JPH10125426A - Ic socket - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve mounting workability of numeral contacts in an IC socket in which a contact pitch is reduced corresponding to reduction of a lead pitch of an IC device. SOLUTION: An IC socket 10 is provided a plurality of contacts 14 to be securely housed in a housing 12. These contacts 14 are divided into a plurality of contact groups 30 having a desired quantity of contacts respectively, and all contacts 14 included in each contact group 30 are held each other integrally by an electrically insulating holding member 32 and independently of the contacts 14 included in the other contact group 30. A plurality of the holding members 32 holding the contacts 14 in advance is mounted in the housing 12 while a tip end part of a contact tail part 26 is penetrated into a through hole 22 of a housing bottom part 16, and whereby all the contacts 14 are mounted in the housing 12 in a same pitch as a lead pitch.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to an IC socket for detachably supporting an IC device and electrically connecting the IC device to an external circuit.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an electronic circuit, such as a computer, which is expected to replace or increase or decrease an IC device, an IC socket is provided with a plurality of ICs incorporated in the socket while detachably supporting the IC device. It is used as a kind of mounting connector for electrically connecting an IC device and an electronic circuit via a contact. In addition, a test IC socket used for performing a predetermined electrical test such as a continuity test on an IC device before being mounted on an electronic device is also well known. At the time of an electrical test, it is necessary to easily and accurately connect the IC device to the test circuit and to connect a large number of IC devices in a replaceable manner. That electrically connects an IC device and a test circuit through a plurality of contacts in a socket.
C sockets are conveniently used.

[0003] As a conventional typical test IC socket, for example, one disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 7-505255 is known. This IC socket is used for an IC device having an array type package structure (for example, BGA (ball grid array) or LGA (land grid array)) in which a large number of leads (that is, electrode pads) are arranged in a square lattice or a staggered lattice. A resin housing in the form of a lidless container, a support base disposed above the bottom of the housing and supporting the IC device, and a plurality of elastic contacts provided between the support base and the bottom of the housing. And a lid hingedly connected to the housing. The support base is provided with a plurality of insertion holes for inserting the contact portion at one end of each contact, and the housing bottom is provided with a plurality of locking holes for locking the tail portion at the other end of each contact. Each contact is fixed to the housing bottom with the tail extending outward by pressing the tail into the locking hole in the housing bottom.

When using this IC socket, first, the IC socket is mounted on a circuit board of a test apparatus, and the tail portion of each contact is connected to the test circuit by soldering or the like. Next, the IC device is placed on the support base, and the lid is pressed against the IC device while being engaged with the contacts of the IC device at the contact portions of the contacts arranged in the insertion holes of the support base, and is engaged with the housing. As a result, each contact is elastically deformed, and each lead of the IC device comes into contact with a contact portion of each contact under the pressure due to the elastic restoring force.

[0005]

In recent years, as the miniaturization of IC devices and the densification of lead arrangement have progressed,
The IC socket is also required to have a structure that can be adapted to such an IC device. For example,
I having an array type package structure such as BGA or LGA
In the C device, the arrangement interval (pitch) of a plurality of leads arranged in a lattice tends to be reduced from 1.27 mm, which is conventionally general, to 1.0 mm or less. In order to reduce the contact pitch to the same as the lead pitch in the above-described conventional IC socket corresponding to the IC device having such a small lead pitch, the thickness of the peripheral wall of the locking hole provided at the bottom of the housing of the IC socket is reduced. Inevitably decreases. As a result, when the tail portion of the contact is pressed into the locking hole, the peripheral wall of the locking hole is relatively easily deformed by stress, and there is a concern that damage such as whitening, bending, and destruction may occur at the bottom of the housing.

Further, as the contact pitch is reduced, the shape of the contact itself is reduced in order to prevent a short circuit between adjacent contacts. May be relatively easily deformed or destroyed. If the contacts are deformed, it becomes difficult to keep many contacts parallel to each other and the height of the contacts in the socket, which not only increases the risk of short-circuits, but also prevents signal transmission failure due to uneven contact pressure. May occur. Even if it is possible to press-fit the contact into the locking hole without damaging the contact, if the above-described deformation occurs in the wall around the locking hole, many contacts are also kept parallel to each other and at the same contact point height. It becomes difficult.

Further, since the above-mentioned miniaturized contacts require more careful work when handled alone, the mental burden on the operator increases. When a large number of such contacts are press-fitted into the bottom of the housing at once to shorten the working time, it is difficult to provide a press-fitting device that can cope with a small contact shape and a narrow contact pitch. On the other hand, the locking holes provided at the bottom of the housing are generally formed in a stepped hole shape in order to securely lock the tail portion of the contact, but a large number of locking holes having such a shape are provided as described above. It is difficult to create a mold that can be formed into a lattice array with a narrow pitch.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an IC socket having a reduced contact pitch in accordance with a further reduction in the lead pitch of an IC device having an array type package structure. An object of the present invention is to provide an IC socket capable of improving the structural reliability of the IC socket and significantly improving the workability of mounting a large number of contacts by reducing the possibility of damage to the housing and the contacts that may occur.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention comprises a housing in the form of an open container and a plurality of contacts fixedly accommodated in the housing, each of the contacts being: I above the bottom of the housing
A contact portion at one end electrically connected to each of the plurality of leads of the C device; and a tail portion at the other end extending outward from the bottom of the housing and electrically connected to an external circuit. In an IC socket, a plurality of contacts are
Dividing into a plurality of contact groups each having one or more desired number of contacts, all the contacts included in one contact group are fixed on a housing and independent of the contacts included in other contact groups. hand,
Provided is an IC socket, comprising: a plurality of electrically insulating holding members that hold the IC devices at positions corresponding to lead arrangements; and fixing means for fixing the plurality of holding members to a housing.

[0010] The present invention further provides the IC socket, wherein the holding member is formed of a resin molded body integrally molded with all the contacts included in one contact group.

The present invention further provides the IC socket, wherein the fixing means is provided complementary to the housing and the holding member in the IC socket, and the engaging portion engages the holding member with the housing in a fixed manner.

According to the present invention, in the above IC socket, the housing further includes a support portion disposed above the bottom portion for supporting the IC device, and a plurality of the contact portions of the plurality of contacts are inserted through the support portion. An IC socket provided with an insertion hole is provided.

According to the present invention, the IC socket further comprises a lid detachably attached to the housing, and when the lid is closed, the plurality of leads of the IC device and the contact portions of the plurality of contacts are predetermined. Provided is an IC socket configured to make contact under pressure.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description of the embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to a test IC socket is shown. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to a mounting IC socket.

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a test IC socket 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. IC socket 10
Is provided with a housing 12 in the form of an open container, and a plurality of contacts 14 fixedly accommodated in the housing 12.
The housing 12 is formed of an electrically insulating material having excellent mechanical strength and heat resistance, and includes a bottom 16 having a substantially rectangular planar shape, and an enclosure 18 extending substantially upright from four sides of the bottom 16. The bottom 16 and the enclosure 18 define an open interior space 20 within the housing 12.

The bottom portion 16 of the housing 12 is provided with a plurality of through holes 22 for individually receiving the contacts 14. The through-holes 22 are formed in the bottom 16 in a rectangular lattice arrangement that can correspond to the lead arrangement of the IC device 100 (see FIG. 6) having an array type package structure to which the IC socket 10 is applied. Therefore, the pitch of the plurality of through holes 22 is the same as the lead pitch of the target IC device 100.

The plurality of contacts 14 are pin-shaped conductors made of an electrically conductive elastic material, and are provided with a contact portion 24 at one end disposed above a bottom portion 16 of the housing 12 and a through hole formed in the housing bottom portion 16. A tail portion 26 at the other end extending outward through the contact portion 24;
And an elastically deformable connecting portion 28 that connects between the two. Each contact 14 is connected to the IC device 100 by the contact portion 24 when the IC socket 10 operates as described later.
Connected to each of a plurality of leads 102 (see FIG. 6), and an external test circuit (not shown)
, Thereby electrically connecting between each lead 102 and the test circuit.

The plurality of contacts 14 includes a plurality of contact groups 30 each having a desired number of contacts 14.
(Only two contact groups 30 are shown in FIG. 1 for simplicity). And each contact group 30
Are held together by the electrically insulating holding member 32 and independently of the contacts 14 included in the other contact groups 30. Therefore, in the IC socket 10, the plurality of contacts 14 held by the plurality of holding members 32 are fixedly installed at predetermined positions of the housing 12 via the holding members 32, so that the plurality of contacts 14
The C device 100 is fixed at a position corresponding to the arrangement of the leads 102.

The holding member 32 includes a rod-shaped base 34 for integrally holding all the contacts 14 of the contact group 30 in a line, and a pair of arms extending upright from both ends in the longitudinal direction of the base 34. And a unit 36. Base 34
A plurality of locking holes 38 for locking the tail portion 26 of each contact 14 are formed substantially in parallel with the extending direction of the arm portion 36. The pitch of the plurality of locking holes 38 is the same as the pitch of the through holes 22 in the housing bottom 16, and is therefore the same as the lead pitch of the target IC device 100. Each of the contacts 14 is arranged such that the connecting portion 28 is arranged between the two arm portions 36 so as to be spaced apart from each other, and is received and locked in the locking hole 38 by a part of the tail portion 26 having a locking structure described later. The tip of the tail 26 extends from the base 34.

The base 34 of the holding member 32 has a bottom surface 34
a (FIG. 2), and abuts the bottom portion 16 of the housing 12 at both axial end surfaces 34b (FIG. 2).
In contact with a pair of opposing surfaces 18a of the surrounding wall 18 of
It is housed in the housing 12. The arm portion 36 of the holding member 32 has an outer end surface 36b (FIG. 2) extending in the same plane from both end surfaces 34b in the axial direction of the base portion 34.
Abuts against the opposing surface 18a of the surrounding wall 18. That is, the distance between the outer end surfaces 36b of the both arm portions 36 of the holding member 32 is equal to the distance between the facing surfaces 18a of the surrounding wall 18 of the housing 12. The height from the bottom surface 34 a of the base 34 of the holding member 32 to the top surface 36 a of the arm 36 is substantially equal to the height of the surrounding wall 18 of the housing 12. Further, the transverse dimension parallel to the bottom surface 34 a of the base 34 of the holding member 32 is
Pitch of the through hole 22 of the housing bottom 16,
And the lead pitch of the IC device 100.

As shown in an enlarged manner in FIG.
The two arm portions 36 are provided with engaging projections 40 protruding outward from the outer end surface 36b. The engagement ridge 40 extends linearly in parallel with the extension direction of the arm 36. Housing 12
A plurality of grooves 42 capable of receiving the engagement ridges 40 of the both arms 36 of each holding member 32 are formed in the facing surface 18a of the surrounding wall 18. The grooves 42 extend linearly from the top surface 18 b of the surrounding wall 18 to the bottom 16 of the housing 12 substantially perpendicular to the bottom 16.

In the IC socket 10, the housing 1
When a plurality of contacts 14 are mounted on the second contact member 2, first, the holding member 32 holding all the contacts 14 of one contact group 30 in advance is caused by the base 34 facing the housing bottom 16 and the engagement of both arms 36. While engaging the ridge 40 with the groove 42 of the surrounding wall facing surface 18 a of the housing 12,
It is slidably mounted on the surrounding wall 18 from the surrounding wall top surface 18b. The holding member 32 is guided by the engagement between the engaging ridge 40 and the groove 42, moves parallel to the housing bottom 16, and has a distal end of the tail portion 26 of each contact 14 protruding from the base 34 of the holding member 32. The part penetrates into the through hole 22 of the housing bottom 16. When the base 34 of the holding member 32 abuts against the housing bottom 16, the tip portion of the tail 26 of each contact 14 extends outward from the housing bottom 16, and all the contacts 1 of one contact group 30.
4 are arranged at predetermined positions. By performing such an operation for all the contact groups 30 sequentially or collectively, all the contacts 14 are connected to the housing 12 by the I
It is mounted at the same pitch as the lead pitch of the C device 100.

