JP5862547B2 - connector - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a connector of a type connected to a printed circuit board.

  As an example of a connector connected to a printed circuit board, one described in Patent Document 1 below is known. In this structure, a board mounting portion on which a printed circuit board is mounted and a connector fitting portion on which a mating connector is fitted are formed on mutually orthogonal surfaces of the connector housing, while a plurality of L-shaped tabs are formed. The terminal has a structure in which one end and the other end are embedded in a form facing the board mounting portion and the connector fitting portion.

  This type of connector is often formed by insert molding because it is difficult to bend it into an L shape after mounting a straight tab-like terminal on the housing. In general, by performing primary insert molding using a tab-shaped terminal bent in advance in an L-shape as an insert member, an assembly having a tab-shaped terminal attached to a core is formed, and further, the assembly is used as an insert member. The connector is formed by performing the next insert molding.

JP 2008-18633 A

In the insert molding as described above, there are many cases where the insert member is set in a molding die and the manual work is often involved, and there is a problem that the manufacturing cost is increased as it is.
In addition, depending on the product, there is also a request to accurately align one end of the tab-shaped terminal so that the work of connecting one end of the tab-shaped terminal to the printed circuit board can be performed easily. Since the alignment plate is retrofitted to the board mounting portion of the connector housing, the cost is further increased, and the appearance of the solution has been eagerly desired.
The present invention has been completed based on the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a connector that can be manufactured at low cost while having an alignment function.

In the connector disclosed in the present specification, the first recess in which the printed board is mounted and the second recess in which the mating connector is fitted are different from each other via a partition wall through which a terminal insertion hole is formed. A connector housing formed in an open shape on the surface, a plurality of tab-like terminals, and a core that is mounted in a predetermined arrangement and can be inserted into the first recess, An alignment portion having a positioning hole through which one end of the tab-like terminal is press-fitted is provided on the surface of the core facing the printed circuit board, and is fixed to face the bulkhead of the core. The opposing surface is provided with a holding portion capable of holding the tab-like terminal in a form in which the other end of the tab-like terminal protrudes from the opposing surface in a state where the opposing surface is at least fixed, and the partition of the core On the opposite side of A mounting portion that can be press-fitted into a mounting hole that is formed through the partition wall, and the other end of the tab-shaped terminal is located along a clamping surface of the mounting portion facing a predetermined surface of the mounting hole. Is attached to the core in a form protruding forward, and a holding groove for tightly fitting and holding the other end of the tab-like terminal is formed on the clamping surface of the mounting portion of the core. The other end side of the tab-like terminal is sandwiched between the attachment portion of the core and the predetermined surface of the attachment hole .

The connector is manufactured as follows. First, a plurality of tab-shaped terminals are inserted into the positioning holes of the alignment part through the tabs, and the other end is engaged with the holding part and protrudes to the front of the facing surface. Mounted in form. Next, the core on which the tab-like terminal is mounted is inserted into the first recess of the connector housing, and the other end of the tab-like terminal is inserted into the attachment hole while penetrating the terminal insertion hole of the partition wall. It is fixed with . When the core is fixed, one end of each tab-shaped terminal is arranged in the first recess in a form aligned by the alignment portion, and the other end of the tab-shaped terminal is connected to the holding surface of the mounting portion and the mounting hole. It protrudes and arrange | positions in a 2nd recessed part with the form clamped between the opposing surfaces and arranged.
That is, it is possible to obtain a connector in which both end portions of each tab-like terminal are aligned in a predetermined manner without using insert molding or separately providing an alignment plate, which can contribute to a reduction in manufacturing cost. Further, the other end of the tab-shaped terminal can be held along the holding surface of the core. For example, the other end of the tab-shaped terminal is fitted through the mounting hole of the partition wall while the other end of the tab-shaped terminal is passed through the mounting hole. Work can be performed accurately and efficiently.

The following configuration may also be used .

(2) While the tab-shaped terminal is bent in an L shape, the attachment portion and the alignment portion of the core are formed on surfaces orthogonal to each other. Similarly, in the case where the tab-shaped terminals are L-shaped, a connector in which both end portions of each tab-shaped terminal are aligned in a predetermined manner can be obtained .

(4) The core can be slidably contacted with the partition on the inner surface perpendicular to the partition in the first recess of the connector housing, and the partition includes the attachment portion of the core. A guide for guiding the guide toward the mounting hole is provided. When the core on which the tab-like terminal is mounted is moved toward the partition wall while sliding on the predetermined inner surface of the first recess, the mounting portion is guided by the guide to the mounting hole of the partition wall. The operation of press-fitting the core mounting portion into the mounting hole of the partition wall is performed accurately and quickly .

  According to the connector of the present invention, it is possible to manufacture at low cost while ensuring the alignment function of the tab-like terminals.

The top view of the connector housing which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention Front view Longitudinal sectional view showing the operation of mounting tab-shaped terminals on the core Longitudinal sectional view of an assembly with tab-shaped terminals attached to the core Front view Rear view Plan view Bottom view Side view Longitudinal sectional view showing initial mounting operation for connector housing of assembly Longitudinal section of the connector when assembly is complete Plan view Front view FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of an assembly in which tab-shaped terminals are mounted on the core according to the second embodiment of the present invention. Front view Plan view Bottom view Longitudinal sectional view showing initial mounting operation for connector housing of assembly Longitudinal section of the connector when assembly is complete

<Embodiment 1>
The implementation mode 1 is described with reference to FIGS 13. As shown in FIG. 11, the connector according to the first embodiment includes a connector housing 10, two tab-like terminals 30, and a core 40 to which both tab-like terminals 30 are attached.

  The connector housing 10 (hereinafter referred to as the housing 10) is formed by injection molding of a synthetic resin material, and as shown in FIGS. A board mounting portion 11 on which a printed circuit board P (see FIG. 11) is mounted is formed on the front side, and a connector fitting portion 12 in which a mating connector (not shown) is fitted on the front side. Has been.

The substrate mounting portion 11 is formed in a square box shape with an upper opening, and the front wall of the substrate mounting portion 11 is the partition wall 13 described above. The inside of the substrate mounting portion 11 is a first recess 15, and the inner peripheral surface thereof is formed in a stepped shape in which the lower region in the depth direction has a smaller planar cross-sectional shape than the upper region. (Step 16). The printed circuit board P is closely fitted in the first recess 15, and its four edges can be placed on the step surface. That is, the step surface becomes the placement surface 17 of the printed circuit board P.
At the center width position of the front wall portion of the step portion 16, a guide groove 18 is formed over a predetermined width.

  The connector fitting portion 12 is formed in a rectangular tube shape opened forward from the outer surface of the partition wall 13, and the inside of the connector fitting portion 12 is a second recess 20. As described above, the mating connector is fitted to the connector fitting portion 12 from the front, and the upper surface of the connector fitting portion 12 is engaged with a lock arm provided in the mating connector. Thus, a locking projection 21 is provided for locking the connector with the counterpart connector in a properly fitted state.

As shown in FIG. 2, the back surface of the second recess 20 (partition wall 13) has a mounting hole 23 that is a rectangular shape that is horizontally long when viewed from the front at a position slightly above the center. It is formed with. The mounting hole 23 functions as a press-fitting hole for press-fitting a mounting portion 42 of the core 40 described later.
The lateral width of the mounting hole 23 matches the width dimension of the guide groove 18 described above. A tapered lead-in surface 18A is formed at the edge of the guide groove 18 on both side surfaces on the first recess 15 side.

The tab-like terminals 30 are formed by, for example, pressing a metal plate having excellent conductivity, and two connectors are prepared for each connector. As shown in FIG. 3, the tab-like terminal 30 is initially formed in a straight posture, and, as will be described later, the other end 32 (lower end in FIG. 3) is in the length direction in the process of being attached to the core 40. 4 is bent at a right angle at a position closer to one end 31 than the center thereof, as shown in FIG. 4, the one end 31 side is an upward vertical portion 33 and the other end 32 side is directed forward (left side in the figure). It is formed in an L shape that is 34.
One end 31 of the tab-like terminal 30 is a board connection end (hereinafter, board connection end 31) connected to the printed circuit board P, and the other end 32 is a mating female terminal (not shown) accommodated in the mating connector. ) And a terminal connection end (hereinafter referred to as a terminal connection end 32).

The core 40 on which the two tab-shaped terminals 30 are mounted is formed by injection molding using a synthetic resin material. As shown in FIGS. 5 to 9, as shown in FIGS. Have. The main body 41 has a width dimension equal to the width of the mounting hole 23 and the guide groove 18 of the partition wall 13 and a height dimension equal to the height from the bottom surface to the placement surface 17 in the first recess 15. have.
At the central height position on the front surface 41A of the main body 41, a mounting portion 42 that fits tightly into the mounting hole 23 of the partition wall 13 is formed to protrude over the entire width. The protruding dimension of the mounting portion 42 is set to a dimension comparable to the thickness of the partition wall 13.

  On the lower surface of the main body 41, an insertion concave portion 43 is formed so as to rise in the front-rear direction in two regions, one inside from both ends in a region divided into approximately five equal parts in the width direction. As shown in FIG. 3, each insertion recess 43 has a ceiling surface 43 </ b> A that reaches a position slightly above the upper surface of the mounting portion 42 in the rear depth region of approximately 2/3, and the remaining front side In the approximately 1/3 depth region, the ceiling surface 43 </ b> B reaches the same height as the lower surface (the clamping surface 47) of the mounting portion 42.

  A high-side ceiling portion in each insertion recess 43 serves as an alignment portion 45, and each alignment portion 45 has a substrate of the tab-like terminal 30 at a predetermined position near the rear end in the depth direction in the center width position. A positioning hole 46 through which the connection end 31 side is press-fitted is opened. A tapered lead-in port 46A is formed at the lower end of each positioning hole 46.

On the other hand, in the center width position of the lower ceiling surface 43B in each insertion recess 43, the horizontal portion when the tab-like terminal 30 is bent into an L shape in a form continuous to the sandwiching surface 47 of the mounting portion 42 described above. A holding groove 48 is formed in which the base end side of 34 is tightly fitted and held. When the proximal end side of the horizontal portion 34 of the tab-like terminal 30 is properly fitted in the holding groove 48, the proximal end side of the horizontal portion 34 is flush with the lower ceiling surface 43B from the clamping surface 47 of the mounting portion 42. Thus, a substantially 1/2 length portion on the front end side of the horizontal portion 34 protrudes from the front surface of the mounting portion 42.
On the four peripheral surfaces of the mounting portion 42, press-fitting ribs 49 extending in the front-rear direction are formed over the entire protruding length at the center position in the width direction or the height direction, respectively.

Next, an example of a connector manufacturing procedure will be described.
First, the two tab-like terminals 30 are attached to the core 40. The mounting operation is performed using an automatic machine. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, a tab-like terminal 30 having a straight posture is inserted into the insertion recess 43 of the core 40 from below, and The board connection end 31 is press-fitted into the positioning hole 46 of the alignment portion 45 and protrudes to the upper surface by a predetermined dimension. At the same time, the terminal connection end 32 side of the tab-like terminal 30 is bent at a right angle from the predetermined position toward the front, and the base end side of the horizontal portion 34 is sandwiched from the lower ceiling surface 43B to the clamping surface of the mounting portion 42 as shown in FIG. It is closely fitted in the holding groove 48 formed over the region 47 and is buried in the clamping surface 47.

  As a result, as shown in FIGS. 5 to 9, an assembly 50 is formed in which the two tab-like terminals 30 bent in an L shape with respect to the core 40 are mounted. In the assembly 50, the board connection ends 31 of the two tab-shaped terminals 30 are aligned by projecting through the alignment portion 45 and project from the upper surface thereof. After being buried flush with the sandwiching surface 47 of the part 42, it has a form protruding from the front surface of the mounting part 42 by a predetermined dimension.

  Such an assembly 50 is inserted from above into the first recess 15 of the substrate mounting portion 11 in the housing 10 and placed on the bottom surface of the first recess 15 as indicated by an arrow a in FIG. After that, as indicated by an arrow b in the figure, the terminal connection end 32 of the tab-like terminal 30 is moved from the guide groove 18 to the partition wall 13 while being moved toward the partition wall 13 while sliding on the bottom surface of the first recess 15. Through the lower position of the hole 23, it protrudes into the second recess 20, and then the mounting portion 42 of the core 40 is guided by the guiding surface 18 </ b> A and enters the guide groove 18, and is subsequently guided to the mounting hole 23. . When the core 40 is further pushed in, the ribs 49 are crushed and the mounting portion 42 is pressed into the mounting hole 23. As shown in FIG. 11, the pressing stops when the front surface 41A of the main body 41 hits the partition wall 13. Is done. Thereby, the assembly of the assembly 50 is completed.

  When the assembly of the assembly 50 is completed in this way, as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, on the board mounting portion 11 side, the tab-shaped terminals 30 of the two tab-like terminals 30 are positioned at the position close to the partition wall 13 in the first recess 15. The board connection ends 31 protrude above the mounting surface 17 of the printed board P in the first recess 15 by a predetermined dimension in a form aligned side by side by the alignment unit 45. On the other hand, on the connector fitting portion 12 side, from the back surface of the second recess 20, the terminal connection ends 32 of both tab-shaped terminals 30 are between the clamping surface 47 of the mounting portion 42 and the opposing surface (lower surface) of the mounting hole 23. In a form that is sandwiched between them and aligned side by side on the left and right sides, a predetermined dimension protrudes toward the front side.

After that, the printed board P is placed on the board mounting portion 11 side and placed on the placement surface 17. Accordingly, the board connection ends 31 of both tab-like terminals 30 pass through the through holes of the printed board P and protrude from the upper surface thereof, so that they are soldered and connected to the corresponding lands. Since the board connection ends 31 of both tab-like terminals 30 are aligned, the operation of placing the printed board P on the placement surface 17 while passing the board connection ends 31 through the through holes is performed accurately and quickly. .
The connector manufactured as described above is attached to a fixing member such as a device, and is used in a form in which the mating connector is fitted to the connector fitting portion 12.

  As described above, according to the connector of the present embodiment, the board connection end 31 of the tab-like terminal 30 is aligned by being press-fitted into the alignment portion 45 provided in the core 40, and the terminal connection end 32 side is in the middle. Each tab-shaped terminal 30 is aligned by being clamped between the mounting portion 42 of the child 40 and the opposing surface of the mounting hole 23, that is, without insert molding, or without providing an additional alignment plate. Thus, it is possible to obtain a connector in which the board connection end 31 and the terminal connection end 32 are both aligned in a predetermined manner and face the first recess 15 or the second recess 20, which can contribute to a reduction in manufacturing cost.

  In addition, when the board connection end 31 of the tab-like terminal 30 in a straight posture is press-fitted into the alignment portion 45 and the terminal connection end 32 side of the tab-like terminal 30 is bent at a right angle, a so-called springback occurs. Although it can be said that it is difficult to hold the terminal connection end 32 side in a posture along the holding surface 47 of the mounting portion 42, in this embodiment, the terminal connection end 32 side (horizontal portion) of the tab-like terminal 30 is placed on the holding surface 47. 34) is provided, so that the terminal connection end 32 side of the tab-like terminal 30 can be held flush with the clamping surface 47. Therefore, the operation of fitting the mounting portion 42 of the core 40 into the mounting hole 23 while penetrating the terminal connection end 32 side of the tab-shaped terminal 30 into the mounting hole 23 of the partition wall 13 can be performed accurately and efficiently. .

  The core 40 is slidably contactable on the bottom surface of the first recess 15 toward the partition wall 13, and the surface of the partition wall 13 facing the first recess 15 side is attached to the attachment portion 42 of the core 40. Since the guide groove 18 is provided for guiding the guide toward the mounting hole 23 of the partition wall 13, the press-fitting operation of the mounting portion 42 of the core 40 into the mounting hole 23 is performed accurately and quickly.

<Embodiment 2>
Next, the implementation mode 2 by 14 to 19.
In this embodiment, the structure of the core 60 and the structure of the portion for fixing the core 60 to the partition wall 13A of the housing 10 are changed.
In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 14 to 17, the shape of the core 60 is such that the mounting portion 42 in the core 40 of the first embodiment is removed and only the main body 41 is left. Similarly, the high-side ceiling portion of each insertion recess 43 serves as an alignment portion 45 in which the positioning hole 46 is opened, and the low-side ceiling surface 43B of each insertion recess 43 has a tab-like terminal. A holding groove 61 into which the proximal end side of the horizontal portion 34 of the 30 is closely fitted is formed.
As shown in FIG. 15, a protrusion 63 is formed on the front surface 62 (the surface facing the partition wall 13 </ b> A) of the core 60 so as to surround the holding groove 61.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 18, two terminal insertion holes 65 through which the terminal connection ends 32 of the tab-like terminals 30 can be tightly inserted are formed in the partition wall 13 </ b> A side by side. A tapered lead-in port 65 </ b> A is formed on the inlet side of the terminal insertion hole 65. A guide groove 18 is similarly formed on the surface of the partition wall 13A on the first recess 15 side.
About another structure, it is the same as that of the said Embodiment 1, Comprising: About the site | part and member which have the same function as Embodiment 1, description is abbreviate | omitted or simplified by attaching | subjecting the same code | symbol.

The procedure for assembling the connector of the present embodiment is as follows.
In order to attach the two tab-shaped terminals 30 to the core 60, the tab-shaped terminals 30 having a straight posture are inserted into the insertion recess 43 of the core 60 from below, and the board connection end 31 is aligned. 14 is pressed into the positioning hole 46 of the portion 45 and protrudes to the upper surface by a predetermined dimension, and the terminal connection end 32 side of the tab-like terminal 30 is bent at a right angle from the predetermined position to the front, as shown in FIG. The base end of 34 is tightly fitted into the holding groove 61 of the lower ceiling surface 43B, and is buried in the same level on the lower ceiling surface 43B.

  As a result, as shown in FIGS. 15 to 17, an assembly 50 </ b> A in which the two tab-like terminals 30 bent in an L shape with respect to the core 60 are mounted is formed. In the assembly 50A, the board connection ends 31 of the two tab-shaped terminals 30 are aligned by projecting through the alignment portion 45 and protruded from the upper surface thereof. After being filled flush with the ceiling surface 43B of the core 60, a predetermined dimension is projected from the front surface 62 of the core 60.

  Such an assembly 50 </ b> A is inserted from above into the first recess 15 of the substrate mounting portion 11 in the housing 10 and placed on the bottom surface of the first recess 15, as indicated by an arrow c in FIG. 18. After that, as indicated by an arrow d in the figure, the terminal connection end 32 of the tab-like terminal 30 passes through the guide groove 18 and moves toward the partition wall 13A while sliding on the bottom surface of the first recess 15. It protrudes into the second recess 20 through the corresponding terminal insertion hole 65. At the final stage, the front surface 62 side of the core 60 enters the guide groove 18 and is pushed in, and the pushing is stopped when the protrusion 63 on the front surface 62 of the core 60 hits the partition wall 13A. Then, by heating the core 60 in a state of pressing against the partition wall 13A, the portion of the protrusion 63 is mainly welded, so that the core 60 is attached to the partition wall 13A as shown in FIG. As a result, the assembly is completed.

When the fixing of the core 60 is completed, the board connection ends 31 of the respective tab-like terminals 30 are aligned by the alignment portions 45 so as to protrude upward from the mounting surface 17 in the first recess 15, and the tab-like terminals 30. The terminal connection end 32 is in a state of projecting into the second recessed portion 20 in a form aligned through the terminal insertion hole 65.
Similarly, the board connection end 31 and the terminal connection end 32 of each tab-like terminal 30 are aligned together in the first recess 15 or the second recess 20 without using insert molding or providing an additional alignment plate. A connector that meets the requirements can be obtained, which can contribute to a reduction in manufacturing costs.

<Other embodiments>
The technology disclosed in the present specification is not limited to the embodiments described with reference to the above description and drawings, and includes, for example, the following various aspects.
(1) In forming the assembly, the tab-shaped terminals may be bent in advance in an L shape and then attached to the core.
(2) When the tab-shaped terminal is bent in an L shape in advance as described above, there is no need to consider springback, so the terminal connection end side of the tab-shaped terminal is on the clamping surface of the core mounting portion. but it may also only in arranging to along simply for.
(3) As a form of the connector housing, a first recess in which the printed circuit board is mounted and a second recess in which the mating connector is fitted may be provided back to back. A straight terminal can be used.
(4) In relation to the second embodiment, the means for fixing the front surface of the core to the partition wall is not limited to welding and may be adhesion.

P ... Printed circuit board 10 ... Connector housing 11 ... Board mounting part 12 ... Connector fitting part 13, 13A ... Partition 15 ... First recess 18 ... Guide groove (guide)
20 ... 2nd recessed part 23 ... Mounting hole (terminal insertion hole)
30 ... Tab-shaped terminal 31 ... Board connection end (one end of the tab-shaped terminal 30)
32 ... Terminal connection end (the other end of the tab-like terminal 30)
40 ... core 41 ... main body 41A ... front surface (main body 41) (surface facing partition wall 13)
42 ... Mounting portion 45 ... Alignment portion 46 ... Positioning hole 47 ... Nipping surface (holding portion)
48 ... Holding groove 49 ... Rib 50, 50A ... Assembly 60 ... Core 62 ... Front surface of core 60 (opposite surface to partition wall 13A)
63 ... protrusion 65 ... terminal insertion hole

Claims (3)

A connector formed such that a first recess in which a printed circuit board is mounted and a second recess in which a mating connector is fitted are opened on different surfaces through a partition wall through which a terminal insertion hole is formed. A housing;
A plurality of tab-shaped terminals;
A core that is mounted in a predetermined arrangement with the tab-shaped terminals inserted into the first recess, and
The surface of the core facing the printed circuit board is provided with an alignment portion having a positioning hole through which one end of the tab-shaped terminal is press-fitted, and opposed to the partition wall of the core. The holding surface that is fixed is provided with a holding portion that can hold the other end of the tab-shaped terminal protruding from the opposite surface in a state where the opposite surface is at least fixed .
A mounting portion that can be press-fitted into a mounting hole formed through the partition wall is provided on a surface of the core facing the partition wall, and the other end of the tab-shaped terminal is a predetermined portion of the mounting hole in the mounting portion. Attached to the core in a form that protrudes forward of the mounting portion along the clamping surface facing the one surface,
A holding groove for tightly fitting and holding the other end side of the tab-like terminal is formed on the clamping surface of the attachment portion of the core,
The other end side of the tab-shaped terminal is sandwiched between the mounting portion of the core and the predetermined one surface of the mounting hole . While the tab-shaped terminal is an L-shaped connector of claim 1, wherein the said mounting portion of said core and said alignment portion is formed on the orthogonal plane to one another. The core can be slidably contacted with the partition on the inner surface perpendicular to the partition in the first recess of the connector housing, and the mounting portion of the core is attached to the partition the connector according to claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that guide for guiding toward the hole.

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