JP2000315545A - Connector mating structure - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To provide a connector fitting in which a mating state is reliably detected during a fitting operation of a pair of male and female connectors, and the fitting operation is not disabled during the fitting operation. Provide structure. SOLUTION: The connector fitting structure 1 of the present invention provides a housing lock 1 in which a male connector 10 is engaged with an engagement projection 43.
Arm 16 having an upper portion 8 and a pressing portion 19 at the top, and a first engaging portion 46 on the back surface of the outer housing 11.
And a second engaging portion 48 in the outer housing 11 below the lock arm 16. In the outer housing 11, first and second slide members 21 and 26 which are slidable in the fitting direction and sandwich the compression spring 33 are provided.
The slide member 26 locks the first engagement arm 28 that engages with the first engagement portion 46, the second engagement arm 47 that engages with the second engagement portion 48, and the lock arm 16 after fitting. The first slide member 21 has a locking groove 27 for allowing the first engagement arm 28 to escape.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a resilient member mounted on at least one housing of a pair of male and female connectors which are fitted and connected to each other. The present invention relates to a connector fitting structure for securely performing a fitting lock of the connector.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a vehicle such as an automobile is equipped with a large number of electronic devices, and various cables and male and female connectors for connecting the cables are frequently used to supply and control power to the devices. I have. The male and female connectors have a waterproof function in consideration of use in harsh environments such as vibration and flooding, and a function to easily connect and disconnect cables in consideration of the assembly process and maintenance. are doing. Various connector fitting structures that can detect the fitting state of the male and female connectors have been proposed.

An example of a conventional connector fitting structure will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 9, a male connector 60, which is one of the connectors constituting the conventional connector fitting structure 51, includes an inner housing 62 having a terminal accommodating chamber, which is opened forward, and a slider 70 which will be described later slides over the inner housing 62. And the inner housing 6
2 Outer housing 61 forming a hood portion covering the outer periphery
It is composed of

The outer housing 61 includes a slider 7
And a slider housing 63 for housing the slider 70 on both sides of the housing.
Are provided with guide grooves 65 for guiding the both side end portions.
A lock arm 66 having a free end on the front side along the axis of the fitting direction is integrally provided on the inner housing 62 in the slider accommodating portion 63.

A pair of housing locks 68 are provided at the upper end of the lock arm 66 to lock an engagement projection 93 (see FIG. 9) of a mating housing 91 described later. Pressing part 69 operated at the time of release
Is provided. A pair of engaging members 67 are provided on the rear side along the axis of the fitting direction behind the slider accommodating portion 63 and at the rear end of the free end to temporarily prevent the slider 70 from moving rearward. A stop arm 67 is provided.

The slider 70 has a first slide member 71 which is guided by the guide groove 65 and slides in the slider accommodating portion 63, and a second slide member 76 which is engaged behind the first slide member 71. , And a compression spring 83 which is an elastic member held in the second slide member 76. The first slide member 71 includes a pair of stopper arms 73, 73 extending rearward and abutting on one end of the compression spring 83, and a connecting portion 74 connecting the stopper arms 73. Below the connecting portion 74, a contact portion 75 is provided, with which a pressing rib 92 on the female connector 90 side described below contacts. Further, on both side ends of the connecting portion 74, an engagement arm portion 7 on the second slide member 76 side described later is provided.
8 are provided with a pair of slide grooves 72, 72 which allow the movement of the slide groove 8.

An outer portion of the second slide member 76 is slidably fitted into the guide groove 65, and a locking portion 77 for locking the housing lock 68 at the tip of the lock arm 66 when displaced is provided at the lower front end. Has been extended. A flexible operating portion 79 that is operated at the time of disengagement is provided at the center upper portion of the second slide member 76, and the pressing portion 69 of the lock arm 66 is inserted at the time of insertion into the slider accommodating portion 63.
From above. Also, the second slide member 7
A pair of engagement arms 78, 78 that are locked to the stopper arm 73 of the first slide member 71 are provided on both side ends of the sixth slide 6. A spring housing chamber 81 for housing and holding the compression spring 83 is provided on both inner wall portions of the second slide member 76.

Next, a female connector 9 as the other connector is provided.
0 has a housing insertion opening 94 opened forward, and a first sliding member 71 is provided at the center of the outer wall on the housing 91.
A pressing rib 92 is provided upright against an abutting portion 75 of the lock arm 6.
A pair of engaging projections 93 are provided for bending the housing 6 and engaging the housing lock 68.

Next, the connector fitting structure 5 having the above-described structure is used.
1 will be described. First, the slider 70 is assembled as shown in FIG. That is, the slider 70 is assembled with one set of the compression springs 8.
3 is inserted into the spring accommodating chamber 81 in the second slide member 76, and then the stopper arm portion 7 of the first slide member 71 is inserted.
The first slide member 71 and the second slide member 76 are integrated with the third 3 held in the spring accommodating chamber 81.

Next, the slider 70 is assembled to the male connector 60 from the front of the male connector 60 by the slider housing 6.
The slider 70 is pushed into the slider 3. At this time, the stopper arm 73 and the connecting part 74 of the first slide member 71
And the side end portion of the second slide member 76 is fitted into the guide groove 65, and the rear end portion of the second slide member 76 abuts against the locking arm 67, thereby completing the mounting of the slider 70.

Next, the operation of fitting the male and female connectors 60 and 90 constituting the connector fitting structure 51 of the above-described conventional type will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG.
The male and female connectors are fitted so that the outer housing 61 of the male connector 60 is fitted externally to the housing 91 of the female connector 90 from the state where the inner housing 62 of the male connector 60 and the housing insertion port 94 of the female connector 90 face each other as shown in FIG. Start the joint operation. At this time, the pressing rib 92 of the female connector 90 is inserted into the insertion notch 77 of the second slide member 76.
a (see FIG. 9), and the front end of the pressing rib 92 comes into contact with the contact portion 75 of the first slide member 71.

Then, as shown in FIG.
0 pressing rib 92 pushes the first slide member 71 while inserting the lock space 66 of the lock arm 66 of the male connector 60.
6a (see FIG. 9). At this time, the inclined surface of the housing lock 68 at the distal end of the lock arm 66 and the engaging projection 93 at the front end of the pressing rib 92 are in sliding contact, and the distal end of the lock arm 66 is moved toward the housing 91 of the female connector 90 (downward in the figure). Displace. Therefore, the tip of the housing lock 68 is engaged with the locking portion 77 of the second slide member 76, and the second slide member 76 is moved to the first slide member 71.
At the same time, it becomes impossible to slide integrally.

When the fitting operation is further advanced, the pressing rib 9
2, the first slide member 71 moves rearward.
At this time, the slide groove 72 on the side of the first slide member 71
The movement of the engagement arm 78 (see FIG. 9) of the second slide member 76 into the inside (see FIG. 9) is allowed. With the second slide member 76 stopped, the first slide member 71
Is moved, the compression spring 83 in the second slide member 76 is compressed, and a restoring force that attempts to return elastically is generated. Assume that the housing lock 6 on the male connector 60 side is used.
8 and the engagement protrusion 93 of the female connector 90 side is not fully engaged, and when the engagement operation is stopped, the compression spring 83 restores the force in the release direction opposite to the engagement direction by the restoring force of the compression spring 83. One slide member 71 is pushed back. Thereby, the female connector 90 is pushed back in the detaching direction via the pressing rib 92 which has been in contact with the contact portion 75 of the first slide member 71, and the halfway fitted state can be prevented.

Further, as shown in FIG.
When the fitting operation is advanced against the female connector 90, the engagement protrusion 93 on the female connector 90 side moves to the housing lock 6 at the tip of the lock arm 66.
Overcoming 8 and returning elastically. As a result, the engagement state between the distal end portion of the housing lock 68 and the locking portion 77 at the distal end of the second slide member 76 is released, and the housing lock 68
Is engaged with the rear end of the engagement projection 93. Therefore, the male connector 60 and the female connector 90 are in a completely fitted state, and both contacts 64 and 95 are also in a completely electrically connected state.

[0015]

However, in the conventional connector fitting structure 51, when the slider 70 is completely assembled, a slight restoring force acts on the compression spring 83, so that the conventional connector fitting structure 51 is assembled to the male connector 60. When the sheet is conveyed in the state of being moved, the engagement arm 78 may be disengaged from the engagement surface of the stopper arm 73 due to vibration during the conveyance, or the like.
There is a possibility that the rear end face of the second slide member 76 may come off the locking projection 67a of the locking arm 67. Therefore, the first slide member 71 falls out before the fitting operation, or the second slide member 76 moves to the rear portion of the outer housing 61 arbitrarily, and the locking portion 77 enters the lower surface of the housing lock 68 to lock the housing. There is a problem that the arm 66 does not bend during the fitting operation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and it is possible to reliably detect an interim mating state during a mating operation of a pair of male and female connectors, and to perform a mating operation during a mating operation. It is an object of the present invention to provide a connector fitting structure that does not prevent the connection.

[0017]

The above objects of the present invention can be attained by the connector fitting structure described in the following items 1) to 3). 1) Out of a set of male and female connectors that are fitted and connected to each other, the inner housing includes a front opening and an outer housing that covers the inner housing and slidably mounts a slider, and a front end on the inner housing. A connector provided with a lock arm provided with a housing lock, and a pressing rib on the housing which collides with the slider, wherein the locking arm is bent on both sides of the distal end of the pressing rib, and the housing is bent. The other connector provided with a pair of engagement protrusions for engaging the lock,
A first slide member in which the slider slides in the outer housing in the axial direction; a second slide member engaged behind the first slide member; a second slide member held in the second slide member; In a connector fitting structure comprising: an elastic member that exerts an elastic force in a direction for separating the second slide member from each other, the second slide member is provided on a back surface of an outer housing of the one connector. A flexible first engagement arm that engages with the first engagement portion, and a flexible second engagement arm that also engages with a second engagement portion provided on the outer housing. The first sliding member and the second
When the slide member approaches against the repulsive force of the elastic member, the first slide member releases the engagement state of the first engagement arm and forms a slide groove for releasing the first engagement arm. And the second slide member
A connector fitting structure, wherein an engagement state of an engagement arm is released by a tip end of the housing of the other connector.

2) The second slide member has a locking portion at a front end thereof for suppressing downward displacement of the housing lock, and a rearwardly inclined surface is provided at a rear end surface of the locking portion. 3) The second slide member includes a plate-shaped locking auxiliary arm that is locked to the locking auxiliary surface of the first slide member.

According to the connector fitting structure having the above structure, the second slide member is engaged with the first engagement portion provided on the back surface of the outer housing of one connector.
Since the engagement arm is provided, the housing of the other connector fits into one connector, and the engagement projection of the other connector pushes down the housing lock, and then the distal end of the first engagement arm is inserted into the slide groove. The first engagement arm is not released from the first engagement portion unless the first is released. Therefore, the second
Since the slide member does not retreat by vibration or the like before the housing lock is depressed, the fitting operation of the male and female connectors does not become impossible, so that the reliability of the male and female connectors can be improved. .

Further, the second slide member has a flexible second engagement arm which engages with the second engagement portion provided on the outer housing of the one connector.
Until the second engagement arm is disengaged from the second engagement portion by the end of the housing of the other connector, that is, immediately before the housing lock is engaged with the engagement projection of the other connector, the second slide member vibrates. Does not release the engagement state. Therefore, the elastic force of the elastic member is kept high until just before the complete mating, so that if the mating force is loosened in the halfway mated state, the other connector can be reliably and strongly separated from the male and female connectors. Can be further improved.

Further, the second slide member has a locking portion at a front end thereof for suppressing downward displacement of the housing lock, and a rearwardly inclined surface is provided at a rear end surface of the locking portion. The lock slides smoothly on the rear end face of the engaging portion by the large elastic force of the elastic member, and is engaged with the engaging projection of the other connector. Therefore, complete fitting is reliably performed with a relatively small low fitting force, so that the reliability of the male and female connectors can be further improved.

Further, since the second slide member has a flat plate-shaped locking auxiliary arm which is locked to the locking auxiliary surface of the first slide member, the second slide member is stably engaged with the first slide member. The slider does not come off from the first slide member due to vibration or the like, and the reliability of the slider can be improved.

[0023]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the connector fitting structure of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an embodiment of the connector fitting structure of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a slider in FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a male and female connector housing in FIG. 1, and FIG. 5 is an operation explanatory view at the time of starting fitting in FIG. 5, FIG.
1 is an operation explanatory view in the middle of the fitting in FIG. 1, FIG. 6 is an operational explanatory view showing a state in which the fitting is further advanced in FIG. 1, FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view at the time of the completion of the fitting in FIG. FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing an inclined state of a rear end surface of a locking portion in FIG.

Connector fitting structure 1 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3
Is an inner housing 1 in which a socket contact 14 is inserted into a male connector 10 as one connector of a pair of female and male connectors which are fitted and connected to each other and opened forward.
2 and a hood-shaped outer housing 11 that slidably mounts the slider 20 on the upper part of the inner housing 12 and covers the inner housing 12. A lock arm 16 having flexibility provided on the inner housing 12 along the axis in the fitting direction,
At the front end, a hook-shaped housing lock 18 is provided.
9 are provided.

More specifically, the inner housing 1
A slider accommodating portion 13 is formed between the upper surface of the outer housing 11 and the rear surface of the upper surface of the outer housing 11, and guide grooves 15 for guiding both end portions of the slider 20 are provided on the inner wall of the housing at both end portions. A side space 13a for inserting the slider 20 is provided between the lock arm 16 and the inner wall of the outer housing 11. An insertion space 16a is provided between the lock arm 16 and the housing lock 18, and the inner housing 12
Is covered with a seal member 12a (see FIG. 4). Further, on the rear surface of the outer housing 11, a first engagement portion 46 for engaging a first engagement arm 28 described later is provided, and a second engagement portion 48 for engaging a second engagement arm 47 described later. Is provided.

The slider 20 is mounted on the outer housing 1.
1, a first slide member 21 that slides in the axial direction, a second slide member 26 that is engaged behind the first slide member 21, and a first slide member 21 that is held in the second slide member 26.
A compression spring 33 is provided as an elastic member that exerts an elastic force in a direction to separate the second slide members 21 and 26 from each other.

The first slide member 21 extends rearward and a pair of stopper arms 23 abutting on one end of a compression spring 33, and a pair of stopper arms 23
And a connecting portion 24 for connecting the two at the front end.
A contact portion 25 is provided below the front end of the connector 4 for contact with a pressing rib 42 on the female connector 40 described later. Also,
A locking auxiliary surface 23a for locking a locking auxiliary arm 49 described later is provided on an upper portion of the stopper arm 23. Further, when the first and second slide members 21 and 26 approach each other at the time of the fitting operation of the male and female connectors, a slide groove 22 for allowing a distal end portion of a first engagement arm 28 described later to escape is provided at the rear end of the connecting portion 24. It is provided in.

The second slide member 26 is provided at the lower portion of the front end with the locking portion 2 for suppressing the downward displacement of the housing lock 18.
7 is extended forward, and a detachment preventing portion 29 for operating at the time of disengagement is provided at the upper center, and covers the pressing portion 19 when the slider 20 is mounted on the outer housing 11. A notch 27 is provided between the pair of locking portions 27 so that a pressing rib 42 described later of the female connector 40 does not interfere when the female and male connectors 10 and 40 are fitted.
a is provided. Further, by moving the second slide member 26 forward at the time of disengagement, the lock arm 16 is moved.
A release projection 50 is provided on the lower surface of the front end of the detachment prevention portion 29 for abutting against the pressing portion 19 to bend the lock arm 16 downward to release the engagement state of the housing lock 18. Further, a pair of locking auxiliary arms 49 having a flat and flexible shape having a locking auxiliary projection 49a on the lower surface of the front end, which is locked to the locking auxiliary surface 23a of the first slide member 21.
It has. Further, an inclined surface 30 having a downwardly inclined inclination angle β is provided on the rear end surface of the locking portion 27 (see FIG. 8).

Further, the second slide member 26 has a hook-shaped first locking projection 28a which is engaged with a first engaging portion 46 provided on the back surface of the outer housing 11 at its front end, and is flexible. A pair of first engaging arms 28 having a hook-shaped second locking projection 47a to be engaged with a second engaging portion 48 provided on the outer housing 11 at the front end, and having flexibility. A second engagement arm 47 is provided.

In the housing 41 of the female connector 40 as the other connector, a pin contact 45 protrudes in the fitting direction, and a central portion of the outer wall on the housing 41 is provided with the first slide member 21 described above. A pressing rib 42 abutting on the contact portion 25 extends along the fitting direction. Further, a pair of engaging projections 43 for bending the lock arm 16 and engaging the housing lock 18 are provided on both sides of the tip of the pressing rib 42 opposed to each other.

Next, the connector fitting structure 1 having the above-described structure will be described.
Will be described. First, as shown in FIG. 2, after setting compression springs 33 on both sides of the second slide member 26,
When the stopper arm 23 of the first slide member 21 is brought into contact, the locking auxiliary projection 49a of the locking auxiliary arm 49 is locked on the locking auxiliary surface 23a, and the assembly of the slider 20 is completed.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3, along the guide groove 15 of the outer housing 11, the front end surface of the connecting portion 24 of the first slide member 21 of the slider 20 is flush with the inside of the slider accommodating portion 13. insert. Then, as shown in FIG. 1, the first locking projection 28a of the first engagement arm 28 of the second slide member 26 is locked by the first engagement portion 46 of the outer housing 11, and the second engagement The second locking projection 47 a of the arm 47 is locked to the second engaging portion 48. Therefore,
Since the second slide member 26 is locked to the outer housing 11 of the male connector 10 at a total of three places of the pair of the first engagement arm 28 and the second engagement arm 47, the first and second members of the outer housing 11 are provided. The first and second engagement arms 28 and 47 do not come off the engagement portions 46 and 48 and move rearward.

Next, when the inner wall of the housing 41 of the female connector 40 is inserted so as to be guided by the outer periphery of the inner housing 12 of the male connector 10 as shown in FIG. The contact portion 25 of the member 21 and the locking portion 27 of the second slide member 26
Is slid into the upper surface of the housing 41.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5, when the mating proceeds, only the first slide member 21 is pressed against the elastic force of the compression spring 33 while the second slide member 26 is held in its position. The compression spring 33 is pressed by the pressing rib 42
Is moved backward in the slider accommodating portion 13 while contracting.
Then, the engagement projection 43 pushes down the housing lock 18, so that the lock arm 16 bends downward.

Next, as shown in FIG. 6, when the fitting further proceeds, the first engaging arm 28 is released from the first engaging portion 46 and is slid into the slide groove 22 so as to escape.
The second engagement arm 47 is also the housing 41 of the female connector 40.
The distal end portion is pressed and released from the second engaging portion 48, and the inclined surface 30 of the locking portion 27 pushes the distal end of the housing lock 18 rearward by the elastic force of the compression spring 33. At this stage,
If the fitting force of the female connector 40 is released, the first slide member 21 is pressed forward by the elastic force of the compression spring 33, so that the female connector 40 is pushed back in the separating direction via the contact portion 25 and the pressing rib 42. It is. Further, if the connector fitting is not completed, the pressing portion 19 on the lock arm 16 is almost covered by the detachment preventing portion 29 of the second slide member 26, so that it is possible to visually detect the incomplete fitting. .

Next, as shown in FIG. 7, when the female connector 40 is further pushed in the fitting direction, the downwardly bent lock arm 16 returns to the original position, and the housing lock 18 becomes the engagement projection 43. Is engaged. Then, the locking part 2
Since the lock 7 is released from the housing lock 18, the second slide member 26 moves to the rear of the male connector 10 by the elastic force of the compression spring 33. At this time, the locking portion 27 is sunk into the lower surface of the housing lock 18, so that the housing lock 18 is locked so as not to bend while being engaged with the engagement protrusion 43. Therefore, the male and female connectors 10 and 40 are in a completely fitted state, and the fitted state is not released by vibration or the like. Further, since the disengagement prevention portion 29 of the second slide member 26 is separated rearward from the pressing portion 19 above the lock arm 16, it can be visually detected that the engagement state is complete. Further, even when the repulsive force of the compression spring 33 suddenly decreases, the completely fitted state can be detected.

By the way, as shown in FIG. 8 (a), when the rear end face of the locking portion 27 is inclined forward and downward by the vertical wall or the inclination angle α °, as shown in FIG. Since the distal end of the housing lock 18 is pressed by the elastic force of the compression spring 33, the lock arm 16 that has been bent downward cannot return to the upper side with its own restoring force and be engaged with the engagement projection 43. Therefore, the rear end face of the locking portion 27 is as shown in FIG.
When the inclined surface 30 inclined by the downward inclined angle β ° is provided, the lock arm 16 which has been bent downward returns upward along the inclined surface 30 and engages with the engagement protrusion 43 as shown in FIG. Therefore, the fitting operation can be advanced with a low fitting force.

As described above, according to the connector fitting structure of the present embodiment, the male connector 10 engages with the first engaging portion 46 provided on the back surface of the outer housing 11 and the first engaging portion 46 engages with the front end. Since the first engagement arm 28 having the projection 28a is provided, the housing 41 of the female connector 40 is fitted into the male connector 10 and the engagement projection 43 pushes down the housing lock 18, and then the first engagement arm 28 is inserted into the slide groove 22. As long as the arm 28 is not missed, the first engagement arm 28
It is not released from the engaging portion 46. Therefore, the second slide member 26 does not disengage from the outer housing 11 due to vibration or the like before the housing lock 18 is pushed down, and does not retreat to the rear of the housing.
The fitting operation between the 40 and 40 can be reliably performed, and the reliability of the male and female connectors 10 and 40 can be improved.

The second slide member 26 has a second engagement arm 47 having a second engagement projection 47a at the front end, and a second engagement portion 48 is provided on the outer housing 11 of the male connector 10. Therefore, until the second engagement arm 47 is disengaged by the tip of the housing 41 of the female connector 40, that is, immediately before the housing lock 18 is engaged with the engagement projection 43 of the female connector 40, the second slide member 2
6 does not come off the outer housing 11 due to vibration or the like and retreat to the rear of the housing. Therefore, since the compression spring 33 is compressed until immediately before complete fitting, its repulsive force is strongly maintained, and if the fitting force is loosened in the halfway fitted state, the female connector 40 can be reliably pushed in the separating direction. Therefore, the reliability of the male and female connectors 10 and 40 can be further improved.

Further, since the inclined surface 30 inclined downward by an inclination angle β ° is provided on the rear end surface of the locking portion 27 provided on the second slide member 26, the male and female connector 1 is provided.
Immediately before the complete fitting of the female connector 40 and the female connector 40, the housing lock 18 smoothly returns to the rear end surface of the locking portion 27 along the inclined surface 30 while the elastic force of the compression spring 33 is applied. Are engaged with the engagement projections 43 of the first pair. Therefore, since the female and male connectors 10 and 40 are completely fitted, the reliability of the male and female connectors 10 and 40 can be further improved.

It is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but can be applied to various embodiments. For example, although the slider 20 is housed in the male connector 10 in the present embodiment,
It is also possible to house it on the female connector 40 side. Also,
Although the lock arm 16 and the first engagement arm 28 are provided in a pair, respectively, a single arm can be used. Also,
The number of the second engagement arms 47 is not necessarily one, but may be a pair.

[0042]

As described above, according to the connector fitting structure of the present invention, the second slide member can be flexibly engaged with the first engagement portion provided on the back surface of the outer housing of one connector. First engagement arm, and a flexible second engagement arm that also engages with a second engagement portion provided on the outer housing. When the second slide member approaches against the repulsive force of the elastic member, the first slide member has a slide groove for releasing the engagement state of the first engagement arm and releasing the first engagement arm. At the same time, the engagement state of the second engagement arm of the second slide member is released by the housing distal end of the other connector. Therefore, the housing of the other connector fits into the outer housing of one connector,
As long as the first engagement arm does not escape into the slide groove, the first engagement arm is not released from the first engagement portion. Therefore, the fitting operation of the male and female connectors does not become impossible, and the reliability of the male and female connectors can be improved.

Further, the second slide member may be vibrated or the like until the second engagement arm is disengaged by the tip of the housing of the other connector, that is, immediately before the housing lock is engaged with the engagement projection of the other connector. It does not come off the outer housing and retreat to the rear of the housing.
Therefore, if the fitting force is loosened in the halfway fitted state by the elastic force of the elastic member until immediately before the complete fitting, both the male and female connectors can be reliably pushed back in the separating direction. Therefore, the reliability of the male and female connectors can be further improved.

In the connector fitting structure, preferably, the second slide member has a locking portion at a front end thereof for suppressing a downward displacement of the housing lock, and a rearwardly inclined surface on a rear end surface of the locking portion. If a surface is provided,
Immediately before the male and female connectors are completely fitted, the housing lock returns upward along the inclined surface of the rear end face of the locking portion and is engaged with the other connector. Therefore, the fitting operation of the male and female connectors is performed with low insertion force, and the complete fitting of the male and female connectors is reliably performed, so that the reliability of the male and female connectors can be further improved.

Further, in the connector fitting structure,
Preferably, when the second slide member is provided with a plate-shaped locking auxiliary arm that is locked to the locking auxiliary surface of the first slide member, the second slide member is stably engaged with the first slide member, and vibrations and the like are provided. Thus, it is possible to reliably prevent the slider from coming off the first slide member, and to improve the reliability of the slider.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing one embodiment of a connector fitting structure of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the slider in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a main part of a male connector and a female connector in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an operation explanatory view at the time of starting fitting in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of an operation during fitting in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an operation explanatory view of a state in which the fitting is further advanced in FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is an operation explanatory view at the time of completion of fitting in FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is an explanatory view showing an inclined surface of a rear end surface of a locking portion in FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view showing an example of a conventional connector fitting structure.

10 is an operation explanatory diagram at the time of starting fitting in FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram of an operation during fitting in FIG. 9;

FIG. 12 is an operation explanatory view at the time of completion of fitting in FIG. 9;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Connector fitting structure 10 One connector (male connector) 11 Outer housing 12 Inner housing 16 Lock arm 18 Housing lock 19 Pressing part 20 Slider 21 First slide member 22 Slide groove 23 Stopper arm 23a Locking auxiliary surface 24 Connecting part 25 Abutment portion 26 second slide member 27 locking portion 28 first engagement arm 28a first locking protrusion 29 detachment prevention portion 30 inclined surface 33 elastic member (compression spring) 40 other connector (female connector) 41 housing 42 pressing Rib 43 engagement protrusion 46 first engagement portion 47 second engagement arm 47a second engagement protrusion 48 second engagement portion 49 engagement auxiliary arm 49a engagement auxiliary projection

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An inner housing comprising a pair of female and male connectors which are fitted and connected to each other, comprising an inner housing opened forward and an outer housing which covers the inner housing and slidably mounts a slider. One connector provided with a lock arm provided with a housing lock at the upper front end, and a pressing rib on the housing which collides with the slider, and the lock arm is flexed on both sides of the pressing rib tip opposite to each other, And a second connector provided with a pair of engagement projections for engaging the housing lock; a first slide member in which the slider slides in the outer housing in the axial direction; and a rear portion of the first slide member. A second slide member to be joined, and the first and second slide members held in the second slide member and separated from each other A connector fitting structure comprising: an elastic member that exerts an elastic force in a direction, wherein the second slide member can engage with a first engagement portion provided on a back surface of an outer housing of the one connector. A flexible first engagement arm, and a flexible second engagement arm that also engages with a second engagement portion provided on the outer housing; When the first slide member and the second slide member approach each other against the repulsive force of the elastic member, the first slide member releases the engagement state of the first engagement arm, and A connector fitting structure comprising: a slide groove for releasing an arm; and an engagement state of the second engagement arm of the second slide member is released by a distal end of the housing of the other connector. 2. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the second slide member has a locking portion at a front end thereof for suppressing downward displacement of the housing lock, and a rearwardly inclined surface is provided on a rear end surface of the locking portion. The connector fitting structure according to claim 1, wherein: 3. The connector fitting according to claim 1, wherein the second slide member includes a flat locking auxiliary arm that is locked to the locking auxiliary surface of the first slide member. Joint structure.