Patent Publication Number: US-11398698-B2

Title: Connector

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to a connector. 
     BACKGROUND 
       FIGS. 9A and 9B  show a conventional connector (refer to Patent Document 1). This connector  630  includes a housing  631  accommodating a female terminal and a front holder  650  mounted so as to be movable with respect to the housing  631  between a provisionally-engaged position and a completely-engaged position. 
     The front holder  650  detects an incomplete insertion of the female terminal during the movement from the provisionally-engaged position to the completely-engaged position, and performs double engagement of the female terminal by being positioned in the completely-engaged position (i.e., restricts deflection of a female terminal retaining lance not shown). Further,  FIGS. 9A and 9B  illustrate the front holder  650  that is about to release a completely-engaged state where the front holder  650  is positioned to the completely-engaged position and completely engaged with the housing  631 . 
     The front holder  650  includes a complete engagement elastic arm  657  having a complete engagement projection  657   a  that engages with a complete engagement hole  644  formed in the housing  631 . The complete engagement elastic arm  657  includes an insertion opening  657   b  for a jig  658  that is arranged at an inner side with respect to a complete engagement projection  657   a . The jig  658  is arranged to release the completely-engaged state of the front holder  650 . This insertion opening  657   b  is arranged along a direction orthogonal to the movement direction of the front holder  650  from the provisionally-engaged position to the completely-engaged position. 
     To release the completely-engaged state of the front holder  650  to shift to the provisionally-engaged position, a distal end  658   a  of the jig  658  is inserted into the insertion opening  657   b  to lift the complete engagement elastic arm  657 , and, while maintaining this state, the jig  658  is operated toward the provisionally-engaged position orthogonal to the insertion direction so as to engage the jig  658  with the complete engagement projection  657   a . In this manner, the completely-engaged state of the front holder  650  is released, allowing to shift from the completely-engaged position to the provisionally-engaged position. 
     PRIOR ART DOCUMENT 
     Patent Document 1: JP 2018-98114 A 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Problem to be Solved by the Invention 
     In the conventional connector  630  described above, when releasing the completely-engaged state of the front holder  650  and shifting to the provisionally-engaged position, it requires a complex operation including inserting the jig  658  into the insertion opening  657   b  to lift the complete engagement elastic arm  657  and moving the jig  658  to the direction orthogonal to the insertion direction. 
     In view of this, an object of the present invention is to provide a connector which includes an engagement projection and an arm portion and which has a structure capable of releasing, with a simple operation, engagement of the arm portion engaged with the engagement projection. 
     Solution to the Problem 
     In order to achieve the above-described object, the present invention provides, in one aspect, a connector including: a first housing and a second housing that are configured to be fitted to each other; an engagement projection formed on the second housing so as to protrude from an outer surface of the second housing; an arm portion that is formed on the first housing and that is configured to engage with the engagement projection, the arm portion having an opening to which the engagement projection is fitted, wherein, in a state where the arm portion is engaged with the engagement projection and the engagement projection is fitted to the opening, a gap for insertion of a jig exists in the opening at a lateral side of the engagement projection, the lateral side being adjacent to the engagement projection in a direction orthogonal to a fitting direction in which the second housing is fitted to the first housing, the second housing includes a release operation portion, the release operation portion being formed as a recess on the outer surface of the second housing and being arranged such that the jig is insertable from the gap, the release operation portion extending to a rear side in the fitting direction with respect to the engagement projection, and an inclined surface is formed at a rear end in the fitting direction of the release operation portion, the inclined surface being continuous with the outer surface of the second housing. 
     Advantageous Effect of the Invention 
     According to the present invention, it is possible to release, with a simple operation, the engagement of the arm portion engaged with the engagement projection. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is an exploded view of a connector according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view of a female housing of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of a male housing of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view showing a completely-fitted state where the female housing and the male housing of  FIG. 1  are completely fitted to each other; 
         FIG. 5  is an enlarged view of the male housing of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 6  shows the connector of  FIG. 1  and shows an arm portion that is about to be released from an engagement projection using a jig; 
         FIG. 7  illustrates the arm portion being lifted by the jig of  FIG. 6 ; 
         FIG. 8  illustrates the jig of  FIG. 7  that is about to press the male housing in a direction opposite to a fitting direction; and 
         FIGS. 9A and 9B  show a conventional connector. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS 
     A connector according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to  FIGS. 1-8 . 
     A connector  1  shown in  FIG. 1  includes a female terminal  4 , a female housing  2  (corresponding to “first housing”) having a female terminal accommodating space  21  for accommodating the female terminal  4 , a bus bar  5  having a male terminal  52  that is arranged to be fitted to the female terminal  4 , and a male housing  3  (corresponding to “second housing”) arranged to accommodate the bus bar  5  and capable of being fitted to the female housing  2 . 
     In this example, the connector  1  is provided with a plurality of female terminals  4 , and the plurality of female terminals  4  is arranged to be electrically connected to each other by the bus bar  5 . The connector  1  as described above is also referred to as “joint connector”. 
     The female terminal  4  is obtained by applying press working or the like to an electrically conductive metal plate. The female terminal  4  includes a barrel configured to crimp an electric wire  9  to be electrically connected to the electric wire  9 , and a rectangular tube-shaped connecting portion to which the male terminal  52  is fitted so that the male terminal  52  is electrically connected thereto. 
     The female housing  2  is formed into a rectangular tube-shape from an insulating synthetic resin, and inside of the female housing  2  is partitioned into a front portion and a rear portion by a partition wall  27 , as shown in  FIG. 2 . At a rear side of the partition wall  27 , four female terminal accommodating spaces  21  which can accommodate the female terminals  4  individually are parallelly arranged along a width direction (i.e., a direction orthogonal to the fitting direction of both housings  2 ,  3  and corresponding to a direction perpendicular to a plane of a paper of  FIG. 2 ). On a front side of the partition wall  27 , a fitting portion  26  to which the male housing  3  can be fitted is provided. 
     Herein, with respect to the female housing  2 , a front side thereof corresponds to the male housing  3  side in the fitting direction of both housings  2 ,  3 , and, with respect to the male housing  3 , a front side thereof corresponds to the female housing  2  side in the fitting direction of both housings  2 ,  3 . 
     Further, a provisional engagement portion  24  and an arm portion  25  are formed by a part of an outer wall constituting the fitting portion  26 . The provisional engagement portion  24  is arranged to engage with a later-described provisional engagement projection  34  of the male housing  3 . The provisional engagement portion  24  has an elongated opening  24   a  for positioning the provisional engagement projection  34 . The arm portion  25  is arranged to engage with a later-described engagement projection  35  of the male housing  3 . The arm portion  25  is formed in a cantilever plate shape and has an opening  25   a  to which the engagement projection  35  is fitted. 
     Each female terminal accommodating space  21  is provided with a lance  22  that is arranged to engage with the female terminal  4  to retain the female terminal  4  from falling off. The lance  22  extends in a cantilever plate shape manner from the rear side to the front side of the female terminal accommodating space  21 , and a distal end of the lance  22  is arranged to be engaged with a rear edge (i.e., an edge on the barrel side) of the connecting portion of the female terminal  4  The lance  22  is capable of being elastically deformed into a deflection space  23  formed on the side opposite to the female terminal  4 . 
     The bus bar  5  is obtained by punching a conductive metal plate, and includes a strip-shaped base portion  51 , and four male terminals  52  extending from the a long side of the base portion  51  and extending parallel to each other in a rod shape. 
     The male housing  3  is made of an insulating synthetic resin, and as shown in  FIG. 3  and  FIG. 5 , the male housing  3  includes a holding portion  31  configured to hold the base portion  51 , a plate portion  32  continuous with the holding portion  31  and extending parallel to the plurality of male terminals  52 , and a plate-shaped restricting portion  33  continuous with a distal end of the plate portion  32 . The male housing  3  further includes a provisional engagement projection  34 , an engagement projection  35  and a wall portion  37  that are protruding from an outer surface  32   a  of the plate portion  32 . The male housing  3  further includes a release operation portion  36  that is formed as a recess on the outer surface  32   a  of the plate portion  32  and that extends in a groove shape manner in the fitting direction of housings  2 ,  3 . 
     In the connector  1  described above, the provisional engagement projection  34  is fitted to the opening  24   a  of the provisional engagement portion  24 , thereby placing the female housing  2  and the male housing  3  in a provisionally-fitted state. At this time, the arm portion  25  and the engagement projection  35  are in a non-engaged state. 
     Further, in the connector  1  described above, the male housing  3  is pushed deeper into the female housing  2  from the provisionally-fitted state described above, and, as shown in  FIG. 4 , the engagement projection  35  is fitted into the opening  25   a  of the arm portion  25 , and the arm portion  25  is engaged with the engagement projection  35 , thereby placing the female housing  2  and the male housing  3  in the completely-fitted state. In the completely-fitted state shown in  FIG. 4 , the entire male housing  3  is positioned inside the female housing  2 , the holding portion  31  is fitted into the fitting portion  26 , and the restricting portion  33  is positioned in the deflection space  23 . 
     As described above, in a state where both housings  2 ,  3  are completely fitted to each other, the restricting portion  33  is positioned in the deflection space  23  for the lance  22  and restricts the deflection of the lance  22  . The restricting portion  33  also functions as an incomplete insertion detecting portion for the female terminal  4 . That is, in the incompletely-inserted state where the female terminal  4  is not completely inserted into the female terminal accommodating space  21 , the lance  22  is placed over the female terminal  4  and is positioned in the deflection space  23 . Thus, during the operation of completely fitting both housings  2 ,  3  to each other, the distal end of the restricting portion  33  abuts on the distal end of the lance  22  and the restricting portion  33  cannot enter the deflection space  23 , hence both housings  2 ,  3  cannot be completely fitted to each other. The male housing  3  having the restricting portion  33  as described above is also referred to as “terminal position assurance member”. 
     Next, the configuration of the arm portion  25  and the engagement projection  35  as well as the configuration around them will be described in more detail. In a state where the arm portion  25  is engaged with the engagement projection  35  and the engagement projection  35  is fitted to the opening  25   a , a gap for insertion of the jig  8  exists in the opening  25   a  at a lateral side of the engagement projection  35 . This “lateral side” means adjacent to the engagement projection  35  in a direction (i.e., a width direction of the male housing  3 ) orthogonal to the fitting direction of the housings  2 ,  3 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 6-8 , the jig  8  is configured to lift the arm portion  25  which is engaged with the engagement projection  35  to release the engaged state. The jig  8  is formed in a rod shape having a thickness that decreases as approaching to a distal end thereof. 
     The release operation portion  36  is formed on a lateral side of the engagement projection  35 , and the release operation portion  36  extends from the distal end of the restricting portion  33  to a rear side with respect to the engagement projection  35 . The release operation portion  36  overlaps with the gap in the opening  25   a , and the jig  8  can be inserted therein from the gap. 
     The release operation portion  36  may not necessarily be formed in a groove shape, it may be formed in any suitable shape as long as it extends to a rear side with respect to the engagement projection  35  and it is formed such that the jig  8  can be inserted therein from the gap. By forming the release operation portion  36  in a groove shape as in this example, it is possible to guide the jig  8  to the rear side in the fitting direction, thereby further facilitating the release operation for releasing the engagement of the arm portion  25 . 
     An inclined surface  38  connected to the outer surface  32   a  of the plate portion  32  is formed at a rear end of the release operation portion  36 . This inclined surface  38  functions to guide the jig  8  to the rear side and to the outer surface  32   a  side. 
     The wall portion  37  protrudes from a portion of the outer surface  32   a  of the plate portion  32  that is connected to the inclined surface  38 . The wall portion  37  is positioned at a rear side with respect to the arm portion  25  engaged with the engagement projection  35 . 
     Next, an operation for releasing the engagement of the arm portion  25  engaged with the engagement projection  35  will be explained. First, in a state where both housings  2 ,  3  are completely fitted to each other, the jig  8  is inserted into the gap in the opening  25   a  in a direction indicated with an arrow A 1  shown in  FIG. 6 , and the jig  9  is pushed in a direction indicated with an arrow A 2  (i.e., in the rearward direction) along the release operation portion  36 . That is, the distal end of the jig  8  is moved beneath the arm portion  25 . Then, as shown in  FIG. 7 , the jig  8  is further pushed along the inclined surface  38 . Thus, the arm portion  25  is lifted in a direction indicated with an arrow A 3 , rendering the arm portion  25  in a ready-to-be released state. Further, as shown in  FIG. 8 , the jig  8  is pushed so as to abut against the wall portion  37 . Thus, the male housing  3  is moved to a direction indicated with an arrow A 4 , and the engagement of the arm portion  25  is released and both housings  2 ,  3  are shifted to the provisionally-fitted state. 
     As described above, the connector  1  of this example can release the engagement of the arm portion  25  engaged with the engagement projection  35  with a simple operation including inserting the jig  8  into the release operation portion  36  from the gap in opening  25   a  and pushing the jig  8  in the same direction as the insertion direction. That is, the release of the engagement of the arm portion  25  can be performed by a single action, thereby improving the work efficiency. 
     It should be understood that the above-described embodiment is only a representative form of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. That is, various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. Such modifications, as long as they still have the configuration of the present invention, are of course within the scope of the present invention. 
     LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS 
     
         
           1  connector 
           2  female housing (first housing) 
           3  male housing (second housing) 
           8  jig 
           25  arm portion 
           25   a  opening 
           35  engagement projection 
           36  release operation portion 
           37  wall portion 
           38  inclined surface