Printed circuit board connector having contacts arranged in a staggered grid array

Claim 2

An edge connector for a printed circuit card which comprises: a planar substrate formed with a plurality of apertures therethrough, said apertures being arranged in pairs in staggered alignment along said substrate; a plurality of contact terminals supported within said apertures, each of said contacts including a bowed portion resilient in a direction transverse to the axis of the associated aperture and spaced therefrom by an offset portion, said contacts associated with each pair of apertures being arranged with the bowed portions thereof in closely spaced facing relationship; and an insulative housing substantially enclosing said contacts and including a pair of parallel, longitudinal sidewalls, each formed with a plurality of recesses for receiving the offset portions of selected ones of said contacts and a plurality of transversely extending wall sections separating each contact pair, adjacent ones of said wall sections being frictionally engageable with selected others of said contacts for frictionally retaining said housing in enclosing relationship with said contacts.

Claim 3

An edge connector as set forth in claim 1 wherein the offset portions of the contacts of each contact pair are offset in the same direction anD the offset portions of adjacent pairs of contacts are offset in opposite directions.

Claim 4

An edge connector as set forth in claim 2 wherein one contact of each contact pair is receivable in a recess while the other contact of each contact pair is frictionally engageable with its associated adjacent wall sections.

Claim 5

An edge connector as set forth in claim 1 wherein said plurality of recesses comprise slots which extend through said sidewalls.

Claim 6

An edge connector as set forth in claim 2 wherein the bowed portions of all the contact pairs are in alignment, with the bowed portions of each contact pair being spaced on opposite sides of a printed circuit card receiving plane and wherein each of said recesses in said wall sections comprises an elongated depending slot subtending said printed circuit card receiving plane, the lowermost portion of said slot being aligned with said offset portions of said contacts.

Claim 7

An edge connector as set forth in claim 3 wherein the contact of each contact pair which is frictionally engageable with said wall sections is formed with a wall section-engaging shoulder below its offset portion and said adjacent wall sections associated therewith are formed with grooves for receiving said shoulder.

Claim 8

An improved printed circuit card edge connector of the type including a planar substrate formed with a plurality of pairs of contact receiving apertures therealong, a plurality of contacts each including a portion press-fitted into one of said apertures in said substrate, and a bowed portion resilient in a direction transverse to the axis of an associated aperture, the bowed portions of the contacts associated with each aperture being in closely spaced facing relationship on the opposite sides of a card-receiving plane and an insulative housing having bottom openings of sufficient size to receive the bowed portions of said contacts and a top opening to receive the printed circuit board, said housing being placed down over said press-fitted contacts to substantially enclose said contacts, wherein the improvement comprises: adjacent ones of said pairs of apertures being arranged in offset staggered relationship, with one aperture on each pair on opposite sides of said card-receiving plane; each of said contacts having an offset portion between said bowed portion and said press-fitted portion, the offset portions of each pair of contacts being offset in the same direction, the offset portions of adjacent pairs of contacts being offset in opposite directions; and said housing is formed with a plurality of recesses for receiving the offset portions of selected ones of said contacts.

Claim 9

An improved printed circuit card edge connector of the type including a planar substrate formed with a plurality of pairs of contact receiving apertures therealong, a plurality of contacts each including a portion press-fitted into one of said apertures in said substrate, and a bowed portion resilient in a direction transverse to the axis of an associated aperture, the bowed portions of the contacts associated with each aperture being in closely spaced facing relationship on the opposite sides of a card-receiving plane and an insulative housing having bottom openings of sufficient size to receive the bowed portions of said contacts and a top opening to receive the printed circuit board, said housing being placed down over said press-fitted contacts to substantially enclose said contacts, wherein the improvement comprises: adjacent ones of said pairs of apertures being arranged in offset staggered relationship, with one aperture on each pair on opposite sides of said card-receiving plane; each of said contacts having an offset portion between said bowed portion and said press-fitted portion, the offset portions of each pair of contacts being offset in the same direction, the offset portions of adjacent pairs of contacts being offset in opposite directions; and said housing is formed with a plurality of recesses for receiving the offset portions of selected ones of said contacts.

Claim 10

The improved edge connector set forth in claim 7 wherein the offset portion of one contact of each pair is offset in a direction toward its bowed portion and the offset portion of the other contact of each pair of contacts is offset in a direction away from its bowed portion.