Patent Document

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0002]    The present invention relates to electrical connectors, especially terminal blocks, with active electrical components between signal paths and ground.  
           [0003]    2. Description of the Prior Art  
           [0004]    Active, or non-resistive, capacitive elements can be incorporated into connectors to reduce cross-talk, improve impedance matching, filter out EMI/RFI (electromagnetic or radio-frequency interference), suppress transients (voltage “spikes”), and for various other purposes. Such elements are sometimes known as “chip capacitors” or simply “chips” and will be so referred here. The chips may be placed across two signal lines, from signal lines to ground, or otherwise as appropriate.  
           [0005]    The chips may be held in a hole in the insulating housing of the connector, which provides both location and protection for the chip. This is illustrated by U.S. Pat. No. 6,036,545 to Caviness et al, entitled “Decoupled BNC Connector.” It discloses a board mountable BNC electrical connector  10  with a spark gap feature that protects the connector against exposure to elevated voltages. The Caviness BNC connector is adapted to be mounted onto a printed circuit (PC) board to make grounding contact. The connector includes a grounding clip  76  which is mounted under the connector body or housing so as to be in contact with the PC board. As seen in FIG. 5, capacitors (chips)  68  are held in slots  66  to contact the conductive shell portion  18  on the inside and, on the outside, the upward-extending tines or arms  82  of the grounding clip  76 . The grounding clip  76  is mounted to the PC board with board locks  84  that project downwardly from the base portion  80  of the clip  76 . The board locks clip into holes in the board.  
           [0006]    In the Caviness design only two chips can make contact with the shell portion  18 .  
           [0007]    A spark gap tab  74  projects up from the base  80  (in the opposite direction from the board locks  84 ). As best seen in FIG. 5, the tab  74  is fitted into a key way  72 . This is the only apparent mechanical connection between the grounding clip  76  and the plastic housing, and it is not a strong connection. The narrow width of the tab  74 , combined with the small overlap on the shoulder of the key way and the relatively weak nature of the insulating material, make for failure under any but the mildest stresses under pulling-out forces, and sliding of the tab in the key way could also be a problem.  
           [0008]    In addition, the assembly of the tab  74  into the key way  72 , followed by the bending of the conductor leads  54 , is difficult to automate or perform rapidly.  
           [0009]    Plass, in FIG. 1 of U.S. Pat. No. 5,242,318, shows an elongated plate  9  which Plass calls a filter carrier. It has a central opening, around which are contact tongues  9 . 1  that hold a thin planar filter  10 . FIG. 1 of Plass, an exploded view with parts separated longitudinally, shows the filter  10  slid out transversely to the longitudinal direction, indicating that the tongues  9 . 1  provide a slot for the filter  10 .  
           [0010]    U.S. Pat. No. 4,500,159 to Briones et al. discloses a filter connector ( 24 ;  90 ;  116 ) with an electrically conductive shell ( 60 ;  91 ;  118 ) and a dielectric body ( 50 ;  93 ;  120 ) mounted to the shell and having a sidewall  52 , a row of passages ( 56 ;  95 ;  123 ) extending through with each receiving an electrical contact ( 51 ;  97 ;  124 ), and a row of separated cavities ( 58 ;  99 ;  122 ) extending inwardly from the sidewall in a direction transverse to that of the passages with each communicating with only one respective passage. A monolithic chip-type capacitor chip  80 , including active and ground electrodes, is disposed in each cavity. Their inner ends touch individual signal conductors, and their outer ends are pressed by resilient conductive spring tines  75  (see FIG. 3). The tines are bent over from fingers extending from the flat plate of a spring member  70 . There are two members  70 , one above and one below.  
           [0011]    A resilient conductor ( 90 ) pressing against a chip ( 80 ) is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,340,334 to Nguyen, in FIG. 5.  
           [0012]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,895,293, issued to Brandenberg et al, discloses a filtered terminal block assembly with a dielectric insert ( 20 ) having a cavity ( 48 ) including various-sized sub-cavities including a pocket ( 50 ) and a bore ( 52 ). The insert ( 20 ) is mounted in an opening ( 46 ) on a ground plate ( 16 ), and a ground member ( 22 ) extends from the plate to enclose the dielectric insert. The dielectric insert has a bore ( 52 ) and a cavity ( 48 ), in which a filter element ( 24 ,  26 ) is disposed. The filter element  24  is annular/cylindrical in shape, like a section of tubing; see FIG. 3. An electrical contact ( 14 ) extends through the filter element ( 24 ,  26 ). An outer end of the filter element ( 24 ,  26 ) is electrically connected to the electrical contact ( 14 ), and a ground member ( 22 ) is electrically connected between the filter element ( 24 ,  26 ) and the ground plate ( 16 ). An electrically-conductive thixotropic material ( 54 ) in a pocket ( 50 ) and along an inner surface of the cavity( 48 ) electrically connects an inner end of the filter element ( 24 ,  26 ) to the electrical contact ( 14 ).  
