact position on the stop pin 82 corresponding to the starting position of the actuating device 10, in which the pins of the module 12 are separated from the socket, while the stop pin 84 the Position of the actuating lever 76 defined with inserted contact pins. The in Figs. 2A, 2B and 2C, stop pins 82 and 84, shown schematically, can also be designed as locking elements for the actuating lever 76.

The operation of the device described is explained below. Before the module 12 is inserted adjacent to the front edge surface 52 of the yoke part 50, the actuating lever 76 is actuated counterclockwise into its position on the stop pin 82, as a result of which the wedge piece 64 reaches the position shown in FIG. 2A. In this position, referred to as the starting position of the elements involved, the pressure piece 48 is in its lower position shown in FIG. 2A, the helical springs 40, 42 being compressed and the support plates 30, 32 on the horizontal contact surfaces 22, 24 of the contact angles 18 and 20 concerns. Now the module 12 is inserted adjacent to the edge surface 52 in such a way that its contact pins face the associated sockets (in FIG. 2A above, not shown). In this starting position according to FIG. 2A there is a gap of the width a between the edge surface 14 of the module 12 and the front edge surface 52 of the pressure piece 48, the contact pins are without contact with respect to the sockets (0 = open).

To insert the pins of the module 12 into the associated socket socket, the actuating lever 76 is pivoted away from the stop pin 82, i.e. clockwise, whereby the wedge piece 64 is moved upward and consequently the pressure piece 48 under the action of the coil springs 40, 42 for contact with the module 12 arrives so that the gap a, the size of which is not known, is now closed. The contact is still open = O. The module 12 is now moved further towards the socket base until the pins come into contact with the contact springs of the sockets, corresponding to the beginning of area B according to FIG. 1, as shown in FIG. 2B . The coil springs 40, 42 are dimensioned with respect to their spring characteristics so that their force is sufficient, the pressure piece 48 and - after the edge surface 52 has been in contact with the edge surface 14 of the module 12 - the module 12 through the entire area A according to FIG to the beginning of area B, i.e. until it comes into contact with the contact surfaces of the bushing springs. However, the force of the coil springs 40, 42 is not sufficient to overcome the resistance that the contact springs exert on the pins. As a result, the pressure piece 48 and the module 12 stop their movement at the end of the area A after they have covered the path from the starting position (beginning of area A) to the starting position (end of area A / beginning of area B) which is not known in terms of size . The support plates 30, 32 remain in contact with the contact angles 18, 20 during this adjustment process (FIG. 2B).

In the course of the further pivoting movement of the actuating lever 76, the wedge piece 64 comes to rest against the inclined edge surface 34 of the support plate 32 and the side surface 58 of the shaft part 54 (FIG. 2C). As a result The narrow tolerance between the side surfaces 56, 57, 58 and 59 of the support plates 30, 32 and vertical contact surfaces 26, 28 of the contact angles 18, 20 form the support plates 30, 32 and the shaft part 54 of the pressure piece 48 and the wedge piece 64 under this movement the action of the latter, a unit of movement with a self-locking effect, and the point in the course of the pivoting movement of the actuating lever 26, at which this effect occurs, is the same for each of the successive actuating movements due to the geometry of the wedge piece 64 and the edge surfaces 34 and 58. When the beginning of area B is reached, the wedge piece 64 thus locks the pressure piece 48 and the support plates 30, 32, as a result of which the existing tension of the coil springs 40, 42 is maintained. The actuating lever 76 is now pivoted the rest of the way to the stop pin 84, and the module 12 moves from the not exactly defined starting position by a defined distance into its end position determined by the stop pin 84, in which the contact pins are inserted into the associated socket bases (G = Contacts closed).

In the embodiment according to FIGS. 3 to 5, which has essentially the same functionality as the previously described example, measures for pulling the contact pins out of the socket are also included. A horizontal groove 88 with a vertical stop surface 90 at one end and a flat base surface 92 is provided in a base plate 86. A support block 94 arranged upright therein is cut out on one side in such a way that it forms a chamber which is delimited by an inclined edge surface 96. The lower end of the support block 94 has a bore 98 designed as a blind hole for receiving one End of a coil spring 100 provided. The other end of the coil spring 100 is located in a similarly blind hole 102 in a projection 104 formed from the frame 106 downward. As FIG. 4 shows, the frame 106 frames the module 108 (shown in broken lines) on all four outer surfaces, but is a partial framing of the module 108 is also conceivable.

The rear edge surface 110 of the module 108 is adjacent to the rear surface 112 of the frame 106 (FIG. 4), whereby the front edge surface 114 of the module 108, from which the contact pins protrude downward into the plane of the drawing, is adjacent to the front edge surface 118 of the frame 106 is arranged. An upwardly projecting stop block 120 on the frame 106 includes a stop surface 122 that defines the chamber that is formed in the support block 94 and is defined by the inclined edge surface 96. Arranged within this chamber is a wedge piece 124, to which the arm 129 of an actuating lever 130 is articulated by means of a pin 126 and an elongated hole 128, the side parts 131 of which, as shown in FIG. 4, are arranged on both sides of the frame 106. The actuating lever 130 is pivotally mounted on a bolt 132 for movement between the starting position and the end position defined by a stop 134.

