JP2005063750A - Connector - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To protect an energizing means for a connector having an incomplete fitting preventing function. <P>SOLUTION: In a female housing 20 capable of fitting into a mating male housing 10, a slider 40 capable of sliding back and forth along the fitting/disconnection direction of both the housings 10, 20 is assembled. The slider 40 is pushed by the male housing 10 for retreating when the slider 40 is fitted. A compression coil spring S is assembled between the slider 40 and the female housing 20. The compression coil spring S accumulates energizing force for disconnecting both the housings 10, 20 by the retreat of the slider 40 from an initial position and can be elastically shrunk. In the female housing 20, a shielding wall 36 is provided for covering the compression coil spring S. The slider 40 has a covering wall relief recess 48 for allowing the shielding wall 36 to escape in retreating. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a connector having a half-fitting prevention function.

Conventionally, what was described in following patent document 1 is known as an example of the connector provided with the half-fitting prevention function. As shown in FIG. 22, this is assembled to the female housing 2 that can be fitted to the mating male housing 1, and is slid back and forth along the fitting / detaching direction of the two housings 1 and 2. The slider 3 is made possible, and the compression coil spring 4 is mounted so as to be sandwiched between the slider 3 and the female housing 2. When the housings 1 and 2 are fitted together, the slider 3 is pushed by the male housing 1 and retracted, and the compression coil spring 4 is elastically retracted by the retracting slider 3 to release the housings 1 and 2. Is accumulated. Therefore, when the fitting operation is interrupted in spite of the half-fitted state, the urging force accumulated in the compression coil spring 4 is released, so that both the housings 1 and 2 are forcibly separated. The situation where both the housings 1 and 2 are kept in the half-fitted state can be prevented.
JP 2002-324625 A

By the way, in the connector described above, the walls 5 and 6 covering the outer peripheral side of the compression coil spring 4 are provided on both the female housing 2 and the slider 3, but the slider 3 is between the walls 5 and 6. An escape space 7 is secured over a predetermined length so as to allow the retreat from the initial position, and the compression coil spring 4 is exposed to the outside by the range of the escape space 7. For this reason, there is a possibility that external foreign matter or the like may interfere with the compression coil spring 4 through the escape space 7, or dust may adhere to the compression coil spring 4, and the compression coil spring 4 may not perform its original function. There was sex.
The present invention has been completed based on the above situation, and an object thereof is to protect the biasing means.

  As means for achieving the above-mentioned object, the invention of claim 1 is a connector housing that can be fitted to a mating connector housing, and is assembled to the connector housing and along the fitting / removing direction of both connector housings. A slider that is slidable back and forth and that is pushed back by a mating connector housing when fitted, and a slider that is assembled between the slider and the connector housing and that slides as the slider retracts from the initial position. And an urging means capable of accumulating an urging force for releasing the mating connector housing by being elastically compressed between the connector housing and the connector housing. A cover wall is provided to cover the means, and the slider has the above-mentioned It has a feature where the escape recess for releasing have wall has a configuration provided.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the covering wall is formed so as to substantially follow the urging means, and the urging means is deformed in a direction intersecting the axial direction. It is characterized in that it can be regulated.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the guide housing according to the first or second aspect, wherein the connector housing is provided with a guide wall capable of guiding a sliding motion by slidingly contacting an outer surface of the slider. The urging means is surrounded by a wall from three directions, the covering wall is provided on the open side of the guide wall, and the width dimension thereof is set to be approximately equal to the urging means. Has characteristics.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, when the slider is at the initial position, the cover wall enters the relief recess, and the slider is disposed outside the cover wall. It is characterized by the fact that the walls are arranged so as to overlap.

<Invention of Claim 1>
When the two connector housings are fitted together, the slider is pushed back by the mating connector housing, and the urging means is retracted while accumulating the urging force. Therefore, when the operation is interrupted in the middle of the mating, the urging force accumulated in the urging means is released, so that both the connector housings are forcibly separated. The situation of being kept in the fitted state is prevented.
According to the present invention, since the urging means is covered with the covering wall, for example, a situation in which an external foreign object interferes with the urging means can be prevented, and the urging means can be protected. Moreover, since the escape recess is provided in the slider so as to escape the cover wall, the slider can be retracted without any trouble.

