JP2003346562A - Flat cable - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a flat cable which can easily connect with a crimp terminal. <P>SOLUTION: The flat cable 1 comprises a plurality of conductors 4 which are covered with insulating films 5 and plane-likely arranged in parallel, and a bridge part 2 for joining adjacent insulating films 5 each other leaving a space therebetween. The bridge part 2 consists of an extending part 2a which extends from an insulating film 5 positioning in the orthogonal direction B in respect to the arranged direction A of each conductor 4 to the direction B, and a joining part 2b for linearly joining the extending end of each extending part 2a in the arranged direction A. When the crimp terminal 6 is connected to the cable, since each branch part in connenting parts 6a of the crimp terminal 6 is connected with each conductor 4 without penetrating the bridge part 2, a stress in insertion of the crimp terminal is little, thereby enabling the crimp terminal 6 to be easily connected. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a flat cable (Flat Cable: FC) for connecting electrical components (auxiliary equipment) mounted on an automobile or the like, and more particularly, to a flat cable which can be easily connected to a press contact terminal. About.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art At present, wire harnesses are mainly used for connecting electrical components (auxiliary machines) such as automobiles. A wire harness is obtained by bundling electric wires connecting each of the auxiliary devices in a harness shape. Usually, crimp terminals are attached to the ends of each of the electric wires constituting the harness. It is built into a connector that is connected to a connector or the like provided in the device. The connector of the wire harness is formed in a different shape for each accessory,
It is devised so as not to cause connection mistakes.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a process of manufacturing such a wire harness. First, the wires of each electric wire constituting the harness are twisted (S100), individually extruded to form an insulating coating (S101), the extruded wires are assembled (S102), and the assembled wires are sorted (S103). . The configuration so far is referred to as an extrusion step.

[0004] Next, the sorted wires are individually measured according to the accessory to be connected (S200), and the measured wires are cut (S201), and the insulating coating of the terminal is removed to expose the element wires. Then, the crimp terminals are individually crimped to the exposed wires (S203), the wires crimped to the crimp terminals are gathered (S204), and the gathered wires are sorted (S205). The process up to this point is called a pressure bonding process.

[0005] If necessary, the insulating coating at a predetermined position between the ends of the wire is removed to expose the strand (intermediate tapping) (S300), and a joint terminal for branching is crimped (S301). The wire rods to which the joint terminals are crimped are assembled (S302), and the collected wire rods are sorted (S302).
303). The process so far is called a joint process.

[0006] Each terminal of the wire material having the terminals attached thereto is inserted into a connector or the like (S400), and a temporary assembly is performed to form a sub-assembly (S / Assy) (S401), and the formed sub-assemblies are assembled (S402). . The process up to this point is called a sub-assembly process.

After the sub-assembly is formed, a branch is formed (S500), terminals are inserted (S501), a tape such as an insulating tape is wound around the wire (S502), and various types of exterior are attached to the wire harness (W / W). H) (S50)
3), the formed wire harnesses are assembled (S50)
4). The steps so far are referred to as an assembly step.

Then, a completion inspection of the assembled wire harness is performed (S600), a product number and a lot are attached (S601), and finally the wire harness is shipped (S6).
02). This process is called an inspection shipping process.

As described above, in order to manufacture a wire harness, it is necessary to individually perform various processes such as an extrusion process, a crimping process, a joint process, a sub-assembly process, an assembly process, and an inspection shipping process.

However, in a wire harness manufactured through such a process, for example, a large number of connectors are used also in a branch portion and a joint portion, and when the number of connected auxiliary devices increases, a wire ( Since the number of components such as electric wires) and connectors also increases, the harness becomes thicker and the weight increases, and the number of components increases, which is disadvantageous in cost.

For this reason, instead of a wire harness, a plurality of conductors 104 are arranged in a plane as shown in FIG.
Each conductor 104 is covered with an insulating coating 105, and each insulating coating 10
Each of the auxiliary devices is also connected using a flat cable 100 having a structure in which the five units are connected by a bridge unit 102.

