Electrical transmission or interconnection systems – Vehicle mounted systems – Automobile
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-10
2003-03-04
Tso, Edward H. (Department: 2838)
Electrical transmission or interconnection systems
Vehicle mounted systems
Automobile
C439S034000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06528900
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a circuit connection assembly for a wire harness in a vehicle, and more particularly to a circuit connection assembly for a vehicle wire harness in which auxiliary devices on a vehicle body panel can be easily and securely connected to auxiliary devices on an interior wall member.
Various vehicle body panel-side auxiliary devices, such for example as a power window opening-closing mechanism, a door mirror drive mechanism and a door lock mechanism, have heretofore been mounted on a door of an automobile. Wire harnesses, comprising many wires and connectors, are installed for electrically connecting these auxiliary devices. The wire harnesses are installed through an operation window mainly with a blind operation, and the mounting of the various auxiliary devices and the connection of the harnesses are very cumbersome. In addition, for electrical connection to the auxiliary devices, auxiliary devices, such as a switch unit, are mounted on an interior wall member such as a door trim, and it has been very cumbersome to connect the vehicle body panel-side auxiliary devices to the interior wall member-side auxiliary devices.
Therefore, there has been proposed a circuit connection assembly of an automobile door as shown in
FIGS. 5 and 6
.
The automobile door
1
comprises a door panel (vehicle body panel)
2
of metal, a panel unit
3
mounted on the door panel
2
, and a door trim (interior wall member)
4
mounted on the door panel
2
to cover an interior-side face of the panel unit
3
.
The panel unit
3
serves as a support structure which supports auxiliary devices on the door panel
2
such as a speaker
7
, a door lock mechanism
9
and a power window opening-closing mechanism mounted within the door
1
. In this illustrated example, a control circuit panel
8
for controlling the operations of the various auxiliary devices mounted on the panel unit
3
is also mounted on the panel unit
3
.
This control circuit board
8
comprises a printed circuit board comprising a rigid insulating board on which necessary circuit patterns are printed, and various electronic and electrical parts, forming control circuit sections, are mounted on this printed circuit board. The control circuit board
8
is mounted on the panel unit
3
, and is received in a protective casing except a connector portion
8
a,
connected to a switch unit (described later), so that the electronic and electrical parts, mounted on the printed circuit board, will not be damaged upon interference with neighboring objects.
The door trim
4
is the interior wall member forming the appearance of the interior of the car room. A switch-mounting opening
15
is formed in an upper face of a armrest
13
formed on the door trim
4
in a bulged manner, and the main switch unit
10
is mounted in the opening
15
.
Various switches for operating the auxiliary devices mounted on the panel unit
3
are mounted on the main switch unit
10
. As shown in
FIG. 6
, this main switch unit
10
comprises a switch casing
11
with an open bottom, and a switch board
12
through which key tops (operating keys)
12
a
are mounted on the switch casing
11
in such a manner that these key tops
12
a
are exposed to an upper face of the switch casing
11
.
Elastic lock claws
11
a,
formed on an outer peripheral portion of the switch casing
11
, are engaged with a peripheral edge
15
a
of the opening
15
, thereby fixing the main switch unit
10
in position to the door trim
4
.
The main switch unit
10
, mounted in the opening
15
in the door trim
4
, is electrically connected to the connector portion
8
a
of the control circuit board
8
on the panel unit
3
by a flat circuit member
17
.
The flat circuit member
17
is a flexible wiring board comprising a flexible film on which contacts and circuit patterns are formed, and this flat circuit member
17
includes a contact section
17
a
on which a plurality of switch contacts are arranged, and a tongue-like connecting section
17
b
which is formed integrally with the contact section
17
a
and is connectable to the connector portion
8
a
of the control circuit board
8
on the panel unit
3
. The connections of the respective switch contacts are switched by the switching operation of the switch board
12
effected in accordance with the operation of the key tops
12
a.
As shown in
FIG. 6
, the contact section
17
a
is fitted into and fixed to an insertion guide
20
, formed in the interior of the armrest
13
of the door trim
4
, through a contact section holder
19
.
The contact section holder
19
includes a base plate portion
19
a
and a lid portion
19
b
between which a peripheral edge portion of the contact section
17
a
is held. This contact section holder
19
has positioning projections
19
c
for locating the contacts on the flat circuit member
17
in predetermined positions, respectively. The contact section holder
19
is fixed in position in the insertion guide
20
by positioning member (not shown). The positioning projections
19
are engaged respectively in positioning holes
11
c,
formed respectively in distal ends of support posts
11
b
depending from the switch casing
11
, thus serving also to position the main switch unit
10
in a horizontal direction.
On the other hand, the connecting section
17
b
is inserted into a recess in a housing (not shown) mounted on the inner face of the door trim
4
, and cooperates with this housing to form a connector portion. Simultaneously when the door trim
4
is mounted on the door panel
2
on which the panel unit
3
is beforehand mounted, the connector portion
8
a
of the control circuit board
8
is connected to the connecting section
17
b.
In the circuit connection assembly of the automobile door shown in
FIGS. 5 and 6
, the positioning of the switch board
12
is effected by the peripheral edge
15
a
of the opening
15
in the armrest
13
through the switch casing
11
, whereas the positioning of the contact section
17
a
of the flat circuit member
17
to be electrically connected to the switch board
12
is effected by the insertion guide
20
, formed in the interior of the door trim
4
, through the contact section holder
19
.
The switch board
12
and the contact section
17
a,
which are to be positioned in electrical contact with each other, are positioned on the basis of the different portions of the door trim
4
, respectively. The door trim
4
is a molded product of a large size, and therefore its dimensional tolerance becomes large in some cases, and for this and other reasons, there is encountered a problem that it is difficult to properly position the switch contacts of the contact section
17
a
with respect to the switch board
12
.
Since the door trim
4
is the large molded product, it is difficult to provide such dimensional precision as to secure the proper contact pressure of the connector terminals at the portion of electrical connection between the connector portion
8
a
of the control circuit board
8
and the connecting section
17
b.
Therefore, the efficiency of the operation, in which the door trim
4
is mounted on the door panel
2
while securely connecting the main switch unit
10
on the door trim
4
to the auxiliary devices (including the speaker
7
and the door lock mechanism
9
mounted within the door
1
) on the door panel
2
, has not been high.
The control circuit board
8
for controlling the operations of the auxiliary devices is mounted on the panel unit
3
mounted on the door panel
2
, and it is necessary to cover this control circuit board
8
with the protective casing except the connector portion
8
a
so that the electronic and electrical parts, mounted on the control circuit board
8
, will not be damaged upon interference with neighboring objects. This has invited a problem that the production cost. increases.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a satisfactory circuit connection assembly for a vehicle wire harness, in which auxiliary devices on a ve
Iwasaki Kenji
Serizawa Yasuyoshi
Shiraki Kentaro
Tibbits Pia
Tso Edward H.
Yazaki -Corporation
LandOfFree
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