Electrical connector with sliding fitting detection member

1 . A connector comprising:

a housing configured to be fitted to a counterpart housing and having a terminal accommodating chamber configured to accommodate a terminal; and

a fitting detection member slidably attached to the housing and configured to detect fitting between the housing and the counterpart housing,

wherein the fitting detection member includes a locking protrusion to be locked to a locked protrusion of the housing,

wherein, when the locking protrusion is locked to the locked protrusion, the locked protrusion of the housing prevents the locking protrusion of the fitting detection member from moving in a rear direction,

wherein in the housing, a space configured to allow the locking protrusion to pass in a sliding direction of the fitting detection member is defined between an outer peripheral surface of the housing and the locked protrusion,

wherein the locking protrusion passes through the space from a rear end toward a front end in the sliding direction and is locked to the locked protrusion,

wherein the housing includes a locking mechanism configured to be locked with the counterpart housing in a state where the housing and the counterpart housing are fitted to each other,

wherein the locking mechanism includes: a pair of left and right elastic arm pieces that are supported on the outer peripheral surface of the housing in a cantilever manner and extend forward; a locking piece that bridges front end portions of the pair of left and right elastic arm pieces in a left-right direction and that is locked with the counterpart housing in the state where the housing and the counterpart housing are fitted to each other; a pair of left and right release arms that are supported on the front end of the pair of right and left elastic arm pieces in a cantilever manner, respectively, and extend rearward, and

wherein the locked protrusion is provided at a central portion, in an extending direction, of each of the release arms.

2 . The connector according to claim 1 ,

wherein, in a non-deformed state, at an upper end surface of the locking protrusion, an inclined surface formed in an upward inclined shape from the front end toward the rear end, and a flat surface located on a rear end side of the inclined surface and formed to extend in the sliding direction are continuously provided,

wherein at a lower end surface of the locked protrusion, an inclined surface formed in an upward inclined shape from the front end toward the rear end, and a flat surface located on a front end side of the inclined surface of the locked protrusion and formed to be substantially parallel to the outer peripheral surface are continuously provided, and

wherein the upper end surface of the locking protrusion is configured to slide against the lower end surface of the locked protrusion in the sliding direction.

3 . The connector according to claim 1 ,

wherein the fitting detection member includes an elastically deformable arm piece provided with a locking claw configured to lock the locking piece of to the locking mechanism,

wherein before the housing and the counterpart housing are fitted to each other, the locking claw is in contact with the locking piece of the locking mechanism at a temporary locking position where the locking protrusion is locked to the locked protrusion such that the fitting detection member is restricted from replacing from the temporary locking position, and

wherein, when the housing and the counterpart housing are fitted to each other, the arm piece is elastically deformed to release a contact state between the locking claw and the locking piece of the locking mechanism such that the fitting detection member displaces from the temporary locking position to a final locking position where the locking claw is locked to the locking piece of the locking mechanism.