Electricity: conductors and insulators – Conduits – cables or conductors – Combined
Reexamination Certificate
1999-03-23
2001-09-18
Reichard, Dean A. (Department: 2831)
Electricity: conductors and insulators
Conduits, cables or conductors
Combined
C029S872000, C174S078000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06291771
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a structure and method for connecting covered wires, by which respective conductors of the covered wires can be connected to each other by making use of internal heating of the wires brought by ultrasonic oscillation. More particularly, it relates to a connecting method for covered wires, which is effective to connect a shield wire with a ground wire.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, it is complicated and troublesome to handle a shield wire having a braided wire coaxially disposed around a core line (or core lines) with the deteriorated workability in using the shield wire. As an effective measure for improving the deteriorated workability, there is provided a connecting structure for wires which takes advantage of inside heating due to the ultrasonic oscillation by Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (kokai) No. 7-320842.
In the publication, there are shown two kinds of covered wires. One is a shield wire which comprises a core line, an inside insulating rind arranged outside the core line, a braided wire as a shield conductor arranged outside the inside insulating rind, and an outside insulating rind. The other is a ground wire consisting of a core line and an outside resinous rind arranged outside the core line.
According to the disclosed method, in order to connect the braided wire of the shield wire with the core line of the ground wire in front of the connector, the shield wire and the ground wire being both connected to a connector, the ground wire is firstly overlaid on the shield wire so as to cross each other at a connection point. Next, the overlapping portions are interposed between upper and lower resin tips. Then, while compressing the upper and lower resin tips from the outside, they are subjected to ultrasonic oscillation by making use of an ultrasonic horn and an anvil. Consequently, both of the outside rinds of the shield wire and the ground wire are molten for elimination, so that the braided wire of the shield wire comes into electrical contact with the core line of the ground wire. Simultaneously, the upper and lower resin tips are mutually welded to each other thereby to seal up the surroundings of the above connecting point.
In this way, according to the above publication, there has been provided the connecting structure where the braided wire of the shield wire and the core line of the ground wire are connected to overlap each other.
Besides the electrical connection between the shield wire and the ground wire, there is disclosed another connecting structure where covered wires are electrically connected by making use of internal heating produced by the ultrasonic oscillation in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (kokai) No. 8-78071.
In the disclosed connecting method, two different covered wires are firstly overlapped so as to cross each other. Next, so-obtained overlapping portions of the wires are disposed between an upper resin tip and a lower resin tip and subsequently, the upper and lower resin tips are subjected to the ultrasonic oscillation under pressure from the outside. Consequently, respective outside rinds of the covered wires are molten and removed from the circumference of the overlapping portions, so that both core lines of the wires can be electrically connected to each other. Simultaneously, the upper and lower resin tips are welded into one body, thereby to seal up the circumference of a connection of the core lines.
In common with the above-mentioned publications, however, since the conductors of the covered wires, i.e. the braided wire, the core lines, etc. are simply overlapped and contacted with each other in the integrated and closed resin tips, the resultant connecting structure does easily exhibit dispersion in terms of contact area between the conductors (between the braided and the core line, between the core line and the core line). In other words, the earlier art connecting methods have problems of dispersion in electrical performance at the connection between the conductors.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Under such a circumstance, it is therefore an object of the present invention to provide structure and method for connecting covered wires, by which it is possible to reduce the dispersion in conductive area, thereby accomplishing the reliable conductivity of the connection between the conductors.
The object of the present invention described above can be accomplished by a connecting structure for covered wires, comprising:
a first covered wire having a first conductor covered with an insulating cover;
a second covered wire having a second conductor covered with another insulating cover, the second cover being overlaid on the first covered wire so as to cross thereto;
upper and lower resin tips welded to each other so as to interpose overlapping portions of the first and second wires therebetween; and
a welding material being positioned in the upper and lower resin tips welded into one body;
wherein the insulating covers of the first and second wires are locally removed at the overlapping portions of the first and second wires so that the first conductor of the first covered wire comes into electrical contact with the second conductor of the second covered wire, thereby providing a connecting part of the first and second wires; and
wherein the welding material is molten into the connecting part, while the welded upper and lower resin tips seal up the circumference of the connecting part.
According to the connecting structure, since the welding material is molten into the connecting part of the conductors of the first and second covered wires, the conductors are joined to each other through the molten welding material metallically and there is no possibility of producing dispersion in conductive area between the conductors. Consequently, it is possible to obtain the reliable conductivity between the first and second covered wires while also restricting the dispersion in electrical performance of the connecting part.
In the present invention, preferably, the upper and lower resin tips are provided, on their faces butting each other, with wire accommodating grooves of semi-circular cross sections, each of which has a diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the first covered wire.
With this establishment of the diameter, it is possible to weld the upper and lower resin tips in the form of wrapping the insulating cover of the first covered wire without compressing it strongly.
In the present invention, preferably, the first covered wire is a shield wire having a shield conductor as the first conductor, while the second covered wire is a ground wire having a core line as the second conductor.
In detail, since the shield conductor and the core line are joined to each other through the molten welding material metallically, there is no possibility of producing dispersion in conductive area between the shield conductor and the core line. Consequently, it is possible to obtain the reliable conductivity between the shield wire and the ground wire while also restricting the dispersion in electrical performance of the connecting part.
In the present invention, more preferably, the wire accommodation groove of the upper resin tip is provided with a recess for accommodating the welding material therein.
In this case, when the welding material is molten by the ultrasonic oscillation, much material would remain in the welded resin tips due to the provision of the recess. Thus, it is possible to increase the conductive area between the first and second covered wires, providing the improvement in electrical performance at the connecting part. Additionally, there is no possibility of leakage of the molten material between the upper and lower resin tips.
In connection with the above modification, alternatively, the welding material may be arranged in the recess so that a top of the welding material projects from an inner face defining the wire accommodation groove of the upper resin tip.
In this case, in comparison with the above modifi
Asakura Nobuyuki
Tanikawa Satoshi
Finnegan Henderson Farabow Garrett & Dunner L.L.P.
Mayo III William H.
Reichard Dean A.
Yazaki -Corporation
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