Communication jack having a plurality of contacts mounted on a flexible printed circuit board

• US 8,961,239 B2
• Filed: 03/14/2013
• Issued: 02/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/07/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CommScope Inc. (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: CommScope Inc. (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Inventors: Lin, Chen-Chien, Moffitt, Bryan S., Shih, Yi-Teh, Bertoncini, Daniel
• Primary Examiner(s): Prasad, Chandrika
• Application Number:
  US13/803,660
• Publication Number:
  US 20140073198A1
• Time in Patent Office: 712 Days
• Field of Search: 439/676, 439/620.22
• US Class Current: 439/676
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6461 Means for preventing cross-talk
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6464 by adding capacitive elements
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6466 on substrates, e.g. printed circuit boards [PCB]
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6467 by cross-over of signal conductors
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6469 on substrates
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 24/00 Two-part coupling devices, or either of their cooperating parts, characterised by their overall structure contact members H01R13/02; securing contact members in or to a base or case or insulating of contact members H01R13/40; bases or cases H01R13/46; means for supporting coupling part when not engaged H01R13/60; means for facilitating engagement or disengagement of coupling parts or for holding them in engagement H01R13/62; means for preventing, inhibiting or avoiding incorrect coupling H01R13/64
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 24/64 for high frequency, e.g. RJ 45
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/0228 Compensation of cross-talk by a mutually correlated lay-out of printed circuit traces, e.g. for compensation of cross-talk in mounted connectors balanced signal pairs H05K1/0245
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/0239 Signal transmission by AC coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/147 at least one of the printed circuits being bent or folded, e.g. by using a flexible printed circuit H05K1/148 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/162 incorporating printed capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/10189 Non-printed connector
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 999/99 dummy group

Abstract

Communications jacks include a housing having a plug aperture in a front portion thereof and a flexible printed circuit board having a plurality of conductive paths thereon. A plurality of input contacts and a plurality of output contacts are each electrically connected to respective ones of the conductive paths on the flexible printed circuit board. A spring that is separate from the input contacts is connected to at least a first of the input contacts. Each of the input contacts comprises a separate, raised contact that is connected to the flexible printed circuit board and mounted to extend into the plug aperture.

Claims

1. A communications jack, comprising:

a housing having a plug aperture in a front portion thereof;

a flexible printed circuit board having a plurality of conductive paths, the flexible printed circuit board being at least partly within the housing;

a plurality of input contacts that extend upwardly from the flexible printed circuit board and that are electrically connected to respective ones of the conductive paths on the flexible printed circuit board;

a plurality of output contacts that are electrically connected to respective ones of the conductive paths on the flexible printed circuit board; and

a spring that is separate from the input contacts and that biases at least a first of the input contacts, the spring being electrically isolated from the input contacts,

wherein each of the input contacts comprises a separate, raised contact that is fixed to the flexible printed circuit board,

wherein each of the input contacts includes a respective plug contact region that is within the plug aperture, and

wherein signal current carrying paths from the plug contact regions of the respective input contacts to the flexible printed circuit board pass through portions of the respective input contacts that are fixed to the flexible printed circuit board.

2. The communications jack of claim 1, wherein a first of the input contacts extends forwardly beyond a front portion of the flexible printed circuit board.

3. The communications jack of claim 1, wherein a first of the input contacts is a substantially rigid input contact.

4. The communications jack of claim 1, further comprising a dielectric contact extension that is not part of the flexible printed circuit board that is directly connected to the first of the input contacts.

5. The communications jack of claim 4, wherein the dielectric contact extension is interposed between the first of the input contacts and the spring to connect the first of the input contacts to the spring.

6. The communications jack of claim 1, wherein the flexible printed circuit board includes a plurality of cantilevered fingers.

7. The communications jack of claim 6, wherein each of the input contacts is mounted on a respective one of the cantilevered fingers.

8. The communications jack of claim 1, wherein portions of the input contacts that include the plug contact regions extend upwardly from a first side of the flexible printed circuit board and the spring is on a second side of the flexible printed circuit board that is opposite the first side.

9. The communications jack of claim 1, wherein each input contact has a first end and a second end, and wherein both the first end and the second end of at least some of the input contacts are fixedly attached to the flexible printed circuit board.

10. The communications jack of claim 1, wherein the flexible printed circuit board include a plurality of openings, and wherein each of the input contacts has a base that is mounted through a respective one of the openings.

11. The communications jack of claim 1, wherein the first end portion of each input contact has a piercing termination that extends through the flexible printed circuit board and that electrically connects the respective input contacts to respective ones of a plurality of conductive paths on the flexible printed circuit board.

12. A communications jack, comprising:

a housing having a plug aperture;

a plurality of input contacts that extend into the plug aperture;

a flexible printed circuit board that includes a plurality of cantilevered fingers; and

a plurality of springs that bias the respective input contacts, wherein each spring is electrically isolated from the respective input contact that it biases;

wherein a base of each of the input contacts extends through a respective aperture in the flexible printed circuit board into respective dielectric mounting structures that are below the flexible printed circuit board, and

wherein a plug contact region of each input contact extends above the flexible printed circuit board.

13. The communications jack of claim 12, wherein each of the input contacts is substantially rigid.

14. The communications jack of claim 12, wherein the plurality of springs are below of the flexible printed circuit board.

15. The communications jack of claim 12, wherein each input contact comprises a non-resilient metal.

16. A communications jack, comprising:

a flexible printed circuit board;

a plurality of jackwire contacts that are each electrically connected to the flexible printed circuit board and that are mounted to extend above a top surface of the flexible printed circuit board;

wherein the jackwire contacts have respective first end portions that are attached to the flexible printed circuit board at respective first mounting locations on the flexible printed circuit board and at least some of the jackwire contacts have second end portions that are attached to the flexible printed circuit board at respective second mounting locations on the flexible printed circuit board, and

wherein a signal current carrying path for each of the jackwire contacts passes through the respective first mounting location for each of the jackwire contacts.

17. The communications jack of claim 16, further comprising a plurality of dielectric contact extensions, wherein each jackwire contact is mounted in a respective one of the dielectric contact extensions and wherein the dielectric contact extensions are positioned below the flexible printed circuit board, and wherein each jackwire contact includes a plug contact region that extends above the flexible printed circuit board and wherein the first end portion of each jackwire contact extends through the flexible printed circuit board into a respective one of the dielectric contact extensions.

18. The communications jack of claim 16, wherein the flexible printed circuit board includes a plurality of cantilevered fingers.

19. The communications jack of claim 16, wherein the flexible printed circuit board comprises a first flexible printed circuit board and a second flexible printed circuit board, and wherein the first mounting locations are on the first flexible printed circuit board and the second mounting locations are on the second flexible printed circuit board.