EP3232518B1 - Electrical connector - Google Patents
Electrical connector Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- EP3232518B1 EP3232518B1 EP17159798.2A EP17159798A EP3232518B1 EP 3232518 B1 EP3232518 B1 EP 3232518B1 EP 17159798 A EP17159798 A EP 17159798A EP 3232518 B1 EP3232518 B1 EP 3232518B1
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- lever
- connector
- slider
- mated
- recited
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
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Classifications
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
- H01R13/00—Details of coupling devices of the kinds covered by groups H01R12/70 or H01R24/00 - H01R33/00
- H01R13/62—Means for facilitating engagement or disengagement of coupling parts or for holding them in engagement
- H01R13/629—Additional means for facilitating engagement or disengagement of coupling parts, e.g. aligning or guiding means, levers, gas pressure electrical locking indicators, manufacturing tolerances
- H01R13/62977—Pivoting levers actuating linearly camming means
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
- H01R13/00—Details of coupling devices of the kinds covered by groups H01R12/70 or H01R24/00 - H01R33/00
- H01R13/62—Means for facilitating engagement or disengagement of coupling parts or for holding them in engagement
- H01R13/629—Additional means for facilitating engagement or disengagement of coupling parts, e.g. aligning or guiding means, levers, gas pressure electrical locking indicators, manufacturing tolerances
- H01R13/62933—Comprising exclusively pivoting lever
- H01R13/62944—Pivoting lever comprising gear teeth
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
- H01R13/00—Details of coupling devices of the kinds covered by groups H01R12/70 or H01R24/00 - H01R33/00
- H01R13/62—Means for facilitating engagement or disengagement of coupling parts or for holding them in engagement
- H01R13/629—Additional means for facilitating engagement or disengagement of coupling parts, e.g. aligning or guiding means, levers, gas pressure electrical locking indicators, manufacturing tolerances
- H01R13/62933—Comprising exclusively pivoting lever
- H01R13/62955—Pivoting lever comprising supplementary/additional locking means
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
- H01R13/00—Details of coupling devices of the kinds covered by groups H01R12/70 or H01R24/00 - H01R33/00
- H01R13/62—Means for facilitating engagement or disengagement of coupling parts or for holding them in engagement
- H01R13/629—Additional means for facilitating engagement or disengagement of coupling parts, e.g. aligning or guiding means, levers, gas pressure electrical locking indicators, manufacturing tolerances
- H01R13/62905—Additional means for facilitating engagement or disengagement of coupling parts, e.g. aligning or guiding means, levers, gas pressure electrical locking indicators, manufacturing tolerances comprising a camming member
- H01R13/62922—Pair of camming plates
Definitions
- This invention relates to a connector which is changeable, by turning a lever, between a mated state that the connector is mated with a mating connector and a removable state that the connector is removable from the mating connector.
- a connector assembly 90 disclosed in JPA 2015-122182 has a connector 900 and a mating connector 950.
- the connector 900 has a housing 910, a cover 920, a lever 930 and sliders 940.
- the cover 920 is attached to the housing 910.
- the lever 930 is attached to the cover 920 to be rotatable within a predetermined range.
- the sliders 940 are accommodated in the housing 910 at least in part to be movable in a front-rear direction.
- the lever 930 and the sliders 940 are combined with each other to be interlocked with each other. In detail, the lever 930 and the sliders 940 are combined so that turning the lever 930 in a rotational direction moves the sliders 940 in the front-rear direction.
- the sliders 940 are formed with a plurality of cam grooves 942 (one of them is shown in Fig. 22 ).
- the mating connector 950 is formed with a plurality of bosses 952 (three of them are shown in Fig. 22 ).
- the cam grooves 942 correspond to the bosses 952, respectively.
- the bosses 952 of the mating connector 950 are inserted into the cam grooves 942 of the sliders 940.
- any part of the connector can be worn down by rubbing against neighboring parts thereof when the part is rattled by the vibration.
- the wear of the part causes malfunction of the connector, furthermore, causes malfunction of a product using the connector. Accordingly, it is necessary to prevent the part from being rattled.
- Patent Literature 1 shows nothing to prevent the part from being rattled.
- the regulating portion regulates the regulated portion to limit movement of the lever for the initial position while the press mechanism presses the regulated portion against the regulating portion to prevent the lever from being rattled.
- the retain mechanism retains the slider in the front-end position to prevent the slider from being rattled.
- a connector assembly 10 has a connector 30 and a mating connector 50.
- the connector 30 is mateable with and removable from the mating connector 50 along an up-down direction.
- the connector 30 is a socket connector while the mating connector 50 is a pin connector.
- the up-down direction is a Z-direction. A positive Z-direction is upward while a negative Z-direction is downward.
- the mating connector 50 has a plurality of mating contacts 500 and a mating housing 600 which holds the mating contacts 500.
- the mating housing 600 is provided with a plurality of camshafts (force receiving portions) 604.
- the mating housing 600 has two side surfaces 602 positioned in a right-left direction. Each of the side surfaces 602 is provided with two camshafts 604 which protrude outward therefrom in the right-left direction.
- the two camshafts 604 provided on each of the side surfaces 602 are arranged apart from each other in a front-rear direction.
- One of the camshafts 604 formed on one of the side surfaces 602 and one of the camshafts 604 formed on the other of the side surfaces 602 make one pair.
- the mating housing 600 of the present embodiment has two pairs of the camshafts 604.
- the camshafts 604 making one pair are identical with each other when seen along the right-left direction.
- the front-rear direction is an X-direction orthogonal to the up-down direction. A positive X-direction is forward while a negative X-direction is rearward.
- the right-left direction is a Y-direction orthogonal to both of the up-down direction and the front-rear direction.
- the connector 30 is provided with a plurality of contacts 100, a housing 200, a lever 300 and a pair of sliders 400 (402, 404).
- the connector 30 is provided with a press mechanism and a retain mechanism (spring portions 340).
- the housing 200 has a housing body 210 and a cover 270.
- the housing body 210 has a contact holding portion 212 and a wall portion 220.
- the contact holding portion 212 holds the contacts 100.
- the wall portion 220 surrounds a periphery of the contact holding portion 212.
- the cover 270 is attached to an upper part of the housing body 210 and opens frontward.
- the cover 270 is provided with stoppers 272 which protrude outward therefrom in the right-left direction.
- the contact holding portion 212 of the housing body 210 has an approximately rectangular-parallelepiped shape which is long in the front-rear direction.
- the contact holding portion 212 is provided with a plurality of holding holes 214 which hold the contacts 100, respectively.
- the holding holes 214 are arranged to correspond to arrangement of the mating contacts 500 of the mating connector 50.
- the holding holes 214 pierce the contact holding portion 212 in the up-down direction.
- the contacts 100 held in the holding holes 214 are connected with wirings (not shown), respectively. The wirings are routed out upward of the contact holding portion 212 and led forward by the cover 270.
- the wall portion 220 of the housing body 210 has a pair of inner sidewalls 222, a pair of outer sidewalls 224, a front wall 226 and a rear wall 228.
- the inner sidewalls 222 are located outward of the contact holding portion 212 in the right-left direction.
- the outer sidewalls 224 are located outward of the inner sidewalls 222 in the right-left direction.
- Each of the inner sidewalls 222 and the outer sidewall 224 adjacent thereto are disposed at a predetermined interval.
- the front wall 226 is positioned forward of the contact holding portion 212 and connects the inner sidewalls 222 and the outer sidewalls 224 to one another at their front ends.
- the rear wall 228 is positioned rearward of the contact holding portion 212 and connects the inner sidewalls 222 to each other at their rear ends.
