JP2568609Y2 - Connector inspection device - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector inspection apparatus for inspecting the mounting state of terminal fittings of a connector used for interconnection of wire harnesses used in automobiles and the like and connection between electric devices. It is about.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a wiring harness used for wiring electrical components in an automobile, a connector is used for connection between the wiring harnesses and connection between the wiring harness and the electrical components. This connector generally includes a housing made of a synthetic resin material, and a female terminal fitting or a male terminal fitting accommodated in a terminal accommodating chamber formed in the housing. The terminal fitting is locked to the housing by a so-called housing lance method. When the respective housings of the female connector and the male connector are fitted, the male and female terminal fittings to be interconnected are aligned and connected, and electrical connection is achieved.

[0003] In the housing lance system, a flexible locking arm integrally formed with a housing is protruded toward an internal space of a terminal accommodating chamber, and the locking arm is connected to a hole or a shoulder of an electrical contact portion of a terminal fitting. This is a technique for preventing terminal fittings from coming off by engaging with terminal parts. In the process of inserting the terminal fitting into the housing, the locking arm abuts on the terminal fitting and is elastically deformed. When the terminal fitting is completely inserted, the locking arm returns to its original shape, and the locking arm engages with the hole or shoulder of the terminal fitting. Therefore, when the terminal fitting is completely inserted into the housing, the locking of the terminal fitting is automatically achieved.

[0004] However, since the locking arm cannot be formed so large, there is a risk that the terminal arm may be damaged during repeated attachment and detachment of the male and female connectors, and eventually the terminal fitting may fall out of the housing. Therefore, recently, a connector having a double locking structure for double locking the terminal fitting in addition to the housing lance method by fitting a locking member engaging with the terminal fitting from the side surface of the housing after inserting the terminal fitting. Is being used. Such a connector is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-23391.

[0005] In the connector disclosed in this publication,
A through hole is formed in a side portion of the housing, and a locking member is inserted into the through hole. Before the terminal fitting is inserted into the housing, the locking member is temporarily locked and retracted at a position where the terminal fitting can be inserted. Then, after the terminal fitting is inserted, the locking member is pushed into the housing to achieve double locking.

In this configuration, since the locking member is temporarily locked to the housing in advance, the housing and the locking member can be substantially handled as one part. For this reason,
There is an advantage that inventory management and the like can be simplified. However, in the connector having the double locking structure as described above, the operation of inserting the terminal fitting into the housing and the operation of pushing the locking member into the housing are required. For this reason, while producing a large amount of wire harnesses, there is a possibility that the pressing operation of the locking member may be neglected or incomplete for some connectors.

In addition, since the stroke length of the locking member between the temporary locking position and the pressing completion position is at most about the size of the terminal accommodating chamber, it is determined whether the pressing operation of the locking member has been completely performed. It is difficult to determine after the fact. On the other hand, if the double locking is not completely performed, the reliability of the locking of the terminal fittings is poor, and eventually the reliability of the wire harness is reduced.

On the other hand, in the final stage of the production of the wire harness, a continuity test of the connector is usually performed.
The continuity test of the connector is performed to check whether the terminal fitting is correctly inserted into the housing, whether the wire is properly crimped to the terminal fitting, and the like. That is, when the terminal fitting is not inserted, when the terminal fitting is incompletely inserted, or when the crimping of the electric wire is defective, the operation of the electric component of the automobile is defective. Therefore, the above-described continuity test is indispensable during the production of the wire harness.

An inspection device for conducting a continuity inspection of a connector has a connector receiving portion for holding a housing and an inspection portion provided to face the connector receiving portion. The inspection unit is provided with a detector for obtaining conduction with the terminal fitting in the housing. For example, the connector receiving portion is fixed, and the inspection portion is configured to be slidable so as to be able to move toward and away from the connector receiving portion.

