Amp LLC

Michael D Galloway

David T Shaffer

William H Rose

Dimitry G Grabbe

David J Gingerich

There is disclosed a stacked electrical connector assembly (20) for mounting on a printed circuit board (108). The stacked electrical connector assembly includes a bracket (26) having first and second bracket members (90,96). The bracket has a shield member (28) electrically commoned with at least one of the first and second bracket members. A first electrical connector (22) is mounted on the first and second bracket members with the housing (30) thereof on a first side of the shield member (28). A second electrical connector (24) is mounted on the first and second bracket members with the housing (60) thereof on a second side of the shield member (28). The contacts (44,74) of each of the first and second electrical connectors are interconnectable with traces (110) on the printed circuit board when the assembly is mounted thereon. The shield member (28) extends at least partially between the housings (30,60) of the first and second connectors thereby shielding each of the first and second connectors from the other.

Shielded stackable connector assembly

A connector assembly for an anti-skid hydraulic braking system comprises a bulkhead connector extending through an aperture in a sidewall of the brake fluid reservoir, a connector harness mounted along the inside of the reservoir sidewalls extending from the bulkhead connector to three solenoid assemblies mounted on the reservoir floor, and a solenoid connector on each solenoid assembly in engagement with the connector harness. The solenoids extend through floor apertures into the master cylinder to respective hydraulic lines extending to brake cylinders in the wheels, one of the solenoids handling both rear wheels. The bulkhead connector mates with a connector outside the reservoir which is terminated to a wire harness connected to the on-board microprocessor to relay current to the solenoids when data from individual wheel speed sensors is processed to determine that a particular wheel is about to skid. The solenoid for that wheel is then instantaneously actuated to momentarily decrease hydraulic pressure in that wheel's brake fluid line. The connector harness is planar and can be bent around corners between adjoining sidewalls of the reservoir. Contact sections on path members of the harness are exposed to be engaged by spring arm contact sections of the bulkhead connector and the individual solenoid connectors. The harness is made by overmolding spaced cover portions over a stamped lead frame and then severing the individual path members from each other, and the path member can be bent between the cover portions.

Electrical connector assembly for antiskid braking system

A connector assembly for an anti-skid hydraulic braking system comprises a bulkhead connector extending through an aperture in a sidewall of the brake fluid reservoir, a connector harness mounted along the inside of the reservoir sidewalls extending from the bulkhead connector to three solenoid assemblies mounted on the reservoir floor, and a solenoid connector one each solenoid assembly in engagement with the connector harness. The solenoids extend through floor apertures into the master cylinder to respective hydraulic lines extending to brake cylinders in the wheels, one of the solenoids handling both rear wheels. The bulkhead connector mates with a connector outside the reservoir which is terminated to a wire harness connected to the on-board microprocessor to relay current to the solenoids when data from individual wheel speed sensors is processed to determine that a particular wheel is about to skid. The solenoid for that wheel is then instantaneously actuated to momentarily decrease hydraulic pressure in that wheel's brake fluid line. The connector harness is planar and can be bent around corners between adjoining sidewalls of the reservoir. Contact sections on path members of the harness are exposed to be engaged by spring arm contact sections of the bulkhead connector and the individual solenoid connectors. The harness is made by overmolding spaced cover portions over a stamped lead frame and then severing the individual path members from each other, and the path members can be bent between the cover portions.

Method of making electrical connector assembly for antiskid braking

A wire length having a very small diameter is terminated to a contact member by forming a groove in the contact member, disposing the wire length entirely within and along the groove, and striking the surface of the contact on both sides of the groove deforming the sides of the groove downwardly and inwardly into the groove firmly against the wire therein. The contact members can be made in lead frames on a carrier strip and have grooves formed therein, the wire can be placed in the grooves and terminated to the contact members in an automated assembly to make, for example, fuse components where wire segments bridge gaps between associated contact sections of pairs of the contact members, and the lead frames can have housings molded thereto while on the carrier strip.

Method of making an electrical termination

A connector assembly for an anti-skid hydraulic braking system comprises a bulkhead connector extending through an aperture in a sidewall of the brake fluid reservoir, a connector harness mounted along the inside of the reservoir sidewalls extending from the bulkhead connector to three solenoid assemblies mounted on the reservoir floor, and a solenoid connector on each solenoid assembly in engagement with the connector harness. The solenoids extend through floor apertures into the master cylinder to respective hydraulic lines extending to brake cylinders in the wheels, one of the solenoids handling both rear wheels. The bulkhead connector mates with a connector outside the reserovir which is terminated to a wire harness connected to the on-board microprocessor to relay current to the solenoids when data from individual wheel speed sensors is processed to determine that a particular wheel is about to skid. The solenoid for that wheel is then instantaneously actuated to momentarily decrease hydraulic pressure in that wheel's brake fluid line. The connector harness is planar and can be bent around corners between adjoining sidewalls of the reservoir. Contact sections on path members of the harness are exposed to be engaged by spring arm contact sections of the bulkhead connector and the individual solenoid connectors. The harness is made by overmolding spaced cover portions over a stamped lead frame and then severing the individual path members from each other, and the path members can be bent between the cover portions.

An electrical component has a plurality of paired contacts with spaced inner contact sections bridged by a fuse element. The paired contacts have outer contact sections enabling mounting to a circuit panel to complete circuit paths thereon. The component is used as a fuse component to protect the circuit panel by preventing overload of a circuit path by the respective fuse element. When the circuit paths have different design in-service currents and different levels of excessive electrical currents, the corresponding fuse elements can have correspondingly different in-service current-carrying capabilities and different melting points, in the same component. The component can be surface mountable and can have DIP configuration.

Electrical fuse component and method of using same

An electrical circuit package comprises a stamped and formed lead frame to which is molded a dielectric housing member which includes openings having exposed electrical contacts, the housing member providing support for the lead frame. Some of the exposed contacts in the openings serve to support electrical components in the openings and to make electrical contact therewith while other of the exposed contacts in the openings electrically engage the electrical components and maintain them in the openings. Further exposed contacts electrically engage another electrical component and the housing member and the further exposed contacts maintain the other electrical component in the housing member. An electrical switch is part of the lead frame. The method involves molding a dielectric housing member on the lead frame with exposed circuit path parts in openings either stamped into pairs before molding or severed into pairs after molding, and further forming ones of the pairs of exposed path parts into cantilever contact members while the others of the pairs define stationary contact members.

Method of making an electrical circuit package

An electrical switch comprises a dielectric base member having parallel stationary contact assemblies provided with aligned contact segments, each of the contact segments including an exposed contact section and a dielectric section. A spring-biased movable contact assembly is disposed between the stationary contact assemblies and includes cantilevered arcuate contact sections springably engaging respective aligned contact segments. The exposed contact sections have parallel projections and the dielectric sections have a projection along which the arcuate contact sections move, one of the parallel projections being longer so that, when the arcuate contact sections move from the contact sections onto the dielectric sections or vice versa, the arcuate contact sections engage the longer projection last or first so that an electric arc, if it occurs, will occur therebetween rather than between the short projections and the arcuate contact sections.

Electrical switch having arc-protected contacts

An electrical circuit package comprise a stamped and formed lead frame to which is molded a dielectric housing member which includes openings having exposed electrical contacts, the housing member providing support for the lead frame. Some of the exposed contacts in the openings serve to support electrical components in the openings and to make electrical contact therewith while other of the exposed contacts in the openings electrically engage the electrical components and maintain them in the openings. Further exposed contacts electrically engage another electrical component and the housing member and the further exposed contacts maintain the other electrical component in the housing member. An electrical switch is part of the lead frame.

Electrical circuit package for greeting cards

A hook switch comprises a dielectric base member having series of stationary electrical contact members secured in aligned rows therein; the contact members in one row are offset with respect to the contact members in the other row and they include V-shaped contact sections and terminal sections. A dielectric cover member is latchably secured onto the base member. A movable contact assembly mounted in the cover member includes an operating member and a contact-carrying member. The operating member is linearly movable within an opening in the cover member from a normally inoperative position to an operative position against spring members extending betweeen the operating member and the base member. The contact-carrying member has switch segments isolated from one another, each of the switch segments including an electrical contact element of a specified length and the remaining length being dielectric material so that opposing sets of V-shaped contact sections engage respective switch segments to electrically connect the V-shaped contact sections together when engaging the electrical contact elements or to electrically disconnect the V-shaped contact sections when engaging the dielectric material in either of the inoperative or operative positions.

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Middletown, PA, United States of America

Michael D Galloway