KR100512214B1 - Connector systems technolgy n.v. - Google Patents

Abstract

The electrical connector includes a female connector 40, the female connector 40 having a housing 12 having an insertion slot 14 for opening one end and inserting the male terminal 6, and protruding into each insertion slot, A plurality of female terminals 40 are provided having a pair of contacts 46 holding male terminals from both sides and having a base 42 fixed to the housing and supporting the contacts via the pair of arm portions. The housing 12 has a groove portion 22 formed in one side wall portion 20 for receiving the base 42 and partitioning the insertion slot 14. The arm portion 44 extends from the base 42 received in the groove portion 22 in an inclined state with respect to the axis of the insertion slot 14. The contact portion 46 is located at an intermediate position between the side wall portion 20 having the groove portion 22 and the opposite side wall portion.

Description

Electrical connector {CONNECTOR SYSTEMS TECHNOLGY N.V.}

The present invention relates to an electrical connector for electrically and mechanically connecting an electronic device such as a hard disk drive on a printed circuit board.

In addition to miniaturization and densification of electronic devices such as notebook or palmtop personal computers, miniaturization of electrical connectors mounted on printed circuit boards has been demanded.

In general, some such miniaturized electrical connectors have a female terminal electrically connected to a male terminal in the form of a pin that is formed flat with a conductive plate member.

In the female terminal, a pair of contact portions opposed in plane at predetermined intervals are supported by a plate-shaped base through the pair of arm portions. When the male terminal is sandwiched between a pair of contacts of the female terminal, the arm portion is compressed by the male terminal and moves along the surface of the plate member. The arm portion presses a pair of contacts toward the pin shaped male terminal with the spring force generated by the movement. Although the thickness of the arm portion is thin, a large spring force is generated in the arm portion, so that the female terminal and the male terminal can be mechanically and electrically connected to each other. However, if the length of the male terminal is longer and it is necessary to insert the male terminal into the deeper position of the female terminal, the tip of the male terminal contacts the base. For this reason, it is desired that the arm portion be formed longer. In this case, the electrical connector expands in dimension.

In order to solve the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide an electrical connector capable of inserting a long male terminal up to the deepest position of a female terminal without increasing the dimensions of the electrical connector.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is made of an insulating material, the housing having a plurality of insertion slots for accommodating the male terminals and opened at one side of the housing, and protrudes into the insertion slots so as to be electrically connected to the male terminals, respectively. Having a pair of contacts holding male terminals from both sides thereof, each comprising a plurality of female terminals supporting the contacts via a pair of arms and having a base fixed to the housing, the housing being inserted to receive the base A retaining portion which is a recess formed in one of the side wall portions that partitions the slot, wherein the arm portions of the female terminal extend from a base received at the retaining portion in an inclined state with respect to the axis of the insertion slot, and the contacts are formed in the side wall in which the recess is formed Electrical connector located at an intermediate position between the The ball. In the electrical connector as described above, as the base is received in the retaining portion, which is a recess formed in one of the sidewall portions defining the insertion slot, the pair of contacts of the female terminal protrude into the insertion slot. Thus, the male terminal inserted into the insertion slot can be electrically and mechanically connected to the pair of contacts. In addition, the male terminal is not adjacent to the base of the female terminal even when inserted into the deep position. With the above configuration, the long male terminal is inserted in a deep position between the female terminals, thereby ensuring electrical and mechanical connection without increasing the housing size of the female terminal and the electrical connector. The housing has guide grooves formed separately in the side wall portions that face each other on both sides of the side wall portion in which the recess portion is formed to receive the arm portion. Thus, the arm portions of the female terminal slide in the guide grooves, so that the spring effect of the arm portions can be reliably shown. Furthermore, the housing may have slots having an end opening in the retaining portion and extending toward one side of the housing in which the inserting slot is opened along the axis of the inserting slot in the sidewall portion where the recessed portion is formed. The female terminal may have a central tongue section extending from the base between the arm portions. Thus, when the base of the female terminal is received in the retaining portion of the housing, the central tongue section fits into the slots of the housing. Thus, a rotational force is applied to the base when the insertion force of the male terminal is applied to the contact portion, but the rotational force is offset by the central tongue section. The central tongue section has a plurality of small protrusions formed on the outer circumference, and these small protrusions penetrate the housing material, so that the female terminal can be held firmly in the housing. Moreover, according to the present invention, it has a plurality of insertion slots made of an insulating material and accommodates male terminals and is opened in one side thereof, each protrudes into an insertion slot so as to be electrically connected with the male terminals, and the male terminals from both sides thereof. A housing for holding each of the plurality of female terminals having a base fixed to the housing and supporting these contacts through a pair of contacts for holding and a pair of arms, the sidewalls defining an insertion slot to receive the base. Slots having a retaining portion which is a recessed portion formed in one, an end extending in one side toward the side of the housing in which the insertion slot is opened along the axis of the insertion slot in a sidewall portion which is opened in the retaining portion and the recessed portion which is the retaining portion is formed; Are separately formed in sidewall portions that face each other on both sides of the sidewall portion where the portions are formed; Each having guide grooves for receiving arm portions, the slots retaining a central tongue portion extending from the base between a pair of arm portions of the female terminal, the guide grooves in the retaining portion in an inclined direction with respect to the axis of the insertion slot; Guides the arm portions of the female terminal from the receiving base, the contacts of the female terminal being located at an intermediate position between the side wall portion formed with the recessed groove portion and the opposite side wall portion, which are retained, and are guided along the direction of proximity and the separation of the axis of the insertion slot. Provided is a housing of an electrical connector that can slide in a groove. Furthermore, according to the present invention, a male terminal is accommodated in a housing made of an insulating material having a plurality of insertion slots open at one side, and protrudes into the insertion slot so as to be electrically connected with the male terminal and to hold the male terminal from both sides. A pair of contacts and a base supporting the contacts through a pair of arms and having a base fixed to the housing, the female terminal having a central tongue extending from the base between the pair of arms and the outer periphery of the central tongue A plurality of small protrusions protruding from the arm portions, the arm portions extending from the base in an inclined state with respect to the thickness direction and positioned at positions where the contact portions offset the thickness direction from the base portion, and the central tongue section has one end opened in the retaining portion. And grooves formed in one of the side wall portions defining the insertion slot of the housing. When the base is accommodated in the oil portion, the insertion portion is inserted into the slot extending along the axis of the insertion slot toward one side of the housing in the side wall portion in which the recess portion is formed, and the arm portions are provided on both sides of the side wall portion in which the recess portion is formed. Guided to slide in guide grooves formed separately in the side wall portions opposed to each other, the contacts are arranged at an intermediate position between the side wall portion and the side wall portion in which the recessed groove portion is formed, so that the contacts are in a direction proximate to the axis of the insertion slot. And a female terminal for a thin plate type electrical connector that generates a spring force in the separation direction.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 shows a state in which a male connector 8 is inserted into a female connector 10 in an electrical connector according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the male connector 8 is arranged in a sealed case of the hard disk drive, screwed to the hard disk drive via the fixing portion 8a, and connected to the end of the male terminal 6 protruding into the case. The male connector 8 is electrically connected to the internal device and the electronic device through the board F. As shown in FIG. Next, the relatively long terminal outwardly protruding from the case is fitted to the female connector 10 so as to be electrically connected to an external device. Reference numeral P denotes a printed circuit board on which the female connector 10 is mounted.

2A-2D schematically show a top view, a front view and a cross-sectional view of the female connector 10. The housing 12 of the female connector 10 is made of an insulating material and molded into an integral structure. Furthermore, the housing 12 is formed with twenty-two insertion slots 14, for example arranged in two rows, for receiving each male terminal 6. As shown in Fig. 2A, each of the insertion slots 14 is arranged at predetermined intervals, and is opened at one side of the housing 12, i.e., the upper side fitted with the male connector 8. The opening of the insertion slot 14 is formed slightly larger than the male terminal. In addition, the wall portions 16 are arranged at predetermined intervals along the longitudinal direction of the housing 12. These wall portions 16 protrude toward the printed circuit board P (see Fig. 1) and serve as stand offs. The housing 12 may be formed of a suitable insulating material. However, it is preferred to use polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) resins to obtain the desired heat resistance, insulation and strength.

As shown in Fig. 2A, each insertion slot 14 has a rectangular opening on the upper side to which the male connector 8 is connected.

