Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6213792
-
Patent Number
6,213,792
-
Date Filed
Friday, March 19, 199925 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, April 10, 200123 years ago
-
Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
- Paumen; Gary F.
- Gilman; Alexander
Agents
- Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, L.L.P.
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 439 157
- 439 152
- 439 153
- 439 154
- 439 155
- 439 156
- 439 158
- 439 159
- 439 160
- 439 310
- 439 347
- 439 352
-
International Classifications
-
Abstract
A fitting structure for connectors includes a female connector 30, a male connector 40 and a hood assembly 10. In assembling, an assembling port of the connector 30 is assembled to an opening 18 of the hood assembly 10. The engagement and disengagement between the male and female connectors 40, 30 can be accomplished by reciprocatively moving slide members 13, 13 in the hood assembly 10 while guide pins 44 are being retained in guide grooves 14 of the slide members 13, 13. Respective interior dimensions A, B, D defining the assembling port are respectively larger than respective interior dimensions a, b, d defining the opening 18 of the hood assembly 10, a step 38 is produced in a boundary area between the hood assembly 10 and the female connector 30. Without entering the female connector 30 into the hood assembly 10, it is possible to fit the male connector 40 to the female connector 30 certainly.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a connector fitting structure where multipolar male and female connectors are engaged with and disengaged from each other by sliding a slide member reciprocatively.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (kokai) No. 8-167635 discloses the conventional connector fitting structure where male and female connectors can be engaged with each other by sliding a slide member mounted on a hood assembly.
In the disclosed structure, the hood assembly is assembled to the female connector, provided with the slide member having a guide groove formed therein. In use, when sliding the slide member, then the male connector is drawn to engage with the female connector.
The female connector for engaging a plurality of terminals therein is provided with a hood for covering respective leading ends of the terminals. While, the hood assembly is provided with a flange to be engaged with the hood. By sliding the hood assembly to one direction while engaging the flange with the hood of the female connector, some engagement holes formed in the hood assembly can be engaged with engagement projections formed on the female connector, respectively. With this engagement, the hood assembly can be assembled to the female connector. During the sliding of the hood assembly, since some press plates formed on the hood of the female connector do press restricting parts of the hood assembly, which are disposed inside the flange of the hood assembly, the hood is interposed between each restricting part and the flange, thereby causing the female connector and the hood assembly from rattling to or poorly connecting with each other.
In the above-mentioned conventional structure, however, there is a case that the hood of the female connector is positioned inside the hood assembly due to the rattling between the female connector and the hood assembly. In such a case, the leading end of the male connector being drawn into the hood assembly may butt against the hood in the hood assembly. Consequently, there is caused a problem that a manipulating force required for fitting the female and male connectors to each other is increased to cause the difficulty or impossibility of fitting.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a connector fitting structure which allows the male and female connectors to be engaged with each other certainly and also easily while surely preventing the female connector and the hood assembly from rattling to each other.
The object of the present invention described above can be accomplished by a fitting structure for connectors, comprising:
a female connector;
a male connector for engagement with the female connector;
a hood assembly having an opening to be assembled to an assembling port provided on either one of the male and female connectors, the hood assembly including at least one slide member adapted so as to slide therein and provided with one or more guide grooves; and
one or more guide pins formed on the other of the male and female connectors;
wherein respective interior dimensions defining the assembling port of the one of the male and female connectors are respectively larger than respective interior dimensions defining the opening of the hood assembly, thereby providing a step in a boundary area between the hood assembly and the one of the male and female connectors;
whereby the engagement and disengagement between the male and female connectors can be accomplished by reciprocatively moving the slide member while the one or more guide pins are retained in the one or more guide grooves.
In the above-mentioned structure, since the slide member does slide while the guide groove(s) of the slide member engages with the guide pin(s), the other of the male and female connectors is drawn into the one of the connectors through the hood assembly, so that both connectors can be engaged with each other.
