Connector and wire harness

Abstract

To provide a connector 1 capable of smoothly performing a process of housing a short-circuit target terminal 50 in a terminal housing chamber 14, and a wire harness using the connector 1.SOLUTION: A connector 1 includes a housing 10 for housing a plurality of short-circuit target terminals 50 and short-circuit terminals 20, and a front holder (detection tool) 30 which can be locked from a temporary locking position to a regular locking position when the short-circuit target terminals 50 are housed in a regular position of the housing 10. The shorting terminal 20 includes a pedestal portion 21 and resiliently deformable contact pieces 22 bent toward the to-be-shorted terminals 50 from an end part of the pedestal portion 21 and extending toward a back side in the connecting direction. The front holder 30 has a contact surface 83 which comes into contact with the tip part of the contact piece 22 and brings the tip part of the contact piece 22 close to the pedestal part 21 when the front holder 30 is at the temporary locking position. The contact surface 83 is provided on an inclined surface that approaches the pedestal 21 toward the rear side in the fitting direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

[Technical Field]

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

[0002] Connectors have been proposed that include a detector (e.g., a front holder) for detecting whether terminals are accommodated in the proper positions of the terminal accommodating chambers. For example, in one conventional connector, the front holder is attached to the housing so as to be movable in a predetermined mating direction between a partial-locking position and a full-locking position. The front holder is configured so that it can move to the full-locking position when the terminals are in the proper position (hereinafter also referred to as the "full-insertion position"), but cannot move to the full-locking position when the terminals are in the partial-insertion position. As a result, the conventional connector can detect whether the terminals are accommodated in the proper positions (in other words, whether they are in a partial-insertion state) because the front holder cannot move to the full-locking position when the terminals are in the partial-insertion position (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-194633 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Incidentally, Patent Document 1 further includes a shorting terminal that contacts two or more terminals accommodated in two or more predetermined terminal accommodating chambers among the plurality of terminal accommodating chambers, thereby electrically shorting the two or more contacted terminals. When the two or more terminals are accommodated in the terminal accommodating chambers, the shorting terminal comes into contact with the two or more terminals. In recent years, there has been a demand for a structure that can more smoothly perform the process of accommodating terminals in the terminal accommodating chambers.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and its object is to provide a connector that allows the process of accommodating a terminal into a terminal accommodating chamber to be carried out smoothly, and a wire harness using the connector. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the connector according to the present invention has the following features. A plurality of terminals to be short-circuited; a shorting terminal that contacts the plurality of short-circuit target terminals; a housing that accommodates the plurality of short-circuit target terminals and the short terminal; a detector that is engaged with the housing at a temporary engagement position and that can be engaged from the temporary engagement position to a full engagement position when the short-circuit target terminal is accommodated in a regular position of the housing, The short terminal is A base portion and an elastically deformable contact piece extending from an end portion on a front side in a mating direction of the mating connector of the base portion to a rear side in the mating direction and bent toward the short-circuit target terminal; A connector having: The detection tool is the detection tool has a contact surface that comes into contact with the tip of the contact piece at the temporary locking position and brings the tip of the contact piece closer to the base portion, The contact surface is provided on an inclined surface that approaches the base portion toward the rear side in the fitting direction. It is a connector.

[0007] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the wire harness according to the present invention has the following features. The connector described above; and an electric wire to which the short-circuit target terminal accommodated in the housing is attached. It must be a wire harness. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] The connector and wire harness according to the present invention have the advantage that the process of accommodating terminals in terminal accommodating chambers can be smoothly performed and the designed functionality can be ensured.

