JP7563122B2 - connector - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to connectors.

Patent document 1 discloses a connector that can be attached to equipment such as an inverter. The connector described in patent document 1 includes a plurality of electric wires with terminals, a resin housing that holds the plurality of electric wires with terminals, and a metal shield shell that covers the housing and is fixed to the equipment.

The housing has a cylindrical portion having an opening through which the multiple terminals are exposed, a wire holding portion that protrudes outward from the outer peripheral wall of the cylindrical portion, and a flange that protrudes outward from the outer peripheral wall of the cylindrical portion excluding the section in which the wire holding portion is provided.

A terminal fixing portion provided on the device is inserted into the opening of the cylindrical portion. The terminal and the terminal fixing portion are fastened together with a bolt, thereby electrically connecting the connector and the device.
The shield shell has a surrounding portion that surrounds the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion, and a fixing portion that protrudes from the surrounding portion and is fixed to the device.

The surrounding portion has a protrusion that protrudes toward the flange of the housing. The protrusion comes into contact with the flange, preventing the housing from tilting relative to the shield shell even when a load is applied to the terminal-attached electric wire.

The fixing portion has a through hole into which a bolt is inserted. The bolt inserted into the through hole is screwed into a screw hole provided in the equipment, thereby fixing the shield shell to the equipment.

International Publication No. 2018-186338

However, when fixing the shield shell to the equipment, the worker needs to visually align the through holes of the fixing part with the screw holes of the equipment. This alignment work may reduce the workability when installing the shield shell.

The objective of this disclosure is to provide a connector that can suppress a decrease in workability when installing a shield shell.

The connector of the present disclosure is a connector comprising a plurality of terminals arranged in parallel and electrically connected to mating terminals provided on a device, a resin housing that holds the plurality of terminals, and a metal shield shell that covers the housing and is fixed to the case of the device, the housing having a cylindrical portion with an opening through which the plurality of terminals are exposed, and a protrusion that protrudes from the cylindrical portion to the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion, the shield shell having an enclosing portion that surrounds the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion, a recess that is provided in the enclosing portion facing the protrusion and engages with the protrusion, and a fixing portion that has a through hole through which a bolt used to fix the shield shell to the case is inserted and is fixed to the case.

This disclosure makes it possible to prevent a decrease in workability when installing a shield shell.

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a connector according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a plan view of a connector according to one embodiment. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG.

[Description of the embodiments of the present disclosure]
First, the embodiments of the present disclosure will be listed and described.
[1] A connector disclosed herein includes a plurality of terminals arranged in parallel and electrically connected to mating terminals provided on an equipment, a resin housing that holds the plurality of terminals, and a metal shield shell that covers the housing and is fixed to a case of the equipment, wherein the housing has a cylindrical portion having an opening through which the plurality of terminals are exposed, and a protrusion that protrudes from the cylindrical portion to the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion, and the shield shell has a surrounding portion that surrounds the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion, a recess that is provided in a portion of the surrounding portion facing the protrusion and engages with the protrusion, and a fixing portion that has a through hole through which a bolt used to fix the shield shell to the case is inserted, and is fixed to the case.

According to this configuration, the concave portion of the shield shell engages with the protrusion of the housing, positioning the shield shell relative to the housing. This positions the fixing portion of the shield shell relative to the case of the device. This makes it easier to insert a bolt into the through hole of the fixing portion to fix the shield shell to the case. This makes it possible to prevent a decrease in workability when installing the shield shell.

[2] When the protrusion is a first protrusion, it is preferable that the housing has a second protrusion that protrudes from the cylindrical portion toward the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion and extends in the axial direction of the cylindrical portion.

With this configuration, the second protrusion extends in the axial direction of the cylindrical portion, improving the rigidity of the cylindrical portion. This makes it possible to suppress molding defects in the housing, such as sink marks, and therefore improve the dimensional accuracy of the opening of the cylindrical portion.

[3] It is preferable that the surrounding portion extends in a direction in which the plurality of terminals are arranged, and the fixing portion is provided on both sides of the surrounding portion in the direction in which the plurality of terminals are arranged.
According to this configuration, the fixing parts are provided on both sides in the arrangement direction of the surrounding parts. Therefore, the shield shell is fixed to the case on both sides in the extension direction of the surrounding parts. This makes it easier to ensure the distance between the fixing parts. Therefore, the shield shell can be stably fixed to the case.

[4] It is preferable that the housing has a flange that protrudes from the cylindrical portion toward the surrounding portion, and that the surrounding portion covers the flange from the side opposite the case in the axial direction of the cylindrical portion.

According to this configuration, the flange is covered by the surrounding portion from the side opposite the case in the axial direction of the cylindrical portion. This makes it easier to position the shield shell relative to the housing in the axial direction. This further reduces the decrease in workability when installing the shield shell.

[5] It is preferable that the projection is connected to the flange and extends to an outer edge of the flange.
According to this configuration, the strength of the flange can be improved by the protrusion.

[Details of the embodiment of the present disclosure]
Specific examples of the connector of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. In each drawing, for convenience of explanation, some of the configuration may be exaggerated or simplified. Furthermore, the dimensional ratio of each part may differ in each drawing. Note that the present disclosure is not limited to these examples, but is indicated by the claims, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the claims. In this specification, "orthogonal" does not only mean strictly orthogonal, but also includes approximately orthogonal within the scope of the effect of this embodiment.

(Configuration of Connector 10)
1 and 2, a connector 10 is electrically connected to a vehicle device such as a motor, an inverter, etc. The connector 10 is attached to a device case 100 having an opening 101.

The connector 10 includes a number of terminals 20 arranged in parallel, a housing 40 that holds the terminals 20, and a shield shell 50 that covers the housing 40. The connector 10 includes, for example, three terminals 20. An electric wire 30 is electrically connected to the terminal 20. The electric wire 30 is drawn out from the housing 40.

Hereinafter, the direction in which the multiple terminals 20 are lined up is referred to as the X-axis direction, the direction in which the electric wires 30 drawn out from the housing 40 extend is referred to as the Y-axis direction, and the direction perpendicular to both the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction is referred to as the Z-axis direction. The X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the Z-axis direction are mutually perpendicular.

(Configuration of terminal 20)
3, the terminal 20 has an electric wire connection portion 21 and a terminal connection portion 22. The terminal 20 is a single component in which the electric wire connection portion 21 and the terminal connection portion 22 are integrally formed. The terminal 20 is made of a metal material such as copper, a copper alloy, aluminum, an aluminum alloy, or stainless steel.

An electric wire 30 is electrically connected to the electric wire connection part 21. Here, the electric wire 30 has a core wire 31 and an insulating coating 32 that covers the outer circumference of the core wire 31. The core wire 31 is exposed from the insulating coating 32 at the end part of the electric wire 30. The core wire 31 exposed from the insulating coating 32 is electrically connected to the electric wire connection part 21.

The terminal connection portion 22 is, for example, plate-shaped. The terminal connection portion 22 extends in the Y-axis direction from the electric wire connection portion 21. The terminal connection portion 22 is provided with an insertion hole 23 that penetrates the terminal connection portion 22 in the Z-axis direction. The terminal connection portion 22 is electrically connected to a metallic mating terminal 110 provided inside the opening 101 of the case 100 by a bolt 120 inserted into the insertion hole 23.

(Configuration of the housing 40)
1, the housing 40 has a holding portion 41 that holds the multiple terminals 20, a cylindrical portion 42 that is cylindrical, and a flange 45 that protrudes from the cylindrical portion 42 toward the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 42. The holding portion 41, the cylindrical portion 42, and the flange 45 are integrally provided. The housing 40 is formed of, for example, a resin material.

As shown in FIG. 3, the holding portion 41 protrudes from the cylindrical portion 42 toward the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 42 in the Y-axis direction. The holding portion 41 holds the connection portion between the terminal connection portion 22 and the electric wire 30. The multiple terminals 20 connected to the electric wire 30 and the housing 40 are integrated by insert molding.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the cylindrical portion 42 extends in the X-axis direction. The cylindrical portion 42 has an opening 43 that penetrates in the Z-axis direction. The opening 43 has an elliptical shape that is long in the X-axis direction.

The terminal connection portion 22 of each of the terminals 20 is exposed from the opening 43. When viewed from the Z-axis direction, the entire insertion hole 23 of the terminal 20 overlaps with the opening 43.
1 , an insertion portion 44 is provided at one end in the Z-axis direction of the cylindrical portion 42, which is inserted into an opening 101 of the case 100. An annular seal member 60 made of an elastic material such as rubber is provided on the outer circumferential surface of the insertion portion 44. The seal member 60 provides a seal between the insertion portion 44 and the opening 101 of the case 100.

