阅读说明：本技术 插头连接结构 (Plug connecting structure ) 是由 邵桂峰 康伟强 王峰 于 2018-08-30 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明提供一种插头连接结构,包括：插头连接件；固定件,围绕插头连接件设置在其外部,且与插头连接件连接,固定构件包括第一螺纹；从动件,包括第二螺纹和能与被按压部分相互作用的按压部分,第一螺纹与第二螺纹旋向相反；驱动件,包括与第一螺纹啮合的第三螺纹和与第二螺纹啮合的第四螺纹；驱动件能沿锁定方向和与锁定方向相反的解锁方向旋转,使从动件相对于固定件在锁定位置和解锁位置之间运动,在解锁位置,按压部分按压被按压部分,使得锁定部分与插头被连接件脱离；在锁定位置,按压部分释放被按压部分,使得锁定部分与插头被连接件接合。通过本发明的插头连接结构,能够实现例如XLR插头这样的插头的快速、稳定且安全的插拔。(The present invention provides a plug connection structure, including: a plug connector; a fixing member disposed around the plug connector and connected to the plug connector, the fixing member including a first thread; a follower including a second thread and a pressing portion capable of interacting with the pressed portion, the first thread and the second thread being opposite in direction of rotation; a driver including a third thread engaged with the first thread and a fourth thread engaged with the second thread; the driving piece can rotate along a locking direction and an unlocking direction opposite to the locking direction, so that the driven piece moves between a locking position and an unlocking position relative to the fixing piece, and in the unlocking position, the pressing part presses the pressed part to enable the locking part to be separated from the plug connector; in the lock position, the pressing portion releases the pressed portion so that the lock portion is engaged with the plug-connected member. By the plug connecting structure, the plug such as an XLR plug can be quickly, stably and safely plugged.)

1. A plug connection structure comprising:

a plug connector having an elastic member disposed below the latch and applying an elastic force thereto, and a latch including a locking portion capable of being lockingly engaged with the plug connected member and a pressed portion;

a fixing member disposed around the plug connector at an outer portion thereof and connected to the plug connector, the fixing member including a first thread;

the driven piece is arranged outside the fixing piece in a surrounding mode and comprises a second thread and a pressing part capable of interacting with the pressed part, wherein the first thread and the second thread are opposite in rotation direction;

the driving piece is arranged outside or inside the driven piece and the fixing piece and comprises a third thread meshed with the first thread and a fourth thread meshed with the second thread;

wherein the driving member is rotatable in a locking direction and an unlocking direction opposite to the locking direction, such that the driven member moves relative to the fixed member between a locked position and an unlocked position,

wherein, in the unlocking position, the pressing part presses the pressed part to overcome the elastic force of the elastic component, so that the locking part is separated from the plug connector; in the lock position, the pressing portion releases the pressed portion so that the lock portion is engaged with the plug-coupled member by the elastic force of the elastic member.

2. The plug connection structure of claim 1, wherein in a case where the driving member is provided outside the driven member and the fixed member, the first and second threads are both external threads, and the third and fourth threads are both internal threads.

3. The plug connection structure of claim 1, wherein in a case where the driving member is provided inside the driven member and the fixed member, the first and second threads are both internal threads, and the third and fourth threads are both external threads.

4. A pin connection according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the first thread and the third thread are fine threads and/or the second thread and the fourth thread are fine threads.

5. The plug connection structure of any one of claims 1-3, wherein the pressing portion has a wedge feature and the pressed portion has a ramp feature that interacts with the wedge feature.

6. A plug connection according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, in the locked position, an end face of the follower facing the plug-to-be-connected member abuts against the plug-to-be-connected member.

7. The plug connection structure of claim 1, wherein the locker is integrally formed with or fixedly coupled to the elastic member.

8. The plug connection structure of claim 1, wherein the latch is a separate member from the plug connector and is held by the plug connector inside, or the latch is integrally formed with or fixedly connected to the plug connector, or respective portions of the latch and the elastic member are integrally formed on the plug connector.

9. A plug connection according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the plug connector comprises a recess, the locking portion projects radially outwardly, is disengaged from the recess in the unlocked state, and is insertable into the recess in the locked state.

10. The plug connection structure of claim 1,

the driven member can slide relative to the fixed member, one of the driven member and the fixed member comprises one or more protrusions extending along the sliding direction, and the other of the driven member and the fixed member comprises one or more channels extending along the sliding direction and matched with the one or more protrusions; or

The driven part can slide relative to the fixed part, the driven part and the fixed part are in surface contact, and the contact surface between the driven part and the fixed part is formed by a self-lubricating material; or

The driven part can slide relative to the fixed part, and a medium facilitating sliding exists between the driven part and the fixed part.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a plug connection structure.

Background

The XLR plug can be quickly plugged and pulled out, has a locking function, is a very common electric plug, is widely applied to the field of audio and video, and is widely applied to related products of SONY companies. However, in use, two problems exist in the existing products, the first problem is that the connection can be firm but quick assembly and disassembly cannot be achieved. For example, an XLR plug product NC3FX-SPEC from Neutrik, switzerland, is widely used for audio transmitters, which uses a fine-pitch threaded nut to enhance the traditional locking function of XLR. The fine thread has relatively reliable self-locking performance and is suitable for vibration occasions, but the fine thread is small in thread pitch, so that the screwing and unscrewing needs to be carried out for a plurality of turns, and time and labor are wasted. Especially for the application that needs frequent plug, user experience is not good. Secondly, although some XLR plugs can be quickly assembled and disassembled, there are problems of connection weakness, for example, the locking function cannot fully ensure the plug is firmly fixed, resulting in shaking, mechanical collision, etc., and various noises. In hand-held microphone applications, this noise can be amplified by the microphone, severely affecting its quality. Therefore, a device is required to ensure that the XLR plug is securely locked after insertion.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention provides a plug connection structure, including: a plug connector having an elastic member disposed below the latch and applying an elastic force thereto, and a latch including a locking portion capable of being lockingly engaged with the plug connected member and a pressed portion; a fixing member disposed around the plug connector at an outer portion thereof and connected to the plug connector, the fixing member including a first thread; the driven piece is arranged outside the fixing piece in a surrounding mode and comprises a second thread and a pressing part capable of interacting with the pressed part, wherein the first thread and the second thread are opposite in rotation direction; the driving piece is arranged outside or inside the driven piece and the fixing piece and comprises a third thread meshed with the first thread and a fourth thread meshed with the second thread; the driving piece can rotate along a locking direction and an unlocking direction opposite to the locking direction, so that the driven piece moves between a locking position and an unlocking position relative to the fixing piece, wherein in the unlocking position, the pressing part presses the pressed part to overcome the elastic force of the elastic component, and the locking part is separated from the plug connector; in the lock position, the pressing portion releases the pressed portion so that the lock portion is engaged with the plug-coupled member by the elastic force of the elastic member.

According to an aspect of the invention, in case the driver is arranged outside the driven member and the fixed member, the first and second threads are both external threads and the third and fourth threads are both internal threads.

According to an aspect of the invention, in case the driver is arranged inside the driven member and the fixed member, the first and second threads are both internal threads and the third and fourth threads are both external threads.

According to an aspect of the invention, the first thread and the third thread are fine threads and/or the second thread and the fourth thread are fine threads.

According to one aspect of the invention, the pressing portion has a wedge feature and the pressed portion has a ramp feature that interacts with the wedge feature.

According to one aspect of the invention, in the locked position, the end face of the follower facing the plug-to-be-connected part abuts against the plug-to-be-connected part.

According to one aspect of the invention, the catch is integrally formed with or fixedly connected to the resilient member.

According to an aspect of the invention, the catch is a separate part from the plug connector and is held therein by the plug connector, or the catch is integrally formed or fixedly connected with the plug connector, or corresponding parts are integrally formed on the plug connector as catch and resilient member, respectively.

According to an aspect of the invention, the plug-to-be-connected member includes a groove, the locking portion protrudes radially outward, is disengaged from the groove in the unlocked state, and is insertable into the groove in the locked state.

According to one aspect of the invention, the driven member is slidable relative to the fixed member, and one of the driven member and the fixed member comprises one or more protrusions extending in the sliding direction, and the other of the driven member and the fixed member comprises one or more channels extending in the sliding direction cooperating with the one or more protrusions; or the driven part can slide relative to the fixed part, the driven part and the fixed part are in surface contact, and the contact surface between the driven part and the fixed part is formed by a self-lubricating material; or the driven part can slide relative to the fixed part, and a medium facilitating sliding exists between the driven part and the fixed part.

By the plug connecting structure, the plug such as an XLR plug can be quickly, stably and safely plugged.

