JP2002093539A - Connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a connector wherein an FPC can be surely pinched by a block and a housing and wherein a stable connection is obtained without making the connector larger or incuring cost-up. SOLUTION: A lock member 20 having a locking part 44 in a free end side as a coupling means to couple the block 12 wherein a contact 14 to contact with an FPC 18 mounted with an IC chip 42 is retained and fixed, and a housing 16 to pinch the FPC 18 together with the block 12 is mounted on the block 12, and an engaging part 30 to engage with the engaging part 44 is installed at a position corresponding to a mounting position of the lock member 20 to the housing 16, and by the fact that the engaging part 44 of the lock member 20 is engaged with the engaging part 30 of the housing 16, the FPC 18 is pinched and retained/fixed by the block 12 and the housing 16, thereby the connection can be achieved.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector used for a CCD camera or the like, and more particularly to a flexible printed circuit board (hereinafter referred to as "FP") comprising a block and a housing.
C ").

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A connector used for a CCD camera or the like is mainly composed of a block, a housing, and contacts, and generally has a structure in which an FPC is held between the block and the housing. There are various methods for holding the block and the housing. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the block 62 is provided with hook portions 68 on two surfaces on which the contacts 14 are not arranged, and the hook portions 68 are provided with locking holes 70. The housing 66 has a projection 72 at a position corresponding to the locking hole 70. The FPC 18 on which the IC chip 42 is mounted is placed on the block 62, the housing 66 is overlaid thereon, and the locking hole 70 of the hook 68 of the block 62 is engaged with the projection 72 of the housing 66. By that, F
The PC 18 is held and fixed between the block 62 and the housing 66. In addition to this method, a method of clamping the block and the housing using a screw, an adhesive, or a crimp having spring properties is considered.

[0003]

In the above-mentioned hook structure, the locking hole 70 of the hook 68 of the block 62 and the projection 72 of the housing 66 generally have a length of 0.05.
It is manufactured with a clearance of about 0.2 mm. Because of such clearance, play occurs, and when the FPC 18 is sandwiched and fixed between the block 62 and the housing 66, the land 42 of the FPC 18 cannot be pressed against the contact portion 36 of the contact 14, and the contact pressure is reduced. There was a problem to be solved such as unstable connection. Other pinching methods have the following problems. With a screw or a contact agent, it takes time and effort to pinch it, which leads to an increase in man-hours and, consequently, an increase in cost.
In the case of the clamp, it becomes a separate part, which requires a large number of man-hours for management, leading to an increase in cost and an increase in the size of the connector.

[0004] The present invention has been made in view of such a conventional problem, and does not increase the size of the connector and does not lead to an increase in cost, and reliably sandwiches the FPC between the block and the housing. It is an object of the present invention to provide a connector capable of achieving a stable connection.

[0005]

The object of the present invention is to provide a connector 10 for holding and fixing an FPC 18 having an IC chip 42 mounted thereon, the contact portion 36 contacting the FPC 18 and the fixing portion fixed to the block 12. A contact 14 comprising a connecting portion 38 connected to the substrate;
4 is held and fixed, and the FPC 18
The connector 10 comprises a housing 16 for holding the housing 16 with the block 12 and a connecting means for connecting the housing 16 and the block 12. The lock having a locking portion 44 on a free end side as the connecting means. Member 20
Is mounted on the block 12, and the housing 16 is provided with an engaging portion 30 that engages with the locking portion 44 at a position corresponding to the mounting position of the lock member 20.
The block 12 and the housing 16 allow the FPC to engage with the engagement portion 30 of the housing 16 so that the FPC
18 can be achieved by holding, fixing, and holding. Further, an inclined portion 46 is provided in the locking portion 44 of the lock member 20, and the housing 16 is securely connected to the block 1 when the housing 16 is mounted on the block 12 by the inclined portion 46.
Press to the two sides. The lock member 20
Is made substantially U-shaped so that the lock member 20 has elasticity. By providing elasticity, the lock member 20 can be easily formed.
Can be engaged with the engagement portion 30 of the housing 16.

[0006]

The locking portion 44 of the lock member 20 has an inclined portion 46.
When the locking portion 44 of the lock member 20 fixed to the block 12 is engaged with the engagement portion 30 of the housing 16,
A force for pressing the housing 16 downward acts on the inclined portion 46, and when the housing 16 is mounted on the block 12, the housing 16 can be reliably pressed toward the block 12.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A connector according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an FPC on which the connector of the present invention and an IC chip are mounted, and FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view of the connector of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the lock member of the present invention. The connector 10 of the present invention mainly includes a block 12, a housing 16, a lock member 20, and a contact 14.

First, the lock member 20, which is the point of the present invention, will be described. The lock member 20 is made of metal, and is manufactured by a known press working.
Since the material of the lock member 20 is required to have a spring property or the like, brass, beryllium copper, phosphor bronze, or the like can be used. The lock member 20 has a substantially U-shape as shown in FIG. 3, and a locking portion 44 that engages with the housing 16 is provided on the free end side. As the shape of the locking portion 44, the engaging portion 3 of the housing 16 is used.
Anything that can be engaged with the block 0
The design is appropriately made in consideration of the holding force between the housing 2 and the housing 16 and the pressing force of the housing 16. In this embodiment, the housing 16 has a curved shape, and an inclined portion 46 is provided at a portion of the housing 16 that engages with the engaging portion 30. A force for pressing the housing 16 toward the block 12 is exerted by the inclined portion 46 and the spring property. A fixing portion 50 for fixing the lock member 20 to the block 12 protrudes inward at a substantially central portion of the U-shape, and is press-fitted into the fixing groove 24 of the block 12 near its distal end. A part 48 is provided. Two lock members 20 are mounted on both sides of the block 12 where the contacts 14 are not arranged. Although the lock member 20 has a U-shape as described above, any shape may be used as long as the above-mentioned role can be satisfied. For example, a V-shape or a J-shape obtained by dividing the U-shape into two is conceivable. The size of the lock member 20 is appropriately designed in consideration of the thickness of the block 12, the thickness of the engagement portion 30 of the housing 16, and the spring property of the lock member 20 itself.

Next, the block 12 will be described. The block 12 is an electrically insulating plastic and is manufactured by injection molding of a known technique. The material is appropriately selected in consideration of dimensional stability, workability, cost, and the like. In general, the material is generally polybutylene terephthalate. (PBT)
And polyamide (66PA, 46PA), liquid crystal polymer (LCP), polycarbonate (PC), and synthetic materials thereof. The block 12 is a substantially plate-like piece, and a mounting groove 26 into which an IC chip 42 is inserted is provided at a substantially central portion. The size of the mounting groove 26 may be any size as long as the IC chip 42 can be inserted, and is about 0.1 to 0.3 mm larger than the IC chip 42. Further, two opposing side surfaces of the block 12 are provided with insertion grooves 34 for fixing a required number of contacts 14, and the two side surfaces where the insertion grooves 34 of the contacts 14 are not provided are formed with protrusions 22. Is provided. The protrusion 22 has a fixing groove 2 to which the lock member 20 is fixed.
4 are provided. Although not shown, at least two or more positioning pins may be provided so as to project in the same direction as the projecting direction of the lock member 20 for positioning the housing 16 and the FPC 18. When the positioning pins are provided in this manner, the housing 16 and the F
The PC 18 needs to be provided with holes or grooves at positions corresponding to the positioning pins.

Next, the housing 16 will be described.
The housing 16 is an electrically insulating plastic and is manufactured by injection molding of a known technique. The material is appropriately selected in consideration of dimensional stability, workability, cost, and the like. In general, the material is generally polybutylene terephthalate. (P
BT), polyamide (66PA, 46PA), liquid crystal polymer (LCP), polycarbonate (PC), and synthetic materials thereof. The housing 16 has a substantially plate-like shape, and a fitting port 32 penetrating in the thickness direction is provided at the center. When the connector 10 is used in a CCD camera or the like, a lens may be mounted from the fitting port 32. The housing 16
A pressing portion 28 is provided at a position corresponding to the contact portion of the contact 14 fixed to the block 12, and the pressing portion 28 presses the FPC 18 against the contact 14 when the FPC 18 is sandwiched between the block 12 and the housing 16. It is. The housing 16 is provided with an engagement portion 30 at a position corresponding to the lock member 20 fixed to the block 12. The engaging portion 30 may have any shape as long as the engaging portion 44 of the lock member 20 can be engaged. In this embodiment, only a part of the pressing portion 28 provided on the entire circumference of the housing 16 is removed. Alternatively, a hole may be provided at a position corresponding to the lock member 20.

