Patent Publication Number: US-11641074-B2

Title: Connector

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is based on and claims priority from Japanese Patent Application No. 2020-159756, filed on Sep. 24, 2020, with the Japan Patent Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in their entireties by reference. 
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates to a connector. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication Nos. 2012-199106 and 2020-071938 disclose a connector to be mounted on a circuit board. This connector includes a housing and a plurality of terminals to be held in the housing. Through holes are formed in upper, middle and lower stages of a wall portion of the housing. Upper-stage terminals, middle-stage terminals and lower-stage terminals are respectively inserted into the through holes in the upper, middle and lower stages. Each terminal includes a terminal connecting portion to be inserted into the through hole and a leg portion connected to the rear end of the terminal connecting portion and bent to extend downward. 
     The leg portions of the respective terminals need to be spaced apart by a certain distance or more so as not to be short-circuited to each other. Accordingly, in the connectors of Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication Nos. 2012-199106 and 2020-071938, the leg portions of the upper-stage terminals and the leg portions of the respective middle-stage terminals and lower-stage terminals are shifted in a front-rear direction. 
     SUMMARY 
     However, with the above configuration, a dimension in the front-rear direction of the connector increases. Accordingly, it is considered to arrange the leg portions of all the terminals in a row in a width direction. However, if all the leg portions are arranged in a row in the width direction, a reduction in installation intervals of the terminals merely by arranging the terminals in a row in the width direction is limited since the terminals need to be spaced apart by the certain distance or more. 
     Accordingly, the present disclosure aims to reduce installation intervals of terminals. 
     The present disclosure is directed to a connector with a housing to be mounted on a circuit board, and an upper-stage terminal, a middle-stage terminal and a lower-stage terminal to be held in the housing, wherein the housing includes a wall portion arranged along an up-down direction and a plurality of through holes penetrating through the wall portion, the plurality of through holes include an upper-stage through hole, a middle-stage through hole and a lower-stage terminal from an upper side toward a lower side, the upper-stage terminal passing through the upper-stage through hole, the middle-stage terminal passing through the middle-stage through hole, the lower-stage terminal passing through the lower-stage through hole, each of the upper-stage terminal, the middle-stage terminal and the lower-stage terminal includes a terminal connecting portion extending in a front-rear direction while being held in the through hole, and a leg portion connected to a rear end of the terminal connecting portion and extending downward, the leg portions of the respective upper-stage terminal and middle-stage terminal are arranged side by side in a width direction of the wall portion and include each a wide portion and a narrow portion arranged below the wide portion, the wide portion of the upper-stage terminal protrudes only toward the middle-stage terminal with respect to the narrow portion of the upper-stage terminal, the wide portion of the middle-stage terminal protrudes only toward the upper-stage terminal with respect to the narrow portion of the middle-stage terminal, and the leg portion of the lower-stage terminal is arranged between the narrow portion of the upper-stage terminal and the narrow portion of the middle-stage terminal in the width direction. 
     According to the present disclosure, it is possible to reduce installation intervals of terminals. 
     The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG.  1    is a perspective view of a connector in one embodiment. 
         FIG.  2    is a back view of the connector of the one embodiment. 
         FIG.  3    is a perspective view of an upper-stage terminal, a lower-stage terminal and a middle-stage terminal of the one embodiment. 
         FIG.  4    is an enlarged view of a region including the upper-stage terminals, the lower-stage terminals and the middle-stage terminals shown in  FIG.  2   . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof. The illustrative embodiments described in the detailed description, drawings, and claims are not meant to be limiting. Other embodiments may be utilized, and other changes may be made, without departing from the spirit or scope of the subject matter presented here. 
     Description of Embodiments of Present Disclosure 
     First, embodiments of the present disclosure are listed and described. 
     (1) The connector of the present disclosure includes a housing to be mounted on a circuit board, and an upper-stage terminal, a middle-stage terminal and a lower-stage terminal to be held in the housing, wherein the housing includes a wall portion arranged along an up-down direction and a plurality of through holes penetrating through the wall portion, the plurality of through holes include an upper-stage through hole, a middle-stage through hole and a lower-stage terminal from an upper side toward a lower side, the upper-stage terminal passing through the upper-stage through hole, the middle-stage terminal passing through the middle-stage through hole, the lower-stage terminal passing through the lower-stage through hole, each of the upper-stage terminal, the middle-stage terminal and the lower-stage terminal includes a terminal connecting portion extending in a front-rear direction while being held in the through hole, and a leg portion connected to a rear end of the terminal connecting portion and extending downward, the leg portions of the respective upper-stage terminal and middle-stage terminal are arranged side by side in a width direction of the wall portion and include each a wide portion and a narrow portion arranged below the wide portion, the wide portion of the upper-stage terminal protrudes only toward the middle-stage terminal with respect to the narrow portion of the upper-stage terminal, the wide portion of the middle-stage terminal protrudes only toward the upper-stage terminal with respect to the narrow portion of the middle-stage terminal, and the leg portion of the lower-stage terminal is arranged between the narrow portion of the upper-stage terminal and the narrow portion of the middle-stage terminal in the width direction. 
     In this connector, the wide portion of the upper-stage terminal protrudes only toward the middle-stage terminal with respect to the narrow portion of the upper-stage terminal. The wide portion of the middle-stage terminal protrudes only toward the upper-stage terminal with respect to the narrow portion of the middle-stage terminal. Thus, a large space in the width direction between the narrow portions of the upper-stage terminal and middle-stage terminal can be ensured while the strength of the upper-stage terminal and middle-stage terminal is enhanced by the wide portions. The leg portion of the lower-stage terminal is arranged in this space. Thus, the lower-stage terminal can be installed with good space efficiency. Therefore, according to this connector, installation intervals of the upper-stage terminal, the middle-stage terminal and the lower-stage terminal can be reduced. 
     (2) Preferably, the wide portion of the upper-stage terminal extends up to a position overlapping the wide portion of the middle-stage terminal in the width direction. 
     According to this configuration, the wide portion of the upper-stage terminal can be set long as compared to a configuration in which the wide portion of the upper-stage terminal does not overlap the wide portion of the middle-stage terminal in the width direction. Thus, the strength of the upper-stage terminal can be improved. Particularly, since the leg portion of the upper-stage terminal is formed longer in the up-down direction than the leg portions of the respective middle-stage terminal and lower-stage terminal and it is difficult to ensure sufficient strength, it is highly advantageous to adopt this configuration. 
     (3) Preferably, the terminal connecting portion includes a tab and a protruding portion arranged closer to a rear end than the tab and formed to be wider than the tab, and the wide portion of the upper-stage terminal and the wide portion of the middle-stage terminal are arranged at positions overlapping the protruding portion of the lower-stage terminal in the up-down direction in a back view. 
     According to this configuration, the installation intervals of the upper-stage terminal, the lower-stage terminal and the middle-stage terminal can be reduced while the strength of the upper-stage terminal and middle-stage terminal is enhanced. 
     (4) Preferably, each of the upper-stage terminal, the middle-stage terminal and the lower-stage terminal includes a board connecting portion extending rearward from a lower end of the leg portion, and the board connecting portions of the respective upper-stage terminal, middle-stage terminal and lower-stage terminal are arranged at positions overlapping in the width direction. 
     According to this configuration, an area occupied by the respective board connecting portions on a surface of the circuit board needs not be large in the front-rear direction. Particularly, the above configuration is easily adopted by arranging the leg portion of the lower-stage terminal between the narrow portion of the upper-stage terminal and the narrow portion of the middle-stage terminal. 
     Details of Embodiment of Present Disclosure 
     A specific example of the present disclosure is described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to these illustrations and is intended to be represented by claims and include all changes in the scope of claims and in the meaning and scope of equivalents. 
     Embodiment 
     A connector  10  to be mounted on a circuit board  90  is illustrated in this embodiment. Note that, in the following description, a side of the connector  10  to be connected to a mating connector is referred to as a front side and an opposite side thereof is referred to as a rear side. Further, a side of the circuit board  90  with respect to the connector  10  is referred to as a lower side and an opposite side thereof is referred to as an upper side. Further, a lateral direction when the connector  10  is viewed from behind is referred to as a lateral direction. 
     As shown in  FIGS.  1  and  2   , the connector  10  includes a housing  12 , a plurality of upper-stage terminals  13 , a plurality of middle-stage terminals  14 , a plurality of lower-stage terminals  15  and a pair of mounting members  16 . The upper-stage terminals  13 , the middle-stage terminals  14  and the lower-stage terminals  15  are referred to as the terminals  13 ,  14  and  15  below unless it is necessary to distinguish them. 
     The housing  12  is made of synthetic resin and mounted on the circuit board  90 . The housing  12  includes a wall portion  20  arranged along an up-down direction and the lateral direction, and a tubular receptacle  21  projecting forward from the outer periphery of the wall portion  20 . In this embodiment, the lateral direction corresponds to an example of a “width direction of the wall portion”. Mounting grooves  26  into which the mounting members  16  are mounted are formed in both left and right sides of the housing  12 . The housing  12  is fixed to the circuit board  90  by soldering the mounting members  16  mounted into the mounting grooves  26  to the circuit board  90 . 
     The housing  12  includes a plurality of upper-stage through holes  23 , a plurality of middle-stage through holes  24  and a plurality of lower-stage through holes  25 . The upper-stage through holes  23 , the middle-stage through holes  24  and the lower-stage through holes  25  are referred to as the through holes  23 ,  24  and  25  below unless it is necessary to distinguish them. The through holes  23 ,  24  and  25  penetrate through the wall portion  20  in the front-rear direction. The upper-stage through holes  23 , the middle-stage through holes  24  and the lower-stage through holes  25  are respectively arranged from an upper side toward a lower side. The plurality of upper-stage through holes  23 , the plurality of middle-stage through holes  24  and the plurality of lower-stage through holes  25  are respectively arranged in a row in the lateral direction. The through holes  23 ,  24  and  25  have the same shape and size. The through holes  23 ,  24  and  25  have a rectangular shape longer in the lateral direction than in the up-down direction in a back view. The upper-stage through holes  23 , the middle-stage through holes  24  and the lower-stage through holes  25  are arranged at positions overlapping in the up-down direction. The upper-stage through holes  23  are shifted leftward with respect to the lower-stage through holes  25  arranged at the positions overlapping in the up-down direction. The middle-stage through holes  24  are shifted rightward with respect to the lower-stage through holes  25  arranged at the positions overlapping in the up-down direction. 
     The aforementioned upper-stage terminals  13  are inserted into the upper-stage through holes  23  from behind and held through the upper-stage through holes  23 . The aforementioned middle-stage terminals  14  are inserted into the middle-stage through holes  24  from behind and held through the middle-stage through holes  24 . The aforementioned lower-stage terminals  15  are inserted into the lower-stage through holes  25  from behind and held through the lower-stage through holes  25 . 
     As shown in  FIG.  3   , the terminals  13 ,  14  and  15  are male terminals and respectively formed, such as by punching and bending a conductive metal plate. Each of the terminals  13 ,  14  and  15  has an elongated shape and includes a terminal connecting portion  60 , a leg portion  31 ,  41 ,  51  and a board connecting portion  61 . 
     The terminal connecting portion  60  extends in the front-rear direction while being held in the through hole  23 ,  24 ,  25 . The terminal connecting portion  60  includes a tab  62 , a locking portion  63  and a protruding portion  64 . The tab  62  is arranged in the receptacle  21  of the housing  12  and connected to an unillustrated mating terminal provided in the mating connector with the connector  10  connected to the unillustrated mating connector. The locking portion  63  is arranged behind the tab  62 . The locking portion  63  is configured as a press-fit projection projecting toward left and right sides, and locked to the inner peripheral surface of the through hole  23 ,  24 ,  25  by being press-fit. The protruding portion  64  is arranged behind the locking portion  63  and shaped to protrude further in the lateral direction than the tab  62 . The protruding portion  64  has a rectangular shape longer in the lateral direction than in the up-down direction in a back view, and has a rectangular shape in a plan view. The terminal  13 ,  14 ,  15  is press-fit into the through hole  23 ,  24 ,  25  by a rear surface  65  of the protruding portion  64  being pressed forward by a jig or the like. A forward displacement of the pressed terminal  13 ,  14 ,  15  is restricted by a front surface  66  of the protruding portion  64  butting against a restricting surface in the through hole  23 ,  24 ,  25 . 
