阅读说明：本技术 连接器 (Connector with a locking member ) 是由 田嵨慎吾 深津幸弘 于 2020-01-22 设计创作，主要内容包括：提供一种连接器,其能够提高抑制两壳体晃动的结构的成形自由度及耐久性。连接器具备能相互嵌合的第1壳体(10)及第2壳体(60)。第2壳体(60)具有相互对置的一对壁部(64)。第1壳体(10)具有：罩部(12),其划分嵌合空间(14)；一对侧壁(19),一对侧壁(19)分别与罩部(12)的周向两端连续设置；以及锁臂(24),其配置于两侧壁(19)间。在侧壁(19)与锁臂(24)之间以与嵌合空间(14)连通的方式划分出壁部(64)进入的进入空间(29)。在侧壁(19)的内表面设置有与壁部(64)接触的突部(31、32)。(Provided is a connector which can improve the forming freedom and durability of a structure for restraining the shaking of two shells. The connector includes a 1 st housing (10) and a 2 nd housing (60) which can be fitted to each other. The 2 nd housing (60) has a pair of wall sections (64) that face each other. The 1 st housing (10) has: a cover (12) that divides a fitting space (14); a pair of side walls (19), the pair of side walls (19) being respectively provided continuously with both ends of the cover portion (12) in the circumferential direction; and a lock arm (24) disposed between the side walls (19). An entry space (29) into which a wall portion (64) enters is defined between the side wall (19) and the lock arm (24) so as to communicate with the fitting space (14). Protrusions (31, 32) that come into contact with the wall portion (64) are provided on the inner surface of the side wall (19).)

1. A connector includes a 1 st housing fitted to a 2 nd housing,

the 1 st housing has:

a cover part in a cylindrical shape;

a pair of side walls formed at both circumferential ends of the hood portion, respectively;

a lock arm disposed between the pair of side walls and holding the 2 nd housing in a fitted state;

an entry space formed between the side wall and the lock arm, into which a part of the 2 nd housing enters;

a fitting space formed in communication with the entry space, into which the other part of the 2 nd housing enters inside the hood; and

and a protrusion formed on at least one of the opposing surfaces of the pair of side walls, and contacting a part of the 2 nd housing in a state where the 1 st housing and the 2 nd housing are fitted to each other.

2. The connector of claim 1,

the projection has a flat end surface in surface contact with a part of the 2 nd housing.

3. The connector of claim 1,

the entry space is open on the outside of the side opposite to the fitting space side.

4. The connector according to any one of claims 1 to 3,

the protrusion has a front protrusion that contacts a part of the 2 nd housing at an initial stage of fitting the 1 st housing and the 2 nd housing, and a rear protrusion that contacts a part of the 2 nd housing at a final stage of fitting the 1 st housing and the 2 nd housing.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a connector.

Background

The connector described in patent document 1 includes a female housing and a male housing that can be fitted to each other. The male housing has a cover portion, and a fitting groove having a trapezoidal cross section is provided on an inner surface of the cover portion. The female housing has a terminal receiving portion capable of being fitted to the cover portion. A vibration eliminating rib having a mountain-shaped cross section is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the terminal housing section. When the two housings are fitted, the shake elimination rib is fitted into the fitting groove, and both lower ends of the shake elimination rib and an opening edge of the fitting groove are pressed against each other, whereby the shake of the two housings can be restricted.

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

However, the protruding dimension of the rattle elimination rib is defined in accordance with the clearance between the housings. However, since the clearance between the housings is originally small, the projecting dimension of the play elimination rib cannot be ensured to be too large, and the molding may be difficult. If the projecting dimension of the rattle elimination rib is reduced, the rattle elimination rib is excessively crushed by the pressure from the cover portion side, and the original function of restricting rattle of the both housings may not be performed.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a connector including: the degree of freedom of formation and durability of the structure for suppressing the rattling of the both cases can be improved.

Means for solving the problems

The connector of the present invention is a connector including a 1 st housing fitted to a 2 nd housing, the 1 st housing including: a cover part in a cylindrical shape; a pair of side walls formed at both circumferential ends of the hood portion, respectively; a lock arm disposed between the pair of side walls and holding the 2 nd housing in a fitted state; an entry space formed between the side wall and the lock arm, into which a part of the 2 nd housing enters; a fitting space formed in communication with the entry space, into which the other part of the 2 nd housing enters inside the hood; and a protrusion formed on at least one of the opposing surfaces of the pair of side walls, and contacting a part of the 2 nd housing in a state where the 1 st housing and the 2 nd housing are fitted to each other.

Effects of the invention

When the 1 st housing and the 2 nd housing (both housings) are properly fitted, the projection comes into contact with a part of the 2 nd housing, and the rattling between both housings can be suppressed. Since the entrance space is defined between the side wall and the lock arm and the entrance space communicates with the fitting space, the pressure received by the part of the 2 nd housing from the side wall can be reduced in a state where the part of the 2 nd housing enters the entrance space, and the protrusion can be prevented from being crushed. As a result, the durability of the projection can be improved. Further, the pressure acting on the projection is reduced, whereby the projection dimension of the projection can be increased, and the degree of freedom in forming the projection can be improved.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the 1 st housing in the connector of embodiment 1 of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the 1 st housing.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the 2 nd housing.

Fig. 4 is a front view of the 2 nd housing.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the two housings fitted to each other.

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view and a main portion enlarged view of a state in which both housings are fitted to each other.

Fig. 7 is a side sectional view of a state in which both housings are fitted to each other.

Fig. 8 is a front view of the 1 st housing.

Detailed Description

Preferred embodiments of the present invention are shown below.

(1) The projection has a flat end surface in surface contact with a part of the 2 nd housing. Accordingly, the end face of the projection is less likely to be crushed, and the reliability of suppressing the rattling of the both cases can be further improved.

(2) The entry space is open on the outside of the side opposite to the fitting space side. Accordingly, the operator can see the projection through the entrance space, and can check whether or not the projection is not crushed and functions properly after the housings are fitted to each other.

(3) The protrusion has a front protrusion that contacts a part of the 2 nd housing at an initial stage of fitting the 1 st housing and the 2 nd housing, and a rear protrusion that contacts a part of the 2 nd housing at a final stage of fitting the 1 st housing and the 2 nd housing. The connector is usually set to a fitting peak at an intermediate stage of fitting of the two housings. According to the above configuration, the fitting peak can be set between the contact resistance generated when the leading projection comes into contact with a part of the 2 nd housing at the initial stage of fitting of the two housings and the contact resistance generated when the trailing projection comes into contact with a part of the 2 nd housing at the final stage of fitting of the two housings. Therefore, fitting resistance can be dispersed throughout the fitting of the two housings, and the burden of the fitting work can be reduced.

< example 1>

Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described with reference to fig. 1 to 8. The connector of embodiment 1 includes a 1 st housing 10 and a 2 nd housing 60 that can be fitted to each other. In the following description, the front-rear direction refers to the side of the two housings (the 1 st housing 10 and the 2 nd housing 60) facing each other at the start of fitting as the front side, and the vertical direction refers to the vertical direction in each of the figures other than fig. 2 and 5. The width direction is synonymous with the left-right direction in fig. 4 and 6.

[ case 2 60]

The 2 nd housing 60 is made of synthetic resin and is configured as a male housing to which the male terminal fitting 90 can be attached. As shown in fig. 3, the 2 nd housing 60 has a cylindrical tube portion 61 protruding forward from a bottom wall 62. The bottom wall 62 is provided in an apparatus such as an engine, not shown, and vibrates in accordance with the vibration of the apparatus. As shown in fig. 4, a plurality of projecting pieces 91 of the male terminal fitting 90 that penetrate the bottom wall 62 are disposed so as to project into the cylindrical portion 61. The projecting pieces 91 are arranged in a row in the lateral direction in the tube portion 61. The cylindrical portion 61 and the bottom wall 62 constitute the other portion (main body portion) of the 2 nd housing 60.

The upper wall of the cylindrical portion 61 is arranged along the width direction. A lock portion 63 is provided on the upper wall of the tube portion 61 and protrudes from the width-direction center portion of the outer surface (upper surface). The lock portion 63 is in the form of a flat projection slightly long in the width direction. A pair of wall portions 64 are provided on the upper wall of the tube portion 61 and projecting from both end portions in the width direction of the outer surface. As shown in fig. 3, each wall portion 64 has a rib-like shape extending over the entire length in the front-rear direction on the upper wall of the tube portion 61. Each wall portion 64 has the same cross-sectional shape (substantially rectangular shape) in the front-rear direction, and has a protruding dimension that is the same as or slightly larger than the protruding dimension of the locking portion 63. The wall portion 64 constitutes a part (attached portion) of the 2 nd housing 60.

