JP2011249086A - Flexible flat cable - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a flexible flat cable whose use lifetime is extended longer than in the conventional practice.SOLUTION: The flexible flat cable 1 is configured to be connected to a connector 12 in a first usage state in which the flexible flat cable 1 is used when an end of a reinforcement layer 5 of the flexible flat capable 1 is extended longer than an end of a linear conductor 2 by length L, in a second usage state in which the flexible flat cable 1 is used when the end of the reinforcement layer 5 of the flexible flat cable 1 is cut up to the same position as the end of the linear conductor 2, and in a third usage state in which the flexible flat cable 1 is used when the end of the flexible flat cable 1 is cut at a predetermined distance (e.g., 1 mm), respectively.

Description

  The present invention relates to a flexible flat cable used as a connection cable in various electronic devices.

  Conventionally, in the manufacturing process of various electronic devices such as navigation devices and personal computers, in order to inspect defects in a circuit board built in the electronic device, the circuit board and the tester are connected, and the connected tester is used. A process for inspecting a defect of the circuit board is performed. And in the connection of a circuit board and a tester, the flexible flat cable (FFC) used also as a relay cable between circuit boards is widely used. By using a flexible flat cable for connection between the circuit board and the tester, it is possible to divert the existing connector without the need to form a dedicated connector for connection with the tester on the circuit board.

  In addition, the flexible flat cable is configured by sandwiching a thin plate-like conductor having a predetermined width between insulator layers, and each conductor functions as a wiring for achieving electrical connection. Therefore, for example, in order to connect each conductor to a predetermined terminal of a wiring board or a component, the insulator layer is removed at the connection end and the conductor is exposed. When connecting the flexible flat cable, the exposed conductor (terminal part) is soldered or inserted into the connector, so that it is electrically connected to the terminal of the circuit board or component, and mechanically. Fix it. In particular, in the connection between the circuit board and the tester, it is necessary to sequentially replace and connect a plurality of circuit boards to one tester, so that the flexible flat cable, the circuit board and the tester are inserted into the connector. Connect.

  However, when the circuit board and the tester are connected using a flexible flat cable, there are the following problems. That is, since it is necessary to reduce the thickness of the conductor in the flexible flat cable, the durability of the terminal portion is low, and if the terminal portion is repeatedly inserted and removed from the connector, the terminal portion may be damaged. Therefore, when connecting a circuit board and a tester using a flexible flat cable, the number of times the flexible flat cable is used is limited. When a large number of circuit boards are inspected, a certain number (for example, 100) is used. Each time the inspection of the circuit board was completed, it was necessary to replace the flexible flat cable with a new one.

  In view of this, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2006-13007 proposes a flexible flat cable in which a plurality of connection terminals are formed. In this flexible flat cable, first, the terminals in the front row are used to connect to the connector, and then the terminals in the rear row are cut off after the end of the terminals in the front row reaches the end of its service life. It is described that the service life of a flexible flat cable is extended by connecting to a connector using a cable.

JP 2006-13007 A (pages 6 to 8, FIGS. 1 and 2)

  However, in the flexible flat cable described in Patent Document 1, since it is necessary to form the terminals in a plurality of rows, the space necessary for forming the terminals increases, and the manufacturing cost also increases. In addition, since there are only one portion of the flexible flat cable in which the connector is contacted with respect to one row, there are many portions that are not used for the entire terminal, and the efficiency is poor. Further, when cutting between the terminals, it is necessary to cut the conductor existing between the terminals together.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems of the conventional art. The service life of the flexible flat cable is extended from the conventional one, and the conductor is damaged or short-circuited when part of the flexible flat cable is cut off. An object is to provide a flexible flat cable without fear.

  In order to achieve the above object, a flexible flat cable (1) according to claim 1 of the present application covers a plurality of linear conductors (2) arranged in parallel and the plurality of linear conductors arranged in a plane from above and below. An insulator layer (3, 4), a notch (6) formed at an end portion in the length direction of one surface of the insulator layer, and exposing an end portion of the linear conductor; and the insulator layer A reinforcing layer (5) laminated on the insulator layer at an end portion in the length direction of the other surface of the insulating layer, and an end portion of the reinforcement layer in the length direction of the insulator layer is the linear shape It extends from the end of the conductor.

  A flexible flat cable (1) according to claim 2 is the flexible flat cable according to claim 1, wherein the flexible flat cable is inserted into a connector (12) provided in an electronic device (10), and When the contact terminal (22) of the connector comes into contact with the terminal portion (7) which is the end portion of the linear conductor (2) exposed at the notch (6), the insulator is connected to the electronic device. The length of the end of the reinforcing layer (5) extending from the end of the linear conductor in the length direction of the layers (3, 4) is such that the end of the flexible flat cable is connected to the inner wall of the connector ( 24), in a state where the contact terminal is in contact with the terminal portion.

  Furthermore, the flexible flat cable (1) according to claim 3 is the flexible flat cable according to claim 2, wherein the length of the terminal portion (7) is the length direction of the insulator layers (2, 3). The end of the flexible flat cable is in contact with the inner wall (24) of the connector (12) with the end of the reinforcing layer (5) cut to the same position as the end of the linear conductor (2). In this case, the contact terminal (22) is in contact with the terminal portion (7).

  In the flexible flat cable according to the first aspect having the above-described configuration, it is possible to change the portion of the terminal portion of the flexible flat cable where the contact terminal of the connector contacts by performing a simple cutting operation. Therefore, when the flexible flat cable is repeatedly inserted into and removed from the connector, the service life of the flexible flat cable can be extended as compared with the conventional one. Further, since the linear conductor is not cut when the flexible flat cable is cut, there is no possibility that the linear conductor is damaged or short-circuited.

  In the flexible flat cable according to claim 2, when the end of the reinforcing layer is extended from the end of the linear conductor in the length direction of the insulator layer, the flexible flat cable is connected to the connector. In addition, the terminal portion of the flexible flat cable can be reliably brought into contact with the contact terminal of the connector.

  Furthermore, in the flexible flat cable which concerns on Claim 3, it becomes possible to contact the terminal part of a flexible flat cable with the contact terminal of a connector reliably before and behind the cutting | disconnection of the edge part of a reinforcement layer. As a result, by cutting the end portion of the reinforcing layer in the length direction of the insulating layer to the same position as the end portion of the linear conductor, the portion where the contact terminal of the connector contacts in the terminal portion of the flexible flat cable is changed. It becomes possible.

It is a front view of the flexible flat cable which concerns on this embodiment. It is sectional drawing at the time of cut | disconnecting a flexible flat cable along a centerline. It is the enlarged view which showed the terminal part vicinity of the flexible flat cable in a 1st use state-a 3rd use state. It is the figure which showed an example of the usage condition of a flexible flat cable. It is the schematic diagram which showed the connection aspect of the flexible flat cable with respect to a connector. It is the figure explaining the contact position of the contact terminal with respect to the terminal part in a 1st use state-a 3rd use state.

  Hereinafter, based on one embodiment which materialized the flexible flat cable concerning the present invention, it explains in detail, referring to drawings.

  First, a schematic configuration of the flexible flat cable 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 1 is a front view of the flexible flat cable 1. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the flexible flat cable 1 cut along the center line.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a flexible flat cable 1 according to this embodiment includes a plurality of linear conductors 2 arranged in parallel, a first insulator layer 3 that covers the linear conductors 2 in a planar shape from the vertical direction, and It is basically composed of the second insulator layer 4 and the reinforcing layers 5 laminated on both ends of the second insulator layer 4 respectively. In addition, both end portions of the first insulator layer 3 have cutout portions 6 that are cut out by a certain range. And the edge part of the linear conductor 2 exposed in the notch part 6 forms the terminal part 7 for connecting with the circuit board and tester of an electronic device mentioned later. The flexible flat cable 1 basically has a symmetrical configuration.

  For the linear conductor 2, a gold (Au) plated annealed copper wire, a tin (Sn) plated annealed copper wire, or the like is used. Although the line-to-line pitch of the linear conductor 2 varies depending on the type of electronic equipment and tester to which the flexible flat cable 1 is connected, for example, 0.5 mm, 0.8 mm, 1.0 mm, 1.25 mm, etc. can be selected. it can. Moreover, the number of the linear conductors 2 can be selected from 4-50, for example.

  Moreover, the 1st insulator layer 3 and the 2nd insulator layer 4 are each arrange | positioned with respect to both surfaces of the linear conductor 2 via an adhesive bond layer (not shown), and are mutually adhere | attached. As the first insulator layer 3 and the second insulator layer 4, for example, a flexible plastic film such as a polyimide (PI) film, a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film, a polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) film, or a liquid crystal polymer is used. Can be used.

  The reinforcing layer 5 is laminated in the vicinity of both ends of the second insulator layer 4 via an adhesive layer (not shown). Here, when the flexible flat cable 1 is connected to the connector, the reinforcing layer 5 is attached for the purpose of mechanically reinforcing the terminal portion and facilitating handling. As the reinforcing layer 5, for example, a flexible plastic film such as a PI film, a PET film, a PEN film, or a liquid crystal polymer can be used.

  Here, the reinforcing layer 5 according to the present embodiment has a length direction of the flexible flat cable 1 (that is, a length direction of the first insulator layer 3 and the second insulator layer 4 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2). ), The end of the reinforcing layer 5 is configured to extend beyond the end of the linear conductor 2.

  The length L of the end portion of the reinforcing layer 5 extending from the end portion of the linear conductor 2 in the length direction of the flexible flat cable 1 is such that the end portion of the flexible flat cable 1 is an electronic device as will be described later. It is set to a length (for example, 1 mm) at which the contact terminal on the connector side contacts the terminal portion 7 in a state where the inner wall of the connector is in contact (see FIG. 5). The connection mode between the terminal portion 7 and the connector will be described in detail later.

  Moreover, the flexible flat cable 1 which concerns on this embodiment cut | disconnects the extension part of the reinforcement layer 5, and a part of edge part of the flexible flat cable 1, and the terminal part 7 and the contact terminal by the side of a connector contact. A configuration is used in which the position is changed to a plurality of different positions. Specifically, the “first use state” used in a state where the end of the reinforcing layer 5 extends by a length L from the end of the linear conductor 2, and the end of the reinforcing layer 5 is used as the linear conductor. "Second use state" used in the state cut to the same position as the end of 2, and further from the second use state, the flexible flat cable 1 (linear conductor 2, first insulator layer 3, second insulator It is used in the “third use state” in which the end portions of the layer 4 and the reinforcing layer 5) are used in a state where they are cut at a predetermined distance (for example, 1 mm). FIG. 3 is an enlarged view showing the vicinity of the terminal portion of the flexible flat cable 1 in the first use state to the third use state, respectively.

  And in the flexible flat cable 1 which concerns on this embodiment, after using the service life (for example, 100 times of insertion / extraction with respect to a connector) of the conventional flexible flat cable in the 1st use state mentioned above, the edge part of the reinforcement layer 5 is attached. It is used in the second use state where it is cut to the same position as the end of the linear conductor 2. And after using the service life of the conventional flexible flat cable in a 2nd use condition, it uses in the 3rd use state which cut | disconnected the edge part of the flexible flat cable 1 for the predetermined distance. As a result, the service life of the flexible flat cable 1 is three times longer than the conventional one.

  Note that the length M of the terminal portion 7 is determined by the shape of the notch portion 6, but the length M is an electron at the end of the flexible flat cable 1 in any state of the first use state to the third use state. The length is such that the contact terminal on the connector side contacts the terminal portion 7 when contacting the inner wall of the connector of the device.

  Next, a specific usage mode of the flexible flat cable 1 having the above configuration will be described.

  As an example of the usage mode of the flexible flat cable 1 according to the present embodiment, for example, it is used to connect a circuit board 10 constituting an electronic device and a tester 11 for inspecting the circuit board 10. FIG. 4 is a view showing an example of how the flexible flat cable 1 is used.

  As shown in FIG. 4, one end of the flexible flat cable 1 is connected to the connector 12 of the circuit board 10, and the other end is connected to the connector 13 of the tester 11. When the inspection of the circuit board 10 using the tester 11 is completed, the flexible flat cable 1 is removed from the connector 12, and the flexible flat cable 1 is connected to the connector 12 of the circuit board 10 to be newly inspected. . And the test | inspection of the several circuit board 10 is performed sequentially by connecting and removing the flexible flat cable 1 with respect to the connector 12 repeatedly.

  Then, the connection aspect of the flexible flat cable 1 with respect to the connector 12 of the circuit board 10 and the connector 13 of the tester 11 is demonstrated. Since the connection mode for the connector 12 and the connection mode for the connector 13 are basically the same, the connection mode for the connector 12 will be described below as an example. FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing a connection mode of the flexible flat cable 1 to the connector 12.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the connector 12 is a contact that enables data communication by electrically contacting the insertion port 21 into which the end of the flexible flat cable 1 is inserted and the terminal portion 7 of the flexible flat cable 1. The terminal 22 and the lock portion 23 for fixing the position of the flexible flat cable 1 to the connector 12 are configured.

  And when connecting the flexible flat cable 1 with respect to the connector which has the said structure, the edge part of the flexible flat cable 1 is inserted from the insertion port 21 to the position which contacts the inner wall 24 of the connector 12. FIG. Thereafter, the lock portion 23 is rotated to fix the flexible flat cable 1 to the connector 12. As a result, the terminal portion 7 comes into contact with the contact terminal 22 and the flexible flat cable 1 and the connector 12 are electrically connected.

  Moreover, the contact position of the contact terminal 22 with respect to the terminal part 7 changes with the use states (1st use state-3rd use state (refer FIG. 3)) of the flexible flat cable 1 mentioned above. Below, the contact position of the contact terminal 22 with respect to the terminal part 7 in each use state is demonstrated. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the contact position of the contact terminal 22 with respect to the terminal portion 7 in each use state.

In the first use state in which the end portion of the reinforcing layer 5 of the flexible flat cable 1 is extended by a length L from the end portion of the linear conductor 2, the flexible flat cable 1 has the end portion of the reinforcing layer 5. The contact terminal 22 is connected to the connector 12 in contact with the inner wall 24 of the connector 12, and the contact terminal 22 is brought into contact with the position X closest to the end of the terminal portion 7.
Moreover, in the 2nd use state used in the state which cut | disconnected the edge part of the reinforcement layer 5 of the flexible flat cable 1 to the same position as the edge part of the linear conductor 2, the flexible flat cable 1 is the reinforcement layer 5 and the linear conductor 2. FIG. Are connected to the connector 12 in a state in which the end portions thereof are in contact with the inner wall 24 of the connector 12, and the contact terminal 22 is brought into contact with the position Y substantially at the center of the terminal portion 7.
Moreover, in the 3rd use state used in the state which cut | disconnected the edge part of the flexible flat cable 1 for a predetermined distance (for example, 1 mm), the flexible flat cable 1 has the edge part of the reinforcement layer 5 after cutting, and the edge part of the linear conductor 2, respectively. 12 is connected to the connector 12 in contact with the inner wall 24, and the contact terminal 22 is brought into contact with the position Z at the innermost side of the terminal portion 7.
That is, since the contact position of the contact terminal 22 in the terminal portion 7 is different in each use state, the service life of the terminal portion 7 can be improved as compared with the case where the contact position is repeatedly contacted. In addition, it is good also as a structure which is not used in a 3rd use state, but is used only in a 1st use state and a 2nd use state. In this case, there is no need to cut the conductor, and there is an advantage that the conductor is not damaged or short-circuited. Further, the flexible flat cable 1 may be used in the fourth usage state in which the end portion of the flexible flat cable 1 is further cut by a predetermined distance (for example, 1 mm) from the third usage state, or in the fifth usage state in which the end portion is further cut by a predetermined distance (for example, 1 mm). good. However, if the terminal portion 7 is made too long, the flexible flat cable 1 becomes difficult to handle and may cause damage to the terminal portion 7.

  In addition, the space | interval of position XZ is the length L which the edge part of the reinforcement layer 5 extends from the edge part of the linear conductor 2, and the edge part of the flexible flat cable 1 in order to set it as the 3rd use state. For example, it is preferable to set the distance to about 1 mm. If the interval is too narrow, the terminal portion 7 may be damaged. On the other hand, if the interval is too wide, it is necessary to increase the length M of the terminal portion 7, which makes it difficult to handle the flexible flat cable 1.

  As described above, in this embodiment, when the flexible flat cable 1 is used in the first use state, the second use state, and the third use state, the service life of the flexible flat cable 1 is three times that of the conventional one. If the connection terminal of the flexible flat cable 1 is further exchanged between the circuit board 10 side and the tester 11 side, the first use state, the second use state, and the third use are again made with the other terminal portion 7 as a target. Each can be used in a state, and the service life of the flexible flat cable 1 is six times longer than the conventional one.

As described above in detail, in the flexible flat cable 1 according to this embodiment, the reinforcing layer 5 is provided to reinforce the terminal portion 7 of the flexible flat cable 1, and the reinforcing layer is further provided in the length direction of the flexible flat cable 1. 5 so that the end portion of the reinforcing layer 5 of the flexible flat cable 1 is longer than the end portion of the linear conductor 2. A first use state used in a state of extending only, a second use state in which the end portion of the reinforcing layer 5 of the flexible flat cable 1 is cut to the same position as the end portion of the linear conductor 2, and a flexible The flexible flat cable 1 is connected to the connector 12 in the third use state in which the end portion of the flat cable 1 is used after being cut at a predetermined distance (for example, 1 mm). Since connection, by performing a simple cutting operation, the contact terminals 22 of the connector 12 it is possible to change the portion contacting the terminal portion 7 of the flexible flat cable 1. Therefore, when the flexible flat cable 1 is repeatedly inserted into and removed from the connector 12, the service life of the flexible flat cable 1 can be extended as compared with the conventional case.
Further, when shifting from the first use state to the second use state, since the linear conductor 2 is not cut when the flexible flat cable 1 is cut, the linear conductor 2 is damaged or short-circuited. There is no fear.
The length L of the end of the reinforcing layer 5 extending beyond the end of the linear conductor 2 in the length direction of the flexible flat cable 1 is such that the end of the flexible flat cable 1 contacts the inner wall 24 of the connector 12. In this state, the contact terminal 22 is brought into contact with the terminal portion 7 so that the flexible flat cable 1 is connected to the connector 12 even when the end portion of the reinforcing layer 5 is extended from the end portion of the linear conductor 2. When connected, the terminal portion 7 of the flexible flat cable 1 can be reliably brought into contact with the contact terminal 22 of the connector 12.
Further, the length M of the terminal portion 7 is such that the end portion 7 of the flexible flat cable 1 contacts the inner wall 24 of the connector 12 in any state of the first use state to the third use state. Since the contact terminal 22 has such a length that the contact terminal 22 comes into contact, the terminal portion 7 of the flexible flat cable 1 can be reliably brought into contact with the contact terminal 22 of the connector 12 in each use state.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.
For example, in the present embodiment, the example in which the flexible flat cable 1 is used to connect the circuit board 10 constituting the electronic device and the tester 11 that inspects the circuit board 10 has been described. However, the flexible flat cable 1 is used for other purposes. Is also possible. However, the present invention has a remarkable effect particularly when the flexible flat cable 1 is used for the purpose of repeatedly inserting and removing the terminal portion 7 of the flexible flat cable 1 with respect to the connector.

  In the present embodiment, the end of the reinforcing layer 5 extends beyond the end of the linear conductor 2 at both ends of the flexible flat cable 1, but the end of the reinforcing layer 5 is linear only at one end. It is good also as a structure extended rather than the edge part of the conductor 2. FIG. However, in that case, it is desirable that the side where the reinforcing layer 5 extends is connected to the connector 12 of the circuit board 10.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Flexible flat cable 2 Linear conductor 3 1st insulator layer 4 2nd insulator layer 5 Reinforcement layer 6 Notch 7 Terminal part 10 Circuit board 11 Tester 22 Contact terminal

Claims (3)

A plurality of linear conductors arranged in parallel;
An insulator layer covering the plurality of parallel lined conductors in a planar shape from above and below,
A notch that is formed at an end in the length direction of one surface of the insulator layer and exposes an end of the linear conductor;
A reinforcing layer laminated on the insulator layer at an end portion in the length direction of the other surface of the insulator layer;
The flexible flat cable, wherein an end portion of the reinforcing layer extends beyond an end portion of the linear conductor in a length direction of the insulator layer. The flexible flat cable is inserted into a connector provided in an electronic device, and the contact terminal of the connector comes into contact with a terminal portion that is an end portion of the linear conductor exposed in the cutout portion. Connected,
The length in which the end of the reinforcing layer extends from the end of the linear conductor in the length direction of the insulator layer is such that the end of the flexible flat cable is in contact with the inner wall of the connector. The flexible flat cable according to claim 1, wherein the length of the contact terminal is in contact with the terminal portion. The length of the terminal portion is such that the end of the flexible flat cable is connected to the connector in a state where the end of the reinforcing layer is cut to the same position as the end of the linear conductor in the length direction of the insulator layer. The flexible flat cable according to claim 2, wherein the contact terminal has a length such that the contact terminal comes into contact with the terminal portion when contacting the inner wall.

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