JP2014150613A - Charging connector holding structure - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique for fitting the engaging claw of a charging connector and the claw engaging portion of a charging connector holding part reliably by one insertion work, when inserting the charging connector, regardless of the insertion angle when inserting the charging connector into the charging connector holding part.SOLUTION: A charging connector holding part 7 comprises: a cylindrical part 8 into which a charging terminal is fitted; and a claw engaging portion 9 engaging with the engaging claw 5 of a charging connector above the cylindrical part 8. An engaging portion 10 into which a hook portion 6, formed by folding the tip of the engaging claw 5 downward, is fitted is formed in the claw engaging portion 9. The engaging portion 10 is formed larger than the hook portion 6, so that there is a space where the hook portion 6 is movable, between the hook portion 6 and the claw engaging portion 9, even when the hook portion 6 is fitted in the engaging portion 10.

Description

  The present invention relates to a charging connector holding structure in an automobile charging device.

  Charging an electric vehicle, a plug-in hybrid car, or the like is performed by connecting these vehicles and the vehicle charging device with a charging cable.

  The charging cable includes a charging connector at the tip, and the charging connector is inserted into a plug portion provided on the vehicle side to charge the vehicle.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a structure in which a charging connector when not in use is held by a charging connector holding portion provided in an automobile charging device.

  The charging connector holding structure of Patent Document 1 includes a locking claw formed on the charging terminal portion of the charging connector at the claw engaging portion of the charging connector holding portion, and is provided in the charging connector holding portion. The movement of the latching claw is regulated by a locking mechanism to prevent equipment damage due to mischief or the like.

  However, when the charging connector is inserted toward the charging connector holding portion, as shown in FIG. 7, when the charging connector 1 is inserted into the charging connector holding portion 7, due to the weight of the charging connector 1 or the weight of the charging cable 30. When the charging terminal portion 4 is fitted into the cylindrical portion 8 of the charging connector holding portion 7 in this state, the charging terminal portion 4 at the tip of the charging connector 1 is easily inclined upward. 4 is in contact with the lower end 26 of the tubular portion 8, and a gap 23 is formed between the proximal end upper portion 22 of the charging terminal portion 4 and the upper end 25 of the tubular portion 8. Only when the locking claw portion 5 is positioned on the front opening 24 side of the cylindrical portion 8, the locking claw portion 5 gets on the claw engagement portion 9, that is, in a semi-fitted state. There is.

  In addition, there is a risk that the charging connector will fall if left in a semi-fitted state, and in a system that detects the fitting between the locking claw and the claw engaging part and operates the lock mechanism, There is also a problem that the lock operation may be displaced due to erroneous detection resulting in damage to the lock mechanism, or the lock mechanism may push back the locking claw and the charging connector may fall.

JP 2012-19608 A

  The object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and when inserting the charging connector into the charging connector holding part, a technique that can securely engage the locking connector locking claw and the charging connector holding part claw engaging part. Is to provide.

  The charging connector holding structure of the present invention made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems is provided with a charging terminal part at the tip, and a charging connector provided with a locking claw part above the charging terminal part in the automobile charging device. A charging connector holding structure that is held by a charging connector holding portion, wherein the charging connector holding portion includes a cylindrical portion into which the charging terminal portion is fitted, and a claw that engages with the locking claw portion above the cylindrical portion. An engaging portion is provided, and a hook receiving portion into which a hook portion formed by bending the tip of the hooking claw portion downward is formed in the hook engaging portion, and the hook portion is fitted into the hook receiving portion. Even in such a state, the space portion in which the hook portion is movable is formed so as to have a space between the hook portion and the claw engaging portion.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the charging connector holding structure according to the first aspect, the upper end of the cylindrical portion on the front opening side is positioned forward of the lower end.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the charging connector holding structure according to the first or second aspect, a pressing portion for pressing the charging terminal portion fitted into the cylindrical portion downward is formed on the upper side inside the cylindrical portion. It is characterized by this.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the charging connector holding structure according to any one of the first to third aspects, the push-up to guide the cylindrical portion while pushing up the lower side surface of the charging connector toward the lower end side of the cylindrical portion. The portion is formed.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the charging connector holding structure according to the fourth aspect, the push-up portion pushes the lower side surface of the charging connector onto the extension line drawn from the lower end of the cylindrical portion toward the front surface, The charging connector guide part guides to the shape part.

  In the present invention, the charging connector holding portion includes a cylindrical portion into which the charging terminal portion is fitted, and a claw engaging portion that engages with the locking claw portion above the cylindrical portion, A hook receiving portion is formed in which a hook portion formed by bending the tip of the hooking claw portion downward is fitted, and the hook portion can be moved even when the hook portion is properly fitted in the hook receiving portion. When the charging connector is inserted, the optimal angle for fitting between the charging connector locking claw and the charging connector holding portion claw engaging portion is formed. Even if not, the position and angle of the hooking portion can be finely adjusted in the space portion in the latch receiving portion to obtain the optimum position and angle for fitting. Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the charging connector from being half-fitted, and even when the charging connector is half-fitted, when the charging connector is moved back and forth, the locking claw portion also moves back and forth. Thus, the locking claw portion can be securely fitted to the locking receiving portion.

  In the invention described in claim 2, since the front opening of the cylindrical portion is formed with the upper end positioned forward of the lower end, the charging connector is slightly increased by its own weight when fitted into the charging connector holding portion. Even if it is inclined, the charging terminal portion first comes into contact with the upper end of the cylindrical portion on the front opening side, and there is a gap between the upper base end of the charging terminal portion and the upper end of the cylindrical portion. It does not occur, and the locking claw portion is securely fitted to the locking receiving portion.

  Furthermore, like the invention of Claim 3, the press part which presses the charging terminal part fitted in this cylindrical part downward is formed in the inside upper side of the said cylindrical part, or the invention of Claim 4 As described above, the push-up portion for guiding the fitting angle to the tubular portion while forming the optimum angle while pushing up the lower surface of the charging connector is formed on the lower side of the tubular portion. The charging connector guide part that guides the fitting angle to the cylindrical part to be the optimum angle while pushing up the lower surface of the charging connector on the extended line drawn in the front direction from the lower end part of the cylindrical part Also by arranging, the inclination of the charging connector can be relaxed, the angle can be corrected to an optimum angle for fitting, and the charging connector can be prevented from being half-fitted.

1 is an overall perspective view of an automobile charging device having a charging connector holding structure. It is a vertical sectional view in a state where the charging connector is held by the charging connector holding part. It is a principal part perspective view of a charging connector holding part. It is a whole perspective view of a charging connector holding part. It is principal part sectional drawing of a charging connector holding part. It is a principal part perspective view of the charge connector holding | maintenance part in other embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of a prior art.

  Preferred embodiments of the present invention are shown below.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the charging connector 1 when not in use is held in a charging connector holding space 3 formed in the automobile charging device 2. The charging connector holding space 3 includes a charging connector holding portion 7 shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the charging connector 1 includes a charging terminal portion 4 at the tip, and a locking claw portion 5 above the charging terminal portion 4. The latching claw portion 5 is formed with a hook portion 6 formed by bending the tip downward. In addition, the charging connector 1 includes a locking claw portion operating means 27 that moves the locking claw portion 5 up and down.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the charging connector holding portion 7 includes a cylindrical portion 8 into which the charging terminal portion 4 of the charging connector 1 is fitted, and a claw engagement that engages with the locking claw portion 5 above the cylindrical portion 8. Part 9 is provided. A flange portion 16 is formed on the back side of the tubular portion 8 and is fixed by a screw through a screw hole 17 of the flange portion 16.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the claw engaging portion 9 is formed with a latch receiving portion 10 into which the hook portion 6 of the charging connector 1 is fitted. Further, an inclined portion 18 is formed on the front surface side of the claw engaging portion 9 to guide the hooking portion 6 of the locking claw portion 5 to an appropriate position.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the latch receiving portion 10 includes a space portion 11 that can move between the hook portion 6 and the claw engaging portion 9 even when the hook portion 6 is correctly fitted in the latch receiving portion 10. It is formed to have. As a structure for forming the space portion 11, the space portion 11 is formed between the hook portion 6 and the claw engagement portion 9 by forming the claw engagement portion 9 to be narrow. Thus, since the latch receiving part 10 has the structure having the space part 11, there is a space in which the latching claw part 5 can be operated. It becomes possible to move back and forth, and the locking claw portion 5 can be securely fitted to the locking receiving portion 10.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the charging connector holding part 7 is provided with a lock mechanism 12 at its upper part for restricting the movement of the locking claw part 5 engaged with the claw engaging part 9 and maintaining the locked state. Yes. The lock mechanism 12 covers the upper part of the locking claw part 5 engaged with the claw engaging part 9 and restricts the movement of the claw engaging part 9 separating from the locking claw part 5, and the restriction piece 13 The cylinder 14 is configured to drive the piece 13.

  The cylinder 14 operates in response to a drive signal transmitted upon detecting that the charging connector 1 is held by the charging connector holding portion 7, and moves the regulating piece 13 toward the locking receiving portion 10 via the link 15. When the restricting piece 13 is at a position covering the upper portion of the engaging claw 5, the movement of the engaging claw portion 5 is restricted. On the other hand, unlocking is performed in conjunction with, for example, an authentication system or a billing system. The cylinder 14 contracts by a drive signal transmitted upon completion of authentication or billing, and the regulating piece 13 is connected to the cylindrical portion 8 via the link 15. When moving in the opposite direction, the upper cover of the locking claw 5 is not covered, and the movement restriction of the locking claw portion 5 is released.

  The charging connector 1 is easy to incline the charging terminal portion 4 at the front end upward due to its own weight or the weight of the charging cable 30. In this state, the charging terminal portion 4 is connected to the cylindrical portion 8 of the charging connector holding portion 7. When the fitting is performed, as shown in FIG. 7, the base end lower portion 21 of the charging terminal portion 4 first comes into contact with the tubular portion 8. In such a case, a gap 23 is formed between the proximal end upper portion 22 of the charging terminal portion 4 and the cylindrical portion 8, and the locking claw portion 5 is the front opening portion of the cylindrical portion 8 by the gap 23. The locking claw portion 5 cannot be moved over the claw engaging portion 9 and the locking claw portion 5 and the claw engaging portion 9 are held in a half-fitted state. is there.

  On the other hand, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2 or FIG. 5, the front opening 24 of the cylindrical portion 8 is formed so as to be inclined obliquely downward so that the upper end 25 is in front of the lower end 26. Therefore, even when the charging connector 1 is slightly inclined upward due to its own weight when fitted into the charging connector holding portion 7, the charging terminal portion 4 is first the upper end of the cylindrical portion 8 on the front opening 24 side. 25 and the base end upper part 22 abut. Therefore, since the gap 23 as described above does not occur, the locking claw portion 5 can be accurately fitted to the locking receiving portion 10. In the present embodiment, the upper end 25 of the cylindrical portion 8 is formed to be inclined obliquely downward so as to be in front of the lower end 26. First, the base end upper portion 22 of the charging connector 1 holds the charging connector. Since it suffices to abut on the upper end 25 of the portion 7, it is sufficient if only the upper end 25 protrudes forward from the lower end 26.

  In addition, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, a pressing portion 19 that presses the charging terminal portion 4 fitted in the cylindrical portion 8 downward is formed on the upper side inside the cylindrical portion 8. When the charging connector 1 is inserted into the cylindrical portion 8, the charging terminal portion 4 is pressed downward. That is, since the locking claw portion 5 formed above the charging terminal portion 4 is also moved downward while moving forward, it can be accurately guided to the locking receiving portion 10. Further, a push-up portion 20 that pushes up the charging terminal portion 4 fitted into the tubular portion 8 is formed below the front opening 24 inside the tubular portion 8. By forming the push-up portion 20, even when the charging connector 1 is slightly inclined upward or downward at the time of fitting into the charging connector holding portion 7, the inclination of the charging connector 1 is relaxed, and the optimum angle for fitting Can be corrected. The push-up portion 20 is formed in a protruding shape from the front opening 24 to the vicinity of the middle. Therefore, when the charging connector 1 is inserted into the cylindrical portion 8, it is pushed upward by the push-up portion 24 formed on the front opening 24 side from the middle portion of the cylindrical portion 8, and when inserted, the cylindrical portion 8 is pushed down by the pressing portion 19 formed on the upper side of the base plate 8, and the locking claw portion 5 of the charging connector 1 is accurately guided to the locking receiving portion 10, so that the charging connector 1 can be accurately inserted. .

  Further, as a method for enhancing the effect, the pressing part 19 is formed continuously from the upper middle part of the cylindrical part 8 toward the inner part of the cylindrical part 8 and protrudes downward from the middle part to the innermost part. The push-up portion 20 is formed continuously from the front opening 24 on the lower side of the cylindrical portion 8 toward the middle, and the protruding portion 20a that protrudes upward from the front opening 24 to the middle is formed. By forming it, it becomes possible to correct to an angle more suitable for fitting.

  In order to relieve the inclination of the charging connector 1 and correct it to an optimum angle for fitting, as another structure of the push-up portion 20, as shown in FIG. It is also possible to adopt a structure in which the tip end portion of the charging connector guide portion 28 that guides the fitting angle to the cylindrical portion 8 to be the optimum angle while pushing up the lower surface of the charging connector 1 on the line. Similar to the push-up portion 20, the push-up portion 20 is modified so that it can be inserted at an optimum angle for fitting the charging connector 1. The push-up portion 20 can be formed either inside or outside the cylindrical portion 8. is there.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Charging connector 2 Car charging device 3 Charging connector holding space 4 Charging terminal part 5 Locking claw part 6 Hook part 7 Charging connector holding part 8 Tubular part 9 Claw engaging part 10 Locking receiving part 11 Space part 12 Lock mechanism 13 Restriction piece 14 Cylinder 15 Link 16 Gutter part 17 Screw hole 18 Inclined part 19 Press part 20 Pushing part 21 Base end lower part 22 Base end upper part 23 Gap 24 Front opening part 25 Upper end 26 Lower end 27 Locking claw part operation means 28 Charging connector guide Part 30 Charging cable

Claims (5)

A charging connector holding structure for holding a charging connector having a charging terminal portion at a tip and a locking claw portion above the charging terminal portion in a charging connector holding portion provided in an automobile charging device,
The charging connector holding portion includes a cylindrical portion into which the charging terminal portion is fitted, and a claw engaging portion that engages with the locking claw portion above the cylindrical portion,
On the claw engaging portion, a locking receiving portion is formed in which a hook portion formed by bending the tip of the locking claw portion downward is fitted,
A charging connector holding structure characterized in that a space portion is formed between the hook portion and the claw engaging portion so that the hook portion can move even when the hook portion is fitted in the latch receiving portion.   The charging connector holding structure according to claim 1, wherein an upper end of the cylindrical portion on the front opening side is positioned forward of a lower end.   The charging connector holding structure according to claim 1, wherein a pressing portion that presses a charging terminal portion fitted into the cylindrical portion downward is formed on an upper side inside the cylindrical portion.   The charging connector holding structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a push-up portion that guides the tubular portion while forming a lower surface of the charging connector is formed below the tubular portion.   The push-up portion is a charging connector guide portion that guides to the tubular portion while pushing up the lower surface of the charging connector on an extension line drawn from the lower end portion of the tubular portion toward the front surface. 5. The charging connector holding structure according to any one of 4 above.