Movable PCB Connector Housing Eliminates Soldering
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing connectors for printed circuit boards (PCBs) often require labor-intensive installation and maintenance, can cause shadowing of light from LEDs, and necessitate multiple connectors, leading to inefficient lighting and increased manufacturing costs due to the need for soldering and complex installation processes.
Innovation Solution
The development of improved connectors with a moveable housing that allows for easy mounting and adjustment over PCBs, utilizing a non-conductive housing with resilient holding elements like spring clips to securely engage contact pads and reduce the number of connectors required, enabling vertical PCB replacement and continuous lighting without soldering.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If traditional connectors are used for PCB connections, then electrical connection is achieved, but installation and maintenance become labor-intensive requiring soldering
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the traditional soldering process (thermal/chemical mechanism) with a mechanical press-fit system. The connector housing includes a pressing portion that mechanically presses the PCB contact pad onto the contact terminal, eliminating the need for soldering irons, flux, and cooling time. This mechanical substitution directly resolves the contradiction by making installation easier and faster.
Solution Approach 2:
The connector design enables self-installing through the press-fit mechanism where the housing itself performs the connection function. The pressing portion automatically applies sufficient force during installation to create a reliable electrical connection without requiring external soldering equipment or additional fastening operations, allowing operators to complete installations quickly and independently.
2Illumination intensity
If multiple connectors are used to ensure continuous lighting, then lighting coverage is improved, but shadowing increases and device complexity rises
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a movable housing that can be positioned at different locations along the PCB. This dynamic positioning capability allows a single connector type to replace multiple fixed connectors, reducing overall device complexity while maintaining continuous lighting coverage. The housing moves to optimal positions that minimize shadowing and ensure uninterrupted LED illumination.
Solution Approach 2:
The connector is designed as a universal component that can serve multiple functions: electrical connection, mechanical support, and positioning adjustment. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for specialized connectors at different PCB locations, reducing the total number of connector variants and simplifying inventory management while ensuring continuous lighting throughout the assembly.
3Reliability
If connectors are firmly fixed to PCBs, then connection stability is improved, but PCB replacement becomes difficult requiring connector removal
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is designed to be movable relative to the base, allowing it to be easily removed and repositioned. This dynamic design maintains stable electrical connections during normal operation while enabling quick PCB replacement when needed. The pressing portion retains sufficient force for reliable connection but allows deliberate removal by applying opposite force, resolving the contradiction between stability and replaceability.
Solution Approach 2:
The connector is segmented into a base portion (attached to mounting structure) and a movable housing portion (containing contact terminals). This segmentation allows the housing to be independently removed from the base, enabling PCB replacement without removing the entire connector assembly. The segmented design maintains connection stability during operation while facilitating easy maintenance and repair.
4Reliability
If soldering is used for connector installation, then electrical connection reliability is improved, but manufacturing cost and process complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the soldering process with a mechanical press-fit system where the housing pressing portion directly applies force to create reliable electrical contact. This eliminates all soldering-related costs including solder material, flux, soldering iron equipment, and specialized operator training. The mechanical system achieves comparable or superior reliability while dramatically reducing manufacturing complexity and cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The connector housing appears to be designed as a disposable or easily replaceable component rather than a permanent soldered attachment. This approach reduces manufacturing costs by eliminating expensive soldering processes and allows for quick replacement if needed, trading the permanence of soldering for economic efficiency and operational flexibility.
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 reduces the need for soldering, minimizes shadowing, and decreases the number of connectors needed, allowing for easier PCB replacement and near-continuous lighting with fewer dark spots, while being cost-effective and simpler to install, thus improving the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of PCB connections.
Implementation Method 1
a resilient holding element... engageable with at least one of the PCBs and/or a surface supporting the PCBs to releasably retain the housing and the terminals
Data Source
Figure 1A
Figure 1B
Figure 1C
AI summary
A connector for electrically connecting a conductor to a first printed circuit board (PCB) or for electrically connecting a first and second PCB together. A housing is adapted to be slidably moveable relative to a mounting structure to allow the mounting of the PCB to the surface and moveable over the PCB to contact pads located on the top side of the PCB. In another example, a bridging connector for electrically connecting a first PCB with a second PCB includes a resilient holding element, such as for example a spring clip, engageable with at least one of the PCBs and/or a surface supporting the PCB(s) to releasably retain the housing and the terminals in the correct location.