Multiple electrical connector and block with printed circuit board connector clip

Claim 1

A block for housing electrically conductive wire-formed connector elements of the type having oppositely facing and interconnected upper and low rows of loops, the block including: a retainer section, said retainer section having opposite first and second surfaces; a plurality of rows of spaced slots in said retainer section first surface; at least some of said spaced slots of said retainer section being provided with apertures and spacers, said apertures and said spacers each being positioned so as to be equidistant from the centers of an adjacent pair or loops of a connector element, said apertures communicating with said retainer section second surface, each of said spacers being a protrusion which will be positioned between and in contact with two adjacent lower loops of a connector element; at least a pair of elongated electrically conductive printed circuit board connector pin means, said pin means being positioned and retained within said apertures of said spaced slots, a first end of said pin means extending outwardly beyond said first surface of said retainer section wherein said extended pin means first end is capable of being positioned between and in electrical contact with two adjacent lower loops of a connector element, a second end of said pin means having incorporated thereon a printed circuit board receiving means, a pair of said receiving means capable of electrical and mechanical connection and defining a printed circuit board connector clip; a main body section; a plurality of rows of spaced slots in said main body section in alignment with corresponding rows of slots in said retainer section; a plurality of bridge elements on said main body section in bridging alignment with the slots in each row of said main body section, each bridge element defining a passage in alignment with corresponding slots in the main body section and the retainer section; said corresponding retainer slots, main body slots and bridge passages in each main body section cooperating to define housings for electrically conductive wire connector elements; said bridge elements in each row being spaced apart and in alignment with bridge elements in other rows to define spaced columns for connection of electrical conductors to wire connector elements; and means for releasably joining said retainer section and said main body section together.