Patent US3926360A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US3926360A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Method of attaching a flexible printed circuit board to a rigid printed circuit board
Assignee: Unisys Corp
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Filing: 1974-05-28
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Granted: 1975-12-16
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Expires: 1994-05-28
Abstract
Abstract An improved method for soldering the terminals of a rigid printed circuit board to those of a flexible printed circuit board, such method comprising the steps of focusing a radiant heating source upon each of a plurality of solder globules deposited in a like number of through holes in the terminals of the rigid printed circuit board for controlling of the capillary flow of the molten solder radially from the through holes to form solder points of controlled depth and pattern between the terminals of the boards.
Inventors
- 👤 Jr Douglas E Moister
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-28 20:21
CPC Classifications
H; H01; H01R; H01R12/00; H01R12/50; H01R12/59; H01R12/62; B; B23; B23K; B23K1/00; B23K1/005; B23K1/0053; H05; H05K; H05K3/00; H05K3/36; H05K3/361; H05K3/363; B23K2101/00; B23K2101/36; B23K2101/42; H05K2201/00; H05K2201/09; H05K2201/09209; H05K2201/095; H05K2201/09572; H05K2201/10; H05K2201/10613; H05K2201/10621; H05K2201/10666; H05K2203/00; H05K2203/04; H05K2203/041; H05K2203/0455; H05K3/30; H05K3/32; H05K3/34; H05K3/3494
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 10
Claim 1
Independent Claim
205 words
A method for solderably joining a selected terminal of a flexible printed circuit board to a selected terminal of a rigid printed circuit board comprising the steps of: a. providing one or more apertures in the rigid printed circuit board through its said selected terminal, b. plating the surfaces of said selected terminals, c. pre-heatably filling each of said apertures with a globule of solder of sufficient size to produce a protruding convex upper and lower meniscus thereof as a byproduct of said plating, d. bringing the selected terminal of said flexible printed circuit board into compressible contact with each of said lower convex meniscuses of solder in the apertures of said rigid printed circuit board, e. arranging an infrared heating source and focusing means therefor in aligned focusing relationship relative to each of said upper meniscuses of solder, and f. controllably activating each of said infrared heating sources such that an infrared beam of controlled intensity and timeduration is directed upon each of said upper convex meniscuses to bring each of said solder globules to a molten state and to thereby capillarily transform each of said lower convex meniscuses to a radially formed solder joint between said selected terminals when said molten solder solidifies.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
205 words
A method for solderably joining a selected terminal of a flexible printed circuit board to a selected terminal of a rigid printed circuit board comprising the steps of: a. providing one or more apertures in the rigid printed circuit board through its said selected terminal, b. plating the surfaces of said selected terminals, c. pre-heatably filling each of said apertures with a globule of solder of sufficient size to produce a protruding convex upper and lower meniscus thereof as a byproduct of said plating, d. bringing the selected terminal of said flexible printed circuit board into compressible contact with each of said lower convex meniscuses of solder in the apertures of said rigid printed circuit board, e. arranging an infrared heating source and focusing means therefor in aligned focusing relationship relative to each of said upper meniscuses of solder, and f. controllably activating each of said infrared heating sources such that an infrared beam of controlled intensity and timeduration is directed upon each of said upper convex meniscuses to bring each of said solder globules to a molten state and to thereby capillarily transform each of said lower convex meniscuses to a radially formed solder joint between said selected terminals when said molten solder solidifies.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
61 words
The method defined in claim 1 wherein the step of controllably activating more than one of said infrared heating sources is preceded by the step of supportably and evenly backing said flexible Printed circuit board on the side thereof opposite the selected terminal thereof, such that each of said radially formed solder joints between said selected terminals is of uniform depth.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
95 words
The method defined in claim 1 wherein the step of bringing the selected terminal of the flexible printed circuit board into compressible contact with each of the lower convex meniscuses of solder in the apertures of the selected terminal of the rigid printed circuit board comprises the steps of: a. registering the selected terminals together in overlapping relationship, b. compressibly backing said flexible printed circuit board on the side thereof opposite its said selected terminal, and c. clamping the printed circuit boards together such that the selected terminals are retainably aligned in said overlapping registration.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
88 words
The method defined in claim 1 wherein the step of controllably activating each of the infrared heating sources includes the steps of: a. focusing a beam from said heating source upon the upper convex meniscus of solder with which said heating source is aligned, and b. controlling the intensity and time duration of said infrared beam for maximum dispersion of the molten solder from the lower end of each of the solder filled apertures to form radial patterns via capillary flow intermediate said selected and registrationally aligned terminals.
