JP2024046822A - Wire with terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to provide an electric wire with a terminal that suppresses variation in a core portion when joining the core portion of the electric wire to a terminal.
SOLUTION
The terminal-attached electric wire 1, 11 includes a terminal 2, 12 and an electric wire 10 having a core wire portion 10A composed of an assembly of a plurality of wires 1A, and the terminal 2, 12 includes a bottom wall 41 and a pair of opposing walls 42, 42, 142, 142 extending from the bottom wall 41 and bending to face the bottom wall 41, and the core wire portion 10A is inserted between the pair of opposing walls 42, 42, 142, 142, and with the core wire portion 10A sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls 42, 42, 142, 142, each end surface 4e of the pair of opposing walls 42, 42, 142, 142 is joined to the core wire portion 10A.
[Selected Figure] Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to an electric wire with a terminal.

A known method for joining a terminal and an electric wire is to strip the insulating coating of the electric wire to expose a core wire consisting of multiple strands, and then join the exposed core wire to the terminal by ultrasonic welding (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

The joint structure between a terminal and an electric wire disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a terminal and an electric wire. The terminal is made of a metal and consists of a rectangular base plate, a core wire is placed on the upper surface of which the core wire is ultrasonically joined (welded) at two points on the base end and tip end. Of the two joints formed in this way, the height of the joint on the tip end side is formed to be lower than the height of the joint on the base end side. This reduces the stress acting on the joint on the base end side during ultrasonic joining, thereby suppressing breakage of the core wire, such as breakage, that occurs during ultrasonic joining.

JP 2022-79208 A

However, in conventional terminal and wire joining structures, the multiple strands that make up the core are welded while still in a disorganized state, which can result in some strands not melting completely when the terminal and core are joined, or the joint being thin and spread out. In other words, welding defects are likely to occur.

The present invention aims to provide an electric wire with a terminal that suppresses variation in the core wire when joining the core wire of the electric wire to the terminal.

In order to solve the above problems and achieve the object, the electric wire with terminal described in the present invention is an electric wire with terminal comprising a terminal and an electric wire having a core portion composed of an assembly of multiple strands, the terminal comprising a bottom wall and a pair of opposing walls extending from the bottom wall and bending to face the bottom wall, the core portion being inserted between the pair of opposing walls, and the tip surfaces of the pair of opposing walls being joined to the core portion with the core portion sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls.

According to the present invention, it is possible to suppress variation in the core wire when joining the core wire of the electric wire to the terminal.

1 is a perspective view showing a terminal constituting an electric wire with a terminal according to a first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. FIG. FIG. 5A to 5C are perspective views illustrating a procedure for manufacturing the terminal. 1A is a diagram illustrating a state in which a core portion of the electric wire is installed in the terminal; FIG. 1B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the core portion of the electric wire and the terminal are laser welded together; and FIG. 1C is a diagram illustrating an electric wire with terminal obtained by connecting the core portion of the electric wire and the terminal. FIG. 6 is a front view showing a terminal constituting an electric wire with a terminal according to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a front view showing a state in which a core portion of the electric wire is installed in the terminal. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a modified example of the electric wire with terminal, and is a front view showing a state in which a core portion of the electric wire is attached to the terminal.

First Embodiment
An electric wire with terminal 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to Figures 1 to 6. Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a female terminal 2 (terminal) constituting an electric wire with terminal 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is a plan view showing the female terminal 2. Figure 3 is a side view showing the female terminal 2. Figure 4 is a front view showing the female terminal 2. As shown in Figures 1 and 6, the electric wire with terminal 1 includes the female terminal 2 and an electric wire 10 (shown in Figure 6) having a core portion 10A connected to the female terminal 2.

The female terminal 2 is made of a conductive metal. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the female terminal 2 is configured with a mating contact portion 3 into which a tab terminal of a male terminal fitting (not shown) is inserted, a core wire connection portion 4 that is connected to the core wire portion 10A of the electric wire 10, and a connecting portion 5 that is located between the mating contact portion 3 and the core wire connection portion 4 and connects them. The mating contact portion 3 is provided in front X1 of the core wire connection portion 4.

In this embodiment, the direction in which the mating contact portion 3 is located as viewed from the core wire connection portion 4 is referred to as the "forward (X1 direction)", the opposite direction is referred to as the "rearward (X2 direction)", and the two directions that are approximately perpendicular to the X direction are referred to as the Y direction and the Z direction, respectively. The Y direction may be referred to as the "upward (Y1 direction)" and the other as the "downward (Y2 direction)". The Z direction may be referred to as the "leftward (horizontal) direction".

As shown in Figures 1 and 4, the mating contact portion 3 is formed in a rectangular tube shape with its axis in the front-rear direction X. As shown in Figures 1 and 4, the mating contact portion 3 is configured to include a front bottom wall 31, a pair of front side walls 32L, 32R rising from both ends of the front bottom wall 31 in the left-right direction Z, an upper wall 33 that is continuous with one of the pair of front side walls 32L, 32R, bent to face the front bottom wall 31, and an overlapping wall 34 that is continuous with the other front side wall 32R, bent to overlap the upper wall 33.

As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the mating contact portion 3 is provided with a pair of extending walls 35, 35 that extend downward Y2 from the pair of front side walls 32L, 32R. Each extending wall 35 is formed by cutting out a part of the front bottom wall 31 in a U-shape, and is configured to extend downward Y2 from the front bottom wall 31.

As shown in Figures 2 and 4, the core wire connection part 4 has a rear bottom wall 41 (bottom wall) and a pair of opposing walls 42, 42 that are continuous with the rear bottom wall 41 and bend to face the rear bottom wall 41.

As shown in FIG. 1, the rear bottom wall 41 is provided at the rear X2 of the front bottom wall 31 of the mating contact part 3 via the connecting bottom wall 51 of the connecting part 5 described later.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the rear bottom wall 41 is provided with a placement portion 410 on which the core portion 10A of the electric wire 10 is placed. The placement portion 410 has a predetermined width dimension and is provided continuously in the front-rear direction X at the center of the rear bottom wall 41 in the left-right direction Z.

As shown in Figures 1 and 4, the pair of opposing walls 42, 42 are bent to face the rear bottom wall 41 and are in contact with the rear bottom wall 41. That is, the pair of opposing walls 42, 42 are configured to be at a height position equal to the plate thickness of each opposing wall 42 from the rear bottom wall 41, and the plate thickness of each opposing wall 42 is configured to be thick enough to sandwich the core wire portion 10A of the electric wire 10.

As shown in FIG. 4, the pair of opposing walls 42, 42 are bent to face the rear bottom wall 41, and are formed to leave a distance L1 (the distance between the pair of opposing walls 42, 42). Distance L1 is formed to be the diameter dimension of the core portion 10A of the electric wire 10, which will be described later, plus the tolerance of the core portion 10A. This pair of opposing walls 42, 42 keeps the core portion 10A of the electric wire 10 sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls 42, 42.

1, the connecting portion 5 includes a connecting bottom wall 51 and a pair of connecting side walls 52, 52 rising from both ends of the connecting bottom wall 51 in the left-right direction Z. The connecting bottom wall 51 is located between the rear bottom wall 41 and the front bottom wall 31 of the mating contact portion 3, and is located on the same plane as the rear bottom wall 41 and the front bottom wall 31. In addition, the pair of connecting side walls 52, 52 are provided contiguous to the respective front side walls 32L, 32R of the mating contact portion 3.

As shown in FIG. 6, the electric wire 10 has a core portion 10A with a circular cross section composed of an assembly of seven (multiple) wires 1A (only four are shown in FIG. 6), and a covering portion 10B that covers the core portion 10A.

Next, when manufacturing such an electric wire with terminal 1, a single metal plate is first pressed to form a punched body (not shown) that includes a mating contact portion 3, a core wire connection portion 4, and a connecting portion 5 that are continuous with each other.

In the punched body, the boundary between the front bottom wall 31 of the mating contact part 3 and each of the front side walls 32L, 32R, and the boundary between the connecting bottom wall 51 of the connecting part 5 and each of the connecting side walls 52 are folded to form the connecting part 5. Then, the boundary between one of the front side walls 32L of the mating contact part 3 and the top wall 33 is folded, and then the boundary between the other of the front side wall 32R of the mating contact part 3 and the overlapping wall 34 is folded to overlap the overlapping wall 34 above the top wall 33 Y1. In this manner, the mating contact part 3 is formed.

As shown in FIG. 5, the boundary between the rear bottom wall 41 of the core wire connection portion 4 and each opposing wall 42 is folded so that each opposing wall 42 stands up from the rear bottom wall 41, and the boundary between the rear bottom wall 41 and each opposing wall 42 is further folded so that each opposing wall 42 faces the rear bottom wall 41. In this manner, the female terminal 2 is formed.

Next, when electrically connecting the female terminal 2 and the core 10A of the electric wire 10 to form the electric wire with terminal 1, as shown in FIG. 6(A), the covering 10B is stripped off at the end of the electric wire 10 to expose the core 10A, and the core 10A is inserted between the pair of opposing walls 42, 42 of the core connection part 4 and placed on the placement part 410. As a result, the core 10A is sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls 42, 42, and the multiple strands 1A that make up the core 10A are pressed. In this state, as shown in FIG. 6(B), the core 10A and the core connection part 4 of the terminal 2 are joined by laser welding. As a result, as shown in FIG. 6(C), the core 10A melts, and a joint part 100 is formed in which the melted core 10A and the tip faces 4e of the pair of opposing walls 42, 42 are joined together. In this way, the female terminal 2 and the core portion 10A of the electric wire 10 are electrically connected to form the electric wire with terminal 1.

According to the above-mentioned embodiment, the female terminal 2 (terminal) has a rear bottom wall 41 (bottom wall) and a pair of opposing walls 42, 42 that extend from the rear bottom wall 41 and bend to face the rear bottom wall 41. The core portion 10A is inserted between the pair of opposing walls 42, 42, and the tip surfaces 4e of the pair of opposing walls 42, 42 are joined to the core portion 10A while the core portion 10A is sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls 42, 42. As a result, the core portion 10A of the electric wire 10 is sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls 42, 42, and joined while the core portion 10A is pressed between the pair of opposing walls 42, 42, so that the variation of the core portion 10A can be suppressed when the core portion 10A of the electric wire 10 is joined to the female terminal 2. This can reduce the occurrence of welding defects.

The pair of opposing walls 42, 42 are provided in contact with the rear bottom wall 41 (bottom wall). This allows the core portion 10A to melt during laser welding, and the molten core portion 10A and the tip surfaces 4e of the pair of opposing walls 42, 42 to be joined together, thereby increasing the area of the joint. In addition, when the pair of opposing walls 42, 42 are formed by bending the boundaries between the rear bottom wall 41 and each opposing wall 42, it is easier to manufacture the grooves for accommodating the core portion 10A of the electric wire 10 in the mounting portion 410 than when, for example, they are formed by cutting, thereby improving productivity.

Second Embodiment
Hereinafter, an electric wire with terminal 11 according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to Figs. 7 and 8. Fig. 7 is a front view showing a female terminal 12 (terminal) constituting an electric wire with terminal 11 according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 8 is a front view showing a state in which a core wire portion 10A of an electric wire 10 is installed in the female terminal 12. In the second embodiment, parts having the same shape or configuration as those in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals as those in the first embodiment, and description of those parts will be omitted. The electric wire with terminal 11 according to the second embodiment and the electric wire with terminal 1 according to the first embodiment differ in the configuration of the core wire connection portions 4, 14.

The electric wire with terminal 11 shown in Figures 7 and 8 comprises a female terminal 12 (terminal) and an electric wire 10 having a core wire portion 10A connected to the female terminal 12. As shown in Figure 7, the female terminal 12 is made of a conductive metal and comprises a mating contact portion 3 into which the tab terminal of the male terminal fitting is inserted, a core wire connection portion 14 connected to the electric wire 10, and a connecting portion 5 located between the mating contact portion 3 and the core wire connection portion 14 to connect them.

