GB2323722A

GB2323722A - Electronics box coaxial connection assembly

Info

Publication number: GB2323722A
Application number: GB9801425A
Authority: GB
Inventors: I Gonzalvez Roger Navas; Olle Antoni Puell
Original assignee: Whitaker LLC
Current assignee: Whitaker LLC
Priority date: 1997-01-23
Filing date: 1998-01-22
Publication date: 1998-09-30
Anticipated expiration: 2018-01-22
Also published as: ES1040033Y; ITTO980031A1; GB2323722B; ES1040033U; DE29800952U1; GB9801425D0

Abstract

An electronics module coaxial connection assembly comprises a plurality of coaxial connectors (10) mounted in a die cast housing (4) that receives printed circuit boards (PCBs) (6,8) therein. The PCBs are interconnected and mounted within the housing (4) by means of compliant pins (50,51) that allow assembly in the axial direction (A). Central axes of input and output connectors are positioned at 45 degrees to those of the coaxial connectors (10) such that signal supply cables can be fed in orthogonal directions without requiring termination of a right angled connector. Cost-effective assembly and installation are thus provided.

Description

2323722 ELECTRONICS BOX COAXIAL CONNECTION ASSMBLY This invention relates

to a connection assembly of an electronics box, the box having coaxial connectors.

In applications such as satellite data reception systems, parabolic antennas capture and concentrate signals which are distributed to a plurality of receivers, for example to different apartments in a building. The signals received by the antenna are typically processed by an electronics module that separates the incoming signal into a plurality of signals. The separate signals may be carried by individual coaxial conductors, either for carrying a plurality of different signals, or for branching the signals to further electronic processing stations that distribute the signals to the various receivers. The electronics module thus requires a plurality of coaxial connections that interconnect the electronic circuitry therein to coaxial supply leads. Cable television systems require similar electronics modules or boxes to distribute signals from a main supply cable to various users. Such an electronics box typically has an outer housing with a conductive shielding material, the housing may in fact be fully conductive such as die cast metal. It is known to provide a coaxial connector projecting from an edge of the housing, where the housing has a cylindrical projection extending therefrom that forms the outer conductor of the coaxial connector. A cylindrical dielectric part is placed within the tubular outer protrusion, and holds an inner conductor. The outer conductor is interconnected to ground circuit traces of the electronics modules which typically comprise printed circuit boards (PCBs) with components thereon. The coaxial connection typically has to be connected to the PCB.

For many applications, it is important to produce a 35 very costeffective electronics module. A major cost of many electronics components is due to assembly of the components or installation of the device, in particular if 40615 GB manual operations are required, for example fitting together of the parts or soldering contacts or components. It is nevertheless necessary to achieve a reliable electronics box that has effective shielding against electro-magnetic or electro-static noise reception or emission. It is also important to ensure that a reliable and easy electrical connection can be made to the electronics box. In this respect it is desirable to be able to position the electronics box in a relatively compact space for connection to coaxial distribution cables and incoming and outgoing input and output cables respectively. In certain situations, especially for cable TV, the direction in which the input and output cables approach the electronics box may vary. In conventional systems this typically requires provision of a right angled connection or in-line connection depending on the situation. Adapting the interconnection to different situations increases installation costs.

It would be desirable to simplify assembly operations, and in particular automate assembly operations as far as possible.

It is an object of this invention to provide a coaxial connection assembly for an electronics box that is cost-effective and reliable.

It would be advantageous to provide an electronics box connection assembly for interconnecting coaxial cables to connectors of the electronics module in a reliable and effective manner for high performance that is also compact and cost-effective to assemble and install.

