Wire Harness With Segmented Pipe And Pull-Out Ports
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wire harness designs with branching structures require complex mold structures for resin protectors, leading to increased mold costs and uncertainty in branch line connections due to twisting of wire bundles.
Innovation Solution
A wire harness featuring a tubular, bendable pipe with pull-out ports at branching locations, allowing the pipe to conform to wire routing paths and define branch positions without the need for a complex mold structure, using divided segments with mating surfaces and protective bushes to prevent damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a resin protector with a branching structure is used to define branched locations, then the branched locations can be defined, but the mold structure becomes more complex and mold costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The wire harness is divided into a main line and multiple branch lines that are separately formed and then assembled. The pipe is also segmented with through-holes at specific positions to accommodate branch lines, avoiding the need for a complex integrated mold structure while still defining branched locations precisely.
Solution Approach 2:
The pipe serves as an intermediary component that mediates between the main line and branch lines. Through-holes in the pipe act as intermediaries to guide and position branch lines, enabling precise definition of branched locations without requiring the mold itself to have complex branching structures.
2Reliability
If a resin protector with a branching structure is used to prevent wire bundle twisting, then the wire bundle twisting can be prevented, but the manufacturing cost increases due to complex mold structure
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of using a single complex integrated protector, the solution segments the structure into a simple pipe and separate branch line components. This segmentation maintains the ability to prevent twisting while using simpler, less expensive manufacturing processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The pipe is made from a simple material (aluminum or aluminum alloy) that is easier and cheaper to manufacture than a complex resin protector. This simpler component achieves the same functional goal of preventing wire bundle twisting at lower cost.
3Ease of manufacture
If tape is wound around a wire bundle to create branches, then the wire harness can be assembled, but the wire bundle may twist and branched locations may change
Solution Approach 1:
The pipe acts as an intermediary structure that provides fixed through-holes at predetermined positions. These through-holes serve as precise guides for branch lines, ensuring accurate positioning of branched locations while still allowing for relatively simple assembly operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The pipe is designed to be bendable, allowing it to conform to the routing path of the wire harness. This flexibility maintains ease of assembly and installation while the fixed through-holes ensure precise positioning of branches, resolving the contradiction between flexibility and precision.
Data Source
AI summary
A wire harness that allows branched locations to be defined and can be manufactured inexpensively. A wire harness includes a tubular bendable pipe through which a wire is inserted. The pipe includes pull-out ports of the wire at positions corresponding to branching locations of the wire. The pull-out ports are configured to open on the respective mating surfaces of a first divided segment and a second divided segment obtained by circumferentially dividing the pipe into two. Bushes serving as protection portions that protect the wire are provided at rims of the pull-out ports.