JP5258802B2 - Electrical connector assembly having plug electrical connector and receptacle electrical connector - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a plug electrical connector and an electrical connector assembly having the same and a receptacle electrical connector .

  The connectors that are fitted and connected to each other are often provided with a lock structure for preventing the connectors from coming off. As a connector having such a lock structure, for example, a connector disclosed in Patent Document 1 is known.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a connector that has a plug to which a lead wire is connected and a receptacle to which another lead wire is connected, and is fitted to each other. In the plug, a pin-shaped male terminal held by a male-side housing (insulator) made of synthetic resin is surrounded by an annular peripheral wall portion of the male-side housing, and the male terminal and an inner wall surface of the peripheral wall portion Is formed with an annular receiving space for receiving the female terminal. An annular recess (groove) is formed on the inner wall surface of the peripheral wall portion over the entire circumference of the inner wall surface.

  On the other hand, in the receptacle, a female terminal having an opening for receiving a male terminal is held by a female housing (insulator) made of synthetic resin, and the female terminal is an annular peripheral wall portion of the female housing. Covered with no gaps. An annular protrusion is formed on the outer wall surface of the peripheral wall portion over the entire circumference of the outer wall surface. When the connector is fitted, the female terminal and the peripheral wall of the receptacle enter the plug receiving space, and the annular protrusion of the receptacle is engaged with the annular recess of the plug in the connector fitting direction. As a result, the plug and the receptacle are prevented from coming off.

  In the connector disclosed in Patent Document 1, since the annular concave portion of the plug and the annular convex portion of the receptacle that are locked with each other are both made of synthetic resin and are not strong enough, wear and deformation occur due to repeated use, and the locking function There is a risk that the plug and the receptacle may be disconnected.

  In order to prevent the connectors from coming off more reliably, there is known a connector having a lock structure that locks portions made of metal having a strength higher than that of synthetic resin. For example, a connector in which a lock portion is formed on a metal plate processed into a cylindrical shape with diameters that can be fitted to each other can be given. Specifically, one of the locking portions that are locked to each other is formed as a protruding portion obtained by convexly curving the metal plate, and the other is a concave portion (groove portion) that is concavely curved into a shape that matches the locking portion. And the locking portions are locked in the connector fitting direction.

JP-A-8-203593

  However, in a lock structure having a lock part formed in a cylindrical part made by processing such a metal plate, the member formed with the lock part located outside can be elastically deformed when the connector is fitted Since it is formed only with a metal plate with a small plate thickness, when an inadvertent pull-out force acts on the connector in the mated state, the member is elastically deformed so that it easily spreads, and the lock portions are engaged with each other. There is a possibility that the stopped state cannot be maintained.

In view of such circumstances, the present invention provides a plug electrical connector that can secure a sufficient strength of the lock portion and can maintain a state in which the lock portions are firmly engaged with each other, and a receptacle electrical connector. It is an object to provide an electrical connector assembly having the same.

  The electrical connector according to the present invention includes a terminal extending in the fitting direction of the connector, a metal shell that surrounds the terminal around an axis in the fitting direction and forms a receiving space for receiving the mating connector, and the terminal And a synthetic resin housing for holding the shell.

  In such an electrical connector, in the present invention, the shell is formed with a slit that extends in the fitting direction and is opened on the mating connector side, or is divided at at least one position in the circumferential direction, and forms the receiving space. A lock portion for locking the mating connector in the fitting direction is formed on the inner wall surface, and the housing covers the shell by contacting the outer wall surface over the entire circumference of the outer wall surface of the shell. It is characterized by having.

  In the present invention, since the lock portion is formed as a part of a metal shell, the strength of the lock portion is greater than that of a case where the lock portion is formed of a synthetic resin or the like, and the wear resistance and deformation resistance are high. The shell is formed with a slit extending in the fitting direction and opened on the mating connector side, or divided at at least one position in the circumferential direction. Therefore, when the mating connector enters the receiving space, the shell can be elastically displaced so as to expand. And in this invention, the cover part of the housing made from a synthetic resin touches this outer wall surface over the perimeter of the outer wall surface of the said shell, and covers this shell. Accordingly, the shell is allowed to expand so that the shell is allowed to expand by the elastic displacement of the synthetic resin cover portion itself, and the shell is returned to its original shape by the elastic restoring force (reaction force) of the cover portion. Force is applied. As a result, even if an inadvertent pull-out force acts, the shell does not deform so as to spread easily, and the state where the lock portions are firmly locked is maintained.

