JP4896192B2 - Waterproof connector - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a waterproof connector provided with a sealing member that performs a waterproof seal between a male connector and a female connector.

  As Related Art 1, there is known a waterproof connector that performs waterproofing individually for each pair of terminals connected to each other when a female connector and a male connector are fitted (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  The female connector of this waterproof connector includes a female housing, a female terminal held by the female housing, and a female-side sealing material that is in close contact with the front surface of the housing front wall of the female housing. The male connector has a male housing, a male terminal held by the male housing, and a male-side sealing material. The male housing is divided into a front part and a rear part. A male-side sealing material is sandwiched between the front side portion and the rear side portion of the male housing. On the front side of the female housing, a sealing material holder that holds the female-side sealing material can be mounted.

  When the female connector and the male connector are fitted, the protruding portion formed for each male terminal is inserted into the protruding portion insertion hole of the sealing material holder so that the through hole in the female side sealing material is sealed. Since the protrusion is in close contact with the entire circumference, the female sealing material prevents water from entering the female housing from the male terminal insertion hole formed in the female housing.

  Also, in the male connector, individual male terminals are individually waterproofed by the male side sealing material sandwiched between both the front side portion and the rear side portion.

JP 2006-147248 A (see paragraph [0028], paragraph [0033], paragraph [0038], paragraph [0059] [FIG. 1] of the publication)

  Since the waterproof connector of Related Art 1 has two sealing materials on the female side and the male side, there is a problem in that the overall length dimension when the female connector and the male connector are fitted increases.

  Further, the waterproof connector of Related Art 1 requires two sealing materials having different shapes on the female side and the male side, so that the number of parts of the sealing member increases.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a waterproof connector that can reduce the overall length when the male connector and the female connector are fitted, and can be miniaturized.

  Moreover, the other subject of this invention is providing the waterproof connector which can reduce the number of parts of a sealing member.

  According to the connector of the embodiment of the present invention, the female connector in which the female terminal is accommodated and held in the female housing and the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical guide housing in the axial direction in the axial direction are in close contact with the outer peripheral surface. The male housing holding the male terminal is fitted and held in a cylindrical portion on one side of the guide housing with the seal member interposed therebetween. A male connector in which a female housing fitting hole for fitting the female housing is formed in the cylindrical portion on the side, and one end of the male terminal penetrates the seal member from the fitting side end surface of the male housing. Projecting into the female housing fitting hole to form a contact portion with the female terminal, and the seal member seals between the male housing and the guide housing on one side. Lumpur portion, the waterproof connector is obtained, wherein the forming the second sealing portion for sealing between the guide housing on the other side with the female housing.

  In the connector, the first seal portion is a press-fit recess, and a male housing press-fit convex portion provided around a protruding base portion of the male terminal protruding from the fitting-side end surface of the male housing is press-fit into the press-fit recess. Thus, the space between the male housing and the guide housing may be sealed.

  In the connector, a sealing protrusion may be provided on the inner peripheral surface of the press-fitting recess for tightly sealing the entire outer periphery of the male housing press-fitting projection.

  In the connector, the second seal portion is a press-fitting convex portion provided around a protruding base portion of the male terminal protruding from the seal member into the female housing fitting hole portion, and the fitting-side end surface of the female housing A female housing press-fit recess provided on the outer wall of the press-fit protrusion may be externally fitted and press-fitted to seal between the guide housing and the female housing.

  In the connector, a sealing protrusion may be provided on the outer peripheral surface of the press-fitting convex portion to tightly seal the entire inner peripheral surface of the female housing press-fitting concave portion.

  In the connector, the seal member may be made of an elastic body, the guide housing may be made of a resin material, and the seal member and the guide housing may be integrally formed by two-color molding.

  According to the waterproof connector according to the embodiment of the present invention, since the waterproof seal can be formed by one seal member, the overall length dimension when the male connector and the female connector are fitted can be reduced. Therefore, there is an advantage that downsizing is possible.

