Wire protection materials and wire harnesses

Abstract

To provide a wire protection material and a wire harness that can make power wiring easier.SOLUTION: Between a wire harness 1 and an electric wiring location 2 there is interposed a wire protection material 8 that protects the outer peripheral surface of an electric wire 7. On the wire protection material 8 there is a protection material body part 10 formed in a planar shape as a whole interposed directly between the electric wire 7 and an interference portion 9 at the electric wiring location 2. On the protection material body part 10 there is no single part that is more bendable than other parts of the protection material body part 10. The wire protection material 8 is a protection plate (protective sheet) that protects the outer peripheral surface of the electric wire 7. The interference portion 9 is a welding burr that occurs at the boundary between metal materials.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a wire protection material for protecting wires and a wire harness.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a harness protection material for protecting a wire harness has been proposed (see Patent Document 1). The harness protection material disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a flexible protection member provided on an adhesive layer of a fixing sheet that can be wound around the outer peripheral surface of the wire harness. By bundling a plurality of wires and winding the fixing sheet, the wire harness is protected by the protection member.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] The above harness protection material has a structure in which a fixing sheet is wound around the wire harness. Therefore, since the wire harness has rigidity, it has been difficult to arrange the wire harness along the arrangement surface at the wire routing location.

[0005] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a wire protection material and a wire harness that can improve the ease of routing of wires.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The wire protection material for solving the above problems is configured to protect the outer peripheral surface of the wire routed at the wire routing location, and the entire protection material body directly interposed between the interference portion existing at the wire routing location and the wire is formed in a planar shape, and the protection material body does not have a portion that is more easily bent than other portions of the protection material body.

[0007] The wire harness that solves the above problem comprises a wire routed to a wire routing location, a fixing member for fixing the wire to the wire routing location, and a wire protection material for protecting the outer surface of the wire, wherein the wire protection material has a protective body that is directly interposed between the interference portion present at the wire routing location and the wire, and the entire body of the protective material is formed in a planar shape. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to this disclosure, the ease of routing power lines can be improved. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a diagram showing the installation of a wire harness according to one embodiment. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a perspective view of the wire protection material. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a perspective view of the power lines. [Figure 4] Figure 4 is a top-down perspective view of the wire harness. [Figure 5] Figure 5 is a perspective view of the wire harness from below. [Figure 6] Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VI-VI in Figure 3. [Figure 7] Figure 7 is a perspective view showing the wire harness in its packaging. [Figure 8] Figure 8 is a perspective view showing one side of the wire harness raised. [Figure 9] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram showing how the first fixing member is fixed to the vertical wall. [Figure 10] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram showing how the angle of the wire protection material absorbs the excess length of the wire. [Figure 11] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram showing the state in which the electric wire sways from side to side on the wire protection material. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0010] First, the embodiments of this disclosure will be listed and described. [1] The wire protection material of the present disclosure is configured to protect the outer surface of a wire routed at a wire routed location, wherein the protective material body interposed between the interference portion present at the wire routed location and the wire is formed in a planar shape.

[0011] With this configuration, the protective material itself is flat, making it possible to bend the protective material. This allows the protective material to be positioned to conform to the shape of the wiring location. Therefore, even when the protective material is used to protect the outer surface of the wire, the wire does not develop linear rigidity, and the wire can be positioned along with the protective material to conform to the shape of the wiring location. Thus, the ease of wiring can be improved.

[0012] [2] The wire protection material is provided with tongue-shaped pieces at at least one end of the lengthwise direction of the main body of the protection material. The tongue-shaped pieces are attached to the wire by a first fixing method, in which a fixing member for fixing the wire to the wire is interposed between the wire and the tongue-shaped piece; a second fixing method, in which the fixing member is not interposed; or a combination thereof. With this configuration, the wire protection material can be attached to the wire using the most suitable fixing method from the first fixing method, the second fixing method, and combinations thereof, depending on the shape of the wire distribution location. This further contributes to improving the ease of wire distribution.

[0013] [3] The first fixing is a structure in which the tongue piece is applied to and fixed to the fixing member attached to the electric wire. With this configuration, the electric wire is assembled integrally with the fixing member, and the electric wire protection material is fixed to this assembly, so the structure of the first fixing can be made into a structure with multiple fixing points. Thus, the electric wire, the electric wire protection material, and the fixing member can be securely fixed. In addition, since the tongue piece is fixed with reference to the fixing member attached to the electric wire, it is possible to position the electric wire protection material relative to the electric wire.

[0014] [4] The first fixing and the second fixing are configured to wind the tape member around and assemble the tongue piece to the electric wire. According to this configuration, it is possible to fix the wire protection material to the electric wire by a simple method using the tape member.

[0015] [5] The fixing member has an engaging portion engaged with the wire routing location and an arm portion extending from the engaging portion. The first fixing is structured such that the arm portion is interposed between the electric wire and the tongue piece. According to this configuration, it is possible to hold and fix the tongue piece of the wire protection material against the arm portion of the fixing member. Therefore, it is possible to firmly assemble the wire protection material to the electric wire.

[0016] [6] The tongue piece is formed in a shape that makes surface contact with the arm portion. According to this configuration, since the surface when the tongue piece is applied to the arm portion is a flat surface, it is difficult for the tongue piece to be displaced. Therefore, it is possible to make it difficult for the wire protection material after being attached to the wire routing location to be displaced. Also, since it is possible to increase the contact area between the tongue piece of the wire protection material and the fixing member, it is possible to firmly press the wire protection material against the fixing member.

[0017] [7] The fixing member has a shape with the arm portion only on one side with respect to the engaging portion. The electric wire, the tongue piece, and the arm portion are arranged in alignment such that their axes are aligned in the stacking direction. According to this configuration, it is possible to arrange the electric wire, the tongue piece, and the arm portion so as to stack them, so it is possible to compactly integrate this part.

[0018] [8] The protection material body has flexibility. According to this configuration, when arranging the wire protection material at the wire routing location, it is less likely to be affected by the shape of the wire routing location. Therefore, it is advantageous for arranging the wire protection material at the wire routing location without gaps.

[0019] [9] The protective material body has a displacement-allowing portion that prevents the electric wire from protruding from the protective material body even when the electric wire moves in the planar direction of the protective material body. With this configuration, even if the electric wire is displaced in the planar direction of the protective material body when the electric wire is assembled or when the electric wire vibrates, the electric wire is less likely to protrude from the electric wire protective material. Thus, it becomes possible to protect the electric wire effectively.

[0020]

[10] The wire harness of the present disclosure comprises a wire routed to a wire routing location, a fixing member for fixing the wire to the wire routing location, and a wire protection material for protecting the outer surface of the wire, wherein the wire protection material has a protective material body that is interposed between an interference portion present at the wire routing location and the wire and is formed in a planar shape.

[0021] This configuration provides the same effects as wire protection materials. Therefore, it is possible to improve the ease of routing wires and, consequently, wire harnesses.

[11] At least a portion of the outer surface of the electric wire where the electric wire protective material is laid is provided with a bending-tolerant protective layer that can bend together with the electric wire while protecting it. With this configuration, even when the electric wire is arranged in a bent position, the outer surface of the electric wire can be adequately protected.

[0022]

[12] A rigid hard protective layer is provided on at least a portion of the outer surface of the electric wire that is stepped on by the user. With this configuration, the portion of the outer surface of the electric wire that is frequently stepped on by the user is protected with a rigid hard protective layer, making it possible to protect the electric wire even more effectively.

[0023]

[13] The wire protection material is provided with tongues at at least one end of the lengthwise direction of the main body of the protection material. The tongues are attached to the wire by a first fixing method in which a fixing member for fixing the wire to the wire is interposed between the wire and the tongue, a second fixing method in which the fixing member is not interposed, or a combination thereof. With this configuration, the same effects as a wire protection material can be obtained.

[0024]

[14] The fixing member has an engaging portion that engages with the wire routing location and an arm portion that extends from the engaging portion to only one side. The first fixing is a structure in which the wire protection material is fixed to the wire by interposing the arm portion between the wire and the tongue piece. With this configuration, the wire protection material can be positioned relative to the wire by fixing the tongue piece of the wire protection material with respect to the arm portion of the fixing member.

[0025]

[15] The fixing member includes a first fixing member that is involved in assembling the wire protection material to the electric wire and a second fixing member that is not involved in assembling the wire protection material to the electric wire. The second fixing member has an engaging portion that engages with the wire routing location and a pair of arms that extend on both sides from the engaging portion, and the pair of arms are directly fixed to the electric wire. With this configuration, the position of the second fixing member does not have to be affected by the wire protection material. Therefore, there is a degree of freedom in the position of the second fixing member, and it is possible to attach the second fixing member to the optimal position.

[0026] [Details of the embodiments of this disclosure] Specific examples of the wire protection materials and wire harnesses of this disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to these examples, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims, as defined by the claims. In the drawings, some parts of the configuration may be exaggerated or simplified for illustrative purposes. Furthermore, the dimensional ratios of the parts may differ from those of the actual components.

[0027] [Overview of Wire Harness 1 Installation] As shown in Figure 1, a wire harness 1 for electrically connecting electrical components is routed to the wiring location 2. The wire harness 1 is, for example, an in-vehicle harness. In this case, the wiring location 2 includes, for example, the floor 3 inside the vehicle and a vertical wall 4 erected against the floor 3. Thus, the wire harness 1 is placed in a location where it is highly likely to be stepped on directly or indirectly by the user.

[0028] [Overview of Wire Protection Material 8] As shown in Figure 1, a wire protection material 8 is interposed between the wire harness 1 and the wire routing location 2 to protect the outer surface of the wire 7. The wire protection material 8 has a flat protective body 10 that is interposed between the interference portion 9 present in the wire routing location 2 and the wire 7. Thus, the wire protection material 8 is a protective plate (protective sheet) that protects the outer surface of the wire 7. The interference portion 9 is, for example, a welding burr that occurs at the boundary of metal materials.

[0029] As shown in Figure 2, the protective material body 10 is formed in a roughly rectangular shape, for example. The protective material body 10 is flexible. The wire protection material 8 can be bent at least in the protective material body 10. The wire protection material 8 is preferably made of resin, for example, PP (polypropylene) is used as an example. The wire protection material 8 can be manufactured inexpensively, for example, by punching out sheet material from PP.

[0030] The wire protection material 8 is provided with tongue pieces 11 at at least one end (in this example, both ends) of the protection material body 10 in the longitudinal direction (X-axis direction in Figure 2). The tongue pieces 11 are formed to protrude longitudinally from the center in the width direction (Y-axis direction in Figure 2) of the protection material body 10. In this example, the tongue pieces 11 include a first tongue piece 11a positioned along the vertical wall 4 and a second tongue piece 11b positioned along the floor surface 3. The length La of the first tongue piece 11a is formed to be longer than the length Lb of the second tongue piece 11b (La > Lb). The tip of the tongue piece 11 has hook portions 12 that protrude on both sides in the width direction (Y-axis direction in Figure 2) of the wire protection material 8.

[0031] [Overview of the structure of power line 7] As shown in Figure 3, the electric wire 7 comprises an electric wire body 14 consisting of one or more electrical wires. A rigid protective layer 15 is provided on at least a portion of the outer surface of the electric wire 7 (electric wire body 14) that is stepped on by the user, protecting the electric wire 7 while maintaining rigidity. The rigid protective layer 15 is, for example, a sheet material and is wrapped around the electric wire body 14. The rigid protective layer 15 is formed to a length that reaches the second tongue piece 11b of the electric wire protection material 8.

[0032] At least a portion of the outer surface of the electric wire 7 (electric wire body 14) where the electric wire protection material 8 is laid is provided with a bendable protective layer 16 that protects the electric wire 7 while also bending together with the electric wire 7. The bendable protective layer 16 is, for example, a sheet material and is wrapped around the electric wire body 14. In this example, the bendable protective layer 16 is formed to be the same length as or approximately the same length as the protective material body 10.

[0033] Preferably, the wire body 14 is wrapped with a tape 17 that does not have a protective function, and a rigid protective layer 15 and a bending-permissible protective layer 16 are provided on the outside of the tape. Therefore, in the parts of the wire 7 (wire body 14) where the rigid protective layer 15 and the bending-permissible protective layer 16 are not provided, the tape 17 is exposed to the outside. Note that the tape 17 is not limited to being provided over the entire surface of the wire body 14; for example, it may be omitted in the areas covered by the bending-permissible protective layer 16.

[0034] [Summary of securing wire harness 1 to power line routing location 2] As shown in Figure 1, the wire harness 1 is attached and secured to the wire routing location 2 by two fixing members 20. In this example, the wire harness 1 is secured to the wire routing location 2 at two locations: the floor surface 3 and the vertical wall 4. The fixing member 20 used for securing to the vertical wall 4 will be referred to as the "first fixing member 20a," and the fixing member used for securing to the floor surface 3 will be referred to as the "second fixing member 20b." The fixing members 20 are, in other words, clamps.

[0035] The first fixing member 20a has an engaging portion 21 that engages with the wire routing location 2, and an arm portion 22 that extends from the engaging portion 21 to only one side. The first fixing member 20a is a so-called "single-arm clamp". The second fixing member 20b has an engaging portion 23 that engages with the wire routing location 2, and a pair of arm portions 24 that extend from the engaging portion 23 to both sides. The second fixing member 20b is a so-called "double-arm clamp". In this example, the first fixing member 20a is involved in assembling the wire protection material 8 to the wire 7, while the second fixing member 20b is not.

[0036] [Summary of securing wire protection material 8 to wire 7] As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the tongue piece 11 is attached to the electric wire 7 by a first fixing method, in which a fixing member 20 for fixing the electric wire 7 to the electric wire routing location 2 is interposed between the tongue piece 11 and the electric wire 7; a second fixing method, in which the fixing member 20 is not interposed; or a combination thereof. In this example, the first fixing method is used for the first tongue piece 11a, and the second fixing method is used for the second tongue piece 11b. That is, the first tongue piece 11a is fixed to the electric wire 7 with the first fixing member 20a in between. On the other hand, the second tongue piece 11b is fixed directly to the electric wire 7 without the second fixing member 20b.