<Invention of Claim 2>
When the slider moves backward, the urging means can be surely contracted and the urging force can be accumulated, so that half-fitting can be reliably prevented.
<Invention of Claim 3>
The urging means is protected by being surrounded by the guide wall and the cover wall. As compared with the case where the covering wall is provided over the entire circumference of the urging means, the formation range of the escape recess is sufficient, which is suitable for downsizing.
<Invention of Claim 4>
The biasing means can always be protected.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In this embodiment, the slider 40 and the compression coil spring S are assembled to a female connector housing 20 (hereinafter simply referred to as a female housing 20) that can be fitted with a mating male connector housing 10 (hereinafter simply referred to as a male housing 10). This is what we did. In the following, the fitting surface side of both housings 10 and 20 is the front, and the vertical direction is based on each drawing excluding the plan view of FIG.

  The male housing 10 is made of synthetic resin. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 13, a hood portion 11 capable of fitting the female housing 20 on the inside, and a male terminal fitting connected to the end of the electric wire (both the electric wire) It is set as the structure which connected the terminal accommodating part 12 which can accommodate (not shown) back and forth. The terminal accommodating portion 12 is provided with three cavities 13 in which a male terminal fitting can be inserted from the rear side by side in the width direction. In addition, a retainer 14 having a locking portion 14a that can be locked to each received male terminal fitting can be attached to the terminal receiving portion 12. The retainer 14 has a temporary locking position where the locking portion 14a is retracted to the side of the cavity 13 and allows the male terminal fitting to be inserted and removed, and a book where the locking portion 14a enters the cavity 13 and locks to the male terminal fitting. It is possible to move along the width direction between two positions with respect to the locking position (only the main locking position is shown in each drawing).

  The hood portion 11 is formed in a substantially rectangular tube shape that opens forward, and the length dimension is set to be shorter than the female housing 20 by a predetermined length (about the length of a restriction portion 35 described later). A cantilevered lock arm 15 is provided to project forward from a position above the cavity 13 on the back surface of the hood portion 11 and from a substantially central position in the width direction. The lock arm 15 includes an arm portion 15a extending substantially horizontally and a flange portion 15b protruding downward from a free end (front end) of the arm portion 15a. The arm portion 15a can be elastically deformed while tilting up and down (direction intersecting the fitting / removing direction) from a substantially horizontal natural state with the base end portion as a fulcrum (see FIG. 14). The flange portion 15b is configured such that the rear surface 15c is locked to a rear surface 27a of the lock portion 27 on the female housing 20 side, which will be described later, so that the housings 10 and 20 can be held in a fitted state. The rear surface 15c of the flange portion 15b is formed in a substantially arc shape that forms a downward slope toward the front (rightward in FIG. 13). Further, the front surface 15d of the lock arm 15 is formed in a tapered shape having an upward slope toward the front, and the slope is set steeper than the rear surface 15c of the flange portion 15b.

  A cutout portion 16 that opens in the vertical direction and forward is formed at substantially the center in the width direction at the upper portion of the hood portion 11, and a slider operation portion 47 provided on the slider 40 on the female housing 20 side described later can enter here. (See FIG. 18). The cutout portion 16 is set to have a width dimension substantially the same as or slightly larger than that of the slider operation section 47, and a length dimension is set to be shorter than the movable stroke of the slider 40 by a predetermined length. The lock arm 15 described above is disposed on the rear side (back side) of the rear end surface of the notch portion 16, and the periphery thereof is completely surrounded by the wall surface of the hood portion 11. In addition, a pair of guide ribs 17 project inwardly at substantially the same height as the lock arms 15 on the inner surfaces of both side portions of the hood portion 11. A pair of guide recesses 18 are provided at both end positions on the inner surface of the lower portion of the hood portion 11.

  The female housing 20 is made of synthetic resin, and as shown in FIGS. 2 to 6, a female terminal fitting (not shown), which is connected to the end of the electric wire, can be inserted into the inside from behind. Three cavities 21 are provided side by side in the width direction. A retainer 22 for retaining the inserted female terminal fitting can be attached to the female housing 20. The retainer 22 is the same as the retainer 14 on the male housing 10 side described above, has a locking portion 22a that can be locked to the female terminal fitting, and has two positions, a temporary locking position and a main locking position. It is possible to move along the width direction (detailed explanation is omitted, and only the main locking position is shown in each drawing). In addition, a pair of guide recesses 23 are provided on both outer side surfaces of the female housing 20 to receive the guide ribs 17 on the male housing 10 side so as to guide the fitting operation of both the housings 10 and 20. A pair of guide ribs 24 that can enter the guide recesses 18 on the male housing 10 side are provided so as to protrude downward from both side edges of the lower surface of the female housing 20.

  A lock release recess 25 is formed at the approximate center in the width direction on the upper surface of the female housing 20 so that the arm 15a of the lock arm 15 can be released during fitting (see FIG. 19). The lock release recess 25 is open forward and upward, and the height and width are set to be approximately the same as or slightly larger than the arm 15a. The height position of the upper surface of the female housing 20 is substantially aligned with the upper surface of the lock arm 15. The female housing 20 is provided with a lock release hole 26 that communicates with the lock release recess 25 and that allows the flange 15b of the lock arm 15 to escape. The lock release hole 26 is disposed at a position slightly lower than the lock release recess 25, and is formed in a square hole shape opened on the rear surface of the female housing 20 for convenience of mold removal.

  And the lock part 27 which can latch the collar part 15b is left in the front side of this lock escape hole 26. FIG. The front surface 27b of the lock portion 27 is formed in a taper shape with an upward slope toward the rear, so that the operation of the lock arm 15 to ride can be guided. The rear surface 27a of the lock portion 27 is formed in a substantially arc shape that slopes downward toward the rear (rightward in FIG. 13), and has a shape that substantially follows the rear surface 15c of the flange portion 15b. Accordingly, when a force greater than a predetermined level is applied to separate the housings 10 and 20 from the state in which the flange portion 15b is locked to the lock portion 27, the rear surface 15c and the lock portion of the flange portion 15b that are tapered to each other. 27, the lock arm 15 is elastically deformed while automatically releasing the locked state. That is, the locking structure between the lock arm 15 and the lock portion 27 is a semi-lock structure. In addition, the rear surface 15c of the collar portion 15b and the rear surface 27a of the lock portion 27 may be formed in, for example, a tapered shape other than the substantially arc shape, and even in this case, the same effect as described above can be obtained.

  A pair of side walls 28 project upward from both side edges of the upper surface of the female housing 20. Both side walls 28 extend along the front-rear direction and are formed over substantially the entire length of the female housing 20. A rear wall 29 extending along the width direction is provided on the rear edge of the upper surface of the female housing 20 so as to protrude upward, and both side edges thereof are connected to the rear edge of the both side walls 28. The rear wall 29 is formed one step lower than the side walls 28. The space surrounded by the side walls 28 and the rear wall 29 is an accommodation chamber 30 that opens upward and forward, and in which the slider 40 and the compression coil spring S can be assembled from the front. The slider 40 accommodated in the accommodation chamber 30 can be slid back and forth along the fitting / removing direction of the housings 10 and 20, and when sliding, both side walls 28 and the upper surface of the female housing 20 (the bottom wall of the accommodation chamber 30) 30a) is slidable. The rear end of the compression coil spring S is received by the rear wall 29. Specifically, a spring fitting groove 29a capable of fitting the rear end portion of the compression coil spring S is formed in the center of the rear wall 29 in the width direction, and a compression coil spring is formed inside the spring fitting groove 29a. A spring insertion protrusion 29b that can be inserted into the rear end of S projects forward. On the opposite surface (inner surface) of the lower end portion of the both side walls 28 (lower portion of the support portion 33 described later), an escape groove 31 for releasing the front stop portion 45 provided in the slider 40 is opened rearward. Since the front stop receiving portion 32 provided on the front side of the escape groove 31 (the front end position of the side wall 28) is locked to the front stop portion 45, the slider 40 can be held in the front stop state. (See FIG. 8). The side walls 28 and the bottom wall 30a of the storage chamber 30 can surround the slider 40 and the compression coil spring S from three directions, and the both side walls 28 and the bottom wall 30a are claimed in claims. It corresponds to the guide wall described in the range.

  A pair of support portions 33 that can support the arm portion 46 of the slider 40 are provided in the middle of the both side walls 28 in the height direction. The support portion 33 can enter a support portion entry groove 44 of the slider 40 described later. The support portion 33 is formed in a rail shape extending in the front-rear direction along the fitting / removing direction of the housings 10, 20 and is provided over substantially the entire length of the side wall 28. It is connected. The upper surface of the support portion 33 is formed so as to be substantially flush with the upper surface of the rear wall 29. Further, both corners of the inner end of the support portion 33 are chamfered, and a pair of inclined surfaces along the chamfer are formed on the peripheral surface of the support portion entry groove 44 described later. A pair of housing operation portions 34 projecting outward from the rear end portion of the female housing 20 are provided. The housing operation part 34 is formed in a stepped shape in which a margin of outward protrusion increases toward the rear end side, thereby facilitating an operation of pulling the female housing 20 rearward. The housing operation part 34 is formed so as to protrude above the side wall 28 by a predetermined height (approximately the same as the thickness dimension of the upper part of the hood part 11).

  A pair of restricting portions 35 projecting inward from the opposing surfaces (inner surfaces) of the upper end portions of both housing operation portions 34 are provided. The lower surface of the restricting portion 35 is set to a height position substantially the same as the upper surface of the slider 40 (the surface opposite to the lower surface that is in sliding contact with the upper surface of the female housing 20), so that the slider 40 (arm portion 46). The upper surface of can be slidably contacted. The lower surface of the restricting portion 35 is disposed so as to face the upper surface of the female housing 20 so that the slider 40 can be restrained from moving up and down (in a direction intersecting the sliding direction) together with the upper surface of the female housing 20. It has become. Further, the distance between the opposing surfaces (inner surfaces) of both regulating portions 35 is set to be substantially the same as or slightly larger than the width dimension of the slider operating portion 47 of the slider 40 and is set to be substantially the same as the width dimension of the notch portion 16. Yes. In a state where both housings 10 and 20 are fitted, the restricting portion 35 is disposed so as to protrude to the outside of the hood portion 11, and is disposed opposite to the upper portion of the hood portion 11 in the front-rear direction ( FIG. 17).

  The slider 40 is made of a synthetic resin and includes a slider main body 41 having a substantially block shape. The slider body 41 has a width dimension that is the same as or slightly smaller than the distance between the opposing surfaces of the side walls 28, a length dimension that is greater than half the length of the female housing 20, and a height dimension. It is set to be approximately the same as the side wall 28. At a substantially central position on the rear surface of the slider body 41, a spring accommodating recess 42 that opens rearward and can accommodate the front end portion of the compression coil spring S is provided. The spring accommodating recess 42 is formed in a substantially circular shape along the outer peripheral surface of the compression coil spring S, and a spring insertion protrusion 42a that can enter the front end of the compression coil spring S is rearward on the rear surface (back surface). Protrusively provided. As described above, the compression coil spring S is sandwiched between the rear surface of the spring accommodating recess 42 of the slider 40 and the front surface of the rear wall 29 of the female housing 20, so It is possible.

  A bending allowance concave portion 43 that allows the lock arm 15 to ride on the lock portion 27 and elastically deform on the front end portion of the slider 40 is formed to open forward and downward. A front surface 43a of the bending-permissible recess 43 is formed as a pressed surface that is formed straight along the vertical direction and can be pressed by the front surface 15d of the lock arm 15 that is elastically deformed (see FIG. 14). In a state where both housings 10 and 20 are fitted, the rear portion of the slider body 41 with respect to the bending allowance concave portion 43 is disposed above the lock arm 15, thereby restricting the lock arm 15 from being elastically deformed. (See FIG. 17).

  A support portion entry groove 44 into which the support portion 33 of the female housing 20 can enter is formed at the substantially center position in the height direction on both outer surfaces of the slider 40 so as to open to the front and rear and to the outside. When the slider 40 slides back and forth, the peripheral surfaces of the support portion 33 and the support portion entry groove 44 are in sliding contact with each other so that the slide operation can be guided. A pair of front stop portions 45, which can be locked to the front stop receiving portion 32 of the female housing 20, are provided on the lower portion of the support portion entry groove 44 on both outer surfaces of the slider 40. It has been. The front stop 45 is tapered so that the rear surface can easily get over the front stop receiving portion 32 when the slider 40 is assembled, whereas the front surface is a locking surface with the rear surface of the front stop receiving portion 32. It is considered to be face to face. When the slider 40 is in the front-stopped state, the front end position is substantially flush with the female housing 20, and the assembly position is the initial position (see FIGS. 8 and 10). The slider 40 can be retracted from the initial position to a position (see FIGS. 19 to 21) where the rear end surface is substantially flush with the rear end surface of the female housing 20. The front surface 43a of the lock arm 15 is arranged outward (rightward in FIG. 19) from the front surface 15d of the lock arm 15, so that the elastic deformation of the lock arm 15 is allowed, and the position of the slider 40 becomes the deflection allowable position. ing.

  A cantilevered arm portion 46 extending rearward is provided from the upper rear end of the slider main body 41 (upper portion than the support portion entry groove 44). The arm portion 46 has a height dimension (thickness dimension) smaller than that of the slider main body 41 (about 1/3), the width dimension is the same as the slider main body 41, and the length dimension is substantially the same as that of the rear wall 29. It is set slightly shorter than the part 35. Since the lower surface of the arm portion 46 is continuously formed on the upper surface of the peripheral surface of the support portion entry groove 44 so as to be substantially flush with the lower surface of the arm portion 46, the upper surface of the support portion 33 can be in sliding contact with the lower surface of the arm portion 46. (See FIG. 11). Therefore, the arm portion 46 is always supported from below by the support portion 33 in the process in which the slider 40 moves back and forth. Furthermore, since the upper surface of the arm portion 46 is flush with the upper surface of the slider body 41 and is set at substantially the same height as the lower surface of the restricting portion 35, the restricting portion 35 is moved when the slider 40 moves backward. The lower surface of can be slidably contacted. As a result, the arm portion 46 is supported so as to be sandwiched between the support portion 33 and the restriction portion 35 from above and below, so that the displacement of the arm portion 46 in the vertical direction (direction intersecting the slide direction) can be restricted. (See FIG. 20). The rear wall 29 has an upper surface formed in a shape along the lower surface of the arm portion 46, and the height position is set to be substantially the same or slightly lower, so that the arm portion 46 is released when the slider 40 moves backward. (See FIGS. 9 and 19).

  A slider operation portion 47 is provided at the substantially center of the upper surface of the arm portion 46 in the width direction so as to project the slider 40 backward and project upward. The slider operating unit 47 has a front surface for an operator to hook and operate with a finger or the like, and an inclined surface with an upward slope toward the rear. An uneven portion is formed. The base end portion of the slider operation unit 47 is set to have a length dimension slightly larger than that of the arm unit 46. As described above, the slider operating portion 47 is provided on the arm portion 46 extending from the slider main body 41. Therefore, the slider operating portion 47 can be arranged at the rear position by the length of the arm portion 46, and thus the hood. The formation length of the notch part 16 of the part 11 can be shortened.

  Now, a substantially central portion in the width direction of the rear wall 29 of the female housing 20 protrudes upward along the spring fitting groove 29a. From this protruding portion, the compression coil spring S is moved upward (both side walls 28 and bottom wall). A cover wall 36 that can be covered from the open side of 30a is provided to extend forward. On the other hand, the slider 40 is formed with a cover wall escape recess 48 for allowing the cover wall 36 to escape. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 12, the covering wall 36 is formed in a substantially arc shape along the outer peripheral surface of the compression coil spring S as viewed from the front, and the inner peripheral surface thereof contacts the outer peripheral surface of the compression coil spring S. By being arranged in contact or close to each other, the deformation of the compression coil spring S in a direction (height direction or width direction) intersecting the axial direction can be restricted. The covering wall 36 is set to have a width dimension substantially equal to that of the compression coil spring S, and can surround the compression coil spring S together with the both side walls 28 of the female housing 20 and the bottom wall 30a of the accommodating chamber 30 described above. It has become. As a result, it is possible to avoid as much as possible a situation in which an external foreign matter interferes with the compression coil spring S or an external dust adheres to the compression coil spring S.

  The cover wall relief recess 48 is formed in a groove shape that opens rearward on the ceiling surface of the spring accommodating recess 42, and is formed by cutting out substantially the center in the width direction of the slider body 41 and the arm portion 46 by a predetermined width. . The covering wall relief recess 48 is formed in a substantially arc shape along the covering wall 36, and the width dimension and the height dimension are set to be substantially the same as or slightly larger than the covering wall 36. Therefore, the outer peripheral surface of the cover wall 36 is arranged in contact with or close to the ceiling surface of the cover wall relief recess 48.

  The cover wall 36 is sized so as to protrude forward from the rear end of the slider 40 whose length dimension is the initial position and enter the cover wall escape recess 48. Therefore, the wall (including the arm portion 46) of the slider 40 having the ceiling surface of the cover wall escape recess 48 is always arranged outside the cover wall 36 so as to overlap. Thus, the arm portion 46 can always be supported from below by the cover wall 36 together with the support portion 33. That is, it can be said that the covering wall 36 is an auxiliary support portion for the arm portion 46. Further, the covering wall relief recess 48 has a length range in which the front surface of the covering wall 36 comes into contact when the slider 40 is most retracted with respect to the rear surface (back surface) (when the slider 40 reaches the deflection allowable position). It is formed (see FIG. 19).

  This embodiment has the structure as described above, and the operation thereof will be described subsequently. To assemble the female connector, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the compression coil spring S is first accommodated in the accommodation chamber 30 from the front, and the spring insertion protrusion 29 b is inserted inside the rear end portion. After the rear end portion is fitted in the spring fitting groove 29a, the slider 40 is accommodated in the accommodating chamber 30 from the front. When the slider 40 is accommodated, the support portion 33 is inserted into the support portion entry groove 44, the compression coil spring S is moved from the front end side into the spring accommodation recess 42, the cover wall 36 is covered and the wall escapes into the recess 48. To. When the slider 40 reaches the initial position, as shown in FIG. 8, the front stop portion 45 enters the escape groove 31 and is locked to the front stop receiving portion 32, so that the slider 40 is held in the front stop state. Is done. In this initial position, as shown in FIG. 10, the compression coil spring S is slightly elastically compressed so that the slider 40 does not easily retreat from the initial position unless a force greater than a predetermined value is applied to the rear. It can be held elastically. In addition to the above assembly procedure, for example, the compression coil spring S is assembled in the spring accommodating recess 42 of the slider 40 and then the slider 40 and the compression coil spring S are assembled in the accommodating chamber 30 of the female housing 20. Good.

  Next, an operation for fitting both the housings 10 and 20 will be described. In order to perform the fitting operation, the female housing 20 is fitted into the hood portion 11 of the male housing 10 from the state in which the housings 10 and 20 face each other as shown in FIG. At the time of fitting, the guide ribs 17 and 24 of the housings 10 and 20 enter the guide recesses 18 and 23 and the peripheral surfaces thereof are slidably contacted with each other, so that the fitting operation is smooth. When the fitting proceeds to a predetermined depth, the lock arm 15 is elastically deformed while riding on the lock portion 27 while being guided by the inclination between the front surface 15d of the lock arm 15 and the front surface 27b of the lock portion 27 as shown in FIG. When the female housing 20 is to be fitted upside down with respect to the male housing 10, the guide ribs 17 and 24 are not aligned with the guide recesses 18 and 23, and the fitting is restricted. It is like that.

  The lock arm 15 in the tilted posture is released into the bending allowance recess 43 of the slider 40 and its front surface 15 d is brought into contact (engaged) with the front face 43 a of the bending allowance recess 43. At this time, the front surface 15 d of the lock arm 15 is substantially in contact with the front surface 43 a of the bending allowable recess 43. When the fitting is advanced from this state, the slider 40 is pushed (pressed) backward by the lock arm 15, so that the slider 40 elastically compresses the compression coil spring S as shown in FIGS. 15 and 16. While moving backwards. At the time of the retreat, the lower surface of the slider 40 is in sliding contact with the upper surface of the female housing 20, and the upper surface of the slider 40 is in sliding contact with the ceiling surface of the hood portion 11. And the support portion 33 and the cover wall 36 are slidably contacted with the lower surface of the arm portion 46, whereby the sliding operation of the slider 40 is guided. In particular, when the slider 40 is most retracted in the fitting process immediately before the normal fitting, the restricting portion 35 is slidably contacted with the upper surface of the arm portion 46 in addition to the support portion 33 and the cover wall 36. It is possible to restrict the lifting, in which the portion 46 is displaced upward.

  By the way, in spite of such a state in the middle of the fitting, there is a case where the fitting operation is interrupted by misunderstanding that the operator has properly fitted. In that case, the urging force that has been elastically compressed and accumulated in the compression coil spring S is released, and the slider 40 that is urged forward presses the lock arm 15, whereby both housings 10, 20. Can be forced to leave. Thereby, the situation where both the housings 10 and 20 are kept in a semi-fitted state is avoided.

  When the two housings 10 and 20 are fitted to the normal depth, as shown in FIG. 17, the flange portion 15b gets over the lock portion 27 and the lock arm 15 is restored to a substantially horizontal posture (natural state). The portion 15 a is released to the lock release recess 25, and the flange 15 b is released to the lock release hole 26. At this time, the rear surface 15c of the flange portion 15b is locked to the rear surface 27a of the lock portion 27, and the urging force accumulated in the compression coil spring S is applied to the slider 40 released from the pressing state by the lock arm 15. It is moved forward by being released, and when the initial position is reached, the front stop 45 is abutted against the front stop receiving portion 32 and is stopped (FIG. 8). At this time, the slider 40 enters the bending space above the lock arm 15 and the lock arm 15 is covered over almost the entire length, whereby the elastic deformation operation of the lock arm 15 is restricted. Thereby, both the housings 10 and 20 are firmly held so as not to be detached from the fitted state. When the slider 40 moves forward, as shown in FIG. 18, the slider operating portion 47 has entered the notch portion 16 of the hood portion 11, and the front surface thereof is in contact with or close to the front surface of the notch portion 16. To reach. In this fitted state, the rear end portion of the female housing 20 protrudes forward of the hood portion 11 by a predetermined length, and the restricting portion 35 has no gap between the hood portion 11 and the housing operation. The portions 34 are arranged to face each other while leaving a predetermined gap (operation space) between the portions 34.

  On the other hand, the housings 10 and 20 may be detached due to maintenance or other circumstances. In that case, by pulling the slider operation part 47 protruding upward from the hood part 11 backward, the slider 40 is moved backward while the compression coil spring S is elastically contracted, and the housing operation part 34 is held. And pull backwards. At this time, although the arm portion 46 is deformed by the operation force applied to the slider operation portion 47 and is displaced up and down, there is a concern that the operability may deteriorate, but the arm portion 46 is supported by the support portion 33 and the cover wall 36. Since it is supported from below and supported from above by the ceiling surface of the hood portion 11 and the restriction portion 35, the deformation of the arm portion 46 can be restricted, and the operability of the slider 40 is kept good. In particular, when the slider 40 reaches the bending allowance position which is most retracted in the movable stroke, the compression coil spring S is compressed most, so that the operating force applied to the slider operating portion 47 is maximized. The deformation of the portion 46 can be effectively restricted and the operability of the slider 40 can be kept good. Further, when the slider 40 is retracted, the sliding operation is guided as in the case of the fitting. Then, as shown in FIGS. 19 to 21, when the slider 40 reaches the bending allowable position where the slider 40 is completely retracted from above the lock arm 15, the pulling force applied to the female housing 20 and the slider 40 in the detaching direction, The lock arm 15 is automatically elastically deformed upward by being guided by the rear surface 15c of the flange portion 15b and the rear surface 27a of the lock portion 27 which are tapered to each other. Then, by further pulling the female housing 20 in the disengagement direction, the collar portion 15b rides on the lock portion 27 and the locked state is released. Therefore, the female housing 20 is pulled out as it is.

  Even during the above-described separation, the separation operation may be interrupted for some reason. In this case, the biasing force accumulated in the compressed compression coil spring S is released, so that the slider 40 moves forward and abuts against the front surface 15d of the lock arm 15 tilted by elastic deformation. Thus, both housings 10 and 20 are forcibly detached. This prevents both housings 10 and 20 from being left in a semi-fitted state even when detached.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the compression coil spring S is covered by the cover wall 36. For example, external foreign matter interferes with the compression coil spring S, or external dust enters the compression coil spring S. The situation where it adheres can be prevented, and the compression coil spring S can be protected. Moreover, since the cover 40 is provided with the cover wall escape recess 48 to allow the cover wall 36 to escape, the slider 40 can be moved backward without any trouble.

  Further, the cover wall 36 is formed so as to be substantially along the compression coil spring S and is capable of restricting the compression coil spring S from being deformed in a direction intersecting the axial direction thereof, so that the slider 40 moves backward. At this time, since the compression coil spring S can be reliably elastically compressed and the urging force can be accumulated, half-fitting of the housings 10 and 20 can be reliably prevented.

  In addition, the compression coil spring S is surrounded from three directions by the both side walls 28 and the bottom wall 30a of the accommodation chamber 30 slidably contacted with the outer surface of the slider 40, and the cover wall 36 is provided on the open side of the both side walls 28 and the bottom wall 30a. Since the formation width is set to be substantially equal to that of the compression coil spring S, the range in which the cover wall relief recess 48 is formed as compared with the case where the cover wall is formed in a cylindrical shape surrounding the compression coil spring over the entire circumference. Therefore, the entire connector can be reduced in size.

  Further, when the slider 40 is in the initial position, the cover wall 36 is disposed so that the cover wall escapes into the cover wall relief 48 and the wall of the slider 40 overlaps the outside thereof, so the slider 40 is assembled at the initial position. After that, the compression coil spring S can always be protected.

