Female terminal

Abstract

To disclose a female terminal which can stably secure the followability and the contact pressure to a male terminal to suppress deformation of the female terminal while suppressing an increase in size of the female terminal even if a correspondence to a large current is required, and is improved in assembly.SOLUTION: A female terminal 10 comprises: a main body part 18 having a box-like conductive part 16; and a pair of contact formation metal tools 22a and 22b each having a plate thickness smaller than that of the main body part 18. The box-like conductive part 16 has a rear open window 30. The pair of contact formation metal tools 22a and 22b each includes a first spring piece 60 and a second spring piece 64. The first spring piece 60 has a first contact point 66, and the second spring piece 64 has a second contact point 68. The female terminal comprises a contact pressure application spring 82 that is arranged at each projection end part 74 of the first spring piece 60 and the second spring piece 64 and can be inserted into a rear open window 30. The projection end parts 74 are energized in a direction in which they come closer to each other by the contact pressure application spring 82 accompanying a press-in of a male terminal 12. The first contact point 66 and the second contact point 68 are brought into contact with the male terminal 12 with pressure.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a female terminal. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 proposes a female terminal formed by pressing a metal plate. The base end of the female terminal is provided with an electric wire connection part formed by overlapping a pair of flat plate parts, and the tip end of the female terminal is provided with a male terminal mounting tube part into which a flat tab-shaped male terminal is inserted. The male terminal mounting tube part has a pair of L-shaped support plate parts that protrude from each flat plate part to the opposite side in the overlapping direction and then protrude toward the tip end. In addition, it also has a pair of contact spring parts that are connected to the protruding ends of the pair of support plate parts in a cantilever shape via a semicircular arc-shaped curved part and protrude toward the base end. The pair of contact spring parts are arranged opposite to each other across a male terminal insertion gap, and a separate contact pressure applying spring is attached to the tip end of the pair of contact spring parts. This contact pressure applying spring applies contact pressure to the male terminal of the pair of contact spring parts, so that a stable connection state of the female and male terminals can be maintained. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2022-83287 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, since the female terminal of Patent Document 1 is formed by pressing a metal plate, the contact spring portion also needs to have a thickness according to the current capacity. Therefore, when a large current needs to flow, the plate thickness of the contact spring portion also becomes thick. As a result, in order to ensure the followability of the contact spring portion to the male terminal, the contact spring portion has to be lengthened, and the female terminal tends to become larger. In addition, when the plate thickness of the contact spring portion becomes thicker, the reaction force of the contact spring portion when displacing to follow the male terminal also becomes large, so there is a possibility that the contact pressure applied by the contact pressure applying spring and the deformation of the support plate portion may be affected. In addition, the contact pressure applying spring needs to be attached to the tip portions of the pair of contact spring portions from the side of the contact spring portion, making assembly difficult.

[0005] Therefore, the present invention discloses a female terminal that has improved assembly properties, which can suppress deformation of the female terminal by stably ensuring compliance with and contact pressure against the male terminal while preventing the female terminal from becoming too large, even when it is necessary to accommodate larger currents. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The female end terminal of the present disclosure comprises a main body portion having a connection portion at one end in a longitudinal direction, the connection portion being conductively connected to another member, and a hollow box-shaped conductor portion at the other end in the longitudinal direction; and a pair of contact-forming fittings having a plate thickness smaller than that of the main body portion and being conductively fixed and held to a pair of opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor portion, the box-shaped conductor portion having a male terminal insertion opening that opens toward the other end side, and a rear opening window that opens toward the one end side, one of the pair of contact-forming fittings includes a first fixing portion fixed to one of the pair of opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor portion, and a first spring piece that is held in a cantilever shape by the first fixing portion and protrudes from the male terminal insertion opening toward the rear opening window, and the other of the pair of contact-forming fittings is a male terminal insertion opening that opens toward the other end side, the male terminal insertion opening is fixed to one of the pair of opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor portion, and a rear opening window that opens toward the one end side. and a second fixing portion fixed to the other of the pair of opposing inner surfaces, and a second spring piece held in a cantilever shape by the second fixing portion and protruding from the male terminal insertion port toward the rear opening window, wherein the first spring piece has a first contact point on a surface facing the second spring piece, and the second spring piece has a second contact point on a surface facing the first spring piece, and a pressure applying spring is disposed on each of the protruding ends of the first spring piece and the second spring piece and has a size allowing the protruding ends to pass through the rear opening window, and as a male terminal is pressed between the opposing surfaces of the first spring piece and the second spring piece, the pressure applying spring urges the protruding ends in a direction approaching each other, and the first contact point and the second contact point are pressed against the male terminal. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the connector of the present disclosure, it is possible to suppress or prevent an external force applied to the electric wire from being transmitted to the terminal side, while suppressing an increase in size of the connector itself and an increase in manufacturing costs. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a female terminal according to a first embodiment in a mated state with a male terminal. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is an enlarged plan view showing a main part of the female terminal shown in FIG. [Diagram 3]FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III in FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the female terminal shown in FIG. 1 in a state separated from the male terminal. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the female terminal shown in FIG. 4 and corresponds to FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VI-VI in FIG. [Figure 7] 7 is an exploded perspective view of the female terminal shown in FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a main body portion constituting the female terminal shown in FIG. 1 in a developed state before being folded. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IX-IX in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] <Description of the embodiments of the present disclosure> First, embodiments of the present disclosure will be listed and described. The female terminal of the present disclosure comprises: (1) A connector for a terminal block including a main body having a connection portion at one end in a longitudinal direction thereof, the connection portion being conductively connected to another member, and a hollow box-shaped conductor at the other end in the longitudinal direction thereof; and a pair of contact-forming metal fittings having a plate thickness smaller than that of the main body and being conductively fixed and held to a pair of opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor, the box-shaped conductor having a male terminal insertion opening that opens toward the other end side and a rear opening window that opens toward the one end side. One of the pair of contact-forming metal fittings includes a first fixing portion fixed to one of the pair of opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor, and a first spring piece that is held in a cantilever shape by the first fixing portion and protrudes from the male terminal insertion opening toward the rear opening window. and a second fixing portion fixed to the other of the opposing inner surfaces of the male terminal insertion port, and a second spring piece held in a cantilever shape by the second fixing portion and protruding from the male terminal insertion port toward the rear opening window, wherein the first spring piece has a first contact point on a surface facing the second spring piece, and the second spring piece has a second contact point on a surface facing the first spring piece, and a pressure applying spring is disposed on each of the protruding ends of the first spring piece and the second spring piece and has a size allowing the protruding ends to pass through the rear opening window, and as a male terminal is pressed between the opposing surfaces of the first spring piece and the second spring piece, the pressure applying spring urges the protruding ends in a direction approaching each other, and the first contact point and the second contact point are pressed against the male terminal.

[0010] According to the female terminal of the present disclosure, the main body has a connection portion and a box-shaped conductor portion, and a pair of contact-forming metal fittings having a smaller plate thickness than the main body are fixed and held conductively to a pair of opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor portion. As a result, when a large current needs to flow, the plate thickness of the main body is increased to reduce the conductive resistance, while the contact-forming metal fittings having a thinner plate thickness than the main body can form a contact with the male terminal. As a result, the contact-forming metal fittings having a thinner plate thickness can ensure the followability to the male terminal without increasing the length of the first spring piece and the second spring piece, and the female terminal can be prevented from becoming large. Furthermore, since the plate thickness of the first spring piece and the second spring piece is smaller than that of the main body, the reaction force of the first spring piece and the second spring piece when they follow and displace to the male terminal can be reduced, and the occurrence of a problem such as the contact pressure applying spring being excessively deformed and not being able to ensure the desired contact pressure can be advantageously suppressed or prevented. In addition, the main body portion has a greater plate thickness than the contact-forming fitting, and the box shape of the box-shaped conductor portion advantageously ensures rigidity, thereby advantageously suppressing or preventing the problem of the entire female terminal, including the box-shaped conductor portion, being deformed by the reaction force of the first spring piece and the second spring piece when they displace in response to the male terminal.

[0011] Furthermore, since the box-shaped conductor portion of the main body has a rear opening window and is sized to allow the contact pressure spring to pass through the rear opening window, the contact pressure spring can be disposed from the front side in the protruding direction relative to the protruding ends of the first and second spring pieces by inserting it through the rear opening window. This improves the ease of assembly of the female terminal compared to the conventional structure in which assembly was only possible from the lateral side, which is the direction perpendicular to the protruding direction of the first and second spring pieces.

[0012] (2) It is preferable that the contact pressure applying spring is constituted by a clip spring having a rectangular flat connecting plate portion and a pair of rectangular flat clamping plate portions protruding in a direction approaching each other from both side edges of the connecting plate portion, and the protruding end portion of the first spring piece and the protruding end portion of the second spring piece are clamped between the pair of clamping plate portions of the clip spring when the male terminal is inserted. By employing a clip spring as the contact pressure applying spring, it is possible to configure a contact pressure applying spring with a compact and simple structure that can bias the protruding ends of the first spring piece and the second spring piece in a direction approaching each other when the male terminal is inserted, while enabling the arrangement of the first spring piece and the second spring piece at the protruding ends.

[0013] (3) It is preferable that the first fixing portion of one of the contact-forming fittings is fixed to one of the opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor by welding, and the second fixing portion of the other of the contact-forming fittings is fixed to the other of the opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor by welding. Since the first fixing portion and the second fixing portion of the pair of contact-forming fittings are fixed to the opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor by welding, respectively, the conductive resistance of the female terminal can be advantageously reduced.

[0014] (4) In the above (3), it is preferable that one of the contact-forming metal fittings is crimped and fixed to one of the opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor portion, and the other of the contact-forming metal fittings is crimped and fixed to the other opposing inner surface of the box-shaped conductor portion. By crimping and fixing the contact-forming metal fittings to the box-shaped conductor portion, it is possible to further reduce the contact resistance and improve the retention of the contact-forming metal fittings on the box-shaped conductor portion.

[0015] (5) It is preferable that the box-shaped conductor portion has a positioning protrusion protruding from its inner surface, and the position of the insertion end of the pressure spring from the rear opening window to the inside of the box-shaped conductor portion is determined by abutting against the positioning protrusion. Since the position of the insertion end of the pressure spring from the rear opening window to the inside of the box-shaped conductor portion is determined by abutting against the positioning protrusion protruding from the inner surface of the box-shaped conductor portion, the worker can simply and stably position the pressure spring at a desired position by inserting the pressure spring from the rear opening window. This can further improve the ease of assembly of the female terminal.

[0016] (6) It is preferable that the female terminal further includes a retainer attached to the box-shaped conductor portion and covering the rear window. By attaching the retainer covering the rear window to the box-shaped conductor portion, it is possible to advantageously prevent the pressure applying spring from coming off the rear window, and it is possible to stably maintain the configuration of the female terminal.

[0017] (7) In the above (6), it is preferable that the retainer has a displacement regulating portion disposed adjacent to the contact pressure applying spring and abutting against the contact pressure applying spring to regulate displacement of the retainer toward the rear opening window. By providing the retainer covering the rear opening window with a displacement regulating portion, it is possible to stably maintain the configuration of the female terminal in which the desired contact pressure applied by the contact pressure applying spring is stably maintained by regulating displacement of the contact pressure applying spring toward the rear opening window.

[0018] (8) It is preferable that the main body is a pressed product made of a single metal plate, and the connection part has the same thickness as the metal plate. By constructing the entire main body using a metal plate having a thickness dimension corresponding to the required current capacity, a desired value of conduction resistance can be advantageously realized. Moreover, since the connection part has the same thickness as the metal plate and is not thickened by folding or overlapping multiple members, the process of insert molding the connection part into a connector housing or the like can be advantageously performed without problems such as resin getting between the overlapping surfaces.

[0019] (9) In any one of the above (2) to (8), it is preferable that the female terminal includes a plurality of the first spring pieces and a plurality of the second spring pieces arranged at a plurality of positions spaced apart from each other in the plate width direction of the male terminal, the clip spring has a plurality of pairs of the clamping plate parts arranged at a plurality of positions spaced apart from each other in the plate width direction, and when the male terminal is inserted, the protruding ends of the plurality of the first spring pieces and the protruding ends of the plurality of the second spring pieces are clamped separately by the plurality of pairs of the clamping plate parts. The male terminal can be clamped by the plurality of first spring pieces and the second spring pieces arranged at a plurality of positions spaced apart from each other in the plate width direction of the male terminal. Moreover, when the male terminal is inserted, the pair of the first spring piece and the second spring piece is clamped by each separate pair of the clamping plate parts arranged at a distance from each other in the plate width direction. This advantageously realizes stable follow-up of the female terminal to the rotational displacement of the male terminal.

[0020] <Details of the embodiment of the present disclosure> Specific examples of the female terminal of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the present disclosure is not limited to these examples, but is defined by the claims, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims.

[0021] <Embodiment 1> The female terminal 10 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to Figs. 1 to 9. The female terminal 10 is a terminal that connects between a power source side member such as a battery and a load side member such as a motor. The female terminal 10 provided on one side of the power source side and the load side and the male terminal 12 provided on the other side of the power source side and the load side are in contact with each other to be in a conductive state, so that power is supplied from the power source such as a battery to the load such as a motor. The female terminal 10 can be arranged in any direction, but in the following, the upper side will be described as the upper side in Fig. 3, the lower side as the lower side in Fig. 3, the front side as the left side in Fig. 2, the rear side as the right side in Fig. 2, the left side as the upper side in Fig. 2, and the right side as the lower side in Fig. 2. In addition, for multiple identical members, only some of the members may be labeled with a reference symbol, and the reference symbols may be omitted for the other members.

[0022] <Female terminal 10> The female terminal 10 is provided with a body 18 having a connection portion 14 at one end (rear end) in the length direction, the connection portion 14 being conductively connected to another member (for example, a member on the power source side such as a battery), and a hollow box-shaped conductor portion 16 at the other end (front end) in the length direction. The female terminal 10 also has a pair of contact-forming metal fittings 22, 22 (first and second contact-forming metal fittings 22a, 22b described later) that have a smaller plate thickness than the body 18 and are conductively fixed and held to a pair of opposing inner surfaces 20, 20 of the box-shaped conductor portion 16 (inner surfaces 20a, 20b of an upper wall portion 32 and a lower wall portion 34 described later).

[0023] <Male terminal 12> The male terminal 12 is a tab terminal having a plate shape as a whole. The male terminal 12 has a substantially rectangular shape in a plan view, has a predetermined width dimension (left-right dimension) and thickness dimension (up-down dimension), and extends substantially straight in the front-rear direction. In the first embodiment, the male terminal 12 has a horizontally elongated shape in which the width dimension is larger than the thickness dimension. In addition, the end portion (rear end portion) of the male terminal 12 on the front side in the insertion direction into the female terminal 10 is tapered. The male terminal 12 is conductive and is formed of a metal with low electrical resistance, such as copper, copper alloy, aluminum, or aluminum alloy. For example, a bolt insertion hole is provided in the base end portion (front end portion) of the male terminal 12, and the male terminal 12 is fixed to another member (for example, a load side member such as a motor) by a bolt not shown, or an electric wire on the load side is fixed or crimped.

[0024] <Connection 14> The connecting portion 14 is generally plate-like extending in the front-rear direction as a whole, and is generally rectangular in shape with the front-rear dimension being larger than the left-right dimension in a plan view. A bolt insertion hole 24 penetrating in the plate thickness direction (vertical direction) is formed at the rear end of the connecting portion 14, and the female terminal 10 can be fixed to another member (for example, a member on the power source side such as a battery) by a bolt (not shown) inserted into the bolt insertion hole 24. When a female connector is configured including the female terminal 10, an end of an electric wire may be fixed to the connecting portion 14, and when a terminal block is configured including the female terminal 10, a bus bar constituting an internal circuit may be connected to the connecting portion 14. The connecting portion 14 also has relatively wide flat portions on the upper and lower surfaces. This makes it easy to apply adhesive or the like to these flat portions, and when a female connector or terminal block configured including the female terminal 10 is molded, for example, an adhesive or the like is applied to the connecting portion 14, and the female terminal 10 is set in a molding cavity and molded, so that a female connector or terminal block having the female terminal 10 can be easily molded as a single unit.

[0025] As described later, the main body 18 having the connection portion 14 and the box-shaped conductor portion 16 is a pressed product formed by performing press working or the like on a single metal flat plate. That is, the connection portion 14 has the same plate thickness (vertical dimension) as the metal flat plate constituting the main body 18. The box-shaped conductor portion 16 is integrally connected to the front of the connection portion 14. As shown in FIG. 6, a narrow width portion 26 having a smaller width dimension (left-right dimension) than the connection portion 14 and the box-shaped conductor portion 16 is provided at the connecting portion between the connection portion 14 and the box-shaped conductor portion 16 (the front end portion of the connection portion 14). This makes it possible to easily perform press working of the metal flat plate.

[0026] <Box-shaped conductor part 16> The box-shaped conductor portion 16 is generally in the shape of a rectangular box or a rectangular cylinder that opens on both sides in the front-rear direction, and has a male terminal insertion opening 28 that opens toward the other end side (front end side) of the main body portion 18 in the length direction, and a rear opening window 30 that opens toward one end side (rear end side) in the length direction. In the first embodiment, the box-shaped conductor portion 16 has a horizontally elongated shape in which the width dimension (left-right dimension) is larger than the height dimension (up-down dimension). The box-shaped conductor portion 16 includes an upper wall portion 32 that constitutes the upper wall portion, a lower wall portion 34 that constitutes the lower wall portion, and a left wall portion 36 and a right wall portion 38 that constitute the left and right side wall portions. As a result, the upper wall portion 32 and the lower wall portion 34 face each other in the up-down direction, and in the first embodiment, the inner surface 20a of the upper wall portion 32 and the inner surface 20b of the lower wall portion 34 form a pair of opposing inner surfaces 20, 20 to which the pair of contact forming fittings 22, 22 are fixed and held.

[0027] As described above, the main body 18 having the connection portion 14 and the box-shaped conductor portion 16 is formed by pressing a single metal plate, and in the first embodiment, the connection portion 14 and the lower wall portion 34 are connected to each other via the narrow width portion 26 described above. A fitting protrusion 40 protruding toward the right wall portion 38 is provided at a front-to-rear middle portion of the right end portion of the upper wall portion 32, and a fitting recess 42 opening toward the upper wall portion 32 is provided at a front-to-rear middle portion of the upper end portion of the right wall portion 38. The length dimension (front-to-rear dimension) of the fitting protrusion 40 is approximately equal to or slightly larger than the length dimension (front-to-rear dimension) of the fitting recess 42. As a result, when a metal flat plate is pressed or the like to form the box-shaped conductor portion 16, the mating convex portion 40 on the upper wall portion 32 can be fitted into the mating concave portion 42 on the right wall portion 38 in an approximately press-fit state, thereby preventing the upper wall portion 32 and the right wall portion 38 from unintentionally separating when the box-shaped conductor portion 16 is formed.

[0028] The left wall 36 and the right wall 38 face each other in the left-right direction. As shown in Fig. 6, the inner surface 44 of the left wall 36 and the inner surface 46 of the right wall 38 constituting the inner surface of the box-shaped conductor 16 are provided with positioning protrusions 48 that protrude inward in the facing direction (inward in the left-right direction). Furthermore, the left wall 36 and the right wall 38 are provided with locking protrusions 50 protruding outward in the facing direction (outward in the left-right direction) in front of each positioning protrusion 48. The rear end surfaces of each of these positioning protrusions 48 and the front end surfaces of each of the locking protrusions 50 are vertical surfaces 52 that extend in a direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction.

[0029] <Main body 18> Here, as described above, the main body 18 having the connection portion 14 and the box-shaped conductor portion 16 is a pressed product formed by performing press processing or the like on a single metal flat plate, and Figs. 8 and 9 show the main body 18 (metal flat plate) in an expanded state before performing press processing or the like. As shown in Figs. 8 and 9, a pair of contact-forming metal fittings 22, 22 are fixed and held to the respective inner surfaces 20a, 20b of the upper wall portion 32 and the lower wall portion 34 of the main body 18 (metal flat plate) in a state before performing press processing or the like. Although the method of fixing each of the contact-forming metal fittings 22 to each of the inner surfaces 20a, 20b is not limited, in the first embodiment, each of the contact-forming metal fittings 22 is fixed to each of the inner surfaces 20a, 20b by welding and crimping, as described later. Therefore, the four corners of each of the inner surfaces 20a, 20b are provided with engagement protrusions 54 for crimping and fixing each of the contact-forming metal fittings 22. Each engaging protrusion 54 is provided so as to protrude inward in the vertical direction when the box-shaped conductor portion 16 is in the formed state shown in Figure 1 etc., and when the main body portion 18 is in the unfolded state shown in Figures 8 and 9, each engaging protrusion 54 is provided so as to protrude upward from each of the inner surfaces 20a, 20b of the upper wall portion 32 and the lower wall portion 34.

[0030] 8 and 9, in the unfolded state of the main body 18, the upper wall 32, the left wall 36, the lower wall 34, and the right wall 38 constituting the box-shaped conductor 16 are provided continuously in the left-right direction, and the connection portion 14 extends rearward from the lower wall 34 via the narrow width portion 26. Bent portions 56 are provided between the upper wall 32 and the left wall 36, between the left wall 36 and the lower wall 34, and between the lower wall 34 and the right wall 38. The box-shaped conductor 16 is formed in the front portion of the main body 18 by bending each of the bent portions 56 and fitting the fitting convex portion 40 and the fitting concave portion 42. Therefore, in the first embodiment, the upper wall 32, the left wall 36, the lower wall 34, and the right wall 38 constituting the box-shaped conductor 16, and the connection portion 14 all have a substantially constant plate thickness. The metal material constituting the main body 18 is not limited, but any metal having excellent electrical conductivity can be used, such as pure copper.

[0031] <Contact forming metal fitting 22> As described above, the pair of contact-forming fittings 22, 22 are fixed to and held by the inner surface 20a of the upper wall portion 32 and the inner surface 20b of the lower wall portion 34, and are composed of the first contact-forming fitting 22a fixed to the inner surface 20a of the upper wall portion 32 as one of the pair of contact-forming fittings 22, 22, and the second contact-forming fitting 22b fixed to the inner surface 20b of the lower wall portion 34 as the other of the pair of contact-forming fittings 22, 22. For ease of understanding, the first and second contact-forming fittings 22a, 22b housed and disposed inside the box-shaped conductor portion 16 are each shown by dashed lines in Figs. 1, 4, and 7. Also, in Fig. 2, the first contact-forming fitting 22a housed and disposed inside the box-shaped conductor portion 16 and a clip spring 82 as a contact pressure applying spring, which will be described later, are each shown by dashed lines.

[0032] The first contact-forming fitting 22a includes a first fixing portion 58 fixed to the inner surface 20a of the upper wall portion 32, and a first spring piece 60 held in a cantilever shape by the first fixing portion 58 and protruding from the male terminal insertion opening 28 toward the rear opening window 30, i.e., from the front to the rear. The second contact-forming fitting 22b includes a second fixing portion 62 fixed to the inner surface 20b of the lower wall portion 34, and a second spring piece 64 held in a cantilever shape by the second fixing portion 62 and protruding from the male terminal insertion opening 28 toward the rear opening window 30, i.e., from the front to the rear. The first spring piece 60 and the second spring piece 64 face each other in the vertical direction, and the first spring piece 60 has a first contact point 66 on the surface facing the second spring piece 64 (lower surface), while the second spring piece 64 has a second contact point 68 on the surface facing the first spring piece 60 (upper surface).

[0033] In embodiment 1, the first contact-forming fitting 22a has first spring pieces 60, 60 provided at each of multiple locations (2 locations) spaced apart from each other in the plate width direction (left-right direction) of the male terminal 12, and the second contact-forming fitting 22b has second spring pieces 64, 64 provided at each of multiple locations (2 locations) spaced apart from each other in the plate width direction (left-right direction) of the male terminal 12.

[0034] The specific shapes of the first contact-forming fitting 22a and the second contact-forming fitting 22b will be described below, but since the first contact-forming fitting 22a and the second contact-forming fitting 22b have the same shape, only the first contact-forming fitting 22a will be described and the second contact-forming fitting 22b will not be described. That is, the first fixing portion 58 and the second fixing portion 62 have shapes corresponding to each other, and the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64 have shapes corresponding to each other. As the material of the first contact-forming fitting 22a and the second contact-forming fitting 22b, a metal having electrical conductivity and spring properties can be used, for example, a copper alloy can be used.

[0035] The first contact-forming metal fitting 22a is generally made of a rectangular plate-like body, and has a thickness dimension smaller than that of the metal flat plate constituting the main body 18. The central portion of the rectangular plate-like body is cut and raised in one direction in the thickness direction to provide a frame-shaped first fixing portion 58 in the outer periphery, and the cut and raised portions form a pair of first spring pieces 60, 60. That is, in the first contact-forming metal fitting 22a, gaps 70 are formed on three sides (the rear and both the left and right sides) around each first spring piece 60, and each first spring piece 60 is connected at its front end to the first fixing portion 58 in the outer periphery of the first contact-forming metal fitting 22a. In other words, each first spring piece 60 extends rearward from the front end portion of the first fixing portion 58, and the protruding dimension in one direction in the thickness direction increases toward the rear. As a result, in the first contact-forming metal fitting 22a, each first spring piece 60 is elastically deformable in the thickness direction.

[0036] Also, a bent portion 72 is provided at the protruding tip portion of each first spring piece 60, and the inclination angle of each first spring piece 60 with respect to the first fixing portion 58 is made smaller at the bent portion 72. Specifically, by providing the bent portion 72 at the protruding tip portion of each first spring piece 60, in the natural state of each first spring piece 60 before the insertion of the male terminal 12, as shown in Figures 4, 5 and 8, a protruding end portion 74 (rear end portion) of each first spring piece 60 spreads in the horizontal direction (direction perpendicular to the up-down direction), which is the same direction as the first fixing portion 58 and the upper wall portion 32.

[0037] At the position where the bent portion 72 is formed in each of the first spring pieces 60, a first contact 66 is provided that is convex toward one side in the plate thickness direction of the first contact-forming metal fitting 22a, which is the cutting and raising direction of each of the first spring pieces 60. This first contact 66 is provided in a curved arc shape in the vertical cross section shown in FIG. 3, has a predetermined left-right dimension in the left-right central portion of each of the first spring pieces 60, and is provided so as to straddle both sides of each of the first spring pieces 60 across the bent portion 72. Each of the first contacts 66 has an elliptical shape in which the dimension in the front-rear direction, which is the insertion direction of the male terminal 12, is larger than the dimension in the left-right direction when viewed from above (projected in the up-down direction). This makes it possible to stably secure the contact area between each of the first and second contacts 66, 68 and the male terminal 12 even when the male terminal 12 inserted into the female terminal 10 is oscillated and displaced in the up-down direction. In embodiment 1, each first contact 66 is formed by pressing each first spring piece 60, and a recess 76 is formed at a position corresponding to each first contact 66 on the other side of each first spring piece 60 in the thickness direction.

[0038] As described above, the first fixing portion 58 having a substantially rectangular frame shape is overlapped on the inner surface 20a of the upper wall portion 32 and fixed by welding and crimping. In the first embodiment, the first fixing portion 58 is fixed to the inner surface 20a of the upper wall portion 32 at both front and rear end portions. In particular, in the first embodiment, an area covering a predetermined left-right dimension at the left-right center portion of both front and rear end portions of the first fixing portion 58 is fixed to the inner surface 20a of the upper wall portion 32 by laser welding. As a result, a welded portion 78 is formed at the left-right center portion of both front and rear end portions of the first fixing portion 58. Similarly, a welded portion 78 is formed at the left-right center portion of both front and rear end portions of the second fixing portion 62, and the second fixing portion 62 is overlapped on the inner surface 20b of the lower wall portion 34 and fixed by laser welding.

[0039] 2 and 9, engagement holes 80 corresponding to the engagement protrusions 54 provided at the four corners of the inner surface 20a of the upper wall portion 32 are formed at both left and right ends of the front and rear ends of the first fixing portion 58 by penetrating the first fixing portion 58 in the up and down direction. The inner diameter dimension of each engagement hole 80 is approximately equal to or slightly larger than the outer diameter dimension of each engagement protrusion 54, so that each engagement protrusion 54 can be inserted into each engagement hole 80. Then, as shown in FIG. 9, after each engagement protrusion 54 is inserted into each engagement hole 80, the protruding tip of each engagement protrusion 54 protruding from each engagement hole 80 is struck and crushed, so that the outer diameter dimension of the part of each engagement protrusion 54 protruding from each engagement hole 80 is made larger than the inner diameter dimension of each engagement hole 80. As a result, the first fixing portion 58 (first contact-forming metal fitting 22a) is fixed and held by crimping in addition to the laser welding. Similarly, engagement holes 80 are provided at both left and right ends of the front and rear end portions of the second fixing portion 62, and the second fixing portion 62 (second contact-forming metal fitting 22b) is fixed and held by crimping in addition to the laser welding in addition to the inner surface 20b of the lower wall portion 34.

[0040] As shown in Figures 8 and 9, the first and second contact-forming fittings 22a, 22b shaped as described above are fixed to the inner surfaces 20a, 20b of the upper wall portion 32 and the lower wall portion 34 of the main body portion 18 (metallic flat plate) before being folded. That is, in the first and second contact-forming fittings 22a, 22b, the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64 are cut and raised in a direction away from the upper wall portion 32 and the lower wall portion 34, respectively. Then, as shown in Figures 4 and 5, the main body portion 18 is folded to form the box-shaped conductor portion 16, so that the upper wall portion 32 and the lower wall portion 34 face each other in the up-down direction, and the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64 are cut and raised in a direction approaching each other in the first and second contact-forming fittings 22a, 22b. As a result, as shown in Figure 5, the protruding ends 74 of each first spring piece 60 and each second spring piece 64 are close to each other in the vertical direction, and in embodiment 1, the first contacts 66 and second contacts 68 that protrude in the cutting direction of each first spring piece 60 and each second spring piece 64 are in contact with each other.

[0041] <Contact pressure spring (clip spring 82)> The female terminal 10 includes clip springs 82 as contact pressure springs arranged on the protruding ends 74 of the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64. When the male terminal 12 is inserted into the female terminal 10, the clip springs 82 urge the protruding ends 74 of the first spring pieces 60 and the protruding ends 74 of the second spring pieces 64 in directions that bring them closer to each other. The clip springs 82 are formed to a size that allows them to be inserted through the rear opening window 30 in the box-shaped conductor portion 16.

[0042] Specifically, as shown in Fig. 7, the clip spring 82 has a rectangular flat connecting plate portion 84 and a pair of rectangular flat clamping plate portions 86, 86 protruding in a direction approaching each other (inward in the vertical direction) from both side edges (upper and lower side edges) of the connecting plate portion 84. In the first embodiment, a plurality of (two) clamping plate portions 86, 86 spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction, which is the plate width direction of the male terminal 12, are provided on each side of the connecting plate portion 84, and a total of four clamping plate portions 86 are provided in the clip spring 82. That is, a pair of clamping plate portions 86, 86 facing each other in the vertical direction is provided with another pair at a position spaced apart in the left-right direction. Each of these clamping plate portions 86 is elastically deformable in the vertical direction.

[0043] The left-right dimension of each clamping plate portion 86 is larger than the left-right dimension of each recess 76 provided on the up-down outer side of each first spring piece 60 and each second spring piece 64. As a result, as shown in Fig. 3, when the male terminal 12 is inserted into the female terminal 10 and the bent portion 88 of each clamping plate portion 86 abuts against the formation position of each recess 76 in each first spring piece 60 and each second spring piece 64, both left-right end portions of each clamping plate portion 86 abut at portions that are left-right outer than each recess 76 in each first spring piece 60 and each second spring piece 64.

[0044] A bent portion 88 is provided in the longitudinal intermediate portion of each clamping plate portion 86, and the protruding tip portions of each clamping plate portion 86 extend in a direction away from each other from the bent portion 88. Therefore, the opposing distance between each pair of clamping plates 86 facing each other in the vertical direction is smallest at the bent portion 88 provided in the longitudinal intermediate portion. The gap between these bent portions 88 is an insertion opening 90 for inserting and assembling the protruding ends 74 of the first and second spring pieces 60, 64.

[0045] 5, the opening dimension (vertical dimension) of each insertion opening 90 in the clip spring 82 before elastic deformation is larger than the vertical dimension of the protruding tip portion of each of the first spring pieces 60 and each of the second spring pieces 64. Such a clip spring 82 is inserted into the inside of the box-shaped conductor portion 16 through the rear opening window 30 of the box-shaped conductor portion 16. Then, the protruding tip portions of each of the first spring pieces 60 and each of the second spring pieces 64 are inserted into each insertion opening 90 without abutting against each bent portion 88 located at the innermost vertical position in each clamping plate portion 86, or while, for example, each upper bent portion 88 abuts (slidingly contacts) against the protruding tip portion of each of the first spring pieces 60. The inward insertion end position of the box-shaped conductor portion 16 from the rear opening window 30 of this clip spring 82 is determined by the left and right ends of the connecting plate portion 84 abutting the rear end vertical surfaces 52 of each positioning protrusion 48 provided on each inner surface 44, 46 of the left wall portion 36 and the right wall portion 38, as also shown in Figures 5 and 6.

[0046] 5 and 6, in the female terminal 10 before the male terminal 12 is inserted, the vertical dimension of each insertion opening 90 is larger than the vertical dimension of the protruding tip portion of each of the first spring pieces 60 and each of the second spring pieces 64 to be inserted. Also, the front-to-rear distance between each positioning protrusion 48 (vertical surface 52) and a retainer 92 described later is slightly larger than the thickness dimension (front-to-rear dimension) of the connecting plate portion 84, and the distance between the opposing surfaces of each of the inner surfaces 44, 46 in the left wall portion 36 and the right wall portion 38 is slightly larger than the width dimension (left-to-right dimension) of the connecting plate portion 84. As a result, in the female terminal 10 before the male terminal 12 is inserted, the clip spring 82 is arranged freely relative to the box-shaped conductor portion 16 without being fixed in the up-down, front-to-rear, or left-to-right directions.

[0047] <Retainer 92> The female terminal 10 further includes a retainer 92 that is attached to the box-shaped conductor portion 16 to cover the rear opening window 30 and prevent the clip spring 82 from falling off. As shown in Fig. 7, the retainer 92 is formed by bending a generally strip-shaped member by pressing or the like. The retainer 92 may be formed of, for example, metal or synthetic resin, and preferably has sufficient strength (deformation rigidity) and heat resistance, and in the first embodiment, is formed of stainless steel.

[0048] The retainer 92 is a member that extends in the left-right direction as a whole, and a displacement restriction portion 94 is provided in the center portion in the longitudinal direction, which is disposed adjacent to the clip spring 82 and abuts against the clip spring 82 to restrict displacement of the clip spring 82 toward the rear opening window 30 when the female terminal 10 is assembled. The displacement restriction portion 94 is substantially rectangular in a front view (viewed in the front-rear direction) and is slightly smaller in size than the rear opening window 30. As a result, when the retainer 92 is assembled to the box-shaped conductor portion 16, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, the displacement restriction portion 94 enters the inside of the box-shaped conductor portion 16 through the rear opening window 30 and covers substantially the entire rear opening window 30.

[0049] Further, both left and right end portions of the retainer 92 are bent so as to extend forward relative to the displacement restricting portions 94, and the forward extending portions at both left and right end portions of the retainer 92 constitute fixing portions 96 for fixing the retainer 92 to the box-shaped conductor portion 16. A substantially rectangular locking hole 98 penetrating in the thickness direction (left and right direction) is formed in the front portion of each fixing portion 96, and the retainer 92 is assembled to the box-shaped conductor portion 16 by bringing the retainer 92 close to the box-shaped conductor portion 16 from the rear and locking the locking protrusions 50 protruding outward in the left and right direction at the box-shaped conductor portion 16 into the locking holes 98.

[0050] <Assembly of female terminal 10> The following describes a specific example of a method for assembling the female terminal 10. However, the method for assembling the female terminal 10 is not limited to the embodiment described below.

[0051] First, a metal plate constituting the main body 18 is prepared, and the first contact-forming metal fitting 22a and the second contact-forming metal fitting 22b are fixed to the parts of the metal plate constituting the inner surfaces 20a, 20b of the upper wall 32 and the lower wall 34 by welding and crimping. That is, the engagement protrusions 54 protruding from the inner surfaces 20a, 20b are inserted into the engagement holes 80 in the first fixing portion 58 and the second fixing portion 62, and the first contact-forming metal fitting 22a and the second contact-forming metal fitting 22b are aligned with the inner surfaces 20a, 20b. Thereafter, the welds 78 in the first fixing portion 58 and the second fixing portion 62 are laser-welded in a state in which the upper wall 32 and the lower wall 34 are overlapped with the first fixing portion 58 and the second fixing portion 62, respectively. Then, by striking and crushing the protruding tip portion of each engaging protrusion 54 protruding from each engaging hole 80, the first contact-forming fitting 22a and the second contact-forming fitting 22b are fixed to the metal plate constituting the main body 18 as shown in Figures 8 and 9.

[0052] 8 and 9, the bent portions 56 are bent, and the mating convex portions 40 provided on the upper wall portion 32 are mated with the mating concave portions 42 on the right wall portion 38. This forms the box-shaped conductor portion 16 in the front portion of the main body portion 18. In this state, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the protruding ends 74 of the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64 are close to each other in the vertical direction, and the first contacts 66 of the first spring pieces 60 and the second contacts 68 of the second spring pieces 64 are in contact with each other.

[0053] Then, in the box-shaped conductor 16 as described above, the clip spring 82 is inserted into the box-shaped conductor 16 through the rear opening window 30. The clip spring 82 is inserted until the connecting plate portion 84 abuts against the vertical surface 52 of each positioning protrusion 48 protruding inward in the left-right direction in the box-shaped conductor 16. As a result, the protruding end portions 74 of the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64 are inserted into the insertion openings 90 of the clip spring 82. In this state, the bent portions 88 of the clamping plate portions 86 are not abutting against the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64, or the clip spring 82 is displaced downward due to gravity from the state shown in FIG. 5, for example, so that the upper bent portion 88 abuts against the first spring pieces 60 and the lower bent portion 88 is separated from the second spring pieces 64.

[0054] Thereafter, the retainer 92 is brought close to the box-shaped conductor portion 16 from the rear, the displacement restricting portion 94 is inserted into the inside of the box-shaped conductor portion 16 through the rear opening window 30, and the locking protrusions 50 of the box-shaped conductor portion 16 are locked into the locking holes 98 of the fixing portions 96. In this way, the retainer 92 is assembled to the box-shaped conductor portion 16, and the female terminal 10 is completed.

[0055] Into the female terminal 10 thus assembled, the male terminal 12 is press-fitted through the male terminal insertion opening 28 in the front of the box-shaped conductor portion 16. As a result, as shown in Fig. 3, the first contacts 66 of the first spring pieces 60 and the second contacts 68 of the second spring pieces 64 come into contact with both the upper and lower surfaces of the male terminal 12, and the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64 are pushed apart in a direction separating them from each other. Then, the bent portions 72 of the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64 pushed apart outward in the vertical direction come into contact with the bent portions 88 of the clip spring 82 from the inside in the vertical direction, and the clamping plate portions 86 are elastically deformed outward in the vertical direction. The elastic restoring force of each of these clamping plates 86 clamps the protruding end portions 74 of the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64, and biases the protruding end portions 74 of the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64 in a direction toward each other. As a result, the first contacts 66 and the second contacts 68 are pressed against the upper and lower surfaces of the male terminal 12 that is press-fitted between the opposing surfaces of the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64. As a result, the male terminal 12 and the female terminal 10 are electrically connected to each other.

[0056] That is, the vertical distance A (see FIG. 3) at each bent portion 72 of each of the first spring pieces 60 and each of the second spring pieces 64, which are pressed against the male terminal 12 from both the upper and lower sides, is made larger than the vertical dimension B (see FIG. 5) at each insertion opening 90 of the clip spring 82 in a natural state. As a result, not only each of the first spring pieces 60 and each of the second spring pieces 64, but also each of the clamping plate portions 86 of the clip spring 82 are pushed outward in the vertical direction with the insertion of the male terminal 12, and the first contacts 66 and each of the second contacts 68 are pressed against both the upper and lower surfaces of the male terminal 12 by the elastic restoring force of each of the clamping plate portions 86. In particular, in the first embodiment, a pair of first spring pieces 60, 60 and a pair of second spring pieces 64, 64 spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction are provided, and a pair of clamping plate portions 86, 86 spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction are provided on both the upper and lower sides of the clip spring 82. As a result, the upper and lower clamping plate portions 86, 86 on both the left and right sides respectively clamp the first spring piece 60 and the second spring piece 64, thereby pressing the first contact point 66 and the second contact point 68 against the male terminal 12.

[0057] According to the female terminal 10 of the first embodiment, the first contact-forming metal fittings 22a constituting each of the first contacts 66 and the second contact-forming metal fittings 22b constituting each of the second contacts 68 are provided separately from the main body 18 having the box-shaped conductor 16, and are fixed to the opposing inner surfaces (the inner surfaces 20a, 20b of the upper wall 32 and the lower wall 34) of the box-shaped conductor 16. This allows the members constituting the contacts (the first contact-forming metal fittings 22a and the second contact-forming metal fittings 22b) to be made thinner and shorter than in the conventional structure in which contacts are formed by bending a metal plate, thereby making it possible to reduce the size of the female terminal 10. In addition, since a metal plate having a predetermined thickness can be used as the main body 18 having the box-shaped conductor 16, it is possible to handle a large current, and it is possible to achieve both an improvement in current capacity and avoidance of an increase in the size of the terminal. Furthermore, by providing the first and second contact-forming metal fittings 22a, 22b and the box-shaped conductor 16 as separate bodies, different materials can be used for each of them. This eliminates the need to use a material with spring properties for the box-shaped conductor portion 16, and the box-shaped conductor portion 16 can be made of pure copper or the like, which has excellent electrical conductivity.

