JP3045010B2 - Connector inspection probe - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a probe for inspecting a connector by contacting terminal fittings of the connector.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a connector inspection apparatus, for example, one described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-40669 is known. In this configuration, a connector holder is fixedly provided on a base, and a probe holder is provided so as to be movable toward and away from the connector holder, and a plurality of probes are arranged in the probe holder.

In this connector inspection apparatus, when a terminal fitting is inserted into a cavity and a connector constituting a wire harness is mounted on the connector holder, and the probe holder is moved toward the connector holder, the probe is moved into the cavity of the connector housing. And comes into contact with the terminal fittings therein. At this time, if the terminal fitting is inserted into the correct cavity, correct electrical conduction occurs between the terminal fitting and the probe, but if the terminal fitting is not inserted into the correct cavity, the terminal fitting is The electrical continuity between the probe and the probe does not reach a predetermined state. From this, it is determined whether the terminal fitting is inserted into the correct cavity, and the continuity test of the wire harness is performed.

Conventionally, a probe used in this connector inspection apparatus houses a probe pin base end side slidably in a sleeve pipe, and in the sleeve pipe houses a coil spring for pushing the probe pin forward. Such a configuration is common, and the clearance between the probe pin and the sleeve pipe is set to be extremely small so as to guide the probe pin straight.

[0005]

By the way, for example, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1, when inspecting a connector provided with a female terminal fitting 1, a partition frame 3 is provided on the front surface of the connector housing 2.
In order to allow the probe pin 4 to correctly contact the terminal fitting 1, the probe pin 4 must enter into a narrow opening partitioned by the partition frame 3. However, the positional relationship between the connector and the probe pin 4 may be deviated due to a molding error of the connector housing 2 or a mounting error of the connector housing 2 to the inspection device. In some cases, the tip of the probe pin 4 to be abutted comes into contact with the partition frame 3, which has hindered the inspection. Further, the probe pin 4 is inserted from the male terminal insertion hole 2a of the connector housing 2 to insert the tongue piece 1 of the female terminal fitting 1.
In the case where the tongue piece 1a is contacted, there is a problem that the tongue piece 1a is deformed or the plating is peeled off.

For example, as shown in FIG. 9, when inspecting a connector provided with a male terminal fitting 5, the tip of the terminal fitting 5 is bent and deformed like the upper one in the figure. In such a case, the tip of the probe pin 4 may not reliably come into contact therewith, and the continuity test becomes uncertain. There is also a possibility that it will. On the contrary, when the tip of the probe pin 4 strongly contacts the side surface of the terminal fitting 5, the bending deformation of the terminal fitting 5 is promoted, and the deformation within the standard is changed to the deformation outside the standard. There is a problem that defective products are produced.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to be able to perform a reliable inspection of a deformed product that is originally a non-defective product within a standard, and to prevent various kinds of error factors. An object of the present invention is to provide a connector inspection probe capable of performing a reliable inspection.

[0008]

According to the present invention, there is provided a connector inspection probe for inspecting a connector by contacting a terminal fitting mounted on a connector housing, wherein a probe pin having a tip contacting the terminal fitting is provided. A sleeve for accommodating the proximal end of the probe pin, and a coil spring accommodated in the sleeve and constantly biasing the probe pin toward the distal end are provided, and the distal end of the probe pin swings. The sleeve is housed in the sleeve with a clearance to obtain an inner peripheral wall.
An annular guide that protrudes inward and slides on the probe pin
The protruding ridge is provided and the probe pin
Positioned closer to the coil spring side than the annular guide ridge
A spring receiver where the coil spring is pressed against the part
The spring seat is provided with a
The tapered surface that narrows toward the center of the il spring
It is characterized by its location (the invention of claim 1).

Further, the tip of the probe pin may (claims provided large-diameter portion having a tapered recess the end surface
2 of the invention), it may be a tapered surface which narrows towards the axis of the probe pin to a rear end side of the large-diameter portion (claim
Invention of 3) .

