Electrical contact assembly for printed circuit boards

• US 9,865,953 B2
• Filed: 07/11/2017
• Issued: 01/09/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Fan, Na, Hu, Jun, Huang, Sen Xiong, Shi, YongDong, Yin, XiYuan
• Primary Examiner(s): DINH, PHUONG K
• Application Number:
  US15/646,234
• Publication Number:
  US 20170310031A1
• Time in Patent Office: 182 Days
• Field of Search: 439741, 439743, 439 83, 439876
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/57 surface mounting terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 12/716 Coupling device provided on the PCB
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/11 Resilient sockets carrying separate resilient parts H01R13/15
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 43/04 for forming connections by deformation, e.g. crimping tool
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 43/205 with a panel or printed circuit board
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/184 Components including terminals inserted in holes through the printed circuit board and connected to printed contacts on the walls of the holes or at the edges thereof or protruding over or into the holes
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/10303 Pin-in-hole mounted pins
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/10704 Pin grid array [PGA]
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/1078 Leads having locally deformed portion, e.g. for retention
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/10803 Tapered leads, i.e. leads having changing width or diameter
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 3/3447 Lead-in-hole components H05K3/3415 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/1069 with spring contact pieces

Abstract

A socket housing and contact assembly process includes forming the solder ball contact region after initial installation of a set of contacts into the housing. The contact regions of the set of contacts pass through corresponding contact cavities to extend beyond the housing and the contact regions are formed over at equal angles for solder ball placement.

Claims

1. An assembly process comprising:

inserting a socket pin into a socket housing, the socket pin having a contact region, the socket housing having a rectangular contact cavity that receive the contact region, the contact region passing through the rectangular contact cavity and extending beyond the socket housing;

bending the socket pin such that the contact region is configured to receive a solder ball including;

securing the socket housing,

striking the contact region in a first direction, and

striking the contact region in a second direction such that the contact region is bent more than 90 degrees from an original orientation; and

attaching the solder ball to the contact region;

wherein;

the contact region is bounded by an end of the socket pin and a stress concentration feature, and

the socket pin bends at the stress concentration feature.

2. The assembly process of claim 1, wherein striking the contact region the second direction causes the socket pin to contact a standoff of the socket housing.

3. The assembly process of claim 1, wherein the socket pin is a central processing unit (CPU) socket pin.

4. The assembly process of claim 3, wherein the socket pin is a land grid array (LGA) socket pin.

5. The assembly process of claim 1, wherein the stress concentration feature has a smaller width than the contact region.

6. The assembly process of claim 1, wherein the stress concentration feature is a scoreline.

7. The assembly process of claim 1, wherein:

the socket housing includes a standoff located on the side of the socket housing where the contact region of the socket pin extends out and located on the side of the rectangular contact cavity where the socket pin is bent.