JP4915245B2 - Connector, connection method, and connection structure - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a connection connector, a connection method, and a connection structure, and more particularly to a coaxial line connection connector, a connection method, and a connection structure.

  When connecting the coaxial line, the connection is made using a connection connector. FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional view of a commonly used connection connector. This connector is generally used to connect a coaxial line of about 20 GHz.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a general connection connector has a male side and a female side. The male side has a protruding shape in which the central conductor of the coaxial line protrudes. On the other hand, on the female side, the shape of the tip portion of the center conductor is a concave shape corresponding to the male projection. The distal end portion of the female-side central conductor has a spring structure so as not to alleviate an impact at the time of coupling or cause a clearance. Moreover, the tap is provided in the outer peripheral part of both the male side and the female side. At the time of connection, the connection state is locked by this tap, and the center conductor and the outer peripheral conductor serving as the ground are fixed.

  The connection connector may be used for a long time in an environment where the temperature fluctuates. It is also assumed that the desorption is repeated many times. In the conventional connector as shown in FIG. 1, the spring structure part gradually deteriorates due to repeated desorption and thermal contraction due to exposure to a long-term temperature fluctuation environment, which threatens the stability of the connection. It was sometimes. In the state where the male side and the female side are connected, if the central conductors are brought into contact with or separated from each other due to thermal contraction or external mechanical stress, it is considered that instantaneous signal interruption or the like occurs.

  Further, in such a connector, the connection cannot be made unless the positions of the central conductors coincide with each other. Therefore, at the time of connection, it is necessary to connect the male side and the female side facing each other from the front. If either the male side or the female side is attached to a flexible cable or the like, and the relative position can be freely adjusted, the connection can be easily made to face directly from the front. However, the relative position between the male side and the female side may not be freely adjusted. For example, when the sub-panels in the same device are to be directly connected (when the positions of the sub-panels are fixed), it is difficult to align the center conductors and it may be difficult to connect them.

  Therefore, there is a demand for a connection connector that can be easily connected without threatening the stability of the connection.

  As a related technique, Patent Document 1 discloses a housing having an upper surface and a lower surface, a through-hole penetrating the upper and lower surfaces of the housing, a cylindrical dielectric inserted into the through-hole, A high-frequency IC connection structure including a connection pin that is inserted into the through hole in a state surrounded by a dielectric, and includes a holding portion that holds a high-frequency signal input / output pin in the high-frequency IC at the upper and lower surface side ends of the housing. It is disclosed.

  Patent Document 2 discloses a technique for improving the reliability between an internal conductor and an input / output terminal when connected in a point contact state.

  In Patent Document 3, a circuit board having a microstrip line signal line pattern and a turn between installations is mounted in a conductive package to which a coaxial connector is attached, and the coaxial connector core wire and signal connection ribbon are mounted. It is described that a circuit board and a coaxial connector are electrically connected by wires, and a dielectric material is filled in a gap between the circuit board and the conductive package.

  On the other hand, Patent Document 4 describes, as a description about a strip line, a two-layer structure in which two metal strips face each other with a ceramic as a dielectric therebetween.

JP 2003-332487 A JP 58-70602 A Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-237209 JP-A-3-163901

  An object of the present invention is to provide a connection connector that is less likely to cause signal interruption.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a connector that can be easily connected even when the position cannot be freely adjusted.

[Means for Solving the Problems] will be described below using the numbers and symbols used in [Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention]. These numbers and symbols are added in parentheses in order to clarify the correspondence between the description of [Claims] and [Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention]. However, these numbers and symbols should not be used for the interpretation of the technical scope of the invention described in [Claims].

  The connector (10) according to the present invention includes a coaxial line (7) having a central conductor (4), strip lines (1, 2, 3) electrically connected to the coaxial line (7), and a strip line. And a dielectric film (5) covering at least a part of (1, 2, 3). The strip lines (1, 2, 3) are provided in a flat plate shape. The dielectric film (5) is provided so as to be in contact with the connection surface of the mating connector at the time of connection.

  With such a configuration, since a spring structure or the like is not required, the connection portion will not be deteriorated even if it is used for a long time in an environment with temperature fluctuations or the detaching operation is repeated many times. Therefore, instantaneous signal interruption due to deterioration is unlikely to occur.

  Further, since the dielectric film (5) serves as a connection surface, the connection is made through the dielectric film (5) at the time of connection. In the connected state, this dielectric film (5) becomes a capacitor. That is, the coaxial lines (7) are connected to each other via the capacitor. With such a configuration, even if the positions of the connection connectors (10) are slightly deviated in the connected state, the capacitance value of the connection portion is only slightly deviated. As a result, exact alignment is not required, and even when it is difficult to freely adjust the position of the connection connector (10), connection can be easily performed.

  The connector (10) further includes a conductive housing (1), a dielectric substrate (2) provided on a part of the outer surface of the housing (1), and a dielectric substrate (2). And a conductive line (3) formed on the substrate. Here, the strip lines (1, 2, 3) are formed as overlapping portions of the casing (1), the dielectric substrate (2), and the line (3). The line (3) and the dielectric substrate (2) have an exposed portion (12) that is not covered with the dielectric film (5). The coaxial line (7) and the strip lines (1, 2, 3) are electrically connected by being connected to the line (3) at the central conductor (4) and the exposed portion (12).

  Further, a concave portion having a bottom surface is formed on the outer surface of the housing (1), and the dielectric substrate (2), the line (3), and the dielectric film (5) are arranged on the bottom surface of the concave portion. It is preferable that Moreover, it is preferable that the depth of the concave portion matches the thickness from the bottom surface to the dielectric film.

  In this way, if the concave portion is provided and the depth of the concave portion and the thickness to the dielectric film are made to coincide with each other, excessive pressure is not applied to the joint surface at the time of connection, and the connection connector (10) is deteriorated. Can be further prevented.

  In this connection connector (10), it is preferable that the exposed portion (12) of the dielectric substrate (2) is provided with a through hole (6) penetrating the dielectric substrate (2). The coaxial line (7) is preferably attached so as to extend from the through hole (6) to the inside of the housing (1). The center conductor (4) is drawn out to the line (3) side of the dielectric substrate (2) through the through hole (6), and is connected to the line (3) on the line (3) side. Is preferred.

  The connection connector (10) further includes a conductive casing (1), a conductive sheet (9) provided on a part of the outer surface of the casing (1), and a conductive sheet (9). It is preferable to comprise a dielectric substrate (2) provided on top and a conductive line (3) formed on the dielectric substrate (2). At this time, the strip lines (1, 2, 3) are formed as overlapping portions of the conductive sheet (9), the dielectric substrate (2), and the line (3).

  With such a configuration, the conductive sheet (9) provided between the housing (1) and the dielectric substrate (2) serves as a cushion at the time of connection. As a result, the impact at the time of connection is absorbed and the joint surfaces can be brought into contact with each other more reliably.

  The connection connector structure (20) concerning this invention is a connection connector structure using said connection connector (10). In this connection connector structure (20), two connection connectors (10) are connected so that their joint surfaces are opposed to each other.

  The connection method according to the present invention includes a step of preparing two connection connectors (10) and a step of connecting the two connection connectors (10) so that their contact surfaces are opposed to each other. It has.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the connection connector which is hard to produce the signal interruption etc. is provided.

  Furthermore, according to the present invention, there is provided a connection connector that can be easily connected even when the position cannot be freely adjusted.

(First embodiment)
The first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 2 is a perspective view of the connection connector 10 according to the present embodiment, FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an exploded main part, and FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional view.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the connection connector 10 includes a metal case 1, a coaxial line 7, a dielectric substrate 2, a line 3 provided on the dielectric substrate 2, and a dielectric film 5. I have.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a concave portion recessed inward is formed on one outer surface of the metal case 1. The recess has a bottom surface. The bottom surface is provided with a hole 13 for passing the coaxial line 7 and a recess 8 for preventing interference with the other connection connector at the time of connection. The metal case 1 is grounded when connected.

  The coaxial line 7 is for transmitting an RF (Radio Frequency) signal. As shown in FIG. 4, the coaxial line 7 includes a center conductor 4, a dielectric 14 provided around the center conductor 4, and an outer conductor (not shown) provided on the outer peripheral side of the dielectric 14. have. The tip of the coaxial line 7 is connected to the hole 13 of the metal case 1. At the tip end portion of the coaxial line 7, the center conductor 4 protrudes toward the outside of the metal case 1. The protruding portion of the central conductor 4 is connected to a line 3 provided on the dielectric substrate 2 through a through hole 6 provided in the dielectric substrate 2 as will be described later. Although not shown, the outer peripheral conductor is connected to the metal case 1.

  The dielectric substrate 2 is an insulator and is disposed on the bottom surface of the recess of the metal case 1. As shown in FIG. 3, the dielectric substrate 2 is provided with a through hole 6 for passing the central conductor 4 at a position corresponding to the hole 13 of the metal case. Examples of the dielectric substrate 2 include a PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) substrate and an FR4 (Frame Regentant Type 4) substrate. Among these, a PTFE substrate is more preferable because it has a certain degree of elasticity. If an elastic substrate such as a PTFE substrate is used, the dielectric substrate 2 serves as a cushion during connection, and the connection can be reliably made without applying an excessive load to the connection connector 10.

  The line 3 is conductive and is provided on at least a part of the dielectric substrate 2. The line 3 is formed in a flat plate shape having a predetermined width (W) and extends to the vicinity of the through hole 6. The line 3 is electrically connected to the central conductor 4 drawn out from the through hole 6 in the vicinity of the through hole 6 by soldering or the like.

  As described above, since the dielectric substrate 2 and the line 3 are provided on the metal case 1, it can be understood that the overlapping portion constitutes a flat strip line.

  The dielectric film 5 is an insulator and is provided on the dielectric substrate 2 so as to cover at least a part of the line 3. However, as shown in FIG. 4, the dielectric film 5 is not provided in the vicinity of the through hole 6 of the dielectric substrate 2, and is an exposed portion 12 where the line 3 and the dielectric substrate 2 are exposed. As the dielectric film 5, for example, a commercially available photosensitive resin having a thickness of about 20 to 50 μm called a green resist can be used. This green resist is preferable from the viewpoint of cost and impact resistance during connection.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the depth a of the recess provided in the metal case 1 is designed to be equal to the total thickness of the dielectric substrate 2, the line 3, and the dielectric film 5. Thus, the outer surface portion of the metal case 1 other than the recess and the upper surface of the dielectric film 5 are provided on the same surface. In the connected state, the surface including the upper surface of the dielectric film 5 becomes the bonding surface 11.

  Next, a connection structure 20 in which two coaxial lines 7 are connected using the connection connector 10 having the above-described configuration will be described with reference to FIG. When connecting the coaxial lines 7 to each other, as shown in FIG. 5A, the connection connectors 10 </ b> A and 10 </ b> B are opposed so that the lines 3 are opposed to each other via the dielectric film 5. At this time, in order to prevent the connection portions of the center conductor 4 and the line 3 from overlapping each other, the connection portions of the center conductor 4 and the line 3 are opposed to each other. Then, as shown in FIG. 5B, the dielectric films 5 are brought into contact with each other to connect the two connection connectors 10A and 10B. At this time, a portion other than the concave portion of the surface of the metal case 1 provided with the concave portion also comes into contact. In addition, the connection part of the center conductor 4 and the track | line 3 does not interfere with the metal case 1 by providing the hollow 8. FIG. In this state, for example, the connection state can be maintained by fixing the metal cases 1 around the recesses with screws or the like. In the connected state, the metal case 1 is grounded. Thereby, the metal case 1 becomes a ground plane.

  In this connection structure 20, a part of the line 3 on each dielectric substrate 2 overlaps, and a sandwich structure is formed with the dielectric film 5 interposed therebetween. Further, the overlapping portion of the dielectric substrate 2, the line 3, and the metal case 1 has a stripline structure as described above. Therefore, this connection structure 20 can be represented by an equivalent circuit (strip line-capacitor-strip line) as shown in FIG.

  In such a connection structure 20 via a capacitor, if the capacitance value of the capacitor is a value large enough to pass the RF signal (reactance is small enough), the RF signal is transmitted through the dielectric film 5. You can make it. The capacitance value of the capacitor is such that the thickness of the dielectric film 5 is t (m), the relative dielectric constant of the dielectric film 5 is εr, the width of the line 3 is W (m), and the dielectric films 5 overlap each other. When the length is L (m), it can be expressed by “8.85 × εr × W × L / 2t” (pF). Therefore, when designing the connection connector 10, W and L may be determined based on the thickness of the dielectric substrate 2 and the thickness of the dielectric film 5 employed. Specifically, W may be determined such that the characteristic impedance of the strip line is the same as the design value, and L is determined so that the value of the capacitor that can be calculated above is sufficiently large to pass the RF signal.

