Electrical connectors – With relatively guided members and intermediate pliable... – Relatively movable about axis
Reexamination Certificate
2001-07-20
2002-11-05
Paumen, Gary F. (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
With relatively guided members and intermediate pliable...
Relatively movable about axis
Reexamination Certificate
active
06475007
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cable reel mounted on a steering apparatus of automobiles, and more particularly, it relates to an improvement in the connecting configuration between a flat cable accommodated in an annular hollow space formed between a stator and a rotor of a cable reel and an external wire connected with the rotor side.
2. Description of Background Information
As shown in
FIG. 9
, a conventional cable reel
51
includes a stator
52
including an outer peripheral wall
52
a
and a bottom wall
52
b
fastened to a steering column and a rotor
53
including an inner peripheral wall
53
a
and an upper wall
53
b
fastened to a steering wheel (handle). The stator
52
and rotor
53
are connected for relative rotation. A flexible flat cable
55
, which is accommodated in a coiled manner in an annular recess
54
between the stator
52
and the rotor
53
, is unwound and rewound in accordance with reciprocal rotation of the rotor
53
in conjunction with rotational movement of the steering wheel (hereinafter abbreviated as wheel).
With the aforementioned cable reel
51
, a conductor
56
of flat cable
55
is connected with a wire
58
of a wire harness on a rotor side through an inner peripheral end
56
a
at an end of the coil, while an outer peripheral end
56
b
of a conductor
56
of flat cable
55
is also electrically connected with a wire harness on a stator side through the cable reel
51
. Thus, electric devices, such as a turn signal indicator, etc. are electrically connected with a circuit on a car body side.
In the case of the conventional cable reel
51
previously adopted, a bus bar
57
disposed on a rotor
53
side is fastened to a base
61
a
of case
61
as shown in FIG.
10
. A conductor
56
of flat cable
55
is welded to one end of the bus bar, and exposed core wires from wire ends are welded to the other end of the bus bar, and a cover
61
b
is provided thereto after welding. The case
61
is fastened by inter-fitting into a recess
53
c
provided at an inner peripheral position of the upper wall
53
b
of rotor
53
.
The connecting structure between the flat cable and a wire at the conventional cable reel
51
, however, requires a base
61
a
and a cover
61
b
hat cover the bus bar as well as a case receiving recess on a rotor side, which unavoidably leads to an increase in the number of components and assembly processes. In addition, due to the complicated mounting structure around the bus bar
57
, there appear such problems as difficulty in correctly positioning the flat cable
55
and the dimension in an axial direction of rotor
53
becoming larger in height due to the dimensional tolerance that accumulates in a disposed position of the flat cable
55
.
In addition, with an increase in the number of circuits, in the case of a connecting area located between external wires and a flat cable that requires two positions must be provided, a case
61
becomes necessary which covers a bus bar connecting a flat cable and a wire for every connection, thereby causing problems in increasing the number of components as well as the assembly processes.
Furthermore, because the interfitted area between the rotor and the stator is the center of coiling of the cable, the length of the flat cable must be greater in order to accommodate the necessary number of steering wheel rotations. Although it is preferable to maintain the length at a minimum, there is a problem that the length of the flat cable inherently becomes larger and at least occupies a protrusive space of the case at the connecting areas.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention was developed to solve the above problems. Therefore a purpose of the present invention is to attain electric connection between a flat cable and an external cable through a bus bar without using a different case, thereby reducing the number of components and assembling processes.
According to an aspect of the present invention, a cable reel is provided including a rotor interlocked with a steering wheel and rotatably connected with a stator provided on a steering column, a flat cable is provided in a coiled manner in an annular hollow space provided by the stator and rotor, and an inner peripheral end of the flat cable is electrically connected with an external cable through a connector which extends from the rotor. Additionally, an upper wall of the rotor forms an inner cylinder and an upper wall of the annular hollow space, a bus bar is connected with each conductor on the inner peripheral end side of the flat cable and is secured to the upper wall of the rotor with an insert mold, and the conductors of the flat cable and an external cable are welded to the bus bar.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, because the bus bar functions as an electric relay electrically connecting the inside and outside of the cable reel and is insert molded on the upper wall of the rotor, a mounting case is unnecessary. A mounting process also becomes unnecessary because the bus bar is mounted at the same time that the rotor is molded. Further, a mounting base is unnecessary since the bus bar is provided parallel to the upper wall surface of the rotor. That is, the upper wall of the rotor is utilized as a base substrate of the bus bar to reduce the required space of the cable reel.
In another aspect of the present invention, a mounting structure is made simpler, reducing the number of components, assembling processes, and production facilities. Furthermore, because the bus bar is mounted directly on the rotor, the flat cable can be mounted in an accurate position without causing accumulation of dimensional tolerances at the disposed position of the flat cable, thereby making it possible to set a dimension (in height) in an axial direction of the rotor smaller by an amount equivalent to the space that would be required for a mounting case or the like.
In a further aspect of the present invention, a cable reel is provided including an opening is provided on an upper wall of the rotor, which allows a connecting area of the bus bar to be exposed, and a through slit for a flat cable is provided at an inner peripheral end of the opening. An inner peripheral end area of the flat cable is pulled out through the through slit from the annular hollow space and is arranged on the upper face of the bus bar, and conductors of the flat cable and the bus bar are welded from above and below using a welding horn and a welding anvil.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a bus bar that is molded onto the rotor, and a flat cable can be welded together by a welding horn and a welding anvil. In addition, because the bus bar and the flat cable are connected in the area of the starting point for coiling the flat cable, a spare length becomes unnecessary for connecting the bus bar with the flat cable. Furthermore, a connector area projects from the upper wall of the rotor, and a connecting area of the bus bar is exposed through the opening of a bottom area of the connector area. An L-type terminal connected with an external wire terminal is inserted into the connector area, the lower face of the L-type terminal is positioned on the upper face of the bus bar, and the bus bar and the L-type terminal are connected by welding using the welding horn and the welding anvil. Further, by connecting a C-type terminal with the cable terminal, the L-type terminal and the bus bar that is molded in a horizontal position in the rotor are welded by a welding horn and a welding anvil.
According to a further aspect of the invention, the welding area of the conductors of the bus bar and the flat cable, and the welding area of the bus bar and the wire side, are positioned at the same radial distance from the center of the rotor, or circular periphery of the rotor, and welding connection is performed by rotating the rotor relative to a welding horn and a welding anvil. Further, the welding connection between the bus bar and the flat cable and the welding connection between the
Greenblum & Bernstein P.L.C.
Paumen Gary F.
Sumitomo Wiring Systems Ltd.
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