JP2021158082A - Electric connector for circuit board, opposite side electric connector, and electric connector assembly - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an electric connector for a circuit board, an opposite side electric connector, and an electric connector assembly that enable the downsizing of the connector in a terminal arrangement direction while preventing the unconsidered deformation of the terminal.SOLUTION: A housing 10 includes a terminal arrangement part 14 that extends over a terminal arrangement area and has a plate surface on which contact parts 21, 31 of a plurality of terminals 20, 30 are arranged, the contact parts 21, 31 have a pair of contact pieces 21A, 31A facing each other in a connector width direction, the terminals 20, 30 have coupling parts 23, 33 that connects bases of the pair of contact pieces 21A, 31A and extension parts 24, 34 that extend from the coupling parts 23, 33 to the connection parts 22, 32, and of the pair of contact pieces 21A, 31A, one contact piece extends along one side of the plate surface of the terminal arrangement part 14 and is arranged on the one side of the plate surface, and the other contact piece extends along the other side of the plate surface of the terminal arrangement part 14 and is arranged on the other side of the plate surface.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

The present invention includes a circuit board electrical connector arranged on a mounting surface of a circuit board, a mating electrical connector fitted and connected to the circuit board electrical connector, and a circuit board electrical connector and a mating electrical connector. With respect to an electrical connector assembly having.

Such an electric connector for a circuit board and an electric connector assembly are disclosed in, for example, Patent Document 1. Patent Document 1 discloses an electric connector assembly having a connector arranged on a mounting surface of a circuit board and a mating connector arranged on a mounting surface of another circuit board and fitted and connected to the connector. ing.

The connector has a plurality of terminals arranged with a direction parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board as a terminal arrangement direction, and a housing for arranging and holding the plurality of terminals. The plurality of terminals are pin-shaped male terminals extending in the vertical direction, and a contact portion that comes into contact with the mating terminal provided on the mating connector is formed on the upper end side portion thereof, that is, the mating side connector side portion. ing. The housing has a fitting peripheral wall that surrounds the contact portion of the plurality of terminals and opens upward. The female mating terminal provided on the mating connector has a mating contact portion for contact with the contact portion of the terminal at the lower end side portion, that is, the connector side portion. The mating contact portion has a pair of elastic contact pieces, and contacts the contact portion with the contact portion of the terminal sandwiched. That is, the terminal and the mating terminal are in contact with each other at two points, thereby improving the contact reliability between the terminals.

Utility model registration No. 3225181

In recent years, there has been an increasing demand for miniaturization of connectors. For example, by reducing the dimensions of the terminals in the terminal arrangement direction and reducing the distance between adjacent terminals, it is often possible to reduce the size in the terminal arrangement direction. In Patent Document 1, the contact portion of the pin-shaped terminal is located in the internal space of the fitting peripheral wall of the housing without being supported by other members. Therefore, if the size of the contact portion in the terminal arrangement direction is reduced, the strength of the contact portion becomes extremely small, and the contact portion may be easily excessively deformed and damaged by receiving an inadvertent external force. be.

In view of such circumstances, the present invention provides an electric connector for a circuit board, a mating side electric connector, and an electric connector assembly capable of reducing the size of the connector in the terminal arrangement direction while preventing inadvertent deformation of the terminals. The task is to do.

According to the present invention, the above-mentioned problems are solved by the following electric connector for a circuit board according to the first invention, the other side electric connector according to the second invention, and the electric connector assembly according to the third invention.

<First invention>
The circuit board electric connector according to the first invention is a circuit board electric connector arranged on a mounting surface of a circuit board and fitted and connected to a mating connector, and is unidirectionally parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board. The terminals are provided with a plurality of terminals arranged in the terminal arrangement direction and a housing for holding the plurality of terminals in an arrangement. It has a possible contact portion on one end side and a connection portion connectable to a circuit board on the other end side.

In such an electric connector for a circuit board, in the first invention, the housing has a terminal array portion having a plate surface extending over the terminal array range and having the contact portions of the plurality of terminals arranged, and the contact portion is The terminal has a pair of contact pieces facing each other in the width direction of the connector, and the terminal has a connecting portion for connecting the base portions of the pair of contact pieces and an extension portion extending from the connecting portion toward the connecting portion. In the pair of contact pieces, one contact piece extends along one plate surface of the terminal arrangement portion and is arranged on the one plate surface, and the other contact piece is the other of the terminal arrangement portion. It is characterized in that it extends along the plate surface and is arranged on the other plate surface.

In the first invention, the contact portion of the terminal has a pair of contact pieces, and each contact piece can contact the mating connector, so that the contacting portion comes into contact with the mating connector at two points. , The contact reliability is improved. Further, in the first invention, the housing has a terminal arrangement portion, and the pair of contact pieces of the terminals are arranged on the plate surface of the terminal arrangement portion, respectively. Therefore, even if the contact piece receives an inadvertent external force, it is unlikely to be excessively deformed.

In the first invention, the connecting portion and the extending portion may have a plate surface perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction.

In the first invention, in the terminal, the contact portion extends parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board, and the extension portion extends toward the mounting surface in a direction perpendicular to the mounting surface of the circuit board. It may have legs.

<Second invention>
The other-side electric connector according to the second invention is a other-side electric connector that is arranged on a mounting surface of another circuit board and is fitted and connected to the circuit board electric connector according to the first invention, and is the above-mentioned circuit board. A plurality of mating terminals that come into contact with the terminals of the electric connector and a mating housing that holds the plurality of terminals in an array are provided, and the mating housing is a receiving space that receives the terminal arrangement portion of the circuit board electric connector. Is formed, and the mating terminal is located in the receiving space and is capable of contacting the pair of contact pieces of the terminal, and the mating side connecting the pair of mating contact pieces. It is characterized by having a connecting portion and a mating side connecting portion extending from the mating side connecting portion and being connectable to the other circuit board.

In the counterpart electric connector according to the second invention, since the pair of mating contact pieces of the mating terminal come into contact with the pair of contact pieces of the terminal, the mating terminal contacts the terminal at at least two points. Therefore, the contact reliability can be improved. Further, in the other side electric connector, when the terminal arrangement part is formed in the housing and is fitted and connected to the electric connector for the circuit board according to the first invention, the terminal arrangement part can be easily received by the reception space. can.

<Third invention>
The electric connector assembly according to the third invention is characterized by including an electric connector for a circuit board according to the first invention and a counterpart electric connector according to the second invention.

In the third invention, the housing of the electric connector for a circuit board has a fitting peripheral wall that surrounds the contact portion of the plurality of terminals and the terminal arrangement portion and opens to the mating side connector side, and the fitting peripheral wall is formed. A pair of side walls extending in the terminal arrangement direction and a pair of ends extending in the connector width direction perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction at both end positions of the fitting peripheral wall in the terminal arrangement direction and connecting the ends of the pair of side walls. The mating side housing of the mating side electrical connector has a wall, and the mating side fitting peripheral wall forming the receiving space is provided, and the mating side fitting peripheral wall is a pair of mating sides extending in the terminal arrangement direction. It has a side wall and a pair of mating end walls extending in the connector width direction at both ends of the mating peripheral wall in the terminal arrangement direction and connecting the ends of the pair of mating side walls, and the pair of ends. One end wall of the wall is larger than the other end wall in the terminal arrangement direction and protrudes toward the mating connector side, or one of the pair of mating end walls has a mating end wall. It may be larger than the other end wall on the other side in the terminal arrangement direction and may protrude toward the electrical connector side for the circuit board.

In the electric connector assembly according to the third invention, when the mating side electric connector is fitted to the circuit board electric connector, one end side of the mating side connector in the terminal arrangement direction (one mating side end wall is located). The mating connector may be fitted to the electrical connector for the circuit board while rotating the mating connector around the axis extending in the width direction of the connector. At this time, in the connector fitting process, one mating end wall of the mating connector comes into contact with one end wall of the circuit board electric connector, and a contact force acts on the contact position.

In the third invention, one end wall of the electric connector for a circuit board is larger than the other end wall in the terminal arrangement direction, or one other end wall of the other side electric connector is the other end wall of the other end wall. It is larger in the terminal arrangement direction than the wall. Therefore, since the strength of the one end wall itself or the other end wall itself is increased, the contact force can be sufficiently countered in the connector fitting process. Further, in the third invention, one end wall of the electric connector for a circuit board protrudes from the other end wall toward the mating connector side, or one mating end wall of the mating electrical connector is the other mating end wall. It protrudes from the side end wall toward the electrical connector for the circuit board. Therefore, in the connector fitting process, the portion capable of contacting one end wall and the other end wall on the other side becomes large, and it becomes easy to maintain the contact state, so that the connector fitting operation becomes easy.

In the present invention, as described above, the terminals of the electric connector for the circuit board have a pair of contact pieces, and each contact piece can contact the connector on the other side, so that the contact reliability can be improved. It is planned. Further, since the pair of contact pieces are arranged on the plate surface of the terminal arrangement portion of the housing, even if the contact pieces are made smaller in the terminal arrangement direction, the contact pieces receive an inadvertent external force and become excessive. Deformation can be prevented, and the size of the circuit board electric connector in the terminal arrangement direction and the mating side electric connector fitted and connected to the circuit board electric connector can be reduced.

(A) is a perspective view showing an electric connector for a circuit board according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and (B) is a perspective view showing a mating side electric connector fitted to the electric connector for a circuit board of (A). It is a figure. It is a perspective view which showed each member of the electric connector for a circuit board of FIG. 1 separately. 2 is a perspective view showing a single upper terminal of the electric connector for a circuit board of FIG. 2, where (A) is viewed from one side in the terminal arrangement direction and (B) is viewed from the other side in the terminal arrangement direction. Shows the state. It is a perspective view which showed each member of the other side electric connector of FIG. 1 separately. It is a cross-sectional view of the electric connector for a circuit board and the electric connector on the other side in a plane perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction, (A) shows a state immediately before connector fitting, and (B) shows a connector fitting state. .. (A) is a perspective view showing an electric connector for a circuit board according to a second embodiment of the present invention, and (B) is a perspective view showing a mating side electric connector fitted to the electric connector for a circuit board of (A). It is a figure.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

<First Embodiment>
FIG. 1 (A) is a perspective view showing an electric connector 1 for a circuit board (hereinafter, referred to as “connector 1”) according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 1 (B) is a perspective view showing the connector 1 of FIG. 1 (A). It is a perspective view which shows the mating side electric connector 2 (hereinafter, referred to as "the mating side connector 2"). In FIGS. 1A and 1B, each of the connector 1 and the mating connector 2 is shown as viewed from the mating portion side. The connector 1 is a circuit board electric connector arranged on the mounting surface of the circuit board B1, and the mating connector 2 is a circuit board electric connector arranged on the mounting surface of another circuit board B2. The connector 1 and the mating connector 2 are fitted and connected in a posture in which the mounting surfaces of the circuit board B1 and the circuit board B2 are at right angles to each other (see FIGS. 5A and 5B).

The connector 1 is arranged and mounted on the mounting surface of the circuit board B1 from above, and is mounted from the Y2 side with the direction along the mounting surface of the circuit board B1 (Y-axis direction) as the connector fitting direction. The side connector 2 is fitted and connected. The connector 1 is a so-called L-shaped electric connector (right angle electric connector) mounted on the circuit board B1 in which the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) and the connector fitting direction (Y-axis direction) form a right angle. Hereinafter, regarding the connector 1, in the connector fitting direction (Y-axis direction), the Y1 direction is referred to as “forward” and the Y2 direction is referred to as “rear”.

The connector 1 is a housing 10 made of an electrically insulating material and having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped outer shape, and a plurality of connectors 1 are arranged and held in the housing 10 with one direction parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board B1 as the terminal arrangement direction (X-axis direction). It has a metal upper terminal 20 and a metal lower terminal 30, and a metal upper outer shield plate 50, an upper inner shield plate 60, and a lower shield plate 70 attached to the housing 10. Hereinafter, when it is not necessary to distinguish between the upper terminal 20 and the lower terminal 30, these are collectively referred to as "terminals 20 and 30".

As seen in FIG. 1A, the housing 10 has a front portion (a portion on the Y1 side) in the connector fitting direction formed as a fitting portion 11 for fitting with the mating connector 2. The rear portion (the portion on the Y2 side) in the direction is formed as the terminal holding portion 12 for holding the terminals 20 and 30. The fitting portion 11 includes a fitting peripheral wall 13 having a rectangular body outer shape whose longitudinal direction is the terminal arrangement direction (X-axis direction), and two terminal arrangement portions 14 extending in the terminal arrangement direction in the internal space of the fitting peripheral wall 13. Have.

The fitting peripheral wall 13 extends up and down in the terminal arrangement direction and faces a pair of side walls (upper wall 13A and lower wall 13B described later) facing each other in the vertical direction (connector width direction) and at both ends of the fitting peripheral wall in the terminal arrangement direction. It has a pair of end walls 13C extending in the direction and connecting the ends of the pair of side walls. Further, the space surrounded by the fitting peripheral wall 13 is formed as a receiving recess 15 opened forward (in the Y1 direction) to receive the mating side connector 2.

As seen in FIGS. 1A and 2, the upper wall 13A has a front end portion (opening of the receiving recess 15) of the upper wall 13A at a plurality of locations (six locations in the present embodiment) in the terminal arrangement direction. An upper mounting groove 13A-1 is formed which is recessed from the lower surface of the portion forming the edge portion). The upper mounting groove 13A-1 is open downward and forward, and holds a mounting piece 64 (see FIG. 2) of the upper inner shield plate 60 press-fitted from the front as will be described later.

Further, as seen in FIGS. 1A and 2, the lower wall 13B has a front end portion (reception recess 15) of the lower wall 13B at a plurality of locations (six locations in the present embodiment) in the terminal arrangement direction. The lower mounting groove 13B-1 is formed so as to be submerged from the upper surface of the portion forming the opening edge portion of the above. The lower mounting groove 13B-1 is open upward and forward, and holds a mounting piece 73 (see FIG. 2) of the lower shield plate 70 press-fitted from the front as will be described later.

Two terminal arrangement portions 14 are provided at intervals in the vertical direction (connector width direction), and each protrudes forward from the front surface of the terminal holding portion 12 and extends over the terminal arrangement range in the terminal arrangement direction, and the upper wall 13A. It has a plate shape having a plate surface parallel to each wall surface of the lower wall 13B. A plurality of terminal grooves 14A extending in the front-rear direction are arranged in the terminal arrangement direction on both plate surfaces of the terminal arrangement portion 14, that is, on the upper surface and the lower surface, respectively. Contact pieces 21A and 31A, which will be described later, of the corresponding terminals 20 and 30 are arranged in each terminal groove 14A. In the present embodiment, the inner wall surface of the terminal groove 14A (the surface perpendicular to the vertical direction and the surface perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction) supports the plate surface and the plate thickness surface of the contact pieces 21A and 31A. .. Further, the front end (tip located on the Y1 side) of the terminal arrangement portion 14 is located in front of the front ends (tips located on the Y1 side) of the contact pieces 21A and 31A.

The terminal holding portion 12 has a slit-shaped terminal holding groove 16 that extends at a right angle to the terminal arrangement direction (see FIGS. 5A and 5B).

Prior to the description of the shape of the terminal holding groove 16, the shapes of the terminals 20 and 30 held by the terminal holding groove 16 will be described first. The terminals 20 and 30 are formed by punching out a metal plate member and bending in the plate thickness direction. The terminals 20 and 30 have a substantially L-shape as a whole when viewed in the terminal arrangement direction (X-axis direction) (see FIGS. 5A and 5B). Of the terminals 20 and 30, the upper terminal 20 has a contact portion 21 formed on one end side and a connection portion 22 formed on the other end side, as seen in FIGS. 3A and 3B. It has a connecting portion 23 for connecting a pair of contact pieces 21A described later of the contact portion 21, and an extending portion 24 extending in an L shape from the connecting portion 23 toward the connecting portion 22.

The contact portion 21 has a pair of contact pieces 21A for contacting the mating terminal 90, which will be described later, of the mating connector 2. Each contact piece 21A has a strip-shaped piece having the same length in the front-rear direction (Y-axis direction) and extends in a straight line. Further, each contact piece 21A has a plate surface (a surface perpendicular to the plate thickness surface) perpendicular to the vertical direction (Z-axis direction), and the plate surfaces face each other in the vertical direction. There is. Of the pair of contact pieces 21A, the contact piece 21A located above is arranged in the terminal groove 14A formed on the upper surface of the terminal arrangement portion 14 of the housing 10, and faces forward along the upper surface of the terminal arrangement portion 14. It extends so that it can come into contact with the mating terminal 90 on the upper surface (plate surface) of the contact piece 21A (see FIG. 5 (B)). On the other hand, the contact piece 21A located below is arranged in the terminal groove 14A formed on the lower surface of the terminal arrangement portion 14 of the housing 10, and extends forward along the lower surface of the terminal arrangement portion 14. , The lower surface (plate surface) of the contact piece 21A can be contacted with the mating terminal 90 (see FIG. 5B).

