Connection terminal

Abstract

To provide a connection terminal which can suppress the number of components.SOLUTION: A connection terminal 1 comprises: a male terminal 2 having a male-side contact part 20 formed into a columnar shape; and a female terminal 3 having a female-side contact part 10 which is formed into a columnar shape and has a linear slit 13 formed along an axial direction X. The female terminal 3 has: an insertion space 14 which is formed inside the female-side contact part 10, and into which the male-side contact part 20 is inserted; and a base part 15 which is located so as to face the slit 13 across the insertion space 14. The connection terminal 1 is configured such that, in an insertion condition where the male-side contact part 20 is inserted in the insertion space 14, the female-side contact part 10 is bent to the radially outer side intersecting the axial direction X, with the base part 15 serving as a bending start point, thereby applying a contact load to the male-side contact part 20.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a connection terminal. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventional connection terminals, for example, include a spring contact member in which a female terminal has a plurality of spring pieces arranged in parallel with gaps and held in a cylindrical shape within the terminal body, which elastically contacts the peripheral surface of an inserted pin terminal in order to obtain a stable contact area between the contacts of a male terminal, known as a pin terminal, and a female terminal (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-187170 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in the above-mentioned conventional connection terminal, the female terminal is composed of a plurality of parts, which increases the cost of parts and the number of steps required for assembling the parts. In addition, it is difficult to obtain positional accuracy between the parts, leaving room for improvement.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a connection terminal that can reduce the number of parts. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the connection terminal of the present invention comprises a male terminal having a cylindrically formed male contact portion, and a female terminal having a cylindrically formed female contact portion with a linear slit formed along the axial direction, wherein the female terminal has an insertion space formed inside the female contact portion and into which the male contact portion is inserted, and a base located opposite the slit across the insertion space, and is characterized in that when the male contact portion is inserted into the insertion space, the female contact portion bends radially outwardly intersecting the axial direction, with the base as the bending starting point, to apply a contact load to the male contact portion. Effect of the Invention

[0007] The connection terminal according to the present invention has an effect of reducing the number of parts. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a connection terminal according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a view of the female terminal of FIG. 1 as viewed from the second axial direction side. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a connection terminal according to the second embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a view of the female terminal in FIG. 3 as viewed from the second axial direction side. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is another view of the female terminal of FIG. 3 as viewed from the second axial direction side. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a connection terminal according to the second embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a connection terminal according to the third embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a view of the female terminal in FIG. 7 as viewed from the second axial direction side. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a connection terminal according to a modified example of the third embodiment. [Figure 10]FIG. 10 is a view of the female terminal in FIG. 9 as viewed from the second axial direction. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a connection terminal according to a modified example of the third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, the embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments. In other words, the components in the following embodiments include those that a person skilled in the art can easily imagine or that are substantially the same, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the invention.

[0010] [First embodiment] First, a connection terminal 1 according to a first embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 1 and 2. The connection terminal 1 shown in Figure 1 includes a male terminal 2 and a female terminal 3, and the male terminal 2 and the female terminal 3 are electrically connected to each other by fitting the male terminal 2 into the female terminal 3.

[0011] In the following description, for convenience, of the illustrated X, Y, and Z directions, the X direction will be referred to as the "axial direction X," the Y direction will be referred to as the "width direction Y," and the Z direction will be referred to as the "height direction Z." The axial direction X, width direction Y, and height direction Z are mutually perpendicular. The axial direction X corresponds to the direction along the central axis O. The width direction Y and height direction Z are included in the directions perpendicular to the axial direction X. The axial direction X is the insertion / removal direction of the male terminal 2 into the female terminal 3, and the insertion direction is referred to as the "first axial direction X1" and the removal direction is referred to as the "second axial direction X2."

[0012] The connection terminal 1 is applied to, for example, connectors, electric junction boxes, electronic components, etc. that are mounted on vehicles such as automobiles and incorporated into wire harnesses. Here, the wire harness is, for example, a component in which a number of electric wires used for power supply and signal communication are bundled together to connect the various devices mounted on a vehicle, and the multiple electric wires are connected to the various devices using connectors or the like.

[0013] The male terminal 2 is composed of a male contact portion 20, a connector connecting portion 21, a linking portion 22, and a cap 23. The male terminal 2, except for the cap 23, is integrally molded from a conductive metal material such as copper, a copper alloy, aluminum, or an aluminum alloy, with the male contact portion 20, the connector connecting portion 21, and the linking portion 22 being molded from an insulating resin material or the like. The male terminal 2 is arranged in the axial direction X from the first axial direction X1 toward the second axial direction X2, with the cap 23, the male contact portion 20, the linking portion 22, and the connector connecting portion 21 being arranged in this order and linked to each other.

[0014] When the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3, the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male contact portion 20 comes into contact with and is electrically connected to the mating female terminal 3. The male contact portion 20 is formed in a cylindrical shape with a central axis O along the axial direction X. A cap 23 is attached to the male contact portion 20 on the first axial direction X1 side, and a connector connecting portion 21 is connected to the second axial direction X2 side via a connecting portion 22.

[0015] The connector connection portion 21 is a portion that is connected to, for example, an electric wire or an electronic component housed in a connector or an electric connection box, and is electrically connected to these.

[0016] Linking portion 22 is a portion that is interposed between male contact portion 20 and connector connecting portion 21 and links male contact portion 20 to connector connecting portion 21. Linking portion 22 has an outer diameter that is relatively larger than the outer diameter of male contact portion 20, and in a mated state in which male terminal 2 is mated with female terminal 3, it abuts against the end portion of female terminal 3 on the second axial direction X2 side, and restricts movement of male terminal 2 in the first axial direction X1 side.

[0017] Cap 23 is a hat-shaped protective member attached to the tip side of male terminal 2 on the first axial direction X1 side of male contact portion 20 to prevent electric shock. Cap 23 has an outer diameter that is the same as or relatively smaller than the outer diameter of male contact portion 20.

[0018] The female terminal 3 is composed of a female contact portion 10, an electric wire connection portion 11, and a connecting portion 12. The female terminal 3 is molded such that the female contact portion 10, the electric wire connection portion 11, and the connecting portion 12 are integrally formed from a conductive metal material, such as copper, a copper alloy, aluminum, or an aluminum alloy. The female terminal 3 is formed by pressing and bending a single sheet metal punched into a shape corresponding to each of the female contact portion 10, the electric wire connection portion 11, and the connecting portion 12, so that each portion is integrally formed three-dimensionally. The female terminal 3 is arranged in the axial direction X from the second axial direction X2 toward the first axial direction X1 in the order of the female contact portion 10, the connecting portion 12, and the electric wire connection portion 11, and is connected to each other.

[0019] The female contact portion 10 is a portion in which an inner peripheral surface 10a of the female contact portion 10 comes into contact with and is electrically connected to the male terminal 2, which is the mating terminal, in a mated state in which the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3. The female contact portion 10 is formed in a cylindrical shape with a central axis O aligned along the axial direction X. The female contact portion 10 of this embodiment has a slit 13, an insertion space 14, and a base 15.

[0020] The slit 13 is a gap that penetrates the female contact portion 10 from the end in the second axial direction X2 to the end in the first axial direction X1 and is formed linearly along the axial direction X. As shown in Fig. 2, when the female contact portion 10 is viewed from the axial direction X, the slit 13 opens to one side in the height direction Z perpendicular to the axial direction X and the width direction Y, and communicates between the outside and the insertion space 14. The interval of the slit 13 is relatively smaller than the inner diameter R1 / 2 of the female contact portion 10.

[0021] The insertion space 14 is a portion of the female contact portion 10 into which a part of the male terminal 2 is inserted. The female contact portion 10 is electrically connected to the male terminal 2 by inserting a part of the male terminal 2 into the insertion space 14. The female contact portion 10 forms an insertion opening for the male terminal 2 that opens on the second axial direction X2 side and communicates between the insertion space 14 and the outside, and the electric wire connection portion 11 is connected via a connecting portion 12 on the first axial direction X1 side.

[0022] Base 15 is a portion of female contact portion 10 located opposite slit 13 across insertion space 14. Female contact portion 10 is formed so as to elastically deform and bend radially outward (in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 2 ) with base 15 as the bending starting point when male contact portion 20 of male terminal 2 described below is inserted into insertion space 14.

[0023] Here, the female contact portion 10 and the male contact portion 20 of this embodiment are formed so that the inner diameter R1 of the female contact portion 10 is smaller than the outer diameter R2 of the male contact portion. The inner diameter R1 is the inner diameter of the inner peripheral surface 10a of the female contact portion 10 as shown in Fig. 2. The outer diameter R2 is the outer diameter of the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male contact portion 20.

[0024] The electric wire connecting portion 11 is a portion to which a core wire of an electric wire (not shown) is crimped and electrically connected to the electric wire. The electric wire connecting portion 11 is formed of, for example, a pair of barrel pieces.

[0025] The connecting portion 12 is interposed between the female contact portion 10 and the electric wire connecting portion 11 and connects the female contact portion 10 and the electric wire connecting portion 11 together.

[0026] As described above, the connection terminal 1 according to the first embodiment includes the male terminal 2 having the male contact portion 20 formed in a cylindrical shape, and the female terminal 3 having the female contact portion 10 formed in a cylindrical shape with a linear slit 13 formed along the axial direction X. The female terminal 3 has an insertion space 14 into which the male contact portion 20 is inserted, and a base portion 15 located opposite the slit 13 across the insertion space 14. In an inserted state in which the male contact portion 20 is inserted into the insertion space 14, the female contact portion 10 bends radially outward from the base portion 15 as a bending starting point, thereby applying a contact load to the male contact portion 20.

[0027] With the above configuration, the connection terminal 1 can ensure a high contact load of the female contact portion 10 against the male contact portion 20, which is sufficient to handle the passage of a large current. As a result, the connection terminal 1 can reduce the number of parts without providing a separate spring contact member, which is provided in conventional female terminals. Furthermore, the connection terminal 1 can reduce the number of parts assembly steps compared to conventional connection terminals with a two-part structure. Furthermore, the connection terminal 1 has no contact resistance between parts and has low conductor resistance of the material compared to conventional connection terminals with a two-part structure, making it possible to reduce terminal resistance. Furthermore, the connection terminal 1 can reduce the size of the female terminal 3 compared to conventional connection terminals with a two-part structure.

[0028] Furthermore, in the connection terminal 1 according to the first embodiment, the female contact portion 10 and the male contact portion 20 are formed such that the inner diameter R1 of the female contact portion 10 is smaller than the outer diameter R2 of the male contact portion. As a result, in the connection terminal 1, in a mated state in which the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3, the female contact portion 10 can bend radially outward with the base portion 15 as the bending starting point, to apply a contact load to the male contact portion 20.

[0029] [Second embodiment] Next, a connection terminal 1A according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 3 to 6. The connection terminal 1A according to the second embodiment differs from the connection terminal 1 of the first embodiment in that the female terminal 3A has a pair of indented portions 16a, 16a and a pair of indented portions 16b, 16b. In the second embodiment, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0030] As shown in the figure, the female terminal 3A has a pair of indented portions 16a, 16a and a pair of indented portions 16b, 16b that protrude radially inward from both circumferential ends with the slit 13 therebetween.

[0031] The pair of indented portions 16a, 16a is provided on the second axial direction X2 side of the female contact portion 10A. The pair of indented portions 16b, 16b is provided on the first axial direction X1 side of the female contact portion 10A. The four indented portions 16a, 16a, 16b, 16b have the same shape. Each of the indented portions 16a, 16a, 16b, 16b extends in the axial direction X and has an inclined surface P at each end in the axial direction X that is inclined from the radial inside to the radial outside along the axial direction X. Each of the indented portions 16a, 16a, 16b, 16b is provided at a position spaced apart from the base portion 15 in the height direction Z.

[0032] In the female terminal 3A, in a mated state in which the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3A, the radially inner tips of the indented portions 16a, 16a, 16b, 16b abut against the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male contact portion 20 from one side in the height direction Z, and the inner peripheral surface 10a of the base portion 15 abuts against the outer peripheral surface 20a from the other side in the height direction Z. In addition, in the mated state in which the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3A, when the mated portion is viewed from the axial direction X as shown in Fig. 5, the female contact portion 10A of the female terminal 3A supports the male contact portion 20 at three points indicated by points a. In addition, in the mated state in which the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3, when the cross section of the mated portion is viewed from the width direction Y as shown in Fig. 6, the female contact portion 10A of the female terminal 3 supports the male contact portion 20 at three points indicated by points a.

[0033] As shown in FIG. 4, the pair of indent portions 16a, 16a, the pair of indent portions 16b, 16b, the male contact portion 20, and the female contact portion 10A are formed so that the inner diameter L1 of each indent portion 16a, 16b < the outer diameter L2 of the male contact portion 20 < the inner diameter L3 of the female contact portion.

[0034] As described above, in the connection terminal 1A according to the second embodiment, the female contact portion 10A has a pair of indent portions 16a, 16a and a pair of indent portions 16b, 16b that protrude radially inward from both circumferential ends with the slit 13 between them. Thus, the connection terminal 1A is able to hold the female terminal 3 and the male terminal 2 by a moment effect by providing the indent portions 16a, 16b at a position away from the base portion 15. In addition, the connection terminal 1A is able to suppress the inclination of the male terminal 2 in the axial direction X by providing the pair of indent portions 16a, 16a and the pair of indent portions 16b, 16b at a distance in the axial direction X, thereby making it easier to obtain line contact between the female contact portion 10A and the male contact portion 20. As a result, the connection terminal 1A can increase the contact area between the female contact portion 10A and the male contact portion 20, and can realize a stable connection even when the contact resistance is low. Also, since each of the indent portions 16a, 16a, 16b, 16b has an inclined surface P at each end in the axial direction X, the assembling property of the male terminal 2 to the female terminal 3 can be improved.

[0035] In connection terminal 1A, indent portions 16a, 16b, male contact portion 20, and female contact portion 10A are formed so that inner diameter L1 of indent portions 16a, 16b < outer diameter L2 of male contact portion 20 < inner diameter L3 of female contact portion. This allows connection terminal 1 to have male terminal 2 insertable into female terminal 3, and in a mated state in which male terminal 2 is mated with female terminal 3, female contact portion 10 can bend radially outward with base portion 15 as the bending starting point, to apply a contact load to male contact portion 20.

[0036] In the second embodiment, the indent portion 16a and the indent portion 16b are separated along the axial direction X. However, they may be formed integrally so as to extend in the axial direction X.

[0037] [Third embodiment] Next, a connection terminal 1B according to a third embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 7 and 8. The connection terminal 1B according to the third embodiment differs from the connection terminal 1A of the second embodiment in that a female terminal 3B has a groove-shaped portion 18. In the third embodiment, the same components as those in the first and second embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0038] The female contact portion 10B has a groove portion 18 formed in the base portion 15 and recessed radially outward from the inner peripheral surface 10a of the female contact portion 10B. The groove portion 18 is formed to extend linearly in the axial direction X and is provided at a position facing the slit 13 in the height direction Z. The groove portion 18 is formed so that its cross-sectional shape as viewed from the axial direction X is substantially rectangular. The groove portion 18 is formed, for example, by reducing the thickness of the base portion 15 from the radially inner side.

[0039] In the female terminal 3B, in a mated state in which the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3B, the radially inner tips of the indented portions 16a, 16a, 16b, 16b abut against the outer circumferential surface 20a of the male contact portion 20 from one side in the height direction Z, and the corners 18a at both circumferential ends of the groove portion 18 abut against the outer circumferential surface 20a from the other side in the height direction Z. In addition, in the mated state in which the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3B, when the mated portion is viewed from the axial direction X as shown in Fig. 8, the female contact portion 10B of the female terminal 3B supports the male contact portion 20 at four points indicated by points a.

[0040] As described above, the connection terminal 1B according to the third embodiment has a groove-shaped portion 18 formed by reducing the thickness of the base 15 and recessed from the inner peripheral surface 10a of the female contact portion 10B toward the outside in the radial direction. As a result, even if the radial thickness of the female contact portion 10B is relatively thick and the female contact portion 10B is not easily elastically deformed in the fitted state, the base 15 of the connection terminal 1B is reduced in thickness by forming the groove-shaped portion 18. As a result, the connection terminal 1B can make the female contact portion 10B more likely to bend with the base 15 as the bending starting point, and by adjusting the depth (amount of reduction) of the groove-shaped portion 18, the contact load of the female contact portion 10B with respect to the male contact portion 20 and the insertion force of the male terminal 2 with respect to the female terminal 3B can be adjusted.

[0041] When the tip of the male terminal 2 of the connection terminal 1B on the first axial direction X1 side is inserted into the insertion space 14 of the female terminal 3B, a part of the tip is guided in the first axial direction X1 side while sliding on a pair of corners 18a of the groove portion 18. This makes it easier for the connection terminal 1B to insert the male terminal 2 into the female terminal 3B. Furthermore, by providing the pair of indent portions 16a, 16a and the pair of indent portions 16b, 16b spaced apart in the axial direction X, the connection terminal 1B makes it easier to obtain line contact in the axial direction X between the two corners 18a of the groove portion 18 and the outer circumferential surface 20a of the male contact portion 20, and thereby provides stable electrical contact.

[0042] [Modification of the third embodiment] Next, a connection terminal 1C according to a variation of the third embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 9 to 11. The connection terminal 1C according to the variation of the third embodiment differs from the connection terminal 1B of the third embodiment in that the female terminal 3C has a protrusion 19 and the male terminal 2A has a recess 25 corresponding to the protrusion 19.

[0043] The protrusion 19 is a portion that protrudes radially inward from the inner circumferential surface 10a of the female contact portion 10C. The protrusion 19 is formed by protruding from one circumferential end toward the insertion space 14 side across the slit 13. The illustrated protrusion 19 is formed by folding back one circumferential end across the slit 13 in the circumferential direction, but is not limited to this. The protrusion 19 is disposed in a region between the indent portion 16a provided on the second axial direction X2 side and the indent portion 16b provided on the first axial direction X1 side on the inner circumferential surface 10a of the female contact portion 10C.

[0044] The recess 25 is formed so as to be recessed from the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male contact portion 20A toward the radially inward direction. The recess 25 extends from the end of the male contact portion 20A on the first axial direction X1 side toward the second axial direction X2 side. The recess 25 is open on the first axial direction X1 side, but the opening is closed by attaching the cap 23 to the male contact portion 20A. The recess 25 is formed so that the cross-sectional shape viewed from the axial direction X is substantially rectangular. The recess 25 has a bottom surface 25a located on the radially inner side and a pair of opposing surfaces 25b that are opposed to each other in the circumferential direction with the bottom surface 25a sandwiched therebetween. The recess 25 has the protrusion 19 inserted therein when the male terminal 2A is fitted into the female terminal 3C.

[0045] In the connection terminal 1C, in a mated state in which the male terminal 2A is mated with the female terminal 3C, the convex portion 19 is inserted into the concave portion 25. In this case, when the male terminal 2A of the connection terminal 1C tries to rotate in one circumferential direction relative to the female terminal 3C, the convex portion 19 abuts against one of the opposing surfaces 25b to restrict the rotation of the male terminal 2A. On the other hand, when the male terminal 2A of the connection terminal 1C tries to rotate in the other circumferential direction relative to the female terminal 3C, the convex portion 19 abuts against the other of the opposing surfaces 25b to restrict the rotation of the male terminal 2A. In this way, in the mated state, the connection terminal 1C restricts the rotation of the male terminal 2A in the circumferential direction, improves the holding force of the male terminal 2A of the female terminal 3C, and stabilizes the electrical contact between the male terminal 2A and the female terminal 3C. [Explanation of symbols]

[0046] 1 Connection terminal 2 Male terminals 3 Female terminal 10 Female contact part 10a Inner surface 11 Wire connection 12 Connecting part 13 Slit 14 Insertion Space 15 base 20 Male contact part 20a Outer surface 21 Connector connection part 22 Connecting part 23 Cap 25 Recess

Claims

1. A male terminal having a cylindrical male contact portion; a female terminal having a female contact portion formed in a cylindrical shape and having a linear slit formed along an axial direction; The female terminal is an insertion space formed inside the female contact portion and into which the male contact portion is inserted; a base portion located opposite the slit across the insertion space, In an inserted state in which the male contact portion is inserted into the insertion space, the female contact portion bends outward in a radial direction intersecting with the axial direction with the base portion as a bending starting point, thereby applying a contact load to the male contact portion. A connection terminal characterized by:

2. The female contact portion and the male contact portion are The female contact portion is formed so that its inner diameter is smaller than its outer diameter. The connection terminal according to claim 1 .

3. The female contact portion is A pair of indented portions protruding inward in the radial direction from both ends in the circumferential direction across the slit, The indent portion, the male contact portion, and the female contact portion are The inner diameter of the indent portion is smaller than the outer diameter of the male contact portion and smaller than the inner diameter of the female contact portion. The connection terminal according to claim 1 .

4. The female contact portion is The base portion has a groove portion formed in a concave shape from the inner peripheral surface of the female contact portion toward the outside in the radial direction. The connection terminal according to claim 3 .

5. The female terminal is A protrusion protruding radially inward from an inner circumferential surface of the female contact portion, The male terminal is a recess that is recessed radially inward from an outer circumferential surface of the male contact portion and into which the protrusion is inserted in the inserted state; The recessed portion is A pair of opposing surfaces facing each other in the circumferential direction with the protruding portion therebetween The connection terminal according to claim 1 .

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