The present disclosure relates to a terminal and a wire with terminal.
Conventionally, a wire with terminal is known in which a terminal is connected to a core exposed from an end of a wire. Some of such terminals include, for example, a crimping portion to be crimped to the core exposed from the end of the wire from outside.
The above terminal is crimped to the wire, for example, as follows. First, the terminal of a predetermined shape is formed by press-working a metal plate material. Subsequently, the terminal is placed on a placing portion of a lower die located on a lower side, out of a pair of dies relatively movable in a vertical direction. Subsequently, the core exposed from the end of the wire is placed on the crimping portion of the terminal. Thereafter, one or both of the pair of dies is/are moved in mutually approaching direction(s), and the crimping portion is sandwiched between a crimper of the upper die and the placing portion of the lower die, whereby the crimping portion is crimped to the core of the wire. In the above way, the terminal is connected to the end of the wire (see Patent Document 1).
Patent Document 1: JP 2005-050736 A
In the case of connection by sandwiching a core instead of using the above crimping portion, a terminal is possibly constituted by two components including a terminal body and a slide portion disposed behind the terminal body. In this case, if a step is formed between the two components, there is a problem that the terminal rattles when being disposed in a connector.
The present disclosure was completed on the basis of the above situation and aims to provide a terminal with a reduced step.
The present disclosure is directed to a terminal with a terminal body including a mating connecting portion to be connected to a mating terminal, a wire connecting portion to be connected to a wire and a coupling portion for coupling the mating connecting portion and the wire connecting portion, and a shell to be externally fit to the wire connecting portion, wherein the wire connecting portion includes a sandwiching portion extending in an extending direction of the wire, the sandwiching portion sandwiching the wire, the shell includes a pressurizing portion for pressurizing the sandwiching portion toward the wire, the mating connecting portion includes a mating bottom wall and a mating side wall formed to rise upward in a predetermined rising direction from the mating bottom wall, the wire connecting portion includes a wire-side bottom wall and a wire-side side wall rising upward in the rising direction from the wire-side bottom wall, and the coupling portion is inclined in a direction opposite to the rising direction from the wire-side bottom wall toward the mating bottom wall to couple the wire-side bottom wall and the mating bottom wall.
Effect of the Invention
According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a terminal with a reduced step.
[Description of Embodiments of Present Disclosure]
First, embodiments of the present disclosure are listed and described.
(1) The terminal according to the present disclosure is provided with a terminal body including a mating connecting portion to be connected to a mating terminal, a wire connecting portion to be connected to a wire and a coupling portion for coupling the mating connecting portion and the wire connecting portion, and a shell to be externally fit to the wire connecting portion, wherein the wire connecting portion includes a sandwiching portion extending in an extending direction of the wire, the sandwiching portion sandwiching the wire, the shell includes a pressurizing portion for pressurizing the sandwiching portion toward the wire, the mating connecting portion includes a mating bottom wall and a mating side wall formed to rise upward in a predetermined rising direction from the mating bottom wall, the wire connecting portion includes a wire-side bottom wall and a wire-side side wall rising upward in the rising direction from the wire-side bottom wall, and the coupling portion is inclined in a direction opposite to the rising direction from the wire-side bottom wall toward the mating bottom wall to couple the wire-side bottom wall and the mating bottom wall.
Since the shell is externally fit to the wire connecting portion, the shell covers the wire-side bottom wall of the wire connecting portion. Thus, the shell projects more outward than the wire-side bottom wall. However, the mating bottom wall of the mating connecting portion coupled to the wire-side bottom wall by the coupling portion projects more outward than the wire-side bottom wall since the coupling portion is inclined. Since both the bottom wall of the shell and the mating bottom wall project more outward than the wire-side bottom wall, a step of the terminal can be reduced as compared to the shape of the terminal in which only the bottom wall of the shell projects outward.
(2) Preferably, the coupling portion includes a coupling bottom wall coupling the mating bottom wall and the wire-side bottom wall and a pair of coupling side walls rising upward from the coupling bottom wall, and the pair of coupling side walls respectively include constricted portions bent in directions toward each other.
If the coupling bottom wall of the coupling portion is inclined, the pair of coupling side walls are also bent. At this time, by providing the pair of coupling side walls respectively with the constricted portions bent in the directions toward each other, the terminal can be reduced in size as compared to the case where the pair of coupling side walls are bent in directions away from each other.
