CN109792123B - Connector with a locking member - Google Patents

Abstract

A connector (1) comprising: a housing (3), the housing (3) having an inner cylindrical body (11) and an outer cylindrical body (13); and a housing (9), the housing (9) having an intermediate cylindrical body (15) disposed in a gap between the inner cylindrical body and the outer cylindrical body. A rib (53a) of the housing (9) is inserted into a rib housing section (55a), and the rib housing section (55a) is provided in the cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body so as to extend in the fitting direction. The rib housing has a slit shape extending through the cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body in the thickness direction. The cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body has a thickness corresponding to the height of the ribs.

Description

Connector with a locking member

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a connector.

Background

Conventionally, there is known a connector in which a cylindrical body accommodating terminals of a female housing and a cylindrical body accommodating terminals of a male housing are fitted to each other to connect the terminals to each other. In this type of connector, a gap set in consideration of manufacturing tolerances and assembly tolerances is provided between the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical body of the female housing and the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical body of the male housing. However, depending on the size of the gap, looseness between the cylindrical bodies may become large, which may adversely affect the connection between the terminals.

The connector described in patent document 1 includes: a female housing having an inner cylindrical body accommodating a female terminal and a rectangular cylindrical outer cylindrical body covering the inner cylindrical body; and a male housing having a rectangular cylindrical tubular body accommodating the male terminal and disposed in a gap between the inner cylindrical body and the outer cylindrical body. When mating each housing in such a connector, a rib extending in the mating direction on the outer surface of the cylindrical body of the male housing is inserted into a groove extending in the mating direction on the inner surface of the outer cylindrical body of the female housing. Thus, looseness due to relative displacement between the male housing and the female housing in a direction intersecting the protruding direction of the ribs can be suppressed.

Reference list

Patent document

Patent document 1: JP-A2015-103372

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem

In the connector of patent document 1, the wall thickness of the outer cylindrical body is larger than the depth of the groove to provide the groove on the inner surface of the outer cylindrical body, and therefore, the outer cylindrical body tends to be increased in size. It is preferable to avoid an increase in the size of such a connector if possible.

An object of the present invention is to provide a connector in which looseness between housings can be suppressed without increasing the size of the connector.

Means for solving the problems

The connector according to the present invention is characterized by (1) described below, and preferably, also by (2) to (6) described below.

(1) A connector, comprising: a housing having an inner cylindrical body accommodating a terminal and an outer cylindrical body covering the inner cylindrical body; another housing having an intermediate cylindrical body disposed in a gap between the inner cylindrical body and the outer cylindrical body; a rib housing portion provided on a cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body of the one housing to extend along a fitting direction; and a rib provided on the cylindrical wall of the other housing to extend in the fitting direction and inserted into the rib housing. The rib housing is slit-shaped and penetrates the cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body in the thickness direction, and the cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body has a thickness corresponding to the height of the rib.

According to the connector characterized by the above configuration (1), since the slit penetrating the cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body in the thickness direction (in other words, formed by cutting the inner and outer surfaces of the cylindrical wall) and the rib to be inserted into the slit are formed, when the housing is relatively offset in the direction intersecting the protruding direction of the rib, the side surfaces of the rib come into contact with the side surfaces of the opposing slit, and therefore, similarly to the above-described conventional connector, looseness can be suppressed. For example, in the case where the outer cylindrical body of one housing and the intermediate cylindrical body of the other housing are rectangular cylindrical bodies, slits are provided on at least three surfaces of the outer cylindrical body of one housing, and ribs are provided on the outer surface of the other housing at positions corresponding to the slits, whereby looseness in any direction intersecting the axis (fitting direction) of the housings can be suppressed.

Further, the cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body can be thinned to a thickness corresponding to the height of the ribs (for example, to such an extent that the outer surface of the cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body is flush with the end faces in the height direction of the ribs), and therefore, the thickness of the cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body can be reduced as compared with the above-described conventional connector. Therefore, the outer dimension of the outer cylindrical body can be reduced, and therefore, an increase in the size of the connector can be avoided.

Therefore, in the connector of the above feature, looseness between the housings can be suppressed without increasing the size of the connector.

(2) The connector according to the above configuration (1), wherein in the fitting direction, a distal end portion in a forward direction of the inner cylindrical body extending toward the other housing protrudes in the forward direction beyond a distal end portion in the forward direction of the outer cylindrical body.

According to the connector characterized by the above configuration (2), the distal end portion in the forward direction of the inner cylindrical body in the fitting direction protrudes beyond the distal end portion in the forward direction of the outer cylindrical body, and therefore, the length in the fitting direction of the outer cylindrical body can be reduced, so that the weight of the connector can be reduced.

(3) The connector according to the above configuration (1) or (2), wherein the one housing has a cantilever-like lock arm swingably supported on an elastic support member provided in the one housing and extending in the fitting direction, the lock arm having: an engaging portion on a free end side of the lock arm for engaging with an engaged portion provided in the other housing; and an operating portion on a fixed end side of the lock arm for releasing engagement of the engaging portion with the engaged portion, and the one housing has a stopper that limits a swing range of the lock arm at the time of releasing the engagement.

According to the connector characterized by the above configuration (3), when the engaging portion of the lock arm to be engaged with the engaged portion of the other housing is to be released from the engaged portion, the operating portion of the rear end (fixed end side) of the lock arm is operated to move the engaging portion of the tip (free end side) of the lock arm. At this time, since the stopper for limiting the swing range of the lock arm is provided in one housing, it is possible to prevent the engaging portion of the lock arm from excessively moving from the engaged portion in the releasing direction and generating excessive stress in the supporting member. Therefore, permanent deformation of the support member can be suppressed.