When the inspection section is brought close to the connector receiving section with the housing mounted on the connector receiving section, the terminal fitting in the connector housing and the detector provided in the inspection section come into contact with each other, and conduction is established between them. can get. If the terminal fitting is not inserted into the housing, or if the crimping of the wire to the terminal fitting is poor, the conduction will be poor. Therefore, whether or not the connection between the detector and the terminal fitting can be obtained when the inspection section is displaced close to the connector receiving section can determine whether or not the terminal fitting is attached and whether the wire is crimped.

Japanese Patent Publication No. 2-56786 discloses a technique in which the above-described connector inspection apparatus is used to detect the above-mentioned incompletely inserted state of the locking member. In this prior art, the connector receiving portion is provided with a detecting portion that detects the amount of protrusion of the locking member with respect to the surface of the housing. This detecting unit is realized by, for example, a configuration in which a detecting pin is provided so as to be able to protrude and retract at a position facing the locking member in the connector receiving unit. That is, if the locking member is completely pushed in, the locking member does not protrude from the surface of the housing, and the displacement of the detection pin is small. On the other hand, when the insertion of the locking member is incomplete, the locking member protrudes from the surface of the housing, so that the displacement amount of the detection pin increases.

Therefore, when the detection pin is greatly displaced and the lamp is turned on to indicate this, the inspector can know that the locking member is not fully inserted. However, in this prior art, for a connector in which the insertion of the locking member is detected to be incomplete, the housing is removed from the connector receiving portion, the locking member is pushed in, and then the housing is attached to the connector receiving portion again. And have to repeat the test. For this reason, there is a problem that the work in the continuity inspection process becomes complicated.

In the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Publication No. 2-56786,
A connector inspection device shown in FIG. 9 of the present application is disclosed as a configuration in which when the insertion of the locking member is incomplete, the locking member can be pushed in without removing the connector from the connector receiving portion. That is, the connector receiving portion 71 for receiving the connector 70 to be inspected includes a fixed wall 72 having a substantially L-shaped cross section, and a hinge portion 7 with respect to the fixed wall 72.
And a cover wall 74 that is rotatably mounted through the cover 3. A contact 75 is provided at the abutting portion between the fixed wall 72 and the cover wall 74. When the contact 75 is turned on, the display circuit 76 operates to turn on the lamp 77.

The connector 70 to be inspected includes a locking member 78
Is mounted on the connector receiving portion 71 such that the is located on the upper surface. Then, the cover wall 74 is closed. Locking member 78
Is pushed into the housing of the connector 70, the lamp 77 is turned on, and when the insertion of the locking member 78 is incomplete, the lamp 77 is kept off. The inspector
When the lamp 77 is not turned on, the pushing of the locking member 78 can be achieved by pressing the cover wall 74. Therefore, when the insertion of the locking member 78 is incomplete, the locking member 78 can be pushed into the housing without removing the connector 70 from the connector receiving portion 71.

[0015]

However, in such a configuration, even if the contact 75 is once conducted by pressing the cover wall 74, the locking member 78 is incomplete when the cover wall 74 is opened. Returning to the inserted state is also conceivable. Therefore, the insertion of the locking member 78 may be uncertain, and a defective wire harness may be generated.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned technical problems, and to provide a connector inspection device which can easily insert a locking member and can increase the reliability of insertion of the locking member. It is to be.

[0017]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector inspection apparatus, wherein a locking member temporarily locked to a housing is pushed into the housing, and the locking member and the locking member are connected to each other. Used to inspect a connector adapted to lock the terminal fitting in the housing by engaging the terminal fitting in the housing,
A connector receiving portion for holding the connector and a plurality of detectors provided to face the connector receiving portion and corresponding to a plurality of terminal fittings of the connector to be inspected are arranged side by side toward the connector receiving portion. And a means for mutually displacing / separating the connector receiving portion and the inspection portion along and in the direction in which the detector extends,
When the connector receiving portion and the inspection portion are brought close to each other, whether or not conduction is obtained between the terminal metal of the connector and the detector is determined. A lock mechanism that is provided on a receiving portion and that, when the locking member protrudes from the surface of the housing, engages with the protruding locking member to prevent removal of the connector from the connector receiving portion; A pressing member provided with its front end face opposed to the locking member held by the housing held by the connector receiving portion, and slidable along the insertion direction of the locking member; The pressing member is in contact with the end surface and is slidable in a direction intersecting the sliding direction of the pressing member, and the pressing member is slid in the inserting direction of the locking member during the sliding process. Characterized in that it comprises a bar.

According to the above arrangement, by bringing the connector receiving portion and the inspection portion close to each other, the terminal fittings of the connector and the detector come into contact with each other, and the two are electrically connected. If this conduction is not obtained, it is considered that one of the defects has occurred, such as the terminal fitting not being inserted into the housing of the connector or the wiring connection to the terminal fitting being defective. Accordingly, by checking the conduction / non-conduction between the detector and the terminal fitting while bringing the connector receiving section and the inspection section close to each other, it is possible to inspect the mounting state of the terminal fitting and the like.

In the present invention, the connector mounted on the connector receiving portion for inspection cannot be removed from the connector receiving portion if the locking member protrudes from the housing. That is, since the locking member protruding from the housing is engaged with the locking mechanism, if the locking member is incompletely inserted or the insertion operation is neglected, the connector is pulled out of the connector receiving portion. Can not do. In this way, the inspection cannot be terminated in a state where the connector is not completely inserted, so that it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a defective product in which the locking member is not completely inserted.

On the other hand, when the locking member is not completely inserted, when a lever provided on the connector receiving portion is slid, a pressing member provided so as to face the locking member moves in a direction in which the locking member is inserted. Slide along. Thus, the pressing member comes into contact with the locking member and pushes the locking member into the housing. In this way, the insertion of the locking member can be easily performed without removing it from the connector receiving portion.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, a guide inclined surface for guiding the lever is formed on at least one of a rear end surface of the pressing member and a side surface of the lever opposed to the rear end surface. It is characterized by being. According to this configuration, when the lever is slid, the pressing member can be smoothly slid, and the operating force can be effectively transmitted to the pressing member. Further, the sliding displacement of the lever can be converted into the sliding displacement of the pressing member by sliding the pressing member and the lever on the inclined guide surface.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the connector inspecting device, the detector is provided with a first probe in contact with the terminal fitting and a predetermined gap formed on the opposite side of the first probe from the connector receiving portion. It is characterized by having a second probe arranged in series, and means for individually urging and urging the first probe and the second probe toward the connector receiving portion.

According to this configuration, when the inspection section and the connector receiving section come close to each other, the terminal fitting comes into contact with the first probe, and
Further, the first probe retreats and makes conductive contact with the second probe. As a result, conduction is established between the terminal fitting and the second probe. Since the first and second probes are individually resiliently biased toward the connector receiving portion, if the mounting of the terminal fitting to the housing is incomplete,
The terminal fitting is discharged out of the housing by the resiliency exerted on the terminal fitting by the first and second probes. Thereby, the incompletely mounted state of the terminal fitting is reliably detected.

In particular, if the terminal fitting is discharged out of the housing before the locking member is pushed in, the locking member is forcibly engaged with the terminal fitting that is incompletely mounted. Can be avoided.

[0025]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a connector inspection apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. This connector inspection device is used, for example, to inspect a connector attached to a wire harness. The wire harness is placed on a drawing board for inspection in which the connection mode of the electric wires is illustrated in advance and inspected. The connector inspection device shown in FIG. 1 is fixedly arranged at each position where the connector of the wire harness placed on the inspection drawing board is located.

A connector receiving portion 4 capable of holding a connector 30 to be inspected is fixed on a main body base 1 fixed to the inspection drawing board. The main body base 1 is provided with a slide rail 2. An inspection unit 3 is slidably fitted into the slide rail 2. At one end of the inspection section 3, a lever attachment section 1A is attached. A lever 6 is attached to the lever attachment portion 1A so as to be rotatable about an axis parallel to the main body base 1 and intersecting with the slide rail 2. One end of the link 7 is attached to the lever 6 at a position shifted from the rotation axis. The other end of the link 7 has a projection 5 protruding from the side of the inspection section 3.
Is engaged.

