1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an improvement of a card contacting construction, in which a card, such as an IC memory card, or the like, is inserted into a card connector so that electrode pads of the card will come into pressure contact with contacts of a card connector.
2. Related Art
Conventionally, a card, such as an IC card, or the like, is inserted into a user's card connector, and then the user's card connector with the card thus inserted therein, is in turn inserted into an inlet port of an electronic device, such as a personal computer, or the like, or a user's card connector is pre-installed within an inlet port of such an electronic device so that when the card is inserted into the inlet port, the card will come into contact with a data processing circuit of the electronic device through the card connector.
The electrode pads arranged on the lower surface of the card and the contacts provided within the card connector and adapted to contact the card, can have a contacting construction as shown in FIGS. 1(A)-1(B) or 2(A)-2(B).
The card contacting construction of FIGS. 1(A)-1(B) is designed such that a contact portion 2 provided on a free end of each card contacting contact 1 is pressed at it's side surface by a front edge of a card 3 to cause the contact portion 2 to be shifted to a lower surface of the card or card receiving case 3, so that the contact portion 2 will come into pressure contact with a corresponding one of the electrode pads 4 arranged on the lower surface of the card or card receiving case 3.
This conventional arrangement, however, has the following shortcomings. In order to obtain a sufficient contacting pressure between the electrode pad 4 of the card 3 and the contact portion 2 of the card contacting contact 1, a projecting distance H of the contact portion 2 with respect to the card 3 is required to be as large as possible and a downward shifting quantity of the contact portion 2 is required to be as large as possible. However, if the projecting distance H is designed to be too large in order to obtain a sufficient contacting pressure, the contact portion 2 and the contact 1 will be deformed when the card 3 hits the side surface of the contact portion 2 of the contact 1, and in addition, a card inserting resistance will be increased.
Therefore, an acceptable projecting distance H of the contact portion 2 is limited, and a required contacting pressure is difficult to obtain.
The card contacting construction of FIGS. 2(A)-2(B) is designed to include a slide plate S capable of sliding in accordance with insertion of the card 3, and the slide plate 5 is provided on a lower surface thereof with contact guide grooves 6 extending in a direction of insertion of the card 3. Contact portions 2 of card contacting contacts 1 are, before insertion of the card 3, disposed in a standby position where the contact portions 2 are contacted under pressure with bottom surfaces of the contact guide grooves 6 to preload resilient force, respectively. The contact portions 2 of the card contacting contacts 1 are, during the course of insertion of the card 3, caused to slide on the bottom surfaces of the contact guide grooves 6 of the slide plate 5 and are resiliently restored upwardly at openings 7 formed in first ends of the grooves 6, respectively, so that they will be contacted under pressure with electrode pads 4 provided on a lower surface of the card 3.
This conventional card contacting construction, however, has the following shortcomings. Since the contact portions 2 of the card contacting contacts 1 are required to be held in a standby position where the contact portions 2 are normally contacted under pressure with the bottom surfaces of the contact guide grooves 6 to preload resilient force, respectively, the contacts 2 are susceptible to fatigue and resilient deficiency, in their resiliency. In addition, the contact portions 2 are held in rubbing relation with the bottom surfaces of the contact guide grooves 6 for a long time, respectively, thereby degrading the plating on the surfaces of the contact portions 2 in an early stage of their service life, with the results that the reliability is decreased.
The present invention has been accomplished under the above-mentioned circumstances.