EP0843383A2
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
High density connector having a ball type of contact surface
Assignee: FCI SA
•
Filing: 1997-11-12
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Granted: —
•
Expires: 2017-11-12
Abstract
Abstract An electrical connector (1) for use with a circuit substrate has a spacer member (10) and a plurality of elongated conductors (8). The conductors are fitted into passages (25) on the spacer member (10). A tail end of each conductor terminates in a well (11) on a surface of the spacer member that facilitates the attachment of the electrical connector to the substrate. The passages in the spacer member hold the conductor tail ends in alignment while providing a clearance around the conductors to accommodate the effects of thermal expansion and contraction. Solder paste (19) from the well (11) with or without a preformed solder ball (12) is coalesced into a spherical shaped conductive body at least partially extending outside said well for connection between the conductors and the circuit substrate. A spherical shaped conductor body is fused to the end of the conductors (8)
Inventors
- 👤 Stanley W. Olson
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-02 19:04
CPC Classifications
H; H01; H01R; H01R12/00; H01R12/50; H01R12/51; H01R12/55; H01R12/57; H01R12/70; H01R12/71; H01R12/72; H01R12/721; H05; H05K; H05K3/00; H05K3/30; H05K3/32; H05K3/34; H05K3/341; H05K3/3431; H05K3/3436; H01R12/722; H01R12/725; H01R13/00; H01R13/46; H01R13/516; H01R13/518; H05K2201/00; H05K2201/09; H05K2201/09009; H05K2201/09036; H05K2201/10; H05K2201/10007; H05K2201/10189; H05K2201/10227; H05K2201/10424; H05K2201/10431; H05K2201/10568; H05K2201/20; H05K2201/2036; H05K2203/00; H05K2203/04; H05K2203/041; H05K3/3421; H05K3/3426; H05K3/3465; H05K3/3485; Y; Y02; Y02P; Y02P70/00; Y02P70/50
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 29
Claim 1
Independent Claim
192 words
An electrical connector for use in forming an electrical connection
between a contact portion of an electronic component and a contact
portion of a circuit substrate, the electrical connector comprising: a connector body; a plurality of electrical contacts disposed on the connector body and
arranged to electrically mate with the contact portion of the electronic
component; a spacer member forming a mounting interface for mounting of the
connector on the circuit substrate, the member having a plurality of
passages therethrough; a plurality of elongated conductors disposed on the connector body
and arranged to form an electrical connection with the circuit substrate,
each elongated conductor being in electrical communication with a
corresponding one of said plurality of electrical contacts, each one of said
plurality of elongated conductors having a tail end that is unattachedly
disposed within a corresponding one of said passages of said spacer
member; and a plurality of substrate contact members each having a curvilinear
substrate contact surface connected on the tail end of a corresponding
one of said elongated conductors such that an electrical connection
between said elongated conductors and said contact portion of the circuit
substrate is selectively accommodated.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
30 words
The electrical connector of claim 1, wherein the substrate contact
members are solder balls, and said passages have a cross-section area
larger than a cross-section area of said elongated conductors.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
40 words
The electrical connector as recited in claim 1, further comprising a
plurality of wells disposed on said mounting interface of said spacer
member, each of said plurality of wells being in communication with one
of said plurality of said passages.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
49 words
The electrical connector of claim 3, wherein the wells have sides
with side dimensions and the substrate contact members have cross
dimensions and the cross dimensions are less the side dimensions so that
the substrate contact members are spaced from the sides of the wells to
provide a clearance.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
35 words
The electrical connector as recited in claim 4, wherein each
substrate contact member is fused to one tail end of said elongated
conductors to form a spherical body which extends partially outside of
said well.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
34 words
The electrical connector as recited in claim 1, wherein said wells are
elongated in one direction and the direction of elongation of the wells is
substantially aligned with a length of said spacer member.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
23 words
The electrical connector as recited in claim 1, wherein the substrate
contact members are coplanar within a range of 0.1 to 0.2 millimeters.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
28 words
The electrical connector as recited in claim 1, wherein one substrate
contact member is fused to one tail end of the elongated conductors in a
substantially spherical shape.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
27 words
The electrical connector as recited in claim 1, wherein said
elongated conductors are passivated such that said substrate contact
members can attach on a single surface thereof..
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
141 words
An electrical connector for use in forming an electrical connection
with a circuit substrate, the electrical connector comprising: a spacer member, having a planar surface forming an interface
surface with the circuit substrate and having a plurality of wells disposed
on said interface surface, each well having a corresponding passage
extending from a bottom of the well through said spacer member, said
wells having sides forming an opening; a plurality of elongated conductors each having a tail end wherein
each elongated conductor is disposed within a selected one of said
passages such that said tail ends terminate in said corresponding wells
within a predefined range of said planar surface; and an electrically conductive material fused on said corresponding tail
end of said plurality of elongated conductors, said conductive material
having a spherical shaped body which extends partially outside said well
opening.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
33 words
The electrical connector of claim 10, wherein said conductive
material has a melting temperature lower than the melting temperature of
said elongated conductor for fusibly joining said elongated conductor with
the circuit substrate.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
15 words
The electrical connector as recited in claim 11, wherein said
electrically conductive material is solder.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
229 words
An electrical connector for use in forming an electrical connection
between a first electrical element having an electrical contact portion and
a second electrical element having an electrical contact portion, the
electrical connector comprising: a connector body; a first electrical contact disposed within said body, said first
electrical contact comprising an electrically conductive surface for mating
with the electrical contact portion of the first electrical element such that
an electrical connection can be selectively formed between said first
electrical contact and the first electrical element; a spacer member comprising a planar surface and a well disposed
within the planar surface of said spacer member and a passage
connecting said well with a second surface of said spacer member; a second electrical contact comprising a shaped body of an
electrically conductive material having an outer surface for joining said
electrical connector with the electrical contact portion of the second
electrical element; an elongated conductor having a tail end, said elongated conductor
being in electrical communication between said first electrical contact and
said second electrical contact, said connector body and said spacer
member being separated along a length of said elongated conductor, said
elongated conductor tail end being disposed within said passage of said
spacer member and terminating in said well within a predefined range of
said planar surface, wherein said tail end is fusibly joined with said
electrically conductive material.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
21 words
The electrical connector as recited in claim 13, wherein said shaped
body of electrically conductive material extends partially outside said well.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
35 words
The electrical connector as recited in claim 13, wherein said
elongated conductor comprises a bend of about ninety degrees so that
said first electrical contact is disposed angularly with respect to said
second electrical contact.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
16 words
The electrical connector as recited in claim 13, wherein said
passage comprises a substantially rectangular cross-section.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
45 words
The electrical connector as recited in claim 13, wherein said
passage comprises a cross-section with an area larger than the cross-sectional
area of said elongated conductor such that clearance is provided
between the sides of the electrical conductor and the side walls of the
passage.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
25 words
The electrical connector as recited in claim 13, wherein a portion of
said elongated conductor proximate said tail end is passivated to prevent
solder wicking.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
149 words
An electrical element for performing a predefined electrical function
for use with a circuit substrate, the electrical element comprising: a spacer member having a planar surface for mounting on the
circuit substrate, a well with a bottom disposed within said planar surface
and a passage disposed through said spacer member proximate the
bottom of said well; an elongated conductor for providing an electrical current flow
between said electrical element and said circuit substrate, said elongated
conductor having a tail portion within and laterally movable in the
passage and an end of said tail portion that terminates within said well
above said bottom and within a predefined range of the planar surface of
said spacer member; and, a conductive material fused to the end of said tail portion for being
selectively fused to said circuit substrate thereby forming an electrical
current path between said elongated conductor and said circuit substrate.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
20 words
The electrical element as in claim 19, wherein the elongated
conductor comprises a plurality of conductors forming a linear array.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
15 words
The electrical element as in claim 19, wherein the element
comprises an edge card connector.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
53 words
An electrical component comprising: an insulative body; an elongated conductive element mounted on and extending from
the body, the element having a side surface and an end surface transverse
to the side surface; a fusible member fixed only on the end surface by a butt joint
between the member and the end surface.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
27 words
An electrical component as in claim 22, wherein the member is a
solder ball having a cross-sectional area greater than the cross-sectional
area of the end surface.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
14 words
An electrical component as in claim 22, wherein the component
comprises an electrical connector.
Claim 25
Independent Claim
157 words
A method for forming a substrate contact on an electrical element,
wherein the electrical element comprises a mounting surface and an
elongated conductor, said elongated conductor providing an electrical
current flow path between said electrical element and a circuit substrate,
the method comprising the steps of: (a) forming a well in the mounting surface of the electrical
element; (b) inserting a tail end of the elongated conductor into a portion
of said electrical element such that the tail end of the elongated conductor
occupies a portion of said well and terminates within a predefined range
of the mounting surface; (c) filling said well with an amount of solder paste; (d) placing a conductive body in said paste; (e) melting said solder paste such that the conductive body fuses
to said tail end of said elongated conductor and said body coalesces with
molten solder paste to form a spherical body wich at least partially
extends outside said well.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
40 words
The method for forming a conductive body on an electrical element
as recited in claim 25 further comprising the step of treating a portion of
the tail end such that molten solder paste will not attach to the treated
portion.
Claim 27
Independent Claim
151 words
A method of forming a fusible material to a tail end of an elongated
conductor in an electrical connector for use with an electronic component
and a substrate circuit wherein the electrical connector includes a
substrate mounting surface and the elongated conductor provides an
electrical current flow path between the electronic component and the
circuit substrate comprising steps of: (a) forming a well within said mounting surface; (b) inserting the tail end of the conductor into the electrical
connector within a predefined range of the mounting surface such that a
portion of the tail end is exposed within said well; (c) filling in and over said well with a predetermined amount of
the fusible material in the form of a paste; (d) heating said paste to at least a first melting point such that
said paste coalesces into a ball and said ball fuses to said tail end of said
conductor.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
57 words
The method of forming a body of fusible material in an electrical
connector as recited in claim 27 further comprising the step of treating a
portion of the tail end such that the fused material formed from the paste
will not attach to the treated portion so that said ball is at least partially
outside said well.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
50 words
The method of forming a body of fusible material in an electrical
connector as recited in claim 28 wherein the treating step comprises at
least one of passivating said tail end portion and coating said tail end
portion with a oleophobic-hydrophobic fluoropolymer and coating said
well with an anti-migration solution.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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