Texas Instruments Corporation

Vlt Corporation

Jeffrey A Curhan

Patrizio Vinciarelli

Peter G Berg

Lance L Andrus

Daniel R Pimentel

Michael D Evans

James D Goss

An electronic device includes a surface and a conductive termination on the surface. A protective conformal coating on the surface of the electronic device includes a window formed in the protective coating to expose a portion of the conductive termination. The exposed portion of the conductive termination is recessed in the conformal coating.

Protective coating for an electronic device

In general, in one aspect, the invention features a connection between a through-hole in a circuit board and a contact region on a component. The contact region has a surface bearing a depression. A continuous solder column has one end of that forms a solder joint with an inner wall of the through-hole and the other end of that forms a solder joint with the contact region.

Making a connection between a component and a circuit board

A method for forming a protective coating on an exposed surface of an electronic device, including forming the protective coating on a conductive termination connected to a circuit element in the electronic device, and making a window in the protective coating to expose the termination.

A heat generating component is encapsulated within an encapsulant. A window is made in the encapsulant to expose a heat dissipating surface of the component and a heat sinking device is attached to the heat dissipating surface of the heat generating component. The window is formed using a laser.

Laser machining of molded assemblies

A heater particularly adapted for use in automotive applications as a passenger compartment heater or the like has a housing with an opening and has a plurality of heat-exchanging fin members and self-regulating electrical resistance heater discs of positive temperature coefficient resistivity (PTC) disposed in the housing to heat air or other fluid which is passed through the housing opening in heat-transfer relation to the fin members. A thermally conductive grease is positioned between the PTC heater discs and fin members to enhance heat transfer. Springs resiliently position the fin members, grease and heater discs in thermally and electrically conductive relation to each other between terminals accessible from the housing exterior to retain the fin members, grease and heater discs engaged during thermal expansion and vibration for reliably energizing the heater discs to heat the fin members over a long service life.

Finned PTC air heater assembly for heating an automotive passenger

An internal combustion engine has a channel member such as a plenum chamber or cylinder head or the like with an inlet receiving air and fuel to form an air-fuel mixture and with a pair of outlets furnishing the air-fuel mixture to respective cylinders or groups of cylinders or to respective cylinder intake valve openings of two-intake engine cylinders or the like. A heating device mounted on the channel member has a heat-exchange surface which intercepts the air and fuel from the inlet to heat and fully vaporize the fuel to form the air-fuel mixture and also to divide the fuel mixture between the two outlets for furnishing the fuel mixture to the individual cylinders, groups of cylinders or intake valve openings.

Internal combustion engine with fuel heater

An internal combustion engine of the injector type has self-regulating electrical resistance heating devices of positive temperature coefficient of resistivity arranged in cylinder head air-fuel inlet channels to intercept fuel directed into the channels by fuel injectors for heating and deflecting the fuel into respective cylinder intake valve openings. The heating devices and/or fuel injectors are movable after engine warm-up so that the fuel injectors thereafter spray fuel directly onto warmed-up intake valves in the valve openings without being intercepted by the heaters, whereby the heaters are adapted to be deenergized after engine warm-up without creating a cold spot in the engine fuel supply system at the heater location.

Growing community of inventors

Medway, MA, United States of America

Jeffrey A Curhan