Patent ID: RE39153

Claim:
An electrical connector comprising a plurality of bus conductors , each bus conductor of the plurality of bus conductors running through the length of the connector yet and being electrically isolated from one another and other bus conductors of the plurality of bus conductors, each bus conductor of the plurality of bus conductors having a number of compliant contact regions disposed at various positions along their respective lengths so as to provide electrical coupling points for like contact regions of electrical devices to be received within the connector, the plurality of bus conductors being divided into including first and second groups such that across the width of the connector a each bus conductor of the first group is positioned adjacent to in an interleaved configuration with each bus conductors conductor of the second group that is positioned adjacent to yet another bus conductor of the first group, and so on for each of the plurality of bus conductors, the and having a predetermined transmission line impedance of any pair of adjacent bus conductors, one being chosen from the first group and the other being chosen from the second group, being determinable , and wherein each of the bus conductors of the first group are adapted to be electrically coupled to respective signal paths associated with a circuit board on which the connector is to be mounted through only two an electrical contact elements regardless of the number of compliant contact regions, the two electrical contact elements of each bus conductor of the first group being arranged so that each is element disposed substantially near an each end of its each respective bus conductor of the first group , and the bus conductors of the second group each being adapted to be electrically coupled to an electrical ground plane associated with the circuit board through a number of electrical contact elements disposed along their respective lengths, the number of electrical contact elements being irrespective of the number of compliant contact regions each bus conductor of the second group .