Connector

Abstract

To provide a connector with having a reduced depth dimension.SOLUTION: A shell block 10 of a connector 1 includes: a through-hole 110; and a receiving portion 150. The through-hole 110 penetrates the shell block 10 in a front-rear direction and has a large opening portion 120 and a small opening portion 130. The large opening portion 120 is located in front of the small opening portion 130 and communicates with the small opening portion 130. The large opening portion 120 is larger than the small opening portion 130. In an up-down direction, the small opening portion 130 has a first size as a minimum size. The receiving portion 150 is located at a boundary between the large opening portion 120 and the small opening portion 130 and faces forward. An insulating member 220 of a contact assembly 20 has a held portion 222, and is divided into a front side portion 23 and a rear side portion 25 by the held portion 222. The held portion 222 is in contact with the receiving portion 150 in the through-hole 110. In the up-down direction, the rear side portion 25 has a second size as a maximum size. The second size is smaller than the first size.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a connector, and more particularly to a connector including a contact assembly and a shell block. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses an example of a connector that includes a contact assembly and a shell block.

[0003] 18, a connector 90 disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a contact assembly 92 and a shell block 94. The contact assembly 92 is attached to the shell block 94 and is housed together with the shell block 94 in a housing 96 of an electronic device.

[0004] 18 , the contact assembly 92 is provided with a protrusion 921 that protrudes in a direction perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction. On the other hand, the shell block 94 is provided with a stopper 941. The stopper 941 at least partially defines a hole 943 that penetrates the shell block 94 in the front-to-rear direction. The contact assembly 92 is inserted into the hole 943 from the rear of the shell block 94 and attached to the shell block 94. The protrusion 921 of the contact assembly 92 abuts against the stopper 941 of the shell block 94, thereby positioning the contact assembly 92 with respect to the shell block 94 in the front-to-rear direction.

[0005] 18 , in the connector 90, the rear end of the contact assembly 92 is at least partially covered with a resin layer 98. The resin layer 98 prevents moisture from penetrating into the interior of the electronic device through gaps inside the contact assembly 92 and gaps between the contact assembly 92 and the shell block 94. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Special Publication No. 2024-516208 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] As the density of components inside electronic devices increases and built-in batteries become larger, there is a demand for the depth dimensions of connectors, which serve as external interfaces, to be reduced.

[0008] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a connector with a reduced depth dimension. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The present invention provides a first connector comprising a shell block and a contact assembly, The shell block has a through hole and a receiving portion, The through-hole penetrates the shell block in the front-rear direction and has a large opening and a small opening, the large opening is located in front of the small opening in the front-rear direction and is in communication with the small opening, In a plane perpendicular to the front-rear direction, the large opening is larger than the small opening, In a vertical direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction, the through hole has a first size that is a size of a lowest portion of the small opening, the receiving portion is provided in the through hole at a boundary between the large opening and the small opening, and faces forward in the front-rear direction, The contact assembly includes at least one contact and an insulating member that fixes and holds the contact, the insulating member has a held portion that protrudes in a direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction, the contact assembly is divided by the held portion into a front portion located forward of the held portion and a rear portion located rearward of the held portion, the held portion abuts against the receiving portion within the through hole, the contact assembly has a second size as a size of the highest part of the rear side portion in the up-down direction, The second size is smaller than the first size. Provide a connector.

[0010] The present invention also provides a first connector as the second connector, The connector further includes a fixing plate fixed to the shell block, The held portion is sandwiched between the fixing plate and the receiving portion of the shell block in the front-rear direction, The contact assembly is fixed to the shell block. Provide a connector.

[0011] The present invention also provides a third connector, which is a second connector, The connector further comprises a waterproof gasket; The waterproof gasket is annular, The waterproof gasket is attached to the shell block so as to surround the shell block. Provide a connector.

[0012] The present invention also provides a fourth connector, which is the third connector, the shell block has a front end; The waterproof gasket surrounds the front end of the shell block and its periphery, the fixation plate has a major back surface; When the fixing plate is fixed to the shell block, the main back surface contacts the front end of the shell block. Provide a connector.

[0013] The present invention also provides a fifth connector, which is a second connector, The contact assembly is provided with a temporary holding portion, The fixing plate is provided with a temporary holding portion, The temporary holding portion temporarily holds the temporarily held portion, thereby fixing the relative position of the fixing plate with respect to the contact assembly. Provide a connector.

[0014] The present invention also provides a sixth connector, which is the first connector, the connector is mounted on a circuit board disposed below the rear portion in the front-rear direction during use, the contacts have connection portions that are connected to conductors on the circuit board when the connector is mounted on the circuit board; The connector further includes a potting resin filled in the small opening, the small opening has an edge at a rear end in the front-to-rear direction, the potting resin has a lower end in the up-down direction, The lower end of the potting resin does not extend beyond the edge of the small opening to the rear. Provide a connector.

[0015] The present invention also provides a seventh connector, which is the first connector, The connector further includes a backshell that is fixed to the shell block and covers the rear end of the shell block. Provide a connector.

[0016] The present invention also provides an eighth connector, which is the first connector, The connector is provided in a housing of an electronic device when in use, The shell block is provided with a fixed portion that is fixed to the housing of the electronic device. Provide a connector. [Effects of the Invention]

[0017] In a connector according to one aspect of the present invention, the contact assembly is configured to be attached to the shell block from the front, which reduces the size in the front-to-rear direction (depth direction) required for the potting resin that covers the rear end of the contact assembly, thereby making it possible to reduce the size of the rear side of the connector in the front-to-rear direction compared to conventional connectors. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0018] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view partially illustrating an electronic device equipped with a connector according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which the connector is depicted through a housing of the electronic device, and a relay connector is provided on a circuit board on which the connector is mounted. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is another perspective view showing the electronic device of FIG. 1. A relay flexible printed cable is connected to the relay connector on the circuit board. [Figure 3] 1 is a perspective view showing a connector according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 4] 4 is an exploded bottom perspective view of the connector of FIG. 3, with the potting resin omitted. [Figure 5] 4 is an exploded top perspective view of the connector of FIG. 3, with the potting resin omitted. [Figure 6] 4 is a perspective cross-sectional view of the connector of FIG. 3, with the backshell omitted. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the connector of FIG. 6. [Figure 8] 4 is a perspective view showing a contact assembly and a fixing plate included in the connector of FIG. 3. [Figure 9] 4 is a perspective view showing a contact assembly, a fixing plate, a shell block, and a waterproof gasket included in the connector of FIG. 3. The fixing plate is attached to the contact assembly. The waterproof gasket is attached to the shell block. [Figure 10] 4 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing a contact assembly, a fixing plate, and a shell block included in the connector of FIG. 3. [Figure 11] 4 is a perspective view showing a modified example of the connector of FIG. 3. The connector is mounted on a circuit board. [Figure 12] 12 is a perspective view partially illustrating an electronic device including the connector of FIG. 11. The connector is depicted through the housing of the electronic device. [Figure 13] 4 is a longitudinal sectional view showing another modified example of the connector of FIG. 3. FIG. [Figure 14] 14 is another longitudinal cross-sectional view showing the connector of FIG. 13. The connector is mounted on a circuit board. [Figure 15] 6 is a front view showing a shell block and a waterproof gasket included in the connector of FIG. 5. FIG. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a front view showing a modified example of the shell block of FIG. 15 together with a waterproof gasket. [Figure 17] FIG. 16 is a front view showing another modified example of the shell block of FIG. 15 together with a waterproof gasket. [Figure 18] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a connector disclosed in Patent Document 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0019] As can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 2, the illustrated connector 1 is provided within a housing 73 of an electronic device during use, and is mounted on a circuit board 71 provided within the housing 73. A board-to-FPC connector 75 is mounted on the circuit board 71, and a relay flexible printed cable (FPC) 77 is connected to the board-to-FPC connector 75. The connector 1 is attachable to and detachable from a mating connector (not shown) along the front-to-rear direction. In this embodiment, the front-to-rear direction coincides with the depth direction of the connector 1. In the drawings, the front-to-rear direction is the X direction. The front is the +X direction, and the rear is the -X direction. The illustrated connector 1 is a waterproof connector. However, the present invention is also applicable to connectors other than waterproof connectors.

[0020] As shown in Fig. 3, the connector 1 includes a shell block 10 and a contact assembly 20. As shown in Figs. 3 to 6, the connector 1 further includes a fixing plate 30, a waterproof gasket 40, a potting resin 50, and a backshell 60.

[0021] As can be seen from Fig. 5, shell block 10 is manufactured by a method such as metal forming or cutting, and is a structure having multiple thickness elements. Shell block 10 has through holes 110 and receiving portions 150. As shown in Figs. 11 and 12, shell block 10A of modified connector 1A may further be provided with fixed portions 170 that are fixed to housing 73 of an electronic device using screws 79.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 5, the through-hole 110 penetrates the shell block 10 in the front-to-rear direction and has a large opening 120 and a small opening 130. The large opening 120 is located in front of the small opening 130 in the front-to-rear direction and is connected to the small opening 130. In a plane perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction, the large opening 120 is larger than the small opening 130. In the figure, the plane perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction is the YZ plane. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 15, in the illustrated through-hole 110, the large opening 120 is larger than the small opening 130 in both the up-down direction perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction and the pitch direction perpendicular to both the front-to-rear and up-down directions. In the figure, the up-down direction is the Z direction, and the pitch direction is the Y direction. Up is the +Z direction, and down is the -Z direction. However, the present invention is not limited to this. As shown in the modified example of FIG. 16, the large opening 120A may be larger than the small opening 130A only in the pitch direction. Also, as in the modified example of FIG. 17, the large opening 120B may be larger than the small opening 130B only in the vertical direction.

[0023] As can be seen from Figures 5 and 15, a step is formed at the boundary between the large opening 120 and the small opening 130. The receiving portion 150 is formed at this step. Specifically, the receiving portion 150 is provided at the boundary between the large opening 120 and the small opening 130 within the through hole 110 and faces forward in the front-to-rear direction. In the illustrated shell block 10, the receiving portion 150 has an annular shape. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, in the shell block 10A shown in Figure 16, the receiving portion 150A is located only at both ends in the pitch direction. Furthermore, in the shell block 10B shown in Figure 17, the receiving portion 150B is located only at both ends in the up-down direction.

[0024] 7, in the vertical direction, the through-hole 110 has a first size S1 as the size of the lowest part of the small opening 130. In other words, the minimum size of the through-hole 110 in the vertical direction is the first size S1.

[0025] As can be seen from Figures 3 to 5, the waterproof gasket 40 is attached to the shell block 10 so as to surround the shell block 10. More specifically, the waterproof gasket 40 surrounds the front end of the shell block 10 and its periphery. The illustrated waterproof gasket 40 is made of an elastic material such as rubber. The illustrated waterproof gasket 40 is annular.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 5, the contact assembly 20 includes a contact 210 and an insulating member 220 that holds the contact 210 in place.

[0027] As can be seen from Figure 5, the insulating member 220 has a retained portion 222 that protrudes in a direction perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction. The retained portion 222 shown is a flange that protrudes in a plane perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction. The retained portion 222 divides the contact assembly 20 into a front portion 23 located forward of the retained portion 222 and a rear portion 25 located rearward of the retained portion 222. In particular, the front portion 23 shown has a tongue-like shape.

[0028] 7, the contact assembly 20 has a second size S2 as the size of the highest part of the rear side portion 25 in the up-down direction. In other words, the maximum size of the rear side portion 25 of the contact assembly 20 in the up-down direction is the second size S2. The second size S2 is smaller than the first size S1.

[0029] 5, the contacts 210 are partially embedded and held in the insulating member 220 by insert molding. There are multiple contacts 210 shown, and they are arranged in two rows, one above the other. Furthermore, the contacts 210 in each row are arranged in the pitch direction.

[0030] As can be seen from FIGS. 5 to 7 , the contact 210 has a contact portion 212 and a connecting portion 214. The contact portion 212 is located on the front side portion 23 of the contact assembly 20. The illustrated contact portion 212 is exposed above or below the front side portion 23. The contact portion 212 comes into contact with a mating contact (not shown) of the mating connector (not shown) when the connector 1 is connected to the mating connector. The connecting portion 214 is located on the rear side portion 25 of the contact assembly 20. In the illustrated connector 1, the rear side portion 25 is composed of only a portion of the contact 210. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The rear side portion 25 may include a portion of the insulating member 220.

[0031] 1, 3, and 5, when the connector 1 is mounted on the circuit board 71, the circuit board 71 is disposed below the rear portion 25 of the contact assembly 20. When the connector 1 is mounted on the circuit board 71, the connection portions 214 of the contacts 210 are connected to conductors (not shown) on the circuit board 71. More specifically, the illustrated connection portions 214 are soldered to the conductors on the circuit board 71. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as can be seen from FIGS. 13 and 14, the connection portions 214A of a modified example are supported by elastically deformable support portions 216A, and may contact the conductors on the circuit board 71 by utilizing the elastic deformation of the support portions 216A.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 7 , the shell block 10 uses the fixing plate 30 to hold the insulating member 220 of the contact assembly 20. Specifically, the fixing plate 30 is fixed to the shell block 10. Furthermore, the held portion 222 is sandwiched between the fixing plate 30 and the receiving portion 150 in the front-rear direction. This fixes the position of the held portion 222 in the front-rear direction. In this state, the held portion 222 abuts against the receiving portion 150 within the through hole 110. Alternative methods for holding the insulating member 220 by the shell block 10 include press-fitting the held portion 222 into the through hole 110 or thermally welding the held portion 222 into the through hole 110. In the connector 1 of FIG. 5 , the receiving portion 150 is annular and the held portion 222 is flange-shaped. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. The held portion 222 can take various forms as long as it abuts against the receiving portion 150 and is held by the shell block 10.

[0033] As can be seen from Figures 3 and 7, the illustrated fixing plate 30 is fixed to the shell block 10 by laser welding. As a result, a weld 32 is formed as shown in Figure 3. However, the method of fixing the fixing plate 30 to the shell block 10 is not limited to this. For example, a latch may be provided on the fixing plate 30 and engaged with the shell block 10. The fixing plate 30 may also be press-fitted into the shell block 10, or may be adhesively attached to the shell block 10. Furthermore, although the illustrated fixing plate 30 is fixed to the front surface 12 of the shell block 10, it may also be disposed within the large opening 120 of the through-hole 110 and fixed thereto.

[0034] As shown in FIGS. 4 and 10 , the fixing plate 30 has a main back surface 34. As can be seen from FIGS. 7 and 10 , when the fixing plate 30 is fixed to the shell block 10, the main back surface 34 contacts the front surface 12 of the shell block 10 and is pressed against the waterproof gasket 40. Pressing the main back surface 34 against the waterproof gasket 40 prevents the potting resin 50 filled in the small opening 130 from leaking from the rear side of the connector 1 to the front side and prevents water from entering the inside of the connector 1. In this embodiment, the main back surface 34 of the fixing plate 30 is flat, but may be provided with a protrusion that protrudes rearward. In this case, the protrusion may have a size and shape that allows it to be pressed against the waterproof gasket 40. For example, the protrusion may be annular so as to partially overlap the waterproof gasket 40 when viewed in the front-to-rear direction.

[0035] As shown in FIG. 8 , the contact assembly 20 is provided with a temporary holding portion 27. As can be seen from FIGS. 5 and 8 , in the illustrated connector 1, the temporary holding portion 27 is a protrusion that protrudes forward from the insulating member 220. The illustrated fixing plate 30 is provided with a temporarily held portion 36. In the illustrated connector 1, the temporarily held portion 36 is a recess. The temporary holding portion 27 temporarily holds the temporarily held portion 36, thereby fixing the relative position of the fixing plate 30 with respect to the contact assembly 20. As can be seen from FIGS. 8 and 9 , in the illustrated connector 1, the protrusion (temporarily held portion 27) of the insulating member 220 is press-fitted into the recess (temporarily held portion 36) of the fixing plate 30, thereby fixing the relative position of the fixing plate 30 with respect to the contact assembly 20. This prevents the fixing plate 30 from rattling when fixed to the shell block 10.

[0036] As shown in FIG. 6 , the potting resin 50 is filled in the small opening 130. The small opening 130 has a rim at its rear end in the front-to-rear direction. The potting resin 50 has a lower end and an upper end in the up-down direction. The lower end of the potting resin 50 does not extend rearward beyond the edge of the small opening 130. Furthermore, the upper end of the potting resin 50 shown does not extend rearward beyond the edge of the small opening 130. That is, the potting resin 50 shown is contained within the small opening 130. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the upper end of the potting resin 50 may extend rearward beyond the edge of the small opening 130. The potting resin 50 prevents water from seeping in from outside the connector 1 through the interface between the contacts 210 and the insulating member 220 that holds them, and the interface between the through-holes 110 in the shell block 10 and the insulating member 220.

[0037] 3 and 5, the back shell 60 is fixed to the shell block 10 and covers the rear end of the shell block 10. The back shell 60 has a shielding effect that prevents high-frequency signals transmitted to the contacts 210 from interfering with peripheral components due to electromagnetic energy. The back shell 60 also prevents the intrusion of dust and foreign matter and prevents deformation of the connection portion 214 (see FIG. 6) from the rear of the connector 1.

[0038] As described with reference to FIG. 7 , in the connector 1 of the present invention, the second size S2 (i.e., the size of the highest part of the rear side portion 25) is smaller than the first size S1 (i.e., the size of the lowest part of the small opening 130). In other words, the size of the highest part of the rear side portion 25 of the contact assembly 20 is smaller than the size of the lowest part of the through-hole 110 of the shell block 10. Therefore, as can be seen from FIGS. 7 , 9 , and 10 , the rear side portion 25 having the connecting portion 214 can be inserted into the through-hole 110 of the shell block 10. That is, the contact assembly 20 can be assembled into the shell block 10 from the front. Furthermore, with this configuration, as described with reference to FIG. 6 , a sufficient waterproofing effect can be achieved even if the lower end of the potting resin 50 does not extend beyond the rear edge of the small opening 130. Therefore, the size of the connector 1 in the depth direction (front-rear direction) can be reduced.

[0039] Although the present invention has been described above with reference to exemplary embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above-described exemplary embodiments and various modifications and variations are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. For example, the number and arrangement of the contacts 210 included in the contact assembly 20 are arbitrary. Furthermore, the contact assembly 20 may have a mid-plate located in the center in the vertical direction. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] 1, 1A connector 10, 10A, 10B shell blocks 12 Front 110 Through hole 120, 120A, 120B large opening 130, 130A, 130B Small opening 150, 150A, 150B receiving part 170 Fixed part 20 Contact assembly 210 Contacts 212 Contact point 214, 214A connection 216A Support part 220 Insulating materials 222 Holding part 23 Front side 25 rear side 27 Temporary holding section 30 Fixing plate 32 Welded section 34 Main back 36 Temporarily held part 40 Waterproof gasket 50 potting resin 60 Backshell 71 Circuit Board 73 Case 75 Board-to-FPC Connector 77 Relay flexible printed cable (FPC) 79 screws

Claims

1. A connector comprising a shell block and a contact assembly, The shell block has a through hole and a receiving portion, The through-hole penetrates the shell block in the front-rear direction and has a large opening and a small opening, the large opening is located in front of the small opening in the front-rear direction and is in communication with the small opening, In a plane perpendicular to the front-rear direction, the large opening is larger than the small opening, In a vertical direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction, the through hole has a first size that is a size of a lowest portion of the small opening, the receiving portion is provided at a boundary between the large opening and the small opening within the through hole and faces forward in the front-rear direction, The contact assembly includes at least one contact and an insulating member that fixes and holds the contact, the insulating member has a held portion that protrudes in a direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction, the contact assembly is divided by the held portion into a front portion located forward of the held portion and a rear portion located rearward of the held portion, the held portion abuts against the receiving portion within the through hole, the contact assembly has a second size as a size of the highest part of the rear side portion in the up-down direction; The second size is smaller than the first size. connector.

2. 2. The connector of claim 1, The connector further includes a fixing plate fixed to the shell block, The held portion is sandwiched between the fixing plate and the receiving portion of the shell block in the front-rear direction, The contact assembly is fixed to the shell block. connector.

3. 3. The connector according to claim 2, The connector further comprises a waterproof gasket; The waterproof gasket is annular, The waterproof gasket is attached to the shell block so as to surround the shell block. connector.

4. 4. The connector according to claim 3, the shell block has a front end; The waterproof gasket surrounds the front end of the shell block and its periphery, the fixation plate has a major back surface; When the fixing plate is fixed to the shell block, the main back surface contacts the front end of the shell block. connector.

5. 3. The connector according to claim 2, The contact assembly is provided with a temporary holding portion, The fixing plate is provided with a temporary holding portion, The temporary holding portion temporarily holds the temporarily held portion, thereby fixing the relative position of the fixing plate with respect to the contact assembly. connector.

6. 2. The connector of claim 1, the connector is mounted on a circuit board disposed below the rear portion in the front-rear direction during use, the contacts have connection portions that are connected to conductors on the circuit board when the connector is mounted on the circuit board; The connector further includes a potting resin filled in the small opening, the small opening has an edge at a rear end in the front-to-rear direction, the potting resin has a lower end in the up-down direction, The lower end of the potting resin does not extend beyond the edge of the small opening to the rear. connector.

7. 2. The connector of claim 1, The connector further includes a backshell that is fixed to the shell block and covers the rear end of the shell block. connector.

8. 2. The connector of claim 1, The connector is provided in a housing of an electronic device when in use, The shell block is provided with a fixed portion that is fixed to the housing of the electronic device. connector.

Images