(4) The connector according to the above configuration (1) or (2), wherein the one housing has a cantilever-like lock arm swingably supported on an elastic support member provided in the one housing and extending in the fitting direction, the lock arm having: an engaging portion on a free end side of the lock arm for engaging with an engaged portion provided in the other housing; an operating portion on a fixed end side of the lock arm for releasing engagement of the engaging portion with the engaged portion; and a fulcrum member that protrudes from a portion between the engagement portion and the operating portion toward the support member and is provided at a position distant from the support member by a predetermined distance, and that is tapered, the distance from the fulcrum member to the support member increasing from a distal end portion of the fulcrum member closest to the support member toward the operating portion of the lock arm.

According to the connector characterized by the above configuration (4), a gap is provided between the fulcrum member and the support member, and the size of the gap increases from the distal end portion of the fulcrum member toward the operating portion (i.e., the fulcrum member is tapered). Thus, for example, even when the lock arm is reduced in size and thus the clearance is reduced, excessive thinning of the part of the mold used at the time of resin molding forming the clearance can be avoided, and therefore, the strength of the part can be improved. Therefore, the durability of the mold can be improved.

(5) The connector according to the above configuration (2), wherein a counterpart terminal to be connected with the terminal of the one housing is accommodated in an intermediate cylindrical body of the other housing, and the rib comes into contact with an end surface of the outer cylindrical body when the one housing and the other housing are mated in a state in which a positional deviation that makes it impossible to insert the rib into the rib accommodation portion occurs, wherein the one housing has an interference member in a set range on the end surface of the outer cylindrical body for interfering with the rib to restrict movement in the mating direction.

According to the connector characterized by the above configuration (5), since the interference member is provided at a position on the end surface of the outer cylindrical body of the one housing with which the rib comes into contact, even when the other housing and the one housing are fitted to each other in a state where, for example, the phase of the rotational direction of the other housing is shifted about the axis of the one housing (a state where the positional shift is caused), the other housing does not move in the fitting direction until the rib comes into direct contact with the end surface of the outer cylindrical body of the one housing. In other words, in a state where the positional deviation is caused, the insertion of the other housing into the one housing is restricted. Therefore, when the positional deviation occurs, the terminals of the respective housings can be suppressed from interfering with each other.

(6) The connector according to the above configuration (1) or (2), wherein the outer cylindrical body of the one housing is a rectangular cylindrical body and has, in portions corresponding to corners of an inner surface thereof, inward ribs extending in the fitting direction, and the intermediate cylindrical body of the other housing is a rectangular cylindrical body and has, in portions corresponding to corners of an outer surface thereof, grooves extending in the fitting direction to insert the inward ribs thereinto.

According to the connector characterized by the above configuration (6), the outer cylindrical body of the one housing and the intermediate cylindrical body of the other housing are rectangular cylindrical bodies, the inward ribs are provided in portions (R surfaces) corresponding to corners of the inner surface of the outer cylindrical body of the one housing, and the grooves are provided in portions corresponding to corners of the outer surface of the intermediate cylindrical body of the other housing. Here, the inward ribs provided in the portions (R surfaces) corresponding to the corners are difficult to deform at the time of molding, as compared with the case where the inward ribs are provided in portions different from the corners, and therefore, even when the clearance between the inward ribs and the grooves is reduced, it is possible to suppress the increase in insertion resistance due to friction between the inward ribs and the grooves. Therefore, the looseness between the housings can be further suppressed while suppressing an increase in insertion resistance caused at the time of fitting.

Advantageous effects of the invention

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a connector in which looseness between housings can be suppressed without increasing the size of the connector.

The present invention has been described so far simply. The details of the present invention will be more apparent by reading forms (hereinafter referred to as "embodiments") for carrying out the present invention described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a connector according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an external perspective view illustrating a mated state of the connector of fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along arrows a-a of the connector of fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the connector for explaining a state in which the rib is inserted into the slit.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the female housing illustrating the structure of the lock arm in the connector according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 6 is a top view of the female housing illustrating the structure of the lock arm in the connector according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the female housing illustrating the rear end portion of the lock arm in the connector according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 8 is a rear view of the female housing illustrating the rear end portions of the lock arms in the connector according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 9 is a side view illustrating a state where a male housing in a connector according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention is assembled upside down.

Fig. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the state of fig. 9.

Fig. 11 is a front view of a female housing of a connector according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

List of reference marks

1 connector

3 yin shell (one shell)

9 Male shell (another shell)

11 inner cylindrical body

13 outer tubular body

15 cover part (middle cylinder)

33 outer surface

35 support member

37 locking arm

39 engaged part

41 joint part

43 operating part

53a to 53c Ribs

55a to 55c slits (Rib receiving part)

65 fulcrum parts

67 stop member

69 inclined plane

75 interference component

77R surface (portion corresponding to corner)

79a to 79d inward ribs

81a to 81d grooves

Detailed Description

< first embodiment >

Now, a first embodiment of a connector according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a connector of the present embodiment, fig. 2 is an external perspective view of the connector, and fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along an arrow a-a of fig. 2. The connector 1 of the present embodiment includes: a female housing 3, the female housing 3 corresponding to one housing; an annular seal 5; a front holder 7; and a male housing 9, i.e., another housing, the male housing 9 is to be fitted into the female housing 3. Hereinafter, the X direction in fig. 1 is referred to as the front-rear direction (fitting direction), the Y direction is referred to as the width direction, the Z direction is referred to as the height direction, and the upper side in fig. 1 is referred to as the upper side.

