The present invention relates to a novel pinned module and a method for making the same.
In the manufacture of printed circuit boards and similar electrical devices, it is desirable to make connections to the device as quickly and easily as possible. One technique for making this connection is to employ pins which are mechanically and sometimes electrically connected to the device.
Many techniques are known for affixing electrical connection pins to circuit boards and the like devices. One well known way is to provide the circuit board or device with an opening and to provide the pin with a compliant section having a size compatible with the opening such that when the compliant section of the pin is inserted into the opening, it coacts with the walls of the opening to maintain the pin affixed to the device or board. See U.S. Pat. No. 4,969,259, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. For convenience, this technique of affixing a pin to a substrate using a compliant section of the pin to interact with the walls of an opening in the substrate shall be referred to hereinafter as "compliant pin connection."
Another well known method for connecting pins to circuit boards and the like devices uses non-compliant pins. In this technique, a pin blank is inserted into a hole in the board or other device and the blank is subjected to compression along its longitudinal axis. As a result, the portions of the pin blank adjacent the two sides or surfaces of the board deform through compressive stress to form bulges which securely lock the pin in place. For convenience, techniques for affixing pins in this manner will be referred to hereinafter as "compressive deformation connection."
In the design of complicated electronic components, it is not uncommon to arrange circuit boards and other like devices in stacked relation with numerous electrical connections being made between the different boards. Typically this is done by providing a first circuit board with pins of either the compliant or non-compliant types, moving a second circuit board into position so that the pins projecting from the first circuit board engage corresponding positions in the second circuit board and then soldering the pins to the second circuit board to lock them in place.
Although this procedure works well, it is disadvantageous because it employs soldering operations, which are inherently time consuming, messy and expensive.
In order to overcome this disadvantage, it has been proposed to affix stacked circuit boards together by using electrical connection pins in which both boards are secured to the same pin by compliant pin connection. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,446,505 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,889,496, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. However, in these cases, either the mechanical/electrical connection made with at least some of the pins in one or both boards is not as good as desired or the procedures are complicated and expensive due to the use of pin blanks of esoteric structure, special mechanical manipulations, or both.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a novel technique for forming electrical connections between two or more stacked printed circuit boards by a simple and straightforward manner which provides excellent electrical/mechanical connection for all connections.
In addition, it is a further object of the present invention to provide a novel circuit board or module for use in this technique.
A still further object of this invention is to provide a completed assembly of two or more stacked printed circuit boards or devices which is made using this module.
In addition, it is a still further object of the present invention to provide a method of affixing pin blanks to electrical substrates in order to make the modules of the present invention.
Moreover, it is a still another object of this invention to provide a novel hammer or anvil for use in affixing pin blanks to substrates in accordance with this method.