Onboard connector and connector mounting plate

Abstract

An onboard connector includes a housing having a press-fit hole, and a terminal press-fitted into the press-fit hole. The terminal includes a first terminal portion including a first contact portion that contacts and electrically connects to a counterpart terminal when the first contact portion is connected to the counterpart terminal, and a press-fit portion that is press-fitted into the press-fit hole, and a second terminal portion including a bent portion that extends from the first terminal portion and is bent along an axis of the first terminal portion around a bending axis, and a second contact portion that is located at a position offset from the first contact portion along an intersecting direction intersecting the axis of the first terminal portion and electrically connects to a conductor pattern when the onboard connector is mounted on the circuit board.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a board-mounted connector having a structure in which a terminal is press-fitted and held in a housing and is to be mounted on a circuit board, and a connector mounting board on which a connector is mounted. BACKGROUND

[0002] As an example of a board-mounted connector, Patent Literature 1 discloses a connector in which a terminal is press-fitted into a press-fitting hole provided in a housing, one end portion of the terminal serving as a contact portion (so-called tip) with a counterpart terminal, and the other end portion of the terminal serving as a contact portion with a conductor pattern on a circuit board. The terminal used in this type of connector is generally manufactured by punching, press working, and the like of a thin metal plate.

[0003] Patent Literature 1: JP-A-2020-187953 SUMMARY

[0004] Since the board-mounted connector is mounted so that the connector is mounted to the board surface or the board edge of the circuit board, in general, the contact portion that contacts the counterpart terminal of the terminal and the contact portion that contacts the conductor pattern of the circuit board are located at offset positions in the thickness direction of the circuit board. Therefore, in the process of manufacturing the terminal, the terminal is subjected to bending processing so that the two ends of the terminal are offset from each other. For example, when a terminal of a typical crank shape for the above-described connector is manufactured, it is necessary to perform bending processing to bend at least two positions of the terminal. From the perspective of improving the productivity of the terminal (and, in turn, the productivity of the connector), it is desirable to perform the bending processing as efficiently as possible in the process of manufacturing the terminal.

[0005] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a board-mounted connector having excellent productivity, and a connector mounting board using the same.

[0006] The present disclosure provides a board-mounted connector that is mountable on a circuit board having a conductor pattern and is connectable to a counterpart terminal, the board-mounted connector including: a housing having a press-fitting hole; and a terminal press-fitted into the press-fitting hole, wherein the terminal includes: a first terminal portion; and a second terminal portion, wherein the first terminal portion includes: a first contact portion that contacts and electrically connects to the counterpart terminal when the first contact portion is connected to the counterpart terminal; and a press-fitting portion that is press-fitted into the press-fitting hole, and wherein the second terminal portion includes: a bent portion that extends from the first terminal portion and is bent around a bending axis along an axis of the first terminal portion; and a second contact portion that is located at a position offset from the first contact portion in an intersecting direction intersecting the axis of the first terminal portion and electrically connects to the conductor pattern when the board-mounted connector is mounted on the circuit board.

[0007] The present disclosure provides a connector mounting board including: a circuit board; and the aforementioned on-board connector mounted on the circuit board, wherein the circuit board has a cutout portion defined by a side edge of the circuit board, the cutout portion is recessed in a direction of a board surface, and wherein the on-board connector is arranged to fit the housing into the cutout portion, and the second terminal portion is electrically connected to the conductor pattern of the circuit board.

[0008] The present disclosure has been briefly described above. Furthermore, details of the present disclosure will be set forth by reading the reference drawings that accompany the following detailed description of the aspects (hereinafter, referred to as "embodiments") of the present invention for realizing the following. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0009] Figure 1 A and Figure 1 B show a state in which the on-board connector according to the embodiment of the present disclosure is mounted on the circuit board, Figure 1 A is a perspective view from a front side, and Figure 1 B is a perspective view from a rear side.

[0010] Figure 2 is a perspective view showing Figure 1 A and Figure 1 B show a state in which the connector and the circuit board are separated from each other.

[0011] Figure 3 A to Figure 3 C show Figure 1 A and Figure 1 B show the connector and the circuit board, Figure 3 A is a plan view thereof, Figure 3 B is a front view thereof, and Figure 3 C is a rear view thereof.

[0012] Figure 4 is a perspective view showing a cross section along Figure 3 A-A line of A.

[0013] Figure 5 is a view showing an assembly process of the housing, the terminal, and the circuit board, corresponding to Figure 4 .

[0014] Figure 6 A and Figure 6 B show an upper terminal, Figure 6 A is a plan view thereof, and Figure 6 B is a side view thereof.

[0015] Figure 7 A and Figure 7 B show a lower terminal, Figure 7 A is a plan view thereof, and Figure 7 B is a side view thereof.

[0016] Figure 8 A and Figure 8 B shows a chain terminal in which a plurality of preformed rod bodies obtained by punching a thin metal plate are connected by a carrier, Figure 8 A is a plan view, and Figure 8 B is a view along Figure 8 A is an enlarged view of a portion of a C-C line section.

[0017] Figure 9 A is Figure 3 C is an enlarged view of portion B, and Figure 9 B is Figure 3 C is an enlarged perspective view of portion B.

[0018] Figure 10 is a view showing a distance in the left-right direction between a protective wall of a housing located at both ends in the left-right direction and a second terminal portion of a terminal. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] [EMBODIMENT]

[0020] Hereinafter, the board connector 1 and the connector mounting plate 7 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. As shown in Figure 1 A and Figure 1 B, the connector 1 includes a housing 2 and a plurality of terminals 3 press-fitted into the housing 2, and is used by being mounted on a circuit board 4. By this mounting, the connector mounting plate 7 is manufactured.

[0021] Hereinafter, as shown in Figure 1 A to Figure 10 "front-rear direction", "left-right direction", "up-down direction", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "up (upper side)", and "down (lower side)" are defined. The "front-rear direction", "left-right direction", and "up-down direction" are orthogonal to each other. The front-rear direction coincides with a fitting direction of the connector 1 and a counterpart connector (not shown), the front side of the fitting direction of the counterpart connector is referred to as the front side, and the rear side of the fitting direction opposite to the front side is referred to as the rear side. The left-right direction coincides with an arrangement direction of a plurality of upper press-fitting holes 33A and a plurality of lower press-fitting holes 33B (see Figure 5 and the like) provided in the housing 2, which will be described later. Hereinafter, each member constituting the connector 1 will be described in order.

[0022] First, the terminal 3 will be described. As shown in Figure 5 and the like, the connector 1 includes a plurality of upper terminals 3A press-fitted into the upper press-fitting holes 33A and a plurality of lower terminals 3B press-fitted into the lower press-fitting holes 33B as the plurality of terminals 3. First, the upper terminal 3A will be described.

[0023] Figure 6 A and Figure 6 The upper terminal 3A shown in B is relative to the preformed rod 3g obtained by punching and pressing a flat thin metal sheet (see...). Figure 8 A and Figure 8 B) By modifying the bends 17, 20 and 22 (see...) Figure 6 A and Figure 6 B) Formed by bending. The preformed rod 3g includes a linearly extending first terminal portion 11 and a generally L-shaped extending second terminal portion 12. Each of the first terminal portion 11 and the second terminal portion 12 has a rectangular cross-section orthogonal to the extension direction.

[0024] like Figure 6 A and Figure 6 As shown in Figure B, the first terminal portion 11 has a shape that extends linearly in the front-rear direction. The front end of the first terminal portion 11 functions as a first contact portion 13, that is, the first contact portion 13 contacts and electrically connects with the mating terminal (female terminal, not shown) housed in the mating connector. A pair of pressing protrusions 14 protruding in the left and right directions are provided at two positions in the front-rear direction at the rear side position of the first contact portion 13 of the first terminal portion 11.

[0025] A wide portion 15 is provided at the position of the first terminal portion 11 behind the pressing protrusions 14, thereby protruding further than the pair of pressing protrusions 14 in the left-right direction. The wide portion 15 acts as a stop, that is, when pressing the upper terminal 3A, the stop defines the position of the upper terminal 3A relative to the housing 2 in the front-rear direction. The rear end surface of the first terminal portion 11 (a rectangular flat surface orthogonal to the front-rear direction) acts as a pressing surface 16, that is, the pressing surface 16 is used to press the pressing clamp (not shown) when pressing the upper terminal 3A. Therefore, since the pressing clamp can press on the pressing surface 16 located on the extension line of the axis of the first contact portion 13, the structure of the terminal 3 can be simplified compared to the case where a dedicated pressing surface (e.g., a so-called shoulder) is separately provided in the terminal 3. In addition, problems such as buckling are less likely to occur in the first terminal portion 11 during pressing.

[0026] like Figure 6 A and Figure 6B, the second terminal portion 12 includes a bent portion 17 extending rightward from a rear end portion of the first terminal portion 11 (a portion on the rear side of the wide portion 15) and bent upward, a standing portion 18 extending upward from an upper end portion of the bent portion 17, a first portion 19 extending rearward from an upper end portion of the standing portion 18, a bent portion 20 extending rearward from a rear end of the first portion 19 and bent downward, a second portion 21 extending downward from a lower end portion of the bent portion 20, a bent portion 22 extending downward from a lower end portion of the second portion 21 and bent rearward, and a second contact portion 23 extending rearward from a rear end portion of the bent portion 22. The second contact portion 23 is conductively connected to the conductor pattern 42A (see Figure 4 and Figure 5 ) of the circuit board 4. The bent portion 17 is bent around a bending axis X which is parallelly shifted to the right side from the axis of the first terminal portion 11.

[0027] As described above, in the upper terminal 3A, the second terminal portion 12 is located at a position shifted rightward with respect to the first terminal portion 11 (see Figure 6 A). Further, the second contact portion 23 is located at a position shifted downward with respect to the first contact portion 13 (see Figure 6 B).

[0028] In the upper terminal 3A, a crank shape (see Figure 6 B) when viewed in the left-right direction, which is formed by the first terminal portion 11, the standing portion 18, and the first portion 19, can be obtained by performing one bending process on the bent portion 17. Therefore, compared to a general machining method in which two positions of a terminal in an extending direction are bent to obtain a crank shape, the number of bending processes on the terminal to obtain a crank shape can be reduced.

[0029] In the upper terminal 3A, a plate thickness T2 (see Figure 6 A) of the second terminal portion 12 is smaller than a plate thickness T1 (see Figure 6 B) of the first terminal portion 11 (see also Figure 8 B). More specifically, because the second terminal portion 12 has a shape in which the thickness decreases in a direction in which a bent outer surface (a lower surface in Figure 8 B) at the bent portion 17 approaches a bent inner surface (an upper surface in Figure 8 B), the plate thickness T2 of the second terminal portion 12 is smaller than the plate thickness T1 of the first terminal portion 11. Therefore, when the bent portion 17 of the second terminal portion 12 is provided, it is easy to perform a bending process. In addition, in the present example, a plurality of upper terminals 3A are provided in the housing 2 in a state in which they are arranged in the left-right direction (see Figure 4 and the like). In this case, in the upper terminals 3A which are adjacent to each other in the left-right direction, the bent portion 17 of the left upper terminal 3A and a left end surface of the rear end portion of the first terminal portion 11 of the right upper terminal 3A are closest to each other in the left-right direction (see Figure 9B). In this regard, since the plate thickness T2 (i.e., the thickness in the left-right direction) of the bent portion 17 (a portion of the second terminal portion 12) decreases in a direction away from the adjacent first terminal portion 11, the interval Y (so-called insulation distance) in the left-right direction between the bent portion 17 and the adjacent first terminal portion 11 can be increased.

[0030] In the upper terminal 3A, the width T3 (see Figure 6 B) of the bent portion 17 and the standing portion 18 in the front-rear direction is greater than the plate thickness T1 and the plate thickness T2. Therefore, the rigidity of the bent portion 17 can be increased, and the shape of the upper terminal 3A after the bending process on the bent portion 17 is appropriately maintained. Therefore, the coplanarity (flatness) of the second contact portions 23 of the plurality of upper terminals 3A is increased, thereby improving the reliability of the electrical connection between the circuit board 4 and the connector 1. The above has described the upper terminal 3A.

[0031] For example, the above-described upper terminal 3A is manufactured as follows. First, a thin metal plate is punched to obtain a chain terminal in which a plurality of preformed rod bodies 3g are connected by a carrier 5 as shown in Figure 8 A. Next, in the chain terminal, only the second terminal portion 12 of each of the preformed rod bodies 3g is sequentially subjected to a pressing work, and for each preformed rod body 3g, the plate thickness T2 of the second terminal portion 12 is made to be smaller than the plate thickness T1 of the first terminal portion 11 (see also Figure 8 B). Next, in the chain terminal, the carrier 5 is removed to separate the plurality of preformed rod bodies 3g from each other, and the bent portions 17, 20, and 22 (see Figure 6 A and Figure 6 B) of each preformed rod body 3g are subjected to a bending process. Therefore, the plurality of upper terminals 3A is obtained. A portion or all of the bent portions 17, 20, and 22 (see Figure 6 A and Figure 6 B) can be subjected to a bending process before or after the upper terminal 3A is press-fitted to the housing 2.

[0032] It is understood from the above manufacturing procedure that, at the second contact portion 23 of the upper terminal 3A, a punched surface (cut surface) generated when the thin metal plate is punched faces and is connected to the conductor patterns 42A and 42B of the circuit board 4. From the viewpoint of achieving a good electrical connection, in the present example, the punched surface of the second contact portion 23 is subjected to a plating process. Examples of the plating material include gold (Au). The gold plating is generally provided on a base plating layer such as copper or nickel provided on a base material. Not only the punched surface of the second contact portion 23, but also the entire punched surface of the upper terminal 3A can be subjected to the same plating process. In the present example, the second contact portion 23 of the lower terminal 3B described later is also subjected to the same plating process.

[0033] Next, the lower terminal 3B will be described. In the lower terminal 3B, the first terminal portion 11 and the second terminal portion 12 are formed in the same manner as in the upper terminal 3A. The first terminal portion 11 is formed in the same manner as in the upper terminal 3A. The second terminal portion 12 is formed in the same manner as in the upper terminal 3A. Figure 7A and Figure 7 B, the lower terminal 3B is formed in the same manner as the upper terminal 3A. The second contact portion 23 of the lower terminal 3B is conductively connected to the conductor pattern 42B (see Figure 6 A and Figure 6 B of the upper terminal 3A, and the description thereof is omitted. The second contact portion 23 of the lower terminal 3B is conductively connected to the conductor pattern 42B (see Figure 4 and Figure 5 ) of the circuit board 4. The lower terminal 3B is also made from the chain terminal as shown in Figure 8 A by the same process as the upper terminal 3A. The lower terminal 3B also has the same functions and effects as the above-described various functions and effects of the upper terminal 3A. Hereinafter, the main differences between the lower terminal 3B and the upper terminal 3A will be described.

[0034] In the lower terminal 3B, the bent portion 17 extends to the left from the rear end portion of the first terminal portion 11, which is opposite to the upper terminal 3A (see Figure 7 A). That is, the bent portion 17 is bent around a bending axis X that is parallelly offset to the left side from the axis of the first terminal portion 11. Therefore, in the upper terminal 3A, the second terminal portion 12 is located at a position that is offset to the right with respect to the first terminal portion 11 (see Figure 6 A), whereas in the lower terminal 3B, the second terminal portion 12 is located at a position that is offset to the left with respect to the first terminal portion 11 (see Figure 7 A).

[0035] In the lower terminal 3B, the overall shape of the second terminal portion 12 is different from that of the upper terminal 3A. Therefore, in the upper terminal 3A, the second contact portion 23 is located at a position that is offset downward with respect to the first contact portion 13 (see Figure 6 B), whereas in the lower terminal 3B, the second contact portion 23 is located at a position that is offset upward with respect to the first contact portion 13 (see Figure 7 B). Therefore, in a state where the upper terminal 3A and the lower terminal 3B are press-fitted into the upper press-fitting hole 33A and the lower press-fitting hole 33B of the case 2, respectively, the second contact portion 23 of the upper terminal 3A and the second contact portion 23 of the lower terminal 3B are located on the same plane (see Figure 4 and the like). The lower terminal 3B has been described above.

[0036] Next, the case 2 will be described. The case 2 is a resin molded product, and as shown in Figure 2 and the like, includes a rectangular tubular main body portion 31 that extends in the front-rear direction and is longer in the left-right direction. The rear end of the main body portion 31 is closed by a rectangular flat plate-shaped rear end wall 32 (see Figure 4 and Figure 5), and the front end of the main body portion 31 is open. When the connector 1 and the mating connector are fitted to each other, the mating connector is inserted into and fitted into the inside space of the main body portion 31 through the front end opening of the main body portion 31, and is held in the fitted state by the locking portion 31a provided at the central portion in the left-right direction of the upper wall of the main body portion 31.

[0037] As shown in FIG. 1, the rear end wall 32 is provided with a plurality of upper press-fitting holes 33A arranged in the left-right direction, and is provided with a plurality of lower press-fitting holes 33B arranged in the left-right direction at positions below the plurality of upper press-fitting holes 33A. Each of the upper press-fitting holes 33A and the lower press-fitting holes 33B is a through hole having a rectangular cross section and penetrating in the front-rear direction. Figure 3 Figure 5 The first terminal portion 11 of the upper terminal 3A is inserted from the rear and press-fitted into the upper press-fitting hole 33A. The press-fitting is performed by pressing the press surface 16 by a press-fitting jig (not shown) to press the first terminal portion 11 forward. The press-fitting is performed while sliding the press-fitting protrusion 14 of the first terminal portion 11 against the inner wall surface of the upper press-fitting hole 33A, and is completed when the wide portion 15 of the first terminal portion 11 comes into contact with the rear end edge of the upper press-fitting hole 33A. Similarly, the first terminal portion 11 of the lower terminal 3B is inserted from the rear and press-fitted into the lower press-fitting hole 33B.

[0038] As shown in FIG. 1, the rear end wall 32 is provided with a plurality of upper press-fitting holes 33A arranged in the left-right direction, and is provided with a plurality of lower press-fitting holes 33B arranged in the left-right direction at positions below the plurality of upper press-fitting holes 33A. Each of the upper press-fitting holes 33A and the lower press-fitting holes 33B is a through hole having a rectangular cross section and penetrating in the front-rear direction.

[0039] As shown in FIG. 1, the rear end wall 32 is provided with a plurality of upper press-fitting holes 33A arranged in the left-right direction, and is provided with a plurality of lower press-fitting holes 33B arranged in the left-right direction at positions below the plurality of upper press-fitting holes 33A. Each of the upper press-fitting holes 33A and the lower press-fitting holes 33B is a through hole having a rectangular cross section and penetrating in the front-rear direction. Figure 4 As shown in FIG. 1, the rear end wall 32 is provided with a plurality of upper press-fitting holes 33A arranged in the left-right direction, and is provided with a plurality of lower press-fitting holes 33B arranged in the left-right direction at positions below the plurality of upper press-fitting holes 33A. Each of the upper press-fitting holes 33A and the lower press-fitting holes 33B is a through hole having a rectangular cross section and penetrating in the front-rear direction.

[0040] The intervals (distances) in the left-right direction between the adjacent upper press-fitting holes 33A and the intervals (distances) in the left-right direction between the adjacent lower press-fitting holes 33B coincide with each other. In the present example, the intervals (distances) in the left-right direction between the adjacent upper press-fitting holes 33A and the intervals (distances) in the left-right direction between the adjacent lower press-fitting holes 33B are 0.5 mm. Figure 3 ​As can be understood in section B, the plurality of upper pressing holes 33A are configured to be shifted to the left by half a spacing relative to the plurality of lower pressing holes 33B. In other words, the plurality of upper pressing holes 33A and the plurality of lower pressing holes 33B are configured to have a positional relationship in which the upper pressing holes 33A and the lower pressing holes 33B do not overlap in the vertical direction when viewed from the front-back direction (the so-called zigzag shape).

[0041] Therefore, the first terminal portion 11 of the lower terminal 3B1 (see) is pressed into the rightmost of the multiple pressing holes 33B. Figure 3 B and Figure 10 The first terminal 11 is located to the right of the upper terminal 3A of the rightmost upper pressing hole 33A among the plurality of upper pressing holes 33A. Conversely, the first terminal portion 11 of the upper terminal 3A1 of the leftmost upper pressing hole 33A among the plurality of upper pressing holes 33A (see...) Figure 3 B and Figure 10 The upper pressure hole 33A is located to the left of the first terminal portion 11 of the lower terminal 3B, which is pressed into the leftmost of the plurality of lower pressure holes 33B. In this example, to avoid interference with the locking part 31a, the upper pressure hole 33A is not provided in the central region in the left-right direction (see...). Figure 3 B). Therefore, the height of the main body 31 can be further reduced.

[0042] Furthermore, for each of the upper terminal 3A and the lower terminal 3B, the offset in the left-right direction between the first terminal portion 11 and the second terminal portion 12 is equal to half a pitch. Therefore, as Figure 10 As shown, regarding the lower terminal 3B where the first terminal portion 11 is pressed into the lower pressing hole 33B and the upper terminal 3A where the first terminal portion 11 is pressed into the upper pressing hole 33A located half a distance to the left of the lower pressing hole 33B, the position of the second terminal portion 12 of the upper terminal 3A and the position of the first terminal portion 11 of the lower terminal 3B are consistent in the left-right direction, and the position of the first terminal portion 11 of the upper terminal 3A and the position of the second terminal portion 12 of the lower terminal 3B are consistent in the left-right direction.

[0043] like Figure 5 As shown, the rear end wall 32 is provided with a plate-shaped partition 34 that extends in the left-right direction between a plurality of upper pressing holes 33A and a plurality of lower pressing holes 33B that protrude rearward in the vertical direction, thereby separating the upper pressing holes 33A and the lower pressing holes 33B from each other. In this example, the upper surface of the partition 34 is continuous with and flush with the lower edge of the inner wall of the plurality of upper pressing holes 33A. In this way, compared with the case where the partition 34 is not provided, the insulation distance (in particular, creepage distance) between the upper terminal 3A pressed into the upper pressing hole 33A and the lower terminal 3B pressed into the lower pressing hole 33B can be increased by providing the partition 34.

[0044] The downwardly protruding auxiliary wall portions 35 are provided on the lower surface of the partition wall portion 34 at positions corresponding to the left and right directions of the plurality of lower press-fit holes 33B (see Figure 5 , Figure 10 and so on). In other words, each auxiliary wall portion 35 is provided between the upper press-fit holes 33A adjacent to each other in the left and right directions (see Figure 10 ). Therefore, the auxiliary wall portions 35 support the partition wall portion 34, and thus, even if the thickness of the partition wall portion 34 is reduced, the partition wall portion 34 can be prevented from collapsing and so on. In addition, since the second terminal portion 12 of each of the lower terminals 3B (in particular, the first portion 19) is positioned in the space between the adjacent auxiliary wall portions 35 (see Figure 10 ), it is possible to increase the insulation distance between the adjacent lower terminals 3B.

[0045] As shown in Figure 2 and so on, a pair of protrusion portions 36 are provided on the upper side regions of the left and right side surfaces of the main body portion 31 so as to protrude in the left and right directions and extend in the front and rear directions. The pair of protrusion portions 36 function as stops that define the position of the case 2 in the up and down directions with respect to the circuit board 4 when the case 2 is mounted on the circuit board 4. Each protrusion portion 36 is provided with a hook mounting portion 37, and the metal hook 6 is mounted and fixed to each hook mounting portion 37.

[0046] The main body portion 31 is provided with a pair of protection wall portions 38 so as to protrude rearward continuously from the pair of protrusion portions 36. Therefore, the pair of protection wall portions 38 are provided so as to sandwich the second terminal portions 12 of the plurality of upper terminals 3A and the plurality of lower terminals 3B extending rearward from the plurality of upper press-fit holes 33A and the plurality of lower press-fit holes 33B in the left and right directions, and function to protect the second terminal portions 12 of the plurality of upper terminals 3A and the plurality of lower terminals 3B. As shown in Figure 2 and Figure 10 , a pair of engagement protrusions 39 that protrude downward are provided on the lower surfaces of the pair of protection wall portions 38. The pair of engagement protrusions 39 are inserted into a pair of positioning holes 44 (see Figure 2 ) of the circuit board 4.

[0047] As shown in Figure 10As shown, in this example, in the lower terminal 3B1 of the rightmost lower pressing hole 33B among the plurality of upper pressing holes 33A and the plurality of lower pressing holes 33B, the second terminal 12 is located to the left of the first terminal 11 (i.e., inside in the left-right direction). Similarly, in the upper terminal 3A1 of the leftmost upper pressing hole 33A among the plurality of upper pressing holes 33A and the plurality of lower pressing holes 33B, the second terminal 12 is located to the right of the first terminal 11 (i.e., inside in the left-right direction). Therefore, it is easy to ensure a large distance L1 between the second terminal 12 of the lower terminal 3B1 and the right protective wall portion 38, and a large distance L2 between the second terminal 12 of the upper terminal 3A1 and the left protective wall portion 38.

[0048] In other words, in the upper pressing hole 33A and the lower pressing hole 33B, while the first terminal portion 11 of the terminal 3 can be positioned as far outward as possible in the left-right direction, the second terminal portion 12 of the terminal 3 can be positioned separately from the pair of protective wall portions 38. Therefore, since it is not necessary to design a pair of protective wall portions 38 to escape outward in the left-right direction to avoid contact with the second terminal portion 12, the size of the housing 2 in the arrangement direction (i.e., the left-right direction) can be reduced. The housing 2 has been described above.

[0049] Next, circuit board 4 will be described. For example... Figure 2 As shown, the circuit board 4, made of resin, has a rectangular flat plate shape, wherein a rectangular cut portion 41 is formed in the area other than the left and right ends of the front end surface of the circuit board 4. The cut portion 41 has a shape corresponding to the outline (shape viewed from the top and bottom) of the main body portion 31 of the shell 2.

