JP2002042568A - Flat cable and method for manufacturing the same and terminal processing method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To facilitate terminal processing of a flat cable. SOLUTION: In the flat cable, a plurality of conductors 18 are put between the first insulating layer 10 and the second insulating layer 20 which are adhered by an adhesive layer 12. The conductors 18 come in contact with the second insulating layer 20 directly without the adhesive layer 12. In the second insulating layer 20, when terminals are processed, non adhesive parts 20a which come in contact with the conductors 18 directly are cut out and peeled from other parts and the conductors 18 are exposed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a flat cable in which a plurality of conductors are arranged in a flat shape, and a method for manufacturing and terminating the flat cable.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional flat cable and its manufacturing process will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0003] As shown in FIG. 5 (a), the first insulating layer 1
On top of the metal foil 14, a metal foil 14 is laminated via an adhesive layer 12 made of a thermoplastic adhesive or a thermosetting adhesive.

As shown in FIG. 1B, a resist film 16 having a shape corresponding to a desired conductor pattern is formed on the conductor layer 14.
Then, a plurality of conductors (flat conductors) 18 arranged in the pattern are formed as shown in FIG. Thereafter, the resist film 16 is removed as shown in FIG.

[0005] As shown in FIG. 6 (a), a second adhesive layer 22 similar to the adhesive layer 12 is provided on the back surface in advance.
The insulating layer 20 is laminated on the conductor 18 with the second insulating layer 22 and the conductor 18 facing each other, and pressed under heating. As a result, as shown in FIG.
0 and the second insulating layer 20 are bonded via the adhesive layers 12 and 22, and a flat cable in which the conductor 18 is embedded in the adhesive layers 12 and 22 can be manufactured.

[0006]

In order to use the flat cable, the conductor 18 is exposed to the outside by removing the second insulating layer 20 at a terminal portion thereof (terminal treatment). Must be able to make contact with external conductors (eg, connector terminals). However, in the flat cable, since the second insulating layer 20 is bonded to the adhesive layer 22 over the entire surface, it is extremely difficult to peel off the second insulating layer 20.

For this reason, conventionally, a window (through hole) for exposing the conductor 18 at a predetermined position of the second insulating layer 20 in advance is conventionally used.
Is formed, and the flat cable is cut at a portion where the conductor 18 is exposed to the outside through the window to make a terminal. However, this method complicates the manufacturing process of the flat cable, and Since the cut portion of the flat cable is limited to the portion where the window is formed, there is a disadvantage that the length of the flat cable cannot be freely set.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-40741 discloses that an insulating resin layer is coated on an adhesive layer and a plurality of conductors embedded on one side of the adhesive layer in order to reduce the thickness of the entire flat cable. However, even in this flat cable, since the insulating resin layer and each conductor are in a state of being bonded by the coating, it is possible to easily perform a terminal treatment for exposing a terminal of the conductor. Can not.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and has as its object to facilitate flat cable terminal processing.

[0010]

As a means for solving the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a method for sandwiching a plurality of conductors between a first insulating layer and a second insulating layer in a state of being arranged in a flat shape. In a flat cable in which both insulating layers are bonded via an adhesive layer, the conductors are directly in contact with the second insulating layer without using the adhesive layer, and only between the conductors. The second insulating layer is bonded to the first insulating layer via the adhesive layer.

[0011] In this flat cable, the second insulating layer and each conductor are in direct contact with each other without the interposition of the adhesive layer, so that the terminal treatment for exposing the terminal of the conductor can be easily performed. Specifically, the terminal of the conductor can be easily exposed to the outside by removing the portion of the second insulating layer that is in direct contact with the conductor by removing it from other portions.

Here, if the second insulating layer is made thinner than the first insulating layer, the second insulating layer is cut off while securing the strength of the entire flat cable by the thickness of the first insulating layer. That is, terminal processing can be made easier.

[0013] The present invention also relates to a method for manufacturing the flat cable, wherein the first insulating layer, the adhesive layer, and a plurality of conductors arranged in a flat shape are sequentially stacked. A manufacturing step, and a pressing step of superposing and pressing the second insulating layer on the laminate from the conductor side, and the pressing step allows the adhesive layer to be formed between the conductors and the back surface of the second insulating layer. The thickness of the adhesive layer in the laminate is set so as to come in contact with the adhesive.

According to this method, the excellent flat cable can be easily manufactured by a simple process.

[0015]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6 described above.
The same components as those described in (1) are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

First, in manufacturing a flat cable, a plurality of conductors 18 having a predetermined arrangement pattern on a first insulating layer 10 with an adhesive layer 12 interposed therebetween as shown in the lower side of FIG. Are laminated. The method for manufacturing such a laminate may be the method shown in FIGS. 5A to 5D or another method, for example, a die stamping method or a plating transfer method.

On this laminate, only the second insulating layer 20 is laminated from the conductor 18 side, and pressed in a heated state. Thereby, each conductor 18 sinks into the adhesive layer 12, and conversely, the adhesive layer 12 rises from between the conductors 18 and contacts the back surface of the second insulating layer 20. As a result, the flat cable as shown in FIG. 3, that is, the conductor 18 and the second insulating layer 20 are in direct contact with each other without the intermediary of the adhesive layer, and the second insulating layer 20 is connected only between the conductors 18 by the adhesive. First through layer 12
A flat cable bonded to the insulating layer 10 can be obtained.

Here, the conductor 18 and the two insulating layers 10, 2
The material of 0 is not particularly limited, but as the former material, a material obtained by rolling oxygen-free copper or tough pitch copper is preferable, and as the latter material, a synthetic resin film such as a polyester film or a polyimide film is preferable. .

The adhesive constituting the adhesive layer 12 may be the above-mentioned thermoplastic adhesive (for example, polyester,
Polyolefin and polyvinyl chloride adhesives) and thermosetting adhesives (for example, acrylic and epoxy adhesives)
Is preferable, and the thickness of the adhesive layer 12 is set so that the second insulating layer 20 can be finally contacted between the conductors 18.
What is necessary is just to set according to the thickness, width, and pitch of the conductor 18. In the case of the conductor width as shown in FIG. 1, if the thickness of the adhesive layer 12 is set to 70 to 80% of the thickness of the conductor 18, the second insulating layer 20 can be sufficiently bonded. For example, assuming that the thickness of the conductor 18 is 100 μm and the sum of the widths of the conductors 18 is substantially equal to the sum of the widths of the regions where the conductors 18 are not arranged, the thickness of the adhesive layer 12 is 70 μm. ~ 80μ
It is sufficient to set m.

In the above-described conventional method, the first insulating layer 1
0, since the adhesive layers 12, 22 are arranged on both sides of the second insulating layer 20, the thickness of each of the adhesive layers 12, 22 is set to half of the final required thickness (35 to 40 μm in the above example). That is, in the case of the method of the present invention, the adhesive 12 having a required thickness may be provided only on the first insulating layer 12 side.

In the flat cable obtained as described above, since each conductor 18 and the second insulating layer 20 are not bonded, the terminal treatment becomes extremely easy. That is,
To process the end of this flat cable, a cutting blade 24 is inserted along the edge of the conductor 18 as shown in a two-dot chain line in FIG. 3 and FIG. 18a, which is in direct contact with the non-adhesive portion 20
It is only necessary to separate a from other insulating layer portions. Thereby, the non-adhered portion 20a can be easily peeled off, and the upper surface 18a of the conductor 18 can be exposed. That is, it is possible to easily manufacture a flat cable subjected to terminal treatment.

Furthermore, if the second insulating layer 20 is made thinner than the first insulating layer 10, the thickness of the first insulating layer 10 increases the required strength of the entire flat cable while removing the second insulating layer 20. The terminal processing step can be made easier.

[0023]

As described above, according to the present invention, each of the conductors constituting the flat cable is brought into direct contact with the second insulating layer without the use of an adhesive. Since the conductor can be exposed by separating the portion of the insulating layer from other portions, there is an effect that the terminal treatment of the flat cable can be easily performed with a simple configuration.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a manufacturing process of a flat cable according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the manufacturing process.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a completed state of the flat cable according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a terminal processing step of the flat cable.

5 (a) to 5 (d) are cross-sectional views showing steps of manufacturing a conventional flat cable.

6 (a) and 6 (b) are cross-sectional views showing steps of manufacturing a conventional flat cable.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 10 first insulating layer 12 adhesive layer 18 conductor 20 second insulating layer

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Hiroshi Murakami 1-7-10 Kikuzumi, Minami-ku, Nagoya-shi, Aichi F-term in Harness Research Institute, Inc. (reference) 5G311 CB01 CC01 CD03

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A flat conductor in which a plurality of conductors are sandwiched between a first insulating layer and a second insulating layer in a state of being arranged in a flat shape, and both insulating layers are bonded via an adhesive layer. In the cable, each of the conductors is directly in contact with the second insulating layer without through the adhesive layer, and only between the conductors, the second insulating layer is in contact with the first insulating layer through the adhesive layer. A flat cable characterized by being adhered to a flat cable. 2. The flat cable according to claim 1, wherein said second insulating layer is thinner than said first insulating layer. 3. The method for manufacturing a flat cable according to claim 1, wherein the first insulating layer, the adhesive layer, and a plurality of conductors arranged in a flat shape are sequentially stacked. And a pressing step of stacking and pressing a second insulating layer from the conductor side with respect to the stacked body, and the pressing step causes the adhesive layer to move the second insulating layer from between the conductors. A method for manufacturing a flat cable, comprising setting a thickness of an adhesive layer in the laminate so as to contact a back surface of the layer. 4. The method for treating a terminal of a flat cable according to claim 1, wherein a portion of the second insulating layer that is in direct contact with the terminal of the conductor is separated from another portion and removed. A method for treating a flat cable terminal, wherein the terminal of the conductor is exposed to the outside.