JP5359321B2 - Grounding wiring material, joint connector used therefor, and wire harness incorporating the grounding wiring material - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an earth connecting wiring material capable of thinning and lightening a wire harness by being incorporated in the wire harness, a joint connector used for the same, and the wire harness incorporating the earth connecting wiring material. <P>SOLUTION: This earth connecting wiring material 10 incorporated in a wire harness 50 and used for connecting an on-vehicle apparatus connected to the wire harness 50 to a body includes an earth wire 12 which can be connected to the grounding part of the body, and a plurality of joint connectors JC disposed at a plurality of positions along the earth wire 12 to electrically connect a wire 11a electrically connected to the on-vehicle apparatus to the earth wire 12. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention is incorporated in a wire harness provided in a vehicle such as an automobile, and is used for grounding a vehicle body of an in-vehicle device connected to the wire harness, a wiring material for ground connection, a joint connector used therefor, and a ground connection The present invention relates to a wire harness in which a wiring material is incorporated.

  Conventionally, as a wire harness in which an electric wire (ground line) used for grounding a vehicle-mounted device to a vehicle body is incorporated, for example, the one described in Patent Document 1 is known. This wire harness is configured by bundling a plurality of electric wires and winding a tape around the wires. An in-vehicle device disposed on a vehicle panel or the like is connected to the electric wire drawn from a predetermined position of the wire harness. As shown in FIG. 14, such a wire harness has an earth for electrically connecting each vehicle-mounted device 102 connected to the wire harness 100 and the vehicle body to ground the vehicle-mounted device 102 to the vehicle body. Line 104 is routed. Each of the earth lines 104 has one terminal connected to the in-vehicle device 102 and the other terminal connected to a connection terminal 106 that can be connected to a grounding portion provided on the vehicle body. In such a wire harness 100, the connection terminal 106 is connected to the grounding portion of the vehicle body, whereby the ground line 104 from each vehicle-mounted device 102 is electrically connected to the vehicle body, whereby each vehicle-mounted device 102 is connected to the vehicle body. Grounded.

JP-A-8-191522

  In the wire harness 100, the earth line 104 is routed from the in-vehicle device 102 to the connection terminal 106 for each in-vehicle device to be connected. For this reason, when the number of in-vehicle devices 102 mounted on the vehicle increases, the number of in-vehicle devices (circuits) 102 connected to the wire harness 100 increases, thereby increasing the number of earth lines 104 incorporated in the wire harness 100. Thus, when the number of the earth lines 104 incorporated in the wire harness 100 increases, the wire harness 100 becomes thicker and the weight also increases.

  Therefore, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention can reduce the thickness and weight of the wire harness by being incorporated in the wire harness, the joint connector used therefor, and the ground connection. It is an object of the present invention to provide a wire harness incorporating a wiring material for use.

  Accordingly, in order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention provides a wiring material for ground connection that is incorporated in a wire harness and is used for grounding an in-vehicle device connected to the wire harness to the vehicle body. And a plurality of joint connectors that are arranged at a plurality of positions along the ground wire and are electrically connected to the in-vehicle device and electrically connected to the ground wire. And.

  Since this wiring material for ground connection is incorporated in the wire harness, each in-vehicle device can be grounded to the vehicle body by being connected to the joint connector at a position corresponding to each in-vehicle device via the electric wire, There is no need to incorporate a large number of grounding wires (ground lines) into the wire harness. Thereby, the wire harness can be made thinner and lighter. That is, the present invention pays attention to the fact that all the ground lines included in the conventional wire harness are kept at zero potential and can be integrated, and a common grounding wire is used. The purpose is achieved by providing a plurality of joint connectors.

  In the wiring material for ground connection according to the present invention, the joint connector includes a fitting portion that can be fitted to a device-side terminal provided at a terminal of a wire that is electrically connected to the in-vehicle device, and the ground wire. A connection metal conductor integrally including a connection portion to be connected / fixed to the terminal, and a terminal accommodating chamber having a shape into which the device-side terminal can be inserted in order to be fitted to the fitting portion. It is preferable to have an insulating housing for holding the connecting metal conductor in a state exposed to the outside.

  In such a joint connector, since the connection portion is exposed to the outside from the insulating housing, it is easy to perform connection / fixing work when connecting / fixing the joint connector to the grounding wire. In addition, since the device-side terminal can be fitted into the fitting portion by inserting the device-side terminal into the terminal accommodating chamber, electrical connection between the in-vehicle device and the grounding wire can be easily performed.

  In the joint connector disposed at the terminal position of the grounding wire, the connecting metal conductor further includes a grounding terminal connectable to a grounding part of the vehicle body, and the insulating housing includes the connecting part and the grounding part. It is preferable to hold the connection metal conductor with the grounding terminal exposed to the outside.

  Since the connecting metal conductor includes the grounding terminal in this way, the grounding terminal is connected to the grounding portion of the vehicle body, so that the in-vehicle device connected to the terminal joint connector is connected to the grounding wire. Therefore, the ground potential fluctuation generated in the grounding wire is not affected by the vehicle-mounted device. As a result, it is possible to connect an in-vehicle device that is vulnerable to ground potential fluctuations to the ground connection wiring member.

  Moreover, in order to eliminate the said subject, this invention is a joint connector used for the said wiring material for ground connection, Comprising: The apparatus side provided in the terminal of the electric wire electrically connected with the said vehicle equipment A connecting metal conductor integrally including a fitting portion that can be fitted to the terminal and a connecting portion that can be connected / fixed to the ground wire, and the device-side terminal can be inserted to fit the fitting portion. And an insulating housing that holds the connection metal conductor in a state where the connection portion is exposed to the outside.

  In this joint connector, since the connecting portion is exposed to the outside from the insulating housing, it is easy to perform connection / fixing work when connecting / fixing the joint connector to the grounding wire. Therefore, the use of the joint connector facilitates the manufacture of the ground connection wiring material.

  Moreover, in the joint connector, the connecting metal conductor is formed of metal so as to integrally include the connecting portion and the fitting portion, so that it is more reliable than connecting the fitting portion and the grounding wire with a thin electric wire or the like. Can be connected to.

  In the joint connector, the connecting metal conductor has a plurality of fitting portions, and the plurality of fitting portions are formed of a single metal plate, and the insulating housing includes a plurality of terminal receiving chambers. And has a flat outer shape in the thickness direction of the metal plate so as to be aligned at positions corresponding to the fitting portions, and defines each terminal accommodating chamber and the outside on one side of the insulating housing in the thickness direction. In the wall portion, in a portion corresponding to each terminal accommodating chamber, when the device side terminal is inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber, the outer side of the insulating housing is bent outward to allow the device side terminal to pass through, It is preferable that a terminal locking portion is formed that returns to a normal position after the passage and locks the device-side terminal at a position where the device-side terminal is fitted to the fitting portion.

  The ground connection wiring member using the joint connector is incorporated into the wire harness so that the metal plate of the joint connector is substantially perpendicular to the radial direction of the wire harness. The protruding dimensions of the connector can be kept small. For this reason, the wiring material for ground connection using the joint connector is incorporated into the wire harness, whereby the wire harness as a whole can be thinned.

  The terminal locking portion is usually provided in the insulating housing. However, since the insulating housing according to the present invention has a flat outer shape in order to reduce the thickness and size of the joint connector, the terminal locking portion cannot be provided in the insulating housing. A terminal locking portion is formed in a part of the wall portion that defines the outside.

  Even if the terminal locking portion is not fixed when the tape is wound around the ground connection wiring material using the joint connector together with the plurality of electric wires, The inserted device side terminal can be locked. However, when the tape is wound in a state where the wiring material for ground connection using the joint connector is bundled together with a plurality of electric wires, the tape passes through all portions where the terminal locking portions are formed. By being affixed to the insulating housing, the bending of all terminal locking portions outward from the outer surface of the insulating housing is regulated by the tape, thereby maintaining the fitting state with the fitting portion of the device side terminal. The device side terminal is reliably prevented from falling off the joint connector.

  Further, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention is a wire harness connected to an in-vehicle device, and includes a plurality of electric wires and any one of the ground connection wiring members, and these are bundled together. It is characterized by comprising.

  In this wire harness, each in-vehicle device is grounded to the vehicle body by being connected to the joint connector at a corresponding position with each in-vehicle device in a state where the grounding wire is connected to the grounding portion of the vehicle body. Moreover, since the wiring material for ground connection is incorporated in the wire harness, it is not necessary to incorporate a large number of ground lines in the wire harness, and thereby the wire harness can be made thinner and lighter.

