JPH0982419A - Engaging structure of connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To engage a mating connector regularly with the connector on the receiving side. SOLUTION: A connector mounting plate 8 is attached to the rear side of an instrument panel 1. A pair of support walls 16 are projected at the front of an insertion hole 10, and a pair of upper and lower mobile members 14 are supported shiftably in the backward and forward direction between the support walls. The female connector 9 on waiting side is accommodated between both mobile members 14 is condition that the lock plate 22 lies in front of the insertion hole 10. When electric equipment 2 is inserted into the opening 3 for mounting, the energizing plate 7 of a male connector 5 flexes, riding on a projection 28, whereby it opens a flexible board 20, and the lock plate 22 is locked, and both connectors 5 and 9 are engaged with each other while a female connector 6 being retained in work position. When they are engaged with each other regularly, the projection 28 fits in a release hole 29, and the flexible plate 28 closes, whereby the lock is released, and when a worker pushes in the electric equipment 2 subsequently, it is pushed into the regular setup position.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector fitting structure in which one of a pair of male and female connectors is placed in a standby state and the other connector is fitted from the front.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a structure and an assembling procedure of a portion for connecting various electric components such as meters and switches mounted on an instrument panel to a wire harness are as follows. The instrument panel has openings for mounting various electrical components at predetermined positions, while a wire harness is accommodated on the back side of the instrument panel. Corresponding to each opening from the wire harness. Thus, the connector is pulled out. The instrument panel is fixed to the body with the wire harness stored therein. When connecting electrical components to a wire harness, first insert your hand or finger through the opening and pull out the corresponding connector to the front of the instrument panel. After fitting, the electrical components are attached to the opening together with the connector, and this is repeated for each electrical component to assemble. This method has a problem that it takes time and effort to assemble electrical components, resulting in inefficiency.

Therefore, in recent years, in order to improve work efficiency, instrument panels adopting a plug-in type connection structure are being developed one after another. As shown in FIG. 9, this one is provided with a connector mounting plate d in addition to an instrument panel b having an opening c for mounting various electric components a. On the connector mounting plate d, a plurality of connectors e which can be fitted to the connectors provided in each electrical component a are respectively drawn out from the wire harness f and supported at predetermined positions. This connector e is a so-called standby connector. Then, the connector mounting plate d supporting the connector e is attached to the back side of the instrument panel b in advance, and the instrument panel b is fixed to the body in this state. After that, each electrical component a is sequentially inserted into the opening c, and the connector of the electrical component a is fitted with the corresponding connector e on the connector mounting plate d, thereby connecting each electrical component a. is there.

[0004]

In adopting the plug-in structure, when the connector mounting plate d is mounted on the instrument panel b as described above, it is difficult to obtain the mounting accuracy because both are large molded products. As a result, the distance from the opening c to the connector e on the standby side may vary. for that reason,
For example, if the standby side connector e is retracted too far back, the connector of the other electrical component a cannot be fitted to the normal amount, and conversely, if the standby side connector e is too far forward, the electrical component a side There is a problem that the electrical component a cannot be pushed to a predetermined position in the opening c because the pushing of the connector is restricted. The present invention has been completed based on the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to enable a mating connector to be properly fitted to a connector on a standby side.

[0005]