As described above, according to the IC socket 10, when the plurality of contacts 14 are mounted on the housing 12, the step of press-fitting the contact into the housing bottom 16, which has been conventionally performed, is omitted by the action of the holding member 32. Therefore, for example, when the lead pitch is reduced to 1.0 mm or less,
Even if the contacts 14 are arranged at a fine pitch corresponding to the C device 100, the fear that the peripheral walls of the plurality of through holes 22 of the housing bottom 16 are damaged by the stress at the time of press fitting is eliminated. Similarly, the miniaturized contacts 14
The fear of deformation due to press-in is also eliminated. Moreover, since the plurality of contacts 14 are held parallel to each other by the holding member 32 and perpendicular to the housing bottom 16, if the contacts 14 are correctly mounted on the holding member 32, the contacts 14 may be connected to each other. The risk of a short circuit and the risk of signal transmission failure due to uneven contact point heights are avoided.

Further, the plurality of contacts 14 held by the holding member 32 can be easily handled as the contact group 30, and the mental burden on the worker is reduced.
Moreover, such a contact group 30 can be attached to the housing 12 by hand, and it is easy to mount a plurality of contact groups 30 on the housing 12 at one time. Further, the plurality of contacts 14 are attached to the holding member 3.
Since the through hole 22 is attached to the housing 12 through the housing 2, the through hole 22 provided in the housing bottom 16 can be formed into a simple cylindrical hole, and even in a narrow pitch, it can be easily formed into a lattice arrangement. The fixing of the plurality of contacts 14 to the housing 12 is obtained by fixing between the contacts 14 and the holding member 32 and between the holding member 32 and the housing 12.

In order to accurately fix the plurality of contacts 14 to the holding member 32, the contacts 14 are arranged in a mold as inserts, and the holding members 32 are integrally formed with the contacts 14 by an insert molding process from a resin material. Is preferred. In this case, as shown in FIG. 6, it is desirable to provide a simple locking structure 44 including a notch, a projection, or the like on a part of the tail portion 26. Further, the holding member 32 provided with a plurality of locking holes 38 in advance is separately formed, and the tail portion 26 of the contact 14 is pressed into the locking holes 38 to fix the contact 14 to the holding member 32. Can also. In this case, as is well known, a serrated locking structure is provided on a part of the tail portion 26. Such a configuration by press-fitting allows the stress at the time of press-fitting to be easily released to the peripheral wall of the locking hole 38 of the base 34 of the holding member 32, as compared with a configuration in which the contact is directly press-fitted into the housing bottom as in the related art. And damage to the base 34 can be avoided as much as possible.

The holding member 32 fixedly holds all the contacts 14 included in one contact group 30 at a position corresponding to the lead arrangement of the IC device 100 on the housing 12 as described above. Therefore, depending on how the contact group 30 is set, it is possible to provide a holding member having various bases for holding the plurality of contacts 14 in various arrangements other than the one-row equal pitch arrangement. For example, as shown schematically in FIG. 3A, when a plurality of holding members 32 having the same shape are arranged in parallel in the housing 12, the holding members 32 holding the contacts 14 in all the locking holes 38, The holding members 32 'and 32 "having the locking holes 38' that do not hold the contacts 14 (however, when the above-described insert molding process is employed, no holes are formed in these portions) are generated. After the formation of the holding members 32 ', 32 ", the portion of the locking hole 38' that does not hold the contact 14 can be cut off as shown by a broken line. Thus, the holding member according to the present invention includes:
Even when only one contact is held, the intended purpose can be achieved.

Further, as schematically shown in FIG.
A holding member 32A that holds the plurality of contacts 14 in a rectangular grid arrangement with two rows at equal pitches corresponding to the lead arrangement of the IC device, and a holding member that holds the plurality of contacts 14 with a square grid arrangement with three rows at equal pitches. The member 32B can also be used. It is needless to say that the same effects as described above can be obtained in such a configuration. As described above, the holding member according to the present invention does not actively limit the number and arrangement of the contacts 14 in the contact group 30. The holding member and the contact are attached in the step of attaching the contact to the holding member by insert molding or press fitting. It can be formed into various shapes as long as no damage is caused or no holding member is formed.