- the housing body 210 further has upper guide portions 242 and lower guide portions 244. Each of the upper guide portions 242 and the lower guide portions 244 connects each of the inner sidewall 222 and the outer sidewall 224 adjacent thereto to each other.
- each of the front wall 226 and the rear wall 228 is connected to the contact holding portion 212 in an upper side upper than a middle of the contact holding portion 212 in the up-down direction.
- the inner sidewalls 222 are connected to the contact holding portion 212.
- a receiving portion 252 is formed between the contact holding portion 212 and surrounding walls, i.e. the inner sidewalls 222, the front wall 226 and the rear wall 228, and is positioned below connecting parts between the contact holding portion 212 and the surrounding walls.
- the receiving portion 252 receives a mating housing 600 of the mating connector 50 in part when the connector 30 is mated with the mating connector 50.
- a lever accommodation portion 254 and a slider accommodation portion 256 are formed between each of the inner sidewalls 222 and the outer sidewall 224 adjacent thereto.
- the lever accommodation portion 254 rotatably accommodates the lever 300 in part.
- the slider accommodation portion 256 accommodates the slider 400 (402 or 404) in part to allow the slider 400 to be movable in the front-rear direction.
- the lever accommodation portion 254 and the slider accommodation portion 256 communicate with each other in the up-down direction except for some parts.
- the upper guide portions 242 partition the lever accommodation portion 254 from the slider accommodation portion 256 in part.
- the lower guide portions 244 define a bottom of the slider accommodation portion 256.
- the upper guide portions 242 and the lower guide portions 244 guide front-rear-direction movement of the slider 400 accommodated in the slider accommodation portion 256.
- the inner sidewalls 222 are further provided with rotational shafts 232 protruding outward therefrom in the right-left direction.
- the rotational shafts 232 are positioned in the lever accommodation portions 254.
- the rear wall 228 is provided with a lock portion (a regulating portion) 234.
- the lock portion 234 protrudes rearward from the rear wall 228.
- the inner sidewalls 222, the outer sidewalls 224, the front wall 226, the rear wall 228, the upper guide portions 242 and the lower guide portions 244 are formed integrally with one another. Specifically, they are integrally molded using a resin (a first resin). This is for reducing the number of parts, simplifying manufacturing process and reducing manufacturing costs.
- the wall portion 220 may be molded integrally with at least a part of the contact holding portion 212 using common material.
- the lever 300 has an operation portion 310 and a pair of arm portions 320.
- the operation portion 310 extends in the right-left direction.
- the arm portions 320 extend from both ends of the operation portion 310 in a direction orthogonal to the right-left direction.
- each of the arm portions 320 is formed with a shaft hole 322 in a vicinity of an end of the arm portion 320.
- the shaft hole 322 pierces the arm portion 320 in the right-left direction.
- the arm portions 320 have inner surfaces facing each other in the right-left direction.
- Each of the inner surfaces of the arm portions 320 is formed with a guide groove 324 extending from an edge of the arm portion 320 to the shaft hole 322.
- the guide grooves 324 extend in a direction orthogonal to an extending direction (a longitudinal direction) of the arm portions 320. In other words, the guide grooves 324 extend in the up-down direction when the longitudinal direction of the arm portions 320 coincides with the front-rear direction.
- the guide grooves 324 guide rotational shafts 232 provided to the housing 200 to the shaft holes 322 upon attaching the lever 300 to the housing 200.
- the shaft holes 322 receive the rotational shafts 232 so that the lever 300 is rotatably attached to the housing 200.
- the lever 300 in a state that the lever 300 is attached to the housing 200, the lever 300 is rotatable about the rotational shafts 232.
- the lever 300 of the present embodiment is rotatable between an initial position shown in Figs. 1 , 2 , 5 and 6 and a mated position shown in Figs. 7 to 12 .
- the lever 300 is partly accommodated in the lever accommodation portions 254 in a state that the lever 300 is attached to the housing 200.
- the ends of the arm portions 320 are always positioned in the lever accommodation portions 254.
- a ratio of parts of the arm portions 320 that are accommodated in the lever accommodation portion 254 becomes maximum.
- the operation portion 310 is always positioned outside the lever accommodation portions 254.
- each of the arm portions 320 further has a pinion portion 330.
- the pinion portion 330 has a plurality of teeth 332.
- the teeth 332 are arranged to surround partly a periphery of the shaft hole 322 when seen along the right-left direction.
- the arm portion 320 further has a plate-like member 334.
- the plate-like member 334 connects the teeth 332 of the pinion portion 330 to one another to reinforce the teeth 332.
- the plate-like member 334 is provided on one of side surfaces of the pinion portion 330. In other words, the plate-like members 334 of the arm portions 320 are located inward of two sets of the teeth 332 in the right-left direction.
- each of the arm portions 320 is provided with the spring portion 340.
- the spring portion 340 functions as both of the press mechanism and the retain mechanism.
- the lever 300 when the lever 300 is positioned in the mated position, the lever 300 has a middle and a front end in the front-rear direction between which the spring portion 340 is positioned.
- the spring portion 340 is positioned between the middle and the front end of the lever 300 in the front-rear direction.
- the spring portion 340 is positioned below the arm portion 320 and rearward of the pinion portion 330.
- the spring portion 340 is positioned on a plane (an XZ plane) same as a plane on which the pinion portion 330 is located. As shown partially enlarged in Fig. 15 , in a state that a longitudinal direction of the lever 300 coincides with the front-rear direction, the spring portion 340 diagonally extends frontward and downward from a base (a root or a start point) 342 thereof and then extends frontward to a tip 344 thereof. As understood from Figs. 11 and 15 , a shaft center of the rotational shaft 232 and the tip 344 of the spring portion 340 define a first distance L1 therebetween.
- the shaft center of the rotational shaft 232 and the base 342 of the spring portion 340 define a second distance L2 therebetween.
- the shaft center of the rotational shaft 232 and a tip of any one of the teeth 332 of the pinion portion 330 define a third distance L3 therebetween.
- the first distance L1 is equal to or shorter than the second distance L2 (L1 ⁇ L2).
- the first distance L1 is equal to or shorter than the third distance L3 (L1 ⁇ L3).
- the tip 344 of the spring portion 340 is always hidden behind a part of the housing 200, i.e. the outer sidewall 224, when seen along the right-left direction. All these conditions about the tip 344 of the spring portion 340 are for protecting the tip 344 of the spring portion 340.
- the operation portion 310, the arm portions 320, the pinion portions 330, the plate-like members 334 and the spring portions 340 are integrally formed. Specifically, they are integrally molded using a resin (a second resin). This is for reducing the number of parts, simplifying manufacturing process and reducing manufacturing costs.
- the second resin may be same as or different from the first resin.
- the lever 300 is partly reduced in thickness to reduce weight thereof. Accordingly, the lever 300 has a lattice pattern on a surface thereof.
- the operation portion 310 is provided with a supporting portion 312 and a locked portion (a regulated portion) 314 supported by the supporting portion 312.
- the supporting portion 312 and the locked portion 314 are positioned in a middle of the operation portion 310 in the right-left direction.
- the locked portion 314 protrudes from a surface of the supporting portion 312 in a direction of the ends of the arm portions 320.
- the locked portion 314 is caught by the lock portion 234 provided to the housing 200.
- the lock portion 234 regulates the locked portion 314 to limit movement (turn), directed to the initial position, of the lever 300.
- the locked portion 314 is movable at least in the front-rear direction due to resilient deformation of the supporting portion 312 when the lever 300 is positioned in the mated position.
- the supporting portion 312 supports the locked portion 314 so that the locked portion 314 is movable at least in the front-rear direction when the lever 300 is positioned in the mated position.
- the lever 300 is allowed to turn (move) to the initial position.
- an end 316 of the supporting portion 312 functions as a releasing portion which releases the regulation of the regulated portion (the locked portion 314) by the regulating portion (the lock portion 234).
- each of the sliders 400 has an approximately rectangular-flat-plate shape when seen along the right-left direction.
- the slider 400 has an inner side surface oriented inward of the connector 30 in the right-left direction.
- the inner side surface of the slider 400 is formed with a plurality of cam grooves (force transmission portions) 420.
- the slider 400 is formed with two cam grooves 420. It should be noted that the cam grooves 420 may pierce the slider 400 in the right-left direction.
- the two cam grooves 420 correspond to the two camshafts 604 provided on any one of the side surfaces 602 of the mating housing 600 of the mating connector 50.
- the connector 30 of the present embodiment has two pairs of the cam grooves 420.
- the cam grooves 420 of each of the sliders 400 are arranged apart from each other in the front-rear direction.
- Each of the cam grooves 420 opens downward at one end (a lower end) thereof.
- the cam groove 420 extends upward from the one end, and then diagonally extends rearward and upward, and further extends rearward.
- the cam grooves 420 transmit up-down-direction force to the camshafts 604 of the mating connector 50 according to the front-rear-direction movement of the sliders 400 to move the mating connector 50 in the up-down direction against the connector 30.
- each of the sliders 400 further has a rack portion 410.
- the rack portion 410 has a plurality of teeth 412 arranged along the front-rear direction.
- the slider 400 further has a plate-like member 414 connecting the teeth 412 of the rack portion 410 to one another to reinforce the teeth 412.
- the plate-like member 414 is provided on an outer-side surface of the teeth 412 in the right-left direction.
- the rack portion 410 is formed in a vicinity of an upper-front end of the slider 400.
- the slider 400 is integrally formed with the rack portion 410 and the plate-like member 414.
- the slider 400 is integrally molded using a resin (a third resin). This is for reducing the number of parts, simplifying manufacturing process and reducing manufacturing costs.
- the third resin may be same as at least one of the first resin and the second resin or different from both of the first resin and the second resin.
- the sliders 400 (402, 404) are attached to the housing 200 to be movable between a front-end position shown in Fig. 11 and a rear-end position shown in Fig. 5 .
- One slider 402 and the other slider 404 are positioned to be identical with each other when seen along the right-left direction.
- the rack portions 410 of the sliders 400 engage with the pinion portions 330 of the lever 300, respectively.
- the rack portions 410 and the pinion portions 330 engage with each other so that the turn of the lever 300 is translated to the front-rear-direction movement of the sliders 400.
- the sliders 400 are positioned in the rear-end position when the lever 300 is positioned in the initial position.
- the sliders 400 are positioned in the front-end position when the lever 300 is positioned in the mated position. Accordingly, when the lever 300 turns from the initial position to the mated position, the sliders 400 are moved from the rear-end position to the front-end position in the front-rear direction. Inversely, when the lever 300 turns from the mated position to the initial position, the sliders 400 are moved from the front-end position to the rear-end position in the front-rear direction.
- the sliders 400 are always positioned in the slider accommodation portions 256 between the front-end position and the rear-end position. In other words, each of the sliders 400 is always hidden by a part of the housing 200, especially any one of the outer sidewalls 224, when seen along the right-left direction.
- each of the cam grooves 420 in a state that the lever 300 is in the initial position or that the sliders 400 are in the rear-end position, the lower end of each of the cam grooves 420 is positioned between two of the lower guide portions 244 which are adjacent to each other in the front-rear direction when seen along the up-down direction.
- the cam grooves 420 can receive the camshafts 604 of the mating connector 50.
- the connector 30 is in a mateable state that the connector 30 is mateable with the mating housing 600.
- the spring portions 340 When the lever 300 is turned toward the mated position from the initial position, the spring portions 340 are brought into abutment with the sliders 400 and resiliently deformed as understood from Fig. 11 . When the lever 300 is in the mated position, the spring portions 340 are in a state that they are resiliently deformed. Reaction force of the spring portions 340 works to move the lever 300 and the sliders 400 away from each other. In other words, the spring portions 340 apply, to the lever 300, force of a direction directed toward the initial position from the mated position.
- the locked portion 314 is pressed against the lock portion 234.
- the lever 300 is prevented from being rattled.
- the spring portions 340 function as the press mechanism which apply force to the lever 300 to press the regulated portion (the locked portion 314) against the regulating portion (the lock portion 234) when the lever 300 is in the mated state.
- the spring portions 340 apply downward force to the sliders 400 to press the sliders 400 against the lower guide portions 244. As a result, frictional force between the sliders 400 and the lower guide portions 244 is increased, and the sliders 400 are retained in the front-end position.
- the spring portions 340 also function as the retain mechanism which press the sliders 400 against the lower guide portions 244 to retain the sliders 400 in the front-end position when the lever 300 is in the mated state.
- the spring portions 340 may be provided to the sliders 400 though the spring portions 340 are provided to the lever 300 in the present embodiment.
- each of the spring portions 340 except for a part (a point of action) thereof must be positioned inward of an outer shape of the slider 400 to which the spring portion 340 is provided. Accordingly, providing the spring portion 340 to the slider 400 causes increasing the slider 400 in size. Therefore, it is preferable that the spring portions 340 are provided to the lever 300.
- the spring portions 340 have a cantilever structure.
- the present invention is not limited thereto.
- the spring portions 340 may have a double-supported beam structure.
- the spring portion 340 serves as both the press mechanism and the retain mechanism, and the press mechanism and the retain mechanism are unified.
- the press mechanism and the retain mechanism may be provided as distinct bodies separated from each other.
- each of the press mechanism and the retain mechanism may be provided to any one of the housing 200, the lever 300 and the slider 400.
- each of the press mechanism and the retain mechanism may not be something that uses large resilient deformation like the spring portion 340.
- each of the press mechanism and the retain mechanism may be a protrusion which can apply force to the lever 300 or the slider 400.
- a direction in which each of the press mechanism and the retain mechanism acts is not limited to the up-down direction but may be the right-left direction.
- the mating connector 50 is pushed downward in a direction away from the connector 30.
- the lever 300 reaches the initial position, the sliders 400 are moved to the rear-end position.
- the camshafts 604 reach the mating start position in the cam grooves 420.
- the contacts 100 and the mating contacts 500 are separated from each other.
- the mating connector 50 comes into a removable state (the mateable state) that the mating connector 50 is removable form the connector 30. Then, the connector 30 can be easily removed from the mating connector 50.
- the present invention is not limited thereto but susceptible of various modifications and alternative forms.
- the regulating portion (the lock portion 234) and the regulated portion (the locked portion 314) are provided to the rear wall 228 and the operation portion 310, respectively, in the aforementioned embodiment, the regulating portion may be provided on either the inner sidewall 222 or the outer sidewall 224 while the regulated portion may be provided to the arm portion 320.
- the regulating portion considering a balance of force applied to the lever 300, it is desirable that a plurality of the regulated portions is provided to the pair of the arm portions 320 to be arranged symmetrically. Accordingly, providing the regulated portions on the arm portions 320 complicates structure of the connector 30 and releasing operation thereof. Therefore, like the present embodiment, it is desirable to provide the regulated portion in the middle of the operation portion 310 in the right-left direction.
- the releasing portion (the end 316 of the supporting portion 312) is provided to the lever 300 in the aforementioned embodiment, the releasing portion may be provided to the housing 200.
- the regulated portion (the locked portion 314) may be directly provided to the operation portion 310 without being supported by the supporting portion 312, and the regulating portion (the lock portion 234) may be supported by the supporting portion to be provided to the rear wall 228.