  It is preferable that the shell and the housing are integrally formed. In this way, by integrally forming the shell and the housing, it is not necessary to make the shell and the housing separately and assemble them, so that the manufacturing is easy and the manufacturing cost can be suppressed. Further, the shell and the housing can be integrated with each other in close contact.

  The housing has an extending portion extending toward the mating connector side from the tip position of the shell in the fitting direction, and the extending portion protrudes from the inner wall surface of the extending portion over the entire circumference of the extending portion. It is preferable that an annular protrusion that is brought into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the mating connector with contact pressure in the fitted state is formed.

  In the present invention thus configured, the connectors are in a sealed state when the annular protrusion comes into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the mating connector with contact pressure in the connector fitting state. Therefore, a good seal can be obtained, and entry of moisture and the like from the outside can be reliably prevented.

  As described above, according to the present invention, the strength of the lock portion can be increased by forming the lock portion in the metallic shell. In addition, the cover is formed by forming a slit in the shell or dividing the shell at at least one position in the circumferential direction, and covering the shell with a cover portion of a housing made of synthetic resin, while allowing an elastic displacement to spread the shell. A force that causes the shell to return to its original shape by the elastic restoring force of the portion itself is applied, and the state in which the lock portions are firmly locked is maintained.

It is sectional drawing which shows the state before fitting of the electrical connector which concerns on embodiment, and a mating connector. It is II-II sectional drawing of the electrical connector of FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the fitting state of the electrical connector of FIG. 1, and a mating connector.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a state before the plug connector 1 that is an electrical connector according to the present embodiment and the receptacle connector 2 that is a mating connector, and shows a cross-section at a terminal position of these connectors. 2 is an II-II enlarged sectional view of the plug connector 1 of FIG. 1, and shows a cross section at a position of an elastic arm portion 12 of a terminal 10 to be described later. Although the plug connector 1 and the receptacle connector 2 according to the present embodiment are formed as so-called coaxial connectors, the present invention can also be applied to electrical connectors other than coaxial connectors.

  The plug connector 1 includes a terminal 10 as a signal terminal extending in the fitting direction of the connector (left and right direction in FIG. 1), and a receiving space for receiving the receptacle connector 2 around the terminal 10 around the axis in the fitting direction. A metal shell 20 that forms an annular space that is a part of the housing, and a synthetic resin housing 30 that holds the terminal 10 and the shell 20.

  The terminal 10 is formed by punching so as to maintain a metal plate, and has a plate shape extending in parallel to the paper surface of FIG. The terminal 10 includes a base portion 11 positioned substantially at the center in the left-right direction, two elastic arm portions 12 extending from the base portion 11 to the left in parallel with each other, and a cable extending from the base portion 11 to the right. And a connection portion 13 to which (not shown) is connected. Further, a contact protrusion 12A that protrudes toward each other is formed at the left end of the two elastic arm portions 12.

  The base 11 is formed with two held projections 14 and 15 that protrude from both side edges of the base 11. The held projections 14 and 15 bite into the inner wall surface of the housing groove 35 when the terminal 10 is press-fitted leftward into a housing groove 35 of the housing 30 described later. As shown in FIG. 1, the held projection 14 located on the left side of the held projection 14 and the held projection 15 has a smaller projection amount than the held projection 15.

  Further, a restricting portion 16 that protrudes from both side edges of the transition portion is formed at the transition portion from the base portion 11 to the connection portion 13. As shown in FIG. 1, the restricting portion 16 has a left side edge extending in the vertical direction, that is, a front edge in the press-fitting direction of the terminal 10 is in contact with the right end surface of the housing 30, and more than that of the terminal 10. The press-fitting position is determined by restricting the press-fitting.

  As is often seen in FIG. 2, the shell 20 is made by rounding a metal plate and curving it into a cylindrical shape by abutting the ends with each other in the circumferential direction. In other words, the cylindrical shell 20 is divided in the circumferential direction at the position of the abutment portion 21 between the end portions of the metal plate. As shown in FIG. 1, the shell 20 surrounds a small diameter portion 34 of a housing 30 that accommodates the elastic arm portion 12 of the terminal 10 as described later, and receives the receptacle connector 2 around its axis. An annular space 38A forming a part of the space 38 is formed.

  As described above, since the shell 20 is divided at the position of the abutting portion 21 in the circumferential direction, when the receptacle connector 2 enters the annular space 38A during connector fitting, the shell 20 It is possible to elastically displace so as to spread. As shown in FIG. 1, a lock groove portion 22 is formed on the inner wall surface of the shell 20 so as to extend to the left side and extend over the entire circumference of the shell 20, and the lock groove portion 22 is a lock protrusion of a receptacle connector 2 described later. The lock function is carried out by engaging with the part 53 in the left-right direction.

  In the present embodiment, the shell 20 having such a configuration is connected to a circuit unit (not shown), and is in contact with a shell 50 of a later-described receptacle connector 2 to receive power supply. However, instead of this, the shell 20 may be used as a signal terminal or a ground terminal, or may be used as a simple lock member.

  The housing 30 is made by integral molding with the shell 20, and a main body portion 31 that holds the press-fitted terminal 10, and is located outside the shell 20 from the outer peripheral surface of the main body portion 31 toward the left. It has a cylindrical outer cylinder portion 32 that extends. In the main body 31, the substantially right half is formed as a large-diameter portion 33 with a cylindrical outer shape, and the substantially left half is concentric with the large-diameter portion 33 and has a small diameter with a cylindrical outer diameter smaller than the large-diameter portion 33. It is formed as a part 34. A housing groove 35 for housing the base portion 11 and the elastic arm portion 12 of the terminal 10 is formed in the body portion 31 so as to penetrate the body portion 31 over the entire axial direction (left-right direction).

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the accommodation groove portion 35, the right portion corresponding to the large diameter portion 33 in the left-right direction has a substantially right half portion of the base portion 11 and the elastic arm portion 12, that is, a portion closer to the base portion 11. Is housed. In the right portion, the right side portion is formed to have a groove depth (dimension in the vertical direction in FIG. 1) larger than that of the left side portion, and the terminal 10 is held on the inner wall surface of the right side portion. The to-be-held protrusion 14 bites into the inner wall surface of the left side portion of the protrusion 15. Further, in the housing groove 35, the left part corresponding to the small diameter part 34 accommodates the substantially left half of the elastic arm 12, that is, the tip side part. The accommodation groove 35 opens leftward at an opening 34A on the left end surface of the small diameter portion 34.

  The outer cylinder portion 32 extends leftward from the outer peripheral surface of the left side portion of the large diameter portion 33 of the main body portion 31, and the tip thereof is located to the left of the small diameter portion 34. The outer cylinder portion 32 includes a cover portion 36 that is in contact with the outer wall surface over the entire circumference of the outer wall surface of the shell 20 and covers the shell 20, and an extending portion that extends leftward from the left end position of the shell 20. 37. A receiving space 38 for receiving the receptacle connector is formed to open to the left by the inner wall surface of the extending portion 37 and the inner wall surface of the shell 20.

  As described above, in the plug connector 1 having such a configuration, after the shell 20 and the housing 30 are integrally molded, the terminal 10 is restricted from the right in the housing groove 35 of the housing 30. The part 16 is assembled by being press-fitted until it abuts against the right end surface of the housing 30. In the present embodiment, since the shell 20 and the housing 30 are integrally formed, it is not necessary to make the shell 20 and the housing 30 separately and assemble them, so that the manufacturing is easy and the manufacturing cost is reduced. Can be suppressed. Further, the shell 20 and the housing 30 can be integrated with each other in close contact. Needless to say, the shell 20 may be attached to the housing 30 without integrally molding the shell 20 and the housing 30.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the receptacle connector 2 includes a terminal 40 as a signal terminal having a pin shape extending in the connector fitting direction (left and right direction in FIG. 1), and an axis around the fitting direction. A metal shell 50 positioned so as to surround the terminal 40, a synthetic resin housing 60 integrally molded so as to hold the terminal 40 and the shell 50, and a synthetic resin attached to the outer peripheral surface of the housing 60 And an O-ring 70 made of metal.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the terminal 40 includes a held portion 41 bent in a substantially crank shape at an intermediate portion of the terminal 40 and held by the housing 60, and the held portion on the axis of the housing 60. A corresponding contact portion 42 extending rightward from 41 and projecting into a receiving space 62 of the housing 60 described later, and a connection extending leftward from the held portion 41 and extending out of the housing 60 and connected to a cable (not shown). Part 43. As shown in FIG. 1, the corresponding contact portion 42 is located concentrically with the housing 60 in the receiving space 62 of the housing 60.

  The shell 50 includes a cylindrical part 51 that covers an outer peripheral surface of a fitting part 61 of the housing 60 described later, and an arm-like straight part 52 that extends from a part of the left end edge of the cylindrical part 51 in the circumferential direction toward the left. And have. As is often seen in FIG. 1, the cylindrical portion 51 is exposed to the outside, the straight portion 52 is embedded in the housing 60, and the left end portion extends to the left and extends out of the housing 60. Yes. Moreover, the cylindrical part 51 has the cyclic | annular lock | rock protrusion part 53 extended toward radial direction outward over the perimeter, and the convex curve.

  In the present embodiment, the shell 50 is configured such that the straight portion 52 is connected to a power supply circuit portion (not shown), and the plug connector 1 is connected to the plug connector 1 by contact with the shell 20. However, alternatively, the shell 50 may be used as a signal terminal or a ground terminal, or may be used as a simple lock member.

  The right side portion of the housing 60 is formed as a cylindrical fitting portion 61 that enters the annular space 38 </ b> A of the plug connector 1 when fitted to the plug connector 1. In the fitting portion 61, a receiving space 62 for receiving the small diameter portion 34 of the plug connector 1 at the time of the fitting is formed to open to the right. In addition, an annular mounting groove 63 for mounting the O-ring 70 is formed on the intermediate portion in the left-right direction of the housing 60, that is, on the outer peripheral surface at the left side of the fitting portion 61.

  The receptacle connector 2 having such a configuration is assembled by attaching the O-ring 70 to the mounting groove 63 of the housing 60 after the terminal 40 and the shell 50 are integrally formed with the housing 60.

  Hereinafter, the fitting connection between the plug connector 1 and the receptacle connector 2 will be described. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view at a terminal position showing a fitting state of the plug connector 1 and the receptacle connector 2 of FIG.

  First, as shown in FIG. 1, the plug connector 1 and the receptacle connector 2 are brought into a posture facing each other on the coaxial line, and the receptacle connector 2 is inserted into the receiving space 38 of the plug connector 1. As shown in FIG. 3, the insertion of the receptacle connector 2 is such that the front end surface (right end surface) of the fitting portion 61 of the receptacle connector 2 is the bottom surface of the annular space 38A of the plug connector 1, that is, the plug connector 1 The process is performed until the large diameter portion 33 comes into contact with the left end surface. In addition, the receptacle connector 2 is inserted into the receiving space 38 of the plug connector 1, and at the same time, the small diameter portion 34 of the plug connector 1 is inserted into the receiving space 62 of the receptacle connector 2.

  As a result of the completion of the insertion of the receptacle connector 2, as shown in FIG. 3, the corresponding contact portion 42 of the terminal 40 of the receptacle connector 2 passes through the opening 34 A of the small-diameter portion 34 of the plug connector 1 and enters the receiving groove portion 35. Has entered. In the housing groove 35, the corresponding contact portion 42 enters between the elastic arm portions 12 while increasing the distance between the contact protrusions 12 </ b> A of the two elastic arm portions 12 of the terminal 10. By being pinched by 12A, the contact protrusion 12A is elastically contacted. As a result, the terminal 10 of the plug connector 1 and the terminal 40 of the receptacle connector 2 are electrically connected.

  In addition, in the state where the insertion of the receptacle connector 2 is completed, the fitting portion 61 of the receptacle connector 2 and the cylindrical portion 51 of the shell 50 integrally formed with the outer peripheral surface of the fitting portion 61 are the annular space of the plug connector 1. The lock protrusion 53 of the cylindrical portion 51 comes into elastic contact with the lock groove portion 22 of the shell 20 of the plug connector 1. As a result, the shell 20 of the plug connector 1 and the shell 50 of the receptacle connector 2 are electrically connected. In addition, the locking protrusion 53 and the locking groove 22 are locked in the left-right direction, so that inadvertent disconnection between the connectors is prevented. In the present embodiment, the lock protrusion 53 and the lock groove 22 are a part of the shell 20 and the shell 50 made of a metal plate, and have higher strength and wear resistance than the lock portion made of synthetic resin.・ High deformation resistance.

  As described above, since the shell 20 of the plug connector 1 is divided at the position of the abutting portion 21 in the circumferential direction, the lock groove portion 22 of the shell 20 of the receptacle connector 2 is in the connector fitting state. As a result of elastic contact with the locking projection 53 and receiving a pressing force from the locking projection 53 in the radial direction of the shell 20, the shell 20 is elastically displaced so as to spread in the radial direction.

  In the present embodiment, the cover portion 36 of the synthetic resin housing 30 is in contact with and covers the outer wall surface of the outer wall surface of the shell 20. Accordingly, the elastic displacement of the cover portion 36 itself made of synthetic resin allows the shell 20 to displace, and the shell 20 has an original shape due to the elastic restoring force (reaction force) of the cover portion 36. The force to return to is applied. As a result, even if an inadvertent pull-out force is applied, the shell 20 is not deformed so as to spread easily, and the state where the lock protrusion 53 and the lock groove 22 are firmly locked is maintained.

  The O-ring 70 attached to the attachment groove 63 of the housing 60 of the receptacle connector 2 abuts against the inner wall surface of the extension part 37 of the plug connector 1 with contact pressure. As seen in FIG. 3, the O-ring 70 is compressed and deformed in the radial direction in a state where the O-ring 70 is in contact with the inner wall surface of the extending portion 37. Due to the contact between the O-ring 70 and the inner wall surface of the extending portion 37, the connectors are in a sealed state. Therefore, a good seal can be obtained, and entry of moisture and the like from the outside can be reliably prevented.

  In this embodiment, the O-ring of the receptacle connector is in contact with the inner wall surface of the extension portion of the plug connector to form a sealed state between the connectors, but instead of this, the connector is not provided with an O-ring. It is good also as forming the sealing state of each other. For example, an annular protrusion that protrudes from the inner wall surface of the extending portion is formed on the extending portion of the plug connector over the entire circumference, and the annular protruding portion is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the housing of the receptacle connector in the connector fitting state. It is possible to form a sealed state between the connectors. Alternatively, an annular protrusion is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the housing of the receptacle connector, and the annular protrusion is brought into contact with the inner wall surface of the extension part of the plug connector with contact pressure, so that the connector is sealed. It is also possible to form.

  In the present embodiment, the shell of the plug connector has a form in which one metal plate is curved in a cylindrical shape and is divided only at one place in the circumferential direction. Instead, a plurality of curved curved arcs are used. These metal plate members may be arranged in a circular shape to form a cylindrical member divided at a plurality of locations in the circumferential direction as a whole.

  In the present embodiment, the shell of the plug connector is divided in the circumferential direction. Instead of this, instead of dividing the shell, the middle of the connector fitting direction (left-right direction in FIG. 1) is used. A slit may be formed in the shell that extends from the position and opens to the receptacle connector side.

  In the present embodiment, the plug connector shell is provided with the lock groove, and the receptacle connector shell is provided with the lock protrusion. Instead, the plug connector shell is provided with the lock protrusion, and the receptacle connector shell is provided. You may provide a lock groove part in.

  In this embodiment, one signal terminal is provided for each of the plug connector and the receptacle connector, but a plurality of signal terminals may be provided instead.

1 Plug connector 22 Lock groove (lock)
2 Receptacle connector (mating connector) 30 Housing 10 Terminal 36 Cover part 20 Shell 37 Extension part

Claims (3)

A terminal extending in the fitting direction of the connector, a metal shell that surrounds the terminal around the axis of the fitting direction and forms a receiving space for receiving the receptacle electrical connector, and a synthetic resin that holds the terminal and the shell Plug electrical connector comprising a housing made of
The shell extends in the fitting direction and is formed with a slit opened on the receptacle electrical connector side or divided at at least one position in the circumferential direction, and on the inner wall surface forming the receiving space in the fitting direction. A lock portion for locking with the receptacle electrical connector is formed over the entire circumference, and the housing has a cover portion that contacts the outer wall surface and covers the shell over the entire circumference of the outer wall surface of the shell. A plug electrical connector , wherein the shell and the housing are integrally formed . The housing has an extending portion that extends toward the receptacle electrical connector from the tip position of the shell in the fitting direction, and the extending portion protrudes from the inner wall surface of the extending portion over the entire circumference thereof, The plug electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein an annular protrusion that abuts on the outer peripheral surface of the receptacle electrical connector with contact pressure in the connector fitting state is formed. An electrical connector assembly comprising the plug electrical connector of claim 1 and a receptacle electrical connector fitted and connected thereto, wherein the receptacle electrical connector includes a terminal extending in the fitting direction of the connector and an axis in the fitting direction. A metal shell positioned so as to surround the terminal, and a synthetic resin housing integrally molded so as to hold the terminal and the shell, the housing being positioned on the outer periphery of the contact portion at the tip of the terminal The cylindrical portion of the shell is held on the outer peripheral surface of the fitting portion, and the locked portion that engages with the locking portion of the plug electrical connector. An electrical connector assembly comprising:

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