GB2448049A

GB2448049A - Sealing grommet with latching projections

Info

Publication number: GB2448049A
Application number: GB0805202A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Thomas Dreymuller; Oliver Friese
Original assignee: Volkswagen AG
Current assignee: Volkswagen AG
Priority date: 2007-03-29
Filing date: 2008-03-20
Publication date: 2008-10-01
Also published as: DE102007015110A1; GB0805202D0

Abstract

The invention relates to a sealing feedthrough part for lines and cables for arranging in the opening in a vehicle wall, which sealing feedthrough part is formed from a frame 1 which is formed on the peripheral side and from a hard synthetic material having latching means 5,6,7 for latching on the wall edge 10 surrounding the opening and having a sealing plate 2 which is made from a rubber-elastic material, covers the frame opening and comprises at least one feedthrough opening 3,4. The invention achieves the object to form such a feedthrough part so that in the case of a simple construction it can be assembled and dismantled in a convenient manner. For this purpose, the latching means 5,6,7 comprise actuating projections 8 which render it possible to unlatch the feedthrough part without the use of tools, which actuating projections 8 can be gripped and actuated on the side of the feedthrough part remote from the wall edge 10.

Description

DESCRIPTION

SEALING FEEDTHROUGFI PART FOR LINES AND CABLES

The invention relates to a sealing feedthrough part for fluid lines. cablcs. rods and/or hoses, in particular for arranging in an opening in a partitioning wall between a wet area and a dry area in a vehicle.

Spray water-tight feedthrough arrangements for fluid lines, cables and similar elongated components, referred to hereinunder as lines, in the opening in a partitioning or splash wall, which separates the passenger compartment from the engine space in a vehicle. are generally provided using feedthrough parts. for example also rubber protective sleeves.

These feedthrough arrangements are required to meet increased demands with respect to reliability and durability, as they are subjected to considerable operating loads, in particular vibration and temperature loads, during the driving operation. However, requirements that it should be possible to assemble and dismantle these arrangements in a simple and effective manner must also be taken into consideration.

DE 199 04 549 Al describes a feedthrough part for at least one cable. a cable winch or the like. hich comprises for receiving in a sealing manner cables or similar which pass therethrough an insert ring (frame) consisting of a hard synthetic material for holding onto the wall edge which surrounds an opening in a partitioning wall and which is provided for this purpose on the periphery with a U-shaped holding groove for clipping in thereto. and a disc (sealing plate) which fills out the insert ring and consists of a soft rubber-elastic material, preferably EPDM. Cable protective sleeves which protrude at right angles are formed as an integral part on the disc on the side remote from the assembly side. The insert ring is provided with latching tongues which can be tensioned elastically and are disposed at an equal angular spaced disposition with respect to each other and which are adjacent in the axial direction to the holding groove. Between said latching tongues respectively lies a peripheral section which is set back axially and is separated from the adjacent latching tongues in each case by an axial slot which extends as far as the peripheral groove. The latching tongues are formed on the assembly front side of the feedthrough part. i.e. on the side of the cable protective sleeves integrally formed on said feedihrough part. and brace the feedthrough part at the wall opening in the axial direction. To facilitate dismantling, the latching tongues are lengthened in the axial direction and in parallel with the cable protective sleeves in such a manner that these can be gripped on the assembly front side of the feedthrough part and can be curved in an elastically radially inwards manner and can be disengaged from the opening edge. In so doing, it can be regarded as being disadvantageous that it is not possible to handle the latching elements and thus release the sealing part from the wall opening on the assembly side thereof. but rather only on the side of the partitioning wall remote therefrom.

Furthermore, a cable feedthrough part for feeding at least one cable in a sealing manner through a wall of a switching cabinet. housing and the like into its inner compartment is the subject of DE 2004 021 084 UI /DE 10 2004 054 174 Al. The said cable feedthrough part is formed from an insert having a frame for arranging on the edge of an opening in the wall. irom a plate which is formed as an integral part thereon and whieh comprises a number of fecdthrough openings. which corresponds to the number of the cables, and from a cover plate which is attached to the plate and extends thereover, in an elastically soft material and is produced by the two component method. Latching tongues on the assembly front-side are formed as an integral part on the frame for engaging behind the wall edge surrounding the opening. Measures are not provided to facilitate the dismantling process.

It is the object of the invention to provide a sealing fcedthrough part for lines and cables according to the preamble of claim I in such a manner that in the case of a simple construction the said sealing feedthrough part can be assembled and dismantled in a convenient manner.

This object is achieved, in the case of a feedthrough part according to the preamble of claim 1. by its characterising features. Advantageous embodiments arc disclosed in the subordinate claims.

The inention resides in a sealing feedthrough part which is disposed in a known manner in a (wall-) opening. in particular in a vehicle, and which is formed from a l'rarne which is formed on the peripheral side and comprises latching means for latching on the wall edge surrounding the opening and from a sealing plate which covers the frame opening in a rubber-elastic material having at least one feedthrough opening. In order to form the feedthrough part in such a manner that it can be assembled and dismantled in a convenient manner. the latching means are provided with actuating projections which can be gripped and actuated on the side of the feedthrough part remote from the wall edge. The feedthrough part can be assembled in a known manner by inserting it into the opening and it can be latched to the latching means automatically and without the use of tools, on the wall edge which surrounds the wall opening by means of the said latching means formed on the frame. The feedthrough part is then dismantled, in particular where servicing is required, in a manner which in comparison to the prior art acknowledged in the introduction is convenient and considerably easier by manually actuating the latching means on the assembly side of the feedthrough part where sufficient assembly space is available. It is thus possible to dismantle the feedthrough part without the use of tools and as a result in a service friendly nianner and in particular. also in a non-destructive manner.

The frame can be!brmed in the manner of a cover and can consist of a frame plate which is in parallel ith the aIl and is pros ided with a centra' (frame-)opening. and a circumferential centring shoulder which is set back from the outer frame plate edge and corresponds to the (wall-) opening. This seres to ensure that the feedthrough part is inserted securely during the process into the (wall-) opening and that it is fixed securely during the process in a defined sealing position on the all edge.

In an advantageous manner a plurality of latching tongues are formed on the centring shoulder at an equal angular spaced disposition with respect to each other. The latching tongues can bend elastically in the radial direction and are provided with latching projections. These comprise latching surfaces which are formed at a distance from and in parallel ith the frame plate and which in the sealing position engage behind the wall edge which surrounds the opening. In so doing, the distance is selected such that in order to ensure that the latching projections are in a position to engage behind the wall edge it is necessary when assembling the feedthrough part to exert an axial pressure thereon which can be applied manually so that the feedthrough part in the assembled state is held in a braced manner on the wall edge. The latching tongues are extended beyond the laiching projections to form actuating projections which each serve as a gripping piece. said latching tongues protrude through the cut-outs fbrrned in the frame plate and protrude on the side of the frame plate remote from the centring shoulder and thus on the assembly side for the feedthrough part on the partitioning wall. where they can be gripped.

The sealing plate covers in an advantageous manner on the centring shoulder-side the entire frame plate and encompasses also the latching tongue extensions in the region of the cut-outs in a sealing manner. The width of the cut-outs and the flexibility and elasticity of the rubber-elastic sealing material render it possible for the latching tongue extensions to move in the radial direction in such a manner that the latching projections can be moved out of engagement with the wall edge and that the feedthrough part can be dismantled from the opening.

In order to improve the sealing arrangement of the fecdthrough part on the wall edge surrounding the opening. the sealing plate is provided in its edge region on the side remote from the frame with at least one circumferential sealing lip. For the same reason, the at least one feedthrough opcning is formed in the sealing plate in a protective sleeve-like manner, in particular also, to compensate the tolerance deviations and to be able to receive lines which to a limited extent have different diameters.

The feedthrough part is formed in such a manner that it can be produced advantageously by a two-component injection moulding method in a tool. Preferably. PA66 (glass fibre-reinforced polyamide) is used for the frame part and EPDM (ethylene/propylene-diene) for the sealing plate.

