Patent Publication Number: US-9431745-B2

Title: Connector with terminal locking function

Description:
INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE 
     The disclosure of Japanese Patent Application No. 2013-476421 filed on Aug. 28, 2013 including the specification, drawings and abstract is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a connector, particularly to improvement of a structure of a connector including a retainer configured to prevent a terminal from falling out of a housing. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2012-119194 (JP 2012-119194 A) describes a connector configured such that a terminal is inserted to a housing, and a retainer is attached to the housing from a direction intersecting with an insertion direction of the terminal so as to lock the retainer to the terminal, thereby preventing the terminal from falling out of the housing. 
     When the terminal is inserted into the housing, the retainer is attached to the housing such that the retainer is retreated to a temporary locking position in which the retainer allows the terminal to be removed from or inserted into the housing. Then, after the terminal is inserted into the housing, the retainer is moved to a proper locking position in which the retainer makes closer contact with the housing than in the temporary locking position, and the retainer is attached to the housing so as to be locked to the terminal. The retainer is locked to the terminal in the proper locking position, and hereby, the terminal is prevented from falling out of the housing. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In the connector described above, in a case where there is a plurality of terminals to be inserted into the housing, terminal housing chambers each configured to accommodate each of the terminals therein are formed. When the retainer is placed in the temporary locking position, the retainer is separated from the housing in comparison with a case where the retainer is placed in the proper locking position, so that those parts of the retainer which partition adjacent terminal housing chambers from each other are separated from the housing. This causes the adjacent terminal housing chambers to communicate with each other. In a case where assembly, attachment, wiring, or the like operation is performed in such a state where the terminal housing chambers communicate with each other, metal foreign substances invade into the terminal housing chambers, which may cause short circuit between the terminals via the metal foreign substances thus invading. 
     An object of the present invention is to provide a connector configured such that, at the time when a retainer is placed in a temporary locking position, even when metal foreign substances invade into a housing, the connector is able to surely prevent short circuit between terminals. 
     In one aspect of the present invention, a connector includes a plurality of terminals, a housing, and a retainer. The housing includes terminal housing chambers and partition portions. Each of the terminal housing chambers is configured to accommodate therein each of the plurality of terminals. Each of the partition portions is provided between adjacent terminal housing chambers and partition the adjacent terminal housing chambers from each other. The retainer is attached to the housing. The retainer is configured to prevent each of the terminals from falling out and to move between a temporary locking position and a proper locking position. The temporary locking position is a position in which the retainer allows the terminals to be inserted into or removed from the housing. The proper locking position is a position in which the retainer makes closer contact with the housing than in the temporary locking position and the retainer is locked to the terminals so as to prevent the terminals from falling off. The retainer includes communication cut portions. While the retainer is moving between the proper locking position and the temporary locking position, each of the communication cut portions is kept in contact with its corresponding partition portion and cut off communication between the adjacent terminal housing chambers. 
     In the above aspect, the connector may be configured such that one of the partition portion and the communication cut portion includes a projecting portion, and the other one of them includes a groove. Even when the retainer is placed in the temporary locking position, the projecting portion and the groove are at least partially fitted to each other. When the retainer is placed in the proper locking position, the projecting portion is fitted to the groove. 
     According to the connector of the present invention, at the time when the retainer is placed in the temporary locking position, even if metal foreign substances invade into the housing, the connector is able to surely prevent short circuit between the terminals. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Features, advantages, and technical and industrial significance of exemplary embodiments of the invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like numerals denote like elements, and wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a connector according to the present embodiment; 
         FIG. 2  is a sectional view of the connector taken along a line A-A in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a sectional view of the connector taken along a line B-B in  FIG. 2 , at the time when a retainer is placed in a proper locking position; 
         FIG. 4  is a sectional view of the connector taken along the line B-B in  FIG. 2 , at the time when the retainer is placed in a temporary locking position; 
         FIG. 5  is a sectional view of a connector according to another embodiment, at the time when a retainer is placed in a temporary locking position; and 
         FIG. 6  is a sectional view of a connector according to another embodiment, at the time when a retainer is placed in a temporary locking position. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
     An embodiment of a connector according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.  FIG. 1  is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a connector according to the present embodiment, and  FIG. 2  is a sectional view of the connector taken along a line A-A in  FIG. 1 . More specifically,  FIG. 2  is a sectional view of the connector taken along a flat surface xy, and viewed in a z-direction. 
     The connector  10  includes: a housing  12 ; a plurality of terminals  14  inserted into the housing  12 ; and a retainer  16  attached to the housing  12 . 
     In the figure, an insertion-removal direction of the terminals  14  with respect to the housing  12  is indicated by a reference sign x, an insertion-removal direction of the retainer  16  with respect to the housing  12  is indicated by a reference sign y, and a direction perpendicular to the x-direction and the y-direction is indicated by a reference sign z. The present embodiment deals with a case where the y-direction is perpendicular to the x-direction. However, the present invention is not limited to the configuration, and the y-direction may be a direction that merely intersects with the x-direction. 
     The housing  12  is made of a material having insulating properties, e.g., synthetic resin, and terminal housing chambers  18  in which to accommodate respective terminals  14  are formed in the housing  12 . The terminal housing chambers  18  are separated from each other by partition walls  20 , and are arranged in line in the z-direction. The terminal housing chambers  18  are formed so as to penetrate through the housing  12  in the x-direction. 
     Further, the housing  12  has a retainer opening  22  in which the retainer  16  is mounted. The retainer opening  22  is opened toward an upper side (upward in  FIG. 2 ) of the housing  12  and toward both sides (outer sides in the z-direction) of the housing  12 . The retainer opening  22  is formed so as to penetrate through the terminal housing chambers  18  from a top surface  12   a  of the housing  12 , and the retainer  16  is attachable and detachable thereto from the upper side of the housing  12 . In a region of the retainer opening  22 , the partition walls  20  of the housing  12  are cut out due to the retainer opening  22 , so that all the terminal housing chambers  18  communicate with each other. 
     The terminal  14  is made of an electrically-conductive material, e.g., copper, and is formed in an elongated shape in the x-direction, e.g., a square tubular shape. A tab (not shown) of a counterpart terminal is inserted into a tip (a left end in  FIG. 2 ) of the terminal  14  so that the tab is electrically connected to the terminal  14 . On the other hand, a lead wire is connected to a base end (a right end of  FIG. 2 ) of the terminal  14  by contact bonding. 
     The retainer  16  is made of a material having insulating properties, e.g., synthetic resin, and is formed in a generally rectangular solid having a long side in the z-direction. The retainer  16  is inserted into the retainer opening  22  from the upper side of the housing  12 , so as to be attached to the housing  12 . The retainer  16  attached to the housing  12  is kept in either of a proper locking position and a temporary locking position, and is movable in the y-direction between the proper locking position and the temporary locking position. 
     In the proper locking position, part of the retainer  16  is locked to a hollow portion  14   a  of the terminal  14 , so as to regulate a movement of the terminal  14  in the x-direction, as illustrated in  FIG. 2 . This makes it possible to prevent the terminal  14  from falling out of the housing  12 . Hereinafter, that part of the retainer  16  which is locked to the hollow portion  14   a  is referred to as a locking portion  24 . Further, in the proper locking position, the retainer  16  is attached to the housing  12  so that a top surface  16   a  of the retainer  16  is placed on the same flat surface as a top surface  12   a  of the housing  12 , as illustrated in  FIGS. 1, 2 . 
     In the meantime, in the temporary locking position, the retainer  16  is placed on an upper side relative to the proper locking position, so that the locking portion  24  is removed from the hollow portion  14   a  and the terminal  14  is movable in the x-direction. That is, the terminal  14  is insertable into or removable from the housing  12 . 
     In the connector  10  of the present embodiment, the housing  12  includes partition portions  26  (illustrated in  FIGS. 3, 4 ) that partition the terminal housing chambers  18  from each other. The partition portions  26  are provided between the terminal housing chambers  18  adjacent to each other. While the retainer  16  moves between the proper locking position and the temporary locking position, the retainer  16  keeps in contact with the partition portions  26 . Further, the retainer  16  includes communication cut portions  28  (illustrated in  FIGS. 3, 4 ) each configured to cut off communication between the terminal housing chambers  18  adjacent to each other. Even when the retainer  16  is placed in the temporary locking position, the communication cut portion  28  is configured to keep in contact with the partition portion  26 . With such a configuration, it is possible to always partition the terminal housing chambers  18  from each other. As a result, even when metal foreign substances invade into the housing  12  at the time of assembly, attachment, wiring, or the like operation performed in the temporary locking position, it is possible to surely prevent short circuit due to the foreign substances between the terminals  14 . 
     Next, a detailed configuration of the connector  10  of the present embodiment in a region of the retainer opening  22  will be described with reference to  FIGS. 3, 4 .  FIG. 3  is a sectional view of the connector  10  taken along a line B-B in  FIG. 2 , at the time when the retainer  16  is placed in the proper locking position.  FIG. 4  is a sectional view of the connector  10  taken along the line B-B in  FIG. 2 , at the time when the retainer  16  is placed in the temporary locking position. 
     A locking fitting portion  32  is formed on either side surface of the housing  10  in the z-direction so that the after-mentioned side locking portion  30  of the retainer  16  is fitted therein in a slidable manner. The locking fitting portion  32  is a portion formed by partially denting a side surface of the housing  12 , and is continued into the retainer opening  22 . Although not illustrated herein, the locking fitting portion  32  is provided with a temporary locking projection and a proper locking project each projecting from a surface thereof. The proper locking projection is placed below the temporary locking projection (on a lower side in  FIG. 3 ). 
     The side locking portion  30  to be fitted to the locking fitting portion  32  of the housing  10  is formed on either side surface of the retainer  16  in the z-direction. The side locking portion  30  has a plate-like shape hanging down from a main body of the retainer  16 . A locking hollow portion (not shown) is formed on an inner side surface of the side locking portion  30 , so as to be lockable to the temporary locking projection or the proper locking projection of the locking fitting portion  32 . When the locking hollow portion is locked to the temporary locking projection, the retainer  16  is kept in the temporary locking position (a state of  FIG. 4 ), and when the locking hollow portion is locked to the proper locking projection, the retainer  16  is kept in the proper locking position (a state of  FIG. 3 ). 
     Further, the housing  10  is provided with the terminal housing chambers  18  in which to accommodate the terminals  14 , so that the terminal housing chambers  18  are formed at predetermined intervals in the z-direction. The partition portion  26  is provided between adjacent terminal housing chambers  18  so as to separate the adjacent terminal housing chambers  18  from each other. The partition portion  26  constitutes part of the partition wall  20  (illustrated in  FIG. 3 ) that is cut out due to the retainer opening  22 . Since the partition walls  20  are cut out as such, all the terminal housing chambers  18  communicate with each other. Further, the partition portions  26  are provided on outer sides of the terminal housing chambers  18  provided on respective outermost sides in the z direction, so as to separate these chambers  18  from outside. 
     The partition portion  26  of the present embodiment includes a projecting portion  34  projecting toward the retainer  16 , that is, toward an upper side of the housing  10 . The projecting portion  34  is formed so as to be fitted to the after-mentioned groove  36 . The retainer  16  of the present embodiment includes, in a position opposed to the partition portions  26  of the housing  10 , the communication cut portions  28  making contact with the partition portions  26  so as to cut off communication between the terminal housing chambers  18 . The communication cut portion  28  includes the groove  36  formed so that the projecting portion  34  of the partition portion  26  is fitted thereto. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 3 , the projecting portion  34  and the groove  36  are formed so as to be completely fitted to each other at the time when the retainer  16  is placed in the proper locking position. Further, as illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the projecting portion  34  and the groove  36  are formed so as to be partially fitted to each other even when the retainer  16  is placed in the temporary locking position. More specifically, the projecting portion  34  and the groove  36  are formed so as to have at least a length corresponding to a distance between the proper locking position and the temporary locking position in the y-direction. According to such a configuration, when the retainer  16  is placed in the proper locking position, the projecting portion  34  and the groove  36  are fitted to each other so as to keep in contact with each other; and when the retainer  16  is placed in the temporary locking position, the projecting portion  34  and the groove  36  are partially fitted to each other so as to keep in contact with each other. Further, even when the retainer  16  is moving between the proper locking position and the temporary locking position, the projecting portion  34  and the groove  36  are at least partially fitted to each other so as to keep in contact with each other. 
     According to such a configuration of the projecting portion  34  and the groove  36 , even when the retainer  16  is placed in the temporary locking position, it is possible to always partition the terminal housing chambers  18  from each other, as illustrated in  FIG. 4 . As a result, even when metal foreign substances invade into the housing  12  at the time of assembly, attachment, wiring, or the like operation performed in the temporary locking position, it is possible to surely prevent short circuit due to the foreign substances between the terminals  14 . 
     The present embodiment deals with a case where the projecting portion  34  is formed in the partition portion  26  of the housing  12  and the groove  36  is formed in the communication cut portion  28  of the retainer  16 . However, the present invention is not limited to the configuration. The present invention may be configured such that the projecting portion  34  is formed in one of the partition portion  26  and the communication cut portion  28 , and the groove  36  is formed in the other one of them. 
       FIG. 5  is a sectional view of a connector  10  according to another embodiment, at the time when a retainer  16  is placed in a temporary locking position. In this figure, a groove  36  is formed in a partition portion  26  and a projecting portion  34  is formed in a communication cut portion  28 . Similarly to  FIG. 3 , the projecting portion  34  and the groove  36  are formed so as to be completely fitted to each other at the time when the retainer  16  is placed in a proper locking position. In the meantime, as illustrated in  FIG. 5 , the projecting portion  34  and the groove  36  are formed so as to be partially fitted to each other at the time when the retainer  16  is placed in the temporary locking position. More specifically, the projecting portion  34  and the groove  36  are formed so as to have at least a length corresponding to a distance between the proper locking position and the temporary locking position in the y-direction. 
     According to such a configuration of the projecting portion  34  and the groove  36 , even when the retainer  16  is placed in the temporary locking position, it is possible to partition terminal housing chambers  18  from each other, as illustrated in  FIG. 5 . As a result, even when metal foreign substances invade into a housing  12  at the time of assembly, attachment, wiring, or the like operation performed in the temporary locking position, it is possible to surely prevent short circuit due to the foreign substances between terminals  14 . 
     Further, the above embodiment deals with a case where the projecting portion  34  and the groove  36  are formed so as to be at least partially fitted to each other to partition the terminal housing chambers  18  from each other at the time when the retainer  16  is placed in the temporary locking position. However, the present invention is not limited to the configuration. If the partition portion  26  and the communication cut portion  28  are configured to keep in contact with each other even when the retainer  16  is placed in the temporary locking position, it is not necessary to provide the projecting portion  34  and the groove  36 . The following describes a configuration of the partition portion  26  and communication cut portion  28  in such an aspect, with reference to  FIG. 6 . 
       FIG. 6  is a sectional view of a connector  10  according to another embodiment, at the time when a retainer  16  is placed in a temporary locking position. As illustrated in  FIG. 6 , a partition portion  26  and a communication cut portion  28  are configured to make contact with each other so as to keep such a contact state, even when the retainer  16  is placed in the temporary locking position. More specifically, a side surface  26   a  of the partition portion  26  is opposed to a side surface  28   a  of the communication cut portion  28 , so that the side surfaces  26   a ,  28   a  make contact with each other. The side surfaces  26   a ,  28   a  are formed so as to have at least a length corresponding to a distance between a proper locking position and the temporary locking position along the y-direction. Accordingly, although not illustrated herein, when the retainer  16  is placed in the proper locking position, the side surfaces  26   a ,  28   a  also make contact with each other, so as to keep such a contact state. Further, even if the retainer  16  is moving between the proper locking position and the temporary locking position, the side surface  26   a  of the partition portion  26  and the side surface  28   a  of the communication cut portion  28  at least partially make contact with each other, so as to keep such a contact state. 
     According to such a configuration of the partition portion  26  and the communication cut portion  28 , even when the retainer  16  is placed in the temporary locking position, it is possible to partition terminal housing chambers  18  from each other, as illustrated in  FIG. 6 . As a result, even if metal foreign substances invade into a housing  12  at the time of assembly, attachment, wiring, or the like operation performed in the temporary locking position, it is possible to surely prevent short circuit due to the foreign substances between terminals  14 . 
     The above embodiment deals with a case where part of the partition portion  26  and part of the communication cut portion  28  are formed along the y direction, so as to make contact with each other. However, the present invention is not limited to the configuration. If the terminal housing chambers  18  can be partitioned from each other between the proper locking position and the temporary locking position, those parts of the partition portion  26  and the communication cut portion  28  which make contact with each other may be formed diagonally with respect to the y-direction. For example, the projecting portion  34  may be formed as a projection having a V-shaped section, and the groove  36  may be formed as a groove having a V-shaped section so as to be fitted to the projecting portion  34 .