JPH11260443A - Pressure contact connector fixing structure - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent contact failure to a conductive part on an FPC of a pressure contact connector. SOLUTION: When an HPC 21 on which a pressure contact connector 35 is mounted is fixed to the back surface of an instrument case 17 for an automobile, a contact 65a of a terminal 65 in the pressure contact connector 35 comes in contact with a wiring pattern on an FPC 19 fixed onto the case 17 in the pressure contact state. A metal plate material 73 is interposed between the case 17 and the FPC 19, and in this state, a screw 77 is inserted into a screw inserting hole 65a of the pressure contact connector 35, and fastened to the plate material 73.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a flexible electric circuit board provided with a wiring pattern provided on the surface of a case of an apparatus. The present invention relates to a press-connecting connector fixing structure in which a terminal is pressed into contact with a conductive portion to be conducted from the side opposite to the case.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a press-connecting connector 1, in which terminals 5 housed in a housing 3 of the press-connecting connector 1, as shown in FIG. A plurality are arranged along the longitudinal direction. The press-connecting connector 1 is inserted into a through hole of an electric circuit board (HPC) 7 made of glass epoxy or the like in FIG. 6 and soldered from the opposite side. It is fixed to HPC7.

[0003] The press-connecting connector 1 fixed to the HPC 7 comprises:
Screws formed on both ends and the center of the housing 3 shown in FIG. 7 are installed on a flexible electric circuit board (FPC) 13 arranged on a case of an instrument, for example, a case 11 of an automobile instrument. The screw inserted from the insertion hole 15 is screwed into the case 11 to be fixed to the case 11.

The end of the terminal 5 on the case 11 side is bent in an L-shape, and the contact 5a at the tip of the end 5 is the end surface of the housing 3 (in FIG. 6) when the press-connecting connector 1 is not fixed to the case 11. At the lower end surface). In this state, by fixing the press-connecting connector 1 to the case 11 by fastening the above-mentioned screws, the contact 5a of the terminal 5 is pressed into contact with a conductive portion that is conductively connected to the wiring pattern on the FPC 13 due to elastic deformation, and the HPC 7 is connected. Side electric circuit and FPC13
Side is electrically connected to the electric circuit.

[0005]

However, in such a conventional press-connecting connector fixing structure, since the case 11 is usually formed of resin, the case 11 is bent by the contact pressure of the terminal 5. Dust, resin case 1
Since the screw fastened to 1 is easy to loosen, the terminal 5
In this case, poor contact with the conductive portion on the FPC 13 easily occurs, which causes a decrease in reliability.

Accordingly, the present invention provides an FP of a press-connecting connector.
The purpose is to prevent poor contact with the conductive portion on C.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, a flexible electric circuit board provided with a wiring pattern is provided on a surface of a case of an apparatus. A fixed structure of a press-connecting connector that press-connects a terminal from the side opposite to the case to a conductive portion exposed to the outside by conducting to a wiring pattern of an electric circuit board, and a position corresponding to a terminal of the press-connecting connector. A receiving member is provided between the flexible electric circuit board and the case, the receiving member receiving a pressing force against the conductive portion of the terminal.

According to the press-connecting connector fixing structure having such a configuration, the terminals of the press-connecting connector are pressed into contact with the conductive portion of the flexible electric circuit board, and the pressing force at this time is equal to that of the case. The receiving member provided between the conductive circuit board and the conductive circuit board receives the receiving member, so that bending of the case is avoided.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of the first aspect, the receiving member is made of a metal plate.

[0010] According to the above configuration, the pressing force of the terminal to the flexible electric circuit board is reliably received by the metal plate.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of the second aspect, the metal plate is fastened and fixed by screws inserted through the housing of the press-connecting connector and the flexible electric circuit board.

According to the above construction, the screw is inserted through the flexible electric circuit board from the housing side of the press-connecting connector and screwed into the metal plate, so that the flexible electric circuit board is connected to the housing of the press-connecting connector. It is in a state of being sandwiched between a metal plate material. Thereby, the pressure contact state of the terminal to the flexible electric circuit board is secured while the metal plate member receives the pressure contact force of the terminal.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of the third aspect, the metal plate is formed of a long plate that can be elastically deformed and is long along the arrangement direction of the plurality of terminals in the press-connecting connector. The case has a curved shape that is convex along the longitudinal direction, and the curved shape is elastically deformed into a flat plate shape by fastening one screw at the central portion in the longitudinal direction.

According to the above configuration, the metal plate is fastened to the central portion in the longitudinal direction with one screw, so that the central portion separated from the flexible electric circuit board by the curved shape has
It is elastically deformed in a direction approaching the flexible electric circuit board, and is fixed in a state where the curved shape becomes a planar shape. The plate material having the flat shape is pressed at both ends in the longitudinal direction toward the press-connecting connector side by a return force for returning to the curved shape. Thereby, the pressure contact force of the terminal with respect to the flexible electric circuit board is secured at both ends in the longitudinal direction together with the central screw fastening portion.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an exploded state of each member in a press-connecting connector fixing structure according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view of an assembled state. This fixing structure of the press-connecting connector is applied to an automotive instrument shown as an exploded perspective view in FIG.

