U.S. patent application number 16/044284 was filed with the patent office on 2019-01-31 for connector.
The applicant listed for this patent is Yazaki Corporation. Invention is credited to Kengo Aoshima.
Application Number | 20190036270 16/044284 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 65003980 |
Filed Date | 2019-01-31 |
United States Patent
Application |
20190036270 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Aoshima; Kengo |
January 31, 2019 |
CONNECTOR
Abstract
Provided are: a male terminal which has an outer peripheral wall
side of a tubular terminal connection portion as a contact point
with a mating terminal; an insulating insulation member which is
configured to achieve electrical insulation of a distal end of the
terminal connection portion on a side of a mating connector; and an
insulating housing which accommodates the male terminal and the
insulation member.
Inventors: |
Aoshima; Kengo; (Shizuoka,
JP) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Yazaki Corporation |
Tokyo |
|
JP |
|
|
Family ID: |
65003980 |
Appl. No.: |
16/044284 |
Filed: |
July 24, 2018 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H05K 5/0247 20130101;
H01R 13/11 20130101; H05K 7/2039 20130101; H01R 13/502 20130101;
H01R 13/052 20130101; H01R 13/6581 20130101; H01R 13/533
20130101 |
International
Class: |
H01R 13/533 20060101
H01R013/533; H01R 13/6581 20060101 H01R013/6581; H05K 7/20 20060101
H05K007/20; H01R 13/502 20060101 H01R013/502; H01R 13/11 20060101
H01R013/11 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Jul 28, 2017 |
JP |
2017-147010 |
Claims
1. A connector comprising: a male terminal which has an outer
peripheral wall side of a tubular terminal connection portion as a
contact point with a mating terminal; an insulating insulation
member that achieves electrical insulation of a distal end of the
terminal connection portion on a side of a mating connector; and an
insulating housing that accommodates the male terminal and the
insulation member, wherein the insulation member includes: a distal
end insulation portion provided at the distal end of the terminal
connection portion; a shaft portion extending from the distal end
insulation portion along a space inside the terminal connection
portion, and at least one heat dissipating portion which is a
portion protruding from the shaft portion toward an outside of the
terminal connection portion in a direction intersecting a cylinder
axis of the terminal connection portion, and is capable of
dissipating heat at the outside of the terminal connection
portion.
2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the housing has a
fixing portion which is attached to a connector installation
target, and the heat dissipating portion is brought into contact
with the connector installation target when the housing is attached
to the connector installation target.
3. The connector according to claim 2, wherein the heat dissipating
portion is sandwiched between the housing and the connector
installation target when the housing is attached to the connector
installation target.
4. The connector according to claim 2, wherein the heat dissipating
portion is brought into contact with a portion of the connector
installation target having a higher thermal conductivity than that
of the insulation member.
5. The connector according to claim 3, wherein the heat dissipating
portion is brought into contact with a portion of the connector
installation target having a higher thermal conductivity than that
of the insulation member.
6. The connector according to claim 1, further comprising: a shield
member which has both an electrical conductivity and a high thermal
conductivity, electrically shields an inside of the housing, and is
brought into contact with the connector installation target,
wherein the heat dissipating portion is brought into contact with
the shield member.
7. The connector according to claim 2, further comprising: a shield
member which has both an electrical conductivity and a high thermal
conductivity, electrically shields an inside of the housing, and is
brought into contact with the connector installation target,
wherein the heat dissipating portion is brought into contact with
the shield member.
8. The connector according to claim 3, further comprising: a shield
member which has both an electrical conductivity and a high thermal
conductivity, electrically shields an inside of the housing, and is
brought into contact with the connector installation target,
wherein the heat dissipating portion is brought into contact with
the shield member.
9. The connector according to claim 4, further comprising: a shield
member which has both an electrical conductivity and a high thermal
conductivity, electrically shields an inside of the housing, and is
brought into contact with the connector installation target,
wherein the heat dissipating portion is brought into contact with
the shield member.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)
[0001] The present application claims priority to and incorporates
by reference the entire contents of Japanese Patent Application No.
2017-147010 filed in Japan on Jul. 28, 2017.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a connector.
2. Description of the Related Art
[0003] Conventionally, a female connector and a male connector
which electrically connect male and female terminals, separately
provided, to each other have been known as connectors. For example,
the female connector includes a female terminal having a tubular
terminal connection portion, and a housing accommodating the female
terminal. On the other hand, the male connector includes a male
terminal having a shaft-shaped terminal connection portion, and a
housing accommodating the male terminal. As the housings of the
female connector and the male connector are inserted and fitted to
each other, the terminal connection portion of the male terminal is
inserted and fitted to a space inside the terminal connection
portion of the female terminal. A connector of this type is
disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open
No. 2016-72009 below. Here, in the connectors which have been
fitted to each other, the female terminal and the male terminal
generate heat as a current flows thereto, and temperatures of
components including the female terminal and the male terminal
rise. In particular, each amount of heat generation of the female
terminal and the male terminal increases when a large current
flows, and thus, there is a possibility that cost for the
temperature rise of the components becomes great. For example, in
the connector of Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No.
2016-72009, a male terminal is screwed to a nut, fixed to a fixing
portion of a housing, and heat of the male terminal is released to
the fixing portion via the nut as a heat transfer component.
[0004] Meanwhile, the conventional connector is provided with the
heat transfer component in order to release the heat of the male
terminal as described above. That is, the number of components is
increased in order to release the heat of the male terminal in the
conventional connector. The conventional connector has room for
improvement in this point of view.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide
a connector capable of suppressing a temperature rise while
suppressing an increase in the number of components.
[0006] A connector according to one aspect of the present invention
includes a male terminal which has an outer peripheral wall side of
a tubular terminal connection portion as a contact point with a
mating terminal; an insulating insulation member that achieves
electrical insulation of a distal end of the terminal connection
portion on a side of a mating connector; and an insulating housing
which accommodates the male terminal and the insulation member,
wherein the insulation member includes: a distal end insulation
portion provided at the distal end of the terminal connection
portion; a shaft portion extending from the distal end insulation
portion along a space inside the terminal connection portion, and
at least one heat dissipating portion which is a portion protruding
from the shaft portion toward an outside of the terminal connection
portion in a direction intersecting a cylinder axis of the terminal
connection portion, and is capable of dissipating heat at the
outside of the terminal connection portion.
[0007] According to another aspect of the present invention, in the
connector, it is preferable that the housing has a fixing portion
which is attached to a connector installation target, and the heat
dissipating portion is brought into contact with the connector
installation target when the housing is attached to the connector
installation target.
[0008] According to still another aspect of the present invention,
in the connector, it is preferable that the heat dissipating
portion is sandwiched between the housing and the connector
installation target when the housing is attached to the connector
installation target.
[0009] According to still another aspect of the present invention,
in the connector, it is preferable that the heat dissipating
portion is brought into contact with a portion of the connector
installation target having a higher thermal conductivity than that
of the insulation member.
[0010] According to still another aspect of the present invention,
it is preferable that the connector further includes a shield
member which has both an electrical conductivity and a high thermal
conductivity, electrically shields an inside of the housing, and is
brought into contact with the connector installation target,
wherein the heat dissipating portion is brought into contact with
the shield member.
[0011] The above and other objects, features, advantages and
technical and industrial significance of this invention will be
better understood by reading the following detailed description of
presently preferred embodiments of the invention, when considered
in connection with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a connector of an
embodiment together with a mating connector;
[0013] FIG. 2 is a front view illustrating the connector of the
embodiment;
[0014] FIG. 3 is a partially exploded perspective view of the
connector of the embodiment;
[0015] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line X-X of
FIG. 2;
[0016] FIG. 5 is a front view illustrating the mating
connector;
[0017] FIG. 6 is a partially exploded perspective view of the
mating connector;
[0018] FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating a product obtained
by integrating a male terminal and an insulation member;
[0019] FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating the male
terminal;
[0020] FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the male terminal as viewed
from another angle; and
[0021] FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating the insulation
member.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0022] Hereinafter, embodiments of a connector according to the
present invention will be described in detail with reference to the
drawings. Incidentally, the invention is not limited by the
embodiments.
Embodiment
[0023] One of embodiments of the connector according to the present
invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 10.
[0024] Reference numeral 1 in FIGS. 1 to 4 represents a connector
according to the present embodiment. The connector 1 is attached to
an object to be installed (hereinafter referred to as a "connector
installation target") 100 (FIGS. 1, 2 and 4). Incidentally, a
housing 30 is integrated with a male terminal 10 by insert-molding
in the connector 1 as will be described later. Therefore, FIG. 3
illustrates the housing 30 which has been taken out from the male
terminal 10 after the insert-molding for convenience of
description.
[0025] The connector installation target 100 is an object to be
electrically connected to a mating connector 200 (FIGS. 1, 5 and 6)
and examples thereof includes drive devices of a vehicle (an
electric motor, an inverter, and the like of an electric car or a
hybrid vehicle), electrical equipment (such as an actuator) serving
as a load, and the like. The connector installation target 100
includes a main body (not illustrated) to be electrically connected
and a holding member 101 (FIGS. 1, 2, and 4) that holds the main
body. The holding member 101 indicates, for example, a casing such
as an accommodating member that accommodates the main body, a frame
that holds and supports the main body, and the like. The mating
connector 200 indicates a connector that is physically and
electrically connected to the connector 1 of the present
embodiment. The mating connector 200 is electrically connected to
the main body of the connector installation target 100 via the
connector 1 of the present embodiment.
[0026] The connector 1 is a so-called male connector and includes a
male-type terminal (hereinafter referred to as a "male terminal")
10 (FIGS. 1, 3, 4 and 7 to 9). As the connector 1 is inserted and
fitted to the mating connector 200 which is a female connector, the
male terminal 10 is physically and electrically connected to a
female terminal 201 (FIGS. 5 and 6) which is a mating terminal.
[0027] The male terminal 10 is molded into the mail type using a
conductive material such as metal. Here, a male terminal fitting
molded using a metal material such as copper, a copper alloy,
aluminum, and an aluminum alloy is illustrated as an example of the
male terminal 10. The male terminal 10 includes a terminal
connection portion 11, an electrical connection portion 12, and a
coupling portion 13 (FIGS. 3, 4, and 7 to 9).
[0028] The terminal connection portion 11 is a portion to be
physically and electrically connected to the female terminal 201.
The terminal connection portion 11 is formed in a tubular shape,
and an outer peripheral wall side thereof is used as a contact
point with a terminal connection portion 201a (FIGS. 5 and 6) of
the female terminal 201. The terminal connection portion 201a of
the female terminal 201 is formed into a tubular shape so that the
terminal connection portion 11 of the male terminal 10 can be
inserted into an internal space thereof. Here, each of the terminal
connection portions 11 and 201a is formed into the straight
cylindrical shape. The terminal connection portion 11 of the male
terminal 10 is fitted to the terminal connection portion 201a and
is physically and electrically connected to the terminal connection
portion 201a by being inserted into the space at the inner side of
the terminal connection portion 201a of the female terminal 201. In
the terminal connection portion 11 of the male terminal 10, an end
on a side of the mating connector 200 (that is, an inserting
direction side toward the terminal connection portion 201a of the
female terminal 201) is set as a distal end 11a, and an end on the
opposite side of the end (distal end 11a) is set as a rear end 11b
(FIGS. 3, 4, and 7 to 9).
[0029] The electrical connection portion 12 is a portion to be
electrically connected to the main body of the connector
installation target 100. When the connector 1 is attached to the
connector installation target 100, the electrical connection
portion 12 is arranged in an internal space of the holding member
101 as the casing, and is electrically connected to the main body
in the internal space. The electrical connection portion 12 in this
example is formed into a shape such as a so-called rectangular
terminal that is physically and electrically connected to a
counterpart by screwing.
