Flat cables are used for electrical connections between electrical components of, for example, a circuit board installed in an electronic device. Such flat cables are flexible cables produced by arranging a plurality of flat conductors in a stripe pattern with a constant pitch, interposing the conductors between two insulating films, and covering the resulting product with an insulating coating. Flat cables that include conductors having different widths and different pitches are appropriately used in accordance with the structure of electrical components. It is desirable to standardize the pitch of a flat-cable connection terminal (connector) of an electrical component to be connected in an electronic device. However, a change in the design of existing electrical components increases the cost. Therefore, in some cases, electrical components having different terminal pitches must be connected to each other with a flat cable therebetween.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2011-243523 has proposed that, in such a case, a pitch-conversion sheet that converts the pitch of a conductor is connected to an end of a flat cable, and thus the flat cable can be connected to a connector having a different pitch. The pitch-conversion sheet includes a pattern formed on a resin sheet by using a metal foil, the pattern having a plurality of first straight parts arranged at the same pitch as a pitch of the flat cable, a plurality of second straight parts arranged at the same pitch as a pitch of the connector, and a plurality of inclined parts that connect the first straight parts to the corresponding second straight parts in a one-to-one relationship.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds