JP2837088B2 - Connector waterproof plug and waterproof plug mounting structure - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a waterproof plug and a waterproof plug mounting structure incorporated in a connector of a wire harness of an automobile or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which a conventional waterproof plug shown in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. Sho 62-163879 is incorporated into a connector.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a connector housing. A terminal (not shown) is inserted into a terminal insertion hole 1a of the connector housing 1, and a waterproof plug 3 is fitted to an outer periphery of an electric wire 2 extending rearward. The waterproof plug 3 allows the electric wire 2
A gap between the terminal insertion hole 1a and the inner wall of the terminal insertion hole 1a is sealed.

The waterproof plug 3 is entirely made of rubber and has a cylindrical main body 4 having an inside through which an electric wire is inserted. At the front end of the main body 4, a crimping cylinder portion 5 is extended.
A waterproof plug 3 is fixed to the rear end of the terminal. Seal portions 8a and 8b having a corrugated cross section are formed on the inner periphery and the outer periphery of the main body 4 of the waterproof plug 3 to be in close contact with the outer periphery of the electric wire 2 and the inner periphery of the terminal insertion hole 1a of the connector housing 1, respectively. I have. A tapered portion 9 for facilitating insertion of the electric wire 2 is provided on the inner periphery of the rear end of the main body 4.

[0005]

When the terminal to which the waterproof plug 3 is crimped is inserted into the terminal insertion hole of the connector housing 1, the position of the waterproof plug 3 is not necessarily determined. 1 is lower or higher than the outer end wall 1b.

[0007] When the terminal is lowered as shown in FIG. 6, a recess 10 is formed which is surrounded by the inner wall of the terminal insertion hole 1 a, the rear end face 3 b and the tapered face 9 of the waterproof plug 3, and the electric wire 2. Therefore, when the depression 10 faces upward, water 11 may accumulate here.

When water accumulates, there is a possibility that water may enter the terminal side during a long period of time due to vibration, movement of electric wires, and the like. When water invades, there is a possibility that a leak may occur between the terminals or that the terminals may be corroded to cause a connection failure.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and in view of the above circumstances, it is possible to prevent water from accumulating at the rear end of a waterproof plug, and to further enhance the reliability of the seal. The purpose is to provide.

[0009]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a waterproof plug which is fitted around an outer periphery of an electric wire and passes between an electric wire passed through a terminal insertion hole of a connector housing and an inner wall of the terminal insertion hole. In the cylindrical waterproof plug to be sealed, an umbrella-shaped exposed portion that is exposed outside the outer end wall of the connector housing and that covers the terminal insertion hole is provided at a rear end in the insertion direction with respect to the terminal insertion hole. The umbrella-shaped exposed portion is characterized in that an annular lip having elasticity that is in close contact with the outer end wall is protruded from a portion facing the outer end wall of the housing.

[0010] The waterproof plug according to the second aspect of the present invention is the first aspect.
In the waterproof plug of the connector described above, an annular concave portion is provided on the rear end surface of the exposed portion so as to make a round around the electric wire.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a waterproof plug mounting structure according to the first or second aspect, wherein a cylindrical wall surrounding the exposed portion protrudes from an outer end wall of the connector housing accommodating the waterproof plug. In addition, a drain groove is formed in the cylindrical wall.

[0012]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the exposed portion covers the terminal insertion hole, and the lip closes the gap between the outer end wall of the connector housing and the exposed portion, so that water does not collect at the rear end of the waterproof plug. There is no danger of water entering through the gap between the exposed portion and the connector housing. Even if the position of the waterproof plug is slightly displaced, the lip is always in close contact with the outer end wall of the connector housing, so that variations in the position of the waterproof plug can be absorbed by the deformation of the lip and always maintain good sealing performance. I do. Further, since the exposed portion is larger than the terminal insertion hole, it functions as a stopper, stops the waterproof plug from entering any more, and maintains the sealing property by the lip.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the annular concave portion acts as a relief for deforming the exposed portion when the electric wire is inserted. Therefore,
When the electric wire is inserted in the free state, the cylindrical portion inside the annular concave portion is easily opened outward, so that the electric wire is easily inserted. Further, when the waterproof plug is inserted into the terminal insertion hole, the exposed portion is flexibly deformed according to the degree of insertion, so that the absorption amount of the variation in the position of the waterproof plug increases. Since the annular concave portion is exposed outside, there is a possibility that water will accumulate here, but even if water accumulates here,
Since this annular concave portion does not face a gap with another member, there is no possibility that the annular concave portion will enter the inside.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the cylindrical wall protects the waterproof plug. Moreover, since water escapes from the drain groove, water does not accumulate inside the cylindrical wall.

[0015]

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

FIG. 1A shows a waterproof plug 2 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 1B is a sectional view showing a state in which the waterproof plug 20 of the embodiment is incorporated in the connector housing 1. The waterproof plug 20 of this embodiment is the same as the conventional waterproof plug 3 shown in FIG. 6 except that the structure of the rear end is different. Therefore, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted, and only different portions will be described.

An umbrella-shaped exposed portion 21 is formed integrally at the rear end of the body 4 of the waterproof plug 20 in the wire insertion direction. The umbrella-shaped exposed portion 21 is exposed outside the outer end wall 1b of the connector housing 1 when assembled into the connector, and covers the terminal insertion hole 1a (a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the terminal insertion hole 1a). belongs to. An annular lip 22 whose tip is in close contact with the outer end wall 1a protrudes from an outer peripheral edge of a surface of the umbrella-shaped exposed portion 21 facing the outer end wall 1a of the housing 1. The lip 22 has elasticity and is deformed flexibly.

