WO2011096431A1

WO2011096431A1 - Wiring cable connecting system

Info

Publication number: WO2011096431A1
Application number: PCT/JP2011/052144
Authority: WO
Inventors: 昌男冨本; 真人菅
Original assignee: 株式会社パトライト
Priority date: 2010-02-05
Filing date: 2011-02-02
Publication date: 2011-08-11

Abstract

Disclosed is a wiring cable connecting system wherein, when connecting a wiring cable using a compatible connector, the connecting section can be made to be waterproof with reliability. The wiring cable connecting system is comprised of: connectors (1) that have a plurality of connection terminals (17), to be connected to each of the end sections of a plurality of wiring, installed within housings (10) thereof; and a coupling connector (2) that has a body (20) provided with connection openings (21, 22, 23) for having the connectors (1) connected thereto. When the connectors (1) are to be connected to the coupling connector (2), the housings (10) are housed within the connection openings (21, 22, 23) so as to be enveloped therein, and when the connectors (1) have been connected to the coupling connector (2), protrusion terminals (31, 32, 33) within the connection openings are electrically connected to the connection terminals (17) via insertion holes (11) formed on the housings (10). Waterproof pieces (13), which are to come in elastic contact with the inner circumference faces of the connection openings (21, 22, 23), are molded integrally with the housings (10) around the entire outer circumferences thereof.

Description

Wiring cable connection system

The present invention relates to a distribution cable connection system, and is particularly useful as a distribution cable connection system used for a vehicle-mounted distribution cable.

In automobiles, wire harnesses that bundle multiple wires are used for the purpose of power supply and signal communication. When a new lamp or electronic device is added to an automobile, it is necessary to branch a branch line from an existing in-vehicle wiring cable such as a wire harness.

As a method of branching a wiring cable, Patent Document 1 discloses a terminal in which a fitting portion is formed at one end and a pressure contact portion is formed at the other end, the pressure contact portion having a pressure contact slot, and the same pressure contact. The slot has a terminal whose insertion direction is oriented in the direction in which the electric wire held substantially horizontally when the terminal is held vertically is brought close to the terminal, and the length of the pressure contact portion is a predetermined step length. A press-connecting connector comprising a connector case having an electric wire holding portion for holding the electric wires in a predetermined position so that the electric wires are inserted into the respective press-contacting slots while holding the terminals in parallel is disclosed. That is, the press-connecting connector disclosed in Patent Document 1 branches a branch line from an electric wire serving as a main line by pressing the electric wire serving as a main line into a press-contact slot of a press-contact terminal.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 6-54216

However, when waterproofness is required for in-vehicle use etc., the pressure contact connector of Patent Document 1 is insufficient in waterproof function because only the pressure contact portion of the pressure contact slot is covered with the main body portion and the cover material. In addition, since the length of the press contact portion of the press contact terminal is configured to be a stepped length, the number of parts increases as the number of electric wires increases, which is not preferable in terms of assembly man-hours and cost.

Moreover, since the pressure contact connector of Patent Document 1 exhibits a horizontally long shape in which electric wires are arranged side by side on the same plane, when trying to perform a new wiring branch, a circular shape is formed several times so that the outer shape becomes the horizontally long shape. Since it is necessary to open a hole in the vehicle wall, the number of work steps increases, which is not preferable.

This invention is made | formed in view of the said situation, The objective is to provide the wiring cable connection system which can waterproof the connection part reliably, when connecting a wiring cable using a corresponding connector. is there. Another object of the present invention is to provide a wiring cable connection system in which, when a wiring cable is branched, the branching portion can be easily waterproofed, and the burden of bodywork work such as opening a hole for wiring to the vehicle body can be reduced. Is to provide.

In order to solve the above problems, a wiring cable connection system according to the present invention is:
In a wiring cable connection system comprising a connection connector in which a plurality of connection terminals respectively connected to ends of a plurality of wires are provided in a housing, and a connection connector having a main body provided with a connection port for connecting the connection connector,
When connecting the connection connector to the connection connector, the housing is stored so as to be enclosed in the connection port, and when connected, the protruding terminal group in the connection port is electrically connected to the connection terminal through the insertion hole provided in the housing. Which
The waterproof piece that elastically contacts the inner peripheral surface of the connection port is integrally formed over the entire outer peripheral surface of the housing.

