JP2018006010A - Connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve reliability of a short-circuited state by a short-circuit terminal regardless of a direction or the presence/absence of assembly of a front holder.SOLUTION: A contact piece 53 of a short-circuit terminal 50 is brought into contact with a first terminal fitting (short-circuit terminal 60A) that should be short-circuited among multiple first terminal fittings 60 that are disposed within a first housing 10. A second housing 80 to be a fitting party of the first housing 10 comprises: a release part 84 which pushes the contact piece 53 away from the short-circuit terminal 60A when the first and second housings 10 and 80 are regularly fitted; and an entrance part 85 which is disposed in parallel with the release part 84 and enters a space part 21 between a distal end of the pushed contact piece 53 and a first terminal fitting (neighboring terminal 60B) facing the distal end.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a connector.

  A connector disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a plurality of terminal fittings housed in a housing, a short terminal having an elastic contact piece that contacts a specific terminal fitting among the plurality of terminal fittings, and a housing. And a front holder that is assembled to the front surface. In a state before the housing is properly fitted to the mating connector, the specific terminal fitting is short-circuited by the short terminal. On the other hand, in a state where the housing is properly fitted to the mating connector, the short-circuit state between the specific terminal fittings is released by the short-circuit releasing portion provided in the mating connector, and the housing is in the normal fitting state. It can be detected electrically.

  Here, the elastic contact piece is pushed by the short-circuit releasing unit when the short-circuit is released, and approaches the other terminal fitting adjacent to the specific terminal fitting. The other terminal fittings are arranged so as to face a space (referred to as an escape portion) in which the elastic contact piece is pushed. For this reason, there exists a possibility that an elastic contact piece may conduct | electrically_connect with another terminal metal fitting via foreign materials, such as metal scraps. In view of this, in Patent Document 1, the front holder is provided with an insulating portion, and the short portion should not be short-circuited when the insulating portion enters the space between the elastic contact piece and the other terminal fitting. It is comprised so that it can avoid electrically connecting with another terminal metal fitting.

Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2015-60628

  By the way, in the above case, in order for the insulating portion to enter the space between the elastic contact piece and the other terminal fitting, the front holder needs to be moved and assembled from the front toward the front surface of the housing. For this reason, there is a problem that the technique of Patent Document 1 cannot be applied to a configuration in which the front holder is slid and assembled along the front surface of the housing, or in the case of a connector that does not include the front holder in the first place. It was.

  The present invention has been completed based on the above situation, and can improve the reliability when the short-circuit state due to the short terminal is released regardless of the direction and presence of the front holder assembly. An object is to provide a connector.

  A connector according to the present invention includes first and second housings that fit together, a plurality of first terminal fittings disposed in the first housing, and a first terminal that is disposed in the first housing and is to be short-circuited. A short terminal having a contact piece that contacts the metal fitting, and a second terminal metal fitting disposed in the second housing and connected to the first terminal metal fitting corresponding to the normal fitting of the first and second housings, And the second housing is arranged side by side with a release portion that pushes the contact piece in a direction away from the first terminal fitting to be short-circuited when the first and second housings are properly fitted, and the release portion. It has a feature in that it has an entry portion that is arranged and enters a space between the tip of the pushed contact piece and the first terminal fitting facing the tip.

  When the first and second housings are properly fitted, and the entry portion of the second housing enters the space between the tip of the contact piece of the short terminal and the first terminal fitting facing the tip, the short terminal and The opposed first terminal fittings can be in an insulated state. As a result, the reliability at the time of canceling the short circuit state by the short terminal can be improved. In particular, since the entry portion is provided in the second housing, unlike the case of Patent Document 1 shown in the background art, the versatility can be enhanced without being restricted by the direction and presence of the assembly of the front holder.

In the connector which concerns on Example 1 of this invention, it is sectional drawing which shows the state which a 1st, 2nd housing opposes each other before fitting start. It is sectional drawing which shows the state which the 1st, 2nd housing fitted normally, the short circuit state by a short terminal was cancelled | released, and the approach part entered the space part. It is a front view of the 1st housing. It is a front view of the 2nd housing. FIG. 3 is a view corresponding to FIG.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention are shown below.
The first housing has a bendable lance that elastically locks the first terminal fitting, and an opening into which the entry portion is inserted in the front wall of the first housing is interposed through the space. It is good to arrange at the position facing the lance. According to this, a jig | tool can be inserted in an opening part, the front-end | tip part of a jig | tool can be engaged with a lance, and a lance can be bent and deform | transformed in the latch release direction. Therefore, since both the entry portion and the jig can be inserted into the opening, the structure of the first housing can be simplified as compared to the case where the insertion structure is provided in each of the entry portion and the jig.

  The first housing may have a deflectable lance that elastically locks the first terminal fitting, and the entry portion may have a distal end insertion portion that is inserted into a deflection space of the lance. According to this, the entry portion can restrict the bending operation of the lance and have the function of the retainer for the first terminal fitting.

<Example 1>
Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The connector according to the first embodiment is disposed in the first housing 10, the first and second housings 10 and 80 that can be fitted to each other, the plurality of first terminal fittings 60 that are disposed in the first housing 10, and the first housing 10. A short terminal 50 that contacts a first terminal fitting to be short-circuited (hereinafter referred to as a short-circuit terminal 60 </ b> A) and a plurality of second terminal fittings 70 disposed in the second housing 80 are provided. In the following description, the front-rear direction is defined as the front side where the first and second housings 10 and 80 face each other at the start of fitting, and the vertical direction is based on each drawing.

  The first housing 10 is made of synthetic resin, and includes a rectangular block-shaped housing main body 11 and a flat plate-like front holder 12 disposed so as to cover the front surface of the housing main body 11. As shown in FIG. 1, the housing body 11 has a plurality of cavities 13 into which the first terminal fittings 60 can be inserted. Each cavity 13 is configured to penetrate the housing body 11 in the front-rear direction, and is arranged in a plurality of rows in the vertical direction and in a plurality of rows in the width direction (left-right direction in FIG. 3). A cantilever lance 14 that protrudes forward is provided on the upper surface of the inner wall of each cavity 13. The first terminal fitting 60 is temporarily retained within the cavity 13 by being locked to the lance 14.

  The housing body 11 has a storage chamber 15 in which a short terminal 50 can be stored between an uppermost cavity 13 (hereinafter referred to as an upper cavity 13A) and a lower cavity (hereinafter referred to as an adjacent cavity 13B). doing. In the case of the first embodiment, a total of four chambers 15 are provided on each of the left and right sides of the housing body 11.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a partition 16 separates the upper cavity 13 </ b> A and the storage chamber 15 in the housing body 11. The front end portion of the partition wall 16 penetrates in the vertical direction, and is opened to the front of the housing body 11 as a communication portion 17 that allows the upper cavity 13 </ b> A and the storage chamber 15 to communicate with each other. In the communication part 17, while the short terminal 50 contacts with the short circuit terminal 60A, the contact piece 53 mentioned later approachs and is arrange | positioned. The short circuit terminal 60A is accommodated in the upper cavity 13A.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a partition wall 18 partitions the housing body 15 and the adjacent cavity 13 </ b> B in the housing body 11. The front end portion of the partition wall 18 penetrates in the vertical direction, and is opened to the front of the housing body 11 as an escape portion 19 that allows the storage chamber 15 and the adjacent cavity 13B to communicate with each other. In the escape part 19, the tip part of the lance 14 protruding into the adjacent cavity 13B is arranged so as to face from below. As will be described later, a contact piece 53 that is bent and deformed is disposed in the escape portion 19. The penetrating dimension of the relief part 19 (thickness of the partition wall 18) is larger than the penetrating dimension of the communicating part 17 (thickness of the partition wall 16).

  A front portion of the lance 14 that projects below the escape portion 19 and protrudes into the adjacent cavity 13 </ b> B is opened to the front of the housing body 11 as a space portion 21. An entrance portion 85 (described later) of the second housing 80 can enter the space portion 21.

  A mounting hole 22 is provided in the front-rear direction of the housing body 11. The mounting hole 22 extends in the vertical direction, communicates with each cavity 13, communicates with each storage chamber 15, and opens on the lower surface of the housing body 11. A plate-like retainer 20 is inserted into the mounting hole 22 from below.

  A housing recess 23 is provided at the upper end of the housing body 11. The housing recess 23 is disposed above the area where the cavities 13 are disposed, and is open to the rear of the housing body 11. A lever 25 having a cam plate 24 is housed in the housing recess 23. The lever 25 is rotated along a horizontal plane (a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction) while the cam plate 24 is cam-engaged with a cam follower 82 (described later) of the second housing 80 in a state of being accommodated in the accommodating recess 23. Thus, the first and second housings 10 and 80 are brought into the normal fitting state.

  The first terminal fitting 60 is formed into a shape elongated in the front-rear direction by bending a conductive metal plate or the like. As shown in FIG. 1, the first terminal fitting 60 is a female terminal fitting, and has a cylindrical connecting portion 61 and an open barrel-shaped barrel portion 62 disposed behind the connecting portion 61. ing. A locking hole 63 is provided through the upper wall portion of the connecting portion 61. When the first terminal fitting 60 is properly inserted into the cavity 13, the protruding portion formed at the tip of the lance 14 is inserted into the locking hole 63 and locked. Further, the retaining portion 27 of the retainer 20 is locked to the rear end of the connecting portion 61, whereby the first terminal fitting 60 is secondarily prevented from coming out into the cavity 13. The barrel portion 62 has a portion that is crimped and connected to the core wire portion exposed by the removal of the coating at the terminal portion of the electric wire 30, and a portion that is crimped and connected to the covering portion of the terminal portion of the electric wire 30 behind the barrel portion 62. The electric wire 30 is drawn backward from the rear surface of the housing body 11.

  The short terminal 50 is formed in a form that is shorter in the front-rear direction and longer in the vertical direction than the first terminal fitting 60 by bending a conductive metal plate. The short terminal 50 is inserted and held in the accommodation chamber 15 in front of the mounting hole 22. As shown in FIG. 2, the short terminal 50 includes a base portion 51 along the front-rear direction, a bent portion 52 that is folded back in an arc shape at the rear end of the base portion 51, and a front end from the upper end of the bent portion 52. And a contact piece 53 having a front end portion (tip portion) protruding upward in a mountain shape. Although not shown in detail, the contact piece 53 and the bent portion 52 are provided in pairs on the left and right sides (see FIG. 3).

  The contact piece 53 can be bent and deformed in the vertical direction with the bent portion 52 as a fulcrum. The top of the peak at the front end portion of the contact piece 53 is configured as a contact portion 55 that contacts the short-circuit terminal 60A from below (see FIG. 1). In addition, the front portion of the contact piece 53 is inclined forward and downward, and a release portion 84 (to be described later) of the second housing 80 can be slidably contacted to the front surface. The front end (front end of the front portion) of the contact piece 53 is disposed so as to enter the escape portion 19 at the time of bending deformation.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, a restriction piece 56 is provided upright at the front end of the base 51. Since the regulating piece 56 contacts the contact portion 55 from below, it is possible to prevent the contact piece 53 from being excessively bent and deformed downward.

  The front holder 12 is assembled by sliding along the front surface of the housing body 11 from below. The front holder 12 is provided with a tab insertion hole 28 at a position facing each cavity 13. The opening edge portion of the tab insertion hole 28 on the front surface of the front holder 12 is configured to expand in a tapered shape toward the front. As shown in FIG. 2, a male tab 71 (described later) of the second terminal fitting 70 is inserted into the tab insertion hole 28 from the front when the first and second housings 10 and 80 are fitted.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the front holder 12 is provided with an opening 29 penetrating at a position closer to one side (the right side in FIG. 3) of the upper end edge of each tab insertion hole 28. As shown in FIG. 2, the entrance portion 85 of the second housing 80 can be inserted into the opening 29 in a positioned state from the front, and the lance 14 is engaged when the first terminal fitting 60 is removed from the cavity 13. A jig (not shown) for bending in the stop release direction (downward) can be inserted in a positioned state from the front.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the front holder 12 is provided with a laterally long rib insertion hole 26 penetrating substantially in the center of the left and right, and a pair of release holes 33 penetrating the left and right sides of the rib insertion hole 26. Is provided. A rib 83 (to be described later) of the second housing 80 can be inserted into the rib insertion hole 26 in a positioned state, and a release portion 84 of the second housing 80 can be inserted into the release hole 33 in a positioned state. The housing body 11 is provided with an opening (not shown) that receives the rib 83 at a position facing the rib insertion hole 26. The release hole 33 has a cross-sectional shape corresponding to the release portion 84 of the second housing 80, and is disposed so as to straddle the pair of left and right tab insertion holes 28 facing the upper cavity 13A (the cavity in which the short-circuit terminal 60A is accommodated). Has been.

  Next, the second housing 80 will be described. The second housing 80 is made of a synthetic resin and includes a rectangular tube-shaped hood portion 81 protruding forward as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4. A cylindrical cam follower 82 projects from the inner surface of the upper wall of the hood 81.

  A rib 83 projects from the hood portion 81. The rib 83 has a plate-like shape that protrudes forward from the substantially right and left central portion of the back wall of the hood portion 81, and plays a role of preventing the first and second housings 10 and 80 from being twisted.

  Further, in the hood portion 81, a pair of release portions 84 are disposed so as to protrude on both the left and right sides of the rib 83, and a pair of entry portions 85 are disposed below the release portions 84 so as to protrude. A plurality of male tabs 71 project from the upper and lower sides of 83, release portion 84, and entry portion 85. As shown in FIG. 1, the rib 83, the release portion 84, the entry portion 85, and the male tab 71 are arranged in parallel with each other.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the release portion 84 is a plate piece that is flat in the left-right direction, and has a protrusion 87 that protrudes small downward in the left-right center portion. Of the lower surface of the release portion 84, the left and right side portions sandwiching the protrusion 87 are slidable with the contact piece 53 of the short terminal 50.

  The entry portion 85 has a prismatic shape as a whole, and has a substantially square cross-sectional shape so as to correspond to the cross-sectional shape of the opening 29. As shown in FIG. 2, the entry portion 85 enters the space portion 21 through the opening 29 and is disposed to face the tip of the lance 14 when the first and second housings 10 and 80 are properly fitted. A downwardly inclined relief surface 86 is formed on the distal end surface of the entry portion 85, and the distal end of the distal end of the lance 14 is allowed to escape close to the escape surface 86. The entry portion 85 is provided individually corresponding to the contact piece 53 of the short terminal 50.

  The second terminal fitting 70 is a male terminal fitting made of a conductive member. The front end portion of the second terminal fitting 70 is configured as a male tab 71 protruding into the hood portion 81 as shown in FIGS. As shown in FIG. 2, the male tab 71 is inserted into the connection portion 61 of the first terminal fitting 60 and electrically connected when the first and second housings 10 and 80 are properly fitted. ing. The rear end portion of the second terminal fitting 70 is connected by soldering to a board hole of a printed circuit board (not shown).

  As shown in FIG. 1, the distal end of the male tab 71 is positioned so as to be retracted further backward than the distal end of the rib 83. The distal end of the release portion 84 is positioned so as to be retracted further backward than the distal end of the male tab 71, and the distal end of the entry portion 85 is positioned so as to be retracted further backward than the distal end of the release portion 84.

Next, the function and effect of the connector according to the first embodiment will be described.
Prior to the fitting of the first and second housings 10 and 80, the short terminal 50 is housed in the housing chamber 15, the front holder 12 is slid and assembled on the front surface of the housing body 11, and the first terminal fitting 60 is inserted into the corresponding cavity 13 from behind. The first terminal fitting 60 is temporarily locked by the lance 14. Subsequently, the retainer 20 is pushed deeply into the mounting hole 22, and the first terminal fitting 60 is secondarily locked by the retaining portion 27 of the retainer 20. Among these, the short-circuit terminals 60A are arranged in pairs on the left and right sides in the upper cavity 13A. The paired short-circuit terminals 60 </ b> A elastically contact the corresponding contact portions 55 of the short terminals 50 with the lower surface of the connection portion 61, thereby maintaining a short-circuit state with each other.

  Next, the first housing 10 is directly opposed to the second housing 80, and in this state, the second housing 80 is fitted into the hood portion 81. Here, when the cam plate 24 of the lever 25 is cam-engaged with the cam follower 82 and is rotated, the first and second housings 10 and 80 are in a properly fitted state.

  As shown in FIG. 2, when the first and second housings 10 and 80 are properly fitted, the release portion 84 enters the accommodation chamber 15 from the release hole 33 of the front holder 12, and the short terminal 50 The front part of the contact piece 53 slides, and the contact piece 53 is bent and deformed downward away from the short-circuit terminal 60A. Thereby, the short circuit state of 60 A of short terminals is cancelled | released. When the first and second housings 10 and 80 are properly fitted, the entry portion 85 enters the space portion 21 from the opening 29 of the front holder 12 and the contact piece 53 that has entered the relief portion 19. It is arranged between the tip and the first terminal fitting (the first terminal fitting inserted into the adjacent cavity 13B, which will be referred to as the adjacent terminal 60B below) opposite thereto. For this reason, for example, even if foreign matter such as metal scrap is present between the tip of the contact piece 53 and the adjacent terminal 60B in the space portion 21, the foreign matter interferes with the entry portion 85, so that the contact piece 53 and the adjacent terminal 60B. Therefore, when the first and second housings 10 and 80 are properly fitted, the short terminal 50 can be prevented from being inadvertently connected to the adjacent terminal 60B, and only the short-circuit terminal 60A is short-circuited. The configuration can be ensured.

  The entry portion 85 that has entered the space portion 21 does not contact the tip of the contact piece 53, but contacts the upper surface of the connection portion 61 of the adjacent terminal 60B. At this time, the adjacent terminal 60B is pressed by the entry part 85 and is sandwiched between the entry part 85 and the lower surface of the inner wall of the adjacent cavity 13B, thereby suppressing rattling in the adjacent cavity 13B.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, the first and second housings 10 and 80 are properly fitted, and the entry portion 85 of the second housing 80 is connected to the tip of the contact piece 53 of the short terminal 50 and the tip thereof. By entering between the adjacent adjacent terminals 60B, the short terminal 50 and the adjacent terminals 60B can be in an insulated state. As a result, the reliability at the time of canceling the short circuit state by the short terminal 50 can be improved. In particular, in the case of the first embodiment, since the front holder 12 is assembled by sliding along the front surface of the housing main body 11, the technology using the front holder 12 as shown in the background art cannot be applied. Therefore, there is a great merit that the reliability of short circuit cancellation can be improved regardless of the direction and presence of the front holder 12.

  Further, the opening 29 of the front holder 12 is arranged at a position facing the lance 14 through the space 21, and a jig for extracting a terminal (not shown) is inserted into the space 21 through the opening 29, The lance 14 is hooked on the tip of the jig and is bent and deformed in the direction to release the locking with the first terminal fitting 60. In this state, the first terminal fitting 60 can be extracted from the cavity 13. As described above, the entry portion 85 is inserted into the space portion 21 through the opening portion 29. Therefore, since the opening 29 is also used as a hole for passing the entry portion 85 and the jig, the structure of the front holder 12 can be simplified.

<Example 2>
FIG. 5 shows a second embodiment of the present invention. Example 2 is the same as Example 1 except for the entry part 85D, although the form of the entry part 85 is different from that of Example 1. For this reason, in the second embodiment, the same or corresponding parts in structure as in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description overlapping with the first embodiment is omitted.

  The entry portion 85 </ b> D includes a prismatic main body portion 88 that protrudes from the back wall of the hood portion 81, and a thin tip insertion portion 89 that protrudes forward from the front end of the main body portion 88. The distal end insertion portion 89 is configured such that the lower surface is gradually inclined toward the front end by inclining with an upward slope toward the front end.

  When the first and second housings 10 and 80 are properly fitted, the main body portion 88 enters the space portion 21 to prevent the short terminal 50 and the adjacent terminal 60B from being inadvertently connected. it can. This is the same as in the first embodiment. Furthermore, in the second embodiment, the distal end insertion portion 89 enters the bending space 90 positioned above the lance 14 protruding into the adjacent cavity 13B. For this reason, the lance 14 is restricted from being bent upward and deformed, and the adjacent terminal 60B is triple-locked by the lance 14, the retainer 20, and the entry portion 85D.

<Other embodiments>
Other embodiments will be briefly described below.
(1) The present invention is also applicable to a connector that does not include a front mask.
(2) Of the two contact pieces of the short terminal, only one contact piece may be pressed by the release portion to release the short circuit.
(3) The entrance portion may be in the form of a plate that collectively covers two or more contact pieces.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... 1st housing 12 ... Front holder 14 ... Lance 15 ... Accommodating chamber 21 ... Space part 29 ... Opening part 50 ... Short terminal 60 ... 1st terminal metal fitting 70 ... 2nd terminal metal fitting 80 ... 2nd housing 84 ... Release | release part 85 , 85D ... entry part 89 ... tip insertion part 90 ... bending space

Claims (3)

First and second housings that fit together;
A plurality of first terminal fittings disposed in the first housing;
A short terminal having a contact piece disposed in the first housing and in contact with the first terminal fitting to be short-circuited;
A second terminal fitting disposed in the second housing and connected to the first terminal fitting corresponding to the normal fitting of the first and second housings,
The second housing is
A release portion that pushes the contact piece away from the first terminal fitting to be short-circuited when the first and second housings are properly fitted;
A connector comprising: an entry portion that is arranged alongside the release portion and enters a space between a tip of the pushed contact piece and a first terminal fitting facing the tip.   The first housing has a bendable lance that elastically locks the first terminal fitting, and an opening into which the entry portion is inserted in the front wall of the first housing is interposed through the space. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the connector is disposed at a position facing the lance.   2. The first housing has a deflectable lance that elastically locks the first terminal fitting, and the entry portion has a tip insertion portion that is inserted into a deflection space of the lance. Or the connector of 2.

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