Dual-Sided Connector Pin Interposer for Pinless ICs
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing IC packages with pins are prone to damage during installation, making them unusable and expensive to replace, while pinless IC packages require costly board replacements due to bent pin issues, increasing the likelihood of damage as the number of connector pins increases.
Innovation Solution
A removable and replaceable dual-sided connector pin interposer with flexible pins on a substrate, which connects a pinless socket to a pinless integrated circuit component, allowing for easy replacement of damaged pins and reducing the risk of board damage, featuring a presence pin for proper installation detection and a pull-up resistor for installation status signaling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If IC packages include connector pins to be inserted into pad connectors on the socket, then electrical connections can be established, but the pins are prone to damage during installation making the IC package unusable
Solution Approach 1:
The invention divides the connection system into three separate components: the IC package (pinless), the socket (pinless), and the interposer (with flexible pins). This segmentation isolates the vulnerable pins to the replaceable interposer, protecting both the IC package and socket from pin damage while maintaining electrical connection reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The interposer acts as an intermediary component between the pinless IC package and the pinless socket. It contains the flexible pins that make actual contact, mediating the connection while protecting the expensive IC package and socket from direct pin-to-pin contact and associated damage risks.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If pinless IC packages are used requiring the board to manufacture mounting socket with connector pins, then the IC package is protected from pin damage, but bent pins at the board level require expensive board replacement
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the pin-containing component into a separate interposer that can be independently removed and replaced, the invention prevents damage propagation to the board level. When pin damage occurs, only the interposer needs replacement, not the entire board, dramatically reducing repair costs and complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The interposer is designed as a sacrificial, replaceable component that absorbs the wear and damage risks. It is manufactured at lower cost than the IC package or socket, making it economically feasible to replace the interposer rather than the expensive board or IC package when damage occurs.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the number of connector pins on the board increases to provide mounting interface for IC packages with increasing pad connectors, then more connections are available, but the probability of pin damage at the board level increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention segments the connection interface into the interposer containing all flexible pins, allowing the board to have many pad connectors without proportionally increasing pin damage risk. The pins are concentrated in the protected interposer rather than distributed across the board, reducing the probability of board-level pin damage even as connection count increases.
Solution Approach 2:
The interposer serves as an intermediary that absorbs all mechanical stress and damage risks associated with multiple connector pins. This allows the system to support IC packages with increasing numbers of pad connectors while the interposer protects the board from pin damage regardless of the number of connections required.
Data Source
AI summary
A dual-sided connector pin interposer includes a substrate comprising a first side opposite a second side. The interposer includes a first plurality of flexible pins protruding from the first side of the substrate. The first plurality of flexible pins is positioned for installation in a first plurality of pad connectors of the pinless socket. The interposer includes a second plurality of flexible pins protruding from the second side of the substrate. The second plurality of flexible pins is positioned for installation in a second plurality of pad connectors of the pinless integrated circuit component. The first plurality of flexible pins are electrically connected to the second plurality of flexible pins through the substrate to provide electrical contact points between the pinless socket and the pinless integrated circuit component when the interposer is installed.