JP2817087B2 - Double locking connector - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector for double-locking a press-contact terminal housed in a housing of a connector, and is particularly suitable for use in a press-connect connector such as a wire harness for an automobile.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional crimping connector, a crimping terminal accommodated in a terminal accommodating chamber is held by a single locking means (flexible arm) provided in the crimping terminal or the terminal accommodating chamber. When the holding force to the terminal is weak and a pulling force acts on the electric wire, there is a disadvantage that the press contact terminal is easily moved. FIG. 7 shows an example of a press-connecting connector in which such a problem is solved and in which a press-connecting terminal is double-locked, which is described in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 4-136870.
A description will be given based on FIG. FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional press-connecting connector, and FIG. 8 is an assembled sectional view of the conventional press-connecting connector.

The upper connector 1 and the lower connector 3 are provided with terminal receiving chambers 5 in parallel, and the terminal receiving chambers 5 have electric wires 7 (FIG. 8).
(See FIG. 3) is inserted. A cover 11 is attached to the upper surface of the lower connector 3.
The upper connector 1 is mounted upside down on the upper surface of FIG. Therefore, the press-connecting connector is provided with the cover 1
By interposing 1, the terminal accommodating chamber 5 is divided into upper and lower tiers and joined. A flexible arm 13 provided on each of the upper connector 1 and the lower connector 3 projects from the inner wall of the terminal accommodating chamber 5.
a. A dovetail groove 15 extending forward and backward is formed on the lower surface of the front part of the upper connector 1 at two places on the left and right. The dovetail groove 15 is inserted into a projection 17 protruding from the upper surface of the front part of the lower connector 3. A locking groove 19 is provided at the rear of the side wall of the upper connector 1.
Are provided, and the locking groove 19 is locked to a projection 21 protruding from a rear portion of a side wall of the lower connector 3. Furthermore, the lower connector 3
A protrusion 23 is protruded from an upper portion of the center of the rear end, and the protrusion 23 is engaged with an engagement groove 25 formed at the center of the rear end of the cover 11 to position and hold the cover 11. Meanwhile, the cover 11
Projections 27 are provided on the upper and lower surfaces of the rear end, and the projections 27 are located at the rear openings of the terminal receiving chambers 5 when the upper connector 1 and the lower connector 3 are assembled. A terminal locking surface 29 is formed on the front end surface of the projection 27, and the terminal locking surface 29 locks to the rear end 9 b of the press-connecting terminal 9 at the wire press-contact portion during assembly.

In assembling the press-connecting connector thus configured, first, the press-connecting terminal 9 is inserted into each terminal accommodating chamber 5 of the upper connector 1 and the lower connector 3 from the rear end opening. At this time, the press contact terminal 9 is inserted by pushing up the flexible arm 13, and when it is inserted to a predetermined position, the rear end 9 a of the electric contact portion is locked by the flexible arm 13, and the first locking is completed. . Next, the locking groove 25 of the cover 11 is
3 and the cover 11 is attached to the upper surface of the lower connector 3. By attaching the cover 11 to the lower connector 3, the rear end 9 b of the wire press-contact portion of the press-contact terminal 9 is covered with the cover 11.
And the second locking is completed.
Thereby, the press contact terminal 9 accommodated in the terminal accommodating chamber 5 becomes
It will be double locked. After the cover 11 is attached to the lower connector 3, the upper connector 1 is turned upside down from the state shown in FIG. 7, and the dovetail groove 15 is inserted into the projection 17 from the position shifted above the lower connector 3 and forward. Slide to join. Thereby, the locking groove 19 of the upper connector 1 is locked to the projection 21 of the lower connector, and the upper connector 1 is coupled to the upper surface of the lower connector 3 with the cover 11 interposed therebetween. By this connection, the rear end 9b of the wire pressure contact portion of the press contact terminal 9 inserted into the upper connector 1 is locked on the terminal locking surface 29 of the cover 11, and the press contact terminals 9 housed vertically are simultaneously double locked. It will be.

