JP2010040224A - Terminal arrangement jig, and assembly method of connector using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a terminal arrangement jig solving problems of unstable inter-terminal pitches in a connector assembled by mounting the required number of terminals in bulk in a connector housing with the use of the above jig. <P>SOLUTION: The terminal arrangement jig 41 is so structured that terminals 4 are individually inserted into temporary retention holes 44 provided at a given alignment pattern to be temporarily retained, to form a terminal arrangement set 51 of a terminal arrangement pattern of the connectors as objects for assembly in a connector housing, and mounting of the terminals on the connector housing is carried out as the terminal arrangement set is press-fitted. The jig is provided with a terminal-positioning member 43 with positioning holes 46 fitted, the terminals are moved into the temporary retention holes as the terminal positioning member is made to perform positioning movement S, and, by the movement, the terminals are to be positioned inside the temporary retention holes. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a terminal arrangement jig used for assembling a required number of terminals into a connector housing in a predetermined arrangement pattern, and to a connector assembly method using such a terminal arrangement jig. .

  One type of connector is a multi-pin type connector. A multi-pin connector generally includes a connector housing having a terminal holding wall in which a required number of insertion holes are provided in a fixed arrangement pattern, and the required number of terminals are inserted into the insertion holes in the terminal holding wall. It is configured to be assembled in a predetermined arrangement pattern by being held by press-fitting and insertion.

  A typical example of such a multi-pin connector is a joint connector used for connecting a branch path in a wire harness of a vehicle. As a joint connector, a joint connector 1 as shown in FIGS. 8 to 11 is known as a typical one. 8 shows the joint connector 1 as a whole in a simplified perspective state, FIG. 9 shows a simplified cross section along the line AA in FIG. 8, and FIG. 10 shows the cross section of FIG. FIG. 11 shows an image of the assembly process of the joint connector 1.

  The joint connector 1 is a board-embedded male connector, and includes a connector housing 2, a circuit board 3 (FIGS. 9 to 11), and a required number of male terminals 4.

  The connector housing 2 is formed in a box shape with the front side opened as a whole, and is partitioned by a partition wall 5 so that the opening front side has a plurality of (two in the illustrated example) fitting portions 6 and 6. These fitting portions 6 and 6 can be fitted in connection with a connection partner connector not shown.

  As shown in FIGS. 9 to 11, the connector housing 2 is provided with a terminal holding wall 7 and a board mounting portion 8 on the rear side. The terminal holding wall 7 is provided so as to close the rear side of the connector housing 2, and the number of insertion holes 9 corresponding to the number of male terminals 4 required for the joint connector 1 is a predetermined arrangement pattern (FIG. 11). It is formed with. The board incorporating portion 8 is provided adjacent to the terminal holding wall 7 so that the circuit board 3 can be incorporated so as to face the terminal holding wall 7 in a contact state.

  In the circuit board 3, the same number of insertion holes 11 as the insertion holes 9 in the terminal holding wall 7 are formed in an arrangement pattern corresponding to the arrangement pattern of the insertion holes 9. (Not shown) is formed, and a conductive layer (not shown) is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the insertion hole 11.

  The male terminal 4 is formed in the shape of a square pin as a whole, and has a connection portion 12, an insertion portion 13, and an insertion portion 14. The connection portion 12 is a portion that is electrically connected to a female terminal of a connection partner connector (not shown), and has a flat connection surface. The insertion part 13 is a part that is inserted into the insertion hole 9 in the terminal holding wall 7. The insertion portion 13 is provided with annular protrusions 15a and protrusions 15b. When the insertion part 13 is inserted into the insertion hole 9, the protrusion 15a faces a relief groove 16 formed in the insertion hole 9, and the protrusion 15b is formed. It is configured to press fit into the insertion hole 9. The insertion portion 14 is a portion that is inserted into the insertion hole 9 in the circuit board 3. The insertion portion 14 is formed into a press-fit connection structure by providing a press-fit portion 17 that can be elastically deformed in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction of the male terminal 4, and is inserted into the insertion hole 11 of the circuit board 3. At this time, the press-fit portion 17 is pressed against the insertion hole 11 to make an electrical connection to the conductive layer of the insertion hole 11.

  The joint connector 1 as described above is assembled in the procedure as shown in FIG. First, the board assembly 21 is formed by incorporating the circuit board 3 into the board assembly portion 8 of the connector housing 2 (FIGS. 11A and 11C). On the other hand, the terminal arrangement set 23 is formed by temporarily holding the number of male terminals 4 required by the joint connector 1 on the terminal arrangement jig 22 ((b) and (c) of FIG. 11). Here, as shown in FIG. 12, the terminal arrangement jig 22 is configured as a solid block, and the same number of temporary holding holes 24 as the insertion holes 9 in the terminal holding wall 7 correspond to the arrangement pattern of the insertion holes 9. It is formed with an array pattern. Then, the male terminals 4 are inserted into the temporary holding holes 24 one by one (this insertion is made at the connection portion 12, that is, the insertion portion 13 and the insertion portion 14 are projected from the terminal arrangement jig 22). As a result, the number of male terminals 4 required by the joint connector 1 is temporarily held by the terminal arrangement jig 22 in the arrangement pattern of the male terminals 4 in the connector housing 2, thereby forming a terminal arrangement set 23.

  Next, after positioning the board built-in body 21 and the terminal arrangement set 23, the board built-in body 21 is pressed by the press-fitting jig 25 to press-fit each male terminal 4 to the board built-in body 21 in the terminal arrangement set 23. I do. Then, by this press-fitting operation, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the insertion portion 13 of the male terminal 4 is inserted into the insertion hole 9 in the board built-in body 21 and the insertion portion 14 of the male terminal 4 is inserted into the board built-in body 21. The male terminals 4 in the terminal arrangement set 23 are assembled into the connector housing 2 by being inserted into the holes 11.

  In addition, about the above joint connectors, the example disclosed by patent document 1, patent document 2, etc. is known, for example.

JP 2006-216501 A JP 2007-311092 A

  The joint connector 1 as described above, that is, the joint connector 1 assembled by assembling the required number of male terminals 4 together into the connector housing 2 by the terminal arrangement set 23 formed by using the terminal arrangement jig 22 includes a connector. There is a problem of unstable pitch between terminals that the pitch between the terminals of the male terminals 4 assembled in the housing 2 is not constant.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the problem of pitch instability between terminals. As shown in FIGS. 13A to 13E, the male terminal 4 has a pressing side surface 31 and a non-pressing side surface 32, and the insertion hole 9 has a pressing contact surface 33 and a non-pressing contact surface 34. The insertion hole 11 has a pressing contact surface 35 and a non-pressing reception surface 36. The pressing side surface 31 is in a state of being pressed against the pressing contact surface 33 of the insertion hole 9 and the pressing reception surface 35 of the insertion hole 11 by press-fitting, but the non-pressing side surface 32 is not pressed against the insertion hole 9. A gap Ca and a gap Cb are interposed between the contact surface 34 and the non-pressing contact surface 36 of the insertion hole 11 so that there is play. This is to suppress the press-fitting resistance, and due to such play due to the gap Ca and the gap Cb, the male terminal 4 is positioned in the insertion hole 9 and the insertion hole 11 in the direction of the arrow B. It is not determined within the range of the gap Cb.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 13E, there is also play between the male terminal 4 and the temporary holding hole 24 due to the gap Cd. This is necessary for improving the insertion property when the male terminal 4 is inserted into the temporary holding hole 24. Due to such play due to the gap Cd, the male terminal 4 is moved within the temporary holding hole 24. Is not determined within the range of the gap Cd. The position instability of the male terminal 4 in the temporary holding hole 24 in the terminal placement jig 22 is unstable in the position of the male terminal 4 in the insertion hole 9 or the insertion hole 11 after assembly to the connector housing 2. This leads to a problem of pitch instability between terminals. In other words, the inter-terminal pitch instability problem is caused by play with respect to the male terminal 4 that is required for suppressing the press-fitting resistance and improving the insertability, and thereby the inter-terminal pitch of the male terminal 4 is not constant. If it becomes, there exists a possibility that the connection with the female terminal in the connector of a connection other party cannot be made stable.

  The present invention has been made against the background of the above situation, and the first problem is to provide a terminal arrangement jig that can effectively solve the above-described inter-terminal pitch instability problem. A second problem is to provide a connector assembling method using such a terminal arrangement jig.

  In the present invention, in order to solve the first problem, a required number of terminals are held by being inserted into the insertion holes in a connector housing having a terminal holding wall in which the required number of insertion holes are provided in a predetermined arrangement pattern. Are used for insertion of the terminals into the insertion holes in the connector assembled in a predetermined arrangement pattern, and provisional holding holes are provided in an arrangement pattern corresponding to the arrangement pattern of the insertion holes in the terminal holding wall. The required number of terminals are individually inserted into the temporary holding holes and temporarily held, thereby providing the required number of terminals with an arrangement pattern corresponding to the arrangement pattern of the terminal assembly in the connector housing. A terminal arrangement set is formed, and the terminal arrangement set is inserted into the insertion holes by press-fitting the terminal arrangement set. In the jig, positioning holes are provided in an arrangement pattern corresponding to the arrangement pattern of the temporary holding holes, and the jig is assembled so that the positioning movement can be performed as a movement in a plane perpendicular to the axial direction of the temporary holding holes. A terminal positioning member, and the terminal positioning member performs the positioning movement in a state where the terminal is inserted into the temporary holding hole so as to pass through the positioning hole. An inner surface is pressed against the terminal, and the terminal is moved in the temporary holding hole, and by this movement, the terminal is positioned in the temporary holding hole.

  In such a terminal arrangement jig, the terminal can be positioned at a fixed position in the temporary holding hole by the terminal positioning member, and therefore the position of the terminal in the temporary holding hole can be fixed. For this reason, the pitch between terminals of the terminals assembled in the connector housing can be made constant, and the problem of unstable pitch between terminals can be effectively solved.

  Positioning movement of the terminal positioning member in the terminal arrangement jig as described above can be performed as a combination of X movement that is movement in one direction and Y movement that is movement in a direction orthogonal thereto. However, it is more preferable that the positioning movement can be performed only by movement in one direction.

  Therefore, in the present invention, in the terminal arrangement jig as described above, the positioning hole includes a positioning guide surface portion formed by combining tapered surfaces inclined in opposite directions so as to be widened toward the end in the positioning movement direction. Positioning the terminal with respect to the center of the temporary holding hole in the direction perpendicular to the positioning movement direction by pressing the positioning guide surface portion against the terminal during the positioning movement. It is a preferable form to make the following.

  In such a terminal arrangement jig, the terminal can be positioned with respect to the center of the temporary holding hole by the positioning guide surface portion having the tapered surface structure, and therefore, the positioning operation can be performed only in one direction.

  The connector assembly method using the terminal arrangement jig as described above is a terminal arrangement set in which the required number of terminals are individually inserted into the temporary holding holes and temporarily held to form the terminal arrangement set. Including a forming step and a press-fitting step for performing the press-fitting on the terminal arrangement set, and further including a terminal positioning step for causing the terminal positioning member to perform the positioning movement before or after the press-fitting step. .

  According to the present invention as described above, it is possible to effectively solve the problem of unstable pitch between terminals in a connector that is assembled by using a terminal placement jig and assembling a required number of terminals together in a connector housing. it can.

  Hereinafter, modes for carrying out the present invention will be described. 1 to 4 show the configuration of the terminal arrangement jig 41 according to the first embodiment. The terminal arrangement jig 41 includes a jig body member 42 and a terminal positioning member 43. The terminal arrangement jig 41 is used, for example, for assembling the joint connector 1 in FIGS. Therefore, in the following, the case where the terminal arrangement jig 41 is used for assembling the joint connector 1 will be described.

  The jig main body member 42 is configured as a solid block, provided with a temporary holding hole 44 and provided with a positioning member incorporating portion 45. The temporary holding hole 44 is formed in a square having a size having a suitable play with respect to the rectangular male terminal 4 (FIGS. 2 to 4) inserted into the temporary holding hole 44 for temporary holding. The temporary holding holes 44 are provided in the same number as the insertion holes 9 in the terminal holding wall 7 of the connector housing 2 of the joint connector 1 to form a temporary holding hole group 44g, and the temporary holding hole group 44g The arrangement pattern corresponds to the arrangement pattern of the insertion holes 9.

  The positioning member incorporating portion 45 is used to incorporate a terminal positioning member 43 as described later in a close state. Therefore, the positioning member built-in portion 45 is formed as a flat gap extending in the direction orthogonal to the temporary holding hole 24 and covering the entire temporary holding hole group 44g, and the thickness thereof is about the thickness of the terminal positioning member 43. It is said that.

  The terminal positioning member 43 is configured as a flat plate that covers the entire temporary holding hole group 44g, and is incorporated into the jig body member 42 via the positioning member incorporating portion 45, and is orthogonal to the axial direction of the temporary holding holes. Positioning movement (hereinafter, referred to as positioning movement S as appropriate) that is movement in the plane and movement in the direction of the arrow S shown in FIGS.

  The terminal positioning member 43 is provided with a positioning hole 46. The positioning hole 46 is formed so as to penetrate the terminal positioning member 43, and its hole width size is slightly larger than the hole width size of the temporary holding hole 44. As shown in FIG. 4, the positioning hole 46 is provided with a positioning guide surface portion 47 as a part of its inner surface. The positioning guide surface portion 47 is formed by combining a pair of tapered surfaces 48, 48 that are inclined in opposite directions so as to expand toward the end in the direction of the positioning motion S, and the center point 49, that is, the intersection of the tapered surfaces 48, 48. Is positioned on the center line 50 of the positioning hole 46.

  Further, the positioning holes 46 are provided in the same number as the temporary holding holes 44 in the jig main body member 42 to form a positioning hole group 46g. The positioning holes 46g correspond to the arrangement pattern of the temporary holding holes 44 in the positioning hole group 46g. The arrangement pattern is to be

  In the terminal arrangement jig 41 as described above, the male terminal 4 inserted and temporarily held in the temporary holding hole 44 of the jig main body member 42 can be forcibly positioned in the temporary holding hole 44. The positioning operation will be described below.

  The male terminal 4 is inserted and temporarily held in each of the temporary holding holes 44 in a state where the terminal positioning member 43 is in the initial setting position, as shown in FIGS. Here, the initial setting position of the terminal positioning member 43 corresponds to the position of each positioning hole 46 in the positioning hole group 46 g of the terminal positioning member 43 to each temporary holding hole 44 in the temporary holding hole group 44 g of the jig body member 42. In addition, the terminal positioning member 43 is set in the positioning member incorporating portion 45 so that the inner surface of the positioning hole 46 does not protrude from the inner surface of the temporary holding hole 44 in correspondence with the position.

  In the state where the male terminal 4 is temporarily held in the temporary holding hole 44 as described above, the terminal positioning member 43 is caused to perform the positioning operation S as shown in FIGS. Then, due to the positioning movement S, the terminal positioning member 43 presses the inner surface of the positioning hole 46, specifically, the positioning guide surface portion 47 against the male terminal 4, and the male terminal 4 receives the signal on the positioning guide surface portion 47. It is forcibly guided by the pair of tapered surfaces 48, 48, thereby moving in the temporary holding hole 44 in the direction orthogonal to the positioning movement direction and also in the positioning movement direction. For this reason, the male terminal 4 is moved in the positioning movement direction so that one of the four inner side surfaces of the rectangular temporary holding hole 44 corresponds to the inner side surface (this corresponds to the non-pressing side surface 32 of the male terminal 4, and thus the insertion hole 9 and corresponding to the non-pressing receiving surface 36 of the insertion hole 11) and positioning in the positioning moving direction, and the positioning movement forced by the positioning guide surface portion 47 Positioning in the direction orthogonal to the positioning movement direction by movement in the direction orthogonal to the direction, specifically, positioning with respect to the center of the temporary holding hole 44 in the direction orthogonal to the positioning movement direction is performed. As a result, the male terminal 4 is in close contact with a certain position in the temporary holding hole 44, specifically, one inner surface of the rectangular temporary holding hole 44, and the center line in the cross section of the male terminal 4 is the temporary holding hole. It is positioned at a position that matches the center line of 44.

  Next, a method for assembling the joint connector 1 using the terminal arrangement jig 41 as described above will be described. As shown in FIG. 5, the assembly of the joint connector 1 using the terminal arrangement jig 41 is performed by assembling the circuit board 3 into the connector housing 2 at the board incorporation portion 8 to form the board built-in body 21. Forming process ((a), (c) of FIG. 5), the number of male terminals 4 required by the joint connector 31 are individually inserted into the temporary holding holes 44 of the terminal placement jig 41 and temporarily held. A terminal arrangement set forming step ((b) and (c) in FIG. 5) for forming a terminal arrangement set 51 similar to the terminal arrangement set 23 in FIG. 11 described above, and each male terminal 4 in the terminal arrangement set 51 is incorporated into the board. The operation includes a press-fitting step of press-fitting the body 21 with the press-fitting jig 25, and further includes a terminal positioning step of causing the terminal positioning member 43 to perform the positioning movement as described above. However, the terminal positioning step may be either before the press-fitting step or after the press-fitting step, and when it is performed before the press-fitting step, it may be included in the terminal arrangement set forming step.

  Here, the terminal positioning member 43 may be provided with an operation mechanism for causing the positioning movement S, and by providing an operation mechanism with an appropriate structure, the positioning movement operation in the terminal positioning performed after the press-fitting process. Can be made easier. That is, when the terminal positioning is performed after the press-fitting process, the terminal arrangement set 51 enters the fitting portion 6 of the connector housing 2 as shown in FIG. By providing the operation mechanism, it becomes easy to perform the positioning operation in such a state. In addition, although the notch part for receiving the partition wall 5 in the connector housing 2 is provided in the jig | tool main body member 42 and the terminal positioning member 43 of the terminal arrangement jig 41, the illustration is abbreviate | omitted.

  As described above, the terminal placement jig 41 can position the male terminal 4 at a certain position in the temporary holding hole 44 by the terminal positioning member 43, and thus the position of the male terminal 4 in the temporary holding hole 44 can be determined. It can be made constant. For this reason, the pitch between the terminals of the male terminals 4 assembled to the connector housing 2 can be made constant, and the problem of unstable pitch between terminals can be effectively solved.

  Next, a second embodiment will be described. 6 and 7 show the configuration of the terminal arrangement jig 61 according to the second embodiment. The terminal arrangement jig 61 includes a terminal positioning member 62. The terminal positioning member 62 is basically the same as the terminal positioning member 43 in the first embodiment, and is different from the terminal positioning member 43 with respect to the shape of the positioning hole 63 and the operation direction of the positioning movement.

  The positioning hole 63 has a square shape similar to that of the temporary holding hole 44. Therefore, in order to position the male terminal 4 by the positioning hole 63, the terminal positioning member 62 is provided with a positioning movement that is a combination of the X movement that is movement in one direction and the Y movement that is movement in a direction orthogonal thereto. Will be done. That is, first, by causing the terminal positioning member 62 to perform the positioning motion X, the male terminal 4 is moved in the direction of the positioning motion X so as to be pressed against one of the inner surfaces of the temporary holding hole 44, thereby The male terminal 4 is positioned with respect to the direction (FIG. 7B), and then the terminal positioning member 62 performs the positioning movement Y, thereby moving the male terminal 4 in the direction of the positioning movement Y and temporarily holding it. The other one of the inner side surfaces in the hole 44 is pressed against, thereby positioning the male terminal 4 in the direction of the positioning movement Y ((c) of FIG. 7). As a result, the male terminal 4 is positioned at a certain position in the temporary holding hole 44, specifically, at a position in close contact with the inner surface of the temporary holding hole 44 at one corner of the rectangular temporary holding hole 44. .

  Except for the above configuration, the terminal arrangement jig 61 in the present embodiment is the same as the terminal arrangement jig 41 in the first embodiment, and the configuration common to the terminal arrangement jig 41 is shown in FIGS. 4, the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 4 are attached, and the above description is incorporated.

  As mentioned above, although the form for implementing this invention was demonstrated, these are only representative examples, This invention can be implemented with various forms in the range which does not deviate from the meaning. For example, in the above embodiment, the terminal arrangement jig is used for assembling the joint connector. However, the terminal arrangement jig according to the present invention can also be used for assembling connectors other than the joint connector. In the above-described embodiment, the terminals are square. However, the terminal placement jig according to the present invention can be applied to terminals other than the square.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the terminal arrangement | positioning jig | tool by 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the state which made the terminal arrangement | positioning jig | tool of FIG. 1 temporarily hold | maintain a vertical cross section. It is a figure which shows the state which made the terminal placement jig | tool of FIG. 1 temporarily hold | maintain a terminal in planar view. It is a figure explaining positioning of the terminal in the terminal arrangement jig of FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an assembly process of a joint connector performed using the terminal arrangement jig of FIG. 1. It is a figure which shows the structure of the terminal arrangement | positioning jig | tool by 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure explaining the positioning of the terminal in the terminal arrangement jig of FIG. It is a figure which shows the whole conventional joint connector in the perspective view simplified. It is a figure which simplifies and shows the cross section which follows the AA line in FIG. It is a figure which expands and shows the section of Drawing 9 partially. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an assembly process of the joint connector of FIG. It is a figure which shows the structure of the conventional terminal arrangement jig in a longitudinal section. It is a figure explaining the pitch instability problem between terminals.

Explanation of symbols

1 Joint connector (connector)
2 Connector housing 4 Male terminal 7 Terminal holding wall 9 Insertion hole 41, 61 Terminal arrangement jig 43, 62 Terminal positioning member 44 Temporary holding hole 46, 63 Positioning hole 47 Positioning guide surface part 48 Tapered surface 51 Terminal arrangement set S Positioning movement

Claims (3)

The connector in which the required number of insertion holes are assembled in a predetermined arrangement pattern by holding the required number of terminals through the insertion holes in a connector housing having a terminal holding wall provided with a predetermined arrangement pattern. Temporary holding holes are provided in an arrangement pattern corresponding to the arrangement pattern of the insertion holes in the terminal holding wall, and are used for insertion of the terminals into the insertion holes, and the required number of terminals are individually provided in the temporary holding holes. Forming a terminal arrangement set in which the required number of terminals are provided with an arrangement pattern corresponding to the arrangement pattern of the terminal assembly in the connector housing, and press-fitting the terminal arrangement set. In the terminal placement jig adapted to insert the required number of terminals into the insertion hole,
Positioning holes are provided in an arrangement pattern corresponding to the arrangement pattern of the temporary holding holes, and a terminal positioning member incorporated so as to perform a positioning movement as a movement in a plane perpendicular to the axial direction of the temporary holding holes. And the terminal positioning member performs the positioning movement in a state where the terminal is inserted into the temporary holding hole so as to be inserted through the positioning hole, and the positioning movement causes the inner surface of the positioning hole to be A terminal placement jig, wherein the terminal is moved in the temporary holding hole by being pressed against the terminal, and the terminal is positioned in the temporary holding hole by this movement.   Each of the positioning holes has a positioning guide surface portion formed by combining tapered surfaces inclined in opposite directions so as to widen in the positioning movement direction as a part of the inner surface. 2. The terminal according to claim 1, wherein the terminal is positioned with respect to the center of the temporary holding hole in a direction orthogonal to the positioning movement direction by pressing the guide surface portion against the terminal. The terminal placement jig described. A method for assembling a connector using the terminal arrangement jig according to claim 1 or 2,
The terminal arrangement set forming step for forming the terminal arrangement set by inserting and temporarily holding the required number of terminals individually into the temporary holding holes of the terminal arrangement jig, and press-fitting for press-fitting the terminal arrangement set And a terminal positioning step of causing the terminal positioning member to perform the positioning movement before or after the press-fitting step.

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