JP2008287956A - Connector with protector - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To relax concentration of a load to a means for locking a connector housing and a protector to reduce a stress load of a locking means. <P>SOLUTION: The connector with the protector is mounted with a protector 30A for guiding an electric wire W led from a rear side of the connector housing while being bent in a direction crossing the wire leading direction on to a rear portion of a connector housing 11. The locking means 42 for locking the connector housing and the protector are disposed on an electric wire bent direction side and on the opposite side, respectively, and the protector has a protrusion 61 abutted to a rear end surface 11a of the connector housing when the protector is subjected to an external force in a direction perpendicular to the electric wire bent direction to the protector (arrow directions C and D) to reduce the stress load of the locking means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a connector with a protector in which a protector for bending and guiding an electric wire drawn from a connector housing is attached to a rear portion of the connector housing.

  A connector described in Patent Document 1 is known as this type of connector with a protector.

  9 and 10 show the structure of the connector with a protector described in the same document, FIG. 9 shows a state before the protector is attached to the rear part of the connector housing, and FIG. 10 shows the state after the protector is attached to the rear part of the connector housing. Each state before the protector is closed is shown.

  In the connector with the protector, the electric wire W drawn from the rear surface of the connector housing 110 is crossed with the pulling direction (rear direction) at the rear portion of the connector housing 110 (left direction as viewed from the front side of the connector in the drawing). A protector 130 that is bent and guided is attached. The connector housing 110 and the protector 130 are provided with a locking means for locking both, and an engaging claw 112 as a locking means is provided at the rear center of the connector housing 110. An elastic engagement protrusion 138 is provided as a locking means that engages with the engagement claw 112.

  A lock arm 113 for locking with the housing of the mating connector is provided at the center of the upper surface of the connector housing 110. The lock arm 113 can release the lock with the mating connector housing by pushing down the operation part exposed on the upper surface of the connector housing 110 from above.

  The protector 130 includes a base member 131, a cover member 132, and a hinge 133 that couples the base member 131. The base member 131 and the cover member 132 are shown in FIG. By turning the cover member 132 in the direction of the arrow F in the middle, it can be in a closed state. The base member 131 and the cover member 132 are provided with engaging portions 23, 24, and 25 that lock the members 131 and 132 in the closed state.

Further, the protector 130 is provided with an electric wire passage 150 for guiding a plurality of electric wires W drawn from the rear surface of the connector housing 110 while bending.
JP 2004-288545 A

  By the way, in the conventional connector with a protector, only one set of locking means (the engaging claw 112 and the elastic engaging protrusion 138) for locking the connector housing 110 and the protector 130 is provided at the center of the connector housing 110. When a force in the direction orthogonal to the bending direction of the electric wire W, for example, the arrow G direction, acts on the corrugated tube 70 or the protector 130 around the electric wire W led out to the outside, the locking means (elastic engagement with the engaging claw 112) The load is concentrated on the protrusion 138), which may cause the lock to be released or the lock to be broken.

  In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a connector with a protector that can reduce the stress load on the locking means by reducing the concentration of load on the locking means for locking the connector housing and the protector. .

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector with a protector in which a protector for guiding and guiding an electric wire drawn out from the rear surface of the connector housing in a direction intersecting with a drawing direction is attached to a rear portion of the connector housing. Locking means for connecting the protector is provided on each of the bending direction side of the electric wire and the opposite side thereof, and when an external force in a direction perpendicular to the bending direction of the electric wire acts on the protector, An overhanging projection is provided to reduce the stress load on the locking means by contacting the connector housing.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the connector with a protector according to claim 1, wherein the projecting protrusion is disposed outside at least one of the locking means.

  Invention of Claim 3 is a connector with a protector of Claim 1 or 2, Comprising: The electric wire channel | route which routes the electric wire pulled out from the said connector housing in the said protector is provided, This electric wire channel | path is the said A first passage portion for routing an electric wire along a direction in which the electric wire is drawn out from the connector housing; a second passage portion for routing an electric wire by bending the wiring direction with respect to the first passage portion; and the second passage It is comprised from the 3rd channel | path part which bends a wiring direction with respect to a part and routes an electric wire, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  Invention of Claim 4 is a connector with a protector of any one of Claims 1-3, Comprising: The bending angle of the electric wire from the said 1st channel | path part to the said 2nd channel | path part, and said 2nd The bending angles of the electric wires from the passage portion to the third passage portion are both substantially perpendicular.

  The invention according to claim 5 is the connector with protector according to claim 4, wherein the third passage portion is provided with an uneven portion that fits into an outer peripheral shape of the corrugated tube.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the locking means for connecting the connector housing and the protector is not provided in the central portion as in the conventional example, but is provided in the bending direction of the electric wire and on the opposite side. When an external force in a direction orthogonal to the bending direction of the electric wire acts on the protector, a strong coupling force can be exerted on both sides. In addition, the protector is provided with an overhanging protrusion that comes into contact with the connector housing when an external force in a direction perpendicular to the bending direction of the electric wire is applied. By receiving the load, it is possible to disperse the load concentrated on the locking means, and as a result, it is possible to exert a greater binding force. Further, since the stress burden on the locking means can be reduced, the durability of the locking means can be improved.

  According to the invention of claim 2, since the overhanging protrusion is arranged outside the locking means, the overhanging protrusion can bear more load than the locking means when a bending force acts on the protector. And the load applied to the locking means can be reduced. In this case, when the bending force is likely to be applied only in one direction orthogonal to the bending direction of the electric wire, the overhanging protrusion may be provided only on one side where the bending force is applied, and the bending force may be applied in both directions. In such a case, it may be provided on both sides.

  According to the invention of claim 3, since the electric wire drawn out from the connector housing can be led out while being bent several times inside the protector, the electric wire led out to the outside due to the resistance generated in the bent portion of the electric wire The tensile force acting on the can be absorbed. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the external force from acting on the terminals in the connector housing as much as possible.

  According to the fourth aspect of the invention, since the electric wire is guided while being bent at right angles at two locations, it is possible to increase the resistance force when a tensile force acts on the electric wire.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the corrugated tube attached to the outer periphery of the electric wire led out from the third passage portion to the outside is securely held because the uneven portion that fits the outer shape of the corrugated tube is provided in the third passage portion. Can be fixed.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<First Embodiment>
1 is an exploded perspective view of the connector with a protector according to the first embodiment, FIG. 2 is a front view showing the structure of the protector in an opened state, FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the connector with the protector in an assembled state, and FIG. It is a horizontal sectional view of a part.

  This connector with a protector is used in a place with high water resistance such as a lower part of an engine of an automobile, and includes a combination of the connector body 10 and the protector 30A.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the connector main body 10 is configured by inserting a terminal 20 attached to the tip end of the electric wire W from behind to accommodate each of a plurality of cavities 12 formed in a resin connector housing 11. ing. A substantially cylindrical waterproof rubber 21 is attached to the outer periphery of the terminal portion of the electric wire W, and the waterproof rubber 21 is fitted in the vicinity of the rear entrance in each cavity 12 so that the cavity 12 can be seen from the rear. Water entry is blocked.

  At the center of the upper surface of the connector housing 11, a lock arm 13 for locking with the housing of the mating connector is provided. By pushing down the operation part exposed on the upper surface of the connector housing 11 of the lock arm 13 from above. The lock with the mating connector housing can be released.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the protector 30 </ b> A is made of a resin molded product, and includes a base member 31, a cover member 32, and a thin hinge 33 that connects these members. The base member 31 and the cover member 32 are closed by rotating the cover member 32 in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 1 from the open state (the state shown in FIGS. 1 and 2) in which the inner surfaces of the base member 31 and the cover member 32 are opened. Can be made. The base member 31 and the cover member 32 are provided with engaging portions 34, 35, 36, 44, 45, 46 for locking the members 31, 32 in the closed state.