The female housing 3 is made of synthetic resin, and has: a rectangular cylindrical inner cylindrical body 11, the rectangular cylindrical inner cylindrical body 11 accommodating therein a plurality of (six in the drawing) female terminals (not shown); and a rectangular cylindrical outer tubular body 13, the rectangular cylindrical outer tubular body 13 covering the outer peripheral surface of the inner tubular body 11. The inner cylindrical body 11 and the outer cylindrical body 13 are integrated with each other in the rear end portion of the female housing 3. An annular fitting space 17 is formed between the inner cylindrical body 11 and the outer cylindrical body 13, and the hood portion 15 of the male housing 9 is fitted into the annular fitting space 17. A rubber-made annular seal member 5 is attached to the outer surface of the inner cylindrical body 11 of the female housing 3. The seal 5 is sandwiched between the outer surface of the inner cylindrical body 11 and the inner surface of the hood 15 fitted in the fitting space 17, thereby providing waterproofness between the female housing 3 and the male housing 9. A front holder 7 of a rectangular cylindrical shape is attached to a tip end portion of the inner cylindrical body 11. The front retainer 7 is attached to the distal end portion of the inner cylindrical body 11, thereby positioning the distal end portions of the respective female terminals accommodated in the inner cylindrical body 11 and preventing the seal 5 from falling forward.

In the inner cylindrical body 11, the distal end portion protrudes beyond the distal end of the outer cylindrical body 13 in a direction toward the male housing 9 (hereinafter referred to as "forward direction") so as to be exposed. As shown in fig. 3, a plurality of terminal accommodating portions 19 that open forward are formed inside the inner cylindrical body 11. Each terminal accommodating part 19 is provided with a lance 21 extending forward, and the lance 21 hooks a female terminal inserted into the terminal accommodating part 19 through a wire introduction port 23 provided in a rear part of the inner cylindrical body 11, thereby holding the female terminal at a set position in the terminal accommodating part 19.

The upper portion of the outer cylindrical body 13 is cut in the front-rear direction to have an opening 25 with a set width for exposing the outer peripheral surface of the inner cylindrical body 11. A pair of side walls 27a and 27b opposed to each other in the width direction of the opening 25 are formed continuous with a pair of inner surfaces 31a and 31b opposed to each other in the width direction of a gate-like protection wall 29 extending forward from the outer cylindrical body 13. An elastic support member 35 is provided to project on the outer surface 33 of the upper portion of the female housing 3 at a position closer to the rear end than the opening 25, and a cantilever-like lock arm 37 extending in the fitting direction of the female housing 3 is swingably supported on the support member 35. In the lock arm 37, an engaging portion 41 to be engaged with an engaged portion 39 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the male housing 9 is formed at a lower portion of a front end (free end side) thereof, and an operating portion 43 for releasing the engaging portion from the engaged portion 39 is provided at a rear end portion (fixed end side). The operating portion 43 is disposed in spaced relation to the outer surface 33 of the female housing 3.

The male housing 9 is made of synthetic resin, and has: a rectangular cylindrical hood portion 15, the rectangular cylindrical hood portion 15 corresponding to a cylindrical body to be fitted in the fitting space of the female housing 3; and an enlarged portion 45, the enlarged portion 45 being formed by enlarging the outer peripheral surface of the rear portion of the cover portion 15 in the circumferential direction. The cover portion 15 is integrally formed with the enlarged portion 45. The male housing 9 of the present embodiment has a hollow cap structure having a rear end sealed by a not-shown bottom plate, and the male housing 9 is fitted in the female housing 3 so as to watertight seal a gap with the female housing 3.

The engaged portion 39 is provided to protrude at an upper portion of the outer surface of the hood portion 15. The enlarged portion 45 has a stepped portion 47, the stepped portion 47 rises from the upper surface of the cover portion 15 so as to surround the engaged portion 39 of the cover portion 15 from the rear side and both sides in the width direction, and the stepped portion 47 is formed continuous with the outer surfaces of both sides in the width direction of the enlarged portion 45. In other words, the enlarged portion 45 has an outer peripheral surface 49 formed by enlarging the outer peripheral surface of the hood 15 in a stepwise manner over the entire circumference. The outer peripheral surface 49 corresponds to an outer peripheral surface 51 of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3, as shown in fig. 2, and is set to an outer dimension substantially flush with the outer peripheral surface 51 of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3 when the female housing 3 and the male housing 9 are fitted to each other.

In the hood portion 15 of the male housing 9, three ribs 53a to 53c are formed which protrude from the outer surface of both sides and the outer surface of the lower portion in the width direction of the male housing, respectively. Each of the ribs 53a to 53c extends from the front end of the hood 15 to the enlarged portion 45 in the fitting direction on the outer surface of the male housing 9 (hood 15). The respective ribs 53a and 53c formed on the outer surfaces of both sides of the hood 15 in the width direction are positioned at the center in the height direction of the hood 15, but may be provided at positions offset upward or downward from the center. The rib 53b formed on the outer surface of the lower portion of the hood 15 is positioned at the center in the width direction of the hood 15, but may be provided at a position shifted from the center in the width direction. Each of the ribs 53a to 53c is formed to have a rectangular cross section, and the height of protrusion from the outer surface of the hood 15 is set to be the same as the height of the enlarged portion 45, and the rear ends of the ribs 53a to 53c are continuous with the enlarged portion 45.

In the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3, three slits 55a to 55c, i.e., rib receiving portions, corresponding to the ribs 53a to 53c of the male housing 3, respectively, are formed on the outer surface of both sides in the width direction and on the outer surface of the lower portion along the fitting direction of the outer cylindrical body 13. Each of the slits 55a to 55c is formed by cutting the inner and outer surfaces of the outer cylindrical body 13. The length of each slit 55a to 55c in the fitting direction is substantially the same as the length of each rib 53a to 53c in the fitting direction (the length from the enlarged portion 45 to the tip of the hood 15), and as shown in fig. 2, the ribs 53a to 53c are inserted into the bottoms of the slits 55a to 55c, respectively, when the housing 3 and the housing 9 are fitted to each other. The thickness of the outer cylindrical body 13 is set to a thickness corresponding to the height (projection height) of the ribs 53a to 53c inserted into the slits 55a to 55 c. Here, the thickness corresponding to the height of the ribs 53a to 53c includes a case where the outer peripheral surface 51 of the outer cylindrical body 13 is set substantially flush with the end surfaces 57 of the ribs 53a to 53 c.

When this structure is adopted, when the female housing 3 and the male housing 9 are assembled with each other, the hood 15 of the male housing 9 is inserted into the fitting space 17 of the female housing 3 to which the seal 5 and the front holder 7 have been attached, and at the same time, the ribs 53a to 53c of the male housing 9 are inserted into the slits 55a to 55c of the female housing 3, respectively. Then, when the front end of the hood portion 15 of the male housing 9 is inserted into the set position in the fitting space 17, and the engaging portions 41 of the lock arms 37 of the female housing 3 move over the engaged portions 39 of the male housing 9 to engage with the engaged portions 39, the female housing 3 is placed in the fitted state with the male housing 9 (fig. 2).

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a cross section of the connector 1 in a state where the ribs 53a to 53c of the male housing 9 are inserted into the slits 55a to 55c of the female housing 3, respectively. Note that only the outer cylindrical body and the cover 15 are illustrated in fig. 4. A prescribed clearance (clearance) set in consideration of manufacturing tolerance and assembly tolerance is provided between the inner peripheral surface of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3 and the outer peripheral surface of the hood 15 of the male housing 9, and also between the slits 55a to 55c and the ribs 53a to 53c inserted into the slits 55a to 55 c. In this case, the gap between the inner peripheral surface of the outer tubular body 13 and the outer peripheral surface of the hood 15 is set larger than the gap between the slits 55a to 55c and the ribs 53a to 53 c.

As described above, when the female housing 3 and the male housing 9 are mated with each other, the connector 1 of the present embodiment is placed in a state in which the ribs 53a to 53c formed on the outer surface of the hood portion 15 of the male housing 9 along the mating direction are inserted into the slits 55a to 55c formed by cutting the inner and outer surfaces of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3 in the mating direction, respectively. Therefore, when the female housing 3 and the male housing 9 are fitted to each other, if relative displacement in a direction intersecting the protruding direction of the ribs 53a to 53c occurs, the side surfaces of the ribs 53a to 53c overlap and come into contact with the side surfaces of the opposing slits 55a to 55c, so that looseness between the female housing 3 and the male housing 9 can be suppressed. In particular, since the ribs 53a to 53c are inserted into the slits 55a to 55c at three positions of both sides and the lower portion in the width direction, it is possible to suppress looseness in any direction intersecting the axis of the female housing 3 and the male housing 9.

Further, in the present embodiment, the rib receiving portions formed on the inner surface of the outer cylindrical body 13 in the fitting direction are formed as the slits 55a to 55c formed by cutting the inner and outer surfaces of the outer cylindrical body 13, and the outer cylindrical body 13 is set to have a thickness corresponding to the height of the ribs 53a to 53c, and therefore, the outer peripheral surface 51 of the outer cylindrical body 13 can be formed to be reduced to the thickness to the position of the end surface 57 in the height direction of the ribs 53a to 53 c. Therefore, as compared with the case where, for example, grooves for inserting the ribs 53a to 53c are formed on the inner surface of the outer cylindrical body 13, the thickness of the outer cylindrical body 13 can be reduced, and therefore, the outer dimension of the outer cylindrical body 13 can be reduced, thereby making the connector 1 compact.

Further, when the distal end portion of the inner cylindrical body 11 is made to protrude beyond the distal end portion of the outer cylindrical body 13 as in the present embodiment, the length of the outer cylindrical body 13 can be reduced, compared to a connector in which the distal end portion of the inner cylindrical body 11 is covered by the outer cylindrical body 13, thereby reducing the weight of the connector 1 accordingly. Further, since the weight of the connector 1 is thus reduced, the amount of resin to be used can be reduced, and thus the component cost can be reduced. In addition, when the length of the outer cylindrical body 13 is reduced, the length of the ribs 53a to 53c to be inserted into the slits 55a to 55c of the outer cylindrical body 13 is reduced, so that the deformation of the ribs 53a to 53c caused at the time of molding can be suppressed, and as a result, the increase in friction caused between the slits 55a to 55c and the ribs 53a to 53c when the ribs 53a to 53c are inserted into the slits 55a to 55c can be suppressed. Incidentally, even when the distal end portion of the inner cylindrical body 11 is covered by the outer cylindrical body 13, an effect of suppressing looseness can be obtained by inserting the ribs 53a to 53c into the slits 55a to 55c of the outer cylindrical body 13, respectively.

