JP2785703B2 - Waterproof connector - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a waterproof connector in which a molded resin layer is integrated with a wire lead-out portion of a connector housing.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As one type of a connector formed by molding an electric wire lead-out portion, for example, an insertion molded plug described in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 5-73771 is known. This is manufactured by attaching a pair of insertion terminals to a core made of a thermosetting resin, connecting an electric wire to the terminal, and molding the electric wire and the core with a thermoplastic resin. With this configuration, since the wire lead-out portion is covered with the flexible mold resin layer, there is obtained an advantage that the waterproof property is enhanced, the mechanical strength is improved, and the impact resistance is improved.

[0003]

However, when this type of mold structure is applied to a connector having a structure in which a terminal fitting is mounted in a cavity of a connector housing,
It raises various molding problems. In other words, if the wire outlet side of the connector housing is simply molded with the molding resin, the molding resin may enter the cavity due to the injection pressure at the time of molding, and may reach the connection portion of the terminal fitting. . To prevent this, it is necessary to seal the end of the cavity,
The injection pressure of the mold resin is quite high, and there is a situation that the wire penetrates in that part, so it is difficult to seal it, and if the injection pressure is lowered to prevent leakage of the mold resin, production will occur It causes problems such as deterioration of performance.

[0004] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a connector capable of resin-molding an electric wire lead-out portion without causing a problem such as leakage of molding resin while having a configuration in which a terminal fitting is mounted in a cavity of a connector housing.

[0005]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a waterproof connector having a connector housing having a cavity having a terminal insertion opening, and a terminal connected to an electric wire and inserted into the cavity from the terminal insertion opening. A metal fitting, a plug made of an elastic material having an electric wire through-hole for penetrating the electric wire, penetrating the electric wire, and housed from the terminal insertion opening of the cavity, and the terminal fitting and the plug in the cavity. A mold resin layer molded so as to surround the electric wire and be continuous with the connector housing on the terminal insertion opening side of the connector housing in the housed state, and the plug is provided inside the cavity. A plug main part that is in close contact with the peripheral surface, and a large-diameter flange formed at the rear end of the plug main body that is pressed against the terminal insertion opening by receiving the inflow pressure of the mold resin Characterized in place where the structure is formed from a di-section.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the plug has a plurality of electric wire through-holes formed therein, and an outer peripheral surface of the plug main portion has a mountain-shaped cross section. It is characterized in that the large-diameter portion is formed as a single piece over the entire circumference.

[0007]

<Function and Effect of the Invention><Invention of Claim 1> Since the flange is provided at the rear end of the plug, when the mold resin is injected, the flange is brought into close contact with the terminal insertion opening, and the resin is removed. A situation in which the inside of the plug body that exhibits the sealing function by entering the inside is not caused. Therefore, it is possible to further ensure the sealing performance.

<Invention of Claim 2> The plug is a so-called one-piece closed type, and since it has a large contact area with the cavity, a large insertion force tends to be required. Since the structure has only one line, the plug can be mounted with a small insertion force.

[0009]

[0010]

【Example】

<First Embodiment> A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

(Configuration of the Embodiment) In FIGS. 1 to 3 showing the overall configuration, a connector housing 10 is, for example, P
It is made of BT. This connector housing 10 is
The terminal insertion opening 1 is formed around a terminal storage tube portion 13 provided with two cavities 12 defined by the terminal insertion tube 1 at the rear end side (right side in FIG. 1) of the terminal storage tube portion 13.
From 31, terminal fittings 40 to be described later are inserted into each cavity 12. Inside the rear end side (right side in FIG. 1) of the terminal storage tube portion 13, a cavity 12 is provided.
Is not provided, and a single plug housing chamber 14 connected to each cavity 12 is formed here. In addition, on the outer peripheral surface on the rear end side of the terminal storage cylindrical portion 13,
Two annular ribs 15, 16 protrude at a predetermined interval. One of the annular ribs 15 and 16 (FIG. 1)
The outer diameter of the annular rib 15 located on the left side (in FIG. 1) is set larger than that of the annular rib 16 located on the rear side (right side in FIG. 1).
6, the front surface is flat, and the rear surface is formed with inclined surfaces 151 and 161 whose outer peripheral side is inclined obliquely forward.