[0030] The coupling portion 13 is a portion connecting the terminal
connection portion 11 and the electrical connection portion 12. The
coupling portion 13 is formed in a shaft shape. The coupling
portion 13 has one end coupled with the terminal connection portion
11 and the other end coupled with the electrical connection portion
12. The coupling portion 13 in this example is formed in a straight
columnar shape and is arranged coaxially with a cylinder axis of
the terminal connection portion 11. The rear end 11b of the
terminal connection portion 11 is connected to the coupling portion
13.
[0031] The two male terminals 10 are arranged side by side in the
connector 1 (FIG. 3).
[0032] The connector 1 further includes an insulating insulation
member 20 configured to achieve electrical insulation of the distal
end 11a of the terminal connection portion 11 (FIGS. 2 to 4, 7, and
10). The insulation member 20 is molded using an insulating
material such as synthetic resin. This insulation member 20 is
provided for each of the male terminals 10. Incidentally, the
insulation member 20 is integrated with the male terminal 10 by
insert-molding as will be described later. Therefore, FIG. 10
illustrates the insulation member 20 which has been taken out from
the male terminal 10 after the insert-molding for convenience of
description.
[0033] The insulation member 20 is used not only for the electrical
insulation of the distal end 11a of the terminal connection portion
11 but also for heat dissipation of the male terminal 10 as will be
described later. Accordingly, it is desirable to use a material
having a high thermal conductivity among the insulating materials
for the insulation member 20. In addition, it is desirable to mold
the insulation member 20 using a material having a higher thermal
conductivity than that of the housing 30 to be described later. For
example, here, PPS (Poly Phenylene Sulfide) is used for the
insulation member 20 and PBT (Polybutylene Terephthalate) is used
for the housing 30.
[0034] The insulation member 20 has a distal end insulation portion
21 provided at the distal end 11a of the terminal connection
portion 11 (FIGS. 2 to 4, 7, and 10). The distal end insulation
portion 21 is a portion configured to achieve the electrical
insulation of the distal end 11a of the terminal connection portion
11. The distal end insulation portion 21 is formed in a columnar
shape and is arranged in the state of protruding from the distal
end 11a on an end surface of the distal end 11a of the terminal
connection portion 11. Here, the distal end insulation portion 21
is formed so as to have a columnar shape having a circular cross
section orthogonal to the axial direction in accordance with the
cylindrical terminal connection portion 11.
[0035] This insulation member 20 achieves electrical insulation of
the distal end 11a of the terminal connection portion 11 at the
distal end insulation portion 21, and has not only such a function
for electrical insulation but also a function for releasing heat
generated by energization between the male terminal 10 and the
female terminal 201.
[0036] When the terminal connection portion 11 generates heat
accompanying energization, the male terminal 10 transmits the heat
to the coupling portion 13 and further transmits the heat from the
coupling portion 13 to the electrical connection portion 12. As
will be described later, a side of the coupling portion 13 facing
the electrical connection portion 12 and the electrical connection
portion 12 are arranged outside the housing 30 in the male terminal
10. Accordingly, the heat generated in the terminal connection
portion 11 is dissipated to the atmosphere of the internal space of
the holding member 101 serving as the casing, for example, via the
coupling portion 13 and the electrical connection portion 12.
However, the amount of heat generation at the terminal connection
portion 11 increases when a large current flows, and thus, it is
necessary to dissipate more heat.
[0037] Therefore, the connector 1 is configured such that the heat
generated in the terminal connection portion 11 is dissipated via
the insulation member 20. The male terminal 10 has a shaft portion
22 which serves as a heat receiving portion of the heat generated
in the terminal connection portion 11 and a heat dissipating
portion 23 which dissipates the heat (FIGS. 4, 7, and 10).
[0038] The shaft portion 22 is a portion which extends from the
distal end insulation portion 21 along a space 11c inside the
terminal connection portion 11 (FIGS. 4, 7, and 8). The shaft
portion 22 is formed so as to be in close contact with an inner
peripheral wall of the space 11c, and receives the heat of the
terminal connection portion 11 from the inner peripheral wall.
Here, the shaft portion 22 is formed in a columnar shape in
accordance with the cylindrical terminal connection portion 11. The
shaft portion 22 extends from the distal end 11a to the rear end
11b of the terminal connection portion 11.
[0039] The heat dissipating portion 23 is a portion which protrudes
from the shaft portion 22 toward the outside of the terminal
connection portion 11 in a direction intersecting a cylinder axis
of the terminal connection portion 11. That is, the heat
dissipating portion 23 can receive the heat that has transmitted
through the shaft portion 22 and dissipate the heat outside the
terminal connection portion 11. The terminal connection portion 11
has a through hole 11d for communicating the inner space 11c with
the outside (FIGS. 8 and 9). The heat dissipating portion 23 is
connected between the space 11c inside the terminal connection
portion 11 and the outside through the through hole 11d.
[0040] At least one heat dissipating portion 23 is provided. For
example, the heat dissipating portion 23 is formed to protrude from
the shaft portion 22 in a shaft shape. Here, the two shaft-shaped
heat dissipating portions 23, which protrude in a direction
orthogonal to the cylinder axis of the terminal connection portion
11, are provided (FIGS. 3, 4, 7, and 10). The respective heat
dissipating portions 23 protrude in directions opposite to each
other at the rear end 11b of the terminal connection portion
11.
[0041] The connector 1 further includes the insulating housing 30
which accommodates the male terminal 10 and the insulation member
20 (FIGS. 1 to 4). The housing 30 is molded using an insulating
material such as synthetic resin. As described above, the housing
30 is molded using PBT in this example.
[0042] The housing 30 has a fitting portion 31 (FIGS. 1 to 4). The
fitting portion 31 is inserted and fitted to a fitting portion 202a
(FIGS. 1, 5, and 6) of a mating housing 202. The fitting portion 31
is formed in a tubular shape having an elliptical cross section.
The fitting portion 202a is formed in a tubular shape so as to
serve as an inner space of the elliptical cross section into which
the fitting portion 31 can be inserted. A seal member 41,
configured to improve liquid tightness, is provided between the
respective fitting portions 31 and 202a (FIG. 5).
[0043] Two sets of a combination of the male terminal 10 and the
insulation member 20 are accommodated in a space inside the fitting
portion 31. The fitting portion 31 has two columnar spaces along a
cylinder axis direction at an inside thereof, and the respective
spaces are used as male terminal accommodating chambers 32 (FIGS. 1
to 4). Each one set of the combination of the male terminal 10 and
the insulation member 20 is accommodated in each of the male
terminal accommodating chambers 32. The terminal connection portion
11 of the male terminal 10 and the distal end insulation portion 21
and the shaft portion 22 of the insulation member 20 are
accommodated in the male terminal accommodating chamber 32 in this
example.
[0044] The male terminal accommodating chamber 32 becomes a
cylindrical space in the state where the male terminal 10 and the
insulation member 20 are accommodated. When the connector 1 and the
mating connector 200 are inserted and fitted to each other, a
female terminal accommodating portion 202b (FIGS. 5 and 6) of the
mating housing 202 is inserted into this cylindrical male terminal
accommodating chamber 32 through an opening 31a.sub.1 (FIGS. 1 to
4) at one end 31a of the fitting portion 31. The female terminal
accommodating portion 202b is formed in a cylindrical shape and
accommodates the female terminal 201 in a space inside thereof.
Accordingly, the terminal connection portion 11 of the male
terminal 10 is inserted and fitted to the terminal connection
portion 201a of the female terminal 201 as the female terminal
accommodating portion 202b is inserted into the cylindrical male
terminal accommodating chamber 32.
[0045] In this manner, the male terminal 10 is accommodated inside
the fitting portion 31 in the housing 30. Therefore, the connector
1 has a shield member 50 which electrically shields the inside of
the fitting portion 31 of the housing 30 (FIGS. 1 to 4). The shield
member 50 is molded into a tubular shape having an elliptical cross
section using a conductive material, and is provided on the fitting
portion 31 while aligning cylinder axes thereof. Here, the shield
member 50 is molded using a member (a metal material or the like)
having both an electrical conductivity and a high thermal
conductivity. The shield member 50 in this example has a tubular
shield main body 51 that covers an outer peripheral wall of the
fitting portion 31 from the outside (FIGS. 1 to 4). In addition,
the shield member 50 in this example is fastened to a fixed portion
101a (FIG. 1) of the holding member 101 together with a fixing
portion 34 (FIGS. 1 to 4) of the housing 30 by a screw member (not
illustrated) as will be described later. Accordingly, here, the
shield member 50 has a fixing portion 52 which is fixed to the
fixed portion 101a at the time of fastening together (FIG. 4). The
fixing portion 52 is fixed in the state of being in contact with
the fixed portion 101a. That is, at least a part of the shield
member 50 in this example including the fixing portion 52 is
brought into contact with the holding member 101.
[0046] The housing 30 has a cylindrical holding portion 33 at an
end (the other end 31b) of the fitting portion 31 on a side
opposite to the opening 31a.sub.1 (FIGS. 1, 3, and 4). The holding
portion 33 is arranged coaxially with the male terminal
accommodating chamber 32, and holds the coupling portion 13 of the
male terminal 10 in a space inside thereof. The holding portion 33
is provided for each of the male terminals 10. A cylindrical rear
holder 60 is fitted to the holding portion 33 (FIGS. 1, 3, and 4).
The coupling portion 13 protrudes from the rear holder 60.
[0047] The housing 30 has the fixing portion 34 which is attached
to the connector installation target 100 (FIGS. 1 to 4). The fixing
portion 34 is a portion formed in a flange shape at the other end
31b of the fitting portion 31. The fixing portion 34 is fixed to
the fixed portion 101a (FIG. 1) of the connector installation
target 100 by screwing using a screw member (not illustrated). The
fixed portion 101a is a part of the holding member 101. The holding
member 101 has a through hole 101b (FIGS. 1 and 4) through which
the other end 31b of the fitting portion 31 is inserted, and a
predetermined region including a peripheral edge of the through
hole 101b is used as the fixed portion 101a. An annular seal member
42 (FIGS. 1, 3 and 4) configured to improve liquid tightness is
provided between the other end 31b and the through hole 101b. In
the state where the other end 31b is inserted through the through
hole 101b, flat surfaces 34a and 101a.sub.1 of the fixing portion
34 and the fixed portion 101a are brought into close contact with
each other (FIG. 4). In this connector 1, the fixing portion 52 of
the shield member 50 is fastened in the state of being in contact
with the fixed portion 101a when screwing the fixing portion 34 and
the fixed portion 101a.
[0048] The heat dissipating portion 23 described above is brought
into contact with the connector installation target 100 when the
housing 30 is attached to the connector installation target 100.
The heat dissipating portion 23 is desirably sandwiched between the
housing 30 and the connector installation target 100 in order to
maintain the contact state with the connector installation target
100. The heat dissipating portion 23 transmits the heat received
from the shaft portion 22 to the connector installation target 100
by being brought into contact with the connector installation
target 100. Therefore, the heat dissipating portion 23 is desirably
brought into contact with a portion having a higher thermal
conductivity than the insulation member 20 in the connector
installation target 100. In this example, the holding member 101 of
the connector installation target 100 is molded using aluminum
having a higher thermal conductivity than the insulation member
20.
[0049] Thus, the heat dissipating portion 23 is brought into
contact with the holding member 101.
[0050] The heat dissipating portion 23 in this example is brought
into contact with the fixed portion 101a of the holding member 101.
In this example, the heat dissipating portion 23 is formed so as to
be flush with the flat surface 34a of the fixing portion 34, and
the heat dissipating portion 23 is brought into close contact with
the fixed portion 101a when the fixing portion 34 and the fixed
portion 101a are fixed. That is, here, the heat dissipating portion
23 is sandwiched between the fixing portion 34 and the fixed
portion 101a.
[0051] In the connector 1 configured in this manner, the male
terminal 10 and the shield member 50 is separately molded. Further,
in the connector 1, the insulation member 20 is insert-molded in a
die in which the male terminal 10 is arranged. Thereafter, in the
connector 1, the housing 30 is insert-molded in a die in which the
integrated body of the male terminal 10 and the insulation member
20 and the shield member 50 are arranged.
[0052] Since the connector 1 is formed by such insert-molding, the
male terminal 10 and the insulation member 20 can be brought into
close contact with each other, and the insulation member 20 can
receive the heat of the male terminal 10. For example, since the
shaft portion 22 can be arranged in close contact with the space
11c inside the terminal connection portion 11, the insulation
member 20 can receive the heat of the terminal connection portion
11 which is a heat source from the inner peripheral wall of the
space 11c.
[0053] In addition, since the housing 30 is also insert-molded with
respect to the insulation member 20 in the connector 1, the heat
dissipating portion 23 of the insulation member 20 and the fixing
portion 34 of the housing 30 can be brought into close contact with
each other. Accordingly, the heat can be transferred from a
high-temperature side to a low-temperature side between the
insulation member 20 and the housing 30 in this connector 1. For
example, when the temperature of the insulation member 20 is higher
than that of the housing 30, the heat dissipating portion 23 can
dissipate the heat received from the shaft portion 22 to the
connector installation target 100, and further, dissipate the heat
even to the fixing portion 34 of the housing 30. In addition, when
the temperature of the insulation member 20 is lower than that of
the housing 30, the heat dissipating portion 23 not only receives
heat from the shaft portion 22 but also receives heat from the
fixing portion 34 of the housing 30. The heat dissipating portion
23 in this case dissipates the heat received from the shaft portion
22 and the fixing portion 34 to the connector installation target
100.
[0054] As described above, the connector 1 of the present
embodiment can receive the heat of the male terminal 10 generated
accompanying the energization and the heat of the housing 30
generated accompanying the heat generation of the male terminal 10
using the insulation member 20, and dissipate the received heat to
the surroundings of the connector installation target 100 and the
like. Therefore, the connector 1 can suppress the temperature rise
of the male terminal 10, and accordingly, can suppress the
temperature rise of the housing 30 and inside the housing 30. In
addition, the connector 1 of the present embodiment imparts the
functions of receiving and dissipating the heat to the insulation
member 20 configured to achieve the electrical insulation of the
distal end 11a of the terminal connection portion 11. That is, this
connector 1 is not newly provided with a dedicated component
configured to suppress the temperature rise accompanying the
energization. In this manner, the connector 1 of the present
embodiment can suppress the temperature rise while suppressing the
increase in the number of components.
[0055] Here, the shield member 50 has both the electrical
conductivity and the high thermal conductivity in the connector 1
as described above. Further, the shield member 50 is brought into
contact with the holding member 101 (the fixed portion 101a) of the
connector installation target 100 via the fixing portion 52. That
is, the heat is transferred also between the shield member 50 and
the connector installation target 100 in this connector 1. Thus,
the heat dissipating portion 23 is also brought into contact with
the shield member 50. For example, the heat dissipating portion 23
is brought into contact with a part of the shield main body 51. As
a result, the heat dissipating portion 23 can transmit the heat
received by itself to the shield member 50. That is, the heat
dissipating portion 23 in this example can dissipate the heat
received by itself to the connector installation target 100 via the
shield member 50. Therefore, the connector 1 of the present
embodiment further improves the heat dissipation property.
[0056] A connector according to the present embodiments can receive
heat of a male terminal generated accompanying energization using
an insulation member, and dissipate the received heat from a heat
dissipating portion to the surroundings of a connector installation
target or the like. Therefore, this connector can suppress the
temperature rise of the male terminal, and accordingly, can also
suppress a temperature rise of the housing and inside the housing.
In addition, the connector according to the present embodiments
imparts functions of receiving and dissipating the heat to the
insulation member configured to achieve electrical insulation of a
distal end of the terminal connection portion. That is, this
connector is not newly provided with a dedicated component
configured to suppress the temperature rise accompanying the
energization. In this manner, the connector according to the
present embodiments can suppress the temperature rise while
suppressing an increase in the number of components.
[0057] Although the invention has been described with respect to
specific embodiments for a complete and clear disclosure, the
appended claims are not to be thus limited but are to be construed
as embodying all modifications and alternative constructions that
may occur to one skilled in the art that fairly fall within the
basic teaching herein set forth.
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