Grommet apparatus

Details Grommet apparatus Grommet apparatus

2002-10-24

2004-01-13

Patel, Dhiru R (Department: 2831)

Electricity: conductors and insulators

Conduits, cables or conductors

Single duct conduits

C174S068300, C174S068300, C016S002100, C248S056000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06677524

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a grommet apparatus and more particularly to a grommet apparatus for holding a wire which goes through an opening of a panel of a vehicle and so on.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Recently, a large variety of devices or parts are equipped in a vehicle and based on this, a plurality of wires for transmitting the electricity or the mechanical driving force are disposed in the vehicle. At a portion in which these wires go through an opening a panel of the vehicle, a grommet apparatus is used for protecting the wire or for preventing rain water from getting in through the opening. A conventional grommet apparatus of this kind is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Laid-open Publication No.11-127527. As shown in
FIG. 5
, this grommet apparatus
80
includes a wire
81
, a hard grommet
85
having a tubular wall
82
, a base portion
92
and a flexible engaging portion
84
and a soft grommet
90
having a surrounding portion
87
, a first seal portion
88
and a wire fitting portion
89
. The tubular wall
82
and the base portion
92
contact with the wire
81
. The flexible engaging portion
84
is formed on the tubular wall
82
and is engaged with a penetrating hole of a panel
83
. The surrounding portion
87
surrounds the hard grommet
85
. The first seal member
88
is extended from the surrounding portion
87
and is fluid-tightly contacted with the surface of the panel
83
. The wire fitting portion
89
is fitted onto the wire
81
.
In case of that the wire
81
transmits the driving force from a driving source such as a motor and so on, there is a case that the wire
81
swings in regard to the panel
83
. In this case, since there is a clearance
91
between the hard grommet
85
and the panel
83
in the grommet apparatus
80
, there is a possibility that the grommet apparatus
80
jounces in regard to the panel
83
. If the jouncing movement of the grommet apparatus
80
is large, there is in danger that the sealing performance of the grommet apparatus
80
in regard to the panel
93
is decreased.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is, therefore, a principal object of the present invention to provide an improved grommet apparatus which overcomes the above drawback.
In order to attain the foregoing object, the present invention provides a grommet apparatus which includes a wire, a hard grommet having a having a tubular wall portion contacted with the wire, a base portion contacted with the wire and a flexible engaging portion formed on the tubular wall portion and engaged with an opening, and a soft grommet having a surrounding portion surrounding the hard grommet, a first seal portion extended from the surrounding portion and fluid-tightly contacted with a surface of the panel, a wire fitting portion fitted onto the wire and a second seal portion fitted between the opening and the hard grommet.


REFERENCES:
patent: 4656689 (1987-04-01), Dennis
patent: 6150608 (2000-11-01), Wambeke et al.
patent: 6218625 (2001-04-01), Pulaski
patent: 6479748 (2002-11-01), Mori
patent: 6573450 (2003-06-01), Saito et al.
patent: 6593529 (2003-07-01), Nakata et al.
patent: 11-127527 (1999-05-01), None

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