Optical-electrical hybrid connector

Abstract

Provided is an optical-electrical composite connector that is easy to assemble.　An optical-electrical composite connector 1 comprises an optical ferrule 5, an electrical connection terminal 7, a sub-housing 3, and a main housing 2 which accommodates and fixes the sub-housing 3 accommodating the optical ferrule 5, and the electrical connection terminal 7, wherein: the sub-housing 3 integrally includes an accommodating portion 32 for accommodating the optical ferrule 5, and a small tubular portion 33 which is provided projecting forward from a front end surface of the accommodating portion 32 and which has a smaller cross section, perpendicular to a front-back direction, than the front end surface of the accommodating portion 32; and the main housing 2 has, in a front end portion thereof, a housing end surface 11 in which is formed a through-hole 111 in a position in front of the small tubular portion 33 of the accommodated sub-housing 3, and has an internal abutting surface which abuts the front end surface of the accommodating portion 32, with respect to the sub-housing 3 with the position of the small tubular portion 33 matched to the through-hole 111.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a combination optical-electrical connector. [Background technology]

[0002] Optical cables using optical fibers are widely used for information communication in households, industries, etc., because they are capable of transmitting large amounts of information at high speed. In addition, automobiles are equipped with various electronic devices such as car navigation systems, and optical communication using optical cables has begun to be used for communication in these devices. In particular, in recent years, the speed of communication has been increasing rapidly in the automotive field, but there are many challenges in performing high-speed communication exceeding several Gbps using electric cables, and as communication speeds increase, the importance of optical cables capable of high-speed communication is increasing in on-board communication devices. In particular, optical cables equipped with glass optical fibers can be suitably used for high-speed communication.

[0003] On the other hand, optical cables are not suitable for applications that require the supply of energy to operate communication devices, and electric wires having metal wires are also used in combination with optical cables. Therefore, in order to easily connect optical cables and electric wires to devices such as communication devices, connectors that can connect optical cables and electric wires together to devices have been developed. Such optical-electrical composite connectors are disclosed in Patent Document 1 and the like, and some have already been put to practical use. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2007 / 088863 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] As described above, optical-electrical composite connectors have been developed as a means for connecting optical cables and electric wires together to devices such as communication devices, but such composite connectors tend to be more difficult to manufacture than optical connectors that connect only optical cables or electric connectors that connect only electric wires. One of the reasons is that optical connectors and electric connectors usually have completely different manufacturing processes and manufacturing equipment, and it is difficult to manufacture a composite connector that has an optical cable connection part and an electric wire connection part integrated on the same manufacturing line. In particular, it is easy to encounter difficulties in accurately arranging both an optical communication member such as an optical ferrule and an electric connection member such as an electric connection terminal in their respective predetermined positions and fixing them in the connector housing. Furthermore, as the communication speed in automobiles increases, the replacement of the conventionally used plastic optical fiber (POF) with glass optical fiber (AGF) has been progressing in recent years, but since the AGF has a smaller diameter than the POF, the optical communication member for the AGF is smaller than the optical communication member for the POF, and it is particularly difficult to correctly arrange it in the connector housing. Moreover, in order to obtain high communication performance, high accuracy is required in the placement of optical communication components for AGF.

[0006] In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide an optical-electrical composite connector that is easy to assemble. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The optical-electrical composite connector disclosed herein comprises at least one optical ferrule to which an optical fiber of an optical cable is respectively coupled, at least one electrical connection terminal to which an electric wire is respectively coupled, a sub-housing that accommodates the at least one optical ferrule, and a main housing that accommodates and fixes both the sub-housing accommodating the optical ferrule and the electrical connection terminal, and the sub-housing integrally comprises, with the tip side direction along the axis of the optical ferrule accommodated in the sub-housing being the forward direction, an accommodating section that accommodates the optical ferrule, and a small cylindrical section that protrudes forward from a front end face of the accommodating section and has a cross section perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction that is smaller than the front end face of the accommodating section, and the main housing has a housing end face at its front end portion where a through hole is formed in a position forward of the small cylindrical section of the sub-housing it accommodates, and has an internal abutment surface that abuts against the front end face of the accommodating section with respect to the sub-housing with the small cylindrical section positioned in the through hole. Effect of the Invention

[0008] The combined optical and electrical connector according to the present disclosure is an easy-to-assemble combined optical and electrical connector. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1A and 1B are perspective views showing an entire optical-electrical composite connector according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, with Fig. 1A showing the connector as seen from the front and Fig. 1B showing the connector as seen from the rear. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the above-mentioned optical-electrical composite connector. [Diagram 3] 3A and 3B are perspective views showing a housing body of the main housing, with Fig. 3A showing the housing body as seen from the front and Fig. 3B showing the housing body as seen from the rear. [Figure 4] 4A and 4B are perspective views showing a retainer member of the main housing, with Fig. 4A showing the retainer member as seen from the front and Fig. 4B showing the retainer member as seen from the rear. [Diagram 5]FIG. 5A is a perspective view showing an optical sub-connector, and FIG. 5B is a perspective view showing an electrical connection terminal. [Figure 6] 6A and 6B are cross-sectional views showing the optical-electrical composite connector. Fig. 6A shows a cross section taken along line AA in Fig. 1A, which corresponds to the position of the center of the optical sub-connector, and Fig. 6B shows a cross section taken along line BB in Fig. 1A, which corresponds to the position of the center of the electrical connection terminal. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the positional relationship between the retainer member and the optical sub-connector in the optical-electrical combined connector. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] [Description of the embodiments of the present disclosure] First, embodiments of the present disclosure will be listed and described. The optical-electrical composite connector disclosed herein comprises at least one optical ferrule to which an optical fiber of an optical cable is respectively coupled, at least one electrical connection terminal to which an electric wire is respectively coupled, a sub-housing that accommodates the at least one optical ferrule, and a main housing that accommodates and fixes both the sub-housing accommodating the optical ferrule and the electrical connection terminal, and the sub-housing integrally comprises, with the tip side direction along the axis of the optical ferrule accommodated in the sub-housing being the forward direction, an accommodating section that accommodates the optical ferrule, and a small cylindrical section that protrudes forward from a front end face of the accommodating section and has a cross section perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction that is smaller than the front end face of the accommodating section, and the main housing has a housing end face at its front end portion where a through hole is formed in a position forward of the small cylindrical section of the sub-housing it accommodates, and has an internal abutment surface that abuts against the front end face of the accommodating section with respect to the sub-housing with the small cylindrical section positioned in the through hole.

