JP2014160544A - Female terminal fitting - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To perform backlash stuffing of a male tab and to regulate an elastic contact piece from being excessively bent, without increasing processing man-hours.SOLUTION: Within a main body 20, a flexible elastic contact piece 21 is provided and in the elastic contact piece 21, a protrusion 25 is provided. On a sidewall 23 of the main body 20, a hammered-out part 34 is provided by inward hammering together with a through hole 33 and in the hammered-out part 34, in a portion opposing the protrusion 25 in a bending direction of the elastic contact piece 21, an excessive bend regulation part 36 is provided for regulating the elastic contact piece 21 from being excessively bent. In the hammered-out part 34, in a portion opposite to the excessive bend regulation part 36 with the protrusion 25 interposed therebetween, a backlash stuffing part 35 is provided for regulating displacement of a male tab 91 which is inserted into the main body 20.

Description

  The present invention relates to a female terminal fitting.

  The female terminal fitting disclosed in Patent Document 1 is a cylindrical main body portion (referred to as “electrical contact portion” in Patent Document 1) in which a mating male tab (referred to as “electrical contact portion” in Patent Document 1) is inserted. ), And an elastic contact piece that is arranged so as to be deflectable inside the main body and elastically contacts a male tab inserted into the main body. A pair of spring members are cut and raised inward on the side wall of the main body. When the male tab is inserted into the main body, both ends of the male tab in the width direction come into contact with the inner contact portions of the two spring members, so that the male tab is packed in the main body.

JP 2010-123264 A

  By the way, in the case of the conventional female terminal fitting, there is no means for restricting the operation when the elastic contact piece is excessively bent and deformed. There is a fear. In view of this, even if a means for restricting excessive bending of the elastic contact piece is provided separately, if the means is provided in a separate process from the processing of the spring member or the like, the processing man-hours increase and the work burden increases. In addition, the mold structure is complicated, and the cost is high.

  The present invention has been completed based on the above-described circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to perform male tabulation without increasing the number of processing steps and to restrict excessive bending of the elastic contact piece. .

  The female terminal fitting of the present invention is arranged in a cylindrical main body portion into which the mating male tab is inserted, and is flexibly disposed inside the main body portion, and is elastically applied to the male tab inserted into the main body portion. The elastic contact piece is provided with a protruding piece projecting in the width direction, and the side wall in the width direction of the main body portion is knocked out together with the through hole by knocking inwardly. A portion is provided, and the protruding piece enters and is disposed inside the through hole, and a portion of the protruding portion that faces the protruding piece in the bending direction of the elastic contact piece, An over-deflection restricting portion that restricts over-deflection of the elastic contact piece is provided, and a portion of the knocking-out portion opposite to the over-deflection restricting portion with the protruding piece interposed therebetween is inserted into the main body portion. In addition, a backlash filling portion is provided for restricting displacement of the male tab in the width direction. Having the features the time.

  By knocking out the side wall in the width direction of the main body portion inwardly, a punching portion is formed together with the through hole, and in the portion of the knocking-out portion facing the protruding piece in the bending direction of the elastic contact piece, An over-deflection restricting part that restricts over-deflection of the elastic contact piece is provided, and the displacement of the male tab in the width direction is restricted to the part on the opposite side to the over-deflection restricting part across the protruding piece. Since the backlash filling portion is provided, the over-deflection restricting portion and the backlash filling portion are simultaneously formed in the knocking-out process. For this reason, it becomes possible to control the excessive bending of the elastic contact piece while performing the backpacking of the male tab without increasing the number of processing steps.

It is a front view of the female terminal metal fitting of Example 1 of the present invention. It is a side view of a main-body part. It is sectional drawing of the side view direction of a main-body part. It is sectional drawing of the planar view direction of a main-body part. It is sectional drawing of the front view direction of a main-body part. It is sectional drawing of the front view direction of the main-body part in which the male tab was inserted.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention are shown below.
Of the knocking-out portion, a portion that is opposed in the traveling direction of the male tab is provided with a guiding portion that is inclined along the traveling direction of the male tab. As a result, a lead-in portion for guiding the male tab into the main body is also formed at the same time in the knocking-out step. As a result, the main body portion is efficiently provided with the guiding portion, the excessive deflection regulating portion, and the backlash filling portion, and can be suitably used for a small female terminal fitting.

  The elastic contact piece is provided with a bulging contact portion that can come into contact with the male tab, and the backfill portion is disposed close to the outside in the width direction of the contact portion. Thereby, the displacement to the width direction of a male tab is suppressed effectively in the vicinity of the position where a male tab contacts an elastic contact piece, and the contact reliability of a male tab and an elastic contact piece is improved more.

<Example 1>
A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The female terminal fitting 10 according to the first embodiment is a substantially rectangular tube-shaped main body that is integrally formed by bending a conductive metal plate and can be connected to a mating male terminal fitting 90 (see FIG. 6). 20 and an elastic contact piece 21 disposed inside the main body 20 so as to be deflectable. In addition, although the female terminal metal fitting 10 is provided with the part connected to the terminal part of an electric wire (not shown) behind the main-body part 20, the description and illustration are abbreviate | omitted here. Moreover, in the following description, the left side shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, the main body 20 includes a base wall 22 extending in the front-rear direction, a pair of side walls 23 rising from both side edges (both ends in the width direction) of the base wall 22, and one upper end of the side walls 23. And an opposing wall 24 that extends from the other end to the other upper end.

The elastic contact piece 21 is formed by folding back a portion extending forward from the center in the width direction of the front end of the base wall 22, and as shown in FIG. It is made into the form extended from the front end of this to the back in the upward gradient. The elastic contact piece 21 can be bent and deformed in the vertical direction with the front end of the base wall 22 as a fulcrum.
As shown in FIG. 4, a pair of projecting pieces 25 project in the width direction at the rear end portion (extending end portion) of the elastic contact piece 21. Both projecting pieces 25 have a rectangular plate shape and are disposed so as to be within the width of the main body portion 20 while facing a through hole 33 described later. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, an embossed contact portion 26 bulges upward at the rear end portion of the elastic contact piece 21. As shown in FIG. 4, the contact portion 26 is widened from the front end toward the rear, and the apex 27 is located within the front-rear range of both projecting pieces 25 as shown in FIG. 2. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, of the elastic contact piece 21, the front part of both protruding pieces 25 has a shape constricted toward the center side in the width direction of the elastic contact piece 21.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, an auxiliary spring portion 28 that can be bent is disposed inside the main body portion 20 separately from the elastic contact piece 21. The auxiliary spring portion 28 is formed by cutting and raising the base wall 22, and the base wall 22 is formed by cutting and raising holes 29 through the formation of the auxiliary spring portion 28. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, the auxiliary spring portion 28 is configured to extend upward from the rear end to the front, and can be bent and deformed in the vertical direction with the rear end portion as a fulcrum. The front end portion (extending end portion) of the auxiliary spring portion 28 is disposed in contact with the rear end portion of the elastic contact piece 21 from below, thereby elastically supporting the elastic contact piece 21. Yes.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the base wall 22 is formed with a locking projection 30 by cutting and raising together with the auxiliary spring portion 28 through a cutting and raising hole 29. The locking protrusion 30 is disposed in front of the auxiliary spring portion 28 and protrudes in a claw shape below the base wall 22 that is the outside of the main body portion 20. Here, when the female terminal fitting 10 is inserted into a cavity (not shown) of the connector housing, the tip of a lance (not shown) formed on the inner wall of the cavity is cut and raised and fitted into the hole 29 and locked. The protrusion 30 is disposed so as to be able to be locked, whereby the female terminal fitting 10 is pulled out into the cavity and is held in a state of being pulled out.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the facing wall 24 is provided with a receiving portion 31 at a position facing the elastic contact piece 21 and the auxiliary spring portion 28. The receiving portion 31 is formed by bending the opposing wall 24 into the main body portion 20 and has a flat receiving surface 32 along the front-rear direction. As will be described later, a male tab 91 is inserted between the opposing wall 24 and the elastic contact piece 21 so as to be sandwiched (see FIG. 6). However, the elastic contact piece 21 is inserted before the male tab 91 is inserted. Is in a natural state, the vertical distance between the apex 27 of the contact portion 26 of the elastic contact piece 21 and the receiving surface 32 of the receiving portion 31 is made smaller than the thickness of the male tab 91. The male tab 91 is configured in a flat plate shape extending in the front-rear direction and flat in the width direction (see FIG. 6).

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the both side walls 23 are provided with a pair of knocking portions 34 that project inward together with the pair of through holes 33 by knocking out from the outside. Both through-holes 33 have a substantially rectangular opening shape that is long in the front-rear direction in a side view, and the opening edge portion is partitioned by the knocking-out portion 34 over the entire circumference. Moreover, both the through-holes 33 are arrange | positioned in the position which overlaps with the contact part 26 of the elastic contact piece 21 regarding the front-back direction and the up-down direction. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 2, the contact portion 26 of the elastic contact piece 21 is visible from the outside through the through hole 33. In this case, the contact portion 26 can be viewed from the through-hole 33 regardless of whether the elastic contact piece 21 is in the natural state or the bent state. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, both through holes 33 have a hole cross section substantially along the vertical direction and the front-rear direction at a position where they are retracted inwardly of the main body portion 20. A piece 25 is arranged to enter. Specifically, the tip portions of both projecting pieces 25 are arranged so as to be within the plate thickness range of the knocking-out portion 34 inside the through holes 33.

  Now, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the knocking-out portion 34 includes a backlash filling portion 35 that defines the upper edge portion of the through hole 33, and an excessive deflection regulating portion 36 that defines the lower edge portion of the through hole 33. The guide part 37 that partitions the front edge part of the through hole 33 and the rear projecting part 38 that partitions the rear edge part of the through hole 33 are configured. The backlash filling portion 35, the excessive deflection regulating portion 36, the guide portion 37, and the rear overhang portion 38 are integrally connected by the square portion of the through hole 33, and the inner surface of this connection portion is formed in an arc shape, and the inner surfaces other than the connection portion Is formed in a straight line. Further, the upper end portion of the backlash filling portion 35, the guiding portion 37 and the upper end portion of the rear overhang portion 38 overlap with the insertion path of the tab inserted into the main body portion 20 in the vertical direction, and the width of the insertion path of the male tab 91 is widened. It arrange | positions in the position prescribed | regulated by a direction (refer FIG. 6).

  As shown in FIG. 5, the backlashing portion 35 is configured to extend inward along the hitting direction and then bend downward to extend, and the inner surface of the portion that extends downward and extends downward is the backlashing surface. 39. As shown in FIG. 6, the backlash filling surface 39 is disposed so as to face the side surface in the width direction of the male tab 91 in the state where the male tab 91 is inserted in the main body portion 20 while facing the width direction. When the male tab 91 is displaced in the width direction, it contacts the side surface in the width direction of the male tab 91 and plays a role of restricting further displacement. Further, the backlashing surface 39 of the backlashing portion 35 is disposed close to the outside in the width direction of the contact portion 26 of the elastic contact piece 21.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the excessive deflection restricting portion 36 is configured to bend in the upward direction after extending inward along the hitting direction. The upper end surface of the excessive deflection restricting portion 36 is an upward and excessive deflection restricting surface 40 substantially along the front-rear direction and the width direction, and the normal contact operation of the elastic contact piece 21 with the protruding piece 25 is always performed. On the other hand, when the elastic contact piece 21 tries to bend and deform excessively, the elastic contact piece 21 abuts against the protruding piece 25 and plays a role of restricting further displacement.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the guiding portion 37 is configured to extend inward along the hitting direction and then bend and extend rearward, and the front surface of the portion extending inward is the guiding surface 41. Has been. The guide surface 41 is configured to incline inward from the front end toward the rear, and is slidably disposed on the side surface in the width direction of the male tab 91 inserted into the main body portion 20. By restricting the position shift, the male tab 91 is corrected to the normal insertion position. In addition, the guide part 37 and the back overhang | projection part 38 are comprised so that it may become a substantially symmetrical shape on both the front and back sides which pinched | interposed the front-back center axis | shaft of the through-hole 33. FIG.

Next, the effect of the female terminal fitting 10 of Example 1 is demonstrated.
When the connector housing is fitted into a mating connector housing (both not shown), the male tab 91 of the mating male terminal fitting 90 attached to the mating connector housing is the main body portion of the female terminal fitting 10. 20 is inserted. In the insertion process of the male tab 91, the male tab 91 is guided to the center in the width direction by the guide surface 41 of the guide portion 37, and in this state, the male tab 91 contacts the contact portion 26 of the elastic contact piece 21, The elastic contact piece 21 is bent and deformed together with the auxiliary spring portion 28. At this time, even if the male tab 91 assumes an obliquely downward posture and the elastic contact piece 21 is excessively bent and deformed, the two protruding pieces 25 face each other in the bending direction of the elastic contact piece 21. The excessive deflection of the elastic contact piece 21 is regulated by abutting against the excessive deflection regulating surface 40 of the excessive deflection regulating portion 36 that performs the above.

  Further, even when the male tab 91 is about to be displaced in the width direction in the insertion process of the male tab 91, the both sides of the male tab 91 in the width direction slide on the back-filling surface 39 of the back-filling portion 35. The positional deviation in the width direction of 91 is restricted. Furthermore, when the upper surface of the male tab 91 slides on the receiving surface 32 of the receiving portion 31 and the lower surface of the male tab 91 slides on the contact portion 26, the vertical displacement of the male tab 91 is also restricted. .

  Thereafter, when the connector housing is properly fitted to the mating connector housing, the female terminal fitting 10 is also normally connected to the mating male terminal fitting 90, and the male tab 91 is inserted into the main body portion 20 at a regular depth. In the state in which the male tab 91 is normally inserted in this manner, as shown in FIG. 6, the male tab 91 is sandwiched between the contact portion 26 of the elastic contact piece 21 and the receiving surface 32 of the receiving portion 31, and both male and female terminals The metal fittings 10 and 90 are conductively connected in a normal state. Further, in the state where the male tab 91 is normally inserted, both side surfaces in the width direction of the male tab 91 are arranged close to the backlashing surface 39 of the backlash filling portion 35, and the movement of the male tab 91 in the width direction is suppressed. As a result, the connection state of both terminal fittings 10 and 90 is stably maintained.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, by striking the both side walls 23 in the width direction of the main body 20 inwardly, the striking portion 34 is formed together with the through-hole 33. The lower end portion of the elastic contact piece 21 facing the protruding piece 25 is provided with an excessive deflection restricting portion 36. The excessive deflection restricting portion 36 restricts the excessive deflection of the elastic contact piece 21 and Among them, a backlash filling portion 35 is provided at the upper end portion on the opposite side of the excessive deflection restricting portion 36 across the protruding piece 25, and the positional deviation in the width direction of the male tab 91 is restricted by this backlash filling portion 35. . In this case, since the excessive deflection restricting portion 36 and the backlash filling portion 35 are formed at a time in the punching process of forming the through hole 33 in the side wall 23 of the main body portion 20, the manufacturing becomes easy and the cost is low. Can be suppressed.

  In addition, the push-out portion 34 is provided with a guide portion 37 at a position facing the male tab 91 in the advancing direction. The guide portion 37 prevents the male tab 91 from being misaligned, and the male tab 91 is connected to the main body portion. 20 is smoothly invited into. In this way, in addition to the excessive deflection restricting portion 36 and the backlash filling portion 35 being formed in the punching process, the guiding portion 37 is also formed, so that the manufacturing becomes easier and the main body portion 20 includes the excessive deflection restricting portion. 36, the backlash filling portion 35 and the guide portion 37 can be provided in a space efficient manner.

  Further, since the backlash filling surface 39 of the backlash filling portion 35 is disposed close to the outside in the width direction of the contact portion 26 of the elastic contact piece 21, in the vicinity of the contact position between the male tab 91 and the elastic contact piece 21. The loose movement of the male tab 91 in the width direction is effectively suppressed by the backlash filling portion 35. As a result, the contact reliability between the male tab 91 and the elastic contact piece 21 is further 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 aspects are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.
(1) The present invention is also applicable to a female terminal fitting in which an auxiliary spring portion is not provided inside the main body portion.
(2) The shape of the elastic contact piece is not limited, and may be, for example, a form that cantilevered forward from the rear end, or both front and rear ends supported by the base wall. A hand-held form may be sufficient and it may be provided separately from a main-body part.
(3) Of the knocking-out portions, the rear overhanging portion may be omitted depending on circumstances, and even when not omitted, it is not necessary to have the same shape as the guiding portion.
(4) The through hole and the knock-out portion may be provided only on one side wall of the both side walls.
(5) When the elastic contact piece is in a natural state, the elastic contact piece may be configured such that the protruding piece of the elastic contact piece is hidden inside the backlash portion and cannot be seen from the outside.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Female terminal metal fitting 20 ... Main-body part 21 ... Elastic contact piece 23 ... Side wall 25 ... Protrusion piece 26 ... Contact part 33 ... Through-hole 34 ... Striking part 35 ... Backlash filling part 36 ... Over-deflection regulation part 37 ... Lead-in part 38 ... Rear extension 90 ... Male terminal fitting 91 ... Male tab

Claims (3)

A cylindrical main body part into which a male tab on the other side is inserted;
An elastic contact piece disposed inside the main body portion so as to be deflectable and elastically contacting the male tab inserted into the main body portion;
The elastic contact piece is provided with a protruding piece protruding in the width direction,
The side wall in the width direction of the main body is provided with a hitting portion together with a through hole by hitting inward.
In the inside of the through hole, the protruding piece enters and is arranged,
Of the knocking-out portion, a portion facing the protruding piece in the bending direction of the elastic contact piece is provided with an excessive bending regulating portion for regulating excessive bending of the elastic contact piece,
Of the knocking-out portion, a backpacking portion for restricting displacement in the width direction of the male tab inserted in the main body portion is provided on a portion opposite to the excessive deflection restricting portion across the protruding piece. A female terminal fitting characterized by being made.   2. The female terminal according to claim 1, wherein a lead-in portion that is inclined along the traveling direction of the male tab is provided in a portion of the knocking-out portion that is opposed in the traveling direction of the male tab. Hardware.   The elastic contact piece is provided with a bulging contact portion that can come into contact with the male tab, and the backlash portion is disposed close to the outside in the width direction of the contact portion. Item 3. The female terminal fitting according to Item 1 or 2.

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