JP3436113B2 - connector - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a connector,
Specifically, it is intended to prevent a terminal removing jig from being accidentally inserted from the front end opening portion of the terminal accommodating chamber at the time of repairing the terminal and damaging the terminal.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIGS. 9 to 10 show a conventional electrical connector, which generally comprises a metal terminal 2 and a resin housing 10 having a plurality of terminal accommodating chambers 1 for accommodating the terminals 2. . The terminals 2 are the respective terminal accommodating chambers 1
It is inserted individually into and is held by a unidirectional latch. This latch usually consists of a lance 6 bent outwards on the terminal 2, which engages behind a projection 7 formed on the inner wall of the terminal housing 1 with the terminal 2 inserted. . Such engagement structures are very common.

The housing 10 further includes a retainer 11 which is insertable into the housing 10 and engages with the terminal 2.
Have. Such a retainer 11 is a second retainer for the terminal 2.
And the function of confirming that the terminal 2 is completely inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber 1. This double locking structure is also very common.

[0004]

It is sometimes necessary to remove individual terminals 2 for repair or replacement. At this time, the correct method is to return the retainer 11 to the temporary locking position, and insert the rod-shaped jig 12 for removing the terminal into the lance 6 which is bent and removed. By doing so, the terminal 2 can be pulled out from the terminal accommodating chamber 1. However, although it is clear that the retainer 11 is returned to the temporary locking position, the operator mistakes the insertion position of the terminal extracting jig 12 in order to bend the lance 6, and instead of the release hole 8, the terminal accommodating chamber There is a case where it is inserted into the tip opening 5 of No. 1. In this case, a force is directly applied to the terminal 2, which may lead to irreparable damage or damage.

According to the present invention, by providing a shutter capable of closing the front end opening of the terminal accommodating chamber at the time of repairing the terminal, erroneous insertion of a jig for removing the terminal is prevented, and therefore damage to the terminal is prevented. The purpose is to do.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is a connector comprising a plurality of terminals and a housing having a plurality of terminal accommodating chambers for accommodating the terminals, wherein the terminals are provided between the terminals and the inner wall of the terminal accommodating chamber. Has a first latch for holding the terminal in the terminal accommodating chamber, and further holds the terminal in the first latch from a temporary locking position that allows the terminal to be inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber. The retainer includes a retainer that is movable inward to a main locking position that constitutes a second latch that further holds the terminal in the closed state, and the terminal of the mating connector is inserted through the tip opening of the terminal accommodating chamber. Is provided with a release hole adjacent to the tip opening into which a jig for releasing the first latch of each terminal can be inserted, the retainer also has a shutter, and the shutter is temporarily locked. In position above It has a communication hole that closes the end opening and communicates only with the release hole, and the shutter is movable together with the retainer and is set so that the communication hole and the tip opening communicate with each other in the main locking position. The present invention provides a connector characterized in that

It is preferable that the tip end opening and the release hole of the terminal accommodating chamber have a regular grid shape, and that the shutter also has a corresponding lattice of the communication holes. Also, in the preferred embodiment, the shutter moves along a groove in the housing. This groove extends perpendicular to the axial direction of the release hole.

[0008]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a connector includes a metal-made terminal 22 and an injection-molded plastic housing 30 having a plurality of terminal-accommodating chambers 21 for accommodating the terminals 22. Become. In the illustrated embodiment, the terminal accommodating chambers 21 are arranged in four stages vertically and at least 10 chambers side by side. The overall structure of such a housing 30 is apparent from FIGS. 1 and 2. Each terminal 22 has an electrical wire connected to a crimping tab 23, but for purposes of illustration the electrical wire is omitted and the crimping tab 23 is not closed.

The terminal accommodating chamber 21 extends from end to end of the housing 20, and the insertion side opening 24 is for inserting the terminal 22 with a wire, so that the other end opening 25 is the mating connector to be joined. It is for inserting the terminal of. As shown in the drawing, the terminal 22 is of a female type, and is adapted to receive a male type terminal from the side of the tip opening portion 25.

The tab or lance 26 of each terminal 22 engages behind the protrusion 27 on the inner wall of the terminal accommodating chamber 21 to form a first latch. In practice, when the terminal 22 is inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber 21 through the insertion-side opening 24, the lance 26
Is elastically bent by being pushed by the inner wall until it passes through the protrusion 27, and then flips outward to prevent the terminal 22 from being pulled out. Further advancement of terminal 22 is impeded by abutting wall 29, as shown.

The retainer 31 is loosely accommodated in the housing 30, and the through holes 3 corresponding to the respective terminal accommodating chambers 21.
Own 2. In the temporary locking position of FIGS. 3 and 5, the terminal 22 is
Can be inserted freely. Once the terminals 22 are fully inserted and in the fully locked position, the retainer 31 is moved inward to the position of FIGS. 4 and 6 to mate with each terminal 22 to provide a second latch. When the terminal 22 is not firmly inserted, the retainer 31 does not move to the final final locking position, so that the retainer 31 serves as a second latch and at the same time serves as an indicator of improper assembly.

A series of release holes 28 are provided one by one adjacent to each terminal accommodating chamber 21. With this, it is possible to insert the jig 12 for pulling out the terminal for pushing down the individual lances 26, and by doing so, the terminal 21 can be pulled out. This operation is performed after the retainer 31 is also returned to the temporary locking position.

The overall connector structure as described above is very common. It is usually obvious that there is a retainer 31,
Before removing the terminal 22, the operator attaches the retainer 31
It is understood that the must be returned to the temporary locking position. However, the operator may either fail to release the lance 26, or not from the release hole 28, but the tip opening 2
There are times when power is added from 5. In that case, the terminal 21 or the connector itself may be damaged when trying to remove it.

The features of the present invention are illustrated in FIGS. The retainer 31 is a conventional type, but faces the arm 4
The shutter 42 is attached to the main body 43 by means of 4. The body 43 is conventional and includes a through hole 32 and a resilient latch that fits into a suitable recess in the housing 30. The shutter 42 has a plurality of small communication holes 47, which are formed in the same arrangement as the front end opening portion 25 of the housing 30 and are large enough to pass through the mating male terminals. As best shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the shutter 42 moves along a groove 52 formed in the housing 30.

When the retainer 31 is in the temporary position, the terminal 22 can be inserted as before, and each lance 26 is engaged with each protrusion 27. Only when the terminals 22 are properly inserted, the retainer 31 can be moved to the final locking position. These points are the same as before.
However, when the retainer 31 is in the temporary locking position (FIGS. 3 and 5), the shutter 42 causes the tip opening 2 of the terminal 22 to move.
At the same time as closing 5, the jig 12 for removing the terminal is allowed to pass through the release hole 28. In the fully locked position (Fig. 4
6), the release hole 28 is closed, but the tip opening 25 is not shielded and can be connected to another connector.

7 and 8 show a detent state for locking the retainer 31 in the temporary locking position and the final locking position. As shown in FIG. 7, the main body 43 of the retainer 31 is
In the temporary locking position, the first elastic leg 46A engages the base of the protrusion 55 of the housing 30. Second elastic leg 46B
Engages the end of the opposite projection 56 of the housing 30. As shown, the legs 46A, 46B are of equal length and the protrusions 55, 56 are staggered. The arrangement keeps the retainer 31 stationary from the temporary locking position and the arm 44 is raised from the housing 30.

FIG. 8 shows the fully locked position, which is leg 46A.
Is in a state of elastically moving beyond the protrusion 55 for engaging the distal end side, the arm 44 moves with respect to the housing 30, and the retainer 31 is held in the main locking position. The distance that the retainer 31 moves between the temporary locking position and the main locking position is equal to the distance between the open end and the closed position of the shutter 42. In other words, the pitch is the same.

[0018]

Therefore, since the shutter is provided,
When the retainer is in the temporary locking position, it is impossible to apply a force directly to the terminal, which prevents damage to the terminal. In fact, since there is a shutter, when the retainer is in the temporary locking position, the terminal extracting jig can be inserted only through the release hole. Therefore, the shutter serves as a guide for correctly removing the terminal to be replaced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a connector according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view seen from the opposite direction to FIG.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the connector with the retainer temporarily locked.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the connector when the retainer is fully locked.

5 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which terminals are omitted in FIG.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view in which a terminal is omitted in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing an engaged state of the retainer at a temporary locking position.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing an engaged state of the retainer at a main locking position.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a conventional example.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

21 terminal storage room 22 terminals 25 Tip opening 26, 27 first latch 28 Release hole 30 housing 31 retainer 42 shutter 47 communication hole 52 groove

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H01R 13/42

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A connector comprising a plurality of terminals and a housing having a plurality of terminal accommodating chambers for accommodating the terminals, wherein the terminals are provided in the terminal accommodating chamber between the terminals and the inner wall of the terminal accommodating chamber. A first latch for holding the terminal is further formed, and further holds the terminal while the terminal is held by the first latch from a temporary locking position that allows the terminal to be inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber. The retainer includes a retainer that is movable inward to a main locking position that constitutes a second latch. The terminal of the mating connector is inserted through the tip opening of the terminal accommodating chamber. A release hole into which a jig for releasing the first latch of each terminal can be inserted adjacent to the retainer, the retainer also has a shutter, and the shutter closes the tip opening at the temporary locking position. , The above The shutter has a communication hole that communicates only with the lease hole, and the shutter is movable together with the retainer, and is set so that the communication hole and the tip opening portion communicate with each other in the main locking position. connector. 2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the shutter is movable along a groove formed in the housing.