[0011] In the above optical-electrical composite connector, the optical ferrule is not directly accommodated in the main housing that accommodates the electrical connection terminal, but the optical ferrule is accommodated in a sub-housing separately from the electrical connection terminal, and the sub-housing is then accommodated in the main housing. The assembly of the optical ferrule into the sub-housing can be performed using the manufacturing process and manufacturing equipment of conventional optical connectors, and the process of attaching the sub-housing with the optical ferrule assembled thereto together with the electrical connection terminal to the main housing can be performed more simply than the process of attaching the optical ferrule directly to the main housing together with the electrical connection terminal, making it easier to assemble the optical-electrical composite connector.

[0012] Furthermore, in the above optical-electrical composite connector, the sub-housing is formed with a small tubular portion having a smaller cross section than the front end face of the housing portion that houses the optical ferrule, in front of the front end face of the housing portion. The main housing is provided with an internal abutment surface, and the internal abutment surface abuts against the front end face of the housing portion for the sub-housing with the small tubular portion aligned with the through hole in the housing end face. The sub-housing is positioned relative to the main housing by the internal abutment surface of the main housing abutting against the front end face of the housing portion of the sub-housing. Positioning the sub-housing in this way makes it easier to carry out the process of placing the sub-housing at a predetermined position in the main housing and assembling the optical-electrical composite connector.

[0013] Here, the sub-housing may further have a protrusion protruding outward from the outer circumferential surface at a midpoint in the front-rear direction of the accommodating section, and the main housing may have an internal protrusion protruding inward from an inner wall surface at a midpoint in the front-rear direction, and the rear end of the protrusion of the sub-housing and the front end of the internal protrusion of the main housing may abut against each other when the sub-housing is accommodated in the main housing. When the sub-housing is accommodated in the main housing, the protrusion of the sub-housing and the internal protrusion of the main housing abut against each other, so that the sub-housing is positioned relative to the main housing and is prevented from coming out. This, combined with the effect of positioning by the internal abutment surface, makes it easier to position and fix the position of the sub-housing inside the main housing, further improving the manufacturability of the optical-electrical composite connector.

[0014] The electrical connection terminal may have a step structure along the front-rear direction at a midpoint in the front-rear direction of the outer surface, the main housing may have a locking piece on the inside that can be locked with the step structure when the electrical connection terminal is housed therein, and the step structure of the electrical connection terminal may be locked with the locking piece of the main housing. When the electrical connection terminal is housed in the main housing, the step structure on the outer surface of the electrical connection terminal is locked with the locking piece provided on the main housing, thereby positioning the electrical connection terminal with respect to the main housing. This makes it possible to easily position not only the sub-housing that houses the optical ferrule, but also the electrical connection terminal with respect to the main housing, and makes the optical-electrical composite connector as a whole easier to assemble.

[0015] In this case, the locking piece may be formed forward of the internal protrusion in the main housing. Then, the electrical connection terminal is attached to a more forward position in the main housing than the sub-housing that accommodates the optical ferrule. Due to the difference in structure and connection form between the optical ferrule and the electrical connection terminal, it is convenient to provide a connection position between the electrical connection terminal and a mating member provided in the mating connector further forward than the optical ferrule, and by setting the positional relationship between the locking piece and the internal protrusion as described above, such a connection position relationship can be easily realized.

[0016] The main housing may be composed of two divided members divided in a direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction, the housing end surface having the through hole may be formed on one of the two divided members, and the inner protrusion in the case where the main housing has the inner protrusion and the locking piece in the case where the main housing has the locking piece may be formed on the other of the two divided members. In this way, the operation of accommodating and fixing the sub-housing containing the optical ferrule and the electrical connection terminal at a predetermined position inside the main housing can be performed easily and with high accuracy.

[0017] In this case, each of the two divided members may be provided with a claw member that engages with the other, located forward of the position of the internal protrusion. By engaging the claw members of the two divided members with each other, the two divided members can be effectively prevented from floating up relative to each other and being separated.

[0018] [Details of the embodiment of the present disclosure] The optical-electrical composite connector according to the embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. In this specification, the terms "cylindrical", "rectangular tube", "center", "flush", "same" and other terms that indicate the shape or arrangement of components include not only a strict geometrical concept but also a generally acceptable range of error for an optical-electrical composite connector.

[0019] <Outline of the structure of the optical-electrical hybrid connector> 1A, 1B, and 2 show an optical-electrical composite connector (hereinafter, sometimes simply referred to as a composite connector) 1 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, in a perspective view and an exploded perspective view, respectively. The composite connector 1 according to this embodiment is connected to the tip of an assembly of an optical cable 8 and an electric wire 9, and simultaneously performs an optical connection for optical communication and an electrical connection for conduction. The composite connector 1 according to this embodiment is not fixed to a member such as a communication device or a printed circuit board, but is configured as a cable connector that is detachable from a mating connector together with the optical cable 8 and the electric wire 9.

[0020] The composite connector 1 according to this embodiment includes at least one optical ferrule 5 as an optical communication portion, and at least one electrical connection terminal 7 as an electrical connection portion. The composite connector 1 includes a sub-housing 3 as a housing member for housing the optical ferrule 5. The sub-housing 3 houses a spring member 6 together with the optical ferrule 5 to form an optical sub-connector S. The composite connector 1 further includes a main housing 2 capable of housing the sub-housing 3 and the electrical connection terminal 7 together, and the sub-housing 3 that houses the optical ferrule 5 to form the optical sub-connector S, and the electrical connection terminal 7 are housed and fixed in the main housing 2. The structure of the main housing 2 will be described in detail later, and is composed of two separate members, a housing body 10 and a retainer member 20.

[0021] In this specification, the direction in which the optical-electrical composite connector 1 is connected to the mating connector is defined as the front, and the direction in which the optical cable 8 and the electric wire 9 are connected is defined as the rear, and the front-rear direction (direction a) is defined. In other words, the axial direction of the optical ferrule 5 and the electrical connection terminal 7 is the front-rear direction, and the tip side of the optical ferrule 5 and the electrical connection terminal 7 is the front. The direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction, in which the pair of electrical connection terminals 7 and the sub-housing 3 accommodating the optical ferrule 5 are arranged side by side, is defined as the up-down direction (direction c), and the direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction and the up-down direction is defined as the width direction (direction b).

[0022] The optical ferrule 5 is made of a known ferrule for optical fiber, and the optical cable 8 is fixed thereto. Here, the types of the optical cable 8 and the optical ferrule 5 are not particularly limited, but from the viewpoint of application to high-speed communication, it is preferable to use an optical cable 8 equipped with a glass optical fiber (AGF). AGFs that are generally widely used have a cladding diameter of 125 μm, and even in the case of a multimode type, the core diameter is often small, being 100 μm or less, and the area of ​​the tip surface of the compatible optical ferrule is also small. The optical cable 8 is coupled and fixed to the optical ferrule 5 with the optical fiber 81 exposed at the tip portion being flush with the tip surface of the optical ferrule 5. Furthermore, a cable fixing member consisting of a stop ring 83 and a crimping ring 84 is attached to the tip portion of the optical cable 8.

[0023] In the illustrated embodiment, the composite connector 1 includes one optical ferrule 5, but may include multiple optical ferrules. When multiple optical ferrules 5 are included, each optical ferrule 5 is independently coupled to an optical fiber 81. When multiple optical ferrules 5 are included in the composite connector 1, the multiple optical ferrules 5 may be housed in a common sub-housing 3 together with their corresponding spring members 6 to form an optical sub-connector S. Also, the main housing 2 may house multiple optical sub-connectors S, each configured by housing one or multiple sets of optical ferrules 5 and spring members 6 in the sub-housing 3.

[0024] The electrical connection terminal 7 is configured as an electrical connection terminal for a known insulated wire. The electrical connection terminal 7 is fixed to the tip of the insulated wire 9 and is electrically connected to the wire conductor exposed at the tip side of the insulated wire 9. The type of the electrical connection terminal 7 is not particularly limited, but a mating type female terminal can be preferably applied. In the illustrated embodiment, the composite connector 1 includes one pair (two) of electrical connection terminals 7, but the number is not particularly limited as long as the composite connector 1 includes at least one electrical connection terminal 7.

[0025] FIG. 5B shows the electrical connection terminal 7 in a perspective view. The electrical connection terminal 7 has a step structure 71 formed on one of the outer surfaces (the surface in the -b direction) on the outer side in the width direction. The step structure 71 is provided in a middle part in the front-rear direction, in which the height of the outer surface changes along the front-rear direction. Here, the step structure 71 is formed as a step that is higher at the front and lower at the rear along the front-rear direction. Furthermore, the electrical connection terminal 7 has a protruding structure 72, the middle part of which protrudes at an acute angle in the width direction along the front-rear direction, provided forward of the step structure 71. As will be described in detail later, the step structure 71 of the electrical connection terminal 7 is engaged with a terminal engaging piece 24 provided on the main housing 2, thereby positioning the electrical connection terminal 7 in the main housing 2.

[0026] Here, the structure of the sub-housing 3 and the optical sub-connector S will be briefly described. FIG. 5A shows the optical sub-connector S in a perspective view. FIG. 6A also shows the cross section of the optical sub-connector S in a cross section. As described above, the optical ferrule 5 coupled to the optical cable 8 is accommodated in the sub-housing 3 together with the spring member 6 to form the optical sub-connector S. The sub-housing 3, which is the outer shell of the optical sub-connector S, is configured as a hollow cylindrical resin member having openings at the front and rear, and can accommodate at least one optical ferrule 5 connected to the optical cable 8 inside. The sub-housing 3 is composed of two divided members, an upper member 3a and a lower member 3b. The optical ferrule 5 is coupled to the optical cable 8, and the cable fixing members 83 and 84 are attached to the combined body. The entire portion in front of the cable fixing members 83 and 84 is accommodated inside the sub-housing 3.

[0027] The sub-housing 3 formed by joining the upper member 3a and the lower member 3b has a rectangular cylindrical sub-accommodating portion 32. The optical ferrule 5 and the spring member 6 are accommodated in the sub-accommodating portion 32. The optical ferrule 5 is biased forward in the sub-housing 3 by the spring member 6 configured as a coil spring. A connection sub-opening 331 is formed at the front end of the sub-housing 3 as an opening facing the tip face of the optical ferrule 5 and through which the optical connection portion of the mating connector including the optical ferrule can enter. When the mating optical ferrule enters through the connection sub-opening 331 and hits the optical ferrule in the sub-housing 3, the spring member 6 presses the optical ferrule 5 toward the mating optical ferrule.

[0028] The sub-housing 3 has a stepped shape at its tip, and a small tube portion 33 is provided in front of the sub-housing portion 32 that houses the optical ferrule 5 and the spring member 6. The small tube portion 33 is formed as a tubular portion that protrudes forward from the front end face (sub-housing portion end face) 321 of the sub-housing portion 32. The small tube portion 33 is integrally formed with the sub-housing portion 32, and the hollow portion of the small tube portion 33 and the hollow portion of the sub-housing portion 32 are continuous. The small tube portion 33 is thinner than the sub-housing portion end face 321 along the front-rear direction. In other words, the cross section of the small tube portion 33 perpendicular to the front-rear direction is smaller than the sub-housing portion end face 321, and the cross section of the small tube portion 33 has a shape and size that fits inside the surface shape of the sub-housing portion end face 321 over the entire front-rear direction. In the illustrated embodiment, the small tube portion 33 is formed in a cylindrical shape. In the sub-housing 3, the tip of the small tube portion 33 is a sub-opening 331 for connection. As will be explained in detail later, at the boundary between the small tube portion 33 and the sub-housing portion 32, the sub-housing portion end face 321 abuts against an abutment portion 16 provided on the inside of the main housing 2, thereby positioning the sub-housing 3 relative to the main housing 2.

[0029] The outer peripheral surface of the sub-housing 3 is provided with a locking protrusion 31. The locking protrusion 31 is provided at the midpoint of the sub-accommodating portion 32 in the front-rear direction as a protruding piece that protrudes upward from the outside of the upper wall surface of the sub-housing 3, and is integral with the wall surface of the sub-housing 3 (upper member 3a). In the illustrated embodiment, the sub-housing 3 is formed as a small piece having a rectangular parallelepiped shape. As will be described in detail later, the locking protrusion 31 is mutually locked with an inner locking projection 22 provided on the main housing 2, thereby positioning the sub-housing 3 in the main housing 2 and preventing it from coming loose.

[0030] In the composite connector 1 according to the present embodiment, the optical ferrule 5 is not directly fixed to the main housing 2, but the optical sub-connector S is assembled and fixed to the main housing 2 together with the electrical connection terminal 7 after the optical ferrule 5 is accommodated in the sub-housing 3. This makes it easier to assemble the optical communication part of the composite connector 1. Normally, the manufacturing process and manufacturing equipment are significantly different between optical connectors and electrical connectors, and it is difficult to manufacture a connector including both the optical ferrule 5 and the electrical connection terminal 7 on the same manufacturing line. However, as in the present embodiment, if the optical ferrule 5 is accommodated in the sub-housing 3 and assembled as the optical sub-connector S, and the optical ferrule 5 is assembled to the main housing 2 in the form of the optical sub-connector S, the optical sub-connector S can be assembled independently of the assembly of the electrical connection part by applying the manufacturing process and manufacturing equipment for conventional optical connectors. The process of assembling the optical sub-connector S assembled in this way together with the electrical connection terminal 7 to the main housing 2 can be performed without great difficulty by applying the manufacturing process and manufacturing equipment for conventional electrical connectors. In particular, if the optical ferrule 5 has a small diameter for an AGF, it can be difficult to handle during the connector assembly process; however, if it is prepared in advance as an optical sub-connector S, difficulties due to the small diameter of the optical ferrule 5 are less likely to arise in the subsequent assembly process.

[0031] <Main housing structure and positioning> Here, the structure of the main housing 2 and the positioning of the optical sub-connector S and the electrical connection terminals 7 by the main housing 2 will be described in detail.

[0032] (Overall shape of main housing) The main housing 2 is made of a resin material, and houses and fixes in the internal space the optical sub-connector S, which has an optical ferrule 5 housed in the sub-housing 3, and an electrical connection terminal 7. The main housing 2 has a housing end face 11 as its front end face, and is made of a resin material in the shape of a substantially square tube with an open rear end.

[0033] 1A and 1B, the main housing 2 is formed into a generally rectangular cylindrical shape by joining two separate members, a housing body 10 and a retainer member 20. Figures 3A and 3B and Figures 4A and 4B show perspective views of the housing body 10 and the retainer member 20 as viewed from the front and rear, respectively.

[0034] The housing main body 10 has a cylindrical portion 12 in the front, and an open portion 13 that is integral with the cylindrical portion 12 and has a shape that is open on one side in the width direction (-b direction) behind the cylindrical portion 12. A front end face is provided in front of the cylindrical portion 12, and this front end face becomes a housing end face 11 that is the front end face of the main housing 2 as a whole. The retainer member 20 covers the open portion 13 of the housing main body 10 from the outside in the width direction (-b direction), and by joining the retainer member 20 to the open portion 13 of the housing main body 10, the main housing 2 becomes substantially rectangular cylindrical.

