US 6,183,284 B2Granted

Option card retainer and retaining method

AssigneeDell Computer Corporation

InventorsStephen Gill, Mark S. Manley, Roy Rachui, Robert C. Sloan

Life of this patent

Estimating the term…

Loading patent…

Abstract

An option card retainer (10) includes a first elongated leg member (14) and a second elongated leg member (15). The two leg members (14, 15) are aligned with their upper ends connected by a bridge structure (16). The first leg member (14) includes a first clip structure (18) at its lower end and the second leg member (15) includes a second clip structure (19) at its lower end. A biasing device (20) is located beneath the bridge structure (16) between the first and second leg members. The retainer (10) is fastened over an option card (11) with the biasing device (20) compressed between the bridge structure (16) and a top edge (26) of the option card with the clip structures (18, 19) in a gripping engagement with an underside of the option card connector (12).

Claims20

Dependent claims

An option card retainer for use with an option card comprising a circuit board having an upper elongated edge opposite an elongated edge which connects to an elongated card connector the option card retainer comprising:

(a) a first elongated leg member;
(b) a second elongated leg member;
(c) a bridge structure connecting an upper end of the first leg member to an upper end of the second member, the first and second leg members extending from a common side of the bridge structure in a spaced apart relationship with each other;
(d) a first clip structure located at a lower end of the first leg member, the first clip structure comprising a protrusion extending inwardly toward the second leg member;
(e) a second clip structure located at a lower end of the second leg member, the second clip structure comprising a protrusion extending inwardly toward the first leg member;
and
(f) a biasing device positioned on the common side of the bridge structure and extending from the common side of the bridge structure in an area defined between the first leg member and the second leg member, wherein the first elongated leg member extends along one side of the option card and the second elongated leg member extends along an opposite side of the option card when the bridge structure is positioned transversely over the upper edge of the option card with the biasing device contacting the upper edge of the option card, the biasing device being adapted to compress sufficiently to allow the first clip structure to engage an underside of the elongated connector at an area along a first elongated side of the connector and to allow the second clip structure to engage the underside of the elongated connector at an area along a second elongated side of the connector.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 09/344,077Filed 25 Jun 1999
Granted: 6 Feb 2001
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification9 codes

G06F 1/185
Internal mounting support structures, e.g. for supporting printed circuit boards: mounting of expansion boards
G06F 1/184
Internal mounting support structures, e.g. for supporting printed circuit boards: mounting of motherboards
G06F 1/186
Mounting of expansion boards: securing of expansion boards in correspondence to slots provided at the computer enclosure
H01R 12/7005
Coupling devices: guiding, mounting, polarizing or locking means; Extractors