Spring bushing for conductive back-plane connection

Claim 1

A bushing for providing electrical and mechanical contact between an elongated conductive terminal member and a bore in a conductive plate member through which said terminal member passes, comprising: a generally cylindrical, relatively thin-walled first member of a conductive material having a substantial spring characteristic, said cylindrical first member being open at its opposite ends; a generally coaxial re-entrant portion integral with one end of said first member, said re-entrant portion extending axially within said first member toward the other end thereof for a distance at least part of the axial length of said first member and having an elbow in axial cross-section at said one end corresponding to the inward bend of said re-entrant portion, said re-entrant portion including a second generally cylindrical portion extending from said elbow within the inside of said first member; a plurality of spring fingers formed by axially slotting said re-entrant portion through the material thickness, said spring fingers rooting at said elbow and having a rest position radially inward from the inside surface of said first cylindrical member, said spring fingers being capable of resiliently deflecting radially outward against the surfaces of a terminal member axially inserted through said bushing; and means including at least one axially extending open cut extending throughout at least the axial length of said first member, the width of said cut being reduced when said bushing is inserted in said bore, the resilience of said material providing radially outwardly acting force to tend to retain said insert within said bore.