JP2012256474A - Connector mounting structure - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily mount a connector.SOLUTION: A mounting structure of a relay connector 10 for mounting the relay connector 10 to a mounting hole C1 of a mission case C1 comprises: a housing 20 mounted to the mounting hole C1; a support member 30 having a support plate 35 provided with an insertion hole 38 larger than an outer shape of the housing 20, and freely movably supporting the housing 20 inserted in the insertion hole 38 by the support plate 35; both restraining pieces 25, 25 that are provided on an upper side of the insertion hole 38 of the housing 20 and that can contact the support member 30 from above; and a C-ring 60 that has a surrounding part 61 surrounding the housing 20, and in which a swollen part 61A that can contact the support member 30 from a lower side of the insertion hole 38 is communicated with the surrounding part 61. The support plate 35 is arranged between both of the restraining pieces 25, 25 and the swollen part 61A and both of extension parts 62, 62.

Description

  The present invention relates to a connector mounting structure for mounting a connector to a predetermined mounting location on a mating member.

  As this type of connector mounting structure, for example, the one described in Patent Document 1 below is known. This connector has a substantially cylindrical housing, and an engaged portion to which a connector support member made of a C-ring can be attached is provided on the outer peripheral side surface of the housing. The connector support member includes an engaging portion that can be engaged with an engaged portion of the housing, and a sliding portion that projects radially outward from the outer peripheral side surface of the housing in a state where the engaging portion is mounted on the engaged portion. And. On the other hand, the connector arrangement member that supports the connector in a freely movable manner includes a connector insertion portion that is inserted in a state where the housing has play, and a support member sliding surface on which the sliding portion of the connector support member slides. Yes.

JP 2010-33921 A

  However, the above mounting structure is configured such that the sliding portion of the connector support member is supported from below by the support member sliding surface of the connector arrangement member, so that the connector is fitted from below into the through hole of the mating member. Even if it can be combined, when the connector is fitted into the through hole of the counterpart member from above, the connector falls off the connector arrangement member. As a countermeasure for this, for example, a method of arranging the mating member upside down after fitting the connector from below into the through hole of the mating member and making it impossible to detach is also conceivable, but the mating member is usually Since it is fixed to the vehicle body side, the mounting work of the connector becomes complicated.

  The present invention has been completed based on the above-described circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to facilitate a connector mounting operation.

  The present invention relates to a connector mounting structure for mounting a connector to a predetermined mounting position on a mating member, and a support provided with a housing mounted at the mounting position and an insertion hole larger than the outer shape of the housing. A support member that has a plate and supports the housing inserted through the insertion hole movably by the support plate, and is provided on one axial side of the insertion hole in the housing, and on one axial side of the insertion hole with respect to the support member A holding portion that holds the housing and a holding portion that holds the housing from the other side in the axial direction of the insertion hole. And the support plate is characterized in that it is arranged between the one-side contact portion and the other-side contact portion in the axial direction of the insertion hole. .

  According to such a configuration, since the insertion hole of the support plate is larger than the outer shape of the housing, the housing can be supported so as to be movable in a direction intersecting the axial direction of the insertion hole. Therefore, when attaching the connector to the mounting location of the counterpart member, the connector can be mounted at the mounting location while aligning the housing. Here, since the support plate is disposed between the one-side abutting portion of the housing and the other-side abutting portion of the locking member, even when the connector is mounted on the mounting position of the mating member from above, the connector is Since it is not necessary to hold by hand so that it does not fall off from the support member, and it is not necessary to handle the connector and the counterpart member as one body, it is possible to facilitate the connector mounting operation.

The following configuration is preferable as an embodiment of the present invention.
The support member may further include a support wall that supports the housing on the other side in the axial direction of the insertion hole, and the support wall may be configured to push the housing when the connector is attached to the counterpart member.

  According to such a configuration, since the housing can be pushed in by the support wall of the support member, it is possible to eliminate a large force from the support plate to the one-side contact portion when the connector is attached to the counterpart member. .

  A pair of one-side contact portions are provided, while a pair of support walls are provided. The pair of one-side contact portions and the pair of support walls are 90 in the circumferential direction centered on the axis of the insertion hole. It is good also as a structure arrange | positioned alternately at intervals.

  For example, when the pair of support walls and the pair of contact portions are arranged at the same position in the circumferential direction around the axis of the insertion hole, both the support wall and the contact portion are provided in the circumferential direction of the support plate. The housing will be inclined more easily to the part that is not. In that respect, according to the above configuration, the inclination of the housing can be regulated by the pair of one-side abutting portions coming into contact with the support plate while the housing is supported by the pair of support walls.

The one-side contact portion may be configured to be able to make surface contact with the support plate.
According to such a configuration, it is easy to regulate the inclination of the housing by bringing the one-side contact portion into surface contact with the support plate.

The support plate may be a metal plate, while the locking member may be a metal C-ring.
According to such a configuration, since the contact between the support plate and the locking member is a contact between metals, the friction coefficient can be reduced and the housing can be smoothly aligned.

  The support member further includes a mounting plate that is fixedly attached to the metal body, and a pair of connecting walls that extend from both end edges of the mounting plate in an opposed state and are connected to the support plate. The support wall is erected in an opposed state from both side edges of the mounting plate, and the portion of the housing that is disposed on the other side in the axial direction of the insertion hole is surrounded from all sides by both the support wall and both connection walls of the support member. It may be configured as described above.

  According to such a structure, the part distribute | arranged to the axial direction other side of the penetration hole among the housings can be protected by both the supporting walls and both the connecting walls. Further, since the support member can be formed in a substantially box shape by the support plate, the mounting plate, both the support walls, and both the connecting walls, the rigidity of the support member can be increased.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to facilitate the attachment work of the connector.

Sectional drawing which shows the attachment structure of the connector in embodiment The perspective view which showed the state before attaching a connector to a support plate The perspective view which showed the state after attaching a connector to a support plate A perspective view showing a state before the connector is fitted downward to the mounting hole of the transmission case The perspective view which showed a mode that the housing was pushed in by a support wall Front view showing the connector assembled to the support member Side view showing the connector assembled to the support member Rear view showing the connector assembled to the support member The top view which showed the state where the connector was assembled to the support member AA line sectional view in FIG. Front view of support member Side view of support member Top view of support member

<Embodiment>
An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings of FIGS. As shown in FIG. 1, the connector mounting structure in this embodiment includes a relay connector 10, a support member 30 that supports the relay connector 10 so as to be freely movable, and a valve body in which the support member 30 is fastened by a bolt B. 50 and a C-ring 60 that is detachably attached to the relay connector 10. Further, the relay connector 10 can be fitted into a mounting hole C1 formed through the mission case C. The transmission case C is a case of an automatic transmission of an automobile, and a plurality of solenoid valves (not shown) are attached to the valve body 50.

  A female connector F is connected to the fitting portion 11 provided on the valve body 50 side of the relay connector 10 as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. A plurality of electric wires W are drawn out from the back surface of the female connector F. The electric wire W in FIG. 1 is pulled out downward from the female connector F, and then abuts against the support member 30 and is bent sideways. For this reason, the female connector F is biased upward in response to the reaction force of the electric wire W, and the relay connector 10 is also biased upward via the female connector F.

  When the relay connector 10 is fitted in the mounting hole C1 of the transmission case C, a part of the relay connector 10 penetrates the transmission case C and protrudes to the outside. At this time, a portion of the relay connector 10 that protrudes outside the mission case C is an external connection portion 12 that is connected to an external connector (not shown). The relay connector 10 is a connector for connecting the external connector and the female connector F so as to be conductive, thereby supplying power to each solenoid valve and transmitting / receiving electrical signals. ing.

  The relay connector 10 has a housing 20 made of synthetic resin. The housing 20 has a substantially cylindrical shape, and a plurality of relay terminals 13 are accommodated and held therein as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. Although the relay terminal 13 has a needle shape and is not illustrated, the relay terminal 13 is disposed so as to penetrate between the fitting portion 11 and the external connection portion 12 in the vertical direction.

  A rubber ring mounting groove 22 in which a rubber ring 21 is mounted is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the housing 20. When the relay connector 10 is fitted into the mounting hole C1, the rubber ring 21 is sandwiched between the bottom wall of the rubber ring mounting groove 22 and the inner peripheral wall of the mounting hole C1. Then, the elastic deformation of the rubber ring 21 seals the inside of the mission case C in a liquid-tight manner, and restricts the entry of foreign matter from the outside to the inside of the mission case C. From the inside of the mission case C The transmission of mission oil to the outside is restricted.

  The support member 30 is formed by pressing a metal flat plate, and has a substantially box shape as a whole. As shown in FIGS. 11 to 13, the support member 30 extends upward in a facing state from a mounting plate 32 in which a bolt hole 31 into which the bolt B is inserted is formed, and both end edges 33, 33 of the mounting plate 32. A pair of connecting walls 34, 34, a support plate 35 connected to the upper edges of both connecting walls 34, 34 in an arrangement facing the mounting plate 32, and both side edges 36, 36 of the mounting plate 32 facing each other. A pair of support walls 37, 37 raised upward is provided. In the present embodiment, both end edges 33 of the mounting plate 32 correspond to the short side (both ends in the longitudinal direction) of the periphery of the mounting plate 32, and both side edges 36, 36 of the mounting plate 32 are the mounting plate 32. It corresponds to the long side of the periphery.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the mounting plate 32 is fixedly attached to the valve body 50 by inserting the bolt B into the bolt hole 31 and fastening the bolt B while being placed on the installation surface 51 of the valve body 50. . As shown in FIG. 13, the bolt hole 31 is arranged at the center of the mounting plate 32, and both support walls 37, 37 are arranged in parallel on both side edges 36, 36 sandwiching the bolt hole 31. As shown in FIG. 11, the support wall 37 is shorter than the connection wall 34, and the upper end position of the support wall 37 is lower than the support plate 35.

  As shown in FIG. 13, the support plate 35 includes a pair of arc-shaped portions 35A and 35A, and is connected to the upper edge of the connecting wall 34 at the center outer side of each arc-shaped portion 35A. Both arc-shaped portions 35A and 35A have arc-shaped inner peripheral edges 35B and 35B, and an insertion hole 38 is formed in a region surrounded by the inner peripheral edges 35B and 35B. The insertion hole 38 is formed to be slightly larger than the outer shape of the housing 20 of the relay connector 10.

  In addition, both end portions of each arc-shaped portion 35A, 35A are arranged to face each other with gaps S1, S2, respectively, and one gap S1 is formed narrower than the other gap S2. Each support wall 37, 37 is arranged inside the insertion hole 38 (inside the inner peripheral edge 35B, 35B of each arcuate portion 35A, 35A) when the mounting plate 32 side is viewed from the support plate 35 side. ing.

  Now, below the rubber ring mounting groove 22 on the outer peripheral surface of the housing 20, as shown in FIG. The C ring 60 is formed by bending a metal wire into a substantially C shape, and has a holding portion 61 mounted along the C ring mounting groove 23 and diameters from both ends of the holding portion 61. A pair of extending portions 62 and 62 are provided continuously on the outside in the direction. In addition, the holding portion 61 is provided with a bulging portion 61 </ b> A that bulges radially outward at the center portion of the holding portion 61. The bulging portion 61A is disposed on the opposite side of the extending portions 62, 62 with the axial center of the insertion hole 38 of the support plate 35 as the center.

  Both the bulging portion 61A and the extending portions 62, 62 can be brought into contact with the support plate 35 from below (from the mounting plate 32 side). As shown in FIG. 1, when the relay connector 10 is biased upward in response to the reaction force of the electric wire W of the female connector F, the bulging portion 61 </ b> A and the extending portions 62 and 62 are formed on the lower surface of the support plate 35. The relay connector 10 is restricted from coming off from the insertion hole 38 upward (in the direction from the mounting plate 32 side to the support plate 35 side).

  Further, a receiving portion 26 with which the upper end of the support wall 37 can abut is provided on the lower surface of the housing 20. The receiving portion 26 is formed to be recessed upward, and when the relay connector 10 rotates in the circumferential direction, the upper end side portion of the support wall 37 abuts on both side walls of the receiving portion 26 so that the rotation is performed. Being regulated. However, a predetermined clearance is set between the upper end side portion of the support wall 37 and both side walls of the receiving portion 26, and the relay connector 10 is allowed to rotate by this clearance.

  A contacted portion 24 is provided around the outer peripheral surface of the housing 20 so as to be continuous with the C ring mounting groove 23. The contacted portion 24 is disposed so as to face the inner peripheral surface of the insertion hole 38 in the radial direction. A clearance is set between the contacted portion 24 and the inner peripheral surface of the insertion hole 38 so that the relay connector 10 can move in the lateral direction (a direction orthogonal to the axial direction of the insertion hole 38). This clearance is set to be smaller than the overlapping dimension of the bulging portion 61 </ b> A and the extending portions 62, 62 and the support plate 35. Therefore, even when the relay connector 10 moves in the lateral direction within the clearance, the relay connector 10 does not come out of the insertion hole 38.

  Furthermore, since both the support plate 35 and the C ring 60 are made of metal and can suppress the frictional resistance during sliding, the relay connector 10 can smoothly move in the lateral direction in the insertion hole 38. Has been. In particular, since the inside of the transmission case C is in an oil-in-water environment, the frictional resistance during sliding can be further reduced by the oil adhering to the sliding surfaces between the metals.

  In addition, a pair of restricting pieces 25 are provided at positions on the outer peripheral surface of the housing 20 that are continuous above the contacted portion 24. Both restricting pieces 25, 25 are configured to project laterally from the outer peripheral surface of the housing 20. The restricting pieces 25, 25 are arranged at positions that are symmetric about the axis of the housing 20. Further, the restricting pieces 25, 25 and the support walls 37, 37 are alternately arranged at 90 ° intervals in the circumferential direction around the axial center of the insertion hole 38.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the regulation piece 25 can be brought into surface contact with the upper surface of the support plate 35 from above. When the restriction piece 25 abuts on the upper surface of the support plate 35, the relay connector 10 is restricted from coming off from the insertion hole 38 (in the direction from the support plate 35 side to the mounting plate 32 side). Further, when the relay connector 10 tries to take a posture inclined with respect to the axis of the insertion hole 38, the restriction piece 25 comes into surface contact with the upper surface of the support plate 35, and the relay connector 10 is maintained in a vertical posture. The inclination is regulated. A slight clearance is set between the lower surface of the restricting piece 25 and the upper surface of the support plate 35, and the vertical movement of the relay connector 10 relative to the support plate 35 is allowed by this clearance.

  In other words, as shown in FIG. 9, the relay connector 10 is configured such that the support plate 35 is sandwiched between the restriction pieces 25, 25, the bulging part 61 </ b> A and the extension parts 62, 62 from the vertical direction. It is supported by. Specifically, a region where the left extension 62 shown in FIG. 9 contacts the support plate 35 is A1, a region where the left regulation piece 25 contacts the support plate 35 is A2, and the bulging portion 61A is The left portion of the area in contact with the support plate 35 is A3, the right portion of the bulging portion 61A in contact with the support plate 35 is A4, and the right side restriction piece 25 is in contact with the support plate 35. When the region is A5 and the region where the right extension 62 is in contact with the support plate 35 is A6, the regions A1 to A6 are arranged in this order in the counterclockwise direction at substantially equal angular intervals. ing. For this reason, even if the relay connector 10 is about to tilt in any direction, the tilt is regulated in any one of the regions A1 to A6, and the tilt of the relay connector 10 can be regulated in a balanced manner. . As a result, the relay connector 10 can be easily moved in parallel in the horizontal direction while maintaining the vertical posture.

  The present embodiment is configured as described above, and its operation will be described subsequently. First, as shown in FIG. 2, the mounting plate 32 of the support member 30 is placed on the upper surface of the valve body 50, and the bolt B is inserted into the bolt hole 31 and fastened to the valve body 50. Thereby, the support member 30 is attached and fixed to the valve body 50. Next, when the relay connector 10 is inserted into the insertion hole 38 from above the support member 30, both the receiving portions 26 and 26 come into contact with the upper ends of the both support walls 37 and 37 and the relay connector 10 is supported by the support member 30. At the same time, the inclination of the relay connector 10 is regulated by bringing both regulating pieces 25, 25 into contact with the upper surface of the support plate 35.

  Subsequently, by attaching the C-ring 60 to the C-ring attachment groove 23 from the side of the relay connector 10, the support plate 35 is connected to both the restricting pieces 25, 25, the bulging portion 61A, and both the extending portions 62, 62. To make it almost sandwiched from above and below. In this state, the contacted portion 24 of the relay connector 10 is arranged with a predetermined clearance between the inner peripheral surface of the insertion hole 38, and therefore, the lateral direction of the relay connector 10 (perpendicular to the axial direction of the insertion hole 38). In the direction of movement). The relay connector 10 is biased upward in response to the reaction force of the electric wire W of the female connector F, and a slight clearance is set between the restricting pieces 25 and 25 and the support plate 35. The inclination of the relay connector 10 is allowed by this clearance.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 4, the relay connector 10 assembled integrally with the valve body 50 is turned upside down, and the external connection portion 12 is fitted into the mounting hole C1 of the transmission case C. At this time, since the support plate 35 is disposed between the restricting pieces 25, 25, the bulging portion 61A, and the two extending portions 62, 62, the relay connector 10 is dropped from the support plate 35 downward. There is no. Therefore, when fitting the external connection portion 12 into the mounting hole C1 of the transmission case C, the fitting operation can be performed by holding only the valve body 50 without holding the relay connector 10 in hand. Further, in performing this fitting operation, the external connector 12 is behind the valve body 50 and the fitting operation is difficult, but the relay connector 10 is supported so as to be freely movable with respect to the support plate 35. Therefore, workability can be improved.

  Further, in the middle of fitting the external connection portion 12 of the relay connector 10 into the mounting hole C1 of the transmission case C, as shown in FIG. 5, the end of the support wall 37 is in contact with the receiving portion 26. The relay connector 10 can be pushed in strongly. This is because the support member 30 has a substantially box shape as a whole and has a highly rigid structure, and is not deformed when the relay connector 10 is pushed in, and can be pushed in stably. .

  If the support wall 37 is not provided, the support plate 35 performs the fitting operation by pushing in the two restricting pieces 25, 25. Therefore, the support plate 35 bends with the connection portion with the connection wall 34 as the base end. There is a risk of deformation. In this case, the relay connector 10 cannot be pushed in strongly. In this regard, in the present embodiment, the receiving portion 26 is pushed in by the tip of the support wall 37, so that the support wall 37 is not bent and deformed, and the relay connector 10 can be pushed in strongly. Note that the female connector F and the end of the housing 20 to which the female connector F is connected are surrounded by the connecting walls 34 and 34 of the support member 30 and the support walls 37 and 37 from four sides. Can be protected from impact.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the relay connector 10 is supported by arranging the support plate 35 between the restricting pieces 25, 25 and the bulging portion 61A and the extending portions 62, 62 of the C ring 60. The member 30 can be handled integrally. Therefore, the support member 30 can be bolted to the valve body 50, and the relay connector 10 can be fitted into the mounting hole C1 of the transmission case C from above while holding the valve body 50 by hand. At the time of fitting, the relay connector 10 is movably supported by the support plate 35. Therefore, even if the relay connector 10 is difficult to see from the valve body 50 side, the relay connector 10 is attached to the mounting hole C1 of the transmission case C. Therefore, the fitting operation can be facilitated.

  Further, when the relay connector 10 is fitted into the mounting hole C1 of the transmission case C, the receiving portion 26 of the housing 20 is pushed in at the tip of the support wall 37 of the support member 30, so that bending deformation of the support wall 37 is restricted. Then, the housing 20 can be strongly pushed in via the support member 30 by pushing in the valve body 50. In addition, since the restricting pieces 25 and 25 and the support walls 37 and 37 are alternately arranged at intervals of 90 ° in the circumferential direction around the axis of the insertion hole 38, the housing 20 is supported by the support walls 37 and 37. While supporting, both the regulating pieces 25, 25 abut against the support plate 35, so that the inclination of the housing 20 can be regulated.

  In addition, since both the restricting pieces 25 and 25 are in surface contact with the upper surface of the support plate 35, the inclination of the relay connector 10 can be easily restricted. Further, since both the support plate 35 and the C ring 60 are made of metal, the friction resistance can be reduced and the support plate 35 and the C ring 60 can be smoothly slid. Further, since the portion of the housing 20 disposed between the support plate 35 and the mounting plate 32 is surrounded by the connecting walls 34 and 34 and the support walls 37 and 37 from four sides, this portion is externally impacted. Can be protected from.

<Other embodiments>
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described with reference to the above description and drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.
(1) Although a slight clearance is set between the upper surface of the support plate 35 and the lower surfaces of the restricting pieces 25 and 25 in the above embodiment, according to the present invention, the support plate 35 is attached to the restricting pieces 25 and 25. And the C ring 60 may be sandwiched.

  (2) In the above embodiment, the relay connector 10 is fitted into the mounting hole C1 of the transmission case C by pushing the receiving portion 26 at the tip of the support wall 37. The relay connector 10 may be fitted into the mounting hole C1 of the transmission case C by pushing the restriction pieces 25, 25.

  (3) In the above-described embodiment, both the restricting pieces 25 and 25 and the both supporting walls 37 and 37 are alternately arranged at intervals of 90 ° with the axis of the insertion hole 38 as a center. Both support walls may be arranged at the same position in the circumferential direction centered on the axis of the insertion hole 38.

  (4) In the above embodiment, the restricting piece 25 is in surface contact with the support plate 35. However, according to the present invention, the restricting piece may be in point contact or surface contact with the support plate 35.

  (5) Although the support member 30 is made of metal in the above embodiment, the support member may be made of resin according to the present invention.

  (6) Although the support member 30 is configured to have a substantially box shape in the above embodiment, the shape of the support member is not limited according to the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Relay connector 20 ... Housing 25 ... Restriction piece (one side contact part)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 30 ... Support member 32 ... Mounting plate 34 ... Connection wall 35 ... Support plate 37 ... Support wall 38 ... Insertion hole 50 ... Valve body (body)
60 ... C-ring (locking member)
61 ... Holding part 61A ... Swelling part (other side contact part)
62 ... Extension part (other side contact part)
C ... Mission case (other member)
C1 ... Mounting hole (mounting location)

Claims (6)

A connector mounting structure for mounting the connector to a predetermined mounting location on the mating member,
A housing mounted on the mounting location;
A support plate having an insertion hole larger than the outer shape of the housing, and a support member that supports the housing inserted through the insertion hole so as to be freely movable by the support plate;
A one-side contact portion that is provided on one side in the axial direction of the insertion hole in the housing and is capable of contacting the support member from one side in the axial direction of the insertion hole;
A latch having a holding part for holding the housing, and an other side contact part capable of coming into contact with the support member from the other side in the axial direction of the insertion hole is connected to the holding part. With members,
The connector mounting structure, wherein the support plate is disposed between the one-side contact portion and the other-side contact portion in the axial direction of the insertion hole. The support member is configured to further include a support wall that supports the housing on the other axial side of the insertion hole,
The connector mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein the support wall pushes in the housing when the connector is attached to the mating member.   A pair of the one-side contact portions are provided, while a pair of the support walls are provided, and the pair of one-side contact portions and the pair of support walls are centered on the axis of the insertion hole. The connector mounting structure according to claim 2, wherein the connector mounting structure is alternately arranged at intervals of 90 ° in the circumferential direction.   The connector mounting structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the one-side contact portion is capable of surface contact with the support plate.   The connector mounting structure according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the support plate is a metal plate, and the locking member is a metal C-ring. The support member further includes a mounting plate that is fixedly attached to the metal body, and a pair of connecting walls that are extended from both end edges of the mounting plate in an opposed state and connected to the support plate. Both support walls are erected in an opposed state from both side edges of the mounting plate,
The portion of the housing disposed on the other side in the axial direction of the insertion hole is surrounded by the two support walls and the connection walls of the support member from four sides. The connector mounting structure according to any one of the above.

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