Excel, Inc.

Excel Switching Corporation

Christopher E Roy

Kathleen M Lacey

Lori B Pass

An injector/ejector mechanism for a printed circuit card of the type that has front, rear and opposite side edges, a face plate at the front edge and a connector at the rear edge of the card in which slides on chassis card guides adjacent to the side edges of the cards to a home position in a chassis which connects that connector to a mating connector on a motherboard in the chassis. The mechanism includes a dog having spaced-apart first and second lobes, and a pivot pivotally connecting the dog to the card adjacent to the front edge thereof whereby the dog can pivot parallel to the card. The dog is pivotable between a first position wherein the first dog lobe overhangs the card side edge and engages a first surface of the card guide when the card is not in its home position and a second position wherein the second lobe overhangs the card side edge and engages a second surface of the card guide behind the first surface when the card is in its home position. A lever arm and drag link are provided for pivoting the dog between its first and second positions. The mechanism requires minimal space on the printed circuit card and a minimal opening in the face plate of the card.

Injector/ejector machanism for printed circuit cards

A telecommunications switch chassis includes a housing which is divided into front and rear compartments by a transverse printed circuit board or mid-plane. Notches are provided in the upper edges of the mid-plane which are adapted to receive tabs projecting from the ends of a pair of card guides so that the card guides are supported on edge in proper laterally spaced relation within the front compartment. The card guides are formed with columns of slots whose edges are deformed to form slides interleaved with the slots so that the card guides can support a stack of printed circuit cards in vertical spaced relation within the front compartment, the spaces between the cards being aligned with the slots in the card guides. Card connectors are mounted to the printed circuit board, the connectors being aligned with the slides of the card guides so that when printed circuit cards are seated in the slides, end connectors on those cards mate with the corresponding connectors on the mid-plane so that reliable electrical connections via the mid-plane are made between all of the cards in the chassis. The chassis also includes a fan module in the front compartment which directs high pressure air across the front compartment between the printed circuit cards therein which air flows rearwardly into the rear compartment and between similarly stacked printed circuit cards in the rear compartment following a generally U-shaped path through the housing so that all electrical components on all of the cards are cooled properly.

Telecommunication switch chassis

Telecommunications switch

A telecommunications switch chassis includes a generally rectangular housing whose interior is divided by a lateral partition into front and rear compartments. There is a large opening in the top wall of the housing over the rear compartment only which may be dosed by a removable cover. There is also an opening in the front of the housing which is normally closed by a lockable door to provide controlled access to the front compartment of the housing. The rear compartment contains a printed circuit board with connectors for receiving and supporting on edge a plurality of PC-AT cards whose connectors are accessible through openings in the rear wall of the housing so that exterior cables can be connected to those cards. All of these cards are readily accessible for replacement or repair by removing the cover over the rear compartment. The front compartment contains a rack for supporting redundant DC/DC power supply cards or alternatively an AC power supply. The front compartment also contains a plurality of slide-in memory drives. Access to the dangerous or sensitive components of the switch, as well as to certain controls thereof, can only be had by opening a locked door at the front of the housing. Easily removable fans circulate cooling air through the housing. Also, an optional display may be provided in the door of the chassis.

Growing community of inventors

Plymouth, MA, United States of America

Christopher E Roy