Temporary fastening method for wire harness assemblies

Abstract

This invention provides a method for temporarily fastening a wire harness assembly to improve the efficiency of wire harness routing work when attaching the wire harness assembly to the back door of a vehicle. [Solution] A method for temporarily fixing a wire harness assembly 20 to an inner panel 11c that constitutes the back door 10 of a vehicle 1, the assembly 21 having a wire harness 24 and two laminated members made of synthetic resin, each laminated while sandwiching a portion of the electric wires 25 of the wire harness 24, wherein the assembly 21 is placed on the surface of the inner panel 11c before routing the electric wires 25 exposed from the assembly 21 to the back door 10, and a portion of the assembly 21 is welded to the inner panel 11c by ultrasonic bonding to hold the assembly 21 to the inner panel 11c.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a temporary fixing method for a wire harness assembly.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, in the manufacturing process of vehicles such as automobiles, there is a process of attaching a backdoor module having a wire harness to the inner panel of the backdoor. In this process, generally, an operator may need to lift the backdoor module upward with respect to the backdoor in an upwardly open state. Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for reducing the physical burden on the operator by carrying a vehicle backdoor module from the outdoor side into the room through an opening surrounded by the window frame portion of the closed backdoor and attaching it to the inner panel on the indoor side of the backdoor.

[0003] On the other hand, as a structure assumed to be attached to the inner panel of the backdoor, apart from the backdoor module shown in Patent Document 1, there is a wire harness assembly having a panel-shaped assembly member with excellent sound insulation. Patent Document 2 discloses a technique related to a wire harness assembly provided with a sound insulation member having a porous body and a sheet-like body integrally provided on one side of the porous body, and a wire harness is disposed between the porous body and the sheet-like body.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] Let's consider a case where the mounting method for a vehicle back door module disclosed in Patent Document 1 is used to attach the wire harness assembly disclosed in Patent Document 2 to the inner panel of the back door. In this case, during the wire harness assembly mounting process, for example, it is not necessarily the case that the rear glass is not attached to the window frame of the back door, nor is it necessarily the case that all the wires of the wire harness can be routed through the opening in the window frame. Therefore, it is practically difficult to attach the wire harness assembly to the back door based on such assumptions.

[0006] On the other hand, consider a scenario where a worker lifts the wire harness assembly disclosed in Patent Document 2 upwards to install it on a back door that is open upwards. In this case, if the worker attempts to route the multiple wires of the wire harness to the back door, the assembly member will be suspended in mid-air in an unstable position. Such a suspended assembly member can hinder the worker's wiring work and therefore requires improvement.

[0007] This invention has been made in view of the problems of the prior art. The object of this invention is to provide a method for temporarily fastening a wire harness assembly to improve the work efficiency related to the routing of wire harnesses when attaching a wire harness assembly to the back door of a vehicle. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] An aspect of the present invention is a method for temporarily fastening a wire harness assembly to an inner panel constituting the back door of a vehicle, the assembly comprising a wire harness and a sound-insulating assembly member having two laminated members, each made of synthetic resin, which are laminated while sandwiching a portion of the wires of the wire harness, wherein the assembly member is placed on the surface of the inner panel before the wires exposed from the assembly member are routed to the back door, and a portion of the assembly member is welded to the inner panel by ultrasonic bonding to hold the assembly member to the inner panel. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a method for temporarily fastening a wire harness assembly to the back door of a vehicle, thereby improving the efficiency of the work involved in routing the wire harness. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] This figure shows the temporary fastening state of the wire harness assembly according to this embodiment. [Figure 2] This figure shows the back door in temporary fastening in this embodiment. [Figure 3] This is a perspective view of a wire harness assembly. [Figure 4] This diagram illustrates the assembly member placement process in the temporary fastening process according to this embodiment. [Figure 5] This diagram illustrates the ultrasonic bonding process in the temporary fixing step in this embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] The temporary fastening method for the wire harness assembly according to the embodiment will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Note that the dimensional ratios in the drawings are exaggerated for illustrative purposes and may differ from the actual ratios.

[0012] Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the temporary fastening state of the wire harness assembly 20 according to the temporary fastening method of the wire harness assembly 20 according to this embodiment.

[0013] The wire harness assembly 20, described in detail below, is attached to the inner panel 11c that constitutes the back door 10 of a vehicle 1 such as an automobile. In this embodiment, the state of the wire harness assembly 20 when the vehicle 1 is in its finished state, that is, when the manufacturing process of the vehicle 1 is completed, is defined as the final fastening state of the wire harness assembly 20.

[0014] On the other hand, during the manufacturing process of vehicle 1, in the process of attaching the wire harness assembly 20 to the inner panel 11c, there is a step of routing each of the electric wires 25, which are part of the wire harness assembly 20, onto the inner panel 11c. In this embodiment, the state in which the assembly member 21, which is part of the wire harness assembly 20, is held to the inner panel 11c during the routing of the electric wires 25 is defined as the temporary fixing state of the wire harness assembly 20. When the wire harness assembly 20 is in the permanent fixing state, the temporary fixing state may be released and permanent fixing may be performed using a different mounting structure than the one used during temporary fixing, or the mounting structure used during temporary fixing may be maintained as is.

[0015] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the wiring work of the electric wires 25, including the temporary fastening of the wire harness assembly 20, is performed by the worker with the back door 10 open upwards, as shown in Figure 1. The specific structure of the vehicle 1 equipped with the back door 10, and the structure for maintaining the open state of the back door 10, are not particularly limited; in other words, the structures shown in Figure 1 are merely examples.

[0016] Figure 2 is a plan view of the back door 10, which is in the open position as shown in Figure 1, with the wire harness assembly 20 temporarily attached, as seen from below. Note that in Figure 2, the structural details of other parts of the vehicle 1 are omitted.

[0017] The back door 10 comprises a back door body 11 and a rear glass 12. The back door body 11 is a structure composed of an inner panel 11c and an outer panel (not shown), each manufactured by applying various processes to a metal sheet material such as a steel plate. The back door body 11 includes, for example, an upper structural part 11a and a lower structural part 11b.

[0018] The upper structural part 11a is a structural part located above the lower structural part 11b in the back door main body 11 when the back door 10 is in the closed state. The upper structural part 11a has a window frame part 11e as an opening for assembling the rear glass 12. Further, in the present embodiment, since the back door 10 has a structure that opens upward, a plurality of hinge parts 16 that support the back door 10 to be openable and closable with respect to the vehicle 1 are attached to the connecting part of the upper structural part 11a to the ceiling part of the vehicle 1.

[0019] The lower structural part 11b is a structural part located at the lowermost side close to the ground surface in the back door main body 11 when the back door 10 is in the closed state. The assembling member 21 included in the wire harness assembly 20 is attached to a preset attachment area 11d (see FIG. 4) on the part of the inner panel 11c that exists in the lower structural part 11b. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, when the back door 10 is in the open state, the lower structural part 11b is inclined so that the side continuous with the upper structural part 11a in the opening and closing direction is higher from the ground surface than the back door tip part 11f on the opposite side in the opening and closing direction.

[0020] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the wire harness assembly 20. The wire harness assembly 20 is attached to the back door 10 as described above and is applied to the wire harness 24 routed in the back door 10. The wire harness assembly 20 includes a wire harness 24 and an assembling member 21.

[0021] The wire harness 24 is arranged in a predetermined shape inside the assembling member 21 that is integrally assembled. The wire harness 24 includes a plurality of electric wires 25 and a plurality of connectors 26.

[0022] The electric wire 25 is, for example, a coated electric wire in which the outer periphery of a core wire made of a conductive material is coated with an insulating coating. Note that the electric wire 25 may be a flat cable in which a plurality of core wires are arranged in parallel and the outer periphery is coated with an insulating coating. The plurality of electric wires 25 are arranged such that one end side is concentrated at one location and the other end sides are branched with respect to the assembling member 21.

[0023] In this embodiment, the wire harness 24 has, for example, four wires 25: a first wire 25a, a second wire 25b, a third wire 25c, and a fourth wire 25d. Of these, the first wire 25a, the second wire 25b, and the third wire 25c are branch wires, so-called branch lines. On the other hand, the fourth wire 25d is a so-called main line, which combines the first wire 25a, the second wire 25b, and the third wire 25c.

[0024] The connector 26 comprises a housing made of an insulating material such as synthetic resin, and terminals (not shown) made of a conductive material. The housing mates with the mating housing of a mating connector (not shown) that is electrically connected to an electrical component mounted on the back door 10. The terminals are electrically connected to the end of the electric wire 25 and housed in the housing. The terminals are electrically connected to the mating terminal housed in the mating housing when the housing and the mating housing are mated.

