Patent Publication Number: US-10770819-B2

Title: Connector

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority to Japanese Application No. 2017-249059, filed Dec. 26, 2017, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates to a connector. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     A conventional board connector is mounted on a board such as a printed circuit board and is used for connecting to a cable or the like. Such a board connector includes a plurality of L shaped terminals that protrude toward a back side of a connector main body and a guide plate that guides the terminals (see, for example, Patent Document 1). 
       FIG. 15  is a perspective view illustrating a conventional board connector as viewed from the back side. 
     In the figure,  811  denotes a housing made of an insulating material such as synthetic resin. A plurality of terminals  851 , made of a conductive material such as metal, are attached to the housing  811 . The terminals  851  are each an L shaped terminal that protrudes toward the back side from a back wall of the housing  811 , and are each bent at approximately 90 degrees as a whole, to have a leg part  852  extending downward. The leg part  852  has a distal end, that is, a lower end connected by soldering and the like while being inserted into a through hole formed in an unillustrated circuit board. 
     The leg part  852  of each of the terminals  851  is long and thus is likely to deform upon being affected by external force such as vibrations. Thus, a guide plate  841  is attached to the housing  811 , and the leg part  852  of each of the terminals  851  is inserted into a guide hole  842  formed in the guide plate  841 , so that the displacement of the leg part  852  can be prevented. 
     This configuration ensures the prevention of the displacement of the leg part  852  of each of the terminals  851  and thus ensures a stable position of the lower end of the leg part  852 . Thus, the lower ends of the plurality of leg parts  852  can be inserted into the through holes formed in the circuit board at once, whereby the board connector can be mounted to the circuit board easily.
     Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-042935   

     SUMMARY 
     The conventional connector has the guide plate  841  manufactured separately from the housing  811  and attached to the housing  811 . This leads to an increase in the number of parts as well as the number of assembly steps for the connector, resulting in a higher manufacturing cost. 
     An object herein is to solve the problem of the conventional connector. Specifically, a low-cost and high-reliability connector in which a guide member integrally formed with a housing guides a leg part of a terminal so that the position of the leg part of the terminal can be stabilized with a simple configuration. 
     To achieve this, a connector includes a housing; terminals that include leg parts to be connected to a board, and are integrally formed with the housing; and guide members that are integrally formed with the housing and guide the leg parts. The leg parts each include: a horizontal part that protrudes toward a back side from the housing; a vertical part having a part around a distal end to be connected to the board; and a curved part through which the horizontal part and the vertical part are connected with each other. A gap is provided between a back surface of the guide member and a front surface of the vertical part. 
     In another connector, an inclined part along which the gap increases toward a lower side is formed on the back surface. 
     In yet another connector, the guide members include guide walls that protrude toward the back side from the back surface, and the vertical part is accommodated in a guide groove between adjacent ones of the guide walls. 
     In still another connector, the vertical part is not in contact with at least one of the guide walls on both sides of the guide groove. 
     In still another connector, the guide members each include a guide plate that overlaps with at least a part of the back surface of the vertical part, and prevents displacement of the vertical part toward the back side. 
     In still another connector, the guide plate is integrally connected to one of the guide walls on both sides of the guide groove. 
     In still another connector, the guide members are integrally connected to both of the guide walls on both sides of the guide groove. 
     A connector assembly includes the connector according to the present disclosure, and a mating connector including a mating terminal to be connected to the terminals. 
     A method for manufacturing a connector including: a housing; terminals that include leg parts to be connected to a board, and are integrally formed with the housing; and guide members that are integrally formed with the housing and guide the leg parts. 
     The method includes the steps of: performing bending on the leg parts to form curved parts connected to back ends of horizontal parts protruding toward a back side from the housing so that vertical parts connected to the back ends of the curved parts extend toward a lower side; accommodating each of the vertical parts in a guide groove between adjacent guide walls protruding toward the back side from back surfaces of the guide members; and performing shaping on one of the guide walls on both sides of the guide groove and forming a guide plate that is integrally connected to the guide walls and overlaps with at least a part of a back surface of the vertical part. 
     According to the present disclosure, a connector has a guide member, which is integrally formed with a housing, to guide a leg part of a terminal. Thus, a simple configuration can guarantee stabilization of the position of the leg portion, as well as cost reduction and higher reliability. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a first perspective view of a connector according to a first embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is a second perspective view of a connector according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view illustrating a state before the connector according to the first embodiment and a mating connector are mated. 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view illustrating a state before bending is performed on a leg part of a lower side terminal according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 5  is a top view illustrating the state before the bending is performed on the leg part of the lower side terminal according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view illustrating a state after the bending is performed on the leg part of the lower side terminal according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view illustrating a state after shaping is performed on a guide member of the lower side housing according to the first embodiment. 
         FIGS. 8A and 8B  are first two views illustrating the state after the shaping is performed on the guide member of the lower side housing according to the first embodiment, and  FIG. 8A  is a top view and  FIG. 8B  is a cross-sectional view in a direction of arrow A-A in  FIG. 8A . 
         FIGS. 9A and 9B  are second two views illustrating the state after the shaping is performed on the guide member of the lower side housing according to the first embodiment, and  FIG. 9A  is a back view and  FIG. 9B  is a cross-sectional view in a direction of arrow B-B in  FIG. 9A . 
         FIG. 10  is a perspective view illustrating a modification of the state after the shaping is performed on the guide member of the lower side housing according to the first embodiment. 
         FIGS. 11A and 11B  are first two views illustrating the state after the shaping is performed on the guide member of the lower side housing according to the first embodiment, and  FIG. 11A  is a top view and  FIG. 11B  is a cross-sectional view in a direction of arrow C-C in  FIG. 11A . 
         FIGS. 12A and 12B  are second two views illustrating the state after the shaping is performed on the guide member of the lower side housing according to the first embodiment, and  FIG. 12A  is a back view and  FIG. 12B  is a cross-sectional view in a direction of arrow D-D in  FIG. 12A . 
         FIGS. 13A and 13B  are perspective views of a connector according to a second embodiment, and  FIG. 13A  is a perspective view as viewed from the front side and  FIG. 13B  is a perspective view as viewed from the back side. 
         FIGS. 14A and 14B  illustrates two views of the connector according to the second embodiment, and  FIG. 14A  is a top view and  FIG. 14B  is a cross-sectional view in a direction of arrow E-E in  FIG. 14A . 
         FIG. 15  is a perspective view illustrating a conventional board connector as viewed from the back side. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Embodiments will be described in detail below with reference to drawings. 
       FIG. 1  is a first perspective view of a connector according to a first embodiment.  FIG. 2  is a second perspective view of a connector according to the first embodiment.  FIG. 3  is a perspective view illustrating a state before the connector according to the first embodiment and a mating connector are mated. 
     In the figures,  1  denotes a connector according to the present embodiment that is one of a pair of connectors serving as a connector assembly. Preferably, the connector  1  is a board connector, and is mounted to an electric or electronic device such as a personal computer, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a video camera, a music player, or a game device via an unillustrated board. These devices are examples, and the connector  1  may be mounted to any type of devices. 
     Furthermore,  101  denotes a mating connector that is the other one of the pair of connectors serving as a connector assembly and that mates with the connector  1 . In the illustrated example, the mating connector  101  is a cable connector connected to a distal end of a cable  191 , but is not necessarily limited to the cable connector, and may be any type of connector including a board connector mounted to a board, or may be a card edge connector mounted to an end part of a card, for example. 
     Note that expressions for indicating directions such as up, down, left, right, front, and back, used to describe the operations and configurations of the parts of the connector  1  and the mating connector  101  in the present embodiment are not absolute but rather relative directions, and though appropriate when the parts of the connector  1  and the mating connector  101  are in the positions illustrated in the figures, these directions should be interpreted differently when these positions change, in order to correspond to the change. 
     The connector  1  includes an upper side terminal  51 A that is a terminal arranged on the upper side and a lower side terminal  51 B that is a terminal arranged on the lower side of the upper side terminal  51 A. Further, the connector  1  includes an upper side housing  11 A that is a housing serving as a connector main body that holds the upper side terminal  51 A, and a lower side housing  11 B that is a housing serving as a connector main body that holds the lower side terminal  51 B. The the upper side housing  11 A is integrally molded with the upper side terminal  51 A by over-molding (insert molding), and the lower side housing  11 B is integrally molded with the lower side terminal  51 B by over-molding. In the description below, the upper side terminal  51 A and the lower side terminal  51 B may be collectively referred to as a terminal  51 , and the upper side housing  11 A and the lower side housing  11 B may be collectively referred to as a housing  11 . 
     The upper side terminal  51 A is a member integrally formed by performing a process such as punching or bending on a conductive metal plate, and includes tail parts  52 A that are board connection parts exposed on the lower side of the upper side housing  11 A, and surface-mounted on a connection pad formed on a surface of the unillustrated board by soldering. The tail parts  52 A are formed to be bent by approximately 90 degrees at a part close to a lower surface of the upper side housing  11 A, to protrude toward the back side (negative X axis direction), and have lower surfaces connected to the connection pad by soldering while being in contact with or being in the vicinity of the connection pad. The upper side housing  11 A includes an upper side tongue part  13 A extending in a front and back direction (X axis direction) and a width direction (Y axis direction) of the connector  1 , and a part of the upper side terminal  51 A to be in contact with the mating terminal  151  of the mating connector  101  is embedded in the upper side tongue part  13 A while having the upper surface exposed on the upper surface of the upper side tongue part  13 A. 
     The lower side terminal  51 B is a member integrally formed by performing a process such as punching or bending on a conductive metal plate, and includes leg parts  52 B that protrude downward (negative Z axis direction) from the lower side housing  11 B to be exposed, and serve as board connection parts mounted by soldering while having their distal ends (lower ends) inserted into through holes formed on a surface of the unillustrated board. The leg parts  52 B are each bent by approximately 90 degrees at a part close to the back end of the lower side housing  11 B to protrude downward, and is soldered so that the connection is established while having a lower end inserted in the through hole. The lower side housing  11 B includes a lower side tongue part  13 B that extends in the front and back direction and the width direction of the connector  1 . A part of the lower side terminal  51 B to be in contact with the mating terminal  151  of the mating connector  101  is embedded in the lower side tongue part  13 B while having a lower surface exposed on a lower surface of the lower side tongue part  13 B. 
     The upper side housing  11 A and the lower side housing  11 B are accommodated in a shell  61  made of a metal plate while being in a combined state. When the upper side housing  11 A and the lower side housing  11 B are combined, the upper side tongue part  13 A and the lower side tongue part  13 B are combined with a tongue part coupling part  13 C, whereby a tongue part  13  having a thick plate shape is formed. On the upper surface of the tongue part  13 , the part to be in contact with the mating terminal  151  of the upper side terminal  51 A, arranged on the upper surface, is exposed. On the lower surface, the part to be in contact with the mating terminal  151  of the lower side terminal  51 B, arranged on the lower side, is exposed. The tail parts  52 A of the upper side terminal  51 A are arranged on the back side of the leg parts  52 B of the lower side terminals  51 B, to be aligned along the width direction of the connector  1 . 
     In the illustrated example, the shell  61  includes a top plate part  63 , a bottom plate part  64 , a pair of side plate parts  65 , and a back plate part  66 , to surround all the surfaces of the housing  11  except for the surface on a side to be mated with the mating connector  101 , that is, the front surface, is connected to the ground line of the unillustrated board via an attachment leg part  67  protruding toward the lower side from the side plate part  65 , and shields the connector  1 . The top plate part  63 , the bottom plate part  64 , the pair of side plate parts  65 , and the back plate part  66  define a circumference of an inner cavity  62  open at a front end  61   f  of the shell  61  to function as an insertion recess into which a protruding part  112  of the mating connector  101  is inserted. 
     The mating connector  101  includes a mating housing  111  having a rectangular parallelepiped shape, the protruding part  112  protruding toward the front side (negative X axis direction) from the mating housing  111 , and a mating shell  161  that surrounds a circumference of the protruding part  112 . The protruding part  112  includes a terminal accommodating recess  113  that is open at a front end  112   f  of the protruding part  112 . Mating terminals  151  are arranged along the width direction (Y axis direction) of the mating connector  101 , on upper and lower inner surfaces of the terminal accommodating recess  113 . The mating housing  111  has a back end connected with the cable  191  including a plurality of unillustrated power lines. 
     The connector  1  and the mating connector  101  are mated with each other in the following manner. Specifically, the orientations of the connector  1  and the mating connector  101  are controlled so that the front end  61   f  of the shell  61  and the front end  112   f  of the protruding part  112  face each other as illustrated in  FIG. 3 . Then, the mating connector  101  is relatively moved toward the connector  1  so that the protruding part  112  is inserted into the inner cavity  62 . In this process, the tongue part  13  provided in the inner cavity  62  is inserted into the terminal accommodating recess  113 , and the terminals  51  exposed on the upper and the lower surfaces of the tongue part  13  each come into contact with a corresponding one of the mating terminals  151  exposed on the inner surface of the terminal accommodating recess  113 , whereby electric conduction is established. In this manner, the connector  1  and the mating connector  101  are mated with each other and connected with each other. 
     Next, a configuration of the lower side housing  11 B and the lower side terminal  51 B of the connector  1  is described. 
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view illustrating a state before bending is performed on a leg part of a lower side terminal according to the first embodiment.  FIG. 5  is a top view illustrating the state before the bending is performed on the leg part of the lower side terminal according to the first embodiment.  FIG. 6  is a perspective view illustrating a state after the bending is performed on the leg part of the lower side terminal according to the first embodiment.  FIG. 7  is a perspective view illustrating a state after shaping is performed on a guide member of the lower side housing according to the first embodiment.  FIGS. 8A and 8B  illustrate first two views illustrating the state after the shaping is performed on the guide member of the lower side housing according to the first embodiment.  FIGS. 9A and 9B  illustrate second two views illustrating the state after the shaping is performed on the guide member of the lower side housing according to the first embodiment. Note,  FIG. 8A  is a top view and  FIG. 8B  is a cross-sectional view in a direction of arrow A-A in  FIG. 8A , and  FIG. 9A  is a back view and  FIG. 9B  is a cross-sectional view in a direction of arrow B-B in  FIG. 9A . 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 8B , the lower side terminal  51 B includes a main body part  53 B, a contact part  54 B connected to the front end of the main body part  53 B, and a leg part  52 B connected to a back end of the main body part  53 B. When the lower side housing  11 B is integrally formed with the lower side terminal  51 B by over-molding, the main body part  53 B is embedded in and held by a terminal holding part  12 B of the lower side housing  11 B. The contact part  54 B is embedded in the lower side tongue part  13 B while having at least the lower surface (surface on the negative Z axis direction side) exposed on the lower surface of the lower side tongue part  13 B of the lower housing  11 B. A part around the front end of the contact part  54 B may protrude toward the front side (positive X axis direction side) beyond the front end of the lower side tongue part  13 B. 
     In a state immediately after the lower side housing  11 B has been integrally molded with the lower side terminal  51 B, the leg part  52 B linearly protrudes toward the back side from the back end  12   r  of the terminal holding part  12 B, as illustrated in  FIGS. 4 and 5 . The leg part  52 B includes a horizontal part  52   a  that is colinearly poisoned with respect to the main body part  53 B, a curved part  52   b  curved by approximately 90 degrees by the bending, and a vertical part  52   c  that extends in an upper and lower direction (Z axis direction) as a result of forming the curved part  52   b . In the present embodiment, “curved” essentially indicates that the leg part  52 B is partially bent so that the horizontal part  52   a  and the vertical part  52   c  are provided, and includes bending to achieve an arch shaped side surface and bending to achieve an angular shaped side surface. The vertical part  52   c  includes a constricted part  52   d  formed to be thin, and a downward protruding part  52   e  that is a part around a distal end of the vertical part  52   c  and is connected to the unillustrated board. 
     The back end  12   r  of the terminal holding part  12 B has recesses and protrusions in a plan view, and the horizontal part  52   a  of the leg part  52 B protrudes toward the back side from each of parts recessed toward the front side and parts protruding toward the back side. The leg part  52 B protruding from the part of the back end  12   r  recessed toward the front side is referred to as a front side leg part  52 B 1 . The leg part  52 B protruding from the part of the back end  12   r  protruding toward the back side is referred to as a back side leg part  52 B 2 . The front side leg part  52 B 1  and the back side leg part  52 B 2  may be collectively referred to as a leg part  52 B. 
     The front side leg part  52 B 1  and the back side leg part  52 B 2  are equal to each other in the entire length, and are equal to each other in the lengths of the horizontal part  52   a , the curved part  52   b , and the vertical part  52   c  thereof, as well as in the lengths of the constricted part  52   d  and the downward protruding part  52   e  of the vertical part  52   c . Thus, as illustrated in  FIG. 6 , when the curved part  52   b  is formed, the vertical parts  52   c , more on the lower side than the curved parts  52   b  in the front side leg parts  52 B 1 , are aligned on a relatively front side in the width direction of the connector  1 . The vertical parts  52   c , more on the lower side than the curved parts  52   b  in the back side leg parts  52 B 2 , are aligned in the width direction of the connector  1  while being more on the back side than the vertical parts  52   c  in the front side leg part  52 B 1 . Thus, a total of two rows are formed. The vertical parts  52   c  of the leg parts  52 B are not necessarily limited to the configuration of forming the two rows, and may be configured to form a single row or a three or more rows. 
     The terminal holding part  12 B includes guide members  21  that protrude toward the back side from the back end  12   r . The guide member  21  protruding from the part of the back end  12   r  recessed toward the front side is referred to as a front side guide member  21 - 1 . The guide member  21  protruding from the part of the back end  12   r  protruding toward the back side is referred to as a back side guide member  21 - 2 . The front side guide member  21 - 1  and the back side guide member  21 - 2  may be collectively referred to as the guide member  21 . The guide member  21  is integrally formed with the lower side housing  11 B, and has a lower surface, which is at a lowermost position of the lower side housing  11 B, in contact with or arranged in the vicinity of the surface of the unillustrated board, in a state where the connector  1  is mounted on the surface. 
     The guide member  21  includes guide walls  24  having a thick plate shape protruding toward the back side from the back surface  21   r  extending in an upper and lower direction, and a guide groove  23  that is formed between adjacent guide walls  24  and is recessed toward the front side beyond the back end of the guide wall  24 . In the illustrated example, the lower side terminals  51 B are arranged so that two of them form a single set of terminals. The guide walls  24  includes walls (referred to as outer side guide walls  24   a ) positioned on both left and right sides of a set of two leg parts  52 B and a wall (referred to as an inner side guide wall  24   b ) positioned between each set of two leg parts  52 B. The inner side guide wall  24   b  has an amount of protrusion toward the back side larger than that of the outer side guide wall  24   a . The outer side guide wall  24   a  and the inner side guide wall  24   b  may be collectively referred to as the guide wall  24 . 
     Bending is performed on the leg part  52 B linearly protruding toward the back side from the back end  12   r  of the terminal holding part  12 B, so that the curved part  52   b  is formed by approximately 90 degrees to make the vertical part  52   c  extend vertically downward. As a result, as illustrated in  FIG. 6 , the vertical part  52   c  extends downward along the back surface  21   r  of the guide member  21 , and the constricted part  52   d  is provided at the position corresponding to the guide groove  23  formed between the guide walls  24 . When the constricted part  52   d  is accommodated in the guide groove  23 , the downward protruding part  52   e  protrudes toward the lower side beyond the lower surface of the guide member  21 . With the constricted part  52   d  thus accommodated in the guide groove  23 , the guide walls  24  on the both left and right sides prevent the displacement of the constricted part  52   d  in the width direction of the connector  1 . As a result, the displacement of the vertical part  52   c  in the width direction of the connector  1  is prevented. The constricted part  52   d  may have both left and right side surfaces being in contact with side surfaces of both left and right guide walls  24 , or being in the vicinity of the side surfaces with slight gaps in between, instead of being in contact with the side surfaces. 
     Next, shaping is performed on the guide member  21 . Specifically, the back end part of the inner side guide wall  24   b , protruding toward the back side beyond the back surface of the vertical part  52   c  with the constricted part  52   d  accommodated in the guide groove  23 , is plastically deformed by applying heat or pressure. As a result, the back side guide wall  26  serving as the guide plate is formed as illustrated in  FIGS. 7 to 9B . The back side guide wall  26  is formed by extending the back end part of the inner side guide wall  24   b  toward both sides in the width direction of the connector  1 , to protrude toward the left and right adjacent outer side guide walls  24   a  from both left and right side surfaces of the inner side guide wall  24   b , and thus forms a substantially anchor or mushroom shape in a plan view. The parts of the back side guide wall  26  that protrude from both left and right side surfaces of the inner side guide wall  24   b  overlap with at least a part of the back surface of the constricted part  52   d  in the width direction of the connector  1 . Thus, displacement of the constricted part  52   d  toward the back side is prevented, whereby displacement of the vertical part  52   c  toward the back side is prevented. Specifically, the parts of the back side guide wall  26  protruding from both left and right surfaces of the inner side guide wall  24   b  are in contact with at least a part of the back surface of the constricted part  52   d . Gaps are provided between both left and right ends of the back side guide wall  26  and the left and right adjacent outer side guide walls  24   a . Thus, both left and right ends of the back side guide wall  26  are not in contact with the left and right adjacent outer side guide walls  24   a.    
     As illustrated in  FIGS. 8B and 9B , a gap  23   a  is provided on the front side of the constricted part  52   d , in the guide groove  23 . Specifically, the gap  23   a  is provided between the back surface  21   r  of the guide member  21  and the front surface  52   f  of the vertical part  52   c  of the leg part  52 B, and thus the front surface  52   f  of the vertical part  52   c  is separated from the back surface  21   r  of the guide member  21 . An inclined part  21   c , inclined toward the front side, is formed in a lower end part of the back surface  21   r  of the guide member  21 , and thus the distance from the front surface  52   f  of the vertical part  52   c  increases toward the lower side. 
     As described above, the gap  23   a  is provided between the back surface  21   r  of the guide member  21  and the front surface  52   f  of the vertical part  52   c  of the leg part  52 B, and the inclined part  21   c  is formed in the lower end part of the back surface  21   r . Thus, the vertical part  52   c , more on the lower side than the lower end of the curved part  52   b  of the leg part  52 B can be displaced toward the front side when forming the curved part  52   b  curved by approximately 90 degrees by performing bending on the leg part  52 B, considering spring back of the leg part  52 B made of metal. Thus, the bending can be accurately performed to form the curved part  52   b  curved at an angle of approximately 90 degrees, even when the spring back occurs. 
     Next, a modification of the guide member  21  after the shaping is described. 
       FIG. 10  is a perspective view illustrating a modification of the state after the shaping is performed on the guide member of the lower side housing according to the first embodiment.  FIGS. 11A and 11B  illustrate first two views illustrating the state after the shaping is performed on the guide member of the lower side housing according to the first embodiment.  FIGS. 12A and 12B  illustrate second two views illustrating the state after the shaping is performed on the guide member of the lower side housing according to the first embodiment. Note,  FIG. 11A  is a top view and  FIG. 11B  is a cross-sectional view in a direction of arrow C-C in  FIG. 11A , and  FIG. 12A  is a back view and  FIG. 12B  is a cross-sectional view in a direction of arrow D-D in  FIG. 12A . 
     In this modification, a back end part of the inner side guide wall  24   b , protruding toward the back side beyond the back surface of the constricted part  52   d  accommodated in the guide groove  23 , is plastically deformed by applying heat or pressure for example, so that a back side guide wall  26  as illustrated in  FIGS. 10 to 12B  is formed. Specifically, both left and right ends of the back side guide wall  26  are brought into contact with left and right adjacent outer side guide walls  24   a  to be integrated with the outer side guide walls  24   a . Thus, there is no gap between both left and right ends of the back side guide wall  26  and the left and right adjacent outer side guide walls  24   a . In other words, parts of the back side guide wall  26  protruding from both left and right side surfaces of the inner side guide wall  24   b  overlap with the entire back surface of the constricted part  52   d  in the width direction of the connector  1 . Thus, the displacement of the constricted part  52   d  toward the back side is prevented, whereby the displacement of the vertical part  52   c  of the leg part  52 B toward the back side is prevented. 
     Other configurations are the same as those in the example illustrated in  FIGS. 7 to 9B , and thus the description thereof is omitted. 
     The upper side terminal  51 A, held by the upper side housing  11 A in the connector  1  according to the present embodiment, has a tail part  52 A of what is known as a surface mounting type that is connected to the connection pad formed on the surface of the board by soldering. The tail part  52 A is bent at a part close to the lower surface of the upper side housing  11 A by approximately 90 degrees to protrude toward the back side, and has a lower surface connected to the connection pad formed on the surface of the board by soldering. Thus, the tail part  52 A is stably positioned with substantially no protrusion toward the lower side from the lower surface of the upper side housing  11 A. Thus, no guide member is required. 
     On the other hand, the lower side terminal  51 B, held by the lower side housing  11 B, has a leg part  52 B of what is known as dip type or pin insertion type that is mounted by soldering while having a lower end inserted into a through hole formed in the surface of the board. The leg part  52 B, which largely protrudes from the back end  12   r  of the terminal holding part  12 B, is guided by the guide member  21  integrally formed with the lower side housing  11 B, and thus is stably positioned. Thus, downward protruding parts  52   e  of a plurality of the leg parts  52 B protruding toward the lower side from the lower surface of the guide member  21  can each be accurately inserted into a corresponding one of the through holes. 
     It is practically impossible to embed a part of the leg part  52 B from the horizontal part  52   a  to the upper end of the downward protruding part  52   e , in the lower side housing  11 B by over-molding. This is because a mold that can be opened without interfering with the plurality of downward protruding parts  52   e , which need to have a predetermined protrusion length or more for the insertion into the through holes, is extremely difficult to manufacture. 
     The upper side terminal  51 A may be modified to have the leg parts  52 B of what is known as dip type or pin insertion type, as in the case of the lower side terminal  51 B. In such a case, the upper side housing  11 A can be modified to have the guide member  21  integrally formed, as in the case of the lower side housing  11 B. 
     As described above, the connector  1  according to the present embodiment includes: the lower side housing  11 B; the lower side terminals  51 B that include the leg parts  52 B to be connected to the board, and are integrally formed with the lower side housing  11 B; and the guide members  21  that are integrally formed with the lower side housing  11 B and guide the leg parts  52 B. The leg parts  52 B each include: the horizontal part  52   a  that protrudes toward the back side from the lower side housing  11 B; the vertical part  52   c  with the downward protruding part  52   e  to be connected to the board; and the curved part  52   b  through which the horizontal part  52   a  and the vertical part  52   c  are connected with each other. The gap  23   a  is provided between the back surface  21   r  of the guide member  21  and the front surface  52   f  of the vertical part  52   c . With this configuration, the curved part  52   b  can be formed with the vertical part  52   c , more on the lower side than the lower end of the curved part  52   b , displaced toward the front side. Thus, the curved part  52   b  can be accurately formed even when spring back occurs. Thus, this simple configuration can guarantee stabilization of the position of the leg part  52 B, as well as cost reduction and higher reliability. 
     The inclined part  21   c  along which the gap  23  increases toward the lower side is formed on the back surface  21   r . Thus, the vertical part  52   c  can be further displaced toward the front side for large spring back of the leg part  52 B. 
     The guide members  21  include the guide walls  24  that protrude toward the back side from the back surface  21   r , and the vertical part  52   c  is accommodated in the guide groove  23  between adjacent ones of the guide walls  24 . The vertical part  52   c  is not in contact with at least one of the guide walls  24  on both sides of the guide groove  23 . With this configuration, the displacement of the vertical part  52   c  in the width direction of the connector  1  can be prevented. 
     The guide member  21  includes the back side guide wall  26  that overlaps with at least a part of the back surface of the vertical part  52   c , and prevents displacement of the vertical part  52   c  toward the back side. The back side guide wall  26  is integrally connected to one or both of the guide walls  24  on both sides of the guide groove  23 . This ensures the prevention of the displacement of the vertical part  52   c.    
     Next a second embodiment will be described. Note that the description of objects having the same structures as those of the first embodiment will be omitted by being denoted by the same reference numerals. Furthermore, the description of operations and effects that are the same as those of the first embodiment will be omitted. 
       FIGS. 13A and 13B  are perspective views of a connector according to a second embodiment.  FIGS. 14A and 14B  illustrate two views of the connector according to the second embodiment. Note,  FIG. 13A  is a perspective view as viewed from the front side and  FIG. 13B  is a perspective view as viewed from the back side, and  FIG. 14A  is a top view and  FIG. 14B  is a cross-sectional view in a direction of arrow E-E in  FIG. 14A . 
     The connector  1  according to the present embodiment is a board connector mounted to an unillustrated board, as in the first embodiment. The connector  1  according to the present disclosure does not include the shell  61 , and the housing  11  has a surface exposed. The housing  11  has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped outer shape, and has an inner cavity  15  that opens at a front end  11   f . The inner cavity  15  functions as an insertion recess into which a protruding part of an unillustrated mating connector is inserted. The housing  11  has a top plate part  11   a , a bottom plate part  11   b , and a pair of side plate parts  11   c  defining the circumference of the inner cavity  15 . 
     The housing has a back part serving as the terminal holding part  12  that holds the terminal  51  and has the back end  12   r  from which the leg parts  52  of the terminal protrudes toward the back side. The terminal holding part  12  further includes the guide member  21  that protrudes toward the back side from the back end  12   r.    
     The housing  11  according to the present embodiment is not divided into upper and lower sections and has no tongue part. The terminal  51  is also not divided into upper and lower sides. Thus, the terminals  51  are aligned in a single row along the width direction of the connector  1 , in the inner cavity  15 . 
     In the present embodiment, the terminal  51  is bent by approximately 90 degrees, to protrude toward the lower side, as in the case of the lower side terminal  51 B according to the first embodiment, and is connected by soldering while having the lower end inserted into a through hole of the unillustrated board. The vertical parts  52   c  of the leg parts  52  of the terminal  51  are aligned in a single row along the width direction of the connector  1 . The leg part  52  is guided by the guide member  21 . 
     Other configurations of the connector  1  are the same as those in the first embodiment, and thus the description thereof is omitted. 
     An effect provided by the connector  1  is the same as that in the first embodiment, and thus the description thereof is omitted. 
     Note that the present disclosure is only one example, and thus any appropriate change that preserves the gist of the present disclosure and can easily be conceived by a person skilled in the art is within the scope of the present disclosure. The widths, thicknesses, and shapes of the parts illustrated in the drawing are illustrated schematically and are not intended to limit the interpretation of the present disclosure. 
     Note that the disclosure of the present specification describes characteristics related to preferred and exemplary embodiments. Various other embodiments, modifications and variations within the scope and spirit of the claims appended hereto could naturally be conceived by persons skilled in the art by summarizing the disclosures of the present specification. 
     The present disclosure can be applied to connectors.