The operation and effect of the wiring cable connection system with this configuration will be described. The wiring cable connection system includes a connection connector in which a plurality of connection terminals respectively connected to ends of a plurality of wires are provided in a housing, and a connection connector having a main body having a connection port for connecting the connection connector. Is done. When connecting the connection connector to the connection connector, the housing of the connection connector is accommodated in the connection port of the connection connector. A protruding terminal group is provided in the connection port of the connection connector, and when the connection connector is connected to the connection connector, the protrusion terminal group is electrically connected to the internal connection terminal through the insertion hole provided in the housing. Is done. A waterproof piece is integrally formed on the outer periphery of the connector connector housing, and this waterproof piece is in elastic contact with the inner periphery of the connection port, thus reliably preventing water from entering from the outside. The connection portion between the connection connector and the connection connector can be reliably waterproofed. Moreover, since the waterproof piece is integrally formed with the housing, there is no problem such as disconnection when connecting or releasing the connection.

In the wiring cable connection system according to the present invention, the connection connector has three or more connection ports, and the protruding terminal group in each connection port and the protruding terminal group in another connection port correspond to the corresponding protruding terminals. It is preferable that they are electrically connected to each other inside the main body.

According to this configuration, by connecting the connection connector to each of the three or more connection ports of the connection connector, the wiring can be easily branched at the connection connector portion. That is, the connection connector according to the present invention can be used as a branch connector. In addition, the protruding terminal group in each connection port and the protruding terminal group in the other connection port are electrically connected inside the main body with the corresponding protruding terminals. The branch portion can be easily waterproofed.

In the wiring cable connection system of the present invention, it is preferable that each of the corresponding protruding terminals is configured such that each end portion of a wiring member provided inside the main body protrudes to the outside.

According to this configuration, the corresponding protruding terminals can be easily formed in the plurality of connection ports, and the reliability of the branching portion is increased as compared with the conventional pressure welding method.

In the wiring cable connection system according to the present invention, a first connection port and a second connection port are respectively provided on opposite end surfaces of the connection connector, and the first connection port is constituted by four projecting terminals in the first connection port. The projecting terminal group and the second projecting terminal group composed of four projecting terminals in the second connection port are arranged in such a manner that the corresponding projecting terminals are arranged at the same terminal position in front view. Corresponding protruding terminals are respectively configured at respective ends of four wiring members having the same shape, the two wiring members take the first posture, and the other two wiring members take the second posture. Is preferred.

According to this configuration, since the corresponding protruding terminals are arranged at the same terminal position in front view, the connection direction between the connection connector and the connection connector and the connection position of the wiring to the connector terminal are particularly concerned. Can be used without. In addition, since the four pairs of corresponding protruding terminals are configured by the end portions of four wiring members having the same shape, the protruding terminal group in each connection port can be easily formed by using only one type of wiring member having the same shape. Can be configured. Since only one type of wiring member is required, the number of parts is small, which is preferable in terms of cost.

In the wiring cable connection system of the present invention, it is preferable that the connecting connector is formed by integrally forming the wiring member.

According to this configuration, since the wiring member is integrally formed, the connection connector can be easily manufactured.

In the wiring cable connection system according to the present invention, it is preferable that the waterproof piece is formed by two-color molding of the second resin having elasticity on the entire outer peripheral surface of the housing formed of the first resin.

According to this configuration, an elastic waterproof piece can be easily integrally formed on the entire outer peripheral surface of the housing.

It is a perspective view showing the whole wiring cable connection system of the present invention. (A) is a perspective view of the connection connector 1, and (b) is a perspective view from another direction. FIG. 4 is a front view, a plan view, a left side view, and a right side view of the connection connector 2. It is (a) perspective view and (b) front view of

wiring member

3a, 3b, 3c, 3d. It is a perspective view of the wiring member 3a. (A) is a perspective view of the connection terminal 17, and (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II of the connection terminal 17 shown in (a).

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the entire wiring cable connection system of the present invention. The wiring cable connection system includes a connection connector 1 and a connection connector 2. 2A is a perspective view of the connector 1 and FIG. 2B is a perspective view from another direction. FIG. 3 shows only a front view, a plan view, a left side view, and a right side view among the six views of the connection connector 2.

In the present embodiment, an example in which three connection connectors 1 having the same shape are connected to one connection connector 2 is shown. The three connection connectors 1 are connected to the

connection ports

21, 22 and 23 of the connection connector 2, respectively. When mounting in the vehicle body, it is easy to move in the vehicle body by inserting the connection port 22 into a drilling hole (not shown) provided in the vehicle body, for example, along the longitudinal direction of the connection connector 2. I have to.

