JP6446729B2 - Electrical connector assembly and electrical connector used therefor - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an electrical connector, and more particularly to an L-shaped coaxial connector used for connection of a coaxial cable.

  In recent years, electronic devices such as mobile phones, notebook personal computers (PCs), and tablet PCs have been actively developed. In these electronic devices, there is a demand for miniaturization in order to improve portability, and miniaturization is also demanded for electronic components incorporated therein. L-type coaxial connectors are coaxial cables that connect antennas to various electronic components such as RF circuits and central processing units in mobile phones and notebook PCs, tablet PCs, and the like that have become common in recent years. In many cases, it is used for connection, and downsizing is demanded.

  As such an L-shaped coaxial connector, for example, there is a technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-183212 (Patent Document 1). The L-shaped coaxial connector described in Patent Document 1 includes an outer conductor having a fitting cylindrical portion, a dielectric inside the fitting cylindrical portion, a central conductor held by the dielectric, and the like. The fitting cylindrical portion of the outer conductor is formed with open portions at intervals in the circumferential direction at a position on the cable extension direction side. On the inner peripheral surface of the fitting cylindrical portion, a lock portion that engages with an annular lock groove formed on the outer peripheral surface of the outer conductor of the mating connector is provided as an annular protrusion extending in the circumferential direction. .

  In use, when the mating connector attached to the circuit board or the like and the L-shaped coaxial connector are fitted, the fitting cylindrical portion of the outer conductor of the L-shaped coaxial connector expands due to elasticity while the diameter of the mating connector is increased. An annular ridge provided on the inner peripheral surface of the fitting cylindrical portion is brought into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the outer conductor, and is fitted into an annular lock groove formed on the outer peripheral surface of the outer conductor of the mating connector, Locking to prevent the disconnection is performed (see paragraphs 0008, 0028, 0047, and FIG. 2 of Patent Document 1).

JP-A-2005-183212

  By the way, as a result of the study of the L-type coaxial connector technology as described above, the following has been clarified.

  For example, when releasing and removing the mating connector and L-shaped coaxial connector, the mating connector (receptacle connector) attached to the circuit board or the like is usually used using a removal jig or the like. The L-shaped coaxial connector (plug connector) is lifted upward and removed. At that time, since the protruding portion of the fitting cylindrical portion of the L-shaped coaxial connector tends to come out from the lock groove of the outer conductor of the mating connector, it faces outward with respect to the fitting cylindrical portion of the L-shaped coaxial connector. The fitting cylindrical portion of the L-shaped coaxial connector expands due to elasticity and comes into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the external conductor of the mating connector, and the protrusion of the mating cylindrical portion is connected to the mating connector. It moves while rubbing the outer peripheral surface of the outer conductor, and the connector is removed. At this time, the fitting cylindrical portion of the L-shaped coaxial connector has an open portion on the extending direction side of the cable (that is, has a C-shape when viewed from the fitting side). The open part side of the combined cylindrical part is more elastic than the opposite side (base side) and is easy to expand in diameter with a small force. For this reason, when the connector is removed, a large force is applied to the protrusion on the base side of the fitting cylindrical part, which causes the protrusion on the base side of the fitting cylindrical part to be shaved or the outside of the mating connector. The outer peripheral surface of the conductor may be scraped off. If it does so, it will be thought that it influences the fitting force of connectors in the case of subsequent use.

  Accordingly, one object of the present invention is a technique capable of preventing damage and deterioration of a lock portion such as a protruding portion of a fitting cylindrical portion when the connectors are removed in an electrical connector such as an L-shaped coaxial connector. Is to provide.

  The above and other objects and novel features of the present invention will be apparent from the description of this specification and the accompanying drawings.

