JP2003059563A - Method and configuration of branching connection of flat cable - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To form a good branching connection by securely dividing a specific conductor of a first backbone flat cable with cut-in and by connecting it at both sides of the cut-in with each conductor of a second flat cable for branching. SOLUTION: The conductor 11 is divided by making the cut-in 16 to a first flat cable 10. An insulated terminal part of a second flat cable 20 is inserted in the cut-in 16 and is laid flat and the conductor 11 and conductors 21 and 22 of the second flat cable 20 are connected at an overlapped part.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and structure for branching and connecting flat cables having a plurality of conductors arranged side by side in the width direction.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, as a flexible wiring material used in a vehicle or the like, there is known a flat cable in which a plurality of flat conductors (for example, rectangular conductors) are arranged in the width direction and covered with an insulating material. Such a flat cable has various advantages such as being thin and excellent in flexibility and being able to freely change the wiring direction by bending.

Furthermore, in recent years, in order to construct various circuits using a plurality of flat cables, studies have been conducted on a technique for electrically connecting the flat cables to each other in the middle thereof. For example, JP-A-5-11024
In No. 6 publication, two flat cables are stacked,
A method of electrically connecting the conductors of both flat cables by driving a connecting pin into an appropriate portion and ultrasonically welding is disclosed. JP-A-8-17259 discloses a core flat cable and a branch flat cable. Provide an exposed part to expose a specific part of the conductor on each of the cables,
It is disclosed that these exposed portions are connected to each other by soldering.

[0004]

In a vehicle or the like, for example, as shown in FIG. 7, a switch 92 and this switch 9 are provided.
Electrical equipment that is turned on and off by 2 (motor 94 in the figure)
There is a demand for a circuit in which the two are connected in series and both ends thereof are connected to the common connector 90. If such a circuit is used, it is possible to supply power to the motor 94 and switch it on and off simply by connecting the connector 90 to the connector of the power supply side circuit.

As a method of constructing such a circuit by the above-mentioned flat cable, for example, as shown in FIG. 7, the first connector 90 and the motor 94 have two conductors.
Via the flat cable (trunk flat cable) 10, the conductor on one side of the first flat cable 10 is divided in the middle, and both sides of the divided portion are connected to both terminals of the switch 92 by the second flat cable 20. It is possible to connect.

The specific structure is shown in FIGS. 8 and 9. In the figure, a first flat cable 10 includes two flat rectangular conductors 11 and 12 and these flat conductors 11 and 12.
Has an insulator 14 that covers both of the rectangular conductors 11 and 12 in a state of being aligned in the width direction, and similarly, the second flat cable 20
Is two flat conductors 21 and 22 and two flat conductors 2 and 22 in a state where these flat conductors 21 and 22 are arranged in the width direction.
And an insulator 24 covering the first and the second electrodes 22.

Of these flat cables, a notch 15 in the width direction is made at an appropriate position of the first flat cable 10 which is a backbone flat cable to divide only the conductor 11, and then the divided portion is sandwiched between the flat cables. The conductors 21 and 22 of the second flat cable 20 which is a branching flat cable are superposed on one end of the conductor 21, and a connecting pin is driven into the superposed portion to form the conductor 21,
22 and the conductor 11 are electrically connected. As a result, the conductor 21 is connected to one side of the conductor 11 with the dividing point as a boundary, and the conductor 22 is connected to the other side of the conductor 11.
Will be connected. Therefore, the conductors 21, 22
By connecting the other terminal to the both terminals of the switch 92 as shown in FIG. 7, it is possible to construct the circuit as shown in the same figure.

However, there are the following obstacles to actually applying such a connection method.

That is, in the connection method, the cut 1
If the width dimension d (FIG. 9) of 5 is small, the portions of the conductor 11 that are separated from each other intermittently contact (that is, short-circuit) due to the bending deformation of the flat cable 10 due to vibration of the vehicle, so-called chattering. Since the reliability of the circuit is significantly deteriorated, the cut 15 must be cut in order to maintain the insulating state.
It is necessary to set a large width dimension d. However, since the arrangement pitch p of the conductors 21 and 22 is generally very small (for example, 2 mm), if the width dimension d of the notch 15 is made too large, the conductor 11 and the conductors 21 and 22 divided by it will be sufficient. The contact area makes it difficult to connect.

In view of the above circumstances, the present invention provides a flat cable for branching that can be satisfactorily connected to the split portion while reliably maintaining the insulated state of the conductor split portion in the backbone flat cable. An object of the present invention is to provide a method and structure for branching and connecting cables.

[0011]

[Means for Solving the Problems] As means for solving the above problems, the present invention relates to a first flat cable in which a plurality of conductors are arranged in the width direction and the periphery thereof is covered with an insulator. , A cutting step of cutting a specific conductor of the first flat cable by making a cut in the width direction, and a second step in which a plurality of conductors are arranged in the width direction and the periphery thereof is covered with an insulator. Step of inserting the insulator part between the conductors at the ends of the flat cable in the longitudinal direction of the second flat cable with respect to the cut of the first flat cable, and the cut second flat cable Centered on the position of
The flat conductor of the first flat cable is tilted until it becomes a direction substantially parallel to the first flat cable so that the specific conductor of the first flat cable and the conductor of the second flat cable are superposed at positions on both sides of the cut. And a connecting step of electrically connecting the conductors to each other at their overlapping portions.

Further, according to the present invention, a notch in the width direction is made in the first flat cable in which a plurality of conductors are arranged in the width direction and the periphery thereof is covered with an insulator. The insulator portion between the conductors in the end of the second flat cable in which the conductors are arranged in the width direction and whose periphery is covered with the insulator is inserted in the longitudinal direction of the second flat cable, and the insertion is performed. The second flat cable has the second flat cable centered on the position of the cut.
The flat cable of (1) is tilted until it becomes a direction substantially parallel to the first flat cable, so that the specific conductor of the first flat cable and the conductor of the second flat cable are separated at positions on both sides of the cut. It is a branch connection structure of a flat cable in which overlapping portions and overlapping portions are electrically connected to each other.

In the above construction, not only the notch is made in the first flat cable, but also the two flat cables are connected with the insulator part of the end of the second flat cable being inserted in the notch. Because
Even if the width dimension of the notch is small, the insulation state of the conductor of the first flat cable can be reliably maintained due to the interposition of the insulator portion in the notch. Then, by laying down the second flat cable and overlapping the conductor and the specific conductor (divided conductor) of the first flat cable at positions on both sides of the cut, the conductor is formed at the overlapping position. They can be connected in a stable state.

Here, as the means for connecting the conductors, for example, connecting pins for connection are driven in the overlapping portions of the specific conductor of the first flat cable and the second flat cable, It is preferable to electrically connect the conductors in the overlapping portion with each other through the pin.

[0015]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The basic configuration of the first flat cable 10 and the second flat cable 20 connected to each other is exactly the same as that shown in FIG. 7, and the description thereof is omitted here. Further, in each drawing, for the sake of convenience, the flat cables 10 and 20 are drawn such that the ratio of the thickness dimension to the longitudinal dimension and the width dimension of the flat cables 10 and 20 is made larger than it actually is.

The branch connection method according to this embodiment is as follows.

1) Separation Step A notch 16 in the width direction as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is made at an appropriate position of the first flat cable 10 which is a flat cable for the backbone. The depth of the notch 16 is such that only the conductor 11 of the conductors 11 and 12 can be divided, and the width dimension d is the second flat cable for branching.
The thickness is slightly larger than the thickness of the flat cable 20.

2) Inserting Step As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3A and 3B, the insulator portion (the conductor 21 and the conductor 22) at one end of the second flat cable 20 is inserted into the notch 16. (The insulator portion interposed therebetween) is inserted in the longitudinal direction of the second flat cable 20.

3) Connection step The second flat cable 20 is tilted around the position of the notch 16 until the cable 20 is oriented substantially parallel to the first flat cable 10. As a result, the conductors 21 and 22 of the second flat cable 20 are
1 cut in the conductor 11 of the flat cable 10
The position of 6 is sandwiched, and the positions on both sides of the position 6 overlap in the thickness direction. Therefore, the conductor 11 and the conductors 21 and 22 are electrically connected at this overlapping portion.

For this connection, various conventionally known methods can be applied. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, a metal pin 30 is driven into the overlapping portion, and the pin 30, the conductor 11 and the conductor 21 are inserted.
(Or the conductor 22) may be electrically connected. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 6, both end portions of the driven pin 30 'are expanded outward in the radial direction so that each flat cable 1
Insulate the insulators 14 and 24 of 0 and 20,
If the contact is made with 21 (or 22), more reliable connection becomes possible. Alternatively, the above-mentioned JP-A-8-17
As disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 259, flat cable 1
It is also possible to apply a method in which exposed portions for exposing the conductors 11 and the conductors 21 and 22 at their overlapping portions are provided in 0 and 20 and the exposed portions are connected by soldering (or ultrasonic welding or resistance welding). Is.

The connection portion may be left as it is, but it is more preferable to insulate and protect the periphery by, for example, winding a tape.

In the connection structure obtained by the above method, not only the conductor 11 is divided by the notch 16, but also the insulator portion of the second flat cable 20 is inserted into the notch 16, Even if the width dimension d of the notch 16 is not particularly increased, the notch 1
The insulation state of 6 can be reliably maintained. Also,
Since the relative displacement of the second flat cable 20 with respect to the first flat cable 10 is regulated at the insertion portion into the notch 16, the shearing force is suppressed from being applied to the conductor connection portion by the pin 30 or the like, and the strength is increased. Also, an excellent structure can be obtained.

Although the flat cables 10 and 20 having two conductors are connected to each other in this embodiment, the number of conductors in each flat cable does not matter in the present invention. For example, the first flat cable 1
When 0 has three or more conductors, the two or more conductors are divided by the notches 16, and the conductors of the second flat cable 20 are respectively cut at the positions on both sides of the notch 16 with respect to the divided conductors. You may make it connect a conductor. When the second flat cable 20 has three or more conductors, the conductors divided in the first flat cable 10 are connected to three or more conductors of the second flat cable 20. Good.

[0024]

EXAMPLE As the flat cables 10 and 20, the rectangular conductors 11, 12, 21 and 22 have a thickness of 0.1 mm and a width of
A cutout 16 having a depth of 2 mm and a width dimension d of 1 mm is formed in the first flat cable 10 by using 1.57 mm and a conductor pitch p of 2.54 mm. Second for this cut 16
By inserting and inverting the end portion of the flat cable 20, the flat cables 10 and 20 can be electrically connected to each other at the overlapping portions of the conductors.

[0025]

As described above, according to the present invention, a cut is made in the first flat cable to divide the specific conductor,
Furthermore, the insulator portion of the second flat cable end is inserted into the cut, and the overlapping portion of the conductor end of the second flat cable and the conductor of the first flat cable is interconnected. There is an effect that the second flat cable can be satisfactorily branched and connected to the first flat cable while reliably maintaining the insulation state at the cut.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partial cross-sectional perspective view showing an inserting step in a flat cable connecting method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a notch formed in the first flat cable in the embodiment.

3A is a plan view showing the inserting step, and FIG. 3B is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG.

FIG. 4A is a plan view showing a state in which the second flat cable is laid down after the inserting step, and FIG. 4B is a B- of FIG.
It is a B line sectional view.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a state in which conductors are connected by pins after the inserting step.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which conductors are connected by pins after the inserting step.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a circuit mounted on a vehicle or the like.

8 is a partial cross-sectional perspective view showing an example of a flat cable for constructing the circuit shown in FIG.

9 is a plan view showing an example of a connection structure between the flat cables shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 First flat cable 11,12 1st flat cable conductor 14 First flat cable insulation 16 notches 20 second flat cable 21,22 Second flat cable conductor 24 Second flat cable insulation

Continuation of front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI theme code (reference) // H01B 7/08 H01R 9/07 B (72) Inventor Matsumoto Ansei 1-7 Kikuzumi, Minami-ku, Nagoya-shi, Aichi No. 10 Auto Network Technical Laboratory Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Motonori Kido 1-7-10 Kikuzumi, Minami-ku, Nagoya-shi, Aichi F-term inside Auto Network Technical Laboratory Co., Ltd. (reference) 5E012 AA25 5E077 BB05 BB32 BB37 CC16 CC22 DD11 FF02 HH03 HH07 JJ20 5G311 CA05 CB01 CC01 CD03 CF03 5G355 AA08 BA01 BA11 CA05 CA06 CA09 5G375 AA11 CA02 CA13 DB09 EA17

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A first flat cable in which a plurality of conductors are arranged in the width direction and the periphery of which is covered with an insulator is cut into the first flat cable to form a cut in the width direction of the first flat cable. A dividing step of dividing a specific conductor, and an insulator portion between conductors in a terminal of a second flat cable in which a plurality of conductors are arranged in the width direction and the periphery thereof is covered with an insulator, An inserting step of inserting the second flat cable in the longitudinal direction with respect to the notch of the cable, and the second flat cable inserted is centered around the position of the notch and the second flat cable is the first flat cable. The specific conductor of the first flat cable and the conductor of the second flat cable are guided at positions on both sides of the notch by tilting the flat cable so as to be in a direction substantially parallel to A method of branching and connecting a flat cable, comprising a step of overlapping the body and electrically connecting the conductors at the overlapping portion. 2. The flat cable branch connection method according to claim 1, wherein the connecting step includes connecting pins at respective overlapping portions of the specific conductor of the first flat cable and the second flat cable. And a conductor for electrically connecting the conductors in the overlapping portion with the pin as a medium. 3. A notch in the width direction is made in the first flat cable in which a plurality of conductors are arranged in the width direction and the periphery thereof is covered with an insulator, and the plurality of conductors have a width in the notch. The insulator portion between the conductors at the ends of the second flat cable arranged in the direction and covered with the insulator is inserted in the longitudinal direction of the second flat cable, and the inserted second The flat cable is tilted until the second flat cable is oriented substantially parallel to the first flat cable around the position of the notch, so that the first flat cable is located at positions on both sides of the notch. Specific conductor of the second
The flat cable branch connection structure, characterized in that the conductors of the flat cable are overlapped with each other, and the overlapping portions are electrically connected to each other. 4. The branch connection structure for a flat cable according to claim 3, wherein connecting pins are respectively driven into overlapping portions of a specific conductor of the first flat cable and a conductor of the second flat cable. A branch connection structure for a flat cable, wherein conductors in the overlapping portion are electrically connected to each other through the pin.