The above-mentioned automotive instrument is provided with a resin case 17.
A flexible electric circuit board (FPC) 19 is fixed on the back surface of the heat sink cover 2, and an electric circuit board (HPC) 21 made of glass epoxy or the like is further fixed on the back surface.
3 and fixed. The heat sink cover 23 is provided with a heat sink 25 for cooling the electronic components mounted on the HPC 21. The heat sink 25 plays a role of electromagnetic shielding for an electric circuit on the HPC 21 in addition to a cooling function.

The HPC 21 has movements 27, 29, 3 such as a speedometer and a tachometer housed in the case 17.
Driving circuits for driving the first and the third movements 33 and 33 are integrated.
3 is electrically connected to the wiring pattern of the FPC 19. In the HPC 21, a press-connecting connector 35, which is electrically connected to the wiring pattern of the FPC 19 and is exposed to the outside, is fixed by pressure-contacting. The movements 27, 29, 31,
33 and a drive circuit for driving the same are electrically connected.

In FIG. 3, the movement 27,
Hands 37, 39, 4 rotated by 29, 31, 33
Light guide plates 53, 55, 57, 59 are arranged between the dials 45, 47, 49, 51 provided with 1, 43 and the movements 27, 29, 31, 33, and a case in which these are accommodated. A facing 61 is mounted on the front surface of 17, and a front glass 63 is further mounted on the front surface thereof.

The press-connecting connector 35 is, as shown in FIG.
A plurality of terminals 67 penetrating in the up-down direction in a housing 65 extending in the left-right direction in the figure are arranged and accommodated along the longitudinal direction. The end of the terminal 67 projecting from the upper part of the housing 65 in FIG. 1 is inserted into the through hole of the HPC 21 and soldered from the opposite side. Near both ends in the arrangement direction of the terminals 67 of the housing 65, HP
A projection 69 for positioning with respect to C21 protrudes upward.

The terminal 67 is bent in an L-shape similarly to the terminal shown in FIG.
The contact 67a at the end exposed at the lower part of the FPC 5 is pressed into contact with the conductive part connected to the wiring pattern on the FPC 17 to conduct. On the lower surface of the housing 65 at a position corresponding to the positioning projection 69, a projection 71 that is inserted into the positioning hole 19a of the FPC 19 and performs positioning with respect to the FPC 19 is provided.

FPC at a position corresponding to the press-connecting connector 35
A metal plate 73 is interposed between the case 19 and the case 17 as a receiving member for receiving a pressing force against the FPC 19 by the contact 67 a of the terminal 67. Metal plate 73
Is made of iron, aluminum, brass, or the like, and is formed of a long plate long in the left-right direction in FIG. 1 so as to have substantially the same shape as the outer shape of the lower surface of the housing 65 of the press-connecting connector 35. The case 17 has an accommodation recess 75 for accommodating the plate 73.

The plate member 73 is formed with a through hole 73a into which the positioning projection 71 of the press-connecting connector 65 is inserted, and a screw hole is formed in the outside of the through hole 73a and substantially at the center in the longitudinal (left-right) direction. 73b are formed. Screw insertion holes 19b and 65a for inserting screws 77 are formed in the housing 65 of the FPC 19 and the press-connecting connector 35, respectively, corresponding to the screw holes 73b. Further, on the case 17 side, escape holes 17a, 17 into which protruding ends of the positioning projections 71 and the screws 77 from the respective plate members 73 enter at the time of assembly in FIG.
b are formed respectively. The screw 77 is inserted through an opening (not shown) formed in the heat sink cover 23 shown in FIG. 3 to directly fix the housing 65 of the press-connecting connector 35 as shown in FIG.

The HPC 21 also includes a plurality of screws 79 inserted from the back side of the heat sink cover 23,
By fastening and fixing to the side 7, it is fixed to the case 17 together with the heat sink cover 23.

According to the press-connecting connector fixing structure having the above-described structure, the HPC 21 fitted into the heat sink cover 23 is attached to the case 17 with the FPC 19 fixed to the back surface.
Is mounted by fastening the screw 79, the contact 67 of the terminal 67 in the press-connecting connector 35 fixed to the HPC 21.
a contacts the conductive part of the FPC 19. At this time, a metal plate 73 is housed in the housing recess 75 of the case 17, and the positioning projection 71 of the press-connecting connector 35 is
It is inserted into the positioning hole 19 a of the FPC 19 and the through hole 73 a of the plate 73, and the tip of the insertion hole enters the escape hole 17 a of the case 17.

In this state, when the three screws 77 are inserted into the screw insertion holes 65a of the housing 65 of the press-connecting connector 35 through the openings of the heat sink cover 23, as shown in FIG. Insertion hole 1
9b is screwed into the screw hole 73b of the plate member 73, and its tip enters the escape hole 17b of the case 17.

By fastening the screw 77 to the plate 73, the FPC 1 interposed between the plate 73 and the press-connecting connector 35 is provided.
Reference numeral 9 indicates a state in which the contact 67 is sandwiched and fixed between the two, and the contact 67 a of the terminal 67 is pressed into contact with the conductive portion of the FPC 19 to conduct. Since the pressing force of the contact 67a against the FPC 19 at this time is received by the metal plate 73, escape of the pressing force is avoided, and the reliability of conduction between the pressing connector 35 and the conductive portion of the FPC 19 is improved. Becomes

Further, since the screw 77 is fastened to the metal plate 73, it is difficult to loosen, and the above-mentioned pressing force is continuously maintained.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of another embodiment of the present invention, in which each member of the press-connecting connector fixing structure is disassembled, and FIG. 5 is a sectional view of an assembled state. In this embodiment, the plate member 81 has a curved shape in which the case 17 is convex along the longitudinal direction of the plate member 81 in a state before being assembled, as compared with the plate member shown in FIG. The plate material 81 has a screw hole 81a in which the screw 77 is fastened only in the central portion in the longitudinal direction.
Are provided at both ends, and through holes 81b into which the positioning projections 71 of the press-connecting connector 35 are inserted are provided.

According to the press-connecting connector fixing structure described above, when fixing the HPC 21 to the case 17, one screw 77 is inserted into the screw insertion hole 65 a in the center of the housing 65 of the press-connecting connector 35, and When fastened to the screw hole 81a, the curved plate material 81 is elastically deformed so that the portion away from the central FPC 19 gradually approaches the FPC 19, and after fastening, becomes a flat plate as shown in FIG. It is in a state of close contact.

In the assembled state shown in FIG. 5, the curved plate material 81 is elastically deformed and fixed in a flat plate shape.
The FPC 19 is pressed toward the press-connecting connector 35 by a restoring force from both ends in the longitudinal direction from the center to return to the curved shape. As a result, the contact 65a of the terminal 65 in the press-connecting connector 35 contacts the conductive portion of the FPC 19 with a sufficient pressing force in the same manner as in the center, even at both ends from the center fastened by the screw 77. become.

In the example of FIGS. 4 and 5, since the operation of fixing the press-connecting connector 35 is performed by fastening one screw 77, the workability of assembling is improved, the number of parts is reduced, and the cost is reduced. Is achieved.

[0033]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the terminals of the press-connecting connector are pressed into contact with the conductive portion of the flexible electric circuit board, and the pressing force at this time is reduced. Since the receiving member provided between the case and the flexible electric circuit board receives the case, the case is prevented from bending due to the press contact force, and the pressure contact force of the terminal of the press contact connector to the conductive portion of the flexible electric circuit board is desired. And the conduction reliability can be improved.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the pressing force of the terminal of the press-connecting connector to the flexible electric circuit board can be reliably received by the metal plate.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the screw inserted from the housing side of the press-connecting connector through the flexible electric circuit board is fastened to the metal plate, the screw is hardly loosened. For this reason, the pressure contact force of the terminal with respect to the flexible electric circuit board is continuously ensured while receiving the metal plate material.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, when the press-connecting connector is fixed, the curved plate is fastened with one screw at the center, so that the assembling workability is improved and The number of parts is reduced, and the cost can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an exploded state of each member in a press-connecting connector fixing structure according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing an assembled state of the press-connecting connector fixing structure of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a vehicle instrument provided with the press-connecting connector fixing structure of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an exploded cross-sectional view of members of a press-connecting connector fixing structure according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of an assembled state in the press-connecting connector fixing structure of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a press-connecting connector showing a conventional example.

FIG. 7 is a bottom view of the press-connecting connector of FIG. 6;

[Explanation of symbols]

 17 Case 19 FPC (Flexible Electric Circuit Board) 35 Pressure Connector 67 Terminal 67a Contact 73, 81 Metal Plate (Receiving Member) 77 Screw

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A flexible electric circuit board provided with a wiring pattern is provided on the surface of a case of an apparatus, and a conductive portion which is electrically connected to the wiring pattern of the flexible electric circuit board and exposed to the outside is provided on the case. A fixed structure of a press-connecting connector that press-connects a terminal from a side opposite to a case and conducts, and a conductive portion of the terminal is provided between the flexible electric circuit board at a position corresponding to the terminal of the press-connecting connector and the case. A fixing structure for a press-connecting connector, characterized in that a receiving member for receiving a press-contact force is provided. 2. The fixing structure for a press-connecting connector according to claim 1, wherein the receiving member is made of a metal plate. 3. The fixing structure for a press-connecting connector according to claim 2, wherein the metal plate is fastened and fixed by screws inserted through the housing of the press-connecting connector and the flexible electric circuit board. 4. The metal plate member is formed of a long plate that can be elastically deformed long along the direction in which the plurality of terminals of the press-connecting connector are arranged, and has a curved shape in which the case side is convex along the longitudinal direction. 4. The fixing structure for a press-connecting connector according to claim 3, wherein the curved shape is elastically deformed into a flat plate shape by fastening one screw at the central portion in the longitudinal direction.