JP7113712B2 - connector - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a connector that suppresses sliding of contacts.

Among connectors, there are connectors that have backlash due to the tolerances of the parts that make up the connector and the securing of clearances for assembling the connector. For example, in the case of a connector provided with a retainer, the contact is prevented from coming off by inserting the retainer. However, if the dimensions are set so that the retainer can be reliably inserted in consideration of the tolerance of parts, there will be play between the inserted retainer and the contact.

Consideration will now be given to the case where a connector having such backlash is used in an environment affected by vibration, such as in the engine room of an automobile. When the connector receives external vibration, the contacts vibrate relative to the housing. Then, due to the vibration, the contacts of this connector and the contacts of the mating connector may slide repeatedly and wear may occur. In order to prevent this, it is desirable to suppress the relative vibration of the contacts with respect to the housing so that when the connector vibrates, the housing and the contacts vibrate only integrally.

Here, Patent Document 1 discloses a connector in which a pair of housings are relatively displaced in the mating direction when the housings are mated to fill the gap between the housings, thereby preventing the housings from rattling. there is

However, in the structure of Patent Document 1, rattling between the housings is prevented, but rattling between the housing and the contacts is not prevented.

JP 2006-79994 A

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a retainer-equipped connector in which rattling between the housing and the contacts is prevented.

The connector of the present invention for achieving the above object is
contact and
a housing having an accommodation chamber for accommodating the contact;
a retainer inserted into the housing from a lateral direction intersecting the mating direction with the mating connector to prevent the contact from coming off;
the housing
a front housing having a front end portion receiving chamber for receiving a front end portion of the contact in the fitting direction of the receiving chamber;
a main housing having a main receiving chamber for receiving a portion of the receiving chamber excluding a front end portion of the contact in the fitting direction, and a main housing for receiving the retainer;
The front housing is movable in the mating direction with respect to the main housing, and when mated with the mating connector, the front housing is moved rearward in the mating direction with respect to the main housing to press the contacts against the retainer and in the mating direction of the contacts. It is characterized by making it impossible to move to.

The connector of the present invention has a structure in which the front housing moves rearward in the mating direction with respect to the main housing to press the contacts against the retainer when mated with the mating connector. Therefore, rattling between the housing and the contacts is prevented, and sliding between the contacts of this connector and the contacts of the mating connector is suppressed.

Here, in the connector of the present invention, one of the main housing and the front housing has the first engaging portion, and the other has the first engaging portion when the front housing moves forward in the mating direction with respect to the main housing. It is preferable to have a second engaging portion that engages with the mating portion to prevent the front housing from coming off from the main housing and allows the front housing to move rearward in the fitting direction.

With the first engaging portion and the second engaging portion described above, the front housing is prevented from coming off, and the front housing can be moved in the fitting direction.

Moreover, it is preferable that the front housing has a projection on the mating surface with the mating connector. With the protrusion, the protrusion, that is, a predetermined portion of the mating surface can be abutted against the mating connector when mating with the mating connector.

Further, in the connector of the present invention, it is preferable that the front housing has an arm portion that has a recess and is pressed against the mating connector and bends rearward in the mating direction when mated.

By providing this arm portion, it is possible to bring the mating surfaces of both connectors into contact while preventing rattling between the housing and the contacts.

According to the present invention described above, rattling between the housing and the contacts is prevented in a connector with a retainer.

1 is an external perspective view showing a connector according to an embodiment of the present invention and a mating connector mated with the connector; FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a characteristic portion of the connector of the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 1; FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing the behavior of the connector of the present embodiment when mated with a mating connector;

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing a connector according to an embodiment of the present invention and a mating connector mated with the connector.

FIG. 1 shows a state in which three connectors 10 are fitted to a mating connector 60. As shown in FIG. The mating connector 60 is fixed in an environment where vibrations are likely to be transmitted, such as the engine room of an automobile. Male contacts (not shown) forming the mating connector 60 are fixed to the housing 61 thereof. In other words, the mating connector 60 is a connector that is integrally constructed without backlash between the housing 61 and the contacts.

The three connectors 10 fitted to the mating connector 60 have different shapes, but have the same features as embodiments of the present invention. These three connectors 10 are provided with levers 11 . By rotating the lever 11, it is engaged with the mating connector 60, and by rotating it in the opposite direction, the engagement is released.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a characteristic portion of the connector of the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG.

This connector 10 comprises a male contact 20 to which an electric wire 50 is connected, a housing 30 and a retainer 40 .

The housing 30 has an accommodation chamber 301 that accommodates the contacts 20 . The housing 30 is composed of a front housing 31 , a central housing 32 and a rear housing 33 . The front housing 31 corresponds to an example of the front housing referred to in the present invention. Also, the central housing 32 or the combination of the central housing 32 and the rear housing 33 corresponds to an example of the main housing according to the present invention.

The front housing 31 has a front end receiving chamber 301a that is part of the receiving chamber 301 that receives the contacts 20 . The front end accommodating chamber 301a accommodates the front end portion of the contact 20 in the fitting direction. In addition, the central housing 32 has a main receiving chamber 301b forming a receiving chamber 301 for receiving the contacts 20. As shown in FIG. The main accommodation chamber 301b accommodates the contact 20 except for the front end portion in the fitting direction. The front housing 31 is movable in the fitting direction with respect to the central housing 32 . Movement of the front housing 31 will be described in detail later.

The rear housing 33 has a through hole 331 that communicates with the accommodation chamber 301 that accommodates the contact 20 and allows the electric wire 50 to pass therethrough. The rear housing 33 is assembled integrally with the central housing 32 .

The retainer 40 is inserted into the central housing 32 from a lateral direction that intersects the mating direction (the direction indicated by the arrow X) with the mating connector 60 (see FIG. 1). The retainer 40 plays a role of preventing the contact 20 from coming off rearward in the fitting direction (toward the rear housing 33). However, the insertion position of the retainer 40 is a position separated by a dimension D from the engagement portion 21 of the contact 20 in consideration of the tolerance of parts and the like. Therefore, in this state, when the connector 10 is subjected to vibration, the contacts 20 rattle within the range of the dimension D with respect to the housing 30 .

As described above, the front housing 31 is movable in the mating direction with respect to the central housing 32 . FIG. 2 shows a state in which the front housing 31 has moved forward in the fitting direction with respect to the central housing 32 .

A locking claw 311 is provided on the front housing 31 . Further, the central housing 32 is provided with a recess 321 into which the locking claw 311 is inserted. The locking claw 311 corresponds to an example of the first engaging portion according to the present invention, and the concave portion 321 corresponds to an example of the second engaging portion according to the present invention. The concave portion 321 engages with the engaging claw 311 when the front housing 31 is moved forward in the fitting direction, thereby preventing the front housing 31 from coming off from the central housing 32 . However, this recess 321 has a dimension that allows the front housing 31 to move rearward in the fitting direction.

In addition, in this embodiment, the front housing 31 is provided with the locking claw 311 and the central housing 32 is provided with the concave portion 321 . However, on the contrary, the central housing 32 may have a structure corresponding to the locking claw 311 and the front housing 31 may have a structure corresponding to the recess 321 .

Also, the front housing 31 has an arm portion 312 . The arm portion 312 is formed by a protrusion 312a protruding toward the mating connector 60 and a recess 312b provided behind the protrusion 312a. The arm portion 312 is configured to bend rearward in the fitting direction when the projection 312a is pushed.

The inner wall of the front end housing portion 301a of the front housing 31, which contacts the front end of the contact 20, is tapered. This absorbs variations in the length of the contacts 20 along the mating direction (the direction indicated by the arrow X).

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the behavior of the connector of this embodiment when it is mated with a mating connector.

Here, the dashed-dotted line represents the fitting surface 62 of the fitting recess (not shown here) of the mating connector 60 .

FIG. 3A shows a state immediately after the connector 10 moves toward the mating connector 60 in the mating direction (the direction of the arrow X) and the protrusion 312a comes into contact with the mating surface 62 of the mating connector 60. FIG. ing. In FIG. 3A, the front housing 31 is moved forward in the fitting direction, as in FIG.

FIG. 3(B) shows a state in which the connector 10 has moved in the fitting direction (direction of arrow X) by the dimension D of the backlash shown in FIG. 2 compared to FIG. 3(A). However, the front housing 31 cannot move in the direction of the arrow X because the protrusion 312a is in contact with the mating connector 60 . Therefore, the front housing 31 moves rearward in the fitting direction (opposite to arrow X) relative to the central housing 32 . During the movement, the contacts 20 are also moved together and pressed against the retainer 40 . As a result, the dimension D that causes rattling becomes zero.

FIG. 3(C) shows a state in which the connector 10 has moved further in the fitting direction (direction of arrow X) compared to FIG. 3(B). Here, for ease of understanding, the shape of the arm portion 312 is emphasized. When the connector 10 is further moved forward in the fitting direction (in the direction of the arrow X) from the state shown in FIG. The mating surface 313 of the connector 10, which is the front end surface of the housing 31, and the mating surface of the mating connector are properly brought into contact with each other.

As described above, according to the connector 10, the mating connector can be properly fitted, and the rattling between the housing 30 and the contacts 20 can be suppressed.

10 connector 11 lever 20 contact 30 housing 301 storage chamber 301a front end storage chamber 301b main storage chamber 31 front housing (front housing)
311 locking claw (first engaging portion)
312 Arm portion 312a Projection 312b Recess 313 Fitting surface 32 Central housing (main housing)
321 recess (second engaging portion)
33 Rear housing 331 Through hole 40 Retainer 50 Electric wire 60 Mating connector 61 Mating connector housing

Claims (4)

contact and
a housing having an accommodation chamber for accommodating the contact;
a retainer that is inserted into the housing from a lateral direction intersecting the mating direction with the mating connector to prevent the contact from coming off;
The housing is
a front housing having a front end receiving chamber for receiving a front end portion of the contact in the fitting direction, of the receiving chamber;
a main housing for accommodating the retainer and having a main accommodation chamber for accommodating a portion of the accommodation chamber excluding a front end portion of the contact in the fitting direction;
The front housing is movable in the mating direction with respect to the main housing, and moves rearward in the mating direction with respect to the main housing when mating with the mating connector, thereby pressing the contacts against the retainer. 1. A connector, wherein said contacts are prevented from moving in a mating direction. One of the main housing and the front housing has a first engaging portion, and the other engages the first engaging portion when the front housing moves forward in the fitting direction with respect to the main housing. 2. A second engaging portion for preventing the front housing from coming off from the main housing by stopping the front housing and allowing the front housing to move rearward in the fitting direction. connector. 3. The connector according to claim 1, wherein said front housing has a projection on a mating surface with a mating connector. A connector according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein said front housing has an arm portion which has a recess and which is pressed against said mating connector and bends rearward in the mating direction when mated.

Images