  As mentioned above, according to this invention, the wiring material for earth connection which can aim at the thinning and weight reduction of the said wire harness by being integrated in a wire harness, the joint connector used for this, and the wiring material for earth connection An integrated wire harness can be provided.

It is an external view of the wire harness which concerns on this embodiment. It is an external view of the state which removed the insulating tape of the said wire harness. It is a perspective view of the wiring material for earth | ground connection integrated in the said wire harness. In the wiring material for ground connection, (a) is an enlarged perspective view of a portion where a joint connector is provided, and (b) is an enlarged perspective view of a portion where a joint connector for a terminal is provided. In the joint connector, it is a cross-sectional side view showing a state in which a device-side terminal attached to a terminal of a ground wire connected to a vehicle-mounted device is being inserted into the joint connector. In the joint connector, it is a cross-sectional side view showing a state in which the equipment side terminal attached to the end of the ground wire is completely inserted into the joint connector. It is a cross-sectional bottom view of the joint connector. It is a top view of the joint connector. It is AA sectional drawing in FIG. In the wire harness, (a) is an enlarged view of a portion where a branch line branches off from the trunk line before winding the insulating tape, and (b) is a branch line branched from the trunk line after winding the insulating tape. FIG. It is a disassembled perspective view of the insulation housing and connection conductor of the joint connector which concern on other embodiment. It is a figure which shows the press-contact procedure to the electric wire for earth | ground of the said joint connector. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the joint connector in a state in which the joint connector is pressed against a grounding electric wire and covered with a lid member. It is a figure which shows the wiring state of the earth line in the conventional wire harness.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the wire harness 50 according to the present embodiment includes a trunk line 52 and a branch line 54 that branches from the trunk line 52. The trunk line 52 includes a plurality of electric wires 11 and a ground connection wiring material (hereinafter also simply referred to as “wiring material”) 10, and these are bundled together. The branch line 54 is configured by bundling a plurality of electric wires 11 including the electric wires 11 drawn from the trunk line 52. An insulating tape 56 is wound around the wiring member 10 and the electric wire 11 bundled to form the trunk line 52 and the branch line 54 to achieve insulation. In addition, a connector C that can be connected to an in-vehicle device (for example, a meter or the like disposed in the instrument panel) is connected to the tip of the electric wire 11 extending from the terminal of the trunk line 52 or the branch line 54. The plurality of electric wires 11 included in the trunk line 52 and the branch line 54 also include an electric wire (grounding wire 11a) that is electrically connected to a ground terminal of an in-vehicle device to which the wire harness 50 is connected.

  The wiring member 10 can be connected to the grounding portion of the vehicle body, and includes a grounding wire 12 and a plurality of joint connectors JC disposed on the grounding wire 12 as shown in FIG. The grounding wire 12 is constituted by a covered wire. A plurality of joint connectors JC1 (see FIG. 4 (a)) are provided in the middle position of the grounding wire 12 along the length direction thereof, and terminal joint connectors JC2 (FIG. 4 (b) are respectively provided at both ends. )) Is provided. The joint connectors JC1 and JC2 are locally removed from the covering of the grounding wire 12, and are crimped (connected / fixed) to a portion where the covering is removed and the conductor is exposed. The specific shapes of the plurality of joint connectors JC do not have to be the same, even if joint connectors having different sizes are used depending on the magnitude of the ground current from the in-vehicle device connected via the ground wire 11a. Good (see FIG. 3).

  As shown in FIGS. 4A and 5 to 9, the joint connector JC 1 includes a single connection conductor (connection metal conductor) 30 and an insulating housing for holding the connection conductor 30. 40.

  The connection conductor 30 is made of a conductive material, and is connected to the device-side terminal 20 (see FIGS. 5 and 6) provided at the end of the ground wire 11a. Specifically, the connection conductor 30 is configured by bending a predetermined portion of a connection metal plate formed by punching a single metal plate into an appropriate shape. The connection conductor 30 integrally includes a plurality of electrical contact portions 32, a base portion 34, and a crimping portion (connection portion) 36. Each electrical contact portion 32 is a male (tab) fitting portion that can be fitted into the female electrical contact portion 22 of each device-side terminal 20, and these electrical contact portions 32 are parallel to the width direction thereof. Is arranged. The base portion 34 extends in the arrangement direction of the electrical contact portions 32, and the base end of each electrical contact portion 32 is connected to the base portion 34. The crimping part 36 is a part to be crimped to the electric wire 11, and is connected to the rear end side (right side in FIG. 5) of the base part 34. The crimping part 36 includes a plate-like extension part 36a extending rearward from the base part 34 and a pair of crimping pieces 36b extending from the extension part 36a. The extension part 36a is bent in a stepped shape so that the rear end side thereof is located substantially on the same plane as the lower surface of the insulating housing 40 (see FIGS. 5 and 6). The pair of crimping pieces 36b extend in the width direction (alignment direction of the electrical contact portions 32) from both ends of the extending portion 36a, and the portions extending in the width direction are substantially orthogonal to the extending portion 36a downward. In this way, each is bent (see FIG. 9).

  The insulating housing 40 is integrally formed of an insulating material such as a synthetic resin, and has a shape capable of holding the connection conductor 30, specifically, each electrical contact portion 32 and base portion 34 of the connection conductor 30. It has a flat shape in the thickness direction. The insulating housing 40 has a pair of side walls that connect the flat bottom wall 41 and the top wall 42 that are parallel to each other, and both ends in the width direction of the walls 41 and 42 (that is, the left end and the right end). 44 integrally. These walls 41, 42, 44 constitute the outer wall of the insulating housing 40.

  The rear end portion (the right end portion in FIGS. 5 to 7) of the outer wall constitutes a conductor holding portion 43. The base 34 is held by the conductor holding portion 43 by press-fitting the base 34 of the connecting conductor 30 into the conductor holding portion 43 from an opening 43 a provided at the rear end of the insulating housing 40.

  The conductor holding portion 43 has a shape that holds the base portion 34 of the connecting conductor 30. Specifically, the connecting metal is larger than the base 34 and has an outer shape extending in the arrangement direction of the electrical contact portions 32 of the connecting conductor 30, and the base 34 can be inserted from the rear (right side in FIG. 5). Surrounding the plate insertion opening 43a. The base 34 is press-fitted into the conductor holding portion 43 from the insertion port 43a in a posture in which each electric contact portion 32 faces forward.

  A plurality (three in the figure) of partition walls 45 parallel to the side walls 44 are arranged in the connector width direction at a portion in front of the conductor holding portion 43. Each partition wall 45 defines a terminal accommodating chamber 47 between another partition wall 45 or the side wall 44 adjacent to the partition wall 45. Each terminal accommodating chamber 47 has a shape that opens forward and allows the device-side terminal 20 to be inserted through the opening. Each electrical contact portion 32 of the connecting conductor 30 protrudes from the rear in each terminal accommodating chamber 47, and the electrical contact portion 22 of the device side terminal 20 inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber 47 is connected to the electrical contact portion 32. By fitting, the device-side terminal 20 and the connection conductor 30 are electrically connected.

  A lance (terminal locking portion) 46 is formed on the top wall 42 at a position corresponding to each terminal accommodating chamber 47. Each lance 46 is surrounded by a substantially U-shaped slit 42 a (see FIG. 8) formed in the top wall 42, and can be bent and deformed in the thickness direction with respect to the main body of the top wall 42. A free end portion is provided, and a claw-like locking portion 46a is formed at the free end portion. As shown in FIG. 5, the locking portion 46 a is bent and deformed by contacting with the device-side terminal 20 to be inserted to allow the device-side terminal 20 to pass, and after that passage, it is elastically moved to a proper position. By returning, the locked piece 28 of the device side terminal 20 is restrained from the rear (see FIG. 6). That is, the device-side terminal 20 is locked at a position where the device-side terminal 20 is fitted to the electrical contact portion 32.

  Therefore, in this joint connector JC, the device side terminal 20 of the terminal of the ground wire 11a is inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber 47 and fitted into the electrical contact portion 32 of the connection conductor 30, so that Electrical connection with the connecting conductor 30 is achieved.

  As shown in FIG. 4B, the terminal joint connector JC2 is configured so that the connection conductor 30 of the joint connector JC1 and the grounding terminal 38 that can be connected to the grounding portion of the vehicle body are integrally included. Has been. Specifically, although described below, only a configuration different from the joint connector JC1 will be described in detail.

  The terminal joint connector JC2 includes a single connection conductor 130 and an insulating housing 40 for holding the connection conductor 130. The connection conductor 130 is configured by bending a predetermined portion of a connection metal plate formed by punching a single metal plate into an appropriate shape. The connection conductor 130 integrally includes a plurality of electrical contact portions 32, a base portion 34, a crimping portion 36, and a grounding terminal 38.

  The grounding terminal 38 is a plate-like portion connected to the rear end portion of the crimping portion 36. The grounding terminal 38 is provided with a through hole 38a through which a bolt or the like is inserted when connected to the vehicle body. Further, the grounding terminal 38 has a notch piece 39 raised at a position facing the through hole 38a at the periphery of the through hole 38a. The notch piece 39 is bent at an intermediate position so that the tip end portion is substantially parallel to the peripheral edge portion of the through hole 38a.

  The joint connector JC1 configured as described above is crimped (connected / fixed) to the grounding wire 12 as follows. First, the covering of the position where the joint connector JC1 is disposed in the grounding wire 12 is peeled off. In this way, the exposed part is exposed between the pair of crimping pieces 36b extending from the extending part 36a substantially downward so that the crimping part 36 straddles the part where the coating is peeled off and the conductor is exposed. The joint connector JC1 is disposed on the grounding wire 12 so that is positioned. In this state, each of the crimping pieces 36b is bent (clamped) inward (in a direction in which the tip portions approach each other), whereby the conductor is sandwiched between the extending portion 36a and the crimping piece 36b, thereby crimping. Part 36 is crimped to the exposed conductor. By being crimped in this way, the connection conductor 30 and the conductor of the grounding wire 12 become conductive.

  The terminal joint connector JC2 is peeled off from the terminal position of the ground wire 12, and is crimped to the conductor exposed at the terminal position in the same manner as the joint connector JC1. A plurality of joint connectors JC (JC1 and JC2) are crimped to the grounding wire 12. However, the joint connectors JC crimped to the grounding wire 12 are all crimped in the same direction. There is no need. That is, what is necessary is just to determine the opening direction of the terminal accommodating chamber 47 of the joint connector JC suitably according to the wiring state of the grounding wire 11a (refer FIG. 3).

  As described above, when the joint connector JC is connected to and fixed to the grounding electric wire 12, in the joint connector JC according to the present embodiment, the crimp portion 36 of the connection conductor 30 is exposed to the outside from the insulating housing 40. Therefore, it is easy to connect and fix. Therefore, manufacture of the wiring material 10 becomes easy by using the said joint connector JC. In addition, in the joint connector JC, the connection conductor 30 is formed of a conductor so as to integrally include the crimping portion 36 and the electrical contact portion 32. Therefore, the electrical contact portion 32 and the grounding wire 12 are connected with a thin wire or the like. It is possible to connect more reliably than to connect.

  Using the wiring member 10 configured as described above, the wire harness 50 is manufactured as follows.

  First, the wiring member 10 is disposed at a predetermined position. Next, the some electric wire 11 for connecting to each vehicle equipment is routed sequentially. Thus, the trunk line 52 and the branch line 54 containing the wiring material 10 are comprised by the several electric wire 11 being wired. The connector C is connected to the terminal (tip) of each electric wire 11 wired at this time.

  A plurality of electric wires 11 are connected to each connector C, and the plurality of electric wires 11 include a ground electric wire 11a. The device-side terminal 20 is provided on the end of the ground wire 11a opposite to the end connected to the vehicle-mounted device. The device-side terminal 20 is connected to the joint connector JC1 of the wiring member 10. Specifically, by inserting the device side terminal 20 into the terminal accommodating chamber 47 of the insulating housing 40, the electrical contact portion 32 of the connecting conductor 30 is inserted into the electrical contact portion 22 of the device side terminal 20, The grounding wire 11a and the grounding wire 12 are electrically connected. When the device-side terminal 20 is inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber 47 to a position where the device-side terminal 20 is fitted to the electrical contact portion 32 as described above, the device-side terminal 20 is locked by the lance 46, and the fitting state is maintained. The

  When the ground wire 11a is connected to the joint connector JC1, for example, when the ground wire 11a is included in the branch wire 54, the branch wire 54 is used to shorten the ground wire 11a. It is preferable that the ground wire 11a is connected to the joint connector JC1 disposed near the base (end on the main line 52 side) (see FIG. 10A).

  However, the ground wire 11a connected to the in-vehicle device that is vulnerable to fluctuations in the ground potential is routed to the terminal of the wiring member 10 and connected to the joint connector JC2 for the terminal. This is because in the terminal joint connector JC2, the grounding terminal 38 is integrally included in the connection conductor 130, and the grounding terminal 38 is connected to the grounding portion of the vehicle body. That is, since the grounding terminal 38 is connected to the vehicle body, the vehicle-mounted device connected to the terminal joint connector JC2 is grounded to the vehicle body without passing through the grounding electric wire 12, so that This is because the fluctuation of the ground potential generated in the grounding wire 12 is not affected.

  As described above, the wiring member 10 and each electric wire 11 are routed, and each grounding wire 11a is connected to the joint connector JC1 (or JC2) of the corresponding wiring member 10 (see FIG. 2) and then bundled together. An insulating tape 56 is wound around the electric wire 11 (including the grounding electric wire 11a) and the wiring member 10 (see FIGS. 1 and 10B), and the wire harness 50 is formed.

  In the wire harness 50 manufactured in this way, the grounding terminal 38 of the terminal joint connector JC2 is screwed to the grounding portion of the vehicle body, and each connector C is connected to the in-vehicle device to be connected. Attached to.

  As described above, in this embodiment, when the wiring member 10 is incorporated in the wire harness 50, each in-vehicle device is connected to the corresponding joint connector JC (JC1 and JC2) via the ground wire 11a. As a result, each in-vehicle device can be grounded to the vehicle body, so that it is not necessary to incorporate a large number of grounding wires (ground lines) into the wire harness 50. Thereby, the wire harness 50 can be made thinner and lighter. That is, the present invention pays attention to the fact that all the ground lines included in the conventional wire harness are maintained at zero potential and can be integrated, and the common ground wire 12 is used. The object is achieved by arranging a plurality of joint connectors JC.

  As in this embodiment, by using the joint connector JC to connect the grounding wire 11a and the grounding wire 12, the device-side terminal 20 of the grounding wire 11a can be inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber 47 by inserting the device-side terminal 20 of the grounding wire 11a. Since the electrical contact portion 32 of the connection conductor 30 (130) can be fitted into the electrical contact portion 22, electrical connection between the in-vehicle device and the ground wire 12 can be easily performed.

  Further, in the joint connector JC of the present embodiment, since the insulating housing 40 has a flat outer diameter as described above, the arrangement direction of the electrical contact portions 32 of the joint connector JC is the radial direction of the wire harness 50. When the wiring member 10 using the joint connector JC is incorporated in the wire harness 50 so as to be in a substantially orthogonal posture, the projecting dimension of the joint connector JC from the wire harness 50 can be suppressed to be small. Therefore, when the wiring member 10 using the joint connector JC is incorporated into the wire harness 50, the wire harness 50 as a whole can be thinned.

  The lance 46 is usually provided in the insulating housing 40. However, since the insulating housing 40 of this embodiment has a flat outer shape in order to reduce the thickness and size of the joint connector JC, the lance 46 cannot be provided in the insulating housing 40, and the terminal accommodating chamber is not provided. A lance 46 is formed in a part of a wall portion (in this embodiment, the top wall 42) that defines the inside and the outside of the 47.

  Even if the lance 46 is not fixed when the insulating tape 56 is wound around the wiring material 10 using the joint connector JC together with the plurality of electric wires 11, the lance 46 is not fixed. The device-side terminal 20 inserted into 47 can be locked. However, when the insulating tape 56 is wound in a state where the wiring member 10 using the joint connector JC together with the plurality of electric wires 11 is bundled, the insulating tape 56 has all the portions where the lances 46 are formed. By being affixed to the top wall 42 of the insulating housing 40 so as to pass, the bending of all the lances 46 to the outside of the outer surface of the insulating housing 40 is regulated by the insulating tape 56, thereby The fitting state between the contact portion 22 and the electrical contact portion 32 of the connection conductor 30 is maintained, and the device side terminal 20 is reliably prevented from falling off the joint connector JC.

  Note that the wiring member 10 of the present invention, the joint connector JC (JC1 and JC2) used therein, and the wire harness 50 in which the wiring member 10 is incorporated are not limited to the above-described embodiment, and are the gist of the present invention. Of course, various changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

  The connection / fixation method of the joint connector JC to the grounding electric wire 12 is not limited. For example, in the present embodiment, the joint connector JC is connected and fixed to the ground wire 12 by crimping, but may be connected and fixed by pressure welding, welding, or the like.

  Specifically, for example, the joint connector JC3 connected and fixed to the grounding wire 12 by pressure welding is configured as follows. In addition, the same code | symbol is used for the structure similar to joint connector JC1, and detailed description is abbreviate | omitted, and only a different structure is demonstrated in detail.

  As shown in FIGS. 11 to 13, the joint connector JC <b> 3 includes a single connection conductor 230 and an insulating housing 240 for holding the connection conductor 230.

  The connection conductor 230 is configured by bending a predetermined portion of a connection metal plate formed by punching a single metal plate into an appropriate shape. The connection conductor 230 integrally includes a plurality of electrical contact portions 32, a base portion 34, and a pressure contact portion (connection portion) 236.

  The pressure contact portions 236 are configured to extend from both end portions of the base portion 34 in the width direction (alignment direction of the electric contact portions 32) and bend so as to stand up with respect to the base portion 34. The pressure contact portion 236 is provided with a cut portion 236a from the distal end toward the base portion 34. The cut portion 236a is a portion into which the grounding electric wire 12 is press-fitted, and the cut width of the cut portion 236a is smaller than the diameter of the conductor of the grounding electric wire 12. Further, the end of the notch 236a on the distal end side of the press contact part 236 is formed so that the width of the notch increases toward the end of the press contact part 236 so that the grounding wire 12 can be easily press-fitted into the notch part 236a. Has been.

  The insulating housing 240 is molded from an insulating material such as synthetic resin, and is connected to the main body portion 241 and the rear end portion of the main body portion 241, and the holding portion 243 that holds the connecting conductor 230 in a state where the press contact portion 236 is exposed to the outside. And a lid member 249 that surrounds the exposed pressure contact portion 236. Similar to the insulating housing 40 in the above-described embodiment, the main body 241 has a flat bottom wall 41 and a top wall 42 that are parallel to each other, and a pair of side walls 44 that connect both ends in the width direction of both walls 41 and 42. Are integrated. A connecting metal plate insertion opening 43a surrounded by the bottom wall 41, the top wall 42, and both side walls 44 is formed at the rear end portion of the main body 241 configured in this manner, and the connecting conductor 230 is formed from this opening. Is press-fitted from the electric contact portion 32 side.

  The holding portion 243 has the connection conductor 230 (specifically, the base portion 34 and the pressure contact portion 236) in a state in which the electrical contact portion 32 is press-fitted from the distal end side through the connection metal plate insertion opening 43a, and the rear wall side. It has a holding wall 248 that surrounds the end wall and a holding member 247 that closes the rear end side of the holding wall 248. That is, the holding wall 248 and the holding member 247 surround the base portion 34 and the pressure contact portion 236 of the connecting conductor 230 while leaving the bottom wall side of the insulating housing 240. In addition, the side wall portion 248a of the holding wall 248 has a notch 236a provided in the pressure contact portion 236 exposed to the outside (see FIG. 12) in a side view (in a direction view along the grounding electric wire 12 in FIG. 12). It has a shape.

  The lid member 249 is covered with the holding portion 243 from the bottom wall side in a state where the grounding electric wire 12 is press-fitted into the cut portion 236a of the press-contact portion 236 exposed from the holding portion 243. 34 and the pressure contact portion 236 (see FIG. 13).

  The joint connector JC3 configured as described above is connected and fixed to the grounding wire 12 when the grounding wire 12 is press-fitted into the cut-in portion 236a of the press-contact portion 236. Specifically, the portion where the joint connector JC3 in the grounding wire 12 is disposed is press-fitted into the cut portion 236a of the press-contact portion 236. At this time, unlike the above-described embodiment, the grounding electric wire 12 is press-fitted into the cut portion 236a without peeling off the connection portion (see FIG. 12). When press-fitted in this manner, the covering of the contact portion with the cut portion 236a of the grounding electric wire 12 is peeled off by the cut portion 236a, and the inner conductor enters the cut portion 236a and is sandwiched. Thus, the conductor of the grounding wire 12 is held and fixed by being sandwiched between the cut portions 236a. In this state, the cover member 249 is covered, and the attachment of the joint connector JC3 to the grounding wire 12 is completed (see FIG. 13).

  Further, for example, in a joint connector that is connected and fixed to the grounding wire 12 by welding, a plate-like extension portion that is integrally connected to the electrical contact portion 32 from the connection metal plate insertion port 43a of the insulating housing 40 faces backward. The extended portion is welded to the conductor exposed by peeling off the coating of the ground wire 12.