The core wire connection portion 14 includes a rear bottom wall 41 (bottom wall), a pair of rear side walls (not shown) rising from both ends of the rear bottom wall 41 in the left-right direction Z, and a pair of opposing walls 142, 142 that are continuous with the pair of rear side walls and bend to face the rear bottom wall 41.

The pair of opposing walls 142, 142 are bent to face the rear bottom wall 41, and are located above the rear bottom wall 41 in the Y1, Y (first direction) and are provided opposite the rear bottom wall 41. The pair of opposing walls 142, 142 are bent to face the rear bottom wall 41, as shown in FIG. 7, and are formed so as to leave a distance L1 (the distance between the pair of opposing walls 42, 42). With such a pair of opposing walls 142, 142, as shown in FIG. 8, the core wire portion 10A of the electric wire 10 is maintained in a state sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls 142, 142. With the core wire portion 10A of the electric wire 10 sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls 142, 142, as shown in FIG. 8, the pair of opposing walls 142, 142 and the center P of the core wire portion 10A are configured to be at the same position in the vertical direction Y.

Next, when manufacturing such a terminal-equipped electric wire 11, a single metal plate is first pressed to form a punched body (not shown) including a mating contact portion 3, a core wire connection portion 14, and a connecting portion 5, which are continuous with each other.

In the punched body, the boundary between the front bottom wall 31 of the mating contact part 3 and each of the front side walls 32L, 32R, and the boundary between the connecting bottom wall 51 of the connecting part 5 and each of the connecting side walls 52 are folded to form the connecting part 5. Then, the boundary between one of the front side walls 32L of the mating contact part 3 and the top wall 33 is folded, and then the boundary between the other of the front side wall 32R of the mating contact part 3 and the overlapping wall 34 is folded to overlap the overlapping wall 34 above the top wall 33 Y1. In this manner, the mating contact part 3 is formed.

The boundaries between the rear bottom wall 41 of the core wire connection portion 14 and each rear side wall are bent so that each rear side wall stands up from the rear bottom wall 41, and the boundaries between each rear side wall and each opposing wall 142 are bent so that each opposing wall 142 faces the rear bottom wall 41. In this manner, the female terminal 12 is formed.

Next, when electrically connecting the female terminal 12 and the core portion 10A of the electric wire 10, the covering portion 10B is stripped off at the end of the electric wire 10 to expose the core portion 10A, and the core portion 10A is inserted between the pair of opposing walls 142, 142 of the core connection portion 14 and placed on the placement portion 410. As a result, the core portion 10A is sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls 142, 142, and the multiple strands 1A that make up the core portion 10A are pressed down. At this time, the center P of the core portion 10A and the pair of opposing walls 142, 142 are placed at the same position in the vertical direction Y. As a result, the core portion 10A is stably held by being sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls 142, 142 at the position of the center P of the core portion 10A. At this time, as shown in FIG. 8, the seven wires 1A constituting the core portion 10A are arranged such that three wires 1A are arranged in the left-right direction Z, and two wires 1A are arranged above Y1 and below Y2. In this state, the core portion 10A and the core connection portion 14 of the female terminal 12 are joined by laser welding. This melts the core portion 10A, and a joint portion 100 is formed in which the melted core portion 10A and each of the tip surfaces 4e of the pair of opposing walls 142, 142 are joined together. In this way, the female terminal 12 and the core portion 10A of the electric wire 10 are electrically connected to form the electric wire with terminal 11.

According to the above-described embodiment, the core wire portion 10A of the electric wire 10 is inserted between the pair of opposing walls 142, 142 of the core wire connection portion 14, and the tip surfaces 4e of the pair of opposing walls 142, 142 are joined to the core wire portion 10A while the core wire portion 10A is sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls 142, 142. This makes it possible to suppress the variation of the core wire portion 10A when joining the core wire portion 10A of the electric wire 10 to the female terminal 12. This makes it possible to reduce the occurrence of welding defects.

The pair of opposing walls 142, 142 are spaced apart from the rear bottom wall 41 (bottom wall). This allows the core wire portion 10A to be held between the pair of opposing walls 142, 142 at a position close to the center P, so that the core wire portion 10A is stably held.

The pair of opposing walls 142, 142 are spaced apart in the up-down direction Y (first direction) from the rear bottom wall 41 (bottom wall), and the pair of opposing walls 142, 142 and the center P of the core wire portion 10A are configured to be at the same position in the up-down direction Y. As a result, the core wire portion 10A is held even more stably by being sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls 142, 142 at the position of the center P of the core wire portion 10A.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but includes other configurations that can achieve the object of the present invention, and the following modifications are also included in the present invention.

In the above embodiment, when the core wire portion 10A is sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls 142, 142, the seven strands 1A constituting the core wire portion 10A are arranged in such a manner that three strands 1A are arranged in the left-right direction Z, and two strands 1A are arranged above Y1 and below Y2, but the present invention is not limited to this. When the core wire portion 10A is sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls 142, 142, the pair of opposing walls 142, 142 and the center P of the core wire portion 10A are in the same position in the up-down direction Y (first direction). For example, as shown in FIG. 9, the seven strands 1A constituting the core wire portion 10A are arranged in such a manner that three strands 1A are arranged in the up-down direction Y, and two strands 1A are arranged on one side and the other side of the left-right direction Z, but this is not limited to this.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the core 10A of the electric wire 10 and the core connection portion 4 of the female terminals 2, 12 are joined by laser welding, but the present invention is not limited to this. The core 10A of the electric wire 10 and the core connection portion 4 of the female terminals 2, 12 may be joined by laser soldering, ultrasonic joining, or resistance welding.

In the above embodiment, the female terminals 2, 12 are described as terminals each having a mating contact portion 3 into which the tab terminal of a male terminal fitting is inserted, a core wire connection portion 4, 14 connected to the electric wire 10, and a connecting portion 5 located between the mating contact portion 3 and the core wire connection portion 4, 14 to connect them, but the present invention is not limited to this. The terminal may be a male terminal having a tab terminal instead of the mating contact portion 3.

Although the best configurations and methods for implementing the present invention have been disclosed above, the present invention is not limited thereto. That is, the present invention has been mainly illustrated and described with reference to specific embodiments, but those skilled in the art can make various modifications to the above-described embodiments in terms of shape, material, quantity, and other detailed configurations without departing from the scope of the technical idea and purpose of the present invention. Therefore, the descriptions limiting the shapes, materials, etc. disclosed above are provided as examples to facilitate understanding of the present invention, and do not limit the present invention. Therefore, descriptions of the names of components that have some or all of the limitations on the shapes, materials, etc. removed are included in the present invention.

1, 11 Electric wire with terminal 1A Plural wires 10A Core wire portion 10 Electric wire 2, 12 Female terminal (terminal)
41 Rear bottom wall (bottom wall)
42, 42, 142, 142 Pair of opposing walls 4e Tip surfaces P of the pair of opposing walls Center Y of the core wire portion Up-down direction (first direction)

Claims (4)

An electric wire with a terminal, comprising: a terminal; and an electric wire having a core portion formed of an assembly of a plurality of wires,
The terminal includes a bottom wall and a pair of opposing walls extending from the bottom wall and bending to face the bottom wall,
The electric wire with terminal is characterized in that the core portion is inserted between the pair of opposing walls, and the core portion is joined to each end surface of the pair of opposing walls with the core portion sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls. The electric wire with terminal according to claim 1, characterized in that the pair of opposing walls are provided in contact with the bottom wall. The electric wire with terminal according to claim 1, characterized in that the pair of opposing walls are spaced apart from the bottom wall. The pair of opposing walls are spaced apart from the bottom wall in a first direction,
The electric wire with terminal according to claim 3, characterized in that when the core wire portion is sandwiched between the pair of opposing walls, centers of the pair of opposing walls and the core wire portion are configured to be at the same position in the first direction.

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