Abstract:
A terminal, wherein the lower and upper arms have a plurality of integral lower flexible arms and integral upper flexible arms respectively, which include at least a first lower and upper flexible arm and a second lower and upper flexible arm that are elastically displaceable independently of each other, the lower striking portions each have a first and second lower striking portion formed on a first and second lower flexible arm respectively, the second lower striking portion at a position that is offset in the longitudinal direction with respect to the first lower striking portion, and the upper striking portions each have a first and second upper striking portion formed on a first and second upper flexible arm respectively, the second upper striking portion at a position that is offset in the longitudinal direction with respect to the first upper striking portion.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This Paris Convention Patent Application claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119 and claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. JP 2016-151399, filed on Aug. 1, 2016, titled “ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR FOR FLAT CONDUCTOR”, the content of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference for all purposes. 
       BACKGROUND 
     Technical Field 
       [0002]    The present invention relates to an electrical connector for a flat conductor, which is disposed on the mounting face of a circuit board, and to which a flat conductor is connected. 
       Background Art 
       [0003]    Known connectors of this type are disclosed in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2. 
         [0004]    With the connector in Patent Document 1, the terminals each have one lower arm (first piece) and one upper arm (second piece) that clamp a flat conductor in between them, two contact portions protrude from the lower arm, and two pressing portions protrude from the upper arm. The contact portions and the pressing portions are opposite each other in the up and down direction. In Patent Document 1, when a flat conductor is inserted between the lower arm and the upper arm, the upper arm is elastically bent and displaced by a pressurizing means (manipulation portion), and the upper face of the flat conductor is pressed by the two pressing portions provided to the upper arm, which raises the contact pressure between the flat conductor and the two contact portions on the lower arm. 
         [0005]    With the connector in Patent Document 2, the terminals each have two lower arms that extend from the terminal area supported by the bottom wall of the housing and that are elastically displaceable independently of each other, and each of the lower arms has a protruding contact portion. The contact portions of the two lower arms are located at mutually different positions in the longitudinal direction (the direction in which the flat conductor is inserted). Meanwhile, the upper arms of the terminals are each configured to rotationally support the pressurizing member in a first mode, and a portion (the pressurizing portion) of the pressurizing member presses on the flat conductor between the two contact portions in the longitudinal direction during rotation of the pressurizing member. In Patent Document 2, in a second mode, one pressing portion is provided to a flexible upper arm of a terminal, and the flat conductor is pressed by this pressing portion. Furthermore, Patent Document 2 also discloses a third mode in which the positions of the upper arm and the lower arm of the second mode are switched in the up and down direction. 
       PRIOR ART DOCUMENTS 
     Patent Document 
       [0006]    Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent No. 5,203,046 
         [0007]    Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent No. 4,993,788 
       SUMMARY 
     Problems to be Solved by the Invention 
       [0008]    However, with the connector of Patent Document 1, both the lower arm having two contact portions and the upper arm having two pressing portions are formed as a single arm unit. Therefore, if one of the two contact portions is displaced, for example, the other is also displaced accordingly. As a result, in a state in which the flat conductor is connected to the connector, there may be so-called tilt, in which the flat conductor is undesirably lifted up or inclined under an external force, in which case contact may worsen at both contact portions simultaneously, which adversely affects contact reliability. The same applies to the two pressing portions. 
         [0009]    Meanwhile, with the connector of Patent Document 2, since the contact portions are respectively provided to the two lower arms which are independently elastically displaceable, even if the contact state should deteriorate at one contact portion, the other contact portion will still have a good contact state regardless of this. However, it is the pressurizing portion, which is a part of the pressurizing member in the first mode, that presses the flat conductor against the two contact portions, and in the second and the third modes, there is just one pressing portion, which in both cases is located between the two contact portions in the longitudinal direction. Therefore, when the flat conductor becomes tilted as mentioned above, the force thereof has to be borne by the pressurizing portion or pressing portion at just one location, so there is a higher load on the pressurizing portion or the pressing portion, making it harder to maintain the contact pressure on the easily deformed contact portion. Also, since the pressurizing portion or the pressing portion is positioned between the two contact portions in the longitudinal direction and is offset from the contact portions, it is harder for the flat conductor to be firmly clamped between the pressurizing portion or the pressing portion and the contact portions. Thus, the reliability of contact is reduced at the contact portions when the flat conductor is tilted. 
         [0010]    The present invention was conceived in light of the above situation, and it is an object thereof to provide an electrical connector for a flat conductor, with which there is no deformation of a pressing portion due to an excessive load on the pressing portion, and contact reliability at the contact portions will not be decreased. 
       Means for Solving the Problems 
       [0011]    It is an object of the present invention to provide an electrical connector for a flat conductor, with which excessive load on the striking portions of the terminals is prevented, and the contact reliability with the flat conductor is enhanced. 
         [0012]    The electrical connector for a flat conductor pertaining to the present invention comprises a housing formed with a receptacle into which a connecting portion provided on the front end side of a flat conductor is inserted forward, a plurality of terminals made of sheet metal and arranged on and supported by the housing at a right angle to the flat plane of the housing, and a pressurizing member that is movably supported by the housing or by a member attached to the housing and that increases the contact pressure between the flat conductor and the terminals. 
         [0013]    With this electrical connector for a flat conductor of the present invention, at least some of the plurality of terminals each have a lower arm that is supported by the bottom wall of the housing and is formed with a lower striking portion that strikes the lower face of the flat conductor, and an upper arm that is linked via a linking portion to the lower arm, receives force from the pressurizing member, presses on the upper face of the flat conductor, and is formed with an upper striking portion that increases the contact pressure between the flat conductor and the lower striking portion. The lower arms each have a plurality of integral lower flexible arms including at least a first lower flexible arm and a second lower flexible arm that are elastically displaceable independently of each other. The lower striking portions each have a first lower striking portion formed on a first lower flexible arm and a second lower striking portion that is formed on a second lower arm at a position that is offset in the longitudinal direction with respect to the first lower striking portion. The upper arms each have a plurality of integral upper flexible arms including at least a first upper flexible arm and a second upper flexible arm that are elastically displaceable independently of each other. The upper striking portions each have a first upper striking portion formed on a first upper flexible arm and a second upper striking portion that is formed on a second upper arm at a position that is offset in the longitudinal direction with respect to the first upper striking portion. 
         [0014]    With the present invention configured as above, the upper arm and the lower arm independently have a plurality of upper flexible arms and lower flexible arms, respectively, and upper striking portions and lower striking portions are respectively formed on the upper flexible arms and the lower flexible arms, so the upper flexible arms and lower flexible arms can be elastically displaced independently, and the plurality of striking portions strike the upper and lower faces of the flat conductor, and more specifically, a plurality of the upper striking portions strike the upper face of the flat conductor without affecting each other, and a plurality of the lower striking portions strike the lower face without affecting each other, so a good state of contact with the flat conductor can be maintained. In addition, the force received from the flat conductor is dispersed over the plurality of striking portions, and as a result the load at each striking portion does not become excessive. 
         [0015]    In the present invention, the lower striking portions can be provided at positions where the first lower striking portions are opposite the first upper striking portions of the upper striking portions in the up and down direction, and the second lower striking portions are opposite the second upper striking portions in the up and down direction. The result of this is that the plurality of the upper striking portions and the lower striking portions are opposite each other in the up and down direction, and the flat conductor is securely clamped at a plurality of places, so contact reliability between the terminals and the flat conductor can be further improved. 
         [0016]    In the present invention, the lower flexible arms and/or the upper flexible arms of the terminals can be in a two-ply structure obtained by bending a single sheet of metal. The result of this is that the terminals are formed in a two-ply structure at the lower flexible arms and/or the upper flexible arms, which ensures good contact reliability while lowering the height and reducing the size in the longitudinal direction. 
       Effects of the Invention 
       [0017]    As discussed above, with the present invention, in order for a flat conductor to be clamped on both sides from above and below, the lower arms and upper arms of the terminals each have a plurality of lower flexible arms and upper flexible arms that are elastically displaceable independently of each other, the plurality of lower flexible arms each have a lower striking portion and the plurality of upper flexible arms each have an upper striking portion, and the plurality of lower striking portions strike the lower face of the flat conductor while the plurality of upper striking portions strike the upper face, so when a flat conductor has been connected to the connector, if the flat conductor is subjected to tilting, a good state of contact is reliably maintained with some of the plurality of the lower striking portions and some of the plurality of the upper striking portions being displaced independently on both sides of the flat conductor, and the force from the flat conductor is dispersed over the plurality of lower striking portions and upper striking portions, so neither the lower striking portions nor the upper striking portions will be subjected to an excessive force, and as a result contact reliability can be increased between the terminals and the flat conductor. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         [0018]      FIG. 1  illustrates an oblique view of the overall appearance of the connector in an embodiment of the present invention along with a flat conductor just before being connected. 
           [0019]      FIG. 2  illustrates a front view of a terminal used in the connector in  FIG. 1 . 
           [0020]      FIGS. 3A to 3C  illustrate cross sections at the terminal position of the connector in  FIG. 1 , with  FIG. 3A  showing the state just before connection of the flat conductor,  FIG. 3B  the state after the flat conductor has been inserted into the connector, and  FIG. 3C  the connected state of the flat conductor and the terminal. 
           [0021]      FIG. 4  illustrates an oblique view of another embodiment of the terminals of the connector in  FIG. 1 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0022]    The connector  1  in the embodiment shown in  FIG. 1  has a housing  10  that accepts the front end portion of a flat conductor P in which a circuit P 1  has been formed on this front end portion of the flat conductor P, terminals  20  that are supported by the housing  10  and are in contact with and connected to the circuit P 1  of the flat conductor P, and a pressurizing member  30  for raising the contact pressure between the terminals  20  and the circuit P 1  of the flat conductor P. The side edges of the flat conductor P are provided with latching tabs P 2  that latch onto latching protrusions provided on the connector side and prevent the flat conductor P from coming loose. 
         [0023]    The housing  10  is made of an electrically insulating material, and has a relatively flat, rectangular outer shape. A receptacle  11  for receiving the front end portion of the flat conductor P faces rearward, and is formed between a bottom wall  12  and an upper wall  13  so as to open upward at its rear end portion as well. A plurality of terminals  20  are arranged in the receptacle  11 , with the width direction of the receptacle  11  being the terminal arrangement direction. The housing  10  has side walls  14  that restrict the position of the front end portion of the flat conductor P in the width direction when it is inserted into the receptacle  11 , and the bottom wall  12  and the upper wall  13  are linked at the side end positions of these side walls  14 . Latching protrusions  14 A that latch with the above-mentioned latching tabs P 2  of the flat conductor P are provided on their inner faces. 
         [0024]    The pressurizing member  30  for supporting the contact pressure of the terminals  20  against the flat conductor P inserted into the receptacle  11  is located between the front end portions of the side walls  14  inside a front opening  15  formed on the front end side of the housing  10 , and is rotatably supported by the terminals  20 . 
         [0025]    The internal structure forming the receptacle  11  of the housing  10 , the terminals  20 , and the pressurizing member  30  will now be described through reference to  FIGS. 2 and 3 . 
         [0026]    The terminals  20  are made of sheet metal, and in the embodiment shown in  FIG. 2 , the plane of the sheet metal is maintained parallel to the viewing plane. The terminal  20  has a lower arm  21  and an upper arm  22  which are long in the lateral direction, and a linking portion  23  that links the arms at an intermediate position in their lengthwise direction (longitudinal direction). 
         [0027]    The lower arms  21  each have a fixed arm  24  that is fixed to and supported by the bottom wall  12  in surface contact along the bottom wall  12  of the housing  10  (discussed below) (see also  FIG. 3A ), a first lower flexible arm  25  that extends forward with an upward gradient from the fixed arm  24  at a position near the rear end of the fixed arm  24  (the left end in  FIG. 2 ), and a second lower flexible arm  26  that extends rearward from the fixed arms  24  so as to approach the first lower flexible arms  25  at a position of the linking portion  23  ahead of the first lower flexible arms  25 . 
         [0028]    As seen in  FIG. 3A , the fixed arm  24  has at its rear end a rear fixed protrusion  24 A, which is fixed by press-fitting rearward toward a rear fixing groove  12 A formed at the rear end of the bottom wall  12  of the housing  10  and which protrudes to the upper edge of the fixed arm  24 . The fixed arm  24  has at its front end a connecting portion  24 B that protrudes downward from the front end lower edge of the bottom wall  12  of the housing  10  and is located at the same level with or slightly below the lower face of the bottom wall  12 . The connecting portion  24 B is soldered onto a circuit board, to the corresponding circuit portion of the circuit board. 
         [0029]    A first lower striking portion  25 A in the form of a protrusion that faces upward is formed at the front end of the first lower flexible arm  25  extending forward from near the rear end of the fixed arm  24 , and a second lower striking portion  26 A in the form of a protrusion that faces upward is formed at the rear end of the second lower flexible arm  26  extending rearward from the position of the linking portion  23 . The first lower striking portion  25 A and the second lower striking portion  26 A are close together in the longitudinal direction, but are not touching, and in this longitudinal direction, they are located within the range of the circuit P 1  of the flat conductor P inserted up to the normal position in the receptacle  11 . When the circuit P 1  of the flat conductor P is formed on the lower face of the flat conductor P, the first lower striking portion  25 A and the second lower striking portion  26 A function as the contact portions of the terminal  20 , and when the circuit P 1  is formed only on the upper face of the flat conductor P, they function as support portions that support the flat conductor from below. The first lower flexible arm  25  and the second lower flexible arm  26  are both capable of elastic bending displacement in the up and down direction, and the first lower striking portion  25 A and the second lower striking portion  26 A produce a striking force based on this elastic bending displacement between themselves and the flat conductor P. 
         [0030]    The upper arm  22  positioned above the lower arm  21  and linked to the lower arm  21  by the linking portion  23  has a first upper flexible arm  27  and a second upper flexible arm  28  constituting two arms extending rearward from the position of the linking portion  23 , and a pressure receiving arm  29  extending forward from the position of the linking portion  23 . 
         [0031]    The first upper flexible arm  27  and the second upper flexible arm  28  extend rearward and substantially parallel in a state in which the first upper flexible arm  27  is located above the second upper flexible arm  28 , a first upper striking portion  27 A in the form of a protrusion that faces downward is provided to the rear end of the first upper flexible arm  27 , and a second upper striking portion  28 A in the form of a protrusion that faces downward is provided to the rear end of the second upper flexible arm  28 . The first upper striking portion  27 A is located in substantially the same position as the first lower striking portion  25 A of the first lower flexible arm  25  in the longitudinal direction and opposite the first lower striking portion  25 A in the up and down direction with a gap in the up and down direction so that the flat conductor P can be inserted, while the second upper striking portion  28 A is located in substantially the same position as the second lower striking portion  26 A of the second lower flexible arm  26  in the longitudinal direction and is opposite the second lower striking portion  26 A in the up and down direction. Since the first upper flexible arm  27  and the second upper flexible arm  28  both extend rearward from the position of the linking portion  23 , and the rear ends where the first upper striking portion  27 A and the second upper striking portion  28 A are located are positioned corresponding to the first lower striking portion  25 A and the second lower striking portion  26 A in the longitudinal direction, the length of the receptacle  22  facing rearward from the linking portion  23  is shorter than the lower arm  21 . 
         [0032]    The pressure receiving arm  29  extending forward from the linking portion  23  is relatively wide (in the up and down direction), and a pressure receiving portion  29 A that is curved in a concave shape is formed at the lower edge thereof on the front end side. This pressure receiving portion  29 A receives upward force from the cam of the pressurizing member  30  (discussed below). Because it is wide as mentioned above, the pressure receiving arm  29  is rigid, but because the linking portion  23  is comparatively narrow (in the left and right direction), when upward force is received from the cam by the pressure receiving portion  29 A, the pressure receiving arm  29  itself does not bend, but the linking portion  23  undergoes elastic bending displacement in the direction of rotation at the portion linked to the pressure receiving arm  29 , and as a result the pressure receiving arm  29  inclines upward, and the above-mentioned two arms, namely, the first upper flexible arm  27  and the second upper flexible arm  28 , incline downward with this linking position serving as the fulcrum. Since the first upper flexible arm  27  and the second upper flexible arm  28  are thus inclined downward, the first upper striking portion  27 A and the second upper striking portion  28 A provided to their rear ends strike the flat conductor and press the flat conductor downward. 
         [0033]    When the circuit P 1  of the flat conductor P is formed on the lower face of the flat conductor P, the first upper striking portion  27 A and the second upper striking portion  28 A function as pressing portions that press the flat conductor P toward the first lower striking portion  25 A and the second lower striking portion  26 A constituting the contact portions of the terminal  20 , and when the circuit P 1  of the flat conductor P is formed only on the upper face of the flat conductor P or is also formed on the upper face in addition, they function as pressing portions and also function as contact portions. The first upper flexible arm  27  and the second upper flexible arm  28  are both capable of elastic bending displacement in the up and down direction, and the first upper striking portion  27 A and the second upper striking portion  28 A produce a striking force based on the above-mentioned elastic bending displacement between themselves and the flat conductor P. 
         [0034]    The internal structure of the housing  10  that supports the terminals  20  as described above is as follows. 
         [0035]    In the housing  10 , a terminal holding groove  16  is formed between the bottom wall  12  and the upper wall  13 . The terminal holding groove  16  has a lower groove  16 A formed on the upper face of the bottom wall  12  and an upper groove  16 B formed on the lower face of the upper wall  13 , with the two grooves opposite each other. In  FIG. 3 , the grooves  16  are arranged at positions corresponding to the terminals  20  in a direction that is perpendicular to the viewing plane. 
         [0036]    The housing  10  is such that the receptacle  11 , an insertion portion  18  that extends forward from the receptacle  11  and is used for inserting and positioning the flat conductor P, and the front opening  15  all extend at a right angle to the viewing plane of  FIG. 3  over the range between the two side walls  14 . Therefore, the terminal holding groove  16  made up of the lower groove  16 A and the upper groove  16 B is penetrated by the insertion portion  18  between the lower groove  16 A and the upper groove  16 B. 
         [0037]    The rear fixing grooves  12 A, which are formed in the lower arms  21  of the terminals  20  at the rear end position and into which are press-fitted the rear fixed protrusions  24 A, are formed opening forward in the bottom wall  12  of the housing  10 . Also, the front end of the bottom wall  12  is notched so that the connecting portions  24 B of the terminals  20  can stick out. 
         [0038]    With this type of connector, the receptacle  11  is open not only to the rear, but also upward at the rear portion of the housing  10  in order to facilitate the work of inserting the flat conductor P into the receptacle  11 . In other words, the bottom wall  12  of the housing  10  protrudes far to the rear of the upper wall  13 . The rear fixing grooves  12 A make use of the rear end portion of the bottom wall  12  that thus protrudes rearward, and are formed within the wall thickness thereof. The formation of these rear fixing grooves  12 A makes it unnecessary to provide fixing portions for fixing the terminals inside the housing. Also, the upper face of the bottom wall  12  has the function of guiding the slide of the front end of the flat conductor P toward the first lower flexible arms  25  of the terminals  20  when the flat conductor P is inserted. 
         [0039]    Also, the upper wall  13  of the housing  10  is notched so that the portion near the rear end will form the receptacle  11 , and the portion near the front end will form the front opening  15 . 
         [0040]    The pressurizing member  30  disposed in the front opening  15  of the connector  1  is similar to the housing  10  in that it is made of an electrically insulating material, and is rotatably supported by the pressure receiving portions  29 A formed on the upper arms  22  of the terminals  20 . This pressurizing member  30  is able to rotate between the open position shown in  FIGS. 3A and 3B , and the closed position shown in  FIG. 3C . The pressurizing member  30  has a base portion  31  that is housed in the front opening  15  of the housing  10 , and a manipulation portion  32  that protrudes upward from the front opening  15 , in the open position in  FIG. 3A . 
         [0041]    In the base portion  31  are formed pressure receiving arm accepting grooves  33  that extend in a plane parallel to the viewing plane, so as to accept the pressure receiving arms  29  of the upper arms  22  of the terminals  20 , at positions corresponding to the terminals  20  in the terminal arrangement direction, which is at a right angle to the viewing plane in  FIG. 3A . A cam  34  is provided inside each pressure receiving arm accepting groove  33  so as to connect the opposing inner faces of the pressure receiving arm accepting grooves  33 . These cams  34  each have a shaft  34 A that is formed in a concave shape in a pressure receiving arm  29  and is located within a pressure receiving portion  29 A, and an arm  34 B that extends to the right from the pressure receiving portion  29 A in  FIG. 3A . 
         [0042]    The arms  34 B are such that when the pressurizing member  30  rotates around the shafts  34 A within the pressure receiving portions  29 A from the open position in  FIG. 3A  to the closed position in  FIG. 3C , as seen in  FIG. 3C , the distal ends (lower ends) of the arms  34 B of the cams  34  of the pressurizing member  30  strike the front end upper edges  24 C of the lower arms  21  of the terminals  20  and receive a repulsion force from the front end upper edges  24 C, this force is transmitted through the shafts  34 A to the pressure receiving portions  29 A of the terminals  20 , and the pressure receiving portions  29 A are lifted upward. 
         [0043]    The connector of this embodiment configured as above is used in the following manner. 
         [0044]    The flat conductor P seen in  FIG. 1  has the circuit P 1  on its upper face side, and when the flat conductor P is used in the connector  1  as it is orientated, the first upper striking portions  27 A and the second upper striking portions  28 A formed on the two flexible arms, namely the first upper flexible arms  27  and the second upper flexible arms  28 , provided to the upper arms  22  of the terminals  20  function as pressing portions that press the flat conductor P from above, and also function as contact portions that are in contact with and connected to the circuit P 1  of the flat conductor P. 
         [0045]    As shown in  FIG. 3A , first the pressurizing member  30  is put in the open position where it rises upward, and the front end side of the flat conductor P where the circuit P 1  is provided is positioned in a slightly inclined orientation directly rearward of the receptacle  11  of the connector  1 . 
         [0046]    Next, the flat conductor P is gradually put into a horizontal orientation while being inserted forward toward the receptacle  11  and, as seen in  FIG. 3B , the front end potion of the flat conductor P passes through the space between the first lower striking portions  25 A and the second lower striking portions  26 A and the first upper striking portions  27 A as well as the second upper striking portions  28 A of the terminals  20  in the up and down direction, and the flat conductor P is moved forward until it strikes the innermost wall face of the insertion portion  18  of the housing  10 . The front end portion of the flat conductor P here is guided toward the first lower flexible arms  25  of the terminals  20  at the rear end upper face of the bottom wall  12  where the rear fixing grooves  12 A are located. When the front end portion of the flat conductor P strikes the innermost wall face of the insertion portion  18 , the flat conductor P has been inserted up to its normal position. In this normal position, the latching tabs P 2  of the flat conductor P are latched with the latching protrusions  14 A of the housing  10 , which prevents the flat conductor P from coming loose. 
         [0047]    After this, the pressurizing member  30  is rotated from the open position in  FIG. 3B  to a closed position (horizontal state) as seen in  FIG. 3C . When the pressurizing member  30  is rotated to the closed position, the arms  34 B of the cams  34  of the pressurizing member  30  strike the front end upper edges  24 C of the lower arms  21  of the terminals  20  and receive an upward repulsion force from the front end upper edges  24 C, this force is transmitted through the shafts  34 A of the cams  34  to the pressure receiving portions  29 A formed on the upper arms  22  of the terminals  20 , these upper arms  22  tilt so as to be lifted upward in front of the linking portions  23 , with the linking portions  23  serving as the fulcrum, and the first upper flexible arms  27  and the second upper flexible arms  28  are tilted downward at the rear of the linking portions  23 . As a result, the first upper flexible arms  27  and the second upper flexible arms  28  undergo elastic bending displacement independently of each other, while coming into contact with the circuit P 1  of the flat conductor P at the first upper striking portions  27 A and the second upper striking portions  28 A, respectively, and pressing the flat conductor P downward. 
         [0048]    Therefore, the first lower flexible arms  25  and the second lower flexible arms  26 , which receive the downward pressing force via the flat conductor P at the first lower striking portions  25 A and the second lower striking portions  26 A, undergo elastic displacement independently of each other while supporting the flat conductor P from its lower face. 
         [0049]    Thus, the first lower striking portions  25 A are opposite the first upper striking portions  27 A and the second lower striking portions  26 A are opposite the second upper striking portions  28 A in the up and down direction, independently of each other, and clamp the flat conductor P, and the first upper striking portions  27 A and second upper striking portions  28 A, or the first lower striking portions  25 A and second lower striking portions  26 A function as contact portions. Here, the first lower flexible arms  25  on which the first lower striking portions  25 A are formed, the second lower flexible arms  26  on which the second lower striking portions  26 A are formed, the first upper flexible arms  27  on which the first upper striking portions  27 A are formed, and the second upper flexible arms  28  on which the second upper striking portions  28 A are formed are capable of elastic bending displacement independently of each other, so they will be in a good contact state without affecting one another, the contact pressure is maintained at each, and contact reliability with the circuit P 1  of the flat conductor P is improved. The same applies when the circuit P 1  is provided on both sides of the flat conductor P. 
         [0050]    Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described through reference to  FIG. 4 . 
         [0051]    With the previous embodiment in  FIGS. 1 to 3 , the terminals  20  had the plane of the metal sheets maintained, and the first upper flexible arms, the second upper flexible arms, the first lower flexible arms, and the second lower flexible arms were all located in the same plane, but with the embodiment in  FIG. 4 , the second upper flexible arm  28  is bent at its base by an upper bending portion  22 B with respect to the first upper flexible arm  27  and is in a two-ply structure with the first upper flexible arm  27 , while the second lower flexible arm  26  is bent at its base by a lower bending portion  22 A with respect to the first lower flexible arm  25  and is in a two-ply structure with the first lower flexible arm  25 . This is different from the previous embodiment in which the first lower flexible arm  25  and the second lower flexible arm  26  extended in the same direction and were substantially in vertical symmetry with respect to the first upper flexible arm  27  and the second upper flexible arm, and the first lower flexible arm and the second lower flexible arm extended in mutually opposite directions. This embodiment is the same as the previous embodiment in that the first upper striking portions  27 A and the second upper striking portions  28 A are in respectively different positions from those of the first lower striking portions  25 A and the second lower striking portions  26 A in the longitudinal direction, and in that the first upper striking portions  27 A and the first lower striking portions  25 A are respectively opposite the second upper striking portions  28 A and the second lower striking portions  26 A in the up and down direction. 
         [0052]    With this embodiment, the second upper flexible arms  28  are made into a two-ply structure with respect to the first upper flexible arms  27  by bending at the upper bending portions  22 B, and the second lower flexible arms  26  are made into a two-ply structure with respect to the first lower flexible arms  25  by bending at the lower bending portions  22 A, but even so, because there is a bending allowance provided at the upper bending portions  22 B and the lower bending portions  22 A, there is a gap between the first upper flexible arms  27  and the second upper flexible arms  28 , so they are capable of undergoing elastic bending displacement independently of each other. Similarly, the first lower flexible arms  25  and the second lower flexible arms  26  are capable of undergoing elastic bending displacement independently of each other. As a result, good contact can be ensured between the flat conductor P and the first upper striking portions  27 A, the second upper striking portions  28 A, the first lower striking portions  25 A, and the second lower striking portions  26 A, respectively. 
         [0053]    In this embodiment, front end upper edges  24 C of the lower arms  21  are located higher than in the previous embodiment, but this means that the arms  34 B in the cams  34  of the pressurizing member  30  can be shorter. 
         [0054]    Also, the upper arms and lower arms each had two upper flexible arms and two lower flexible arms as in the drawings, but may instead have three or more of each. 
       DESCRIPTION OF THE REFERENCE CODES 
       [0000]    
       
           20  terminals 
           21  lower arm 
           22  upper arm 
           23  linking portion 
           25  first lower flexible arm 
           25 A first lower striking portion 
           26  second lower flexible arm 
           26 A second lower striking portion 
           27  first upper flexible arm 
           27 A first upper striking portion 
           28  second upper flexible arm 
           28 A second upper striking portion 
           30  pressurizing member