Electrical connector for flat conductor

Abstract

To provide an electrical connector for a flat conductor in which a metal fitting is less susceptible to settling caused by movement of a movable member.SOLUTION: A biasing arm of a metal fitting 50 is located on one side of a shaft portion 45 of a movable member 40 in the thickness direction of a flat conductor, and the elastic force of the biasing arm can bias the shaft portion 45 from the one side. The shaft portion 45 presses the biasing arm against the elastic force during the movement of the movable member 40, thereby elastically deforming the biasing arm. The housing 10 includes a support portion 16A capable of supporting a cam portion 44 of the movable member 40 from the other side in the thickness direction. The support portion 16A includes a recess 16B that allows a part of the cam portion 44 to enter during the movement of the movable member 40, and the recess 16B is formed to be recessed below the flat support surface 16C of the support portion 16A that supports the cam portion 44 in the closed position.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an electrical connector for flat conductors to which flat conductors are connected.

Background Art

[0002] A connector is disclosed in Patent Document 1 in which a strip-shaped flat conductor extending in the front-rear direction and having a thickness in the up-down direction is inserted and connected forward. In the connector of this Patent Document 1, a plurality of terminals arranged with the width direction of the flat conductor as the terminal arrangement direction are held by a housing, and fittings arranged one on each of both outer sides of the terminal arrangement range are held by the housing.

[0003] Further, the connector is provided with a movable member for preventing the flat conductor from coming off. At both ends of the movable member, rotation shaft portions having a substantially rectangular cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the terminal arrangement direction project outward in the terminal arrangement direction. The rotation shaft portions are arranged on flat support surfaces formed on both outer sides of the terminal arrangement range in the housing and are rotatably supported. The movable member is rotatable between a closed position for preventing the extraction of the flat conductor and an open position for allowing the extraction of the flat conductor. Further, the fitting restricts the upward movement of the rotation shaft portion by an upward restricting portion that is located directly above the rotation shaft portion and is elastically deformable in the up-down direction.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] In the connector of Patent Document 1, in the rotation process of the movable member between the closed position and the open position, the rotation shaft portion of the movable member presses the upper regulating portion of the metal fitting, thereby elastically deforming the upper regulating portion upward. At this time, since the cross-sectional shape of the rotation shaft portion is substantially square, in the rotation process, one corner portion of the rotation shaft portion is supported by the support surface of the housing, and there is a period during which the other corner portion (the corner portion connected to the one corner portion by the diagonal line of the cross-sectional shape) is in sliding contact with the upper regulating portion. And the upper regulating portion is in a state of being greatly elastically deformed upward with almost the maximum elastic deformation amount during this period.

[0006] In Patent Document 1, since the support surface is a flat surface and always supports the one corner portion at the same height position, the period during which the other corner portion is in sliding contact with the upper regulating portion at a position having a distance corresponding to the length of the diagonal line from the support surface or in the vicinity thereof becomes long. That is, the period during which the upper regulating portion is greatly elastically deformed becomes long. And when this period becomes long, sagging of the upper regulating portion is likely to occur.

[0007] In view of such circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector for flat conductors in which sagging of the metal fitting due to the movement of the movable member hardly occurs.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0008] (1) The electrical connector for flat conductors according to the present invention is an electrical connector for flat conductors to which a flat conductor extending in the front-rear direction is connected, and includes a housing into which the flat conductor is inserted forward, a plurality of terminals arranged and held in the housing with a direction perpendicular to both the front-rear direction and the thickness direction of the flat conductor as the terminal arrangement direction, a metal fitting arranged outside the arrangement range of the terminals in the terminal arrangement direction and held by the housing, and a movable member movable between a closed position and an open position with rotation around a rotation axis extending in the terminal arrangement direction.

[0009] In such an electrical connector for flat conductors, in the present invention, the movable member has a cam portion provided outside the arrangement range of the terminals in the terminal arrangement direction, the cam portion has a shaft portion provided at a position corresponding to the fitting in the terminal arrangement direction, the fitting has a biasing arm portion that can be elastically deformed in the thickness direction, the biasing arm portion is located on one side of the shaft portion in the thickness direction, and the shaft portion can be biased from the one side by the elastic force of the biasing arm portion. The shaft portion is configured to elastically deform the biasing arm portion by pressing the biasing arm portion against the elastic force during the movement process of the movable member. The housing has a support portion that can support the cam portion from the other side in the thickness direction. The support portion has a recess that allows a part of the cam portion to enter during the movement process of the movable member. The recess is formed to be recessed more than the support surface of the support portion that supports the cam portion in the closed position.

[0010] In the present invention, during the movement process of the movable member, a part of the cam portion enters a recess that is recessed more than the support surface of the support portion. When a part of the cam portion enters the recess, the cam portion and thus the shaft portion are positioned on the other side (the side opposite to the above-mentioned one side) in the thickness direction of the flat conductor compared to when the movable member is in the closed position. As a result, compared with the case where the movable member is always in the same position in the thickness direction as in the prior art, the amount of elastic deformation of the biasing arm portion being pressed by the shaft portion toward the one side becomes smaller, and the period during which the biasing arm portion is largely elastically deformed toward the one side during the movement process of the movable member becomes shorter. Therefore, sagging of the biasing arm portion is less likely to occur.

[0011] (2) In the invention of (1), the recess may be configured to allow a part of the cam portion to enter when the movable member is in the open position. In such a configuration, when a part of the cam portion enters the recess in the open position, the cam portion, and thus the shaft portion, will be positioned on the other side in the thickness direction of the flat conductor compared to when the movable member is in the closed position. Therefore, it will be positioned downward. Thus, compared to the case where the movable member is always in the same position in the thickness direction as in the prior art, the elastic deformation amount of the biasing arm portion can be reduced or the elastic deformation amount can be eliminated in the open position. As a result, sagging of the biasing arm portion is less likely to occur.

[0012] (3) In the invention of (1) or (2), the movable member may be configured to receive a moment generated based on the elastic force of the biasing arm portion in either a closing direction toward the closed position or an opening direction toward the open position according to the position of the movable member. By adopting such a configuration, during the movement process of the movable member, a closing moment is generated when the movable member is on the closed position side, and an opening moment is generated when the movable member is on the open position side. As a result, during the movement operation of the movable member, a moment in the moving direction is generated from the middle of the movement, so the movement operation becomes easier.

[0013] (4) In the invention of any one of (1) to (3), in the direction of the terminal arrangement, the front-rear dimension of the shaft portion at one of the closed position and the open position is larger than the front-rear dimension at the other position, the housing has restricting portions located in front of and behind the support portion and facing the shaft portion in the front-rear direction, and the restricting portions may be capable of restricting the movement of the shaft portion in the front-rear direction when the movable member is at the one position. By adopting such a configuration, when the movable member is at the one position, the movement of the movable member in the front-rear direction can be restricted by the restricting portions. As a result, play of the movable member in the front-rear direction at the one position can be suppressed well.

[0014] (5) In any one of the inventions (1) to (4), the recess may have an inclined surface that is inclined relative to the front-rear direction.

[0015] (6) In the invention of (5), a space may be formed between the end face of the part of the cam portion and the inclined surface in the thickness direction when the part of the cam portion is inserted into the recess. By forming such a space, the end face of the part of the cam portion does not interfere with the inclined surface, so that damage to the cam portion can be effectively avoided.

[0016] (7) In the invention of (5) or (6), the support portion may have the recess in a portion of the support portion in the fore-and-aft direction, and another portion of the support portion may have a surface extending in the fore-and-aft direction, and the cam portion may be supported by the surface when the movable member is in at least the closed position.

[0017] (8) In any of the inventions (1) to (7), the housing has a covering wall located on one side in the thickness direction with respect to a receiving space for receiving the flat conductor and covering the receiving space from the one side, and a rear wall connected to a rear end of the covering wall, and the rear wall may have a protruding wall portion protruding toward the one side beyond the covering wall within an area overlapping with at least a portion of the movable member in the terminal arrangement direction.

[0018] By providing such a protruding wall portion on the rear wall in an area overlapping at least a portion of the movable member in the terminal arrangement direction, the protruding wall portion faces the movable member from behind when the movable member is in the open position. Therefore, if an inadvertent external force acts on the movable member in the opening direction when the movable member is in the open position, the protruding wall portion abuts against the movable member from behind, preventing the movable member from moving in the opening direction. As a result, excessive movement of the movable member is prevented, and damage to the movable member is effectively avoided. Effect of the Invention

[0019] The present invention can provide an electrical connector for flat conductors in which the fittings are less susceptible to settling caused by the movement of the movable member. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0020]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Figure 10

Figure 11

[0021] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0022] 1 and 2 are perspective views showing an electrical connector for flat conductors 1 (hereinafter referred to as "connector 1") according to this embodiment together with a flat conductor C, with Fig. 1 showing the state immediately before connecting the flat conductor C and Fig. 2 showing the state immediately before removing the flat conductor C. Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the connector 1 with terminals 20, 30 (a first terminal 20 and a second terminal 30 described below), a movable member 40 and a metal fitting 50 separated.

[0023] The connector 1 is mounted on a mounting surface of a circuit board (not shown), and a flat conductor C (e.g., FPC) as a mating connector is removably connected to the connector 1 with the front-rear direction (X-axis direction) parallel to the mounting surface as the insertion / removal direction. The connector 1 electrically connects the circuit board and the flat conductor C by connecting the flat conductor C. In this embodiment, in the X-axis direction (front-rear direction), the X1 direction is the front and the X2 direction is the rear. The Y-axis direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction (X-axis direction) is the connector width direction, and the Z-axis direction perpendicular to the mounting surface of the circuit board is the up-down direction.

[0024] The flat conductor C is a flexible band-like member extending in the front-rear direction (X-axis direction), with the connector width direction (Y-axis direction) as its width direction and the top-bottom direction (Z-axis direction) as its thickness direction, and its front end portion is inserted into the housing 10 as shown in Fig. 2. The flat conductor C is formed with a plurality of circuit parts (not shown) extending in the front-rear direction and arranged in the connector width direction. The circuit parts are embedded in the insulating layer of the flat conductor C and extend in the front-rear direction, reaching a position near the front end of the flat conductor C. The circuit parts are exposed at the bottom surface of the front end portion and are capable of contacting the terminals 20, 30 of the connector 1.

[0025] As shown in FIG. 1, a notched side recess C1 is formed on both side edges of the front end portion of the flat conductor C, and the rear end edge of the ear C2 located in front of the side recess C1 functions as a locked portion C2A that locks with a locking portion 42 of the connector 1, which will be described later (see FIG. 9(B)).

[0026] As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the connector 1 comprises a housing 10 made of an electrically insulating material such as resin, a plurality of terminals 20, 30 (see Figure 3) made of metal plate that are arranged with the connector width direction being the terminal arrangement direction and held in the housing 10, a movable member 40 made of an electrically insulating material such as resin that is movable between a closed position and an open position, and metal fittings 50 made of metal plate that are arranged on both outsides of the terminal arrangement range in the connector width direction, and a flat conductor C is inserted and connected from the rear (see the arrows shown in Figure 1).

[0027] 1 to 3, the housing 10 has a generally rectangular parallelepiped shape with the connector width direction as the longitudinal direction, and a receiving space 11 for receiving the flat conductor C is formed as a space that is open toward the rear. The housing 10 has a bottom wall 12 (see FIGS. 4(A) and (B)) and an top wall 13 that extend parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board, two side walls 14 (see FIG. 3) that extend in the vertical direction and connect both ends of the bottom wall 12 and the top wall 13 in the connector width direction, a front wall 15 (see FIG. 4(A)) connected to the front ends of the bottom wall 12, the top wall 13, and the side wall 14, and a rear wall 18 connected to the rear ends of the bottom wall 12, the top wall 13, and the side wall 14.

[0028] As shown in FIG. 3, the housing 10 has a protrusion 16 that protrudes from the outer surface of the lower part of the side wall 14 outside the side wall 14 in the connector width direction, and a metal fitting holding portion 17 that is connected to approximately the front half of the protrusion 16.

[0029] The receiving space 11 penetrates the rear wall 18 in the front-to-rear direction and is surrounded by a lower wall 12, an upper wall 13, a front wall 15 (see Figure 4(A)), and two side walls 14 (see Figure 3), extending in the front-to-rear direction, and is configured to receive the front end portion of the flat conductor C (see Figures 9(A) and (B)).

[0030] The upper wall 13 is located above the receiving space 11 (on one side in the thickness direction of the flat conductor C) and serves as a covering wall that covers the receiving space 11 from above. As shown in Fig. 3, the upper wall 13 has an upper hole portion 13A that penetrates in the vertical direction outside the terminal arrangement range. When viewed from above, the upper hole portion 13A has a substantially rectangular shape extending in the front-rear direction. When the movable member 40 is in the closed position, the upper hole portion 13A allows an engagement portion 42 (described later) of the movable member 40 to enter from above (see Fig. 8(B)).

[0031] As shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 3, the housing 10 has terminal accommodating portions 19 for accommodating the terminals 20, 30 arranged in the connector width direction. Fig. 4(A) and (B) are longitudinal cross-sectional views of the connector 1 when the movable member 40 is in the closed position, Fig. 4(A) shows a cross-section at the position of the first terminal 20 in the connector width direction, and Fig. 4(B) shows a cross-section at the position of the locking portion 42 in the connector width direction. As shown in Fig. 4(A), the terminal accommodating portion 19 is formed as a groove penetrating the housing 10 in the front-rear direction. The terminal accommodating portion 19 has a lower groove portion 19A recessed from the upper surface of the lower wall 12 and extending in the front-rear direction, an upper groove portion 19B recessed from the lower surface of the upper wall 13 and extending in the front-rear direction, and a front groove portion 19C penetrating the front wall 15 in the front-rear direction and extending in the up-down direction to connect the front ends of the lower groove portion 19A and the upper groove portion 19B to each other, and as a whole, has a horizontal U-shape that opens toward the rear.

[0032] As shown in Fig. 3, the overhanging portion 16 is plate-shaped with a plate surface perpendicular to the up-down direction, and extends across the entire area of ​​the side wall 14 in the front-rear direction. Figs. 5(A) and (B) are longitudinal sectional views of the connector 1 when the movable member 40 is in the closed position, and Figs. 6(A) and (B) are longitudinal sectional views of the connector 1 when the movable member 40 is in the open position. Here, Figs. 5(A) and 6(A) show cross sections at the position of a shaft portion 45 described later in the connector width direction, and Figs. 5(B) and 6(B) show cross sections at the position of a side plate portion 43 described later in the connector width direction.

[0033] The rear end portion of the overhanging portion 16, specifically, the portion that forms the lower wall of the cam accommodating portion 10B described below within the range of the cam accommodating portion 10B in the front-rear direction, is formed as a support portion 16A that can support a cam portion 44 described below of the movable member 40 from below (the other side in the thickness direction of the flat conductor C). As shown in Figures 5(A) and (B), the lower surface of the support portion 16A is inclined upward toward the rear, and therefore is thinner than the other portion of the overhanging portion 16 (the portion located forward of the support portion 16A).

[0034] 5(A) and (B), the support portion 16A has a recess 16B recessed from the upper surface of the support portion 16A. The recess 16B is formed over the entire range of the support portion 16A in the connector width direction and over the range of the support portion 16A in the front-rear direction excluding the rear end portion. The lower inner wall surface of the recess 16B has an inclined support surface 16B-1 in the range from a position near the front end of the recess 16B to the rear end position. The inclined support surface 16B-1 is inclined upward as it approaches the rear.

[0035] As shown in Figures 6(A) and (B), when the movable member 40 is in the process of moving and in the open position, the recess 16B allows a part of the cam portion 44 to enter, and supports the shaft portion 45 from below with the inclined support surface 16B-1. In addition, the upper surface of the part of the support portion 16A in the range other than the recess 16B in the front-rear direction, specifically the part located behind the recess 16B, forms a flat support surface 16C perpendicular to the up-down direction. As shown in Figures 5(A) and (B), the flat support surface 16C supports the cam portion 44 from below when the movable member 40 is in the closed position.

[0036] 7(A) and (B) are perspective cross-sectional views of the connector 1, showing a vertical cross-section at the position of the metal fitting 50 in the connector width direction, with FIG. 7(A) showing a state in which one metal fitting is removed, and FIG. 7(B) showing a state in which the metal fitting 50 is attached. As shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, and 7(A) and (B), the metal fitting holding portion 17 is provided with a gap between it and the outer surface of the side wall 14 in the connector width direction. The space formed between the metal fitting holding portion 17 and the side wall 14 forms a side plate accommodating portion 10A (see FIGS. 2 and 3) for accommodating a side plate portion 43 of the movable member 40 (described later). The metal fitting holding portion 17 is in the form of a plate that stands upright with a plate surface perpendicular to the connector width direction, and a metal fitting accommodating portion 17A for accommodating a part of the metal fitting 50 is formed outside the overhanging portion 16 in the connector width direction. 3, a portion of metal fitting holding portion 17 that is located more inward than metal fitting accommodating portion 17A in the connector width direction stands upward from overhanging portion 16. Also, as shown in Figures 7(A) and (B), a locked end portion 17B is provided at the rear end of the lower portion of metal fitting holding portion 17. Locked end portion 17B is located in a range that includes metal fitting accommodating portion 17A in the connector width direction, and is located within the range of overhanging portion 16 in the vertical direction, and is adapted to lock with locking leg portion 55 (described below) of metal fitting 50 in the vertical direction, as shown in Figure 7(B).

[0037] 7(A) and (B), the metal fitting accommodating portion 17A is in the form of a groove extending perpendicular to the connector width direction. The lower portion of the metal fitting accommodating portion 17A extends further forward than the other portions, and a press-fit groove portion 17A-1 formed on the front end side holds a press-fit fixing portion 51A (described later) of the metal fitting 50.

[0038] 1 to 3, the rear wall 18 has a rectangular outer diameter with the connector width direction as viewed from the rear, and a hole that is surrounded by its rectangular annular edge and penetrates in the front-rear direction forms the rear end of the receiving space 11. End wall portions 18A that protrude outward beyond the side walls 14 in the connector width direction are formed at both ends of the rear wall 18 in the connector width direction. The end wall portions 18A are located rearward of the overhanging portion 16 and the metal fitting holding portion 17, and are provided in approximately the same range as the overhanging portion 16 in the connector width direction. The end wall portion 18A is also located at a distance from the metal fitting holding portion 17 in the front-rear direction, and the rear end of the support portion 16A is connected to the front surface of the end wall portion 18A.

[0039] 3, 5(A), (B), and 6(A), (B), the space formed directly above support portion 16A between metal fitting holding portion 17 and end wall portion 18A in the front-rear direction constitutes cam accommodating portion 10B for accommodating cam portion 44 (described below) of movable member 40. Cam accommodating portion 10B is formed in a space located on the inside in the connector width direction in a range that overlaps with side plate accommodating portion 10A in the connector width direction, and is in communication with side plate accommodating portion 10A.

[0040] As shown in Fig. 5(A), the front part of the end wall part 18A functions as a rear regulating part for regulating the rearward movement of the cam part 44. The front surface of the end wall part 18A is a flat surface perpendicular to the front-rear direction, and faces the cam part 44 in a state of contact with the cam part 44 from the rear. Also, as shown in Fig. 5(A), the part of the rear part of the metal fitting holding part 17 in the range overlapping with the cam accommodating part 10B in the connector width direction functions as a front regulating part for regulating the forward movement of the cam part 44. The rear surface of the metal fitting holding part 17 is a flat surface perpendicular to the front-rear direction, and faces the cam part 44 from the front with a slight gap formed between them.

[0041] Further, the rear wall 18 has a protruding wall portion 18B that protrudes upward from the upper wall 13 in a range that overlaps with the movable member 40 in the connector width direction. As shown in Fig. 2, the protruding wall portion 18B extends in the connector width direction to include a range that spans between the outer surfaces of side plate portions 43 (described below) that are provided on the movable member 40. Therefore, both ends of the protruding wall portion 18B overlap with the end wall portion 18A in the connector width direction and form the upper portions of the end wall portion 18A.

[0042] As shown in Figs. 4(A) and (B), the protruding wall portion 18B protrudes in the vertical direction to a position slightly above the upper surface of the movable member 40 in the closed position. Therefore, the movable member 40 in the closed position is accommodated in a space surrounded by the protruding wall portion 18B and the two metal fitting holders 17 at a position directly above the upper wall 13. In other words, the front surface of the protruding wall portion 18B faces the rear surface of the movable member 40 in the closed position. The protruding wall portion 18B protrudes with such an amount that its upper end position is almost the same as the upper surface of the movable member 40 in the closed position, so that even if the protruding wall portion 18B is provided on the rear wall 18, the connector 1 does not substantially become larger in the vertical direction. It is not essential that the protruding wall portion 18B protrudes to a position above the upper surface of the movable member 40. For example, the protruding wall portion 18B may protrude to the same position as the upper surface of the movable member 40 or to a position slightly below.

[0043] 1 to 3, the upper part of the rear wall 18, specifically, the part located above the receiving space 11 and extending in the connector width direction within a range corresponding to the receiving space 11, has a rear surface located forward of the rear surfaces of the other parts of the rear wall 18. In other words, the receiving space 11 is open not only rearward but also upward at its rear end. Therefore, even if the flat conductor C is inserted into the housing 10 from a direction slightly inclined upward with respect to the front-rear direction just before the flat conductor C is inserted, the front end of the flat conductor C is smoothly guided to the inner part of the receiving space 11.

[0044] 4(B), the protruding wall portion 18B protrudes in the vertical direction in a range including the contact surface portion between the upper wall 13 and the movable member 40, and covers the contact surface portion from the rear. Therefore, even if the position of the flat conductor C is slightly shifted upward from the correct position (the position corresponding to the receiving space 11) immediately before the start of insertion of the flat conductor C, the front end of the flat conductor C abuts against the rear surface of the protruding wall portion 18B, preventing further advancement. As a result, it is possible to effectively prevent the flat conductor C from being erroneously inserted between the upper wall 13 and the movable member 40.

[0045] As shown in Fig. 2 and Fig. 6(A) and (B), when the movable member 40 is in the open position, the protruding wall portion 18B faces the rear surface of the lower part of the movable member 40. At this time, in the range of the inner surfaces of the side plate portion 43 in the connector width direction, as shown in Fig. 6(A), the front surface of the protruding wall portion 18B abuts against the rear surface of the lower part of the movable member 40 in a face-to-face manner. Also, in the range of the side plate portion 43 in the connector width direction, as shown in Fig. 6(B), the front surface of the protruding wall portion 18B faces the rear surface of the lower part of the movable member 40 with a slight gap between them. Therefore, if an inadvertent external force acts on the movable member 40 in the open position in the opening direction (the moving direction from the closed position to the open position), the front surface of the protruding wall portion 18B abuts against the rear surface of the movable member 40 from behind, thereby preventing the movable member 40 from moving in the opening direction. In this manner, excessive movement of the movable member 40 is prevented, and damage to the movable member 40 is effectively avoided.

[0046] In this embodiment, the protruding wall portion 18B extends continuously in the connector width direction so as to include the range between the outer surfaces of the side plate portions 43 of the movable member 40, but instead, for example, the protruding wall portion 18B may be provided at a position corresponding to a part of the above-mentioned range. In other words, it is sufficient that the protruding wall portion 18B is provided in a range that overlaps with at least a part of the movable member 40 in the connector width direction.

[0047] The terminals 20, 30 have a first terminal 20 and a second terminal 30 that are different in shape from each other, and the first terminals 20 and the second terminals 30 are arranged alternately in the width direction of the connector as shown in Fig. 3. The terminals 20, 30 are made by punching a metal plate member, and are attached by being press-fitted from the front into the terminal accommodating portion 19 of the housing 10 with the plate surface at a right angle to the width direction of the connector.

[0048] As shown in Figure 4(A), the first terminal 20 has a lower arm portion 21 located below the receiving space 11 in the vertical direction and extending in the front-to-rear direction along the bottom wall 12 of the housing 10, an upper arm portion 22 located above the receiving space 11 in the vertical direction and extending in the front-to-rear direction along the top wall 13 of the housing 10, a connecting arm portion 23 extending in the vertical direction along the front wall 15 and connecting the front ends of the lower arm portion 21 and the upper arm portion 22, and a connection portion 24 extending forward from the lower part of the connecting arm portion 23.