           [0013]    The Brandenberg connector cannot be adapted to multiple chips.  
           [0014]    In U.S. Pat. No. 4,950,185, issued to Boutros et al, a planar filter array isolated from mechanical and thermal stresses by an arrangement of resilient planar gaskets which sandwich the array and by electrical contact springs which further isolate the array from mechanical and thermal stresses while permitting electrical connection to the individual filters.  
           [0015]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,397,250 discloses a modular jack connector arranged to optionally accommodate both a ferrite block inductor arrangement and chip capacitors. The connector can be assembled and all components secured in place in four insertion steps, without soldering or other bonding techniques.  
           [0016]    The prior art does not disclose a structure allowing more than one or two chips to be coupled between a conductor, such as a signal lead, and a ground plane. Neither does it disclose a secure arrangement of a ground plane for a terminal block, or any means for retaining a grounding sheet.  
         OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0017]    It is an objective of the capacitor chip filtered terminal block of the invention to provide an assembly capable of filtering EMI/RFI and/or transients from the circuit into which it is installed, by providing flexibility of accepting zero to four chips, or more, per contact location.  
           [0018]    Another object of the invention is an assembly with a reduced number of assembly operations, and particularly no soldering operations during top-level assembly (except for some termination attachments) and thereby lower cost.  
           [0019]    It is another objective of the present invention to provide a protective barrier for the chip within an insulating housing, and a stable protective location for the chip with stress isolation from the external loads applied to the ends of the contacts. Such forces include screw-tightening torque and forces applied to the contact to make external electrical and mechanical connections, and thermal stresses as well.  
           [0020]    Still another object of the invention is to provide the capability of having a plurality of different circuits within one terminal block, including filter and nonfiltered circuit types, including grounded terminations.  
           [0021]    Another object of the invention is to provide a solution of a press fit contact for a terminal block by using a coil spring installed inside the tines, in order to have better control of insertion, removal and retention forces from PCB, and a higher current carrying capability.  
           [0022]    With these and other objects, advantages and features of the invention that may become hereinafter apparent, the nature of the invention may be more clearly understood by reference to the following detailed description of the invention, the appended claims and to the several drawings attached herein.  
           [0023]    The first two preferred embodiments of the present invention are a terminal block with a formed conductive sheet metal as the grounding component. The terminal block is comprised of a plastic housing that has a plurality of contacts. The housing and the contacts may be arranged in a variety of configurations. The contacts are retained in the housing by interference fit, mold-in-place, or captivation, or any other suitable retention means. The terminations of the contacts are in the form of any combination of pin, socket, mounting lugs, quick disconnect contacts, compliant pins, press fit terminals, cables, wires, threaded posts which may have the associated hardware, wire wrap, and solder cups.  
           [0024]    The electrical component is held in a cavity in the housing. The cavity for the electrical component is located adjacent to the contact in the housing. The electrical component is retained in the housing by the grounding component, and a retention insert.  
           [0025]    The electrical component makes electrical connection to the contact by the application of a compressive load. This load is applied to the electrical component by the grounding component. The grounding component is comprised of a formed conductive sheet formed into a spring configuration. The grounding component makes electrical connection to the electrical component, and to the panel or PC board into which the filtered terminal block is installed. It is retained in the connector by the retention insert. The retention insert resists the load applied to the chip from the formed tine on the grounding component. The retention insert is retained in the terminal block by an interference fit with the contacts, or other suitable means.  
           [0026]    In a third embodiment, the terminal block has a flat plate as the primary grounding component. The terminal block is comprised of a plastic housing that has a plurality of contacts. The housing and the contacts may be arranged in a variety of configurations. The contacts are retained in the housing by interference fit, mold-in-place, or captivation, or any other suitable retention means. The terminations of the contacts are in the form of any combination of pin, socket, mounting lugs, quick disconnect contacts, compliant pins, press fit terminals, cables, wires, threaded posts which may have the associated hardware, wire wrap and solder cups.  
