CN213545165U - Adapter assembly of expansion card and computing system - Google Patents

Abstract

The utility model discloses an adapter subassembly and a computing system of miniaturized expansion card. The adapter assembly of the expansion card is used for connecting two expansion cards to a circuit board in a horizontal direction. The adapter assembly includes a support bracket, a first horizontal adapter plate, and a second horizontal adapter plate. The first horizontal adapter plate is provided with a first expansion card connector. The first horizontal adapter plate is assembled to the support bracket. The support bracket and the first horizontal adapter plate support an expansion card in a horizontal direction. The second horizontal adapter plate is provided with a second expansion card connector. The second horizontal adapter plate is assembled to the support bracket. The support bracket and the second horizontal adapter plate support an expansion card in a horizontal direction.

Description

Adapter assembly of expansion card and computing system

Technical Field

The present invention relates generally to a system for supporting an expansion card in a computing device. More particularly, aspects of the present invention relate to a miniaturized removable bracket assembly for mounting dual PCIe cards to a computing device.

Background

A calculator server is typically a calculator device designed for some specific function. Servers typically include general-purpose components such as processors, memory, cooling systems, and power systems. Typically, servers have housings (chassis) with walls of a certain height that can be standardized to plug the housing into the housing of a data center. The chassis is typically provided with a (support) motherboard that contains basic components such as a processor, Dual In Line Memory modules (DIMMs), storage devices, fans, and a power supply. The server may be specially designed to enhance the performance of certain functions. For example, an application server may have relatively more processors to process applications, or a storage server may have more storage devices to obtain more storage capacity. In addition, it is often desirable to extend the functionality of the server through other components, such as network adapters, memory, or processors.

Various protocols allow users to have the flexibility to add or enhance functionality in a computer system through additional hardware expansion cards. Such expansion cards are actually small circuit boards that can be inserted into a server chassis and include functional components that can be electrically connected to other server components. One well-known specification for communication between server components is the Peripheral Component Interconnect express (hereinafter PCIe) specification. Thus, the server will typically include a PCIe connector and corresponding cables to allow connection to PCIe compliant expansion cards to expand the functionality of the server. The server chassis typically has a horizontally oriented motherboard at the bottom of the chassis. The expansion card may be inserted into the slot perpendicular to the motherboard, but the vertical placement of such expansion cards limits the size of the expansion card based on the height of the chassis.

To allow the use of larger expansion cards, the expansion cards are assembled using an adapter assembly (riser assembly). The adapter assembly typically includes a support bracket and a vertically oriented adapter plate (riser board). The patch panel has a vertical PCIe connector. Thus, when the PCIe compliant card is assembled to the connector, it is supported in a horizontal position and parallel to the motherboard. The connection of electrical cables (cable ribs) can be made on thin wire connectors on the vertical patch panels to allow communication between the card and the motherboard. Such an arrangement allows larger PCIe cards to be used with the server.

An exemplary prior art adapter assembly 10 shown in fig. 1A-1F allows two PCIe expansion cards to be assembled to a motherboard in a horizontal orientation. Fig. 1A is a perspective view of a prior art PCIe adapter assembly 10 including a support bracket 12 and a vertical adapter plate 20. Fig. 1B is an exploded perspective view of the components of a prior art PCIe adapter assembly 10. Fig. 1C is a side cross-sectional view of the prior art PCIe adapter assembly 10 taken along line a-a' of fig. 1A, showing the vertical adapter plate 20 with the bracket removed. Fig. 1D is a side cross-sectional view of the prior art PCIe adapter assembly 10 taken along line a-a' in fig. 1A, showing the bracket 12 supporting the vertical adapter plate 20. Fig. 1E is a side view of a connector of the prior art expansion card adapter assembly 10. Fig. 1F is a top view of the prior art expansion card adapter assembly 10.

In fig. 1A-1B, the adapter assembly 10 includes a support bracket 12, the support bracket 12 including a vertical metal plate 14 for enclosing (enclosure) a PCIe card. The metal plate 14 is assembled to the vertical component frame 16. The metal plate 14 includes a vertically oriented flying bracket 18 extending therefrom. The metal plate 14 holds the vertical interposer 20 in a vertical position relative to the motherboard. The vertical interposer 20 includes an outer surface 22, the outer surface 22 including low- profile cable connectors 24, 26, and low- profile cable connectors 28, 30. In fig. 1B, the inner surface 32 includes two PCIe connector receptacles 34, 36 extending therefrom. The connector receptacles 34, 36 are Dual In-line Package (DIP) type connectors. The buffer distance between the connector receptacle 36 and the bottom edge of the vertical interposer 20 (assembled to the motherboard) must be established to prevent damage to the connectors 36 contacting the motherboard. As shown in fig. 1F, the patch panel 20 also includes a power receptacle 38 on the surface 32. Power receptacle 38 and low profile cable connectors 24, 26, 28, 30 are used to connect power and data signals from the motherboard to cards 50, 52. The bracket structure 58 (in fig. 1A) allows assembly of the adapter assembly 10 to a motherboard.

As shown in fig. 1C, the PCIe connector receptacles 34, 36 on the vertical patch panel 20 may mate with edge connectors on corresponding PCIe cards 50, 52. As shown in fig. 1A, the assembly frame 16 includes two locking levers 40, 42 that can be rotated to lock opposite sides of two PCIe cards 50, 52. As shown in the enlarged partial view 60 of FIG. 1D, the receptacles on the patch panel 20, such as receptacle 36, are dual in-line package type connectors that accept an edge 66 of the PCIe card 52 having a gold finger connector. As described above, the edge 66 is inserted into the end of the slot of the connector 36. In this example, the connector 36 must be at least 1mm from the surface of the motherboard.

As shown in the enlarged partial view 62 of fig. 1D, the flying bracket 18 overlaps the top surface of the adapter plate 20. The flying bracket 18 is thus taller than the support structure 12 and thus adds height to the assembly 10.

The height of existing vertical patch panels may create pitch problems in known adapter assemblies when two PCIe cards are stacked in a full height configuration. For example, a miniaturized server chassis may have a height of 42.5mm, while a patch panel for two PCIe cards, such as the interposer assembly 10, has a height of 41.4 mm. When a patch panel assembly with dual PCIe cards is mounted to a motherboard, it must be less than 1mm of the chassis height 42.5 to account for mylar sheets at the top and bottom of the assembly. Therefore, the existing vertical adapter plate assembly 10 cannot be used because the height of the installed adapter assembly 10 exceeds the height of the miniaturized chassis.

Accordingly, there is a need for a dual card adapter assembly that can be deployed in a miniaturized chassis configuration. It is further desirable to provide cabling for patch panels for expansion cards in a manner that effectively reduces the width of the module. There is also a need to provide a more compact adapter assembly to save space of different sizes. It is further desirable to reduce the buffer distance from the connector housing to the edge of the patch panel.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

The utility model aims at providing an adapter subassembly and a computing system of miniaturized expansion card.

An example of the disclosure is an adapter assembly for connecting two expansion cards to a horizontally oriented circuit board. The assembly includes a support bracket that is assembled to the circuit board. A first horizontal adapter plate has a first expansion card connector. The first horizontal adapter plate is assembled to the support bracket, and the support bracket and the first horizontal adapter plate support an expansion card in a horizontal direction. A second horizontal adapter plate has a second expansion card connector. The second horizontal adapter plate is assembled to the support bracket. The support bracket and the second horizontal adapter plate support an expansion card in a horizontal direction.

Another disclosed example is a computing system including a housing and a horizontally oriented circuit board mounted to the housing. The circuit board comprises a cable for connecting to a plurality of PCIe expansion cards. The system includes an expansion card adapter assembly assembled to the circuit board. The adapter assembly includes a support bracket. The adapter assembly includes a first horizontal adapter plate having a first expansion card connector. The first horizontal adapter plate is assembled to the support bracket. The support bracket and the first horizontal adapter plate support a horizontally oriented PCIe expansion card. The adapter assembly includes a second horizontal adapter plate having a second expansion card connector. The second horizontal adapter plate is assembled to the support bracket. The support bracket and the second horizontal adapter plate support a horizontally oriented PCIe expansion card.

The present disclosure relates to a card adapter assembly including a horizontal adapter plate for mating with, for example, a PCIe expansion card. The exemplary components have a reduced height, thereby allowing two expansion cards to be deployed at standard server height. The exemplary horizontal patch panel also arranges the thin cables (SlimLine) and power connectors in efficient locations to allow for a smaller patch panel footprint, thus increasing the available space in the enclosure.

The foregoing summary is not intended to represent each embodiment or every aspect of the present disclosure. Rather, the foregoing summary merely provides an exemplification of some of the novel aspects and features described herein. The foregoing and other features and advantages of the disclosure will be apparent from the following detailed description of representative embodiments and modes for carrying out the disclosure, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and appended claims.

Drawings

The disclosure can be better understood from the following description of the embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1A is a perspective view of a prior art expansion card adapter assembly.

FIG. 1B is an exploded perspective view of the prior art expansion card adapter assembly of FIG. 1A.

FIG. 1C is a side view of the prior art expansion card adapter assembly of FIG. 1A.

FIG. 1D is a side view of the prior art expansion card adapter assembly of FIG. 1A, showing the mounting of the bracket.

FIG. 1E is a side view of the connector of the prior art expansion card adapter assembly of FIG. 1A.

FIG. 1F is a top view of the prior art expansion card adapter assembly of FIG. 1A.

Fig. 2A is a front perspective view of an exemplary miniaturized expansion card adapter assembly.

FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view of the exemplary miniaturized expansion card adapter assembly of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 2C is a cross-sectional view of the exemplary miniaturized expansion card adapter assembly of FIG. 2A, assembled with a bracket assembly.

FIG. 3A is a perspective view of components of the exemplary miniaturized expansion card adapter assembly of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 3B is a top view of an exemplary assembly of the exemplary miniaturized expansion card adapter assembly of FIG. 3A.

FIG. 3C is a side view of an exemplary assembly of the expansion card adapter assembly of FIG. 3A.

Fig. 4 is a partial exploded view of the components of the support bracket of the expansion card adapter assembly of fig. 2A.

Fig. 5A-5F illustrate various stages of assembling and installing the exemplary expansion card adapter assembly of fig. 2A into a computing device.

FIG. 6 illustrates removal of an exemplary expansion card adapter assembly from a computing device chassis.

Fig. 7A is a top view of another exemplary expansion card adapter assembly using a horizontal adapter plate.

FIG. 7B is a side view of the exemplary expansion card adapter assembly of FIG. 7A.

Description of the symbols

10. 100, 700 adaptor assembly

12. 100 support bracket

14 metal plate

16 vertical component frame

18 hanging plate

20 vertical adapter plate

22 outer surface

24. 26, 28, 30, 234, 236 low profile cable connection

Device (external connector)

32 surface of

34. 36 connector socket

38. 738 power socket

40. 42 locking lever

50. 52 quick peripheral interconnection mark

Standard card

58 bracket structure

60. Partial enlargement of 62, 260, 262, 590, 592, 600

66. 416, 418, 720, 722 edges

112 first horizontal adapter plate

114 second horizontal adapter plate

122. 124 expansion card

200 assembling part

202 external connection part

210 Top surface (surface)

212 bottom surface (surface)

214. 230 inner edge

216. 232 outside edge

220 (peripheral component interconnect express)

Standard) card connector

220' (jumper) connector

222 connector slot

238 electric power connector (outer)

Connector

240. 242, 244 support post

250. 252, 254, 544 holes

300 casing

302 circuit board

302', 570 mainboard

310 front side

312 rear side

314 proximal side

316 distal side

320 connector edge

400 front piece

402 back piece

410 frame component

412. 414, 460, 462, 464, 466, 518, 538 openings

420 side wall

422. 454, 468 top wing

424. 456, 470 bottom wing

426. 428 cut

430 rivet hole

432. 472, 542 rivet

440 support tongue

442. 444 locking bolt

446. 448, 574 pin

450 rear frame

452 side panel

480 inclined plate

482 end wing

484. 578 tongue piece

500. 502, 504, 520, 522, 524 tongue region

510. 512, 514, 530, 532, 534 through hole

516. 536 end section

540 Assembly bracket

546 automatic locking plunger

560. 562 screw

572 casing

576 vertical bracket

580 horizontal slot

712. 714 horizontal adapter plate

724 straddle connector

726 concave

730 cable connector

732. 734, 736 signal socket

The present disclosure may be implemented in various modifications and alternative forms. Some examples will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, which show representative embodiments. It should be understood that the drawings and examples are not intended to limit the invention to the particular forms disclosed herein. On the contrary, the present disclosure is intended to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Detailed Description

