JP2000188165A - Rotary connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To simply conduct the connecting work between the conductors of a cable and joint bars by providing positioning means for positioning the conductors to the joint bars on a lead block and the flat cable. SOLUTION: The relative positions of the conductors 16 of a flat cable 14 and the joint bars 19 of a lead block 12 are positioned by positioning holes 15a and projection 18a, the flat cable 14 and the lead block 12 are integrally formed by a pair of pressing plates 19a protruded from both side faces of a resin body 18, thus the conductors 16 of the flat cable 14 can be welded to the joint bars 19 of the lead block 12 simply and reliably without using a special jig. The pressing plates 19a utilize part of the joint bars 19 and function as the positioning sections of the joint bars 19 when the resin body 18 is molded, and the lead block 12 can be simply molded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a rotary connector which is incorporated in a steering device of a vehicle and electrically connects a handle on a rotor side and a stator side.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A rotary connector of this type generally comprises a pair of housings connected concentrically and relatively rotatably, and a flat cable housed and wound in a space between the two housings. Both ends of the flat cable are fixed to both housings, respectively, and then electrically led to the outside. One housing is used as a movable body, and the other housing is used as a fixed body. When the housing on the movable body side is rotated clockwise or counterclockwise, the flat cable is wound or unwound in the space.

[0003] In the rotary connector thus constructed, the housing on the fixed body side is fixed to the steering column of the steering device, the housing on the movable body side is fixed to the handle, and both ends of the flat cable are connected to the steering column and the handle side. By connecting to electrical components, it is used as electrical connection means for airbag systems, horn circuits, and the like. At this time, a lead wire is connected to an end of the flat cable, and the flat cable is sometimes connected to an electric component on a steering column or a steering wheel side via the lead wire. Japanese Patent Publication No. -24611 has been proposed.

In the rotary connector disclosed in the publication, a plurality of joint bars are connected in advance by an insulating support in accordance with the pitch of each conductor of the flat cable, and the conductor of the flat cable and the lead wire are connected to both ends of each joint bar. After the connection, the ends of the flat cable including these connecting portions, the insulating support and the insulating layer of the lead wire are covered with a resin molded protective body, and then the resin molded protective body is fixed to the housing. It is configured. As described above, when the conductor of the flat cable and the lead wire are conducted through the joint bar, the conductor of the flat cable can be overlapped and connected to the flat surface of the joint bar, so that the conductor of the thin and weak flat cable is not cut. It can be connected by ultrasonic welding or the like. In addition, since the joint between the conductor and the lead wire by the joint bar is protected by the resin-molded protective body, the conductor can be prevented from breaking when a tensile force acts on the flat cable or the lead wire.

[0005]

However, in the conventional rotary connector constructed as described above, when welding each conductor of the flat cable and each joint bar, the flat cable and the insulating support are connected to each other. There is a problem that a special jig for positioning and holding is required, and connection work becomes complicated. In addition, since the connection between each conductor of the flat cable and each joint bar is weak against tensile force, after connecting the flat cable conductor and the lead wire to both ends of the joint bar, these connection parts are protected by resin molding. A molding step of covering with a body is required, and from this point, there is a problem that workability is poor.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a rotary connector which can easily perform a connection operation between a conductor of a flat cable and a joint bar. It is in.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, a rotary connector according to the present invention comprises a pair of housings concentrically and relatively rotatably connected to each other and a space between the two housings. A flat cable carrying a plurality of conductors parallel to each other on a strip-shaped insulating film, and a lead block supporting a plurality of joint bars with an insulating resin body. A flat cable and an alignment means for aligning the conductor with the joint bar are provided, and the corresponding conductor and the joint bar are connected to electrically lead the flat cable out of the housing. The lead block was inserted and fixed in the storage recess provided in the housing.

With this configuration, when connecting each conductor of the flat cable to the corresponding joint bar of the lead block by welding or the like, the conductor and the joint bar are aligned by the positioning means provided on the lead block and the flat cable. Therefore, the conductor and the joint bar can be easily connected without using a special jig, and after the conductor and the joint bar are connected, the lead block can be inserted and fixed in the housing recess of the housing as it is. Therefore, a complicated insulating coating step can be omitted.

In the above configuration, it is preferable that the positioning means is constituted by a projection provided on the resin body and a notch formed on the insulating film. In this case, it is easy to insert the projection into the notch. In operation, each conductor of the flat cable can be aligned with each corresponding joint bar of the lead block.

Further, in the above configuration, when a guide portion for guiding the insertion of the lead block is provided on the outer surface of the resin body and the inner wall surface of the storage recess, the lead block can be reliably positioned at a predetermined position in the storage recess. it can.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view of a rotary connector, FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the rotary connector, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line A, FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a connecting portion between the flat cable provided in the rotary connector, the lead block and the lead wire, FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the connecting portion in FIG.
FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a connection portion between the flat cable and the lead block shown in FIG.

In FIGS. 1 to 3, reference numeral 1 denotes a first housing, and reference numeral 2 denotes a second housing. In the case of this embodiment, the first housing 1 is used as a movable body and the second housing is used.
Is used as a fixed body. The first housing 1 has a disc-shaped top plate 4 having a center hole 3 in the center.
And a plurality of slits 5a extending in the axial direction of the center hole 3 at a lower portion of the inner cylinder 5, and a plurality of slits 5a. A snap claw 5b is formed at the lower end of 5. Also,
A projection 4a is integrally formed on the top plate 4, and a cover 6 is attached to one side of the projection 4a. A lead block 7 is housed and fixed inside the projection 4a and the cover 6. ing. A plurality of lead wires 8 are connected to the lead block 7, and each of the lead wires 8 is led out of the first housing 1, and an external connector (not shown) is attached to a tip of the lead wire. On the other hand, the second housing 2
A bottom plate 10 having a guide hole 9 in the center;
The bottom plate 10 and the outer cylinder 11 are joined and integrated with each other by means of heat or the like. Also, the bottom plate 10 and the outer cylinder 1
Projection portions 10a and 11a are integrally formed on a part of 1 and a lead block 12 is housed and fixed inside the projection portions 10a and 11a. This lead block 1
A plurality of lead wires 13 are connected to 2, and each lead wire 13 is led out from the second housing 2, and an external connector (not shown) is attached to a tip of the lead wire 13.

The snap claw 5b of the inner cylinder 5 is
The top edge of the top plate 4 slides on the upper end of the outer cylindrical body 11 and the lower end of the inner cylindrical body 5 slides in the guide hole 9, whereby the first The housing 1 and the second housing 2 are connected concentrically and relatively rotatably. These two housings 1, 2
A ring-shaped space is defined therebetween, and a flat cable 14 is wound, for example, in a spiral shape in this space. As will be described later, both ends of the flat cable 14 are connected to the lead blocks 7 and 1 inside the projection 4a and the cover 7 and inside the projections 10a and 11a, respectively.
2 are connected.

The rotary connector thus constructed is used by being incorporated into a steering device of a vehicle (not shown). At this time, the second housing 2 is attached to a stator member such as a steering column. Housing 2
The lead wire 13 led to the outside is connected to an airbag circuit or the like provided on the vehicle body side via an external connector (not shown). The first housing 1 is attached to a handle, and a lead wire 8 led out from the first housing 1 is connected to an airbag inflator or the like mounted on the handle via an external connector (not shown). Is done. In use, when the first housing 1 rotates clockwise, for example, in conjunction with the handle, the flat cable 14 is wound around the outer peripheral surface of the inner cylinder 5, and conversely, in conjunction with the handle, When the first housing 1 rotates counterclockwise, the flat cable 14 is rewound on the inner peripheral surface of the outer cylinder 11.

Next, the connection structure between the ends of the flat cable 14 and the lead blocks 7, 12 and the lead wires 8, 13 will be described on the outer end side of the flat cable 14.
As shown in FIG. 5, the flat cable 14 is formed of a belt-like body in which a plurality of parallel conductors 16 are laminated with a pair of insulating films 15, and in the case of the present embodiment, three conductors 16 are embedded. Flat cables for three circuits are used. At the outer end of the flat cable 14, each conductor 16 is exposed by removing the insulating film 15.
, And the relevant portion is a connecting portion 17. A pair of positioning holes 15 a are formed in the insulating film 15 in the connecting portion 17, and cutouts 15 b are formed on both side surfaces of the insulating film 15 located near the connecting portion 17. The lead wire 13
Is also called a round wire cable, and the stranded wire 13b is covered with a cylindrical insulating tube 13a.

The lead block 12 is composed of an insulating resin body 18 and a plurality of joint bars 19 supported inside the resin body 18. In the case of the present embodiment, the lead block 12 is flat. Three joint bars 19 are used corresponding to the number of conductors 16 of the cable 14.
Each joint bar 19 is made of a copper material or the like having excellent conductivity, has a rectangular cross section, and has flat front and back surfaces. A first window hole 20 and a second window hole 21 are opened in the resin body 18, and a projection 18a located between the window holes 20, 21 is provided upright. It is exposed from the first and second window holes 20 and 21. The first window hole 20 is one continuous hole,
The second window holes 21 are isolated from each other by the resin body 18, and a concave groove 18 b is formed from each of the second window holes 21 to one end surface of the resin body 18. Each joint bar 19
Are set at substantially the same pitch as the conductors 16 of the flat cable 14. Of these, joint bars 19 at both ends except for the center are integrally formed with holding plates 19a, respectively. 18 protrudes substantially perpendicularly from the side surface.

When connecting the flat cable 14 and the lead wire 13 to the lead block 12, first, the flat cable 14 is placed on the lead block 12, and the positioning hole 15a of the connecting portion 17 is inserted into the projection 18a of the resin body 18.
Insert As a result, the flat cable 14 is positioned with respect to the lead block 12, each conductor 16 is superimposed on the flat surface of each joint bar 19 in the first window hole 20, and both notches 15b are held by both holding plates. 19a
It is superimposed just above. Thereafter, when both presser plates 19a are bent inward and their roots are engaged with the notches 15b, as shown in FIG. 6, the ends of the flat cable 14 are held in the lead block 12 by both presser plates 19a. Thereafter, the flat cable 14 and the lead block 12 are treated as an integral body. Then, each lead wire 13
Of the insulating tube 13a of the lead block 12 into the groove 18
b, and the tip of the stranded wire 13b is overlapped on the flat surface of each joint bar 19 in the second window hole 21.
In this state, a welding jig (not shown) is brought into contact with the overlapping portion of each conductor 16 and the joint bar 19 using the first window hole 20, and the conductor 16 and the joint bar 19 are spot-welded or superposed. Sonic welding. At this time, conductor 16
The relative position of the joint bar 19 is aligned with the positioning hole 15a and the projection 18a, and the flat cable 14 and the lead block 12 are
The conductor 16 and the joint bar 19 can be easily welded without using a special positioning jig because they are integrated by a. Before and after this, a welding jig (not shown) is brought into contact with the overlapping portion of the stranded wire 13b of each lead wire 13 and the joint bar 19 using the second window hole 21, and the stranded wire 13b And the joint bar 19 by spot welding or ultrasonic welding.

