Connector

Abstract

To provide a connector capable of performing detection during assembly when an inner terminal is not inserted to a proper position.SOLUTION: An inner surface of a lid body 25 closing an opening 22 of an inner housing 20 is provided with a storage recess 25a which receives a protrusion of an inner terminal 30 when the inner terminal is inserted into a terminal accommodating chamber 24 to a normal position, thereby enabling the lid body to be closed, and an interference wall portion 25b which interferes with the protrusion of the inner terminal when the inner terminal is in a half-inserted position, thereby preventing the lid body from being closed.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 11

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a connector capable of detecting incomplete insertion of a terminal. [Background technology]

[0002] If one connector is mated with a mating connector when the terminals of the one connector are not properly inserted to the correct position, poor contact may occur between the terminals of both connectors.

[0003] As a technology to prevent this, Patent Document 1 discloses a structure in which a spring portion is provided on the terminal and an inclined wall portion is provided on the inner wall of the terminal accommodating chamber, so that the spring portion of the terminal in a half-inserted position elastically contacts the inclined wall portion, thereby pushing the terminal to the appropriate position by the spring force. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-152833 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, the technology described in Patent Document 1 requires the provision of a dedicated spring portion on the terminal, which tends to make the terminal large, making it difficult to apply to small communication connectors.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and its object is to provide a connector that can detect during assembly when the inner terminal is not inserted to the correct position into the inner housing. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the connector according to the present invention has the following features.

[0008] A connector comprising a connector housing and a cable assembly to be inserted into the connector housing, The cable assembly includes: the electrical connector comprises an outer housing, an inner housing having a terminal accommodating chamber extending in a front-rear direction and accommodated in the outer housing, and an inner terminal that is inserted from the rear to the front into the terminal accommodating chamber of the inner housing in a state where it is connected to an end of an electric wire, the inner housing is provided with an opening that opens toward a side of an insertion path of the inner terminal and an openable and closable cover that closes the opening, and the inner terminal is provided with a protrusion that faces the opening when inserted into the inner housing, The inner surface of the cover of the inner housing is provided with: a storage recess for receiving a protrusion of the inner terminal when the inner terminal is inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber to a normal position, thereby enabling the lid to be closed to a closed position; and an interference wall for preventing the lid from being closed to the closed position by interfering with the protrusion of the inner terminal when the inner terminal is in a half-inserted position short of the normal position of the terminal accommodating chamber. connector. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, partial insertion of the terminals can be detected by checking whether the cover of the inner housing is closed to the proper closed position. Therefore, there is no need to provide an extra structure such as a spring portion on the terminals, and the present invention can be easily applied to small communication connectors.

[0010] The present invention has been briefly described above. Furthermore, the details of the present invention will be further clarified by reading the following description of the preferred embodiment of the present invention (hereinafter, referred to as "embodiment") with reference to the accompanying drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1]FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing a state in which a connector according to an embodiment of the present invention is mated with a mating connector. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of the connector according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a cable assembly used in the connector. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is an external perspective view of an inner housing used in the cable assembly. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an electric wire with an inner terminal used in a cable assembly. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a side cross-sectional view showing a state in which the inner terminal is about to be inserted into the inner housing. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a side cross-sectional view showing a state in which the inner terminal is inserted to a normal position. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a side cross-sectional view showing a state in which the cover is closed following the state shown in FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is an external side view of the state shown in FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a side sectional view showing a state in which the inner terminal is stopped from being inserted just before the normal position. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a side cross-sectional view showing a state in which an attempt to close the lid in the state shown in FIG. 10 is made but the lid cannot be closed completely. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Specific embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0013] FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing a female connector 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention mated with a mating male connector 2, FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of the female connector 1 according to the embodiment, and FIG. 3 is an external perspective view of a cable assembly 10 used in the female connector 1.

[0014] 4 is an external oblique view of the inner housing 20 used in the cable assembly 10, FIG. 5 is an external oblique view of an electric wire W with an inner terminal 30 used in the cable assembly 10, FIG. 6 is a side cross-sectional view showing the state in which the inner terminal 30 is about to be inserted into the inner housing 20, FIG. 7 is a side cross-sectional view showing the state when the inner terminal 30 has been inserted to the correct position, FIG. 8 is a side cross-sectional view showing the state in which the cover body 25 has been closed from the state in FIG. 7, and FIG. 9 is an external side view of the state in FIG. 8.

[0015] As shown in Fig. 1, a female connector 1 of this embodiment is adapted to be mated with a mating male connector. As shown in Fig. 2, the female connector 1 includes a connector housing 5 and a plurality of cable assemblies 10 inserted into the connector housing 5. As shown in Figs. 3 to 5, the cable assembly 10 includes electric wires W, an outer housing 11, an inner housing 20 housed in the outer housing 11, and inner terminals 30 housed in the inner housing 20 in a state connected to the ends of the electric wires W.

[0016] 6 to 8, a terminal accommodating chamber 24 extending in the front-rear direction is provided in the main body 21 of the inner housing 20, and the inner terminal 30 is inserted from the rear to the front into the terminal accommodating chamber 24 of the inner housing 20 in a state where it is connected to an end of the electric wire W. An insertion hole 24a for receiving a terminal of the mating male connector 2 is provided in the front end wall of the terminal accommodating chamber 24.

[0017] The main body 21 of the inner housing 20 has an opening 22 that opens upward (to the side) of the terminal accommodating chamber 24, which is the insertion path for the inner terminal 30, and the inner housing 20 is integrally provided with an openable and closable lid body 25 that closes this opening 22.

[0018] The lid body 25 is integrally connected to the main body 21 of the inner housing 20 by a hinge 26 disposed at the front end of the opening 22, and by utilizing the flexibility of the hinge 26, the lid body 25 is rotatable between a position where the opening 22 is securely closed (closed position) and a position where the opening 22 is opened. The lid body 25 is configured so that, when it is tilted to the position where the opening 22 is completely closed, the upper surface of the lid body 25 and the upper surface of the main body 21 of the inner housing 20 become flush with each other, as shown in Figs. 8 and 9. In this way, the lid body 25 is integrally connected to the front edge of the opening 22 of the main body 21 of the inner housing 20 via the hinge 26, so that the main body 21 and the lid body 25 of the inner housing 20 can be easily manufactured by integral molding of resin.

[0019] 6 to 8, the inner terminal 30 is provided with a protrusion 31 that faces the opening 22 when inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber 24 of the inner housing 20. Also, an inner surface of the lid 25 of the inner housing 20 is provided with a storage recess 25a that receives the protrusion 31 of the inner terminal 30 to enable the lid 25 to be closed to the closed position when the inner terminal 30 is inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber 24 to the correct position, as shown in Figs. 7 and 8.

[0020] Figure 10 is a side cross-sectional view showing the state when the inner terminal 30 is stopped from being inserted just before the normal position, and Figure 11 is a side cross-sectional view showing the state when an attempt is made to close the lid body 25 in the state shown in Figure 10 but it cannot be closed all the way.

[0021] As shown in Figures 10 and 11, an interference wall portion 25b is provided on the inner surface of the lid body 25 of the inner housing 20 adjacent to the storage recess 25a of the protrusion 31 of the inner terminal 30. When the inner terminal 30 remains in a half-inserted position just before the normal position of the terminal accommodating chamber 24, the interference wall portion 25b interferes with the protrusion 31 of the inner terminal 30, thereby preventing the lid body 25 from being closed to the closed position.

[0022] Next, the operation will be described. When assembling this connector 1, first, the inner terminal 30 connected to the end of the electric wire W is inserted from the rear to the front into the terminal receiving chamber 24 of the inner housing 20. At that time, as shown in Figs. 7 and 8, when the inner terminal 30 is inserted to the correct position of the terminal receiving chamber 24 of the inner housing 20, the cover 25 of the inner housing 20 can be closed to the closed position where the opening 22 is completely blocked. That is, the protrusion 31 of the inner terminal 30 inserted to the correct position is at the front position in the insertion direction, does not interfere with the interference wall portion 25b on the inner surface of the cover 25, and is received in the storage recess 25a on the inner surface of the cover 25, so that the cover 25 can be closed to the correct closed position. Therefore, since the upper surface of the closed cover 25 is flush with the upper surface of the main body 21 of the inner housing 20, it can be known that the inner terminal 30 is inserted to the correct position. Also, since the cover 25 does not protrude outward from the inner housing 20, the inner housing 20 can be accommodated in the outer housing 11 without difficulty.

[0023] On the other hand, when the inner terminal 30 is not inserted to the correct position in the terminal receiving chamber 24 of the inner housing 20, the position of the protrusion 31 of the inner terminal 30 is shifted backward from the correct position as shown in FIG. 10 (compare with FIG. 7). Therefore, as shown in FIG. 11, the protrusion 31 interferes with the interference wall portion 25b of the cover body 25 of the inner housing 20, and the cover body 25 does not close to the closed position. In other words, when the cover body 25 does not close, the cover body 25 protrudes outward from the inner housing 20, and the inner terminal 30 can be detected as being in a partially inserted state from the deformation of the appearance. Even if the deformation of the appearance is not noticed, the cover body 25 protruding outward becomes an obstacle, and the inner housing 20 cannot be accommodated in the outer housing 11 as it is. From this, it can be detected that the inner terminal 30 is in a partially inserted state.

[0024] This prevents the inner terminals 30 from being left partially inserted, which can lead to poor contact between the terminals when connected to the mating male connector 2. In this way, it is possible to detect whether the inner terminals 30 are insufficiently inserted based on the position of the cover 25 of the inner housing 20 that interferes with the protrusion 31 of the inner terminal 30, thereby preventing assembly defects with a simple configuration and avoiding poor contact between the terminals when the connectors are fitted. Therefore, it can be easily applied to small communication connectors.

[0025] Here, the features of the connector according to the embodiment of the present invention described above will be briefly summarized and listed in [1] and [2] below. [1] A connector (1) comprising a connector housing (5) and a cable assembly (10) inserted into the connector housing, The cable assembly includes: The electrical connector comprises an outer housing (11), an inner housing (20) having a terminal accommodating chamber (24) extending in the front-rear direction and accommodated in the outer housing, and an inner terminal (30) that is inserted from the rear to the front into the terminal accommodating chamber of the inner housing in a state where the inner terminal is connected to an end of an electric wire (W), The inner housing is provided with an opening (22) that opens toward a side of an insertion path of the inner terminal and an openable and closable lid (25) that closes the opening, and the inner terminal is provided with a protrusion (31) that faces the opening when inserted into the inner housing, The inner surface of the cover of the inner housing is provided with: a storage recess (25a) that receives a protrusion of the inner terminal when the inner terminal is inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber to allow the lid to be closed to the closed position, and an interference wall (25b) that interferes with the protrusion of the inner terminal when the inner terminal is in a half-inserted position short of the regular position of the terminal accommodating chamber to prevent the lid from being closed to the closed position. A connector characterized by:

[0026] According to the connector (1) having the configuration [1] above, when the inner terminal (30) is inserted into the terminal receiving chamber (24) of the inner housing (20) to the correct position, the cover (25) of the inner housing closes to the closed position where it completely covers the opening (22). On the other hand, when the inner terminal is not inserted to the correct position, the protrusion (31) of the inner terminal interferes with the cover (25) of the inner housing, and the cover does not close to the closed position. In other words, when the cover does not close, the cover protrudes outward from the inner housing, and the inner terminal is detected to be in a partially inserted state due to the deformation of the appearance or because the cover becomes an obstacle and the inner housing cannot be accommodated in the outer housing in this state. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the terminals from being left in a partially inserted state, which would cause poor contact when the terminals are connected to the mating connector.

[0027] [2] The cover is integrally connected to the front edge of the opening of the main body of the inner housing via a hinge (26) so as to be rotatable therewith. 2. The connector according to claim 1.

[0028] According to the connector having the configuration [2] above, the lid is integrally connected to the front edge of the opening of the main body of the inner housing via the hinge (26), so that the main body of the inner housing and the lid can be easily manufactured by integral molding of resin.

[0029] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be appropriately modified, improved, etc. In addition, the material, shape, size, number, arrangement location, etc. of each component in the above-described embodiment are arbitrary as long as the present invention can be achieved, and are not limited. [Explanation of symbols]

[0030] 1 Connector 5 Connector housing 10 Cable assembly 11 Outer housing 20 Inner housing 21 Inner housing body 22 Opening 24 Terminal chamber 25 Lid 26 Hinge 30 Inner terminal 31 Protrusion W electric wire

Claims

1. A connector comprising a connector housing and a cable assembly to be inserted into the connector housing, The cable assembly includes: the electrical connector comprises an outer housing, an inner housing having a terminal accommodating chamber extending in a front-rear direction and accommodated in the outer housing, and an inner terminal that is inserted from the rear to the front into the terminal accommodating chamber of the inner housing in a state where it is connected to an end of an electric wire, the inner housing is provided with an opening that opens toward a side of an insertion path of the inner terminal and an openable and closable cover that closes the opening, and the inner terminal is provided with a protrusion that faces the opening when inserted into the inner housing, The inner surface of the cover of the inner housing is provided with a storage recess for receiving a protrusion of the inner terminal when the inner terminal is inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber to a normal position, thereby enabling the lid to be closed to a closed position; and an interference wall for preventing the lid from being closed to the closed position by interfering with the protrusion of the inner terminal when the inner terminal is in a half-inserted position short of the normal position of the terminal accommodating chamber. connector.

2. The cover is integrally connected to a front edge of the opening of the main body of the inner housing via a hinge so as to be rotatable therewith. The connector of claim 1 .

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