Title: Connector
Abstract: A housing (30) has cavities (31) for receiving terminal fittings (10), and a lock (33) is provided in each cavity (31). The terminal fitting (10) temporarily resiliently deforms the lock (33) when the terminal fitting (10) is inserted into the cavity (31). The lock (33) then is restored resiliently to engage the terminal fitting (10) when the terminal fitting (10) reaches a proper depth. An outer wall (17) of the terminal fitting (10) facing the lock (33) has a locking projection (27) projecting toward and engageable with the lock (33). A recess (54) is formed in a surface of the lock (33) that slides in contact with the locking projection (27) in an inserting process. An arcuate surface (29a) of the locking projection (27) and a bottom surface (54a) of the recess (54) have substantially conforming shapes.
Patent Number: 6,948,986 Issued on 09/27/2005 to Kojima, et al.
| Inventors:
|
Kojima; Eiji (Yokkaichi, JP);
Atsumi; Keigo (Yokkaichi, JP);
Nishida; Atsushi (Toyota, JP);
Minakata; Masato (Toyota, JP)
|
| Assignee:
|
Sumitomo Wiring Systems, Ltd. (Yokkaichi, JP)
|
| Appl. No.:
|
875392 |
| Filed:
|
June 24, 2004 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
| Jun 27, 2003[JP] | 2003-184221 |
| Current U.S. Class: |
439/752; 439/595 |
| Intern'l Class: |
H01R 013/51.4 |
| Field of Search: |
439/595,752
|
References Cited [Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Hammond; Briggitte R.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Hespos; Gerald E., Casella; Anthony J.
Claims
1. A connector with a housing having opposite front and rear ends and a cavity
extending between the ends, a lock provided in the cavity, the lock being temporarily
resiliently deformed by insertion of a terminal fitting into the cavity along an
inserting direction from the rear towards the front of the housing, and the lock
being resiliently restored to engage the terminal fitting when the terminal fitting
reaches a proper depth, thereby preventing the terminal fitting from coming out, wherein:
an outer wall of the terminal fitting substantially facing the lock has a locking
projection projecting towards and engageable with the lock, the locking projection
being arcuate in a transverse direction aligned transverse to the inserting direction,
a recess is formed in a surface of the lock for sliding contact with the locking
projection, the recess being arcuate in the transverse direction and being elongated
along the inserting direction, and
sliding-contact surfaces of the locking projection and the recess have substantially
conforming shapes in the transverse direction for minimizing a required resilient
deformation of the lock during insertion of the terminal fitting into the cavity.
2. The connector of claim 1, wherein the locking projection comprises a slanted
substantially semiconical front portion.
3. The connector of claim 1, wherein the lock is substantially transversely symmetrical.
4. The connector of claim 1, further comprising at least one excessive deformation
preventing portion disposed for engaging the lock before the lock is deformed beyond
its resiliency limit.
5. The connector of claim 1, wherein the lock comprises an arm that is resiliently
deformable about at least one end.
6. The connector of claim 5, wherein the arm and the cavity have substantially
equal widths.
7. The connector of claim 1, wherein the outer wall of the terminal fitting is
embossed in an intermediate position to form a protrusion, and wherein the cavity
has a protrusion insertion groove for receiving the protrusion.
8. The connector according to claim 7, wherein the recess is narrower than the
protrusion insertion groove and substantially as wide as the locking projection,
and the recess is less than about half as deep as the protrusion insertion groove.
9. A connector with a housing having a cavity and a lock provided in the cavity,
the lock being temporarily resiliently deformed by insertion of a terminal fitting
into the cavity, and the lock being resiliently restored to engage the terminal
fitting when the terminal fitting reaches a proper depth, thereby preventing the
terminal fitting from coming out, wherein:
an outer wall of the terminal fitting substantially facing the lock has a locking
projection projecting towards and engageable with the lock,
a recess is formed in a surface of the lock for sliding contact with the locking
projection, and
sliding-contact surfaces of the locking projection and the recess have substantially
conforming shapes, wherein the locking projection comprises a rear portion having
a surface disposed for sliding contact with a bottom surface of the recess over
substantially an entire width thereof, so that almost no clearance is defined between
the two surfaces.
10. A connector with a housing having a cavity and a lock provided in the cavity,
the lock being temporarily resiliently deformed by insertion of a terminal fitting
into the cavity, and the lock being resiliently restored to engage the terminal
fitting when the terminal fitting reaches a proper death, thereby preventing the
terminal fitting from coming out, wherein:
an outer wall of the terminal fitting substantially facing the lock has a locking
projection projecting towards and engageable with the lock,
a recess is formed in a surface of the lock for sliding contact with the locking
projection, and
sliding-contact surfaces of the locking projection and the recess have substantially
conforming shapes, the lock comprises a fastening projection for engaging and locking
the terminal fitting, the fastening projection having a locking surface inclined
to overhang, an operation groove in front of the lock and an extended locking surface
is substantially continuous with a rear end of the locking surface of the fastening
projection and engageable with the locking projection, wherein the locking projection
of the terminal fitting inserted into the cavity can enter the operation groove
in front of the lock.
11. The connector of claim 10, wherein an engagement surface of the locking projection
is an overhanging surface and the extended locking surface is a slanted surface
having substantially the same inclination as the engagement surface.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a connector.
2. Description of the Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 5,336,540 relates to a connector with a housing formed with cavities
for receiving terminal fittings. Resiliently deformable locks are formed with the
housing and project into the cavities. The locks are deformed as the terminal fittings
are inserted into the cavities. However, the locks are restored resiliently when
the terminal fitting reaches a proper depth. The restored locks engage an engaging
portion of the terminal fitting, and thereby prevent the terminal fitting from
coming out.
Locking forces on the terminal fittings may be insufficient if the locks
are made smaller in an effort to miniaturize the connector. Locking forces can
be enhanced by forming each terminal fitting with a projection that projects towards
the lock. The lock engages both the engaging portion and projection, thereby enhancing
a locking force. However, this design increases an inserting force because the
lock must be deformed by an additional amount dictated by the projecting distance
of the projection.
The invention was developed in view of the above problem and an object is to
reduce the deformation of a lock during insertion of a terminal fitting.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a connector with a housing that has a cavity. A resiliently
deformable lock is formed in the cavity and is deformed as a terminal fitting is
inserted into the cavity. The lock is restored resiliently and engages the terminal
fitting when the terminal fitting reaches a proper depth, thereby preventing the
terminal fitting from coming out. An outer wall of the terminal fitting facing
the lock has a locking projection that projects towards and engages the lock. A
recess is formed in a surface of the lock that slidably contacts the locking projection.
The sliding-contact surfaces of the locking projection and the recess have substantially
conforming shapes.
The lock engages the locking projection when the terminal fitting is inserted
to the proper depth in the cavity. Thus, the terminal fitting can be held with
a sufficient locking force.
A degree of resilient deformation of the lock during insertion of the terminal
fitting is made smaller by the depth of the recess. As a result, an inserting force
for the terminal fitting is reduced. Further, the deformation of the lock can be
reduced maximally since the sliding-contact surfaces of the locking projection
and the recess have substantially conforming shapes.
The locking projection preferably comprises a slanted front portion that is substantially semiconical.
The locking projection preferably has a rear surface configured for sliding contact
with a bottom surface of the recess over substantially the entire width, so that
almost no clearance is defined between the two surfaces.
The lock preferably has an arm that is resiliently deformable about at least
about one end. The arm preferably is substantially as wide as the cavity.
The lock preferably is substantially transversely symmetrical when viewed from front.
At least one excessive deformation preventing portion may be provided for engaging
the lock before the lock is deformed beyond its resiliency limit to prevent excessive
deformation of the lock.
The lock preferably comprises a fastening projection for engaging and locking
the terminal fitting. The fastening projection may comprise a locking surface that
is inclined to overhang.
An operation groove preferably is formed in front of the lock for receiving the
locking projection of the terminal fitting. An extended locking surface is formed
at the rear end of the operation groove. The extended locking surface is substantially
continuous with the locking surface of the lock and is engageable with the locking projection.
An engagement surface of the lock preferably overhangs and the extended locking
surface is slanted with substantially the same inclination as the engagement surface.
The outer wall of the terminal fitting preferably is embossed in an intermediate
position to form an outwardly projecting protrusion, and the cavity preferably
has a protrusion insertion groove for receiving the protrusion.
The recess preferably is narrower than the protrusion insertion groove and/or
substantially as wide as the locking projection. The depth of the recess may be
less than about half, preferably about ⅓, of the depth of the protrusion
insertion groove and/or the height of the locking projection.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will
become more apparent upon reading of the following detailed description of preferred
embodiments and accompanying drawings. It should be understood that even though
embodiments are separately described, single features thereof may be combined to
additional embodiments.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a front view of a housing according to the invention.
FIG. 2 is a rear view of the housing.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view partly in section of the housing.
FIG. 4 is a front view of a terminal fitting.
FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the terminal fitting.
FIG. 6 is a side view in section showing a state before the terminal fitting
is inserted into the housing and a retainer mounted at a partial locking position.
FIG. 7 is a side view in section showing an intermediate state of inserting
the terminal fitting into the housing.
FIG. 8 is a front view in section showing the state of FIG. 7.
FIG. 9 is a side view in section showing a state where the terminal fitting
is properly inserted in the housing.
FIG. 10 is a side view in section showing a state attained after moving the
retainer to a full locking position.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
A female connector according to the invention is described with reference to
FIGS.
1 to
10. The connector is comprised of female terminal fittings
10,
a housing
30 for accommodating the terminal fittings
10. In the following
description, inserting and withdrawing directions of the terminal fittings
10
into the housing
30 are referred to as forward and backward directions, respectively.
Each terminal fitting
10 has a specified shape and is formed by press-working
a conductive metal plate. The terminal fitting
10 has a substantially box-shaped
main portion
11 with open front and rear ends and a barrel
12 configured
to be crimped, bent or folded into connection with the end of a wire W, as shown
in FIGS. 4 to
6. The barrel
12 has a pair of front crimping pieces
and a pair of rear crimping pieces to be crimped, bent or folded into connection
with a core and an insulation coating of the wire W, respectively.
The main portion
11 includes a bottom wall
13 extending substantially
along forward and backward directions. Sidewalls
14,
15 project up
from opposite lateral edges of the bottom wall
13 and a ceiling wall
16
projects from the projecting end of the left side wall
14 of FIG. 4 to face
the bottom wall. An outer wall
17 projects from the projecting end of the
right side wall
15 of FIG.
4 and is placed at least partly on the
outer side of the ceiling wall
16. The outer wall
17 of the main
portion
11 faces down when the terminal fitting
10 is inserted into
a cavity
31 of the housing
30.
The front end of the bottom wall
13 is more backward than the other walls
14,
15,
16,
17, and a resilient contact piece
18
is formed by folding back a tongue that projects from the front end of the bottom
wall
13. The resilient contact piece
18 is cantilevered back and
up at a moderate angle, and can resiliently contact a tab (not shown) of a mating
male terminal fitting inserted into the main portion
11 from the front.
The ceiling wall
16 has a receiving portion
19 that bulges in for
squeezing the tab in cooperation with the resilient contact piece
18. The
bottom wall
13 is embossed in to form an excessive deformation preventing
projection
20 that engages the resilient contact piece
18 before
the resilient contact piece
18 is deformed beyond its resiliency limit.
The outer wall
17 is divided into a front portion
17a and
a rear portion
17b by forming a cut-away portion
21 substantially
in the longitudinal middle over substantially the entire width. The cut-away portion
21 has an overhanging or undercut front cut end surface
21a inclined
at an acute angle to the longitudinal axis of the terminal fitting
10 over
its substantially entire area. This cut-away portion
21 is slightly shorter
than half the length of the outer wall
17 and substantially extends up to
the upper end of the sidewall
15 at the upper side of FIG. 5. A bulge
22
projects from the projecting end of the ceiling wall
16 and contacts the
upper end surface of this sidewall
15 to support the ceiling wall
16
in a proper substantially horizontal posture. The bulge
22 forms a recess
23 in a front portion of the ceiling wall
16, excluding a contact
portion of the bulge
22 with the sidewall
15, so that the front half
is slightly lower than a rear half. The front portion
17a of the
outer wall
17 is slightly shorter along forward and backward directions
than the rear portion
17b.
The rear end of the rear portion
17b of the outer wall
17
is embossed outwardly in an intermediate position to form a protrusion
24.
A step
25 is defined at the rear ends of the ceiling wall
16 and
the rear portion
17b of the outer wall
17, including the protrusion
24. A stabilizer
26 projects from the projecting end of the rear
portion
17b of the outer wall
17 and has a function of guiding
the insertion of the terminal fitting
10.
The rear end of the front portion
17a of the outer wall
17
is embossed out at the front cut end
21a of the cut-away portion
21 to form a locking projection
27. The locking projection
27
has a substantially semiconical slanted front portion
28 and a substantially
semicylindrical rounded rear portion
29 coupled to each other. The front
portion
28 is slanted so that the width and height thereof gradually decrease
towards the front end. Additionally, the front portion
28 has an arcuate
outer surface
28a when viewed from the front or rear. The extreme
front end of the front portion
28 is rounded slightly. The rear portion
29 has a substantially constant width and height. As shown in FIG. 4, an
arcuate surface
29a is formed around about ⅓ of the outer
surface of the rear portion
29 at the projecting end. Substantially straight
slanted surfaces
29b are continuous with the opposite ends of the
arcuate surface
29a and extend towards the base ends. Curved surfaces
29c extend concavely from the ends of the slanted surfaces
29b
towards the outer surface of the outer wall
17. The rear end surface
of the locking projection
27 is formed by the front cut end surface
21a
of the cut-away portion
21 and is slanted at a similar inclination.
The projecting height of the locking projection
27 substantially equals
the projecting height of the protrusion
24.
The housing
30 is made e.g. of a synthetic resin, and cavities
31
are arranged substantially side by side along widthwise direction at upper and
lower stages, as shown in FIGS. 1 to
3 and
6. The terminal fittings
10 are insertable into the cavities
31 from behind. Each terminal
fitting
10 is locked in the cavity
31 by a resilient lock
33
provided at a bottom wall
32 of the cavity
31, and is supported at
its front end by a front wall
34 of the housing
30. A tab insertion
hole
35 is formed in the front wall
34 of the housing
30 to
permit the tab of the mating male terminal fitting to enter the cavity
31,
and a substantially conical guiding surface
36 is formed over substantially
the entire periphery at the front edge tab insertion hole
35 to guide the
entrance of the tab.
The bottom wall
32 of the cavity
31 has a rearwardly open protrusion
insertion groove
37 for receiving the locking projection
27 and the
protrusion
24 of the terminal fitting
10. The bottom wall
32
of the cavity
31 also has a rearwardly open stabilizer insertion groove
38 for receiving the stabilizer
26. The protrusion insertion groove
37 is substantially in the widthwise middle of the cavity
31, whereas
the stabilizer insertion groove
38 is at the side of the protrusion insertion
groove
37. The protrusion insertion groove
37 extends continuously
to the lock
33, whereas the stabilizer insertion groove
38 ends slightly
behind the lock
33. The protrusion insertion groove
37 is slightly
wider than the locking projection
27 and the protrusion
24, and is
slightly deeper than the projecting heights of the locking projection
27
and the protrusion
24.
A bulge
39 gradually bulges in over substantially the entire width at
the
front end of the upper surface each cavity
31 and substantially faces the
lock
33. Thus, the front end of the terminal fitting
10 inserted
into the cavity
31 is urged towards the lock
33 by the bulge
39,
thereby increasing a depth of engagement of the lock
33. The rear peripheral
edge of each cavity
31 is slanted over substantially the entire periphery
for guiding the terminal fitting
10. However, a preventing portion
40
is formed at an upper-left position of the rear peripheral edge of each cavity
31 in FIG.
2 and extends substantially normal to the inserting and
withdrawing directions of the terminal fitting
10. The stabilizer
26
contacts the preventing portion
40 when the terminal fitting
10 is
oriented improperly (e.g. upside down) to prevent the insertion of the terminal
fitting
10. A front half of each cavity
31 is formed to be narrower
than a rear half thereof.
A retainer mount hole
41 is formed in the bottom surface of the housing
30 for receiving a retainer
42 that doubly locks the terminal fittings
10. This retainer mount hole
41 exposes intermediate portions of
the respective cavities
31 to the outside. The retainer
42 includes
fasteners
43 arranged at upper and lower stages corresponding to the respective
cavities
31. The retainer is movable in the housing
30 between a
partial locking position (see FIG. 6) where the respective fasteners
43
are retracted from the cavities
31 to permit the insertion and withdrawal
of the terminal fittings
10 into and from the respective cavities
31
and a full locking position (see FIG. 10) where the respective fasteners
43
enter the cavities
31 to engage the terminal fittings
10. The retainer
42 can be held selectively at the partial locking position and the full
locking position by an unillustrated holding means.
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 6, each lock
33 is provided at a front side of
the bottom wall
32 of the respective cavity
31 before and near the
retainer mount hole
41. The lock
33 includes an arm
44 supported
at both front and rear ends. A fastening projection
45 is formed on the
upper surface of the arm
44 and projects into the cavity
31. The
fastening projection
45 is configured to be inserted into the cut-away portion
21 of the terminal fitting
10 and to engage the front cut end surface
21a. The lock
33 is substantially transversely symmetrical
when viewed from front. Additionally, the lock
33 at the upper stage serves
as at least part of a partition wall between the adjacent cavities
31 at
the upper and lower stages. The locks
33 at the lower stage also serve as
the outer wall of the housing
30.
The arm
44 has a front view obtained by obliquely cutting off the opposite
lower corners of a laterally long rectangle (see FIG.
1), and is slightly
narrower than the cavity
31. The arm
44 is resiliently deformable
substantially normal to the inserting and withdrawing direction, and has supports
at both the front and rear ends. Thus, the arm
44 takes a substantially
arch or bridge shape, with a longitudinal middle portion at a bottommost position
during the deformation (see FIG.
7). A deformation space of a specified
height is defined below the arm
44 in the deflection direction of the arm
44 for permitting the resilient deformation of the arm
44. Inwardly
and downwardly sloped excessive deformation preventing portions
46 extend
substantially along the longitudinal direction of the lock
33 at positions
spaced out or down from the opposite sides of the arm
44, with the deformation
space therebetween. The excessive deformation preventing portions
46 engage
the lock
33 before the lock
33 is deformed beyond its resiliency
limit. A rear portion
44b of the arm
44 is coupled to the
bottom wall
32 over substantially the entire width and is sloped up and
in towards the cavity
31 and towards the front. A front portion
44a
of the arm
44 is coupled to the front wall
34 of the housing
30 and is substantially horizontal and parallel to the inserting and withdrawing
directions. The protrusion insertion groove
37 in the bottom wall
32
is substantially continuous with the rear portion
44b of the arm
44 (FIG.
3), and portions of the bottom wall
32 at the opposite
sides of the protrusion insertion groove
37 define rear supports
47
for supporting the terminal fitting
10 from below.
The fastening projection
45 has the same width as the arm
44, and
has the front end thereof substantially aligned with the front end of the rear
portion
44b of the arm
44. The rear surface of the fastening
projection
45 is slanted and substantially continuous with the inclination
of the rear portion
44b of the arm
44. A locking surface
48
is defined at the front of the fastening projection
45 for engaging the
terminal fitting
10 and is substantially normal to the forward and backward directions.
A forwardly open operation groove
49 is formed in the upper surface of
the
front portion
44a of the arm
44 over the substantially entire
length. The operation groove
49 can receive a disengagement jig (not shown)
from the outside for forcibly deforming the lock
33. Portions of the upper
surface of the arm
44 at opposite sides of the operation groove
49
define front supports
50 for supporting the terminal fitting
10 from
below. Thus, the front portion
44a of the arm
44 is thinner
than the rear portion
44b due to the operation groove
49.
The operation groove
49 has a depth that is more than about one third, preferably
about half the thickness of the front portion
44a of the arm
44,
and opposite side surfaces of the operation groove
49 are curved towards
the opposite sides to substantially conform to the outer shape of the arm
44
(see FIG.
1). The locking projection
27 of the terminal fitting
10
inserted into the cavity
31 enters the operation groove
49, and an
extended locking surface
51 is formed at the rear end of the operation groove
49 substantially continuous with the locking surface
48 of the fastening
projection
45 for engaging the locking projection
27. This extended
locking surface
51 is inclined to be more backward than the locking surface
48 towards the bottom end and has an inclination that substantially conforms
with the front cut end surface
21a of the cut-away portion
21
of the terminal fitting
10. A jig insertion groove
52 is formed in
the front end of the front portion
44a of the arm
44 and communicates
with the operation groove
49 for receiving the disengagement jig. The jig
insertion groove
52 longitudinally divides the front end of the front portion
44a of the arm
44. A guiding surface
53 is formed at
the rear end of the jig insertion groove
52 and is inclined up and to the
rear for guiding the disengagement jig to the operation groove
49.
A recess
54 is formed in the upper surface of the fastening projection
45,
which is a surface against which the locking projection
27 slides during
insertion of the terminal fitting
10. The recess
54 is substantially
in the widthwise middle of the fastening projection
45 and defines an extension
of the protrusion insertion groove
37. The recess
54 is narrower
than the protrusion insertion groove
37 and is substantially as wide as
the locking projection
27. The depth of the recess
54 is less than
about half, preferably about ⅓ of the depth of the protrusion insertion
groove
37 and the height of the locking projection
27. Accordingly,
about ⅓ of the projecting end of the locking projection
27 enters
the recess
54 during insertion of the terminal fitting
10, and the
arcuate surfaces
28a,
29a of the outer surface of the
locking projection
27 slide in contact with a bottom surface
54a
of the recess
54. The bottom surface
54a of the recess
54 is arcuate and substantially conforms with the shape of the arcuate surface
29a of the rear portion
29 of the locking projection
27.
Thus, the arcuate surface
29a of the locking projection
27
slides in contact with the bottom surface
54a of the recess
54
over substantially the entire width, during insertion of the terminal fitting
10,
and almost no clearance is defined between the surfaces
29a and
54a.
The retainer
42 is mounted at the partial locking position in the housing
30, and the terminal fittings
10 crimped, bent or folded into connection
with the wires W are inserted into the cavities
31, as shown in FIG.
6.
An attempt could made to insert the terminal fitting
10 in an improper posture,
i.e. upside-down posture where the stabilizer
26. However, the front end
surface of the stabilizer
26 will contact the preventing portion
40
at the peripheral edge of the rear end of the cavity
31, thereby preventing
insertion of the terminal fitting
10. In this way, improper insertion of
the terminal fitting
10 is prevented.
The properly oriented terminal fitting
10 can be inserted into the cavity
31. As a result, the locking projection
27 and the protrusion
24
sequentially enter the protrusion insertion groove
37. Additionally, the
stabilizer
26 enters the stabilizer insertion groove
38. Thus, the
terminal fitting
10 can be inserted smoothly without making transverse shaking
movements. The locking projection
27 moves onto the fastening projection
45 when the terminal fitting
10 is inserted to a specified depth.
Thus, the locking projection
27 enters the recess
54 and presses
the fastening projection
45 down in the deflection direction, thereby resiliently
deforming the lock
33, as shown in FIG.
7. The deformation of the
lock
33 causes the arm
44 to take a flat V- or inverted bridge-shape
when being viewed sideways, so that the front portion
44a is inclined
backward and the rear portion
44b is inclined forward.
The front portion
28 of the locking projection
27 enters the recess
54 first during the insertion process and the arcuate surface
28a
thereof slides in contact with the bottom surface
54a. The front
portion
28 has a slanted substantially semiconical shape with a height that
gradually increases towards the rear portion
29. Thus, the lock
33
is deformed gradually, and the inserting movement smooth. The projecting end of
the rear portion
29 enters the recess
54 after the front portion
28, and the arcuate surface
29a slides in contact with the
bottom surface
54b of the recess
54, as shown in FIG.
8.
At this time, the lock
33 undergoes a maximum resilient deformation. However,
the arcuate surface
29a of the rear portion
29 is in sliding
contact with the bottom surface
54a of the recess
54 over
substantially the entire width, and almost no clearance is defined between the
two surfaces
29a and
54a. If the outer surface of the
locking projection
27 bulged out more downward than the bottom surface
54a
of the recess
54, only the bulged-out portion would slide in contact
with the bottom surface
54a of the recess
54. Thus, a clearance
would be defined between the two surfaces, and the required deformation of the
lock
33 would be increased by as much as this clearance. However, the degree
of resilient deformation of the lock
33 is reduced maximally in this embodiment
due to the surface-to-surface sliding contact between the surfaces
29a
and
54a. As a result, an inserting force for the terminal fitting
10 is low, and the deformation space for the lock
33 is small. Therefore,
the connector can be miniaturized.
There are cases where an operator misunderstands that the terminal fittings
10 have reached a proper depth although one or some of them are inserted
insufficiently and moves the retainer
42 to the full locking position. In
such cases, the fastening portion
43 of the retainer
42 contacts
the bottom surface of the main portion
11 of the insufficiently inserted
terminal fitting
10, thereby preventing a movement of the retainer
42
to the full locking position. In this way, the insufficient insertion of the terminal
fitting
10 can be detected.
The locking projection
27 moves over the fastening projection
45
of the lock
33 and enters the operation grooves
49 located before
the fastening projection
45 when the terminal fitting
10 is inserted
to the proper depth in the cavity
3. The lock
33 then is restored
resiliently. As a result, the fastening projection
45 of the lock
33
enters the cut-away portion
21 and the locking surface
48 and the
extended locking surface
51 engage the front cut end surface
21a
(including the rear end surface of the locking projection
27) of the
cut-away portion
21. Thus, the lock
33 holds the terminal fitting
10 with a sufficient locking force. The bulge
39 on the ceiling of
the cavity
31 pushes the front end of the main portion
11 down towards
the lock
33 in the process of inserting the terminal fitting
10.
Thus, a depth of engagement of the lock
33 with the terminal fitting
10
becomes even larger. The locking surface
48 of the lock
33 is formed
over substantially the entire width of the lock
33, i.e. in a width area
corresponding to the width of the cavity
31, and the front cut end surface
21a of the cut-away portion
21 of the terminal fitting
10
is formed over substantially the entire width of the terminal fitting
10.
Thus, the terminal fitting
10 is held with a strong locking force. Further,
the front cut end surface
21a of the cut-away portion
21 is
overhanging or undercut and the extended locking surface
51 is a slanted
surface with substantially the same inclination as the front cut end surface
21a.
Hence, the locking force is even stronger.
The retainer
42 is moved to the full locking position, as shown in FIG.
10, after all the terminal fittings
10 are inserted into the corresponding
cavities
31. Thus, the fastening portions
43 enter the corresponding
cavities
31 to engage the stepped portions
25 including the protrusions
24. In this way, the terminal fittings
10 are held so as not to come
out of the cavities
31 and are locked doubly by the locks
33 and
the retainer
42. In the case of withdrawing the terminal fitting
10
for maintenance or other reason, the retainer
42 is returned to the partial
locking position to cancel the locked state by the retainer
42 and then
the disengagement jig is inserted into the jig insertion groove
52 and the
operation groove
49. Accordingly, the bottom surface of the operation groove
49 is pressed down to deform the lock
33 in the deformation direction.
The wire W can be pulled to withdraw the terminal fitting
10 from the cavity
31 after the terminal fitting
10 is freed from the locked state by
the lock
33.
As described above, the outer wall
17 of the terminal fitting
10
facing the lock
33 has locking projection
27 projecting towards he
lock
33, and the recess
54 is formed in the surface of the lock
33
that slides in contact with the locking projection
27 in the inserting process.
Thus, the deformation of the lock
33 generated during insertion of the terminal
fitting
10 is reduced by the depth of the recess
54. Further, the
surfaces
29a,
54a of the locking projection
27
and the recess
54 have substantially conforming curved shapes and are held
in substantially surface-to-surface sliding contact with each other. As a result,
the degree of deformation of the lock
33 is reduced maximally.
The invention is not limited to the above described and illustrated embodiment.
For example, the following embodiments are also embraced by the technical scope
of the present invention as defined by the claims. Beside the following embodiments,
various changes can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the
present invention as defined by the claims.
Although the depth of the recess is about ⅓ of the height of the
locking projection in the foregoing embodiment, it can be set arbitrarily set.
The surfaces of the locking projection and the recess to be held substantially
in sliding contact are arcuate in the foregoing embodiment. However, they may be,
for example, angular or polygonal surfaces.
The outer wall of the terminal fitting is divided into the front and rear portions
by the cut-away portion in the foregoing embodiment. However, the cut-away portion
may be formed, for example, in a width range smaller than the width of the outer
wall and the projecting ends of the front and rear portions of the outer wall may
be coupled by at least one coupling according to the present invention. Further,
the cut-away portion may be omitted and, in such a case, the lock may be engaged,
for example, with the stepped portion and the protrusion of the main portion. In
such a case, the bottom surface of the recess may have such a shape substantially
in conformity with the outer surface of the protrusion.
Besides the foregoing embodiment, the cut-away portion and the locking projection
may be formed in any one of the sidewalls and the bottom wall of the main portion
and the lock may be engaged therewith.
Although the lock is supported at both ends in the foregoing embodiment,
the present invention is also applicable to connectors provided with cantilevered
locks supported at one end.
Although the female connector is shown in the foregoing embodiment, the
present invention is also applicable to male connectors into which male terminal
fittings provided with tabs are insertable.
*