The IC socket 10 further includes a housing 1
A support 46 can be provided above the second bottom 16. The support base 46 is formed of an electrically insulating material having excellent mechanical strength and heat resistance.
And a substantially rectangular thin plate-shaped perforated support portion 48 for supporting the supporting member, and four leg portions 50 extending substantially upright from four peripheral corners of the perforated support portion 48. The porous support portion 48 has a substantially flat main surface 4.
8a, and a plurality of insertion holes 52 are formed through the porous support portion 48 substantially orthogonal to the main surface 48a. In the peripheral area of the main surface 48a, a projecting frame 54 for guiding and positioning the IC device 100 at its side edge is formed at least locally, slightly projecting from the main surface 48a.

The plurality of insertion holes 52 of the porous support portion 48 are arranged in a square lattice at the same pitch as the lead pitch of the target IC device 100, and are supported by the housing bottom 16 via the holding member 32. The contact portions 24 of the contacts 14 are respectively received. Thereby, the contact portions 24 of the plurality of contacts 14 are held at positions corresponding to the leads 102 of the IC device 100. Each contact 1
The fourth contact portion 24 is inserted into the insertion hole 52 from the rear surface 48 b (FIG. 6) of the porous support portion 48. Preferably, the insertion hole 52 is formed on the main surface 4 of the porous support portion 48 as shown in FIG. 6 to facilitate the insertion of the contact portion 24 of the contact 14.
It is gradually enlarged from the 8a side to the back surface 48b side. In addition, preferably, the insertion hole 52 has a size capable of receiving the contact portion 24 through a gap in order to allow the movement of the contact portion 24 of the contact 14.

Preferably, the four legs 50 of the support 46
Is configured such that a free end 50b at the distal end can resiliently swing with a base end 50a integrally connected to the porous support portion 48 as a fulcrum. The free end 50b of each leg 50 can be provided with a claw 56 that projects outwardly at right angles to the leg 50. These claws 56 are attached to the surrounding wall 18 of the housing 12.
Shoulder surface 5 provided corresponding to another pair of opposing surfaces 18c
8 is engaged. With such a structure, the support base 46 is
It is snap-fitted to the enclosure 18 of the housing 12 via two legs 50.

When the support base 46 is mounted on the housing 12, the peripheral area of the back surface 48 b of the porous support portion 48 of the support base 46 is brought into contact with the top surface 18 b of the surrounding wall 18 of the housing 12. As a result, the holding member 32 is securely fixed to the housing 12 because the top surface 36a of the both arm portions 36 is locked by the support base 46.
Accordingly, in this case, the support base 46 also acts as a fixing means for fixing the holding member 32 to the housing 12 in cooperation with the complementary engagement between the engaging projection 40 of the holding member and the groove 42 of the housing. .

When the support base 46 is mounted on the housing 12, preferably, each contact 14 is not subjected to any load (that is, the connecting portion 28 is not deformed).
The contact portion 24 is loosely inserted into the insertion hole 52 of the porous support portion 48,
The contact portion 24 is slightly projected from the main surface 48a of the porous support portion 48. When the IC device 100 is placed on the porous support portion 48 and pressure is applied to the IC device 100 to obtain a desired contact pressure between the lead 102 and the contact portion 24 of the contact 14, each contact 18 is connected. 28, each contact portion 24
Are easily drawn into the insertion hole 50 without causing friction. As described above, the connecting portion 28 of the contact 14 imparts a spring function to the contact 14 itself, so that a desired contact pressure can be obtained when the contact portion 24 is electrically connected to the lead 102 of the IC device 100. To