The ribs 53a to 53c and the slits 55a to 55c are provided at both sides and lower portions in the width direction of the connector 1 in the present embodiment, but the positions of these components are not particularly limited, and even when provided at two positions of only one side and lower portion in the width direction, for example, looseness in any direction intersecting the axes of the female housing 3 and the male housing 9 can be suppressed. Incidentally, no slit is provided at the upper portion of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3 to avoid interference with the lock arm 37, but a slit may be provided if space is available. In addition, in the present embodiment, although the slits 55a to 55c are provided in the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3 and the ribs 53a to 53c to be inserted into the slits 55a to 55c are provided in the hood 15 of the male housing 9, basically, the slits 55a to 55c may be provided in the cylindrical body of one housing and the ribs 53a to 53c to be inserted into the slits 55a to 55c may be provided on the outer surface of the cylindrical body of the other housing to be fitted to the cylindrical body of one housing.

Although in the present embodiment, the terminals are not accommodated in the male housing 9, the effects of the present embodiment can be similarly achieved even when the male terminals to be connected with the female terminals accommodated in the female housing 3 are accommodated in the male housing 9.

Now, other embodiments of the connector of the present invention will be described. Note that these embodiments are substantially the same as the first embodiment. Therefore, only the characteristic structures of the respective embodiments will be described below, and the structures common to the first embodiment will not be described.

< second embodiment >

A second embodiment of the connector of the present invention will now be described. Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the structure of the lock arm 37 of the connector of the present embodiment, and fig. 6 is a top view illustrating the structure of the lock arm 37 of the connector of the present embodiment. In the present embodiment, the structure of the lock arm 37 is the same as that in the first embodiment, but unlike the first embodiment, the swing range of the lock arm 37 in the operation of releasing the engaging portion 41 of the lock arm 38 from the engaged portion 39 (hereinafter referred to as "releasing operation") is restricted. Now, the characteristic structure of the present embodiment will be described, and the structure of the lock arm 37 will be described in particular.

The lock arm 37 is supported on the elastic support member 35 so as to be swingable in a plane perpendicular to the outer surface of the female housing 3, and the elastic support member 35 is provided to protrude on the outer surface 33 of the female housing 3. The lock arm 37 has: a pair of first arm portions 59, the pair of first arm portions 59 extending from the support member 35 toward the front end of the female housing 3; a connecting portion 61 that connects the leading end portions of the pair of first arm portions 59 to each other; and a second arm portion 63, the second arm portion 63 extending from the connecting portion 61 toward the rear end portion of the female housing 3 beyond the support member 35. The second arm portions 63 are disposed inside the pair of first arm portions 59 when viewed from above the female housing 3.

In the connecting portion 61 provided at the front end portion of the first arm portion 59, an engaging portion 41 to be engaged with the engaged portion 39 of the male housing 9 when the female housing 3 and the male housing 9 are mated with each other is provided to protrude downward, and in the rear end portion of the second arm portion 63, an operating portion 43 for releasing the engaging portion 41 from the engaged portion 39 is provided. Between the tip of the second arm portion 63 and the operating portion 43, a fulcrum member 65 is provided so that the tip thereof is at a position distant from the outer surface 33 of the female housing 3 by a set distance.

In this structure, in the releasing operation of the lock arm 37, the operating portion 43 provided in the rear end portion of the lock arm 37 is pushed toward the outer surface 33 of the female housing 3 to bring the fulcrum member 65 provided between the tip of the second arm portion 63 and the operating portion 43 into contact with the outer surface of the female housing 3, and with this contact portion serving as a fulcrum, an operation for lifting the engaging portion 41 provided in the tip portion of the lock arm 37 like a seesaw is performed. In this case, if the operating portion 43 is pushed deeply toward the outer surface 33 of the female housing 3, excessive stress is generated in the supporting member 35 of the lock arm 37, which may cause permanent deformation of the supporting member 35.

In this regard, in the present embodiment, the stoppers 67 projecting toward the lock arm 37 are provided on the pair of inner surfaces 31a and 31b of the protective wall 29 arranged on both sides of the lock arm 37, respectively, at a side closer to the engaging portion 41 than the supporting member 35. In the releasing operation of the lock arm 37, the stopper 67 comes into contact with the upper surface of the lock arm 37 (the pair of first arm portions 59) swung upward to limit the upper limit (highest position) of the swing range of the lock arm 37. The set height of the stopper 67 can be set according to the deformation allowance of the support member 35 in the releasing operation of the lock arm 37. Note that the stopper 67 may be provided on only one of the pair of inner surfaces 31a and 31b of the protective wall 29.

According to the present embodiment, the stoppers 67 that limit the upper limit of the swing range of the lock arm 37 are provided on the inner surface of the protective wall 29 of the female housing 3 on both sides of the lock arm 37, and therefore, in the releasing operation of the lock arm 37, even when the operating portion 43 is pushed deeply, the upper limit of the swing of the lock arm 37 is limited. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the generation of excessive stress in the support member 35 and to suppress the permanent deformation of the support member 35. Further, although in the present embodiment, the lock arm 37 and the protection wall 29 are provided in the female housing 3, the lock arm 37 and the protection wall 29 may be provided in the male housing 9 instead of the female housing 3.

< third embodiment >

Next, a third embodiment of the connector of the present invention will be described. Fig. 7 is a perspective view illustrating a rear end portion of the lock arm 37 of the connector of the present embodiment, and fig. 8 is a rear view illustrating the rear end portion of the lock arm 37. In the present embodiment, the structure of the lock arm 37 is the same as in the first and second embodiments, but the shape of the fulcrum part 65 of the lock arm 37 is different from that in the first and second embodiments, as described below.

