JPH11204190A - Connecting type connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a connecting type connector miniaturizable in a connecting direction, when a subsidiary housing is connected. SOLUTION: At a front part of an upper subsidiary housing 2, a hood part 17 for contain a counter connector is provided. On the lower surface side of the hood part 17, a dovetail tenon 18 is provided at a right and a left side edge part. A lower subsidiary housing 3 comprises a main body part 10 provided with a terminal containing chamber, and a cover member 8 which can be connected to an upper surface of a hood part 6 which is formed at a front part of the main body part 10. A dovetail tenon 22 is provided at the right and the left side edge part on the back surface side of the cover member 8, and a dovetail groove 15 is recessed on the side of a connector containing part 6.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an articulated connector.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 9 and FIG.
No. 348 illustrates the articulated connector 100.
The connection type connector 100 is provided with two sub-housings 101 and 102, which can be connected to each other. At the front of each of the sub-housings 101 and 102, cylindrical hood portions 101A and 102A are provided. On the outer wall surfaces of the hood portions 101A and 102A, a pair of connecting portions 103 and 104 engageable with each other.
Is provided.

[0003]

In this conventional example, the hood portions 101A and 102A are provided with the sub-housings 101 and 1A.
02 is formed so as to protrude forward from four directions, up, down, left, and right. Therefore, when the connecting portions 103 and 104 are engaged with each other, the thickness of the hood portion becomes double, and the thickness in the stacking direction increases.

Further, a large gap D is formed on the rear side of the sub-housings 101 and 102, and it is difficult to provide an engaging portion for engaging the two sub-housings 101 and 102 in this portion.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a connection type connector which can be downsized in a connection direction when a sub housing is connected.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connection type connector in which a hood portion capable of fitting a terminal receiving chamber capable of receiving a terminal fitting with a mating connector is provided. A plurality of sub-housings, and tabs, and terminal fittings accommodated in the terminal accommodating chamber with the tabs protruding into the hood portion. An opening having a surface side of the other sub-housing opened at one side of the two hoods of the pair of sub-housings to be connected such that the hoods are stacked on each other. And a cover member for closing the opening, and in a state where the two sub-housings are connected, the opening is provided on the hood portion of the other sub-housing instead of the cover member. Characterized in that it is a closed state Ri.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the cover member is provided with a member-side engaging portion,
The hood of the sub-housing provided with the cover member is provided with a first engaging portion engageable with the member-side engaging portion, while the hood of the other sub-housing is provided with the first engaging portion. A second engagement portion engageable with the first engagement portion is provided.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect, the sub-housing has a connecting portion connectable to an outer wall surface of a portion where the terminal accommodating chamber is provided. It is characterized by being provided.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the cover member has an opening position for opening the opening and a closing position for closing the opening. It is characterized in that it is possible to shift between them. In addition,
Here, “displacement” includes both rotational displacement and slide displacement.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the cover member is displaced from the closed position to the open position with an operation of connecting the pair of sub-housings. And

[0011]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, when a pair of sub-housings are connected in a state where the opening is opened, only the hood on the side where the opening is not provided is provided between the two sub-housings. Will be separated by For this reason, the thickness of the single hood portion is provided between the two sub-housings, and the size is reduced in the stacking direction.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the cover member and the hood of the sub-housing provided with the cover member are engaged by the member-side engaging portion and the first engaging portion.
Further, the two sub-housings are engaged by the first engaging portion and the second engaging portion. Thus, the first engagement portion is
Since it is possible to engage with both the member side engaging portion and the second engaging portion, there is no need to separately provide an engaging portion, and the configuration is simplified. Also, it is excellent in usability.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the connecting portion is provided on the outer wall surface where the terminal accommodating chamber is provided. For this reason, the engagement force between the sub-housings is strengthened.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, the cover member is set to the open position when the sub-housing is connected, and the cover member is set to the closed position when the sub-housing is separated. Thus, since the cover member is provided in the sub-housing, it is not lost while connecting the sub-housings.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the cover member is displaced from the closed position to the open position by the operation of connecting the sub-housings. Therefore, the cover member can be displaced only by the connection operation, and the operability at the time of connection is improved.

[0016]

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. In the description of the present embodiment, the front side is the side of the fitting surface with the mating connector (not shown), and the vertical direction is shown in the state shown in FIG.

FIG. 1 shows a state before the connection type connector 1 of this embodiment is assembled. The connection type connector 1 is provided with two sub-housings 2 and 3, and the pair of sub-housings 2 and 3 can be connected.

First, the lower sub-housing 3 will be described. The lower sub-housing 3 is molded from a synthetic resin, and accommodates the male terminal fitting 4 therein.
A mating connector (not shown) can be fitted to the front side. The lower sub-housing 3 includes a main body 10 provided with a hood 6 and a terminal accommodating chamber 5, and a cover member 8 attached to the main body 10.

In the main body 10, a terminal accommodating chamber 5 capable of accommodating the terminal fitting 4 is formed so as to open front and rear. The rear side of the terminal accommodating chamber 5 has a large opening as a terminal mounting opening 5A for mounting the terminal fitting 4, while the front side has a small opening as a tab projecting hole 5B through which the tab 7 of the terminal fitting 4 is inserted. The tab 7 of the terminal fitting 4 mounted in the terminal accommodating chamber 5 projects into an inner space of the hood 6 described below. In the main body 10, the upper outer wall surface 23
A groove 26 is recessed at the center front of the groove, and the connecting bending piece 12 is provided inside the groove 26. The connecting flexure piece 12 has a rear end portion integrated with the main body 10, extends from the main body 10 so as to cover the groove 26, and is flexibly deformable toward the groove 26. On the upper surface side of the connection bending piece 12, two front and rear connection protrusions 13 and 14 are provided to protrude. Among them, a guide surface 13A is provided on the front side of the front connection protrusion 13, while a guide surface 14A is formed on the rear side of the rear connection protrusion 14. A locking recess 25 is provided between the connecting projections 13 and 14.
It is said.

In the front of the terminal accommodating chamber 5, a hood 6 capable of accommodating a mating connector (not shown) is formed. The hood portion 6 is formed to protrude forward of the sub-housing 3 and to be slightly larger than the terminal accommodating chamber 5 on the left, right, and lower sides. The hood portion 6 covers the left and right sides and the lower side of the tab 7 of the terminal fitting 4, and has an open opening 24 on the upper side. This opening 24
A cover member 8 described later is assembled to the cover. Further, a dovetail groove 15 which is continuous in the front-rear direction is formed in the upper end surfaces of the left and right side walls of the hood portion 6. The dovetail groove 15 is open at the front and rear end surfaces of the left and right side walls of the hood portion 6 and can be connected to the cover member 8 and the upper sub-housing 2 (details will be described later).

As shown in FIG. 2, the cover member 8 is attached to the opening 24. The cover member 8 is formed in a substantially rectangular plate shape, is provided with a square notch 9 on both sides of a rear end portion, and has a stepped shape, and is slightly narrower than the front side. I have. The notch 9 is formed in accordance with the shapes of the terminal accommodating chamber 5 on the side of the main body 10 and the hood 6. A rectangular locking hole 11 is provided in the center of the rear part of the cover member 8. The connecting projection 13 of the main body 10 is fitted into the locking hole 11 to prevent the cover member 8 from being pulled out in the front-rear direction. On the back side of the cover member 8, a dovetail 22 which is continuous in the front-rear direction on both right and left side edges is provided in a protruding manner. The dovetail mortise 22 can be fitted into the dovetail groove 15 of the hood portion 6. When the cover member 8 is assembled to the main body 10, the cover groove member engages with the dovetail groove 15 to form a cover member. 8 is stopped in the vertical direction. When the cover member 8 is in the closed position where the cover member 8 is assembled to the sub-housing 3, the cover 24 covers the opening 24 and is closed. Further, as described later, when the two sub-housings 2 and 3 are connected to each other, the cover member 8 is disengaged from the sub-housing 3 and is opened (in the present embodiment, the cover member 8 falls off from the sub-housing 3). ).

Next, the upper sub-housing 2 will be described. The sub-housing 2 is integrally formed of synthetic resin, and is provided with a hood portion 17 which can accommodate a mating connector (not shown) from the front end to the center thereof, and the terminal fitting 4 can be accommodated behind the hood portion 17. Are provided. The terminal accommodating chamber 16 is open to the front and rear. A terminal mounting opening 16A for mounting the terminal fitting 4 is largely opened on the rear side, and a tab projecting hole through which the tab 7 of the terminal fitting 4 is inserted is provided on the front side. 16B has a small opening. The tab 7 of the terminal fitting 4 mounted in the terminal accommodating chamber 16 projects into the inner space of the hood 17. The hood portion 17 is formed so as to surround four sides of the tab 7 (up, down, left, and right).

As shown in FIG. 3, on the lower surface of the outer wall surface of the hood portion 17, protruding tenons 18 are provided at both left and right side edges so as to be continuous in the front-rear direction. The dovetail mortise 18 has substantially the same shape as the dovetail mortise 16 of the cover member 8, and can be engaged with the dovetail groove 15 provided in the lower sub-housing 3. Further, the lower outer wall surface 19 of the terminal accommodating chamber 16 is positioned slightly above (in FIG. 3, lower side) the outer wall surface on the lower surface side of the hood portion 17 with a step. Also, the left and right side edges of the outer wall surface 19 are:
A side edge portion 20 is projected to the rear end so as to be flush with the wall surface of the hood portion 17. At a position slightly forward of the center of the outer wall surface 19, a connecting portion 2 having a guide surface 21A formed on the front side.
1 is provided. When the upper and lower sub-housings 2 and 3 are connected to each other, the connecting portion 21 is sandwiched between the locking recesses 25 between the connecting protrusions 13 and 14 of the lower sub-housing 3, and the two sub-housings 2 and 3 are connected. In the front and rear direction.

Next, the operation and effect of the present embodiment configured as described above will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, when the upper and lower sub-housings 2 and 3 are separated from each other, the lower sub-housing 3 and the cover member 8 are assembled, and the cover member 8 is closed. It is in.

First, the assembly of the sub-housing 3 and the cover member 8 will be described. For example, the cover member 8 is placed on the front side of the sub-housing 3 and is slid in the dovetail groove 15 while fitting the tenon 22. During this assembling operation, a portion of the rear end edge of the cover member 8 that is located behind the locking hole 11 abuts on the guide surface 13A of the connecting projection 13 and lowers the connecting bending piece 12 downward. The assembly proceeds while being bent. When the position of the connecting protrusion 13 and the position of the locking hole 11 are aligned, the connecting bending piece 12 is deformed by return, and the connecting protrusion 13
Are fitted in the locking holes 11. Thus, the cover member 8
Is stopped by the sub-housing 3. The dovetail groove 15
The cover member 8 and the sub-housing 3 are prevented from coming off in the vertical direction by the engagement with the dovetail tenon 22. Also, at this time, since the cover member 3 covers the opening 24, the tab 7 is surrounded at the top, bottom, left and right, and is protected from deformation.

To assemble the two sub-housings 2 and 3,
First, the upper sub-housing 2 is positioned at the upper rear of the lower sub-housing 3, and the two sub-housings 2 and 3 are relatively close to each other while adjusting the left and right positions. Upper sub-housing 2
When the dovetail tenon 18 is assembled by pushing it into the dovetail groove 15 of the lower sub-housing 3, the front end face of the dovetail tenon 18 presses the rear end face of the dovetail tenon 22 of the cover member 8. When the tenon 18 is pushed in against the engagement between the connecting projection 13 and the locking hole 11, the engagement is released and the cover member 8 is pushed forward, and the connection between the upper and lower sub-housings 2 and 3 is established. Is started (see FIG. 6).

When the upper sub-housing 3 is further slid forward, the guide surface 21A of the connecting portion 21 and the guide surface 14A of the connecting protrusion 14 abut. Here, the connection progresses while the connecting flexible piece 12 is bent and deformed downward by the contact force between the two guide surfaces 14A and 21A. When the connecting portion 21 is located in the locking recess 25 between the two connecting protrusions 13 and 14,
The connecting flexure 12 is deformed to return, and the connecting portion 21 is sandwiched between the connecting protrusions 13 and 14, so that the two sub-housings 2 and 3 are prevented from coming off in the front-rear direction. Thus, when the assembling operation of the two sub-housings 2 and 3 is completed, the connection between the cover member 8 and the sub-housing 3 is released, and the cover member 8 comes off. At this time, the front ends of the two sub-housings 2 and 3 are substantially flush (see FIGS. 7 and 8).

In the above description, the upper and lower sub-housings 2, 3
Although the cover member 8 is removed in accordance with the assembling operation, the cover member 8 may of course be removed from the lower sub-housing 3 before assembling the two sub-housings 2 and 3.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the opening 2
When the pair of sub-housings 2 and 3 are connected with the opening of the sub-housing 2, the two sub-housings 2 and 3 are separated only by the hood portion 17 of the upper sub-housing 2. For this reason, since the two sub-housings 2 and 3 are separated by the thickness of the single hood part 17, the upper and lower sub-housings are vertically separated as compared with the conventional case where the two sub-housings are partitioned by a double wall. It is miniaturized in the direction.

The cover member 8 and the lower sub-housing 3
Is engaged with the dovetail 22 and the dovetail groove 15, and the two sub-housings 2 and 3 are engaged by the dovetail and tenon 18 and the dovetail groove 15. As described above, since the dovetail groove 15 can be engaged with any of the dovetails 18 and 22 formed in the cover member 8 and the upper sub-housing 2, it is not necessary to form separate engaging portions. The configuration is simplified. Moreover, it becomes excellent in usability.

Further, connecting projections 13 and 14 and a connecting portion 21 for preventing the two sub-housings 2 and 3 from dropping in the front-rear direction are provided on the outer wall surfaces 19 and 23 where the terminal accommodating chambers 5 and 16 are provided. ing. For this reason, the sub housing 2,
The engagement force between the three is enhanced. In addition, the operation of connecting the two sub-housings 2 and 3 displaces the cover member 8 from the closed position to the open position. Therefore, the cover member 8 can be displaced only by the connection operation of the sub-housings 2 and 3, and the operability at the time of connection is improved.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. For example, the following ones are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

The cover member and the lower sub-housing may be rotatable by hinges. For example, a hinge is provided between the rear end edge of the cover member and the rear end (front end of the terminal accommodating chamber) of the hood portion of the lower sub-housing. The cover member is rotatable between a closed position for closing the opening of the hood portion and an open position for rotating to the rear upper surface of the sub-housing to open the opening. With this configuration, the cover member is set to the open position when the sub-housings are connected to each other, and the cover member is set to the closed position when the sub-housing is separated. In this way, since the cover member is provided in the sub-housing, it is not lost while connecting the sub-housings. The sub-housing and the hinge may be formed integrally. This eliminates the need to form a plurality of molds.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state before an articulated connector according to an embodiment is assembled.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a lower sub-housing when a cover member is removed.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the back surface of the upper sub-housing.

FIG. 4 is a front view before assembling the connection type connector.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view before assembling the connection type connector.

FIG. 6 is a side sectional view showing an operation of assembling the connection type connector.

FIG. 7 is a side cross-sectional view after the connection type connector is assembled.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a connection type connector.

FIG. 9 is a side view of a conventional connector before assembling a connection type connector.

FIG. 10 is a side cross-sectional view after a connection type connector according to a conventional example is assembled.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Connection type connector 2, 3 ... Sub-housing 4 ... Terminal metal fittings 5, 16 ... Terminal accommodating chamber 6, 17 ... Hood part 7 ... Tab 8 ... Cover member 15 ... Available groove (1st engaging part) 18 ... Available mortise (Second engaging portion) 19, 23 ... outer wall surface 21 ... connecting portion 22 ... mortise (member side engaging portion) 24 ... opening 25 ... locking concave portion (connecting portion)

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of sub-housings each having a terminal accommodating chamber capable of accommodating a terminal fitting and a hood portion into which a mating connector can be fitted, and a tab provided with the tab protruding into the hood portion. And a terminal fitting accommodated in the terminal accommodating chamber, wherein the sub-housing is connectable so that the hood portions are stacked on each other, and a pair of connected sub-housings are connected. On either one of the two hood portions of the sub-housing, an opening that opens the surface side of the other sub-housing and a cover member that closes this opening are provided. In a connected state, the opening is closed by a hood portion of the other sub-housing instead of the cover member. 2. The cover member has a member-side engaging portion, and a hood portion of a sub-housing provided with the cover member has a first engaging portion engageable with the member-side engaging portion. 2. The connection according to claim 1, wherein a second engagement portion engageable with the first engagement portion is provided on a hood portion of the sub housing on the other side. 3. Expression connector. 3. The connection type according to claim 1, wherein the sub-housing is provided with a connection portion connectable to an outer wall surface of a portion where the terminal accommodating chamber is provided. connector. 4. The cover member according to claim 1, wherein the cover member is movable between an open position for opening the opening and a closed position for closing the opening. 2. The articulated connector according to item 1. 5. The connection type connector according to claim 4, wherein the cover member is displaced from the closed position to the open position as the pair of sub-housings is connected.