Electric connector for circuit board

Abstract

To provide an electric connector for a circuit board, capable of easily improving drip-proof performance even if a part of a terminal connected to a circuit board is exposed from a housing.SOLUTION: An electric connector 1 for a circuit board includes a housing 10, and a plurality of terminals 20 held by the housing 10 while being arranged in one direction parallel to a mounting surface of the circuit board, as a terminal arrangement direction, each terminal 20 having, at an extension 23 extending from the rear of the housing 10, a connection 23A connected to a circuit on the mounting surface. The electric connector has a cover member 40 attached to the housing 10 so as to cover the extension 23, the cover member 40 has a top plate 41 covering the top face of the housing 10, the top plate 41 has slopes 41A extending from an intermediate position toward both end positions, respectively, in the terminal arrangement direction, and the slopes 41A slope downward toward the respective both end positions in the terminal arrangement direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electrical connector for a circuit board that is mounted on the mounting surface of a circuit board and to which a mating connector is connected from the front. [Background technology]

[0002] As an example of such an electrical connector for a circuit board, Patent Document 1 discloses a board-side connector in which a mating cable-side connector is connected from the front in a front-rear direction parallel to the circuit board. In this board-side connector, multiple terminals held in a housing have extensions (legs) extending from the rear surface of the housing. The extensions are bent in a crank shape, and their lower ends are soldered to the mounting surface of the circuit board. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2020-187945 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In Patent Document 1, the terminal extensions are exposed from the rear surface of the housing. Therefore, if water droplets generated outside the board-side connector, such as water droplets generated by condensation on the surface of the board-side connector itself or other electrical devices arranged around it, adhere to the extensions, the extensions may be damaged by corrosion or other reasons. Patent Document 1 also describes covering the extensions with a potting material to improve waterproofing (drip-proofing). However, this requires the complicated task of covering the extensions with the potting material after mounting the board-side connector on the circuit board.

[0005] In view of the above circumstances, the present invention aims to provide an electrical connector for a circuit board that can easily improve drip-proofness even if a portion of the terminals to be connected to the circuit board are exposed from the housing. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] (1) The electrical connector of the present invention is an electrical connector for a circuit board that is mounted on the mounting surface of the circuit board and to which a mating connector is connected from the front, and has a housing and a plurality of terminals held in the housing in a state where the terminals are arranged in a direction parallel to the mounting surface, and the terminals have connection portions on extension portions extending from the rear of the housing that are connected to the circuit portion of the mounting surface.

[0007] In such an electrical connector for a circuit board, the present invention has a cover member attached to the housing so as to cover the extension portion, and the cover member has an upper plate portion covering the upper surface of the housing, and the upper plate portion has an inclined portion on its upper surface extending from the middle position toward both end positions in the terminal arrangement direction, and the inclined portion inclines downward as it approaches both end positions in the terminal arrangement direction.

[0008] In this invention, the extensions of the terminals are covered by the cover member, so that water droplets generated outside the connector are less likely to adhere to the extensions. Also, in this invention, the drip-proofing can be easily improved by simply attaching the cover member to the housing, eliminating the need for potting work as in the past.

[0009] Furthermore, by providing an inclined portion on the top surface of the cover, water droplets adhering to the top surface of the cover flow down the inclined portion toward both ends in the terminal arrangement direction, preventing water droplets from flowing backward, i.e., toward the side where the terminal extensions are provided. This more reliably prevents water droplets from adhering to the extensions.

[0010] (2) In the invention of (1), the cover member has a protruding edge portion that protrudes from the upper surface of the upper plate portion at a part of the periphery of the upper plate portion, and the protruding edge portion may be formed along the rear edge portion of the upper plate portion and both side edges of the rear portion of the upper plate portion.

[0011] In the invention of (2), even if water droplets flow backward along the upper surface of the upper plate, they are blocked by the protruding edge extending along the rear edge of the upper plate. Furthermore, even if water droplets flow toward both ends of the upper surface of the rear part of the upper plate in the terminal arrangement direction, they are blocked by the protruding edge extending along the side edge of the upper plate. Therefore, water droplets flow down from the front side edge of the upper plate, i.e., the part without the protruding edge, along the front side of the cover member. In other words, water droplets flow down at a position away from the rear side of the cover member, i.e., the side where the terminal extensions are exposed. As a result, water droplets can be more reliably prevented from adhering to the extensions. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] The present invention can provide an electrical connector for a circuit board that can easily improve drip-proofness even if a portion of the terminals to be connected to the circuit board are exposed from the housing. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view showing an electrical connector for a circuit board according to an embodiment of the present invention mounted on a circuit board, as viewed from the front side; [Figure 2] 1A is a front view of the electrical connector for a circuit board as seen from the front, and FIG. 1B is a plan view of the electrical connector for a circuit board as seen from above. [Figure 3] 2 is a perspective view showing the components of the electrical connector for a circuit board separated from one another; FIG. [Figure 4] 1 is a perspective view of the circuit board electrical connector before the cover member is attached, as viewed from the rear side; FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the cover member as seen from below. [Figure 6] 2A is a cross-sectional view taken along line VIA-VIA in FIG. 2A, and FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view taken along line VIB-VIB in FIG. 2A. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0015] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an electrical connector 1 (hereinafter simply referred to as "connector 1") according to this embodiment mounted on a circuit board P, as viewed from the front. FIG. 2(A) is a front view of the connector 1 as viewed from the front, and FIG. 2(B) is a plan view of the connector 1 as viewed from above. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing each component of the connector 1 separated. The connector 1 is an electrical connector for a circuit board mounted on the mounting surface of the circuit board P, and is designed so that a mating connector (not shown) is inserted and removed in the front-to-rear direction (X-axis direction) parallel to the mounting surface. Specifically, the mating connector is mated and connected to the connector 1 from the front (X1 side). In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the connector 1 is mounted on the front end side of the circuit board P, and the front end of the connector 1 slightly protrudes from the front end of the circuit board P. The mating connector is, for example, an electrical connector for a cable to which multiple cables extending in the front-to-rear direction are connected.

[0016] The connector 1 has a housing 10, a plurality of terminals 20 (see Figure 3) held in the housing 10 in an arrangement with the connector width direction (Y-axis direction) parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board P as the terminal arrangement direction, fixing brackets 30 (see Figure 3) held at both ends of the housing 10 in the terminal arrangement direction, and a cover member 40 attached to the housing 10.

[0017] The housing 10 is made of an electrically insulating material such as resin and has a generally rectangular parallelepiped shape with the terminal arrangement direction (Y-axis direction) as its longitudinal direction. The housing 10 has an upper wall 11 and a lower wall 12 that face each other in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction), side walls 13 provided at both ends of the housing 10 in the terminal arrangement direction, a rear wall 14 (see FIG. 4) provided at the rear end of the housing 10, and a central wall 15 (see FIG. 2(A)) that protrudes forward from the central region of the rear wall 14. The space surrounded by the upper wall 11, lower wall 12, side walls 13, and rear wall 14 and opening forward forms a receiving portion 16 for receiving a mating connector from the front.

[0018] 2(A), the housing 10 is also provided with terminal accommodating sections 17 arranged in the terminal arrangement direction for accommodating and holding portions of the terminals 20. These terminal accommodating sections 17 form two levels in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction). The terminal accommodating sections 17 extend in the front-rear direction and penetrate the housing 10, specifically the central wall 15 and rear wall 14, to receive, accommodate, and hold portions of the terminals 20 from the rear (X2 side).

[0019] As shown in Fig. 3, upper wall 11 has upper recesses 11A formed on both ends in the terminal arrangement direction, which recess from the upper surface of upper wall 11 and extend in the front-to-rear direction. Upper recesses 11A are capable of collecting water droplets adhering to the upper surface of upper wall 11. Two locking holes 11B are formed in the front part of upper wall 11 at intermediate positions in the terminal arrangement direction, penetrating upper wall 11. Locking holes 11B can be engaged with locking protrusions (not shown) provided on a mating connector.

[0020] The side wall 13 extends in the vertical direction, connecting the ends of the upper wall 11 and the lower wall 12 in the terminal arrangement direction, and its outer surface intersects (orthogonal in this embodiment) with the terminal arrangement direction. A side recess 13A is formed in the front portion of the side wall 13, recessed from the outer surface of the front portion and extending from the upper end to the lower end of the side wall 13. The side recess 13A has a groove-shaped upper groove 13B extending in the vertical direction and a groove-shaped lower groove 13C extending in the front-rear direction below the upper groove 13B. The side recess 13A has the function of allowing water droplets adhering to the upper surface of the housing 10, for example, water droplets accumulated in the upper recess 11A, to flow downward when they flow onto the side wall 13.

[0021] The upper groove 13B communicates with the upper recess 11A at its upper end and with the rear of the lower groove 13C at its lower end. The upper groove 13B functions as a guide that guides the engaging projection 42A (described later) of the cover member 40 downward during the process of attaching the cover member 40 to the housing 10. The upper portion of the upper groove 13B has a groove width that increases upward (see FIG. 6(A)), making it easier to receive the engaging projection 42A from above. In this manner, in this embodiment, the upper groove 13B has both the function of allowing water droplets to flow downward and the function of acting as a guide that guides the engaging projection 42A. This eliminates the need to form separate components that perform each function, thereby simplifying the shape of the housing 10 and preventing the housing 10 from becoming larger.

[0022] A front locking projection 13D for attaching the cover member 40 to the housing 10 is formed at the bottom of the upper groove 13B and protrudes from the outer surface of the side wall 13. The rear end of the front locking projection 13D is connected to the rear edge 13B-1 of the upper groove 13B within the upper groove 13B, and a small gap is formed between the front end and the front edge 13B-2 of the upper groove 13B (see FIGS. 4 and 6(A)). Therefore, water droplets flowing down the upper groove 13B can pass through the gap and flow down to the lower groove 13C without being blocked by the front locking projection 13D.

[0023] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the lower groove 13C extends to the front end of the side wall 13, and the front end of the lower groove 13C is open toward the front (see also FIG. 6(A)). On the other hand, the rear end of the lower groove 13C is closed. The lower groove 13C has an opening 13C-2 formed by cutting out the front end of its lower edge 13C-1. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the opening 13C-2 is located forward of the front end of the circuit board P and is open downward to communicate with the outside. Therefore, water droplets that flow down into the lower groove 13C flow forward and then flow downward toward the outside via the opening 13C-2.

[0024] In this embodiment, as described above, water droplets adhering to the upper surface of the housing 10 flow down along the side recess 13A, and therefore the water droplets do not flow down the rear surface of the housing 10, i.e., the surface on which the extension portion 23 (described below) of the terminal 20 is exposed. Therefore, it is possible to prevent water droplets from adhering to the extension portion 23.

[0025] Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing the connector 1 before the cover member 40 is attached, as viewed from the rear side. As shown in Fig. 4, rear protruding walls 18 are provided at the rear of the lower part of the housing 10, protruding rearward from the side walls 13 at both ends in the terminal arrangement direction. The rear protruding walls 18 are located rearward of the rear wall 14 and are generally L-shaped when viewed in the terminal arrangement direction. A rear locking protrusion 18A is provided at the upper part of the rear protruding wall 18 for attaching the cover member 40 to the housing 10. The rear locking protrusion 18A has a claw-like shape that protrudes rearward.

[0026] Terminal 20 is formed by bending a metal plate member in the thickness direction, and as shown in Fig. 3, has a held portion 21 that is held in housing 10, a contact portion 22 that extends forward from the front end of held portion 21, and an extending portion 23 that extends from the rear end of the held portion. Terminal 20 is held by holding portion 21 being press-fitted from behind into terminal accommodating portion 17 of housing 10. Specifically, held portion 21 and contact portion 22 are housed in terminal accommodating portion 17, and extending portion 23 extends rearward from terminal accommodating portion 17 (see Fig. 4).

[0027] The contact portion 22 is an elastically deformable contact piece that can come into contact with a mating terminal (not shown) provided on a mating connector. As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the extension portion 23 extends rearward, then bends downward, and then bends rearward again, forming a crank shape as a whole when viewed in the terminal arrangement direction. The lower end (free end) of the extension portion 23 that extends rearward is formed as a connection portion 23A for connection to a circuit portion (not shown) of the circuit board P. The connection portion 23A is soldered to the circuit portion of the circuit board P while its underside is in contact with the circuit portion.

[0028] The fixing bracket 30 is made by punching out a metal plate member, and as shown in Fig. 3, has a held plate portion 31 for being held in the housing 10 and a plurality of fixing portions 32 extending downward from the lower edge of the held plate portion 31. As shown in Fig. 4, the fixing bracket 30 is press-fitted from above into slit-shaped fitting holding portions 13E formed at both ends of the housing 10, and is held by both side edges extending in the vertical direction of the held plate portion 31. The fixing portions 32 also extend downward from the fitting holding portions 13E, and are soldered and fixed to the circuit board P while being inserted into holes (not shown) in the circuit board P.

[0029] 5 is a perspective view of cover member 40 as viewed from below. Cover member 40 is made of an electrically insulating material such as resin, and is provided to cover extension portions 23 of terminals 20 exposed from the rear of housing 10 for purposes such as protecting them from dripping or preventing contact with an operator's fingers. Cover member 40 has an upper plate portion 41 that covers housing 10 from above, side plate portions 42 that cover housing 10 from the sides, and a rear plate portion 43 that covers housing 10 from the rear.

[0030] As shown in FIG. 1 , the upper plate portion 41 covers almost the entire upper wall 11 of the housing 10 from above. The upper plate portion 41 has an inclined portion 41A on its upper surface, which extends from the center toward both end positions in the terminal arrangement direction. As shown in FIG. 2A , the inclined portion 41A slopes downward from the center toward both end positions in the terminal arrangement direction. In other words, the upper surface of the upper plate portion 41 has a roof-like shape. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2A , the inclination angle of the inclined portion 41A in the central region of the upper plate portion 41 in the terminal arrangement direction is larger than the inclination angle in both end regions (regions outside the central region in the terminal arrangement direction). In this embodiment, water droplets adhering to the upper surface of the upper plate portion 41 flow along the inclined portion 41A toward both end sides in the terminal arrangement direction. This prevents water droplets from flowing backward, i.e., toward the side where the extension portions 23 of the terminals 20 are provided.

[0031] As shown in Fig. 1, a protruding edge 41B is formed on part of the periphery of the upper plate 41, protruding from the upper surface of the upper plate 41. Specifically, the protruding edge 41B is formed along the rear edge of the upper plate 41 and along both side edges (edges extending in the front-to-rear direction) of the rear portion of the upper plate 41. The protruding edge 41B is designed to block water droplets adhering to the upper surface of the upper plate 41. Furthermore, the protruding edge 41B is not formed on both side edges of the front portion of the upper plate 41.

[0032] In this embodiment, even if water droplets flow rearward, they are blocked by the protruding edges 41B extending along the rear edge of the upper plate 41 and do not flow down the outer surface (rear surface) of the rear plate 43. Furthermore, water droplets that flow along the upper surface of the rear portion of the upper plate 41 toward both ends in the terminal arrangement direction are blocked by the protruding edges 41B extending along the side edges of the upper plate 41 and do not flow down the outer surfaces (outer surfaces) of the rear portions of the side plates 42. Therefore, water droplets flow down from both side edges of the front portion of the upper plate 41, i.e., portions where no protruding edges are provided, along the outer surfaces (outer surfaces) of the front portions of the side plates 42. In other words, water droplets flow down the rear side of the cover member 40, i.e., away from the side where the extensions 23 of the terminals 20 are exposed. As a result, adhesion of water droplets to the extensions 23 can be more reliably prevented.

[0033] As shown in Figures 2(A), 3, and 5, side plate 42 has, at the lower front portion thereof, a locking projection 42A that projects from the inner surface of side plate 42. Figure 6(A) is a VIA-VIA cross-sectional view of Figure 2(A), showing a cross-section of connector 1 at the position of locking projection 42A and locking hole 43B (described below) in the terminal arrangement direction. Locking projection 42A is a projection for attaching cover member 40 to housing 10, and as shown in Figure 6(A), can be locked from below by front locking projection 13D of housing 10.

[0034] As shown in FIG. 4, the rear plate 43 has mounting portions 43A at both ends in the terminal arrangement direction, i.e., on both outer sides of the terminal arrangement range, that correspond to the rear locking projections 18A of the housing. The mounting portions 43A are cantilever-shaped elastic pieces that extend downward and are elastically deformable in the front-to-rear direction, and a locking hole 43B is formed at its lower end (free end) through the mounting portion 43A. FIG. 6(B) is a cross-sectional view taken along line VIB-VIB of FIG. 2(A) and shows a cross section of the connector 1 at the position of the locking hole 43B in the terminal arrangement direction. The locking hole 43B is a hole for attaching the cover member 40 to the housing 10. As shown in FIGS. 6(A) and 6(B), the rear locking projection 18A is received from the front, allowing the lower edge of the locking hole 43B to lock onto the rear locking projection 18A from below.

[0035] 4 and 5, the lower portion of rear plate portion 43 protrudes rearward. When cover member 40 is attached to housing 10, connecting portion 23A of terminal 20 is housed in the lower portion of rear plate portion 43.

[0036] The cover member 40 is attached to the housing 10 in the following manner. First, as shown in Figures 3 and 4, the cover member 40 is placed above the housing 10 in an orientation that is not inclined relative to the vertical direction (hereinafter referred to as the "non-inclined orientation"). At this time, the locked protrusion 42A of the cover member 40 is positioned directly above the upper end opening of the upper groove portion 13B of the housing 10. Next, the cover member 40 is moved straight downward while maintaining the non-inclined orientation, and the locked protrusion 42A enters the upper groove portion 13B from above. The locked protrusion 42A moves downward while being guided by the upper groove portion 13B.

[0037] As the cover member 40 is moved downward, the rear locking projection 18A of the housing 10 presses rearward against the inner surface of the mounting portion 43A of the cover member 40, slightly elastically deforming the mounting portion 43A rearward. This elastic deformation of the mounting portion 43A allows the cover member 40 to move further downward. When the mounting hole 43B reaches the position of the rear locking projection 18A, the mounting portion 43A returns to its free state, and the rear locking projection 18A enters the mounting hole 43B from the front. As a result, the lower edge of the mounting hole 43B is positioned so that it can be locked from below by the rear locking projection 18A (see FIGS. 6A and 6B).

[0038] Furthermore, the front locking projection 13D of the housing 10 abuts against the locked projection 42A of the cover member 40, slightly elastically deforming the side plate 42 outward in the terminal arrangement direction. This elastic deformation of the side plate 42 allows further downward movement of the cover member 40. When the locked projection 42A reaches a position below the front locking projection 13D, the side plate 42 returns to its free state, and the locked projection 42A is positioned so that it can be locked from below by the front locking projection 13D (see FIG. 6A).

[0039] In this way, the locked projection 42A and the front locking projection 13D can be locked, and the lower edge of the locked hole 43B can be locked with the rear locking projection 18A, completing the attachment of the cover member 40 to the housing 10. In this embodiment, the extensions 23 of the terminals 20 are covered by the cover member 40, so that water droplets generated outside the connector 1 are less likely to adhere to the extensions 23. Also, in this embodiment, drip-proofing can be easily improved by simply attaching the cover member 40 to the housing 10. Therefore, the potting process used in the past is no longer necessary. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] 1 connector 10. Housing 11A Upper recess 13A side recess 13D Front locking protrusion (locking protrusion) 20 terminals 23 Extension 23A connection 40 Cover member 41 Upper plate 41A Inclined section 41B Edge 42A Locked protrusion P circuit board

Claims

1. An electrical connector for a circuit board that is mounted on a mounting surface of a circuit board and to which a mating connector is connected from the front, Housing and a plurality of terminals held in the housing in a state where the terminals are arranged in a terminal arrangement direction parallel to the mounting surface; In the electrical connector for a circuit board, the terminals have connecting portions at extension portions extending from the rear portion of the housing, the connecting portions being connected to the circuit portion on the mounting surface, a cover member attached to the housing so as to cover the extension portion, the cover member has an upper plate portion that covers an upper surface of the housing, the upper plate portion has an inclined portion on its upper surface extending from a middle position toward both end positions in the terminal arrangement direction, 10. An electrical connector for a circuit board, wherein the inclined portion is inclined downward toward both ends in the terminal arrangement direction.

2. the cover member has a protruding edge portion that protrudes from an upper surface of the upper plate portion at a part of a periphery of the upper plate portion, 2. The electrical connector for a circuit board according to claim 1, wherein the protruding edge is formed along a rear edge of the upper plate and along both side edges of the rear of the upper plate.

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