- rotational shafts 232 are provided to the housing 200 while the shaft holes 322 and the guide grooves 324 are provided to the lever 300 in the aforementioned embodiment, the shaft holes 322 and the guide grooves 324 may be provided to the housing 200 while the rotational shafts (shafts) 232 may be provided to the lever 300. Also in this case, the guide grooves 324 guide the rotational shafts 232 into the shaft holes 322 when the lever 300 is attached to the housing 200.
- cam grooves 420 are provided to the connector 30 while the camshafts 604 are provided to the mating connector 50 in the aforementioned embodiment, the camshafts 604 may be provided to the connector 30 while the cam grooves 420 may be provided to the mating connector 50.
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- Details Of Connecting Devices For Male And Female Coupling (AREA)
Description
- This invention relates to a connector which is changeable, by turning a lever, between a mated state that the connector is mated with a mating connector and a removable state that the connector is removable from the mating connector.
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US 2014/134862 A1 discloses the preamble of claim 1 of the present application. - Referring to
Fig. 22 , aconnector assembly 90 disclosed inJPA 2015-122182 connector 900 and amating connector 950. Theconnector 900 has ahousing 910, acover 920, alever 930 andsliders 940. Thecover 920 is attached to thehousing 910. Thelever 930 is attached to thecover 920 to be rotatable within a predetermined range. Thesliders 940 are accommodated in thehousing 910 at least in part to be movable in a front-rear direction. Thelever 930 and thesliders 940 are combined with each other to be interlocked with each other. In detail, thelever 930 and thesliders 940 are combined so that turning thelever 930 in a rotational direction moves thesliders 940 in the front-rear direction. - As understood from
Fig. 22 , thesliders 940 are formed with a plurality of cam grooves 942 (one of them is shown inFig. 22 ). On the other hand, themating connector 950 is formed with a plurality of bosses 952 (three of them are shown inFig. 22 ). Thecam grooves 942 correspond to thebosses 952, respectively. In order to mate theconnector 900 with themating connector 950, thebosses 952 of themating connector 950 are inserted into thecam grooves 942 of thesliders 940. In such a state, turning thelever 930 in a predetermined direction along the rotational direction moves thesliders 940 in one of two directions along the front-rear direction and makes thecam grooves 942 move thebosses 952 upward. Accordingly, themating connector 950 is drawn toward theconnector 900 and mated with theconnector 900. Moreover, turning thelever 930 in an opposite direction opposite to the predetermined direction along the rotational direction moves thesliders 940 in the other direction along the front-rear direction and moves thebosses 952 downward. Accordingly, themating connector 950 is pushed in a direction away from theconnector 900 and becomes removable from theconnector 900. - In a connector used in a condition that it receives vibration, any part of the connector can be worn down by rubbing against neighboring parts thereof when the part is rattled by the vibration. The wear of the part causes malfunction of the connector, furthermore, causes malfunction of a product using the connector. Accordingly, it is necessary to prevent the part from being rattled. Patent Literature 1, however, shows nothing to prevent the part from being rattled.
- It is an object of the present invention to provide a connector which is provided with a mechanism for preventing a part from being rattled.
- The above mentioned object is achieved by the connector according to claim 1.
- In the connector according to the present invention, when the lever is in the mated position, the regulating portion regulates the regulated portion to limit movement of the lever for the initial position while the press mechanism presses the regulated portion against the regulating portion to prevent the lever from being rattled. Moreover, when the lever is in the mated position, the retain mechanism retains the slider in the front-end position to prevent the slider from being rattled.
- An appreciation of the objectives of the present invention and a more complete understanding of its structure may be had by studying the following description of the preferred embodiment and by referring to the accompanying drawings.
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Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a connector assembly according to a first embodiment of the present invention. A connector and a mating connector are not yet mated with each other. -
Fig. 2 is a side view showing the connector assembly ofFig. 1 . -
Fig. 3 is a bottom view showing the connector assembly ofFig. 1 . -
Fig. 4 is a bottom view showing the connector included in the connector assembly ofFig. 1 . -
Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the connector assembly ofFig. 3 , taken along A-A line. -
Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing the connector assembly ofFig. 3 , taken along B-B line. -
Fig. 7 is another perspective view showing the connector assembly according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The connector and the mating connector are in a mated state. -
Fig. 8 is a side view showing the connector assembly ofFig. 7 . -
Fig. 9 is a bottom view showing the connector assembly ofFig. 7 . -
Fig. 10 is a bottom view showing the connector included in the connector assembly ofFig. 7 . -
Fig. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing the connector assembly ofFig. 9 , taken along C-C line. -
Fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view showing the connector assembly ofFig. 9 , taken along D-D line. -
Fig. 13 is a perspective view showing a lever used in the connector included in the connector assembly ofFig. 1 . A longitudinal direction of arm portions coincides with a front-rear direction. Ends of the arm portions are directed forward. -
Fig. 14 is another perspective view showing the lever ofFig. 13 . -
Fig. 15 is a side view showing the lever ofFig. 13 . A part of the lever is enlarged to be shown. -
Fig. 16 is a front view showing the lever ofFig. 13 . -
Fig. 17 is a plan view showing the lever ofFig. 13 . -
Fig. 18 is a perspective view showing one of a pair of sliders used in the connector included in the connector assembly ofFig. 1 . The other slider is formed in a mirror symmetrical shape of the one. -
Fig. 19 is another perspective view showing the slider ofFig. 18 . -
Fig. 20 is a side view showing an outer side surface, oriented outward in a right-left direction, of the slider ofFig. 18 . -
Fig. 21 is a side view showing an inner side surface, oriented inward in the right-left direction, of the slider ofFig. 20 . -
Fig. 22 is a perspective view showing a connector assembly disclosed in Patent Literature 1. A connector and a mating connector are not yet mated with each other. - While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the drawings and will herein be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit the invention to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.
