JP2016197550A - connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve operability in unlocking.SOLUTION: A housing 10 comprises: a housing body 11; and a lock arm 13 having a bending space 12 formed between itself and a facing surface 19 of the housing body 11. The lock arm 13 is provided with a release operation part 18 for separating the housing 10 and a housing 80, which are in a fitted state, from each other when the lock arm 13 is pressed toward the facing surface 19 of the housing body 11. The release operation part 18 is configured such that it is displaceable between a lying position where it takes a lying posture facing the facing surface 19 of the housing body 11 via the bending space 12 and a standing position where it takes a standing posture spaced away from the facing surface 19 of the housing body 11.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

  The present invention relates to a connector.

  The connector disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a housing that can be fitted to a mating housing, and a detection member that is assembled to the housing so as to be movable between a standby position and a detection position. The detection member is allowed to move from the standby position to the detection position when the housing is properly fitted to the mating housing.

  The housing has a block-shaped housing body and a lock arm in which a bending space is formed between the upper surface (opposing surface) of the housing body. The lock arm plays a role of elastically locking the mating housing after being bent and deformed in the bending space, and holding both housings in a fitted state. At the end of the lock arm, a release operation part is provided one step higher. When the two housings are in the fitted state, the release operation portion is pressed from above, so that the lock arm is bent into the bending space and the lock arm and the mating housing are unlocked. Can be removed. The housing body is provided with an arch-shaped protective wall so as to surround the release operation portion. When the two housings are in the fitted state, the release operation portion is protected by the protection wall so that the release operation portion is not illegally operated.

JP 2013-214495 A

  In the case of the connector described above, since the protective wall and a part of the detection member are provided around the release operation portion of the lock arm, there is a situation in which it becomes difficult to press the release operation portion with a finger or the like. . In particular, when the connector is downsized, the operation surface of the release operation unit is also reduced, and there is a problem that it is more difficult to perform a pressing operation on the release operation unit.

  The present invention has been completed based on the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to improve the operability of unlocking.

  In the connector according to the present invention, a bending space is formed between a housing main body that can be fitted into a mating housing and an opposing surface of the housing main body, and the mating housing is elastically locked after being bent and deformed in the bending space. Thus, a lock arm that holds the mating housing and the housing body in a fitted state is provided, and the lock arm is in a fitted state by being pressed toward the opposing surface of the housing body. A release operation part for separating the counterpart housing and the housing body is provided, and the release operation part is a recumbent position taking a lying position facing the opposite surface of the housing body through the bending space, and the housing body It is characterized in that it is configured to be displaceable to an upright position that takes an upright posture that is separated from the opposing surface.

  When performing the unlocking operation, if the release operation part is displaced to the upright position to stand upright away from the opposing surface of the housing body, the periphery of the release operation part is released, so in that state By pressing the standing end of the release operation portion, the lock arm can be easily bent and deformed in the unlocking direction to release the engagement with the counterpart housing. In addition, before performing the unlocking operation, the release operation part is set to the lying position so that the release operation part faces the opposite surface of the housing body, so that the release operation part is prevented from protruding from the surroundings, and the release operation Inadvertent release operation to the part can be prevented.

In the connector which concerns on the Example of this invention, a housing is sectional drawing showing the state which faced the other party housing at the time of a fitting start. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the housing is properly fitted to the mating housing and the detection member is unlocked at the standby position. Furthermore, it is sectional drawing showing the state which the detection member moved to the detection position. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the detection member is returned to the standby position and the release operation unit is raised to the standing position when both housings are detached. Furthermore, it is sectional drawing showing the state which the standing end of the cancellation | release operation part was pressed and the lock arm bent and deformed. It is a top view of the housing in the state where the detection member moved to the detection position. It is a principal part fracture side view of a housing. It is a side view of a detection member. It is a front view of a detection member. It is a top view of a detection member.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention are shown below.
The release operation part is connected to the body part of the lock arm via a hinge so as to be displaceable between the recumbent position and the standing position. According to this, the displacement operation of the release operation part can be easily performed.

