JPH09129276A - Press contact connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the wire leading-out part of a wire presser cover from becoming large. SOLUTION: A connector housing 21 is formed out of a hood part 22 and a terminal housing part 23 with many cavities 28 arranged in two rows along upper and lower levels and a cover 30 is mounted on the terminal housing part 23. Large cavities 28 capable of housing a terminal fitting 40 are arranged so as to be staggered in the terminal housing part 23. Also, the terminal fitting part 40 has a tab 41 and a press contact connection part 43 is formed on the opposite end of the tab 42 as an integral part thereof. The press contact connection part 43 is formed out of an extension piece 43A extended from the tab 41 along the same plane, and a bent piece 43B standing from the extension piece 43A in such a state as faced thereto. In addition, each engaging connection part 43 is arranged in the cavities 28 in such a state as partly staggered.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improvement of a pressure contact connector in which an electric wire is pressure-contacted with a terminal fitting for connection.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As this type of pressure contact connector, for example, the one disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 6-54214 is known.
As shown in FIG. 15, the connector housing 1 has a plurality of terminal fittings 2 arranged in two rows. The fitting connection portion of the terminal fitting 2 which is fitted and connected to the mating connector is located so as to project into the connector housing 1 (not shown), and the electric wire 3 is pressure-welded to be connected. The portion 2a projects outward from the rear surface of the connector housing 1 as shown in the figure.

To connect the electric wire 3 in this configuration,
The electric wire 3 may be simply press-fitted into the slit of the press-connecting connection portion 2a, the engagement hole 4a may be engaged with the locking projection 1a, and the cover 4 may be attached to the connector housing 1 (see FIG. 16). Then, since the press-connecting connection portion 2a of the terminal fitting 2 breaks through the insulating coating of the electric wire 3 and is connected to the core wire, there is an advantage that a troublesome process such as peeling of the electric wire and crimping of the terminal fitting is unnecessary.

[0004]

However, in this type of connector, as shown in FIG. 16, the electric wire 3 may be bent and used so as to be folded back at the lead-out portion from the cover 4. Then, the cover 4 is originally the connector housing 1
In addition to being larger in size, the overlapping dimension of the folded-back portion is added, so that the dimension A is considerably increased as a whole. If this A dimension becomes large, for example, when it is mounted on a predetermined panel or the like by the mounting portion 5 provided on the cover 4, the electric wire 3
Could be strongly pressed against the panel, or could be rubbed against the panel due to vibration and wear.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to downsize a cover in a case where an electric wire is pressed against a terminal fitting provided in a connector housing and the electric wire is held by the cover. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a press-connecting connector capable of preventing the takeout portion of the electric wire from becoming large.

Another object of the present invention is to press an electric wire against a terminal fitting also provided in a connector housing and press the electric wire with a cover by improving the arrangement of the electric wire at the lead-out portion from the cover. An object of the present invention is to provide a press-connecting connector that can prevent the take-out portion of an electric wire from becoming large.

[0007]

[Means for Solving the Problems and Functions / Effects]

<Invention of Claim 1> The pressure contact connector according to the invention of Claim 1 is a connector housing in which cavities are arranged in a plurality of stages in a terminal accommodating portion, and a fitting connection portion accommodated in these cavities and connected to a mating connector. With a plurality of terminal fittings each having a plurality of crimping slits for opening an electric wire extending in a direction orthogonal to the extension direction to crimp at a plurality of points along the direction. In the case where the press-connecting connection part is formed at a position deviated from the mating connection part to one side in the extension direction of the wire, the terminal fittings are arranged in a zigzag pattern with respect to the cavity, and the cavities of the adjacent stages arranged in the extension direction of the wire The terminal metal fitting arranged in [1] is characterized in that the fitting connection parts are arranged so as to face each other.

In this structure, the terminal fittings are arranged in a zigzag manner with respect to the cavity, and the fitting connecting portions of the terminal fittings on the adjacent stages face each other. Therefore, a part of each fitting connecting portion is staggered. They are arranged so that they overlap. Therefore, even if there is a situation in which the press-connecting connection portion is provided with a plurality of press-contact slits that are opened to press-connect the electric wire at a plurality of positions along the extension direction, and the dimension in the same direction becomes large, that part By alternately overlapping, the thickness of the terminal accommodating portion can be reduced. As a result, it is possible to reduce the size of the cover that covers the terminal accommodating portion and prevent the lead-out portion of the electric wire from becoming large.

<Invention of Claim 2> The pressure contact connector according to the invention of Claim 2 is a connector housing in which cavities are arranged in a plurality of stages in a terminal accommodating portion, and a fitting accommodated in these cavities and connected to a mating connector. A plurality of terminal fittings having a mating connection portion, and each of the terminal fittings is formed with a pressure contact connection portion having a pressure contact slit that is opened to pressure contact an electric wire extending in a direction orthogonal to its extension direction, Further, in the terminal accommodating portion having a cover for pressing the pressure-welded electric wire attached, the cover has openings formed on both sides in the extension direction of the electric wire for unconstraining the electric wire. It is characterized by

In this structure, the cover is provided with an opening for holding the electric wire in an unrestrained state. Therefore, the electric wire pressed against the terminal fitting is led out of the cover in an unrestrained state through the opening. To be done. Therefore, the folded portion is not generated in the electric wire, and the increase in size due to the folded portion is suppressed, so that the lead-out portion of the electric wire can be prevented from becoming large.

<Invention of Claim 3> The pressure contact connector according to the invention of Claim 3 is the same as that of Claim 2, except that the opening is composed of a plurality of slits for individually inserting a plurality of electric wires. It is characterized in that a reinforcing rib and a lock are provided in the comb-shaped portion between each slit.

With this arrangement, the electric wire can be led out from the cover without causing a folded portion on the electric wire, and moreover,
Nevertheless, the rigidity of the cover can be increased by the reinforcing ribs and the locks provided on the comb-teeth-shaped portion, and thus the holding force of the electric wire can be increased.

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

<First Embodiment> An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 shows male and female connectors 10 and 20, of which the male connector 20 drawn on the left side is configured as a press-connecting connector according to the present invention. Here, the female connector 10 drawn on the right side has female terminal fittings (not shown) fixed by caulking to the tips of a large number of electric wires 11, and these terminal fittings are formed in a plurality of cavities 13 formed in a connector housing 12. It is housed in. The number of the cavities 13 of the connector housing 12 can be set variously, but in this embodiment, a total of nine cavities 1 are provided.
3 are arranged in upper and lower two stages. More specifically, six cavities 13 are formed in one row in the lower row, two cavities are formed on the left side and one cavity is formed on the right side in the upper row.
A recess 14 is formed on the upper surface of the center, and in that region, cavities 13 are provided only in the lower stage. This recess 1
4, a lock arm 16 having a front end supported by a leg 15 is integrally projected, a locking protrusion 17 is projected on the upper surface of the lock arm 16, and a pressing operation portion is provided at the rear free end. 18 is provided.

On the other hand, the connector housing 21 of the male connector 20 is provided with a square tubular hood portion 22 at the front portion (female connector 10 side) and a terminal accommodating portion 23 at the rear portion. A tab 41 of a terminal fitting 40, which will be described later, projects into the hood portion 22, and the female connector 1 is inserted into the hood portion 22.
0 is fitted and the terminal fitting is fitted and connected to the tab 41. The female connector 1 is provided on the upper surface of the hood portion 22.
An engaging hole 24 that engages with the locking protrusion 17 that is provided on the lock arm 16 of No. 0 is formed, and thereby a lock mechanism that locks the fitted state with the female connector 10 is configured.

The terminal accommodating portion 23 has an outer shell shape which is wider than the hood portion 22 as a whole and has a thin rectangular tube shape, and is located on the upper surface at a position corresponding to the lock mechanism. A housing recess 25 is formed so as to be depressed like a rectangular groove. Inside the terminal accommodating portion 23, a total of 15 cavities 28 are formed in upper and lower stages through a horizontal partition wall 26 and a number of vertical partition walls 27.

There are two kinds of sizes of the cavity 28, and these are arranged as shown in FIG. That is, from the first row to the fourth row on the left side, in the lower stage, large cavities 28A are arranged alternately from the left side and the other are small cavities 28B, and in the upper stage, small cavities 28B are arranged. The cavities 28A are arranged in order from the left side and the others are large cavities 28A, and in the end, the large cavities 28A are arranged in a staggered order from the lower left side. Further, only the large cavities 28A are arranged from the fifth row to the seventh row (the area where the housing recesses 25 are formed) on the left side, and in the eighth row, the upper cavity is the large cavity 28A and the lower row is the small cavity 28B. On the contrary, in the ninth row, the upper cavities 28B and the lower tiers are large cavities 28B.
A. Further, on both the upper and lower surfaces of the terminal accommodating portion 23 and the vertical partition wall 27, a wire insertion slit 29 corresponding to each cavity 28 and opening at the rear edge portion and extending to the front side is formed, and an insulated electric wire 50 extending vertically is provided therein. It can be inserted.

A cover 3 is provided behind the terminal accommodating portion 23.
0 can be installed. The cover 30 is used for the terminal accommodating portion 2
An enclosure wall portion 31 that covers the rear end surface of the terminal 3 and surrounds the outer periphery of the terminal accommodating portion 23 with a gap through which the electric wire 50 can be inserted is provided. The surrounding wall portion 31 conforms to the outer shell shape of the terminal accommodating portion 23, and has a cover recess 32 that is recessed in a rectangular groove shape at a position corresponding to the housing recess 25 of the terminal accommodating portion 23. Further, two engaging holes 33 are formed on each of the left and right sides of the surrounding wall portion 31, which are the connector housings 2.
Locking protrusions 2 formed on the left and right side surfaces of the terminal accommodating portion 23
3a constitutes a locking mechanism that engages with 3a and fixes the cover 30 to the connector housing 21. As shown in FIG. 8, a large number of reinforcing ribs 34 are provided on the cover 30, and a pressing protrusion 35 is provided on the cover 30. The pressing protrusion 35 protrudes toward the press-connecting connection portion 43 of the terminal fitting 40. Furthermore, the housing recess 25 of the connector housing 21 is also
The individual locking projections 25a are provided in a protruding manner, and the locking projections 25 are provided on the bottom rear surface of the corresponding cover recess 32 of the cover 30.
An engaging protrusion (not shown) that engages with a is formed, and this also constitutes the locking mechanism. As shown in FIG. 7, two locking protrusions 23 b are provided in the center of the bottom surface of the terminal accommodating portion 23, and the surrounding wall portion 3 of the cover 30 is provided.
The engaging projections 34a (see FIG. 8) are formed on the reinforcing ribs 34 inside the bottom surface of the first base plate.
It is adapted to be engaged with the connector housing 21 at four positions on the left, right, top and bottom. As shown in FIG. 7, support projections 36 are provided on the bottom surface of the hood portion 22 of the connector housing 21 so as to project downward, and a pair of elastic pieces 37 and locking pieces 38 are located on the left and right sides of the support projections 36. 10 are provided in upper and lower two stages, and as shown in FIG. 10, the connector housing 21 can be fixed to a back panel 51 provided in, for example, the trunk of the vehicle.

Now, the terminal fitting 40 will be described in detail. As described above, this is a tab 41 which is a fitting connection portion which is fitted and connected to the terminal fitting of the mating female connector 10.
And a press contact connecting portion 43 is integrally provided at the opposite end portion thereof. The press-connecting connection portion 43 is provided on the tab 4
It is composed of an extension piece portion 43A extended from 1 on the same plane, and a bending piece portion 43B which is formed by standing up from here and bent to face each other, and each extension piece portion 43A and the bending piece portion 43B have Pressure contact slits 42 are formed rearward so as to press the electric wires 50 extending in a direction orthogonal to the extension direction of the tabs 41. Therefore, each of the terminal fittings 40 has a form in which the press-connecting connection portion 43 is formed at a position deviated from the tab 41 to one side in the extension direction of the electric wire 50.

In this embodiment, four types of terminal fittings 40A, 40B, 40C and 40D are used.
Both of them have the tab 41 and the press-connecting connection portion 43, but the shapes of the intermediate portions thereof are different. The terminal fitting 40A is tab 4
1 and the press-connecting connection portion 43 are linearly connected, and the terminal fitting 40
B is continuous with the middle portion laterally displaced by one cavity 28. That is, the tab 41 of the terminal fitting 40B and the press-connecting connection portion 43 are formed with the lateral shift portion 44 that is displaced in a direction (lateral direction) orthogonal to both the extension direction of the electric wire 50 and the extension direction of the terminal fitting 40. There is. Also, the terminal fitting 40C
Also, between the tab 41 and the pressure contact connecting portion 43, the lateral deviation portion 44
Are formed, which are laterally offset by two cavities 28. The terminal fitting 40D is laterally displaced by one pitch of the cavity 28 as in the terminal fitting 40B, but the direction of deviation is opposite.

The above four types of terminal fittings 40A, 40B, 4
0C and 40D are inserted and arranged as shown in FIG.
That is, each tab 41 of the terminal fitting 40 has two tabs in the vertical direction (extending direction of the electric wire 50) in the two rows on the right side and the leftmost row as described with reference to FIG. The other parts are arranged only in the lower tier. This arrangement state naturally corresponds to the arrangement state of the cavity 13 of the female connector 10 and thus the female terminal fitting. On the other hand, regarding the press-connecting connection portions 43, referring to FIG. 7, the press-connecting connection portions 43 are arranged in a staggered manner in the upper and lower four rows of the cavities 28 on the left side, and the two rows of the cavities 28 on the right side are arranged. Regarding each pressure contact connection part 43
Are staggered vertically. The difference between the arrangement of the tabs 41 and the arrangement of the press-connecting connection portions 43 is due to the existence of the lateral shift portion 44 of the terminal fitting 40, and the details thereof are as shown in FIG. In the figure, the grid pattern on the right side shows the arrangement state of the tabs 41, the grid pattern on the left side shows the arrangement of the cavities 28, and the cavity 28 in which the press-connecting connection portion 43 of the terminal fitting 40 is housed is shaded. Are distinguished and expressed. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the press-connecting connecting portions 43 of the terminal fittings 40 housed in the upper and lower staggered arrangements have the extension piece portions 43A located on the upper side, as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, the lower one has its extension piece portion 43A located below, and both fitting connection portions 41 are arranged to face each other. As a result, as can be seen from FIG.
The fitting connection portions 43 are arranged so that a part of each of the fitting connection portions 43 alternately overlaps with each other. Furthermore, the required terminal metal fitting 40 is provided with the lateral shift portion 4
4 is provided, the two terminal fittings 40 in which the tabs 41 are arranged in the extension direction (vertical direction) of the electric wire 50 are
The press-connecting connection portions 43 are arranged so as not to overlap each other in the extension direction of the electric wire 50. It should be noted that the slit 2 for inserting the lateral shift portion 44 of the terminal fitting 40 into the vertical partition wall 27 of the terminal housing portion 23 of the connector housing 21.
7a is formed from the open end of the cavity 28 toward the back, so that the terminal fitting 40 can be inserted into the cavity 28 from the rear and housed. Further, the terminal fitting 40 inserted into the cavity 28 is fixed to the connector housing 21 by press-fitting the tab 41 into the back wall of the hood portion 22, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

The procedure for assembling the above male connector 20 is as follows. Each cavity 2 of the connector housing 21
The required terminal metal fitting 40 is accommodated in 8, and is press-fitted and fixed. Here, the press-connecting connection portion 43 of each terminal fitting 40 is arranged in the large cavity 28A shown in FIG. On the other hand, for example, nine insulated electric wires 50 are arranged in parallel at a predetermined pitch on a reinforcing tape, and are fixed and adhered to the rear end surface of the terminal accommodating portion 23 of the connector housing 21 at once, and are pressed by a press machine. Each electric wire 50 is connected to the pressure welding slit 42 of the pressure welding connecting portion 43.
Press into. Then, since each press-connecting connection portion 43 breaks through the insulating coating of the electric wire 50 and is connected to the core wire,
The connection of the electric wires to all the terminal fittings 40 is completed, and finally, the cover 30 is attached to the terminal accommodating portion 23 of the connector housing 21 to complete the assembly (see FIG. 9). Cover 3
In the case of 0, the locking projections 23a, 23b, 25a projecting from the outer periphery of the terminal housing portion 23 of the connector housing 21 are covered
It is fixed to the connector housing 21 by engaging with the engaging projection of No. 0, and the pressing projection 35 of the cover 30 in that state is the electric wire 50.
Is pressed into the press contact slit 42.
And, this male connector 20 is, as shown in FIG.
The support protrusions 36 are press-fitted into the back panel 51 and fixed, for example.

According to the male connector 20 of this embodiment,
The terminal fittings 40 are arranged in a staggered manner with respect to the cavity,
In addition, the pressure contact connection portions 43 of the upper and lower terminal fittings 40 are arranged to face each other. Therefore, the press-connecting connection portion 43
However, even if there is a situation in which the extension piece portion 43A and the bending piece portion 43B are provided above and below to increase the vertical dimension, the thickness of the terminal accommodating portion 23 of the connector housing 21 can be reduced due to the overlapping portions. Can be thinned. As a result, the cover 30 that covers the terminal accommodating portion 23 can be miniaturized to prevent the lead-out portion of the electric wire 50 from becoming large, and the connector housing 21 can be mounted close to the panel 51 as shown in FIG. Also, the electric wire 50 is the panel 51
It will never be rubbed against.

Moreover, particularly in this embodiment, the terminal fitting 4
Since the lateral shift portions 44 are formed on the 0B, 40C, and 40D, the pressure contact connecting portions 43 can be arranged in a zigzag shape while the tabs and the pressure contact connecting portions are not arranged in a staggered shape as in the conventional case. The reference numeral 41 indicates an arrangement in which the hood portion 22 of the connector housing 21 and thus the mating female connector 10 can be miniaturized by arranging 41 in a two-tiered arrangement. Further, in this embodiment, the lateral shift portion 44 is attached to the terminal fittings 40B, 40C, 40D.
In view of the above configuration, the slit 27a for inserting the lateral displacement portion 44 into the vertical partition wall 27 between the cavities 28 of the connector housing 21 is formed from the opening end of the cavity 28, and therefore the terminal fitting 40A is of course required. The terminal fittings 40B, 40C, and 40D having the lateral shift portion 44 can also be inserted into the cavity 28 from the rear side and the manufacturing process thereof can be simplified. However, when carrying out the present invention, the terminal fitting 40 is not necessarily inserted and housed in the cavity 28, but the terminal fitting 40 may be fixed so as to be embedded in the connector housing 21 by, for example, insert molding.

<Second Embodiment> FIGS. 11 to 13 show a second embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the first embodiment lies in the shape of the cover 30, and the other parts are the same as those in the above-described embodiment, and therefore, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals and redundant description will be omitted.

In this embodiment, the surrounding wall portion 31 of the cover 30 is formed with openings 60 located on both upper and lower sides (both sides in the extension direction of the electric wire 50) for unconstraining the electric wire 50. The opening 60 has a plurality of slits 61 extending in the front-rear direction for individually inserting the nine electric wires 50.
It has a comb-tooth shape. Reinforcing ribs 63 are provided on the back surface of the comb-teeth portion 62 between the slits 61 (see FIG. 13).

With such a structure, the electric wire 50 is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, it can be pulled out without folding back at the lead-out portion from the cover 30. Therefore, an increase in the vertical dimension due to the folded-back portion of the electric wire 50 can be suppressed, so that even if the connector housing 21 is mounted close to the panel 51 while ensuring a large gap size between the back panel 51 and the electric wire 50. It is possible to reliably prevent the electric wire 50 from being rubbed against the panel 51.

<Other Embodiments> The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and illustrated in the drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. In addition to the following, various changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

(1) In the above embodiment, the terminal fitting 40 has the tab 41 connected to the mating female connector. However, conversely, the female fitting connection portion connected to the tab is provided. The lateral shift portion may be formed on the terminal fitting provided with.

(2) In the present invention, the number of poles of the connector can be freely set.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall exploded perspective view showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the same male connector.

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the same male connector.

FIG. 4 is a transverse sectional view of the same male connector.

FIG. 5 is a front view of the same male connector.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing the types of terminal fittings and their arrangement.

FIG. 7 is a rear view of the same male connector.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view of the cover.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the connector when the cover is also attached.

FIG. 10 is a vertical sectional view of the connector when the cover is also attached.

FIG. 11 is an overall exploded perspective view showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a vertical sectional view of the connector when the cover is also attached.

FIG. 13 is a sectional view of a sectional view of the same cover.

FIG. 14 is a side view of a connector showing a conventional structure.

FIG. 15 is an exploded perspective view of the entire same.

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of the same as above.

[Explanation of symbols]

 20 ... Male connector 21 ... Connector housing 22 ... Hood part 23 ... Terminal accommodating part 28 ... Cavity 30 ... Cover 40 ... Terminal metal fitting 41 ... Tab 43 ... Press-connecting connection part 44 ... Lateral deviation part

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A terminal housing is provided with a connector housing in which cavities are arranged in a plurality of stages, and a plurality of terminal fittings each having a fitting connection part accommodated in the cavities and connected to a mating connector. In the terminal fitting, a crimping connection portion having a plurality of crimping slits that open to crimp an electric wire extending in a direction orthogonal to the extension direction at a plurality of locations along the direction is provided from the fitting connecting portion to the electric wire of the electric wire. In the one formed in a position deviated to one of the extension directions, the terminal fittings are arranged in a staggered manner in the cavity, and the terminal fittings arranged in adjacent cavities arranged in the extension direction of the electric wire are The press-connecting connector is characterized in that the fitting connection parts of are arranged so as to face each other. 2. A connector housing having a plurality of cavities arranged in a row in a terminal accommodating portion, and a plurality of terminal fittings each having a fitting connecting portion accommodated in the cavities and connected to a mating connector. The terminal metal fitting is formed with a pressure contact connecting portion having a pressure contact slit that opens to press the electric wire extending in a direction orthogonal to the extension direction,
In addition, in the terminal accommodating portion provided with a cover for pressing the electric wire pressed, the cover is provided with opening portions located on both sides in the extension direction of the electric wire for unconstraining the electric wire. A press-connecting connector characterized by being formed. 3. The opening is composed of a plurality of slits for individually inserting a plurality of electric wires, and a reinforcing rib is provided in a comb tooth-shaped portion between the slits. Item 2. The press-connecting connector according to item 2.