Electricity: conductors and insulators – Conduits – cables or conductors – Extensible
Reexamination Certificate
2002-03-14
2004-03-02
Abrams, Neil (Department: 2839)
Electricity: conductors and insulators
Conduits, cables or conductors
Extensible
C248S073000, C248S074100, C296S155000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06700064
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wiring harness arrangement assembly for transmission of a power and signals between a car body side and electrical equipment including auxiliary instruments disposed in a sliding door side. Particularly, the wiring harness is covered by a corrugated tube, and the wiring harness arrangement assembly has a pivotal harness guide to allow a sufficient flexibility and an appropriate torsional performance of the wiring harness received in the corrugated tube.
2. Related Art
A one-box car or a wagon has a sliding door for which various types of electric supply units have been proposed to supply a power from a power source disposed in a car body side to the sliding door and to transmit electrical signals from the sliding door to the car body side.
The sliding door is equipped with several types of functional instruments such as electrical equipment and auxiliary instruments like a motor for opening and closing a window, a door lock unit, a speaker, a switch unit, and an electronic control unit. For the functional instruments, it is necessary to supply an electrical power and to transmit electrical signals not only when the sliding door is closed but also the sliding door is open.
FIGS. 11A and 11B
show an example of a conventional wiring harness arrangement assembly for a sliding door.
The wiring harness, which is received in an annular corrugated tube
4
, is arranged from a car body
1
to a sliding door
6
. The corrugated tube
4
is made of a synthetic resin material and has an inner diameter larger than a wiring harness (not shown). The corrugated tube
4
is a bellows constituted by a thin shell having a rectangular cross-section so that the corrugated tube
4
is flexible together with the wiring harness.
FIG. 11A
shows a closed state of the sliding door
6
. As illustrated in the drawing, a longitudinal middle portion of the corrugated tube
4
is secured on a step
2
of the car body
1
with a clamp
90
. The corrugated tube
4
is curved from the clamp
90
to extend toward a rearward end of the sliding door
6
. Each electrical cable of the wiring harness is connected to one of the functional instruments (not shown) in the sliding door. The wiring harness consists of a plurality of the electrical cables.
As illustrated in
FIG. 11B
, with the rearward sliding of the sliding door
6
along an arrow B to open the door, the wiring harness is bent rearward together with-the corrugated tube
4
to absorb the sliding stroke of the sliding door
6
.
However, in the conventional configuration, the opening and closing movement of the sliding door
6
causes the corrugated tube having the wiring harness to be forcedly bent with a smaller bending radius at an adjacent position
4
a
of the clamp
90
or at an adjacent position
4
b
of the rear end of the sliding door
6
. Thus, repeated opening and closing operations of the sliding door
6
tend to disadvantageously cause a damage of the wiring harness and the corrugated tube
4
at the bent portions
4
a
and
4
b.
The forcible local bent with a smaller bending radius of the wiring harness and the corrugated tube
4
exerts an undesirable force on the wiring harness and the corrugated tube
4
. This causes a strong reaction force of the wiring harness and the corrugated tube
4
, providing an interference between the corrugated tube
4
and the sliding door
6
or the car body
1
. Furthermore, the corrugated tube
4
may be possibly pinched between the sliding door
6
and the car body
1
. Thereby, a damage of the wiring harness and the corrugated tube
4
may happen and an undesired noise may be generated. Moreover, a torsional force may be exerted on the wiring harness and the corrugated tube
4
due to the forcible bent of the corrugated tube
4
, causing a damage of the wiring harness and the corrugated tube
4
. That is, a smooth bending of the corrugated tube
4
has been disadvantageously prevented.
Furthermore, since the clamp
90
is disposed at a different position according to a type of a car or a sliding door, the adjacent positions
4
a
and
4
b
of the wiring harness and the corrugated tube
4
receive abnormal forces, and a smooth bending of the wiring harness and the corrugated tube
4
is disadvantageously prevented.
The use of a flexible flat cable (FFC) in place of a wiring harness improves a bending performance thereof. However, the flat cable is constituted by printed circuit conductors each having a small sectional area and an insulating sheet, so that the flat cable disadvantageously has a small transmission capacity for supplying a small amount of an electrical power and electrical signals.
The use of a junction switch unit for switching each of electrical cables to connect to each functional instrument results in an increase of a manufacturing cost.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the aforementioned disadvantages of the conventional art, an object of the present invention is to provide a wiring harness arrangement assembly for a sliding door which allows a smooth bending of a wiring harness with a corrugated tube. The wiring harness and the corrugated tube will not receive too much stresses and will not suffer a damages thereof due to repeated opening and closing operations of the sliding door. The wiring harness with the corrugated tube decreases an assembling cost thereof and is commonly used for various types of cars and sliding doors.
For achieving the object, a first aspect of the invention is a wiring harness arrangement assembly for arranging a wiring harness received in a corrugated tube from a body to a sliding door of a car,
wherein a pivotal harness guide is provided in a side of the body or the sliding door, and the corrugated tube is secured to the harness guide.
A second aspect of the invention is the wiring harness arrangement assembly as described in the first aspect, wherein the harness guide has a harness support member for securing the corrugated tube to the harness guide and a base member for turnably connecting the harness support member to the base member.
A third aspect of the wiring harness arrangement assembly as described in the first aspect, wherein a stopper for limiting a pivoting angle of the harness support member is provided on the harness guide, the body, or the sliding door.
A fourth aspect of the invention is a wiring harness arrangement assembly for arranging a wiring harness received in a corrugated tube from a body to a sliding door of a car,
wherein a harness guide is provided in a side of the body or the sliding door, and the corrugated tube is held turnably in a circumferential direction of the harness guide by the harness guide.
A fifth aspect of the invention is the wiring harness arrangement assembly as described in the first aspect, wherein the harness guide has a locking projection that engages with a groove formed in the corrugated tube.
A sixth aspect of the invention is the wiring harness arrangement assembly as described in the fifth aspect, wherein the harness guide has a base plate for positioning the corrugated tube along the base plate, a side plate raised from each side of the base plate, and an additional side plate raised from each the side plates, the additional side plate formed with the locking projection projected inside of the harness guide.
A seventh aspect of the invention is the wiring harness arrangement assembly as described in the fifth aspect, wherein the harness guide has a cradle and a cap which are formed with a pair of the locking projections opposed to each other so that the cradle and the cap hold the corrugated tube.
An eighth aspect of the invention is the wiring harness arrangement assembly as described in the seventh aspect, wherein the cap has a hinge around which the cap can be turned to open the harness guide.
A ninth aspect of the invention is the wiring harness arrangement assembly as described in the seventh aspect, wherein the cradle has a lock means for locking the cap to the cradle.
A tenth aspect of the invention is the
Aoki Tohru
Doshita Kenichi
Fukumoto Ryoichi
Tsunoda Mitsunori
Abrams Neil
Armstrong Kratz Quintos Hanson & Brooks, LLP
Yazaki -Corporation
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