Terminal connection structure

Abstract

To improve durability against repeated insertion and extraction by reducing a sliding distance of a contact part when fitting a terminal.SOLUTION: The terminal connection structure 1 includes a female terminal 2 having a female terminal connection portion 10, a male terminal 3 having a male terminal connection portion 20, a substrate portion 24, and a seesaw structure portion 30. The seesaw structure portion 30 includes a swing fulcrum portion 31, a push-up portion 32 formed on one side in the insertion direction of the male terminal 3 via the swing fulcrum portion 31, and an acting portion 33 formed on the other side in the insertion direction of the male terminal 3 via the swing fulcrum portion 31. In a state before the male-terminal connecting portion 20 is inserted into the female-terminal connecting portion 10, an inner-diameter D1 of the push-up portion 32 of the seesaw structure 30 is smaller than an outer-diameter D3 of the female-terminal connecting portion 10. The push-up portion 32 is pushed up by the female terminal connecting portion 10 in the process of inserting the male terminal connecting portion 20 and swings with the swing fulcrum portion 31 as a fulcrum. The acting portion 33 moves to a pressing position for pressing the resilient contact piece 14 by the swinging of the push-up portion 32.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a terminal connection structure. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, charging systems including a charging connector and a charging port (charging inlet) have been used to supply power from outside the vehicle to on-board batteries installed in vehicles such as electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles (see, for example, Patent Document 1).In particular, electric vehicles require repeated charging, so connector terminals are required to have high durability against repeated insertion and removal.

[0003] The female terminal fitting in the terminal connection structure described in Patent Document 1 includes a retaining tube made of a conductive material that is connected to an electric wire and has an opening through which a male terminal is inserted, and a resilient contact piece that is disposed inside the retaining tube and in contact with the retaining tube and can contact the male terminal inserted therein. The resilient contact piece includes a pair of first contact portions that face each other at approximately the middle of the longitudinal direction and are spaced apart by a gap narrower than the outer diameter of the male terminal, and a leg portion that extends from the first contact portion toward the bottom of the retaining tube. The resilient contact piece includes an enlarged diameter portion that extends from the first contact portion in the opposite direction to the leg portion and is inclined away from the axial center of the retaining tube, and a guide portion that extends toward the opening beyond the enlarged diameter portion and has a pair of second contact portions at its tip that face each other and are spaced apart by a gap wider than the outer diameter of the male terminal. The second contact portion is configured so that when a male terminal inserted inside the elastic contact piece pushes both first contact portions apart, the boundary between the leg portion and the enlarged diameter portion and the guide portion is pressed against the inner wall of the retaining tube, causing the elastic contact piece to elastically deform and come into contact with the male terminal.

[0004] Furthermore, in the terminal connection structure described in Patent Document 1, a silver (alloy) plating layer is formed on the surface of the terminal connection portion of the male terminal fitting, and the inner surface of the female terminal fitting is subjected to a surface treatment with silver (alloy) plating, similar to the surface of the terminal connection portion of the male terminal fitting.

[0005] In the terminal connection structure described in Patent Document 1, the female terminal fitting is configured to hold a resilient contact piece that contacts the outer periphery of the male terminal fitting within a conductive metal retaining tube connected to an electric wire. With this configuration, a first contact portion that clamps the male terminal fitting is provided at approximately the longitudinal center of the resilient contact piece, thereby shortening the sliding distance of the male terminal fitting relative to the female terminal fitting compared to, for example, a case in which the contact portion is provided near an opening. This suppresses wear of the silver (alloy) plating layer applied to the inner surface of the male terminal fitting, which is the sliding portion, and therefore eliminates the need to increase the coating thickness to account for wear of the plating layer, thereby enabling a reduction in material costs and a reduction in manufacturing costs. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-198567 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] In the terminal connection structure for electric vehicles described in Patent Document 1, the sliding distance of the contact part (the sliding distance of the male terminal fitting relative to the female terminal fitting) can be shortened, but the amount of wear on the contact part due to sliding does not change, so there is little advantage in terms of the terminal lifespan (durability against insertion and removal).

[0008] The present invention has been made in consideration of the problems inherent in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a terminal connection structure that can improve durability against repeated insertion and removal by reducing the sliding distance of the contact portions when mating the male terminal and the female terminal. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] A terminal connection structure according to one aspect of the present invention comprises a female terminal having a cylindrical female terminal connection portion, a male terminal having a rod-shaped male terminal connection portion to be inserted into the female terminal connection portion, a base portion arranged radially outside the male terminal connection portion, and a seesaw structure provided on the base portion, wherein the female terminal connection portion has a resilient contact piece, and the seesaw structure has a swing fulcrum portion, a push-up portion formed on one side of the insertion direction of the male terminal via the swing fulcrum portion, and an action portion formed on the other side of the insertion direction via the swing fulcrum portion, and before the male terminal connection portion is inserted into the female terminal connection portion, the inner diameter of the action portion of the seesaw structure is larger than the outer diameter of the female terminal connection portion and the inner diameter of the push-up portion of the seesaw structure is smaller than the outer diameter of the female terminal connection portion, the push-up portion is pushed up by the female terminal connection portion during the insertion process of the male terminal connection portion and swings around the swing fulcrum portion, and the action portion is configured to move around the swing fulcrum portion as a fulcrum to a pressing position where it presses the resilient contact piece as the push-up portion swings. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a terminal connection structure that can improve durability against repeated insertion and removal by reducing the sliding distance of the contact portions when the male terminal and the female terminal are mated. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a terminal connection structure according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the terminal connection structure according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the initial state of mating between the male terminal and the female terminal. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing an intermediate state of mating between the male terminal and the female terminal. [Figure 5] 10 is a cross-sectional view showing the completed state of mating between the male terminal and the female terminal. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing a terminal connection structure according to another embodiment. [Figure 7]4 is a cross-sectional view showing the initial state of mating between the male terminal and the female terminal. FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing an intermediate state of mating between the male terminal and the female terminal. [Figure 9] 10 is a cross-sectional view showing the completed state of mating between the male terminal and the female terminal. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] The terminal connection structure according to the present embodiment will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Note that the dimensional proportions in the drawings are exaggerated for the sake of convenience and may differ from the actual proportions.

[0013] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a terminal connection structure 1 according to this embodiment includes a female terminal 2 and a male terminal 3 that is fitted into the female terminal 2.

[0014] The terminal connection structure 1 according to this embodiment is used in a charging system for supplying (charging) power from outside the vehicle to an on-board battery mounted on a vehicle such as an electric vehicle or a plug-in hybrid vehicle. For example, the female terminal 2 is applied to a charging connector on the side of a charging stand, and the male terminal 3 is applied to a charging port (charging inlet) on the side of the vehicle that receives charging from the charging connector.

[0015] The female terminal 2 is made of a conductive material. The female terminal 2 has a female terminal connection portion 10 into which the male terminal connection portion 20 of the male terminal 3 is inserted, a female electric wire connection portion 11 to which an electric wire (not shown) on the female terminal 2 side is electrically connected, and a female intermediate connection portion 12 that connects the female terminal connection portion 10 and the female electric wire connection portion 11. The female terminal connection portion 10 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and is electrically connected to the male terminal 3 by inserting the male terminal connection portion 20 of the male terminal 3. In this embodiment, the female terminal connection portion 10 is formed in a cylindrical shape, but is not limited thereto, and the female terminal connection portion 10 may be formed in a rectangular cylindrical shape (box shape). In other words, in this specification, the term "cylindrical" includes not only a circular cross-sectional shape but also a rectangular cross-sectional shape (box shape). The female electric wire connection portion 11 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and is electrically connected to the electric wire by crimping the conductor of the electric wire. In this embodiment, the female wire connecting portion 11 is formed in a cylindrical shape, but is not limited thereto, and the female wire connecting portion 11 may be formed in a square cylindrical shape (box shape). The female intermediate coupling portion 12 is formed with a female flange portion 13.

[0016] The female terminal connection portion 10 has a pair of resilient contact pieces 14 whose base ends are supported by the female terminal connection portion 10. The pair of resilient contact pieces 14 are arranged at a distance from each other in the vertical direction. The resilient contact pieces 14 form a contact portion 4 (see FIG. 5) between the female terminal 2 and the male terminal 3. At least the portion of the resilient contact piece 14 that forms the contact portion 4 is surface-treated with nickel plating, silver plating, or the like. Furthermore, the intersection (corner) between the inner peripheral surface and the tip surface of the resilient contact piece 14 may be tapered by chamfering or the like. The tapered surface is a flat-chamfered portion chamfered into a flat shape (so-called C-shape). However, the corner may be chamfered into an arc-shaped chamfered shape (so-called R-shape) instead of a tapered surface. Furthermore, the portion of the resilient contact piece 14 that comes into contact with the operating portion 33 (described later) may be surface-hardened by boronizing or the like (see FIG. 3).

[0017] In addition, a tapered surface 10b is formed by chamfering or the like at the intersection (corner) between the outer peripheral surface and the tip surface of the female terminal connection part 10 (see FIG. 3). The tapered surface 10b is a flat chamfered portion chamfered into a flat shape (so-called C-shape), but the corner may be formed with an arc-shaped chamfered portion chamfered into an arc (so-called R-shape) instead of the tapered surface 10b. At least the tip 10a of the female terminal connection part 10 is subjected to a surface treatment such as nickel plating or silver plating. Furthermore, at least the tip 10a of the female terminal connection part 10 may be formed with a surface hardening treatment such as boronizing treatment, which is a surface hardening treatment part 10c (see FIG. 3). Since the inner diameter of the female terminal connection portion 10 is larger than the outer diameter of the male terminal connection portion 20, when the tip of the male terminal connection portion 20 is inserted into the female terminal connection portion 10, the male terminal connection portion 20 and the female terminal connection portion 10 do not come into contact with each other (see Figure 3).

[0018] The male terminal 3 is made of a conductive material. The male terminal 3 has a male terminal connection portion 20 that is inserted into the female terminal connection portion 10 of the female terminal 2, a male electric wire connection portion 21 to which an electric wire (not shown) on the male terminal 3 side is electrically connected, and a male intermediate connection portion 22 that connects the male terminal connection portion 20 and the male electric wire connection portion 21. The male terminal connection portion 20 is formed in a rod shape and is electrically connected to the female terminal 2 by being inserted into the female terminal connection portion 10 of the female terminal 2. In this embodiment, the male terminal connection portion 20 is formed in a round rod shape (cylindrical), but this is not limited thereto, and the male electric wire connection portion 21 may be formed in a square rod shape (prismatic). In other words, in this specification, the term "rod shape" includes not only one with a circular cross section (cylindrical), but also one with a square cross section (prismatic). The male electric wire connection portion 21 is formed in a cylindrical shape and is electrically connected to the conductor of the electric wire by being crimped onto the conductor. In this embodiment, the male wire connecting portion 21 is formed in a cylindrical shape, but is not limited to this and may be formed in a square cylindrical (box-like) shape. The male intermediate coupling portion 22 is formed with a male flange portion 23.

[0019] Male terminal connection portion 20 constitutes contact portion 4 (see Figure 5) between female terminal 2 and male terminal 3, and at least the portion of male terminal connection portion 20 that constitutes contact portion 4 is subjected to surface treatment such as nickel plating or silver plating. Because the outer diameter of male terminal connection portion 20 is smaller than the inner diameter of female terminal connection portion 10, when the tip of male terminal connection portion 20 is inserted into female terminal connection portion 10, male terminal connection portion 20 and female terminal connection portion 10 do not come into contact with each other (see Figure 3).

[0020] The terminal connection structure 1 also includes a tubular substrate portion 24 that is disposed radially outward of the male terminal connection portion 20 and covers a portion of the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male terminal connection portion 20. In this embodiment, the substrate portion 24 is formed in a rectangular tube shape, but this is not limiting and the substrate portion 24 may also be formed in a cylindrical shape. In this embodiment, the substrate portion 24 extends from the male flange portion 23 toward the male terminal connection portion 20, extending to approximately the middle position of the male terminal connection portion 20. The substrate portion 24 does not necessarily have to be formed in a tubular shape, and may be any shape that can be provided with a seesaw structure portion 30, which will be described later.

[0021] A pair of seesaw structures 30 are provided on the base plate 24. The pair of seesaw structures 30 are arranged at an interval from each other in the up-down direction. The seesaw structure 30 has a pair of swing fulcrum parts 31, a push-up part 32 formed on one side of the pair of swing fulcrum parts 31 in the insertion direction of the male terminal 3 (terminal insertion / removal direction), and an action part 33 formed on the other side of the swing fulcrum parts 31 in the terminal insertion / removal direction. The pair of swing fulcrum parts 31 are each supported by the base plate 24.

[0022] The push-up portion 32 is disposed closer to the base end of the male terminal connecting portion 20 than the action portion 33. The push-up portion 32 is configured to be pushed up by the tip portion 10a of the female terminal connecting portion 10 during the insertion process of the male terminal connecting portion 20 into the female terminal connecting portion 10, and to swing around the swing fulcrum portion 31 as a fulcrum. The push-up portion 32 bends and extends inward. Before the male terminal connecting portion 20 of the male terminal 3 is inserted into the female terminal connecting portion 10 of the female terminal 2, the inner diameter D1 of the push-up portion 32 of the seesaw structure portion 30 is smaller than the outer diameter D3 of the female terminal connecting portion 10 (see FIG. 3).

[0023] At the intersection (corner) between the inner peripheral surface and the tip surface of the push-up portion 32, a tapered surface 32a is formed by chamfering or the like (see FIG. 3). The tapered surface 32a is a flat chamfered portion chamfered into a flat shape (so-called C-shape), but instead of the tapered surface 32a, the corner may be formed with an arc-shaped chamfered portion chamfered into an arc (so-called R-shape). At least the portion of the push-up portion 32 that comes into contact with the female terminal connecting portion 10 is subjected to a surface treatment such as nickel plating or silver plating. Furthermore, at least the portion of the push-up portion 32 that comes into contact with the female terminal connecting portion 10 may be formed with a surface hardening treatment such as boronizing, to form a surface hardening treatment portion 32b (see FIG. 3).

[0024] The action portion 33 is disposed closer to the tip of the male terminal connecting portion 20 than the push-up portion 32. This action portion 33 is configured to move with the swing fulcrum portion 31 as a fulcrum to a pressing position where it presses the elastic contact piece 14 as the push-up portion 32 swings during the process of inserting the male terminal connecting portion 20 into the female terminal connecting portion 10. Before the male terminal connecting portion 20 of the male terminal 3 is inserted into the female terminal connecting portion 10 of the female terminal 2, the inner diameter D2 of the action portion 33 of the seesaw structure portion 30 is larger than the outer diameter D3 of the female terminal connecting portion 10 (see FIG. 3).

[0025] At the intersection (corner) between the inner peripheral surface and the tip surface of the acting portion 33, a tapered surface 33a is formed by chamfering or the like (see FIG. 3). The tapered surface 33a is a flat chamfered portion chamfered into a flat shape (so-called C-shape). However, instead of the tapered surface 33a, the corner may be formed with an arc-shaped chamfered portion chamfered into an arc (so-called R-shape). At least the portion of the acting portion 33 that comes into contact with the female terminal connecting portion 10 (resilient contact piece 14) is subjected to a surface treatment such as nickel plating or silver plating. Furthermore, at least the portion of the acting portion 33 that comes into contact with the female terminal connecting portion 10 (resilient contact piece 14) may be formed with a surface hardening treatment such as boronizing, to form a surface hardening treatment 33b (see FIG. 3).

[0026] The substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 are formed integrally with the male terminal 3. In other words, the substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 are formed as a member integral with the male terminal 3. For this reason, the substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 are made of a conductive material. By forming the substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 as a member integral with the male terminal 3 in this way, there is an effect that subsequent processes (processes such as joining and welding) are not required.

[0027] The substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure 30 may be formed separately from the male terminal 3. In other words, the substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure 30 may be formed as separate members from the male terminal 3 and then assembled to the male terminal 3. In this case, the substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure 30 may be formed from a conductive material, similar to the male terminal 3. By forming the substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure 30 as separate members from the male terminal 3 in this way, an effect is obtained in which processes such as partial plating on the male terminal 3 side can be facilitated.

[0028] The operation of fitting the male terminal 3 and the female terminal 2 together will now be described.

[0029] 3, because the outer diameter of male terminal connecting portion 20 is smaller than the inner diameter of female terminal connecting portion 10, in the initial state of mating between male terminal 3 and female terminal 2, male terminal connecting portion 20 and female terminal connecting portion 10 do not come into contact with each other. Also, because inner diameter D2 of action portion 33 of seesaw structure portion 30 is larger than outer diameter D3 of female terminal connecting portion 10, in the initial state of mating between male terminal 3 and female terminal 2, action portion 33 of base plate portion 24 of male terminal 3 does not come into contact with female terminal connecting portion 10.

[0030] 4, because the inner diameter D1 of the push-up portion 32 of the seesaw structure portion 30 is smaller than the outer diameter D3 of the female terminal connecting portion 10, the push-up portion 32 comes into contact with the tip portion 10a of the female terminal connecting portion 10 in the middle stage of mating between the male terminal 3 and the female terminal 2. As the insertion of the male terminal connecting portion 20 progresses further from this state, the pressing force from the female terminal connecting portion 10 acts on the push-up portion 32, torsionally deforming the pair of swing fulcrum portions 31, and the push-up portion 32 is pushed up by the tip portion 10a of the female terminal connecting portion 10, swinging about the swing fulcrum portions 31. Meanwhile, the swing of the push-up portion 32 moves the operating portion 33 about the swing fulcrum portions 31 to a pressing position where it presses the resilient contact piece 14, and presses the resilient contact piece 14 against the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male terminal connecting portion 20 just before the mating of the male terminal 3 and the female terminal 2 is completed.

[0031] As shown in Figure 5, when the male terminal 3 and female terminal 2 are fully mated, the resilient contact piece 14 is in contact with the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male terminal connecting portion 20, electrically connecting the male terminal 3 and the female terminal 2. Because the resilient contact piece 14 makes contact with the male terminal connecting portion 20 with almost no sliding, the sliding distance of the contact portion 4 during mating can be reduced, minimizing wear on the highly conductive plating material, such as silver, applied to the contact portion 4. In addition, because the contact portion 4 is in a limited position during mating, there is also the effect of reducing the area where the highly conductive plating material, such as silver, is applied.

[0032] As described above, the terminal connection structure 1 according to this embodiment includes a female terminal 2 having a cylindrical female terminal connection portion 10, and a male terminal 3 having a rod-shaped male terminal connection portion 20 inserted into the female terminal connection portion 10. The terminal connection structure 1 includes a base portion 24 disposed radially outward of the male terminal connection portion 20, and a seesaw structure portion 30 provided on the base portion 24. The female terminal connection portion 10 has a resilient contact piece 14. The seesaw structure portion 30 includes a swing fulcrum portion 31, a push-up portion 32 formed on one side of the swing fulcrum portion 31 in the insertion direction of the male terminal 3, and an action portion 33 formed on the other side of the swing fulcrum portion 31 in the insertion direction. Before the male terminal connection portion 20 is inserted into the female terminal connection portion 10, the inner diameter D1 of the action portion 33 of the seesaw structure portion 30 is larger than the outer diameter D3 of the female terminal connection portion 10. Furthermore, before the male terminal connecting portion 20 is inserted into the female terminal connecting portion 10, the inner diameter D2 of the push-up portion 32 of the seesaw structure portion 30 is smaller than the outer diameter D3 of the female terminal connecting portion 10. The push-up portion 32 is configured to be pushed up by the female terminal connecting portion 10 during the insertion process of the male terminal connecting portion 20, and to swing around the swing fulcrum portion 31. The action portion 33 is configured to move around the swing fulcrum portion 31 as a fulcrum to a pressing position where it presses the resilient contact piece 14 as the push-up portion 32 swings.

[0033] According to this embodiment, the tip 10a of the female terminal connecting portion 10 contacts the push-up portion 32 of the seesaw structure portion 30 during the middle stage of mating between the male terminal 3 and the female terminal 2, and the action portion 33 of the seesaw structure portion 30 presses down on the resilient contact piece 14 just before the male terminal 3 and the female terminal 2 are completely mated. When the action portion 33 presses down on the resilient contact piece 14, the resilient contact piece 14 contacts the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male terminal connecting portion 20, electrically connecting the male terminal 3 and the female terminal 2. Because the resilient contact piece 14 makes contact with the male terminal connecting portion 20 with almost no sliding, the sliding distance of the contact portion 4 during mating can be reduced, minimizing wear of the highly conductive plating material, such as silver, applied to the contact portion 4. Furthermore, because the contact portion 4 is positioned arbitrarily during mating, the area where the highly conductive plating material, such as silver, is applied can be reduced.

[0034] As described above, according to this embodiment, by reducing the sliding distance of the contact portion 4 when the male terminal 3 and the female terminal 2 are mated, a terminal connection structure 1 can be provided that can improve durability against repeated insertion and removal.

[0035] In the terminal connecting structure 1, the push-up portion 32 may be configured to come into contact with the tip portion 10a of the female terminal connecting portion 10 during the insertion process of the male terminal connecting portion 20 and be pushed up by the tip portion 10a of the female terminal connecting portion 10. The action portion 33 may be configured to press the elastic contact piece 14 against the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male terminal connecting portion 20 as the push-up portion 32 swings.

[0036] According to this embodiment, the tip 10a of the female terminal connecting portion 10 contacts the push-up portion 32 during the middle stage of mating between the male terminal 3 and the female terminal 2, and the action portion 33 presses the resilient contact piece 14 against the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male terminal connecting portion 20 just before the male terminal 3 and the female terminal 2 are completely mated. By pressing the resilient contact piece 14 against the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male terminal connecting portion 20, the resilient contact piece 14 comes into contact with the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male terminal connecting portion 20, electrically connecting the male terminal 3 and the female terminal 2. Because the resilient contact piece 14 makes contact with the male terminal connecting portion 20 with almost no sliding, the sliding distance of the contact portion 4 during mating can be reduced, minimizing wear of the highly conductive plating material, such as silver, applied to the contact portion 4. Furthermore, because the contact portion 4 is positioned arbitrarily during mating, the area where the highly conductive plating material, such as silver, is applied can be reduced.

[0037] In the terminal connection structure 1, the substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 may be formed integrally with the male terminal 3.

[0038] In this embodiment, the base plate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 (swing fulcrum portion 31, push-up portion 32, and action portion 33) are formed as an integral member with the male terminal 3. By forming the base plate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 as an integral member with the male terminal 3 in this way, an effect is obtained in which subsequent processes (processes such as joining and welding) are not required.

[0039] In the terminal connection structure 1, the substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 may be formed separately from the male terminal 3.

[0040] The base plate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 (swing fulcrum portion 31, push-up portion 32, and action portion 33) may be formed as separate members from the male terminal 3 and assembled to the male terminal 3. By making the base plate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 separate members from the male terminal 3 in this way, it is possible to obtain the effect of facilitating processes such as partial plating on the male terminal 3 side.

[0041] In the terminal connecting structure 1, at least one of the push-up portion 32 and the portion of the female terminal connecting portion 10 that comes into contact with the push-up portion 32 (tip portion 10a) may have surface hardening treatment portions 32b, 10c that have been subjected to surface hardening treatment.

[0042] In this way, by forming surface hardening treatment portions 32b, 10c that have been subjected to surface hardening treatment such as boronizing treatment on the push-up portion 32 or the tip portion 10a of the female terminal connection portion 10, it is possible to further improve durability against repeated insertion and removal.

[0043] In the terminal connection structure 1, at least one of the action portion 33 and the resilient contact piece 14 may have a surface hardening treatment portion 33b, 14a that has been subjected to a surface hardening treatment.

[0044] In this way, by forming the surface hardening treatment portion 33b, 14a on the action portion 33 or the elastic contact piece 14, which has been subjected to a surface hardening treatment such as boronizing, it is possible to further improve durability against repeated insertion and removal.

[0045] [Other embodiments] Next, a terminal connection structure 1A according to another embodiment will be described. Note that components that are substantially the same as those in the terminal connection structure 1 described above are given the same reference numerals, and descriptions thereof will be omitted.

[0046] As shown in Figures 6 to 9, in the terminal connection structure 1A, the female terminal 2 is held in a female housing 6 having a female terminal accommodating portion 5, and the male terminal 3 is held in a male housing 8 having a male terminal accommodating portion 7.

[0047] The female housing 6 is made of an insulating material. A female terminal insertion opening is opened at one end of the female housing 6 (female terminal accommodating portion 5), and the female terminal 2 is inserted through this female terminal insertion opening. The female terminal 2 is accommodated in the female terminal accommodating portion 5 while being positioned in the terminal insertion / removal direction (see FIG. 6). In the illustrated example, the female housing 6 is formed in a rectangular tube shape, but is not limited to this and the female housing 6 may be formed in a cylindrical shape.

[0048] The male housing 8 is made of an insulating material. A male terminal insertion opening is opened at one end of the male housing 8 (male terminal accommodating portion 7), and the male terminals 3 are inserted through this male terminal insertion opening. The male terminals 3 are accommodated in the male terminal accommodating portion 7 while being positioned in the terminal insertion / removal direction (see FIG. 6). In the illustrated example, the male housing 8 is formed in a rectangular tube shape, but is not limited to this and the male housing 8 may be formed in a cylindrical shape.

[0049] In the terminal connection structure 1A, the substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 are formed separately from the male terminal 3. The substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 are formed as separate members from the male terminal 3 and are assembled to the male housing 8. The substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 may also be formed from a conductive material, similar to the male terminal 3. By forming the substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 as separate members from the male terminal 3 in this way, an effect is obtained that makes it easier to perform processes such as partial plating on the male terminal 3 side.

[0050] In this terminal connection structure 1A, as in the above-described terminal connection structure 1, the resilient contact piece 14 comes into contact with the male terminal connection portion 20 with almost no sliding. This reduces the sliding distance of the contact portion 4 during mating, minimizing wear on the highly conductive plating material, such as silver, applied to the contact portion 4. In addition, because the contact portion 4 is in a limited position during mating, there is also the effect of reducing the area where the highly conductive plating material, such as silver, is applied.

[0051] As described above, according to the embodiment shown in Figures 6 to 9, it is possible to provide a terminal connection structure 1A that can improve durability against repeated insertion and removal by reducing the sliding distance of the contact portion 4 when the male terminal 3 and the female terminal 2 are mated.

[0052] In the terminal connection structure 1A, the substrate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 are formed separately from the male terminal 3.

[0053] The base plate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 (swing fulcrum portion 31, push-up portion 32, and action portion 33) may be formed as separate members from the male terminal 3 and assembled to the male housing 8. By making the base plate portion 24 and the seesaw structure portion 30 separate members from the male terminal 3 in this way, it is possible to obtain the effect of facilitating processes such as partial plating on the male terminal 3 side.

[0054] Although the present embodiment has been described above, the present embodiment is not limited to this, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the gist of the present embodiment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0055] 1-terminal connection structure 2 Female terminal 3 male terminal 10 Female terminal connection 10a Tip 10c Surface hardening treatment section 11 Female wire connection 14 Elastic contact piece 14a Surface hardening treatment section 20 Male terminal connection part 20a Outer surface 21 Male wire connection 24 Circuit board section 30 Seesaw structure 31 Swing fulcrum 32 Push-up part 32b Surface hardening treatment section 33 Action part 33b Surface hardening treatment section D1 Inner diameter at the lifting part D2 Inner diameter at the action part D3 Outer diameter of female terminal connection

Claims

1. a female terminal having a cylindrical female terminal connection portion; a male terminal having a rod-shaped male terminal connection portion that is inserted into the female terminal connection portion; a base plate portion disposed radially outside the male terminal connection portion; a seesaw structure provided on the substrate portion, The female terminal connection portion has a resilient contact piece, the seesaw structure has a swing fulcrum part, a push-up part formed on one side of the swing fulcrum part in the insertion direction of the male terminal, and an action part formed on the other side of the swing fulcrum part in the insertion direction, before the male terminal connection portion is inserted into the female terminal connection portion, an inner diameter of the action portion of the seesaw structure is larger than an outer diameter of the female terminal connection portion, and an inner diameter of the push-up portion of the seesaw structure is smaller than the outer diameter of the female terminal connection portion; the push-up portion is configured to be pushed up by the female terminal connecting portion during the insertion process of the male terminal connecting portion and to swing around the swing fulcrum portion, The action portion is configured to move with the swing fulcrum portion as a fulcrum to a pressing position where the action portion presses the elastic contact piece by swinging the push-up portion. Terminal connection structure.

2. the push-up portion is configured to come into contact with the tip of the female terminal connecting portion during the insertion process of the male terminal connecting portion and be pushed up by the tip of the female terminal connecting portion, The action portion is configured to press the elastic contact piece against the outer peripheral surface of the male terminal connecting portion by swinging of the push-up portion. The terminal connection structure according to claim 1 .

3. The terminal connection structure according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the base plate portion and the seesaw structure portion are formed integrally with the male terminal.

4. The terminal connection structure according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the base plate portion and the seesaw structure portion are formed separately from the male terminal.

5. 3. The terminal connection structure according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the push-up portion and a portion of the female terminal connection portion that comes into contact with the push-up portion has a surface hardened portion that has been subjected to a surface hardening treatment.

6. 3. The terminal connection structure according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the action portion and the resilient contact piece has a surface hardened portion that has been subjected to a surface hardening treatment.

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