(3) Preferably, a recess is provided in each of inner surfaces of the constricted portions provided in the pair of coupling side walls.
To reliably connect the wire and the wire connecting portion, the wire inserted through the wire connecting portion is preferably inserted into the coupling portion beyond the wire connecting portion. Since the recesses are formed in the inner surfaces of the pair of coupling side walls of the coupling portion, the interference of the inner surfaces of the pair of coupling side walls and the wire can be suppressed. As a result, when the wire is inserted into the terminal, the buckling of the wire can be suppressed.
(4) Preferably, a bottom surface of the shell and a bottom surface of the mating connecting portion are disposed on the same plane.
Since the bottom surface of the shell and that of the mating connecting portion are disposed on the same plane, an outer surface of the mating connecting portion and that of the shell can be placed on a plane formed to place the terminal in a connector without being inclined when the terminal is accommodated into the connector. In this way, troubles such as the rattling of the terminal in the connector can be reliably suppressed.
(5) Preferably, the shell is disposed slidably along the extending direction of the wire with respect to the wire connecting portion.
The wire and the terminal can be electrically connected by a simple operation of sliding the shell along the extending direction of the wire. In this way, the efficiency of a connecting operation of the wire and the terminal can be improved.
(6) A wire with terminal according to the present disclosure includes the terminal of any one of (1) to (5) described above, and a wire connected to the terminal.
[Details of Embodiment of Present Disclosure]
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure is described. The present invention is not limited to these illustrations and is intended to be represented by claims and include all changes in the scope of claims and in the meaning and scope of equivalents.
<Embodiment>
One embodiment of the present disclosure is described with reference to
[Wire 11]
As shown in
[Terminal 12]
As shown in
[Terminal Body 15]
As shown in
As shown in
As shown in
As shown in
An upper holding protrusion 23A projecting downward is provided at a position in front of a rear end part on the lower surface of the upper sandwiching portion 18A. A lower holding protrusion 23B projecting upward is provided on a rear end part on the upper surface of the lower sandwiching portion 18B. The lower and upper holding protrusions 23B, 23A are provided at positions shifted in the front-rear direction.
The lower surface of the upper sandwiching portion 18A and the upper surface of the lower sandwiching portion 18B bite into an oxide film formed on the surface of the core 13 to peel off the oxide film, whereby a metal surface of the core 13 is exposed. By the contact of this metal surface and the upper and lower sandwiching portions 18A, 18B, the core 13 and the terminal body 15 are electrically connected.
As shown in
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As shown in
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As shown in
As shown in
[Slide Portion 16]
As shown in
A cross-section of the inner surface shape of the slide portion 16 is the same as or somewhat larger than that of the outer shape of a region of the terminal body 15 where the upper and lower sandwiching portions 18A, 18B are provided. In this way, the slide portion 16 is disposed outside the region of the terminal body 15 where the upper and lower sandwiching portions 18A, 18B are provided.
As shown in
As shown in
With the locking projections 28 of the terminal body 15 and the partial lock receiving portions 26 of the slide portion 16 locked, the slide portion 16 is held at the partial locking position with respect to the terminal body 15 (see
As shown in
As described above, the slide portion 16 is slidable between the partial locking position and the full locking position described above while being externally fit to the region of the terminal body 15 where the upper and lower sandwiching portions 18A, 18B are provided.
As shown in
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As shown in
[Connection Process of Wire 11 and Terminal 12]
Next, an example of a connection process of the wire 11 and the terminal 12 is described. The connection process of the wire 11 and the terminal 12 is not limited to the one described below.
The terminal body 15 and the slide portion 16 are formed by a known method. The slide portion 16 is assembled with the terminal body 15 from behind. The front end edge of the slide portion 16 comes into contact with the locking projections 28 of the terminal body 15 from behind and the side walls of the slide portion 16 are expanded and deformed. If the slide portion 16 is further pushed forward, the side walls of the slide portion 16 are restored and the partial lock receiving portions 26 of the slide portion 16 are locked to the locking projections 28 of the terminal body 15. In this way, the slide portion 16 is held at the partial locking position with respect to the terminal body 15 (see
The core 13 of the wire 11 is exposed by stripping the insulation coating 14 by a known method.
If the wire 11 is further pushed forward, a front end part of the core 13 is introduced into the slide portion 16 from the rear end part of the slide portion 16. By the contact of the core 13 with the guiding portions 47 of the slide portion 16, the core 13 is guided into the slide portion 16. If the wire 11 is further pushed forward, the front end part of the core 13 enters the terminal body 15 and reaches the space between the upper and lower sandwiching portions 18A, 18B.
As shown in
As shown in
Since the right and left side walls 33R, 33L are respectively provided with the right and left recesses 35R, 35L in this embodiment, the core 13 is reliably inserted into the clearance between the right and left side walls 33R, 33L.
Subsequently, as shown in
When the slide portion 16 is moved forward, the side walls of the slide portion 16 are restored and the locking projections 28 of the terminal body 15 and the full lock receiving portions 27 of the slide portion 16 are resiliently locked. In this way, the slide portion 16 is held at the full locking position with respect to the terminal body 15.
With the slide portion 16 held at the full locking position with respect to the terminal body 15, the upper pressurizing portion 25A of the slide portion 16 comes into contact with the upper sandwiching portion 18A of the terminal body 15 from above to press the upper sandwiching portion 18A downward. Further, the lower pressurizing portion 25B of the slide portion 16 comes into contact with the lower sandwiching portion 18B of the terminal body 15 from below to press the lower sandwiching portion 18B upward. In this way, the core 13 is sandwiched from upper and lower sides by the upper and lower sandwiching portions 18A, 18B.
As shown in
With the core 13 sandwiched from upper and lower sides by the upper and lower sandwiching portions 18A, 18B, the core 13 is sandwiched by the upper holding protrusion 23A of the upper sandwiching portion 18A and the lower holding protrusion 23B of the lower sandwiching portion 18B, thereby being held in the state extending in the front-rear direction and bent in the vertical direction. Since the core 13 can be firmly held in this way, a holding force of the wire 11 and the terminal 12 can be enhanced when a pulling force is applied to the wire 11. In this way, the wire with terminal 10 is completed.
[Functions and Effects of Embodiment]
Next, functions and effects of this embodiment are described. The terminal 12 according to this embodiment includes the terminal body 15 having the tube portion 17 to be connected to the mating terminal, the wire connecting portion 20 to be connected to the wire 11 and the coupling portion 30 for coupling the tube portion 17 and the wire connecting portion 20, and the slide portion 16 to be externally fit to the wire connecting portion 20, the wire connecting portion 20 includes the upper and lower sandwiching portions 18A, 18B extending in the front-rear direction and configured to sandwich the wire 11, the slide portion 16 includes the upper and lower pressurizing portions 25A, 25B for pressurizing the upper and lower sandwiching portions 18A, 18B toward the wire 11, the tube portion 17 includes the mating bottom wall 50 and the mating side walls 53 formed to rise upward from the mating bottom wall 50, the wire connecting portion 20 includes the wire-side bottom wall 51 and the wire-side side walls 54 rising upward from the wire-side bottom wall 51, and the coupling portion 30 is inclined downward from the wire-side bottom wall 51 toward the mating bottom wall 50 to couple the wire-side bottom wall 51 and the mating bottom wall 50.
Further, the wire with terminal 10 according to this embodiment includes the above terminal 12 and the wire 11 connected to the terminal 12.
Since the slide portion 16 is externally fit to the wire connecting portion 20, the slide portion 16 covers the wire-side bottom wall 51 from outside. Thus, the bottom wall 52 of the slide portion 16 projects more outward than the wire-side bottom wall 51. However, the tube portion 17 coupled to the wire-side bottom wall 51 by the coupling portion 30 projects more outward than the wire-side bottom wall 51 since the coupling portion 30 is inclined. In this way, both the bottom wall 52 of the slide portion 16 and the mating bottom wall 50 project outward with respect to the wire-side bottom wall 51, wherefore the step of the terminal 12 can be reduced as compared to the shape of the terminal 12 in which only the bottom wall 52 of the slide portion 16 projects.
Further, according to this embodiment, the coupling portion 30 includes the coupling bottom wall 31 coupling the mating bottom wall 50 and the wire-side bottom wall 51 and the right and left side walls 33R, 33L rising from the coupling bottom wall 31, and the right and left side walls 33R, 33L respectively include the constricted portions 34L, 34R bent in the directions toward each other.