After the flat cable 14 and the lead wire 13 are connected to the lead block 12 in this manner, as shown in FIG. Insert inside. At this time, a guide projection 22a is provided on the inner wall of the storage recess 22. A groove 18c extending on the back surface of the resin body 18 is pushed along the guide projection 22a, so that the lead block 12 is moved into the storage recess. Positioning can be reliably performed at a predetermined position within 22. Finally, the bottom plate 10 is put on the lower surface of the outer cylinder 11 and the lead wire 13 is led out from the bottom plate 10, and the bottom plate 10 and the outer cylinder 11 are joined and integrated by heat or the like as described above. Then, the lead block 12
Are housed and fixed in the protruding portions 10a and 11a of the second housing 2. Although the detailed description of the inner end side of the flat cable 14 is omitted, the connection structure of the outer end side is the same as that of the outer end side except that the storage position of the lead block 7 is between the protruding portion 4a and the cover 6. It is configured similarly.

In the above embodiment, the relative position between each conductor 16 of the flat cable 14 and each joint bar 19 of the lead block 12 is determined by the positioning hole 15a and the protrusion 1.
8a, and the flat cable 14 and the lead block 12 are integrated by a pair of holding plates 19a protruding from both side surfaces of the resin body 18, so that each conductor 16 of the flat cable 14 is When welding to the joint bar 19 of the block 12,
Welding can be performed easily and reliably without using a special positioning jig. Further, since the holding plate 19a uses a part of the joint bar 19, the resin body 1
8 is formed, the holding plate 19 a is connected to the joint bar 19.
And the lead block 12 can be formed extremely easily. Further, notches 15b are formed on both side surfaces of the insulating film 15 of the flat cable 14, and the holding plates 19a are engaged with the notches 15b, so that the pull acting on the flat cable 14 and the lead block 12 can be cut. Chip 1
5b and the holding plate 19a can absorb it. Therefore, it is possible to prevent breakage of a connection portion between each conductor 16 of the flat cable 14 and the joint bar 19 without using a resin molding protector that is complicated to mold.

In the above-described embodiment, the rotary connector in which the lead wires are connected to both ends of the flat cable via the lead block has been described. However, in the present invention, at least one end of the flat cable is connected via the lead block. It is sufficient that the connector housing is integrally formed with one of the housings, and one end of the flat cable is connected to a connector terminal provided in the connector housing.
It can also be applied to a rotary connector with one side connected directly.

[0021]

As described above, according to the present invention,
When connecting each conductor of the flat cable to each corresponding joint bar of the lead block by welding or the like, the conductor and the joint bar are aligned by the alignment means provided on the lead block and the flat cable, so a special jig Since the conductor and the joint bar can be easily connected without using a lead, and after the conductor and the joint bar are connected, the lead block can be inserted and fixed in the housing recess of the housing as it is. Can be omitted.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a rotary connector according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the rotary connector.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a connection portion between a flat cable, a lead block, and a lead wire provided in the rotary connector.

FIG. 5 is an exploded plan view showing a connecting portion of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a connecting portion between the flat cable and the lead block shown in FIG.

[Description of Signs] 1 First housing 2 Second housing 5 Inner cylinder 7,12 Lead block 8,13 Lead wire 11 Outer cylinder 14 Flat cable 15 Insulating film 15a Positioning hole 15b Notch 16 Conductor 18 Resin body 18a Projection 18b Groove 18c Groove 19 Joint bar 19a Holding plate 22 Storage recess 22a Guide protrusion

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A pair of housings connected concentrically and relatively rotatably, and a plurality of conductors which are housed and wound in a space between the two housings, and which are parallel to each other, are carried on a strip-shaped insulating film. And a lead block having a plurality of joint bars supported by an insulating resin body, and positioning means for positioning the conductor on the joint bars with the lead block and the flat cable. And connecting the corresponding conductor and the joint bar to electrically lead the flat cable out of the housing, and insert the lead block into a storage recess provided in the housing.
A rotary connector characterized by being fixed. 2. The rotary connector according to claim 1, wherein said positioning means comprises a projection provided on said resin body and a notch formed on said insulating film. 3. The rotary connector according to claim 1, wherein a guide portion for guiding insertion of the lead block is provided on an outer surface of the resin body and an inner wall surface of the storage recess.