JP2016051632A - Lever connector - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is a lever connector capable of preventing an excessive force from causing damage to a component from being applied to a contact portion of a lever and capable of securely mounting a connector at a predetermined position of a connector holder. To do. A connector, a connector holder to which the connector is mounted, a lever provided rotatably on the connector, and the connector are slid to a predetermined position of the connector holder. And a guide structure to be fixed, a guide receiving portion 14 and a lock structure having a lock portion 48 and a lock receiving portion, and provided in the lever 30 and rotated when the connector 10 is not mounted at the predetermined position. And a correction part 35 that contacts the contact part 55 of the connector holder 40 and corrects the connector 10 by pushing it to the predetermined position. [Selection] Figure 11

Description

  The present invention relates to a lever connector.

  Conventionally, a lever connector including a connector, a connector holder to which the connector is mounted, and a rotatable lever is known. For example, in the lever connector described in Patent Document 1 below, a lever is provided in the connector holder so that the lever can be rotated. After the connector holder is pushed to a predetermined position of the connector, the lever is rotated, It is assumed that the mating of the first and second mates will eventually be completed and will be completely mated. When the connector holder has not reached the predetermined position of the connector, the lever comes into contact with the receiving portion provided on the connector so that the rotating operation cannot be performed. Thereby, the operator can notice that the connector holder is in an incomplete position with respect to the connector, and the connector holder is reliably pushed to a predetermined position.

JP 2008-103224 A

  By the way, in the lever connector as described above, although the rotation operation of the lever is restricted due to the connector holder being in an incomplete position with respect to the connector, the operator holds the lever. A strong force may be applied in an attempt to rotate. As a result, an excessive force acts on the contact portion of the lever, which may cause damage to components.

  The present invention has been completed based on the above-described circumstances, and can prevent an excessive force from causing damage to parts at the contact portion of the lever, and the connector of the connector holder. It is an object of the present invention to provide a lever connector that can be securely attached to a predetermined position.

  The lever connector of the present invention includes a connector, a connector holder to which the connector is mounted, a lever that is rotatably provided to the connector, and a guide that slides and fixes the connector to a predetermined position of the connector holder. A locking structure having a portion, a guide receiving portion and a locking portion and a lock receiving portion, and provided on the lever, and when the connector is not mounted at the predetermined position, the connector holder abuts And a correction section that presses the connector to the predetermined position and corrects the connector.

  According to the present invention, when the lever is rotated when the connector is not mounted at the predetermined position of the connector holder, the correction portion of the lever contacts the contact portion of the connector holder so that the connector is moved to the predetermined position. The connector that has been pushed and corrected and has reached a predetermined position is fixed to the connector holder by the lock portion. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent an excessive force from causing damage to the parts from being applied to the contact portion of the lever, and it is possible to reliably attach the connector at a predetermined position.

The front view which shows the state which is the lever connector in a present Example, and two connectors were fixed to the connector holder The top view which shows the lever connector in the state where two connectors were fixed to the connector holder Top view showing connector holder Bottom view showing the first housing Top view showing connector and connector holder when lever is in initial position Sectional drawing which shows a connector and connector holder when a lever exists in an initial position, Comprising: Sectional drawing equivalent to the cross section in the AA position of FIG. Sectional drawing which shows a connector and connector holder when a lever exists in an initial position, Comprising: Sectional drawing corresponded in the cross section in the BB position of FIG. Sectional drawing which shows a connector and connector holder when a lever exists in a fitting completion position, Comprising: Sectional drawing corresponded in the cross section in the AA position of FIG. Sectional drawing which shows a connector and a connector holder when a lever exists in a fitting completion position, Comprising: Sectional drawing equivalent to the cross section in the BB position of FIG. The top view which shows a connector and a connector holder when a lever exists between an initial position and a fitting completion position Sectional drawing which shows a mode that the correction part of a lever presses the contact part of a connector holder, Comprising: Sectional drawing corresponded in the cross section in CC position of FIG. Sectional drawing which shows the state which the connector has not reached the predetermined position of the connector holder, Comprising: Sectional drawing corresponded in the cross section in the DD position of FIG.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention are shown below.
The lever connector of the present invention may be configured such that a plurality of the connectors are mounted on the connector holder, and the contact portion is provided between the adjacent connectors and shared. According to such a configuration, the structure of the connector holder can be simplified as compared with the case where the contact portion is provided for each connector.

<Example>
Hereinafter, an embodiment embodying the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.
The lever connector in the present embodiment includes a connector 10 and a connector holder 40 to which the connector 10 is attached. The lever 30 is rotatably provided on the connector 10. The connector holder 40 is provided with a plurality (two in the present embodiment) of substantially the same connectors 10, and the connector holder 40 is fixed to a vehicle body or the like.

  The connector 10 includes a male housing (hereinafter referred to as a first housing M) and a female housing (hereinafter referred to as a second housing F) that can be fitted to each other. Hereinafter, in each component member, the front side (left side in FIG. 2) in the mounting direction when the connector 10 is mounted on the connector holder 40 will be referred to as the front, and the upper side in FIG.

  The second housing F is formed in a block shape from a synthetic resin, and a female terminal fitting T2 fixed to the terminal portion of the electric wire W is accommodated therein as shown in FIG. On the left and right side surfaces of the second housing F, a pair of cam pins 21 that can be inserted into the cam groove of the lever 30 is provided.

  The first housing M is made of synthetic resin, and a male terminal fitting T1 fixed to the terminal portion of the electric wire W is accommodated therein. On the front side of the first housing M, a hood portion 11 in which the second housing F can be fitted is provided.

A pair of shaft portions 12 are projected on the left and right side surfaces (front and back surfaces in FIG. 6) of the hood portion 11, and a lever 30 is assembled so as to straddle the first housing M.
Further, as shown in FIG. 6, a pair of convex portions 13 that can be engaged with the initial lock portion 34 provided on the lever 30 protrude from the left and right side surfaces (front and back surfaces in FIG. 6) of the hood portion 11. ing. The convex portion 13 has a side-view shape that matches the initial lock portion 34.

  The lever 30 includes a pair of cam plate portions 31 that are rotatably assembled to the shaft portion 12, and an operation portion 32 that couples both the cam plate portions 31. Each cam plate portion 31 is provided with a bearing hole 33 into which the shaft portion 12 can be fitted. In addition, a cam groove (not shown) that can receive the cam pin 21 of the second housing F is provided on the inner side of the cam plate portion 31 (the surface side in contact with the hood portion 11).

The lever 30 has an initial position (see FIGS. 5 to 7) for starting the fitting operation of both housings M and F, and a fitting completion position where both the housings M and F are completely fitted (see FIGS. 8 and 8). (See FIG. 9).
When the lever 30 is in the initial position, the operation portion 32 is located on the rear side of the connector 10, and when the operation portion 32 is moved to the upper front side, the lever 30 rotates toward the fitting completion position. When the lever 30 reaches the fitting completion position, the operation unit 32 is positioned on the front side of the connector 10.

  As shown in FIG. 6, when the lever 30 is in the initial position, the lever 30 is engaged with the convex portion 13 protruding from the side surface of the connector 10 to hold the lever 30 in the initial position. A portion 34 is provided. The initial lock portion 34 is a concave portion formed by cutting out a part of the peripheral edge portion of the cam plate portion 31, and is constituted by two surfaces that are substantially perpendicular to each other.

  The connector 10 has a predetermined position of the connector holder 40 in a state in which the housings M and F are shallowly fitted with the lever 30 in the initial position (the cam pin 21 of the second housing F enters the entrance of the cam groove of the lever 30). When the lever 30 is rotated from the initial position to the mating completion position, the housings M and F are moved in the mating direction to reach a proper mating state.

The connector holder 40 has a flat plate shape as a whole, and a fixing portion 41 fixed to a body or the like is provided at a front end portion thereof (see FIG. 3).
The connector holder 40 is provided with two mounting portions 42 to which the connector 10 is mounted, side by side (up and down in FIG. 3). As shown in FIG. 1, one of the cam plate portions 31 of the lever 30 of each connector 10 attached to the connector holder 40 is arranged outside the connector holder 40, and the other is in the central portion of the connector holder 40 with respect to the left-right direction. Arranged.

  In the central portion (between the pair of mounting portions 42) of the connector holder 40 in the width direction, an escape groove portion 44 into which the peripheral edge portion of the cam plate portion 31 of the lever 30 enters when the lever 30 is rotated is provided (see FIG. 3 and FIG. 6). The escape groove portion 44 has a width dimension that allows the two cam plate portions 31 to enter at a time, and is provided to extend in the front-rear direction. In addition, the width dimension of the escape groove part 44 is made substantially constant in the front-rear direction.

  The rear end of the escape groove 44 is located substantially side by side with the rear end of a guide part 45 described later, and the front end is located slightly behind the front end of the guide part 45. As shown in FIG. 11, the depth dimension of the relief groove 44 is such that at least the peripheral surface of the cam plate 31 of the lever 30 is not caught. The front end surface and the rear end surface of the escape groove 44 are substantially perpendicular to the plate surface of the connector holder 40.

