JP7534232B2 - PCB Connectors - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a connector for a circuit board.

A board connector that is surface-mounted on a circuit board (hereinafter also referred to as "board") is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). As shown in FIG. 6, this board connector 501 has a synthetic resin housing 505 molded into a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape that houses a plurality of terminals 503, and a fixing member 511 that is a fixing metal fitting that fixes this housing 505 to a board 507. As shown in FIG. 7, guide grooves 513 are formed on both side surfaces 509 of the housing 505, into which the fixing member 511 can be inserted from above. Therefore, a pair of front and rear wall portions 515 are formed to protrude from each of the side surfaces 509 on both sides of the housing 505.

As shown in FIG. 8, the fixing member 511 has a main body 517 and a fixing plate 521. A pair of guide portions 523 protrude from both the left and right edges of the main body 517. The fixing plate 521 is bent from the lower end of the main body 517 to the side opposite the side surface 509 so as to be parallel to the substrate 507. The lower surface of the fixing plate 521 facing the substrate 507 becomes the substrate fixing surface 525. The fixing member 511 is formed with an overall height H, a bent length D, and a thickness t.

As shown in FIG. 7, the housing 505 has opposing upright surfaces 527 in a vertical position on both side walls 515, with a distance approximately equal to the width of the main body 517 of the fixing member 511. As a result, the fixing member 511 is fixed against the side surface 509 of the housing 505 with the main body 517 sandwiched between the opposing upright surfaces 527 and the guide portion 523 engaged with the guide groove 513.

As shown in FIG. 9, the fixing plate portion 521 is fixed (joined) to a fixing pad (not shown) on the surface of the board 507 via solder 529 when the board connector 501 is mounted on the board 507. In other words, the fixing member 511 serves as a fixing member between the board connector 501 and the board 507.

JP 2010-80322 A

However, when the above-mentioned board connector 501 is surface-mounted on the board 507, the fixing plate 521 is heated and soldered while it is placed on the solder 529 applied to the board 507. At that time, as shown in FIG. 9, the side 509 of the housing 505 contacts the fixing member 511 at a height H, so that the solder 529 is sucked up in the direction of the arrow a by capillary action through the gap between the side 509 and the fixing member 511. It is difficult to control the amount of solder sucked up at this time. In addition, if the solder 529 is sucked up, the amount of solder between the board 507 and the board fixing surface 525 required to ensure the fixing strength may decrease. On the other hand, if the bent length D of the fixing plate 521 is increased to increase the fixing strength, the board connector 501 will become larger.

The present invention was made in consideration of the above situation, and its purpose is to provide a board connector that can ensure both the fixing strength to the board and compactness.

The above object of the present invention can be achieved by the following configuration.
a housing made of insulating resin that receives terminals and is fixed to a board; and a pair of fixing brackets that are respectively fixed to a pair of parallel side surfaces of the housing perpendicular to the board and that fix the housing to the board, wherein the fixing brackets have a main plate portion that is engaged with engaging portions formed on the side surfaces of the housing and is fixed parallel to the side surfaces, a spacing plate portion that is connected to a lower end of the main plate portion facing the board and extends in a direction away from the side surfaces as it approaches the board, and a fixing plate portion that is bent from the lower end of the spacing plate portion toward the side surfaces to be parallel to the board, the surface that faces the board being a board fixing surface, wherein the spacing plate portion has an inclined connection portion that is connected to the lower end of the main plate portion and inclined in a direction away from the side surfaces as it approaches the board, and a hanging spacing portion that is connected to the inclined connection portion and hangs down parallel to the side surfaces, and the fixing plate portion is bent at a right angle from the hanging end of the hanging spacing portion toward the side surfaces to be parallel to the board .

According to the circuit board connector having the configuration (1) above, the housing has side surfaces on both sides perpendicular to the circuit board. The main body plate of the fixing bracket is engaged with the engaging portions formed on each of the side surfaces. The main body plate engaged with the engaging portions is fixed parallel to the side surfaces, close to or in contact with the side surfaces. A spacing plate is connected to the lower end of the main body plate facing the circuit board. Furthermore, a fixing plate is formed at the lower end of this spacing plate. The fixing plate is bent from the lower end of the spacing plate toward the side surfaces so as to be parallel to the circuit board.
That is, in the board connector of this configuration, an expanded space surrounded by the side surface, the separation plate, and the fixing plate is defined between the side surface of the housing and the fixing metal fitting. In the board connector, during the reflow process, the molten solder spreads upward while forming a fillet between the side surface of the housing and the plate end face of the fixing plate. When the molten solder reaches the expanded space, the upward spread (spreading) stops. This prevents the amount of solder in the fixing plate from decreasing in the board connector of this configuration. Also, since the fixing metal fitting can accommodate the bending length of the fixing plate with the same size as before, the board connector does not become larger.

Furthermore, according to the circuit board connector having the configuration ( 1 ) above, the expanded space defined between the side surface of the housing and the fixing bracket is formed in a wedge shape surrounded by the inclined connection portion and the hanging spacing portion which form the spacing plate portion, the side surface of the housing, and the fixing plate portion.
In other words, the spacer plate for defining the expanded space between the side of the housing and the fastener is formed by the inclined connection portion and the hanging spacer portion. Therefore, the workpiece punched out from the blank to form the fastener requires a smaller size and improves the yield compared to a fastener workpiece in which a horizontal connection portion perpendicular to the side of the housing is formed instead of the inclined connection portion. As a result, the board connector of this configuration can reduce the manufacturing cost of the fastener.

( 2 ) The board connector according to (1) above, wherein a fillet of solidified molten solder is interposed between the bent tip of the fixing plate portion and the side surface.

According to the board connector having the above configuration ( 2 ), a solidified fillet of molten solder is interposed between the bent tip of the fixing plate and the side of the housing. The bent tip has a plate end surface that faces the side surface in parallel. The plate end surface and the side surface are formed to be located on the same plane and basically contact each other. However, in reality, a slight gap may be formed between the plate end surface and the side surface due to the tolerance during press molding of the fixing metal fittings and the assembly tolerance during mounting of the board connector. In this case, the molten solder is filled between the plate end surface and the side surface to fill the gap. This molten solder becomes a fillet when solidified. Therefore, in the board connector of this configuration, the gap between the side surface of the housing and the fixing plate of the fixing metal fitting is filled with a fillet, and no gap exists. As a result, the board connector is able to be fixed to the board more reliably by suppressing rattling and displacement caused by a gap between the housing and the fixing plate.

The circuit board connector of the present invention can ensure the fixing strength to the circuit board while being compact.

The present invention has been briefly described above. The details of the present invention will become clearer by reading the following description of the embodiment of the invention (hereinafter referred to as "embodiment") with reference to the attached drawings.

1 is a perspective view of a state in which a board connector according to an embodiment of the present invention is fixed to a board. FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a main portion of the housing shown in FIG. 1 . 2A is a perspective view of the fixing bracket shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 2B is a side view of FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 1. FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a main portion of FIG. 4 . FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a conventional board connector fixed to a board. FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of a main portion of the housing shown in FIG. 6 . 7A is a perspective view of the fixing bracket shown in FIG. 6, and FIG. 7B is a side view of FIG. This is a cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B in FIG.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a board connector 11 according to an embodiment of the present invention, fixed to a board 13. FIG.
The board connector 11 according to this embodiment mainly includes a housing 15 and a fixing metal fitting 17 (peg). The fixing metal fitting 17 further includes a main plate portion 19, a spacing plate portion 20, and a fixing plate portion 25.

The housing 15 accommodates the terminals 27 and is fixed to the board 13. The housing 15 is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape from an electrically insulating synthetic resin (insulating resin). A coupling opening 29 into which a mating connector (not shown) fits is opened at one end face in the longitudinal direction of the housing 15. A locked portion 33 for locking the fixing metal fitting 17 is formed on both side surfaces 31 of the housing 15 that sandwich the coupling opening 29. The locked portion 33 has a pair of locking protrusions 35 that are spaced apart in the longitudinal direction of the housing 15 and protrude from the side surfaces 31. The distance between the pair of locking protrusions 35 is approximately the same as the width W of the main body plate portion 19 (see FIG. 3(a)), which is the longitudinal direction of the fixing metal fitting 17.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a main portion of the housing 15 shown in FIG.
A locking groove 37 is formed between the pair of locking protrusions 35 and the side surface 31. The locking groove 37 is formed by cutting out a part of the upper surface of the locking protrusion 35 and a part of the opposing upright surface 39 of the locking protrusion 35. A locking portion 41 (see FIG. 3) of the fixing bracket 17 is fitted into this locking groove 37. The housing 15 has the locking portions 41 fitted into the respective locking grooves 37 formed on the side surfaces 31 on both sides, and the fixing bracket 17 is locked (press-fitted).

FIG. 3A is a perspective view of the fixing metal fitting 17 shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3B is a side view of FIG. 3A.
The fixing bracket 17 is fixed to the side surface 31 of the housing 15 to fix the housing 15 to the substrate 13. As shown in Fig. 3(a) , the fixing bracket 17 has a locking portion 41 formed on the main body plate portion 19 to be locked to the housing 15. The locking portion 41 is formed as a convex piece extending to both sides in the width direction at the upper portion of the main body plate portion 19 which is formed in a rectangular plate shape of width W.

The main body plate 19 is fixed parallel to the side surface 31 by engaging the engaging portion 41 with the engaging portion 33 formed on the side surface 31 of the housing 15. A separation plate 20 formed by an inclined connection portion 21 and a hanging separation portion 23 is connected to the lower end of the main body plate 19 facing the substrate 13. The inclined connection portion 21 connected to the lower end of the main body plate 19 inclines in a direction away from the side surface 31 as it approaches the substrate 13. The hanging separation portion 23 is connected to the inclined lower end of the inclined connection portion 21. The hanging separation portion 23 hangs down parallel to the side surface 31. The fixing plate 25 is formed by bending at a right angle from the hanging end of the hanging separation portion 23 toward the side surface 31. The fixing plate 25 is parallel to the substrate 13, and the lower surface facing the substrate 13 becomes the substrate fixing surface 43.

The fixing bracket 17 has a board fixing surface 43 that contacts the fixing pads 45 (see FIG. 4) and foot pattern formed on the connector mounting surface of the board 13. These fixing pads 45 and the like are formed as copper foil sections for solder application.

The fixing bracket 17 is formed by bending a workpiece that has been punched into a T-shape from a blank plate by pressing, to form a main plate portion 19, a separation plate portion 20 formed by an inclined connection portion 21 and a hanging separation portion 23, and a fixing plate portion 25. The fixing bracket 17 is made from a blank plate covered with a plated surface, so that at least the front and back surfaces are covered with the plated surface.

As shown in FIG. 3(b), the fixing bracket 17 is formed with an overall height H, a bending length of the fixing plate portion 25 D, and a thickness t. These dimensions are the same as those of a conventional board connector, but the bending direction of the fixing plate portion 25 with the bending length D is different from that of the conventional board connector. That is, in the conventional board connector, the fixing plate portion 521 of the fixing member 511 is bent in a direction away from the side surface 509 of the housing 505 (see FIG. 8). In contrast, in the board connector 11 of this embodiment, the fixing plate portion 25 of the fixing bracket 17 is bent in a direction approaching the side surface 31 of the housing 15.

Therefore, in conventional board connectors, the corner portion at the bent portion of the fixed plate portion 521 faces the side surface 509 of the housing 505 (see Figure 9), whereas in the board connector 11 of this embodiment, the plate end surface of the bent tip portion 47 faces the side surface 31 (see Figure 4).

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG.
The fixing metal fittings 17 fixed to both side surfaces 31 of the housing 15 are once bent toward the side surfaces 31 at a position where the fixing plate portions 25 bulge outward from the housing 15 by the inclined connection portions 21. An expanded space 49 is defined between the side surfaces 31 and the fixing metal fittings 17, the expanded space 49 being surrounded by the side surfaces 31, the inclined connection portions 21, the hanging separation portions 23 and the fixing plate portions 25. In this expanded space 49, the hanging separation portions 23 are spaced outward from the side surfaces 31 by at least the bending length D of the fixing plate portions 25.

In this embodiment, the spacing plate portion 20 for defining the expanded space 49 is formed by the inclined connection portion 21 and the hanging spacing portion 23, but the spacing plate portion 20 for defining the expanded space 49 may be formed without using the inclined connection portion 21 and the hanging spacing portion 23.
For example, the spacing plate 20 may be formed by bending a horizontal connection portion and a vertical connection portion (not shown) perpendicular to the side surface 31 of the housing 15, instead of the inclined connection portion 21 and the hanging spacing portion 23. In this case, the main plate 19 and the horizontal and vertical connection portions are bent into a crank shape. Alternatively, the spacing plate 20 may be formed only by an inclined connection portion connected to the lower end of the main plate 19 and inclined, and the fixing plate 25 may be bent from the lower end of the inclined connection portion toward the side surface 31.
However, even in these cases, the bulging dimension of the fixing metal fitting 17 from the side surface 31 is set to be the same as the bending length D of the fixing plate portion 25.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a main portion of FIG.
The fixing plate portion 25 of the fixing bracket 17 bent in a direction approaching the side surface 31 of the housing 15 has a board fixing surface 43 facing the board 13 covered with a plated surface and is fixed to the board 13 via solder 51 .

In the board connector 11, a fillet 53 made of solidified molten solder is interposed between the bent tip 47 of the fixing plate portion 25 of the fixing bracket 17 and the side surface 31 of the housing 15. The fillet 53 is interposed without being joined to the side surface 31 of the housing 15 made of synthetic resin.
In the board connector 11, it is preferable that the gap K between the bent tip 47 of the fixing plate portion 25 and the side surface 31, where the fillet 53 is present, is 1 mm or less.

Next, the operation of the board connector 11 according to the present embodiment will be described.
In the board connector 11 according to this embodiment, the housing 15 has side surfaces 31 on both sides that are perpendicular to the board 13. The main body plate portion 19 of the fixing bracket 17 is engaged with the engaged portions 33 formed on the side surfaces 31 on both sides. The main body plate portion 19 engaged with the engaged portions 33 is fixed parallel to the side surfaces 31 in close proximity to or in contact with the side surfaces 31.

A spacing plate portion 20 is connected to the lower end of the main plate portion 19 facing the substrate 13. Furthermore, a fixing plate portion 25 is formed at the lower end of this spacing plate portion 20. The fixing plate portion 25 is bent from the lower end of the spacing plate portion 20 toward the side surface 31 of the housing 15 so as to be parallel to the substrate 13. The surface of this fixing plate portion 25 facing the substrate 13 becomes the substrate fixing surface 43.

That is, the fixing bracket 17 fixed to the housing 15 is first separated from the side surface 31 of the housing 15 by the separation plate portion 20 from the main plate portion 19 that is close to or in contact with the side surface 31 of the housing 15, and then the fixing plate portion 25 is bent parallel to the substrate 13 and approaches the side surface 31 again. As a result, an expanded space 49 is defined between the side surface 31 of the housing 15 and the fixing bracket 17, surrounded by the side surface 31, the separation plate portion 20, and the fixing plate portion 25.

When the fixing bracket 17 is mounted on the board 13, the board fixing surface 43 of the fixing plate portion 25 is fixed to the board 13 by solder 51. At the bent tip portion 47 of the fixing plate portion 25, only the plate end surface parallel to the side surface 31 of the housing 15 faces the side surface 31.

In other words, in the circuit board connector 11 of this embodiment, the solder paste applied in advance to the fixing pad 45 melts during the reflow process, and the molten solder 51 spreads upward while forming a fillet 53 between the side surface 31 of the housing 15 and the plate end surface of the fixing plate portion 25. Then, when the molten solder 51 reaches the expanded space 49, this upward spread (spreading) stops. In other words, the solder 51 is prevented from spreading upward beyond the fixing plate portion 25 due to capillary action as in the conventional case.

This prevents a reduction in the amount of solder in the fixing plate portion 25 of the board connector 11. As a result, a reduction in the fixing (joint) strength between the board connector 11 and the board 13 when they are mounted is prevented.
Furthermore, since the bent length D of the fixing plate portion 25 of the fixing metal fitting 17 is the same size as in the conventional case, the board connector 11 does not become larger.

In addition, in the circuit board connector 11 of this embodiment, the expanded space 49 defined between the side surface 31 of the housing 15 and the fixing bracket 17 is formed in a wedge shape surrounded by the inclined connection portion 21 and the hanging separation portion 23 that form the separation plate portion 20, the side surface 31 of the housing 15, and the fixing plate portion 25.

That is, the inclined connection portion 21 is inclined in a direction away from the side surface 31 as it approaches the substrate 13, and a hanging separation portion 23 that hangs down parallel to the side surface 31 is connected to the inclined lower end of the inclined connection portion 21. Thus, the separation plate portion 20 for defining the expanded space 49 between the side surface 31 of the housing 15 and the fixing bracket 17 is formed by the inclined connection portion 21 and the hanging separation portion 23.

Therefore, the workpiece punched out from the blank to form the fixing bracket 17 requires a smaller size and improves yield compared to the fixing bracket workpiece when forming horizontal and vertical connection sections perpendicular to the side surface 31 of the housing 15 instead of the inclined connection section 21 and the hanging separation section 23. As a result, the manufacturing cost of the fixing bracket 17 can be reduced with the board connector 11 of this configuration.

In addition, in the circuit board connector 11 of this embodiment, a fillet 53 of solidified molten solder is interposed between the bent tip 47 of the fixing bracket 17 and the side surface 31 of the housing 15. The plate end surface of the bent tip 47 faces the side surface 31 in parallel. The plate end surface and the side surface 31 are formed to be located on the same plane and are basically in contact.

However, in reality, a small gap K (see FIG. 5) may be formed between the plate end face and the side face 31 due to the tolerance during press molding of the fixing bracket 17 and the assembly tolerance during mounting of the board connector. In this case, the molten solder fills the gap K by filling the gap between the plate end face and the side face 31. This molten solder becomes a fillet 53 when solidified.

Therefore, in the circuit board connector 11 of this embodiment, the gap between the side surface 31 of the housing 15 and the fixing plate portion 25 is filled with the fillet 53, so there is no gap. This prevents the board connector 11 from wobbling or displacing due to the gap K between the housing 15 and the fixing plate portion 25, allowing for more secure fixing to the circuit board 13.

Therefore, the board connector 11 according to this embodiment can ensure the fixing strength to the board 13 while being compact.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be modified, improved, etc. as appropriate. In addition, the material, shape, size, number, location, etc. of each component in the above-described embodiment are arbitrary as long as they can achieve the present invention, and are not limited.

Here, the features of the embodiments of the board connector according to the present invention described above will be briefly summarized and listed in the following [1] to [3].
[1] A housing (15) made of insulating resin that accommodates a terminal (27) and is fixed to a substrate (13);
A pair of fixing metal fittings (17) are respectively fixed to a pair of parallel side surfaces (31) of the housing perpendicular to the substrate, and fix the housing to the substrate;
Equipped with
The fixing bracket is
a main body plate portion (19) that is engaged with a receiving portion (33) formed on the side surface of the housing and fixed in parallel to the side surface;
a separation plate portion (20) connected to a lower end portion of the main plate portion facing the substrate and extending in a direction away from the side surface as it approaches the substrate;
a fixing plate portion (25) bent from a lower end of the separating plate portion toward the side surface so as to be parallel to the substrate, the surface of the fixing plate portion facing the substrate being a substrate fixing surface (43);
A board connector (11) having
[2] The spacing plate portion (20) has an inclined connection portion (21) connected to a lower end of the main body plate portion (19) and inclined in a direction away from the side surface (31) as it approaches the substrate (13), and a hanging spacing portion (23) connected to the inclined connection portion and hanging down parallel to the side surface,
The connector (11) for a circuit board as described in the above [1], wherein the fixing plate portion (25) is bent at a right angle from the hanging end of the hanging separation portion toward the side surface so as to be parallel to the circuit board.
[3] The connector (11) for a circuit board as described in [1] or [2] above, wherein a fillet (53) of solidified molten solder is interposed between the bent tip portion (47) of the fixing plate portion (25) and the side surface (31).

11... Board connector 13... Board 15... Housing 17... Fixing metal fittings 19... Main body plate part 20... Separating plate part 21... Inclined connection part 23... Hanging separating part 25... Fixing plate part 27... Terminal 31... Side surface 33... Engaged Stop portion 43...board fixing surface 47...bending tip 53...fillet

Claims (2)

a housing made of insulating resin that houses the terminals and is fixed to the board;
a pair of fastening fittings fixed to a pair of parallel side surfaces of the housing perpendicular to the substrate, the pair of fastening fittings fastening the housing to the substrate;
Equipped with
The fixing bracket is
a main body plate portion that is engaged with a receiving portion formed on the side surface of the housing and fixed in parallel to the side surface;
a separation plate portion connected to a lower end portion of the main plate portion facing the substrate and extending in a direction away from the side surface as it approaches the substrate;
a fixing plate portion that is bent from a lower end of the separating plate portion toward the side surface and is parallel to the substrate, the surface facing the substrate being a substrate fixing surface;
having
the spacing plate portion has an inclined connection portion connected to a lower end of the main plate portion and inclined in a direction away from the side surface as it approaches the substrate, and a hanging spacing portion connected to the inclined connection portion and hanging down parallel to the side surface,
The fixing plate portion is bent at a right angle from the hanging end of the hanging separation portion toward the side surface so as to be parallel to the board . 2. The circuit board connector according to claim 1, wherein a fillet of solidified molten solder is interposed between the bent tip of the fixing plate and the side surface.

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