  According to the configuration described above, since the connection is made through the capacitor, it is possible to pass the RF signal even if the dielectric films 5 are not necessarily completely in contact with each other. Even if the dielectric films 5 are completely separated from each other in the connection structure 20, only the capacitance value of the capacitor portion shown in FIG. 6 becomes small, and even the capacitance value sufficient for the RF signal to pass through. If there is, there is no problem because there is no instantaneous interruption of the signal.

  Further, in the connection structure 20 of the present invention, even if there is a shift in the positions of the joint surfaces at the time of connection, only the area of the overlapping portion of the line 3 changes. Compared to the case of connection without any deviation, the capacitance of the capacitor is reduced by the amount of deviation. However, in this case as well, there is no problem as long as the capacitance value of the capacitor is within the design tolerance. Therefore, even when the position cannot be freely adjusted, the connection can be made relatively easily.

  Further, the connection structure 20 does not use a member that may be deteriorated such as a metal spring. Therefore, even if it is used for a long period of time or the detaching operation is performed many times, there is a low possibility that deterioration that causes a momentary signal interruption occurs.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, the second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view showing the configuration of the connection connector 10 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 7, in the present embodiment, a metal sheet 9 is added between the metal case 1 and the dielectric substrate 2 as compared with the first embodiment. Other points are the same as those in the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  Any metal sheet 9 can be used as long as it is conductive and has a slight springiness.

  If the metal sheet 9 is added in this way, the metal sheet 9 serves as a cushion even when the dielectric substrate 2 uses a relatively hard substrate (example: FR4). Therefore, even when the dielectric substrate 2 is relatively hard, the shock at the time of connection can be absorbed and the dielectric films 5 can be reliably brought into contact with each other.

  In the present embodiment, there is a concern that the spring property of the metal sheet 9 is weakened due to repeated desorption and exposure to a long-term temperature fluctuation environment. However, even if the contact between the dielectric films 5 becomes unstable, the capacitance value of the capacitor portion only slightly changes as described in the first embodiment. Then it is hard to become an obstacle.

It is sectional drawing of the conventional connection connector. It is a perspective view of the connection connector concerning a 1st embodiment. It is a disassembled perspective view of the connection connector concerning a 1st embodiment. It is a schematic cross section of the connection connector concerning a 1st embodiment. It is sectional drawing which shows the mode of the connection of the connection connector concerning 1st Embodiment. It is an equivalent circuit diagram at the time of connection. It is a disassembled perspective view of the connection connector concerning a 2nd embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Metal case 2 Dielectric board 3 Line 4 Center conductor 5 Dielectric film 6 Through-hole 7 Coaxial line 8 Depression 9 Metal sheet 10 Connector 11 Joint surface 12 Exposed part 13 Hole 14 Dielectric 20 Connection structure

Claims (4)

  A pair of connectors,
Comprising
  Each of the pair of connection connectors is
    A conductive housing having an outer surface formed with a recess;
    A dielectric substrate provided on the bottom surface of the recess;
    A conductive line provided on the dielectric substrate;
    A dielectric film provided on the dielectric substrate so as to cover a part of the line; and
    A coaxial line having a central conductor,
  In the recess, the housing is provided with a hole,
  The dielectric substrate is provided with a through hole at a position corresponding to the hole,
  The coaxial line extends in the housing so as to be connected to the hole at the tip,
  The tip of the central conductor protrudes from the inside of the housing to the outside through the hole and the through hole so as to be connected to the line.
  The bottom of the recess is further provided with a recess,
  The pair of connection connectors are connected so that the upper surfaces of the dielectric films face each other and contact each other, and the tip of the central conductor in one of the pair of connection connectors faces the recess in the other connection connector. Has been
Connection connector structure.   The connection connector structure according to claim 1,
  The depth of the recess is designed so that the upper surface of the dielectric film and the outer surface of the housing have the same height.
Connection connector structure.   The connection connector structure according to claim 1 or 2,
Furthermore,
  Each of the connection connectors includes a conductive sheet disposed between the bottom surface of the recess and the dielectric substrate.
Connection connector structure.   Used in the connection connector structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3.
Connector for connection.

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