JP3739031B2 - Assembly structure of electrical junction box and waterproof box - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an assembly structure of an electrical junction box and a waterproof box that can be assembled in a waterproof box with good workability in a state where a connector of a wire harness is housed in a connector frame.
[0002]
[Prior art]
FIG. 4 shows a conventional assembly structure of an electrical junction box and a waterproof box.
The electrical connection box (junction block) B is placed in the engine room of the automobile while being housed in a waterproof box 41 made of synthetic resin. The electrical connection box B is connected to the wire harnesses 42 and 43, and is made of a plurality of (two in this example) connectors 44 and 45 disposed in the waterproof box 41, and a synthetic resin made by collecting the connectors 44 and 45. And a frame-like connector frame 46.
[0003]
Guide grooves 47 and 48 are provided on both sides of the wire harness outlets 56 and 57 before and after the waterproof box 41, and slide covers 49 and 50 that engage with the guide grooves 47 and 48 are attached to the wire harnesses 42 and 43 with tape 51. , 52 is fixed by winding. In addition, a rectangular column 53 for positioning is provided vertically from a bottom wall (not shown) of the waterproof box 41, and a connection box coupling bolt 54 is provided at the tip of the column 53. In the center of the connector frame 46, a rectangular frame-shaped engagement hole 55 for the support column 53 is provided.
[0004]
One wire harness 42 is an engine room main wire harness (hereinafter referred to as a first wire harness) including a power line, and the other wire harness 43 is an engine wire harness (hereinafter referred to as a second wire harness) directly derived from the engine. ). Usually, the first wire harness 42 is shipped from the component manufacturer with the slide cover 49 and the connector frame 46 attached, and the second wire harness 43 is attached with the slide cover 50 attached thereto.
[0005]
The waterproof box 41 is assembled in the engine room in the car manufacturer's production line, the connector 45 of the second wire harness 43 is assembled into the connector frame 46 on the first wire harness 42 side, and each connector 44, 45 is connected to the connector frame 46. It is assembled in the waterproof box 41. The slide covers 49 and 50 engage with the guide grooves 47 and 48, and the engagement hole 55 engages with the support column 53, respectively.
[0006]
Next, a mating electrical junction box (not shown) is joined from above the electrical junction box B. The bolts 54 pass through both the electrical connection boxes B... And the electrical connection boxes B are screwed and fitted with nuts (not shown), and at the same time, the connectors 44, 45. The connectors 44 and 45 are disposed downward instead of upward as shown in FIG. 4, and the connectors 44 and 45 are fitted to the mating connectors (not shown) in the waterproof box 41 by the tightening force of the bolts 54 and nuts. The structure to be combined is also known. It is also known to use male connectors having female terminals instead of male terminals as shown in FIG.
[0007]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the conventional assembly structure of the electrical junction box and the waterproof box, since the second wire harness 43 can be fixed to the connector frame 46 only after the engine is mounted, the engine is mounted on the car manufacturer's production line. Until this is done, the connectors 44 and 45 of the wire harnesses 42 and 43 cannot be assembled to the waterproof box 41. As a result, there is a problem that the work after the engine is mounted increases, the work balance before and after the engine is mounted is lost, and the production efficiency deteriorates. In addition, when the parts manufacturer ships without attaching the slide covers 49, 50 to the wire harnesses 42, 43, the slide covers 49, 50 are removed from the waterproof box 41 on the production line of the car manufacturer, and the wire harnesses 42, 43 are attached. After passing through the wire harness outlets 56 and 57, the slide covers 49 and 50 have to be assembled again, and there is a problem that the operation is very troublesome. Further, there is a problem that the connectors 44 and 45 are rattled between the connector frame 46 and the engagement hole 55, and the fitting accuracy with a mating connector (not shown) is deteriorated.
[0008]
Further, as shown in FIG. 5, since the extra length L of the electric wire 58 between the connector 44 and the slide cover 49 cannot be increased (this is the same for the connector 45 side), the slide covers 49 and 50 are placed in the guide grooves. The operation of inserting the connector holes 46 into the support frame 53 and the operation of engaging the engaging holes 55 of the connector frame 46 with the support columns 53 are required at the same time. At this time, the wire harnesses 42 and 43 are twisted as shown in FIG. There is a problem that the positions of the slide covers 49 and 50 are shifted as shown in FIG. 5A, and the assembling work to the waterproof box 41 (FIG. 4) becomes difficult.
[0009]
In view of the above-described points, the present invention can reduce work after an engine is installed in a car maker, can improve the fitting accuracy with a mating connector, and is a connector frame for a waterproof box. Another object of the present invention is to provide an assembly structure of an electrical junction box and a waterproof box that can improve the assembly workability of the connector and can improve the overall assembly workability.
[0010]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
To achieve the above object, the present invention provides an electrical junction box and a waterproof box assembly structure that houses an electrical junction box having a connector of a wire harness and a connector frame that accommodates the connector in a waterproof box. The two connector frames are joined in parallel, and both connector frames are provided with slide engaging portions with respect to the engaged portions of the waterproof box, and the connector is accommodated in both connector frames. The connector frame is provided with an engagement hole portion surrounded by a wall portion, and an accommodation space is provided in communication with the engagement hole portion, and the other connector frame is surrounded by a wall portion that enters the accommodation space. engagement hole is provided, characterized in that it engaged Ryokakarigoana section sequentially engages the strut for positioning of the waterproof box, positioned overlap Ryokakarigoana portion To (claim 1).
It is also effective that the slide engagement portion is fixed to the wire harness (claim 2).
In addition, the waterproof box is provided with two harness outlets through which the wire harness is inserted, and the harness outlet is provided with a guide groove as the engaged portion, and the slide engagement unit is engaged with the guide groove. A structure in which a slide cover as a joint portion is provided on both the connector frames is also effective (Claim 3).
Further, a structure in which the slide cover is integrally provided on each connector frame (Claim 4) and a structure in which the slide cover is assembled separately on each connector frame (Claim 5) are also effective.
A structure in which the connector frame and the connector housing of the connector are integrally formed is also effective (Claim 6).
[0011]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Specific examples of embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.
1 to 3 show an embodiment of an assembly structure of an electrical junction box and a waterproof box according to the present invention.
[0012]
In FIG. 1, connector frames 1 and 2 made of synthetic resin are provided in the electrical junction box A independently for each of the connectors 5 and 6 of the wire harnesses 3 and 4. That is, the first wire harness (engine room main wire harness) 3 includes a concave first connector 5 and an upper half concave first connector frame 1 along the outer peripheral surface of the first connector 5. The second wire harness (engine wire harness) 4 is provided, and a second connector having an upper half substantially convex shape having a rectangular frame-shaped engagement hole 8 that engages with the recess 7 of the first connector frame 1. A frame 2 and a rectangular second connector 6 that fits into the rectangular portion 9 of the second connector frame 2 excluding the engagement hole portion 8 are provided. In this embodiment, the connectors 5 and 6 employ female connectors in which the male terminals 5c and 6c are accommodated in the connector fitting chambers 5b and 6b of the female connector housings 5a and 6a made of synthetic resin. Of course, it is also possible to use a male connector in which a female terminal is accommodated in a terminal accommodating chamber of a male connector housing. In this specification, a female connector housing is defined as a female connector.
[0013]
As shown in FIG. 2, a rectangular frame-shaped engagement hole 10 is formed in the lower half of the first connector frame 1 on the lower side of the recess 7. The engagement hole portion 10 is formed in the same size and symmetrical shape as the engagement hole portion 8 of the second connector frame 2. As shown in FIG. 3, the engagement hole 8 of the second connector frame 2 is formed in the upper half, and the engagement hole 10 of the first connector frame 1 enters the lower side of the engagement hole 8. It is a space 11. In FIG. 1, the engaging hole portions 8 and 10 are positioned so as to overlap each other.
