Electrical connectors – With insulation other than conductor sheath – Metallic connector or contact secured to insulation
Reexamination Certificate
2001-04-16
2002-11-12
Paumen, Gary F. (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
With insulation other than conductor sheath
Metallic connector or contact secured to insulation
Reexamination Certificate
active
06478632
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a connector and a construction for preventing a terminal fitting from shaking in a connector housing.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional connector housing has opposite front and rear ends and a cavity that penetrates through the housing from the rear end to the front end. An elastic locking piece is cantilevered obliquely and forwardly from a wall of the housing into the cavity. A terminal fitting can be inserted into the cavity from behind and locked into engagement with the leading end of the elastic locking piece.
Some connectors are used in high vibration environments, such as in automotive vehicles. Vibrations in these environments cause mated terminal fittings to rub against each other at a high speed and can abrade the contact portions. Fine sliding abrasion can be restricted by preventing vibration of the terminal fittings in the cavities. Therefore, suitable members may be held in contact with the terminal fittings to prevent vibrations.
Some known connectors prevent fine sliding abrasion by pressing the barrel of the terminal fitting or by pressing the insulation coating of the wire. However, these connectors still have problems. Specifically, the same terminal fitting may be used to connect wires that have different diameters. In this case, a contact member for pressing the wire may not contact the wire, depending upon the diameter of the wire. Similarly, the height of a barrel that is crimped into connection with a core or an insulation coating of the wire will vary depending on the diameter of the wire. Thus a contact member for contacting the barrel may not reach the crimped barrel. In these situations, the problem of fine sliding abrasion cannot be solved.
Some connectors include both elastic locking pieces and a retainer for securely locking terminal fittings in a connector housing. An example of such a connector is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 11-204185 and is illustrated in
FIG. 20
herein. The connector of
FIG. 20
includes a terminal
50
and a connector housing
51
. The connector housing
51
is formed with a cavity
52
that has a front wall
53
. The terminal
50
can be inserted into the cavity
52
in a rear-to-front direction until the terminal
50
engages the front wall
53
of the cavity
52
. A cantilever-shaped lock
54
extends from a bottom wall of the cavity
52
to elastically engage and lock a bottom side of the terminal
50
. A retainer
55
is mounted on the upper surface of the connector housing
51
to engage and lock the upper surface of the terminal
50
. Thus, the terminal
50
is prevented from backing out of the cavity
52
.
The connector of
FIG. 20
has a problem because the terminal
50
shakes in the cavity
52
. The shaking occurs because the lock
54
is elastically deformed downward when the terminal
50
is inserted. At this time, an engaging position of the lock
54
moves in an arc. Accordingly, the engaging position of the lock
54
differs in a horizontal direction by a specified distance between a position where the lock
54
permits the terminal
50
to pass and a position where the lock
54
is restored elastically to its original shape to lock the terminal
50
. This creates a clearance between the terminal
50
and the lock
54
in a state where the lock
54
locks the terminal
50
, although this clearance is very small.
The retainer
55
is mounted by pushing straight into the connector housing
51
for mounting. Accordingly, no clearance is formed for the same reason as the lock
54
. However, the retainer
55
is formed separately from the connector housing
51
, and unlike the lock
54
, must create clearances (a) and (b) at a retainer mount position in the connector housing
51
for manufacturing or assembling reasons when the retainer
55
is assembled with the connector housing
51
. Thus, the mount position of the retainer
55
varies in forward and backward directions because the retainer
55
is assembled with the connector housing
51
, and clearances exist between the terminal
50
and the retainer
55
.
The prior art locking construction of
FIG. 20
cannot avoid the shape of the terminal
50
in the cavity
52
. The use of such a connector in an automotive vehicle will cause vibrations to be transmitted from the vehicle to the connector. Thus, the terminals will shake at a high speed and abrade due to fine sliding.
The present invention was developed in view of the above problems and an object of the invention is to prevent a terminal from shaking in a cavity.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is directed to a shake preventing construction for a terminal fitting. The construction comprises at least one terminal fitting with a wire connecting portion at one end for connection with a wire. The connector further has a connector housing with at least one cavity for accommodating the terminal fitting. A terminal fixing device is mountable in the connector housing and has a contact portion for contacting the terminal fitting before or near the wire connecting portion to prevent the terminal fitting from shaking. Accordingly, fine sliding abrasion with a mating terminal can be avoided.
The contact portion of the terminal fixing device contacts the terminal fitting at a position spaced from the wire connecting portion, and therefore is not affected by different diameters of wires to be connected. As a result the terminal fitting can be prevented from shaking with a high degree of reliability.
The terminal fixing device preferably comprises a locking portion for locking the terminal fitting in the cavity. Accordingly, the contact portion of the terminal fixing device prevents the terminal fitting from shaking, while the locking portion of the terminal fixing device prevents the terminal fitting from coming out.
The terminal fixing device preferably is formed with a front-stop wall. The front end surface of the terminal fitting can be brought into contact with the front-stop wall for determining a front end position of the terminal fitting. Accordingly, the contact portion of the terminal fixing device prevents the terminal fitting from shaking, while the front-stop wall of the terminal fixing device determines the front end position of the terminal fitting.
The terminal fitting has a connecting portion for connection with a mating terminal fitting. The terminal fitting also may comprise a receiving piece between the connecting portion and the wire connecting portion. The contact portion of the terminal fixing device contacts the receiving piece to prevent shaking of the terminal fitting.
At least one of the terminal fitting and the contact portion of the terminal fixing device may be formed with a guide surface for guiding a locking operation of the terminal fixing device.
The terminal fixing device can be positioned in a partial lock position, such that at least one communication hole in the terminal fixing device substantially aligns with the corresponding cavity. Thus, the terminal fitting can be inserted into the cavity and the communication hole. The contact portion contacts the terminal fitting when the terminal fixing device is in the full locking position to lock the terminal fitting in the cavity.
One contact portion may enter at least two adjacent or neighboring cavities when the terminal fixing device is in the full locking position. Additionally, corresponding opening edges of the communication hole enter the cavity when the terminal fixing device is in the full locking position.
The terminal fitting may be provided with locking means for interacting with mating locking means in the connector housing to provide secondary locking for locking the terminal fitting in the connector housing.
The invention also is directed a connector with a shake preventing construction. The connector comprises at least one terminal fitting with an engaging portion in a position spaced backward from a leading end of the terminal fitting by a specified distance. The connector also comprises a h
Casella Anthony J.
Hespos Gerald E.
Paumen Gary F.
Sumitomo Wiring Systems Ltd.
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