Card edge connector with improved guiding structure
View Patent ↗A card edge connector includes an insulative housing defining a card receiving slot extending along a longitudinal direction, a plurality of terminals retained in the housing and by two sides of the card receiving slot in a transverse direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, and a metallic guiding member retained to the housing at the end of the card receiving slot. The metallic guiding member includes a main body extending in a vertical direction perpendicular to both the longitudinal direction and the transverse direction, and a curved resilient guiding section upwardly extending from a top end of the main body. The housing forms a constraining wall at the end with a step structure so as to allow the guiding section of the guiding member to be freely support upon the step structure to function as a constrained beam during confrontation with the inserted card module.
1. A card edge connector comprising:
an insulative housing having a pair of side walls with a card receiving slot located therebetween in a transverse direction and extending along a longitudinal direction perpendicular to the transverse direction and communicating with an exterior in a vertical direction perpendicular to both the transverse direction and the longitudinal direction, and a plurality of constraining walls linked between the pair of side walls in the transverse direction, each constraining wall forming a step structure at a top end thereof and a vertically extending constraining face facing toward the card receiving slot;
a plurality of contacts disposed in the housing with contacting sections extending into the card receiving slot; and
a plurality of metallic guiding members associating with the corresponding constraining walls, respectively; wherein
each guiding member includes a planar main body attached upon the vertically extending constraining face, and a curved resilient guiding section unitarily extending from an upper end of the main body with a free end region intimately positioned, in the vertical direction, upon a shoulder edge formed on the step structure so as to have the guiding section deformable in a space between the step structure and the vertically extending constraining face.
2. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the step structure includes two steps, and the shoulder edge is formed by the step located at a lower level than the other.
3. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the step located at an upper level further forms a vertical surface above the shoulder edge, and a tip of the free end region of the guiding member intimately confronts the vertical surface along the longitudinal direction.
4. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the main body of the guiding member includes a pair of wings on two lateral edges and neighboring the curved resilient guiding section, and barbs on said two lateral edges below the wings.
5. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 4 , wherein the main body further includes an embossment abutting against the constraining face in the longitudinal direction for stabilizing the guiding member in the housing.
6. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the constraining wall at an end of the housing forms only one constraining face facing toward the card receiving slot while the constraining wall at an inner position of the housing forms two opposite constraining faces away from each other toward the card receiving slot.
7. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 6 , wherein the constraining wall at the end is associated with only one constraining face to confront only one guiding member, while the constraining wall at the inner position is associated with two opposite constraining faces to confront two guiding members, respectively.
8. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 7 , wherein in one constraining wall located in the inner position, the free end regions of the two curved guiding sections of the two guiding members are separated from each other by a step in the longitudinal direction.
9. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 7 , wherein in one constraining wall located in the inner position, the free end regions of the two curved guiding sections of the two guiding members intimately confront each other in the longitudinal direction.
10. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the contacts are integrally formed on corresponding insulators to form contact modules, and the contact modules are upwardly inserted respectively into corresponding spaces of the housing which are divided by the constraining walls.
11. A card edge connector comprising:
an insulative housing having a pair of side walls with a card receiving slot located therebetween in a transverse direction and extending along a longitudinal direction perpendicular to the transverse direction and communicating with an exterior in a vertical direction perpendicular to both the transverse direction and the longitudinal direction, and a plurality of constraining walls linked between the pair of side walls in the transverse direction, each constraining wall forming a step structure at a top end thereof and a vertically extending constraining face facing toward the card receiving slot;
a plurality of contacts disposed in the housing with contacting sections extending into the card receiving slot; and
a plurality of metallic guiding members associating with the corresponding constraining walls, respectively; wherein
each guiding member includes a planar main body attached upon the vertically extending constraining face, and an oblique resilient guiding section unitarily extending from an upper end of the main body with a free end region intimately positioned, in the vertical direction, upon a shoulder edge formed on the step structure so as to have the guiding section deformable in a space between the step structure and the vertically extending constraining face.
12. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the step structure includes two steps, and the shoulder edge is formed by one step located at a lower level than the other.
13. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 12 , wherein the step located at an upper level further forms a vertical surface above the shoulder edge, and a tip of the free end region of the guiding member intimately confronts the vertical surface along the longitudinal direction.
14. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the main body of the guiding member includes a pair of wings on two lateral edges and neighboring the oblique resilient guiding section, and barbs on said two lateral edges below the wings.
15. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 14 , wherein the main body further includes an embossment abutting against the constraining face in the longitudinal direction for stabilizing the guiding member in the housing.
16. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 15 , wherein the constraining wall at an end of the housing forms only one constraining face facing toward the card receiving slot while the constraining wall at an inner position of the housing forms two opposite constraining faces away from each other toward the card receiving slot.
17. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 16 , wherein the constraining wall at the end is associated with only one constraining face to confront only one guiding member, while the constraining wall at the inner position is associated with two opposite constraining faces to confront two guiding members, respectively.
18. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 17 , wherein in one constraining wall located in the inner position, the free end regions of the two curved guiding sections of the two guiding members are separated from each other by a step in the longitudinal direction.
19. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 17 , wherein in one constraining wall located in the inner position, the free end regions of the two curved guiding sections of the two guiding members intimately confront each other in the longitudinal direction.
20. The card edge connector as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the contacts are integrally formed on corresponding insulators to form contact modules, and the contact modules are upwardly inserted respectively into corresponding spaces of the housing which are divided by the constraining walls.