[0037] The first fixing method involves fixing the wire 7 to a fixing member 20 (first fixing member 20a) by applying a tongue piece 11 (first tongue piece 11a) to it. Specifically, the wire 7 and the first fixing member 20a are first fixed together by tape wrapping, and then the first tongue piece 11a of the wire protection material 8 is fixed to this assembly.

[0038] The first and second fixing methods involve wrapping tape members 26 (26a, 26b) around the wire to attach the tongue piece to the electric wire. Specifically, in the first fixing method, for example, in an assembly where the electric wire 7 is placed on the arm portion 22 of the first fixing member 20a, the electric wire 7 and the first tongue piece 11a sandwich the arm portion 22 of the first fixing member 20a, and the tape member 26a is wrapped around the assembly, thereby attaching them together as a single unit. Therefore, the electric wire 7, the first tongue piece 11a, and the arm portion 22 are fixed together as a single unit by wrapping tape member 26a around the assembly with the arm portion 22 positioned between the electric wire 7 and the first tongue piece 11a. In this way, the first fixing method involves interposing the arm portion 22 between the electric wire 7 and the first tongue piece 11a to fix the electric wire protection material 8 to the electric wire 7. Furthermore, the second fixing method involves, for example, placing the electric wire 7 on the second tongue piece 11b and wrapping them together with the tape member 26b from the outside, thereby assembling them as a single unit.

[0039] The protective material body 10 has displacement-allowing portions 27 that prevent the electric wire 7 from protruding from the protective material body 10 even when it moves in the planar direction of the protective material body 10. In this example, the displacement-allowing portions 27 are provided on both sides in the width direction of the protective material body 10. Furthermore, the displacement-allowing portions 27 are a sheet portion that is integrated with the protective material body 10.

[0040] The second fixing member 20b has a pair of arms 24 that are directly fixed to the electric wire 7. In this example, the second fixing member 20b is integrally fixed to the electric wire 7 by wrapping each of the pair of arms 24 around the electric wire 7 with tape 28.

[0041] As shown in Figure 6, the first tongue piece 11a is formed in a shape that makes surface contact with the arm portion 22 of the first fixing member 20a. This allows the first tongue piece 11a to rest on the flat surface of the arm portion 22 rather than directly contacting the outer circumference (curved surface) of the electric wire 7. Furthermore, the electric wire 7, the first tongue piece 11a, and the arm portion 22 are arranged in alignment so that their axes P are aligned in the stacking direction (the Z-axis direction in Figure 6). That is, if the axis P of the electric wire 7 is "P1", the axis P of the first tongue piece 11a is "P2", and the axis P of the arm portion 22 is P3, then axes P1 to P3 are arranged in a straight line in the vertical direction.

[0042] [Effect] Next, the operation of the wire protection material 8 (wire harness 1) of this embodiment will be explained. As shown in Figure 7, in this example, since the wire protection material 8 is plate-shaped (flat), it is possible to fold the wire harness 1 at the wire protection material 8 when shipping the wire harness 1. Therefore, the wire harness 1 can be compactly packed into a roughly U-shape, making it easier to handle during transportation.

[0043] As shown in Figure 8, when attaching the wire harness 1 to the wire routing location 2, the wire harness 1 is removed from its packaging, the fallen wires 7 are straightened, and the wire harness 1 is made into an approximate L-shape. Then, the engaging portion 21 of the first fixing member 20a is engaged with the engaged portion 30 (shown in Figure 9) of the vertical wall 4, and the engaging portion 23 of the second fixing member 20b is engaged with the engaged portion 31 (shown in Figure 1) of the floor surface 3. In this example, the engaged portion 30 is, for example, a recess (hole). The engaged portion 31 is a recess (hole) provided in the base 32 (shown in Figure 1) of the floor surface 3.

[0044] As shown in Figure 9, the wire protection material 8 is secured to the first fixing member 20a by being bound together with the tape member 26a. Therefore, when the first fixing member 20a is fixed to the engagement portion 30, it becomes possible to press the wire protection material 8 in the direction of attachment of the first fixing member 20a (direction of arrow A in Figure 9). In other words, it becomes possible to position the wire protection material 8 along the wire routing location 2 with minimal gaps.

[0045] As shown in Figure 10, even if there is excess length in the wire harness 1, the excess length can be absorbed by the bending angle of the wire protection material 8. In other words, if there is excess length in the wire harness 1, pushing the wire harness 1 in by that amount will cause the wire protection material 8 to bend inward accordingly, making it possible to position the wire harness 1 along the wire routing location 2. Furthermore, the height H of the wire harness 1 is only the thickness of the wire body 14, the surrounding protective layers (rigid protective layer 15, bending-permissible protective layer 16), and the wire protection material 8. Therefore, the height H of the wire harness 1 can also be kept low.

[0046] As shown in Figure 11, when the wire harness 1 is assembled, the harness position may be adjusted, or when vibrations occur in the vehicle, the electric wire 7 may swing from side to side (in the direction of arrows B1 and B2 in the figure) along the planar direction of the electric wire protection material 8. In this example, since displacement allowances 27 are provided on both sides of the protection material body 10, even if the electric wire 7 swings from side to side, it is possible to maintain the electric wire 7 resting on the electric wire protection material 8. Therefore, it is possible to make it less likely for the electric wire 7 to be damaged.

[0047] According to the wire protection material 8 (wire harness 1) of the above embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. (1) The wire protection material 8 protects the outer surface of the wire 7 that is routed at the wire routing location 2. The wire protection material 8 has a flat body 10 which is interposed between the interference portion 9 present at the wire routing location 2 and the wire.

[0048] With this configuration, since the protective material body 10 of the wire protection material 8 is flat, the wire protection material 8 can be bent. This makes it possible to position the wire protection material 8 along the shape of the wire routing location 2. Therefore, even when the wire protection material 8 is used to protect the outer surface of the wire 7, the wire 7 does not acquire linear rigidity, and the wire 7 can be positioned along the shape of the wire routing location 2 together with the wire protection material 8. Thus, the ease of routing the wire 7 can be improved.

[0049] (2) The wire protection material 8 is provided with tongue pieces 11 at at least one end of the lengthwise direction of the protection material body 10. The tongue pieces 11 are attached to the wire 7 by a first fixing method in which a fixing member 20 for fixing the wire 7 to the wire routing location 2 is interposed between the wire 7 and the tongue piece 11, a second fixing method without the fixing member 20 interposed, or a combination thereof. With this configuration, the wire protection material 8 can be attached to the wire 7 using the most suitable fixing method from the first fixing, second fixing, and combinations thereof, depending on the shape of the wire routing location 2. This further contributes to improving the ease of routing the wire 7.

[0050] (3) The first fixing method involves fixing the wire 7 to a fixing member 20 (in this example, the first fixing member 20a) by applying a tongue piece 11 (in this example, the first tongue piece 11a) to it. With this configuration, the wire 7 is assembled integrally with the fixing member 20, and the wire protection material 8 is fixed to this assembly, so the structure of the first fixing method can be made into a structure with multiple fixing points. Therefore, the wire 7, the wire protection material 8, and the fixing member 20 can be securely fixed. In addition, since the tongue piece 11 is fixed based on the fixing member 20 attached to the wire 7, the wire protection material 8 can be positioned relative to the wire 7.

[0051] (4) The first and second fixing methods involve wrapping the tape member 26 around the wire and attaching the tongue piece 11 to the wire. With this configuration, the wire protection material 8 can be fixed to the wire 7 by a simple method using the tape member 26.

[0052] (5) The fixing member 20 (in this example, the first fixing member 20a) has an engaging portion 21 that engages with the wire routing location 2 and an arm portion 22 extending from the engaging portion 21. The first fixing has a structure in which the arm portion 22 is interposed between the electric wire 7 and the tongue piece 11 (in this example, the first tongue piece 11a). With this configuration, the first tongue piece 11a of the electric wire protection material 8 can be attached to the arm portion 22 of the first fixing member 20a and fixed in place. Thus, the electric wire protection material 8 can be securely attached to the electric wire 7.

[0053] (6) The tongue piece 11 (in this example, the first tongue piece 11a) is formed in a shape that makes surface contact with the arm portion 22. With this configuration, the surface that the first tongue piece 11a makes when it comes into contact with the arm portion 22 is flat, so that the first tongue piece 11a is less likely to shift position. Therefore, the wire protection material 8 can be made less likely to shift position after being attached to the wire routing location 2. In addition, since it is possible to make the contact area between the first tongue piece 11a of the wire protection material 8 and the first fixing member 20a larger, the wire protection material 8 can be firmly pressed against the first fixing member 20a.

[0054] (7) The fixing member 20 (in this example, the first fixing member 20a) has a shape in which it has an arm portion 22 on only one side relative to the engaging portion 21. The electric wire 7, the tongue piece 11 (in this example, the first tongue piece 11a), and the arm portion 22 are arranged in alignment so that the axes P1 to P3 are aligned in the stacking direction. With this configuration, the electric wire 7, the first tongue piece 11a, and the arm portion 22 can be stacked, so this part can be made compact.

[0055] (8) The protective material body 10 is flexible. With this configuration, when the wire protection material 8 is placed in the wire routing location 2, it is less affected by the shape of the wire routing location 2. Therefore, it is advantageous to place the wire protection material 8 in the wire routing location 2 without any gaps.

[0056] (9) The protective material body 10 has a displacement-allowing portion 27 that prevents the electric wire 7 from protruding from the protective material body 10 even if it moves in the planar direction of the protective material body 10. With this configuration, even if the electric wire 7 is displaced in the planar direction (left-right direction) of the protective material body 10 when the electric wire 7 is assembled or when the electric wire 7 vibrates, the electric wire 7 is less likely to protrude from the electric wire protective material 8. Therefore, the electric wire 7 can be adequately protected.