- Referring to
Figs. 1 ,2 ,5 to 8 ,11 and12 , aconnector assembly 10 according to a first embodiment of the present invention has aconnector 30 and amating connector 50. Theconnector 30 is mateable with and removable from themating connector 50 along an up-down direction. In the present embodiment, theconnector 30 is a socket connector while themating connector 50 is a pin connector. Moreover, in the present embodiment, the up-down direction is a Z-direction. A positive Z-direction is upward while a negative Z-direction is downward. - Referring to
Figs. 1 to 3 ,5 to 9 ,11 and12 , themating connector 50 has a plurality ofmating contacts 500 and amating housing 600 which holds themating contacts 500. As shown inFigs. 1 ,2 ,5 and11 , themating housing 600 is provided with a plurality of camshafts (force receiving portions) 604. As understood fromFigs. 1 ,2 ,5 and11 , in the present embodiment, themating housing 600 has twoside surfaces 602 positioned in a right-left direction. Each of the side surfaces 602 is provided with twocamshafts 604 which protrude outward therefrom in the right-left direction. The twocamshafts 604 provided on each of the side surfaces 602 are arranged apart from each other in a front-rear direction. One of thecamshafts 604 formed on one of the side surfaces 602 and one of thecamshafts 604 formed on the other of the side surfaces 602 make one pair. Themating housing 600 of the present embodiment has two pairs of thecamshafts 604. Thecamshafts 604 making one pair are identical with each other when seen along the right-left direction. In the present embodiment, the front-rear direction is an X-direction orthogonal to the up-down direction. A positive X-direction is forward while a negative X-direction is rearward. Moreover, in the present embodiment, the right-left direction is a Y-direction orthogonal to both of the up-down direction and the front-rear direction. - As understood from
Figs. 1 ,4 to 6 , and10 to 12 , theconnector 30 is provided with a plurality ofcontacts 100, ahousing 200, alever 300 and a pair of sliders 400 (402, 404). In addition, as described later, theconnector 30 is provided with a press mechanism and a retain mechanism (spring portions 340). - As shown in
Figs. 1 to 12 , thehousing 200 has ahousing body 210 and acover 270. As understood fromFigs. 1 ,2 ,4 to 6 ,10 and12 , thehousing body 210 has acontact holding portion 212 and awall portion 220. Thecontact holding portion 212 holds thecontacts 100. Thewall portion 220 surrounds a periphery of thecontact holding portion 212. As shown inFigs. 1 to 12 , thecover 270 is attached to an upper part of thehousing body 210 and opens frontward. As shown inFigs. 1 ,2 ,5 ,7 ,8 and11 , thecover 270 is provided withstoppers 272 which protrude outward therefrom in the right-left direction. - As understood from
Figs. 1 ,2 ,4 to 6 and10 to 12 , thecontact holding portion 212 of thehousing body 210 has an approximately rectangular-parallelepiped shape which is long in the front-rear direction. As shown inFigs. 1 ,4 ,6 ,10 and12 , thecontact holding portion 212 is provided with a plurality of holdingholes 214 which hold thecontacts 100, respectively. The holding holes 214 are arranged to correspond to arrangement of themating contacts 500 of themating connector 50. As shown inFigs. 6 and12 , the holdingholes 214 pierce thecontact holding portion 212 in the up-down direction. Thecontacts 100 held in the holdingholes 214 are connected with wirings (not shown), respectively. The wirings are routed out upward of thecontact holding portion 212 and led forward by thecover 270. - Referring to
Figs. 1 to 12 , thewall portion 220 of thehousing body 210 has a pair ofinner sidewalls 222, a pair ofouter sidewalls 224, afront wall 226 and arear wall 228. Theinner sidewalls 222 are located outward of thecontact holding portion 212 in the right-left direction. Theouter sidewalls 224 are located outward of theinner sidewalls 222 in the right-left direction. Each of theinner sidewalls 222 and theouter sidewall 224 adjacent thereto are disposed at a predetermined interval. Thefront wall 226 is positioned forward of thecontact holding portion 212 and connects theinner sidewalls 222 and theouter sidewalls 224 to one another at their front ends. Therear wall 228 is positioned rearward of thecontact holding portion 212 and connects theinner sidewalls 222 to each other at their rear ends. Moreover, as shown inFigs. 5 and11 , thehousing body 210 further hasupper guide portions 242 andlower guide portions 244. Each of theupper guide portions 242 and thelower guide portions 244 connects each of theinner sidewall 222 and theouter sidewall 224 adjacent thereto to each other. - As understood from
Figs. 6 and12 , each of thefront wall 226 and therear wall 228 is connected to thecontact holding portion 212 in an upper side upper than a middle of thecontact holding portion 212 in the up-down direction. Similarly, theinner sidewalls 222 are connected to thecontact holding portion 212. As understood fromFigs 1 ,4 ,6 and10 , a receivingportion 252 is formed between thecontact holding portion 212 and surrounding walls, i.e. theinner sidewalls 222, thefront wall 226 and therear wall 228, and is positioned below connecting parts between thecontact holding portion 212 and the surrounding walls. The receivingportion 252 receives amating housing 600 of themating connector 50 in part when theconnector 30 is mated with themating connector 50. - As understood from
Figs. 1 ,5 and11 , between each of theinner sidewalls 222 and theouter sidewall 224 adjacent thereto, alever accommodation portion 254 and aslider accommodation portion 256 are formed. Thelever accommodation portion 254 rotatably accommodates thelever 300 in part. Theslider accommodation portion 256 accommodates the slider 400 (402 or 404) in part to allow theslider 400 to be movable in the front-rear direction. Thelever accommodation portion 254 and theslider accommodation portion 256 communicate with each other in the up-down direction except for some parts. Theupper guide portions 242 partition thelever accommodation portion 254 from theslider accommodation portion 256 in part. Thelower guide portions 244 define a bottom of theslider accommodation portion 256. Theupper guide portions 242 and thelower guide portions 244 guide front-rear-direction movement of theslider 400 accommodated in theslider accommodation portion 256. Theinner sidewalls 222 are further provided withrotational shafts 232 protruding outward therefrom in the right-left direction. Therotational shafts 232 are positioned in thelever accommodation portions 254. As shown inFigs. 1 and12 , therear wall 228 is provided with a lock portion (a regulating portion) 234. Thelock portion 234 protrudes rearward from therear wall 228. - In the present embodiment, the
inner sidewalls 222, theouter sidewalls 224, thefront wall 226, therear wall 228, theupper guide portions 242 and thelower guide portions 244 are formed integrally with one another. Specifically, they are integrally molded using a resin (a first resin). This is for reducing the number of parts, simplifying manufacturing process and reducing manufacturing costs. Thewall portion 220 may be molded integrally with at least a part of thecontact holding portion 212 using common material. - As shown in
Figs. 1 to 4 , thelever 300 has anoperation portion 310 and a pair ofarm portions 320. Theoperation portion 310 extends in the right-left direction. Thearm portions 320 extend from both ends of theoperation portion 310 in a direction orthogonal to the right-left direction. As shown inFigs. 13 to 15 , each of thearm portions 320 is formed with ashaft hole 322 in a vicinity of an end of thearm portion 320. Theshaft hole 322 pierces thearm portion 320 in the right-left direction. Moreover, as shown inFigs. 13, 14 and17 , thearm portions 320 have inner surfaces facing each other in the right-left direction. Each of the inner surfaces of thearm portions 320 is formed with aguide groove 324 extending from an edge of thearm portion 320 to theshaft hole 322. Theguide grooves 324 extend in a direction orthogonal to an extending direction (a longitudinal direction) of thearm portions 320. In other words, theguide grooves 324 extend in the up-down direction when the longitudinal direction of thearm portions 320 coincides with the front-rear direction. Theguide grooves 324 guiderotational shafts 232 provided to thehousing 200 to the shaft holes 322 upon attaching thelever 300 to thehousing 200. The shaft holes 322 receive therotational shafts 232 so that thelever 300 is rotatably attached to thehousing 200. - As understood from
Figs. 1 ,2 ,5 to 12 , in a state that thelever 300 is attached to thehousing 200, thelever 300 is rotatable about therotational shafts 232. In detail, thelever 300 of the present embodiment is rotatable between an initial position shown inFigs. 1 ,2 ,5 and6 and a mated position shown inFigs. 7 to 12 . Thelever 300 is partly accommodated in thelever accommodation portions 254 in a state that thelever 300 is attached to thehousing 200. As understood fromFigs. 1 ,2 ,7 and8 , the ends of thearm portions 320 are always positioned in thelever accommodation portions 254. When thelever 300 is positioned in the mated position, a ratio of parts of thearm portions 320 that are accommodated in thelever accommodation portion 254 becomes maximum. Theoperation portion 310 is always positioned outside thelever accommodation portions 254. - As understood from
Figs. 1 ,2 and5 , when thelever 300 is positioned in the initial position, trying to turn thelever 300 in a direction away from the mated position makes thearm portions 320 be brought into abutment with thestoppers 272. Then, thelever 300 cannot be turned further. Moreover, as understood fromFig. 11 , when thelever 300 is positioned in the mated position, trying to turn thelever 300 in a direction away from the initial position makes thearm portions 320 be brought in to abutment with theupper guide portions 242. Then, thelever 300 cannot be turned further. - As understood from
Figs. 5 ,11 and13 to 17 , each of thearm portions 320 further has apinion portion 330. Thepinion portion 330 has a plurality ofteeth 332. Theteeth 332 are arranged to surround partly a periphery of theshaft hole 322 when seen along the right-left direction. Thearm portion 320 further has a plate-like member 334. The plate-like member 334 connects theteeth 332 of thepinion portion 330 to one another to reinforce theteeth 332. The plate-like member 334 is provided on one of side surfaces of thepinion portion 330. In other words, the plate-like members 334 of thearm portions 320 are located inward of two sets of theteeth 332 in the right-left direction. - As shown in
Figs. 2 ,5 ,11 , and13 to 15 , each of thearm portions 320 is provided with thespring portion 340. In the present embodiment, thespring portion 340 functions as both of the press mechanism and the retain mechanism. As shown inFig. 11 , when thelever 300 is positioned in the mated position, thelever 300 has a middle and a front end in the front-rear direction between which thespring portion 340 is positioned. In other words, thespring portion 340 is positioned between the middle and the front end of thelever 300 in the front-rear direction. In detail, when thelever 300 is positioned in the mated position, thespring portion 340 is positioned below thearm portion 320 and rearward of thepinion portion 330. Moreover, as shown inFigs. 13 and 14 , thespring portion 340 is positioned on a plane (an XZ plane) same as a plane on which thepinion portion 330 is located. As shown partially enlarged inFig. 15 , in a state that a longitudinal direction of thelever 300 coincides with the front-rear direction, thespring portion 340 diagonally extends frontward and downward from a base (a root or a start point) 342 thereof and then extends frontward to atip 344 thereof. As understood fromFigs. 11 and15 , a shaft center of therotational shaft 232 and thetip 344 of thespring portion 340 define a first distance L1 therebetween. The shaft center of therotational shaft 232 and thebase 342 of thespring portion 340 define a second distance L2 therebetween. The shaft center of therotational shaft 232 and a tip of any one of theteeth 332 of thepinion portion 330 define a third distance L3 therebetween. The first distance L1 is equal to or shorter than the second distance L2 (L1 ≤ L2). Moreover, the first distance L1 is equal to or shorter than the third distance L3 (L1 ≤ L3). In addition, as understood fromFigs. 2 and8 , thetip 344 of thespring portion 340 is always hidden behind a part of thehousing 200, i.e. theouter sidewall 224, when seen along the right-left direction. All these conditions about thetip 344 of thespring portion 340 are for protecting thetip 344 of thespring portion 340. - In the present embodiment, the
operation portion 310, thearm portions 320, thepinion portions 330, the plate-like members 334 and thespring portions 340 are integrally formed. Specifically, they are integrally molded using a resin (a second resin). This is for reducing the number of parts, simplifying manufacturing process and reducing manufacturing costs. The second resin may be same as or different from the first resin. In the present embodiment, thelever 300 is partly reduced in thickness to reduce weight thereof. Accordingly, thelever 300 has a lattice pattern on a surface thereof. - As shown in
Figs. 6 ,10 ,12 ,14 ,16 and17 , theoperation portion 310 is provided with a supportingportion 312 and a locked portion (a regulated portion) 314 supported by the supportingportion 312. The supportingportion 312 and the lockedportion 314 are positioned in a middle of theoperation portion 310 in the right-left direction. The lockedportion 314 protrudes from a surface of the supportingportion 312 in a direction of the ends of thearm portions 320. As shown inFig. 12 , when thelever 300 is positioned in the mated position, the lockedportion 314 is caught by thelock portion 234 provided to thehousing 200. Accordingly, thelock portion 234 regulates the lockedportion 314 to limit movement (turn), directed to the initial position, of thelever 300. As understood fromFig. 12 , the lockedportion 314 is movable at least in the front-rear direction due to resilient deformation of the supportingportion 312 when thelever 300 is positioned in the mated position. In other words, the supportingportion 312 supports the lockedportion 314 so that the lockedportion 314 is movable at least in the front-rear direction when thelever 300 is positioned in the mated position. Accordingly, when regulation of the lockedportion 314 by thelock portion 234 is released by operating the supportingportion 312, thelever 300 is allowed to turn (move) to the initial position. At this time, anend 316 of the supportingportion 312 functions as a releasing portion which releases the regulation of the regulated portion (the locked portion 314) by the regulating portion (the lock portion 234). - As shown in
Figs. 5 ,11 , and18 to 21 , each of thesliders 400 has an approximately rectangular-flat-plate shape when seen along the right-left direction. Theslider 400 has an inner side surface oriented inward of theconnector 30 in the right-left direction. The inner side surface of theslider 400 is formed with a plurality of cam grooves (force transmission portions) 420. In the present embodiment, theslider 400 is formed with twocam grooves 420. It should be noted that thecam grooves 420 may pierce theslider 400 in the right-left direction. The twocam grooves 420 correspond to the twocamshafts 604 provided on any one of the side surfaces 602 of themating housing 600 of themating connector 50. One of thecam grooves 420 of oneslider 402 and one of thecam grooves 420 of theother slider 404 form one pair. Theconnector 30 of the present embodiment has two pairs of thecam grooves 420. Thecam grooves 420 of each of thesliders 400 are arranged apart from each other in the front-rear direction. Each of thecam grooves 420 opens downward at one end (a lower end) thereof. Thecam groove 420 extends upward from the one end, and then diagonally extends rearward and upward, and further extends rearward. As described later, thecam grooves 420 transmit up-down-direction force to thecamshafts 604 of themating connector 50 according to the front-rear-direction movement of thesliders 400 to move themating connector 50 in the up-down direction against theconnector 30. - As shown in
Figs. 5 ,11 ,19 and21 , each of thesliders 400 further has arack portion 410. Therack portion 410 has a plurality ofteeth 412 arranged along the front-rear direction. Theslider 400 further has a plate-like member 414 connecting theteeth 412 of therack portion 410 to one another to reinforce theteeth 412. The plate-like member 414 is provided on an outer-side surface of theteeth 412 in the right-left direction. Therack portion 410 is formed in a vicinity of an upper-front end of theslider 400. In the present embodiment, theslider 400 is integrally formed with therack portion 410 and the plate-like member 414. Specifically, theslider 400 is integrally molded using a resin (a third resin). This is for reducing the number of parts, simplifying manufacturing process and reducing manufacturing costs. In addition, the third resin may be same as at least one of the first resin and the second resin or different from both of the first resin and the second resin. - As understood from
Figs. 5 and11 , the sliders 400 (402, 404) are attached to thehousing 200 to be movable between a front-end position shown inFig. 11 and a rear-end position shown inFig. 5 . Oneslider 402 and theother slider 404 are positioned to be identical with each other when seen along the right-left direction. Moreover, therack portions 410 of thesliders 400 engage with thepinion portions 330 of thelever 300, respectively. Therack portions 410 and thepinion portions 330 engage with each other so that the turn of thelever 300 is translated to the front-rear-direction movement of thesliders 400. Thesliders 400 are positioned in the rear-end position when thelever 300 is positioned in the initial position. On the other hand, thesliders 400 are positioned in the front-end position when thelever 300 is positioned in the mated position. Accordingly, when thelever 300 turns from the initial position to the mated position, thesliders 400 are moved from the rear-end position to the front-end position in the front-rear direction. Inversely, when thelever 300 turns from the mated position to the initial position, thesliders 400 are moved from the front-end position to the rear-end position in the front-rear direction. Thesliders 400 are always positioned in theslider accommodation portions 256 between the front-end position and the rear-end position. In other words, each of thesliders 400 is always hidden by a part of thehousing 200, especially any one of theouter sidewalls 224, when seen along the right-left direction. - As shown in
Figs 4 and5 , in a state that thelever 300 is in the initial position or that thesliders 400 are in the rear-end position, the lower end of each of thecam grooves 420 is positioned between two of thelower guide portions 244 which are adjacent to each other in the front-rear direction when seen along the up-down direction. In the state, thecam grooves 420 can receive thecamshafts 604 of themating connector 50. In other words, theconnector 30 is in a mateable state that theconnector 30 is mateable with themating housing 600. As understood fromFig. 5 , when themating housing 600 of themating connector 50 is inserted partly into the receivingportion 252 of theconnector 30 which is in the mateable state, thecamshafts 604 of themating connector 50 go into thecam grooves 420. Then, thecamshafts 604 of themating connector 50 are brought into contact withupper walls 422 of thecam grooves 420 and stop at a mating start position. - As understood from
Figs. 5 and11 , when thecamshafts 604 of themating connector 50 are positioned in the mating start position of thecam grooves 420, turning thelever 300 from the initial position to the mated position allows thesliders 400 to be moved from the rear-end position to the front-end position according to the turn of thelever 300. According to forward movement of thesliders 400,lower walls 424 of thecam grooves 420 push thecamshafts 604 diagonally upward. Since themating housing 600 of themating connector 50 is partly received by the receivingportion 252 of theconnector 30, neither themating connector 50 nor thecamshafts 604 can be moved forward. Consequently, thecamshafts 604 pushed by thelower walls 424 of thecam grooves 420 are moved upward. In other words, upward force is transmitted from thecam grooves 420 to thecamshafts 604. When thecamshafts 604 receive the upward force from thecam grooves 420, themating connector 50 is pulled up toward theconnector 30. When thelever 300 reaches the mated position, thesliders 400 are moved to the front-end position. When thesliders 400 reach the front-end position, thecamshafts 604 reach the mated position in thecam grooves 420 so that theconnector 30 and themating connector 50 come into a mated state. At this time, as shown inFig. 12 , thecontacts 100 and themating contacts 500 come into contact with one another to be electrically connected to one another. - When the
lever 300 is turned toward the mated position from the initial position, thespring portions 340 are brought into abutment with thesliders 400 and resiliently deformed as understood fromFig. 11 . When thelever 300 is in the mated position, thespring portions 340 are in a state that they are resiliently deformed. Reaction force of thespring portions 340 works to move thelever 300 and thesliders 400 away from each other. In other words, thespring portions 340 apply, to thelever 300, force of a direction directed toward the initial position from the mated position. - Consequently, as understood from
Fig. 12 , the lockedportion 314 is pressed against thelock portion 234. As a result, thelever 300 is prevented from being rattled. Thus, in the present embodiment, thespring portions 340 function as the press mechanism which apply force to thelever 300 to press the regulated portion (the locked portion 314) against the regulating portion (the lock portion 234) when thelever 300 is in the mated state. - Moreover, as understood from
Fig. 11 , thespring portions 340 apply downward force to thesliders 400 to press thesliders 400 against thelower guide portions 244. As a result, frictional force between thesliders 400 and thelower guide portions 244 is increased, and thesliders 400 are retained in the front-end position. Thus, in the present embodiment, thespring portions 340 also function as the retain mechanism which press thesliders 400 against thelower guide portions 244 to retain thesliders 400 in the front-end position when thelever 300 is in the mated state. - It should be noted that the
spring portions 340 may be provided to thesliders 400 though thespring portions 340 are provided to thelever 300 in the present embodiment. However, considering the front-rear-direction movement of thesliders 400, each of thespring portions 340 except for a part (a point of action) thereof must be positioned inward of an outer shape of theslider 400 to which thespring portion 340 is provided. Accordingly, providing thespring portion 340 to theslider 400 causes increasing theslider 400 in size. Therefore, it is preferable that thespring portions 340 are provided to thelever 300. In the present embodiment, thespring portions 340 have a cantilever structure. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, thespring portions 340 may have a double-supported beam structure. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, thespring portion 340 serves as both the press mechanism and the retain mechanism, and the press mechanism and the retain mechanism are unified. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. The press mechanism and the retain mechanism may be provided as distinct bodies separated from each other. In such a case, each of the press mechanism and the retain mechanism may be provided to any one of thehousing 200, thelever 300 and theslider 400. Moreover, each of the press mechanism and the retain mechanism may not be something that uses large resilient deformation like thespring portion 340. For example, each of the press mechanism and the retain mechanism may be a protrusion which can apply force to thelever 300 or theslider 400. In such a case, a direction in which each of the press mechanism and the retain mechanism acts is not limited to the up-down direction but may be the right-left direction. - When the
connector 30 and themating connector 50 are in the mated state that theconnector 30 and themating connector 50 are mated with each other, as understood fromFigs. 11 and5 , turning thelever 300 toward the initial position from the mated position moves thesliders 400 rearward toward the rear-end position from the front-end position. As thesliders 400 are moved rearward, theupper walls 422 of thecam grooves 420 push thecamshafts 604 diagonally downward. Since themating connector 50 cannot be also moved rearward in this time, thecamshafts 604 pushed by theupper walls 422 of thecam grooves 420 are moved downward. In other words, downward force is transmitted from thecam grooves 420 to thecamshafts 604. Hence, themating connector 50 is pushed downward in a direction away from theconnector 30. When thelever 300 reaches the initial position, thesliders 400 are moved to the rear-end position. When thesliders 400 reach the rear-end position, thecamshafts 604 reach the mating start position in thecam grooves 420. At this time, thecontacts 100 and themating contacts 500 are separated from each other. Thus, themating connector 50 comes into a removable state (the mateable state) that themating connector 50 is removable form theconnector 30. Then, theconnector 30 can be easily removed from themating connector 50. - Although the specific explanation about the present invention is made above referring to the embodiments, the present invention is not limited thereto but susceptible of various modifications and alternative forms. For example, though the regulating portion (the lock portion 234) and the regulated portion (the locked portion 314) are provided to the
rear wall 228 and theoperation portion 310, respectively, in the aforementioned embodiment, the regulating portion may be provided on either theinner sidewall 222 or theouter sidewall 224 while the regulated portion may be provided to thearm portion 320. However, in such a case, considering a balance of force applied to thelever 300, it is desirable that a plurality of the regulated portions is provided to the pair of thearm portions 320 to be arranged symmetrically. Accordingly, providing the regulated portions on thearm portions 320 complicates structure of theconnector 30 and releasing operation thereof. Therefore, like the present embodiment, it is desirable to provide the regulated portion in the middle of theoperation portion 310 in the right-left direction. - Although the releasing portion (the
end 316 of the supporting portion 312) is provided to thelever 300 in the aforementioned embodiment, the releasing portion may be provided to thehousing 200. In such a case, the regulated portion (the locked portion 314) may be directly provided to theoperation portion 310 without being supported by the supportingportion 312, and the regulating portion (the lock portion 234) may be supported by the supporting portion to be provided to therear wall 228. - Furthermore, though
rotational shafts 232 are provided to thehousing 200 while the shaft holes 322 and theguide grooves 324 are provided to thelever 300 in the aforementioned embodiment, the shaft holes 322 and theguide grooves 324 may be provided to thehousing 200 while the rotational shafts (shafts) 232 may be provided to thelever 300. Also in this case, theguide grooves 324 guide therotational shafts 232 into the shaft holes 322 when thelever 300 is attached to thehousing 200. - In addition, though the
cam grooves 420 are provided to theconnector 30 while thecamshafts 604 are provided to themating connector 50 in the aforementioned embodiment, thecamshafts 604 may be provided to theconnector 30 while thecam grooves 420 may be provided to themating connector 50.