[0049] The lower arm 21 is housed in the lower groove 19A and has a base arm 21A extending in the front-rear direction and an extension arm 21B extending rearward from the rear end of the base arm 21A. The base arm 21A is entirely housed in the lower groove 19A. The upper edge of the base arm 21A, i.e., the edge of the base arm 21A on the receiving space 11 side, is inclined linearly downward so as to move away from the receiving space 11 toward the rear within a predetermined range extending from a position near the front end to the rear end, as shown in FIG. 4(A).

[0050] In addition, the lower edge of the base arm 21A extends in a manner that inclines upward toward the rear in its approximately rear half, forming a slight gap between the base arm 21A and the groove bottom surface 19A-1 that forms the inner surface of the lower groove 19A. Therefore, the base arm 21A is allowed to elastically displace downward within the range of this gap. In addition, the lower edge of the base arm 21A extends in a manner that does not incline in the front-rear direction in its approximately front-rear half, and is supported by the groove bottom surface 19A-1.

[0051] Also, a notch 21A-1 is formed on the upper edge of the base arm 21A, forward of the predetermined range where the inclined edge is formed. Specifically, as shown in Fig. 4(A), the notch 21A-1 is formed on the upper edge of the portion of the base arm 21A that is connected to the connecting arm 23. Note that the upper edge of the base arm 21A extends without inclining in the front-rear direction in the range between the predetermined range and the notch 21A-1.

[0052] The first terminal 20 in this embodiment is formed by punching a metal plate member multiple times. At this time, the overlapping range in the vicinity of the connecting portion between the base arm portion 21A and the connecting arm portion 23 is punched multiple times. As a result, a large burr may be generated in this range. In this embodiment, the notch portion 21A-1 is formed at a position corresponding to this range, so that even if a large burr as described above is generated, the burr is likely to be formed in the notch portion 21A-1. When the burr is formed in the notch portion 21A-1 in this way, the burr is unlikely to protrude into the receiving space 11. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent the flat conductor C inserted into the receiving space 11 from being damaged by the burr or from being short-circuited through the burr.

[0053] The extension arm 21B has a first extension 21B-1 extending from the rear end of the base arm 21A, and a second extension 21B-2 located above the first extension 21B-1, i.e., on the receiving space 11 side, and extending from the rear end of the first extension 21B-1 in a direction that turns back to the front. The first extension 21B-1 is entirely housed in the lower groove 19A and extends at an upward incline toward the rear. In other words, the gap formed between the lower edge of the first extension 21B-1 and the groove bottom surface 19A-1 of the lower groove 19A gradually becomes larger toward the rear. The first extension 21B-1 is allowed to elastically displace in the vertical direction within the range of this gap.

[0054] 4(A), a portion of the second extension portion 21B-2 is housed in the lower groove portion 19A, inclines upward as it extends forward, and extends in the front-rear direction to a position where it overlaps with the rear end portion of the upper arm portion 22. In this way, the second extension portion 21B-2 extends forward, i.e., toward the base arm portion 21A.

[0055] A lower contact portion 21B-3 protrudes upward from the front end of the second extension portion 21B-2 and is capable of contacting with pressure the circuit portion on the underside of the flat conductor C. When the second extension portion 21B-2 is in a free state, the lower contact portion 21B-3 protrudes from the lower groove portion 19A and is located in the receiving space 11. A gap formed between the second extension portion 21B-2 and the first extension portion 21B-1 in the vertical direction gradually becomes larger toward the front, and elastic displacement of the second extension portion 21B-2 in the vertical direction is allowed within the range of this gap.

[0056] As shown in Fig. 4(A), the upper arm portion 22 is located on the opposite side of the lower arm portion 21 in the up-down direction across the receiving space 11, i.e., above, and extends with a downward inclination toward the rear with a portion of the upper arm portion 22 housed in the upper groove portion 19B. At this time, the lower edge of the upper arm portion 22, i.e., the edge of the upper arm portion 22 on the receiving space 11 side, forms an inclined edge that is inclined linearly downward so as to approach the receiving space 11 toward the rear, in a portion of the range of the upper arm portion 22 in the front-rear direction, specifically, in a predetermined range extending from the front end position of the upper arm portion 22 to a position adjacent to an upper contact portion 22A described later.

[0057] An upper contact portion 22A protrudes downward from the rear end of the upper arm portion 22 and is capable of contacting with a contact pressure the upper surface of the flat conductor C. As shown in Fig. 4(A), when the upper arm portion 22 is in a free state, the upper contact portion 22A protrudes from the upper groove portion 19B and is located in the receiving space 11. As shown in Fig. 4(A), the protruding apex of the upper contact portion 22A is at approximately the same position as the protruding apex of the lower contact portion 21B-3 of the lower arm portion 21 in the front-rear direction.

[0058] The connecting arm portion 23 is accommodated in the front groove portion 19C. An upwardly protruding press-fit protrusion 23A is provided on the upper edge of the connecting arm portion 23. The first terminal 20 is held in the terminal accommodating portion 19 by the press-fit protrusion 23A biting into the inner surface of the upper wall 13.

[0059] Connection portion 24 extends downward and forward from the lower portion of connecting arm portion 23 to the outside of housing 10. The lower edge of connection portion 24 is located slightly below the lower surface of bottom wall 12 of housing 10, and is soldered to a corresponding circuit portion (pad) on the mounting surface when connector 1 is placed on the mounting surface of a circuit board (not shown).

[0060] The second terminal 30 has a shape similar to that of the first terminal 20, but the lengths of the lower arm and upper arm are shorter than the lower arm 21 and upper arm 22 of the first terminal 20. Therefore, as shown in Fig. 4(A), the lower contact portion 31B-3 and the upper contact portion 32A of the second terminal 30 are located forward of the lower contact portion 21B-3 and the upper contact portion 22A of the first terminal 20, respectively. In addition, the lower contact portion 31B-3 and the upper contact portion 32A are located at approximately the same position in the front-rear direction.

[0061] 1 to 3, the movable member 40 has a plate-shaped operating portion 41 extending over the range between the side walls 14 (see Figs. 2 and 3) in the connector width direction, a locking portion 42 protruding from the plate surface of the operating portion 41, and both ends of the operating portion 41 in the connector width direction, i.e., side plate portions 43 and cam portions 44 located outside the arrangement range of the terminals 20, 30. The movable member 40 is movable between a closed position and an open position by rotating about a rotation axis extending in the connector width direction.

[0062] The operating portion 41 is adapted to receive an operation when the movable member 40 is moved between the closed position shown in FIG. 1 and the open position shown in FIG. 2. The operating portion 41 has an end hole portion 41A formed at a position corresponding to the locked portion C2A of the flat conductor C in the connector width direction, which penetrates the movable member 40 in the vertical direction when the movable member 40 is in the closed position. As shown in FIG. 4(B), the end hole portion 41A is adapted to be located directly above the approximately front half of the upper hole portion 13A of the housing 10 in the closed position (see also FIG. 8(B) and FIG. 9(B)). That is, the end hole portion 41A is located directly above the ear portion C2 of the flat conductor C inserted to the correct position in the receiving space 11 in the closed position (see FIG. 9(B)). Therefore, the operator can visually check the ear portion C2 of the flat conductor C from above through the end hole portion 41A and the upper hole portion 13A, and can confirm that the flat conductor C is inserted to the correct position by this visual check.

[0063] The locking portion 42 is provided at a rear part of the operating portion 41 when in the closed position (a lower part of the operating portion 41 when in the open position) at a position corresponding to the locked portion C2A of the flat conductor C in the connector width direction. The locking portion 42 is at the same position as the end hole portion 41A in the connector width direction, and is located at the rear of the end hole portion 41A when the movable member 40 is in the closed position in the front-rear direction, as shown in Fig. 4(B).

[0064] As shown in Fig. 4(B), in the closed position, the locking portion 42 protrudes from the lower surface of the operating portion 41 and is located in the upper hole portion 13A and the receiving space 11 (see also Figs. 8(B) and 9(B)), and can interfere with the flat conductor C (see Fig. 9(B)). The portion of the locking portion 42 located in the receiving space 11 has a guide surface 42A on its rear surface that slopes downward toward the front, and has a locking surface 42B on its front surface that locks with the locked portion C2A of the flat conductor C from the rear. When the movable member 40 is in the open position, the locking portion 42 is located outside the housing 10, and interference with the flat conductor C is released (see Figs. 11(A) and (B)).

[0065] As shown in Fig. 3, the side plate portions 43 are provided in the form of plates having plate surfaces perpendicular to the connector width direction at both ends of the operating portion 41 in the connector width direction. The side plate portions 43 extend in approximately the rear half when the movable member 40 is in the closed position and protrude downward. When the movable member 40 is in the closed position, the side plate portions 43 are accommodated in the side plate accommodating portion 10A of the housing 10 in a state in which they extend in the front-rear direction as shown in Fig. 5(B), and when the movable member 40 is in the open position, the side plate portions 43 are in a state in which they extend in the up-down direction as shown in Fig. 6(B) and are positioned outside the side plate accommodating portion 10A.

[0066] 3, when the movable member 40 is in the closed position, the cam portion 44 protrudes rearward beyond the rear end of the side plate portion 43 and is connected to the rear end of the side plate portion 43. The inner portion of the cam portion 44 in the connector width direction is located in the same range as the side plate portion 43, and the outer portion in the connector width direction is located so as to protrude outward beyond the side plate portion 43. This outer portion forms a shaft portion 45.

[0067] The cam portion 44 is accommodated in the cam accommodating portion 10B of the housing 10. As shown in Figures 5(A) and (B), the cam portion 44 has a first supported portion 44A at a lower portion of the rear portion of the cam portion 44 in the closed position. The lower surface of the first supported portion 44A in the closed position is a flat surface perpendicular to the up-down direction. The lower surface of the first supported portion 44A comes into contact with the flat support surface 16C and is supported from below by the flat support surface 16C.

[0068] Further, the cam portion 44 has a second supported portion 44B on the upper part of the rear portion of the cam portion 44 in the closed position. The outer peripheral surface (surface around the rotation axis) of the second supported portion 44B from the upper surface to the rear surface in the closed position is a convex curved surface. As shown in Figures 6(A) and (B) , in the open position, the second supported portion 44B comes into contact with the inclined support surface 16B-1 at a part of the convex curved surface and is supported from below by the inclined support surface 16B-1.

[0069] As shown in Figures 5(A) and (B), the rear surface of the lower part of the cam part 44 in the closed position forms a first regulated surface 44C. In the closed position, the first regulated surface 44C is a flat surface perpendicular to the front-rear direction. Therefore, as shown in Figures 5(A) and (B), the cam part 44 comes into contact with the front surface of the end wall part 18A at the first regulated surface 44C, so that the movement of the cam part 44 in the rearward direction is regulated. In addition, the part of the cam part 44 that protrudes at the boundary position between the lower surface of the first supported part 44A and the first regulated surface 44C forms a first corner part 44D.

[0070] As shown in Fig. 5(A), the cross-sectional shape of the shaft portion 45 perpendicular to the connector width direction is a substantially rectangular shape with the longitudinal direction being the front-rear direction in the closed position. That is, the front-rear dimension of the shaft portion 45 in the closed position is larger than the front-rear dimension in the open position. The front surface of the upper part of the shaft portion 45 in the closed position forms a second regulated surface 45A. In the closed position, the second regulated surface 45A is a flat surface perpendicular to the front-rear direction. As shown in Fig. 5(A), in the closed position, the second regulated surface 45A faces the rear surface of the metal fitting holding portion 17 from behind with a slight gap formed therebetween.

[0071] In this embodiment, since the dimension in the front-rear direction at the closed position is larger than the dimension in the front-rear direction at the open position, when the movable member 40 is in the open position, the shaft portion 45 is in a posture extending in the front-rear direction in the cam accommodating portion 10B. As a result, as described above, the first restricted surface 44C (rear surface) of the shaft portion 45 contacts the front surface of the end wall portion 18A, and the second restricted surface 45A (front surface) of the shaft portion 45 approaches the rear surface of the metal fitting holding portion 17 with a slight gap formed therebetween. Therefore, the movement of the shaft portion 45 in the front-rear direction is restricted within the range of the above-mentioned gap. As a result, rattling of the shaft portion 45 and thus the movable member 40 in the open position can be effectively suppressed.

[0072] 6A, when the movable member 40 is in the open position, the second regulated surface 45A forms the upper surface of the shaft 45 and is in contact with the lower surface of the biasing piece 52A of the metal fitting 50. At this time, the shaft 45 presses the biasing piece 52A upward, causing a biasing arm 52 (described below) of the metal fitting 50 to elastically deform upward. Therefore, the second regulated surface 45A is biased downward by the biasing piece 52A based on the elastic force (restoring force) of the biasing arm 52.

[0073] As shown in Fig. 5(A), the upper surface of the front part of the shaft portion 45 in the closed position forms a third regulated surface 45B. The third regulated surface 45B is a flat surface perpendicular to the up-down direction in the closed position. In the closed position, the third regulated surface 45B is in contact with the lower surface of the biasing piece 52A of the metal fitting 50. At this time, the shaft portion 45 does not press the biasing piece 52A upward, and the biasing arm portion 52 is not elastically deformed upward. Therefore, in the closed position, the third regulated surface 45B does not receive a biasing force from the biasing piece 52A.

[0074] 6A, when the movable member 40 is in the open position, the third regulated surface 45B forms the rear surface of the shaft portion 45. At this time, the third regulated surface 45B faces the front surface of the end wall portion 18A with a gap formed between the third regulated surface 45B and the front surface of the end wall portion 18A.

[0075] 5(A), the portion of the shaft portion 45 that protrudes at the boundary position between the second regulated surface 45A and the third regulated surface 45B forms a second corner portion 45C. Also, as shown in Fig. 5(A), the portion of the shaft portion 45 where a protruding curved surface is formed at the boundary position between the lower surface of the first supported portion 44A and the second regulated surface 45A forms a curved portion 45D.

[0076] 7(A) and (B), metal fitting 50 is made by punching a metal plate member and bending a portion in the thickness direction, and is attached by being press-fitted from the rear into metal fitting accommodating portion 17A of housing 10. By making metal fitting 50 press-fittable in this way, metal fitting 50 can be easily attached to housing 10.

[0077] 7(A) and (B), the metal fitting 50 has a fixed arm 51 extending in the front-rear direction in a straight line, a biasing arm 52 extending in the front-rear direction above the fixed arm 51, a connecting portion 53 connecting front end portions of the fixed arm 51 and the biasing arm 52, a fixed leg 54 solder-connected to the mounting surface of the circuit board, and a locking leg 55 that can be locked to the housing 10 from below (see also FIG. 3). The metal fitting 50 is held in the metal fitting accommodating portion 17A by a press-fit fixing portion 51A provided at the front end of the fixed arm 51 being press-fitted from behind into a press-fit groove portion 17A-1 of the metal fitting accommodating portion 17A.

[0078] The metal fitting 50 has a plate surface, most of which is perpendicular to the connector width direction, and is adjacent to the cam portion 44 of the movable member 40 on the outer side in the connector width direction. In the metal fitting 50, only the fixed leg portion 54 and the biasing piece 52A, which will be described later, are formed by being bent in the connector width direction. Therefore, the entire metal fitting 50 has a simple shape and is made compact.

[0079] As shown in FIG. 7B, the fixed arm 51 is fixed to the housing 10 while being supported by the bottom surface of the groove of the metal fitting accommodating portion 17A. The urging arm 52 is located above the shaft 45 of the movable member 40 (on one side in the thickness direction of the flat conductor C) and is elastically deformable in the vertical direction. The front half of the urging arm 52 extends at a downward incline toward the rear, and the rear half extends straight from the rear end of the front half toward the rear without inclining. The urging arm 52 has a urging piece 52A for urging the shaft 45 of the movable member 40 from above. The urging piece 52A is bent at the upper edge of the urging arm 52 at the intermediate position of the rear half of the urging arm 52 in the front-rear direction and extends inward in the connector width direction, i.e., toward the shaft 45 of the movable member 40.

[0080] The biasing piece 52A has a plate surface (rolled surface) perpendicular to the up-down direction, and is located directly above the shaft portion 45. The biasing piece 52A has its lower surface in contact with the upper surface of the shaft portion 45 (the third regulated surface 45B in the closed position, and the second regulated surface 45A in the open position), and is capable of restricting the upward movement of the shaft portion 45 and, in turn, the movable member 40 (see Figs. 5(A) and 6(A)). As described above, since the biasing arm portion 52 is not elastically deformed in the closed position, the biasing piece 52A does not bias the shaft portion 45, but since the biasing arm portion 52 is elastically deformed upward in the open position, the biasing piece 52A biases the shaft portion 45 from above.

[0081] In this embodiment, as shown in Figures 1, 2, and 7(B), there is nothing above the rear half of the urging arm 52, but as a modified example, for example, a restricting portion located above the rear end of the urging arm 52 with a predetermined distance between the rear end and the restricting portion may be formed by a part of the housing 10. In this modified example, when the rear end of the urging arm 52 is displaced upward by a predetermined amount, it abuts against the restricting portion from below, and further displacement is restricted. With this configuration, excessive upward elastic deformation of the urging arm 52 is restricted, so that the shaft 45 and therefore the movable member 40 can be more reliably prevented from coming off the housing 10.

[0082] The fixed leg 54 is bent at the lower edge of the fixed arm 51 at a position near the rear end of the fixed arm 51 and extends inward in the connector width direction. Since the fixed leg 54 is formed to extend inward in the connector width direction, i.e., toward the same side as the biasing piece 52A, it is possible to avoid an increase in size of the metal fitting 50 in the connector width direction due to the provision of the fixed leg 54. The fixed leg 54 is located rearward of the biasing piece 52A in the front-rear direction and extends over approximately the same range as the biasing piece 52A in the connector width direction. In addition, the lower surface of the fixed leg 54 is located slightly lower than the lower surface of the lower wall 12 of the housing, and is soldered and fixed to a corresponding portion (pad) on the mounting surface when the connector 1 is placed on the mounting surface of a circuit board (not shown).

[0083] The locking leg 55 is located forward of the fixed leg 54 and is provided at a position having a range overlapping with the biasing piece 52A in the front-rear direction. The locking leg 55 extends downward from the lower edge of the fixed arm 51 and then extends forward, forming an L-shape as a whole. As shown in FIG. 7B, the L-shaped locking leg 55 fits into the locked end 17B of the metal fitting holder 17 from the rear, and is locked to the locked end 17B from below. In this embodiment, the locking leg 55 is provided at a position separated from the fixed leg 54. Therefore, when the fixed leg 54 is soldered to the corresponding part on the mounting surface of the circuit board, the molten solder can be prevented from rising up the locking leg 55 toward the housing 10, which is called solder rising.

[0084] The connector 1 having such a configuration is assembled in the following manner. First, the first terminal 20 is press-fitted from the front into the terminal accommodating portion 19 of the housing 10, and then the second terminal 30 is press-fitted from the front. The movable member 40, which is held in the closed position, is attached to the housing 10 from above. At this time, the side plate portion 43 of the movable member 40 is accommodated in the side plate accommodating portion 10A, and the cam portion 44 is accommodated in the cam accommodating portion 10B. Next, the metal fitting 50 is press-fitted from the rear into the metal fitting accommodating portion 17A of the housing 10. At this time, the locking leg portion 55 is fitted into the locked end portion 17B and is locked to the locked end portion 17B from below. In addition, the biasing piece 52A of the metal fitting 50 is located directly above the shaft portion 45, and the upward movement of the shaft portion 45 is restricted. By attaching the first terminal 20, the second terminal 30, the movable member 40, and the metal fitting 50 to the housing 10 in this manner, the connector 1 is completed.

[0085] In the present embodiment, the first terminal 20, the second terminal 30, the movable member 40, and the metal fitting 50 are attached to the housing 10 in this order, but the order of the attachment steps is not limited to this. For example, the attachment steps of the first terminal 20 and the second terminal 30 may be performed after the attachment steps of the movable member 40 and the metal fitting 50, or may be performed simultaneously. The attachment steps of the first terminal 20 and the second terminal 30 may be performed simultaneously, or the attachment step of the second terminal 30 may be performed first. In the present embodiment, the movable member 40 is attached to the housing 10 in a closed position, but the position of the movable member 40 at the time of attachment is not limited to this, and may be, for example, in an open position.

[0086] Next, the operation of inserting and removing the flat conductor C into and from the connector 1 will be described.

[0087] First, the connection portion 24 of the first terminal 20 and the connection portion of the second terminal 30 of the connector 1 are soldered to corresponding circuit portions of a circuit board (not shown), and the fixing leg portion 54 of the metal fitting 50 is soldered to the corresponding portion of the circuit board. By soldering these connection portions and the fixing leg portion 54, the connector 1 is attached to the circuit board.

[0088] If the movable member 40 is not in the closed position when the connector 1 is attached to the circuit board, the movable member 40 is brought to the closed position. The cam portion 44 of the movable member 40 in the closed position is supported by the flat support surface 16C of the support portion 16A at the first supported portion 44A, and is restricted from moving upward by the biasing piece 52A at the third restricted surface 45B of the shaft portion 45 (see Figs. 5(A) and (B)). At this time, the biasing arm portion 52 of the metal fitting 50 is not elastically deformed, and therefore, no biasing force based on the elastic force of the biasing arm portion 52 acts on the shaft portion 45. In other words, no moment based on the above biasing force acts on the shaft portion 45 and thus on the movable member 40. Moreover, in the closed position, the cam portion 44 does not enter the recess 16B of the support portion 16A.

[0089] 8(A) to 8(C), the flat conductor C is positioned so as to extend in the front-rear direction (X-axis direction) along the mounting surface (not shown) of the circuit board behind the connector 1 (see also FIG. 1). Then, the flat conductor C is inserted forward (X1 direction) into the receiving space 11 of the connector 1.

[0090] In this embodiment, in the first terminal 20, the second extension portion 21B-2 having the lower contact portion 21B-3 is bent back at the rear end of the first extension portion 21B-1 and extends forward. Therefore, when the flat conductor C is inserted into the receiving space 11 from the rear, the flat conductor C is smoothly guided forward by the rear end of the extension arm portion 21B, i.e., the folded back portion of the extension arm portion 21B that is curved convexly backward. Also, in the second terminal 30, the flat conductor C is smoothly guided forward by the folded back portion of the extension arm portion, as described above for the first terminal 20. Therefore, there is no risk of buckling due to contact with the front end of the flat conductor C in any part of the first terminal 20 and the second terminal 30. The flat conductor C thus guided first reaches the positions of the lower contact portion 21B-3 and the upper contact portion 22A of the first terminal 20, and then advances further to reach the positions of the lower contact portion 31B-3 and the upper contact portion 32A of the second terminal 30. As a result, the first terminal 20 and the second terminal 30 come into proper contact with the flat conductor C.

[0091] During the process of inserting the flat conductor C into the receiving space 11, the front end of the flat conductor C abuts against the lower contact portion 21B-3 of the second extension portion 21B-2 of the terminal 20 and the upper contact portion 22A of the upper arm portion 22, pushing down the second extension portion 21B-2 to elastically displace it downward, and pushing up the upper arm portion 22 to elastically displace it upward. As a result, the gap between the lower contact portion 21B-3 and the upper contact portion 22A is pushed wide. At this time, the first extension portion 21B-1 is also elastically deformed downward in accordance with the elastic deformation of the second extension portion 21B-2. Also, in the second terminal 30, the gap between the lower contact portion 31B-3 and the upper contact portion 32A is pushed wide in the same manner as described above for the first terminal 20.

[0092] Furthermore, at the position of the locking portion 42 of the movable member 40 in the connector width direction, the front end of the flat conductor C abuts against the guide surface 42A of the locking portion 42 and pushes up the locking portion 42. As the locking portion 42 is pushed up, the entire movable member 40 moves upward, and accordingly, the biasing piece 52A of the metal fitting 50 is pushed up by the shaft portion 45 of the movable member 40, and the biasing arm portion 52 of the metal fitting 50 elastically deforms upward. In other words, the elastic deformation of the biasing arm portion 52 allows the locking portion 42 to move upward.