On the rear end face of the exposed portion 21, an annular concave portion 23 is formed so as to go around the periphery of the electric wire 2, so that a thin cylindrical portion 24 fitted to the outer periphery of the electric wire 2 is formed inside the annular concave portion 23. Is secured. The depth of the annular concave portion 23 is set to be equal to or larger than the dimension of the exposed portion 21 in the wire insertion direction. This is to effectively cause the deformation of the exposed portion 21.

Next, the operation will be described.

When the electric wire 22 is passed through the waterproof plug 20, the electric wire 2 is passed through the innermost cylindrical portion 24 of the exposed portion 21,
Since the annular concave portion 23 exists outside the cylindrical portion 24, the cylindrical portion 24 can be relatively flexibly deformed. Therefore, insertion of the electric wire 2 is easy, and workability is not impaired.

The waterproof plug 20 is swaged to the rear end of the terminal,
When inserted into the terminal insertion hole 1a of the connector housing 1 while being fitted to the outer periphery of the electric wire 2, as shown in FIG. 1B, the outer periphery of the exposed portion 21 becomes the outer end wall 1b of the connector housing 1. Hit. Then, the tip of the lip 22 comes into close contact with the outer end wall 1b of the connector housing 1, and the exposed portion 2
1 and the outer end wall 1b of the connector housing 1 are sealed. Therefore, intrusion of water into the inside is prevented.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the state at this time as viewed from the outside. In this state, since the electric wire 2 is held by the cylindrical portion 24 surrounded by the annular concave portion 23, even when the electric wire 2 moves in the direction of the arrow in the drawing, the cylindrical portion 24 bends following the movement. . Therefore, the electric wire can be held elastically, and the movement of the electric wire 2 does not reach the seal portions 8a and 8b (see FIG. 1), and the performance of the seal portions 8a and 8b itself is not impaired.

As shown in FIG. 3, when the waterproof plug 20 is inserted further into the position, the outer peripheral portion of the exposed portion 21 is deformed toward the annular concave portion 23, that is, inward by the force received by the lip 22, The movement of the position of the waterproof plug 20 is allowed in a large range. In this case as well, the lip 22 is deformed, but the tip continues to closely contact the outer end wall 1b of the connector housing 1, thereby maintaining the sealing property. In addition, a reaction force is generated by the deformation of the exposed portion 21, so that the waterproof plug 20 is pressed so as not to enter further.

The outer end wall 1b of the connector housing 1
A projecting cylindrical wall surrounding the exposed portion of the waterproof plug 20
The waterproof plug 20 may be protected. FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a mounting structure of the waterproof plug 20 provided with such a cylindrical wall 1d, and FIG. 5 is a connector housing 1 provided with the cylindrical wall 1d.
FIG. As shown in these figures, the cylindrical wall 1d
Is provided, it is desirable to form the drain groove 1c in the cylindrical wall 1d itself.

[0025]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, since the exposed portion is provided at the rear end portion, it is possible to prevent water from collecting at the rear end portion of the waterproof plug. Also,
Since the lip always closes the gap between the exposed portion and the housing, there is no danger of water entering inside regardless of the position of the waterproof plug, and the reliability of the seal is improved.

According to the second aspect of the invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, the presence of the annular concave portion increases the degree of freedom of deformation of the exposed portion, and facilitates insertion of the electric wire. Further, the variation absorption amount of the position of the waterproof plug can be increased, and good sealing performance can always be maintained regardless of the position of the waterproof plug.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the waterproof plug is surrounded by the cylindrical wall, the waterproof plug can be protected.
In addition, since water can escape from the drain groove, accumulation of water can be prevented.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 shows a waterproof plug according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein (a) is a perspective view of the waterproof plug and (b) is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a state where the waterproof plug is assembled to a connector housing.

FIG. 2 is an external view showing a state in which the waterproof plug according to one embodiment of the present invention is assembled to a connector housing.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing another example of a state in which the waterproof plug according to the embodiment of the present invention is assembled to a connector housing.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a state in which the waterproof plug according to the embodiment of the present invention is assembled to another connector housing.

5 is a perspective view of a rear end portion of the connector housing shown in FIG.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing a structure in which a conventional waterproof plug is incorporated in a connector housing.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Connector housing 1a Terminal insertion hole 1b Outer end wall 1c Drainage groove 1d Cylindrical wall 2 Electric wire 20 Waterproof plug 21 Exposure part 22 Lip 23 Ring recess

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-7-142118 (JP, A) JP-A 62-163879 (JP, U) JP-A 56-105272 (JP, U) JP-A 4-142 8271 (JP, U) Japanese Utility Model Showa 58-165808 (JP, U) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁶ , DB name) H01R 13/52 301

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] A tubular waterproof plug fitted to the outer periphery of an electric wire and sealing between the electric wire passed through the terminal insertion hole of the connector housing and an inner wall of the terminal insertion hole, wherein the watertight plug is inserted into the terminal insertion hole. An umbrella-shaped exposed portion that is exposed outside the outer end wall of the connector housing and covers the terminal insertion hole is provided at the rear end in the direction, and the umbrella-shaped exposed portion is provided on the outer end wall of the housing. A waterproof plug for a connector, characterized in that an annular lip having elasticity, which is in close contact with the outer end wall, protrudes from a facing portion. 2. The waterproof plug for a connector according to claim 1, wherein an annular concave portion surrounding the wire is provided on a rear end surface of the exposed portion. 3. A tubular wall surrounding the exposed portion is projected from an outer end wall of the connector housing accommodating the waterproof plug according to claim 1, and a drain groove is formed in the tubular wall. A waterproof plug mounting structure for a connector.