[0058] In addition, since the first contacts 66 and the second contacts 68 are formed by the first contact-forming fittings 22a and the second contact-forming fittings 22b having a relatively small plate thickness, the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64 can be deformed relatively flexibly even when the male terminal 12 is displaced relative to the female terminal 10, and the ability to follow the displacement of the male terminal 12 can be improved. Furthermore, the amount of displacement of the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64 is reduced, so that the effect on the clip spring 82 that exerts a biasing force on the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64 can be reduced. As a result, the biasing force in the inward facing direction generated by the elastic deformation of the clip spring 82 can be stably exerted on the first contacts 66 and the second contacts 68 as a contact pressure on the male terminal 12. In addition to reducing the amount of displacement in each first spring piece 60 and each second spring piece 64, the box-shaped conductor portion 16 has sufficient deformation rigidity, thereby avoiding the problem of the entire female terminal 10 being deformed in conjunction with the displacement of the male terminal 12.

[0059] In addition, whereas in the conventional structure the clip spring is assembled from the side, in the female terminal 10 of the first embodiment, the clip spring 82 is assembled from the rear through the rear opening window 30 of the box-shaped conductor portion 16. In particular, in the conventional structure, the clip spring is assembled with the opening widened, whereas in the first embodiment, the vertical dimension of each protruding end 74 of each first spring piece 60 and each second spring piece 64 is smaller than the opening dimension of the insertion port 90 of the clip spring 82, and the clip spring can be assembled without widening the opening. This improves the workability when assembling the clip spring 82.

[0060] A clip spring 82 is employed as a contact pressure applying spring that applies contact pressure to each of the first spring pieces 60 and each of the second spring pieces 64 when the male terminal 12 is inserted. Thus, the clip spring 82 can be assembled to each of the first spring pieces 60 and each of the second spring pieces 64 by inserting the protruding end portions 74 of each of the first spring pieces 60 and each of the second spring pieces 64 into the insertion openings 90 of the clip spring 82. In particular, before the male terminal 12 is inserted, the clip spring 82 is arranged in a free state in each of the vertical, front-rear, and left-right directions relative to the box-shaped conductor portion 16. Thus, for example, even when the male terminal 12 is inserted at an angle relative to the female terminal 10, the clip spring 82 can be displaced in response to the inclination of the male terminal 12, and contact pressure can be stably applied to each of the first spring pieces 60 and each of the second spring pieces 64.

[0061] The first fixing portion 58 of the first contact-forming fitting 22a is fixed to the inner surface 20a of the upper wall portion 32 by welding, and the second fixing portion 62 of the second contact-forming fitting 22b is fixed to the inner surface 20b of the lower wall portion 34 by welding. In particular, by using laser welding as the welding method, the area required for welding can be reduced, and the first and second contact-forming fittings 22a, 22b, and ultimately the female terminal 10, can be made smaller.

[0062] The first fixing portion 58 of the first contact-forming fitting 22a is also fixed to the inner surface 20a of the upper wall portion 32 by crimping, and the second fixing portion 62 of the second contact-forming fitting 22b is also fixed to the inner surface 20b of the lower wall portion 34 by crimping. As a result, the first and second fixing portions 58, 62 are physically (structurally) fixed to the respective inner surfaces 20a, 20b not only by welding but also by crimping, so that detachment of the first and second contact-forming fittings 22a, 22b from the box-shaped conductor portion 16 is more effectively prevented.

[0063] Positioning protrusions 48 are provided on the inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor 16 (the inner surfaces 44, 46 of the left wall 36 and the right wall 38), and the insertion end of the clip spring 82 from the rear opening window 30 is determined by the abutment of the positioning protrusions 48 with the clip spring 82. This allows the clip spring 82 to be assembled to the box-shaped conductor 16 without any particularly troublesome operations, further improving ease of assembly.

[0064] A retainer 92 that covers the rear opening window 30 is attached to the box-shaped conductor portion 16. This prevents the clip spring 82 from coming off the rear opening window 30. In particular, the retainer 92 has a displacement restriction portion 94 that is disposed adjacent to the clip spring 82, and the clip spring 82 comes into contact with the displacement restriction portion 94 to restrict the rearward displacement of the clip spring 82. As a result, the clip spring 82 can be stably disposed at a predetermined position inside the box-shaped conductor portion 16.

[0065] The main body 18 is a pressed product made of a single metal plate, and the connection portion 14 has the same thickness as the metal plate. This allows the connection portion 14 to be made of a single plate material without, for example, folding the metal plate or overlapping a plurality of members. This prevents resin material or adhesive from getting between the overlapping surfaces during insert molding or the like, and allows a female connector or terminal block equipped with the female terminal 10 to be easily formed by integral molding.

[0066] In the first contact-forming fitting 22a, a pair of first spring pieces 60, 60 are provided spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction, and in the second contact-forming fitting 22b, a pair of second spring pieces 64, 64 are provided spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction. In the clip spring 82, two clamping plate parts 86 are provided spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction on both the upper and lower sides of the connecting plate part 84. This allows the upper and lower clamping plate parts 86 to apply contact pressure to the first spring piece 60 and the second spring piece 64 separately on both the left and right sides. As a result, even if, for example, the male terminal 12 is rotated around a central axis extending in the front-rear direction after the male terminal 12 is inserted into the female terminal 10, it is possible to avoid the occurrence of a problem such as insufficient contact pressure being applied to either the left or right side.

[0067] <Modification> Although the first and second embodiments have been described above as specific examples of the present disclosure, the present disclosure is not limited to these specific descriptions. Modifications, improvements, etc. within the scope of the present disclosure that can achieve the object of the present disclosure are included in the present disclosure. For example, the following modified examples of the embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present disclosure.

[0068] (1) In the above embodiment, the first and second fixing portions 58, 62 of the first and second contact-forming fittings 22a, 22b are fixed to the inner surfaces 20a, 20b of the upper wall portion 32 and the lower wall portion 34 by welding and crimping, but this is not limited to the above embodiment. That is, each contact-forming fitting may be fixed to the inner surface by only one of welding and crimping. Also, the contact-forming fittings may be fixed to the inner surfaces by a method other than welding and crimping, for example, by bolting. Also, even if the contact-forming fittings are welded, the method is not limited to laser welding as in the above embodiment, and a conventionally known welding method such as arc welding or resistance welding may be used.

[0069] (2) In the above embodiment, the first contact-forming fitting 22a and the second contact-forming fitting 22b have the same shape, but these shapes may be different from each other. For example, the number of first spring pieces provided on the first contact-forming fitting and the number of second spring pieces provided on the second contact-forming fitting may be different from each other. Or, the first contact-forming fitting and the second contact-forming fitting may be made of different materials.

[0070] (3) In the above embodiment, the first contact-forming fitting 22a is provided with a pair of first spring pieces 60, 60, and the second contact-forming fitting 22b is provided with a pair of second spring pieces 64, 64, but the number of first spring pieces provided on the first contact-forming fitting and the number of second spring pieces provided on the second contact-forming fitting are not limited. The number of first spring pieces provided on the first contact-forming fitting may be one, or three or more. Similarly, the number of second spring pieces provided on the second contact-forming fitting may be one, or three or more.

[0071] (4) In the above embodiment, the clip spring 82 is provided with two clamping plate portions 86 on each of the upper and lower sides corresponding to the number of the first spring pieces 60 and the second spring pieces 64, but this is not limited to this embodiment. That is, the number of clamping plate portions may be different between the upper and lower sides of the clip spring, for example, one clamping plate portion may be provided on the upper side and multiple clamping plate portions may be provided on the lower side spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction. Note that the number of these clamping plate portions does not need to correspond to the number of the first and second spring pieces, and the number of clamping plate portions on the upper side and the number of first spring pieces may be different from each other, and the number of clamping plate portions on the lower side and the number of second spring pieces may be different from each other.

[0072] (5) In the above embodiment, the first contact-forming metal 22a and the second contact-forming metal 22b are provided on the inner surfaces 20a, 20b of the upper wall 32 and the lower wall 34 that face each other in the up-down direction in the box-shaped conductor 16, but the first contact-forming metal and the second contact-forming metal may be provided on the inner surfaces of the left wall and the right wall that face each other in the left-right direction in the box-shaped conductor. In that case, the box-shaped conductor may be formed in a vertically elongated shape with a vertical dimension larger than its horizontal dimension, and in that case, the male terminal may also be formed in a vertically elongated shape with a vertical dimension larger than its horizontal dimension.

[0073] (6) In the above embodiment, before the male terminal 12 is inserted into the female terminal 10 (the state shown in Figures 4 and 5), the first contacts 66 and the second contacts 68 abut against each other in the vertical direction. However, before the male terminal is inserted, the first contacts and the second contacts may be slightly spaced apart in the vertical direction.

[0074] (7) The shapes of the first contact and the second contact are not limited, and in addition to being elliptical in shape with the front-to-back dimension larger than the left-to-right dimension when viewed in a plane as in the above embodiment, they may be, for example, hemispherical, or may be a shape with the left-to-right dimension larger than the front-to-back dimension.

[0075] (8) In the female terminal according to the present disclosure, as long as the protruding ends of the first and second spring pieces are biased in a direction approaching each other by the contact pressure applying spring in response to the insertion of at least the male terminal, and the first and second contacts are pressed against the male terminal, the state before the insertion of the male terminal is not limited. That is, before the insertion of the male terminal, the first and second spring pieces do not have to be biased in a direction approaching each other as in the above embodiment, and the protruding ends of the first and second spring pieces may be biased in a direction approaching each other by the clamping plate portions of the contact pressure applying spring (clip spring). [Explanation of symbols]

[0076] 10 Female terminal 12 male terminal 14 Connection 16 Box-shaped conductor 18 Main body 20 Opposing inner surface 20a (Top wall) inner surface 20b (lower wall) inner surface 22 Contact forming metal fitting 22a First contact forming metal fitting 22b Second contact forming metal fitting 24 Bolt holes 26 Narrow section 28 Male terminal insertion port 30 Rear opening window 32 Upper wall 34 Lower wall part 36 Left wall 38 Right wall 40 Fitting protrusion 42 Fitting recess 44 (Left wall) inner surface 46 (Right wall) inner surface 48 Positioning protrusion 50 Locking protrusion 52 Vertical plane 54 Engagement protrusion 56 Bend section 58 First fixing part 60 First spring piece 62 Second fixing part 64 Second spring piece 66 First Contact 68 Second Contact 70 Gap 72 Bend 74 Projecting end 76 Recess 78 Welding 80 Engagement hole 82 Clip spring (contact pressure spring) 84 Connecting plate part 86 Holding plate part 88 Bent part 90 Insertion port 92 Retainer 94 Displacement control section 96 Fixed part 98 Locking hole

Claims

1. a main body portion having a connection portion at one end in a longitudinal direction thereof, the connection portion being electrically connected to another member, and a hollow box-shaped conductor portion at the other end in the longitudinal direction thereof; a pair of contact-forming fittings each having a plate thickness smaller than that of the main body portion and electrically connected to and held by a pair of opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor portion, the box-shaped conductor portion has a male terminal insertion opening opening toward the other end side and a rear opening window opening toward the one end side, one of the pair of contact-forming fittings includes a first fixing portion fixed to one of the pair of opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor portion, and a first spring piece held in a cantilever shape by the first fixing portion and protruding from the male terminal insertion opening toward the rear opening window, the other of the pair of contact-forming fittings includes a second fixing portion fixed to the other of the pair of opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor portion, and a second spring piece held in a cantilever shape by the second fixing portion and protruding from the male terminal insertion opening toward the rear opening window, the first spring piece has a first contact point on a surface facing the second spring piece, the second spring piece has a second contact point on a surface facing the first spring piece, a contact pressure applying spring that is disposed on each of the protruding ends of the first spring piece and the second spring piece and has a size that allows the contact pressure applying spring to be inserted through the rear opening window; When the male terminal is pressed into between the opposing surfaces of the first spring piece and the second spring piece, the protruding ends are urged in a direction approaching each other by the contact pressure applying spring, so that the first contact and the second contact are pressed against the male terminal. Female terminal.

2. The contact pressure applying spring is composed of a clip spring having a rectangular flat connecting plate portion and a pair of rectangular flat clamping plate portions protruding in a direction approaching each other from both side edges of the connecting plate portion, 2. The female terminal according to claim 1, wherein when the male terminal is inserted, the protruding end of the first spring piece and the protruding end of the second spring piece are clamped between the pair of clamping plate portions of the clip spring.

3. 3. A female terminal as described in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the first fixing portion of one of the contact-forming fittings is fixed to one of the opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor portion by welding, and the second fixing portion of the other of the contact-forming fittings is fixed to the other of the opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor portion by welding.

4. 4. The female terminal according to claim 3, wherein one of the contact-forming fittings is crimped and fixed to one of the opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor portion, and the other of the contact-forming fittings is crimped and fixed to the other of the opposing inner surfaces of the box-shaped conductor portion.

5. 3. A female terminal as described in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the box-shaped conductor portion has a positioning protrusion protruding from an inner surface thereof, and the position of the insertion end of the box-shaped conductor portion inwardly from the rear opening window of the contact pressure applying spring is determined by abutting against the positioning protrusion.

6. The female terminal according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a retainer attached to said box-shaped conductor portion and covering said rear opening window.

7. 7. The female terminal according to claim 6, wherein the retainer has a displacement restriction portion disposed adjacent to the contact pressure applying spring and abutting against the contact pressure applying spring to restrict displacement of the contact pressure applying spring toward the rear opening window.

8. 3. The female terminal according to claim 1, wherein the main body portion is a pressed product made of a single flat metal plate, and the connection portion has the same plate thickness as the flat metal plate.

9. The male terminal includes a plurality of the first spring pieces and a plurality of the second spring pieces that are disposed at a plurality of positions spaced apart from each other in a plate width direction of the male terminal, The clip spring has a plurality of pairs of clamping plate portions arranged at a plurality of positions spaced apart from each other in the plate width direction, The female terminal as described in claim 2, wherein when the male terminal is inserted, the protruding ends of the multiple first spring pieces and the protruding ends of the multiple second spring pieces are each clamped separately by the multiple pairs of clamping plate portions.

Images