[0009] The present invention has been briefly described above. The details of the present invention will become clearer by reading the following detailed description of the invention (hereinafter referred to as "embodiments") with reference to the accompanying drawings. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a connector according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a connector according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] FIG. 3(a) is a perspective view of the connector when the front holder is not attached, and FIG. 3(b) is a perspective view of the AA cross section of FIG. 3(a). [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the shorting terminal shown in FIG. [Figure 5] 5(a) is a perspective view of the front holder shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 5(b) is a perspective view of the BB cross section of FIG. 5(a), and FIG. 5(c) is a perspective view of the CC cross section of FIG. 5(a). [Figure 6] 6(a) is a front view of the connector shown in FIG. 2, and FIG. 6(b) is an enlarged view of part D in FIG. 6(a). [Figure 7] FIG. 7(a) is a perspective view of the EE cross section of FIG. 6(b) in a state where the terminals to be short-circuited are not inserted, and FIG. 7(b) is an enlarged view of part H of FIG. 7(a). [Figure 8] 8(a) is an FF cross-sectional view of FIG. 6(b) in a state where the shorting terminal is in the intermediate insertion position, and FIG. 8(b) is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of FIG. 8(a). [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing the relationship between the housing, connector, shorting terminal, and short-circuit target terminal. [Figure 10]Figure 10(a) is a schematic diagram showing the short terminal when the front holder is not attached, Figure 10(b) is a schematic diagram showing the short terminal when the front holder is being attached, Figure 10(c) is a schematic diagram showing the short terminal when the front holder is being attached further from the state of Figure 10(b), Figure 10(d) is a schematic diagram showing the short terminal when the front holder is in a temporary locking position, Figure 10(e) is a schematic diagram showing the short terminal when the front holder is in a temporary locking position and a short-circuit target terminal is accommodated in the short-circuit target terminal accommodating chamber, and Figure 10(f) is a schematic diagram showing the short terminal when the front holder is in a full locking position. [Figure 11] 11(a) and 11(b) are diagrams corresponding to FIGS. 8(a) and 8(b) relating to a comparative example of the embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] <Embodiment> Hereinafter, a connector 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention and a wire harness using the connector 1 will be described with reference to the drawings. As shown in Fig. 1, a housing 10 of the connector 1 is adapted to mate with a mating housing 70 of a mating connector 2. When the connector 1 (housing 10) and the mating connector 2 (mating housing 70) are mated, terminals (female terminals) 50 (see Figs. 9 and 10) housed in the housing 10 are electrically connected to mating terminals (male terminals) 80 housed in the mating housing 70, thereby electrically connecting electric wires (not shown) connected to the terminals 50 and electric wires (not shown) connected to the mating terminals 80.

[0012] For ease of explanation, the following definitions are used for the "mating direction," "width direction," "vertical direction," "upper," and "lower" as shown in Figure 1. The "mating direction," "width direction," and "vertical direction" are perpendicular to one another. The mating direction coincides with the mating direction between connector 1 and mating connector 2. With respect to connector 1, the front side in the mating direction where mating connector 2 is mated is referred to as the "front" side, and the opposite rear side in the mating direction is referred to as the "rear" side.

[0013] 1, connector 1 includes a housing 10, a pair of shorting terminals 20 attached to housing 10, and a front holder 30 serving as a detector attached to housing 10. The configurations of these components that make up connector 1 will be described below in order.

[0014] First, we will explain the housing 10. As shown in Fig. 1, the housing 10 is composed of a resin outer housing 10A, a resin inner housing 10B, and a plurality of (four in this example) metal springs 60. Assembly of the housing 10 is completed by clamping (compressing) the spring 60 in the fitting direction between a spring holding portion 63 on the outer housing 10A side and a spring holding portion 64 on the inner housing 10B side, thereby opposing the elastic force of the spring 60, and then engaging the locking protrusion 62 of the inner housing 10B with the locking hole 61 of the outer housing 10A.

[0015] 2 and 3, the housing 10 includes a terminal accommodating portion 11 having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape formed by an inner housing 10B, and an outer cylindrical portion 13 having a substantially rectangular cylindrical shape formed by an outer housing 10A, which covers the outer periphery of the terminal accommodating portion 11 via an annular gap 12 that opens to the front side. The annular gap 12 functions as a space into which a frame portion 31 (details of which will be described later) of the front holder 30 is inserted when the front holder 30 is attached.

[0016] As shown in Fig. 3(a), the terminal accommodating portion 11 is formed with terminal accommodating chambers 14 for accommodating terminals 50 (see Fig. 9) extending in the fitting direction. In this example, a plurality of terminal accommodating chambers 14 are arranged in two rows, upper and lower, in the width direction. Specifically, five terminal accommodating chambers 14 are arranged in the width direction in the lower row in a central region excluding both end portions in the width direction of the terminal accommodating portion 11, and nine terminal accommodating chambers 14 are arranged in the width direction across substantially the entire width direction of the terminal accommodating portion 11 in the upper row.

[0017] 7 to 9, each terminal accommodating chamber 14 is provided with a locking portion 15 at a substantially central position in the fitting direction so as to face the terminal accommodating chamber 14 from below. In this example, as shown in FIG. 7(b), the locking portion 15 includes a pair of both-end supported beam portions 15a arranged side by side in the width direction, and a lance portion 15b located between the pair of both-end supported beam portions 15a and formed integrally with the pair of both-end supported beam portions 15a.

[0018] The doubly supported beam portion 15a is a beam-shaped portion that extends in the mating direction and is elastically deformable in the vertical direction (a portion that exhibits an elastic bending function). The lance portion 15b moves in conjunction with the vertical movement of the doubly supported beam portion 15a, and when the doubly supported beam portion 15a is not elastically deformed (the state shown in FIG. 8), it extends forward and upward at an incline so that its tip side slightly enters the terminal accommodating chamber 14. The lance portion 15b is a portion that exhibits a function of preventing the terminal 50 from slipping out rearward (a portion that exhibits a locking function) by locking a predetermined corner of the terminal 50 inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber 14 from the rear side with the tip of the lance portion 15b.

[0019] When the terminal 50 is in the normal insertion position (a state in which the lance portion 15b exerts its retaining function) in the terminal accommodating chamber 14, the tip of the lance portion 15b fits into the corner of the terminal 50, thereby maintaining the doubly supported beam portion 15a and the lance portion 15b in a state in which they are not elastically deformed (the posture shown in Figures 7, 8 and 9, hereinafter referred to as the "original position"). When the lance portion 15b is in the original position, the detection portion 33 (details of which will be described later) of the front holder 30 can be inserted into the space facing the lower side surface of the lance portion 15b (the side surface opposite the terminal accommodating chamber 14).

[0020] On the other hand, when the terminal 50 is in the half-insertion position (a state in which the lance portion 15b is not performing its retaining function), the tip of the lance portion 15b cannot enter the corner of the terminal 50, and therefore the doubly supported beam portion 15a and the lance portion 15b are maintained in a posture in which they are elastically deformed downward (away from the terminal accommodating chamber 14). In this case, the detection portion 33 of the front holder 30 interferes with the tip of the lance portion 15b that has elastically deformed downward, and therefore the detection portion 33 of the front holder 30 cannot enter the space 16.

[0021] As shown in Fig. 3(a), a pair of shorting terminal mounting spaces 17 for mounting a pair of shorting terminals 20 are formed in both widthwise outer portions of the five terminal accommodating chambers 14 in the lower row of the two upper and lower rows. Each shorting terminal mounting space 17 is vertically connected to the front region of the lance portion 15b of a pair of terminal accommodating chambers 14 arranged adjacent to the corresponding widthwise end of the nine terminal accommodating chambers 14 in the upper row.

[0022] For ease of explanation, hereinafter, each of the pair of terminal accommodating chambers 14 that are in vertical communication with each shorting terminal mounting space 17 will be referred to as the "short-circuit target terminal accommodating chamber 14," and the terminals 50 inserted into the short-circuit target terminal accommodating chambers 14 will be referred to as the "short-circuit target terminals 50." Furthermore, terminal accommodating chambers 14 that are not short-circuit target terminal accommodating chambers 14 will be referred to as the "normal terminal accommodating chambers 14," and terminals 50 that are not short-circuit target terminals 50 will be referred to as the "normal terminals 50."

[0023] 3(a) and 3(b), a pair of cantilever-shaped elastic pieces 18, 19 that are elastically deformable in the width direction are provided side by side in the width direction and extend forward in the central portion of the lower width direction of the terminal accommodating portion 11. The pair of elastic pieces 18, 19 are formed with protrusions 18a, 19a that protrude inward in the width direction, respectively. The protrusions 18a, 19a have the function of locking the front holder 30 at the temporary locking position and the full locking position.

[0024] Next, the shorting terminal 20 will be described. As shown in Fig. 4, the metal shorting terminal 20 integrally comprises a flat base portion 21 and a pair of elastically deformable contact pieces 22 that bend upward from the front end of the base portion 21 and extend rearward. The pair of contact pieces 22 are arranged side by side in the width direction. A contact point 23 that curves upward is formed at the tip end (rear end) of each contact piece 22 at a position outside in the width direction.