Claim 6
Independent Claim
210 words
A method for solderably joining the substantially planar terminals of a flexible printed circuit board to the substantially planar terminals of a rigid printed circuit board comprising the steps of: a. forming one or more apertures in the rigid printed circuit board through each of its said terminals, b. plating the terminals of the flexible printed circuit board and the rigid printed circuit board, and the walls of the apertures formed in the rigid printed circuit board, c. depositing a globule of solder in each of the apertures in the terminals of the rigid printed circuit board as a byproduct of said plating of the terminals, d. bringing the terminals of the flexible printed circuit board into firm contact with the terminals of the rigid printed circuit board such that they are prepositioned in overlapping registry with each other, e. supportably presenting a resilient back pad to the flexible printed circuit board on the side thereof opposite its said terminals, and f. controllably focusing radiant heat locally upon the exposed sides of the globules of solder in each of the apertures formed in the terminals of the rigid printed circuit board for enabling the molten solder to capillarily flow between the registered terminals to radially form corrsponding solder joints therebetween.
Claim 7
Independent Claim
210 words
A method for solderably joining the substantially planar terminals of a flexible printed circuit board to the substantially planar terminals of a rigid printed circuit board comprising the steps of: a. forming one or more apertures in the rigid printed circuit board through each of its said terminals, b. plating the terminals of the flexible printed circuit board and the rigid printed circuit board, and the walls of the apertures formed in the rigid printed circuit board, c. depositing a globule of solder in each of the apertures in the terminals of the rigid printed circuit board as a byproduct of said plating of the terminals, d. bringing the terminals of the flexible printed circuit board into firm contact with the terminals of the rigid printed circuit board such that they are prepositioned in overlapping registry with each other, e. supportably presenting a resilient back pad to the flexible printed circuit board on the side thereof opposite its said terminals, and f. controllably focusing radiant heat locally upon the exposed sides of the globules of solder in each of the apertures formed in the terminals of the rigid printed circuit board for enabling the molten solder to capillarily flow between the registered terminals to radially form corrsponding solder joints therebetween.
Claim 8
Independent Claim
203 words
A method of solderably bonding the plated terminals of a flexible printed circuit board to the plated terminals of a rigid printed circuit board comprising the steps of: a. forming at least one aperture through said rigid printed circuit board at each of its said plated terminals; b. depositing a globule of solder in each of said apertures; c. aligning the plated terminals of said flexible printed circuit board with the solder-containing apertures of the corresponding plated terminals of said rigid printed circuit board; d. applying a predetermined amount of pressure to the side of said flexible printed circuit board not in contact with the plated terminals of said rigid printed circuit board to insure a uniform depth of the solder joint; and e. locally applying a predetermined controlled amount of radiant energy to the side of each of said solder globules not in contact with the plated terminals of said flexible printed circuit board for effecting a capillary flow of solder into a radially patterned solder bond of a uniform dispersion and depth at each of the points of contact between the plated terminals of said flexible printed circuit board and the corresponding apertured plated terminals of said rigid printed circuit board.
Claim 9
Independent Claim
203 words
A method of solderably bonding the plated terminals of a flexible printed circuit board to the plated terminals of a rigid printed circuit board comprising the steps of: a. forming at least one aperture through said rigid printed circuit board at each of its said plated terminals; b. depositing a globule of solder in each of said apertures; c. aligning the plated terminals of said flexible printed circuit board with the solder-containing apertures of the corresponding plated terminals of said rigid printed circuit board; d. applying a predetermined amount of pressure to the side of said flexible printed circuit board not in contact with the plated terminals of said rigid printed circuit board to insure a uniform depth of the solder joint; and e. locally applying a predetermined controlled amount of radiant energy to the side of each of said solder globules not in contact with the plated terminals of said flexible printed circuit board for effecting a capillary flow of solder into a radially patterned solder bond of a uniform dispersion and depth at each of the points of contact between the plated terminals of said flexible printed circuit board and the corresponding apertured plated terminals of said rigid printed circuit board.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
62 words
The method of claim 6 wherein said step of depositing a globule of solder in each of said apertures includes the step of preheatedly depositing a molten globule of solder in each of said apertures and forming a convex lower surface of said globule which protrudes out of said aperture for contacting said corresponding plated terminals of said flexible printed circuit board.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1978-12-15 | 1979-06-16 | 1979-12-16 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1982-12-15 | 1983-06-16 | 1983-12-16 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1986-12-15 | 1987-06-16 | 1987-12-16 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |