Terminal and connector

Inventors: Atsuhito Saito (Makinohara, JP); Kentaro Nagai (Makinohara, JP); Akira Shinchi (Makinohara, JP)

Assignee: Yazaki Corporation

H01R13/11 H01R4/185 H01R9/24

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Quick Facts

Patent No.: US 9,941,615
App. No.: 15/227,153
Granted: Apr 10, 2018
Kind: B2

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Abstract

A leaf spring portion turning back at a bottom wall (first side wall portion) and coming into contact with a male terminal of a connector on the other side to press the male terminal to a ceiling wall (second side wall portion) is formed in a tubular-shaped main terminal body portion in a terminal, the main terminal body portion is formed when a metal plate is bent in a tubular shape such that a pair of end edges approaches each other to form the ceiling wall (second side wall portion), and depressed portions bending toward an inside of the main terminal body portion and extending in a longitudinal direction of the main terminal body portion are provided in a pair of respective wall portions forming the ceiling wall (second side wall portion).

Claims (62)

1. A terminal made of metal capable of being accommodated in a terminal housing chamber provided in a housing of a connector, comprising:

a main terminal body portion extending in a tubular shape into which a mating connector terminal is inserted from an opening at a distal end, including a leaf spring portion formed therein, the leaf spring portion turning back inside the main terminal body portion from an edge portion corresponding to a portion of an edge of the opening,

the leaf spring portion, while coming into contact with the mating connector terminal, pressing the inserted mating connector terminal toward a second side wall portion facing a first side wall portion extending from the edge portion in a longitudinal direction of the main terminal body portion, in a side wall of the tubular shape of the main terminal body portion,

wherein

the main terminal body portion is obtained from a metal plate having a pair of end edges extending in parallel with each other in the longitudinal direction and bent in a tubular shape such that the pair of end edges approaches each other above the leaf spring portion and at the center of the second side wall portion to form the second side wall portion, and

each of a pair of wall portions having the pair of end edges forming the second side wall portion is provided with depressed portion bending toward inside of the main terminal body portion and extending in the longitudinal direction.

2. The terminal according to claim 1 , wherein end edge portions of at least a portion of the pair of end edges form a portion of the depressed portion, and the end edge portions are positioned closer to inside of the main terminal body portion than edges on opposite sides from the end edge portions in the depressed portion.

3. The terminal according to claim 1 , wherein

the main terminal body portion is formed in a shape of a rectangular tube in which the first side wall portion and the second side wall portion form a pair of opposing walls, and the corner portion forming boundary between the second side wall portion and each of a pair of third side wall portions connecting the first side wall portion to the second side wall portion is provided with depression extending in a direction intersecting the corner portion.

4. The terminal according to claim 1 , wherein

first side wall portion is provided with an approach hole formed therein for locking a lance entering the inside of the main terminal body portion from the terminal housing chamber,

the leaf spring portion turns back to near the approach hole from the edge portion, and extends in a convex shape toward the second side wall portion to press the mating connector terminal to the second side wall portion while coming into contact with the mating connector terminal at an apex portion, an end portion of the leaf spring portion is positioned closer to the opening than the approach hole, the end portion is provided with a pair of arm portions formed therein branching toward a pair of third side wall portions connecting the first side wall portion to the second side wall portion, a width of the pair of arm portions being narrower than a width before branching, and

each of the pair of third side wall portions is provided with contact portion formed therein serving as a fulcrum of the arm portion when the mating connector terminal is inserted and the leaf spring portion is pressed by the mating connector terminal from a side of the second side wall portion.

5. The terminal according to claim 4 , wherein a slit extending to the side of the opening of the main terminal body portion is provided between the pair of arm portions in the end portion of the leaf spring portion.

6. The terminal according to claim 4 , wherein

through-holes are provided at positions to which each of distal ends of the pair of arm portions is headed in the pair of third side wall portions,

the contact portions are inner edge portions in inner edges of the through-holes with which the pair of arm portions comes into contact when the leaf spring portion is pushed by the mating connector terminal, and

the inner edge portions are linearly inclined in a direction approaching the first side wall portion as separating more from the opening.

7. The terminal according to any one of claims 4 , wherein the contact portions are racks protruding from each of the pair of third side wall portions toward inside of the main terminal body portion.

8. The terminal according to any one of claims 4 , wherein the leaf spring portion is formed such that a width in the apex portion is wider than a width in a portion on the side of the opening from the apex portion.

9. The terminal according to any one of claims 4 , wherein the leaf spring portion includes a portion having near the apex portion between the edge portion and the apex portion a certain width narrower than a width of the edge portion.

10. The terminal according to claim 9 , wherein a width gradually decreases from the edge portion to the portion having the certain width.

11. The connector comprising: