JP2005056797A - Electric connector - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electric connector displaying good work efficiency when connecting a connecting member. <P>SOLUTION: This electric connector is provided with a cover 5 made of a synthetic resin which can open and close the opening part 9 of a housing 3 made of a synthetic resin by rotational movement. A projection 73 formed on the side part 72 of the cover 5 is engaged with a groove 74 formed in the side wall 13 of the housing 3 to hold the cover 5 in an open position with prescribed holding force. The projection 73 gets over a getting-over part 75 at the rim part of the projection 73 to get engaged with the groove 74. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an electric connector used for connecting a thin and thin connecting member such as an FPC (flexible printed circuit).

  Conventionally, a synthetic resin housing having an opening, a contact that is arranged so as to face the opening of the housing, a synthetic resin cover that opens and closes the opening of the housing by rotation, and a posture in which the cover is closed There is a thing provided with the locking means which locks.

  In this type of connector, after inserting the connecting member from the front of the housing with no insertion force (ZIF) with the cover provided in the front half of the housing open, the cover is closed and the connecting member is connected to the contact. There is an electrical connector that pressurizes and fixes the contact portion.

On the other hand, the contact portion of the contact piece between the fixed piece and the elastic piece facing each other at a distance equal to or less than the thickness of the connecting member inserted into the housing from the insertion port of the housing is opposed to the operation lever provided at the rear of the housing. There has been provided an electrical connector in which a contact portion of an elastic piece is lifted by an external operation based on the principle of “lever” to increase the distance between the contact portions, and a connecting member is inserted without insertion force (for example, a patent) Reference 1).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-154556

  In a production line, a cover opening / closing type electrical connector may be attracted to a holding part of a robot hand by air suction and transferred onto a substrate and automatically mounted. In this case, in order to use air suction for conveyance, the cover needs to be closed and locked in a posture.

  Usually, the operation of connecting the FPC to the electrical connector that has been automatically mounted on the board is manually performed. The tip of the cover is lifted with a nail to release the lock, the cover is opened, the FPC held on the fingertip is inserted, then the cover is closed and locked in a closed position.

  However, there is a case where the opened cover is rotated in the closing direction before the FPC is inserted, and may be in a semi-closed state (unlocked state). In this case, the operation of opening the cover again is performed. Was necessary and the work was complicated.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide an electrical connector with good workability when connecting connection members.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an insulating housing having an opening, a plurality of contacts held by the housing so as to face the opening, and a rotation about a predetermined rotation axis. A cover that can open and close the opening, a pressure unit that presses the connecting member against the contact portion of the contact in a closed position of the cover, a locking unit that locks the cover in the closed position, and a predetermined cover. And holding means for holding in an open posture with the holding force. In the present invention, when the connecting member is inserted into the housing in the production line, the cover can be held in the open posture by the holding means, so that the connecting operation of the connecting member is greatly simplified. Can do.

  In the present invention, the housing may be capable of inserting a connecting member into the opening from the front, and the cover may be disposed at least at the rear of the housing. In this case, it can be suitably applied to a so-called back-lock type electrical connector.

  In the present invention, the holding means may include a pair of friction engagement portions that are provided on the side portion of the cover and the side wall of the housing facing the cover and frictionally engage with each other. In this case, the cover can be held in the open posture using the frictional engagement force. If it is friction engagement, it does not hinder the opening and closing operation of the cover, and the opening and closing operation of the cover can be carried out smoothly.

  In the invention, it is preferable that the holding means includes a protrusion provided on one of the side portion of the cover and the side wall of the housing facing the cover, and a groove provided on the other side and fitted into the protrusion. There is a case where the crossing over the overpass provided on the edge of the groove fits into the groove. In this case, since the cover cannot be rotated to the closed position unless the protrusion passes over the overpass portion, the holding force for holding the cover in the open position is further increased.

  In the present invention, the opening angle of the cover may be 100 to 150 °. In this case, since the weight of the cover generates a moment for holding the cover in the open position, the holding force for holding the cover in the open position can be further increased.

  Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an electrical connector and a connection member according to an embodiment of the present invention, and is a view of a state in which the cover of the electrical connector is opened as viewed from an oblique direction. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the electrical connector with the cover completely closed, and FIG. 3 is a front view of the electrical connector.

  1 and 2, the electrical connector 1 includes a housing 3 made of an insulating synthetic resin that holds a plurality of contacts 2 (only a single contact 2 is shown in FIG. 1) side by side. The housing 3 is provided with a cover 5 made of an insulating synthetic resin that is rotatably supported around a rotation axis 4a via a support shaft 4 having a round cross section. In FIG. 1 and the following figures, the arrow X represents the front of the housing 3.

  Referring to FIGS. 1 and 8, the main feature of the present embodiment is that protrusions are formed on side portions 71 and 72 of cover 5 as holding means for holding cover 5 in an open posture with a predetermined holding force. 73 is provided, and the side walls 12 and 13 of the housing 3 facing the side portions 71 and 72 of the cover 7 are respectively provided with grooves 74 that can be fitted into the corresponding projections 71 and 72. As shown in FIGS. 8, 9, and 10, it crosses over a mountain-shaped crossover portion 75 provided at the edge of the corresponding groove 74 and fits into the groove 74.

  In a state where the projection 73 is fitted into the groove 74 in an inclined manner, the projection 73 is received by the inner surface 74a of the groove 74, and excessive opening of the cover 5 is prevented.

  With reference to FIGS. 2, 8, and 9, an escape recess 76 is formed on the inner surface of the side wall 13 of the housing 3 to escape interference with the protrusion 73 when the cover 5 is closed. The same applies to the other side wall 12.

  With reference to FIGS. 1, 2, and 3, a square annular frame 6 is formed in the front portion of the housing 3, and the frame 6 defines an insertion port 8 for inserting a connection member 7 such as an FPC. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the inner surface of the frame 6 is formed on the inclined surface 6 b so that the width of the insertion port 8 becomes narrower in the insertion direction of the connection member 7, so that the insertion of the connection member 7 can be guided. It has become. As shown in FIG. 1, the housing 3 is provided with an opening 9 behind the frame 6, and this opening 9 opens and closes as the cover 5 rotates as shown in FIGS. 1, 5, and 4. Is done.

  The housing 3 has a bottom wall 10 (see FIGS. 1 and 5) connected to the lower frame 6a shown in FIG. 3 of the frame 6, and as shown in FIG. A plurality of contacts 2 inserted from the rear of the housing 3 toward the front X are held side by side.

  Further, the housing 3 includes a pair of side walls 12 and 13 on both sides of the bottom wall 10, and the pair of side walls 12 and 13 define the side portion of the opening 9. Grooves 61 penetrating vertically are formed on the outer surfaces of the side walls 12 and 13, and a metal reinforcing plate 15 is press-fitted and fixed in each groove 61 as shown in FIG. The reinforcing plate 15 is fixed to the surface 63 of the substrate 62 by soldering.

  With reference to FIG. 1, support portions 64 each including a groove for rotatably supporting the corresponding support shaft 4 of the cover 5 are formed on the inner side surfaces of the side portions 12 and 13 of the housing 3.

  Referring to FIG. 5, contact 2 has first and second beams 51 and 52 extending forward, and a connecting portion 53 that connects the rear ends of both beams 51 and 52 at the rear of housing 3. And make a fork. The contact 2 includes a lead portion 24 extending rearward from the lower portion of the connecting portion 53 and a lock portion 54 formed of, for example, a lock groove at the rear end edge of the connecting portion 53. The lock part 54 of the contact 2 locks the cover 5 in the closed position, which is the lock position, by engaging with an engaging part made of, for example, a protrusion described later of the cover 5.

  The first beam 51 includes a fixing portion 21 with a locking protrusion (not shown) that is press-fitted into and fixed to the fixing hole 20 of the housing 3, and an elastic piece portion 22 that extends in front of the fixing portion 21. Is provided. The second beam 52 has a base end portion 52 a received and fixed by the upper surface of the partition plate 25 that defines the upper portion of the fixing hole 20, and a front piece extending in parallel to the elastic piece portion 22. It becomes part 23. The front end 34 of the fixed piece 23 is inserted and held in a holding recess 65 formed in the rear part of the upper frame 6 c of the opening frame 6 of the housing 3.

  The opening 9 of the housing 3 is formed to allow the connection member 7 to be inserted between the fixed piece 23 and the elastic piece 22 of the contact 2 through the insertion port 8.

  Most of the elastic piece portion 22 is accommodated in an accommodation groove 27 formed on the upper surface of the bottom wall 10 of the housing 3 and can be elastically bent with a rear end portion as a base end. At the front end of the elastic piece portion 22, a contact portion 28 made of an upward chevron is formed and protrudes from the accommodation groove 27.

  Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, and 5, cover 5 has a substantially rectangular plate shape, and has first and second end edges 29 and 30 that face each other. The pair of round support shafts 4 protrude from the opposing side portions 71 and 72 of the first end edge 29 of the cover 5, respectively.

  The opening angle A of the cover 5 is preferably in the range of 100 to 150 °. By setting the opening angle A to 100 ° or more, the weight of the cover 5 generates a moment for holding the cover 5 in the open posture, and the holding force for holding the cover 5 in the open posture can be further increased. Moreover, if the opening angle A is 150 degrees or less, the electrical connector 1 when the cover 5 is opened does not increase in size. The opening angle A is more preferably 110 ° or more, and further preferably 120 ° or more.

  The left and right side portions 71 and 72 of the second end edge 30 of the cover 5 which are opposed to each other are respectively formed with engaging portions 32 made of a pair of protrusions, while the pair of side portions 12 and 12 of the housing 3 are formed. Lock portions 33 each formed of a groove formed on the inner surface of 13 are formed. As shown in FIG. 7, which is a rear view, the cover 5 is locked in a closed posture in which the surface 5 a is horizontal when the engaging portion 32 engages with the corresponding lock portion 33.

  With reference to FIGS. 2 and 5, through holes 35 through which the front ends 34 of the respective fixing pieces 23 are inserted are formed in the first end edge 29 of the cover 5. A shaft portion 36 is formed on the side of the first edge 29 of each through hole 35. Each shaft portion 36 is provided with a flat surface 36a on a part of its peripheral surface so as to form a D-shaped cross section.

  With reference to FIGS. 1 and 5, a fixed piece portion receiving groove 37 for receiving the fixed piece portion 23 of the corresponding contact 2 in the closed state of the cover 5 is formed on the back surface 5 b of the cover 5. Referring to FIG. 1, the back surface 5 b of the cover 5 is provided with retaining projections 42 on both side portions on the first edge 29 side. With the cover 5 in the closed position, the retaining protrusions 42 engage with concave grooves (not shown) formed on both side edges of the connection member 7 to prevent the connection member 7 from being pulled out.

  1, 5, and 6, the back surface 5 b of the cover 5 has a pressurizing portion at a portion from the first edge 29 to a predetermined distance on both sides of the fixed piece portion receiving groove 37. 38 is formed. The pressurizing unit 38 is arranged side by side alternately with the fixed piece 23 of the contact 2 in the closed posture of the cover 5.

  The shaft portion 36 connects the pressurizing portions 38 and 38 adjacent to each other below the fixed piece portion 23 of the contact 2. Each shaft portion 36 is positioned on the contact portion 28 of the elastic piece portion 22 of the corresponding contact 2, but in the closed position of the cover 5, each shaft portion 36 and the contact portion 28 of the elastic piece portion 22 of the contact 2 corresponding to each shaft portion 36. A gap larger than the thickness of the connecting member 7 is provided between them.

  The pressure members 38 located on both sides of each contact 2 press the connecting member 7 toward the elastic piece 22 side of the contact 2 in the closed position of the cover 5 to ensure contact pressure (contact pressure). ing.

  5 and 6, an end surface 39 of the first end edge 29 of the cover 5 is configured as a surface perpendicular to the surface 5a, and the end surface 39 is a part of the end surface 39 described above. The flat surface 36a of the axial part 36 is included. Further, the end surface 39 is provided with a drive unit 40 that is closer to the contact unit 28 side than the shaft unit 36 in the cover 5 in the closed or semi-closed posture. The insertion side end of the connecting member 7 inserted from the insertion port 8 abuts against the drive unit 40 of the cover 5 in a semi-closed posture in which the lock by the lock part 33 is not achieved, and the cover 5 is pushed by pushing it. It can be automatically opened. That is, the drive unit 40 functions as interlocking means for opening the cover 5 in the semi-closed posture in conjunction with the insertion operation of the connecting member 7.

  The present embodiment has the following advantages. That is, in the production line, in order to attach the connecting member 7 to the electrical connector 1 that has been automatically mounted on the board 62, the second edge 30 of the cover 5 is lifted with a claw to unlock the electrical connector 1, and a large number of electrical connectors are mounted. The cover 5 of the connector 1 is opened. At this time, the cover 5 can be held in the open posture by the fitting of the projection 73 and the groove 74. Therefore, the cover 5 is again inserted when the connecting member 7 is subsequently inserted and connected. There is no need to perform the operation of opening the connection member, and the connection operation of the connection member 7 can be greatly simplified.

  In particular, since the cover 5 cannot be turned to the closed posture side unless the projection 73 gets over the overpass portion 75, the holding force for holding the cover 5 in the open posture is further increased.

  Also, a so-called back-lock type electric power is achieved in which the connecting member 7 is inserted into the opening 9 from the front of the housing 3 and the cover 5 disposed at least at the rear of the housing 3 is closed to achieve locking on the rear side of the housing 3. It can be suitably applied to the connector 1.

  Further, since the opening angle A of the cover 5 is 100 ° or more, preferably 110 ° or more, more preferably 120 ° or more, the weight of the cover 5 can be used as a holding force for holding the cover 5 in the open posture. . If the opening angle A is 150 ° or less, the opened cover 5 does not increase the space of the electrical connector 1 so much.

  In the above embodiment, the grooves 74 may be provided on the side portions 71 and 72 of the cover 5, and the protrusions 73 may be provided on the corresponding side walls 12 and 13 of the housing 3.

  Further, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. For example, as shown in FIG. 11, the cover 5 is opened on the side walls 12 and 13 of the housing 3 corresponding to the side portions 71 and 72 of the cover. A pair of friction engagement portions 81 and 82 that frictionally engage with each other may be provided to hold the cover 5 in an open posture. If it is friction engagement, it does not hinder the opening / closing operation of the cover 5, and the opening / closing operation of the cover 5 can be performed smoothly. As a pair of friction engagement parts 81 and 82, as shown in FIG. 11, the combination of a protrusion and a combination of a protrusion and a recessed part other than the combination of a protrusion and a flat part can be illustrated.

  Further, the upper frame of the square annular frame 6 may be eliminated to form a groove-shaped frame.

  Further, the present invention can also be applied when connecting a connecting member such as FFC (flexible flat cable) or PCB (plied circuit board) instead of the FPC.

  Further, as a structure for locking the cover 5 in the closed position, the engaging portion 32 and the lock portion 33 are provided in the cover 5 and the housing 3, respectively, but instead of or in addition to this, the engaging portion 32 is provided. And the lock | rock part 33 can be provided in the cover 5 and the contact 2, respectively. As for the engaging portion 33 and the lock portion 32, either one may be a groove and the other may be a protrusion.

  In addition, various modifications can be made within the scope of the claims of the present invention, such as applying the present invention to a vertical electrical connector in which the connecting member is inserted from above rather than from the lateral direction.

It is a disassembled perspective view of the electrical connector and connection member of one Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view of an electrical connector. It is a front view of an electrical connector. It is a side view of an electrical connector. It is sectional drawing which follows the VV line of FIG. It is sectional drawing of the electrical connector of the state which open | released the cover. It is a rear view of an electrical connector. It is a perspective view of the principal part of the electrical connector of the state which opened the cover. It is a typical top view of the principal part of a housing. It is typical sectional drawing of the electrical connector of the state which open | released the cover. It is a schematic diagram of the principal part of the electrical connector of another embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Electrical connector 2 Contact 3 Housing 4 Support axis 4a Rotating axis 5 Cover 7 Connection member 8 Insertion port 9 Opening part 10 Bottom wall 12, 13 Side wall 28 Contact part 29 1st edge 30 2nd edge 32 Engagement Part (locking means)
33 Locking part (locking means)
37 Fixing piece portion receiving groove 38 Pressurizing portion 71, 72 Side portion 73 Protrusion 74 Groove 75 Overpassing portion 76 Escape recessed portion 81, 82 Friction engaging portion

Claims (5)

An insulating housing having an opening;
A plurality of contacts held by the housing to face the opening;
A cover that can be rotated around a predetermined rotation axis to open and close the opening;
A pressurizing part that is provided on the cover and pressurizes the connecting member against the contact part of the contact in a closed posture of the cover;
Locking means for locking the cover in a closed position;
An electrical connector comprising: holding means for holding the cover in an open posture with a predetermined holding force.   2. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the housing is capable of inserting a connecting member into the opening from the front, and the cover is disposed at least at a rear portion of the housing.   3. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the holding means includes a pair of friction engagement portions that are provided on a side portion of the cover and a side wall of the housing facing the cover and frictionally engage with each other.   3. The holding means according to claim 1, wherein the holding means includes a protrusion provided on any one of a side portion of the cover and a side wall of the housing facing the cover, and a groove provided on the other side and fitted into the protrusion. An electrical connector, characterized in that the projections are fitted over the groove over the overpass provided on the edge of the groove. 5. The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein an opening angle of the cover is 100 to 150 degrees.

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