The present invention relates to a connector assembly, particularly to a connector assembly in which a fitting operation between a first connector and a second connector is performed by rotating a lever member.
Conventionally, there has been known a connector assembly in which a fitting operation between a pair of connectors is easily performed using rotation of a lever member. As an example, JP 2018-152265 A discloses a connector assembly comprising a first connector 1 and a second connector 2 that is fitted to the first connector 1 along a fitting direction D1, as shown in
In the lever member 3, a guide groove (not shown) is formed to face an outer surface of the second housing 2A. The second connector 2 is brought to the vicinity of the first connector 1 along the fitting direction D, the projection 1B of the first connector 1 is inserted in the guide groove of the lever member 3, and in this state, the lever member 3 is rotated, whereby the first connector 1 and the second connector 2 are fitted to each other.
As a result of fitting between the first connector 1 and the second connector 2, as shown in
The second contact 2D is connected to a tip end of an electric wire 4, and, for example, when the first connector 1 is mounted on an electrical device (not shown), an electric current can be applied to the electrical device through the electric wire 4.
In a case where an electric current is applied to an electrical device using the connector assembly of this type, the higher the electric current is, the thicker the electric wire 4 connected to the second contact 2D needs to be.
However, if the electrical device is mounted on a vehicle or installed in an environment where the electrical device receives an external force such as vibration, the external force would be transmitted to a contacting part between the first contact 1C and the second contact 2D through the thick electric wire 4, causing a contact failure therebetween.
An increase in the contact force between the first contact 1C and the second contact 2D could improve their contact reliability but would require the higher insertion force for fitting the first connector 1 with the second connector 2, and accordingly, it may become difficult to easily perform a fitting operation between the first connector 1 and the second connector 2 even with use of rotation of the lever member 3. Moreover, an increase in the contact force may also cause damage on surfaces of the first contact 1C and the second contact 2D, and the contact reliability may be lowered.
The present invention has been made to overcome the above problems associated with the prior art and aims at providing a connector assembly that can improve the contact reliability between a first contact and a second contact while a first connector and a second connector are easily fitted to each other.
A connector assembly according to the present invention comprises:
Embodiments of the present invention are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Fitting and detaching operations of the first connector 11 and the second connector 21 can be performed by operating a lever member 22 that is attached to the second connector 21 in a rotatable manner about a rotational axis AX.
For convenience, the direction of fitting between the first connector 11 and the second connector 21 is referred to as “Z direction,” the direction in which the rotational axis AX of the lever member 22 extends as “Y direction,” and the direction orthogonal to the Z direction and the Y direction as “X direction.”
The second connector 21 moves from the +Z direction to the −Z direction to be fitted to the first connector 11.
The first insulator 13 includes a base portion 13A of flat plate shape extending along an XY plane, a pair of protruding portions 13B protruding in the +Z direction from a +Z directional surface of the base portion 13A and adjoining each other in the X direction, and a pair of support portions 13C of flat plate shape separately joined to a +Y directional end portion and a −Y directional end portion of the base portion 13A and extending in the +Z direction while facing each other in the Y direction.
Each of the pair of protruding portions 13B is provided with a second contact housing portion 13D of recess shape opened toward the +Z direction and extending in the Z direction. Of the +Z directional surface of the base portion 13A, a portion around the pair of protruding portions 13B constitutes an abutment surface 13E which contacts the second connector 21 when the first connector 11 and the second connector 21 are fitted with each other.
A pair of pins 13F projecting in the Y direction are separately formed on surfaces of the pair of support portions 13C, the surfaces facing each other. While
The first connector 11 also includes a pair of shells 15 separately fixed to inner surfaces of the pair of second contact housing portions 13D of the first insulator 13, and a waterproof packing 16 disposed on the −Z directional surface of the base portion 13A of the first insulator 13.
The second connector 21 also includes a pair of inner insulators 26 that separately house the pair of second contacts 24, and two sets of shells 27 that separately surround the pair of inner insulators 26.
Each of the pair of second contacts 24 is housed in the inner insulator 26 and is held inside the second insulator 23 while being also surrounded by the shell 27.
In addition, a pair of through holes 23A are separately formed in opposite side portions of the second insulator 23 and serve as rotational-shaft-member housing portions through which the rotational shaft member 25 is passed and which separately house opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 25. While
The lever member 22 includes a handle portion 22A bent into a U-shape, and a pair of circular plate portions 22B separately joined to opposite ends of the handle portion 22A so as to face each other in the Y direction and each extending along an XZ plane. The pair of circular plate portions 22B are separately provided with center holes 22C. The opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 25 passing through the pair of through holes 23A of the second insulator 23 are separately jointed to the center holes 22C, whereby the lever member 22 is held in a rotatable manner with respect to the second insulator 23.
In addition, cam grooves 22D are separately formed on outer surfaces of the pair of circular plate portions 22B, the outer surfaces facing in opposite directions from each other. While
The pair of pins 13F of the first insulator 13 are separately inserted into the cam grooves 22D of the pair of circular plate portions 22B, and the cam grooves 22D and the pins 13F constitute a cam mechanism that relatively moves the first insulator 13 and the second insulator 23 along the Z direction in conjunction with rotation of the lever member 22.
In addition, the second connector 21 includes a pair of rotational-axis waterproof packings 28 which separately surround the opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 25 along an XZ plane and each of which seals between an inner surface of each of the pair of through holes 23A of the second insulator 23 and an outer peripheral surface of each of the opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 25, and a fitting-part waterproof packing 29 which is disposed on the −Z directional front end surface of the second insulator 23 and which seals between the abutment surface 13E of the first insulator 13 and the −Z directional front end surface of the second insulator 23 when the first connector 11 and the second connector 21 are fitted with each other.
As shown in
The pair of fitting portions 25B are joined to the lever member 22 by being each inserted into the center hole 22C of the corresponding circular plate portion 22B of the lever member 22. Moreover, the pair of rotational-axis waterproof packings 28 are separately fitted into the pair of packing holding grooves 25C of annular shape to be thereby held by the rotational shaft member 25.
As shown in
Next, the fitting operation between the first connector 11 and the second connector 21 will be described.
As shown in
First, with the lever member 22 having the rotation angle of zero degrees, the second connector 21 is moved from the +Z direction to the −Z direction toward the first connector 11, whereby a +Z directional portion of the first insulator 13 of the first connector 11 is inserted in the second insulator 23 of the second connector 21 as shown in
Consequently, as shown in
In the second connector 21, the second contact 24 held inside the second insulator 23 is situated at the same Y directional position as that of the cam portion 25A formed at the center part of the rotational shaft member 25 penetrating the second insulator 23 in the Y direction.
As shown in
The point-of-effort portion 24C of the second contact 24 is situated at the same Z directional position as that of the rotational axis AX of the rotational shaft member 25 and faces the cam portion 25A of the rotational shaft member 25, and the rotational shaft member 25 is jointed to the lever member 22 such that when the rotation angle of the lever member 22 is zero degrees, the small radius portion P1 of the cam portion 25A of the rotational shaft member 25 faces in the X direction while the large radius portion P2 faces in the Y direction. Accordingly, the point-of-effort portion 24C of the second contact 24 faces the small radius portion P1 of the rotational shaft member 25, and due to the relatively small radius R1 of the small radius portion P1, the point-of-effort portion 24C is not in contact with the rotational shaft member 25 in
In this state, while the second contact 24 held inside the second insulator 23 is inserted to a middle position of the interior in the Z direction of the second contact housing portion 13D of the first connector 11, the contact point portion 24B of second contact 24 has not reached the position to face the first contact 14 of the first connector 11 yet.