Drawings

Fig. 1A and 1B are schematic views of a plug connection structure according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2A and 2B are schematic views illustrating a locking process of the plug connection structure according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 3A to 3C are schematic views illustrating an unlocking process of the plug connection structure according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 4A and 4B are schematic views of a plug connection structure according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 5A and 5B are schematic views illustrating a locking process of a plug connection structure according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 6A to 6C are schematic views of an unlocking process of the plug connection structure according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

The foregoing and other technical matters, features and effects of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of embodiments, which is to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings. Directional terms as referred to in the following examples, for example: up, down, left, right, front, rear, inner, outer, etc., are directions with reference to the drawings and general usage only. Therefore, the directional terms used are intended to be illustrative and not restrictive, and the same reference numerals are used to designate the same elements throughout the embodiments.

It should be noted that although the present invention is directed to improvements in the XLR plug connection structure, the plug connection structure of the present invention is not limited to use only in XLR, but those skilled in the art can apply the plug connection structure of the present invention to other plugs in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 1A to 1B and fig. 2A to 2B, a first embodiment of a plug connection structure according to the present invention is described. The plug connection structure according to this embodiment includes: the plug connector comprises a plug connector 1, a fixing piece 2, a driven piece 3, a driving piece 4 and a plug connected piece 5. The respective constituent elements of the plug connection structure are described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The plug connector 1, which is a female head of an XLR plug or other plug, for example, has a lock catch 10 including a locking portion 101 and a pressed portion 102 projecting substantially radially outward, for example, and a resilient member 11, and the resilient member 11 is accommodated in a space below the lock catch 10 and always exerts a resilient force radially outward (upward direction in the drawing) against the lock catch 10. In the embodiment shown in fig. 1A, 2B, the latch 10 may be a separate component from the plug connector 1 and be held by the plug connector 1 in its interior without falling off, but it should be understood that in other embodiments, the left end of the latch 10 may be integrally formed with the plug connector 1 or fixedly connected, while the right end thereof is suspended; in addition, according to another embodiment, the latch 10 may be formed integrally with or fixedly connected to the elastic member 11, for example, both of which are formed of the same material, as long as the elastic member 11 is located in a space below the latch 10 and applies force thereto. Further, according to yet another preferred embodiment, the latch 10 and the resilient member 11 are both integrally formed with the plug connector 1, i.e. corresponding parts of the latch 10 and the resilient member 11, respectively, are integrally formed on the plug connector 1.

The locking portion 101 is engageable with a male-to-female connector 5 (which is, for example, the male of an XLR plug or other plug, see fig. 2B). According to a preferred embodiment, the plug-and-socket connector 5 may, for example, have a recess 51 to receive therein a locking portion 101 to achieve a connection lock between the plug connector 1 and the plug-and-socket connector 5.

The fixing member 2 is provided around the plug connector 1 at the outside thereof to receive the plug connector 1. According to a preferred embodiment, the fixture 2 may be, for example, a hollow screw provided at the rear end of the female head of an XLR plug or other plug for receiving a cable or the like, whereby the fixture member 2 comprises a first thread 20. The fixing member 2 may be detachably connected to the plug connector 1, and the fixing member 2 may be detachably connected to the plug connector 1 by, for example, welding, adhesion, mechanical connection, or the like. Or in other preferred embodiments the fixing element 2 may be formed integrally with the plug connector 1.

The follower 3 is arranged around the fixing member 2 on the outside thereof and comprises a second thread 30 and a pressing portion 31 protruding radially inwards and capable of interacting with the pressed portion 102 of the plug connector 1, wherein the first thread 20 is counter-threaded to the second thread 30. According to a preferred embodiment, the pressing portion 31 of the follower 3 is formed as a wedge-shaped feature and correspondingly the pressed portion 102 of the plug connector 1 is formed with a ramp surface interacting with the wedge-shaped feature to facilitate unlocking of the latch, as described below.

The driver 4 is disposed externally of the fixing member 2 and the driven member 3, and in particular, a portion of the driver 4 is disposed externally thereof around the fixing member 2 and another portion is disposed externally thereof around the driven member 3, and includes a third thread 42 engaged with the first thread 20 and a fourth thread 43 engaged with the second thread 30.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the first thread 20 and the second thread 30 are external threads and the third thread 42 and the fourth thread 43 are internal threads. According to a further development of the invention, the first thread 20 and the third thread 42 engaging therewith can be provided as a fine thread and/or the second thread 30 and the fourth thread 42 engaging therewith can be provided as a fine thread, so that a self-locking of the driver 4 is ensured and a movement of the driver 4 in the locked position due to external forces or the like is prevented. In addition, according to a further development of the invention, the self-locking means is not limited to fine threads.

According to the principle of the present invention, and in the present embodiment, the driver 4 is configured to be screwed by an operator so as to be rotated in a locking direction L described later and an unlocking direction U opposite to the locking direction by an operation of the operator, so that the driver 4 moves the follower 3 between an unlocking position and a locking position described later.

Fig. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of fig. 1A.

According to a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, when the pressing portion 31 of the follower 3 applies the pressing force to the pressed portion 102 of the lock 10, the lock 10 can move from the locked state (shown in fig. 2B) engaged with the plug-by-connector 5 to the unlocked state (see fig. 2A) disengaged from the plug-by-connector 5 against the elastic force of the elastic member 11, so that the locking portion 101 is disengaged from the plug-by-connector 5, for example, from the recess 51 of the plug-by-connector 5; on the other hand, when the pressing portion 31 of the follower 3 releases the pressing of the pressed portion 102 of the latch 10, the latch 10 is restored to the locked state (as shown in fig. 2B) by the elastic force of the elastic member 11, so that the locking portion 101 is brought into locking engagement with the plug-to-be-connected member 5, for example, into the recess 51 of the plug-to-be-connected member 5. In the locked state, as shown in fig. 2B, the pressed portion 102 may be, for example, always under the elastic force of the elastic member 11, thereby reliably maintaining the locking engagement of the locking portion 101 with the plug-to-be-connected member 5, preventing disengagement in use.

In the embodiment shown in the figures, the pressed part 102 is separated from the follower 3 in the locked state of the latch 10, and a certain gap may exist therebetween. However, according to another advantageous embodiment, the latch 10 may be further configured such that in the locked state of the latch 10, the pressed portion 102 is still pressed by the follower 3, i.e. the resilient member 11 presses the pressed portion 102 towards the follower 3, such that the pressed portion 102 abuts against the pressing portion 31 or other inner surface of the follower 3, forming a frictional locking engagement therebetween, which may also help to prevent the follower 3 from loosening.

Although the above describes an embodiment in which the latch 10 is subjected to the resilient force of a resilient member, it is to be understood that the invention also encompasses any other means of enabling the latch 10 to be switched between the locked state and the unlocked state.

The locking and unlocking process of the plug connection structure according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to fig. 1A to 1B, fig. 2A to 2B, and fig. 3A to 3C.

Referring to fig. 2A, which shows a state at the start of the locking operation, when the pressing portion 31 of the follower 3 presses the pressed portion 102 of the locker 10 of the plug-to-connector 1, the locking portion 101 of the locker 10 is disengaged from the groove 51 of the plug-to-connector 5. Starting from the situation shown in fig. 2A, the operator rotates the driver 4 in the locking direction indicated by the arrow L, and since the first thread 20 provided on the fixed member 2 and the second thread 30 provided on the driven member 3 are differential threads with opposite hand, and the driver 4 is provided with the third and fourth threads 42, 43 respectively engaged with the first and second threads 20, 30, the rotation of the driver 4 will cause the driven member 3 to move rapidly relative to the fixed member 2 according to the sum of the leads of the first and second threads, i.e. the driven member 3 moves along the left arrow in fig. 2A, gradually approaching the plug-to-be-connected member 5. The arrangement of the differential thread can reduce the number of rotation turns of the driving member 4, thereby playing a role of quick locking.

As the follower 3 is further moved leftward toward the plug-connected member 5 by the rotation of the driver 4, the latch 10 is changed from the unlocked state to the locked state by the elastic member 11, i.e., upon reaching the state shown in fig. 2B, the locking portion 101 is inserted into the groove 51 to be lockingly engaged therewith, thereby completing the connection locking of the plug connection structure. According to a further advantageous embodiment, in the locked state shown in fig. 2B, the end face of the follower 3 facing the plug-to-connector piece 5 can abut against the plug-to-connector piece 5, avoiding a gap between the two, in order to avoid the plug from being damaged by the entry of foreign matter.

It will be appreciated that the inner surface of the follower 3 is at least partially in face contact with the outer surface of the mount 2, and that there may be some clearance therebetween, as shown in figure 1B. Thus, the follower 3 can smoothly slide with respect to the fixed member 2 in the process of changing from the unlocked state shown in fig. 2A to the locked state shown in fig. 2B. A medium facilitating the sliding movement can also be arranged in this gap. In an alternative embodiment, the inner surface of the driven member 3 and the outer surface of the fixed member 2 are in surface contact, and both are made of self-lubricating material (for example, formed into a self-lubricating copper sleeve, a self-lubricating steel sleeve, etc.), and smooth sliding motion between the two can also be realized.

Further, to facilitate the sliding movement between the follower 3 and the fixed member 2, one of the follower 3 and the fixed member 2 has one or more projections, such as keys, extending in the sliding direction, while the other of the follower 3 and the fixed member 2 has one or more channels, such as keyways, extending in the sliding direction, engaging the projections and able to slide in the corresponding channels as the follower is carried by the driver between the unlocked and locked positions. In the preferred embodiment of fig. 1B, the follower 3 comprises three circumferentially distributed keys 32 and the fixture 2 comprises three circumferentially distributed keyways 22.

Next, a releasing process of the plug connection structure according to the present embodiment is described with reference to fig. 3A to 3C. From the locked state of fig. 3A, the operator rotates the driver 4 in the unlocking direction of arrow U, and due to the opposite handedness of the first thread 20 provided on the fixed member 2 and the second thread 30 provided on the driven member 3, the driven member 3 moves rapidly in the direction of the right arrow in fig. 3A toward the fixed member 2, and reaches the position shown in fig. 3B. In the state of fig. 3B, the pressing portion 31 of the follower 3 starts to press the pressed portion 102 of the latch 10 of the plug connector 1. Further, with further rotation of the driver 4, causing further rightward movement of the driven member 3, the pressing portion 31 presses the pressed portion 102 downward by its wedge-shaped feature against the elastic force of the elastic member 11 below the pressed portion 102 until the locking portion 101 disengages from the recess 51 of the plug-to-be-connected member 5, to a state shown in fig. 3C, whereby the disengagement of the plug connection structure is completed.

Having described the first embodiment of the present invention and some modifications made to its constituent parts, a second embodiment of the present invention and some modifications made to its constituent parts are described below with reference to fig. 4A to 6C.

As shown in fig. 4A, the plug connection structure according to the second embodiment includes: a plug connector 1, a fixing member 2a, a follower 3a, a driving member 4a, and a plug connected member 5, wherein the plug connector 1 and the plug connected member 5 are substantially the same as those in the first embodiment and are given the same reference numerals. The respective constituent elements of the plug connection structure are described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The plug connector 1 of the second embodiment, which is a female head of an XLR plug or other plug, for example, has a lock catch 10 including a locking portion 101 and a pressed portion 102 projecting substantially radially outward, for example, and a resilient member 11, and the resilient member 11 is accommodated in a space below the lock catch 10 and always exerts a force radially outward (upward direction in the drawing) against the lock catch 10. In the embodiment shown in fig. 4A, 5B, the latch 10 may be a separate component from the plug connector 1 and be held by the plug connector 1 in its interior without falling off, but it should be understood that in other embodiments, the left end of the latch 10 may be integrally formed with the plug connector 1 or fixedly connected, while the right end thereof is suspended; in addition, according to another embodiment, the latch 10 may be formed integrally with or fixedly connected to the elastic member 11, for example, both of which are formed of the same material, as long as the elastic member 11 is located in a space below the latch 10 and applies force thereto. Further, according to yet another preferred embodiment, the latch 10 and the resilient member 11 are both integrally formed with the plug connector 1, i.e. corresponding parts of the latch 10 and the resilient member 11, respectively, are integrally formed on the plug connector 1.

The locking portion 101 is engageable with a plug-to-plug connector 5 (which is, for example, the male of an XLR plug or other plug, see fig. 5B). According to a preferred embodiment, the plug-and-socket connector 5 may, for example, have a recess 51 to receive therein a locking portion 101 to achieve a connection lock between the plug connector 1 and the plug-and-socket connector 5.

The fixing member 2a is provided around the plug connector 1 at the outside thereof to receive the plug connector 1. According to a preferred embodiment, the fixation member 2a is a hollow member and comprises a first thread 20a as an internal thread. The fixing member 2a may be detachably connected to the plug connector 1, and the fixing member 2a may be detachably connected to the plug connector 1 by, for example, welding, adhesion, mechanical connection, or the like. Or in other preferred embodiments the fixing element 2a may be formed integrally with the plug connector 1.

The follower 3a is provided around the fixing member 2a on the outside thereof, and includes a second thread 30a as an internal thread, in which the first thread 20a is opposite to the second thread 30a, and a pressing portion 31a protruding radially inward that can interact with the pressed portion 102 of the plug connector 1. According to a preferred embodiment, the pressing portion 31a of the follower 3a is formed as a wedge-shaped feature and correspondingly, the pressed portion 102 of the plug connector 1 is formed with a ramp surface interacting with the wedge-shaped feature to facilitate unlocking of the latch, as described below.

A driving member 4a is provided inside the fixing member 2 and the driven member 3, in particular, a part of the driving member 4a is provided inside the hollow fixing member 2a and another part is provided inside the driven member 3a, and according to a preferred embodiment, the driving member 4a may be, for example, a hollow screw rod provided at the rear end of the female end of an XLR plug or other plug and connected with other related structures for accommodating a cable or the like, and includes a third thread 42a engaged with the first thread 20a and a fourth thread 43a engaged with the second thread 30 a.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first thread 20a and the second thread 30a are internal threads, and the third thread 42a and the fourth thread 43a are external threads. According to a further development of the invention, the first thread 20a and the third thread 42a engaging therewith may be provided as fine threads and/or the second thread 30a and the fourth thread 42a engaging therewith may be provided as fine threads, thereby ensuring self-locking of the driver 4a and preventing movement of the driver 4a in the locked position due to external forces or the like. In addition, according to a further development of the invention, the self-locking means is not limited to fine threads.

According to the principle of the present invention, and in the present embodiment, the driving member 4A is configured to be screwed by an operator, for example, by screwing the shoulder 41a, as shown in fig. 4A, so as to rotate the portion of the driving member 4A disposed inside the driven member 3a, and this operation by the operator causes this driving member 4A to rotate in a locking direction L described later and an unlocking direction U opposite to the locking direction, so that the driving member 4A moves the driven member 3a between an unlocking position and a locking position described later.

Fig. 4B is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of fig. 4A.

According to a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, when the pressing portion 31 of the follower 3 applies the pressing force to the pressed portion 102 of the lock 10, the lock 10 can move from the locked state (shown in fig. 5B) engaged with the plug-by-connector 5 to the unlocked state (see fig. 5A) disengaged from the plug-by-connector 5 against the elastic force of the elastic member 11, so that the locking portion 101 is disengaged from the plug-by-connector 5, for example, from the recess 51 of the plug-by-connector 5; on the other hand, when the pressing portion 31a of the follower 3a releases the pressing of the pressed portion 102 of the latch 10, the latch 10 is restored to the locked state (as shown in fig. 5B) by the elastic force of the elastic member 11, so that the locking portion 101 is brought into locking engagement with the plug-to-be-connected member 5, for example, into the recess 51 of the plug-to-be-connected member 5. In the locked state, as shown in fig. 5B, the pressed portion 102 may be, for example, always under the elastic force of the elastic member 11, thereby reliably maintaining the locking engagement of the locking portion 101 with the plug-to-be-connected member 5, preventing disengagement in use.

In the embodiment shown in the drawings, the pressed portion 102 is separated from the follower 3a in the locked state of the latch 10, and a certain gap may exist therebetween. However, according to another advantageous embodiment, the latch 10 may be further configured such that in the locked state of the latch 10, the pressed portion 102 is still pressed by the follower 3a, i.e. the resilient member 11 presses the pressed portion 102 towards the follower 3a, such that the pressed portion 102 abuts against the pressing portion 31a or other inner surface of the follower 3a, for example, forming a frictional locking engagement therebetween, which may also help to prevent the follower 3a from loosening.

Although the above describes an embodiment in which the latch 10 is subjected to the resilient force of a resilient member, it is to be understood that the invention also encompasses any other means of enabling the latch 10 to be switched between the locked state and the unlocked state.

The locking and unlocking process of the plug connection structure according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to fig. 4A to 4B, fig. 5A to 5B, and fig. 6A to 6C.

