JP2002164112A - Connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent foreign matters from infiltrating into space between a moving plate and a back face of a hood part through a window hole of the moving plate. SOLUTION: A retainer 40 each is fitted to a provisional locking position allowing insertion of a male terminal fitting 20 and a proper locking position preventing fall-off of the metal terminal fitting 20 already inserted, at a back face of a hood part 11. Inside the hood part 11, a moving plate 30 moves between a stand-by position away from the back face of the hood part 11 for insertion-coupling a protruding end of a tab 21 into a locating hole 33 and an insertion-coupling position near the back face of the hood part 11. In a state where the moving plate 30 is at a stand-by position and the retainer 40 is fitted at the provisional locking position, a window hole 36 of the moving plate 30 is blocked by the retainer 40.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector having a moving plate and a retainer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a connector having a moving plate and a retainer, there is a connector disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-219235. This is to form a hood part projecting forward in the connector housing, make the tab of the male terminal fitting inserted into the connector housing protrude into the hood part, and insert the tab into the positioning hole of the moving plate movably provided in the hood part. The retainer is inserted into the connector housing, and the terminal fitting is prevented from being removed by the retainer.

[0003]

The above-mentioned conventional connector is of a so-called side retainer type in which a retainer is assembled from a side surface of a connector housing. There's a problem. Generally, in a connector provided with a retainer, the retainer is temporarily locked at a position allowing insertion and removal of the terminal fitting into and from the connector housing, and the connector in the temporarily locked state is shipped to a site where the terminal fitting is assembled. Then, at the assembly site, insert the terminal fitting into the connector housing,
Thereafter, assembly is performed in such a manner that the retainer is pushed into the final locking position to restrict the terminal fitting from coming off.

[0004] In this case, if the retainer at the temporary locking position protrudes from the outer surface of the connector housing, the retainer interferes with other members during transportation to the assembly site and is pushed into the full locking position. There is a possibility that it will end. In such a case, extra work is required to return the retainer from the final locking position to the temporary locking position at the assembly site. As a countermeasure, a retainer mounting hole may be formed in the connector housing so as to be opened in the inner surface of the hood portion, and the retainer may be inserted into the retainer mounting hole so as to be inserted from the front. If assembled from the front, even if the retainer protrudes from the back of the hood in the temporarily locked state, the protruding retainer is surrounded by the hood, so the protruding retainer There is no risk of being pushed into the final locking position by another member.

[0005] However, in order to adopt a structure in which the retainer is assembled to the inner surface of the hood, it is necessary to provide a window hole in the moving plate for pushing the retainer into the retainer mounting hole. Therefore, there is a possibility that foreign matter outside the hood may enter the space between the moving plate and the inner surface of the hood through the window hole of the moving plate when not mated with the mating connector. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to prevent foreign matter from entering a space between the moving plate and the back surface of the hood portion through a window hole of the moving plate.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector housing having a hood portion into which a female connector is fitted, and a male terminal inserted into the connector housing and having a tab projected into the hood portion. A retainer assembled to a metal fitting, a temporary locking position for allowing the insertion of the male terminal metal fitting with respect to the inner surface of the hood portion, and a full locking position for restricting the inserted male terminal metal fitting from being removed; A positioning hole for penetrating the tab and a window hole corresponding to the retainer are formed, and in the hood portion, a standby position for separating from the inner surface of the hood portion and fitting a projecting end of the tab to the positioning hole. A moving plate which moves toward and away from a fitting position where the base end of the tab is fitted into the positioning hole by approaching a back surface of the hood portion; There in a state where the moving plate is at the standby position together at the partial locking position, and a configuration in which the window opening is closed by the retainer.

[0007]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, when the moving plate is in the standby position and the retainer is in the temporary locking position, the window hole of the moving plate is closed by the retainer. There is no danger of entering the space between the moving plate and the back of the hood through the hole.

[0008]

[First Embodiment] A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The connector M of the present embodiment is a connector housing 1
0, a male terminal fitting 20, a moving plate 30, and a retainer 40. In the following description, the left side of FIG. 1 is the front side in the front-rear direction, and FIG.

The connector housing 10 is made of a synthetic resin.
Are formed. A plurality of cavities 12 are formed inside the connector housing 10. The cavities 12 are located substantially at the center in the height direction, are divided into upper and lower stages, and are horizontally arranged in a plurality of chambers in each stage. The male terminal fittings 20 inserted into each of the cavities 12 The double locking structure of the lance 13 and the retainer 40 restricts the detachment. Also, large-diameter cavities 14 are formed on both left and right sides of the two rows of cavities 12. Terminal fittings (not shown) inserted into the large-diameter cavities 14 are:
The primary locking by the resin lance 15 only prevents the resin from coming off.
In addition, on both upper and lower sides of the cavity 12, receiving recesses 16 for fitting a sub-connector (not shown) from behind are formed.

The upper cavity 12 and the lower cavity 12 are vertically symmetrical, and a resin lance 13 extending forward in a cantilever manner is formed at the front end thereof. The upper resin lance 13 is formed along the lower surface of the cavity 12, and the lower resin lance 13 is formed along the upper surface of the cavity 12.
Between them, a bending space 17A for allowing the resin lance 13 to be elastically bent is formed in a form opened to the front end face of the connector housing 10. In the process of inserting the male terminal fitting 20 into the cavity 12 from behind, the resin lance 1
3 elastically bends toward the bending space 17A due to the interference with the male terminal fitting 20, and when the male terminal fitting 20 is properly inserted, the interference is released and the resin lance 13 elastically returned to the free state is attached to the male terminal fitting 20. On the other hand, it is locked in the removal restriction state. The inserted male terminal fitting 20 is configured such that the tab 21 at the front end of the male terminal fitting 20 projects from the front end face of the connector housing 10 (the back face of the hood section 11) into the hood section 11.

The bending space 17A communicates with the adjacent cavities 12, and has a slit shape elongated in the left-right direction as a whole. When the resin lance 13 is in a free state in which the resin lance 13 is not elastically deformed, the disengagement restriction function portion 41 of the retainer 40 is provided in the bending space 17A.
Are fitted without play in the vertical direction. The bending space 1 is provided on both left and right sides of the bending space 17A.
A pair of left and right guide holes 17B is formed to communicate with the connector 7A and open at the front end surface of the connector housing 10. The guide portion 42 of the retainer 40 can be fitted into the guide hole 17B without play in the vertical and horizontal directions. As described above, the bending space 17 </ b> A and the pair of guide holes 17 </ b> B constitute the retainer mounting hole 17 which is open on the inner surface of the hood 11 in the connector housing 10. On the inner surface of the guide hole 17B, a projection-like provisional locking receiving portion 18A and a final locking receiving portion 18B are formed. These receiving portions 18A, 1
The locking portion 43 of the retainer 40 is locked to 8B so that the retainer 40 is held at the temporary locking position and the full locking position with respect to the connector housing 10 by the locking.

Next, the moving plate 30 will be described. The moving plate 30 is made of a synthetic resin, and has a male terminal fitting 20 protruding into the hood 11 from a front end surface (a back surface of the hood 11) of the connector housing 10.
A plate-shaped plate body 31 parallel to and having the same shape as the front end face of the connector housing 10, and a tab 21 protruding forward from the outer periphery of the plate body 31. It is formed integrally with a guide tube portion 32 which can slide on the inner periphery. The plate body 31 has a positioning hole 33 through which the tab 21 of the male terminal fitting 20 inserted into the upper and lower cavities 12 is inserted, and a male terminal fitting protruding from the sub-connector fitted into the housing recess 16. A positioning hole 34 for penetrating a tab (not shown) and a positioning hole 35 for inserting a tab (not shown) of the male terminal fitting inserted into the large-diameter cavity 14 are formed.

Retainer 40 in plate body 31
On the surface facing the (retainer mounting hole 17), a window hole 36 which is substantially aligned with the bending space 17A and the guide hole 17B of the connector housing 10 is formed so as to penetrate between the front and rear surfaces of the plate body 31. In addition, this window hole 36
Is set to a shape and dimensions necessary for penetrating the retainer 40. The window holes 36 are arranged between the rows of the positioning holes 33 for penetrating the tabs 21 of the male terminal fittings 20 inserted into the upper and lower two-stage cavities 12. A relief portion 37 is formed which communicates with each positioning hole 33 individually. The support portion 45 of the retainer 40 penetrates these relief portions 37. The window 36 is closed by a retainer 40 as described later.

The guide cylinder 32 of the moving plate 30
, A seal member 38 is provided integrally. The seal member 38 is provided at the rear end of the guide cylinder 32 (the plate body 3).
1) outer peripheral side sealing portion 38A along the outer periphery
And an inner peripheral side seal portion 38B along the inner periphery in front of the outer peripheral side seal portion 38A. The two seal portions 38A and 38B are provided with a plurality of connection holes 39 provided at intervals in the circumferential direction. Are connected to each other.

Further, cam pin receivers 32A are formed on both upper and lower sides of the guide cylinder portion 32. Further, a lever 50 is supported by the connector housing 10 so as to be rotatable about a rotary shaft 32B. When the lever 50 is in the initial position (see FIGS. 1 to 3), the cam groove 5
A cam pin receiver 32A is fitted into the entrance of the first and the rear end of the cam pin receiver 32A abuts against the inner surface of the cam groove 51, whereby the moving plate 30 is restricted from moving backward and is held at the standby position. . In this standby position,
The positioning hole 33 is fitted to a protruding end of the tab 21 to the hood 11. In the process of fitting with the female connector F, the cam pins Fa of the female connector F
When the lever 50 is rotated in this state, the cam pin Fa and the cam pin receiver 32A are engaged with the cam groove 51 in an integrated state, so that the cam pin Fa and the cam pin receiver 32A are engaged. In the direction approaching the inner surface). That is, by the cam action of the lever 50, the female connector F
Are integrated with the moving plate 30 and approach the connector housing 10 to reach a fitted state. When the connectors M and F are fitted, the moving plate 30 reaches the fitting position (see FIG. 4), and the positioning hole 33 is fitted to the base end of the tab 21. Thus, the moving plate 30 moves between the standby position and the fitting position.

The retainer 40 is made of a synthetic resin, and has a horizontal plate-shaped detachment restricting function portion 41 which is long in the left-right direction. It is formed by integrally forming a pair of guide portions 42 having a plate-like shape oriented substantially at right angles with the through-off regulating function portion 41. The front end face of the retainer 40 is substantially flush with both the disengagement restriction function part 41 and the guide part 42, but the rear end part of the guide part 42 is further rearward than the rear end of the disengagement restriction function part 41 ( It protrudes in the mounting direction with respect to the connector housing 10).

A pair of front and rear locking portions 43 forming a projection are formed on the outer surface of the rear end portion of the guide portion 42 which protrudes beyond the slip-out restricting function portion 41. Guide hole 17B
When the locking portion 43 is engaged with the temporary locking receiving portion 18A so as to sandwich it from both front and rear sides, the retainer 40 is held at the temporary locking position with respect to the connector housing 10. When the retainer 40 is at the temporary locking position,
Does not enter the bending space 17A, and therefore,
The elastic deformation of the resin lance 13 into the bending space 17A is allowed, and the insertion and removal of the male terminal fitting 20 with respect to the cavity 12 can be performed.

When the retainer 40 at the temporary locking position is pushed into the full locking position, the locking portion 43 engages with the full locking receiving portion 18B of the guide hole 17B so as to sandwich it from both front and rear sides. The retainer 40 is held at the final locking position with respect to the connector housing 10. In a state where the retainer 40 is in the final locking position, the detachment restricting function portion 41 is fitted into the flexible space 17A without play, so that the resin lance 13 is bent toward the flexible space 17A (in a direction in which the resin lance 13 is separated from the male terminal fitting 20).
To the male terminal fitting 20.
Is restricted.

The distance from the back of the hood 11 when the moving plate 30 is at the standby position and the distance from the back of the hood 11 when the retainer 40 is at the temporary locking position are described as follows. In a state where the plate 30 is in the standby position and the retainer 40 is in the temporary locking position, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the front end surface of the retainer 40 and the front surface of the plate body 31 of the moving plate 30 are flush. Window holes 36 of the moving plate 30
Is closed by the front end surface of the retainer 40,
Dimensions are set.

Further, at the rear end of the guide portion 42 (the front end in the mounting direction with respect to the retainer mounting hole 17), there is provided a tapered leading end which gradually decreases in vertical dimension toward the rear end. A portion 44 is formed. Furthermore, each cavity 1 in the dropout restricting function unit 41
At the front end of the position corresponding to 2 (each resin lance 13),
Support portions 45 protruding upward and downward, respectively, are formed. The support portion 45 comes into contact with the front end portion of the male terminal fitting 20 in the cavity 12 from the bending space 17A side in a state where the retainer 40 is assembled at the final locking position. The inclination of the front end portion toward the bending space 17A is restricted, and the male terminal fitting 20 is maintained in a stable posture. The support portion 45 also functions as a stopper that restricts excessive pushing of the retainer 40 by abutting on the front end of the resin lance 13 when the retainer 40 is assembled at the final locking position.

Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described. When assembling the connector M of the present embodiment, first, the moving plate 30 is housed in the hood portion 11, and as shown in FIG.
1 is kept at a standby position that is separated from the front side. Next, the retainer 40 is assembled to the connector housing 10 and temporarily locked while passing through the window hole 36 of the moving plate 30. At this time, the rear end of the guide portion 42 of the retainer 40 is inserted into the guide hole 17 of the retainer mounting hole 17.
B, and is held at the temporary locking position by engaging the locking portion 43 with the temporary locking receiving portion 18A (see FIG. 1). At this time, the front end face of the retainer 40 is positioned so as to be substantially flush with the front end face of the plate body 31 of the moving plate 30, and the window hole 36 is closed by the retainer 40.

In this state, the male terminal fittings 20 are inserted into the cavities 12 so as to be in the primary locking state by the resin lance 13, and the leading end of the tab 21 projecting from the front end face of the connector housing 10 is positioned on the moving plate 30. Fit into the hole 33 (see FIG. 2). Thereby, each tab 21 is positioned in a state where play in the up, down, left, and right directions is regulated, and prepares for fitting with each female terminal fitting (not shown) of the female connector F.

When all the male terminal fittings 20 are fitted, the retainer 40 at the temporary locking position is pushed into the final locking position.
At this time, the retainer 40 which is exposed in the window hole 36 of the moving plate 30 so as to be visible and substantially flush.
You can press the front end face of your finger with your finger. When the retainer 40 is pushed into the final locking position, the removal restricting function portion 41
A, which restricts the resin lance 13 from elastically bending in the direction in which the resin lance 13 is disengaged from the male terminal fitting 20 by being inserted into the male terminal fitting 20. This allows
The male terminal fitting 20 is in the secondary locking state, and the resin lance 13
And the secondary locking by the retainer 40, the male terminal fitting 20 is held in a double locked state, and the removal of the male terminal fitting 20 from the cavity 12 is reliably restricted.

After the assembly of the connector M is completed, the female connector F may be fitted into the hood 11 by rotating the lever 50. In the process of fitting the female connector F, the female connector F and the moving plate 30
Move together, and each tab 21 positioned by the positioning hole 33 of the moving plate 30.
Is securely fitted and connected to each female terminal fitting of the female connector F. In a state in which the female connector F is fitted, as shown in FIG. 4, the outer peripheral side seal portion 38A of the moving plate 30 comes into close contact with the inner periphery of the hood portion 11 so that
And the moving plate 30 are sealed in a watertight state, and the inner peripheral side seal portion 38B of the moving plate 30 is in close contact with the outer periphery of the female connector F, so that the space between the moving plate 30 and the female connector F is watertight. The hood portion 1 is sealed by the sealing member 38.
1 and the female connector F are sealed. In addition, due to the sealing action of the seal member 38, the retainer mounting hole 17 that is open in a region inside the seal member 38 on the front end surface of the connector housing 10 also becomes waterproof.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the retainer 40 is in the temporary locking position and the moving plate 3
0 is in the standby position, the window hole 36 is in the retainer 40.
Therefore, there is no possibility that foreign matter outside the hood portion 11 may enter the space between the plate body 31 of the moving plate 30 and the inner surface of the hood portion 11 through the window hole 36. Further, since the window hole 36 is formed in the surface of the moving plate 30 facing the retainer 40 and the retainer 40 is exposed forward from the window hole 36, the retainer 40 is pushed in from the front of the moving plate 30 (temporary engagement). Push operation from the stop position to the final locking position). That is, the retainer 40 can be assembled to the connector housing 10 from the front.

The window hole 36 of the moving plate 30
Since the retainer 40 can penetrate the retainer 40 in the front-rear direction, the retainer 40 can be assembled after the moving plate 30 is attached to the hood portion 11. In the present embodiment, the moving plate 30 is assembled first, and then the retainer 40 is assembled. However, the retainer 40 may be assembled first, and then the moving plate 30 may be assembled.

Also, a window hole 36 is provided in the moving plate 30.
Is formed, the retainer 40 is assembled from the front, but this means that it is not necessary to form an opening for attaching the retainer 40 to the outer surface of the connector housing 10. Further, the retainer mounting hole 17 is disposed in the back surface of the hood 11 in the connector housing 10, that is, in a region surrounded by the inner periphery of the hood 11. Therefore, by merely providing the seal member 38 between the inner periphery of the hood portion 11 and the outer periphery of the female connector F, the fitting portion with the female connector F can be waterproofed, and at the same time, the water enters the retainer mounting hole 17. Has also been prevented.

The retainer 40 has a guide portion 42 which is inserted into the retainer mounting hole 17 prior to the detachment restricting function portion 41 when the retainer 40 is assembled to the connector housing 10. Part 4
By inserting 2 into retainer mounting hole 17 first, retainer 40 is positioned with respect to connector housing 10 and the posture is stabilized. Thereby, the retainer 40 can be assembled smoothly and reliably.

Further, the guide portion 42 is disengaged.
Are arranged in a pair at both ends, so that the posture of the retainer 40 is less likely to tilt as compared with the case where it is formed only at one end. Further, since the leading portion 44 having a tapered shape is formed at the tip of the guide portion 42, the guide portion 42 can be easily inserted into the retainer mounting hole 17. Further, since the locking portion 43 for holding the retainer 40 in the temporary locking position and the full locking position is formed in the guide portion 42, compared with the case where the locking portion is arranged at a position separate from the guide portion 42. Thus, simplification and downsizing of the shape of the entire retainer 40 are realized.

[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 embodiment, the entire retainer is exposed forward from the window hole of the moving plate. However, according to the present invention, only a part of the retainer may be exposed forward from the window hole. .

(2) In the above embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to a waterproof connector is described. However, the present invention can be applied to a non-waterproof connector. (3) In the above embodiment, seal rings are provided around the inner and outer peripheries of the moving plate as waterproof means between the hood and the mating connector. However, according to the present invention, the seal rings are attached to the inner perimeter of the hood. The seal member may be directly adhered to the outer periphery of the mating connector.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a horizontal sectional view showing a state where a retainer is temporarily locked.

FIG. 2 is a horizontal sectional view showing a state where a retainer is temporarily locked and a terminal fitting is inserted.

FIG. 3 is a horizontal sectional view showing a state where a retainer is fully locked.

FIG. 4 is a horizontal sectional view showing a state where a mating connector is fitted.

FIG. 5 is a front view of the connector housing.

FIG. 6 is a front view showing a state in which the retainer is aligned with the window hole of the moving plate.

FIG. 7 is a front view of a moving plate.

FIG. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view of a moving plate.

FIG. 9 is a front view of a retainer.

FIG. 10 is a side view of a retainer.

FIG. 11 is a plan view of a retainer.

FIG. 12 is a rear view of the retainer.

FIG. 13 is a partially enlarged horizontal sectional view showing a state in which a retainer is removed.

FIG. 14 is a partially enlarged horizontal sectional view showing a state where the retainer is temporarily locked.

FIG. 15 is a partially enlarged horizontal sectional view showing a state where the retainer is fully locked.

[Explanation of symbols]

 M ... Connector F ... Female connector 10 ... Connector housing 11 ... Hood section 20 ... Male terminal fitting 21 ... Tab 30 ... Moving plate 33 ... Positioning hole 36 ... Window hole 40 ... Retainer

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Yuichi Nanko 1-14 Nishisuehirocho, Yokkaichi-shi, Mie Sumitomo Wiring Systems, Ltd. (72) Inventor Kozue Takatsuki 1-14 Nishisuehirocho, Yokkaichi-shi, Mie Sumitomo F Term (Reference) 5E021 FA05 FA09 FB07 FC25 FC32 FC40 HB03 HB05 JA20 5E087 EE14 FF02 FF13 GG15 GG24 GG31 GG32 HH06 LL01 LL04 LL11 LL12 RR12 RR13 RR26 RR36

Claims (1)

[Claims] A connector housing having a hood portion into which a female connector is fitted; a male terminal fitting inserted into the connector housing to project a tab into the hood portion; and a back surface of the hood portion. A retainer assembled to a provisional locking position allowing insertion of the male terminal fitting, a full locking position restricting the inserted male terminal fitting to be removed, a positioning hole for penetrating the tab, and a correspondence with the retainer. In the hood portion, a stand-by position is formed in the hood portion, which is separated from a back surface of the hood portion and a projection end of the tab is fitted into the positioning hole, and approaches a back surface of the hood portion. A moving plate that moves between a base end of the tab and a fitting position for fitting the positioning hole into the positioning hole. In a state where the moving plate is at the standby position, the connector, wherein the window hole is configured to be closed by the retainer.