JPH04315779A - Waterproof connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To complete insertion of a terminal even if the insertion of the terminal is imperfect and to uniform ressing force applied to a waterproof seal so as to enhance the waterproof property of a waterproof connector. CONSTITUTION:A slide tube 2 is longitudinally movably inserted between double walls 6,7 formed at the rear end portion of a housing main body 1 and a pair of lock pieces 22 which engage in both side portions of a cable 35 at a rear position of a waterproof seal 5 are provided to the slide tube 2 in such a manner as freely oscillating via a hinge portion 23, and a lock channel 11 and a protrusion 26 which keep the waterproof seal 5 pushed into a terminal storage room 3 by the lock pieces 22 when the slide tube 2 is moved forward are provided between the housing main body 1 and the slide tube 2. The waterproof seal 5 can be rectilinearly pushed by the lock pieces 22 of the slide tube 2 along the direction of insertion of terminals and, even if insertion of a terminal 42 is imperfect, the terminal 24 can be pushed into the terminal storage room 3 and also ressing force applied to the waterproof seal 5 can be uniformed.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a waterproof connector used in automobile wire harnesses, and more particularly to a waterproof connector having a so-called double locking function in which terminals are locked from behind the waterproof seal.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art Some waterproof connectors with a so-called double locking function have a structure in which a double locking member, which is a separate part from the housing body, is attached to and detached from the housing body (for example, 26272), and because of poor handling workability, a structure in which the double locking member is integrated with the housing body has been proposed as shown in Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. 64-12384. In this waterproof connector, the terminal attached to the end of the cable is inserted into the terminal storage chamber of the housing body, and is locked to the lance in the terminal storage chamber, and the opening of the terminal storage chamber is sealed to the cable. The waterproof seal is fixed, and a double locking member is attached to push the waterproof seal into the terminal storage chamber.This double locking member is integrally attached to the rear end of the housing body via a hinge. It is provided. When inserting the terminal into the terminal storage chamber of the housing body, flip up the double locking member, and after inserting the terminal, fold down the double locking member and store the double locking member into the terminal storage chamber. The structure is such that the rear end of the waterproof seal is pressed while being pushed into the opening of the chamber.

0003

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention] However, in such a waterproof connector, the double locking member is inserted into the terminal storage chamber by a swinging motion centered on the hinge portion, and the terminal storage chamber is inserted into the terminal storage chamber. Approximately linear movement is possible only within a small range of the opening of the chamber. Therefore, the action of pushing the waterproof seal of the terminal is small, and it merely functions as a stopper that comes into contact with the rear end of the waterproof seal. Therefore, if the terminal is not completely inserted into the terminal storage chamber and is in an incompletely inserted state, the function of pushing the terminal in to complete the insertion cannot be expected. However, if the waterproof seal protrudes from the housing body, there is a problem in that when the double locking member is swung, it hits the waterproof seal and cannot even come into contact with the rear end. In addition, since the main movement is rocking motion, the pressing force against the waterproof seal tends to be uneven between parts near and far from the hinge, and there is a risk that the waterproof seal will be unevenly deformed and its waterproof function will be impaired. The present invention
Not only does it double-lock the terminal, but it also makes it possible to push the waterproof seal in a straight line from the rear, complementing the insertion of the terminal, perfecting incomplete insertion, and evening out the pressing force against the waterproof seal. The purpose is to improve waterproofness.

0004

[Means for Solving the Problems] In the waterproof connector of the present invention, a terminal attached to an end of a cable is inserted into a terminal storage chamber of a housing main body, is latched to a lance in the terminal storage chamber, and the cable is In the waterproof connector in which a waterproof seal is fixed to seal the opening of the terminal storage chamber, a slide tube is provided at the rear end of the housing body so as to be movable back and forth, and the slide tube has a rear position of the waterproof seal. A pair of locking pieces facing each other with the cable sandwiched between them are swingably provided via a hinge part, and are installed between the housing body and the slide tube so that when the slide tube is moved forward, the locking pieces prevent the waterproofing. The device is characterized by a locking mechanism that holds the seal in a pressed state within the terminal storage chamber.

[0005]

[Operation] In the waterproof connector of the present invention, the locking piece of the slide tube is pulled out from the housing body and raised from the hinge part, and the terminal attached to the cable is inserted into the terminal storage chamber of the housing body and engaged with the lance. After stopping, when both locking pieces are swung, these locking pieces are opposed to each other with the cable in between at the rear position of the waterproof seal. Then, by moving the entire slide tube forward in this facing state, both locking pieces press the waterproof seal, and in this pressed state, the locking mechanism restricts the movement of the slide tube, so that the terminal Double locking is achieved between the lance inside the storage chamber and the locking piece that presses the waterproof seal. In this case, since the slide tube moves along the terminal insertion direction, it linearly presses the rear end of the waterproof seal, and the pressing force can be made uniform. In addition, if the terminal is incompletely inserted and is not locked by the lance when inserted, the terminal will be pushed into the terminal storage chamber together with the slide tube by the locking piece when the slide tube is moved forward. A terminal in a fully inserted state can be locked to a lance in a fully inserted state, resulting in a double locked state.

[0006]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the waterproof connector of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. This waterproof connector includes a housing body 1, a slide tube 2 provided on the housing body 1 so as to be movable back and forth, and a waterproof seal 5 that seals an opening 4 of a terminal storage chamber 3 of the housing body 1. has been done.

In the illustrated example, the housing main body 1 has two terminal storage chambers 3 arranged side by side and parallel to each other, and has an inner side wall 6 at the rear end so that the rear end has a double cylindrical shape. , outer side walls 7 are provided at some intervals. These side walls 6 and 7 form a guide hole 8 between which the slide tube 2 is inserted so as to be movable back and forth, and a connection connecting the inner side wall 6 and the outer side wall 7 is provided on both left and right sides. A wall 9 is provided, and the connecting wall 9 divides the guide hole 8 into upper and lower halves. Furthermore, two locking grooves 10 and 11 communicating with the guide hole 8 are formed in the outer side wall 7 so as to be arranged above and below the connecting wall 9. These locking grooves 10 and 11 are formed along the front-rear direction except for the rear end of the outer side wall 7, and the end surfaces of the locking grooves 10 and 11 at the rear end of the outer side wall 7 are locked. It is said to be faces 12 and 13. In addition, in the illustrated example, the locking surface 12 of the upper locking groove 10 is disposed at a more forward position than the locking surface 13 of the lower locking groove 11, and the locking surface 12 of the upper locking groove 10 The surface 12 is located at a distance A from the rear end of the housing body 1.

On the other hand, the slide cylinder 2 has a structure in which a pair of locking pieces 22 are swingably provided on a cylindrical body 21 inserted into the guide hole 8 of the housing body 1 via a hinge part 23. has been done. The cylindrical body 21 has grooves 24 on both sides, through which the connecting wall 9 of the housing body 1 is inserted when the cylindrical body 21 is inserted into the guide hole 8 of the housing body 1.
and protrusions 25 and 26 which are arranged above and below the groove 24 and engage with the respective locking grooves 10 and 11 of the housing body 1 are formed. In this case, two protrusions 25 and 26 are formed on each side of the cylindrical body 21.
- 26 is a state in which one of them is a temporary fixing protrusion 25 for temporarily fixing the cylindrical body 21 to the housing body 1, and the other is a state in which the waterproof seal 5 is pushed into the terminal storage chamber 3 as described later. The fixing protrusion 26 is fixed to the fixing protrusion 26. That is, the locking groove 11 and the fixing protrusion 26 constitute a locking mechanism according to the present invention. Also,
In the example of FIG. 1, the temporary fixing protrusion 25 disposed above the groove 24 is located at the front end position of the cylindrical body 21, and the fixing protrusion 26
are provided at a rear position than the temporary fixing protrusion 25, and the distance B between them is set to be slightly larger than the distance A from the locking surface 12 in the locking groove 10 to the rear end of the housing body 1.

