JP6437859B2 - Two-piece connector - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a two-piece connector composed of a first connector and a second connector configured to be fitted / detachable.

  In a two-piece connector, if the first connector is fitted to the second connector and the contacts of both connectors are merely brought into elastic contact with each other and coupled, when an external force in the direction of pulling out the coupling between them is applied, both connectors There is a risk that the connector will be pulled out against the sliding resistance between the contacts of the connector and this connection will be released. For this reason, it is conventionally known to provide a lock mechanism that locks and holds this connection in a state in which the first connector is fitted to and connected to the second connector. As a two-piece connector provided with such a locking mechanism, for example, there is one disclosed in Patent Document 1 below.

  A two-piece connector 1 disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a socket connector 3 and a plug connector 2 configured to be fitted to the socket connector 3. In this two-piece connector 1, the lock mechanism that locks and holds the connection between the connectors 2 and 3 includes locks 40 R and 40 L (eject lock members) provided on the plug connector 2 and a lock mechanism provided on the socket connector 3. It is comprised by joint part 70R, 70L. In a state where both the connectors 2 and 3 are coupled, as shown in FIG. 4, by engaging the lock claw 42R of the lock 40R with the engagement protrusion 71R of the lock engagement portion 70R, the both connectors 2 and 3 are moved up and down. The lock is held so that it will not come out.

  On the other hand, when releasing the lock and removing both connectors 2 and 3 from the locked state as described above, the lock 40R is rotated by operating the operation piece 43R of the lock 40R in the left and right directions. Let As a result, the lock claw 42R rotates to the left and right to release the lock, and the pressing surface 44R of the lock 40R is pressed against the pressing surface 72R of the lock engaging portion 70R. 2 is lifted upwards and removed.

JP 2008-251205 A

  By the way, removal of the fitted two-piece connector is performed by pulling out against the sliding resistance between the contacts of both connectors. Therefore, in a two-piece connector provided with an eject lock member as disclosed in Patent Document 1, if the lift amount of the connector when the eject lock member is rotated is configured to be as large as possible, the eject lock member is Since the amount of pulling out against the sliding resistance by hand after the rotation is reduced, the structure can be easily removed. Further, the connector can be removed by simply rotating the eject lock member. For this reason, it is desired that the connector be lifted as much as possible when the eject lock member is rotated.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a two-piece connector configured so that the lift amount of the connector when the eject lock member is rotated is increased as much as possible.

  In order to achieve the above object, a two-piece connector according to the present invention includes a first connector (for example, the receptacle connector 100 in the embodiment) having a first contact (for example, the receptacle contact 130 in the embodiment), the first connector, A second connector (for example, a plug connector in the embodiment) having a second contact (for example, the conductor 52 in the embodiment) that is configured to be able to be fitted / detached and is brought into contact with and electrically connected to the first contact at the time of fitting. 1), wherein the first connector includes engaging portions (for example, the left wall portion 111L and the right wall portion 111R in the embodiment) that extend to the left and right sides on the left and right sides, and the second connector. The ejector is attached to the left and right sides so as to be pivotable left and right, and engageable with the engaging portion. The eject lock member has an engaging portion accommodating space opened on the left and right inner sides, and the engaging portion is accommodated in the engaging portion accommodating space and engaged with the engaging portion. An accommodation lock portion (for example, the base portion 31 in the embodiment) and an inner wall surface on the side away from the second connector forming the engagement portion accommodation space (for example, the front surface of the intermediate base portion 31b in the embodiment). An eject protrusion (for example, the eject protrusion 34 in the embodiment) that extends in the fitting direction and protrudes into the engagement portion accommodating space, and the engagement portion is connected to the first connector. A protruding portion receiving space (for example, a receiving space in the embodiment) formed by a recess capable of receiving the eject protruding portion on an outer wall surface on the fitting direction side (for example, the rear surface of the wall main body 115 in the embodiment). 17), and when the first connector is fitted with the second connector, the eject lock member is rotated to accommodate the engaging portion in the engaging portion accommodating space and the eject protrusion. A portion is accommodated in the protrusion accommodating space, the eject lock member is engaged with the engagement portion, and the first and second connectors are locked and held in a fitted state, When the eject lock member is rotated so that the storage lock portion is separated from the engaging portion from the lock holding state, the eject lock member is rotated while the eject protrusion is in contact with the engaging portion. Thus, the engagement between the accommodation lock portion and the engagement portion is released while the second connector is moved so as to be detached from the first connector.

  In the above-described two-piece connector, when the first connector is fitted to the second connector, the inner wall surface having the eject protrusion portion is located on the outer side in the direction in which the engagement portion is fitted to the first connector. The eject lock member is rotated so as to come into contact with the wall surface and bring the accommodation lock portion closer to the engagement portion, so that the engagement portion is accommodated in the engagement portion accommodation space, and the eject projection portion is It is preferable that it is the structure accommodated in the said protrusion part accommodation space.

  The first connector includes a cover member (for example, the receptacle-side shell member 120 in the embodiment) that is configured using a metal material and covers an outer surface of the first connector, and the engagement portion is formed of the cover member. A configuration in which it is formed so as to be covered by a part (for example, the eject protrusion contact portions 124L and 124R in the embodiment) is preferable.

  Further, the eject lock member includes an operation portion that is connected to the substantially flat storage lock portion, extends in a direction orthogonal to the storage lock portion, and rotates the eject lock member. The two connectors include a substantially flat housing main body member to which the second contact is attached, and the eject lock member positions the operation portion outside the side of the housing main body member so that the left and right sides of the housing main body member The operation unit is configured to be positioned between both outer surfaces in the thickness direction of the housing main body member in a state where the eject lock member is attached to the housing main body member. Preferably it is.

  In the two-piece connector according to the present invention, when the eject lock member is rotated from the lock holding state, the eject protrusion protruding into the engagement portion accommodating space rotates while abutting the engagement portion. The engagement between the accommodation lock portion and the engagement portion is released while the second connector is moved away from the first connector. In such a configuration in which the connector is pulled out by using the rotation of the eject lock member, a portion (part having a large rotation radius) as far as possible from the rotation center of the eject lock member is brought into contact with the first connector. Accordingly, the lifting amount of the second connector when the rotation of the eject lock member is rotated can be increased, so that the pulling amount to be pulled out against the sliding resistance of the first and second contacts by manual operation This makes it easy to remove. Here, the eject lock member is provided with an eject protrusion that protrudes into the engagement portion accommodating space, and the eject protrusion is brought into contact with the engagement portion of the first connector, for example, left and right of the eject lock member. Compared with the configuration in which the dimension is increased and the part left and right from the center of rotation is in contact with the engaging part of the first connector, the lifting amount of the second connector is increased while suppressing the left and right dimensions of the eject lock member. And it can be set as the structure which is easy to remove. Further, in the state in which the first connector is fitted to the second connector, the eject protrusion is housed in the protrusion housing space, so that the second connector can be easily lifted and removed while being fitted. A compact two-piece connector with a reduced height in the combined state can be configured.

  In the above-described two-piece connector, it is preferable that when the first connector is fitted with the second connector, the eject protrusion is brought into contact with the engaging portion and the eject lock member is rotated. According to this configuration, when the two connectors are fitted, the first and second connectors are automatically rotated by fitting the two connectors without the need to rotate the eject lock member. Since the lock is held, the lock can be easily held.

  Further, it is preferable that the engaging portion is formed by being covered with a part of a cover portion configured using a metal material and covering the outer surface of the first connector. A metal cover member (shell member) that covers the outer surface of the connector may be used to remove noise or the like generated in the connector. However, if the cover portion is used to cover the engaging portion. In addition, it is possible to increase the strength of the portion of the first connector with which the eject protrusion protrudes while suppressing the number of components of the first connector.

  Further, the operation part of the eject lock member is connected to the housing lock part and extends in a direction perpendicular to the housing lock part, and is attached to the housing body member in the thickness direction of the housing body member. In this configuration, which is preferably located between the outer surfaces of the housing, for example, if the size of the operation portion is approximately the same as the thickness of the housing body member, the operation portion is made as large as possible to ensure the operability of the eject lock member. On the other hand, the 2nd connector reduced in size (thinner shape) can be comprised in the thickness direction of a housing main-body member.

It is a perspective view which shows the state before a plug connector is fitted by a receptacle connector from diagonally upward. (A) is a perspective view (partial sectional view) showing the plug connector obliquely from the front, and (b) is a sectional view of II (b) -II (b) portion in FIG. 2 (a). It is a figure which shows the housing main body member which comprises a plug connector, (a) is a rear view, (b) is a top view, (c) is a front view, (d) is a bottom view, (e) is a left view. It is. It is sectional drawing of a housing main-body member, Comprising: (a) is sectional drawing of IV (a) -IV (a) part in FIG. 3, (b) is IV (b) -IV (b) part in FIG. (C) is sectional drawing of IV (c) -IV (c) part in FIG. 3, (d) is sectional drawing of IV (d) -IV (d) part in FIG. It is a figure which shows the eject lock member which comprises a plug connector, Comprising: (a) is a left view, (b) is a top view, (c) is a front view. It is a figure which shows the plug side shell member which comprises a plug connector, Comprising: (a) is a rear view, (b) is a top view, (c) is a front view, (d) is a left view. It is a figure which shows FFC, (a) is a front view, (b) is a right view, (c) is a rear view, (d) is the elements on larger scale of the part enclosed with the dotted line of FIG.7 (b). is there. It is a figure which shows the said receptacle connector, Comprising: (a) is a rear view, (b) is a top view, (c) is a front view, (d) is a bottom view, (e) is a left view. It is sectional drawing of a receptacle connector, Comprising: (a) is sectional drawing of IX (a) -IX (a) part in FIG. 8, (b) is IX (b) -IX (b) part in FIG. It is sectional drawing. It is a figure which shows the receptacle housing which comprises a receptacle connector, (a) is a rear view, (b) is a top view, (c) is a front view, (d) is a bottom view, (e) is a left view. is there. It is a figure which shows the receptacle side shell member which comprises a receptacle connector, (a) is a rear view, (b) is a top view, (c) is a front view, (d) is a bottom view, (e) is a left view. FIG. It is sectional drawing of a plug connector, Comprising: (a) is sectional drawing of XII (a) -XII (a) part in Fig.2 (a), (b) is XII (b)-in Fig.2 (a). It is sectional drawing of a XII (b) part. It is sectional drawing for demonstrating the process in which FFC is inserted, Comprising: (a) is the state from which the latching | locking part began to be pressed by a press part, (b) is further FFC inserted from the state of (a). The state (c) is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the insertion of the FFC is completed. It is sectional drawing of a plug connector, Comprising: (a) is sectional drawing of the XIV (a) -XIV (a) part in Fig.13 (a), (b) is XIV (b)-in FIG.13 (b). Sectional drawing of XIV (b) part, (c) is sectional drawing of the XIV (c) -XIV (c) part in FIG.13 (c). (A) And (b) is a perspective view which shows FFC in the state of FIG.14 (b). FIG. 4 is a perspective view (partially sectional view) for explaining a process of fitting the plug connector, in which (a) is a state before the eject protrusion comes into contact with the eject protrusion contact part, and (b) is an eject protrusion. It is a perspective view which shows the state which contact | abutted to the ejection protrusion contact part. It is a perspective view (partial sectional view) for explaining a process in which a plug connector is fitted, wherein (a) shows a state in which an eject projection is rotated by contacting an eject projection contact portion, and (b) shows ( It is a perspective view which shows the state which the eject lock member rotated further from the state of a). It is a perspective view (partial sectional view) showing a state in which a plug connector is fitted.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a two-piece structure including a plug connector 1 attached to an end portion of an FFC 50 and a receptacle connector 100 that can be fitted to the plug connector 1 and is mounted on a substrate K as an embodiment of the present invention. A connector T is shown. By fitting the plug connector 1 and the receptacle connector 100, the receptacle contact 130 of the receptacle connector 100 is elastically brought into contact with a plug contact of the plug connector 1 described later (the conductor 52 exposed at the tip of the FFC 50). Both are configured to be electrically connected. First, the configuration of the plug connector 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. For convenience of explanation, description will be made by defining front and rear, left and right, and up and down directions in the directions of arrows attached to each drawing.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the plug connector 1 includes a plug-side connector housing 10 made of an insulating material such as a resin, and a plug-side shell member 40 made of a conductive material and attached to the plug-side connector housing 10 (see FIG. 1). 2 (b)), and the plug-side connector housing 10 is inserted and coupled to the plug-side connector housing 10 as described below. The conductor 52 is exposed at the tip of the FFC 50, and the exposed conductor 52 forms a plug contact, and the tip of the FFC 50 is used as a member constituting the plug connector 1.

