JP2001068213A - Lock for modular plug - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reuse a modular plug when a lock means for preventing the modu lar plug from coming-off is broken or crushed by simply mounting an inexpen sive lock in an adaptor form to obtain a function equivalent to the lock means. SOLUTION: This lock 1 formed of an elastically deformable metal material having a nearly U-shaped box-like form has a flexible lock lever 4 on the upper part of an adaptor body 2 and bent parts 3 no the lower part thereof. The lock 1 is fitted to a plug body 6 whose original lock lever is broken or crushed so as to cover it, and fixed to it by bending the bent parts 3. When the plug body 6 with the lock 1 fixed in an adapter form is connected to a mating modular jack, a locking step part 5 of the lock lever 4 tilting and projecting upward engages with a mating lock part, and the connected form to the modular jack is kept, so that careless disconnection can be prevented and the modular plug can be reused.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a communication device using a LAN.
(Local Area Network) The present invention relates to a modular connector used for connection to a cable, a telephone line, or the like, and to a modular plug locking means having a lock for preventing disconnection and connecting to a modular jack.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in a modular plug of this type, as shown in FIG. 8, a locking lever 21 having flexibility protrudes from a plug body 20 to which a cable 23 is connected as locking means for preventing the plug from coming off. The locking step 22 formed at the intermediate portion of the lock lever 21 is engaged with the locking portion 27 of the plug insertion port 26 of the modular jack 25 to be connected to, thereby connecting the modular jack 25 to the modular jack 25. Is maintained so that careless removal is prevented.

[0003] On the other hand, in order to release this combined state,
By utilizing the elastic deformation of the flexible lock lever 21 and pushing the tip end of the lock lever 21 closer to the plug body 20 side, the engagement state of the engagement step 22 and the engagement portion 27 of the plug insertion port 26 is established. Is released and the plug body 20 can be removed from the modular jack 25.

[0004]

However, when the modular jack and the modular plug having the above-described configurations are used, the size of the modular plug itself is as small as 10 mm square or less, and the size of the material is very small. Since the structure is apt to be damaged, if care is taken carelessly, a situation occurs in which the lock means shown by the lock lever 21 in FIG. Since this locking means plays a large role in preventing the modular jack and the modular plug from coming off when they are connected, if they are damaged, the function of preventing the modular jack and the modular plug from coming out cannot be exhibited.

[0005] As described above, when the locking means of the modular plug is damaged and becomes unusable, it is necessary to replace the damaged modular plug as a whole each time. There is no other way but to change a new one. In this case, after performing the terminal treatment on the cable side, an installation operation for reconnecting the modular plug to the cable occurs again, and a large amount of labor and cost are required, such as requiring a crimping tool for that. It will be.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a locking plug for a modular plug, which can easily and inexpensively be mounted as an adapter to perform the same function, instead of the locking means of the modular plug which has been damaged.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, there is provided a modular plug having a modular plug having first locking means for preventing the plug from coming off when connected to a modular jack on a mating side. When the first locking means is broken or missing, the first locking means comprises an adapter which has a second locking means in place of the first locking means and which can be fixed to the plug main body. An adapter body that fits into the outer enclosure, and a bent portion that extends from the adapter body, is bent so as to wrap the plug body, and is fixed to the plug body, and is provided on the adapter body. It is integrally processed with the second lock means.

In this lock fitting for modular plugs, the first locking means and the second locking means are elastically deformable lock levers including locking step portions for preventing removal. A step is engaged with the modular jack side to prevent removal, and at the time of disconnection, the lock lever is pushed and elastically deformed to release the engagement for preventing the locking step from coming off. In the adapter, the adapter body, the bent portion, and the second locking means are all made of an elastically deformable metal material.

The adapter body may be fixed to the plug body by screws or double-sided adhesive tape.

According to the lock fitting for a modular plug of the present invention, the second lock means is provided in place of the first lock means which is damaged and missing, and is fixed to the plug body as an adapter. Thus, the modular plug can be reused as a device having the function of preventing removal.

[0011]

Next, the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a lock plug for a modular plug according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 2 and 3 respectively show a lock plug for a modular plug of the first embodiment before being attached to a plug body. FIG. 4 is a side sectional view showing a state in which the modular plug of FIG. 3 is connected to a modular jack, and FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a modular plug before locking means is broken and a modular jack connected thereto. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the modular plug lock of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a third embodiment of the modular plug lock of the present invention. FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, a lock fitting 1 for a modular plug according to the first embodiment is formed entirely of an elastically deformable metal material, and has a substantially U-shaped box-shaped adapter body. 2, a bendable portion 3 extending from below the adapter main body 2 and capable of being bent, and a flexible portion projecting slightly upward from the end of the U-shaped top surface of the adapter main body 2. A lock lever 4 (second lock means), which is resilient when its tip is pushed toward the top surface of the adapter body 2 and is close to the end of the top surface. A locking step 5 is provided at the site. As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG.
It is mounted so as to be wrapped around the plug body 6 of the modular plug.

Here, the original configuration of the plug body 6 will be described. As shown in FIG. 5, the plug body 6 of the modular plug originally has a lock lever 8 (first lock means) for preventing the plug body 6 from coming off. The plug body 6 made of a reinforced plastic material integrally has a flexible lock lever 8, and the lock lever 8 protrudes slightly upward from the upper surface of the plug body 6, and is resilient when the tip is pressed. A flexible stepped portion 81 is provided at a position that is freely and close to the base.

The plug body 6 to which the cable 10 is connected is
When connecting to the modular jack 9 of the connection partner shown in FIG. 5, the male contact 7 and the female contact 92 are inserted into the plug insertion port 91 of the modular jack 9 to make a conductive connection, and the locking step 81 of the lock lever 8 is Locking part 93
, The state of connection with the modular jack 9 is maintained, and accidental detachment is prevented. That is, the lock lever 8 having the locking step portion 81 is
It is a locking means for preventing the connection from being disconnected.

In order to release the connected state at the time of connection, the elastic step of the flexible lock lever 8 is utilized, and the leading end of the lock lever 8 is pushed toward the plug main body 6 to thereby engage the locking step. The engagement between 81 and the locking portion 93 is released, and the plug body 6 can be removed from the modular jack 9.

The lock lever 8 (first lock means) provided integrally with the plug main body 6 for preventing it from being detached may be damaged due to careless handling or the like, and may be in a missing state. is there. Therefore, the locking means is simply attached to the damaged plug body 6 in the form of an adapter so as to replace the damaged lock lever 8 with a slip-preventing function, so that the plug body 6 can be used again as an original modular plug. This is the lock fitting 1 of this embodiment.

Next, the mounting of the lock fitting 1 on the plug body 6 will be described with reference to FIGS. The upper surface of the plug body 6 is flat because the lock lever 8 is not damaged as shown in FIG. The lock fitting 1 having the above-described shape is attached so as to be wrapped from above. If the width H between the opposed U-shaped surfaces of the U-shape of the adapter body 2 of the lock fitting 1 is set to a size that fits into the width L of the plug body 6, the lock fitting 1 can be used as the plug body. When the lock lever 4 is completely fitted, the lock lever 4 comes to the same position as the lock lever 8 where the breakage and the missing part were located. Therefore, the bent portion 3 of the bent portion 3 below the lock fitting 1
1 is bent to the lower side of the plug body 6 and a bent portion 32
Is bent along the step 61 below the lock fitting 1, whereby the lock fitting 1 is completely fixed to the plug body 6.

FIG. 3 shows the state after the fixing, in which the lock lever 4 provided integrally with the lock fitting 1 and projecting upward and inclined is to be replaced with the damaged lock lever 8 shown in FIG. Becomes new locking means.

The plug body 6 to which the lock fitting 1 is newly fixed as an adapter is connected to the modular jack 9 to be connected as shown in FIG. When the plug body 6 is inserted into the plug insertion opening 91 of the modular jack 9, the male contact 7 and the female contact 92 are electrically connected (FIG. 5).
At the same time, the locking step portion 5 of the lock lever 4 which is inclined upward and protrudes from the lock fitting 1 is engaged with the counterpart locking portion 93, and the connection state with the modular jack 9 is maintained, so that carelessness is maintained. Dropout is prevented. That is, the lock lever 4 of the lock fitting 1 fixed as an adapter is replaced with the lock lever 8 that has been damaged and lost, and serves as locking means for preventing the lock lever 1 from coming off.
The plug body 6 and the lock fitting 1 are combined and used again as a modular plug having a function of preventing removal.

When the connection with the modular jack 9 is disconnected and the connection state is released, the elastic deformation of the flexible lock lever 4 is utilized and the distal end of the lock lever 4 is pushed by using the elastic deformation of the lock lever 4 as described above. The engagement between the locking step portion 5 and the locking portion 93 can be released.

As described above, according to the lock 1 of the first embodiment, the lock 1 has the lock lever 4 instead of the lock lever which is damaged and missing, and is fixed to the plug body 6 as an adapter. The modular plug can be reused as having the function of preventing removal.

FIG. 6 shows a second embodiment of a lock fitting for a modular plug according to the present invention.

The lock fitting 11 of the second embodiment
Has substantially the same configuration and material as the lock fitting 1 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1, has an adapter body 2, a bent portion 3, a lock lever 4, and a locking step portion 5. The difference from the first embodiment is that a screw hole 12 is provided in the top surface of the adapter body 2.

When the lock fitting 11 is to be mounted on the plug body 6 from which the lock lever is missing, the lock fitting 11 fitted into the plug body 6 is screwed into a screw portion 62 (see FIG. 2) formed on the upper surface of the plug body 6. ) And the screw holes 12 for screwing with the screws 13, it is possible to further securely fix the lock fitting 11 to the plug body 6. In this case, bending and fixing using the bent portion 3 may be used together, or fixing with only the screwing without providing the bent portion 3 may be performed.

FIG. 7 shows a mounting method according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

In this case, the mounting is performed using the double-sided adhesive tape 14. That is, the double-sided adhesive tape 14 is attached to a flat portion of the upper surface of the plug body 6 where the lock lever is missing. When the above-described lock fitting 1 or lock fitting 11 is fitted from above the plug body 6, the lock fitting 1 or lock fitting 11 can be fixed to the plug body 6 by the adhesive force of the double-sided adhesive tape 14. Become. Note that the double-sided adhesive tape 14 may be attached to the side surface of the plug body 6 instead of the upper surface.

[0028]

The first effect is that even if the locking means of the modular plug is damaged or lost due to careless handling or the like, the modular plug can easily exhibit the function of preventing the modular plug from being disconnected when connected to the modular jack. There are effects that can be used.

The reason for this is that the locking plug for the modular plug has the same locking means as the missing one, and can be easily mounted on the plug body like an adapter.

The second effect is that even if the locking means is broken or missing, it is not necessary to replace the entire modular plug, and there is an effect that a great deal of labor and cost involved in the replacement can be reduced.

The reason is that only a lock fitting for a modular plug like an adapter is used, so there is no need to replace a cable or replace a modular plug.
This is because no work for cable side terminal processing or connector rise is required, no new plug or crimping tool is required, and the replacement work time is reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a lock fitting for a modular plug according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a state before the modular plug lock according to the first embodiment is attached to the plug body.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state after the lock fitting for the modular plug according to the first embodiment has been attached to the plug body.

FIG. 4 is a side sectional view showing a state where the modular plug of FIG. 3 is connected to a modular jack.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a modular plug before locking means is broken and a modular jack connected thereto.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a lock fitting for a modular plug according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a mounting method as a third embodiment of the lock plug for a modular plug of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a side sectional view showing a connection state between a conventional modular plug and a modular jack.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 11 Locking fixture 2 Adapter body 3 Bending part 4, 8 Lock lever 5 Locking step part 6 Plug body 7 Male contact 9 Modular jack 10 Cable 12 Screw hole 13 Screw 14 Double-sided adhesive tape 31, 32 Bent part 61 Step 62 Screw part 81 Locking step part 91 Plug insertion port 92 Female contact 93 Locking part

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Hidetoshi Sasaki 2, Raikajin, Yoshioka, Yamato-cho, Kurokawa-gun, Miyagi Prefecture Inside Miyagi NEC Corporation (72) Inventor, Osamu Takahashi 2, Raikajin, Yoshioka, Yamato-cho, Kurokawa-gun, Miyagi Miyagi NEC Co., Ltd.

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A modular plug having a plug body having first locking means for preventing disconnection when connected to a modular jack on a connection partner side, wherein when the first locking means is damaged and missing, the first locking means is disconnected. A lock fitting for a modular plug, comprising an adapter having second lock means in place of the first lock means and capable of being fixed to the plug body. 2. The adapter according to claim 1, wherein the adapter is fitted into an outer casing of the plug body, and is bent from the adapter body so as to surround the plug body and be fixed to the plug body. The lock fitting for a modular plug according to claim 1, wherein the lock fitting is formed integrally with the second lock means provided on the adapter body. 3. The first lock means and the second lock means comprise elastically deformable lock levers including a lock step for preventing the pull-out, and when connected, the lock step is formed by the modular jack. 3. The lock lever is pushed to elastically deform to release the engagement of the locking step when the connection is released. A lock fitting for a modular plug according to item 1. 4. The adapter according to claim 1, wherein all of the adapter main body, the bent portion, and the second locking means are made of an elastically deformable metal material. Lock fitting for modular plug. 5. The lock fitting for a modular plug according to claim 1, wherein said adapter body is fixed to said plug body by screws. 6. The modular plug lock according to claim 1, wherein said adapter body is fixed to said plug body by a double-sided adhesive tape.