The utility model can be implemented by various different forms. Representative embodiments are shown in the drawings and will be described herein in detail. The present disclosure is an example or illustration of the principles of the present disclosure and is not intended to limit the broad scope of the present disclosure to the illustrated embodiments. Thus, elements and limitations that are disclosed in, for example, the abstract, the utility model, and the detailed description of the embodiments, but not explicitly recited in the claims, should not be incorporated into the claims, individually or collectively, by implication, inference, or otherwise. For the purposes of this method of implementation, a single form may contain multiple forms and vice versa, unless specifically stated otherwise; the term "including" means "including but not limited to". Also, approximate terms used herein, such as "approximately", "left-right", and the like, may be, for example, in the sense of "being", "close", "in the range of" 3 to 5% "," within acceptable manufacturing tolerances ", or any logical combination thereof.

The present disclosure relates to a card adapter assembly including a horizontal adapter plate for mating with, for example, a PCIe expansion card. The exemplary components have a reduced height, thereby allowing two expansion cards to be deployed at standard server height. The exemplary horizontal patch panel also arranges the thin cables (SlimLine) and power connectors in efficient locations to allow for a smaller patch panel footprint, thus increasing the available space in the enclosure.

Fig. 2A is a front perspective view of an exemplary miniaturized PCIe adapter assembly 100 for supporting dual expansion cards. The example miniaturized PCIe adapter assembly 100 may be reduced in height based on the deployment of horizontal adapter plates. Fig. 2B is a cross-sectional view of the exemplary miniaturized PCIe adapter assembly 100 taken along the line a-a' in fig. 2A. Fig. 2C is a cross-sectional view of the exemplary miniaturized PCIe adapter assembly 100 with the bracket assembly assembled along the line a-a' in fig. 2A. Fig. 3A is a perspective view of the components of the example miniaturized PCIe adapter assembly 100 of fig. 2A with a portion of the components removed from the horizontal adapter plate. Fig. 3B is a top view of an exemplary component of the exemplary miniaturized adapter component 100. Fig. 3C is a side view of an exemplary miniaturized adapter assembly 100.

The adaptor assembly 100 includes a support bracket 110 (shown shaded in fig. 2A), a first horizontal adaptor plate 112, and a second horizontal adaptor plate 114. Two expansion cards 122, 124 are connected to respective first and second horizontal patch panels 112, 114. In this example, the expansion cards 122, 124 are PCIe cards.

The exemplary horizontal adapter plate 112 is L-shaped and includes an assembly portion 200 and an outer connection portion 202. The outer connecting portion 202 is substantially perpendicular to the assembling portion 200. The assembling portion 200 and the external connecting portion 202 define a top surface 210 and an opposite bottom surface 212 (fig. 2B). The assembly portion 200 has an inner edge 214 and an opposite outer edge 216. The inner edge 214 supports a straddled (boot mount) type PCIe card connector 220. The straddle type PCIe card connector 220 contacts both surfaces 210, 212 (in fig. 2B) of the interposer 112 and thus sandwiches the board 112. The PCIe card connector 220 includes a connector slot 222 for receiving an edge connector (edge connector) of a PCIe card.

As shown in fig. 3B, the outer connecting portion 202 includes an inner edge 230 and an opposite outer edge 232. Two low profile cable connectors 234, 236 (external connectors) are mounted on top surface 210 near outside edge 232. The low profile cable connectors 234, 236 are connected to a flat cable (ribbon) from the motherboard so that the assembled expansion card exchanges data signals with the motherboard. A power supply connector 238 (external connector) is mounted at the remote end of the external connection portion 202. A power cable may be plugged into power connector 238 to provide power to any assembled expansion cards via horizontal patch panel 112. The top surface 210 includes support posts 240, 242, 244 that may be in contact with another plate.