  Of the inventions disclosed in the present application, the outline of typical ones will be briefly described as follows. That is, the present invention is an electrical connector assembly such as a coaxial connector, a terminal that is electrically connected to the core wire of the coaxial cable, an insulating housing that accommodates the terminal and has a fitting projection, An outer conductor shell that is electrically connected to a shield wire of the coaxial cable and covers at least a part of the housing, and the outer conductor shell is a substantially cylindrical fitting cylinder around the fitting convex portion The fitting cylindrical part has an open part that is partially open in a C-shape, and a coupling base located on the opposite side of the opening part, and the fitting cylindrical part is And a locking portion provided on at least a part of the inner peripheral surface, and the locking portion is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the annular fitting wall of the mating connector when mated with the mating connector. It is structured to be fitted and locked to the locked part, and the fitting wall Towards the base coupling portion than the gap between the outer peripheral surface of the peripheral surface the fitting convex portion the open portion side has a structure larger, it is characterized in.

  Of the inventions disclosed in the present application, effects obtained by typical ones will be briefly described as follows.

  Since the electrical connector has a structure that shifts in the root direction (base direction) of the fitting cylindrical portion when the connectors are removed, damage and deterioration of the lock portion of the fitting cylindrical portion are prevented.

It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the electrical connector (plug connector) which concerns on one embodiment of this invention. It is a bottom side perspective view showing the composition of the electric connector (plug connector) concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is a bottom view which shows the structure of the electrical connector (plug connector) which concerns on one embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing in the BB cut surface of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the other party connector (receptacle connector). It is a top view which shows the structure of the other party connector (receptacle connector). It is sectional drawing in the AA cut surface of FIG. It is sectional drawing corresponding to FIG.4 and FIG.7 which shows the state which fitted the electrical connector (plug connector) and the other party connector (receptacle connector) in the regular position. It is sectional drawing in the CC cut surface of FIG. 8 which shows the state which fitted the electrical connector (plug connector) and the other party connector (receptacle connector) in the regular position. It is sectional drawing corresponding to FIG. 8 which shows the state at the time of the extraction start of an electrical connector (plug connector) and the other party connector (receptacle connector). It is a top view which shows the structure of the other party connector (receptacle connector) which concerns on other embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing in the AA cut surface of FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that components having the same function are denoted by the same reference symbols throughout the drawings for describing the embodiment, and the repetitive description thereof will be omitted.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a configuration of an electrical connector (plug / connector) according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a bottom perspective view showing the configuration of the electrical connector (plug / connector). FIG. 3 is a bottom view showing the configuration of the electrical connector (plug connector). 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG.

  First, an example of the configuration of the electrical connector according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. An electrical connector (plug connector) 100 according to the present embodiment is an L-type coaxial connector used for connection of a coaxial cable, and a terminal 110 electrically connected to a core wire 310 of the coaxial cable 300, and a terminal 110 And an outer conductor shell 130 that is electrically connected to the shield wire 330 of the coaxial cable 300 and covers at least a part of the housing 120.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the coaxial cable 300 has the same structure as a general coaxial cable, and has an insulating coating 340, a shield wire 330, an insulator 320, and a core wire 310 from the outermost shell toward the center.

  The outer conductor shell 130 is made by bending a metal plate, and has a substantially cylindrical fitting cylindrical portion 131, a lid portion 135, and a surrounding portion 136 as a unit. .

  The fitting cylindrical portion 131 is formed by bending a metal plate along a circle, and the fitting portion is substantially C-shaped when viewed from the fitting direction. An open portion 132 having an open portion is formed, and a substantially plate-like base portion 133 is formed on the opposite side of the open portion 132.

Further, the fitting cylindrical portion 131 has an annular protrusion 134 provided on at least a part of the inner peripheral surface thereof, and when fitting with the mating connector (receptacle connector) 200, the fitting cylinder 131 The fitting wall 240 (cylindrical part 221 and outer conductor 230) of the mating connector 200 is inserted into the cable connector side receiving space 137 between the shaped part 131 and the fitting convex part 121 described later, and the protruding part 134 is It is structured to be fitted and locked in an annular lock groove 231 provided on the outer peripheral surface of the outer conductor 230 of the mating connector 200.

  In addition, the fitting cylindrical portion 131 includes a protrusion 134 provided on the inner peripheral surface of the substantially cylindrical portion of the fitting cylindrical portion 131 and the center of the terminal 110 when the fitting cylindrical portion 131 is not mated with the mating connector 200. The structure is such that the distance from the shaft is greater on the base 133 side than on the open part 132 side. Further, the protrusion 134 provided on the inner peripheral surface of the fitting cylindrical portion 131 has an inclined surface on the opposite side of the fitting direction with the mating connector 200, and when being removed from the mating connector 200, The fitting cylindrical portion 131 is structured to generate a force that expands.

  The housing 120 has a substantially cylindrical fitting convex portion 121 positioned inside the fitting cylindrical portion 131, and the terminal 110 is provided in a terminal accommodating space 138 formed as a space in the center of the fitting convex portion 121. A plate-shaped main body is disposed, and contact pieces extending from the side edges of the main body are bent in the mating direction of the mating connector to form a pair of contact portions. Further, when mating with the mating connector 200, the gap between the outer peripheral surface of the mating convex portion 121 and the inner side of the mating wall 240 of the mating connector 200, which will be described later, is larger than the base portion 133 than the opening portion 132 side. The structure is such that the side is larger. This is realized by designing the distance between the outer peripheral surface of the fitting convex portion 121 and the central axis of the terminal 110 to be smaller on the base 133 side than on the open portion 132 side. In addition, when mating with the mating connector 200, the center axis of the terminal 110 and the center axis of the center conductor 210 of the mating connector 200 coincide with each other.

  FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a mating connector (receptacle connector). FIG. 6 is a plan view showing the configuration of the mating connector (receptacle connector). 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 5 to FIG. 7, the mating connector 200 includes a cylindrical outer conductor 230, a center conductor 210 disposed at the center position thereof, and an insulative material molded integrally between the two conductors. And a housing 220. The housing 220 has a cylindrical cylindrical portion 221 provided along the inner peripheral surface of the outer conductor 230, and the outer conductor 230 and the cylindrical portion 221 are combined to form a fitting wall 240. . The outer conductor 230 is formed in a cylindrical shape so as to be joined at one place in the circumferential direction, and a lock groove 231 is formed on the outer periphery. The center conductor 210 has a shaft-like contact portion 212 and a connection portion 211 that forms an L-shaped arm portion at one location in the circumferential direction from the lower end thereof. Between the cylindrical part 221 inside the fitting wall 240 and the contact part 212 of the center conductor 210, an annular receiving space 222 that can accommodate the fitting convex part 212 when the electric connector 100 is fitted is formed. .

With the configuration as described above, the gap between the inner peripheral surface of the fitting wall 240 and the outer peripheral surface of the fitting convex portion 212 is larger on the base side (G ₂ ) than on the open portion side (G ₁ ). The combined cylindrical portion 131 is structured to be displaced in the direction of the base portion 133 with respect to the mating connector 200.

  Next, the configuration at the time of fitting between the electrical connector 100 and the mating connector 200 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view corresponding to FIGS. 4 and 7 showing a state in which the electrical connector (plug connector) and the mating connector (receptacle connector) are fitted in the normal position. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 8 to 9, when the electrical connector 100 and the mating connector 200 are mated, the mating space 137 between the mating cylindrical portion 131 and the mating convex portion 121 of the electrical connector 100 is mated. The fitting wall 240 of the connector 200 is inserted. In other words, the fitting convex portion 121 of the electrical connector 100 is inserted into the mating connector side receiving space 222 between the cylindrical portion 221 inside the fitting wall 240 of the mating connector 200 and the contact portion 212 of the center conductor 210. The contact portion 111 of the terminal 110 of the electrical connector 100 disposed in the terminal accommodating space 138 contacts the contact portion 212 so as to sandwich the center conductor 210 of the mating connector 200, and contacts the terminal 110 of the electrical connector 100. The central conductor 210 of the side connector 200 is electrically connected. Further, the protrusion 134 of the electrical connector 100 is fitted and locked in an annular lock groove 231 provided on the outer peripheral surface of the external conductor 230 of the mating connector 200.

