Electrical Connector With Fixed Reference Blade
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electrical connectors for circuit boards face challenges in ensuring precise placement of connecting portions due to minimal lateral movability, leading to misalignment and increased size requirements, especially during automated mounting processes.
Innovation Solution
The electrical connector design features a housing with fixedly secured blades and movable blades, utilizing holding grooves to maintain a fixed home position for one blade, allowing for precise alignment of other blades relative to the circuit board without enlarging the connector size.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If all blades are made movable to accommodate minimal lateral movability, then the connector can be mounted on the circuit board, but the connecting portions cannot be precisely placed on the corresponding circuits
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by differentiating the fixation state of different blades: one blade is fixedly secured to provide a reference position with high placement precision, while other blades are movable to accommodate lateral movability requirements. This local differentiation resolves the contradiction by providing both precision (at the fixed blade) and adaptability (at the movable blades) simultaneously.
2Manufacturing precision
If connector size is enlarged to ensure precise placement of all connecting portions, then placement precision improves, but the connector becomes larger and requires enlarged circuit pads
Solution Approach 1:
The patent avoids enlarging the entire connector by applying local quality: only one blade is fixedly secured to provide the necessary placement precision reference, while other blades remain movable. This localized approach to fixation provides sufficient precision without requiring the entire connector structure to be enlarged, thus avoiding increased circuit pad requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The fixedly secured blade serves as a self-service reference element that automatically provides the placement precision needed for other movable blades. During automated mounting, the fixed blade's known position enables the system to self-correct or self-align the positions of movable blades without requiring external adjustment mechanisms or enlarged dimensions.
3Productivity
If automated mounting is used to improve productivity, then mounting speed increases, but misalignment occurs due to minimal lateral movability
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-securing one blade in a fixed position before the automated mounting process. This pre-established reference position enables the automated mounting system to quickly and accurately position the remaining movable blades without requiring complex real-time adjustment, thus maintaining both high productivity and alignment accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The fixedly secured blade provides a stable reference that acts as a feedback basis for the automated mounting system. The known position of the fixed blade allows the mounting system to verify and adjust the positions of movable blades, ensuring alignment accuracy while maintaining automated high-speed operation.
Data Source
AI summary
In an electrical connector for circuit boards or blades, a holding portion formed in a housing has, for each blade, holding grooves that hold the front portions of the blades, and at least one of the above-mentioned multiple blades is fixedly secured in place within one of the corresponding holding grooves while the rest of the blades are made movable through a small gap within the respective corresponding holding grooves. With this arrangement, the fixed blade may be used as a reference while the other blades are free to move slightly during a mating step. In addition, such blade securement may be of use of resilient latches (19) positioned at both ends of each blade (20). At engagement to a mating connector, housing portion (75) of the housing is to provide support for ends of the blades (20).