Patents by Inventor Willard A. Dix

Willard A. Dix 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: 5226835
    Abstract: A plug for interconnecting a pair of wires at its input with a pair of insulation displacement connectors (IDC) at its output is improved. The plug comprises a dielectric housing and a pair of non-insulated conductors within the housing that cross over and are spaced-apart from each other. Each conductor comprises a generally flat blade portion for insertion into an IDC at one end, and a terminal for making electrical contact with a wire at the other. In the illustrative embodiment of the invention, the terminal comprises an insulation displacement connector. Additionally, the conductors are identical to each other, but are reverse-mounted with respect to each other to achieve crossover.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 6, 1992
    Date of Patent: July 13, 1993
    Assignee: AT&T Bell Laboratories
    Inventors: Frank P. Baker, III, Golam M. Choudhury, W. John Denkmann, Willard A. Dix, Lyndon D. Ensz, William T. Spitz
  • Patent number: 5186647
    Abstract: An electrical connector for conducting high frequency signals includes a number of input and output terminals that are interconnected by a pair of metallic lead frames that are mounted on a dielectric spring block. The lead frames are identical to each other and comprise several flat elongated conductors, each conductor terminating in a spring contact at one end and an insulation-displacing connector at the other. The lead frames are mounted on top of each other and their conductors are all generally parallel and close to each other. Only three of the conductors of each lead frame are arranged to overlap each other; and this occurs in a designated crossover region without electrical contact being made because of a reentrant bend in the conductors in the crossover region. As a result, crosstalk between specific conductors can be reduced by judiciously choosing the location of the crossover and the particular crossover pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 1992
    Date of Patent: February 16, 1993
    Assignee: AT&T Bell Laboratories
    Inventors: W. John Denkmann, Willard A. Dix, William T. Spitz
  • Patent number: 4885435
    Abstract: A manually operated switch that combines spring and contact functions in a low profile, machine-insertable component. The switch readily mounts onto a printed wiring board. It includes a cantilevered leaf spring member having one free end and a pair of spaced-apart fulcrums at the other end; one of the fulcrums being at the point of attachment of the leaf spring to the printed wiring board and the other being a re-entrant bend in the leaf spring in the vicinity of its center. An actuator is positioned to apply a force between the fulcrums such that the free end moves in a direction opposite to the direction of the applied force. Each spring member in combination with suitably placed contact pads is capable of providing a separate switch operation such as: "make" operation, "break" operation, or make-before-break "transfer" operation. A single actuator operates one or more spring members, each independently providing a different one of the above-described switch operations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 1988
    Date of Patent: December 5, 1989
    Assignees: Telephone and Telegraph Company, AT&T Information Systems Inc.
    Inventor: Willard A. Dix
  • Patent number: D276232
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 11, 1982
    Date of Patent: November 6, 1984
    Assignee: AT&T Bell Laboratories
    Inventors: Willard A. Dix, Gordon E. Sylvester, Joe E. Warren
  • Patent number: RE41311
    Abstract: An electrical connector for conducting high frequency signals includes a number of input and output terminals that are interconnected by a pair of metallic lead frames that are mounted on a dielectric spring block. The lead frames are identical to each other and comprise several flat elongated conductors, each conductor terminating in a spring contact at one end and an insulation-displacing connector at the other. The lead frames are mounted on top of each other and their conductors are all generally parallel and close to each other. Only three of the conductors of each lead frame are arranged to overlap each other; and this occurs in a designated crossover region without electrical contact being made because of a reentrant bend in the conductors in the crossover region. As a result, crosstalk between specific conductors can be reduced by judiciously choosing the location of the crossover and the particular crossover pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2010
    Assignee: CommScope, Inc. of North America
    Inventors: W. John Denkmann, Willard A. Dix, William T. Spitz