The function of the embodiment according to FIGS. 3 to 5 is basically the same as that of the embodiment according to FIG. 2. The actuating lever 130 is first pivoted counterclockwise, so that the wedge piece 124 on the stop surface 122 and the support block 94 against the vertical stop surface 90 rest, whereby the spring 100 is compressed. The module 108 is now inserted into the frame 106 in such a way that its contact pins are aligned downward with the associated socket base 136 (FIG. 3). If the actuating lever 130 is now pivoted clockwise, the spring 100 causes an adjustment movement of the surface 112 by the adjustment path b (FIG. 4), the size of which is not known, to the rear edge surface 110 of the module 108 and then moves the frame 106 together with the module 108 by the amount c to the end of the area A in FIG. 1, where the frame and module reach the - not known - starting position, in which the contact pins come into contact with the contact springs. To prevent upward movement of the module 108 during the engagement of the pins in the contact springs, a cam surface 113 is provided along the upper edge of the edge surface 112. In the course of the further pivoting movement of the actuating lever 130, the inclined surface of the wedge piece 124 comes to bear against the inclined edge surface 96 of the support block 94, the wedge piece 124 reaching a self-locking position between this and the upper surface of the frame 106, which position is independent of the position during each adjustment process The position and size of the respective module 108 takes effect at exactly the same position. Upon further pivoting movement of the actuating lever 130 by a fixed amount of travel up to the end position determined by the stop 134 (FIG. 3), the wedge piece 124, the support block 94 and the frame 106 together lead the insertion movement for the pins of the module 108 into the corresponding socket base 136 out. In order to avoid an upward movement of the module 108 here, too, the base plate 86 is provided with a bevelled edge 138 which projects beyond the leading edge of the module 108, as shown in FIG. 5.

To release the module 108 from the socket base 136, the actuating lever 130 is pivoted in the opposite direction, namely counterclockwise, the front surface 118 coming into contact with the front edge surface 114 of the module 108 such that the pins are pulled out of the sockets will. 4, the frame 106 cooperates on both sides with identical support blocks 94, 96 and wedge pieces 124.

Claims (7)

1. Adjusting device for the relative adjustment of an object from an undefined starting position by an amount predetermined in relation to a reference point, characterized by. a base plate (16; 86) with a reference stop element (18, 20; 90), a pressure piece (48; 106) which is movable on the base plate relative to the reference stop element, a support plate (30, 32; 94) and a wedge piece (64; 124) with complementary oblique edge surfaces (34, 66) which are movably embedded between the reference stop element and the pressure piece, a spring element (40, 42; 100) located between the pressure piece (48; 106) and the support plate (s) (30, 32; 94), and an actuating element (76; 130) attached to the wedge piece (64; 124) for the adjustment thereof, wherein in the starting position of the actuating element (76; 130) and the wedge piece (64; 124) the wedge piece bears against the pressure piece (30, 32; 106) and the support plate (30, 32; 94) while tensioning the spring element (40, 42; 100) against the reference stop element (18, 20; 90), and wherein during a first movement section of the actuating element (76; 130) and the wedge piece (64; 124), the wedge piece releases a first adjustment path (only) of the pressure piece (48; 106) under the action of the spring element (40, 42; 100) into the initial position and during a second movement section of the actuating element (76; 130) and the wedge piece (64; 124), the wedge piece, the support plate (30, 32; 94) and the pressure piece (48; 106) as a unit, a second adjustment path relative to the reference stop element (18, 20; 90) of defined length to the end position .. 2. Actuator according to claim 1,
characterized,
that two reference stop elements (18, 20; 90), support plates (30, 32; 94) and spring elements (40, 42; 100) are arranged. 3. Adjusting device according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in
that the pressure piece (48) is T-shaped, such that the reference stop elements (18, 20), the support plates (30, 32) and the spring elements (40, 42) are arranged on both sides of the shaft part (54) of the pressure piece (48) are. 4. Adjusting device according to claims 1 to 3, characterized in
that the reference stops (18, 20) are angular and arranged so that their system surfaces (22, 26, 24, 28) for the support plates (30, 32) are effective as a reference line and movement guide. 5. Adjusting device according to claims 1 to 4, characterized in
that the actuating element is designed as a pivotable actuating lever (76; 130) and is stationary on the base plate (16; 86) or one of the reference stop elements (20). 6. Adjusting device according to claims 1 to 5, characterized in
that the actuating lever (76; 130) is assigned stop elements (82, 84; 134) which determine its starting and end position. 7. Actuating device according to claims 1 to 6, characterized by the application for electronic circuit modules for inserting the plug pins of the module (12; 108) into the associated contact sockets of a socket base (136), or vice versa.

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