Objects of this invention have been achieved by providing an electronics box connection assembly according to claim 1. Disclosed herein is an electronics box connection assembly having a housing comprising a base wall, and opposed side walls, rear wall and front wall upstanding therefrom to form a cavity area for receiving the electronic circuitry therein, the connection assembly comprising coaxial connectors extending through one or 40615 GB more of the sidewalls for interconnecting the electronic circuitry to a complementary coaxial connector external to the electronics box for distributing signals, the connection assembly comprising at least one input connector for connection to a signal supply cable, wherein the input connector extends through the front wall at an angle of approximately 45 degrees with respect to the side walls. Supply cables fed from different directions can thus be connected in-line with the electronics box thus simplifying installation and enabling different orientations of the cable with respect to the electronics box whilst using in-line coaxial connections.

Advantageously, a connection assembly may be provided having a housing with conductive shielding for ground, and at least one coaxial connector having a mating face at the outside of the housing for connection to a complementary coaxial connector, and an inner end for connection to a circuit board of the electronics module, wherein the board has at least one terminal mounted proximate an edge of the board that is plugged onto the central conductor of the coaxial connector. The housing may comprise a base plate and side walls, where the coaxial connectors are mounted in the side walls and the base plate is substantially parallel to the circuit boards. The base plate would face an open end of the housing where the boards are received in a direction substantially orthogonal to the base plate. The terminals for interconnecting to the coaxial centre conductor, are arranged with respect to the coaxial central conductor such that during mounting of the board within the housing from the open end, the terminals are plugged to the centre conductor. A simple assembly operation is thus achieved by top mounting the board and simultaneously plugging onto the coaxial central conductors. The ground connection between the housing shielding and the circuit boards may be provided by having a plurality of grounding terminals, for example one on either side of the terminal for 40615 GB contacting the coaxial central conductor, that plug into the base of the housing. In the case of a metallic housing, the terminals may have compliant pin sections that plug into recesses in the housing base wall.

Further advantageous aspects of the invention will be apparent from the description, drawings and claims.

Embodiments of this invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the figures, whereby; Figure la is a cross-sectional top view of an electronics box housing; Figure lb is a cross-sectional view through line lblb of Figure la; Figure lc is a detailed cross-sectional view of a ground terminal on a PCB, grounded to the electronics box housing; Figure ld is a detailed top view of a housing stud for receiving a ground contact; Figure 2 is a cross-sectional side view of an electronics box with parts disassembled; Figure 3 is an isometric view of part of a coaxial connector; Figure 4 is a partial cross-sectional view through the electronics box; Figure 5 is a partial top view of a PCB showing terminals for connection to a coaxial connector; Figure 6 is a simplified top view of a slightly different embodiment of a box similar to that shown in figure 1a; Figure 7 is a view in the direction of arrow 7 of figure 6; Figure 8 is a view similar to figure 6 of an embodiment with less ports (or distribution connectors); Figure 9 is an isometric view of another embodiment of an electronics box without cover; Figure 10 is a view similar to Figure 9, the box provided with a cover after complete assembly; Figure 11 is an isometric view of the box of Figure 40615 GB from a top side; Figure 12 is a partial cross-secticnal detail view of the connection between a coaxial centre contact and a PCB; Figure 13 is a partial cross-sectional detail view of the mechanical and electrical connection of the PCB to a housing of the box; Figure 14 is a partial cross-sectional detail view of the cover mounted to the box; and Figure 15 is a view similar to Figure 14 after complete assembly.

Referring to Figures 1-3, an electronics module 2 comprises a housing 4, a first PCB 6 and a second PCB 8, and a plurality of coaxial connectors 10. The PCBs 6,8 have electric components 12 mounted thereon which are interconnected by conductive circuit traces on the boards.

The housing 4 is of a conductive material, such as die cast aluminium alloy, however it would also be conceivable to provide an insulative housing having a conductive shielding layer thereon. The housing 4 has a base wall 14 and opposed side walls 16 and opposed front 17 and rear 15 walls. The side, front and rear walls extend along a lateral edge of the base wall 14 and project upwardly therefrom to an open end 18, thus forming a cavity area 34. A cover part (not shown) can be positioned against the upper edge 20 at the open end 18 for closing the components fully within the housing 4.