  The release operation part is in contact with the main body part when the release operation part is rotated from the recumbent position to the standing position via the hinge, and further rotation of the release operation part is restricted. And the stopper part which maintains the standing state of the said release operation part in the said standing position is provided. In the standing position, the release operation unit is maintained in the standing state by the stopper unit, so that the pressing operation to the release operation unit can be performed without any trouble.

  The housing body is movable to a standby position and a detection position with respect to the housing, and is allowed to move from the standby position to the detection position when the housing body is normally fitted to the mating housing. The detection member has a pair of side walls covering both sides of the release operation part in the recumbent position, and the release operation part in the standing position protrudes between the pair of side walls. Be placed. Although there is a possibility that the pressing operation to the release operation part is difficult due to the both side walls of the detection member, the release operation part in the standing position protrudes from the both side walls, so that the pressing operation to the release operation part is not hindered. It can be carried out. Moreover, since both sides of the release operation part in the recumbent position are covered with both side walls, an inadvertent release operation to the release operation part can be prevented by both side walls.

<Example>
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The connector of this embodiment includes a housing 10 and a detection member 60 that is assembled to the housing 10 so as to be movable between a standby position and a detection position. The housing 10 can be fitted into the mating housing 80. In the following description, with respect to the front-rear direction, the side of the housings 10 and 80 that face each other at the start of fitting is defined as the front side, and the vertical direction is based on the drawings other than FIGS. 6 and 10.

  The mating housing 80 is made of a synthetic resin and includes a cylindrical hood portion 81 protruding forward as shown in FIG. In the hood part 81, the male tab 82 of the mating terminal fitting 83 protrudes. A lock receiving portion 84 is provided through the upper wall of the hood portion 81.

  The housing 10 is made of synthetic resin, and as shown in FIG. 7, a block-shaped housing main body 11 and a lock arm 13 that can be bent into the bending space 12 by forming a bending space 12 between the housing main body 11 and It has. As shown in FIG. 2, the housing body 11 can be fitted into the hood portion 81 of the mating housing 80.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a terminal fitting 14 is inserted into the housing body 11 from the rear. The terminal fitting 14 is connected to the terminal portion of the electric wire 15. When the terminal fitting 14 is properly inserted into the housing main body 11, the electric wire 15 extends rearward from the rear surface of the housing main body 11. Further, when the housings 10 and 80 are properly fitted, the male tab 82 of the mating terminal fitting 83 is inserted into the terminal fitting 14 and the terminal fittings 14 and 83 are electrically connected.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the lock arm 13 includes a main body 16 that extends from the upper surface of the housing main body 11 (hereinafter referred to as a facing surface 19) and then extends rearward, and a hinge 17 at the rear end of the main body 16. The release operation unit 18 is connected via the connection. That is, the lock arm 13 is configured to extend in a cantilevered manner from the main body portion 16 to the release operation portion 18, and the main body portion 16 bends in the vertical direction with the fulcrum portion 21 rising from the facing surface 19 of the housing main body 11 as a fulcrum. It can be deformed.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the front portion of the main body portion 16 has a flat plate shape in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction, and is formed in a substantially rectangular shape in plan view. A lock portion 22 protrudes upward at a substantially central portion in the front-rear direction of the main body portion 16. When the lock portion 22 is elastically fitted into the lock receiving portion 84 of the counterpart housing 80, both the housings 10 and 80 are held in the fitted state.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the rear of the lock portion 22 is opened, and as shown in FIG. 6, the portion from the left and right sides of the main body portion 16 across the lock portion 22 to the rear end portion is a pair of extending portions 23. In addition, the rear ends of the extending portions 23 are connected to each other by connecting portions 24 along the left-right direction. Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the main body portion 16 is provided with a concave portion 25 at a position corresponding to the lower portion of the lock portion 22. The concave portion 25 is opened in a range from the lower surface of the main body portion 16 to the rear surface of the lock portion 22. As shown in FIG. 3, when the detection member 60 reaches the detection position, a locking portion 71 (to be described later) enters the recess 25 and is disposed in the recess 25.

  The connecting portion 24 is arranged one step higher than the lock portion 22. The upper surface of the connecting portion 24 is disposed flatly along the front-rear direction. As shown in FIG. 4, a stopper portion 29, which will be described later, of the release operation portion 18 can be brought into contact with the rear end portion of the upper surface of the connecting portion 24.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the front end of the hinge 17 is integrally connected to the left and right sides of the rear end of the connecting portion 24, and is provided in a pair on the left and right. The hinge 17 has a strip shape that is substantially rectangular in plan view, and has flexibility to bend in the vertical direction.

  The release operation unit 18 has a flat plate shape in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction, and is formed in a substantially rectangular shape in plan view as shown in FIG. The rear end of the hinge 17 is integrally connected to the left and right sides of the front end of the release operation unit 18. Here, the release operation unit 18 has a recumbent position (see FIGS. 1 to 3 and 7) that takes a substantially horizontal recumbent position with respect to the main body unit 16 with the hinge 17 as a fulcrum, and a substantially vertical standing posture. It can be displaced to the standing position (see FIGS. 4 and 5). Unless otherwise specified, the concepts of the front-rear direction and the up-down direction with respect to the release operation unit 18 are based on the state where the release operation unit 18 is in the recumbent position.

  As shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, a rib-like operation main body 27 extending over the entire width in the left-right direction is provided at the rear end portion of the upper surface of the release operation portion 18. The rear surface of the operation main body 27 is a flat pressing surface 28 along the vertical direction. As shown in FIG. 4, when the release operation unit 18 is in the standing position, the pressing surface 28 of the operation main body 27 is disposed along the front-rear direction, and in this state, the pressing surface 28 can be pressed from above. ing.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, a rib-like stopper portion 29 extending over the entire width in the left-right direction is provided at the front end portion of the upper surface of the release operation portion 18. The stopper portion 29 is formed with a projection amount smaller than that of the operation main body 27. The front surface of the stopper portion 29 is a flat contact surface 31 along the vertical direction. As shown in FIG. 4, when the release operation portion 18 is in the standing position, the contact surface 31 of the stopper portion 29 contacts the upper surface of the connecting portion 24 along the front-rear direction, and the release operation portion 18 is maintained in the standing state. It is possible to do.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the release operation portion 18 in the recumbent position is disposed substantially along the front-rear direction so as to face the facing surface 19 of the housing body 11 from above via the flexure space 12, as shown in FIG. 6. The outer wall 33 of the housing 10 and the side wall 62 of the detection member 60, which will be described later, are located on the left and right sides. That is, the release operation part 18 in the recumbent position is arranged and protected so as to be sandwiched between both outer walls 33 and both side walls 62 except for the upper end part of the operation main body 27.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4, the release operation portion 18 in the standing position is disposed substantially along the vertical direction so as to be separated from the facing surface 19 of the housing body 11, and includes a proximal end portion in the standing direction including the stopper portion 29. Except for the above, what protrudes upward from between both outer walls 33 and both side walls 62 and covers the periphery is substantially eliminated and opened.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the housing body 11 has a pair of inner walls 32 erected on the left and right sides of the lock arm 13, and a pair of outer walls 33 erected outside the inner wall 32. Both the inner wall 32 and the outer wall 33 are configured to extend in the front-rear direction, and the rear end of the outer wall 33 is located behind the rear end of the inner wall 32. Between the inner wall 32 and the outer wall 33, a later-described elastic piece 64 of the detection member 60 enters and is arranged.

  As shown in FIG. 7, a guide groove 34 extending in the front-rear direction along the facing surface 19 of the housing body 11 is provided at the lower end portion of the inner surface of the outer wall 33, and the rear end portion of the inner wall 32 of the guide groove 34. In addition, a retaining receiving portion 35 is provided. A guide portion 67 (described later) of the detection member 60 is inserted into the guide groove 34 in a fitted state, and a retention portion 69 (described later) of the detection member 60 abuts on the retention receiving portion 35, so that the detection member 60 is removed from the housing 10. Escape is regulated. Further, the outer surface of the inner wall 32 can be locked to a first holding receiving portion (not shown) that can be locked to a first holding portion 65 (described later) of the detection member 60 and a second holding portion 66 (described later) of the detection member 60. A second holding receiving portion (not shown) is provided.

  As shown in FIG. 6, a ceiling wall 36 is integrally connected to the inner wall 32 and the outer wall 33 so as to extend over the upper ends of the inner wall 32 and the outer wall 33. As shown in FIG. 7, the ceiling wall 36 is disposed so as to cover the upper portion of the connecting portion 24 of the lock arm 13. The release operation unit 18 at the recumbent position is located behind the ceiling wall 36, and only the upper end portion of the operation main body 27 is disposed so as to wrap with the ceiling wall 36 in the vertical direction. Moreover, the release operation part 18 in the standing position is located close to the rear of the ceiling wall 36, and the tip part in the standing direction projects upward from the ceiling wall 36 with respect to the vertical direction.

  Next, the detection member 60 will be described. The detection member 60 is made of synthetic resin, and is assembled to the rear portion of the housing 10 so as to enter the bending space 12 of the lock arm 13 shallowly (see FIGS. 1 and 2). Then, it slides and moves along the facing surface 19 of the housing body 11 to a detection position (see FIG. 3) that enters the bending space 12 deeply.

  As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the detection member 60 includes a base portion 61 extending in the left-right direction, a pair of side walls 62 that protrudes upward after rising upward from both left and right ends of the base portion 61, and the left and right sides of the base portion 61. And a locking arm 63 protruding forward from the center.

  An elastic piece 64 that can bend and deform in the left-right direction is provided at the front portion of the side wall 62. As shown in FIG. 9, the elastic piece 64 has a plate shape extending in the vertical direction, and claw-shaped first and second holding portions 65 and 66 extending in the vertical direction are provided at the front end thereof so as to protrude inward. It has been. The first holding part 65 is located above the second holding part 66 and is formed with a projecting dimension larger than that of the second holding part 66. Although not shown in detail, the first holding portion 65 elastically locks the first holding receiving portion of the housing 10, so that the detection member 60 is prevented from coming out backward in the standby position, and the second holding portion Since the portion 66 elastically locks the second holding receiving portion of the housing 10, the return movement of the detection member 60 to the standby position at the detection position is restricted.

  As shown in FIG. 8, a rib-shaped guide portion 67 extending along the lower edge of the outer surface is provided at the rear portion of the side wall 62. A concave groove 68 is provided in the lower half portion of the guide portion 67 along the front-rear direction, and a retaining portion 69 is provided at a substantially central portion of the concave groove 68 in the front-rear direction. In addition to the locking of the first holding portion 65 and the second holding receiving portion described above, the retaining portion 69 latches the retaining receiving portion 35 of the housing 10 so that the detection member 60 is pulled out backward in the standby position. It is surely regulated.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the locking arm 63 is configured to be inclined obliquely upward from the front end of the base portion 61 toward the front. At the front end portion of the locking arm 63, a square block-shaped locking portion 71 is provided protruding upward, and at the lower edge of the front end of the locking portion 71, a plate-like protruding piece 72 is provided protruding forward. ing. As shown in FIG. 1, the detection part 60 faces the lock part 22 from the rear, and the projecting piece 72 is pressed against the inner upper surface of the recess 25 while applying a preload, whereby the detection position of the detection member 60 in the standby position is detected. Movement to is regulated.