[0010]

In each of the first and second aspects of the present invention, the tip end of the probe pin is swingably supported. Therefore, if
Even if the connector to be inspected has various error factors, such as a molding error of the connector housing or a bending deformation of the terminal fitting, and the probe pin and the terminal fitting are displaced from the normal positional relationship, the probe pin is not moved according to the error. The tip swings to absorb the error. In addition, since the annular guide ridge is provided by projecting the inner peripheral wall of the sleeve to the inside, the probe pin slides in the sleeve while being guided by the annular guide ridge, and the probe pin does not touch the annular guide ridge. Swings smoothly due to clearance. Further, since the spring seat is pressed by the coil spring and comes into contact with the annular guide ridge, the annular guide ridge also functions as a stopper. Furthermore, since the spring seat has a tapered surface, when the tip of the probe pin swings, the center between the spring seat and the coil spring coincides due to the interaction between the tapered surface and the coil spring. Such force acts, and the probe pin easily returns to the straight state before swinging.

According to the second aspect of the present invention , when the probe pin is brought into contact with the male terminal metal fitting, the tip of the male terminal metal fitting is formed. Enters the tapered recess and is guided. Furthermore, according to the third aspect of the present invention , wherein the tapered surface is formed on the rear end side of the large-diameter portion, the large-diameter portion does not catch on the connector housing when the probe pin is pulled out of the connector housing.

[0012]

As described above, according to the connector inspection probe of the present invention, since the distal end side of the probe pin swings freely, the probe pin and the terminal fitting may be out of a regular positional relationship due to various error factors. Even if it is off,
In accordance with the error, the tip of the probe pin swings and the error is absorbed, so that a reliable inspection can be performed. In particular, the tip of the probe pin strongly touches the side surface of the male terminal fitting, and it promotes the bending deformation of the terminal fitting, causing the deformation within the standard to the deformation outside the standard, or the female terminal. When the probe pin is brought into contact with the tongue piece of the terminal fitting, deformation of the tongue piece and peeling of plating can be reliably prevented.

[0013]

【Example】

<First Embodiment> A first embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a male connector inspection apparatus will be described below with reference to FIGS.

First, the connector 11 inspected in the present embodiment
Has a well-known structure in which a substantially rectangular parallelepiped synthetic resin connector housing 12 is provided, and a plurality of cavities (not shown) formed therein accommodate male male terminal fittings 13, respectively. 13 is prevented from falling off by a lance provided integrally with the connector housing 12 inside the cavity, and the tip protrudes into the hood portion 12 a of the connector housing 12.

The connector inspection apparatus 20 according to the present embodiment
Has a connector holder 22 on the right side of the drawing on the base 21 as shown in FIG. The connector holder 22 is for holding the connector 11 and includes a holder main body 23 made of a synthetic resin material and having a U-shaped cross section opened upward and backward and upward and a U-shaped stopper plate 24 fixed to the rear end surface. Consists of The distance between the left and right side walls parallel to each other of the holder main body 23 is substantially the same as the width of the connector housing 12 of the connector 11, and the connector 11 is inserted into the holder main body 23 from above and the rearward movement of the stopper plate is prevented. At 24, it is held in a blocked state.

On the other hand, a slide block 25 is provided on the base 21 so as to face the connector holder 22. The slide block 25 is slidably supported along two rails 21a provided on the upper surface of the base 21 so as to move toward and away from the connector holder 22, and has a rectangular parallelepiped shape as a whole. 2
It has a rectangular recess 26 into which the connector housing 12 can be inserted. A guide shaft 27 is provided between the slide block 25 and the holder main body 23. When the slide block 25 moves toward the connector holder 22, the compression spring 28 mounted on the guide shaft 27 is compressed. A plurality of probes 30 are provided on the slide block 25 so as to extend toward the respective terminal fittings 13 of the connector 11 in the concave portions 26, and the probes 30 will be described in detail next.

