Connector

Abstract

To provide a connector capable of improving insulation reliability.SOLUTION: A connector 1 is formed by molding the terminal 2 and the plate 4, and includes a terminal 2, a resin part 3, and a plate 4. The plate 4 is provided so as to secure a surface pressure of a seal member for stopping water between the resin part 3 and a connector mounting counterpart in an opening of the connector mounting counterpart, when the connector 1 is mounted and fixed to the opening. A three-dimensionally shaped insulation part 32 for insulating the terminal 2 and the plate 4 is provided on the plate 4.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical Field]

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

[0002] Conventionally, a connector in which a wire-connected terminal and a plate are molded with resin is well known, as disclosed in Patent Document 1. The wire-connected terminal and the plate are insulated by the resin. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-222876 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, if a crack occurs in the resin and fluid such as water seeps in from the interface between the resin and the plate, the fluid may cause a short circuit between the wire-attached terminal and the plate.

[0005] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a connector that can improve the reliability of insulation. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The connector that solves the above problem comprises a terminal, a resin part that is integrally formed with the terminal by molding and that is placed in an opening formed in the connector mounting part so that the terminal is positioned in the opening, and a plate that is integrally formed with the resin part together with the terminal by molding to ensure the surface pressure of a sealing member that waterproofs the gap between the resin part and the connector mounting part at the opening, and the plate is provided with a three-dimensional insulating part that insulates the terminal from the plate. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] The present disclosure can improve the reliability of insulation in connectors. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a connector. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the connector as seen from the rear side. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a plan view of the connector. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a plate having an insulating portion. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the connector. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a plan view of the terminal. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a plan view of a plate having an insulating portion. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VIII-VIII shown in FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is an enlarged perspective view of the resin portion. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the insulating portion disassembled from the plate. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the operation when a crack occurs in the resin part. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] First, embodiments of the present disclosure will be listed and described. [1] The connector of the present disclosure comprises a terminal, a resin part integrally formed with the terminal by molding and arranged in an opening formed in a mating connector so that the terminal is positioned in the opening, and a plate integrally formed with the resin part together with the terminal by molding to ensure the surface pressure of a sealing member that waterproofs the gap between the resin part and the mating connector at the opening, and the plate is provided with a three-dimensional insulating part that insulates the terminal from the plate.

[0010] According to this configuration, a three-dimensional insulating portion is provided between the terminal and the plate. Therefore, even if a crack forms in the resin portion extending from the terminal to the plate and water seeps in through the interface between the plate and the resin portion, the insulating portion prevents the water from reaching the crack. This makes it less likely that water that seeps into the connector from the interface between the resin portion and the plate will reach the terminal through the crack. Therefore, a short circuit between the terminal and the plate caused by water seeping in through the interface between the resin portion and the plate is less likely to occur. This makes it possible to improve the reliability of the insulation in the connector.

[0011] [2] In the above [1], the terminals are provided in plurality, and the insulating part has a shape that faces the plurality of terminals as a single part. With this configuration, even if there are multiple terminals, the insulating part is a single part, which contributes to simplifying the connector structure.

[0012] [3] In the above [1] or [2], a positioning portion for positioning the insulating portion on the plate is provided between the plate and the insulating portion. With this configuration, the insulating portion can be fixed to the plate by the positioning portion, making it difficult for the insulating portion to become misaligned.

[0013] [4] In any of [1] to [3] above, the terminal is a wire-attached terminal, and the insulating portion has thick and thin portions corresponding to the shape of the wire-attached terminal arranged opposite to it. With this configuration, if the wire-attached terminal has, for example, a stepped portion, thick and thin portions corresponding to the stepped portion are formed in the insulating portion. Therefore, by maintaining a constant distance between the wire-attached terminal and the insulating portion, it is possible to remove weight from the resin portion in that area. This makes it possible to reduce the thickness of the resin portion formed between the wire-attached terminal and the insulating portion, thereby suppressing the occurrence of voids or sink marks in that area.