As shown in fig. 4, the left and right side walls of the cylindrical portion 61 are arranged along the vertical direction (height direction). A pair of side wall portions 65 are provided on the left and right side walls of the tube portion 61 so as to project slightly below the height direction center portion of the outer surface. As shown in fig. 3, each of the side wall portions 65 has a rib-like shape extending over the entire length in the front-rear direction on the left and right side walls of the tube portion 61. Each side wall portion 65 is formed to have a substantially rectangular cross section and a projecting dimension smaller than the projecting dimension of each wall portion 64. Flat ribs 66 are provided at the rear end portions of the left and right side walls of the tube portion 61, the flat ribs being thickened to a predetermined thickness from the upper surface of each side wall portion 65 to the adjacent outer surface region.

[ case 1 ] A

The 1 st housing 10 is made of synthetic resin and is configured as a female housing capable of accommodating the female terminal component 80. As shown in fig. 1 and 8, the 1 st housing 10 includes a terminal housing 11 that is flat in the width direction and a cylindrical cover 12 that surrounds the outer periphery of the terminal housing 11. As shown in fig. 7 and 8, the cover 12 and the terminal housing 11 are coupled by a connecting portion 13 along the radial direction. A seal ring 70 is fitted on the outer surface of the terminal housing 11 and in front of the connecting portion 13. A fitting space 14 into which the 2 nd housing 60 can be fitted is provided in the cover 12. The cylindrical portion 61 of the 2 nd housing 60 is fitted into the terminal housing portion 11 inside and outside the fitting space 14. The seal ring 70 is in close contact with the inner surface of the cylindrical portion 61 and the outer surface of the terminal housing 11, and seals both the housings 10 and 60 in a liquid-tight manner.

The terminal housing 11 is provided with a plurality of cavities 15 penetrating in the front-rear direction. As shown in fig. 1 and 6, the cavities 15 are arranged in a row in the lateral direction in the terminal housing portion 11. As shown in fig. 7, a flexible lance 16 protruding forward is provided on the inner surface of each cavity 15.

The female terminal fitting 80 is inserted into each cavity 15 of the 1 st housing 10 from the rear. The female terminal component 80 is made of a conductive metal, and as shown in fig. 7, is connected to a terminal portion of an electric wire 85, and has a cylindrical connection portion 81 at the front. The connection portion 81 is inserted into the protruding piece 91 of the connection male terminal fitting 90. The lance 16 is locked to the connecting portion 81, and the female terminal fitting 80 is thereby prevented from coming off the cavity 15. A rubber plug 86 is fitted to the electric wire 85. The rubber plug 86 is held in the cylindrical portion 82 of the female terminal fitting 80, and is in close contact with the rear inner surface of the cavity 15, thereby sealing the cavity 15 in a liquid-tight manner. A front holding body, not shown, is attached to the terminal housing portion 11 so as to cover the front surface thereof. The front holding body is attached to the terminal housing portion 11 and functions to restrict the flexing action of the lance portion 16 and prevent the female terminal fitting 80 from coming off the cavity 15.

As shown in fig. 1 and 2, the upper portion of the cover 12 is open, and the cover 12 has a peripheral wall 17 that is continuous in the circumferential direction at a portion other than the upper portion. As shown in fig. 6, the peripheral wall 17 is formed in a shape corresponding to the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 61, and has a pair of groove portions 18 on the inner surfaces on both the left and right sides. Each groove 18 is formed to have a concave cross section, extends in the front-rear direction, and opens at the front end of the peripheral wall 17. The side wall portions 65 can be inserted into the groove portions 18 of the peripheral wall 17.

As shown in fig. 8, the 1 st case 10 includes a pair of side walls 19 rising from both ends in the circumferential direction of the peripheral wall 17, and a bridge portion 21 extending in the width direction between the front ends of the side walls 19. Each side wall 19 is formed in a rib shape extending over the entire length in the front-rear direction at both circumferential ends of the circumferential wall 17, and as shown in fig. 2, the rear portion 22 is formed to have a wider partition width than the front portion 23.

As shown in fig. 1 and 2, case 1 has lock arm 24 between side walls 19. Lock arm 24 has: a plate-shaped arm main body 25 located behind the bridge portion 21 and above the fitting space 14, and extending in the front-rear direction; and a pair of coupling portions 26 that couple the left and right side portions of the arm body 25 to the side walls 19. A lock hole 27 is provided through the distal end of the arm body 25. A release operation portion 28 protruding to both sides in the width direction is provided at the rear end portion of the arm main body 25. As shown in fig. 7, the locking portion 63 is fitted into the locking hole 27 of the arm main body 25, and the housings 10 and 60 are held in a fitted state. When the release operation portion 28 is pressed from above, the lock portion 63 is disengaged from the lock hole 27, and the housings 10 and 60 are in a detachable state.