As seen in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the base portion 21A-1 forming the rear end side portion of the contact piece 21A is located on the X2 side in one side edge (terminal arrangement direction (X-axis direction)). It has a plurality of held projections 21A-2 (two in FIGS. 3A and 3B) on the side edges extending in the front-rear direction.

The connecting portion 23 has a plate surface perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction (X-axis direction), and the other side edge of the base portion 21A-1 of the pair of contact pieces 21A (terminal arrangement direction (X-axis direction)). (Side edges that are located on the X1 side and extend in the front-rear direction) are connected to each other. That is, the connecting portion 23 and the base portion 21A-1 of the pair of contact pieces 21A form a substantially horizontal U-shaped bent portion that opens to the X2 side when viewed in the front-rear direction (Y-axis direction).

As seen in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the extension portion 24 has a plate surface perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction, and the extension portion 24A has a lateral portion 24A extending straight rearward from the rear end edge of the connection portion 23. And a vertical portion 24B as a leg portion extending downward from the rear end portion of the horizontal portion 24A. The lateral portion 24A is connected to the rear end edge of the connecting portion 23 by a constricted portion 24A-1 formed at the front end. The connecting portion 22 has a width dimension (dimension in the front-rear direction) smaller than that of the vertical portion 24B, and extends downward from the lower end of the vertical portion 24B. The connecting portion 22 projects from the lower surface (bottom surface) of the terminal holding portion 12 of the housing 10, and the lower end thereof is located at the same height as the mounting surface of the circuit board B1 in the vertical direction (see FIG. 5 (A)). The connection portion 22 is solder-connected to a corresponding circuit portion (not shown) on the mounting surface of the circuit board B1 at the lower end thereof so as to be electrically conductive.

In the present embodiment, as seen in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the lateral portion 24A of the extension portion 24 extends rearward from the vertical central region of the rear end edge of the connecting portion 23. Therefore, in one upper terminal 20, the length of the signal transmission path passing from the upper contact piece 21A to the connection portion 22 and the length of the signal transmission path passing from the lower contact piece 21A to the connection portion 22 are substantially equal. It has become.

The lower terminal 30 has a contact portion 31, a connecting portion 32, a connecting portion 33, and an extension portion 34, similarly to the upper terminal 20 described above, but the horizontal portion 34A and the vertical portion 34B of the extension portion 34 are included. It differs from the upper terminal 20 in that it is shorter than the horizontal portion 24A and the vertical portion 24B of the upper terminal 20, respectively. Further, also in the lower terminal 30, similarly to the upper terminal 20, the length of the signal transmission path passing from the upper contact piece 31A to the connection portion 32 and the signal transmission path passing from the lower contact piece 31A to the connection portion 32. Are almost equal in length.

Returning to the description of the housing 10. As seen in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the terminal holding groove 16 of the housing 10 for holding the terminals 20 and 30 described above is a base portion 21A-1 and a connecting portion of the pair of contact pieces 21A of the upper terminal 20. 23 (see FIGS. 3A and 3B) and the upper groove portion 16A accommodating the lateral portion 24A, and the base portion 31A-1, the connecting portion 33 and the lateral portion 34A of the pair of contact pieces 31A of the lower terminal 30 are accommodated. It has a lower groove portion 16B and a rear groove portion 16C extending to the rear end and the lower end of the terminal holding portion 12 in a region behind the upper groove portion 16A and the lower groove portion 16B.

As is often seen in FIG. 5A, the upper groove portion 16A extends in the front-rear direction (Y-axis direction) at the upper part of the terminal holding portion 12, and the front end opens toward the receiving recess 15 to open the receiving recess. The rear end communicates with the rear groove portion 16C while communicating with 15. The lower groove portion 16B is located below the upper groove portion 16A and extends in the front-rear direction, and is formed shorter than the upper groove portion 16A in the front-rear direction. The front end of the lower groove portion 16B opens toward the receiving recess 15 at the same position as the front end of the upper groove portion 16A and communicates with the receiving recess 15, and the rear end is positioned in front of the rear end of the upper groove portion 16A. It communicates with the rear groove portion 16C. As described above, the rear groove portion 16C extends to the rear end and the lower end of the terminal holding portion 12, and is opened rearward and downward to communicate with the outside.

A holding hole (not shown) recessed from the rear surface of the terminal holding portion 12 is formed in the rear portion of the terminal holding portion 12 at a position corresponding to the held piece 52A (see FIG. 2) of the upper outer shield plate 50 described later. Has been done. As will be described later, the holding hole press-fits and holds the held piece 52A of the upper outer shield plate 50.

In the upper part of the housing 10, as seen in FIG. 5A, the upper surface of the terminal holding portion 12 is located below the upper surface of the fitting portion 11, and the fitting portion 11 and the terminal holding portion 12 are connected to each other. A step portion 10A is formed in the boundary region. The step portion 10A is formed with an upper through hole (not shown) that penetrates the rear portion of the fitting portion 11 in the front-rear direction. The upper through holes are formed at a plurality of locations (six locations in the present embodiment) in the terminal arrangement direction corresponding to the inner connection portions 63 (see FIG. 2) of the upper inner shield plate 60, which will be described later, and are the inner connection portions. 63 is inserted from the front.

In the lower part of the housing 10, as shown in FIG. 5A, the lower surface of the terminal holding portion 12 is located above the lower surface of the fitting portion 11, and the fitting portion 11 and the terminal holding portion 12 are connected to each other. A step portion 10B is formed in the boundary region. A lower through hole (not shown) extending from the receiving recess 15 to the bottom surface of the terminal holding portion 12 and opening forward and downward is formed in a range extending from the front end portion of the lower portion of the terminal holding portion 12 to the step portion 10B. .. The lower through holes are formed at a plurality of locations (six locations) in the terminal arrangement direction corresponding to the legs 72 (see FIG. 2) of the lower shield plate 70, which will be described later, and receive the legs 72 from the front. It has become like.

As seen in FIGS. 2 and 5A, the upper outer shield plate 50 is formed by bending a metal plate member in the plate thickness direction so that the overall shape when viewed in the terminal arrangement direction is substantially L-shaped. Is made. The upper outer shield plate 50 is bent rearward from the lower end of the upper plate portion 51 extending along the upper surface of the terminal holding portion 12, the rear plate portion 52 extending along the rear surface of the terminal holding portion 12, and the rear plate portion 52. It has a rear ground contact portion 53 formed in the above. In the upper outer shield plate 50, the upper plate portion 51 covers almost the entire upper surface of the terminal holding portion 12, and the rear plate portion 52 covers almost the entire rear surface of the terminal holding portion 12.

As seen in FIG. 2, the upper plate portion 51 has a plurality of locations (six locations in FIG. 2) corresponding to the upper through holes (not shown) of the housing 10 in the terminal arrangement direction when viewed in the terminal arrangement direction. It also has an outer connecting portion 51A bent in the plate thickness direction so as to form a crank shape at the front end portion of the upper plate portion 51. The outer connection portion 51A is located above the other portion of the upper plate portion 51, and receives the inner connection portion 63 of the upper inner shield plate 60, which will be described later, from the front between the outer connection portion 51A and the upper surface of the terminal holding portion 12. Forming a gap. The outer connecting portion 51A comes into contact with the upper surface of the inner connecting portion 63 on the lower surface thereof, whereby electrical conduction between the upper outer shield plate 50 and the upper inner shield plate 60 is achieved.

As seen in FIG. 2, the rear plate portion 52 has a plurality of locations (six locations in FIG. 2) corresponding to the holding holes (not shown) of the terminal holding portion 12 of the housing 10 in the terminal arrangement direction, and the rear plate portion 52. The lower part of 52 is cut up toward the front to form the held piece 52A. As will be described later, the held piece 52A is press-fitted into the holding hole from the rear and held when the upper outer shield plate 50 is attached to the terminal holding portion 12 from the rear.

The rear grounding portion 53 is provided at each position corresponding to the external connecting portion 51A in the terminal arrangement direction, and is bent rearward at the lower end of the rear plate portion 52 as shown in FIG. 5 (A). Is formed. As seen in FIG. 5A, the rear grounding portion 53 is located at the same height as the connecting portions 22 and 32 of the terminals 20 and 30, with respect to the corresponding circuit portion on the mounting surface of the circuit board B1. It is solder-connected and can be grounded.

The upper inner shield plate 60 is separate from the upper outer shield plate 50, and is made by bending a metal plate member in the plate thickness direction. As seen in FIG. 5A, the upper inner shield plate 60 is located in the receiving recess 15 of the housing 10 along the upper inner wall surface of the inner wall surface forming the receiving recess 15. It covers almost the entire wall surface.

The upper inner shield plate 60 includes a plurality of upper long shield contact pieces 61 and a plurality of upper short shield contact pieces 62 formed by arranging them in the terminal arrangement direction (hereinafter, “upper shield contact pieces 61, 62” as necessary. A plurality of inner connecting portions 63 formed at the rear end portion of the upper inner shield plate 60, and a plurality of mounting pieces 64 and guide portions 65 formed at the front end portion of the upper inner shield plate 60. Have.

As seen in FIG. 2, the upper long shield contact piece 61 and the upper short shield contact piece 62 are formed so as to be alternately arranged in the terminal arrangement direction. The upper short shield contact piece 62 is formed shorter in the front-rear direction than the upper long shield contact piece 61. The upper long shield contact piece 61 and the upper short shield contact piece 62 are formed by cutting up the upper inner shield plate 60, and extend so as to incline slightly downward toward the front (Y1 direction), and extend in the vertical direction (plate). It is formed as a cantilever-shaped elastic piece that can be elastically displaced in the thickness direction (see FIG. 5 (A)).

The upper front shield contact portion 61A (see FIG. 5A) for contacting the upper shield plate 100, which will be described later, provided on the mating side connector 2 is a front end portion (free end portion) of the upper long shield contact piece 61. It is formed so as to project downward. Similar to the upper long shield contact piece 61, the upper short shield contact piece 62 is also formed with an upper rear shield contact portion 62A (see FIG. 5A) at the front end portion. Hereinafter, the upper front shield contact portion 61A and the upper rear shield contact portion 62A are collectively referred to as "upper shield contact portions 61A, 62A" as necessary.

As seen in FIG. 2, the internal connection portions 63 are viewed in the terminal arrangement direction at a plurality of locations (six locations in the present embodiment) corresponding to the upper through holes (not shown) of the housing 10 in the terminal arrangement direction. It is sometimes formed by bending the rear end portion of the upper inner shield plate 60 into a crank shape. The inner connection portion 63 is located below the other portion of the upper inner shield plate 60, penetrates the upper through hole of the housing 10 from the front, and has a terminal with the outer connection portion 51A of the upper outer shield plate 50. It has entered the gap between the holding portion 12 and the upper surface from the front. The inner connecting portion 63 located in the gap comes into contact with the lower surface of the outer connecting portion 51A on the upper surface of the inner connecting portion 63.

As seen in FIG. 2, the mounting pieces 64 are located between the guide portions 65 adjacent to each other at a plurality of locations (six locations in the present embodiment) corresponding to the upper mounting grooves 13A-1 of the housing 10 in the terminal arrangement direction. It is provided and is formed by bending the front end portion of the upper inner shield plate 60 in a crank shape. The mounting piece 64 extends upward and then bends forward to extend, and is press-fitted from the front into the upper mounting groove 13A-1 at a portion extending forward and held.

The guide portion 65 is formed by bending the front end portion of the upper inner shield plate 60 so as to incline upward as it goes forward. As seen in FIG. 5A, the guide portion 65 is located on the front end side of the upper wall 13A, and when the connector is fitted, the mating side connector 2 is placed in the receiving recess 15 on the lower surface of the guide portion 65. It is designed to guide you to.

The lower shield plate 70 is made by bending a metal plate member in the plate thickness direction. The lower shield plate 70 has a lower inner shield portion 71 located along the lower inner wall surface of the receiving recess 15 in the receiving recess 15 of the housing 10 and covering almost the entire inner wall surface, and a lower inner shield. It has a plurality of leg portions 72 that bend and extend from the rear end edge of the portion 71 in a crank shape, and a plurality of mounting pieces 73 and a guide portion 74 that bend and extend from the front end edge of the lower inner shield portion 71. ..

The lower shield plate 70 has a shape as if the upper inner shield plate 60 described above was turned upside down. That is, the lower inner shield portion 71 has a lower long shield contact piece 75 and a lower short shield contact piece 76 as elastic pieces that can be elastically displaced in the vertical direction (hereinafter, if necessary, "lower shield contact piece". 75, 76 ") are arranged alternately in the terminal arrangement direction. The lower shield contact pieces 75 and 76 themselves also have a shape in which the upper shield contact pieces 61 and 62 of the upper inner shield plate 60 are turned upside down. That is, the lower front shield contact portion 75A (see FIG. 5A) is formed on the lower long shield contact piece 75, and the lower rear shield contact portion 76A (see FIG. 5 (A)) is formed on the lower short shield contact piece 76. A)) has been formed. Hereinafter, the lower front shield contact portion 75A and the lower rear shield contact portion 76A are collectively referred to as “lower shield contact portions 75A, 76A” as necessary. The lower shield contact pieces 75 and 76 are elastically contactable with the lower shield plate 110 provided on the mating connector 2 at the lower shield contact portions 75A and 76A.

As seen in FIG. 2, the legs 72 are provided at a plurality of locations (six locations in the present embodiment) corresponding to the lower through holes (not shown) of the housing 10 in the terminal arrangement direction. The leg portion 72 is formed by bending the rear end portion of the lower shield plate 70 in a crank shape when viewed in the terminal arrangement direction. The leg portion 72 extends downward and then bends backward and extends, and the portion extending rearward is located at the front position of the terminal holding portion 12 along the mounting surface of the circuit board B1 and is grounded to the mounting surface. It is formed as a front ground contact portion 72A (see FIG. 5 (A)).

As seen in FIG. 2, the mounting pieces 73 are adjacent to each other at a plurality of locations (six locations in this embodiment) corresponding to the lower mounting grooves 13B-1 of the housing 10 in the terminal arrangement direction. It is provided between them, and is formed by bending so as to form a crank shape from the front end edge of the lower inner shield portion 71 when viewed in the terminal arrangement direction. The mounting piece 73 has a shape in which the mounting piece 64 of the upper inner shield plate 60 is turned upside down, extends downward, and then bends forward to extend, and the lower mounting groove is formed at a portion extending forward. It is press-fitted into 13B-1 from the front and held.

The guide portion 74 has a shape in which the guide portion 65 of the upper inner shield plate 60 described above is turned upside down, and is located on the front end side of the lower wall 13B as shown in FIG. 5 (A), and is a connector. At the time of fitting, the mating side connector 2 is guided into the receiving recess 15 on the upper surface of the guide portion 74.

The connector 1 having the above configuration is assembled as follows. First, the lower terminal 30 is inserted into the terminal holding groove 16 of the housing 10 from the rear, and the base portion 31A-1 of the contact piece 31A of the lower terminal 30 is press-fitted into the lower groove portion 16B of the terminal holding groove 16 to lower the lower side. The terminal 30 is attached to the housing 10. Next, the upper terminal 20 is inserted into the terminal holding groove 16 of the housing 10 from the rear, and the base portion 21A-1 of the contact piece 21A of the upper terminal 20 is press-fitted into the upper groove portion 16A of the terminal holding groove 16 to press the upper terminal 20 into the upper groove portion 16A. Is attached to the housing 10. With the terminals 20 and 30 attached to the housing 10 in this way, the contact piece 21A of the upper terminal 20 and the contact piece 31A of the lower terminal 30 are placed in the terminal grooves 14A of the corresponding terminal arrangement portions 14, respectively. Be placed. When the terminals 20 and 30 are press-fitted, the rear end faces of the vertical portions 24B and 34B are pressed. In the present embodiment, since the rear end surfaces of the vertical portions 24B and 34B are plate-thick surfaces, the terminals 20 and 30 are not easily deformed even when subjected to pressing pressure, and the terminals 20 and 30 can be easily attached to the housing 10. can.

Next, the held piece 52A of the upper outer shield plate 50 is press-fitted into the holding hole (not shown) of the terminal holding portion 12 of the housing 10 from behind, and the upper outer shield plate 50 is attached to the terminal holding portion 12. With the upper outer shield plate 50 attached, a gap is formed between the outer connection portion 51A of the upper outer shield plate 50 and the upper surface of the terminal holding portion 12.

Next, the mounting piece 64 of the upper inner shield plate 60 is press-fitted into the upper mounting groove 13A-1 of the housing 10 from the front, and the upper inner shield plate 60 is mounted on the fitting portion 11 of the housing 10. When the upper inner shield plate 60 is attached to the fitting portion 11, the inner connection portion 63 of the upper inner shield plate 60 penetrates the upper through hole (not shown) of the housing 10 from the front and together with the outer connection portion 51A. It enters the gap between the terminal holding portion 12 and the upper surface, contacts the lower surface of the external connecting portion 51A, and becomes electrically conductive. Further, the portion of the upper inner shield plate 60 located in the receiving recess 15 is located along the upper inner wall surface of the receiving recess 15 and covers the inner wall surface.

Subsequently, the lower shield plate 70 is positioned in front of the receiving recess 15 at the same height as the lower through hole (not shown), and then the lower shield plate 70 is directed rearward so that the leg portion 72 Move until brought into the lower through hole. Next, after moving the lower shield plate 70 downward, the lower shield plate 70 is moved rearward, the mounting piece 73 is press-fitted into the lower mounting groove 13B-1 from the front, and the lower shield plate 70 is inserted into the housing 10. It is attached to the fitting portion 11. When the lower shield plate 70 is attached to the fitting portion 11, the lower inner shield portion 71 of the lower shield plate 70 is located along the lower inner wall surface of the receiving recess 15 and covers the inner wall surface.

In this way, the connector 1 is completed by attaching the upper terminal 20, the lower terminal 30, the upper outer shield plate 50, the upper inner shield plate 60, and the lower shield plate 70 to the housing 10. In the present embodiment, the upper outer shield plate 50, the upper inner shield plate 60, and the lower shield plate 70 are attached to the housing 10 in this order, but the order of attachment is not limited to this, and whichever is attached first. It may be attached at the same time.

Next, the configuration of the mating connector 2 will be described. The mating connector 2 is fitted and connected to the connector 1 with the Y2 direction as the front in the connector fitting direction. Hereinafter, regarding the mating side connector 2, in the connector fitting direction (Y-axis direction), the Y2 direction is referred to as “forward” and the Y1 direction is referred to as “rear”. As seen in FIG. 1B, the mating connector 2 includes a mating housing 80 made of an electric insulating material and having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped outer shape, and a plurality of metal mating plates arranged and held in the mating housing 80. It has a side terminal 90 and a metal upper shield plate 100 and a lower shield plate 110 attached to the mating housing 80 (see also FIGS. 4 and 5 (A) and 5 (B)). Hereinafter, if necessary, the upper shield plate 100 and the lower shield plate 110 are collectively referred to as “shield plates 100, 110”.

As seen in FIG. 1, the mating housing 80 has an upper wall 81 and a lower wall 82 as a pair of mating side walls extending in the terminal arrangement direction (X-axis direction) facing each other in the vertical direction, and the mating side housing 80 in the terminal arrangement direction. It has an end wall 83 as a pair of mating end walls extending in the vertical direction at both ends of the mating housing 80 and connecting the end of the upper wall 81 and the end of the lower wall 82. The upper wall 81, the lower wall 82, and the pair of end walls 83 form a mating peripheral wall on the mating side that fits into the receiving recess 15 of the connector 1 in the connector fitted state.

Further, the mating housing 80 has one partition wall 84 that extends in the terminal arrangement direction at the center position in the vertical direction and connects the inner wall surfaces of the end walls 83 to each other. The space surrounded by the peripheral wall formed by the upper wall 81, the lower wall 82, and the two end walls 83 is divided into two small spaces in the vertical direction by the one partition wall 84. Each small space forms a receiving space 85 for receiving the terminal arrangement portion 14 of the connector 1.

In the receiving space 85, a plurality of mating terminals 90 are housed in a state of being arranged in the terminal arrangement direction. As seen in FIG. 5A, the receiving space 85 penetrates in the connector fitting direction, and as will be described later, the mating terminal 90 can be press-fitted from the rear (Y1 direction). There is. The upper inner wall surface and the lower inner wall surface forming each receiving space 85, that is, the lower surface of the upper wall 81 and the upper surface of the partition wall 84 for the upper receiving space 85, and the lower surface of the partition wall 84 for the lower receiving space 85. As seen in FIG. 5A, a terminal groove 85A accommodating the mating side contact piece 91A, which will be described later, is formed on the upper surface of the lower wall 82 extending in the front-rear direction (Y-axis direction). Has been done.

As seen in FIG. 4, the upper wall 81 is recessed from the upper surface of the front end portion (Y2 side end portion) of the upper wall 81 at a plurality of locations (five locations in the present embodiment) in the terminal arrangement direction. The upper mounting groove 81A is formed. The upper mounting groove 81A is open upward (Z1 direction) and forward (Y2 direction), and holds the mounting piece 102 of the upper shield plate 100 press-fitted from the front as described later. Further, on the upper surface of the front end portion of the upper wall 81, an upper inclined surface 81B that inclines downward as it goes forward is formed between the upper mounting grooves 81A that are adjacent to each other in the terminal arrangement direction. Further, at the rear end portion (end portion on the Y1 side) of the upper wall 81, fixing portions 81C for fixing the upper shield plate 100 are provided at a plurality of locations (five locations in the present embodiment) in the terminal arrangement direction. It is formed so as to project from the upper surface of the rear end portion. A fixing hole 81C-1 penetrating in the connector fitting direction is formed in the fixing portion 81C so that the fixed portion 104 described later of the upper shield plate 100 is inserted from the front to hold the fixed portion 104. It has become.

The lower wall 82 of the mating housing 80 has a shape as if the upper wall 81 described above was turned upside down. Since the shape of the lower wall 82 is the same as that of the upper wall 81 except that it is upside down, a code obtained by adding "1" to the code on the upper wall 81 is added (for example, the upper wall 81 The "lower mounting groove" of the lower wall 82 corresponding to the "upper mounting groove 81A" is designated by the reference numeral "82A"), the description thereof will be omitted here.

The plurality of mating terminals 90 held by the mating housing 80 are all formed in the same shape. The mating side terminal 90 is formed by bending a metal plate member in the plate thickness direction, and as shown in FIG. 4, the mating side contact portion 91 extending in the front-rear direction and being able to contact the terminals 20 and 30 and the mating side terminal 90. The mating side connecting portion 92 that connects the pair of mating side contact pieces 91A described later of the side contacting portion 91, and the mating side connecting portion 93 that extends rearward from the mating side connecting portion 92 and can be connected to the circuit board B2 (see FIG. 1). And have.

The mating side contact portion 91 has a pair of mating side contact pieces 91A for contacting the terminals 20 and 30 of the connector 1. Each mating contact piece 91A forms a strip-shaped piece extending in a straight line with the same length in the front-rear direction. Further, the plate surfaces (planes perpendicular to the plate thickness surface) of the mating contact pieces 91A face each other in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction). Each of the mating side contact pieces 91A has a base portion 91B forming a rear end portion of the mating side contact piece 91A, a held plate portion 91C extending forward from the base portion 91B, and a held plate portion 91C toward the front. It has an extending elastic arm portion 91D.

The held plate portion 91C has a plate surface perpendicular to the vertical direction, and press-fitting protrusions are formed on each of the side edge portions extending in the front-rear direction, and the press-fitting protrusions are formed on the inner wall surface of the terminal groove 85A. The mating terminal 90 is press-fitted and held in the terminal groove 85A by biting into the terminal groove 85A.

The pair of elastic arm portions 91D are inclined and extended so as to approach each other toward the front, and are bent so as to be inclined away from each other at the front end portions thereof. The bent portion at the front end portion, that is, the portion protruding so as to approach each other, forms a contact protrusion 91D-1 (see FIG. 5 (A)) capable of contacting the contact pieces 21A and 31A of the terminals 20 and 30.

The mating side connecting portion 92 has a plate surface perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction, and one side end edge of the base portion 91B of the mating side contact piece 91A (in FIG. 4, the side end edge on the X2 side in the X-axis direction). ) Are connected. The mating side connecting portion 93 has a plate surface perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction, and extends rearward from the rear end edge of the mating side connecting portion 92. In the mating side connecting portion 93, when the mating side connector 2 is arranged on the mounting surface of the circuit board B2, the rear end surface (plate thickness surface perpendicular to the front-rear direction) of the mating side connecting portion 93 is on the mounting surface. It is positioned so as to be in contact with each other (see FIG. 5 (A)), and can be solder-connected to the corresponding circuit portion of the mounting surface.

In the present embodiment, the mating side connecting portion 93 extends rearward from the vertical central region of the rear end edge of the mating side connecting portion 92. Therefore, in one mating terminal 90, the length of the signal transmission path passing from the upper elastic arm portion 91D to the mating side connecting portion 93 and the signal transmission path passing from the lower elastic arm portion 91D to the mating side connecting portion 93. Are almost equal in length.

The upper shield plate 100 and the lower shield plate 110 have exactly the same shape as those shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 (A) and 5 (B). Here, the configuration of the upper shield plate 100 will be mainly described, and the lower shield plate 110 is designated by adding "10" to the code of the upper shield plate 100 (for example, of the upper shield plate 100). The "shield plate main body" of the lower shield plate 110 corresponding to the "shield plate main body 101" described later is designated by the reference numeral "111"), and the description thereof will be omitted.

The upper shield plate 100 is formed by bending a part of a metal plate member, and is attached to the upper surface of the upper wall 81 of the mating housing 80. The upper shield plate 100 includes a shield plate main body 101 having a shield surface facing the upper surface of the upper wall 81, a mounting piece 102 provided on a leading edge portion (Y2 side edge portion) of the shield plate main body 101, and a mounting piece 102. It has a guided portion 103, a fixed portion 104 provided on the trailing edge portion (edge portion on the Y1 side) of the shield plate main body portion 101, and a shield plate grounding portion 105.

As seen in FIG. 1B, the shield plate main body 101 has a flat plate shape extending over the entire terminal arrangement range in the terminal arrangement direction. The mounting pieces 102 are provided at a plurality of locations (six locations in this embodiment) corresponding to the upper mounting grooves 81A of the mating housing 80 in the terminal arrangement direction, and the shield plate main body 101 when viewed in the terminal arrangement direction. It is formed by bending so as to form a crank shape from the front end edge of the. The mounting piece 102 extends downward and then bends forward to extend, and is press-fitted into and held in the upper mounting groove 81A from the front at a portion extending forward.

As seen in FIGS. 1B and 4, the guided portion 103 is provided between the adjacent mounting pieces 102 in the terminal arrangement direction, and is forward from the front end edge of the shield plate main body portion 101. It is formed by bending so as to incline downward toward (Y2 direction). The guided portion 103 extends along the upper inclined surface 81B of the upper wall 81. When the connector is fitted, the guided portion 103 is guided into the receiving recess 15 of the connector 1 by the guide portion 65 of the connector 1 on the upper surface of the guided portion 103.

The fixed portions 104 are provided at a plurality of locations (five locations in the present embodiment) in the terminal arrangement direction corresponding to the fixing portions 81C of the mating housing 80, and are provided from the rear end edge of the shield plate main body portion 101. It extends straight toward the rear (Y1 direction). With the upper shield plate 100 attached to the mating housing 80, the fixed portion 104 is press-fitted into the fixing hole 81C-1 of the fixing portion 81C from the front and held by the fixing hole 81C-1.

The shield plate grounding portion 105 is provided at a plurality of locations (six locations in this embodiment) in the terminal arrangement direction, specifically at the same positions as the mounting piece 102, and is bent at the rear end edge of the shield plate main body 101. It is extended upward. In the shield plate grounding portion 105, when the mating connector 2 is arranged on the mounting surface of the circuit board B2, the rear surface (plate surface perpendicular to the connector fitting direction) of the shield plate grounding portion 105 is the mounting surface. It is located so as to be in contact with the mounting surface (see FIG. 5 (A)), and can be grounded by being solder-connected to the corresponding circuit portion of the mounting surface.

As described above, the lower shield plate 110 has exactly the same shape as the upper shield plate 100, and the bottom surface of the lower wall 82 of the mating housing 80 is placed upside down with respect to the upper shield plate 100. It is attached so as to cover it. In the present embodiment, since the shield plates 100 and 110 are attached to both the upper surface and the lower surface of the mating housing 80, it is possible to shield in a wide range, and a higher shielding effect can be obtained.

The mating connector 2 having the above configuration is assembled as follows. First, the mating terminal 90 is attached to the mating housing 80 by press-fitting the mating terminal 90 into the terminal groove 85A of the mating housing 80 from behind to accommodate the mating terminal 90. At this time, the mating terminal 90 is held by the inner wall surface of the terminal groove 85A at the held plate portion 91C. When the mating side terminal 90 is press-fitted, the rear end surface of the mating side connecting portion 93 is pressed. In the present embodiment, since the rear end surface of the mating side connecting portion 93 is a plate thick surface, the mating side terminal 90 is not easily deformed even when a pressing force is applied, and the mating side terminal 90 is easily attached to the mating side housing 80. be able to.

Next, the mounting piece 102 of the upper shield plate 100 is press-fitted into the upper mounting groove 81A of the mating housing 80 from the front (Y2 side), and the fixed portion 104 is forward (toward the fixing hole 81C-1 of the fixing portion 81C). Press-fit from the Y2 side). Next, the lower shield plate 110 is attached to the bottom surface side of the mating housing 80 in the same manner as described above for the upper shield plate 100. In this way, the upper shield plate 100 is attached to the upper surface side of the mating housing 80, and the lower shield plate 110 is attached to the lower surface side of the mating housing 80.

By attaching the mating terminal 90, the upper shield plate 100, and the lower shield plate 110 to the mating housing 80 in this way, the mating connector 2 is completed. In the present embodiment, the mating terminal 90, the upper shield plate 100, and the lower shield plate 110 are attached to the mating housing 80 in this order, but the order of attachment is not limited to this, and whichever is attached first. It may be attached at the same time.

Next, the fitting operation between the connectors will be described with reference to FIGS. 5A and 5B. First, the connector 1 is solder-connected to the mounting surface of the circuit board B1 for mounting, and the mating connector 2 is solder-connected to the mounting surface of the circuit board B2 for mounting. Next, as seen in FIG. 5A, the connector 1 and the mating connector 2 are positioned so that the front portions face each other. Then, the mating connector 2 is moved toward the connector 1, that is, toward the front (Y2 direction) of the connector mating direction in the mating connector 2 (see the arrow in FIG. 5A), and the mating side connector 2 is moved. The side connector 2 is fitted into the receiving recess 15 of the connector 1. At this time, the guided portions 103 and 113 of the mating side connector 2 are guided by the guide portions 65 and 74 of the connector 1, so that the mating side connector 2 is surely brought into the receiving recess 15 of the connector 1.

Further, at the same time that the mating side connector 2 is fitted into the receiving recess 15 of the connector 1, the contact pieces 21A and 31A of the terminal arrangement portion 14 of the connector 1 and the terminals 20 and 30 arranged in the terminal arrangement portion 14 are engaged with each other. It is inserted into the receiving space 85 of the side connector 2. At this time, the contact pieces 21A and 31A of the terminals 20 and 30 enter between the elastic arm portions 91D so as to expand the pair of elastic arm portions 91D of the corresponding mating terminal 90 while elastically displacementing them.

In the present embodiment, the housing 10 of the connector 1 has the terminal arrangement portion 14, and the pair of contact pieces 21A and 31A of the terminals 20 and 30 are arranged on the plate surface of the terminal arrangement portion 14, respectively. Therefore, even if the contact pieces 21A and 31A receive an inadvertent external force in the connector fitting process, the contact pieces 21A and 31A are supported by the terminal arrangement portion 14 and are less likely to be excessively deformed. Damage to terminals 20 and 30 is satisfactorily prevented. As described above, since the terminals 20 and 30 are prevented from being damaged in this embodiment, the contact pieces 21A and 31A of the terminals 20 and 30 are made smaller in the terminal arrangement direction, so that the connector 1 can be made smaller in the terminal arrangement direction. Can be achieved.

