Printed circuit board retainer

United States Patent m

Yamamoto

US005779388A [ii] Patent Number: [45] Date of Patent:

5,779,388 Jul. 14, 1998

[54] PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD RETAINER

[75] Inventor: Albert K. Yamamoto. Huntington Beach. Calif.

[73] Assignee: Faircbild Holding Corp.. Chantilly, Va.

[21] Appl. No.: 725,806
[22] Filed: Oct 4,1996

[51] Int. CI.6 B25G 3/00

[52] U.S. CI 403/405.1; 403/374; 403/409.1;

361/741; 361/756

[58] Field of Search 361/740. 741.

361/747. 756. 759. 801, 802. 807. 809; 403/374. 409.1, 405.1. DIG. 7. 326. 327

[56] References Cited

U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS

4,318,157 3/1982 Rank et al 361/386

4,354.770 10/1982 Block 361/806 X

4,480,287 10/1984 Jensen 361/388

4,571,966 2/1986 Lopez Jr 70/232

4,775,260 10/1988 Kecmer 403/409.1

4,824,303 4/1989 Dinger 403/374 X

5,090,840 2/1992 Cosenza 403/409.1

5.156,647 10/1992 Ries 403/409.1 X

5577,415 11/1996 Reasoner 403/DIG. 7

Primary Examiner—Kenneth J. Dorner
Assistant Examiner—William L. Miller
Attorney, Agent, or Firm—Irving Keschner

[57] ABSTRACT

An improved printed circuit board wedge assembly having a center segment with sloped surfaces at its opposite ends and two end wedge segments having surfaces that abut against opposite ends of the center wedge segment. A drive shaft has a first ratchet member at one end, the first ratchet member engaging a second ratchet member having an elongated hex shaped member extending therefrom. The hex member is adapted to slide in a hex socket formed in an adjacent sleeve member. The drive shaft, having a threaded portion, extends lengthwise through a channel in the center wedge segment and connects together the two end wedge segments. A retaining ring is provided for captivating the driver portion of the assembly to the wedge segments. When the drive shaft is rotated in one direction, the two end wedge segments, together with the shaft, move transversely to the center wedge segment to fasten the PCB in place. The hexagonal shaped member transmits torque from an external drive to the first ratchet member. A snap ring is utilized to captivate the wedge segments and prevent them from falling off the shaft when in the relaxed position. A leaf spring is provided to maintain the individual end wedge segments longitudinally aligned with the center wedge segment when the shaft is loosened.

2 Claims, 3 Drawing Sheets