JPH08222321A - Connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To firmly engage a terminal metal fitting by utilizing a retainer for double-locking. CONSTITUTION: A female-type terminal metal fitting F1 inserted in a cavity 15 of a housing 1 is primarily locked by a lance 22. When a retainer 2 put temporarily in a retainer insertion inlet 26 is pushed to an actual setting position, a deformation restricting part 37 sneaks in a deflection deformation space 24 of the lance 22 to restrict the deflection deformation of the fitting and secondarily locked. An engaging 38 which can be locked with a stabilizer 9 of the female-type terminal metal fitting F1 is formed in the retainer 2. Following the retainer 2 is pushed toward the actual setting position, the locking pawl 38 passes a lower face of the stabilizer 9 while being deformed by deflection and at the time when the retainer is pushed to the actual setting position, the locking pawl 38 is deformed due to restoration, so that the hook part 39 at the tip is locked at the rear end of the lower face of the stabilizer 9 and the female-type terminal metal fitting F1 can be triply locked.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector provided with a retainer for firmly locking a terminal fitting in a housing.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been known a connector in which a retainer is used to double-hold a terminal fitting. There are multiple types of double locking, but especially for waterproof type connectors, it is not preferable to provide an opening for attaching the retainer on the side surface of the housing. A type in which a retainer is inserted from the front side which is the surface is generally used.

An example thereof will be described with reference to FIGS.
This connector is provided with a retainer 64 which is mounted from the front side of a housing 63 having a cavity 62 into which the terminal fitting 61 can be inserted. When the terminal fitting 61 is inserted into the cavity 62, the lance 65 provided in the cavity 62 is elastically fitted into the locking hole 66 formed in the bottom surface of the terminal fitting 61, as shown in FIG. When the retainer 64 is pushed in as shown in FIG. 19, the deformation restricting portion 67 provided on the retainer 64 sneaks into the lower surface of the lance 65, which is the bending deformation space 68, and the bending By restricting the deformation, secondary locking is performed, and thus double locking is performed.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned one, the double locking is achieved by restricting the deflection of the lance 65 in the escape direction, and it is actually locked to the terminal fitting 61. Since only the lance 65 is provided, when a strong tensile force as shown by the arrow in FIG. 19 acts on the terminal fitting 61, the terminal fitting 61 may be pulled out while damaging the lance 65.

The present invention was completed in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to make it possible to more firmly lock a terminal fitting by utilizing a retainer for double locking. To do.

[0006]

As a means for achieving the above object, the invention of claim 1 is provided with a housing having a cavity into which a terminal fitting can be inserted, and a retainer attachable to this housing. The terminal fitting inserted into the cavity is elastically primary-locked by a lance provided in the cavity, and a deformation restricting portion provided in the retainer when the retainer is attached causes a deformation deformation of the lance. In a connector of a type that is secondarily locked by entering a space and restricting its deformation, the retainer has a holding means that locks to the terminal metal fitting when attached to the housing to prevent the retainer from being pulled out. It is characterized in that it is configured to be attached.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the holding means is constituted by a flexibly deformable locking claw that is elastically locked to the rear edge of the stabilizer provided on the terminal fitting. It has a feature in that it exists.

A third aspect of the invention is characterized in that, in the first aspect of the invention, the holding means is formed by a protrusion that can be fitted into a fitting hole opened in the stabilizer of the terminal fitting. .

[0009]

According to the invention of claim 1, when the retainer is mounted, the deformation restricting portion provided on the retainer enters into the bending deformation space of the lance so that the terminal fitting is doubly locked, and the holding means is connected to the terminal. It is locked to the metal fitting, so to speak, a triple lock is made.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, when the retainer is mounted, the retaining claws provided on the retainer elastically engage the stabilizer of the terminal fitting to triple-lock the terminal fitting.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, when the retainer is mounted, the protrusion provided on the retainer is fitted into the fitting hole formed in the stabilizer of the terminal fitting, so that the terminal fitting is triple-locked. Done.

[0012]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the retainer means of the retainer engages with the terminal fitting so that the terminal fitting can be triple-locked. There is an effect that a good terminal holding force can be obtained.

According to the invention of claim 2, in addition to obtaining a strong terminal holding force, the elastic force of the locking claws also functions to press the terminal fitting against the inner surface of the cavity, and The effect of preventing the rattling is further obtained.

According to the invention of claim 3, it is possible to realize with a simple structure in which a fitting hole is opened in the stabilizer of the terminal fitting and a protrusion is formed in the retainer, and it is possible to easily and inexpensively manufacture. Is obtained.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a waterproof type female connector will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. <First Embodiment> FIGS. 1 to 11 show a first embodiment of the present invention. In the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, a housing 1 for accommodating the female terminal fitting F1 and a retainer 2 mounted to the housing 1 from the front side are provided.

The female terminal fitting F1 is formed by press-molding a conductive metal plate,
As shown in FIG. 5 or FIG. 9, an elongated box-shaped main body 4 into which a tab of a mating male terminal fitting (not shown) is inserted is formed on the tip side, and a wire barrel 5 and an insulation barrel 6 are formed behind the main body 4. And are sequentially formed. A contact piece 7 for elastically contacting the tab of the male terminal fitting is formed in the main body portion 4 by bending the tip of the bottom plate inward, and the bottom plate of the main body portion 4 is A locking hole 8 into which a lance 22 described later can be fitted is opened.

A pair of stabilizers 9 are provided on both sides of the locking hole 8. This stabilizer 9
The female terminal fitting F1 is stably placed in the cavity 15 by extending from the side plate of the main body portion 4 and projecting downward, and following the guide portion provided in the cavity 15 of the housing 1 described later. It fulfills the function of smooth insertion. The waterproof rubber 10 is fitted to the end of the cover 12 of the electric wire 11, the insulation barrel 6 is fixed to the waterproof rubber 10, and the wire barrel 5 is attached to the end of the core wire 13 protruding from the end of the cover 12. The waterproof rubber 10 and the female terminal metal fitting F are fixed to the end of the electric wire 11.
And 1 are fixed.

The housing 1 is integrally molded of a synthetic resin material, and has three cavities 15 for accommodating the female terminal fittings F1 therein, as shown in FIG.
Are formed side by side in the lateral direction. Fitting grooves 16 are formed in positions between the cavities 15, respectively, and fitting ribs 29 provided on the retainer 2 to be described later are fitted therein so that twisting when the retainer 2 is inserted is prevented. Has become.

The cavity 15 has a circular hole 17 on its rear end side (right side in FIG. 1) and has an opening on the rear surface so that the above-mentioned waterproof rubber 10 can be tightly fitted thereto. In front of the circular hole 17, a rectangular hole 18 in which the main body portion 4 of the female terminal fitting F1 is fitted in a substantially tight manner is continuously provided. On the front surface of the cavity 15, female terminal metal fittings F1
Is provided with a front plate 19 that abuts the front surface of the body portion 4 of
A terminal insertion port 20 into which a tab of a mating male terminal fitting is inserted is opened in the front plate 19.

A lance 22 for locking the female terminal fitting F1 is integrally formed at the center of the bottom surface of the rectangular hole 18 of each cavity 15 in the lengthwise direction so as to project forward. There is. The front of the lance 22 is opened toward the front surface of the housing 1. The tip of the lance 22 is provided with a fitting projection 23 that fits into the locking hole 8 of the bottom plate of the female terminal fitting F1 and is elastically deformable downward. Therefore, the bending deformation space 24 of the lance 22 is provided on the lower surface side of the lance 22.

A retainer insertion opening 26 for inserting the retainer 2 is opened on the front surface of the housing 1. The retainer insertion opening 26 has a height ranging from the bottom surface of the rectangular hole 18 of the cavity 15 to the flexural deformation space 24 of the lance 22 and is formed to have a front opening extending over substantially the entire width of the housing 1. The above-described prying-preventing fitting grooves 16 are formed so as to communicate with the upper surface of the retainer insertion opening 26, respectively. In addition, the terminal insertion opening 2 of each cavity 15
At the lower edge of 0, a jig insertion port 27 is formed so as to communicate with the retainer insertion port 26, and the jig insertion port 27 is a jig for unlocking the lance 22. It is designed to be used when inserting.

Next, the structure of the retainer 2 will be described. The retainer 2 is also integrally formed of a synthetic resin material, and has a shape that can be inserted into the retainer insertion opening 26 of the housing 1 from the front, as shown in FIGS. Fitting ribs 29 that can be fitted into the fitting grooves 16 of the housing 1 are provided on the upper surface of the retainer 2 on the front end side in the insertion direction.

Further, the retainer 2 has a first locking projection 31 for locking the retainer 2 to the housing 1 in a temporarily assembled state and a second locking projection for locking the retainer 2 in a fully assembled state. And a part 32 are provided. The first locking projection 31 is formed at a substantially central position in the longitudinal direction on the front side surface of the front fitting rib 29 in FIG. 2, and the second locking projection 32 is formed on the far side fitting rib 29. Is formed at a position along the side surface on the other side and at a position rearward by a certain dimension from the rear end of the fitting rib 29. The first locking projection 31 is the frontmost cavity 15 in the housing 1 shown in FIG.
The second locking protrusion 32 corresponds to the position of the side wall 33 between the front side and the fitting groove 16 on the front side, and the second locking protrusion 32 is located on the farthest side from the cavity 1.
5 is formed corresponding to the position of the side wall 34 between the groove 5 and the fitting groove 16 on the other side. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the lower surface of each of the side walls 33 and 34 has a locking groove 3 that is cut out rearward from a position inside a certain size from the front surface.
5 is formed. The first locking projection 31 has an oblique guide surface formed on the front end side in the insertion direction, and the second locking projection 32 has oblique guide surfaces formed on the front and rear ends in the insertion direction.

Then, when the retainer 2 is inserted into the retainer insertion opening 26 of the housing 1, the guide surface of the first locking projection 31 contacts the front surface of the side wall 33 and is pushed in while expanding the retainer insertion opening 26, and the first locking projection is formed. After the portion 31 has passed the lower surface of the side wall 33, as shown in FIG. 3, the portion 31 is fitted in the locking groove 35 and locked in the pull-out direction (temporary assembled state). At that time, the second locking projection 32 is located at a position corresponding to the front surface of the side wall 34, and the second locking projection 32 abuts on the front surface of the side wall 34 so as not to inadvertently shift to the next main assembly state. Has become.

When the retainer 2 is further pushed in from the above-mentioned temporary assembled state, the guide surface at the front end of the second locking projection 32 comes into contact with the front surface of the side wall 34 and is pushed in while expanding the retainer insertion opening 26, and the second locking is performed. After the protrusion 32 passes through the lower surface of the side wall 34, the protrusion 32 is fitted in the locking groove 35 as shown in FIG.

Further, the retainer 2 is provided with deformation restricting portions 37 for restricting the bending deformation of the lance 22 at three convenient positions, that is, both ends in the width direction and the central part. That is, each deformation restricting portion 37 is provided at a position where the three lances 22 can advance and retreat into each bending deformation space 24.
When the retainer 2 is in the above-mentioned temporary assembly state, as shown in FIG.
As shown in, each deformation restricting portion 37 is retracted in front of the bending deformation space 24 to allow the bending deformation of each lance 22. On the other hand, when the retainer 2 is pushed into the fully assembled state,
As shown in FIG. 6, each deformation restricting portion 37 bends in the bending deformation space 2
4 to restrict the bending deformation of the lance 22.

In the first embodiment, a pair of locking claws 38 are provided at the positions on both sides of the deformation restricting portion 37. As shown schematically in FIG. 11, the pair of locking claws 38 are arranged at intervals equal to the corresponding intervals of both stabilizers 9 of the female terminal fitting F1 inserted in each cavity 15. Each locking claw 38 is formed in a cantilever shape so as to horizontally project toward the front in the insertion direction at a position slightly above the upper surface of the deformation restricting portion 37, and the stabilizer 9 is provided at the tip thereof. A hook portion 39 that can be locked is provided at the rear end of the lower edge of the lower edge, and can be flexibly deformed downward.

When the retainer 2 is in the temporarily assembled state, the pair of locking claws 38 are located near the entrance of the retainer insertion opening 26 and are inserted into the cavity 15, as shown in FIG. Stabilizer 9 for female terminal fitting F1
Have been evacuated in front of. On the other hand, when the retainer 2 is pushed into the fully assembled state, the locking claw 38 is advanced until its hook portion 39 reaches the rear surface side of the stabilizer 9.

As shown in FIG. 2, a jig insertion recess 41 is formed in the upper surface of the retainer 2 at a position corresponding to the rear of one of the fitting ribs 29. When the retainer 2 is returned from the fully assembled state to the temporarily assembled state for maintenance or the like, the tip of a rod-shaped jig is inserted into the recess 41 through the fitting groove 16 of the housing 1,
It is used when the retainer insertion opening 26 is widened by the lever action and the second locking projection 32 for the main assembly is removed from the locking groove 35. Further, the triangular notch 42 provided on the rear end surface of the position where the recess 41 is provided is a mark indicating that the recess 41 is provided.

The first embodiment has the structure as described above, and the assembling procedure will be described next. First, retainer 2
Is inserted from the retainer insertion opening 26 of the housing 1 in the same manner as described above, and is assembled in a temporarily assembled state in which the first locking projection 31 is fitted in the locking groove 35 of the side wall 33 as shown in FIG. . At this time, the deformation restricting portion 37 provided on the retainer 2 is retracted in front of the bending deformation space 24 of the lance 22, as shown in FIG. 5, and is in a state in which the bending deformation of the lance 22 is allowed. Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the locking claw 38 is retracted near the entrance of the retainer insertion opening 26 so that it does not interfere with the stabilizer 9 of the female terminal fitting F1 inserted into the cavity 15. There is.

Subsequently, each cavity 15 of the housing 1
The female terminal fittings F1 fixed to the ends of the electric wires 11 are inserted therein. The female terminal fitting F1 is pushed in while bending and deforming the lance 22 toward the bending deformation space 24 side below against the elasticity, and the front surface of the main body portion 4 is pushed into the cavity 15
When the lance 22 is restored and deformed when it hits the front plate 19, the fitting projection 23 of the lance 22 is engaged with the locking hole 8 of the female terminal fitting F1.
The female terminal fitting F1 is locked in the pull-out direction by fitting into That is, the female terminal fitting F1 is primarily locked by the lance 22. At this time, the waterproof rubber 10 is closely fitted to the inner peripheral surface of the circular hole 17 of the cavity 15 to waterproof the cavity 15.

Next, the retainer 2 is further pushed in as described above, and as shown in FIG. 4, the retainer 2 is assembled into the main assembly state in which the second engagement projection 32 is fitted in the engagement groove 35 of the side wall 34. Along with this, the respective deformation restricting portions 37 provided on the retainer 2 enter the flexural deformation space 24 on the lower surface of each lance 22 as shown in FIG. 6, and the flexural deformation of the lance 22 is restricted. As a result, the female terminal fitting F1 is prevented from being pulled out while the lance 22 is flexed, that is, secondary locking is performed.

When the retainer 2 is pushed in from the temporarily assembled state, a pair of locking claws 3 provided on the retainer 2 are provided.
After the hook portion 39 of 8 hits the corresponding stabilizer 9 of the female terminal fitting F1, the locking claw 38 passes through the lower surface of the stabilizer 9 while flexing and deforming to the lower surface side, and the retainer 2 is fully assembled as described above. When assembled in the state, the hook portion 39 of the locking claw 38 passes through the lower surface of the stabilizer 9 and passes through the locking claw 38.
Elastically restores and deforms, and as shown in FIGS. 8 and 10, the hook portion 39 is locked to the rear surface of the lower edge of the stabilizer 9 to further restrict the movement of the female terminal fitting F1 in the pull-out direction. It That is, the female terminal fitting F1 is triple-locked.

Further, the locking claw 38 elastically restored and deformed
Functions to press the upper surface of the main body 4 of the female terminal fitting F1 against the ceiling surface of the cavity 15 through the stabilizer 9, and prevents the female terminal fitting F1 from rattling in the cavity 15.

That is, according to this embodiment, the retainer 2
By locking the locking claw 38 provided on the female terminal metal fitting F1 to the stabilizer 9 of the female terminal metal fitting F1, the female terminal metal fitting F1 can be triple-locked, and a strong terminal holding force that resists a large tensile force. Is obtained. Further, rattling of the female terminal fitting F1 is also prevented. Further, the existing stabilizer can be used as it is, that is, the stabilizer 9 can be easily coped with without changing the structure of the female terminal fitting F1.

<Second Embodiment> Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In this second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 13, both stabilizers 9 provided on the female terminal fitting F2 are fitted with fitting holes 5 for locking.
1 is opened.

On the other hand, the retainer 52 is provided with a pair of projections 53 which can be fitted into the fitting holes 51 formed in the stabilizer 9, instead of the locking claws 38 of the first embodiment. . Specifically, as shown in FIG. 12, the retainer 5
2 on both sides of the position where the respective deformation restricting portions 37 are provided, with a space slightly wider than the corresponding space between the stabilizers 9 provided therebetween.
4 is formed, and the pair of protrusions 5 described above is provided on each side wall 54.
3 is formed so as to project inward. The inner surface of each protrusion 53 is formed into an arc surface.

When the retainer 52 is temporarily assembled with the housing 1, the pair of protrusions 53 are provided as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 4, it is located near the entrance of the retainer insertion opening 26 and is retracted in front of the stabilizer 9 of the female terminal fitting F2 inserted into the cavity 15. On the other hand, when the retainer 52 is pushed into the fully assembled state, the protrusion 53 is advanced to a position corresponding to the fitting hole 51 of the stabilizer 9, as shown in FIG. The other structure is the same as that of the first embodiment described above, the same members are designated by the same reference numerals, and the duplicated description will be omitted.

The operation of this second embodiment is as follows. After inserting the female terminal metal fitting F2 into the cavity 15 and performing the primary locking by the lance 22, when the retainer 52 in the temporarily assembled state shown in FIG. Bending deformation space 24 of lance 22
Secondary locking is performed by entering the inside and restricting the bending deformation of the lance 22.

When the retainer 52 is pushed in from the temporarily assembled state, the pair of projections 53 provided on the retainer 52 pass through the outer surface of the stabilizer 9 of the female terminal fitting F2 while being guided by the arc surface. When the retainer 52 is assembled in the fully assembled state, the protrusions 53 reach the positions of the fitting holes 51 of the stabilizer 9, and the protrusions 53 are fitted into the fitting holes 51 as shown in FIG. . As a result, the movement of the female terminal fitting F2 in the pulling-out direction is further restricted, that is, the female terminal fitting F2 is triple-locked.

That is, in this second embodiment, in addition to obtaining a strong terminal holding force, a fitting hole 51 is opened in the stabilizer 9 of the female terminal fitting F2, and a protrusion 5 is formed in the retainer 52.
Since it can be realized by a simple structure such as forming 3, there is an advantage that it can be manufactured easily and inexpensively.

<Other Embodiments> The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described with reference to the above description and drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. In addition to the above, various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

(1) The present invention can be similarly applied to a male connector that accommodates male terminal fittings. (2) Further, the invention is not limited to the waterproof type connector, and can be similarly applied to a non-waterproof type connector. (3) Further, the retainer can be applied to a type in which the retainer is mounted from the side surface of the housing.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a state before a retainer is assembled in a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a retainer according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view for explaining a temporary assembling operation of the retainer.

FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view illustrating the main assembly operation of the retainer.

FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing the position of the deformation restricting portion when the retainer is in the temporarily assembled state.

FIG. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional view for explaining the operation of the deformation restricting portion when the retainer is inserted in the fully assembled state.

FIG. 7 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing the position of the locking claws when the retainer is in the temporarily assembled state.

FIG. 8 is a vertical cross-sectional view illustrating the operation of the locking claw when the retainer is inserted in the fully assembled state.

FIG. 9 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the retainer in a temporarily assembled state.

FIG. 10 is a partially cutaway perspective view when the retainer is inserted in the fully assembled state.

FIG. 11 is a schematic cross-sectional view thereof.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a retainer according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a female terminal fitting according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the retainer in a temporarily assembled state.

FIG. 15 is a partially cutaway perspective view when the retainer is inserted in the fully assembled state.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view thereof.

FIG. 17 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view thereof.

FIG. 18 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a retainer in a conventional example in a temporarily assembled state.

FIG. 19 is a vertical cross-sectional view when the retainer is inserted in the fully assembled state.

[Explanation of symbols]

 F1 ... Female terminal metal fitting 1 ... Housing 2 ... Retainer 9 ... Stabilizer 15 ... Cavity 22 ... Lance 24 ... Bending deformation space 31 ... First locking protrusion 35 ... Locking groove 37 ... Deformation restricting portion 38 ... Locking claw ( Holding means) F2 ... Female terminal fitting 51 ... Fitting hole 52 ... Retainer 53 ... Projection (holding means)

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A housing having a cavity into which a terminal fitting can be inserted, and a retainer attachable to the housing, wherein the terminal fitting inserted into the cavity is elastically elastic by a lance provided in the cavity. In a connector of a type that is primarily locked, and a secondary locking is provided by a deformation restricting portion provided on the retainer when the retainer is mounted and enters the flexural deformation space of the lance to restrict the deformation. The connector, wherein the retainer is provided with a holding means for locking the terminal fitting to prevent the retainer from being pulled out when the retainer is attached to the housing. 2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the holding means is constituted by a flexibly deformable locking claw that elastically locks with a stabilizer provided on the terminal fitting. 3. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the holding means is composed of a protrusion that can be fitted in a fitting hole formed in the stabilizer of the terminal fitting.