Connector housing

Abstract

An object of the invention is to provide a connector housing that can generate a sufficient impact sound (engagement completion sound) while also meeting the compactness requirements of the connector. A connector housing which is capable of engaging and disengaging with a counterpart housing, having a main body, a housing lever supported on the main body, and a slide lever, wherein the housing lever has a support section supported on the main body and an arm which extends from the support section in the radial direction and is capable of bending displacement, an operation section and the arm are supported on the support section and are capable of rocking in a seesaw manner, the tip of the arm has an engagement section, and when the slide lever is mounted at the engagement position, contact between the engagement section and the contact-receiving section of the counterpart housing causes flexural elastic deformation of the arm in the separating direction, and upon engaging with the counterpart housing, the arm strikes the counterpart housing and produces an engagement completion sound.

Claims

1. A connector housing capable of engaging and disengaging with a counterpart housing, characterized in that the housing has a main body, a housing rod supported on the main body, and a sliding rod, the housing rod having: a support portion supported on the main body; an operating portion extending from the support portion in a direction opposite to the engagement direction; and an arm extending from the support portion in the engagement direction and capable of flexural displacement, the operating portion and the arm being supported by the support portion and capable of swinging in a seesaw-like manner, the arm having an engagement portion at its front end; the sliding rod having: a limiting portion disposed on the side of the operating portion in the direction of the support portion formation, limiting the displacement of the operating portion in the direction of the support portion formation; and a main body abutment portion disposed on the side of the operating portion in the direction of the support portion formation, the sliding rod being mounted on the main body in a manner capable of moving in the engagement and disengagement directions in an engagement position and a disengageable position, the engagement position being a position where the main body abutment portion abuts against the surface of the opposing main body, and the disengageable position being a position where the main body abutment portion does not abut against the surface. When the sliding rod is installed in the engaged position and the displacement of the operating part in the direction of forming the support is restricted, the swing displacement of the arm caused by the contact between the engaging part and the interference part of the opposing housing is restricted, as the engaging part moves in the opposite direction to the direction of forming the support, i.e., away from the interference part. As a result, the arm undergoes elastic deformation, flexing in the separation direction. When the engaging part of the opposing housing engages with the engaging part, the restoring force of the elastic deformation causes the impact part at the front end of the arm to strike the opposing housing, producing a locking sound. When the sliding rod has a sliding rod operating part, and the displacement of the operating part in the direction of forming the support is not restricted because the sliding rod is installed in the release position, pressing the sliding rod operating part in the direction of forming the support causes the operating part to move in that direction, resulting in a swing displacement of the arm in the opposite direction to the direction of forming the support, thus releasing the engagement between the housing and the opposing housing. When the sliding rod is installed in the releasable position, the distance L1 between the support and the operating part and the distance L2 between the support and the operating part of the sliding rod are L1 < L2.

2. The connector housing as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the sliding rod has a flexure limiting portion, and the housing rod has a restricted portion between the arm and the operating portion and at a position opposite to the sliding rod, wherein the flexure limiting portion and the restricted portion are always able to abut against each other regardless of whether the sliding rod is in the engaged position or the releasable position, and the flexure limiting portion abuts against the restricted portion as the arm elastically deforms when the sliding rod is installed in the engaged position.

3. The connector housing as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that there is a space between the flexure limiting portion and the arm.

4. The connector housing as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the sliding rod has a stop member, which, by pressing the sliding rod operating part in the direction of forming the support part, abuts against the surface of the main body opposite to the stop member, thereby restricting the displacement of the operating part in the pressing direction.

5. The connector housing as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the sliding rod has a lifting portion disposed on the side of the support portion forming direction of the arm, and by pressing the sliding rod operating portion toward the support portion forming direction to displace it, the lifting portion is displaced in the opposite direction to the support portion forming direction, thereby lifting the arm and performing displacement.

6. The connector housing as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the housing has two opposing walls located on the left and right sides of the housing rod, and the sliding rod has two outer walls opposing each of the walls, wherein the sliding rod is movable in an engaging direction and a disengaging direction by means of the opposing walls being arranged parallel to the outer walls.

7. The connector housing as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the sliding rod has a guided portion, the housing has a guide portion, and the sliding rod is movably mounted by means of the guided portion and the guide portion, thereby preventing the sliding rod from falling off.

8. The connector housing as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the body and the housing rod are integral.

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