JPH10116642A - Connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a small height type connector by reducing the height of a connector while making sure of reliable connection between a plug contact and a jack contact. SOLUTION: This connector comprises a plug connector 21 in which pin- shaped contacts 211a are arranged in line, and a jack connector 22 in which jack contacts 221a are arranged to match to each plug contact 211a. The jack contact 221a made of an elastic wire member is formed in a latter C-shaped ring whose inner diameter is not more than the diameter of the plug contact 211a on the condition of such pre-connection as it is.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a low-profile connector, and more particularly, to a low-profile connector which ensures a reliable connection between a plug contact and a jack contact.

2. Description of the Related Art With the development of small devices such as mobile phones accompanying the recent development of electronic technology, demands for lower price and miniaturization of connectors have been increasing. There is an increasing demand for lowering the height to lower the height.

[0003] In this case, the requirement to reduce the height necessarily leads to a reduction in the sliding distance at the time of connection between the plug terminal and the jack terminal. There is a growing demand for smaller and less expensive connectors.

[0004]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 8 is a view for explaining a conventional low-profile connector.
-2) indicates a jack connector.

[0005] In the drawings, description will be made in a state where the connector is cut in a direction orthogonal to the terminal row of the connector, and a case where the jack connector is a board mounted type will be described as an example. In FIG. 8, a low-profile connector 1 includes a plug connector 11 indicated by (8-1) and a jack connector 1 indicated by (8-2).
Consists of two.

The inner plug connector 11 is shown in FIG.
As shown in 1), one end obtained by bending the plate-like member into an “L” shape is a plug contact 111a and the other end is an external connection terminal 111b.
A plurality of plug terminals 111 formed in the base plate 112 and a through hole 112a having a U-shape in cross section and having a size to which the plug terminal 111 can be fixed are formed at a predetermined pitch "p" in the root region of the peripheral wall 112c of the bottom plate 112b. And a plug insulator 112 formed in alignment.

Then, for example, the plug contact 111a of the plug terminal 111 is inserted into the through hole 112a from outside the bottom plate of the plug insulator 112, and the plug terminal
By fixing 1 to the insulator 112, the plug connector 11 in a state where one surface of the plug contact 111a is in close contact with the inner surface of the peripheral wall of the plug insulator 112 can be configured as shown in (8-1).

On the other hand, the jack connector 12 connected to the plug connector 11 is composed of the same number of jack terminals 121 as the plug terminals 111, and a jack insulator 122 on which the respective jack terminals 121 are implanted.

The jack terminal 121 made of a plate-like member has a jack contact 121a, one end of which is bent in the thickness direction and is displaced in the thickness direction, and an insulator fixing portion 121b which follows the contact region. Are formed on the external connection terminals 121c which are bent at right angles.

The jack insulator 122 is provided with a peripheral wall 122a that fits with the outer surface of the peripheral wall of the plug insulator 112, and the jack insulator is provided at a position corresponding to each plug contact 111a of the plug connector 11. A through hole 122b to which the terminal 121 can be fixed by press-fitting the insulating insulator fixing portion 121b is formed.

The through hole 122b is formed at a position where the jack contact area when the jack terminal 121 is fixed can come into contact with the plug contact area when the insulator 122 is fitted to the plug connector 11. ing.

Therefore, as shown by the broken line A, the jack terminal 121 having the straight external connection terminal 121c is inserted into the through hole 122b from the side of the external connection terminal, and is inserted into the through hole 122b of the insulator fixing portion 121b. After being fixed to the jack insulator 122 by press-fitting into the jack connector 122b, the external connection terminal area is bent as shown by the arrow B, so that the jack connector 12
Can be configured as shown in (8-2).

On the circuit board 15 on which the jack connector 12 is mounted, connection electrodes 15a connected to a circuit pattern (not shown) are formed at respective positions corresponding to the external connection terminals 121c by patterning.

