US6524134B2 — Pluggable module and receptacle

Claim 1

Independent Claim 210 words

A receptacle for receiving a module and electrically connecting said module to a host circuit board mounted within a chassis of a host system, said chassis having a bezel opening which has an offset a certain distance above said host circuit board, said receptacle comprising: a housing having a front and rear, a back wall, a top wall, a bottom wall, and side walls and defining a cavity for receiving a module, said bottom wall having a bottom opening to receive a receptacle connector, said front having a front opening to receive said module, the walls comprising a conductive material; a plurality of elongated members extending down from said housing past said bottom wall and adapted for electrical connection to a host circuit board such that said walls are electrically connected to said host circuit board; at least one standoff extending down from said housing, said standoff being more toward said front of said housing than said rear, when said housing is mounted to said host circuit board, said standoff contacts said circuit board and causes said front of said housing to be raised above said rear of said housing, said front of said housing being raised above said host circuit board by a distance approximately that of said offset.

Claim 2

Dependent Claim 210 words

A receptacle for receiving a module and electrically connecting said module to a host circuit board mounted within a chassis of a host system, said chassis having a bezel opening which has an offset a certain distance above said host circuit board, said receptacle comprising: a housing having a front and rear, a back wall, a top wall, a bottom wall, and side walls and defining a cavity for receiving a module, said bottom wall having a bottom opening to receive a receptacle connector, said front having a front opening to receive said module, the walls comprising a conductive material; a plurality of elongated members extending down from said housing past said bottom wall and adapted for electrical connection to a host circuit board such that said walls are electrically connected to said host circuit board; at least one standoff extending down from said housing, said standoff being more toward said front of said housing than said rear, when said housing is mounted to said host circuit board, said standoff contacts said circuit board and causes said front of said housing to be raised above said rear of said housing, said front of said housing being raised above said host circuit board by a distance approximately that of said offset.

Claim 3

Dependent Claim 36 words

The receptacle of claim 1 , wherein said standoff extends downward from said housing at a length sufficient for said front of said housing to be raised above said rear of said housing at about 1°.

Claim 4

Dependent Claim 19 words

The receptacle of claim 1 , wherein said housing comprises two standoffs, one on each of said side walls.

Claim 5

Dependent Claim 22 words

The receptacle of claim 1 , wherein said bottom wall covers at least about 50% of the bottom area of said receptacle.

Claim 6

Dependent Claim 35 words

The receptacle of claim 1 , wherein at least one elongated containment member extends from said housing between two of said elongated members, said containment member being electrically conductive and electrically connected to said walls.

Claim 7

Dependent Claim 18 words

The receptacle of claim 1 , wherein a plurality of containment members are disposed adjacent said bottom opening.

Claim 8

Dependent Claim 32 words

The receptacle of claim 6 , wherein said elongated members are asymmetrically located on each side of said receptacle and said containment members are symmetrically located on each side of said receptacle.

Claim 9

Dependent Claim 56 words

The receptacle of claim 1 , wherein said housing further comprises grounding tabs disposed at said front of said housing to effect an electrical connection with said bezel of said host system when said receptacle is mounted to said host circuit board, said grounding tabs being cantilevered mounted and extending backwards to a free, distal end.

Claim 10

Dependent Claim 66 words

The receptacle of claim 8 , wherein said front of said housing comprises one or more stops extending outward from said housing to such a distance that they cannot be inserted through said bezel opening, said stops being located forward of the distal ends of said grounding tabs, therefore, said receptacle cannot be inserted through said bezel opening past the distal ends of said grounding tabs.

Claim 11

Dependent Claim 255 words

A pluggable module system comprising: a receptacle mounted to a host circuit board within a chassis of a host system, said chassis having a bezel opening which has an offset a certain distance above said host circuit board, said receptacle comprising a housing having a front and rear, a back wall, a top wall, a bottom wall, and side walls and defining a cavity for receiving a module, said bottom wall having a bottom opening to receive a receptacle connector, said front having a front opening to receive said module, the walls comprising a conductive material and being electrically connected to said host circuit board, said housing also comprising at least one standoff extending down from said housing, said standoff being more toward said front of said housing than said rear, when said housing is mounted to said host circuit board, said standoff contacts said circuit board and causes said front of said housing to be raised above said rear of said housing, said front of said housing being raised above said host circuit board by a distance approximately that of said bezel opening offset; a receptacle connector electrically connecting to said host circuit board and protruding into said cavity through said bottom opening, said receptacle connector being adapted for electrically connecting said module to said host circuit board; and a module comprising a module housing having a front end and a back end and being adapted for insertion into said receptacle and grounding contacts configured for electrical connection to said housing of said receptacle.

Claim 12

Dependent Claim 255 words

A pluggable module system comprising: a receptacle mounted to a host circuit board within a chassis of a host system, said chassis having a bezel opening which has an offset a certain distance above said host circuit board, said receptacle comprising a housing having a front and rear, a back wall, a top wall, a bottom wall, and side walls and defining a cavity for receiving a module, said bottom wall having a bottom opening to receive a receptacle connector, said front having a front opening to receive said module, the walls comprising a conductive material and being electrically connected to said host circuit board, said housing also comprising at least one standoff extending down from said housing, said standoff being more toward said front of said housing than said rear, when said housing is mounted to said host circuit board, said standoff contacts said circuit board and causes said front of said housing to be raised above said rear of said housing, said front of said housing being raised above said host circuit board by a distance approximately that of said bezel opening offset; a receptacle connector electrically connecting to said host circuit board and protruding into said cavity through said bottom opening, said receptacle connector being adapted for electrically connecting said module to said host circuit board; and a module comprising a module housing having a front end and a back end and being adapted for insertion into said receptacle and grounding contacts configured for electrical connection to said housing of said receptacle.

Claim 13

Dependent Claim 36 words

The receptacle of claim 10 , wherein said standoff extends downward from said housing at a length sufficient for said front of said housing to be raised above said rear of said housing at about 1°.

Claim 14

Dependent Claim 19 words

The receptacle of claim 10 , wherein said housing comprises two standoffs, one on each of said side walls.

Claim 15

Dependent Claim 64 words

The system of claim 10 , wherein at least said top wall defines holes which are aligned in two or more rows running front to back thereby defining grounding paths of solid conductive material between the rows, and wherein said grounding paths and grounding contacts cooperate such that when said module is being inserted into said housing, said grounding contacts slide along said paths.

Claim 16

Dependent Claim 133 words

The system of claim 10 , wherein said module comprises a circuit board within said module housing such that at least an edge portion of said module circuit board is accessible in a direction along the same plane as said module circuit board, the edge portion comprising pads on opposing sides of said module circuit board, the pads being suitable for forming an electrical connection with contacts in a mating connector; and said electrical connector comprising a slot for receiving said edge portion and at least two rows of contacts, one row of contacts extending upward into the slot and another row of contacts extending downward into the slot; the contacts being adapted to make an electrical connection with pads on said module circuit board when said module is inserted into the housing.

Claim 17

Dependent Claim 116 words

The system of claim 10 , further comprising an ejection mechanism comprising a resilient member disposed adjacent the back of said housing, and a retention mechanism comprising a resilient latch disposed on said housing, an actuator slidably connected to said module, and a latching member extending from said housing for latching with said resilient latch, said ejection mechanism and said retention mechanism cooperating such that, when said module is inserted into said receptacle, the resilient member is loaded and said resilient latch engages said latching member, when said actuator is pushed backward, said actuator urges said resilient latch from said latching member thereby allowing the resilient member to unload thereby urging the module from the receptacle.

Claim 18

Dependent Claim 28 words

The system of claim 15 , wherein said latching member is configured to shear if said module is forcibly pulled from the housing without releasing said latching mechanism.

Claim 19

Dependent Claim 36 words

The system of claim 15 , wherein said resilient latch comprises an inclined leading edge for riding over the latching member of the module and interfering with a ramped portion of an actuator of the module.

Annuity Stage	Window Opens	Payment Deadline	Surcharge Period Until	Estimated Fee	Status
3.5 Years (Year 4)	2006-02-24	2006-08-26	2007-02-25	$2000.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8)	2010-02-24	2010-08-26	2011-02-25	$3760.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12)	2014-02-24	2014-08-26	2015-02-25	$7700.00	Window Closed / Lapsed

Pluggable module and receptacle

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