JP3427665B2 - 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 connector, and more particularly to a connector with a retainer for double locking terminal fittings.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIGS. 10 and 11 show an image before the conventional male and female connectors 50 and 54 are fitted to each other. The female connector 50 on the left side of the drawing includes a female connector housing 51 that accommodates a female terminal fitting 53, and a pair of upper and lower retainers 52. The retainer 52 is for double-locking the female terminal fitting 53. When the retainer 52 is completely assembled to the female connector housing 51 after the female terminal fitting 53 is engaged by the lance 58, the retainer 52 is engaged. Protrusion 52
A attaches to the female terminal fitting 53 and holds it in a retaining state. On the other hand, a retainer 57 for double locking the male terminal fitting 55 is also provided on the male connector 54 side. Further, a hood portion 56 for protecting the male terminal fitting 55 is provided on the front side thereof and is slightly larger than the rear side thereof. Therefore, if the female terminal fitting 53 is not completely inserted and the retainer 52 is not inserted to the regular depth, the retainer 52 is lifted from the surface of the housing as shown by the solid line. Although it is possible to detect the half-insertion of the female terminal fitting 53 for the time being by this lifted state, the possibility of being overlooked cannot be denied because it is a visual judgment. However, in the case of the female connector 50, if the female terminal fitting 53 is half-inserted, the retainer 52 interferes with the opening edge of the hood portion 56 when the female and male connectors 50 and 54 are fitted, and further fitting is performed. There is no match. As a result, the half insertion of the female terminal fitting 53 is reliably detected.

[0003]

However, in the case of the male connector 54, even if the male terminal fitting 55 is half-inserted, it cannot be detected more than visually. For this reason, conventionally, the male connector 54 side and the female connector 50 side are in a state of imbalance in detection of half-insertion of the terminal fitting. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a connector that can reliably detect half-insertion of a terminal fitting even in a male connector, similar to a female connector.

[0004]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector according to claim 1, wherein a male connector housing of the male and female connector housings that can be fitted to each other is fitted to the female connector housing. A cover that engages with the female connector housing when it is displaced back in the lifting direction is attached rotatably, and a terminal metal fitting that is housed in the connector housing is attached to the male connector housing. A retainer that holds the retainer in place is provided so that it can be inserted, and the insertion position is located within the rotation area of the cover, so that it can interfere with the cover when the retainer is not inserted to the normal depth. It is characterized in that. The connector according to claim 2 is the connector according to claim 1,
The cover is formed in a substantially U shape having a pair of side pieces so as to cover from the upper surface to both side surfaces of the male connector housing, and the retainer is provided from a side surface of the male connector housing. By being insertable, the retainer can interfere with the edge of the side piece when the cover is lifted.

[0005]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the terminal fitting is mounted on the male connector housing in advance and the retainer is assembled, whereby the terminal fitting is doubly locked. Then, when the male and female connector housings are fitted together, the cover is lifted, and when the cover is moved back, both connector housings are held at the fitted position. At this time, when the retainer and the male-side connector housing have not reached the complete engagement position, the cover cannot be lifted, so that the female-side connector housing cannot be fitted. Therefore, incomplete engagement between the retainer and the male connector housing can be prevented. According to the invention of claim 2, the turning direction of the side piece and the inserting direction of the retainer are orthogonal to each other, so that the retainer cannot be inserted even if the cover is forcibly turned. Therefore, incomplete engagement between the retainer and the male connector housing can be prevented more effectively.

[0006]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 shows a state before assembly of a male connector 1 embodying the present invention. The male connector 1 includes a male-side connector housing 3 capable of accommodating a male-side terminal fitting 2, a retainer 4 that double-locks with the terminal-fitting 2 and holds the mating-side terminal fitting 2, and a mating female connector housing 7. And a cover 5 that holds the stopper in a retaining state. The male connector housing 3 is integrally formed of a synthetic resin material, and accommodates the terminal fitting 2 described later therein. Further, a hood portion 6 for protecting the terminal fitting 2 is provided on the front side of the male connector housing 3 (on the side where the female connector housing 7 is fitted). The hood portion 6 is formed in a rectangular tube shape which is slightly larger than the rear side, and is opened to the front to open the female connector housing 7
Can be fitted with.