  Moreover, according to the waterproof connector which concerns on the embodiment of this invention, since it is comprised so that waterproof sealing can be performed by one sealing member, there exists an advantage that the number of parts of a sealing member can be reduced.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is the perspective view which showed the waterproof connector which concerns on the example of 1 embodiment of this invention, and showed the form which connected the electric wire to the waterproof connector. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the waterproof connector shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the female connector shown in FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the female connector shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing a female housing, a female terminal to which an electric wire is connected, and a female retainer in the female connector shown in FIG. 3. It is the longitudinal cross-sectional view which showed the female housing shown in FIG. It is the perspective view which showed the male connector shown in FIG. 1, and showed the form which connected the electric wire to the male connector. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the male connector shown in FIG. FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view showing a guide housing, a male housing, a male terminal to which an electric wire is connected, and a male retainer in the female connector shown in FIG. 8. It is a perspective view which shows the state which looked at the male housing shown in FIG. 9 from the front side which is a fitting side. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the male housing shown in FIG. FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing the guide housing shown in FIG. 9. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the guide housing and seal member shown in FIG. FIG. 14 is a perspective cross-sectional view illustrating a longitudinal cross section of the guide housing and the seal member illustrated in FIG. 13. It is the front view which looked at the guide housing shown in FIG. 9 from the front side which is a fitting side. FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view of the guide housing shown in FIG. 15 taken along line AA. It is the perspective view which showed the sealing member shown in FIG. It is the perspective view which showed the state which looked at the sealing member shown in FIG. 17 from the rear side. (a) is a plan view of the seal member shown in FIG. 18, (b) is a front view of the seal member shown in (a), (c) is a right side view of the seal member shown in (b), (d ) Is a right side view of the seal member shown in FIG. It is the longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the modification in the structure of the waterproof connector which concerns on this invention, and shows the attachment structure to a guide housing when a sealing member is formed in a different body. It is the longitudinal cross-sectional view which showed the modification in the male housing of the waterproof connector which concerns on this invention.

  1 and 2 show a waterproof nectar according to an embodiment of the present invention. The waterproof connector 1 includes a female connector 2 that is electrically connected by fitting and connecting to each other, and a male connector 6 that is fitted to the female connector 2. In this embodiment, the female connector 2 and the male connector 6 will be described with the side to be fitted to each other being the front side.

  3 to 5 show the configuration of the female connector 2. 2 to 5, the female connector 2 includes a female terminal 3 (two female crimp terminals in the example of the female connector 2), a female housing 4 that accommodates and holds the female terminal 3, and a female retainer. It consists of five.

  The female terminal 3 includes a box-shaped contact portion 3a having a contact spring piece 3c (see FIGS. 2 and 4) inside one end side, and a wire crimping portion for crimping and connecting an electric wire 12 to the other end side of the contact portion 3a. 3b. When the female terminal 3 is used, after the electric wire 12 is crimped and connected to the electric wire crimping portion 3b, the sealing rubber 12a is covered so as to be in close contact with the electric wire 12 around the electric wire crimping portion 3b and the electric wire crimping portion 3b.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the female housing 4 has two female terminal accommodating chambers 4 b penetrating in the front-rear direction. On the front end side of the female terminal accommodating chamber 4b, a female housing press-fit recess 4a that has a large diameter and opens to the front end side is formed. A rising wall portion 4d having a male terminal insertion hole 4c is formed at the boundary between the female terminal accommodating chamber 4b and the female housing press-fit recess 4a. A cantilever-shaped lance 4e extending forward from the intermediate portion is formed on the upper wall portion of the female terminal accommodating chamber 4b.

  On the upper surface of the female housing 4, a lock piece 4f extending rearward from the front end side is formed. Similarly, a second locking piece insertion groove 4 i is formed on the rear end side of the upper surface of the female housing 4. Engagement protrusions 4j are formed on the upper surfaces of both sides across the second locking piece insertion groove 4i.

  The female retainer 5 includes a cover plate portion 5a that covers the rear end surface of the female housing 4, a U-shaped first locking piece 5d that extends forward from the left and right edges of the cover plate portion 5a, and an upper portion of the cover plate portion 5a. A second locking piece 5e extending forward from the edge.

  On the lower edge of the cover plate portion 5a, there are two U-shaped wire insertion grooves 5b and a U-shaped seal rubber pressing piece 5c extending forward from the peripheral edge of the wire insertion groove 5b. At the tip of the second locking piece 5e, there is a locking portion 5f that rises in a T-shape.

  The female connector 1 is assembled by attaching the electric wire 12 and the seal rubber 12a to the female terminal 3, and then inserting the female terminal 3 into the female terminal accommodating chamber 4b of the female housing 4 from the rear opening, and inserting the seal rubber 12a into the female terminal accommodating chamber. Press fit into 4b. Then, the contact portion 3a of the female terminal 3 abuts against the rising wall portion 4d of the female housing 4 and faces the male terminal insertion hole 4c. At this time, the locking step 4h at the tip of the lance 4e is locked to the rear end of the contact portion 3a to prevent the female terminal 3 from being held in the female terminal accommodating chamber 4b. Further, the space between the female terminal accommodating chamber 4b and the outside is sealed with a seal rubber 12a.

  Thereafter, the rear end surface of the female housing 4 is covered with the cover plate portion 5 a of the female retainer 5. The first retaining piece 5d of the female retainer 5 is engaged with the engaging protrusions 4g provided on the left and right side wall surfaces of the female housing 4, and the second retaining piece 5e is engaged with the second retaining piece of the female housing 4. The female retainer 5 is attached to the female housing 4 by being inserted into the insertion groove 4i and engaging both side portions of the T-shaped locking portion 5f with the engaging protrusion 4j. Then, the electric wire 12 enters the U-shaped portion of the electric wire insertion groove 5b of the female retainer 5 and the seal rubber pressing piece 5c. At this time, the seal rubber pressing piece 5c enters the female terminal housing chamber 4b and presses the rear end portion of the seal rubber 12a, thereby preventing the seal rubber 12a from coming out of the female terminal housing chamber 4b. Thus, the assembly of the female connector 1 is completed.

  7 to 9 show the configuration of the male connector 6 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. 7 to 9, the male connector 6 includes a male terminal 7 (two male crimping terminals in the male connector 6), a male housing 8 holding the male terminal 7, a male retainer 9, and a guide. It consists of a housing 10 and a seal member 11.

  The male terminal 7 has a pin-like connecting portion 7a on one end side, an electric wire crimping portion 7b for crimping and connecting an electric wire 13 on the other end side, and an engaging portion 7c formed in a box shape at the middle portion. When the male connector 6 is used, after the electric wire 13 is crimped and connected to the electric wire crimping portion 7b, the seal rubber 13a is put on the electric wire crimping portion 7b and the electric wire crimping portion 7b so as to be in close contact with the periphery of the electric wire 13.

  The male housing 8 has two left and right male terminal accommodating chambers 8b penetrating forward and backward. As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the male housing 8 has a male housing press-fit convex portion 8 a that protrudes forward from the front peripheral edge of the male terminal accommodating chamber 8 b in the shape of a vertically long ellipse on the front end face. Is formed.

  On the rear end face of the male housing press-fitting convex portion 8a, a horizontal plate portion insertion hole 8c formed forward from the upper portion of the male terminal accommodating chamber 8b is formed. A cantilever-shaped lance 8d extending forward from the middle portion is formed on the upper wall portion of the male terminal accommodating chamber 8b.

  The male retainer 9 includes a cover plate portion 9a that covers the rear end face of the male housing 8, a locking piece 9d (see FIGS. 7 and 9) that extends forward from the left and right edges of the cover plate portion 9a, and a cover plate portion. And a horizontal plate portion 9e extending forward from the upper edge of 9a.

  The lower edge of the cover plate portion 9a has two inverted U-shaped wire insertion grooves 9b and a U-shaped seal rubber pressing piece 9c extending forward from the peripheral edge of the wire insertion groove 9b.

  The guide housing 10 is made of a resin material and includes a female housing fitting hole 10a and a male housing fitting hole 10b as shown in FIGS. Further, the guide housing 10 has an inward flange portion 10c for attaching the seal member 11 to the inner peripheral surface of the intermediate portion in the front-rear direction in the rectangular tubular portion. That is, in the guide housing 10, the front half of the guide housing 10 forms the female housing fitting hole 10a from the inward flange portion 10c, and the rear half forms the male housing fitting hole 10b. .