<Other embodiments>
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described with reference to the above description and drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention, and further, within the scope not departing from the gist of the invention other than the following. Various modifications can be made.
(1) The width dimension of the covering wall can be arbitrarily changed. For example, what formed the cover wall in the shape of a half cylinder which covers the upper half of a compression coil spring, and what formed it in the cylinder shape which covers a circumference of a compression coil spring are also contained in this invention. In that case, the shape of the cover wall relief recess on the slider side may be changed in accordance with the cover wall.

(2) The length dimension of the cover wall can also be arbitrarily changed. For example, a structure in which the cover wall does not escape and enter the recess when the slider is at the initial position is also included in the present invention.
(3) The shape of the covering wall can be arbitrarily changed in addition to the arc shape along the outer peripheral surface of the compression coil spring. Further, the present invention includes an arrangement in which the inner peripheral surface of the cover wall is arranged somewhat apart from the outer peripheral surface of the compression coil spring.

(4) The present invention can be applied to one having two or more compression coil springs.
(5) In addition to the compression coil spring, the urging means includes, for example, one using a tension coil spring.
(6) In the above-described embodiment, the case where the slider is pushed in by the lock arm provided in the male housing has been shown. However, the present invention includes the case where the slider is pushed in at a portion other than the lock arm.

(7) In the above-described embodiment, the case where the male terminal fitting connected to the electric wire is accommodated in the male housing has been shown. However, for example, the male housing is directly connected to the device and the tab-shaped male terminal fitting is embedded inside. The present invention is also included in the present invention.
(8) Contrary to the above-described embodiment, the present invention includes a slider and a compression coil spring assembled on the male housing side.

The front view of the male housing which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention Front view of female housing and slider Top view of female housing and slider Rear view of female housing and slider XX sectional view of FIG. YY sectional view of FIG. Front view of female housing with slider Top view of female housing with slider Rear view of female housing with slider XX sectional view of FIG. YY sectional view of FIG. ZZ sectional view of FIG. XX sectional drawing of FIG.1 and FIG.7 which shows the state before fitting both housings XX sectional drawing of FIG.1 and FIG.7 which shows the state of a fitting initial stage XX sectional drawing of FIG.1 and FIG.7 which shows the state in the middle of a fitting YY sectional view of FIG. 1 and FIG. 7 which shows the state in the middle of fitting XX sectional drawing of FIG.1 and FIG.7 which shows the state fitted normally Plan view showing a properly fitted state XX sectional view of FIG. 1 and FIG. 7 showing a state in which the slider is retracted to the allowable bending position at the time of separation. A cross-sectional view taken along the line Y-Y in FIGS. 1 and 7 showing a state in which the slider is retracted to the bending allowable position at the time of separation. A plan view showing a state in which the slider is retracted to the allowable bending position when detached. Side sectional view of a conventional example

Explanation of symbols

10 ... Male housing (mating connector housing)
20 ... Female housing (connector housing)
28 ... Side wall (guide wall)
30a ... Bottom wall (guide wall)
36 ... covering wall 40 ... slider 48 ... covering wall relief recess (relief recess)
S: Compression coil spring (biasing means)

Claims (4)

A connector housing that can be mated with a mating connector housing;
A slider that is assembled to the connector housing and slidable back and forth along the fitting / removing direction of both connector housings, and that is pushed back by the mating connector housing at the time of fitting;
An urging force that is assembled between the slider and the connector housing and is released between the slider and the connector housing as the slider is retracted from the initial position, thereby releasing the mating connector housing. And an urging means capable of accumulating
The connector housing is provided with a cover wall for covering the urging means, and the slider is provided with an escape recess for allowing the cover wall to escape when retracted. 2. The cover wall according to claim 1, wherein the cover wall is formed so as to substantially follow the urging means, and the urging means can be restricted from being deformed in a direction intersecting an axial direction thereof. Connector. The connector housing is provided with a guide wall capable of guiding the sliding operation by sliding contact with the outer surface of the slider, and the biasing means is surrounded from three directions by the guide wall,
The connector according to claim 1, wherein the cover wall is provided on an open side of the guide wall, and a width dimension thereof is set to be substantially equal to that of the urging means. 4. The slider according to claim 1, wherein when the slider is in the initial position, the cover wall enters the escape recess, and the slider wall overlaps the outside. A connector according to any one of the above.

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