Further, in the connector fitting process, the upper shield contact portions 61A and 62A are pressed upward by the upper surface of the shield plate main body 101 of the upper shield plate 100, and the upper shield contact pieces 61 and 62 are elastically displaced upward. Further, the lower shield contact portions 75A and 76A are pressed downward by the lower surface of the shield plate main body 111 of the lower shield plate 110, and the lower shield contact pieces 75 and 76 are elastically displaced downward. The elastic displacement of the upper shield contact pieces 61, 62 and the lower shield contact pieces 75, 76 allows the mating connector 2 to be further fitted, and the mating connector 2 is fitted to the normal fitting position. The connector fitting operation is completed.

In the state where the connector fitting operation is completed (connector fitting state), as shown in FIG. 5B, the elastic arm portion 91D of the mating terminal 90 is maintained in a state of elastic displacement, and a pair of elastics. The contact protrusion 91D-1 of the arm 91D comes into contact with the contact surfaces (plate surfaces) of the contact pieces 21A and 31A of the corresponding terminals 20 and 30, respectively. As a result, the contact pieces 21A and 31A and the elastic arm portion 91D come into contact with each other with contact pressure, and are in a state of being electrically conductive. At this time, the terminals 20 and 30 and the mating terminal 90 come into contact with each other at two points, so that the contact reliability can be improved.

Further, in the connector mated state, the upper shield contact pieces 61 and 62 and the lower shield contact pieces 75 and 76 are maintained in an elastically displaced state, and the upper shield contact pieces 61 and 62 are the shield plate main body of the upper shield plate 100. The lower shield contact portions 75A and 76A come into contact with the upper surface of the portion 101 and the lower surface of the shield plate main body portion 111 of the lower shield plate 110 with contact pressure, and are in a state of being electrically conductive.

In the present embodiment, the contact pieces 21A and 31A of the terminals 20 and 30 are arranged in the terminal groove 14A formed on the plate surface of the terminal arrangement portion 14 of the housing 10, as seen in FIG. 5 (A). The plate surfaces of the contact pieces 21A and 31A are supported by the inner wall surface (the surface perpendicular to the vertical direction) of the terminal groove 14A. Therefore, even if the plate surfaces of the contact pieces 21A and 31A receive pressing force in the vertical direction (plate thickness direction) due to the contact of the mating terminal 90 with the contact protrusion 91D-1 in the connector fitting process, the terminal groove The inner wall surface of 14A can counter the pressing force. As a result, the contact pieces 21A and 31A are prevented from being excessively deformed and damaged in the vertical direction (plate thickness direction).

In the present embodiment, the contact pieces 21A and 31A of the terminals 20 and 30 of the connector 1 are supported by the inner wall surface of the terminal groove 14A of the terminal arrangement portion 14 of the housing 10 in the state before the connector is fitted. Instead of this, the contact pieces 21A and 31A may be arranged in the terminal groove 14A with a slight gap between the contact pieces 21A and 31A and the inner wall surface of the terminal groove 14A before the connector is fitted. In this case, when the contact pieces 21A and 31A are subjected to an external force, they are elastically deformed within the range of the gap and come into contact with the inner wall surface of the terminal groove 14A. As a result, the contact pieces 21A and 31A are supported by the inner wall surface of the terminal groove 14A after elastic deformation, and further elastic deformation is prevented, so that damage due to excessive deformation is prevented.

Further, in the present embodiment, as seen in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the front end (tip located on the Y1 side) of the terminal arrangement portion 14 is located in front of the front ends of the contact pieces 21A and 31A. ing. Therefore, even if the mating side connector 2 is slightly displaced with respect to the connector 1 in the vertical direction immediately before the start of connector fitting, the front end (tip located on the Y2 side) of the mating side terminal 90 is the terminal arrangement portion 14. It comes into contact with the front end and does not come into contact with the front ends of the contact pieces 21A and 31A. As a result, deformation of the contact pieces 21A and 31A due to buckling is also prevented.

In the present embodiment, the operation in which the front-rear direction is the connector fitting direction, that is, the mating side connector 2 is linearly moved in the Y-axis direction and fitted to the connector 1 has been described. The fitting operation is not limited to this, and for example, the mating connector 2 may move so as to be rotated around an axis extending in the vertical direction to be fitted to the connector 1. At this time, a straight line (virtual line) extending in the vertical direction at a position on one end side in the terminal arrangement direction of the mating connector 2 can be used as the axis line. In this case, the mating side connector 2 gradually deepens the fitting with respect to the connector 1 from the one end side in the terminal arrangement direction, and in the connector fitting process, the contact pieces of the terminals 20 and 30 of the connector 1 An external force including not only a component in the front-rear direction but also a component in the terminal arrangement direction (for example, a frictional force of the mating terminal 90 with the mating contact piece 91A) acts on the 21A and 31A. In the present embodiment, the contact pieces 21A and 31A of the terminals 20 and 30 are arranged in the terminal groove 14A formed on the plate surface of the terminal arrangement portion 14 of the housing 10, and the contact pieces 21A and 31A in the terminal arrangement direction are arranged. The movement of the terminal groove 14A is regulated by the inner wall surface (the surface perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction). Therefore, when the mating connector 2 is fitted to the connector 1 under the movement accompanied by rotation as described above, the contact pieces 21A and 31A are inadvertently deformed even if they receive an external force of a component in the terminal arrangement direction. It is difficult and damage to the terminals 20 and 30 is satisfactorily prevented.

<Second embodiment>
In the first embodiment, both end walls 83 of the mating housing 80 of the mating connector 2 have the same dimensions (thickness dimensions) in the terminal arrangement direction, as seen in FIGS. 1 and 4. At the same time, the front end is located at the same position. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, one end wall is larger than the other end wall in the terminal arrangement direction and protrudes forward, and in this respect, the connector and the other end wall of the first embodiment are configured. It's different. Further, in the present embodiment, the receiving recess of the connector housing is formed large on one end side in the terminal arrangement direction to receive one end wall of the mating connector, and in this respect, the first embodiment. It is different from the connector of.

In the present embodiment, the shapes of the housing of the connector and the housing of the connector on the other side are different from those of the first embodiment. Therefore, the differences will be mainly described, and the same parts as those of the first embodiment will be described in the first embodiment. The description will be omitted by adding a code obtained by adding "200" to the code in.

6 (A) is a perspective view showing the mating side connector 202 according to the second embodiment, and FIG. 6 (B) is a perspective view showing the mating side connector 202 fitted to the connector 201 of FIG. 6 (A). Is. In the present embodiment, as seen in FIG. 6A, the end wall 213C located on one end side (X2 side) of the housing 210 in the terminal arrangement direction is one end side (X2) of the housing 10 of the first embodiment. It is located away from the terminal arrangement portion 214 in the terminal arrangement direction as compared with the end wall 13C (see FIG. 1) on the side). Therefore, in the present embodiment, the space on one end side (X2 side) of the receiving recess 215 of the housing 210 of the connector 201 in the terminal arrangement direction is larger than the space on the other end side (X1 side). The space on one end side of the receiving recess 215 corresponds to one end wall 283 of the mating connector 202, which will be described later, and receives the one end wall 283.

On the other hand, in the mating housing 280 of the mating connector 202, as seen in FIG. 6B, one end wall 283 located on one end side (X2 side) in the terminal arrangement direction is on the other end side (X1 side). ) Is larger than the other end wall 283 located in the terminal arrangement direction, and protrudes forward (Y2 direction). Specifically, the front end portion of one end wall 283 that protrudes from the other end wall 283 is formed as a protruding wall portion 283A that extends over the entire area of one end wall 283 in the vertical direction.

In the present embodiment as well, as in the first embodiment, the mating connector 202 is connected to the connector 1 so that the mating connector 202 moves with rotation around an axis extending in the vertical direction in the connector fitting process. Can be fitted to. At this time, in the present embodiment, the axis (virtual line) extending in the vertical direction on the one end wall 283 side of the other side connector 202 is used as the above axis line, and the other side connector 202 is moved so as to rotate to the connector 201. Be fitted.

When fitting the connectors together in this way, first, at the start of connector fitting, the protruding wall portion 283A of one end wall 283 of the mating side connector 202 is placed on the front end side of one end wall 213C of the connector 201 (FIG. 6). It is brought into contact with the inner wall surface of (Y1 side in (A)). Then, while using the contact position between the protruding wall portion 283A and the inner wall surface of one end wall 213C as a fulcrum, the mating connector 202 is rotated around the axis passing through the contact position to proceed with the fitting operation. Let me. As the mating operation progresses, the mating connector 202 gradually deepens the fitting with respect to the connector 201 from one end side in the terminal arrangement direction. Also in the present embodiment, similarly to the first embodiment, the contact piece 221A of the upper terminal 220 and the contact piece 231A of the lower terminal 230 are formed in the terminal groove 214A formed on the plate surface of the terminal arrangement portion 214 of the housing 10. Since the contact pieces 221A and 231A are less likely to be deformed during the connector fitting process, the terminals 220 and 230 are satisfactorily prevented from being deformed or damaged. When the connector fitting operation is completed, one end wall 283 of the mating connector 202 is accommodated in the space on one end side that is largely formed by the receiving recess 215 of the connector 201.

In the present embodiment, as described above, one end wall 283 of the mating connector 202 is larger than the other end wall 283 in the terminal arrangement direction. Therefore, since the strength of the one end wall 283 itself is increased, it is possible to sufficiently counter the contact force generated between the protruding wall portion 283A and the inner wall surface of the one end wall 213C in the connector fitting process. Further, in the present embodiment, one end wall 283 of the mating connector 202 protrudes forward of the other end wall 283 (in the Y2 direction in FIG. 6B). Therefore, in the connector fitting process, the area of the portion capable of contacting the one end wall 283 of the mating connector 202 and the one end wall 213C of the connector 1 becomes large, and it becomes easy to maintain the contact state. The connector fitting operation becomes easy.

In the connector fitting operation described above, in the connector fitting process, the contact position between the protruding wall portion 283A of one end wall 283 of the mating connector 202 and the inner wall surface of one end wall 213C of the connector 201 is used as a fulcrum. However, it is not essential that this contact position serves as a fulcrum. For example, the contact position between the circuit board B1 on which the connector 201 is mounted and the circuit board B2 on which the mating connector 202 is mounted is the fulcrum. May be.

Specifically, first, at the start of connector fitting, one end of the circuit board B1 in the terminal arrangement direction and one end of the circuit board B2 in the terminal arrangement direction are brought into contact with each other. Next, with the contact position between one ends of the circuit boards B1 and B2 as a fulcrum, the mating connector 202 is rotated and fitted around an axis (virtual line extending in the vertical direction) passing through the contact position. Proceed with the operation. At this time, in the connector fitting process, the protruding wall portion 283A of one end wall 283 of the mating connector 202 comes into contact with the inner wall surface on the front end side of one end wall 213C of the connector 201, and the protruding wall portion 283A and one side. The connector fitting proceeds while the contact state with the end wall 213C is maintained. Even when the connectors are fitted to each other by such an operation, the connector fitting operation is easily performed while sufficiently countering the contact force between the one end walls of the connectors.

In the present embodiment, as described above, one end wall 283 of the mating connector 202 is thickened and projected forward, but instead, one end wall of the connector is made to be the other end wall. It may be made thicker and protrude forward. Even in such a form, it is possible to obtain an effect that the connector fitting operation can be easily performed while sufficiently countering the contact force between one end wall of the connector in the connector fitting process.

In the present embodiment, the fitting operation of rotating and moving the mating side connector 202 to fit the connector has been described, but the fitting operation is not limited to this, and the mating side connector 202 is moved back and forth with respect to the connector 201. The direction may be the connector fitting direction, that is, the mating connector 2 may be linearly moved in the Y-axis direction to be fitted.

In the first and second embodiments, a so-called right angle type in which the direction in which the connector is mounted on the mounting surface of the circuit board (vertical direction) and the direction in which the mating connector is fitted (front-back direction) are at right angles. Although an example in which the present invention is applied to a connector has been described, the type of connector to which the present invention is applicable is not limited to this. For example, a connector in which the mating connector is fitted and connected in a direction perpendicular to the mounting surface of the circuit board, in other words, the direction in which the mating connector is fitted on the mounting surface of the circuit board matches the direction in which the mating connector is fitted. The present invention can also be applied to a connector of the type to be used. In this type, the direction parallel to the mounting surface and perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction is the connector width direction.

1 Connector 2 Mating connector 10 Housing 13 Fitting peripheral wall 13A Upper wall (side wall)
13B lower wall (side wall)
13C End wall 14 Terminal arrangement part 20 Upper terminal 21 Contact part 21A Contact piece 21A-1 Base 22 Connection part 23 Connection part 24 Extension part 24B Vertical part (leg part)
30 Lower terminal 31 Contact part 31A Contact piece 31A-1 Base part 32 Connection part 33 Connection part 34 Extension part 34B Vertical part (leg part)
80 Opposite housing 81 Upper wall (opposite side wall)
82 Lower wall (opposite side wall)
83 End wall (opposite end wall)
85 Receiving space 90 Mating side terminal 91A Mating side contact piece 91B Base 92 Mating side connecting part 93 Mating side connecting part 201 Connector 202 Mating side connector 210 Housing 213C End wall 214 Terminal arrangement part 220 Upper terminal 230 Lower terminal 221A Contact piece 231A Contact piece 280 Opposite housing 281 Upper wall (opposite side wall)
282 Lower wall (opposite side wall)
283 End wall (opposite end wall)
B1 circuit board B2 circuit board

Claims (6)

An electrical connector for a circuit board that is arranged on the mounting surface of a circuit board and fitted and connected to a mating connector, and is composed of a plurality of terminals arranged in one direction parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board as a terminal arrangement direction. The terminal is made of a metal plate and has a bent shape, and has a contact portion extending to the mating side connector side and having contact with the mating side connector on one end side. In addition, in an electrical connector for a circuit board that has a connection portion that can be connected to the circuit board on the other end side.
The housing has a terminal array portion that extends over the terminal array range and has a plate surface on which the contact portions of the plurality of terminals are arranged.
The contact portion has a pair of contact pieces facing each other in the width direction of the connector.
The terminal has a connecting portion that connects the base portions of the pair of contact pieces, and an extension portion that extends from the connecting portion toward the connecting portion.
In the pair of contact pieces, one contact piece extends along one plate surface of the terminal arrangement portion and is arranged on the one plate surface, and the other contact piece is the other plate of the terminal arrangement portion. An electrical connector for a circuit board, characterized in that it extends along a surface and is arranged on the other plate surface. The electrical connector for a circuit board according to claim 1, wherein the connecting portion and the extending portion have a plate surface perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction. The terminal has a leg portion in which the contact portion extends parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board, and the extension portion extends toward the mounting surface in a direction perpendicular to the mounting surface of the circuit board. The electrical connector for a circuit board according to claim 1 or 2. A mating electrical connector that is arranged on a mounting surface of another circuit board and is fitted and connected to the electrical connector for a circuit board according to any one of claims 1 to 4.
A plurality of mating terminals that come into contact with the terminals of the circuit board electrical connector,
It is equipped with a mating housing that holds the plurality of terminals in an array.
The mating housing is formed with a receiving space for receiving the terminal arrangement portion of the circuit board electrical connector.
The mating terminal is a pair of mating contact pieces located in the receiving space and capable of contacting a pair of contact pieces of the terminal, a mating connecting portion connecting the pair of mating contact pieces, and the mating end. A mating-side electrical connector characterized by having a mating-side connecting portion that extends from the side-coupling portion and can be connected to the other circuit board. An electric connector assembly comprising the circuit board electric connector according to any one of claims 1 to 3 and the counterpart electric connector according to claim 4. The housing of the electrical connector for a circuit board has a fitting peripheral wall that surrounds the contact portion of the plurality of terminals and the terminal arrangement portion and is open to the mating connector side, and the fitting peripheral wall extends in the terminal arrangement direction. It has a pair of side walls and a pair of end walls extending in the connector width direction perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction at both end positions of the fitting peripheral wall in the terminal arrangement direction and connecting the ends of the pair of side walls. ,
The mating side housing of the mating side electric connector has a mating side fitting peripheral wall forming the receiving space, and the mating side fitting peripheral wall has a pair of mating side side walls extending in the terminal arrangement direction and the mating side fitting. It has a pair of mating end walls that extend in the connector width direction at both ends of the peripheral wall in the terminal arrangement direction and connect the ends of the pair of mating side walls.
One of the pair of end walls is larger than the other end wall in the terminal arrangement direction and protrudes toward the mating connector side, or one of the pair of mating end walls is the other end wall. The electric connector assembly according to claim 5, wherein the side end wall is larger than the other mating end wall in the terminal arrangement direction and protrudes toward the electric connector side for the circuit board.

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