Cable holding member, electrical connection device, connector device, flat cable

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9673546-B2
Application number	US-201415021212-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 8, 2014
Priority date	Sep 10, 2013
Publication date	Jun 6, 2017
Grant date	Jun 6, 2017

Abstract

The connector device of one embodiment of the present invention includes an electrical connection device and a receptacle connector. The cable holding member includes a supporting part and a wall part. The supporting part includes a supporting face for supporting a flat cable in a folded state. The wall part is provided to the supporting part so as to be on a side of the flat cable in a width direction of the flat cable supported on the supporting part. A groove for receiving a first protrusion of the flat cable is provided to an internal face of the wall part.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A cable holding member for holding a flat cable in a strip shape including a substrate where multiple electrically conductive members are arranged side by side in a width direction of the flat cable, and at least one first protrusion protruding outward in the width direction of the flat cable from a side edge of the substrate in the width direction of the flat cable,
the cable holding member comprising:
a supporting part including a supporting face for supporting the flat cable in a folded state; and
at least one wall part provided to the supporting part so as to be on at least one of opposite sides of the flat cable in the width direction of the flat cable supported on the supporting part, and

at least one groove for receiving the at least one first protrusion of the flat cable being provided to the at least one wall part.

2. The cable holding member of claim 1 , wherein
a second protrusion to be fitted into a hole provided to the flat cable is provided to the supporting part.

3. The cable holding member of claim 2 , wherein
the at least one groove provided to the at least one wall part and the second protrusion are provided in different positions in a length direction of the flat cable which is perpendicular to the width direction of the flat cable.

4. The cable holding member of claim 1 , wherein:
the at least one groove provided to the at least one wall part includes a first groove provided to an internal face of the at least one wall part on a front side of the supporting part, and a second groove provided to the internal face of the at least one wall part on a rear side of the supporting part; and
with regard to the at least one wall part, the first groove and the second groove are provided respectively on the front side and the rear side of the supporting part to be in a same position when viewed in a thickness direction of the flat cable supported on the supporting part.

5. The cable holding member of claim 1 , wherein
the at least one groove is shaped to receive the at least one first protrusion in a width direction of the flat cable.

6. The cable holding member of claim 1 , wherein
an opening dimension of the at least one groove in a thickness direction of the flat cable supported on the supporting part is equal to a thickness of the flat cable.

7. The cable holding member of claim 1 , wherein:
the first housing has a hollow cylindrical or prism shape with opposite open ends one of which defines a fitting hole; and
a guiding part for guiding insertion of the cable holding member into the fitting hole in inserting the cable holding member into the fitting hole is provided to an end of the at least one wall part in an insertion direction in which the cable holding member is inserted into the fitting hole.

8. The cable holding member of claim 1 , wherein:
the at least one wall part includes a pair of wall parts; and
the pair of wall parts are provided to the supporting art so as to be on the opposite sides of the flat cable in the width direction of the flat cable supported on the supporting part.

9. An electrical connection device comprising:
the cable holding member of claim 1 ; and
a first housing with a hollow cylindrical or prism shape with opposite open ends,
the first housing holding the cable holding member which is inserted into the first housing via a first one of the open ends while the flat cable is supported thereon, and
the first housing making, when a receptacle connector including a second housing supporting multiple terminals corresponding to the multiple electrically conductive members is inserted into the first housing via a second one of the open ends with the multiple terminals being directed to the first housing, electrical connection between the multiple terminals and corresponding ones of the multiple electrically conductive members.

10. A connector device comprising:
the electrical connection device of claim 9 ; and
the receptacle connector including the multiple terminals and the second housing which supports the multiple terminals and is to be removably connected to the electrical connection device,
each of the multiple terminals including a fixed part, at least one contact, and at least one side wall part which are formed integrally,
the fixed part being fixed to the second housing,
the at least one contact being in a plate spring shape which is to be electrically connected to a corresponding one of the multiple electrically conductive members when coming into elastic contact with the corresponding one of the multiple electrically conductive members while the electrical connection device is connected to the receptacle connector, and
the at least one side wall part being on a side of the at least one contact in a direction across a direction in which the at least one contact changes in shape.

11. The connector device of claim 10 , wherein:
each of the multiple electrically conductive members is present on a front side and a rear side of the supporting part in a state where the flat cable is supported on the supporting part; and
each of the multiple terminals corresponding to the multiple electrically conductive members includes, as the at least one contact, a pair of contacts to be in contact with a corresponding one of the multiple electrically conductive members present on the front side and the rear side of the supporting part with the supporting part in-between.

12. The cable holding member of claim 10 , wherein
the flat cable has part to be bent when supported on the supporting part, and the part being provided with a flexible structure for making the part more flexible than a remaining part of the flat cable.

13. The connector device of claim 12 , wherein
the flexible structure is defined as a penetrating structure in which at least one of one or more holes and one or more cut-outs is formed at the part of the flat cable to be bent when supported on the supporting part so as to penetrate the flat cable in a thickness direction of the flat cable.

14. The connector device of claim 12 , wherein
the flexible structure is defined as a thin structure obtained by making the part of the flat cable to be bent when supported on the supporting part be thinner than a remaining part of the flat cable.

15. The connector device of claim 12 , wherein:
a reinforcing part in a film shape is provided to a surface of the flat cable except the part to be bent when supported on the supporting part; and
the flexible structure is defined as a structure in which the reinforcing part is not provided to the surface of the flat cable with regard to the part to be bent when supported on the supporting part.

16. A flat cable in a strip shape to be supported in a folded state on the supporting part of the cable holding member of claim 1 ,
the flat cable comprising:
a substrate where multiple electrically conductive members are arranged side by side in a width direction of the flat cable; and
at least one first protrusion protruding outward in the width direction of the flat cable from a side edge of the substrate in the width direction of the flat cable,

the substrate having part to be bent when supported on the supporting part, and the part being provided with a flexible structure for making the part more flexible than a remaining part of the substrate.

17. The flat cable of claim 16 , wherein
the flexible structure is defined as a penetrating structure in which at least one of one or more holes and one or more cut-outs is formed at the part to be bent when supported on the suppo

Assignees

• Panasonic Ip Man Co Ltd

Inventors

• Okura Kenji
• Ito Chikara
• Iida Mitsuru

Classifications

• H01R12/774 Primary

  Retainers · CPC title