Joint connector

Details Joint connector Joint connector

1999-11-18

2001-01-09

Paumen, Gary F. (Department: 2833)

Electrical connectors

With provision to isolate circuitry by severance of bridging...

C439S723000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06171140

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a joint connector having a bus bar which can be used for an automobile wire harness, for example, and can arbitrarily cause an electrical circuits of the wire harness to be branched and joined one to another.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventionally, a joint connector of this kind has a construction such that as
FIG. 25
shows, for example, a joint box
101
and a connector
102
are coupled with each other. A housing
103
of the joint box
101
has a fitting hole
104
formed therein, and at the rear side of the fitting hole
104
there is fitted a bus bar unit
106
including a bus bar
105
having a desired circuit pattern embedded in a synthetic resin material, the bus bar
105
having tongue-like contacts. The bus bar unit
106
is locked by a locking arm
107
formed in the housing
103
.
On the other hand, a housing
108
of the connector
102
has an inner cylinder portion
109
, and a multiplicity of terminal housing holes
110
are provided in the inner cylinder portion
109
. Housed in the terminal housing holes
110
are connecting terminals
113
which connect electrical conductor
111
to the rear side of terminal housing hole, with a wire seal member
112
fitted on electrical conductor
111
. Connecting terminal
113
is prevented from slipping out rearward by a locking arm
114
. On the outer periphery of the inner cylinder portion
109
at the front end thereof, with a seal member
115
fitted thereon, a front holder
116
is set in position and locked to the housing
108
by a locking arm
117
of the front holder
116
.
When the front holder
116
and the seal member
115
are fitted in the fitting hole
104
of the joint box
101
, the joint box
101
and the connector
102
become jointed together in waterproof condition so that desired connector terminals
113
are short-circuited by the bus bar
105
to form a circuit.
Whereas above described prior art bus bar unit
106
, shown by way of example, is such that a bus bar
105
having a desired circuit pattern is embedded in a synthetic resin material, a joint connector is also known such that a cut bus bar is set in a housing molded from a synthetic resin material to form a desired circuit pattern.
In the above described prior art examples, however, since a bus bar
105
having a desired circuit pattern is embedded in a synthetic resin material, and in case that cut bus bars are set in a housing molded from a synthetic resin material to form a desired circuit pattern, so that different circuit patterns are required, it is necessary to provide a multiplicity of bus bars
105
according to the different circuit patterns and to set cut bus bars
105
in the housing. This poses the problem of increased production cost.
Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a joint connector which eliminates above mentioned problems, has a circuit arrangement easy to construct, and is inexpensive.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In order to accomplish the above mentioned object, the joint connector in accordance with the present invention comprises a housing for accommodating a plurality of connecting terminals in a rear-side portion thereof, a bus bar comprised of an electrically conductive metal plate accommodated in the housing for jointing any individual ones of the connecting terminals, a bus bar holder for holding the bus bar, and a front cover mounted to the housing in such a way as to cover the bus bar holder, the bus bar holder having a plurality of holes to be used in cutting the bus bar for forming an arbitrary circuit, with the bus bar holder and the bus bar mounted so as to be movable in relation to the housing in a direction orthogonal to the direction of the connecting terminals being housed, thereby to enable the bus bar to be jointed with connecting terminals.


REFERENCES:
patent: 4471158 (1984-09-01), Roberts
patent: 5000699 (1991-03-01), Nadin
patent: 5490785 (1996-02-01), Hein et al.
patent: 5540602 (1996-07-01), Bell
patent: 5964624 (1999-10-01), Pernelle

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