Classifications

• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
  • H01R12/00—Structural associations of a plurality of mutually-insulated electrical connecting elements, specially adapted for printed circuits, e.g. printed circuit boards [PCB], flat or ribbon cables, or like generally planar structures, e.g. terminal strips, terminal blocks; Coupling devices specially adapted for printed circuits, flat or ribbon cables, or like generally planar structures; Terminals specially adapted for contact with, or insertion into, printed circuits, flat or ribbon cables, or like generally planar structures
  • H01R12/50—Fixed connections
  • H01R12/51—Fixed connections for rigid printed circuits or like structures
  • H01R12/55—Fixed connections for rigid printed circuits or like structures characterised by the terminals
  • H01R12/57—Fixed connections for rigid printed circuits or like structures characterised by the terminals surface mounting terminals
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
  • H01R13/00—Details of coupling devices of the kinds covered by groups H01R12/70 or H01R24/00 - H01R33/00
  • H01R13/02—Contact members
  • H01R13/03—Contact members characterised by the material, e.g. plating, or coating materials
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
  • H01R13/00—Details of coupling devices of the kinds covered by groups H01R12/70 or H01R24/00 - H01R33/00
  • H01R13/02—Contact members
  • H01R13/10—Sockets for co-operation with pins or blades
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
  • H01R13/00—Details of coupling devices of the kinds covered by groups H01R12/70 or H01R24/00 - H01R33/00
  • H01R13/02—Contact members
  • H01R13/10—Sockets for co-operation with pins or blades
  • H01R13/11—Resilient sockets
  • H01R13/112—Resilient sockets forked sockets having two legs
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
  • H01R13/00—Details of coupling devices of the kinds covered by groups H01R12/70 or H01R24/00 - H01R33/00
  • H01R13/02—Contact members
  • H01R13/10—Sockets for co-operation with pins or blades
  • H01R13/11—Resilient sockets
  • H01R13/113—Resilient sockets co-operating with pins or blades having a rectangular transverse section
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
  • H01R13/00—Details of coupling devices of the kinds covered by groups H01R12/70 or H01R24/00 - H01R33/00
  • H01R13/02—Contact members
  • H01R13/35—Contact members for non-simultaneous co-operation with different types of contact member, e.g. socket co-operating with either round or flat pin
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
  • H01R13/00—Details of coupling devices of the kinds covered by groups H01R12/70 or H01R24/00 - H01R33/00
  • H01R13/64—Means for preventing incorrect coupling
  • H01R13/642—Means for preventing incorrect coupling by position or shape of contact members
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
  • H01R43/00—Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing, assembling, maintaining, or repairing of line connectors or current collectors or for joining electric conductors
  • H01R43/20—Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing, assembling, maintaining, or repairing of line connectors or current collectors or for joining electric conductors for assembling or disassembling contact members with insulating base, case or sleeve
  • H01R43/205—Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing, assembling, maintaining, or repairing of line connectors or current collectors or for joining electric conductors for assembling or disassembling contact members with insulating base, case or sleeve with a panel or printed circuit board
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
  • H01R43/00—Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing, assembling, maintaining, or repairing of line connectors or current collectors or for joining electric conductors
  • H01R43/16—Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing, assembling, maintaining, or repairing of line connectors or current collectors or for joining electric conductors for manufacturing contact members, e.g. by punching and by bending

