Female terminal fitting

Details Female terminal fitting Female terminal fitting

2000-10-03

2002-11-12

Vu, Hien (Department: 2833)

Electrical connectors

Metallic connector or contact having movable or resilient...

Spring actuated or resilient securing part

Reexamination Certificate

active

06478636

ABSTRACT:

TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to female electrical terminal fitting.
BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION
A female terminal fitting is provided with an angular tubular-shaped fitting member into which a tab of a corresponding male terminal fitting can be inserted, and with a resilient contacting member which protrudes into the fitting member in a bent-over shape from an anterior end of a base wall of this fitting member, this resilient contacting member making resilient contact with the male tab. Different female terminal fittings are provided with differing means to prevent the resilient contacting member from bending excessively. An example of one of these means is described in JP-9-35796.
As shown in
FIG. 8
of this specification, a female terminal fitting is provided with: an angular tubular-shaped fitting member
101
into which a tab (not shown) of a male terminal fitting can be inserted: a resilient contacting member
102
which extends within the fitting member
101
in the direction of insertion of the tab (the left-right direction in
FIG. 8
) and which is capable of bending resiliently as the tab is inserted into the fitting member
101
, thereby making contact with the tab; and two bending regulating members
104
and
105
, these bending regulating members
104
and
105
being formed by cutting away a base wall
103
of the fitting member
101
. When the resilient contacting member
102
is at the point of bending excessively, a lower face of this resilient contacting member
102
makes contact with one or both of the two bending regulating members
104
and
105
, thereby preventing the resilient contacting member
102
from bending excessively.
In the conventional female terminal fitting, both of the bending regulating members
104
and
105
are formed on the base wall
103
. Consequently, the area of an opening
106
formed by the cutting away of the bending regulating members
104
and
105
is large, and the base wall
103
is weakened.
The present invention has taken the above problem into account, and aims to present a female terminal fitting wherein the wall member of the fitting member is not weakened as a result of cutting away bending regulating members therefrom, these bending regulating members preventing the excessive bending of the resilient contacting member.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the invention, there is provided a female terminal fitting comprising an elongate box-like body of sheet metal and having an open end adapted to receive a tab of a male terminal fitting in a fitting direction, the body having a resilient contacting member extending in the fitting direction, and in use bending resiliently on contact with a male tab, the female fitting further comprising bending regulating members part sheared from said body and underlying said contacting member to prevent excessive bending thereof, characterized in that said bending regulating members are formed from two or more different walls of said body. Such an arrangement reduces the weakening of the body as a result of forming all bending regulating members in the same side wall.
In the preferred embodiment the contacting member has a pent shape with a contact defined at the apex for making electrical contact with a male terminal tab. Two regulating members preferably project towards each other from opposite side walls and present aligned planar faces for contact with the underside of said contacting member. The apertures corresponding to these regulating members are preferably arranged to permit viewing of the contacting member therethrough.
A regulating member preferably protrudes towards the underside of the contacting member at right angles, and a window is preferably formed in a side wall of the body through which this regulating member may be inspected.
In a preferred embodiment, the mouth of the body has inturned portions which narrow the mouth and regulate the width thereof for receiving a male tab.


REFERENCES:
patent: 5443592 (1995-08-01), Ittah et al.
patent: 5575696 (1996-11-01), Endo et al.
patent: 5630738 (1997-05-01), Ito et al.
patent: 5707259 (1998-01-01), Ishizuka et al.
patent: 5733155 (1998-03-01), Sagawa
patent: 5791945 (1998-08-01), Myer et al.
patent: 6116970 (2000-09-01), Yamamoto et al.

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