Alternatively, each of the contacts 14 may be in a state where the connecting portion 28 is slightly elastically deformed by receiving a load when the support base 46 is attached to the housing 12. In this case, a protrusion 60 (FIG. 6) is provided in a boundary region between the contact portion 24 and the connection portion 28 of the contact 14, and the protrusion 60 is engaged with the back surface 48 b of the porous support portion 48 of the support base 46, thereby making the contact 14. Is preferably configured to receive a load from the support base 46. According to such a configuration, the holding member 3 receives the elastic biasing force of the plurality of contacts 14.
2 is pressed against the housing bottom 16 and fixed. Further, the claw 56 of each leg 50 of the support base 46 and the housing 1
If the engagement with the shoulder surface 58 of the second enclosure 18 is provided with play, the claw 56 of the support base 46 engages with the shoulder surface 58 of the housing 12 under the elastic biasing force of the plurality of contacts 14. Since the support base 46 is held at a predetermined position above the housing bottom 16 and the oblique pushing of the IC device 100 when the lid 62 described later is closed can be elastically absorbed, the contact between the lead 102 and the contact 14 can be prevented. Pressure non-uniformity can be avoided and the risk of damaging the leads 102 of the IC device 100 can be reduced.

As described above, the support base 46 is mounted on the IC device 1.
It has a function of supporting the contact portion 24 of the contact 14 at a predetermined position while supporting the contact portion 24. However, the support base 46 may be omitted by, for example, imparting an IC device support function to the contact itself. The contact in this case does not include the connecting portion 28 curved in a C-shape as in the case of the contact 14 but includes a relatively high-rigidity linear connecting portion, and instead has an I
A device having an elastic structure for elastically receiving the lead of the C device can be adopted. For a contact having such a structure, for example, if the boundary region between the connection portion of the contact and the contact portion is held by a holding member, the contact portion can be fixedly held at a predetermined position. .

As the fixing means for fixing the holding member 32 to the housing 12, various forms other than the above-described use of the support base 46 can be provided. For example, as shown in FIG. 4A, the outer end surface 36b of the arm portion 36 of the holding member 32
An engaging claw 37 is provided instead of the engaging ridge 40, and a shoulder 19 is provided instead of the groove 42 on the facing surface 18a of the surrounding wall 18 of the housing 12, and the engaging claw 37 and the shoulder 19 are held by engagement. The structure which fixes the member 32 can be used. FIG. 4
As shown in (b), the bottom surface 3 of the base 34 of the holding member 32
The holding member 32 can be fixed by providing the projection 35 on the bottom 4a, providing the recess 17 on the bottom 16 of the housing 12, and pressing the projection 35 into the recess 17. In this case, the arm 36 can be omitted.

It is well known that a predetermined contact pressure is required between the contact conductors in order to ensure a good conduction state when two independent conductors are brought into contact with each other. I
The C socket 10 includes contact portions 24 of the plurality of contacts 14.
A cover 62 detachably attached to the housing 12 can be provided as a pressurizing means for applying such a contact pressure between the lead and the plurality of leads 102 of the IC device 100. Preferably, the lid 62 is, as shown in FIG.
It is hingedly connected to one edge of the top wall 18 b of the housing 12 via the shaft 64. When the electrical test is performed, the IC device 10 on the support base 46 may be used with a desired jig.
In the case where 0 can be pressed in a direction approaching the housing bottom 16, the lid 62 is unnecessary.

The lid 62 is provided with a raised portion 68 having a flat pressing surface 66 for pressing the IC device 100 at substantially the center of the surface facing the housing 12. As shown in FIG. 6, when the lid 62 is disposed at a predetermined closed position, the pressing surface 66 of the raised portion 68 of the lid 62
Device 100 is pressed in a direction approaching housing bottom 16. As a result, the contact portions 24 of the contacts 14 received in the respective insertion holes 52 of the porous support portion 48 of the support base 46.
Each of the leads 10 of the IC device 100 is operated in cooperation with the elastic restoring force of the contact 14 itself and the pressing force of the lid 62.
2 under a predetermined pressure to obtain a good conduction state.

