JPH10223311A - Connector fitting structure - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a connector fitting structure with which incomplete fitting of inter-connector can be prevented and damage to connector housings can surely be prevented. SOLUTION: In this structure 1, when a second connector 3 is fitted in a first connector 2, a cantilever arm 44 installed in an outer housing 22 composing the second connector 2 is engaged in an engaging projected part 16 formed in the first connector 2. Then, a lock arm 25 installed in an inner housing 21 composing the second connector 3 is joined to a joining groove 15 formed in the first connector 2 to move the outer housing 22 by a spring member. Consequently, the lock arm 25 is held down and connectors are completely joined.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a male / female connector fitting structure and, more particularly, to a connector fitting structure capable of securely locking a male connector and a female connector.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recent vehicles, such as automobiles, are equipped with a large number of electronic devices for various controls. Therefore, connectors for connecting electronic devices to wire harnesses and connectors for relay connection between wire harnesses are frequently used. Have been. Many of these connectors are electrically connected by fitting a pair of male and female connectors. In this connector fitting, it is indispensable that a complete fitting is always performed, and if the connector fitting is used in an intermittent fitting state, the connector is disconnected during use and the electronic device stops functioning. An accident such as a stoppage of a car occurs. Therefore, various connector fitting structures have been proposed to ensure the mutual fitting state of the connectors. As an example, an outline of the "connector fitting fixing unit" disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. 5-43484 has been proposed. Will be described.

[0003] As shown in FIG. 12, the connector fitting / fixing unit includes a receptacle X and a connector plug Y. One receptacle X has a cylindrical receptacle shell 61, and a socket front insulator 62 and a rear insulator 65 that sandwich a ferrule 63 and a spring member 64 for urging the same from front and rear,
It is housed in the receptacle shell 61 by a ring 66. Also, on the inner peripheral surface of the receptacle shell 61,
A locking spring 75 that forms a first engaging portion protruding inward is formed.

[0004] The other connector plug Y has a cylindrical barrel 69, and a front insulator 71 and a rear insulator 65 which sandwich the phenol 63 and a spring member 77 for urging the phenol 63 forward from the front and rear are provided. It is housed in a barrel 69 by a ring 66. Barrel 69
A protrusion 69a which forms a second engaging portion which engages with the locking spring 75 at the time of fitting with the connector plug is provided on the outer peripheral surface near the fitting end, and a barrel groove 69b is provided behind the protrusion 69a. Is formed.

[0005] A cylindrical coupling 67 is externally inserted into the barrel 69 as an engagement control member for performing an operation at the time of locking, and a slide ring 68 is fitted inside the coupling 67. I have. Furthermore, slide ring 6
8, a rear washer 72 fixed by retaining 73, a spring 70 inserted between the slide ring 68 and the washer 72 and biasing the slide ring 68 and the coupling 67 forward. It has.

The engagement between the receptacle X and the connector plug Y is such that the connector plug Y is pressed and inserted into the receptacle X, and the locking spring 7 of the receptacle shell 61 is engaged.
5 hits the projection 69a of the barrel 69 and is displaced outward. Thus, the rear end of the receptacle shell 61 hits the slide ring 68 and pushes the slide ring 68 backward, so that the spring 70 is compressed.

When the insertion is further continued, the locking spring 75 of the receptacle shell 61 is
a, and falls into the barrel groove 69b behind it.
As a result, the slide ring 68 is released from the state of contact with the locking spring 75, so that the slide ring 68 is urged forward by the repulsive force of the spring 70, and the locking spring 7
5 is locked from the outside so that the engagement is completed and the engagement state between the locking spring 75 and the projection 69a is maintained.

[0008]

In the connector fixing and fixing unit, the connector plug Y is pushed out by the repulsive force of the spring 70 in the case of halfway fitting, and the slide ring 68 is pushed only in the case of complete fitting. The locking spring 75 that has been pressed is completely fitted. However, since the locking spring 75 is located on the receptacle X side, when the configuration on the receptacle X side is directly attached to, for example, a gear box of an automobile, a large force is required when attaching / detaching the connector plug Y side, In some cases, the receptacle X or the connector plug Y may be damaged.

For this reason, a powdery glass material is mixed in the synthetic resin material to increase the strength of the connector housing. However, although this glass-containing resin material contributes to an improvement in strength, the flexibility is reduced, and there is a problem that it cannot be applied to a configuration in which a locking spring is provided on the receptacle X side. Therefore, a configuration utilizing these contradictory characteristics was required. In addition, only one projection 69a and one barrel groove 69b of the connector plug Y corresponding to the locking spring 75 on the receptacle X side and the locking spring described above are provided. That is, the connector fitting is locked at a predetermined location on the barrel 69 on the connector plug Y side and on a corresponding location on the receptacle shell 61 on the receptacle X side. Therefore, when the connector is fitted, in addition to the pressing force of the coupling 67 on the connector plug Y side, an engagement force is further applied to the projection 69a, and imbalance in the insertion force occurs, so that the locking spring described above is twisted due to twisting or the like. There is a concern that 75 or the like may be deformed or damaged.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a connector fitting structure that can prevent incomplete fitting of connectors and can surely prevent damage to a connector housing.

[0011]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The object of the present invention is to provide a connector housing having one connection terminal, an engagement portion formed at one end on the outer periphery of the connector housing, and the connector housing. A first connector having a locking projection formed at the other end on the outer periphery of the first connector; and a second connection terminal that is connected to the connection terminal so as to be able to conduct electricity, when the first connector is fitted to the first connector. An inner housing having a lock arm that engages with the engaging portion; and an outer side of the inner housing that is slidable in a fitting / removing direction, and is locked by the locking projection when fitted to the first connector. An outer housing with a cantilever arm,
A connector fitting structure for a second connector including a spring member inserted between the outer housing and the inner housing, wherein the engagement protrusion and the cantilever arm are provided at one end of the inner housing. This can be solved by a connector fitting structure in which a cantilever arm push-up projection for releasing the locked state during the fitting is provided.

[0012] The object of the present invention is the connector fitting structure, wherein preferably, the cantilever arm on the outer housing and the lock arm of the inner housing are provided in a pair at least at opposing positions. The problem can be solved by a characteristic connector fitting structure.

[0013] In the connector fitting structure having the above structure according to the present invention, when the second connector is fitted to the first connector, the lock arm provided on the second connector is connected to a housing end of the first connector. While the cantilever arm provided on the outer housing is locked by the locking projection provided on the housing of the first connector, and the outer housing temporarily becomes non-slidable. When the second connector is further pushed in, the lock arm engages with the engagement portion, and by this pushing, the cantilever arm push-up projection acts on the cantilever arm to release the engagement state with the engagement projection. The housing slides in the fitting direction by the repulsive force of the spring member to press the lock arm into the engagement portion.
Therefore, the mutual fitting of the first and second connectors can be reliably completed. Further, when the pair of the cantilever arms and the lock arms are provided at least in opposition to each other, it is possible to reliably complete the above-described mutual connection of the connectors, and to perform the above-described engagement due to twisting or the like at the time of connector connection. Damage of the combined structure can be reliably prevented.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of a connector fitting structure to which the present invention is applied will be described below in detail with reference to FIGS. In the description of the present embodiment, the configuration of each of the first and second connectors will be described, and then the fitting operation at the time of fitting the connectors will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the configuration of the connector fitting structure 1 according to the present embodiment is roughly divided into a male connector 2 corresponding to a first connector.
And a female connector 3 corresponding to the second connector. Hereinafter, the configurations of the male connector 2 and the female connector 3 will be sequentially described.

As shown in FIG. 2, the male connector 2 is fixed to an electronic device, a gear box, or the like, and is integrally formed using a glass-containing resin material. The male connector 2 has a substantially cylindrical shape, and a cylindrical connector housing 11 is integrally formed with a substrate housing 12 fixed to an electronic device (not shown), and a female connector 3 described later is fitted in the direction of arrow A. An internal space 13 is formed for joining. The board housing 12 has a plurality of connector terminals 14.
Is fixed, one end of the connector terminal 14 is connected to the electronic device, and the other end protrudes into the internal space 13. Also,
An engagement groove 15 is formed at one end of the outer surface of the connector housing 11 as an elongated engagement portion, and a locking projection 16 is formed at the other end.

Next, the structure of the female connector 3 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 is a sectional view taken along line aa of FIG. 4 showing the internal structure of the female connector, FIG. 4 is a plan view showing the structure of the fitting surface of the female connector, and FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view taken along line bb of FIG. FIG. 6 and FIG. 6 are bottom views of the female connector. As shown in FIG. 3, the female connector 3 is composed of an inner housing 21 fitted so as to sandwich the connector housing 11 of the male connector 2 and an outer housing 22 which can slide back and forth outside the inner housing. ing. As shown in FIG. 4, an overhanging portion 23 is provided at the upper portion of the inner housing 21, and a lock arm 25 formed to have elasticity by slits 24a and 24b is provided at a central portion thereof. Is provided with an engagement projection 26.

As shown in FIG. 3, a protruding fitting portion 27 is provided at the center of the inner housing 21, and a male mold is provided between the fitting portion 27 and the projecting portion 23 and the outer housing 22. A gap G sandwiching the connector housing 11 of the connector 2 is provided. Around the fitting portion 27, a waterproof material 29 such as rubber is provided so as not to come out. In the present embodiment, six terminal accommodating chambers 31 are formed in the insertion section 27, and a female connector terminal 32 is inserted into each terminal accommodating chamber 31. Then, the electric wire outlet 3 is connected to each terminal accommodating chamber 31 so as to communicate therewith.
3 is provided, connected to the connector terminal 32, and a rubber stopper R
Can be pulled out.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the inner housing 21 and the outer housing 22 are provided on the back of the positions P1 and P2 shown at both ends in the lateral direction of the female connector 3.
A spring member 35 is provided so as to repel.
Hereinafter, the spring member 35 at the position P2 will be described with reference to FIG. 5. One end of the spring member 35 is fitted into a concave fitting portion 36 formed in the inner housing 21 and inserted into the rod-shaped locking projection 37. ing. The other end of the spring member 35 is fitted into a fitting portion 38 formed on the outer housing 22. Therefore, the inner housing 21 and the outer housing 22 are always urged in the opposite directions by the spring member 35.

As shown in FIG. 3, a slide hole 39 having a predetermined length L is formed in the lower central portion of the outer housing 22. A cantilever push-up protrusion 41 is formed at a position corresponding to the slide hole 39 of the outer housing 22, and protrudes into the slide hole 39. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, a guide projection 42 is provided on an upper portion of the inner housing 21 and is engaged with a guide groove 43 formed in the outer housing 22, so that the outer housing 22 slides rightward in the figure. In this case, the sliding movement is smooth. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, a slit 45a is formed on the lower side of the outer housing 22 so as to sandwich the slide hole 39.
A portion 45b is formed, and a portion sandwiched between the slits 45a and 45b is a cantilever arm 44 having elasticity.

Next, the operation of fitting the male connector 2 and the female connector 3 will be described. As shown in FIG. 7, when the male connector 2 and the female connector 3 are fitted, the outer housing 22 of the female connector 3 is fitted outside the connector housing 11 of the male connector 2. When the female connector 3 is further pushed leftward in the drawing, the tip of the cantilever arm 44 formed at the tip of the outer housing 22 hits the locking projection 16 formed on the connector housing 11 of the male connector 2. The movement of the outer housing 22 is prevented.

