Patents by Inventor Mark Thomas Downing

Mark Thomas Downing has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 6027357
    Abstract: An electrical connector for interconnecting a daughter card to a mother board comprises a dielectric housing having a longitudinally elongated slot and a latch cavity. The housing carries a plurality of contacts which are engageable with contact pads on the daughter card when the daughter card is inserted into the slot in a first position and pivoted through an angle to a second position. A latch member which is attached to the housing has a latch tab engageable behind the daughter card to maintain the daughter card in the second position. The latch member has first and second beams. The first beam has a mounting portion which is stabilized in the latch cavity against longitudinal and lateral movement, and the second beam has a locking tab that is engaged with the housing to secure the latch member against withdrawal from the housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 1997
    Date of Patent: February 22, 2000
    Assignee: The Whitaker Corporation
    Inventors: David Gregory Howell, Joseph Alexander Labiak, Mark Thomas Downing