Abstract:
A card edge connector adapted for rotatably receiving a larger daughter board to a mother board includes an insulating housing defining an elongated slot therein, a plurality of contacts received in the housing, a pair of stopping arms setting to the ends of the housing respectively and a supporting wall integrating with the stopping arm and being longer near to the stopping arm. The stopping arms and the supporting walls are immovable when the daughter board rotating.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention generally relates to an electrical connector, and particularly to a card edge connector for connecting a daughter board, such as a card memory module, to a mother board. 
   2. Description of Prior Arts 
   A conventional card edge connector generally includes an insulating housing defining an elongated slot for receiving a daughter card, and a plurality of contacts received along two opposite inner walls of the slot. A pair of latching arms extend from two opposite ends of the housing. A supporting portion is defined below and inside the latching arm and has a top supporting plane parallel to the lower inner wall of the slot so as to support the daughter card. Two types of the latching arm and supporting portion are generally used in application. One type is that the supporting portion is short so that the latching provides enough elasticity. The second type is that the supporting portion is long, may be as long as the latching arm, but must separate from the latching arm so that the latching arm can pivot outwards to provide elasticity. 
   However, when a larger daughter board, that is much longer than the latching arms, is inserted in a connector of said first type, the larger daughter board can not be supported nicely by the short supporting portion, maybe it will slope down. The daughter board also will shift transversely if the daughter board is inserted into a connector of said second type, since the longer latching arm is easy move transversely. U.S. Pat. No. 5,393,234 discloses a new type of connector defines a latching arm without elasticity, however, and the daughter board is inserted into the slot parallel. Corresponding, the contacts for parallel insertion are different from that of rotatably insertion of the daughter board. In convention mass-production, cost-down current, re-design a new mould to adapt to desire the connector of U.S. Pat. No. 5,393,234 is not ideal. Hence, we hope to desire a new connector on the basis of current connector with most less change. 
   BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   It is an object of the present invention to provide a lower-inserting force card edge connector used for receiving a larger daughter board. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide a card edge connector for receiving and retaining a daughter board steadily. 
   In order to obtain the objective above, a card edge connector adapted for rotatably receiving a larger daughter board to a mother board includes an insulating housing defining an elongated slot therein, a plurality of contacts received in the housing, a pair of stopping arms setting to the ends of the housing respectively and a supporting wall integrating with the stopping arm and being longer near to the stopping arm. The stopping arms and the supporting walls are immovable when the daughter board rotating. 
   Other objects, advantages and novel feature of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present embodiment when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a front side perspective view of a card edge connector constructed in accordance with the present invention; and 
       FIG. 2  is a bottom perspective view of the card edge connector of  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 3  and  FIG. 4  are perspective views of the card edge connector retaining a daughter board therein, and  FIG. 3  shows the daughter board is positioned at a first position, and  FIG. 4  shows the daughter board is positioned at a second position. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   Reference will now be made to the drawing figures to describe the present invention in detail. 
   With reference to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , a card edge connector constructed in accordance with the present invention, generally designated with reference number  1  is used for rotatablely receiving a larger daughter board  7 , and comprises an elongated housing  2  made of insulative material, such as plastics, with an elongated slot  21  defined therein for receiving a releasing edge of the larger daughter board. Two rows of contact-receiving channels  23  and  23 ′ are defined along upper and lower inner walls of the elongated slot  21  to receive a plurality of contacts  6  and  6 ′ (only a pair is shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 ). Each contacts comprises a retaining section retained in the housing, a contacting section extending into the slot  21  and a soldering section extending out the bottom surface of the housing. A key  22  is positioned in the elongated slot  21  and integrally formed with the housing  2 . The daughter card is inserted into the elongated slot  21  with its notch  70  properly aligning with the key  22 . Two fixing members  3  are retained in the ends of the bottom surface of the housing  2  respectively for being inserted and soldered into a mother board (not shown) where the connector is mounted, thereby increasing the reliability of the connector mounted on the mother board. 
   A pair of stopping arms  4  integrally extend from two opposite ends of the housing  2 . The stopping arms  4  respectively define an inner surface  41  facing to each other, and an outer surface  42  parallel to the inner surface  41 . A slanting surface  43  is formed at the intersect of an top surface  44  and the inner surface  41 , thereby protecting the stopping arm  4  from being scraped scratched when the daughter board is inserted into the slot  21 , especially when inserted incorrectly. The stopping arms  4  each has an inward protrusion  45  respectively at the distal end thereof, which face each other and have a same height as the elongated slot  21 . The protrusion  45  is also defined and served as a locking lug. 
   The card edge connector  1  further comprises a pair of supporting walls  5  integrally extending from the opposite ends of the housing  2 . The supporting wall  5  also integrates with the stopping arm  4  which is long enough to reach to the stopping arm  4 . The supporting walls  5  respectively define an inner face  51  facing each other, an outer face  52  parallel to the inner surface  51  and a second bottom face  56  connecting the inner face  51  and the outer face  52 . The top of the supporting wall  5 , which is defined as a supporting face  53 , is as high as the lower inner wall of the slot  21  so as to support the daughter board. A front portion of the supporting wall  5  is partially cut-off to define a receiving room  54 . The outer surface  42  of the stopping arm  4  projects outward beyond the outer face  52  of the supporting wall  5  to define a receiving room  55  below the stopping arm  4 . Therefore, said receiving room  54  and  55  is adapted for receiving other component. The second bottom face  56  of the supporting wall is disposed below a first bottom face  46  of stopping arm  4  and defines a groove  57  for saving material. Each supporting wall  5  is defined as an upward supporting platform, and an upper face of the supporting platform is defined as the supporting face  53 . The supporting platform integrally with the stopping arm  4  is defined as a side arm, and a bottom face  450  of the locking lug  45  is essentially coplanar with the supporting face  53 . 
   Referring to  FIG. 3  and  FIG. 4 , when put the releasing edge of the daughter board into the slot  21 , and the daughter board  7  is firstly positioned at a first position and oblique to the mother board, and then is rotated such that a front end of the daughter board is moved downwards until the daughter board is positioned at a second position in which the daughter board is parallel to the mother board and abuts against the supporting face  53 , and the projections  45  enter into corresponding concaves  71  at sides of the daughter board. Then a latching device (not shown), such as some bolts, is used to lock the front end of the daughter board to the mother board to latch the daughter board in an up-and-down direction. If the daughter board is not inserted completely into the slot  21 , the protrusions  45  of the stopping arms  4  will stop the daughter board from further moving downwardly. The entrance of the protrusions  45  into the corresponding concaves  71  at sides of the daughter board is to prevent relative movement of the daughter board  7  in a front-to-back direction, and the side arms are immoveable relative to the housing during the rotation of the daughter board between the first and second positions. The card edge connector  1  is not integrally equipped with any part which is used to latch the daughter board  7  in the up-and-down direction. 
   The stopping arms  4  is integrally formed with the supporting wall  5 , so the daughter board, especially the larger daughter board position in the connector surely and do not shift transversely. The supporting wall  5  is long enough to support the daughter board, thereby increasing the reliability of daughter board. 
   It is to be understood, however, that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set form in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of number, shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the board general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.