Host assembly for an integrated computer module

• US 6,297,955 B1
• Filed: 03/31/1999
• Issued: 10/02/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Western Digital Ventures Incorporated (Western Digital Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Western Digital Ventures Incorporated (Western Digital Corporation)
• Inventors: Szeremeta, Wally, Hanan, Thomas D., Frank, Charles W. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Picard, Leo P.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Vortman, Anatoly
• Application Number:
  US09/282,500
• Time in Patent Office: 916 Days
• Field of Search: 361/686, 361/380.1, 361/383, 361/386-396, 361/399, 361/417, 361/427, 361/429, 361/679-688, 361/690, 361/692, 361/693, 361/707-714, 361/724-727, 439/299, 439/300, 439/374, 439/377, 439/378, 439/928, 364/708, 364/708.1, D14/100, D14/105, D14/107
• US Class Current: 361/679.41
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/18 Packaging or power distribution
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/183 Internal mounting support structures, e.g. for printed circuit boards, internal connecting means for buses G06F13/409

Abstract

A host assembly having a docking bay for receiving an integrated computer module is disclosed. The docking bay includes a cavity for receiving and grossly aligning the module, a host connector located at a back end of the cavity at a position where it is aligned with the module connector when the module is received in the cavity, and a projecting member located at an XY location at the back end of the cavity for helping to align the module connector with the host connector. The projecting member may also provide a locking function and may be located at an asymmetric XY location for ensuring that the cavity only receives an un-keyed module that is in the correct orientation.

Claims

1. A docking bay in a host assembly for receiving an integrated computer module, the module having a front wall and a back wall opposite the front wall, and having a substantially rectangular module end periphery defined by a floor wall, a ceiling wall opposite the floor wall, a first side wall, and a second side wall opposite the first side wall, and having a module connector located at an XY connector location on the back wall thereof, the module containing a disk drive, random access memory, and a printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) carrying a plurality of integrated circuits that constitute substantially all of the integrated circuits needed to define a microprocessor-based computing subsystem, the docking bay comprising:

a cavity adopted for receiving and grossly aligning the module, the cavity being defined by a front opening, a back end opposite the front opening, and a substantially rectangular cavity periphery that is slightly larger than the substantially rectangular module end periphery;

a host connector located at the XY connector location at the back end of the cavity, the host connector being substantially correctly aligned with the module connector when the module is received in the cavity; and

a projecting member located at an XY member location at the back end of the cavity for more finely aligning the host connector with the module connector, the projecting member extending into the cavity in parallel with an insertion axis extending between the front opening and the back end of the cavity, the projecting member adapted for envelopment by a module aperture aligned with the XY member location on the back wall of the module when the module is received in the cavity and the host connector is about to engage the module connector, the projecting member further comprising a retention notch located behind a tip of the projecting member on a side thereof, the retention notch being adapted for locking engagement with a latch mechanism located inside of the module when the module aperture envelopes the projecting member;

whereby the module connector may be correctly aligned to engage the host connector.

2. The docking bay of claim 1 wherein the cavity has a key feature incorporated into its substantially rectangular cavity profile that ensures that the module is received in a correct orientation.

3. The docking bay of claim 1 wherein the cavity does not have a key feature and may receive a module that is in a correct orientation and in an incorrect orientation and wherein the XY member location is asymmetric to abut the back wall of the module when the module is in the incorrect orientation to inhibit the module from being fully received by the cavity and to inhibit the module connector from engaging the host connector.

4. The docking bay of claim 1 wherein the projecting member is adapted to slidably mate with an annular beveled recess surrounding the module aperture, the projecting member being circular in cross section and having an annular bevel located at a tip thereof.

5. The docking bay of claim 1 wherein the projecting member extending into the cavity is of a length sufficient to enter the module aperture before the module connector engages the host connector.

6. The docking bay of claim 1 wherein the host connector is mounted at an outer boundary of a printed circuit board assembly contained in the host assembly.

7. The docking bay of claim 1 wherein the host connector comprises conductive fingers formed at an outer boundary of a printed circuit board assembly contained in the host assembly.

8. The docking bay of claim 3 wherein the projecting member extending into the cavity is of a length sufficient to contact the back wall of the module when the module is in the incorrect orientation before the front wall of the module is located flush with the front opening of the docking bay.

9. The docking bay of claim 1 wherein the retention notch comprises an annular recess.

10. The docking bay of claim 1 wherein the projecting member is conductive and connected to ground via the host assembly for discharging electrostatic energy contained in the module to ground.

11. The docking bay of claim 10 wherein the projecting member has a resistance of at least one megohm to control the rate of discharge.

12. The docking bay of claim 1 further comprising means for retrofitting the cavity, the host connector, and the projecting member into a standard peripheral bay.

13. The docking bay of claim 12 wherein the standard peripheral bay is designed to receive a standard 5¼

″

peripheral.

14. The docking bay of claim 12 wherein the retrofitting means comprises an adapter sleeve having a floor wall, a ceiling wall opposite the floor wall, a left side wall, and a right side wall opposite the left side wall, the adapter sleeve having

external dimensions that substantially conform to the internal dimensions of the standard peripheral bay;

internal dimensions that define the cavity suitable for receiving the integrated computer module; and

means for securing the adapter sleeve inside of the standard peripheral bay.