[0050] On the upper surface of the rear region of the cutting section 41, a plurality of conductor patterns 42A are arranged in the left-right direction as second contact portions 23 corresponding to a plurality of upper terminals 3A, and a plurality of conductor patterns 42B are arranged in the left-right direction at the front position of the plurality of conductor patterns 42A as second contact portions 23 corresponding to a plurality of lower terminals 3B.

[0051] A pair of recesses 43 are provided on the upper surface of the outer region of the cut portion 41 of the circuit board 4 in the left-right direction, corresponding to a pair of hooks 6 fixed to the housing 2. The pair of hooks 6 are received and soldered in the pair of recesses 43. A pair of positioning holes (through holes) 44 are provided on the upper surface of the outer region in the left-right direction of the plurality of conductor patterns 42A and 42B of the circuit board 4. The circuit board 4 has been described above.

[0052] To mount connector 1 onto circuit board 4, firstly, as follows: Figure 2As shown, the housing 2 is disposed above the circuit board 4. Next, the housing 2 and the circuit board 4 are brought close to each other in the up-and-down direction until the lower surfaces of the pair of protruding portions 36 come into contact with the circuit board 4, the main body portion 31 of the housing 2 is inserted to fit into the cutout portion 41 of the circuit board 4, the pair of hooks 6 are received in the pair of recessed portions 43, the pair of engagement protrusions 39 are inserted into the pair of positioning holes 44, the second contact portions 23 of the plurality of upper terminals 3A come into contact with the plurality of conductor patterns 42A, respectively, and the second contact portions 23 of the plurality of lower terminals 3B come into contact with the plurality of conductor patterns 42B, respectively (see FIG. 6). Figure 1 A and Figure 1 B).

[0053] Next, the pair of hooks 6 received in the pair of recessed portions 43 are adhered and fixed to the pair of recessed portions 43 by adhesion or welding, the second contact portions 23 of the plurality of upper terminals 3A are fixed to the plurality of conductor patterns 42A by welding, and the second contact portions 23 of the plurality of lower terminals 3B are fixed to the plurality of conductor patterns 42B by welding. Thus, the mounting of the housing 2 on the circuit board 4 is completed. In this way, by mounting the connector 1 to fit into the cutout portion 41 provided in the circuit board 4, compared to the case where the connector 1 is mounted to be placed on the board surface of the circuit board 4, the height of the entire structure of the connector 1 and the circuit board 4 can be reduced.

[0054] <Function and Effect>

[0055] As described above, according to the board-mounted connector 1 of the present embodiment, the terminal 3 is configured such that the second terminal portion 12 including the second contact portion 23 to be electrically connected to the conductor patterns 42A and 42B of the circuit board 4 includes the bent portion 17 extending from the first terminal portion 11 including the first contact portion 13 to be electrically connected to the counterpart terminal and bent around a bending axis along the axis of the first terminal portion 11. For example, when the terminal 3 has a typical crank shape, the terminal 3 can be manufactured by blanking a thin metal plate to obtain a preform bar including the first terminal portion 11 and the second terminal portion 12 (see, for example, FIG. 8), and then performing a bending process once to offset the first terminal portion 11 and the second terminal portion 12 from each other in the thickness direction of the circuit board 4. Figure 8 A and Figure 8 B), and then performing a bending process once to offset the first terminal portion 11 and the second terminal portion 12 from each other in the thickness direction of the circuit board 4. That is, compared to the above example, the number of times of bending processes performed on the terminal 3 can be reduced.

[0056] In addition, in the terminal 3 of the connector 1, since the position of the bent portion 17 is different from that in the prior art and the first contact portion 13 and the second contact portion 23 are offset from each other, the terminal surface of the first terminal portion 11 can be used as the pressing surface 16 of the press-fit jig. Thus, compared to the case where a dedicated pressing surface (e.g., so-called shoulder portion) is separately provided in the terminal 3, the structure of the terminal 3 can be simplified.

[0057] As described above, in the on-board connector 1 according to the present embodiment, even if the first contact portion 13 that contacts the mating terminal and the second contact portion 23 that contacts the conductor patterns 42A and 42B of the circuit board 4 are located at the offset positions, the number of times of bending processing on the terminal 3 can be reduced, and thus the productivity of the connector 1 is excellent.

[0058] In addition, regarding the thickness of the plate-shaped body that constitutes the terminal 3, the thickness T2 of the second terminal portion 12 is smaller than the thickness T1 of the first terminal portion 11. Therefore, when the bent portion 17 of the second terminal portion 12 is provided, bending processing is easily performed.

[0059] Further, when a plurality of terminals 3 is provided in the housing 2, since the thickness of the second terminal portion 12 decreases in a direction away from the first terminal portion 11 of the adjacent terminal 3, the interval Y (see FIG. 6) between the surface of the second terminal portion 12 and the surface of the adjacent terminal 3 can be increased. In other words, the plurality of terminals 3 can be densely provided in the housing 2, and the size and height of the connector 1 can be further reduced. Figure 9 A, so-called insulation distance). In other words, the plurality of terminals 3 can be densely provided in the housing 2, and the size and height of the connector 1 can be further reduced.

[0060] Further, the second terminal portion 12 includes a standing portion 18 that extends from the first terminal portion 11 and extends through the bent portion 17 in the intersecting direction, a first portion 19 that extends from an end portion of the standing portion 18 in the axis direction, and a second portion 21 that extends from an end portion of the first portion 19 toward the second contact portion 23. Therefore, even when the circuit board 4 is provided at a position offset from the first terminal portion 11 in the intersecting direction, the terminal 3 can be connected to the conductor patterns 42A and 42B of the circuit board 4 while reducing the number of times of bending processing when manufacturing the above-described terminal 3.

[0061] Further, in a state where the housing 2 of the connector 1 is fitted to the cut portion 41 of the circuit board 4, the terminal 3 that is press-fitted to the housing 2 is connected to the conductor patterns 42A and 42B of the circuit board 4. Therefore, compared to a case where the connector 1 is placed on the board surface of the circuit board 4, the total height of the connector mounting board 7 can be reduced.

[0062] [Other Embodiments] [Other Embodiments]

[0063] The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be used within the scope of the present disclosure. For example, the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be appropriately modified, improved, and the like. In addition, the materials, shapes, sizes, numbers, arrangement positions, and the like of the components in the above-described embodiments can be freely set and are not limited as long as the present disclosure can be achieved. [Other Embodiments]

[0064] In the embodiments, the upper terminal 3A and the lower terminal 3B are press-fitted into the housing 2. Meanwhile, only one of the upper terminal 3A and the lower terminal 3B can be press-fitted into the housing 2. [Other Embodiments]

[0065] Further, in the above-described embodiment, regarding the thickness of the plate-shaped body constituting the terminal 3, the thickness T2 of the second terminal portion 12 is smaller than the thickness T1 of the first terminal portion 11. However, the thickness T2 of the second terminal portion 12 and the thickness T1 of the first terminal portion 11 can be the same.

[0066] The on-board connector 1 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, which is mountable on a circuit board 4 including conductor patterns 42A, 42B and connectable to a counterpart terminal. The on-board connector 1 includes a housing 2 having press-fit holes 33A, 33B, and a terminal 3 press-fitted into the press-fit holes 33A, 33B. The terminal 3 includes a first terminal portion 11 and a second terminal portion 12. The first terminal portion 11 includes a first contact portion 13 that contacts and electrically connects to the counterpart terminal when the first contact portion 13 is connected to the counterpart terminal, and a press-fit portion 14 that is press-fitted into the press-fit holes 33A, 33B. The second terminal portion 12 includes a bent portion 17 that extends from the first terminal portion 11 and is bent around a bending axis X along an axis of the first terminal portion 11, and a second contact portion 23 that is located at a position offset from the first contact portion 11 in a direction of intersection intersecting the axis of the first terminal portion 11 and electrically connects to the conductor patterns 42A, 42B when the on-board connector 1 is mounted on the circuit board 4.

[0067] According to this configuration, the second terminal portion 12 including the second contact portion 23 to be electrically connected to the conductor patterns 42A and 42B of the circuit board 4 includes the bent portion 17 that extends from the first terminal portion 11 including the first contact portion 13 to be electrically connected to the counterpart terminal and is bent around a bending axis along an axis of the first terminal portion 11. The terminal 3 has a shape in which the first contact portion 13 that is a contact of the counterpart terminal and the second contact portion 23 that is a contact of the conductor patterns 42A, 42B of the circuit board 4 are offset from each other. For example, in a case where the terminal 3 is produced to have a crank shape in the related art, a thin metal plate is punched to manufacture a preform bar 3g including the first terminal portion 11 and the second terminal portion 12 (see, for example, the chain terminal shown in Figure 8 A and Figure 8 B), and then a bending process can be performed at the bent portion 17 once so that the first contact portion 13 and the second contact portion 23 are offset in a predetermined direction. That is, the number of times of bending processes on the terminal 3 can be reduced compared to the number of times (at least twice) in the related art. When the terminal 3 has a more complex shape, for example, a preform bar having such a shape can be manufactured at a punching stage, or additional bending processes can be performed after a bending process on a crank shape. Regardless, as described above, the number of times of bending processes can be reduced compared to the related art.

[0068] Further, the position of the bent portion 17 of the terminal 3 is different from that of the terminal in the related art, and the first contact portion 13 and the second contact portion 23 are offset from each other. With this configuration, the terminal surface of the first terminal portion 11 (for example, the end surface of the end portion on the opposite side of the first contact portion 13, see Figure 6 A, Figure 6 B, Figure 7 A and Figure 7 B) can be used as the pressing surface 16 of the press-fit jig. Therefore, compared to a case where a dedicated pressing surface (for example, a so-called shoulder portion) is separately provided in the terminal, the structure of the terminal 3 can be simplified.

[0069] As described above, since the board-mounted connector 1 can simplify the structure of the terminal 3 and reduce the number of times of bending processing performed in the manufacturing stage of the terminal 3. Therefore, compared to the connector in the background art, the board-mounted connector 1 has excellent productivity.

[0070] Further, the terminal 3 includes a plate-shaped body 3g that includes and continuously extends through the first terminal portion 11 and the second terminal portion 12, and is bent at the bent portion 17, and the thickness T2 (second thickness) of the plate-shaped body 3g at the bent portion 17 of the second terminal portion 12 is smaller than the thickness T1 (first thickness) of the plate-shaped body 3g at the first terminal portion 11.

[0071] With this configuration, the terminal 3 is formed of a continuous plate-shaped body 3g, and the thickness T2 of the plate-shaped body 3g at the bent portion 17 of the second terminal portion 12 is smaller than the thickness T1 of the plate-shaped body 3g at the first terminal portion 11. Therefore, since the bent portion 17 of the second terminal portion 12 is thin, it is easy to perform bending processing on the bent portion 17.

[0072] The thickness T2 of the plate-shaped body 3g at the bent portion 17 of the second terminal portion 12 is reduced toward the second contact portion 23, so that the bent outer surface of the plate-shaped body 3g approaches the bent inner surface of the plate-shaped body 3g.

[0073] With this configuration, the plate-shaped body 3g at the bent portion 17 of the second terminal portion 12 has a shape in which the thickness is reduced so that the bent outer surface approaches the bent inner surface (for example, see Figure 8 B), and therefore the plate-shaped body 3g of the second terminal portion 12 is thinner than the plate-shaped body 3g of the first terminal portion 11. Therefore, for example, when a plurality of terminals 3 are arranged side by side in the housing 2, as described above, since the thickness of the bent portion 17 is reduced, the distance (so-called insulation distance) between the bent portion 17 and the adjacent terminal 3 can be increased. In other words, it is possible to densely arrange a plurality of terminals 3 in the housing 2, and it is possible to further reduce the size and height of the connector 1. Not only the bent portion 17 but also the entire second terminal portion 12 can be thinner than the first terminal portion 11.

[0074] The second terminal portion 12 includes a standing portion 18 extending from the first terminal portion 11 and extending in the intersecting direction by passing through the bent portion 17, a first portion 19 extending from an end portion of the standing portion 18 in the direction of the axis, and a second portion 21 extending from the end portion of the first portion 19 toward the second contact portion 23.

[0075] With this configuration, the second terminal portion 12 of the terminal 3 includes the standing portion 18 extending from the first terminal portion 11 and extending in the intersecting direction by passing through the bent portion 17, the first portion 19 extending from the end portion of the standing portion 18 in the direction of the axis, and the second portion 21 extending from the end portion of the first portion 19 toward the second contact portion 23. Therefore, for example, even when the circuit board 4 is disposed at a position offset in the intersecting direction from the first terminal portion 11 (see, for example, Figure 4 ), the terminal 3 can be connected to the conductor patterns 42A and 42B of the circuit board 4 while reducing the number of times of bending processing when manufacturing the above terminal.

[0076] A connector mounting board 7 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a circuit board 4, and the on-board connector 1 mounted on the circuit board 4. The circuit board 4 includes a cutout portion 41 defined by a side edge of the circuit board 4, the cutout portion 41 being recessed in the direction of a board surface, the on-board connector 1 is disposed so as to be fitted into the cutout portion 41, and the second terminal portion 12 is electrically connected to the conductor patterns 42A, 42B of the circuit board 4.

[0077] With this configuration, in a state where the housing 2 of the connector 1 is disposed so as to be fitted into the cutout portion 41 of the circuit board 4, the terminal 3 press-fitted to the housing 2 is connected to the conductor patterns 42A and 42B of the circuit board 4. Therefore, compared to a case where the connector is placed on the board surface of the circuit board to mount the connector, the total height of the connector mounting board 7 can be reduced. Further, as described above, since the structure of the terminal 3 can be simplified and the number of times of bending processing performed at the manufacturing stage of the terminal 3 can be reduced, the productivity of the connector 1 (and the productivity of the connector mounting board 7) can be improved.

[0078] In this way, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, it is possible to provide an on-board connector with excellent productivity and a connector mounting board using the same.

Claims

1. An on-board connector mountable on a circuit board having a conductor pattern and connectable to a counterpart terminal, the on-board connector comprising: a housing having a press-fit hole; and a terminal press-fitted into the press-fit hole, wherein the terminal includes: a first terminal portion; and a second terminal portion, wherein the first terminal portion includes: a first contact portion that contacts and electrically connects to the counterpart terminal when the first contact portion is connected to the counterpart terminal; and a press-fit portion that is press-fitted into the press-fit hole, and wherein the second terminal portion includes: a bent portion that extends from the first terminal portion and is bent around a bending axis along an axis of the first terminal portion; and a second contact portion that is located at a position offset from the first contact portion in a direction of intersection intersecting the axis of the first terminal portion and electrically connects to the conductor pattern when the on-board connector is mounted on the circuit board; wherein the terminal includes a plate-shaped body that includes and continuously extends through the first terminal portion and the second terminal portion, the plate-shaped body being bent at the bent portion, wherein a second thickness of the plate-shaped body at the bent portion of the second terminal portion is smaller than a first thickness of the plate-shaped body at the first terminal portion; and wherein the second thickness of the plate-shaped body at the bent portion of the second terminal portion decreases toward the second contact portion such that a bent outer surface of the plate-shaped body approaches a bent inner surface of the plate-shaped body.

2. The on-board connector according to claim 1, the second terminal portion includes: wherein a standing portion that extends from the first terminal portion and extends in the direction of intersection by the bent portion; a first portion that extends from an end portion of the standing portion in a direction of the axis; and a second portion that extends from an end portion of the first portion toward the second contact portion.

3. A connector mounting board comprising: a circuit board; and the on-board connector according to claim 1 or 2 mounted on the circuit board, wherein the circuit board has a cutout portion defined by a side edge of the circuit board, the cutout portion being recessed in a direction of a board surface, and wherein the on-board connector is arranged to fit the housing into the cutout portion and the second terminal portion is electrically connected to the conductor pattern of the circuit board. ​ ​

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