JP3314846B2 - Interconnection terminals and joint connectors - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an interconnection terminal for commonly connecting a plurality of electric wires and a joint connector using the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in a wire harness for a vehicle, a joint connector is used to commonly connect ground lines from a plurality of electrical components to ground with a vehicle body. As a conventional example of a terminal used in the joint connector, for example, a structure disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 62-120287 is known.

As shown in FIG. 11, this is a structure in which a wire barrel 2 for caulking and connecting an electric wire (not shown) and a terminal body 1 are integrally formed, and are vertically stacked in a connector housing (not shown). Inserted.
The terminal body 1 is formed with a side wall 3 which faces in an opposing state and an elastic contact piece 4 located between the side walls 3, and the elastic contact piece 4 comes into contact with the bottom of another terminal arranged above this. By doing so, the terminals come into contact with each other. Further, in order to mount the terminal in the connector housing, lances 5 are cut and raised outward on the left and right side wall portions 3, and the lances 5 are locked by locking portions of the connector housing. The terminal is prevented from falling out of the connector housing.

[0004]

However, in the terminal having the above structure, since the lance 5 protrudes laterally from the side wall portion 3, the terminal is manufactured, an electric wire is connected to the terminal, and the terminal is mounted on the connector housing. In each of the work steps described above, there is a possibility that foreign matter touches the lance 5 and deforms it. If the lance 5 is plastically deformed under the force of being pressed from the side, reliable locking to the connector housing cannot be performed, and the terminal retaining force is significantly reduced. Further, if the lance 5 is deformed so as to be caught by a foreign substance and raised, there is a problem that the insertion into the connector housing is hindered.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide an interconnection terminal capable of protecting an engagement portion for mounting a terminal to a connector housing and preventing its deformation. It is another object of the present invention to provide a joint connector capable of preventing deformation of an interconnecting terminal and obtaining a reliable attachment state to a connector housing.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An interconnecting terminal according to the present invention is for connecting wires in common and connecting them together by connecting a plurality of wires to each other and mounting them in a connector housing. And a resilient contact piece, a common connection protrusion that contacts the resilient contact piece of another adjacent interconnection terminal mounted in the connector housing, and a resilient contact piece formed to engage with the common connection protrusion. Thus, the present invention is characterized in that it has a configuration including an engagement portion for bringing the terminals into an engaged state (the invention of claim 1).

In this case, the engaging portion can be formed by cutting and raising a part of the elastic contact piece.
Invention). Further, a contact piece support portion extending toward the back side of the elastic contact piece by bending a part thereof may be formed at the tip of the elastic contact piece (the invention of claim 3). Also,
Also, an engaging portion support piece may be formed at the tip of the elastic contact piece so as to be folded back and extend toward the back surface of the engaging portion (the invention of claim 4).

Further, the joint connector according to the present invention is characterized in that a plurality of interconnection terminals respectively connected to electric wires are mounted on a connector housing to commonly connect the electric wires, and the interconnection terminals have elastic contact pieces. And a common connection protrusion that contacts the elastic contact piece of another adjacent interconnection terminal, and an engagement portion that engages the terminals by engaging with the common connection protrusion, The connector housing is characterized in that the connector housing is provided with an engaging portion that engages with an engaging portion of the terminal located on the outermost side of the interconnecting terminal group connected to each other to lock the terminal to the connector housing. (Invention of claim 5). Further, the housing may be provided with an elastic locking piece that engages with the common connection projection of the interconnection terminal (the invention of claim 6).

[0009]

According to the joint connector of the above means, the terminals are engaged with each other by the engagement of the engagement portion of the interconnection terminal with the common connection projection, and the terminal located at the outermost position in the terminal group is connected. The engaging portion is engaged with the locking portion of the connector housing, so that the connector housing is prevented from coming off. Further, in particular, the housing is provided with an elastic locking piece.
In the invention of the first aspect, the terminal group for interconnection is connected to the housing 2
Will engage at the point.

In the structure according to the third aspect of the present invention, wherein the contact piece support portion is provided on the interconnection terminal, when the elastic contact piece is largely bent and deformed, the back surface of the elastic contact piece contacts the contact piece support portion. And further excessive bending deformation is prevented. Further, in the structure according to claim 4, wherein the engagement terminal support piece is provided on the interconnection terminal, the back surface of the engagement part comes into contact with the engagement part support piece when the engagement part is largely bent and deformed. And further excessive bending deformation is prevented.

[0011]

As described above, according to the joint connector of the present invention, the terminals are engaged with each other and a part of the terminals is engaged with the connector housing, so that each terminal is engaged with the connector housing. There is no need to provide a lance, and there is no obstacle due to the deformation. Also,
In particular, according to the invention of claim 6, since the interconnection terminal group is engaged with the housing at two places, more reliable retaining performance can be obtained.

Further, according to the interconnection terminal of the present invention,
Since the terminals can be engaged with each other, there is no need to provide a lance for engaging each terminal with the connector housing, and there is no obstruction due to the deformation, and in particular, the engaging portion is cut from the elastic contact piece. Claim 2 formed by raising.
According to the invention, the manufacturing of the engaging portion is simplified.

Further, according to the interconnection terminal of the third aspect, since the excessive bending of the elastic contact piece can be prevented, the deformation or the like due to the excessive bending of the elastic contact piece can be prevented. According to the interconnection terminal, since excessive bending of the engaging portion can be prevented, deformation or the like due to excessive bending of the engaging portion can also be prevented.

[0014]

【Example】

<First Embodiment> A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 shows an overall structure of an interconnection terminal 10 according to the present embodiment, and a wire barrel 13 for caulking a core wire 12 of an electric wire 11 at a rear end of a box-shaped terminal body 20. Electric wire 11
An insulation barrel 15 for caulking the insulating coating 14 is integrally formed. Opposite side walls 22 are formed in the terminal body 20 on both sides along the longitudinal direction of a rectangular bottom wall 21 in a rising shape, and the upper ends of the side walls 22 are folded inward in a U-shape. A gap 23 having a predetermined width is formed between the side wall portions 22.

A long strip is cut out from the center of the front edge of the bottom wall 21 and is bent so as to be located between the side walls 22 to form an elastic contact piece 24.
The elastic contact pieces 24 are provided at positions lower than the front ends of the side walls 22, and are hidden behind the side walls 22 on both sides. Further, an engagement portion 25 is formed on the base side of the elastic contact piece 24 by cutting and raising the wire barrel 13 so as to open. The engaging portion 25 is also separated from the elastic contact piece 24 at the base bent portion 24a of the elastic contact piece 24 so as to have a spring characteristic independent of the elastic contact piece 24.

The elastic contact piece 24 is connected to the wire barrel 13.
As shown in FIG. 2, the side is bent obliquely downward, and the front end side is directed to the base end bent portion 24 a side while contacting the bottom wall portion 21. Is formed on the support portion 26. The engaging portion support piece 26 has a lower end in contact with the bottom wall 21 of the terminal body 20 and an upper end with a predetermined gap between the engaging portion 25 and the back surface of the engaging portion 25. When the is greatly deformed downward, the back surface thereof comes into contact with the upper end of the engagement portion support piece 26 to prevent further deformation.

Further, on the upper surface of the elastic contact piece 24, a contact portion 27 which is raised in a rectangular shape is formed. And
The elastic contact piece 24 folded so as to be in contact with the bottom wall 21
At a position below the contact portion 27, a contact piece support portion 28 that is bent upward from both sides of the engaging portion support piece 26 and extends vertically is formed. The contact piece support portion 28 has a lower end in contact with the bottom wall 21 of the terminal body 20 and an upper end with a predetermined gap between the elastic contact piece 24 and the back surface of the contact portion 27. When the contact piece 24 is largely bent and deformed downward, the back surface thereof comes into contact with the upper end of the contact piece support portion 28 so that further deformation is prevented.

At the lower portion of the bottom wall portion 21 below the elastic contact piece 24, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, two common connection projections 29 are formed in a facing state by cutting and raising. I have. This common connection protrusion 29 has a trapezoidal shape,
It is cut and raised in a trapezoidal shape so as to open both side wall portions 22, and is formed in a protruding piece shape extending substantially along the gap 23 between the side wall portions 22 substantially at the center of the bottom wall portion 21.

On the other hand, the housing 30 has a rectangular box shape with one surface (right side in FIG. 6) opened, and a plurality of (four in this case) interconnection terminals 10 can be inserted vertically. It has become. For this purpose, a rib 32 extending to the left and right is formed in the inside, thereby forming a terminal accommodating chamber 33 which is vertically stacked in four stages. On the lower surface of the ceiling portion of the housing 30, the locking portion 3 is provided at a position corresponding to the engaging portion 25 of the interconnection terminal 10 located at the uppermost stage.
4 are provided so as to be able to engage with the engaging portion 25. Also, on the bottom surface of the housing 30, the elastic locking piece 35 has three sides from the bottom surface as shown in FIG. 7 at positions corresponding to the common connection protrusions 29 of the interconnection terminals 10 located at the lowest stage. It is formed so as to be separated, and can be engaged with the common connection projection 29.

In the above configuration, a plurality of interconnecting terminals 10 caulked by the electric wires 11 are inserted into the respective terminal accommodating chambers 33 of the housing 30. As shown in FIG. 6, the uppermost terminal 10 is prevented from being detached from the housing 30 by the engagement of the engagement portion 25 formed on the elastic contact piece 24 with the engagement portion 34 of the housing 30. Further, the interconnecting terminal 10 located in the second stage below the interconnecting terminal 25 is engaged with the common connecting projection 29 of the terminal 10 in the uppermost stage, so that the interconnecting terminal 10 is interconnected with the terminal 10 in the upper stage. Is engaged.
Thus, the housing 30 is prevented from falling off.
Further, each of the third and fourth interconnection terminals 10
Also in the same manner as described above, the respective engagement portions 25 are engaged with the common connection protrusions 29 of the terminal 10 located at the upper stage, thereby preventing the terminal 10 from coming off. In addition, the lowermost common connection protrusion 2
Reference numeral 9 also engages with an elastic locking piece 35 provided on the bottom surface of the housing 30. In such a retaining state, each terminal 10 is in an electrically connected state because the common connection protrusion 29 contacts the elastic contact piece 24 of the terminal 10 located at the lower stage. The electric wires 11 are commonly connected.

According to this embodiment of the structure, the side wall 22 of the terminal 10 has a lance 5 similar to the conventional structure shown in FIG.
Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the foreign matter from touching the lance 5 and deforming the lance 5 from causing trouble such as a decrease in the retaining force of the terminal 10. Even if the lance 5 is not provided, each terminal 10 is connected to the engaging portion 25.
And the common connection projection 29 engage with each other, and the uppermost and lowermost terminals 10 located outside the group of terminals 10 are engaged with the housing 30. As a result, the terminal 30 does not come off.

Further, in this embodiment, a pair of side wall portions 22 are provided on both sides of the terminal body 20 in a rising shape, and the elastic contact pieces 24 and the engaging portions 25 are hidden behind the side wall portions 22. Since they are provided, they are protected by the side wall portions 22 on both sides. Therefore, terminal 1
In the respective working steps from the production of the electric wire 11 to the connection of the electric wire 11 to the attachment to the housing 30, no unnecessary force acts on the elastic contact pieces 24 and the engaging portions 25 from the outside, and Can be reliably prevented, and a reliable electrical connection state can be obtained. Further, even when the elastic contact piece 24 is hidden behind the side wall 22 in this manner, the common connection protrusion 29 is formed on the bottom wall 21 of the terminal body 20.
Are protruded and brought into contact with the elastic contact pieces 24 of the lower terminals 10, so that the connection state between the terminals 10 is reliable. Rather, particularly in this embodiment, the common connection protrusion 2
9 is formed in the shape of a protruding piece extending along the gap 23 between the side wall portions 22, so that when the terminals 10 are sequentially inserted into the housing 30, the common connection protruding portions 2 of the previously inserted terminals 10 are formed.
9, the elastic contact piece 24 of the terminal 10 to be inserted later comes into smooth contact, and the assembling work becomes extremely simple.

In the present embodiment, since the contact piece support portion 28 is provided on the elastic contact piece 24, the elastic contact piece 2
Even if 4 receives an external force such that it is greatly bent and deformed,
The back surface of the elastic contact piece 24 comes into contact with the contact piece supporting portion 28, and further excessive bending deformation is prevented, so that the deformation of the elastic contact piece 24 can be more reliably prevented. Furthermore, the elastic contact piece 24 has an engaging portion support piece 26.
Even if the engagement portion 25 is subjected to an external force such that the engagement portion 25 is largely bent and deformed, the back surface of the engagement portion 25 contacts the engagement portion support piece 26, and the Excessive bending deformation is prevented, and the engagement portion 25 can be more reliably prevented from deformation.

<Second Embodiment> FIG. 9 shows a second embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the first embodiment is that the terminal body 2
The shape of the side wall portion 22 is 0, where the upper end is bent in an arc shape and the tip is directed downward. Other structures are first
This is the same as the embodiment, and the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the duplicate description will be omitted. It goes without saying that even with such a structure, the same effect as in the first embodiment can be obtained.

<Third Embodiment> FIG. 10 shows a third embodiment of the present invention.
The structure of the 0 side wall portion 22 is different. Here, the right side wall portion 2 passes from the left side wall portion 22 through the wire barrel 13 side.
A U-shaped extension piece 22a is formed so as to wrap around the second side, and a U-shaped extension piece 22b is formed so that the right side wall 22 also passes through the wire barrel 13 and wraps around the left side wall 22. The extension pieces 22a and 22b overlap the other side wall 22. As a result, the left and right side wall portions 22 have a shape that is continuous on the wire barrel 13 side, and the wire barrel 1 is located between the two side wall portions 22.
A gap 23 closed on the third side is formed.

Also in this embodiment, the resilient contact pieces 24 and the engaging portions 25 are located between the side walls 22 and are provided at positions lower than the front ends of the side walls 22. Will be in a protected form. Moreover, in this embodiment, the gap 23 is
Since the side has a closed shape, contact of foreign matter from this direction can be surely prevented, and the protection of the engaging portion 25 is further ensured.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described with reference to the above description and drawings, and 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 interconnection terminal according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the terminal body in a partially broken manner.

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the terminal body.

FIG. 4 is a front view of the interconnection terminal.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a bottom portion of the terminal body, which is also partially cut away.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional side view showing the same connection terminal mounted on a housing.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the same housing.

FIG. 8 is a longitudinal sectional front view showing the same connection terminals mounted on the housing.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a conventional interconnection terminal.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Terminal for interconnection 11 ... Electric wire 20 ... Terminal main body 22 ... Side wall part 23 ... Gap 24 ... Elastic contact piece 25 ... Engagement part 26 ... Engagement part support piece 28 ... Contact piece support part 29 ... Common connection protrusion 30 ... Housing 34 ... Locking part 35 ... Elastic locking piece

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H01R 31/08 H01R 13/05 H01R 13/42

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] An interconnecting terminal for connecting the electric wires to each other and mounting the electric wires in a connector housing, wherein a plurality of the electric wires are in contact with each other to connect the electric wires in common with each other; A common connection protrusion that contacts the elastic contact piece of another adjacent interconnection terminal mounted in the terminal; and engages with the common connection protrusion of another terminal provided on the elastic contact piece. Ri Na and an engaging portion for the mutual and engaged, the elastic contact
A part of the elastic contact piece is folded back at the tip of the piece.
A contact piece support portion extending toward the back side is formed
An interconnection terminal characterized by the above-mentioned . 2. An interconnecting terminal for connecting a common wire between said wires by connecting the wires to each other and mounting the wires in a connector housing. A common connection protrusion that contacts the elastic contact piece of another adjacent interconnection terminal mounted in the terminal; and engages with the common connection protrusion of another terminal provided on the elastic contact piece. Ri Na and an engaging portion for the mutual and engaged, the elastic contact
At the tip of the piece, part of it is folded back to
An engaging portion support piece extending toward the side is formed.
A terminal for interconnection characterized by the following. 3. A method of mounting a plurality of interconnection terminals connected to electric wires on a connector housing to connect the electric wires in common, wherein the interconnection terminals have an elastic contact piece and an adjacent contact member. A common connection protrusion that contacts the elastic contact piece of the interconnection terminal, and an engagement portion that engages the terminal by engaging with the common connection protrusion. Is characterized by comprising a locking portion that engages with the engaging portion of the terminal located on the outermost side of the interconnecting terminal group connected to each other to lock the terminal to the connector housing. And joint connector. 4. The joint connector according to claim 3 , wherein the connector housing is provided with an elastic locking piece that engages with a common connection projection of the interconnection terminal.