           [0027]    The electrical component is held in a cavity in the housing or in the grounding component or both. The cavity for the electrical component is located adjacent to the contact in the housing. The electrical component is retained in the housing by the primary grounding component, and the secondary grounding component.  
           [0028]    The electrical component makes electrical connection to the contact by the application of a compressive load. This load is applied to the electrical component by the grounding components. The grounding component may be comprised of any combination of a formed conductive sheet, machined plate, conductive elastomer, or conductive spring. The grounding components make electrical connection to the electrical component, and to the panel into which the filtered terminal block is installed. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0029]    [0029]FIG. 1 a  is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the invention.  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 1 b  is a perspective cut-away view of the embodiment FIG. 1 a , with a cut indicated by arrows II-II.  
         [0031]    [0031]FIG. 1 c  is an exploded perspective view of the embodiment FIG  1   a.    
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment FIG. 1 a  taken on section II-II.  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a contact of the embodiment of FIG. 1.  
         [0034]    [0034]FIG. 4 is a perspective partial view of a second embodiment of the invention.  
         [0035]    [0035]FIG. 5 is a view, resembling a cross-sectional view, in the direction of arrow V of FIG. 4.  
         [0036]    [0036]FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken on section line VI-VI of FIG. 5.  
         [0037]    [0037]FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken on section line VII-VII of FIG. 5.  
         [0038]    [0038]FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a retention insert.  
         [0039]    [0039]FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a ground strip.  
         [0040]    [0040]FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a bare housing.  
         [0041]    [0041]FIG. 11 is a view similar to that of FIG. 1 c , of a third embodiment of the invention.  
         [0042]    [0042]FIG. 12 is a view similar to that of FIG. 1 b , of the third embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0043]    Here, and in the following claims, “chip” includes any discrete electrical element or combination of elements, whether resistive, inductive, capacitive, or active, and for example includes transient suppression diodes, capacitors, metal oxide varisters, grounding chips, feed through contacts (no electrical component), spark gap devices, and similar devices, and so on.  
         [0044]    A first embodiment, a terminal block, is shown in FIGS. 1 a - 3 .  
         [0045]    [0045]FIGS. 1 a - 2  illustrate a first preferred embodiment of the present invention, a terminal block with an insulating (for example, plastic) housing  10  and contacts  20  that may be arranged in a variety of configurations. In the illustrated embodiment the contacts  20  are arrayed in linear single file. In FIG. 1 the terminations or lower connections  22  of the contacts  20  are visible protruding from the bottom of the terminal block housing  10 . (Various different types of contact with different lower end connections  22  are shown mounted in the a single housing  10 , to illustrate the different types.) Various fittings F are seen attached to the lower connections  22 .  
         [0046]    In FIG. 1 c  the upper connections  28  are visible. The illustrated connections are tapped holes, but any type can be provided. The contact termination ends (upper  28  or lower  22 ) may be in the form of pin, socket, mounting lugs, solder cup, quick disconnect, compliant pins, press fit terminals, cable, wire, threaded posts (which may have the associated hardware), or any other configuration suitable for making electrical connection.  
         [0047]    The housing  10  has attachment holes  12  at both ends thereof, and preferably has ribs  14  between adjacent terminal contacts.  
         [0048]    On the bottom side of the terminal block  10 , which is visible in FIG. 1, a retention insert  50  and grounding component or ground plate  40  are visible. These are more clearly seen in the exploded view of Fig. 1 c , in which a number of chips  30  are visible above the ground plate  40 . The chips are located in pockets or cavities  13  in the bottom side of the housing  10 . They make electrical connection to the underside of the upper portion of the contact  20 , as explained below.  
         [0049]    The contacts are preferably retained in the housing by a barb (interference fit), molding in place, clamping, or any other suitable retention means. The surface  21  is preferably knurled. A flat  27 , visible in FIG. 3, may be provided to resist turning.  
         [0050]    [0050]FIG. 2 shows a variation of the first embodiment, in which there are possibly more than four chips  30  to each contact  20 . FIG. 2 is a cross section taken on two angled planes that meet at the center line C, the axis of the contact  20 .  
         [0051]    The chip  30  is held and makes electrical connection to the contact  20  by a compressive force created by a spring tine  43  of the conductive grounding component  40 , which is made from conductive sheet with finger portions formed into spring tines  43 , as seen in FIG. 1 c . The tines  43  are captivated between the retention insert  50  and the chip  30 . This provides protection from external mechanical forces that could damage the spring tine  43  and the chip  30 . FIG. 2 illustrates, on the right side, an empty cavity  13  in which there is no chip  30 .  
         [0052]    [0052]FIG. 3 shows the contact  20  of FIG. 2 from underneath, similar to the view of Fig. 1 b . A chip-contacting surface  23 , formed by a shoulder at the bottom of an annular flange  21 , has four chip-contacting areas A that are indicated in FIG. 3 by dashed lines. (One of those chip-contacting areas is also visible in FIG. 2, as the line at the top of the chip  30 .) It will be understood that each of the areas A corresponds to one cavity  13  in the housing  10  above the annular flange  21 , and that four various different chips  30  can be put between the contact and the grounding plate, all in parallel. The present invention also contemplates that two chips may be placed into one cavity, either stacked so as to be in series or placed side-by-side. In the latter case the number of chips and cavities may not match.  
         [0053]    The invention also includes a connector with exactly two chip cavities  13  per contact, for example, one on either side of the longitudinal axis of the contact.  
         [0054]    While the chip-contacting shoulder is exemplified by the illustrated flat surface  23 , the chip-contacting shoulder is not limited to a flat surface. The shoulder surface may be stepped (for different lengths of chip, for example), may be conical, may include surface features or attachments to improve electrical contact, and so on. The present invention is limited to no particular shape, surface, outline, or size of the shoulder.  
         [0055]    The invention is not limited to a particular quantity of contacts or chips. A different quantity of contacts or chips (not shown) may be desirable in some applications. The housing and the contacts may be arranged in a variety of configurations. The contact termination ends may be in the form of pin, socket, mounting lugs, solder cup, quick disconnect, compliant pins, press fit terminals, cable, wire, threaded posts which may have the associated hardware or any other configuration suitable for making electrical connection.  
         [0056]    In the illustrated preferred embodiment the chips  30  are pressed against the areas A by the chip tines  43  and electrical connection to ground is through the ground plate  40  which, as shown in FIGS. 1 c  and  2 , includes a generally flat outer portion adapted to be pressed against a ground surface such as a metalized grounding area of a PC board, or some grounded conductive component, when the housing  10  is mounted on that conductive ground surface. Screws (not shown) installed through the holes  12  and  42  into the grounding surface and tightened would provide a good ground connection to each of the chips  30  in the assembly.  
         [0057]    The chips  30  can also or alternatively be located at the sides, bottom, top or any location around the contact  20  and partially or fully inside the housing, within the scope of the invention. For example, chips can be also pressed against the sides of the contact  20  in the manner of the Caviness et al. &#39;545 patent discussed above (not shown in the drawing). In combination with the areas A shown in FIG. 3, even more chips could be placed into contact with each contact  20  by urging them against the sides of the annular flange  21  or the sides of the other lower annular steps. The grounding plate, in such an embodiment, would preferably include additional tines (not shown) along the side of the housing  10 , similar to the tines  76  shown by Caviness et al.; or, a single solid sheet of the same cross-sectional shape could be used.  
         [0058]    [0058]FIG. 2 shows that, on the bottom of the housing  10 , the lower connections  22  are spaced well away from the outer portion or periphery of the ground plate  40  and there is little chance of grounding the contact lower connection end  22 . Internally, there is also no chance of accidental grounding because the chip tine  43  is separated from the contact  20  by insulating material, of the housing  10  and the retention insert  50 . Both are preferably molded of plastic.  
         [0059]    The retention insert  50  is, preferably, press-fitted into a mating opening  15  in the bottom of the housing  10 . That mating opening  15  merges with the chip cavities  13  so that the chips can be dropped into place when the housing  10  is upside-down, preferably after the contacts  20  are fastened in place. The grounding plate  40  can make an interference fit with the portion of the chip tines  43  which are adjacent the flat periphery and vertical in FIG. 2, which in turn can interfere with the opening  15  of the housing  10 ; and the protruding upper part  51  of the retention insert  50  can make an interference fit with the mating portion of the opening  15 . The retention insert  50  may of course also or alternatively be held in place by other means. The bottom of the retention insert  50  is preferably flat and just above flush with the bottom of the housing  10 . A platform portion  54  of the retention insert  50  supports the chip tine  43  and resists the force exerted downward by that spring element.  