  The front lower half of the inward flange portion 10c of the guide housing 10 is closed with a partition wall 10d. Two male terminal insertion holes 10e are formed on the left and right of the partition wall 10d. A lock piece 10f is formed on the rear half of the upper wall portion of the guide housing 10 by inserting a U-shaped cut groove. The left and right side wall portions on the rear half side of the guide housing 10 are formed with cutout portions 10h formed by cutting out into a square shape.

  The seal member 11 is shown in FIGS. 17 to 19 (a) to 19 (d) together with FIGS. 2, 8, 13, and 14. FIG. The seal member 11 is an elastic body made of a rubber material such as silicone rubber or nitrile rubber, and includes a press-fit concave portion (first seal portion) 11a, a press-fit convex portion (second seal portion) 11b, seal protrusions 11c and 11d, and It has a main body 11e.

  The seal member 11 and the guide housing 10 are integrally formed by two-color molding. That is, the seal member 11 is integrally formed with the guide housing 10 by two-color molding so that the outer peripheral surface of the main body portion 11e is in close contact with the inner peripheral surface of the inward flange portion 10c.

  On the rear surface of the main body portion 11e, two left and right press-fit recesses 11a having a vertically long elliptical shape are formed. On the front surface of the seal member 11, two press-fitting convex portions 11 b having an elliptical shape that protrudes into the female housing fitting hole portion 10 a are formed.

  The press-fit convex portion 11b is a portion provided around the protruding base portion of the male terminal 7 protruding from the seal member 11 into the female housing fitting hole portion 10a. Sealing ridges 11c and 11d are formed on the inner peripheral surface of the press-fit recess 11a and the outer peripheral surface of the press-fit convex portion 11b, respectively.

  Further, the partition wall 10d of the guide housing 10 is embedded in the seal member 11 so that the male terminal insertion hole 10e is exposed at the bottom surface of the press-fit recess 11a. A male terminal insertion seal hole 11f is formed through the lower portion of the press-fitting protrusion 11b so as to communicate with the male terminal insertion hole 10e. A rectangular columnar female terminal retainer 11g is formed so as to protrude above the front end face of the press-fitting protrusion 11b.

  In assembling the male connector 6, first, the male housing 8 is fitted and mounted in the male housing fitting hole 10 b of the guide housing 10 with the seal member 11. Then, the engaging protrusion 8e formed on the upper surface of the male housing 8 engages with a locking hole 10g formed in the lock piece 10f of the guide housing 10, and the guide housing 10 and the male housing 8 are integrated.

  Further, the male housing press-fit convex portion 8a of the male housing 8 press-fits into the press-fit concave portion 11a of the seal member 11, and the sealing protrusion 11c on the inner peripheral surface of the press-fit concave portion 11a is the entire circumference of the outer peripheral surface of the male housing press-fit convex portion 8a. In close contact with each other, a waterproof seal is provided between the guide housing 10 and the male housing 8.

  Next, after the electric wire 13 and the seal rubber 13a are attached to the male terminal 7, the male terminal 7 is inserted into the male terminal accommodating chamber 8b of the male housing 8 from the rear opening, and the seal rubber 13 is press-fitted into the male terminal accommodating chamber 8b. Then, the contact portion 7 a of the male terminal 7 protrudes into the female housing fitting hole portion 10 a of the guide housing 10 through the male terminal insertion hole 10 e and the male terminal insertion seal hole 11 f of the seal member 11.

  Further, the locking portion 7c of the male terminal 7 abuts against the partition wall 10d and is prevented from coming off by locking to the locking step portion 8f at the tip of the lance 8d at the rear end portion of the locking portion 7c. It is held in the male terminal accommodating chamber 8b. Further, the space between the male terminal accommodating chamber 8b and the outside is sealed with a seal rubber 13a.

  Thereafter, the rear end surface of the male housing 8 is covered with the cover plate portion 9 a of the male retainer 9, the horizontal plate portion 9 e of the male retainer 9 is inserted into the horizontal plate portion insertion hole 8 c of the male housing 8, and the male retainer 9 is engaged. The male retainer 9 is attached to the male housing 8 by engaging a locking projection (not shown) provided on the inner surface of the stop piece 9d with a locking step 8g provided on the left and right side walls of the male housing 8. Install. Then, the electric wire 13 enters the wire insertion groove 9b of the male retainer 9 and the U-shaped portion of the sealing rubber pressing piece 9c, and the sealing rubber pressing piece 9c enters the male terminal accommodating chamber 8b and presses the rear end portion of the sealing rubber 13, thereby sealing rubber. 13 is prevented from coming out of the male terminal accommodating chamber 8b. Note that the locking piece 9 d of the male retainer 9 enters the notch 10 h of the guide housing 10. Thus, the assembly of the male connector 6 is completed.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the female connector 2 and the male connector 6 are connected by fitting the female connector 2 into the female connector fitting hole 10 a of the male connector 6. Then, the contact portion 7a of the male terminal 7 is inserted into and contacted with the socket-like contact portion 3a of the female terminal 3 through the male terminal insertion hole 4c of the female connector 2, and the female connector 2 and the male connector 6 are electrically connected. To do. Then, the engagement protrusion 4k provided on the lock piece 4f of the female connector 2 engages with a locking hole 10j provided on the inner surface of the upper wall of the female connector fitting hole 10a of the male connector 6, and the female connector 2 and the male The fitting state of the connector 6 is locked.

  Further, the female housing press-fit recess 4 a of the female connector 2 is press-fitted into the press-fit convex portion 11 b of the seal member 11, and the seal protrusion 11 d provided on the outer peripheral surface of the press-fit convex portion 11 b is fitted into the female housing 4. The female housing press-fit recess 4a provided on the mating end surface is in close contact with the entire circumference of the inner peripheral surface. Then, a waterproof seal is provided between the female connector 2 and the male connector 6 (between the female housing 4 and the guide housing 10).

  The female terminal retainer 11g of the seal member 11 enters between the upper wall of the female terminal accommodating chamber 4b and the socket-shaped contact portion 3a of the female terminal 3, and the contact portion 3a moves within the female terminal accommodating chamber 4b. Suppress.

  As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, two sealing seals are provided between the male housing 8 and the guide housing 10 and between the female housing 4 and the guide housing 10 by one seal member 11. Is possible.

  In the above embodiment, the seal member 11 is integrally formed with the guide housing 10 by two-color molding. However, the seal member 11 may be formed separately from the guide housing 10 and assembled to the guide housing 10.

  FIG. 20 is a view showing a modified example corresponding to FIG. 13 and shows a mounting structure to the guide housing 10 when the seal member 11 is formed separately. In addition, the part which fulfill | performs the function similar to the sealing member 11 and the guide housing 10 which were demonstrated by FIG. 13 was attached | subjected and shown with the same reference number.

  In this modified example, the seal member 11 ′ formed separately has the outer peripheral surface of the main body 11e ′ of the seal member 11 ′ in close contact with the inner peripheral surface of the male housing fitting hole 10b ′ of the guide housing 10 ′. It is press-fitted in a waterproof seal.

  The male housing 8 is fitted and inserted into the male housing fitting hole 10b ′, and the main body portion 11e ′ is sandwiched between the inward flange portion 10c ′ and the male housing 8, whereby the seal member 11 ′ is inserted into the guide housing. Assembled and fixed to 10 '.

  The portions other than the structure for attaching the seal member 11 ′ to the guide housing 10 ′ are basically the same as in the previous embodiment.

  Furthermore, in the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, the male housing is press-fitted into the front end face of the male housing 8 in the shape of a vertically long oval from the front opening peripheral edge of the male terminal accommodating chamber 8b and protruding forward. Although the convex part 8a was formed, you may make it form a grid | lattice-like protrusion part instead of the male housing press-fit convex part 8a.

