JP2002110272A - Plug connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To excellently protect a conductor from damaging due to collision with a counter connector housing when connecting with a connector, and to lower the cost by rationally simplifying the connector structure. SOLUTION: In the condition that a FFC 10 (flat wiring material) is formed along a core plate 24 of a core member 20, the FFC 10 is attached to the core member 20 to form a plug connector C1. The FFC 10 is provided with a pair of windows 12 for exposing a conductor 14 to the outside, and the FFC 10 is attached along the core plate 24 so that a part (a part left as it is coated) between windows 12a and 12b is arranged at a tip of the core plate 24, and a contact is thereby structured by the conductor 14 exposed to the outside from windows 12a and 12b.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to flat cables, ribbon electric wires, FFCs (Flexible Flat Cables), and FFCs.
The present invention relates to a plug connector for electrically connecting a flat wiring material such as a PC (Flexible Printed Circuit) to a circuit board or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a plug connector has been formed in the middle of a flat wiring material, and the plug connector is inserted into a board connector mounted on a circuit board, so that the conductor of the flat wiring material is formed on the circuit board. Connecting to the circuit is done.

As this type of plug connector, for example,
There is a connector as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 4-120993. This connector is compatible with FPC (Flexible Print
ed Circuit) is attached to the core plate and folded back at its tip, and in this state, the FPC is inserted into the fixing housing integrally with the core plate to hold (pin) the FPC by the core plate and the housing. Has become.

[0004] The FPC is provided with an exposed portion of the conductor at an intermediate portion thereof, and by attaching this exposed portion to the core plate, the surface of the core plate to the tip to
The conductor of the FPC is externally exposed over the back surface to form a contact. Then, when the core plate portion is inserted into the board connector, each terminal accommodated in the board connector comes into contact with the conductor of the FPC, thereby connecting the conductor of the flat wiring material to the circuit on the circuit board. It is supposed to be.

[0005]

In the above-described plug connector, since the conductor of the FPC is externally exposed from the front surface to the front surface to the rear surface of the core plate as described above, the plug connector is mated with the mating connector. Sometimes, the tip of the plug, that is, the tip of the core plate collides with the housing or the terminal of the mating connector, thereby damaging the conductor and possibly causing a break or the like.

In this regard, in the plug connector disclosed in the above publication,
A portion (cover) covering the FPC at the tip of the core plate is provided integrally with the fixing housing, so that disconnection or the like due to the above-described collision can be favorably prevented.

In recent years, there has been a strong demand for lowering the cost of plug connectors by reducing the number of components. Therefore, it is necessary to ensure a certain level of performance and to reasonably simplify the connector structure. . Therefore, even in the plug connector as described in the above publication, it is desired that the conductor can be protected at the tip portion of the core plate and that the connector structure be reasonably simplified.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and in a plug connector, while protecting a conductor from damage due to collision with a mating connector housing or the like at the time of connecting a connector, the connector structure is improved. The purpose is to reduce the cost by rational simplification.

[0009]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a core plate and a flat wiring member fixed to the core plate in a state of being folded back at the tip of the core plate. Of the parts that follow the core plate, the portion of the flat wiring material other than the part that covers the tip of the core plate is removed to form a contact with the mating connector, and the part that covers the tip of the core plate is flat. The coating is present on a wiring member (claim 1).

[0010] According to this plug connector, since the flat wiring member has a coating at the tip of the core plate, the conductor portion of the flat wiring member directly collides with the mating connector housing or the like at the time of mating with the mating connector. Therefore, the conductor portion at the tip portion of the core plate is well protected. In addition, since the existing coating of the flat wiring member is used, the conductor portion can be protected without providing a dedicated member separately.

In this plug connector, if the flat wiring member is displaced with respect to the core member, the contact (conductor portion) is displaced to the tip of the core plate, and the contact may collide with the mating connector housing or the like when the connector is connected. There is. For this reason, in the plug connector according to the first aspect, it is more preferable to provide a positioning means for positioning the flat wiring member with respect to the core plate in the longitudinal direction, so that both are reliably positioned (claim 2). ).

In this case, specifically, as a positioning means, a hole for positioning is formed in a portion of the flat wiring material where the coating of the tip of the core plate exists, and the hole is formed in the tip of the core plate in the hole. Preferably, a corresponding projection is formed, and the flat wiring member is fixed to the core plate in a state where the projection is inserted into the perforated portion.

According to this configuration, since the flat wiring member is positioned at the portion where the coating at the tip of the core plate exists, the flat wiring member can be positioned well without affecting the contact portion. In particular, when a contact is formed on both the front and back surfaces of the core plate by removing the coating of the flat wiring material on the front and back surfaces of the core plate (claim 4), the flat wiring material is applied between the two contacts. Since the two contacts are restrained by the core plate, the two contacts can be positioned rationally.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 schematically shows a plug connector according to the present invention. As shown in this figure, the plug connectors C1 are formed at a plurality of locations in the longitudinal direction of the flat wiring member 10 and are inserted into the board-side connectors C2 on the circuit boards P provided in a plurality of stages, respectively.
The respective circuit boards P are electrically connected to each other via the flat wiring member 10.

Although not shown in detail, the board-side connector C2 has an elongated housing 1 and the housing 1
A plurality of terminals 2 are housed in a state where they are arranged.
As shown in FIG. 3A, the terminals 2 are vertically
U-shaped terminal having a, 3b, and a plug connector C1
Is inserted into the board side connector C2, the two contact pieces 3
A later-described core plate 24 of the plug connector C1 is interposed between a and 3b, and both contact pieces 3a and 3b are configured to contact the contacts formed on both upper and lower (front and back) surfaces of the core plate 24.

On the other hand, as shown in an exploded perspective view of FIG. 2, the plug connector C1 comprises the flat wiring member 10 and the core member 20.

The flat wiring member 10 is made of an FFC in which a plurality of conductors 14 arranged in parallel and flat are covered with a sheath.
(Hereinafter, referred to as FFC10).
A pair of window pairs 12 for exposing the conductor 14 to the outside at predetermined intervals are formed at regular intervals in the longitudinal direction. The windows 12a and 12b of the window pair 12 are formed by removing the sheath on the front side (one surface) of the FFC 10 by a predetermined width in the longitudinal direction.

The core member 20 has a substantially T-shaped cross section including a plate-like base portion 22 elongated in the width direction and a core plate 24 erected on the base portion 22 and extending in the width direction. And the whole is made of an insulating resin material. The base 22 and the core plate 2
Flanges 23 and 25 for positioning the FFC 10 in the width direction are formed on both ends in the width direction of the FCC 4 respectively.

Then, based on the above components, as shown in FIG. 2 and FIG.
The FFC 10 is folded back in a U-shape along the core plate 24 so that the portion between 2a and 12b (that is, the unremoved portion of the sheath (coating)) is disposed at the tip of the core plate 24. The FFC 10 is adhered to the core member 20 while being positioned in the width direction by 25. As a result, the FFC is provided on both upper and lower sides (front and back) of the core plate 24 through the windows 12a and 12b.
The plug connector C1 having the ten conductors 14 exposed to the outside as contacts is configured.

When the plug connector C1 as described above is connected to the board side connector C2, as shown in FIG. 3A, the core plate 24 is connected to the insertion port 1 of the board side connector C2.
a into the connector housing 1. In this way, as shown in FIG. 3B, the core plate 24 of the plug connector C1 intervenes between the upper and lower contact pieces 3a and 3b of the terminal 2, and the contacts formed on the upper and lower surfaces of the core plate 24. That is, the conductor 14 and the two contact pieces 3 of the FFC 10 that are externally exposed by the window
a and 3b are in contact with each other, and each conductor 14 of the FFC 10 is electrically connected to the circuit on the circuit board P.

In such a connector connection operation, when the plug connector C1 is inserted into the board-side connector C2, the tip of the connector, that is, the tip of the core plate 24 is connected to the housing 1 or the terminal 2 of the board-side connector C2.
However, according to the plug connector C1, the portion between the windows 12a and 12b is disposed at the distal end of the core plate 24 as described above (that is, the portion other than the distal end of the core plate 24). By removing the sheath of the FFC 10 described above, the contact with the mating connector C2 is formed), so that the conductor 14 is covered with the sheath without being exposed at the distal end portion of the core plate 24. And the conductor 14 do not directly collide. Therefore, the conductor 14 is well protected at the tip of the core plate 24.

As described above, according to the plug connector C 1, the FFC 10
Since the conductor 14 is protected from collision between the core plate 24 and the mating connector housing 1 or the like generated at the time of connector connection by leaving the sheath at the connector, the core plate 24 can be mounted without using a dedicated member separately. The conductor 14 can be well protected at the tip.

Therefore, as compared with a conventional plug connector of this type which requires a dedicated member (cover) to protect the conductor 14, the connector configuration can be reasonably simplified, and as a result, the plug connector can be simplified. Can be reduced.

In the configuration of the plug connector C1 as described above, the FFC 10 is displaced with respect to the core plate 24 in the assembling process, that is, the FFC 10 is displaced in the longitudinal direction with respect to the core plate 24 to expose the conductor 14. A part of the windows 12a and 12b,
If the FFC 10 is adhered in a state where the FFC 10 is shifted to the front end portion, the conductor 14 may collide with the mating connector housing 1 or the like at the time of connector connection. Therefore, in the plug connector C1, the above-described FF at the time of pasting is used.
It is more preferable to provide positioning means for preventing the displacement of C10. FIG. 4A shows a plug connector C1 provided with such positioning means.

That is, the plug connector C1 shown in FIG.
Are the windows 12a and 12b (window pair 1) in the FFC 10.
2), a pair of positioning holes 16 (perforated portions) are formed at predetermined intervals in the center (center in the longitudinal direction of the FFC 10) in the width direction. A pair of bosses 28 (projections)
Are juxtaposed in the width direction. Then, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, the FFC 10 is attached along the surface of the core plate 24 with the bosses 28 inserted into the positioning holes 16. According to such a plug connector C1, the boss 28 makes the FF to the core plate 24.
Since the C10 is positioned in the longitudinal direction, the above-described displacement at the time of attaching the FFC 10 can be favorably prevented. In particular, a positioning hole 16 is provided in a portion where the sheath between the windows 12a and 12b is left to provide an FF.
Because C10 is positioned, there is no effect on the contacts,
Another feature is that the FFC 10 can be positioned rationally because the two front and back contacts of the core plate 24 can be positioned at once. In this configuration,
Since the FFC 10 is also positioned in the width direction by the boss 28, the flanges 23 and 25 of the core member 20 like the plug connector C1 shown in FIG. 1 are unnecessary.

As another configuration of the plug connector C1, a configuration as shown in FIG. 5A may be employed.

That is, a housing 30 having a plate insertion hole 32 for inserting the core plate 24 is provided, and the FFC 10 is attached along the core plate 24 as shown in FIG. Then, the core plate 24 is inserted into the plate insertion hole 32a of the housing 30 integrally with the FFC 10, and a hook (not shown) of the housing 30 is locked to the locking portion 22a provided on the core member 20 so that the core member 20 and the housing 30 May be configured so that the FFC 10 is held (sandwiched) by the housing 30 and the core member 20. In the case of this configuration, as shown in FIG.
The FFC 10 is positioned relative to the core plate 24 in the longitudinal direction by connecting the core member 20 and the housing 30 in a state in which the bosses 28 are respectively provided at the ends of the core plate 24 and the bosses 28 are inserted into the positioning holes 16. Is preferred.

[0029]

As described above, in the plug connector of the present invention, the portion of the portion following the core plate other than the portion covering the tip of the core plate is removed from the mating connector by removing the coating of the flat wiring member. Constitute the contact point of
Since the coating is present on the flat wiring material at the portion covering the core plate tip portion, the core plate tip at the time of connector connection and the mating connector housing and the like can be connected without separately providing a special member (cover). The conductor portion of the flat wiring member can be protected from damage due to the collision of the flat wiring member. Therefore, similarly to the conventional plug connector of this type, the conductor portion can be protected well, and the connector configuration can be reasonably simplified, thereby reducing the cost of the plug connector.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a plug connector according to the present invention and a board-side connector to which the plug connector is connected.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration of a plug connector.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a plug connector and a board-side connector ((a) shows a state before connection, and (b) shows a connection state).

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the plug connector ((a) is an exploded view, and (b) is an assembly view).

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the plug connector ((a) is an exploded view, and (b) is an assembly view).

[Explanation of symbols]

 C1 plug connector C2 board side connector 10 flat wiring material; FFC 12 window pair 12a, 12b window 14 conductor 20 core member 22 base part 24 core plate

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Noriichi Okamura 1-7-10 Kikuzumi, Minami-ku, Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture Inside Harness Research Institute, Inc. (72) Inventor Hiroki Hirai 1 Kikuzumi, Minami-ku, Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture No. 7-10 Harness Research Institute, Ltd. F-term (reference) 5E023 AA04 AA16 BB09 BB22 BB23 BB27 CC03 CC26 EE10 EE12 HH01 HH16 HH18 HH24 HH30

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A core plate, and a flat wiring member fixed to the core plate in a state of being attached to the core plate so as to be folded at the tip of the core plate, and covering a tip of the core plate in a portion attached to the core plate. The contact with the mating connector is formed by removing the coating of the flat wiring material of the portion other than the portion, and that the coating is present on the flat wiring material in the portion covering the tip portion of the core plate. Features a plug connector. 2. The plug connector according to claim 1, further comprising positioning means for positioning said flat wiring member with respect to said core plate in a longitudinal direction thereof. 3. The plug connector according to claim 2, wherein, as the positioning means, a hole for positioning is formed in a portion of the flat wiring member where the coating of the tip of the core plate exists, and the tip of the core plate is formed. A plug connector, wherein a projection corresponding to the perforated portion is formed in a portion, and the flat wiring member is fixed to the core plate with the projection inserted into the perforated portion. 4. The plug connector according to claim 3, wherein the contact is formed on both front and back surfaces of the core plate by removing the coating of the flat wiring material on both front and back surfaces of the core plate. connector.