JP3397233B2 - Ball lock type connector - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to, for example, pneumatic equipment,
The present invention relates to a ball lock connector used for connecting pipes or flow paths of hydraulic equipment or hydraulic equipment.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a typical conventional example of this type of ball-lock type connector, as shown in FIG. 6, a socket 100 attached to one end of one pipe or flow path,
A plug 110 that is attached to the end of the other pipe or flow path and can be inserted into the socket 100;
00 is provided on the outer periphery of the socket 100 so as to be movable in the axial direction, and is provided with a slider 120 biased toward the tip 101a side of the plug receiving portion 101 of the socket 100 by a coil spring 130, and is inserted into the socket 100 and the inner periphery thereof. There is also a structure in which the plugs 110 are connected to each other via a plurality of hard balls 140.

The hard balls 140 have a plurality of tapered hard ball receiving holes 10 formed in the socket 100 at predetermined intervals in the circumferential direction.
And a ring-shaped fitting groove 112 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the insertion cylinder portion 111 of the plug 110, in which a part of the spherical surface is disposed in each of the hard ball receiving holes 102 toward the inner peripheral side of the socket 100. Mating is possible. Slider 120
Is a large-diameter inner peripheral surface 121 that forms an escape space for the hard sphere 140 outside the hard sphere accommodating hole 102 when the coil spring 130 is displaced in the direction of compression (the side opposite to the tip 101a of the plug receiving portion 101), The coil spring 1
The hard ball 1 is displaced in the urging direction by 30 to the movement restriction position due to the interference with the stop ring 150.
And a small-diameter inner peripheral surface 122 for constraining 40 to be fitted into the fitting groove 112. The space between the socket 100 and the insertion cylinder portion 111 of the plug 110 inserted in the inner periphery of the socket 100 is sealed with a packing 160 such as an O-ring.

That is, this ball lock type connector is
In order to obtain the connected state shown in FIG. 6, first, the slider 120 is displaced in the compression direction of the coil spring 130, and then the slider 120 is displaced.
On the inner circumference of the socket 100, the insertion cylinder portion 111 of the plug 110
Insert. By doing so, as shown in FIG. 7, the hard balls 140 in the respective hard ball receiving holes 102 are pushed toward the large-diameter inner peripheral surface 121 side of the slider 120 during the insertion process of the insertion tube portion 111. The insertion of the insertion tube portion 111 is allowed. Then, when the insertion tube portion 111 is inserted to a predetermined depth, the fitting groove 112 is inserted into the hard ball receiving hole 10.
2 and the position corresponding to the radial direction are reached, the slider 12
When 0 is displaced to the position of interference with the stop ring 150 by the urging force of the coil spring 130, the hard balls 140 in the respective hard ball receiving holes 102 are pushed toward the inner peripheral side by the small diameter inner peripheral surface 122 of the slider 120, and A part of the spherical surface fits into the fitting groove 112, and the socket 100 and the plug 110 are held in a connected state.

On the contrary, the socket 100 and the plug 110
When the sliders 120 are separated from the connected state shown in FIG. 6, the slider 120 is displaced in the compression direction of the coil spring 130 to release the hard ball 140 from the restrained state.
It is possible to easily pull out the plug 110 from 00.

[0006]

According to the above-mentioned prior art, when the socket 100 and the plug 110 are connected or separated from each other, the large-diameter inner peripheral surface 121 of the slider 120 is positioned outside the hard ball receiving hole 102. As described above, the slider 120 is displaced in advance with the fingertip of the hand holding the socket 100 against the biasing force of the coil spring 130, and the plug 110 held in another hand is held while maintaining the displaced state. Need to be inserted into or removed from the socket 100. However, the coil spring 130 is
Since the spring constant is set to a high value to some extent so as not to inadvertently move in the direction in which the constraint on the hard ball 140 is released due to the connector falling or vibrating, the slider 120 is coiled by the force of the finger of one hand. 130
It was not easy to displace it to a predetermined position against the biasing force of. Moreover, since the connection work while maintaining such a displaced state is poor in workability, there is a risk that the connection may not be ensured and the internal pressure may come off during use, or pressure fluid may leak. there were.

In the connected state shown in FIG. 6, the frequency of the vibration transmitted from the outside, such as the vibration from the internal combustion engine, is
The slider 120 resonates in its movable direction by matching the natural frequency due to the mass of the slider 120 and the spring constant of the coil spring 130, or the slider 120 is largely moved in the compression direction of the coil spring 130 due to an impact force caused by dropping or the like. When displaced, this may release the restraint of the hard ball 140, and the plug 110 may slip out of the socket 100. In order to prevent such a situation, it is effective to increase the spring constant of the coil spring 130. In this case, as described above, when connecting or separating the socket 100 and the plug 110, one hand is used. The slider 120 cannot be displaced in the compression direction of the coil spring 130 by the force of the fingers.

In order to solve the above problems,
For example, the one provided with a restraint means for preventing the careless displacement of the slider 120 in the connected state shown in FIG.
Alternatively, a slider has been developed in which the slider 120 automatically performs the above-described predetermined operation in the process of inserting the plug 110 into the socket 100, but it is expensive because of its complicated structure.

The present invention has been made under the circumstances as described above, and its technical problem is to improve workability in connecting or disconnecting a socket and a plug with each other, and further, in a connected state. (EN) Provided is a ball lock type connector having a simple structure capable of securely holding

[0010]

The above-mentioned technical problems are as follows.
The present invention can effectively solve the problem. That is, the ball lock type connector according to the present invention is a cylindrical socket in which a plurality of hard ball receiving holes penetrating in the radial direction are opened at predetermined intervals in the circumferential direction, and a radial direction of the socket in the hard ball receiving hole. And a sphere that is movably accommodated therein and that can be inserted into the inner circumference of the socket from one end in the axial direction and that fits with a part of the spherical surface of the hard sphere on the outer peripheral surface at a predetermined insertion depth into the socket. A cylindrical plug having a possible fitting recess, and a cylindrical slider in which a spring ring is held in the holding groove on the inner periphery so as to be movable in the axial direction on the outer periphery of the socket so that the diameter of the spring ring can be operated from the outside. And an annular first locking groove on the outer peripheral surface of the socket, and a tapered sliding surface having a diameter gradually increasing from the groove bottom toward the hard ball receiving hole side and the tapered sliding surface. Ring located on the side of the hard ball hole A second locking groove is formed in the slider, and when the spring ring is in the engagement position with the second locking groove, the slider projects the hard ball into a part of the spherical surface of the inner circumference of the socket. The spring ring is locked at a position where it is restrained, and is locked at a position where the restraint is released when the spring ring is at an engagement position with the first locking groove.

In the above structure, the socket is attached to the end of one pipe or the flow path, and the plug is attached to the end of the other pipe or flow path. When the socket and the plug are separated from each other, the slider is held in the non-restraint position with respect to the hard ball by the engagement of the spring ring and the first locking groove, and the hard ball in the hard ball accommodation hole moves in the radial direction of the socket. It is ready to move. Therefore, when the plug is inserted into the inner circumference of the socket, in the process, the hard balls in the hard ball receiving hole are pushed away by the plug in the outer diameter direction of the socket, and the smooth insertion of the plug is allowed.

When the plug is inserted into the inner periphery of the socket to a predetermined depth, the fitting recess of the plug reaches a position where it can be fitted with the hard ball in the hard ball receiving hole. Axial movement from position to restraint position. Then, the hard spheres in the hard sphere storage holes are pushed inward by the slider that has moved to the restraining position, and a part of the spherical surface of the hard spheres is projected into the inner circumference of the socket and is restrained in a state of being fitted into the fitting recess. It Therefore, the socket and the plug inserted into the inner periphery of the socket are connected to each other via the hard balls, and the one pipe and the other pipe are connected to each other via the socket and the plug.

In the connecting process, the spring ring held in the holding groove on the inner peripheral surface of the slider is first moved as the slider is axially moved from the non-restricted position to the hard sphere to the restricted position. The diameter of the locking groove is increased while sliding on the tapered sliding surface toward the second locking groove from the bottom of the locking groove, and when the slider reaches the restraining position, the spring ring causes the second locking groove to move. Then, the diameter is reduced by its own elasticity to fit into this second locking groove. In this state, the spring ring does not disengage from the second locking groove unless the diameter of the spring ring is expanded from the outside, so even if an axial vibrational displacement or impact force is input, the slider can be securely placed in the locked position. Held in.

When the socket and the plug connected to each other are separated, the diameter of the spring ring is first expanded from the outside of the slider. In this case, in the spring ring, a hooking end formed at one end in the circumferential direction is hooked in a hooking hole formed in the slider, and an operation end formed at the other end in the circumferential direction is the above-mentioned. A structure is inserted through an elongated operation hole formed in the slider so as to be displaceable in the circumferential direction of the slider, and the diameter can be expanded to a larger diameter than the second locking groove by operating the operation end portion. be able to. By such a diameter expansion operation, the engagement state with the second locking groove can be released, so that the slider is axially moved to the non-restraint position with respect to the hard ball. As a result, the hard sphere can move within the hard sphere accommodating hole, so that the plug can be pulled out from the inner circumference of the socket.

[0015]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a preferred embodiment of a ball lock type connector according to the present invention,
2 to 4 are sectional views showing the operation of the connecting or separating process in this embodiment, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the connected state.
In this ball lock type connector, reference numeral 1 is a socket attached to one end of a pipe or a flow path (not shown), and 2 is an insertion tube portion 2 that can be inserted into the socket 1.
A plug having 1 and attached to the connection end (not shown) of the other pipe or flow path, 3 is a plurality of hard spheres that connect the socket 1 and the insertion tube portion 21 inserted into the inner periphery thereof, Reference numeral 4 is a slider arranged on the outer periphery of the socket 1 so as to be movable in the axial direction, and 5 is the slider 4 which is the socket 1
A spring ring 6 is held at a predetermined position in the axial direction on the outer circumference, and 6 is a packing that seals between the socket 1 and the insertion cylinder portion 21 inserted into the inner circumference thereof.

The socket 1 has a substantially cylindrical shape, and one side in the axial direction thereof is a plug receiving portion 11 for receiving the insertion cylindrical portion 21 of the plug 2, and the other side in the axial direction is a connecting portion 12. A female screw groove 12a is formed on the inner circumference of the connecting portion 12 as a means for connecting to the pipe. In addition, a plurality of hard ball receiving holes 13 penetrating in the radial direction are formed at equal intervals in the circumferential direction at positions unevenly distributed on the tip 11a side of the plug receiving portion 11, and each hard ball 3 has a corresponding hard ball receiving hole 13. It is accommodated inside so as to be movable in the radial direction of the socket 1.

As shown in FIG. 2, the hard sphere receiving hole 13 is formed in a tapered shape in which the inner diameter of the inner end 13a of the socket 1 which is open to the inner peripheral side is smaller than the outer diameter of the outer end 13b which is open to the outer peripheral side. The diameter of the hard sphere 3 is smaller than the diameter of the outer end 13b of the hard sphere accommodation hole 13 and larger than the diameter of the inner end 13a and the radial thickness of the plug receiving portion 11 of the socket 1. Therefore, the hard sphere 3 cannot pass through the hard sphere housing hole 13 to the inner circumference of the socket 1, but moves to the inner circumference side to a position where a part of the spherical surface thereof projects to the inner circumference of the socket 1. be able to.

On the inner peripheral surface of the plug receiving portion 11 of the socket 1, a packing mounting groove 14 continuous in the circumferential direction is formed. An O-ring, for example, is used as the packing 6 mounted in the packing mounting groove 14, and is closely attached to the outer peripheral surface of the insertion cylinder portion 21 of the plug 2 inserted in the inner periphery of the plug receiving portion 11 with a proper crushing margin. It has become so.

The plug 2 has a connecting portion 22 on the side opposite to the insertion cylinder portion 21, and a female screw groove 22a which is a connecting means with a pipe is formed on the inner periphery thereof. The insertion tube portion 21 is adapted to be inserted with a slight clearance with respect to the inner peripheral surface of the plug receiving portion 11 of the socket 1.
An annular stepped portion 23 formed on the outer circumference of the base is brought into contact with the tip 11a of the plug receiving portion 11 so that the insertion depth into the plug receiving portion 11 is regulated to a predetermined depth. .

When the insertion tube portion 21 is inserted into the outer peripheral surface of the insertion tube portion 21 of the plug 2 until the annular step portion 23 is substantially in contact with the tip 11a of the plug receiving portion 11 of the socket 1, a hard ball is accommodated. A circumferentially continuous fitting groove 24 is formed as a fitting concave portion at a position corresponding to the hole 13 in the radial direction. The fitting groove 24 has an arcuate shape in which the cross-sectional shape cut along a plane passing through the axis of the plug 2 is curved with a radius of curvature substantially the same as the radius of the hard sphere 3, that is, in each hard sphere accommodation hole 13 of the socket 1. It can be fitted with a part of the spherical surface of the hard ball 3 protruding from the inner end 13a.

The slider 4 has a cylindrical shape whose axial length is shorter than that of the socket 1, and has a small-diameter inner peripheral surface 41 opposed to the outer peripheral surface of the socket 1 with a slight gap, and a plug receiving portion of the socket 1. The portion 11 has a large-diameter inner peripheral surface 42 formed on the inner periphery of the end facing the tip 11a side, and the step portion 43 therebetween is formed in a tapered shape. Further, the size of the step between the small-diameter inner peripheral surface 41 and the large-diameter inner peripheral surface 42 is slightly larger than the difference between the length of the hard ball receiving hole 13 and the diameter of the hard ball 3 in the radial direction of the socket 1. Has become.

At the inner periphery of the end of the slider 4 on the side of the small-diameter inner peripheral surface 41 opposite to the large-diameter inner peripheral surface 42, the spring ring 5 is continuously extended in the circumferential direction for accommodating and holding the spring ring 5 in an elastically expandable and deformable state. The holding groove 44 is formed, and from this holding groove 44, a hooking hole 45 and an operation long hole 46 which penetrate the peripheral wall of the slider 4 in the radial direction are formed. The hook hole 45 has a circular opening shape, and the operation long hole 4
6 has a shape such that its opening shape is elongated in the circumferential direction of the slider 4. On the other hand, on the outer peripheral surface of the socket 1, a first engaging groove 15 which is continuous in the circumferential direction is provided on the connecting portion 12 side with respect to the opening position of the hard ball accommodation hole 13, and a groove of the first engaging groove 15. A tapered sliding surface 16 having a diameter gradually increasing from the bottom toward the hard ball receiving hole 13 side and a second continuous sliding surface 16 located on the hard ball receiving hole 13 side from the tapered sliding surface 16 and continuous in the circumferential direction. A locking groove 17 is formed.

