JP2013080665A - Joint connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve waterproofness and efficiency of an assembling operation of a joint connector.SOLUTION: A joint connector 10 electrically connecting plural female terminals 12 connected to plural electric wires 11 comprises: a housing 13 having a waterproof cylinder part 23 in which the female terminals 12 are inserted, and a rubber plug housing part 29 opened opposite to the waterproof cylinder part 23; a conductive member 14 arranged on the housing 13 and having plural male tabs 25 connected to the plural female terminals 12 inserted from the waterproof cylinder part 23, respectively; a cap 32 mounted to the rubber plug housing part 29 after the female terminals 12 are connected to the male tabs 25; and a rubber plug 30 mounted to the cap 32 and closely contacting an inner face of the rubber plug housing part 29. The rubber plug 30 comprises an annular ring part 50, and a front wall 51 coupling at least one part of a front end in a direction for mounting to the rubber plug housing part 29 among ends of the ring part 50.

Description

  The present invention relates to a joint connector.

  Conventionally, a joint connector described in Patent Document 1 is known. The joint connector includes a plurality of terminals connected to ends of the plurality of electric wires, and a housing in which the terminals are accommodated. The housing is formed with a first opening into which a terminal is inserted and a second opening that opens on the opposite side of the first opening. The housing is provided with a conductive member having a plurality of connection portions connected to the plurality of terminals, respectively. By connecting each terminal and each connection part, the plurality of terminals connected to the plurality of electric wires are electrically connected.

  In the joint connector according to the prior art, the joint connector is waterproofed by inserting a rubber plug into the second opening.

JP 2010-40263 A

  However, according to the above configuration, when the rubber plug is inserted into the second opening, the outer surface of the rubber plug and the inner surface of the second opening are in sliding contact with each other, so that the rubber plug is rearward in the direction of attachment to the second opening. There is concern about moving to. As a result, the rubber plug is displaced from the normal mounting position. As a result, there is a concern that the waterproof property of the joint connector is lowered.

  In order to prevent the above problem, when the rubber plug is displaced from the normal mounting position, it is necessary to redo the rubber plug mounting operation. Then, since the man-hour for attaching the rubber plug increases, there is a problem that the efficiency of the rubber plug attaching operation is lowered.

  The present invention has been completed based on the above-described circumstances, and aims to improve the waterproofness of the joint connector and improve the efficiency of the assembling work.

  The present invention is a joint connector that electrically connects a plurality of terminals connected to a plurality of electric wires, and opens in a direction opposite to the first opening into which the terminals are inserted and the first opening. A housing having a second opening; a conductive member disposed in the housing and having a plurality of connection portions respectively connected to the plurality of terminals inserted from the first opening; and the terminals are connected to each other A cap that is attached to the second opening after being connected to the second opening, and a rubber plug that is attached to the cap and is in close contact with the inner surface of the second opening, the rubber plug having an annular ring portion; And a connecting wall that connects at least a part of the front end portion or the rear end portion in the direction of attachment to the second opening among the end portions of the ring portion.

  According to the present invention, when the rubber plug is housed in the rubber plug housing portion, even when the outer surface of the rubber plug and the inner surface of the second opening are in sliding contact, the ring portion is displaced rearward in the mounting direction. This is regulated by the connecting wall. Thereby, it can control that a ring part shifts from a regular position. As a result, when the rubber plug deviates from the normal position, the work of re-installing the rubber plug can be saved, so the process of assembling the joint connector can be made more efficient. The waterproofness of the joint connector can be improved.

As embodiments of the present invention, the following embodiments are preferable.
It is preferable that the connection wall connects a front end portion in the attachment direction among end portions of the ring portion, and the cap includes a support portion that supports the connection wall from the rear in the attachment direction.

  According to said aspect, since it can restrict | limit by a support part that a connection wall moves to the back of an attachment direction, it can restrict | limit reliably that the ring part connected with the connection wall moves back. Thereby, the waterproofness of a joint connector can be improved further.

  Of the end portions of the ring, the end portion on the front side in the attaching direction to the second opening is preferably closed by the connecting wall.

  According to said aspect, the waterproofness of a joint connector can be improved further because the edge part of a ring part is block | closed with a connection wall.

  The conductive member preferably has a grounding portion that is led out of the housing and connected to the vehicle body of the vehicle.

  According to the above aspect, the joint connector can be applied to the ground connector.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the waterproofness improvement of a joint connector and the efficiency improvement of an assembly work can be aimed at.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a joint connector according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the joint connector. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the conductive member. FIG. 4 is a side view showing the joint connector. FIG. 5 is a front view showing the joint connector before the cap portion is attached to the rubber stopper housing portion. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a rubber stopper. FIG. 7 is a front view showing the rubber stopper. FIG. 8 is a rear view showing the rubber stopper. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IX-IX in FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX in FIG. FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the housing. FIG. 12 is a rear view showing the cap portion. FIG. 13 is a front view showing the cap portion. 14 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XIV-XIV in FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XV-XV in FIG. FIG. 16 is a partially enlarged sectional view showing an assembly structure of the cap portion and the rubber plug. FIG. 17 is a rear view showing the joint connector before the cap portion is attached to the rubber stopper housing portion.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The joint connector 10 according to the present embodiment is attached to a vehicle body 40 of a vehicle (not shown) and grounds the plurality of electric wires 11. The joint connector 10 includes a housing 13 in which female terminals 12 (terminals) connected to ends of a plurality of electric wires 11 are accommodated, and a conductive member 14 that is attached to the housing 13 and connected to the female terminals 12. Prepare. In the following description, regarding the housing 13, the left side in FIG. 1 is the front, the right side is the rear, the upper side is the upper side, and the lower side is the lower side. Further, the vertical direction in FIG.

(Terminal receiving portion 15)
As shown in FIG. 1, the synthetic resin housing 13 includes a terminal accommodating portion 15 that accommodates a plurality of female terminals 12. In the terminal accommodating portion 15, the female terminals 12 are accommodated in two stages in the vertical direction and four in the width direction. A lance 16 is formed on the inner wall of each terminal accommodating portion 15 so as to protrude forward from the inner wall of the terminal accommodating portion 15. The pair of lances 16 arranged vertically are lined up back to back so that their bending spaces are shared.

(Female terminal 12)
The female terminal 12 includes a crimping part 19 that is crimped to the end of the electric wire 11 and a connecting cylinder part 20 that extends forward from the crimping part 19. The connecting cylinder part 20 has a cylindrical shape. An elastic contact piece 21 is formed inside the connecting tube portion 20. When the lance 16 is locked to the wall portion of the connecting tube portion 20, the female terminal 12 is restricted from being displaced rearward.

  A waterproof cylindrical portion (first opening) 23 is formed behind the terminal accommodating portion 15 (right side in FIG. 1). The waterproof cylinder portion 23 has a cylindrical shape. The waterproof cylinder portion 23 is opened rearward (to the right in FIG. 1). An electric wire side rubber plug 24 that is externally fitted to the electric wire 11 is accommodated inside the waterproof cylinder portion 23. When the outer periphery of the wire-side rubber plug 24 and the inner wall of the waterproof cylinder portion 23 are in close contact with each other, the space between the wire 11 and the housing 13 is liquid-tightly sealed.

(Conductive member 14)
A conductive member 14 formed by pressing a metal plate material into a predetermined shape is insert-molded into the housing 13 at a position near the front end of the housing 13. The rear end portion of the conductive member 14 enters the connecting tube portion 20 of the female terminal 12 and is elastically contacted with the elastic contact piece 21 to be electrically connected to the female terminal 12 (connection tab 25). Part).

  As shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of male tabs 25 are formed in a connecting portion 26 having a substantially C shape and arranged at intervals. In the present embodiment, four are formed side by side in the width direction at the upper stage portion of the connecting portion 26, and four are formed at the lower stage portion of the connecting portion 26 side by side in the width direction. A total of eight male tabs 25 are electrically connected at the connecting portion 26.

  A lower portion of the connecting portion 26 is formed with an embedded portion 41 that extends downward and is positioned inside the housing 13 and embedded in the housing 13. A grounding portion 27 led downward from the housing 13 is formed below the embedded portion 41. The grounding portion 27 is bent downward from the housing 13 forward (leftward in FIG. 1) at a substantially right angle. The grounding portion 27 is formed with a bolt through hole 28 penetrating in the vertical direction. A bolt (not shown) is inserted into the bolt through hole 28 and screwed into a screw hole (not shown) formed in the vehicle body 40, whereby the grounding portion 27 is fixed to the vehicle body 40.

(Concave groove 35)
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, one concave groove 35 is formed on the outer wall of the housing 13 along the circumferential direction of the housing 13. It is formed over. As shown in FIG. 1, the cross-sectional shape of the concave groove 35 is a square shape, and is a square groove.

  As described above, the outer wall of the housing 13 in the portion where the concave groove 35 is formed is formed thinner than the other portions. As a result, the portion of the housing 13 where the concave groove 35 is formed is weaker in strength than the other portions. Thereby, when the vehicle is disassembled, the housing 13 is broken in the concave groove 35 by pulling the electric wire 11 with a crane or the like. Thereby, the electric wire 11, the female terminal 12, etc. can be easily removed from the vehicle body 40 now.

(Rubber plug 30 and cap 32)
As shown in FIG. 1, a rubber plug 30 accommodating portion (second opening) 29 is formed in the housing 13 in front of the terminal accommodating portion 15 (left side in FIG. 1). The rubber stopper housing part 29 is opened forward. Inside the rubber plug housing portion 29, the rubber plug 30 is housed from behind. That is, the front in the mounting direction of the rubber plug 30 to the rubber plug housing portion 29 is the rear in the present embodiment, and the rear in the mounting direction is the front in the present embodiment. Hereinafter, the rubber plug 30 will be described with reference to the mounting direction.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the connecting portion 26 described above is embedded in the synthetic resin constituting the rubber stopper housing portion 29. In other words, the rubber plug housing portion 29 is reinforced by the connecting portion 26 and is prevented from being deformed in the radial direction.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the rubber plug 30 is attached to a synthetic resin cap 32 formed via a hinge 31 at a position near the front end portion of the upper wall of the housing 13. The cap 32 can be rotated via the hinge 31.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the lock portion 33 formed on the side wall of the cap 32 and the lock receiving portion 34 formed on the side wall of the housing 13 are elastically engaged, so that the cap 32 and the housing 13 are engaged with each other. It is supposed to be locked.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the rubber plug 30 attached to the cap 32 is accommodated in a rubber plug accommodating portion 29 of the housing 13 in a state where the cap 32 and the housing 13 are locked. The cap 32 and the housing 13 are sealed in a liquid-tight manner when the inner wall of the rubber plug housing portion 29 and the outer surface of the rubber plug 30 are in close contact with each other.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 to 8, the rubber plug 30 has a flat shape elongated in the width direction. As shown in FIG. 9, the rubber plug 30 includes an annular ring portion 50 and a front wall 51 (connecting wall) that connects at least a part of the front end portion of the ring portion 50. In the present embodiment, the front end of the ring portion 50 is closed by the front wall 51. On the outer periphery of the ring portion 50, an outer peripheral lip 52 is formed over the entire circumference in the circumferential direction while projecting outward in the radial direction of the ring portion 50. A plurality (four in this embodiment) of the outer peripheral lips 52 are formed side by side in the front-rear direction. Further, an inner peripheral lip 53 is formed on the inner periphery of the ring portion 50 and protrudes inward in the radial direction of the ring portion 50 and extends along the entire circumference in the circumferential direction. A plurality (three in this embodiment) of inner peripheral lips 53 are formed in the front-rear direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, a plurality of (three in this embodiment) attachment projections 54 are formed on the rear surface of the front wall 51 so as to protrude rearward at intervals in the width direction. The attachment protrusion 54 has a substantially truncated cone shape. In other words, the attachment protrusion 54 is formed in a tapered shape as it goes from the base portion toward the tip. A flat surface perpendicular to the front-rear direction is formed at the tip of the attachment protrusion 54.

  As shown in FIG. 9, a meat stealing portion 55 is formed inside the attachment protrusion 54. Due to the meat stealing portion 55, a hollow portion is formed inside the attachment projection 54. The meat stealing portion 55 is not formed at the tip of the attachment projection 54. For this reason, the front-end | tip part of the attachment protrusion 54 is solid. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the front end of the meat stealing portion 55 is opened on the front surface of the front wall 51.

  As shown in FIGS. 8 and 10, a plurality of (four in this embodiment) inspection projections 56 are formed on the rear surface of the front wall 51 at intervals in the width direction. Between the adjacent inspection protrusions 56, the above-described attachment protrusions 54 are arranged.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the inspection protrusion 56 is formed to protrude rearward from the rear surface of the front wall 51. The inspection protrusion 56 has a substantially cylindrical shape.

  As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the cap 32 is formed with a fixing portion 57 for fixing the rubber plug 30. The fixing portion 57 is formed integrally with the cap 32 and has a shape elongated in the width direction. The rubber plug 30 is fitted on the fixing portion 57. A portion of the fixing portion 57 that contacts the front wall 51 of the rubber plug 30 in a state where the rubber plug 30 is attached is a support portion 58. Further, as shown in FIG. 13, the cap 32 has a window portion 59 in which the support portion 58 can be visually recognized opened in a shape elongated in the width direction.

  As shown in FIG. 14, the support portion 58 is formed with a through hole 60 that penetrates in the front-rear direction and through which the attachment protrusion 54 can penetrate. The inner surface of the through hole 60 is formed in a tapered shape as the distance from the rubber plug 30 side increases. Further, the inner diameter of the through hole 60 is set smaller than the outer diameter of the mounting protrusion 54.

  As shown in FIG. 15, the support portion 58 is formed with an inspection hole 61 that penetrates in the front-rear direction and into which the inspection protrusion 56 is inserted. The cross-sectional shape of the inspection hole 61 is circular. The inner diameter dimension of the inspection hole 61 is set to be the same as or slightly larger than the outer diameter dimension of the inspection protrusion 56.

  As shown in FIG. 12, a plurality of (four in this embodiment) inspection holes 61 are formed in the support portion 58 (fixed portion 57) side by side in the width direction. In addition, a plurality of (three in this embodiment) through holes 60 are formed in the support portion 58 side by side in the width direction. The through hole 60 is disposed between the adjacent inspection holes 61.

  As shown in FIG. 16, in the state where the rubber plug 30 is attached to the cap 32, the attachment protrusion 54 is in a state of being penetrated into the through hole 60. The front end portion of the attachment projection 54 penetrates the through hole 60 and protrudes behind the support portion 58. Since the tip end portion of the attachment protrusion 54 is formed solid, it comes into contact with the hole edge of the through hole 60 from the rear. As a result, the rubber plug 30 is prevented from coming forward.

  A meat stealing portion 55 is formed at least in a region located in the through hole 60 in a state where the rubber plug 30 is attached to the cap 32 in the attachment protrusion 54. By pressing the outer surface of the mounting projection 54 against the inner surface of the through hole 60, the portion where the meat stealing portion 55 is formed is narrowed.

  The outer peripheral lip 52 is in close contact with the inner surface of the rubber plug 30 housing portion, thereby sealing between the cap 32 and the rubber plug 30 housing portion in a liquid-tight manner. Further, the inner peripheral lip 53 is in close contact with the fixing portion 57 of the cap 32, so that the rubber plug 30 and the cap 32 are firmly fixed. Further, the gap between the rubber plug 30 and the cap 32 is sealed in a liquid-tight manner.

  As shown in FIG. 17, the support portion 58 is visible from the window portion 59 in a state where the rubber plug 30 is attached to the cap 32. From the through hole 60 formed in the support portion 58, the tip of the attachment projection 54 protrudes. Further, the tip of the inspection projection 56 protrudes from the inspection hole 61 formed in the support portion 58.

(Assembly process)
Then, an example of the assembly | attachment process of the joint connector 10 which concerns on this embodiment is demonstrated. The assembly process is not limited to this embodiment. The female terminal 12 connected to the end of the electric wire 11 is accommodated in the terminal accommodating portion 15 from the waterproof cylindrical portion 23 that opens to the rear of the housing 13. Then, the lance 16 comes into contact with the connecting tube portion 20 of the female terminal 12 and elastically deforms. When the female terminal 12 is further pushed forward, the lance 16 is restored and deformed, and the lance 16 is locked with the connecting tube portion 20. This prevents the female terminal 12 from coming off backward.

  In a state where the female terminal 12 is locked to the lance 16 and held in a normal position, the male tab 25 insert-molded in the housing 13 is brought into elastic contact with the elastic contact piece 21 of the female terminal 12 so that the female terminal 12 is female. It is electrically connected to the terminal 12.

  After attaching all the female terminals 12 to the housing 13, it is confirmed from the rubber plug housing portion 29 by visual observation or using a jig that the lance returns to the initial position. Thereby, it is confirmed that the female terminal 12 is inserted in the normal position. Thereafter, the cap 32 to which the rubber plug 30 is attached is assembled to the housing 13. Thereby, the rubber stopper housing part 29 is sealed in a liquid-tight manner. Subsequently, the bolt is passed through the bolt through hole 28 of the grounding portion 27 and fixed to the vehicle body 40. Thereby, the electric wire 11, the female terminal 12, the male tab 25, the connecting portion 26, and the grounding portion 27 are grounded to the vehicle body 40.

(Operation and effect of this embodiment)
Then, the effect | action and effect of this embodiment are demonstrated. When the rubber plug 30 attached to the cap 32 is housed in the rubber plug housing portion 29 from the rear in the mounting direction, the outer periphery of the rubber plug 30 comes into sliding contact with the inner periphery of the rubber plug housing portion 29 and is pressed backward. . Then, the rubber plug 30 receives a force in a direction of moving relative to the cap 32 in the rear in the mounting direction.

  According to the present embodiment, since the front end portion of the ring portion 50 of the rubber plug 30 is connected by the front wall 51, even when the outer surface of the rubber plug 30 and the inner surface of the rubber plug housing portion 29 are in sliding contact, The front wall 51 restricts the ring portion 50 from being displaced rearward in the mounting direction. Thereby, it can control that ring part 50 shifts from a regular position. As a result, when the rubber plug 30 is deviated from the normal position, it is possible to save time and labor for re-installing the rubber plug 30, so that the assembly process of the joint connector 10 can be made more efficient. Moreover, since the ring part 50 is reliably arrange | positioned in a regular position, the waterproofness of the joint connector 10 can be improved.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the front wall 51 connects the front end portions in the mounting direction among the end portions of the ring portion 50, and the cap 32 supports the front wall 51 from the rear in the mounting direction. Is provided. Thereby, since it can restrict | limit by the support part 58 that the front wall 51 moves to the back, it can restrict | limit reliably that the ring part 50 connected with the front wall 51 moves to the back of an attachment direction. Thereby, the waterproofness of the joint connector 10 can be improved further.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, the front end portion of the end portion of the ring portion 50 in the attaching direction to the rubber plug housing portion 29 is closed by the front wall 51. As described above, the end portion of the ring portion 50 is closed by the front wall 51, whereby the waterproofness of the joint connector 10 can be further improved.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the conductive member 14 has the grounding portion 27 that is led out of the housing 13 and connected to the vehicle body 40 of the vehicle. Thereby, the plurality of electric wires 11 are grounded to the vehicle body 40. Thus, the joint connector 10 according to the present embodiment can be used as a ground connector.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the housing 13 is formed with the terminal accommodating portion 15 that accommodates the female terminal 12, and the terminal accommodating portion 15 is formed with the lance 16 that is engaged with the female terminal 12. The male tab 25 is disposed in the terminal accommodating portion 15. Thus, according to this embodiment, since the female terminal 12 and the male tab 25 can be arranged in one housing 13, for example, in a connector having a female housing and a male housing that can be fitted to each other, a female Compared to the case where the female terminal 12 is arranged in the housing and the male tab 25 is arranged in the male housing, the number of parts can be reduced.

<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 this embodiment, although it was set as the structure which earth | grounds the female terminal 12 connected to the eight electric wires 11, it was not restricted to this, It connected to the 2-7 or 9 or more electric wires 11 The female terminal 12 may be grounded.

  (2) In the present embodiment, the housing 13 is configured to have the terminal accommodating portion 15 that accommodates the female terminal 12. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the housing 13 is a female housing in which the female terminal 12 is held. And a male housing having a hood portion into which the female housing is fitted, and the conductive member 14 may be insert-molded with a synthetic resin in the male housing.

  (3) It is good also as a structure which connects a male terminal to the electric wire 11, and provides the female terminal 12 in the electrically-conductive member 14. FIG.

  (4) In the present embodiment, the front end portion of the ring portion 50 is connected by the front wall 51. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the rear end portion of the ring portion 50 is connected by the rear wall (connection wall). It is good also as a structure to be. Further, the rear end portion of the ring portion 50 may be blocked by the rear wall.

10 ... Joint connector 11 ... Electric wire 12 ... Female terminal (terminal)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 13 ... Housing 14 ... Conductive member 23 ... Waterproofing cylinder part (1st opening)
25 ... Male tab (connection part)
27 ... Grounding part 29 ... Rubber stopper housing part (second opening)
30 ... Rubber stopper 32 ... Cap 40 ... Car body 50 ... Ring part 51 ... Front wall (connection wall)
58 ... support part

Claims (4)

A joint connector for electrically connecting a plurality of terminals connected to a plurality of electric wires,
A housing in which a first opening into which the terminal is inserted and a second opening that opens in a direction opposite to the first opening;
A conductive member disposed in the housing and having a plurality of connection portions respectively connected to the plurality of terminals inserted from the first opening;
A cap attached to the second opening after the terminal is connected to the connecting portion;
A rubber stopper attached to the cap and in close contact with the inner surface of the second opening,
The rubber plug includes an annular ring portion, and a connecting wall that connects at least a part of a front end portion or a rear end portion in an attachment direction to the second opening among the end portions of the ring portion. Joint connector. The connecting wall connects the front end portion in the mounting direction among the end portions of the ring portion,
The joint connector according to claim 1, wherein the cap includes a support portion that supports the connection wall from the rear in the attachment direction.   3. The joint connector according to claim 1, wherein, of the end portions of the ring, the end portion on the front side in the attaching direction to the second opening is closed by the connecting wall.   The joint connector according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the conductive member includes a grounding portion that is led out of the housing and connected to a vehicle body of the vehicle.

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