JPH0837052A - Female terminal metal - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent an elastic contact piece from being excessively deflected over a wide range and prevent the strength reduction of a main body section. CONSTITUTION:A pair of stoppers 23 expanded inward by beating from the outside are symmetrically formed on the right and left side faces 22 of a main body section 13. The stoppers 23 are oblongly formed in the region from the tip section of an elastic contact piece 18 to an edge section on this side of a contact 20 below the elastic contact piece 18. When a tab 5 is inserted in the slantly inward attitude, the elastic contact piece 18 is deflected further downward as compared with when the tab 5 is normally inserted. The first contact section C1 of the elastic contact piece 18 is brought into point contact with a corner section on this side of the stopper 23, the second contact section C2 is brought into line contact with the portion on the depth side of the upper edge of the stopper 23, and the elastic contact piece 18 is prevented from being excessively deflected beyond the elastic limit.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a female terminal fitting provided with an elastic contact piece for elastically contacting a tab of a male terminal fitting in a box-shaped main body, and more particularly, the female terminal fitting has an excessive elastic contact piece. The present invention relates to a female terminal fitting having a function of preventing bending.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Heretofore, as a female terminal metal fitting having a function of preventing an elastic contact piece of this kind from excessively bending, that disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 3-77382 is known. As shown in FIG. 7, this is a box-shaped main body 31.
By cutting and raising the side surface 32 of the elastic contact piece 34, a protrusion 33 having a vertical posture is provided below the tip side of the elastic contact piece 34. Then, the tab 35 of the mating male terminal fitting is attached to the main body 3
If the insertion direction is proper when it is inserted into the first end from inside the tab 1, as shown in FIG. 8, the tab 35 bends the elastic contact piece 34 to such an extent that it does not abut the projection 33, and the elastic contact piece 34 is bent. 34 and the ceiling surface 36 of the main body 31 are inserted and connected. Here, when the insertion direction of the tab 35 is obliquely downward, the elastic contact piece 34 bends further downward than the state shown in FIG. However, if the insertion angle is not so large, the elastic contact piece 34 comes into contact with the protrusion 33 before the elastic limit is exceeded, and further downward bending is prevented. That is, the elastic contact piece 34 is prevented from being excessively bent and from being plastically deformed.

[0003]

However, the tab 3
5 is inserted, the tab 35
For example, as shown in FIG. 9, the elastic contact piece 34 comes into contact with an intermediate position between the folded-back portion 37 and the portion contacting the protrusion 33. However, since this abutting portion has nothing to support from below, if this portion is strongly pushed by the tab 35, plastic deformation occurs relatively easily.

On the other hand, as a countermeasure against this, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-609.
In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 31-31991, the side surface of the main body is cut and raised to form an elongated horizontal projection in the lengthwise direction of the elastic contact piece, and when the elastic contact piece tries to bend excessively, the elastic contact piece It has been proposed to prevent the elastic contact piece from excessively bending by receiving two points on the tip end side and the central portion in the length direction by the projecting piece. However, this has another drawback that the side surface of the main body portion is cut and raised over a wide area to open, so that the strength of the side surface of the main body portion is reduced.

Therefore, according to the present invention, the excessive bending of the elastic contact piece caused by the improper insertion of the tab of the male terminal fitting can be prevented over a wide range, and the strength of the main body is not deteriorated. It is an object of the present invention to provide a female terminal fitting as described above.

[0006]

As a means for achieving the above object, the invention of claim 1 is a box-shaped main body,
An elastic contact piece that is folded back inward from the tip of the main body is provided, and the tab of the male terminal fitting allows the elastic contact piece to elastically contact the elastic contact piece while bending the elastic contact piece from the tip side of the main body. In the female terminal fitting to be inserted, on the side surface of the main body,
A stopper is provided so as to bulge from the side surface of the main body of the elastic contact piece by allowing the elastic contact piece to come into contact with at least two front and rear portions in the longitudinal direction of the elastic contact piece. Have.

According to a second aspect of the invention, in the invention of the first aspect, at least one portion of the portion of the stopper that comes into contact with the elastic contact piece is shaped so as to come into contact with the elastic contact piece over a predetermined length range. There is a feature in that.

[0008]

According to the invention of claim 1, when the elastic contact piece is excessively bent, at least two positions in the longitudinal direction of the elastic contact piece are received by the stoppers provided on the side surfaces of the main body,
Further bending is prevented. According to the second aspect of the invention, when the elastic contact piece is received by the stopper, at least one of the elastic contact pieces is received within a predetermined length range.

[0009]

In other words, according to the invention of claim 1, since the elastic contact piece is received by the stopper at least at two front and rear positions in the length direction, the elastic contact piece has a length capable of suppressing excessive deformation of the elastic contact piece. The range is expanded. Moreover,
Since the stopper is provided by bulging from the side surface of the main body,
The stopper itself also provides a reinforcing effect on the side surface of the main body portion, so that a double effect is obtained.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the above effect, a part of the elastic contact piece is received by the stopper within a predetermined length range, so that the elastic contact piece is in a more stable state. Since the load is received and the load can be dispersed, excessive bending of the elastic contact piece can be prevented more reliably.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The female terminal fitting of this embodiment is formed by bending a thin metal plate having a predetermined shape.
As shown in FIG. 3, an insulation barrel 11 to which the end of the coating 2 of the electric wire 1 is crimped and a wire barrel 12 for crimping the end of the core wire 3 exposed from the coating 2 are crimped.
And a main body 13 provided in front of it.

The main body 13 is constructed by bending both side surfaces 22 from the bottom plate 19, further bending the ceiling plate 15 and bending the whole body into a box shape. The ceiling plate 15 is continuous from one side surface 22 and is connected to the other side surface 22.
The shape of the main body portion 13 is maintained by being pressed by a pair of front and rear pressing pieces 27 that extend from both end portions and have a push-out portion 27a formed at the center thereof. Further, an opening 14 is formed on the tip surface of the main body 13.
4, and the tab 5 of the male terminal fitting is inserted through the opening 14 as shown in FIG. At the center of the inner surface of the ceiling plate 15 of the main body 13,
The sandwiching portion 16 is formed by being punched out in a square shape from the outer surface side.

An elastic contact piece 18 is provided in the main body 13. The elastic contact piece 18 is formed by folding back a portion extending from the front edge of the bottom plate 19 in a state where the main body portion 13 is unfolded into a substantially U-shape before the step of bending both side surfaces 22 of the main body portion 13. It was done. This elastic contact piece 1
The folded-back portion 18a of FIG. 8 is positioned so as to be slightly retracted inward from the front edge of the side surface of the main body portion 13, and when the female terminal fitting is inserted into the cavity of the female housing (not shown), the front end wall inside the cavity is The folded portion 18a is prevented from coming into direct contact with.

Further, the elastic contact piece 18 has an upward slope toward the tip side in this embodiment, and is provided with appropriate elasticity. Further, a contact 20 is bulged in the substantially central portion of the elastic contact piece 18. The upper surface of this contact 20 is a flat surface, and the tab 5 is elastically clamped between this surface and the clamping portion 16 on the ceiling plate 15 side. It should be noted that the elastic contact piece 18 does not engage with the stopper 23 described below as long as the tab 5 is inserted in a normal state, but for some reason (for example, as shown in FIG.
(When the insertion angle is large), when it is flexibly deformed until it engages with the stopper 23, the range of the tip end side of the contact point 20 is in continuous contact with the stopper 23 along the length direction. .

Now, on the left and right side surfaces 22 of the main body 13,
A pair of stoppers 23 for preventing excessive bending of the elastic contact piece 18 are provided at symmetrical positions. Both stoppers 23
Is formed by bulging the side surface 22 of the main body portion 13 from the outer surface side to bulge into the main body portion 13.
More specifically, the peripheral edge portion of the stopper 23 is an inclined surface having a substantially uniform width, and the central portion is parallel to the other side surface 22.

Further, the bulge height of both stoppers 23 is such that when the elastic contact piece 18 is elastically deformed by a certain amount,
It is set to such an extent that it can be reliably engaged with the lower surface sides of the left and right side edges. Further, the stopper 23 is arranged at a height position below the elastic contact piece 18 in a natural state, and is in contact with the elastic contact piece 18 within the elastic limit. Furthermore, the length range in which the stopper 23 is provided is the contact 2
It is horizontally arranged in a range from the position corresponding to the front edge portion of 0 to the position corresponding to the tip of the elastic contact piece 18.
As a result, when the elastic contact piece 18 engages with both stoppers 23, as shown in FIG. 6, the front edge portion of the contact point 20 becomes the first contact portion C1 and the tip (free end) is astride the contact point 20. The range up to the end is the second contact portion C2, and as shown in the same figure, the second contact portion C2 is in a state of linear contact with the stopper 23 along the length direction thereof.

The bottom plate 19 of the main body 13 is formed with a locking hole 25 into which a lance provided in a cavity of a connector housing (not shown) for accommodating the female terminal fitting is fitted. At the left and right side edges of the stop hole 25, stabilizers 26 that similarly fit in the fitting grooves of the cavity and function to prevent rattling at the time of accommodation are provided in a protruding manner.

The present embodiment has the above-mentioned structure, and its operation will be described below. Tab 5 of the mating male terminal fitting
However, as shown in FIG.
When the tab 5 is inserted in the correct posture along the sandwiching portion 16 of the ceiling plate 15, the tab 5 is inserted into the elastic contact piece 18 during the insertion process.
The elastic contact piece 18 is gradually pressed downward while passing through the contact 20 as the insertion progresses. As a result, the elastic contact piece 18 gradually bends downward about the folded-back portion 18a to the extent that it does not come into contact with the stopper 23, that is, elastically deforms within the elastic limit, and due to the restoring elastic force, the tab 5 moves.
Is a contact point 20 between the sandwiching portion 16 of the ceiling plate 15 and the elastic contact piece 18.
The elastic member 5 is elastically sandwiched between the tab 5 and the elastic contact piece 18, and the tab 5 and the elastic contact piece 18 are electrically connected to each other.

On the other hand, when the tab 5 is inserted in an obliquely downward posture due to misalignment (or insertion of another foreign substance), when the tab 5 enters the main body portion 13, as shown in FIG. Its tip abuts the portion of the elastic contact piece 18 on the front side of the contact point 20 at an angle to press the elastic contact piece 18. Then, the elastic contact piece 18 bends further downward as compared with the case where the tab 5 is correctly inserted, but the first contact portion C1 does not contact the stopper 2.
The third contact portion C2 comes into line-contact with the rear-side portions of the upper edges of the left and right stoppers 23, as well as the second contact portion C2. Thereby, the elastic contact piece 1
8 is prevented from flexing beyond its elastic limit.

Further, even if the tab 5 is inserted in the correct direction, but the foreign matter such as dust adheres to the upper surface of the tab 5, the elastic contact piece 23 is apt to bend downward greatly. However, in this case as well, similarly to the above, the fixed length portion on the tip end side of the elastic contact piece 18 and the side edges on the front side of the contact point 20 abut on the left and right stoppers 23, respectively, and the elasticity of the elastic contact piece 18 is reduced. Excessive bending beyond the limit is prevented.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the elastic contact piece 18 receives the external force at two front and rear positions by the first and second contact portions C1 and C2 engaging with the stopper 23. Therefore, it is possible to effectively resist an external force that causes the elastic contact piece 18 to be excessively bent over a wide range. Moreover, since the second contact portion C2 is in line contact with the stopper 23, the load can be dispersed and the excessive bending can be more reliably eliminated.

Since the stopper 23 is formed by hitting out the side surface 22 of the main body portion 13, the side surface 22 is not opened unlike the case where the stopper is cut and raised to form the stopper 23. It contributes to prevention of deformation of the portion 13.

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. Various modifications can be implemented within a range not departing from.

(1) In the above embodiment, the tip end side of the elastic contact piece 18 is in contact with the stopper 23 within a certain length range. The contact piece 18 may be configured to be received at two front and rear positions in the length direction, and in this case as well, the elastic contact piece 18 is excessively irrespective of the position where the mating tab 5 abuts or the position of the foreign matter bitten. It is possible to effectively prevent bending, and such a structure is also included in the present invention.

(2) In the above embodiment, the stopper 2
3 is provided on both the left and right side surfaces 22 of the main body portion 13, but as long as the elastic contact piece 18 can receive the elastic contact piece 18 at the front and rear two positions in the longitudinal direction, the stopper 23 can be provided on either the left or right side surface 22. It may be.

(3) Further, instead of forming the stopper as a horizontally long one as in the above embodiment, two stoppers are provided so as to receive the elastic contact piece 18 at two front and rear portions in the longitudinal direction, respectively. The individual stoppers may be separately formed by punching.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention.

[Figure 2] The same front view

FIG. 3 is a side view of the same.

FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view of the same.

FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view with the tab properly inserted.

FIG. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a state where the tab is inserted abnormally.

FIG. 7 is a vertical sectional view of a conventional example.

FIG. 8 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a conventional example in which a tab is correctly inserted.

FIG. 9 is a vertical sectional view when a tab is abnormally inserted in a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 5 ... Tab 13 ... Body part 14 ... Opening part 18 ... Elastic contact piece 22 ... Side surface (of body part 13) 23 ... Stopper C1, C2 ... Contact part

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A box-shaped main body, and an elastic contact piece that is folded back inward from the tip of the main body, wherein a tab of the male terminal fitting connects the elastic contact piece from the tip side of the main body. A female terminal fitting that is flexibly inserted into the elastic contact piece so as to be elastically contactable with the elastic contact piece, wherein the side surface of the main body portion can be brought into contact with at least two positions in the longitudinal direction of the elastic contact piece. The female terminal fitting is characterized in that a stopper for preventing excessive bending of the elastic contact piece is provided by bulging from the side surface of the main body. 2. The female according to claim 1, wherein at least one portion of the portion of the stopper that comes into contact with the elastic contact piece has a shape that comes into contact with the elastic contact piece over a predetermined length range. Shaped terminal fittings.