Electrical connectors – With insulation other than conductor sheath – Metallic connector or contact secured to insulation
Reexamination Certificate
2000-06-22
2002-04-30
Sircus, Brian (Department: 2839)
Electrical connectors
With insulation other than conductor sheath
Metallic connector or contact secured to insulation
C439S869000, C439S949000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06379195
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an electrical junction box.
2. Description of the Related Art
An electrical junction box as shown in
FIG. 7
has conventionally been disclosed.
The electrical junction box
80
is made up of a circuit body
82
having a plurality of stacked busbar circuit boards
81
, relay terminals
84
of a female-female type which are connected to tab-like terminals
83
disposed on the busbar circuit boards
81
, a housing member
85
which receives the tab-like terminals
83
and the relay terminals
84
, and an upper cover (not shown) for covering the housing member
85
. The tab-like terminals
83
firmly stand upright, projecting from the circuit body
82
.
As shown in
FIGS. 7 and 8
, the assembly of the electrical junction box
80
is completed by inserting the tab-like terminals
83
into the relay terminals
84
at one end to make an electrical connection therebetween, inserting the relay terminals
84
, the other end first, into the receiving cavities
86
of the housing member
85
, and fitting the upper cover to the housing member
85
. Because the tab-like terminals
83
of the circuit body
82
are disposed in a row arrangement in the electrical junction box
80
, the relay terminals
84
are also disposed likewise with the same pitch P as of the tab-like terminals
83
.
With the above structure, however, the relay terminals
84
in connection with the tab-like terminals
83
, being not locked relative to the latter, tend to tilt to the front and back or left and right relative to the circuit body
82
as shown in
FIG. 9
, resulting in the positional accuracy of relay terminals
84
lowered. Especially where the pitch P of the tab-like terminals
83
is small, neighboring relay terminals
84
,
84
are caused to contact or interfere with each other. If the tilted relay terminal
84
is in error pushed into or against the housing member
85
, it may get bent and deformed and at the worst broken.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This invention has been accomplished to overcome the above drawback and an object of this invention is to provide an electrical junction box which prevents lowering of positional accuracy of relay terminals relative to mating terminals, and which prevents deformation of relay terminals. A method of assembling an electrical junction box is also provided.
In order to attain the object, according to an aspect of this invention, there is provided an electrical junction box which comprises: a relay terminal; a housing member having a receiving cavity formed therein for receiving the relay terminal; a circuit body having a mating terminal which mates with the relay terminal; and a locking means provided on the relay terminal for locking the relay terminal in the receiving cavity of the housing member.
In the above electrical junction box, the relay terminal has the locking means which enables the relay terminal to be locked and stationary in the receiving cavity of the housing member. The relay terminal thus does not move out of place relative to the mating terminal.
Preferably, the locking means comprises a pair of locking bosses of round shape which project on both side walls of the relay terminal extending parallel to an insertion direction of the relay terminal into the receiving cavity.
Advantageously, the locking bosses are located at spaced positions in a longitudinal direction of the relay terminal.
In the above electrical junction box, the pair of locking bosses are located on both side walls of the relay terminal, at spaced positions in the longitudinal direction of the relay terminal. The relay terminal is thus locked in the receiving cavity by two locking bosses at two positions, enabling the relay terminal not to move out of place especially in the direction perpendicular to the relay terminal insertion direction.
Preferably, the locking means comprises a pair of locking bosses extending in a longitudinal direction on both side walls of the relay terminal while curved outwardly.
Preferably, the locking means comprises a pair of locking bosses extending in a longitudinal direction on both side walls of the relay terminal while projected outwardly in trapezoidal form.
According to another aspect of this invention, there is provided a method of assembling an electrical junction box having a relay terminal, a housing member with a receiving cavity formed therein for receiving the relay terminal, a circuit body having a mating terminal which mates with the relay terminal, and a locking means provided on the relay terminal for locking the relay terminal in the receiving cavity, which comprises: locking the relay terminal in the receiving cavity of the housing member by means of the locking means to prepare a sub connector; and assembling the sub connector to the circuit body to electrically connect the mating terminal of the circuit body to the relay terminal inside the sub connector.
In the above electrical junction box, because the relay terminal is locked in the receiving cavity of the housing member by means of the locking means, the relay terminal does not move out of place and is maintained in position in the receiving cavity. Further, because the sub connector is assembled to the circuit body to have the mating terminal of the circuit body inserted into the relay terminal inside the sub connector, an interference between the relay terminal and the housing member is prevented during assembling together the circuit body and the sub connector.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5088940 (1992-02-01), Saito
patent: 5116230 (1992-05-01), Dechelette et al.
patent: 5252094 (1993-10-01), Colleran et al.
patent: 5285011 (1994-02-01), Shimochi
patent: 5383800 (1995-01-01), Saka et al.
patent: 5421735 (1995-06-01), Dechelette
patent: 5839925 (1998-11-01), Simmons
patent: 5989075 (1999-11-01), Hsiao et al.
patent: 2 346 489 (2000-08-01), None
Torikoshi Makoto
Yoshie Kazuhiko
Armstrong Westerman & Hattori, LLP
Hyeon Hae Moon
Sircus Brian
Yazaki -Corporation
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