Inside the hood portion 6, the tab portion 13 of the terminal fitting 2 is mounted so as to project, and when the male and female connector housings 3 and 7 are fitted, the male and female terminal fittings 19,
2 are connected in an electrically conducting state. Further, a pair of concave grooves 8 are provided from the opening edge in substantially the central portions of the left and right wall surfaces of the hood portion 6. A lock piece 9 projecting from the mating female connector housing 7 side can enter the groove 8. Further, a cam insertion hole 11 through which a cam lock 10 protruding from the lower surface of the cover 5 penetrates is opened at the center of the upper surface of the hood portion 6. A retainer mounting groove 17 is provided on one side surface (a front side surface as shown in FIG. 1) on the rear side of the male connector housing 3. In the retainer mounting groove 17, a pair of upper and lower retainer insertion holes 14 are opened at positions near the hood portion 6, that is, at positions near the center of rotation of the cover 5 described later. The retainer insertion hole 14 is provided so as to cross the terminal accommodating chambers 12 at right angles and to communicate with both.

A terminal housing chamber 12 for housing the terminal fitting 2 is provided inside the rear portion (rear side of the hood portion 6) of the male connector housing 3. The terminal accommodating chamber 12 shown in the drawing has a plurality of chambers arranged side by side in parallel. The rear side of the terminal accommodating chamber 12 is largely opened as a terminal accommodating port 12A for accommodating the terminal fitting 2, and the front side has a terminal insertion hole 12B into which the tab portion 13 of the terminal fitting 2 is inserted and which penetrates into the hood portion 6. And it has a small opening. Further, a pair of pivot shafts 18 for pivotally supporting the cover 5 are formed at the upper central portions of both side surfaces of the male connector housing 3 so as to project therefrom.

The male terminal fitting 2 is formed by bending a conductive metal plate and is connected to the mating female terminal fitting 19 to establish electrical connection between the male and female connectors. At the tip of the terminal fitting 2, a tab portion 13 that is coupled to the female terminal fitting 19 is provided in a protruding manner, and a pair of stabilizers 20 are projected downward by cutting and raising from both rear edges of the tab portion 13. Then, when the terminal fitting 2 is inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber 12 to the normal depth, the stabilizer 20 reaches immediately before the retainer insertion hole 14 described above.
Therefore, the retainer 4, which will be described below, has the retainer insertion hole 14
4, the terminal engaging piece 15 of the retainer 4 engages with the stabilizer 20 so that the terminal fitting 2 is retained inside the terminal accommodating chamber 12 as shown in FIG. Further, a barrel portion 21 for crimping the electric wire W is provided on the rear portion of the terminal fitting 2 in a protruding manner.

The retainer 4 is made of synthetic resin and has a U-shaped cross section as shown in the drawing. As described above, the retainer 4 is inserted into the retainer insertion hole 14 of the male connector housing 3 to lock the terminal fitting 2 in a retaining state. To do. The retainer 4 is composed of a rectangular parallelepiped substrate 16 and terminal engaging pieces 15 which are symmetrically projected from above and below the substrate 16. When the retainer 4 is assembled to the retainer insertion hole 14 of the male side connector housing 3 to the regular depth, the board 16 is attached to the retainer mounting groove 1
It is installed in 7. At this time, the board 16 and the outer wall surface of the male connector housing 3 are flush with each other.
And the depth of the retainer mounting groove 17 are substantially the same. Therefore, when the retainer 4 cannot be inserted to the regular depth due to insufficient insertion of the terminal fitting 2, the board 16
Does not fit into the retainer mounting groove 17, and a part thereof projects from the outer wall surface of the male-side connector housing 3.

The cover 5 is formed of a synthetic resin material, and is provided with a pair of side pieces 5A on both sides to form a substantially U-shape. Further, the cover 5 has an appropriate elasticity for expanding the both side pieces 5A, and the rotating shaft 18 can be fitted into the pair of shaft holes 23 formed at the ends of the both side pieces 5A. As a result, the cover 5 is assembled so as to be rotatable with respect to the male connector housing 3 and cover the upper half of the hood portion 6. Also, both sides 5A of the cover 5
A pair of lock holes 22 are opened near the front end of the. The two lock holes 22 are adapted to fit into the recessed grooves 8 of the hood portion 6 when the cover 5 is in the closed position with respect to the male connector housing 3 (state of FIG. 1). That is, when the male and female connector housings 3 and 7 are completely fitted together, the lock piece 9 provided on the female connector housing 7 side is positioned in the concave groove 8 of the hood portion 6. At this time, the tip portion of the lock piece 9 projects laterally from the concave groove 8. When the cover 5 is closed in this state, the lock piece 9 is engaged in the lock hole 22.