The side and front walls 16,17 comprise tubular extensions 22 forming a cavity 24 for receiving a dielectric 26 therein. The tubular extension 22 comprises the outer conductor of the coaxial connector, where a plurality of coaxial connectors extend from different walls 16,17. Within the dielectric 26 is a central conductor 28 that has a mating end 30 for coupling with a complementary connector and a connection end 32 that projects into the cavity area 34 formed by the side walls and base wall. The inner contacts 28 are revolution machined contacts in this embodiment, but could of course 40615 GB 6 be formed by other manufacturing methods.

Both the circuit boards 6 and 8 substantially fill the surface area within the enclosure 34 and are mounted in a stacked manner one upon the other. The boards are interconnected between each other by board interconnection terminals 36 that have compliant pin contact portions 38, 40 at either end for resilient mounting in plated through holes 42,44 of the PCBs 6,8. The circuit board 6 could also be provided with positioning means such as holes 46 cooperable with centring means of the housing such as studs 48 for positioning of the board with respect thereto. Ground contact between the board 6 and the shielding of the housing 4 can be provided by a plurality of grounding terminals 51 that have a compliant pin section 52 for insertion in a plated through-hole 55 of the circuit board 6, and at the other end a fork-shaped pair of cantilever beam contact arms 56 for insertion into a corresponding recess 58 in the base wall. The recess 58 can be provided in a stud 59 projecting up from the base wall, as shown in Figures la-1d, and Figure 4. The stud may also provide a means for positioning the circuit board at a precise height above the base wall 14. The recess 58 may either plated with conductive shielding material or simply formed from the metal of the housing if it is die cast. The terminals can be manufactured in a simple manner by edge-stamping from sheet metal. Further terminals 50, which may be identical to the grounding terminals 51, are provided for connection to the central conductor connection portion 32 of the coaxial 30 connectors 10. All terminals 36,50,51 may be formed by edge stamping from sheet metal into substantially planar shapes that are very cost-effective to manufacture. Both the grounding terminals and the central terminals for connection to the coaxial conductor, are positioned along edges 60 of the circuit board 6. The fork-shaped contact arms 56 form a slot 64 and receive the central conductor 32 therebetween in a resilient manner 40615 GB for electrical connection thereto. These contact arms can thus be used for contact with their outer edges 62 or slot 64, for contacting ground (in the recess 58) or the coaxial central conductor 32 respectively. The arcuate, outwardlybowed outer edge surface 62 provides the outer contact surface, and also provides a guide means extending towards the free end 66 of the contact arms by the inwardly curved shape for guiding the contact in the recess 58. A tapered lead-in 68 is also provided for guiding the coaxial inner conductor into the contact slot 64. The base wall 14 could also be provided with ribs rather than recesses 58 for insertion in the grounding contact slot 64.

Both the ground and coaxial terminals can be stamped from a single strip of sheet metal and supported by a base strip that is sheared transversely at a central portion 72 between adjacent terminals. Very little scrap material is produced which lowers manufacturing costs of the contacts. An increase in scrap metal resulting from stamping procedures needs a more costly tooling for evacuation of metal, and the scrap also generates handling costs. It is therefore an advantageous feature to separate adjacent terminals by merely shearing them apart rather than separating them by taking out a piece of metal.

Along the PCB, if adjacent terminals have base portions 70 that are too close together, the ground contacts can be orientated at a different angle to the coaxial contact that they flank thereby increasing the gap between adjacent contacts as shown in Figure 5 where the ground contacts 51 are turned at 90' to the centre contacts 50. The positioning at an angle of the ground contacts may also change the ground and shielding characteristics, the angle (between 0' and 90') thus providing a means of tuning such characteristics.

Boards 6 and 8 can thus be stacked together in the axial direction A, being interconnected by the contacts 36, and then plugged in the direction A into the housing 40615 GB -8 cavity 34, such that the ground contacts 51 plug into the corresponding ground recesses 58, and the coaxial central contacts 50 plug onto the coaxial centre conductor connection portions 32.