A specific embodiment of the present invention iU now be described, by way of example only. with reference to the accompan.ing drawings. hich show in: Figure 1 a perspective vie of a feedthrough part for heat exchanger pipes for arranging in an opening of a vehicle splash wall as seen from the open side/splash valI side.

Figure 2 the view of a latching clement (detail X) formed on said feedthrough part.

Figure 3 a main view of the fecdthrough part with the direction of view towards the vehicle splash wall.

Figure 4 the lower view thereof, Figure 5 a lateral view thereof Figure 6 the plan view thereof Figure 7 the view thereof as seen from the opening side/splash wall side, Figure 8 a cross-sectional view Vill-Vill through said feedthrough part and Figure 9 a cross-sectional view IX-IX therethrough.

The feedthrough part illustrated in Figure 1 comprises a frame I formed on the peripheral side in PA66. glass fibre-reinforced. tbr latching with a wall edge (10. Fig. 2.

8. 9) which surrounds an opening in a vehicle wall, and an EPDM sealing plate 2 which covers the frame opening and is integrally formed in a materially-bonded manner using a two component injection moulding method. The sealing plate 2 comprises three feedthrough openings 3 and 4 for feeding through and arranging in a sealing manner heat exchanger pipes (13. Fig. 8)and for a condensed atcr outlet pipe (14. Fig.9). The frame 1 is formed in a cover-like manner and consists of a frame plate 1.1 and a circumferential centring shoulder 1.2 hich is set back from the outer frame plate edge and corresponds to the (wall-)opening. Three latching tongues 5 which can bend in an elastic manner in the radial direction and comprise outwardly pointing latching projections 6 with latching surfaces 7 formed on the frame plate side are integrally formed on this frame (I) at a mutually spaced angular disposition of 120c. the latching surfaces 7 being formed in parallel with the frame plate 1.1, and as shown in particular in Figure 2. are spaced for receiving the wall edge (10) at a distance a from the frame plate 1.1. The sealing plate 2 is provided in its edge region with two circumferential sealing lips DL which are disposed in parallel with each other.

Figure 2 illustrates that the latching tongues 5 are extended beyond the latching projections 6. The respective extension 8 protrudes in each case through a cut-out 9 which is disposed in the frame plate I. I and said extension is formed protruding therefrom as a gripping piece on the side remote from the centring shoulder 1.2. The feedthrough of the extension g through the frame plate 1.1 is indicated by a broken line.

Figures 1 and 2 also illustrate that the sealing plate 2 is disposed on the centring shoulder-side on the frame I and in so doing covers the frame plate I. I. The arrangement of the latching tongues 5 with the extensions 8 lbrmed on the end side into gripping pieces is illustrated in the following figures.

Figure 3 illustrates the size of the cut-outs 9 with respect to the extensions 8. The respective extension 8 is enclosed in the sealing material (2) in such a manner that it can perform such a radial movement that the latching projections 6 connected thereto can be disengaged with their latching surfaces 7 from the wall edge (10. Fig. 8.9). The elasticity of the latching tongues 5 and also of the sealing material thus ensure that after their actuation the extensions 8 are automatically returned to their starting position.

Figures 4 to S illustrate the formation of the feedthrough part. The direction in which the said part is assembled is indicated by arrows. In order to increase the rigidity of the frame (1) and thus of the feedthrough part. circumferential stabilising ribs 11 are formed on the side of the frame I remote from the latching projections 6 on the frame plate 1.1 in each case in the outer edge region and on the edge region which faces the frame opening. The feedthrough openings 3 and 4 are formed on integral sections 12. which narrow in the shape of a funnel. of the sealing plate 2. Figure 8 illustrates furthermore the arrangement of a heat exchanger pipe 13 in the feedthrough opening 3 and in Figure 9 the arrangement of a condensed water outlet pipe 14 in the feedthrough opening 4 is indicated by broken lines. The integral sections 12 each lie elastically expanded and in a sealing manner against the respective line 13. 14.

The arrangement of the feedthrough part on the vehicle splash a11 (10) is achieved expediently ith lines 13 and 14 pre-assembled thereon. hich lines are connected to the respecti\e components once the feedthrough part has been fixed to the partitioning wall. In order to fix the pre-assembled feedthrough part. this is inserted, with the centring shoulder 1.2 and the vehicle interior space-side line ends towards the front, into the predetermined opening in the vehicle wall and by means of pressure latched with and braced against the wall edge 10. wherein the latching projections 6 engage with their latching surfaces 7 behind the wall edge 10 on the vehicle compartment inner side. The extensions 8 formed as a gripping piece protrude into the engine compartment which is simultaneously the assembly and dismantling space for the feedthrough part.

In order to dismantle the feedthrough part these (8) only require to be gripped and to be urged radially inwards, whereby the latching projections 6 are disengaged from the wall edge 10. In the present case of a feedthrough part having three latching projections 6. it is even sufficient to release only one latching projection 6 to dismantle the feedthrough part.

List of designations I Frame 1.1 Frame plate 1.2 Centring shoulder 2 Sealing plate 3 Feedthrough opening 4 Feedthrough opening Latching tongue 6 Latching projection 7 Latching surface 8 Extension 9 Cut-out Wall edge 11 Stabilising rib 12 Integral section 13 Heat exchanger pipe 14 Condensed water outlet pipe a distance DL sealing lip

Claims

I Sealing feedthrough part for lines and cables for arranging in an opening in a vehicle wall, having a frame formed on the peripheral side from a hard synthetic material for latching with the wall edge surrounding the opening. having a sealing plate which is formed from a rubber-elastic material and is integrally formed on the frame and covers the frame opening and comprises a number of feedthrough openings which corresponds to the number of lines to be fed through. and having latching means formed on the frame for engaging in a braced manner behind the wall edge on the side remote from the assembly side for the feedthrough part, wherein the latching means comprise actuating projections in order that they can be unlatched without the use of tools. which actuating projections can be gripped and actuated on the side of the feedthrough part remote from the wall edge.
2 Feedthrough part as claimed in claim 1. characterised in that the frame is formed in the manner of a cover and in so doing comprises a frame plate having a central opening and a circumferential centring shoulder which is set back from the outer frame plate edge and corresponds to the wall edge.
3 Feedthrough part as claimed in claim 2 characterised in that a plurality of latching tongues are formed on the centring shoulder at an equal angular spaced disposition from each other. and can bend elastically in the radial direction and on hicli are integrally formed latching projections with latching surfaces.

wherein the latching surfaces are formed at a distance from and in parallel with the frame plate and the latching tongues extend beyond the latching projections to form actuating projections which each serve as a gripping piece and said latching tongues protrude through the cut-outs formed in the frame plate and stand proud on the side of the frame plate remote from the centring shoulder in such a manner that they can be gripped.
4 Feedthrough part as claimed in claim 3, characterised in that the sealing plate covers the frame plate on the centring shoulder-side and in so doing encompasses the actuating projections in the region of the cut-outs in a sealing manner such that the actuating projections (8) can move in the radial direction.
Feedthrough part as claimed in claim I or 4, characterised in that the sealing plate comprises in its outer edge region on the centring shoulder-side at least one circumferential sealing lip.
6 Feedthrough part as claimed in claim 1, 4 or 5. characterised in that the sealing plate is provided with integral sections which narrow in the shape of a funnel.

on which the feedthrough openings are formed.
7 [:eedthrough part as claimed in claim 2. 3 or 4. characterised in that the frame plate is provided on its side remote from the centring shoulder on the outer and on the inner edge with circumferential stabilising ribs.
8 Feedthrough part as claimed in claim I or 4, characterised in that the sealing plate and the frame plate are connected as one piece and are produced by the two component injection moulding method.
9 Feedthrough as claimed in any one or several of the preceding claims.

characterised in that the frame part consists of PA66 (polyamide)-glass-reinforced, and the sealing plate consists of EPDM (ethylene/propylefle-diefle) or rubber.