A cam lock 10 is provided so as to project downward from the inner surface of the cover 5 so that it can be inserted into the cam insertion hole 11 of the male connector housing 3 and the male and female connector housings 3 and 7 are fitted together. In this case, the cam groove 24 on the female connector housing 7 side can be engaged.
On the front surface of the cam lock 10, a guide surface 10A forming an inclined surface is provided.
When the female connector housing 7 is inserted into the hood portion 6, the guide surface 10A is pressed by the front end surface of the female connector housing 7 in accordance with the insertion operation, and the cover 5 is automatically pushed up. To be Then, when the pushed-up cover 5 returns, the cam lock 10 engages with the cam groove 24 of the female connector housing 7, and together with the lock hole 22 and the lock of the lock piece 9, the connector housings 3 and 7 are joined together. Double lock. By the way, the portion of the cover 5 near the center of rotation is formed in a stepped shape as described above (hereinafter, this stepped portion is referred to as the detection portion 25), and the rear end portion thereof reaches a position above the insertion position of the retainer. It has been extended. In addition, the detection unit 25
As shown in FIG. 3, the cover 5 is formed to be thicker than other portions of the side piece 5A, so that the cover 5 is rotated while being in close contact with the side surface of the male connector housing 3. Then, when the cover 5 rotates in the lifting direction, the detection unit 25
Since the retainer 4 exists in the rotation area of the retainer 4,
If is not inserted to the normal depth, the substrate 16 of the retainer 4 interferes with the detection unit 25.

The female connector housing 7 is made of a synthetic resin material and has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape.
9 is accommodated and electrically connected to the male connector housing 3. The female connector housing 7 is formed to be equal to or slightly smaller than the hood portion 6. A pair of lock pieces 9 are projected from both side walls of the female connector housing 7. The tip portion of the lock piece 9 is tapered upward. When the male and female connector housings 3 and 7 are fitted together, the lock piece 9 fits into the concave groove 8 of the male side connector housing 3. Further, a cam groove 24 is provided on the upper surface side of the female connector housing 7, and a cam lock 10 protruding from the cover 5 is engaged with the cam groove 24.

Next, the function and effect of the present embodiment configured as described above will be described. First, the cover 5 is assembled from above the male connector housing 3. Since the rear part of the cover 5 contacts the cover rotating shaft 18, the cover rotating shaft 18 is engaged in the shaft hole 23 of the cover 5 after the portion is bent so as to be expanded and deformed. In this state, the cover 5
Is rotatable upward. Next, the male terminal fitting 2
Is pushed into the terminal accommodating chamber 12 from the terminal accommodating port 12A.
When the tab portion 13 of the terminal fitting 2 projects into the hood portion 6 from the terminal insertion hole 12B and reaches a predetermined position, the insertion of the terminal fitting 2 is completed.

Then, the terminal engaging piece 15 of the retainer 4 is inserted into the retainer insertion hole 14 of the male connector housing 3. When the retainer 4 is pushed into the retainer mounting groove 17 while pressing the retainer 4, the side wall surface of the male connector housing 3 and the retainer 4 substrate 16 are flush with each other, and the retainer 4 is assembled. . In this way, the assembling of the male connector 1 is completed. Next, the male connector 1 and the female connector housing 7 that are completely assembled in this manner are fitted together. When the female connector housing 7 is inserted into the hood portion 6, the upper end of the distal end of the female connector housing 7 presses the cam lock 10 projecting on the inner surface side of the cover 5 with the insertion work. Since the leading end side of the cam lock 10 is the guide surface 10A, the cam lock 10 receives an upward force when the female connector housing 7 is inserted. Therefore, the cover 5 rotates in the pushing-up direction with the cover rotating shaft 18 as the center of rotation. In this way, the cover 5 is accompanied by the fitting operation of the male and female connector housings 3, 7.
Is automatically lifted, so that the operation of pushing up the cover 5 is unnecessary.

