JP6561916B2 - connector - Google Patents

Description

  The technology described herein relates to a connector for charging a vehicle.

  Conventionally, a connector for charging a vehicle such as an electric vehicle is known. Patent Document 1 below describes a charging inlet in which a vehicle-side terminal accommodated in a terminal accommodating portion of an inlet housing is prevented from being detached by a retainer. The retainer is provided with a plurality of terminal locking cylinders, and the plurality of terminal locking cylinders are latched from the rear to the terminals inserted into the terminal housings, whereby a plurality of vehicle side terminals are provided. It has been retained.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2016-1522

  By the way, since the several terminal latching cylinder part provided in a retainer is the shape which protrudes in a cylinder shape, there is a concern about the bending and the fall of this terminal latching cylinder part. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, the shortest path on the outer periphery of a plurality of adjacent terminal locking cylinder portions 1 is connected and reinforced by the rib 2 so that the terminal locking cylinder portion 1 does not break or fall. It is possible to do. However, when the plurality of terminal locking cylinder portions 1 are reinforced by the ribs 2 in this way, the upper terminal locking cylinder portions 1 are transmitted to the recesses 3 formed in the portion where the terminal locking cylinder portions 1 and the ribs 2 are connected. The water pool 4 is generated by the water D that has fallen, and there is a concern about problems such as leakage current between terminals due to the water pool 4.

  The technology described in the present specification has been completed based on the above-described circumstances, and provides a connector capable of suppressing the occurrence of water pool while reinforcing the terminal holding cylinder portion. Objective.

The connector described in the present specification has a plurality of terminals, a terminal accommodating portion that accommodates a front end side of the terminal, a housing that fits into a mating charging connector, and a rear side of the housing And a retainer having a plurality of terminal holding tube portions for holding the plurality of terminals, the front end sides of which are accommodated in the terminal housing portions, from the rear side, wherein the retainer is disposed between the adjacent terminal holding tube portions. Connecting ribs, the connecting ribs extending along the tangent line connecting the terminal holding tube portions adjacent on the upper side among the plurality of tangent lines on the outer periphery of the adjacent terminal holding tube portions. It extends.
According to this structure, the several terminal holding | maintenance cylinder part adjacent by a connection rib can be reinforced. Further, the connecting rib extends along a tangent line connecting a plurality of adjacent terminal holding cylinder portions on the upper side among a plurality of tangent lines on the outer periphery of the plurality of adjacent terminal holding cylinder portions. And the connecting rib are less likely to form a recess in which water accumulates. Therefore, it becomes possible to suppress the occurrence of water pool while reinforcing the adjacent terminal holding cylinder portions with the connecting ribs.

The following embodiments are preferable as the embodiments of the technology described in this specification.
The connecting rib is provided on the base end side of the terminal holding cylinder portion.
If it does in this way, the water which transmitted the connection rib can make it difficult to adhere to a terminal from the front-end | tip part of a terminal holding cylinder part.

The plurality of terminal holding tube portions have heights different from each other at the position of the uppermost portion on the outer peripheral surface, and the connecting rib is connected to the uppermost portion of the terminal holding tube portion on the lower side of the uppermost portion. Yes.
If it does in this way, the crevice which collects water can be prevented from being formed between the terminal holding cylinder part on the side where the uppermost part is lower, and the connecting rib.

  According to the technique described in this specification, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a water pool while reinforcing the terminal holding cylinder portion of the connector.

Front view showing the connector of the embodiment Right side view showing connector AA sectional view of FIG. Connector exploded perspective view Perspective view showing retainer Front view showing retainer The figure explaining the problem at the time of connecting between several terminal latching cylinder parts by the rib of the shortest path

<Embodiment>
Embodiments will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6.
The connector 10 of the present embodiment is an inlet for charging a vehicle such as an electric vehicle, for example, and is a battery (not shown) mounted on the vehicle by fitting and connecting an external charging connector (not shown). ) Is charged. In the following description, the X direction (the fitting direction with the mating charging connector) is the front, the Y direction is the left, and the Z direction is the upper.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the connector 10 includes a plurality of terminals 11 </ b> A and 11 </ b> B, a front end side of the plurality of terminals 11 </ b> A and 11 </ b> B, a housing 20 that is mounted on a vehicle body, and a rear side of the housing 20. A retainer 30 that is mounted and prevents the terminals 11A and 11B from coming off from the rear side.

  The plurality of terminals 11A and 11B are both cylindrical female terminals, and have a pair of large-diameter terminals 11A and a plurality of small-diameter terminals 11B. The large-diameter terminals 11A arranged side by side are power terminals, and the small-diameter terminals 11B arranged side by side are signal terminals. The terminals 11 </ b> A and 11 </ b> B are provided with overhang portions 12 that project in the radial direction.

  The housing 20 is made of an insulating synthetic resin, and as shown in FIG. 3, a fitting portion 22 that fits with a mating charging connector, and a mounting plate 28 that is attached to a vehicle body (panel). And an extension portion 29 extending in a cylindrical shape behind the fitting portion 22. The fitting portion 22 is for fitting a male housing (not shown) of the charging connector, and has a hood portion 23 that opens in the form of a hood forward and a circular back wall portion that closes the hood portion 23. 26.

  A plurality of terminal accommodating portions 27 </ b> A and 27 </ b> B arranged in the up / down / left / right direction protrude forward from the back wall portion 26. The terminal accommodating portions 27A arranged in the lateral direction are cylindrical and accommodate the front end side of the large-diameter terminal 11A. The plurality of terminal accommodating portions 27B arranged in the vertical direction are divided into a plurality of accommodating chambers 27C that can accommodate the front end side of each small-diameter terminal 11B, and the accommodating chambers 27C at necessary locations according to the vehicle type, specifications, and the like. The terminal 11B is accommodated in the terminal. A terminal insertion recess 27D through which the rear end sides of the terminals 11A and 11B are inserted is provided behind the back wall portion 26 at a position continuous with the plurality of terminal accommodating portions 27A and 27B. A step 27E is formed between the inner walls of the terminal accommodating portions 27A and 27B and the terminal insertion recess 27D so that the protruding portion 12 of the terminals 11A and 11B can contact.

  A die hole is formed through the upper portion of the back wall portion 26, and a seal member 46 is fitted into the hole. The mounting plate 28 has a rectangular shape, and mounting holes 28A pass through the four corners. As shown in FIG. 4, a plurality (four in this embodiment) of locking protrusions 29 </ b> A are provided on the outer periphery of the extension part 29 at intervals in the circumferential direction.

  3 and 4, the retainer 30 has a circular plate-like base 31, a plurality of terminal holding cylinders 34 </ b> A to 34 </ b> I that protrude forward from the base 31 and hold the terminals 11 </ b> A and 11 </ b> B from the rear, An encircling wall portion 37 projecting annularly behind the base portion 31 and collectively enclosing the plurality of electric wires connected to the plurality of terminals 11A and 11B, and projecting rearward from the lower portion of the base portion 31, is connected to a drain hose. And a cylindrical drain tube portion 38.

  The base 31 is formed with through-holes that are continuous with the terminal holding tube portions 34 </ b> A to 34 </ b> I and the drain tube portion 38. A peripheral wall 32 projects forward from the peripheral edge of the base 31. A seal ring 33 is attached to the peripheral wall 32. A pressing portion 32 </ b> A that presses the seal member 46 extends forward from the upper portion of the peripheral wall 32.

  As shown in FIG. 4, a plurality of attachment pieces 42 extend forward on the outer peripheral wall overlapping the outer side of the peripheral wall 32. Each attachment piece 42 has a frame shape and is held in a state in which the retainer 30 is mounted on the housing 20 by locking the edge of the locking hole 42 </ b> A to the locking projection 29 </ b> A of the housing 20.

  The terminal holding cylinders 34A to 34I include a plurality (two in this embodiment) of terminal holding cylinders 34A and 34B corresponding to the pair of terminal accommodating parts 27A and a plurality of (this embodiment) corresponding to the plurality of terminal accommodating parts 27B. 7) in the form of terminal holding cylinders 34C to 34I, and the protruding parts 12 of the terminals 11A and 11B accommodated in the terminal accommodating parts 27A and 27B, respectively, are connected to the distal ends of the terminal holding cylinders 34C to 34I. The part is locked from behind to prevent it from coming off. Each terminal holding cylinder portion 34A to 34I is formed with a through hole 39 through which the rear end portions of the terminals 11A and 11B and the electric wires are inserted. On the inner wall of the through hole 39, a reduced diameter portion 39A having an inner diameter reduced in a step shape is formed. As shown in FIG. 3, a seal member 47 made of rubber or the like is attached between the reduced diameter portion 39A and the terminals 11A and 11B.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the plurality of terminal holding tube portions 34 </ b> C to 34 </ b> I form two tube portion groups 35 </ b> A and 35 </ b> B at the upper portion and the substantially intermediate portion of the base portion 31. The upper cylindrical portion group 35A includes three terminal holding cylindrical portions 34C to 34E, and the lower cylindrical portion group 35B includes four terminal holding cylindrical portions 34F to 34I, both of which are at the highest position in the vertical direction. The arranged terminal holding cylinders 34C and 34F are connected to adjacent (obliquely downward) terminal holding cylinders 34D, 34G, and 34H by connecting ribs 40A to 40C.

  The connecting ribs 40A to 40C are connected to the terminal holding cylinders 34D, 34G, and 34H at the positions where the upper terminal holding cylinders 34C and 34F are obliquely downward (in the present embodiment, 45 degrees oblique) in each of the cylinder groups 35A and 35B. On the other hand, among the plurality of tangents A1 to A4 on the outer periphery of each other (in FIG. 6, only the tangent line between the terminal holding cylinder part 34C and the terminal holding cylinder part 34D is virtually illustrated), It extends along the direction. More specifically, the connecting ribs 40A to 40C extend at an angle of 45 degrees with respect to the vertical direction, and the terminal holding cylinder portions 34C and 34F where the upper surface sides (one side edges) of the connecting ribs 40A to 40C are adjacent to each other. In addition, the lower surface side (the other side edge) of the connecting ribs 40A to 40C is connected to the uppermost position on the outer periphery of the middle terminal holding cylinder portions 34D, 34G, and 34H.

  The lower terminal holding cylinders 34E and 34I are arranged at positions immediately below the upper terminal holding cylinders 34C and 34F, and the connecting rib 40C is formed at the bottom of the upper terminal holding cylinders 34C and 34F and the lower Are connected to the uppermost portions of the terminal holding cylinder portions 34E and 34I. Each of the connecting ribs 40A to 40C is erected from the front surface of the base 31, and is connected to the base end side of the terminal holding cylinder part 34B (backward from substantially the middle in the axial direction of the terminal holding cylinder part 34B). Yes.

  In this way, the connecting ribs 40A to 40C are connected to each other through the shortest path between the upper terminal holding cylinders 34C and 34F and the middle terminal holding cylinders 34D, 34G and 34H. No recess is formed between 40C and the terminal holding cylinders 34D, 34G, 34H in which water accumulates. Therefore, the water D adhering to the connecting ribs 40A to 40C falls down along the connecting ribs 40A to 40C (the one-dot chain line arrow in FIG. 6), and the water that has dropped to the lower part of the retainer 30 is discharged into the drain tube section 38. Led in. Since the hose connected to the drain cylinder 38 extends outside the vehicle compartment via the inside of the vehicle, the water in the drain cylinder 38 is discharged to the outside of the vehicle via the hose.

According to the present embodiment, the following operations and effects are achieved.
The connector 10 includes a plurality of terminals 11A and 11B and terminal accommodating portions 27A and 27B in which the front ends of the terminals 11A and 11B are accommodated, a housing 20 that fits with a mating charging connector, and a rear side of the housing 20 The retainer 30 includes a plurality of terminal holding cylinder portions 34A to 34I that are mounted on the side and hold the plurality of terminals 11A and 11B housed in the terminal housing portions 27A and 27B from the rear side. The connecting ribs 40A to 40C connecting the plurality of adjacent terminal holding cylinder portions 34C to 34I are provided, and the connecting ribs 40A to 40C are a plurality of the outer circumferences of the adjacent terminal holding cylinder portions 34C, 34D, and 34F to 34H. Among the tangent lines A1 to A4, the plurality of terminal holding cylinder portions 34C, 34D and 34F to 34H adjacent on the upper side extend along the tangent line A1.

  According to the present embodiment, the adjacent terminal holding cylinder portions 34C to 34I can be reinforced by the connecting ribs 40A to 40C. Further, the connecting ribs 40A to 40C include a plurality of terminal holding cylinder portions 34C and 34D adjacent on the upper side among the plurality of tangent lines A1 to A4 on the outer periphery of the plurality of adjacent terminal holding cylinder portions 34C, 34D and 34F to 34H. , 34F to 34H, it extends along the tangent line A1 between the terminal holding cylinder portions 34C, 34D, 34F to 34H and the connecting ribs 40A to 40C. Therefore, it becomes possible to suppress the occurrence of water pool while reinforcing the terminal holding cylinder portions 34C to 34I.

Further, the connecting ribs 40A to 40C are provided on the base end side of the terminal holding cylinder portions 34C to 34I.
In this way, it is possible to make it difficult for water transmitted through the connecting ribs 40 </ b> A to 40 </ b> C to adhere to the terminals 11 </ b> A and 11 </ b> B from the tip end portions of the terminal holding cylinder portions 34 </ b> C to 34 </ b> I through the through holes 39.

The plurality of terminal holding cylinders 34C to 34I have different heights at the positions of the uppermost portions on the outer peripheral surface, and the connecting ribs 40A to 40C are intermediate terminal holding cylinders (on the lowermost side). It is connected to the top of the parts 34D, 34F, 34G.
If it does in this way, the recessed part which water accumulates between terminal holding cylinder part 34D, 34F, 34G and the connection ribs 40A-40C of the side where the uppermost part is low can be prevented from being formed.

<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) Although the connecting ribs 40A to 40C are provided in the vehicle-side connector 10 in the above-described embodiment, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the connecting rib may be provided in the mating charging connector.

(2) The connecting ribs 40A to 40C are linear, but are not limited thereto. For example, an arc shape or a curved shape may be used.

(3) The number of the connecting ribs 40A to 40C and the shape such as the width (thickness) are not limited to the number and shape of the above embodiment, and may be changed to different numbers and shapes.

10: Connectors 11A, 11B: Terminal 20: Housing 27A, 27B: Terminal receiving portion 30: Retainers 34A-34I: Terminal holding cylinders 40A-40C: Connecting ribs A1-A4: Tangent D: Water

Claims (3)

Multiple terminals,
A housing that has a terminal accommodating portion for accommodating a front end side of the terminal, and is fitted with a mating charging connector;
A retainer mounted on the rear side of the housing and having a plurality of terminal holding cylinders for holding the plurality of terminals housed from the rear side, the front end side being housed in the terminal housing part,
The retainer includes a connecting rib that connects between the plurality of terminal holding cylinder portions adjacent to each other,
The connecting rib extends along the tangent line connecting the plurality of terminal holding cylinder portions adjacent on the upper side among the plurality of tangent lines on the outer periphery of the plurality of adjacent terminal holding cylinder portions. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the connecting rib is provided on a proximal end side of the terminal holding cylinder portion. The plurality of terminal holding tube portions have heights different from each other at the position of the uppermost portion on the outer peripheral surface, and the connecting rib is connected to the uppermost portion of the terminal holding tube portion on the lower side of the uppermost portion. The connector according to claim 1 or 2.

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