  FIG. 21 is a view showing a modified example corresponding to FIG. 10. On the front surface of the male housing 108, a protruding portion 108 a is formed that divides in a lattice shape from the peripheral edge of the front opening of the male terminal accommodating chamber 8 b. In the male housing 108, waterproof sealing is performed by pressing the seal member 11 against a flat surface on the inner side of the lattice-shaped protrusion 108 a.

  Since the portions other than the structure of the protruding portion 108a of the male housing 108 are basically the same as those of the previous embodiment, the portions having the same functions as those of the male housing in FIG. The explanation is omitted.

1 Waterproof connector 2 Female connector 3 Female terminal (Female crimp terminal)
3a, 7a Contact part 3b, 7b Wire crimping part 4 Female housing 4a Female housing press-fit recess 4b Female terminal receiving chamber 4c Male terminal insertion hole 4d Rising wall part 4e, 8d Lance 4f Locking piece 4g Engaging protrusion 4h Locking step part 4i Second locking piece insertion grooves 4j, 4k Engaging protrusion 5 Female retainers 5a, 9a Cover plate portions 5b, 9b Electric wire insertion grooves 5c, 9c Seal rubber pressing piece 5d First locking piece 5e Second locking piece 6 Male Connector 7 Male terminal (Male crimp terminal)
7c Locking portion 8, 108 Male housing 8a Male housing press-fitting convex portion 8b Male terminal receiving chamber 8c Horizontal flat plate portion insertion hole 8e Engaging protrusion 8f, 8g Locking step portion 9 Male retainer 9d Locking piece 9e Horizontal flat plate portion 10 , 10 'guide housing 10a, 10a' female housing fitting hole 10b, 10b 'male housing fitting hole 10c, 10c' inward flange 10d partition 10e male terminal insertion hole 10f locking piece 10g, 10j locking hole 10h Notch part 11 and 11 'Seal member 11a and 11a' Press-fit recessed part (1st seal part)
11b, 11b ′ Press-fit convex part (second seal part)
11c, 11c ', 11d, 11d' Sealing ridges 11e, 11e 'Main body portions 11f, 11f' Male terminal insertion seal holes 11g, 11g 'Female terminal retainers 12, 13 Electric wires 12a, 13a Seal rubber 108a Protruding portions

Claims (6)

A female connector housing and holding a female terminal in the female housing;
A waterproof seal member is disposed and fixed so that the outer peripheral surface is in close contact with the inner peripheral surface of the intermediate portion in the axial direction of the cylindrical guide housing, and one side of the guide housing sandwiching the seal member A male connector in which the male housing holding a male terminal is fitted and held in the cylindrical portion, and a female housing fitting hole portion into which the female housing is fitted is formed in the cylindrical portion on the other side of the guide housing. And
One end of the male terminal penetrates the seal member from the fitting side end surface of the male housing and protrudes into the female housing fitting hole to form a contact portion with the female terminal,
The seal member includes a first seal portion that seals between the male housing and the guide housing on one surface side, and a second seal portion that seals between the guide housing and the female housing on the other surface side. Waterproof connector, characterized by   The first seal portion is a press-fit recess, and a male housing press-fit convex portion provided around a protruding base portion of the male terminal protruding from the fitting-side end surface of the male housing is press-fitted into the press-fit recess. 2. The waterproof connector according to claim 1, wherein a gap between a housing and the guide housing is sealed.   3. The waterproof connector according to claim 2, wherein a sealing protrusion is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the press-fitting recess for tightly sealing the entire outer periphery of the male housing press-fitting protrusion.   The second seal portion is a press-fit convex portion provided around a protruding base portion of the male terminal protruding from the seal member into the female housing fitting hole portion, and a female housing provided on a fitting side end surface of the female housing The waterproof connector according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a seal is provided between the guide housing and the female housing by externally fitting a press-fit recess into the press-fit convex portion.   5. The waterproof connector according to claim 4, wherein a sealing protrusion is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the press-fitting convex portion so as to tightly seal the entire inner peripheral surface of the female housing press-fitting concave portion.   The seal member is made of an elastic body, the guide housing is made of a resin material, and the seal member and the guide housing are integrally formed by two-color molding. Waterproof connector.

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