Connector and connecting method
View Patent ↗A connector includes a contact retained in a housing selectively in one of a first posture and a second posture inverted 180 degrees around a fitting direction, the contact including a contact portion to be contacted with a contact of a counter connector and a connection portion to be connected to a flexible conductor of a connection object, between a case where the contact is retained in the housing in the first posture and a case where the contact is retained in the housing in the second posture, the contact portion is situated at a same position with respect to the housing and the connection portion is situated at a different position with respect to the housing, the contact being retained in the housing in, of the first posture and the second posture, a posture corresponding to an orientation of a flexible conductor exposed surface of the connection object.
1 . A connecting method for connecting at least one contact of a connector to a flexible conductor exposed on one surface of a connection object,
the connector being to be fitted with a counter connector in a fitting direction and comprising:
a housing attached to the connection object; and
the at least one contact made of a conductive material and retained in the housing selectively in one of a first posture and a second posture that are postures inverted 180 degrees from each other around the fitting direction,
wherein the housing includes a first insulator and a second insulator that are assembled to each other in a predetermined assembling direction while sandwiching the connection object therebetween,
the at least one contact includes a contact portion to be contacted with a contact of the counter connector and a connection portion to be connected to the flexible conductor of the connection object, the contact portion projecting from the first insulator in the fitting direction,
between a case where the at least one contact is retained in the housing in the first posture and a second case where the at least one contact is retained in the housing in the second posture, the contact portion is situated at a same position with respect to the housing and the connection portion is situated at a different position with respect to the housing, and
the at least one contact is retained in the housing in, of the first posture and the second posture, a posture corresponding to an orientation of a surface of the connection object on which surface the flexible conductor is exposed,
wherein the at least one contact includes a first contact surface and a second contact surface that are situated symmetrically with respect to a centerline along the fitting direction, a first connection surface connected to the first contact surface, and a second connection surface connected to the second contact surface,
the first connection surface and the second connection surface are situated asymmetrically with respect to the centerline,
at least one of the first contact surface and the second contact surface makes contact with the contact of the counter connector as the contact portion in both cases where the at least one contact is retained in the housing in the first posture and where the at least one contact is retained in the housing in the second posture,
the first connection surface is connected to the flexible conductor of the connection object as the connection portion when the at least one contact is retained in the housing in the first posture, and
the second connection surface is connected to the flexible conductor of the connection object as the connection portion when the at least one contact is retained in the housing in the second posture,
the method comprising:
putting the at least one contact such that the at least one contact is temporarily retained in the first insulator or the second insulator of the housing in, of the first posture and the second posture, the posture corresponding to the orientation of the surface of the connection object on which surface the flexible conductor is exposed,
disposing the connection object between the first insulator and the second insulator, and
assembling the first insulator and the second insulator to each other in the predetermined assembling direction, whereby the connection portion of the at least one contact is connected to the flexible conductor of the connection object.
2 . The connecting method according to claim 1 ,
wherein the connection portion of the at least one contact temporarily retained is disposed to be displaceable and faces a first opposed surface of the first insulator or a second opposed surface of the second insulator with a distance larger than a thickness dimension of the flexible conductor, and
by assembling the first insulator and the second insulator to each other with the flexible conductor being inserted between the connection portion and the first opposed surface or the second opposed surface, the connection portion is displaced between the first opposed surface and the second opposed surface and pressed against and connected to the flexible conductor.