JP3039345B2 - Flat cable connector and jig for surface mount connector - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a flat cable connector and a jig for a surface mount connector, and more particularly to a flat cable connector to which a flat cable can be attached on either side.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a connector for a flat cable of this type, the one shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 is known.
The thin box-shaped casing 1 is provided with a slit-shaped opening 2 on a wide side surface, and a U-shaped terminal fitting 3 is press-fitted from the rear side and mounted. The terminal fitting 3 extends along the ceiling surface and the bottom surface in the opening 2 and has contact portions 3a and 3b facing each other at a tip portion. The retainer 4 has a plate portion 4a inserted into the opening 2, and the plate portion 4a can be inserted along the bottom surface or along the ceiling surface. Also, the flat cable 5 can be inserted into the opposite side. One end of the flat cable 5 has a terminal portion 5a with a metal surface exposed, and a surface on which the terminal portion 5a is not formed is a contact portion 3a on the side facing the inside of the opening 2. 3b
Attach so that the lid is covered. Thereby, the common casing 1 can be used regardless of whether the surface on which the terminal portion 5a is formed is on the upper side or the lower side.

[0003]

In the conventional flat cable connector described above, the flat cable 5 is used.
And the retainer 4 come into contact with each other and are held. However, regardless of which side is inserted first, the other must be inserted while slidingly contacting the other. However, such insertion work was difficult because the flat cable 5 was thin. Further, an electrode for grounding or the like could not be provided on the surface opposite to the terminal portion 5a.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and provides a flat cable connector that can be mounted regardless of the formation surface of the terminal portion of the flat cable 5 and that can be easily mounted. With the goal.

[0005]

To achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a flat cable and a retainer plate are inserted into an opening of a casing in which terminal fittings are juxtaposed, and the flat cable and a retainer plate are inserted into a surface of the flat cable. In the flat cable connector in which the contact portion of the terminal fitting is pressed against the formed terminal portion to conduct electricity, the opening of the casing is
The flat cable can be inserted on either side in a state where the terminal fitting is positioned in the middle of the thickness direction, and the terminal fitting can be inserted on any side where the flat cable can be inserted in the opening. Also equipped with the abutment section,
The retainer is configured to be insertable into any side of the opening where the flat cable is not inserted.

[0006] The invention according to claim 2 is based on claim 1.
In the flat cable connector according to the above, a terminal fitting which can conduct to a terminal portion formed on the back side of the flat cable is provided on a ceiling surface and a bottom surface in the opening where the terminal fitting is arranged. Further, according to the invention according to claim 3, in the flat cable connector according to claim 1 or 2, the casing has two side-by-side openings, and the partition wall portion is penetrated so as to allow the terminal to pass therethrough. The configuration is such that a contact portion of a metal fitting is provided.

[0007]

[0008]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the flat cable is connected to one of the terminal and the ceiling or the bottom located in the middle of the casing in the thickness direction. insert. At this time, the flat cable is inserted so that the terminal portion thereof is in contact with the terminal fitting. That is, if the terminal is located on the lower surface of the flat cable, insert it between the terminal fitting and the ceiling surface, and if the terminal is located on the upper surface of the flat cable, insert it between the terminal fitting and the bottom surface I do. Thereafter, when the retainer is inserted into the opening in the side where the flat cable is not inserted, the terminal fitting is pressed against the terminal portion of the flat cable located on the opposite side to conduct.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the terminal fitting is disposed in the middle of the opening, and another terminal fitting is disposed on the ceiling surface and the bottom surface so as to sandwich the terminal fitting. When the flat cable is inserted into the ceiling or bottom side of the opening, the terminals on the front surface conduct to the middle terminal fittings, and the terminals on the back side connect to the ceiling or bottom terminal fittings. Conduct. Further, in the invention according to claim 3 configured as described above, two openings are provided in the casing, and the flat cable is inserted into one of the openings, and the retainer is inserted into the other opening. . Also in this case, the terminal fitting is provided through the partition wall portion between them, and the retainer pushes the terminal fitting toward the opening on the opposite side to conduct the terminal fitting.

[0010]

[0011]

As described above, according to the present invention, even if the terminal portion is provided on either side of the flat cable, it is sufficient to insert the terminal portion into the common casing, and the retainer also comes into sliding contact with the flat cable directly. Therefore, it is possible to provide a flat cable connector that can be easily mounted without damaging the flat cable. According to the second aspect of the present invention, even when the flat cable has terminal portions on both sides,
It can be mounted using a common casing.

Further, according to the third aspect of the present invention,
Since there are two openings per se, even if the flat cable is soft, it can be mounted above or below the terminal fitting or on a desired side.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a flat cable connector according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a casing alone, and FIGS. This is shown in the figure. In the figure, a flat cable 10 has a plurality of electric paths 12 made of a metal film such as copper foil on the lower surface of a film-shaped medium 11, and an electric path 13 for grounding formed on an upper surface. Although the electric line 12 itself is covered with a protective film for insulation, the flat cable 10
At the front end, the electric wire path 12 is exposed while being widened, and the metal surface is used as a terminal portion 14.

The flat cable 10 may have at least one terminal portion 14 having a metal surface exposed at one end, and its number and shape are not particularly limited. Needless to say, the terminal portion 14 may be formed on the upper surface of the flat cable 10. Also, the wire path 13 itself as a ground wire is not always necessary, and another plate material is overlapped to maintain the strength of the tip portion, or a protective cap for exposing the terminal portion 14 is attached. You can leave it. Further, it is not always necessary to have flexibility, and the present invention can be applied to those formed as a plate material.

The casing 20 has a thin rectangular box shape and is mounted on a printed circuit board (not shown) so as to lie down. One wide side surface is called a surface, and a slit-shaped opening 21 extending in the width direction is formed on the surface. A partition wall 22 is formed in the opening 21 in the horizontal direction, and it looks as if two chambers are arranged vertically above and below from the surface. The flat cable 10 can be inserted into any of the chambers 23 and 24 on the upper and lower sides of the opening 21, and the opening 21 communicates on the inner side of the partition wall 22.

In this embodiment, the casing 20 is formed in a thin rectangular box shape.
The outer shape and the like are not particularly limited as long as 0 can be inserted, and the mounting form can be appropriately changed, such as laying down on a printed circuit board or mounting it upright. . Although the partition wall 22 is not always necessary, if the entrance is divided into two at the opening 21, the place to be inserted becomes easy to understand, and the workability is improved.

On the back side of the casing 20, grooves 25 oriented in the vertical direction are formed by the number of the terminals 14, and terminal fittings 30 are mounted for each groove 25. Same groove 2
5 is in communication with the opening 21, and the terminal fitting 30 is provided with a contact portion 31 extending into the opening 21 through the communication portion.
A lead piece 32 protruding outward from the groove 25 and extending in parallel with the surface of the mounting board (not shown); and a positioning piece 33 press-fit into a fixing hole 26 formed below the groove 25 on the rear side. It is composed of The fixing hole 26 and a portion communicating with the opening 21 are both formed in parallel with the front-rear direction of the casing 20. The contact part 31 enters the opening 21 from the groove part 25,
It is a rear part in the opening 21 and is held in the middle of the thickness direction. The abutting portion 31 is formed with a mountain-shaped projection on the upper surface and the lower surface, and is easily conducted when pressed against the terminal portion 14 of the flat cable 10.

In the present embodiment, the terminal fitting 30 is formed in a substantially three-pronged shape including the contact portion 31, the lead piece 32 and the positioning piece 33, but is held at least in the opening 21 in the middle of the thickness direction. It is sufficient that only the contact portion 31 is provided, and it is not always necessary to have such a shape. For example, the rear end of the contact portion 31 is a lead piece, and can be pressed into the inner wall of the casing 20 and held. However, by forming it into a three-pronged shape, it has a slight flexibility between the pieces, absorbs the distortion of the shape of each part, and facilitates the mounting work. In particular, the contact portion 31 is made longer so as to be easily bent up and down, and can be easily bent to the other side when the flat cable 10 is first inserted as described later.

