Document serial number: 73 10650
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Patent name: manufacturing method of corrugated pipe
Technical field:
The present invention relates to a bellows for accommodating and protecting a wire harness in a power vehicle such as an automobile. In particular, the present invention relates to a corrugated pipe having a longitudinal slit along its axial direction. The wire harness consists of many wires. In the structure according to the present invention, the slit is first opened, and the wire harness is inserted along the slit from the side of the bellows. Then, after inserting the wire harness, the incision is firmly closed in a convenient way.
In the wire harness for vehicles, some parts of the wire harness need to be wrapped with corrugated pipes to be protected. Examples of known bellows suitable for this purpose include
The pipe shown in figure 1A has a slit along its axial direction (1- 1 type); -Seamless pipeline (type 1-2), as shown in figure 1B; The pipe is similar to 1- 1, but there is an overlapping area r in the circumferential direction of the pipe (1-3), as shown in figure1c.
For bellows 1-2 without slits, when the connector housing is initially installed at one end of the electric wire w, the electric wire cannot pass through the bellows 1-2. Therefore, it is necessary to first load the wire into the bellows 1-2, and then install the connector housing to the end of the wire. When the connector housing is subsequently installed, the end of each wire cannot be inserted into the housing through an automated process. So it will bring difficulties to the automatic assembly process.
For corrugated pipe with slit 1- 1, a group of wires w can be inserted by opening the slit. The connector housing may be pre-installed to the end of the electric wire. Therefore, the insertion of the end into the connector housing can be completed by an automated process. However, when the position of bellows protection is bent as shown in Figure 2, the slit will be opened. Therefore, it is necessary to lock the slit after inserting the electric wire W.. For this purpose, a tape can be wound around the outer peripheral surface of the tube 1- 1. But this kind of work is more troublesome.
The bellows 1-3 with overlapping slits shown in fig. 1C is different from the former only in that the overlapping part on one side of the slit covers the corresponding part on the other side of the slit. However, it is necessary to firmly lock the gap with tape. As mentioned above, this kind of work is very troublesome.
There is also a well-known bellows, which, viewed from the axial direction, has a ridge-shaped and groove-shaped cross section that alternately runs through the whole axial direction, and has a slit along the axial direction. First and second regions are defined along the slit, the first region including a raised first end and the second region including a raised second end. Seen from the axial direction of the tube, the first and second ends further include first and second segments having concave and convex overlapping portions. The first and second parts respectively extend from the slit along the opposite circumferential directions of the pipeline, forming socket and plug locking devices respectively. In this structure, the plug locking device is inserted under the socket locking device, the first and second parts are fixed together in an overlapping manner, and the slit is locked in a closed state.
In this structure, the width of the socket locking device measured in the axial direction is greater than that of the plug locking device.
Furthermore, if viewed from the direction of the cross section, the socket locking device may include an L-shaped convex surface, a concave surface and a convex portion from the slit side, while the plug locking device may include an inverted V-shaped convex surface, a concave surface and a convex portion. After the slit is opened and the electric wire is inserted into the tube, the socket locking device and the plug locking device are fixed together to lock the slit in a closed state.
An object of the present invention is to solve the above problems, and to provide a device for automatically inserting an electrical terminal into a connector housing and locking its slit through one operation, thereby reducing sewing work.
To this end, the present invention provides a corrugated pipe, which, as viewed from its axial section, has alternating ridge-shaped and groove-shaped sections throughout the entire axial direction, and has a through slit along the axial direction, which defines first and second regions, wherein the first region includes a ridge-shaped first end portion, the second region includes a ridge-shaped second end portion, and the first end portion includes a convex portion with an inverted U-shaped section when viewed from the axial direction. The convex part extends around the first circumferential direction of the tube from one side of the slit to form a socket locking device, and the second end part includes a convex part and a concave part with an inverted U-shaped cross section, and the concave part extends around the second circumferential direction of the tube from one side of the slit to form a plug locking device, and the socket locking device is superimposed on the plug locking device to lock the slit in a closed state.
If measured along the axial direction of the pipeline, the width of the socket locking device is preferably larger than that of the plug locking device. In addition, if measured around the circumferential direction of the tube, the length of the convex part of the socket locking device is preferably greater than that of the convex part of the plug locking device.
Furthermore, when viewed from the axial direction of the tube, the convex part of the socket locking device may include an outer side wall with an inner surface, while when viewed from the axial direction of the tube, the convex part of the plug locking device may include a side wall bisected by the convex part and having an outer surface, and the inner surface of the socket locking device and the outer surface of the plug locking device extend substantially in the radial direction, and the height of the inner surface measured in the radial direction is equal to or greater than that of the outer surface.
The present invention also includes a bellows including a wire harness composed of electric wires. In this embodiment, after the slit is opened, the electric wire is inserted into the tube, and the socket locking device is superimposed on the plug locking device to lock the slit in the closed state.
In the above embodiment, the socket locking device arranged on one side of the slit covers the plug locking device on the other side of the slit, so that the convex part of the former is overlapped on the outer surface of the convex part of the latter. In the axial direction, the former has a hanging wall adjacent to the slit and a radially inward wall end in the radial direction. In use, the wall end is fixed in the concave part of the plug locking device. While abutting against the radial hanging wall of the outer surface of the convex part of the socket locking device. In this way, the slit can be closed and locked by pressing and fixing operations. This can save the work of winding the tape.
In addition, if measured along the axial direction of the tube, the width of the socket locking device is greater than that of the plug locking device. With this configuration, the plug locking device can be easily inserted below the socket locking device with respect to the axial direction of the tube.
As described above, the wires constituting the wire harness can be inserted into the tube by opening the slit, the plug locking device is superimposed on the socket locking device, and the slit is locked in the closed state.
In addition, the laminated concave parts are located between the laminated convex parts, so that the slit can be firmly locked.
This series of actions is very simple, and the slit can be closed and locked by a single pressing and fixing operation. Therefore, the subsequent winding operation is no longer needed. In addition, only the ridge part is used to lock the bellows instead of the groove part. This structure ensures the flexibility of the tube. Due to this flexibility, the wires can be easily bent and routed along the vehicle body.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention can be realized by the following description of a preferred embodiment by way of non-limiting example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which figure 1A shows a well-known corrugated pipe with slits; Fig. 1B shows a well-known corrugated pipe without slit; Fig. 1C shows a known bellows with slits and overlapping areas; Fig. 2 shows a well-known bellows, the slit of which is unlocked by bending force; Fig. 3A is a transverse sectional view of the bellows; Fig. 3B is a perspective view of the bellows shown in fig. 3A; Fig. 4 shows the bellows of fig. 3, the slit of which is in a locked state; Fig. 5 shows a top view of the locking device of the bellows of fig. 3; Fig. 6A is a perspective view of the bellows of fig. 3 in a manufacturing process; Fig. 6B is a cross-sectional view of the bellows of fig. 3 when it is installed in a holding device before being cut, and figs. 7A and 7b respectively show transverse cross-sectional views of the bellows of fig. 3 when wires are installed before and after being locked; Figs. 8A and b are a transverse sectional view and a perspective view, respectively, of the corrugated pipe of the present invention; Fig. 9 shows a transverse sectional view of the bellows of fig. 8; Fig. 10 shows a top view of the locking device of the bellows of fig. 8; Figs. 0A and b show cross-sectional views of the bellows of fig. 8 when wires are installed before and after locking, respectively.
In order to better understand the present invention, embodiments that have been applied before but have not been disclosed will be described below.
In the embodiment shown in figs. 3A and 3B, the bellows 10 has slits 1 1 ... extending along the entire axial direction L. In addition, annular ridges 12 and annular grooves 13 are alternately arranged at predetermined intervals in the axial direction.
The first area and the second area are respectively arranged along both sides of the slit 1 1. These areas include completely raised parts 12a and 12b adjacent to the slit1. Seen from the cross section around the circular ring, these ridges have a concave-convex shape. The concave surface and the convex surface can be overlapped with each other by one pressing and fixing operation, so that the slit 1 1 is closed.
The part of the first area 12a constitutes the socket locking device 14. The socket locking device includes a convex end 15, a concave part 16, a convex part 17 and a concave positioning groove 18 with an open end and an L-shaped cross section, and is used for fixing the pipe during cutting (see Figure 4). The part 12b constitutes the plug locking device 19. Similarly, the plug locking device includes a convex part 20 with an inverted V-shaped cross section, a concave part 22 and a concave positioning groove 23 for fixing the pipe during cutting.
As shown in fig. 5, the width of the socket locking device 14 (convex 15, concave 16, convex 17) is W 1, which is larger than that of the plug locking device 19 (convex 20, Therefore, the plug locking device 19 can be arranged inside the socket locking device 14 when viewed from the cross section of the pipeline. Further, a substantially V-shaped notch 24 is formed at a position radially opposite to the slit 1 1. In addition, the length L2 of the convex part 2 1 of the plug locking device 19 is greater than the length L 1 of the convex part 16 of the socket locking device 14, that is, L 1 < L2.
As shown in figs. 6A and 6B, the bellows 10 is initially cylindrical, and the edge of the convex end 15 of the socket locking device 14 is connected to the convex end 20 of the plug locking device 10 through a radially extending wall 25. The connecting wall 25 is cut with the cutter 27 to form a slit 1 1 separating the socket locking device 14 and the plug locking device 19. On both sides of the slit 1 1 on the pipeline, there are concave positioning grooves18,23. When using the cutter 27, the tube is placed in the clamping device 28 with a pair of clamping ribs 29, and the ribs 29 are fixed in the corresponding concave portions 65, 438+08, 23, thereby clamping it in the device.
In the above-mentioned pipe with the slit 1 1, the connector housing (not shown in the figure) is first connected to the end of the electric wire W. Then, the slit 1 1 of the bellows/kloc-0 is opened, and the electric wire W is inserted into the pipe through the slit, as shown in fig. 7A.
Then, the socket outside the slit 1 1 is closed together with the plug locking devices 14 and 19, so that the plug locking device 19 is under the socket locking device 14, as shown in fig. 7B. Since the V-shaped notch 24 is arranged on the pipe at a position radially opposite to the slit 1 1, the plug and socket locking devices can smoothly approach and overlap.
The v-shaped convex end 20 of the plug locking device 19 first reaches below the l-shaped convex end 15 of the socket locking device 14. The male end portion 20 exceeds the female portion 16 and is fixed in the male portion 17. Meanwhile, the recess 2 1 of the plug locking device 19 and the recess 16 of the socket locking device 14 are closely overlapped. Similarly, the convex portion 22 of the plug locking device 19 and the convex end 15 of the socket locking device 14 closely overlap.
Then, the three concave-convex parts of the socket locking device 14 are fitted into the three concave-convex parts of the plug locking device 19. Specifically, the fixing recesses 16 and 2 1 are sandwiched between two stacked convex portions. In addition, all ridges along the axial direction of bellows 10 adopt this configuration. In this way, the two locking devices 14 and 19 are firmly locked together, and the slit 1 1 is tightly closed. Therefore, the tape winding work required to prevent the slit from opening can be omitted.
Compared with the prior art, the bellows 40 of the present invention has a simple structure.
As shown in figs. 8A and 8B, the bellows 40 includes a slit 30 extending in the entire axial direction l of the tube 40. In addition, annular ridges 12 and annular grooves 13 are alternately arranged in the axial direction at predetermined intervals.
The slit 30 separates the tube in the longitudinal direction and forms first and second regions at its edges. The first area includes the ridge 12a adjacent to the slit 30, and constitutes the socket locking device 44. Similarly, the second region includes the ridge 12b adjacent to the slit 30, and constitutes the plug locking device 49. The slit 30 can be closed and locked by one pressing operation.
Seen from the cross section, a part of the ridge 12a (socket locking device 44) constitutes a convex part 3 1 with an inverted U-shape, which extends around the circumferential direction from the slit side. A concave positioning groove 18 is arranged near the convex part 3 1 for fixing the pipe before cutting. Seen from one side of the slit around the circumferential direction, the ridge 12b (plug locking device 49) sequentially includes a convex portion 32 and a concave portion 33 having an inverted U-shape. There is a concave locating groove near the latter for fixing the pipe before cutting.
As shown in fig. 10, the width of the socket locking device 44 is W3, which is greater than the width W4 of the convex part 32 and the concave part 33 of the plug locking device 49, that is, w3 > W4. Further, the length L4 of the convex part 3 1 is designed to be greater than the length L4 of the convex part 32 of the socket locking device 49, that is, L3 > L4. Therefore, the former can include the latter, and the two can overlap appropriately.
As shown in fig. 9, the height of the inner surface of the side wall 3 1 a in the convex part 31of the socket locking device 44 is equal to or greater than the height of the outer surface of the side wall 32a in the convex part 32 of the plug locking device 49. Therefore, the side wall edge of the convex part 3 1 of the socket locking device 44 can abut against the base of the concave part 33 of the plug locking device 49.
The bellows 40 may be initially made cylindrical, so that the sidewall edge of the convex portion 36 of the socket locking device 44 and the sidewall edge of the convex portion 32 of the plug locking device 49 are adjacent to each other and integrally formed. Just like the bellows 10 shown in fig. 4B, the tube 40 is placed in the clamping device 28, and the concave positioning grooves 18, 23 are pressed by the corresponding ribs 29.
Then, lines corresponding to the side wall edges of the convex portion 3 1 of the socket locking device 44 and the convex portion 32 of the plug locking device 49 are cut with the cutting tool 27 to form a slit 30 through which the socket locking device 44 and the plug locking device 49 are separated. As described above, the bellows 40 according to the present invention is provided with the slit 30. A connector housing (not shown) may be pre-installed at the end of the electric wire. In fig. 1 1A, the tube 40 is shown after the electric wire is inserted by opening the slit 30. Next, the first region extending along the slit 30 side of the tube 40 is lifted from a set of lines W and placed on the corresponding second region. Therefore, the ridge 12a of the socket locking device 44 may overlap with the corresponding ridge 12b of the plug locking device 49 located on the other side of the slit 30. In this way, the convex part 3 1 included in the part 12a of the socket locking device 44 can be overlapped on the convex part 32 included in the part 12b of the plug locking device 49 over the entire slit 30. In addition, as shown in fig. 1 1B, the side wall 3 1 a of the convex part 31on the socket side is engaged with the convex part 32 on the plug side in the adjacent concave part 33. In this way, the slit 30 can be locked by one operation, and the tape winding work for closing the slit can be omitted. In addition, the inner depth of the side wall 3 1 a of the convex part 31is designed to be equal to or greater than the outer depth of the side wall 32a of the convex part 32, so the edge of the side wall 3 1a can be fixed on the base of the concave part 33 on the plug side. This structure ensures a lasting clamping force.
In the bellows 40 according to the present invention, compared with the prior art, the number of concave surfaces and convex surfaces provided on the ridge can be reduced. Therefore, the above technology is suitable for corrugated pipes with small diameters, because the locking device of such pipes is usually difficult to close.
However, the gist of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. The locking device can also be composed of a plurality of ridged parts, which are only arranged at the axial ends of the pipe, instead of the installation mode running through the whole axial direction. In addition, the interval between ridges can also be changed or appropriately increased.
In addition, the corrugated pipe is made into a cylindrical shape in advance. As long as the pipe is cut, the slit and the socket and plug locking device can be formed at the same time. Therefore, the invention is easy to implement.
claim of right
1. Seen from its axial section, the bellows (40) has a ridge shape (12) and a groove shape (13) which alternately run through the entire axial direction, and has a through slit (30) along the axial direction, and the slit (30) defines a first region and a second region. And the second region includes a second end (12b) with a ridge shape (12), which is characterized in that the first end (12a) includes a convex part (3 1) with an inverted U-shaped cross section and a convex part (3/kloc-0) The second end (12b) includes a convex part (32) with an inverted U-shaped cross section and a concave part (33), and the concave part (33) extends from one side of the slit around the second circumferential direction of the pipe opposite to the first circumferential direction to form a plug locking device (49), and the socket locking device (44) is superposed on the plug locking device (49).
2. The corrugated pipe (40) according to claim 1, characterized in that the width (W3) of the socket locking device (44) measured along the axial direction of the pipe (40) is greater than the width (W4) of the plug locking device (49).
3. The bellows (40) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the length (L3) of the convex part (3 1) of the socket locking device (44) around the circumferential side of the pipeline (30) is greater than the length (32) of the convex part of the plug locking device (49).
4. The bellows (40) according to claim 1 to 3, characterized in that the convex part (3 1) of the socket locking device (44) includes an outer side wall (3 1a) with an inner surface when viewed from the axial direction of the pipe (40). The inner surface of the socket locking device (44) and the outer surface of the plug locking device (49) extend substantially in the radial direction, and the height of the inner surface along the radial side is equal to or greater than that of the outer surface.
5. The bellows (40) according to claim 1 to 4, characterized in that the bellows (40) includes a wire harness (w) composed of electric wires, and the wire harness (w) is inserted into the tube (40) after opening the slit (30), and the socket locking device (44).
Full text abstract
The bellows (40) has a ridge shape (12) and a groove shape (13), which alternately run through the entire axial direction when viewed from its axial cross section. There is also a slit (30) along the axial direction of the tube, where the first and second regions are formed. The first and second regions respectively include a first end (12a) and a second end (12b) having a ridge shape (12). The first end (12a) forms a convex part (3 1), while the second end (12b) forms a convex part (32) and a concave part (33). Each part extends from one side of the slit (30) in opposite circumferential directions to form a socket (44) and a plug locking device (49) respectively. When the plug locking device (49) is inserted under the socket locking device (44), the convex part (3 1) of the first area and the convex part /(32) and the concave part (33) of the second area overlap, and the slit (30) is locked.
The file number is h02g3/04gk1198031sq9810774.
The publication date is 1998165438+1October 4th, the application date is1February 20th, 998 and the priority date is 65438+February 2nd10997.
Inventor Akihito Kawamura Applicant: Sumitomo Denso Co., Ltd.
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