         [0060]    While a stamped spring-metal sheet with bent tines  43  is preferred, the ground plate  40  may include any combination of a machined plate, a stamped and formed sheet metal plate, a conductive rubber component, or a separate conductive spring. The ground plate may be retained to the housing by bonding, riveting, clamping, threaded fasteners, or any other suitable means.  
         [0061]    FIGS.  4 - 10  show a second, most preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 shows part of a complete connector, with the left portion removed. The arrow V indicates the direction of a second view of this embodiment, which is FIG. 5. This embodiment differs in several ways from that of FIGS.  1 - 3 .  
         [0062]    One difference is that the ground plate is embodied as two distinct, separate, parallel ground strips  44  (one of which is shown alone in FIG. 9). Preferably, the ground strips  44  are identical on the left and right sides of the housing  10 . This permits continuous fabrication of ground strip material, that can be cut to length for any length of housing  10  and installed on both sides. It also adds the flexibility of providing a ground strip  44  on only one side of the housing  10 , if one will suffice.  
         [0063]    As with the ground plate  40  of the first embodiment, the ground strips  44  may include any combination of a machined plate, a stamped and formed sheet metal plate, a conductive rubber component, or a separate conductive spring, and may be retained to the housing by bonding, riveting, clamping, threaded fasteners, or any other suitable means.  
         [0064]    To locate the ground strip  44  accurately, alignment holes  47  on the ground strip preferably fit onto alignment bosses  57  on the retention insert  50 . The alignment bosses  57  are seen in FIGS. 7 and 8.  
         [0065]    To locate the assembled ground strips  44  and retention insert  50  onto the housing  10 , U-shaped stabilizing bosses  17 , that straddle the alignment bosses  57 , are preferably provided on the bottom of the housing  10 . These bosses  17  also reduce tilting of the ground strips and stabilize them. They are seen in perspective in FIG. 10 and in cross section in FIG. 7.  
         [0066]    The entire assembly is still more firmly fixed by bosses  16  on the housing  10 , that mate with openings  56  in the retention insert  50  (FIGS. 8 and 6; the bosses  16  are also shown in FIG. 10). Other round openings  52  are sized to accept the contact lower connection ends  22  of the contacts  20  (FIGS. 8 and 6). The bosses  16  are preferably knurled.  
         [0067]    Like the grounding plate  40  of the first embodiment, the ground strip  44  of the second embodiment has chip tines  43  that press upward against the chips  30 , but it also has grounding tines or fingers  45  that press in the opposite direction against a PC board or conductive panel (not shown). Because of the resilience of the conductive, springy grounding fingers  45 , the ground strip  44  can still make contact with an underlying surface even when it is not clamped against that surface (it need only be held such that the grounding fingers  45  are deflected enough to give sufficient ground connection. As a result, the housing  10  end portions that contain the bolt end mounting holes  12  may be omitted, because the hold-down force of bolts or screws is no longer needed. The housing  10  preferably includes recesses  19  on the bottom surface above each grounding finger  45  to permit a portion of the finger  45  to deflect upward when the PCB surface presses it in that direction.  
         [0068]    Bolts, screws, rivets and the like may, in the second embodiment, be eliminated and the holding force is then preferably supplied by the contact lower connection ends  22 , which in the embodiment of FIG. 4 are press-fit contacts. Each press-fit connection end  22  comprises a number of contact tines  23  (for example, the four illustrated), that are resilient in the radial direction and have outer bulges that together comprise a flange-like region of increased diameter that is slightly greater than the diameter of the PCB hole (not shown) into which the contact tines  23  are intended to go. The entire terminal block can thus “press” onto the PCB with grounding connection to the PCB assured by the forces applied to the PCB by the deflection of the grounding fingers  45  . The bulge  23  on the contact passes into the PCB board hole, and makes contact to the inside diameter of the PCB hole, and can hold the terminal block to the PCB, and maintains the deflection of the grounding fingers  45 .  
         [0069]    The distance of the flange-like region of increased diameter from the bottom surface of the connector may be adjusted to the thickness of the PCB for which the connector is intended. The radial force should be adjusted to permit repeated installation and removal of the connector without damage to the PCB.  
         [0070]    Because the bolt holes  12  are no longer needed (though they may be retained, as illustrated), the housing  10  can be cut to length from a continuous long blank, like the grounding strip  44 . If connectors with different numbers of contacts are to be made, it is then possible to do so with only one mold, by cutting long housings into sections as desired. (The bolt hole  42  in the first-embodiment grounding plate  40  is, of course, not present in the embodiment of FIG. 4.) Press-in assembly to the PCB eliminates the need for soldering as well as the need for assembly hardware.  
         [0071]    Preferably a spring  24 , generally tubular in the shape and in the form of a single or double rolled spring, it is fitted inside the contact tines  23 , to increase the radial force as the press-fit connection end  22  passes into the PCB, and applies this radial force to the hole to create electrical connection, and provide a mechanical retention force. The presence of spring  24  increases the radial forces of the contact tine to the PCB hole, contact retention and current carrying capacity which allows for repeated installation and removal of the terminal block and connectors of other styles that use the press-fit contact. This can eliminate the need for hold-down hardware in some applications..  
         [0072]    The contacts  20  preferably include directed barbs  29  that hold the contacts  20 , once inserted, into the housing  10  and the openings  52  of the retention insert.  
         [0073]    The termination of the contacts may be in the form of any combination of pin, socket, mounting lugs, quick disconnect contacts, pins, press fit contacts, cables, wires, threaded posts (which may have the associated hardware), wire wrap and solder cups. In some combinations the bolt holes  12  may be required to ensure deflection of the grounding tines  45  and resulting ground connection.  
         [0074]    [0074]FIGS. 11 and 12 show an alternative third embodiment with a machined ground plate  40  that is fastened with screws  60  rather than being pressed onto the housing  10 , and separate springs to compress the chips  30 . This embodiment has two rows of contacts  20  and, in place of the tines  43  of the first embodiment it employs individual resilient conductor springs  70 , or a conductive strip. These are preferably pieces of conductive elastomer, but may include coil springs or other resilient conducting devices. The grounding component in this embodiment comprises the flat plate  40  as a primary grounding component and the resilient conductors  70  as secondary grounding components.  
         [0075]    The contacts  20  in the embodiment of FIG. 11 have, like the contacts  20  of the first embodiment, an annular flange  21  which again permits four or more chips to be placed in parallel between each contact  20  and electrical ground. Although only one chip  30  per contact  20  is illustrated for the sake of clarity, the cavity/chip/resilient conductor combination can clearly be multiplied by a person skilled in the art, to provide plural chips as desired.  
         [0076]    In summary, the present invention has a number of advantages.  
         [0077]    One major advantage is that up to four or more chips per contact can be provided, and chips of different types can be combined, on one contact or signal carrier. Different types can be combined: feed through, ground, capacitive, transient suppression, spark gap, and so on.  
         [0078]    A wider range of capacitance is available, by using plural chips, and increased dielectric breakdown voltage and current-carrying capabilities are also made possible by the present invention. The chips may be assembled in a parallel to significantly increase the capacitance; the chips may be assembled in a series circuit (e.g., several chips in one chip cavity  13 ) to significantly increase the voltage tolerance. Also, the capacitance value achieved using chip capacitors greatly exceeds that of tubular capacitors of the same voltage rating.  
         [0079]    The formed conductive sheet metal grounding components or component reduces the size of the filtered connector so that the overall package size is essentially that of an unfiltered terminal block.  
         [0080]    The retention insert protects the formed tines from the external environment.  
         [0081]    Assembly with conductive grounding components that are formed from conductive sheet, conductive rubber, or a conductive spring, as opposed to relying on a soldered ground component, is an advantage. The stress isolation of the filter component prevents damage and subsequent failure due to stresses induced during assembly of the terminal into the next application.  
         [0082]    Press or snap-in assembly optionally without bolts, screws, rivets saves assembly time and parts cost.  
         [0083]    Lower cost is associated with rapid assembly.  
         [0084]    While the embodiments described above are terminal blocks, the present invention is not limited to terminal blocks, but includes any type of connector within the scope of the following claims. For example, the annular flange with plural chip-contact areas of the invention could be adapted to a cable-type connector like that illustrated in the Nguyen &#39;334 patent discussed above. The “lower” contact end might not be underneath, in that case, and the press fit contact end with possible tubular shaped rolled spring could also be incorporated in other styles of connection devices.  
         [0085]    Although certain presently preferred embodiments of the present invention have been specifically described herein, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains that variations and modifications of the various embodiments shown and described herein may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, it is intended that the invention be limited only to the extent required by the appended claims and the applicable rules of law.

Technology Category: h