connector
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Patents
- Current Assignee / Owner
- SUMITOMO WIRING SYSTEMS LTD
- Filing Date
- 2022-09-21
- Publication Date
- 2026-07-31
Smart Images
Figure 0007898070000001 
Figure 0007898070000002 
Figure 0007898070000003
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0004] , , , , , , ,
[0003] , , , , ,
[0001] The present disclosure relates to a connector.
Background Art
[0002] The connector disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a housing disposed on the surface of a circuit board and a terminal fitting attached to the housing. The housing has a base wall that stands up on the surface of the circuit board and a cylindrical peripheral wall that protrudes forward from the outer edge of the base wall. A through hole is formed in the base wall. The terminal fitting has a pin shape, penetrates through the through hole of the base wall, and has a terminal connection portion that is connected to a mating terminal fitting inside the peripheral wall, and a board connection portion that is bent downward behind the base wall and is soldered and connected to the circuit board at the lower end. The terminal connection portion (swing support portion) of the terminal fitting (contact terminal) is swing-supported by the base wall in a state of penetrating through the through hole (mounting hole), and is inclined within a gap range formed between the base wall and a rear protruding portion (terminal support plate) of the base wall. Note that the board connector is also disclosed in Patent Documents 2-4. In the case of Patent Document 2,
Prior Art Documents
[0005] Therefore, the object of this disclosure is to provide a connector that can prevent the terminal fittings from lifting away from the circuit board. [Means for solving the problem]
[0006] The connector of this disclosure comprises a housing disposed on the surface of a circuit board and a terminal fitting mounted on the housing, wherein the housing has a base wall that stands upright on the surface of the circuit board and a cylindrical peripheral wall that protrudes forward from the outer edge of the base wall, the terminal fitting has a terminal connection portion that penetrates a through hole in the base wall and is connected to a mating terminal fitting inside the peripheral wall, and a board connection portion that extends downward from the rear end of the terminal connection portion behind the base wall and whose lower end is soldered to the surface of the circuit board, the through hole has an inner lower surface that is parallel to the lower surface of the terminal connection portion and an inner upper surface that is parallel to the upper surface of the terminal connection portion, the base wall has a lower portion that partitions the inner lower surface and is formed in a height range of the portion that protrudes rearward from the base wall below the through hole and an upper portion that partitions the inner upper surface and is formed in a height range of the portion that protrudes rearward from the base wall above the through hole, the upper portion having a larger volume than the lower portion. [Effects of the Invention]
[0007] According to this disclosure, it is possible to provide a connector that can prevent the terminal fittings from lifting away from the circuit board. [Brief explanation of the drawing]
[0008] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of a connector fitted into a mating housing in Embodiment 1 of this disclosure. [Figure 2]Figure 2 is a perspective view of the connector. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a magnified rear view of a portion of the connector. [Figure 4] Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in Figure 3. [Figure 5] Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view along line BB in Figure 3. [Figure 6] Figure 6 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of Figure 5. [Modes for carrying out the invention]
[0009] [Description of Embodiments in this Disclosure] First, the embodiments of this disclosure will be listed and described. The connector disclosed herein is (1) A housing disposed on the surface of a circuit board and a terminal fitting mounted on the housing, wherein the housing has a base wall that stands upright on the surface of the circuit board and a cylindrical peripheral wall that protrudes forward from the outer edge of the base wall, the terminal fitting has a terminal connection portion that penetrates a through hole in the base wall and is connected to a mating terminal fitting inside the peripheral wall, and a board connection portion that extends downward from the rear end of the terminal connection portion behind the base wall and whose lower end is soldered to the surface of the circuit board, the through hole has an inner lower surface that is parallel to the lower surface of the terminal connection portion and an inner upper surface that is parallel to the upper surface of the terminal connection portion, the base wall has a lower portion that partitions the inner lower surface and is formed in a height range of the portion that protrudes rearward from the base wall below the through hole and an upper portion that partitions the inner upper surface and is formed in a height range of the portion that protrudes rearward from the base wall above the through hole, the upper portion has a larger volume than the lower portion.
[0010] With the above configuration, since the upper part has a larger volume than the lower part, the thermal expansion of the upper part in the vertical direction can be made smaller than that of the lower part. Therefore, thermal expansion of the upper part due to heating during connector mounting can be suppressed. As a result, the upward displacement of the through-hole of the terminal connection part in the through-hole of the base wall can be suppressed, and the board connection part can be prevented from lifting away from the circuit board.
[0011] (2) Preferably, the inner upper surface of the upper portion is formed longer than the inner lower surface of the lower portion in the front-rear direction, and the rear end of the inner upper surface of the upper portion is located behind the rear end of the inner lower surface of the lower portion. According to the above configuration, the terminal connection portion can come into long contact with the inner upper surface of the upper portion, and it is possible to suppress the displacement of the rear end side of the terminal connection portion from tilting upward inside the through hole. As a result, it is possible to effectively prevent the substrate connection portion from lifting off the circuit board.
[0012] (3) It is preferable that the upper portion is formed thicker than the lower portion in the vertical direction. According to the above configuration, the contact pressure on the upper portion side with respect to the terminal connection portion can be increased, so that it is possible to prevent the substrate connection portion from lifting off the circuit board without making the inner upper surface of the upper portion particularly long in the front-rear direction.
[0013] (4) The upper portion has an upper guiding surface that slopes upward from the rear end of the inner upper surface toward the rear, and the lower portion has a lower guiding surface that slopes downward from the rear end of the inner lower surface toward the rear. It is preferable that the front end of the lower guiding surface is located in front of the front end of the upper guiding surface. According to the above configuration, the upper guiding surface and the lower guiding surface can function to guide the terminal connection portion into the through hole. In particular, since the front end of the lower guiding surface is located in front of the front end of the upper guiding surface and is continuous with the rear end of the inner lower surface of the lower portion, it is possible to efficiently form a shape in which the inner lower surface of the lower portion is shorter than the inner upper surface of the upper portion in the front-rear direction.
[0014] [Details of Embodiments of the Present Disclosure] Specific examples of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to this exemplification, and is shown by the claims, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the claims.
[0015] <Embodiment 1> The connector 10 according to Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure is a connector for a substrate, and includes a housing 20 disposed on the surface of a circuit board 90 and a terminal fitting 70 attached to the housing 20. The housing 20 is fitted into a mating housing 60. In the following description, regarding the front-back direction, the side where the housing 20 is fitted into the mating housing 60 is defined as the front side. The right side of each figure except FIG. 3 is the front side (reference sign X). Regarding the up-down direction, the side where the housing 20 is installed with respect to the surface of the circuit board 90 is defined as the upper side. The upper side of each figure except FIG. 4 is the upper side (reference sign Z). The up-down direction is synonymous with the height direction. Regarding the left-right direction, based on the left-right direction when viewed from the front side, the left side of FIG. 3, which is a rear view, is defined as the right side (reference sign Y). The left-right direction is synonymous with the width direction. These direction references are for convenience and do not necessarily match the direction references in the state where the connector 10 is mounted on a vehicle or the like not shown in the drawings.
[0016] (Mating housing) The mating housing 60 is made of synthetic resin and is configured as a square-block-shaped female housing as shown in FIG. 1. The mating housing 60 has a plurality of cavities 61. In each cavity 61, a mating terminal fitting 80, which is a female terminal fitting connected to the terminal portion of the electric wire 100, is accommodated. The mating housing 60 has a lock arm 62 that holds the housing 20 and the mating housing 60 in a fitted state.
[0017] (Housing and terminal fitting) The housing 20 is made of synthetic resin and has an overall hood shape. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the housing 20 has a rectangular base wall 21 that stands upright in the up-down direction and a square tubular peripheral wall 22 that projects forward from the outer edge of the base wall 21. The side wall portions 23 on both the left and right sides of the peripheral wall 22 have protective wall portions 24 that project rearward from the base wall 21. Each protective wall portion 24 protects a substrate connection portion 72, which will be described later, of the terminal fitting 70 from the side. As shown in FIG. 2, a fixing member 50 is attached to the outer surface of each side wall portion 23. The fixing member 50 is a metal plate material and is soldered and fixed to the surface of the circuit board 90 in a state of being attached to the housing 20.
[0018] As shown in Figure 1, a locking portion 26 is formed on the left-right central side of the upper wall portion 27 of the peripheral wall 22. The locking portion 26 protrudes inward from the peripheral wall 22. The locking portion 26 engages with the locking arm 62 of the mating housing 60. A punch hole 28 is formed on the upper end side of the base wall 21, resulting from the withdrawal of a mold (not shown) used to form the locking portion 26.
[0019] As shown in Figures 1 and 5, multiple through holes 29 are formed in the base wall 21. Each through hole 29 has a rectangular opening shape that is elongated in the left-right direction, and as shown in Figure 2, they are arranged in two rows, upper and lower, and in multiple rows in the width direction, four rows in this embodiment 1. The two rows of through holes 29 located on the central side in the left-right direction are located below the punch-out hole 28 and below the through holes 29 located on both sides in the left-right direction, with a smaller opening diameter.
[0020] The terminal fittings 70 are made of conductive metal, are tab-shaped, and are held in place on the base wall 21, passing through each through-hole 29. As shown in Figure 2, the terminal fittings 70 of this embodiment 1 consist of four types: a large, long terminal fitting 70A that passes through the through-holes 29 located in the upper section on both the left and right sides; a large, short terminal fitting 70B that passes through the through-holes 29 located in the lower section on both the left and right sides; a small, long terminal fitting 70C that passes through the through-hole 29 located in the upper section on the central side in the left and right sides; and a small, short terminal fitting 70D that passes through the through-hole 29 located in the lower section on the central side in the left and right sides. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, each terminal fitting 70A, 70B, 70C, and 70D will be collectively referred to as each terminal fitting 70.
[0021] Each terminal fitting 70 is tab-shaped and, as shown in Figure 5, has a terminal connection portion 71 that extends in the front-rear direction through the through hole 29, and a substrate connection portion 72 that extends downward from the rear end of the terminal connection portion 71 behind the base wall 21. The substrate connection portion 72 has a solder connection portion 73 that bends backward from its lower end. The solder connection portion 73 is electrically connected by soldering to a conductive portion (not shown) formed on the surface of the circuit board 90 (see Figure 1).
[0022] As shown in Figure 4, the terminal connection portion 71 has a connection body portion 74 positioned inside the through hole 29 and inside the peripheral wall 22, and a connecting portion 75 that extends out from the through hole 29 with a plate width (dimension in the left-right direction) smaller than the connection body portion 74. When the housing 20 and the mating housing 60 are fitted together, as shown in Figure 1, the connection body portion 74 is electrically connected to the mating terminal fitting 80 mounted on the mating housing 60 inside the peripheral wall 22.
[0023] As shown in Figure 3, the long terminal fittings 70A and 70C (only 70A is shown in Figure 3), positioned in the upper row, have their connecting portion 75 connected to one side (right side in Figure 3) in the left-right direction on the rear end face of the connecting body portion 74. The short terminal fittings 70B and 70D (only 70B is shown in Figure 3), positioned in the lower row, have their connecting portion 75 connected to the other side (left side in Figure 3) in the left-right direction on the rear end face of the connecting body portion 74. This prevents the upper and lower rows of terminal fittings 70 from interfering with each other.
[0024] As shown in Figure 4, the rear end of the connecting body portion 74 has a stepped surface 76 facing forward at a position opposite to the rear end surface to which the connecting portion 75 is connected. When the connecting body portion 74 is inserted into the through hole 29 from the rear, the stepped surface 76 abuts against the left and right opening end faces 34 of the through hole 29 on the rear surface of the base wall body portion 31, which will be described later, and the insertion operation of the terminal fitting 70 is stopped. In addition, the rear end of the connecting body portion 74 has locking protrusions 77 that extend to the left and right at a position in front of the stepped surface 76. When the stepped surface 76 abuts against the left and right opening end faces 34 of the through hole 29, each locking protrusion 77 is locked in by biting into the left and right inner surfaces 33 of the through hole 29, thereby inserting the terminal fitting 70 into the through hole 29 and holding it to the base wall 21.
[0025] As shown in Figures 1 and 5, the base wall 21 has a base wall main body 31 that extends over the entire vertical height of the housing 20, and a projection 32 (a portion that protrudes to the rear of the base wall 21) that projects rearward from the rear surface of the base wall main body 31. The base wall main body 31 has a rectangular plate shape when viewed from the rear and has an outer edge that connects to the peripheral wall 22. The base wall 21 is formed to be thicker in the front-rear direction in the height range where the projection 32 is located.
[0026] As shown in Figure 4, the left and right inner surfaces 33 of the through hole 29 are formed only on the base wall body portion 31 and intersect with the open end surface 34 at the rear end. As shown in Figure 6, the inner upper surface 35 (facing downwards) and inner lower surface 36 (facing upwards) of the through hole 29 are arranged horizontally so as to extend along the front-rear direction from the base wall body portion 31 to the projection 32. The upper surface of the connection body portion 74 of the terminal connection portion 71 is positioned to contact the inner upper surface 35 of the through hole 29 in parallel and opposite directions. The lower surface of the connection body portion 74 of the terminal connection portion 71 is positioned to contact the inner lower surface 36 of the through hole 29 in parallel and opposite directions.
[0027] As shown in Figure 3, the projection 32 has an upper portion 37, a lower portion 38, and a side portion 39 at the opening edge of the through hole 29 on the rear surface of the base wall body portion 31. The upper part 37 is shaped like a long rectangular block in the left-right direction and, as shown in Figure 6, is located above the through hole 29 and demarcates the inner upper surface 35. The upper surface of the upper part 37 is arranged horizontally along the front-rear direction. The rear surface of the upper part 37 is arranged to be steeply oriented along the up-down direction. The upper part 37 has an upper guide surface 41 that slopes upward from the rear end of the inner upper surface 35 to the rear surface of the upper part 37.
[0028] The lower section 38 is shaped like a long rectangular block in the left-right direction and, as shown in Figure 6, is located below the through hole 29 and demarcates the inner lower surface 36. The vertical thickness (dimension in the vertical direction) of the lower section 38 is thinner than the vertical thickness of the upper section 37. The front-to-back length (dimension in the front-to-back direction) of the lower section 38 is shorter than the front-to-back length of the upper section 37. Also, the front-to-back length of the inner lower surface 36 is shorter than the front-to-back length of the inner upper surface 35. The volume (amount of resin) of the lower section 38 as a whole is smaller than the volume of the upper section 37.
[0029] The lower surface of the lower section 38 is positioned horizontally along the front-to-back direction, opposite to the upper surface of the upper section 37. The rear surface of the lower section 38 is positioned further forward and recessed than the rear surface of the upper section 37 (see Figures 3 and 6), and is positioned vertically. The lower section 38 has a lower guide surface 42 that slopes downward from the rear end of the inner lower surface 36 of the through hole 29 to the rear surface of the lower section 38. As shown in Figure 6, the front-to-back length of the lower guide surface 42 is the same as the front-to-back length of the upper guide surface 41. Since the rear end of the inner lower surface 36 is located forward of the rear end of the inner upper surface 35, the lower guide surface 42 as a whole is shifted forward of the upper guide surface 41.
[0030] As shown in Figure 3, the side sections 39 are shaped like long rectangular blocks in the vertical direction and are arranged in pairs on both the left and right sides separated by the through hole 29. Each side section 39 extends along the front-rear direction and has opposing surfaces 43 at its front end that intersect and connect with the left and right opening end faces 34 of the through hole 29 (see Figure 4). The rear surface of each side section 39 is arranged to be steeply oriented along the vertical direction. The rear surface of each side section 39 is seamlessly connected to the rear surface of the upper section 37 behind the rear surface of the lower section 38 (the dotted line in Figure 3 indicates the boundary between the side section 39 and the upper section 37). Each side section 39 has lateral guide surfaces 45 that widen on both the left and right sides from the rear end of the opposing surface to the rear surface of each side section 39. The lateral guide surfaces 45 are formed with a shorter front-rear length in front of the upper guide surface 41 and the lower guide surface 42. As shown in Figures 1-3, a recess 44 is formed on the rear surface of the base wall 21 between the lower part 38 of the upper section, the upper part 37 of the lower section, and the rear surface of the base wall main body 31.
[0031] (Function of the connector) During assembly, each terminal fitting 70 is inserted from the rear into each through-hole 29 of the base wall 21. The terminal connection portion 71 of each terminal fitting 70 is guided into the through-hole 29 by the lateral guide surface 45, the upper guide surface 41, and the lower guide surface 42.
[0032] Here, as shown in Figure 6, the front-to-back length at which the upper surface of the connecting body portion 74 and the inner upper surface 35 come into contact is longer than the front-to-back length at which the lower surface of the connecting body portion 74 and the inner lower surface 36 come into contact. An upper portion 37, which is thicker in the vertical direction and has a larger volume, is positioned above the rear end of the connecting body portion 74, and a lower portion 38, which is thinner in the vertical direction and has a smaller volume compared to the upper portion 37, is positioned below the rear end of the connecting body portion 74.
[0033] After the assembly of each terminal fitting 70, the connector 10 is placed on the surface of the circuit board 90 and moved to the reflow process. The solder connection portion 73 of each terminal fitting 70 is soldered to a conductive portion (not shown) of the circuit board 90 via the reflow process. When the connector 10 is heated in a reflow oven (not shown), there is a concern that the housing 20 may expand due to heat on the surface of the circuit board 90. If the housing 20 expands due to heat, the solder connection portion 73 of each terminal fitting 70 may lift off the surface of the circuit board 90, potentially leading to mounting defects.
[0034] However, in this embodiment 1, the larger upper portion 37 described above is positioned to cover the rear end of the connecting body portion 74 of the terminal fitting 70 from above. As a result, the vertical thermal expansion of the upper portion 37 is kept to a minimum, making it difficult for the upper portion 37 to expand due to heat. Consequently, upward displacement of the inner upper surface 35 of the through hole 29 is suppressed, and the connecting body portion 74 of the terminal fitting 70 can be maintained in a horizontal position along the inner upper surface 35. By maintaining the horizontal position of the connecting body portion 74, it is possible to prevent the solder connection portion 73 from lifting off the surface of the circuit board 90. Furthermore, by preventing the solder connection portion 73 of each terminal fitting 70 from lifting off the surface of the circuit board 90, the height position of each solder connection portion 73 can be aligned to a constant position, thereby stabilizing coplanarity.
[0035] As described above, according to this embodiment 1, the larger volume upper part 37 can suppress upward displacement of the connecting body part 74, thereby preventing the soldering connection part 73 from lifting up from the circuit board 90.
[0036] Furthermore, since the front-to-back length of the inner upper surface 35 of the upper part 37 is longer than the front-to-back length of the inner lower surface 36 of the lower part 38, and the rear end of the inner upper surface 35 is located behind the rear end of the inner lower surface 36, the terminal connection portion 71 can make contact along the inner upper surface 35 of the upper part 37 for a longer period, and the rear end of the terminal connection portion 71 can be prevented from being displaced upward inside the through hole 29. As a result, the substrate connection portion 72 can be effectively prevented from lifting away from the circuit board 90.
[0037] Furthermore, since the upper portion 37 has a greater vertical thickness than the lower portion 38, the contact pressure on the upper portion 37 side with respect to the terminal connection portion 71 can be increased. As a result, the board connection portion 72 can be prevented from lifting away from the circuit board 90 without having to make the inner upper surface 35 of the upper portion 37 particularly long in the front-to-back direction.
[0038] Furthermore, according to this embodiment 1, the upper part 37 has an upper guiding surface 41 that slopes upward toward the rear from the rear end of the inner upper surface 35, and the lower part 38 has a lower guiding surface 42 that slopes downward toward the rear from the rear end of the inner lower surface 36, with the front end of the lower guiding surface 42 located in front of the front end of the upper guiding surface 41. As a result, the guiding function of the terminal connection part 71 can be properly performed, and a shape in which the front-to-back length of the inner lower surface 36 of the lower part 38 is shorter than the front-to-back length of the inner upper surface 35 of the upper part 37 can be formed efficiently without waste.
[0039] [Other embodiments of this disclosure] The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restrictive. In the first embodiment described above, the front-to-back length of the inner upper surface of the upper part was longer than the front-to-back length of the inner lower surface of the lower part, and the upper and lower thickness of the upper part was thicker than the upper and lower thickness of the lower part. In contrast, according to other embodiments, although the front-to-back length of the inner upper surface of the upper part is longer than the front-to-back length of the inner lower surface of the lower part, the upper and lower thickness of the upper part may be the same as or thinner than the upper and lower thickness of the lower part. Furthermore, according to other embodiments, although the upper and lower thickness of the upper part is thicker than the upper and lower thickness of the lower part, the front-to-back length of the inner upper surface of the upper part may be the same as or shorter than the front-to-back length of the inner lower surface of the lower part. In the first embodiment described above, the upper and lower sections were formed to have the same volume. In contrast, according to other embodiments, the volume of the upper section of the upper part may be larger than the volume of the upper section of the lower part, and the configuration may be precisely set in accordance with the thermal expansion coefficient of the housing. [Explanation of Symbols]
[0040] 10… Connectors 20… Housing 21…Base wall 22...Peripheral wall 23... Side wall section 24...Protective wall part 26... Rock Club 27...Top wall part 28... Hole 29…Through hole 31...Main body of the base wall 32...Protrusion (the part that protrudes from the rear of the base wall) 33…Left and right sides 34...Opening end surface 35…Inner top surface 36…Inner lower surface 37… Upper section 38...Lower part 39...Lateral part 41... Upper guiding surface 42...Lower guide surface 43… Opposite side 44…dent 45... Lateral induction surface 50… Fixing member 60... Opponent's Housing 61... Cavity 62... Lock Arm 70…Terminal fittings 70A...Large and long terminal fittings 70B...Large, short terminal fittings 70C... Small, long terminal fittings 70D... Small, short terminal fittings 71...Terminal connection section 72... Circuit board connection section 73... Solder connection 74...Connecting main unit 75...Connecting part 76…Step surface 77…Latching protrusion 80…Mating terminal fittings 90... Circuit board 100...Electric wire
Claims
1. It comprises a housing positioned on the surface of a circuit board and terminal fittings attached to the housing, The housing has a base wall that stands upright on the surface of the circuit board, and a cylindrical peripheral wall that protrudes forward from the outer edge of the base wall. The terminal fitting has a terminal connection portion that penetrates the through hole in the base wall and is connected to a mating terminal fitting on the inside of the peripheral wall, and a board connection portion that extends downward from the rear end of the terminal connection portion behind the base wall, with its lower end being soldered to the surface of the circuit board. The through hole has an inner lower surface that is parallel to and opposite the lower surface of the terminal connection portion, and an inner upper surface that is parallel to and opposite the upper surface of the terminal connection portion. The base wall comprises a lower portion that partitions the inner lower surface and is formed in a height range of the portion that protrudes rearward from the base wall below the through hole, and an upper portion that partitions the inner upper surface and is formed in a height range of the portion that protrudes rearward from the base wall above the through hole. The upper part has a larger volume than the lower part. The upper surface of the upper part and the lower surface of the lower part are both arranged horizontally along the front-to-back direction. A connector in which the vertical thickness defined between the upper surface of the upper part and the inner upper surface is greater than the vertical thickness defined between the lower surface of the lower part and the inner lower surface.
2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the inner upper surface of the upper portion is formed to be longer than the inner lower surface of the lower portion in the front-rear direction, and the rear end of the inner upper surface of the upper portion is located behind the rear end of the inner lower surface of the lower portion.
3. The upper portion has an upper guiding surface that slopes upward toward the rear from the rear end of the inner upper surface, The lower portion has a downward guiding surface that slopes downward toward the rear from the rear end of the inner lower surface, The connector according to claim 2, wherein the front end of the lower guide surface is located forward of the front end of the upper guide surface.