[0035] The coupled state between the housing body 10 and the retainer member 20 is maintained by engagement between the locking tab 21 and the locking projection 14. The retainer member 20 is provided with loop-shaped locking tabs 21 on the upper and lower wall surfaces. The housing body 10 is provided with a locking projection 14 capable of locking the locking tab 21 at a position corresponding to the locking tab 21 when the retainer member 20 is coupled. The housing body 10 and the retainer member 20 can be coupled by covering the open portion 13 of the housing body 10 with the retainer member 20 and engaging the loop structure of the locking tab 21 with the locking projection 14. Once engaged, the locking structure between the locking tab 21 and the locking projection 14 cannot be easily released.

[0036] Furthermore, the main housing 2 may be provided with a supplementary member for maintaining the connection between the housing body 10 and the retainer member 20 other than the pair of the locking tab 21 and the locking projection 14. For example, a pair of claw members capable of engaging with each other in the width direction may be provided at corresponding locations on the outside of the upper and lower wall surfaces of the housing body 10 and the inside of the upper and lower wall surfaces of the retainer member 20. In the illustrated embodiment, one claw member 15 is provided on the outside surface of the portion of the upper wall surface of the housing body 10 that overlaps with the retainer member 20, and the other claw member 25 is provided on the inside surface of the extension portion 23 of the upper wall surface of the retainer member 20 that extends to the position of the cylindrical portion 12 of the housing body 10, and these claw members 15, 25 are engaged with each other in the width direction. Such claw members 15, 25 suppress the retainer member 20 from floating up in the width direction relative to the housing main body 10, and suppress the force acting in a direction in which the retainer member 20 and the housing main body 10 are separated from each other. From the viewpoint of enhancing the effect of suppressing the floating up of the retainer member 20, it is preferable that the claw members 15, 25 are provided on the front side of the main housing 2, forward of the engagement point between the locking tab 21 and the locking projection 14, and more preferably forward of the engagement point between the locking inner projection 22 and the locking protrusion 31 described later.

[0037] The space inside the cylindrical portion 12 of the housing main body 10 is divided into a plurality of spaces by partitions along the front-rear direction. Among these spaces, the sub-connector accommodating space s1 accommodates the sub-housing 3 that accommodates the optical ferrule 5 and the like to form the optical sub-connector S. Furthermore, the two terminal accommodating spaces s2 each accommodate an electrical connection terminal 7 to which an electric wire 9 is connected. The electrical connection terminal 7 and the optical ferrule 5 accommodated in the sub-housing 3 are disposed in the main housing 2 with their respective axial directions directed in the front-rear direction. The sub-connector accommodating space s1 and the terminal accommodating space s2 are each formed to have a size and shape that can accommodate the sub-housing 3 and the electrical connection terminal 7 without rattling.

[0038] An optical connection opening 111 is formed as a through hole in the housing end face 11 configured as the front end face of the housing main body 10. The optical connection opening 111 is provided at a position corresponding to the front of the small tube portion 33 of the sub-housing 3. An optical connection portion of the mating connector including an optical ferrule can enter the inside of the sub-housing 3 through the optical connection opening 111 and the connection sub-opening 331. In addition, an electrical connection opening 112 is formed in the housing end face 11 at a position corresponding to the front of each electrical connection terminal 7, and an electrical connection portion of the mating connector including the electrical connection terminal can enter the terminal accommodating space s2.

[0039] (Optical sub-connector positioning) Here, the positioning of the optical sub-connector S in the main housing 2 will be described. Fig. 6A shows a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in Fig. 1A, that is, a cross-sectional view of the composite connector 1 cut along a plane perpendicular to the up-down direction passing through the center of the optical sub-connector S (the internal structures of the optical ferrule 5 and the optical cable 8 are not shown). The following description will be made with reference to Fig. 6A in addition to the figures described above.

[0040] As described above, the optical connection opening 111 is formed in the housing end surface 11 of the housing main body 10 at a position in front of the small tube portion 33 of the sub-housing 3. The opening diameter of the optical connection opening 111 is formed slightly larger than the diameter of the small tube portion 33 of the sub-housing 3, and is large enough to allow the small tube portion 33 to pass through but not allow the sub-accommodating portion 32 to pass through.

[0041] Abutment portion 16 is provided integrally with housing end face 11 behind optical connection opening 111. Abutment portion 16 is configured as a block-shaped member having a through hole penetrating in the front-rear direction. The through hole of abutment portion 16 has the same inner diameter as optical connection opening 111 of housing end face 11, and is continuous with optical connection opening 111 in the front-rear direction. The thickness (dimension in the front-rear direction) of abutment portion 16 is the sum of the plate thickness of housing end face 11 (d1 in FIG. 6A) and is approximately the same as the length of small tube portion 33 of sub-housing 3 along the front-rear direction. The rear end surface of this abutment portion 16 serves as internal abutment surface 161.

[0042] When the optical sub-connector S is inserted from the rear into the sub-connector accommodating space s1 in the main housing 2, the small tube portion 33 is inserted into the through hole of the abutment portion 16. Then, an internal abutment surface 161, which is the rear end surface of the abutment portion 16, abuts against a sub-accommodating portion end surface 321 (the front end surface of the sub-accommodating portion 32) at the rear of the small tube portion 33. At this time, the tip of the small tube portion 33 becomes flush with the housing end surface 11 of the main housing 2. In this manner, the sub-housing 3 is positioned relative to the main housing 2 by the abutment between the internal abutment surface 161 provided on the main housing 2 and the sub-accommodating portion end surface 321 of the sub-housing 3. Also, the sub-housing 3 is prevented from slipping out forward relative to the main housing 2. The sub-housing 3 can be positioned simply by inserting the small tube portion 33 of the sub-housing 3 from the rear into the through hole of the abutment portion 16 of the main housing 2 and abutting the sub-accommodating portion end face 321 against the internal abutment surface 161, so that when incorporating the optical sub-connector S into the main housing 2, the sub-housing 3 can be easily positioned and held in the correct position.

[0043] Furthermore, the main housing 2 is provided with an internal locking protrusion 22 as a member for further enhancing the reliability of holding the optical sub-connector S positioned by utilizing the abutment between the internal abutment surface 161 and the sub-accommodation end surface 321 as described above. The internal locking protrusion 22 is provided on the inside of the closing surface 26 of the retainer member 20. Here, the closing surface 26 of the retainer member 20 is a surface located on the outer side (-b direction) of the housing body 10 in the width direction and closing the open portion 13 of the housing body 10. The internal locking protrusion 22 is provided as a small block-shaped piece protruding from the inner wall surface of the closing surface 26 of the retainer member 20 toward the inner side (+b direction) in the width direction at the midpoint of the main housing 2 in the front-rear direction. The internal locking protrusion 22 becomes a member protruding toward the inside of the main housing 2 when the retainer member 20 is coupled to the housing body 10.

[0044] When the retainer member 20 is attached to the housing body 10 with the sub-accommodating portion end face 321 of the sub-housing 3 abutting against the internal abutment surface 161 in the housing body 10 to position the optical sub-connector S, the position of the locking inner protrusion 22 of the retainer member 20 corresponds to the position of the locking protrusion 31 protruding outward in the width direction (-b direction) from the side wall surface of the accommodated sub-housing 3. More specifically, the position of the locking inner protrusion 22 is set so that the position of the rear end 311 of the locking protrusion 31 corresponds to the position of the front end 221 of the locking inner protrusion 22.

[0045] 7 is a perspective view showing the positional relationship between the retainer member 20 and the sub-housing 3, focusing on the locking locations of the locking protrusions 31 and the internal locking projections 22. Here, because the positions of the locking protrusions 31 and the internal locking projections 22 are set as described above, the rear end 311 of the locking protrusions 31 and the front end 221 of the internal locking projections 22 come into contact with each other. This contact between the locking protrusions 31 and the internal locking projections 22 results in the locking protrusions 31 and the internal locking projections 22 being locked to each other in the front-rear direction.

[0046] The locking structure between the locking protrusion 31 and the locking internal protrusion 22 increases the reliability of the positioning of the optical sub-connector S in the main housing 2 in addition to the positioning by the abutment between the sub-accommodating end face 321 and the internal abutment face 161 at the front of the sub-housing 3. Furthermore, the optical sub-connector S positioned in this manner is retained by the locking between the locking protrusion 31 and the locking internal protrusion 22, and is prevented from slipping out toward the rear of the main housing 2. This makes it possible to easily perform the process of arranging and fixing the optical sub-connector S at a predetermined position in the main housing 2, and in the manufactured composite connector 1, the optical sub-connector S is stably held at a predetermined position in the main housing 2. Furthermore, the locking internal protrusion 22 has a long shape along the front-rear direction, and in the main housing 2, it also serves as a partition wall that is continuous with the partition wall provided in the cylindrical part 12 of the housing body 10 and defines the sub-connector accommodating space s1.

[0047] (Positioning of electrical connection terminals) Next, the positioning of the electrical connection terminal 7 in the main housing 2 will be described. Figure 6B shows a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in Figure 1A, that is, a cross-sectional view of the composite connector 1 cut along a plane perpendicular to the up-down direction passing through the center of one of the electrical connection terminals 7 (the internal structures of the electrical connection terminal 7 and the electric wires 9 are not shown). The following description will be given with reference to Figure 6B in addition to the figures described above.

[0048] The retainer member 20 constituting the main housing 2 has an extension portion 23 whose upper wall surface extends forward. The extension portion 23 extends forward from a closing surface 26 that closes the open portion 13 of the housing body 10, and reaches a midway portion of the tubular portion 12 of the housing body 10 in the front-rear direction. A terminal locking piece 24 is provided integrally with the extension portion 23 at the front portion of the extension portion 23. The terminal locking piece 24 is configured as a small plate-like piece that protrudes downward from the extension portion 23. The outer surface of the terminal locking piece 24 is flush with the outer surface of the closing surface 26 in the width direction, but the plate thickness of the terminal locking piece 24 is greater than the plate thickness of the closing surface 26. A window portion 17 is provided as a through hole into which the terminal locking piece 24 can enter at a location of the side wall surface of the housing body 10 where the terminal locking piece 24 is located when the retainer member 20 is joined. When the retainer member 20 is joined to the housing main body 10, the terminal locking piece 24 protrudes inward (in the +b direction) from the side wall surface of the main housing 2 through the window portion 17 by an amount equal to the difference in plate thickness with the blocking surface 26.

[0049] The position of the terminal locking piece 24 corresponds to the position of the step structure 71 of the electrical connection terminal 7 when the electrical connection terminal 7 is inserted into the terminal accommodating space s2 of the cylindrical portion 12 of the housing body 10 and the retainer member 20 is attached. More specifically, the position of the terminal locking piece 24 on the retainer member 20 is set so that the position of the front end 241 of the terminal locking piece 24 corresponds to the position of the step structure 71 of the electrical connection terminal 7, that is, the position of the step whose height changes from the front to the rear, in a state in which the electrical connection terminal 7 is inserted into the terminal accommodating space s2 to a position where it abuts against the housing end face 11. In addition, the height of the step in the step structure 71 and the protruding height of the terminal locking piece 24 from the inner surface of the main housing 2 are the same.

[0050] Since the positional relationship between the terminal locking piece 24 and the step structure 71 of the electrical connection terminal 7 is set as described above, the terminal locking piece 24 is locked to the step structure 71 of the electrical connection terminal 7 along the front-rear direction in the composite connector 1, as shown in Fig. 6B. The terminal locking piece 24 also abuts against the outer surface of the rear part (the part below the step) of the step structure 71 of the electrical connection terminal 7. This locking structure between the terminal locking piece 24 and the step structure 71 of the electrical connection terminal 7 positions the electrical connection terminal 7 within the main housing 2. The vertical dimension of the terminal locking piece 24 spans both positions of the two electrical connection terminals 7 arranged in parallel, and one terminal locking piece 24 can be locked to the step structures 71 of both electrical connection terminals 7, positioning the two electrical connection terminals 7 simultaneously. In addition, the electrical connection terminal 7 has a protrusion structure 72 provided in a position forward of the step structure 71, and when the electrical connection terminal 7 is inserted into the terminal accommodating space s2, this protrusion structure 72 bites into the inner wall surface of the housing main body 10, thereby provisionally retaining the electrical connection terminal 7 within the main housing 2, and then the electrical connection terminal 7 is firmly fixed at a predetermined position within the main housing 2 by the terminal retaining piece 24.

[0051] In the retainer member 20, the terminal locking piece 24 that is locked to the step structure 71 of the electrical connection terminal 7 is formed forward of the locking inner protrusion 22 that is locked to the locking protrusion 31 of the sub-housing 3 that constitutes the optical sub-connector S. As a result, the position where the electrical connection terminal 7 forms an electrical connection with the electrical connection terminal of the mating connector is set forward of the position where the optical ferrule 5 forms an optical connection with the optical ferrule of the mating connector. The electrical connection terminal 7 has a simple connection structure directly connected to the tip of the electric wire 9, and is easily electrically connected at a shallow position on the front side of the main housing 2 corresponding to the connection with the mating electrical connection terminal by male-female type fitting. In contrast, the optical ferrule 5 is not simply connected to the tip of the optical cable 8, but the spring member 6 and the cable fixing members 83, 84 need to be arranged nearby, and it is convenient to form an optical connection at a position deep inside the main housing 2 corresponding to the connection with the mating optical ferrule by butting the tip face. As described above, by locating the terminal locking piece 24 forward of the locking inner protrusion 22, a composite connector 1 in which the electrical connection by the electrical connection terminal 7 is formed forward of the optical connection by the optical ferrule 5 can be constructed with a simple configuration.

[0052] When assembling the composite connector 1, first, the pre-assembled optical sub-connector S and the electrical connection terminal 7 with the electric wire 9 coupled thereto are inserted from the rear into the sub-connector accommodating space s1 and the terminal accommodating space s2 of the housing main body 10, respectively. At this time, the optical sub-connector S is positioned by inserting the small tube portion 33 of the sub-housing 3 into the through hole of the abutment portion 16 and abutting the sub-accommodating portion end face 321 against the internal abutment surface 161. Also, the electrical connection terminal 7 is provisionally locked by the protruding structure 72 at a position where its tip abuts against the housing end face 11. Next, the retainer member 20 is attached so that the opening portion 13 of the housing main body 10 is closed by the closing surface 26 of the retainer member 20. At this time, the locking inner protrusions 22 provided on the inside of the blocking surface 26 are locked to the locking protrusions 31 of the sub-housing 3, and the terminal locking pieces 24 are locked to the step structures 71 of the two electrical connection terminals 7. Also, the claw members 15 of the housing body 10 and the claw members 25 of the retainer member 20 are locked to each other. After the locking structures are formed in each part in this way, the locking tabs 21 of the retainer member 20 are locked to the locking protrusions 14 of the housing body 10, thereby joining the housing body 10 and the retainer member 20. In this way, the composite connector 1 in which the optical ferrules 5 and the electrical connection terminals 7 are housed in predetermined positions in the main housing 2 can be easily manufactured.

[0053] <Other forms> In the embodiment described above, the main housing 2 is composed of the housing body 10 and the retainer member 20, which are divided in the width direction, and the retainer member 20 is provided with the locking inner protrusion 22 for holding the optical sub-connector S and the terminal locking piece 24 for holding the electrical connection terminal 7. This configuration makes it easy to arrange and fix the optical sub-connector S and the electrical connection terminal 7 at a predetermined position inside the cylindrical main housing 2. However, the main housing 2 does not necessarily have to be divided into a plurality of divided members, and even if it is divided into divided members, the division may be in a different form from the above, such as division in the front-rear direction. Furthermore, when the main housing 2 is composed of two divided members in the width direction as described above, the locking inner protrusion and the terminal locking piece may be provided on either divided member, and both may be provided on the same divided member or on different divided members. However, as described above, by providing the locking inner protrusion 22 and the terminal locking piece 24 on a common divided member (retainer member 20 in the above), and further by providing the locking inner protrusion 22 and the terminal locking piece 24 on a divided member (retainer member 20 in the above) different from the divided member having the housing end face 11 (housing main body portion 10 in the above), it is possible to easily form an locking structure between the optical sub-connector S and the electrical connection terminal 7 using those members 22, 24.

[0054] As described above, the type and number of the electrical connection terminals 7 are not particularly limited. For example, either a general terminal that is not expected to comply with a specific standard or a terminal that meets a specified standard such as the Ethernet (registered trademark) standard may be used as the electrical connection terminal 7. The configuration using the general terminal is superior in terms of low cost, while the configuration using the terminal that meets the specified standard is superior in terms of being able to guarantee the performance of the electrical connection part, such as communication performance.

[0055] When a plurality of electrical connection terminals 7 are provided, the direction in which the electrical connection terminals 7 are arranged is not particularly limited. In the above embodiment, as shown in the figure, a pair of electrical connection terminals 7 are arranged in the vertical direction (c direction) together with the sub-housing 3 housing the optical ferrule 5 (hereinafter referred to as a series arrangement), but for example, the pair of electrical connection terminals 7 may be arranged in the vertical direction (c direction) together with the sub-housing 3 housing the optical ferrule 5 in a state where they are arranged in the width direction (b direction) (hereinafter referred to as a parallel arrangement). Whether the serial arrangement or the parallel arrangement is adopted may be selected according to the use of the composite connector 1 and the type of the electrical connection terminals 7. In addition, the composite connector according to this embodiment is a cable connector, and the serial arrangement or the parallel arrangement may be selected according to the arrangement of the electrical connection part and the optical connection part in the mating connector, such as a substrate connector (PCB connector), to be fitted. However, the parallel arrangement is superior in terms of space saving, as it is easier to set the overall composite connector 1 to a small size.

[0056] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the composite connector 1 is not waterproofed, but the composite connector 1 may be configured as a waterproof connector. For example, a configuration in which the opening at the rear end of the main housing 2 is closed with a waterproof plug is conceivable.

[0057] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0058] 1 (Optical-electrical) composite connector 2 Main housing 3 Sub-housing 3a Upper member 3b Lower member 5 Optical Ferrule 6 Spring member 7 Electrical connection terminal 8 Optical Cable 9 (Insulated) Wire 10 Housing body 11 Housing end face 111 Optical connection aperture 112 Electrical connection opening 12 Cylindrical part 13 Open area 14 Locking protrusion 15 Claw member 16 Contact part 161 Internal contact surface 17 Window section 20 Retainer member 21 Locking tab 22 (For locking) Inner protrusion 221 (For locking) Front end of inner protrusion 23 Extension 24 Terminal locking piece 241 Front end of terminal locking piece 25 Claw member 26 Occlusion surface 31 (For locking) Protrusion 311 (for locking) rear end of protruding part 32 (Sub) Storage Unit 321 Sub-accommodation end face (= front end face of sub-accommodation part) 33 Small cylinder part 331 Connection sub-opening 71 Step structure of electrical connection terminal 72 Protruding structure 81 Optical Fiber 83 Stop ring 84 Crimping ring a Anteroposterior direction b Width direction c Vertical direction d1 Total thickness of the contact part and the housing end face s1 Sub-connector housing space s2 Terminal accommodating space S Optical Sub-Connector

Claims

1. At least one optical ferrule for coupling with an optical fiber of each optical cable; At least one electrical connection terminal to which an electric wire is respectively coupled; a sub-housing for receiving the at least one optical ferrule; a sub-housing that houses the optical ferrule and a main housing that houses and fixes the electrical connection terminal, a direction of a tip end side along an axis of the optical ferrule housed in the sub-housing is defined as a forward direction, The sub-housing includes: a housing portion for housing the optical ferrule; a small cylinder portion that is integral with the housing and protrudes forward from a front end surface of the housing portion, the small cylinder portion having a cross section perpendicular to the front-rear direction smaller than the front end surface of the housing portion; The main housing includes: a housing end face having a through hole formed at a front end portion thereof in a position forward of the small cylindrical portion of the sub-housing accommodated therein; the sub-housing has a small cylinder portion aligned with the through hole, and the sub-housing has an internal abutment surface that abuts against the front end surface of the accommodating portion.

2. The sub-housing further has a protrusion protruding outward from an outer circumferential surface at a midpoint in the front-rear direction of the accommodation portion, The main housing has an inner protrusion protruding inward from an inner wall surface at a midpoint in the front-rear direction, 2. The optical-electrical composite connector according to claim 1, wherein when the sub-housing is accommodated in the main housing, the rear end of the protrusion of the sub-housing and the front end of the internal projection of the main housing abut against each other.

3. the electrical connection terminal has a step structure along the front-rear direction at a midpoint in the front-rear direction of an outer surface, the main housing has a locking piece inside that can be locked with the stepped structure in a state in which the electrical connection terminal is housed therein; 3. The optical-electrical composite connector according to claim 2, wherein the step structure of the electrical connection terminal is engaged with the engaging piece of the main housing.

4. 4. The composite optical-electrical connector according to claim 3, wherein said locking piece is formed on said main housing forward of said inner projection.

5. The main housing is composed of two divided members that are divided in a direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction, the housing end surface having the through hole is formed on one of the two divided members, 3. The combined optical-electrical connector according to claim 2, wherein the internal projection is formed on the other of the two divided members.

6. The main housing is composed of two divided members that are divided in a direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction, the housing end surface having the through hole is formed on one of the two divided members, 4. The composite optical-electrical connector according to claim 3, wherein said locking piece is formed on the other of said two divided members.

7. 7. The composite optical-electrical connector according to claim 5, wherein each of said two divided members is provided with a claw member for engaging with each other, said claw member being located forward of the position of said internal projection.

8. The electrical connection terminal has a step structure along the front-rear direction at a midpoint in the front-rear direction of the outer surface, the main housing has a locking piece inside that can be locked with the stepped structure in a state in which the electrical connection terminal is housed therein; 2. The optical-electrical composite connector according to claim 1, wherein the step structure of the electrical connection terminal is engaged with the engaging piece of the main housing.

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