  As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, a pair of support portions 73 project from the left and right sides of the upper surface of the base 61. The support portion 73 has a rib shape extending in the left-right direction, and is disposed so as to be able to support the release operation portion 18 in the recumbent position from below as shown in FIG.

Next, the fitting / removing operation of the housings 10 and 80 will be described.
Prior to the fitting of the two housings 10 and 80, the detection member 60 is assembled to the housing 10 from the rear, and the detection member 60 is retained in the standby position. In the standby position, the locking portion 71 of the locking arm 63 is disposed so as to be locked to the locking portion 22 of the lock arm 13, and the retaining portion 69 and the first holding portion 65 are respectively secured to the retaining portion 35 and the first holding portion. The detection member 60 is maintained in a state in which movement in the front-rear direction is restricted by being disposed so as to be able to be locked to the receiving portion. Further, the release operation portion 18 in the recumbent position is disposed between the side walls 62 of the detection member 60.

  In this state, the housing 10 is directly opposed to the mating housing 80 (see FIG. 1), and the housing main body 11 is fitted in the hood portion 81. In the fitting process of the housings 10 and 80, the lock portion 22 interferes with the front end of the hood portion 81, the lock arm 13 is bent and deformed toward the bending space 12, and the protrusion 72 is pressed and locked accordingly. The arm 63 is also bent and deformed in the bending space 12. When the two housings 10 and 80 are properly fitted, the lock arm 13 is elastically restored and the lock portion 22 is fitted into the lock receiving portion 84 (see FIG. 2). Thereby, both the housings 10 and 80 are held in the fitted state. On the other hand, the locking arm 63 is not released from the bending state because the locking portion 71 abuts against the inner surface of the front end of the upper wall of the hood portion 81, so that the locking portion 71 is separated from the lock portion 22 and locked. The lock is released. Therefore, after the housings 10 and 80 are properly fitted, the detection member 60 can be moved to the detection position by applying a pushing force forward (detection position) to the detection member 60.

  When the detection member 60 reaches the detection position, the locking portion 71 is inserted into the concave portion 25 in a state where the locking arm 63 is bent and deformed, and is arranged so as to be able to contact the inner front surface of the concave portion 25 (see FIG. 3). The step end surface 79 of the side wall 62 is abutted against the rear end of the inner wall 32, and further advancement of the detection member 60 is restricted (see FIG. 6). Further, at the detection position, the return movement of the detection member 60 to the standby position is restricted by elastically locking the second holding portion 66 to the second holding receiving portion. Further, at the detection position, the locking arm 63 enters the bending space 12 of the lock arm 13 deeply, so that the bending operation of the lock arm 13 is restricted, and the fitting state of both the housings 10 and 80 is firmly held. . In the process in which the detection member 60 moves from the standby position to the detection position, when the support portion 73 of the detection member 60 slides on the lower surface of the release operation unit 18 and the detection member 60 reaches the detection position, the release operation unit 18 is slightly moved. Inclined forward (see FIG. 3).

  On the other hand, when the fitting operation is finished before the two housings 10 and 80 are properly fitted, both the lock arm 13 and the locking arm 63 are bent and deformed, and the locking portion 71 can be locked to the locking portion 22. The state of arrangement is maintained. Therefore, the detection member 60 cannot be moved to the detection position. For this reason, when the movement of the detection member 60 to the detection position is restricted, it can be determined that the housings 10 and 80 are not in the normal fitting state.

  When the two housings 10 and 80 are detached, first, the detection member 60 is given a rearward pulling force to release the engagement between the second holding portion 66 and the second holding receiving portion, and the detection member 60. Is moved to the initial position. As a result, the detection member 60 is retracted from the bending space 12, and the lock arm 13 is bent and deformed.

  Subsequently, the release operation unit 18 is displaced from the recumbent position to the standing position (see FIG. 4). At this time, the release operation unit 18 is rotated counterclockwise in the figure from the recumbent position to the standing position with the hinge 17 as the center while grasping the operation main body 27 with a finger. When the release operation part 18 reaches the standing position, the contact surface 31 of the stopper part 29 is abutted against the connecting part 24, and further turning operation of the release operation part 18 is restricted. When the release operation unit 18 reaches the standing position, the hinge 17 is bent into a substantially U shape.

  The release operation unit 18 in the standing position is erected in a state where the periphery of the standing end is open, and the pressing surface 28 is exposed at the uppermost end. Therefore, the operator can easily press the pressing surface 28 of the release operation unit 18 with a finger or the like without being interfered with the surroundings. When the release operation portion 18 is pressed, the pressing force (see reference numeral F in FIG. 5) is transmitted from the stopper portion 29 to the main body portion 16, and the main body portion 16 is bent and deformed toward the bending space 12 (see FIG. 5). reference). As a result, the lock portion 22 comes out downward from the lock receiving portion 84, and the lock arm 13 is disengaged from the counterpart housing 80. In this state, when the two housings 10 and 80 are pulled away from each other, the both housings 10 and 80 are separated from each other.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, when the lock arm 13 is unlocked, even if there is a situation where it is difficult to operate the release operation unit 18 due to circumstances such as a small connector, the release is performed. By displacing the operation unit 18 to the standing position, the pressing surface 28 of the release operation unit 18 can be easily pressed, so that the lock arm 13 can be unlocked without any trouble. In addition, when the release operation unit 18 is in the recumbent position, the left and right sides of the release operation unit 18 are covered and protected by the both side walls 62 of the detection member 60, thereby preventing an inadvertent release operation to the release operation unit 18. can do.

<Other embodiments>
Other embodiments will be briefly described below.
(1) The release operation unit at the recumbent position may be slightly inclined in the vertical direction from the horizontal position. Further, the release operation unit in the standing position may be slightly inclined in the front-rear direction from the vertical position.
(2) The fulcrum portion of the lock arm may be connected to a portion different from the upper surface of the housing body.
(3) The lock arm may be configured to extend forward in a cantilevered manner. Further, the lock arm may have a doubly supported form in which both ends in the extending direction are fixed ends.
(4) The present invention can also be applied to a connector in which a detection member is not assembled to the housing.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Housing 11 ... Housing main body 12 ... Deflection space 13 ... Lock arm 16 ... Main body part 17 ... Hinge 18 ... Release operation part 29 ... Stopper part 60 ... Detection member 62 ... Side wall 80 ... Counterpart housing 84 ... Lock receiving part

Claims (4)

A housing body that can be fitted into a mating housing;
A bending space is formed between the housing body and the opposing surface, and the mating housing and the housing body are brought into a fitted state by elastically locking the mating housing after being bent and deformed in the bending space. A holding lock arm,
The lock arm is provided with a release operation portion for releasing the mating housing and the housing main body in a fitted state by being pressed toward the opposing surface of the housing main body,
The release operation unit is displaceable into a lying position that takes a lying position facing the facing surface of the housing body through the bending space, and an upright position that takes a standing position that is spaced apart from the facing surface of the housing body. A connector characterized by being configured.   The connector according to claim 1, wherein the release operation unit is connected to the body portion of the lock arm so as to be displaceable between the recumbent position and the standing position via a hinge.   The release operation part is in contact with the main body part when the release operation part is rotated from the recumbent position to the standing position via the hinge, and further rotation of the release operation part is restricted. The connector according to claim 1, further comprising a stopper portion that maintains the standing state of the release operation portion at the standing position.   The housing body is movable to a standby position and a detection position with respect to the housing, and is allowed to move from the standby position to the detection position when the housing body is normally fitted to the mating housing. The detection member has a pair of side walls covering both sides of the release operation part in the recumbent position, and the release operation part in the standing position protrudes between the pair of side walls. The connector according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the connector is arranged.

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