Electrical connectors – With insulation other than conductor sheath – Metallic connector or contact secured to insulation
Reexamination Certificate
2000-08-30
2001-05-01
Abrams, Neil (Department: 2837)
Electrical connectors
With insulation other than conductor sheath
Metallic connector or contact secured to insulation
C439S748000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06224431
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a plug type connector for coupling wiring within a vehicle such as an automobile and, more particularly, relates to the double engagement structure of a coupling terminal in a plug type connector which ensures that the coupling terminal is quickly and surely inserted into and engaged with the housing of the plug type connector.
2. Related Art
In a vehicle such as an automobile in which various kinds of electronic devices are mounted, the conventional plug type connector for connecting wire harness wired among the electronic devices is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,624,284, for example.
As shown in
FIGS. 11 and 12
, a housing
61
forming a part of the conventional plug type connector is received in a groove (not shown) provided at a sliding portion
51
along the longitudinal direction thereof. The sliding portion is provided with movable contact rooms
52
of a concave shape on both side surfaces thereof. The sliding portion is further provided on each of both sides thereof with a plurality of table portions
53
which are protrusively provided and separated from one another with a space corresponding to the width of each of a tongue shaped elastic first engagement piece
57
a
and a tongue shaped elastic second engagement piece
57
b
whose one ends are supported by the both side surfaces of a coupling terminal
54
.
The upper end surface of the table portion
53
has a function as a first engagement portion
55
which engages with the other end of the first engagement piece
57
a
serving as a free end. In contrast, the table portion
54
is provided at the lower end of the side surface thereof with a projection portion
56
which avoids an electric wire fastening portion
58
and abuts against the bottom surface of the coupling terminal
54
so as to be able to lift the coupling terminal
54
in accordance with the movement of the slide portion
51
toward the direction shown by an arrow b.
Further, as shown in
FIG. 12
, a fixing contact room
62
is formed in a concave shape at the side wall of the housing in opposite to the side wall of the sliding portion
51
. The lower end surface of the fixing contact room has a function as a second engagement portion
63
which engages with the other end of the second engagement piece
57
b
serving as a free end. The second engagement portion
63
is positioned at the portion slightly above the first engagement portion
55
arrived at its maximum upper limit.
In the case of assembling the coupling terminal
54
into the housing
61
, firstly the slide portion
51
is slid along a groove (not shown) provided at the housing
61
so as to cross the housing and then inserted at a predetermined standby position of the housing in advance. Then, the coupling terminal
54
is entirely pressed into the housing toward the direction shown by an arrow a while sliding the first engagement piece
57
a
into the space between the table portions
58
of the sliding portion
51
and also sliding the second engagement piece
57
b
on the lower wall of the second engagement portion
63
.
The first engagement piece
57
a
thus passed through the space between the table portions
58
is entirely housed within the movable contact room
52
together with it's the other end. However, since the fixing contact room
62
is positioned above the movable contact room
52
, the other end of the second engagement piece
57
b
is not housed within the fixing contact room
62
, so that the elastically deformed configuration of the other end of the second engagement piece is maintained almost in a straight shape.
In this state, the sliding portion
51
is slid and pushed linearly to a predetermined position toward the direction shown by the arrow b in
FIG. 11
thereby to engage the first engagement portion
55
with the other end of the first engagement piece
57
a.
Thereafter, the sliding portion
51
is further slid and pushed linearly to the predetermined position toward the direction shown by the arrow b, whereby a wedge portion
53
a
protrusively provided at the lower end surface of the table portion
58
moves straightly in such a manner that the protruded end surface of the wedge portion slides in a contacted manner on the protruded end surface of other wedge portion (not shown) of the bottom surface of the housing provided in opposite to the wedge portion
53
a.
As a result, the sliding portion
51
moves upward. In this respect, on the way where the sliding portion moves upward to the position shown by a phantom line in
FIG. 12
, firstly the projection portion
56
abuts against the bottom surface of the coupling terminal
54
, then soon moves the coupling terminal
54
upward, and thereafter the entirety of the coupling terminal including the other end of the second engagement piece
57
b
is housed within the fixing contact room
62
.
Thus, the other end of the first engagement piece
57
a
and the other end of the second engagement piece
57
b
are positioned to the same level by the first engagement portion
55
and the second engagement portion
63
, respectively. Therefore, the stress such as pulling force etc. is equally distributed and the projection portion
56
prevents the coupling terminal
54
from being dropped.
However, according to the aforesaid conventional plug type connector, when the initial assembling stage is terminated in a state that a part of the first engagement piece
57
a
of the coupling terminal
54
is remained within the space between the table portions
58
, the part of the first engagement piece
57
a
is pushed in toward the lateral direction by the table portions
58
and remarkably deformed in the succeeding assembling stage for linearly sliding the sliding portion
51
in the direction shown by the arrow b.
Thus, the other end of the first engagement piece
57
a
can not be engaged with the first engagement portion
55
. Therefore, the conventional plug type connector in a sate that the assembling process of the coupling terminal
54
has been completed has a problem that the first engagement piece
57
a
and the second engagement piece
57
b
can not be fixed with an equal engagement force.
Further, since the conventional plug type connector does not have a means for effectively detecting the abnormal insertion of the coupling terminal
54
in the initial assembling state thereof, the coupling terminal
54
is assembled within the housing in the aforesaid unstable state.
Thus, when the a pin or a blade serving as a male type terminal of a partner-side connector is inserted between elastic contact pieces
59
disposed at the tip end portion of the coupling terminal
54
, there arises a problem that the coupling terminal
54
can not withstand against the insertion force of the male type terminal and so the entirety thereof is abnormally deformed or dropped out.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
Accordingly, the invention has been made in order to obviate the aforesaid problems of the prior art, and an object of the invention is to provide a double engagement structure of a coupling terminal in a plug type connector which ensures that the coupling terminal is quickly and surely inserted into and engaged with a housing.
Such an object of the invention is attained by a double engagement structure of a coupling terminal in a plug type connector which is arranged in a manner that in the plug type connector wherein a sliding portion is fitted into a terminal housing front portion for receiving a contact portion which constitutes a part of a coupling terminal inserted from a terminal housing rear portion of the housing thereby to doubly engage the contact terminal, a double engagement structure of a coupling terminal in a plug type connector is characterized in that
the coupling terminal is arranged in a manner that the casing of the contact portion thereof supports on one side surface thereof one end portion of a first engagement piece which engages with a first engagement portion formed by the step end surface of a fixing contact groove provided i
Abrams Neil
Dinh Phuong
Morgan & Lewis & Bockius, LLP
Yazaki -Corporation
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