JP3555556B2 - connector - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a connector.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, there is a connector shown in FIG. This comprises a male connector 1 having a hood 3 projecting forward from a housing 2 and a female connector 4 having a tubular fitting 6 surrounding a housing 5. The two connectors 1 and 4 are fitted by being fitted between the housing 2 on the side and the cylindrical fitting portion 6. Further, a retainer mounting hole 7 is provided in the female cylindrical fitting portion 6, and a side retainer 8 is assembled into the housing 5 through the retainer mounting hole 7.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the case of the connector 4 in which the retainer mounting hole 7 is opened in the cylindrical fitting portion 6 as described above, when the hood portion 3 is fitted into the cylindrical fitting portion 6 in an inclined state, the outer end of the hood portion 3 The peripheral edge 3 </ b> A abuts on the opening edge of the retainer mounting hole 7, which may hinder the fitting operation.
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to prevent a hood portion from abutting against an opening edge of a retainer mounting hole of a cylindrical fitting portion.
[0004]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The invention according to claim 1 comprises a male connector having a hood portion projecting forward from the male housing, and a female connector having a tubular fitting portion surrounding the female housing. The male and female connectors are fitted by fitting the female-side housing and the cylindrical fitting portion into each other. In a connector having a retainer mounting hole for assembling a retainer in a female housing, an arc-shaped edge centered on an axis parallel to a fitting direction of the male and female connectors is provided at an outer peripheral end edge of the hood portion. An inner surface of the cylindrical fitting portion is provided with an arc-shaped surface centered on an axis parallel to a fitting direction of the male and female connectors and corresponding to the arc-shaped edge portion; The hole is at least A part of the retainer mounting hole extending along the arcuate surface of the retainer mounting hole in a spiral direction concentric with the arcuate surface and oblique to the cylindrical fitting portion. The guide portion is formed such that the arc-shaped edge portion of the hood portion fitted into the hood portion can be in contact with the hood portion.
[0005]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the retainer mounting hole is provided with a hole edge substantially parallel to a fitting direction of the male and female connectors and connected to the guide portion. The hole edge portion and the guide portion were smoothly connected by an arcuate connecting portion.
[0006]
Function and effect of the present invention
[Invention of claim 1]
When the male and female connectors are fitted diagonally, the arc-shaped edge of the outer peripheral tip of the hood abuts the guide portion of the retainer mounting hole, and this guide portion has a spiral centered on an axis parallel to the fitting direction. Therefore, the arc-shaped edge of the hood comes into contact with the guide obliquely and in a point contact manner. Accordingly, the hood can smoothly fit into the tubular fitting portion without being caught or hit, and the posture is corrected as the fitting progresses.
[0007]
[Invention of claim 2]
When the arcuate edge of the tip of the hood portion that is obliquely fitted transitions to a state in which it comes into contact with the guide portion through a state in which it contacts the hole edge parallel to the fitting direction in the retainer mounting hole, the arcuate connection portion Thus, the transition can be made smoothly without causing any catching.
[0008]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
[Embodiment 1]
Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
The connector according to the present embodiment includes a male connector 10 and a female connector 20 that are fitted to each other such that their front faces are opposed to each other.
[0009]
The male connector 10 has a hood 12 protruding forward from the male housing 11 and a male terminal fitting 14 attached to the male housing 11 protruding into the hood 12. The upper and lower wall portions 12A and 12B of the hood portion 12 have a flat shape that is long in the left-right direction, and the wall thickness of a left wall portion 12L (the right wall portion of the hood portion 12 itself) facing the front of the hood portion 12 is constant. The outer surface of the right wall portion 12R on the right side when viewed from the front has a vertical flat shape and the inner surface has a semi-arc shape. The outer peripheral edge of the left wall 12L in the semicircular shape of the hood portion 12 is parallel to the fitting direction (front-rear direction) of the male and female connectors 10, 20 and is aligned with the axis of the semicircular arc of the wall 12L. An arc-shaped edge 13 is provided at the center.
[0010]
The female connector 20 includes a female housing 21 having a cavity 22 for accommodating a female terminal fitting (not shown), and a cylindrical fitting portion 23 surrounding the female housing 21. The hood portion 12 is fitted between the female housing 21 and the cylindrical fitting portion 23 so as to fit with the male connector 10.
The front shape of the female housing 21 is an ellipse similar to the inner peripheral surface of the hood portion 12, and the female housing 21 has a semicircular shape on the right side (left side of the female housing 21 itself) toward the front. A retainer receiving portion 24 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the housing 22 and communicates with the cavity 22. A retainer 29 is accommodated in the retainer accommodating portion 24 through a retainer mounting hole 27 of a cylindrical fitting portion 23 described later. The direction in which the retainer 29 is attached to the female housing 21 is a direction orthogonal to the direction in which the male and female connectors 10 and 20 are fitted. In the state where the retainer is in the temporary locking position shown in FIG. 2, insertion and removal of the female terminal fitting (not shown) with respect to the cavity 22 are allowed. When the retainer is pushed into the full locking position shown in FIG. The released female terminal fitting is in a restricted state. A seal ring 25 for sealing between the outer periphery of the female housing 21 and the inner periphery of the hood portion 12 is provided on the outer periphery of the female housing 21 behind the retainer housing portion 24.
[0011]
Of the inner circumference of the cylindrical fitting portion 23, the inner circumferential surface on the right side toward the front of the cylindrical fitting portion 23 (the inner circumferential surface on the left side of the cylindrical fitting portion 23 itself, The inner peripheral surface on the side corresponding to the arcuate edge 13) has an arc-like shape similar to the arcuate edge 13 of the hood 12 around an axis parallel to the fitting direction of the male and female connectors 10 and 20. The arc-shaped surface 26 has a slightly larger diameter than the edge portion 13. The arcuate surface 26 is formed over an angle range of about 60 ° from the lower surface region on the inner periphery of the cylindrical fitting portion 23, and the inner peripheral region above the arcuate surface 26 is retracted outward. It has become.
[0012]
Further, the cylindrical fitting portion 23 is formed with a retainer mounting hole 27 for mounting the retainer 29 to the retainer accommodating portion 24 of the female housing 21. The retainer mounting hole 27 is arranged so that its lower end is opened to the arcuate surface 26 and is formed to penetrate from the inner peripheral side to the outer peripheral side of the cylindrical fitting portion 23. When the cylindrical fitting portion 23 is viewed from the side (a direction orthogonal to the fitting direction of the male and female connectors 10, 20), the opening shape of the retainer mounting hole 27 is an upper edge portion 27A and a lower edge portion 27B. (A hole edge substantially parallel to the fitting direction of the male and female connectors 10, 20 which is a constituent element of the present invention and connected to the guide portion 27G) forms a straight line parallel to the fitting direction, and has a front edge portion 27F. The rear edge 27R and the rear edge 27R form a straight line perpendicular to the fitting direction, and a portion between the rear end of the lower edge 27B and the lower end of the rear edge 27R is formed as Has become. The edge of the hole along the arcuate surface 26 of the inclined edge 27S is a guide 27G extending in the spiral direction concentric with the arcuate surface 26. The hole edge of the lower edge portion 27B on the side of the arcuate surface 26 and the guide portion 27G are smoothly connected by an arcuate connecting portion 27C as viewed from the side.
[0013]
Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described.
When the hood portion 12 is fitted into the cylindrical fitting portion 23 in such a manner that the arc-shaped edge portion 13 faces the retainer mounting hole 27 side, first, the arc-shaped edge portion on the outer periphery of the distal end of the hood portion 12 is formed. 13 is in point contact with the lower edge 27B of the arcuate surface 26 of the retainer mounting hole 27 in a point-contact state, and thereafter, as shown in FIGS. 27G, and then comes into sliding contact with the guide portion 27G. At this time, since the guide portion 27G extends in a helical direction centered on an axis parallel to the fitting direction of the male and female connectors 10, 20, the arc-shaped edge portion 13 of the hood portion 12 is positioned with respect to the guide portion 27G. It comes into contact obliquely and in point contact. Note that this point contact position P is a position relatively close to the lower end of the arc-shaped edge portion 13 and at the same time, is the lowest end position of the guide portion 27G.
[0014]
When the fitting of the hood portion 12 to the tubular fitting portion 23 proceeds from this state, the state shown in each of FIGS. 6 to 8B is maintained while maintaining the above-mentioned point contact state. In this state, the inclination of the attitude of the hood portion 12 with respect to the cylindrical fitting portion 23 is slightly corrected, and the point contact position P is a position shifted above the point contact position (A). .
When the fitting proceeds further from this state, the position of the hood portion 12 with respect to the cylindrical fitting portion 23 is further corrected while the point contact position P shifts upward while maintaining the point contact state. Then, when the point contact position P reaches the upper end of the guide portion 27G, the inclination of the attitude of the hood portion 12 is almost eliminated, and thereafter, the arc-shaped edge portion 13 of the hood portion 12 is disengaged from the guide portion 27G and is moved from the guide portion 27G. Also comes into sliding contact with the arcuate surface 26 on the front side in the fitting direction.
[0015]
Here, when the arc-shaped edge portion 13 of the hood portion 12 moves from the guide portion 27G to the arc-shaped surface 26, the posture of the hood portion 12 is directly opposed to the cylindrical fitting portion 23 (both axes are mutually opposite). Since the guide portion 27G has a spiral shape, the arc-shaped edge 13 can be separated from the guide portion 27G without being caught. The state shown in each (C) of FIGS. 6 to 8 is obtained.
[0016]
As described above, according to the present embodiment, the hood portion 12 can smoothly fit into the cylindrical fitting portion 23 without being caught or abutted against the opening edge of the retainer mounting hole 27. it can.
Also, the lower edge 27B, which is substantially parallel to the fitting direction of the male and female connectors 10, 20 in the retainer mounting hole 27, and the guide 27G are smoothly connected by the arcuate connecting portion 27C. When the arcuate edge 13 at the tip of the hood 12 is shifted to a state in which it comes into contact with the guide 27G through a state in which the arcuate edge 13 is in sliding contact with the lower edge 27B of the retainer mounting hole 27, the transitional operation is performed in an arcuate manner. The connection is performed smoothly without being caught by the connecting portion 27C.
[0017]
[Other embodiments]
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above with reference to the drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. Can be implemented with various modifications.
(1) In the above-described embodiment, the shape of the opening as viewed from the side of the retainer mounting hole is substantially rectangular as a whole, and one of the four corners is tapered to form the guide portion. According to the present invention, the guide portion 32 may be formed by tapering the lower edge parallel to the fitting direction over the entire length as in the retainer mounting hole 31 shown in FIG. A guide portion 34 may be formed by tapering a trailing edge perpendicular to the fitting direction, as in a retainer mounting hole 33 shown in FIG. 11, or as a right-angled triangle as a whole like a retainer mounting hole 35 shown in FIG. The edge of the hole may be used as the guide portion 36.
[0018]
(2) In the above embodiment, the waterproof type connector has been described, but the present invention can be applied to a non-waterproof type connector.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a horizontal sectional view showing a state in which both connectors are detached in Embodiment 1. FIG. 2 is a front view of a female connector. FIG. 3 is a transverse sectional view of a female connector. FIG. FIG. 5 is a side view of the female connector. FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a change in a sliding state between the hood and the cylindrical fitting portion. FIG. 7 is a sliding contact between the hood and the cylindrical fitting portion. FIG. 8 is a partial side view showing a change in state. FIG. 8 is a partial horizontal cross-sectional view showing a change in a sliding contact state between a hood portion and a cylindrical fitting portion. FIG. 9 shows a modification of an opening shape of a retainer mounting hole and a guide portion. FIG. 10 is a partial side view showing a modified example of the opening shape of the retainer mounting hole and the guide portion. FIG. 11 is a partial side view showing a modified example of the opening shape of the retainer mounting hole and the guide portion. Example cross-section [Explanation of reference numerals]
10 Male Connector 11 Male Housing 12 Hood 13 Arc Edge 20 Female Connector 21 Female Housing 23 Cylindrical Fitting 26 Arc Surface 27 Retainer Mounting Hole 27B Lower Edge (Hole edge that continues to the guide part of the retainer mounting hole)
27C communication part 27G guide part 29 retainers 31, 33, 35 retainer mounting holes 32, 34, 36 guide part

Claims (2)

A male connector having a hood portion protruding forward from the male housing, and a female connector having a cylindrical fitting portion surrounding the female housing. The male and female connectors are fitted by being fitted between the cylindrical fitting portions, and the cylindrical fitting portion has a retainer in the female housing from the outer surface side thereof. In the connector where the retainer mounting hole for assembling is open,
An arc-shaped edge centered on an axis parallel to the fitting direction of the male and female connectors is provided at an outer peripheral end edge of the hood portion,
On the inner periphery of the cylindrical fitting portion, an arc-shaped surface centered on an axis parallel to the fitting direction of the male and female connectors and corresponding to the arc-shaped edge is provided,
The retainer mounting hole is arranged to open at least a part of the retainer mounting hole in the arc-shaped surface,
At the edge of the retainer mounting hole along the arcuate surface, the arcuate edge of the hood portion extends in a spiral direction concentric with the arcuate surface and is fitted obliquely to the cylindrical fitting portion. A connector characterized by having a guide portion capable of abutting on the connector. The retainer mounting hole is provided with a hole edge substantially parallel to the fitting direction of the male and female connectors and connected to the guide portion, and the hole edge and the guide portion are connected by an arcuate connecting portion. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the connector is smoothly continuous.

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