A recess 8 is formed on the end face of the inspection section 3 opposite to the lever 6. In the recess 8, a plurality of detectors 9 whose heads project at respective positions facing terminal fittings of the connector 30 held by the connector receiving portion 4 are arranged in parallel. The detector 9 is elastically urged toward the connector receiving portion 4 by a coil spring (not shown).

The connector receiving section 4 has a substantially U-shaped cross section crossing the slide rail 2 and has a housing space 10 for holding a connector 30 to be inspected. A notch 11 is formed at the rear end of the connector receiving portion 4 for passing an electric wire (not shown) drawn from the connector 30. FIG. 2 is a front view showing the configuration of the connector receiving section 4, FIG. 3 is a plan view thereof, and FIG. 4 is a side view thereof. A concave portion 15 is formed at one end of the side wall 13 of the pair of side walls 12, 13 along the slide rail 2 of the connector receiving portion 4 opposite to the inspection section 3. A mounting portion 17 for mounting the coil spring 16 protrudes from a position near the accommodation space 10 in the concave portion 15. A concave portion 18 (see FIG. 4) is formed in the mounting portion 17, and a coil spring 16 (see FIG. 2) is mounted in the concave portion 18.

A substantially U-shaped retainer pressing member 19 (not shown in FIGS. 3 and 4) is fitted around the coil spring 16 and the mounting portion 17, and its front end face 19A. Faces the accommodation space 10. The retainer pressing member 19 is guided by a guide surface 20 formed along a direction intersecting with the slide rail 2 in the concave portion 18 and is slidable so as to approach / separate from the housing space 10.

The rear end face 19B of the retainer pressing member 19 has a guide inclined surface 2 which gradually projects downward.
1 is formed. A guide rod 22 (not shown in FIG. 4) is provided upright from the bottom of the connector receiving portion 4 at a position facing the rear end face 19 </ b> B of the retainer pressing member 19. This guide rod 22 has a coil spring 23
(See FIG. 2), and a lever 24 (not shown in FIG. 4) is inserted therethrough.

A tapered portion 25 corresponding to a guide inclined surface is formed at a corner of the lower end of the lever 24 facing the retainer pressing member 19. Also, this lever 24
A projection 26 is formed at the lower end of the, at a corner opposite to the retainer pressing member 19. This projection 26
It is slidably inserted into a guide hole (not shown) formed in a cover plate 28 fixed by a bolt (not shown) screwed into the screw hole 27 (see FIG. 4). The lever 24 is
It is urged upward by the coil spring 23, and its upward displacement is regulated by the protrusion 26 abutting on the end of the guide hole of the cover plate 28.

A spacer 50 (not shown in FIG. 2) is fitted on the opposite side of the inspection section 3 from the lever 24 and the retainer pressing member 19 so as to fill the space in the recess 15. . Behind the spacer 50,
A cover plate 51 is provided, and the cover plate 51 is connected to the connector receiving portion 4 together with the spacer 50 by bolts 53 (see FIG. 1) which are screwed into screw holes 52 (see FIG. 2) formed in the connector receiving portion 4. Attached to.

On the upper surface of the side wall portion 13 of the connector receiving portion 4, the lock claw 5 is located just above the retainer pressing member 19.
5 (not shown in FIGS. 3 and 4) is formed with a recess 56. This recess 56
, A coil spring 57 is fitted between the lock claw 55 and the coil spring 57 for urging the lock claw 55 toward the accommodation space 10.

The lock claw 55 is integrally formed with an operation lever 58 projecting upward. On the upper surface of the side wall portion 13, a bolt 60 screwed into the screw hole 59 (see FIG. 3).
A cover plate 61 is attached thereto (see FIG. 1), and a guide hole 62 (see FIG. 1) through which the operation lever 58 is slidably inserted is formed in the cover plate 61.

A guide inclined surface 63 is formed on the upper surface of the tip portion 55a of the lock claw 55. This tip 5
5a protrudes to a surface position such as the spacer 50 when the operation lever 58 is in contact with the end surface of the guide hole 62 on the accommodation space 10 side. FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration example of a connector to be inspected by the connector inspection device having the above configuration, and FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view of an assembled state.
FIGS. 5 and 6 show the configuration of the male connector 30 configured by housing the male terminal fitting 31 in the male housing 32.

The male housing 32 is formed of a resin molded product, and has a plurality of terminal accommodating chambers 33 formed therein. A flexible locking arm 34 integrally formed with the housing 32 projects from each terminal accommodating chamber 33. When the terminal fitting 31 is inserted in the direction of the arrow 43, the terminal fitting 31 abuts on the locking arm 34 in the insertion process, and the locking arm 34 is elastically deformed. When the terminal fitting 31 is inserted to the insertion completed position, the locking arm 34 is restored to the original position, whereby the locking arm 34 is engaged with the hole 42 of the terminal fitting 31. Thereby, the locking of the terminal fitting 31 by the so-called housing lance method is achieved.

After the terminal fitting 31 is inserted in this manner, the retainer 35 serving as a locking member is inserted.
That is, the through hole 36 communicating with the internal space of the connector housing 32 is formed on the side of the housing 32. A comb-shaped retainer 35 is fitted into the through hole 36. The retainer 35 has a plurality of lock pieces 38 protruding from the connecting portion 37. 38M central lock piece
Has a temporary locking portion 39 at the distal end and a locking portion 40 at the proximal end.
have. Further, the remaining lock pieces 38 have locking portions 40 at the distal end and the proximal end, respectively.

Before the terminal fitting 31 is inserted into the housing 32, the retainer 35 is temporarily locked in the temporary locking position shown in FIG. 6, and the locking portion 40 is in a position allowing the terminal fitting 31 to be inserted. Has been evacuated. When the retainer 35 is at the temporary lock position, the temporary locking portion 39 formed at the distal end of the center lock piece 38M engages with the housing 32 to prevent the retainer 35 from coming off.

Terminal fitting 31 to be mounted on housing 32
After all are inserted, the retainer 35 is
It is pushed into 2. At this time, the locking portions 40 formed on the lock pieces 38 are engaged with the cut-and-raised portions 41 of the terminal fittings 31 in the respective terminal accommodating chambers 33 in the housing 32. This achieves double locking of the terminal fittings 31 as well as locking by the housing lance method described above.

When the retainer 35 is completely pushed into the housing 32, the surface of the connecting portion 37 of the retainer 35 is in the same plane of the housing 32, or is closer to the inner space than the surface of the housing 32. To position. In conducting the continuity test of the connector 30, as shown in FIG. 1, the connector 30 is fitted into the housing space 10 of the connector receiving portion 4 with the retainer 35 facing the side wall 13. When the retainer 35 is not fully inserted and the connecting portion 37 of the retainer 35 protrudes from the surface of the housing 32, the protruding retainer 35 is guided by the guide inclined surface 63 of the lock claw 55. Is inserted into the accommodation space 10 while being immersed in the recess 56. At this time, the front end face 1 of the retainer pressing member 19
9A faces the surface of the housing 32. That is,
In the state of FIG. 2 in which no external force acts on the lever 24, the retainer pressing member 19 has the front end face 19 </ b> A whose retainer 35 protrudes from the surface of the housing 32.
It has receded to a position where it can enter.

After attaching the connector 30 to the connector receiving portion 4, the inspection operator raises the lever 6. Lever 6
Is caused, the inspection section 3 is displaced toward the connector receiving section 4, and the connector 30 enters the recess 8. Then, the detector 9 contacts the tip of the terminal fitting 31 of the connector 30. When the lever 6 is further raised against the spring force of a coil spring (not shown) biasing the detector 9, the detector 9 is immersed in the inspection unit 3, and the inspection unit 3 and the connector are connected. A state is reached in which the end faces of the receiving portion 4 are in contact with each other.