Claims (13)
- A connector (30) configured to be mated with and to be removed from a mating connector (50) in an up-down direction (Z), wherein:the mating connector (50) comprises a plurality of camshafts (604);the connector (30) comprises a housing (200), a lever (300), a slider (400), a press mechanism, and a retain mechanism;the housing (200) is provided with a regulating portion (234);the lever (300) is attached to the housing (200) to be rotatable between an initial position and a mated position;the lever (300) is provided with a regulated portion (314);the slider (400) is attached to the housing (200) to be movable between a front end position and a rear end position in a front-rear direction (X) orthogonal to the up-down direction (Z);the lever (300) has a pinion portion (330) having a plurality of teeth (332);the slider (400) has a plurality of cam grooves (420) and a rack portion (410) having a plurality of teeth (412);the pinion portion (330) and the rack portion (410) translate turn of the lever (300) into front-rear-direction (X) movement of the slider (400) by engaging with each other;according to the front-rear-direction (X) movement of the slider (400), the cam grooves (420) transmit up-down-direction (Z)force to the camshafts (604) of the mating connector (50) to move relatively the mating connector (50) against the connector (30) in the up-down direction (Z);when the lever (300) turns from the initial position to the mated position, the slider (400) is moved from the rear end position to the front end position in the front-rear direction (X);when the slider (400) is moved from the rear end position to the front end position, the connector (30) comes into a mated state that the connector (30) is mated with the mating connector (50);when the lever (300) turns from the mated position to the initial position, the slider (400) is moved from the front end position to the rear end position in the front-rear direction (X);when the slider (400) is moved from the front end position to the rear end position, the connector (30) comes into a removable state that the connector (30) is removable from the mating connector (50);when the lever (300) is in the mated position, the regulating portion (234) regulates the regulated portion (314) to limit movement of the lever (300) toward the initial position; andwhen the lever (300) is in the mated position, the retain mechanism retains the slider (400) in the front end position, characterized in thatwhen the lever (300) is in the mated position, the press mechanism applies a force to the lever (300) in a direction directed towards the initial position from the mated position to press the regulated portion (314) against the regulating portion (234).
- The connector (30) as recited in claim 1, wherein:the press mechanism and retain mechanism are formed integrally with each other;the housing (200) is provided with an upper guide portion (242) and a lower guide portion (244) which guide movement of the slider (400);when the lever (300) is in the mated position, the retain mechanism presses the slider (400) against the lower guide portion (244) to retain the slider (400) in the front end position.
- The connector (30) as recited in claim 2, wherein:the press mechanism and the retain mechanism are provided as a spring portion (340); andthe spring portion (340) is formed on either the slider (400) or the lever (300).
- The connector (30) as recited in claim 3, wherein the spring portion (340) is formed on the lever (300).
- The connector (30) as recited in claim 4, wherein:the lever (300) turns around a shaft (232);the shaft (232) has a shaft center;the spring portion (340) has a tip (344) and a base (342);the shaft center of the shaft (232) and the tip (344) of the spring portion (340) define a first distance (L1) therebetween;the shaft center of the shaft (232) and the base (342) of the spring portion (340) define a second distance (L2) therebetween; andthe first distance (L1) is equal to or shorter than the second distance (L2).
- The connector (30) as recited in claim 5, wherein:the teeth (332) of the pinion portion (330) have tips;the shaft center of the shaft (232) and each of the tips of the teeth (332) of the pinion portion (330) define a third distance (L3) therebetween; andthe first distance (L1) is equal to or shorter than the third distance (L3).
- The connector (30) as recited in claim 5 or 6, wherein:when seen along a right-left direction (Y) orthogonal to both of the up-down direction (Z) and the front-rear direction (X), the tip of the spring portion (340) is always hidden behind a part of the housing (200).
- The connector (30) as recited in any one of claims 4 to 7, wherein the pinion portion (330) is positioned on a plane same (XZ) as a plane on that the spring portion (340) is located.
- The connector (30) as recited in any one of claims 4 to 8, wherein the spring portion (340) is formed integrally with the lever (300).
- The connector (30) as recited in any one of claims 1 to 9; wherein:when the lever (300) is in the mated position, the lever (300) has a middle and a front end in the front-rear direction (X) between which the retain mechanism is positioned.
- The connector (30) as recited in any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein:the lever (300) is provided with a supporting portion (312) which supports the regulated portion (314) and an end (316) of the supporting portion functions as a releasing portion which releases regulation of the regulated portion (314) caused by the regulating portion (234); andthe releasing portion is positioned in a middle of the lever (300) in a right-left direction (Y) orthogonal to both of the up-down direction (Z) and the front-rear direction (X).
- The connector (30) as recited in any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein:the connector (30) has a pair of the sliders (400), andthe pair of the sliders (400) has two pairs of the cam grooves (420).
- The connector (30) as recited in any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein:the housing (200) has a housing body (210) and a cover (270); andthe lever (300) and the slider (400) are attached to the housing body.
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
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JP2016080120A JP6634332B2 (en) | 2016-04-13 | 2016-04-13 | connector |
Publications (2)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP3232518A1 EP3232518A1 (en) | 2017-10-18 |
EP3232518B1 true EP3232518B1 (en) | 2018-12-12 |
Family
ID=58266401
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP17159798.2A Active EP3232518B1 (en) | 2016-04-13 | 2017-03-08 | Electrical connector |
Country Status (2)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (1) | EP3232518B1 (en) |
JP (1) | JP6634332B2 (en) |
Families Citing this family (5)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
DE102018009478A1 (en) * | 2018-12-04 | 2020-06-04 | Kostal Kontakt Systeme Gmbh | Connector arrangement |
JP7022351B2 (en) * | 2019-01-10 | 2022-02-18 | 株式会社オートネットワーク技術研究所 | Connector with booster mechanism |
JP7456397B2 (en) | 2021-02-10 | 2024-03-27 | 住友電装株式会社 | connector |
JP7498434B2 (en) | 2021-05-25 | 2024-06-12 | 住友電装株式会社 | connector |
JP2023151999A (en) * | 2022-04-01 | 2023-10-16 | 株式会社オートネットワーク技術研究所 | lever type connector |
Family Cites Families (8)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
ITTO20010290A1 (en) * | 2001-03-27 | 2002-09-27 | Framatome Connectors Italia | ELECTRIC CONNECTOR. |
ITTO20050089A1 (en) * | 2005-02-16 | 2006-08-17 | Fci Italia S P A | ELECTRIC CONNECTOR |
JP2006331991A (en) * | 2005-05-30 | 2006-12-07 | Tyco Electronics Amp Kk | Lever-type connector |
JP4405564B2 (en) * | 2008-04-21 | 2010-01-27 | タイコエレクトロニクスジャパン合同会社 | Lever type connector |
JP5392197B2 (en) * | 2010-07-05 | 2014-01-22 | 住友電装株式会社 | connector |
JP5846105B2 (en) * | 2012-11-13 | 2016-01-20 | 住友電装株式会社 | Lever type connector |
JP6381904B2 (en) | 2013-12-24 | 2018-08-29 | タイコエレクトロニクスジャパン合同会社 | Lever type electrical connector |
JP6115521B2 (en) * | 2014-06-19 | 2017-04-19 | 住友電装株式会社 | Lever type connector |
-
2016
- 2016-04-13 JP JP2016080120A patent/JP6634332B2/en active Active
-
2017
- 2017-03-08 EP EP17159798.2A patent/EP3232518B1/en active Active
Non-Patent Citations (1)
Title |
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None * |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
JP2017191704A (en) | 2017-10-19 |
EP3232518A1 (en) | 2017-10-18 |
JP6634332B2 (en) | 2020-01-22 |
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