Metal working – Method of mechanical manufacture – Electrical device making
Reexamination Certificate
1998-01-21
2001-11-27
Arbes, Carl J. (Department: 3729)
Metal working
Method of mechanical manufacture
Electrical device making
C029S755000, C029S861000, C029S863000, C029S03300H
Reexamination Certificate
active
06321445
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to the manufacture of a wire harness for automobile use. More particularly, the present invention relates to the manufacture of a wire harness for automobile use integrated with an interior panel of an automobile.
2. Description of Related Art
A wire harness for electrically connecting various electrical parts mounted on an automobile is attached onto interior panels of the automobile such as an instrument panel, door panel, roof panel and back door panel. Conventionally, the wire harness is attached onto the interior panels in the following manner. The wire harness, which has been supplied by a wire harness manufacturer in a single form, is attached onto interior panels by an automobile manufacturer. Then, the interior panels onto which the wire harness has already been attached are mounted on a body of an automobile.
The above work conducted by the automobile manufacturer takes time and requires much labor. Especially, in the automobile factory in which the number of electronic parts to be mounted on an automobile has increased recently, there is a strong demand for simplifying the wire harness attaching process to be conducted by the automobile manufacturer.
A problem to be solved by the present invention is to simplify a process in which the wire harness is attached onto an interior panel of an automobile body by an automobile manufacturer.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In order to solve the above problem, the invention provides a method of manufacturing a wire harness for automobile use in which a wire harness is formed on a plate and subsequently transferred to an interior panel of an automobile body. Specifically, insulation displacement contact connectors are temporarily fixed to a plate used for temporarily wiring a wire harness. A predetermined number of electric wires are guided from an electric wire feeder to a wiring robot, the arm end of which can be moved three-dimensionally. The electric wires are wired along a predetermined wiring route on the plate by an insulation displacement contact wiring machine arranged at the end of the robot arm of the wiring robot, and the electric wires are pressed into grooves of terminals in the insulation displacement contact connectors. Covers are then attached to the insulation displacement contact connectors.
The wire harness is made along a predetermined wiring route on the plate as described above, and the design of the wiring route is made to be the same as the design of a wiring route on the interior panel. This interior panel is put on the plate in such a manner that the wiring side of the interior panel is arranged on the plate side, and then the wire harness temporarily arranged on the plate is transferred onto the interior panel. Due to the foregoing, a wire harness integrated with the interior panel can be easily obtained. When a wire harness maker supplies the above wire harness integrated with the interior panel to an automobile manufacturer, both the interior panel and the wire harness can be simultaneously mounted on an automobile body by the automobile manufacturer. Therefore, the manufacturing process can be greatly simplified.
In this case, fixtures capable of holding the insulation displacement contact connectors and electric wires for the wire harness are arranged at the insulation displacement contact connector attaching positions and along the wire harness electric wire arranging route on the interior panel. The wire harness on the plate is held by the fixtures when the interior panel is put on the plate, and then the interior panel is separated from the plate. Thus, the wire harness is transferred from the plate onto the interior panel. Due to the foreging, the wire harness can be transferred from the plate onto the interior panel while the profile of the wire harness is not collapsed. At the same time, the wire harness can be strongly attached onto the interior panel by the fixtures. Therefore, even after the interior panel has been mounted on an automobile body, it is unnecessary to fix the wire harness again.
In another aspect, the invention relates to a wire harness integrated with the interior panel on which the fixtures are arranged.
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Ohta Yoshinobu
Suzuki Toshiaki
Arbes Carl J.
Harness System Technologies Research Ltd.
Oliff & Berridg,e PLC
Trinh Minh
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