In this state, the contact pressure between the detector 9 and the terminal fitting 31 is obtained by the spring force of the coil spring that urges the detector 9, and conduction between the two is obtained. Thereby, inspections such as whether the terminal fitting 31 is correctly mounted and whether the crimping of the electric wire to the terminal fitting 31 is good are achieved. Next, the inspector returns the lever 6 to the position shown in FIG. 1 and separates the inspection device 3 from the connector receiving portion 4. Then, the connector 30 whose inspection has been completed is taken out of the connector receiving portion 4. If the retainer 35 is completely inserted, the connector 30 can be taken out without being caught by the lock claw 55. That is, as described above, the distal end portion 55A of the lock claw 55 is located on substantially the same plane as the surface of the spacer 50 and the like, and is eventually located at the position of the surface of the housing 32. For this reason,
The retainer 35 is completely pushed in so that its surface is flush with the surface of the housing 32, or
Is immersed below the surface of the housing 32, the retainer 35 does not catch on the lock claw 55.

On the other hand, when the insertion operation of the retainer 35 is neglected, or when the insertion of the retainer 35 is incomplete despite the insertion operation, the retainer 35 is hooked on the lock claw 55. Therefore, the connector 30 cannot be removed from the connector receiving portion 4. Therefore, the inspector can easily know that the retainer 35 is incompletely inserted based on the fact that the connector 30 is hooked on the lock claw 55.

When the connector 30 is caught by the lock claw 55 and cannot be removed, the operator next moves to the lever 24.
Press down. As a result, the lever 24 is connected to the coil spring 2
3 is compressed and guided by the guide rod 22 and slid downward, and the tapered portion 25 is
Slidably in contact with the guide inclined surface 21. Accordingly, the retainer pressing member 19 is guided by the guide surface 20 and slides toward the housing space 10 while compressing the coil spring 16. As a result, the front end face 1 of the retainer pressing member 19
9A comes into contact with the surface of the retainer 35, and this retainer 35
Is pushed into the housing 32.

When the lever 24 is released, the coil spring 2
With the restoring force of 3, the lever 24 returns to the initial position shown in FIG. For this reason, the retainer pressing member 19 also returns to the initial position in FIG. 2 by the restoring force of the coil spring 16. When removing the connector 30 without pushing the retainer 35, the operating lever 58 may be operated to retract the lock claw 55. Such an operation is necessary, for example, when the terminal fittings 31 have fallen out or have been incompletely inserted.

As described above, in the connector inspection apparatus of the present embodiment, the incompletely inserted state of the retainer 35 is detected based on the fact that the connector 30 cannot be removed from the connector receiving portion 4. When the retainer 35 is not fully inserted, the retainer 35 is pushed into the housing 32 by operating the lever 24. If the connector 30 cannot be removed even after the operation of the lever 24, the retainer 35 cannot be pushed in.

As described above, in this embodiment, the connector 30 cannot be removed from the connector receiving portion 4 when the retainer 35 is not fully inserted. Therefore, the incompletely mounted state of the retainer 35 can be reliably detected, and the occurrence of defective products can be reliably prevented. Moreover, since the continuity inspection of the connector is an indispensable step in the manufacture of the wire harness, the retainer 35 is required to be inspected before the continuity inspection.
It is not always necessary to completely insert in the housing 32 in advance. Therefore, it is possible to omit the retainer insertion operation and to push the retainer 35 only at the same time as the continuity test of the connector 30. This simplifies the wiring harness manufacturing process,
Productivity can be increased.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a detector for explaining the configuration of a connector inspection apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention. In the description of the present embodiment, FIGS. 1 to 6 used for the description of the first embodiment will be referred to again. In the present embodiment, a detector 80 having the configuration shown in FIG. 7 is used instead of the detector 9 arranged in parallel with the recess 8 of the inspection unit 3 in the first embodiment. The detector 80 is provided facing the connector receiving portion 4 and is provided with the first probe 8 which comes into contact with a terminal fitting of the connector.
1 and a so-called two-probe type including a second probe 82 arranged in series behind the first probe 81.

