Wire Harness Shape Retention Using Cured Adhesive
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wire harnesses with metal protection pipes require significant space for transportation and processing, and the use of flexible sheathing members struggles to maintain shape without additional protectors, leading to high costs and inefficiencies.
Innovation Solution
A wire harness design featuring a flexible sheathing member with recessed and protruded sections, where a curing-type adhesive or resin is applied and cured at the bent parts to maintain shape, eliminating the need for external protectors and allowing for efficient shaping without dedicated molds or parts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a metal protection pipe is used to protect wires, then the wire is protected from damage and electromagnetic shielding is provided, but the space required for transportation and processing increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces rigid metal protection pipes with flexible sheathing members that have corrugated surfaces. These flexible sheaths provide wire protection while being collapsible or flexible enough to reduce transportation space requirements, directly resolving the contradiction between protection reliability and space efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite structures combining flexible materials with protective properties. The sheathing member integrates multiple functions (protection, electromagnetic shielding, shape maintenance) into a single flexible component, reducing the need for bulky metal pipes while maintaining reliability
2Volume of moving object
If a flexible sheathing member is used instead of metal protection pipe, then transportation space is reduced, but the sheathing member cannot maintain desired shape without additional protectors
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies adhesive to the sheathing member before bending and shaping operations. This preliminary application of adhesive ensures that when the sheath is bent to its final shape, the adhesive holds it in place, eliminating the need for additional protectors to maintain shape during and after installation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces adhesive as an intermediary substance between the sheathing member and its mounting surface. This adhesive mediator enables the flexible sheath to maintain its shaped configuration without requiring rigid protectors or additional structural support
3Shape
If a protector is provided to maintain shape of sheathing member, then shape retention is improved, but manufacturing cost increases due to separate design and multiple prototype molds
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the shape-retention function into the adhesive application process itself, rather than requiring a separate protector component. The adhesive serves dual purposes: bonding the sheathing member and maintaining its shape, thereby eliminating the need for separately designed protectors and reducing manufacturing complexity and cost
4Shape
If a protector is provided for sheathing member, then shape maintenance is achieved, but mounting part size increases causing proximity to ground
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the shape-maintenance function from a separate protector component and integrates it into the adhesive system. This eliminates the need for additional mounting parts or structural elements, keeping the mounting area compact and preventing proximity to the ground
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively maintains the desired shape of the wire harness without external protectors, reduces manufacturing costs, and improves working efficiency by preventing detachment of the adhesive, allowing for flexible and cost-effective production.
Implementation Method 1
a curing-type adhesive or resin containing the adhesive is supplied to only the recessed sections of a bent part which is formed when the wire harness is bent, and cured while the bent part is maintained in a bent shape
Implementation Method 2
a curing-type adhesive or resin containing the adhesive is supplied to only the recessed sections
Data Source
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AI summary
A wire harness with which, when using a flexible sheathing member in a bended state as a sheathing member for a conduction path, the sheathing member can be maintained in a desired shape without using protectors. The wire harness (9) is provided with: a conduction path consisting of a good conductor such as wires (18); and a corrugated tube (16), as a sheathing member, that has a conduction path (18) passing therethrough, and has recessed sections and protruded sections, which extend in the circumferential direction on the surface of the corrugated tube (16), formed alternately along the longitudinal direction of the corrugated tube (16). In this wire harness (9), a curing-type adhesive (23) is applied to recessed sections of a bending section, which is formed on the sheathing member (16) when the wire harness (9) is bent, and cured while maintaining the bent shape thereof.