JP4730441B2 - Waterproof connector - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a waterproof connector.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 10, a waterproof rubber 4 capable of collectively waterproofing a plurality of electric wires 3 holding the female terminal fitting 2 on the terminal is mounted on the rear surface side of the female housing 1 of the waterproof connector. There is a configuration in which a pressing member 5 is attached from above. For attachment of the pressing member 5, a pair of locking projections 6a and 6b are provided on the rear side of the female housing 1, while the pressing member 5 is provided with each of the pair of locking projections 6a and 6b. Correspondingly, a pair of bending pieces 7a, 7b are provided in a protruding manner. When the pressing member 5 is mounted, the bending pieces 7a and 7b are pushed into the female housing 1 while being bent and deformed so as to ride on the locking projections 6a and 6b. Overcoming the locking projections 6a and 6b, restored and deformed, locked to the locking projections 6a and 6b, and the pressing member 5 is attached to the female housing 1 with the waterproof rubber 4 sandwiched therebetween (see Patent Document 1). ).

JP 2000-243505 A

  When the pressing member 5 is attached to the female housing 1 with the waterproof rubber 4 sandwiched therebetween, it is desirable to compress the waterproof rubber 4 uniformly from four directions.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the said situation, The objective exists in the place which compresses the sealing member for waterproofing uniformly from four directions.

To achieve the above object, a waterproof connector according to a first aspect of the present invention is a block-shaped housing having a cavity, and is formed on the upper surface of the housing to be engaged with a mating housing to maintain the fitted state of both housings. A lock arm, a seal member having a through hole at a position corresponding to the cavity, and a holder attached to cover the front surface of the housing with the seal member on the inside, and having a window hole at a position corresponding to the cavity A waterproof connector in which the sealing member is pressed against the front surface of the housing in a state in which the holder is mounted on the housing, thereby ensuring sealing performance against the cavity. And a locking piece formed to be able to bend at each of the upper and lower edges and both edges of the front plate. The seal member is fitted into the back side of the front plate and surrounded by the front plate and the locking pieces, and the engagement members are respectively provided on the upper and lower surfaces and both side surfaces of the housing. A locking projection for mounting the holder to the housing in a retaining state is formed by locking with a locking piece, and the locking piece formed on the upper edge of the holder is another locking The locking projection formed on the upper surface of the housing is disposed on the back side of the housing with respect to the other locking projection, and is formed on the upper surface of the holder. The locking state of the locking piece formed on the edge and the locking protrusion formed on the upper surface of the housing can be released through a gap inside the lock arm that forms the frame shape. It has a characteristic where it exists .

  Since the locking pieces are arranged in four directions, the seal member is uniformly compressed from the four directions.

It is a perspective view (before mounting) of a female housing and a holder concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is sectional drawing of the female housing and holder in the XX fracture surface of FIG. It is a perspective view (before fitting) of a female housing and a holder (after mounting) and a locking release jig. It is a front view (before fitting) of a female housing, a holder, and an unlocking jig viewed from the front. It is a front view (after fitting) of a female housing, a holder, and a locking release jig. It is a perspective view (after fitting) of a female housing, a holder, and a locking release jig. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view (before and after unlocking) of the female housing, the holder, and the unlocking jig in the YY fracture surface of FIG. 6. It is a cross-sectional view (before and after unlocking) of the female housing, the holder, and the unlocking jig. It is the side view which showed the state which the stopper part of the latch for latch release contact | abutted to the holder. It is the disassembled perspective view which showed an example of what a mounting member is mounted | worn with a housing.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the unlocking jig 40 according to the present embodiment has a female connector 10 and a holder 30 attached to a female connector 10 having a holder 30 attached to one end of the waterproof housing 10. It is for canceling | releasing the latching by the bending piece and the latching protrusion for restricting the separation | separation of this.

  First, the structure of the waterproof connector on the female housing 10 side will be described in detail. Hereinafter, the side on which the holder 30 is mounted will be described as the front side.

