The Whitaker Corporation

John Thomas Larkin, Jr

Robert S Correll, Jr

Robert H Frantz

John L Broschard

Andrew Dewitt Balthaser

Keith McQuilkin Murr

Richard Scott Kline

Dennis Leroy Kemmick

Edmund Luther Jacobs

Ronald E Katzaman

A header assembly (10) having an array of posts (12,14) extending through plastic bodies (16,18) with end portions extending beyond opposed header faces for connection with circuits of a pair of parallel, spaced circuit boards. Adapters (40) are securable at ends (32,34) of the assembly that self-secure to end posts (12) and include alignment posts (50) along one face (26), such that after the header assembly has been mounted onto a first circuit board, the alignment posts provide for blindmate alignment with a connector of the second circuit board (or directly with the second circuit board) for board-to-board interconnection.

Alignment adapters for post header

A connector 20 for disk-shaped batteries 102 includes a housing 22 with a battery receiving cavity 38, first and second pairs of side walls 30, 34 and first and second terminal-receiving slots 40, 54 for receiving respective terminals 66, 84 therein and located between the side walls of the first and second pairs respectively. Each side wall 30, 34 includes an inwardly directed retention flange 32, 36 respectively for securing the battery 102 in the housing 22. The base 24 includes a plurality of board standoffs 62 of sufficient length to permit portions of the connector base 24 to be flexed downwardly toward a circuit board 108 a sufficient distance to move the retention flange 36 of one of the side walls 34 outwardly thereby releasing the battery 102 from said connector 20.

Battery connector

An electrical connector generally comprising a housing, a terminal member and a clamping member. The housing has a first open end, a generally closed second end including a conductor passage, and an internal cavity extending between the ends. The terminal member has a first end which includes an IDC mating contact, a second end which includes a planar electrical contact, and a middle portion extending therebetween. The terminal member is positioned in the housing with the first end adjacent the first housing open end and the middle portion extending through the housing cavity. The second end is positioned within the clamping means conductor receiving area. A conductor is connected to the second end of the terminal member by passing it through the conductor passage into the conductor receiving area and actuating the clamping member which moves the planar electrical contact into contact with the conductor.

Electrical connector

A cover (10) adapted to be releasably secured to an electrical connector assembly (30) for positioning the assembly (30) to a surface of an electrical article (70) by use of a vacuum-suction nozzle (66). The connector assembly (30) includes a housing (32) having a transverse body section 33) and a plurality of electrical terminals (50) disposed therein and extending above the body section (33). The cover (10), which overlies at least a central region of the housing, has a plate (12) having planar top surface (14) and at least one projection (18) extending substantially perpendicularly from a lower surface (16) of the cover (10) intermediate the side edges thereof. The projection (18) is dimensioned to be received in a central location of the connector assembly (30) and to be releasably gripped by cooperating surfaces therein. The cooperating surfaces exert sufficient force against the at least one projection (18) to retain the cover (10) on the connector assembly during positioning of the connector assembly to the electrical article (70) whereafter the cover (10) is removable from the assembly (30).

Electrical connector with releasable positioning cover

A smart card connector with a card slot 10 for receiving a smart card employs an end position switch comprising a single resilient contact 14 engaging a stationary post 16 to detect full insertion of a smart card. The resilient contact 14 and the post 16 are mounted in the rear of a housing base 4 which includes resilient data contacts 12 mounted in contact cavities 38 located at the front and rear of the housing base. Contact arms 88 on the data contacts are preloaded so that each contact engages the smart card with a prescribed force and extends into the housing slot for a prescribed distance. The contact arms 88 are located in channels 34 in the housing base and lateral protrusions 36 extending from separator ribs 32 defining the contact channels 34 engage the contacts to preload them. The housing base 4 also includes resilient cantilever diverter springs 18, molded into the housing base which both protect the data contacts 12 and provide a reactive force to counter the force exerted by the normally closed resilient contact 14 upon full insertion of the smart card.

Smart card connector with preloaded data contacts

A PCMCIA receptacle connector 2 for use with a PCMCIA card includes a plurality of receptacle contact terminals 34 positioned in two rows of cavities 18 in a housing 12. Each of the cavities has two cavity sections 20, 28. Mating pin terminal are received through the first cavity section 20 and the contact terminals are inserted from the rear face 16 of the housing 12 into the second housing cavity 28, which has smooth interior walls 32. Each stamped and formed contact terminal 34 has a forward mating section 36, a central contact support section 48, and a rear conductor contact section 42 including surface mount solder tails 44. The contact support section 48 includes resilient spring members 50 in the form of edge stamped cantilever spring members that engage the interior smooth walls 32 of the second cavity section 28 to retain the contacts in the housing 12 and to properly position the mating contact section 36 and the solder tails 44.

Memory card receptacle connector and contact terminal

A connector 60 for disk-shaped batteries 40 including a housing 62 with a battery receiving cavity 74, opposed endwalls 66 having spring arms 68 that extend outwardly from the cavity 74 for retaining the battery 40 in the housing 62, a surface mountable positive terminal 77, and a surface mountable negative terminal 79. The positive and negative terminals 77,79, are disposed in respective terminal receiving passageways 72 of the housing with spring arm contact sections 80 opposing each other along the housing sidewalls and with surface mountable connecting sections 84 of both the terminals 77,79, extending outwardly from respective the housing sidewalls 64 at the bottoms thereof. The terminals are electrically engageable with battery electrodes on opposed surfaces of the battery, and the surface mountable connecting sections thereof are spaced apart at least the thickness of a the battery, being a sufficient distance from each other to prevent bridging therebetween when the connecting sections are soldered to respective circuit pads on a circuit board.

Growing community of inventors

New Cumberland, PA, United States of America

John Thomas Larkin, Jr