Connected Body

Abstract

Two halves obtained from the patterned cover are assembled by gluing to provide a joint having the same surface pattern as the cover. [Solution] The connecting body 1 is joined by assembling two mirror-image first and second half sections 2, 2' and one reinforcing plate 3. The first and second half sections are cut out from a wood-grain-like wire cover. The surface sections 4 of the first and second halves are joined together in an L-shape. Side sections 5a, 5b extend downward from both sides of the surface section in an inverted concave shape. In addition, the side sections have bent sections 6 formed along the longitudinal direction, with cross sections bent outward in a "L" shape. The cut surfaces of the surface sections of the first and second halves and the cut surfaces of the side sections are butted together and joined with an adhesive. Furthermore, a reinforcing plate is attached to the back side of the joints of the surface sections.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a connector used at a change of direction in a wire cover for covering wires routed along a wall or the like. [Background technology]

[0002] Generally, when electric wires are laid along a wall or the like, they are covered with a long wire cover made of synthetic resin for safety and appearance reasons. When the direction of the wire cover is changed, a separate connector is used to connect the wires.

[0003] The wire cover is usually selected to be colored to suit the condition of the installation location. At the point where the wire cover changes direction, it is preferable to use a connector that has the same color and pattern as the wire cover.

[0004] When a pattern such as a wood grain pattern is used on the surface of the electric wire cover, it is desirable to use a connector having a similar wood grain surface. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Since wire covers are long bodies, it is relatively easy to create a wood grain pattern in the longitudinal direction of the wire cover by injection molding while mixing synthetic resins of different colors. However, it is almost impossible to create a wood grain pattern or the like similar to that of the wire cover on a separate connecting body by molding processes such as injection molding.

[0006] The object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems and to provide a connector that can be easily manufactured and used in a pattern similar to that of the cover when connecting long covers by changing their direction. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the connector of the present invention comprises first and second halves of the same shape or mirror image, and a reinforcing plate attached to the first and second halves, and is used to connect covers that cover long attachment members at right angles to each other, and the first and second halves each have a generally concave cross section consisting of a surface portion and two side portions extending downward from both sides of the surface portion, and the surface portion and both side portions are cut at a 45-degree angle to the longitudinal direction, and the other is cut at a 90-degree angle to the longitudinal direction, and the cut surfaces of the surface portion of the first and second halves and the cut surfaces of the both side portions are butt-joined and joined by adhesive, and the reinforcing plate is adhered to the back surface of the joint between the surface portions. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] The connector of the present invention is made by assembling two halves obtained from a cover that has a certain pattern in advance, for example, by gluing them together via a reinforcing plate, so that the surface pattern is the same as the cover and does not look out of place. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the connector of the first embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a connector according to a second embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a connector according to a third embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. [Figure 12] FIG. [Figure 13] FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the illustrated embodiments. [Example]

[0011] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a connector in the case where wire covers are connected in a perpendicular direction on a plane in the first embodiment, FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the connector as seen from below, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the components.

[0012] The connector 1, made of synthetic resin, is joined by assembling two mirror-image first and second half sections 2 and 2' with one reinforcing plate 3 that is approximately the same thickness as the first and second half sections 2 and 2'. The first and second half sections 2 and 2' are cut out from a long electric wire cover that has a woodgrain pattern on its surface.

[0013] The joint between the surface portions 4 of the first and second halves 2, 2' is flat and L-shaped in the longitudinal direction, i.e., joined at right angles. Side portions 5a, 5b extend downward from both longitudinal sides of the surface portion 4 in an inverted concave shape. Furthermore, the side portions 5a, 5b are bent outward in cross section in a dogleg shape, and bent portion 6 is formed continuously along the longitudinal direction of the side portions 5a, 5b.

