Filtered electrical connector

Claim 2

A filtered electrical connector for a printed circuit comprising: a housing having a shelf and a compartment that includes a socket in the bottom of the housing for attaching an end connector of a wiring harness to the housing, the compartment having a lower portion and an upper portion, the shelf facing away from the lower portion and exposed in the upper portion, a plastic retainer individually engaging each one of a plurality of contact pins extending through the retainer, the retainer disposed in the lower portion of the compartment with the contact pins extending downwardly into the socket and upwardly into the upper portion, and an electric filter insert disposed in the upper portion of the compartment and engaged to the shelf of the housing with the contact pins extending through the filter insert.

Claim 3

A filtered electrical connector for a printed circuit comprising: a housing having a compartment that includes a socket in the bottom of the housing for attaching an end connector of a wiring harness to the housing; the compartment having a lower portion and an upper portion; a plastic retainer individually engaging each one of a plurality of contact pins extending through the retainer, the retainer disposed in the lower portion of the compartment with the contact pins extending downwardly into the socket and upwardly into the upper portion; and an electric filter insert disposed in the upper portion of the compartment with the contact pins extending through the filter insert wherein the filter insert has a body comprising a plastic substrate having anistropic thermal expansion properties and electrical devices having major lengths that are oriented so that the major lengths of the electrical devices align in the direction of the reduced thermal expansion properties of the substrate.

Claim 4

A filtered electrical connector for a printed circuit comprising: a housing having a compartment that includes a socket in the bottom of the housing for attaching an end connector of a wiring harness to the housing; the compartment having a lower portion and an upper portion; a plastic retainer individually engaging each one of a plurality of contact pins extending through the retainer, the retainer disposed in the lower portion of the compartment with the contact pins extending downwardly into the socket and upwardly into the upper portion; and an electric filter insert disposed in the upper portion of the compartment with the contact pins extending through the filter insert wherein the filter insert has a body comprising a plastic substrate having anistropic thermal expansion properties and electrical devices having major lengths that are oriented so that the major lengths of the electrical devices align in the direction of the reduced thermal expansion properties of the substrate.

Claim 5

The filtered electrical connector as defined in claim 2 wherein the substrate has a plurality of through holes that the contact pins extend through and the substrate is coated so that the through holes are conductive and a surface of the substrate includes conductive contact pads for the conductive through holes and a ground plane that surrounds the conductive contact pads.

Claim 6

The filtered electrical connector as defined in claim 3 wherein the conductive contact pads include solder pads and the ground plane includes fingers that provide ground solder pads that are spaced closely to respective ones of the solder pads of the contact pads.

Claim 7

The filtered electrical connector as defined in claim 4 wherein the solder pads and the ground solder pads are spaced from each other in the direction of the reduced thermal expansion properties of the substrate.

Claim 8

The filtered electrical connector as defined in claim 5 wherein the electrical devices are capacitors that are surface mounted on the body of the filter and have electrical contacts at the ends of their major lengths that are soldered to the respective solder pads and ground solder pads.

Claim 9

The filtered electrical connector as defined in claim 6 wherein the filter insert has ground holes extending through the insert, wherein the substrate of the filter insert is coated so that the ground holes are conductive, and wherein the housing is conductive and includes integral ground contact pins that are press fit in the ground contact holes to ground the ground plane to the housing.

Claim 10

A filtered electrical connector for a printed circuit comprising: a housing having a compartment that includes a socket in the bottom of the housing for attaching an end connector of a wiring harness to the housing; the compartment having a lower portion and an upper portion; a plastic retainer having a plurality of contact pins extending through the retainer, the retainer disposed in the lower portion of the compartment with the contact pins extending downwardly into the socket and upwardly into the upper portion; an electric filter insert disposed in the upper portion of the compartment with the contact pins extending through the filter insert wherein the filter insert has a body comprising a plastic substrate having anistropic thermal expansion properties and electrical devices having major lengths that are oriented so that the major lengths of the electrical devices align in the direction of the reduced thermal expansion properties of the substrate; the substrate having a plurality of through holes that the contact pins extend through and the substrate is coated so that the through holes are conductive and a surface of the substrate includes conductive contact pads for the conductive through holes and a ground plane that surrounds the conductive contact pads; the contact pads having solder pads and the ground plane having fingers that provide ground solder pads that are spaced closely to respective ones of the solder pads of the contact pads, wherein the solder pads and the ground solder pads are spaced from each other in the direction of the reduced thermal expansion properties of the substrate, and wherein the electrical devices are capacitors that are surface mounted on the body of the filter insert and have electrical contacts at the ends of the capacitor lengths that are soldered to the respective solder pads and ground solder pads; the filter insert having ground holes extending through the insert, wherein the substrate of the filter insert is coated so that the ground holes are conductive, and wherein the housing is conductive and includes integral ground contact pins that are press fit in the ground contact holes to ground the ground plane to the housing; and the substrate being plated so that substantially the entire exposed surface of the substrate is conductive except for labyrinths on the upper surface that define the contact pads and fingers and for rings on the lower surface that isolate the contact holes.

Claim 11

A filtered electrical connector for a printed circuit comprising: a housing having a compartment that includes a socket in the bottom of the housing for attaching an end connector of a wiring harness to the housing; the compartment having a lower portion and an upper portion; a plastic retainer having a plurality of contact pins extending through the retainer, the retainer disposed in the lower portion of the compartment with the contact pins extending downwardly into the socket and upwardly into the upper portion; an electric filter insert disposed in the upper portion of the compartment with the contact pins extending through the filter insert wherein the filter insert has a body comprising a plastic substrate having anistropic thermal expansion properties and electrical devices having major lengths that are oriented so that the major lengths of the electrical devices align in the direction of the reduced thermal expansion properties of the substrate; the substrate having a plurality of through holes that the contact pins extend through and the substrate is coated so that the through holes are conductive and a surface of the substrate includes conductive contact pads for the conductive through holes and a ground plane that surrounds the conductive contact pads; the contact pads having solder pads and the ground plane having fingers that provide ground solder pads that are spaced closely to respective ones of the solder pads of the contact pads, wherein the solder pads and the ground solder pads are spaced from each other in the direction of the reduced thermal expansion properties of the substrate, and wherein the electrical devices are capacitors that are surface mounted on the body of the filter insert and have electrical contacts at the ends of the capacitor lengths that are soldered to the respective solder pads and ground solder pads; the filter insert having ground holes extending through the insert, wherein the substrate of the filter insert is coated so that the ground holes are conductive, and wherein the housing is conductive and includes integral ground contact pins that are press fit in the ground contact holes to ground the ground plane to the housing; and the substrate being plated so that substantially the entire exposed surface of the substrate is conductive except for labyrinths on the upper surface that define the contact pads and fingers and for rings on the lower surface that isolate the contact holes.

Claim 12

The filtered electrical connector as defined in claim 1 further including a ferrite block that is disposed in the compartment above the filter insert, wherein the contact pins extend through the ferrite block.

Claim 13

The filtered electrical connector as defined in claim 9 wherein the filter insert is encapsulated in a sealant and the ferrite block has a bottom that is embedded in the sealant.

Claim 14

The filtered electrical connector as defined in claim 7 further including a ferrite block disposed in the compartment above the filter insert with the contact pins extending through the ferrite block and wherein the housing has a shelf that supports the integral ground contact pins and further supports integral pedestals that extend through the filter insert to support the ferrite block.

Claim 15

The filtered electrical connector as defined in claim 11 wherein the filter insert is encapsulated in a sealant and the ferrite block has a bottom that is embedded in the sealant.

Claim 16

An electric filter insert for an electrical connector having a plurality of contact pins comprising: a body having a plastic substrate having anistropic thermal expansion properties, the substrate defining a plurality of through holes, each one of the plurality of contact pins extending through a respective one of the plurality of through holes, the plurality of contact pins thereby supported by the substrate; and electrical devices having major length that are oriented so that the major lengths of the electrical devices align in the direction of the reduced thermal expansion properties of the substrate.

Claim 17

An electric filter insert for an electrical connector having a plurality of contact pins comprising: a body having a plastic substrate having anistropic thermal expansion properties, the substrate defining a plurality of through holes, each one of the plurality of contact pins extending through a respective one of the plurality of through holes, the plurality of contact pins thereby supported by the substrate; and electrical devices having major length that are oriented so that the major lengths of the electrical devices align in the direction of the reduced thermal expansion properties of the substrate.

Claim 18

The electric filter insert as defined in claim 13 wherein the substrate is coated so that the plurality of through holes are conductive and a surface of the substrate includes conductive contact pads for the conductive plurality of through holes and a ground plane that surrounds the conductive contact pads.

Claim 19

The electric filter insert as defined in claim 14 wherein the conductive contact pads include solder pads and the ground plane includes fingers that provide ground solder pads that are spaced closely to respective ones of the solder pads of the contact pads.

Claim 20

The electric filter insert as defined in claim 15 wherein the solder pads and the ground solder pads are spaced from each other in the direction of the reduced thermal expansion properties of the substrate.

Claim 21

The electric filter insert as defined in claim 16 wherein the electrical devices are capacitors that are surface mounted on the body of the filter insert and have electrical contacts at the ends of their major length that are soldered to the respective solder pads and ground solder pads.

Claim 22

The electric filter insert as defined in claim 17 wherein the filter insert has ground holes extending through the filter insert and wherein the substrate of the filter insert is coated so that the ground holes are conductive.

Claim 23

The filter insert as defined in claim 18 wherein the substrate is plated so that substantially the entire exposed surface of the body is conductive except for labyrinths on the upper surface that define the contact pads and ground planes and for the rings on the lower surface that isolate the contact holes.