Electrical connector circuit wafer
First Claim
1. A device for making electrical connection to a plurality of pins in a male cable connector which mates with sockets in a female connector, the male and female connectors having outer shells which are removably connected together, said device comprising:
- a wafer having a series of holes therein aligned with the pins in the male connector, the wafer having a diameter smaller than the diameter of the male connector shell, said wafer being insertable into the male cable connector shell so that the pins extend through the holes;
circuit means on the wafer for using electrical signals on the pins; and
contact means for making electrical contact between the pins as they extend through the holes in the wafer and the circuit means.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A semiconductor wafer has a plurality of holes therein which correspond to pins of an electrical connector. The wafer includes circuitry thereon and contacts for making electrical connection to the pins. In such manner, the circuitry on the wafer can be used for a wide variety of purposes such as testing or modifying signals carried by the pins. The wafer can be installed in any common electrical connector pair without prior modification or preparation of the connectors and without impairing the normal fit or function of the mated connector pair.
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Citations
34 Claims
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1. A device for making electrical connection to a plurality of pins in a male cable connector which mates with sockets in a female connector, the male and female connectors having outer shells which are removably connected together, said device comprising:
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a wafer having a series of holes therein aligned with the pins in the male connector, the wafer having a diameter smaller than the diameter of the male connector shell, said wafer being insertable into the male cable connector shell so that the pins extend through the holes; circuit means on the wafer for using electrical signals on the pins; and contact means for making electrical contact between the pins as they extend through the holes in the wafer and the circuit means. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. The combination comprising:
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a male electrical connector having an outer metallic shell and a plurality of electrically conductive pins carrying electrical signals to electronic equipment; a female connector having an outer metallic shell and a plurality of sockets for receiving the pins in the male connector; and a semiconductor wafer lying between the male and female connectors, the wafer having a sufficiently small diameter and being sufficiently thin to permit the male and female connectors to be mated together to permit the pins to engage the sockets, the wafer including contact means for making removable electrical connection between the pins and the wafer to thereby permit the wafer to be inserted and removed from the interior of the shell of the male connector; and
circuit means on the wafer for electrically communicating through the contact means with the pins on the male connector;whereby the wafer provides simple electrical connection to the pins and to the electronic equipment coupled thereto. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A method of making electrical connection to electronic equipment that is removably connected to an electrical cable by mating male and female connectors, the male connector having a plurality of pins extending into sockets in the female connector, said method comprising:
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providing a wafer having a series of holes therein corresponding to the pins in the male connector; inserting the wafer into the male connector so that the pins extend through the holes in the wafer; making a wiping electrical contact between the pins and the wafer; mating the male and female connectors together while sandwiching the wafer therebetween; and using circuitry on the wafer to perform preselected functions on signals carried by the pins. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20)
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21. A device for making electrical connection to a plurality of pins in a male connector which mates with sockets in a female receptacle, said device comprising:
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a wafer having a series of holes therein aligned with the pins in the male connector, said wafer being insertable onto the male connector so that the pins extend through the holes; circuit means on the wafer for detecting electrical signals on the pins; contact means for making electrical contact between the pins as they extend through the holes in the wafer and the circuit means; and said wafer being sufficiently thin to allow the male connector to mate with the female receptacle and permit the circuit means to detect electrical signals flowing between the female sockets and male connector pins. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31)
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32. A method of detecting characteristics of electrical signals flowing between a male connector that is removably connected to a female receptacle, the male connector having a plurality of pins extending into sockets in the female receptacle, said method comprising:
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providing a wafer having a series of holes therein corresponding to the pins in the male connector; inserting the wafer into the male connector so that the pins extend through the holes in the wafer; making electrical contact between the pins and circuitry on the wafer; mating the male connector and the female receptacle, with the wafer being sandwiched therebetween; and using the circuitry on the wafer to perform preselected functions on signals carried by the pins. - View Dependent Claims (33, 34)
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Specification