Fastener and device

Abstract

To provide a fastener and a device, capable of suppressing a damage to a cable.SOLUTION: A fastener 1 for a cable, comprises: a plurality of clamp parts 10 into which a cable can be inserted, and which includes an attachment part that is attached to an object; and a coupling part 20 that couples the clamp part 10. The coupling part 20 can be deformed. The clamp part 10 includes, e.g., a groove-like housing space 11a into which the cable is housed, and includes: a housing part 11 that has the attachment part at a bottom part 13; and a lid part 12 that is continuously provided from a rear wall part 15 as one wall part of the housing space 11a, and blocks an opening of the housing part 11. In this case, the coupling part 20 is provided continuously from the bottom part 13.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1A

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to fasteners and devices. [Background technology]

[0002] Devices having electrical components such as power supplies, sensors, and actuators have cables that connect the electrical components together. The cables that connect the electrical components together are generally fixed to the device with clamps, cable ties, or the like, or stored in grooves provided in the device, so that the cables do not interfere with mechanical components (e.g., covers, etc.) inside the device, or to protect the cables from the mechanical components. Regarding cable fixing, there is a technology described in Patent Document 1, for example. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 3461851 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Assume that loose cables, which are not bundled together with tape or a tube, are fixed using clamps or cable ties. Since clamps and cable ties have a small width for fixing cables, the cables may not be bundled and may protrude between cable fixing points. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, when a cable 8 is fixed with multiple clamps 810, a cable 8a may protrude between the clamps 810. Then, when assembling a mechanical part 906, the protruding cable 8a may be screwed in a state where it is crushed by the mechanical part 906, causing a break in the cable. Also, the protruding cable 8a may come into contact with a moving part (not shown) and be damaged, causing a break in the cable.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and provides a fastener and device that can suppress damage to cables. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, a fastener according to one embodiment of the present invention is a fastener for a cable, the fastener comprising: a plurality of clamp portions through which a cable can be inserted, the clamp portions having attachment portions for attachment to an object; and connecting portions connecting the clamp portions, the connecting portions being deformable.

[0007] Moreover, a device according to one aspect of the present invention includes the fastener described above. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, damage to the cable can be suppressed. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1A] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a fastener according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 1B] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a fastener according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 1C] FIG. 2 is a plan view of a fastener according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 1D] FIG. 2 is a plan view of a fastener according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 1 is a diagram showing a state in which a cable is fixed by a fastener according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] 1 is a diagram showing a state in which a cable is fixed by a fastener according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 1 is a diagram showing a state in which a cable is fixed by a fastener according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] 1 is a diagram showing a state in which a cable is fixed by a fastener according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6A] FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a fastener according to a first modified example. [Figure 6B]FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a fastener according to a first modified example. [Figure 7A] FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view of a fastener according to a second modified example. [Figure 7B] FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view of a fastener according to a second modified example. [Figure 8] 1A and 1B are diagrams for explaining problems with conventional clamps. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Each drawing is merely a schematic illustration to the extent that the present invention can be fully understood. Therefore, the present invention is not limited to only the illustrated examples. In addition, in the drawings to which reference is made, the dimensions of the members constituting the present invention may be exaggerated or otherwise expressed in order to clarify the explanation. In addition, in each drawing, the same reference numerals are given to common or similar components, and their repeated explanations are omitted.

[0011] <Configuration of fastener according to embodiment> A fastener 1 according to an embodiment will be described with reference to Figs. 1A to 2. Figs. 1A and 1B are perspective views of the fastener 1. Fig. 1C is a plan view of the fastener 1. Fig. 1D is a side view of the fastener 1. Fig. 2 is a view of the fastener 1 fixing a cable 8. The fastener 1 is a member for fastening the cable 8 to an object (e.g., a device having electrical components such as a power source, a sensor, an actuator, etc.). The type of cable 8 fixed by the fastener 1 is not limited, and may be, for example, a conductor wire, a communication cable, etc.

[0012] In the description of fastener 1, "up and down," "front and back," and "left and right" refer to the arrows in Figures 1A to 1D. These directions are defined for the convenience of description and do not limit the present invention. Fastener 1 comprises multiple clamping portions 10 (three in Figure 1A) through which cable 8 (see Figure 2) can be inserted, and at least one or more connecting portions 20 (two in Figure 1A) that connect the clamping portions 10. In other words, fastener 1 has a structure in which multiple clamping portions 10 are connected by connecting portions 20.

[0013] The first clamp portion 10A located on the left side, the second clamp portion 10B located in the center, and the third clamp portion 10C located on the right side have the same configuration. The first connecting portion 20A connects the first clamp portion 10A and the second clamp portion 10B. The second connecting portion 20B connects the second clamp portion 10B and the third clamp portion 10C. The first connecting portion 20A and the second connecting portion 20B have the same configuration. The fastener 1 (clamp portion 10 and connecting portion 20) is made of, for example, resin, and is made as a single unit (is a single molded product).

[0014] 1A has a function of bundling cables 8 (see FIG. 2). Clamp unit 10 has a storage section 11 in which cables 8 (see FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B) are stored, and a lid section 12 that closes the opening of storage section 11.

[0015] As shown in Fig. 1A, the storage section 11 mainly includes a bottom 13, and a front wall 14 and a rear wall 15 standing upright from the bottom 13. That is, the storage section 11 has a U-shape (a rectangular tube with one wall removed) when viewed from the left and right. As a result, the storage section 11 has a groove-shaped storage space 11a for storing the cable 8 (see Fig. 2). The upper part of the storage space 11a is open.

[0016] The lid portion 12 is a member that closes the upper opening of the storage space 11a. The lid portion 12 is provided continuously from the rear wall portion 15 that constitutes the storage space 11a, and has a shape and size that allows it to close the opening of the storage space 11a. The wall portion on which the lid portion 12 is provided may be the front wall portion 14. In other words, the lid portion 12 is provided continuously from one wall portion of the storage space 11a.

[0017] Lid 12 has hinge 12a at the boundary with storage 11 (the base of lid 12). In this embodiment, hinge 12a is realized by forming through-hole 12b at the boundary with storage 11. Hinge 12a rotates in the left-right direction, and allows angle θ (see FIG. 1D) between rear wall 15 and lid 12 to be changed. That is, by increasing angle θ from the state shown in FIG. 1D, lid 12 can be moved to a position facing bottom 13. The number of through-holes 12b is not particularly limited.

[0018] The storage section 11 has a receiving section 17 for fixing the lid section 12. The fixing section 18 of the lid section 12 is fixed to the receiving section 17, so that the lid section 12 does not come off the storage section 11. The receiving section 17 is provided so as to protrude forward from the front wall section 14. The receiving section 17 is provided with an insertion hole 17a into which the fixing section 18 of the lid section 12 is inserted. The shape of the insertion hole 17a corresponds to the shape and size of the fixing section 18, and the fixing section 18 can be inserted to a predetermined depth, and the fixing section 18 is shaped so that it is difficult to pull out after it has been inserted to the predetermined depth. When the wall section on which the lid section 12 is provided is the front wall section 14, the receiving section 17 is preferably provided so as to protrude rearward from the rear wall section 15.

[0019] The lid 12 has a fixing portion 18 fixed to the receiving portion 17. The fixing portion 18 is provided to protrude from the tip of the lid 12. As shown in FIG. 1D, the fixing portion 18 is formed by bending a plate-like member, and has a substantially V-shape (substantially U-shape) in a side view. The fixing portion 18 has a bent portion 18a that bends from the main body of the lid 12, a folded portion 18b that is provided continuously from the bent portion 18a, an engagement claw 18c that is a protrusion that engages with the receiving portion 17, and a release lever 18d. The fixing portion 18 has a function of a leaf spring, and when the engagement claw 18c is brought close to the bent portion 18a, a force that returns the engagement claw 18c to the outside is generated by the elastic force.

[0020] The engaging claw 18c is a protrusion that has a triangular shape when viewed from the side, and has a slope on the outside that continues from the folded-back portion 18b. The engaging claw 18c engages with the engaged portion 17b (see FIG. 1C) of the receiving portion 17, and serves to prevent the lid portion 12 from slipping out upward. The engaged portion 17b is a ridge-like protrusion formed inside the insertion hole 17a of the receiving portion 17.

[0021] When the fixing part 18 is inserted into the insertion hole 17a of the receiving part 17, the inclined surface of the engaging claw 18c comes into contact with the engaged part 17b provided on the inside of the insertion hole 17a, and the engaging claw 18c is pushed inward and elastically deformed. By inserting the fixing part 18 to a predetermined depth, the interference between the inclined surface of the engaging claw 18c and the engaged part 17b is eliminated, and the engaging claw 18c is returned to its original position by the elastic force. As a result, the engaging claw 18c is caught by the engaged part 17b, preventing the lid part 12 from slipping out upward.

[0022] 2, in a state where the fixing part 18 is inserted into the receiving part 17, that is, in a fixed state where the engaging claw 18c prevents the lid part 12 from being removed upward, the release lever 18d protrudes upward from the upper surface of the receiving part 17. By moving the release lever 18d inward, the engaging claw 18c moves to a position where it does not engage with the engaged part 17b, so that the fixing part 18 can be removed upward from the insertion hole 17a of the receiving part 17.

[0023] The clamp unit 10 also has a function of fixing the cable 8 (see FIG. 2) to an object (such as a circuit board of an apparatus). As shown in FIG. 1B, the clamp unit 10 has an attachment unit 16 on the bottom 13, which is attached to an object. The attachment unit 16 is a portion that is inserted into an attachment hole 916 (see FIG. 4) formed in the object to be attached. The attachment unit 16 has an engagement claw 16a for fixing the attachment unit 16 in a state where it is inserted into the attachment hole 916. The principle by which the engagement claw 16a is fixed to the attachment hole 916 may be the same as that of the engagement claw 18c. As a result, when the attachment unit 16 is inserted into the attachment hole 916, it is locked and the attachment unit 16 cannot be removed.

[0024] The connecting portion 20 is a member that connects the clamp portions 10 together. As shown in Fig. 1A, one end of the first connecting portion 20A is continuous with the right side of the bottom portion 13 of the first clamp portion 10A, and the other end is continuous with the left side of the bottom portion 13 of the second clamp portion 10B. Also, one end of the second connecting portion 20B is continuous with the right side of the bottom portion 13 of the second clamp portion 10B, and the other end is continuous with the left side of the bottom portion 13 of the third clamp portion 10C.

[0025] The connecting portion 20 is preferably deformable and has a shape that can be easily bent. In this embodiment, the connecting portion 20 is made of a long and thin member and has an overall diamond shape as shown in Fig. 1C, but may have other shapes. The connecting portion 20 may be, for example, an annular shape other than a diamond shape (for example, a circular shape), a mesh shape, an S-shape, or the like.

[0026] 1C, it is preferable that dimension L1 of clamping portion 10 in a direction along cable 8 (left-right direction) is longer than dimension L2 of connecting portion 20 in the same direction (left-right direction). Also, it is preferable that dimension H1 of clamping portion 10 in a direction perpendicular to cable 8 (front-rear direction) is shorter than dimension H2 of connecting portion 20 in the same direction (front-rear direction).

[0027] 2 to 5 are diagrams showing a state in which a cable 8 is attached to an object by the fastener 1 of this embodiment. In the fastener 1 of this embodiment, since the connecting portion 20 is flexible, it is not necessary to set strict tolerances for the spacing of the mounting holes 916 (see FIG. 4). In other words, the position of each clamp portion 10 can be adjusted. 3, since the connecting portion 20 is flexible, there is no need to align and fix the clamp portions 10 in a straight line. In other words, the cable 8 can be attached to the object in a bent state. In addition, the direction in which the connecting portion 20 bends is not limited to within the same plane. Therefore, as shown in Fig. 4, the connecting portion 20 can be laid over a route that spans a step formed by overlapping two metal plates 901 and 902, or as shown in Fig. 5, the connecting portion 20 can be laid over a corner formed by arranging two metal plates 903 and 904 at a right angle.

[0028] The fastener 1 according to the embodiment described so far has the following effects, for example. In the fastener 1 according to the embodiment, each of the connected clamping parts 10 bundles the cables 8 and attaches them to an object. Therefore, the cables 8 are less likely to protrude, and damage to the cables 8 can be suppressed. For example, the risk of crushing the cables 8 with a component when the component is attached can be reduced. In particular, by making the clamping parts 10 longer and the connecting parts 20 shorter, it is possible to further suppress the cables 8 from protruding. In addition, since the clamp parts 10 are connected, the clamp parts 10 are aligned when the fastener 1 is installed, so there is no need to align the orientation of each clamp part 10 when bundling the cables 8. This makes the work easier.

[0029] In addition, by allowing the connecting portion 20 to flex, the fastener 1 can be used to attach the cable 8 not only along straight routes but also along curved routes, routes spanning steps, and routes spanning angled surfaces (see Figures 2 to 5). In addition, when an edge 901a of the metal plate 901 is exposed at a step or the like as shown in Fig. 4, it was necessary to remove burrs or round off the edge 901a to prevent the coating of the cable 8 from being scratched by the edge 901a of the metal plate 901. However, with the fastener 1 according to the embodiment, the connecting portion 20 protects the cable 8 (because it comes into contact with the edge 901a of the metal plate 901 and the coating of the cable 8 does not come into contact with the edge 901a), so processing of the edge 901a is not necessary. The same applies to the case where edges 903a, 904a of the metal plates 903, 904 are exposed as shown in Fig. 5.

[0030] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be practiced within the scope of the claims. Modifications of the embodiment are, for example, as shown below.

[0031] [First Modification] As shown in Fig. 6A and Fig. 6B, the connecting portion 120 (first connecting portion 120A and second connecting portion 120B) may be provided with a wall portion 121 for preventing the cable 8 from protruding. Fig. 6A and Fig. 6B are perspective views of the fastener 101 according to the first modification. The front wall portion 121e is provided at a position corresponding to the front wall portion 14, and the rear wall portion 121f is provided at a position corresponding to the rear wall portion 15. In this way, the cable 8 can be further prevented from protruding.

[0032] [Second modified example] Moreover, the connecting portion 20 in the embodiment has an overall diamond shape (see FIG. 1C). However, the shape of the connecting portion 20 is not limited to a diamond shape as long as it can be easily bent to change the distance and angle between the clamp portions 10. For example, the connecting portion 20 may be a mesh-like connecting portion 220 shown in FIG. 7A or an S-shaped connecting portion 320 shown in FIG. 7B. Although not shown, a honeycomb structure or an annular structure may also be used. FIGS. 7 and 8 are schematic plan views of fasteners 201 and 301 according to a second modified example.

[0033] Furthermore, in the embodiment, three clamp parts 10 are connected, but the number of clamp parts 10 to be connected is not limited as long as it is two or more. In addition, in the embodiment, all of the connected clamp parts 10 have the same shape and size, but the connected clamp parts 10 may have different shapes and sizes. [Explanation of symbols]

[0034] 1,101,201,301 Fasteners 8 Cable 10 Clamp section 11 Storage area 11a Storage space 12 Lid 12a Hinge part 12b Through hole 13 Bottom 14 Front wall (wall) 15 Rear wall (wall) 16 Mounting part 16a Engagement claw 17 Receiving part 17a Insertion hole 17b Engaged part 18 Fixed part 18a Bend part 18b Folded part 18c engaging claw 18d Release lever 20,120,220,320 Connection part 121 Wall section

Claims

1. A fastener for a cable, comprising: A plurality of clamp units each having an attachment portion for attachment to an object, the clamp units having an attachment portion through which the cable can be inserted; A connecting portion that connects the clamp portions, A fastener, characterized in that the connecting portion is deformable.

2. The fastener according to claim 1 , wherein the connecting portion is annular, mesh-like, or S-shaped.

3. The clamp portion is a storage section having a groove-shaped storage space in which the cable is stored and having the mounting section at a bottom thereof; a cover portion provided continuously from one wall portion of the storage space and closing an opening of the storage portion, The connecting portion is provided continuously from the bottom portion. The fastener according to claim 1 .

4. 2. The fastener according to claim 1, wherein the connecting portion has a wall portion that prevents the cable from protruding out.

5. 13. An apparatus comprising the fastener of claim 1.

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