Electrical connectors – Coupling part including flexing insulation – Sealing
Reexamination Certificate
2000-10-16
2001-12-25
Patel, Tulsidas (Department: 2839)
Electrical connectors
Coupling part including flexing insulation
Sealing
Reexamination Certificate
active
06332809
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
(1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a waterproof connector preventing rubber from unnecessarily adhering when packing made of the rubber is molded in one body in a connector housing of the waterproof connector.
(2) Description of the Related Art
FIGS. 7 through 12
show a conventional waterproof connector.
As to the conventional waterproof connector
24
(see FIG.
11
), a packing
29
made of rubber is formed in one body within a female connector housing
28
made of synthetic resin. The connector housing
28
has two main chambers (chambers for mating connectors)
30
situated in parallel each other (see FIG.
7
), each of which is contiguous to a small sub-chamber
33
situated at a base
32
side of the connector housing through a step
31
(see FIG.
8
). On one inner wall
35
of the sub-chamber
33
, there are provided a plurality of grooves
27
for introducing rubber, each of which communicates with a peripheral groove
34
(see
FIG. 9
) at the back of the base
32
of the connector housing. At the peripheral groove
34
side, a print circuit board (PCB; not shown in the figure) is arranged.
At an end of the inner wall
35
of the main chamber
30
and on an inner and outer surfaces of the base
32
of the connector housing, small projections for preventing the rubber from leaking are formed in a mating direction of the connectors. Each projection
36
,
37
or
38
prevents molten rubber from leaking by being closely in contact with a mold
25
(shown by an alternate long and two short dashes line in
FIG. 8
) for casting.
The mold
25
is inserted into the connector housing
28
in a direction of arrow E (see
FIG. 8
) and comes in contact with the projections
36
and
37
. The mold
25
has a wavelike lip-forming portion
25
a
and a rectangular block portion
25
b
, which enters into the sub-chamber
33
. At the base
32
side of the connector housing, a mold
39
for casting having a V-shaped lip-forming porion
39
a
that continues to the peripheral groove
34
is placed.
Heated and molten rubber is injected from a gate
40
of the mold
25
into a gap between the mold
25
and the connector housing
28
, thereby the packing
29
(see
FIG. 11
) is formed in one body within the connector housing
28
. In the main chamber
30
, a packing portion
29
a
(see
FIGS. 10 and 11
) for a mating male connector (not shown in the figure) is formed. The rubber flows into the peripheral groove
34
of the base
32
side of the connector housing through the groove
27
for introducing rubber (see FIG.
8
), thereby another packing portion
29
b
(see
FIGS. 11 and 12
) is formed. A male terminal (not shown in the figure) at the PCB side is formed in the connector housing
28
by press-fit or integral molding, thereby the waterproof connector
24
is completed.
However, as to the conventional waterproof connector
24
described above, when the molten rubber is introduced into the groove
27
in a direction of arrow J in
FIG. 13
, the rubber enters into a small gap between the mold
25
and the connector housing
28
in directions of arrow G and arrow H, resulting in a formation of an unnecessary thin layer portion
41
(see
FIG. 11
) or unnecessary thick layer portion
42
on an inner wall
26
of the sub-chamber
33
or the step
31
. Moreover, rubber injected from an opposite gate
40
′ (see
FIG. 11
) with respect to the groove
27
enters into a small gap between the mold
25
and the connector housing
28
, similarly resulting in a formation of an unnecessary thin layer portion
41
or unnecessary thick layer portion
42
. The formation of these layer portions causes unnecessary material cost-up due to the increased use of an amount of the rubber. In addition, since the unnecessary rubber adheres on the inner wall
26
of the connecter housing
28
or the step
31
, there is such a fear that a mating condition between this waterproof connector and the mating connector (not shown in the figure) deteriorates.
Even when projections
43
and
44
for preventing the rubber from leaking are formed at the periphery of the groove
27
for introducing rubber and the step
31
as shown in
FIG. 14
in order to solve the above problem, the projection
43
extended in an inserting direction of the mold is scraped off by an edge of the rectangular block portion
25
b
of the mold
25
(see FIG.
8
), whereby the rubber leaks out in directions of arrow G and arrow K, resulting in no solution of the problem.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an objective of the present invention to solve the above problem and to provide a waterproof connector, in which the unnecessary rubber never leaks out into the inner wall of the sub-chamber or the step between the main chamber and the sub-chamber of the connecter housing and the rubber is prevented from unnecessarily adhering, when a packing is molded in one body in the main chamber side and the base side of a connector housing of the waterproof connector.
In order to attain the above objective, the present invention is to provide a waterproof connector comprising: a main chamber and a sub-chamber continuously formed in a connector housing of the waterproof connector with a step therebetween; a hole for introducing rubber penetratingly formed inside a wall of the sub-chamber arising from the step and communicating with a base of the connector housing; and a packing made of the rubber formed in one body in the main chamber and at the base of the connector housing.
A groove for introducing rubber is formed on an inner wall of the main chamber, allowing the hole for introducing the rubber to be contiguous to the groove for introducing the rubber in one body.
Projections for preventing the rubber from leaking are formed closely in contact with a mold for casting and that continuously at a periphery of an opening of the hole for introducing the rubber and a whole periphery of the step.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4895533 (1990-01-01), Yagi et al.
patent: 5618198 (1997-04-01), Sato et al.
patent: 5766039 (1998-06-01), Abe
patent: 6132249 (2000-10-01), Saito et al.
Armstrong Westerman Hattori McLeland & Naughton LLP
Patel Tulsidas
Yazaki -Corporation
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