The detailed structure of each probe 30 is shown in FIG. That is, the probe 30 is connected to the slide block 2
The probe pin 32 is movably inserted in an axial direction into a sleeve 31 fixed to the sleeve 5, and the probe pin 32 is a coil spring 33 provided in the sleeve 31.
Is always urged in the protruding direction. The probe pin 32 has a cylindrical large-diameter portion 35 at the distal end of a shaft portion 34, and a tapered concave portion 36 that is conically recessed at the distal end surface of the large-diameter portion 35. A spring seat 37 having a slightly larger diameter is formed at the base end of the shaft portion 34, and a conical tapered surface 38 that becomes thinner toward the center at the rear end surface is formed. The taper surface 38 receives the coil spring 33.

On the other hand, a throttle portion 39 is formed at the rear end side (left side in FIG. 3) of the sleeve 31 so that the steel ball 40 housed in the sleeve 31 is prevented from coming off. The rear end side is received. In the sleeve 31, an annular guide ridge 41 is formed near the middle between the squeezed portion 39 and the distal end portion by squeezing the sleeve 31 from the outside, and the inner peripheral surface thereof is formed on the outer periphery of the shaft portion 34 of the probe pin 32. Is in sliding contact with The inner diameter of the annular guide ridge 41 is smaller than the outer diameter of the spring seat 37, so that the annular guide ridge 41 functions as a stopper for the spring seat 37,
It also has a function of guiding the probe pins 32 along the extension direction of the sleeve 31. When the inner peripheral surface of the annular guide ridge 41 is cut along the axis of the sleeve 31, FIG.
As shown in (1), it has a shape that draws a smooth arc, and thereby comes into line contact with the shaft portion 34 of the probe pin 32. Further, a large-diameter cylindrical portion 42 whose inner diameter is further increased at the front end side of the sleeve 31 and a flange portion 43 are formed at the distal end thereof, so that the distal end side of the probe pin 32 swings as shown by an arrow in FIG. It is housed in the sleeve 31 with a clearance to obtain.

An electric wire 44 (shown only in FIG. 1) is connected to each probe pin 32, and these are connected to a continuity inspection circuit of a wire harness (not shown). The continuity inspection circuit is also connected to the electric wire 14 of the connector 11 assembled as a wire harness, and the presence or absence of electrical continuity between the terminal fitting 13 and the probe pin 32 is detected. The appropriateness of the connection of the electric wire 44 is notified by lighting a lamp, sounding a buzzer, or the like. A cam handle 45 is provided at a position on the opposite side to the connector holder 22 of the base 21 so as to sandwich the slide block 25 so as to be rotatable about a support shaft 46. The cam portion 45a presses the slide block 25 and moves it to the connector holder 22 side.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. When inspecting the connector 11 assembled as a wire harness, first, the connector 11 is connected to the connector inspection device 20.
Is set and held in the connector holder 22 from above. Then, the connector 11 is directly opposed to the slide block 25 as shown in FIG. Therefore, when the cam handle 45 is rotated in the direction of the arrow in the figure, the cam handle 45 is rotated about the support shaft 46 and presses the slide block 25 toward the connector 11.
5 moves while compressing the compression spring 28, and
6, the connector housing 12 of the connector 11 enters. As a result, the large-diameter portion 35 of the tip of the probe pin 32 projecting into the recess 26 is connected to the terminal fitting 13 of the connector 11.
The electrical contact is obtained by contacting the tip of the connector, and the connector is inspected based on the electrical continuity. The slide block 25
The coil spring 33 in the sleeve 31 is compressed according to the movement stroke of the
It is pushed into 1.

Here, if the terminal fitting 13 of the connector 11 is
Is bent and deformed like the one at the top of FIG.
The axes of the terminal fitting 13 and the probe 30 do not coincide. Conventionally, in such a case, poor contact between the terminal fitting and the probe pin has been apt to occur. In this regard, in the present embodiment, when the terminal fitting 13 is bent and deformed as shown in the figure, when the distal end surface of the large-diameter portion 35 of the probe pin 32 comes into contact with the distal end of the terminal fitting 13, The terminal fitting 13 is fitted into the tapered concave portion 36 of the large-diameter portion 35, and is guided by the inner peripheral surface thereof, so that the probe pin 32 swings at the distal end side. As a result, as shown in FIG.
3 is in a state of being in reliable contact with the tip, and an accurate continuity test can be performed.