[0014]
Each of the engagement holes 8 and 10 is set to have an inner dimension slightly larger than the outer dimension of the column 13 so that the engagement hole portions 8 and 10 can be engaged with the columnar column 13 for positioning the waterproof box 12 made of synthetic resin. The engagement hole portion 8 (FIG. 3) is composed of vertical left and right wall portions 8a and 8a protruding from the front wall 14 of the connector frame 2 and a front wall portion 8b connecting the wall portions 8a and 8a. A rectangular hole 8c is provided. Further, the engagement hole portion 10 (FIG. 2) is constituted by a rectangular frame-shaped four wall portion 10a integrated with the connector frame 1 on the lower side of the concave portion 7, and has a rectangular hole 10b on the inner side.
[0015]
The engagement holes 10 and 8 of the connector frames 1 and 2 are engaged with the single column 13 so that the connectors 5 and 6 in the connector frames 1 and 2 with respect to the connector portion of the other electrical connection box (not shown). The position accuracy of the is improved. The support column 13 is integrally provided on the bottom wall 15 (FIG. 3) of the waterproof box 12 and has a metal bolt 16 integrally formed at the tip end. The mating connector (not shown) can also be provided in the waterproof box. In this case, the connectors 5 and 6 of the electrical junction box A are arranged downward.
[0016]
In FIG. 1, the slide covers 21 and 22 are integrally provided on the rear walls 17 and 18 of the connector frames 1 and 2 via a pair of ribs 19 and 20, respectively. The ribs 19 and 20 are notched in steps with the same height as the upper end surfaces of the connector frames 1 and 2, and vertical flat plate rectangular slide covers 21 and 22 are integrally molded with the rear ends of the ribs 19 and 20, respectively. Has been. The ribbed slide covers 21 and 22 can be integrated with the connector frames 1 and 2 by welding or the like. It is also possible to provide the slide covers 21 and 22 with ribs separately from the connector frames 1 and 2, and separate the slide covers 21 and 22 from the ribs 19 and 20 integrated with the connector frames 1 and 2. It can also be assembled. For the assembly in a separate body, a slide fitting means, that is, a structure in which the slide portion of the slide cover is slid and fitted to the guide portion of the connector frame is used. When the slide covers 21 and 22 are separated, the slide covers 21 and 22 are assembled to the connector frames 1 and 2 and delivered to the wire harness factory, or the slide covers 21 and 22 are connected to the connector at the wire harness factory. Assembling to the frames 1 and 2 is also possible, and the degree of freedom of assembling work is expanded.
[0017]
The waterproof box 12 is formed with vertically elongated wire harness outlets 23 and 24, and each pair of ribs 19 and 20 enters the inside of the wire harness outlets 23 and 24, and slide covers (slide engagement parts) ) Both side portions 21a and 22a of 21 and 22 are slidably engaged with guide grooves (engaged portions) 25 and 26 outside the wire harness outlet ports 23 and 24. The guide grooves 25 and 26 are formed between the wall portions 27 and 28 of the waterproof box 12 and the vertically long guide walls 29 and 30. The connector frames 1 and 2 are accurately positioned by supporting the engagement holes 10 and 8 and the side portions 21a and 22a of the slide covers 21 and 22 at three points.
[0018]
Semi-cylindrical lead-out guides 31-34 project symmetrically between the lower parts of the slide covers 21, 22 and the lower parts of the wire harness outlets 23, 24. The wire harnesses 3 and 4 are wound and fixed to the upper guides 31 and 32 by tapes 35 and 36, respectively. The upper guides 31 and 32 prevent water from entering from above.
[0019]
After the waterproof box 12 is assembled in the engine room on the car manufacturer's production line, first, the first connector frame 1 of the first wire harness 3 is assembled to the waterproof box 12 as shown in FIG. That is, the slide cover 21 is first engaged with the guide groove 25, and then the engagement hole 10 is engaged with the support column 13 (FIG. 1). By engaging the slide cover 21 first, the engagement hole 8 is smoothly and easily engaged with the support column 13.
[0020]
Next, the second connector frame 2 of the second wire harness 4 is assembled to the waterproof box 12 as shown in FIG. Needless to say, the slide cover 22 engages with the guide groove 26, and then the engagement hole 8 engages with the support column 13 (FIG. 1). Reference numeral 37 denotes a wire harness connector (not shown) in the waterproof box 12 or another connector connected to the connector in the waterproof box 12.
[0021]
The two connector frames 1 and 2 are combined in the waterproof box 12 as shown in FIG. That is, the engagement hole 8 of the second connector frame 2 engages with the recess 7 of the first connector frame 1. Each engagement hole part 8 and 10 is joined up and down. Further, the upper end surfaces of the connectors 5 and 6 are positioned at a height waiting for the mating connector. Locking means for the connector frames 1 and 2 with respect to the column 13 may be provided. Each of the connectors 5 and 6 acts as a standby connector, and requires high positional accuracy with respect to a mating connector (not shown).
[0022]
As shown in FIGS. 2 to 3, since the two connectors 5 and 6 can be separately assembled to the waterproof box 12 for each connector frame 1 and 2, for example, the first connector frame of the first wire harness 3 before the engine is mounted. 1 can be assembled to the waterproof box 12 and the second connector frame 2 of the second wire harness 4 can be assembled to the waterproof box 12 after the engine is mounted. This optimizes the amount of work before and after installing the engine on the car manufacturer's production line, making the assembly work more efficient. Needless to say, by engaging the engagement holes 10 and 8 of the connector frames 1 and 2 with the same column 13, the positional accuracy of the connector frames 1 and 2 is improved.
[0023]
In addition, since the connector 6 of the second wire harness 4 on the engine side is surrounded and protected by the connector frame 2 before the engine is mounted, damage to the connector 6 due to interference with the outside is prevented. Further, when assembling the connector frames 1 and 2 to the waterproof box 12, since the slide covers 21 and 22 are integrated with the connector frames 1 and 2, the slide cover is twisted by the wire harnesses 3 and 4 as in the prior art. As a result, the assembling work can be performed easily and reliably without the positional shift of the 21 and 22 in the rotation direction.
[0024]
In addition, the connector frames 1 and 2 can be easily assembled to the waterproof box 12 without making the extra length of the wire harnesses 3 and 4 (L dimension in FIG. 5) in the waterproof box 12 long. In addition, enlargement of the waterproof box 12 is prevented. On the contrary, even when the waterproof box 12 is small and the extra length of the wire harnesses 3 and 4 cannot be taken, the position of the slide covers 21 and 22 is accurately determined, so that the assemblability is good.
[0025]
It is also possible to use a slide cover integrated connector (not shown) in which the connector housings 5a and 6a made of synthetic resin and the connector frames 1 and 2 are integrally formed. Also in this case, the slide covers 21 and 22 can be provided integrally with the connector frames 1 and 2 or separately. Of course, the connectors 5 and 6 may be male connectors instead of female connectors. In addition, one connector frame (for example, 1) basically accommodates one connector (for example, 5), but a plurality of connectors (not shown) are accommodated and locked in one connector frame (for example, 1). It is also possible. In this example, the connectors 5 and 6 of the two wire harnesses 3 and 4 are accommodated in the connector frames 1 and 2, but a plurality of connectors (not shown) of one wire harness (for example, only 3). May be accommodated in each of the connector frames 1 and 2.
[0026]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, since the displacement between the slide engaging portion and the connector frame does not occur, the electrical connection box is obtained by engaging the slide engaging portion with the engaged portion. Assembling workability with the waterproof box is improved. In addition, since the displacement between the slide engagement portion and the connector frame does not occur, the insertion hole portion of the connector frame can be easily engaged with the support column by inserting the slide engagement portion into the engaged portion. The workability is improved. In addition, each connector frame of the electrical connection box can be separately engaged with the support and assembled to the waterproof box, so the assembly timing can be adjusted according to the work of the assembly line, and efficient assembly work can be performed. As a result, assembly workability is improved. Further, since the engaging hole portion of each connector frame is engaged and positioned with one support column, the positional accuracy of the connector frame is improved, and the connector is smoothly and accurately engaged with the mating connector.
According to the second aspect of the present invention, the connector frame can be easily assembled in the waterproof box without setting the extra length of the wire harness in the waterproof box. As a result, the position of the slide engagement portion is accurately determined even when the waterproof box is small and the extra length of the wire harness cannot be taken.
According to the invention described in claim 3, since the slide cover and the connector frame are not misaligned, the workability of assembling the electrical junction box and the waterproof box is improved by inserting the slide cover into the guide groove. improves.
According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, it is not necessary to assemble the slide cover to the connector frame, the number of assembling steps is reduced, and the assembling workability is further improved.
According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the slide cover can be fixed to the connector frame after the slide cover is assembled to the wire harness, the degree of freedom in the work procedure is expanded, thereby assembling workability. Will improve.
According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the labor for assembling the connector housing of the connector to the connector frame is reduced, and the overall assembling workability is improved. In addition, the gap between the connector frame and the connector becomes zero, which prevents rattling and improves the positional accuracy of the connector and increases the fitting accuracy with the mating connector .
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an embodiment of an assembly structure of an electrical junction box and a waterproof box according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a state in which the first connector frame is assembled to the waterproof box.
FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a state in which a second connector frame is assembled to a waterproof box.
FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing a conventional example.
FIG. 5 is a side view showing the surplus length of the wire harness.
FIG. 6 is a front view showing a conventional problem.
[Explanation of symbols]
A Electrical connection box 1, 2 Connector frame 5, 6 Connector 5a, 6a Connector housing 8, 10 Engagement hole 12 Waterproof box 13 Strut 21, 21 Slide cover (slide engagement part)
23, 24 Harness outlet 25, 26 Guide groove (engaged part)

Claims (6)

In the assembly structure of the electrical connection box and the waterproof box for housing the electrical connection box having the connector of the wire harness and the connector frame for housing the connector in the waterproof box,
The two connector frames are joined in parallel, and both connector frames are provided with slide engaging portions with respect to the engaged portions of the waterproof box, and the connector is accommodated in both connector frames. The connector frame is provided with an engagement hole portion surrounded by a wall portion, and an accommodation space is provided in communication with the engagement hole portion, and the other connector frame is surrounded by a wall portion that enters the accommodation space. An electrical connection box and a waterproof structure, wherein the engagement holes are sequentially engaged with the positioning columns of the waterproof box, and the engagement holes overlap each other . Box assembly structure.   The assembly structure of an electric junction box and a waterproof box according to claim 1, wherein the slide engaging portion is fixed to the wire harness. The waterproof engagement box is provided with two harness outlets through which the wire harness is inserted, and the harness outlet is provided with a guide groove as the engaged portion, and the slide engagement part engaged with the guide groove An assembly structure of an electrical junction box and a waterproof box according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a slide cover is provided on both the connector frames.   4. The assembly structure of an electric junction box and a waterproof box according to claim 3, wherein the slide cover is integrally provided on each connector frame.   4. The assembly structure of an electrical junction box and a waterproof box according to claim 3, wherein the slide cover is separately assembled to each connector frame.   6. The electrical junction box / waterproof box assembly structure according to claim 1, wherein the connector frame and a connector housing of the connector are integrally formed.

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