  The plug-side connector housing 10 includes a housing main body member 11 formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped extending left and right, and two eject lock members 30 and 30 (see FIG. 5) attached to the left and right ends of the housing main body member 11. Is done.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the housing body member 11 is connected to a base portion 12 formed in a substantially rectangular shape in front view, a fitting portion 13 that is connected to the front portion of the base portion 12 and extends forward, and left and right portions of the base portion 12. Eject lock member holding portions 20 and 20 extending outward in the left and right directions are configured. The fitting part 13 includes an FFC support part 13a that is substantially flat and extends in the front-rear direction, and guide protrusions 13b and 13b that extend in the front-rear direction at both left and right ends of the FFC support part 13a. The base portion 12 is formed in a substantially box shape having an insertion space 14 that is opened rearward and extends forward and backward, and the insertion space 14 communicates with each of the upper surface side and the lower surface side of the FFC support portion 13a (FIG. 4). (See also (b) and FIG. 4 (d)). FIG. 4D shows only the cross-sectional shape of the right-side eject lock member holding portion 20 among the eject lock member holding portions 20, 20 provided on the left and right sides. -The lock member holding part 20 also has the same cross-sectional shape as the right side.

  As can be seen from FIGS. 4 (a) and 4 (b), the upper side wall portion of the base portion 12 configured in a substantially box shape is formed in a cantilever support shape with the rear side fixed and extending forward, and the tip is A pressing portion 15 extending toward the front lower side is provided. The pressing portion 15 protrudes downward (toward the insertion space 14) from the upper side wall portion of the base portion 12. The pressing portion 15 is used to bend a locking portion 57 of the FFC 50 described later downward. The eject lock member holding portion 20 is formed with a housing space 21 penetrating in the front-rear direction and a pair of rotating shaft support holes 22, 22 penetrating vertically (see also FIG. 4C). .

  As shown in FIG. 5, the eject lock member 30 includes a base portion 31 that is formed in a substantially flat plate shape and extends in the front-rear direction, and an operation portion 32 that extends vertically at the right rear end portion of the base portion 31. The base portion 31 includes a rear base portion 31a extending forward and backward on the rear side, an intermediate base portion 31b connected to the front portion of the rear base portion 31a and extending forward, and a front base portion 31c connected to the front portion of the intermediate base portion 31b and extending forward. And a lock portion 31d extending leftward from the front portion of the front base portion 31c. The intermediate base portion 31b includes a pair of rotating shafts 33 and 33 that extend in the vertical direction in a substantially cylindrical shape on the right side portion, and includes an eject protrusion 34 that protrudes forward at the left front end portion. The lock portion 31d includes a lock protrusion 35 protruding rearward at the left rear end portion.

  As shown in FIG. 5C, the eject lock member 30 has an engagement portion accommodation space 37 that is surrounded by the intermediate base portion 31b, the front side base portion 31c, and the lock portion 31d and opened to the left in front view. The eject protrusion 34 protrudes from the rear in the engaging portion accommodating space 37. The engaging portion accommodating space 37 is formed so as to accommodate an L-shaped portion 116 and an eject projection contact portion 124L (eject projection contact portion 124R) described later (see FIG. 18).

As will be described later, the eject lock member 30 is attached to the housing body member 11 by inserting the base 31 of the eject lock member 30 back and forth into the housing space 21 of the housing body member 11. Here, in the state where the vertical width of the operation portion 32 of the eject lock member 30 is substantially the same as the vertical width of the housing main body member 11 and the eject lock member 30 is attached to the housing main body member 11, The portion 32 is configured not to protrude vertically from the housing body member 11. Therefore, it is possible to configure the plug-side connector housing 10 (plug connector 1) that is downsized (thinned) vertically while ensuring the operability of the eject lock member 30 by making the operation portion 32 as large as possible.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the plug-side shell member 40 is configured with a base portion 41 having a substantially rectangular flat plate shape as a base. Three ground arms 42 that are formed in a cantilever support shape whose rear side is fixed and the front side is freely fixed to the base 41 and projecting upward, and a cantilever support shape similar to the ground arm 42 on the left and right outer sides of the ground arm 42 And two upper arms 43 that protrude upward and a locking portion 44 that protrudes downward on the front side of the ground arm 42. The ground arm 42 and the lifting arm 43 have contact portions 42 a and 43 a (see FIG. 6D) bent so as to protrude upward at the tip portion, and can be elastically deformed up and down.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the FFC 50 is formed of a flexible insulating material and extends in the front-rear direction, and is formed in a line shape using a conductive material. A plurality of conductors 52 that extend in the front-rear direction, an upper insulating sheet 53 made of a flexible insulating material and affixed to the upper surface of the plurality of conductors 52, and a lower made of a flexible insulating material At the rear of the reinforcing plate 54, the reinforcing plate 54 attached to the lower surface of the front part of the side insulating sheet 51, the shield plate 55 made of a conductive material and applied across the lower surface of the reinforcing plate 54 and the lower insulating sheet 51, It comprises a shield plate 55, a lower insulating sheet 51, and an electrically conductive shielding tape 56 attached so as to enclose the upper insulating sheet 53. As shown in FIG. 7A, at the front end portion of the FFC 50, the upper insulating sheet 53 is removed and the plurality of conductors 52 are exposed upward. In FIG. 7A, a portion exposed at the front end portion of the conductor 52 extending in the front-rear direction is hatched. FIG. 7 shows only the front portion of the FFC 50. Actually, however, the FFC 50 has a belt-like shape extending rearward, and the surface (upper surface and lower surface) reaching the vicinity of the rear end portion. A shield tape 56 is attached to the entirety.

  The FFC 50 is formed with a pair of engaging portions 57 and 57 extending outward in the left and right sides at the left and right ends of the FFC 50 by removing the hatched areas A and A shown in FIG. As can be seen from FIG. 7 (d), the locking portion 57 is formed in a portion in which the flexible reinforcing plate 54, the lower insulating sheet 51, and the upper insulating sheet 53 are stacked one above the other. Elastic deformation is possible in the thickness direction (vertical direction). The shield plate 55 has left and right dimensions corresponding to the three ground arms 42. When the FFC 50 is inserted into the insertion space 14 as described later, the three ground arms 42 abut against the shield plate 55 and two The lifting arm 43 comes into contact with the left and right reinforcing plates 54 of the shield plate 55. Since the pressing portions 15 and 15 are provided in correspondence with the left and right positions of the locking portions 57 and 57, when the FFC 50 is inserted into the insertion space 14, the locking portions 57 and 57 are moved downward by the pressing portions 15 and 15. Pressed.

  Next, the configuration of the receptacle connector 100 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the receptacle connector 100 includes a receptacle-side connector housing 110 made of an insulating material such as a resin, a receptacle-side shell member 120 made of a conductive material and attached to the receptacle-side connector housing 110, and a conductive material. And a plurality of receptacle contacts 130 attached to the receptacle-side connector housing 110.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the receptacle-side connector housing 110 includes a front bottom portion 111F formed in a substantially flat plate shape, a lower wall portion 111D erected rearwardly connected to a lower portion of the front bottom portion 111F, and a front bottom portion 111F. An upper wall portion 111U that is connected to the upper portion and is erected at the rear, a right wall portion 111R that is connected to the right portion of the lower wall portion 111D and the upper wall portion 111U, and that extends vertically, and a lower wall portion 111D and an upper wall portion 111U A left wall portion 111 </ b> L that is connected to the left portion and extends vertically is formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The receptacle-side connector housing 110 has a fitting space 112 that is surrounded by walls 111F, 111D, 111U, 111R, and 111L and is opened rearward. One fitting portion 13 is fitted and inserted. In the front bottom portion 111F, three locking holes 119 penetrating in the front-rear direction are formed side by side. A plurality of contact holding grooves 113 for holding the plurality of receptacle contacts 130 side by side are formed on the lower surface (the surface on the fitting space 112 side) of the upper wall portion 111U. Further, two support holes 114, 114 penetrating in the front-rear direction are formed on the upper surface of the upper wall portion 111U.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the receptacle-side shell member 120 is attached to the receptacle-side connector housing 110 and has a substantially rectangular frame shape in plan view that surrounds the receptacle-side connector housing 110 from above and below and from the left and right outside. More specifically, a lower frame portion 121D that extends to the left and right on the lower side, a right frame portion 121R that extends upward by connecting to the right portion of the lower frame portion 121D, and a left that extends upward by connecting to the left portion of the lower frame portion 121D The frame portion 121L is configured to include an upper frame portion 121U that is connected to the upper portions of the right frame portion 121R and the left frame portion 121L and extends to the left and right. The lower frame portion 121D has three ground arms 122 that are formed in a cantilever support shape with a fixed front side and a free rear side, and can be elastically deformed up and down, and for a ground formed on the substrate K extending downward in the front side. Four joints 123 joined to a pattern (not shown) and three lower protrusions 129 connected to the ground arm 122 and extending forward are also provided (see also FIG. 9). An eject projection abutting portion 124R bent so as to protrude rearward is formed at the rear portion of the right frame portion 121R, and similarly, the ejector protruding rearward is similarly formed at the rear portion of the left frame portion 121L. A protrusion contact portion 124L is formed. The upper frame portion 121U extends forward and is inserted into and supported by the support hole 114 of the receptacle-side connector housing 110. The upper frame portion 121U extends to the upper front side and is formed on the substrate K for the ground. And two joint portions 126 joined to the pattern P1 (see FIG. 1) (see also FIG. 9B).