[0014] The open ends of the first and second halves 2, 2' are cut ends 7 from the wire cover, and these cut ends 7 are formed by cutting the surface 4 and side portions 5a, 5b at a 90-degree angle relative to their longitudinal direction. At the joint, the surface 4 of the first and second halves 2, 2' is cut at a 45-degree angle relative to their longitudinal direction, and the side portions 5a, 5b are also cut along this cutting line, resulting in the two side portions 5a, 5b having different lengths. Note that the cut surface of the surface 4 is cut at a 90-degree angle relative to its plane, while the cut surfaces of the side portions 5a, 5b are cut at a 45-degree angle relative to their plane.

[0015] To assemble the connector 1, the cut surfaces of the surface portions 4 of the first and second halves 2, 2' and the cut surfaces of the side portions 5a, 5b are butted together and bonded with an adhesive. Furthermore, an L-shaped flat reinforcing plate 3 is affixed with an adhesive to the backside of the joint of the surface portions 4. This assembly results in the connector 1 shown in Figures 1 and 2.

[0016] To use this connecting body 1, a synthetic resin base 8 is attached to the wall or floor of a building with double-sided tape or the like, as shown in Figure 4. This base 8 has a bottom surface 8a for attaching to the wall and a pair of opposing upright portions 8b that rise from both sides of the bottom surface 8a, and upright portions 8b have convex portions 8c that protrude outward and are formed continuously in the longitudinal direction.

[0017] The wire cover 9 attached to the base 8 has side portions 9b extending downward from both sides of the surface portion 9a in an inverted concave shape, and both side portions 9b have a cross section shaped like a dogleg, with bent portions 9c projecting outward continuously formed along the longitudinal direction. Note that, since the connecting body 1 is cut out from the wire cover 9, the connecting body 1 and the wire cover 9 have the same cross-sectional shape.

[0018] The bottom surface 8a of the base 8 is fixed to the wall, the electric wires 10 are laid inside the rising portions 8b, and the electric wire cover 9 is pushed into the base 8 from above. As a result, both side surfaces 9b of the electric wire cover 9 are expanded, and the bent portions 9c are fitted into the convex portions 8c on both sides of the base 8, and the electric wire cover 9 is joined to the base 8 as a single unit with the electric wires 10 built in.

[0019] However, in this state, the wire cover 9 does not cover the wires 10 at the location where the direction of the wire cover 9 changes in an orthogonal direction on a plane, so it is necessary to place the connector 1 in this portion to cover the wires 10. When the connector 1 is pressed from above against the base 8 at the location where the wire cover 9 is not covered, the bent portions 6 provided on both side surfaces 5a, 5b of the connector 1 expand and fit onto the outside of the protrusions 8c of the base 8, and the wire covers 9 extending from two directions are connected to each other via the connector 1, as shown in Fig. 5. Note that the base 8 is not shown in Fig. 5, and the length of the wire cover 9 is shown shortened.

[0020] The ends of the wire cover 9 and the cut end 7 of the connector 1 are cut perpendicular to their longitudinal direction, so that these ends are tightly connected to each other, meaning that the surfaces of the first and second halves 2, 2' are flush with the surface 9a of the wire cover 9, and the side surfaces 5a, 5b are flush with the side surface 9b, creating no unnatural appearance.

[0021] Furthermore, the connecting body 1 is formed by cutting out a portion of the wood-grain wire cover 9 to form the first and second halves 2, 2', so that the surface of the connecting body 1 has the same wood-grain pattern as the wire cover 9, and therefore there is no sense of incongruity when connecting them, as shown in Figure 5. [Example]

[0022] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the connector of the second embodiment, FIG. 7 is a side view of the connector, and FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the components.

[0023] The connector 11 is for connecting wire covers 9 with wood-grain surfaces to the corners of walls. The connector 11 is composed of first and second half sections 12, 12' of the same shape and one reinforcing plate 13.

[0024] In this second embodiment, the first and second halves 12, 12' are cut from the wire cover 9 at the cut-off end 17 and assembled by bending at right angles along the corners at the joints. The surface portions 14 are cut at 90 degrees to the longitudinal direction, with the cut surfaces at 45 degrees to the plane. The side portions 15a, 15b are cut at 45 degrees to the longitudinal direction, with the cut surfaces at 90 degrees to the plane, with the bent portions 15 being continuously provided in the longitudinal direction on the side portions 15a, 15b.

[0025] To assemble the connecting body 11 using the first and second halves 12, 12' and the reinforcing plate 13, the cut surfaces of the surface portions 14 and the cut surfaces of the side portions 15a, 15b are joined together by adhesive, and then an L-shaped reinforcing plate 13 is adhered to the back surface of the joint between the surface portions 14, thereby completing the connecting body 11 as shown in Figures 6 and 7.

[0026] As shown in Fig. 9, the wire covers 9 arranged from two directions toward the projected corner are connected at the corner of the projected corner using a connector 11. The connector 11 of Example 2 has a structure for this purpose and can be fitted and fixed to the base 8 in the same way as in Example 1, but the base 8 is not shown in Fig. 9. [Example]

[0027] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the connecting body of the third embodiment, FIG. 11 is a plan view of the connecting body as seen from above, and FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the components.

[0028] The connector 21 of the third embodiment is for connecting wire covers 9 having a wood-grain surface to the corner of a wall. The connector 21 is composed of first and second half portions 22, 22′ and one reinforcing plate 23. In this connector 21, the first and second halves 22, 22' are cut off from the wire cover 9 at the cut-off end 27 and bent at right angles to fit the shape of the recessed corner at the joint. The surface portions 24 are cut at 90 degrees to the longitudinal direction, with the cut surfaces at 45 degrees to the plane. The side portions 25a, 25b are cut at 45 degrees to the longitudinal direction, with the cut surfaces at 90 degrees to the plane, and the bent portions 26 formed on the side portions 25a, 25b are continuous in the longitudinal direction.

[0029] To assemble the connecting body 21 using the first and second halves 22, 22' and the reinforcing plate 23, the cut surfaces of the surface portions 24 and the cut surfaces of the side portions 25a, 25b are joined together by adhesive, and then an L-shaped reinforcing plate 23 is adhered to the back surface of the joint between the surface portions 24, thereby completing the connecting body 21 shown in Figures 10 and 11.

[0030] 13, the wire covers 9 arranged toward the inside corner from two directions are connected to the recessed portion of the inside corner via a connector 21. The connector 21 of the third embodiment has a structure for this purpose and can be fitted and fixed to the base 8 in the same manner as in the first and second embodiments, but the illustration of the base 8 is omitted.

[0031] In Examples 1 to 3, the connectors 1, 11, and 21 have a wood-grain surface because they are cut out from the wire cover 9 having a wood-grain surface, but they can also be applied to cases with other patterns.

[0032] Furthermore, in the case of covers other than electric wire covers, for example, covers for covering refrigerant pipes of air conditioners, the connectors can be similarly made to have the same pattern as the cover. [Explanation of symbols]

[0033] 1, 11, 21 Concatenation 2, 2', 12, 12', 22, 22' 1st, 2nd half 3, 13, 23 Reinforcement plate 4, 14, 24 Surface area 5a, 5b, 15a, 15b, 25a, 25b Side 6, 16, 26 Flexion part 7, 17, 27 cut end 8 ベース 9 wire カバー 10 Wires

Claims

1. A connector that includes first and second halves of the same shape or mirror image shape, and a reinforcing plate attached to the first and second halves, and connects covers that cover long attachment members in a perpendicular direction, The first and second halves each have a cross section that is approximately concave, consisting of a surface portion and two side portions extending downward from both sides of the surface portion, and the surface portion and both side portions are cut at a 45-degree angle to the longitudinal direction, and the other at a 90-degree angle, and the cut surfaces of the surface portions of the first and second halves and the cut surfaces of the side portions are butted together and joined by adhesive, and the reinforcing plate is adhered to the back surface of the joint between the surface portions.

2. 2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the first and second halves are cut from the cover.

3. 2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the both side surfaces are provided with outwardly bent portions extending continuously along the longitudinal direction.

4. 2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein a pattern is expressed on the surface.

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