Patent ID: 8198547

Claim:
A Z-directed component for mounting in a printed circuit board (PCB) having a mounting hole having a depth D therein and at least one internal layer of conductive traces, the Z-directed component comprising: an insulative body of a length L comprising: a top surface; a bottom surface, with one of the top surface and the bottom surface having a conductive trace extending to an edge of the body; a side surface between the top and bottom surfaces; a cross-sectional shape that is insertable into the mounting hole in the PCB; a first region proximate to the at least one internal layer of the PCB; and at least one circumferential channel disposed in the side surface of the body proximate to the at least one internal layers of the PCB; at least one O-ring disposed in the circumferential channel and electrically connectable to one of the at least one internal layers when the Z-directed component is inserted into the mounting hole; and a conductor extending through the first region of the body, the conductor having one end electrically connected to the at least one O-ring and the other end to the conductive trace on one of the top and bottom surfaces of the body, the conductor creating a signal path for passing a signal from one of the top and bottom surfaces of the PCB to the at least one internal layer when the Z-directed component is mounted in the mounting hole.