[0005]

However, in the conventional double locking connector, the flexible arms 13 for performing the first locking are provided on the upper connector 1 and the lower connector 3, respectively, and the second locking is performed. Since the protrusions 27 are formed on the cover 11 formed separately from the upper connector 1 and the lower connector 3,
Connectors are upper connector 1, lower connector 3, cover 1
Since it is divided into three parts, the number of parts is large, the assembling workability is deteriorated, and the cost is increased. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a double locking connector capable of performing double locking with a small number of parts, thereby improving assembly workability and reducing cost. I do.

[0006]

According to the present invention, there is provided a double locking connector according to the present invention, wherein a terminal accommodating chamber is formed in a housing so as to be opened on an outer peripheral surface parallel to a connector connecting direction. A recessed first locking portion and a second locking portion are formed in the pressure contact terminal, and the tongue is locked to the first locking portion of the pressure contact terminal inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber to prevent removal of the pressure contact terminal. A first flexible arm is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the housing, and a cover fitted on the outer periphery of the housing is formed separately from the housing. When the cover is fitted on the housing, the cover is formed on the second locking portion of the press contact terminal. The tongue-shaped second flexible arm to be locked is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the cover parallel to the connector coupling direction. Further, the configuration of the double locking connector is such that when the second locking portion and the second flexible arm are misaligned, the second locking portion is brought into contact with the mating connector fitted to the outer periphery of the cover to prevent insertion of the mating connector. The flexible arm may be formed so as to protrude from the outer peripheral surface of the cover.

[0007]

When the press contact terminal is inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber, the first flexible arm is engaged with the first locking portion of the press contact terminal, and the press contact terminal is primarily locked. When the cover is inserted into the outer periphery of the housing in this state, and the housing and the cover are fitted, the second flexible arm of the cover is further locked by the second locking portion of the press-contact terminal held in the terminal accommodating chamber. , The press contact terminal is the first flexible arm,
It will be double locked by the second flexible arm. Further, in the double locking connector in which the second flexible arm is formed so as to be able to protrude from the outer peripheral surface of the cover, when the double locking connector is inserted into the inner peripheral portion of the box-shaped mating connector, the second flexible arm is inserted. When the second locking portion of the pressure contact terminal is not at the predetermined relative position, the second flexible arm projects from the outer peripheral surface of the cover, preventing insertion of the mating connector, thereby displacing the position of the pressure contact terminal. Will be detected.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of a double locking connector according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a double locking connector of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a press contact terminal, and FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the double locking connector with a cover fitted. Upper and lower partitioning plates 35 are formed between the side walls 33 of the housing 31, and the partitioning plates 35 vertically partition a space in the housing sandwiched between the side walls 33. Terminal housings 37 are formed on the upper and lower sides of the partition plate 35, and a plurality of the terminal housings 37 are arranged between the side walls 33 (in this embodiment, two on the upper side and two on the lower side). Are formed with four terminal accommodating chambers 37). Therefore, the terminal receiving chamber 37
Are open on the outer peripheral surface 31a parallel to the connector coupling direction. Each of the terminal accommodating chambers 37 has a flexible tongue-shaped first flexible arm 39 formed therein.
9 has a base end connected to the housing 31 and a free end at the front end. A locking claw 39a (see FIG. 3) projecting into the terminal accommodating chamber 37 is formed at the tip of the first flexible arm 39, and the locking claw 39a is locked to a press-contact terminal described later. I have.

As shown in FIG. 2, an electric contact portion 41a is formed at the tip of the press contact terminal 41, and the electric contact portion 41a is connected to a male terminal (not shown). A recessed first locking portion 43 is formed at a rear portion of the electric contact portion 41a, and the first locking portion 43 engages with the locking claw portion 39a of the first flexible arm 39 described above. I have. That is, the press contact terminal 41 inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber 37 has the first locking portion 43
By being engaged with 9a, it is held in the terminal accommodating chamber 37 irremovably. An electric wire press contact portion 45 is provided behind the first locking portion 43, and the electric wire press contact portion 45 can be electrically connected to the press-fitted electric wire 47 without any insulation coating. A recessed second locking portion 49 having a projecting portion is formed at the rear portion of the wire pressure contact portion 45, and the second locking portion 49 is configured to be locked to a flexible arm of a cover described later. .

A box-shaped cover 5 is provided on the outer periphery of the housing 31.
1 is inserted, and the rear part of the cover 51 is an opening for inserting the housing. Cover 51
A pair of recesses 53 are formed on the inner circumference of the side wall of the housing 31, and the recesses 53 are adapted to be engaged with protrusions 55 provided on the side wall 33 of the housing 31. That is, the cover 51 is
The projection 55 is locked to the outer periphery of the housing 31 so that the projection 55 cannot be pulled out. A through hole 57 is formed in the front surface of the cover 51, and the through hole 57 is formed in the housing 31.
It matches with the terminal insertion hole 59 on the front surface (see FIG. 3). The inner peripheral shape of the cover 51 is formed substantially the same as the outer peripheral shape of the housing 31. Therefore, when the first flexible arm 39 protrudes from the outer peripheral surface 31 a of the housing 31, the housing 31 cannot be inserted into the cover 51.

A flexible tongue-shaped second flexible arm 61 is provided on the outer peripheral surface 51a of the cover 51 parallel to the connector coupling direction. The second flexible arm 61 has a base end connected to the cover 51. The tip is a free end. A locking claw 61a is formed at the tip of the second flexible arm 61, and the locking claw 61a projects into the terminal accommodating chamber 37 of the housing 31 held inside the cover. That is, the locking claw portion 61 a protruding into the terminal accommodating chamber 37 is engaged with the second locking portion 49 of the press-contact terminal 41 already accommodated in the terminal accommodating chamber 37. The housing 31, the first flexible arm 39, the press contact terminal 41, the cover 51, and the second flexible arm 61 are used as main members or parts to constitute a double locking connector 63.

The double locking connector 6 constructed as described above.
3 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a completely fitted state of the housing and the cover, FIG. 5 is a perspective view for explaining connection between the double locking connector and the mating connector, and FIG. 6 shows an incompletely fitted state of the housing and the cover. It is sectional drawing. When the press contact terminal 41 is inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber 37 of the housing 31, the electric contact portion 4 of the press contact terminal 41 is
The first flexible arm 39 comes into contact with the locking claw portion 39a of the first flexible arm 39, and the distal end of the first flexible arm 39 projects from the outer peripheral surface 31a of the housing 31 around the base end. Further, when the press contact terminal 41 is inserted and reaches a predetermined position, the locking claw portion 39a coincides with the first locking portion 43 of the press contact terminal 41, and the locking claw portion 39a is moved by the elastic force of the first flexible arm 39. The first flexible arm 39 is locked by the first locking portion 43, and the protruding state of the first flexible arm 39 from the outer peripheral surface 31a is eliminated. Thereby, the primary locking to the press contact terminal 41 is completed.

Next, when the housing 31 in this state is inserted through the rear opening of the cover 51, the second flexible arm 61
Of the housing 31 abuts on the outer peripheral surface 31a of the housing 31, and the distal end of the second flexible arm 61 is
Project from the outer peripheral surface 51a. Further, when the housing 31 is inserted, the locking claw 61a is moved to the terminal accommodating chamber 37.
To the second locking portion 49 of the press contact terminal 41 held at
The protruding state of the second flexible arm 61 from the outer peripheral surface 51a is eliminated. At the same time, the projection 55 of the housing 31 is locked in the concave portion 53 of the cover 51 (see FIG. 1), and the cover 51 and the housing 31 are fitted together. Thereby, the press contact terminal 4
1 is double-locked to the first flexible arm 39 and the second flexible arm 61 (see the state of FIG. 4). At this time, the housing 31 is provided inside the cover 51,
Is protected by the cover 51.

As shown in FIG. 5, the double locking connector 63 in which the press contact terminal 41 is double locked is further provided with a box-shaped female connector 6 as a mating connector.
5 is inserted. At this time, when the second flexible arm 61 and the second locking portion 49 are not at a predetermined relative position, that is, when the housing 31 and the cover 51 are insufficiently inserted and the fitting is incomplete, for example, The locking claw 61a of the two flexible arms 61 does not lock to the second locking portion 49 of the press contact terminal 41, and the distal end of the second flexible arm 61 has the outer peripheral surface 51a of the cover 51 as shown in FIG.
It is in a state protruding from. If the double locking connector 63 is inserted into the female connector 65 in this state, the second flexible arm 61
Abuts against the insertion opening edge of the female connector 65 to prevent the double locking connector 63 and the female connector 65 from being inserted. That is, in this state, it is detected that the press contact terminal 41 is not arranged at a regular position.

The position detecting operation of the press contact terminal is the same in the relative relationship between the first flexible arm 39 and the housing 31. That is, if the insertion of the press contact terminal 41 is insufficient and the tip of the first flexible arm 39 projects from the outer peripheral surface 31 a of the housing 31, the tip of the first flexible arm 39 is inserted into the insertion opening edge of the cover 51. , The housing 31 and the cover 51 cannot be fitted to each other, and it is detected that the press contact terminal 41 is not disposed at a proper position with respect to the housing 31.

The double locking connector 63 according to the embodiment described above.
According to the present invention, double locking with a small number of parts, which is the object of the present invention, is achieved from the fact that the flexible arm is inserted into the cover terminal 51 or the female connector 65 with respect to the press contact terminal 41 which is not in a predetermined position. To prevent the pressure contact terminal 41
Can also be detected. Further, in the press-connecting connector, the primary locking may be of a press-fitting type irrespective of the first flexible arm 39, and in such a case, it has been difficult to confirm the position of the terminal in the related art. Double locking connector 6
According to 3, the confirmation can be easily performed by the detection by the second flexible arm 61.

[0017]

As described above in detail, according to the double locking connector of the present invention, the first locking portion and the second locking portion are formed on the press contact terminal, and the first flexible arm is formed. The cover is formed with a second flexible arm that is formed on the housing and further locked on the press-contact terminal on which the first flexible arm is locked. The arm and the second flexible arm are double-locked, and double-locking is possible with a small number of parts, so that assembling workability can be improved and cost can be reduced. Further, in the double locking connector in which the second flexible arm is formed so as to be able to protrude from the outer peripheral surface of the cover, when the press contact terminal is not at a predetermined position when the second flexible arm is inserted into the mating connector, the second flexible arm is moved to the outer periphery of the cover. The mating connector protrudes from the surface, preventing insertion of the mating connector. Thereby, the position of the press contact terminal can be easily confirmed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a double locking connector according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a press contact terminal used for the double locking connector of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the double locking connector fitted with the cover of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a completely fitted state of the housing and the cover of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating connection between the double locking connector of FIG. 1 and a mating connector.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing an incompletely fitted state of the housing and the cover of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional press-connecting connector.

8 is an assembled sectional view of the conventional press-connecting connector of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 31 housing 31a outer peripheral surface 37 terminal accommodating chamber 39 first flexible arm 41 press-contact terminal 43 first locking portion 49 second locking portion 51 cover 51a outer peripheral surface 61 second flexible arm 63 double locking connector

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁶ , DB name) H01R 13/42

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A terminal receiving chamber is formed in a housing with an opening on an outer peripheral surface parallel to a connector coupling direction, and a first locking portion and a second locking portion having a concave shape are formed in a press-contact terminal. A first tongue-shaped flexible arm that locks to the first locking portion of the press contact terminal inserted into the chamber and prevents the press contact terminal from being pulled out is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the housing. A cover fitted to the outer periphery is formed separately from the housing, and a tongue-shaped second flexible arm that locks to the second locking portion of the press-contact terminal when the cover is fitted to the housing. A double locking connector formed on an outer peripheral surface parallel to the connector coupling direction of the connector. 2. The second flexible arm is adapted to abut against a mating connector fitted to the outer periphery of the cover when the second locking portion and the second flexible arm are displaced to prevent insertion of the mating connector. The double locking connector according to claim 1, wherein the flexible arm is formed so as to protrude from the outer peripheral surface of the cover.