JP2007227037A - Bulb socket - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a bulb socket, capable of suppressing deformation of a connecting terminal during insert molding. <P>SOLUTION: A main body part 31 of the connecting terminal 30 includes a bulb contact part 32 protruding over the main body part 31 in the attaching and detaching direction of a bulb, and mold insert parts 36a and 36b to which leg parts of a mold enclosing the bulb contact part 32 are inserted during insert molding, and the leg parts of the mold are inserted into the connecting terminal 30 through the mold insert parts 36a and 36b during the insert molding to support the main body part 31. According to this, deformation of the main body part 31 of the connecting terminal 30 by resin pressure can be suppressed. Since the bulb contact part 32 is entirely enclosed by the mold during the insert molding, intrusion of a melted resin material to the bulb contact part 32 can be prevented. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a bulb socket used for a vehicle turn signal lamp or the like, and more particularly to a bulb socket in which a connection terminal is insert-molded in a bulb socket body.

  Vehicles such as automobiles are provided with a turn signal lamp (direction indicator lamp) for notifying other vehicles etc. of the traveling direction of the vehicle, a license plate lamp (number light) for illuminating the license plate at night, etc. Yes. Any of these vehicular lighting devices can be turned on as needed by an operator operating an operation switch provided in the vehicle.

  Usually, a vehicle lighting device includes a valve socket body made of a resin material such as plastic, a connection terminal formed by bending a conductive thin plate, a valve detachably provided on the connection terminal, and a valve socket. It is comprised from the cover which consists of transparent resin which protects the connection terminal and valve | bulb in a main body from rain water, dust, etc. To replace the valve, remove the cover from the valve socket body, etc., pull out the old valve from the vertical direction of the valve socket body, and insert the new valve with a predetermined load from the vertical direction of the valve socket body. I have to.

  As such a lighting device for a vehicle, for example, a valve socket as shown in Patent Document 1 or 2 is known. These valve sockets are formed in a straight line so that the connection terminals provided in the main body thereof are on the same axis line as the valve attaching / detaching direction and the connector attaching / detaching direction. Accordingly, the valve socket can be assembled by inserting the linear connection terminal formed by bending the thin plate into a predetermined portion of the valve socket formed in advance by resin or the like. However, since the connection terminal and the valve socket body are formed in a straight line, the length of the connecting terminal and the valve socket body is large with respect to the mounting direction to the vehicle, and the mounting to the vehicle or the like where the depth dimension at the mounting portion of the vehicle is limited. Problems such as difficulties arise.

Therefore, in order to solve such a problem, a bulb socket formed by bending a connection terminal and a bulb socket body in an L shape is applied as a vehicle lighting device. There is a valve socket as shown in. According to such a so-called L-shaped valve socket, the connection terminal provided in the main body is formed in an L shape so that the attaching / detaching direction of the valve is substantially perpendicular to the attaching / detaching direction of the connector. As with Patent Documents 1 and 2, the connection terminal cannot be assembled by being inserted into the valve socket body. Therefore, the connection terminal is provided in the valve socket body by insert-molding the L-shaped connection terminal.
JP 10-31910 A Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 2-150688 Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 63-187290

  The connection terminal of the valve socket in Patent Document 3 described above includes a valve contact portion (contact portion) that sandwiches the electrode portion of the valve, and surrounds the valve contact portion, and in the valve attachment / detachment direction with respect to the valve contact portion. A side wall (standing wall) having a U-shaped cross section extending high is formed by bending a thin plate having conductivity. And when this connection terminal is insert-molded and provided in the valve socket body, a mold that covers the portion exposed to the outside from the side wall of the connection terminal, that is, the opening portion of the side wall having a U-shaped cross section, is set. Thus, the molten resin material is prevented from entering the valve contact portion.

  However, in insert molding, in order to spread the molten resin material evenly across the gaps of the mold, the resin material is fed at a predetermined pressure, and the cross section of the connection terminal is U-shaped by this resin pressure. There is a risk that the side wall of the bulge bulges toward the valve contact and is deformed. In particular, in the case of dealing with a small connection terminal in which a small valve is detachably provided, it has been difficult to reduce the plate thickness to ensure the moldability.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the said situation, The objective is to provide the valve socket which can suppress a deformation | transformation of the connection terminal at the time of insert molding.

  The valve socket of the present invention is a valve socket in which a connection terminal in which a valve is detachably provided on one end side and a connector is detachably provided on the other end side is insert-molded, and the connection terminal includes a body portion A valve contact portion that is provided integrally with the main body portion and protrudes in a direction in which the valve is attached and detached from the main body portion, and a connector that is provided integrally with the main body portion and extends toward the opposite side of the valve contact portion. And a die insertion portion into which an end of a die surrounding the valve contact portion is inserted during the insert molding.

  The valve socket according to the present invention is characterized in that the connector contact portion of the connection terminal is bent with respect to the attaching / detaching direction of the valve.

  According to the present invention, the mold insertion in which the valve contact part protruding in the attaching / detaching direction of the valve from the main body part and the end part of the mold surrounding the valve contact part at the time of insert molding are inserted into the main body part of the connection terminal. Since the end of the mold enters the connection terminal through the mold insertion part and supports the main body part at the time of insert molding of the valve socket, the main body part of the connection terminal is thereby supported. Deformation can be suppressed. Further, since the valve contact portion is surrounded from the entire surface by the mold during the insert molding of the valve socket, the molten resin material can be prevented from entering the valve contact portion.

  According to the present invention, since the connector contact portion of the connection terminal is bent with respect to the attaching / detaching direction of the valve, it can be attached to an attachment target in which the depth dimension in the mounting portion of the valve socket is limited.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1 is a cross-sectional view along the longitudinal direction of a valve socket according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view along the short direction of the valve socket shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a connection shown in FIG. FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrams each showing a relative position relationship between the connection terminal, the socket body, and the mold at the time of insert molding.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the bulb socket 10 is used as a turn signal lamp as a vehicle lighting device attached to a side surface of a vehicle (not shown) such as an automobile. The valve socket 10 is held by a valve socket body 20 made of a resin material such as plastic, a pair of connection terminals 30a and 30b formed by bending a flat conductive member, and the connection terminals 30a and 30b. And a cover 50 made of an orange transparent resin for protecting the connection terminals 30a and 30b and the bulb 40 from rain water, dust, and the like.

  Each connection terminal 30a, 30b is provided inside the valve socket body 20 by insert molding, and the cover 50 is detachably attached to the valve socket body 20 by a lock mechanism such as a lock claw not shown. Thereby, when the filament (not shown) of the valve 40 is cut, the lock mechanism is released, the cover 50 is removed from the valve socket body 20, and the old valve 40 is pulled out from the vertical direction of the valve socket body 20, The valve 40 can be replaced by inserting a new valve 40 under a predetermined load from the vertical direction of the valve socket body 20.

  The valve socket body 20 includes a solid portion 21 in which the connection terminals 30a and 30b are embedded by insert molding, and a first portion in which one end side of each of the connection terminals 30a and 30b protrudes toward the valve 40 side. A first opening 22 and a second opening 23 provided on the opposite side of the first opening 22 and opening on the right side in FIG. 1 and projecting from the other end of each connection terminal 30a, 30b are formed. .

  A flange portion 22a is integrally formed in the first opening portion 22, and a cover 50 is connected to the flange portion 22a via a lock mechanism. A connector (not shown) for connecting a harness (wiring) from a battery (not shown) mounted on the vehicle or an operation switch (not shown) provided in the vehicle to the second opening 23. Is detachably provided. Further, a lock claw 23a that holds the connector connected is integrally formed on the lower end side of the second opening 23 in the figure.

  Of the connection terminals 30a and 30b, one of the connection terminals 30a is a negative terminal that is grounded to the vehicle body or the like, and the other connection terminal 30b is connected to the positive terminal of the battery via an operation switch. It is a positive terminal. The connection terminals 30a and 30b are all formed in the same shape, and the connection terminals 30a and 30b are insert-molded so as to face each other and not contact each other as shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, each connection terminal 30a, 30b (hereinafter simply referred to as connection terminal 30) is a flat conductive member made of a copper-based material having excellent conductivity (for example, a thickness of 0.3 to 0.4 mm) is punched out by press working or the like, and the punched conductive member is bent using a jig or the like (not shown). The connection terminal 30 includes a main body portion 31, a valve contact portion 32, and a connector contact portion 33.

  The main body portion 31 of the connection terminal 30 is connected to the connector contact portion 33 at the lower end side in the drawing, and a first vertical portion 31a embedded in the solid portion 21 of the valve socket main body 20 by insert molding, and a first vertical portion One end is connected to the portion 31a, the parallel portion 31b bent in a direction substantially perpendicular to the first vertical portion 31a, the lower end side is connected to the parallel portion 31b, and the lower end side of the valve contact portion 32 is connected to the upper end side. The second vertical portion 31c.

  The first vertical portion 31a of the main body 31 is provided with a perforation 34 at a substantially central portion thereof, and the perforation 34 allows a molten resin material to pass back and forth during insert molding. Further, a pair of barriers 35a and 35b bent upward are provided on the left and right sides of the parallel part 31b of the main body 31 in FIG. 3, and the resin melted during insert molding by these barriers 35a and 35b. The material is prevented from entering the inside of each barrier 35a, 35b.

  In the upper part of the second vertical portion 31c of the main body portion 31 in FIG. 3, the mold insertion portions 36a and 36b formed by turning back three times toward the parallel portion 31b and having a hollow portion having a substantially rectangular cross section. Are formed to face each other on the left and right sides in FIG. In the mold insertion portions 36a and 36b, leg portions 62a and 62b as end portions of the mold 60 are inserted into the hollow portions at the time of insert molding as shown in FIGS. It is like that. Further, the lower ends of the pair of valve contact portions 32a and 32b are connected to the upper ends of the inner portions of the mold insertion portions 36a and 36b.

  The pair of valve contact portions 32a and 32b protrudes upward in the drawing in the direction of attaching and detaching the valve 40 from the mold insertion portions 36a and 36b of the second vertical portion 31c constituting the connection terminal 30. Is formed in a substantially arc shape. The arc-shaped projecting sides of the valve contact portions 32a and 32b face each other inward, and sandwich the electrode portion (wedge portion) 41 of the valve 40 shown in FIG.

  The connector contact portion 33 is formed in a long shape by being folded back so that two plate-like conductive members overlap each other, and one side thereof is connected to the lower end side in the drawing of the first vertical portion 31a, and the other side. Becomes a flat terminal (male) and is detachable from a flat terminal (female) in the vehicle-side connector. Thereby, the connection terminal 30 is formed by bending the flat conductive member so that the outer shape thereof is substantially L-shaped.

  Next, insert molding of the valve socket 10 according to the present invention configured as described above will be described.

  As shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the mold 60 determines the inner shape of the first opening 22 of the valve socket body 20. The mold 60 surrounds the valve contact portion 32 from the entire surface and prevents a molten resin material from entering the inside of the valve contact portion 32, and a diagram of the valve contact surrounding portion 61. One side is connected to the middle lower end side, and the other side has a pair of leg portions 62 a and 62 b inserted into the respective mold insertion portions 36 a and 36 b of the connection terminal 30.

  As shown in FIG. 4A, the leg portions 62a and 62b of the mold 60 are inserted into the respective mold insertion portions 36a and 36b of the connection terminal 30 from above in the drawing, and the leg portions 62a and 62b Insert molding is performed in a state where the lower end side in the drawing is in contact with the parallel portion 31 b of the connection terminal 30. At this time, the leg portions 62a and 62b come into contact with the inner surface of the second vertical portion 31c of the connection terminal 30 to back up the second vertical portion 31c. Further, the upper surface of the second vertical portion 31c of the connection terminal 30 in the drawing and the mold 60 are in close contact with each other to seal each other, thereby preventing the molten resin material from flowing between the two. In addition to the legs 62a and 62b provided on the mold 60, a mold 60 having another leg 62c as shown by a broken line in FIG. 4A may be used. The second vertical part 31c can be backed up more strongly by the part 62c. After the molten resin material is solidified from the state shown in FIG. 4 (a), as shown in FIG. 4 (b), the mold 60 is pulled out in the direction of the arrow in FIG. finish.

  As described above in detail, according to the valve socket 10 in the present embodiment, the main body 31 of the connection terminal 30 has the valve contact 32 protruding in the attaching / detaching direction of the valve 40 from the main body 31 and the insert molding. Since the mold insert portions 36a and 36b into which the leg portions 62a and 62b of the mold 60 surrounding the valve contact portion 32 are inserted are provided, the leg portions 62a and 62b of the mold 60 are formed at the time of insert molding of the valve socket 10. Since 62b enters the connection terminal 30 via the mold insertion parts 36a and 36b and supports the main body 31, the mold 60 receives the resin pressure and the main body 31 of the connection terminal 30 is deformed. Can be suppressed. Therefore, since the plate thickness of the connection terminal can be reduced and the moldability can be ensured, it is possible to cope with a small connection terminal in which a small valve is detachably provided. In addition, since the valve contact portion 32 is surrounded from the entire surface by the mold 60 during insert molding of the valve socket 10, it is possible to prevent molten resin material from entering the valve contact portion 32.

  Further, according to the valve socket 10 in the present embodiment, the connector contact portion 33 of the connection terminal 30 is bent with respect to the attaching / detaching direction of the valve 40, so that the depth dimension in the mounting portion of the valve socket 10 is limited. It can be attached to.

  It goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, in the above embodiment, the connection terminal 30 is formed by bending a flat conductive member so that the outline of the connection terminal 30 is substantially L-shaped. Not limited to this, the connection terminal may be formed linearly so that the connector contact portion is on the same axis with respect to the valve contact portion. Further, the connection terminal 30 may be formed at any other angle in accordance with the shape of the bulb socket 10 on the attachment target side, without being formed in a substantially L shape at a right angle (90 degrees).

  Furthermore, in the said embodiment, what used the valve socket 10 for the turn signal lamp with which the side surface of a vehicle is mounted was shown, However, This invention is not restricted to this, The license plate which is another vehicle lighting device It may be used for a lamp (number light), a clearance lamp (vehicle width light), or the like.

It is sectional drawing which follows the longitudinal direction of the valve socket which is one embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which follows the transversal direction of the valve socket shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the connection terminal shown in FIG. 1 alone. (A), (b) is a figure showing the relative positional relationship of the connection terminal and socket main body at the time of insert molding, and a metal mold | die.

Explanation of symbols

10 Valve socket 20 Valve socket body (valve socket)
21 Solid part (valve socket)
22 First opening (valve socket)
22a Flange 23 Second opening (valve socket)
23a Lock claw 30, 30a, 30b Connection terminal 31 Body (connection terminal)
31a 1st vertical part 31b Parallel part 31c 2nd vertical part 32, 32a, 32b Valve contact part 33 Connector contact part 34 Perforation 35a, 35b Barrier 36a, 36b Mold insertion part 40 Valve 50 Cover 60 Mold 61 Valve contact enclosure part 62a, 62b, 62c Leg (end)

Claims (2)

A connection terminal in which a valve is detachably provided on one end side and a connector is detachably provided on the other end side is a valve socket that is insert-molded,
The connection terminal is
The main body,
A valve contact portion provided integrally with the main body portion and projecting in the attaching / detaching direction of the valve from the main body portion;
A connector contact portion provided integrally with the main body portion and extending toward the opposite side of the valve contact portion;
The valve socket according to claim 1, wherein a die insertion portion into which an end portion of a die surrounding the valve contact portion is inserted during the insert molding is provided in the main body portion.   The valve socket according to claim 1, wherein the connector contact portion of the connection terminal is bent with respect to the attaching / detaching direction of the valve.

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