On the other hand, a cylindrical housing-side waterproof seal 17 is fitted around the distal end of the terminal storage cylinder 13, and a hood 18 surrounding the periphery is provided at the distal end of the terminal storage cylinder 13. ing. A mating connector housing (not shown) is fitted into the hood portion 18, and a lock piece 181 provided on the hood portion 18 is provided.
, The mating connector housing is locked. Reference numeral 19 denotes a housing for preventing the housing-side waterproof seal 17 from coming off,
This is a retainer for preventing the terminal fitting 40 inserted into the terminal fitting 2 from coming off.

On the other hand, a cable 20 connected to this connector is of a two-core type in which two electric wires 22 are integrated with an outer sheath 21, and the outer sheath 21 is removed at the tip end to separate the two electric wires 22. In addition, near the tip of each electric wire 22, the insulating coating 221 is removed and the core wire 222 is exposed.

There are two terminal fittings 40 connected to the ends of the electric wires 22, respectively. These have a well-known structure, and are integrally provided with a wire barrel 42 for caulking the core wire 222 of the electric wire 22 and an insulation barrel 43 for caulking the insulating coating 221 following the female connection portion 41.

In the plug housing chamber 14 of the connector housing 10, a plug 50 made of synthetic rubber, which is an elastic material, is housed through the terminal insertion opening 131. This is shown in FIG. 4 and FIG.
As shown in the figure, the oblong flange portion 52 is also integrally formed on the rear end face of the obturator main portion 51 whose longitudinal section inserted into the obturator housing chamber 14 has an oblong shape. Electric wire 2
Two electric wire insertion holes 53 having an inner diameter that is in close contact with the outer peripheral surface 2 are formed penetrating forward and backward. An intermediate portion in the front-rear direction of the plug main body 51 is formed with a large-diameter portion 511 by increasing the outer diameter, and when the plug 50 is pressed into the plug housing chamber 14, the large-diameter portion 511 is formed. The front and rear regions of the plug main body 51 strongly adhere to the inner peripheral wall of the plug housing chamber 14, and the distal end surface of the plug main portion 51 has a plurality of linear protrusions 512 extending in the front and rear direction.
Are formed. A notch 54 is formed in the upper part of the plug main portion 51 and the flange 52 along the extension direction of the electric wire insertion hole 53 to reach the electric wire insertion hole 53, and the electric wire 22 is cut from the state shown in FIG. Through the wire insertion hole 53. As shown in FIG. 5, two annular grooves 531 concentric with the wire insertion hole 53 are formed on the inner peripheral surface of the wire insertion hole 53 at intervals. Adhesion portions 532 that are in close contact with the electric wire 22 are formed before and after 531 and between each other.

On the rear end side of the connector housing 10, a mold resin layer 100 formed by injection molding of a flexible synthetic rubber material is provided integrally. The front end of the mold resin layer 100 surrounds the rear end of the terminal housing cylindrical portion 13, and the rear end is gradually narrowed to surround the front end of the outer sheath 21 of the cable 20. Although the connector housing 10 is shown separately from the connector housing 10 in FIG.
Is in a state of being fixed to the connector housing 10 so as to surround the rear end portion of the terminal storage tube portion 13 and cannot be separated from the connector housing 10 in practice.

The present embodiment has the above-described configuration. Next, a description will be given of a manufacturing procedure of a portion related to the present invention. A terminal fitting 40 is connected to the end of each electric wire 22 of the cable 20 by crimping, and a plug 50 is attached near the end of each electric wire 22. To attach the plug 50, the plug 50 is positioned below the electric wire 22, and the notch 54 of the plug 50 is addressed along the electric wire 22, and in this state, the cut 50 is opened. Each wire 22 may be press-fitted into the wire insertion hole 53 while elastically deforming the wire. As a result, the plug body 50 is
As shown by a solid line in FIG.

Then, each terminal fitting 40 is inserted into each cavity 12 of the connector housing 10 and the retainer 19
Is pushed into the locking position to prevent the terminal fitting 40 from coming off, and the plug 50 is inserted into the plug housing chamber 1 of the connector housing 10.
Push into 4. As a result, the plug 50 is pressed into the connector housing 10 to be in a fixed state, and the terminal insertion opening 131 of the connector housing 10 is sealed. The connector housing 10 in that state is shown in FIG.
Is set in the molding die 110 as shown in FIG. 1 and the molding resin is injected into the molding die 110 at a predetermined injection pressure.
00 is molded. At this time, since the plug body 50 keeps the terminal insertion opening 131 of the connector housing 10 closed, it is possible to reliably prevent the mold resin from entering the cavity 12 of the connector housing 10. Moreover, since the plug body 50 is formed with the flange portion 52, when the plug body 50 is further pushed into the connector housing 10 by the resin injection pressure injected into the molding die 110, the flange portion 52 is formed. Comes into close contact with the opening end surface of the terminal insertion opening 131 of the connector housing 10, the sealing performance inside and outside the terminal insertion opening 131 is further strengthened, and leakage of the mold resin to the cavity 12 side is more reliably prevented.

(Effects of Embodiment) The effects of this embodiment are as follows.

From the connector housing 10 to the cable 2
Since the lead-out side of the cable 20 is covered with the mold resin layer 100, it is possible to effectively prevent water from entering therefrom, and to mold the lead-out side of the cable 20 with the flexible mold resin layer 100. Therefore, even if the cable 20 is bent, the molded resin layer 100 sufficiently deforms to maintain the waterproof property, and also the impact force such that a rock or the like which is mounted on the vehicle and jumps up during traveling collides. Even if it acts, it is less likely to be damaged and has high reliability.

In the present invention, since the plug 50 through which the electric wire 22 penetrates is arranged in the terminal insertion opening 131, it is possible to prevent the molding resin from flowing into the terminal fitting 40 with a strong pressure during the molding of the molding resin layer 100. Can be. Moreover, the plug body 50 is made of an elastic material, and
The sealing property is high and the leakage of the mold resin can be prevented reliably.

Further, since the plug body 50 is made of an elastic material and has a high sealing property, an excellent waterproof function is exhibited in this portion, and the following unexpected advantages are obtained. That is,
In the connector including the molded resin layer 100 integrally molded with the connector housing 10 as in the present embodiment,
As described above, it exhibits high waterproofness. However, in order to make the waterproof property more perfect, it is necessary to sufficiently select both the material of the connector housing 10 and the material of the mold resin layer 100. At the boundary between different resins, it is difficult to adhere if the affinity between the two resins is poor, and if the coefficient of thermal expansion is different, a gap occurs due to the difference in expansion and contraction due to the cooling process during molding and temperature changes in the use environment. Therefore, the gap is a cause of reducing the waterproofness.

However, generally, the outer sheath resin of the electric wire is made of polyethylene, cross-linked polyethylene or fluorine resin, and the connector housing is often made of PBT (polybutylene terephthalate), PPS (polyphenylene sulfide) or the like. Is generally quite different. For this reason, it is quite difficult to select a mold resin that is compatible with both resins, and in order to ensure perfect momentum and waterproofness, it is necessary to select a mold resin material at the disadvantage of cost, It was necessary to reconsider the material of the connector housing.

In this respect, in this embodiment, the plug 50 provided to prevent the mold resin from entering the cavity 12 originally exhibits excellent waterproofing properties. A gap is formed between the plug housing 50 and the plug housing 50 even if water enters therethrough.
Thus, it is possible to reliably prevent water from entering the terminal fitting 40 side. Therefore, various materials such as the connector housing 10, the electric wire 22, or the mold resin layer 100 can be freely selected in consideration of the material cost and the like without fear of occurrence of such a gap. It is possible to achieve both cost and high waterproofness.