At this time, as described above, when the fitting cylindrical portion 131 is not fitted to the mating connector 200, the protrusion 134 provided on the inner peripheral surface of the fitting cylindrical portion 131 and the terminal 110 are arranged. The distance from the central axis is such that the base 133 side (L ₂ ) is larger than the open part 132 side (L ₁ ). Therefore, at the time of fitting, due to this difference in distance, a force that moves the fitting convex portion 121 of the electrical connector 100 to the right side in FIG. 8 (that is, the open portion side in the extending direction of the cable 300) works. The conductor 210 is fitted at a position where the central axis of the conductor 210 and the central axis of the terminal 110 coincide. As a result, as shown in FIG. 9, the gap between the outer peripheral surface of the fitting convex portion 121 and the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 221 inside the outer conductor 230 of the mating connector 200 is on the base 133 side. The gap G ₂ is fitted in a state where the gap G ₂ is larger than the gap G ₁ on the open part 132 side, that is, the normal position where the center axis positions of the terminals of the electrical connector 100 and the intermediate connector 200 are in contact with each other within an appropriate range.

  Next, referring to FIG. 10, when the electrical connector 100 and the mating connector 200 are pulled out, the fitting cylindrical portion 131 can be connected to the mating connector 200 by the elasticity of the fitting cylindrical portion 131. Explain why the direction is off. FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration at the start of extraction of the electrical connector and the mating connector at a position corresponding to FIG.

When the electrical connector 100 and the mating connector 200 are removed, the lock portions (protrusions 134, lock grooves 231) of the electrical connector 100 and the mating connector 200 are inclined (tapered). When pulled upward, a force is generated to move the electrical connector 100 to the left side (opposite to the extending direction of the cable 300). This is because the opening portion 132 side of the fitting cylindrical portion 131 expands due to elasticity and the locking force is weakened, but the base 133 side of the fitting cylindrical portion 131 has little spreading, and therefore the force applied to the lock portion becomes strong. It is. In addition, when the contacts are fitted together, the gap G ₂ on the base 133 side is larger than the gap G ₁ on the open part 132 side, so that the electrical connector 100 is allowed to move to the left.

  Therefore, when the connectors are removed, the electrical connector 100 is displaced in the left direction (the root direction of the fitting cylindrical portion), so that the lock portion of the fitting cylindrical portion is prevented from being damaged.

  FIG. 11 is a plan view showing a configuration of a mating connector (receptacle connector) according to another embodiment of the present invention. 12 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG.

In the embodiment, the gap G on the base 133 side is reduced by making the diameter of the fitting convex portion 121 of the electrical connector 100 smaller on the opposite side of the cable extension direction than on the extension direction side of the cable 300. ₂ is larger than the gap G ₁ on the open part 132 side. However, as shown in FIGS. 11 to 12, the radial thickness of the cylindrical part 221 of the mating connector 200 is changed. As a result, the same effect as in the above embodiment can be obtained. That is, the thickness of the cylindrical portion 221 in the radial direction may be made thinner on the opposite side of the cable extension direction than on the extension direction side of the cable 300. Further, a structure in which the distance between the inner peripheral surface of the fitting wall 240 and the central axis of the terminal 110 is smaller on the open portion 132 side than on the base portion 133 side may be employed.

  As mentioned above, the invention made by the present inventor has been specifically described based on the embodiment. However, the invention is not limited to the embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. Needless to say.

  For example, the shapes of the terminals of the electrical connector and the mating connector may be interchanged. That is, a terminal having a shape similar to that of the center conductor 210 may be provided instead of the terminal 110 of the electrical connector, and a terminal having a shape similar to that of the terminal 110 may be provided instead of the center conductor 210 of the mating connector.

100 Electrical connector (plug connector)
110 Terminal 111 Contact part 120 Housing 121 Fitting convex part 130 Outer conductor shell 131 Fitting cylindrical part 132 Opening part 133 Base part 134 Projection part (locking part)
135 Lid 136 Surrounding part 137 Cable connector side accommodation space 138 Terminal accommodation space 200 Mating side connector (receptacle connector)
210 Central conductor 211 Connection portion 212 Contact portion 220 Housing 221 Cylindrical portion 222 Receiving space 230 External conductor 231 Lock groove (locked portion)
240 Fitting wall 300 Coaxial cable 310 Core wire 320 Insulator 330 Shield wire 340 Insulation coating

Claims (11)

A terminal electrically connected to the core wire of the coaxial cable;
An insulating housing that houses the terminal and has a fitting projection;
An outer conductor shell electrically connected to the shielded wire of the coaxial cable and covering at least a part of the housing,
The outer conductor shell has a substantially cylindrical fitting cylindrical portion around the fitting convex portion,
The fitting cylindrical portion has an open portion that is partially opened in a C shape, and a base portion that is located on the opposite side of the open portion,
The fitting cylindrical portion has a locking portion provided on at least a part of its inner peripheral surface,
At the time of fitting with the mating connector, the locking portion is fitted and locked to the locked portion provided on the outer peripheral surface of the annular fitting wall of the mating connector,
An electrical connector characterized in that a gap between an inner peripheral surface of the fitting wall and an outer peripheral surface of the fitting convex portion is configured to be larger on the base side than on the opening side. Assembly.   When the fitting cylindrical portion is not mated with the mating connector, the distance between the locking portion provided on the inner peripheral surface of the fitting cylindrical portion and the central axis of the terminal is The electrical connector assembly according to claim 1, wherein the electrical connector assembly is configured such that the base side is larger than the open side.   The locking portion provided on the inner peripheral surface of the fitting cylindrical portion has an inclined surface on the opposite side of the fitting direction with the mating connector, and when the mating connector is pulled out, the fitting The electrical connector assembly according to claim 1, wherein the electrical connector assembly is configured to generate a force for expanding the combined cylindrical portion.   The electrical connector set according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a distance between an outer peripheral surface of the fitting convex portion and a central axis of the terminal is smaller on the base portion side than on the open portion side. Solid.   The structure according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein when mating with the mating connector, the center axis of the terminal coincides with the central axis of the center conductor of the mating connector. An electrical connector assembly as described. A terminal electrically connected to the core wire of the coaxial cable;
An insulating housing that houses the terminal and has a fitting projection;
An outer conductor shell electrically connected to the shielded wire of the coaxial cable and covering at least a part of the housing,
The outer conductor shell has a substantially cylindrical fitting cylindrical portion around the fitting convex portion,
The fitting cylindrical portion has an open portion that is partially opened in a C-shape, and a substantially plate-shaped base portion that is located on the opposite side of the open portion,
The fitting cylindrical portion has a locking portion provided on at least a part of its inner peripheral surface,
An electrical connector having a structure in which a distance between an outer peripheral surface of the fitting convex portion and a central axis of the terminal is smaller on the base side than on the opening side. The electrical connector according to claim 6 , wherein a distance between the base portion and a central axis of the terminal is larger than a distance between the open portion and the central axis of the terminal. The length of the said base part is an electrical connector of Claim 6 larger than the spatial distance of the said open part. The shape of the fitting cylindrical portion changes from a straight shape to a curved shape from the base portion toward the open portion,
The electrical connector according to claim 6 , wherein the change start position that changes from a straight shape to a curved shape is located closer to the base side than a position at which a distance between two extension portions extending from both ends of the base portion is the largest. . An electrical connector used as a mating connector in the electrical connector assembly according to claim 1,
An electrical connector having a structure in which a distance between an inner peripheral surface of the fitting wall and a central axis of the terminal is smaller on the other side than on one side. The thickness of the fitting wall is, towards the other hand the other side than the side is thicker, the electrical connector according to claim 1 0.

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