Next, the contact 14 will be described.
The contact 14 is made of metal, and is manufactured by a known press working. Since the material of the contact 14 is required to be conductive, springy, and the like, beryllium copper, phosphor bronze, and the like can be used. The contact 14 mainly includes a contact portion 36 that comes into contact with the land 40 of the FPC 18, a fixed portion that is fixed and held by the block 12, and a connection portion 38 that is connected to a substrate or the like. The contact 14 is fixed to the insertion groove 34 of the block 12 by press fitting. Contact portion 36 of contact 14
Is provided so as to slightly protrude from the surface of the block 12 on the side in contact with the housing 16. In this embodiment, the connecting portion is of the SMT type, but may be of the dip type.

Finally, an FPC on which the IC chip 42 is mounted
The method of holding 18 will be described. First, IC chip 4
2 is mounted on the land 40 of the FPC 18.
And the contact portion 36 of the contact 14 is put on a predetermined position of the block 12 so as to match. At this time, if the positioning pins as described above are provided, positioning can be easily performed. Next, the housing 16 is placed on the FPC 18 disposed on the block 12 as described above so that the land 40 of the FPC 18 and the pressing portion 28 of the housing 16 coincide with each other. Engagement of the block 30 with the housing 16
Thus, the FPC 18 can be held.

[0013]

As is clear from the above description, according to the connector of the present invention, the following excellent effects can be obtained. (1) Since the lock member 20 is used to hold the FPC 18 between the block 12 and the housing 16, the block 12 and the housing 16 can be easily engaged. (2) Since the locking portion 44 of the lock member 20 is provided with the inclined portion 46, the housing 16 can be pressed toward the block 12, and the pressing portion 28 of the housing 16 reliably presses the FPC 18. Since the land 40 of the FPC 18 can be pressed against the contact portion 36 of the contact 14, a constant contact pressure can be obtained and a stable connection can be obtained. (3) Since the locking portion 44 of the lock member 20 is provided with the inclined portion 46, the lock member 2 fixed to the block 12
When the engaging portion 44 of the housing 16 is engaged with the engaging portion 30 of the housing 16, a force for pressing the housing 16 downwardly by the inclined portion 46 acts, and when the housing 16 is mounted on the block 12, the housing 16 is securely inserted. Can be pressed to the block 12 side. (4) Since the lock member 20 is used for holding the block 12 and the housing 16, it is easy to hold, does not require labor, does not increase the cost, and does not increase the cost of the connector 10.
There is no need to enlarge itself. (5) For example, when the connector 10 is used in a CCD camera or the like, a lens may be attached from the fitting port 32, but the locking portion 44 of the lock member 20 is provided with an inclined portion 46. Since the housing 16 is pressed, the housing 16 can be pressed toward the block 12, so that the lens is not displaced, and no defocus or the like occurs.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 shows an F mounted with a connector and an IC chip of the present invention.
It is a perspective view of PC.

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view of the connector of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a lock member of the present invention.

FIG. 4 shows a conventional FP on which a connector and an IC chip are mounted.
It is a perspective view of C.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10, 60 Connector 12, 62 Block 14 Contact 16, 66 Housing 18 FPC 20 Lock member 22 Projection 24 Fixing groove 26 Mounting groove 28 Pressing part 30 Engaging part 32 Fitting entrance 34 Inserting groove 36 Contact part 38 Connection part 40 Land 42 IC chip 44 Locking portion 46 Inclined portion 48 Press-fit portion 50 Fixing portion 68 Hook portion 70 Locking hole 72 Projection

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A connector for holding and fixing a flexible printed circuit board (FPC) on which an IC chip is mounted, comprising: a contact portion that contacts the FPC; a fixing portion fixed to a block; and a connection portion connected to the substrate. A connector comprising: a contact comprising: a contact holding and fixing the contact; a housing for holding the FPC between the block; and connecting means for connecting the housing and the block. As a means, a lock member having a locking portion on a free end side is mounted on the block, and the housing is provided with an engaging portion for engaging with the locking portion at a position corresponding to a mounting position of the locking member, The FPC is sandwiched and held and fixed between the block and the housing by engaging the locking portion of the lock member with the engaging portion of the housing. And connectors. 2. The locking device according to claim 1, wherein the locking portion of the locking member has an inclined portion, and the inclined portion securely presses the housing toward the block when the housing is mounted on the block. The connector described. 3. The lock member according to claim 2, wherein the lock member has a substantially U shape, and the lock member has elasticity.
The connector described.