An inner inclined surface for guiding the male terminal 6 is formed at the corner of the insertion slot 14. In addition, an opening 18 for mounting a female terminal, which will be described later, is formed on the lower side of the housing, that is, the side mounted on the printed circuit board P, and communicates with the insertion slot 14. In the housing 12 of each of these insertion slots 14 it is partitioned by side walls. The groove part 22 is formed in the side wall part 20 which is one of these side wall parts 20. Guide grooves 28 and 30 facing each other are formed in the side wall portions 24 and 26 facing each other on both sides of the side wall portion 20 having the groove portion 22. Reference numeral 32 denotes a slot formed in the side wall portion 20. The slot 32 extends along the axis of the insertion slot 14 in the side wall portion 20 and has a lower end opening to the recess 22. In this embodiment, the side wall portion 20 with the groove portion 22 is arranged inside the housing 12. Thus, as shown in Fig. 2C, two insertion slots 14 adjacent to each other in the transverse direction of the housing 1 are arranged symmetrically. The recess 22 functions as a retainer for accommodating the base of the female terminal 40 to be described later.

3A and 3B show female terminals inserted into the housing 12 through the opening 18.

As shown in Fig. 3A, the female terminal 40 of this embodiment is formed by punching out of a blank 38 made of metal such as bronze which is electrically and mechanically preferable.

In the female terminal 40, the inner part in contact with the male terminal 6, that is, the contact portion to be described later, is so-called shaving to be molded into a flat surface. This serves to prevent the male terminal 6 from being damaged when in contact with the male terminal 6. In the state punctured from the blank 38, the female terminal 40 has a planar shape shown at 40a on the left side of FIGS. 3a and 3b. Thereafter, the main portion of the female terminal 40a is bent to form a solid shape shown by reference numeral 40b. Each female terminal 40 has a base, such as a flat plate, a pair of arm portions 44 extending from the base, and a contact portion 46 provided on the tip end of each arm portion 44. In addition, the solder tail 48 extends from the lower side of the base 42 to the opposite side of the arm portion 44. Initially, the female terminal 40 is supported by the blank 38 through the tail 48. Moreover, the central tongue section 50 extends from the base 42 between the pair of arm portions 44, 44. The central tongue piece 50 is provided with a tapered tip, and a plurality of small protrusions 52 protruding from the outer circumference are formed. In this embodiment, the small protrusions 52 protrude along the surface direction on the same plane as the central tongue 50. However, the small protrusions 52 are not limited to this and can extend in the thickness direction or both the thickness and the surface direction. The female terminal 40 is bent in solid form shown by reference numeral 40b to solid form shown by reference numeral 40a. In such a bent state, the pair of arm portions 44 are bent so as to be inclined with respect to the plane in which the base 42 and the central tongue section 50 are arranged. On the other hand, the contact portion 48 is offset in the thickness direction to be substantially parallel to the base 42 and the central tongue section 50.

4 shows a state where the female terminal 40 is fitted to the housing 12. Each female terminal 40 is inserted through the opening 18 into the housing 12, and then the central tongue section 50 is inserted into a slot 32 formed in the side wall portion 20 (Fig. C) and FIG. 2 (C)). The small protrusions 52 formed at the outer periphery of the central tongue section 50 dig into the housing material to firmly retain the female terminals in the housing 12. When the central tongue piece 50 is inserted into the slot 32, the base 42 is retained in the recess 22 formed as a retaining portion of the side wall portion 20. Thus, the female terminal 40 does not protrude into the insertion slot 14. In addition, when the base 42 is retained in the recess 22, both edges of the base can dig into neighboring sidewall portions 24, 26. By doing so, the female terminal 40 can be held more firmly. Arm portions 44 and 44 are individually received in guide grooves 28 and 30 formed in side wall portions 24 and 26. These arm portions 44, 44 extend along the guide grooves 28, 30 from the base 42 received in the retaining portion, ie in the recess 22, in an inclined state with respect to the axis of the insertion slot 14. do. The contact portion 46 on the tip of the arm portion 44 is located at an intermediate position between the side wall portion 20 where the groove portion 22 and the slot 32 are formed and the opposite side wall (see FIG. 1B). Each arm 44, 44 can slide in the direction in which the contact 46 approaches the axis of the insertion slot 14 and in the spaced apart direction within the guide grooves 28, 30. Typically, these contacts 46, 46 are arranged in a state of protruding into the insertion slot 14. The solder tail 48 can be molded into a suitable shape. In the case where the solder tail 48 is bent as shown in Fig. 1B, when the solder tail 48 is inserted into the through hole of the printed circuit board P, these solder tails 48 are temporarily removed from the printed circuit board P. You can keep it.