As a means for achieving the above object, the invention of claim 1 is characterized in that one connector of a pair of male and female connectors is provided on a connector mounting plate in a standby state, and one of them is provided. In the connector fitting structure in which the other connector is fitted from the front of the connector, the one connector is provided with an elastically displaceable movable member so as to be integrally movable in the front-rear direction. , The other connector is provided with an urging member engageable with the movable member, and the urging member urges the movable member into a displaced state until both connectors are properly fitted, and Functioning to displace the movable member in the backward direction when fitted to the connector, the one connector is configured such that the elastically displaced movable member is locked by the locking member provided on the connector mounting plate, By being fitted to the other connector while being held at the work position projecting forward from the assembly position of the rule, and when properly fitted, the movable member is displaced back and the locking is released. It is characterized in that it is allowed to be pushed into the assembling position. Claim 2
In the invention of claim 1, in the invention of claim 1, the connector mounting plate is provided with a restricting member that is locked to the movable member and restricts the movable member from moving further forward from the working position. It has a feature in that it is configured.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, a pair of male and female connectors to be fitted to each other, an electrical component provided with the one connector, an electrical component mounting plate for mounting the electrical component at a predetermined position, and an electrical component. With a connector mounting plate that can be attached to the product mounting plate and supports the other connector in a standby state,
By attaching the connector mounting plate to the electrical component mounting plate in advance, fixing the electrical component mounting plate to the body, and then mounting the electrical component, the connector on the electrical component side is fitted with the connector on the standby side on the connector mounting plate. The connector on the standby side is provided with a movable member that is elastically displaceable so as to be integrally movable in the front-rear direction, and the connector on the electrical component side is engaged with the movable member. A biasing member that can be fitted is provided, and the biasing member biases the movable member to the displacement state until both connectors are properly fitted, and when the fitting is properly fitted, the movable member is displaced back. And the connector on the standby side
The elastically displaced movable member is locked by the locking member provided on the connector mounting plate, so that the movable member is held at the working position projecting forward from the regular assembly position and fitted with the connector on the electrical component side. When it is properly fitted, the movable member is displaced back and the locking is released, so that the movable member is allowed to be pushed into the assembling position.

[0007]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, when one connector on the standby side is set at a position where the movable member is in front of the locking member and the other connector is fitted, the connector is moved along with the fitting operation. The member is elastically displaced and the movable member is locked by the locking member, so that one connector is held at the working position while the other connector is fitted. When both connectors are properly fitted, the movable member returns to the original position and the locking by the locking member is released, so that the connector is pushed into the regular assembly position. If both connectors are not properly fitted, the movable member remains locked by the locking member, and the connector on the standby side cannot be pushed in from the working position.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, when the mating connector is pulled out from the state where the connector is pushed into the regular assembly position, both connectors are returned to the working position, and then the movable member is moved forward by the restricting member. Since it is restricted, the biasing member is pulled out while only elastically moving the movable member, and only the mating connector is pulled out while leaving the connector on the standby side at the working position.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, when the connector on the standby side is set at a position where the movable member is located in front of the locking member and the electrical component is mounted, the movable member is elastically displaced in accordance with the mounting operation, By locking the movable member to the locking member, the connector on the standby side is held at the working position while the connector on the electrical component side is fitted. When both connectors are properly fitted, the movable member returns to the original position and the locking by the locking member is released, so that both connectors are pushed into the regular mounting position. If both connectors are not properly fitted, the movable member remains locked to the locking member,
The connector on the standby side cannot be pushed in from the working position.

[0010]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the mating connector is fitted in a state where the standby side connector is locked in advance at the working position in front of the regular assembling position, and then the assembling is performed. Since the connector can be pushed to the position, it is possible to ensure that both connectors are properly fitted together, and the mating connector can be surely pushed to the predetermined position for mounting. Also, as long as both connectors are in the half-fitted state, the connector on the standby side cannot be pushed in from the working position to the back.Therefore, when the connector on the standby side is pushed to the assembly position, both connectors are properly fitted. There is an effect that it is possible to confirm that it is present. According to the second aspect of the invention, in addition to the above effects, when the mating connector is detached, there is an effect that only the mating connector can be detached while leaving the standby side connector at the working position.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, even when the connector mounting plate is attached to the electrical component mounting plate in the front-rear direction, the connectors on the electrical component side corresponding to the standby side are properly fitted to each other. In addition, the electric component can be surely pushed into the predetermined position to be mounted. Further, the fact that the connector on the standby side has been pushed to the proper assembly position has the effect of being able to naturally confirm that both connectors are properly fitted.

[0012]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a connecting portion of an electric component in an instrument panel will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 8. In FIG.
Reference numeral 1 is an instrument panel similar to that described with reference to FIG. 9, which is integrally molded from synthetic resin. The instrument panel 1 is formed with a plurality of mounting openings 3 for inserting and mounting various electric components 2 from the front side. On the back side of the upper and lower edges of the mounting opening 3, there are formed protruding plates 3a protruding from the central portion in the width direction thereof. A hood-shaped male-side connector 5 (hereinafter referred to as a male connector) is integrally provided on the front surface of the electrical component 2 in the insertion direction, and a tab-shaped male terminal metal fitting 6 is protruded therein. There is. The hood is divided into four surfaces, and as shown in FIG. 7, the upper and lower two surfaces of the hood are biasing plates 7 whose tip ends are elastically bent and deformable outward. Detailed functions thereof will be described later.

On the rear side of the instrument panel 1,
Similarly, a connector mounting plate 8 integrally formed of synthetic resin can be attached. The connector mounting plate 8 has a female connector 9 on the standby side.
Insertion holes 10 are formed to allow (hereinafter, referred to as a female connector) to be inserted in the front-rear direction. Each insertion hole 10 has a corresponding mounting opening 3 when the connector mounting plate 8 is mounted on the instrument panel 1. Is formed for each position corresponding to.

The female connector 9 is formed in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped which can be fitted into the male connector 5 provided in the above-mentioned electric component 2, and the inside of which the electric wire 12 drawn from a wire harness (not shown) is inserted. The female terminal fitting connected to the terminal is inserted and accommodated from the rear surface side (left side in FIG. 1). The wire harness is integrally attached to the connector mounting plate 8.

Further, the above-mentioned insertion hole 10 is set such that its lateral dimension can be inserted through both side surfaces of the male connector 5 fitted into the female connector 9, while its longitudinal dimension is, as will be described later in detail, a female connector. Movable member 1 arranged on both upper and lower sides of 9
4, especially the movable member 14 in a natural state is set to be insertable.

Front side of the connector mounting plate 8 (right side of FIG. 1)
As shown in detail in FIG. 8, a pair of support walls 16 are provided so as to project forward along the left and right side edges of the insertion hole 10. The upper and lower edges of each of the support walls 16 project from the upper and lower edges of the insertion hole 10, respectively. The distance between the two support walls 16 is set to the above-mentioned instrument panel 1
Is wider than the width of the protruding plate 3a provided in the mounting opening 3, and when the connector mounting plate 8 is mounted on the instrument panel 1, as shown in FIG. A certain size is inserted between the support walls 16.

A pair of upper and lower movable members 14 are disposed between the support walls 16. The movable member 14 is formed of a synthetic resin material separately from the connector mounting plate 8. As shown in FIG. 8, the movable member 14 is formed at a right angle to the outside of the front edge of the flexible plate 20 in a horizontal posture. A projecting mounting plate 21 is formed, and a locking plate 22 that projects inward at a right angle is formed on the trailing edge side.

Guide grooves 24 are formed along the front-rear direction on the inner surfaces of the upper and lower ends of each of the support walls 16 described above, and each guide groove 24 is formed in a stepped shape in which the deep side is wide. And is opened on the front side of the support wall 16. On the other hand, a leg portion 25 protruding in the lateral direction is formed on the protruding edge of the mounting plate 21 of each movable member 14, and each leg portion 2
A fitting portion 26 that is fitted in the guide groove 24 described above in a substantially tightly and freely slidable manner is formed at the tip of 5.

Each movable member 14 is attached by inserting both fitting portions 26 into corresponding guide grooves 24 on the upper side or the lower side of the left and right support walls 16 from the opening on the front side.
At that time, as shown in FIG. 1, each movable member 14 is arranged such that the outer surface of each flexible plate 20 is located inside the upper edge or the lower edge of the insertion hole 10. 1
4 is movable in the front-rear direction along the guide groove 24 while inserting the bending plate 20 and the locking plate 22 into the insertion hole 10. Further, each of the flexible plates 20 can be flexibly deformed toward the outside on the trailing edge side provided with the locking plate 22.
Therefore, when the bending plate 20 is flexed and deformed outward with the locking plate 22 projecting to the front surface side of the connector mounting plate 8, the locking plate 22 abuts against the upper edge or the lower edge of the insertion hole 10 to move. The movement of the member 14 to the rear is restricted. By restricting the rearward movement of the movable member 14 as described above, as will be described later, the female connector 9 on the standby side is received.
Can be held at a work position that projects forward from the regular mounting position.

Further, a spring means (not shown) is provided between the connector mounting plate 8 and the movable member 14. This spring means always biases the movable member 14 to a position (working position) where the locking plate 22 comes to the front surface of the insertion hole 10, and as described in detail later, the male connector 5 is fitted to the female connector 9. While the flexible plate 20 is flexed and deformed by a predetermined amount in combination, it has an elastic force capable of holding the movable member 14 in its working position.

The above-mentioned female connector 9 on the standby side can be housed between the upper and lower movable members 14, and in this case, between the outer peripheral surface of the female connector 9 and the upper and lower flexible plates 20 and the left and right support walls 16. Is provided with a clearance into which the hood of the male connector 5 is fitted in a substantially tight manner.
The female connector 9 is configured so that the locking plates 22 of both movable members 14 prevent the female connector 9 from coming out backward, and the electric wire 12 is pulled out from a gap between the locking plates 22.

Further, on both upper and lower surfaces of the female connector 9, there are formed protrusions 28 having a mountain-shaped cross section with the front and rear surfaces inclined, and the upper and lower urging plates 7 of the male connector 5 described above. , The escape holes 29 that fit the protrusions 28 and allow them to escape.
Is formed, and the pair of each protrusion 28 and the escape hole 29 is
The male and female connectors 9 and 5 are formed in such a positional relationship that they are fitted to each other when they are properly fitted.

A pair of lock pieces 31 for locking the electrical component 2 in the mounting opening 3 are provided on both upper and lower surfaces on the rear end side in the insertion direction of the electrical component 2. This lock piece 3
1 is formed so as to be flexibly deformable and extends toward the front in the insertion direction, and a fitting protrusion 32 is formed at the extension end. On the other hand, the upper and lower projecting plates 3 provided in the mounting opening 3
On the inner surface of a, there is formed a lock recess 33 into which the fitting protrusion 32 can be fitted. That is, the electrical component 2 is inserted into the mounting opening 3 while flexibly deforming the lock piece 31,
When the lock piece 31 is pushed back to a predetermined position (for example, the rear end face in the insertion direction is flush with the surface of the instrument panel 1), the lock piece 31 is restored and deformed, and the fitting protrusion 32 is fitted into the lock recess 33. , And the movement in the push-in and pull-out directions is locked.

This embodiment has the structure as described above,
Subsequently, the procedure of the assembling will be described. As described above, the upper and lower movable members 14 are mounted between the both support walls 16 of the connector mounting plate 8, and the female connector 9 into which the female terminal fitting pulled out from the wire harness is inserted.
Are housed between the movable members 14 and the support wall 16. Further, the movable member 14 is held at a position (working position) in which the locking plate 22 projects forward from the insertion hole 10 as shown in FIG. 1 by spring means provided between the movable member 14 and the connector mounting plate 8. , The female connector 9 has both locking plates 2 on its rear surface.
By being locked by 2, it is prevented from coming out backward.
Further, since the length of the electric wire 12 is limited, the female connector 9 is restricted from being pulled out further forward from the position accommodated in the support wall 16.

The connector mounting plate 8 supporting the female connector 9 and the movable member 14 in this manner is attached to the back side of the instrument panel 1. Next, the instrument panel 1 to which the connector mounting plate 8 is attached in advance
Is fixed to the body.

Subsequently, as shown by the arrow in FIG. 1, the electrical component 2 is pushed into the mounting opening 3 of the instrument panel 1. Then, as shown in FIG. 2, the male connector 5 provided on the electrical component 2 is gradually fitted to the outer periphery of the female connector 9 on the standby side while the movable member 14 is held at the working position by the elastic force of the spring means. Are combined. When fitted by a predetermined amount, the upper and lower urging plates 7 of the male connector 5 ride up along the front sloped surface 28a of the protrusion 28 provided on the upper and lower surfaces of the female connector 9 to bend outward. It deforms, and accordingly, the bending plate 20 of the movable member 14 bends and deforms outward, and the locking plate 22 moves to a position where it abuts against the upper edge or the lower edge of the insertion hole 10. As a result, the retreat of the movable member 14 is regulated regardless of the spring means, that is, the male connector 5 on the electrical component 2 side is continuously fitted while the female connector 9 is held at the working position.

Then, as shown in FIG. 3, both connectors 5,
When 9 is pushed into a position where it is properly fitted, the relief hole 29 of the biasing plate 7 corresponds to the position of the protrusion 28, and the protrusion 28
The urging plate 7 is restored to its original shape by the restoring elasticity while being fitted into the relief hole 29 and escaping. Thereby, the flexible plate 2 of the movable member 14
By removing the biasing force for 0, the flexible plate 20 is restored to the original horizontal posture by the restoring elasticity. Along with that,
The locking plate 22 retracts inside the upper and lower edges of the insertion hole 10,
The locking of the movable member 14 is released.

Then, when the electric component 2 is pushed in, the flexible plate 20
While passing through the insertion hole 10, the movable member 14 is pushed inward along the guide groove 24 against the elasticity of the spring means,
At the same time, the female connector 9 is pushed inward together with the male connector 5.

In the meantime, the electric component 2 is pushed in while flexibly deforming the lock piece 31, and when pushed to a predetermined position, the fitting projection 32 of the lock piece 31 enters the lock recess 33 as shown in FIG. By fitting elastically, electrical components 2
Is installed in a predetermined position with the pushing and locking prevention restricted. As a result, the female connector 9 is accommodated in the male connector 5 in the regular assembly position.

As already mentioned, when both connectors 5 and 9 are in the half-fitted state, the bending plate 20 is opened and the locking plate 22 is opened.
Since the push-fitting is restricted by locking the upper and lower edges of the insertion hole 10 and the push-fitting can be pushed into the assembling position only after the fitting is properly performed, the female connector 9 remains in the semi-fitted state. There is no danger of being pushed to the assembly position.

Further, when it is necessary to remove the electrical component 2 for maintenance or the like, when the electrical component 2 is unlocked from the state shown in FIG. 4 and pulled out from the mounting opening 3, the female connector 9 is put together. While being pulled out, the movable member 14 is also returned to the working position along the guide groove 24 while passing through the insertion hole 10 via the spring means.

When the electric component 2 is further pulled, as shown in FIG. 5, the mounting plate 21 of the movable member 14 abuts against the tip of the projecting plate 3a of the mounting opening 3 and is restricted from moving further forward. On the other hand, since the female connector 9 is also pulled by the electric wire 12 and its forward movement is restricted, as shown in FIG. 6, the rim of the escape hole 29 of the biasing plate 7 is inclined toward the rear side of the protrusion 28. The urging plate 7 and the bending plate 20 are restored to their original shape when the bending plate 20 of the movable member 14 is pulled out while flexibly deforming the bending plate 20 of the movable member 14 and the tip of the urging plate 7 comes off the protrusion 28. Then, only the electrical component 2 and the male connector 5 are detached to the front side of the instrument panel 1 with the female connector 9 left in the working position. Therefore, when the electric component 2 is mounted again, if the electric component 2 is pushed into the mounting opening 3 in the same manner as above without performing any operation on the standby side, both connectors 5 and 9 are properly fitted. Above, it can be pushed to the regular assembly position.

As described above, in this embodiment, the male connector 5 on the electrical component 2 side is fitted while the female connector 9 on the standby side is locked in advance at the work position in front of the regular assembly position. Since it is possible to push the connector mounting plate 8 to the instrument panel 1 even after the connector mounting plate 8 is attached to the instrument panel 1, the connector 9 on the electrical component 2 side corresponding to the standby side can be used even if there is variation in the front-back direction. 5,
The parts can be fitted together properly, and the electric component 2 can be securely pushed into a predetermined position to be mounted.

