Abstract:
A connector for a double-sided, printed circuit board. The connector has a body defining a housing for accommodating a microphone module, first conductors equipped with an area for electrical connection to a complementary connector and with an area for contact with a track on the first face of the board, and second conductors connecting the microphone to the board. The body has a space for accommodating the board, where the space is defined between the electrical connection areas of the first and second conductors. Each contact area of the second conductors is in contact with the second face of the board. The microphone module is arranged, with respect to the space for accommodating the board, on the same side as the areas for making contact between the second conductors and the board.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
         [0001]    The present application is related to French patent application number 00 02344, filed on Feb. 24, 2000, which is hereby incorporated by reference.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    The present invention relates to a connector designed to accommodate a printed-circuit board and equipment having such a connector.  
         DISCUSSION OF THE BACKGROUND  
         [0003]    Connectors are used, for example, in mobile telecommunication equipment, such as portable telephones. The connectors are permanently incorporated so that data transfer can be set up with an external information processing unit, such as a microcomputer, or to transfer electrical energy from a source of electrical energy to the equipment coupled to the external unit via the appropriate connector. Such a connector also allows an electrical connection to be made between a microphone in the mobile telecommunication equipment and the latter&#39;s printed-circuit board.  
           [0004]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,761,299 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,836,790 describe portable telephones including connectors of this type in which the microphone is arranged next to the set of contact terminals allowing an item of auxiliary equipment to be connected. The microphone and the set of terminals are thus aligned in a transverse direction of the telephone, that is to say along the width of the telephone. More precisely, the set of contact terminals and the microphone are arranged side by side along the width of the telephone&#39;s printed-circuit board, this board extending along most of the length of the portable telephone. Furthermore, the set of connection terminals and the microphone are arranged on the same side of the printed-circuit board.  
           [0005]    The current demands of consumers require that the dimensions of portable telephones be as small as possible. However, the presence in the connector of the microphone placed next to the set of connection terminals imposes minimum transverse dimensions on the portable telephone in the region where the connector is provided (i.e. at the base of the telephone).  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0006]    The present invention provides a connector that can be used in a portable telephone and has reduced dimensions.  
           [0007]    To this end, the present invention is a connector intended to accommodate a printed circuit board having electrically conductive metal strips on first and second opposite faces, characterized in that the body has a space for accommodating the board, the space being defined between the electrical connection areas of the first and second electrically conductive elements, so that the or each contact area of the or of each second electrically conductive element is in mechanical contact with a metal strip borne or supported by the second face of the board, and in that the microphone module is essentially arranged, with respect to the space for accommodating the board, on the same side as the or each contact area of the or of each second electrically conductive element.  
           [0008]    More specifically, the present invention relates to a connector designed to accommodate a printed-circuit board having electrically conductive metal strips on first and second opposite faces. The connector has a body designed to be mounted on the board, and the body has a housing for accommodating a microphone module. The connector has a microphone module accommodated at least in part in the accommodation housing, and the microphone module has a microphone. The connector has at least one first electrically conductive element having, on the one hand, an area for electrical connection with a corresponding electrically conductive element of a complementary connector, and, on the other hand, an area for contact with a metal strip borne by the first face of the board. Furthermore, the connector has at least one second electrically conductive element having, on the one hand, an area for electrical connection with the microphone, and, on the other hand, an area for contact with a metal strip on the board.  
           [0009]    According to specific embodiments, the connector has one or more of the following features:  
           [0010]    the microphone module is arranged, at least in part, in line with the space for accommodating the board;  
           [0011]    the accommodation housing is arranged in the body, so that the accommodation housing extends essentially facing the second face of the board when the board is plugged into the connector;  
           [0012]    the or each electrical connection area of the or of each first electrically conductive element is arranged, within the body, in the continuation of the space for accommodating the board;  
           [0013]    the or each second electrically conductive element is integrated in the microphone module, and the body has a passage for the or each second electrically conductive element, the passage connecting the housing for accommodating the microphone module to the space for accommodating the board;  
           [0014]    the body and the microphone module have complementary means for holding the microphone module in a predetermined position within the accommodation housing;  
           [0015]    the complementary means for holding the microphone module in a predetermined position have means for elastically engaging the microphone module in the accommodation housing; and  
           [0016]    the microphone module has at least one casing which accommodates the microphone and comprises at least one channel for directing sound waves intended for the microphone.  
           [0017]    The present invention further provides mobile telecommunication equipment, characterized in that the equipment has at least one casing, at least one printed-circuit board and at least one connector as described above. The board is plugged into the connector, and the casing has an access opening produced opposite the or each electrical connection area of the or of each first electrically conductive element, so that one or each electrically conductive element of a complementary connector is coupled to the first electrically conductive element or to at least some of the first electrically conductive elements of the connector.  