In the lock arm 37, a fulcrum member 65 whose tip is positioned away from the outer surface 33 of the female housing 3 by a set distance is provided between the tip of the second arm portion 63 and the operating portion 43. When the fulcrum member 65 is viewed from the operation portion 43 side of the lock arm 37, as shown in fig. 8, a space S is provided from the support member 35 in the width direction of the female connector 3. The space S is formed by a part of a mold for resin molding. Therefore, for example, when the lock arm 37 is made compact and thus the space is reduced, the parts of the mold become thin, and therefore there is a fear that the durability of the mold may be deteriorated due to insufficient strength.

In this regard, the fulcrum member 65 of the present embodiment is formed in a tapered shape so that the distance from the supporting member 35 can be increased toward the outer surface 33 of the female housing 3 when viewed from the operating portion 43 side of the lock arm 37. In other words, the fulcrum member 65 has the inclined surface 69, and the inclined surface 69 is tapered downward on the side surface of the supporting member 35 side when viewed from the operating portion 43 side of the lock arm 37. Therefore, the space S can be increased, and the parts of the mold for molding the space S can be thickened to improve the strength of the mold, so that the durability of the mold is improved.

Although the inclined surface 69 extending toward the lower end is provided on the side surface of the fulcrum member 65 in the present embodiment, instead of the inclined surface 69, one or more steps for increasing the space from the support member 35 toward the lower end in a stepwise manner can be provided. Incidentally, although an inclined surface that is tapered toward the upper end may be provided on the support member 35 to increase the space S between the fulcrum member 65 and the support member 35, such a structure is not preferable because the support strength of the lock arm 37 is reduced. Further, although in the present embodiment, the lock arm 37 is provided in the female housing 3, the lock arm 37 may be provided in the male housing 9 instead of the female housing 3.

< fourth embodiment >

Next, a fourth embodiment of the connector of the present invention will be described. In the present embodiment, in the case where the terminal is accommodated in the male housing 9 and the distal end portion of the inner cylindrical body 11 of the female housing 3 protrudes beyond the distal end portion of the outer cylindrical body 13 in the connector according to any one of the first to third embodiments, the present embodiment is different from the first to third embodiments in the following configuration.

Fig. 9 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the male housing 9 is assembled on the female housing 3 upside down, and fig. 10 is a sectional view of fig. 9. As shown in these drawings, in a structure in which a counterpart terminal (male terminal 73) to be connected with a female terminal 71 accommodated in a female housing 3 is accommodated in a hood part 15 of a male housing 9, the male housing 9 may be erroneously assembled on the female housing 3 upside down in a phase shifted by 180 degrees from a phase in a rotational direction that can be inserted into an outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3 in some cases.

In such a case, for example, if the ribs 53a to 53c of the male housing 9 and the slits 55a to 55c of the female housing 3 are provided at positions shifted in either the up-down direction from the center in the height direction of the hood 15 and the outer cylindrical body 13, the phases in the rotational direction of the ribs 53a to 53c and the slits 55a to 55c are shifted by 180 degrees from each other, and therefore, the ribs 53a to 53c come into contact with the distal end face of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3, and the male housing 9 cannot be fitted in the outer cylindrical body 13. Further, even if the ribs 53a to 53c of the male housing 9 and the slits 55a to 55c of the female housing 3 are provided at the center in the height direction of the hood 15 and the outer cylindrical body 13, the ribs 53b come into contact with the distal end face of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3, and the male housing 9 cannot be fitted in the outer cylindrical body 13.

However, in the case where the distal end portion of the inner cylindrical body 11 of the female housing 3 protrudes beyond the distal end portion of the outer cylindrical body 13, when the ribs 53a to 53c of the male housing 9 come into contact with the distal end face of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3, the inner cylindrical body 11 of the female housing 3 to which the front holder 7 is attached is inserted into the hood portion 15 of the male housing 9, and as a result, there is a fear that the female terminal 71 and the male terminal 73 may interfere with each other.

In this regard, in the present embodiment, as shown in fig. 9 and 10, in the position where the interference member 75 is provided on the end surface of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3 within the set angular range, when the male housing 9 is disposed upside down, and therefore the phases in the rotational direction of the ribs 53a to 53c of the male housing 9 and the slits 55a to 55c of the female housing 3 are shifted from each other by 180 degrees, the ribs 53a to 53c of the male housing 9 come into contact with the interference member 75. The interference member 75 is formed integrally with the outer cylindrical body 13 and is rectangular parallelepiped in shape, and if it is desired to increase the set angle range, the interference member may be formed in an arc shape along the end face of the outer cylindrical body 13. Note that the interference member 75 may be provided at any one of the positions with which the ribs 53a to 53c come into contact, or may be provided at all the positions with which the ribs 53a to 53c come into contact.

According to the present embodiment, when the phases of the ribs 53a to 53c of the male housing 9 are shifted from the phases of the slits 55a to 55c of the female housing 3 at the time of assembling the male housing 9 and the female housing 3 with each other, since the ribs 53a to 53c come into contact with the interference member 75 provided on the end surface of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3, the insertion of the male housing 9 into the inner cylindrical body 11 of the female housing 3 is restricted, and therefore, the interference between the female terminal 71 and the male terminal 73 can be suppressed.

