Electrical connectors – With indicating or identifying provision – Connection indicating provision
Reexamination Certificate
2002-04-09
2003-05-27
Ta, Tho D. (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
With indicating or identifying provision
Connection indicating provision
C439S352000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06568954
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a half-fitting prevention connector-assembling method and a half-fitting prevention connector, in which when a pair of male and female connector housings are fitted together, a half-fitted condition of the male and female connector housings is detected by determining whether or not a fitting detection member, mounted on one of the first and second connector housings, can be slid into a proper fitting detection position.
The present application is based on Japanese Patent Applications No. 2001-114405 and No. 2001-269062, which are incorporated herein by reference.
2. Related Art
In a conventional half-fitting prevention connector shown in
FIGS. 18 and 19
, when a pair of male and female connector housings
1
and
9
are fitted together, a half-fitted condition of the male and female connector housings
1
and
9
is detected by determining whether or not a fitting detection member
2
, mounted on the male connector housing (first connector housing)
9
, can be slid into a proper fitting detection position (see JP-A-8-31517).
As shown in
FIG. 19
, the male connector housing
1
has a flexible lock arm
4
rising from an upper wall
3
at a front end thereof and further extending toward a rear end of the housing, and a lock portion
6
is formed on an intermediate portion of an upper surface of this flexible lock arm
4
in a projected manner.
A pressing plate portion
7
is provided at a free end of the flexible lock arm
4
disposed near to the rear end of the male connector housing
1
, and this pressing plate portion
7
serves as an operating portion for elastically displacing the flexible lock arm
4
when fitting the male and female connector housings together.
The female connector housing
9
has an engagement portion
10
formed on an inner surface of an upper wall thereof at a front end thereof which upper wall overlies the flexible lock arm
4
when fitting the male and female connector housings
1
and
9
together.
As shown in
FIGS. 20 and 21
, when the fitting length of the male and female connector housings
1
and
9
relative to each other reaches a proper value, the engagement portion
10
slides over the lock portion
6
through the elastic displacement of the flexible lock arm
4
. When the fitting length of the male and female connector housings
1
and
9
reaches the proper value, the engagement portion
10
becomes engaged in a recess
6
a
, disposed at the rear side of the lock portion
6
, from the upper side, to retain the lock portion
6
, thereby locking the male and female connector housings
1
and
9
in a fitted condition.
As shown in
FIGS. 18 and 19
, the fitting detection member
2
includes an operating plate portion
16
, which is slidably engaged with the pressing plate portion
7
so as to slide in a fitting direction of the male and female connector housings, a resilient piece portion
17
, extending from a rear end of the operating plate portion
16
toward the front ends of the male and female connector housings, and a positioning retaining portion
20
formed at a distal end of the resilient piece portion
17
in a projected manner, these portions being formed integrally with one another. The resilient piece portion
17
has a bar-like shape, and can pass through a space between a pair of side plate portions
5
of the flexible lock arm
4
.
As shown in
FIG. 18
, the positioning retaining portion
20
is in the form of a projection, and can be fitted into each of recesses
6
a
and
6
b
, disposed respectively at the rear and front sides of the lock portion
6
, from the lower side by the resilient force of the resilient piece portion
17
. Before the male and female connector housings are fitted together, this positioning retaining portion
20
is kept fitted in the recess
6
a
at the rear side of the lock portion
6
, and is retained by a rear edge of the lock portion
6
, and therefore is prevented form forward movement.
The position where the positioning retaining portion
20
is abutted against the rear edge of the lock portion
6
, and is prevented from forward movement is an initial position of the fitting detection member
2
mounted on the male connector housing
1
.
With respect to the sliding engagement between the pressing plate portion
7
and the operating plate portion
16
, the sliding range is so determined that the fitting detection member
2
can slide between the proper fitting detection position, set forwardly of the above initial position, and this initial position.
When the pair of male and female connector housings
1
and
9
are fitted together, the fitting length of the male and female connector housings
1
and
9
reaches the proper value, so that the engagement portion
10
is fitted in the recess
6
a
at the rear side of the lock portion
6
, as shown in FIG.
21
.
Therefore, the positioning retaining portion
20
of the fitting detection member
2
, already fitted in the recess
6
a
, is downwardly pushed out of this recess by the engagement portion
10
, so that the holding of the positioning retaining portion
20
in the initial position is canceled. As a result, the fitting detection member
2
can be slid by pushing the operating plate portion
16
forward as indicated by arrow A in the drawings.
When the fitting detection member
2
is pushed forward after the holding of the positioning retaining portion
20
in the initial position is canceled, this positioning retaining portion
20
moves forward in sliding contact with the lower surfaces of the engagement portion
10
and lock portion
6
, as shown in FIG.
22
. Then, when the positioning retaining portion
20
moves past the front edge of the lock portion
6
, this portion
20
is displaced upwardly by the resilient force of the resilient piece portion
17
, and is fitted into the recess
6
b
at the front side of the lock portion
6
.
Therefore, the positioning retaining portion
20
, thus fitted in the recess
6
b
, is retained at its rear end surface by the front end surface of the lock portion
6
, and is held in a locked condition, that is, prevented from rearward sliding movement.
However, if the fitting length of the male and female connector housings
1
and
9
does not reach the proper value, thus inviting a half-fitted condition, when the male and female connector housings
1
and
9
are fitted together, the engagement portion
10
of the female connector housing
9
will not be fitted into the recess
6
a
at the rear side of the lock portion
6
.
Therefore, the positioning retaining portion
20
will not be pushed out of the recess
6
a
by the engagement portion
10
, and therefore the holding of the fitting detection member
2
in the initial position by the lock portion
6
will not be canceled.
Therefore, in the half-fitted condition of the male and female connector housings
1
and
9
, even when the operating plate portion
16
is pushed forward, the fitting detection member
2
will not be moved forward, and therefore the half-fitted condition can be detected by determining whether or not the fitting detection member
2
can be moved forward.
In the operation for fitting the pair of male and female connector housings
1
and
9
together, the connector housings
1
and
9
are directly held with the fingers of the hands, and then the two connector housings
1
and
9
are fitted together.
In the operation for moving the detection member in order to judge the fitted condition of the two connector housings
1
and
9
, the fingers of the hand, holding the male connector housing
1
, are shifted into positions where the operating plate portion
16
of the fitting detection member
2
can be pushed by these fingers, and then the fitting detection member
2
is moved from the initial position to the proper fitting detection position.
Further, a housing-pulling confirmation operation is effected in order to confirm whether or not the locked condition of the male and female connector housings is incomplete because of damage to the lock portion
6
Endo Tomomi
Taguchi Naoto
LandOfFree
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