JP2003274532A - Protector - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a protector that allows precise positioning of a tube housed inside the protector. <P>SOLUTION: The protector 1 comprises a housing part 3 that houses the front end of the corrugated tube 20 and is provided with a latching rib 2 latched to a groove 22 of the housed corrugated tube 20; an engaging part 7 that is formed at the front of the housing part 3 and engaged with the rear end of an engagement detection member 40; and an opening 6 formed in the front end of the housing part 3. The protector is also configured such that a protrusion preventive wall 5 for preventing the tip of the corrugated tube 20 from protruding is formed in the protector, and a clearance is formed between a packing 33 of a female connector 30 and the protrusion preventive wall 5, in a state with the engagement detection member 40 being completely slid to the engagement direction of the female connector 30. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention is attached to a half-fitting detection connector used for connecting electric wires of automobiles and the like, and protects an electric wire led out from the connector equipped with the half-fitting detection member. The present invention relates to a protector for connecting a tube with a connector.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a protector mounted on a connector is mounted on a rear end of the connector while locking a corrugated tube for accommodating and protecting an electric wire led to the rear of the connector to restrict axial movement. It is what is done. As shown in FIG. 7, the protector 71 is attached to the half-fitting detection connector.
Protector 71, the female connector 90
It is attached to the rear end of the fit detecting member 100 that is slidably mounted on the outer periphery of the male and female connectors 90 and 110 along the fitting direction (see FIG. 8).

The female connector 90 accommodates a female terminal (not shown) and guides an electric wire W connected to the female terminal rearward. Although not shown, at least two female terminals are accommodated in parallel, and a plurality of electric wires W connected to each female terminal are led out. A rubber packing 93 is attached to a portion where the electric wire W is led out in a state of protruding rearward from a rear end of the terminal accommodating chamber of the female connector 90. This packing 93 covers the outer periphery of the electric wire W and elastically maintains the contact state between the female connector and the electric wire W.
The electric wire W is prevented from being damaged at the lead-out portion, and intrusion of water or the like from the outside is prevented.

The protector 71 is a corrugated tube 8
It has a cylindrical accommodating portion 73 for accommodating the front end portion of 0. The groove 8 of the corrugated tube 80 is provided in the accommodation portion 73.
Three annular locking ribs 72 for locking 2 are provided. Engagement portions 77 for attaching the protector 71 to the rear end of the fitting detection member 100 are provided on both front sides of the housing portion 73.
Are formed.

When the female connector 90 is not fitted to the male connector, the locking arm 101 provided on the fitting detecting member 100 is engaged with the locking hole 91 of the female connector 90,
The rear end of the fitting detection member 100 is positioned at the initial position where it is projected rearward from the rear end of the female connector 90.

As shown in FIG. 8, when the male connector 110 is fitted into the female connector 90, the engaging projections 111 of the male connector 110 are locked in the locking holes 91 of the female connector 90,
The locking arm 101 of the fitting detection member 100 is unlocked from the locking hole 91. After that, the fitting detecting member 100 is slid in the front direction of the female connector 90 along the fitting direction of the female connector 90. When the fitting detection member 100 is completely slid in the front direction of the female connector 90,
The locking arm 101 is locked to the detection member locking portion 92, and the rear end of the fitting detection member 100 is positioned at the detection position in the completely fitted state where the rear end of the fitting detection member 100 matches the rear end surface of the female connector 90. By the sliding movement of the fitting detecting member 100 to the detecting position, the completely fitted state of the male and female connectors 90 and 110 can be detected.

[0007]

However, in order to completely slide the fitting detecting member 100 in the forward direction of the female connector 90, a space for accommodating the packing 93 must be provided at the front end of the accommodating portion 73. In the configuration of the protector 71, the corrugated tube 80 is provided in the housing portion 7.
The front end position of the corrugated tube 80 cannot be positioned when the corrugated tube 80 is housed in the housing 3, so that the corrugated tube 80 projects forward from the housing portion 73, or a space for housing the packing 93 is not secured. Sometimes. In that case, the front end of the corrugated tube 80 contacts the packing 93, and the fitting detection member 100
However, there is a problem in that the male connector 90 cannot completely slide in the front direction of the female connector 90, and it is impossible to detect the completely fitted state of the male and female connectors 90 and 110.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a protector capable of reliably positioning a tube accommodated in the protector.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, a protector according to claim 1 of the present invention accommodates a connection terminal in a terminal accommodating chamber and is attached to an end of an electric wire connected to the connection terminal. And a connector housing in which a packing is inserted at the rear end of the terminal accommodating chamber; A protector attached to a half-fitting detection connector having a fitting detection member for detecting a half-engaged state, which accommodates the electric wire and has circumferential ridges and grooves alternating on the outer peripheral surface. A semi-cylindrical accommodating portion for accommodating a front end portion of a bellows-shaped tube formed on the accommodating tube and having a locking rib that is engaged with the groove of the accommodated tube; First and second protector parts each having an engaging portion formed on one side and engaged with a rear end part of the fitting detection member, and a hinge connecting the first and second protector parts, A lock means for locking the first protector part and the second protector part to each other;
A projection preventing wall having a semicircular opening is provided at the front ends of the accommodating portions of the first and second protector parts to prevent the tube tip from projecting, and the fitting detection member is fitted with the connector. It is characterized in that a gap is formed between the packing and the protrusion preventing wall in a state of completely sliding in the mating direction.

According to the protector having the above structure, since the projection preventing wall having the semicircular opening is provided at the front ends of the accommodating portions of the first and second protector parts, the tube is accommodated in the accommodating portion. At this time, the tube can be prevented from protruding to the front of the housing portion. Further, since the fitting detection member is completely slid in the fitting direction of the connector, a gap is formed between the packing and the projection preventing wall, so that the tube or protector comes into contact with the packing. This can be reliably prevented, and the fitting detection member can be completely slid in the fitting direction.

Further, a protector according to a second aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object is the protector according to the first aspect, in which the rear end of the protrusion preventing wall and the front end of the locking rib are provided. The interval is wider than the interval between the adjacent grooves of the tube.

According to the protector having the above structure, even if the front end portion of the tube is not cut cleanly and the cut end is slanted, the distance between the protrusion preventing wall and the locking rib is larger than that between adjacent grooves. Since it is widely provided, the front end portion of the tube can be reliably accommodated in the accommodation portion.

Further, a protector according to claim 3 of the present invention for achieving the above object is the protector according to claim 1, wherein the diameter of the opening of the protrusion preventing wall is:
It is characterized in that it is provided with a diameter smaller than the outer circumference of the groove of the tube.

According to the protector having the above structure, the diameter of the opening of the protrusion preventing wall is formed smaller than the outer diameter of the groove of the tube, so that the tube protrudes forward of the protrusion preventing wall. The first and second protector parts are no longer locked together. Therefore, when the protector is attached to the fitting detection member, it is possible to prevent the tube from protruding in front of the protrusion preventing wall.

A protector according to a fourth aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object is the protector according to the first aspect, wherein the protector wall and the rear end of the connector housing are attached when the protector is mounted. It is characterized in that a confirmation hole is provided so that the space between them can be visually recognized.

According to the protector having the above structure, since the confirmation hole for visually confirming between the projection preventing wall and the rear end of the connector housing is provided, it is possible to determine whether or not the tube is present in front of the accommodating portion. , Can be visually confirmed before the connectors are fitted to each other. When the tube is present in front of the housing portion, it can be determined that the tube is not properly housed.

A protector according to a fifth aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object is the protector according to the first aspect, wherein the hinge is made of a thin band-shaped flat plate.
The radius of curvature formed at the corner of the connecting portion with the first protector component is different from the radius of curvature formed at the corner of the connecting portion with the second protector component. To do.

According to the protector having the above-mentioned structure, the central axis of the hinge, which is bent, is biased toward the side having a small radius of curvature due to the difference in the radius of curvature formed at the corners of the connecting portion, so that the first and second protector parts are provided. Since a large clearance is provided when locking each other, the degree of freedom of the lock operation is increased and the operability can be improved.

[0019]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a protector according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. Figure 1
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the protector of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view of the protector shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state in which the protector of FIG. 3 is a plan view of FIG. 3, FIG. 5 is a vertical sectional view of FIG. 3, and FIG.
FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a state in which a male connector is fitted to the female connector in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the protector 1 for the half-fitting detection connector of this embodiment has a structure in which a first protector part A and a second protector part B are connected by a hinge 15. I am doing it. The first protector part A and the second protector part B are similar to each other in a halved shape, and a corrugated tube having a bellows shape in which circumferential ridges 21 and circumferential grooves 22 are alternately formed in the axial direction. 20
And the hinge 15 is bent and attached to the rear end of the fitting detection member 40 described later (see FIG. 3).

First, the structure common to the first protector part A and the second protector part B will be described.
First protector part A and second protector part B
Has a semi-cylindrical accommodating portion 3 that accommodates the front end portion of the corrugated tube 20. A plurality of locking ribs 2 for locking the grooves 22 of the corrugated tube 20 are provided in the housing portion 3.
In this embodiment, three articles are provided. The distance L between the locking ribs 2, 2 is the distance between the grooves 22 formed in the corrugated tube 20, that is, the groove 2 straddling one protrusion 21.
It is set according to the interval of 2,22.

A projection preventing wall 5 is provided at the front end of the accommodating portion 3 to prevent the corrugated tube 20 from projecting forward of the accommodating portion 3 when the corrugated tube 20 is accommodated. Further, the protrusion prevention wall 5 is formed with a semicircular opening 6 for inserting the electric wire W therethrough.
The diameter of the opening 6 is equal to the groove 2 of the corrugated tube 20.
2 is smaller than the outer diameter. Further, the front end accommodating portion 4 is provided between the protrusion prevention wall 5 and the locking rib 2 located furthest to the front, and the interval M between the locking ribs 2 and 2 is set to be wider than the interval L between the locking ribs 2 and 2. In the case, two ridge portions 21 are provided at an interval capable of accommodating two.

Engaging portions 7 having engaging grooves 8 are formed on both front sides of the housing portion 3. The engagement groove 8 is engaged with the rear end portion of the fitting detection member 40 when the protector 1 is attached to the fitting detection member 40.

Next, different configurations of the first protector part A and the second protector part B will be described. Here, the different structure in the first protector part A and the second protector part B means a lock for mutually locking the first protector part A and the second protector part B, each of which has a half-split shape. It relates to means.

A lock portion 9 having a lock hole 10 is provided on one side portion of the housing portion 3 of the first protector part A. The lock portion 9 is engaged with a lock projection 11 formed on one side portion of the housing portion 3 of the second protector component B. A lock claw 12 is provided on the other side of the housing 3 of the first protector component A. The lock claw 12 is engaged with a lock groove 12 formed on the other side portion of the housing portion 3 of the second protector component B.

Further, the other side portion of the accommodation portion 3 for the first protector component A and the accommodation portion 3 for the second protector component B are provided.
A hinge 15 for connecting the first protector component A and the second protector component B is provided between the other side portion of the hinge protector and the second protector component B. The hinge 15 is made of a thin strip-shaped flat plate, and when the protector 1 is attached, the housing portions 3 and 3 are bent so that the corrugated tube 20 is housed from both sides.

The connecting portion of the hinge 15 with the first and second protector parts A and B is formed with a curvature at the corners. The radius of curvature r in the connecting portion with the first protector component A is smaller than the radius of curvature R in the connecting portion with the second protector component B. Due to this difference in curvature, the hinge 15 when mounting the protector 1
The axis of rotation X around which the
It is set on the protector part A side. Therefore, the first
Also, the clearance for locking the second protector parts A and B with each other is increased by the width of the rotation axis X biased toward the first protector part A, which increases the degree of freedom of the lock operation. It is easily locked.

Next, an example of a procedure for mounting the protector 1 will be described. First, in the housing portion 3 of the first protector part A,
The front end of the corrugated tube 20 is arranged rearward of the protrusion preventing wall 5, and the groove 22 is locked by the locking rib 2 to be housed. At this time, the electric wire W (not shown) in front of the corrugated tube 20 is inserted into the opening 6 of the protrusion prevention wall 5. Next, the lower portion of the rear end of the fitting detection member 40 is attached to the engaging portion 7
Engage with the engaging groove 8. In this state, the hinge 15 is bent to cover the fitting protector 40 and the corrugated tube 20 with the second protector part B from above, and the locking projection 11 is locked in the locking hole 10 and the locking claw 12 is provided.
Are locked in the lock groove 13, and the fitting detection member 40 and the corrugated tube 20 are sandwiched to lock the first and second protector parts A and B to each other.

Since the diameter of the opening 6 of the protrusion preventing wall 5 is smaller than the outer diameter of the groove 22 of the corrugated tube 20, the corrugated tube 20 protrudes forward of the protrusion preventing wall 5. In this state, the first and second protector parts A and B are not locked to each other. Therefore, the protector 1 is attached to the fitting detection member 4
The corrugated tube 20 is prevented from protruding in front of the protrusion preventing wall 5 when the corrugated tube 20 is attached to the 0.

Next, the fitting detecting member 40 having the protector 1 mounted thereon and the female connector 30 which is a connector housing in which the fitting detecting member 40 is mounted will be described. Figure 3-
As shown in FIG. 5, the protector 1 is attached to the rear end of the fitting detecting member 40 in a state where the corrugated tube 20 having the electric wire W accommodated therein is accommodated and locked in the accommodation portion 3. The fitting detecting member 40 is mounted on the outer periphery of the female connector 30 so as to be slidable along the fitting direction (see FIG. 6) between the female and male connectors 30 and 50.

The female connector 30 accommodates a female terminal (not shown) which is one of the connecting terminals, and leads out the electric wire W connected to this female terminal from the rear end. A rubber packing 33, which is mounted so as to project rearward from the rear end of the female connector 30, is attached to the lead-out portion of the electric wire W, and the electric wire W is led out from the packing 33. The packing 33 covers the outer circumference of the electric wire W and elastically maintains the contact state between the female connector 30 and the electric wire W, thereby preventing the electric wire W from being damaged at the lead-out portion and preventing water or the like from entering from the outside. is doing.

In a state where the female connector 30 is not fitted to the male connector 50, the locking arm 41 provided on the fitting detecting member 40 is engaged with the locking hole 31 of the female connector 30,
The rear end of the fitting detection member 40 is positioned at an initial position where it is projected rearward from the rear end of the female connector 30. Further, the gap P between the front end of the protrusion preventing wall 5 formed at the front end of the housing portion 3 of the protector 1 and the rear end of the fitting detection member 40 is determined by the packing 3
3 is provided longer than the length Q of the female connector 30 protruding rearward.

Further, in front of the accommodating portion 3 of the protector 1, a confirmation hole 18 is provided at a position between the engaging portions 7, 7 so that the projection preventing wall 5 and the rear end of the female connector 30 can be visually recognized. Is provided. Thereby, it is possible to visually confirm whether or not the corrugated tube 20 is present in front of the housing portion 3 before the female and male connectors 30 and 50 are fitted to each other. When the corrugated tube 20 is present in front of the housing portion 3, it can be determined that the corrugated tube 20 is poorly housed.

As shown in FIG. 6, when the male connector 50 accommodating the male terminal (not shown) connected to the female terminal is fitted into the female connector 30, the engaging projection 51 of the male connector 50 is formed.
However, it is locked in the locking hole 31 of the female connector 30, and the locking arm 41 of the fitting detection member 40 is unlocked from the locking hole 31. After that, the fitting detection member 40 slides in the front direction of the female connector 30 along the fitting direction of the female connector 30, the locking arm 41 is locked to the detection member locking portion 32, and the fitting detection member 40 The rear end of the female connector 30 is positioned at a detection position in a completely fitted state that matches the rear end surface of the female connector 30.
By the sliding movement of the fitting detecting member 40 to the detecting position, the completely fitted state of the male and female connectors 30, 50 can be detected.

At this time, since the gap P between the front end of the protrusion preventing wall 5 and the rear end of the fitting detecting member 40 is larger than the length Q of the packing 33 protruding rearward of the female connector 30, the packing is provided. A gap is provided between 33 and the protrusion prevention wall 5. Therefore, the corrugated tube 20 and the protector 1 do not come into contact with the packing 33 to prevent the fitting detection member 40 from sliding to the fitting detection position.

[0036]

As described above, according to the protector according to the first aspect of the present invention, the projection preventing wall having the semicircular opening is formed at the front end of the accommodating portion of the first and second protector parts. Since it is provided, it is possible to prevent the tube from projecting to the front of the housing portion when the tube is housed in the housing portion. Further, since the fitting detection member is completely slid in the fitting direction of the connector, a gap is formed between the packing and the projection preventing wall,
It is possible to reliably prevent the tube or the protector from coming into contact with the packing, and it is possible to completely slide the fitting detection member in the fitting direction.

Further, according to the protector according to the second aspect, even if the front end portion of the tube is not cut cleanly and the cut end is slanted, the groove between the protrusion preventing wall and the locking rib is adjacent. Since it is provided wider than the space between the grooves, the front end portion of the tube can be reliably accommodated in the accommodation portion.

Further, according to the protector of claim 3, since the diameter of the opening of the protrusion preventing wall is formed smaller than the outer diameter of the groove of the tube, the tube is protruded in front of the protrusion preventing wall. In the defective state, the first and second protector parts are not locked to each other. Therefore, when the protector is attached to the fitting detection member, it is possible to prevent the tube from protruding in front of the protrusion preventing wall.

Further, according to the protector of the fourth aspect, since the confirmation hole is provided which allows the projection preventing wall and the rear end of the connector housing to be visually recognized, the tube exists in front of the accommodating portion. Whether or not there is a connector can be visually confirmed before fitting the connectors to each other. When the tube is present in front of the housing portion, it can be determined that the tube is not properly housed.

According to the protector of the fifth aspect, the center axis of bending of the hinge is biased toward the side with a small radius of curvature due to the difference in radius of curvature formed at the corners of the connecting portion. A large clearance is provided when the two protector parts are locked with each other, and the degree of freedom of the lock operation is increased, and the operability can be improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a protector according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the protector shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state in which the protector of FIG. 1 is attached to a half-fitting detection connector.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of FIG.

5 is a vertical cross-sectional view of FIG.

6 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a state in which a male connector is fitted to the female connector in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a state in which a conventional protector is attached to a half-fitting detection connector.

8 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a state in which a male connector is fitted to the female connector in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 protector 2 Locking rib 3 accommodation 4 Front end housing 5 Projection prevention wall 6 openings 7 Engagement part 8 engaging groove 9 Lock part 10 lock holes 11 Lock protrusion 12 lock claws 13 Lock groove 15 Hinge 18 Confirmation hole 20 corrugated tube 21 Ridge 22 groove 30 female connector 33 packing 40 Fitting detection member 50 male connector A First protector part B Second protector part R, r radius of curvature X rotation axis W electric wire

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Masanori Wakui             1 Toyota Town, Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture Toyota Auto             Car Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Keiichi Ito             1 Toyota Town, Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture Toyota Auto             Car Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 5E021 FA05 FA09 FB07 FB20 FC02                       FC31 FC38 GA03 GB08 GB20                       HC09 JA05 KA06                 5G357 DA10 DB03 DC12 DD01 DD10                       DG05

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A connector housing in which a connection terminal is accommodated in a terminal accommodating chamber and a packing attached to an end portion of an electric wire connected to the connection terminal is inserted into a rear end of the terminal accommodating chamber.
Half-fitting, which is mounted on the outer periphery of the connector housing so as to be slidable along the fitting direction of the female and male connectors, and a fitting detection member for detecting a half-engaged state of the male and female connectors depending on whether or not the sliding movement is possible. A protector attached to the match detection connector, which accommodates the electric wire and accommodates a front end portion of a bellows-shaped tube in which circumferential ridges and grooves are alternately formed on an outer peripheral surface and is accommodated. Also, a semi-cylindrical accommodating portion having an engaging rib that is engaged with the groove of the tube, and an engaging portion formed in front of the accommodating portion and engaged with a rear end portion of the fitting detecting member. First and second protector parts, a hinge connecting the first and second protector parts, and locking means for mutually locking the first protector part and the second protector part. And a fitting prevention member having a semicircular opening at the front end of the accommodation portion of the first and second protector parts and having a semicircular opening for preventing the projection of the tube tip. The protector is formed so that there is a gap between the packing and the protrusion preventing wall in a state where the is completely slid in the fitting direction of the connector. 2. The distance between the rear end of the protrusion prevention wall and the front end of the locking rib is wider than the distance between the adjacent grooves of the tube. Protector. 3. The diameter of the opening of the protrusion prevention wall is
The protector according to claim 1, wherein the protector is provided with a diameter smaller than an outer circumference of the groove of the tube. 4. The protector according to claim 1, further comprising a confirmation hole that allows a visual confirmation between the protrusion prevention wall and the rear end of the connector housing when the protector is attached. 5. The hinge comprises a thin strip-shaped flat plate,
The radius of curvature formed at the corner of the connecting portion with the first protector component is different from the radius of curvature formed at the corner of the connecting portion with the second protector component. The protector according to claim 1.