Covered terminals

Abstract

This prevents the terminal cover from deforming due to the reaction force of the electric wire. [Solution] The covered terminal 10 comprises a terminal cover 20, an electric wire W, a terminal 11, and a binding member. The terminal 11 has a fastening portion 12 that is fastened to a device-side connection portion provided on the mating device, and an electric wire connection portion 17 that is connected to the electric wire W. The terminal cover 20 has a terminal housing portion 21 that houses the terminal 11, and an electric wire fixing portion 25 connected to the terminal housing portion 21 through which the electric wire W is fixed and pulled out by the binding member. The electric wire fixing portion 25 is configured to allow the electric wire W to move in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction while suppressing the movement of the electric wire W in a first direction when viewed from the direction in which the electric wire W is pulled out.

Description

[[Technical Field]]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a covered terminal. [[Background Art]]

[0002] Conventionally, a covered terminal described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2022-143048 (Patent Document 1 below) is known. This covered terminal accommodates a terminal connected to an end of an electric wire in a terminal cover. The terminal is connected to a counterpart device by being fastened to a device-side connecting portion provided on the counterpart device in a state where a bolt is inserted therethrough.

[0003] The terminal includes: a bolt fastening portion that is bolted to the device-side connecting portion of the counterpart device; a core wire connecting portion that is provided on the bolt fastening portion via a connecting portion and connected to a core wire of the electric wire; and a sheath connecting portion that is connected to a sheath of the electric wire. [[Prior Art Literature]] [[Patent Literature]]

[0004] [[Patent Document 1]] Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2022-143048 [[Summary of the Invention]] [[Problem to be Solved by the Invention]]

[0005] In the terminal described above, the bolt fastening portion, the core wire connecting portion, and the sheath connecting portion are arranged side by side on the same plane. However, depending on the installation environment of the counterpart device, a terminal in which the bolt fastening portion and the core wire connecting portion are connected via a bent portion may be employed in some cases. For example, forming a bent portion requires bending a metal plate material. When the influence of springback or the like is taken into consideration, the bent portion cannot be formed at a desired angle, and the height of the bolt fastening portion may become higher or lower than an original height in some cases. Further, even when crimping the core wire connecting portion and the sheath connecting portion, the height of the bolt fastening portion may fluctuate due to fluctuations in crimping conditions.

[0006] In such cases, when the bolted fastening portion is bolted to the equipment-side connection portion of the mating equipment, the bolted fastening portion is fixed in alignment with the position of the equipment-side connection portion. As a result, the entire terminal tilts, and the electric wire also attempts to displace within the terminal cover in accordance with the tilt of the terminal. In this case, if the electric wire is a thick wire, the bending rigidity of the wire is high, and there is a risk that the terminal cover may deform due to the reaction force of the wire. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The covered terminal of this disclosure is a covered terminal comprising a terminal cover, an electric wire, a terminal, and a binding member, wherein the terminal has a fastening portion that is fastened to a device-side connection portion provided on a mating device, and an electric wire connection portion that is connected to the electric wire, and the terminal cover has a terminal housing portion that houses the terminal, and an electric wire fixing portion that is connected to the terminal housing portion and through which the electric wire is fixed and pulled out by the binding member, and the electric wire fixing portion is configured to allow the electric wire to move in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction while suppressing the movement of the electric wire in a first direction when viewed from the direction in which the electric wire is pulled out. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to this disclosure, deformation of the terminal cover due to the reaction force of the electric wire can be suppressed. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a perspective view of a covered terminal of one embodiment, seen from the wire fixing side. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a perspective view of a covered terminal of one embodiment, seen from the fastening side. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a right side view of a covered terminal according to one embodiment. [Figure 4] Figure 4 is a left side view of a covered terminal according to one embodiment. [Figure 5] Figure 5 is a plan view of a covered terminal according to one embodiment. [Figure 6]Figure 6 is a bottom view of a covered terminal according to one embodiment. [Figure 7] Figure 7 is a front view of a covered terminal according to one embodiment. [Figure 8] Figure 8 is a perspective view of a covered terminal in one embodiment, with the terminal cover in the open position. [Figure 9] Figure 9 is an exploded perspective view of a covered terminal in one embodiment, with the terminal cover in the open position. [Figure 10] Figure 10 is a cross-sectional view of AA in Figure 3. [Figure 11] Figure 11 is a left side view showing the state in which the fastening part is displaced upward during fastening. [Figure 12] Figure 12 is a left side view showing the state in which the fastening part is displaced downward during fastening. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0010] [Description of Embodiments in this Disclosure] First, the embodiments of this disclosure will be listed and described.

[0011] [1] The covered terminal of the present disclosure comprises a terminal cover, an electric wire, a terminal, and a binding member, wherein the terminal has a fastening portion that is fastened to a device-side connection portion provided on a mating device, and an electric wire connection portion that is connected to the electric wire, and the terminal cover has a terminal housing portion that houses the terminal, and an electric wire fixing portion that is connected to the terminal housing portion and through which the electric wire is fixed and pulled out by the binding member, and the electric wire fixing portion is configured to allow the electric wire to move in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction while suppressing the movement of the electric wire in a first direction when viewed from the direction in which the electric wire is pulled out.

[0012] With this configuration, the wire fixing part can restrict the movement of the wire in the first direction while allowing the wire to move in the second direction. Therefore, when the wire attempts to displace in the second direction, the wire can be moved into the movable area, thereby preventing the terminal cover from deforming due to the reaction force of the wire.

[0013] [2] In the covered terminal according to the above [1], it is preferable that the second direction is a direction in which the electric wire can move when the fastening portion is fastened to the device-side connecting portion. According to such a configuration, when the electric wire moves in the second direction due to fastening the fastening portion to the device-side connecting portion, the electric wire can be released into the movable region.

[0014] [3] In the covered terminal according to the above [1] or [2], it is preferable that the second direction is a direction in which the electric wire can rotate around the fastening portion when viewed from the first direction. According to such a configuration, when the electric wire rotates in the second direction around the fastening portion when viewed from the first direction, the electric wire can be released into the movable region.

[0015] [4] In the covered terminal according to any one of the above [1] to [3], it is preferable that the binding member is a binding band, the electric wire fixing portion has a band insertion hole through which the binding band is inserted, the binding band has an insertion portion inserted through the band insertion hole and an electric wire contact portion in contact with the electric wire, and the first direction is a direction from the electric wire contact portion toward the insertion portion. According to such a configuration, when the electric wire is fixed to the electric wire fixing portion by using the binding band, the electric wire can be fixed in the first direction between the electric wire contact portion and the insertion portion of the binding band.

[0016] [5] In the covered terminal according to any one of the above [1] to [4], it is preferable that the terminal has a connecting portion connecting the fastening portion and the electric wire connecting portion, and the connecting portion arranges the electric wire connecting portion at a predetermined angle with respect to the fastening portion. According to such a configuration, for example, even if the position of the fastening portion varies when bending the connecting portion, since the electric wire can move in the second direction, deformation of the terminal cover caused by the reaction force of the electric wire can be suppressed.

[0017] [6] In the covered terminal described in any of [1] to [5] above, it is preferable that the wire connection portion has a wire barrel portion to which the core wire of the electric wire is crimped. With this configuration, for example, even if the position of the fastening part varies when crimping the wire barrel section, the electric wire can move in the second direction, thus suppressing deformation of the terminal cover.