Corresponding to the flat cable 10 having the wire path 13 as a ground wire on the upper surface, a plate-like ground side extending in the width direction is provided on the ceiling surface and the bottom surface in the opening 21 of the casing 20. The terminal fittings 40 are mounted. As described above, the electric wire path 13 is not always necessary, and therefore, the ground-side terminal fittings 40, 40 are not necessarily required. However, according to the structure of the present embodiment, the flat cable having the terminal portions on both sides is used. Even if it is 10, it can be used. Needless to say, if the number of the electric wire paths 13 is plural, a corresponding number of terminal fittings may be provided on the ceiling surface and the bottom surface instead of the ground-side terminal fitting 40.

The retainer 50 has a plate-shaped retainer plate 51, and the retainer plate 51 can be mounted on either the upper or lower side of the opening 21 in the casing 20. At both ends in the width direction on the rear end side of the retainer plate 51, there are provided vertically extending supporting portions 52, 52, which are engaged with the supporting portions 52, 52 by a jig described later, and the casing is provided. 20. In the present embodiment, the retainer plate 51 having the same thickness is used, but it is sufficient that the retainer plate 51 can enter the opposite side of the flat cable 10 with respect to the contact portion 31 of the terminal fitting 30. Therefore, it is not necessary to have a constant thickness. For example, when there is no partition wall 22, the thickness of the retainer plate 51 may be increased only at that portion. By temporarily inserting the cable while changing its thickness in this way, the flat cable 1
When the 0 is inserted, it can be always inserted into a desired side with respect to the contact portion 31 of the terminal fitting 30.

Next, the operation of this embodiment having the above configuration will be described. As shown in FIG.
When the terminal portion 14 is formed on the lower surface of the
1 inserts the flat cable 10 into the upper chamber. As the flat cable 10 is inserted, it is forced to be inserted between the contact part 31 of the terminal fitting 30 and the ground-side terminal fitting 40 at the back, but one contact part 31 is made longer. Since it is formed to have flexibility in the vertical direction, it can be inserted relatively easily.

After the flat cable 10 is inserted, the retainer plate 5 of the retainer 50 is inserted into the lower chamber in the opening 21.
Insert 1. As the retainer plate 51 is inserted into the back, the retainer plate 51 enters below the contact portion 31 of the terminal fitting 30 and pushes up the contact portion 31. Since the flat cable 10 is inserted above the abutting portion 31, the abutting portion 31 is strongly pressed against the terminal portion 14 of the flat cable 10 by being pushed up, and is held so as to be conductive and not easily come off. You. Of course, during this time, the retainer plate 51 is not pressed while being pressed against the flat cable 10, so that even the soft flat cable 10 is not damaged.

On the other hand, when the terminal portion 14 is formed on the upper surface of the flat cable 10, the flat cable 10 is inserted into a chamber below the opening 21. Then, the flat cable 10 is located at the far end, where the contact portion 3 of the terminal fitting 30 is located.
Go under one. After the flat cable 10 is inserted, the retainer plate 51 of the retainer 50 is inserted into the upper chamber of the opening 21. Then, the retainer plate 51 enters the upper side of the contact portion 31 of the terminal fitting 30 and pushes the contact portion 31 downward, so that the contact portion 31 is strongly attached to the terminal portion 14 of the flat cable 10 entering the lower side. Pressed. Thereby, both are electrically connected and are held so as not to be easily removed.

In any case, the terminal 1
4 is a ground wire 13 formed on the side opposite to 4
Is pressed against a ground-side terminal fitting 40 on the ceiling surface or bottom surface, and the flat cable 10 is electrically connected to predetermined terminal fittings on both sides. Thus, the casing 20
The contact portion 31 of the terminal fitting 30 is held in the middle of the thickness direction in the opening 21, and in the opening 21, the flat cable 10 is provided on either the ceiling side or the bottom side.
When the flat cable 10 is inserted into the ceiling surface or the bottom surface so that the terminal portion 14 of the flat cable 10 faces the contact portion 31, and the retainer 50 is inserted into the opposite side, When the retainer plate 51 is pushed into the opposite side of the contact part 31, the contact part 31 is pressed against the terminal part 14 of the flat cable 10 to make it conductive and hold it strongly so as not to come off.

By the way, the casing 20 is mounted on the surface mounting board, but it is not easy to insert the retainer 50 on the surface of the plate. The jig 60 for the surface mount connector shown in FIGS.
Is formed in a pliers shape by rotatably supporting the two pieces 61, 61 in the middle thereof, and opening and closing the wide gripping parts 62, 62 so that a finger can be easily put on the pliers. 6
3, 63 can be opened and closed. Of course, gripper 6
Since the sides of the members 2 and 62 are longer than the sides of the acting portions 63 and 63, the acting portions 63 and 63 can be opened and closed by increasing the force by this action.

At the tip of each of the action parts 63, 63,
Concave portions 63a, 63a are formed so that the corners on the rear side at both ends of the casing and the retainer can be inserted therein. When the action portions 63, 63 are opened and pressed to cover the surface mount connector, FIG. Thus, the rear end corners of the casing and the retainer enter and are held in the four concave portions 63a. At this time, the width of the concave portions 63a, 63a is set to such a degree that no play is generated in the width direction. Thereafter, when the grip portions 62 are closed, the retainer and the casing are pressed, and as a result, the retainer is pushed into the casing. Of course, the levers can be pressed with a small force when closing the grips 62, 62 by leverage.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a flat cable connector according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a casing alone in the flat cable connector.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view when a flat cable having a terminal portion on a lower surface is used.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view when a flat cable having a terminal portion on an upper surface is used.

FIG. 5 is a side view of a jig for a surface mount connector.

FIG. 6 is a front view of a jig for a surface mount connector.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of an operation portion showing a use state of the jig for a surface mount connector.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional flat cable connector using a contact portion on the upper surface side.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view in the case where a contact portion on the lower surface side is used in the flat cable connector.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Flat cable 14 ... Terminal part 20 ... Casing 21 ... Opening 22 ... Partition wall 30 ... Terminal metal fitting 31 ... Contact part 40 ... Earth-side terminal metal fitting 50 ... Retainer 60 ... Surface mounting connector jig 61 ... Two pieces 62 ... Grip Part 63 ... Working part 63a ... Recess

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of front page (56) References JP-A-53-124793 (JP, A) JP-A-7-326439 (JP, A) JP-A 7-18386 (JP, U) JP-A 5- 59775 (JP, U) JP-A 4-112480 (JP, U) JP-A 4-112472 (JP, U) JP-A 6-31094 (JP, U) (58) Fields surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H01R 12/16-12/28 H01R 24/00-24/18

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A flat cable in which a flat cable and a retainer plate are inserted into an opening of a casing in which terminal fittings are juxtaposed, and a contact portion of the terminal fitting is pressed against a terminal formed on the surface of the flat cable to conduct electricity. In the connector, the opening of the casing allows the flat cable to be inserted on either side in a state where the terminal fitting is positioned in the middle of the thickness direction, and the terminal fitting is provided in the opening. The flat cable, wherein the contact portion is provided on any side where the flat cable can be inserted, and the retainer can be inserted on any side where the flat cable is not inserted in the opening. Connector. 2. The flat cable connector according to claim 1, wherein a terminal portion formed on a rear surface side of the flat cable is provided on a ceiling surface and a bottom surface in the opening in which the terminal metal is arranged. A connector for a flat cable, comprising: 3. The flat cable connector according to claim 1, wherein the casing has two side-by-side openings, and a partition wall portion between the casings is penetrated to form a contact portion of the terminal fitting. A flat cable connector characterized by being arranged.