JP3520729B2 - connector - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector mounted on a panel. 2. Description of the Related Art A connector mounted on a door panel of an automobile has the following configuration. A standby connector housing is attached to the mounting hole of the panel, and a nut is fixed to the standby connector housing. A grommet capable of sealing the opening edge of the mounting hole is attached to the waterproof side connector housing fitted to the standby side connector housing, and when both connector housings are fitted, the mounting hole becomes waterproof by the grommet. Become. [0003] Bolts are used as means for fitting the two connectors together. That is, a nut is inserted into the standby-side connector housing, and a bolt that supports the grommet in a watertight state is supported in the waterproof-side connector housing. The bolt is screwed into the nut and tightened. The two connector housings can be surely brought into the proper mating state against the resistance, particularly the large mating resistance in the case of multi-pole. [0004] The tightening and tightening of this bolt
The loosening operation is performed by using a tool such as a torque wrench and fitting the tool to the hexagonal head of the bolt. For this reason, there is a disadvantage that the operation cannot be performed if the tool is not close at hand, and that the operation of selecting the tool according to the dimensions of the hexagonal head or fitting the tool into the hexagonal head is troublesome. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to enable a connector housing to be fitted / removed without using a tool. According to a first aspect of the present invention, a standby connector housing attached to a mounting hole of a panel and a grommet capable of sealing an opening edge of the mounting hole are attached to an outer surface. A connector adapted to be fitted with a waterproof-side connector housing, wherein the waterproof-side connector housing has an operating portion disposed outside the grommet and capable of manual rotation operation, A bolt having a shaft portion that penetrates the grommet fitting through hole in a watertight state and a male screw portion disposed inside the grommet is rotated only with its axis being parallel to the fitting direction of the connector housings. The standby-side connector housing is provided with a female screw portion capable of screwing the male screw portion, and the male screw portion and the female screw portion are engaged with each other. The two connector housings by rotating the said operating portion Te is configured to be connecting and separating said Misao
A working state in which the working portion projects radially from the shaft portion;
Between the storage state accommodated in the accommodation hole formed in the shaft part
Is constituted by a lever that allows displacement in
You . <Function and Effect of the Invention><Invention of Claim 1> The fitting and disengagement of the standby-side connector housing and the waterproof-side connector housing are performed by manually rotating the bolt operating section. So that no tools are required. In addition, when the fitting / removing operation is performed, if the lever is pulled out from the accommodation hole and is used in a state of being projected in the radial direction and a rotational force is applied to the lever, the lever can be easily operated with a small operating force. be able to. When not operating,
If the lever is stored in the accommodation hole, the lever does not need to be in the way. Embodiment 1 Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6. The connector according to the present embodiment includes a standby-side connector housing 10 that can be fitted to each other.
And a waterproof connector housing 20. The standby-side connector housing 10 accommodates a plurality of male terminal fittings (not shown) in a housing body 11 and a tab (not shown) of the male terminal fitting with a hood 12.
The mounting flange 13 is formed on the outer periphery of the hood portion 12. The standby-side connector housing 10 has the front end (upper end) of the hood portion 12 fitted into the mounting hole H of the panel P almost tightly from below, and the mounting flange 13 is in contact with the opening edge of the mounting hole H. It is fixed to the panel P in advance by locking means (not shown). In the mounted state, the hood portion 12 opens largely upward along the opening edge of the mounting hole H.
Inside the hood portion 12, a fitting tube portion 14 protruding upward from the housing body 11 is waiting. On the inner periphery of the fitting tube portion 14, a female screw portion 15 is formed in a region slightly above the center in the upper and lower axial directions. A spring receiving portion 16 having a stepped diameter is formed on the inner periphery of the upper end of the fitting tube portion 14. When the two connector housings 10 and 20 are fitted together, the housing body of the waterproof connector housing 20 is fitted into the hood 12 and the bolt 31 of the waterproof connector housing 20 is inserted into the fitting cylinder 14. It is supposed to be. Waterproof connector housing 20
A female terminal fitting (not shown) is accommodated in a housing body 21, and a resin wire cover 22 is attached so as to cover the upper surface of the housing body 21, and a rubber wire cover is provided so as to cover the wire cover 22. And a resin grommet cover 24 is attached so as to cover the grommet 23. An electric wire insertion hole (not shown) is formed in the electric wire cover 22, and an electric wire guiding portion 25 is formed in the grommet 23 so as to extend cylindrically outward from a position matching the electric wire insertion hole. An electric wire penetration hole (not shown) for penetrating the electric wire guiding portion 25 is formed in 24. An electric wire (not shown) extending from the upper surface of the waterproof connector housing 20 is inserted into the electric wire guiding portion 25. The fitting tube portion 14 in the grommet 23
A circular fitting hole 26 is formed at a position corresponding to. Although not shown, a lip portion for sealing is formed on the inner periphery of the fitting hole 26. Bolt through holes 27 and 28 are formed in the electric wire cover 22 and the grommet cover 24 so as to be aligned with the fitting holes 26, respectively. Wire cover 2
In the second bolt through hole 27, a relief portion 29 is formed by increasing the diameter of the opening edge on the upper surface side (the side corresponding to the fitting hole 26) in a stepped manner, and the relief portion 29 is formed larger than the relief portion 29. The lower part is a stopper 30. Further, a seal portion 23A projecting obliquely downward and outward is formed on the peripheral edge of the grommet 23 over the entire circumference. When the waterproof connector housing 20 is fitted to the standby connector housing 10, the seal portion 23 </ b> A is elastically deformed and adheres to the opening edge of the mounting hole H on the upper surface of the panel P. . A bolt 31 for fitting and disengaging the connector housings 10, 20 is attached to the waterproof connector housing 20. The bolt 31 is a shaft section 3 having a circular cross section.
2 and a male screw 33 formed at the lower end of the shaft 32
, A lever (an operation part which is a constituent element of the present invention) 34 which is a separate component from the shaft portion 32, and a return spring 35 which is also a separate component from the shaft portion 32. The upper end of the shaft portion 32 is an enlarged diameter portion 36. The enlarged diameter portion 36
Fitting hole 26 of grommet 23 and grommet cover 24
Through the bolt through hole 28. Since the outer diameter of the enlarged diameter portion 36 is set slightly larger than the inner diameter of the lip portion of the fitting hole 26, the lip portion is elastically deformed while the enlarged diameter portion 3
6, and the space between the fitting hole 26 and the enlarged diameter portion 36 becomes watertight. A flange portion 37 is formed in the enlarged diameter portion 36, and the flange portion 37 is a relief portion 2 of the wire cover 22.
9 and the stopper 30 and the fitting hole 2
6 is vertically sandwiched between the opening edge portion 6. With this structure, the bolt 31 is restricted from moving in the vertical direction with respect to the waterproof connector housing 20, and is supported in a state where rotation about the axis is allowed. The return spring 35 is composed of a compression coil spring.
The shaft portion 32 is loosely fitted in a region below the enlarged diameter portion 36. The upper end of the return spring 35 is locked to the lower end of the enlarged diameter portion 36 by locking means (not shown). On the other hand, the lower end of the return spring 35 is in a free state in which the lower end of the return spring 35 is allowed to move vertically with respect to the shaft 32. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the shaft portion 32 is formed with an elongated accommodation hole 38 that is concentric with the axis thereof and penetrates vertically. A pair of guide grooves 3 extending in the vertical direction are formed in the inner periphery of the accommodation hole 38.
9 are formed. The lower end of the guide groove 39 is the accommodation hole 38
, That is, the lower end of the bolt 31 is open, but the upper end is a dead end at a position slightly lower than the upper end of the accommodation hole 38. A relief recess 40 is formed at the upper end of the housing hole 38 and is open to the outer peripheral surface and the upper end surface of the enlarged diameter portion 36. The upper end of the guide groove 39 is opened at the inner surface of the relief recess 40. ing. A rubber stopper 41 is provided at the lower end of the accommodation hole 38.
Are fitted. The rubber stopper 41 has a circular shape as a whole, and a pair of ridges 42 corresponding to the guide grooves 39 are formed on the outer periphery. Therefore, this rubber stopper 4
The space between 1 and the accommodation hole 38 is watertight. The lever 34 has an elongated rod shape, and its outer diameter is slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the accommodation hole 38. The total length of the lever 34 is
The length of the receiving hole 38 is the same as or slightly shorter than the length of the region where the rubber stopper 41 is not fitted.
A pair of retaining pins 43 is provided at one end of the lever 34.
Has been formed. Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described.
The bolt 31 is assembled as follows. That is, before attaching the rubber stopper 41, the lever 34 is inserted into the receiving hole 38 from below with the retaining pin 43 facing downward, and the retaining pin 43 is fitted into the guide groove 39, and thereafter,
Assembling is performed by fitting the rubber stopper 41 into the lower end of the housing hole 38. In this state, the rubber stopper 41 prevents the lever 34 from falling out of the housing hole 38 downward. Further, pulling out of the lever 34 upward from the accommodation hole 38 is restricted by locking the retaining pin 43 to a dead end at the upper end of the guide groove 39. Thus, the lever 34 is assembled to the bolt 31 so as not to be detached. The bolt 31 is attached to the waterproof connector housing 20 as follows. That is, after the wire cover 22 is attached to the housing body 21, the bolt 31 is inserted into the bolt through hole 27 from above, the flange portion 37 is accommodated in the escape portion 29, and the stopper 30 is inserted.
After that, the grommet 23 and the grommet cover 24 are sequentially fitted, and the flange 37 of the bolt 31 is sandwiched between the hole edge of the fitting hole 26 of the grommet 23 and the stopper 30. Thus, the bolt 31
Are integrated with the waterproof connector housing 20. When the waterproof connector housing 20 is fitted into the standby connector housing 10, the lever 3
4 is pulled out from the accommodation hole 38, the retaining pin 43 is positioned at the upper end of the guide groove 39, and the lever 34 is turned down about the retaining pin 43. As a result, the lever 34 is brought into a use state in which it protrudes largely in the radial direction with respect to the bolt 31. In this state, the housing body 21 of the waterproof connector housing 20 is fitted into the hood 12 of the standby connector housing 10, and the lower end of the bolt 31 is inserted into the fitting cylinder 14, and the lower end of the male screw 33 is inserted. The female screw part 1
5 to make contact with the upper end. Next, a finger is put on the lever 34 and the lever 34
And a torque is applied to the bolt 31. Then, male screw part 3
As the female connector 3 engages with the female screw portion 15, the waterproof connector housing 20 is drawn into the standby connector housing 10, and the fitting proceeds. During this fitting operation, the lower end of the return spring 35 abuts against the spring receiving portion 16 of the fitting tubular portion 14, and thereafter, the return spring 35 is elastically contracted as the fitting proceeds. If the lever 34 interferes with the electric wire guiding portion 25 when the lever 34 is rotated, the interference can be avoided by reversing the lever 34 about the retaining pin 43. The two connector housings 10, 20
When the male thread part 33 reaches the regular fitting state, the male screw part 33 becomes
, The engagement is released, and thereafter, the bolt 3
Even if 1 is rotated, the two connector housings 10 and 20 do not come closer to each other. Thereafter, when the lever 34 is set upright and released, the lever 34 is lifted by its own weight.
3 is dropped into the accommodation hole 38 along the guide groove 39 to be in the stored state. Thus, the fitting operation is completed. When the waterproof connector housing 20 is detached from the standby connector housing 10, the lever 34 is pulled out of the accommodation hole 38 and turned down to be used. From this state, when a rotational force in a direction opposite to that at the time of fitting is applied to the lever 34, the upper end of the male screw portion 33 and the lower end of the female screw portion 15 start engaging due to the elastic restoring force of the return spring 35. Thereafter, the two screw portions 15, 33
As the engagement progresses, the waterproof connector housing 20 is displaced in a direction away from the standby connector housing 10. After the male screw portion 33 has passed the female screw portion 15, if the waterproof connector housing 20 is pulled out, both connector housings 10, 20 are detached. As described above, in the present embodiment, the fitting and disengagement of the standby-side connector housing 10 and the waterproof-side connector housing 20 can be performed by manually rotating the lever 34. No need to use. Further, when the fitting / removing operation is not performed, the lever 34 can be stored in the accommodation hole 38, so that the lever 34 does not need to be in the way. Reference Example 1 Next, Reference Example 1 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. Book
In the reference example 1 , the operation unit of the bolt is configured differently from the first embodiment. Other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment, and thus the same configurations are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description of the structures, operations, and effects will be omitted.
The operating portion 51 of the bolt 50 of the first embodiment has a disk shape having a larger outer diameter than the enlarged diameter portion 52 and is formed integrally with the bolt 50. A knob 53 having a rib shape in the radial direction is formed on the upper surface of the operation unit 51.
When performing the rotation operation, the bolt 50 may be rotated by pinching the knob 53 with a finger and twisting it. < Embodiment 2 > Next, Embodiment 2 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. Book
In the reference example 2 , the operation part of the bolt is configured differently from the first embodiment. Other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment, and thus the same configurations are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description of the structures, operations, and effects will be omitted.
A mounting hole 57 penetrating in the radial direction is formed in the enlarged diameter portion 56 of the bolt 55 of the second embodiment, and a pin-shaped lever 58 separate from the shaft portion 32 is slidable in the mounting hole 57. Is pierced. Retaining protrusions 59 are formed at both ends of the lever 58 so that the lever 58 does not come out of the mounting hole 57. At the time of rotating operation, as shown in FIG. 8, the lever 58 may be in a state of protruding in the radial direction with respect to the shaft portion 32, and a finger may be put on the lever 58 to apply a rotational force. Further, the lever 58 is connected to the electric wire guiding portion 25 (FIG. 8).
In each case, the lever 58 may be slid so that the opposite end is projected. <Other Embodiments> The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and illustrated in the drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. In addition, various changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. (1) In the above embodiment, both connector housings 10, 2
Although the male screw portion 33 is detached from the female screw portion 15 when 0 is properly fitted, according to the present invention, the male screw portion and the female screw portion can be kept engaged even in the normal fitting state. . In this case, the return spring becomes unnecessary. (2) In the first embodiment, the lever 34 is stored inside the bolt 31 when not operated, but according to the present invention, the lever may be detachable from the bolt. (3) In the first practical example , the operation unit 51 is
It had been fixed to, may be removal of the operation unit from the bolt.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a state in which both connector housings are detached in Embodiment 1. FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a state in which both connector housings in Embodiment 1 are being fitted. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which both connector housings are properly fitted in the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the bolt in the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a bolt in a retracted state in Embodiment 1; FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a bolt of Reference Example 1 ; FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a bolt of Reference Example 2 ; P ... Panel H ... Mounting hole 10 ... Standing side connector housing 15 ... Female screw part 20 ... Waterproof side connector housing 23 ... Grommet 26 ... Fit through hole 31 ... Bolt 32 ... Shaft part 33 ... Male screw part 34 ... Bar (operating portion) 38 ... accommodating hole 50, 55 ... bolt 51 ... operation part 58 ... lever (operating part)

Continuation of front page (72) Inventor Makoto Fukamachi 1-114, Nishisuehiro-cho, Yokkaichi-shi, Mie Sumitomo Wiring Systems, Ltd. (56) References JP-A-5-182714 (JP, A) JP-A-61-250980 ( JP, A) JP-A 4-72476 (JP, U) JP-A 4-10977 (JP, U) JP-A 6-13069 (JP, U) (58) Fields surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , (DB name) H01R 13/629 H01R 13/52 H01R 13/622 H01R 13/74

Claims (1)

(1) A standby connector housing attached to a mounting hole of a panel and a waterproof side having a grommet which can seal an opening edge of the mounting hole on an outer surface. A connector adapted to be fitted with a connector housing, wherein the waterproof connector housing includes an operating portion arranged outside the grommet and capable of manual rotation operation, and a fitting hole for the grommet. A bolt having a shaft portion penetrating the grommet and a male thread portion disposed inside the grommet is attached so that only the shaft center can be rotated in a direction parallel to the fitting direction of the connector housings. The standby-side connector housing is provided with a female screw portion capable of screwing the male screw portion, and the male screw portion and the female screw portion are engaged to rotate the operation portion. Wherein the Rukoto two connector housings are configured to be fitting and removing, using state of the operation unit, protruding from the shaft portion in a radial direction
And a storage state accommodated in an accommodation hole formed in the shaft portion.
Constituted by a lever that allows displacement between
Connector, characterized in that is.