JP2011222229A - Standby connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a standby connector facilitating the fitting of a door side connector.SOLUTION: A standby connector mounted on a panel P of a vehicle includes a panel side connector housing 20 having a terminal storage portion 21 and capable of fitting with the door side connector 60, a male type terminal fitting 10 attached to the terminal storage portion 21, and a panel mounting member 40 having a holding frame portion 42 mounted on the panel P to hold the panel side connector housing 20. The holding frame portion 42 holds the panel side connector housing 20 in a posture in which a fitting direction of the door side connector 60 changes from a direction vertical to the panel P to a direction parallel with a rotation axis of a hinge H supporting a door D and tilting in a closing direction C side of the door D about an axis Z passing through a center of an opening portion of the panel P.

Description

  The present invention relates to a standby connector attached to a vehicle.

  Conventionally, what was described in patent document 1 as a standby connector attached to the opening part of the panel of a vehicle using the clearance gap between a vehicle body and a door is well-known. This standby connector attaches a connector attached to the end of an electric wire extending from the board portion of the vehicle body to the opening of the vehicle panel, and attaches a door side connector connected to the electric wire extending from the door control portion to the panel. It is the structure fitted in the direction orthogonal to a surface.

JP 2004-171885 A

  However, despite the growing demand for small vehicles with a narrow space between the vehicle body and the door and poor workability of the door-side connector, the camera mounted on the door mirror and the airbag for the door are controlled. As the number of electric wires to increase is increased, standby connectors and door-side connectors are becoming larger. For this reason, it is becoming more difficult to fit a large door-side connector into a standby connector provided in a narrow space.

  Further, if the size of the connector is further increased, the connectors cannot be fitted between the vehicle body and the door, and the door is removed from the vehicle body when the door side connector is attached to or detached from the standby connector. The problem arises that work must be performed in the state.

  The present invention has been completed based on the above-described circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a standby connector that can easily perform a fitting operation of a door-side connector.

  As means for achieving the above object, the present invention is a standby connector attached to a panel provided with a hinge for supporting a door of a vehicle, and has a terminal accommodating portion at an end of an electric wire led out from the door. A connector housing that can be fitted to the provided door-side connector, a terminal fitting that is attached to the terminal accommodating portion of the connector housing, and a holding frame portion that is attached to the panel and holds the connector housing in a predetermined posture. A panel mounting member having the connector frame, the holding frame portion being parallel to the pivot axis of the hinge from a direction in which the fitting direction of the door side connector is perpendicular to the panel, and In a configuration that is held in a posture that is inclined toward the closing direction side of the door about the axis center passing through the center of the opening of the panel. With a butterfly.

  According to the standby connector having such a configuration, when the door is opened, the standby connector and the door-side connector are in a state in which the fitting direction of the standby connector faces the gap provided between the vehicle body and the door. Therefore, the door-side connector can be easily fitted.

The following configuration is preferable as an embodiment of the present invention.
A locking part and a locked part for locking the connector housing are provided on one and the other of the holding frame part and the connector housing, and the locking part or the locked part is fitted to the connector housing. It is good also as a structure set to the position which can be reversely mounted when it reverse | reverses centering around a direction.

  In this embodiment, since the holding frame portion holds the connector housing in an inclined posture, when the same standby connector is shared on the left and right sides of the vehicle body, the arrangement of the terminal fittings mounted on the connector housing is arranged upside down on the left and right sides of the vehicle body. However, according to such a configuration, the panel mounting member is connected to the standby connector while maintaining the vertical position of the connector housing on the left and right sides of the vehicle. The fitting direction with the door-side connector can be reversed around the axis and attached to the panel.

  That is, it is possible to use the same standby connector in common on the left and right sides of the vehicle while maintaining the vertical orientation of the connector housing, so there is no need to manufacture dedicated standby connectors on the left and right sides of the vehicle, Cost increase can be prevented.

  The panel mounting member is provided with an annular panel sealing member that seals a gap with the opening of the panel, and an annular holder that seals the gap between the connector housing and the holding frame portion on the outer surface of the connector housing. It is good also as a structure by which the sealing member for is provided. According to such a configuration, it is possible to prevent water from entering between the gap between the vehicle body panel and the panel mounting member and the gap between the holding frame portion and the connector housing by each seal member.

  A cam pin that engages with a cam groove provided in a lever that is rotatably supported by the door-side connector protrudes from the outer surface of the connector housing. It is good also as a structure fitted with a door side connector. According to such a configuration, even when the connectors are multipolar, the respective connectors can be easily fitted by cam action.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the standby connector which can perform the fitting operation | work of a door side connector easily can be provided.

The top view which showed the state before fitting the door side connector to the stand-by connector which concerns on this embodiment Front view of a standby connector according to the present embodiment Cross-sectional side view Plan sectional drawing which showed the state before fitting a door side connector with the stand-by connector attached to the right side panel of vehicles Plan sectional drawing which showed the state which fitted the door side connector to the stand-by connector attached to the right side panel of vehicles Plan sectional drawing which showed the state before fitting a door side connector with the stand-by connector attached to the left side panel of vehicles

<Embodiment>
An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
The standby connector of this embodiment is attached to the panel P of the vehicle body to which the hinge H holding the vehicle door D is attached, and the attachment position is located between the two hinges H arranged in the vertical direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the standby connector is attached to the terminal side housing 21 and the panel side connector housing 20 corresponding to the connector housing that has the terminal housing portion 21 and can be fitted to the door side connector 60. A structure comprising a male terminal fitting 10 corresponding to a terminal fitting to be made and a panel mounting member 40, wherein the panel mounting member 40 is attached to the opening of the panel P of the vehicle body with the panel side connector housing 20 held therein. It has become.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the panel-side connector housing 20 has a box shape with rounded four corners. A flange portion 22 is provided, and a cam pin 23 protrudes at a position between the panel-side connector housing 20 and the flange portion 22 on one outer surface in the longitudinal direction. In addition, the outer surface shape of the panel side connector housing 20 is formed symmetrically with respect to the outer surface shape of the rear portion from the flange portion 22. The panel-side connector housing 20 has a front portion as a hood portion 24 with a flange portion 22 as a boundary, and a rear portion as a terminal accommodating portion 21.

  The terminal accommodating portion 21 is provided so as to extend straight rearward from the bottom surface of the hood portion 24 at a distance from the outer wall surface of the panel side connector housing 20, and is provided in a form slightly protruding from the rear end surface of the panel side connector housing 20. It has been.

The terminal accommodating portion 21 is divided into a plurality of cavities 21A, and the male terminal fittings 10 connected to the ends of the electric wires Y are attached to the cavities 21A as shown in FIG. Although the male terminal fitting 10 is omitted for simplification, the panel-side connector housing 20 has a cavity in which a small terminal fitting is mounted at the center of the terminal accommodating portion 21 as shown in FIG. 21A is provided, and a hybrid type is provided in which a cavity 21A is provided on both sides of which large terminal fittings are mounted.
The male terminal fitting 10 is configured to be crimped and crimped to the end of the electric wire Y behind the connection portion 11, and is attached to the cavity 21 </ b> A with the tip of the connection portion 11 protruding from the bottom surface of the hood portion 24. .

On the other hand, the door-side connector 60 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape with rounded corners. The door-side connector housing 61, the female terminal fitting 15 attached to the door-side connector housing 61, and the door-side connector housing 61 rotate. It is comprised from the lever 62 supported so that it is possible.
On the mating side surface of the door-side connector housing 61, a fitting portion 63 is formed in the center of the door-side connector housing 61 so as to be accommodated in the hood portion 24 of the panel-side connector housing 20. ing.
A female terminal fitting 15 connected to the male terminal fitting 10 protruding from the bottom surface of the hood portion 24 is mounted inside the fitting portion 63.

  The rear end face of the door-side connector 60 is provided with a wire lead-out port 64 through which the wire Y is led out at the center, and a cover mounting portion 65 for attaching a grommet (not shown) is provided at the opening edge.

  A connector sealing member 66 that seals the gap between the connector housings 20 and 61 when the connector housings 20 and 61 are fitted to each other on the outer peripheral surface of the fitting portion 63 to prevent water from entering the connector housing. The connector seal member 66 is provided with a lip portion 66A at a position in close contact with the outer peripheral surface of the fitting portion 63 and the inner peripheral surface of the hood portion 24, so that water can be more reliably immersed into the connector housing. To prevent.

  The lever 62 rotatably supported by the door-side connector housing 61 is provided with a cam groove 62B that engages with the cam pin 23 of the panel-side connector housing 20 in the main body 62A. When the connector housings 20 and 61 are fitted, the levers 62 are rotated in the direction in which the connector housings 20 and 61 are fitted, so that the connector housings 20 and 61 are fitted by cam action. Even when the connector is multipolar, the fitting operation can be easily performed by the boosting action of the cam pin 23 and the cam groove 62B.

On the other hand, a panel mounting member 40 can be attached to the outside of the panel-side connector housing 20.
The panel attachment member 40 is opened in the front-rear direction, and the outer surface thereof has a narrowed form in two stages from the front to the rear. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the inside of the panel mounting member 40 is configured to be narrowed in two steps from the front to the rear in accordance with the outer surface shape of the panel mounting member 40, and is located at the front portion. The door-side connector housing 61 is fitted into the widest fitting recess 41. The bottom surface of the fitting recess 41 has the same shape as the outer peripheral shape of the panel mounting member 40.

A holding frame portion 42 having a stepped portion 43 is formed at a rear portion of the fitting recess 41 of the panel mounting member 40, and the panel side connector housing 20 is accommodated in the holding frame portion 42. Yes.
The opening of the holding frame portion 42 has a length in the longitudinal direction that extends to the entire length of the bottom surface of the fitting recess 41, and a length in the short direction is slightly narrower than that of the fitting recess 41. This shape is formed to be bilaterally symmetric substantially the same as the outer peripheral shape of the flange portion 22 provided on the panel-side connector housing 20. Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 3 to 6, when the panel-side connector housing 20 is accommodated in the holding frame portion 42, the outer peripheral surface of the flange portion 22 and the inner peripheral surface of the holding frame portion 42 come into contact with each other. Yes. Further, since the inner surface shape of the holding frame portion 42 and the outer surface shape of the rear portion of the flange portion 22 of the panel side connector housing 20 are bilaterally symmetric, the panel side connector housing 20 is reversed left and right with respect to the holding frame portion 42. Can be attached.

  Further, when the panel-side connector housing 20 is inserted into the holding frame portion 42 between the stepped portion 43 of the holding frame portion 42 and the flange portion 22 of the panel-side connector housing 20, An annular holder sealing member 25 that seals the gap between the peripheral surface and the outer peripheral surface of the panel-side connector housing 20 is disposed between the stepped portion 43 and the flange portion 22 (see FIGS. 3 and 4). The water that has entered the panel mounting member 40 is prevented from entering the inside of the panel. The holder sealing member 25 is provided with a lip portion 25A at a position in close contact with the inner peripheral surface of the holding frame portion 42 and the outer peripheral surface of the panel-side connector housing 20, and the water that has entered the panel mounting member 40 is provided. Is surely prevented from entering the inside of the panel P.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the length of the holding frame portion 42 and the depth of the fitting recess 41 are combined to extend the length of the panel-side connector housing 20 accommodated in the holding frame portion 42. It is set to be substantially the same as the length of the outer surface, and when the panel-side connector housing 20 reaches the fitting completion state with respect to the holding frame portion 42, the rear opening surface of the panel-side connector housing 20 and the panel mounting member 40 The rear opening surface is set so as to be flush with each other.

  On the other hand, on the outer peripheral surface of the panel-side connector housing 20 in the short direction, as shown in FIG. 3, a locking projection 26 slightly protruding from the outer surface of the panel-side connector housing 20 is provided at the center of the rear edge portion It is provided integrally with the side connector housing 20. The locking protrusion 26 has a flat box shape having a pressing inclined surface 26A inclined outward from the rear to the front at a position on the outer side of the rear end portion, and the surface in the longitudinal direction is a panel. It arrange | positions so that the back end part of the side connector housing 20 may be met.

  When the panel-side connector housing 20 is inserted into the holding frame portion 42 of the panel mounting member 40, the locking projection 26 corresponds to the locking projection 26 from the inner surface of the holding frame portion 42 into the holding frame portion 42. It is configured to be locked by a flexible lance 44 extending in a cantilevered manner in the rearward direction.

  When the panel-side connector housing 20 is inserted into the holding frame portion 42 from the front side, the pressing inclined surface 26A of the locking projection 26 is bent and deformed so as to push the flexible lance 44 outward, and the panel side When the connector housing 20 is inserted into the holding frame portion 42 to the proper position, the contact state between the pressing inclined surface 26A and the front surface of the flexible lance 44 is released, and the locking projection 26 is flexible. Locked by the lance 44. As a result, the panel-side connector housing 20 is held by the panel mounting member 40.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the panel mounting member 40 has a rectangular tube shape with rounded corners, and the front opening surface is inclined with respect to the rear opening surface. Yes. More specifically, both opposing longitudinal wall surfaces of the fitting recess 41 are set to have different lengths in the front-rear direction, and a short wall surface 45 in which one wall surface is set shorter than the other wall surface. The other surface is a long wall surface 46 set longer than the short wall surface 45. In this embodiment, the length of the long wall surface 46 in the front-rear direction is set to a length dimension that is, for example, about twice the length of the short wall surface 45 in the front-rear direction.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, the angle between the rear opening surface of the panel mounting member 40 and the opening surface of the fitting recess 41 is set to about 25 degrees, and the edge portion of the short wall surface 45 and the edge portion of the long wall surface 46 are set. The opening edge part which connects is formed in an inclined form.

  Further, the front opening edge of the panel mounting member 40 is provided with a hooking portion 47 at one central portion in the short side direction and an elastic engaging claw 48 that is elastically deformable at the other central portion. Yes. The hook portion 47 is formed in a box shape having a rhombus shape protruding from the opening edge of the fitting recess 41, and the elastic engagement claw 48 is fitted to the front portion from the front toward the rear. It is formed in a shape having an inclined surface 48A inclined outward from the opening of 41 and an engaging surface 48B orthogonal to the outer surface of the fitting recess 41 in the rear part.

  Further, a flange-like panel abutting portion 49 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the fitting concave portion 41 at a position slightly rearward from the opening portion so as to follow the edge of the opening portion. When attaching to the opening provided on the panel P, the opening edge of the panel P is sandwiched between the front surface of the panel abutting portion 49 and the engaging surface 48B of the hooking portion 47 and the elastic engaging claw 48. The panel mounting member 40 is fixed to the panel P.

  Specifically, the hook 47 is hooked to the edge of the opening of the panel P in the short direction, and the panel abutment 49 is pressed against the panel (the front and rear direction of the panel mounting member 40 is relative to the mounting surface of the panel P). The panel mounting member 40 is caused (in a direction perpendicular to the vertical direction). In this attachment process, the elastic engagement claw 48 is pressed against the opening edge of the panel P by inserting the inclined surface 48A of the elastic engagement claw 48 into the opening of the panel P while inserting the distal end portion thereof into the opening of the panel P. It is elastically deformed toward the inside of the fitting recess 41. Then, when the panel contact portion 49 of the panel mounting member 40 is in a state parallel to the panel P, it is elastically restored, and the opening edge of the panel P is pulled with the front surface of the panel contact portion 49. The panel attachment member 40 is fixed to the opening of the panel P by being sandwiched between the hook portion 47 and the engagement surface 48B of the elastic engagement claw 48.

  A panel sealing member 51 that seals the gap between the panel P and the panel contact portion 49 when the panel mounting member 40 is attached to the opening of the panel P is attached to the front surface of the panel contact portion 49. The provided seal mounting groove 50 prevents rainwater and the like from entering the panel.

  Here, the panel mounting member 40 of the present embodiment has a configuration in which the opening surface on the fitting side is inclined, so that the panel mounting member 40 is placed with respect to the opening of the panel P as shown in FIG. It can be installed in an inclined state. That is, the fitting direction of the panel-side connector housing 20 and the door-side connector housing 61 can be attached in a state inclined with respect to the attachment surface of the panel P.

Next, the attachment procedure to the opening part of the panel P of this embodiment is demonstrated, and the effect is demonstrated collectively.
First, the panel-side connector housing 20 with the male-side terminal fitting 10 mounted on the panel mounting member 40 is inserted from the front side, so that the panel-side connector housing 20 is locked by the flexible lance 44 of the holding frame portion 42. The standby connector is configured by locking the portion 26 and preventing the panel-side connector housing 20 from coming off the panel mounting member 40.

  Next, the standby connector is attached to the opening portion of the rectangular panel P that is opened vertically. The attachment direction of the standby connector at this time is such that the long wall surface 46 of the panel attachment member 40 opens the door D. It fixes from the inside of the panel P so that it may be arrange | positioned.

  The fixing method is such that the hook portion 47 is hooked on the opening edge in the short direction, and the panel contact portion 49 is pressed against the panel P while the tip of the elastic engagement claw 48 is inserted into the opening portion of the panel P. By causing the standby connector, the standby connector is fixed to the opening of the panel P. In this attachment process, the elastic engaging claw 48 is bent and deformed when its inclined surface 48A is pressed against the edge of the opening of the panel P, and is completely inserted into the opening of the panel P. The opening edge of the panel P is sandwiched between the panel contact portion 49 facing the 48B.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the standby connector of the present embodiment fixed as described above is a door inside the panel P while the panel mounting member 40 holds the panel-side connector housing 20 in the holding frame portion 42. Is fixed with respect to the opening of the panel P so as to be inclined in the direction opposite to the side to be opened and closed. That is, the fitting direction of the panel-side connector housing 20 and the door-side connector housing 61 accommodated in the holding frame portion 42 of the panel attachment member 40 is inclined with respect to the attachment surface of the panel P, and the inclination direction is the panel direction. Inclined from the direction perpendicular to P to the pivot axis of the hinge H and inclined toward the closing direction of the door D around the axis center Z passing through the center of the opening of the panel P (to the panel P The angle θ between the fitting direction of the door-side connector housing and the opening surface of the panel P is set to about 65 degrees, for example. Is done.

  Thereby, the standby connector of this embodiment is compared with the conventional standby connector, when the operator tries to engage the door side connector with the door of the vehicle opened, the fitting direction is In this state, it is possible to perform the fitting work very easily for the worker who fits the door side connector.

  In addition, even if the conventional standby connector cannot secure a space for the fitting stroke for fitting the door-side connector due to the increase in size of the connector, the standby connector of this embodiment has a fitting direction that opens the door. Since the mating direction is toward the operator when it is in a state, it is possible to secure a sufficient space for the mating stroke of the door side connector, and the burden of the operator's mating work is reduced. Can be reduced.

  Further, since the panel-side connector housing 20 can be mounted horizontally reversed with respect to the holding frame portion 42 of the panel mounting member 40, it is attached to the right panel of the vehicle as shown in FIGS. The panel attachment member 40 can be reversed left and right and employed in the left side panel of the vehicle while maintaining the posture of the panel side connector housing 20 with the attached standby connector. Thereby, a stand-by connector can be fixed to the vehicle without reversing the arrangement of the male terminal fittings 10 of the panel-side connector housing 20 on the left and right sides of the vehicle. Therefore, it is possible to eliminate the troublesome work of an operator who performs the fitting operation of the door side connector confirming the fitting direction every time the fitting operation is performed.

<Other embodiments>
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described with reference to the above description and drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.
(1) In the above embodiment, the panel-side connector housing 20 is held by the holding frame portion 42 so that the angle θ between the fitting direction of the door-side connector 60 and the opening surface of the panel P is about 65 degrees. However, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and the angle θ may be any angle that allows the door-side connector to be easily fitted to the standby connector. For example, the angle θ is 60 degrees or 70 degrees. It may be degrees.
(2) In the above embodiment, the panel-side connector housing 20 can be mounted on the panel mounting member 40 by reversing the left and right. However, the present invention is not limited to such a mode, and the panel side It is good also as a structure which cannot reversely mount the connector housing 20 with respect to the panel attachment member 40. FIG.

  (3) In the above embodiment, the shape of the panel mounting member 40 and the panel-side connector housing 20 is configured in a box shape with rounded corners, but the present invention is not limited to such an aspect. For example, the shape may be a cylindrical shape or a box shape with sharp corners.

10: Male terminal fitting (terminal fitting),
20: Panel side connector housing (connector housing),
21: terminal accommodating portion, 23: cam pin, 25: seal member for holder,
26: locking protrusion (locked portion), 40 panel mounting member, 42: holding frame portion 44: flexible lance (locking portion), 51: panel sealing member,
60: Door side connector, 62: Lever, 62B: Cam groove, D: Door,
H: Hinge, P: Panel, Y: Electric wire, Z: Center of axis

Claims (4)

A standby connector attached to a panel provided with a hinge for supporting a vehicle door,
A connector housing that has a terminal accommodating portion and can be fitted to a door-side connector provided at an end of an electric wire led out from the door, a terminal fitting attached to the terminal accommodating portion of the connector housing, and the panel A panel attachment member having a holding frame portion attached and holding the connector housing in a predetermined posture;
The holding frame portion passes through the connector housing through the center of the opening of the panel from the direction in which the fitting direction of the door side connector is perpendicular to the panel from the direction perpendicular to the hinge. A standby connector configured to be held in a posture that is inclined toward the closing direction side of the door about the axis center. A locking part and a locked part for locking the connector housing are provided on one and the other of the holding frame part and the connector housing,
The standby connector according to claim 1, wherein the locking portion or the locked portion is set at a position where the connector housing can be reversed when the connector housing is reversed with the fitting direction as an axis center.   The panel mounting member is provided with an annular panel sealing member that seals a gap with the opening of the panel, and an annular holder that seals the gap between the connector housing and the holding frame portion on the outer surface of the connector housing. 3. The standby connector according to claim 2, further comprising a sealing member for use.   A cam pin that engages with a cam groove provided in a lever that is rotatably supported by the door-side connector protrudes from the outer surface of the connector housing. The standby connector according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the standby connector is fitted to a door-side connector.

Images