International Business Machines Corporation

Lenovo (singapore) Pte. Ltd.

Yasushi Yoshikawa

Hirohide Komiyama

Hideshi Tsukamoto

Mitsuru Ogawa

Masahiko Sugiyama

A flexible printed circuit board (FPCB) is disclosed. The FPCB can be employed to connect an interface card having connectors with a two-stage configuration to a connection destination of a portable information equipment. The FPCB includes a bend line located between an upper-stage terminal group and a lower-stage terminal group. The FPCB can be bent along the bend line to allow the upper-stage terminal group and the lower-stage terminal group to be mutually superimposed over each other. In addition, the upper-stage terminal group of the FPCB is connected to the upper-stage-side connector terminal group of the interface card, and the lower-stage terminal group of the FPCB is connected to the lower-stage-side connector terminal group of the interface card.

Flexible printer circuit board

Described is a connector in which a plug can be pulled out of a receptacle without producing stress in the connector itself or a circuit board on which the connector is mounted. The plug is inserted into the receptacle so that the side wall of the plug makes contact with the interior wall of the receptacle. When the plug and the receptacle are coupled, a fitting space is formed therebetween. When compressed air is injected into this fitting space, the plug will be pushed up by a rise in the air pressure and therefore the plug can be pulled out of the receptacle. The use of air pressure in the fitting space to pull out the plug is advantageous because it can be implemented without producing biased stress in the plug or the receptacle.

Growing community of inventors

Shiga-ken, Japan

Yasushi Yoshikawa