The connection connector 1 has a substantially quadrangular prism shape as a whole, and is configured by providing a plurality of connection terminals 17 to be described later in the housing 10. The housing 10 is formed of a resin such as polybutylene terephthalate (PBT) or nylon.

When connecting to the connector 2, the surface 10a of the housing 10 facing the

connection ports

21, 22, 23 has a through hole 11 into which projecting

terminal groups

31, 32, 33 of the connector 2 to be described later are inserted. Four shapes are provided. In the present embodiment, the shape of the insertion hole 11 is a square, but it may be a circle or the like.

In the surface 10b on the back side of the surface 10a of the connection connector 1, four wiring insertion ports 12 into which ends of wiring (not shown) are inserted are provided in a square shape. That is, four wires can be connected to the connection connector 1. For example, two wires are used as a power supply line and two wires are used as a signal communication line.

Specifically, the wiring is inserted into the wiring insertion port 12 after the connection terminal 17 is mounted. If there is a gap between the inner circumference of the wiring insertion port 12 and the outer circumference of the covered portion of the inserted wiring, use a rubber wire seal or the like to fill the gap and prevent water from entering. It is preferable to do.

A waterproof piece 13 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the housing 10 in the vicinity of the outer edge of the surface 10a. In the present embodiment, the waterproof piece 13 includes three ridges 13a provided on the side surfaces 10c, 10d, 10e, and 10f of the housing 10 over the entire circumference. The number of such ridges can be set as appropriate, but a plurality of ridges are preferably provided.

The waterproof piece 13 is made of a soft resin, for example, an elastomer, and is elastically deformable. Examples of the elastomer include thermosetting elastomer silicone rubber and fluorine rubber. The cross section of the protrusion 13a has a triangular shape. The height of the ridge 13a is set so that the outer periphery of the ridge 13a is slightly larger than the inner peripheral surfaces of the

connection ports

21, 22, 23 of the connecting connector 2, and the connection connector 1 is connected to the

connection ports

21, 22, When connected to 23, the waterproof piece 13 is crushed by the inner peripheral surfaces of the

connection ports

21, 22, 23 and is elastically deformed. As a result, the waterproof piece 13 elastically contacts the inner peripheral surfaces of the

connection ports

21, 22, and 23, thereby reliably preventing water from entering from the outside, and connecting the connection connector 1 and the connection connector 2. It is definitely waterproof.

The waterproof piece 13 is molded integrally with the housing 10 by performing so-called two-color molding, in which an elastomer is molded on the outer periphery of the housing 10 molded of a resin such as polybutylene terephthalate (PBT).

On the three

side surfaces

10c, 10d, and 10e of the housing 10, a guide 14 protruding from the surface is provided. The guide 14 is continuously provided along the insertion direction of the connection connector 1. The height of the guide 14 is the clearance (play) between the housing 10 and the

connection ports

21, 22, 23 when the connection connector 1 is connected to the

connection ports

21, 22, 23 of the connection connector 2 and after the connection. Is set to be eliminated. In this embodiment, the guides 14 are provided on the three

side surfaces

10c, 10d, and 10e. However, it is preferable to provide the guides 14 on the other side surface 10f.

Further, gripping portions 15 are provided on two opposing side surfaces 10c and 10e of the housing 10. The grip portion 15 has a triangular shape when viewed from the side, and the slope portion is formed in a wave shape so that it can be easily gripped by hand when the connection connector 1 is connected to the connection connector 2 or disconnected. It has become.

A locking portion 16 is provided on the side surface 10 f of the housing 10. The locking part 16 is locked to the locked part 24 of the connection connector 2 when the connection connector 1 is inserted into the

connection ports

21, 22, 23 all the way.

The shape of the connection terminal 17 provided in the housing 10 is not particularly limited, and a known connection terminal 17 can be used, but it is a female terminal so as to correspond to the protruding terminal group of the connection connector 2. . FIG. 6 shows an example of the connection terminal 17, (a) is a perspective view of the connection terminal 17, and (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II of the connection terminal 17 shown in (a). The end of the wiring is peeled off, the copper wire portion and the covering portion are placed in the copper wire fixing portion 17a and the covering fixing portion 17b of the connection terminal 17, and the connection terminal 17 is fixed to the end portion of the wiring by caulking with a tool. . As shown in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 6B, the distal end portion 17c of the connection terminal 17 has its extended bottom surface bent inward, and is reliably electrically connected to the counterpart protruding terminal inserted from the distal end. It is like that.

