Shielded Connectors

Abstract

To provide a shield connector having a novel structure capable of suppressing reduction in heat radiation property caused by change in environmental temperature and of exhibiting an expected heat radiation property with stability by a shorter heat radiation path.SOLUTION: A shield connector 10 comprises: a terminal fitting 18 that has a mating terminal arrangement part 14 into which a mating terminal 12 is inserted, and a terminal connection part 16 connected with the mating terminal 12 arranged and inserted into the mating terminal arrangement part 14; an insulative housing 20 that accommodates the terminal fitting 18; a shield shell 22 that covers an outer face of the housing 20; an insulative heat radiation member 24 that has a connection part side contact surface 84 being in contact with the terminal connection part 16 in a state where the mating terminal 12 is arranged at the mating terminal arrangement part 14, and a shell side contact surface 86 exposed from the housing 20 and being in contact with the shield shell 22; and a spring member 26 that presses the terminal connection part 16 against the connection part side contact surface 84 of the heat radiation member 24 and presses the shell side contact surface 86 of the heat radiation member 24 against the shield shell 22.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

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

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a shielded connector that includes a terminal fitting having a terminal connection portion to be connected to a mating terminal, an electric wire connected to the electric wire connection portion of the terminal fitting, and a metallic shield shell that covers the electric wire connection portion of the terminal fitting and the electric wire, and that integrates the electric wire connection portion and the shield shell with an insulating resin portion formed by insert molding. In this shielded connector, the electric wire connection portion of the terminal fitting is tightly covered with an insulating resin portion that is filled in the shield shell by insert molding so as to fill the air layer inside the shield shell, and is integrated with the shield shell. Therefore, heat generated on the conductive path is quickly transferred from the insulating resin portion to the metallic shield shell without passing through the air layer, and is dissipated, thereby improving the heat dissipation performance of the shielded connector. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2018-113119 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in the shielded connector described in Patent Document 1, if short shots or voids (gaps) occur due to resin fluidity during molding of the insulating resin part, the expected heat dissipation performance may be reduced. In addition, since the linear expansion coefficients of the insulating resin part and the metallic shielded connector and terminal fittings are different, air layers (gaps) may occur between the contact surfaces of the insulating resin part and the metallic shielded connector and terminal fittings due to changes in the environmental temperature during use, which may reduce the heat dissipation performance. Furthermore, since the contact part of the insulating resin part with the terminal fittings is the electric wire connection part, there is an inherent problem that the distance from the terminal connection part, where the largest amount of heat is generated on the conductive path, to the shield shell, which is the heat dissipation part, is long, and the thermal resistance is large.

[0005] Therefore, we disclose a shielded connector with a new structure that can suppress the deterioration of heat dissipation performance due to changes in environmental temperature and stably achieve the desired heat dissipation performance with a shorter heat dissipation path. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The shielded connector of the present disclosure comprises: a terminal fitting having a mating terminal arranging portion into which a mating terminal is inserted, and having a terminal connection portion to be connected to the mating terminal inserted and arranged in the mating terminal arranging portion; an insulating housing that accommodates the terminal fitting; a shield shell that covers the outer surface of the housing; an insulating heat dissipation member having a connection portion side contact surface that contacts the terminal connection portion when the mating terminal is arranged in the mating terminal arranging portion, and a shell side contact surface exposed from the housing and in contact with the shield shell; and a spring member that presses the terminal connection portion against the connection portion side contact surface of the heat dissipation member and presses the shell side contact surface of the heat dissipation member against the shield shell. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the shielded connector of the present disclosure, deterioration of heat dissipation performance due to changes in environmental temperature is suppressed, and the desired heat dissipation performance can be stably exhibited with a shorter heat dissipation path. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a shielded connector according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a right side view of the shielded connector shown in FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view showing a main part of the cross section taken along line III-III in FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the shielded connector shown in FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram for illustrating a state midway through the assembly process of the shielded connector shown in FIG. 1, showing the state before the terminal fitting side assembly is inserted into the shield shell side assembly. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing an assembly on the shield connector side shown in FIG. [Figure 7] 7 is a perspective view showing a housing constituting the shielded connector shown in FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a second spring member constituting the shielded connector shown in FIG. 1 in a state where it is assembled into a housing. [Figure 9] 9 is a perspective view showing a main portion of the shield connector shown in FIG. [Figure 10] 10 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a state in which a mating terminal is inserted into the shielded connector shown in FIG. 1, and corresponds to FIG. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the shielded connector according to the second embodiment. [Figure 12] 12 is a right side view of the shielded connector shown in FIG. 11. FIG. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XIII-XIII in FIG. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XIV-XIV in FIG. [Figure 15] 15 is an exploded perspective view of the shielded connector shown in FIG. 11. FIG. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a perspective view showing a terminal fitting constituting the shielded connector shown in FIG. 11 in a separate state prior to being assembled into a housing. [Figure 17] FIG. 17 is a right side view of the terminal fitting shown in FIG. [Figure 18] FIG. 18 is a perspective view showing the second spring member constituting the shielded connector shown in FIG. 11 in a separate state prior to being assembled into the housing. [Figure 19] 19 is a right side view of the second spring member shown in FIG. 18. FIG. [Figure 20] Figure 20 is an explanatory diagram for illustrating the state midway through the assembly process of the shielded connector shown in Figure 11, and shows the state before the terminal fitting side assembly is inserted into the shield shell side assembly. [Figure 21] 21 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a state in which a mating terminal is inserted into the shielded connector shown in FIG. 11, and corresponds to FIG. [Figure 22] FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XXII-XXII in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] <Description of the embodiments of the present disclosure> First, embodiments of the present disclosure will be listed and described. The shielded connector of the present disclosure comprises: (1) A terminal fitting having a mating terminal arranging portion into which a mating terminal is inserted, and having a terminal connection portion to be connected to the mating terminal inserted and arranged in the mating terminal arranging portion, an insulating housing that accommodates the terminal fitting, a shield shell covering an outer surface of the housing, an insulating heat dissipation member having a connection portion side contact surface that contacts the terminal connection portion when the mating terminal is arranged in the mating terminal arranging portion, and a shell side contact surface exposed from the housing and in contact with the shield shell, and a spring member that presses the terminal connection portion against the connection portion side contact surface of the heat dissipation member and presses the shell side contact surface of the heat dissipation member against the shield shell.

[0010] According to the shielded connector of the present disclosure, instead of the insulating resin part molded to fill the gap between the shield shell and the terminal metal fitting in the conventional structure, an insulating heat dissipation member having a connection part side contact surface that contacts the terminal connection part of the terminal metal fitting and a shell side contact surface exposed from the housing and contacting the shield shell is adopted. That is, since a separate heat dissipation member is used instead of the insulating resin part molded in the heat dissipation path, it is possible to reduce the possibility that the expected heat dissipation performance will be reduced due to the occurrence of short shots and voids that may occur during molding. Furthermore, when the mating terminal is placed in the mating terminal placement part, a separate spring member is used to press the terminal connection part against the connection part side contact surface of the heat dissipation member, and the shell side contact surface of the heat dissipation member is pressed against the shield shell. As a result, even if the environmental temperature during use changes, the heat dissipation member interposed between the terminal connection part and the shield shell can be stably held in contact with the terminal connection part and the shield shell by utilizing the elastic force of the spring member. In addition, because the contact portion of the heat dissipation member with the terminal fitting is the terminal connection portion, the terminal connection portion, which generates the largest amount of heat on the conductive path, can be brought into direct contact with the shield shell via the heat dissipation member. As a result, the heat dissipation path can be made shorter than in the conventional structure, and the desired heat dissipation performance can be stably achieved.

[0011] In addition, the spring member may have any shape as long as it can press the terminal connection portion against the connection portion-side contact surface of the heat dissipation member and press the shell-side contact surface of the heat dissipation member against the shield shell when the mating terminal is placed in the mating terminal placement portion.Similarly, there are no particular limitations on the terminal fitting including the terminal connection portion, the shield shell, and the heat dissipation member as long as it can press the terminal connection portion against the connection portion-side contact surface of the heat dissipation member and press the shell-side contact surface of the heat dissipation member against the shield shell when the mating terminal is placed in the mating terminal placement portion.

[0012] (2) It is preferable that the spring member includes a second spring member having a pair of second pressing parts that directly press both sides of the portion of the connection side contact surface of the heat dissipation member that contacts with the terminal connection part. Since the spring member includes a second spring member having a pair of second pressing parts that directly press the connection side contact surface of the heat dissipation member, the contact state of the heat dissipation member with the shield shell can be more stably maintained. Moreover, since the pair of second pressing parts directly press both sides of the portion of the connection side contact surface of the heat dissipation member that contacts with the terminal connection part, the heat dissipation member can be pressed against the shield shell by the second spring member without interposing the second spring member between the terminal connection part and the heat dissipation member. As a result, it is possible to achieve both shortening of the heat dissipation path and prevention of the occurrence of gaps, etc. in the heat dissipation path.

[0013] (3) It is preferable that the second spring member is assembled to the housing, the second spring member has a curved portion, a base portion protruding from one peripheral end of the curved portion, and the pair of second pressing portions protruding from the other peripheral end of the curved portion, and that before being assembled to the housing, the distance between the opposing surfaces of the base and the second pressing portions increases as the second spring member moves away from the curved portion.

[0014] Before the second spring member is assembled to the housing, the distance between the opposing surfaces of the base and the second pressing portion increases as the second spring member is separated from the curved portion. Then, by assembling the second spring member to the housing, the base and the second pressing portion elastically deform inward in the opposing direction, and the second spring member is stably assembled to the housing by the elastic restoring force. In particular, since the second pressing portion of the second spring member presses the heat dissipation member against the shield shell, by assembling the second spring member to the housing, the heat dissipation member is constantly pressed against the shield shell, and a gap is unlikely to occur between the heat dissipation member and the shield shell even due to changes in environmental temperature, etc. As a result, a deterioration in heat dissipation performance is stably prevented.

[0015] (4) It is preferable that the housing has an opening window, and the heat dissipation member is inserted through the opening window and pressed directly against the shield shell. Since the heat dissipation member is inserted through the opening window of the housing and pressed directly against the shield shell, the heat dissipation member can be advantageously pressed against the shield shell while ensuring insulation of the terminal fittings and terminal connection parts housed in the housing, and the heat dissipation path is shortened to improve heat dissipation.

[0016] (5) It is preferable that the spring member includes a first spring member having a first pressing portion provided on the terminal connection portion, the first pressing portion being pressed by the mating terminal inserted into the mating terminal arranging portion and elastically deforming to allow the mating terminal to be inserted into the mating terminal arranging portion, and that the elastic restoring force of the first pressing portion causes the first pressing portion to press the terminal fitting against the connection portion side contact surface of the heat dissipation member and press the shell side contact surface of the heat dissipation member against the shield shell.