As shown in fig. 3A to 3B, three holes 250, 252, 254 are formed on the assembly portion 200 and the outer connecting portion 202. When the interposer 112 is assembled, the posts 240, 242, 244 shown in FIG. 2A are inserted into the holes 250, 252, 254, respectively. In this example, the posts 240, 242, 244 have an open end that can receive Surface-mount technology (SMT) nuts that are inserted through respective holes 250, 252, 254 to secure the posts. However, other suitable assembly mechanisms may be used.

As shown in fig. 2A, 3A, and 3B, an exemplary expansion card, such as PCIe type expansion card 122, includes a rectangular housing 300. The housing 300 covers a circuit board 302. The circuit board 302 includes opposite front and back sides 310 and 312. The anterior side 310 and the posterior side 312 are joined by a proximal side 314 and a distal side 316. The proximal side 314 includes a connector edge 320 that extends from the circuit board 302. Connector edge 320 may include a gold finger connector that may be inserted into any suitable connector, such as a jumper connector or a dual in-line package type connector. The circuit board 302 includes various components that, when inserted into the card connector 220 of the interposer 112, can receive power and exchange data through the connector edge 320, as shown in fig. 2A.

Fig. 4 is a partial exploded view of the components of the support bracket 110 of the adaptor assembly 100 of fig. 2A. The support bracket 110 includes a front piece 400 and a rear piece 402. The front piece 400 includes a frame member 410, and the frame member 410 includes openings 412, 414 extending along the length of the frame member 410. When mounted to the support bracket 110, the openings 412, 414 allow access to the PCIe cards 122, 124 in fig. 2A and 3A. The frame member 410 includes opposing edges 416, 418. The rim 416 is connected to a portion of the sidewall 420. The partial side wall 420 includes a top wing 422 and a bottom wing 424. Each wing 422, 424 includes a respective cut-out 426, 428, the cut- outs 426, 428 defining an extension arm having a rivet hole 430. In this example, the frame member 410 is manufactured as a separate component and is assembled to a portion of the side wall 420 via rivets 432 on the bottom wing 424.

The rim 418 includes a support tab 440 extending perpendicularly from the frame 410. The prop tongue 440 includes two rotating locking latches 442, 444 on each pin 446, 448. The locking latches 442, 444 and respective pins 446, 448 fit within the holes of the support tongue 440. The locking latches 442,444 have an unlocked position rotated away from the support tongue 440 and a locked position rotated to engage a separately mounted expansion card to lock the card to the support bracket 110.

The back piece 402 includes a back frame 450 perpendicular to a side plate 452. The side plate 452 includes a top wing 454 and a bottom wing 456, the top wing 454 and the bottom wing 456 oriented generally perpendicular to the plane of the side plate 452. In this example, the rear frame 450 and side plates 452 are formed as a single component that is joined to the top wing 454 and the bottom wing 456 by fasteners, such as rivets.

The rear frame 450 includes rectangular openings 460, 462, 464, 466, the openings 460, 462, 464, 466 allowing access to low profile cable connectors, such as the low profile cable connectors 234, 236 of the patch panel 112 in fig. 3A. The rear frame 450 includes a top wing 468 and a bottom wing 470. The top wing 468 and the bottom wing 470 are joined to one end of the top wing 454 and one end of the bottom wing 456, respectively, via rivets 472.

The opposite end of the side plate 452 includes an angled plate 480, the angled plate 480 being joined to an end wing 482. The tilt plate 480 supports a triangular tab 484 that is vertically engaged to the tilt plate 480. The triangular tab 484 allows assembly to the bottom wing 456 via a rivet.

The top wing 454 includes two retracted tongue regions 500, 502. Another retracted tongue region 504 is defined on the top wing 468 of the rear frame 450. The tongue areas 500, 502, 504 are provided with corresponding through holes 510, 512, 514. The through holes 510, 512, 514 allow the insertion of screws to secure the legs of a corresponding adapter plate, such as the adapter plate 112 of fig. 3A. The top wing 454 also includes an end section 516, the end section 516 having a key-opening shaped opening 518. The end segments 516 are joined to the arms of the top wing 422 of the front piece 400. The cut-out 426 allows access to the opening 518 when the front piece 400 is assembled to the back piece 402.

The bottom wing 456 includes two retracted tongue regions 520, 522. Another retracted tongue region 524 is defined on the bottom wing 470 of the rear frame 450. The tongue regions 520, 522, 524 are provided with corresponding through holes 530, 532, 534. The through holes 530, 532, 534 allow the insertion of screws to secure the holes of a corresponding adapter plate, such as the adapter plate 114 of fig. 3A. The bottom wing 456 also includes an end section 536, the end section 536 having a key-opening shaped opening 538. The end segment 536 is joined to the arms of the bottom wing 424 of the front piece 400. The cutout 428 allows access to the opening 538 when the front piece 400 is assembled to the back piece 402.

A mounting bracket 540 includes a distal end that is assembled to one end of the side plate 452 by rivets 542. The proximal end of the mounting bracket 540 includes an aperture 544, and the aperture 544 supports an auto lock plunger 546. The auto-locking plunger 546 may have open and closed positions that allow the plunger to be assembled to the mounting bracket 540 for securing to the motherboard when the adapter assembly 100 is mounted to the motherboard.

The assembled assembly 100 of fig. 2A-2C and 3A-3B provides several advantages of reducing the size of the support bracket 110 and the adapter plates 112, 114, allowing for increased space in the server chassis. An enlarged partial view 260 in fig. 2C shows the lowering of the tray height by the horizontal adapter plates 112, 114. As shown in fig. 2C, the height of the support bracket 110 is less than the height of the housing 300 of the upper PCIe card 122. This allows the adapter assembly 100 to fit in a miniaturized chassis. Another enlarged partial view 262 shows that the use of the jumper connector 220' on the patch panel 114 (which is identical to the connector 220 on the patch panel 112) allows a smaller gap of 0.08mm from the main board 302' to the connector 220' of the card 124, as defined by the bottom of the support bracket 110. The smaller gap allows the assembly to be more compact or miniaturized in height, thus allowing for use with compact or miniaturized enclosures. Larger connectors may be used because the connector arrangement creates additional space.

Finally, as shown in fig. 3B, the location of the low- profile cable connectors 234, 236 and the power connector 238 shown on the outer connection portion 202 of the horizontal patch panel 112 allows the width of the assembly 100 to be smaller than the known assembly shown in fig. 1E. Accordingly, the overall footprint of the assembly 100 in plan area and height is relatively smaller than existing dual card adapter assemblies.

Fig. 5A-5F illustrate various stages of assembling and installing the exemplary riser card assembly 100 of fig. 2A. Like elements in fig. 5A-5F have like reference numerals with respect to corresponding parts in fig. 2-4. Fig. 5A shows the support bracket 110 and the adapter plates 112, 114 prior to assembly. As shown in fig. 5B, the interposer 112 is placed in alignment with the top wing 454 of the support bracket 110 such that the posts 240, 242, 244 (shown in fig. 2A) are aligned with the through- holes 510, 512, 514 (shown in fig. 4) at the respective indented tongue regions 500, 502, 504. The low profile cable connectors 234, 236 are aligned with the openings 460, 462 in the rear frame 450. Screws 560 are provided to assemble the posts 240, 242, and 244 of the interposer 112 to the top wing 454 and the top wing 468 via the through holes 510, 512, 514.

Similarly, fig. 5A-5C show the interposer 114 in a position aligned with the bottom wing 456 of the support bracket 110 such that through-holes similar to the through- holes 250, 252, 254 (in fig. 3B) in the interposer 112 are aligned with the through- holes 530, 532, 534 (shown in fig. 4) in the retracted tab regions 520, 522, 524 (shown in fig. 4) of the bottom wing 456 and the bottom wing 470 (shown in fig. 4). Corresponding low-profile cable connectors of the interposer 114 are aligned with the openings 464, 466 in the rear frame 450. Screws 562 are provided for insertion through holes 530, 532, 534 in the bottom wing 456 and the bottom wing 470 (in fig. 4), and through corresponding holes in the adapter plate 114.

Fig. 5C shows the assembled adapter plates 112, 114 engaged to the support bracket 110. The PCIe card 122 is moved such that the connector edge 320 is inserted into the PCIe card connector 220 of the interposer 112. Similarly, the PCIe card 124 is moved such that the corresponding connector edge is inserted into the PCIe connector of the patch panel 114. As shown in FIG. 5D, after the PCIe cards 122, 124 are assembled to the PCIe connectors of the patch panels 112, 114, the locking latches 442, 444 are rotated to a locked position to engage the respective PCIe cards 122, 124 and lock them in place as shown in the partial enlarged view 566.

Fig. 5E is a view of the adaptor assembly 100 supporting the bracket 110, the adaptor boards 112, 114 and the PCIe cards 122, 124, mounted in front of a motherboard 570 in a miniaturized chassis 572 of a computing device. The main plate 570 has a pin 574 and a vertical bracket 576 that is connected to the adapter assembly 100. The vertical bracket 576 includes a tongue 578 that is assembled to the main plate 570. The bracket 576 also includes a horizontal slot 580.

As shown in fig. 5F, the adaptor assembly 100 (the assembled bracket 110, the interposers 112, 114, and PCIe cards 122, 124) is placed on the motherboard 570. In this example, the openings 536 (in fig. 5E) on the bottom wing 456 of the bracket 110 are inserted around the pins 574 to align the support bracket 110 on the main plate 570. The enlarged detail view 590 is a top view showing the support bracket 110 moved forward from the initial position so that the other end of the opening 536 moves to contact the pin 574. Correspondingly, the auto-locking plunger 546 of the mounting bracket 540 is inserted into the slot 580 of the vertical bracket 576 that has been assembled to the main plate 570, as shown in the enlarged detail 592. As the support bracket 110 moves, the auto-lock plunger 546 moves to the closed end of the slot 580, guided by the pin 574 in the opening 536. Once at the closed end, the auto-lock plunger 546 may be pushed to lock the bracket 540 to the vertical bracket 576.

The motherboard 570 includes a plurality of sets of flat, flat cables and connectors for electronic signals and power. Flat cables for electrical signals and low profile cable connectors, such as low profile cable connectors 234, 236, which are plugged into the patch panels 112, 114. Power cables and connectors are plugged into power connectors of the patch panels 112, 114, such as power connector 238.

FIG. 6 shows the process of removing the adaptor assembly 100 from the motherboard 570 with the PCIe cards 122, 124 inserted. Various cables are pulled out of the thin cable connectors and power connectors of the patch panels 112, 114. In this example, the auto-lock plunger 546 is moved from the locked position shown in the close-up view 600 to the unlocked position. The bracket 540 is thus detachable from the vertical bracket 576. The assembly 100 can then be moved rearwardly to move the opening 536 relative to the pin 574. The opening 536 of the bottom wing 456 can then be removed from the pin 574 and the assembly 100 can be disengaged from the main plate 570.

Fig. 7A is a top view of another exemplary adapter assembly 700, the adapter assembly 700 supporting horizontal adapter plates 712, 714. Fig. 7B is a side view of an example adapter assembly 700. In this example, the horizontal patch panels 712, 714 of the adaptor assembly 700 support the expansion cards 122, 124 of fig. 1-4 and may then be mounted in a miniaturized chassis, such as the chassis 572 of fig. 5E. The adapter plates 712, 714 are identical, so reference will only be made to adapter plate 712. The adapter plate 712 includes two longitudinally opposing edges 720, 722. The edge 720 includes a straddle mount PCIe card connector 724. The cross-connect 724 accepts a connector edge of an expansion card, such as the connector edge 320 of the card 122 (shown in FIGS. 3A-3B). The opposite edge 722 includes a recess 726, the recess 726 being defined in part of the edge 722 and not overlapping the relative position of the connector 724 of the edge 720. Recess 726 provides an area for assembling card edge cable connector 730(card edge cable connector). The cable connector 730 has a receptacle for inserting the connector with a cable strap from the motherboard. In this example, cable connector 730 has three sets of signal receptacles 732, 734, 736 and a power receptacle 738. Recess 726 allows card edge cable connectors 730 to be recessed from the edge of the interposer, thereby minimizing the footprint of interposer 712. Such an arrangement of the assemblies 700 allows for space savings over the entire width of the assemblies 700.