5A and 5B show a cross section of the male connector 8 corresponding to each female connector 10 as described above. The male connector 8 has twenty-two male terminals comprising square pins equal to the number of female terminals 40. Liquid crystal polymer (LCP) is applied to the outer periphery of each male terminal 6 by injection molding. As shown in Fig. 5B, the male terminal 6 has a small diameter portion in order to prevent the male terminal 6 from being separated from its central portion. The male terminal also has a tapered tip. As shown in Fig. 5C, preferably, one side of the blind portion of the male terminal has a length substantially half with respect to one side of the blind portion of the insertion slot 14.

It is possible to provide a preferred coupling of the female connector 10 described above with the male connector having the long terminal 6. As shown on the right side of Fig. 6A, the male terminal 6 is usually inserted coaxially with the axis of the insertion slot 14, and its tip reaches between the opposing contacts 46 and 46. Then, when the distance between the contacts 46, 46 is extended by the inserted male terminal 6, the arm portions 44, 44 slide in the guide grooves 28, 30. Moreover, when the male terminal is inserted into the insertion slot 14, the male terminal 6 is pressed from both sides in a state held between them by the contact portions 46 and 46, so that the arm portions 44 and 44 are supported. While mechanically connected to each other by the spring force of the, it is electrically connected to the female terminal (40). Further, since the base 42 is retained in the recess 22 of the side wall 20, the male terminal does not interfere with the base 42 even when inserted into the inner portion thereof. Therefore, it is not necessary to increase the size of the female terminal 40 and the housing 12 of the female connector 10. Moreover, the male connector 8 and the female connector 10 can be electrically and mechanically connected with the long male terminal 6 inserted in the deep position of the female terminal. The central tongue section 50 is inserted into the slot 32 (see Figure 2c). When the male terminal 6 pushes the contact portions 46 and 46, the rotational force applied to the female terminal 40 is canceled by the central tongue section 50. Thus, the female terminal 40 does not leave the housing 12.

6A and 6B, even if the male terminal 6 is inserted into the insertion slot 14 in an inclined state with respect to the axis of the insertion slot 14, the male terminal 6 has a male end portion thereof. Since one side of the square portion of the terminal is formed to have a length substantially half of one side of the square portion of the insertion slot 14, it is always in contact with the contact portion 46 as shown in Fig. 6C. Therefore, the arm part 44 can be guided to the guide grooves 28 and 30 through the contact part 46. Thus, the male or female terminal can be prevented from damage by the coupling of the contact portion 46 and the male terminal 6. According to such a female connector 10, the long male terminal can be firmly inserted into the deep position of the female terminal. As indicated in the above description, the electrical connector according to the apparatus is constructed in the following manner. That is, the base of the female terminal is accommodated in a recessed recessed portion in one side wall portion defining the insertion slot of the male terminal, and the arm portion supporting the contact portion extends in an inclined state with respect to the axis of the insertion slot. Moreover, since the contact portion is located at an intermediate portion between the side wall portion having the concave retaining portion and the opposite side wall portion, the base is arranged at a position moved from the axis of the insertion slot. Therefore, the male terminal and the female terminal can be firmly connected to each other by inserting the long male terminal into the deep position of the female terminal. Further, since the housing has guide grooves formed in opposing side wall portions on both sides of the side wall portion in which the recess portion is formed, which accommodates the arm portion, the arm portion of the female terminal is provided on the guide groove so that the spring effect of the arm portions can be reliably shown. Slide Thus, the male terminal can be firmly held by the elastic force. Moreover, the housing is provided with one end opened to the retaining portion, and slots extending toward one side of the housing along the axis of the insertion slot 14 are formed in the side wall portion which concave the retaining portion. The female terminal has a central tongue section extending from the base between the corresponding arm portions. Since the base of the female terminal is received in the retaining portion of the housing, the central tongue section is retained in the slot of the housing. Thus, even if the pushing force of the male terminal is applied to the contact so that the base is influenced by the rotational force, the central tongue section serves to prevent rotation of the base, so that the base can be held firmly in the holding portion. The central tongue section has a plurality of small protrusions formed on the outer circumference thereof. These small protrusions dig into the housing material so that the female terminal remains firmly in the housing. Thus, the female terminal can be prevented from being separated from the housing.

Since the present invention has been described in connection with the preferred embodiments of the various forms, other similar embodiments may be used, or modifications and additions to the described embodiments may be made to carry out the same functions of the invention without departing from the invention. Should be interpreted as Accordingly, the present invention should not be limited to any simple embodiments, but rather should be construed within the breadth and scope as set forth in the claims.

Therefore, according to the electrical connector according to the present invention, it is possible to insert a longer male terminal up to a deep position of the female terminal without increasing the size of the electrical connector.

1A and 1B are explanatory views showing the internal structure of a female connector in a state coupled with a male connector according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1A is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view, FIG. 1B is a schematic cross-sectional view;

2A to 2D are explanatory views showing the housing of the female connector in FIG. 1, FIG. 2A is a plan view, FIG. 2B is a front view taken along the line BB of FIG. 2A, and FIG. 2C is along the line CC of FIG. 2B. 2D is a cross sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG. 2A,

3A-3C are explanatory views showing female terminals in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the apparatus, in which FIG. 3A shows a perforated and partially folded state from the blank, and FIG. 3B is taken along the line BB of FIG. 3A. Figure 3c is a view taken along the line CC of Figure 3a,

4 is a perspective view schematically showing the internal structure of the insertion slot and the arrangement of the male terminals;

5A and 5B are explanatory views showing the male connector in a state of being engaged with the female connector of FIG. 1, FIG. 5A is a cross-sectional view, FIG. 5B is a partial enlarged view,

6A to 6C are explanatory views showing the state of the male connector coupled with the female connector according to a preferred embodiment of the present apparatus, FIG. 6A is a longitudinal cross-sectional view, FIG. 6B is a cross sectional view, and FIG. 6C is a plan view from CC of FIG. 6B. .

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

6: male terminal

12: housing

14: insertion slot

20: side wall portion

22: groove

40: female terminal

42: Donation

44; Arm

46: contact

Claims (7)

