JPH0377629B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a connector locking mechanism for locking the connected state of a so-called round electrical connector that connects a plug and a socket to each other and electrically connects the plug contacts and socket contacts.

<Background> Conventionally, when a plug and a socket are connected, a locking mechanism has been installed to prevent the connector from becoming uncoupled even if the cord of the connector is caught on a hand or foot.
This is proposed in Publication No. 31909. This locking mechanism is extremely convenient in that when the plug and socket are connected, the locking mechanism automatically operates and becomes locked, and complete locking can be achieved with a so-called one touch. However, when inserting a plug into a socket, it is impossible to insert it unless you hold the cap part. In other words, when the plug and socket are connected, you have to hold the connecting cylinder to release the lock and connect the connector. It is not possible. A person who uses a connector may hold the plug while holding the plug, or may hold the cap part, or may hold the coupling cylinder part, and in either case, it is possible to connect it to the socket. It is desirable to be able to do so. Further, the conventional connector lock mechanism has a complicated structure, has a large number of parts, and is difficult to assemble.

<Summary of the Invention> The object of the present invention is to provide a connector lock that can be inserted into and connected to a socket by holding any part of the plug, has a simple structure, is easy to assemble, has a small number of parts, and can be manufactured at low cost. The goal is to provide a mechanism.

According to this invention, a pressing spring piece is provided in the front part of the coupling cylinder of the plug, and has a pawl that extends in the axial direction and has a free end projecting in the circumferential direction, and is movable in the direction in which the pawl projects. provided. A claw that is adjacent to the free end of the spring piece in the radial direction, extends in the axial direction at the front part of the insertion part of the coupling cylinder and the plug body, and protrudes from the free end on the opposite side of the spring piece. A locking spring piece is provided which has a locking spring piece and can be displaced in a direction substantially perpendicular to the protruding direction of the claw of the pressing spring piece. A fitting groove is formed on the front surface of the socket body, in which the locking spring piece and pressing spring piece are positioned when the plug and socket are connected, and when the socket is connected into the plug, the locking spring piece It rides over the engagement protrusion formed on the inner surface of the groove of the socket and engages with it in the axial direction in a coupled state,
When the claw of the locking spring piece crosses over the engagement protrusion, the claw of the holding spring piece engages with the detachment protrusion provided in the fitting groove, and the claw of the locking spring piece When the plug is further pushed in, the disengagement convex portion disengages from the pressing spring piece, and the claw portion of the locking spring piece is pressed by the claw of the pressing spring piece. Therefore, the claw of the locking spring piece cannot move in its protruding direction, and the engagement with the engagement protrusion is maintained, resulting in a locked state. When removing the plug from the socket, when the coupling cylinder is moved against the biasing force, the claw of the holding spring piece engages with the detachment convex part and is displaced, so that it no longer faces the locking spring piece. Therefore, the claw of the locking spring piece can move in the protruding direction of the engagement projection with respect to the engagement protrusion, and can be disengaged from the engagement by climbing over this.

<First Embodiment> Plug Next, an embodiment of the connector locking mechanism according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The plug of this connector is constructed as shown in FIGS. 1-3. That is, as shown in FIG. 1, a plug body 11 made of an insulating material has a cylindrical shape, for example, and a cylindrical insertion portion 12 is integrally formed in the front part thereof as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. . A plurality of pin contacts as plug contacts 13 are attached to the plug body 11 inside the insertion portion 12 so as to pass through the plug body 11 in the axial direction. A positioning protrusion 14 is integrally formed on the inner peripheral wall surface of the cylindrical insertion portion 12 and extends in the axial direction. One end of the cap 15 is attached to the back of the plug body 11, that is, on the side opposite to the insertion section 12. A lead wire of a cord 16 is connected to the contact 13 within the cap 15, and the cord 16 is led out from the other end of the cap 15.

In this invention, a coupling cylinder 17 is provided coaxially on the outside of the plug body 11 and the cap 15.
is fitted so as to be movable in the axial direction. Coupling cylinder 1
7 is the front side by the coil spring 18, that is, the insertion part 1
It is biased towards the 2nd side. That is, this coupling cylinder 17
The inner diameter of the inner circumferential surface of the inner circumferential surface of the inner circumferential surface of the inner diameter is larger than the intermediate portion, and a stepped portion 19 is formed between the large and small inner diameters.
A stopper 21 is formed in a ring shape to protrude from the outer peripheral surface of the cap 15, and the ring-shaped stopper 21
A retainer 22 is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the coupling cylinder 17 at the rear thereof. A coil spring 18 is mounted around the outer periphery of the cap 15 between the stepped portion 19 and the stopper 21, and the coupling cylinder 17 is biased forward by the coil spring 18, and the retainer 22 abuts against the stopper 21. This prevents the coupling cylinder 17 from slipping out. In this state, in this example, the front end surface of the insertion portion 12 of the main body 11 and the front end surface of the coupling cylinder 17 are located on substantially the same plane.

In this example, the front end of the coupling cylinder 17 is provided with pressing spring pieces 23a and 23b extending in the axial direction. That is, in this example, the coupling cylinder 17
is formed as a molded product of synthetic resin material, and the fourth
As shown in the figure, a pair of slit-like notches 24a and 24b are cut from the front end, and a spacing notch 24 is further provided between these notches 24a and 24b.
5 are formed between these notches 24a, 24b and 25, respectively.
b is formed integrally with the coupling cylinder 17 almost parallel to the axis. At the free ends of the presser spring pieces 23a and 23b, claws 2 are protruded in the circumferential direction so as to approach each other.
6a and 26b are integrally formed.

On the other hand, a locking spring piece 27 is formed extending in the axial direction at the front part of the insertion part 12 of the main body. In this case as well, the plug body 11 and the insertion portion 12 are made as molded bodies of synthetic resin, and the locking spring piece 27
is also made together with this. That is, as shown in FIG. 5, a pair of notches 28 are formed from the front end of the insertion portion 12.
a, 28b are formed, and a locking spring piece 27 is formed between these notches. Lock spring piece 2
In this example, a claw 29 is integrally formed on the inside of the free end portion of 7. The claw 29 of this locking spring piece 27 is
Claws 26a, 26b of presser spring pieces 23a, 23b
and are relatively close to each other, as shown in Figure 2. Further, the holding spring pieces 23a and 23b protrude slightly more forward than the locking spring pieces 27. In this example, such a presser spring piece 23
A, 23b and a locking spring piece 27 are formed in two sets, each with an interval of about 180 degrees.

Socket On the other hand, the socket connected to this plug is the 6th one.
As shown in the drawings and FIG. 7, the socket main body 31 is made of an insulating material, has a cylindrical outer shape, and has a ring-shaped fitting groove 32 formed on its front surface. This fitting groove 32 has a plug insertion portion 1.
2 can be inserted and fitted. This fitting groove 3
A socket contact 33 is held in the socket body 31 in the axial direction inside the socket 2 . This socket contact 33 can be coupled with the plug contact 13, and in this example has a cylindrical shape, so that the pin contact 13 can be fitted into the socket contact 33. In addition, the fitting groove 32
A positioning groove 34, which is fitted with the positioning protrusion 14, extends in the axial direction on the inner circumferential surface of the positioning groove 34.

In this example, the disengagement convex portion 3 is configured so that it can engage with the pressing spring pieces 23a, 23b and displace the ends of the pressing spring pieces 23a, 23b in the circumferential direction.
5 (see also FIG. 8) is formed to protrude from the outer peripheral surface of the fitting groove 32. As shown in FIG. 8, the detachment convex portion 35 has a diamond shape extending in the axial direction. An engagement protrusion 36 is integrally formed on the inner peripheral surface of the fitting groove 32, facing the detachment protrusion 35. As shown in FIG. 7, the engagement protrusion 36 preferably has a tapered surface that protrudes into the fitting groove 32 from the front toward the rear.

Locking Operation The locking operation of the locking mechanism according to the invention described above will now be described. That is, when inserting the plug into the socket, for example, if the coupling cylinder 17 is inserted, and the insertion part 12 is inserted into the fitting groove 32,
As shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B, the presser spring pieces 23a and 23b engage with the detachment convex portion 35, and the interval between them increases, that is, the claws 26a and 26b are displaced in the circumferential direction so as to separate from each other. As a result, the claw 29 of the locking spring piece 27 and the claws 26a, 26b no longer face each other. Accordingly, the pawl 29 of the locking spring piece engages with the engaging convex portion 36, and the pawl 29 is displaced in the radial direction and overcomes the engaging convex portion 36. As shown in FIGS. 9C and 9D, when the claw 29 of the locking spring piece 27 is over the engagement protrusion 36, press the spring pieces 23a and 2.
The pawls 26a and 26b of 3b pass through the disengagement protrusion 35 in the same way, and the pawl 29 returns by the spring action of the locking spring piece 27 to engage with the engagement protrusion 36 in the axial direction, and in the same manner. Pressing spring pieces 23a, 23
Due to the spring action of b, the claws 26a and 26b approach each other and face the claw 29. In this state, the locking spring piece 27 cannot be displaced in the radial direction, and even if an attempt is made to remove the plug from the socket, the pawl 29 engages with the engagement protrusion 36 and cannot be removed, causing the plug and socket to be separated. The connection state with is locked.

To release this locked state, the plug can be removed from the socket while pulling the coupling cylinder 17 backward against the biasing force of the coil spring 18. That is, when the coupling cylinder 17 is pulled backward, the presser spring piece 2
3a, 23b pass through the detachment protrusion 35, and at this time, the claws 26
When the gap between a and 26b is widened, the claw 2 of the locking spring piece
9 no longer faces the locking spring piece 27.
resists the spring force and climbs over the engagement protrusion 36, disengaging from the engagement protrusion 36 and allowing the plug to be removed from the socket.

When inserting the plug into the socket by holding the cap 15, the spring force of the coil spring 18 is made stronger than the spring force of the holding spring pieces 23a and 23b, so that the plug is inserted into the socket as described in FIG. It works similarly to insert a plug into a socket.

<Other Embodiments> The presser spring pieces 23a and 23b may be placed on the inside, and the locking spring piece 27 may be placed on the outside. For example, as shown in FIGS. 10 to 12 with the same reference numerals assigned to the parts corresponding to those in FIGS. , and the outer circumferential diameter of the plug body 11 holding the contact 13 is made large enough to fit into the coupling cylinder 17. The coupling cylinder 17 is located behind the insertion part 12, and the front end surface of the coupling cylinder 17 has a
Presser spring pieces 26a and 26b are integrally formed to protrude forward. These pressing spring pieces 26a, 2
A through hole 41 extending from the back surface to the front surface of the insertion section 12 is formed to communicate with the inside of the insertion section 12 so that the insertion section 6b is placed in the insertion position. Cuts 28a and 28b are formed in the insertion portion 12 in the axial direction from the front end at the position of this through hole 41, and these cuts 28
The locking spring piece 27 is inserted into the insertion part 12 between a and 28b.
(The plug body 11) is formed integrally with the plug body 11. The claws of the lock spring pieces 27 are the presser spring pieces 23a and 23b.
It is provided on the opposite side to the claws 26a, 26b, that is, protrudes outward.

The socket for this plug is shown in FIGS. 13 to 14, with the same reference numerals attached to the parts corresponding to those in FIGS. 6 to 8.
The engaging convex portion 36 that engages with the claw 29 is in the fitting groove 32.
are formed on the outer peripheral wall of the presser spring pieces 23a, 23.
A detachment protrusion 35 that engages with the claws 26a and 26b of b.
is formed on the inner circumferential wall of the fitting groove 32.

For example, as shown in FIGS. 16 and 17, the contact 13 of the plug is used as a contact,
The contacts 33 of the socket may be pin contacts. Furthermore, the cylindrical insertion portion 12 may be omitted, that is, the locking spring piece 27 may be formed integrally with the main body 11 so as to protrude forward from the main body 11. The number of sets of the holding spring pieces 23a, 23b and the locking spring pieces 27 may not be two, but may be only one set, or three or more sets. One of the holding spring pieces 23a and 23b may be omitted. Each main body 11, 31 is not limited to a cylindrical shape, but may be a rectangular tube shape.

<Effects> As described above, according to the locking mechanism according to the present invention, the plug can be inserted and coupled into the socket by holding either the plug coupling cylinder 17 or the cap 15, and moreover, the plug can be simply inserted and coupled. Simply do this to enter the lock state. Further, the lock can be easily released by moving the coupling cylinder 17 against the biasing force of the coil spring 18. Moreover, the locking spring piece 27 and the holding spring pieces 23a, 23b are integrally provided on the socket body 11 and the coupling cylinder 17, respectively, so the number of parts is small, the structure is simple, and assembly is easy.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of the plug in the locking mechanism according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a left side view thereof, FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is a coupling cylinder 17.
5 is a perspective view of the front part of the plug body 11, FIG. 6 is a front view of the socket in the locking mechanism according to the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the front part of the plug body 11.
8 is a sectional view taken along line CC in FIG. 7, and FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line CC in FIG. , a diagram showing the relationship between the detachment convex parts,
10 is a front view showing another plug of the locking mechanism according to the present invention, FIG. 11 is a left side view of FIG. 10, FIG. 12 is a sectional view taken along line DD of FIG. 10, and FIG.
The figure is a front view showing the socket paired with the plug in Figure 10, Figure 14 is a sectional view taken along the EE line in Figure 13, Figure 15 is a sectional view taken along the FF line in Figure 14, and Figure 16 is a sectional view taken along the line FF in Figure 14. FIG. 17 is a sectional view showing still another plug of the locking mechanism, and FIG. 17 is a sectional view showing a socket paired with the plug of FIG. 16. 11: Plug body, 12: Insertion part, 13: Plug contact, 15: Cap, 16: Cord,
17: Coupling cylinder, 18: Coil spring, 23a,
23b: Presser spring piece, 26a, 26b: Claw, 2
7: Locking spring piece, 29: Claw, 31: Socket body, 32: Fitting groove, 33: Socket contact, 35: Removal protrusion, 36: Engagement protrusion.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A plug in which a plug contact is attached to a plug body made of an insulating material and a cap fixed to the back of the plug body, and a socket in which a socket contact is attached to a socket body made of an insulating material. In a connector that can electrically connect the plug contact and the socket contact to each other by coupling them together, a coupling cylinder disposed coaxially on the outer periphery of the plug body and fitted so as to be movable in the axial direction. a coil spring that biases the coupling cylinder forward; and a claw extending in the axial direction at the front part of the coupling cylinder and having a free end protruding in the circumferential direction; a presser spring piece provided so as to be able to be displaced; and a presser spring piece that protrudes forward from the plug body and extends in the axial direction, and has a free end adjacent to the free end of the presser spring piece in the radial direction; A locking spring piece is formed on the front surface of the socket body, and has a protruding claw on the opposite side to the holding spring piece, and is disposed so as to be able to be displaced in a direction substantially perpendicular to the direction of displacement of the holding spring piece. A fitting groove is provided on one wall surface of the fitting groove in which the holding spring piece and the locking spring piece are located in the state, and a claw of the locking spring piece is provided in the state where the plug and the socket are connected. and an engaging protrusion that engages in the axial direction with the locking spring piece, which is provided on the other wall surface of the fitting groove and engages with the pawl of the holding spring piece when the plug and socket are inserted or removed. and a detachment convex part that can be displaced so as not to face the connector lock mechanism.