In the connector 1 including the plug connector 11 and the jack connector 12, the peripheral walls 112 c and 122 a are engaged with each other by fitting as shown by an arrow C, so that the jack contact 121 a of the jack terminal 121 is formed.
Contact with the di-plug contact 111a of the plug terminal 111, and consequently, each of the external connection terminals 111b and 121
c can be realized.

Therefore, for example, by mounting the jack connector 12 on the circuit board 15 by a normal reflow soldering technique or the like, a connector capable of connecting / disconnecting between the external connection terminal of the plug connector 11 and the connection electrode of the circuit board 15 is provided. Can be easily obtained.

[0016]

On the other hand, with the demand for miniaturization of the electronic device, it has been strongly desired to reduce the height of the connector. However, the connector 1 illustrated in FIG. In a conventional connector that uses a connection between a contact and a sleeve-shaped jack contact corresponding to the plug contact, the plug connector and the jack connector are moved by sliding between the plug contact and the jack contact arranged along the plug contact extending direction. Since the connection is made, it is necessary to secure a sliding distance with respect to the plug contact in consideration of the spring constant in the jack contact region in order to realize reliable connection.

Therefore, the conventional connector has a problem that it is difficult to reduce the height of the connector relative to the circuit board mounting surface to the sliding distance or less.

[0018]

The object of the present invention is to provide a connector comprising a plug connector in which pin-shaped plug contacts are arranged and arranged, and a jack connector in which jack contacts are arranged corresponding to the respective plug contacts. The above-mentioned jack contact made of a wire having spring properties is solved by a connector formed in a C-ring shape having an inner diameter not exceeding the diameter of the plug contact in a natural state before connection.

When a C-ring shaped jack contact in which a wire having spring properties is wound to an inner diameter not exceeding the diameter of the plug contact is fitted to the pin-shaped plug contact, the number of contact points between the two contacts can be increased. At the same time, the sliding distance between both contacts can be reduced.

Therefore, in the present invention, a required connector is constituted by the plug connector provided with the pin-shaped plug contacts and the jack connector provided with the C-ring shaped jack contacts.

This indicates that the length of the plug contact region can be reduced by reducing the sliding distance between the two contacts without deteriorating the connection characteristics between the two contacts.

Therefore, the height of the connector can be reduced.

[0023]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 is a view for explaining a connection mechanism of a connector according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a view for explaining the configuration of the connector of the present invention together with a board mounted state, and FIG. 3 is a jack according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of the connector, FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a completed state of the jack connector according to the present invention, and FIG.
FIG. 6 is a view for explaining another example of the connector configuration according to the present invention.
FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the jack connector of FIG. 5, and FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the connection state of the connector of FIG.

In FIG. 1, which explains in principle the connection mechanism of the connector according to the present invention, (1-1) shows a state before the connection between the plug terminal and the jack terminal, and (1-2) shows each state. This shows the state when the terminals are connected.

That is, in (1-1) of FIG.
Reference numeral 1 denotes one end formed on a round pin-shaped plug contact 11a and the other end formed on an external connection terminal (not shown).

The jack terminal 12 made of a phosphor bronze wire having a diameter smaller than the diameter of the plug contact is formed at one end into a jack contact 12a which is naturally rounded into a C-ring shape smaller than the diameter of the plug contact 11a, and has the other end. The external connection terminals 12b are formed at substantially right angles from the jack contact area.

Then, after holding the jack terminal 12 so that only the area of the jack contact 12a can be expanded and contracted only in the diameter direction, the plug terminal 11 is moved to the arrow C _1.
When the jack contact 12a is inserted into the jack contact area as shown in the figure, the jack contact 12a is expanded in the area of the chamfer 11b of the plug contact 11a. As a result, the jack contact 12a is The connection between the terminals can be realized by being wound.

The plug contact 11a in this case is
Connection with the jack contact 12a is realized by contact and sliding at at least a plurality of points, so that reliable connection can be ensured.

Further, even if there is a deviation between the central axis of the plug contact 11a and the central axis of the jack contact 12a, the front end of the plug contact catches the jack contact area by the chamfer 11b, so that reliable connection can be realized. it can.

[0030] When pulled out the plug terminal 11 in a state of such a (1-2) in the C ₂ direction, since the plug contact region is retained only to be scaled in a diametrical direction, as described above, (1 It is possible to return to the initial state shown in -1).

The connector 2 according to the present invention in FIG.
It comprises a plug connector 21 shown in 1) and a jack connector 22 shown in (2-2). (2-
In 3), a circuit board 23 corresponding to the jack connector 22 is shown.

That is, in (2-1) of the drawing, the plug connector 21 has a plurality of plug terminals 211 and each of the plug terminals 21.
1 are fixed in two rows. One end of the plug terminal 211 is tapered 2
11b formed on the plug contact 211a having
Insulator fixing portion 211 following plug contact 211a
The tip bent substantially at a right angle from c is formed on the external connection terminal 211d which is flattened by, for example, a normal flat hitting technique.

The insulator 212 is connected to each of the plug terminals 2.
11 are formed by a usual insert molding technique. Therefore, the required plug connector 21 can be obtained as shown in the figure by molding the insulator 212 with the plug terminals 211 arranged and aligned at predetermined positions.

Also, the jack connector 2 is shown in FIG.
2 is the same number of jack terminals 22 as the plug terminals 211
1 and the respective jack terminals 221 are connected to the plug connector 2 described above.
1 and a cover plate 2 that covers the jack insulating housing 222.
23.

Here, in order to facilitate understanding of the present invention, the structure of the jack connector 22 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. In FIG. 3, (3-1) shows the jack terminal 221, (a) is a perspective view, and (b) is an arrow D.
Is a side plan view as viewed from _one direction, further (c) is an arrow D ₂
It is the plane view seen from the direction.

(3-2) shows the cover plate 223,
(3-3) shows the jack insulating housing 222. That is, in (3-1) of the figure, the jack terminal 221 in this case made of a wire smaller than the diameter of the plug contact 211a of the plug connector 21 as described above,
As shown in the plan view (c), one end of which is formed in a C-ring-shaped jack contacts 221a rounded to slightly smaller diameter d ₁ than the plug contact diameter, area diameter outwardly following the jack contacts 221a After being bent, the external connection terminal 221b is bent in a direction perpendicular to the jack contact region.

[0037] And in the region of the jack contacts 221a, with is provided with slightly bent claw 221c diametrically outwardly at the free end p _1, the free end p ₁
At substantially equal intervals around the circumference excluding (p ₂ and p _{3 in the} figure)
Bent projections 2 projecting outward in the diameter direction.
21d- ₁ 221d- ₂ .

The tip of the claw 221c and the apex of each of the bent protrusions 221d- ₁ 221d- ₂ are located substantially on the circumference indicated by the two-dot chain line E. FIG.
The jack insulating casing 222 shown in (3-3) is a plug-in connector 21 of the plug connector 21 described with reference to FIG.
1a, the through-hole 222a into which the plug contact can be inserted is formed at the position corresponding to the jack terminal 221.
The jack contact 221a is formed with a concave hole 222b having a diameter and a depth that can be dropped in a region including the tip of the claw 221c and the tip of the bent protrusion 221d.

Each of the recessed holes 222b is formed with a recess 222c extending in the outward direction orthogonal to the terminal row, and the external connection terminal 221b of the plug terminal 211 is inserted through the recess 222c. Through hole 222 for
d is formed.

An opening on the lower surface side of the through hole 222d has an outer end face 222f in a direction orthogonal to the terminal row from the through hole.
Is formed at a depth not exceeding the diameter of the external connection terminal 221b.

As shown in FIG. 3 (2), a cover plate 223 having a size in plan view and a thickness sufficiently smaller than the length of the plug contact is equal to the size of the jack insulating case 222, and extends through the jack insulating case 222. A through hole 223a having the same diameter as the through hole 222a is formed at each position corresponding to the hole 222a, and the jack insulating housing 222 is provided in a blank area of the insulating housing 222. The positioning hole 222h and the projection 223b provided at a position corresponding to the positioning hole are fitted and fixed.

