JP4025513B2 - Locking connector - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a lock-type connector that can detect half-fitting with the other connector by the action of a slider that is elastically biased in one connector and can easily unlock both connectors. is there.
[0002]
[Prior art]
12 to 13 show a conventional locking connector described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-289756.
[0003]
In FIG. 12, 51 indicates a male connector, and 52 indicates a female connector. The male connector 51 has female terminals 54 in a connector housing 53 made of synthetic resin, and the female connector 52 has male terminals 56 in a connector housing 55 made of synthetic resin. The male connector housing 53 is integrally provided with a synthetic resin hood 57 on the outside. The female connector 52 has a connector fitting chamber 58 into which the male connector housing 53 is fitted, and a tab portion 56 a for contacting the male terminal 56 projects into the connector fitting chamber 58. . In this specification, the one having the female terminal 54 is defined as a male connector 51, and the one having the male terminal 56 is defined as a female connector 52.
[0004]
A synthetic resin slider 59 for detecting connector half-fitting is provided in the hood 57 of the male connector housing 53 so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction (connector fitting / removal direction). The slider 59 is positioned above the male connector housing 53 and is urged forward by a compression coil spring 60 in the hood portion 57. The slider 59 has an operation protrusion 61 and a downward stop protrusion 62 on the rear end side, a horizontal flexible contact arm 63 on the intermediate part, and a horizontal contact wall 65 on the front end side. Have. The contact arm 63 has a downward contact protrusion 64 on the front end side, and the contact protrusion 64 has an inclined surface for sliding contact on the rear side. The contact arm 63 can be bent in the vertical direction.
[0005]
A guide projection 66 for stopping and guiding the stop projection 62 of the slider 59 is provided upward at an intermediate portion in the longitudinal direction of the hood portion 57, and a flexible lock arm 67 extends in front of the guide projection 66. A downward locking projection 68 for engaging the upward locking projection 69 of the female connector 52 is provided at the tip of the locking arm 67, and an abutment projection 70 for preventing deflection is provided above the locking projection 68. It has been. The contact protrusion 70 contacts the lower surface of the horizontal contact wall 65 to prevent the lock arm 67 from bending upward.
[0006]
The female connector 52 is provided with the lock protrusion 69 on the rear side of the upper wall of the connector fitting chamber 58, and in front of the lock protrusion 69, an upward contact protrusion 71 with respect to the contact protrusion 64 of the slider 59. Is provided. The lock protrusions 68 and 69 are provided at the center in the width direction of the connectors 51 and 52, and the contact protrusions 64 and 71 are provided on both sides of the connectors 51 and 52 in the width direction.
[0007]
When the connectors 51 and 52 are initially fitted from the state shown in FIG. 12, the abutment protrusions 64 and 71 abut, and the slider 59 is pushed by pressing both the connectors 51 and 52 in the mating direction. Retreat and compress the coil spring 60. The contact wall 65 of the slider 59 is separated rearward from the upward contact protrusion 70 of the lock arm 67. Then, when the inclined surface of the contact protrusion 64 is in sliding contact with the inclined surface of the guide protrusion 66, the contact arm 63 of the slider 59 bends upward, thereby releasing the contact between the contact protrusions 64 and 71. . Then, the lock protrusions 68 and 69 of both the connectors 51 and 52 come into contact with each other, the lock arm 67 is bent upward, and the both connectors 51 and 52 are pressed in the fitting direction, so that the lock protrusion 68 gets over the lock protrusion 69. As shown in FIG. 13, the lock projections 68 and 69 are engaged at the same time as the connectors 51 and 52 are completely fitted, and the connectors 51 and 52 are locked. In this state, the terminals 54 and 56 of both connectors 51 and 52 are connected to each other.
[0008]
During the fitting of the connectors 51 and 52, the slider 59 is pressed by the coil spring 60 in the direction in which the connector is detached, and the contact protrusions 64 and 71 are in contact with each other. In the case of fitting (incomplete fitting), the female connector 52 is pushed out of the male connector 51 by the force of the coil spring 60. Thereby, the half-fitting of the connectors 51 and 52 is detected. When the operator pushes the connector 52 again, the connectors 51 and 52 are completely fitted.
[0009]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the above conventional lock type connector, when releasing the lock, the operator fully retracts the slider 59 against the coil spring 60, and in this state, the lock arm 67 is bent upward with a jig or the like. A troublesome operation of pulling the connectors 51 and 52 in the disengagement direction while releasing the engagement of the lock protrusions 68 and 69 is necessary, and the connector disengagement operation during maintenance or the like is very troublesome.
[0011]
In view of the above-mentioned points, the present invention can perform the half-fitting detection of the connector satisfactorily as well as the locking type that can smoothly and easily and reliably perform the disconnection operation between the male and female connectors. An object is to provide a connector.
[0012]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
  To achieve the above object, according to a first aspect of the present invention, one connector housing integrally has a lock arm and an unlocking protrusion, and the other connector housing is a lock arm for the lock arm. There is a lock projection that engages with the projection, and a slider is mounted on the one connector housing so as to be movable in the front-rear direction under the forward bias of the elastic member. A guide inclined portion that bends the lock arm in the unlocking direction, and a pair of left and right pressing protrusions of the other connector housing on the sliderRear contact surfaceA pair of flexible contact arms that contact with the pair of contact projections are provided with a phase shift in the front and rear direction. Pressing protrusionRear contact surfaceA pair of slider release protrusions that release the contact with each other are provided on the one connector housing with a phase shift in the front-rear direction. The pressing protrusionRear contact surfaceContact with the connectorof timeOne of the contact protrusions is retracting the sliderFrom the frontRide on one of the pressing protrusions and the other corresponding contact protrusion on the rear side gets over the other pressing protrusion.At the end of slider retractionThe other pressing projection by the biasing force of the elastic memberRear contact surfaceIt is characterized by abutting on.
  With the above configuration, one abutment arm of the slider abuts one pressing projection of the other connector housing with the restoring force of the elastic member during connector fitting, and the other connector housing is connected to one connector when the connector is half-fitted. Push away from housing. Thereby, connector half-fitting is detected. When the connector is further engaged, the two abutting arms ride on the slider release protrusion of one of the connector housings, thereby releasing the engagement with the lock protrusion. At the same time as the connector is completely engaged, the slider is biased by the elastic member. Restore forward with. The “connector” refers to a connector housing including a terminal.
  Further, when the connector is detached, the slider is retracted, and the other abutting arm abuts against the other pressing projection of the other connector housing with the restoring force of the elastic member while the slider is retracted. Is energized in the direction of withdrawal. Thereby, connector removal operation force is reduced. Less slider retraction stroke.
[0013]
  Also connectorPressing one of the other connector housings during matingProtrusionIs the contact of one contact arm of the sliderProtrusionIs pressed in the connector mating direction, and the contact arm of the slider contactsProtrusionThe slider release of one connector housingProtrusionRide on and press oneProtrusionAnd one abutmentProtrusionAnd disengagement with bothProtrusionIs pressing bothProtrusionThe slider is restored to the front by the urging of the elastic member while passing over the connector, so that both connectors are fitted.
  Also, when the connector is detached, by retracting the slider,The contact protrusion of the other contact arm gets over the other pressing protrusion,Abutment of one abutment armProtrusionOne ofPressing protrusionAt the same time as the other abutment armThe protrusion is the otherPressingProtrusionAnd the other connector housing is urged in the disengagement direction by the restoring force of the elastic member.
[0015]
  Also connectorPressing one of the other connector housings during matingProtrusionPresses one abutment arm of the slider, unlocking one connector housing while the slider moves backwardProtrusionRides on the slider's guide slope, the lock arm bends upward, and the lock arm locks the other connector housing.ProtrusionLock without touchingProtrusionThe slider abutment of one connector housing.ProtrusionBy pressing onto the abutment armProtrusionIs released, the slider is restored to the front by the bias of the elastic member, both connectors are completely fitted, and the lock arm is restored downward to lockProtrusionThe two connectors are locked.
  Also, when the connector is detached, the slider is retracted, so that one connector housing is unlocked at the guide inclined part of the slider.ProtrusionIs scooped up, the lock arm bends upward, and the lock is released. At the same time, the other abutment arm of the slider is pressed against the other connector housing.ProtrusionIs pressed in the connector detaching direction with the restoring force of the elastic member, so that the detaching force of the connector is reduced and the detaching of the connector is easily performed with a low force.
[0017]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a locking connector according to the present invention.
[0018]
This lock-type connector includes a male connector (represented by reference numeral 1), a slider 3 that is slidably attached to the male connector via a coil spring (elastic member) 2 in a connector fitting / removing direction, a female In particular, the slider 3 has a flexible pair of left and right parallel pressing protrusions (pressing portions) 5 and 5 ′ of the female connector housing 4. Abutting arms 7 and 8 (FIG. 4) are provided with a slight phase shift in the connector fitting direction (front-rear direction), and a pair of release projections 9 for the pair of abutting arms 7 and 8 are provided on the male connector housing 1. (Only one of the release protrusions is shown in FIG. 4), and when the connector is fitted, one pressing protrusion 5 comes into contact with one contact arm 7 to retract the slider 3, and when the connector is detached, the other pressing protrusion 5 ′ On the other abutment Contact arm 8 is brought, it is characterized in that presses and biases the female side of the connector (4) in the removal direction by the urging force of the coil spring 2.
[0019]
In the drawing, each terminal in each connector housing 1, 4 is not shown, but it goes without saying that the connector (1, 4) is composed of the terminal and the connector housing 1, 4 made of synthetic resin. Since the terminals are almost the same as the configuration in the prior art (FIG. 12), description thereof is omitted.
[0020]
In FIG. 1, the contact arms 7 and 8 of the slider 3 are provided independently in parallel on the left and right, and the contact protrusion (contact portion) 7a (FIG. 4) at the tip of one contact arm 7 is located forward. However, the contact protrusion (contact portion) 8a (FIG. 4) at the tip of the other contact arm 8 is located slightly rearward. The pair of pressing protrusions 5 and 5 'of the female connector housing 4 has a vertical pressing surface 5a (FIG. 1) at the front end and an inclined sliding contact surface 5b at the rear end, and each pressing surface 5a is front and rear. It is located on the same vertical plane without phase shift.
[0021]
A form of the contact arms 7 and 8 of the slider 3 'and the slider release protrusion 9 of the male connector housing 1' will be described in detail using another embodiment of FIG. For convenience, the same reference numerals as those in FIGS. 1 and 4 are used.
[0022]
In FIG. 3, a synthetic resin slider 3 'is composed of a front side portion, an intermediate portion, and a rear side portion, and a pair of contact arms 7 and 8 are disposed in the intermediate portion. In this embodiment, one abutment arm 7 is formed in a rectangular frame shape, and has a contact projection (contact part) 7a at the right end below the tip. The rigidity, that is, the bending strength of the contact arm 7 is enhanced by the frame-like portion 7d. The other abutting arm 8 is positioned adjacent to the left side of the frame-like portion 7d, and has an abutting protrusion (abutting portion) 8a on the lower side of the tip. The base of each contact arm 7, 8 continues to the front wall 17 on the rear side of the slider, and the other contact protrusion 8a is located slightly rearward of one contact protrusion 7a. Each of the contact protrusions 7a, 8a has a vertical contact surface 7b, 8b at the front end and an inclined sliding contact surface 7c, 8c at the rear end. Both abutting arms 7 and 8 can be bent upward in the figure. The positions of the contact arms 7 and 8 are different from those of the embodiment of FIG.
[0023]
In FIG. 3, on the horizontal intermediate wall 19 which is the lower wall of the slider accommodating portion 18 of the male connector housing 1 ′, a release projection (release portion) 9 for one contact projection 7 and the other contact projection 8 are provided. And a release protrusion (release portion) (not shown). Both release projections 9 are arranged with a phase shift in the front-rear direction corresponding to the positions of the contact projections 7a, 8a, and each have a front-side inclined sliding contact surface 9a and a rear-side vertical stop surface 9b. Yes. The release protrusion 9 is located substantially in the middle of the connector housing 1 'in the longitudinal direction, and the intermediate wall 19 is located in the rear half of the connector housing 1'. A flexible lock arm 20 protrudes horizontally from the front end of the intermediate wall 19 in front of the release protrusion 9.
[0024]
The locking arm 20 has a locking projection (locking portion) 10 pointing downward with respect to an upward locking projection (locking portion) 6 (FIG. 1) on the opposite female connector housing 4 (FIG. 1), and horizontal locking on both sides. Each has a release projection (lock release portion) 13 and an upward curved sliding contact projection (sliding contact portion) 21. The male connector housing 1 ′ includes an outer hood portion 22 having a slider accommodating portion 18 and a housing main body portion 23 which is an inner terminal accommodating portion. A front holder (not shown) is attached to the front portion of the housing body.
[0025]
In FIG. 3, a pair of left and right unlocking guide inclined portions 12 are formed on the front side portion of the slider 3 ′ (only the right side is illustrated), and the guide inclined portion 12 is horizontal. Following the support portion 24, the support portion 24 constitutes a part of the front end wall 25, and a space 26 is provided between the front end wall 25 and the contact arm 7.
[0026]
The front side portion of the slider 3 '(portion indicated by a chain line with a part cut away) is formed symmetrically. An insertion groove 27 for the pressing protrusions 5 and 5 ′ of the female connector housing 4 (FIG. 1) is formed on the side of the guide inclined portion 12. The left and right outer walls 28 of the slider 3 are provided with stop projections 29 for preventing the front-side disconnection from the male connector housing 1 ', and projections 30 for pulling (retracting) operation are provided upward on the rear side. It has been.
[0027]
The embodiment of FIG. 1 is basically the same as FIG. In FIG. 1, the contact arms 7 and 8 at the intermediate portion of the slider 3 are not formed in a frame shape but are substantially straight. A wide groove-like space 31 is located opposite the front ends of the contact arms 7 and 8, and the pressing protrusions 5 and 5 ′ of the female connector housing 4 can enter the space 31. A horizontal lock auxiliary wall (lock auxiliary portion) 14 is positioned above the space 31, and the wall portions 28 on both sides of the slider 3 are connected by the lock auxiliary wall 14. The space 31 communicates with the space 26 on the front side of the slider, and a pair of left and right forward tapered guide inclined portions 12 are located near the center of the front space 26, and the guide inclined portion 12 has a horizontal support portion 24. It passes through the front end wall 25 and passes through. On the rear side of the slider, an upper operation projection 30, a lower stop projection 32 (FIG. 4), and spring receiving bosses 33 on both sides are provided.
[0028]
The male connector housing 1 has a slider accommodating portion 18 penetrating in the connector fitting / removing direction (front-rear direction) in the upper portion of the hood portion 22 and a plurality of terminal accommodating chambers 34 in the housing main body portion. The coil spring 2 is accommodated in the guide grooves 35 on both sides of the slider accommodating portion 18, and urges the slider 3 in the connector fitting direction (forward) as shown in FIG. In this state, the front end position of the slider 3 is defined by the contact between the stop protrusion 32 (FIG. 4) and the slider release protrusion 9 (FIG. 1).
[0029]
In FIG. 1, a pair of left and right unlocking protrusions 13 are located in the slider housing portion 18, the unlocking protrusions 13 are located slightly below the lock arm 20, and the lock protrusions 10 are located below the distal end of the lock arm 20. Yes. A pair of left and right slider release protrusions 9 (only one is shown) are located behind the lock arm 20. The downward contact protrusions 7a and 8a of the respective contact arms 7 and 8 of the slider 3 can be slidably contacted with the inclined sliding contact surfaces 9a (FIG. 4) of the respective slider release protrusions 9, and the lock protrusion 10 is provided on the female side. The connector housing 4 can be engaged with a lock protrusion 6 (FIG. 1). The lock protrusion 10 is disposed behind the pressing protrusions 5, 5 ′ between the pair of left and right pressing protrusions 5, 5 ′ on the upper wall (wall part) 37 of the connector fitting chamber 36 of the female connector housing 4. Yes. The connector fitting chamber 36 continues to the rear terminal accommodating portion 38.
[0030]
The operation of the locking connector will be described below with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 4 shows an initial fitting state of both the male and female connectors (1, 4), that is, a state in which the housing main body 23 slightly enters the connector fitting chamber. Terminals (not shown) in both connectors are not yet in contact.
[0031]
The slider 3 is biased forward by a coil spring (not shown), is located with a space for sliding (substitute with reference numeral 18) between the rear end of the slider accommodating portion 18, The front end is in contact with the rear end of the slider release protrusion 9 of the male connector housing 1, the front end wall 25 of the slider 3 is located on the front end side of the slider accommodating portion 18, and the female connector is located substantially below the front end wall 25. A pair of left and right pressing protrusions 5, 5 ′ of the housing 4 are located, a locking protrusion 6 is positioned behind the pressing protrusions 5, 5 ′, and a pair of left and right unlocking protrusions 13 of the lock arm 20 of the male connector housing 1. An auxiliary locking wall 14 of the slider 3 is positioned above the slider 3, a guide inclined portion 12 of the slider 3 is positioned in front of the unlocking protrusion 13, and a pair of left and right contacts of the slider 3 are positioned behind the unlocking protrusion 13 and the locking protrusion 10. Each contact projection 7a of the arm 7, 8, 8a is located.
[0032]
As shown in FIG. 5, by pressing both connectors (1, 4) in the connector fitting direction, one pressing projection 5 of the female connector housing 4 is brought into contact with the tip of one contact arm 7 of the slider 3. 7a abuts on the front end surface (portion indicated by part C in FIG. 5), and the terminals in both connector housings 1 and 4 start contact.
[0033]
As a result, the slider 3 is pushed backward as shown by the arrow D against the spring force as shown in FIG. While the slider 3 is retracted, the pair of left and right guide inclined portions 12 on the front side of the slider 3 scoop up the pair of left and right unlocking protrusions 13 of the lock arm 20 of the male connector housing 1.
[0034]
As a result, the lock release projection 13 is positioned on the horizontal support portion 24 following the guide inclined portion 12 as shown in FIG. 7, the lock arm 20 is bent upward, and the downward lock projection 10 of the lock arm 20 is on the female side. It passes over the lock projection 6 without contacting the lock projection 6 of the connector housing 4. At the same time, as the slider 3 moves backward, the downward contact protrusion 7 a of the one contact arm 7 of the slider 3 starts to ride on the one slider release protrusion 9.
[0035]
5 to 7, the connectors (1, 4) are still incompletely fitted. If the operator stops the connector fitting in this state, the restoring force of the coil spring 2 (FIG. 1) is maintained as in the conventional case. Then, the contact protrusions 7a and 8a of the contact arms 7 and 8 of the slider 3 push the pressing protrusions 5 and 5 'of the female connector housing 4 in the connector detaching direction, so that the male connector (1) to the female connector (4) Disconnected, thereby detecting incomplete connector engagement.
[0036]
As shown in FIG. 8, when the connector is further engaged, the contact protrusions 7a and 8a of both the contact arms 7 and 8 of the slider 3 ride completely on the pair of slider release protrusions 9 of the male connector housing 1, The contact between the contact protrusions 7a and 8a and the pair of pressing protrusions 5 and 5 'of the female connector housing 4 is released. At this time, the downward locking projection 10 of the locking arm 20 of the male connector housing 1 is positioned close to the rear upper part of the upward locking projection 6 of the female connector housing 4.
[0037]
As shown in FIG. 9, the slider 3 momentarily slides forward as indicated by arrow E along the slider accommodating portion 18 by the restoring force of the coil spring 2 (FIG. 1), and the locking arm of the male connector housing 1 is moved. The lock release protrusion 13 of 20 slides down from the substantially horizontal support portion 24 of the slider 3 through the guide inclined portion 12, and the lock arm 20 is restored downward. As a result, the lock projections 6 and 10 of the two connector housings 1 and 4 are engaged with each other, and the two connectors (1, 4) are securely locked in the fully fitted state.
[0038]
The pair of abutment arms 7 and 8 advances from the state shown in FIG. 8 over the pair of pressing projections 5 and 5 ′ and is restored downward as shown in FIG. 9. Both abutment projections 7 a and 8 a are locking projections. 6 and the pressing protrusions 5 and 5 '. The downward stop protrusion 32 of the slider 3 contacts the upward slider release protrusion 9 of the male connector housing 1. The horizontal lock auxiliary wall 14 of the slider 3 is located in contact with the upper end of the lock arm 20 (sliding contact portion 21 in the example of FIG. 3), and prevents the lock arm 20 from being bent upward to ensure the lock. And let it be done firmly.
[0039]
The male and female connectors (1, 4) are detached from the connector fitting state of FIG. 9 by the following method. The connector detachment means shown in FIGS. 10 to 11 is a main part of the present invention.
[0040]
  That is, as shown in FIG. 10, the slider 3 is retracted by pulling the rear operating projection 30 as shown by the arrow F against the bias of the coil spring 2 (FIG. 1). At this time, the guide inclined portion 12 of the slider 3 scoops up the unlocking protrusion 13 of the lock arm 20 of the male connector housing 1 and bends the lock arm 20 upward as in FIG. 4, the downward locking protrusion 10 of the locking arm 20 is detached from the upward locking protrusion 6, and the abutting protrusion 8 a of the abutting arm 8 gets over the pressing protrusion 5 ′, and the one abutting arm 7 of the slider 3 faces downward. The contact protrusion 7afemaleSide connector housing4Riding along the inclined surface 5b (FIG. 4) on the rear side of the pressing projection 5, the one abutting arm 7 is bent upward, and the downward abutting projection 8a of the other abutting arm 8 is the other pressing projection. It contacts the vertical contact surface 5a 'at the front end of 5'.In the embodiment of the invention, the front-rear direction of the female-side connector housing 4 is described opposite to the front-rear direction of the male-side connector housing 1.
[0041]
As a result, the contact protrusion 8 presses the pressing protrusion 5 'in the connector detachment direction by the restoring force of the coil spring 2 (FIG. 1), and the female connector (4) has the male connector by the restoring force of the coil spring 2. It is pressed in the direction of separation from (1). In this way, the connector detachment force is assisted by the restoring force of the coil spring 2, and the operator can easily detach both the male and female connectors (1, 4) with a small force as shown in FIG.
[0042]
When the connector shown in FIG. 6 is fitted, one pressing protrusion 5 comes into contact with the contact protrusion 7a of one contact arm 7. When the connector shown in FIG. 10 is detached, the other pressing protrusion 5 'comes into contact with the other contact arm 8. Abuts against the protrusion 8a. In this way, the positions of the contact protrusions 7a and 8a of the pair of contact arms 7 and 8 are shifted in phase forward and backward, and the positions of the pair of slider release protrusions 9 of the male connector housing 1 are accordingly moved forward and backward. Due to the phase shift, each of the contact arms 7 and 8 can be bent independently.
[0043]
In FIG. 10, the engagement of the lock protrusions 6 and 10 of both connector housings 1 and 4 is released, and the contact protrusion 8a of the other contact arm 8 contacts the pressing protrusion 5 'of the female connector housing 4. At this point, it is no longer necessary to move the slider 3 backward, and the backward stroke of the slider 3 is reduced. This also simplifies the connector removal operation.
[0044]
The pair of pressing protrusions 5 and 5 'of the female connector housing 4 are shifted in phase forward and backward, and the pair of contact protrusions 7 and 8 and the pair of slider release protrusions 9 are arranged in parallel on the left and right without phase shift. Even in this case, the same effect as described above can be obtained.
[0045]
11, the locking projection 6 of the female connector housing 4 is separated in front of the locking projection 10 of the male connector housing 1, and the slider 3 is biased by the coil spring 2 (FIG. 1). The contact stroke of each terminal of both connectors (1, 4) is reduced to, for example, about half of the total stroke. From this state, the operator can easily detach both connectors (1, 4) with a small force.
[0046]
The applicant has proposed a configuration in which one abutment arm (7) is provided on the spacer (3) in Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-146022 (the configuration other than the abutment arm is substantially the same). Compared to the configuration, the configuration according to the present invention does not require the backward movement of the spacer 3 at the same time as the lock is released, and the spacer 3 causes the female connector (4) to move by the repulsive force of the coil spring 2 when the connector is detached. By pressing in the detaching direction, there is an effect that the connector detaching operation is facilitated.
[0047]
【The invention's effect】
  As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, in the middle of connector fitting, one abutting arm of the slider is pressed against one of the other connector housings by the restoring force of the elastic member.ProtrusionWhen the connector is half-fitted, the other connector housing is pushed out of the one connector housing in the disengagement direction, so that the connector half-fitting is well detected. Also, when the connector is detached, the other abutment arm presses the other connector housing with the restoring force of the elastic member while the slider is retracting.ProtrusionBy urging the other connector housing in the direction of detachment, the connector detachment operation force is reduced, and the operator can easily and reliably detach both connectors with a small force. Therefore, for example, the connector detachment operation in a narrow place of the vehicle can be performed smoothly, easily and reliably. In addition, the other abutment arm is pressed against the other connector housing while the slider is moving backward.ProtrusionWith this, the backward stroke of the slider can be reduced, and the connector detachment operation can be smoothed and facilitated. Further, since it is not necessary to hold the slider in the retracted state as in the prior art, this also facilitates the connector detachment work and improves the detachment workability.
[0048]
  Also connectorAt the time of detachment, the slider is moved backward to contact one of the contact arms.ProtrusionThe slider release of one connector housingProtrusionAt the same time as the other abutment armProtrusionIs the other pressing of the other connector housingProtrusionSince the other connector housing is strongly biased in the detaching direction by the restoring force of the elastic member, the detaching operation of the connector is more reliably and easily performed.
[0050]
  Also especiallyBy releasing the slider when the connector is detached, one connector housing is unlocked by the slider's inclined guide.ProtrusionAnd the lock arm is flexed upward to release the lock, and at the same time the other abutment arm of the slider presses the other connector housingProtrusionIs pressed in the connector detaching direction with the restoring force of the elastic member, so that the detaching force of the connector is reduced and the detaching of the connector is easily performed with a low force.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an embodiment of a locking connector according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which a slider is mounted on the male connector housing of the locking connector.
FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing another embodiment of a male connector housing and a slider with a part cut away.
FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an initial fitting state of the lock type connector.
FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a halfway fitting state of the lock type connector.
FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state in which the slider is retracted when the lock-type connector is fitted halfway.
FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state where the lock arm of the lock type connector is bent upward.
FIG. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state in which the contact arm of the slider of the lock connector is bent upward.
FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state where the slider is restored to the front simultaneously with the connector fitting.
FIG. 10 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state in which the slider is retracted as a connector releasing operation.
FIG. 11 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state in which the contact arm of the slider urges the connector in the detaching direction.
FIG. 12 is a longitudinal sectional view of a state before fitting showing one form of a conventional locking connector.
FIG. 13 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state when the conventional locking connector is fitted.
[Explanation of symbols]
1,1 'Male connector housing
2 Coil spring (elastic member)
3, 3 'slider
4 Female connector housing
5,5 'Pressing protrusion (Pressing part)
6 Locking protrusion (locking part)
7,8 Contact arm
7a, 8a Contact protrusion (contact part)
9 Slider release protrusion (slider release part)
12 Guide slope
13 Unlocking protrusion (Unlocking part)
14 Lock auxiliary wall (lock auxiliary part)
20 Lock arm

Claims (1)

One connector housing has a lock arm and a lock release protrusion integrally, the other connector housing has a lock protrusion that engages with the lock protrusion of the lock arm, and a slider is an elastic member in the one connector housing The slider has a guide inclined portion that is slidably contacted with the unlocking projection and retracts the lock arm in the unlocking direction when retreating, and is mounted so as to be movable in the front-rear direction. In addition, the contact projections of the pair of flexible contact arms that contact the rear contact surfaces of the pair of left and right parallel pressing projections of the other connector housing are provided with a phase shift in the front-rear direction. to and connector let ride complete fitting pair of abutting projections immediately before a pair of sliders releasing projection for releasing the abutment between the abutment surface of the rear side of said pair of pressing projections back and forth when withdrawal Phase shift and provided on one connector housing the front side of one of the abutting projections during the connector fitting abuts the abutment surface on the rear side of one of the pressing pressure protrusions by the urging force of the elastic member, the connector The one abutting projection rides on the one pressing projection from the front while the slider is retracting at the time of disengagement, and the other corresponding contacting projection on the rear side gets over the other pressing projection, and at the end of the slider retracting operation , A locking connector, wherein the locking connector is brought into contact with a rear contact surface of the other pressing projection by an urging force.

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