JPH0319185Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (a) Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to a connector, and particularly to a connector that allows flexible printed circuit boards to be inserted and removed reliably with simple operation.

(b) Prior art and its problems Conventionally, this type of connector uses, for example, a flexible printed circuit board whose insertion side end is either the same as the flexible printed circuit board or is backed and reinforced with a thin plate, and the insertion side end is connected to the connector body. The connector terminals on the flexible printed circuit board are electrically connected to the contact pieces of the leads arranged inside the connector body by being press-fitted into the insertion part, but due to significant changes in temperature, especially during summer and winter, Expansion or contraction of the flexible printed circuit board, etc. causes the insertion portion to become loose, making it easier for the flexible printed circuit board to come off, or, conversely, to become wedged, making it difficult to come off.

In addition, when the flexible printed circuit board is inserted into the connector body, a separately prepared insertion fixing member is inserted to insert the flexible printed circuit board into the connector body, and a locking means is added to the structure. However, the disadvantage is that the insertion operation requires two steps, which is time-consuming and complicates the structure.

(c) Purpose It is an object of the present invention to eliminate such drawbacks and to provide a connector that allows a flexible printed circuit board to be mounted and removed reliably with simple operation.

(d) Means and action for resolving the problem Therefore, the connector of the present invention has an opening having a shape in which both ends in the width direction are enlarged so that a flexible printed circuit board can be inserted with both ends curved. a cavity communicating with the opening, and notches provided in the bottom wall of both ends in the width direction of the cavity and formed on both edges on the insertion side of the flexible printed circuit board are removably engaged. a connector body having a protrusion for stopping; a contact piece having elasticity for pressing the flexible printed circuit board inserted into the cavity and electrically connecting with the connector terminal of the flexible printed circuit board; and a terminal having leads connected to each other, wherein the upper wall at both ends in the width direction of the cavity has an inclined surface that slopes downward from the opening toward the inner part; A front surface of the protrusion is formed with an inclined surface that slopes forward and downward, and is characterized in that both inclined surfaces contact and guide the inserted flexible printed circuit board.

(E) Embodiments The present invention will be explained in detail below based on illustrated embodiments.

In Fig. 1, 1 is a connector and 2 is a flexible printed circuit board (hereinafter referred to as FPC board).As shown in the figure, with both edges curved, FPC board 2 connects to connector 1 as shown by the arrow. inserted.

The connector 1, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 5,
It is formed from a rectangular parallelepiped connector body 3 and a plurality of terminals 4 arranged at predetermined intervals on the connector body 3 in the width direction.

Specifically, the connector body 3 has an opening 5 on the front side.
is opened, and a cavity 6 is formed in communication with the opening 5. The opening 5 is as shown in FIG.
Both ends in the width direction are expanded so that the FPC board 2 can be inserted in a curved state.

Further, a plurality of protrusions 7 are vertically provided at predetermined intervals on the upper wall of the hollow portion 6 except for both ends in the width direction, and the terminal 4 is disposed between the protrusions 7. . The terminal 4 is formed of an elastic contact piece 8 bent into a substantially U-shape and a lead 9 integrally connected to the contact piece 8. It is press-fitted between the parts 7 and the leads 9 protrude below the connector main body 3. Then, the FPC board 2 inserted through the opening 5 is pressed by the contact piece part 8, and one example of the connector terminal of the FPC board 2 and the contact piece part 8 are electrically connected.

Further, on the upper walls of both ends in the width direction of the cavity 6, inclined surfaces 11 which are inclined downward from the opening 5 toward the inner part are formed, and the bottom walls of the both ends are latched. A protruding portion 12 is provided in a protruding manner.
On the front surface of this protrusion 12, there is an inclined surface 1 that slopes forward and downward.
2a is formed. Note that the eight-most portions of both ends of the cavity 6 are set to have dimensions slightly larger than the thickness of the FPC board 2. Thus, when the FPC board 2 is inserted into the protrusion 12, the notches 13 (see FIG. 1) formed at both end edges on the insertion side are removably locked.

FIG. 6 shows another embodiment, in which the protrusion 12 is made separate from the connector body 3 and fitted into the connector body 3. Since the other configurations are the same as those of the previous embodiment, the explanation thereof will be omitted.

Next, the operation of pressing the FPC board 2 onto the connector 1 will be explained.

First, hold the FPC board 2 with one hand and bend both side edges as shown in FIG. In this state, when inserting the FPC board 2 into the opening 5 of the connector 1 as shown by the arrow and pushing it further, both side edges of the FPC board 2 will be aligned with the upper wall (slope 1
1) Move towards the back. After pushing the FPC board 2 to the innermost part, when the hand holding the FPC board 2 is released, the FPC board 2 returns to its flat shape due to elastic recovery force, and the notch 13 is locked to the protrusion 12. In this state, the insertion side of the FPC board 2 is pressed by the contact pieces 8 of the terminals 4. In this way, the FPC board 2 is inserted into the connector 1.

Next, in order to remove the FPC board 2 from this state, first hold the FPC board 2 with one hand and curve the edges on both sides to release the locking state of the protrusion 12 from the notch 13. This is done by pulling the substrate 2.

According to the effect of the embodiment of the present invention, the inclined surface 12a tilting forward and downward is formed on the front surface of the protrusion 12,
The insertion operation of the FPC board 2 can be performed smoothly. Further, by configuring the protrusion 12 separately from the connector main body 3, the lower opening can be closed.

The present invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiment, and the design may be modified without changing the gist of the invention, such as changing the shape and arrangement of the terminals 4, omitting the upper wall 3a of the opening 5 of the connector body 3, etc. Can be changed.

(f) Effects The present invention effectively achieved the intended purpose with the configuration detailed above. In particular, the upper walls at both ends in the width direction of the connector body are sloped surfaces that slope downward from the opening toward the inner part, and the notches of the FPC board are removably engaged with the bottom walls of both ends. Since the locking protrusion is formed, the FPC board can be inserted into and removed from the connector in one touch and reliably by simply bending and deforming both side edges of the FPC board with one hand. Further, unlike conventional products, there is no need to use a separate insertion/fixing member, and it is possible to provide a compact and inexpensive connector with a simple structure.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing the operation of inserting a flexible printed circuit board into the connector of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a front view of the connector, Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along line A-A in Fig. 2, and Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the connector. 2, FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along CC in FIG. 4, and FIG. 6 is a sectional side view showing another embodiment. 2... Flexible printed circuit board (FPC board), 3... Connector body, 4... Terminal, 5...
Opening, 6... Cavity, 8... Contact piece, 9... Lead, 10... Connector terminal, 11... Inclined surface,
12... Protrusion, 13... Notch.

Claims (1)

[Claims for Utility Model Registration] An opening having a shape in which both ends in the width direction are enlarged so that a flexible printed circuit board can be inserted with both ends curved, and a cavity communicating with the opening; a connector main body having protrusions that are provided on the bottom wall of both ends in the width direction of the cavity and that are removably engaged with notches formed on both edges on the insertion side of the flexible printed circuit board; The terminal includes an elastic contact piece portion that presses a flexible printed circuit board inserted into the flexible printed circuit board to electrically connect with a connector terminal of the flexible printed circuit board, and a terminal that has a lead integrally connected to the contact piece portion. the connector, wherein the upper wall at both ends in the width direction of the hollow portion has an inclined surface that slopes downward from the opening toward the inner part, and the front surface of the protrusion has an inclined surface that slopes downward toward the front. 1. A connector characterized in that the flexible printed circuit board that is inserted is brought into contact with and guided by both inclined surfaces.