Electronic circuit unit capable of external connection

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9332668-B2
Application number	US-201114350249-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 12, 2011
Priority date	Oct 5, 2011
Publication date	May 3, 2016
Grant date	May 3, 2016

Abstract

An electronic circuit unit includes a circuit board ( 10 ) with conductors for connection ( 14 ) on an edge ( 12 ), a case ( 20 ) for housing the circuit board ( 10 ) and a connector (C). The case ( 20 ) includes an opening ( 21 ) that allows the circuit board ( 10 ) to be inserted in a board inserting direction and holds the circuit board ( 10 ) at a specific board holding position. The connector (C) includes connector terminals ( 30 ) to be mounted on ends of wires (W), and a housing ( 40 ) for holding the connector terminals ( 30 ) so that the connector terminals ( 30 ) can simultaneously contact the conductors for connection ( 14 ). The housing ( 40 ) includes a lid ( 48 ) for closing the opening ( 21 ). The case ( 20 ) locks the housing ( 40 ) at a position where the connector terminals ( 30 ) contact the conductors for connection ( 14 ) of the circuit board ( 10 ) at the board holding position.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An electronic circuit unit, comprising:
a circuit board including an edge part and first and second opposite surfaces extending from the edge part, a plurality of first conductors for connection provided on the first surface thereof and a plurality of second conductors for connection provided on the second surface thereof;
a case for housing the circuit board; and
a connector for connecting wires to the conductors for connection of the circuit board;
wherein:
the case includes an opening that is open in a specific direction and is so shaped that the circuit board is insertable into the case in a board inserting direction perpendicular to a plate thickness direction of the circuit board through the opening with the edge part in the lead;
the connector includes a board insertion space configured for receiving the edge part of the circuit board therein, first and second pluralities of terminal accommodating chambers disposed respectively on first and second sides of the board insertion space, first and second pluralities of connector terminals connected to ends of the respective wires and disposed respectively in the first and second terminal accommodating chambers, the first and second pluralities of connector terminals being electrically conductively connectable respectively to the first and second pluralities of conductors for connection of the circuit board by respectively coming into contact with the conductors, the housing being configured for holding the connector terminals in such an arrangement that the respective connector terminals simultaneously come into contact with the respective conductors for connection, the housing being shaped to be mountable into the case to close the opening of the case at a position where each connector terminal held in the housing comes into contact with each conductor for connection of the circuit board at a board holding position; and
the case includes a housing locking portion for locking the housing of the connector at the position where each connector terminal of the connector comes into contact with each conductor for connection of the circuit board housed in the case.

2. The electronic circuit unit of claim 1 , wherein:
the case includes side walls extending in the board inserting direction and configured to hold the circuit board from opposite sides in the plate thickness direction while guiding the circuit board in the board inserting direction, and an end wall located on a side opposite to the opening with respect to the board inserting direction;
the housing includes a board restraining portion capable of coming into contact with an end surface of the edge part of the circuit board, and the circuit board is held in the case at a position where the circuit board is restrained in the board inserting direction by the board restraining portion and the end wall.

3. The electronic circuit unit of claim 1 , wherein:
the housing of the connector further includes a retainer provided to be movable between a connector terminal locking position and a connector terminal releasing position, the retainer doubly locks the connector terminals held in the housing at the connector terminal locking position and allows the insertion of the connector terminals into the housing at the connector terminal releasing position, the case includes a mounting preventing portion for allowing the housing to be mounted into the case when the retainer is at the connector terminal locking position while preventing the housing from being mounted into the case by coming into the contact with the retainer when the retainer is at the connector terminal releasing position.

4. The electronic circuit unit of claim 1 , wherein the first plurality of connector terminals are juxtaposed in a direction along the edge part of the circuit board to form a first connector terminal row and the second plurality of connector terminals are juxtaposed in a direction parallel to the first connector terminal row to form a second connector terminal row.

5. The electronic circuit unit of claim 1 , wherein the housing of the connector includes a cover portion shaped to cover an end part of the case on the opening side from an outer side in a state where the terminal holding portion is inserted in the opening of the case.

6. The electronic circuit unit of claim 5 , wherein the cover portion includes an engaging portion to be locked to the case.

7. The electronic circuit unit of claim 1 , further comprising:
a connector-side seal member to be interposed between the case and the connector; and
a plurality of wire-side seal members provided for the respective wires;
wherein the housing of the connector includes terminal inserting portions having an inner peripheral surface surrounding each of a plurality of connector terminal insertion holes through which the respective connector terminals are insertable from an outer side and a terminal holding portion shaped to receive and hold the connector terminals inserted through the terminal inserting portions and to be insertable into the case through the opening of the case and configured to hold each connector terminal such that the connector terminal comes into contact with each conductor for connection of the circuit board in an inserted state, the connector-seal member is interposed between the housing and the case to seal the interior of the case, each wire-side seal member is interposed between the wire and the inner peripheral surface of the terminal inserting portion to close the interior of the case, and the housing locking portion of the case locks the housing at a position where each connector terminal held in the terminal holding portion of the housing comes into contact with each conductor for connection of the circuit board in the case and the connector-side seal member is interposed between the housing and the case to seal the interior of the case.

8. The electronic circuit unit of claim 7 , wherein each wire-side seal member is made of a resiliently deformable material and shaped to be mounted in close contact with the outer peripheral surface of the wire and held in close contact with the inner peripheral surface of the terminal inserting portion over the entire circumference while being resiliently deformed.

9. The electronic circuit unit of claim 7 , wherein the connector-side seal member is made of a resiliently deformable material and is shaped to be held in close contact with the outer peripheral surface of the terminal holding portion of the housing and the inner peripheral surface of the case over the entire circumference while being resiliently deformed.

10. The electronic circuit unit of claim 9 , wherein the connector-side seal member is fixed on the outer peripheral surface of the terminal holding portion of the housing.

11. An electronic circuit unit, comprising:
a circuit board including a first edge part and a second edge part facing opposite sides, opposite first and second surfaces extending between the edge parts and first conductors for connection and second conductors for connection provided respectively on the first and second surfaces at the edge parts;
a case for housing the circuit board;
a first connector for connecting wires to the first and second conductors for connection at the first edge part of the circuit board; and
a second connector for connecting wires to the first and second conductors for connection at the second edge part in red is the of the circuit board;
wherein:
the case includes a first opening facing the first edge part and a second opening opposite the first opening and facing the second edge part, the case is so shaped that the circuit board is insertable into the case in a

Assignees

• Nishio Akihiro
• Hirai Hiroki
• Tanaka Tetsuji
• Omori Yasuo
• Autonetworks Technologies Ltd
• Sumitomo Wiring Systems
• Sumitomo Electric Industries

Inventors

• Nishio Akihiro
• Hirai Hiroki
• Tanaka Tetsuji
• Omori Yasuo

Classifications

• H01R13/6271

  Latching means integral with the housing (H01R13/6276, H01R13/6277, H01R13/6278 take precedence) · CPC title

• H01R13/4361

  Insertion of locking piece perpendicular to direction of contact insertion · CPC title

• H01R12/721

  cooperating directly with the edge of the rigid printed circuits · CPC title

• H05K5/0069

  having connector relating features for connecting the connector pins with the PCB or for mounting the connector body with the housing · CPC title

• H05K7/1452 Primary

  Mounting of connectors; Switching; Reinforcing of back panels · CPC title