When the cam handle 45 is returned after the continuity test, the slide block 25 is pushed back in the direction away from the connector 11 by the elastic force of the compression spring 28, and each probe pin 32 is separated from the tip of the terminal fitting 13. Then, since the conical tapered surface 38 is formed in the spring seat 37 at the base end of the probe pin 32, the probe pin 32 is moved so that the center of the tapered surface 38 coincides with the center of the coil spring 33. Rock it.
As a result, when the probe pins 32 are separated from the terminal fittings 13, they immediately return to a straight state to prepare for the next connector inspection. In addition, the bending deformation of the terminal fitting 13 is large,
In the case where the tip of the terminal fitting 13 cannot enter the tapered recess 36 of the large diameter portion 35, the tip of the probe pin 32 is placed on the lower side of the terminal fitting 13 opposite to the uppermost one in FIG.
The terminal 13 and the probe pins 32 are not excessively acted on, and the terminal 13 is prevented from being bent or deformed, and the probe 30 is prevented from being broken. can do.

<Second Embodiment> FIGS. 5 to 7 show a second embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a connector inspection apparatus provided with female terminal fittings.

First, the connector 15 inspected by the connector inspection device 50 of the present embodiment will be described. This is a well-known structure in which a connector housing 16 made of synthetic resin having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape is provided, and a plurality of female terminals 17 are accommodated in a plurality of cavities 16a formed therein, respectively. The connector 16 is inserted from the rear of the cavity 16a and is prevented from falling off by a lance 18 provided integrally with the connector housing 16 inside the cavity 16a. When the terminal fitting 17 is inserted into the cavity 16a from the rear, the lance 18 is temporarily bent to the lance bending space 16b formed adjacent to the cavity 16a to allow the lance 18 to pass therethrough. , The lance 18 engages with the terminal fitting 17. In addition, on the front side of the connector housing 16,
The cavity 16a and the lance bending space 16b are defined by the partition frame 1
9 is defined. Further, a contact tongue piece which is in contact with a tab portion of a mating male terminal fitting (not shown) is formed on the distal end side of the terminal fitting 17, and is plated with gold.

On the other hand, the connector inspection apparatus 50 has the same configuration as that of the first embodiment, except for the tip of the probe pin 51. That is, the same parts as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and will be described briefly. The connector holder 22 and the slide block 25 are provided on the base 21 so as to face each other. The slide block 2 is moved by operation.
The probe 30 is provided so as to protrude in the concave portion 26 of FIG. The probe 30 is also provided with a probe pin 32 movably housed in a sleeve 31 and a coil spring 33.
In the configuration constantly biased in the protruding direction, the annular guide ridge 4
1 contacts and guides the shaft portion 34 of the probe pin 32, and a large-diameter cylindrical portion 42 is formed at the tip of the sleeve 31, and the tip of the probe pin 32 is swingably supported. A tip portion of the probe pin 32 is provided with a tapered large portion 52 large enough to enter the lance bending space 16b of the connector housing 16, and a tapered surface 53 having a tapered surface 53 on the shaft portion 34 side is provided at the rear end portion. Is formed. The tapered large portion 52 faces the lower half of the partition frame 19 of the connector 11 set in the connector holder 22.

In this embodiment, when the connector 11 is set on the connector holder 22 and the cam handle 45 is rotated, the slide block 25 advances toward the connector 11 as in the previous embodiment, and the tapered diameter of the tip of the probe pin 32 is reduced. The large portion 52 contacts the lower half of the partition frame 19 of the connector housing 16. Then, since the probe pin 32 can swing at the distal end side in the same manner as in the first embodiment, the probe pin 32 swings in a form in which the distal end side is lowered as shown in FIG. You will enter. In this state, since the tapered surface 38 of the spring seat 37 of the probe pin 32 is inclined with respect to the coil spring 33, the taper surface 38 extends in a direction (a direction in which the tip portion swings upward) so as to be continuous. Restoring force is acting. Therefore, the tapered large portion 52 of the probe pin 32
When the probe pin 32 further enters the lance bending space 16b beyond the partition frame 19, the probe pin 32 is displaced upward by the upward restoring force, and the tapered large portion 52 becomes the terminal fitting 17 as shown in FIG. It comes into contact with the side. Thus, electrical continuity between the probe pin 32 and the terminal fitting 17 is obtained, and a continuity test of the connector 15 is performed. When the cam handle 45 is returned to the original position after the inspection, the probe pin 32 is retracted, and the tapered surface 53 of the large-diameter portion 52 has a tapered diameter.
The large-diameter tapered portion 52 is bent so as to escape along the inclination of, escapes from the connector housing 16 beyond the partition frame 19, and returns to the original position.

As described above, the connector inspection apparatus 5 of the present embodiment
According to 0, the probe pin 32 comes into contact with the terminal fitting 17 from the side, so that the contact tongue piece which is scheduled to be in contact with the counterpart terminal fitting and is plated with gold is provided. The probe pins 32 do not touch. For this reason, even if the contact tongue of the terminal fitting 17 is plated with gold, it is possible to reliably prevent the contact tongue from being damaged, and to sufficiently enhance the reliability of the electrical contact state as the connector. Can be.

Further, in the conventional inspection apparatus in which the probe is pressed against the contact tongue of the terminal fitting, the probe strongly hits the contact tongue of the terminal fitting and deforms the contact tongue depending on processing errors on both the connector and the probe. There were things. However, according to the connector inspection device 50 of the present embodiment, since the probe pin 32 does not contact the contact tongue piece that is expected to come into contact with the counterpart terminal fitting, there is no possibility that the probe pin 32 will be deformed. It is possible to reliably prevent an unreasonable situation in which the contact tongue of the connector is damaged due to the inspection. Further, in the conventional inspection apparatus, even when the probe pin is deformed and cannot be contracted and displaced, the contact tongue of the terminal fitting may be deformed. Such a situation does not occur. Of course, without using a probe, for example, compared with a conventional connector inspection device that uses an actual male terminal as an inspection terminal and contacts the female terminal of the connector,
Similarly, abrasion / peeling of the plated portion of the contact tongue and deformation of the contact tongue itself can be reliably prevented, so that the function of the terminal fitting can be maintained.

In addition, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described with reference to the above description and the drawings, but can be implemented with various modifications without departing from the scope of the invention.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an entire inspection apparatus showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the inspection device of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view showing the probe of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the inspection apparatus showing a state at the time of inspection of the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of an inspection apparatus showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of the inspection apparatus showing a state at the time of inspection according to the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view showing a state at the time of inspection of the embodiment in a state different from FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a partial sectional view showing a conventional inspection apparatus for inspecting a female connector.

FIG. 9 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a conventional inspection device for inspecting a male connector.

[Explanation of symbols]

 11, 15 ... connector 13, 17 ... terminal fitting 30 ... probe 31 ... sleeve 32 ... probe pin 33 ... coil spring 34 ... shaft part 35 ... large diameter part 36 ... tapered concave part 37 ... spring seat 38 ... tapered surface 42 ... Large diameter cylinder

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] An apparatus for inspecting a connector by contacting a terminal fitting mounted on a connector housing, comprising: a probe pin having a distal end in contact with the terminal fitting; a sleeve accommodating a base end of the probe pin; A coil spring that is housed in a sleeve and constantly biases the probe pin toward the distal end, and the probe pin is housed in the sleeve with a clearance that allows the distal end to swing , Inner wall on sleeve
The annular pin that projects inward and slides against the probe pin.
An id ridge is provided and the probe pin
And closer to the coil spring side than the annular guide ridge
A spring where the coil spring is pressed against the part where it is located
A seat is provided, and the spring seat contacts here
Tapered surface that tapers toward the center of the coil spring
A connector inspection probe, wherein a probe is formed . 2. The connector inspection probe according to claim 1 , wherein a large-diameter portion having a tapered concave portion on the distal end surface is provided at a distal end portion of the probe pin. 3. The connector inspection probe according to claim 2 , wherein a tapered surface that becomes thinner toward a shaft portion of the probe pin is formed on a rear end side of the large diameter portion.