[0017] The spring member includes a first spring member having a first pressing portion provided on the terminal connection portion, and the elastic restoring force of the first pressing portion can be used to press the terminal connection portion against the shield shell via the heat dissipation member while maintaining a contact state between the mating terminal and the terminal connection portion. This makes it possible to achieve both stable conduction by ensuring contact pressure between the mating terminal and the terminal connection portion, and reduced thermal resistance of the heat dissipation path by stably maintaining a state in which the terminal connection portion, the heat dissipation member, and the shield shell are in contact with each other, with a small number of parts.

[0018] (6) It is preferable that the terminal connection portion and the heat dissipation member are arranged in parallel, each having a flat plate shape, one surface of the heat dissipation member in the plate thickness direction constitutes the connection portion side contact surface, the other surface of the heat dissipation member in the plate thickness direction constitutes the shell side contact surface, and the other surface of the heat dissipation member contacts the contact plane of the shield shell that extends parallel to the other surface. The flat terminal connection portion and the heat dissipation member arranged parallel to each other are overlapped, and the shell side contact surface formed by the other surface of the heat dissipation member in the plate thickness direction contacts the contact plane of the shield shell that extends parallel thereto. This makes it possible to ensure a wider contact area between the terminal connection portion and the heat dissipation member, and between the heat dissipation member and the shield shell, and to press and hold them in contact. As a result, it is possible to advantageously realize improvement in heat dissipation and prevention of the occurrence of gaps in the heat dissipation path.

[0019] (7) It is preferable that the terminal connection portion of the terminal fitting has a cylindrical portion that defines the mating terminal arrangement portion internally, and a pair of flat plate-like portions that protrude from a pair of circumferential end faces separated by a slit extending over the entire axial length of the cylindrical portion and are spaced apart from each other toward the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion, and the spring member includes a third pressing portion that overlaps the pair of flat plate-like portions and presses them against the connection portion side contact surface of the heat dissipation member, and the cylindrical portion is expanded in diameter to allow the columnar mating terminal to be pressed into the mating terminal arrangement portion, and the pressing force of the third pressing portion presses the pair of flat plate-like portions against the connection portion side contact surface of the heat dissipation member while pressing the cylindrical portion against the mating terminal, thereby pressing the shell side contact surface of the heat dissipation member against the shield shell.

[0020] When the mating terminal is columnar, the terminal connection part of the terminal fitting has a cylindrical part, and the mating terminal arrangement part is partitioned inside the cylindrical part. A pair of flat plate parts protruding from a pair of circumferential end faces separated by a slit provided in the cylindrical part are provided, and the spring member is provided with a third pressing part for pressing the pair of flat plate parts in the overlapping direction. Pressing of the columnar mating terminal into the cylindrical part is permitted by the expansion of the diameter of the cylindrical part due to the displacement of the pair of flat plate parts against the pressing force of the third pressing part, and after the press-in, the inner surface of the cylindrical part is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the mating terminal by the elastic restoring force of the cylindrical part in the diameter contraction direction, and this state is stably maintained by the pressing force of the third pressing part against the pair of flat plate parts. Furthermore, the third pressing part also has the function of pressing the pair of flat plate parts in the overlapping state against the connection part side contact surface of the heat dissipation member and pressing the shell side contact surface of the heat dissipation member against the shield shell. Therefore, with a small number of parts, it is possible to achieve both stable conductivity by ensuring the contact pressure between the mating terminal and the terminal connection portion, and reduced thermal resistance of the heat dissipation path by stably maintaining the terminal connection portion, heat dissipation member, and shield shell in contact with each other.

[0021] The third pressing portion of the spring member may be provided on a spring member (for example, a third spring member) separate from the second spring member, or may be provided integrally with the second spring member as described below.

[0022] (8) It is preferable that the protruding end of the base is folded back toward the curved portion and the free end protruding toward the second pressing portion constitutes the third pressing portion, and the third pressing portion is provided integrally with the second spring member. The third pressing portion can be provided integrally with the second spring member by using the second spring member with a simple structure in which the protruding end of the base of the second spring member is folded back toward the curved portion and protrudes toward the second pressing portion. Therefore, a single second spring member can simultaneously realize the function of pressing the terminal connection portion against the heat dissipation member and further pressing the heat dissipation member against the shield shell, and the function of ensuring contact pressure of the terminal connection portion against the mating terminal, thereby further reducing the number of parts and simplifying the structure and making the device more compact.

[0023] (9) It is preferable that the protruding end of the base protrudes toward the second pressing portion, and then further protrudes toward the base via a bent portion, and abuts against the flat portion via the bent portion. The third pressing portion, which is integrally provided with the second spring member, is shaped so that the protruding end of the base protrudes toward the second pressing portion, and then further protrudes toward the base via a bent portion, thereby advantageously causing elastic deformation of the third pressing portion toward the base. This makes it possible to easily allow the pair of flat portions to be displaced against the pressing force of the third pressing portion, and to reduce the press-fitting force on the tubular portion of the mating terminal.

[0024] (10) It is preferable that the terminal fitting is made of a belt-shaped metal flat plate, an electric wire connecting part to which a core wire of an external coated electric wire is connected is formed at one end of the metal flat plate, one of the pair of flat plate-shaped parts is formed by a part connected to the electric wire connecting part, the part connected to one of the flat plate-shaped parts is bent into a cylindrical shape to form the cylindrical part, the other of the pair of flat plate-shaped parts is formed by a part connected to the cylindrical part, and the other of the flat plate-shaped part is superimposed on one of the flat plate-shaped parts. A terminal fitting having a pair of flat plate-shaped parts and a cylindrical part can be formed by a simple structure of simply bending a belt-shaped metal flat plate into a cylindrical shape at approximately the middle part, and the structure can be simplified and the cost can be reduced. In particular, by folding back the belt-shaped metal flat plate, the electric wire connecting part, the pair of flat plate-shaped parts, and the cylindrical part can be compactly arranged on the same line, which advantageously allows the terminal fitting and the entire shielded connector to be made smaller.

[0025] <Details of the embodiment of the present disclosure> Specific examples of the shielded connector of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the present disclosure is not limited to these examples, but is defined by the claims, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims.

[0026] <Embodiment 1> Hereinafter, a shielded connector 10 according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Figs. 1 to 10. The shielded connector 10 is applied to, for example, electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles, and is used in the high current range of a high-voltage connector extending from a PCU to a battery. The shielded connector 10 can be arranged in any direction, but in the following description, the upper side refers to the upper side in Fig. 2, the lower side refers to the lower side in Fig. 2, the front side refers to the left side in Fig. 2, the rear side refers to the right side in Fig. 2, the left side refers to the front direction in the direction perpendicular to the paper surface in Fig. 2 (the right side in Fig. 3), and the right side refers to the back direction in the direction perpendicular to the paper surface in Fig. 2 (the left side in Fig. 3). In addition, for multiple identical members, only some of the members may be labeled with a reference symbol, and the reference symbols may be omitted for the other members.

[0027] <Shield connector 10> The shielded connector 10 has a mating terminal arrangement portion 14 into which a mating terminal 12 is inserted, and is provided with terminal fittings 18 having terminal connection portions 16 that are connected to the mating terminals 12 inserted and arranged in the mating terminal arrangement portion 14. The terminal fittings 18 are accommodated in an insulating housing 20, and the outer surface of the housing 20 is covered with a shield shell 22. The shielded connector 10 also has an insulating heat dissipation member 24 that contacts the terminal connection portions 16 inside the housing 20 and is exposed on the outer surface of the housing 20 and contacts the shield shell 22. That is, the heat dissipation member 24 has a connection portion side contact surface 84 (described later) that contacts the terminal connection portions 16, and a shell side contact surface 86 (described later) that contacts the shield shell 22. Furthermore, the shielded connector 10 is provided with a spring member 26 that presses the terminal connection portion 16 against the connection portion side contact surface 84 of the heat dissipation member 24 and also presses the shell side contact surface 86 of the heat dissipation member 24 against the shield shell 22 when the mating terminal 12 is arranged in the mating terminal arrangement portion 14.

[0028] <Other terminal 12> The shape of the mating terminal 12 is not limited, but in this embodiment, it is a substantially flat tab shape. In this embodiment, as described later, a mating terminal arrangement section 14 is provided inside the shielded connector 10, and the mating terminal 12 is inserted into a mating terminal insertion hole 60 provided in the housing 20. The mating terminal 12 arranged in the mating terminal arrangement section 14 and the terminal connection section 16 of the terminal fitting 18 accommodated in the housing 20 are in contact with each other to be electrically connected. That is, in this embodiment, the mating terminal 12 is a male terminal, and the terminal connection section 16 is a female terminal.

[0029] <Terminal metal fitting 18> As shown in Figs. 4 and 5, the terminal fitting 18 including the terminal connection portion 16 has a generally flat plate shape as a whole and a generally rectangular shape extending in the front-rear direction. The front portion of the terminal fitting 18 is the terminal connection portion 16, and the electric wire 28 is fixed to the rear end of the terminal fitting 18. The rear end of the terminal fitting 18 is the electric wire connection portion 29. The electric wire 28 is a coated electric wire, and an insulating coating 32 made of synthetic resin is inserted around the core wire 30. At the tip portion of the electric wire 28, the insulating coating 32 is peeled off to expose the core wire 30, and the exposed core wire 30 is fixed to the rear end (electric wire connection portion 29) of the terminal fitting 18 by crimping, welding, or the like, so that the electric wire 28 and the terminal fitting 18 are electrically connected. In addition, a ring-shaped waterproof rubber 34 having a generally rectangular outer shape is inserted and attached to the rear of the portion of the electric wire 28 where the core wire 30 is exposed.

[0030] Furthermore, positioning protrusions 36 that protrude outward in the up-down direction are provided on both up-down sides of both front-rear end portions of the terminal connection portion 16. The left-right dimension of each positioning protrusion 36 is smaller than the left-right dimension of the terminal connection portion 16, and in this embodiment, the left end face of the terminal connection portion 16 and the left end faces of each positioning protrusion 36 extend on the same plane. In short, each positioning protrusion 36 is provided biased leftward in the left-right direction of the terminal connection portion 16.

[0031] <First spring member 38> A first spring member 38 constituting the spring member 26 is provided on the left end surface of the terminal connection portion 16. The first spring member 38 is generally in the shape of a rectangular plate, is made of a metal with good electrical conductivity, and is fixed to the left end surface of the terminal connection portion 16. The first spring member 38 has a generally mountain-shaped cut-up portion protruding to the left and is elastically deformable to reduce the protruding height. A plurality of such generally mountain-shaped cut-up portions are provided and aligned in the up-down direction and the front-rear direction. These multiple generally mountain-shaped cut-up portions form a first pressing portion 40 that is pressed between the counterpart terminal 12 and the terminal connection portion 16 when the counterpart terminal 12 is inserted and arranged in the counterpart terminal arrangement portion 14.

[0032] In this way, the electric wire 28 with the waterproof rubber 34 attached thereto is fixed to the rear end of the terminal fitting 18, and the first spring member 38 is fixed to the left end face of the terminal connection portion 16, which is the front portion of the terminal fitting 18, thereby forming a terminal fitting side assembly 42 as shown on the right side of Fig. 5. This terminal fitting side assembly 42 is assembled to a shield shell side assembly 44 shown on the left side of Fig. 5 and in Fig. 6. The shield shell side assembly 44 is formed by including the housing 20, the shield shell 22, the heat dissipation member 24, and a second spring member 46 which forms the spring member 26. Each member that forms the shield shell side assembly 44 will be described below.

[0033] <Housing 20> 7, the housing 20 has a generally cylindrical shape with a bottom that opens rearward, and is made of insulating synthetic resin. Although the method for forming the housing 20 is not limited, in this embodiment, the housing 20 is formed by molding, and is formed separately from the shield shell 22 and is later assembled.

[0034] The housing 20 is provided with a substantially rectangular front wall 48 corresponding to the bottom wall at the front end, and a substantially cylindrical peripheral wall 50 protruding rearward from the four peripheral edges of the front wall 48. The peripheral wall 50 thus includes an upper wall 52a at the top, a lower wall 52b at the bottom, and a left wall 52c and a right wall 52d at the left and right sides. The peripheral wall 50 has an outer shape that differs in the front-rear direction, and the front portion of the peripheral wall 50 is substantially rectangular with a larger vertical dimension than the horizontal dimension. The left wall 52c and the right wall 52d are provided with portions that are inclined so as to gradually widen outward to the left and right as they move rearward, and thus the rear end portion of the peripheral wall 50 has a substantially square outer shape. That is, the internal space of the housing 20 is larger in the rear portion than in the front portion.

[0035] A front protrusion 54 protruding forward is provided at the right end of the front wall 48. A support protrusion 56 protruding rearward is provided at the position where the front protrusion 54 is formed, on the rear surface of the front wall 48, on the inner side in the left-right direction from the right end. An opening window 58 is formed in the right wall 52d including the front protrusion 54, by cutting out the opening window 58 from the front end portion to the middle portion in the front-rear direction. Specifically, the front end portion of the opening window 58 is located forward of the rear surface of the portion of the front wall 48 where the front protrusion 54 is not provided, and the rear end portion of the opening window 58 reaches the middle position of the portion of the right wall 52d that inclines rightward toward the rear. As a result, the internal space and the external space of the housing 20 are mutually communicated through the opening window 58 in the right wall 52d.

[0036] A substantially rectangular mating terminal insertion hole 60 penetrating in the thickness direction (vertical direction) is provided in the front portion of the upper wall portion 52a of the housing 20. Furthermore, positioning ribs 62, 62 are provided over a predetermined length from the front end in the center portion in the left-right direction in the front portion of the inner surface of the upper wall portion 52a and the lower wall portion 52b. Furthermore, a positioning rib 64 is provided over a predetermined length from the front end in the center portion in the up-down direction in the front portion of the inner surface of the left wall portion 52c.

[0037] <Shield Shell 22> The shield shell 22 is made of a metal having excellent heat dissipation properties. The overall external shape of the shield shell 22 is substantially the same as that of the housing 20, and is a substantially cylindrical shape with a bottom that opens to the rear. That is, the shield shell 22 has a substantially rectangular front end wall 66, and a cylindrical wall 68 that protrudes rearward from the four peripheral edges of the front end wall 66. Therefore, the cylindrical wall 68 has an upper end wall 70a on the upper side, a lower end wall 70b on the lower side, and a left end wall 70c and a right end wall 70d on both the left and right sides. Similarly to the housing 20, the shield shell 22 has an external shape that differs in the front-rear direction, and the front part of the shield shell 22 is substantially rectangular in shape with a vertical dimension larger than its horizontal dimension. The left end wall 70c and the right end wall 70d have inclined portions that gradually widen outward to the left and right as they move rearward, and as a result, the rear end part of the cylindrical wall 68 has a substantially square external shape. That is, in the shield shell 22 as well, the internal space is made larger in the rear portion than in the front portion.

[0038] In particular, the shielded shell 22 is formed with a size capable of accommodating the housing 20, and when the housing 20 is accommodated in the shielded shell 22, the inner surface of the shielded shell 22 and the outer surface of the housing 20 are in approximately close contact with each other. As will be described later, the inner surface of the right end wall portion 70d of the shielded shell 22 is a contact plane 71 that extends parallel to the other surface (shell-side contact surface 86) of the heat dissipation member 24 in the plate thickness direction, and when the shielded connector 10 is assembled, the shell-side contact surface 86 of the heat dissipation member 24 is in contact with the contact plane 71 over its entire surface.

[0039] A through window 72 penetrating in the thickness direction is formed in the front portion of the upper end wall portion 70a of the shield shell 22, and the internal space of the shield shell 22 and the external space are mutually communicated through the through window 72. This through window 72 is formed at a position corresponding to the mating terminal insertion hole 60 in the housing 20, and in this embodiment, has a length in the front-rear direction longer than the mating terminal insertion hole 60 and is formed over the entire length of the upper end wall portion 70a in the left-right direction. As a result, when the housing 20 is accommodated and assembled in the shield shell 22, the portion of the upper wall portion 52a of the housing 20 surrounding the mating terminal insertion hole 60 is exposed to the outside through the through window 72 in the upper end wall portion 70a.

[0040] When the housing 20 is accommodated in the shield shell 22 and assembled, the rear end position of the shield shell 22 is located rearward of the housing 20. At the rear end portion of the shield shell 22, the upper end wall portion 70a and the lower end wall portion 70b are provided with positioning protrusions 74a, 74b that protrude outward in the vertical direction, respectively.

[0041] Furthermore, the waterproof rubber 34 to be fitted onto the electric wire 28 is fitted into the internal space at the rear end portion of the shield shell 22, and a retainer 76 is provided at the rear end portion of the shield shell 22 to prevent the waterproof rubber 34 from falling off from the shield shell 22. In this embodiment, the retainer 76 is vertically separable and is composed of an upper retainer 78a and a lower retainer 78b. The upper and lower retainers 78a, 78b cover the rear end portion of the shield shell 22 from above and below and are fixed by a bolt 80, so that the retainer 76 is assembled to the rear end portion of the shield shell 22. The upper and lower retainers 78a, 78b are provided with positioning holes 82 corresponding to the positioning protrusions 74a, 74b provided on the upper end wall portion 70a and the lower end wall portion 70b of the shield shell 22, respectively. When the upper and lower retainers 78a, 78b are assembled to the shield shell 22, the positioning protrusions 74a, 74b are inserted into the positioning holes 82, whereby the shield shell 22 and the upper and lower retainers 78a, 78b are aligned with each other.

[0042] <Heat dissipation member 24> The shape and material of the heat dissipation member 24 are not limited as long as it has insulating properties, but in this embodiment, the heat dissipation member 24 has a substantially flat plate shape. In addition, the heat dissipation member 24 only needs to have a thermal conductivity greater than that of air, but it is preferable that the heat dissipation member 24 has excellent thermal conductivity, and in this embodiment, the heat dissipation member 24 is made of ceramic. The heat dissipation member 24 is assembled so as to cover the front portion of the opening window 58 in the housing 20 accommodated in the shield shell 22. In particular, when the heat dissipation member 24 is assembled, it is inserted between the support protrusions 56 and the right end wall portion 70d of the shield shell 22, which face each other in the left-right direction, and the front end position of the heat dissipation member 24 is determined by the heat dissipation member 24 abutting against the front protrusion 54 provided on the housing 20.

[0043] When the shielded connector 10 is assembled, one surface (the left end surface in this embodiment) in the plate thickness direction of the heat dissipation member 24 contacts the terminal connection portion 16, and the one surface in the plate thickness direction of the heat dissipation member 24 constitutes a connection portion side contact surface 84. The other surface in the plate thickness direction of the heat dissipation member 24 (the right end surface in this embodiment) is exposed to the outer surface of the housing 20 through the opening window 58 of the housing 20 and contacts the shield shell 22 covering the outer surface of the housing 20. That is, the other surface in the plate thickness direction of the heat dissipation member 24 constitutes a shell side contact surface 86. In particular, in this embodiment, the contact plane 71, which is the inner surface of the right end wall portion 70d of the shield shell 22 that contacts the shell side contact surface 86, spreads parallel to the shell side contact surface 86, and the shell side contact surface 86 contacts the contact plane 71 over the entire surface.

[0044] In this embodiment, the surfaces on both sides of the heat dissipation member 24 in the plate thickness direction (the connection side contact surface 84 and the shell side contact surface 86) are inclined toward each other, and the plate thickness dimension of the heat dissipation member 24 gradually increases toward the rear.

[0045] <Second spring member 46> The second spring member 46 is formed of, for example, an insulating synthetic resin, and as shown in FIG. 8, has a curved portion 88 extending in the left-right direction at its front end. A base portion 90 protruding rearward is provided at one peripheral end (left end) of the curved portion 88, and a pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 protruding rearward are provided at the other peripheral end (right end) of the curved portion 88. As a result, the base portion 90 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 face each other in the left-right direction. The curved portion 88, the base portion 90, and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 each have a substantially constant thickness dimension, and the base portion 90 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 each have a substantially equal front-rear dimension. The base portion 90 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 are elastically deformable in the left-right direction with respect to the curved portion 88.

[0046] 8 shows the second spring member 46 assembled to the housing 20, and the base 90 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 extend in the front-rear direction in a state where they are substantially parallel to each other. However, before being assembled to the housing 20, the distance between the opposing surfaces (left-right distance) of the base 90 and the second pressing portions 92 in the second spring member 46 gradually increases as they move away from the curved portion 88. That is, when the second spring member 46 is assembled to the housing 20, the base 90 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 are pressed inward in the opposing direction. The elastic restoring force of the base 90 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 acts as a biasing force outward in the left-right direction on the left wall portion 52c and the heat dissipation member 24 located outward in the left-right direction of the base 90 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 during assembly.

[0047] The curved portion 88 may be curved over its entire length in the longitudinal direction, or may be curved only partially in the longitudinal direction, but in this embodiment, the left-right central portion of the curved portion 88 is substantially flat, and both left-right end portions of the curved portion 88 are gradually curved backward as they move outward in the left-right direction. Whether the curved portion 88 is curved over its entire length in the longitudinal direction or partially curved in the longitudinal direction, the curvature of the curved portion may be substantially constant over its entire length, or may vary in the longitudinal direction. In particular, in this embodiment, a pair of positioning recesses 94, 94 that open outward in the vertical direction are formed on both top and bottom sides of the left-right central portion of the curved portion 88 that is substantially flat.

[0048] A positioning groove 96 penetrating in the thickness direction is provided in the vertical central portion from the left end portion of the curved portion 88 to the base portion 90. Specifically, the positioning groove 96 is formed from the left curved portion of the curved portion 88 to approximately the front-rear central portion of the base portion 90. Furthermore, a pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 extending rearward from the right curved portion of the curved portion 88 are provided at both the top and bottom ends of the other peripheral end (right end) of the curved portion 88, and the approximately rectangular region surrounded by the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 and the curved portion 88 is an accommodation region 98 in which the terminal connecting portion 16 is accommodated when the shielded connector 10 is assembled, as described below.

[0049] <Assembly process of the shield connector 10> Next, a specific example of the process for assembling the shielded connector 10 will be described. Note that the process for assembling the shielded connector 10 is not limited to the following description.

[0050] First, the first spring member 38 is fixed to the left end face of the terminal connection portion 16, which is the front portion of the terminal fitting 18, and the electric wire 28 is fixed to the electric wire connection portion 29, which is the rear end portion of the terminal fitting 18. Then, the waterproof rubber 34 is fitted onto the electric wire 28 and attached, thereby completing the terminal fitting side assembly 42.

[0051] Also, the shield shell 22, the housing 20, the heat dissipation member 24, and the second spring member 46 are prepared by forming them separately. Then, the housing 20 is inserted from the rear opening of the shield shell 22 and accommodated in the shield shell 22. Next, the heat dissipation member 24 is inserted from the rear opening of the housing 20, and inserted between the right end wall portion 70d of the shield shell 22 and the support protrusion 56 of the housing 20 through the opening window 58, and the front end of the heat dissipation member 24 is brought into contact with the front protrusion 54 of the housing 20. As a result, the shell-side contact surface 86 of the heat dissipation member 24 is exposed to the outer surface of the housing 20 through the opening window 58 and is brought into contact with the contact plane 71, which is the inner surface of the right end wall portion 70d of the shield shell 22. Then, the second spring member 46 is inserted from the rear opening of the housing 20 and placed in the area surrounded by the housing 20 and the heat dissipation member 24. This completes the shield shell side assembly 44.

[0052] When the second spring member 46 is inserted into the housing 20, the positioning ribs 62, 62 protruding from both the top and bottom of the inner surface of the housing 20 are inserted into the positioning recesses 94, 94 of the second spring member 46, and the positioning rib 64 protruding from the left side of the inner surface of the housing 20 is inserted into the positioning groove 96 of the second spring member 46. This causes the housing 20 and the second spring member 46 to be aligned with each other.

[0053] Furthermore, by disposing the second spring member 46 between the housing 20 and the heat dissipation member 24, the base 90 is placed on the left wall portion 52c of the housing 20 from the inside, and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 is placed on the heat dissipation member 24 from the inside. As a result, the base 90 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 are pressed inward in the opposing direction by the left wall portion 52c and the heat dissipation member 24, respectively, and the base 90 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 are elastically deformed from a state in which they gradually widen toward the rear to a state in which they are parallel to each other. Then, an urging force is applied outward in the left-right direction to the left wall portion 52c and the heat dissipation member 24 by the elastic restoring force of the base 90 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92. In other words, the base 90 presses the left wall 52c against the left end wall 70c of the shield shell 22, and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 press the heat dissipation member 24 directly against the right end wall 70d of the shield shell 22 through the opening window 58. Specifically, the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 directly press the connection portion side contact surface 84 of the heat dissipation member 24 on both sides sandwiching an accommodation region 98 that accommodates the terminal connection portions 16. That is, when the shielded connector 10 is assembled, the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 directly press the connection portion side contact surface 84 of the heat dissipation member 24 on both sides sandwiching a portion with which the terminal connection portions 16 come into contact.

[0054] Thereafter, the completed terminal metal side assembly 42 and the shield shell side assembly 44 are opposed to each other in the front-rear direction as shown in Fig. 5, and the terminal metal side assembly 42 is inserted into the internal space of the shield shell side assembly 44. As a result, as also shown in Fig. 9, the terminal connection portion 16 is accommodated in the accommodation region 98 provided between the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92. Then, the terminal connection portion 16 is brought into contact with the connection portion side contact surface 84 of the heat dissipation member 24 between the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92. In addition, the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 are inserted between the positioning protrusion 36 protruding outwardly in the vertical direction on the left side of the terminal connection portion 16 and the heat dissipation member 24 in the left-right direction. At the same time, the positioning protrusion 36 protruding outwardly in the vertical direction from the terminal connection portion 16 is inserted between the positioning ribs 62, 62 provided on the housing 20 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 of the second spring member 46 in the left-right direction. Insertion of the terminal fitting side assembly 42 into the shielded shell side assembly 44 is restricted, for example, by the front end of the terminal connecting portion 16 abutting against the wall portion that constitutes the front end of the accommodating area 98. For ease of understanding, Fig. 9 shows only the essential parts of the shielded connector 10, and specifically, the shielded shell 22 and the housing 20 are omitted.

[0055] Additionally, as the terminal metal fitting side assembly 42 is inserted into the shielded shell side assembly 44, the waterproof rubber 34 is press-fitted into the rear end of the shielded shell 22 to liquid-tightly seal the rear opening of the shielded shell 22. Thereafter, upper and lower retainers 78a, 78b are attached to the upper and lower sides of the rear end of the shielded shell 22 and fixed with bolts 80. This fixes the retainer 76 to the rear end of the shielded shell 22, completing the shielded connector 10.

[0056] In the assembled state of the shielded connector 10, the first pressing portion 40 of the first spring member 38 provided on the terminal connecting portion 16 is provided at a position substantially equal to the mating terminal insertion hole 60 provided on the housing 20 in the front-rear direction. In the present embodiment, the leftward protruding end of the first pressing portion 40 is arranged to slightly protrude into the mating terminal insertion hole 60 in a plan view (projected in the up-down direction). In the present embodiment, both the terminal connecting portion 16 and the heat dissipating member 24 are substantially flat plate-shaped, and in the assembled state of the shielded connector 10 (the state of FIG. 3 before the mating terminal 12 is inserted), the terminal connecting portion 16 and the heat dissipating member 24 are arranged in parallel, but the right end surface of the terminal connecting portion 16 may abut against the connection portion side contact surface 84 of the heat dissipating member 24, or may face each other with a slight space therebetween in the left-right direction.

[0057] In the shielded connector 10 thus assembled, as shown in Fig. 10, by inserting the mating terminal 12 through the mating terminal insertion hole 60 and arranging the mating terminal 12 in the mating terminal arrangement portion 14, the first pressing portion 40 is pressed between the terminal connection portion 16 and the mating terminal 12 and elastically deformed. In other words, the first pressing portion 40 is pressed by the mating terminal 12 and elastically deformed, thereby allowing the mating terminal 12 to be inserted into the mating terminal arrangement portion 14. As a result, the terminal connection portion 16 and the mating terminal 12 come into contact with each other via the first spring member 38, and are electrically connected.

[0058] Further, the terminal connection portion 16 is pressed rightward with respect to the mating terminal 12 by the elastic restoring force of the first pressing portion 40 of the first spring member 38, and the terminal connection portion 16 is pressed against the connection portion side contact surface 84 of the heat dissipation member 24 by the first pressing portion 40. The shell side contact surface 86 of the heat dissipation member 24 is also pressed against the right end wall portion 70d of the shield shell 22 by the pressing of the terminal connection portion 16 against the heat dissipation member 24. That is, in this embodiment, the shell side contact surface 86 of the heat dissipation member 24 is pressed against the contact plane 71 on the right end wall portion 70d of the shield shell 22 by the elastic restoring force of the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 of the second spring member 46 as well as the elastic restoring force of the first pressing portion 40 accompanying the insertion of the mating terminal 12 into the mating terminal arrangement portion 14. As a result, heat generated by energization between the terminal connection portion 16 and the mating terminal 12 is transferred to the shield shell 22 via the heat dissipation member 24, and is dissipated from the shield shell 22 to the outside.

[0059] In particular, in the first embodiment, since the rear end of the terminal fitting 18 is provided with the electric wire connection portion 29 to which the core wire 30 of the electric wire 28 is fixed, not only the heat generated at the contact portion between the terminal connection portion 16 and the mating terminal 12 but also the heat generated at the connection portion between the electric wire connection portion 29 and the core wire 30 can be dissipated via the heat dissipation member 24. That is, in addition to the heat generated between the terminal connection portion 16 and the mating terminal 12, the heat generated at the connection portion between the electric wire connection portion 29 and the core wire 30, which generates a relatively large amount of heat, is also dissipated via the heat dissipation member 24 and the shield shell 22, thereby exhibiting good heat dissipation properties.

[0060] Therefore, in this embodiment, the mating terminal arrangement portion 14 is provided in the front portion of the internal space of the shield shell 22, which is smaller than the rear portion. As a result, the mating terminal 12 and the terminal connection portion 16 can be arranged in the smaller internal space of the front portion while ensuring an insertion area for the end of the electric wire 28 (the portion fixed to the terminal connection portion 16) in the rear portion of the internal space of the shield shell 22. As a result, the heat dissipation path from the heat generating portion caused by the current flow between the terminal connection portion 16 and the mating terminal 12 to the outside via the heat dissipation member 24 and the shield shell 22 can be shortened, and the heat dissipation efficiency can be improved. Also, in this embodiment, the housing 20, the shield shell 22, the heat dissipation member 24, and the second spring member 46 constituting the shield shell side assembly 44 are formed as separate bodies and then assembled. As a result, the components can be assembled after quality checks such as whether short shots have occurred in each component, and the shield connector 10 can stably exhibit the desired heat dissipation performance.

[0061] In the shielded connector 10 of this embodiment, a heat dissipation member 24 is provided on a heat dissipation path from a heat generating portion caused by current flow between the terminal connection portion 16 and the mating terminal 12 to the outside via the shielded shell 22, and the terminal connection portion 16 contacts the shielded shell 22 via the heat dissipation member 24, not via a molded insulating resin portion as in the conventional structure. This prevents an air layer from being generated on the heat dissipation path due to the occurrence of short shots or voids, and prevents a decrease in heat dissipation performance. In addition, in the conventional structure, there is a risk of a gap (air layer) being generated between members made of different materials due to differences in linear expansion coefficients, for example, when the environmental temperature changes significantly. However, in the shielded connector 10 of this embodiment, a spring member 26 is provided that presses the terminal connection portion 16 against the heat dissipation member 24 and presses the heat dissipation member 24 against the shielded shell 22 when the mating terminal 12 is arranged in the mating terminal arrangement portion 14. As a result, even when the environmental temperature changes significantly, gaps are prevented from occurring between the terminal connection portion 16 and the heat dissipation member 24 or between the heat dissipation member 24 and the shield shell 22, thereby preventing a decrease in heat dissipation performance.

[0062] Furthermore, the terminal connection portion 16, which is prone to heat generation and high temperatures due to current flow with the mating terminal 12, can be brought into contact with the shield shell 22 via the heat dissipation member 24, and the heat dissipation path can be set to be short, improving heat dissipation performance. Since the heat dissipation performance is improved as described above, it is also possible to miniaturize the shield shell 22, which is responsible for dissipating heat to the outside, which in turn allows the entire shielded connector 10 to be miniaturized and costs to be reduced by reducing the amount of material required.

[0063] The spring member 26 of this embodiment includes a first spring member 38 provided in the terminal connection portion 16, and the first spring member 38 has a first pressing portion 40. The first pressing portion 40 is elastically deformable when the mating terminal 12 is arranged in the mating terminal arrangement portion 14, and the elastic restoring force of the first pressing portion 40 presses the terminal connection portion 16 against the heat dissipation member 24 and presses the heat dissipation member 24 against the shield shell 22. As a result, the first spring member 38 not only improves the stability of conduction between the terminal connection portion 16 and the mating terminal 12, but also suppresses the occurrence of gaps between the terminal connection portion 16 and the heat dissipation member 24 and between the heat dissipation member 24 and the shield shell 22, preventing a decrease in heat dissipation performance.

[0064] The spring member 26 of this embodiment includes a second spring member 46 assembled to the housing 20, and the second spring member 46 has a pair of second pressing portions 92, 92. Between the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 is an accommodation area 98 in which the terminal connection portion 16 is accommodated, and when the shielded connector 10 is assembled, the terminal connection portion 16 accommodated in the accommodation area 98 can directly contact the heat dissipation member 24. This prevents the second spring member 46 from being interposed between the terminal connection portion 16 and the heat dissipation member 24, shortening the heat dissipation path and improving the heat dissipation performance. Furthermore, since the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 press the heat dissipation member 24 against the shield shell 22, the occurrence of a gap between the heat dissipation member 24 and the shield shell 22 is suppressed, and the heat dissipation performance is further improved.

[0065] In particular, the second spring member 46 has a pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 and a base portion 90 that faces each other in the left-right direction, and before the second spring member 46 is assembled to the housing 20, the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 and the base portion 90 spread apart toward the rear (as they move away from the curved portion 88). Then, by assembling the second spring member 46 to the housing 20, the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 and the base portion 90 become parallel to each other. That is, by assembling the second spring member 46 to the housing 20, the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 and the base portion 90 are elastically deformed inward in the opposing direction by the heat dissipation member 24 and the left wall portion 52c of the housing 20, respectively, and the second spring member 46 is held within the housing 20 by the elastic restoring force. Therefore, by adopting the second spring member 46 having such a shape, the heat dissipation member 24 can be pressed against the shield shell 22 by the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92, and the second spring member 46 can be easily assembled to the housing 20 without providing a special mechanism for assembling the second spring member 46 to the housing 20.

[0066] Since the terminal connection portion 16 and the heat dissipation member 24 are both flat plate-shaped and arranged in parallel, a sufficiently large contact area can be secured when the terminal connection portion 16 and the heat dissipation member 24 come into contact with each other, improving the heat dissipation performance. In addition, since the shell-side contact surface 86 of the heat dissipation member 24 and the contact plane 71, which is the inner surface of the right end wall portion 70d of the shield shell 22, extend in parallel, when the shell-side contact surface 86 and the contact plane 71 come into contact with each other, substantially the entire surface of the shell-side contact surface 86 can come into contact with the contact plane 71. This ensures a sufficiently large contact area when the heat dissipation member 24 and the shield shell 22 come into contact with each other, further improving the heat dissipation performance.

[0067] The housing 20 has an opening window 58 in the right wall portion 52d, and the heat dissipation member 24 is disposed in front of the opening window 58. Therefore, the heat dissipation member 24 is exposed on the outer surface of the housing 20, and since the outer surface of the housing 20 is covered by the shield shell 22, the heat dissipation member 24 passes through the opening window 58 and is directly pressed against the shield shell 22. This makes it possible to reduce the number of components on the heat dissipation path and shorten the heat dissipation path, thereby improving heat dissipation performance.

[0068] <Embodiment 2> Next, a shielded connector 100 according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Fig. 11 to Fig. 22. In the first embodiment, the mating terminal 12, which is a male terminal, and the terminal connection portion 16, which is a female terminal, are both formed in a substantially flat plate shape, but in the second embodiment, the mating terminal 102, which is a male terminal, is formed as a columnar pin terminal, and the terminal connection portion 104, which is a female terminal, has a tubular portion 106 into which the columnar mating terminal 102 is inserted. In the following description, the same members or parts as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals in the drawings, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0069] <Shielded Connector 100> 15, the shielded connector 100 has a similar structure as the shielded connector 10 in the first embodiment, and includes a terminal fitting 108 having a terminal connection portion 104, a housing 110, a shield shell 112, a heat dissipation member 24, and a spring member 114. Note that the heat dissipation member 24 has a substantially flat plate shape as in the first embodiment, and is made of the same material as in the first embodiment, so a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0070] <Other terminal 102> As described above, in the second embodiment, the mating terminal 102 is columnar, and particularly in the second embodiment, the mating terminal 102 is cylindrical. The mating terminal 102 is inserted into the tubular portion 106 of the terminal connection portion 104, and the outer peripheral surface of the mating terminal 102 comes into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the tubular portion 106, thereby providing electrical continuity between the mating terminal 102 and the terminal connection portion 104. In the second embodiment, a resin cap 116 is provided at the tip of the mating terminal 102, as shown in FIG. 22, which will be described later.

[0071] <Terminal fitting 108> 16 and 17, the terminal fitting 108 is formed by using a band-shaped flat metal plate as a whole, which is bent into a predetermined shape. That is, the flat metal plate is bent to form a substantially cylindrical tubular portion 106 by a longitudinal intermediate portion of the flat metal plate. In the second embodiment, the tubular portion 106 has a substantially cylindrical shape corresponding to the cylindrical mating terminal 102. The peripheral wall of the tubular portion 106 does not extend over the entire circumferential length, and a slit 118 is provided on a portion of the peripheral wall, which extends over the entire axial length of the tubular portion 106 (the width direction of the flat metal plate, perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. 17), and the peripheral wall of the tubular portion 106 is separated.

[0072] A pair of flat plate-like portions 120, 120 each formed from both longitudinal end portions of a metal flat plate protrude from a pair of separated circumferential end faces of the peripheral wall of the cylindrical portion 106 toward the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 106. In the second embodiment, of the pair of flat plate-like portions 120, 120, the right flat plate-like portion 120 in FIG. 17 located on the outer side in the left-right direction (right side) when the terminal fitting 108 is assembled to the housing 110 is a first flat plate-like portion 120a which is one of the flat plate-like portions 120, and the left flat plate-like portion 120 in FIG. 17 is a second flat plate-like portion 120b which is the other of the flat plate-like portions 120. In an assembled state of the shielded connector 100 described below, a cylindrical portion 106 is provided at a front end of the terminal connecting portion 104 of the terminal fitting 108, and first and second flat portion 120a, 120b protrude rearward from a circumferential end face of the cylindrical portion 106 separated by a slit 118. That is, in the second embodiment, the terminal connecting portion 104 includes the cylindrical portion 106 and a pair of flat portion 120, 120 (first and second flat portion 120a, 120b).

[0073] 16 and 17 show the terminal fitting 108 in a separate state before being assembled into the housing 110 (a shield shell side assembly 136 described later), with the first flat plate portion 120a and the second flat plate portion 120b spaced apart from each other. In the second embodiment, in the separate state of the terminal fitting 108, the first flat plate portion 120a and the second flat plate portion 120b are spaced apart from each other by a gradually increasing distance as they are spaced apart from the cylindrical portion 106. As described later, when the terminal fitting 108 is assembled into the housing 110, the first flat plate portion 120a and the second flat plate portion 120b are pressed against each other by a third pressing portion 128 and overlapped with each other. In the second embodiment, the first flat plate portion 120a has a longer length than the second flat plate portion 120b, and the first flat plate portion 120a protrudes further rearward than the second flat plate portion 120b. The rear portion of the first flat plate portion 120a forms an electric wire connection portion 122 to which the core wire 30 exposed by removing the insulating coating 32 from the external coated electric wire (electric wire 28) is connected.

[0074] In short, the wire connection portion 122 is formed at one end of the metal flat plate constituting the terminal fitting 108, and the first flat plate portion 120a, which is one of the flat plate portions 120, is formed by a portion connected to the wire connection portion 122. The portion connected to the first flat plate portion 120a is bent into a cylindrical shape to form the cylindrical portion 106, and the second flat plate portion 120b, which is the other of the flat plate portion 120, is formed by a portion connected to the opposite side of the first flat plate portion 120a in the cylindrical portion 106. In the second embodiment, the core wire 30 exposed to the wire connection portion 122 is fixed from the left side, which is the inner side in the left-right direction. As in the first embodiment, each positioning protrusion 36 is provided on both sides of the first flat plate portion 120a in the vertical direction, biased to the left.

[0075] As described above, since the mating terminal 102 is inserted into the substantially cylindrical tubular portion 106, the internal space of the tubular portion 106 is the mating terminal arrangement portion 124 in which the mating terminal 102 is arranged. In short, the tubular portion 106 of the terminal fitting 108 is provided with the mating terminal arrangement portion 124 partitioned therein. As shown in Fig. 13, when the terminal fitting 108 is assembled to the housing 110, the first and second flat plate-like portions 120a, 120b are overlapped with each other by a third pressing portion 128 of the second spring member 126 described later, and in this state, the inner diameter dimension of the mating terminal arrangement portion 124, i.e., the inner diameter dimension φA of a virtual circle (shown by a two-dot chain line) formed including the inner peripheral surface of the tubular portion 106, is slightly smaller than the outer diameter dimension φB of the mating terminal 102 (see Figs. 21 and 22). In the state shown in Figure 22 before the terminal fitting 108 is assembled to the housing 110, the inner diameter dimension of the tubular portion 106 is φA' which is larger than φA, and when the terminal fitting 108 is assembled to the housing 110 and the first and second flat portions 120a, 120b are overlapped, the inner diameter dimension of the tubular portion 106 is maintained at the smaller φA.

[0076] <Second spring member 126> In the first embodiment, the spring member 26 includes the first spring member 38 and the second spring member 46, but in the second embodiment, the spring member 114 does not include the first spring member and includes the second spring member 126. As shown in Figs. 18 and 19, the second spring member 126 has a curved portion 88 extending in the left-right direction at the front end portion, as in the first embodiment. A base portion 90 protruding rearward is provided at one peripheral end (left end) of the curved portion 88, and a pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 protruding rearward is provided at the other peripheral end (right end) of the curved portion 88. The pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 are provided at both the upper and lower ends of the other peripheral end (right end) of the curved portion 88, and a substantially rectangular area surrounded by the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 and the curved portion 88 is the storage area 98.

[0077] The second spring member 126 of the second embodiment includes a third pressing portion 128 that overlaps the pair of flat plate-like portions 120, 120 (first and second flat plate-like portions 120a, 120b) and presses them against the connection portion-side contact surface 84 of the heat dissipation member 24. This third pressing portion 128 is provided at a free end portion (rear end portion) of the base portion 90 of the second spring member 126 on the side opposite to the side connected to the curved portion 88, and is configured by providing a folded portion 129 at the rear end portion of the base portion 90 and folding back a protruding end portion 130 of the base portion 90 forward toward the curved portion 88. Furthermore, a bent portion 132 is provided at the middle portion of the free end portion of the base portion 90 folded back forward by the folded portion 129. That is, protruding end 130 on the free end side of base 90 is folded forward at folding back portion 129 to protrude toward second pressing portion 92 facing base 90 in the left-right direction, and then further protrudes toward base 90 via bent portion 132. Protruding end 130 protruding toward base 90 via bent portion 132 faces base 90 at a distance in the left-right direction. As a result, in embodiment 2, third pressing portion 128 having bent portion 132 is provided integrally with second spring member 126.

[0078] 18 and 19, the second spring member 126 is shown in a separate state before being assembled to the housing 110 (a shield shell side assembly 136 described later), and similarly to the first embodiment, the distance between the opposing surfaces (left-right distance) of the base 90 and the second pressing portion 92 gradually increases as they move away from the curved portion 88. Then, as the second spring member 126 is assembled to the housing 110, the base 90 and the second pressing portion 92 are pressed by the left wall portion 52c and the heat dissipation member 24 of the housing 110 and elastically deform inwardly in the opposing directions, so that the base 90 and the second pressing portion 92 become approximately parallel to each other.

[0079] The electric wire 28 to which the waterproof rubber 34 is attached is fixed to the electric wire connecting portion 122 provided at the rear end of the terminal fitting 108 as described above, and the second spring member 126 is assembled to the front portion of the terminal fitting 108, thereby forming a terminal fitting side assembly 134 as shown on the right side of Fig. 20. That is, the terminal fitting 108 is inserted from the side of the second spring member 126 (perpendicular to the paper surface of Fig. 19), and the cylindrical portion 106 of the terminal connection portion 104 is disposed in the space in front of the protruding end portion 130 in the internal space of the second spring member 126. Also, the pair of flat portions 120, 120 (first and second flat portions 120a, 120b) of the terminal connection portion 104 are positioned between the bent portion 132 of the second spring member 126 and each second pressing portion 92 facing each other in the left-right direction. The first flat plate portion 120a to which the electric wire 28 is connected projects rearward beyond the second spring member 126. This terminal metal fitting side assembly 134 is assembled to a shield shell side assembly 136 shown on the left side of FIG.

[0080] In addition, Figure 20 shows the terminal fitting side assembly 134 in a state after it has been assembled to the shield shell side assembly 136, but in the terminal fitting side assembly 134 before it is assembled to the shield shell side assembly 136, the base 90 and each second pressing portion 92 of the second spring member 126 are gradually spaced apart toward the rear as shown in Figures 18 and 19, and the pair of flat plate-shaped portions 120, 120 (first and second flat plate-shaped portions 120a, 120b) of the terminal connection portion 104 are spaced apart from each other as shown in Figures 16 and 17.

[0081] The shield shell side assembly 136 of the second embodiment is configured to include a housing 110, a shield shell 112, and a heat dissipation member 24. The housing 110 and the shield shell 112 will be described below.

[0082] <Housing 110> The housing 110 has a shape similar to that of the housing 20 in the first embodiment as a whole, and includes a front wall 48 and a peripheral wall 50 including an upper wall 52a, a lower wall 52b, a left wall 52c, and a right wall 52d. The right wall 52d of the housing 110 has an opening window 58 cut out from the front wall 48 at the front end to the middle part in the front-rear direction. The front part of the upper wall 52a of the housing 110 has a substantially circular mating terminal insertion hole 60 penetrating in the thickness direction (vertical direction). The inner diameter dimension φC (see FIG. 14) of the mating terminal insertion hole 60 is slightly larger than the outer diameter dimension φB of the mating terminal 102. In the second embodiment, an guiding taper 138 that gradually expands in diameter toward the top is provided at the upper opening of the mating terminal insertion hole 60.

[0083] In the second embodiment, a rear protrusion 140 that protrudes rearward is provided on the rear end surface of the front wall 48. The number, size, shape, position, and the like of the rear protrusions 140 are not limited, but in the second embodiment, two rear protrusions 140 extending in the left-right direction are provided spaced apart from each other in the up-down direction. Note that, on the rear end surface of the front wall 48, the rear protrusions 140 are not provided on the right end where the heat dissipation member 24 is to be disposed. This housing 110 is also formed of insulating synthetic resin, as in the first embodiment, and is formed by, for example, molding.

[0084] <Shield Shell 112> The shield shell 112 has the same overall shape as the shield shell 22 in the first embodiment, and includes a front end wall 66 and a cylindrical wall 68 composed of an upper end wall 70a, a lower end wall 70b, a left end wall 70c, and a right end wall 70d. A through window 72 penetrating in the thickness direction is formed in the front portion of the upper end wall 70a of the shield shell 112. This through window 72 is formed at a position corresponding to the mating terminal insertion hole 60 in the housing 110, and the internal space of the housing 110 communicates with the external space through the mating terminal insertion hole 60 and the through window 72. As in the first embodiment, the shield shell 112 is also formed of, for example, a metal having excellent heat dissipation properties.

[0085] <Assembly process of the shield connector 100> Next, a specific example of the process for assembling the shielded connector 100 will be described. Note that the process for assembling the shielded connector 100 is not limited to the following description.

[0086] First, a metal plate is bent into the above-mentioned shape to form the terminal fitting 108. Then, the electric wire 28 is fixed to the electric wire connection portion 122 at the rear end of the terminal fitting 108, and the second spring member 126 is attached to the front portion of the terminal fitting 108. Furthermore, the waterproof rubber 34 is fitted onto the electric wire 28 and the terminal fitting side assembly 134 is completed.

[0087] Also, the shield shell 112, the housing 110, and the heat dissipation member 24 are prepared by forming them separately. Then, the housing 110 is inserted from the rear opening of the shield shell 112 and accommodated in the shield shell 112. Next, the heat dissipation member 24 is inserted from the rear opening of the housing 110, and the heat dissipation member 24 is inserted between the right end wall portion 70d of the shield shell 112 and each rear protrusion portion 140 of the housing 110 through the opening window 58, and the front end portion of the heat dissipation member 24 is brought into contact with the front wall portion 48 of the housing 110. As a result, the shell-side contact surface 86 of the heat dissipation member 24 is exposed to the outer surface of the housing 110 through the opening window 58 and is brought into contact with the contact plane 71, which is the inner surface of the right end wall portion 70d of the shield shell 112. As a result, the shield shell side assembly 136 is completed.

[0088] Thereafter, the completed terminal metal side assembly 134 and shield shell side assembly 136 are opposed to each other in the front-rear direction as shown in Fig. 20, and the terminal metal side assembly 134 is inserted into the internal space of the shield shell side assembly 136. As a result, the second spring member 126 and the front portions of the terminal metals 108 are disposed between the housing 110 and the heat dissipation member 24, and the base 90 is overlapped from the inside with the left wall portion 52c of the housing 110, and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 are overlapped from the inside with the heat dissipation member 24. As a result, the base 90 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 are pressed inward in the opposing direction by the left wall portion 52c and the heat dissipation member 24, respectively, and the base 90 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 are elastically deformed from a state in which they gradually widen toward the rear to a state in which they are parallel to each other. The elastic restoring forces of the base 90 and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 apply an outward urging force in the left-right direction to the left wall portion 52c and the heat dissipation member 24. In short, the base 90 presses the left wall portion 52c against the left end wall portion 70c of the shield shell 112, and the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 press the heat dissipation member 24 directly against the right end wall portion 70d of the shield shell 112 through the opening window 58. In other words, the shell-side contact surface 86 of the heat dissipation member 24 is pressed against the shield shell 112 by the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92.

[0089] Then, the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 are elastically deformed leftward, which is the inner side in the opposing direction with respect to the base portion 90, to accommodate the first flat plate portion 120a of the terminal fitting 108 in the accommodation region 98 provided between the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92. In other words, in a state in which the terminal fitting 108 is accommodated and disposed in the internal space of the second spring member 126, the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 are elastically deformed in a direction approaching the first flat plate portion 120a. As a result, the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92 spaced apart from each other in the vertical direction come into contact with the positioning projections 36 protruding from the first flat plate portion 120a on both the upper and lower sides, and the outer surface (right surface) of the first flat plate portion 120a is exposed to the outer surface of the second spring member 126 through the accommodation region 98.

[0090] Moreover, by elastically deforming the base 90 to the right, which is the inner side in the opposing direction relative to the pair of second pressing portions 92, 92, the third pressing portion 128 of the second spring member 126 presses the second flat plate portion 120b to the right side, which is the side of the first flat plate portion 120a, so that the first flat plate portion 120a and the second flat plate portion 120b overlap each other. In the second embodiment, the third pressing portion 128 is provided with a bent portion 132, which abuts against the second flat plate portion 120b, so that the first flat plate portion 120a and the second flat plate portion 120b overlap each other. The bent portion 132 of the third pressing portion 128 presses the first and second flat plate portions 120a, 120b against the heat dissipation member 24 in a state in which the first and second flat plate portions 120a, 120b are overlapped with each other.

