JP2002124336A - Rubber stopper for waterproof connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve an inserting workability of a wire and a terminal fitting to an insertion hole. SOLUTION: The rubber stopper 40 fitted to the back surface side of a housing 20 is provided with an insertion-through hole 42 passing through back and forth, capable of letting in a female terminal fitting 13 and a wire 10, and three back and forth inner periphery lips 43 are provided swollen inward. The inner periphery lip 43 is equipped with an adhesion lip 44 at the center, and also a pair of insertion resistance reducing lips 45 in front and at back having a larger inside diameter than that of the adhesive lip 44. When the female terminal fitting 13 and the wire 10 are inserted through the insertion-through hole 42, frictional resistance is produced, because each inner periphery lip 43 is made to slide and contact the outer periphery of the female terminal fitting 13 and the wire 10 compressed by the female terminal fitting 13 and the wire 10. This frictional resistance is reduced at the insertion resistance reducing lips 45 as compared with that at the adhesion lip 44.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a rubber plug for a waterproof connector.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an example of a one-piece rubber stopper used for a waterproof connector is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 7-282892. This rubber stopper 1 is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, the terminal fitting 3 is fitted to the rear end side of the connector housing 2 and is formed in a flat plate shape. An insertion hole 5 through which the electric wire 4 can be inserted is provided in a state penetrating back and forth, and an inner peripheral surface of each insertion hole 5 is provided with a lip 6 that can be in close contact with an outer peripheral surface of the inserted electric wire 4.
Are arranged side by side around a plurality of lines (two lines in FIG. 10). The inner diameter of each lip 6 is adjusted to be smaller than the outer diameter of the electric wire 4 so as to maintain a good contact state with the outer peripheral surface of the electric wire 4.

[0003]

In the rubber plug 1 described above, since the lips 6 arranged in front and rear have the same inner diameter, the electric wire 4 is moved through the lip 6 during the passage of the electric wire 4 through the insertion hole 5. The frictional resistance associated with the sliding contact while compressing the paper tends to increase, and the insertion workability is not good. The present invention has been completed based on the above circumstances, and has as its object to improve the workability of inserting electric wires and terminal fittings into insertion holes.

[0004]

As a means for achieving the above object, the invention of claim 1 is to fit a terminal fitting connected to a terminal of an electric wire to a rear surface side of a connector housing in which the terminal fitting is accommodated from the rear. A through hole through which the terminal fitting and the electric wire can be inserted is provided, and a plurality of lips are arranged in front and rear on an inner peripheral side of the insertion hole, and each lip is inserted. In those which are tightly attached to the electric wire inserted into the hole and which can be waterproof around the wire,
The lip is characterized in that it is constituted by a close contact lip and an insertion resistance reducing lip having a larger inner diameter than the close contact lip.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the terminal has a substantially rectangular main body at the front end side as viewed from the front or back, and a diagonal distance between the main body and the terminal. In contrast, the present invention is characterized in that the diameter of the entrance of the insertion hole is set to be larger.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect, the outer diameter of the electric wire is larger than a diagonal distance of the main body, and the insertion resistance reducing lip is provided. Is characterized in that its inner diameter is set to be larger than the diagonal distance in the main body.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the device according to any one of the first to third aspects, the contact lip and the insertion resistance alleviating lip are such that the rubber plug for the waterproof connector is symmetrical in the longitudinal direction. It is characterized in that it is arranged as follows.

[0008]

<Invention of claim 1> As the terminal fitting is accommodated in the connector housing, the electric wire is inserted into the insertion hole, and both the close contact lip and the insertion resistance alleviating lip adhere to the electric wire. When the wire is inserted through the insertion hole, the frictional resistance that occurs as the wire slides into each lip is
Since the insertion resistance reducing lip is reduced as compared with the close contact lip, the insertion workability of the terminal fitting and the electric wire can be improved. In addition, since the contact state of the contact lip to the electric wire is good, sufficient waterproofness can be maintained.

<Invention of Claim 2> When the terminal fitting is inserted into the insertion hole, the four corners of the main body can be made not to interfere with the outer edge of the entrance, so that the insertion workability is further improved.

<Invention of Claim 3> When the outer diameter of the electric wire is larger than that of the main body of the terminal fitting, when the terminal fitting passes through the insertion hole, the main body does not move relative to the insertion resistance reducing lip. Since the interference can be made, the insertion workability is further improved.

<Invention of Claim 4> When the rubber plug for the waterproof connector is fitted to the connector housing, the front and rear directions of the rubber plug are not selected, so that the fitting operation can be easily performed.

[0012]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. <First Embodiment> A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In this embodiment, a collective rubber plug 40 to be attached to the female waterproof connector is shown.
As shown in FIG. 1, the rubber plug 40 is fitted on the rear side of the female connector housing 20 (hereinafter simply referred to as the housing 20), and the female terminal fitting 13 is provided from the rear thereof.
And the electric wire 10 can be inserted.

The electric wire 10 is formed by covering a core wire 11 made of a thin metal wire with an insulating coating 12 made of synthetic resin, and exposing the core wire 11 by cutting off the coating on the terminal portion. The female terminal fitting 13 includes a substantially box-shaped main body 14,
Barrel parts 15 to be crimped to the electric wire 10 are provided side by side. The main body portion 14 is formed so as to penetrate back and forth, and a male terminal fitting (not shown) on the other side can enter from the front, and is brought into conductive contact with a contact piece (not shown) inside. . On the bottom of the body 14,
A locking hole 16 is provided to be open.
A lance 24 on the side of the housing 20 enters the inside and can be locked to the edge of the hole. As shown in FIG. 2, the main body portion 14 has a front end surface formed in a substantially square shape when viewed from the front and has corner portions 17 at four corners, and connects outer edges of the non-adjacent corner portions 17. The diagonal distance T is set to be larger than the outer diameter W of the electric wire 10 (insulating coating 12). The barrel 15 is, as shown in FIG.
The insulation barrel 18 that is crimped to the exposed core wire 11 and the wire barrel 19 that is crimped to the insulating coating 12 on the rear side of the exposed core wire 11 are arranged in front and rear.

Next, the housing 20 will be described. The housing 20 includes a terminal accommodating portion 21 capable of accommodating the female terminal fitting 13 therein, and a hood-shaped rubber plug accommodating portion 22 protruding rearward from a rear end of the terminal accommodating portion 21. A cavity 23 into which the female terminal fitting 13 can be inserted from the rear is formed in the terminal accommodating portion 21 so as to penetrate in the front and rear directions.
A total of 14 rooms are provided in seven rows and seven rows. As shown in FIG. 1, the upper cavity 23 and the lower cavity 23 are formed to be vertically symmetrical with each other, and the lower surface of the upper cavity 23 and the upper surface of the lower cavity 23 are respectively provided on the upper cavity 23 and the lower cavity 23. A cantilevered lance 24 that can be locked to the female terminal fitting 13 is provided to protrude into the cavity 23. As the female terminal fitting 13 is inserted into the cavity 23, the lance 24
The lance 24 is capable of bending and deforming so as to be retracted to the outside.
Are formed to open forward.

The rubber stopper accommodating portion 22 is formed in a substantially rectangular cylindrical shape having an accommodating concave portion 26 which opens rearward.
A flat rubber plug 40 is fitted into the housing concave portion 26 from the rear, and a pressing member 30 for holding the rubber plug 40 is attached from the rear side. The pressing member 30 is formed in a plate shape capable of pressing substantially the entire rear end surface of the rubber plug 40 (see FIG. 3), and a lock projection 31 protruding from the upper and lower outer surfaces includes a rubber plug housing 22. The rubber plug 40 sandwiched between the terminal accommodating portion 21 and the rubber stopper 40 is held in the housing 20 in a slightly compressed state in the front-rear direction. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, through holes 32 are formed in the plate surface of the holding member 30 at positions corresponding to the cavities 23 so that the female terminal fittings 13 and the electric wires 10 can be inserted therethrough. Has become. The inner peripheral surface of the through hole 32 can be slid on the main body 14.
The holding member 30 has a rear end surface flush with the rear end surface of the housing 20 in the mounted state. The holding member 30 has a vertically symmetrical shape, and does not matter in the vertical mounting direction when it is mounted on the housing 20.

The rubber stopper 40 is formed in a flat plate shape.
The front end surface is in contact with the rear end surface of the terminal accommodating portion 21, and the rear end surface is in contact with the front end surface of the holding member 30. Outer peripheral surface of rubber stopper 40 (peripheral surface facing inner peripheral surface of accommodation recess 26)
, Three outer lips 41 are arranged side by side,
Each is formed to bulge outward. Each of the outer peripheral lips 41 is compressed as the rubber stopper 40 is mounted in the accommodation recess 26 and is in close contact with the inner peripheral surface of the accommodation recess 26 to keep the accommodation recess 26 watertight. In the rubber stopper 40,
Each cavity 23 of the housing 20 and the holding member 30
The insertion holes 42 are provided at positions corresponding to the respective through holes 32 so as to penetrate back and forth. Each insertion hole 42 is formed so as to match the cavity 23 and the through hole 32 arranged in front and rear, and the female terminal fitting 13 and the electric wire 10 can be inserted into each insertion hole 42. . On the inner peripheral surface of the insertion hole 42, three inner peripheral lips 43 are arranged side by side in front and rear,
Each is formed to bulge inward. Each inner peripheral lip 43 is in close contact with the outer peripheral surface of the electric wire 10 in a state where the female terminal fitting 13 is accommodated in the cavity 23, so that the periphery thereof can be waterproofed (see FIG. 7).

The front and rear inner peripheral lips 43 are composed of a contact lip 44 and an insertion resistance reducing lip 45 having different inner diameters, and have one contact lip 44 at the center. A pair of insertion resistance reducing lips is provided at the front and rear. Inner diameter dimension B of insertion resistance reducing lip 45
4 is set to be larger than the inner diameter A of the contact lip 44 and smaller than the outer diameter W of the electric wire 10, as shown in FIGS. Note that the inner diameter dimension here indicates the inner diameter dimension at the bulging end of each inner peripheral lip 43, that is, the minimum inner diameter dimension at each inner peripheral lip 43.

With respect to the electric wire 10 inserted into the insertion hole 42, the contact lip 44 and the insertion resistance alleviating lip 45 come into close contact with the outer peripheral surface thereof while being compressed. The compression allowance of the contact lip 44 at this time is a size obtained by subtracting the inner diameter A of the contact lip 44 from the outer diameter W of the electric wire 10, and the compression allowance of the insertion resistance reducing lip 45 (the outer diameter W of the electric wire 10). (The size obtained by subtracting the inner diameter B of the insertion resistance relaxing lip 45 from the above). Therefore, the contact lip 4
4 has a better adhesion state to the electric wire 10 than the insertion resistance relaxing lip 45.

On the other hand, in the process of inserting the female terminal fitting 13 and the electric wire 10 into the insertion hole 42, the female terminal fitting 13 and the electric wire 1
The frictional resistance is generated as 0 is slidably contacted while compressing the close contact lip 44 and the insertion resistance reducing lip 45. Regarding the magnitude of the frictional resistance, the female terminal fitting 13 and the electric wire 1
0 is smaller when passing through the insertion resistance relaxing lip 45 having the relatively large inner diameter dimension B than when passing through the close contact lip 44 having the smaller inner diameter dimension A.

The front and rear insertion resistance reducing lips 45 are
It is formed so that the diameter increases as it approaches the front and rear end faces of the rubber plug 40 from the bulging end. The diameter C of the opening 46 that opens at the front and rear end surfaces of the rubber plug 40 is set to be larger than the diagonal distance T of the main body 14 of the female terminal fitting 13. The opening 46
As shown in FIG. 3, the diameter dimension C is a size protruding outward with respect to the through hole 32 of the holding member 30.
The female terminal fitting 13 is prevented from interfering with the outer edge of the opening 46.

Further, as described above, the inner peripheral lip 43 is disposed at a position where the close contact lip 44 is located at the center and the insertion resistance reducing lip 45 is disposed in a pair before and after the close contact lip 44. Has a symmetrical shape. Thereby, the front and rear mounting directions are not limited when the rubber stopper 40 is fitted into the housing recess 26. In other words, it is possible to attach the rubber plug 40 regardless of whether the front and back faces the front or back. Further, the rubber stopper 40 is symmetrical in the vertical and horizontal directions by arranging the insertion holes 42 symmetrically in the vertical and horizontal directions shown in FIG. 3. We do not choose direction.

The present embodiment has the above-described structure, and its operation will be described below. As shown in FIG. 1, the female terminal fitting 13 is
0 through the through hole 32. The female terminal fitting 13 that has passed through the through hole 32 is subsequently inserted into the insertion hole 42 of the rubber plug 40 as shown in FIG. At this time, since the opening 46 which is the entrance of the insertion hole 42 has a diameter C larger than the diagonal distance T in the main body 14, the four corners of the main body 14 are formed at the outer edge of the opening 46. A situation in which 17 interferes and bites is avoided, and the insertion work into the insertion hole 42 is performed smoothly. Also, the main body 14
Is slid in contact with the inner peripheral surface of the through hole 32, so that the
Is inserted into the insertion hole 42 in a straight posture.

When the main body 14 enters the insertion hole 42,
First, the front end face of the main body portion 14 is provided with the rear-side insertion resistance reducing lip 4.
5, the insertion resistance reducing lip 45 is compressed as the main body 14 moves forward, and the inner peripheral surface is slidably contacted with the outer peripheral surface of the main body 14. Main unit 14
Then, these are compressed in the order of the contact lip 44 at the center and the insertion resistance reducing lip 45 at the front side, and are slid on the inner peripheral surface thereof. In the process in which the main body 14 passes through the insertion hole 42, frictional resistance is generated between the main body 14 and each of the inner peripheral lips 43, and the operator resists the female terminal fitting 13 and The electric wire 10 is being advanced.

Here, the frictional resistance generated when the main body 14 passes through the insertion resistance reducing lip 45 having the large inner diameter B is smaller than the contact lip 4 having the smaller inner diameter A.
4, the operation force required to insert the female terminal fitting 13 is smaller than when all the inner peripheral lips 43 are formed as the contact lips 44, for example. Further, since the frictional resistance accompanying the insertion of the main body portion 14 is reduced, the possibility of applying a force to bend the barrel portion 15 which is inferior in strength to the main body portion 14 in the insertion process is reduced, and Even if it is applied, the force becomes small, and it is possible to prevent the barrel 15 from being deformed as much as possible.

After the main body 14 passes through the insertion hole 42 of the rubber plug 40 and enters the front cavity 23, the barrel portion 15 enters the insertion hole 42, and subsequently the electric wire 10 enters. You. When the electric wire 10 passes through the insertion hole 42, similarly to when the electric wire 10 passes through the main body 14, the electric wire 10 is slid on the inner peripheral surface while compressing the inner peripheral lip 43. Although frictional resistance is generated between the lip 43 and the electric wire 10, the frictional resistance is reduced by the frictional resistance reducing lip having a relatively large inner diameter B, so that the insertion operation can be performed with a low operating force.

Then, the female terminal fitting 13 is connected to the cavity 23.
7, the lance 24, which has been in contact with the lower surface of the main body portion 14 and has been bent and deformed, is elastically returned to the normal position, as shown in FIG. And the female terminal fitting 13 is retained in the housing 20 so as not to come off.

At this time, the compressed inner peripheral lips 43 are in close contact with the outer peripheral surface of the electric wire 10 to keep the periphery of the electric wire 10 watertight, and water enters the cavity 23 from the rear outside. Such a situation is prevented. Here, while the compression allowance of the insertion resistance relaxing lip 45 is relatively small, the close contact lip 44 has a large compression allowance and a large amount of compression by the electric wire 10, so that the close contact state with the electric wire 10 is good. In addition, the close contact lip 44 can ensure sufficient waterproofness.

As described above, according to the present embodiment,
Since the insertion resistance reducing lip 45 having an inner diameter B larger than the close contact lip 44 is provided as the inner peripheral lip 43 of the insertion hole 42, friction generated when the female terminal fitting 13 and the electric wire 10 are inserted into the insertion hole 42. The resistance can be reduced, and the workability of inserting the female terminal fitting 13 and the electric wire 10 can be improved. In addition, with respect to the function of waterproofing the electric wire 10, sufficient waterproofness can be maintained by the close contact lip 44 having a large compression allowance being closely adhered to the electric wire 10.

Furthermore, the diameter C of the opening 46, which is the entrance of the insertion hole 42, is set to be larger than the diagonal distance T of the main body 14 of the female terminal fitting 13, so that the main body 1
When the 4 enters the insertion hole 42, it is possible to avoid a situation where the four corners 17 of the main body 14 interfere with the outer edge of the opening 46, thereby further improving the workability of inserting the female terminal fitting 13 and the electric wire 10. it can.

<Second Embodiment> Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 8 or FIG. In the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, the outer diameter W 'of the electric wire 10' is larger than the diagonal distance T 'of the main body 14' of the female terminal fitting 13 '.

The close contact lip 44 'and the insertion resistance reducing lip 45' provided in the insertion hole 42 'of the rubber stopper 40'
As shown in FIG. 8 and FIG.
B ′ is set to be smaller than the outer diameter dimension W ′ of the electric wire 10 ′ so that it can be compressed by the electric wire 10 ′ inserted into the insertion hole 42 ′ and can be in close contact with the outer peripheral surface of the electric wire 10 ′. Has become. Among them, the inner diameter dimension B 'of the insertion resistance reducing lip 45' is set to be larger than the diagonal distance T 'in the main body 14'. Thus, when the main body 14 ′ is inserted through the insertion hole 42 ′, the main body 14 ′ does not interfere or only slightly interferes with the insertion resistance reducing lip 45 ′. Further reduction is achieved, and the female terminal fitting 13 ′ and the electric wire 10 ′
Can be further improved. In addition,
Other structures, operations, and effects are the same as those of the above-described first embodiment, and a description thereof will not be repeated.

<Other Embodiments> The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above with reference to the drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. In addition, various changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. (1) In the above-described embodiment, the rubber stopper having three inner peripheral lips has been described.
The present invention can also be applied to rubber stoppers having more than one line.

(2) In the above-described embodiment, the case where the close contact lip is disposed at the center and the insertion resistance reducing lip is disposed before and after the center is described. However, the arrangement positions of the close contact lip and the insertion resistance reducing lip are arbitrary. , For example, may be arranged at asymmetrical positions before and after. (3) In the above embodiment, the case where the two insertion resistance relaxing lips have the same inner diameter is shown. However, if the inner diameter is larger than the close contact lip, the sizes may be different. Such is also included in the present invention.

(4) In the above embodiment, the case where the female terminal fitting is inserted into the insertion hole of the rubber plug has been described.
A male terminal fitting provided with a tab projecting forward from a box-shaped main body may be inserted into the insertion hole of the rubber stopper. (5) In the second embodiment, the inner diameter of the insertion resistance reducing lip is larger than the diagonal distance of the main body. However, for example, the outer diameter of the electric wire is larger than the diagonal distance of the main body. If it is large, the inner diameter of the contact lip can be set smaller than the distance of the diagonal line of the main body while maintaining the adhesion to the electric wire, and the insertion resistance can be further reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded side sectional view of a waterproof connector including a rubber stopper according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view for explaining a size relationship between a main body of the female terminal fitting and an electric wire;

FIG. 3 is a rear view of the waterproof connector.

FIG. 4 is a side sectional view of a female terminal fitting and a rubber plug to which electric wires are connected.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged rear view of a rubber stopper insertion hole.

FIG. 6 is a side sectional view showing a state immediately before the female terminal fitting and the electric wire are inserted into the insertion hole.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional side view showing a state in which the female terminal fitting is accommodated in the cavity and each inner peripheral lip is in close contact with the electric wire.

FIG. 8 is a side sectional view showing a rubber terminal and a female terminal fitting connected to an electric wire according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged rear view of the rubber stopper insertion hole.

FIG. 10 is a side sectional view of a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10, 10 '... electric wires 13, 13' ... female terminal fittings (terminal fittings) 14, 14 '... body part 20 ... housing (connector housing) 40, 40' ... rubber stoppers 42, 42 '... insertion holes 43, 43' ... inner peripheral lips (lip) 44, 44 '... close contact lip 45, 45' ... insertion resistance relaxing lip 46, 46 '... opening (entrance) A, A' ... inner diameter of the close contact lip B, B '... insertion resistance Inner dimensions of relief lip C, C ': Diameter of opening T, T': Diagonal distance in main body W, W ': Outer dimensions of electric wire

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A terminal fitting connected to a terminal of an electric wire is fitted to a rear surface side of a connector housing accommodated from behind, and an insertion hole through which the terminal fitting and the electric wire can be inserted penetrates. A plurality of lips are arranged in front and rear on the inner peripheral side of the insertion hole, and each lip is in close contact with the electric wire inserted into the insertion hole and the periphery thereof can be waterproofed. The rubber lip for a waterproof connector, wherein the lip comprises a contact lip and an insertion resistance reducing lip having a larger inner diameter than the contact lip. 2. The terminal fitting according to claim 1, wherein the terminal has a substantially rectangular main body at the front end side as viewed from the front or back, and a diameter of an entrance in the insertion hole is smaller than a diagonal distance of the main body. The rubber plug for a waterproof connector according to claim 1, wherein is set to be large. 3. An outer diameter of the electric wire is larger than a diagonal distance in the main body, and an inner diameter of the insertion resistance reducing lip is set to be larger than a diagonal distance in the main body. The rubber plug for a waterproof connector according to claim 1 or 2, wherein 4. The waterproof connector according to claim 1, wherein the contact lip and the insertion resistance reducing lip are arranged such that the rubber plug for the waterproof connector has a symmetrical shape in the front-rear direction. A rubber stopper for a waterproof connector as described in Crab.