connector

Abstract

To provide a connector which reduces the number of components.SOLUTION: An inner housing 4 has a terminal storage part 41 for storing a power source terminal 2 connected to a power source line L1, and a lance 413 engaged with the power source terminal 2 is provided in the terminal storage part 41. An outer housing 5 has: a terminal storage part 51 for storing a communication terminal 3 connected to a communication line L2; an inner housing storage part 52 for storing the inner housing 4; and a front part 53 that covers the side of a mating connector in a fitting direction of the power source terminal 2 in the inner housing 4 stored in the inner housing storage part 52, and is provided with an insertion hole 531 to which the terminal of the mating connector is inserted. The terminal storage part 51, the inner housing storage part 52, and the front part 53 are integrally molded with a resin.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

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

[0002] A known connector for accommodating a power terminal connected to a power line is described in Patent Document 1. Furthermore, the connector for accommodating the power terminal and the connector for accommodating a power terminal connected to a communication line are provided separately. This poses a problem of increasing the number of parts. Patent Document 1 also discloses a connector for accommodating a power terminal. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2019-87391 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a connector with a reduced number of parts. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the connector according to the present invention has the following features. an inner housing having a first accommodating portion for accommodating a power terminal connected to a power line, the first accommodating portion being provided with a lance for engaging the power terminal; the connector includes an outer housing having a second accommodating portion for accommodating a communication terminal connected to a communication line, a third accommodating portion for accommodating the inner housing, and a front portion for covering the mating connector side of the power supply terminal in the mating direction of the inner housing accommodated in the third accommodating portion and having an insertion hole into which a terminal of the mating connector is inserted, the outer housing being integrally molded from resin with the second accommodating portion, the third accommodating portion, and the front portion; The inner housing has an upper side in a vertical direction perpendicular to the fitting direction. of a locking portion that locks with a mating connector is provided on an end surface, and a spacer accommodating chamber that accommodates a spacer that will be locked to the inner housing is opened on a lower end surface in the vertical direction, The third accommodating portion of the outer housing is open in both the up and down directions, and when the inner housing is accommodated in the third accommodating portion, the locking portion is exposed through the upper opening of the third accommodating portion, and the opening of the spacer accommodating chamber is exposed through the lower opening of the third accommodating portion. It is a connector. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a connector with a reduced number of parts.

[0007] The present invention has been briefly described above. The details of the present invention will become clearer by reading the following detailed description of the invention (hereinafter referred to as "embodiments") with reference to the accompanying drawings. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an embodiment of a connector of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the connector shown in FIG. [Figure 3] 3 is a front perspective view of the inner housing shown in FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 4]4 is a rear perspective view of the inner housing shown in FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a power terminal accommodated in the inner housing shown in FIGS. [Figure 6] 6 is a front perspective view of the outer housing shown in FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 7] 7 is a rear perspective view of the outer housing shown in FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 8] 8 is a front perspective view of the spacer shown in FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 9] 9A to 9C are perspective views illustrating the assembly procedure for the connector shown in FIG. [Figure 10] 10A to 10C are perspective views illustrating the assembly procedure for the connector shown in FIG. [Figure 11] 11A to 11C are perspective views illustrating the assembly procedure for the connector shown in FIG. [Figure 12] 12A to 12C are perspective views illustrating the assembly procedure for the connector shown in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] A connector 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. As shown in Fig. 11, the connector 1 of this embodiment houses a power terminal 2 connected to a power line L1 and a communication terminal 3 connected to a communication line L2. Power is supplied to the power line L1, and a communication signal is supplied to the communication line L2.

[0010] For ease of explanation, the following definitions are used for the "front-rear direction," "left-right direction," "up-down direction," "front," "rear," "up," "down," "right," and "left," as shown in Figure 1 etc. The "front-rear direction," "left-right direction," and "up-down direction" are perpendicular to each other. The front-rear direction coincides with the mating direction of connector 1 and a mating connector (not shown), with the front side being the mating connector and the rear side being connector 1.

[0011] 1 and 2, the connector 1 includes an inner housing 4, an outer housing 5, and a spacer 6. The inner housing 4, the outer housing 5, and the spacer 6 are made of synthetic resin and are provided separately from each other.

[0012] Before describing the details of the inner housing 4, the power terminals 2 accommodated in the inner housing 4 will be described with reference to FIG. 5. In this embodiment, ten power terminals 2 are provided. The power terminals 2 are provided with the same shape and the same size. The power terminals 2 are female terminal fittings, and are formed into a predetermined shape by bending a metal plate. The power terminal 2 has a box portion 21 into which a terminal of a mating connector is inserted, a core crimping portion 22 that crimps the core wire of the power wire L1, and a covering crimping portion 23 that crimps the covering portion of the power wire L1. The box portion 21, core crimping portion 22, and covering crimping portion 23 are provided consecutively from the front to the rear of the power terminal 2 in this order.

[0013] The box portion 21 is formed in a rectangular tubular shape having a bottom wall 211, a pair of side walls 212, 212, and a top wall 213, and terminals of a mating connector are inserted inside. The pair of side walls 212, 212 are erected upward from both the left and right sides of the bottom wall 211. The top wall 213 spans between the upper ends of the pair of side walls 212, 212. A stabilizer 214 is formed to protrude upward from the rear end and left side of the top wall 213. The stabilizer 214 is formed by cutting out a portion of the top wall 213. In addition, a locking hole 215 is formed in the top wall 213 forward of the stabilizer 214, which is engaged with a lance 413 (described later). The locking hole 215 is formed to penetrate the top wall 213.

[0014] The core wire crimping portion 22 has a bottom wall (not shown) that is continuous with the rear end of the bottom wall 211 of the box portion 21, and a pair of crimping pieces 221, 221 that rise upward from both the left and right sides of the bottom wall. The core wire can be electrically connected to the power terminal 2 by placing the core wire on this bottom wall (not shown) and crimping the tips of the pair of crimping pieces 221, 221 toward the core wire.

[0015] The cover crimping portion 23 has a bottom wall (not shown) that is continuous with the rear end of the bottom wall of the core wire crimping portion 22, and a pair of crimping pieces 231 that rise upward from both the left and right sides of the bottom wall. The cover can be fixed to the power terminal 2 by mounting the cover on this bottom wall and crimping the tips of the pair of crimping pieces 231 toward the cover.

[0016] In this embodiment, one communication terminal 3 is provided. As shown in Fig. 11, the communication terminal 3 is provided in a shape different from that of the power terminal 2. The communication terminal 3 is a female terminal fitting, and is formed into a predetermined shape by bending a metal plate material or the like.

[0017] Next, the inner housing 4 will be described. As shown in Figs. 2 to 4, the inner housing 4 is integrally formed from resin with a terminal accommodating portion 41 as a first accommodating portion for accommodating the power terminals 2, and a locking portion 42 that locks with the mating connector. As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the terminal accommodating portion 41 is formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, and is provided with a plurality of terminal accommodating chambers 411 that accommodate the power terminals 2. The terminal accommodating chambers 411 are provided so as to penetrate the terminal accommodating portion 41 in the front-rear direction. In this embodiment, ten terminal accommodating chambers 411 are provided, arranged in two vertical rows and five rows aligned horizontally.

[0018] Furthermore, a spacer accommodating chamber 412 that accommodates a spacer 6 (described later) is provided in approximately the center of the terminal accommodating portion 41 in the front-to-rear direction. The spacer accommodating chamber 412 has a first accommodating chamber 412A into which a main body 61 of the spacer 6 (described later) is fitted and accommodated, and a second accommodating chamber 412B into which a locking portion 62 of the spacer 6 is fitted and accommodated. The first accommodating chamber 412A is cut out from the bottom surface of the terminal accommodating portion 411 to the uppermost terminal accommodating chamber 411, and has an opening 412C facing downward. The first accommodating chamber 412A is provided so as to penetrate the terminal accommodating portion 41 in the left-to-right direction.

[0019] The second accommodating chamber 412B is provided further forward than the first accommodating chamber 412A, and is provided by recessing the left and right side walls of the terminal accommodating portion 41. Locking protrusions 412D that lock the spacer 6 are provided in the recessed portions of the left and right side walls. The locking protrusions 412D protrude in the left-right direction. Although not shown, two locking protrusions 412D are provided, one above the other, with the lower protrusion serving to provisionally lock the spacer 6 and the upper protrusion serving to fully lock the spacer 6.

[0020] 2, a lance 413 is provided in front of the spacer accommodating chamber 412 of the terminal accommodating part 41, which engages with the locking hole 215 of the power terminal 2 to prevent the power terminal 2 from slipping out of the rear opening of the terminal accommodating chamber 411. The lance 413 protrudes upward and forward, and is configured as a cantilever with its rear end supported by the inner wall of the terminal accommodating chamber 411, and its front end is configured to be flexible in the vertical direction.

[0021] 3 and 4, the locking portion 42 has a locking arm 421 and a locking protrusion 422. The locking arm 421 extends in the front-rear direction and is provided in the form of a cantilever with its front end supported on the upper surface of the terminal accommodating portion 41. This allows the rear end side of the locking arm 421 to be flexible in the up-down direction. The locking protrusion 422 protrudes from the upper surface of the locking arm 421 and is engaged with the mating connector.

[0022] Next, we will explain the outer housing 5. As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the outer housing 5 is made of resin and integrally comprises a terminal accommodating section 51 that accommodates the communication terminals 3, an inner housing accommodating section 52 that accommodates the inner housing 4 so that the fitting directions of the power terminals 2 and the communication terminals 3 are the same, and a front section 53 that covers the front side of the inner housing 4 accommodated in the inner housing accommodating section 52 and has insertion holes 531 for the terminals of the mating connector.

[0023] The terminal accommodating portion 51 is formed in a rectangular cylindrical shape with openings on both front and rear sides. The inner housing accommodating portion 52 is arranged next to the terminal accommodating portion 51 in the left-right direction. The inner housing accommodating portion 52 has a right side wall 521 and a left side wall 522 that sandwich the inner housing 4 on the left and right sides, and connecting portions 523 and 524 that connect the right side wall 521 and the left side wall 522. The right side wall 521 is formed from the left side wall of the rectangular cylindrical terminal accommodating portion 51. The right side wall 521 and the left side wall 522 are arranged to be spaced apart in the left-right direction.

[0024] The connecting portion 523 is provided to extend in the left-right direction, and both left-right ends are connected to the rear ends of the upper surfaces of the right side wall 521 and the left side wall 522. As shown in Fig. 7, the connecting portion 524 is provided to extend in the left-right direction, and both left-right ends are connected to the rear ends of the lower surfaces of the right side wall 521 and the left side wall 522. That is, the inner housing accommodating portion 52 is open at the rear, and the inner housing 4 is accommodated through this rear opening. The inner housing accommodating portion 52 is also open in the top-bottom direction, and when the inner housing 4 is accommodated, the locking portion 42 provided at the top and the opening 412C of the spacer accommodating chamber 412 provided at the bottom are exposed.

[0025] As shown in Fig. 2, the front portion 53 covers the front of the inner housing 4 and engages with the front ends of the power terminals 2 accommodated in the inner housing 4 to prevent the power terminals 2 from slipping out of the front openings of the terminal accommodating chambers 411. As shown in Figs. 6 and 7, the front portion 53 is composed of a wall portion perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction and is provided with a plurality of insertion holes 531 that penetrate in the front-to-rear direction. As shown in Fig. 2, each of the plurality of insertion holes 531 communicates with the terminal accommodating chambers 411 of the inner housing 4. As shown in Fig. 2, the plurality of insertion holes 531 have tapered portions 532 that become smaller toward the rear, and fitting portions 533 that are provided behind the tapered portions 532 and into which the front ends of the power terminals 2 are fitted.

[0026] The fitting portion 533 is larger than the hole at the rear end of the tapered portion 532, and a step surface perpendicular to the front-rear direction is provided at the boundary between the tapered portion 532 and the fitting portion 533. The front end of the power terminal 2 abuts against this step surface. Both left and right ends of the front portion 53 are connected to the front ends of the right wall 521 and the left wall 522.

[0027] Next, the spacer 6 will be described. The spacer 6 is engaged with the inner housing 4 at both a temporary engagement position, which allows insertion of the power terminal 2 into the terminal accommodating portion 41, and a full engagement position, which engages with the power terminal 2 accommodated in the terminal accommodating portion 41 and prevents the power terminal 2 from slipping out of the rear opening of the terminal accommodating chamber 411. As shown in Fig. 8, the spacer 6 has a main body 61 that engages with the stabilizer 214 of the power terminal 2, and a pair of engagement portions 62, 62 that engage with the inner housing 4. The main body 61 is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape and has a first partition wall 611 that separates the space in the up-down direction and a second partition wall 622 that separates the space in the left-right direction.

[0028] The first partition walls 611 are disposed vertically in the up-down direction and are arranged side by side in the up-down direction. In this embodiment, two first partition walls 611 are provided. The second partition walls 622 are disposed vertically in the left-right direction and are arranged side by side in the left-right direction between the first partition walls 611. In addition, the upper end of the second partition wall 622 is provided so as to protrude upward beyond the first partition wall 611 above. In this embodiment, six second partition walls 612 are provided.

[0029] 2, when the spacer 6 is accommodated in the inner housing 4, the space enclosed by the upper and lower first partition wall 611 and second partition wall 612 communicates in the front-to-rear direction with the lower terminal accommodating chamber 411 of the inner housing 4. When the spacer 6 is accommodated in the inner housing 4, the groove formed by the upper ends of the upper first partition wall 611 and second partition wall 612 communicates in the front-to-rear direction with the upper terminal accommodating chamber 411 of the inner housing 4.

[0030] The pair of locking portions 62, 62 are provided to protrude forward from both left and right ends of the main body portion 61. The pair of locking portions 62, 62 are provided with locking protrusions 621 that protrude in directions that bring them closer to each other.

[0031] Next, the assembly procedure for the connector 1 configured as described above will be described with reference to Figures 9 to 12. First, at the parts factory, the inner housing 4 is inserted from the rear opening of the inner housing accommodating portion 52 of the outer housing 5, as shown in Figure 9. When the inner housing 4 is inserted to a position where the front surface of the inner housing 4 abuts against the rear surface of the front portion 53, the inner housing 4 is locked to the outer housing 5.

[0032] Next, as shown in Fig. 10, the spacer 6 is inserted from the lower opening 412C of the spacer accommodating chamber 412 of the inner housing 4. When the spacer 6 is inserted, the locking protrusions 621 of the spacer 6 are vertically locked with the lower locking protrusions 412D, temporarily locking the spacer 6. At this time, as shown in Fig. 11, the spacer 6 protrudes downward from the lower surfaces of the outer housing 5 and the inner housing 4. With the spacer 6 thus temporarily locked, the connector 1 is transported from the parts factory to the wire harness factory.

[0033] Next, at a wire harness factory, as shown in FIG. 11 , the communication terminal 3 is accommodated in the terminal accommodating portion 51 of the outer housing 5, and the power terminal 2 is accommodated in the terminal accommodating chamber 411 provided in the terminal accommodating portion 41 of the inner housing 4. At this time, the communication terminal 3 is inserted from the rear opening of the cylindrical terminal accommodating portion 51 toward the front in the front-rear direction. The power terminal 2 is also inserted from the rear opening of the terminal accommodating chamber 411 toward the front in the front-rear direction. At this time, the power terminal 2 is inserted with the stabilizer 214 facing downward. The front-rear direction coincides with the insertion direction of the power terminal 2 and the communication terminal 3.

[0034] When the power terminal 2 is inserted forward from the rear opening of the terminal accommodating chamber 411, the power terminal 2 reaches the spacer 6. In the provisionally locked position, the spacer 6 allows the power terminal 2 to be inserted forward. When the power terminal 2 is inserted further, the front end of the power terminal 2 reaches the lance 413, causing the lance 413 to bend downward. When the front end of the power terminal 2 then reaches the front portion 53, the front end of the power terminal 2 engages with the engaging portion 533 of the insertion hole 531. At this time, the lance 413 is inserted into the engaging hole 215 and returns to its original position upward. As a result, even if the power terminal 2 is pulled backward, the lance 413 engages with the front edge of the engaging hole 215, preventing the power terminal 2 from falling out.

[0035] Next, as shown in Fig. 12, when the spacer 6 is inserted further upward, the locking protrusion 621 of the spacer 6 vertically locks with the upper locking protrusion 412D, and the spacer 6 is fully locked. In this fully locked position, the inner housing 4 and the lower surface of the spacer 6 are flush with each other. At this time, as shown in Fig. 2, the first partition wall 611 of the spacer 6 and the stabilizer 214 are aligned in the front-to-rear direction and locked together, further strengthening the lock between the power terminals 2 and the connector 1.

[0036] The above-described front portion 53 and the inner housing 4 on which the lance 413 is formed cannot be integrally molded from resin due to mold removal, and must be provided as separate parts. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the outer housing 5 has a terminal accommodating portion 51, an inner housing accommodating portion 52, and a front portion 53, which are integrally formed from resin. Therefore, there is no need to separately provide the terminal accommodating portion 51 that accommodates the communication terminal 3, the inner housing accommodating portion 52, and the front portion 53, and the number of parts can be reduced.

[0037] According to the above-described embodiment, by providing the spacer 6, the power terminal 2 can be locked more firmly.

[0038] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be appropriately modified, improved, etc. Furthermore, the material, shape, size, number, location, etc. of each component in the above-described embodiments are arbitrary and not limited as long as they can achieve the present invention.

[0039] For example, in the above-described embodiment, the terminal accommodating portion 51, the inner housing accommodating portion 52, and the front portion 53 are aligned in the left-right direction and integrally formed, but this is not limited thereto. The terminal accommodating portion 51, the inner housing accommodating portion 52, and the front portion 53 may also be aligned in the up-down direction and integrally formed.

[0040] In the above-described embodiment, the spacer 6 is engaged with the inner housing 4, but this is not limitative. The spacer 6 is not essential and may be omitted.

[0041] Here, the features of the above-described embodiments of the connector according to the present invention will be briefly summarized and listed below in [1] and [2].

[0042] [1] an inner housing (4) having a first accommodating portion (41) for accommodating a power terminal (2) connected to a power line (L1), the first accommodating portion (41) being provided with a lance (413) for engaging with the power terminal (2); the second housing (51), the third housing (52), and the front portion (53) are integrally molded from resin and include a second housing portion (51) for housing a communication terminal (3) connected to a communication line (L2), a third housing portion (52) for housing the inner housing (4), and a front portion (53) for covering the mating connector side of the inner housing (4) housed in the third housing portion (52) in the mating direction of the power terminal (2) and having an insertion hole (531) into which the terminal of the mating connector is inserted. Connector(1).

[0043] According to the configuration [1], the outer housing (5) has the second housing portion (51), the third housing portion (52), and the front portion (53), which are integrally formed of resin. Therefore, it is not necessary to separately provide the second housing portion (51) for accommodating the communication terminal (3), and the third housing portion (52) and the front portion (53), thereby reducing the number of parts.

[0044] [2] In the connector (1) described in [1], The connector further includes a spacer (6) that engages with the inner housing (4) at both a temporary locking position that allows insertion of the power terminal (2) into the first housing portion (41) and a full locking position that engages with the power terminal (2) accommodated in the first housing portion (41). Connector(1).

[0045] According to the configuration [6] above, the provision of the spacer (6) allows the power terminal (2) to be more firmly locked. [Explanation of symbols]

[0046] 1 connector 2 Power terminal 3 Communication terminal 4 Inner housing 5 outer housing 6 spacers 41 Terminal accommodating section (first accommodating section) 51 Terminal accommodating section (second accommodating section) 52 Inner housing accommodation section (third accommodation section) 53 Front section 531 Insertion hole 413 Lance L1 power line L2 communication line

Claims

1. an inner housing having a first accommodating portion for accommodating a power terminal connected to a power line, the first accommodating portion being provided with a lance for engaging the power terminal; the connector includes an outer housing having a second accommodating portion that accommodates a communication terminal connected to a communication line, a third accommodating portion that accommodates the inner housing, and a front portion that covers the mating connector side of the power supply terminal in the mating direction of the inner housing accommodated in the third accommodating portion and has an insertion hole into which a terminal of the mating connector is inserted, the outer housing being integrally molded from resin with the second accommodating portion, the third accommodating portion, and the front portion; The inner housing has a locking portion on an upper end surface in a vertical direction perpendicular to the fitting direction, the locking portion being adapted to lock with a mating connector, and a spacer accommodating chamber opening on a lower end surface in the vertical direction for accommodating a spacer to be engaged with the inner housing, The third accommodating portion of the outer housing is open in both the up and down directions, and when the inner housing is accommodated in the third accommodating portion, the locking portion is exposed through the upper opening of the third accommodating portion, and an opening of the spacer accommodating chamber is exposed through the lower opening of the third accommodating portion. connector.

2. 2. The connector according to claim 1, the spacer is accommodated in the spacer accommodating chamber and engages with the inner housing at both a temporary locking position that allows insertion of the power terminal into the first accommodating portion and a full locking position that engages with the power terminal accommodated in the first accommodating portion, connector.

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