Although in the present embodiment, it is assumed that the phase in the rotational direction of the male housing 9 is shifted by 180 degrees from the phase that enables the male housing 9 to be inserted into the outer tubular body 13 of the female housing 3, for example, when the male housing 9 and the female housing 3 are cylindrical, the shift in the rotational phase is not limited to 180 degrees. In this case, an angular range of the shift of the rotational phase is set in advance, and the interference member 75 is provided at a position on the end surface of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3 in the set angular range where it can come into contact with the ribs 53a to 53c of the male housing 9 whose rotational phase is shifted, whereby effects similar to those of the present embodiment can be obtained.

Incidentally, it is assumed in the present embodiment that the slits 55a to 55c are provided in the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3 and the ribs 53a to 53c are provided in the hood 15 of the male housing 9, and thus the interference member 75 is provided on the end face of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3, and basically, the interference member 75 may be provided on the end face of the cylindrical body of the other housing in a case where the ribs 53a to 53c are provided in the cylindrical body of the one housing and the slits 55a to 55c are provided in the cylindrical body of the other housing to be inserted into the cylindrical body of the one housing.

< fifth embodiment >

Next, a fifth embodiment of the connector of the present invention will be described. Fig. 11 is a front view of the female housing 3 of the connector of the present embodiment, in which the hood 15 of the male housing 9 is shown in phantom line. The present embodiment is different from the first to fourth embodiments in that: in the connectors of the first to fourth embodiments, the following structure is further adopted to improve the effect of suppressing the looseness between the male housing 9 and the female housing 3.

As in the first embodiment, when the lengths of the ribs 53a to 53c formed on the outer surface of the hood section 15 of the male housing 9 in the fitting direction are large, the ribs 53a to 53c tend to be easily deformed by molding. Therefore, depending on the gaps provided between the ribs 53a to 53c and the slits 55a to 55c, friction caused between the ribs 53a to 53c and the slits 55a to 55c when the hood 15 of the male housing 9 is inserted into the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3 may increase, and therefore there is a fear that insertion resistance may increase.

In the present embodiment, the outer tubular body 13 of the female housing 3 and the hood 15 of the male housing 9 are formed in a rectangular cylindrical shape as in the first embodiment. The outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3 is provided with inward ribs 79a to 79d along the fitting direction on four R surfaces 77 corresponding to the corners of the inner surface. Further, in a hood portion 15 (shown by a broken line diagram in fig. 11) of the male housing 9 to be fitted into the outer cylindrical body 13, grooves 81a to 81d for inserting the inward ribs 79a to 79d are formed at corner positions of the outer surface in the fitting direction. Each of the inward ribs 79a to 79d is formed by causing two surfaces rising from the R surface 77 to intersect with each other at substantially right angles, and each of the grooves 81a to 81d has a cross section corresponding to each of the inward ribs 79a to 79d, but the cross sectional shape of the inward ribs 79a to 79d is not limited to this shape.

As in the present embodiment, the inward ribs 79a to 79d provided on the R surface 77 forming the corner portion of the inner surface of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3 are difficult to deform due to molding, and therefore, even if the gaps between the inward ribs 79a to 79d and the grooves 81a to 81d are reduced, friction caused between the inward ribs 79a to 79d and the grooves 81a to 81d can be suppressed. Therefore, by suppressing an increase in insertion resistance caused when the cover portion 15 of the male housing 9 is inserted into the outer tubular body 13 of the female housing 3, the play between the female housing 3 and the male housing 9 can be further suppressed.

Although in the present embodiment, the inward ribs 79a to 79d are provided on the four R surfaces 77 corresponding to the corners of the inner surface of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3, the inward ribs 79a to 79d may be provided at least two R surfaces 77 provided on mutually opposite sides with respect to the axis of the outer cylindrical body 13.

Incidentally, it is assumed in the present embodiment that the inward ribs 79a to 79d are provided on the R surface of the inner surface of the outer cylindrical body 13 of the female housing 3 and the grooves 81a to 81d for inserting the ribs 79a to 79d are formed at the corners on the outer surface of the hood portion 15 of the male housing 9, and basically, the inward ribs 79a to 79d may be provided on the R surface corresponding to the corners of the inner surface of the cylindrical body of one housing, and the grooves 81a to 81d for inserting the ribs 79a to 79d are formed in the corners of the outer surface of the cylindrical body of the other housing to be inserted into the cylindrical body of one housing.

Specific embodiments have been described so far, and it is to be noted that the present invention is not limited to the appearances and structures described herein, and various modifications, additions, and deletions can be made without changing the scope of the invention.

The features of the above-described embodiment of the connector according to the present invention are summarized in the following (1) to (6).

(1) A connector (1) comprising: a housing (3) having an inner cylindrical body (11) accommodating the terminal and an outer cylindrical body (13) covering the inner cylindrical body; another housing (9) having an intermediate cylindrical body (15) disposed in a gap between the inner cylindrical body and the outer cylindrical body; rib receiving portions (55a to 55c) provided on a cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body of the one housing so as to extend along the fitting direction; and ribs (53a to 53c) provided on the cylindrical wall of the other housing so as to extend in the fitting direction and inserted into the rib receiving portions (55a to 55 c). The rib housing is slit-shaped and penetrates the cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body in the thickness direction, and the cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body has a thickness corresponding to the height of the rib.

(2) The connector according to the above configuration (1), wherein in the fitting direction, a distal end portion in a forward direction of the inner cylindrical body (11) extending toward the other housing protrudes in the forward direction beyond a distal end portion in the forward direction of the outer cylindrical body (13).

(3) The connector according to the above configuration (1) or (2), wherein the one housing (3) has a cantilever-like lock arm (37) swingably supported on an elastic support member (35) provided in the one housing and extending in the fitting direction, the lock arm has an engaging portion (41) on a free end side thereof for engaging with an engaged portion (39) provided in the other housing (9) and has an operating portion (43) on a fixed end side thereof for releasing the engagement of the engaging portion with the engaged portion, and the one housing (3) has a stopper (67) that limits a swing range of the lock arm when releasing the engagement.

(4) The connector according to the above configuration (1) or (2), wherein the one housing (3) has a cantilever-like lock arm (37) swingably supported on an elastic support member (35) provided in the one housing and extending in the fitting direction, the lock arm having: an engaging portion (41) on a free end side of the lock arm for engaging with an engaged portion (39) provided in the other housing (9); an operating portion (43) on a fixed end side of the lock arm for releasing engagement of the engaging portion with the engaged portion; and a fulcrum member (65) that protrudes from a portion between the engagement portion and the operating portion toward the support member and is provided at a position away from the support member by a prescribed distance, and the fulcrum member (65) is tapered such that a distance from the fulcrum member to the support member (35) increases from a tip end portion of the fulcrum member closest to the support member toward the operating portion of the lock arm.

(5) The connector according to the above configuration (2), wherein a counterpart terminal to be connected with a terminal of the one housing (3) is accommodated in an intermediate cylindrical body (15) of the other housing (9), and when the one housing and the other housing are mated in a state in which positional deviation that makes it impossible to insert the ribs (53a to 53c) into the rib accommodation parts (55a to 55c) occurs, the ribs come into contact with an end surface of the outer cylindrical body (13), and the one housing has an interference member (75) for interfering with the ribs to restrict movement in a mating direction within a set range on the end surface of the outer cylindrical body (13).

(6) The connector according to the above configuration (1) or (2), wherein the outer cylindrical body (13) of the one housing is a rectangular cylindrical body and has, in portions (77) corresponding to corners of an inner surface thereof, inward ribs (79a to 79d) extending in the fitting direction, and the intermediate cylindrical body (15) of the other housing is a rectangular cylindrical body and has, in portions corresponding to corners of an outer surface thereof, grooves (81a to 81d) extending in the fitting direction to insert the inward ribs thereinto.

This application is based on a prior japanese patent application (japanese patent application No. 2016-.

Industrial applicability

According to the connector of the present invention, looseness between the housings can be suppressed without increasing the size of the connector. The present invention exhibiting this effect is useful in a connector.

Claims (5)

1. A connector, comprising:

a housing having an inner cylindrical body accommodating a terminal and an outer cylindrical body covering the inner cylindrical body;

another housing having an intermediate cylindrical body disposed in a gap between the inner cylindrical body and the outer cylindrical body;

a rib housing portion provided on a cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body of the one housing to extend along a fitting direction; and

a rib provided on the cylindrical wall of the other housing to extend along the fitting direction and inserted into the rib receiving portion,

wherein the rib housing is slit-shaped penetrating the cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body in the thickness direction,

wherein the cylindrical wall of the outer cylindrical body has a thickness corresponding to the height of the ribs,

wherein the one housing has a cantilever-like lock arm provided to project on an outer surface of the one housing, supported on an elastic support member provided in the one housing, and extended toward front and rear ends of the fitting direction,

wherein the lock arm has: a pair of first arm portions extending from the support member toward a front end of the one housing; a connecting portion that connects the front end portions of the pair of first arm portions to each other; and a second arm portion extending from the connecting portion toward a rear end of the one housing beyond the support member; and the lock arm is supported swingably in a plane perpendicular to an outer surface of the one housing,

wherein in a connecting portion provided at a front end portion of the first arm portion, an engaging portion that engages with an engaged portion of the other housing is provided, and in a rear end portion of the second arm portion, an operating portion for releasing the engaging portion from the engaged portion is provided,

wherein, between the tip end of the second arm portion and the operating portion, a fulcrum member is provided such that the tip end thereof is at a position distant from the outer surface of the one housing by a set distance, and

wherein the fulcrum member is tapered, i.e., tapered in such a manner that a distance from a side surface of the support member increases toward an outer surface of the one housing.

2. The connector of claim 1, wherein the first and second connectors are connected to each other,

wherein a distal end portion in a forward direction of the inner cylindrical body extending toward the other housing protrudes in the forward direction beyond a distal end portion in the forward direction of the outer cylindrical body in the fitting direction.

3. The connector according to claim 1 or 2,

the one housing has a stopper on an inner surface of a wall of the one housing on both sides of the lock arm, the stopper limiting an upper limit of a swing range of the lock arm when the engagement is released.

4. The connector of claim 2, wherein the first and second connectors are connected to each other,

wherein a counterpart terminal to be connected with the terminal of the one housing is accommodated in the intermediate cylindrical body of the other housing, and

when the one housing and the other housing are fitted in a state where a positional deviation that makes it impossible to insert the rib into the rib receiving portion occurs, the rib comes into contact with an end surface of the outer cylindrical body; the one housing has an interference member in a set range on the end surface of the outer cylindrical body for interfering with the rib to restrict movement in the fitting direction.

5. The connector according to claim 1 or 2,

wherein the outer cylindrical body of the one housing is a rectangular cylindrical body and has inward ribs extending in the fitting direction in portions corresponding to corners of an inner surface of the outer cylindrical body of the one housing, and

the intermediate cylindrical body of the other housing is a rectangular cylindrical body, and has groove portions extending in the fitting direction to insert the inward ribs thereinto in portions corresponding to corners of an outer surface of the intermediate cylindrical body of the other housing.

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