Abstract:
A connector which makes it easy to view light from a light source. A light guide  7  guides light from LEDs  21  forward of the housing  5  in a fitting direction. The light guide  7  is configured to be mounted on the housing  5  that hold contacts  3 , in a manner covering the same.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention relates to a connector. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Conventionally, there has been proposed a connector with a display function, which is comprised of a housing, a terminal unit, a shield member, and two light guides (see Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2007-287350). 
     The housing includes a bottom plate portion and side wall portions. Connecting portions for connecting the bottom plate portion and the side wall portions are formed with light guide-accommodating portions that accommodate the respective light guides. The light guide-accommodating portions extend in a direction in which the connector with the display function is fitted to a mating connector. One end of each light guide-accommodating portion reaches the front surface of the housing, and the other end thereof reaches the bottom surface of the housing. Therefore, the front end of the light guide-accommodating portion opens in the front surface of the housing, and the rear end thereof opens in the bottom surface of the housing. 
     The terminal unit includes a unit body, a terminal supporting portion, a plurality of terminals, a plurality of connecting pins, and a plurality of conductive wires. The unit body is made of an insulating material, such as a synthetic resin, and is substantially square in shape. The terminal supporting portion is shade-shaped, and protrudes from an upper portion of the front surface of the unit body. The terminals are bent such that they are generally V-shaped. Each terminal has one end supported by the terminal supporting portion, and the other end supported by the unit body. The connecting pins are supported by the unit body, and protrude from the bottom of the unit body. The connecting pins are inserted into a through hole of a printed circuit board, for being electrically connected to the printed circuit board. The conductive wires electrically connect the terminals and associated ones of the connecting pins. The terminal unit is accommodated in the housing between the side wall portions, and is fixed to the housing. 
     The shield member is made of metal, and covers the housing and the terminal unit. The shield member has a front surface formed with light guide openings that are opposed to openings each formed in one end of the light guide-accommodating portion. 
     Each light guide is generally prism-shaped, and is accommodated in the light guide-accommodating portion. A recess for accommodating an LED, which is a light source mounted on the printed circuit board, is formed in the rear end of the light guide in the direction of the length thereof. When the connector with the display function is mounted on the printed circuit board, the LEDs are accommodated in the associated recesses of the light guides via the openings formed in the rear ends of the light guide-accommodating portions, respectively. 
     The LED emits light, e.g. when the connector with the display function is connected to the mating connector, or when a signal is flowing through the connector with the display function and the mating connector. Light emitted from the LED enters the recess of the light guide, and is emitted from the foremost end face of the light guide in the direction of the length thereof. This makes it possible to detect connection between the connector with the display function and the mating connector, or detect that a signal is flowing. 
     In the above-described connector, since light is emitted from the foremost end face of the prism-shaped light guide in the direction of the length thereof, the area from which light is emitted is small, and hence the visibility of emitted light is low. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention has been made in view of these circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a connector which makes it easy to visually recognize light emitted from a light source. 
     To attain the above object, in a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector comprising contacts, a housing that holds the contacts, and a light guide that is mounted on the housing in a manner covering the housing, for guiding light from a light source, forward of the housing in a fitting direction. 
     As described above, the light guide is disposed in a manner covering the housing, for guiding light from the light source, forward of the housing in the fitting direction, which cases the front end of the light guide in the fitting direction to shine. 
     Preferably, the light guide is removable from the housing. 
     To attain the above object, in a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector comprising contacts, a housing that holds the contacts, a frame that covers the housing, and a light-transmissive portion that is supported by a front end of the frame in a fitting direction, for causing light emitted from a light source and introduced into a hollow cylindrical space formed between an outer peripheral surface of the housing and an inner peripheral surface of the frame, to pass forward of the housing in a fitting direction. 
     As described above, the light-transmissive portion causes light emitted from the light source and introduced into the gap between the housing and the frame, to pass forward of the housing in the fitting direction, which causes the front end of the frame in the fitting direction to shine. 
     Preferably, the frame is removable from the housing. 
     To attain the above object, in a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector comprising contacts, a housing that holds the contacts, and a thin portion that is formed in the housing, for causing light from a light source to pass forward of the housing in a fitting direction. 
     As described above, the housing includes the thin portion for causing light from the light source to pass forward of the housing in the fitting direction, which causes the thin portion to shine. 
     According to the present invention, it is easy to visually recognize light from the light source. 
     The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a connector according to a first embodiment of the present invention, in a state having a light guide removed therefrom; 
         FIG. 2A  is a front view of the  FIG. 1  connector; 
         FIG. 2B  is a plan view of the  FIG. 1  connector; 
         FIG. 2C  is a side view of the  FIG. 1  connector; 
         FIG. 2D  is a cross-sectional view taken on line IID-IID of  FIG. 2A ; 
         FIG. 2E  is a perspective view of the  FIG. 1  connector; 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a connector according to a second embodiment of the present invention, in a state having a film removed therefrom; 
         FIG. 4A  is a front view of the  FIG. 3  connector, in a state having the film mounted thereon; 
         FIG. 4B  is a plan view of the  FIG. 4A  connector; 
         FIG. 4C  is a side view of the  FIG. 4A  connector; 
         FIG. 4D  is a cross-sectional view taken on line IVD-IVD of  FIG. 4A ; 
         FIG. 4E  is a perspective view of the  FIG. 4A  connector; 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a connector according to a third embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 6A  is a front view of the  FIG. 5  connector; 
         FIG. 6B  is a plan view of the  FIG. 5  connector; 
         FIG. 6C  is a side view of the  FIG. 5  connector; 
         FIG. 6D  is a cross-sectional view taken on line VID-VID of  FIG. 6A ; and 
         FIG. 6E  is a perspective view of the  FIG. 5  connector, as viewed in a direction different from the direction in which the connector is viewed in  FIG. 5 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings showing preferred embodiments thereof. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIGS. 2A to 2E , a connector  101  is comprised of a plurality of contacts  3 , a housing  5 , a light guide  7 , and a shield member  11 . The connector  101  is provided for charging a cellular phone (not shown), for example, and is mounted on a printed circuit board  20 . The printed circuit board  20  has two LEDs (light-emitting diodes)  21 , which are light sources, mounted thereon. The LEDs  21  emit light in a direction perpendicular to a mounting surface  20   a  of the printed circuit board  20 . 
     Each contact  3  includes a contact portion  3   a , a terminal portion  3   b , and a connecting portion (not shown), and is made of metal. The contact portion  3   a  is brought into contact with an associated one of mating contacts of a mating connector, not shown. The terminal portion  3   b  is soldered to an associated one of terminal pads (not shown) of the printed circuit board  20 . The connecting portion connects the contact portion  3   a  and the terminal portion  3   b.    
     The housing  5  includes a housing body  51  and a contact portion-holding portion  52 , and is made of an insulating material. The housing body  51  has a generally rectangular parallelepiped shape. The connecting portion of the contact  3  is embedded in the housing body  51 . The contact portion-holding portion  52  is connected to an upper portion of a front surface (face opposed to the mating connector) of the housing body  51 . The contact portion-holding portion  52  extends in a fitting direction D in which the housing  5  is fitted in the mating connector. The contact portion-holding portion  52  holds the respective contact portions  3   a  of the contacts  3  at equally-spaced intervals. The housing body  51  has engaging protrusions  51   a  formed on a rear end thereof in the fitting direction D. 
     The light guide  7  includes a light guide body  71  and a protruding portion  72 , and is made of a colorless and transparent acrylic resin. 
     The light guide body  71  has a generally hollow cylindrical shape, for accommodating the shield member  11  (see  FIG. 2A ). The light guide body  71  has an inner surface formed with a plurality of recesses (not shown) extending in the fitting direction D. When the light guide  7  is mounted on the housing  5  via the shield member  11  in the fitting direction D, the recesses prevent the light guide  7  and guides  112 , referred to hereinafter, of the shield member  11  from being brought into contact with each other. Cutouts (notches)  71   b  are formed in a lower portion of the light guide body  71  toward a rear end thereof in the fitting direction D. When the light guide  7  is mounted on the housing  5  via the shield member  11 , the LEDs  21  are received in the cutouts  71   b , respectively. Further, light emitted from the LEDs  21  enters the light guide  7  through the cutouts  71   b , and is emitted from a front surface of the light guide  7  in the fitting direction D. At this time, since the light emitted from the LEDs  21  is also emitted from the outer peripheral surface of the light guide  7 , substantially the whole light guide  7  shines. 
     The protruding portion  72  is connected to a lower portion of the light guide body  71  toward a front end thereof in the fitting direction D. This increases the area of the front of the light guide  7  in the fitting direction D. 
     The shield member  11  includes a shield member body  111  and the guides  112 , and is made of metal. 
     The shield member body  111  has a generally hollow cylindrical shape. The shield member body  111  is generally D-shaped in cross section. Legs  111   a  are formed on a lower portion of the shield member body  111  toward a rear end thereof in the fitting direction D. Cutouts  111   b  are formed in an upper portion of the shield member body  111  toward the rear end thereof in the fitting direction D. The cutouts  111   b  receive the engaging protrusions  51   a  of the housing  5 . Thus, the housing  5  is accurately positioned (in the fitting direction D) with respect to the shield member  11 . 
     The shield member body  111  has nails  113  and rear walls  114  on respective opposite sides of the rear end thereof in the fitting direction D. After the housing  5  is accommodated in the shield member  11 , the nails  113  are bent substantially at right angles toward the housing body  51 , whereby the housing  5  is fixed to the shield member  11 . 
     The guides  112  are formed on a front end of the shield member body  111  in the fitting direction D. The guides  112  guide the mating connector into the shield member body  111 . 
     To mount the connector  101  on the printed circuit board  20 , first, the shield member  11  in a state having the light guide  7  removed therefrom is disposed at a predetermined position on the printed circuit board  20  (between the two LEDs on the printed circuit board  20 ). 
     After that, the terminal portion  3   b  of each contact  3  is soldered to an associated one of the terminal pads (not shown) of the printed circuit board  20 , and the legs  111   a  of the shield member  11  are soldered to pads  200  of the printed circuit board  20  (see  FIG. 1 ). The soldering of the terminal portions  3   b  and the legs  111   a  is performed by a reflow soldering method. 
     Finally, the light guide  7  is caused to slide from the front side of the shield member  11  to the rear side thereof, to thereby mount the light guide  7  on the shield member  11 . When the light guide  7  is mounted on the shield member  11 , the light guide  7  is held on the shield member  11  by holding means (e.g. a click stop mechanism), not shown, provided on the light guide  7  and the shield member  11 . 
     The LEDs  21  light or flash e.g. when a battery of a cellular phone is being charged, or when the remaining capacity of the battery of the cellular phone becomes low. 
     When the LEDs  21  light or flash, light emitted from the LEDs  21  is guided by the light guide  7  forward in the fitting direction D, whereby the front end face of the light guide  7  in the fitting direction D appears as a bright ring. 
     According to the first embodiment, it is possible to easily view light emitted from the LEDs  21 . 
     Further, since the light guide  7  made of an acrylic resin is removable from the shield member  11 , it is possible to reflow solder the shield member  11  to the printed circuit board  20 , which facilitates the soldering operation. 
     Next, a connector  201  according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to  FIG. 3  and  FIGS. 4A to 4E . Component parts identical to those of the connector  101  according to the first embodiment are denoted by identical reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted. Hereafter, a description will be given of only main different parts from those of the first embodiment. 
     As shown in  FIG. 3  and  FIGS. 4A to 4E , the connector  201  is comprised of the plurality of contacts  3 , the housing  5 , a frame  8 , a film (light-transmissive portion)  9 , and the shield member  11 . 
     The frame  8  includes a first hollow cylindrical portion  81 , a second hollow cylindrical portion  82 , and a connecting portion (not shown) (see  FIG. 4D ), and is made of a white LCP (liquid crystal polymer). It should be noted that the LCP may be a light-transmissive one. The second hollow cylindrical portion  82  surrounds the outer peripheral surface of the shield member  11  such that the former is substantially intimate contact with the latter. The first hollow cylindrical portion  81  surrounds the outer peripheral surface of the second hollow cylindrical portion  82  via a hollow cylindrical space G. The first hollow cylindrical portion  81  and the second hollow cylindrical portion  82  are connected by a connecting portion (not shown). The connecting portion has a shape which blocks light emitted from the LEDs  21  as little as possible. 
     The first hollow cylindrical portion  81  includes a first hollow cylindrical portion body  811  and a protruding portion  812 . Cutouts (notches)  811   a  are formed in a lower portion of the first hollow cylindrical portion body  811  toward a rear end thereof in the fitting direction D. The cutouts  811   a  communicate with the hollow cylindrical space G. When the frame  8  is disposed at a predetermined position on the printed circuit board  20 , the LEDs  21  are received in the cutouts  811   a . The protruding portion  812  is connected to the lower portion of the first hollow cylindrical portion body  811  toward a front end thereof in the fitting direction D. This increases the area of the front surface of the frame  8  in the fitting direction D. 
     The second hollow cylindrical portion  82  has an inner periphery formed with a plurality of recesses (not shown) extending in the fitting direction D. When the frame  8  is mounted on the shield member  11  from forward in the fitting direction D, the recesses prevent the frame  8  and the guides  112  of the shield member  11  from being brought into contact with each other. 
     The film  9  is white and translucent. The LCP or polyimide is suitable for a material thereof. The film  9  is fixed to a front end of the frame  8  in the fitting direction D. 
     Since the frame  8  is made of the LCP or the like, which is a heat-resistant material, the connector  201  can be soldered to the printed circuit board  20  in a state in which the frame  8  is mounted on the shield member  11 , by the reflow soldering method. 
     When the LEDs  21  light or flash, light emitted from the LEDs  21  is guided through the hollow cylindrical space G to the front of the frame  8  in the fitting direction D, to pass through the film  9 . At this time, the film  9  appears as a bright ring. 
     According to the second embodiment, the same advantageous effects as provided by the first embodiment are obtained, and since the frame  8  is made of a heat-resistant material, it is possible to solder the connector  201  having the frame  8  mounted thereon to the printed circuit board  20  by the reflow soldering method. 
     Next, a connector  301  according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to  FIG. 5  and  FIGS. 6A to 6E . Component parts identical to those of the connector  101  according to the first embodiment are denoted by identical reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted. Hereafter, a description will be given of only main different parts from those of the first embodiment. 
     As shown in  FIG. 5  and  FIGS. 6A to 6E , the connector  301  is comprised of the plurality of contacts  3 , a housing  305 , and the shield member  11 . 
     The housing  305  includes a housing body  51 ′ and the contact portion-holding portion  52 . The housing body  51 ′ has circular thin portions  351   b  formed at a rear end thereof in the fitting direction D. The thin portions  351   b  has a thickness suitable for causing light emitted from the LEDs  21 ′ to pass therethrough. 
     The housing body  51 ′ of the housing  305  of the connector  301  according to the present embodiment has approximately the same construction as that of the housing body  51  of the housing  5  of the connectors  101  and  201  according to the first and second embodiments. The housing body  51 ′ and the housing body  51  are distinguished from each other in that the former housing body  51 ′ has the thin portions  351   b  but the latter housing body  51  has no thin portions  351   b.    
     The LEDs  21 ′ emit light in a direction parallel to the mounting surface  20   a  of the printed circuit board  20 . 
     The connector  301  is mounted on the printed circuit board  20  by the reflow soldering method. 
     When the LEDs  21 ′ light or flash, light emitted from the LEDs  21 ′ advances forward in the fitting direction D through the thin portions  351   b  of the housing  305 . When the connector  301  is viewed from the front in the fitting direction D, the thin portions  351   b  emit circular light. 
     According to the third embodiment, the same advantageous effects as provided by the first embodiment are obtained, and since the thin portions  351   b  can be formed according to the size of the housing  305 , it is possible to increase the size of light-emitting portions (thin portions  351   b ). 
     It should be noted that although in the above-described first to third embodiments, the shield member  11  is employed, it is possible to omit the shield member  11 . 
     Further, although in the above-described first embodiment, the light guide  7  is configured to be removable from the housing  5 , the light guide  7  is not necessarily required to be removable from the housing  5 . 
     Further, although in the above-described second embodiment, the frame  8  is configured to be removable from the housing  5 , the frame  8  is not necessarily required to be removable from the housing  5 . 
     Further, although in the above-described second embodiment, a frame including the first hollow cylindrical portion  81  and the second hollow cylindrical portion  82  is employed as the frame  8 , the configuration of the frame  8  is not necessarily limited to this, but any suitable frame may be used insofar as it can form an annular gap between the same and the shield member or the housing. 
     It should be noted that although the materials of the frame  8  and the film  9  are white, this is not limitative, but they may be of a color other than white, or a light color. 
     It is further understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing are the preferred embodiments of the present invention, and that various changes and modification may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.