Claims
- 1. An high-density coaxial interconnect system comprising the integral components:
- (a) a grouper frame configured to hold at least one linear grouper;
- (b) at least one linear grouper positioned in said grouper frame, said linear grouper configured with means on its inner surface to matingly engage and hold in place an array of coaxial connectors in said linear grouper;
- (c) an array of coaxial connectors contained in the linear groupers comprising a coaxial signal cable terminated to a signal contact, an insulator surrounding the terminated cable and contact, and a conductive ground shell surrounding said insulator and contact.,
- (d) said grouper frame attached to a header frame configured to house an array of juxtaposed header chutes and means to attach said header frame to header chutes housed therein.,
- (e) header chutes comprising elongated molded plastic components, including cylindrical parallel bores configured to receive the protruding ends of the conductive ground shells of the coaxial connectors housed within said linear groupers; said header chutes having signal contact pins affixed in the bottom surfaces of each cylindrical bore therein, which houses each said conductive ground shell in alignment to form a terminating electrical contact with each said signal contact of each said coaxial signal cable when said system is assembled, each said signal contact pin being supported in said cylindrical aperture of said header chute by a protruding cone of molded plastic integral with the bottom surface of each header chute and extending both above and below the bottom surface of each said cylindrical bore of said header chute, each cylindrical bore of each header chute including a vertical slot in an outer wall parallel to the length of said bore which houses a resilient leaf contact extending from an elongated perforated conductive ground plane affixed juxtaposed to the outside surface adjacent the slots in said header chute wall by fitting the perforations therethrough over cooperating protruding bottoms of plastic molded therefor into the wall of said header chute, said ground plane also including signal contact pins integrally formed thereon extending below said ground plane, and means to attach said header chutes to said header frame;
- (f) said pins of said ground plane and said signal pins housed within said cylindrical bores of said header chute being aligned for termination in the signal and ground contact receptacles of an electrical signal transmission system;
- (g) said grouper frame and said header frame having an array of commonly aligned bores passing through the top and bottom surfaces thereof; and
- (h) a multiplicity of alignment pins housed in, passing through, and joining said frames in juxtaposition for completion of the assembly of said frames into said system and termination of said system in signal and ground receptacles of an electrical signal transmission system.
- 2. A system of claim 1 wherein each said linear grouper, grouper frame, header frame, and header chute is molded from plastic.
- 3. A system of claim 1, wherein the resilient leaf contact within said system comprises a "T"-shaped contact leaf.
- 4. A system of claim 1 wherein each said linear grouper is separately removable from and replaceable in said grouper frame.
- 5. A system of claim 4 wherein each said coaxial connector is separately removable from and replaceable in said linear grouper.
- 6. A high-density coaxial interconnect system comprising the integral components:
- (a) a grouper frame configured to hold at least one linear grouper, said grouper frame comprising a rectangular open frame, including;
- (1) vertical slots inlet into inner surfaces to house in parallel juxtaposed array a multiplicity of linear groupers;
- (2) means formed into the interior walls of said grouper frame and said slots to matingly engage means formed into the exterior surfaces of said linear groupers to hold said linear groupers into said grouper frame; and
- (3) apertures formed into said grouper frame and passing through said grouper frame top to bottom to house alignment pins for connecting said grouper frame to other parts of an interconnect system;
- (b) at least one linear grouper positioned in said grouper frame, said linear grouper configured with means on its inner surface to matingly engage and hold in place an array of coaxial connectors in said linear grouper, said linear grouper comprising:
- (1) in fixed linear juxtaposed array an array of commonly aligned parallel bores passing through the top and bottom thereof;
- (2) means formed into an outside surface of said linear grouper to matingly engage corresponding cooperating means to hold said linear grouper in place in a coaxial interconnect system;
- (3) said coaxial connectors comprising a terminated coaxial signal cable having a center conductor terminated to a signal contact, an insulator surrounding said cable terminated to said contact, and a conductive ground shell surrounding said insulator and contact;
- (4) said coaxial connectors protruding from the bottom surface of said linear grouper a required distance to be terminatable both as to ground and signal contacts of an electrical signal transmission system;
- (c) said grouper frame attached to a header frame configured to house an array of juxtaposed header chutes and means to attach said header frame to header chutes housed therein;
- (d) said header chute comprising:
- (1) an elongated molded plastic block having an array of parallel cylindrical bores traversing said block from top to bottom and configured to receive and terminate signal pins and ground shells of a multiplicity of coaxial connectors;
- (2) said block having signal contact pins affixed in the bottom of each cylindrical bore supported by a protruding cone of material integral with the bottom surface of each said bore, said pins extending both above and below the bottom of each said block to be matable with the signal contacts of coaxial connectors in the bores and matable with termination receptacles of an electrical signal transmission system in position below said block;
- (3) said block including a vertical slot formed in a side of each said bore parallel to the length of said bore; said block including buttons formed on the side of said block located between said slots in said bores and apertures formed in the opposite side of said block from said buttons and configured to be able to house the ends of buttons formed into an adjacent block juxtaposed to said block; and
- (4) a perforated conductive ground plane affixed on said buttons adjacent said slots in said block and including perforations to house said buttons and hold said ground plane to said block, elongated resilient "T"-shaped leaf contacts formed from the material of said ground plane and extending partially into said slots of said block, contact pins internally formed into the lower edge of said ground plane and extending below said ground plane and said block in an even alignment to be matable with ground termination receptacles of an electrical transmission system;
- (e) said pins of said ground plane and said signal pins housed within said cylindrical bores of said header chute being aligned for termination in the signal and ground contact receptacles of an electrical signal transmission system;
- (f) said grouper frame and said header frame having an array of commonly aligned bores passing through the top and bottom surfaces thereof; and
- (g) a multiplicity of alignment pins housed in, passing through, and joining said frames in juxtaposition for completion of the assembly of said frames into said system and termination of said system in signal and ground receptacles of an electrical signal transmission system.
- 7. The coaxial interconnect system of claim 6 wherein said ground plane comprises an electrically conductive metal.
- 8. The coaxial interconnect system of claim 6 wherein the header frame includes slots or protuberances molded into said frame for cooperating with hold-down apparatus.
- 9. The coaxial interconnect system of claim 6 wherein the linear grouper additionally includes extended side walls, one of which side walls contains a slot for mating with a polarization key molded into a side wall of a header frame.
- 10. The coaxial interconnect system of claim 6 wherein the header frame additionally includes a polarization key molded into a side wall for mating with a slot in a linear grouper.
- 11. The coaxial interconnect system of claim 6 in which the means to engage and hold in place a coaxial connector comprises an adhesive.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application is a continuation-in-part of application U.S. Ser. No. 07/716,079, filed Jun. 17, 1991.
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Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
716079 |
Jun 1991 |
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