Flexible Beam Pin for PCB Hole Contact
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The insertion of a pin into a circuit board hole creates a stub effect, leading to impedance discontinuity and disruption of the intended operation of printed circuit boards due to impedance discontinuity.
Innovation Solution
A pin with outwardly biased flexible beams that extend from its body, connected at one end and separated at the other, forming an open slot, which contacts the plating of the circuit board hole, minimizing the lead-in point and reducing the stub effect by optimizing beam thickness, slot separation, and length to accommodate various hole diameters.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a pin is inserted into a circuit board hole to establish electrical contact, then reliable electrical connection is achieved, but stub effect and impedance discontinuity occur disrupting circuit board operation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the harmful portion of the pin (the inserted portion creating stub effect) by using a flexible beam design that makes minimal contact with the hole walls. The flexible beams contact only the plating at the hole opening, effectively removing the problematic inserted portion while maintaining electrical connection functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs flexible beams that act as thin, compliant contact elements. These flexible beams can deform to accommodate hole variations while maintaining contact with the plating, reducing the rigid stub effect that causes impedance discontinuity while ensuring reliable electrical connection.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the pin structure is modified to reduce stub effect, then impedance discontinuity is minimized, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The pin is segmented into a body and multiple flexible beams that extend from the body. This segmentation allows the beams to independently contact the plating while the body remains external to the hole, reducing stub effect while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure that can be manufactured as an integrated component.
Solution Approach 2:
The flexible beams introduce dynamic compliance to the pin structure, allowing it to adapt to variations in hole dimensions and plating positions. This dynamic capability reduces impedance discontinuity without requiring complex adjustable mechanisms, as the flexibility is inherent in the beam design.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively reduces the stub effect, minimizing the pin's impact on the circuit board's performance by establishing a reliable electrical connection with reduced impedance discontinuity and deformation, thus enhancing the operational integrity of the printed circuit board.
Implementation Method 1
a pair of outwardly biased flexible beams that each extend from a body of the pin, the flexible beams connected at one end to one another at the body of the pin and separated from each other at an end opposite the end connected to the body
Data Source
AI summary
A pin and a method of establishing contact between a pin and plating of a circuit board hole is provided. Embodiments include a pin comprising a pair of outwardly biased flexible beams that each extend from a body of the pin, the flexible beams connected at one end to one another at the body of the pin and separated from each other at an end opposite the end connected to the body, the separation between the pair of flexible beams forming an open slot, each flexible beam including a contact point that contacts the plating of the hole when the pin is inserted into the circuit board hole.