Female terminal

• US 5,108,318 A
• Filed: 03/20/1991
• Issued: 04/28/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/1990
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Yazaki Corporation
• Original Assignee: Yazaki Corporation
• Inventors: Yamamoto, Masayuki, Sakurai, Kazuaki, Hatagishi, Yuji
• Primary Examiner(s): McGlynn, Joseph H.
• Application Number:
  US07/672,568
• Time in Patent Office: 405 Days
• Field of Search: 439/744, 439/283, 439/843
• US Class Current: 439/744
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/111 co-operating with pins having a circular transverse section
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/4223 comprising integral flexible contact retaining fingers

Abstract

A female terminal includes a female terminal member and a protective sleeve. The female terminal member has a receptacle section to which a male terminal is to be connected and an electrical wire connecting section to which an electrical wire is to be connected. The receptacle section has a base cylindrical part and a flexible contact part extending from the base cylindrical part. The protective sleeve for protectively covering the receptable section of the female terminal member is fitted around the receptacle section. The sleeve has a base cylindrical portion fixedly fitted onto the base cylindrical part of the receptacle section and an enlarged diameter portion integrally connected to the base cylindrical portion through a step portion. When the female terminal thus constituted is fitted in a connector housing, at least one stopper arm provided in the connector housing come to engage with the step portion to securely hold the female terminal in the housing. The engagement between the stopper arm and the step portion of the female sleeve is made relatively near from a front opening of the housing.

Claims

1. A female terminal to be fitted in a connector housing cavity which includes an inner surface and a front opening, said female terminal comprising:

a terminal member having an electrical wire connecting section to which an electrical wire is to be connected and a female receptacle section, said receptacle section including means for receiving a male terminal and comprising a base cylindrical part and a flexible contact part extending from the base cylindrical part adapted for receiving the male terminal therein, and a flexible contact part having a tip part; and

means for protectively covering only the receptacle section of the female terminal member, comprising a protective sleeve which further includes;

a base cylindrical portion fixedly fitted onto the base cylindrical part of the receptacle section;

an enlarged diameter portion integrally connected to the base cylindrical portion for allowing sufficient deformation of the tip part of the flexible contact part to make the insertion of the make terminal easy when the male terminal is connected to the female terminal; and

a stepped portion circumferentially formed between the base cylindrical portion and the enlarged diameter portion, with at least one stopper arm protrudingly provided on the inner surfaces of the cavity of the connector housing and adapted to be engaged when the female terminal is fitted in the cavity to secure the female terminal in the cavity, the stepped portion being located substantially around a middle portion of the flexible contact part such that the engagement between the stepped portion and the stopper arm is made at a position relatively close to the front opening of the cavity when the female terminal is properly fitted in the cavity.

2. A female terminal as claimed in claim 1, wherein the base cylindrical portion of the protective sleeve is fixedly fitted onto the base cylindrical part of the receptacle section of the female terminal member by means of a plurality of indentations.