  At the center in the width direction of each mounting portion 42, a passage groove 43 is formed along a path through which an elastic piece 18 of the connector 10 described later passes when the connector 10 is mounted on the connector holder 40. As shown in FIG. 3, the passage groove 43 extends linearly from the rear end of the connector holder 40 toward the front.

  The connector 10 and the connector holder 40 include a guide structure that guides the connector 10 to a predetermined position of the connector holder 40, and a lock structure that fixes the connector 10 mounted at the predetermined position of the connector holder 40 to the connector holder 40. (See FIG. 4).

The guide structure includes a guide portion 45 provided in the connector holder 40 and a guide receiving portion 14 provided in the connector 10.
A pair of guide portions 45 of the connector holder 40 are provided on each mounting portion 42 of the connector holder 40 (see FIG. 3). The pair of guide portions 45 extend in the front-rear direction so as to be substantially parallel to each other. As shown in FIG. 1, each guide portion 45 includes a guide leg portion 46 that stands upward from the upper surface of the connector holder 40, and a guide overhang portion 47 that projects from the upper end of the guide leg portion 46 to the left and right sides. . The overhang dimension of the guide overhang portion 47 is different between one and the other across the guide leg portion 46.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the guide receiving portions 14 of the connector 10 are provided at both ends in the width direction of the lower surface of each connector 10 (first housing M). A guide portion 45 can be inserted into the guide receiving portion 14 from the front.

  The guide receiving portion 14 is provided with a guide receiving piece 15 that is engaged with the lower surface side of the guide overhang portion 47 of the inserted guide portion 45 (see FIG. 1). The guide receiving piece 15 has a shape protruding from both ends in the width direction of the first housing M toward the center side. The projecting dimension of each guide receiving piece 15 is equivalent to the projecting dimension of the guide projecting portion 47 to be locked, and the guide receiving piece 15 disposed on the center side of the connector holder 40 in a state of being fixed to the connector holder 40. The overhang dimension is made larger than the overhang dimension of the guide receiving piece 15 arranged on the outside (see FIG. 1).

  In the state where the guide portion 45 is inserted into the guide receiving portion 14, the connector 10 is allowed to move only in the front-rear direction while the movement in the vertical direction and the left-right direction is restricted.

  A stop portion 16 is provided at the rear end portion of the guide receiving portion 14 to stop the advancement of the connector 10 by contacting the rear end of the inserted guide portion 45 (see FIG. 4). The stopper portion 16 abuts against the guide portion 45 of the connector holder 40 when the connector 10 reaches a predetermined position of the connector holder 40. The guide receiving portion 14 and the guide portion 45 also serve as a lock structure. Yes.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the lock structure includes a lock portion 48 provided in the connector holder 40 and a lock receiving portion 17 provided in the connector 10.
As shown in FIG. 3, the lock portions 48 of the connector holder 40 are provided one by one on the mounting portion 42 of the connector holder 40. The lock portion 48 is disposed at the approximate center in the width direction of each mounting portion 42.

  A locking portion 49 capable of locking the elastic piece 18 of the connector 10 is provided at the center in the width direction of the locking portion 48 (see FIG. 9). The locking portion 49 is provided in a form that is stretched above the passage groove portion 43 at a midway position near the front end of the passage groove portion 43. The locking part 49 is locked to the rear surface of the locking claw 18N of the elastic piece 18 and restricts the backward movement of the connector 10. The front surface of the locking portion 49 is formed with a surface that is inclined slightly downward and forward, and is substantially vertically cut, and the rear surface of the locking portion 49 is guided to get over the locking claw 18N. An inclined surface is formed as much as possible. An opening 51 is formed in a portion of the passage groove 43 that faces the locking portion 49 so as to penetrate the connector holder 40 in the vertical direction.

  As shown in FIG. 1, when the lock portion 48 is inserted into the lock receiving portion 17 on both sides of the locking portion 49, the connector 10 is locked with the lock receiving portion 17, thereby moving the connector 10 in the vertical and horizontal directions. A limiting unit 52 is provided to limit the above. As shown in FIG. 3, the pair of limiting portions 52 are provided along both sides of the passage groove portion 43, and the rear end portions thereof are connected by a locking portion 49.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the restricting portion 52 includes a restricting leg portion 53 that stands upward from the upper surface of the connector holder 40 and a restricting protruding portion 54 that protrudes from the upper end of the restricting leg portion 53 to the left and right sides. Extending in the direction. The restricting overhanging portion 54 has a large overhanging dimension on the side opposite to the locking portion 49. In addition, the height dimension of the restriction part 52 and the dimension in the front-rear direction are both smaller than the dimension of the guide part 45 in the same direction.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the lock receiving portion 17 of the connector 10 is provided at the center portion of the lower surface of the first housing M in the width direction. At the center in the width direction of the lock receiving portion 17, there is provided an elastic piece 18 that extends in a cantilevered direction toward the front and can be elastically bent in the vertical direction with the rear end portion as a fulcrum (see FIG. 9). ). A locking claw 18N is provided at the front end portion of the elastic piece 18 so as to protrude upward. The elastic piece 18 has a shape that becomes gradually thinner from the front end toward the rear end (the size in the vertical direction becomes smaller).

  On both sides of the elastic piece 18 in the lock receiving portion 17, as shown in FIG. 1, lock receiving pieces 19 that are engaged with the lower surface side of the limiting overhang portion 54 provided in the lock portion 48 are provided. The overhang dimension of the lock receiving piece 19 is the same as the overhang dimension of the restricting overhang portion 54 to be locked.

  Now, when the lever 10 is rotated when the connector 10 is not mounted at the predetermined position of the connector holder 40, the lever 30 contacts the contact portion 55 of the connector holder 40 and pushes the connector 10 to the predetermined position. A straightening unit 35 for straightening is provided (see FIG. 11).

The correction portion 35 is provided on the cam plate portion 31 that is disposed on the center side of the connector holder 40 when the connector 10 is attached to the connector holder 40 among the pair of cam plate portions 31.
The correcting portion 35 is a surface located on the rear side in the rotation direction when the lever 30 moves from the initial position to the fitting completion position among the two surfaces constituting the initial locking portion 34.

  When the lever 30 is in the initial position, the correction portion 35 is disposed at the front end portion of the connector 10 and is located at a height slightly above the lower surface of the connector 10 as shown in FIG. Then, the correction portion 35 moves rearward as the lever 30 moves toward the fitting completion position and lowers to a height equivalent to the lower surface of the connector 10, and then rises while moving further rearward. As shown in FIG. 8, it is assumed that the position reaches a position higher than the position arranged at the initial stage. The correction unit 35 is disposed substantially horizontally when the lever 30 is in the initial position.

  The contact portion 55 is provided between the pair of mounting portions 42 (between adjacent connectors 10) in the connector holder 40. As shown in FIG. 11, the contact portion 55 is a rear end surface of the escape groove portion 44 formed in the connector holder 40, and is shared by the adjacent connectors 10.

Next, an example of the operation | work which fixes the connector 10 comprised as mentioned above to the connector holder 40 is demonstrated.
First, the pair of housings M and F are fitted shallowly. The lever 30 is placed at the initial position, the front sides of the housings M and F are opposed to each other, and the cam pin 21 of the first housing M enters the entrance of the cam groove of the lever 30.

  Next, the connector 10 is attached to the connector holder 40. The connector 10 is slid from the rear toward the front along the upper surface of the connector holder 40 so that the guide portion 45 of the connector holder 40 is inserted into the guide receiving portion 14 of the connector 10 from the front. When the connector 10 is pushed forward, the connector 10 is guided by the guide portion 45 and the guide receiving portion 14, and when the connector 10 reaches a predetermined position, the lock portion 48 is inserted into the lock receiving portion 17 and the connector 10 is fixed. Is done. At this time, the elastic piece 18 of the lock receiving portion 17 is elastically deformed downward and climbs over the locking portion 49 of the locking portion 48, and then elastically returns to be locked to the front surface side of the locking portion 49. Further, the stopper 16 of the guide receiving portion 14 abuts against the rear surface of the guide portion 45. Thereby, the connector 10 is in a state where movement in the front-rear direction is restricted.

  Next, the lever 30 is rotated toward the fitting completion position, and the two housings M and F are brought into a completely fitted state. As the lever 30 is rotated, the housings M and F are attracted to each other by the cam action caused by the engagement between the cam pin 21 and the cam groove. At this time, the peripheral edge portion of the cam plate portion 31 enters the escape groove portion 44, and the lever 30 is smoothly rotated. When the lever 30 is in the fitting completion position, as shown in FIG. 9, both housings M and F are in a completely fitted state in which male and female terminal fittings T1 and T2 are electrically connected.

  By the way, as shown in FIG. 12, the lever 30 may be rotated even though the connector 10 is not mounted at a predetermined position of the connector holder 40. In such a case, since the connector 10 is located behind the predetermined position, the correction portion 35 of the rotated lever 30 is brought into contact with the contact portion 55 of the connector holder 40 as shown in FIG. The rotation of the lever 30 stops halfway. As a result, the operator notices that the connector 10 is not mounted at a predetermined position, so that the connector 10 is mounted again at the predetermined position, and the lever 30 is continuously rotated, whereby both the housings M, F can be brought into a completely fitted state.

Here, the operator may apply a strong force to the lever 30 to continue to rotate the lever 30. In such a case, the correction part 35 pushes the contact part 55 and the lever 30 is rotated, and accordingly, the connector 10 moves forward. Then, the connector 10 reaches a predetermined position and is fixed by the lock structure as described above. Further, the correction portion 35 of the lever 30 is separated from the contact portion 55, the lever 30 is smoothly rotated to reach the fitting completion position, and both the housings M and F are completely fitted.
Thus, the operation of fixing the connector 10 to the connector holder 40 is completed.

Next, operations and effects of the embodiment configured as described above will be described.
The lever connector of this embodiment includes a connector 10, a connector holder 40 to which the connector 10 is attached, a lever 30 that is rotatably provided to the connector 10, and the connector 10 is attached to a predetermined position of the connector holder 40. Then, the connector 10 has a lock structure for fixing the connector 10 to the connector holder 40. When the lever 30 is rotated when the connector 10 is not mounted at a predetermined position, the contact portion 55 of the connector holder 40 is provided. A correction portion 35 is provided that corrects the connector 10 by pressing the connector 10 to a predetermined position.

  According to this configuration, when the lever 30 is rotated when the connector 10 is not mounted at a predetermined position of the connector holder 40, the correction portion 35 of the lever 30 contacts the contact portion 55 of the connector holder 40. The connector 10 is pushed and corrected to a predetermined position, and the connector 10 reaching the predetermined position is fixed to the connector holder 40 by the lock structure. Therefore, it is possible to prevent an excessive force that causes damage to the parts from being applied to the contact portion of the lever 30, and the connector 10 can be reliably mounted at a predetermined position.

  A plurality of connectors 10 are attached to the connector holder 40, and the contact portion 55 is provided between the adjacent connectors 10 and shared. According to this configuration, the structure of the connector holder 40 can be simplified as compared with the case where the contact portion is provided for each connector.

<Other embodiments>
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described with reference to the above description and drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.
(1) In the above embodiment, the correction portion 35 is provided on the peripheral edge of the lever 30. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the contact portion is erected on the upper surface of the connector holder, and the correction portion is the cam plate portion. You may project on the plate surface.
(2) In the said Example, although the correction | amendment part 35 is made into the surface which comprises the initial stage lock part 34, you may provide not only this but a correction part and an initial stage lock part separately.
(3) In the above-described embodiment, the contact portion 55 is shared by the two connectors 10, but the present invention is not limited to this, and one contact portion may be provided for each connector.
(4) In the above-described embodiment, the correction portion 35 is provided only on one cam plate portion 31 of the pair of cam plate portions 31. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the correction portions are provided on both the pair of cam plate portions. It may be provided.
(5) In the above embodiment, the case where the two connectors 10 are mounted on the single connector holder 40 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and only one connector or three or more connectors are mounted on the single connector holder. It is good also as what is done.
(6) In the above embodiment, the lever 30 is assembled to the male housing M. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the lever may be assembled to either male or female housing.
(7) In the above embodiment, the guide receiving portion 14, the lock receiving portion 17, the guide portion 45, and the locking portion 48 are provided as the locking structure. The specific structure of the locking structure is that the connector is connected to the connector holder. Any structure may be used as long as it can be slid and fixed at a predetermined position.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Connector 14 ... Guide receiving part 17 ... Lock receiving part 40 ... Connector holder 45 ... Guide part 48 ... Lock part 30 ... Lever 35 ... Correction | amendment part 55 ... Contact part

Claims (2)

A connector;
A connector holder to which the connector is mounted;
A lever provided rotatably on the connector;
A lock structure having a guide portion, a guide receiving portion, a lock portion, and a lock receiving portion that slides and fixes the connector to a predetermined position of the connector holder;
A correction unit provided on the lever and corrects by contacting the contact portion of the connector holder and pushing the connector to the predetermined position when rotated when the connector is not mounted at the predetermined position. When,
Lever connector with A plurality of the connectors are attached to the connector holder,
The lever connector according to claim 1, wherein the contact portion is provided and shared between the adjacent connectors.

Images