Therefore, the external connection terminal 221b of the jack terminal 221 is connected to the jack insulating casing 22 as shown by the arrow F.
2 through the through hole 222d, and the jack contact 221a of the terminal 221 is inserted into the concave hole 222b of the insulating casing 222.
After that, the tip of the external connection terminal 221b protruding from the lower surface of the insulating casing is bent along the concave groove 222g as shown by a broken line G.

Next, the cover plate 223 is positioned on the jack insulating housing 222 by fitting the positioning holes 222h and the projections 223b, and the both are fixed with, for example, a normal adhesive or the like. Related jack connector 2
2 can be configured as shown in FIG.

In the jack connector 22, the above-mentioned jack contact 221 a having a C-ring shape is
Although located sandwiched between the jack insulator casing 222 and the cover plate 223 while being held in the region of the protrusion 221d bending and 1c, this is slightly thicker than the inner diameter d ₁ of the contact in the jack contacts 221a By inserting the plug contact 211a, it means that the diameter of the contact area is expanded following the plug contact 211a while sliding on the surface of the plug contact.

Therefore, a reliable connection of the jack contact 221a to the plug contact 211a can be ensured. However, since the jack contact to the plug contact is located orthogonal to the plug contact, the length of the plug contact can be reduced. The jack connector 22 having a smaller height than the jack connector 12 described with reference to FIG. 8 can be configured as shown in FIG.

The circuit board 25 on which the jack connector 22 is mounted has a position corresponding to each external connection terminal 221b of the jack terminal 221 in the jack connector 22, in other words, a concave groove 222 of the jack insulating casing 222.
The connection electrode 25a connected to a circuit pattern (not shown) is formed in a pattern at each position corresponding to g, and the contact with the tip of the plug contact is avoided at each position corresponding to the plug contact 211a. Through hole 25b is formed.

Therefore, as described with reference to FIG. 8, the jack connector 2 is formed by, for example, a normal reflow soldering technique.
2 is mounted on the circuit board 25, and the above-described plug connector 21 is inserted into the jack connector 22 as shown by an arrow H, whereby the external connection terminal 211 of the plug connector 21 is formed.
It is possible to easily obtain the connector 2 which can connect / disconnect between the connection electrode 25a and the connection electrode 25a of the circuit board 25.

In the connector 2 having such a configuration, the height of the plug connector and the jack connector can be easily reduced by shortening the plug contact area, and the height of the connector can be easily reduced.

In the connector 2 described above, the center axis of the plug contact 211a and the jack contact 221a
Even when there is an axial misalignment between the plug connector 21 and the jack connector 22, the guide at the time of fitting between the plug connector 21 and the jack connector 22 can be absorbed by the displacement of the jack contact side with respect to the plug contact. There is a merit to be eliminated.

FIG. 5 shows another configuration example of a connector.
The connector 3 includes the plug connector 21 and the jack connector 31 described with reference to FIG. 2, but in order to facilitate understanding of the present invention, as in FIG.
1 will be described in detail.

FIG. 6 shows an example in which the present invention is applied to the jack connector 22 described with reference to FIG. 3. Therefore, the same reference numerals are given to the same target components and parts as in FIG. The description of the operation is omitted.

That is, in FIG. 6, the jack connector 31 in this case has the same number of jack terminals 221 as the plug terminals 211 of the plug connector 21, and the respective jack terminals 221 are arranged and fixed at the positions corresponding to the plug terminals of the plug connector 21. And a cover plate 312 that covers the jack insulating housing 311.

The jack insulating casing 311 is formed by the concave hole 222b in the jack insulating casing 222 described with reference to FIG.
6 is replaced by a plurality of types (two types in the figure) of recessed holes having different depths, that is, the recessed hole 222b of FIG. 3 and the recessed hole 311a of FIG. Is equivalent to

The cover plate 312 is provided with a projection 312a having a step corresponding to the difference between the depth of the concave hole 311a and the depth of the concave hole 222b only in each region corresponding to the concave hole 311a. The other configuration is the same as the cover plate 223 described above.

Therefore, similarly to FIG.
1 is inserted into each through-hole 222d of the jack-insulated housing 311 as shown by the arrow D, and
After dropping the first jack contact 221a into the concave holes 222b and 311a of the insulating housing 311, the tips of the external connection terminals 221b protruding from the lower surface of the insulating housing 311 are inserted into the concave grooves 222g as shown by broken lines G. Fold along.

Next, as described with reference to FIG.
The required jack connector 31 can be configured as shown in FIG. 5 by positioning the 12 in the jack insulating housing 311 and fixing them with, for example, a normal adhesive.

In the jack connector 31, the area of the C-ring shaped jack contact 221a is shifted in the plug contact insertion direction.
7A and 7B illustrating the connection state, (7-1) shows a state before connection, (7-2) shows a state in the middle of connection, and (7-3) shows a state after connection. It is a thing.

That is, in the connector 3 in this case composed of the plug connector 21 and the jack connector 31 in (7-1) of the drawing, the area of the jack contact 221a inserted in the concave hole 222b and the concave portion 311a are inserted. The area with the jack contact 221a is shifted from the insertion direction F of the plug contact 211a as described above.

When the plug connector 21 is inserted, the plug contacts 211a of the plug connector 21 are inserted.
First, as shown in (7-2), the jack contact 221a- ₁ located in the concave hole 222b is brought into contact with the jack contact 221a- _1, and then the jack contact 221a located in the concave hole 311a is entered as shown in (7-3). _-2 and comes into a connected state, and the connection between them is completed as shown in (7-3).

This indicates that the insertion force of the plug connector 21 into the jack connector 31 is divided into two stages, and as a result, the operation force at the time of connecting the connector can be reduced.

When the connection is released, the connection with the jack contact 221a- ₂ located in the concave hole 311a is first released, and then the connection with the jack contact 221a- ₁ located in the concave hole 222b is released. Therefore, the operation force at the time of disconnection can be reduced.

[0062]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a connector having a reduced height as a connector while ensuring reliable connection between a plug contact and a jack contact.

In the above description, the case of the jack connector in which the positional displacement of the jack contact region with respect to the plug contact is made in two steps is taken as an example, but the positional displacement is divided into three or more steps to connect / disconnect as a connector. Obviously, the operating force at the time can be further reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a connector connection mechanism according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the connector of the present invention together with a board mounted state.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a jack connector according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a completed state of the jack connector according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating another example of a connector configuration according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the jack connector of FIG.

7 is a diagram illustrating a connection state in the connector of FIG.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a conventional low-profile connector.

[Explanation of symbols]

2, 3 connector 11, 211 plug terminal 11a, 211a plug contact 11b chamfer 12, 221 jack terminal 12a, 221a, 221a- ₁ , 221a- ₂ jack contact 12b, 211d, 221b external connection terminal 21, 31 plug connector 22 jack connector 25 circuit board 25a connection electrode 25b, 222a, 222d, 223a through hole 211b taper 211c insulator fixing portion 212 plug insulator 221c claw 221d, 221d- ₁ , 221d- ₂ bent protrusion 222, 311 jack insulating housing 222b, 311a concave Hole 222c Concave portion 222f Outer end surface 222g Concave groove 222h Positioning hole 223, 312 Cover plate 223b, 312a Projection

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A connector comprising: a plug connector in which pin-shaped plug contacts are arranged and arranged; and a jack connector in which jack contacts are arranged corresponding to the respective plug contacts, wherein the connector is made of a wire having spring properties. The connector wherein the jack contact is formed in a C-ring shape having an inner diameter not exceeding a diameter of the plug contact in a natural state before connection. 2. The jack contact according to claim 1,
A connector characterized by comprising bent projections projecting outward in the same plane at a plurality of substantially equally arranged locations. 3. The jack contact according to claim 1,
A connector, wherein the connectors are arranged in groups at a plurality of positions different in the plug contact connection direction.