Further, since notches 54 are formed in the plug body 50 in correspondence with the electric wire insertion holes 53, the notches 54 are formed.
The electric wire 22 can be passed through the electric wire insertion hole 53 through the through hole, and the manufacturing process is simplified as compared with a configuration in which the electric wire 22 is inserted from the tip into the through hole, which is advantageous in manufacturing cost.

The rear end of the connector housing 10 has
Since the annular ribs 15 and 16 are formed, the bonding property between the mold resin layer 100 formed so as to cover the annular ribs and the connector housing 10 is enhanced, and the mold resin layer 1 is formed.
00 can be prevented.

Further, of the annular ribs 15 and 16, the side closer to the resin injection gate is set to have such a relationship that the projecting dimension is low and the far side is high. Since the 161 is formed, the molding resin injected from the injection gate flows sufficiently to every corner, and occurrence of molding failure can be suppressed.

<Other Embodiments> The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. For example, the following embodiments are possible, and these are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. In each of the embodiments described below, configurations other than those specifically described are the same as those in the first embodiment, and thus duplicate description is omitted, and the same reference numerals are given to the same portions as necessary.

(1) FIG. 7 shows a second embodiment in which the connection between the mold resin layer 100 and the connector housing 10 is enhanced. In this embodiment, a single annular rib 15 is provided on the connector housing 10 and a plurality of through holes 152 through which the molding resin can enter is formed in the annular rib 15. The effect of being able to more reliably prevent falling out of the housing 10 is obtained. Although not shown, two annular ribs 1 are provided on the connector housing 10 as in the first embodiment.
Needless to say, it is also possible to adopt a configuration in which the protrusions 5 and 16 are provided and through holes are respectively provided in these.

(2) Even when the annular ribs 15, 16 are not necessarily provided on the connector housing 10, depending on the required retaining force, as shown in the third embodiment of FIG. May be omitted.

(3) The shape of the plug is not limited to that shown in each of the above embodiments, and is not shown, but may be tapered or stepped. The inner peripheral surface of the storage chamber may be tapered or stepped so as to match the shape of the plug. In addition, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described with reference to the above description and the drawings. For example, an adhesive, an expanding agent, or a sealant is applied to the outer peripheral surface of the plug and stored in the plug storage chamber. Various changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall longitudinal sectional view showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a transverse cross-sectional view of the same.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the whole.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the same plug.

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the plug body.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state of the molding resin layer during molding.

FIG. 7 is a partial longitudinal sectional view showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a partial longitudinal sectional view showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Connector housing 100 ... Mold resin layer 12 ... Cavity 131 ... Terminal storage opening 14 ... Plug body storage chamber 20 ... Cable 22 ... Wire 40 ... Terminal fitting 50 ... Plug body 53 ... Wire insertion hole 54 ... Cut-out

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁶ , DB name) H01R 13/52 301

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] A connector housing having a cavity having a terminal insertion opening, a terminal fitting to which an electric wire is connected and inserted into the cavity from the terminal insertion opening, and an electric wire penetrating hole for penetrating the electric wire. A plug made of an elastic material housed through the terminal insertion opening of the cavity through which an electric wire passes, and the terminal fitting and the plug being housed in the cavity are provided on the terminal insertion opening side of the connector housing. A mold resin layer that surrounds the electric wire and is molded so as to be continuous with the connector housing, and the plug is formed at a rear end of a plug main portion that is in close contact with an inner peripheral surface of the cavity. And a large-diameter flange portion pressed against the terminal insertion opening by receiving the inflow pressure of the mold resin. Ta. 2. The plug has a plurality of electric wire through holes formed therein, and a large-diameter portion having a mountain-shaped cross section is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the main part of the plug over the entire circumference. The waterproof connector according to claim 1, wherein: