JP4948376B2 - Terminal chain - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a terminal chain band in a state in which a plurality of terminal fittings are projected in parallel from a band plate, and in particular, has a structure for preventing deformation of the terminal fitting when the terminal chain band is wound around a reel. Regarding terminal chain.

  The terminal fitting of the connector used for the wire harness is configured to include a wire connecting portion that presses the end of the electric wire at one end and a terminal connecting portion that is connected to the other terminal fitting at the other end. In general, a terminal fitting is manufactured by punching a long metal plate with a press and developing a large number of plate-like terminal fitting pieces protruding in parallel from the side edges of an elongated strip. By bending the wire, the terminal connecting portion extends from the band plate, and the terminal chain with the wire connecting portion formed at the extending end is obtained. After this terminal chain is in a state of being wound around a reel, it is transported to a processing place in order to detach the terminal fitting and crimp the electric wire to the electric wire connecting portion.

  By the way, this terminal chain is formed with a number of protrusions raised upward from the terminal fittings, and the metal interference with the inner or outer terminal fittings when these protrusions are wound around the reel. As a result, deformation or damage may occur.

  For this reason, conventionally, an interlayer paper is sandwiched between the layers of the terminal chain that is wound around the reel, thereby preventing metal interference between the terminals when the terminal fittings overlap each other. ing.

  In addition, a part of the strip is cut and raised to form a support piece, and the height of the support piece is made higher than the height of the projection of the terminal fitting, so that the support piece is applied to the upper layer of the strip when wound around the reel. A protection structure for a terminal chain is disclosed in which a gap is formed between the layers to prevent interference between terminals (see Patent Document 1).

JP-A-9-129346

  However, for example, as in Patent Document 1, in the case of a structure in which a belt plate and a support piece are stacked to support each layer, when an inclination occurs in the width direction of the terminal chain band (the direction perpendicular to the length direction), for example, There is a possibility that the protrusion shape provided at a position away from the band plate is pressed to cause deformation or the like.

  Further, the terminal fitting is not only formed in a protruding shape obtained by bending a metal plate material upward, but, for example, a tab (electric wire connecting portion) formed at an extended end from the band plate is bent downward in a crank shape. There may be. In this case, even if the interlayer paper is sandwiched between the layers, the portion closely contacting the interlayer paper has only a small area including tabs, so that the terminal chain is not stable and tends to be inclined in the width direction. When the pressing force from the peripheral side acts, the crank portion of the tab may be deformed.

  An object of the present invention is to prevent deformation of a terminal fitting when a terminal chain is wound around a reel.

  The present invention relates to a terminal chain formed by bending a metal plate material upward and projecting in parallel from a side edge of the band plate. Projecting pieces are formed so as to be bent in a direction substantially parallel to the extending direction of the terminal fitting, and the height of the bent surface of the protruding piece is the maximum of the terminal fitting. It is characterized by being higher than the height.

  In this way, by providing a protruding piece extending at a predetermined height in the width direction of the terminal chain, when the reel of the terminal chain is wound, for example, an interlayer paper disposed between each layer of the terminal chain A wide contact area in the width direction can be secured. Thereby, the inclination of the terminal chain band in the width direction can be suppressed, and the deformation of the protruding portion of the terminal fitting extending in the width direction can be prevented. In this case, since the projecting piece is formed in a gap portion between the terminal fittings and uses a member that is not necessary originally, the metal material is not wasted.

  Further, the present invention provides a terminal chain in which a plurality of terminal fittings each having a square tube portion that is bent in a cylindrical shape and penetrates in the front-rear direction are protruded in parallel from the side edge of the strip. The lance that is locked to the cavity in a state where the square tube portion is inserted into the cavity of the housing is formed by cutting and raising the top plate of the square tube portion upward, and in the gap portion between adjacent terminal fittings , A protruding piece is formed that protrudes in a direction substantially parallel to the upper side of the terminal fitting and is bent in a direction substantially parallel to the extending direction of the terminal fitting, and the height of the bent surface of the protruding piece is It is characterized by being higher than the cut and raised height.

  When the lance is formed in the square tube portion of the terminal fitting in this way, the lance has a pressing force applied at the time of reel winding by setting the height of the bent surface of the projecting piece to at least the height of the lance cut and raised. It is possible to prevent deformation due to this.

  In this case, the terminal fitting is provided with a tab at one end in the direction protruding from the band plate, the tab has a crank portion that bends in a crank shape toward the lower side of the terminal fitting, It is preferable that the tab is bent and extended in the protruding direction.

  Thus, even if the tab has a crank part that bends below the terminal fitting, the projecting piece can be bent and extended in a direction substantially parallel to the direction of extension of the end of the crank part. And the tab can contact the upper and lower interlayer papers to support the terminal chain. Thereby, the inclination of the terminal chain band in the width direction can be suppressed, and deformation of the crank portion of the terminal fitting can be prevented.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the terminal fitting from being deformed when the terminal chain is wound around the reel.

  Hereinafter, a terminal chain according to an embodiment to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a terminal chain according to the present embodiment, where (a) is a diagram showing a process of punching and bending, and (b) is a diagram showing a state where punching and bending are completed. . FIG. 2 is a development view for explaining the process of punching and bending in the terminal chain of the present embodiment. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the entire configuration of the terminal fitting separated from the terminal chain of the present embodiment.

  The manufacturing method of the terminal chain 1 of the present embodiment will be described. First, a large number of plate-shaped terminal fitting pieces 3 are paralleled from the side edges of the elongated strip 5 by punching a long flat metal plate. Then, the terminal chain strip 1 is obtained by bending the terminal metal piece 3 into a predetermined shape of the terminal metal 3A.

  The terminal chain 1 obtained in this way is wound around and stored in a reel (not shown), for example, conveyed to the crimping site of the wire, and subjected to crimping of the wire to the cut terminal fitting. . Note that the terminal chain 1 of the present embodiment is described by taking, as an example, a two-row press shape in which the terminal fittings 3A are alternately protruded inside the strips 5 arranged in two rows for the purpose of improving production efficiency. However, for example, the present invention can be applied to a single-line press shape.

  Next, the structure of the terminal metal fitting 3A of the terminal chain 1 will be described.

  The terminal fitting 3A extends from the side edge of the strip 5 in a direction perpendicular to the length direction thereof, and has a cylindrical rectangular tube portion 7 into which a mating tab is inserted and a tab 9 (electrical contact) on the tip side thereof. Part). The rectangular tube portion 7 is formed with a space penetrating in the front-rear direction by raising a metal plate material from both sides and bending it into a cylindrical shape, and the bottom surface of the rectangular tube portion 7 projects from the belt plate 5 in a flush manner. It has become a form.

  The tab 9 is formed with a crank portion 11 that extends from the rectangular tube portion 7 and bends the terminal fitting 3A downward in a crank shape, whereby the terminal fitting 3A that continues from the rectangular tube portion 7 to the tip of the tab 9 is formed. A step is formed on the bottom of the front and rear of the crank portion 11.

  On the other hand, the lance 13 is formed by cutting and raising from the top plate 15 of the square tube portion 7, and the maximum height of the terminal fitting 3 </ b> A is the height of raising and lowering the lance 13 (height from the lower surface 14). Yes.

  Next, the structure of the terminal chain 1 of this embodiment will be specifically described. In the terminal chain 1 of the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, a connection for connecting the connecting portions of the rectangular tube part 7 and the tab 9 of each terminal fitting 3 </ b> A to each other in the length direction of the band plate 5 in each row A member 17 is provided, and a protective member 19 bent in a crank shape is provided so as to protrude in the width direction of the terminal chain 1 from the side edge of the connecting member 17 (the side opposite to the band plate 5).

  The protection member 19 rises from the side edge of the connecting member 17 in a direction substantially parallel to the height direction of the terminal fitting 3A, and further bends at a right angle in a direction substantially parallel to the direction in which the tab 9 extends. 5 extends in a direction perpendicular to the length direction of 5, that is, in the width direction of the terminal chain 1 by a predetermined length. In the present embodiment, since the terminal chain 1 is in two rows, the protection members 19 and the tabs 9 are alternately arranged in the length direction of the strip 5. Here, the height of the bent upper surface of the protection member 19 is equal to or higher than the cut-and-raised height of the lance 13.

  Next, the operation of the terminal chain 1 when the terminal chain 1 configured in this way is wound around a reel and stored will be described.

  4 is a side sectional view showing a part of the state where the terminal chain 1 is wound around the reel R. FIG. In the drawing, a central axis (not shown) of the reel R is arranged below, and the terminal chain 1 is wound upward. In the figure, in order to simplify the description, the terminal chain 1 shows an example of one row.

  When the terminal chain 1 is wound around the reel R, as shown in the figure, a long strip of interlayer paper 21 is applied to the inner peripheral side of the terminal chain 1 and the interlayer paper 21 and the terminal chain 1 are connected to each other. Wrap together around the reel R in a stacked state. In this way, by interposing and winding the interlayer paper 21 between the layers of the terminal chain 1, the terminal chain 1 is prevented from coming into direct contact with the terminal chain 1 adjacent to the inner peripheral side of the terminal chain 1. Metal interference between the metal fittings 3A can be avoided.

  In the present embodiment, by extending the protective member 19 at a predetermined height in the width direction of the terminal chain 1, the upper surface of the protective member 19 can be brought into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the interlayer paper 21 b in the width direction. . By ensuring a wide contact area in the width direction with the interlayer paper 21 in this way, the inclination in the width direction of the terminal chain 1 can be suppressed, and when wound around the reel, it is pressed from the circumferential direction. The deformation of the terminal fitting 3A can be prevented.

  Moreover, since the height h1 of the bent surface extending in the width direction of the protective member 19 is equal to or higher than the cut-and-raised height h2 of the lance 13, the lance 13 is pressed from the circumferential direction when winding the reel. Can be prevented. In the present embodiment, the height h1 of the bent surface is set with reference to the cut-and-raised height h2 of the lance 13, but in short, it is more than the maximum height of the terminal fitting 3A, more preferably the maximum height. What is necessary is just to set h1 so that a setting amount may become larger than this.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, since the crank part 11 is formed in the tab 9 of the terminal fitting 3A, in order to prevent the deformation of the crank part 11, the tab 9 is arranged on the inner peripheral side as shown in FIG. It is necessary to make the square tube portion 7 float in the gap between the interlayer papers 21a and 21b by being in close contact with the interlayer paper 21a. Therefore, the protection member 19 is bent at a right angle in the direction in which the tab 9 extends and is extended in that direction. In this way, since the contact area between the protective member 19 and the inner peripheral side of the interlayer paper 21b can be secured wide in the width direction, the tab 9 can stably contact the outer peripheral side of the interlayer paper 21a. Thereby, the terminal chain 1 can be stably supported between the upper and lower interlayer papers 21 and the inclination of the terminal chain 1 in the width direction can be suppressed, so that the deformation of the crank portion 11 and the deformation of the lance 13 are prevented. can do.

  As in the present embodiment, in the two-row terminal chain 1, the protection members 19 in each row are alternately arranged between the two connecting members 17 arranged in parallel. The upper and lower interlayer paper 21 is supported in the vicinity of the center in the width direction. For example, the terminal chain 1 can be further stabilized in the width direction by adding a second protective member to other portions. Can be supported.

  Next, the formation process of the protection member 19 in this embodiment is demonstrated.

  When attention is paid to the right side column of the development view of FIG. 2, first, the hatched area 23 is punched, and the protection member piece 25 is separated from the connecting member 17a at the α position. Subsequently, the protective member piece 25 is bent from the β portion as shown in (1) of FIG. 5, and further, the γ portion is bent as shown in (2) of FIG. The portion bent at the β portion is raised upward, and the protective member 19 is finally formed. Since the protective member 19 is formed using a metal member in a region that is not originally used as a gap portion between the terminal fittings 3A, the metal material is not wasted.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the protection member 19 is extended in the width direction of the terminal chain 1 with the height of the bent surface greater than the maximum height of the terminal fitting 3A. When the terminal chain 1 is wound around the reel, the deformation of the terminal fitting 3A can be prevented. Further, even when the terminal fitting 3A is provided with the crank portion 11 that is bent downward, by providing the protective member 19 of the present embodiment, the terminal chain 1 can be stabilized without being inclined between the upper and lower interlayer papers 21. Therefore, it is possible to prevent deformation of the terminal fitting 3A.

  In the present embodiment, the protective member 19 is projected from the side edge of the connecting member 17 in the gap between the terminal fittings, but is not limited thereto, and is based on the shape of the terminal fitting. It can be set appropriately.

  In the present embodiment, a typical female terminal-shaped terminal fitting provided with a rectangular tube portion and a tab including a crank portion has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration. The present invention can also be applied to terminal shapes that do not include the crank portion.

It is a perspective view of the terminal chain band of this embodiment, (a) is a figure which shows the process of a punching process and a bending process, (b) is a figure which shows the state which the bending process was completed. It is an expanded view for demonstrating the process of a punching process and a bending process in the terminal chain band of this embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows the whole structure of the terminal metal fitting of the state isolate | separated from the terminal chain of this Embodiment. It is a sectional side view which shows a part of state which wound the terminal chain belt around the reel. It is a figure for demonstrating the formation process of a protection member, (1) is the process of bending (beta) part, (2) is a figure explaining the process of bending (gamma) part following (1).

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Terminal chain 3A Terminal metal fitting 5 Band plate 7 Square cylinder part 9 Tab 11 Crank part 13 Lance 19 Protection member 21 Interlayer paper

Claims (3)

In the terminal chain band formed by bending a metal plate material upward and projecting a plurality of parallel from the side edge of the band plate,
In the gap portion between the adjacent terminal fittings, a projecting piece is provided that protrudes in a direction substantially parallel to the upper side of the terminal fitting and is bent and extended in a direction substantially parallel to the extending direction of the terminal fitting. And the height of the bent surface of the protruding piece is equal to or greater than the maximum height of the terminal fitting. In the terminal chain band in which a terminal metal fitting having a square tube portion that is bent into a cylindrical shape and penetrates in the front-rear direction is projected in parallel from the side edge of the band plate,
In the terminal fitting, a lance that is locked to the cavity in a state where the rectangular tube portion is inserted into the cavity of the housing is formed by cutting and raising the top plate of the rectangular tube portion,
In the gap portion between the adjacent terminal fittings, a projecting piece is provided that protrudes in a direction substantially parallel to the upper side of the terminal fitting and is bent and extended in a direction substantially parallel to the extending direction of the terminal fitting. And the height of the bent surface of the projecting piece is equal to or higher than the height of the lance cut and raised.   The terminal fitting is provided with a tab at one end in a direction protruding from the band plate, the tab having a crank portion bent in a crank shape toward the lower side of the terminal fitting, and the protruding piece is The terminal chain band according to claim 1, wherein the terminal chain band is bent and extended in a protruding direction.

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