Advantageously therefore, due to the axial mounting of the boards to the housing, with simultaneous plugging to the coaxial conductors, rapid and automated assembly is enabled for a cost-effective solution. Furthermore, the simple edge-stamped circuit board terminals for connection to the coaxial inner conductors and ground are identical and therefore cost-effective to manufacture, but nevertheless ensure reliable contact.

Referring mainly to figure la, the electronics module coaxial connection assembly 2 is provided with coaxial distribution connectors 80 projecting from the opposed side walls 16 for connection to coaxial cables for distribution of signals to different users, and input and output coaxial connectors 82, 84 respectively projecting from the front wall 17. The input and output connectors are for connection to a supply coaxial cable 86, 86' as shown in figure 6, that supplies the module 2 with data signals from the 'source', for further distribution. The module 21 shown only partially in figures 6 and 7 can be of substantially the same construction as the embodiments of figures 1-4, except for a slightly different outer shape, particularly concerning the front wall 171. In figure la, the module front wall 17 is shown to have portions 19 extending at or approximately at 45 degrees with respect to the side walls 16. In figure 6, the module front wall 171 is substantially semicircular in shape. In both embodiments, the input and output connectors 82,84 project outwards from the front wall in a direction at or substantially at 45 degrees with respect to the side walls 16. The latter enables the supply cable to be fed to the module from directions orthogonal(O) or parallel (P) to the side walls 16 without excessive bending and in a relatively confined space. Without the 45 degree angle of 40615 GB the input/output connectors, i.e. if the connectors were positioned on a front wall orthogonal to the sidewalls or positioned on the sidewalls, a right angled coaxial connector would be needed in certain situations, and an in-line type of coaxial connector in other situations, terminated to the supply cable 86,86'. Installation and preparation of the supply cable would thus depend on the circumstance, thus increasing installation costs, and also limiting the subsequent reorientation of the electronics module 2,21. The invention thus not only reduces costs whilst maintaining low space but also increases the versatility in of the electronics module 2,2'. In-line connectors also have better electrical performance than right-angle connectors. Also, the distribution connectors and input and output connectors are all provided in the same plane, thereby enhancing the compactness of the interconnection.

In figure 8, an embodiment 211 with only 2 distribution connectors is shown, and an input and an output connector 82, 84 respectively are provided. The number of distribution connectors can be varied, and provision thereof extending from the rear wall 15 is also conceivable. The particular arrangement in this invention of input and output connectors with respect to the side walls from which distribution connectors project, would also be advantageous with fibre optic connectors, as fibre optic cables are adversely affected by small radiused curves, and the provision of in-line connection is often necessary if not desirable.

Referring now to Figures 9-15, yet another embodiment of an electronics box 2"1 is shown comprising a conductive housing 41 that may be cast from metal, or from an insulating material and subsequently plated with a conductive layer, the housing receiving a PCB 61 having electronic circuitry thereon for distributing signals from the input coaxial connector 821 to the distribution installation requirements orientation 40615 GB coaxial connectors 80', and the output coaxial connector 84'. The PCB 61 is mechanically fixed against ledges 90 extending upwardly from a base wall 141 of the housing, by screws 91 that are self tapping screws received in a cylindrical bore 92 of the raised portion or ledge 90. The PCB 61 is provided with conductive circuit traces around the contact area 93 for making the ground connection between the board and housing 41. In this embodiment as best seen in Figure 12, the centre contacts 32 of the coaxial connectors 801,821,841 are soldered or welded, by a solder or weld connection 94 to corresponding circuit traces on the circuit board 61. Soldering of the connections may provide higher electrical performance than the compliant contact connection of the embodiment shown in Figure 4. As in the previous embodiments, the input and output connectors project at substantially 450 with respect to the side walls 1611 by provision on the angled front walls 17",19" respectively. The walls 1711,1911 are similar to the embodiment shown in Figure la arranged at 900 with respect to each other.

The PCB 61 is guided and located with respect to the housing walls 1611, 1711,19" by tapered ribs 95 that guide the PCB 61 as it is assembled into the housing 4'-.

