Patents by Inventor Patrick Champion

Patrick Champion 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: 6511353
    Abstract: A connector comprises a housing of insulating material and a number of right-angled contact elements arranged in rows and columns. The contact elements are provided with a contact end, an intermediate elbow part and a termination for connection to a printed circuit board. The housing includes a first housing section accommodating the contact ends of the contact elements, and a second housing section accommodating the elbow parts. The second housing section comprises upper and lower walls, and support walls extending mainly parallel to the upper and lower walls between adjacent rows of contact elements for supporting the intermediate elbow parts of the rows of contact elements. The second housing section is provided with at least one intermediate wall extending transverse to the support walls between the elbow parts of two adjacent columns of contact elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 11, 2001
    Date of Patent: January 28, 2003
    Assignee: Framatome Connectors International
    Inventors: Patrick Champion, Dominique Etiembre
  • Publication number: 20020086592
    Abstract: A connector comprises a housing of insulating material and a number of right-angled contact elements arranged in rows and columns. The contact elements are provided with a contact end, an intermediate elbow part and a termination for connection to a printed circuit board. The housing includes a first housing section accommodating the contact ends of the contact elements, and a second housing section accommodating the elbow parts. The second housing section comprises upper and lower walls, and support walls extending mainly parallel to the upper and lower walls between adjacent rows of contact elements for supporting the intermediate elbow parts of the rows of contact elements. The second housing section is provided with at least one intermediate wall extending transverse to the support walls between the elbow parts of two adjacent columns of contact elements.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 11, 2001
    Publication date: July 4, 2002
    Inventors: Patrick Champion, Dominique Etiembre
  • Patent number: 5934939
    Abstract: The invention concerns a connector of the shielded type comprising a socket (1) attached to a printed circuit board (CI) and a plug (7) designed to be mechanically and electrically coupled to socket (1). A first shielding component (2, 4) is extended by elastic locking projections (22) provided with hooks (24). Shielding (9a) of plug (7) comprises openings (90a) in which these hooks (24) engage. These projections (22) rub against shielding (9a) of plug (7) and establish a galvanic contact between shieldings (9a, 2, 4) of plug (7) and socket (1). They also assure a locking of the latter in the socket (1).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 1997
    Date of Patent: August 10, 1999
    Assignee: Framatome Connectors International
    Inventors: Jacky Thenaisie, Patrick Champion
  • Patent number: 5888077
    Abstract: A connector assembly comprises a first connector (1) and a second connector (2) adapted to be mated with the first connector. Each connector has two spaced rows of contact elements (4,10) arranged at a given pitch, each of the contact elements having a contact face (6). In the first connector (1) at least two adjacent contact elements (4) of one row of contact elements are made integral as one first power contact element (13) having two contact faces (6) at the given pitch. In the second connector (2) at least one contact element (10) of one row of contact elements can be made integral with an opposite contact element (10) of the other row of contact elements as one second power contact element (14).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 30, 1999
    Assignee: Framatome Connectors International
    Inventors: Patrick Champion, Danny Morlion, Werner Panis, Jacky Thenaisie, Jan Peter Karel Van Koetsem, Luc Jonckheere
  • Patent number: 5885093
    Abstract: A connector assembly comprises a first connector (1) and a second connector (2) adapted to be mated with the first connector. The first connector (1) comprises a first housing (3) having a bottom (4) and two longitudinal walls (5, 6) determining a receiving space (8), a row of male signal contacts (9) projecting from the bottom upwardly into the receiving space and a row of male ground contacts (10), wherein as seen in row direction a male ground contact is located at both sides of a corresponding male signal contact. The second connector (2) comprises a second housing (11) which can be substantially completely received within the receiving space, and a row of female signal contacts (12) adapted to be connected with the male signal contacts when the connectors are mated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 23, 1999
    Assignee: Framatome Connectors International
    Inventors: Patrick Champion, Danny Morlion, Werner Panis, Jacky Thenaisie, Jan Peter Karel Van Koetsem, Luc Jonckheere
  • Patent number: 5879193
    Abstract: The invention concerns a connector of the shielded type comprising a socket (1) attached to a printed circuit board (CI) and a plug (7) designed to be mechanically and electrically coupled to socket (1). One wall of socket (1) is covered with a shielding (5) of electrically conductive material. This shielding (5) is extended on its front part by projections (52) folded back on themselves so as to form a spring, these springs emerging inside socket (1) and exerting a pushing force on plug (7) along a direction orthogonal to the direction of insertion of the plug into the socket, so as to establish a galvanic contact with shielding (9b) of plug (7).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 9, 1999
    Assignee: Framatome Connectors International
    Inventors: Jacky Thenaisie, Patrick Champion
  • Patent number: 5879194