If the coupling bottom wall 31 of the coupling portion 30 is inclined, the right and left side walls 33R, 33L are also bent. At this time, by providing the right and left side walls 33R, 33L respectively with the right and left constricted portions 34R, 34L bent in the directions toward each other, the terminal 12 can be reduced in size as compared to the case where the right and left side walls 33R, 33L are bent in directions away from each other.
According to this embodiment, the right and left recesses 35R, 35L are respectively provided in the inner surfaces of the right and left constricted portions 34R, 34L provided in the right and left side walls 33R, 33L.
To reliably connect the core 13 of the wire 11 and the wire connecting portion 20, the core 13 inserted through the wire connecting portion 20 is preferably inserted into the coupling portion 30 beyond the wire connecting portion 20. Since the right and left recesses 35R, 35L are formed in the respective inner surfaces of the right and left side walls 33R, 33L of the coupling portion 30, the interference of the inner surfaces of the right and left side walls 33R, 33L and the core 13 can be suppressed. As a result, when the core 13 of the wire 11 is inserted into the terminal 12, the buckling of the wire 11 or core 13 can be suppressed.
According to this embodiment, the bottom surface of the slide portion 16 and that of the tube portion 17 are disposed on the same plane.
Since the bottom surface of the slide portion 16 and that of the tube portion 17 are disposed on the same plane, the lower surface of the tube portion 17 and that of the slide portion 16 are disposed on the same plane 60. In this way, when the terminal 12 is accommodated into an unillustrated connector, the lower surface of the tube portion 17 and that of the slide portion 16 can be placed on a plane formed to place the terminal 12 in the connector without being inclined. In this way, troubles such as the rattling of the terminal 12 in the connector can be reliably suppressed.
According to this embodiment, the slide portion 16 is disposed slidably along the front-rear direction with respect to the wire connecting portion 20.
By a simple operation of sliding the slide portion 16 along the front-rear direction, the wire 11 and the terminal 12 can be electrically connected. In this way, the efficiency of a connecting operation of the wire 11 and the terminal 12 can be improved.
<Other Embodiments>
(1) Although the coupling bottom wall 31 is inclined as a whole in this embodiment, the coupling bottom wall 31 may be partially inclined.
(2) Although the terminal according to this embodiment is a so-called female terminal, it may be a male terminal.
(3) Although the right and left recesses 35R, 35L are provided in this embodiment, there is no limitation to this and either one of the right and left recess 35R, 35L may be provided. Further, both the right and left recesses 35R, 35L may be omitted.
(4) The terminal 12 may include one, three or more sandwiching portions.
(5) The bottom surface of the tube portion 17 and that of the slide portion 16 may not be disposed on the same plane.
(6) The mating side walls 53 may not rise upward from the side edges of the mating bottom wall 50. Further, the wire-side side walls 54 may not rise upward from the side edges of the wire-side bottom wall 51. Further, the left and right side walls 33L, 33R may not rise upward from the side edges of the coupling bottom wall 31.
10: wire with terminal
11: wire
12: terminal
13: core
14: insulation coating
15: terminal body
16: slide portion
17: tube portion (example of mating connecting portion)
18A: upper sandwiching portion (example of sandwiching portion)
18B: lower sandwiching portion (example of sandwiching portion)
19: resilient contact piece
20: wire connecting portion
23A: upper holding protrusion
23B: lower holding protrusion
25A: upper pressurizing portion (example of pressurizing portion)
25B: lower pressurizing portion (example of pressurizing portion)
26: partial lock receiving portion
27: full lock receiving portion
28: locking projection
30: coupling portion
31: coupling bottom wall
33L: left side wall (example of coupling side wall)
33R: right side wall (example of coupling side wall)
34L: left constricted portion (example of constricted portion)
34R: right constricted portion (example of constricted portion)
35L: left recess (example of recess)
35R: right recess (example of recess)
45: jig
46: jig contact portion
47: guiding portion
50: mating bottom wall
51: wire-side bottom wall
52: bottom wall of slide portion
53: mating side wall
54: wire-side side wall
60: plane
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2019-074920 | Apr 2019 | JP | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/JP2020/015215 | 4/2/2020 | WO | 00 |