Connector

Abstract

Disclosed is a connector capable of reducing a risk that a seal member of a hood accommodation part is scooped up by a leading end portion of a hood part of a mating connector. A connector (10) comprises: a housing (14) which has terminal accommodation parts (12); terminal fittings (16) which are accommodated in the terminal accommodation parts (12); a first opening (18) which exposes the leading end sides of the terminal fittings (16) to the outside; a hood accommodation part (34) which is provided on the outer peripheral side of the first opening (18) and into which a hood part of a mating connector is inserted; a seal member (20) which is attached to a leading end portion of an inner wall (30) of the hood accommodation part (34); fixing protrusions (52) which protrude from the opening-side end of the seal member (20) toward the inner peripheral side and cover a leading end surface (42) of the inner wall (30) of the hood accommodation part (34); and a front retainer (22) which is fixed to the housing (14) and sandwiches the fixing protrusions (52) between the front retainer and the leading end surface (42) of the inner wall (30).

Description

Connector

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a connector.

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a connector including a housing and a terminal fitting housed inside the housing. The housing has a cylindrical terminal accommodating portion for accommodating the terminal fitting, and a tip end portion of the terminal fitting is exposed to the outside from one opening of the terminal accommodating portion. An annular hood accommodating portion into which a cylindrical hood portion of a mating connector housing is inserted when the mating connector is fitted is provided on an outer peripheral side of the opening. As shown in FIG. 17 of Patent Document 1, a sealing member such as a seal rubber is disposed at a tip end portion of an inner wall of the hood accommodating portion, and the seal rubber is sandwiched between the hood portion of the mating connector and the inner wall of the hood accommodating portion, whereby waterproof performance at a fitting portion of the two connectors is ensured.

[0003] Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2023-51001

[0004] However, in the structure of Patent Document 1, when the hood portion of the mating connector is inserted into the hood accommodating portion, an operator often fits the tip end portion of the hood portion into the opening of the hood accommodating portion from obliquely above, and there is a possibility that the tip end portion of the hood portion scoops up the sealing member. In such a case, the sealing member is sandwiched between the hood portion and the hood accommodating portion in a deformed state, which causes a gap or the like to lower the water stopping performance, or may make it difficult to fit the mating connector, so further improvement has been demanded.

[0005] Therefore, the present disclosure discloses a connector that can reduce the risk that the sealing member in the hood accommodating portion is scooped up by the tip end portion of the hood portion of the mating connector.

[0006] The connector of this disclosure comprises a housing having a terminal housing portion; a terminal fitting housed in the terminal housing portion; a first opening provided on one end of the terminal housing portion to expose the tip of the terminal fitting to the outside; a hood housing portion provided on the outer circumference of the first opening into which the hood portion of a mating connector is inserted; an annular sealing member attached to the tip of the inner wall of the hood housing portion; a fixing projection protruding inward from the opening end of the sealing member and covering the tip surface of the inner wall of the hood housing portion; and a front retainer fixed to the housing and sandwiching the fixing projection of the sealing member between itself and the tip surface of the inner wall.

[0007] The connector of this disclosure reduces the risk that the sealing member of the hood housing portion will be scooped up by the tip portion of the hood of the mating connector.

[0008] Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a connector according to Embodiment 1. Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view of the connector in Figure 1. Figure 3 is a front view showing a part of the connector in Figure 1. Figure 4 is a partial cross-sectional view of the IV-IV section of Figure 3. Figure 5 is a front view showing a part of Modification 1 of the connector in Figure 1. Figure 6 is a front view showing a part of Modification 2 of the connector in Figure 1.

[0009] <Description of Embodiments of the Disclosure> First, embodiments of the Disclosure will be listed and described. The connector of the Disclosure comprises: (1) a housing having a terminal housing portion; a terminal fitting housed in the terminal housing portion; a first opening provided on one end of the terminal housing portion to expose the tip of the terminal fitting to the outside; a hood housing portion provided on the outer circumference of the first opening into which the hood portion of a mating connector is inserted; an annular sealing member attached to the tip of the inner wall of the hood housing portion; a fixing projection protruding inward from the opening end of the sealing member and covering the tip surface of the inner wall of the hood housing portion; and a front retainer fixed to the housing and sandwiching the fixing projection of the sealing member between itself and the tip surface of the inner wall.

[0010] According to the connector of this disclosure, in a hood housing provided on the outer circumference side of the first opening of the terminal housing portion of the housing, an annular sealing member attached to the tip of the inner wall has a fixing projection that protrudes inward from the opening end of the sealing member and covers the tip surface of the inner wall of the hood housing portion. Furthermore, it has a front retainer fixed to the housing that clamps the fixing projection of the sealing member between itself and the tip surface of the inner wall. With a structure in which the fixing projection protruding inward from the sealing member is clamped between the front retainer and the tip surface of the inner wall of the hood housing portion, even if the hood portion of the mating connector is inserted into the hood housing portion from an oblique angle above and a force is applied in a direction that scoops up the sealing member with the tip of the hood portion, the fixing projection of the sealing member is clamped between the front retainer and the tip surface of the inner wall, so that the sealing member can be stably held in the correct mounting state.Therefore, the risk of the sealing member of the hood housing portion being scooped up by the tip of the hood portion of the mating connector can be reduced. Furthermore, this prevents the seal rubber from becoming deformed and pinched between the hood and the hood housing, which can create gaps and reduce water-sealing performance, or make it difficult to mate the mating connector. The fixing protrusions provided on the sealing member may be provided around the entire circumference of the sealing member, or they may be provided intermittently in the circumferential direction of the sealing member.

[0011] (2) In (1) above, it is preferable that the fixing protrusions of the sealing member are provided intermittently in the circumferential direction of the sealing member. By providing the fixing protrusions intermittently in the circumferential direction, a plurality of fixing protrusions with small circumferential dimensions can be distributed in the circumferential direction. This reduces the assembly force required when assembling the front retainer to the housing while clamping the fixing protrusions between the front end surface of the inner wall of the hood housing, and reduces the overall volume of the sealing member.

[0012] (3) In (1) or (2) above, it is preferable that the outer wall of the hood housing portion has a fitting recess that extends with a cross-sectional shape corresponding to the fitting rib protruding from the hood portion of the mating connector and accommodates the fitting rib, and that the fitting recess includes a non-orthogonal portion that extends in a direction other than the direction perpendicular to the outer wall of the hood housing portion. If a fitting rib that extends with a cross-sectional shape corresponding to the fitting rib protruding from the hood portion of the mating connector is provided on the outer wall of the hood housing portion, the shape of the fitting recess (fitting rib) will affect the insertion direction of the hood portion of the mating connector into the hood housing portion. Therefore, if the fitting recess has a non-orthogonal portion that extends in a direction not perpendicular to the outer wall of the hood housing portion (inclined direction or horizontal direction), the worker is instructed to combine the hood portion of the mating connector parallel to the hood housing portion without inclining it in order to align the corresponding non-orthogonal portion provided on the fitting rib of the hood portion of the mating connector with respect to the non-orthogonal portion. This further reduces the risk of the sealing member of the hood housing being scooped up by the tip of the hood portion of the mating connector.

[0013] <Details of Embodiments of the Disclosure> Specific examples of the connectors of the Disclosure are described below with reference to the drawings. However, the Disclosure is not limited to these examples and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims as indicated by the claims.

[0014] <Embodiment 1: Connector 10> Hereinafter, the connector 10 of Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 4. The connector 10 is provided on the terminal of an electric wire connected to in-vehicle equipment mounted on a vehicle such as an electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle. The connector 10 is composed of a housing 14 having a cylindrical terminal housing portion 12 and a terminal fitting 16 housed in the terminal housing portion 12. As shown in the exploded view in Figure 2, an annular sealing member 20 and a front retainer 22 are assembled in a first opening 18 provided on one end of the terminal housing portion 12, which exposes the tip of the terminal fitting 16 to the outside. The connector 10 can be positioned in any orientation within a vehicle, but in the following description, unless otherwise specified, the directions indicated by the arrows in Figure 1 will be described as the up-down direction, the front-back direction, and the left-right direction. In addition, for multiple identical components, reference numerals may be assigned to only some of the components, while the reference numerals for other components may be omitted.

[0015] <Housing 14> The housing 14 is made of an insulating material such as synthetic resin and is configured as a rectangular box. Although detailed illustrations are omitted, the housing 14 is provided with a pair of cylindrical terminal housings 12 that extend vertically through the inside of the housing 14. The upper end of each terminal housing 12 is exposed to the outside through a first opening 18 that opens into the bottom surface of the housing 14 (the rear surface in Figure 1). The lower end of each terminal housing 12 is exposed to the outside through a pair of second openings 24 that open into the bottom surface of the housing 14 (the lower surface in Figure 1). The insulated wire 26 fixed to the terminal fitting 16 is pulled out to the outside of the housing 14 by passing through each of the second openings 24. Although detailed illustrations are omitted, the terminal fitting 16 is made of copper, aluminum, or an alloy thereof. Its tip, which is electrically connected to the mating terminal fitting of a mating connector (not shown), is exposed to the outside through the first opening 18, while the core wire of the insulated wire 26 is fixed and electrically connected to the base end located near the second opening 24. Furthermore, both ends of the lever 28 are rotatably supported on both sides of the housing 14 (left and right sides in Figure 1). The lever 28 is used to maintain the mated state when the connector 10 is mated with a mating connector (not shown).

[0016] As clearly shown in Figure 2, the first opening 18 is demarcated by the tip of an inner wall 30 which has a substantially rectangular cylindrical shape in plan view, and an outer wall 32 which also has a substantially rectangular cylindrical shape in plan view is provided on the outer periphery of the inner wall 30, separated by a predetermined gap. As a result, a hood housing portion 34 is provided on the outer periphery of the first opening 18 of the housing 14, which is composed of the inner wall 30, the outer wall 32 and the gap between them, and opens in the direction of the opening of the first opening 18, into which the hood portion of a mating connector (not shown) is inserted.

[0017] As shown in Figures 2 and 4, the tip of the inner wall 30 is provided with a small-diameter portion 36, which has a smaller outer diameter than the portion located closer to the base end, and the outer circumferential surface of the small-diameter portion 36 forms a seal member mounting surface 38. The annular seal member 20 is fitted onto the seal member mounting surface 38 provided at the tip of the inner wall 30. A stepped surface 40 is formed between the small-diameter portion 36 of the inner wall 30 and the larger-diameter portion located closer to the base end, and the seal member 20 comes into contact with the stepped surface 40, preventing the seal member 20 from being displaced inward from the inner wall 30.

[0018] On the leading edge surface 42 of the inner wall 30, there are multiple locations (six in this embodiment) spaced apart in the circumferential direction, where fitting recesses 44 are provided at positions corresponding to the multiple fixing protrusions 52 provided on the sealing member 20 (described later), into which the fixing protrusions 52 are fitted. Therefore, when the sealing member 20 is mounted on the sealing member mounting surface 38 of the inner wall 30, the fixing protrusions 52 of the sealing member 20 fit into the fitting recesses 44 provided on the leading edge surface 42 of the inner wall 30, thereby positioning and holding the sealing member 20 in its proper assembly position.

[0019] Multiple mating recesses 46 are provided on the outer circumferential surface of the outer wall 32 at circumferentially spaced locations (five locations in this embodiment). These recesses have a rectangular cross-sectional shape and extend in the assembly direction (front-to-back direction) of the connector 10 and the mating connector, opening radially inward and in the direction of the opening of the first opening 18. Specifically, the mating recesses 46 extend in the front-to-back direction with a cross-sectional shape corresponding to the mating ribs that protrude from the outer surface of the hood portion of the mating connector and extend in the assembly direction (front-to-back direction) of the connector 10. In this embodiment, the entire mating recess 46 extends outward in a direction perpendicular to the outer wall 32 of the hood housing portion 34. When mating the mating connector to the connector 10, the mating ribs provided on the hood portion of the mating connector are accommodated in the mating recesses 46 provided on the outer wall 32 of the hood housing portion 34, thereby ensuring stable mating of the connector 10 and the mating connector. Therefore, the mating ribs and mating recesses 46 of the mating connector are located in corresponding positions with corresponding cross-sectional shapes for the connector 10 and the mating connector that are to be properly assembled. If the connector 10 and the mating connector are not in the correct combination, the cross-sectional shapes and positions of the mating ribs and mating recesses 46 of the mating connector will be different, making it difficult to assemble them together and thus preventing incorrect assembly.

[0020] <Sealing Member 20> The sealing member 20 is made of an elastic material such as rubber or elastomer, and is provided in a substantially rectangular annular shape in plan view, corresponding to the sealing member mounting surface 38 of the inner wall 30. As shown in Figure 4, the inner circumferential surface of the sealing member 20 has a plurality of lower annular ribs 48 that are pressed against the sealing member mounting surface 38 when fitted onto it. The outer circumferential surface of the sealing member 20 has a plurality of upper annular ribs 50 that are pressed against the inner circumferential surface of the hood portion of the mating connector. Furthermore, as shown in Figures 2 and 4, the opening end of the sealing member 20 (left side in Figure 4) has a plurality of fixing protrusions 52 that protrude inward from a plurality of locations (six in this embodiment) spaced apart in the circumferential direction and cover the front end surface 42 of the inner wall 30 of the hood housing portion 34. These plurality of fixing protrusions 52 are fitted into and held in a plurality of fitting recesses 44 provided at opposing positions on the front end surface 42 of the inner wall 30.

[0021] <Front Retainer 22> As shown in Figure 2, the front retainer 22 is assembled and fixed to the first opening 18 side of the housing 14. Specifically, the front retainer 22 includes a rectangular outer frame portion 54 that covers the front end surface of the inner wall 30 of the hood housing portion 34 and corresponds to the front end surface 42 of the inner wall in a plan view, and a connecting plate portion 56 that connects the intermediate portions of the upper and lower wall portions of the outer frame portion 54 to each other. The connecting plate portion 56 has a terminal housing portion 62 that houses a pair of terminals 60 that protrude from the lower end of a connecting leg portion 58 that connects the intermediate portions of the upper and lower wall portions of the inner wall 30 of the housing 14 to each other. The middle portion to the upper end of the connecting plate portion 56 is superimposed on the connecting leg portion 58.

[0022] On the inner circumference of the outer frame portion 54 of the front retainer 22, elastic locking pieces 64 are provided at multiple locations spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction. The tips of the elastic locking pieces 64 engage with locking claws (not shown) provided on the inner wall 30 of the housing 14. As a result, as shown in Figures 1, 3, and 4, the front retainer 22 is held in the assembled state relative to the housing 14. In this state, with the front retainer 22 assembled and fixed to the housing 14, the outer frame portion 54 of the front retainer 22 is pressed against the front end surface 42 of the inner wall 30 with the fixing projection 52 of the sealing member 20 in between (see Figure 4), so that the fixing projection 52 of the sealing member 20 is securely held between the front end surface 42 of the inner wall 30 and the outer frame portion 54 of the front retainer 22.

[0023] <Assembly of Connector 10> Next, an example of how to assemble the connector 10 configured as described above will be given. When assembling the connector 10, first, the housing 14, sealing member 20, and front retainer 22, which are configured as described above, are prepared by injection molding or the like. Furthermore, a pair of insulated wires 26 are manufactured and prepared, in which terminal fittings 16, which are formed by press-forming a metal plate, are connected to the core wires that are exposed at the ends. Subsequently, the terminal fittings 16 are inserted into the terminal housing portion 12 of the housing 14 with the tip end leading, passing through the second opening 24 side of the housing 14, so that the insulated wires 26 are pulled out from the second opening 24.

[0024] Next, the sealing member 20 is brought close from the outside of the first opening 18 of the housing 14 and fitted onto the sealing member mounting surface 38 provided on the outer surface of the inner wall 30 of the hood housing 34 (see Figure 2). At this time, the sealing member 20 comes into contact with the stepped surface 40 of the inner wall 30, thereby positioning the sealing member 20 in the axial direction of the inner wall 30 and preventing further inward displacement of the sealing member 20 (see Figure 4). In this state, the multiple fixing protrusions 52 provided on the sealing member 20 are fitted into the fitting recesses 44 provided on the tip surface 42 of the inner wall 30, so that the sealing member 20 is stably held in the normal assembly position.

[0025] Subsequently, the front retainer 22 is brought close from the outside of the first opening 18 of the housing 14, and its outer surface is inserted into the inner surface of the inner wall 30, thereby fitting the front retainer 22 into the tip of the inner wall 30 (see Figure 2). By pushing the front retainer 22 inward into the first opening 18, the terminal 60 protruding from the connecting leg portion 58 is accommodated in the terminal housing portion 62 provided on the connecting plate portion 56 of the front retainer 22. Finally, the tip of the elastic lock piece 64 engages with a lock claw (not shown) provided on the inner wall 30 of the housing 14, completing the assembly of the front retainer 22 to the housing 14 and fixing it in the correct position. In this state, the fixing projection 52 of the sealing member 20 is securely held between the tip surface 42 of the inner wall 30 and the outer frame portion 54 of the front retainer 22 (see Figure 4). In this way, the assembly of the connector 10 is completed, and the connector 10 of Embodiment 1 is finished.

[0026] In the connector 10 of Embodiment 1, which has the structure described above, the hood housing portion 34 provided on the outer circumference side of the first opening 18 of the terminal housing portion 12 of the housing 14 has a fixing projection 52 that protrudes inward from the opening side end of the sealing member 20 and covers the tip surface 42 of the inner wall 30 of the hood housing portion 34. The fixing projection 52 of the sealing member 20 is sandwiched between the front retainer 22 fixed to the housing 14 and the tip surface 42 of the inner wall 30. As a result, even if the hood portion of the mating connector is inserted into the hood housing portion 34 from an oblique upward angle and force is applied in a direction that scoops up the sealing member 20 with the tip portion of the hood portion, the sealing member 20 can be stably held in the correct mounting state, and the risk of the sealing member 20 of the hood housing portion 34 being scooped up by the tip portion of the hood portion of the mating connector can be reduced. As a result, it is possible to prevent the sealing member 20 from being pinched between the hood portion and the hood housing portion 34 in a deformed state, which can cause gaps and other issues that reduce water-sealing performance, as well as make it difficult to mate the mating connector.

[0027] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the fixing protrusions 52 are intermittently provided in the circumferential direction of the sealing member 20, and a plurality of fixing protrusions 52 with small circumferential dimensions are distributed in the circumferential direction. This reduces the assembly force required when assembling the front retainer 22 to the housing 14 while clamping the fixing protrusions 52 between the front end surface 42 of the inner wall 30 of the hood housing 34, thereby reducing the overall volume of the sealing member 20.

[0028] <Modifications> Although Embodiment 1 has been described in detail above as a specific example of the present disclosure, the present disclosure is not limited by this specific description. Modifications, improvements, etc., to the extent that they can achieve the purpose of the present disclosure are included in the present disclosure. For example, the following modifications of the embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present disclosure.

[0029] (1) In the embodiment 1, a fitting recess 46 is provided in the outer wall 32 of the housing 14 to prevent misassembly with a mating connector that is not in the correct combination, and the entire fitting recess 46 extends outward in a direction perpendicular to the outer wall 32 of the hood housing 34. The specific shape of the fitting recess 46 is not limited to that of embodiment 1. For example, in modified example 1 shown in Figure 5, the fitting recess 66 includes a non-orthogonal portion 68 that extends in a direction other than perpendicular to the outer wall 32 of the hood housing 34. Specifically, the non-orthogonal portion 68 of the fitting recess 66 extends parallel to the outer wall 32 of the hood housing 34. Furthermore, in modified example 2 shown in Figure 6, the entire fitting recess 70 constitutes a non-orthogonal portion that extends in a direction other than perpendicular to the outer wall 32 of the hood housing 34. Specifically, the fitting recess 70 (non-orthogonal portion) extends in a direction inclined with respect to the outer wall 32 of the hood housing 34.

[0030] When there is a non-orthogonal portion 68 (the entire mating recess 70) that extends in a direction not perpendicular to the outer wall 32 of the hood housing 34 (in an inclined or horizontal direction), such as the mating recess 66 or mating recess 70, it is necessary to align the corresponding non-orthogonal portion provided on the mating rib of the hood portion of the mating connector with respect to the non-orthogonal portion 68 (the entire mating recess 70). Therefore, the worker is encouraged to assemble the mating connector parallel to each other without inclining the hood portion of the mating connector relative to the hood housing 34 from above. Consequently, when the mating recess 66 or mating recess 70 shown in Modification 1 and 2 are adopted, the risk of the sealing member 20 fitted onto the inner wall 30 of the hood housing 34 being scooped up by the tip of the hood portion of the mating connector can be further advantageously reduced.

[0031] (2) In the embodiment 1 described above, the upper ends of a pair of terminal housings 12 provided in the housing 14 were exposed to the outside through a single first opening 18 that opens into the bottom surface of the housing 14. However, the upper ends of each terminal housing 12 may be exposed to the outside through a pair of first openings 18 provided in the housing 14. In that case, a hood housing 34 may be provided on the outer circumference of each first opening 18, and the fixing projection 52 of the sealing member 20 attached to the tip of the inner wall 30 of each hood housing 34 may be individually pressed against the tip surface 42 of the inner wall 30 by the respective front retainers 22 fixed to the housing 14.

[0032] (3) In Embodiment 1, an example of a lever-type connector in which a lever 28 is provided on the housing 14 was shown, but the lever 28 is not essential, and the contents of this disclosure can be similarly applied to connectors other than lever-type connectors.

[0033] 10 Connector 12 Terminal housing 14 Housing 16 Terminal fitting 18 First opening 20 Seal member 22 Front retainer 24 Second opening 26 Insulated wire 28 Lever 30 Inner wall 32 Outer wall 34 Hood housing 36 Small diameter section 38 Seal member mounting surface 40 Stepped surface 42 Tip surface (inner wall) 44 Fitting recess 46 Fitting recess 48 Lower annular rib 50 Upper annular rib 52 Fixing projection 54 Outer frame section 56 Connecting plate section 58 Connecting leg section 60 Terminal 62 Terminal housing 64 Elastic lock piece 66 Fitting recess (modified version 1) 68 Non-orthogonal section 70 Fitting recess (modified version 2)

Claims

1. A connector comprising: a housing having a terminal housing portion; a terminal fitting housed in the terminal housing portion; a first opening provided on one end of the terminal housing portion to expose the tip of the terminal fitting to the outside; a hood housing portion provided on the outer circumference of the first opening into which the hood portion of a mating connector is inserted; an annular sealing member attached to the tip of the inner wall of the hood housing portion; a fixing projection protruding inward from the opening end of the sealing member and covering the tip surface of the inner wall of the hood housing portion; and a front retainer fixed to the housing and sandwiching the fixing projection of the sealing member between itself and the tip surface of the inner wall.

2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the fixing projection of the sealing member is provided intermittently in the circumferential direction of the sealing member.

3. The connector according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the outer wall of the hood housing portion extends with a cross-sectional shape corresponding to a fitting rib protruding from the hood portion of the mating connector and has a fitting recess for accommodating the fitting rib, and the fitting recess includes a non-orthogonal portion extending in a direction other than that perpendicular to the outer wall of the hood housing portion.

Images