JP2926675B2 - How to assemble the meter module to the vehicle - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method of assembling a meter module in which instruments mounted on an instrument panel of an automobile and a control circuit for the instruments are mounted on a vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An electric circuit of an instrument panel of an automobile is provided by manually arranging a wire harness formed based on a required electric circuit on a body of an automobile or a dashboard of an instrument panel. Means for forming a circuit by connecting a connector of a harness and a connector of a switch and an instrument is employed. In addition,
In the following description, unless otherwise specified,
Or instrument frequency means multiple switches or multiple
It shall mean an instrument.

On the other hand, with the advancement of computerization and electric control in automobiles, the instrument panel provided in front of the driver's seat has a remarkable increase in the number of switches and instruments and the complexity of electric circuits. The wire harness used for the formation is further enlarged and weighted, and it becomes difficult to accommodate them in a limited space, and the assembling work tends to be extremely complicated and inefficient.

[0004] Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. Hei 4-266637 discloses a proposal for simplifying the electric circuit of the instrument panel. In the proposal of the above publication, as shown in FIG. 23, a component member called an instrument cluster b is mounted on an instrument panel section a, and switches and instruments are attached to the instrument cluster b. A flexible printed wiring board c on which electronic functional components are mounted is attached to form an independent electrical component,
The instrument cluster b, which is an electrical component, is mounted on the dashboard of the instrument panel section a.

However, in such an instrument cluster b, the method of assembling to the vehicle is the same as the conventional method, and the problem that the assembling work requires much labor and time has not been solved.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and has a good workability in assembling a vehicle and a method of assembling a meter module into a vehicle which is easy to maintain and inspect. The task is to provide here,
The meter module refers to an electrical component formed by integrally connecting switches and instruments, electronic functional components for controlling the switches and instruments, a flexible printed wiring board, and the like.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a plurality of switches and instruments and their switches .
When mounting a meter module incorporating an electric circuit for controlling switches and instruments to a vehicle, a mounting stay is rotatably provided on a steering column shaft of the vehicle, and the meter module is mounted on the mounting stay. By rotating the mounting stay, the meter module is housed and fixed in the housing recess provided in the instrument panel, and the connector of the meter module and the connector provided on the instrument panel are connected. It is preferable that the meter module is formed in a substantially semicircular shape, and the opening of the accommodation recess provided in the instrument panel is formed in an arc shape (claim 2).

The meter module may be divided into a meter module main body and a finish panel, and the meter module main body may be mounted on a mounting stay, and the mounting stay may be rotated to install the meter module. The meter module body is housed and fixed in the housing recess provided in the instrument panel, and the connector of the meter module body and the connector provided on the instrument panel are connected, and then the finish panel is attached to the meter module body. I do. The connector is preferably formed by a card edge type connector (claim 4).

[0009]

According to the present invention, the meter module is mounted on the mounting stay rotatably fitted to the steering column shaft, and then the meter module is rotated to accommodate the meter module in the accommodating recess of the instrument panel. Since the connectors are connected to each other, the work of assembling the meter module to the vehicle includes the work of attaching the meter module to the mounting stay and the work of rotating the meter module and screwing it to the instrument panel. Then, the assembly is completed only by the operation of connecting the connectors. Therefore, complicated work inside the instrument panel becomes unnecessary, and workability in the assembling process is remarkably improved, and maintenance work and adjustment work are also facilitated. In particular, if a card edge type connector is adopted as the connector, the connection of the connector is completed only by turning the meter module, so that the productivity is further improved.

Further, the meter module is divided into a meter module main body and a finish panel, and the meter module main body is mounted on the instrument panel. Then, the finish panel is attached to the meter module main body, thereby forming the instrument panel. The degree of freedom in the shape, the design of the meter module, and the like is increased, and it can be applied to various types of vehicles.

[0011]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a meter module 1 showing an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a front view showing a housing recess 3 provided in an instrument panel 2, and a mounting stay is provided at a central portion. 4 is shown. The meter module 1
An outer periphery is formed in a substantially semicircular shape, and an instrument panel 6 and switches 7 equipped with various instruments 5 are mounted on the front face, and an electronic function for controlling the instruments 5 and switches 7 is not shown on the back face. A control circuit including components and a flexible printed wiring board is mounted. A fixing portion 1a for mounting to the mounting stay 4 is recessed at the center.

The instrument panel 2 is formed with an accommodating recess 3 which is opened concentrically with the steering column shaft 8 in an arc shape, and a connector mount stay 2b is provided at the upper center of the accommodating recess 3 toward the center of the accommodating recess 3. It is protruding. A connector 9 connected to a wire harness W provided in the instrument panel 2 is mounted on the connector mount stay 2b. Reference numeral 10 denotes a steering wheel.

As shown in FIG. 3, the mounting stay 4 is formed in a flat plate shape, is provided with a hole 11 through which the steering column shaft 8 is inserted and a collar 12 at the center, and is bent at the lower edge to form a meter module. A screw hole 13 for attachment is formed, and a screw hole 14 for attachment is also provided at the upper end. A locking projection 15 that engages with a key groove 8a provided in the steering column shaft 8 is provided on an inner wall 12a of the collar 12.
Is provided.

FIGS. 4 to 6 are explanatory views showing a process of inserting the mounting stay 4 into the steering column shaft 8. FIG. As shown in FIG.
Is composed of a steering column shaft 8, a steering wheel 10, an upper column cover 16a forming a column cover 16, a lower column cover 16b, a steering wheel shaft 17, and the like.

The mounting stay 4 is inserted into the steering wheel shaft 17 with the steering wheel 10 removed.
, The collar 10 of the mounting stay 2 is fitted into the steering column shaft 8, and then a ring-shaped stay holder 18 is fitted. Then, as shown in FIG. 5, the upper column cover 16a and the lower column cover 16b are combined so as to cover the steering column shaft 8 from above and below to form the column cover 16, and as shown in FIG. Steering wheel 1
0 is attached.

The mounting stay 4 is rotatably fitted to the steering column shaft 8 by the collar 12. When the mounting stay 4 is rotated by a predetermined angle, the collar 12 is engaged with the keyway 8 a of the steering column shaft 8. The collision portion 15 is engaged so that it can enter the steering column shaft 8 deeply.

Next, a process of mounting the meter module 1 on the mounting stay 4 will be described. As shown in FIG. 7, the meter module 1 is turned upside down and screwed to the mounting stay 4 through the screw holes 13 and 14. FIG. 8 shows a state in which the meter module 1 is fixed to the mounting stay 4, and FIG. 9 is an explanatory view showing a side surface thereof.

When the meter module 1 fixed to the mounting stay 4 is rotated as shown by the arrow in FIG.
By further rotating in the direction of the arrow, the meter module 1 is completely housed in the housing recess 3 of the instrument panel 2 as shown in FIG.

In this state, the connector 9 of the instrument panel 2 and the connector 19 provided on the meter module 1 are not yet connected as shown in FIG. , The keyway 8a of the steering column shaft 8, which has been set in advance, engages with the engaging projection 15 of the collar 12, and as shown in FIG. As you enter the shaft 8,
The meter module 1 also enters the housing recess 3, and the connector 9 and the connector 19 are connected. Although not shown, a stopper is provided at a predetermined position in the key groove 8a to prevent the mounting stay 4 from excessively entering.

FIG. 15 is a sectional view showing a joint between the connector 9 and the connector 19. The connector 19 is recessed on the back surface of the meter module 1. The circuit conductor of the flexible printed wiring board 20 mounted on the back surface of the meter module 1 is bent and attached to the inner wall 19 a of the connector 19. This forms an electrical contact portion.

On the other hand, a terminal 21 that is electrically connected to the wire harness W is accommodated in the connector 9.
By inserting the connector 9 into the inside, the terminal 21
The printed circuit boards 20 are electrically connected to each other by surface contact with the circuit conductors. After connecting the connector 9 and the connector 19, the meter module 1 and the instrument panel 2 are fixed by screws.

When the meter module 1 is to be removed from the housing recess 3 of the instrument panel 2, the above steps may be reversed. That is, the instrument panel 2
, The meter module 1 is pulled out to the front, the connection between the connector 9 and the connector 19 is released, and the meter module 1 is rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow in FIG. 1 can be taken out. This operation is performed on the steering wheel 10
Since inspection can be performed even in a state in which the meter module 1 is mounted, inspection and adjustment in the meter module 1 can be easily performed.

FIG. 16 shows an example of using a card edge type connector as another embodiment of the present invention, and is an explanatory view of the meter module 23 accommodated in the instrument panel 22 as viewed from the back side. One end of the instrument panel 24 constituting the meter module 23 is provided with the connector 19 of the above embodiment.
Instead, a male card edge type connector 25 is provided. A connector mount stay 27 protrudes from the instrument panel 22 so as to face the accommodating recess 26, and the connector mount stay 27 has a female card edge type connector 28 that fits with the male card edge type connector 25. It is installed. A wire harness W is connected to the card edge type connector 28.

By rotating the meter module 23 in the direction of the arrow, the card edge type connectors 25 and 28 are fitted together as shown in FIG. Meter module 23
Is mounted on a mounting stay 29 rotatably fitted to the steering column shaft 8 as shown in FIG. 18 as in the previous embodiment. The column shaft 8 has no keyway, and the collar 30 of the mounting stay 29 has no engaging projection. FIG. 19 is a detailed view of a portion A of FIG. 17 and shows a coupling state of the card edge type connectors 25 and 28. As shown in FIG. 20, a terminal housed inside the card edge type connector 28 is shown in FIG. 31 and the conductor of the card edge type connector 25 are brought into contact to conduct. The terminal 31 is connected to the wire harness W.

By adopting the card edge type connectors 25 and 28, the meter module 23 can be housed in the housing recess 26 and electrically connected only by rotating the meter module 23. Since the pressing operation of the mounting stay 4 on the steering column shaft 8 in the embodiment becomes unnecessary, the assembling work is further simplified.

FIG. 21 is an explanatory view showing still another embodiment of the present invention. This is an example in which the outer periphery of the meter module cannot be formed into a semicircle due to the structure or design of the meter module. The meter module is divided into a meter module main body 32 and a horizontally formed finish panel 33, and the meter module is formed. By mounting the main body 32 on the mounting stay 4 and rotating it in the same manner as in the above-described embodiment, the main body 32 is housed in the housing recess 35 of the instrument panel 34, and as shown by the arrow, the meter module main body 3
The finish panel 33 is attached to the second panel 2. As described above, by using the finish panel 33, the degree of freedom in the shape of the instrument panel, the design of the meter module, and the like is increased, and it is possible to adapt to various types of meter modules.

Further, as shown in FIG. 22, a meter module is composed of an instrument panel section 36 constituting the meter module,
The instrument panel section 36 is formed by dividing the switch panel 37, and the instrument panel section 36 is mounted on the mounting stay 4 and rotated in the same manner as in the above embodiment, and is housed in the housing recess 3 of the instrument panel 2, as shown by the arrow. Alternatively, a switch panel 37 may be attached to the instrument panel 36.

[0028]

According to the present invention, the meter module mounted on the mounting stay is rotated to accommodate the meter module in the accommodating recess of the instrument panel and connect the connectors to each other. The complicated internal assembling work becomes unnecessary, and the workability of the assembling process is significantly improved, and the work such as maintenance and inspection is also facilitated. In particular, if a card edge type connector is adopted as the connector, the connection of the connector is completed only by turning the meter module, so that the productivity is further improved. Also, the meter module is divided into a meter module body and a finish panel, and the meter module body is attached to the instrument panel.Then, by attaching the finish panel to the meter module body, the shape of the instrument panel, There is a great advantage that the degree of freedom in the design of the meter module and the like can be increased, and it can be applied to various types of vehicles.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a meter module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing an accommodation recess provided on an instrument panel for accommodating the meter module of FIG. 1 and a mounting stay.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the mounting stay of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a configuration of a steering column to which the mounting stay of FIG. 3 is attached.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing a state in which a mounting stay is inserted into the steering column shaft of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view showing a state where a steering wheel is mounted on the steering wheel shaft of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a state before a meter module is mounted on the mounting stay of FIG. 2;

FIG. 8 is an explanatory view showing a state where a meter module is mounted on the mounting stay of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a schematic side view showing a state where a meter module is mounted on the mounting stay of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is an explanatory view of a step of rotating the meter module of FIG. 8;

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a process of rotating the meter module of FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing a state where the meter module of FIG. 11 has reached a predetermined position on the instrument panel.

FIG. 13 is a schematic side view showing positions of a meter module and an instrument panel in FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a schematic side view showing a state where the meter module of FIG. 13 is pressed to connect the connectors.

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the connectors of FIG. 14 are connected to each other.

FIG. 16 is a rear view of a meter module and an instrument panel showing another embodiment of the present invention.

17 is a rear view showing a state where the card edge type connectors provided on the meter module and the instrument panel of FIG. 16 are connected to each other.

18 is a schematic side view of the meter module and the instrument panel of FIG.

FIG. 19 is an explanatory diagram showing details of a portion A in FIG. 17;

FIG. 20 is a sectional view taken along line BB of FIG. 19;

FIG. 21 is an explanatory view showing still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 22 is an explanatory view showing another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is an explanatory diagram showing an example in which an electric circuit of a conventional instrument panel is simplified.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 meter module 2 instrument panel 3 receiving recess 4 mounting stay 5 instrument 7 switch 8 steering column shaft 9 connector 19 connector 22 instrument panel 23 meter module 25 male card edge type connector 26 receiving recess 28 female card edge Type connector 29 Mounting stay 32 Meter module main body 33 Finish panel 34 Instrument panel 35 Housing recess

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] A plurality of switches and instruments and their switches .
When mounting a meter module incorporating an electric circuit for controlling switches and instruments to a vehicle, a mounting stay is rotatably provided on a steering column shaft of the vehicle, and the meter module is mounted on the mounting stay. A meter for receiving and fixing the meter module in a housing recess provided in the instrument panel by rotating the mounting stay, and connecting a connector of the meter module to a connector provided in the instrument panel. How to assemble the module to the vehicle. 2. The method for assembling a meter module into a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said meter module is formed in a substantially semicircular shape, and an opening of a housing recess provided in the instrument panel is formed in an arc shape. . 3. A formed by dividing the meter module in the meter module body and finish panel, the attachment stay and attached to the stay mounting the meter module body is rotated in a housing recess provided in the instrument panel The finish panel is attached to the meter module main body after accommodating and fixing the meter module main body and connecting the connector of the meter module main body with the connector provided on the instrument panel . How to assemble the meter module to the vehicle. 4. A method of assembling to the vehicle meter module according to claim 1, 2 or 3 wherein the connector is formed in the card edge type connector.