Electrical connectors – With indicating or identifying provision – Connection indicating provision
Reexamination Certificate
2001-05-29
2002-08-06
Sircus, Brian (Department: 2839)
Electrical connectors
With indicating or identifying provision
Connection indicating provision
C439S354000, C439S382000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06428346
ABSTRACT:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
The present invention is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-169254, which is incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a half fit preventive connector which not only can prevent a set of male and female connectors to be fitted and connected with each other from being imperfectly fitted with each other using the repulsion force of a spring member mounted on at least one of the connector housings of the male and female connectors but also can prevent the spring member from being fatigued using a simple structure.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, there are known various kinds of half fit preventive connectors which prevent the imperfect fit between the male and female connectors using the repulsion force of a spring member mounted on a connector housing (which is hereinafter referred to as a housing simply). For example, as shown in
FIGS. 8
to
13
, there is known a half fit preventive connector which is disclosed in JP-U-4-24277. According to a conventional half fit preventive connector shown
FIGS. 8 and 9
, in the center of the bottom portion of a housing
55
of a female connector
53
which is one of a set of male and female connectors
52
,
53
to be fitted and connected with each other, there is mounted a spring member
56
. That is, the present half fit preventive connector
51
prevents the imperfect fit between the male and female connectors
52
and
53
due to the repulsion force of the spring member
56
.
And, the male connector
52
includes a lock arm
60
which not only is supported on a support pillar
59
erected on the leading end portion of a housing
54
but also includes a securing projection
61
disposed on the intermediate portion of the upper portion thereof and a pair of pressing parts
62
disposed on the rear end portion thereof. Also, the female connector
53
includes a slide plate
65
which is supported on the upper portion of the front end of the housing
55
and allows the securing projection
61
to slide onto the lower surface thereof and, in the rear end portion of the slide plate
65
, there is formed a securing groove
66
to which the securing projection
61
can be secured.
Thus, the present half fit preventive connector
51
, when fitting together the male and female connectors
52
and
53
, cooperates together with the spring member
56
in causing the lock arm
60
to flex to thereby secure the securing projection
61
to the securing groove
66
of the female connector
53
, so that the male and female connectors
52
and
53
can be perfectly fitted with each other.
Also, the spring member
56
, as shown in
FIG. 10
, includes as a base portion thereof an elastically flexible part
67
which is formed of a coiled spring; and, the elastically flexible part
67
includes a support arm
57
which is extended from one end thereof obliquely backward in a linear manner and can be rotated in the fitting direction of the male and female connectors
52
and
53
. And, in the spring member
56
, there is disposed a resilient piece
58
which is curved from the support arm
57
so as to return toward the base portion of the elastically flexible part
67
.
And, the spring member
56
further includes a mounting arm
68
which not only is extended from the other end thereof backward in a linear manner but also includes a reversed-pawl-shaped projection
69
. The mounting arm
68
is inserted into a mounting hole
70
of a mounting part
71
provided in one housing
55
and retained by the reversed-pawl-shaped projection
69
so as to prevent removal of the mounting arm
68
from the mounting part
71
.
And, In the housing
54
of the male connector
52
, there is formed a terminal storage chamber
63
for storing a terminal such as a female-type terminal and, in the front-end opening portion of the terminal storage chamber
63
, there is formed a spring contact portion
64
with which the resilient piece
58
can be contacted. By the way, in the rear portion of the housing
55
of the female connector
53
, there is formed a terminal storage chamber
72
for storing a terminal such as a male-type terminal.
In the above-structured half fit preventive connector
51
, as shown in
FIG. 8
, firstly, the spring member
56
is mounted onto the mounting part
71
disposed within one housing
55
and, after then, a male-type terminal with the end portion of a covered electric wire connected thereto is inserted and mounted into the terminal storage chamber
72
. Also, into the terminal storage chamber
63
formed within the other housing
54
, there is inserted and mounted a female-type terminal to which the end portion of a covered electric wire is connected.
Next, as shown in
FIG. 11
, the male and female connectors
52
and
53
are opposed to each other and their mutual fitting operation is started. Specifically, the housing
54
of the male connector
52
is fitted into the housing
55
of the female connector
53
and the resilient piece
58
including the support arm
57
of the spring member
56
is brought into contact with the spring contact portion
64
of the housing
54
. As a result, the support arm
57
is pushed down against its elasticity, while the resultant repulsion force gradually increases a push-back force to push back the male connector
52
in the anti-fitting direction (that is, in the opposite direction to the fitting direction).
And, as the connector fitting operation advances as shown in
FIG. 12
, the securing projection
61
penetrates under the lower surface of the slide plate
65
to thereby flex the lock arm
60
downward. Also, while being contacted with the spring contact portion
64
, the leading end portion of the resilient piece
58
gradually presses against the male connector
52
in the anti-fitting direction. In this stage, in case where the fitting force is eased, the male and female connectors
52
and
53
are separated from each other, thereby being able to prevent the imperfect fit between them.
Further, in case where the connector fitting operation advances as shown in
FIG. 13
, when the securing projection
61
passes through under the lower surface of the slide plate
65
and is then secured to the securing groove
66
, the resilient piece
58
is sufficiently pushed down to thereby enter under the lower surface of the housing
54
, so that the male and female connectors
52
and
53
are perfectly fitted with each other. At the then time, although the energizing force thereof to push up the male connector
52
is large, since the resilient piece
58
is inclined almost horizontally, the component of the force to push back the male connector
52
in the anti-fitting direction is negligible.
Further, to remove the connector fitted state, in case where the pressing parts
62
are pressed down with fingers, the lock arm
60
is flexed and the securing projection
61
is thereby removed from the securing groove
66
; and, therefore, in case where the housings
54
and
55
of the male and female connectors
52
and
53
are pulled in the separating direction, they can be easily separated from each other. At the then time, since the resilient piece
58
holding the repulsion force is contacted with the leading end portion of the spring contact portion
64
, the fit removing force can be increased.
However, in the above-mentioned conventional half fit preventive connector
51
, in the perfectly fitted state, the resilient piece
58
including the support arm
57
of the spring member
56
is always pushing up the male connector
52
while the resilient piece
58
remains flexed. This raises a problem that the male connector
52
can be damaged and the spring member
56
can be fatigued.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention aims at eliminating the above problem found in the conventional half fit preventive connector. Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a highly reliable half fit preventive connector which, in the perfectly fitted
Le Thanh-Tam
Sircus Brian
Sughrue & Mion, PLLC
Yazaki -Corporation
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