Wire harness

Abstract

To provide a wire harness that can properly route routing materials.SOLUTION: A wire harness 1 comprises: a plurality of routing materials 10 having conductivity; a joint part 20 that connects, to each other, terminals 11t of a plurality of routing materials to be connected 11, of the plurality of routing materials 10; and a mold shaped member 30 that is provided integrally with the plurality of routing materials 10 and the joint part 20, and covers the plurality of routing materials 10 and the joint part 20 from the outside.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a wire harness. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a joint connector including a joint terminal provided at the end of an electric wire and a connector housing that accommodates the joint terminal therein. Patent Document 2 discloses a bonder cap that is attached to a bonder for a bundle of electric wires. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2014-11142 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2012-182103 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Incidentally, the joint portion of the electric wire (wiring material) typified by the joint connector described in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 and the bonder cap described in the above-mentioned Patent Document 2 is provided at the end of a branch wire branching from a trunk wire, and is fixed to the trunk wire by wrapping an adhesive tape around it. However, with such a configuration, for example, there is a risk that the position of the joint portion may shift when the adhesive tape is wrapped around it, and therefore a configuration that allows the wiring material to be routed more appropriately is desired.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a wire harness that allows wiring materials to be properly routed. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the wire harness of the present invention is characterized by comprising a plurality of electrically conductive wiring materials, a joint portion that connects the terminals of a plurality of wiring materials to be connected among the plurality of wiring materials, and a molded member that is formed integrally with the plurality of wiring materials and the joint portion and covers the plurality of wiring materials and the joint portion from the outside. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] The wire harness according to the present invention has an effect of enabling the wiring material to be properly routed. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. Furthermore, the components in the following embodiments include those that are easily replaceable by those skilled in the art, or those that are substantially the same.

[0010] [First embodiment] The wire harness 1 shown in Figure 1 is, for example, a collection of multiple wiring materials 10 used for power supply and signal communication, bundled together to form an assembly component for connecting various devices installed in a vehicle, and the multiple wiring materials 10 are connected to each device using connectors or the like.

[0011] The wire harness 1 is provided with a joint portion 20 that connects the terminals 11t of the connection target wire members 11 among the plurality of wire members 10. And the wire harness 1 of the present embodiment integrally provides a mold forming member 30 for the plurality of wire members 10 and the joint portion 20, and realizes a configuration in which the wire members 10 can be properly routed by fixing the position of the joint portion 20 with the mold forming member 30. Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, the configuration of the wire harness 1 will be described in detail.

[0012] In the following description, among the first direction, the second direction, and the third direction that intersect each other, the first direction is referred to as the "length direction X", the second direction is referred to as the "width direction Y", and the third direction is referred to as the "height direction Z". Here, the length direction X, the width direction Y, and the height direction Z are orthogonal to each other. Also, the length direction X typically corresponds to the extending direction (axial direction) of the wire member 10. In addition, each direction used in the following description will be described as the direction in the state where each part of the wire harness 1 is assembled, unless otherwise specified.

[0013] In addition, the wire harness 1 may further include various components such as an outer member such as a corrugated tube and a protector, an electrical connection box, and a fixture.

[0014] As shown in FIG. 1, the wire harness 1 includes a plurality of conductive wire members 10, a joint portion 20, and a mold forming member 30.

[0015] <Wire member> The wiring material 10 is wired to a vehicle and electrically connects each device. As shown in FIG. 2, the wiring material 10 of the present embodiment includes a conductive conductor portion 10a (core wire) and an insulating coating portion 10b having insulation properties, and is an insulated wire in which the conductor portion 10a is coated with the insulating coating portion 10b. The conductor portion 10a here is a stranded wire formed by twisting a plurality of strands made of a conductive metal. The insulating coating portion 10b is formed, for example, by extrusion molding a resin material having insulation properties (such as PP, PVC, cross-linked PE, etc., appropriately selected in consideration of abrasion resistance, chemical resistance, heat resistance, etc.). Note that the conductor portion 10a may be a bundle of a plurality of strands.

[0016] Also, as shown in FIG. 1, the plurality of wiring materials 10 applied to the wire harness 1 of the present embodiment include a main line W1 and a branch line W2 branching from the main line W1. The main line W1 here is a bundle of a plurality of wiring materials 10 wired along the length direction X. The branch line W2 is a bundle of a plurality of wiring materials 10 branching from the main line W1 via a branch portion WB. The wiring material 10 constituting the branch line W2 constitutes a plurality of connection target wiring materials 11 connected (jointed) by a joint portion 20 among the plurality of wiring materials 10. The branch line W2 of the present embodiment is composed of three connection target wiring materials 11 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Here, the connection target wiring material 11 is wired in a direction different from the extending direction (length direction X) of the main line W1 by bending from the branch portion WB.

[0017] <Joint portion> The joint portion 20 connects a plurality of connection target wiring materials 11 as described above. The joint portion 20 of the present embodiment houses a terminal 121 provided at the terminal 11t (see FIG. 1) of the connection target wiring material 11 inside a connector housing 122 and electrically connects the terminals 121 to each other. The joint portion 20 of the present embodiment is a joint connector 120 that electrically connects the terminals 121 provided at the terminals 11t of the three connection target wiring materials 11 to each other.

[0018] As shown in Fig. 2, the joint connector 120 includes three terminals 121, a connector housing 122 that houses the terminals 121 therein, and a circuit member 123 that forms a circuit for connecting the terminals 121 housed in the connector housing 122 to each other. The terminal 121 here is a member that is joined to the conductor portion 10a exposed from the end of the insulating coating portion 10b of the wiring material 10, so as to be electrically connected and conduct with the connection target wiring material 11. Further, the terminal 121 is formed by shaping a single sheet metal made of a conductive metal into a shape corresponding to each part by various processes such as punching, pressing, and bending, so that each part is integrally formed three-dimensionally. The connector housing 122 is a box-shaped member in which a terminal accommodation chamber 122S for accommodating and supporting the terminals 121 is formed. The circuit member 123 is a conductive member such as a bus bar provided inside the connector housing 122. Note that the joint connector 120 shown in Fig. 2 has been described as constituting a connection circuit (joint circuit) by electrically connecting the terminals 121 housed in the connector housing 122 via the circuit member 123, but it is not limited to this. For example, the joint connector 120 may be configured such that the terminals 121 are directly in contact with each other to form a connection circuit (joint circuit) and are electrically connected without including the circuit member 123. Also, the joint connector 120 may be configured such that a plurality of terminals 121 housed in the connector housing 122 form one connection circuit (joint circuit), or a plurality of terminals 121 may form a plurality of different connection circuits (joint circuits).

[0019] <Molded member> The molded member 30 is an exterior member for the wiring material 10 and the joint portion 20, and by disposing the wiring material 10 and the joint portion 20 inside, it can protect the wiring material 10 and the joint portion 20 in a combined state.

[0020] As shown in FIG. 1, the mold forming member 30 of the present embodiment is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape along the extending direction (length direction X) of the main line W1. Further, the mold forming member 30 is provided around the plurality of cable members 10 and the joint portions 20. More specifically, the mold forming member 30 is provided in a partial section W1a of the main line W1 composed of a plurality of cable members 10, a branch line W2 composed of a plurality of cable members 11 to be connected, a branch portion WB, and the joint portion 20.

[0021] Further, the mold forming member 30 is formed of, for example, a resin material having insulation properties (such as rubber or thermoplastic elastomer). Therefore, the mold forming member 30 is integrally provided with a partial section W1a of the main line W1, the branch line W2, the branch portion WB, and the joint portion 20 by being molded with a mold 40 (see FIG. 3).

[0022] Further, the mold forming member 30 covers from the outside by embedding a partial section W1a of the main line W1, the branch line W2, the branch portion WB, and the joint portion 20, and bundles the partial section W1a of the main line W1, the branch line W2, the branch portion WB, and the joint portion 20 together, thereby fixing the position of the branch line W2 with respect to the main line W1. Further, the mold forming member 30 can properly route the cable member 10 by also fixing the position of the joint portion 20 provided at the terminal of the branch line W2 at the same time.

[0023] <Method for manufacturing a wire harness> Next, a method for manufacturing the wire harness 1 will be described.

[0024] The method for manufacturing the wire harness 1 includes an arranging step and a molding step. The arranging step here is a step of arranging the plurality of cable members 10 and the joint portions 20 in the mold 40. The molding step is a step of injection molding (mold molding) the mold forming member 30 around the plurality of cable members 10 and the joint portions 20 arranged in the mold 40. Note that this method for manufacturing a wire harness will be described as being automatically performed by various manufacturing apparatuses.

[0025] Specifically, first, as the placement step, a partial section W1a of the main cable W1 composed of a plurality of cable materials 10, a branch cable W2 composed of a plurality of cable materials 11 to be connected, a branch portion WB, and a joint portion 20 are placed in the mold 40. At this time, the mold 40 is configured to include a lower mold 41 and an upper mold 42 shown in FIG. 3. Then, the partial section W1a of the main cable W1, the branch cable W2, the branch portion WB, and the joint portion 20 are placed inside the molding portion 41a of the lower mold 41. Then, by combining the lower mold 41 and the upper mold 42, the partial section W1a of the main cable W1, the branch cable W2, the branch portion WB, and the joint portion 20 are placed in the cavity portion 43 formed by the molding portion 41a of the lower mold 41 and the molding portion 42a of the upper mold 42.

[0026] Then, as a molding process, the molten resin material is injected into the cavity 43. At this time, a partial section W1а of the main line W1, the branch line W2, the branch portion WB, and the joint portion 20 are covered from the outside by the lower mold 41 and the upper mold 42. Then, the nozzle of the injection device is inserted into the insertion hole 42b provided in the upper mold 42, and the molten resin material is injected from the nozzle, so that the resin material fills the cavity 43. Then, by curing the resin material filled in the cavity 43, the mold molding member 30 is injection molded (mold molded) so as to cover the outside of the main line W1, the branch line W2, the branch portion WB, and the joint portion 20 arranged in the cavity 43. Therefore, the wire harness 1 manufactured by the manufacturing method described above is provided integrally with a plurality of wiring members 10, the joint portion 20, and the mold molding member 30, and by fixing the position of the joint portion 20 by the mold molding member 30, the wiring members 10 can be properly wired. Further, the wire harness 1 manufactured by the manufacturing method described above can fix the joint portion 20 to the wiring members 10 without using a bundling member such as a tape. Therefore, the wire harness 1 can be manufactured without performing post-processes such as taping. Furthermore, by molding the wire harness 1 by injection molding (mold molding) instead of extrusion molding, by combining the lower mold 41 and the upper mold 42 on the jig plate, mold molding members 30 of various shapes can be directly provided for the wiring members 10. Therefore, the wire harness 1 does not need to manually assemble a protective member such as a protector and can be automatically manufactured by various manufacturing apparatuses. Therefore, the wire harness 1 manufactured by the manufacturing method described above has good manufacturing efficiency and can contribute to the automation of the manufacturing process by performing injection molding (mold molding) on the jig plate.

[0027] The wire harness 1 described above includes a plurality of wire members 10 having conductivity, a joint portion 20 that connects the terminals 11t of a plurality of connection target wire members 11 among the plurality of wire members 10, and a molded member 30 that is provided integrally with the plurality of wire members 10 and the joint portion 20 and covers the plurality of wire members 10 and the joint portion 20 from the outside.

[0028] According to such a configuration, in the wire harness 1, since the plurality of wire members 10, the joint portion 20, and the molded member 30 are provided integrally, for example, the plurality of wire members 10 and the molded member 30 can be combined into one by the molded member 30 without using a bundling member such as a tape. Further, in the wire harness 1, by fixing the position of the joint portion 20 by the molded member 30, the wire members 10 can be properly routed. Further, in the wire harness 1, by integrally molding the joint portion 20 and the molded portion 30 and allowing the resin material of the molded portion 30 to penetrate into the joint portion 20, sufficient insulation of the joint portion 20 can be ensured. Further, in the wire harness 1, by integrally molding the joint portion 20 and the molded portion 30 and covering the outside of the joint portion 20 with the molded portion 30, sufficient waterproofness of the joint portion 20 can be ensured. Further, in the wire harness 1, by integrally molding the joint portion 20 and the molded portion 30, for example, it is possible to suppress the generation of abnormal noise caused by the joint portion 20 hitting the surrounding members. Therefore, in the wire harness 1, the wire members 10 can be more properly routed by the molded member 30.

[0029] More specifically, the plurality of wiring materials 10 applied to the wire harness 1 described above includes a main line W1 and a branch line W2 that branches from the main line W1 via a branch portion WB and is constituted by a plurality of wiring materials 11 to be connected. Further, the joint portion 20 applied to the wire harness 1 is provided at the terminal of the branch line W2, and the mold forming member 30 is provided integrally with the main line W1, the branch line W2, the branch portion WB, and the joint portion 20, and covers the main line W1, the branch line W2, the branch portion WB, and the joint portion 20 from the outside. According to such a configuration, in the wire harness 1, the plurality of wiring materials 10 constituting the main line W1, the branch line W2, and the branch portion WB, the joint portion 20, and the mold forming member 30 are provided integrally, so that the main line W1, the branch line W2, the branch portion WB, and the mold forming member 30 can be integrated into one by the mold forming member 30. Further, the wire harness 1 can properly route the branch line W2 in which terminals are connected to each other via the joint portion 20 and the main line W1 connected to the branch line W2 via the branch portion WB by fixing the position of the joint portion 20 by the mold forming member 30. Further, the wire harness 1 can sufficiently ensure the insulation and waterproof properties of the joint portion 20 by integrally molding the joint portion 20 and the mold forming portion 30. Further, the wire harness 1 can suppress the generation of abnormal noise when, for example, the joint portion 20 provided at the terminal of the branch line W2 swings and hits surrounding members by integrally molding the joint portion 20 and the mold forming member 30. Therefore, the wire harness 1 can more properly route the wiring material 10 by the mold forming member 30.

[0030] Furthermore, the joint portion 20 applied to the wire harness 1 described above is configured by a joint connector 120 that accommodates terminals 121 provided at the ends 11t of the wiring materials 11 to be connected inside a connector housing 122 and connects the terminals 121 together. With this configuration, the wire harness 1 has a plurality of wiring materials 10, a joint connector 120, and a molded member 30 integrally provided therein, and can fix the position of the joint connector 120 while the terminals 121 accommodated inside the connector housing 122 are properly connected to each other. Therefore, the wire harness 1 can properly route the wiring materials 10 using the molded member 30. Furthermore, by integrally molding the joint connector 120 and the molded member 30, the wire harness 1 can sufficiently ensure the insulation and waterproofing properties of the joint connector 120. Furthermore, by integrally molding the joint connector 120 and the molded member 30, the wire harness 1 can suppress, for example, the generation of abnormal noise caused by the joint connector 120 hitting surrounding members. Therefore, in the wire harness 1, the molding member 30 allows the wiring material 10 to be wired more appropriately.

[0031] [Second embodiment] Next, a wire harness 1A according to a second embodiment shown in Fig. 4 will be described. The wire harness 1A differs from the wire harness 1 according to the first embodiment in the configuration of the joint portion 20. In the second embodiment, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0032] Specifically, the wire harness 1A differs from the wire harness 1 in that the joint portion 20A is configured by a conductor joint portion 220A.

[0033] <Joint part> The joint part 20A is a conductor joint part 220A (bonder) that electrically connects the terminals 11t (see FIG. 1) of the cable materials 11 to be connected. The conductor joint part 220A is configured by joining the conductor parts 10a exposed from the terminals 11t of the cable materials 11 to be connected by removing the insulation coating part 10b of the cable material 10. The conductor parts 10a are joined by, for example, welding, but the type thereof is not particularly limited and is appropriately selected from thermocompression bonding, ultrasonic pressure welding, laser welding, etc. According to such a configuration, in the wire harness 1A, the plurality of cable materials 10, the conductor joint part 220A, and the mold forming member 30 are integrally provided, so that the conductor parts 10a of the terminals 11t of the cable materials 11 to be connected are appropriately connected, and the position of the conductor joint part 220A can be fixed. Therefore, the wire harness 1 can appropriately route the cable material 10 by the mold forming member 30 in the same manner as the wire harness 1 described above. Further, the wire harness 1A can sufficiently ensure the insulation and waterproof properties of the conductor joint part 220A by integrally molding the conductor joint part 220A and the mold forming part 30. Therefore, the wire harness 1A can more appropriately route the cable material 10 by the mold forming member 30 in the same manner as the wire harness 1 described above.

[0034] Note that the wire harnesses 1 and 1A according to the above-described embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope described in the claims.

[0035] <tmp For example, the range of the cable material 10 covered by the mold forming member 30 is not particularly limited.

[0036] Further, the cable material 10 may be composed of only the main line W1, and the cable material 11 to be connected included in the cable material 10 may be a part of the cable material 10 constituting the main line W1. Also, the main lines W1 may be connected by the joint parts 20 and 20A.

[0037] In addition, the number of wiring members 10 and the number of connection target wiring members 11 included in the wiring member 10 are not particularly limited.

[0038] In addition, the form of the joint portions 20 and 20A provided at the terminals 11t of the connection target wiring member 11 is not particularly limited.

[0039] In addition, when the joint portion 20A is constituted by the conductor joint portion 220A, the conductor portions 10a may be connected by bolt connection, connection by a pressure contact blade, or connection by a coupler.

[0040] In addition, the wire harnesses 1 and 1A according to the present embodiment may be configured by appropriately combining the components of the embodiments described above.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0041] 1, 1A Wire harness 10 Wiring member 10a Conductor portion of the wiring member 10b Insulation coating portion of the wiring member 11 Connection target wiring member 11t Terminal of the connection target wiring member 20, 20A Joint portion 30 Molded member 120 Joint connector 220A Conductor joint portion W1 Trunk line W2 Branch line WB Branch portion X Length direction Y Width direction Z Height direction

Claims

1. A plurality of conductive cable materials, A joint portion that connects terminals of a plurality of connection target cable materials among the plurality of cable materials, Characterized by comprising a molded member that is provided integrally with the plurality of cable materials and the joint portion and covers the plurality of cable materials and the joint portion from the outside, A wire harness.

2. The plurality of cable materials include a main line and branch lines that branch from the main line through a branch portion and are constituted by the plurality of connection target cable materials, The joint portion is provided at the terminal of the branch line, The molded member is provided integrally with the main line, the branch line, the branch portion, and the joint portion, and covers the main line, the branch line, the branch portion, and the joint portion from the outside, The wire harness according to claim 1.

3. The joint portion is constituted by a joint connector that houses terminals respectively provided at the terminals of the connection target cable materials inside a connector housing and connects the terminals to each other, The wire harness according to claim 1 or 2.

4. The joint portion is constituted by a conductor joint portion that joins conductor portions exposed from the terminals of the connection target cable materials to each other, The wire harness according to claim 1 or 2.

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