[0018] [Details of the embodiments of this disclosure] Specific examples of the connectors of this disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. In each drawing, some parts of the configuration may be exaggerated or simplified for the sake of explanation. Also, the dimensional ratios of each part may differ in each drawing. In this specification, "orthogonal" and "parallel" include not only cases where they are strictly orthogonal or parallel, but also cases where they are approximately orthogonal or parallel within the range that produces the effects of this embodiment. As used in this description, "cylindrical" includes not only those in which a circumferential wall is formed continuously around the entire circumference, but also those formed by combining multiple parts to form a cylinder, and those having notches or other cutouts in the circumferential direction, such as C-shapes or U-shapes. The shape of "cylindrical" includes, but is not limited to, circular, elliptical, and polygons with pointed or rounded corners. In this specification, "opposing" means that faces or members are in a position facing each other, and includes not only cases where they are completely facing each other, but also cases where they are partially facing each other. In this specification, "opposing" includes not only cases where two members are separated from each other, but also cases where two members are in contact with each other. Furthermore, terms such as "first," "second," and "third" used herein are used merely to distinguish between subjects and do not rank them. The present invention is not limited to these examples, but is shown in the claims, and all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the claims are intended.

[0019] <Embodiment> A covered terminal according to one embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 12. In the following description, the X-axis direction is defined as the front-to-back direction, the Y-axis direction as the left-to-right direction, and the Z-axis direction as the up-to-down direction. In each drawing, the direction indicated by arrow X is forward, the direction indicated by arrow Y is left, and the direction indicated by arrow Z is upward.

[0020] In this embodiment, the left-right direction shown in Figure 10 corresponds to the first direction of this disclosure, and the up-down direction shown, which is perpendicular to the left-right direction, corresponds to the second direction of this disclosure. Furthermore, the directions in each drawing do not necessarily represent the orientation of the covered terminal and the mating device (not shown) when in use. In addition, for multiple identical components, reference numerals may be assigned to only some of the components, while the reference numerals for other components are omitted.

[0021] (Overall configuration of terminal 10 with cover) As shown in Figure 9, the covered terminal 10 of this embodiment houses the terminal 11, which is connected to the end of the electric wire W, within the terminal cover 20. The terminal 11 is connected to a mating device by, for example, tightening a bolt or nut onto a device-side connection part provided on the mating device (not shown). The mating device here includes, for example, the body of a vehicle, a battery, or a terminal block provided on the device.

[0022] (Overall configuration of terminal 10 with cover) As shown in Figures 1, 9, and 10, the covered terminal 10 of this embodiment comprises a wire W, a terminal cover 20, and a terminal 11. As will be described later, the wire W is fixed to the terminal cover 20 by a cable tie 70. The cable tie 70 is an example of a fastening member of this disclosure.

[0023] Terminal 11 is provided on the covered terminal 10. As shown in Figure 9, terminal 11 has a fastening portion 12 that is fastened to a device-side connection portion provided on the mating device, a wire connection portion 17 that is connected to an electric wire, and a connecting portion 14 that connects the fastening portion 12 and the wire connection portion 17. Terminal 11 is formed by punching out a metal plate material with excellent conductivity by press working, and then bending it.

[0024] The fastening portion 12 is shaped like a roughly elliptical plate and has a fastening hole 13 through which a bolt such as a stud bolt SB is inserted when fastening to the equipment-side connection portion. On the other hand, as an example of the equipment-side connection portion, a stud bolt SB is formed on the mating equipment as shown in Figures 11 and 12. The fastening portion 12 is made to be slightly larger in dimensions than the seating surface SB1 of the stud bolt SB. When a nut (not shown) is tightened onto the stud bolt SB, the fastening portion 12 is sandwiched between the seating surface SB1 of the stud bolt SB and the nut, and the fastening portion 12 and the equipment-side connection portion are electrically connected.

[0025] The connecting portion 14 includes a first connecting portion 14A positioned adjacent to the fastening portion 12, a second connecting portion 14C positioned adjacent to the wire connection portion 17, and a bent portion 14B positioned between the first connecting portion 14A and the second connecting portion 14C. The bending angle of the bent portion 14B allows the wire connection portion 17 and the fastening portion 12 to be positioned at a predetermined angle. In this embodiment, the wire connection portion 17 is positioned at an angle of approximately 20 degrees relative to the fastening portion 12.

[0026] As shown in Figure 9, a wire W is connected to the wire connection part 17. The wire W is a well-known insulated wire having a conductive core wire and an insulating coating that covers the outer circumference of the core wire. The wire connection part 17 has a wire barrel portion 15 connected to the core wire of the wire W and an insulation barrel portion 16 connected to the insulating coating. The wire barrel portion 15 is connected to the core wire of the wire W by, for example, crimping or ultrasonic welding.

[0027] (Terminal cover 20) The terminal cover 20 comprises a terminal housing portion 21 that houses the terminal 11 in the area where the components from the fastening portion 12 of the terminal 11 to the insulation barrel portion 16 are arranged, a wire fixing portion 25 that is connected to the terminal housing portion 21 in the wire pulling direction and through which the wire W is fixed and pulled out by a cable tie 70, and a plurality of lid portions 26, 27, 28. The terminal cover 20 is molded using an insulating synthetic resin material. The plurality of lid portions 26, 27, 28 are connected to the terminal housing portion 21 via hinges.

[0028] As shown in Figures 3 to 9, the cover portion 26 is positioned to correspond to the fastening portion 12, the cover portion 27 is positioned to correspond to the connecting portion 14, the wire barrel portion 15, and the insulation barrel portion 16, and the cover portion 28 is positioned to correspond to the electric wire W drawn out from the terminal 11.

[0029] As shown in Figures 7 and 8, the wire fixing portion 25 has an upper fixing portion 25A formed on the terminal housing portion 21 side and a lower fixing portion 25B formed on the lid portion 28 side. The upper fixing portion 25A has a band insertion hole 29 through which a cable tie 70 is inserted. As shown in Figures 9 and 10, the band insertion hole 29 is formed at the outer peripheral end of the upper fixing portion 25A, opposite to the lower fixing portion 25B.

[0030] (Cable ties 70) As shown in Figure 10, the cable tie 70 has a band portion 71 and a band fixing portion 72 for fixing the band portion 71. The band portion 71 is wrapped around the right half of the upper fixing portion 25A and the right half of the lower fixing portion 25B. The electric wire W is wrapped around the band portion 71 together with the upper fixing portion 25A and the lower fixing portion 25B. The electric wire W is fixed to the electric wire fixing portion 25 by fixing the band portion 71 with the band fixing portion 72.

[0031] The band portion 71 has an insertion portion 71A that is inserted into the band insertion hole and a wire contact portion 71B that contacts the electric wire W. When the electric wire W is bundled with the cable band 70, the electric wire W is pulled toward the insertion portion 71A (in the first direction) by the wire contact portion 71B. When the electric wire W comes into contact with the inner surface of the wire fixing portion 25, the pulling of the electric wire W stops, and the electric wire W is clamped in the first direction between the wire contact portion 71B of the band portion 71 and the inner surface of the wire fixing portion 25. As a result, the electric wire W is fixed so that it cannot move in the first direction when viewed from the direction in which the electric wire is pulled out.

[0032] The solid lines in Figures 11 and 12 represent the case where there is no bending up or bending down of the fastening portion 12 during the manufacturing process of the terminal 11. The dashed-dot line in Figure 11 represents the case where there is bending up of the fastening portion 12, and the dashed-dot line in Figure 12 represents the case where there is bending down of the fastening portion 12. Note that the manufacturing process of the terminal 11 may be, for example, the process of manufacturing the terminal 11, or it may be, for example, the process of crimping the wires W.

[0033] As shown in Figure 11, when the fastening portion 12 is bent upward and the nut is fastened to the stud bolt SB, the fastening portion 12 is pushed downward toward the seating surface SB1, and as shown by the dashed line, the seating surface SB1 and the fastening portion 12 become horizontal, completing the fastening of the nut. Consequently, the terminal 11 rotates counterclockwise around the fastening portion 12, and the electric wire W connected to the electric wire connection portion 17 also rotates counterclockwise around the fastening portion 12. As a result, the electric wire W attempts to move upward relative to the electric wire fixing portion 25.

[0034] As shown in Figure 10, an upper movable region R1 is formed above the wire W, which is shown by the solid line. When the wire W attempts to move upward relative to the wire fixing portion 25, the wire W is allowed to move upward in a second direction toward the upper movable region R1. Therefore, even if the wire W contacts the inner surface of the wire fixing portion 25 from below, the reaction force of the wire W is reduced, and deformation of the terminal cover 20 is suppressed.

[0035] As shown in Figure 12, when the nut is fastened to the stud bolt SB with the fastening portion 12 bent down, the fastening portion 12 is pushed downward toward the seating surface SB1, and as shown by the dashed line, the seating surface SB1 and the fastening portion 12 become horizontal, completing the fastening of the nut. Consequently, the terminal 11 rotates clockwise around the fastening portion 12, and the electric wire W connected to the electric wire connection portion 17 also rotates clockwise around the fastening portion 12. As a result, the electric wire W attempts to move downward relative to the electric wire fixing portion 25.

[0036] As shown in Figure 10, a lower movable region R2 is formed below the wire W, which is shown by the solid line. When the wire W attempts to move downward relative to the wire fixing portion 25, the wire W is allowed to move downward in a second direction toward the lower movable region R2. Therefore, even if the wire W contacts the inner surface of the wire fixing portion 25 from above, the reaction force of the wire W is reduced, and deformation of the terminal cover 20 is suppressed.

[0037] (Effects of the embodiment) (1) The covered terminal 10 comprises a terminal cover 20, an electric wire W, a terminal 11, and a cable tie 70, wherein the terminal 11 has a fastening portion 12 that is fastened to a stud bolt SB provided on the mating device, and an electric wire connection portion 17 that is connected to the electric wire W, and the terminal cover 20 has a terminal housing portion 21 that houses the terminal 11, and an electric wire fixing portion 25 that is connected to the terminal housing portion 21 and through which the electric wire W is fixed and pulled out by the cable tie 70, wherein the electric wire fixing portion 25 is configured to allow the electric wire W to move in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction while suppressing the movement of the electric wire W in a first direction when viewed from the direction in which the electric wire W is pulled out.

[0038] With this configuration, the wire fixing part 25 can suppress the movement of the wire W in the first direction while allowing the wire W to move in the second direction. Therefore, when the wire W attempts to displace in the second direction, the terminal cover 20 can be prevented from deforming due to the reaction force of the wire W by allowing the wire W to escape into the movable regions R1 and R2.

[0039] (2) The second direction is the direction in which the electric wire W can move when fastening the fastening portion 12 to the stud bolt SB. With this configuration, when the electric wire W moves in the second direction by fastening the fastening part 12 to the stud bolt SB, it becomes possible to move the electric wire W into the movable areas R1 and R2.

[0040] (3) The second direction is the direction in which the electric wire W can rotate around the fastening portion 12 when viewed from the first direction. With this configuration, when the electric wire W rotates in the second direction around the fastening portion 12 when viewed from the first direction, it becomes possible to move the electric wire W into the movable regions R1 and R2.

[0041] (4) The wire fixing portion 25 has a band insertion hole 29 through which the cable tie 70 is inserted, and the cable tie 70 has an insertion portion 71A that is inserted into the band insertion hole 29 and a wire contact portion 71B that contacts the wire W, and the first direction is the direction from the wire contact portion 71B toward the insertion portion 71A. With this configuration, when the electric wire W is fixed to the electric wire fixing part 25 using the cable tie 70, the electric wire W can be fixed in the first direction between the electric wire contact part 71B and the insertion part 71A of the cable tie 70.

[0042] (5) The terminal 11 has a connecting portion 14 that connects the fastening portion 12 and the wire connection portion 17, and the connecting portion 14 positions the wire connection portion 17 at a predetermined angle with respect to the fastening portion 12. With this configuration, for example, even if the position of the fastening portion 12 varies when bending the connecting portion 14, the electric wire W can move in the second direction, thus suppressing deformation of the terminal cover 20 due to the reaction force of the electric wire W.

[0043] (6) The wire connection section 17 has a wire barrel section 15 to which the core wire of the electric wire W is crimped. With this configuration, for example, even if the position of the fastening portion 12 varies when crimping the wire barrel portion 15, the electric wire W can move in the second direction, thus suppressing deformation of the terminal cover 20.

[0044] (Other embodiments) This embodiment can be implemented with the following modifications. This embodiment and the following modifications can be combined with each other to the extent that they do not contradict each other technically.

[0045] In the above embodiment, a cable tie 70 was exemplified as the fastening member, but a fastening method using tape may also be employed, in which case the fastening member is tape.

[0046] In the above embodiment, the example shows that the electric wire W moves to the movable regions R1 and R2 by bending up or down of the fastening portion 12. However, if there is no bending up or down of the fastening portion 12, the electric wire W may not move to the movable regions R1 and R2.

[0047] In the above embodiment, bending of the connecting portion 14 and crimping of the wire barrel portion 15 were given as examples of bend-up or factors causing bend-up, but other factors may also be used.

[0048] In the above embodiment, the terminal 11 has a connecting portion 14 that connects the fastening portion 12 and the wire connection portion 17, and the connecting portion 14 is positioned so that the wire connection portion 17 is positioned at a predetermined angle with respect to the fastening portion 12, but the predetermined angle may be approximately 180 degrees. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0049] 10: Covered terminals 11: Terminals 12: Fastening section 13: Fastening hole 14: Connecting section 14A: First connecting section 14B: Bent section 14C: Second connecting section 15: Wire barrel section 16: Insulation barrel section 17: Wire connection section 20: Terminal cover 21: Terminal housing section 25: Electric wire fixing part 25A: Upper fixed part 25B: Lower fixing part 26: Lid 27: Lid 28: Lid 29: Band insertion hole 70: Cable ties (fastening materials) 71: Band Club 71A: Insertion section 71B: Wire contact part 72: Band fixing part R1: Upper movable area R2: Lower movable area SB: Stud bolt SB1: Seat W: Electric wire

Claims

1. A covered terminal comprising a terminal cover, an electric wire, a terminal, and a binding member, The terminal has a fastening portion that is fastened to a device-side connection portion provided on the other device, and a wire connection portion that is connected to the wire. The terminal cover has a terminal housing portion for housing the terminal and a wire fixing portion connected to the terminal housing portion through which the wire is fixed and pulled out by the binding member. The wire fixing portion is a covered terminal configured to restrict the movement of the wire in a first direction when viewed from the direction in which the wire is pulled out, while allowing the wire to move in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction.

2. The covered terminal according to claim 1, wherein the second direction is the direction in which the electric wire can move when the fastening portion is fastened to the equipment-side connection portion.

3. The covered terminal according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the second direction is a direction in which the electric wire can rotate around the fastening portion when viewed from the first direction.

4. The fastening member is a cable tie, The wire fixing portion has a band insertion hole through which the cable tie is inserted, The aforementioned cable tie has an insertion portion that is inserted through the band insertion hole and a wire contact portion that contacts the electric wire, The terminal with a cover according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the first direction is the direction from the wire contact portion toward the insertion portion.

5. The terminal has a connecting portion that connects the fastening portion and the wire connection portion, and the connecting portion causes the wire connection portion to be positioned at a predetermined angle with respect to the fastening portion, as described in claim 1 or claim 2.

6. The terminal with a cover according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the wire connection portion has a wire barrel portion to which the core wire of the electric wire is crimped.

Images