A flange 84 is formed at the tip of the metal tube 83 inserted into the inspection section 3, and the first probe 81 is connected to the metal tube 8 from the side where the flange 84 is formed.
3 is inserted. A boss 85 that fits into the metal tube 83 is slidably inserted into the rear end of the first probe 81. Then, the first probe 8 protruding from the boss 85
A stopper 86 for preventing the boss 85 from falling off is provided at the rear end of the boss 85.
Has been fixed. On the other hand, a flange 87 is formed at an intermediate portion near the distal end of the first probe 81, and a coil spring 88 for urging the first probe 81 in the direction of arrow 90 is provided between the flange 87 and the boss 85. Is wound.

On the other hand, a boss 91 made of an insulating material such as a synthetic resin material is fitted into the rear end of the metal tube 83. A thin metal tube 92 is fixed to the boss 91, and a coil spring 93 is housed in the metal tube 92. The second probe 82 is slidably inserted into the metal tube 92. A flange 94 slidably in contact with the metal tube 92 is formed at an intermediate portion of the second probe 82.

When the stopper 86 fixed to the rear end of the first probe 81 is in contact with the rear end of the boss 85,
A gap 89 is formed between the first probe 81 and the second probe 82. When the connector 30 to be inspected is mounted on the connector receiving portion 4 and the test portion 3 is displaced toward the connector receiving portion 4 by raising the lever 6, first, the terminal fitting 31 in the housing 32 contacts the first probe 81. Touch When the inspection unit 3 is further slid from this state, the coil spring 88 is compressed, and finally the gap 89 is eliminated, so that the rear end of the first probe 81 and the second probe 82
And the coil spring 93 is further compressed. As a result, the terminal fitting 31 and the first probe 81 are brought into conduction by obtaining a contact pressure from the coil spring 88, and the first probe 8
The first and second probes 82 are brought into conduction by obtaining a contact pressure from the coil spring 93.

Therefore, if the terminal (not shown) of the lead wire connected to the inspection unit (not shown) is connected to the thin metal tube 92, “the terminal fitting 31 → the first probe 81 →
It is possible to detect that a circuit is formed such as “second probe 82 → flange 94 → metal tube 92”. First probe 8
A coil spring 8
Spring forces from 8 and 93 act. Therefore, if the terminal fitting 21 is in the half-inserted state and the locking by the housing lance method is incomplete, the terminal fitting 31 is discharged out of the housing 32 before the retainer 35 is inserted. You. When the terminal fitting 31 is ejected out of the housing 32 in this manner, the operator stops the rotation operation of the lever 6 and again inspects the connector 30 after inserting the ejected terminal fitting 31.

In this way, in this embodiment, in addition to the continuity test and the insertion of the retainer, the half-inserted state of the terminal fitting 31 can be detected. Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. For example, in each of the above embodiments, the link mechanism is used to slide the inspection unit on the main body base, but the cam mechanism shown in FIG. 8 may be applied to each of the above embodiments.

In this configuration, a lever mounting portion 102 is provided upright at one end of the main body base 101, and a lever 103 is rotatably mounted on the lever mounting portion 102. The lever 103 is integrally formed with a cam portion 104.
The cam portion 104 is in contact with the rear end surface of the inspection portion 105. With this configuration, the lever 103
The inspection unit 105 to the main body base 101
You can slide it on.

In the above embodiment, the inspection section is displaced, but it is sufficient that the inspection section and the connector receiving section are relatively displaced toward and away from each other. Therefore, the connector receiving portion may be displaced, or both may be displaced simultaneously. Further, in the above embodiment, the guide inclined surface 21 is formed on the rear end surface 19A of the retainer pressing member 19, and the taper portion 25 is formed on the side surface of the lever 24 facing the retainer pressing member 19, for example. The tapered portion 25 need not be formed. Further, no inclined surface is formed on the rear end surface of the retainer pressing member 19, and the side of the lever 24 facing the retainer pressing member 19 is provided with the retainer pressing member 19 as it goes upward.
An inclined surface that gradually projects to the side may be formed. Even in this configuration, the retainer pressing member 19 can be slid toward the housing space 10 by pressing down the lever 24.

