JP2015011817A - Connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a connector which can prevent engagement work with a mating connector from becoming difficult while improving assembly workability.SOLUTION: A connector 1 includes a terminal fitting and a housing 2 which houses the terminal fitting. The housing has a first housing 4 and a second housing 5 assembled with the first housing. The first housing is provided with a base part 40 and a pair of terminal holding parts 63, 64 which are formed in a projection manner in a connector engagement direction from the base part, are provided separately from each other, and grip and hold the terminal fitting between them. The second housing is provided with a wall part 56 adjacent to at least one side in a separation direction of the pair of terminal holding parts at intervals, and one 63 of the pair of terminal holding parts is provided with a reinforcement rib 67 which is provided in a projection manner toward the wall part and reinforces one of the terminal holding parts.

Description

  The present invention relates to a connector that includes a terminal fitting and a housing that houses the terminal fitting.

  A wide variety of electronic devices are mounted on automobiles as moving bodies. A wire harness is used to transmit electric power and control signals to the electronic device. The wire harness includes a plurality of electric wires and a connector attached to the end of the electric wires (see Patent Document 1).

  As shown in FIG. 6, the connector 101 described in Patent Document 1 includes a female connector housing 102 provided with a terminal housing chamber 121 for housing a female terminal (not shown), and a half-fitting detection for housing the female connector housing 102. Member 103. The female connector housing 102 includes a housing body 120 having a substantially box shape. The housing main body 120 is formed with a terminal accommodating chamber 121 that accommodates and holds a female terminal.

  Further, the female connector housing 102 is provided with a cylindrical shroud 122 into which a male connector housing 104 that accommodates a male terminal (not shown) that fits with a female terminal accommodated in the terminal accommodating chamber 121 is inserted. The shroud 122 is formed in a bottomed cylindrical shape in which the front end side in the longitudinal direction Y1 of the female terminal is opened and the rear end side in the longitudinal direction Y1 is closed by the rear end wall. That is, the housing main body 120 is accommodated in the shroud 122. The shroud 122 is provided with a notch groove 123 that exposes the locking projection 141 provided on the outer surface of the male connector housing 104 from the front end to the rear end in the longitudinal direction Y1 of the female terminal.

  An L-shaped front view that prevents the shroud 122 from deforming in the direction in which the groove width of the cutout groove 123 is reduced by abutting against a pair of contact surfaces 122a and 122a on the inner surface of the half-fitting detection member 103. A pair of straightening ribs 131 and 131 are provided. The pair of correction ribs 131 and 131 are provided so that the groove width of the cutout groove 123 gradually increases, and when the pair of correction ribs 131 and 131 reach the pair of contact surfaces 122a and 122a and come into contact with each other. Then, the groove width of the notch groove 123 is corrected so as to be a regular groove width. As described above, the half-fitting detection member 103 has a pair of correction ribs 131 and 131 in a direction in which the groove width of the notch groove 123 does not shrink against the force in the direction in which the groove width of the notch groove 123 of the shroud 122 shrinks. By applying force, the shroud 122 and the male connector housing 104 are prevented from interfering with each other when the male connector housing 104 is inserted into the shroud 122.

JP 2007-128743 A

  However, in the conventional connector 101, the pair of correction ribs 131, 131 of the half-fitting detection member 103 has a groove of the notch groove 123 against a force in a direction in which the groove width of the notch groove 123 of the shroud 122 is reduced. Since a force in a direction in which the width is not reduced is applied, when the housing main body 120 is inserted into the shroud 122, an insertion force that resists a force in a direction in which the groove width of the notch groove 123 is reduced is required. The assembly workability when inserting into the inside was bad. That is, the conventional connector 101 has a problem that the assembling workability is poor.

  The present invention provides a connector that can prevent the fitting operation with a mating connector from becoming difficult while improving the assembly workability.

  The present invention according to claim 1 is a connector comprising a terminal fitting and a housing for housing the terminal fitting, wherein the housing is a first housing and a second housing assembled to the first housing. The first housing is formed so as to protrude from the base in the connector fitting direction, and is provided so as to be spaced apart from each other and hold the terminal fitting therebetween. A pair of terminal holding portions, and the second housing is provided with a wall portion adjacent to and spaced apart from at least one side in the separating direction of the pair of terminal holding portions. At least one of the connectors is provided with a reinforcing rib that protrudes toward the wall portion and reinforces the one terminal holding portion.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the reinforcing rib is formed over the entire length of the one terminal holding portion in the connector fitting direction.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the present invention, the reinforcing rib is provided at one end portion in a direction intersecting the separating direction of the one terminal holding portion. Features.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the first housing is formed with the base and the base protruding from the base in the connector fitting direction. A pair of terminal holding portions that are held between the pair of terminals, and the second housing is provided with a wall portion adjacent to and spaced apart from at least one side in the separating direction of the pair of terminal holding portions. Since one of the holding portions is provided with a reinforcing rib that protrudes toward the wall portion and reinforces the one terminal holding portion, one of the holding portions is held by the dimension along the separation direction of the reinforcing rib. The rigidity of the portion is increased, and therefore the shape of the opening (frontage) formed by the pair of terminal holding portions is maintained. Thereby, at the time of connector fitting, the inside falling of one terminal holding part is prevented, and it can prevent that fitting work becomes difficult. Further, when the second housing is assembled to the first housing, even if there is a possibility that the wall portion of the second housing and the reinforcing rib provided projecting toward the wall portion of the first housing may interfere with each other. By elastically deforming the terminal holding portion, the second housing can be assembled to the first housing without being interfered by the reinforcing rib, so that the assembly workability can be improved and the fitting work with the mating connector can be performed. It can be prevented from becoming difficult.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the reinforcing rib is formed over the entire length of the one terminal holding portion in the connector fitting direction, the rigidity is increased over the entire length of the one terminal holding portion. Thus, the inward fall of the pair of terminal holding portions can be prevented more reliably.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, the reinforcing rib is provided at one end in the direction intersecting the separating direction of the one terminal holding portion. For example, the reinforcing rib is provided at the other end of the reinforcing rib. A recess (positioning recess) is formed by one terminal holding portion formed in a substantially L shape and the wall portion of the second housing, and the insertion portion (positioning plate) of the mating connector is inserted into the recess. In this case, reverse fitting between the connector and the counterpart connector can be prevented.

It is a perspective view which shows the lever fitting type connector concerning one embodiment of this invention. It is a front view which shows the lever fitting type connector shown by FIG. It is a figure which expands and shows the principal part of the lever fitting type connector shown by FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the cross section which follows the II line | wire in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the other party connector fitted with the lever fitting type connector shown by FIG. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows the conventional connector.

  Hereinafter, a lever fitting type connector 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. This lever fitting type connector 1 (hereinafter referred to as connector 1) is fitted with a mating connector 10 (shown in FIG. 5) and constitutes a wire harness routed in an automobile.

  Here, in this specification, the connector fitting direction of the connector 1 and the mating connector 10 is indicated by an arrow Z, the vertical direction in FIG. 1 which is a direction orthogonal to the fitting direction is indicated by an arrow Y, and the arrow Z And the arrow Y are orthogonal to each other, and the left-right direction which is the “separating direction of the pair of terminal holding portions” in the claims is indicated by an arrow X. Further, the arrow Z direction may be referred to as the front-rear direction. Of these front and rear directions, the fitting surface side (lower right in FIG. 1, front side in FIG. 2) is referred to as “front”, and (upper left in FIG. 1, rear side in FIG. 2) is referred to as “rear”. It may be noted.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the connector 1 is provided with a plurality of female terminals (not shown), a housing 2 made of an insulating resin whose overall shape is formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, and a rotatable structure in the housing 2. , And a lever 3 that pulls and mates the mating connector 10 by rotating. The plurality of female terminals include a plurality of first terminals and four second terminals (terminal fittings) through which a larger current flows than the first terminals. Each second terminal is formed so as to have a larger diameter than the first terminal. The housing 2 includes a housing body 4 (first housing) having a terminal accommodating portion 41 for accommodating the first and second terminals, and a front holder 5 assembled to the front side (fitting surface side) of the terminal accommodating portion 41. (Second housing).

  As shown in FIG. 1, the housing body 4 includes a base portion 40 (shown in FIG. 4) and a terminal accommodating portion 41 that protrudes forward from the base portion 40 and accommodates a plurality of first and second terminals. And a hood portion 42 erected in a rectangular tube shape so as to surround the terminal accommodating portion 41 from the base portion 40 and for inserting and guiding the mating connector 10 between the terminal accommodating portion 41 and the hood portion 42. The terminal accommodating portion 41 is provided at the four corners of the first accommodating portion 60 having a plurality of accommodating chambers (not shown) for accommodating a plurality of first terminals, and accommodates the second terminals. Four second accommodating portions 61 (each of the second accommodating portions may be referred to as 61A, 61B, 61C, 61D). The first housing part 60 is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape. Inside the first housing part 60, a plurality of housing chambers are formed in 12 rows in the left-right direction and arranged in two stages in the up-down direction. Yes.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the first housing portion 60 is provided with a lock 62 for fixing the reinforcing wall 50 of the front holder 5 in an overlapped state on the front end surface thereof. The front end surface of the first housing portion 60 is provided on the rear side (back side) of the front end surface of the second housing portion 61. Then, the reinforcing wall 50 of the front holder 5 is fixed by the lock 62, and the front end surface of the reinforcing wall 50 and the front end surface of the second housing portion 61 are flush with each other in a state where the reinforcing wall 50 is fixed. Is formed.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the four second accommodating portions 61 are provided to protrude from the first accommodating portion 60 in the left-right direction (arrow X direction) and are spaced apart in the vertical direction (arrow Y direction). Is provided. In other words, the second housing part 61 is provided at the four corners of the first housing part 60. As shown in FIG. 4, each of the second accommodating portions 61 includes a pair of holding portions 63 and 64 (a pair of terminal holding portions) that hold the second terminal therebetween. . The pair of holding portions 63 and 64 are provided so as to stand forward from the base portion 40, and are provided at intervals in the left-right direction so as to be elastically deformable in the left-right direction. Here, of the pair of holding parts 63 and 64, one holding part provided at a position adjacent to the left and right direction side of the first housing part 60 is referred to as a first holding part 63, and the first holding part 63 is sandwiched therebetween. The other holding portion provided on the opposite side of the first housing portion 60 is referred to as a second holding portion 64.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the first holding part 63 protrudes (protrudes) from the holding part 66 erected from the base part 40 in a substantially L-shaped cross section and from the holding piece 66 toward the first accommodating part 60. And a reinforcing rib 67 that reinforces the holding piece 66. The reinforcing rib 67 is formed over the entire length of the holding piece 66 in the front-rear direction (arrow Z direction). Here, among the four second accommodating portions 61A, 61B, 61C, 61D provided at the four corners of the first accommodating portion 60, in the second accommodating portions 61A, 61B located on the upper side, the reinforcing rib 67 is The reinforcing rib 67 is provided at the lower end portion of the holding piece 66 in the second accommodating portions 61 </ b> C and 61 </ b> D that are provided at the upper end portion of the holding piece 66 and located on the lower side.

  The 2nd holding | maintenance part 64 is comprised from the holding piece erected in the substantially L shape from the base 40, as shown in FIG. The second holding portion 64, that is, the holding piece is provided in a shape that is point-symmetric about the holding piece 66 of the first holding portion 63 and the axis of the second storage portion 61.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the hood portion 42 is provided with a lever support protrusion 44 that protrudes from the outer surface in the left-right direction (arrow X direction) and rotatably supports the lever 3, and the lever 3 is shown in FIG. 1. An engaging portion 45 is provided that engages with the lever 3 in a state where the housing 2 and the mating connector 10 are positioned at a fitting position where the housing 2 and the mating connector 10 are properly fitted. Further, the hood portion 42 is formed with a pair of groove portions 46 through which the pair of cam pins 14 provided in the mating connector 1 are inserted. The pair of groove portions 46 is formed in a concave groove shape on each of the inner surfaces of the left and right walls 42A constituting the hood portion 42, and is formed to extend linearly in the front-rear direction (arrow Z direction).

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the front holder 5 is formed in a plate shape that can cover the front end portion of the first housing portion 60, and is attached to the front end portion of the first housing portion 60. The reinforcing wall 50 reinforces the housing portion 60 and two reinforcing frames 51 formed continuously on the reinforcing wall 50. The reinforcing wall 50 is formed so that the front end surface thereof and the front end surface of the reinforcing frame 51 are positioned on the same plane. The reinforcing wall 50 is formed with a plurality of through holes 50 a communicating with the openings and a lock receiving portion 52 formed of a through hole for locking the lock 62 so as to expose the opening of the storage chamber. .

  Each reinforcing frame 51 has a U-shaped frame main body 53 whose both ends are connected to the upper and lower corners 50 </ b> A (shown in FIG. 3) of the reinforcing wall 50, and a second housing from the inside of the U-shaped frame main body 53. And a pair of inner walls 54 and 55 that are formed so as to stand in a plate shape along the upper and lower outer surfaces of the portion 61 and surround each of the second accommodating portions 61 with a part of the frame main body 53. ing. The pair of inner walls 54 and 55 are provided facing each other in the vertical direction (arrow Y direction) with a space therebetween. The pair of inner walls 54, 55 are formed such that the dimension in the standing direction (left-right direction X) is substantially equal to the dimension in the left-right direction of each second housing portion 61. And the front-end | tip of the inner walls 54 and 55 is formed so that it may become a dimension which does not penetrate | invade in the positioning recessed part 20 mentioned later. As shown in FIG. 4, the dimension of the pair of inner walls 54, 55 in the front-rear direction (arrow Z direction) is shorter than the dimension of the frame body 53 in the front-rear direction. Here, reference numeral 56 (shown in FIG. 3) is given to the side surface (the wall portion in the claims) on the left and right direction (arrow X direction) side of the outer peripheral surface of the reinforcing wall 50.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the housing 2 is provided with a pair of positioning recesses 20 into which the positioning plate 15 of the mating connector 10 is inserted, as well as the housing body 4 and the front holder 5. The pair of positioning recesses 20 are fixed to the left and right side surfaces (not shown) of the first housing part 60 and the front side of the first housing part 60 in a state where the front holder 5 is assembled to the housing body 4. Left and right side surfaces 56 (shown in FIG. 3) of the reinforcing wall 50 provided on the same plane as the left and right side surfaces of the first housing part 60, and mutually facing surfaces 67 a of the reinforcing ribs 67 of the upper and lower second housing parts 61. , Formed on the holding piece 66 of the first holding portion 63, and formed by a surface 66 a facing the side surface 56 of the first housing portion 60.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the lever 3 is formed in a plate shape that couples the pair of opposing plates 30 formed with the round holes 3 a into which the lever support protrusions 44 of the hood portion 42 are fitted, and the pair of opposing plates 30. And an operation portion 31 for operating the lever 3, and the lever support protrusion 44 of the hood portion 42 is fitted in the round hole 3 a so as to be rotatably attached to the hood portion 42. Each of the pair of opposing plates 30 is communicated with each groove portion 46 and each cam pin 14 (shown in FIG. 5) that has entered each groove portion 46 is caused to enter. A cam groove 32 to be drawn is formed. The operation portion 31 is provided with an engagement receiving portion (not shown) that engages with the engagement portion 45 of the housing 2 in a state where the lever 3 is located at the fitting position.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the mating connector 10 is formed between the terminal accommodating portion 41 and the hood portion 42 of the connector 1 so as to be able to enter, and is mated with the mating connector 11 and accommodated in the mating housing 11. And an L-shaped first male terminal 12 connected to the first terminal and an L-shaped second male terminal 13 accommodated in the counterpart housing 11 and connected to the second terminal. . The mating housing 11 has a pair of cam pins 14 projecting from the outer surface in the left-right direction (arrow X direction) and entering the groove 46 and the cam groove 32, and the inner surface of the pair of cam pins 14 facing each other in the left-right direction. A positioning plate 15 that is formed and inserted into the positioning recess 20 of the housing 2 is provided.

  Next, a procedure for assembling the connector 1 having the above-described configuration will be described. First, the lever 3, the housing body 4, and the front holder 5 are formed separately in advance. Then, the round hole 3 a of the lever 3 is fitted into the lever support protrusion 44 of the housing main body 4, and the lever 3 is rotatably attached to the housing main body 4.

  Each first terminal is housed in each housing chamber of the first housing portion 60 in the housing body 4. And a 2nd terminal is pushed in between the 1st, 2nd holding | maintenance parts 63 and 64 of each 2nd accommodating part 61. FIG. Then, the second holding portion 64 is pushed by the second terminal, and the second holding portion 64 is elastically deformed in a direction away from the first holding portion 63 in the left-right direction (arrow X direction), so that the second terminal is It is inserted between the first and second holding parts 63 and 64. When the second terminal is accommodated between the first and second holding portions 63 and 64, the second holding portion 64 is elastically restored. In this way, the second terminal is held between the first and second holding portions 63 and 64. Here, when the second terminal is pushed between the first and second holding portions 63 and 64, a force is also applied to the first holding portion 63, but the first holding portion 63 has a reinforcing rib 67. The dimension of the first holding part 63 is increased by the dimension along the left-right direction of the reinforcing rib 67 and the rigidity of the first holding part 63 is increased by this increased dimension. The first holding part 63 has higher rigidity than the holding part 64, and the first holding part 63 hardly undergoes elastic deformation.

  In a state where the second terminal is held between the first and second holding portions 63 and 64, the packing 16 is fitted on the terminal accommodating portion 41. Further, the reinforcing wall 50 of the front holder 5 is brought close to the front end surface of the first housing portion 60, and the reinforcing frames 51 are surrounded by the second housing portions 61A, 61C, so that the reinforcing frames 51 surround the upper and lower second housing portions 61, respectively. And the front holder 5 is pushed in between the terminal accommodating part 41 and the hood part 42, respectively approaching the 2nd accommodating part 61B and 61D. At this time, even if the front holder 5 (side surface 56 thereof) and the reinforcing rib 67 of the second housing portion 61 interfere with each other, the first holding portion 63 is elastically deformed in a direction away from the side surface 56 of the front holder 5. There is no interference by the reinforcing rib 67. The front holder 5 has a reinforcing wall 50 that overlaps the front end surface of the first housing portion 60 and each reinforcing frame 51 surrounds the upper and lower second housing portions 61. Locks. Thereby, the front holder 5 is assembled | attached to the housing main body 4, and the connector 1 is assembled.

  Next, a procedure for fitting the connector 1 assembled in the above-described procedure and the mating connector 10 will be described. The counterpart connector 10 is brought close to the front of the connector 1 in the lever standing state. Then, the positioning plate 15 of the mating connector 10 enters the positioning recess 20 of the connector 1. As the position further approaches, the cam pin 14 enters the groove 46 and the cam groove 32 communicating with each other, and in this state, the lever 3 is rotated rearward to move the cam pin 14 within the cam groove 32. By doing so, the mating housing 11 of the mating connector 10 is pulled into the housing 2, and the female terminals (first terminal and second terminal) accommodated in the housing 2 and the male terminals (first male terminal) of the mating connector 10 are accommodated. 12 and the second male terminal 13) are fitted. Thus, the connector 1 and the mating connector 10 are fitted.

  According to the above-described embodiment, the rigidity of the first holding portion 63 (one terminal holding portion) is increased due to the provision of the reinforcing rib 67, and thus the first and second holding portions 63, The shape of the opening (frontage) formed by 64 (a pair of terminal holding portions) is maintained. Accordingly, when the connectors 1 and 10 are fitted, the first holding portion 63 (one terminal holding portion) is prevented from falling down, and the fitting work can be prevented from becoming difficult.

  Further, when the front holder 5 (second housing) is assembled to the housing body 4 (first housing), the side surface 56 (wall portion) of the front holder 5 (second housing) and the reinforcing rib 67 may interfere with each other. Even if the first holder 63 (one terminal holder) is elastically deformed, the front holder 5 (second housing) is not interfered by the reinforcing rib 67 and the housing body 4 (first housing). Assembling workability can be improved.

  In such a connector 1, it is possible to prevent the mating operation with the mating connector from becoming difficult while improving the assembly workability without changing the structure or function of the mating connector 10. .

  In the above-described embodiment, the reinforcing rib 67 is provided only in the first holding portion 63, but the present invention is not limited to this. The reinforcing rib 67 may be provided only in the second holding part 64 or may be provided in both the first holding part 63 and the second holding part 64. The reinforcing rib 67 is provided at the upper end portion of the holding piece 66 in the second accommodating portions 61A and 61B located on the upper side, and in the second accommodating portions 61C and 61D located on the lower side. The reinforcing rib 67 is provided at the lower end of the holding piece 66, but the present invention is not limited to this. The reinforcing rib 67 is provided at the lower end portion of the holding piece 66 in the second accommodating portions 61A and 61B positioned on the upper side, and the reinforcing rib 67 is provided on the lower end portion of the holding piece 66. 67 may be provided at the upper end of the holding piece 66. That is, the reinforcing rib 67 may be provided at any position of the first and second holding portions 63 and 64 as long as the reinforcing rib 67 protrudes toward the side surface 56 (wall portion) of the front holder 5.

  Moreover, although the housing main body 4 (1st housing) had the 1st accommodating part 60, this invention is not limited to this. The first housing part 60 may be omitted. Moreover, although the housing main body 4 has four 2nd accommodating parts 61 (a pair of terminal holding | maintenance part), the 2nd accommodating part 61 should just be at least 1 or 2 or more. In the case where the housing body (first housing) has one second accommodating portion 61 (61A), the reinforcing rib 67 is arranged in the vertical direction of the first holding portion 63 (the separation direction of the one terminal holding portion). When a positioning recess (recess) is formed on the other end in the vertical direction, the positioning plate 15 of the mating connector 10 is inserted into the positioning recess. Thereby, reverse fitting with the connector 1 and the other party connector 10 can be prevented.

  Moreover, each embodiment mentioned above only showed the typical form of this invention, and this invention is not limited to embodiment by embodiment. That is, those skilled in the art can implement various modifications in accordance with conventionally known knowledge without departing from the scope of the present invention. As long as the configuration of the connector 1 of the present invention is provided even by such a modification, it is of course included in the scope of the present invention.

1 Lever fitting type connector (connector)
2 Housing 4 Housing body (first housing)
5 Front holder (second housing)
40 Base 56 Front Holder Side (Wall)
63 1st holding part (one terminal holding part of a pair of terminal holding parts)
64 Second holding part (terminal holding part)
67 Reinforcement rib

Claims (3)

Terminal fittings,
A connector housing the terminal fitting,
The housing has a first housing and a second housing assembled to the first housing;
The first housing has a base portion and a pair of terminal holding portions formed so as to protrude from the base portion in the connector fitting direction and spaced apart from each other and holding the terminal fitting therebetween. And provided,
The second housing is provided with a wall portion adjacent to and spaced apart from at least one side in the separating direction of the pair of terminal holding portions,
At least one of the pair of terminal holding portions is provided with a reinforcing rib that protrudes toward the wall portion and reinforces the one terminal holding portion.   The connector according to claim 1, wherein the reinforcing rib is formed over the entire length of the one terminal holding portion in the connector fitting direction.   3. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the reinforcing rib is provided at one end portion in a direction intersecting with a separating direction of the one terminal holding portion.

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