The connecting connector 2 has a main body 20 having first to

third connection ports

21, 22 and 23. The main body 20 is formed of a resin such as polybutylene terephthalate (PBT) or nylon, similarly to the housing 10 of the connector 1.

The first to

third connection ports

21, 22, and 23 are provided on the three

side surfaces

20a, 20b, and 20c of the main body 20. When the connection connector 1 is connected to the connection connector 2, the

connection ports

21, 22, and 23 are recessed so that the housing 10 is included in the

connection ports

21, 22, and 23. Locked portions 24 that are locked with the locking portions 16 of the connection connector 1 are provided on the outer peripheral portions of the

connection ports

21, 22, and 23.

First to third protruding

terminal groups

31, 32, and 33 are provided on the bottom surfaces of the first to

third connection ports

21, 22, and 23, respectively. The first to third protruding

terminal groups

31, 32, and 33 are each composed of four protruding terminals. The four protruding terminals are each arranged in a square shape when viewed from the front. The protruding terminal group in each connection port and the protruding terminal group in the other connection port are electrically connected inside the main body 20 by corresponding protruding terminals.

In the first projecting terminal group 31, the second projecting terminal group 32, and the third projecting terminal group 33, the corresponding projecting terminals are arranged at the same terminal position in front view. That is, for example, in this embodiment, the protruding terminal 311 of the first protruding terminal group 31, the protruding terminal 321 of the second protruding terminal group 32, and the protruding terminal 331 of the third protruding terminal group 33 correspond to each other. Similarly, the protruding terminal 312, the protruding terminal 322, and the protruding terminal 332 correspond to each other, the protruding terminal 313, the protruding terminal 323, and the protruding terminal 333 correspond to each other, and the protruding terminal 314, the protruding terminal 324, and the protruding terminal 334 correspond to each. ing.

In the connecting connector 2, four

wiring members

3a, 3b, 3c, 3d are integrally formed. 4A is a perspective view of the

wiring members

3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d, and FIG. 4B is a front view of the

wiring members

3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d shown in FIG. is there. The end portions of these

wiring members

3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d protrude from the bottom surfaces of the

connection ports

21, 22, and 23 to form protruding

terminal groups

31, 32, and 33. Specifically, each end of the wiring member 3 a includes a protruding terminal 311 of the first protruding terminal group 31, a protruding terminal 321 of the second protruding terminal group 32, and a protruding terminal 331 of the third protruding terminal group 33. Each end of the wiring member 3 b constitutes a protruding terminal 312 of the first protruding terminal group 31, a protruding terminal 322 of the second protruding terminal group 32, and a protruding terminal 332 of the third protruding terminal group 33. Each end of the wiring member 3c constitutes a protruding terminal 313 of the first protruding terminal group 31, a protruding terminal 323 of the second protruding terminal group 32, and a protruding terminal 333 of the third protruding terminal group 33. Each end of the member 3 d constitutes a protruding terminal 314 of the first protruding terminal group 31, a protruding terminal 324 of the second protruding terminal group 32, and a protruding terminal 334 of the third protruding terminal group 33.

In the present embodiment, all of the four

wiring members

3a, 3b, 3c, 3d (hereinafter, collectively referred to as the wiring member 3) have the same shape. Therefore, only the wiring member 3a will be described below.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the wiring member 3a. The wiring member 3a is formed by bending a metal flat plate having a thickness of about 0.2 to 0.3 mm. The wiring member 3a is configured by three projecting

portions

30b, 30c, and 30d extending from a substantially L-shaped connecting portion 30a having a long side and a short side. The protruding portion 30b and the protruding portion 30c are extended from both ends of the substantially L-shaped connecting portion 30a in opposite directions in the long side direction. In addition, the protruding portion 30d extends in the short side direction from a position closer to the protruding portion 30b than the center of the long side of the connecting portion 30a. The protruding

portions

30b, 30c, and 30d become the protruding terminal 311, the protruding terminal 321, and the protruding terminal 331, respectively, after the wiring member 3a is integrally formed inside the main body 20.

The connecting portion 30a and the protruding

portions

30b, 30c, and 30d are continuous at

step portions

30e, 30f, and 30g, respectively. The

step portions

30e, 30f, 30g are provided in the same direction in the vertical direction from the connecting portion 30a. By providing the

step portions

30e, 30f, and 30g, the plane of the connecting portion 30a and the plane of the projecting

portions

30b, 30c, and 30d are offset.

As shown in FIG. 4, among the four

wiring members

3a, 3b, 3c, 3d, the two

wiring members

3a, 3c take the same first posture, and the other two

wiring members

3b, 3d have the same second position. I'm taking a posture. The second posture is a posture obtained by rotating the wiring member of the first posture by 180 degrees. A pair of wiring members which took the 1st attitude | position and the 2nd attitude | position have bulged in the mutually opposing direction (refer FIG.4 (b)). That is, for example, in the wiring member 3a in the first posture and the wiring member 3b in the second posture that face each other, each protruding portion (each protruding terminal) is arranged in the same plane, whereas each connecting portion is a stepped portion. Since the protrusions extend in directions away from the protrusions, the protrusions are disposed on both sides of the surface where the protrusions are disposed.

By using the four wiring members 3 having the shape as described above, the four protruding terminals can be arranged in a square shape in the

connection ports

21, 22, and 23, respectively, when viewed from the front. In this way, by arranging the plurality of protruding terminals in a plurality of rows instead of one row, the shape of the connection port does not need to be a horizontally long shape, and can be a substantially square shape. This makes it possible to reduce the hole diameter of the hole that opens to the vehicle body when mounting a new wiring branch, and it is not necessary to open a circular hole multiple times. This can reduce the burden of bodywork work.

For example, the method of using the wiring cable connection system of the present invention is as follows. First, the connection connector 2 is interposed in the middle of the wiring that becomes the trunk line. Specifically, each of the divided ends of the wiring that becomes the trunk line is connected to the two connection connectors 1, and the two connection connectors 1 are respectively connected to the connection port 21 and the connection port 22 of the connection connector 2. .

Then, the connection connector 1 connected to the wiring of the electronic device to be added is connected to the connection port 23 of the connection connector 2. Thereby, since the corresponding protruding terminals are electrically connected inside the main body 20, the wiring can be easily branched at the connection connector 2 portion. When there is no electronic device to be added, the connection port 23 may be closed by the connection connector 1 that is not connected with wiring. At this time, it is preferable that the wiring insertion port 12 is completely closed with a rubber cap or the like.

Also, according to the wiring cable connection system of the present invention, it is easy to remove an electronic device that has been added once, change it to another electronic device, or replace it with a new electronic device.

In addition, for example, the connection connector 1 in which the end of the wiring to be the main line is connected is connected to the connection port 21 and the connection port 23 of the connection connector 2, and the connection connector in which the end of the wiring of the electronic device to be added is connected 1 may be connected to the connection port 22 of the connection connector 2 to branch the wiring.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Connection connector 2 Connection connector 3 Wiring member 10 Housing 11 Insertion hole 12 Wiring insertion port 13 Waterproof piece 14 Guide 15 Holding part 16 Locking part 17 Connection terminal 20 Main body 21 Connection port 22 Connection port 23 Connection port 31 Projection terminal group 32 Projection Terminal group 33 Projecting terminal group

Claims

In a wiring cable connection system comprising a connection connector in which a plurality of connection terminals respectively connected to ends of a plurality of wires are provided in a housing, and a connection connector having a main body provided with a connection port for connecting the connection connector,
When connecting the connection connector to the connection connector, the housing is stored so as to be enclosed in the connection port, and when connected, the protruding terminal group in the connection port is electrically connected to the connection terminal through the insertion hole provided in the housing. Which
A wiring cable connection system, wherein a waterproof piece that elastically contacts the inner peripheral surface of the connection port is integrally formed over the entire outer peripheral surface of the housing.
The connection connector has three or more connection ports,
2. The wiring according to claim 1, wherein the protruding terminal group in each connection port and the protruding terminal group in another connection port are electrically connected to each other within the main body by corresponding protruding terminals. Cable connection system.
The wiring cable connection system according to claim 2, wherein each of the corresponding protruding terminals is configured such that each end of a wiring member provided inside the main body protrudes to the outside.
A first connection port and a second connection port are respectively provided on opposite end faces of the connection connector;
The first projecting terminal group composed of four projecting terminals in the first connection port and the second projecting terminal group composed of four projecting terminals in the second connection port are the corresponding projecting terminals. Each is located at the same terminal position in front view,
The four corresponding protruding terminals are respectively configured by the end portions of four wiring members having the same shape, the two wiring members take the first posture, and the other two wiring members take the second posture. The distribution cable connection system according to claim 3, wherein:
The wiring cable connection system according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the wiring member is formed integrally with the connection connector.
The wiring cable connection system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the waterproof piece is formed by two-color molding of a second resin having elasticity on the entire outer peripheral surface of the housing formed of the first resin.