Patent Publication Number: US-6991474-B1

Title: Electrical connector

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to an electrical connector, and particularly relates to an electrical connector adapting for a BGA (Ball Grid Array) chip. 
   2. Background of the Invention 
   As the application of the multimedia, the communication and the computer technologies develop; the desk or laptop computer functions more powerful and the design of the circuit are more complicated. Particularly for the arrangement of pluralities of components in a laptop computer with limited size, the design of the circuit and the arrangement of the components are much emphasized. 
   The conventional electrical connector discloses a semiconductor packaging assembly, which includes a land grid array socket adapting for a circuit board for an electrical connection, a land grid array module having a substantially flat carrier member having electrical contact with said socket, said carrier member also including a semiconductor die disposed on top of said carrier member so as to leave exposed a top portion of said carrier member substantially surrounding said die; a supporting frame engaging to the circuit board and having a supporting member disposed therein; at least two press levers connecting the supporting member to lift the carrier member upwardly in a rotation manner; and a resilient arm disposed on the supporting member contacting the press levers for upward movements. 
   However, the supporting frame and the socket are engaged with each other, when the lever rotates upwardly, the supporting frame is forced to warp upwardly, so as to enable the socket warp for disconnection or break. Furthermore, the connectional socket is complicated and difficult to process. 
   Hence, an improvement over the prior art is required to overcome the disadvantages thereof. 
   SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
   An electrical connector is provided with a simple structure and a guaranteed connection between a chip module and a circuit board. 
   An electrical connector includes an insulating housing having a frame and a plurality of slots formed thereof; a plurality of contacts receiving in the slots partially and having a contacting portion higher than the slots; a pair of levers having an operation portion, a shaft portion and a press portion; and at least one metallic orientation member secured at the shaft portion thereof for rotating the operation portion to enable the press portion downwardly so as to force a chip module, thus the chip module electrically connecting the contacts. 
   Comparing to the conventional socket, the shaft portion according to the present invention is secured by the metallic member, and the metallic member has an opposing end soldered to the circuit board. Thus, there is no direct connection between the shaft portion and the insulating housing. When the lever rotates the shaft portion will not force to the insulating housing so as to avoid warping or breaking. Furthermore, the electrical connector has a simple structure and easy to make. 
   To provide a further understanding of the invention, the following detailed description illustrates embodiments and examples of the invention. Examples of the more important features of the invention thus have been summarized rather broadly in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the contributions to the art may be appreciated. There are, of course, additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter which will form the subject of the claims appended hereto. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with regard to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings, where: 
       FIG. 1  is a decomposition view of an electrical connector according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the electrical connector connecting a circuit board according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 2A  is an enlarged view of an embodiment of a metallic member disposed in the electrical connector according to  FIG. 2 ; 
       FIG. 3  is a decomposition view of a card edge connector connecting the circuit board and a chip module according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view of another embodiment of a metallic member disposed in the electrical connector according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the electrical connector according to  FIG. 4  connecting the circuit board and the chip module; 
       FIG. 6  is a perspective view of a further embodiment of the metallic member disposed in the electrical connector according to the present invention; and 
       FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the electrical connector according to  FIG. 6  connecting the circuit board and the chip module. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
   With respect to  FIGS. 1 to 3 , an electrical connector according to the present invention includes an insulating housing  1  having a frame and a plurality of slots  10  formed thereof; a plurality of contacts  2  receiving in the slots  10  partially and having a contacting portion  21  higher than the slots  10 ; a pair of levers  3  having an operation portion  31 , a shaft portion  30  and a press portion  32 ; and at least one metallic orientation member  4  secured at the shaft portion  30  thereof for rotating the operation portion  31  to enable the press portion  32  downwardly so as to force a chip module  5 , thus the chip module  5  electrically connecting the contacts  2 . Therefore, the chip module  5  electrically connects a circuit board  6 . The frame has an orientation border  11  projected upwardly therefrom for orientating the chip module  5 . The orientation border  11  has a plurality of receiving slots  110  formed on an upper surface thereof, and a plurality of vertical passages communicating the receiving slots  110  for inserting the metallic orientation member  4 . In addition, the insulating housing  1  has a protrusion  12  projected outwardly from a side thereof. 
   The metallic orientation member  4  has a sheet shape, and includes an orientation portion  40 , a solder portion  41  vertically extending downwardly from the orientation portion  40 , and a bent portion  42  extending laterally from the orientation portion  40 . The solder portion  41  penetrates through the insulating housing  1  and exposes out of a lower surface thereof for inserting and soldering a hole of the circuit board  6 . The orientation portion  40  is disposed inside the receiving slots  110 , and the bent portion  42  has a configuration mating with the receiving slots  110 . The operation portion  31  is substantially extending to the shaft portion  30 , and the press portion  32  extending from a middle portion of the shaft portion  30 . The bent portion  42  of the orientation metallic member  4  can limit the shaft portion  30  along a vertical direction thereof. When the press portion  32  forces the chip module  5 , the operation portion  31  has an end  310  engaging with the protrusion  12  of the insulating housing  1 . Thus, the contacts  2  can electrically connect the chip module  5 . 
   The two levers  3  are symmetrically arranged along the insulating housing  1 , when the chip module  5  connects the electrical connector, the chip module  5  only needs to be disposed in the insulating housing  1 , the press portion  32  of the lever  3  ca presses an upper surface of the chip module  5  to practice the compression contact between the chip module  5  and the contacts  2 . 
   Illustrated in  FIGS. 4 and 7 , the orientation metallic member  4  can be another shape, the orientation metallic member  4  is substantially sheet. Referring to  FIG. 4 , the orientation portion  40 ′ has a through hole  42 ′ for receiving the shaft portion  30  and the press portion  32 , the insulating housing  1  has a slit  111  substantially vertical to the receiving slots  110  and formed at an upper surface thereof for receiving the metallic member  4 ′, and the slit  111  is formed from the upper surface to the lower surface of the insulating housing  1 . Therefore, the solder portion  41 ′ can extends out of the lower surface of the insulating housing  1  for electrically connecting the circuit board  6 . Of course, the solder portion  41 ″ can be extended from a lower end of the orientation portion  40 ″, illustrated in  FIG. 6 , for soldering to the circuit board  6  by SMT. In addition, the contacts  2  can have a lower end shaped like a needle for penetrating through the circuit board  6  in order to solder to the lower surface thereof. 
   It should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the above description is only illustrative of specific embodiments and examples of the invention. The invention should therefore cover various modifications and variations made to the herein-described structure and operations of the invention, provided they fall within the scope of the invention as defined in the following appended claims.