Connector

A first space in which terminals are disposed and that is connected to a first connection and a second space in which ground terminals are disposed and that is connected to a second connection are provided in a housing portion of a flat conductor including a plate. Furthermore, in the thickness direction of the flat conductor including a plate, the second space is formed with a size that is equivalent to or greater than the thickness of a ground plate so as to enable the second connection to the housed therein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present disclosure relates to a connector that conductively connects a flat conductor and a circuit board to each other.

2. Description of the Related Art

Hitherto, a connector used in an electronic device is mounted on a circuit board and conductively connects a flexible printed circuit (FPC), a flexible flat cable (FFC), or the like (referred to as a “flat conductor” in the present description and the claims) and a circuit board to each other. Since such a connector can connect a unit, such as a computer or a liquid crystal display, in the system and a circuit board to each other in various forms, the connector is installed in many electronic devices.

In recent years, electronic components have become highly functional and multifunctional and the amount of data transmitted has increased; accordingly, flat conductors that are capable of high-speed transmission of signals of higher frequencies are used. Accordingly, measures against electromagnetic interference (EMI) such as noise generated by the flat conductor are awaited. As an example of a flat conductor that has employed such a measure, there is a flat conductor (hereinafter, referred to as a “flat conductor including a plate” in the present description) on which a conductive member such as a ground plate grounded to the ground terminal provided in the connector is stacked, and, typically, a special connector is used for such a flat conductor (see Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2005-347021, for example).

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Incidentally, the difference between a typical flat conductor and a flat conductor including a plate is, in many cases, whether there is a conductive member such as a ground plate stacked thereon. Accordingly, it is desirable that a single connector can be used for both a typical flat conductor and a flat conductor including a plate rather than separately using a connector for a typical flat conductor and a connector for a flat conductor including a plate since there will be various advantages on the user side and on the manufacturer side, such as reduction in manufacturing cost and elimination of the need to select an adapting connector.

One way to allow a single connector to be used for both conductors is to use a flat conductor including a plate for the typical flat conductor. The reason for the above is that a flat conductor including a plate is formed thicker than a typical flat conductor by the thickness of the conductive member; accordingly, the housing portion inside the connector that receives the flat conductor including a plate is also formed with a space that is large compared with a space of a housing portion of a connector for a typical flat conductor. However, when a typical flat conductor is fitted therein, a gap will be created between the flat conductor and an inner wall of the housing portion and the fitting state will be unstable. In such a case, the gap may be eliminated by adhering a tape to the flat conductor, for example; however, the tape adhering work needs to be done manually, which is labor consuming and inefficient.

The present disclosure has been made to overcome the above problem. In other words, an object of the disclosure is to provide a connector that can be used both for a typical flat conductor and for a flat conductor including a plate and that has high connection reliability.

The present disclosure achieving the above object is configured as below.

The present disclosure is a connector including a housing that forms a housing portion for a flat conductor, the flat conductor including a first connection on a front side in an insertion direction of a flat conductor body, the flat conductor body provided with a conductive line between flat insulation substrates, and a second connection including a conductive member stacked on one surface of one of the insulation substrates of the flat conductor body such that the second connection is formed with a plate thickness that is greater than that of the first connection; and a connector that includes a first terminal that is retained by the housing and that is connected to the flat conductor, and a second terminal that is retained by the housing and that is connected to the flat conductor. In the connector, the housing portion includes a first space in which the first terminal is disposed and that is connected to the first connection, and a second space in which the second terminal is disposed and that is connected to the second connection, and the second space capable of housing the second connection is formed larger than the first space in a plate thickness direction of the flat conductor by a thickness that is equivalent to or greater than the thickness of the conductive member.

If the entire housing portion were to have a size that is capable of housing the second connection that is formed thicker than the first connection, the housing portion will become too large in the thickness direction of the flat conductor and a gap will be created between the first connection and the inner wall of the housing portion. With the above, there are cases in which the connection between the first connection and the first terminal becomes unstable.

Conversely, the housing portion of the present disclosure includes the first space in which the first terminal is disposed and that is connected to the first connection, and the second space in which the second terminal is disposed and that is connected to the second connection. By forming the first space and the second space separately, a large gap can be prevented from being created between the inner wall of the housing portion and the first connection. Accordingly, there will be no need to close the gap by using another member such as, for example, tape, and the connection reliability between the first connection and the first terminal can be improved.

Furthermore, the second space of the present disclosure is formed larger than the first space in the plate thickness direction of the flat conductor by a thickness that is equivalent to or greater than the thickness of the conductive member, and the second space is capable of housing the second connection. Accordingly, by providing the first space and the second space that have different sizes in the thickness direction of the flat conductor, the first connection and the second connection can be conductively connected in a stable manner to the first terminal and the second terminal, respectively. Accordingly, a connector with high connection reliability can be fabricated even if the connector is used both for the typical flat conductor and for the flat conductor including the plate.

The housing of the present disclosure may include an elastic lock piece that is locked to the flat conductor and the elastic lock piece may include a lock protrusion that is locked to the flat conductor and an operation portion that is exposed to an outside of the housing and that is provided along an outer surface of the housing.

Since the housing includes the elastic lock piece that is locked to the flat conductor, the flat conductor can be reliably fixed to the connector. Furthermore, since the elastic lock piece includes the operation portion that is exposed to the outside of the housing, the operation of locking and unlocking the flat conductor with the elastic lock piece, for example, can be facilitated. Furthermore, since the operation portion is provided along the outer surface of the housing, compared to a case, for example, in which the operation portion greatly protrudes towards the outside from the outer surface of the housing, the overall connector can be small in size.

The housing of the present disclosure may include an elastic lock piece that is locked to the flat conductor and the elastic lock piece may include a plurality of lock protrusions that are locked to the flat conductor at positions that are different from each other in a width direction of the flat conductor and a single operation portion that is exposed to an outside of the housing, the single operation portion being pressed so as to displace the plurality of lock protrusions in the thickness direction of the flat conductor so that the locked state with the flat conductor is cancelled.

Since the housing includes the elastic lock piece including the plurality of lock protrusions that are locked to the flat conductor, the flat conductor can be fixed to the connector in a further reliable manner. Furthermore, since the elastic lock piece includes the operation portion that is exposed to the outside of the housing, the operation of locking and unlocking the flat conductor with the elastic lock piece, for example, can be facilitated.

Furthermore, in the above case, if supposing that the plurality of lock protrusions are each provided with an operation portion that interlocks with the corresponding lock protrusion and that all of the operation portions corresponding to the lock protrusions need to be pressed in order to cancel the locked state of the flat conductor including a plate locked with the plurality of lock protrusions, then, work efficiency will be low and the workload on the operator will be large. Conversely, the housing of the present disclosure includes a single operation portion that, by being pressed, displaces the plurality of lock protrusions in the thickness direction of the flat conductor so as to cancel the locked state between the plurality of lock protrusions and the flat conductor. Accordingly, by pressing a single operation portion, the operator is capable of canceling the locked state of the flat conductor locked by the plurality of lock protrusions, thus, unlocking work can be performed efficiently.

The housing of the present disclosure may include a wall that forms the housing portion and a metal reinforcement member that is fitted along the wall. Accordingly, the wall can be made so as not to be easily deformed even when the wall is pressed by the flat conductor inserted into the housing portion.

The second terminal of the present disclosure may be provided by partially extending the reinforcement member into the second space. Accordingly, the second terminal and the reinforcement member can be formed integrally and the number of parts can be reduced. Furthermore, since it is possible to install the second terminal and the reinforcement member in the housing with a single operation, efficiency of assembly work can be increased.

The reinforcement member of the present disclosure may include a fixed portion that is positioned on the bottom surface of the housing opposing a circuit board and that is soldered to the circuit board. With the above, since the portion where soldering is performed does not protrude to the outside; accordingly, the mounting area can be made small.

In the present disclosure, the flat conductor may include an edge portion that extends in a width direction of the flat conductor, and the elastic lock piece may be locked to the edge portion. With the above, the flat conductor is not easily dislocated from the connector, and the connection reliability with the flat conductor can be improved.

The elastic lock piece of the present disclosure may include an elastic arm that extend towards an inside of the housing from the operation portion and that is elastically displaced in the thickness direction of the flat conductor when a press operation is performed on the operation portion. The lock protrusion may be provided in the elastic arm and may be capable of being attached to and detached from the flat conductor when the elastic arm is elastically displaced.

By providing the operation portion to the elastic lock piece, the elastic lock piece can be operated from the outside of the housing; accordingly, it will be possible to easily detach the lock protrusion from the flat conductor and to easily disconnect and remove the flat conductor from the housing. Furthermore, by providing the elastic arm that is elastically displaced and the lock protrusion in an integral manner, compared to a case in which the elastic arm and the lock protrusion are provided separately, the elastic lock piece can be made compact in a further manner.

The operation portion of the present disclosure may be provided so as to oppose the outer surface of the housing and a recess into which the operation portion is elastically displaced may be provided in the outer surface of the housing.

By providing the operation portion so as to oppose the outer surface of the housing, compared with a case in which the operation portion is disposed at a position away from the housing, the overall connector can be made compact. However, in such a case, a space for the operation portion to sufficiently elastically displace itself while not interfering with the housing needs to be provided between the operation portion and the outer surface of the housing. If the operation portion is set away from the outer surface of the housing in order to achieve the above, the overall connector becomes large. Conversely, as in the present disclosure, by providing the recess into which the operation portion is elastically displaced in the outer surface of the housing, the above space can be provided without setting the operation portion greatly away from the housing. Accordingly, the operation portion of the elastic lock piece can be provided without making the size of the overall connector large.

The operation portion of the present disclosure may be elastically displaced along the outer surface of the housing.

When the connector is mounted on the circuit board where other components are mounted in a dense manner, there are cases in which there is no space between the housing and the other mounted components for elastically displacing the operation portion. In such a case, it is difficult to, for example, displace the operation portion in a direction that is orthogonal to the outer surface of the housing or in a direction that displaces the operation portion away from the housing. Conversely, by elastically displacing the operation portion along the outer surface of the housing, even if there is no sufficient space around the housing for elastically displacing the operation portion, the operation portion can be operated.

In the present disclosure, the connector may be mounted on the circuit board and the insertion direction may be parallel with respect to the surface of the circuit board.

With the above, the overall connector can be made short in height; accordingly the connector can be mounted on a circuit board that is disposed in a tight space. Furthermore, even if it is difficult to sight the connector from a direction that is orthogonal to the surface of the circuit board, the flat plate can be inserted.

The connector may be mounted on the circuit board and the insertion direction may be orthogonal to the surface of the circuit board.

With the above, the connector may be a connector with a small mounting area; accordingly, the connector can be mounted in a further small space on the circuit board. Furthermore, even if it is difficult to sight the connector from a direction that is parallel to the surface of the circuit board, the flat plate can be inserted.

According to the connector of the present disclosure, a single connector can be used for both connecting a typical flat conductor and the flat conductor including a plate, and connection reliability with the typical flat conductor and with the flat conductor including a plate can be increased. Accordingly, there are various advantages for the user and the manufacturer, such as reduction in manufacturing cost and elimination of the need to select adapting connectors.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a connector of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Connectors1and12illustrated in the embodiments below that are mounted on a circuit board2. The connectors1and12that each conductively connect, to a plated circuit, a flat conductor3having a plate such as, for example, an FPC or an FFC serving as a “flat conductor” will be described.

First Embodiment (FIGS.1to13)

As illustrated inFIGS. 1 to 13, the connector1includes a housing4, terminals5serving as a “first terminal”, reinforcement members6, and ground terminals7serving as a “second terminal”. The connector1is mounted on the circuit board2and conductively connects a flat conductor3including a plate to the circuit board2. The flat conductor3including a plate serving as the “flat conductor” includes a first connection8that is provided on the front side in the insertion direction (Y direction) of the flat conductor3including a plate and that is conductively connected to the terminals5of the connector1, and a second connection9that is formed thicker than the first connection8by having a ground plate3aserving as a “conductive member” stacked thereon.

Note that in the present embodiment, description will be given while a direction that is parallel to the circuit board2and that extends in the longitudinal direction of the connector1is referred to as an X direction, and a direction that extends in the transverse direction of the connector1is referred to as a Y direction. Furthermore, the description will be given while the height direction of the connector1is a Z direction. Moreover, the description will be given while, in a height direction Z of the connector1, the side on the circuit board2is referred to as a “lower side” and the side on the connector1is referred to as an “upper side”; however, the above do not restrict the fitting direction of the connector1and the manner in which the connector1is mounted on the circuit board2.

The connector1according to the present embodiment is placed flat with respect to the circuit board2, and the flat conductor3including a plate is connected to the connector1by being inserted in a parallel direction with respect to the surface of the circuit board2. Accordingly, even if it is difficult to sight the connector1and a slot4athereof from a direction orthogonal to the circuit board2, for example, it will be possible to insert the flat conductor3including a plate. Furthermore, such a flat-placed type connector1is low in height and the diameters in a transverse direction Y and in a longitudinal direction X thereof are longer than the diameter in the height direction Z thereof. Accordingly, since the connector1is stable when mounted on the circuit board2and does not easily fall down, when inserting the flat conductor3including a plate therein and when pressing an operation portion11aof an elastic lock piece11, it is possible to avert a situation such as the mounted connector1coming off and falling down on the circuit board2from easily occurring.

As illustrated inFIGS. 7, 10 to 13, and 23 to 26, the flat conductor3including a plate includes a cable body3bserving as a “flat conductor body”. In the cable body3b, insulating layers3dserving as “insulation substrates” are stacked on both the upper and lower surfaces of a layer including conductive lines3c. The conductive lines3care exposed to the outside at the front side of the cable body3bin the insertion direction when the cable body3bis inserted into the housing4. The above portion serving as the first connection8is conductively connected to the terminals5of the connector1.

Furthermore, the ground plate3ais provided on a surface on the lower side (the side that comes into contact with the ground terminals7of the connector1) of the flat conductor3including a plate and is stacked on the flat conductor3including a plate in an area other than the two ends of the flat conductor3including a plate in the width direction. The portion where the ground plate3ais provided, serving as the second connection9, is conductively connected to the ground terminals7. Furthermore, since the ground plate3ais formed in the cable body3b, the second connection9is formed thicker than the first connection8.

A recess10is formed in each of the two sides of the first connection8in the width direction of the flat conductor3including a plate. Each recess10illustrated in the present embodiment is formed as a notch that is the lateral side of the flat conductor3including a plate cut away in a concave manner. However, each recess10may be a hole or may have any other shape that allows the elastic lock piece11described later to function as a “lock portion” that can lock and retain the flat conductor3including a plate. Furthermore, the recesses10include edge portions10athat extend in the width direction of the flat conductor3including a plate. Lock protrusions11cof the elastic lock piece11described later are locked to the edge portions10a.

A configuration of the connector1will be described next.

Housing

The housing4is formed of insulating resin and, as illustrated inFIGS. 1 to 6, is formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The slot4afor inserting the flat conductor3including a plate into the connector1is formed in one of the sidewalls constituting the housing4. A recess4gthat is formed along the shape of the operation portion11aof the elastic lock piece11described below is formed in the upper surface of the housing4at a position that is the far side with respect to the insertion direction of the flat conductor3including a plate.

Furthermore, a housing portion4ffor the flat conductor3including a plate is provided on the inner side of the housing4. The terminals5are capable of being elastically deformed in the housing portion4fmainly in the height direction Z. The housing portion4fincludes a first space4f1and a second space4f2.

First Space

As illustrated inFIGS. 1 to 3, 10, and 11, the terminals5are disposed in the first space4f1. Here, in the first space4f1, the terminals5and the first connection8of the flat conductor3including a plate are conductively connected to each other. A top surface portion4bis provided on the upper side of the first space4f1in the height direction Z and slits4cis formed on the lower side of the first space4f1in the height direction Z. The terminals5protrude into the first space4f1through the slits4cand come into contact with the first connection8of the flat conductor3including a plate from under. Then, the terminals5press the flat conductor3including a plate against the top surface portion4b.

Second Space

As illustrated inFIGS. 1 to 3, 10, and 11, the ground terminals7are disposed in the second space4f2. Here, the ground terminals7and the ground plate3acome into contact with each other. The second space4f2is provided adjacent to the first space4f1. An inclined portion4f3is formed in the second space4f2between the first space4f1and the second space4f2, and the second space4f2is larger than the first space4f1in the height direction Z. Accordingly, the second connection9that is thicker than the first connection8by the thickness of the ground plate3acan be housed in the second space4f2.

Terminal

Each of the terminals5is formed by bending a conductive metal plate and, as illustrated inFIGS. 10and11, includes a circuit board connection5a, a fixed portion5b, an elastic piece5c, and a contact portion5d. Furthermore, a plurality of terminals5are arranged parallel to each other in the longitudinal direction X of the housing4.

Each circuit board connection5ais provided on one end side of the corresponding terminal5, extends to the outside of the housing4, and is soldered and fixed to the circuit board2.

The fixed portion5bincludes a vertical piece5b1and a horizontal piece5b2, and the lower end of the vertical piece5b1is coupled to the circuit board connection5a. Furthermore, the horizontal piece5b2penetrates through a wall4dof the housing4and, here, the terminal5is fixed to the housing4. The terminals5and the housing4are integrally formed by insert molding and the terminals5are fixed to the housing4at the fixed portions5b.

The elastic piece5cextends towards the slot4aside from the end portion of the horizontal piece5b2of the fixed portion5bin a cantilevered manner. Furthermore, the elastic piece5celastically deforms in the height direction Z of the connector1while the horizontal piece5b2of the fixed portion5bserves as a fulcrum. Furthermore, the contact portion5dis elastically supported at the distal end side of the elastic piece5c.

The contact portion5dis a portion that is conductively connected to the flat conductor3including a plate. Furthermore, the contact portion5dis bent in a mountainous shape extending in a direction that comes in contact with the circuit board and a contact portion5d1that is conductively connected to the flat conductor3including a plate is formed at a substantially middle portion thereof.

Reinforcement Member

The reinforcement members6are each formed of a metal plate and reinforce the wall4dthat forms the housing portion4f. Furthermore, as illustrated inFIGS. 1, 2, 10, and11, a reinforcement member6is provided on each of the two sides of the housing4in the longitudinal direction X in a portion on the lower side and on the slot4aside of the housing4. The pair of reinforcement members6are formed so as to be bilaterally symmetrical with each other.

As illustrated inFIG. 8, each reinforcement member6includes a fixed portion6dthat is fixed to the housing4, a ground connection6aformed of a plate surface that is parallel to the bottom surface of the housing4, a reinforcing plate6bthat reinforces the wall4don the bottom surface side of the housing4, and a step6cformed between the reinforcing plate6band the ground connection6a.

The fixed portion6dis press fitted into and fixed to a press-fitting hole4eprovided on the bottom surface side of the housing4.

Each ground connection6ais exposed to the outside from the lower side of the housing4and is soldered to a corresponding ground connection pad of the circuit board2. The ground connection6adoes not protrude outside the housing4and is within the plane of the bottom surface of the housing4; accordingly, the connector1can be made compact and can be mounted on the circuit board2while occupying a small area on the circuit board2. When the flat conductor3including a plate is connected to the connector1, the ground connection6acan connect the flat conductor3including a plate and the circuit board2to each other. Since the bottom surface side of the ground connection6afunctions as a soldering portion with respect to the circuit board2, the connector1can be fixed to the circuit board2at the above portion. Each fixed portion6dis positioned on the bottom surface side of the housing4and does not protrude outside the housing4. Accordingly, the connector1can be made further compact.

Each reinforcing plate6bis inserted in the plate thickness of the wall4dserving as a bottom wall of the housing4and is not exposed to the bottom surface side of the housing4. By providing the reinforcing plates6b, the wall4dcan be made to not deform easily when the wall4dis pressed by the flat conductor3including a plate that is inserted into the housing portion4f.

Ground Terminal

The ground terminals7are each formed of conductive metal and is provided integrally with the reinforcement members6. Furthermore, as illustrated inFIGS. 1, 2, 10, and 11, a single ground terminal7is provided on each of the two end sides of the housing4in the longitudinal direction X. Each of the ground terminals7extends towards the slot4aside of the housing4from the corresponding reinforcement member6and is bent back in a substantially U-shape such that the distal end side extends into the housing portion4f. A bent portion7athat is bent in a mountainous shape and that comes into contact with the second connection9of the flat conductor3including a plate is provided on the distal end side.

By forming the ground terminal7and the reinforcement member6in an integral manner, the ground terminal7and the reinforcement member6can be installed in the housing4with a single operation; accordingly, efficiency of assembly work can be increased and the number of parts can be reduced compared to having separate members.

Elastic Lock Piece

The elastic lock piece11locks the flat conductor3including a plate so that the flat conductor3including a plate is not dislocated from the connector1and is a member for improving the connection reliability with the flat conductor3including a plate. As illustrated inFIGS. 9, and10to13, the elastic lock piece11includes the operation portion11athat is exposed to the outside of the housing4, elastic arms11bthat extend towards the inside of the housing4from the sides of the two end portions of the operation portion11aand that are elastically displaced in the thickness direction of the flat conductor3including a plate when a press operation is performed on the operation portion11a, the lock protrusions11cthat are provided in the elastic arms11band that are attachable and detachable with respect to the edge portions10aof the flat conductor3including a plate upon the above elastic displacement, bent portions11dformed in a U-shape, and fixed portions11ethat are fixed to the housing4. The elastic lock piece11is structured so that all of the portions from after the operation portion11a, that is, the elastic arms11b, the lock protrusions11c, the bent portions11d, and the fixed portions11eare positioned within the housing4and are formed so that there are no portions that protrude to the outside, for example, in the height direction Z of the housing4; accordingly, the elastic lock piece11contributes to making the connector1compact particularly in the height direction Z.

The operation portion11ais formed in a tabular shape extending along the outer surface of the top surface portion4bon the upper side of the housing4and is provided above the recess4gof the housing4. Accordingly, the operation portion11adoes not greatly protrude from the top surface portion4bof the housing4such that the connector1can be reduced in size and height. In the present embodiment, the operation portion11ais provided so as to oppose a surface of the top surface portion4bthat is the outer surface of the housing4. By doing so, the overall connector1can be made compact compared to a case in which the operation portion11ais disposed so as to be greatly set apart or protruded from the housing4.

The operation portion11ais pressed towards the housing4side when disconnecting and removing the flat conductor3including a plate from the connector1. In such a case, a space for the operation portion11ato elastically displace itself so that the operation portion11ais elastically displaced in a sufficient manner while not interfering with the housing4needs to be provided between the operation portion11aand the outer surface of the housing4. Accordingly, there are cases in which the operation portion11ais set apart from the outer surface of the housing4, resulting in increase in the size of the overall connector1. However, as in the present embodiment, by providing the recess4gin the outer surface of the housing4into which the operation portion11aelastically displaces itself, the above space can be provided without setting the operation portion11aapart from the housing4. By having the operation portion11abe elastically displaced into the recess4gof the housing4, the operation portion11acan be, without increasing the size of the overall connector1, sufficiently pressed towards the housing4side without interfering with the housing4.

By providing the operation portion11athat is exposed to the outside in a manner described above in the elastic lock piece11, the elastic lock piece11can be operated from the outside of the housing4; accordingly, it will be possible to easily detach the lock protrusions11cfrom the flat conductor3including a plate and to easily disconnect and remove the flat conductor3including a plate from the housing4.

A single elastic arm11bextends from each of the two ends of the operation portion11aand is disposed inside the housing4. Each of the elastic arms11bis formed in a linear manner in the transverse direction Y of the housing4, and a lock protrusion11cdescribed later is formed at a substantially middle portion in the transverse direction Y. Since the elastic arms11bcan be elastically displaced in the thickness direction of the flat conductor3including a plate, the lock protrusions11cinterlocks with the elastic arms11band is displaced. As described above, by providing the elastic arms11band the lock protrusions11cin an integral manner, compared to a case in which the elastic arms11band the lock protrusions11care provided separately, the elastic lock piece11can be made compact.

A single lock protrusion11cis provided in each of the elastic arms11band11band is formed so as to protrude in a mountainous shape towards the flat conductor3including a plate. Accordingly, a single elastic lock piece11includes two lock protrusions11cat different positions in the width direction of the fitted flat conductor3including a plate. When the flat conductor3including a plate is housed in the housing portion4f, the lock protrusions11cand11care pressed and displaced towards the lower side with the flat conductor3including a plate. From the above state, by having the flat conductor3including a plate further penetrate towards the far side of the housing portion4f, the lock protrusions11cand11cmove into the recesses10of the flat conductor3including a plate. The lock protrusions11cand11cincludes the edge portions10athat extend in the width direction of the flat conductor3including a plate, and the edge portions10aare locked to the recesses10of the flat conductor3including a plate. In the above locked state, the flat conductor3including a plate does not become dislocated even if the flat conductor3including a plate is pulled. As described above, by having the two lock protrusions11cat different positions in the width direction of the flat conductor3including a plate, and by having the two lock protrusions11clocked to the two recesses10included in the flat conductor3including a plate, the flat conductor3including a plate can be fixed to the connector1in a further reliable manner.

The bent portions11dare provided continuously from the elastic arms11band are formed so as to be bent back towards the lower side in a U-shape from the slot4aside of the elastic arms11bin the transverse direction Y. When the operation portion11ais pressed in the above-described manner, the above bent portions11dbecome deformed and the portions of the elastic arms11bon the far side in the insertion direction of the flat conductor3including a plate are pushed down towards the circuit board2side; accordingly, the elastic arms11bare inclined obliquely. With the above, the lock protrusions11care pushed down towards the circuit board2side and are dislocated from the recesses10of the flat conductor3including a plate; accordingly, the locked flat conductor3including a plate is released and the flat conductor3including a plate can be disconnected and removed from the connector1.

The fixed portions11eare formed continuously from the bent portions11dand are formed so as to bend towards the two sides of the housing4in the longitudinal direction X. Lock portions11fare provided on the upper side of the fixed portions11eand are fixed to fixing grooves (not shown) provided in the housing portion4fof the housing4.

Description of the Method of Use

The method of using the connector1will be described next.

First, as illustrated inFIGS. 10 and 11, the flat conductor3including a plate is inserted into the second space4f2of the connector1through the slot4a. The distal end of the flat conductor3including a plate comes into contact with the lock protrusions11cand11cof the elastic lock piece11, pushes down the lock protrusions11cand11ctowards the circuit board2side, and goes over the lock protrusions11cand11c. Furthermore, the flat conductor3including a plate, while being pressed by the lock protrusions11cand11c, is inserted into the first space4f1of the connector1along the underside of the top surface portion4bin the housing portion4f.

As described above, the ground plate3ais stacked on the flat conductor3including a plate in an area other than the two ends of the flat conductor3including a plate in the width direction so as to be formed thicker than the first connection8. Furthermore, the second space4f2is formed larger than the first space4f1in the height direction Z of the connector1. Accordingly, when inserting the first connection8of the flat conductor3including a plate into the first space4f1, the thick second connection9can be made to enter the second space4f2as well.

Then, when the flat conductor3including a plate is made to further penetrate into the far side of the first space4f1while the elastic lock piece11is pushed down, the flat conductor3including a plate comes into contact with the contact portions5dof the terminals5, pushes down the contact portions5d, and goes over the contact portions5d1.

Then, the recesses10of the flat conductor3including a plate reaches the lock portions11fof the elastic lock piece11. Restoring force that returns the elastic lock piece11towards the top surface portion4bside constantly acts on the elastic lock piece11in which the lock portions11fare elastically deformed as if falling down. Accordingly, in a state in which the recesses10of the flat conductor3including a plate have reached the lock portions11fof the elastic lock piece11, the elastic lock piece11moves into the recesses10and is restored to its original state. In such a case, the edge portions10ain the lock portions11fof the elastic lock piece11become substantially parallel to the edge portions10aof the recesses10and lock the connector1(FIG. 12).

In the above state, the flat conductor3including a plate is pinched by the contact portions5d1and the top surface portion4bsuch that the flat conductor3including a plate and the terminals5are conductively connected to each other.

Furthermore, when disconnecting and removing the flat conductor3including a plate from the connector1, the lock protrusions11cand11cof the elastic lock piece11needs to be disconnected from the recesses10of the flat conductor3including a plate. In order to achieve the above, the operation portion11ais pushed down towards the circuit board2side (in the arrow A direction). As described above, by pressing the operation portion11aso that the operation portion11amoves into the recess4gof the housing4, the lock protrusions11cand11ccan be sufficiently displaced towards the circuit board2side and the flat conductor3including a plate can be disconnected from the recesses10and10. In the above state, the flat conductor3including a plate can be pulled out from the connector1(FIG. 13).

Now if supposing that the two lock protrusions11cand11ceach include an operation portion11athat interlocks with the corresponding lock protrusion11cand that all of the operation portions11acorresponding to the two lock protrusions11cand11cneed to be pressed in order to cancel the locked state of the flat conductor3including a plate locked with the lock protrusions11cand11c, then, work efficiency will be low and the workload on the operator (not shown) will be large. Conversely, in the present embodiment, the two lock protrusions11cinterlock with a single operation portion11a. Accordingly, by pressing the single operation portion11a, the two lock protrusions11ccan be displaced in the thickness direction of the flat conductor3including a plate and locking with the flat conductor3including a plate can be canceled. Accordingly, the operator can perform an operation of canceling the locked state of the flat conductor3including a plate with a single action and, accordingly, the operation of canceling the locked state of the flat conductor3including a plate with the lock protrusions11cand11ccan be performed in a further efficient manner.

Description of the Effects of the Connector1

The effects of the connector1other than those that have been described already will be described next.

Different from the connector1of the present embodiment, if the entire housing portion4fwere to have a size that is capable of housing the second connection9that is formed thicker than the first connection8, the housing portion4fwill become too large in the thickness direction of the flat conductor3including a plate and a gap will be created between the first connection8and the inner wall of the housing portion4f. With the above, there will be cases in which the connection between the first connection8and the terminals5becomes unstable; accordingly, work to close the gap by adhering tape to the noncontact side surface of the first connection8, for example, will be required. Furthermore, when using a flat conductor with only the cable body3band no ground plate3a, a gap amounting to the ground plate3awill be created not only in the first connection8but also in the corresponding portion of the second connection9; accordingly, a similar measure to fill the gap will be required.

Conversely, in the connector1according to the present embodiment, the housing portion4fincludes the first space4f1and the second space4f2. The above can prevent a large gap from being created between the inner wall of the housing portion4fand the first connection8by forming the first space4f1to have a size that allows the first connection8to be inserted but does not allow the second connection9to be inserted.

Accordingly, as is the case of the flat conductor3including a plate, even if the first connection8and the second connection9on which the ground plate3ais stacked are formed, conductive connection can be made with the connector1in a stable manner. In other words, the terminals5may be disposed in the first space4f1and the first connection8may be housed in the first space4f1, and the ground terminals7may be disposed in the second space4f2that is formed large in the thickness direction of the flat conductor and the second connection9may be disposed in the second space4f2.

Furthermore, with such a configuration, even in the case of a flat conductor (not shown) that is different from the flat conductor3including a plate and that has no ground plate3astacked thereon, the flat conductor can be connected to the connector1. In such a case, when the flat conductor is inserted into the first space4f1, the terminals5press the flat conductor against the top surface portion4bof the housing4. Furthermore, by having the lock protrusions11cbe inserted into and locked to the recesses10of the typical flat conductor, fitting is completed. With the above, even in a case of a typical flat conductor, the connector1can be conductively connected in a stable manner.

When force is applied to the flat conductor3including a plate in the disconnecting and removing direction when the flat conductor3including a plate is locked to the connector1, since the lock protrusions11cof the elastic lock piece11are abutted against the edge portions10aof the recesses10of the flat conductor3including a plate so as to prevent dislocation, the state in which the terminals5of the connector1and the flat conductor3including a plate are in contact with each other is maintained. Accordingly, the flat conductor3including a plate can be locked to the connector1without the need of providing separate members such as an actuator and a slider; accordingly, the connector1can be reduced in size in the height direction Z. Furthermore, since the flat conductor3including a plate is not fitted along members with a moving structure such as an actuator and a slider that have the possibility of becoming loose but is fitted along the inner wall surface of the housing portion4fof the housing4itself, a reliable fitting state with no unstable factors such as occurrence of looseness can be maintained. Furthermore, since locking can be performed with a single action of inserting the flat conductor3including a plate into the connector1, fitting work is facilitated.

As described above, according to the connector1of the present embodiment, a single connector1can be used for both connecting a typical flat conductor and the flat conductor3including a plate, and connection reliability with the typical flat conductor and with the flat conductor3including a plate can be increased.

Accordingly, there are various advantages for the user and the manufacturer, such as reduction in manufacturing cost and elimination of the need to select adapting connectors.

Second Embodiment (FIGS.14to26)

In the embodiment described above, the connector1that is placed flat with respect to the circuit board2and in which a so-called angle connection is performed with the flat conductor3including a plate has been described. Conversely, in a second embodiment, as illustrated inFIGS. 14 to 26, the connector is a connector12that is placed vertically with respect to the circuit board2and in which a so-called straight connection is performed with the flat conductor3including a plate. In such a case, the flat conductor3including a plate is inserted into the housing portion4fthrough the slot4ain a vertical direction (the Z direction) with respect to the circuit board2(FIGS. 23 and 24). Since the mounting area can be reduced with the connector12, as described above, that is placed vertically with respect to the circuit board2, the connector12can be mounted even in a small space where other components are densely mounted. Furthermore, even if the connector and the slot cannot be easily cited from a direction parallel to the surface of the circuit board2, it will be possible to insert the flat conductor3including a plate.

Note that in the present embodiment, a description will be given while the direction that is parallel to the circuit board2and that extends in the longitudinal direction of the connector12is referred to as a Y direction, and a direction that extends in the transverse direction of the connector12is referred to as an X direction. Furthermore, the description will be given while the height direction of the connector12is referred to as a Z direction. Furthermore, the description will be given such that, in a height direction Z of the connector12, the side on the circuit board2is a “lower side” and the side on the connector12is an “upper side”; however, the above do not restrict the fitting direction of the connector12and the manner in which the connector12is mounted on the circuit board2.

Furthermore, as illustrated inFIGS. 14 to 20, fixed portions14of the reinforcement members6according to the present embodiment are exposed to the outside through the housing4. In other words, the fixed portions14are fixed to the housing4so as to hold the two end sides of the housing4in the longitudinal direction Y of the housing4from the outside. Furthermore, ground connections15with respect to the circuit board2are provided at positions that are in contact with the circuit board2and at the lower sides of the fixed portions14in the height direction Z of the connector12and are formed so as to protrude towards the outside of the housing4. By being protruded towards the outside from the housing4in the above manner, the connector12for straight connection that is placed vertically with respect to the circuit board2and whose fixed state is apt to become unstable with respect to the circuit board2can be reliably fixed to the circuit board2.

In the case of the connector12of the present embodiment, if the operation portion11aof the elastic lock piece11is, similar to the connector1of the first embodiment, provided on the far side with respect to the insertion direction of the flat conductor3including a plate (the lower side in the height direction Z in the present embodiment), the operation portion11abecomes close to the circuit board2making the press operation difficult to be performed.

Accordingly, in the present embodiment, as illustrated inFIGS. 14 to 26, the operation portion11ais extended towards the slot4aside and a press portion13that protrudes in the lateral direction of the housing4is provided at a position in the vicinity of the upper side of the slot4ain the height direction Z of the housing4. The press portion13is provided as a tabular piece that extends in the longitudinal direction Y of the housing4and, furthermore, since the press portion13is parallel to the circuit board2, when the connector12is automatically mounted, the press portion13is used as a suction surface for picking up the connector12with a suction nozzle.

For example, when the connector12is to be mounted on the circuit board where other components are densely mounted, there are cases in which there is no space around the housing4to elastically deform the operation portion11a. In such cases, it is difficult to displace the operation portion11ain a direction that is orthogonal to the outer surface of the housing4or in a direction that moves away from the outer surface of the housing4, for example. Conversely, in the present embodiment, the press portion13is configured so as to be pushed down from above in the arrow B direction such that the operation portion11ais elastically displaced along the outer surface of the housing4. With the above, the operation portion11acan be operated even if there is not enough space around the housing4to displace the operation portion11ain a direction moving away from the housing4.

By displacing the operation portion11ain the above manner, as illustrated inFIGS. 25 and 26, the elastic lock piece11that is fixed by the fixed portions11epivots about the bent portions11dserving as fulcrums and the operation portion11aand the elastic arms11bare inclined obliquely with respect to the housing4. In accordance with the above, the lock protrusions11care displaced so as to move away from the flat conductor3including a plate and are dislocated from the recesses10; accordingly, the locked state is canceled.

Modification of Each of the Embodiments

In each of the embodiments described above, examples have been given in which the reinforcement members6and the elastic lock piece11are integrally formed with respect each other. Conversely, the reinforcement members6and the elastic lock piece11may be formed as separate members. Furthermore, the reinforcement members6may each be formed of a metal piece and the elastic lock piece11may be formed of a resin piece. In such a case, the elastic lock piece11may be formed, for example, as a formed body that is integral with the housing4, which is advantageous in that the number of parts of the elastic lock piece11can be reduced.