Referring to Figures 10, 14 and 15, the electronics box 2... is further provided with a cover 96 that is received against a small ledge 97 provided on the top end 201 of the walls of the housing. The cover may be received against the side walls in an interference fit, and securely held in place by deformation of studs or tabs 98 integrally formed with the housing 41. The deformed stud 98 is shown in Figure 15.

As best seen in Figure 11, the housing 4' comprises an external grounding portion 99 with a cavity 100 for receiving an earthing wire therein, connected for example to the housing with the self tapping screw 101.

As best seen in Figures 9 and 10, fixing pads 102,103 are provided on the housing 41 for fixing the electronics 40615 GB -11 box 21" against a wall or against a panel. The mounting surfaces 104 are slightly raised with respect to the cover 96 such that the box can be securely mounted against a panel with 3 support points thereby preventing rocking. In addition, the pad 102 at a top of the box is provided with an upside-down V-shaped recess 105 that assists in directing moisture along the outside walls of the box, rather than along the cover 96, in order to improve weather proofness of the box.

40615 GB 12

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. An electronics box connection assembly having a housing and electronic circuitry mountable in the housing, the housing comprising a base wall and opposed sidewalls, rear wall and front wall upstanding therefrom to form a cavity area for receiving the electronic circuitry therein, the connection assembly comprising one or more coaxial connectors extending through one or more of the sidewalls for interconnecting the electronic circuitry to a complementary coaxial connector external to the electronics box for distributing signals, the connection assembly comprising at least one input connector for connection to a signal supply cable, wherein the input connector projects from the front wall at an angle of approximately 45 degrees with respect to the side walls.

2. The connection assembly of claim 1 wherein an output connector also projects from the front wall at an angle of approximately 45 degrees with respect to the side walls.

3. The connection assembly of claim 2 wherein the output connector extends to an angle of approximately 90 degrees with respect to the input connector.

4. The connection assembly of any one of the preceding claims wherein the front wall has a substantially semicircular shape.

5. The connection assembly of any one of claim 1 to 3 wherein the front wall has two portions substantially orthogonal to each other, an input and output connector positioned on respective said portions.

6. The connection assembly of any one of the preceding claims wherein the connection assembly comprises one or more terminals mounted proximate an edge of a printed circuit board 13 - of the electronics circuitry and pluggable to coaxial centre conductors of the coaxial connectors in a direction of assembly of the printed circuit board of the electronics circuitry, into the housing.

7. The connection assembly of claim 6 wherein the coaxial centre conductor comprises a connection end projecting into the cavity area below the terminal for plugging connection therewith, the connection end extending transversely to the assembly direction.

8. The connection assembly of claim 7 wherein the terminal comprises forkshaped contact arms that form a slot for resiliently receiving the connection end of the coaxial centre conductor therein.

9. The connection assembly of any preceding claim wherein the electronics circuitry comprises a circuit board received in the housing, the circuit board positioned against circuit board ledges upstanding from the base wall for mechanical and electrical connection of the circuit board to the housing, the circuit board fixed to the circuit board ledges by self tapping screws.

10. The connection assembly of any preceding claim wherein the box comprises a cover received at a top end of the side walls, the cover received against a cover ledge along the top of the side walls and securely fixed therein by means of deformable tabs or studs integral with the housing.

11. The connection assembly of any preceding claim wherein the housing is provided with tapered ribs along the inner side of the from, rear and side walls, the tapered ribs adapted for guiding a circuit board of the electronic circuitry during insertion into the housing, and securely locating the circuit board in the fully assembled position.

- 14

12. The connection assembly of any preceding claim wherein the housing comprises fixing pads that have mounting surfaces raised with respect to a cover of the connection assembly for providing a three point positioning against a wall or panel.

13. The connection assembly of claim 12 wherein a fixing pad at the top of the box is provided with an upside down V-shaped recess for directing moisture droplets in the direction of the side walls of the housing.

14. A connection assembly substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.