Pcb hinged pod connector

Claim 2

An electrical connector assembly for effecting releasable connection to a printed circuit board, which comprises a housing of resilient insulating material and at least one contact releasably mounted in the housing, in which the housing is formed with feet projecting below a floor of the housing for penetrating apertures in and engaging the underside of the circuit board, at least two of the feet being spaced apart in a linear sense along the floor of the housing, one of the spaced feet being resiliently secured to the housing and resiliently movable relative to the housing in the linear sense and the other of the spaced feet being relatively rigidly secured to the housing, thE contact having a contact portion projecting through an aperture in the floor of the housing, and in which the housing is formed with a lid integrally secured by a hinge to a body of the housing, the feet being formed on legs extending from the lid.

Claim 3

An assembly as claimed in claim 1, in which the body is formed with latch means arranged releasably to latch the lid to the body.

Claim 4

An assembly as claimed in claim 1, in which the lid is formed internally with a projection or respective projections arranged to engage and hold the or each contact against movement away from the floor of the housing.

Claim 5

An assembly as claimed in claim 1, in which the floor of the housing is formed on its underside with peripheral flaps arranged resiliently to engage the circuit board around the contact or contacts and act as a dust seal.

Claim 6

An assembly as claimed in claim 1, in which the housing is of generally rectangular form as seen in plan looking towards the floor, the lid being formed with two pairs of legs, one pair of each of the opposite housing ends, the hinge being formed at an end adjacent one of the pairs, the legs of each pair being disposed one on each of the opposite sides of the housing, the legs of the pair at the hinge end being stood off from sides of the lid by respective projections flexible in torsion about an axis transverse to the linear sense, the legs adjacent the hinge end being spaced apart by an amount greater than the legs of the pair at the other end of the housing.

Claim 7

An assembly as claimed in claim 5, in which the housing floor is formed with a contact aperture or a row of contact apertures at the end adjacent the hinge and the resilient legs, and is formed at the other end with a cable entry for the contact or contacts.

Claim 8

An electrical connector assembly for effecting releasable connection to a printed circuit board, which comprises a housing of resilient insulating material and at least one contact releasably mounted in the housing, in which the housing is formed with feet projecting below a floor of the housing for penetrating apertures in and engaging the underside of the circuit board, at least two of the feet being spaced apart in a linear sense along the floor of the housing, one of the spaced feet being resiliently secured to the housing and resiliently movable relative to the housing in the linear sense and the other of the spaced feet being relatively rigidly secured to the housing, the contact having a contact portion projecting through an aperture in the floor of the housing, and wherein said contact comprises a wire connecting portion and a contact portion, the contact portion being of inverted channel form having the wire connecting portion at an end of the web of the channel, in which sides of the channel at the end adjacent the wire connecting portion have lower projections which are turned inwards generally parallel to the channel web, the inturned portions having spring tongue extensions extending forwardly along the channel in closely spaced side-by-side relationship, free end portions of the tongues being bent initially away from the channel web at an inclination and then towards the channel web to present arcuate convex contact portions directed outwardly of the channel.

Claim 9

An electrical connector assembly for effecting releasable connection to a printed circuit board, which comprises a housing of resilient insulating material and at least one contact releasably mounted in the housing, in which the housing is formed with feet projecting below a floor of the housing for penetrating apertures in and engaging the underside of the circuit board, at least two of the feet being spaced apart in a linear sense along the floor of the housing, one of the spaced feet being resiliently secured to the housing and resiliently movable relative to the housing in the linear sense and the other of the spaced feet being relatively rigidly secured to the housing, the contact having a contact portion projecting through an aperture in the floor of the housing, and wherein said contact comprises a wire connecting portion and a contact portion, the contact portion being of inverted channel form having the wire connecting portion at an end of the web of the channel, in which sides of the channel at the end adjacent the wire connecting portion have lower projections which are turned inwards generally parallel to the channel web, the inturned portions having spring tongue extensions extending forwardly along the channel in closely spaced side-by-side relationship, free end portions of the tongues being bent initially away from the channel web at an inclination and then towards the channel web to present arcuate convex contact portions directed outwardly of the channel.

Claim 10

An assembly as claimed in claim 7, in which the extremities of the free ends of the spring tongues are generally perpendicular to the web of the channel, and are disposed between channel side portions.

Claim 11

An assembly as claimed in claim 7, in which the web of the channel is apertured between a portion adjacent the wire connecting portion and a remote leading end portion, metal from the aperture forming a support spring extending in cantilever fashion from the channel web at the wire connecting portion, between the channel sides at an inclination towards the contact springs, the free end of the support spring arranged to engage the contact springs on their flexure towards the channel web.

Claim 12

An assembly as claimed in claim 9, in which the support sprIng is formed intermediate its ends with an arcuately bent transition section projecting in convex manner towards the aperture in the channel web and adapted on operation flexure of the support spring to engage a lid part of the housing to resist flexure away from the housing floor.