[0012]

However, in such a flat cable 100, for example, when a press contact terminal for connecting each auxiliary device and the conductor 104 is connected to the conductor, as shown in FIG. Because of the structure in which the coatings 105 are connected at the shortest distance, the tip of the connection portion 106a of the press contact terminal 106 having a bifurcated shape is inserted into the flat cable 100 to connect the press contact terminal 106 to the flat cable 100. Needs to break through the insulating coating 105 of the bridge portion 102, and the sense of insertion resistance is considerably strong. Further, since the connecting portion 106a of the press contact terminal 106 needs to have strength to break through the insulating coating 105 of the bridge portion 102, the terminal strength of the press contact terminal 106 must be increased, and the press contact terminal 106 becomes large. There is also a problem.

The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a flat cable which can be easily connected to a press contact terminal.

[0014]

A first flat cable according to the present invention is arranged such that a plurality of conductors are covered with an insulating coating and arranged in a plane so that adjacent insulating coatings are separated from each other. And a structure joined by a bridge portion.

According to the first flat cable of the present invention, the plurality of conductors are each covered by the insulating coating, are arranged in a plane, and are connected by the bridge so that the adjacent insulating coatings are separated from each other. Therefore, when connecting the press contact terminal to the conductor, the press contact terminal does not penetrate the bridge portion, and the sense of insertion resistance can be reduced.
Thereby, the press contact terminals can be easily connected.
Further, since it is not necessary to increase the terminal strength of the press contact terminal, the size of the press contact terminal can be reduced. Further, when connecting the insulation displacement terminal to the conductor, the connection can be made by absorbing (correcting) a pitch defect or the like between the conductors (between the cores) of the flat cable.

A second flat cable according to the present invention has a structure in which a plurality of conductors are respectively covered with insulating coatings, are arranged in a plane, and the adjacent insulating coatings are connected to each other by bridge portions. A plurality of slits of a predetermined length formed along the conductor and penetrating the bridge at predetermined intervals in the length direction of the conductor are formed in the bridge.

According to the second flat cable of the present invention, the plurality of conductors are each covered by the insulating coating, are arranged in a plane, and the adjacent insulating coatings are respectively connected to each other by the bridge portion. The bridge portion is formed with a plurality of slits of a predetermined length formed along the conductor and penetrating the bridge portion at predetermined intervals in the length direction of the bridge portion. When the terminals are connected, it is possible to reduce the insertion resistance without penetrating the bridge portion. Accordingly, the press contact terminals can be easily connected, and it is not necessary to increase the terminal strength of the press contact terminals, so that the size of the press contact terminals can be reduced. Further, since the slits are formed at predetermined intervals, it is possible to visually check the length of the flat cable by counting the number of slits.

The conductor covered with the insulating coating is preferably a single or stranded wire of a round conductor made of Cu or Al.

[0019]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a flat cable according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a state where a press contact terminal is connected to the flat cable. As shown in FIG. 1, the flat cable 1 is composed of a plurality of conductors 4 which are covered by an insulating coating 5 and arranged in a plane, and have a structure in which adjacent insulating coatings 5 are connected by a bridge portion 2. . The flat cable 1 includes a conductor 4 made of a wire material such as a single or stranded wire of a round conductor made of Cu or Al, for example, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), polyimide (PI) and polyvinyl chloride. The adjacent insulating coatings 5 are covered with an insulating coating 5 made of an insulating resin such as (PVC), and are connected to each other so as to be separated from each other by a bridge portion 2 made of the same insulating resin as the insulating coating 5.

The bridge portion 2 is arranged in the direction A in which the conductors 4 are arranged.
An extending portion 2a extending in the direction B from the insulating coating 5 located on the direction B (direction B) orthogonal to the direction (A);
A connecting portion 2b for connecting the leading end of the extending portion 2a in the extending direction linearly in the A direction. With the bridge portion 2 having such a structure, the adjacent insulating coatings 5 are connected to be separated from each other.

The flat cable 1 constructed as described above
As shown in FIG. 2, when connecting the press contact terminal 6 to each of the conductors 4, the connection end of the connection portion 6 a of the press contact terminal 6, which is bifurcated, is inserted in the direction B so as to sandwich the conductor 4. (See FIG. 1). The inserted pressure contact terminal 6 is pressed by the branch portion of the connection portion 6a biting into the insulating coating 5 of each conductor 4 of the flat cable 1 and sandwiching the conductor 4 by a spring force. Since the flat cable 1 has a structure in which the insulating coatings 5 are connected by the bridge portion 2 instead of the shortest distance, the branch portion of the connection portion 6a of the press contact terminal 6 does not penetrate the bridge portion 2 and the conductor 4 Connected to.
For this reason, the feeling of insertion resistance is small, and in this flat cable 1, the press contact terminal 6 can be easily connected. Further, since there is no need for the press contact terminal 6 to penetrate the bridge portion 2 at the time of connection, it is possible to connect sufficiently without increasing the terminal strength of the press contact terminal 6, and as a result, the press contact terminal 6
Can be reduced in size. Furthermore, the bridge part 2
Can be connected to the conductor without penetrating through the flat cable 1, thereby connecting (absorbing (correcting), for example, a pitch defect between the conductors 4 (between the cores) of the flat cable 1).

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view showing a state in which a press contact terminal is connected to another flat cable according to an embodiment of the present invention. In addition, the description which overlaps with the part already described is omitted. As shown in FIG. 3, the flat cable 1 ′ is composed of a plurality of conductors 4 which are covered with an insulating coating 5 and arranged in a plane, and each of the insulating coatings 5 located in the direction B (see FIG. 1). The space between them is connected in a curve shape in the direction A (see FIG. 1) by a bridge portion 2 ', and the adjacent insulating coatings 5 are connected so as to be separated from each other. When the press contact terminals 6 are connected to the conductors 4 of the flat cable 1 ′, the adjacent insulating coatings 5 are connected so as to be separated from each other by the bridge portions 2 ′. The branch portion of the connection portion 6a of the press contact terminal 6 is connected to each conductor 4 without penetrating the bridge portion 2 '.
Thus, the press contact terminal 6 can be easily connected to the flat cable 1 ', and the press contact terminal 6 can be reduced in size.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a flat cable according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a top view of the flat cable. As shown in FIG. 4, the flat cable 10 is composed of a plurality of conductors 4 which are covered with an insulating coating 5 and arranged in a plane, and have a structure in which adjacent insulating coatings 5 are connected by a bridge portion 20. . The flat cable 10 is formed by connecting a conductor 4 made of a wire material such as a single wire or a stranded wire of a round conductor made of, for example, Cu or Al to PE.
The insulating coatings 5 made of an insulating resin such as T, PEN, PI, and PVC are covered with each other, and the adjacent insulating coatings 5 are connected to each other by bridge portions 20 made of the same insulating resin as the insulating coatings 5.

As shown in FIG. 5, the bridge section 20 has
A plurality of slits 29 having a predetermined length are formed through the insulating coating 5 of the bridge portion 20 and formed at predetermined intervals along the conductor 4 in the length direction of the conductor 4. When connecting the press-contact terminals 6 (not shown) to the conductors 4 of the flat cable 10 configured as described above, the connection direction end of the connection portion 6a of the press-contact terminal 6 that is branched into two branches sandwiches the conductor 4 and Insert in the B direction (see FIG. 1) so as to be inserted into each slit 29. The inserted pressure contact terminal 6 is pressed by the branch portion of the connection portion 6a biting into the insulating coating 5 of each conductor 4 of the flat cable 10 and sandwiching the conductor 4 by a spring force. In the flat cable 10, a slit 29 having a predetermined length penetrating through the insulating coating 5 of the bridge portion 20 is formed in the longitudinal direction of the conductor 4 even though the adjacent insulating coatings 5 are connected by the bridge portion 20. Are formed in the bridge portion 20 at predetermined intervals, so that if the branch portion of the connecting portion 6a of the press contact terminal 6 is connected by inserting it into the slit 29, the branch portion does not penetrate the bridge portion 20 and Connected to conductor 4. Therefore, the press contact terminal 6 can be easily connected to the flat cable 10 and the press contact terminal 6 can be reduced in size. In addition, since the slits 29 are formed at predetermined intervals, it is possible to check the length of the flat cable 10 at a glance by counting the number of the slits 29. For example, when a connector (not shown) incorporating the press contact terminal 6 is attached to the flat cable 10, it is possible to easily inspect at which position of the flat cable the connector is attached and at what interval.

In the flat cable 10, since a plurality of slits 29 are formed, the flat cable 10 is connected to the adjacent insulating coatings 5 despite the structure in which the adjacent insulating coatings 5 are connected to each other by the bridge portion 20 at the shortest distance, for example. A
It is possible to bend in the direction. For example, if the slits 29 having a plurality of lengths y are formed at predetermined intervals x so that y is smaller than x, the press-connecting terminals 6 can be easily formed while both bending the flat cable 10 and maintaining shape. A flat cable that can be connected can be realized.

[0026]

As described above, according to the first flat cable of the present invention, a plurality of conductors are covered with insulating coatings and arranged in a plane, and adjacent insulating coatings are separated from each other. Therefore, when connecting the press contact terminal to the conductor, the press contact terminal does not penetrate the bridge portion, and the sense of insertion resistance can be reduced. Thereby, the press contact terminals can be easily connected. Further, since it is not necessary to increase the terminal strength of the press contact terminal, the size of the press contact terminal can be reduced. Further, when connecting the insulation displacement terminal to the conductor, the connection can be made by absorbing (correcting) a pitch defect or the like between the conductors (between the cores) of the flat cable.

Further, according to the second flat cable of the present invention, the plurality of conductors are each covered with the insulating coating and arranged in a plane, and the adjacent insulating coatings are connected to each other by the bridge portions. Since a plurality of slits of a predetermined length formed along the conductor are formed in the bridge portion along the conductor at predetermined intervals in the longitudinal direction of the conductor, a portion of the conductor sandwiched by the slits When the pressure contact terminal is connected to the bridge, it is possible to reduce insertion resistance without penetrating the bridge portion. Accordingly, the press contact terminals can be easily connected, and it is not necessary to increase the terminal strength of the press contact terminals, so that the size of the press contact terminals can be reduced. Further, since the slits are formed at predetermined intervals, it is possible to visually check the length of the flat cable by counting the number of slits.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a flat cable according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a state where a press contact terminal is connected to the flat cable.

FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a state where a press contact terminal is connected to another flat cable according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a flat cable according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a top view of the flat cable.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a manufacturing process of a wire harness.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a conventional flat cable.

FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a state where a press contact terminal is connected to a conventional flat cable.

[Explanation of symbols]

1, 1 ', 10 ... flat cable, 2, 2', 20 ...
Bridge part, 2a ... extension part, 2b ... connection part, 4 ... conductor,
5: insulation coating, 6: press contact terminal, 6a: connection part, 29: slit.

   ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page    (72) Inventor Daisuke Mako             1-5-1, Kiba, Koto-ku, Tokyo Stock Exchange             Inside Fujikura F-term (reference) 5G311 CA05 CB02 CC01 CD01 CD06                       CD07 CF02

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A structure in which a plurality of conductors are covered with an insulating coating and are arranged in a plane in a plane, and the adjacent insulating coatings are connected to each other by a bridge portion so as to be separated from each other. Flat cable. 2. A structure in which a plurality of conductors are covered by an insulating coating and are arranged in a plane in a plane, and adjacent insulating coatings are respectively connected to each other by a bridge portion. A flat cable, wherein a plurality of slits each having a predetermined length formed along the conductor and penetrating the bridge portion at intervals are formed in the bridge portion. 3. The flat cable according to claim 1, wherein the conductor is a single or stranded wire of a round conductor made of Cu or Al.