US4064623A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Method of making conductive elastomer connectors
Assignee: International Telephone and Telegraph Corp
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Filing: 1976-10-28
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Granted: 1977-12-27
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Expires: 1996-10-28
Abstract
Abstract An electrical connector in which conductive rubber rods are mounted in a nonconductive substrate. The rods extend above and below the upper and lower surfaces, respectively, of the substrate for electrically interconnecting conductive traces on a pair of electronic components, such as a display panel and logic circuit used in a digital wrist watch. A method for making the connector is disclosed.
Inventors
- 👤 John R. Moore
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-26 00:30
CPC Classifications
H; H01; H01R; H01R13/00; H01R13/02; H01R13/22; H01R13/24; H01R13/2407; H01R13/2414; G; G04; G04G; G04G17/00; G04G17/02; G04G17/06; H01R43/00; H01R43/007; Y; Y10; Y10S; Y10S428/00; Y10S428/901; Y10T; Y10T29/00; Y10T29/49; Y10T29/49002; Y10T29/49117; Y10T29/49124; Y10T29/49147; Y10T29/49151; Y10T29/49153; Y10T29/49204; Y10T29/49208; Y10T29/4981; Y10T29/49812; Y10T428/00; Y10T428/16; Y10T428/163; Y10T428/24; Y10T428/24174; Y10T428/24182; Y10T428/24273; Y10T428/24281; Y10T428/24289; Y10T428/29; Y10T428/2913; Y10T428/2918; Y10T428/2927; Y10T428/31504; Y10T428/31652; Y10T428/31663; Y10T428/31725; Y10T428/31786
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 11
Claim 1
Independent Claim
100 words
A method of making a conductive elastomer connector comprising the steps of: providing a laminate having upper and lower surfaces comprising an insulative substrate having metal layers bonded to the top and bottom surfaces thereof: forming openings through said laminate; filling said openings with a conductive elastomer thereby forming conductive elastomer rods within said openings, said conductive elastomer rods extending only between said upper and lower surfaces of said laminate and removing said metal layers from said substrate with said conductive elastomer rods remaining in said substrate and thereby extending above and below the respective top and bottom surfaces thereof.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
100 words
A method of making a conductive elastomer connector comprising the steps of: providing a laminate having upper and lower surfaces comprising an insulative substrate having metal layers bonded to the top and bottom surfaces thereof: forming openings through said laminate; filling said openings with a conductive elastomer thereby forming conductive elastomer rods within said openings, said conductive elastomer rods extending only between said upper and lower surfaces of said laminate and removing said metal layers from said substrate with said conductive elastomer rods remaining in said substrate and thereby extending above and below the respective top and bottom surfaces thereof.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
18 words
A method as set forth in claim 1 wherein: said openings in said laminate are formed by etching.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
40 words
A method as set forth in claim 1 wherein: said openings in said laminate are formed by first etching aligned holes in said metal layers and then etching holes in said substrate aligned with said holes in said metal layers.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
30 words
A method as set forth in claim 1 wherein: said holes in said substrate are underetched to provide in each hole an undercut etch pattern to retain said rods therein.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
62 words
A method as set forth in claim 1 wherein: said openings are filled with said conductive elastomer by placing a layer of conductive elastomer on the exposed planar surface of one of said metal layers and compressing the resulting structure in a mold; and said elastomer layer is removed from said planar surface prior to removing said metal layers from said substrate.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
19 words
A method as set forth in claim 1 wherein: said metal layers are removed from said substrate by etching.
Claim 8
Independent Claim
150 words
A method of making a conductive elastomer connector comprising the steps of: providing a laminate having upper and lower surfaces comprising an insulative substrate having thin metal layers bonded to the top and bottom surfaces thereof: etching aligned holes in said metal layers; etching holes in said substrate aligned with said aligned holes in said metal layers; placing a layer of conductive elastomer on the exposed planar surface of one of said metal layers and compressing the resulting structure in a mold to fill said holes with said elastomer; removing said elastomer layer from said planar surface thereby forming conductive elastomer rods within said holes, said conductive elastomer rods extending only between said upper and lower surfaces of said laminate; and etching said metal layers from said substrate with said conductive elastomer rods remaining in said substrate and thereby extending above and below the respective top and bottom surfaces thereof.
Claim 9
Independent Claim
150 words
A method of making a conductive elastomer connector comprising the steps of: providing a laminate having upper and lower surfaces comprising an insulative substrate having thin metal layers bonded to the top and bottom surfaces thereof: etching aligned holes in said metal layers; etching holes in said substrate aligned with said aligned holes in said metal layers; placing a layer of conductive elastomer on the exposed planar surface of one of said metal layers and compressing the resulting structure in a mold to fill said holes with said elastomer; removing said elastomer layer from said planar surface thereby forming conductive elastomer rods within said holes, said conductive elastomer rods extending only between said upper and lower surfaces of said laminate; and etching said metal layers from said substrate with said conductive elastomer rods remaining in said substrate and thereby extending above and below the respective top and bottom surfaces thereof.
Claim 10
Independent Claim
105 words
A method of making a conductive elastomer connector comprising the steps of: providing a laminate having upper and lower surfaces comprising an insulative substrate having metal layers on the top and bottom surfaces thereof; forming openings through said laminate of generally uniform cross-section; filling said openings with a conductive elastomer thereby forming conductive elastomer rods within said openings, said conductive elastomer rods extending only between said upper and lower surfaces of said laminate; and removing said metal layers from said substrate with generally uniform cross-section conductive elastomer rods remaining in said substrate and thereby extending above and below the respective top and bottom surfaces thereof.
Claim 11
Independent Claim
105 words
A method of making a conductive elastomer connector comprising the steps of: providing a laminate having upper and lower surfaces comprising an insulative substrate having metal layers on the top and bottom surfaces thereof; forming openings through said laminate of generally uniform cross-section; filling said openings with a conductive elastomer thereby forming conductive elastomer rods within said openings, said conductive elastomer rods extending only between said upper and lower surfaces of said laminate; and removing said metal layers from said substrate with generally uniform cross-section conductive elastomer rods remaining in said substrate and thereby extending above and below the respective top and bottom surfaces thereof.
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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) | 1980-12-26 | 1981-06-27 | 1981-12-27 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1984-12-26 | 1985-06-27 | 1985-12-27 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1988-12-26 | 1989-06-27 | 1989-12-27 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |