JP7164503B2 - electrical connector for circuit board - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to electrical connectors for circuit boards.

As an electrical connector for circuit boards, for example, the connector disclosed in Patent Document 1 is known. Patent Document 1 discloses a fixed housing made of an electric insulating material that is directly or indirectly fixed to the mounting surface of a circuit board, a movable housing made of an electric insulating material that is movable with respect to the fixed housing, and An electrical connector for a circuit board is disclosed having a plurality of bridged resilient metal terminals.

In Patent Document 1, a plurality of terminals are arranged with one direction parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board as the terminal arrangement direction, one end of which is held by a fixed housing, and the other end of which is held by a movable housing. ing. It has an elastic portion bent in a horizontal S shape in the intermediate portion, and has a connection portion extending from the fixed housing at the one end side, and is soldered to the circuit board at the connection portion. It's becoming The terminals are composed of a first terminal row in which the connecting portion is arranged at one of two positions separated in the connector width direction (direction perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction), and a first terminal row in which the connecting portion is arranged in the other of the two positions. They are arranged in two rows including the second terminal row.

The fixed housing has two terminal holding members that separately hold the terminals of the first terminal row and the terminals of the second terminal row at positions spaced apart in the connector width direction and extend in the terminal arrangement direction. The ends in the terminal arrangement direction are connected by a connecting member made of a metal plate extending in the connector width direction.

The movable housing is positioned between the two terminal holding members in the width direction of the connector, and has a support portion whose upper end is positioned above the elastic portion of the terminal and whose lower end is in contact with the circuit board; It has a cylindrical fitting portion that is positioned to receive the mating connector, and the support portion and the fitting portion are integrally formed. The fitting portion has a peripheral wall formed of side walls extending in the terminal arrangement direction and end walls located at both ends of the side walls, and a bottom wall located at the lower ends of the side walls. The contact portions of the terminals contacting the terminals of the mating connector are arranged and held in the terminal arrangement direction on the inner wall surface of the fitting portion.

The end wall of the fitting portion extends downward from the bottom wall and reaches the surface of the circuit board, and the bottom end thereof is provided with a portion to be regulated that projects from the outer surface of the peripheral wall in the terminal arrangement direction. there is The two terminal holding members of the fixed housing extend to the position of the restricted portion in the terminal arrangement direction, and the connecting member is positioned so as to face the upper surface of the restricted portion and straddle the restricted portion, Both ends of the connecting member are bent downward to connect the terminal holding member so that the connecting member and the terminal holding member form a frame shape. Thus, in the connector of Patent Document 1, the movable housing that receives the mating connector is movable with respect to the fixed housing due to elastic deformation of the elastic portions of the terminals, but the movable housing is more flexible than the outer surface of the peripheral wall in the terminal arrangement direction. The upward movement of the portion to be regulated projecting out is regulated by the connecting member on the fixed housing side, and even if the movable housing is pulled upward when the mating connector is pulled out, the regulated portion is regulated, and an excessive load is applied to the terminal. does not bring.

JP 2018-078079

In the connector of Patent Document 1, as described above, the movable housing that is movable with respect to the fixed housing has the regulated portion that protrudes in the terminal arrangement direction from the outer periphery of the peripheral wall that forms the cylindrical fitting portion. However, the upward movement is restricted by a connecting member attached to the fixed housing. Therefore, the movable housing secures a so-called floating function in which the movable housing is movable with respect to the fixed housing during use of the connector due to elastic deformation of the elastic portion of the terminal. Even if a force is applied in the pulling direction from the terminal, the upward movement of the regulated portion does not become excessive, and the load on the terminal can be suppressed. However, since the restricted portion protrudes from the outer periphery of the peripheral wall of the movable housing in the terminal arrangement direction, the size of the restricted portion in the same direction must be increased accordingly. This does not meet the demand for miniaturization of connectors.

In view of such circumstances, the present invention provides an electrical connector for a circuit board that allows the floating of the movable housing, even if the movable housing has a portion to be regulated in the withdrawal direction when the mating connector is withdrawn. An object of the present invention is to provide a connector that does not increase in size in the arrangement direction.

An electrical connector for a circuit board according to the present invention comprises a fixed housing made of an electrical insulating material that is directly or indirectly fixed to a mounting surface of the circuit board, a movable housing made of an electrical insulating material that is movable with respect to the fixed housing, and a fixed housing. a housing and a plurality of elastic metal terminals bridged by the movable housing; a connector height direction perpendicular to the circuit board serving as a mating direction of the mating connector; perpendicular to the connector height direction; , a terminal arrangement direction parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board, and a connector width direction perpendicular to both the height direction and the terminal arrangement direction, and the movable housing is movable with respect to the fixed housing.

In such a circuit board electrical connector, according to the present invention, the plurality of terminals includes a fixed side held portion held by a fixed housing on one end side of the terminal and a movable side held portion held by a movable housing on the other end side of the terminal. an elastic portion as an intermediate portion between the fixed-side held portion and the movable-side held portion; and a connection portion extending from the fixed housing at the one end side and connected by soldering to the circuit board, a first terminal row in which the connection portion is arranged at one of two positions spaced apart in the connector width direction, and a second terminal row in which the connection portion is arranged at the other of the two positions; The fixed housing extends in the terminal arrangement direction and has two fixed-side terminal holding portions that separately hold the first terminal row and the second terminal row at positions spaced apart in the connector width direction, and two fixed-side terminals. The holding portion is connected at its ends in the terminal arrangement direction by a connecting portion. The connecting portion has a restricting portion that restricts upward movement of the movable housing. and an end wall connecting the ends of the side walls in the width direction of the connector. A fitting space for fitting a mating connector is formed in the peripheral wall. has a regulated portion whose upward movement is regulated by the regulating portion of the connecting portion, and extends from the outer surface of the end wall of the movable housing in the terminal arrangement direction to a range including the height range where the connecting portion is located. At least part of the restricting portion of the connecting portion is accommodated in the retracting portion of the movable housing, and the restricted portion of the movable housing is below the restricting portion. It is characterized by being located

According to the present invention, at least a part of the regulating portion of the connecting portion is accommodated in the immersed portion formed by being immersed in the terminal arrangement direction from the outer surface position of the end wall of the movable housing, and the portion to be regulated of the movable housing is as described above. Since it is positioned below the regulating portion, it is possible to reduce the size of the movable housing in the terminal arrangement direction by the extent that the regulating portion and the portion to be regulated are housed in the recessed portion.

In the present invention, the movable housing has a side wall and an end wall forming a peripheral wall of the movable housing, and at least an upper surface of the end wall, which serves as a mating connector receiving side, has an introductory sloping portion downwardly sloping toward the inside of the fitting space. The introduction inclined portion can be positioned so as to overlap with the restricted portion in the terminal arrangement direction. By doing so, the introduction inclined portion formed on the upper surface of at least the end wall of the peripheral wall of the movable housing facilitates and reliably introduces the mating connector into the fitting space in the terminal arrangement direction. Further, since the introduction inclined portion is positioned in a range overlapping with the restricted portion in the terminal arrangement direction, the introduction inclined portion can be formed with a sufficiently large range even if the movable housing is made smaller in the terminal arrangement direction.

In the present invention, the connecting portion may be a metal plate connecting member that is separate from the fixed housing. According to this form, since the connecting member is made of a metal plate, it has a large strength and a small size. Also, the connecting portion can be made of the same material as the movable housing and can be a separate member from the movable housing, or can be formed integrally with the movable housing.

In the present invention, the elastic portion of the terminal includes a horizontal portion extending in the width direction of the connector from the movable-side held portion held by the movable housing, and an inverted U-shaped vertical portion rising from the horizontal portion. and a horizontal U-shaped portion extending from the tip of the vertical inverted U-shaped portion, and the fixed-side held portion is held by the fixed-side terminal holding portion between the horizontal U-shaped portion and the connecting portion. can be formed as

In the present invention, the side wall of the movable housing has a thin portion that is recessed in the width direction of the connector in an inner region surrounded by both side edges and an upper edge in the terminal arrangement direction, and the thin portion is the terminal. A terminal window may be formed at the position of each corresponding terminal to allow the terminal to partially protrude outside the peripheral wall. In such a configuration, since the terminals partially protrude from the terminal window portion to the outside of the peripheral wall, the terminals are elastically deformed by the elastic portion, and when the movable housing floats, particularly when the movable housing floats, the terminals are elastically deformed in the direction in which the terminals are arranged. In this case, collision between the movable housing and the terminals can be avoided.

According to the present invention, as described above, the movable housing has an outer surface position of the end wall of the movable housing that includes the height range in which the connecting portion of the fixed housing is positioned in the connector height direction, which is the mating direction of the mating connector. A recessed portion is formed from the movable housing so as to be recessed in the terminal arrangement direction, and at least a part of the connecting portion is accommodated in the recessed portion of the movable housing. It is possible to reduce the size of the housing, which is movable in the arrangement direction, and thus the electrical connector for the circuit board.

1 is a perspective view showing a connector as an embodiment of the present invention and a mating connector in a state before mating, the connector being mounted on a circuit board, and illustration of the circuit board of the mating connector being omitted; FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the connector and the mating connector in FIG. 1 in an upside-down inverted posture, omitting illustration of the circuit board of the connector, and mounting the mating connector on the circuit board; 2 is a cross-sectional view of the connector of FIG. 1 and the mating connector taken along a plane perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction at the terminal position, omitting the illustration of the circuit board; FIG. FIG. 2 shows the connector of FIG. 1, where (A) is a cross-sectional view in the terminal arrangement direction and perpendicular to the width direction of the connector at the terminal position, and (B) is a plan view seen from above in the height direction of the connector. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing only a fixed housing, a terminal, and a connecting member of the connector of FIG. 1, omitting illustration of a movable housing; Fig. 1 shows the state of the movable housing of the connector when it moves the maximum amount, (A) when moving in the terminal arrangement direction, (B) when moving in the connector width direction, and (C) the connector height. direction indicates when to move upwards.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

A circuit board electrical connector (hereinafter referred to as "connector") I of this embodiment receives a mating connector II and is electrically connected to each other, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 all show the state before connection between the connector I and the mating connector II. Both the connector I and the mating connector II are mounted on corresponding circuit boards, but in the perspective view of FIG. It is shown. In the perspective view of FIG. 2, the positions of the connector I and the mating connector II are reversed in comparison with the case of FIG. shown as is. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the connector I and the mating connector II showing the attitude and positional relationship in FIG. 1 with the circuit board omitted. In the following figures, in order to clarify the directions, X is the terminal arrangement direction in the connector, Y is the direction parallel to the mounting surfaces of the circuit boards P and Q and is perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction X, and Y is the connector width direction. A direction perpendicular to the direction X and the connector width direction Y, that is, a connector fitting direction perpendicular to the mounting surfaces of the circuit boards P and Q is set as the connector height direction Z. As shown in FIG.

The connector I shown in FIG. 1 is shown in FIG. A plan view seen from above in the height direction Z is as shown in FIG. 4(B). 5 is a perspective view of the connector I with the movable housing omitted.

In FIG. 1, the connector I is mounted on the circuit board P. As shown in FIG. The connector I includes a fixed housing 1 fixed to a mounting surface of a circuit board, a connecting member 3 as a connecting portion for connecting two fixed-side terminal holding members 2, which will be described later, forming the fixed housing 1 at both ends thereof, It has a movable housing 4 movable with respect to the fixed housing 1 and a plurality of terminals 5 bridging the fixed housing 1 and the movable housing 4 . The terminals 5 are provided in two terminal rows, a first terminal row 5S1 and a second terminal row 5S2, at two positions separated in the connector width direction Y, respectively.

The fixed housing 1 has fixed-side terminal holding members 2 as two fixed-side terminal holding portions that hold one ends of the terminals 5 . The two fixed-side terminal holding members 2 are made of an electrical insulating material, and have a shape symmetrical in the connector width direction Y at two positions spaced apart in the connector width direction Y, and straight bodies extending in the terminal arrangement direction X. is making One of the two fixed-side terminal holding members 2 holds the terminals 5 of the first terminal row 5S1, and the other holds the terminals 5 of the second terminal row 5S2. The two fixed-side terminal holding portions 2 and the two terminal rows 5S1 and 5S2 are positioned symmetrically with respect to each other in the connector width direction Y, and have the same reference numerals. , the fixed-side terminal holding member 2 and the terminals 5 of the first terminal row 5S1 will be described.

The fixed-side terminal holding member 2 holds the rows of terminals 5 by integral molding with the terminals 5 , and the terminal 5 connects a connecting portion 51 formed by an end projecting from the fixed-side terminal holding member 2 to the circuit. It is fixed to the circuit board P through the terminal 5 by soldering to the corresponding circuit portion P1 of the board P. As shown in FIG. As can be seen in FIG. 2, the connecting portion 51 slightly protrudes from the lower surface of the fixed-side terminal holding member 2 (the surface facing the circuit board P) in the connector width direction Y and the connector height direction Z, and the connecting portion 51 can be smoothly connected. It is solder-connected to the corresponding circuit section P1. The fixed-side terminal holding member 2 extends beyond the terminal arrangement range in the terminal arrangement direction X, and has a length that includes a portion required for connection by a connection member 3 described later, and both ends are attached to the movable housing 4 described later. It is located substantially at the same position as the outer surface of the peripheral wall 42 .

The movable housing 4 is made of an electrically insulating material, and has a peripheral wall 42 forming a fitting space 41 for receiving a corresponding portion of the mating connector II, a bottom wall 43 positioned at the bottom of the peripheral wall 42, and a bottom wall 43 extending in the height direction Z of the connector. It has a central projecting wall 44 depending from wall 43 and depending legs 45 extending downwardly from bottom wall 43 in FIG.

A peripheral wall 42 of the movable housing 4 has a rectangular tubular shape extending in the connector height direction Z, and includes side walls 46 extending in the terminal arrangement direction X and end walls 47 connecting the side walls 46 to each other at their ends in the terminal arrangement direction X. have. In order to facilitate introduction of the mating connector II into the fitting space 41, the upper surfaces of the side wall 46 and the end wall 47 in FIG. 47A are formed respectively. The side wall 46 has a thin portion 46C sunk in the connector width direction Y in an inner region surrounded by both side edge portions 46-1 and an upper edge portion 46-2. A terminal window portion 46C-1 is formed at the position of each corresponding terminal 5 to allow the portion of the corresponding terminal 5 to protrude outside the peripheral wall 42. As shown in FIG.

The bottom wall 43 is formed so as to close the bottom of the peripheral wall 42, but the terminal window portion 46C-1 formed in the thin portion 46C of the side wall 46 extends to the bottom wall 43. The wall 43 partially penetrates and opens in the connector height direction Z (see FIG. 3).

A center protruding wall 44 parallel to the side wall 46 extends vertically from the center position of the bottom wall 43 in the connector width direction Y. As shown in FIG. When viewed in the connector height direction Z, the central protruding wall 44 is positioned in an island shape within the peripheral wall 42 (see FIG. 4B). An annular space is formed between the inner surface and this annular space forms a part of the fitting space 41 .

The center protruding wall 44 holds a contact portion 52 of the terminal 5 described below on its outer surface by integral molding (insert molding) with the terminal 5 .

A hanging leg portion 45 is provided extending downward from the central position of the bottom wall 43 in the connector width direction Y. As shown in FIG. As seen in FIG. 3, the hanging leg portion 45 extends from the bottom wall 43 to a position substantially at the same position as the lower surface of the fixed-side terminal holding member 2 of the fixed housing 1 in the connector height direction Z, and the terminal arrangement direction. In X, as shown in FIG. 4(A), a recessed portion 45A is formed which is constricted to approximately the same width as the central protruding wall 44, and below it, a drooping portion extending in a range approximately equal to the peripheral wall 42 in the terminal arrangement direction X is formed. It has a lower leg portion 45B. The recessed portion 45A is formed in a range including the height range in which the later-described restricting portion 31 of the connecting member 3 is positioned in the connector height direction Z. As shown in FIG. Also, the hanging leg lower portion 45B is formed to have substantially the same length as that of the fixed-side terminal holding member 2 in the terminal arrangement direction X. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4A, the upper end of the center projecting wall 44 is positioned below the lower ends of the introduction inclined portion 46A formed on the side wall 46 and the introduction inclined portion 47A formed on the end wall 47. there is

As seen in FIG. 2, the hanging leg lower portion 45B (located on the upper surface side in FIG. 2) has regulated portions 45B-1 at both end positions in the terminal arrangement direction X. As shown in FIG. The regulated portion 45B-1 is formed to extend in the connector width direction Y, so that the hanging leg lower portion 45B is substantially H-shaped when viewed in the connector height direction Z. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4A, the regulated portion 45B-1 is located within the range of a later-described recessed portion 45A of the movable housing 4 in the terminal arrangement direction X. and the terminal arrangement direction. 3, the regulated portion 45B-1 forms a gap g in the connector width direction Y between the end face 45B-1A in the connector width direction Y and the fixed-side terminal holding member 2. This gap g allows the floating movement of the movable housing 4 with respect to the fixed housing 1 in the connector width direction Y, and when the movement progresses and the gap g disappears, the fixed side terminal holding member 2 is moved. It functions to prevent the above floating movement.

The terminal 5 bridged between the fixed housing 1 and the movable housing 4 has a shape in which a metal strip plate is bent in the plate thickness direction. 51 and a second terminal row 5S2, and each terminal row 5S1, 5S2 is formed of three terminals 5 in this embodiment. The terminals 5 of the first terminal row 5S1 and the terminals 5 of the second terminal row 5S2 are alternately positioned in the terminal arrangement direction X as shown in FIG. Since they are positioned symmetrically in the width direction Y and have a symmetrical form, the first terminal row 5S1 and the second terminal row 5S2 will be described as terminals 5 without distinction.

The terminals 5 are shown in FIG. 3, which is a cross-sectional view of the fixed-side terminal holding member 2 of the fixed housing 1, the movable housing 4, and the terminals 5, and the fixed-side terminal holding member 2 and the terminals 5 are shown in a perspective view with the movable housing 4 omitted. As seen in FIG. 5, a connecting portion 51 formed at one end held by the fixed-side terminal holding member 2 of the fixed housing 1 and the other end held by the central projecting wall 44 of the movable housing 4 are shown. It has a contact portion 52 formed on the end portion side and an elastic portion 53 forming an intermediate portion between the connection portion 51 and the contact portion 52 .

The connecting portion 51 is integrally molded (insert-molded) with the fixed-side terminal holding member 2 so that the tip portion protruding beyond the fixed-side terminal holding member 2 is positioned on the lower surface of the fixed-side terminal holding member 2 and extends in the connector width direction. It is formed to extend outward at Y. Therefore, the connection portions 51 of the terminals 5 of the first terminal row 5S1 and the terminals 5 of the second terminal row 5S2 are positioned apart from each other in the connector width direction Y. As shown in FIG.

On the other hand, the contact portion 52 is formed by bending the terminal 5 in an inverted U shape in the plate thickness direction in a range including the contact portion 52 and integrally molding (insert molding) with the central projecting wall 44 . and are located on both sides of the central projecting wall 44 . The contact portion 52 is formed such that the plate surface of the terminal 5 is slightly recessed to ensure secure engagement with the terminal of the mating connector II and prevent the terminal from coming off in the removal direction. Since the contact portions 52 of the first terminal row 5S1 and the second terminal row 5S2 are positioned on both sides of the central projecting wall 44, they are located at the same position in the connector width direction Y, unlike the connecting portion 51. FIG.

As can be seen in FIG. 3, the elastic portion 53 has a horizontal portion 53A extending in the connector width direction Y from the lower end of the central projecting wall 44 of the movable housing 4, and an inverted U shape rising from the horizontal portion 53A. and a horizontal U-shaped portion 53C extending from the lower end of the vertical inverted U-shaped portion 53B. The terminal 5 is fixed between the horizontal U-shaped portion 53C and the connecting portion 51 at the tip. It is integrally molded and held by the side terminal holding member 2 . Thus, the elastic portion 53 can be elastically deformed in the connector width direction Y, the connector height direction Z, and the terminal arrangement direction X due to the presence of the vertical inverted U-shaped portion 53B and the horizontal U-shaped portion 53C.

Next, the connecting member 3 has a shape in which a metal strip plate is bent in its plate thickness direction, and as shown in FIG. a regulating portion 31 extending long in the connector width direction Y, a crank-shaped held portion 32 integrally embedded in the fixed-side terminal holding member 2 from the end of the regulating portion 31; and a fixing portion 33 extending in the connector width direction Y from the lower surface of the terminal holding member 2 . In the present embodiment, the connecting member 3 is made of a metal plate and has a higher strength than when it is made of an electrical insulating material. more regulated.

The regulating portion 31 is positioned facing the upper surface of the regulated portion 45B-1 forming a part of the hanging leg lower portion 45B of the movable housing 4 so as to accommodate the regulated portion 45B-1, and the fixed portion 33 is connected by soldering. It is fixed to the corresponding portion of the circuit board P by . The connecting member 3 is made wider than the terminal 5 in order to ensure strength, and the restricting portion 31 is made wider than the held portion 32 .

As described above, the fixed-side terminal holding member 2 has a length such that both ends thereof reach substantially the same position as the outer surface 47B of the end wall 47 of the peripheral wall 42 of the movable housing 4 in the terminal arrangement direction X, as shown in FIG. The movable housing 4 is formed with a recessed portion 45</b>A that is recessed from the outer surface 47</b>B of the end wall 47 below the peripheral wall 42 . Since the connecting member 3 connects the ends of the fixed-side terminal holding member 2, the regulating portion 31 of the connecting member 3 located on the upper surface of the regulated portion 45B-1 of the movable housing 4 extends over the entire area in the terminal arrangement direction X. is positioned within the submerged portion 45A. Further, in this embodiment, not only the regulating portion 31 but also the held portion 32 and the fixing portion 33, that is, the entire connecting member 3 are located within the range of the recessed portion 45A in the terminal arrangement direction X. As shown in FIG.

As can be seen in FIG. 4A, the side edge 31A of the restricting portion 31 of the connecting member 3 and the deep portion 45A-1 of the recessed portion 45A form an interval h in the terminal arrangement direction X, This gap h allows floating movement of the movable housing 4 with respect to the fixed housing 1 in the terminal arrangement direction X, and when the movement progresses and the gap h disappears, the deep portion 45A-1 moves further in floating. function to prevent

In this embodiment, the connecting member 3 is positioned within the recessed portion 45A of the movable housing 4 in the terminal arrangement direction, and the regulated portion 45B-1 of the movable housing 4 is below the regulating portion of the connecting member 3. Therefore, the size of the movable housing 4 and thus the connector I can be reduced in the terminal arrangement direction X by the extent that the connecting member 3 and the restricted portion 45B-1 are housed in the recessed portion 45A. In addition, it is not essential that the connecting member 3 and the regulated portion 45B-1 are entirely accommodated in the recessed portion 45A in the terminal arrangement direction X, and even if only a part of them are accommodated, the amount that is accommodated is Only the movable housing 4 and thus the connector I can be miniaturized.

Further, in this embodiment, the introduction inclined portion 47A of the movable housing 4 is positioned in the terminal arrangement direction X so as to overlap with the restricted portion 45B-1 of the movable housing 4. As shown in FIG. Therefore, even if the movable housing 4 is miniaturized in the terminal arrangement direction X, the introduction inclined portion 47A can be formed with a sufficiently large range.

The mating connector II to be fitted to the connector I of this configuration is made of an electrically insulating material having a fitting portion 61 fitted into the fitting space 41 of the connector I, as shown in FIGS. and terminals 70 held by the housing 60 .

As seen in FIG. 3, the fitting portion 61 has a rectangular tubular shape with an outer surface suitable for fitting into the fitting space 41 of the connector I. , the protruding base has a dimension larger than the fitting space 41 in the connector width direction Y so that the fitting portion 61 is projected from the fitting space 41 when the fitting portion 61 is fitted into the fitting space 41 of the connector I. 62 are formed.

The fitting portion 61 having the shape of a rectangular tube is formed therein with a receiving portion 63 as a space for receiving the central projecting wall 44 of the connector I when the connector I is fitted. A terminal groove 64 for receiving the terminal 70 is formed on the inner surface so as to communicate with the receiving portion 63 . Since the terminal 70 has a flat plate surface parallel to the paper surface (XY plane) in FIG. The width of the groove is equal to the plate thickness), and the groove is open upward in FIG.

The terminal 70 is made of a metal plate and has a flat plate surface parallel to the plane of FIG. 3 as described above. A base portion 71 positioned at the top, two contact arms 72 extending downward in an inverted U shape together with the base portion 71, and extending from the upper portion of the base portion 71 outside the housing 60 in the connector width direction Y. and a connecting portion 73 extending in one direction. A terminal 70 having two contact arms 72 and one connecting portion 73 extending from the base portion 71 corresponds to the terminals 5 of the first terminal row 5S1 and the terminals 5 of the second terminal row 5S2 of the connector I, and is arranged in the terminal arrangement direction. They are arranged in a zigzag pattern with X (perpendicular to the plane of the paper in FIG. 3). The terminal 70 located on the right side in FIG. 3 corresponding to the terminal 5 of the first terminal row 5S1 and the terminal 70 located on the left side in FIG. 3 corresponding to the terminal 5 of the second terminal row 5S2 are the same. It is made into a shape and arranged in a symmetrical posture by flipping the plate surface inside out. As a result, when viewed in the terminal arrangement direction X, the shape is symmetrical in the connector width direction Y, and the connection portion 73 of the terminal 70 located on the right side in FIG. A connecting portion 73 of 70 extends leftward.

In the contact arm 72 of the terminal 70, the outer side edge 72B in the connector width direction Y faces downward and is gradually separated from the inner surface of the terminal groove 64 of the housing 60. The distance between both contact arms 72 is widened due to elastic deformation of the left contact arm 72 . A contact portion 72A is provided at the lower end position of the contact arm 72 and protrudes in the opposite direction of the contact arms 72. are elastically deformed so as to widen the distance between them as described above.

Next, the fitting of the connector I to the mating connector II and the behavior after the fitting will be described.

First, the connector I is mounted on the circuit board P, and the mating connector II is mounted on the circuit board Q, respectively. In the connector I, the connection portion 51 of the terminal 5 is soldered to the corresponding circuit portion P1 of the circuit board P, and the fixing portion 33 of the connecting member 3 is soldered to the corresponding portion P2 of the circuit board P. On the other hand, in the mating connector II, the connecting portion 73 of the terminal 70 is soldered to the corresponding portion Q1 of the circuit board Q (see FIG. 2). By this mounting, a connector I with a circuit board P as shown in FIG. 1 and a mating connector II with a circuit board Q as shown in FIG. 2 are obtained.

After that, as seen in FIGS. 1 and 3, the mating connector II is brought above the connector I in a mating orientation with respect to the connector I (the circuit board Q is shown in FIG. 1). are omitted, and the circuit boards P and Q are omitted in FIG. From this state, the mating connector II is lowered to fit the fitting portion 61 of the mating connector II into the fitting space 41 of the connector I, as indicated by the arrow in FIG.

At the start of mating of the mating connector II to the movable housing 4 of the connector I, the terminal arrangement direction X, the connector width direction Y, or both directions may deviate from the normal position. In this case, the mating connector II is guided in the terminal arrangement direction X and the connector width direction Y by the introduction inclined portion 47A and the introduction inclined portion 46A formed in the movable housing 4 of the connector I and brought to the normal position. Alternatively, fitting progresses while approaching the normal position. At that time, when the mating connector II is not brought to the normal position by being guided by the introduction inclined portion 47A and the introduction inclined portion 46A at the initial position of the movable housing 4, the movable housing 4 is moved from the mating connector II in the terminal arrangement direction X and A force is received from the mating portion 61 of the mating connector II in the connector width direction Y or in a direction in which there is a deviation in both directions. Move floating. As a result, the mating connector II can be further fitted into the connector I, and fitted to the proper depth (position in the connector height direction Z).

When mating of the mating connector II to the connector I is completed, the terminals 70 of the mating connector II are terminals in which the contact portions 72A of the paired two contact arms 72 are positioned on both sides of the central projecting wall 44 of the connector I. A force is received from the contact portion 52 of 5. As a result, the two contact arms 72 are elastically deformed to widen the distance between the two contact arms 72, and the contact pressure corresponding to the amount of elastic deformation of the elastic portion 53 of the terminal 5 is applied to the connector I. It occurs between the contact portion 52 and the contact portion 52 . Thus, the fitting of the mating connector II to the connector I is completed, and the two connectors I and II are electrically connected.

When the mating connector II is fitted into the movable housing 4 of the connector I, the elastic portions 53 of the terminals 5 of the connector I remain elastically deformed, or when the connector is in use, the terminals are arranged in the terminal arrangement direction X on the mating connector II or the circuit board Q. , the connector width direction Y, or both directions, the mating connector II increases the amount of relative movement with respect to the connector I in the direction of the external force, and the amount of movement is absorbed by the elastic deformation of the elastic portion 53 of the terminal 5. be done.

At that time, in the terminal arrangement direction X, when the deep portion 45A-1 of the recessed portion 45A of the movable housing 4 of the connector I, which moves together with the mating connector II, abuts the side edge 31A of the restricting portion 31 of the connecting member 3, that is, , when the distance h (see FIG. 4A) between the deep portion 45A-1 of the recessed portion 45A and the side edge 31A of the restricting portion 31 disappears, the amount of movement reaches a maximum and further movement is prevented ( A state in which the movable housing 4 has moved in the terminal arrangement direction X with respect to the fixed housing 1 is shown (see FIG. 6A).

On the other hand, in the connector width direction Y, when the end surface 45B-1A of the regulated portion 45B-1 of the movable housing 4 of the connector I, which moves together with the mating connector II, abuts the side edge 2A of the fixed-side terminal holding member 2, That is, when the gap g between the end surface 45B-1A of the regulated portion 45B-1 and the fixed side terminal holding member 2 disappears, the amount of movement is maximized and further movement is prevented (relative to the fixed housing 1). (See FIG. 6B), which shows a state in which the movable housing 4 has moved in the connector width direction.

Furthermore, in the connector height direction Z, the restricting portion 31 of the connecting member 3 faces the upper surface of the restricted portion 45B-1 of the movable housing 4, so that the movable housing 4 is pulled upward toward the mating connector II. Even if an attempt is made to move in the connector height direction Z, the restricted portion 45B-1 contacts the lower surface of the restricting portion 31 of the connecting member 3 and is prevented from moving upward (relative to the fixed housing 1). (See FIG. 6C), which shows a state in which the movable housing 4 is moved upward in the connector height direction Z. Furthermore, even if the movable housing 4 is pushed downward by the mating connector II, the lower surface of the hanging leg portion 45 of the movable housing 4 abuts against the circuit board P and is prevented from moving downward.

In this embodiment, the connecting portion that connects the ends of the fixed terminal holding members 2 as the two fixed terminal holding portions of the fixed housing 1 is made of a metal that is separate from the fixed terminal holding member 2. Although the connection member 3 is used, it is not essential that the connection portion is made of metal, and for example, it may be made of an electrical insulating material. Further, when the connecting portion is made of an electrically insulating material, the connecting portion may form a separate member from the fixed-side terminal holding portion, or the connecting portion forms a part of the fixed housing and is integrated with the terminal holding portion. may be formed intentionally. Such integral formation eliminates the need to separately provide a connecting member, so the number of members can be reduced.

1 fixed housing 2 fixed side terminal holding member (fixed side terminal holding portion)
3 connecting member (connecting part)
4 movable housing 5 terminal 5S1 first terminal row 5S2 second terminal row 41 fitting space 42 peripheral wall 45A recessed portion 45B-1 restricted portion 46 side wall 46-1 side edge portion 46-2 upper edge portion 46C thin portion 46C-1 Terminal window portion 47 End wall 47A Introductory inclined portion 47B Outer surface of end wall 53 Elastic portion 53A Horizontal portion 53B Vertical inverted U-shaped portion 53C Horizontal U-shaped portion 57 Connection portion
I connector (electrical connector for circuit board)

Claims (5)

A fixed housing made of an electric insulating material that is directly or indirectly fixed to the mounting surface of the circuit board, a movable housing made of an electric insulating material that is movable with respect to the fixed housing, and an elasticity bridged between the fixed housing and the movable housing. a plurality of metal terminals;
A connector height direction perpendicular to the circuit board that is the mating direction of the mating connector, a terminal arrangement direction perpendicular to the connector height direction and parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board, the height direction and the terminal arrangement direction A circuit board electrical connector in which the connector width direction is perpendicular to both directions of and the movable housing is movable with respect to the fixed housing,
The plurality of terminals includes a fixed-side held portion held by the fixed housing on one end side of the terminal, a movable-side held portion held by the movable housing on the other end side, the fixed-side held portion and the movable side. It has an elastic portion as an intermediate portion with the held portion, and a connection portion extending from the fixed housing at the one end side and connected to the circuit board by soldering. It has a first terminal row arranged at one of the positions and a second terminal row arranged at the other of the two positions, and is held by the fixed housing and the movable housing by integral molding. cage,
The fixed housing has two fixed-side terminal holding portions that extend in the terminal arrangement direction and separately hold the first terminal row and the second terminal row at positions spaced apart in the connector width direction,
The two fixed-side terminal holding portions are connected by a connecting portion at their ends in the terminal arrangement direction,
The connecting portion has a restricting portion that restricts upward movement of the movable housing,
The movable housing has a peripheral wall formed by side walls extending in the terminal arrangement direction and end walls connecting the ends of the side walls in the width direction of the connector. form,
The movable housing has a regulated portion whose upward movement is regulated by the regulating portion of the connecting portion. A immersion portion is formed that is immersed in the terminal arrangement direction,
The recessed portion is located below the fitting space and is recessed in the range of the fitting space in the terminal arrangement direction,
At least a portion of the restricting portion is accommodated in the recessed portion within a range including the restricted portion in the width direction of the connector ,
The electrical connector for a circuit board, wherein the regulated portion is positioned below the regulating portion.
The movable housing has a side wall forming a peripheral wall of the movable housing and an end wall, and at least an upper surface of the end wall, which serves as a receiving side of the mating connector, is formed with an introductory inclined portion downwardly sloping toward the inside of the fitting space. 2. The electrical connector for a circuit board according to claim 1, wherein said introductory inclined portion is positioned so as to overlap with said restricted portion in the terminal arrangement direction. 2. The electrical connector for a circuit board according to claim 1, wherein said connecting portion is a metal plate connecting member which is separate from said fixed housing. The elastic portion of the terminal includes a horizontal portion extending in the width direction of the connector from the movable-side held portion held by the movable housing, a vertical inverted U-shaped portion rising from the horizontal portion and forming an inverted U-shape; a horizontal U-shaped portion extending from the tip of the vertical inverted U-shaped portion, and the fixed side held portion is held by the fixed side terminal holding portion between the horizontal U-shaped portion and the connecting portion; The electrical connector for circuit boards according to claim 1. A side wall of the movable housing has a thin portion in which an inner region surrounded by both side edges and an upper edge in the terminal arrangement direction is recessed in the width direction of the connector, and the thin portion partially accommodates the terminals. 2. The electrical connector for a circuit board according to claim 1, wherein a terminal window is formed at each corresponding terminal to allow the terminal to protrude outside the peripheral wall.

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