Waterproof connector

A connector is provided that is short in a length from a front end thereof to an electric wire-bending portion thereof. An electric wire (45) extends rearward from a cavity (13) in a housing (11), and is bent downward and led to the outside from an electric wire lead-out opening (25). At the electric wire lead-out opening (25), the periphery of the electric wire (45) is sealed with a rubber plug (50). The gap between an open edge portion (19) of a housing (11) and a cover (30) is sealed with a sealing member (55) made of a jelly-like material. Thus, it is unnecessary to provide a rear part of the cavity (13) with a portion for installing a rubber plug thereon. Therefore, it is possible to provide the connector short in the length from the front end thereof to the electric wire-bending portion thereof.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
 1. Field of the Invention
 The present invention relates to a waterproof connector.
 2. Description of the Related Art
 A prior art waterproof connector is identified generally by the numeral 1
 in FIGS. 7 and 8. The connector 1 has a terminal fixture 3 connected with
 an electric wire 2. The connector 1 also has a housing 5 with a cavity 4
 configured for accommodating the terminal fixture 3. A cover 6 is
 installed on a rear end portion of the housing 5, and is configured to
 enable a bend of the electric wire 2. An insulation barrel 3A is provided
 at a rear end portion of the terminal fixture 3 to fixedly crimp a rubber
 plug 7 into which the electric wire 2 has been inserted. The rubber plug 7
 is in close contact with an inner peripheral wall of the cavity 4 and with
 the electric wire 2 to waterproof each cavity 4.
 The cover 6 is constructed of a pair of half covers 6A and 6B that are
 butted to each other. An electric wire lead-out opening 8 is formed on an
 end surface of each of the half covers 6A and 6B. The electric wire 2 is
 taken out to the exterior through the electric wire lead-out opening when
 both half covers 6A and 6B are bought into contact with each other.
 The prior art connector 1 has a length A from the front end of the
 connector 1 to an electric wire-bending portion. This length A is required
 to be as small as possible because of a limited space. However, the
 conventional waterproof connector is constructed so that the electric wire
 2 is sealed with the rubber plug 7 that extends rearward from the rear end
 portion of the terminal fixture 3. Thus the prior art housing 5 must be
 long enough to incorporate the rubber plug 7 in the rear part of the
 cavity 4. Further, the electric wire 2 is bent at a position rearward of
 the rubber plug 7. Thus, the prior art construction prevents the length A
 from being reduced.
 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
 The present invention has been made in view of the above-described
 situation. It is an object of the present invention to provide a connector
 that has a short length from a front end to an electric wire-bending
 portion thereof.
 A connector in accordance with the invention comprises a terminal fixture
 that has opposed ends. One end of the terminal fixture is a connection
 portion that can be connected to one end of an electric wire. The opposed
 end of the terminal fixture is configured to be connected with a terminal
 of a mating connector.
 The connector also comprises a housing with opposite front and rear ends.
 The housing has a cavity that is open at front end of the housing and at
 the rear end thereof. The cavity is capable of accommodating the terminal
 fixture.
 A cover is installed on the housing and covers a draw-out portion of the
 electric wire. The cover guides the electric wire that is led out from the
 cavity through an electric wire lead-out opening, such that the electric
 wire is bent sideways. A sealing member is provided for sealing a gap
 between the cover and the housing. Furthermore, a rubber plug is installed
 on the electric wire and seals a periphery of the electric wire at the
 electric wire lead-out opening. The rubber plug may be fixed to the
 connection portion.
 According to the invention, the gap between the housing and the cover is
 sealed with the sealing member, and the periphery of the electric wire at
 the electric wire draw-out portion is sealed with the rubber plug. Thus,
 it is unnecessary to provide a rear part of the cavity with a part for
 installing the rubber plug thereon. Accordingly, it is possible to bend
 the electric wire at the rear end of the terminal fixture and thus reduce
 the length from the front end of the connector to the electric
 wire-bending portion.
 Further, according to the invention, the rubber plug is easy to place in
 position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
 An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with
 reference to FIGS. 1 through 6.
 As shown in FIG. 5, a connector 10 has a pair of female-side terminal
 fixtures 40 connected with an electric wire 45. The connector 10 further
 comprises a housing 11 that accommodates the female-side terminal fixtures
 40, and a cover 30 which can be installed on a rear portion of the housing
 11.
 The housing 11 is unitarily molded of a synthetic resinous material, and
 has opposite front and rear sides. The front side of the housing 11 is
 formed to define a hood 12 into which a male-side connector (not shown)
 can be inserted. A locking arm 16 is provided on an upper surface of the
 housing 11, and is deformable with the motion of a seesaw. The locking arm
 16 engages a part of the male-side connector, and holds the male-side
 connector in an unremovable state.
 The housing 11 is molded to define a pair of right and left cavities 13,
 each of which is capable of accommodating one of the female-side terminal
 fixtures 40. A peripheral wall of each cavity 13 projects into the hood
 12, and thus forms a projecting portion 14. Each cavity 13 is open at its
 rear and at its front. The open rear of each cavity 13 defines a terminal
 insertion opening 13A into which one of the female-side terminal fixtures
 40 can be inserted. The open front of each cavity 13 defines a tab
 insertion opening 13B for receiving a tab (not shown) of the male-side
 connector. A vertically deformable lance 15 projects from a bottom wall of
 the cavity 13. The lance 15 elastically engages the female-side terminal
 fixture 40, and prevents the female-side terminal fixture 40 from being
 removed from the cavity 13.
 A rubber ring 65 can be mounted on a peripheral surface of the projecting
 portion 14 at its rear side. The rubber ring 65 has several convexities on
 its inner and outer peripheral surfaces. The convexities contact the
 housing 11 and the male-side connector closely, thus sealing the gap
 present therebetween. A cylindrical retainer 67 is provided on the
 peripheral surface of the front side of the projecting portion 14, and has
 an engaging means that engages the projecting portion 14. The retainer 67
 restricts deflection of the lance 15, thus unremovably holding the
 female-side terminal fixture 40 in the cavity 13.
 An H-shaped rear wall 18 projects from the rear of the housing 11. A lower
 portion of the rear wall 18 is formed with a rear opening 18A that can be
 covered with the cover 30. The rear wall 18 has an open edge 19 that is
 recessed along a U-shaped edge of the rear opening 18A such that the open
 edge 19 and the U-shaped edge have a difference in level. A sealing member
 55, which will be described later, is disposed inside the open edge
 portion 19 when the cover is installed on the rear opening 18A. The space
 rearward from the terminal insertion opening 13A is divided right and left
 with a partitioning wall 17 to form a wire-bending space 26. The electric
 wire 45 that extends from the terminal insertion opening 13A can be bent
 downward in the wire-bending space 26. The housing 10 has a U-shaped
 groove part 20 formed concavely at a lower side of each wire-bending space
 26, as shown in FIG. 6. When the cover 30 is installed on the rear opening
 18A, an electric wire lead-out opening 25 is formed between a wall surface
 of the groove part 20 and the cover 30. The electric wire 45 is bent
 through the electric wire lead-out opening 25, and is guided to the
 outside of the connector 10. The electric wire 45 is fitted into a sealing
 portion 52 of a rubber plug 50, and the rubber plug 50 then can be
 installed on the groove part 20. A projecting portion 22 is formed between
 the groove part 20 and the terminal insertion opening 13A, and sets a
 vertical position of the sealing portion 52.
 A pair of locking projections 21 are formed vertically on each of left and
 right outer side surfaces of the rear wall 18 of the housing 11 for
 installing the cover on the housing 11.
 The cover 30 is unitarily molded from a synthetic resinous material into a
 flat shape that is large enough to cover the rear opening 18A. Elastic
 locking arms 35 extend forwardly from the respective left and right side
 edges of the cover 30. Each locking arm 35 is formed with a locking hole
 36 which is disposed and dimensioned to receive one of the locking
 projections 21 therein when the cover 30 is installed on the housing 11.
 The cover 30 has a pair of hook-shaped sealing member-holding portions 33
 that project from positions that confront the projecting portion 22 of the
 housing 11. Each sealing member-holding portion 33 penetrates through the
 sealing member 55, and hooks the sealing member 55. The electric wire 45
 can be sandwiched between the tip of the sealing member-holding portions
 33 and the projecting portion 22 through the rubber plug 50.
 The sealing member 55 is made of a jelly-like material and has an
 approximately square plate with a size that corresponds to the size of the
 open edge 19. The sealing member 55 has a pair of fit-in holes 56, and
 each sealing member-holding portion 33 can be fitted into one of the
 fit-in holes 56.
 The female-side terminal fixture 40 has a front end that defines a square
 pillar-shaped coupling portion 41. The coupling portion 41 can be coupled
 to the tab of the male-side connector. The lance 15 in the cavity 13 of
 the housing 11 can engage the coupling portion 41 of the female-side
 terminal fitting 40. A connection portion 43 is formed at the rear end
 portion of the female-side terminal fixture 40. The connection portion 43
 has a pair of wire barrels 43A and a pair of insulation barrels 43B. Each
 wire barrel 43A and each insulation barrel 43B consists of a crimping
 piece. A core wire of the electric wire 45 can be connected with the wire
 barrel 43A by crimping. Similarly, the electric wire 45 and the rubber
 plug 50 to be installed on the periphery thereof are fixed to the
 insulation barrel 43B by crimping.
 When the female-side terminal fixture 40 is accommodated inside the cavity
 13, the rear edge of the connection portion 43 is coincident with the
 terminal insertion opening 13A. Thus, the electric wire 45 connected with
 the connection portion 43 is drawn to the outside from the cavity 13, and
 is bent immediately in the wire-bending space 26 located at a rearward
 position of the housing 11.
 The rubber plug 50 is unitarily molded into a cylindrical shape from a
 rubber material that has a proper degree of elasticity. A through-hole 51
 is formed along the axis of the rubber plug 50 for receiving the electric
 wire. A sealing portion 52 for sealing the periphery of the electric wire
 lead-out opening 25 is provided at one end of the peripheral surface of
 the through-hole 51. The outer diameter of the sealing portion 52 is a
 little larger than the inner diameter of a sectionally circular arc-shaped
 portion of the groove 20. Thus the sealing portion 52 can be brought into
 close contact with the circular arc-shaped portion of the groove 20 (see
 FIG. 6). A portion of the rubber plug 50 forwardly of the sealing portion
 52 has a sufficiently small-diameter to be bent with the electric wire 45
 inserted through the through-hole 51. The rubber plug 50 has an edge 54
 which projects outside to a small extent. The rubber plug 50 can be fixed
 to the female-side terminal fixture 40 at an appropriate position by
 crimping a portion of the rubber plug 50 immediately inwardly (rearward)
 from the edge 54 with the insulation barrel 43B.
 The connector 10 of this embodiment is assembled by initially inserting an
 end of the bare electric wire 45 into the through-hole 51 from an opening
 of the rubber plug 50 at the side of the sealing portion 52. The end of
 the electric wire 45 then is taken out from an opposite-side opening of
 the rubber plug 50. Then, the core wire of the electric wire 45 is
 connected with the female-side terminal fixture 40 by crimping the
 electric wire 45 with the wire barrel 43A of the female-side terminal
 fixture 40. The electric wire 45 inside the rubber plug 50 and the portion
 of the rubber plug 50 immediately inward from the edge 54 then are fixed
 to the female-side terminal fixture 40 with the insulation barrel 43B. The
 rubber plug 50 is fixed to the connection portion 43 of the female-side
 terminal fixture 40 in this manner. Thus, the rubber plug 50 can be easily
 fixed to the female-side terminal fixture 40 at a predetermined position.
 After the electric wire 45 and the rubber plug 50 are fixed to the
 female-side terminal fixture 40 in this manner, the female-side terminal
 fixture 40 is inserted into the cavity 13 from the terminal insertion
 opening 13A. Sufficient insertion of the female-side terminal fixture 40
 into the cavity 13 enables the lance 15 to engage the female-side terminal
 fixture 40. Thus, the female-side terminal fixture 40 is prevented from
 being removed from the cavity 13. The rubber ring 65 is mounted on the
 periphery of the projecting portion 14, and the projecting portion 14 is
 engaged by the retainer 67 to hold the female-side terminal fixture 40 in
 an unremovable state. Assembly continues by fitting the sealing
 member-holding portion 33 of the cover 30 into the fit-in hole 56 to hold
 the sealing member 55 therein.
 The electric wire 45 that extends from the terminal insertion opening 13A
 and portions of the rubber plug 50 mounted on the electric wire 45 are
 bent downward in the wire-bending space 26. The sealing portion 52 then is
 inserted into the groove 20. Then, the cover 30 is pressed against the
 rear portion of the housing 11 such that the cover 30 covers the rear
 opening 18A. As a result, the sealing member 55 is sandwiched between the
 open edge 19 and the cover 30, thus closing the gap therebetween. Further,
 the rear end of the sealing portion 52 is pressed against the sealing
 member 55. Consequently, the sealing member 55 penetrates into the gap
 between the sealing portion 52 and the wall surface of the groove part 20,
 thus sealing the periphery of the electric wire lead-out opening 25
 completely. When the cover 30 is pressed to the predetermined position,
 the locking projection portion 21 is fitted into the locking hole 36. In
 this manner, the assembling of the connector 10 is completed.
 As described above, according to the embodiment, the gap between the open
 edge portion 19 of the housing 11 and the cover 30 is sealed with the
 sealing member 55, and the periphery of the electric wire 45 at the
 electric wire lead-out opening 25 is sealed with the rubber plug 50. Thus,
 it is unnecessary to provide the rear part of the cavity 13 with a portion
 for installing the rubber plug thereon. Therefore, the electric wire 45
 can be bent at the rear end of the female-side terminal fixture 40, and
 hence the length from the front end of the connector 10 to the electric
 wire-bending portion can be reduced.
 Further, because the rubber plug 50 is fixed to the connection portion 43
 of the female-side terminal fixture 40, the rubber plug 50 can be easily
 fixed in position. For example, supposing that the rubber plug is not
 fixed to the female-side terminal fixture 40, the installing position of
 the rubber plug on the electric wire 45 can be dislocated from its
 specified position. If the connector 10 is assembled in this state, the
 length of the bent portion of the electric wire 45 is not fixed. As a
 result, the electric wire 45 is stretched or bent excessively, which can
 cause the electric wire 45 to be broken or damaged. To avoid such a
 disadvantage, it is necessary to perform a complicated work of inserting
 the female-side terminal fixture 40 into the cavity 13 and installing the
 electric wire 45 on the groove 20 after the rubber plug is moved to an
 appropriate position by checking a bent state of the electric wire 45. But
 according to the above-described embodiment, because the rubber plug 50 is
 placed in an appropriate position, it is possible to accomplish the
 assembling work smoothly.
 The present invention is not limited to the described embodiment. For
 example, embodiments described below are included in the technical scope
 of the present invention.
 Although the sealing member 55 is made of a jelly-like material, it may be
 made of a rubber material.
 Although the connector 10 of the embodiment is a female-side connector for
 accommodating the female-side terminal fixture 40, it may be applicable to
 a male-side connector for accommodating a male-side terminal fixture.
 Although in the embodiment, the number of the female-side terminal fixtures
 40 that is accommodated in the housing 11 and that of the electric wires
 45 that are connected therewith are two, respectively, the number of each
 thereof is not limited to two.
 Although in the embodiment, the electric wire lead-out opening 25 is formed
 between the groove part 20 of the housing 11 and the cover 30, the
 electric wire lead-out opening 25 may be formed in penetration through the
 cover 30.
 Although in the embodiment, the groove part 20 of the housing 11 and the
 cover 30 are separate from each other, both may be formed integrally with
 each other through a hinge or the like.