Next, as shown in
Consequently, the contact point portion 24B of the second contact 24 is situated to face a side surface of the first contact 14 of the first connector 11 as shown in
At this time, in accordance with rotation of the lever member 22, the rotational shaft member 25 also rotates 45 degrees about the rotational axis AX, while the outer peripheral cam surface 25D formed in a surface of the large radius portion P2 has not faced in the X direction yet, and the point-of-effort portion 24C of the second contact 24 is kept in a non-contact state with the rotational shaft member 25.
As shown in
Accordingly, as shown in
Meanwhile, in accordance with rotation of the lever member 22, the rotational shaft member 25 also rotates about the rotational axis AX, and the outer peripheral cam surface 25D formed in the surface of the large radius portion P2 faces in the X direction. Since the large radius portion P2 has the relatively large radius R2, the outer peripheral cam surface 25D contacts and presses the point-of-effort portion 24C of the second contact 24 in the X direction.
Since a distance L2 from the fulcrum portion 24A to the point-of-effort portion 24C in the second contact 24 is designed to be longer than a distance L1 from the fulcrum portion 24A to the contact point portion 24B, the so-called principle of leverage works such that the contact point portion 24B receives a force larger than a pressing force the point-of-effort portion 24C receives from the outer peripheral cam surface 25D of the rotational shaft member 25, whereby the contact point portion 24B of the second contact 24 contacts the first contact 14 with a high contact pressure.
The rotation position of the lever member 22 at this time is defined as “second rotation position.”
As described above, by rotating the lever member 22 from the initial rotation position where the handle portion 22A has an angle of zero degrees with respect to the Y direction to the first rotation position where the handle portion 22A has an angle of 45 degrees with respect to the Y direction, the second insulator 23 of the second connector 21 can be moved from the start-of-fitting position to the fitting position with respect to the first insulator 13 of the first connector 11 while the point-of-effort portion 24C of the second contact 24 is not in contact with the rotational shaft member 25, and the first connector 11 and the second connector 21 can be easily fitted to each other with a small insertion force.
Further, by rotating the lever member 22 from the first rotation position to the second rotation position where the handle portion 22A has an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the Y direction, then, the point-of-effort portion 24C of the second contact 24 is pressed in the X direction by the outer peripheral cam surface 25D of the rotational shaft member 25 while the second insulator 23 of the second connector 21 is kept at the fitting position with respect to the first insulator 13 of the first connector 11, and the contact point portion 24B of the second contact 24 can be brought into contact with the first contact 14 with a high contact pressure.
At this time, since the first contact 14 and the second contact 24 are pressed against each other in the X direction without rubbing against each other in the Z direction, the first contact 14 and the second contact 24 can be electrically connected to each other while preventing surface damages thereof.
Hence, even if the first connector 11 is mounted on an electrical device that is installed in an environment where the electrical device receives an external force such as vibration, the first connector 11 and the second connector 21 are easily fitted to each other while the first contact 14 and the second contact 24 contact each other with a high contact pressure, thereby enabling to achieve reliable electrical connection therebetween.
In addition, as shown in
Moreover, due to the presence of the rotational-axis waterproof packings 28 separately attached to the Y directional opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 25, a portion between the inner surface of each of the through holes 23A of the first insulator 23 and the outer peripheral surface of the rotational shaft member 25 is sealed.
Accordingly, the connection parts between the first contact 14 and the second contact 24 can be prevented from water infiltration from the outside.
The second connector 31 includes a second insulator 33, a rotational shaft member 35, and a lever member 32, and the rotational shaft member 35 is held to be slidable in the Y direction with respect to the second insulator 33. As with Embodiment 1, a pair of second contacts separately connected to end portions of the two electric wires C are held inside the second insulator 33.
As shown in
The fitting portion 35A of the rotational shaft member 35 includes a columnar portion 35B projecting in the +Y direction along the rotational axis AX, and a projection 35C integrally joined to an outer periphery of the columnar portion 35B and projecting in the radial direction to have a fan-like shape when viewed from the Y direction.
As shown in
The projection housing portion 33A has a shape corresponding to the projection 35C of the fitting portion 35A of the rotational shaft member 35 when viewed from the Y direction.
As shown in
The center hole 32A of the lever member 32 has a shape corresponding to the fitting portion 35A of the rotational shaft member 35 when viewed from the Y direction, that is, a shape in which a projection is formed at and protrudes from an outer periphery of a columnar portion.
As shown in
In the fitting operation between the first connector 11 and the second connector 31, the rotational shaft member 35 is slid in the +Y direction in the pair of through holes 23A of the second insulator 33 and the center hole 32A of the lever member 32, so that the projection 35C of the fitting portion 35A is situated on the +Y direction side of the projection housing portion 33A of the second insulator 33. Accordingly, the lever member 32 and the rotational shaft member 35 can be rotated with respect to the second insulator 33 without interference between the projection 35C of the fitting portion 35A and the projection housing portion 33A of the second insulator 33.
In this manner, as with Embodiment 1, while the first connector 11 and the second connector 31 are easily fitted to each other, the first contact and the second contact are brought into contact with each other with a high contact pressure, thereby enabling to achieve reliable electrical connection therebetween.
When the first connector 11 and the second contact 31 are fitted with each other, and electrical connection between the first contact and the second contact is established, as shown in
Consequently, as shown in
In addition, since the fitting portion 35A of the rotational shaft member 35 is inserted in the center hole 32A of the lever member 32 at this time, the lever member 32 cannot rotate with respect to the rotational shaft member 35.
As a result, rotation of the lever member 32 with respect to the second insulator 33 is being locked. Accordingly, electrical connection between the first connector 11 and the second connector 31 can be prevented from being impaired by rotation of the lever member 32 for any reason, and the reliability of electrical connection can be further improved.
Meanwhile, the projection 35C of the fitting portion 35A of the rotational shaft member 35 is not necessarily formed into a fan-like shape, and a projection having any shape selected from various shapes can be formed at an outer periphery of the columnar portion 35B.
Fitting and detaching operations of the first connector 51 and the second connector 61 can be performed by operating a lever member 62 that is attached to the second connector 61 in a rotatable manner about the rotational axis AX.
For convenience, the direction of fitting between the first connector 51 and the second connector 61 is referred to as “Z direction,” the direction in which the rotational axis AX of the lever member 62 extends as “Y direction,” and the direction orthogonal to the Z direction and the Y direction as “X direction.”
The second connector 61 moves from the +Z direction to the −Z direction to be fitted to the first connector 51.
The first insulator 53 includes a base portion 53A of flat plate shape extending along an XY plane, a pair of protruding portions 53B protruding in the +Z direction from a +Z directional surface of the base portion 53A and adjoining each other in the Y direction, and a pair of support portions 53C of flat plate shape separately joined to a +Y directional end portion and a −Y directional end portion of the base portion 53A and extending in the +Z direction while facing each other in the Y direction.
Each of the pair of protruding portions 53B is provided with a second contact housing portion 53D of recess shape opened toward the +Z direction and extending in the Z direction. Of the +Z directional surface of the base portion 53A, a portion around the pair of protruding portions 53B constitutes an abutment surface 53E which contacts the second connector 61 when the first connector 51 and the second connector 61 are fitted with each other.
A pair of pins 53F projecting in the Y direction are separately formed on surfaces of the pair of support portions 53C, the surfaces facing each other. While
The first connector 51 also includes a pair of shells 55 separately fixed to outer surfaces of the pair of protruding portions 53B of the first insulator 53, and a waterproof packing 56 disposed on the −Z directional surface of the base portion 53A of the first insulator 53.
The second connector 61 also includes a lid portion 66 covering a +Z directional end portion of the second insulator 63.
The pair of second contacts 64 are held in the second insulator 63.
In addition, a pair of through holes 63A are separately formed in Y directional opposite side portions of the second insulator 63 and serve as rotational-shaft-member housing portions through which the rotational shaft member 65 is passed and which separately house opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 65.
The lever member 62 includes a handle portion 62A bent into a U-shape, and a pair of flat plate portions 62B separately joined to opposite ends of the handle portion 62A so as to face each other in the Y direction and each extending along an XZ plane. The pair of flat plate portions 62B are separately provided with attachment holes 62C. The opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 65 passing through the pair of through holes 63A of the second insulator 63 are separately jointed to the attachment holes 62C, whereby the lever member 62 is held in a rotatable manner with respect to the second insulator 63.
In addition, cam grooves 62D are separately formed on outer surfaces of the pair of flat plate portions 62B, the outer surfaces facing in opposite directions from each other. While
The pair of pins 53F of the first insulator 53 are separately inserted into the cam grooves 62D of the pair of flat plate portions 62B, and the cam grooves 62D and the pins 53F constitute a cam mechanism that relatively moves the first insulator 53 and the second insulator 63 along the Z direction in conjunction with rotation of the lever member 62.
In addition, the second connector 61 includes a waterproof packing 67 which seals between the +Z directional end portion of the second insulator 63 and the lid portion 66, a pair of rotational-axis waterproof packings 68 which separately surround the opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 65 along an XZ plane and each of which seals between an inner surface of each of the pair of through holes 63A of the second insulator 63 and an outer peripheral surface of each of the opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 65, and a fitting-part waterproof packing 69 which is disposed on the −Z directional front end surface of the second insulator 63 and which seals between the abutment surface 53E of the first insulator 53 and the −Z directional front end surface of the second insulator 63 when the first connector 51 and the second connector 61 are fitted with each other.
As shown in
The pair of fitting portions 65B are joined to the lever member 62 by being each inserted into the attachment hole 62C of the corresponding flat plate portion 62B of the lever member 62. Moreover, the pair of rotational-axis waterproof packings 68 are separately fitted into the pair of packing holding grooves 65C of annular shape to be thereby held by the rotational shaft member 65.
The pair of insertion grooves 65A are not formed to extend along the entire circumference of the rotational shaft member 65 but to extend in the circumferential direction along an XZ plane only in a predetermined angle range, e.g., a range of 180 degrees. As shown in
Meanwhile, regardless of the foregoing configuration, a plurality of cam surfaces may be arranged at regular angle intervals in the circumferential direction and along an XZ plane.
Next, the fitting operation between the first connector 51 and the second connector 61 will be described.
As shown in
First, with the lever member 62 having the rotation angle of zero degrees, the second connector 61 is moved from the +Z direction to the −Z direction toward the first connector 51, whereby a +Z directional portion of the first insulator 53 of the first connector 51 is inserted in the second insulator 63 of the second connector 61 as shown in
Consequently, as shown in
In addition, the second contact 64 held inside the second insulator 63 is inserted to a middle position of the interior in the Z direction of the second contact housing portion 53D of the first connector 51.
As shown in
In this state, the contact point portion 64B of the second contact 64 has not yet reached a position to face the first contact 54 of the first connector 51.
While the point-of-effort portion 64C formed at the +Z directional end portion of the second contact 64 is inserted in the insertion groove 65A formed in the rotational shaft member 65, when the rotation angle of the lever member 62 is zero degrees, the first side surface portion F11 of the insertion groove 65A faces the point-of-effort portion 64C as shown in
Accordingly, as shown in
Next, as shown in
Consequently, the contact point portion 64B of the second contact 64 is situated to face a side surface of the first contact 54 of the first connector 51 as shown in
At this time, in accordance with rotation of the lever member 62, the rotational shaft member 65 also rotates 45 degrees about the rotational axis AX, while the first side surface portion F11 of the insertion groove 65A still faces the point-of-effort portion 64C, and the point-of-effort portion 64C of the second contact 64 is kept in a non-contact state with the rotational shaft member 65 as shown in
As shown in
Accordingly, as shown in
Meanwhile, in accordance with rotation of the lever member 62, the rotational shaft member 65 also rotates about the rotational axis AX, and the second side surface portion F12 of the insertion groove 65A forming the cam surface faces the point-of-effort portion 64C as shown in
Since a distance L4 from the fulcrum portion 64A to the point-of-effort portion 64C in the second contact 64 is designed to be longer than a distance L3 from the fulcrum portion 64A to the contact point portion 64B, the so-called principle of leverage works such that the contact point portion 64B receives a force larger than a pressing force the point-of-effort portion 64C receives from the second side surface portion F12 of the insertion groove 65A of the rotational shaft member 65, whereby the contact point portion 64B of the second contact 64 contacts the first contact 54 with a high contact pressure.
The rotation position of the lever member 62 at this time is defined as “second rotation position.”
As described above, by rotating the lever member 62 from the initial rotation position where the handle portion 62A has an angle of zero degrees with respect to the Z direction to the first rotation position where the handle portion 62A has an angle of 45 degrees with respect to the Z direction, the second insulator 63 of the second connector 61 can be moved from the start-of-fitting position to the fitting position with respect to the first insulator 53 of the first connector 51 while the point-of-effort portion 64C of the second contact 64 is not in contact with the rotational shaft member 65, and the first connector 51 and the second connector 61 can be easily fitted to each other with a small insertion force.
Further, by rotating the lever member 62 from the first rotation position to the second rotation position where the handle portion 62A has an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the Z direction, the point-of-effort portion 64C of the second contact 64 is then pressed in the Y direction by the second side surface portion F12 of the insertion groove 65A of the rotational shaft member 65 while the second insulator 63 of the second connector 61 is kept at the fitting position with respect to the first insulator 53 of the first connector 51, and the contact point portion 64B of the second contact 64 can be brought into contact with the first contact 54 with a high contact pressure.
At this time, since the first contact 54 and the second contact 64 are pressed against each other in the Y direction without rubbing against each other in the Z direction, the first contact 54 and the second contact 64 can be electrically connected to each other while preventing surface damage thereof.
In addition, as shown in
Moreover, due to the presence of the rotational-axis waterproof packings 68 separately attached to the Y directional opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 65, a portion between the inner surface of each of the through holes 63A of the first insulator 63 and the outer peripheral surface of the rotational shaft member 65 is sealed.
In addition, the waterproof packing 67 seals between the +Z directional end portion of the second insulator 63 and the lid portion 66.
Accordingly, the connection parts between the first contact 54 and the second contact 64 can be prevented from water infiltration from the outside.
Fitting and detaching operations of the first connector 71 and the second connector 81 can be performed by operating a lever member 82 that is attached to the second connector 81 in a rotatable manner about a rotational axis AX.
For convenience, the direction of fitting between the first connector 71 and the second connector 81 is referred to as “Z direction,” the direction in which the rotational axis AX of the lever member 82 extends as “Y direction,” and the direction orthogonal to the Z direction and the Y direction as “X direction.”
The second connector 81 moves from the +Z direction to the −Z direction to be fitted to the first connector 71.
The first insulator 73 includes a base portion 73A of flat plate shape extending along an XY plane, a pair of protruding portions 73B protruding in the +Z direction from a +Z directional surface of the base portion 73A and adjoining each other in the Y direction, and a pair of support portions 73C of flat plate shape separately joined to a +Y directional end portion and a −Y directional end portion of the base portion 73A and extending in the +Z direction while facing each other in the Y direction.
Each of the pair of protruding portions 73B is provided with a second contact housing portion 73D of recess shape opened toward the +Z direction and extending in the Z direction. Of the +Z directional surface of the base portion 73A, a portion around the pair of protruding portions 73B constitutes an abutment surface 73E which contacts the second connector 81 when the first connector 71 and the second connector 81 are fitted with each other.
A pair of pins 73F projecting in the Y direction are separately formed on surfaces of the pair of support portions 73C, the surfaces facing each other. While
The first connector 71 also includes a pair of shells 75 separately fixed to outer surfaces of the pair of protruding portions 73B of the first insulator 73, and a waterproof packing 76 disposed on the −Z directional surface of the base portion 73A of the first insulator 73.
The second connector 81 also includes a lid portion 86 covering a +Z directional end portion of the second insulator 83.
The pair of second contacts 84 are held in the second insulator 83.
In addition, a pair of through holes 83A are separately formed in Y directional opposite side portions of the second insulator 83 and serve as rotational-shaft-member housing portions through which the rotational shaft member 85 is passed and which separately house opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 85.
The lever member 82 includes a handle portion 82A bent into a U-shape, and a pair of flat plate portions 82B separately joined to opposite ends of the handle portion 82A so as to face each other in the Y direction and each extending along an XZ plane. The pair of flat plate portions 82B are separately provided with attachment holes 82C. The opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 85 passing through the pair of through holes 83A of the second insulator 83 are separately jointed to the attachment holes 82C, whereby the lever member 82 is held in a rotatable manner with respect to the second insulator 83.
In addition, cam grooves 82D are separately formed on outer surfaces of the pair of flat plate portions 82B, the outer surfaces facing in opposite directions from each other. While
The pair of pins 73F of the first insulator 73 are separately inserted into the cam grooves 82D of the pair of flat plate portions 82B, and the cam grooves 82D and the pins 73F constitute a cam mechanism that relatively moves the first insulator 73 and the second insulator 83 along the Z direction in conjunction with rotation of the lever member 82.
In addition, the second connector 81 includes a waterproof packing 87 which seals between the +Z directional end portion of the second insulator 83 and the lid portion 86, a pair of rotational-axis waterproof packings 88 which separately surround the opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 85 along an XZ plane and each of which seals between an inner surface of each of the pair of through holes 83A of the second insulator 83 and an outer peripheral surface of each of the opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 85, and a fitting-part waterproof packing 89 which is disposed on the −Z directional front end surface of the second insulator 83 and which seals between the abutment surface 73E of the first insulator 73 and the −Z directional front end surface of the second insulator 83 when the first connector 71 and the second connector 81 are fitted with each other.
As shown in
The pair of fitting portions 85B are joined to the lever member 82 by being each inserted into the attachment hole 82C of the corresponding flat plate portion 82B of the lever member 82. Moreover, the pair of rotational-axis waterproof packings 88 are separately fitted into the pair of packing holding grooves 85C of annular shape to be thereby held by the rotational shaft member 85.
The pair of protruding plates 85A are not formed to extend along the entire circumference of the rotational shaft member 85 but to extend in the circumferential direction along an XZ plane only in a predetermined angle range, e.g., a range of 180 degrees. As shown in
Meanwhile, regardless of the foregoing configuration, a plurality of cam surfaces may be arranged at regular angle intervals in the circumferential direction and along an XZ plane.
Next, the fitting operation between the first connector 71 and the second connector 81 will be described.
As shown in
First, with the lever member 82 having the rotation angle of zero degrees, the second connector 81 is moved from the +Z direction to the −Z direction toward the first connector 71, whereby a +Z directional portion of the first insulator 73 of the first connector 71 is inserted in the second insulator 83 of the second connector 81 as shown in
Consequently, as shown in
In addition, the second contact 84 held inside the second insulator 83 is inserted to a middle position of the interior in the Z direction of the second contact housing portion 73D of the first connector 71.
As shown in
In this state, the contact point portion 84B of the second contact 84 has not yet reached a position to face the first contact 74 of the first connector 71.
While the point-of-effort portion 84C formed at the +Z directional end portion of the second contact 84 is situated at the same Z directional position as that of the protruding plate 85A formed in the rotational shaft member 85, when the rotation angle of the lever member 82 is zero degrees, the first outer surface portion F21 of the protruding plate 85A faces the point-of-effort portion 84C as shown in
Accordingly, as shown in
Next, as shown in
Consequently, the contact point portion 84B of the second contact 84 is situated to face a side surface of the first contact 74 of the first connector 71 as shown in FIG. 49. In this state, the Z directional position of the second insulator 83 with respect to the first insulator 73 is defined as “fitting position,” and the rotation position of the lever member 82 is defined as “first rotation position.”
At this time, in accordance with rotation of the lever member 82, the rotational shaft member 85 also rotates 45 degrees about the rotational axis AX, while the first outer surface portion F21 of the protruding plate 85A still faces the point-of-effort portion 84C, and the point-of-effort portion 84C of the second contact 84 is kept in a non-contact state with the rotational shaft member 85 as shown in
As shown in
Accordingly, as shown in
Meanwhile, in accordance with rotation of the lever member 82, the rotational shaft member 85 also rotates about the rotational axis AX, and the second outer surface portion F22 of the protruding plate 85A forming the cam surface faces the point-of-effort portion 84C as shown in
Since a distance L6 from the fulcrum portion 84A to the point-of-effort portion 84C in the second contact 84 is designed to be longer than a distance L5 from the fulcrum portion 84A to the contact point portion 84B, the so-called principle of leverage works such that the contact point portion 84B receives a force larger than a pressing force the point-of-effort portion 84C receives from the second outer surface portion F22 of the protruding plate 85A of the rotational shaft member 85, whereby the contact point portion 84B of the second contact 84 contacts the first contact 74 with a high contact pressure.
The rotation position of the lever member 82 at this time is defined as “second rotation position.”
As described above, by rotating the lever member 82 from the initial rotation position where the handle portion 82A has an angle of zero degrees with respect to the Z direction to the first rotation position where the handle portion 82A has an angle of 45 degrees with respect to the Z direction, the second insulator 83 of the second connector 81 can be moved from the start-of-fitting position to the fitting position with respect to the first insulator 73 of the first connector 71 while the point-of-effort portion 84C of the second contact 84 is not in contact with the rotational shaft member 85, and the first connector 71 and the second connector 81 can be easily fitted to each other with a small insertion force.
Further, by rotating the lever member 82 from the first rotation position to the second rotation position where the handle portion 82A has an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the Z direction, the point-of-effort portion 84C of the second contact 84 is then pressed in the Y direction by the second outer surface portion F22 of the protruding plate 85A of the rotational shaft member 85 while the second insulator 83 of the second connector 81 is kept at the fitting position with respect to the first insulator 73 of the first connector 71, and the contact point portion 84B of the second contact 84 can be brought into contact with the first contact 74 with a high contact pressure.
At this time, since the first contact 74 and the second contact 84 are pressed against each other in the Y direction without rubbing against each other in the Z direction, the first contact 74 and the second contact 84 can be electrically connected to each other while preventing surface damage thereof.
In addition, as shown in
Moreover, due to the presence of the rotational-axis waterproof packings 88 separately attached to the Y directional opposite end portions of the rotational shaft member 85, a portion between the inner surface of each of the through holes 83A of the second insulator 83 and the outer peripheral surface of the rotational shaft member 85 is sealed.
In addition, the waterproof packing 87 seals between the +Z directional end portion of the second insulator 83 and the lid portion 86.
Accordingly, the connection parts between the first contact 74 and the second contact 84 can be prevented from water infiltration from the outside.
In Embodiments 1 to 4 described above, the initial rotation position, the first rotation position, and the second rotation position of the lever member 22, 32, 62, 82 are defined as positions at which the lever member 22, 32, 62, 82 has rotation angles of zero degrees, 45 degrees, and 90 degrees, respectively, but this is not the sole case, and these positions can be defined as positions with other rotation angles.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
2022-034195 | Mar 2022 | JP | national |