Further, as long as both connectors 5 and 9 are in the half-fitted state, the female connector 9 on the standby side is reliably prevented from being pushed to the regular assembly position. Further, when the electrical component 2 is pulled out, the female connector 9 and the movable member 1
Since it is possible to pull out only the electrical component 2 while leaving 4 in the working position, the mounting work of the electrical component 2 can be performed again as it is.

<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) Although the movable member is formed separately from the female connector in the above embodiment, the movable member may be formed integrally with the female connector. (2) Further, the means for flexibly deforming the flexible plate of the movable member is not limited to the one exemplified in the above embodiment, and for example, a protrusion is formed on the inner surface of the flexible plate, and the hood of the male connector is used as the protrusion. Other methods may be used, such as directly bending the flexible plate by abutting against.

(3) In the above embodiment, the means for abutting against the instrument panel is adopted as the means for restricting the movement of the movable member further forward than the working position. You may make it provide a regulation member. (4) The present invention is not limited to a connection part of electrical components in an instrument panel, but one connector of a pair of male and female connectors is provided on a connector mounting plate in a standby state, and one connector is connected to the front of the other connector. It can be widely applied to all connector fitting structures in which the connector is fitted.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where a connector mounting plate according to an embodiment of the present invention is attached to an instrument panel.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of an initial state in which an electric component is pushed in.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where both connectors are properly fitted.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which an electric component is mounted at a predetermined position.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which an electric component is being pulled out.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which drawing is further continued.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of an electrical component and a male connector.

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view showing a housing portion of the female connector.

FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view showing a connection structure of electrical components in a plug-in format.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Instrument panel (electrical equipment mounting plate) 2 ... Electrical equipment 3 ... Mounting opening 3a ... Projecting plate 5 ... Male connector 7 ... Energizing plate 8 ... Connector mounting plate 9 ... Female connector (standby connector) 10 ... Insertion hole 14 ... Movable member 20 ... Bending plate 21 ... Mounting plate 22 ... Locking plate 24 ... Guide groove 28 ... Projection 29 ... Relief hole

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A connector fitting structure in which one connector of a pair of male and female connectors is provided on a connector mounting plate in a standby state, and the other connector is fitted from the front of the one connector. The one connector is provided with an elastically displaceable movable member so as to be integrally movable in the front-rear direction, and the other connector is provided with a biasing member engageable with the movable member. The urging member functions to urge the movable member in a displaced state until both connectors are properly fitted together, and to move the movable member backwardly when the both members are properly fitted together. The elastically displaced movable member is retained by a retaining member provided on the connector mounting plate, so that the movable connector is held at a work position projecting forward from the regular assembly position while the other connector is retained. When fitted and properly fitted, the movable member is displaced back and the locking is released, so that the movable member is allowed to be pushed into the assembling position. Connector mating structure. 2. The connector mounting plate is provided with a restricting member that engages with the movable member and restricts the movable member from moving further forward from the working position. Item 1. The connector fitting structure according to Item 1. 3. A pair of male and female connectors to be fitted to each other, an electrical component provided with the one connector, an electrical component mounting plate capable of mounting the electrical component at a predetermined position, and an electrical component mounting plate. A connector mounting plate that supports the other connector in a standby state is possible, and by previously mounting the connector mounting plate on the electrical component mounting plate, fixing the electrical component mounting plate to the body, and then mounting the electrical component, In the connector in which the electrical component side is fitted with the connector on the standby side on the connector mounting plate, an elastically displaceable movable member is integrally moved in the front-rear direction on the connector on the standby side. The connector on the electrical component side is provided with a biasing member that can be engaged with the movable member, and the biasing member is movable until both connectors are properly fitted. Urges the wood to the displacement state,
And functions to move the movable member backward when it is properly fitted, and in the connector on the standby side, the elastically displaced movable member is locked to the locking member provided on the connector mounting plate. , The fitting is fitted to the connector on the electrical component side while being held in the working position projecting forward from the normal assembly position, and when fitted properly, the movable member is displaced back and the locking is released. As a result, the connector fitting structure is characterized in that it is allowed to be pushed into the assembly position.