When the female connector housing 7 is further inserted and the fitting of the male and female connector housings 3 and 7 is completed, the cam groove 2 provided on the female connector housing 7 side.
The positions of 4 and the cam lock 10 are aligned. At the same time, on the side wall surface, the lock piece 9 of the female connector housing 7 is located in the concave groove 8 of the hood portion 6. At this position, the cover 5 is rotated in the direction of pushing back. Then, the cam lock 10 on the lower end surface of the cover 5 is attached to the wall surface on the front side of the cam groove 24, and the female connector housing 7 is pulled toward the male connector housing 3 to complete the fitting of both connector housings 3, 7. . At this time, the cam lock 10 and the cam groove 24 are on the upper surface side.
, And the lock hole 2 of the cover 5 on the side wall surface side.
The lock piece of the female connector housing 7 is engaged with the inside of the connector 2. In this way, the male and female connector housings 3 and 7 are held in the disengaged state by the engagement at the two places. In this way, when the retainer 4 and the male connector housing 3 are completely assembled, the fitting operation of the male and female connector housings 3 and 7 can be performed smoothly.

On the other hand, when the retainer 4 is not inserted to the regular depth with respect to the male side connector housing 3 due to incomplete insertion of the terminal fitting 2, the board 16 of the retainer 4 is inserted into the male side connector housing 3. It is located at a position protruding outward from the side surface of the. In this state, when the male connector housing 3 and the female connector housing 7 are attempted to be fitted to each other, even if the tip end surface of the female connector housing 7 first comes into contact with the guide surface 10A of the cam lock 10, the detection is made behind the cover 5. The cam lock 10 cannot be pushed up because the portion 25 interferes with the substrate 16 (see FIG. 9).
That is, the worker notices that the retainer 4 is not completely inserted because the female connector housing 7 cannot be pushed in.

As described above, according to this embodiment, when the retainer 4 and the male side connector housing 3 are not in the completely engaged position, the cover 5 is not lifted up so that the female side connector housing 7 is fitted. I can't. In addition, the turning direction of the side piece 5A and the inserting direction of the retainer 4 are
Since they are orthogonal to each other, the retainer 4 cannot be inserted even if the cover 5 is forcibly rotated. Therefore, incomplete engagement between the retainer 4 and the male connector housing 3 can be prevented. Further, since this incomplete engagement preventing function does not depend on visual observation, the half insertion of the terminal fitting 2 can be detected more completely.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, but can be implemented with various modifications. The engagement position between the cover rotation shaft and the cover is not limited to the rear end portion of the cover and may be the central portion. The cover may be biased in the closing direction so that the closing operation of the cover can be automatically performed. The retainer may have a flat plate shape instead of the U-shape. Further, the retainer may be inserted not on the side surface but on the upper surface of the housing. The cover may also serve as a hood. Also, a pair of upper and lower covers may be attached.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view before mounting a male connector.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state of a cam lock projecting inside the cover.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the retainer fully inserted into the male connector housing.

FIG. 4 is a side sectional view before fitting the male and female connectors.

FIG. 5 is a side cross-sectional view when the tip of the female connector housing starts pushing up the cam lock when fitting the male and female connectors.

FIG. 6 is a side sectional view when the female connector housing pushes up the cam lock when fitting the male and female connectors.

FIG. 7 is a side cross-sectional view when the male and female connectors are fitted and the cover is pushed in.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of the retainer not fully inserted into the male connector housing.

FIG. 9 is a side cross-sectional view when the male and female connectors are about to be fitted in the state of FIG.

FIG. 10 is a side sectional view of a conventional example in which a female-side connector housing and a retainer are not completely engaged with each other, and a female-male connector is to be fitted.

FIG. 11 is a side cross-sectional view in which the female retainer and the male hood portion are in contact with each other in the same example.

[Explanation of symbols] 1 ... Connector 2 ... Terminal fittings 3 Male connector housing 4 ... Retainer 5 ... Cover 7. Female connector housing

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A male-side connector housing of the male and female connector housings that can be fitted to each other is displaced in the lifting direction when the female-side connector housing is fitted, and when moved back, the female-side connector housing becomes the female-side connector housing. A cover that engages is rotatably attached, and a retainer that holds the terminal fittings housed in the connector housing in a retaining state is provided in the male connector housing so that the retainer can be inserted. A connector, wherein the connector is arranged in a rotation region of the cover so that the retainer can interfere with the cover when the retainer is not inserted to a normal depth. 2. The cover according to claim 1, wherein the cover is formed in a substantially U shape having a pair of side pieces so that it can be covered from the upper surface to both side surfaces of the male connector housing. And wherein the retainer is insertable from the side surface of the male connector housing so that the retainer can interfere with the edge of the side piece when the cover is lifted. connector.