Here, recalling the locking action of the spring member 35, the spring member 35 urges the inner housing 21 and the outer housing 22 in opposite directions. The outer housing 22 is in a state in which the outer housing 22 cannot be pushed in due to contact with the locking projection 16. Therefore, although the outer housing 22 cannot be pushed in, the inner housing 21 can be pushed leftward in the figure by compressing the spring member 35.

As shown in FIG.
Is moved to the left in the figure, the fitting portion 27 enters the inside of the connector housing 11, and at the same time, the cantilever arm push-up projection 41 also moves to the left. When the inner housing 21 is further pushed leftward, the engagement projection 26 at the tip of the lock arm 25 is
Touch the tip of Then, as shown in FIG. 9, since a slope is formed below the engagement protrusion 26, the lock arm 25 is elastically deformed by continuing to push the inner housing 21 and rides on the connector housing 11. . At this point, the cantilever arm push-up projection 41 is located at substantially the center of the slide groove 39. The distal end of the outer housing 22 is formed with a tapered surface 22a to facilitate the deformation of the lock arm 25.

When the inner housing 21 is further pushed leftward as shown in FIG. 10, the lock arm 25 moves over the connector housing 11 and moves into the engaging groove 15. At this time, the cantilever arm push-up projection 41 moves by the distance L, so that it only comes into contact with the cantilever arm 44 from the slide groove 39 side. Therefore, since a slope is formed at the contact position of the cantilever arm push-up projection 41, the cantilever arm 44 is lifted outward.

In this state, if the inner housing 21
When the pushing of the inner housing 21 is stopped,
Is returned to the original direction by the repulsive force of the spring member 35 (see FIG. 5). With this return, it is possible to immediately recognize the state of poor locking (incomplete fitting) between the male connector 2 and the female connector 3.

When the inner housing 21 is further pushed leftward from the state shown in FIG. 10, the engagement projection 2 formed on the tip of the lock arm 25 as shown in FIG.
6 completely penetrates into the engagement groove 15 formed in the connector housing 11 and is engaged therewith. At this stage, the connector terminal 14 of the male connector 2 and the connector terminal 32 of the female connector 3 are electrically connected. Note that the end surface 15a of the engagement groove 15 is formed in a slope shape, and the engagement protrusion 26
Is designed to make it easier to slip.

At the stage shown in FIG. 11, although the engagement projection 26 is in the engagement groove 15, the cantilever arm 44
Is on the locking projection 16, and the upper part of the lock arm 25 is not covered by the outer housing 22. Therefore, when the pushing of the inner housing 21 is stopped at this stage, the inner housing 21 moves rightward due to the rebound of the spring member 35. And since the upper part of the lock arm 25 is not pressed, the lock arm 25 can be deformed upward,
Slope 15 formed with engagement protrusion 26 at the end of engagement groove 15
a is slid up and returned to the original direction.

At the stage shown in FIG. 11, a gap g is formed between the surface of the board housing 12 surrounded by the connector housing 11 and the tip of the insertion portion 27. Therefore, when the inner housing 21 is pushed leftward, the gap g is reduced so that the inner housing 2 is pressed.
1 moves to the left, and the cantilever arm 44 is
, And the locking projection 16 enters the slide groove 39. Due to the movement of the minute length g, the entire outer housing 22 moves leftward integrally with the cantilever arm 44 as shown in FIG. 1, the lock arm 25 is pressed down from above, and the engagement protrusion 26 is engaged with the engagement groove. 15 is fully engaged.

As described above, when the female connector 3 is fitted to the male connector 2, the end fitted to the fitting portion 36 of the spring member 35 is fixed. The outer housing 22 is moved leftward by the repulsive force of the spring member 35 with the fulcrum as a fulcrum. Therefore,
The outer housing 22 moves to the left at a stroke due to the repulsive force of the spring member 35, covers the overlapping portion between the male connector 2 and the inner housing 21, and completely presses the lock arm 25 to a completely fitted state. .

In the above-described connector fitting structure 1 of the present embodiment, the rubber material 29 is pressed against the entire inner surface of the connector housing 11 to make the connection portions of the connector terminals 14 and 32 completely watertight, thereby causing an electric leakage. And other accidents can be prevented beforehand. Further, since the male connector 2 is made of glass-containing resin and has no elastic portion, the strength is greatly improved, and the reliability of equipment and devices to which this connector fitting structure is applied is improved in combination with prevention of incomplete fitting. Performance can be improved.

[0030]

As described above, the connector fitting structure according to the present invention comprises: one connection terminal fitted into the connector housing; and an engagement portion formed at one end on the outer periphery of the connector housing. A first connector having a locking projection formed at the other end on the outer periphery of the connector housing; and a second connection terminal operatively connected to the connection terminal. An inner housing having a lock arm that engages with the engaging portion when mated, and an inner housing that is slidable in the direction of mating and uncoupling, and engages with the locking projection when mated with the first connector. A connector fitting structure for a second connector including an outer housing having a cantilever arm to be stopped, and a spring member inserted between the outer housing and the inner housing. A is, the locking projection and said cantilevered arm push protrusion locking state releasing during fitting of the cantilever arm is provided at one end of the inner housing.

Therefore, when the fitting is incomplete, the second connector moves in the direction opposite to the fitting direction from the first connector by the action of the spring member, so it is ensured that the connector is completely fitted. Can be determined. Therefore, the incomplete fitting is not mistaken for the perfect fitting, and the connector can be reliably prevented from coming off. In addition, there is no need to check whether the connector is completely mated,
Work efficiency can be improved.

Further, a pair of the cantilever arm on the outer housing and the lock arm of the inner housing are provided at least at opposing positions. Therefore, the above-described mutual fitting of the connectors can be reliably completed, and the breakage of the above-described engagement structure due to twisting or the like at the time of fitting the connectors can be reliably prevented.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of a connector fitting structure according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a configuration of a male connector.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a configuration of a female connector.

FIG. 4 is a front view showing the configuration of the female connector.

FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view showing a configuration of a female connector.

FIG. 6 is a bottom view showing the configuration of the female connector.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a fitting operation of the connector.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing an operation when the connector is fitted.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing an operation of a row arm when a connector is fitted.

FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing the operation of the lock arm and the operation of the cantilever arm when the connector is fitted.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing complete fitting of the connector.

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a conventional connector.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Connector fitting structure 2 Male connector (first connector) 3 Female connector (second connector) 11 Connector housing 12 Board housing 14 Connector terminal (connection terminal) 15 Engagement groove (engagement part) 16 Engagement Projection 21 Inner housing 22 Outer housing 25 Lock arm 26 Engagement projection 32 Connector terminal (connection terminal) 35 Spring member 39 Slide groove 41 Cantilever arm push-up projection 44 Cantilever arm

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Toshifumi Matsuura 206-1 Nunobikihara, Haibara-cho, Haibara-gun, Shizuoka Prefecture Yazaki Parts Co., Ltd.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A connection terminal fitted into a connector housing, an engaging portion formed at one end on the outer periphery of the connector housing, and a locking formed at the other end on the outer periphery of the connector housing. A first connector having a projection; and a lock arm engaged with the engagement portion when the first connector has the other connection terminal operatively connected to the connection terminal. An inner housing, and an outer housing having a cantilever arm slidable on the outer side of the inner housing in a fitting / removing direction and locked by the locking projection when fitted to the first connector.
A connector fitting structure for a second connector including a spring member inserted between the outer housing and the inner housing, wherein the engagement protrusion and the cantilever arm are provided at one end of the inner housing. A connector fitting structure comprising a cantilever arm push-up projection for releasing a locked state during fitting. 2. The connector fitting structure according to claim 1, wherein a pair of the cantilever arm on the outer housing and the lock arm of the inner housing are provided at least at opposing positions.