Surface-Mount Inductor With Segmented Metallic Plate
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional surface-mount inductors face damage to the molded body when forming external terminals and fail to achieve high-density mounting due to solder fillet formation on side surfaces during assembly.
Innovation Solution
A surface-mount inductor design featuring a molded body made from a composite material with a metallic plate embedded in a way that prevents damage, where the metallic plate is partially exposed at the mounting surface, forming external terminals without exposing end portions on side surfaces, thereby preventing solder fillet formation and enhancing mounting density.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a metallic plate is bent to form an external terminal in a conventional surface-mount inductor, then the external terminal can be formed, but the molded body may be damaged when the size of the electronic component is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The metallic plate is divided into multiple portions: a first metallic plate portion embedded in the molded body, second metallic plate portions extending to the bottom surface, and third metallic plate portions extending along the bottom surface. This segmentation allows the external terminal to be formed without concentrating stress that could damage the molded body.
Solution Approach 2:
The metallic plate structure extends in multiple dimensions: horizontally within the molded body, vertically to the bottom surface, and along the bottom surface parallel to it. This multi-dimensional configuration distributes the bending stress away from the side surfaces, preventing molded body damage while maintaining terminal functionality.
2Ease of operation
If external terminals are disposed on side surfaces of the molded body, then the terminals are accessible, but solder fillet formation on side surfaces prevents high-density mounting
Solution Approach 1:
The external terminals are repositioned from the side surfaces to the bottom surface of the molded body. This dimensional relocation allows solder fillets to form on the bottom surface rather than side surfaces, eliminating the obstacle to high-density mounting while maintaining terminal accessibility through the exposed third metallic plate portions.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of extending terminals upward from the bottom surface to the side surfaces as in conventional designs, this invention extends them parallel to the bottom surface, keeping them separated from side surfaces. This inverted approach prevents solder fillet formation on side surfaces while still providing accessible external terminals.
3Volume of moving object
If the metallic plate is embedded close to side surfaces of the molded body, then the structure is compact, but damage to the molded body occurs during terminal formation
Solution Approach 1:
The metallic plate is segmented into portions that extend parallel to the bottom surface rather than contacting side surfaces. This segmentation maintains compactness by keeping the structure within the molded body footprint while preventing damage by avoiding proximity to vulnerable side surfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The third metallic plate portions are specifically configured to extend parallel to the bottom surface and be separated from side surfaces, creating a local quality difference that prevents damage at critical locations while maintaining overall compactness through the embedded first and second portions.
Data Source
AI summary
A surface-mount inductor includes a molded body and a metallic plate. The metallic plate has a first metallic plate portion embedded in the molded body such that an extension direction and a width direction thereof are parallel to the mounting surface; second metallic plate portions extending from both end portions, in the extension direction, of the first metallic plate portion to a bottom surface of the molded body in a direction to the mounting surface; and third metallic plate portions disposed to extend from the second metallic plate portions along the bottom surface of the molded body and be separated from side surfaces adjacent to the bottom surface of the molded body. Each of the third metallic plate portions has at least a surface exposed from the molded body. End portions of the metallic plate are embedded to be separated from the side surfaces of the molded body.