Land vehicles: bodies and tops – Bodies – Door or window with specified vehicle feature
Reexamination Certificate
2000-12-12
2002-12-17
Dayoan, D. Glenn (Department: 3612)
Land vehicles: bodies and tops
Bodies
Door or window with specified vehicle feature
C174S1130AS, C361S826000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06494523
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally pertains to a wiring system for a wire harness, with applications for electrically connecting electrical devices depending from a sliding door of a vehicle to the main body portion. Such a sliding door is commonly found in some types of road vehicles, e.g. automobiles.
2. Description of Background Information
A sliding door system is frequently adopted in a single-volume (or “monospace”) car, RV car (recreational vehicle), or van. The door slides freely in front-to-rear and rear-to-front directions (along the vehicle's length direction). Such a sliding door is usually equipped with various electrical devices such as touch sensors for preventing door-pinching, loudspeaker systems for an audio system, and the like. In order to supply power to these electrical devices, a wire harness is extensively wired from the body of a vehicle into its sliding door, and is then taken inside the sliding door in an appropriate manner.
FIGS. 1A
,
1
B and
1
C show a commonly adopted wiring system for a vehicle sliding door wire harness. The sliding door
2
moves forward and backward along the vehicle's length. A door is opened (giving access to a door opening
1
a
) or closed, in accordance with its sliding displacement. The inside lower end
2
a
of the sliding door
2
is provided with a box-like harness housing
3
including a guiding channel
3
a
. Alternatively, the harness housing
3
may be installed in the vehicle's body
1
, depending on the type of a vehicle.
The wire harness is led from inside the vehicle's body
1
through to inside the sliding door
2
. For this purpose, a first group of electrical cables W
1
is wired from the body
1
to the sliding door
2
. The former is then fitted with an end portion A of a flat harness C. The flat harness C is folded over itself in the harness housing
3
to form a U-shaped loop portion, so as to provide sufficient spare length therein. Another end portion B of the flat harness C is connected to a second group of electrical cables W
2
, which is wired into and inside the sliding door
2
. The first group of electrical cables W
1
and the flat harness C are connected through a first harness connector CA, while the second group of electrical cables W
2
and the flat harness C are connected through a second harness connector CB. The first harness connector CA carries a sliding device which engages with the guiding channel
3
a
of the harness housing
3
in a freely slidable way. The second harness connector CB is fixed to the harness housing
3
.
FIG. 2A
shows the condition of the above wiring system harness when the sliding door
2
is closed. The first group of electrical cables W
1
, wired between the body part
1
and the sliding door
2
, is positioned at the rear side of the sliding door
2
, while the second harness connector CB, contained in the sliding door
2
, is placed in the front side relative to the first harness connector CA. The flat harness C is then maintained in a U-shaped looped configuration.
FIG. 2B
shows a condition when the sliding door
2
is opened. In this case, as the sliding door
2
is being opened, the harness housing
3
moves rearward relative to the first harness connector CA connected to the body part
1
. In the harness housing
3
, the first harness connector CA is placed forward, relative to the second harness connector CB. In this manner, the flat harness C changes its shape in the harness housing
3
with the opening and closing movements of the sliding door
2
.
In a known wire harness system applied to a vehicle sliding door, a flat harness is folded and provided with a looped extra-length portion, so that the latter can follow the opening and closing movements of the sliding door. However, problems arise because there is little space available between the top and bottom faces of the sliding door. The flat harness must therefore have a very high bending capacity. It must also have a high wear resistance, because the opening and closing of the sliding door has a rubbing action. For these reasons, a so-called “flat cable” is used in place of the flat harness.
FIGS. 3A and 3B
shows another arrangement for a flat cable C′, which may be adopted as a function of the type of vehicle. In this case, the flat cable C′ folded in a U-shape loop portion is turned sideways, and the ex portion is extended or folded as the door
2
′ opens or closes. A harness housing
3
′ may have an open base, depending on the housing used.
However, when a flat harness or a flat cable is used for a folded extra portion, end portions of the flat harness or flat cable must be connected through first and second harness connectors respectively to a first group of electrical cables at the side of the vehicle's body part and to a second group of electrical cables at the side of the sliding door. Such a construction requires a number of component parts, and results in troublesome mounting operations. Moreover, the connector-fitting portions must often be reinforced by molding, in order to ensure reliable connections and secure a waterproof quality. This molding step increases operational steps and incurs higher costs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention was contemplated to solve such problems, and provides an integrated wire harness system ranging from the vehicle's body to inside the sliding door, in which system the folded portion can be folded flexibly and possesses a high wear resistant property.
To this end, there is provided a harness-wiring system, in which a wire harness, including electrical cables, electrically connects a body of a vehicle to a sliding door thereof, one of the body and the sliding door including an enclosure, the wire harness including a lengthwise portion stored in the enclosure such as to form a folded portion having first and second enclosed end portions, so that the wire harness can follow opening and closing movements of the sliding door by changing the shape of the folded portion.
The above wire harness extends, as a joint-less continuous unit, from the body to the sliding door via the folded portion, and has first and second cable ends. The first cable end is adapted to fit with a body-side connector, while the second cable end is adapted to fit with a door-side connector. The wire harness is then placed inside a net-like sheath (net tube) for at least that part of folded portion. Such a net-like sheath is formed by knitting resin threads.
Alternatively, the wire harness may be placed inside the net-like sheath extending substantially from the body-side connector to the door-side connector.
Suitably, the folded portion further includes an elastic band, laid along the electrical cables at least at one locus of inside the net-like sheath and outside the net-like sheath.
Preferably, the system further includes a first clamping device including a pair of fixing pieces respectively including a semicircular recess, so that, when the fixing pieces are connected, both of the semicircular recesses form a holder. A hinge portion that pivotally connects the pair of fixing pieces is provided at one end of the pair of fixing pieces, and locking mechanism is located at the other end of the pair of fixing pieces, distal to the hinge portion, so that the first clamping device holds the first enclosed end portion of the wire harness by the pair of fixing pieces, and is locked by the locking mechanism.
Typically, the enclosure includes a first fitting device and the first clamping device includes a second fitting device, so that the first clamping device is fixed to the enclosure by fitting the first fitting device to the second fitting device.
Preferably yet, the system further includes a second clamping device including a pair of fixing pieces respectively including a semicircular recess, so that, when the fixing pieces are connected, both of the semicircular recesses form a holder. A hinge portion that pivotally connects the pair of fixing pieces is provided at one
Dayoan D. Glenn
Greenblum & Bernstein P.L.C.
Morrow Jason
Sumitomo Wiring Systems Ltd.
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