The flange 45 protrudes from the portion of the cylindrical portion 42 adjacent to the insertion portion 44 in the Z-axis direction, excluding the holding portion 41. The flange 45 protrudes toward the surrounding portion 52 of the shield shell 50, which will be described later. The flange 45 is connected to the holding portion 41.

As shown in FIG. 2, the housing 40 has a plurality of first protrusions 46 and a plurality of second protrusions 47 that protrude from the cylindrical portion 42 toward the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 42. The housing 40 has three first protrusions 46 and six second protrusions 47. The first protrusions 46 and the second protrusions 47 are both plate-shaped.

The first protrusions 46 are provided on the end of the cylindrical portion 42 opposite the holding portion 41 in the Y-axis direction and on both ends of the cylindrical portion 42 in the X-axis direction. The first protrusions 46 are connected to the flanges 45.

As shown in FIG. 1, the first protrusion 46 extends to the outer edge 45a of the flange 45. The amount by which the first protrusion 46 protrudes from the cylindrical portion 42 is the same as the amount by which the flange 45 protrudes from the cylindrical portion 42.

The length of the first protrusion 46 in the Z-axis direction is smaller than the length of the cylindrical portion 42 from the flange 45 to the edge of the opening 43 in the Z-axis direction.
In the following description, the circumferential direction of the cylindrical portion 42 will be simply referred to as the circumferential direction. The second protrusions 47 are provided on both sides of each first protrusion 46 in the circumferential direction. Each of the first protrusions 46 and each of the second protrusions 47 are provided at intervals from each other in the circumferential direction. The second protrusions 47 are connected to the flange 45.

The second protrusion 47 extends halfway in the direction of the flange 45's projection. Therefore, the amount by which the second protrusion 47 protrudes from the cylindrical portion 42 is smaller than the amount by which the first protrusion 46 protrudes from the cylindrical portion 42.

The second protrusion 47 extends in the axial direction of the cylindrical portion 42, i.e., in the Z-axis direction, to the edge of the opening 43. Therefore, the length of the second protrusion 47 in the Z-axis direction is the same as the length of the cylindrical portion 42 from the flange 45 to the edge of the opening 43 in the Z-axis direction. The second protrusion 47 is connected to the cylindrical portion 42 throughout its entire length in the Z-axis direction.

(Configuration of the shield shell 50)
1 and 2, the shield shell 50 has an attachment portion 51 that covers a portion of the holding portion 41 and to which a shielding member (not shown) is attached, a surrounding portion 52 that surrounds the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 42, and two fixing portions 55 that are fixed to the case 100. The attachment portion 51, the surrounding portion 52, and the fixing portions 55 are integrally provided. The shield shell 50 is formed of a metal material such as an aluminum alloy.

The attachment portion 51 covers a portion of the holding portion 41 opposite the case 100 in the Z-axis direction and both side portions in the X-axis direction.
The surrounding portion 52 extends in the X-axis direction. The surrounding portion 52 has an opening 53 into which the cylindrical portion 42 is inserted. The opening 53 has an elliptical shape that is long in the X-axis direction. The opening 53 is larger than the outer diameter of the cylindrical portion 42.

The surrounding portion 52 has a peripheral wall 52a that surrounds the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 42 and the flange 45, and a top wall 52b that protrudes inwardly from the peripheral wall 52a around the entire circumference of the peripheral wall 52a.
4, the top wall 52b surrounds the outer periphery of a portion of the cylindrical portion 42 opposite the insertion portion 44 across the flange 45. The top wall 52b covers the outer edge 45a of the flange 45 from the opposite side to the case 100 in the Z-axis direction. That is, when viewed from the Z-axis direction, the top wall 52b and the flange 45 overlap each other.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the surrounding portion 52 has three recesses 54 that engage with the ends of the first protrusions 46. Each recess 54 is provided in a portion of the top wall 52b that faces each of the first protrusions 46 in the protruding direction of the first protrusions 46. The recesses 54 are recessed to the outer periphery side of the outer edge 45a of the flange 45 in the protruding direction of the first protrusions 46. A gap is provided between the top wall 52b and the second protrusions 47.

The operation of engaging the recess 54 with the first protrusion 46 can be performed on the housing 40 after the terminal 20 and the mating terminal 110 are connected, or it can be performed on the housing 40 before the terminal 20 and the mating terminal 110 are connected.

As shown in FIG. 3, when the shield shell 50 is fixed to the case 100, the top wall 52b of the surrounding portion 52 and the first projection 46 are flush with each other.
1 , the fixing portions 55 are provided on both sides of the surrounding portion 52 in the X-axis direction. The fixing portions 55 protrude in the X-axis direction from the top wall 52b. The fixing portions 55 have through holes 56 into which bolts 130 are inserted. The bolts 130 inserted into the through holes 56 are screwed into screw holes 102 provided in the case 100, thereby fixing the shield shell 50 to the case 100.

The operation of this embodiment will be described.
The recess 54 of the shield shell 50 engages with the first projection 46 of the housing 40, thereby positioning the shield shell 50 relative to the housing 40. As a result, the fixing portion 55 of the shield shell 50 is positioned relative to the case 100 of the device.

The effects of this embodiment will be described.
(1) Connector 10 includes a plurality of terminals 20 arranged in parallel, a resin housing 40 that holds the plurality of terminals 20, and a metal shield shell 50 that covers housing 40 and is fixed to a case 100 of an apparatus. Housing 40 has a cylindrical portion 42 having an opening 43 through which the plurality of terminals 20 are exposed, and a first protrusion 46 that protrudes from cylindrical portion 42 to the outer periphery of cylindrical portion 42. Shield shell 50 has surrounding portion 52 that surrounds the outer periphery of cylindrical portion 42, a recess 54 that is provided in a portion of surrounding portion 52 facing first protrusion 46 and engages with first protrusion 46, and a fixing portion 55 that has a through hole 56 through which bolt 130 is inserted and is fixed to case 100.

This configuration provides the above-mentioned effects, making it easier to insert the bolt 130 into the through hole 56 of the fixing portion 55 to fix the shield shell 50 to the case 100. This makes it possible to prevent a decrease in workability when installing the shield shell 50.

(2) The housing 40 has the second protrusion 47 that protrudes from the cylindrical portion 42 toward the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 42 and extends in the Z axis direction.
According to this configuration, the second protrusions 47 extend in the Z-axis direction, which improves the rigidity of the cylindrical portion 42. As a result, for example, molding defects in the housing 40, such as sink marks, can be suppressed, and the dimensional accuracy of the opening 43 of the cylindrical portion 42 can be improved.

(3) The surrounding portion 52 extends in the X-axis direction. The fixing portions 55 are provided on both sides of the surrounding portion 52 in the X-axis direction.
According to this configuration, the fixing portions 55 are provided on both sides of the surrounding portion 52 in the X-axis direction. Therefore, the shield shell 50 is fixed to the case 100 on both sides in the direction in which the surrounding portion 52 extends. This makes it easier to ensure the distance between the fixing portions 55. Therefore, the shield shell 50 can be stably fixed to the case 100.

(4) The housing 40 has a flange 45 that protrudes from the cylindrical portion 42 toward the surrounding portion 52. The top wall 52b of the surrounding portion 52 covers the flange 45 from the side opposite the case 100 in the Z-axis direction.

With this configuration, the flange 45 is covered by the top wall 52b of the surrounding portion 52 from the side opposite the case 100 in the Z-axis direction. This makes it easier to position the shield shell 50 relative to the housing 40 in the Z-axis direction. This further reduces the deterioration of workability when installing the shield shell 50.

(5) The first projection 46 is connected to the flange 45 and extends to the outer edge 45 a of the flange 45 .
According to this configuration, the strength of the flange 45 can be improved by the first projections 46 .

<Example of change>
This embodiment can be modified as follows: This embodiment and the following modifications can be combined with each other to the extent that there is no technical contradiction.

The first protrusion 46 does not have to be connected to the flange 45. In this case, a gap is generated between the first protrusion 46 and the flange 45 in the Z-axis direction.
The first protrusions 46 do not have to extend to the outer edge 45a of the flange 45. In other words, the first protrusions 46 may extend to a midpoint in the direction in which the flange 45 protrudes. In this case, the flange 45 protrudes further outward than the first protrusions 46. Even with this configuration, the strength of the flange 45 can be improved by the first protrusions 46.

The first protrusion 46 may extend further outward than the outer edge 45a of the flange 45. Even in this configuration, the top wall 52b of the surrounding portion 52 covers the flange 45 in the Z-axis direction, so that the tubular portion 42 inserted into the opening 53 of the surrounding portion 52 is prevented from slipping out of the surrounding portion 52. This makes it possible to perform the work of attaching the shield shell 50 to the housing 40 before it is attached to the case 100 in an advantageous manner.

The top wall 52b may be omitted from the surrounding portion 52. In other words, the surrounding portion 52 does not have to cover the flange 45 in the Z-axis direction.
The flange 45 can be omitted from the housing 40 .

The shield shell 50 may have one fixing portion 55 or three or more fixing portions 55 .
The positions at which the fixing portions 55 are provided may be changed as appropriate. For example, the fixing portions 55 may protrude in only one direction in the X-axis direction, or may protrude in the Y-axis direction.

The number of second protrusions 47 can be changed as appropriate.
The second protrusion 47 may protrude until it comes into contact with the top wall 52b of the surrounding portion 52. In this case, the positioning of the shield shell 50 and the housing 40 is performed by the second protrusion 47 in addition to the first protrusion 46.

The second protrusion 47 does not have to extend to the edge of the opening 43 in the Z-axis direction. In other words, the length of the second protrusion 47 in the Z-axis direction may be smaller than the length of the tubular portion 42 from the flange 45 to the edge of the opening 43 in the Z-axis direction.

The second protrusion 47 may be omitted from the housing 40 .
The length of the first protrusion 46 in the Z-axis direction may be the same as the length of the second protrusion 47 in the Z-axis direction. In this case, the first protrusion 46 protrudes from the top wall 52b of the surrounding portion 52.

The number of the first protrusions 46 can be changed as appropriate.
The opening 53 may be omitted from the shield shell 50. In this case, the shield shell 50 covers the opening 43 of the housing 40.

- The connector 10 of the present disclosure can also be applied to a connector having a male terminal that is inserted into a female terminal provided on a device, for example.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10 connector 20 terminal 21 electric wire connection portion 22 terminal connection portion 23 insertion hole 30 electric wire 31 core wire 32 insulating coating 40 housing 41 holding portion 42 cylindrical portion 43 opening 44 insertion portion 45 flange 45a outer edge 46 first projection 47 second projection 50 shield shell 51 mounting portion 52 surrounding portion 52a peripheral wall 52b top wall 53 opening 54 recess 55 fixing portion 56 through hole 60 seal member 100 case 101 opening 102 screw hole 110 mating terminal 120 volt 130 volt

Claims (5)

A connector comprising: a plurality of terminals arranged in parallel and electrically connected to mating terminals provided on a device; a resin housing for holding the plurality of terminals; a metal shield shell for covering the housing and fixed to a case of the device; and electric wires extending from the housing;
The housing includes:
a cylindrical portion having an opening through which the plurality of terminals are exposed;
a protrusion protruding from the cylindrical portion toward an outer periphery of the cylindrical portion,
The shield shell is
a surrounding portion surrounding an outer periphery of the cylindrical portion;
a recess provided in a portion of the surrounding portion facing the protrusion and adapted to engage with the protrusion;
a fixing portion having a through hole into which a bolt used for fixing the shield shell to the case is inserted and fixed to the case,
an extending direction of the electric wire and an attaching direction of the housing and the shield shell are perpendicular to each other,
The thickness direction of the terminal and the mounting direction of the housing and the shield shell are aligned.
connector. When the protrusion is a first protrusion,
The housing has a second protrusion protruding from the cylindrical portion toward an outer periphery of the cylindrical portion and extending in an axial direction of the cylindrical portion.
The connector of claim 1 . The surrounding portion extends in a direction in which the terminals are arranged,
The fixing portion is provided on both sides of the surrounding portion in the arrangement direction.
The connector according to claim 1 or 2. The housing has a flange that protrudes from the cylindrical portion toward the surrounding portion,
The surrounding portion covers the flange from the opposite side to the case in the axial direction of the cylindrical portion.
The connector according to any one of claims 1 to 3. The projection is connected to the flange and extends to an outer edge of the flange.
The connector according to claim 4.