Further, the IC socket 10 can be provided with an engaging element 72 rotatably attached via a shaft 70 to a distal end of the lid 62 opposite to the shaft 64. The engaging element 72 has a pawl 7 projecting toward the housing 12 at its free end.
When the lid 62 is in the predetermined closed position, the pawl 74 selectively engages with the overhang portion 76 provided on the outer surface of the enclosure 18 of the housing 12 so that the lid 62 is closed. And the pressing force generated by the lid 62 is maintained.

The IC socket according to the present invention can be formed from various materials. For example, in the above embodiment, the housing 12, the support member 46, and the lid 62 are made of PPS (polyphenylene sulfide), PBT (polybutylene terephthalate), PEI (polyetherimide), PES
It is preferably formed from an electrically insulating resin material having excellent heat resistance and mechanical strength, such as (polyether sulfone). Further, the contact 14 is preferably made of a metal material having a spring property such as beryllium copper or phosphor bronze,
It is desirable that at least the contact portion of such a contact be plated with gold under nickel.

[0040]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, a plurality of contact groups formed by dividing a plurality of contacts housed in an IC socket into a desired number are formed on a housing by a plurality of holding members. Since the contacts are individually held and all the contacts are fixedly held at the positions corresponding to the lead arrangement of the IC device, there is a fear that the housing or the contacts may be damaged when a large number of contacts are mounted on the housing. Thus, the structural reliability of the IC socket can be improved, and the workability of mounting a large number of contacts can be significantly improved. Therefore, according to the present invention, an IC socket capable of reducing the contact pitch can be easily manufactured with high reliability in response to the further reduction of the lead pitch of an IC device having an array type package structure. Becomes

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an IC socket according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged exploded perspective view of the IC socket of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view showing a modified example of the holding member used for the IC socket of FIG. 1, wherein (a) a plurality of holding members having the same shape, and (b) a plurality of holding members having different shapes. Is shown.

FIG. 4 is a schematic side view showing a modified example of the fixing means used in the IC socket of FIG. 1; (a) engagement between a housing surrounding wall and a holding member arm; and (b) housing bottom and a holding member base. Respectively.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state where the lid is attached to the IC socket of FIG. 1 and assembled.

FIG. 6 shows a state in which the IC socket of FIG.
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the C device is mounted.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 12 ... Housing 14 ... Contact 16 ... Bottom part 18 ... Enclosure wall 22 ... Through-hole 24 ... Contact part 26 ... Tail part 28 ... Connection part 30 ... Contact group 32 ... Holding member 34 ... Base part 36 ... Arm part 38 ... Locking hole 40 ... Engagement ridge 42 ... groove 46 ... support base 48 ... porous support part 52 ... insertion hole 62 ... lid

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A housing comprising a housing in the form of an open container, and a plurality of contacts fixedly accommodated in the housing,
Each of the contacts is electrically connected to a respective one of the plurality of leads of the IC device above the bottom of the housing, and a contact at one end extends outwardly from the bottom of the housing to an external circuit. An IC socket comprising a tail portion at the other end electrically connected, wherein the plurality of contacts are divided into a plurality of contact groups each having at least one desired number of the contacts. An electrically insulating property that holds all of the contacts included in a contact group fixedly on the housing and independent of the contacts included in other contact groups at a position corresponding to the lead arrangement of the IC device; An IC socket comprising: a plurality of holding members; and fixing means for fixing the plurality of holding members to the housing. 2. The IC socket according to claim 1, wherein the holding member is formed of a resin molded body integrally formed with all the contacts included in one contact group. 3. The IC according to claim 1, wherein said fixing means is provided complementary to said housing and said holding member, and comprises an engaging portion for fixedly engaging said holding member with said housing. socket. 4. The housing includes a support portion disposed above the bottom portion for supporting an IC device, and the support portion has a plurality of insertion holes for inserting the contact portions of each of the plurality of contacts. The IC socket according to any one of claims 1 to 3, which is provided. 5. A lid further detachably attached to the housing, wherein when the lid is closed, the plurality of leads of the IC device and the contact portions of the plurality of contacts come into contact under a predetermined pressure. The IC socket according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the IC socket is configured to perform the operation.