Daimler Chrysler Ag

Temic Telefunken Microelectronic Gmbh

Engelbert Woerle

Richard Baur

Guenter Anton Fendt

Alfons Woehrl

Juergen Ryll

A housing for an assembly of electronic components mounted on a circuit board is predominantly made of plastic, and includes a plastic housing cover and a housing floor. Metal surfaces are provided in the housing to preferentially condense moisture from the air in the housing upon cooling, to avoid condensation on the circuit board or the electronic components. The metal surfaces may be a metal casing around an electronic component, a metallized layer deposited on an inner surface of the housing, a metal insert in the housing, a metal housing floor, or an additional metal floor plate adjacent to a plastic housing floor. A hydrophobic film enforces condensate droplet formation, and channels and drain holes drain the condensate droplets out of the housing. An encapsulating film is unnecessary on the electronic components, because condensation on these components is avoided.

Plastic housing with condensation protection for electric and electronic assemblies

In order to secure a circuit board or the like in a housing, the board is provided with a through-hole, and the housing is provided with a mounting stud that protrudes into the housing from an outer wall thereof. A securing pin simultaneously passes through the through-hole of the board and into a hollow space or bore of the mounting stud. The securing pin is preferably conically tapered so that it exerts a wedging and spreading force radially outwardly against the inner surface of the hollow bore of the securing stud, and directly or indirectly against the inner surface of the through-hole of the board. Thereby, the board is securely fastened to the stud, and the pin is secured in the stud, by the wedging effect. An end portion of the stud may also be received in the through-hole of the board, and the pin may be integrally formed as a protrusion of a lid for the housing.

Arrangement for securing a circuit board in a housing

An assembly is mounted and secured on a support by at least one securing bolt that is pre-installed in the assembly and engages a keyhole-shaped opening provided in the support. The head of the bolt is inserted through the larger portion of the keyhole opening and then slidingly displaced so the bolt shaft is engaged in the narrower portion of the keyhole opening and the bolt head is secured behind the support. A safety cap is initially mounted on the bolt to cover the tool engagement surfaces of the bolt, and the cap is inserted in the opening together with the bolt. As the assembly is slidingly displaced relative to the support, the safety cap is pushed off the bolt to expose the tool engagement surfaces, by contact of stop surfaces of the safety cap with stop surfaces of the support. The safety cap thereby prevents engagement of a tightening tool with the bolt, until the bolt has surely reached its proper securing position.

Method and arrangement for securing an assembly onto a support using a pre-installed securing bolt outfitted with a safety cap

An arrangement of electronic components in a housing includes a housing, at least one circuit board arranged in the housing with electronic components of a first type (such as SMDs) mounted thereon, at least one electronic component of a second type (such as a non-SMD coil or capacitor) that is not arranged on the circuit board but rather is mounted on a mounting surface in the housing, and an electrical connection established between the second electronic component and the circuit board. The electrical connection may be established by a connector member having two connecting shanks connected to the wires of the second component and two mounting shanks that are press-fit into contact holes of the circuit board. Alternatively, the electrical connection may be established by respective contact clips electrically and mechanically clamped onto the wires of the second component, whereby the contact clips have contact pins that plug into contact holes in the circuit board.

Growing community of inventors

Kuehbach, Germany

Engelbert Woerle