A housing made of an insulating material, each housing having a plurality of insertion slots having a pair of sides and accommodating a plurality of male terminals opened at one side of the housing; Each of a plurality of female terminals each having a contact portion projecting into an insertion slot and electrically holding the male terminal from both sides to be electrically connected with the male terminal, supporting the contacts through a pair of arm portions and having a base fixed to the housing; Including them, The housing has a retention portion that is a recess formed in one of the sidewall portions that partitions the insertion slot to receive the base, The arm portions of the female terminal extend from the base received at the retention portion inclined with respect to the axis of the insertion slot, And the contacts are located at an intermediate position between the side wall portion in which the recessed portion is formed and the opposite side wall portion. A housing made of an insulating material, each housing having a plurality of insertion slots having a pair of sides and accommodating male terminals opened at one side of the housing; A plurality of female terminals each having a contact portion protruding into an insertion slot to electrically connect with the male terminal and holding the male terminal from both sides thereof, supporting the contacts through a pair of arm portions, and having a base fixed to the housing; , The housing has a retaining portion, which is a recess formed in one of the side wall portions that partitions the insertion slot to receive a base, and guide grooves that are formed separately on opposing side wall portions on both sides of the side wall portion where the recess, the retaining portion, are formed and receive arm portions. , The arm portions of the female terminal extend from the base received in the holding portion in an inclined state with respect to the axis of the insertion slot, And the contacts are located at an intermediate position between the side wall portion in which the recessed groove portion is formed and the opposite side wall portion, and are able to slide in the guide groove along a direction close to the axis of the insertion slot and in a separation direction. A housing made of an insulating material, each housing having a plurality of insertion slots having a plurality of insertion slots for receiving male terminals opened at one side of the housing; Each of a plurality of female terminals each having a contact portion projecting into an insertion slot and electrically holding the male terminal from both sides to be electrically connected with the male terminal, supporting the contacts through a pair of arm portions and having a base fixed to the housing; Including them, The housing includes a retaining portion that is a recess formed in one of the sidewall portions that partitions the insertion slot to receive the base, and a housing in which the insertion slot is opened along the axis of the insertion slot in the sidewall portion formed in the retaining portion and the recessed portion that is the retaining portion. Slots having one end extending toward one side, Each of the female terminals has a central tongue extending from the base between the pair of arm portions, The central tongue section is inserted into the slot of the housing when the base of the female terminal is received in the retention portion of the housing, The arm portions of the female terminal extend from the base received at the retention portion inclined with respect to the axis of the insertion slot, And the contacts are located at an intermediate position between the side wall portion in which the recessed portion is formed and the opposite side wall portion. A housing made of an insulating material, each housing having a plurality of insertion slots having a plurality of insertion slots for receiving male terminals opened at one side of the housing; Each of a plurality of female terminals each having a contact portion projecting into an insertion slot and electrically holding the male terminal from both sides to be electrically connected with the male terminal, supporting the contacts through a pair of arm portions and having a base fixed to the housing; Including them, The housing includes a retaining portion that is a recess formed in one of the sidewall portions that partitions the insertion slot to receive the base, and a housing in which the insertion slot is opened along the axis of the insertion slot in the sidewall portion formed in the retaining portion and the recessed portion that is the retaining portion. Slots having one end extending toward one side, Each of the female terminals has a central tongue portion extending from the base between the pair of arm portions and having a plurality of small protrusions formed on the outer circumference thereof, The central tongue portion is inserted into a slot of the housing by causing the small protrusions formed at its outer periphery to dig into the housing material when the base of the female terminal is received in the retaining portion of the housing, The arm portions of the female terminal extend from the base received at the retention portion inclined with respect to the axis of the insertion slot, And the contacts are located at an intermediate position between the side wall portion in which the recessed portion is formed and the opposite side wall portion. A housing made of an insulating material, each housing having a plurality of insertion slots having a plurality of insertion slots for receiving male terminals opened at one side of the housing; Each of a plurality of female terminals each having a contact portion projecting into an insertion slot and electrically holding the male terminal from both sides to be electrically connected with the male terminal, supporting the contacts through a pair of arm portions and having a base fixed to the housing; Including them, The housing includes a retaining portion which is a recessed portion formed in one of the sidewall portions defining the insertion slot to receive the base, and one side of the housing in which the insertion slot is opened along the axis of the insertion slot which is opened in the retaining portion and the recessed portion which is a retaining portion is formed. Slots having one end extending toward the side, and guide grooves separately formed in the side wall portions opposed to each other on both sides of the side wall portion in which the recessed portion is formed, and receiving arm portions, Each of the female terminals has a central tongue extending from the base between the pair of arm portions, The central tongue portion is inserted into the slot of the housing when the base of the female terminal is received in the retention portion of the housing, The arm portions of the female terminal extend from the base received at the retention portion inclined with respect to the axis of the insertion slot, And the contacts are located at an intermediate position between the side wall portion in which the recessed groove portion is formed and the opposite side wall portion, and are able to slide in the guide groove along a direction close to the axis of the insertion slot and in a separation direction. Made of insulating material, each having a plurality of insertion slots for receiving male terminals having a pair of sides and an opening in one side thereof, A plurality of females each having a pair of contacts each protruding into an insertion slot to electrically connect with the male terminals and holding the male terminals from both sides, and a base supported by the pair of arm portions and having a base fixed to the housing; Accept terminals, The housing is a retaining portion which is a recess formed in one of the side wall portions that partitions the insertion slot to receive the base, and a side of the housing in which the insertion slot is opened along the axis of the insertion slot in the side wall portion which is formed in the retaining portion and the recess is formed in the retaining portion. Slots each having one end extending toward the side, and guide grooves separately formed in the side wall portions opposed to each other on both sides of the side wall portion in which the recessed groove portion is formed, and which accommodate the arm portions, The slots retain a central tongue extending from the base between the pair of arm portions of the female terminal, The guide grooves guide the arm portions of the female terminal from the base received at the retention portion in an inclined direction with respect to the axis of the insertion slot, The contact portions of the female terminal are located at an intermediate position between the side wall portion formed with the recessed portion, which is a retaining portion, and the opposite side wall portion, and are capable of sliding in the guide groove along the direction and space of the insertion slot axis. Housing. Housed in a housing made of an insulating material having a plurality of insertion slots, one side of which receives a male terminal, A pair of contacts that protrude into the insertion slots to electrically connect with the male terminals and hold the male terminals from both sides, and have a base that supports these contacts through a pair of arm portions and is fixed to the housing, The female terminal includes a central tongue section extending from the base between the pair of arm sections, and a plurality of small protrusions projecting from the outer periphery of the central tongue section, The arm portions are located at positions that extend from the base in an inclined state with respect to the thickness direction and the contacts are offset in the thickness direction extending from the base, When the base tongue is received in the retaining portion, which is a recess formed in one of the side wall portions defining the insertion slot of the housing, the central tongue section has one side of the housing in which the insertion slot is opened along the axis of the insertion slot in the side wall portion in which the recess is formed. One end extending toward is inserted into a slot opened in the retention portion, The arm portions are guided to slide in guide grooves formed separately in the side wall portions facing each other on both sides of the side wall portion in which the recess portion, which is the retaining portion, is formed, The contacts are arranged at an intermediate position between the side wall portion in which the recessed portion, which is a retention portion, is formed, and the opposite side wall portion, Female terminal of a thin electrical connector, characterized in that the contacts generate spring force in the direction of proximity and space of the axis of the insertion slot.