As used herein, terms such as "component," "module," "system," and the like are generally intended to refer to a computer-related entity, either hardware (e.g., circuitry), a combination of hardware and software, or an entity associated with operating a machine with one or more particular functions. For example, a component may be, but is not limited to being, a program executing on a processor (e.g., a digital signal processor), a processor, an object, an execution document, a thread of execution, a program, and/or a computer. By way of illustration, both an application executing on a controller and the controller can be a component. One or more components can reside within a program and/or thread of execution and a component can be localized on one computer and/or distributed between two or more computers. In addition, a "device" may take the form of specially designed hardware; by executing software on hardware to make general-purpose hardware specific, the hardware can execute specific function; software stored on a computer-readable medium; or a combination thereof.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" may include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Furthermore, the terms "comprising," having, "" appended to, "or variants thereof, as used in the detailed description and/or the claims, are intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term" comprising.

Unless defined otherwise, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will be understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and the present disclosure, and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

While various embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not limitation. Many modifications may be made to the disclosed embodiments in light of the disclosure herein without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Although the invention has been shown and described with respect to one or more implementations, equivalent alterations and modifications will occur to others skilled in the art upon the reading and understanding of this specification and the annexed drawings. In addition, while a particular feature of the invention may have been disclosed with respect to only one of several implementations, such feature may be combined with one or more other features of the other implementations as may be desired and advantageous for any given or particular application. Thus, the scope of the present invention should not be limited by any of the above-described embodiments. Rather, the scope of the invention should be defined in accordance with the following claims and their equivalents.

Claims (10)

1. An adapter assembly for connecting two expansion cards to a horizontally oriented circuit board, comprising:

a support bracket mountable to the circuit board;

a first horizontal adapter plate having a first expansion card connector, the first horizontal adapter plate assembled to the support bracket, wherein the support bracket and the first horizontal adapter plate operate to support a horizontally oriented expansion card; and

a second horizontal adapter plate having a second expansion card connector, the second horizontal adapter plate assembled to the support bracket, wherein the support bracket and the second horizontal adapter plate operate to support a horizontally oriented expansion card.

2. The adapter assembly of claim 1, wherein the expansion cards are PCIe cards.

3. The adapter assembly of claim 1, wherein said first horizontal adapter plate includes an external connector for electrically connecting to said circuit board.

4. The adapter assembly of claim 3, wherein the first horizontal adapter plate includes an assembly portion, the first expansion card connector and an external connection portion being mounted in an orientation perpendicular to the assembly portion.

5. The adapter assembly of claim 4, wherein the external connector including one of a low-profile cable connector and a power connector is mounted to an outer edge of the external connection portion.

6. A computing system, comprising:

a housing;

a horizontally oriented circuit board mounted to the chassis, the circuit board including a cable for connecting to a plurality of PCIe expansion cards; and

an expansion card adapter assembly assembled to the circuit board, the adapter assembly comprising:

a support bracket;

a first horizontal adapter plate having a first expansion card connector, the first horizontal adapter plate assembled to the support bracket, wherein the support bracket and the first horizontal adapter plate operate to support a horizontally oriented PCIe expansion card; and

a second horizontal adapter plate having a second expansion card connector, the second horizontal adapter plate assembled to the support bracket, wherein the support bracket and the second horizontal adapter plate operate to support a horizontally oriented PCIe expansion card.

7. The computing system of claim 6, wherein the first horizontal patch panel includes an external connector to connect to the circuit board.

8. The computing system of claim 7 wherein the first horizontal adapter plate includes an assembly portion, the first expansion card connector and an external connection portion being mounted in an orientation perpendicular to the assembly portion.

9. The computing system of claim 8, wherein the external connector is mounted to an outer edge of the external connection portion, wherein the external connector is one of a low-profile cable connector and a power connector.

10. The computing system of claim 6, wherein the expansion card connectors are cross-connectors.

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