  The part of the wire harness 50 in which the wiring member 10 is incorporated is not limited. For example, in this embodiment, it is incorporated in the trunk line 52, but is not limited to this part, and may be incorporated in the branch line 54, or may be incorporated in both the trunk line 52 and the branch line 54. By making common the grounding wires 11 a arranged in the branch line 54 and replacing it with the wiring member 10, the branch line 54 can be made slim.

  The number of wiring members 10 incorporated in the wire harness 50 is not limited. For example, in the present embodiment, one wiring member 10 is incorporated in the main line 52, but the present invention is not limited to this, and there may be two or more.

  The connection part of the grounding wire 12 to the grounding part of the vehicle body is not limited. For example, in this embodiment, the grounding terminal 38 of the joint connector JC2 for terminal provided at the terminal of the grounding wire 12 is used, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the joint is connected to the terminal position of the grounding wire 12. Terminals independent of the connector JC may be provided. Further, the position of the terminal does not need to be the terminal position of the grounding wire 12 and may be an intermediate position.

  Further, the specific shape of the joint connector JC provided on the ground wire 12 is not limited. For example, the insulating housing may not be thin, and the number of the terminal accommodating chambers 47 does not need to be four. That is, the connection conductor integrally includes an electrical contact portion and a connection portion such as a crimping portion or a pressure contact portion, and the insulating housing having the terminal accommodating chamber 47 holds the connection conductor with the connection portion exposed to the outside. Just do it.

10 Wiring material (Wiring material for ground connection)
11a Grounding wire 12 Grounding wire 20 Device side terminal 30 Connection conductor 32 Electrical contact portion (fitting portion)
34 Base 36 Crimping part (connection part)
38 Grounding terminal 40 Insulating housing 47 Terminal accommodating chamber 50 Wire harness 52 Trunk line 54 Branch line 56 Insulating tape JC Joint connector

Claims (6)

A wiring material for ground connection that is incorporated in a wire harness and used for grounding a vehicle-mounted device connected to the wire harness to the vehicle body,
A grounding wire connectable to the grounding part of the vehicle body;
A plurality of joint connectors disposed at a plurality of positions along the grounding wire and electrically connected to the vehicle-mounted device, and electrically connected to the grounding wire. Wiring material for connection. The ground connection wiring material according to claim 1,
The joint connector integrally includes a fitting portion that can be fitted to a device-side terminal provided at a terminal of an electric wire electrically connected to the in-vehicle device, and a connecting portion that is connected to and fixed to the ground wire. Including a connection metal conductor, and a terminal accommodating chamber having a shape into which the device-side terminal can be inserted for fitting into the fitting portion, and the connection metal conductor being exposed to the outside. A wiring material for ground connection, characterized by having an insulating housing for holding the wire. The ground connection wiring material according to claim 2,
In the joint connector disposed at the terminal position of the ground wire, the connection metal conductor further includes a ground terminal that can be connected to the ground portion of the vehicle body,
The insulating housing holds the connecting metal conductor in a state where the connecting portion and the grounding terminal are exposed to the outside. A joint connector used for the ground connection wiring material according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
A connecting metal conductor integrally including a fitting portion that can be fitted to a device-side terminal provided at a terminal of an electric wire electrically connected to the in-vehicle device, and a connecting portion that can be connected and fixed to the ground wire; ,
An insulating housing having a terminal accommodating chamber with a shape into which the device-side terminal can be inserted in order to fit the fitting portion, and holding the connection metal conductor in a state where the connection portion is exposed to the outside; A joint connector comprising: The joint connector according to claim 4,
The connecting metal conductor has a plurality of fitting portions, and the plurality of fitting portions are constituted by a single metal plate,
The insulating housing has a flat outer shape in the thickness direction of the metal plate such that a plurality of terminal accommodating chambers are aligned along the metal plate at positions corresponding to the fitting portions, and the thickness direction of the insulating housing The wall portion that defines each terminal accommodating chamber and the outside on one side of the terminal housing has a portion corresponding to each terminal accommodating chamber than the outer surface of the insulating housing when the device side terminal is inserted into the terminal accommodating chamber. A terminal locking portion is formed that flexes outward and allows the device-side terminal to pass, returns to a normal position after the passage, and locks the device-side terminal at a position where the device-side terminal is fitted to the fitting portion. A joint connector characterized by that. A wire harness connected to an in-vehicle device,
A wire harness comprising: a plurality of electric wires; and the ground connection wiring material according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the wire harnesses are bundled together.

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