[0025] The shorting terminals 20 are inserted from the front into a pair of shorting terminal mounting spaces 17 of the housing 10. When the shorting terminals 20 are mounted in the shorting terminal mounting spaces 17, the pair of contact points 23 come into contact with a pair of short-circuit target terminals 50 inserted into a pair of short-circuit target terminal accommodating chambers 14 located above them, thereby short-circuiting the pair of short-circuit target terminals 50 with each other (see FIG. 10(f)).

[0026] Furthermore, the pair of contact points 23 are formed into a convex shape that curves toward the side away from the base portion 21, and are pressed downward by contact portions 80 (described later) of the front holder 30 when the front holder 30 is in the provisionally locked position, and are maintained in this state. These points will be described in detail later.

[0027] Next, the front holder 30 will be described. As shown in Fig. 5, the resin front holder 30 includes a rectangular cylindrical frame body 31. Inside the frame body 31, flat detection plates 32 are provided integrally with the frame body 31 so as to extend rearward in two upper and lower stages corresponding to the plurality of terminal accommodating chambers 14 in two upper and lower stages. At the rear end of the two upper and lower stages of detection plates 32, detection portions 33 (10 in total) are provided, each corresponding to one of the five normal terminal accommodating chambers 14 in the two upper and lower stages.

[0028] A pair of openings 36 that penetrate vertically are provided at both widthwise ends of the upper detection plate 32 at locations corresponding to the pair of shorting terminal mounting spaces 17. Each opening 36 is provided so as not to obstruct vertical communication between the shorting terminal mounting space 17 of the housing 10 and the pair of shorting target terminal accommodating chambers 14 located above it when the front holder 30 is attached to the housing 10.

[0029] A pair of detection portions 34 (four in total) corresponding to a corresponding pair of short-circuit target terminal accommodating chambers 14 are provided at the rear end of the upper detection plate 32 at locations adjacent to both widthwise edges of each opening 36. In this way, the detection portions 34 are provided at positions that do not interfere with the operation of the short-circuit terminal 20 when the short-circuit terminal 20 is attached to the short-circuit terminal attachment space 17.

[0030] The front holder 30 has a contact portion 80. As shown in Figures 8(a), 8(b), and 9, the contact portion 80 is formed in a generally trapezoidal shape so as to be able to come into contact with the pair of contact points 23 in the temporary locking position. The contact portion 80 has a rear end surface 81 facing the rear side in the mating direction, a guide surface 82 adjacent to the rear end surface 81 and generally parallel to the mating direction, and a contact surface 83 adjacent to the guide surface 82 and coming into contact with the contact points 23. The contact surface 83 is provided on an inclined surface that approaches the base portion 21 as it approaches the rear side in the mating direction.

[0031] As shown in Fig. 5(c), a pair of through holes 37, 38 that penetrate in the mating direction are provided side by side in the width direction at the center of the lower part of the front holder 30. Protrusions 37a, 38a that protrude outward in the width direction are formed in the pair of through holes 37, 38, respectively. The protrusions 37a, 38a have the function of locking the front holder 30 at the temporary locking position and the full locking position (details will be described later). The configuration of each component that makes up the connector 1 has been described above.

[0032] <Attaching the front holder 30 to the housing 10> Next, the operation of attaching the front holder 30 to the housing 10 will be described. First, as shown in Figure 7 and other figures, square tubular rubber packing 40 is inserted from the front into annular gap 12 of housing 10 and fixed in a predetermined position on the outer periphery of terminal accommodating portion 11. Multiple (three in this example) annular lip portions are formed on the outer periphery of packing 40. When a mating housing 70 (see Figure 1) is fitted to housing 10, the annular lip portions function to provide a watertight seal between mating housing 70 and housing 10.

[0033] 7(a), the front holder 30 is inserted from the front side into the annular gap 12. At this time, the pair of elastic pieces 18, 19 of the housing 10 are inserted into the through holes 37, 38 of the front holder 30, respectively. As the insertion of the front holder 30 progresses, the protrusion 18a of the elastic piece 18 first comes into contact with the protrusion 37a of the through hole 37.

[0034] After the protrusion 18a contacts the protrusion 37a, as the insertion progresses, the elastic piece 18 elastically deforms outward in the width direction, causing the protrusion 18a to ride up onto the protrusion 37a. Thereafter, as the insertion progresses, the protrusion 18a rides over the protrusion 37a, causing the elastic piece 18 to elastically return to its original position. As a result, with the protrusion 18a positioned forward of the protrusion 37a and the protrusion 19a positioned rearward of the protrusion 38a, the protrusions 18a and 37a, and the protrusions 19a and 38a, respectively, engage with each other, and the front holder 30 is held in the provisionally locked position as shown in FIG. 7(a).

[0035] From the start of insertion of the front holder 30 into the housing 10 (see FIG. 10(a)), until the front holder 30 reaches the temporary locking position, the rear end surface 81 of the contact portion 80 of the shorting terminal 20 comes into contact with the pair of contact points 23 (see FIG. 10(b)), and then the guide surface 82 elastically deforms the pair of contact pieces 22 so that they approach the base portion 21 (see FIG. 10(c)). Then, as shown in FIG. 10(d), when the front holder 30 reaches the temporary locking position, the pair of contact points 23 of the shorting terminal 20 are maintained in a state where they are in contact with the contact surface 83. The contact surface 83 comes into contact with the rear side of the apex of the contact point 23 in the mating direction.

[0036] At this time, the pair of contact pieces 22 are also elastically deformed so as to approach the base portion 21. At this time, the pair of contact points 23 of the shorting terminal 20 are held in positions that do not interfere with the area L through which the outer surface of the short-circuit target terminal 50 inserted into the short-circuit target terminal accommodating chamber 14 passes, and the dimension A from the lower side surface of the base portion 21 to the upper apex of the contact points 23 is maintained.

[0037] In this state, when the normal terminal 50 is inserted into the normal terminal accommodating chamber 14 to the normal insertion position, the lance portion 15b is maintained in the original position, as described above. Therefore, the detection portion 33 (see FIG. 5(b)) of the front holder 30 can enter the space facing the lower side surface of the lance portion 15b (the side surface opposite the terminal accommodating chamber 14). Therefore, when the normal terminal 50 is in the normal insertion position, if the front holder 30, which is in the temporary locking position, is pushed backward, the detection portion 33 enters the space 16, and the front holder 30 moves to the full locking position. At this time, the protrusion 19a of the elastic piece 19 overcomes the protrusion 38a of the through hole 38, and the protrusion 19a is positioned forward of the protrusion 38a, and the protrusion 19a engages with the protrusion 38a, thereby holding the front holder 30 in the full locking position.

[0038] On the other hand, when the normal terminal 50 is in the partial insertion position, as described above, the lance portion 15b is maintained in a position (see FIG. 8(a)) in which it is elastically deformed downward (away from the terminal accommodating chamber 14). Therefore, the tip of the lance portion 15b interferes with the detection portion 33, preventing the detection portion 33 from entering the space 16. As a result, the front holder 30 cannot move from the temporary locking position to the full locking position. In this way, since the front holder 30 cannot move from the temporary locking position to the full locking position, partial insertion of the normal terminal 50 can be easily detected.

[0039] The above-described operation of the front holder 30 with respect to the temporary locking position and the full locking position applies only to the relationship between the normal terminal 50 and the normal terminal accommodating chamber 14. The operation of the front holder 30 with respect to the temporary locking position and the full locking position with respect to the relationship between the short-circuit target terminal 50 and the short-circuit target terminal accommodating chamber 14 will be described later.

[0040] <Operation of the front holder 30 in relation to the short-circuit target terminal 50 and the short-circuit target terminal accommodating chamber 14> In this example, as shown in FIG. 7(b), the locking portion 15 provided in the short-circuit target terminal accommodating chamber 14 among the multiple terminal accommodating chambers 14 is provided with a rib portion 15c that protrudes outward in the width direction from the widthwise outer surface of the both-end supported beam portion 15a. The rib portion 15c extends in the mating direction along the both-end supported beam portion 15a in the rear region of the both-end supported beam portion 15a that extends in the mating direction. The rib portions 15c are provided in positions (four positions in total) in the width direction that correspond to the detection portions 34 of the front holder 30 (four positions in total, see FIG. 5(b)). In this way, in the connector 1, the lance portions 15b and the rib portions 15c are arranged in different positions from each other.

[0041] When the short-circuit target terminal 50 is in the partial insertion position in the short-circuit target terminal accommodating chamber 14, the beam 15a and the lance 15b are maintained in a downwardly elastically deformed position (away from the terminal accommodating chamber 14), and the rib 15c, which is interlocked with the beam 15a and the lance 15b, is also maintained in a downwardly displaced position (away from the terminal accommodating chamber 14). Therefore, the front end surface of the rib 15c interferes with the detection portion 34 of the front holder 30, preventing the detection portion 34 from advancing any further. As a result, the front holder 30 cannot move from the temporary locking position to the full locking position. Since the front holder 30 cannot move from the temporary locking position to the full locking position, partial insertion of the short-circuit target terminal 50 can be easily detected.

[0042] On the other hand, when the short circuit target terminal 50 is inserted from this state to the correct insertion position in the short circuit target terminal accommodating chamber 14, as described above, the doubly supported beam 15a and the lance 15b elastically return (upward) to their original positions (the posture shown in FIG. 8 ), and the rib 15c linked to the doubly supported beam 15a and the lance 15b also returns (moves upward) to their original positions. This allows the detection portion 34 of the front holder 30 to enter the area below the rib 15c without interfering with the front end face of the rib 15c. Therefore, when the short circuit target terminal 50 is in the correct insertion position, pushing the front holder 30 backward from the temporary locking position causes the detection portion 34 to enter the area below the rib 15c, and the front holder 30 can move to the final locking position.

[0043] At this time, as the front holder 30 moves from the temporary locking position to the full locking position, the contact of the contact surface 83 with the pair of contact points 23 is released, and the pair of contact points 23 come into contact with the short-circuit target terminal 50 in the short-circuit target terminal accommodating chamber 14 so that the short terminal 20 returns to its initial shape (exceeds dimension A) (see Figure 10(f)).

[0044] <Actions and Effects> As described above, in the connector 1 and the wire harness using the connector 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the locking portion 15 of the housing 10 includes a lance portion 15b that locks the terminal 50 and a rib portion 15c that interferes with the detection portion 34 of the front holder 30. Therefore, the lance portion 15b and the rib portion 15c can be designed independently of each other, increasing the design flexibility of each. In particular, when the lance portion 15b and the rib portion 15c are located in different positions, the design flexibility of each can be further improved. For example, the lance portion 15b can be designed to have a shape that facilitates insertion of the terminal 50 into the terminal accommodating chamber 14, while the rib portion 15c can be designed to have a size and strength that reliably prevents the front holder 30 from being assembled. Therefore, the connector 1 configured as described above can achieve both ease of insertion of the terminal 50 into the terminal accommodating chamber 14 and high detection accuracy for detecting partial insertion of the terminal 50.

[0045] Furthermore, according to the connector 1, the rib portion 15c that interferes with the detection portion 34 of the front holder 30 is provided only on the locking portion 15 of the short-circuit target terminal accommodating chamber 14 among the multiple terminal accommodating chambers 14. This makes it easier to manufacture the housing 10 and reduces the manufacturing cost of the connector 1 compared to providing the rib portion 15c on the locking portions 15 of all the terminal accommodating chambers 14.

[0046] Furthermore, according to the connector 1, when the front holder 30, which is a detection tool, is in the temporary locking position, the contact surfaces 83 of the contact portions 80 provided on the front holder 30 elastically deform the tips (contact points 23) of the contact pieces 22 of the shorting terminal 20 so as to approach the base portion 21, and the pair of contact points 23 are held in positions that do not interfere with the area L (see FIG. 10(d)) through which the outer surfaces of the short-circuit target terminals 50 pass when inserted into the short-circuit target terminal accommodating chambers 14. As a result, in the process of accommodating the multiple short-circuit target terminals 50 in their normal positions in the housing 10 (when the detection tool is in the temporary locking position), the multiple short-circuit target terminals 50 do not come into contact with the shorting terminal 20 (see FIG. 10(e)).

[0047] Therefore, the connector 1 can smoothly perform the process of accommodating the multiple short-circuit target terminals 50 in their correct positions. Furthermore, according to the connector 1, in the process of accommodating the multiple short-circuit target terminals 50 in their correct positions in the housing 10 (when the detector is in the provisional locking position), the multiple short-circuit target terminals 50 do not come into contact with the shorting terminal 20, so there is no risk of damage to the contact points 23 of both, and the designed functionality can be ensured.

[0048] Furthermore, according to the connector 1, the contact surface 83 of the contact portion 80 is provided on an inclined surface that approaches the base portion 21 toward the rear side in the fitting direction. This reduces the amount of elastic deformation of the shorting terminal 20 caused by the contact surface 83 of the contact portion 80, and also reduces the repulsive force of the shorting terminal 20. Because the repulsive force of the shorting terminal 20 can be reduced, deformation of the front holder 30 can be reduced.

[0049] The above effect will be explained by comparing it with a comparative example shown in FIG. 11. The comparative example in FIGS. 11(a) and 11(b) corresponds to FIGS. 8(a) and 8(b). When the front holder 30 is in the temporary locking position, the pair of contact points 23 of the shorting terminal 20 are held in contact with the guide surface 82, and the dimension B from the lower side surface of the base portion 21 to the upper apex of the contact points 23 is maintained. When the shorting terminal 20 is pressed down by the guide surface 82, the shorting terminal 20 is pressed down further than the lower limit of the region L by the thickness of the contact points 80. In contrast, in the present embodiment, the shorting terminal 20 is pressed down by the inclined surface, so that the shorting terminal 20 can be pressed down slightly below the lower limit of the region L. That is, the dimension A in the embodiment of the present invention is larger than the dimension B in the comparative example. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present invention, when the front holder 30 is in the temporary locking position, the elastic repulsive force of the shorting terminal 20 is smaller than that in the comparative example, and there is little risk of local deformation of the front holder 30.

[0050] <Other forms> The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be adopted within the scope of the present invention. For example, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and modifications, improvements, etc. are possible as appropriate. In addition, the material, shape, dimensions, number, location, etc. of each component in the above-described embodiments are arbitrary and not limited as long as the present invention can be achieved.

[0051] In the above embodiment, the rib portion 15c that interferes with the detection portion 34 of the front holder 30 is provided only on the locking portion 15 of the short-circuit target terminal accommodating chamber 14 among the plurality of terminal accommodating chambers 14. However, the rib portion 15c may also be provided on the normal terminal accommodating chamber 14 among the plurality of terminal accommodating chambers 14.

[0052] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the locking portion 15 is composed of a pair of doubly supported beam portions 15a, a lance portion 15b located between the pair of doubly supported beam portions 15a, and a rib portion 15c integrally protruding outward in the width direction from the outer surface of the doubly supported beam portion 15a in the width direction, and the rib portion 15c interferes with the detection portion 34 of the front holder 30, making it possible to detect the partially inserted state of the short-circuit target terminal 50. However, the locking portion 15 may have another form (for example, a form composed only of a cantilevered lance portion and a rib portion) as long as the partially inserted state of the short-circuit target terminal 50 can be detected by the interference of the detection portion 34 of the front holder 30 with an interference point that is a point on the locking portion 15 different from the abutment point.

[0053] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the front holder 30 attached to the housing 10 from the front side is used as the "detection tool." Alternatively, a rear holder attached to the housing 10 from the rear side may be used as the "detection tool."

[0054] Furthermore, the connector 1 shown in the above embodiment can be used, for example, as a component of a wire harness. More specifically, by using the connector 1 in a wire harness that constitutes a circuit for activating an inflator of a vehicle airbag, it becomes possible to prevent the inflator from malfunctioning due to static electricity or the like.

[0055] Here, the features of the above-described embodiments of the connector 1 and the wire harness according to the present invention will be briefly summarized and listed below in [1] to [3].

[0056] [1] A plurality of short-circuit target terminals (50); a shorting terminal (20) that contacts the plurality of short-circuit target terminals (50); a housing (10) that accommodates a plurality of the short-circuit target terminals (50) and the short terminal (20); a detector (30) that is locked in a temporary locking position relative to the housing (10) and that can be locked from the temporary locking position to a full locking position when the short-circuit target terminal (50) is accommodated in a normal position in the housing (10), The short terminal (20) is A base portion (21), an elastically deformable contact piece (22) extending from an end portion on the front side in the mating direction of the mating connector of the base portion (21) toward the short-circuit target terminal (50) and toward the rear side in the mating direction; A connector (1) having The detector (30) is The detector (30) has a contact surface (83) that comes into contact with the tip of the contact piece (22) at the temporary locking position and brings the tip of the contact piece (22) closer to the base portion (21), The contact surface (83) is provided on an inclined surface that approaches the base portion (21) toward the rear side in the fitting direction. Connector(1).

[0057] According to the connector (1) having the configuration [1] above, during the process of accommodating the multiple short-circuit target terminals (50) in their proper positions in the housing (10) (when the detector (30) is in the provisionally locked position), the multiple short-circuit target terminals (50) do not come into contact with the shorting terminal (20). This allows the process of accommodating the multiple short-circuit target terminals (50) in their proper positions to be carried out smoothly, and there is no risk of damage to the contact points between the multiple short-circuit target terminals (50), ensuring the designed functionality. Furthermore, by making the contact surface (83) an inclined surface, the amount of elastic deformation of the shorting terminal (20) caused by the contact surface (83) can be reduced, and the repulsive force of the shorting terminal (20) can also be reduced. Since the repulsive force of the shorting terminal (20) can be reduced, deformation of the front holder (30) can be reduced.

[0058] [2] In the connector (1) described in [1] above, The tip of the contact piece (22) of the shorting terminal (20) is provided with a convex contact point (23) that curves toward the side away from the base portion (21), The back side of the contact point (23) in the fitting direction relative to the apex of the contact point (23) contacts the inclined surface. Connector(1).

[0059] According to the connector (1) having the configuration [2] above, the convex contact point (23) curved away from the base portion (21) is provided at the tip of the contact piece (22) of the shorting terminal (20). This reduces the risk of the contact piece (22) biting into the contact surface, and the front holder, which is the detection device (30), can smoothly perform each step from the start of insertion into the housing (10) through the provisional locking position to the full locking position.

[0060] [3] The connector (1) described in [1] or [2] above, and an electric wire to which the short-circuit target terminal (50) accommodated in the housing (10) is attached. Wire harness.

[0061] According to the wire harness having the configuration [3] above, in the process of accommodating the plurality of short-circuit target terminals (50) in their normal positions in the housing (10) (when the detection device (30) is in the provisional locking position), the plurality of short-circuit target terminals (50) do not come into contact with the short terminal (20). This makes it possible to smoothly accommodate the plurality of short-circuit target terminals in their normal positions, and there is no risk of damage to the contact points (23) of both terminals, thereby ensuring the designed functionality. [Explanation of symbols]

[0062] 1 connector 10. Housing 20 Short terminal 21 Base 22 Contact piece 23 Contact points 30 Front holder (detection tool) 50 terminals (terminals to be shorted) 83 Contact surface (slanted surface)

Claims

1. A plurality of terminals to be short-circuited; a shorting terminal that contacts the plurality of short-circuit target terminals; a housing that accommodates the plurality of short-circuit target terminals and the short terminal; a detector that is engaged with the housing at a temporary engagement position and that can be engaged from the temporary engagement position to a full engagement position when the short-circuit target terminal is accommodated in a regular position of the housing, The short terminal is A base portion and an elastically deformable contact piece extending from an end portion on a front side in a mating direction of the mating connector of the base portion to a rear side in the mating direction and bent toward the short-circuit target terminal; A connector having: The detection tool is the detection tool has a contact surface that comes into contact with the tip of the contact piece at the temporary locking position and brings the tip of the contact piece closer to the base portion, The contact surface is provided on an inclined surface that approaches the base portion toward the rear side in the fitting direction. connector.

2. 2. The connector according to claim 1, The tip of the contact piece of the shorting terminal is provided with a convex contact point that curves toward the side away from the base portion, a rear side of the contact point in the mating direction relative to the apex of the contact point contacts the inclined surface; connector.

3. The connector according to claim 1 or 2; and an electric wire to which the short-circuit target terminal accommodated in the housing is attached. Wire harness.

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