Electrical Junction Box Unit

Abstract

To provide an electric connection box unit which is excellent in workability of fixing etc. of an electric connection box to an object member.SOLUTION: An electric connection box unit 1 includes: electric connection boxes 2; and a bracket 5 which houses the electric connection boxes 2 and fixes the electric connection boxes 2 to an object member. The electric connection box 2 has: a first resin body 3 having an internal space for housing electronic components; and a second resin body 4 assembled to the first resin body 3 so as to close an opening of the first resin body 3. The bracket 5 is configured to house the multiple electric connection boxes 2, and the second resin body 4 is integrally formed with the bracket 5.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electric junction box unit. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there have been proposed electrical junction boxes such as relay boxes and fuse boxes that are mounted on vehicles and have storage spaces for accommodating electronic components such as relays and fuses (hereinafter also referred to as "conventional electrical junction boxes"). One conventional electrical junction box includes a frame and a lower cover, and is configured such that an attachment portion provided on the frame or the lower cover is screwed to a target component (target location) of the vehicle, thereby fixing the electrical junction box to the target component (target location) of the vehicle (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 6-165345 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, when a plurality of conventional electric junction boxes are mounted on a vehicle, the number of fixing operations to the vehicle is proportional to the number of electric junction boxes mounted on the vehicle, and the number of steps required for the operation tends to increase. Furthermore, some conventional electric junction boxes have a complicated structure to protect the electric wires drawn out from the electric junction box, and the operation of mounting the electric junction box on the vehicle, including the fixing operation, may become complicated. Thus, conventional electric junction boxes have room for improvement in terms of workability.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an electrical junction box unit that is easy to work with, for example, when fixing an electrical junction box to a target member. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the electric junction box unit according to the present invention has the following features.

[0007] An electric connection box unit including an electric connection box and a bracket that houses the electric connection box and fixes the electric connection box to a target member, The electrical connection box includes: a first resin body having an internal space capable of accommodating an electronic component; a second resin body attached to the first resin body so as to close the opening of the first resin body; The first resin body is The electrical junction box is configured in its entirety except for a part of the lower region of the side wall. A roughly rectangular cylindrical Frame Side wall 、 A frame comprising: The second resin body is a lower cover side wall portion that constitutes a portion of the lower region of the side wall of the electrical junction box and has an upper end edge portion that is fitted with a lower end edge portion of the frame side wall portion, and a lower cover bottom wall portion that closes a lower end opening defined by the lower cover side wall portion, a lower cover that is attached to a lower portion of the frame so as to close a lower end opening of the frame, The bracket is a bracket side wall portion having a generally rectangular tubular shape extending in the vertical direction, a bracket bottom wall portion closing a lower end opening of the bracket side wall portion, and a partition wall dividing an internal space defined by the bracket side wall portion and the bracket bottom wall portion into a plurality of storage spaces capable of respectively accommodating a plurality of the electrical junction boxes, The electrical junction box unit includes: The lower cover is integrally formed with the bracket bottom wall portion of the bracket within the accommodation space defined by the bracket. It is an electrical junction box unit. Effect of the Invention

[0008] The electric junction box unit according to the present invention will be described below. According to the electric junction box unit of this configuration, the electric junction box can be fixed to the target member by housing the electric junction box in the bracket. This allows multiple electric junction boxes to be fixed to the target member all at once by housing multiple electric junction boxes in the bracket. Furthermore, since the second resin body is integrally formed with the bracket, the first resin body and the second resin body can be assembled, and the electric junction box can be housed in the bracket all at once. In this way, the electric junction box unit of this configuration is superior to conventional electric junction boxes in various workability, including fixing the electric junction box to the target member.

[0009] As a further advantage, according to the electric junction box unit of the present configuration, it is not necessary to perform the fixing work to the target member for each electric junction box as in the conventional electric junction box, and the working space is reduced.

[0010] As another effect, the electric junction box unit of this configuration can standardize the electric junction box by attaching the electric junction box to the target member with the bracket. This allows the electric junction box housed in the bracket to be changed as needed, so that, for example, when mounting the electric junction box (electrical junction box unit) on a vehicle, the circuit can be easily changed.

[0011] As yet another effect, according to the electrical junction box unit of the present configuration, the electrical junction box is composed of three parts, namely, a first resin body, a second resin body, and a bracket, which constitute the electrical junction box unit. However, since the second resin body is configured integrally with the bracket, the electrical junction box unit can be composed of two parts, thereby reducing the number of parts.

[0012] The present invention has been briefly described above. Furthermore, the details of the present invention will be further clarified by reading the following description of the embodiment of the present invention (hereinafter, referred to as "embodiment") with reference to the accompanying drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of an electric junction box unit according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a main part of the electric junction box unit shown in FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view of the frame shown in FIG. [Figure 4] 4 is an exploded perspective view of the lower cover and the bracket shown in FIG. 2. FIG. [Diagram 5] 2. FIG. 5 is a rear perspective view of the lower cover and the bracket shown in FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a top view of the electric junction box unit shown in FIG. [Figure 7]FIG. 7 is a first top view showing an aspect in which an electric junction box is not accommodated in one accommodation space. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a second top view showing an aspect in which an electric junction box is not accommodated in one accommodation space. [Figure 9] 9 is a front perspective view showing an intermediate stage of mounting the holder to the electric junction box unit shown in FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 10] 10 is a front perspective view showing a stage in which mounting of the holder to the electric junction box unit shown in FIG. 1 is completed. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] <Embodiment> Hereinafter, an electric junction box unit 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention shown in Figs. 1 to 10 will be described with reference to the drawings. The electric junction box unit 1 is typically mounted on a vehicle, and is composed of a plurality of electric junction boxes 2 (two in this example) and a bracket 5 (see Figs. 1 and 2). The electric junction box 2 is a relay box having an internal space for accommodating electronic components such as relays and other components R. The bracket 5 is a component for accommodating the electric junction box 2 and for mounting and fixing the electric junction box 2 to a target member (target location) of the vehicle.

[0015] For ease of explanation, "front," "rear," "left," "right," "upper," and "lower" are defined below as shown in Figs. 1 to 10. The "front-rear direction," "left-right direction," and "upper direction" are mutually perpendicular. When the electric junction box unit 1 is mounted on a vehicle, the "front-rear direction," "left-right direction," and "upper direction" correspond to the front-rear direction, left-right direction, and upper-lower direction of the vehicle, respectively. In addition, the side of the electric junction box 2 facing the inside is referred to as the "inner" side, and the side of the electric junction box 2 facing the outside is referred to as the "outer" side. The electric junction box 2 and the bracket 5 that constitute the electric junction box unit 1 will be described below in order.

[0016] First, the electrical junction box 2 will be described. As shown in Fig. 2, the electrical junction box 2 is composed of a frame 3 (corresponding to the "first resin body" of the present invention) and a lower cover 4 (corresponding to the "second resin body" of the present invention) that is attached to the lower side of the frame 3 so as to close the lower end opening of the frame 3. Both of the above two parts that constitute the electrical junction box 2 are resin molded bodies. Note that, for example, an upper cover (not shown) is attached to the upper end opening of the frame 3.

[0017] 1 to 2 and 6 to 8, in the electric junction box 2, electric wires (not shown) electrically connected to some of the components R arranged inside (internal space) of the electric junction box 2 are led out to the outside of the electric junction box 2 through electric wire lead-out holes (not shown) provided in a rear wall portion of the electric junction box 2. The frame 3 and lower cover 4 that constitute the electric junction box 2 will be described in order below.

[0018] First, a description will be given of the frame 3. As shown in Fig. 2 and Fig. 3, the frame 3 has a side wall portion 11 having a generally rectangular tubular shape extending in the vertical direction. The side wall portion 11 constitutes most of the external appearance of the side surface of the electrical junction box 2.

[0019] The side walls 11 on both the left and right sides have a plurality of (four in this example) outer surfaces at their lower ends that are integrally provided with locking portions 12 (corresponding to the “first locking portions” of the present invention) that include through holes extending in the up-down direction. The locking portions 12 function to assemble the lower cover 4 to the frame 3.

[0020] A locked portion 13 (corresponding to the "second locked portion" of the present invention) including a guide (e.g., a guide rib or the like) and a locking protrusion is integrally provided on the outer surface of the side wall portion 11 on both front and rear sides. The locked portion 13 has a function of assembling the frame 3 accommodated in an accommodation space 34 of the bracket 5, which will be described later, to the bracket 5.

[0021] A hole 14 opening downward is provided in the side wall 11 at a location corresponding to the electric wire outlet hole of the electric junction box 2. The hole 14 functions to form the upper portion of the inner wall that defines the electric wire outlet hole.

[0022] Next, the lower cover 4 will be described. As shown in Fig. 4, the lower cover 4 is integrally provided with an annular side wall portion 21 that constitutes most of the appearance of the lower side surface of the electrical junction box 2, and a bottom wall portion 22 that closes an annular lower end opening of the side wall portion 21 and constitutes most of the appearance of the bottom surface of the electrical junction box 2. The annular upper end edge portion of the side wall portion 21 has a shape that corresponds to the annular lower end edge portion of the side wall portion 11 of the frame 3, and is capable of fitting with the annular lower end edge portion of the side wall portion 11.

[0023] On the outer surface of the upper end portion of each of the side wall portions 21 on both the left and right sides at multiple locations (four locations in this example), locking pieces 23 extending in the vertical direction are integrally formed, each corresponding to a corresponding one of the multiple locking portions 12 of the frame 3.

[0024] A hole (reference numeral omitted) that opens upward is provided in the side wall 21 at a location corresponding to the electric wire pull-out hole of the electric junction box 2 (see FIG. 5). The hole functions to constitute a part of the lower portion of the inner wall that defines the electric wire pull-out hole (see FIG. 5).

[0025] 2 and 5, the lower cover 4 is integrally formed with the bracket 5 (bottom wall portion 32) within an accommodation space 34 of the bracket 5, which will be described later. Therefore, it can be said that the electric junction box unit 1 is composed of the electric junction box 2 made up of the frame 3, and the bracket 5 having the lower cover 4. The frame 3 and the lower cover 4 which constitute the electric junction box 2 have been described above.

[0026] Next, the bracket 5 will be described. As shown in Fig. 2 and Fig. 5, the bracket 5 is a resin molded body that is integrally formed (molded) with the lower cover 4 of the electrical junction box 2. As shown in Fig. 4 and Fig. 5, the bracket 5 is integrally provided with a side wall portion 31 having a substantially rectangular tubular shape extending in the vertical direction, and a bottom wall portion 32 that closes an annular lower end opening of the side wall portion 31.

[0027] A partition wall 33 extending in the vertical direction is provided at a predetermined position of the bottom wall portion 32 so as to face the side wall portions 31 on both the left and right sides in the left-right direction. The partition wall 33 has a function of dividing the internal space of the bracket 5 into a plurality of spaces (two in this example) (see Figs. 4 to 8). As a result, the bracket 5 defines an accommodation space 34 capable of accommodating the electric junction box 2. The accommodation space 34 is defined so as to correspond to the outer peripheral shape of the electric junction box 2.

[0028] In each housing space 34, a locking portion 35 including a guide (e.g., a guide rib or the like) and a locking protrusion is integrally provided on the inner surface of the side wall portion 31 on both sides in the front-rear direction (see Figs. 4 and 5). The locking portion 35 has a function of assembling the frame 3 of the electrical connection box 2 housed in the housing space 34 to the bracket 5.

[0029] In each housing space 34, a hole 36 opening upward is provided in the side wall 31 at a location corresponding to the electric wire pull-out hole of the electric junction box 2 (see FIG. 5). The hole 36 functions to form part of the lower portion of the inner wall that defines the electric wire pull-out hole (see FIG. 5).

[0030] Mounting portions 37 each including a screw hole penetrating in the vertical direction are integrally provided on the outer surface of each side wall portion 31 at a plurality of locations (three locations in this example) on both front-rear directions (see Figs. 4 to 8). The mounting portions 37 have a function of mounting and fixing the electric junction box unit 1 (i.e., the electric junction box 2) to a target member (not shown) of the vehicle.

[0031] The side wall 31 has holding portions 38 on its outer surface at multiple locations in the circumferential direction, each capable of holding a holder 8 (see Figs. 9 and 10). The holder 8 is, for example, a resin molded body, and is a component for holding various devices (for example, electric wires, connectors, etc., not shown) around the bracket 5.

[0032] The above describes the electric junction box 2 and the bracket 5 that constitute the electric junction box unit 1. In order to attach and fix the electric junction box unit 1 consisting of the electric junction box 2 and the bracket 5 to a target member, it is necessary to assemble (house) the electric junction box 2 in the bracket 5.

[0033] To assemble (house) the electric junction box 2 in the bracket 5, first, at least one electric junction box 2 is prepared to match the vehicle to be mounted on (in this example, an example in which there are two electric junction boxes 2 will be described). Then, the frames 3 of the prepared electric junction boxes 2 are respectively disposed above the corresponding housing spaces 34 of the bracket 5, and the frames 3 and the bracket 5 are brought relatively close to each other in the vertical direction.

[0034] Then, the locking pieces 23 (see FIG. 4) of the lower cover 4 formed integrally with the bracket 5 are inserted from below into the multiple through holes of the locked portions 12 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) of the frame 3, and from this state, the annular upper edge portion of the side wall portion 21 of the lower cover 4 is fitted into the annular lower edge portion of the side wall portion 11 of the frame 3, and the multiple locking pieces 23 are locked into the multiple locked portions 12, respectively. In this way, the lower cover 4 is assembled to the frame 3.

[0035] During a series of steps in which the lower cover 4 is assembled to the frame 3, the locking portion 35 (see FIGS. 4 and 5) of the bracket 5 is locked to the locked portion 13 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) of the frame 3, and the frame 3 (i.e., the electric junction box 2) is housed in the bracket 5 (specifically, the housing space 34). This completes the electric junction box unit 1 (see FIGS. 1 and 6).

[0036] When the electrical junction box 2 is housed in the bracket 5, separation of the frame 3 and the bracket 5 (lower cover 4) is prevented by the engagement of the multiple locked portions 12 of the frame 3 with the multiple locking pieces 23 of the lower cover 4, and the engagement of the locked portions 13 of the frame 3 with the locking portions 35 of the bracket 5. Furthermore, when the electrical junction box 2 is housed in the bracket 5, the hole 14 of the frame 3, the hole in the lower cover 4, and the hole 36 of the bracket 5 define an electric wire withdrawal hole (not shown) through which an electric wire (not shown) is inserted.

[0037] Then, if necessary, the holder 8 is assembled and held in place in the holding portion 38 of the bracket 5, and then the mounting portion 37 of the bracket 5 is screwed into the target component of the vehicle, thereby fixing the electrical junction box unit 1 (electrical junction box 2) to the target component.

[0038] In addition, when only one electrical connection box 2 is accommodated in the bracket 5, the empty accommodation space 34 in the bracket 5 may be, for example, in a state in which only a lower cover 4 is provided (see Figure 7), or in a state in which no lower cover 4 is provided (see Figure 8).

[0039] <Actions and Effects> According to the electric junction box unit 1 of this embodiment, the electric junction box 2 can be fixed to the target member by housing the electric junction box 2 in the bracket 5. As a result, by housing multiple electric junction boxes 2 in the bracket 5, multiple electric junction boxes 2 can be fixed to the target member all at once. Furthermore, since the lower cover 4 is configured integrally with the bracket 5, the assembly of the frame 3 and the lower cover 4, and the housing of the electric junction box 2 in the bracket 5 can be performed all at once. In this way, the electric junction box unit 1 of this embodiment is superior in various workability, including the ease of fixing the electric junction box 2 to the target member, compared to conventional electric junction boxes.

[0040] Furthermore, according to the electrical connection box unit 1 of this embodiment, the frame 3 has the engaging portion 12 to which the locking piece 23 of the lower cover 4 engages and the engaging portion 13 to which the locking portion 35 of the bracket 5 engages, thereby preventing separation of the electrical connection box 2 and the bracket 5.

[0041] Furthermore, the electrical connection box unit 1 according to this embodiment further includes a holder 8 that is assembled to and held by the bracket 5, so that various devices (e.g., connectors, etc.) around the bracket 5 can be housed in the holder 8.

[0042] As a further advantage, according to the electric junction box unit 1 of this embodiment, it is not necessary to perform the fixing work to the target member for each electric junction box 2 as in the case of the conventional electric junction box, and the working space is reduced.

[0043] As a further effect, according to the electric junction box unit 1 of this embodiment, the electric junction box 2 can be standardized by attaching the electric junction box 2 to a target member by the bracket 5. This allows the electric junction box 2 accommodated in the bracket 5 to be changed as appropriate, so that, for example, when mounting the electric junction box 2 (electrical junction box unit 1) on a vehicle, only the bracket 5 needs to be changed as appropriate to match the vehicle, and the circuit can be easily changed.

[0044] As yet another effect, according to the electrical junction box unit 1 of this embodiment, the electrical junction box 2 is composed of three parts, namely, the frame 3, lower cover 4, and bracket 5, but since the lower cover 4 is configured integrally with the bracket 5, the electrical junction box unit 1 can be configured of two parts, reducing the number of parts.

[0045] As another effect, according to the electrical junction box unit 1 of this embodiment, the electrical junction box 2 is attached to the target component by the bracket 5, and therefore, unlike conventional electrical junction boxes, it is not necessary to attach an electrical junction box to the target component even if it is not necessary due to the circuit specifications.

[0046] <Other forms> The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be appropriately modified, improved, etc. In addition, the material, shape, size, number, arrangement location, etc. of each component in the above-described embodiment are arbitrary as long as the present invention can be achieved, and are not limited.

[0047] Here, the features of the embodiments of the electric junction box unit according to the present invention described above will be briefly summarized and listed in the following [1] to [3]. [1] An electric junction box unit (1) including an electric junction box (2) and a bracket (5) for accommodating the electric junction box and fixing the electric junction box to a target member, The electrical connection box (2) is A first resin body (frame 3) having an internal space capable of accommodating electronic components; a second resin body (lower cover 4) assembled to the first resin body so as to close the opening of the first resin body, The bracket (5) is A plurality of the electrical connection boxes (2) are configured to be accommodated therein, The electrical junction box unit (1) comprises: The second resin body (lower cover 4) and the bracket (5) are integrally formed. Electrical junction box unit (1). [2] In the electric junction box unit (1) described in the above [1], The first resin body (frame 3) is a first locked portion (locked portion 12) to which the locking portion (locking piece 23) of the second resin body (lower cover 4) is locked; and a second locked portion (locked portion 13) to which the locking portion (35) of the bracket (5) is locked. Electrical junction box unit (1). [3] The electric connection box unit (1) according to the above [1] or [2], The bracket (5) further includes a holder (8) that is assembled to and held by the bracket (5). Electrical junction box unit (1).

[0048] According to the electric junction box unit having the configuration [1] above, the electric junction box can be fixed to the target member by housing the electric junction box in the bracket. This allows multiple electric junction boxes to be fixed to the target member all at once by housing multiple electric junction boxes in the bracket. Furthermore, since the second resin body is integrally formed with the bracket, the first resin body and the second resin body can be assembled, and the electric junction box can be housed in the bracket all at once. In this way, the electric junction box unit having this configuration is superior in various workability, including fixing the electric junction box to the target member, compared to conventional electric junction boxes.

[0049] As a further advantage, according to the electric junction box unit of the present configuration, it is not necessary to perform the fixing work to the target member for each electric junction box as in the conventional electric junction box, and the working space is reduced.

[0050] As another effect, the electric junction box unit of this configuration can standardize the electric junction box by attaching the electric junction box to the target member with the bracket. This allows the electric junction box housed in the bracket to be changed as needed, so that, for example, when mounting the electric junction box (electrical junction box unit) on a vehicle, the circuit can be easily changed.

[0051] As yet another effect, according to the electrical junction box unit of the present configuration, the electrical junction box is composed of three parts, namely, a first resin body, a second resin body, and a bracket, which constitute the electrical junction box unit. However, since the second resin body is configured integrally with the bracket, the electrical junction box unit can be composed of two parts, thereby reducing the number of parts.

[0052] According to the electrical connection box unit having the configuration [2] above, the first resin body has a first engaging portion to which the engaging portion of the second resin body engages and a second engaging portion to which the engaging portion of the bracket engages, thereby preventing separation of the electrical connection box and the bracket.

[0053] According to the electric junction box unit having the configuration [3] above, by further providing a holder that is attached to and held by the bracket, various devices (for example, connectors, etc.) around the bracket can be housed in the holder. [Explanation of symbols]

[0054] 1 Electrical junction box unit 2 Electrical junction box 3 Frame (first resin body) 4 Lower cover (second resin body) 5 Bracket 8 Holder 11, 21, 31 Side wall 12 Locked part (first locked part) 13 Locked part (second locked part) 14,36 Hole 22,32 Bottom wall 23 Locking piece 33 Partition Wall 34 Containment Space 35 Locking part 37 Mounting part 38 Holding part R Parts

Claims

1. An electric connection box unit including an electric connection box and a bracket that houses the electric connection box and fixes the electric connection box to a target member, The electrical connection box includes: a first resin body having an internal space capable of accommodating an electronic component; a second resin body attached to the first resin body so as to close the opening of the first resin body, the first resin body is a frame including a substantially rectangular tubular frame side wall portion extending in a vertical direction and constituting an entire side wall of the electrical junction box except for a portion of a lower region of the side wall, the second resin body is a lower cover that includes: a lower cover side wall portion that constitutes a portion of the lower region of the side wall of the electrical junction box and has an upper edge portion that is fitted with a lower edge portion of the frame side wall portion; and a lower cover bottom wall portion that closes a lower end opening defined by the lower cover side wall portion, and is assembled below the frame so as to close the lower end opening of the frame, The bracket is a bracket side wall portion having a generally rectangular tubular shape extending in the vertical direction, a bracket bottom wall portion closing a lower end opening of the bracket side wall portion, and a partition wall dividing an internal space defined by the bracket side wall portion and the bracket bottom wall portion into a plurality of storage spaces capable of respectively accommodating a plurality of the electrical junction boxes, The electrical junction box unit includes: The lower cover is integrally formed with the bracket bottom wall portion of the bracket within the accommodation space defined by the bracket. Electrical junction box unit.

2. 2. The electric junction box unit according to claim 1, The first resin body is a first engaged portion to which the engaging portion of the second resin body is engaged; and a second engaged portion to which the engaging portion of the bracket is engaged. Electrical junction box unit.

3. 3. The electric junction box unit according to claim 1, Further comprising a holder assembled to and held by the bracket. Electrical junction box unit.

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