  As shown in FIG. 9A, the receptacle contact 130 is formed in a substantially L shape in a side view, and is connected to the front side of the contact side base 131 and the front side of the contact side base 131 and extends upward. And a joining base portion 132 that extends. A contact portion 133 is formed near the rear end portion of the contact side base 131 so as to be convex downward. Further, in the vicinity of the upper end portion of the bonding side base portion 132, a bonding portion 134 to be bonded to the wiring pattern P2 (see FIG. 1) formed on the substrate K is formed. The receptacle contact 130 is press-fitted into the contact holding groove 113 of the receptacle-side connector housing 110, and the rear portion of the contact-side base 131 (in the vicinity of the contact portion 133) is held so as to be elastically deformable up and down.

  Next, the assembly configuration of the plug connector 1 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  In the following description, the plug-side connector housing 10 is configured by attaching the eject lock members 30, 30 to the housing body member 11. After the plug-side shell member 40 is attached to the plug-side connector housing 10, the FFC 50 is finally attached. An assembly procedure for mounting will be described as an example. Note that the assembly procedure described below is an example, and the plug connector 1 can be assembled by other assembly procedures.

The eject lock member 30 is attached to the housing body member 11 by ejecting
The eject lock member 30 is inserted into the accommodation space 21 of the lock member holding portion 20 from the rear, and the rotation shafts 33 and 33 of the eject lock member 30 are connected to the rotation shaft support holes 22 and 22 of the eject lock member holding portion 20. It is done by fitting to. As a result, the eject lock member 30 is held rotatably about the rotation shaft 33. More specifically, the lock-side limit position where the left and right inner side surfaces 36 (see FIG. 5C) of the base portion 31 abut against the left and right outer side surfaces 20a of the guide protrusion 13b (see FIG. 4D), and the eject -It is hold | maintained so that rotation between the eject side limit positions (refer FIG. 1) which the operation part 32 contact | abuts to the rear-end part of the lock member holding | maintenance part 20 is possible.

  Subsequently, the plug-side shell member 40 is attached to the plug-side connector housing 10 configured as described above. In this attachment, the plug-side shell member 40 is inserted into the insertion space 14 of the base portion 12 from the rear, and the front portion of the plug-side shell member 40 is placed on the lower surface side of the FFC support portion 13a as shown in FIG. Do so as to position. Accordingly, the plug-side shell member 40 is attached along the inner surface of the lower wall portion of the base portion 12. In this attached state, the locking portion 44 of the plug-side shell member 40 is locked to the locking portion 12a of the base portion 12 so as to face the front and rear, and the plug-side shell member 40 is held so as not to come out rearward.

  Subsequently, the FFC 50 is attached to the plug-side connector housing 10 to which the plug-side shell member 40 is attached. As shown in FIG. 13, the FFC 50 is attached by inserting the FFC 50 from the rear into the insertion space 14 of the base 12 (the space above the plug-side shell member 40). The insertion position where the FFC 50 is inserted from the rear and the front portion of the FFC 50 (the portion where the conductor 52 in FIG. 7A is exposed) contacts the contact portion 42 a of the ground arm 42 and the contact portion 43 a of the lifting arm 43. , The front portion of the FFC 50 is elastically pressed upward by the ground arm 42 and the lifting arm 43. Accordingly, the front portion of the FFC 50 is pressed against the inner surface 12c of the upper wall portion of the base portion 12 and is held flat. On the other hand, in the insertion position, the locking portion 57 of the FFC 50 abuts against the pressing portion 15 and is pressed downward, and is elastically deformed so as to bend downward. For this reason, the FFC 50 is elastically deformed so that the locking portion 57 and its vicinity are bent downward in a state where the front portion is pressed upward by the ground arm 42 and the lifting arm 43 and held flat. FIG. 13 (a) and FIG. 14 (a)).

  When the FFC 50 is further inserted forward from the state shown in FIG. 13A, the front portion of the FFC 50 reaches the upper surface side of the FFC support portion 13a while being held flat by the ground arm 42 and the lifting arm 43. Supported. Here, FFC holding grooves 13c (see FIG. 2A) extending in the front-rear direction are formed at both left and right end portions on the upper surface side of the FFC support portion 13a, and the FFC 50 has left and right end portions of the FFC holding grooves 13c. Is supported on the upper surface side of the FFC support portion 13a. Therefore, a portion of the FFC 50 that is supported on the upper surface side of the support portion 13 a is held flat by the left and right FFC holding grooves 13 c and 13 c and the upper wall portion inner surface 12 c of the base portion 12. Thus, in a state where the front portion of the FFC 50 is supported on the upper surface side of the FFC support portion 13a, the locking portion 57 of the FFC 50 is pressed downward by the pressing portion 15, and the vicinity of the locking portion 57 is the lifting arm. 43 is elastically pressed upward. Thereby, the latching | locking part 57 and its vicinity part are elastically deformed below against the elastic force of the raising arm 43 (refer FIG.13 (b) and FIG.14 (b)).

FIG. 15 illustrates the deformation state of the FFC 50 shown in FIGS. 13B and 14B in an easily understandable manner. As can be seen from FIG. 15, the front portion of the FFC 50 (the portion supported on the upper surface side of the FFC support portion 13 a and the portion where the conductor 52 is exposed) is held flat. On the other hand, with respect to the portion connected to the front portion of the FFC 50 and extending rearward, the locking portion 57 and its vicinity (near both left and right ends) are pressed by the pressing portion 15 and elastically deformed downward, but the left and right intermediate portions are ground The arm 42 is pressed against the inner surface 12c of the upper wall portion and held flat.

  When the FFC 50 is further inserted forward from the state shown in FIG. 13B, the locking portion 57 moves to the front of the pressing portion 15 and is pressed downward by the pressing portion 15 as shown in FIG. 13C. Is released. When the pressing by the pressing portion 15 is released in this way, the locking portion 57 and its vicinity are lifted upward by its own restoring force and the elastic force by the lifting arm 43, and the inner surface of the upper wall portion of the base portion 12. 12c. Thereby, the latching | locking part 57 is accommodated in the latching | locking part accommodation space 12b formed ahead of the press part 15, and the latching | locking part 57 and its vicinity part are the front part (part where the conductor 52 was exposed). It is elastically deformed to form the same plane, and the entire FFC 50 is held flat. When the entire FFC 50 is held flat in this way, the locking portion 57 is locked to the pressing portion 15 so as to oppose the front and rear, and the FFC 50 is held so as not to come out backward (FIG. 12B, FIG. 13 (c) and FIG. 14 (c)). As can be seen from the above description, the FFC 50 can be easily held so as not to be pulled backward by simply inserting the FFC 50 into the insertion space 14 from the rear. In the state where the FFC 50 is held in this way, the three ground arms 42 abut on the shield plate 55 and the two lifting arms 43 abut on the left and right reinforcing plates 54 of the shield plate 55.

  Next, the assembly configuration of the receptacle connector 100 will be described. The receptacle connector 100 is configured by attaching a receptacle-side shell member 120 and a receptacle contact 130 to a receptacle-side connector housing 110. The configuration for attaching the receptacle contact 130 to the receptacle-side connector housing 110 is the same as described above, and the description thereof is omitted here.

  The receptacle-side shell member 120 is attached to the receptacle-side connector housing 110 by inserting the upper protrusion 125 into the support hole 114 from behind and supporting it, and press-fitting the lower protrusion 129 into the lock hole 119 from behind to lock it. To do. As a result, the side surface of the receptacle-side connector housing 110 is surrounded by the receptacle-side shell member 120. At this time, the left frame portion 121L (eject projection contact portion 124L) is attached to the left wall portion 111L so as to cover from the rear, and the right frame portion 121R (eject projection contact portion 124R) to the right wall portion 111R. ) Is attached so as to cover from behind. The mounting structure of the eject protrusion contact portions 124L and 124R will be described below. Here, since the mounting configurations of both the abutting portions 124L and 124R are basically the same, the eject projection abutting portion 124L will be described with reference to FIG. 16A, and the eject projection abutting portion 124R will be described. Omitted.

  16A shows the eject lock member holding portion 20, the receptacle-side connector in order to easily show the engagement / disengagement state of the eject lock member 30 with respect to the left wall portion 111L (eject projection contact portion 124L). The housing 110 and a part of the receptacle-side shell member 120 are omitted, and the left wall portion 111L and the eject protrusion contact portion 124L are shown as cross-sectional views. The same applies to FIG. 16B, FIG. 17 and FIG.

As shown in FIG. 16A, the left wall portion 111L includes a wall portion main body 115 extending in the front-rear direction, and an L-shaped L-shaped portion 116 connected to the front-rear central portion of the wall main body 115 and extending leftward and rearward. And is configured. The L-shaped portion 116 is configured such that the tip height position thereof is substantially the same as the tip height position of the wall portion main body 115. In addition, a lock protrusion 116 a protruding forward is formed on the left front portion of the L-shaped portion 116. When attaching the U-shaped eject protrusion contact portion 124L that protrudes rearward to the left wall portion 111L configured in this manner, the gap between the wall portion main body 115 and the L-shaped portion 116 is not affected. Then, the right portion of the eject protrusion contact portion 124L is inserted from the rear. In this way, the eject protrusion contact portion 124L is attached so as to cover the L-shaped portion 116. In this attached state, the wall portion main body 115 is lower than the L-shaped portion 116 to which the eject projection contact portion 124L is attached by an amount corresponding to the eject projection contact portion 124L. The height difference between the wall main body 115 and the L-shaped portion 116 (eject projection contact portion 124L) is configured to be equal to or higher than the vertical height of the eject projection 34. Therefore, the wall main body 115 is configured. The eject protrusion 34 can be accommodated in a step portion between the protrusion protrusion contact portion 124L and the eject protrusion contact portion 124L.

  By simply fitting and inserting the fitting portion 13 of the plug connector 1 into the fitting space 112 of the receptacle connector 100 configured as described above and coupling the two together, the direction in which both are pulled out (in the front-rear direction) is extracted. When an external force is applied, these bonds may be disconnected. Therefore, the eject lock members 30 and 30 are provided on the plug connector 1, and the eject lock members 30 and 30 lock and hold the plug connector 1 in the state where the plug connector 1 is fitted and inserted into the receptacle connector 100. Yes.

  Hereinafter, the operation (lock holding) of the eject lock member 30 when the plug connector 1 is fitted to the receptacle connector 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 16 to 18 additionally. Hereinafter, the case where the plug connector 1 is fitted to the receptacle connector 100 from the back will be described as an example. Since the operations of the left and right eject lock members 30, 30 are the same, the operation of the eject lock member 30 with respect to the left wall portion 111L will be described below, and the operation of the eject lock member 30 with respect to the right wall portion 111R will be described. The description about is omitted. In the plug connector 1, the rear is the direction in which the front is pulled out (detached) in the direction in which the front is fitted, while the receptacle connector 100 is in the direction in which the rear is fitted in the direction in which the front is removed.

  When the plug connector 1 is to be fitted, first, the operation portion 32 of the eject lock member 30 is operated to place the eject lock member 30 in the vicinity of the eject side limit position as shown in FIG. The tip of 31 is opened to the left and right outside. In this state, as shown in FIG. 16A, the fitting portion 13 of the plug connector 1 is inserted and fitted into the fitting space 112 of the receptacle connector 100 from the rear. At this time, since the eject protrusion 34 of the eject lock member 30 faces the eject protrusion contact portion 124L in the front-rear direction, when the plug connector 1 is inserted further forward, as shown in FIG. The protrusion 34 contacts the eject protrusion contact portion 124L.

  More specifically, the eject protrusion 34 comes into contact with the left and right inner portions, that is, the portion that curves toward the front right side in the U-shaped portion at the rear end of the eject protrusion contact portion 124L. For this reason, when the plug connector 1 is further inserted in this state, the eject lock member 30 rotates while the eject projection 34 abuts the eject projection abutment portion 124L as shown in FIG. It is smoothly rotated counterclockwise around the shaft 33. Further, since the portion (eject projection contact portion 124L) with which the eject projection 34 abuts is configured using the metal receptacle-side shell member 120 for removing noise or the like, the component parts of the receptacle connector 100 The intensity | strength of the part which the eject protrusion 34 contact | abuts is raised, suppressing a score.

As a result, the eject protrusion 34 moves to the right while being in contact with the eject protrusion contact portion 124L, and the front base portion 31c and the lock portion 31d move to the right to move the L-shaped portion 116 (eject protrusion contact). Part 124L). Then, as shown in FIG. 17B, the eject protrusion 34 enters the accommodation space 117 on the right side of the eject protrusion contact portion 124L (the step portion between the eject protrusion contact portion 124L and the wall main body 115). In the state of FIG. 17B, when the plug connector 1 is further inserted forward and inserted to the fitting completion position, the eject lock member 30 is further rotated counterclockwise as shown in FIG. The L-shaped portion 116 and the eject protrusion contact portion 124 </ b> L are accommodated in the engaging portion accommodating space 37. In this state, the lock protrusion 35 is positioned on the right side of the lock protrusion 116 a and the eject protrusion 34 is accommodated in the accommodation space 117. As a result, the lock portion 31d is engaged with the L-shaped portion 116 (eject projection contact portion 124L) in the front-rear direction, and the lock holding by the eject lock member 30 is completed. In the locked state, the lock protrusion 35 is positioned on the right side of the lock protrusion 116a, so that the eject lock member 30 is not rotated freely and the lock is not released.

  In this way, when the plug connector 1 is fitted and locked to the receptacle connector 100, the receptacle contact 130 elastically contacts the conductor 52 exposed upward on the upper surface side of the FFC support portion 13a. The conductor 52 and the receptacle contact 130 are electrically connected. Further, the ground arm 122 of the receptacle-side shell member 120 elastically contacts the plug-side shell member 40 exposed downward on the lower surface side of the FFC support portion 13a. For this reason, the shield tape 56 of the FFC 50 is electrically connected to the ground pattern on the substrate K via the plug-side shell member 40 and the receptacle-side shell member 120, and noise generated in the FFC 50 and the receptacle connector 100 is reduced. Can escape to the side.

  When locked by the eject lock member 30 as described above, the connected state can be maintained even if an external force acts on the plug connector 1 and the receptacle connector 100 in the front-rear direction. For this reason, when the plug connector 1 is removed from the receptacle connector 100, it is necessary to first release the lock holding by the eject lock member 30. Hereinafter, the operation of the eject lock member 30 when the lock holding is released and the plug connector 1 is removed from the receptacle connector 100 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  Release of the lock of the eject lock member 30 with respect to the left wall portion 111L (right wall portion 111R) and removal of the plug connector 1 are as shown in FIG. 18 (the state where the plug connector 1 is fitted to the receptacle connector 100). Then, by operating the operating portion 32, the eject lock member 30 located in the vicinity of the lock-side limit position is rotated in the order shown in FIGS. 17 (b), 17 (a) and 16 (b). This is done by positioning it in the vicinity of the eject side limit position.

As described above, when the eject lock member 30 is rotated toward the eject side limit position, the eject lock member 30 is rotated in a state of being in contact with the eject protrusion contact portion 124L. At this time, since the eject protrusion 34 is in contact with the portion of the eject protrusion abutting portion 124L that curves toward the front right side, the eject lock member 30 can be smoothly rotated clockwise. Here, the plug connector when the eject lock member 30 is rotated by bringing the eject lock member 30 away from the rotation shaft 33 (the portion having a large rotation radius) into contact with the eject protrusion abutting portion 124L. However, in the present embodiment, the eject lock member 30 is provided with an eject projection 34 that projects forward from the intermediate base 31b, and this eject projection 34 is projected. The contact portion 124L is in contact with the contact portion 124L. For this reason, for example, the left and right dimensions of the base portion 31 are increased, and the portion of the base portion 31 left and right away from the rotation shaft 33 is brought into contact with the eject protrusion contact portion 124L to increase the amount of lifting of the plug connector 1. Thus, the lifting amount of the plug connector 1 can be increased while suppressing the left and right dimensions of the base portion 31 (the eject lock member 30 and the plug connector 1). As a result, the amount of pulling that is manually pulled out against the sliding resistance between the conductor 52 and the receptacle contact 130 is reduced, thereby facilitating removal. The two-piece connector T described in the present embodiment has a configuration in which the plug connector 1 is completely removed by the rotation operation of the eject lock member 30, and does not need to be manually pulled out. This makes it easier to remove.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 18, since the eject protrusion 34 is accommodated in the accommodating space 117 in a locked state, the lifting amount when the eject lock member 30 is rotated by the eject protrusion 34 as described above is set. The front-rear height of the entire two-piece connector T when the plug connector 1 is fitted to the receptacle connector 100 can be kept low while making the structure to earn. Further, since the eject lock member 30 is configured to rotate the left and right operation portions 32, 32 inwardly to the left and right to rotate to the eject side limit position, the lock holding can be easily released with one hand to remove the plug connector 1. Is possible.

  In the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the two lifting arms 43 are in contact with the reinforcing plates 54 on the left and right outer sides of the shield plate 55 instead of the shield plate 55 has been described as an example, but for example, in addition to the three ground arms 42 The two lifting arms 43 may also be configured to contact the shield plate 55.