           [0018]    According to a specific embodiment, the mobile equipment is a portable telephone.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0019]    A more complete appreciation of the invention and many of the attendant advantages thereof will become readily apparent with reference to the following detailed description, particularly when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 1 is a partial view from above in exploded perspective of a portable telephone having a connector according to the invention at a lower end thereof;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 2 is a view from below in exploded perspective of the connector and of the end of the printed-circuit board in the portable telephone, where the microphone module is removed;  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the connector according to the invention intended to accommodate a printed-circuit board, where the section is taken in the central plane of the microphone, and  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 4 is a view in exploded perspective of the microphone module intended to be housed in the connector depicted in FIGS.  1  to  3 .  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0024]    [0024]FIG. 1 depicts a connector  10  according to the present invention that is inserted into a portable telephone  12 . The portable telephone has a printed-circuit board  14  held between a rear half-shell  16  and a front half-shell  18 . The two half-shells  16  and  18  delimit an extended outer casing of the telephone. The length of the printed-circuit board extends along the length of the telephone. A keypad is provided on the front half-shell  18 .  
         [0025]    The connector  10  is provided at the base of the telephone  12 , i.e. at a lower end of the telephone opposite the one which has the acoustic transmission element. To this end, the front and rear half-shells have discontinuities  16 A,  18 A which between them define a passage for accessing the connector. The passage is formed in the lower end face of the casing.  
         [0026]    An aperture  19  is made at the base of the front half-shell  18  for sound waves to pass through to a microphone in the telephone.  
         [0027]    The connector  10  has a body  20  configured to be mounted on the printed-circuit board  14  at a lower end thereof. The connector  10  also has a microphone module  22  configured to be accommodated in a housing  24  of the body. The module  22  is positioned facing the opening  19 .  
         [0028]    As depicted in FIG. 2, the body  20  has a slot  26  for accommodating the end of the board  14 . The slot  26  allows the connector to enclose the end of the board  14  along its width. The slot  26  is delimited by a base  28  intended to come into contact with a rear face  14 A of the board and a covering wall  30  extending parallel to the base  28  and configured to be pressed onto a front face  14 B of the board. The base  28  and the covering wall  30  are connected to one another by an end wall  31  configured to extend transversely at the end of the board  14 . The end wall partly closes off the slot  26  by extending perpendicular to the base  28  and to the covering wall  30 . In addition, the slot  26  is delimited at the sides by pillars  32  connecting the base  28  to the covering wall  30 . To allow the pillars  32  to pass, the printed-circuit board  14  is equipped with notches  32 A which open out along its lower edge.  
         [0029]    The end wall  31  has a set of housings  33  (see FIG. 3) extending parallel to one another. Each housing  33  is contained within the base  28 . The housings  33  are distributed along most of the length of the end wall  31 . Each of the housings  33  contains an electrically conductive element  34 , which can be seen in FIG. 3. Each conductive element  34  is made of a resilient metal blade. The conductive elements  34  continue into parallel grooves  36  (FIG. 2) made on the face of the base  28  delimiting the slot  26  on the inside. Each end of the conductive elements  34 , having been accommodated in a corresponding groove  36 , is configured to interact with an electrically conductive metal strip  38  produced on the rear face  14 A of the printed-circuit board  14 . The metal strips  38  are continuations of tracks on the board. The opposite end of each of the conductive elements  34  forms an electrical connection terminal for a corresponding terminal of a complementary connector configured to make electrical connection with another, external item of equipment.  
         [0030]    The base  28  is continued laterally on both sides by fixing tabs  40 , which can be seen in FIG. 2. Each of the fixing tabs  40  is provided with an opening  42  allowing the passage of a system for fixing to the board, comprising at least one fixing screw. The housing  24  for accommodating the microphone module, which can be seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, is formed facing the conductive elements  34  mounted in the base  28 , and is approximately in the connector&#39;s central region. It should be noted that, in accordance with an alternative embodiment, the accommodation housing  24  is situated in a region close to one of the lateral outer edges  43  of the connector  10 . The accommodation housing  24  is provided on the opposite side of the base  28  to the slot  26 . It is produced partly in the covering wall  30 .  
         [0031]    The accommodation housing  24  is generally of cylindrical shape. The accommodation housing  24  has an axis that extends perpendicularly to the plane of the slot  26 . More precisely, the accommodation housing  24  is delimited by a semi-cylindrical wall  50  made in the covering wall  30 . The semi-cylindrical wall  50  is continued by a semi-cylindrical skirt  52  which is an integral part of the rest of the body. The semi-cylindrical skirt  52  and wall  50  define a cylindrical space which is open at both ends and opens out, in particular, in the slot  26 .  
         [0032]    The height of the skirt  52  is greater than the thickness of the covering wall  30 . The semi-cylindrical skirt  52  is continued tangentially at two ends thereof by tabs  58  for holding the microphone module  22 . The tabs  58  have protrusions  60  oriented towards the end wall  31 . The protrusions  60  extend above the covering wall  30  and, with the covering wall  30 , delimit notches  62  for accommodating complementary interlocking elements borne or supported by the microphone module  22 . In addition, an aperture  64  is made in the inner surface of the semi-cylindrical skirt  52  to allow the microphone module  22  to be retained by elastic engagement.  