Further, in the above embodiment, the male terminal fitting 3
Although the inspection of the male connector having the number 1 is taken as an example, the continuity inspection and the insertion of the retainer can be performed with the same configuration for the female connector having the female terminal fitting. In addition, various design changes can be made without changing the gist of the present invention.

[0057]

As described above, according to the connector inspection device of the present invention, the connector cannot be removed from the connector receiving portion when the locking member protrudes from the housing. For this reason, since the inspection cannot be completed in a state where the connector is not completely inserted, it is possible to reliably prevent the occurrence of a defective product in which the locking member is not completely inserted.

On the other hand, when the lever provided on the connector receiving portion is slid, the pressing member provided to face the locking member comes into contact with the locking member and pushes the locking member into the housing. In this way, the locking member can be inserted without removing it from the connector receiving portion. Therefore, the inspection work does not become complicated. Also, if the insertion of the locking member is performed exclusively during the inspection of the connector, the work of pushing the locking member in advance can be omitted, so that the productivity of the wire harness and the like can be remarkably improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a basic configuration of a connector inspection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of a connector receiving portion.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a connector receiving portion.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the connector receiving portion.

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration of a connector to be inspected.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the connector.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing a configuration of a detector used in another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a front view showing a configuration in which an inspection unit is slid by a cam mechanism.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the prior art.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 Slide rail 3 Inspection part 4 Connector receiving part 6 Lever 7 Link 9 Detector 19 Retainer pressing member 20 Guide surface 21 Guide inclined surface 22 Guide rod 24 Lever 25 Tapered part 30 Connector 31 Terminal fitting 32 Housing 35 Retainer 36 Through hole 40 Engagement Stop part 41 Lock arm 55 Lock claw 57 Coil spring 63 Taper part 80 Detector 81 First probe 82 Second probe 83 Metal tube 88 Coil spring 89 Gap 92 Metal tube 93 Coil spring 103 Lever 104 Cam part 105 Inspection part

Claims (3)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] A locking member temporarily locked to a housing is pushed into the housing, and the locking member is engaged with a terminal fitting in the housing to lock the terminal fitting in the housing. A connector receiving portion for holding the connector, and a plurality of detectors provided to face the connector receiving portion and corresponding to a plurality of terminal fittings of the connector to be inspected. An inspection section projecting toward the connector receiving section and juxtaposed; and means for displacing the connector receiving section and the inspection section toward and away from each other along a direction in which the detector extends. When the connector receiving portion and the inspection portion are brought close to each other, whether or not continuity is obtained between the terminal metal of the connector and the detector is determined. When the locking member is provided on the connector receiving portion and the locking member protrudes from the surface of the housing, the locking member is engaged with the protruding locking member to prevent removal of the connector from the connector receiving portion. A locking mechanism, a pressing member provided with its front end face opposed to the locking member held by the housing held by the connector receiving portion, and slidable along the insertion direction of the locking member; A lever that abuts against the rear end surface of the pressing member, is slidable in a direction intersecting the sliding direction of the pressing member, and slides the pressing member along the insertion direction of the locking member during the sliding process. A connector inspection device comprising: 2. A guide inclined surface for guiding said lever is formed on at least one of a rear end surface of said pressing member and a side surface of said lever opposed to said rear end surface. 2. The connector inspection device according to 1. 3. The detector according to claim 1, wherein the detector comprises a first probe in contact with the terminal fitting, and a second probe arranged in series with a predetermined gap on a side opposite to the connector receiving portion with respect to the first probe. And means for individually and resiliently urging the first probe and the second probe toward the connector receiving portion.
The connector inspection device according to the above.