    Abstract: The invention concerns a shielded connector of the type comprising a socket (1) attached to a printed circuit board (CI) and a plug (7) designed to be mechanically and electrically coupled to socket (1). A first shielding component (2, 4) is extended by elastic locking projections (22) provided with hooks (24). Shielding (9a) of plug (7) has openings (90a) into which these hooks (24) engage. Projections (22) rub against shielding (9a) of plug (7) and establish a galvanic contact between shieldings (9a, 2-4) of plug (7) and socket (1). They assure a locking of the latter in socket (1). First projection (22) has a separate piece (3) of insulating material forming a lever that permits unlocking plug (7) and socket (1), when a pressure force (F.sub.1) is exerted on projection (3) and an extraction force (F.sub.2) is exerted on plug (7).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 9, 1999
    Assignee: Framatome Connectors International
    Inventors: Jacky Thenaisie, Patrick Champion
  • Patent number: 5593307
    Abstract: A connector includes an insulative bridge having a U-shape cross-section, i.e., a central region and two lateral branches, and elbow electrical contact members. The contact members have front contact regions housed in openings of the central region of the bridge and elbow regions and rear contact regions. The connector also includes a retaining peg for fixing it to a flat support and a rear insulative body surrounding the electrical contact members in at least one area between the front contact region and the elbow region. The retaining peg is fastened to one side of the rear insulative body.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 1994
    Date of Patent: January 14, 1997
    Assignee: Framatome Connectors International
    Inventors: Alain Bale, Patrick Champion
  • Patent number: 5443401
    Abstract: This invention relates to a connection set for electrically connecting a mother card (1) and a daughter card (2), comprising a first connector (3) including a first insulating body (10) which presents first contact members (60) of which first ends (63) are inserted in the mother card (1) and a second connector member (5) including a second insulating body (81) which presents second contact members (85) of which respective first ends (83) cooperate with corresponding ends (62) of respective one of the first contact members (60) and of which second ends (88) are inserted in the daughter card, respective surfaces (31, 41)) of the first (3) and the second (5) insulating bodies facing each other when the first (3) and second (5) connector members are connected together.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 27, 1994
    Date of Patent: August 22, 1995
    Assignee: Framatome Connectors International
    Inventors: Patrick Champion, Jacky Thenaisie
  • Patent number: 5441423
    Abstract: The invention concerns a removable attachment in order to integrally join at least one flat support, such as a circuit support, to an element, characterized by the fact that it comprises an axial retention device (20,60) having a first retention means (22,63), assuring its retention on a first piece (32,81) borne by said element (1,31) and at least one second retention means (23,86) assuring the retention of the flat support (9,70).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 1993
    Date of Patent: August 15, 1995
    Assignee: Framatome Connectors France
    Inventors: Patrick Champion, Jacky Thenaisie
  • Patent number: 5356301
    Abstract: The invention relates to a modular electrical-connection element. It is characterised in that it includes an insulating body including a central region (11) for receiving electrical contact elements (60) and twp lateral branches (12, 13) substantially perpendicular to an axis of the central region (11) and having a width (1) equal to that of the module, in that each lateral branch includes, on an outer face (32), a screening element (40) extending over a major part of its surface, the screening element (40) comprising at least one device (45, 54) for retaining in position in the insulating body, at least one electrical connection contact (43) extending beyond the insulating body and at least one contact (46, 48) for elastic electrical contact through at least one corresponding opening (17) of the lateral branch (12, 13) emerging on an inner face (31) of the lateral branch (12, 13).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 1992
    Date of Patent: October 18, 1994
    Assignee: Framatome Connectors International
    Inventors: Patrick Champion, Jacky Thenaisie
  • Patent number: 5277624
    Abstract: The invention relates to a modular electrical-connection element including an insulating body having a U-shaped cross section including a central branch (11) for receiving electrical contact elements and two lateral branches (12,13), said cross section having a width (1) equal to that of a module, characterized in that each lateral branch includes an electrically conductive screening element (40) extending over a major part of an outwardly directed surface of said lateral branch, said screening element including at least one means (46,48) for elastic electrical contact positioned on an inner face of said lateral branch and at least one means for electrical connection through said insulating body, said screening element (40) having a means (45) for retaining said screening element in position in the insulating body, at least in the direction of a pull-out substantially parallel to an axis of the U-shaped cross section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 1992
    Date of Patent: January 11, 1994
    Assignee: Souriau et Cie
    Inventors: Patrick Champion, Jacky Thenaisie
  • Patent number: 5259773
    Abstract: The invention relates to a connector having an insulating central element including rows of connection elements each having a male terminal intended to be solidly attached to a flat support such as a printed-circuit daughterboard, and a female terminal, as well as a screening device disposed on either side of the rows of connection elements. It is characterized in that it includes at least one hot-deformable stud (110) firmly attached to the central element (81), in that the screening device has a portion (96) provided with at least one opening (100), the shape of the screening device (91, 101) being such that when it is mounted on the central element (81) of the connector, the opening (100) engages in the stud (110) and a space (120) intended for receiving one end (2') of the support (2) is left between the portion (96) and the central element (81).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 1992
    Date of Patent: November 9, 1993
    Assignee: Framatome Connectors International
    Inventors: Patrick Champion, Jacky Thenaisie