[0025] Since the connector 26 is connected to the terminals of multiple electric wires 25, in this embodiment there are four connectors corresponding to four electric wires 25. The connector 26 connected to the terminal of the first electric wire 25a is the first connector 26a. The connector 26 connected to the terminal of the second electric wire 25b is the second connector 26b. The connector 26 connected to the terminal of the third electric wire 25c is the third connector 26c. The connector 26 connected to the terminal of the fourth electric wire 25d is the fourth connector 26d. The fourth connector 26d is connected to a mating connector routed from the vehicle body that supports the back door 10 in the vehicle 1.

[0026] Each assembly member 21 comprises a base material 22 and a cover material 23, which are laminated members made of synthetic resin and are laminated together.

[0027] The base material 22 is a sheet-like member formed from a sound-insulating material such as urethane foam, polypropylene fiber, polyethylene terephthalate fiber, or polyester fiber nonwoven fabric. The base material 22 is a long plate with its longitudinal direction aligned with the width direction of the back door 10. The thickness of the base material 22 is set to, for example, about 10 to 15 mm. On the inner surface of the base material 22 facing the cover material 23, portions of the multiple wires 25 of the wire harness 24 are arranged in a predetermined shape. The terminal ends of each wire 25 connected to the connector 26 are positioned outside the base material 22.

[0028] The cover material 23 is a sheet-like member formed from a sound-insulating material such as a film made of polyvinyl chloride or polyethylene, or closed-cell or continuous foam made of polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, or elastomer. The planar shape of the cover material 23 is the same as the planar shape of the base material 22. The thickness of the cover material 23 is set to, for example, about 2 mm, which is thinner than the thickness of the base material 22. Adhesive is applied to the surface of the cover material 23 that faces the base material 22, and the cover material 23 is attached to the inner surface of the base material 22 so as to sandwich a portion of the multiple electric wires 25 between the cover material 23 and the base material 22.

[0029] In the assembly member 21, multiple electric wires 25 arranged in a predetermined shape are held between the base material 22 and the cover material 23 which are attached to each other. Therefore, the assembly member 21 can protect the electric wires 25 of the wire harness 24 and maintain the arrangement shape of the electric wires 25.

[0030] Furthermore, the assembly member 21 has sound-insulating properties because at least one of the base material 22 or the cover material 23 is made of a material as exemplified above. Such an assembly member 21, having sound-insulating properties, may also be referred to as a sound-absorbing material.

[0031] Next, we will explain the method for temporarily fastening the wire harness assembly 20.

[0032] Figures 4 and 5 are perspective views illustrating the temporary fastening process corresponding to the temporary fastening method of the wire harness assembly 20, drawn in chronological order relative to each other. Hereinafter, the temporary fastening process will be performed when the back door 10 is open upwards in the vehicle 1.

[0033] Figure 4 illustrates the assembly member placement process during the temporary fastening process.

[0034] First, as part of the assembly component placement process, the worker prepares the wire harness assembly 20 as illustrated in Figure 3, and places the assembly components 21 of the wire harness assembly 20 in the mounting area 11d set on the surface of the inner panel 11c. At this time, the assembly components 21 are positioned so that the outer surface 22a of the base material 22 is in contact with the inner panel 11c.

[0035] Figure 5 illustrates the ultrasonic bonding process in the temporary fixing process.

[0036] Next, as an ultrasonic bonding process following the assembly member placement process, the worker holds the assembly member 21 to the inner panel 11c by welding a portion of the assembly member 21 to the inner panel 11c using ultrasonic bonding.

[0037] Here, before starting ultrasonic bonding, the worker selects the bonding positions on the assembly member 21 to be ultrasonically bonded. In this embodiment, as an example, two bonding positions are selected that are spaced apart from each other along the width direction of the assembly member 21, which is aligned with the width direction of the back door 10 perpendicular to the opening and closing direction. If the planar shape of the assembly member 21 is a rectangle with the width direction as the longitudinal direction, as illustrated, the two bonding positions may be symmetrical with respect to the midpoint of the assembly member 21 in the width direction. Although not shown, the inner panel 11c may have multiple openings provided in advance as through-holes that lead from the outside of the inner panel 11c to the space formed between the inner panel 11c and the outer panel. In this case, care is taken not to position the selected bonding positions directly above the openings.

[0038] The worker then sequentially performs ultrasonic bonding on the two selected joining positions on the assembly member 21. For ultrasonic bonding, an ultrasonic bonding apparatus equipped with, for example, a metal, rod-shaped horn 100 is used. After the tip of the horn 100 is applied to the joining position on the outer surface 23a of the cover material 23, the horn 100 applies ultrasonic vibration in the vertical direction while pressing the joining position toward the inner panel 11c, thereby melting at least the base material 22 that constitutes the assembly member 21. At this time, in addition to the melting of the base material 22, the cover material 23, which also constitutes the assembly member 21, may also be melted. A portion of the molten assembly member 21 is welded to the surface of the inner panel 11c, forming a point-like welded portion 27. In Figure 5, one of the two joining positions is shown as having completed ultrasonic bonding and formed a welded portion 27, while the other joining position is shown as being in the process of ultrasonic bonding.

[0039] In this embodiment, when the worker routes the electric wire 25, the mounting area 11d is inclined such that the side closer to the hinge portion 16 in the opening and closing direction is higher from the ground than the side closer to the tip portion 11f of the back door. In contrast, the assembly member 21 is directly fixed to the mounting area 11d of the inner panel 11c by ultrasonic bonding, so that it does not slip off the mounting area 11d when routing the electric wire 25.

[0040] As a result of this temporary fastening process, the assembly member 21 is temporarily fixed to the inner panel 11c, and thereafter, the worker can route each of the electric wires 25 to the predetermined positions on the back door 10 without being hindered by the assembly member 21. For example, after temporarily fastening the assembly member 21, the worker may route the fourth electric wire 25d, which is a main line having a fourth connector 26d connected to the mating connector on the vehicle body side at its end, along a predetermined path using multiple clips 30, as shown in Figure 2. After that, the worker may route the first electric wire 25a, the second electric wire 25b, and the third electric wire 25c, which are branch lines, along predetermined paths.

[0041] Next, we will explain the effects of the temporary fastening method for the wire harness assembly 20.

[0042] The temporary fastening method involves temporarily fastening a wire harness assembly 20 to the inner panel 11c that constitutes the back door 10 of the vehicle 1. The wire harness assembly 20 comprises a wire harness 24 and a soundproof assembly member 21 having two laminated members, each made of synthetic resin, which are laminated while sandwiching a portion of the electric wires 25 of the wire harness 24. In this temporary fastening method, the assembly member 21 is placed on the surface of the inner panel 11c before the electric wires 25 exposed from the assembly member 21 are routed to the back door 10. Then, a portion of the assembly member 21 is welded to the inner panel 11c by ultrasonic bonding to hold the assembly member 21 in place on the inner panel 11c.

[0043] Here, the two laminated members correspond to the base material 22 and the cover material 23 in the above example.

[0044] Let's consider a scenario where a worker lifts the wire harness assembly 20 upwards to install it onto the back door 10, which is open upwards. In this case, the worker can temporarily fasten the assembly member 21 to the inner panel 11c using ultrasonic bonding, allowing the wires 25 of the wire harness 24 to be routed efficiently without being obstructed by the assembly member 21.

[0045] Furthermore, when temporarily fastening the assembly member 21, there is no need to form mounting holes or the like in the inner panel 11c for use in attaching the assembly member 21, which is advantageous in simplifying the temporary fastening process, for example.

[0046] As described above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to provide a method for temporarily fastening a wire harness assembly 20 that improves the work efficiency related to the routing of the wire harness 24 when attaching the wire harness assembly 20 to the back door 10 of the vehicle 1.

[0047] Furthermore, in the temporary fastening method for the wire harness assembly 20, at least two welding portions 27 may be formed in a point-like manner on the assembly member 21 that are welded to the inner panel 11c.

[0048] This temporary fastening method allows for stable holding of the assembly member 21 to the inner panel 11c while shortening the working time required for ultrasonic bonding.

[0049] Although embodiments have been described above, the embodiments are not limited to these, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the gist of the embodiments. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0050] 1 vehicle 10 Back door 11c Inner Panel 20 Wire harness assembly 21 Assembly components 22 Base material 23 Cover material 24 Wire Harness 25 Electric wire 27 Welded area

Claims

1. A method for temporarily fastening a wire harness assembly to an inner panel constituting the back door of a vehicle, the assembly comprising a wire harness and a sound-insulating assembly member having two laminated members, each made of synthetic resin, which are laminated while sandwiching a portion of the wires of the wire harness, Before routing the exposed wires from the assembly member to the back door, The assembly member is placed on the surface of the inner panel. A method for temporarily fastening a wire harness assembly, wherein a portion of the assembly member is welded to the inner panel by ultrasonic bonding, thereby holding the assembly member to the inner panel.

2. The method for temporarily fastening a wire harness assembly according to claim 1, wherein at least two welding portions are formed in a point-like manner on the assembly member that are welded to the inner panel.

Images