Referring to fig. 5A, which shows a state at the start of the locking operation, when the pressing portion 31a of the follower 3a presses the pressed portion 102 of the locker 10 of the plug-to-connector 1, the locking portion 101 of the locker 10 is disengaged from the recess 51 of the plug-to-connector 5. Starting from the state shown in fig. 5A, the operator rotates the driver 4a in the locking direction indicated by the arrow L, and since the first thread 20a provided on the fixed member 2a and the second thread 30a provided on the driven member 3a are differential threads having opposite handedness, and the driver 4a is provided with the third and fourth threads 42a, 43a engaged with the first and second threads 20a, 30a, respectively, the rotation of the driver 4a causes the driven member 3a to move rapidly relative to the fixed member 2a in accordance with the sum of the leads of the first and second threads, that is, the driven member 3a moves in the leftward arrow in fig. 5A, gradually approaching the plug-to-be-connected member 5. The arrangement of the differential thread can reduce the number of rotation turns of the driving member 4a, thereby playing a role of quick locking.

As the follower 3a is further moved leftward toward the plug-connected member 5 by the rotation of the driver 4a, the lock catch 10 is changed from the unlocked state to the locked state by the elastic member 11, i.e., upon reaching the state shown in fig. 5B, the locking portion 101 is inserted into the recess 51 to be lockingly engaged therewith, thereby completing the connection locking of the plug connection structure. According to a further advantageous embodiment, in the locked state shown in fig. 5B, the end face of the follower 3a facing the plug-to-connector piece 5 can abut against the plug-to-connector piece 5, avoiding a gap between the two, in order to avoid the plug from being damaged by the entry of foreign matter.

It will be appreciated that the inner surface of the follower 3a is at least partially in face contact with the outer surface of the fixed member 2a, and that there may also be a gap therebetween, as shown in figure 4B. Thus, the follower 3a can smoothly slide relative to the fixed member 2a in the process of changing from the unlocked state shown in fig. 5A to the locked state shown in fig. 5B. A medium facilitating the sliding movement can also be arranged in this gap. In an alternative embodiment, the inner surface of the driven member 3a and the outer surface of the fixed member 2a are in surface contact, and both are made of self-lubricating material (for example, formed into a self-lubricating copper sleeve, a self-lubricating steel sleeve, etc.), and smooth sliding motion between the two can also be realized.

Further, in order to facilitate the sliding movement between the follower 3a and the fixed member 2a, one of the follower 3a and the fixed member 2a has one or more projections extending in the sliding direction, such as keys, while the other of the follower 3a and the fixed member 2a has one or more channels, such as keyways, extending in the sliding direction, engaging with the projections, cooperating with the one or more projections, and being able to slide in the corresponding channels as the follower is carried by the driver between the unlocked position and the locked position. In the preferred embodiment of fig. 4B, follower 3a includes three circumferentially distributed keyways 32a and retainer 2a includes three circumferentially distributed keys 22 a.

Next, a releasing process of the plug connection structure according to the present embodiment is described with reference to fig. 6A to 6C. From the locked state of fig. 6A, the operator rotates the driver 4a in the unlocking direction of the arrow U, and due to the opposite rotation directions of the first thread 20a provided on the fixed member 2a and the second thread 30a provided on the follower 3a, the follower 3a moves rapidly toward the fixed member 2a along the rightward arrow in fig. 6A, and reaches the position shown in fig. 6B. In the state of fig. 6B, the pressing portion 31a of the follower 3a starts to press the pressed portion 102 of the latch 10 of the plug-and-socket connector 1, and further, with further rotation of the driving member 4a, causing further rightward movement of the follower 3a, the pressing portion 31a presses the pressed portion 102 downward by its wedge-shaped feature against the elastic force of the elastic member 11 below the pressed portion 102 until the locking portion 101 is disengaged from the recess 51 of the plug-and-socket connector 5, to the state shown in fig. 6C, whereby the disengagement of the plug-and-socket connection structure is completed.

It should be noted that although the present invention has been described in the specification and illustrated in the drawings with reference to various embodiments, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the above-described embodiments are merely preferred embodiments and that certain features of the embodiments may not be necessary to solve particular technical problems so that these features may not be included or omitted without affecting the solution of the technical problems or the formation of the technical solutions. Further, the features, elements, and/or functions of one embodiment may be combined, coupled, or coordinated with the features, elements, and/or functions of one or more other embodiments as appropriate, unless the combination, coupling, or coordination is clearly not implementable. From the foregoing it will be seen that this invention is one well adapted to attain all the ends and objects set forth above, together with other advantages which are obvious and inherent to the system and method. It will be understood that some features and sub-combinations are useful and may be used without reference to other features and sub-combinations. This is to be considered as falling within the scope of the claims.