JPH09232027A - Connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To waterproof the clearance between mutual butting surfaces of connector housings to be fitted. SOLUTION: Ribs 45 and 46 are protrusively formed on a butting surface 38 of a female connector housing 30, and receiving parts 25 and 26 to engage with the ribs 45 and 46 are formed on a butting surface 18 of a male connector housing 10, and a creeping distance of a clearance between its mutual butting surfaces 18 and 38 is lengthened. Therefore, water hardly spreads up to the inmost part, and a waterproof effect can be obtained.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector which is waterproof in a gap between abutting surfaces of a connector housing.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a connector in which a pair of connector housings are butted against each other, the abutting surfaces of the connector housings are brought into close contact with each other without a gap because of structural reasons or dimensional tolerances. It's difficult. Therefore, it is inevitable that a slight gap is left between the abutting surfaces in the fitted state. Therefore, when water is splashed on the outer surface of the abutting portion of the connector housing, there is a fear that the water may enter the gap between the abutting surfaces and the invaded water may spread deeply.

The present invention was devised in view of the above circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to achieve waterproofing in a gap between abutting surfaces of mutual connectors.

[0004]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, ribs projecting in the fitting direction are formed on the abutting surfaces of one or both of a pair of connector housings that are fitted in abutment with each other, and at the same time, the mating surfaces of the mating members are formed. The connector housing is characterized in that the abutment surface is formed with a receiving portion that can be engaged with the rib.

According to a second aspect of the invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the pair of connector housings are formed with drainage holes communicating with each other, and both of the drainage holes are ribs and receiving portions. It is characterized in that they are connected by fitting. The invention of claim 3 is claim 1
The invention is characterized in that the rib is formed along the opening edge of the male terminal fitting housing chamber, and the receiving portion is formed along the opening edge of the female terminal fitting housing chamber.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the rib is formed so as to surround an operating piece projectingly formed so that it can enter into the mating connector housing. It has characteristics. The invention of claim 5 is the invention of any one of claims 1 to 4,
A characteristic is that one or both of the rib and the receiving portion is integrally formed with a watertight holding portion capable of holding the space between the rib and the receiving portion in a watertight state.

[0007]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, by providing the rib and the receiving portion, the creeping distance in the gap between the connector housings becomes longer. Since the creepage distance of the gap between both connector housings has been lengthened, it is difficult for the water to spread to the back even if water enters the gap. According to the invention of claim 2, since the creepage distance from the connecting portion of the water draining hole to the abutting surface of the connector housing is lengthened by providing the rib and the receiving portion, the water in the water draining hole is connected at the connecting portion. Even if it leaks, it is difficult for the leaked water to reach the abutment surface.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the rib and the receiving portion are provided at the opening edge of the terminal metal fitting accommodating chamber, the creeping distance from the abutting surface to the terminal metal accommodating chamber is long, so that the gap between the abutting surfaces is large. It is difficult for water to enter the terminal fitting housing chamber. According to the invention of claim 4, in the state where the connector housing is detached, it is prevented that the operating piece is hit by another member. According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the space between the rib and the receiving portion can be kept watertight, the spread of water is prevented in this portion, and a high waterproof effect is obtained.

[0009]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The connector of the present embodiment includes a pair of male and female connector housings 10 and 30 that can be fitted and disengaged from each other, and both connector housings 1.
Terminal fittings 12 and 32 mounted on the connector housings 0 and 30, and terminal fittings 12 and 3 mounted on the connector housings 10 and 30, respectively.
It is composed of retainers 20 and 40 for holding 2, and has a waterproof structure as described later.

First, the male connector housing 10 will be described. Upper and lower two male terminal metal fitting accommodating chambers 11 and 11 are formed in the male connector housing 10, and the male terminal metal fitting 12 is formed in the male terminal metal fitting accommodating chamber 11 from the rear side opening.
Is inserted and held at a predetermined position by the lance 13 and a retainer 20 described later. The male tab 12 </ b> A of the male terminal fitting 12 projects from the front opening of the male terminal fitting housing chamber 11 and faces the inside of the hood portion 14 that projects from the peripheral edge of the front end surface of the male connector housing 10 in a rectangular tube shape.

At the height between the two male terminal fitting accommodating chambers 11, there is formed a drain hole 15 penetrating in the front-rear direction. The water drain hole 15 is opened at the rear end surface of the male connector housing 10 and is connected to a water drain hole 35 of a female connector housing 30 described later. Further, a retainer insertion hole 16 is formed in the male connector housing 10. The retainer insertion hole 16 is opened in the lower surface of the male connector housing 10, vertically penetrates the lower male terminal fitting housing chamber 11 and the drain hole 15, and is opened in the lower surface of the upper male terminal fitting housing chamber 11. . In the retainer insertion hole 16, the retainer 20 is
It is attached to a temporary locking position that allows the insertion of the male terminal fitting 12 and a main locking position that holds and holds the male terminal fitting 12. The retainer 20 has a male terminal metal fitting through hole 21 communicating with the lower male terminal metal fitting housing chamber 11 and a water draining through hole 22 communicating with the water draining hole 15, and the upper end portion has an upper male terminal metal fitting. It is adapted to project into the accommodation chamber 11.

On the other hand, the female connector housing 30 is fitted so as to be housed in the hood portion 14 of the male connector housing 10. This female connector housing 30
Two upper and lower female terminal metal fitting accommodating chambers 31, 31 are formed therein, and a female terminal metal fitting 32 is inserted into the female terminal metal fitting accommodating chamber 31 from an opening on the rear side thereof to form a lance 33 and a retainer 40 described later. Is held in place by. The female terminal fitting 32 waits for the male tab 12A at the front opening of the female terminal fitting housing 31.

Similarly, the female connector housing 30 has two
A water drainage hole 35 is formed at a height between the female terminal fitting accommodating chambers 31, 31 penetrating in the front-rear direction. The drain hole 35 is opened at the rear end surface of the female connector housing 30 and is connected to the drain hole 15 of the male connector housing 10. further,
A retainer insertion hole 36 is formed in the female connector housing 30. The retainer insertion hole 36 is opened in the upper surface of the female connector housing 30, vertically penetrates the upper female terminal metal fitting housing chamber 31 and the drain hole 35, and is opened in the upper wall surface of the lower female terminal metal fitting housing chamber 31. There is. The retainer 40 is attached to the retainer insertion hole 36 at a temporary locking position that allows the insertion of the female terminal fitting 32 and a main locking position that holds the female terminal fitting 32 in place. The retainer 40 is
Female terminal fitting through hole 41 communicating with the upper female terminal fitting accommodating chamber 31 and draining through hole 42 communicating with the drain hole 36
And has a lower end protruding into the upper female terminal fitting housing chamber 31.

Next, the waterproof structure provided in the connector of this embodiment will be described. Waterproof structure is retainer 2
0, 40 and the gap between the retainer insertion holes 16, 36, and
It is used in the gap between the abutting surfaces (front end surfaces corresponding to the fitting) 18, 38 of the male and female connector housings 10, 30. Retainer 20, 40 and retainer insertion hole 16, 36
The waterproof structure of the gap between and is as follows. The inner wall surface on the front side (right side in FIGS. 3 and 4) of the retainer insertion hole 16 on the male side is formed in a straight line in the vertical direction, but the inner wall surface on the rear side is the height at which the drain hole 15 is formed. In, the upper inner wall surface is bent in a crank shape so as to be positioned in front of the lower inner wall surface, thereby forming the draining portion 19. The bent portion of the draining portion 19 is angled at a right angle when viewed from the side.

On the other hand, a water draining portion 23 is formed on the front wall surface of the retainer 20 by cutting out in a substantially U shape at a height corresponding to the upper surface wall of the water draining through hole 22. The opening edge of the water draining portion 23 is chamfered at an angle of 45 °, and the upper and lower bent portions at the back end of the water draining portion 23 are angled at right angles. Further, the rear wall surface of the retainer 20 is configured such that a portion above the height at which the through hole 22 for draining water is formed is a notch, and the draining portion 19 of the retainer insertion hole 16 is cut off. Crank-shaped draining portion 24 is formed so as to be aligned with. Of the two bent portions in the front and rear of the draining portion 24 of the retainer 20, the front bent portion is squared, while the rear bent portion is chamfered at an angle of about 45 °.

The inner wall surface on the front side (left side in FIGS. 3 and 4) of the female side retainer insertion hole 36 is formed in a straight line up and down, but the inner wall surface on the rear side is above the drain hole 36. At the height of the wall surface, the upper inner wall surface is bent in a crank shape so as to be located rearward of the lower inner wall surface, and thereby the drainer 39 is formed. This drainer 3
The bent portion 9 is angled at a right angle when viewed from the side.
On the other hand, the front wall surface of the retainer 40 has a through hole 42 for draining water.
The water draining portion 43 is formed by making a notch in a substantially U-shape at a height corresponding to the upper surface wall. The opening edge of the water draining portion 43 is chamfered at an angle of 45 °, and the upper and lower bent portions of the water draining portion 43 are squared at right angles. Further, the rear wall surface of the retainer 40 is configured such that a portion below the height at which the through hole 42 for draining water is formed is cut off, and the draining portion of the retainer insertion hole 36 is formed. A crank-shaped draining portion 44 which is aligned with 39 is formed. Of the two front and rear bent portions of the water draining portion 44, the front bent portion is angled at a right angle, while the rear bent portion is chamfered at an angle of about 45 °.

Next, the waterproof structure of the gap between the abutting surfaces 18, 38 of both connector housings 10, 30 will be described. On the abutting surface of the female connector housing 30, a rectangular rib (hereinafter, referred to as a peripheral rib) 45 protruding forward along the outer peripheral edge thereof is formed. On the other hand, the abutting surface 18 of the male connector housing 10 is formed with a rectangular groove-shaped receiving portion 25 capable of receiving the peripheral rib 45. Between the peripheral ribs 45 and the receiving portion 25, there is only a small gap considering the dimensional tolerance.

Further, on the abutting surface 38 of the female connector housing 30, a pair of upper and lower plate-like ribs (hereinafter referred to as connecting ribs) which protrude forward in a state flush with the upper wall surface and the lower wall surface of the water draining hole 35 are formed. 46) is formed.
Both side edges of the connecting rib 46 are continuous with the inner surface of the peripheral rib 45. On the other hand, the male connector housing 1
The abutting surface 18 of 0 is formed with receiving portions 26, 26 capable of receiving the connecting ribs 46, 46 by notching both upper and lower edges of the opening of the water draining hole 15. Both connector housings 1 are formed by the connecting ribs 46 and the receiving portions 26.
The water drain holes 15 and 35 of 0 and 30 are connected to each other.

Further, at the front ends of the upper and lower connecting ribs 46, 46, taper-shaped watertight holding portions 46A, 46 are formed.
A is integrally formed, and watertight retainers 26A and 26A each having a concave shape are integrally formed at the inner ends of the receiving portions 26 and 26 (see FIG. 7). Connection rib 46
The taper angle of the watertight holding portion 46A (angle formed with respect to the fitting direction of both connector housings) is set smaller than that of the watertight holding portion 26A of the receiving portion 26, and the watertight holding portions 46A and 26A are lined with each other. They are brought into close contact with each other in contact with each other, and thus water leakage is prevented at the connection between the water drain holes 15 and 35.

Further, on the abutting surface 38 of the female connector housing 30, above and below the drain hole 35, respectively,
A short-circuit releasing piece (operating piece which is a constituent feature of the present invention) 47 that can be inserted into the male connector housing 10 and that performs the operation of short-circuiting and releasing the short-circuit between the male terminal fittings 12, 12 is formed to project. (See Figure 2). These short-circuit releasing pieces 47 are accommodated in the two spaces formed by the peripheral ribs 45 and the connecting ribs 46. This prevents other members from hitting the short circuit release piece 47.

On the abutting surface 18 of the male connector housing 10, a terminal fitting rib 28 is formed along the edge of the opening of the male terminal fitting housing chamber 11. As shown in an enlarged manner in FIG. 8, the outer peripheral edge of the terminal fitting rib 28 is formed in a tapered shape with a concavity. On the other hand, on the abutting surface 38 of the female connector housing 30, a receiving portion 48 having a tapered inner recess is formed along the edge of the opening of the female terminal fitting housing chamber 31, and the receiving portion 48 has a terminal fitting. The ribs 28 are designed to enter.

Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described. Each of the connector housings 10, 30 has a terminal fitting 12,
32, and retainer 20, 40 are fully locked,
When the two connector housings 10 and 30 are fitted to each other, the following waterproof function is exerted. In the male connector housing 10, since the water draining portions 19, 23, and 24 that are bent in a U shape and a crank shape are formed in the gap between the retainer 20 and the retainer insertion hole 16, a gap is formed from the opening on the lower surface of the male connector housing 10. Even if water invades, the spread of the water is restricted at the bent portions of the drainage portions 19, 23, 24. Moreover, the draining section 19,
Retainer 2 because 23 and 24 are bent
The creepage distance in the gap between 0 and the retainer insertion hole 16 is long, making it difficult for water to reach the back. Moreover, since the drainage portions 19, 23, 24 are provided so as to face the drainage hole 15, the water overflowing at the drainage portions 19, 23, 24 flows into the drainage hole 15 and is discharged to the outside.

Even if the water that has entered the male terminal fitting housing chamber 11 through the opening on the rear end face of the male connector housing 10 enters the gap between the retainer insertion hole 16 and the retainer 20, this water will be discharged in the same manner as above. Is the draining section 19, 23, 2
The expansion is regulated at 4, and the water flows into the drain hole 15 and is discharged to the outside. Also in the one female connector housing 30, the male connector housing 1
As in the case of 0, since bent drainers 39, 43, and 44 are provided in the gap between the retainer 40 and the retainer insertion hole 36, the spread of water that has entered the gap is restricted, and the drain hole 35 allows Water is discharged to the outside. still,
Since the female connector housing 30 is housed in the hood portion 14 and the opening of the retainer insertion hole 36 is hidden from the outside, water does not easily leak from the opening of the retainer insertion hole 36.

In addition, both male and female connector housings 10, 3
Since the ribs 45 and 46 and the receiving portions 25 and 26 are formed between the 0 abutting surfaces 18 and 38, the creeping distance of the gap between the connector housings 10 and 30 is long. As a result, even if water enters through the gap between the outer circumference of the female connector housing 30 and the inner circumference of the hood portion 14, it is possible to prevent the water from spreading at the peripheral ribs 45. If it exceeds the peripheral ribs 45, the abutting surfaces 18, 3
Even if water enters the gap between the eight, it is possible to prevent the water from spreading in the gap or the connection rib 46.
In particular, since the watertight holding portions 46A and 26A are formed in the connection ribs 46 and the receiving portions 26 provided in the connection portions of the water drainage holes 15 and 35, the water in the water drainage holes 15 and 35 is abutted against the abutting surface 18, It does not leak into the gap 38. Furthermore, since the terminal fitting rib 28 is provided at the opening of the male terminal fitting housing chamber 11, it is difficult for water to enter the male terminal fitting housing chamber 11 through the gap between the abutting surfaces 18, 38.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the abutting surfaces 18, 38 of the male and female connector housings 10, 30 are provided.
Since the ribs 45, 46 and the receiving portions 25, 26 thereof are provided on the to increase the creepage distance, both connector housings 10, 30
It is possible to control the spread of water in the gap and to exert a high waterproof effect. In particular, the upper and lower female terminal metal fitting housing chambers 1
Since the ribs 46 are arranged between 1, 11 and 31, 31,
Water is also prevented from being transmitted from the one terminal metal fitting housing chamber 11, 31 to the other terminal metal housing housing chamber 11, 31. Further, since the rib 28 is also provided in the opening of the terminal fitting housing chamber 11, the male terminal fitting housing chamber 11 is inserted through the gap between the abutting surfaces 18, 38.
It is also possible to prevent the entry of water into the.

<Other Embodiments> The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and illustrated in the drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. In addition, various changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. (1) In the above embodiment, the receiving portion is formed on the male connector housing and the ribs are formed on the female connector housing, but the ribs may be formed on the male connector housing and the receiving portion may be formed on the female connector housing. .

(2) In the above embodiment, the rib is provided at the connecting portion between the peripheral edge of the abutting surface and the drainage hole, but the rib may be provided so as to surround the opening of the terminal fitting housing chamber. (3) In the above embodiment, the watertight holding portion is formed in a tapered shape inclined with respect to the fitting direction. However, an elastic bending piece is integrally formed on one or both of the rib and the receiving portion. A watertight state may be ensured by elastic contact. In this case, it is possible to absorb the dimensional tolerance and obtain a high watertightness retaining property.

(4) In the above embodiment, the watertight holding portion is formed on the connection rib of the water drainage hole and the receiving portion thereof, but the watertight holding portion may not be provided. Even in this case, since a long creepage distance is secured, there is no possibility that water leaking from the drain hole will reach the abutting surface. (5) In the above embodiment, the drain holes are arranged between the upper and lower terminal fitting housing chambers, but the drain holes may be arranged between the outer surface of the connector housing and the terminal fitting housing chamber. (6) Although the water drain hole is provided in the above embodiment, the present invention can be applied to a connector having no water drain hole.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a fitted state of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a separated state.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a fitted state.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a separated state.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a retainer attached to a female connector housing.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a retainer attached to a male connector housing.

FIG. 7 is a partial enlarged cross-sectional view showing a waterproof structure in the connection portion of the drain hole.

FIG. 8 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view showing a waterproof structure in the opening of the terminal fitting housing chamber.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 ... Male connector housing 18, 38 ... Abutting surface 25, 26 ... Receiving part 30 ... Female connector housing 45 ... Peripheral rib 46 ... Rib for connection

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A rib projecting in the fitting direction is formed on the abutting surface of one or both of a pair of connector housings that are fitted to each other, and the rib is engaged with the abutting surface of the mating connector housing. A connector characterized in that a mating receiving portion is formed. 2. A pair of connector housings are formed with drainage holes communicating with each other, and both drainage holes are connected by fitting a rib and a receiving portion. The connector according to claim 1. 3. The rib is formed along the opening edge of the male terminal fitting housing chamber, and the receiving portion is formed along the opening edge of the female terminal fitting housing chamber. Connector described. 4. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the rib is formed so as to surround an actuating piece that is formed so as to project into the mating connector housing. 5. A watertight holding portion capable of holding a watertight state between the rib and the receiving portion is integrally formed on one or both of the rib and the receiving portion.
Connector according to any one of.