[0014] [5] In any of [1] to [4] above, the resin portion has an annular portion shaped to correspond to the opening, the terminal is arranged exposed inside the annular portion, the plate has a plate body that presses the seal member when fixed to the connector mating, and a plate hole formed in the plate body in a shape corresponding to the opening, and the insulating portion is arranged along the periphery of the plate hole. With this configuration, when the resin portion has a shape with an annular portion, it is possible to arrange the insulating portion along the annular portion. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent short circuits caused by water seeping in from the interface between the resin portion and the plate.

[0015] [6] In the above [5], the resin part has a terminal mounting part for accommodating the terminal on a side surface of the annular part, and the insulating part is disposed between the terminal accommodated in the terminal mounting part and the plate. With this configuration, for a connector in which the terminal and the plate are disposed close to each other, the insulating part provided between the terminal and the plate can provide a measure against short circuits caused by water intrusion from the interface between the resin part and the plate.

[0016] [7] In any of the above [1] to [6], the insulating portion is formed on the plate by primary molding, and the resin portion is formed by secondary molding, which integrates the terminal and the plate with resin. With this configuration, the insulating portion is formed on the plate by molding, and the terminal and the plate are also integrated by molding. This allows the same manufacturing method for both, contributing to simplification of manufacturing.

[0017] [8] In any of the above [1] to [6], the insulating part is formed as a separate part from the plate and is integrated with the plate by assembly. With this configuration, it is possible to manufacture a plate having an insulating part by a simple method of attaching the insulating part, which is manufactured in a separate process, to the plate.

[0018] [Details of the embodiments of the present disclosure] Specific examples of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to these examples, but is defined by the claims, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the claims. In each drawing, for the convenience of explanation, some components may be exaggerated or simplified. Furthermore, the dimensional proportions of each part may differ from the actual ones.

[0019] (Connector 1) As shown in Figure 1, connector 1 includes terminals 2, a resin portion 3, and a plate 4. Connector 1 has a structure in which terminals 2 and plate 4 are molded to integrate them into resin portion 3. Molding is a molding method in which terminals 2 and plate 4 are manufactured as an integrated part by, for example, setting terminals 2 and plate 4 in a mold, pouring resin into the mold, and allowing it to harden.

[0020] The connector 1 is attached and fixed to a mating connector 5 having electrical terminals (not shown) to which the terminals 2 are connected. The mating connector 5 is, for example, a hollow case with a predetermined electrical component (not shown) mounted inside. The connector 1 is fixed to the mating connector 5 so that the tip of the terminal 2 is positioned in an opening 6 formed in the mating connector 5. In this example, a plurality of terminals 2 (six in this example) are provided.

[0021] (Resin part 3) As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the resin part 3 has an annular part 8 having a shape corresponding to the opening 6. In this example, the annular part 8 has a hole 9 formed to communicate with the opening 6. The resin part 3 has a terminal mounting part 10 on the side surface of the annular part 8 that accommodates the terminal 2. In this example, a plurality of terminal mounting parts 10 (six in this example) are provided for each terminal 2.

[0022] As shown in Figure 1, the connector 1 is attached and fixed to the mating connector 5 with a seal member 11 interposed between the resin part 3 and the mating connector 5. The seal member 11 is, for example, an annular rubber packing. A seal receiving recess 12 (see Figure 2) that positions the seal member 11 in the resin part 3 is formed on the back surface of the resin part 3. The seal receiving recess 12 is formed in an annular shape so as to surround the hole 9.

[0023] (Plate 4) As shown in Fig. 4, the plate 4 has a plate body 14 that presses against the seal member 11 when fixed to the mating connector 5, and a plate hole 15 formed in the plate body 14 in a shape corresponding to the opening 6. The plate 4 is attached to the mating connector 5 in a state where the plate body 14 strongly presses against the seal member 11 arranged between the plate 4 and the mating connector 5, ensuring surface pressure. The plate 4 is made of metal.

[0024] 1, a plurality of holes 17 are formed on both sides of the plate body 14 for inserting fastening parts 16 (only one shown) such as bolts or screws that fasten the plate 4 to the mating connector 5. The plate 4 is fixed to the mating connector 5 by inserting the shanks of the fastening parts 16 into the holes 17 formed on both sides of the plate body 14 and fastening the shanks of the fastening parts 16 to fastened parts 18 of the mating connector 5.

[0025] 4, the plate 4 is formed with through holes 19 in which resin is placed to connect the resin material on the front side of the plate with the resin material on the back side of the plate. A plurality of through holes 19 (six in total in this example) are arranged along the periphery of the plate hole 15. The resin part 3 is firmly fixed to the plate 4 by connecting the resin material on the front side of the plate with the resin material on the back side of the plate by the resin material accommodated in the through holes 19.

[0026] (Terminal 2) As shown in Figures 5 and 6, the terminal 2 is a wire-attached terminal 22 in which the terminal 2 is fixed to the tip of an electric wire 21. The electric wire 21 has a core wire 23 and an insulating coating 24 that covers the periphery of the core wire 23. Examples of the core wire 23 include a bus bar and a twisted wire. A predetermined amount of the core wire 23 is exposed to the outside from the end of the insulating coating 24. A heat-shrinkable tube 25 is attached to the outer periphery of the insulating coating 24 at the entrance position of the terminal mounting portion 10, ensuring waterproofing of the interface between the resin portion 3 and the insulating coating 24.

[0027] The terminal 2 has a wire connection portion 26 to which the core wire 23 of the electric wire 21 is connected, and a contact portion 27 to be fixed to an electrical terminal (not shown) of the mating connector 5. The contact portion 27 is formed in a shape in which a plate-like conductor is bent multiple times. Specifically, the contact portion 27 has a base end portion 28 formed in a shape extending obliquely from the wire connection portion 26, an intermediate portion 29 bent downward from the end of the base end portion 28 by approximately 90 degrees, and a tip portion 30 bent upward from the end of the intermediate portion 29 by approximately 90 degrees. As described above, the terminal 2 is arranged such that the axes of the wire connection portion 26 and the tip portion 30 do not overlap each other in a plan view. The terminal 2 is arranged exposed inside the annular portion 8 of the resin portion 3. Specifically, a portion of the contact portion 27 of the terminal 2 is arranged exposed inside the annular portion 8.

[0028] (insulating part 32) 5 and 7, the plate 4 is provided with a three-dimensional insulating portion 32 that insulates the terminal 2 from the plate 4. The insulating portion 32 is provided to ensure insulation between the terminal 2 and the plate 4, for example, even if a crack 33 (see FIG. 11) or the like occurs in the resin portion 3. The three-dimensional shape of the insulating portion 32 refers to, for example, a shape with a certain degree of thickness. The insulating portion 32 is made of, for example, resin.

[0029] In this example, the insulating portion 32 is disposed along the periphery of the plate hole 15. The insulating portion 32 has, for example, a shape that faces multiple terminals 2 as a single component. Specifically, the insulating portion 32 is formed in a strip shape so as to face multiple terminals 2.

[0030] An example of the insulating portion 32 is a primary molded product. In this case, the insulating portion 32 is formed on the plate 4 by primary molding. The resin portion 3 is formed by secondary molding, which integrally forms the terminals 2 and the plate 4. That is, the plate 4 having the insulating portion 32 is formed by primary molding, and the plate 4 and the terminals 2 are integrated by secondary molding.

[0031] The insulating portion 32 may be, for example, a separate component that is later attached to the plate 4. In this case, the insulating portion 32 is integrated with the plate 4 by assembly. That is, the insulating portion 32 is formed in a separate manufacturing process, and the plate 4 having the insulating portion 32 is manufactured by assembling the insulating portion 32 to the plate 4.

[0032] 8, the insulating portion 32 is disposed, for example, between the terminal 2 accommodated in the terminal mounting portion 10 and the plate 4. The insulating portion 32 is attached to the plate 4 and disposed so as to face the terminal 2. In this example, the insulating portion 32 is disposed so as to face the electric wire connection portion 26 of the terminal 2. The insulating portion 32 is disposed so as to be entirely hidden inside the resin portion 3.

[0033] (Stepped shape of insulating portion 32) 8, the wire-attached terminal 22 is formed in a shape having a step portion 35 at a portion where the core wire 23 is exposed from the insulating coating 24. In this example, the insulating portion 32 is formed in a stepped shape corresponding to the step portion 35 of the wire-attached terminal 22. Specifically, the insulating portion 32 has a thick portion 36 facing the wire connection portion 26 to which the core wire 23 is fixed, and a thin portion 37 facing the insulating coating 24. In this way, the insulating portion 32 is formed in a stepped shape having the thick portion 36 and the thin portion 37 so as to correspond to the shape of the wire-attached terminal 22 arranged opposite to it.

[0034] 9, the thick portions 36 are formed, for example, along the plate holes 15 of the plate 4, and are thus formed into a shape that connects a plurality of thin portions 37. Specifically, the thick portions 36 have protruding portions 36a that protrude in the direction of the thin portions 37, and recessed portions 36b that avoid the through holes 19. The protruding portions 36a are formed for each thin portion 37. The recessed portions 36b are formed for each through hole 19. The thin portions 37 are formed lower than the thick portions 36, and extend to positions where they are located on the edge of the plate 4.

[0035] (positioning part 39) 10 , a positioning portion 39 for positioning the insulating portion 32 on the plate 4 is provided between the plate 4 and the insulating portion 32. The positioning portion 39 has, for example, a plurality of positioning protrusions 40 formed on the insulating portion 32 and a plurality of positioning holes 41 formed on the plate 4. The positioning protrusions 40 are arranged side by side in the width direction on the back surface of the insulating portion 32. The positioning holes 41 are formed through the plate 4 to correspond to the respective positioning protrusions 40.

[0036] (Operation of the embodiment) Next, the operation of the connector 1 of this embodiment will be described. 11, in the case of a connector 1 having a resin part 3, for example, a crack 33 extending from the terminal 2 to the plate 4 may occur in the resin part 3. If a crack 33 of this shape occurs in the resin part 3, and water seeps into the interior from the interface between the resin part 3 and the plate 4 and reaches the crack 33, the water may reach the terminal 2, causing a short circuit between the terminal 2 and the plate 4.

[0037] In this example, since the insulating portion 32 is provided on the plate 4, even if water seeps in from the interface between the resin portion 3 and the plate 4, the insulating portion 32 can block the water and prevent it from reaching the cracks 33. In other words, water that has seeped into the resin portion 3 is less likely to reach the terminal 2. Therefore, insulation between the terminal 2 and the plate 4 is ensured.

[0038] Furthermore, in this example, the insulating portion 32 has a three-dimensional shape, which allows for corresponding lightening of the resin portion 3. Specifically, the insulating portion 32 has a shape including a thick portion 36 and a thin portion 37 to match the shape of the stepped portion 35 of the wire-attached terminal 22, which allows for lightening of the insulating portion 32 in this portion. Therefore, when the connector 1 in which the terminal 2 and the plate 4 are integrated with resin is molded, it is possible to prevent voids or sink marks from occurring in the portion of the resin portion 3 facing the wire-attached terminal 22.

[0039] (Effects of the embodiment) According to the connector 1 of the above embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. (1) Connector 1 includes terminals 2, a resin portion 3, and a plate 4. Resin portion 3 is formed integrally with terminals 2 by molding, and is disposed in opening 6 formed in a connector mating portion 5 so that terminals 2 are positioned in opening 6. Plate 4 is formed integrally with resin portion 3 together with terminals 2 by molding in order to ensure the surface pressure of seal member 11 that seals between resin portion 3 and connector mating portion 5 at opening 6. Plate 4 is provided with a three-dimensional insulating portion 32 that insulates terminals 2 from plate 4.

[0040] According to this configuration, a three-dimensional insulating portion 32 is provided between the terminal 2 and the plate 4. Therefore, even if a crack 33 extending from the terminal 2 to the plate 4 is formed in the resin portion 3 and water seeps in from the interface between the resin portion 3 and the plate 4, the insulating portion 32 prevents the water from reaching the crack 33. This makes it less likely that water that has seeped into the connector 1 from the interface between the resin portion 3 and the plate 4 will reach the terminal 2 through the crack 33. Therefore, a short circuit between the terminal 2 and the plate 4 caused by water seeping in from the interface between the resin portion 3 and the plate 4 is less likely to occur. This makes it possible to improve the reliability of insulation in the connector 1.

[0041] (2) A plurality of terminals 2 are provided. The insulating portion 32 has a shape that faces the plurality of terminals 2 as a single component. With this configuration, even if there are a plurality of terminals 2, the insulating portion 32 is a single component, which contributes to simplifying the structure of the connector 1.

[0042] (3) A positioning portion 39 is provided between the plate 4 and the insulating portion 32 to position the insulating portion 32 on the plate 4. According to this configuration, the insulating portion 32 can be fixed to the plate 4 by the positioning portion 39, making it difficult for the insulating portion 32 to become misaligned.

[0043] (4) The terminal 2 is a wire-attached terminal 22. The insulating portion 32 has a thick portion 36 and a thin portion 37 that correspond to the shape of the wire-attached terminal 22 that is arranged opposite to it. With this configuration, if the wire-attached terminal 22 has, for example, a stepped portion 35, the thick portion 36 and the thin portion 37 that correspond to the stepped portion 35 are formed in the insulating portion 32. Therefore, by making the distance between the wire-attached terminal 22 and the insulating portion 32 constant, it is possible to remove weight from the resin portion 3 in that portion. This makes it possible to reduce the thickness of the resin portion 3 formed between the wire-attached terminal 22 and the insulating portion 32, thereby suppressing the occurrence of voids or sink marks in that portion.

[0044] (5) The resin part 3 has an annular part 8 shaped to correspond to the opening 6. The terminal 2 is arranged exposed inside the annular part 8. The plate 4 has a plate main body 14 that presses the seal member 11 when fixed to the connector mating part 5, and a plate hole 15 formed in the plate main body 14 in a shape corresponding to the opening 6. The insulating part 32 is arranged along the periphery of the plate hole 15. With this configuration, when the resin part 3 has a shape having the annular part 8, it is possible to arrange the insulating part 32 along the annular part. Therefore, an effective measure can be taken against short circuits caused by water seeping in from the interface between the resin part 3 and the plate 4.

[0045] (6) The resin part 3 has a terminal mounting part 10 on the side of the annular part 8, which accommodates the terminal 2. The insulating part 32 is disposed between the terminal 2 accommodated in the terminal mounting part 10 and the plate 4. With this configuration, for a connector 1 in which the terminal 2 and the plate 4 are disposed close to each other, the insulating part 32 provided between the terminal 2 and the plate 4 can provide a measure against short circuits caused by water entering through the interface between the resin part 3 and the plate 4.

[0046] (7) The insulating portion 32 is formed on the plate 4 by primary molding. The resin portion 3 is formed by secondary molding, which integrates the terminal 2 and the plate 4 with resin. With this configuration, the insulating portion 32 is formed on the plate 4 by molding, and the terminal 2 and the plate 4 are also integrated by molding. This allows the same manufacturing method for both, which contributes to simplifying manufacturing.

[0047] (8) The insulating portion 32 is formed as a separate part from the plate 4 and is integrated with the plate 4 by assembly. With this configuration, the plate 4 having the insulating portion 32 can be manufactured by a simple method of attaching the insulating portion 32, which is manufactured in a separate process, to the plate 4.

[0048] (Other embodiments) This embodiment can be modified as follows: This embodiment and the following modifications can be combined and implemented within the scope of technical compatibility.

[0049] The insulating portion 32 may be formed around the entire periphery of the plate hole 15 . The insulating portion 32 does not necessarily have to be formed only on the front surface of the plate 4, but may also be formed on the rear surface.

[0050] The insulating portion 32 is not limited to being formed only on a part of the interface between the resin portion 3 and the plate 4, but may be formed on the entire interface (including substantially the entire interface). The insulating portion 32 is not limited to a shape having a thick portion 36 and a thin portion 37, and may have a shape with a uniform thickness.

[0051] The thick portion 36 may be formed for each thin portion 37. That is, the insulating portion 32 may be formed in a shape that is divided for each terminal 2. The thin portion 37 may be formed as a single portion, similar to the thick portion 36 .

[0052] The terminal 2 does not necessarily have to be disposed on the side of the resin part 3 (specifically, the annular part 8), but may be disposed, for example, on the upper part of the resin part 3 (specifically, the annular part 8). The number of terminals 2 is not limited to a plurality, and may be one.

[0053] The resin part 3 may have a shape that does not have the hole 9. In this case, the resin part 3 is fixed to the mating connector 5 so as to close the opening 6 of the mating connector 5. The number of fastening portions 16 used when fixing the plate 4 to the connector mounting member 5 by the fastening portions 16 may be changed as appropriate to a number other than that shown in the embodiment.

[0054] The positions of the holes 17 in the plate 4 may be changed as appropriate to positions other than those in the embodiment. The structure for fixing the plate 4 to the mating connector 5 is not limited to the structure using the fastening portion 16, but may be a structure in which a lock piece engages with a protruding portion, for example.

[0055] While the present disclosure has been described with reference to the embodiments, it is understood that the present disclosure is not limited to those embodiments or structures. The present disclosure also encompasses various modifications and equivalent modifications. In addition, various combinations and forms, including only one element, more than one element, or less than one element, are also within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. [Explanation of symbols]

[0056] 1 connector 2 terminals 3 Resin part 4 plates 5 Connector mounting partner 6 Opening 8 Annular section 9 Hole 10 Terminal mounting part 11 Sealing material 12 Seal receiving recess 14 Plate body 15 plate holes 16 Fastening part 17 Hole 18 Part to be fastened 19 Through hole 21 Electric wire 22 Wire terminal 23 core wire 24 Insulation coating 25 Heat shrink tubing 26 Wire connection 27 Contact point 28 Proximal end 29 Middle section 30 Tip 32 Insulation section 33 Crack 35 Stepped part 36 Thick part 36a Protruding part 36b Concave part 37 Thin-walled section 39 Positioning part 40 Positioning protrusion 41 Positioning hole

Claims

1. A connector comprising: a terminal; a resin part formed integrally with the terminal by molding and disposed in an opening formed in a mating connector so that the terminal is positioned in the opening; and a plate formed integrally with the resin part together with the terminal by molding in order to ensure a surface pressure of a seal member that seals water between the resin part and the mating connector at the opening, The plate is provided with a three-dimensional insulating portion that insulates the terminal from the plate.

2. The terminals are provided in plurality, The connector according to claim 1 , wherein the insulating portion has a shape that faces a plurality of the terminals as a single part.

3. The connector according to claim 1 , further comprising a positioning portion provided between the plate and the insulating portion for positioning the insulating portion on the plate.

4. the terminal is a wire-attached terminal, The connector according to claim 1 , wherein the insulating portion has a thick portion and a thin portion having shapes corresponding to the shapes of the wire-connected terminals arranged opposite to each other.

5. the resin portion has an annular portion having a shape corresponding to the opening, The terminal is disposed inside the annular portion and exposed therefrom, The plate has a plate body that presses the seal member when fixed to the connector mounting mating part, and a plate hole formed in the plate body in a shape corresponding to the opening, The connector according to claim 1 , wherein the insulating portion is disposed along a periphery of the plate hole.

6. the resin portion has a terminal mounting portion on a side surface of the annular portion for accommodating the terminal, The connector according to claim 5 , wherein the insulating portion is disposed between the terminal housed in the terminal mounting portion and the plate.

7. the insulating portion is formed on the plate by primary molding; The connector according to claim 1 , wherein the resin portion is formed by secondary molding in which the terminal and the plate are integrated with resin.

8. 2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the insulating portion is formed as a separate part from the plate and is integrated with the plate by assembly.

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