According to the present invention, the hood assembly is assembled to one connector, for example, the female connector by assembling the opening of the hood assembly to the assembling port of the female connector. Regarding this assembling, since the interior dimensions defining the assembling port of the female connectors are respectively larger than respective interior dimensions defining the opening of the hood assembly, the step is produced in the boundary area between the hood assembly and the female connector. Thus, there is no possibility that the female connector is positioned inside the hood assembly, so that the other connector, for example, the male connector draw into the hood assembly does not butt against the female connector. Consequently, the male connector can be fitted to the female connector smooth and certainly.
In the above-mentioned fitting structure, preferably, the assembling port of the one of the male and female connectors is in the form of a frame, while the opening of the hood assembly is provided with a cover for covering the frame of the one of the male and female connectors, the cover being opened on one side thereof, so that the hood assembly can be assembled to the one of the male and female connectors by sliding the frame relatively to the hood assembly through the opened side of the cover. In this way, since the assembling of the hood assembly to one connector, for example, the female connector can be attained by the sliding movement of either one of the hood assembly and the female connector in only one direction, the assembling operation can be simplified.
In the present invention, preferably, the hood assembly comprises a hood serving as a housing of the hood assembly and a manipulating lever pivotably mounted on the hood stopper, for sliding the slide member. In this case, owing to the provision of the manipulating lever, it will be possible to simplify the sliding operation of the slide member.
In the present invention, preferably, the guide groove consists of an inlet portion opening perpendicularly to one side of the slide member, a slanted portion slanted to a direction to slide the slide member and an end portion succeeding the slanted portion in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the slide member.
With the constitution of the guide groove, the sliding movement of the slide member can be converted to a force to drawing the other connector into the hood assembly.
In the present invention, preferably, the guide groove is provided, on one side of the inlet portion, with a flexible projection for temporary engagement with the guide pin.
In this case, owing to the provision of the flexible projection, it will be possible to engage the guide pin at the inlet portion of the guide groove, for the time being.
In the present invention, preferably, the frame is shaped to be rectangular and also provided, on both sidewalls thereof, with projections, while the cover of the hood assembly is provided, on both sidewalls thereof, with engagement holes for respective engagement with the projections on the frame.
With the above structure of the frame and the cover, it is possible to engage the frame with the cover securely.
In the present invention, preferably, the assembling port is constituted by at least one male-connector fitting chamber of which length and height correspond to the interior dimensions of the assembling port, while the opening of the hood assembly is constituted by at least one male-connector accommodating chamber of which length and height correspond to the interior dimensions of the opening.
With the above constitution of the assembling port and the cover, it will be possible to produce the above step in the boundary area between the hood assembly and the female connector.
In the present invention, preferably, the hood assembly includes two slide members arranged on upper and lower sides of the hood and the manipulating lever is mounted on the hood in order to slide the slide members in opposite directions to each other.
In this case, owing to the provision of the plural slide members, it is possible to draw the other connector, for example, the male connector into the hood assembly certainly.
These and other objects and features of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims taken in conjunction with the accompany drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is a perspective view of a connector fitting structure in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2A
is an explanatory diagram of a slide member, viewed from the side of guide grooves;
FIG. 2B
is an explanatory enlarged view of a part IIB of the slide member of
FIG. 2A
;
FIG. 3
is a cross sectional view showing a condition that a hood assembly is assembled to a female connector; and
FIG. 4
is an explanatory enlarged view of a part IV of FIG.
3
.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Now referring to
FIG. 1
, the connector fitting structure of the embodiment comprises a female connector
30
, a male connector
40
and a hood assembly
10
, all of which are wholly made of synthetic resin. In assembly, the male connector
40
is drawn into the female connector
30
through the intermediary of the hood assembly
10
.
The hood assembly
10
includes a hood
11
in the form of a rectangular cylinder, also serving as a female connector housing having a front opening
18
for fittingly fixing the female connector
30
and a rear part into which the male connector
40
is to be inserted, upper and lower slide grooves
12
,
12
formed on the hood
11
, a pair of slide members
13
,
13
for sliding in the slide grooves
12
,
12
reciprocatively and a synthetic manipulating lever
20
allowing the respective slide members
13
,
13
to reciprocatively slide for engagement or disengagement of the multipolar female connector
30
with the multipolar male connector
40
.
The interior of the hood
11
is divided into two “male-connector” accommodating chambers
11
b
,
11
b
through a partition wall
11
d
. Each slide groove
12
has a pair of step parts
12
a
,
12
a
formed to retain thin-walled portions of each slide member
13
on both sides thereof, respectively. Thus, the pair of slide members
13
,
13
are adapted so as to reciprocatively slide into the pair of slide grooves
12
,
12
in the mutual opposite directions.
The hood
11
has a bottom wall
11
f
formed to oppose a top wall
11
h
. On both sides of the bottom wall
11
f
, a pair of sidewalls
11
g
,
11
g
are formed to stand upright, integrally with the bottom wall
11
f
. Similarly, the bottom wall
11
h
has a pair of sidewalls
11
i
,
11
i
formed to stand upright on both sides of the wall
11
h
, integrally. The upper slide groove
12
is disposed between the sidewalls
11
i
and
11
i
, while the lower slide groove
12
is disposed between the sidewalls
11
g
and
11
g
. The respective ends of the opposing sidewalls
11
g
,
11
g
are connected to each other through a plurality of bridging ribs
19
, . . .
19
. Similarly, the respective ends of the opposing sidewalls
11
i
,
11
i
are also connected to each other through a plurality of bridging ribs
19
, . . .
19
. Each bridging rib
19
is arranged so as to extend perpendicularly to the sliding direction of each slide member
13
. The bridging ribs
19
, . . .
19
are disposed apart from each other in the longitudinal direction of the sidewalls
11
g
,
11
g
,
11
i
,
11
i.
In this way, since both sidewalls
11
g
,
11
g
, and
11
i
,
11
i
interposing the upper and lower slide grooves
12
,
12
respectively are connected to each other by the bridging ribs
19
, . . . ,
19
, it is possible to prevent both sidewalls
11
g
,
11
g
, and
11
i
,
11
i
from curving or tumbling inward. Thus, owing to the provision of the bridging ribs
19
, . . . ,
19
, it is possible to exclude a possibility that both sidewalls
11
g
,
11
g
, and
11
i
,
11
i
tightly come into contact with or gnaw into the slide members
13
,
13
in the slide grooves
12
,
12
.
On the rear (the male connector's) side of the hood
11
, the sidewalls
11
g
,
11
i
are respectively provided with a plurality of notch guides
11
e
, . . . ,
11
e
. Each notch guide
11
e
is arranged in a position opposing to each of inlet portions
14
a
of a plurality of guide grooves
14
respectively formed in the upper and lower slide members
13
,
13
.
Again, each slide member
13
is provided, on a surface thereof opposing the other slide member
13
, with the plural guide grooves
14
each inclining to a direction to insert each slide member
13
by a predetermined angle. As shown with solid lines and chain lines in
FIG. 2A
, the inclining direction of each guide groove
14
of the upper slide member
13
is opposite to the inclining direction of each guide groove
14
of the lower slide member
13
. In addition, each guide groove
14
consists of the inlet portion
14
a
opening perpendicularly to one side of the slide member
13
, a slanted portion
14
b
succeeding the inlet portion
14
a
and an end portion
14
c
succeeding the slanted portion
14
b
in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the slide member
13
.
On one side of each inlet portion
14
a
through which a guide pin
44
mentioned later is to be inserted into the guide groove
14
, a temporary engagement means
15
is provided for temporary engagement with the guide pin
44
. As shown in
FIG. 2B
, the temporary engagement means
15
is constituted by a flexible projection
15
a
integrally projecting so as to be in parallel with the inlet portion
14
a
and a pair of notches
15
b
,
15
b
on both sides of the flexible projection
15
a.
The manipulating lever
20
serves to reciprocatively slide the pair of slide members
13
,
13
in the opposite directions to each other and has a pivot center hole
23
formed at a center of the base part of the lever
20
. Inserted into the pivot center hole
23
is a support shaft
17
which extends from the hood
11
and through which the manipulating lever
20
is carried so as to rotate up and down, by the hood
11
. In the vicinity of the support shaft
17
, a pair of long holes
24
,
24
are respectively formed so as to put the hole
23
therebetween. The upper and lower slide members
13
,
13
are respectively provided with column-shaped attachment bosses
13
a
,
13
a
which are inserted into the long holes
24
,
24
in the lever
20
, respectively. With the engagement of the lever
2
with the upper and lower slide members
13
,
13
, they can be slid in the opposite directions to each other by pivoting the manipulating lever
20
up and down.
Further, the manipulating lever
20
is provided, on one sidewall close to a leading end of the lever
20
, with a rectangular engagement hole
25
for engagement with a not-shown engagement protrusion integrally formed on the sidewall
11
i
of the top wall
11
h
of the hood
11
.
As mentioned before, the hood
11
is provided, on a front side thereof, with the opening
18
which is assembled to the female connector
30
. The opening
18
is communicated with the male-connector accommodating chambers
11
b
,
11
b
, being the same size as the chambers
11
b
,
11
b
. About the opening
18
, an elongated U-shaped cover
16
is provided to have an upper face
16
a
and right and left side faces
16
b
,
16
b
, opening downward.
On both side faces
16
b
,
16
b
of the cover
16
, engagement holes
16
c
are formed for respective engagement with projections
33
of the female connector
30
. Additionally, the cover
16
is provided, on both side faces
16
b
,
16
b
, with respective guide ribs
16
d
,
16
d
which operate to guide the hood assembly
10
when assembling it to the female connector
30
. Note, the assembling of the hood assembly
10
to the female connector
30
can be accomplished by inserting a frame part
31
of the connector
30
through the above-mentioned opening underside of the cover
16
as shown with arrow of FIG.
1
.
In the female connector
30
, the frame part
31
engages with and carries a large number of pin-terminals
32
soldered to a printed wiring baseplate (not shown). The frame part
31
operates as an assembling entrance to which the cover
16
of the hood
11
is assembled. The frame part
31
is shaped in the form of a rectangular frame consisting of top and bottom walls
31
a
,
31
b
and both of left and right sidewalls
31
c
,
31
c.
Owing to the provision of a partition wall
31
d
opposing the partition wall
11
d
of the hood
11
, the interior of the frame
31
is divided into a pair of “male-connector” fitting chambers
31
e
,
31
e
for respective engagement with two connector housings
41
,
41
of the male connector
40
. Furthermore, on respective exterior faces of the left and right sidewalls
31
c
,
31
c
of the frame
31
, the above-mentioned projections
33
,
33
are formed to engage in the engagement holes
16
c
,
16
c
of the hood
11
, respectively.
The frame
31
is arranged on the rear side of a casing
34
fixed on the printed wiring baseplate through fixings (not shown). Defined between the rear side of the casing
34
and the frame
31
is a clearance
36
which is longer than the frame
31
. Both ends of the clearance
36
in the longitudinal direction constitute guide recesses
36
a
,
36
a
for guiding the guide ribs
16
d
,
16
d
of the hood
11
, respectively.
As to the dimensions of the frame
31
(i.e. an assembling port) of the female connector
30
and the opening
18
(i.e. the male-connector accommodating chamber
11
b
) of the hood
11
, respective dimensions of the interior of the frame
31
are established larger than respective dimensions of the interior of the opening
18
, respectively. In detail, providing that the length of the “male-connector” fitting chambers
31
e
,
31
e
of the frame
31
are respectively represented by the alphabets A, B and the height of each chamber
31
e
is represented by the alphabet D, while the length of the “male-connector” accommodating chambers
11
b
,
11
b
of the opening
18
are respectively represented by the alphabets a, b and the height of each chamber
11
b
is represented by the alphabet d, there are established the following relationships of:
A>a, B>b and D>d
With the above dimensional relationships of the interiors, when the hood assembly
10
is assembled to the female connector
30
, as shown in
FIGS. 3 and 4
, it is possible to produce a step
38
in a boundary area between the opening
18
and the frame
31
, corresponding to a difference in dimension (height) therebetween.
Again, the male connector
40
is provided with the pair of connector housings
41
,
41
which are respectively inserted into the male-connector accommodating chambers
11
b
,
11
b
separated from each other by the partition wall
11
d
of the hood
11
. These connector housings
41
,
41
are to be inserted into the hood
11
from a direction perpendicular to the movement direction of the slide members
13
,
13
. Note, engaged and carried in the interior of each connector housing
41
are a plurality of terminals (not shown) into which the pin-terminals
32
of the female connector
30
are to be inserted in order to attain the electrical connection between the female connector
30
and the male connector
40
.
On both upper and lower faces of the connector housing
41
, the plural guide pins
44
are formed to respectively match the notch guides
11
e
and movably engage in the guide grooves
14
of the slide members
13
. Note, a plurality of wires are connected to the terminals in the connector housing
41
and withdrawn out of the housing
41
in the form of a bundle since they are covered with a cover
46
.
According to the shown embodiment, as shown with the arrow with no reference numeral or alphabet of
FIG. 1
, the hood assembly
10
can be assembled to the female connector
30
by overlaying the front cover
16
of the hood assembly
10
on the rear frame
31
of the female connector
30
from its upside. Then, with the movement of the guide ribs
16
d
,
16
d
on both sides of the cover
16
16
d
of the hood assembly
10
, the hood assembly
10
can be lowered without producing any positional deviation between the rear frame
31
and the cover
16
in plan view. With the hood's lowering, the projections
33
of the frame
31
engage in the engagement holes
16
c
of the cover
16
, so that the opening
18
of the hood assembly
10
is assembled and fixed to the assembling port of the female connector
30
, that is, the frame
31
.
In the so-assembled condition, since the interior dimensions of the frame
31
of the female connector
30
are larger than the interior dimensions of the cover
16
of the hood assembly
10
, the step
38
is formed at the boundary between the walls
31
a
,
31
b
and the sidewalls
31
c
,
31
c
of the female connector
30
and the opening
18
of the hood assembly
10
, so that the respective walls
31
a
,
31
b
,
31
c
,
31
c
come into contact with the end face of the hood
11
. Thus, there is no possibility that the walls
31
a
,
31
b
,
31
c
,
31
c
enter into the opening
18
of the hood assembly
10
.
Consequently, since the male connector
40
drawn into the male-connector accommodating chamber
11
b
of the hood assembly
10
does not butt against the walls
31
a
,
31
b
,
31
c
,
31
c
of the female connector
30
, there can be eliminated a possibility of increasing the manipulation force required in fitting the male connector
40
to the female connector
30
, while the male connector
40
can be fitted to the female connector
30
certainly. In addition, even if the hood
11
is curved inwardly, the step
38
could absorb such an inward curve, thereby allowing the male connector
40
to be withdrawn into the hood
11
.
After assembling the female connector
30
to the hood assembly
10
, the male connector
40
is inserted into the hood
11
from the opposite side to the female connector
30
, so that the guide pins
44
of the male connector
40
enter into the inlet portions
14
a
of the guide grooves
14
of the slide members
13
,
13
through the notch guides
11
e
of the hood
11
. Under this condition, when rotating the manipulating lever
20
to the downside, the slide members
13
,
13
are slid in the upper and lower slide grooves
12
,
12
of the hood
11
in the reciprocating direction. With the movements of the slide members
13
, each guide pin
44
moves from the inlet portion
14
a
to the end portion
14
c
through the slanted portion
14
b
, so that the male connector
40
is drawn into the hood
11
for the mutual engagement of the connectors
30
,
40
.
The engagement between the multipolar female connector
30
and the multipolar male connector
40
can be certainly locked since the projection on the hood
11
is engaged in the engagement hole
25
in the sidewall
22
of the manipulating lever
20
at the time of the completion of rotating the manipulating lever
20
downward.
On the contrary, when rotating the manipulating lever
20
upward, the respective slide members
13
,
13
slide in the upper and lower slide grooves
12
in the hood
11
in the mutual reciprocating directions. With the slide movements of the slide members
13
,
13
, each guide pin
44
moves from the end portion
14
c
to the inlet portion
14
a
through the slanted portion
14
b
, so that the male connector
40
is separated from the hood
11
for the disengagement of the connectors
30
,
40
.
In the above-mentioned ways, the engagement and disengagement between the female connector
30
and the female connector
40
can be accomplished.
Finally, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing description is related to one preferred embodiment of the disclosed fitting structure for connectors, and that various changes and modifications may be made to the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.
For example, in one modification of the embodiment, the male connector
40
may have the above-mentioned frame
31
, while the hood assembly
10
has the opening
18
to be assembled to the frame
31
. In such a case, one or more guide pins would be provided on the female connector
30
.
Additonally, two slide mambers
13
,
13
of the hood assembly
10
may be replaced with a single slide member in the modification. Similarly, the slide member
13
may be provided with a single guide groove corresponding to a single guide pin formed on the male connector
40
.
Claims
- 1. A fitting structure for connectors, comprising:a female connector having at least two projections and at least two guide recesses; a male connector for engagement with the female connector; a hood assembly having an opening to be assembled to an assembling port provided on either one of the male and female connectors, the hood assembly including at least one slide member adapted so as to slide therein and provided with one or more guide grooves, the hood assembly further including at least two engagement holes for respective engagement with the at least two projections and at least two guide ribs to guide the hood assembly when interengaging with the female connector; and one or more guide pins formed on the other connector of the male and female connectors; wherein respective interior dimensions defining the assembling port of the one of the male and female connectors are respectively larger than respective interior dimensions defining the opening of the hood assembly, thereby providing a step in a boundary area between the hood assembly and the one of the male and female connectors; whereby the engagement and disengagement between the male and female connectors can be accomplished by reciprocatively moving the slide member while the one or more guide pins are retained in the one or more guide grooves; whereby the hood assembly is connected to the female connector by overlaying the hood assembly in a direction perpendicular to a mating direction onto the female connector and then lowering the hood assembly so that the guide ribs engage with the guide recesses and the projections engage with the engagement holes.
- 2. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the assembling port of the one of the male and female connectors is in the form of a frame, while the opening of the hood assembly is provided with a cover for covering the frame of the one of the male and female connectors, the cover being opened on one side thereof,whereby the hood assembly can be assembled to the one of the male and female connectors by sliding the frame relatively to the hood assembly through the opened side of the cover.
- 3. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 2, wherein the hood assembly comprises a hood serving as a housing of the hood assembly and a manipulating lever pivotably mounted on the hood, for sliding the slide member.
- 4. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 3, wherein the guide groove comprises an inlet portion opening perpendicularly to one side of the slide member, a slanted portion slanted to a direction to slide the slide member and an end portion succeeding the slanted portion, in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the slide member.
- 5. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 4, wherein the guide groove is provided, on one side of the inlet portion, with a flexible projection for temporary engagement with the guide pin.
- 6. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 5, wherein the frame is shaped to be rectangular and also provided, on both sidewalls thereof, with projections, while the cover of the hood assembly is provided, on both sidewalls thereof, with engagement holes for respective engagement with the projections on the frame.
- 7. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 6, wherein the assembling port is constituted by at least one male-connector fitting chamber of which length and height correspond to the interior dimensions of the assembling port, while the opening of the hood assembly is constituted by at least one male-connector accommodating chamber of which length and height correspond to the interior dimensions of the opening.
- 8. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 7, wherein the hood assembly includes two slide members arranged on upper and lower sides of the hood and the manipulating lever is mounted on the hood in order to slide the slide members in opposite directions to each other.
- 9. A connector fitting structure, comprising:a first connector having an assembling port with an interior dimension, and at least two projections and at least two guide recesses; a second connector having an assembling port with an interior dimension; and a hood assembly having an opening capable of interengaging with the assembling port of the first connector and with the assembling port of the second connector, the opening having an interior dimension that is respectively larger than an interior dimension of the assembling port of either the first connector or the second connector, the hood assembly further including at least two engagement holes for respective engagement with the at least two projections and at least two guide ribs to guide the hood assembly when interengaging with the first connector, whereby a step in a boundary area is formed between the hood assembly and the first connector when the hood assembly is interengaged with the first connector, and a step in a boundary is formed between the hood assembly and the second connector when the hood assembly is interengaged with the second connector, whereby the hood assembly is connected to the first connector by overlaying the hood assembly in a direction perpendicular to a mating direction onto the first connector and then lowering the hood assembly so that the guide ribs engage with the guide recesses and the projections engage with the engagement holes.
- 10. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 9, wherein the opening of the hood assembly is interengaged with the assembling port of the first connector.
- 11. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 9, wherein the opening of the hood assembly is interengaged with the assembling port of the second connector.
- 12. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 9, wherein the opening of the hood assembly is interengaged with the assembling port of the first connector and the opening of the hood assembly is interengaged with the assembling port of the second connector.
- 13. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 9, wherein the hood assembly further comprises at least one slide member adapted to slide within the hood assembly and having at least one guide groove formed thereon.
- 14. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 13, wherein the second connector has at least one guide pin formed thereon such that engagement and disengagement between the first and second connectors can be accomplished by reciprocally moving the at least one slide member while the at least one guide pin is retained in the at least one guide groove.
- 15. A connector fitting structure, comprising:a first connector having an assembling port with an interior dimension; a second connector having an assembling port with an interior dimension and a guide pin formed thereon, and at least two projections and at least two guide recesses; and; a hood assembly having an opening capable of interengaging with the assembling port of the first connector and with the assembling port of the second connector, the opening having an interior dimension that is respectively larger than an interior dimension of the assembling port of either the first connector or the second connector, the hood assembly also having a slide member with a guide groove to slide within the hood assembly, the hood assembly further including at least two engagement holes for respective engagement with the at least two projections and at least two guide ribs to guide the hood assembly when interengaging with the second connector, whereby a step in a boundary area is formed between the hood assembly and the first connector when the hood assembly is interengaged with the first connector, and a step in a boundary is formed between the hood assembly and the second connector when the hood assembly is interengaged with the second connector, whereby engagement and disengagement between the first and second connectors can be accomplished by reciprocally moving the slide member while the guide pin is retained in the guide groove, whereby the hood assembly in a direction perpendicular to a mating direction is connected to the female connector by overlaying the hood assembly onto the second connector and then lowering the hood assembly so that the guide ribs engage with the guide recesses and the projections engage with the engagement holes.
- 16. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 15, wherein the hood assembly has a plurality of slide member and a plurality of guide grooves, and the second connector has a plurality of guide pins.
- 17. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 15, wherein the opening of the hood assembly is interengaged with the assembling port of the first connector and the opening of the hood assembly is interengaged with the assembling port of the second connector.
- 18. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 15, wherein the assembling port of at least one of the connectors is in the form of a frame, and the opening of the hood assembly is provided with a cover for covering the frame of at least one of the connectors, the cover being opened on one side thereof, whereby the hood assembly can be assembled to the one of the connectors by sliding the frame relatively to the hood assembly through the opened side of the cover.
- 19. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 18, wherein the hood assembly comprises a hood serving as a housing of the hood assembly and a manipulating lever pivotably mounted on the hood for sliding the slide member, and the guide groove comprises an inlet portion opening perpendicularly to one side of the slide member, and a slanted portion is slanted to a direction to slide the slide member and an end portion succeeding the slanted portion in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the slide member, and the guide groove is provided on one side of the inlet portion with a flexible projection for temporary engagement with the guide pin.
- 20. A fitting structure as claimed in claim 19, wherein the frame is shaped to be rectangular and also provided on both sidewalls thereof with projections, and the cover of the hood assembly is provided on both sidewalls thereof with engagement holes for respective engagement with the projections on the frame, and at least one of the assembling ports is constituted by at least one connector fitting chamber of which length and height correspond to the interior dimensions of at least one assembling port, and the opening of the hood assembly is constituted by at least one connector accommodating chamber of which length and height correspond to the interior dimensions of the opening, and wherein the hood assembly includes two slide members arranged on upper and lower sides of the hood and the manipulating lever is mounted on the hood in order to slide the slide members in opposite directions to each other.
Priority Claims (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
10-077959 |
Mar 1998 |
JP |
|
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