JP2012146523A - Retainer mounting structure - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To add a retainer later for improving a locking force.SOLUTION: In this mounting structure of a retainer 40, the retainer 40 for restraining downward displacement of a lance 25 can be mounted to a connector housing 20. The retainer 40 comprises a pair of lock parts 43 arranged on both of right and left sides of the connector housing 20 and locked with a lower outside surface of the connector housing 20 to restrain downward detachment; and a plurality of positioning ribs 41 locked with a slit 26 formed on the lower outside surface of the connector housing 20 for forward, backward, rightward and leftward positioning.

Description

  The present invention relates to a retainer mounting structure.

  Conventionally, as a connector having a connector housing provided with a plurality of cavities for accommodating mating terminals, for example, a connector described in Patent Document 1 below is known. A lance is provided on the inner wall of the cavity to prevent the mating terminal housed in the cavity from coming off. The lance can be elastically bent toward the outer surface side of the connector housing by forming a slit between the outer surface of the connector housing and the inner wall of the cavity, and is arranged to face the outside of the connector housing.

JP 2010-67483 A

  However, in the above connector, the retainer mounting structure that double-stops the mating terminal together with the lance is not originally set, and only the locking force by the lance is obtained, for example, the wire connected to the mating terminal is pulled strongly. Then there may be a shortage. As described above, even when a further locking force is required, a retainer cannot be added later, so that a flexible response cannot be taken.

  The present invention has been completed based on the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to allow a retainer to be added later in order to improve the locking force.

  The present invention includes a connector housing having a plurality of cavities arranged in the left-right direction in a form penetrating in the front-rear direction, and a lance that is provided for each cavity to prevent the mating terminal accommodated in the cavity from coming off. In the connector that is mounted inside the connector housing and includes a joint terminal that short-circuits the mating terminals housed in the cavity, the lance is between the one side surface on the outer surface of the connector housing and the inner wall of the cavity. A retainer mounting structure that is provided and can be deflected to one side, and that can be attached to the connector housing to restrict displacement to one side of the lance. The retainer is provided on both sides of the connector housing in the left-right direction. One that regulates falling off to one side by being disposed and locked to the other side of the outer surface of the connector housing And a plurality of positioning projections for positioning in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction by engaging with a locking recess formed on one surface of the outer surface of the connector housing. It has the characteristics.

  According to such a configuration, even when the retainer mounting structure is not originally set in the connector, a special mounting structure for mounting the retainer on the connector side is not required, so that the retainer can be added later. it can. That is, it is possible to position the retainer in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction by restricting the retainer from falling off the connector housing by both lock portions and locking the positioning convex portion in the locking recess.

The following configuration is preferable as an embodiment of the present invention.
The locking recess may be formed by a circumferential groove formed by notching the front side of the lance and the left and right sides of the connector housing, and the positioning projections may be inserted into the left and right side portions of the lance in the circumferential groove.
According to such a structure, since the latching recessed part is comprised by the circumferential groove of the lance, the structure of a connector housing can be simplified.

Both lock portions may be arranged along both left and right side surfaces of the connector housing, and the retainer may be positioned in the left and right direction.
According to such a configuration, the retainer can be positioned in the left-right direction by engaging the both lock portions with both side surfaces of the connector housing.

The positioning convex portion may be configured by both front and rear end portions of a positioning rib having a form extending in the front-rear direction.
According to such a configuration, since the pair of front and rear positioning convex portions can be integrally provided as positioning ribs, the strength of both positioning convex portions can be increased.

It is good also as a structure which further positions the retainer in the left-right direction by arrange | positioning both the side walls of a connector housing between the positioning rib located in the right-and-left both ends, and the lock part facing this, respectively.
According to such a structure, the positioning of the retainer in the left-right direction can be reliably performed by the positioning ribs and the lock portions positioned at both the left and right ends.

A pair of gap-filling ribs that close the gap between the mating terminal and the inner wall of the cavity may be provided at diagonal positions in the rectangular cavity.
According to such a structure, it becomes easy to control that the other party terminal rotates in a cavity by both gap filling ribs. Therefore, the locking force between the mating terminal and the lance can be increased and the locking force can be improved.

  According to the present invention, the retainer can be added later to improve the locking force.

The perspective view of the connector with which the retainer in the embodiment was assembled. 1 is an exploded perspective view of FIG. Front view in FIG. AA line sectional view in FIG. BB sectional view in FIG. Rear view of connector without retainer CC sectional view in FIG. DD sectional view in FIG. Cross-sectional view showing the mating terminal inserted into the cavity in a regular posture. Sectional view showing an enlarged view of the mating terminal inserted into the cavity in an inclined posture Sectional drawing which expanded and showed the other party terminal inserted in the cavity in the inclination posture when not providing a gap filling rib Retainer top view Retainer front view

<Embodiment>
An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings of FIGS. Although not shown, the connector 10 in the present embodiment is a joint connector that is fixed to the trunk of the wire harness by tape winding. The wire harness is pulled out from the trunk and an electrical signal from the wire harness is transmitted to another wire harness or the like. Used to branch to

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the connector 10 includes a connector housing 20 made of synthetic resin, a joint terminal 30, and a retainer 40. Inside the connector housing 20, a plurality of cavities 21 are provided side by side in the left-right direction so as to penetrate in the front-rear direction. In this cavity 21, the mating terminal 50 is inserted from behind and can be accommodated.

  Further, a terminal insertion port 22 into which the joint terminal 30 is inserted from the front is provided on the front surface of the connector housing 20 so as to open to the front. Inside the connector housing 20, a terminal accommodating portion 24 that accommodates the joint terminal 30 inserted from the terminal insertion port 22 is provided. The terminal accommodating portion 24 is provided over all the cavities 21 arranged in the left-right direction and communicates with all the cavities 21.

  The joint terminal 30 is manufactured by pressing a metal plate material having good conductivity, and has a shape in which a plurality of terminal portions 32 protrude from the strip-shaped base portion 31 at a predetermined interval. The belt-like base portion 31 is provided with a plurality of feed holes located between the adjacent terminal portions 32. Of these feed holes, two feed holes arranged at both ends in the alignment direction are engaged with engagement protrusions (not shown) provided in the connector housing 20 so that the joint terminal 30 is connected to the terminal accommodating portion 24. Is supposed to be retained.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the cavity 21 has a square hole shape. A pair of gap-filling ribs 23 is provided at diagonal positions on the inner wall of the cavity 21 (upper left in the figure and lower right in the figure). As shown in FIG. 7, the upper left gap rib 23 has a form extending in the front-rear direction, and the lower right gap rib 23 has a form extending in the front-rear direction as shown in FIG. 8. . Both the gap filling ribs 23 are formed in the accommodation region of the rectangular tube portion 51 of the mating terminal 50 in the cavity 21. The gap filling ribs 23 regulate the backlash and the counterclockwise rolling of the mating terminal 50 in the up-down direction and the left-right direction by closing the gap between the inner wall of the cavity 21 and the rectangular tube portion 51. .

  As shown in FIG. 9, a locking step portion 52 is provided on the bottom wall of the rectangular tube portion 51 by knocking it downward. The locking step 52 is locked in the front-rear direction with the lance 25 provided on the bottom wall of the cavity 21. FIG. 9 shows a state in which the mating terminal 50 is accommodated in the cavity 21 in a normal posture, and a region of the locking step portion 52 that is locked with the lance 25 is indicated by a broken line. On the other hand, FIG. 10 shows a state in which the mating terminal 50 is housed in the cavity 21 in a posture in which the tilt angle is the largest in the counterclockwise direction. It is indicated by a broken line. In FIG. 10, the angle of inclination of the mating terminal 50 is minimized by the square tube portion 51 being in contact with the gap filling ribs 23 and 23. As a comparison, FIG. 11 shows a state in which the counterpart terminal 50 is accommodated in the cavity 21 in a posture in which the inclination angle is the largest counterclockwise when no gap filling rib is provided. As can be seen from a comparison between FIG. 10 and FIG. 11, the provision of the gap filling ribs 23, 23 greatly increases the engagement margin (broken line region) between the locking step portion 52 and the lance 25. As a result, the locking force by the lance 25 when the counterpart terminal 50 is tilted can be improved.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the lance 25 has a cantilever shape and projects forward. As shown in FIG. 4, a circumferential groove that allows the lance 25 to bend is formed on both the left and right sides and the front side of the lance 25 on the bottom wall of the cavity 21. With the portion (rear end) as a fulcrum, the front end (front end) can be elastically bent in the vertical direction.

  Of the circumferential groove of the lance 25, the left and right side portions excluding the front side are slits 26. That is, both slits 26 are formed on the left and right sides of the lance 25. The inner slits 26 except for the left and right ends of the slits 26 are formed by vertically cutting away the partition walls 27 that isolate the adjacent cavities 21. Outer slits 26 located at both left and right ends of the slit 26 are formed by notching the inner side surface of the side wall 28 in the left-right direction of the connector housing 20 to the outer side in the left-right direction and notch in the up-down direction.

  Now, the retainer 40 in this embodiment is not always used by being assembled to the connector housing 20, but an electric wire (not shown) connected to the mating terminal 50 is strongly pulled. Only when the stopping force is not sufficient, that is, when a further locking force is required, the connector housing 20 is assembled and used. Therefore, the connector housing 20 is not provided with a retainer mounting portion for assembling the retainer 40.

  As shown in FIGS. 2, 12, and 13, the retainer 40 includes a base portion 42 in which a plurality of positioning ribs 41 are provided side by side in the left-right direction, and a pair of standups that rise from both lateral edges of the base portion 42. The lock part 43 is comprised. Further, the lock portion 43 includes a side wall 44 disposed along both left and right side surfaces of the connector housing 20 and a locking claw that projects inward from the upper end of the side wall 44 and is disposed along the ceiling surface of the connector housing 20. 45. As shown in FIG. 6, the ceiling surface of the connector housing 20 is formed such that one side edge portion protrudes upward, and accordingly, one of the lock portions 43 is formed higher than the other.

  When the retainer 40 is assembled to the connector housing 20 from below, as shown in FIG. 1, the retaining claw 45 of the lock portion 43 is hooked on the ceiling surface of the connector housing 20 and vertically locked. The downward drop of is regulated.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the positioning rib 41 is inserted into the slit 26, and the front and rear end portions of the positioning rib 41 are locked in the front-rear direction with respect to the front and rear end portions at the hole edge of the slit 26. It is like that. Thereby, the retainer 40 is positioned in the front-rear direction.

  At the same time, as shown in FIG. 4, the left and right side edges of the positioning rib 41 are engaged with the left and right side edges of the hole edge of the slit 26 in the left and right direction. Thereby, the retainer 40 is positioned in the left-right direction. Further, the side walls 28 of the connector housing 20 are accommodated between the outer slits 26 located at the left and right ends and the side walls 44 of the lock portion 43, respectively. Thereby, the retainer 40 is positioned reliably in the left-right direction.

  In this way, the retainer 40 is positioned in the front-rear direction, the left-right direction, and the up-down direction, and the base portion 42 is disposed in the bending space of the lance 25. For this reason, it is possible to restrict the lance 25 from being bent by, for example, forcibly pulling the electric wire, and to improve the locking force by the lance 25.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the retainer 40 can be assembled to the connector housing 20 later if necessary. That is, since the retainer 40 can be selectively attached according to the usage state of the connector 10, it is not necessary to provide a dedicated connector housing depending on the presence or absence of the retainer 40. When it is necessary to improve the locking force, the retainer 40 is fixedly attached to the connector housing 20 in a positioned state, so that the lance 25 is restricted from being bent and deformed by the base portion 42 of the retainer 40. The locking force by 25 can be improved.

  In addition, since the positioning rib 41 is fitted into the circumferential groove formed around the lance 25 and the retainer 40 is positioned in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction, the slit into which the positioning rib is fitted separately from the circumferential groove. Therefore, the structure of the connector housing 20 can be simplified.

  Further, the connector housing 20 is held by both side walls 44 of both lock portions 43 from both sides in the left-right direction, and both side walls 28 of the connector housing 20 are provided between both positioning ribs 41 at both left and right ends and both side walls 44 of both lock portions 43. Since each is accommodated, the retainer 40 can be reliably positioned in the left-right direction.

  In addition, since the pair of positioning projections that are engaged with the front and rear end portions of the slit 26 are not provided individually but as the positioning ribs 41, the strength of the positioning projections can be increased.

  Furthermore, since the pair of gap filling ribs 23, 23 are provided at diagonal positions on the inner wall of the cavity 21, the rectangular tube portion 51 is brought into contact with both gap filling ribs 23, 23 to suppress rolling of the mating terminal 50. By securing the locking allowance between the lance 25 and the locking step portion 52, the locking force by the lance 25 can be improved.

<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) Although the pair of front and rear positioning protrusions are integrally provided as the positioning rib 41 in the above embodiment, according to the present invention, the positioning protrusions may be provided individually. In this case, the positioning protrusions are positioned instead of the slits. You may provide the positioning hole into which a convex part fits.

  (2) Although the pair of gap ribs 23 are provided on the inner wall of the cavity 21 in the above embodiment, only one gap rib may be provided according to the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 20 ... Connector housing 21 ... Cavity 23 ... Crevice rib 25 ... Lance 26 ... Slit 28 ... Side wall 30 ... Joint terminal 40 ... Retainer 41 ... Positioning rib 43 ... Locking part 50 ... Mating terminal

Claims (6)

A connector housing having a plurality of cavities arranged in the left-right direction in a form that penetrates in the front-rear direction, and a lance that is provided for each of the cavities to prevent the mating terminal housed in the cavity from being removed, and the connector housing And a joint terminal for short-circuiting the mating terminals housed in the cavity, the lance is formed by connecting one surface of the outer surface of the connector housing and the inner wall of the cavity. A retainer mounting structure provided in between and capable of being bent to the one side, wherein a retainer for restricting the displacement of the lance to the one side is attachable to the connector housing;
The retainer is disposed on both left and right sides of the connector housing and is engaged with the other surface of the outer surface of the connector housing to restrict the dropout to the one side, and the connector housing A retainer mounting structure, comprising: a plurality of positioning protrusions that perform positioning in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction by engaging with a locking recess formed on the one side surface of the outer surface of the retainer.   The locking recess is constituted by a circumferential groove formed by notching the front side and the left and right sides of the lance in the connector housing, and the positioning projection is inserted into the left and right sides of the lance in the circumferential groove. The retainer mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein:   3. The retainer mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein the lock portions are disposed along both left and right side surfaces of the connector housing and position the retainer in the left and right direction.   The retainer mounting structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the positioning convex portion includes both front and rear end portions of a positioning rib configured to extend in the front-rear direction.   The both side walls of the connector housing are respectively disposed between the positioning ribs positioned at the left and right ends and the lock portion facing the positioning ribs, thereby further positioning the retainer in the left-right direction. The retainer mounting structure according to claim 4.   The pair of gap-filling ribs that close the gap between the mating terminal and the inner wall of the cavity are provided at diagonal positions in the rectangular cavity. The retainer mounting structure according to claim 5.

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