  This connector with a protector has a wire W drawn from the rear surface of the connector housing 11 at the rear part of the connector housing 11 constituting the connector main body 30 in a direction intersecting the drawing direction (rear direction) (the front side of the connector in the figure). A protector 30A that is bent and guided in the left direction as viewed from the side is mounted, and the connector housing 11 and the protector 30A are provided with locking means 42 for locking both.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 4, the lock means 42 is arranged symmetrically on the left and right sides of the connector housing 11 with respect to the bending direction side of the electric wire W and the opposite side thereof, that is, the left and right center lines L of the connector housing 11. At the same distance A from the center line L), and an engaging claw 14 as a locking means is provided on the connector housing 11 side, and the engaging claw 14 is engaged on the protector 30A side. An engaging projection 41 is provided as a locking means.

  In addition, when an external force in the direction of arrow C perpendicular to the bending direction of the electric wire W acts on the protector 30A, the protector 30A comes into contact with the rear end surface 11a of the connector housing 11 to thereby come to the locking means 42. An overhanging protrusion 61 is provided to reduce the stress burden on the surface.

  In this embodiment, the bending direction of the electric wire W is the left side, and the overhanging protrusion 61 is located on the outer side of the lock means 42 on the right side (opposite to the bending direction of the electric wire), that is, on the right side from the center line L of the connector housing 11. It is arranged at a position farther than the distance A to the means 42 [position at a distance from the center line L to B (B> A)].

  A connector mounting portion 40 for mounting on the rear portion of the connector housing 11 is provided around the engaging protrusion 41 of the base member 31 of the protector 30 </ b> A. The connector mounting portion 40 is fitted to the rear portion of the connector housing 11. By doing so, the outer side of the rear surface of the connector housing 11 can be covered almost completely.

  Further, a bridge-shaped protection beam 48 is provided on the upper side of the base member 31 of the protector 30A. The protective beam 48 covers the space above the operation portion of the lock arm 13 of the connector housing 11 when the protector 30A is properly attached to the rear portion of the connector housing 11, so that the lock arm 13 can be prevented from being inadvertently applied. Although it is intended to protect it from being pushed down, a normal release operation of the lock arm 13 can be performed from a position avoiding the lock arm 13 while protecting.

  In addition, an electric wire passage 50 is provided inside the protector 30A for guiding the plurality of electric wires W drawn from the rear surface of the connector housing 11 while bending them.

  The electric wire passage 50 is provided in the base member 31, a first passage portion 51 for routing the electric wire W along the direction of drawing out the electric wire from the connector housing 11 at a position below the connector mounting portion 40, and the base member The first passage portion 51 is provided in both the base member 31 and the cover member 32, and the second passage portion 52 in which the electric wire W is bent and wired in a direction substantially perpendicular to the first passage portion 51 (lower side in the drawing). And a third passage portion 53 that bends and wires the electric wire W in a direction substantially perpendicular to the second passage portion 52 (left side in the drawing).

  As described above, the third passage portion 53 is formed by both the base member 31 and the cover member 32, and the corrugated tube 70 is provided on the inner surface of each member 31, 32 on the outlet side of the third passage portion 53. Concave and convex portions 56 that fit into the outer peripheral shape are provided.

  Next, the assembly work of the connector body 10 and the work of assembling the protector 30A to the assembled connector body 10 will be described.

  When assembling, first, as shown in FIG. 1, waterproof rubber 21 is attached to a plurality of electric wires W, terminals 20 are crimped and connected to the terminals of the electric wires W, and the plurality of electric wires W connected to the terminals 20 are connected. The corrugated tube 70 is attached to the outer periphery of the bundle.

  Next, the terminals 20 connected to the terminals of the plurality of electric wires W are inserted into the cavities 12 from the rear of the connector housing 11 and fixed. Thereafter, a retainer or the like is attached to complete the assembly of the connector main body 10.

  Next, the connector mounting portion 40 of the protector 30 </ b> A is fitted to the rear portion of the connector housing 11. At the time of this fitting, the plurality of electric wires W drawn from the connector main body 10 are routed in the first passage portion 51, the second passage portion 52, and the third passage portion 53 of the base member 31. Specifically, the electric wire W drawn out from the connector main body 10 is routed along the electric wire passage 50 by bending the electric wire W at two locations in a substantially right angle direction.

  When the protector 30A is completely fitted into the connector housing 11, the engaging protrusion 41, which is the locking means 42, and the engaging claw 14 are engaged, and the protector 30A is locked to the connector main body 10 as shown in FIG. The

  Thereafter, a portion of the corrugated tube 70 is aligned and fitted to the concavo-convex portion 56 of the third passage portion 53 of the base member 31, and then the cover member 32 is rotated in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 32 and the base member 31 are set in an assembled state. When the base member 31 and the cover member 32 are completely assembled, the three locking means 34, 35, 36, 44, 45, 46 are engaged, and the base member 31 and the cover member 32 are thereby locked. The One end of the corrugated tube 70 is held by the protector 30A when the protector 30A is closed.

  As described above, the protector 30 </ b> A and the corrugated tube 70 can be integrally attached to the connector main body 10. And the electric wire W pulled out from the connector main body 10 can be protected by the protector 30A in a state of being routed in the electric wire passage 50 of the protector 30A.

  In this protector-equipped connector, the electric wires W drawn from the connector main body 10 are arranged at two locations, that is, a boundary portion between the first passage portion 51 and the second passage portion 52 and a boundary portion between the second passage portion 52 and the third passage portion 53. Since it is routed in the electric wire passage 50 in a state bent at a right angle, the tensile force can be absorbed by the resistance generated at the bent portion of the electric wire W when the tensile force acts on the electric wire W. . Therefore, it is possible to prevent the external force from acting on the terminals 20 in the connector housing 11 as much as possible.

  Further, not only one set of locking means 42 for connecting the connector housing 11 and the protector 30A is provided in the central portion as in the conventional example, but is provided in the bending direction of the electric wire W and on the opposite side (connector housing 11). Strong coupling force on both sides when an external force in a direction orthogonal to the bending direction of the electric wire W (for example, an external force in the direction of arrow C in FIGS. 3 and 4) acts on the protector 30A. Can be demonstrated.

  In addition, the protector 30A is provided with a projecting protrusion 61 that comes into contact with the rear end surface 11a of the connector housing 11 when an external force in a direction (arrow C direction) perpendicular to the bending direction of the electric wire W is applied. Since the protrusion 61 contacts the connector housing 11 and receives a part of the load at that portion, the load concentrated on the locking means 42 can be dispersed, and as a result, a larger coupling force can be exhibited. Further, since the stress burden on the locking means 42 can be reduced, the durability of the locking means 42 can be improved.

  Further, since the overhanging protrusion 61 is disposed outside the locking means 42, the overhanging protrusion 61 can bear more load than the locking means 30A when a bending force is applied to the protector 30A. The load applied to the lock means 42 can be reduced.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, since the uneven | corrugated | grooved part 56 which fits in the outer peripheral shape of the corrugated tube 70 is provided in the 3rd channel | path part 53, the corrugated tube 70 which protects the electric wire W is reliably hold-fixed. Can do.

Second Embodiment
FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the connector with a protector according to the second embodiment, and FIG. 6 is a horizontal sectional view of an essential part thereof.

  In the connector with the protector of the first embodiment, the protruding protrusion 61 is provided on the right side from the front of the connector of the protector 30A. However, in the connector with the protector of the second embodiment, the left side from the front of the connector of the protector 30B. That is, the protruding protrusion 62 is provided on the side of the electric wire W in the bending direction. The position is a distance B (B> A) where A is the distance from the center line L of the connector housing 11 to the locking means 42. Since other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.

  When the protruding protrusion 62 is provided at this position, the same effect can be exerted with respect to the external force in the direction of arrow D in FIG. That is, since the protector 30B is provided with an overhanging protrusion 62 that comes into contact with the rear end surface 11a of the connector housing 11 when an external force in a direction (arrow D direction) orthogonal to the bending direction of the electric wire W is applied. Since the protrusion 62 contacts the connector housing 11 and receives a part of the load at that portion, the load concentrated on the locking means 42 can be dispersed, and as a result, a larger coupling force can be exhibited. Further, since the stress burden on the locking means 42 can be reduced, the durability of the locking means 42 can be improved.

  Further, since the overhanging protrusion 62 is arranged outside the locking means 42, the overhanging protrusion 62 can bear more load than the locking means 30A when a bending force is applied to the protector 30A. The load applied to the lock means 42 can be reduced.

<Third Embodiment>
FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the connector with protector of the third embodiment, and FIG. 8 is a plan view thereof.

  In the connector with the protector of the third embodiment, the protruding protrusions 61 and 62 similar to the above are provided on the left and right sides of the protector 30C, instead of providing the protruding protrusions on only one side. By doing so, the same effect as described above can be obtained for the external forces in the directions of the arrows C and D.

It is a disassembled perspective view of the connector with a protector of 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a front view which shows the state which the protector in the same embodiment opened. It is a perspective view which shows the assembly state of the connector with a protector of the embodiment. It is a horizontal sectional view of the important section in the assembly state. It is a disassembled perspective view of the connector with a protector of 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a horizontal sectional view of the important section of the assembly state of the connector with a protector of the embodiment. It is a disassembled perspective view of the connector with a protector of 3rd Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view of the assembly state of the connector with a protector of the embodiment. It is a disassembled perspective view of the conventional connector with a protector. It is the perspective view seen from another direction of the connector with the protector.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Connector housing 30 Protector 42 Locking means 50 Electric wire channel | path 51 1st channel | path part 52 2nd channel | path part 53 3rd channel | path part 56 Uneven part 61,62 Overhang | projection protrusion 70 Corrugated tube W Electric wire C, D The direction orthogonal to the bending direction of an electric wire

Claims (5)

In a connector with a protector in which a protector for bending and guiding an electric wire drawn from the rear surface of the connector housing in a direction crossing the pulling direction is attached to the rear portion of the connector housing.
Locking means for connecting the connector housing and the protector is provided on each side of the electric wire in the bending direction and on the opposite side, and an external force in a direction perpendicular to the electric wire bending direction is applied to the protector. In this case, the connector with the protector is provided with an overhanging projection that reduces the stress load on the locking means by contacting the connector housing. It is a connector with a protector of Claim 1, Comprising:
The connector with a protector, wherein the projecting protrusion is disposed outside at least one of the locking means. A connector with a protector according to claim 1 or 2,
The protector is provided with an electric wire path for routing an electric wire drawn out from the connector housing, and the electric wire path is arranged with a first path portion for routing an electric wire along a direction in which the electric wire is drawn from the connector housing; A second passage portion that bends the wiring direction with respect to the first passage portion and routes the electric wire; and a third passage portion that bends the wiring direction with respect to the second passage portion and routes the electric wire. A connector with a protector, characterized by being configured. A connector with a protector according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The protector characterized in that the bending angle of the electric wire from the first passage portion to the second passage portion and the bending angle of the electric wire from the second passage portion to the third passage portion are both substantially perpendicular. With connector. It is a connector with a protector of Claim 4, Comprising:
A connector with a protector, wherein the third passage portion is provided with an uneven portion that fits into an outer peripheral shape of the corrugated tube.

Images