The spring ring 5 is formed in a substantially C-shaped curve in the circumferential direction and is elastically deformable in the radial direction.
And a hooking end portion 52 and an operating end portion 53 extending from the both end portions of the slider 4 which are close to and opposed to each other to the outer peripheral side. Usually, only the outer peripheral portion of the main body portion 51 of the slider 4 is formed. The engagement end portion 52 is engaged by being inserted into the engagement hole 45 of the slider 4 while being engaged with the holding groove 44, and the operation end portion 53 is normally operated by the operation of the slider 4. It is inserted in a position eccentrically located on the engaging hole 45 side in the elongated hole 46.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, when the spring ring 5 held in the holding groove 44 of the slider 4 is fitted in and engaged with the first locking groove 15, this causes the slider 4 to move. Is locked in a non-restraint position with respect to the hard ball 3, and the large-diameter inner peripheral surface 42 has the hard ball receiving hole 1 in the socket 1.
It is located outside of 3. Then, in this state, the hard spheres 3 in the respective hard sphere accommodation holes 13 have the inner ends 13 of the hard sphere accommodation holes 13.
It is possible to move toward the outer peripheral side of the slider 4 to a position where it does not protrude from a. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, when the spring ring 5 is fitted in and engaged with the second locking groove 17, the slider 4 is locked at the restraining position with respect to the hard ball 3, that is, the small diameter. The inner peripheral surface 41 is located on the outer peripheral side of the hard ball accommodation hole 13. In this state, the hard sphere 3 is pressed by the small-diameter inner peripheral surface 41 from the outer peripheral side of the hard sphere accommodation hole 13, and a part of the spherical surface is constrained to protrude from the inner end 13a of the hard sphere accommodation hole 13.

When the slider 4 is moved from the non-restraint position with respect to the hard balls 3 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 to the restraint position with respect to the hard balls 3 as shown in FIG. 4, the spring ring 5 is moved accordingly. The diameter of the first locking groove 15 is increased while sliding on the tapered sliding surface 16 toward the large diameter side from the groove bottom. Therefore, when the spring 4 reaches the outer periphery of the second locking groove 17 when the slider 4 reaches the restraining position, the spring ring 5 contracts due to its own elasticity and the second engaging member 17 is pressed. Stop groove 17
The slider 4 is fitted in such a manner that it can be flipped inward, and the slider 4 is locked at the restrained position.

Further, the spring ring 5 and the second locking groove 1
7 is released, the operating end portion 53 of the spring ring 5 protruding from the operating long hole 46 of the slider 4 is released.
By displacing the main body 51 of the spring ring 5 with the second locking groove 17 by displacing with a finger in a direction (arrow A direction) in which the locking end 52 is locked in the locking hole 45. The slider 4 is moved toward the connecting portion 12 side of the socket 1 while being elastically expanded and deformed so as to float from above. As a result, the main body portion 51 of the spring ring 5 rides up on the tapered sliding surface 16, and thereafter the slider 4 can be moved toward the connecting portion 12 side even if the finger is removed from the operating end portion 53. it can.

The connection operation and connection release operation of the ball lock type connector having the above-mentioned structure will be described below.

First, as shown in FIG. 2, when the socket 1 and the plug 2 are separated from each other, the slider 4 on the outer periphery of the socket 1 is in a non-restraint position with respect to the hard balls 3, and each hard ball 3 is inside the hard ball receiving hole 13. Can be moved. At this time, the spring ring 5 held in the holding groove 44 of the slider 4 engages with the first locking groove 15 of the socket 1 to move the slider 4 toward the connecting portion 12 side from the non-restraint position. Is blocked, the hard ball 3 becomes the hard ball receiving hole 1
You can't fall out of 3.

When the socket 1 and the plug 2 are separated from each other and the two are connected to each other, first, the insertion tube portion 21 of the plug 2 is connected to the plug receiving portion 1 of the socket 1.
Insert in the inner circumference of 1. At this time, as explained earlier,
The slider 4 is in a non-restraint position with respect to the hard spheres 3, each hard sphere 3 is movable in the hard sphere accommodating hole 13, and the hard spheres are inserted in the process of inserting the insertion tube portion 21 into the plug receiving portion 11. As shown in FIG. 3, the member 3 is pushed away to the outer diameter side, so that the insertion cylindrical portion 21 can be smoothly inserted.
Further, the packing mounting groove 14 on the inner peripheral surface of the plug receiving portion 11
The packing 6 attached to the insertion tube portion 2 into which the packing 6 is inserted.
It is in close contact with the outer peripheral surface of 1.

When the plug 2 connected to, for example, a steel pipe (steel pipe) is connected to the fixed socket 1, the insertion tube portion 21 of the plug 2 is pulled into the socket 1 while pulling the steel pipe. It must be inserted into the plug receiving part 11. However, according to this embodiment, when the socket 1 and the plug 2 are separated from each other, the slider 4 on the outer periphery of the socket 1 is held in the non-restraint position with respect to the hard ball 3, so that the slider 4 can be moved to one side as in the conventional case. There is no need to manually insert the plug 2 while moving it to the unconstrained position against the biasing force of the coil spring.
Alternatively, the insertion work can be performed by holding the steel pipe with both hands.

The insertion tube portion 21 of the plug 2 has an annular step portion 23 formed on the base portion thereof so that the plug receiving portion 1 of the socket 1 is formed.
When it is inserted into the tip 11a of No. 1 to such a depth that it comes into contact with the distal end 11a, the fitting groove 24 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the insertion tube portion 21 corresponds to the hard ball accommodation hole 13 in the radial direction, as shown in FIG. Reach the position. Therefore, when the slider 4 is axially moved toward the tip 11a side of the plug receiving portion 11 with one hand, the small-diameter inner peripheral surface 41 of the slider 4 moves to the outside of the hard-ball receiving hole 13, In the process, the hard sphere 3 in each hard sphere accommodation hole 13 is pushed inward by the tapered step portion 43, and a part of the spherical surface projects from the inner end 13a of the hard sphere accommodation hole 13 and fits into the fitting groove 24. To meet.

As described above, the spring ring 5 causes the first locking groove 1 to move as the slider 4 is axially moved toward the tip 11a of the plug receiving portion 11.
The diameter is increased while sliding on the tapered sliding surface 16 toward the large diameter side from the groove bottom of No. 5, and is fitted into the second locking groove 17. As a result, the slider 4 is locked at the restraining position with respect to the hard spheres 3, that is, the small-diameter inner peripheral surface 41 is positioned outside the hard sphere receiving holes 13, so that the hard spheres 3 in each hard sphere receiving hole 13 are locked. Is constrained so that a part of its spherical surface fits into the fitting groove 24 of the insertion tube portion 21 of the plug 2. Therefore, the plug 2 is connected to the socket 1 via the hard ball 3, and one pipe to which the socket 1 is attached and the other pipe to which the plug 2 is attached are connected to each other.

Here, the spring ring 5 elastically fitted in the second locking groove 17 does not come off from the second locking groove 17 unless the diameter of the spring ring 5 is expanded by an external force.
Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the slider 4 from moving from the restrained position shown in FIG. 4 to the connecting portion 12 side and inadvertently pulling out the plug 2 from the socket 1 due to input of vibration or impact force. it can.

From the connected state shown in FIGS. 4 and 5,
To separate the socket 1 from the plug 2, first set the slider 4
By displacing the operating end portion 53 of the spring ring 5 in the operating long hole 46 in the direction of the arrow A in FIG. Then, the slider 4 is moved toward the connecting portion 12 side of the socket 1. When the movement of the slider 4 is started, when the finger is released from the operation end portion 53, the spring ring 5 slides on the tapered sliding surface 16 toward its small diameter side and contracts due to its elasticity,
The slider 4 is engaged with the first engaging groove 15, and at that time, the slider 4 is engaged with the hard ball 3 in an unrestrained position, that is, the fitting groove 2
The hard sphere 3 that has been restrained in a state of being fitted with 4 is released from the restraint. Therefore, when the plug 2 is pulled out from the socket 1, as shown in FIG. 3, the fitting groove 24 extends from the position on the inner peripheral side of the hard ball receiving hole 13 to the plug receiving portion 11 of the socket 1.
As the inner circumference of the plug moves in the pulling-out direction, the hard ball 3 is pushed onto the outer circumferential side so as to ride on the outer circumferential surface of the insertion tube portion 21 of the plug 2, and the smooth pulling-out of the plug 2 is allowed. .

[0035]

According to the ball lock type connector of the present invention, the following effects can be realized.

First of all, when the plug is inserted into the socket or when the plug inserted in the socket is pulled out, the slider is held in the non-constrained position with respect to the hard ball, so that the insertion or the withdrawal can be easily performed. be able to. Moreover, unlike the conventional case where the slider is constantly urged by the spring toward the restraining position for the hard ball, the slider is moved for the work of moving the slider to the non-constraining position for the hard ball and for connecting the socket and the plug. Since the work of moving to the restraining position for the hard sphere can be easily performed with fingers, the workability can be improved.

Secondly, since the spring ring for locking the slider in the restraining position or the non-constraining position with respect to the hard ball also has a function as a stop ring which is mounted in the prior art to prevent the slider from coming off,
Such a stop ring becomes unnecessary, and the number of parts is reduced, so that a ball lock type connector having a simple structure and a low cost can be provided.

Thirdly, as in the case where the slider is constantly urged toward the restraining position with respect to the hard sphere by the spring, the slider is not moved from the restraining position due to the resonance due to the external vibration or the strong exciting force. There is no possibility that the socket and the plug will inadvertently separate due to the movement of the slider even under the condition that the slider does not move carelessly to the restrained position and thus receives vibration of a wide frequency range from the internal combustion engine or the like. Without, it can improve safety.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a preferred embodiment of a ball lock connector according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a separated state of a socket and a plug in the above embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a process of inserting or pulling out the plug from the socket in the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a connected state of the socket and the plug in the above embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a connected state of the socket and the plug in the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a connected state of a socket and a plug of a ball lock connector according to a conventional technique.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a connecting process or a separating process of the socket and the plug in the above-mentioned conventional technique.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 socket 11 Plug receiving part 12 Connection 13 Hard ball receiving hole 14 packing mounting groove 15 First locking groove 16 Tapered sliding surface 17 Second locking groove 2 plugs 21 insertion tube 22 Connection 23 annular step 24 Fitting groove (fitting recess) 3 hard balls 4 slider 41 Small diameter inner peripheral surface 42 Large diameter inner peripheral surface 43 Step 44 retaining groove 45 hook hole 46 long hole for operation 5 spring ring 51 body 52 Hook end 53 Operation end

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A plurality of hard ball accommodation holes (1) penetrating in a radial direction.
3) cylindrical sockets (1) opened at predetermined intervals in the circumferential direction, and hard balls (3) housed in the hard ball housing holes (13) so as to be movable in the radial direction of the socket (1). ) And a part of the spherical surface of the hard sphere (3) that can be inserted into the inner periphery of the socket (1) from one end in the axial direction and has a predetermined insertion depth into the socket (1) on the outer peripheral surface. A cylindrical plug (2) having a fitting recess (24) that can be fitted, and a diameter increasing operation from the outside to a holding groove (44) arranged on the outer circumference of the socket (1) so as to be movable in the axial direction. A cylindrical slider (4) holding a spring ring (5) in a possible state, and an annular first locking groove (1) on the outer peripheral surface of the socket (1).
5) and a tapered sliding surface (16) having a diameter gradually increasing from the groove bottom toward the hard ball receiving hole (13) side, and the hard ball receiving hole (13) side from the tapered sliding surface (16). An annular second locking groove (17) is formed at a position corresponding to the second locking groove (17) when the spring ring (5) is in the engagement position with the second locking groove (17). The hard sphere (3) is locked at a position where a part of the spherical surface of the hard sphere is projected to the inner circumference of the socket (1), and the spring ring (5) is locked by the first locking groove (15). A ball lock type connector characterized in that it is locked at a position where the restraint is released when it is in an engaging position with. 2. The hooking end portion (52) formed at one end in the circumferential direction of the spring ring (5) according to claim 1, is hooked in a hooking hole (45) formed in the slider (4). The operating end (53) formed on the other end of the spring ring (5) in the circumferential direction of the slider (4) is inserted into the operating slot (46) formed in the slider (4). The spring ring (5) is inserted so as to be displaceable in the circumferential direction, and the spring ring (5) can be expanded to a larger diameter than the second locking groove (17) by a displacement operation of the operation end portion (53). Characteristic ball lock type connector.