JP5126024B2 - Joint connector - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a joint connector for a wire harness, and particularly to a joint connector that can be fitted to a plurality of connectors.

  Various joint connectors for wire harnesses have been conventionally proposed. For example, JP-A-2006-1000018 (Patent Document 1) includes a joint connector shown in FIG. The joint connector 1 accommodates a joint bus bar 3 having a plurality of tabs 3a projecting in a housing 2, and engages and connects the tab 3a with a terminal 5 connected to a terminal of an electric wire 4, thereby providing a plurality of terminals. 5 is made conductive.

  Some joint connectors of this type are fitted and connected to a plurality of harness connectors 8 as in the joint connector 6 shown in FIG. 11. In this case, in order to cope with the increase in the number of poles, FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, there are many cases in which a plurality of tab rows in the Y direction are provided with a plurality of tabs 7 a of the joint bus bar 7 protruding in the X direction.

  By the way, in the case of the joint connector used for the wire harness routed to a motor vehicle, for example, as shown in FIGS. However, in the conventional connector such as the joint connector 6, even if the tabs 7a of the joint bus bar 7 are provided in a plurality of rows in the X direction and a plurality of steps in the Y direction, the mating direction (terminals) of the mating harness connector 8 is provided. Since the parallel direction is limited to the X direction or the Y direction, the connection pattern that can be handled by one type of joint connector 6 is limited by the form of the joint bus bar 7 accommodated in the joint connector 6. Therefore, when the connection pattern differs depending on the specification and the vehicle type, the form of the joint bus bar 7 must be changed, and the number of types of joint connectors is required to be the same as the number of connection patterns, which raises the problem of high costs. .

  Also, considering the harness manufacturing workability, it is preferable to divide the harness connector as much as possible. However, in order to match the harness connector to the shape and number of poles on the joint connector side, the number of poles on the joint connector side is the number of poles actually required for connection. If more, as shown by the broken line in FIG. 12 (C), an empty cavity is provided in the harness connector due to a useless pole that is not used, and there is a problem in that it is contrary to miniaturization and cost reduction of the connector. is there.

JP 2006-100193 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and in a joint connector that can be fitted with a plurality of connectors, it is possible to cope with a plurality of connection patterns with one type of joint connector, and the harness connector can be miniaturized. The problem is to reduce costs by reducing the number of wasted poles.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention is a joint connector that can be fitted with a plurality of connectors,
The connector housing partition wall is provided with tab holes having the same pitch P in the X direction and the Y direction in the row direction in the X direction and the step direction in the Y direction, and one side sandwiching the partition wall And the other side on the other side is a connector fitting portion that can be fitted with the terminal parallel direction as the X direction and the Y direction,
The joint bus bar has tabs protruding from the carrier portion extending in the X direction at the pitch P. The joint bus bar is divided into one or a plurality of pieces and arranged side by side in the X direction. Penetrating the tab hole of the partition wall and projecting to the connector fitting portion ,
The mating connector that fits into the connector fitting portion fits the mating connector in the X direction when jointing the terminals in the connector, while the joint connector is mating with the terminals in other mating connectors. A joint connector is provided in which a mating connector is fitted in the Y direction .

  In the joint connector having the above-described configuration, the same number of tabs of the joint bus bar are protruded at the same pitch P in the X direction and the Y direction. Therefore, the mating connector sets the terminal parallel direction at the time of mating according to the connection pattern. Either the direction or the Y direction can be selected. Therefore, without changing the shape of the joint bus bar, the connection pattern can be changed by changing the terminal parallel direction when mating with the mating connector, and one joint connector can be used for multiple vehicle types and multiple optional connection patterns. Therefore, the number of types of joint connectors can be reduced, and the cost can be reduced.

  In addition, a plurality of mating connectors can be fitted to the joint connector in various combinations in the X and Y directions, so that generation of useless poles can be prevented and the number and shape of joint connectors can be matched. Therefore, it is not necessary to make a useless empty cavity in the mating connector, and the mating connector can be downsized.

  Furthermore, since the dimensions of the joint connector in the X and Y directions, that is, the horizontal and vertical directions can be made uniform, the joint connector can be easily designed and manufactured.

Each of the joint bus bars has three or a multiple of 3 tabs projecting,
The number of tab holes in the X direction and the number of steps in the Y direction are three or a multiple of 3, and the tabs of the joint bus bar are projected from all the tab holes.
This is because, in the case of an automobile wire harness, the counterpart connector connected to the joint connector is usually based on three poles: plus, minus, and ground.

  As described above, according to the present invention, since the same number of the tabs of the joint bus bar are protruded at the same pitch P in the X direction and the Y direction in the joint connector, the mating connector is fitted according to the connection pattern. The terminal parallel direction at the time can be selected in either the X direction or the Y direction. Therefore, without changing the shape of the joint bus bar, the connection pattern can be changed by changing the terminal parallel direction when mating the mating connector, and a single joint connector can handle multiple connection patterns. The number of types can be reduced, and the cost can be reduced.

  In addition, the joint connector can be combined with a plurality of mating connectors in the X direction and the Y direction, thereby preventing the generation of useless poles and reducing the number and shape of the joint connectors. In addition, since it is not necessary to make a useless empty cavity in the mating connector, the mating connector can be miniaturized, and the cost can be reduced also in this respect.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
1 to 7 show a joint connector 10 according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 1, the joint connector 10 is for fitting and connecting a plurality of connectors 40 connected to a plurality of electric wire groups 60 constituting a wire harness for an automobile.

2A and 2B, the housing 11 of the joint connector 10 has a joint bus bar accommodating portion 13 on one side and a connector fitting portion 14 on the other side through a partition wall 12 provided inside. Is provided.
As shown in FIG. 3, the partition wall 12 is provided with six tab holes 15 penetrating in the row direction in the X direction, and six tab holes 15 are provided in the Y direction, for a total of 36 tabs. A hole 15 is formed. The pitch in the X direction and the pitch in the Y direction between the tab holes 15 are the same pitch P.

  As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the joint bus bar accommodating portion 13 is provided with six stages of bus bar accommodating chambers 16 extending in the X direction with a pitch P in the Y direction. The rear end side of each bus bar housing chamber 16 communicates with the six tab holes 15 of each step arranged in parallel with the partition wall 12 in the X direction, and the other end side is opened as it is and extends in the X direction. A horizontally long bus bar insertion opening 17 is formed.

  The joint bus bar accommodating portion 13 accommodates six bus bars 30A having six tabs 32 protruding from the carrier portion 31 with the pitch P therebetween. Specifically, each bus bar 30A is inserted into each bus bar accommodating chamber 16 from the bus bar insertion port 17 with the extending direction of the carrier portion 31 as the X direction, and each carrier portion 31 is inserted into each bus bar accommodating chamber. 16 and a total of 36 tabs provided in the partition wall 12 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, with all tabs 32 of each bus bar 30A penetrating through the tab holes 15 of the partition wall 12. A tab 32 protrudes from the hole 15 toward the connector fitting portion 14.

  The connector fitting portion 14 has a structure for locking and fixing the harness connector to the inner surface of the peripheral wall 18. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the tab wall 15 of each row is formed in the upper wall 18 a and the lower wall 18 c extending in the X direction in the figure after the peripheral wall 18 consisting of the four surfaces of the housing 11. A locking structure is provided on the inner surface at the same position in the X direction. As the locking structure, six locking claws 19 project from the inner surface of the upper wall 18a, and 6 on the inner surface of the lower wall 18c. The locked holes 20 are recessed. In addition, the right side wall 18b and the left side wall 18d extending in the Y direction in the drawing are provided with a locking structure on the inner surface of the same height in the Y direction with the tab hole 15 of each step. Six locked holes 20 are recessed in the inner surface of the right side wall 18b, and six locking claws 19 project from the inner surface of the left side wall 18d.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the harness connector 40 fitted to the joint connector 10 includes a plurality of terminal accommodating chambers 42 arranged in a row in the housing 41 with the pitch P therebetween. In addition, the female terminal 43 connected to the end of the electric wire 60 is latched and accommodated.

The peripheral wall of the four surfaces of the housing 41 of the harness connector 40 is provided with a locking structure with the joint connector 10 or another adjacent connector 40.
Specifically, a harness connector 40X of the type in which the terminal parallel direction when fitting to the joint connector 10 is the X direction is a lower wall 41c and a left side wall of the housing 41 in the drawing as shown in FIG. A locking claw 44 projects from the outer surface of 41d, and a locked hole 45 is recessed in the outer surfaces of the upper wall 41a and the right side wall 41b in the figure. In addition, the upper wall 41a and the lower wall 41c extending in the parallel direction of the terminal accommodating chambers 42 are provided with the same number of locking claws 44 or locked holes 45 as the number of the terminal accommodating chambers 42 with the pitch P therebetween. The left and right side walls 41d and 41b are provided with one locking claw 44 or one locked hole 45, respectively.

  On the other hand, the harness connector 40Y of the type in which the terminal parallel direction when fitting to the joint connector 10 is the Y direction is locked to the outer surfaces of the upper wall 41a and the left side wall 41d in the drawing, as shown in FIG. A claw 44 is protruded, and a locked hole 45 is formed in the outer surface of the lower wall 41c and the right side wall 41b in the figure. In addition, the upper wall 41a and the lower wall 41c extending in the parallel direction of the terminal accommodating chambers 42 are provided with the same number of locking claws 44 or locked holes 45 as the number of the terminal accommodating chambers 42 with the pitch P therebetween. The left and right side walls 41d and 41b are provided with one locking claw 44 or one locked hole 45, respectively.

Next, a connection pattern of the joint connector 10 will be described.
For example, in the model A, it is assumed that six terminals 43 in each connector 40A of a plurality of 6-pole type harness connectors 40A in which six female terminals 43 are accommodated and fixed in six terminal accommodating chambers 42 are joint-connected. In that case, the X-direction fitting type 6-pole connector 40XA (hereinafter abbreviated as “X-direction 6-pole connector”) is used, and each X-direction 6-pole connector 40XA is connected to the connector fitting portion 14 of the joint connector 10. Fit so that the parallel direction is the X direction.

  Specifically, first, six X-direction six-pole connectors 40XA are stacked in the Y direction with the parallel direction of the terminal accommodating chambers 42 as the X direction, and are opposed to the connector housing 41 of the harness connector 40XA adjacent vertically. As shown in FIG. 1, a laminated harness connector 50 in which six X-direction 6-pole connectors 40XA are temporarily connected is formed by fitting the locking claws 44 and the locked holes 45 provided on the outer peripheral wall surface to be engaged with each other. To do. The laminated harness connector 50 is inserted into the connector fitting portion 14 of the joint connector 10, and the locking claw 19 (or the locked hole 20) formed on the inner surface of the peripheral wall 18 of the connector fitting portion 14 and the laminated harness connector. 50 are engaged with the locked holes 45 (or the locking claws 44) appearing on the outer surface of the 50, and the six X-direction 6-pole connectors 40XA are fitted and fixed to the joint connector 10, and each connector 40XA is fixed. The female terminal 43 is connected to the tab 32 of the joint connector 10.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 7A, each harness connector 40XA can jointly connect the terminals 43 in the connector 40XA with the joint bus bar 30A.

  For example, in the B model, the terminal 43 in the 6-pole harness connector 40A is jointly connected to the terminal 43 of the other harness connector 40A. In this case, as shown in FIG. 6, the Y-direction fitting type 6-pole connector 40YA (hereinafter abbreviated as “Y-direction 6-pole connector”) is used. The directional 6-pole connector 40YA is fitted so that the terminal parallel direction is the Y direction. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 7B, the terminals 43 in each harness connector 40YA can be joint-connected to the terminals 43 of the other harness connector 40YA by the joint bus bar 30A.

  In addition to the six-pole harness connector 40A (40XA, 40YA), a three-pole harness connector 40B (40XB, 40YB) in which three female terminals 43 are housed and fixed in three terminal housing chambers 42 is also used. By combining these harness connectors 40XA, 40YA, 40XB, and 40YB and fitting and connecting them to the joint connector 10 with the terminal parallel direction as the X direction or the Y direction, for example, as shown in FIG. It is possible to correspond to the connection pattern.

Thus, the joint connector 10 has six tabs 32 of the joint bus bar 30A arranged in parallel at the same pitch P in the X direction and the Y direction, so when fitting the 6-pole harness connector 40A, As shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, the terminal parallel direction can be the X direction or the Y direction. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 7C, by combining a 6-pole harness connector 40A (40XA, 40YA) and a 3-pole harness connector 40B (40XB, 40YB), it is possible to cope with various connection patterns. Can do.
Therefore, since a single joint connector 10 can cope with various connection patterns, the number of types of joint connectors can be reduced, and the number of useless poles where there is no connection partner can be reduced, resulting in cost reduction. Can be achieved.

  In addition, since the parallel number of the tabs 32 in the X direction and the Y direction is six, which is a multiple of 3, as shown in FIG. 7C, even when the 3-pole harness connector 40B is used, the terminal parallel direction is changed. By arranging two harness connectors 40XB (or 40YB) in the X direction (or Y direction) in the X direction (or Y direction), six female terminals 43 can be arranged in parallel in the X direction (or Y direction). it can. This also suitably corresponds to the fact that the harness connector of an automobile normally has a basic number of 3 poles. Therefore, since all 36 tabs 32 of the joint connector 10 can be fitted and connected to the female terminals 43 of the harness connector 40 without leaving any unnecessary poles, the useless poles can be eliminated. Therefore, it is not necessary to form an empty cavity on the harness connector side, and the cost can be reduced and the harness connector can be downsized.

  As in the first modification shown in FIG. 8, the joint connector 10 divides the six-pole joint bus bar 30 </ b> A and separates the three tabs 32 from the carrier portion 31 extending in the X direction with the pitch P. The protruding three-pole joint bus bar 30B may be housed and fixed. Specifically, two joint bus bars 30B are juxtaposed in the X direction and accommodated in six stages with a pitch P in the Y direction, with the tabs 32 protruding from all 36 tab holes 15 in total. Yes.

  Alternatively, as in Modification 2 shown in FIG. 9, the 6-pole joint bus bar 30A and the 3-pole joint bus bar 30B may be combined and accommodated.

It is a perspective view of the joint connector and other party harness connector which concern on 1st embodiment of this invention. (A) (B) is explanatory drawing which shows the accommodation structure of the joint bus bar to the housing of a joint connector. It is the front view which looked at the joint connector from the connector fitting part side. It is a perspective view which shows a harness connector. (A) is a front view showing an X direction fitting type harness connector, and (B) is a front view showing a Y direction fitting type harness connector. It is a perspective view which shows the fitting operation | work of the harness connector and joint connector at the time of respond | corresponding to the connection pattern of B vehicle type. (A) is the schematic which shows the connection pattern of A vehicle type, (B) is the schematic which shows the connection pattern of B vehicle type, (C) is the schematic explanatory drawing which shows the connection pattern of C vehicle type. FIG. 10 is a schematic view showing the arrangement of joint bus bars in the joint connector of Modification 1; FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating an arrangement of joint bus bars in a joint connector according to Modification 2; It is a figure which shows a prior art example. It is a figure which shows another prior art example. (A)-(C) are schematic explanatory drawings which show the problem in a prior art example.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Joint connector 11 Housing 12 Partition wall 13 Joint bus bar accommodating part 14 Connector fitting part 15 Tab hole 30A (6 poles) Joint bus bar 30B (3 poles) Joint bus bar 31 Carrier part 32 Tab 40 Harness connector 40A (40XA, 40YA) 6 Polar harness connector 40B (40XB, 40YB) 3-pole harness connector 42 Terminal receiving chamber 43 Female terminal

Claims (2)

A joint connector that can be fitted with a plurality of connectors,
The connector housing partition wall is provided with tab holes having the same pitch P in the X direction and the Y direction in the row direction in the X direction and the step direction in the Y direction, and one side sandwiching the partition wall And the other side on the other side is a connector fitting portion that can be fitted with the terminal parallel direction as the X direction and the Y direction,
The joint bus bar has tabs protruding from the carrier portion extending in the X direction at the pitch P. The joint bus bar is divided into one or a plurality of pieces and arranged side by side in the X direction. Penetrating the tab hole of the partition wall and projecting to the connector fitting portion ,
The mating connector that fits into the connector fitting portion fits the mating connector in the X direction when jointing the terminals in the connector, while the joint connector is mating with the terminals in other mating connectors. A joint connector characterized by mating a mating connector in the Y direction . Each of the joint bus bars has three or a multiple of 3 tabs projecting,
2. The joint connector according to claim 1, wherein the number of tab holes in the X direction and the number of steps in the Y direction are three or a multiple of 3, and the tabs of the joint bus bar protrude from all the tab holes. .

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