[0091] In other words, in a state in which the base 90 and each second pressing portion 92 are parallel to each other, the distance L (see FIG. 13) between the protruding end face of the bent portion 132 and the outer surface (right surface) of each second pressing portion 92 in the left-right direction is set to be slightly smaller than twice the thickness dimension T (see FIG. 13) of the metal flat plate constituting the terminal fitting 108 (2×T, i.e., the thickness dimension in the overlapping state of the first and second flat plate-like portions 120a, 120b). As a result, in the state shown in FIG. 13 in which the second spring member 126 and the terminal fitting 108 are accommodated and disposed between the heat dissipation member 24 and the housing 110, the bent portion 132 abuts from the left against the first and second flat plate-like portions 120a, 120b overlapping the heat dissipation member 24, and the third pressing portion 128 is pressed toward the base 90 from the folded portion 129 as a base point until L=(2×T) is satisfied, causing elastic deformation. The elastic restoring force of the third pressing portion 128 acts as a biasing force toward each second pressing portion 92 (i.e., toward the heat dissipation member 24), and the first and second flat plate portions 120a, 120b are pressed toward the heat dissipation member 24 by the bent portion 132. As a result, the pair of flat plate portions 120, 120 (first and second flat plate portions 120a, 120b) are pressed against the connection portion side contact surface 84 of the heat dissipation member 24 by the pressing force of the third pressing portion 128.

[0092] As a result, the outer surface (right surface) of the first flat plate portion 120a exposed from the outer surface of the second spring member 126 is pressed against the heat dissipation member 24. That is, in the first embodiment, the first spring member 38 presses the terminal connection portion 16 (terminal metal fitting 18) against the heat dissipation member 24 by arranging the mating terminal 12 in the mating terminal arrangement portion 14, but in the second embodiment, even before the mating terminal 102 is arranged in the mating terminal arrangement portion 124, the terminal connection portion 104 (terminal metal fitting 108) is pressed against the heat dissipation member 24. In addition to the pressing force of the second pressing portions 92 pressing against the heat dissipation member 24, the shell-side contact surface 86 of the heat dissipation member 24 is also pressed against the right end wall portion 70d (contact plane 71) of the shield shell 112 by the pressing force of the third pressing portion 128 pressing against the first and second flat plate portions 120a, 120b.

[0093] The insertion of the terminal metal fitting side assembly 134 into the shield shell side assembly 136 is restricted, for example, by the curved portion 88 at the front end of the second spring member 126 abutting against a rearward protruding portion 140 that protrudes rearward from the front wall portion 48 of the housing 110. In addition, as the terminal metal fitting side assembly 134 is inserted into the shield shell side assembly 136, the waterproof rubber 34 is press-fitted into the rear end portion of the shield shell 112 to liquid-tightly seal the rear opening of the shield shell 112. Thereafter, the upper and lower retainers 78a, 78b are assembled to the rear end portion of the shield shell 112 from both the top and bottom and fixed with the bolts 80. In this way, the retainer 76 is fixed to the rear end portion of the shield shell 112, and the shield connector 100 is completed.

[0094] 21 and 22, in the shielded connector 100 assembled in this manner, by inserting the mating terminal 102 through the mating terminal insertion hole 60, the tubular portion 106 constituting the mating terminal arranging portion 124 is expanded and deformed until its inner diameter dimension φA becomes equal to the outer diameter dimension φB of the mating terminal 102, thereby allowing the mating terminal 102 to be inserted into the mating terminal arranging portion 124. That is, as described above, in the state before the mating terminal 102 is inserted into the mating terminal arranging portion 124, the first and second flat plate-like portions 120a, 120b are overlapped by the third pressing portion 128, so that the inner diameter dimension φA of the mating terminal arranging portion 124 is made slightly smaller than the outer diameter dimension φB of the mating terminal 102, and the mating terminal 102 is inserted in a substantially press-fit state while the mating terminal arranging portion 124 is slightly expanded in diameter. As a result, when the mating terminal 102 is inserted into the mating terminal arranging portion 124, the inner surface of the tubular portion 106 and the outer surface of the mating terminal 102 are more securely pressed against each other, so that the terminal connection portion 104 and the mating terminal 102 are brought into an electrically conductive state.

[0095] The manner in which the cylindrical portion 106 is expanded and deformed with the insertion of the mating terminal 102 is not limited, but for example, the expansion is achieved by the second flat portion 120b continuing from the cylindrical portion 106 being pushed backward (downward in FIG. 21) with the insertion of the mating terminal 102 into the cylindrical portion 106. In such a case, the second flat portion 120b is displaced relative to the first flat portion 120a, but since the first and second flat portions 120a, 120b are maintained in an overlapping state by the third pressing portion 128 of the second spring member 126, the second flat portion 120b is slidably displaced in the front-rear direction relative to the first flat portion 120a.

[0096] In addition, in the state where the mating terminal 102 is inserted into the cylindrical portion 106, the first flat plate portion 120a of the terminal connection portion 104 is overlapped with the heat dissipation member 24, and the heat dissipation member 24 is overlapped with the right end wall portion 70d of the shield shell 112. Specifically, the heat dissipation member 24 is pressed against the right end wall portion 70d of the shield shell 112 by the second pressing portions 92 of the second spring member 126. In addition, the first and second flat plate portions 120a, 120b are overlapped and pressed against the heat dissipation member 24 by the third pressing portion 128 of the second spring member 126. As a result, in the second embodiment, the third pressing portion 128 of the second spring member 126 also presses the heat dissipation member 24 against the right end wall portion 70d of the shield shell 112 via the first and second flat plate portions 120a, 120b. As a result, similarly to the first embodiment, heat generated by energization between the terminal connection portion 104 and the mating terminal 102 is transmitted to the shield shell 112 via the heat dissipation member 24, and is dissipated from the shield shell 112 to the outside.

[0097] Furthermore, in the second embodiment as well, since the electric wire connection portion 122 is provided on the first flat plate portion 120a, not only heat generated at the contact portion between the terminal connection portion 104 and the mating terminal 102 but also heat generated at the connection portion between the electric wire connection portion 122 and the core wire 30 can be dissipated via the heat dissipation member 24. That is, in addition to heat generated between the terminal connection portion 104 and the mating terminal 102, heat generated at the connection portion between the electric wire connection portion 122 and the core wire 30, which generates a relatively large amount of heat, is also dissipated via the heat dissipation member 24 and the shield shell 112, thereby achieving good heat dissipation.

[0098] In the second spring member 126, the protruding end portion 130 of the base portion 90 protruding backward is folded back toward the curved portion 88 at the folded back portion 129 to form the third pressing portion 128. This allows the third pressing portion 128 to be formed integrally with the second spring member 126 with a simple structure. In particular, in the first embodiment, the first spring member 38 that presses the terminal connection portion 16 against the heat dissipation member 24 and the second spring member 46 that presses the heat dissipation member 24 against the shield shell 22 are separate bodies, but in the second embodiment, the second pressing portions 92 that press the heat dissipation member 24 against the shield shell 112 and the third pressing portion 128 that presses the first and second flat plate-shaped portions 120a, 120b of the terminal connection portion 104 against the heat dissipation member 24 are integrally provided with the second spring member 126. This reduces the number of parts and the number of assembly steps.

[0099] Further, the third pressing portion 128 is provided with a bent portion 132, which is adapted to come into contact with the second flat plate portion 120b at the bent portion 132. As a result, even when the third pressing portion 128 overlaps the first and second flat plate portions 120a, 120b and presses them toward the heat dissipation member 24, for example, the protruding end portion 130 of the base portion 90 does not come into contact, and friction between the third pressing portion 128 and the second flat plate portion 120b is reduced.

[0100] In the second embodiment, the terminal fitting 108 is formed using a band-shaped flat metal plate, and by bending the flat metal plate, the tubular portion 106 is formed from the middle portion of the flat metal plate, and the pair of flat plate portions 120, 120 (first and second flat plate portions 120a, 120b) are formed from both end portions of the flat metal plate. Therefore, the tubular portion 106, the pair of flat plate portions 120, 120 (first and second flat plate portions 120a, 120b), and the electric wire connection portion 122 can be formed with a simple structure and a small number of parts.

[0101] <Other embodiments> The technology described in this specification is not limited to the embodiments described above and in the drawings, and for example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the technology described in this specification.

[0102] (1) In the first embodiment, the spring member 26 includes the first spring member 38 that presses the terminal connection portion 16 against the connection portion-side contact surface 84 of the heat dissipation member 24 and the second spring member 46 that presses the shell-side contact surface 86 of the heat dissipation member 24 against the shield shell 22 when the mating terminal 12 is arranged in the mating terminal arrangement portion 14, and two separate spring members (the first and second spring members 38, 46) with different functions are used, but the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment. For example, as in the second embodiment, the spring member may be composed of a single member and may have, at different positions, a function of pressing the terminal connection portion against the heat dissipation member and a function of pressing the heat dissipation member against the shield shell. Specifically, for example, the first spring member 38 and the second spring member 46 in the first embodiment may be integrally formed, and a portion corresponding to the first spring member may be fixed to a terminal connection portion of the terminal, so that a terminal metal fitting side assembly is configured including a portion corresponding to the second spring member. The terminal metal fitting side assembly may then be assembled to a shield shell side assembly including a shield shell, a housing, and a heat dissipation member. Alternatively, in the second embodiment, one spring member 114 (second spring member 126) having different functions in different portions is used, but in the second embodiment, a spring member having a function of pressing the first and second flat plate portions against the heat dissipation member by overlapping them, and a spring member having a function of pressing the heat dissipation member against the shield shell may be separate.

[0103] In addition, since the first spring member in the first embodiment needs to electrically connect the terminal connection portion and the mating terminal, it needs to have a certain degree of good conductive performance, but for example, after the first spring member and the second spring member are formed by integral molding with synthetic resin, the portion corresponding to the first spring member may be plated with a metal having excellent conductive performance, etc. However, as in the above embodiment, the first spring member may be formed from metal, the second spring member from synthetic resin, and the first spring member and the second spring member may be integrated by later fixing them.

[0104] Alternatively, a single spring member may be employed that has, in the same portion, a function of pressing the terminal connection portion against the heat dissipation member and a function of pressing the heat dissipation member against the shield shell when the mating terminal is arranged in the mating terminal arrangement portion. For example, in the first embodiment, if the terminal connection portion 16 is pressed against the heat dissipation member 24 and the heat dissipation member 24 is pressed against the shield shell 22 by the elastic restoring force of the first pressing portion 40 caused by the elastic deformation of the first pressing portion 40 accompanying the insertion of the mating terminal 12, then the second spring member 46 is not essential. That is, the shield connector according to the first embodiment only needs to have a spring member that presses at least the terminal connection portion toward the heat dissipation member side (from left to right in the first embodiment) when the mating terminal is inserted. Similarly, in the second embodiment, if the third pressing portion 128 presses the first and second flat plate-shaped portions 120a, 120b against the heat dissipation member 24, and the heat dissipation member 24 is pressed against the shield shell 112, the second pressing portions 92 are not essential. The first spring member and the second spring member are not limited to the shapes exemplified in the first embodiment, and may be, for example, a coil spring or a leaf spring. In the second embodiment, the second pressing portion 92 and the third pressing portion 128 are not limited to the shapes described above, and for example, the third pressing portion may be formed by partially cutting and raising the base of the second spring member, or a coil spring may be disposed between the base and the second flat plate-shaped portion as the third pressing portion.

[0105] (2) In the first embodiment, both the terminal connection portion 16 and the mating terminal 12 are flat, but as in the second embodiment, the mating terminal may be pin-shaped (cylindrical), and the terminal connection portion may be cylindrical into which the mating terminal is inserted. In such a case, in addition to the mode exemplified in the second embodiment, for example, a spring member may be provided on a part (for example, the right side) of the circumference of the inner surface of the cylindrical terminal connection portion, so that the spring member is elastically deformed with the insertion of the mating terminal into the terminal connection portion, and the terminal connection portion may be pressed against the mating terminal (for example, from left to right) by the elastic restoring force. As a result, the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical terminal connection portion may be pressed against the heat dissipation member, and the heat dissipation member may be pressed against the shield shell, so that heat generated by the passage of electricity between the terminal connection portion and the mating terminal may be dissipated to the outside via the heat dissipation member and the shield shell. In the second embodiment, the mating terminal may be in a shape other than a cylinder, for example a polygonal column, and the terminal connection portion may be in a polygonal tubular shape corresponding to the mating terminal.

[0106] (3) In the first and second embodiments, the heat dissipation member 24 has a substantially flat plate shape and is made of ceramics. However, the heat dissipation member is not limited to a ceramic material as long as it has insulating properties. In addition to ceramics, the heat dissipation member may be made of, for example, a synthetic resin having a higher thermal conductivity than air. Specifically, silicone-based resins, non-silicone acrylic resins, ceramic resins, etc. may be used. More specifically, examples of the heat dissipation member include a heat dissipation sheet, a heat dissipation gap filler, a heat conductive grease, and a heat conductive silicone rubber, all of which are made of silicone-based resins. In the first and second embodiments, the terminal connection portion 16 and the terminal connection portion 104 (first flat plate portion 120a) are in direct contact with the heat dissipation member 24, and the heat dissipation member 24 is in direct contact with the shield shell 22, 112. However, the heat dissipation sheet, the heat dissipation gap filler, the heat conductive grease, etc. may be interposed between these members.

[0107] (4) In the first embodiment, when the mating terminal 12 is not inserted, the terminal connection portion 16 and the connection portion side contact surface 84 of the heat dissipation member 24 and the shell side contact surface 86 of the heat dissipation member 24 are in contact with the shield shell 22, but these may be opposed to each other with a slight separation distance in the left-right direction, and the terminal connection portion and the heat dissipation member, and / or the heat dissipation member and the shield shell may be in contact with each other when the mating terminal is inserted and arranged in the mating terminal arrangement portion. Also, in the second embodiment, even when the mating terminal 102 is not inserted, the terminal connection portion 104 (first and second flat plate-like portions 120a, 120b) is pressed against the heat dissipation member 24, and the heat dissipation member 24 is pressed against the shield shell 112. In short, the shielded connector of the present disclosure only needs to have a configuration in which, at least when the mating terminal is placed in the mating terminal placement portion, the terminal connection portion is pressed against the heat dissipation member and the heat dissipation member is pressed against the shield shell, and the configuration when the mating terminal is not inserted is not limited.

[0108] (5) In the second embodiment, the terminal fitting 108 is formed by bending one strip-shaped metal plate into a predetermined shape, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the cylindrical portion constituting the terminal connection portion may be formed of a plurality of members, and for example, two metal pieces each having a semicircularly curved portion and a flat portion extending from the curved portion may be overlapped in the left-right direction, and a spring member having a pressing portion such as the third pressing portion may be provided to press the flat portions of the two metal pieces toward the heat dissipation member while they are overlapped. By overlapping the semicircular portions of such metal pieces in the left-right direction, a cylindrical portion can be formed that can undergo radial expansion deformation (separation and displacement of the two metal pieces) against the pressing force of the pressing portion when the mating terminal is inserted into the mating terminal arrangement portion. [Explanation of symbols]

[0109] 10 Shielded connector (embodiment 1) 12 Counterpart terminal 14. Mating terminal arrangement section 16 Terminal connection 18 Terminal fitting 20. Housing 22 Shield Shell 24 Heat dissipation material 26 Spring parts 28 Electric wire 29 Wire connection 30 core wire 32 Insulation coating 34 Waterproof rubber 36 Positioning protrusion 38 First spring member 40 First pressing part 42 Terminal metal fitting side assembly 44 Shield shell side assembly 46 Second spring member 48 Front wall 50 Peripheral wall section 52a Upper wall 52b Lower wall part 52c Left wall section 52d Right wall section 54 Front protrusion 56 Support protrusion 58 Opening window 60 Counterpart terminal insertion hole 62,64 Positioning rib 66 Front end wall 68 Cylindrical wall 70a Upper end wall 70b Lower end wall 70c Left end wall 70d Right end wall 71 Contact plane 72 Through window 74a, 74b Positioning protrusions 76 Retainer 78a Upper retainer 78b Lower retainer 80 Volts 82 Positioning hole 84 Connection side contact surface 86 Shell side contact surface 88 Curved section 90 Base 92 Second pressing part 94 Positioning recess 96 Positioning groove 98 Containment Area 100 Shielded connector (embodiment 2) 102 Counterpart terminal 104 Terminal connection part 106 Cylindrical part 108 Terminal fittings 110 Housing 112 Shield Shell 114 Spring parts 116 Resin Cap 118 Slit 120 Flat plate part 120a 1st flat plate part 120b 2nd flat plate part 122 Wire connection 124 Counterpart terminal arrangement section 126 Second spring member 128 Third pressing part 129 Folded part 130 Projecting end 132 Bend 134 Terminal metal fitting side assembly 136 Shield shell side assembly 138 Lead-in Taper 140 Rear protrusion

Claims

1. a terminal fitting having a mating terminal arrangement portion into which a mating terminal is inserted and a terminal connection portion to be connected to the mating terminal inserted and arranged in the mating terminal arrangement portion; an insulating housing that accommodates the terminal fitting; a shield shell covering an outer surface of the housing; a heat dissipation member having a connection portion side contact surface that contacts the terminal connection portion when the mating terminal is arranged in the mating terminal arrangement portion, and a shell side contact surface that is exposed from the housing and contacts the shield shell; a spring member that presses the terminal connection portion against the connection portion side contact surface of the heat dissipation member and presses the shell side contact surface of the heat dissipation member against the shield shell; A shielded connector with

2. 2. The shielded connector as described in claim 1, wherein the spring member includes a second spring member having a pair of second pressing portions that directly press both sides of the portion with which the terminal connection portion contacts on the connection portion side contact surface of the heat dissipation member.

3. The second spring member is attached to the housing, 3. The shielded connector of claim 2, wherein the second spring member has a curved portion, a base portion protruding from one peripheral end of the curved portion, and the pair of second pressing portions protruding from the other peripheral end of the curved portion, and before being assembled into the housing, the second spring member has a distance between opposing surfaces of the base portion and the second pressing portions that increases as it moves away from the curved portion.

4. 4. The shielded connector according to claim 1, wherein the housing has an opening window, and the heat dissipation member is inserted through the opening window and directly pressed against the shield shell.

5. the spring member includes a first spring member having a first pressing portion provided on the terminal connection portion, 5. A shielded connector as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the first pressing portion is pressed by the mating terminal inserted into the mating terminal arranging portion and elastically deforms to allow the mating terminal to be inserted into the mating terminal arranging portion, and the elastic restoring force of the first pressing portion causes the first pressing portion to press the terminal fitting against the connection portion side contact surface of the heat dissipation member and press the shell side contact surface of the heat dissipation member against the shield shell.

6. the terminal connection portion and the heat dissipation member each have a flat plate shape and are arranged in parallel, One surface of the heat dissipation member in the plate thickness direction constitutes the connection portion side contact surface, and the other surface of the heat dissipation member in the plate thickness direction constitutes the shell side contact surface, 6. The shielded connector according to claim 5, wherein the other surface of the heat dissipation member is in contact with a contact plane of the shield shell that extends parallel to the other surface.

7. the terminal connection portion of the terminal fitting has a cylindrical portion defining the mating terminal arrangement portion therein, and a pair of flat plate-like portions projecting apart from each other toward an outer circumferential side of the cylindrical portion from a pair of circumferential end faces separated by a slit extending over the entire axial length of the cylindrical portion, the spring member includes a third pressing portion that overlaps the pair of flat plate-shaped portions and presses them against the connection portion side contact surface of the heat dissipation member, 5. A shielded connector as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the cylindrical portion is expanded to allow the columnar counterpart terminal to be pressed into the counterpart terminal locating portion, and the pressing force of the third pressing portion presses the cylindrical portion against the counterpart terminal while pressing the pair of flat portions against the connection portion side contact surface of the heat dissipation member, thereby pressing the shell side contact surface of the heat dissipation member against the shield shell.

8. A shielded connector as described in claim 7 when claim 3 applies, wherein the third pressing portion is constituted by a free end portion of the base portion that is folded back toward the curved portion and protrudes toward the second pressing portion, and the third pressing portion is integrally formed on the second spring member.

9. 9. The shielded connector according to claim 8, wherein the protruding end of the base protrudes toward the second pressing portion and then further protrudes toward the base side via a bent portion, and abuts against the flat portion by the bent portion.

10. The terminal fitting is formed using a belt-shaped metal flat plate, An electric wire connection portion is configured to connect a core wire of an external covered electric wire to one end of the metal flat plate, A portion connected to the electric wire connection portion constitutes one of the pair of flat plate-shaped portions, A portion connected to one of the flat plate portions is bent into a cylindrical shape to form the cylindrical portion, 10. The shielded connector according to claim 8 or claim 9, wherein the other of the pair of flat portions is formed by a portion connected to the cylindrical portion, and the other of the flat portions is superimposed on one of the flat portions.

Images