[0093] In this manner, the gap between the lower contact portion 21B-3 and the upper contact portion 22A of the first terminal 20, and the gap between the lower contact portion 31B-3 and the upper contact portion 32A of the second terminal 30 are pushed apart, and the locking portion 42 of the movable member 40 moves upward, allowing the flat conductor C to be inserted further forward. The flat conductor C is inserted until it abuts against the front wall 15 of the housing 10, as shown in Figures 9(A) and (B).

[0094] When the insertion of the flat conductor C is completed, as shown in FIG. 9(A), the elastic deformation state of the extension arm portion 21B (first extension portion 21B-1 and second extension portion 21B-2) of the lower arm portion 21 and the upper arm portion 22 is maintained, and the flat conductor C is clamped by the lower contact portion 21B-3 and the upper contact portion 22A. That is, while the upper contact portion 22A presses the flat conductor C from above, the lower contact portion 21B-3 contacts the circuit portion of the flat conductor C with contact pressure. In this way, the electrical conduction state between the first terminal 20 and the flat conductor C is maintained in the second terminal 30. Similarly to the first terminal 20 described above, while the upper contact portion 32A presses the flat conductor C from above, the lower contact portion 31B-3 contacts the circuit portion of the flat conductor C with contact pressure.

[0095] During the insertion process of the flat conductor C, when the ear C2 of the flat conductor C passes the position of the locking portion 42 and the locking portion 42 reaches the position of the side recess C1, the movable member 40 returns to the closed position, and the locking portion 42 enters the side recess C1 from above, as shown in FIG. 9(B). As a result, the locking surface 42B of the locking portion 42 is positioned so as to be able to lock with the locked portion C2A of the flat conductor C from the rear, thereby preventing the flat conductor C from being accidentally removed. Also, as shown in FIG. 9(C), the lower surface (rolled surface) of the biasing piece 52A of the metal fitting 50 comes into contact with the upper surface of the third restricted surface 45B of the shaft portion 45, and the movable member 40 is maintained in the closed position. In this manner, the connection operation of the flat conductor C to the connector 1 is completed.

[0096] 9(A)-(C), that is, when the flat conductor C in the connected state with the connector 1 is to be intentionally removed from the connector 1, the movable member 40 in the closed position is moved to the open position (see FIG. 2 and FIG. 10(A)-(C)). FIG. 10(A)-(D) are longitudinal cross-sectional views of the connector 1 at the position of the shaft 45 during the process of moving the movable member 40 from the closed position to the open position. In FIG. 10(A)-(D), the longitudinal cross-section (cross-section perpendicular to the connector width direction) in the vicinity of the shaft 45 is shown enlarged.

[0097] In this embodiment, the movable member 40 not only rotates about an axis extending in the connector width direction, but also displaces in the front-rear and up-down directions during the process of moving between the closed position and the open position. Hereinafter, the moving direction from the closed position to the open position is referred to as the "opening direction," and the moving direction from the open position to the closed position is referred to as the "closing direction."

[0098] Immediately after the movable member 40, which was in the closed position, starts to move in the open direction, as shown in FIG. 10(A), the shaft 45 rotates and displaces forward (to the right in FIG. 10(A)) while sliding against the flat support surface 16C at the first corner 44D. At this time, the second corner 45C presses the urging piece 52A upward, and as a result, the urging arm 52 elastically deforms upward. When the urging arm 52 elastically deforms in this manner, a downward elastic force is generated in the urging arm 52, and the urging piece 52A urges the second corner 45C downward due to the elastic force. In other words, it can be said that the shaft 45 presses the urging piece 52A upward at the second corner 45C against the elastic force. As a result of the second corner 45C being urged downward, the first corner 44D is supported by the flat support surface 16C while receiving an upward reaction force against the elastic force from the flat support surface 16C. 10(A), the curved portion 45D of the shaft portion 45 abuts against the rear surface of the metal fitting holding portion 17. As shown in FIG.

[0099] 10(A), the shaft 45 is supported from below by the flat support surface 16C at the first corner 44D, and is biased from above by the biasing piece 52A at the second corner 45C at a position forward of the first corner 44D. Therefore, a moment is generated in the shaft 45 and thus in the movable member 40 in the closing direction.

[0100] In this embodiment, the biasing piece 52A biases the shaft portion 45 with its lower surface, which is a rolled surface. Therefore, compared to the case where the shaft portion is biased with the plate thickness surface (fracture surface) of the metal fitting, the biasing piece 52A can be brought into contact with the shaft portion 45 with a smooth surface, and the contact area between the biasing piece 52A and the shaft portion 45 can be increased. As a result, even if the biasing piece 52A and the shaft portion 45 come into sliding contact with each other due to the movement of the movable member 40, wear of the shaft portion 45 is unlikely to occur, and a decrease in the biasing force of the biasing piece 52A can be effectively avoided.

[0101] When the movable member 40 moves further in the opening direction from the state shown in FIG. 10(A), as shown in FIG. 10(B), the shaft portion 45 rotates and displaces forward while sliding against the flat support surface 16C at the first corner portion 44D. Then, the first corner portion 44D passes over the boundary portion between the flat support surface 16C and the inclined support surface 16B-1. As a result, the first corner portion 44D of the shaft portion 45 enters the recess 16B and is supported by the inclined support surface 16B-1 at the first corner portion 44D. In addition, the second corner portion 45C displaces upward, pressing the biasing piece 52A and lifting it further upward. The curved portion 45D of the shaft portion 45 displaces upward while sliding against the rear surface of the metal fitting holder 17, and is still in contact with the rear surface at the time shown in FIG. 10(B).

[0102] 10B, the second corner 45C receiving the urging force from the urging piece 52A is located forward of the first corner 44D supported by the inclined support surface 16B-1. Therefore, even in this state, a moment in the closing direction is generated in the shaft 45 and thus in the movable member 40.

[0103] When the movable member 40 moves further in the opening direction from the state of FIG. 10(B), as shown in FIG. 10(C), the shaft portion 45 rotates and displaces forward and downward while sliding against the inclined support surface 16B-1 at the first corner portion 44D. Therefore, the first corner portion 44D enters the recessed portion 16B deeper than in the state of FIG. 10(B). In addition, the second corner portion 45C displaces upward, pressing the biasing piece 52A and lifting it further upward. Even in the state of FIG. 10(C), the shaft portion 45 is supported by the inclined support surface 16B-1 at the first corner portion 44D and biased by the biasing piece 52A at the second corner portion 45C. At this time, the first corner portion 44D and the second corner portion 45C are at approximately the same position in the front-rear direction, and the distance between them in the up-down direction is maximum. Therefore, the second corner portion 45C reaches the uppermost position in the movement process of the movable member 40. As a result, the amount of displacement of the urging piece 52A pressed against the second corner portion 45C, in other words, the amount of upward elastic deformation of the urging arm portion 52, is maximized.

[0104] In addition, during the movement of the movable member 40, when the first corner portion 44D and the second corner portion 45C are aligned with each other in the front-rear direction, no moment is generated in the movable member 40. In addition, as shown in Fig. 10(C), the convex curved surface of the second supported portion 44B of the shaft portion 45 abuts against the front surface of the end wall portion 18A.

[0105] When the movable member 40 moves further in the opening direction from the state of FIG. 10(C), as shown in FIG. 10(D), the shaft portion 45 rotates and is displaced further forward and downward while sliding against the inclined support surface 16B-1 at the first corner portion 44D. As a result, in addition to the first corner portion 44D, most of the first supported portion 44A also enters the recess 16B. At this time, the shaft portion 45 rotates in the opening direction, so that the first regulated surface 44C approaches the inclined support surface 16B-1. In addition, compared to the state of FIG. 10(C), the second corner portion 45C is displaced downward, so that the biasing piece 52A and therefore the biasing arm portion 52 are also displaced downward. The second corner portion 45C is also displaced backward, and reaches a position rearward of the rear end of the biasing piece 52A as shown in FIG. 10(D). Therefore, the shaft portion 45 is supported by the inclined support surface 16B-1 at the first corner portion 44D, and is biased from above by the biasing piece 52A at the second regulated surface 45A.

[0106] 10D, the portion of the second regulated surface 45A that receives the biasing force from the biasing piece 52A is located rearward of the first corner portion 44D supported by the inclined support surface 16B-1. Therefore, in this state, a moment in the opening direction is generated in the shaft portion 45 and thus in the movable member 40.

[0107] Then, when the movable member 40 moves further in the opening direction from the state of FIG. 10(D), the shaft portion 45 rotates and is displaced further forward and downward while sliding against the inclined support surface 16B-1 at the second supported portion 44B. Then, when the shaft portion 45 reaches the open position, as shown in FIG. 6(A) and FIG. 11(C), the entire lower portion of the shaft portion 45 enters the recess 16B and is supported by the inclined support surface 16B-1 at the second supported portion 44B. At this time, the first corner portion 44D and the first regulated surface 44C are separated from the inclined support surface 16B-1. Therefore, a space is formed between the lower surface of the shaft portion 45 and the inclined support surface 16B-1 in the vertical direction. By forming such a space, the lower surface of the shaft portion 45 and thus the cam portion 44 do not interfere with the inclined support surface 16B-1, so that damage to the cam portion 44 can be effectively avoided.

[0108] In the open position, the second regulated surface 45A of the shaft 45 contacts the lower surface of the biasing piece 52A and receives a downward biasing force from the biasing piece 52A. As shown in Fig. 6(A) and Fig. 11(C), the range in which the second regulated surface 45A contacts the lower surface of the biasing piece 52A in the front-rear direction extends to the rear of the second supported portion 44B. Therefore, in the open position, a moment in the opening direction is generated on the shaft 45 and thus on the movable member 40, so that the movable member 40 is well maintained in the open position.

[0109] The operation of shaft portion 45 when movable member 40 moves has been described above with reference to Fig. 5, Fig. 6, and Fig. 8 to 11. However, since first supported portion 44A, second supported portion 44B, first regulated surface 44C, and first corner portion 44D are provided across the entire range of cam portion 44 in the connector width direction, the same operation as that already described for shaft portion 45 is performed across the entire cam portion 44 with regard to these portions (see Fig. 5(B) and Fig. 6(B)).

[0110] As a result of the movable member 40 moving to the open position in this manner, the locking portion 42 of the movable member 40 is disengaged upward from the side recess C1 of the flat conductor C as shown in Fig. 11(B), allowing removal of the flat conductor C. Then, by pulling the flat conductor C backward (in the X2 direction), the flat conductor C is easily removed from the connector 1, completing the removal operation.

[0111] In this embodiment, the recess 16B formed in the support portion 16A of the housing 10 allows a part of the cam portion 44 to enter when the movable member 40 is in the moving process and in the open position. In this configuration, when a part of the cam portion 44 enters the recess 16B, the shaft portion 45 provided on the cam portion 44 is located lower than when the movable member 40 is in the closed position. Therefore, compared to the conventional case where the movable member is always located at the same height, the amount of upward elastic deformation of the urging piece 52A of the urging arm portion 52 pressed by the shaft portion 45 during the moving process and the open position of the movable member 40 is reduced. As a result, the period during which the urging arm portion 52 is largely elastically deformed during the moving process of the movable member 40 is shortened. In addition, the amount of elastic deformation of the urging arm portion 52 can be reduced even in the open position. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the occurrence of sagging of the urging arm portion 52 can be effectively suppressed.

[0112] In addition, in this embodiment, the movable member 40 is adapted to receive a moment in either the closing direction or the opening direction during its movement depending on the position of the movable member 40. Specifically, when the movable member 40 is in the closed position, a moment in the closing direction is generated, and when the movable member 40 is in the open position, a moment in the opening direction is generated. Therefore, when the movable member 40 is moved, a moment in the moving direction is generated midway through the movement, making the movement easier.

[0113] In this embodiment, the elastically deformed state of the urging arm 52 is maintained in the open position, but instead, the urging arm 52 may be in a free state in the open position. In this case, no urging force based on the elastic force of the urging arm 52 is generated, but the urging piece 52A comes into contact with the second regulated surface 45A of the shaft 45, so that the movable member 40 is maintained in the open position.

[0114] In this embodiment, the shaft 45 is shaped such that the front-rear dimension in the closed position is larger than the front-rear dimension in the open position when viewed in the connector width direction, but instead, the shaft may be shaped such that the front-rear dimension in the open position is larger than the front-rear dimension in the closed position. In this case, when the movable member is in the open position, the shaft is in a position extending in the front-rear direction in the cam accommodating portion, and the front surface of the shaft is close to the rear surface of the metal fitting holder, and the rear surface of the shaft is close to the front surface of the end wall. Therefore, the movement of the shaft in the front-rear direction is restricted by the rear surface of the metal fitting holder and the front surface of the end wall. As a result, rattling of the shaft and thus the movable member in the open position can be effectively suppressed. [Explanation of symbols]

[0115] 1 Connector 10. Housing 11 Reception space 13 Upper wall (covering wall) 16A Support part 16B Recess 16B-1 Inclined support surface 16C flat support surface 17 Metal fitting holding part (regulating part) 18 Back wall 18A End wall (restriction part) 18B Projection wall part 20 First terminal 30 Second terminal 40 Movable parts 44 Cam section 45 Shaft 50 Metal fittings 52 Biasing arm C Flat conductor

Claims

1. An electrical connector for flat conductors to which flat conductors extending in the front-rear direction are connected, a housing into which the flat conductor is inserted forward, a plurality of terminals arranged and held in the housing with a direction perpendicular to both the front-rear direction and the thickness direction of the flat conductor as the terminal arrangement direction, a fitting arranged outside the arrangement range of the terminals in the terminal arrangement direction and held by the housing, In an electrical connector for flat conductors having a movable member movable between a closed position and an open position with rotation about a rotation axis extending in the terminal arrangement direction, the movable member has a cam portion provided outside the arrangement range of the terminals in the terminal arrangement direction, the cam portion has a shaft portion provided at a position corresponding to the fitting in the terminal arrangement direction, the fitting has a biasing arm portion elastically deformable in the thickness direction, the biasing arm portion is located on one side of the shaft portion in the thickness direction, and the shaft portion can be biased from the one side by the elastic force of the biasing arm portion, the shaft portion is configured to elastically deform the biasing arm portion by pressing the biasing arm portion against the elastic force during the movement of the movable member, the housing has a support portion capable of supporting the cam portion from the other side in the thickness direction, the support portion has a recess that allows a part of the cam portion to enter during the movement of the movable member, The recess is formed to be recessed more than the support surface of the support portion that supports the cam portion in the closed position. An electrical connector for flat conductors, characterized in that.

2. The electrical connector for flat conductors according to claim 1, wherein the recess allows a part of the cam portion to enter when the movable member is in the open position.

3. The movable member is configured to receive a moment generated based on the elastic force of the biasing arm portion in either a closing direction toward the closed position or an opening direction toward the open position according to the position of the movable member. The electrical connector for flat conductors according to claim 1.

4. In a direction along the terminal arrangement direction, the longitudinal dimension of the shaft portion at one of the closed position and the open position is larger than the longitudinal dimension at the other position. The housing has restricting portions located in front of and behind the support portion and opposing the shaft portion in the longitudinal direction. The restricting portions are capable of restricting the movement of the shaft portion in the longitudinal direction when the movable member is at the one position. The electrical connector for flat conductors according to claim 1.

5. The recess has an inclined surface that is inclined with respect to the longitudinal direction. The electrical connector for flat conductors according to claim 1.

6. With a part of the cam portion entering the recess, a space is formed between an end face of the part and the inclined surface in the thickness direction. The electrical connector for flat conductors according to claim 5.

7. The support portion has the recess in a part of the support portion in the longitudinal direction. The other part of the support portion has a surface extending in the longitudinal direction, and is capable of supporting the cam portion with the surface when the movable member is at least at the closed position. The electrical connector for flat conductors according to claim 5 or claim 6.

8. The housing has a covering wall located on one side in the thickness direction with respect to the receiving space for receiving the flat conductor and covering the receiving space from the one side, and a rear wall connected to the rear end of the covering wall. The rear wall has a protruding wall portion that protrudes toward the one side more than the covering wall in a range overlapping at least a part of the movable member in the terminal arrangement direction. The electrical connector for flat conductors according to claim 1.

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