  The female housing 10 is made of a synthetic resin, and its front portion is formed in a block shape that can be fitted into a hood portion of a male housing (not shown), and the front surface is a fitting end surface 11.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a cavity 12 facing in the front-rear direction is formed in the female housing 10 so as to correspond to the male terminals on the male housing side, for example, arranged in three rows in seven rows. Has been. The front surface of the cavity 12 is opened as a terminal insertion port 13 through which a male terminal can be inserted. Further, a lance 14 is provided on the bottom wall of the cavity 12 so as to be able to bend and deform toward the lower bending space 15. The front of the bending space 15 is opened, and the locking of the lance 14 is released. This is a jig insertion port 16 for the purpose.

  The rear end side of the female housing 10 is formed in a hood shape, and the inside is a rubber plug accommodating portion 17 that opens to the inlets of all the cavities 12, and a batch rubber plug 18 is fitted and held by a rubber plug retainer 19. ing.

  A female terminal (not shown) fixed to the end of the electric wire passes through the rubber plug 18 and is inserted into the cavity 12 from behind, and the lance 14 is elastically locked when inserted to the proper position. Thus, the inlets of the cavities 12 are sealed when the through holes 18A of the collective rubber plug 18 are in close contact with the outer periphery of the electric wire.

  On the upper surface of the female housing 10, there is provided a lock arm 20 that is engaged with the male housing and holds the fitted state of both housings. The entire lock arm 20 is formed in a rectangular frame shape along the upper surface of the female housing 10, and has a pair of fulcrum portions 20A on both sides of the rear end side, and can swing in a seesaw shape around the fulcrum portion 20A. Yes. The rear end portion of the lock arm 20 is a release operation portion 20B having an anti-slip formed on the upper surface. On the other hand, when both housings are properly fitted to the front end opening edge of the rectangular frame, A locking edge 20C that can be locked with a protrusion (not shown) is formed. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the rear end portion of the upper surface of the female housing 10 and the central portion of the locking edge 20C are connected by the reinforcing piece 20D, and the flexural rigidity of the lock arm 20 is enhanced. Although the opening inside the rectangular frame of the lock arm 20 is partitioned left and right in the width direction by the reinforcing piece 20D, a jig different from a release jig described later through this (not shown, but not shown) It has a pointed form.) Is inserted.

  Further, a protective frame 10 </ b> A is provided on the upper surface of the female housing 10 so as to surround the lock arm 20. The protective frame 10 </ b> A is connected to the rear end portion of the upper surface of the female housing 10 to be cantilevered, and the lower surface thereof is formed so as to be substantially flush with the lower surface of the lock arm 20. Furthermore, a pair of guide ribs 10B are provided on the upper surface of the female housing 10 along the length direction from the front end thereof. When the holder 30 is mounted, the female housing 10 is in sliding contact with both side edges of the long locking piece 38A. In addition to serving as an entry guide, it also serves as a guide for fitting with the male housing. Further, at the center of the upper surface of the female housing 10, two ridges 22A protrude along the fitting direction, and a locking protrusion 21A is formed at each rear end portion. The piece 38A can be locked.

  In addition, the same protrusions 22B and 22C as those described above are formed on the both side surfaces and the lower surface of the female housing 10 so as to protrude along the fitting direction. Since these protrusions 22B and 22C correspond to the short locking pieces 38B and 38C arranged on both sides and the lower part of the holder 30, respectively, different from those arranged on the upper surface of the female housing 10, The locking projections 21B and 21C are cut out so as to be formed at a position closer to the front side. More specifically, those arranged on both side surfaces are arranged slightly below the central portion in the height direction, and those arranged on the lower surface are arranged in the center in the width direction. Further, a pair of guide ribs 10C are formed on the lower surface of the female housing 10 so as to sandwich the protrusion 22C along the fitting direction, and are in sliding contact with both side edges of the corresponding short locking piece 38C on the holder 30 side. It serves as a guide for the approach. The guide rib 10C provided on the lower surface side of the female housing 10 is arranged at a position different from the guide rib 10B provided on the upper surface side in the width direction. This is a device for restricting erroneous assembly (erroneous fitting) such that the male housing is turned upside down when fitting the male housing.

The holder 30 (mounting member) has a waterproof seal member 31 assembled on the inside thereof, and is attached to the female housing 10 so as to cover the entire fitting end surface 11. In addition, 11 A of ribs are protruded and formed toward the front so that the outer periphery of the fitting end surface 11 and the lower edges of the cavity of each step may be connected.
Similar to the female housing 10, the holder 30 is formed of a hard resin such as PBT (polybutylene terephthalate) and has a cap shape that can be fitted to the front end of the female housing 10. As shown in FIG. 1, a circular window hole 33 is opened in the front plate 32 at each position corresponding to the terminal insertion port 13 of each cavity 12. The base end portion of the male terminal of the male housing can be inserted into the window hole 33. In addition, the front edge of the window hole 33 is tapered for guide.

  Further, the holder 30 has a front plate 32, and the above-described long locking pieces 38A can be bent at the upper edge portion thereof, and the short locking pieces 38B and 38C can be bent at the both side edge portions and the lower edge portion thereof. It is formed to extend. A portion on the back side of the front plate 32 and surrounded by the locking pieces 38A to 38C and the front plate 32 becomes a mounting recess 34, which has a thick plate shape and is made of a soft resin such as silicone. A sealing member 31 made of (rubber) is fitted. In a state where the holder 30 is mounted on the female housing 10, the rib 11 </ b> A standing on the front surface of the front plate 32 bites into the seal member 31, thereby improving the sealing performance for all the cavities 12.

  A circular through hole 36 is opened in the seal member 31 at each position aligned with each window hole 33 of the holder 30, and one lip 37 is formed on the inner peripheral surface thereof. The inner diameter dimension of the lip 37 is set slightly smaller than the outer dimension of the base end portion of the male terminal of the male housing. In the illustrated example, the position where the lip 37 is formed is shifted rearward (right side in FIG. 2) sequentially from the lower stage to the upper stage.

  The holder 30 is put on the front end portion of the female housing 10 from the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. At that time, each of the long and short locking pieces 38A to 38C moves forward while being guided by the upper and lower guide ribs 10B and 10C, and when the respective tips get over the locking projections 21A to 21C, they are bent and deformed outwardly. Is returned and locked inside the respective locking pieces 38 </ b> A to 38 </ b> C formed in a frame shape, and thus the entire holder 30 is mounted in a state of being prevented from being detached from the female housing 10. Further, in a state where the holder 30 is mounted, the contact surface 31A of the seal member 31 is pressed against the fitting end surface 11 of the female housing 10, and each rib 11A bites in, and the sealing performance for all cavities is ensured.

  Now, as shown in FIG. 3, the unlocking jig 40 according to the present embodiment includes a prismatic operation part 41 that is gripped by an operator, and short locking pieces arranged on the upper end part of the operation part 41. 38B and 38C are integrally formed of a synthetic resin material from a release portion 42 for releasing the lock collectively.

  The release portion 42 is formed in a U shape that can sandwich the rear portion of the holder 30 in the female housing 10 to which the holder 30 is mounted. A pair of projecting pieces 44 are disposed along the front-rear direction on the bottom 43 of the release portion 42 that faces the lower surface of the female housing 10. Between the two projecting pieces 44, there is a guide groove 43A which can be fitted in alignment with the ridge 22C. Further, in the state in which the protrusion 22C is fitted in the guide groove 43A, the outer surfaces of both the protruding pieces 44 are fitted inside the both guide ribs 10C on the female housing 10 side, and the jig 40 is moved. Enables guidance.

  Further, the front end sides of both projecting pieces 44 project forward from the front edge of the bottom 43 of the release portion 42 to form a release claw a1. Both release claws a1 are formed in a taper shape having a tapered slope so that the both release claws a1 can enter the inside of the short locking piece 38C in a locked state with the locking protrusion 21C. In the release portion 42, the pair of arm portions 45 standing on both sides thereof can be appropriately bent and deformed in the expanding direction, and it is easy to get over the two protrusions 22B on the female housing 10 side at the tip end. A tapered surface 46 is formed. In addition, guide grooves 43B are recessed along the front-rear direction at the center of the inner surfaces of both arm portions 45, and can be fitted to the corresponding protrusions 22B. On the other hand, a pair of release claws a2 and a2 are formed so as to protrude forward from the front edges of both arm portions 45 so as to sandwich the guide groove 43B. Both release claws a2 are tapered on the outer surface side so that they can easily enter the inside of the tip of the short locking piece 38B in the locked state.

  The release claws a1 and a2 have the same length of protrusion from the front edge of each arm portion 45. The dimension from the tip of each release claw a1, a2 to the rear edge of each arm part 45 is slightly smaller than the width dimension from the front and rear stepped parts 10D of the female housing 10 to the holder 30 when the holder 30 is mounted. It is set to become.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.
In order to remove the holder 30 from the female housing 10, the unlocking jig 40 is directed to the female housing 10 from below. At this time, the tapered surface 46 positioned at the tips of the arm portions 45, 45 of the locking release jig 40 is in contact with both protrusions 22 </ b> B of the female housing 10 by grasping the operation portion 41. In this state, when the release portion 42 is pushed in strongly, both the arm portions 45 are expanded and deformed in the process of getting over the protrusion 22B, and returned when they get over, and correspondingly, correspond to the guide grooves 43A and 43B. The protruding ridges 22C and 22B are fitted. At this time, the tips of the release claws a1 and a2 are positioned on the front side of the tips of the corresponding short regulating pieces.

  Next, the operation unit 41 is operated to move the entire jig 40 toward the holder 30 side. At this time, the moving operation can be smoothly performed by receiving guidance by fitting between the guide grooves 43A, 43B and the protrusion 22C and sliding contact between the protrusion 44 and both guide ribs 10C. By this moving operation, the respective release claws a1 and a2 sink into the corresponding short-length locking pieces 38B and 38C. Then, as each of the release claws a1 and a2 enters the short locking pieces 38B and 38C deeper, the respective short locking pieces 38B and 38C are deformed outwardly, and the locking protrusions 21B and 21C. Is released. That is, the latching of a total of three places of the both side surfaces and the lower surface of the holder 30 is collectively released.

  Further, when the short operation pieces 38B and 38C are bent and deformed to such an extent that the locking with the locking projections 21B and 21C can be released during the releasing operation, as shown in FIG. The front surface of the release portion 42 of the jig 40, that is, the side edges of both arm portions serves as the contact portion 47 and abuts against the opening edge portion of the holder 30. This prevents the unlocking jig 40 from moving further forward with respect to the holder 30. That is, the contact portion 47 functions as a stopper for restricting excessive bending with respect to each short locking piece 38B, 38C.

  By the way, in this embodiment, although the latching with respect to each short length locking piece 38B and 38C can be cancel | released all at once with the jig | tool 40, 38A of long locking pieces are still in a locked state. For this reason, it is necessary to release only the long locking piece 38A using another release jig (not shown). In that case, while holding the short locking pieces 38B and 38C in the released state as described above, the long locking pieces 38A are passed through the gap inside the lock arm 20 having a frame shape with a jig with a sharp tip. A release operation will be performed. In the present embodiment, the locking pieces 38A to 38C are arranged in four directions in order to uniformly compress the seal member 31 from the four directions. Of course, before the unlocking operation by the jig 40, the locking on the upper surface may be released in advance.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the locking at the three positions can be simultaneously released by moving the locking release jig 40 forward by the release claws a1 and a2 provided thereon. Therefore, it is possible to increase the efficiency of the unlocking operation as compared with the conventional method in which the locking is only released one by one. In addition, the locking release jig 40 receives guidance from the guide grooves 43A, 43B and the like during the movement operation, so that the movement operation is stable and smooth operation is possible.

  Further, during the moving operation, the contact portion 47 functions as a stopper, and the holder 30 can be pushed out (removed) while restricting excessive bending of the respective short locking pieces 38B, 38C. The separation operation can be performed simultaneously. Of course, the holder 30 cannot be removed unless the long locking piece 38A is unlocked, but the holder 30 is subjected to the pushing force when the short locking pieces 38B and 38C are unlocked. Therefore, when the locking of the long locking piece 38 </ b> A is released, the holder 30 is automatically separated from the female housing 10.

<Other embodiments>
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. For example, the embodiments described below are also included in the technical scope of the present invention, and various other than the following can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. It can be changed and implemented.
(1) In the above embodiment, the locking release jig applied to the locking projections 21A and 21B on the female housing 10 side and the locking pieces 38A to 38C (flexible pieces) on the holder 30 side. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can also be applied to a structure in which a flexible piece is provided on the female housing 10 side and a locking projection is provided on the holder 30 side.
(2) In the above embodiment, the jig for removing the holder 30 of the waterproof connector has been exemplified. However, the jig can be widely applied as long as it is a member attached to the housing.
(3) In the above-described embodiment, the release claws a1 and a2 of the release jig 40 are provided corresponding to the engagement protrusions 21 at least in symmetrical positions (left and right surfaces of the female housing 10) in the female housing 10. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and it may be provided corresponding to the locking by the locking protrusion at the asymmetric position. However, in the case of the configuration as in the above embodiment, the left and right ends of the holder 30 can be simultaneously pushed forward to maintain the posture of the holder 30. When trying to release, it is possible to reliably prevent the other bending piece, which has already been released from being locked, from being locked again by the corresponding locking projection.
(4) In the above embodiment, the release claws a1 and a2 are configured to enter the inside of the respective locking pieces 38 by moving the locking release jig 40 in the front-rear direction (separating direction). For example, it is also possible to move the locking release jig in a direction orthogonal to the front-rear direction and to bend and deform the locking piece by a release claw arranged in front of the movement direction. is there.

10 ... Female housing 21B, 21C ... Locking projection 22B, 22C ... Projection (guided portion)
30 ... Holder (mounting member)
38B, 38C ... Short length locking piece 40 ... Unlocking jig 43A, 43B ... Guide groove (guide portion)
a1, a2 ... release claw 47 ... contact part

Claims (1)

A block-shaped housing having a cavity, and a lock arm that is formed on the upper surface of the housing and that locks with a mating housing to hold the fitting state of both housings;
A seal member having a through hole at a position corresponding to the cavity;
A holder that is attached so as to cover the front surface of the housing with the seal member on the inside, and has a window hole at a position corresponding to the cavity;
In the state where the holder is mounted on the housing, the sealing member is pressed against the front surface of the housing, and thus a waterproof connector that ensures sealing performance against the cavity,
The holder includes a front plate and locking pieces formed to be able to bend at both upper and lower edges and both side edges of the front plate, and is located on the back side of the front plate. The seal member is fitted in a portion surrounded by each locking piece,
On each of the upper and lower surfaces and both side surfaces of the housing, locking protrusions for mounting the holder to the housing in a state of retaining are formed by locking with the locking pieces.
The locking piece formed on the upper edge of the holder is formed longer than the other locking pieces, and the locking projection formed on the upper surface of the housing It is arranged on the back side of the housing from the stop projection,
Furthermore, the locking state of the locking piece formed on the upper edge of the holder and the locking projection formed on the upper surface of the housing is a gap inside the lock arm that forms the frame shape. Waterproof connector characterized in that it can be released through .

Images