[0057] (10) At least a portion of the outer surface of the electric wire 7 where the electric wire protection material 8 is laid is provided with a bending-tolerant protective layer 16 that can bend together with the electric wire 7 while protecting it. With this configuration, the outer surface of the electric wire 7 can be adequately protected even when the electric wire 7 is bent during placement.

[0058] (11) A rigid hard protective layer 15 is provided on at least a portion of the outer surface of the electric wire 7 that is stepped on by the user. With this configuration, the parts of the outer surface of the electric wire 7 that are frequently stepped on by the user are protected by the rigid hard protective layer 15, so the electric wire 7 can be protected even more effectively.

[0059] (12) The fixing member 20 includes a first fixing member 20a that is involved in assembling the wire protection material 8 to the electric wire 7, and a second fixing member 20b that is not involved in assembling the wire protection material 8 to the electric wire 7. The second fixing member 20b has an engaging portion 23 that engages with the wire routing location 2, and a pair of arm portions 24 that extend from the engaging portion 23 to both sides, and the pair of arm portions 24 are directly fixed to the electric wire 7. With this configuration, the position of the second fixing member 20b does not have to be affected by the wire protection material 8. Therefore, there is a degree of freedom in the position of the second fixing member 20b, so that the second fixing member 20b can be attached to the optimal position.

[0060] This embodiment can be implemented with the following modifications. This embodiment and the following modifications can be combined with each other to the extent that they do not contradict each other technically. The wire protection material 8 is not limited to being fixed to the wire 7 using the tape member 26; for example, it may also be fixed using adhesive or fasteners.

[0061] The protective material body 10 is not limited to a roughly rectangular shape; it can be changed to, for example, a triangular shape, a trapezoidal shape, a circular shape, etc. The method is not limited to fixing the electric wire 7 and the fixing member 20 first, and then fixing the electric wire protection material 8 to this assembly. For example, a method may be used in which the electric wire 7, the electric wire protection material 8, and the fixing member 20 are fixed at the same time.

[0062] The structure of the electric wire 7, electric wire protection material 8, and fixing member 20 is not limited to a structure in which the fixing member 20 is placed between the electric wire 7 and the electric wire protection material 8. For example, a structure in which the electric wire 7 is placed between the electric wire protection material 8 and the fixing member 20, or where the electric wire protection material 8 is placed between the electric wire 7 and the fixing member 20, may be used.

[0063] The fixing location for the fixing member 20 is not limited to walls or seats; any location where the fixing member 20 can be fixed is acceptable. Alternatively, the tongue piece 11 may be provided on only one side, and the protective material body 10 may be fixed to the electric wire 7 on the other side.

[0064] The fixing member 20 is not limited to being fixed to the electric wire 7 by wrapping it with tape; it may be changed to another fixing method, such as using an adhesive. The fixing member 20 is not limited to a clamp, and may be changed to other members such as a band (cable tie).

[0065] The interfering portion 9 is not limited to welding burrs, but can be any location that has the potential to damage the outer surface of the electric wire 7. The electric wire 7 is not limited to a structure in which a rigid protective layer 15 and a bending-permissible protective layer 16 are covered around it. For example, it may have a structure without these covering materials, or it may be protected around the periphery by a covering material having another function.

[0066] • The location of the power line routing 2 is not limited to the floor 3 or vertical wall 4 inside the vehicle; it may be changed to other locations such as the side wall of the vehicle body. The wire protection material 8 may be used not only in vehicles but also in other devices and equipment.

[0067] This disclosure is described in accordance with the embodiments, but it is understood that this disclosure is not limited to such embodiments or structures. This disclosure also includes various modifications and variations within the scope of equivalence. In addition, various combinations and forms, as well as other combinations and forms that include only one, more, or less of those elements, fall within the scope and concept of this disclosure.

[0068] The technical concept is described below. (1)Technical philosophy 1 A wire protection material for protecting the outer surface of a wire routed at a wire routed location, wherein the protective material body interposed between the wire and an interference portion present at the wire routed location is formed in a planar shape, and the protective material body is provided with tongue pieces at at least one end in the longitudinal direction of the protective material body, the tongue pieces are assembled to the wire by a first fixing method in which a fixing member for fixing the wire to the wire routed location is interposed between the wire and the wire, a second fixing method without the fixing member interposed, or a combination thereof, the first fixing method is a wire protection material in which the tongue pieces are pressed against and fixed to the fixing member attached to the wire.

[0069] (2)Technical philosophy 2 A wire protection material for protecting the outer surface of a wire routed at a wire routed location, wherein the protective material body interposed between the wire and an interference portion present at the wire routed location is formed in a planar shape, and the protective material body is provided with tongue pieces at at least one end in the longitudinal direction of the protective material body, the tongue pieces are assembled to the wire by a first fixing method in which a fixing member for fixing the wire to the wire routed location is interposed between the wire and the wire, a second fixing method without the fixing member interposed, or a combination thereof, and the first and second fixing methods are constructed by wrapping a tape member around the wire to assemble the tongue pieces to the wire.