     The leg portion  31 ,  41 ,  51  of the terminal  13 ,  14 ,  15  is connected to the rear end (in particular, rear surface  65  of the protruding portion  64 ) and extends downward. The leg portions  31 ,  41  and  51  are arranged side by side in a row in the lateral direction. A height of the leg portions  31  of the upper-stage terminals  13  is larger than that of the leg portions  41  of the middle-stage terminals  14 . A height of the leg portions  41  of the middle-stage terminals  14  is larger than that of the leg portions  51  of the lower-stage terminals  1   t.  The leg portions  31 ,  41  and  51  of the respective upper-stage terminals, middle-stage terminals and lower-stage terminals  13 ,  14  and  15  are so arranged that height positions of lower ends are aligned. The leg portion  31 ,  41 ,  51  includes a wide portion  32 ,  42 ,  52 , a reduced-width portion  33 ,  43 ,  53  and a narrow portion  34 ,  44 ,  54  having a smaller lateral width than the wide portion  32 ,  42 ,  52 . 
     The wide portion  32 ,  42 ,  52  includes a wide bent portion  35 ,  45 ,  55  connected to the rear end of the terminal connecting portion  60  (in particular, protruding portion  64 ) and bent downward in a curved manner, and a wide planar portion  36 ,  46 ,  56  extending downward from the lower end of the wide bent portion  35 ,  45 ,  55 . A lateral width of the wide portion  32 ,  42 ,  52  is constant and larger than a thickness of the wide portion  32 ,  42 ,  52 . 
     The reduced-width portion  33 ,  43 ,  53  extends downward from the lower end of the wide portion  32 ,  42 ,  52  and has a width reduced toward a lower side. A width of the upper end of the reduced-width portion  33 ,  43 ,  53  is equal to that of the lower end of the wide portion  32 ,  42 ,  52 . A width of the lower end of the reduced-width portion  33 ,  43 ,  53  is equal to that of the upper end of the narrow portion  34 ,  44 ,  54 . 
     The narrow portion  34 ,  44 ,  54  is arranged below the wide portion  32 ,  42 ,  52 . The narrow portion  34 ,  44 ,  54  includes a reduced-width planar portion  37 ,  47 ,  57  connected to the lower end of the wide portion  32 ,  42 ,  52  via the reduced-width portion  33 ,  43 ,  53  and extending downward, and a narrow bent portion  38 ,  48 ,  58  connected to the lower end of the reduced-width planar portion  37 ,  47 ,  57  and bent rearwardly in a curved manner. A lateral width of the narrow portion  34 ,  44 ,  54  is constant and equal to a thickness of the narrow portion  34 ,  44 ,  54 . 
     The leg portions  31 ,  41  and  51  of the terminals  13 ,  14  and  15  are repeatedly arranged in the order of the leg portion  31  of the upper-stage terminal  13 , the leg portion  51  of the lower-stage terminal  15  and the leg portion  41  of the middle-stage terminal  14  toward a right side. In an example shown in  FIG.  4   , the leg portions  31 ,  51 ,  41  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A, the lower-stage terminal  15 A, the middle-stage terminal  14 A, the upper-stage terminal  13 B, the lower-stage terminal  15 B and middle-stage terminal  14 B are successively arranged. The following description is focused on a set of the upper-stage terminal  13 A, the middle-stage terminal  14 A and the lower-stage terminal  15 A. 
     The protruding portions  64  of the respective upper-stage terminal  13 A, middle-stage terminal  14 A and lower-stage terminal  15 A are arranged at positions overlapping in the up-down direction. The protruding portion  64  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A is shifted leftward with respect to the protruding portion  64  of the lower-stage terminal  15 A. The protruding portion  64  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A is shifted rightward with respect to the protruding portion  64  of the lower-stage terminal  15 A. The leg portion  31  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A is arranged on a left side, and the leg portion  41  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A is arranged on a right side. The leg portion  51  of the lower-stage terminal  15 A is arranged between the leg portion  31  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A and the leg portion  41  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A in the lateral direction. 
     The leg portion  31  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A is connected to a left part of the rear surface  65  of the protruding portion  64 . Note that a right part of the rear surface  65  of the protruding portion  64  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A functions as a pressing surface to be pressed by the jig or the like. The left surface of the leg portion  31  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A extends in the up-down direction without any step. The right surface of the leg portion  31  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A is inclined leftward toward a lower side in the reduced-width portion  33 . In other words, the wide portion  32  and the reduced-width portion  33  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A protrude only rightward with respect to the narrow portion  34 , but do not protrude leftward. 
     The leg portion  41  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A is connected to a right part of the rear surface  65  of the protruding portion  64 . Note that a left part of the rear surface  65  of the protruding portion  64  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A functions as a pressing surface. The right surface of the leg portion  41  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A extends in the up-down direction without any step. The left surface of the leg portion  41  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A is inclined rightward toward a lower side in the reduced-width portion  43 . In other words, the wide portion  42  and the reduced-width portion  43  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A protrude only leftward with respect to the narrow portion  44 , but do not protrude rightward. The aforementioned wide portion  32  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A extends up to a position overlapping the wide portion  42  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A in the lateral direction. The reduced-width portion  33  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A extends up to a position overlapping the reduced-width portion  43  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A in the lateral direction. 
     The leg portion  51  of the lower-stage terminal  14 A is connected to a laterally central part of the rear surface  65  of the protruding portion  64 . Note that both left and right sides of the rear surface  65  of the protruding portion  64  of the lower-stage terminal  14 A function as pressing surfaces. The leg portion  51  and the protruding portion  64  of the lower-stage terminal  15 A are arranged between the narrow portion  34  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A and the narrow portion  44 A of the middle-stage terminal  14 A. In other words, the leg portion  51  and the protruding portion  64  of the lower-stage terminal  15 A are arranged to be lower than the wide portion  32  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A and the wide portion  42  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A and the reduced-width portion  53  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A and the reduced-width portion  43  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A. Both left and right surfaces of the reduced-width portion  53  of the lower-stage terminal  15 A are inclined laterally inwardly toward a lower side. The wide portion  32  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A and the wide portion  42  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A described above are arranged at positions overlapping the protruding portion  64  of the lower-stage terminal  15 A in the up-down direction in a back view. 
     The board connecting portion  61  is connected to the lower end of the leg portion  31 ,  41 ,  51  (in particular, narrow bent portion  38 ,  48 ,  58 ) of the terminal  13 ,  14 ,  15  and extends rearward. A width of the board connecting portion  61  is equal to that of the narrow portion  34 ,  44 ,  54 . The board connecting portion  61  is soldered to a conductive path formed on the surface of the circuit board  90 . The board connecting portions  61  of the respective upper-stage terminals  13 , middle-stage terminals  14  and lower-stage terminals  15  are arranged at positions overlapping in the lateral direction. The rear ends of the respective board connecting portions  61  are arranged at the same position in the front-rear direction. 
     Next, a manufacturing method of the connector  10  is described. The upper-stage terminals  13 , the middle-stage terminals  14  and the lower-stage terminals  15  are respectively inserted into the upper-stage through holes  23 , the middle-stage through holes  24  and the lower-stage through holes  25  of the housing  12  from behind. The terminals  13 ,  14  and  15  are press-fit into the through holes  23 ,  24  and  25  by having the rear surfaces  65  of the protruding portions  64  pressed by the jig or the like. The terminals  13 ,  14  and  15  are positioned by the front surfaces  66  of the protruding portions  64  butting against the restricting surfaces in the through holes  23 ,  24  and  25 . The mounting members  16  are mounted into the mounting grooves  26  on both left and right sides of the housing  12 . In this way, the connector  10  is completed. The conductive paths are formed on the surface of the circuit board  90  and solder paste is applied at necessary positions. The connector  10  is placed on the circuit board  90  and reflow soldered to the circuit board  90 . In particular, the mounting members  16  are soldered to the circuit board  90  and the board connecting portions  61  of the respective terminals  13 ,  14  and  15  are soldered to the conductive paths formed on the circuit board  90 . 
     As described above, in the connector  10  of this embodiment, the wide portion  32  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A protrudes only toward the middle-stage terminal  14 A with respect to the narrow portion  34  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A. The wide portion  42  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A protrudes only toward the upper-stage terminal  13 A with respect to the narrow portion  44  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A. Thus, a large space in the width direction between the narrow portions  34  and  44  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A and the middle-stage terminal  14 A can be ensured while the strength of the upper-stage terminal  13 A and the middle-stage terminal  14 A is enhanced by the wide portions  32 ,  42 . The leg portion  51  of the lower-stage terminal  15 A is arranged in this space. Thus, the lower-stage terminal  15 A can be installed with good space efficiency. Therefore, according to this connector  10 , installation intervals of the upper-stage terminal  13 A, the middle-stage terminal  14 A and the lower-stage terminal  15 A can be reduced. 
     Further, the wide portion  32  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A extends up to the position overlapping the wide portion  42  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A in the lateral direction. Thus, the wide portion  32  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A can be set long as compared to a configuration in which the wide portion  32  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A does not overlap the wide portion  42  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A in the lateral direction. Thus, the strength of the upper-stage terminal  13 A can be improved. Particularly, since the leg portion  31  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A is formed longer in the up-down direction than the leg portions  41 ,  51  of the respective middle-stage terminal  14 A and lower-stage terminal  15 A and it is difficult to ensure sufficient strength, it is highly advantageous to adopt this configuration. 
     Further, the wide portion  32  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A and the wide portion  32  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A described above are arranged at the positions overlapping the protruding portion  64  of the lower-stage terminal  15 A in the up-down direction. Thus, the installation intervals of the upper-stage terminal  13 A, the middle-stage terminal  14 A and the lower-stage terminal  15 A can be reduced while the strength of the upper-stage terminal  13 A and the middle-stage terminal  14 A is enhanced. 
     Further, the board connecting portions  61  of the respective upper-stage terminal  13 A, middle-stage terminal  14 A and lower-stage terminal  15 A are arranged at the positions overlapping in the lateral direction. Thus, an area occupied by the respective board connecting portions  61  on the surface of the circuit board  90  needs not be large in the front-rear direction. Particularly, the above configuration is easily adopted by arranging the leg portion  51  of the lower-stage terminal  15 A between the narrow portion  34  of the upper-stage terminal  13 A and the narrow portion  44  of the middle-stage terminal  14 A in the lateral direction. 
     Other Embodiments of Present Disclosure 
     The embodiment disclosed this time should be considered illustrative in all aspects, rather than restrictive. 
     (1) Although the wide portion of the upper-stage terminal does not protrude leftward with respect to the narrow portion in the above embodiment, the wide portion may protrude leftward. Further, although the wide portion of the middle-stage terminal does not protrude rightward with respect to the narrow portion in the above embodiment, the wide portion may protrude rightward. 
     (2) Although the lower-stage terminal includes both the wide portion and narrow portion in the above embodiment, the lower-stage terminal may include only the wide portion without including the narrow portion. 
     (3) The terminal connecting portion may extend in the front-rear direction as a whole and may be inclined with respect to the front-rear direction (e.g. a direction parallel to the surface of the circuit board). Similarly, the leg portion may be shaped to extend in the up-down direction as a whole and may be inclined with respect to the up-down direction (e.g. a direction perpendicular to the surface of the circuit board). Further, the front-rear direction may be different from a horizontal direction and the up-down direction may be different from a vertical direction when the connector is used. 
     (4) Although the leg portions of the upper-stage terminal, the middle-stage terminal and the lower-stage terminal include the reduced-width portion in the above embodiment, these leg portions may include no reduced-width portion. That is, the wide portions may be directly connected to the narrow portions. 
     From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure have been described herein for purposes of illustration, and that various modifications may be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the various exemplary embodiments disclosed herein are not intended to be limiting, with the true scope and spirit being indicated by the following claims.