Definitions

• the present invention concerns thermocouple connectors for use on printed circuit boards. More particularly the present invention concerns connectors that are low profile, to fit in tight spaces, reversible as positive/negative connectors in one design, pick and place machine mountable on printed circuit boards and provide reverse polarity protection via a connection that is an error proof (poka-yoke) design that can only be used in one direction such that a device, to be connected to the circuit board, can only be plugged into the circuit board in correct alignment.
• an error proof proka-yoke
• Printed circuit boards having the need of connection to external controls or devices are known and in common use.
• the means to attach external controls or devices have typically included connectors wherein an opening must be made in the board and the connector hard soldered into place.
• Such means of connection therefore, have required additional time to do one-off attachment and have produced questionable results, damage to circuit boards due to the soldering process and considerable delays in production due to the need for precise work and the use of skilled workers in such connections.
• the connectors of the prior art are typically identical elements that allow connection of devices in such a manner that the device can be plugged in without concern for correct polarity and if plugged in an incorrect manner can cause damage to the device and to the circuit board.
• PCC-SMP are female thermocouple connectors that connect a male thermocouple connector to a printed circuit board.
• PCC-SMP miniature thermocouple connectors
• PCC-OST standard thermocouple connectors
• the inadequacy associated with these types of legacy connectors is that they are through-hole technology and therefore require the user to hand-solder them to the printed circuit board (that is, these products do not use surface mount technology). In high- volume applications, this becomes very expensive manual labor or requires expensive automation equipment.
• PAX device is inadequate in that there is no reverse polarity incorporated into the design, such that the user could plug the thermocouple in backwards, potentially damaging both the equipment attached and the printed circuit board.
• the PAX design has also been found to be quite complex with many bends, causing it to be difficult and expensive to manufacture. Finally, because the design encompasses several complex bends, it is possible for the user to plug the mating thermocouple connector into the wrong open “slots”, which would result, while correct in polarity, in an insecure connection.
• the device would be desirable for the device to be a single unit creating a connector that provides a different opening at each end, such that with one connector design positive and negative terminals can be plugged into different ends - by placing two connectors parallel to each other in reverse orientation a connection is created that provides access to the circuit board in correct polarity; thereby saving effort time and money in creating one device each for negative and positive terminals.
• any number of devices can be placed, side by side, in the orientation needed, to create sockets for two, three and/or more wire systems.
• a connector element comprising a single sheet of electrical conductive material folded to form a generally tubulated element.
• the generally tubulated element has an elongated axis having a first and second end each formed such that the first end can fit a positive electrical connector and the second end can fit a negative electrical connector; the connector having a tab to allow for the quick attachment and easy alignment of the generally tubulated element to a printed circuit board.
• the connector element is made of beryllium-copper and is plated with nickel and is created from a single sheet of electrically conductive material folded into a generally “C” -shaped form.
• the connector When an electronic connection is desired two of these electrical connectors are placed in a generally parallel relationship, in reverse axis configuration, to form a junction socket for an electrical device. With the noted tab, the placement of the connectors forms a poka-yoke connection for polarity protection.
• the connector includes an alignment tab, depending generally perpendicular from the bottom of the connector element, for aiding in affixing the connector element to a printed circuit board.
• the connector includes a tab, projecting out from the top of the connector element, generally perpendicular to the elongated axis, to prevent two or more connection elements from inter-tangling with each other.
• a method of providing connection for an electrical device to a printed circuit board includes the steps of forming a pair of generally tubulated elements from electrically conductive material, the generally tubulated elements each having a long axis the ends of the generally tubulated elements being formed such that at one end of each of the axes the generally tubulated element is formed to fit a positive prong of a plug and at the other end of each of the axes the generally tubulated element is formed to fit a negative prong of a plug. Then attaching and electrically linking each of the tubulated elements, in generally parallel configuration and reverse polarity, to the printed circuit board to form a socket connector. In this manner, once so configured, an electrical device can be plugged into one end of each of the generally tubulated elements and be in electrical connection with the printed circuit board.
• the devices used in this method are preferably electrically conductive, and are made of a sheet of such material as beryllium-copper plated with nickel. These devices are simply made by folding the sheet of material into a generally “C” -shaped form. In some instances, where a device has more than two prongs, three or more of the devices can be used to accommodate the plug element.
• the method of using the devices includes the inclusion of a tab for aid in connection within a printed circuit board and can include a second tab, projecting out from the connector element in a generally perpendicular to the elongated axis position, to prevent two or more connection elements from inter-tangling with each other.
• Figure 1 is a perspective view of a connector of the prior art.
• Figure 2 is a perspective view of a second connector of the prior art in place on a circuit board.
• Figure 3 is an exploded perspective view of a connector of the prior art being placed on a circuit board.
• Figure 4 is an elevational view of a connector of the present invention.
• Figure 5 is a perspective view of a connector of the present invention.
• Figure 6 is a plan view of connectors of the present invention, partially cut away to show placement of a device therein, in place on a printed circuit board and connected to an external device.
• Figure 7 is a perspective view of the connectors of the present invention in place on a printed circuit board and connected to an external device.
• a connector of the prior art is shown in a perspective view in Figures 1 and 2.
• devices 10 in Figure 1 comprises folded material having electronic conductivity and means to connect to a printed circuit board and form a connection therewith with an outside device, such as a thermocouple, which when connected will form a device that can be used to measure such things as temperature of third products by taking the measurement of temperature and providing information to the circuit board, for discernment by the devices making up the circuit board.
• an outside device such as a thermocouple
• the devices 10 in Figure 1 are identical Pax connectors shown in reverse configuration next to each other, so that it can be seen that the opening 2 of each connector are identical and by design can incorporate any sized prong, either different widths or identical widths, in either sides opening, leading to, at times, incorrect polarity with the device there plugged.
• the Pax device 10 includes tabs 4 that allow the device to be placed on a circuit board.
• the device 10 of Figure 2 comprises metal elements 12, attached to a printed circuit board 14 allowing the flow of electrons from a male thermocouple connector 16 to the circuit board 14 for measurement by elements making up the circuit board 14 and for display on any type of display device.
• the device 10, as shown in Figure 3, is a more complex connector still in use that comprises elongated connector elements 18 that are pushed through opening 20, in circuit board 14, so that the device 10 can be attached, to the circuit board 14, typically by soldering. It will be understood by persons having ordinary skill in the art that such connection, in the prior art, is made by making openings in the board, pushing the device into the board and hand soldering the device onto the board and into electronic communication with the board. Such processes take an extraordinary amount of time and the use of skilled workers to create a proper and long lasting connection on a circuit board.
• Connector 10 is a complex element that further includes openings 22 into which an external instrument, such as a thermocouple, can be plugged into. It will be seen that openings 22 are differentiated by size so that a plug can only be plugged in one way.
• FIG. 4 shows the device 30 in an elevational view.
• device 30 is created from a single sheet of electrically conductive material; in the preferred embodiment the material is an amalgam of beryllium and copper that is nickel plated - which allows excellent conductivity, allows the bending and forming of the desired shape and is resistant to corrosion. It will be understood that numerous other materials, amalgamations, alloys and other material types, can be substituted herein without departing from the novel scope of the present invention.
• FIG. 5 a perspective view of device 30, it can be more clearly seen that the final product of the bending of the sheet of electrically conductive material is a generally C-shaped element, having a top wall 32, a bottom wall 34 and a sidewall 36, generally forming a C-shape.
• connection tab 38 which is used to fix the position of device 30 on a printed circuit board, for a pick and place automated installation, in a manner known to persons having ordinary skill in the art.
• a larger tab 40 Disposed from top wall 32, and extending generally perpendicular thereto, is a larger tab 40, which is provided to keep device 30 free from entanglement with other devices 30.
• top member 42t comprises a central curved section 42c depending from top 32 and two end members 42e that also depend from top 32 but are angled more severely (and, as shown in Figure 4, are made to touch the top 34t of bottom wall 34).
• Top member 44t in contrast, is a one-piece element, curved similarly to the central curved section 42c.
• Each device 30 is made in this way to provide, in one element, a connector for both a positive and a negative terminal of an electronic instrument, as will be described in more detail below.
• the one device 30 can accommodate differing prongs of the electronic element, in the manner that the prior art device 10 (in Figure 3) does with elements 22.
• Figure 6 shows an electronic element 50 in place within devices 30; so as to more clearly demonstrate the shape and sizes of connective prongs 52, in relation to devices 30, devices 30 are shown partially cut away (please compare same structures in Figure 7) so that the relative sizes of the prongs 52 can be better shown relative thereto.
• negative prong 52n has a greater width than positive prong 52p has; which is a standard configuration of negative and positive prongs on such elements.
• the user of the devices 30 can only plug electronic elements 50 into circuit boards 14, which have the devices of the present invention thereon, one way (that is, turning element 50 upside down and trying to plug prongs 52n, 52p into devices 30, will not work due to the sizes of the prongs and the concomitant sizes of the openings in devices 30); this is to protect the element 50 and the board 14 from the deleterious effects of accidently reversing the polarity of either.
• the device of the present invention covers all SMT mountable Thermocouple connectors that incorporate an asymmetrical design to ensure reverse polarity protection. It should also be understood, that the device is not exclusive to thermocouples but can be used for all electrical based temperature sensors, including RTDs and Thermistors, as well.
• Figure 7 shows the connection of the electronic element 50 with the socket 60 of the present invention.
• Prong 52p is clearly shown fitting into side 42, with prong 52p held tightly, and in electrical communication, therein by end members 42e and prong 52n is shown held within the top 44t and bottom 34 of end 44, in electronic communication; all to form an electrical circuit connecting element 50 to circuit board 14.
• Each device 30 is shown in place in reverse orientation from the other device 30, which form socket 60, so as to show that with a single style of element 30, thereby simplifying the process of making such devices in that only one design is needed to accomplish the designated purpose, is used to create the attachment point for a circuit board.
• the invention is a Surface Mountable Thermocouple Connector with reverse polarity protection (PCC-SMD).
• PCC-SMD Surface Mountable Thermocouple Connector with reverse polarity protection
• Thermocouple Connector is a Surface Mountable Device, meaning it is automation-ready for standard pick-and-place machines/PCB automation.
• This SMD style thermocouple connector will save the PCB manufacturer labor and cost, making it very attractive for high-volume applications.
• the present invention has at least three primary improvements over existing connectors, among these are:
• the present invention provides reverse polarity protection, making it “error- proof’ (poka-yoke).
• the PCC-SMD is designed with specific features with mechanical blocking so that the user is not able to plug the mating Thermocouple connector in backwards or upside down.
• This device of the invention is asymmetric and ensures that the PCB manufacturer must mount the connector in the fashion that the PCB designer intended.
• a secondary improvement is that the device of the present invention can be made much slimmer in height than prior existing devices.
• the existing device disclosed above is 3.27mm in height, whereas the device of the present invention is, in a preferred embodiment, 2.36mm at its maximum point (a 28% reduction in height, with the same footprint). This is notable because this allows for thinner electronics and tighter PCB packing within casing, which is important in the advancing electronics industry.
• a tertiary improvement is that the present invention incorporates only 2 primary bends, resulting in simple “c” shaped geometry, whereas the existing device disclosed above has 4 primary bends, resulting in “e” shape geometry.
• the existing device therefore, requires 55% more raw material, as well as much more complex tooling to be made. This results in the device of the present invention being much more easily manufacturable and also more economical to make.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
• Coupling Device And Connection With Printed Circuit (AREA)
• Details Of Connecting Devices For Male And Female Coupling (AREA)
• Combinations Of Printed Boards (AREA)

Priority Applications (6)

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Publications (1)

Family

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Family Applications (1)

Country Status (8)

Families Citing this family (2)

Citations (7)

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• 2019
  • 2019-12-04 US US16/703,476 patent/US11688978B2/en active Active
  • 2019-12-05 CA CA3155853A patent/CA3155853C/en active Active
  • 2019-12-05 CN CN201980100624.1A patent/CN114514656A/zh active Pending
  • 2019-12-05 WO PCT/US2019/064609 patent/WO2021061174A1/en not_active Ceased
  • 2019-12-05 JP JP2022519126A patent/JP7541577B2/ja active Active
  • 2019-12-05 EP EP19947304.2A patent/EP4035227B1/en active Active
  • 2019-12-05 KR KR1020227013688A patent/KR20220078623A/ko not_active Ceased
  • 2019-12-05 MX MX2022003669A patent/MX2022003669A/es unknown

Patent Citations (7)

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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