Patent Publication Number: US-7896688-B2

Title: Electrical connector with flexible circuit board

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     This invention relates to a connector. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     A conventional connector of this kind will be described with reference to  FIG. 9  to  FIG. 11 . In the drawings, 1 denotes a connector, and a number of contact pins  3  are fixed in parallel rows to left and right opposite side portions (upper and lower portions in  FIG. 1 ) of a mold  2  of the connector  1 , and are arranged to be exposed to the exterior from the left and right opposite sides of the mold  2 . And, a circuit board (not shown) such as a flexible board is provided at lower surfaces of contact pins  3 , and the contact pins  3  are soldered to the circuit board to be electrically connected thereto. The circuit board is connected to other electronic parts. 
     Then, a plug (not shown) is fitted to the connector, and contact pins of the plug are connected to the contact pins  3  of the connector  1 , and by doing so electronic parts connected to the plug are electrically connected to the electronic parts connected to the connector  1  via the flexible board. 
     Also, there is known an electric connector which is a connector in which a plug connector and a receptacle connector are fitted together and which is constructed such that a resilient force is imparted to contact pins of the receptacle connector so that good contact of the contact pins with contact pins of the plug connector can be maintained (For example, see Japanese Patent Publication No. 11-26102A) 
     Further, there is known a cover-equipped connector having a construction in which a cover is provided at a plug insertion port of the connector, and the intrusion of foreign matters between contact pins of a plug and contact pins of the connector is prevented by the cover so as to prevent electrical short-circuiting and breakage of the connector (For example, see Japanese Patent Publication No. 10-340753A). 
     The above-mentioned conventional connector is constructed such that the plug or the like is connected to the connector so as to electrically connect the electronic parts electrically connected to the plug to the electronic parts connected to the connector. The contact pins of the connector are fixed to the mold, and also are connected to terminals of the circuit board by soldering or the like. 
     However, the contact pins of the connector are soldered in such a manner that the contact pins are exposed to the exterior, and therefore may be damaged by an external impact, and besides the contact pins may be subjected to short-circuiting by the intrusion of foreign matters, and therefore this has been the cause of a degraded quality. 
     DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION 
     It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a connector in which damage of contact pins by an external impact as well as the intrusion of foreign matters into a contact pin-mounted portion is prevented so that the quality can be enhanced. 
     In order to achieve the above object, according to the invention, there is provided a connector, including: 
     a housing body; 
     a contact pin, accommodated in the housing body such that a first end portion of which is adapted to be subjected to soldering and projected from an outer face of the housing body; and 
     a cover body, coupled to the housing body so as to cover the first end portion of the contact pin. 
     With this construction, the first end portion of the contact pin which is adapted to be subjected to soldering is covered with the cover body, and therefore an external impact against the contact pin is prevented by the cover body, and also the intrusion of foreign matters is prevented. 
     The cover body may include a first cover supporting the first end portion of the contact pin and a second cover covering the first end portion of the contact pin. 
     With this construction, the cover body can be easily mounted on the housing body. 
     The housing body may have a groove opened at a bottom face and a first side face thereof, and the first cover may be inserted into the groove from the first side face. 
     With this construction, the first cover can be easily mounted on the housing body by inserting it into the groove from the first side face of the housing body. 
     The connector may include a flexible circuit board having a terminal adapted to be electrically connected to the first end portion of the contact pin by the soldering, and inserted between the housing body and the first cover from a second side face opposite to the first side face. 
     With this construction, the first cover is inserted into the mold from the direction opposite to the flexible circuit board connected to the connector, and therefore the flexible board will not prevent the mounting of the first cover, and the first cover can be easily attached. 
     The second cover may be a frame-shaped member adapted to surround an outer periphery of the housing body. 
     With this construction, the second cover is formed into the square frame-shape, and therefore the second cover covers the first end portion of the contact pin exposed to the exterior of the housing body, and also a plug insertion portion or a board insertion portion of the connector is exposed from a central portion of the second cover. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of one embodiment of a connector of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a plan view of the connector. 
         FIG. 3  is a side-elevational view of the connector. 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view taken along the line IV-IV of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 5  is a plan view of an upper cover of the connector. 
         FIG. 6  is a plan view of a lower cover of the connector. 
         FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VII-VII of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 8  is a bottom view of the connector. 
         FIG. 9  is a plan view of a conventional connector. 
         FIG. 10  is a side-elevational view of the conventional connector. 
         FIG. 11  is a bottom view of the conventional connector. 
     
    
    
     BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION 
     One embodiment of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 8 .  FIG. 1  shows one embodiment of a connector  10  the present invention, and is used in a car audio equipment or the like. In the connector  10 , a central portion of a mold  11  is projected, and further a groove is formed in a central portion of this projected portion to form an insertion port  12  to which other circuit board is adapted to be attached. 
     Contact pins  13  are fixed to the mold  11  in left-right opposed relation, and further a flexible board  14  is inserted into the mold  11 . Then, as shown in  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 3 , distal end portions of the contact pins  13  are fixed by soldering to terminals  15  of the flexible board  14 , respectively. 
     As shown in  FIG. 4 , the contact pins  13  are curved inwardly at a central portion of the insertion port  12 , and extend laterally upwardly, and then are curved inwardly, and are bent laterally at their lower portions, so that the distal end portions of the contact pins  13  are exposed to the exterior of the mold  11 . 
     On the one hand, the upper side of the externally-exposed portions of the contact pins  13  disposed at an edge portion around the outer periphery of the insertion port  12  and a lower surface of the connector  10  are covered with a cover  16 . The cover  16  is composed of an upper cover  17  and a lower cover  18 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 5 , the upper cover  17  is formed into a square frame-shape. Further, the upper cover  17  is formed into a cross-sectionally L-shape, and is so constructed as to cover the upper side of the contact pins  13  exposed from the mold  11 . Convex portions  19  formed respectively at opposite side portions (left and right in  FIG. 2 ) of the mold  11  can be fitted respectively in recesses  20  formed respectively in opposite side portions of the upper cover  17 , thereby fixing the upper cover  17  to the mold  11 . 
     On the one hand, with respect to the lower cover  18 , as shown in  FIG. 6  and  FIG. 7 , side edge portions of the lower cover  18  are stepped to provide sliding portions  21  in a projecting manner. A recessed portion  22  in which the lower cover  18  can be mounted is formed in the reverse surface of the mold  11 , and grooves  23  are formed in side surfaces of the recessed portion  22  so as to guide the sliding portions  21  of the lower cover  18 . Therefore, the lower cover  18  is slidably attached to the mold  11 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 8 , the grooves  23  in the mold  11  are formed to extend from a rear portion to a middle portion of the mold  11  in the forward-rearward direction, and by inserting the sliding portions  21  of the lower cover  18  respectively into the grooves  23  from the rear side of the connector  10 , the lower cover  18  is attached to the mold  11 . Then, a distal end portion of the lower cover  18  abuts against rear end portions of the grooves  23 , so that the forward movement of the lower cover  18  is limited. 
     Further, as shown in  FIG. 7  and  FIG. 8 , the flexible board  14  is inserted to be disposed at the lower surface of the mold  11  and also on the upper surface of the lower cover  18 . The flexible board  14  is inserted from the front side (the right side in  FIG. 1 ), and the contact pins  13  are soldered respectively to the terminals  15  of the flexible board  14 , and the flexible board  14  extends forwardly from the connector  10 . 
     When assembling the connector  10 , the flexible board  14  is inserted from the front side to be disposed at the lower surface of the mold  11  having the contact pins  13  mounted thereon, and the terminals  15  of the flexible board  14  are fixed by soldering to the distal end portions of the contact pins  13 , respectively. 
     Then, the lower cover  18  is pushed in from the outer side face of the recessed portion  22  of the mold  11 . At this time, the sliding portions  21  slide respectively along the grooves  23  of the recessed portion  22 , and the sliding portions  21  abut against the rear end portions of the grooves  23 , respectively, so that the forward movement of the lower cover  18  is limited, and the lower cover  18  is attached to the mold  11 . When attaching the lower cover  18 , the flexible board  14  will not prevent the attaching of the lower cover  18  since the flexible board  14  extends forwardly, and the lower cover  18  can be easily mounted on the mold  11 . 
     By attaching the upper cover  17  to the peripheral edge portion of the mold  11  from the upper side of the mold  11 , the upper cover  17  is fixed to the mold  11 . At this time, the lower end of the end edge of the upper cover  17  abuts against the peripheral edge portion of the lower cover  18  as shown in  FIG. 4 , thereby preventing the movement of the lower cover  18 , and therefore the lower cover  18  is stably fixed to the mold  11 . 
     In the thus constructed connector  10 , the connected portions between the contact pins  13  and the terminals  15  of the flexible board  14  are covered with the cover  16 , and therefore fears for damage of the connection between the contact pins  13  and the terminals  15  due to an external impact, etc., can be eliminated. Furthermore, the intrusion of foreign matters can be prevented by the cover  16 , and the electrical short-circuiting of the contact pins  13  is prevented, thereby enhancing the quality of the connector  10 . 
     And, by inserting other flexible board (not shown) of various kinds into the insertion port  12 , electronic parts connected to the flexible board are electrically connected to the electronic parts connected to the connector  10  via the flexible board. 
     Incidentally, various modifications can be made without departing from the spirits of the prevent invention, and naturally, the present invention covers such modifications.