JP6504228B2 - connector - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a connector.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there are various types of connectors, such as a specification to which a relay function is added (relay connector) or a specification to which a joint function is added (joint connector). In the joint connector disclosed in Patent Document 1 below, a joint terminal in which a plurality of tab portions are provided in parallel is incorporated in the inside of the connector housing, and the mating terminal fittings connected to each tab portion are collectively provided. It is made to be able to take a joint.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-333628

  However, as described above, if it is a joint connector, a dedicated configuration (joint terminal) is required for each specification, and it is not easy to divert one specification to another specification. Therefore, there is a problem that the connector is dedicated for each specification.

  The present invention has been completed based on the above circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a connector which can be easily diverted to other specifications.

The connector according to the present invention is an opening which can accommodate the terminal fitting and a terminal fitting integrally provided with a terminal connection portion connectable to a mating terminal fitting and a component connection portion, and expose the component connection portion to the outside. A connector housing in which a portion is formed, and a functional component having conductivity that can be connected to the component connection portion through the opening, and the terminal fitting is a relay terminal having the terminal connection portion at both end portions in the longitudinal direction And the component connection portions are respectively provided on the inner side in the longitudinal direction of the terminal connection portion, and the component connection portions are separably connected in the connector housing, and based on the presence or absence of the division of the component connection portions, wherein in the component metal terminal connection part is divided, and the functional component between the component connecting portion is disconnected so is bridged, the component connecting portion, open And a pair of connecting legs capable of closing legs, and a bulging portion extending in the left-right direction is formed at the leg end of the pair of connecting legs, and the functional component is press-fit between the pair of connecting legs It is characterized in that it is designed to be inserted into a spirit .

According to the present invention, the opening portion is formed in the connector housing, and the component connection portion of the terminal fitting is exposed to the outside at the opening portion. Therefore, it is possible to easily select whether or not the functional components are attached or not according to the specifications required for the connector. That is, the connector can be easily changed to different specifications.
Further, in the connector of the present invention, when the component connection portion is not divided, the terminal fitting functions as a normal relay terminal. When the component connection parts are separated, the component connection parts are disconnected. By connecting between these by means of functional parts such as fuses and relays, it is possible to change to a specification in which functions based on fuses and relays are added to the circuit.

A perspective view of a connector according to a reference example Similarly, a plan view of the connector housing Bottom view as well Rear view also A perspective view showing a terminal fitting and a joint member which is a functional part Top view showing a state in which the terminal fitting is attached to the connector housing Bottom view as well Furthermore, the bottom view which shows the state which equipped the joint member A cross-sectional view of the lower end side terminal fitting row cut horizontally and viewed from the bottom side A-A line sectional view of FIG. 8 BB sectional drawing of FIG. 8 Side sectional view showing upper and lower terminal fittings and joint members The connector which concerns on an Example WHEREIN: The flat cross section which expands and shows the state which connected the fuse which is a functional component in the state which removed the fracture | rupture part of the relay terminal Same side section

A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described.
The connector of the present invention may apply a fuse or a relay as a functional component. By doing this, it is possible to change to the connector specifications to which the functions of these parts are added.

  Next, the connector of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

<Reference example>
1 to 11 show a connector according to a reference example of the present invention. The connector C according to the reference example has a box-shaped connector housing 1 as shown in FIG. 1, and a plurality of terminal fittings are accommodated inside. In the following description, it is assumed that the acronym concerning "upper and lower" is performed based on FIG. The affirmation concerning "front and back" shall be performed based on FIG. 2, and the left side in FIG. 2 shall be called "front" and the right side shall be called "rear". Also, it is assumed that the admiration concerning "left and right" is made based on FIG.

<Terminal fitting 2: refer to FIG. 5>
The terminal fitting 2 is formed by punching a conductive flat metal material into a predetermined shape by a press. The terminal fitting 2 in the present embodiment is a relay terminal, and tab-shaped terminal connection portions 3 are formed at both ends in the longitudinal direction, and can be connected to a mating terminal fitting not shown.

  In each terminal fitting 2, a component connection portion 4 connected to a joint member 5 (functional component) described later is provided on the inner side in the longitudinal direction of both terminal connection portions 3. When each terminal fitting 2 is attached to the connector housing 1, the terminal connection portion 3 located on the front side (the terminal connection portion 3 located on the front side in FIG. 5) While the terminal connection portion 3 located in the rear (the terminal connection portion 3 located in the back side in the same figure) is continuous with the component connection portion 4 without the press-in portion 6 interposed therebetween.

  The press-fit portion 6 is formed wider than the connection legs 8 (described below) in the terminal connection portion 3 and the component connection portion 4. Further, on both sides of the boundary portion between the press-fit portion 6 and the terminal connection portion 3, a pair of stopper pieces 7 are formed in a projecting manner.

  Both component connections 4 have a pair of connection legs 8. In each of the terminal fittings 2, the connection legs 8 are branched in a bifurcated manner to the left and right and extend so as to face each other in the front-rear direction. However, although both connecting legs 8 are slightly deformed, opening and closing legs are permitted. A substantially circular bulging portion 9 is formed so that the leg end portions of both connecting legs 8 project in the left and right directions. The bulging portions 9 facing each other in the front and back direction are connected by a pair of connection pieces 10. Both connection pieces 10 are formed narrower than the connection legs 8 and the terminal connection portions 3 and can be separated at an intermediate portion as needed. Further, both connection pieces 10 are formed substantially flush with the connection leg 8 and the terminal connection portion 3. Furthermore, a pair of projecting pieces 11 are formed to project outward in the left-right direction at center portions in the front-rear direction of both the connecting pieces 10, respectively. In the present embodiment, both the projecting pieces 11 project outward while bending so as to be one step lower than the connecting piece 10. The two projecting pieces 11 are formed to project further outward than the two stopper pieces 7.

<Connector housing 1: Mainly refer to FIGS. 1 to 4>
The connector housing 1 is integrally formed of a synthetic resin material. A recess 12 is formed on the top surface of the connector housing 1 of the present embodiment. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the recess 12 is disposed on the left side of the center line of the connector housing 1 in the left-right direction, and is formed over the entire length in the front-rear direction. By forming the recess 12, the left side of the upper surface of the connector housing 1 across the recess 12 becomes the narrow first convex portion 1 A, and the right side becomes the wide second convex portion 1 B.

  A plurality of terminal fittings 2 are incorporated in the connector housing 1 so as to be arranged at a constant pitch in the left-right direction in two stages, upper and lower. As shown in FIG. 10, in the reference example, a total of three terminal fittings 2 are arranged on the upper side (the lower side in the drawing), and a total of six terminal fittings 2 are arranged on the lower side (the upper side in the drawing).

  As shown in FIG. 2, first and second openings 13 and 14 are formed on the upper surface of the first and second biconvex portions 1A and 1B, respectively, at substantially the center in the front-rear direction. . The openings 13 and 14 can expose the component connection portions 4 (the connection legs 8, the connection pieces 10 and the projecting pieces 11) of the terminal fittings 2 disposed on the upper side described later. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, a third opening 15 is provided on the lower surface of the connector housing 1. The third opening 15 is open over substantially the entire width of the connector housing 1. The third openings 15 are provided at positions corresponding to the first and second openings 13 and 14 in the front-rear direction and have a front-rear width, and the component connection parts 4 of all the terminal fittings 2 disposed on the lower side (The connection leg 8, the connecting piece 10 and the overhanging piece 11) are exposed.

  As shown in FIGS. 9 and 12, a pair of hood portions 16 opening forward or backward is formed in the front and rear portions of the connector housing 1. A plurality of terminal connection portions 3 of the terminal fitting 2 are projected in parallel in the upper and lower two stages in the both hood portions 16. A mating connector (not shown) can be fitted to both hood parts 16, and by fitting the mating connector, the corresponding male and female terminal fittings are connected, thereby fitting the connector C from the front and rear The mating connectors can be electrically relayed.

  A terminal mounting portion 17 for mounting the terminal fitting 2 is formed between the back walls of both the hood portions 16 inside the connector housing 1 (see FIGS. 9 to 12). The terminal mounting portion 17 is provided with a plurality of cavities 18 for accommodating the respective terminal fittings 2. In the case of this reference example, six chambers of the cavity 18 are arranged at a constant pitch along the left-right direction on the lower side, two cavities 18 on the right side with the recess 12 on the upper side, and 1 on the left side. A chamber cavity 18 is arranged. The respective cavities 18 are formed along the back and forth direction between the back walls of both hood portions 16, and the respective cavities 18 adjacent in the left and right direction are partitioned by the partition walls 19 or the wall surfaces in the both convex portions 1A, 1B.

  Further, a rail groove 32 is formed in the center in the left-right direction in each cavity 18 so as to be recessed along the front-rear direction (see FIGS. 2, 3, 11 and the like). In each of the cavities 18, the end surfaces of the left and right side portions of the rail groove 32 are the contact surfaces 33 for supporting the connection legs 8 of the terminal fitting 2. As shown in FIG. 11, in the portion where the rail grooves 32 correspond to the upper and lower sides, the partition wall 34 is formed between the rail grooves 32.

  As shown in FIG. 4, in the back wall of the hood portion 16 on the front side, a plurality of insertion ports 20 which allow the entire terminal fitting 2 to be inserted into the respective cavities 18 are opened. Each communicates with the corresponding cavity 18 ing. On the other hand, on the back wall of the rear hood portion 16, as shown in FIG. 12, a protrusion 21 for opening the rear terminal connection portion 3 of the terminal fitting 2 into the rear hood portion 16 is opened. , Each in communication with a corresponding cavity 18. Thus, each terminal fitting 2 is inserted into the connector housing 1 through the front hood portion 16.

  The width in the left-right direction of each cavity 18 is formed slightly narrower than the width of the press-fit portion 6 of the terminal fitting 2, and the width of each protrusion 21 is formed equal to or slightly narrower than the terminal connection portion 3. As a result, each terminal fitting 2 is press-fit into the cavity 18 and held in a retaining state. Further, a pair of stopper walls 22 are formed at the inlet of the insertion port 20, and when each terminal fitting 2 is inserted to the proper depth in the cavity 18, the stopper piece 7 of the terminal fitting 2 abuts and the terminal fitting The insertion depth of 2 is regulated.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a slit 23 is recessed along the vertical direction on the wall surface on the outer side in the left-right direction at the center in the front-rear direction in the first and second openings 13 and 14. As shown in FIG. 3, such slits 23 are also provided on both side surfaces in the left-right direction in the third opening 15. The slits 23 are used to form, in the terminal mounting portion 17, support surfaces 24 for the projecting pieces 11 of the terminal fitting 2 located at both ends in the left-right direction among the terminal fittings 2 arranged on the upper stage side and the lower stage side. It is a thing. Also, in order to form the supporting surface 24 for the remaining overhanging pieces 11, the terminal mounting portion 17 is generally divided back and forth by a plane along the extension direction of the slit 23 with the supporting surface 24 left. It is in the form of In other words, the terminal mounting portions 17 divided into the front and rear are connected by a plurality of wall bodies 25 in which the support surfaces 24 are recessed in the upper and lower end faces (see FIG. 3).

  As shown in FIG. 6, the bottom of the recess 12 in the connector housing 1 is at the same position as the position where the slit 23 described above in the front-rear direction is formed. Window holes 26 are opened at three locations corresponding to the three central terminal fittings 2). Each window hole 26 exposes a part of the projecting piece 11 of the terminal fitting 2 and the central part of the connecting piece 10.

  As shown in FIG. 10, in both the upper and lower portions, except for the support surfaces 24 for the overhanging pieces 11 located at both ends in the left-right direction, escape grooves 27 vertically penetrate through the wall 25 having the other support surfaces 24 Each wall 25 is separated left and right. By this, the support surface 24 is divided into right and left sandwiching the escape groove 27, and the projection pieces 11 adjacent in the left and right direction are separately supported. That is, the escape groove 27 is generally positioned between the overhanging pieces 11 adjacent in the left-right direction, and when the joint member 5 described later is mounted, the joint portion 28 is press-fit between the adjacent overhanging pieces 11 In addition to being divided, the end of the joint portion 28 can enter into the escape groove 27.

  Next, the joint member 5 will be described. The joint member 5 is integrally formed of a conductive metal flat plate material. FIG. 5 shows one for joining the terminal fittings 2 arranged on the lower side. As shown in FIG. 8, the base plate 5A in the lower joint member 5 is formed to have a dimension slightly shorter than the overall length in the left-right direction of the third opening 15 and sufficiently shorter than the dimension in the front-rear direction of the third opening 15 It is formed with a width. The joint member 5 on the lower side shown in FIG. 5 is provided with a total of five joint portions 28 at a constant pitch in the left-right direction. Each joint portion 28 is formed by bending and raising from the base plate 5A. The pitch of each joint portion 28 is substantially equal to that of the lower terminal fitting 2. When the lower joint member 5 is mounted in the third opening 15, the joint portion 28 is pushed in all at once in a press-fit manner between adjacent projecting pieces 11 in the left-right direction, and the tip thereof enters the escape groove 27. It has become. By this, all the terminal fittings 2 on the lower side are jointed simultaneously.

  On the other hand, the upper joint member 5 is used only for the terminal fitting 2 located in the second opening 14 for the terminal fitting 2 on the upper stage side. The upper joint member 5 has a structure in which one joint portion 28 is protruded from the base plate 5A by cutting and raising. When the upper joint member 5 is mounted in the second opening 14, the joint portion 28 is provided between the adjacent projecting pieces 11. Enters in the press-fit state, and the joint between the two terminal fittings 2 is taken, as in the lower side.

  Next, the operation and effect of the reference example configured as described above will be described. After the terminal metal fitting 2 is attached to each cavity 18 of the connector housing 1, joint work between the terminal metal fittings 2 is performed. In that case, the joint members 5 on the lower side of the third opening 15 are fitted into the terminal fittings 2 on the lower side. Then, each joint portion 28 is inserted between the corresponding overhanging pieces 11 in a press-fitting manner (see FIGS. 8 and 9). Thereby, the terminal fittings 2 on the lower side are jointed simultaneously.

  Further, the upper joint member 5 is inserted from the second opening 14 into the upper terminal fitting 2, and the joint 28 of the joint member 5 is located in the second opening 14 of the two terminal fittings 2. If inserting between the overhanging pieces 11 in a manner of press-fitting, the two terminal fittings 2 in the second opening 14 are also joined.

  Thus, in the reference example, all the terminal fittings 2 on the lower side are joined, and on the upper stage, the terminal fittings 2 in the second opening 14 are joined. That is, the connector before the upper and lower side joint members 5 are mounted has a specification as a normal relay connector, but by mounting the joint member 5 through the second and third openings 14 and 15 It can be easily changed to the specifications of the relay joint connector.

  Further, in the lower joint member 5, it is possible to selectively perform bending and raising of each joint portion 28 formed by bending and raising. A plurality of types in which the formation position and number of such joint portions 28 are changed are prepared, and if the desired type is selected from these and mounted on the connector housing 1, the terminal metal fitting 2 on the lower side is prepared. Alternatively, multiple joint patterns can be constructed.

  Furthermore, it is also possible to joint the lower terminal fitting 2 and the upper terminal fitting 2. For example, in FIG. 10, the joint 28 of the lower joint member 5 is not formed but the joint of the upper joint member 5 is extended, and between the two projecting pieces 11 of the corresponding lower lower terminal fittings 2. It may be made to press fit as well. In this way, the joint pattern can be further expanded.

<Example>
13 and 14 show an embodiment of the present invention. In the embodiment, both connection pieces 10 of any one of the terminal fittings 2 are divided at the center in the front-rear direction. Thus, the terminal fitting 2 is separated into the front half and the rear half. The fuse 29 (functional component) is installed in the first half and the second half. The fuse 29 has a configuration in which the lead terminal 31 protrudes from the main body 30, and both the lead terminals 31 are inserted by being press-fitted between the connection legs 8 of the front half and the rear half of the terminal fitting 2 The specification as the connector can be easily changed to the specification in which the fuse 29 is mounted.
The other configuration including the connector housing 1 is similar to that of the reference example.

  The dividing work of the connection piece 10 described above can be performed after the terminal fitting 2 is attached to the connector housing 1, that is, in the connector housing 1. For example, the fuse 29 is attached to one of the terminal fittings 2 arranged at the lower side which does not have the one corresponding to the upper side. That is, in the case of the terminal fitting 2 in this position, as shown in FIG. 10, the terminal mounting portion 17 is divided forward and backward in the front and back width region where the overhanging piece 11 is formed. Since the cutter and the device serving as the holder are allowed to enter from both the upper and lower directions, both connecting pieces 10 can be cut off by the front and rear width of the projecting piece 11. Thus, the fuse 29 can be bridged through the third opening 15 with respect to the terminal fitting 2 divided in the front and rear direction.

Other Embodiments
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above with reference to the drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.
(1) Although the example which mounts a functional component (joint member 5, the fuse 29) in the male terminal fitting 2 was shown in the said reference example and Example, you may make it mount in a female terminal fitting.
(2) Although the fuse 29 is illustrated as a functional component in the above embodiment, it is also possible to mount a relay.
(3) Although the case where it applied to a relay connector was shown in the said reference example, you may apply to the connector mounted in a printed circuit board.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Connector housing 2 ... Terminal fitting 3 ... Terminal connection part 4 ... Component connection part 5 ... Joint member (functional component)
13 to 15 First to third openings 28 Joints 29 Fuses (functional parts)

Claims (2)

A terminal fitting integrally provided with a terminal connection portion connectable to a mating terminal fitting and a component connection portion;
A connector housing capable of accommodating the terminal fitting and having an opening for exposing the component connection portion to the outside;
A conductive functional component connectable to the component connection through the opening;
The terminal fitting is a relay terminal having the terminal connection portion at both ends in the longitudinal direction, and the component connection portion is provided inside the longitudinal direction of the terminal connection portion, and the component connection portions are the connector housing divided capable coupled at the inner, based on the presence or absence of division of the component connecting portion, as in the terminal fitting component connection portion is separated, the functional component between the component connecting portion is disconnected is bridged Has become
The component connection portion has a pair of connection legs which can be opened and closed.
The leg end portion of the pair of connection legs is formed with a bulging portion that protrudes in the left-right direction,
A connector characterized in that the functional component is inserted between the pair of connection legs in a press-fitting manner .   The connector according to claim 1, wherein the functional component is a fuse or a relay.

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