[0070] (3)Technical philosophy 3 A wire protection material for protecting the outer surface of a wire routed at a wire routed location, wherein the protective material body interposed between the wire and an interference portion present at the wire routed location is formed in a planar shape, and the protective material body is provided with tongue pieces at at least one end in the longitudinal direction of both ends, the tongue piece being assembled to the wire by a first fixing method in which a fixing member for fixing the wire to the wire routed location is interposed between the wire and the wire, a second fixing method without the fixing member interposed, or a combination thereof, the fixing member having an engagement portion that engages with the wire routed location and an arm portion extending from the engagement portion, the first fixing method having a structure in which the arm portion is interposed between the wire and the tongue piece.

[0071] (4)Technical philosophy 4 The wire protection material according to Technical Concept 1, wherein the first and second fixings are constructed by wrapping a tape member around the wire and assembling the tongue piece to the wire.

[0072] (5)Technical philosophy 5 The fixing member has an engaging portion that engages with the wire routing location and an arm portion extending from the engaging portion, and the first fixing is a wire protection material according to any one of technical concepts 1, 2, or 4, wherein the arm portion is interposed between the wire and the tongue piece.

[0073] (6)Technical philosophy 6 The wire protection material according to Technical Concept 3 or Technical Concept 5, wherein the tongue is formed in a shape that makes surface contact with the arm portion.

[0074] (7)Technical philosophy 7 The fixing member has a shape in which the arm portion is on only one side of the engaging portion, and the electric wire, the tongue piece, and the arm portion are arranged in alignment so that their axes are aligned in the stacking direction, according to any one of Technical Concepts 3, 5, or 6.

[0075] (8)Technical philosophy 8 The protective material body is a flexible wire protection material according to any one of Technical Concepts 1 to 7.

[0076] (9)Technical philosophy 9 The wire protection material according to any one of Technical Concepts 1 to 8, wherein the protective material body has a displacement-allowing portion that prevents the wire from protruding from the protective material body even when the wire moves in the planar direction of the protective material body.

[0077] (10)Technical philosophy 10 A wire harness comprising a wire routed to a wire routed location, a fixing member for fixing the wire to the wire routed location, and a wire protection material for protecting the outer surface of the wire, wherein the wire protection material has a flat body interposed between the interference portion present at the wire routed location and the wire, and at least a portion of the outer surface of the wire where the wire protection material is laid is provided with a bending-permissible protective layer that can bend together with the wire while protecting it.

[0078] (11)Technical philosophy 11 A wire harness comprising a wire routed to a wire routed location, a fixing member for fixing the wire to the wire routed location, and a wire protection material for protecting the outer surface of the wire, wherein the wire protection material has a protective material body formed in a planar shape which is interposed between an interference portion present at the wire routed location and the wire, the wire protection material has tongue pieces provided at least one end of both ends in the longitudinal direction of the protective material body, the tongue pieces are assembled to the wire by a first fixing method in which the fixing member for fixing the wire to the wire routed location is interposed between the wire and the wire, a second fixing method without the fixing member interposed, or a combination thereof, the fixing member has an engagement portion that engages with the wire routed location and an arm portion extending only to one side from the engagement portion, and the first fixing method is a structure in which the wire protection material is fixed to the wire by interposing the arm portion between the wire and the tongue piece.

[0079] (12)Technical philosophy 12 A wire harness comprising a wire routed to a wire routing location, a fixing member for fixing the wire to the wire routing location, and a wire protection material for protecting the outer surface of the wire, wherein the wire protection material has a flat body that is interposed between the interference portion present at the wire routing location and the wire, the wire protection material has tongues provided at at least one end in the longitudinal direction of the protective material body, and the tongues interpose the fixing member that fixes the wire to the wire routing location between the wire and the wire A wire harness that is assembled to the electric wire by a first fixing method, a second fixing method without the interposing fixing method, or a combination thereof, wherein the fixing method includes a first fixing method that is involved in assembling the wire protection material to the electric wire and a second fixing method that is not involved in assembling the wire protection material to the electric wire, and the second fixing method has an engaging portion that engages with the wire routing location and a pair of arms that extend to both sides from the engaging portion, and the pair of arms are directly fixed to the electric wire.

[0080] (13)Technical philosophy 13 A wire harness according to technical concept 11 or technical concept 12, wherein at least a portion of the outer surface of the electric wire where the electric wire protective material is laid is provided with a bend-tolerant protective layer that can bend together with the electric wire while protecting it.

[0081] (14)Technical philosophy 14 A wire harness according to any one of Technical Concepts 10 to 13, wherein at least a portion of the outer surface of the electric wire that is stepped on by the user is provided with a rigid protective layer. [Explanation of symbols]

[0082] 1 Wire harness 2. Locations for routing power lines 3 Floor surface 4 Vertical wall 7 Electric wire 8. Wire protection material 9 Interference area 10 Protective material body 11 Tongue piece 11a 1st tongue piece 11b Second tongue piece 12 Hook part 14. Wire body 15 Hard protective layer 16. Curvature-tolerant protective layer 17 Tapes 20 Fixing member 20a First fixing member 20b Second fixing member 21 Engaging part 22 Arm 23 Engaging part 24 Arm 26 Tape component 26a Tape component 26b Tape component 27 Displacement-allowable section 28 Tapes 30 Engaged portion 31 Engaged portion 32 bases La length Lb length P-axis P1~P3 axis H Height

Claims

1. A wire protection material that protects the outer surface of wires laid at a wire routing location, The protective material body, which is directly interposed between the interference portion present at the wire routing location and the wire, is formed in a flat shape overall. The protective material body does not have any part that is more flexible than other parts of the protective material body. The protective material body is provided with tongue-shaped pieces at at least one end of both ends in the longitudinal direction, The tongue-shaped piece is a wire protection material that is attached to the wire by a first fixing method in which a fixing member for fixing the wire to the wire is interposed between the wire and the tongue-shaped piece, a second fixing method in which the fixing member is not interposed, or a combination thereof.

2. The wire protection material according to claim 1, wherein the first fixing is a structure in which the tongue piece is applied to and fixed to the fixing member attached to the wire.

3. The wire protection material according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the first fixing and the second fixing are constructed by wrapping a tape member around the wire and assembling the tongue piece to the wire.

4. The fixing member has an engaging portion that engages with the wire routing location and an arm portion that extends from the engaging portion. The first fixing method has a structure in which the arm portion is interposed between the electric wire and the tongue piece. A wire protection material according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. The tongue-shaped piece is formed to make surface contact with the arm portion. The wire protection material according to claim 4.

6. The fixing member has a shape in which the arm portion is located on only one side relative to the engaging portion. The wire protection material according to claim 4 or claim 5, wherein the wire, the tongue piece, and the arm portion are arranged in alignment so that their axes are aligned in the stacking direction.

7. The protective material body is flexible A wire protection material according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. The wire protection material according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the protective material body has a displacement-allowing portion that prevents the wire from protruding from the protective material body even when the wire moves in the planar direction of the protective material body.

9. The power lines that are laid at the power line distribution points, A fixing member for fixing the aforementioned electric wire to the aforementioned electric wire routing location, A wire harness comprising a wire protection material that protects the outer surface of the electric wire, The aforementioned wire protection material is directly interposed between the interference portion present at the wire routing location and the wire, and the entire body of the protection material is formed in a planar shape. A wire harness in which a bending-permissible protective layer is provided on at least a portion of the outer surface of the electric wire where the electric wire protective material is laid, allowing the electric wire to bend together with the electric wire while protecting it.

10. The power lines that are laid at the power line distribution points, A fixing member for fixing the aforementioned electric wire to the aforementioned electric wire routing location, A wire harness comprising a wire protection material that protects the outer surface of the electric wire, The aforementioned wire protection material is directly interposed between the interference portion present at the wire routing location and the wire, and the entire body of the protection material is formed in a planar shape. A wire harness in which a rigid protective layer is provided on at least a portion of the outer surface of the electric wire that is stepped on by the user.

11. The power lines that are laid at the power line distribution points, A fixing member for fixing the aforementioned electric wire to the aforementioned electric wire routing location, A wire harness comprising a wire protection material that protects the outer surface of the electric wire, The aforementioned wire protection material is directly interposed between the interference portion present at the wire routing location and the wire, and the entire body of the protection material is formed in a planar shape. The wire protection material is provided with tongue-shaped pieces at at least one end of both ends in the longitudinal direction of the protection material body, The tongue is a wire harness assembled to the electric wire by a first fixing method in which the fixing member for fixing the electric wire to the electric wire is interposed between the electric wire and the tongue, a second fixing method in which the fixing member is not interposed, or a combination thereof.

12. The wire harness according to any one of claims 9 to 11, wherein the protective material body has no portion that is more easily bent than other parts of the protective material body.

13. The fixing member has an engaging portion that engages with the wire routing location and an arm portion that extends from the engaging portion to only one side. The wire harness according to claim 11, wherein the first fixing is a structure in which the arm portion is interposed between the electric wire and the tongue piece to fix the electric wire protective material to the electric wire.

14. The fixing member includes a first fixing member that is involved in assembling the wire protection material to the wire and a second fixing member that is not involved in assembling the wire protection material to the wire. The wire harness according to claim 11, wherein the second fixing member has an engaging portion that engages with the wire routing location and a pair of arms that extend from the engaging portion to both sides, and the pair of arms are directly fixed to the wire.

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