Appeal No. 2002-2118 Page 8
Application No. 09/010,614
provides a support for vacuum attachment to the connectors and which provides
support to the connector walls during the soldering thereof to a circuit board.
As shown in Figures 5 and 6, a connector placement member 1 is attached to
an electrical connector 2 to provide a substantially planar, or flat, surface to the
electrical connector 2 when attached thereto. The electrical connector 2 includes a
rectangular housing 3 formed from an insulative material. The connector housing 3 has
a pair of opposing longitudinal sidewalls 4 which define a slot 10 therebetween which is
intended to receive a mating electric connector therein.
The connector placement member 1 is best shown in Figures 1-4 and includes a
cover plate 8 having a flat top surface 7 which is engaged by a transfer or placement
mechanism in which typically has an internal port communicating with a source of
negative air pressure. Once attached, the connector may be transferred from a supply
source (not shown) to another electronic assembly component, typically a circuit board
100 (Figure 6). The connector placement member 1 remains in place upon the
connector until after the connector is joined to the circuit board.
The connector placement member 1 also includes pairs of resilient engagement
legs 6 joined to the ends of the cover plate 8 at the corners thereof. The legs 6 depend
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Last modified: November 3, 2007