  In the above-described embodiment, the FFC 50 configured by pasting the shield tape 56 on the lower surface of the lower insulating sheet 51 and the upper surface of the upper insulating sheet 53 has been described as an example. However, the pasting form of the shield tape 56 is limited to this. For example, it may be attached only to the lower surface of the lower insulating sheet 51 or only to the upper surface of the upper insulating sheet 53.

  In the above-described embodiment, when the plug connector 1 is fitted and removed, the eject protrusion 34 of the eject lock member 30 is used as the eject protrusion contact portion 124L (eject protrusion contact portion 124R) of the receptacle-side shell member 120. Although the configuration of contacting is described, instead of this configuration, the eject protrusion 34 may be configured to contact the receptacle-side connector housing 110 (the left wall portion 111L and the right wall portion 111R).

  In the above-described embodiment, the plug connector 1 is provided with the eject lock member 30, and the receptacle connector 100 is engaged with the eject lock member 30 with the L-shaped portion 116 and the eject projection contact portion 124L (eject projection contact portion). The two-piece connector T provided with 124R) has been described. The configuration of the two-piece connector is not limited to this. For example, the receptacle connector 100 may be provided with an eject lock member, and the plug connector 1 may be provided with an L-shaped portion that engages with the eject lock member and an eject protrusion contact portion. .

  In the above-described embodiment, the configuration example in which the vertical width of the operation portion 32 of the eject lock member 30 is substantially the same as the vertical width of the housing body member 11 has been described, but the configuration of the operation portion 32 is not limited to this. In short, it is only necessary that the operation portion 32 is attached to the housing body member 11 and does not protrude vertically from the housing body member 11. For example, the vertical width of the operation portion 32 is smaller than the vertical width of the housing body member 11. The configuration may be acceptable.

  In the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the plug connector 1 is completely removed by the rotation operation of the eject lock member 30 has been described. However, in addition to this configuration, the plug connector 1 is completely removed by the rotation operation of the eject lock member 30. It is good also as a structure which needs to be pulled out by the middle (it is necessary to pull out by hand).

In the above-described embodiment, the example in which the present invention is applied to the two-piece connector T including the plug connector 1 attached to the end of the FFC 50 and the receptacle connector 100 mounted on the substrate K has been described. This example is an example of a two-piece connector to which the present invention can be applied. For example, the present invention can also be applied to a two-piece connector in which a plug connector and a receptacle connector are both mounted on a substrate and used.

1 Plug connector (second connector)
11 Housing body member 30 Eject lock member 31 Base part (accommodating lock part)
32 Operation unit 34 Ejection protrusion (Ejection protrusion)
37 Engagement part accommodating space 52 Conductor (second contact)
100 Receptacle connector (first connector)
111L Left wall part (engagement part)
111R Right wall part (engagement part)
117 accommodation space (projection accommodation space)
120 Receptacle side shell member (cover member)
124L Eject projection contact part (part of cover member)
124R Ejection projection contact part (part of cover member)
130 Receptacle contact (first contact)
T two-piece connector

Claims (4)

A first connector having a first contact; and a second connector having a second contact that is configured to be able to be fitted to and detached from the first connector and that is in electrical contact with the first contact during fitting. A two-piece connector
The first connector includes engaging portions that extend outwardly on the left and right sides,
The second connector includes an eject lock member that is pivotably attached to the left and right sides and engageable with the engaging portion.
The eject lock member has an engaging portion accommodating space opened on the left and right inner sides, the accommodating lock portion for accommodating the engaging portion in the engaging portion accommodating space, and engaging the engaging portion; An eject protrusion that extends in the direction of fitting from the inner wall surface on the direction of detachment with respect to the second connector forming the engaging portion accommodating space and protrudes into the engaging portion accommodating space;
The engaging portion includes a protrusion accommodating space including a recess capable of accommodating the eject protruding portion on an outer wall surface on a direction side to be fitted to the first connector,
When the first connector is fitted to the second connector, the eject lock member is rotated so that the engaging portion is accommodated in the engaging portion accommodating space and the eject protruding portion is moved to the protruding portion. By being accommodated in an accommodating space, the eject lock member is engaged with the engaging portion, and the first and second connectors are locked and held in a fitted state,
When the eject lock member is rotated so that the accommodation lock portion is separated from the engagement portion from the lock holding state, the eject lock member is rotated while the eject protrusion is in contact with the engagement portion. Then, the two-piece connector is configured to release the engagement between the accommodation lock portion and the engagement portion while moving the second connector so as to be detached from the first connector.   When the first connector is fitted with the second connector, the inner wall surface having the eject protrusion is in contact with the outer wall surface of the engagement portion on the direction of fitting with the first connector. The eject lock member is rotated so that the accommodation lock portion is brought close to the engagement portion, and the engagement portion is accommodated in the engagement portion accommodation space, and the eject projection portion is located in the projection portion accommodation space. The two-piece connector according to claim 1, wherein the two-piece connector is housed in a housing. The first connector includes a cover member configured using a metal material and covering an outer surface of the first connector;
The two-piece connector according to claim 1, wherein the engaging portion is formed to be covered with a part of the cover member. The eject lock member includes an operation portion that is connected to the substantially flat storage lock portion and extends in a direction orthogonal to the storage lock portion to rotate the eject lock member.
The second connector includes a substantially flat housing body member to which the second contact is attached,
The eject lock member is attached to the left and right sides of the housing body member with the operating portion positioned laterally outside the housing body member,
The operation unit is configured to be positioned between both outer surfaces in the thickness direction of the housing main body member in a state where the eject lock member is attached to the housing main body member. The two-piece connector according to any one of Items 1 to 3.

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