Connection terminals

Abstract

To provide a connection terminal which can suppress the number of components.SOLUTION: A connection terminal 1 comprises: a male terminal 2 having a male-side contact part 20 formed into a columnar shape; and a female terminal 3 having a female-side contact part 10 which is formed into a columnar shape and has a linear slit 13 formed along an axial direction X. The female terminal 3 has: an insertion space 14 which is formed inside the female-side contact part 10, and into which the male-side contact part 20 is inserted; and a base part 15 which is located so as to face the slit 13 across the insertion space 14. The connection terminal 1 is configured such that, in an insertion condition where the male-side contact part 20 is inserted in the insertion space 14, the female-side contact part 10 is bent to the radially outer side intersecting the axial direction X, with the base part 15 serving as a bending start point, thereby applying a contact load to the male-side contact part 20.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

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

[0002] Conventional connection terminals, for example, include those that have a spring contact member in which multiple spring pieces that elastically contact the peripheral surface of the inserted pin terminal are arranged in parallel with gaps and held in a cylindrical shape within the terminal body in order to obtain a stable contact area between the contact points of a male terminal, known as a pin terminal, and a female terminal (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-187170 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in the above-mentioned conventional connection terminal, the female terminal is composed of multiple parts, which increases the cost of parts and the number of steps required to assemble the parts, and also makes it difficult to achieve positional accuracy between the parts, leaving room for improvement.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a connection terminal that can reduce the number of parts. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above object, a connection terminal according to the present invention comprises a male terminal having a cylindrical male contact portion, and a female terminal having a cylindrical female contact portion with a linear slit formed along an axial direction, wherein the female terminal has an insertion space formed inside the female contact portion and into which the male contact portion is inserted, and a base portion located opposite the slit across the insertion space, and when the male contact portion is inserted into the insertion space, the female contact portion bends radially outward from the base portion in a direction intersecting with the axial direction, applying a contact load to the male contact portion, The female terminal has a protrusion that protrudes radially inward from the inner peripheral surface of the female contact portion, and the male terminal has a recess that is recessed radially inward from the outer peripheral surface of the male contact portion and into which the protrusion is inserted in the inserted state, and the recess has a pair of opposing surfaces that are circumferentially opposed to each other with the protrusion sandwiched therebetween. It is characterized by: [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] The connection terminal according to the present invention has the effect of reducing the number of parts. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a connection terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a view of the female terminal of FIG. 1 as viewed from the second axial direction side. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a connection terminal according to the second embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a view of the female terminal of FIG. 3 as viewed from the second axial direction. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is another view of the female terminal of FIG. 3 as viewed from the second axial direction side. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a connection terminal according to the second embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a connection terminal according to the third embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a view of the female terminal of FIG. 7 as viewed from the second axial direction side. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a connection terminal according to a modified example of the third embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a view of the female terminal of FIG. 9 as viewed from the second axial direction. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a connection terminal according to a modified example of the third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments. That is, the components in the following embodiments include those that can be easily imagined by a person skilled in the art or those that are substantially the same, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

[0010] [First embodiment] First, a connection terminal 1 according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 1 and 2. The connection terminal 1 shown in Figure 1 includes a male terminal 2 and a female terminal 3, and the male terminal 2 is fitted into the female terminal 3 to electrically connect the male terminal 2 and the female terminal 3.

[0011] In the following description, for convenience, of the X, Y, and Z directions shown in the drawings, the X direction will be referred to as the "axial direction X," the Y direction will be referred to as the "width direction Y," and the Z direction will be referred to as the "height direction Z." The axial direction X, width direction Y, and height direction Z are perpendicular to one another. The axial direction X corresponds to the direction along the central axis O. The width direction Y and height direction Z are included in the directions perpendicular to the axial direction X. The axial direction X is the insertion / removal direction of the male terminal 2 with respect to the female terminal 3, and the insertion direction is referred to as the "first axial direction X1" and the removal direction is referred to as the "second axial direction X2."

[0012] The connection terminal 1 is applied to, for example, connectors, electric junction boxes, electronic components, etc. that are mounted on vehicles such as automobiles and incorporated into wire harnesses. Here, a wire harness is, for example, a component in which a plurality of electric wires used for power supply and signal communication are bundled together to connect various devices mounted on a vehicle, and the plurality of electric wires are connected to the devices using connectors, etc.

[0013] The male terminal 2 is composed of a male contact portion 20, a connector connecting portion 21, a connecting portion 22, and a cap 23. The male terminal 2, except for the cap 23, is integrally molded from a conductive metal material such as copper, a copper alloy, aluminum, or an aluminum alloy, with the male contact portion 20, connector connecting portion 21, and connecting portion 22 being molded. The cap 23 is formed separately from the male contact portion 20, connector connecting portion 21, and connecting portion 22, and is molded from an insulating resin material or the like. The male terminal 2 is arranged in the axial direction X from the first axial direction X1 toward the second axial direction X2, with the cap 23, male contact portion 20, connecting portion 22, and connector connecting portion 21 being connected to each other in this order.

[0014] When the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3, the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male contact portion 20 comes into contact with and electrically connects to the mating female terminal 3. The male contact portion 20 is formed in a cylindrical shape with a central axis O aligned with the axial direction X. A cap 23 is attached to the male contact portion 20 on the side in the first axial direction X1, and a connector connecting portion 21 is connected to the side in the second axial direction X2 via a connecting portion 22.

[0015] The connector connection portion 21 is a portion that is connected to, for example, an electric wire housed in a connector or an electric connection box, an electronic component, etc., and is electrically connected to these.

[0016] Linking portion 22 is a portion that is interposed between male contact portion 20 and connector connecting portion 21 and links male contact portion 20 and connector connecting portion 21. The outer diameter of linking portion 22 is relatively larger than the outer diameter of male contact portion 20, and in the mated state where male terminal 2 is mated with female terminal 3, it abuts against the end of female terminal 3 on the second axial direction X2 side, and restricts movement of male terminal 2 in the first axial direction X1 side.

[0017] Cap 23 is a hat-shaped protective member attached to the tip side of male terminal 2, on the first axial direction X1 side of male contact portion 20, to prevent electric shock. Cap 23 has an outer diameter that is the same as or relatively smaller than the outer diameter of male contact portion 20.

[0018] The female terminal 3 is composed of a female contact portion 10, a wire connection portion 11, and a connecting portion 12. The female terminal 3 is formed such that the female contact portion 10, the wire connection portion 11, and the connecting portion 12 are integrally formed from a conductive metal material such as copper, a copper alloy, aluminum, or an aluminum alloy. The female terminal 3 is formed by pressing and bending a single sheet metal that has been punched into shapes corresponding to the female contact portion 10, the wire connection portion 11, and the connecting portion 12, so that each portion is three-dimensionally integrated. The female terminal 3 is arranged in the axial direction X from the second axial direction X2 toward the first axial direction X1, and the female contact portion 10, the connecting portion 12, and the wire connection portion 11 are connected to each other in this order.

[0019] The female contact portion 10 is a portion in which an inner peripheral surface 10a of the female contact portion 10 comes into contact with and electrically connects to the mating male terminal 2 when the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3. The female contact portion 10 is formed in a cylindrical shape with a central axis O aligned with the axial direction X. The female contact portion 10 of this embodiment has a slit 13, an insertion space 14, and a base 15.

[0020] The slit 13 is a gap that penetrates the female contact portion 10 from its end in the second axial direction X2 to its end in the first axial direction X1 and is formed linearly along the axial direction X. As shown in Fig. 2, when the female contact portion 10 is viewed from the axial direction X, the slit 13 opens to one side in the height direction Z that is perpendicular to the axial direction X and the width direction Y, and communicates between the outside and the insertion space 14. The spacing of the slit 13 is relatively smaller than the inner diameter R1 / 2 of the female contact portion 10.

[0021] The insertion space 14 is a portion of the female contact portion 10 into which a portion of the male terminal 2 is inserted. The female contact portion 10 is electrically connected to the male terminal 2 by inserting a portion of the male terminal 2 into the insertion space 14. The female contact portion 10 forms an insertion opening for the male terminal 2 that opens on the second axial direction X2 side and connects the insertion space 14 to the outside, and the wire connection portion 11 is connected to the first axial direction X1 side via a connecting portion 12.

[0022] Base 15 is a portion of female contact portion 10 that is located opposite slit 13 across insertion space 14. Female contact portion 10 is formed so as to bend by elastic deformation radially outward (in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 2 ) with base 15 as the bending origin when male contact portion 20 of male terminal 2, which will be described later, is inserted into insertion space 14.

[0023] Here, the female contact portion 10 and the male contact portion 20 of this embodiment are formed so that the inner diameter R1 of the female contact portion 10 is smaller than the outer diameter R2 of the male contact portion. The inner diameter R1 is the inner diameter of the inner peripheral surface 10a of the female contact portion 10, as shown in Figure 2. The outer diameter R2 is the outer diameter of the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male contact portion 20.

[0024] The electric wire connecting portion 11 is a portion to which a core wire or the like of an electric wire (not shown) is crimped and electrically connected to the electric wire. The electric wire connecting portion 11 is configured by, for example, a pair of barrel pieces or the like.

[0025] The connecting portion 12 is interposed between the female contact portion 10 and the electric wire connecting portion 11 and connects the female contact portion 10 and the electric wire connecting portion 11 together.

[0026] As described above, the connection terminal 1 according to the first embodiment includes a male terminal 2 having a cylindrical male contact portion 20, and a female terminal 3 having a cylindrical female contact portion 10 with a linear slit 13 formed along the axial direction X. The female terminal 3 has an insertion space 14 into which the male contact portion 20 is inserted, and a base 15 located opposite the slit 13 across the insertion space 14. When the male contact portion 20 is inserted into the insertion space 14, the female contact portion 10 bends radially outward with the base 15 as the bending origin, applying a contact load to the male contact portion 20.

[0027] With the above configuration, the connection terminal 1 can ensure a high contact load between the female contact portion 10 and the male contact portion 20, which is sufficient to withstand the passage of a large current. As a result, the connection terminal 1 does not require a separate spring contact member, as is the case with conventional female terminals, and the number of parts can be reduced. Furthermore, the connection terminal 1 can reduce the number of parts assembly steps compared to conventional connection terminals with a two-component structure. Furthermore, the connection terminal 1 has no contact resistance between parts and low conductor resistance of the material compared to conventional connection terminals with a two-component structure, making it possible to reduce terminal resistance. Furthermore, the connection terminal 1 can reduce the size of the female terminal 3 compared to conventional connection terminals with a two-component structure.

[0028] Furthermore, in the connection terminal 1 according to the first embodiment, the female contact portion 10 and the male contact portion 20 are formed so that the inner diameter R1 of the female contact portion 10 is smaller than the outer diameter R2 of the male contact portion. As a result, in the connection terminal 1 in a mated state in which the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3, the female contact portion 10 can bend radially outward with the base 15 as the bending starting point, thereby applying a contact load to the male contact portion 20.

[0029] [Second embodiment] Next, a connection terminal 1A according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 3 to 6. The connection terminal 1A according to the second embodiment differs from the connection terminal 1 of the first embodiment in that the female terminal 3A has a pair of indent portions 16a, 16a and a pair of indent portions 16b, 16b. In the second embodiment, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0030] As shown in the figure, the female terminal 3A has a pair of indented portions 16a, 16a and a pair of indented portions 16b, 16b that protrude radially inward from both circumferential ends with the slit 13 therebetween.

[0031] The pair of indented portions 16a, 16a is provided on the second axial direction X2 side of the female contact portion 10A. The pair of indented portions 16b, 16b is provided on the first axial direction X1 side of the female contact portion 10A. The four indented portions 16a, 16a, 16b, 16b have the same shape. Each indented portion 16a, 16a, 16b, 16b extends in the axial direction X and has an inclined surface P at each end in the axial direction X that slopes from the radially inner side to the radially outer side along the axial direction X. Each indented portion 16a, 16a, 16b, 16b is provided at a position spaced apart from the base portion 15 in the height direction Z.

[0032] In the mated state in which the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3A, the radially inner tips of the indent portions 16a, 16a, 16b, 16b abut against the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male contact portion 20 from one side in the height direction Z, and the inner peripheral surface 10a of the base portion 15 abuts against the outer peripheral surface 20a from the other side in the height direction Z. In addition, in the mated state in which the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3A, when the mated portion is viewed from the axial direction X as shown in FIG. 5, the female contact portion 10A of the female terminal 3A supports the male contact portion 20 at three points indicated by points a. In addition, in the mated state in which the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3, when the cross section of the mated portion is viewed from the width direction Y as shown in FIG. 6, the female contact portion 10A of the female terminal 3 supports the male contact portion 20 at three points indicated by points a.

[0033] As shown in FIG. 4, the pair of indent portions 16a, 16a, the pair of indent portions 16b, 16b, the male contact portion 20, and the female contact portion 10A are formed so that the inner diameter L1 of each indent portion 16a, 16b < the outer diameter L2 of the male contact portion 20 < the inner diameter L3 of the female contact portion.

[0034] As described above, in the connection terminal 1A according to the second embodiment, the female contact portion 10A has a pair of indent portions 16a, 16a and a pair of indent portions 16b, 16b that protrude radially inward from both circumferential ends of the connection terminal 1A, sandwiching the slit 13. Thus, by providing the indent portions 16a, 16b at positions away from the base 15, the connection terminal 1A can hold the female terminal 3 in place of the male terminal 2 by moment effect. Furthermore, in the connection terminal 1A, the female contact portion 10A has the pair of indent portions 16a, 16a and the pair of indent portions 16b, 16b spaced apart in the axial direction X, which can suppress tilt of the male terminal 2 in the axial direction X in the mated state, making it easier to obtain line contact between the female contact portion 10A and the male contact portion 20. As a result, connection terminal 1A can increase the contact area between female contact portion 10A and male contact portion 20, achieving stable connection even when contact resistance is low. Also, since each indent portion 16a, 16a, 16b, 16b has an inclined surface P at each end in the axial direction X, the ease of assembling male terminal 2 to female terminal 3 can be improved.

[0035] Furthermore, in connection terminal 1A, indent portions 16a, 16b, male contact portion 20, and female contact portion 10A are formed so that inner diameter L1 of indent portions 16a, 16b < outer diameter L2 of male contact portion 20 < inner diameter L3 of female contact portion. This allows connection terminal 1 to insert male terminal 2 into female terminal 3, and in a mated state where male terminal 2 is mated with female terminal 3, female contact portion 10 can bend radially outward with base 15 as the bending starting point, applying a contact load to male contact portion 20.

[0036] In the second embodiment, the indented portion 16a and the indented portion 16b are separated along the axial direction X, but they may be formed integrally and extend in the axial direction X.

[0037] [Third embodiment] Next, a connection terminal 1B according to a third embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 7 and 8. The connection terminal 1B according to the third embodiment differs from the connection terminal 1A of the second embodiment in that the female terminal 3B has a groove portion 18. In the third embodiment, the same components as those in the first and second embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0038] The female contact portion 10B has a groove portion 18 formed in the base portion 15 and recessed radially outward from the inner peripheral surface 10a of the female contact portion 10B. The groove portion 18 extends linearly in the axial direction X and is provided at a position opposite the slit 13 in the height direction Z. The groove portion 18 has a substantially rectangular cross section when viewed from the axial direction X. The groove portion 18 is formed, for example, by reducing the thickness of the base portion 15 from the radially inner side.

[0039] In the mated state where the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3B, the radially inner tips of the indent portions 16a, 16a, 16b, 16b abut against the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male contact portion 20 from one side in the height direction Z, and the corner portions 18a at both circumferential ends of the groove portion 18 abut against the outer peripheral surface 20a from the other side in the height direction Z. In addition, in the mated state where the male terminal 2 is mated with the female terminal 3B, when the mated portion is viewed from the axial direction X as shown in Figure 8, the female contact portion 10B of the female terminal 3B supports the male contact portion 20 at four points indicated by points a.

[0040] As described above, connection terminal 1B according to the third embodiment has groove-shaped portions 18 formed by reducing the thickness of base 15 and recessed radially outward from inner circumferential surface 10a of female contact portion 10B. As a result, even if female contact portion 10B has a relatively large radial thickness and is not easily elastically deformed in a mated state, base 15 of connection terminal 1B is reduced in thickness by forming groove-shaped portions 18. As a result, connection terminal 1B allows female contact portion 10B to bend easily with base 15 as the bending origin, and by adjusting the depth (amount of reduction) of groove-shaped portions 18, the contact load of female contact portion 10B relative to male contact portion 20 and the insertion force of male terminal 2 relative to female terminal 3B can be adjusted.

[0041] Furthermore, when the tip of the male terminal 2 of the connection terminal 1B on the first axial direction X1 side is inserted into the insertion space 14 of the female terminal 3B, a portion of the tip is guided toward the first axial direction X1 while sliding along a pair of corners 18a of the groove portion 18. This facilitates the insertion of the male terminal 2 into the female terminal 3B. Furthermore, by providing the pair of indent portions 16a, 16a and the pair of indent portions 16b, 16b spaced apart in the axial direction X, the connection terminal 1B facilitates line contact in the axial direction X between the two corners 18a of the groove portion 18 and the outer peripheral surface 20a of the male contact portion 20, thereby ensuring stable electrical contact.

[0042] [Modification of the third embodiment] Next, a connection terminal 1C according to a modification of the third embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 9 to 11. The connection terminal 1C according to the modification of the third embodiment differs from the connection terminal 1B of the third embodiment in that the female terminal 3C has a protrusion 19 and the male terminal 2A has a recess 25 corresponding to the protrusion 19.

[0043] The protrusion 19 is a portion that protrudes radially inward from the inner circumferential surface 10a of the female contact portion 10C. The protrusion 19 is formed to protrude from one circumferential end across the slit 13 toward the insertion space 14. The illustrated protrusion 19 is formed by folding back one circumferential end across the slit 13 in the circumferential direction, but is not limited to this. The protrusion 19 is disposed on the inner circumferential surface 10a of the female contact portion 10C in a region between the indent portion 16a provided on the second axial direction X2 side and the indent portion 16b provided on the first axial direction X1 side.

[0044] Recess 25 is formed so as to be recessed radially inward from outer peripheral surface 20a of male contact portion 20A. Recess 25 extends from the end of male contact portion 20A on the first axial direction X1 side toward the second axial direction X2 side. Recess 25 is open on the first axial direction X1 side, but this opening is closed by attaching cap 23 to male contact portion 20A. Recess 25 has a substantially rectangular cross-sectional shape when viewed from axial direction X. Recess 25 has bottom surface 25a located radially inward and a pair of opposing surfaces 25b circumferentially opposing bottom surface 25a. Protrusion 19 is inserted into recess 25 when male terminal 2A is mated with female terminal 3C.

[0045] In the connection terminal 1C, when the male terminal 2A is mated with the female terminal 3C, the protrusion 19 is inserted into the recess 25. In this case, when the male terminal 2A of the connection terminal 1C attempts to rotate in one circumferential direction relative to the female terminal 3C, the protrusion 19 abuts against one side of the opposing surface 25b, restricting the rotation of the male terminal 2A. On the other hand, when the male terminal 2A of the connection terminal 1C attempts to rotate in the other circumferential direction relative to the female terminal 3C, the protrusion 19 abuts against the other side of the opposing surface 25b, restricting the rotation of the male terminal 2A. In this way, in the mated state, the connection terminal 1C restricts the rotation of the male terminal 2A in the circumferential direction, improving the holding force of the male terminal 2A by the female terminal 3C and stabilizing the electrical contact between the male terminal 2A and the female terminal 3C. [Explanation of symbols]

[0046] 1 Connection terminal 2 male terminals 3 Female terminal 10 Female contact part 10a Inner surface 11 Wire connection 12 Connecting part 13 Slit 14 Insertion Space 15 base 20 Male contact part 20a Outer surface 21 Connector connection part 22 Connecting part 23 Cap 25 recess

Claims

1. a male terminal having a cylindrical male contact portion; a female terminal having a cylindrical female contact portion with a linear slit formed along the axial direction; The female terminal is an insertion space formed inside the female contact portion and into which the male contact portion is inserted; a base portion located opposite the slit across the insertion space, When the male contact portion is inserted into the insertion space, the female contact portion bends radially outward in a direction intersecting with the axial direction, with the base portion as a bending starting point, to apply a contact load to the male contact portion, The female terminal is a protrusion protruding radially inward from an inner circumferential surface of the female contact portion; The male terminal is a recess that is recessed radially inward from the outer circumferential surface of the male contact portion and into which the protrusion is inserted in the inserted state; The recessed portion is A pair of opposing surfaces facing each other in the circumferential direction with the protrusion therebetween A connection terminal characterized by:

2. The female contact portion and the male contact portion are The inner diameter of the female contact portion is smaller than the outer diameter of the male contact portion. The connection terminal according to claim 1 .

3. The female contact portion is a pair of indent portions projecting inward in the radial direction from both ends in the circumferential direction with the slit in between, The indent portion, the male contact portion, and the female contact portion are The inner diameter of the indent portion is smaller than the outer diameter of the male contact portion and smaller than the inner diameter of the female contact portion. The connection terminal according to claim 1 .

4. The female contact portion is The base portion has a groove portion formed in a concave shape extending from the inner peripheral surface of the female contact portion toward the outside in the radial direction. The connection terminal according to claim 3 .

5. The groove-shaped portion penetrates the open end portion into which the male contact portion is inserted along the axial direction. The connection terminal according to claim 4 .

6. The protrusion is formed by folding back one end in the circumferential direction across the slit. The connection terminal according to claim 1 .

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