         [0033]    The microphone module  22  is shown in detail in FIGS. 3 and 4. The microphone module  22  has a microphone  70  accommodated in a casing  72 . The casing  72  has a body  74  defining a housing for accommodating the microphone  70  and a cover  76  for closing off the body. On the inside, the body  74  delimits a cylindrical cavity  76  which retains the microphone. The cavity  67  is continued by a channel  78  for directing sound waves and for routing them to the microphone  70 . The channel  78  opens out laterally in a mouth  80  at the surface of the casing.  
         [0034]    The shape of the outer surface of the body of the microphone module  22  is generally complementary to that of the accommodation housing  24 , thereby providing the body with an essentially cylindrical outer surface. A radial extension  81 , in which the channel  78  and the mouth  80  are formed, projects from the cylindrical surface at one end of the body.  
         [0035]    On a lateral surface thereof, the body  74  has a protrusion  82  configured to be accommodated in the aperture  64 , as well as two protrusions  83 , one on each side of the radial extension  81 . The protrusions  83  are configured to be accommodated in the notches  62  in the connector body. Thus, the notches  62  and the aperture  64  interact with the protrusions  83  and the protrusion  82 , respectively, so that the microphone module  22  can be held in the desired position.  
         [0036]    The cover  76  has the general shape of a disc and, at a periphery thereof, has a collar  84  configured to interact with a peripheral groove  86  produced in the opening in the body  74  in order to fix the cover  76  to one end of the body  74  as a result of elastic engagement. In addition, two electrically conductive elements  88  cross the cover  76  in order to make an electrical connection between the microphone  70  and the printed-circuit board  14 . The conductive elements  88  are formed by resilient blades, one branch  90  of which projects outside the microphone module  22 . The free end of the branches  90  is bent. As depicted in FIG. 3, the branches  90  are configured to interact with metal strips  92 ,  94  produced directly on the front face  14 B of the printed-circuit board  14  when the microphone module  22  is housed in the connector body  20 . The metal strips  92 ,  94  are connected to tracks on the board  14 .  
         [0037]    When assembled, the connector body  20  engages at the lower end of the printed-circuit board  14 . In this position, the base  28  is essentially facing the rear face  14 A of the printed-circuit board, whereas the covering wall  30  is facing the front face  14 B. The body is retained by a fixing system comprising screws engaged through the board  14  and the apertures  42 . In this position, the end wall  31  is arranged along the width of the board and in its continuation. Thus, the end wall  31  extends along the thickness of the board and continues on either side of the latter. The inherent elasticity of the ends of the conductive elements  34  holds them in contact with the metal strips  38  on the rear face  14 A of the printed-circuit board.  
         [0038]    As depicted in FIG. 1, the metal strips  92  and  94  produced on the upper face  14 B of the printed-circuit board appear at the bottom of the housing  24 . The microphone module  22  is engaged in the accommodation housing  24  and is held there by elastic engagement of the protrusions  82  and  83  in the aperture  64  and in the notches  62 . In this position, depicted in FIG. 3, the ends of the conductive branches  90  are pressed onto the metal strips  92 ,  94 , thus making electrical connection between the microphone  70  and these metal strips  92 ,  94 , which are themselves connected to tracks on the board  14 .  
         [0039]    When the microphone module  22  is housed in the connector body  20 , the radial extension  81  is pressed onto the upper surface of the covering wall  30  in a position such that the mouth  80  emerges in the opening direction of the apertures  34 . When the casing of the telephone is assembled, the mouth  80  of the connector is aligned with the acoustic passage hole  19  made at the lower end of the front half-shell  18 .  
         [0040]    When the half-shells  16  and  18  are assembled around the board  14  bearing the connector  10 , the end wall  31  is accommodated between the discontinuities  16 A,  16 B made in the lower ends of the half-shells. Thus, the end wall appears through the discontinuities. The conductive elements  34  forming electrical connection terminals are opposite the lower end face of the telephone. The conductive elements  34  are thus made accessible from the lower end of the telephone through the discontinuities.  
         [0041]    It will be seen that, with a connector as described above, when the conductive elements  34  of the connector are in contact with one of the faces of the printed-circuit board, while the microphone module  22  extends facing the opposite face of the board, and the connection terminals of the microphone module  22  interact with this opposite face of the board, the lateral dimensions of the connector, and hence the volume, are reduced. Thus, a telephone incorporating such a connector  10  can be miniaturized.  
         [0042]    In the previous descriptions, numerous specific details are set forth, such as specific materials, structures, processes, etc., in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, as one having ordinary skill in the art would recognize, the present invention can be practiced without resorting to the details specifically set forth. In other instances, well known processing structures have not been described in detail in order not to unnecessarily obscure the present invention.  
         [0043]    Numerous modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein.