Amp LLC

Ronald P Jansen

Mark R Thumma

An electrical connector (10) wherein the contacts (32, 34) have tail portions (40, 46) extending into respective holes (18) of a printed circuit board (16). The tail portions are gently curved, which provides a centering of the distal ends (48, 56) of the tail portions over the respective circuit board holes and also results in a low insertion force. Retention is provided by friction of the tail portions against the walls of the holes. The gentle curve of the tail portions keeps them close to the walls of the respective holes so that when a surface mount solder process is utilized, each tail portion provides a wicking action to concentrate the small amount of solder which is available in the region where the tail portion is close to the wall, resulting in a strong mechanical and electrical solder joint without requiring the hole to filled with solder. Also, minimum vibration is generated when the tail portions are inserted into the holes so that other temporarily retained components on the board are not displaced.

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Mechanicsburg, PA, United States of America

Ronald P Jansen