JP2001345146A - Inertial lock connector - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To reliably connect a male terminal to a female terminal in a connector housing by inertia force. SOLUTION: An arm 9 for abutting the male terminal 3 is provided on a connector housing 1, and a locking portion 12 for temporarily locking the arm 9 is connected to a connector in a state where the abutting portion 15 of the arm protrudes into the connector housing. The male terminal 3 is provided on the housing and abuts against the abutting portion 15 protruding into the connector housing. The arm 9 is provided in the opening 10 of the outer wall 8 of the connector housing 1, the engaging portion 12 is provided in the opening, and the engaging portion 22 which is secondarily engaged with the engaging portion with the arm closing the opening is provided. Provided on the arm. The arm 9 has an elastic force directed to the outside of the connector housing 1. The arm 9 engages with the insertion hole of the female terminal to lock the female terminal.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an inertia in which a male terminal is brought into contact with an arm of a connector housing accommodating a female terminal to obtain an inertial force of the male terminal, thereby enabling a reliable connection between the male and female terminals. It relates to a lock connector.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIGS. 5 to 6 show states in which a male terminal used for connecting a rear defogger or the like of an automobile is connected to a female terminal in a mating connector.

In FIG. 5, reference numeral 81 denotes a male terminal having a contact tab 81a, and reference numeral 82 denotes a connector accommodating a female terminal 83. The male terminal 81 is formed, for example, by bending in a substantially crank shape, and the other connecting portion (not shown) following the one contact tab portion 81a is connected to a terminal of a rear defogger heat wire by soldering. A hole 84 for locking is formed in the center of the contact tab 81a. The male terminal 81 remains exposed to the outside, and is not housed in the connector housing 85 like the female terminal 83.

The connector 82 includes a connector housing 85 made of synthetic resin and a female terminal 83 made of metal.
The connector housing 85 is composed of a front wall and upper, lower, left and right walls. An insertion hole 86 for the male terminal 81 is formed on the front wall, and a locking projection 87a for the female terminal 83 is formed on the lower wall.
Is formed.

The female terminal 83 has a box-shaped electric contact portion 8 on one side.
8, and the other side has an electric wire connection part (crimp part) 89. An elastic contact piece 90 is provided inside the electric contact portion 88, and the elastic contact piece 90 is formed with a locking projection 91 with respect to the hole 84 of the male terminal 81. As shown in FIG. 6, the contact tab 81 a of the male terminal 81 is inserted and connected between the elastic contact piece 90 of the female terminal 83 and the holding wall 92, and the locking projection 9 is formed in the hole 84.
1 is engaged, so-called positive locking is performed. The engagement between the terminals 81 and 83 is released by displacing the elastic contact piece 90 downward by a mechanism (not shown) and pulling the connector 82 having the male terminal 81 or the female terminal 83.

In FIG. 5, the electric wire connecting portion 89 is constituted by a pair of conductor crimping pieces on the front side and a pair of covering crimping pieces on the rear side.
The electric wire 93 is, for example, a power line for an automobile, and has a male terminal 81.
The side is supplied with electricity to heat, for example, a hot wire for a rear defogger.

[0007]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional structure, since there is no connector housing on the male terminal 81 side, the male and female connector housings cannot be fitted and locked together. ,for that reason,
It is difficult to check whether the male terminal 81 is completely inserted and connected to the female terminal 83, and the male terminal 8
1 is likely to be in a half-inserted (incompletely inserted) state, in which case there is a problem that the male terminal 81 easily comes out of the female terminal 83 due to vibration of the vehicle or the like. Also, terminal 8
When the terminals 1 and 83 are large or the terminals 81 and 83 have a large number of poles, the sliding resistance between the terminals increases at the time of terminal connection, and a large insertion force is required for the male terminal 81. There is a problem that the terminal 81 is likely to be half-inserted.

Conventionally, when a male connector containing a female terminal is fitted to a female connector (not shown) containing a male terminal, for example, one of the two connectors is prevented from being half-fitted. Means for fitting the two connectors with a large inertia force by abutting the locking projection of the other connector housing against the flexible lock arm of the connector housing. However, there is no good means for securely connecting the male terminal 81 having no connector housing to the female terminal 83 in the mating connector 82 without half-insertion, and such means has been desired.

In view of the foregoing, it is an object of the present invention to provide an inertial lock connector that can reliably connect a male terminal to a female terminal in a connector without causing half-insertion.

[0010]

According to the present invention, there is provided a connector for inserting a male terminal into a female terminal in a connector housing, wherein the connector housing is provided with an arm which abuts the male terminal. A locking portion for temporarily locking the arm is provided in the connector housing in a state where the abutting portion of the arm is projected into the connector housing, and the abutting portion protruding into the connector housing is provided on the abutting portion. An inertial lock connector, wherein the male terminal abuts, is employed (claim 1). The arm is provided in an opening of an outer wall of the connector housing, the locking portion is provided in the opening, and the arm is secondarily engaged with the locking portion in a state where the opening closes the opening. It is also effective that the portion is provided on the arm (claim 2). It is also effective that the arm has an elastic force directed toward the outside of the connector housing (claim 3). It is also effective that the arm engages with the insertion hole of the female terminal to lock the female terminal (claim 4).

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. 1 to 4 show one embodiment of an inertial lock connector according to the present invention.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a connector housing made of a synthetic resin, and reference numeral 2 denotes a contact tab portion of a male terminal 3, respectively. The male terminal 3 is connected and fixed, for example, to a hot wire for a defroster in a rear window of an automobile by soldering. The connector housing 1 accommodates the female terminal 4 (FIG. 2) and is configured as a male connector 5. Electric wire 6 (Fig. 2)
Is crimped. The connector housing 1, the female terminal 4, and the male terminal 3 constitute an inertial lock connector 7.

As shown in FIG. 1, the connector housing 1 integrally has an elastic arm 9 for abutting a male terminal on an upper wall (outer wall or wall) 8, and the arm 9 flexes upward in a free state and is bent upward in FIG. The arm 9 projects out of the connector housing 1 as shown in FIGS.
As a result, the upper end 13 of the arm upper surface is primarily locked by a locking projection (locking portion) 12 provided on the inner surface 11 of the opening 10 for projecting the arm. The portion on the tip side) acts as the butting portion 15 against the male terminal.

The arm 9 is formed so as to protrude outward during resin molding as shown in FIG. 2, thereby having an outward elastic force (restoring force). With the arm 9 protruding outward, as shown in FIG.
From 6, the female terminal 4 is inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber 17.

As shown in FIG. 1, the base 18 of the arm 9 is located near the front wall 19 of the connector housing 1, and the free end of the arm 9 is located far from the front wall 19. That is, the arm 9 extends toward the rear of the connector housing 1.

The arm 9 includes a main body 21 formed by cutting the upper wall 8 of the connector housing 1 into a substantially U-shape,
1, a thick-walled protruding portion 14 having a substantially triangular cross-section and protruding into the terminal accommodating chamber 17, and an abutting portion 15 having a rectangular cross-section extending and formed on the distal end side (lower end side) of the protruding portion 14. It is composed of The main body 21, the protruding portion 14, and the butting portion 15 are integrally formed of synthetic resin.

Length of main body 21 (length in terminal insertion direction)
Is approximately the same as the length of the projection 14, whereby the elastic force of the arm 9 is increased. When the length of the main body 21 is set to be long, the elastic force of the arm 9 becomes weak. By appropriately setting the length of the arm 9, the elastic force of the arm 9, that is, the inertial force of the male terminal 3, which will be described later, can be freely adjusted.

The main body 21 has an opening 1 in the upper wall 8 of the housing.
It is formed slightly smaller than 0, and the opening 10 can be completely sealed. An engagement protrusion 12 having a triangular longitudinal section is provided on an inner surface 11 on the rear side of the opening 10, and a substantially V-shaped engagement groove (engagement portion) for the engagement protrusion 12 is provided on the free end side of the arm 9. 22 are formed. The locking projection 12 is formed slightly longer in the horizontal direction (shorter than the inner width of the opening 10). The lower inclined surface 12 a of the locking projection 12 acts as a stop surface against the arm 9, and the upper inclined surface 12 b
Functions as a sliding surface for allowing the outwardly projecting arm 9 to smoothly enter the connector housing as shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, the arm 9 is primarily locked with the upper end 13 of the main body 21 abutting against the lower inclined surface 12a of the locking projection 12 with an upward restoring force. At this time, the protruding portion 14 of the arm 9 protrudes largely into the terminal accommodating chamber 17. In this state, the male terminal 3 is inserted into the slit-shaped insertion hole 23 of the housing front wall 19, and the tip 24 of the contact tab 2 abuts on the butting portion 15 at the tip of the protruding portion.

The vertical width of the male terminal insertion hole 23 is slightly larger than the thickness of the tab portion 2, and the tip end 24 of the tab portion 2 reliably abuts against the butting portion 15 of the arm 9. Insertion hole 23
A horizontal guide wall (not shown) is provided at a lower end edge 25 of the arm so as to protrude into the terminal accommodating chamber 17, and the tab portion 2 is accurately guided along the upper surface of the guide wall toward the butting portion 15 of the arm 9. It is also possible to make it. A vertical hole 26 for locking the female terminal 4 (FIG. 2) is provided at the center of the tab portion 2 in the width direction.

As shown in FIG. 2, with the arm 9 protruding outward by its elastic force, the terminal accommodating chamber 1 of the connector housing 1 is provided.
The female terminal 4 with an electric wire is inserted into the rear opening 7 from the rear opening 16. Since the arm 9 protrudes outward, interference with the female terminal 4 is prevented, and the female terminal 4 can be smoothly inserted. Since the shape of the female terminal 4 is the same as that described in the related art, a detailed description is omitted. The female terminal 4 is locked, for example, in the hole 28 of the electrical contact portion 27 by the projection 31 of the locking arm 30 on the lower wall 29 of the connector housing 1. Since the locking arm 30 is integral with and coplanar with the lower wall 29, the female terminal 4 is always in contact with the inner surface of the lower wall 29, as shown in FIG.
When the male terminal 3 collides with the arm 9 when the male terminal 3 is inserted, the female terminal 4 is not displaced (rattle) in the height direction.

In this embodiment, the locking arm 30 is used. However, the locking arm 30 may be eliminated and only the butting arm 9 may be used to lock the female terminal 4. In this case, when the female terminal 4 is inserted into the connector housing 1, an operator or an automatic assembling machine pushes down the arm 9 to project into the electrical contact portion 27 of the female terminal 4. Thereby, the female terminal 4 is locked, and the female terminal 4 is locked.
Is prevented from slipping through.

An insertion hole 35 for the protrusion 14 of the arm 9 is formed in the upper wall 32 of the female terminal 4, that is, in the contact plate portion 34 facing the elastic contact piece 33 in this embodiment. The size of the insertion hole 35 is for allowing the arm 9 to protrude into the terminal accommodating chamber 17, and is preferably as small as possible from the viewpoint of electrical contact.

From the state shown in FIG. 2, for example, an operator presses the arm 9 downward to bend it, and causes it to protrude into the terminal accommodating chamber 17, that is, into the female terminal 4, as shown in FIG. At this time, the upper end 13 of the upper surface of the arm 9 protrudes downward beyond the locking projection 12 of the opening 10, and the upper end 13 of the upper surface of the arm 9 contacts the lower inclined surface 12 a (FIG. 2) of the lower locking projection 12. (Primary lock)
Thus, the upward restoring operation of the arm 9 is prevented. As the angle of the lower inclined surface 12a is steeper, the arm 9
The force required for restoring is large. The projecting portion 14 of the arm 9 passes through the insertion hole 35 (FIG. 2) of the upper wall 32 of the female terminal 4, and the butting portion 15 at the tip of the projecting portion projects into the electrical contact portion 27 of the female terminal 4. The projecting length of the butting portion 15 is the elastic contact piece 3
3 is set so as not to touch or lightly touch it.

In this state, the male terminal 3 is connected to the housing front wall 19.
Is inserted into the connector housing 1 through the insertion hole 23. The same is true when the connector housing 1 is moved toward the male terminal 3 on the fixed side. The distal end 24 of the tab portion 2 of the male terminal 3 abuts against the butting portion 15 of the arm 9, and in this state, the operator strongly presses the male terminal 3 in the insertion direction, or the connector housing 1 faces the male terminal 3. By pressing strongly, a large pressing force is stored, and the pressing force is
When the specified insertion force of the female terminals 3 and 4 is exceeded, the arm 9 is pushed back upward as shown in FIG. 4, and the male terminal 3 is inserted to the specified position in the female terminal 4 at a stretch by inertia.

The force for temporarily locking the locking projection 12 of the opening 10 while the arm 9 is bent downward is greater than the force required for inserting the male and female terminals 3 and 4, ie, the insertion force. Is set. While the arm 9 is restored upward, the engagement groove 22 engages (secondary engagement or secondary engagement) with the engagement protrusion 12 in the opening 10 and is positioned on the same surface as the housing upper wall 8. Close the opening 10.

When the female terminal 4 is locked by the arm 9,
In FIG. 4, it is preferable that the abutting portion 15 of the arm 9 is slightly extended downward to be engaged with the insertion hole 35 of the female terminal 4. Both the terminals 3 and 4 can be locked only by the engagement between the locking projection 36 of the elastic contact piece 33 of the female terminal 4 and the hole 26 of the male terminal 3. If the lower inclined surface 12a of the locking projection 12 is set to be steep in the stage of FIG. 3, the restoring prevention force of the arm 9 increases, and the strong inertial force of the male terminal 3 is exhibited.
The inertial force of the male terminal 3 can be appropriately adjusted by setting the angle of the locking projection 12.

The inertial insertion of the male terminal 3 causes the two terminals 3, 4
Is prevented from being half-inserted, and a reliable electrical connection is made. As shown in FIG. 4, the tab portion 2 of the male terminal 3 is
3 and the contact plate 34, the engaging projection 36 of the elastic contact piece 33 is engaged with the hole 26 of the tab portion 2 so that the male and female terminals 3, 4 are mutually connected. Locked (positive locked).

The form of the abutting arm 9 is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, until the upper surface of the arm 9 (replaced by reference numeral 21 in FIG. 1) and the housing upper wall 8 are flush with each other, May be restored by the elastic force, and may not be restored upward any more. Further, the arm 9 may have an elastic force in a downward direction, that is, a direction in which the arm 9 projects into the connector housing 1. The arm 9 is pushed up by the male terminal 3 against the bias. In short, the opening 1 is provided so that the arm 9 does not bend outward (in the pushing direction).
It is necessary to obtain a large inertial force of the male terminal 3 by stopping the engagement with the locking projections 12 within 0. In these cases, when inserting the female terminal 4 into the connector housing 1, it is necessary for an operator to bend the arm 9 upward.

The length of the arm 9 is appropriately set in accordance with the required inertial force of the male terminal 4, and the shape of the projection 14 (in this embodiment, a substantially triangular longitudinal section) can be appropriately set. The direction of the arm 9 is such that the free end of the arm is rearward.
Is necessary to prevent buckling deformation of the arm and smooth restoration, but if these points (buckling etc.) are eliminated, the direction of the arm 9 is reversed (the free end of the arm is forward). It may be.

An engaging projection (engaging portion) is provided at the tip of the arm 9, and the lower edge 37 (FIG. 2) of the inner surface 11 of the opening 10 of the connector housing 1 is engaged with the engaging projection. Acting as a part, on the inner surface 11 of the opening 10,
It is also possible to provide a locking groove for secondary engagement of the engaging projection.

The male terminal 3 is accommodated in a female connector housing (not shown), and the operation of the arm 9 is performed simultaneously with the fitting of the male connector housing 1 accommodating the female terminal 4 and the female connector housing. Thus, the inertial force of the male terminal 3 can be exhibited. In this case, a relief portion for the arm 9 is formed in the female connector housing.

[0033]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the arm is held in a state of protruding into the connector housing by the locking portion, and the male terminal abuts against the abutting portion of the arm. A strong pressing force in the insertion direction acts on the male terminal, and the arm flexes in the escape direction, and at the same time, a strong inertial force is exerted on the male terminal, whereby the male terminal is securely inserted and connected without being half-inserted into the female terminal. This prevents the male terminal from coming out due to incomplete insertion. Particularly, by locking the arm with the locking portion of the connector housing projecting into the connector housing, a strong force is required for restoring the arm, and a large inertial force of the male terminal can be obtained.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the arm is locked (secondarily engaged) while closing the opening of the connector housing, foreign matter and the like from the opening into the connector housing can be prevented. In addition to preventing intrusion, the protrusion of the arm to the outside is eliminated and interference with the outside is prevented.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the female terminal can be smoothly inserted into the connector housing without interference with the arm protruding outside the connector housing. Is improved.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the arm also serves as a locking member for the female terminal, there is no need to separately provide a member for locking the female terminal in the connector housing. Compact and low cost.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a main part of an inertial lock connector according to an embodiment of the present invention in a longitudinal sectional state.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state in which a female terminal is inserted into a connector housing with an abutting arm protruding outward.

FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a state in which a male terminal is inserted with the arm protruding inside the connector housing.

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state where the male terminal is completely inserted into the female terminal by inertia force.

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view showing one form of a conventional connector.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state where a male terminal is inserted.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Connector housing 3 Male terminal 4 Female terminal 7 Inertial lock connector 8 Upper wall (outer wall) 9 Arm 10 Opening 12 Locking projection (locking part) 15 Butting part 22 Engaging groove (engaging part) 35 Insertion hole

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A connector for inserting a male terminal into a female terminal in a connector housing, wherein the connector housing is provided with an arm for abutting the male terminal, and an abutting portion of the arm is protruded into the connector housing. An inertia lock connector, wherein a locking portion for temporarily locking the arm is provided in the connector housing in a state in which the male terminal abuts on the abutting portion protruding into the connector housing. 2. The connector according to claim 2, wherein the arm is provided in an opening in an outer wall of the connector housing, the locking portion is provided in the opening, and the arm is secondary to the locking portion in a state where the opening closes the opening. 2. The inertial lock connector according to claim 1, wherein said engaging portion is provided on said arm. 3. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the arm has an elastic force directed outward of the connector housing.
Or the inertial lock connector according to 2. 4. The female terminal according to claim 1, wherein said arm engages with an insertion hole of said female terminal to lock said female terminal.
3. The inertial lock connector according to any one of 3.