15. The docking bay of claim 14 further comprising a back wall that defines the back end of the cavity and supports the host connector at the back end of the cavity.

16. The docking bay of claim 15 wherein the back wall is a printed circuit board (PCB).

17. The docking bay of claim 14 wherein the adapter sleeve is formed from injection molded plastic.

18. The docking bay of claim 1 further comprising an elastic stop located on the back end of the cavity for reducing a shock force when the cavity fully receives the module and when the module connector engages the host connector.

19. A host assembly for receiving an integrated computer module, the module having a front wall and back wall opposite the front wall, having a substantially rectangular module end periphery defined by a floor wall, a ceiling wall opposite the floor wall, a first side wall, and a second side wall opposite the first side wall, and having a module connector located at an XY connector location on the back wall thereof, the module containing a disk drive, random access memory, and a printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) carrying a plurality of integrated circuits that constitute substantially all of the integrated circuits needed to define a microprocessor-based computing subsystem, said host assembly comprising:

a chassis including a power supply, at least one input connector port for attachment to an input device, and at least one output connector for attachment to an output device;

a cavity adopted for receiving and grossly aligning the module, the cavity being defined by a front opening, a back end opposite the front opening, and a substantially rectangular cavity periphery that is slightly larger than the substantially rectangular module end periphery;

a host connector located at the XY connector location at the back end of the cavity, the host connector being substantially correctly aligned with the module connector when the module is received in the cavity; and

a projecting member located at an XY member location at the back end of the cavity for more finely aligning the host connector with the module connector, the projecting member extending into the cavity in parallel with an insertion axis extending between the front opening and the back end of the cavity, the projecting member adapted for envelopment by a module aperture aligned with the XY member location on the back wall of the module when the module is received in the cavity and the host connector is about to engage the module connector, the projecting member further comprising a retention notch located behind a tip of the projecting member on a side thereof, the retention notch being adapted for locking engagement with a latch mechanism located inside of the module when the module aperture envelopes the projecting member;

whereby the module connector may be correctly aligned to engage the host connector.

20. The host assembly of claim 19 wherein the chassis contains a video monitor.

21. The host assembly of claim 19 wherein the cavity has a key feature incorporated into its substantially rectangular cavity profile that ensures that the module is received in a correct orientation.

22. The host assembly of claim 19 wherein the cavity does not have a key feature and may receive a module that is in a correct orientation and in an incorrect orientation and wherein the XY member location is asymmetric to abut the back wall of the module when the module is in the incorrect orientation to inhibit the module from being fully received by the cavity and to inhibit the module connector from engaging the host connector.

23. The host assembly of claim 19 wherein the projecting member is adapted to slidably mate with an annular beveled recess surrounding the module aperture, the projecting member being circular in cross section and having an annular bevel located at a tip thereof.

24. The host assembly of claim 19 wherein the projecting member extending into the cavity is of a length sufficient to enter the module aperture before the module connector engages the host connector.

25. The host assembly of claim 19 wherein the host connector is mounted at an outer boundary of a printed circuit board assembly contained in the host assembly.

26. The host assembly of claim 19 wherein the host connector comprises conductive fingers formed at an outer boundary of a printed circuit board assembly contained in the host assembly.

27. The host assembly of claim 22 wherein the projecting member extending into the cavity is of a length sufficient to contact the back wall of the module when the module is in the incorrect orientation before the front wall of the module is located flush with the front opening of the docking bay.

28. The docking bay of claim 19 wherein the retention notch comprises an annular recess.

29. The host assembly of claim 19 wherein the projecting member is conductive and connected to ground via the host assembly for discharging electrostatic energy contained in the module to ground.

30. The host assembly of claim 29 wherein the projecting member has a resistance of at least one megohm to control the rate of discharge.

31. The host assembly of claim 19 further comprising means for retrofitting the cavity, the host connector, and the projecting member into a standard peripheral bay.

32. The host assembly of claim 31 wherein the standard peripheral bay is designed to receive a standard 5¼

″

peripheral.

33. The host assembly of claim 31 wherein the retrofitting means comprises an adapter sleeve having a floor wall, a ceiling wall opposite the floor wall, a left side wall, and a right side wall opposite the left side wall, the adapter sleeve having

external dimensions that substantially conform to the internal dimensions of the standard peripheral bay;

internal dimensions that define the cavity suitable for receiving the integrated computer module; and

means for securing the adapter sleeve inside of the standard peripheral bay.

34. The host assembly of claim 33 further comprising a back wall that defines the back end of the cavity and supports the host connector at the back end of the cavity.

35. The host assembly of claim 34 wherein the back wall is a printed circuit board (PCB).

36. The host assembly of claim 33 wherein the adapter sleeve is formed from injection molded plastic.

37. The host assembly of claim 19 further comprising an elastic stop located on the back end of the cavity for reducing a shock force when the cavity fully receives the module and when the module connector engages the host connector.