Notches 31 are formed in the center portions of the upper and lower walls of the cylindrical body 21 in the left-right direction, and the locking pieces 22 are provided so as to be disposed within these notches 31. . These locking pieces 22 are formed with protrusions 32 projecting in the left-right direction on both sides of the back surface thereof, and the width of the back surface including these protrusions 32 is set to be slightly larger than the width of the notch 31 of the cylindrical body 21. Then, insert this into the notch 3 of the cylindrical body 21.
1, the stepped portion 33 inside the notch 31
The protrusion 32 is adapted to be locked to. Furthermore, a pair of arcuate grooves 34 are formed along the length direction on the inner surface of the locking piece 22, and these arcuate grooves 34 are
These arcuate grooves 34 are provided at the same spacing as both terminal storage chambers 3 of the housing body 1, so that these arcuate grooves 34 engage with both sides of the cable 35 when the locking pieces 22 are opposed to each other. There is.

Further, an arc-shaped projection 36 is integrally formed on the front surface of each locking piece 22 so as to extend the arc-shaped groove 34 . These arcuate protrusions 36 are formed so that the outer shape when the locking pieces 22 are opposed to each other with the cable 35 in between is a similar shape that is slightly smaller than the opening 4 of the terminal storage chamber 3 of the housing body 1. They are inserted into the opening 4 in this facing state. And slide tube 2
is inserted into the guide hole 8 of the housing body 1 and only the temporary fixing protrusion 25 is engaged with the locking groove 10 of the housing body 1, as shown in FIG. A relatively large interval is formed between 1 and
Further, when the fixing protrusion 26 is engaged with the engagement surface 13 in the engagement groove 11 of the housing main body 1 as shown in FIG. 36 is set in a dimensional relationship to be inserted into the opening 4 of the terminal storage chamber 3. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 37 indicates a hole in a mold when forming both arcuate protrusions 36 by injection molding. Further, the waterproof seal 5 is formed as a whole into a cylindrical shape made of rubber or the like, and ring-shaped protrusions 41 are formed on the outer and inner circumferential surfaces (only the protrusions on the outer circumferential surface are shown in the drawing). . The tip end thereof is integrally caulked to the cable 35 by a terminal 42.

When assembling the waterproof connector constructed in this way, the tip of the slide tube 2 is attached to the housing body 1.
into the guide hole 8 of the slide tube 2, and the temporary fixing protrusion 25 of the slide tube 2 is inserted into the locking groove 1 of the housing body 1 as shown in FIG.
0 and both locking pieces 22 as shown in FIG.
, and then insert the terminal 42 into the terminal storage chamber 3 of the housing body 1. At this time, the terminal 42 is inserted until the lance 43 in the terminal storage chamber 3 locks onto the terminal 42, and the lance 43 prevents the terminal 42 from coming off. In order to prevent the slide tube 2 from tilting in the state shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the fixing protrusion 26 has a rectangular outer shape so as to come into contact with the rear end of the housing body 1. Next, when both locking pieces 22 are pushed down, as shown in FIG.
Both locking pieces 22 are opposed to each other with 5 interposed therebetween, and these arcuate grooves 34 are engaged with both sides of the cable 35.

Then, from the state shown in FIG. 4, push the rear ends of both locking pieces 22, and as shown in FIG.
Push it inside. At this time, the arcuate protrusions 36 of both locking pieces 22 are inserted into the terminal storage chamber 3 of the housing body 1,
While pressing the rear end of the waterproof seal 5, the fixing protrusion 26 of the slide tube 2 is pressed against the housing body 1 as shown in FIG.
It engages with the locking groove 11 of and comes into contact with the locking surface 13 thereof. In this locked state, the terminal 42 is doubly locked by the lance 43 and the locking piece 22. On the other hand, even if the insertion work of the terminal 42 is incomplete and the lance 43 is not locked to the terminal 42, the waterproof seal 5 is secured by both locking pieces 22 as shown in FIG.
By pushing the terminal 42 into the terminal storage chamber 3 of the housing body 1 and locking the fixing protrusion 26 of the slide tube 2 in the locking groove 11 of the housing body 1, the terminal 42 is moved together with the slide tube 2 and the lance 43 The lance 43 and the locking piece 22 achieve double locking.

As described above, since the slide tube 2 is provided so as to be freely movable back and forth with respect to the housing body 1, when the two locking pieces 22 are made to face each other, the temporary fixing protrusion 2 of the slide tube 2
5 is locked in the locking groove 10 of the housing body 1, and the slide tube 2 is pulled out from the housing body 1, so that both locks can be locked at a position away from the rear end of the housing body 1. The pieces 22 can be made to face each other, and even if a part of the waterproof seal 5 protrudes from the housing body 1 as shown in FIG. 7, both locking pieces 22 can be made to face each other without coming into contact with the waterproof seal 5. Can be done. After the locking pieces 22 are brought together in this manner, the entire slide tube 2 is moved to press the rear end of the waterproof seal 5, so it is assumed that the terminal 42 is not fully inserted. By moving the slide tube 2, the terminal 42 can be pushed into the fully inserted state, and the inserted state of the terminal 42 can be corrected. Further, the slide tube 2 moves linearly along the terminal insertion direction, and by arranging both the locking pieces 22 to face each other, the arcuate protrusions 36 of the locking pieces 22 come into contact with almost the entire surface of the waterproof seal 5. , the waterproof seal 5 can be pressed uniformly, and its waterproof function can be reliably exerted.

[0014]

[Effects of the Invention] As is clear from the above explanation, according to the waterproof connector of the present invention, the locking piece of the slide cylinder presses the rear end of the waterproof seal, so that the terminal can be held between the lance of the housing body. Not only can it be double-locked, but the slide tube is also movable in the front-back direction of the housing body, so it is possible to push the waterproof seal linearly along the terminal insertion direction. Even if the terminal is incompletely inserted, it can be pushed into the terminal storage chamber to be completely inserted, and the terminal can be reliably double-locked to prevent it from falling off. In addition, since both locking pieces are provided on the slide tube that moves linearly, these locking pieces can press the waterproof seal over the entire surface, ensuring its waterproof function. The reliability of double locking can be increased.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded view showing an embodiment of the waterproof connector of the present invention.

2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing a state in which terminals are inserted into the waterproof connector of FIG. 1. FIG.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the waterproof connector shown in FIG. 2.

4 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing a state in which both locking pieces are brought down and butted against each other from the state shown in FIG. 2. FIG.

5 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing a state in which the slide tube is moved from the state shown in FIG. 4 and a waterproof seal is pressed by a locking piece.

FIG. 6 is a side view of the waterproof connector shown in FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view similar to FIG. 4 when the terminal is incompletely inserted.

[Explanation of symbols]

1... Housing body, 2... Slide tube, 3... Terminal storage chamber, 4... Opening, 5... Waterproof seal, 6... Inner side wall, 7... Outer side wall, 8... Guide hole, 9... Connecting wall, 10/11... Connection Stopping groove, 12, 13...Locking surface, 21...Cylindrical body, 22...Locking piece,
23... Hinge portion, 24... Groove, 25... Protrusion for temporary fixing, 26
...Fixing protrusion, 31...Notch, 32...Protrusion, 33...Step part,
34... Arc-shaped groove, 35... Cable, 36... Arc-shaped projection,
37... Punch hole, 41... Convex strip, 42... Terminal, 43... Lance

Claims (1)

[Claims] [Claim 1] Terminal storage chamber (
3) inside the terminal (
42) is inserted and the lance (4) is inserted in the terminal storage chamber (3).
3) and the cable (35),
In a waterproof connector in which a waterproof seal (5) is fixed to seal an opening (4) of a terminal storage chamber (3), a sliding tube (2) is provided at the rear end of the housing body (1) so as to be movable back and forth. A pair of locking pieces (22) facing each other across the cable (35) at a rear position of the waterproof seal (5) are provided on the slide cylinder (2) and are swingable via a hinge part (23). between the housing body (1) and the slide tube (2), and when the slide tube (2) is moved forward, the locking piece (22) closes the waterproof seal (5) to the terminal storage chamber (3). ) locking mechanism (
11.26) A waterproof connector characterized by being provided with: