JP2009087571A - Lever connector - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve operability by simplifying an engaging operation of connectors. <P>SOLUTION: A lever connector 1 comprises a connector housing 2 capable of directly housing a plurality of female connectors 6, a slide frame 3 slidably assembled at an upper portion of the connector housing 2 and having a notch 15 in an inner frame 14, and a lever 4 wherein a fulcrum is connected with the connector housing 2 and an action point is connected with the slide frame 3. The female connector 6 is temporarily inserted into the connector housing 2 while the notch 15 of the slide frame 3 is coincided with a guide groove 11 of the connector housing 2, a projection 8 of the female connector 6 is kept in a temporarily fixed state so as to stop slippage from the connector housing 2 by the inner frame 14 by sliding the slide frame 3 forward, and the female connector 6 can be pushed into an engaging position by the connector housing 2 by descending the slide frame 3 by rotatively operating the lever 4 from the temporarily fixed state. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a lever connector used for connecting, for example, a wire harness disposed in an automobile.

  For example, as shown in Patent Document 1, the lever connector includes a fitting operation lever, holds one terminal, and a plurality of other connectors that can accommodate terminals corresponding to the terminals on the connector side, A structure provided with a collective frame capable of holding other connectors together is well known. In this lever connector, the assembly frame holding the other connector is assembled at the mating standby position of one connector, and then the lever is operated to rotate, so that the cover provided in the assembly frame is provided in the cam groove provided in the lever. The structure is such that the drive pins are guided, the assembly frame is urged toward the fitting side to one connector by the lever principle, and the connectors are coupled to each other with a low fitting force (low insertion force).

JP-A-6-119955

  However, when assembling such a lever connector, the other connector connected to each one or a plurality of electric wires branched from the plurality of wire harnesses is assembled in advance to the assembly frame, and then the assembly frame is assembled thereon. Is a procedure for fitting the connector to one of the connectors on the vehicle body side. For this reason, the number of assembling procedures increases, and a large aggregate frame is bulky and difficult to handle. In particular, since it is difficult to insert a plurality of connectors branched from a plurality of wire harnesses into an assembly frame at an actual assembly site, it is performed on a wire harness production line. If they are fitted to the collective frame across the wire, the form of the wire harness becomes complicated and handling becomes more difficult, leading to a decrease in workability.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a lever connector that is simplified in fitting work between connectors and is excellent in workability.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is capable of accommodating a plurality of terminals, a plurality of connectors having protrusions protruding from the side surfaces, a connector can be directly accommodated, and corresponds to a connector-side terminal. A connector housing capable of holding a terminal to be connected, a first slide position which is assembled at an upper portion of the connector housing so as to be slidable in a direction orthogonal to the insertion direction of the connector, and which interferes with the protrusion of the connector and restricts the insertion of the connector; A slide frame that can slide between a second slide position that allows insertion of the connector without interfering with the projection of the connector, a fulcrum part on one of the connector housing and the slide frame, and an action point part on the other And a lever that lowers the slide frame by an upward / downward rotation operation, the connector housing having the slide frame as the second slide position. When the connector is temporarily inserted and the slide frame is slid to the first slide position, the connector is in a temporarily fixed state in which the connector is prevented from being detached from the connector housing, and the lever is rotated from the temporarily fixed state. The slide frame is lowered and the connector is pushed to the fitting position with the connector housing.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of the first aspect, in order to improve the workability, at least one of the protrusion of the connector and the slide frame is provided with the slide frame at the temporary insertion position of the connector. A chamfering portion is provided that abuts the protrusion and pushes the connector downward together with the protrusion when the position is slid from the position to the first slide position.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of the first or second aspect, in order to reliably perform the fitting operation, the slide frame interferes with the connector housing at the second slide position to restrict the slide frame from descending. In addition, a stopper portion that eliminates the interference with the connector housing at the first slide position and allows the slide frame to descend is provided.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the connector connected to each one or a plurality of electric wires branched from the plurality of wire harnesses can be directly fitted to the connector housing without using the collective frame. Therefore, the assembly procedure is simplified, and the connector portion is reduced in size, so the connector portion is not bulky and the form of the wire harness is not complicated, and the workability related to the fitting of the connector is improved. It can be easily and reliably fitted with a low insertion force even at the assembly site.
In addition to increasing the degree of freedom in designing the harness, it is also possible to adjust a connector combination that differs depending on the specification, or that some connectors are omitted, etc. at the assembly site. The form can be selected.
According to the second aspect of the invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, the connector is automatically temporarily fixed in accordance with the slide operation of the slide frame, and further improvement in workability can be expected.
According to the third aspect of the invention, in addition to the effect of the first or second aspect, by adopting the stopper portion, the lever cannot be rotated unless the slide frame is slid to the first slide position. The joint operation can be performed reliably.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[Form 1]
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an example of a lever connector. The lever connector 1 includes a connector housing 2, a slide frame 3, a lever 4, and three female connectors 6 that are directly accommodated in the connector housing 2. , 6... All are molded articles of synthetic resin.
First, the connector housing 2 is a box-like body that opens upward, and can be directly inserted into the female connectors 6, 6.. The accommodating portions 5, 5... Are partitioned. The female connector 6 has a block shape in which a plurality of terminal insertion portions 7, 7... That can accommodate female terminals (not shown) are arranged side by side, and a pair of left and right protrusions 8, 8 are provided on the left and right side surfaces, respectively. A chamfered portion 9 is formed on the rear side of the upper surface of each protrusion 8 so as to gradually become lower as it goes rearward.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of terminal insertion portions 10 capable of accommodating male terminals (not shown) corresponding to the terminal insertion portions 7 of the female connector 6 are provided at the bottom of each accommodation portion 5 of the connector housing 2. , 10... Are drilled. On the other hand, on the left and right side plates of the connector housing 2, guide grooves 11, 11,... That allow the female connector 6 to be inserted into the housing part 5 while avoiding interference with the protrusions 8 of the female connector 6 are cut out from the upper end. Near the lower end of the rearmost guide groove 11, support shafts 12 and 12 for connecting the lever 4 project outward. Further, on the outer surfaces of the left and right side plates, concave grooves 13 and 13 are formed in the front-rear direction so as to be orthogonal to the guide grooves 11, respectively.

  Next, the slide frame 3 is formed so as to surround the outer periphery of the left and right side surfaces and the rear surface at the upper portion of the connector housing 2, and has a U-shape in plan view in which the front and rear dimensions are slightly longer than the connector housing 2. An inner frame portion 14 that engages with the opening edge of the connector housing 2 is extended at the upper end edge, and slides in the longitudinal direction with only the housing portion 5 of the connector housing 2 opened upward in a plan view. It is possible. .. Are formed on the inner peripheral edge of the inner frame portion 14 at three positions on the left and right sides corresponding to the guide groove 11, and the second notch 15 is located immediately above the guide groove 11. The projection 8 of the female connector 6 can be passed at the slide position. Further, chamfered portions 16 that gradually increase toward the front are formed on the rear side of each notch 15 on the lower surface of the inner frame portion 14.

Further, on the inner surfaces of the left and right side plates of the slide frame 3, stopper pieces 17, 17 parallel to the inner frame portion 14 project as stoppers at the front end slightly below the inner frame portion 14. Two guide projections 18 and 18 are provided on the rear side of the piece 17 at the lower end, respectively. Here, when the guide protrusions 18 and 18 are inserted into the concave groove 13 of the connector housing 2, the stopper pieces 17 and 17 are positioned on the substantially upper end surface of the connector housing 2 and the inner frame portion 14 is separated upward from the connector housing 2. In this state, the slide frame 3 is slidably held back and forth, and the stopper pieces 17, 17 protrude forward of the connector housing 2 and move away from the upper end surface of the connector housing 2 to guide guides 18, 18. Enters the intersection with the front and rear guide grooves 11, 11, and the slide frame 3 can move downward.
On the other hand, pins 19 and 19 project from the outer surfaces of the left and right side plates of the slide frame 3 substantially at the center.

  The lever 4 is U-shaped in a plan view with the front open, and penetrates the support shaft 12 of the connector housing 2 so as to be rotatably connected to the lower edge of the both ends that are the fulcrum portions slightly toward the rear. Holes 20 and 20 are respectively formed. In addition, oval cam grooves 21 and 21 are formed at the upper edges of the ends of both ends that serve as the action point of the lever 4, and the pins 19 and 19 projecting from the side surface of the slide frame 3 are idle. It is inserted. The cam groove 21 is formed so as to be inclined with respect to both ends so as to be oriented along the longitudinal direction when the lever 4 is in the lying down state (the female connector 6 is not fitted) shown in FIG. Is allowed to move in the front-rear direction. Reference numeral 22 denotes a fitting recess formed at the lower edge near the rear end of the cam groove 21, and the pin 19 is fitted and positioned in the lying state of the lever 4.

In the lever connector 1 configured as described above, first, with the lever 4 lying down, the slide frame 3 is moved to the second slide position where the notch 15 coincides with the guide groove 11 of the connector housing 2 in the vertical direction. As shown in FIG. 3, the female connector 6 is inserted into each housing portion 5 from above. At the time of this insertion, the terminals of the female connector 6 and the connector housing 2 are not completely fitted together, so that the female connector 6 remains in the temporary insertion position where the upper end of the protrusion 8 is located at the lower end of the notch 15.
Next, the slide frame 3 is slid to the first slide position where the stopper piece 17 protrudes forward from the connector housing 2. Then, due to the contact between the chamfered portion 9 of the protrusion 8 and the chamfered portion 16 of the notch 15, the protrusion 8 is pressed downward and the female connector 6 is further pressed downward as shown in FIG. At this time, the notch 15 shifts from the upper side to the front side of the protrusion 8, so that the inner frame portion 14 is in a temporarily fixed state in which the protrusion 8 is prevented from coming off. Further, as the slide frame 3 slides, the pin 19 moves to the front end of the cam groove 21 of the lever 4, and the guide protrusion 18 also moves into the guide groove 11.

From this temporarily fixed state, if the rear end of the lever 4 is pushed up and rotated around the support shaft 12, the tip end of the lever 4 rotates downward, and the cam groove 21 moves the slide frame 3 through the pin 19. Press down. Then, as shown in FIG. 5, the descending inner frame portion 14 pushes each female connector 6 downward through the protrusions 8 to be fitted into the connector housing 2. At this fitting position, the stopper pieces 17 and 17 are moved forward of the connector housing 2, so that the slide frame 3 does not move rearward accidentally, and the protrusion 8 is prevented from being detached by the inner frame portion 14. Is maintained.
In addition, when removing female connector 6, it becomes a procedure reverse to the above. That is, when the rear end of the lever 4 is pushed downward, both ends rotate upward and the cam groove 21 pushes the slide frame 3 up to the first slide position via the pin 19, so that the slide frame 3 is moved as it is. If the notch 15 is slid to the rear second slide position and the notch 15 is aligned with the upper position of the guide groove 11, the female connector 6 can be extracted upward. When the slide frame 3 is pushed up, the guide projection 18 pushes up the front and rear female connectors 6 to the temporarily fixed state via the projection 8, so that the female connector 6 can be easily removed.

Thus, according to the lever connector 1 of the said form, the female connector 6 connected for every one or several electric wire branched from the several wire harness can be directly fitted to the connector housing 2 without using an assembly frame. . Therefore, the assembly procedure is simplified, and the connector portion is reduced in size, so the connector portion is not bulky and the form of the wire harness is not complicated, and the workability related to the fitting of the connector is improved. It can be easily and reliably fitted with a low insertion force even at the assembly site.
In addition to increasing the degree of freedom in designing the harness, it is also possible to adjust a connector combination that differs depending on the specification, or that some connectors are omitted, etc. at the assembly site. The form can be selected.

In particular, here, when the slide frame 3 is slid from the second slide position to the first slide position at the temporary insertion position of the female connector 6, the protrusion 8 of the female connector 6, the notch 15 of the slide frame 3, and By providing the chamfered portions 9 and 16 for abutting and pushing the female connector 6 together with the protrusions 8, the female connector 6 is automatically temporarily fixed as the slide frame 3 is slid. Further improvement can be expected.
Further, the slide frame 3 interferes with the connector housing 2 at the second slide position to restrict the lowering of the slide frame 3, and the interference with the connector housing 2 is canceled at the first slide position to lower the slide frame 3. By providing the stopper piece 17 that permits this, the lever 4 cannot be rotated unless the slide frame 3 is slid to the first slide position, and the fitting operation can be performed reliably.

[Form 2]
Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the same structure part as the form 1, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.
FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the lever connector 1a according to the present embodiment. In the lever connector 1a, both ends of the lever 4 rotate between the connector housing 2 and the slide frame 3 as shown in FIGS. The point is different from the lever connector 1 of the first embodiment. Therefore, in the slide frame 3, the pin 23 protrudes from the inner surface of the left and right side plates at the front lower end, but here the tip of the pin 23 is also inserted into the concave groove 13 and is also used as the guide protrusion of form 1. ing. In addition, L-shaped cam grooves 24 having a long portion inclined and a short portion facing upward are formed at the front ends of both ends of the lever 4. Corresponding to the slide position, notches 25, 25 are formed to avoid interference with the rear end of the slide frame 3.

In the lever connector 1a configured as described above, the slide frame 3 and the notch 15 coincide with the guide groove 11 of the connector housing 2 in the vertical direction in a state where the lever 4 is laid downward as in the first embodiment. It slides to a 2nd slide position, and inserts the female connector 6 in each accommodating part 5 from a top to a temporary insertion position. When the slide frame 3 is slid from here to the first slide position, the female connector 6 is brought into contact with the chamfered portion 9 of the protrusion 8 and the chamfered portion 16 of the notch 15 as shown in FIG. Further, the projection 8 is pushed downward and the projection 8 is prevented from being detached by the inner frame portion 14. At this time, the pin 23 has moved to the front end of the longitudinal portion of the cam groove 24.
From this temporarily fixed state, if the rear end of the lever 4 is pushed up and rotated around the support shaft 12, the tip end of the lever 4 rotates downward, and the pin 23 is relatively short in the cam groove 24. Then, the slide frame 3 is pushed downward via the pin 23. Then, as shown in FIG. 10, the descending inner frame portion 14 can push each female connector 6 downward through the protrusion 8 and can be fitted to the connector housing 2.

As described above, also in the lever connector 1a of the second aspect, the female connector 6 connected to each one or a plurality of electric wires branched from the plurality of wire harnesses can be directly fitted to the connector housing 2 without using the collective frame. . Therefore, the assembly procedure is simplified, and the connector portion is reduced in size, so the connector portion is not bulky and the form of the wire harness is not complicated, and the workability related to the fitting of the connector is improved. It can be easily and reliably fitted with a low insertion force even at the assembly site. In addition to increasing the degree of freedom in designing the harness, it is also possible to adjust a connector combination that differs depending on the specification, or that some connectors are omitted, etc. at the assembly site. The form can be selected.
Further, by adopting the chamfered portions 9 and 16 and the stopper piece 17, a further improvement in workability and a reliable fitting operation can be expected as in the first embodiment.

In the first and second embodiments, the cam groove is provided on the lever side and the pin is provided on the slide frame side to connect the two. On the contrary, the pin is provided on the lever side and the cam groove is provided on the slide frame side. There is no problem even if it is provided. Also, the fulcrum part is set closer to the rear of both ends of the lever, the action point part is set to the tip side, and the slide frame is lowered by pushing up the lever. The connector can be similarly fitted by setting the action point portions closer to the rear and lowering the slide frame by pushing down the lever.
Furthermore, the specific shape of the cam groove, the pin, the support shaft, the protrusion of the connector, the notch of the slide frame, etc. is not limited to the above form, and can be changed as appropriate, and the chamfered portion between the protrusion and the notch is either one of them. Even if it is only formed, the projection can be pushed and biased by sliding the slide frame, and the chamfered portion can be omitted if the connector can be inserted to the temporarily fixed position depending on the form of the terminal etc. Good.

In addition, the number and shape of the connectors and the shape of the housing portion of the connector housing corresponding to this are not limited to the above-described forms. For example, the connector can accommodate the male terminals and the connector housing can accommodate the female terminals. Even if the holder for holding the terminal is separately attached and detached, the application of the present invention is not hindered.

It is a disassembled perspective view of the lever connector of form 1. It is explanatory drawing (a female connector is a temporary insertion position) of a lever connector, the left shows a plane, the center shows a back surface, and the right shows a bottom face, respectively. It is explanatory drawing (a female connector is a temporary insertion position) of a lever connector, (A) is a perspective view, (B) is a side view. It is explanatory drawing (a female connector is a temporarily fixed state) of a lever connector, (A) is a perspective view, (B) is a side view. It is explanatory drawing (a female connector is a fitting position) of a lever connector, (A) is a perspective view, (B) is a side view. It is a disassembled perspective view of the lever connector of form 2. It is explanatory drawing (a female connector is a state temporarily fixed) of a lever connector, the left shows a plane, the center shows the back, and the right shows a bottom. It is a perspective view of a lever connector (female connector is not inserted). It is a perspective view of a lever connector (a female connector is temporarily fixed). It is a perspective view of a lever connector (female connector is a fitting position).

Explanation of symbols

  1, 1a ··· Lever connector, 2 ··· Connector housing, 3 ··· Slide frame, ··· Lever, 5 ··· Housing, 6 · · Female connector, 7, 10 · · Terminal insertion portion, 8 ··· Projection 9, 16, ... Chamfered part, 11 ... Guide groove, 12 ... Support shaft, 13 ... Recessed groove, 14 ... Inner frame part, 15 ... Notch, 17 ... Stopper piece, 18 ... Guide Projection, 19, 23,... Pin, 21, 24, .. cam groove.

Claims (3)

A plurality of connectors capable of accommodating a plurality of terminals and projecting protrusions on the side surfaces;
A connector housing capable of directly accommodating the connector and holding a terminal corresponding to the terminal on the connector side;
A first slide position that is slidably assembled in an upper direction of the connector housing in a direction orthogonal to the insertion direction of the connector, interferes with the projection of the connector and restricts insertion of the connector, and interferes with the projection of the connector. A slide frame that can slide between a second slide position that allows insertion of the connector without
A fulcrum part is connected to one of the connector housing and the slide frame, and an action point part is connected to the other, respectively, and includes a lever that lowers the slide frame by a rotation operation in the vertical direction,
The connector is prevented from being detached from the connector housing by temporarily inserting the connector into the connector housing with the slide frame at the second slide position and sliding the slide frame to the first slide position. By temporarily operating the lever from the temporarily fixed state to lower the slide frame and push the connector to the fitting position with the connector housing.
A lever connector characterized by that.   When the slide frame is slid from the second slide position to the first slide position at the temporary insertion position of the connector, at least one of the protrusion of the connector and the slide frame, the protrusion comes into contact with the protrusion. The lever connector according to claim 1, further comprising a chamfered portion that pushes the connector downward.   The slide frame interferes with the connector housing at the second slide position to restrict the lowering of the slide frame, and the interference with the connector housing is eliminated at the first slide position to lower the slide frame. The lever connector according to claim 1, further comprising a stopper portion that permits

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