Electrical connectors – Coupling part including flexing insulation – Sealing
Reexamination Certificate
2000-02-08
2003-03-04
Abrams, Neil (Department: 2839)
Electrical connectors
Coupling part including flexing insulation
Sealing
Reexamination Certificate
active
06527586
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND ART
This invention relates to a watertight connector with improved watertight performance.
As shown in
FIG. 5
, the applicants of the present application have proposed a watertight connector comprising: a connector housing
3
including receptors (cavities)
3
a
for inserting and holding terminals
2
fixed to wires
1
therein, and a seal setting portion
3
b
provided at a rear part of the receptors
3
a
; a resilient seal member
4
made of a soft material including a front surface
4
a
making contact with a rear surface
3
c
of the seal setting portion
3
b
of the connector housing
3
, and press-fit holes
4
c
formed therein for passing the terminals and the wires for press-fitting; and a holder
5
including a holding portion
5
a
that makes contact with a rear surface
4
b
of the seal member
4
to encase the seal member
4
, a pair of locking hollows
5
b
engageable with corresponding projections
3
d
on the connector housing
3
in a state that the seal member
4
is held between the connector housing
3
and the holder
5
, and insertion holes Sc for inserting the terminals and the wires.
In the above watertight connector, as shown in
FIG. 6A
, the connector housing
3
, the seal member
4
, and the holder
5
are assembled one another in a state that the seal member
4
is seated in fit contact with the seal setting portion
3
b
of the connector housing
3
, the holding portion
5
a
of the holder
5
encases the rear surface
4
b
of the seal member
4
in fit contact therewith, and the projections
3
d
engage with the locking hollows
5
b.
In this state, after the terminals
2
pass through insertion holes Sc of the holder
5
, as shown in
FIG. 6B
, the terminals
2
are press-fitted in the press-fit holes
4
c
of the seal member
4
and abutted against lance portions
3
e
while held by the receptors
3
a
of the connector housing
3
. The wires
1
are press-fitted in the pressfit holes
4
c
of the seal member
4
, and in this way, the outer surface of the wires
1
is sealed in a water-tight state.
Thereafter, as shown in
FIG. 6C
, when projections
6
a
of a retainer
6
are thrust into the receptors
3
a
from the front side of the connector housing
3
, the tip ends of the projections
6
a
are abutted against the tip ends of the lance portions
3
e
to thereby hinder the retainer
6
from being further thrust any more. This is a half-fitted state where the terminals
2
are in incomplete engagement with the lance portions
3
e
. Further thrusting the terminals
2
from the rear side of the connector accomplishes a complete engagement with the lance portions
3
e.
When the projections
6
a
of the retainer
6
are completely thrust into the receptors
3
a
, the projections
6
a
engage with the lance portions
3
e
so that the lance portions
3
e
may not be deflected. Thus, the terminals
2
are prevented from loosening off from the connector.
In the above conventional watertight connector, the terminals
2
and the wires
1
are required to be altogether press-fitted in the press-fit holes
4
c
of the seal member
4
. Accordingly, it is highly likely that part of the seal member
4
around the press-fit holes
4
c
may be damaged or scraped off due to forcible insertion of the tubular terminals
2
each having a rectangular shape in cross-section into the press-fit holes
4
c
and that the scraped part may be intruded inside the terminals to thereby cause an electrical problem resulting from inferior contact of the connector.
Another problem may rise from the following construction of the above watertight connector. Each of the terminals
2
is provided with a stabilizer
2
a
projecting outward on a lateral side thereof as a mark for preventing a possibility that the terminals
2
may be inserted upside down. Since the press-fit hole
4
c
has, as shown in detail in
FIG. 7A
, a smaller dimension than the outer configuration of the terminal
2
viewed from the front side, it is highly likely that the edge-shaped stabilizer
2
a
may damage the press-fit hole
4
c
while the terminal
2
being pressingly inserted in the press-fit hole
4
c
to thereby impair the sealability of the watertight connector around a portion where the wires are inserted. The above problem must be considered also in the case where the press-fit holes
4
c
have a slit-like shape, as shown in FIG.
7
B.
In view of the above problems residing in the prior art, it is an object of this invention to provide a watertight connector with improved watertight performance at a portion where a connector housing and wires are provided.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
To solve the above problems, according to an aspect of this invention, this invention is directed to a watertight connector comprising: a connector housing formed with receptors for inserting and holding terminals connected to wires therein, and a seal setting portion provided at a rear part of the receptors; a resilient seal member made of a soft material including a front surface made in contact with a rear surface of the seal setting portion and formed with segment holes for inserting the terminals and the wires therein; and a holder including a pressing portion made in contact with a rear surface of the seal member to compress the seal member forward, a locking part engageable with the connector housing when the seal member is compressed, and insertion holes for inserting the terminals and the wires therein. The watertight connector has the features that the seal setting portion of the connector housing is formed with a housing recess for housing the seal member therein, and that the seal member is compressed by the pressing portion of the holder when the seal member is housed in the housing recess in a state that the terminals connected to the wires pass through the insertion holes of the holder and the segment holes of the seal member and are held in the receptors of the connector housing.
According to this invention, the seal member is housed in the housing recess of the seal setting portion of the connector housing, and the terminals connected to the wires pass through the insertion holes of the holder and the segment holes of the seal member and are held in the receptors of the connector housing, whereby the seal member is compressed by the pressing portion of the holder. Consequently, the segment holes of the seal member reduce the respective sizes thereof due to the compression so as to deform in conformity with the outer shape of the wires.
In this way, when the seal member is housed in the housing recess defined in the seal setting portion of the connector housing and compressed by the pressing portion of the holder, the front surface of the seal member makes fit contact with the rear surface of the seal setting portion, and the outer surface of the seal setting portion makes fit contact with the inner surface of the housing recess. Thus, the sealable contact area of the seal member with the connector housing increases to secure sealability of the connector at the connector housing portion.
Further, as the compression of the seal member reduces the sizes of the segment holes, the seal member is deformed into such a shape as to follow the outer shape of the wires. Thus, secured is the sealability of the connector at a portion where the wires are inserted.
There is an idea of forming a housing recess in a front surface of a pressing portion of a holder in place of forming the housing recess in the seal setting portion of the connector housing. In this case, the seal member is set in the housing recess of the holder. This arrangement may cause a problem that the sealable contact area of the seal member with the connector housing decreases because the contact of the seal member with the connector housing is limited to the contact of the front surface of the seal member with the rear surface of the seal setting portion of the connector housing without a fit contact of the outer surface of the seal member with the connector housing. This arrangement is liable to result in an insecure sealed state
Hattori Yasuhiro
Okamura Kenji
Abrams Neil
Autonetworks Technologies Ltd.
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