The side walls 19 are disposed so as to cover the arm body 25 from both left and right sides across both sides of the arm body 25 in the width direction. As shown in fig. 1, 2, and 6, a pair of entry spaces 29 are defined between the left and right side portions of the arm main body 25 and the side walls 19, and the wall portions 64 enter the pair of entry spaces 29 when the housings 10 and 60 are fitted to each other. Each of the inlet spaces 29 communicates with the lower fitting space 14 and is open at the upper side. The partition width of the front side of each entry space 29 is set to be substantially the same as the thickness (width dimension) of each wall portion 64. The inner surface of each side wall 19 corresponds to the facing surface of each side wall 19.

The inner surface of the front portion 23 of each side wall 19 (the surface facing the wall portion 64) is a vertical surface extending in the front-rear direction and the up-down direction. On the inner surface of the front portion 23, projections 31 and 32 are provided in pairs on the left and right. As shown in fig. 2, each of the projections 31 and 32 is composed of a pair of front projections 31 projecting from a front end lower portion of the inner surface of the front portion 23 and a pair of rear projections 32 projecting from a rear end lower portion of the inner surface of the front portion 23. Each of the front protrusions 31 and each of the rear protrusions 32 is flat and mesa-shaped, and has a flat end surface 33 along the front-rear direction and the up-down direction on a tip surface (inner surface) in the protruding direction, and the front-rear surface and the left-right surface are tapered toward the end surface 33. Each of the front protrusions 31 and each of the rear protrusions 32 is disposed below the bridging portion 21 in the vertical direction. Each of the front protrusions 31 is disposed at a position overlapping the lock hole 27 in the front-rear direction. Each of the backward protrusions 32 is disposed rearward of the lock hole 27 in the front-rear direction. As shown in fig. 5, each leading projection 31 and each trailing projection 32 face each entry space 29, and fill the gap between each wall 64 entering each entry space 29, so that the end face 33 contacts each wall 64.

[ chimeric Structure and Effect ]

The cylindrical portion 61 of the 2 nd housing 60 is fitted in the fitting space 14 of the 1 st housing 10. At the initial stage of fitting of both the housings 10, 60, each side wall portion 65 enters each groove portion 18, each wall portion 64 enters each entry space 29, and the end face 33 of each preceding projection 31 slides on the outer surface (the surface facing the side wall 19) of each wall portion 64. Here, each wall 64 presses each leading protrusion 31, and each leading protrusion 31 presses each wall 64. However, the base end portions of the side walls 19 are connected only to the peripheral wall 17, and the base end portions of the side walls 19 above the peripheral wall 17 are open as a communication region between the lock arm 24 and the fitting space 14. Further, since it has a slight elasticity, it can be deformed so as to bulge outward. Similarly, each wall portion 64 is also elastically deformable so as to tilt with its base end portion as a fulcrum. Therefore, the pressure acting on each of the advanced protrusions 31 from each of the wall portions 64 is released, and the advanced protrusions 31 can be prevented from being crushed by the pressure received from each of the wall portions 64.

In the intermediate stage of fitting of the housings 10, 60, the projecting piece 91 of each male terminal fitting 90 is inserted into the connecting portion 81 connected to each female terminal fitting 80, and the arm main body 25 interferes with the locking portion 63, and the lock arm 24 is deformed in a flexing manner with each connecting portion 26 as a fulcrum. Therefore, a peak value of the fitting operation force (fitting peak value) appears in the middle of fitting of the both housings 10, 60.

At the final stage of fitting of both housings 10, 60, the end face 33 of each backward projection 32 abuts against the outer surface of each wall 64. In this case, since the base end portion of each side wall 19 of each rearward projection 32 has slight elasticity, similarly to the preceding projections 31, each rearward projection 32 can be prevented from being crushed by a pressure received from each wall portion 64. The timing at which each backward projection 32 comes into contact with the outer surface of each wall portion 64 is after a fitting peak occurs in the middle of fitting of both housings 10, 60. Therefore, contact resistance generated when each backward projecting portion 32 contacts the outer surface of each wall portion 64 does not overlap the fitting peak, and the fitting operation force can be prevented from continuously increasing during the fitting of both housings 10, 60.

When both housings 10, 60 are properly fitted, lock arm 24 is elastically restored, and lock portion 63 is fitted into lock hole 27 (see fig. 5 to 7). At this time, the female terminal fittings 80 and the male terminal fittings 90 are electrically connected in a normal state (see fig. 7). In addition, each flat rib 66 is firmly in contact with the inner surface of each groove portion 18.

In a state where both housings 10, 60 are properly fitted, each wall portion 64 is disposed so as to cover and sandwich arm body 25 from both left and right sides between both left and right sides of arm body 25 and each side wall 19. The end face 33 of each front projection 31 and the end face 33 of each rear projection 32 are in contact with each wall 64 at a distance in the front-rear direction. The operator can visually confirm each wall 64, each forward projection 31, and each backward projection 32 from above through each entry space 29. The wall portions 64 and the side wall portions 65 together function to guide the fitting operation of the housings 10 and 60.

Even if the machine vibrates and the vibration force is transmitted to the housings 10 and 60 after the housings 10 and 60 are fitted to each other, the end surfaces 33 of the front protrusions 31 and the end surfaces 33 of the rear protrusions 32 are kept in contact with the wall portions 64, and the flat ribs 66 are kept in contact with the inner surfaces of the groove portions 18. Therefore, the 1 st casing 10 can be suppressed from shaking with respect to the 2 nd casing 60. As a result, the female terminal fittings 80 and the male terminal fittings 90 can be prevented from being worn due to vibration. In particular, since the leading projections 31 and the trailing projections 32 are paired at intervals at four positions symmetrical with respect to the lock hole 27 of the arm body 25 in a plan view, the rattling of the housings 10 and 60 can be further suppressed.

As described above, according to the present embodiment 1, the pair of the entry spaces 29 are defined between the left and right side portions of the arm main body 25 and the side walls 19, and the entry spaces 29 communicate with the fitting space 14, so that the pressure received by the wall portions 64 from the side walls 19 can be reduced in a state where the wall portions 64 enter the entry spaces 29, and a situation in which the front protrusions 31 and the rear protrusions 32 are crushed can be avoided. As a result, the durability of each of the front protrusions 31 and the rear protrusions 32 can be improved. In addition, the degree of freedom in forming each of the front protrusions 31 and the rear protrusions 32 can be increased.

Since the flat end surface 33 of each of the leading protrusions 31 and the trailing protrusions 32 is in surface contact with the outer surface of each of the wall portions 64, the leading protrusions 31 and the trailing protrusions are less likely to be crushed than in the case of point contact or line contact, and the reliability of suppressing rattling of the housings 10 and 60 can be further improved.

Further, since each entry space 29 is opened upward (on the side opposite to the fitting space 14), the operator can see each forward projection 31 and each backward projection 32 through the entry space 29, and after the housings 10 and 60 are fitted, can ensure whether or not each forward projection 31 and each backward projection 32 are not crushed and function properly.

Further, since the timing at which the front protrusions 31 contact the outer surfaces of the wall portions 64 to generate contact resistance is set at the initial stage of fitting, the timing at which the rear protrusions 32 contact the outer surfaces of the wall portions 64 to generate contact resistance is set at the final stage of fitting, and the fitting peak value is set at the intermediate stage of fitting, the fitting resistance can be dispersed throughout the fitting process of the both housings 10 and 60, and the burden of the fitting work can be reduced.

< other examples >

Other embodiments will be briefly described below.

(1) Contrary to embodiment 1, the 1 st housing may be a male housing to which the male terminal part is attached and in which the projecting piece projects into the hood portion, and the 2 nd housing may be a female housing capable of accommodating the female terminal part.

(2) The projection may be provided only on one of the facing surfaces of the side walls.

(3) The projections may be provided on both surfaces of the side walls and the wall portions (facing each other).

(4) The projection may be provided only at one position in the front-rear direction of the 1 st case without distinction between the front projection and the rear projection.

(5) The projection may include another projection disposed at a distance in the front-rear direction of the 1 st case, in addition to the front projection and the rear projection.

(6) The projection may be sandwiched between the wall and the side wall in a slightly crushed state after the two housings are fitted.

Description of the reference numerals

10: no. 1 casing

12: cover part

14: fitting space

19: side wall

24: locking arm

29: entering space

31: advanced protrusion (protrusion)

32: backward projection (projection)

60: no. 2 casing

64: wall part (part of 2 nd case)