JP6641638B2 - Lock structure - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a lock structure for assembling and fixing a first member and a second member to each other, for example, to a lock structure between a protector body and a lid in a protector for protecting a wire harness arranged in a vehicle. Things.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a lock structure in which two members such as a main body and a lid are assembled and fixed to each other has been widely used. For example, in a wire harness protector described in JP-A-2015-23615 (Patent Document 1). The lock structure allows the protector body and the lid to be assembled and fixed to each other.

  By the way, in the protector described in Patent Literature 1, a locking frame body provided with an elastic piece which is elastically deformable in a thickness direction below is provided on an outer surface of the protector body, while a lid is provided at a tip end. An elastic locking arm having a locking projection is provided, and a locking structure between the protector body and the lid is constituted by the locking frame and the elastic locking arm. That is, since the lid is overlapped with the opening of the protector body, the elastic projection arm elastically deforms the elastic piece outward, and the elastic locking arm is inserted into the locking frame. Then, when the locking projections get over the elastic pieces, the elastic pieces return to the initial position, and the locking projections are locked to the elastic pieces. As described above, by providing an elastically deformable portion in a part of the lock structure, assembly with a low insertion force is possible.

  However, in the lock structure described in Patent Document 1, the gap formed between the locking frame and the outer surface of the protector body is made larger than the locking projection in order to reduce the insertion force at the time of assembly. The elastic piece protrudes from the locking frame so as to be inclined inward toward the outer surface of the protector body. For this reason, the amount of protrusion of the locking frame from the outer surface of the protector body tends to be large, and there has been a demand for a lock structure that enables downsizing of the protector.

JP 2015-23615 A

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and a problem to be solved is to adopt a lock structure with a low insertion force, avoid increasing the size of the first member and the second member, and hold the lock. An object of the present invention is to provide a novel lock structure capable of improving a force.

A first aspect of the present invention, while from the first member the elastic locking arm extending out downward, the outer surface of the peripheral wall of the second member elastically deformable elastic piece in the thickness direction downwards A locking frame body is provided, and a locking projection provided at a lower end portion of the elastic locking arm is locked to the elastic piece , so that the first member is located above the second member. In the lock structure adapted to be assembled, a thin portion having a reduced thickness of the peripheral wall is formed in the second member at a position corresponding to the locking frame body. And an outer surface of the thick portion located below the thin portion and having a thicker thickness is connected by an inclined surface that is lower than the elastic piece and that gradually projects outward as it goes down. It is characterized by having been done.

  According to the lock structure according to this aspect, since the position corresponding to the locking frame on the outer surface of the second member is a thin portion having a reduced thickness of the peripheral wall, the thickness of the peripheral wall is reduced. As compared with the case where the locking frame is provided substantially on the outer surface of the peripheral wall and the locking frame is provided on the outer surface of the second member, the protrusion dimension of the locking frame from the outer surface of the second member can be reduced. Accordingly, it is possible to avoid the enlargement of the first member and the second member while adopting the lock structure having a low insertion force as in Patent Document 1.

Furthermore, since an inclined surface is provided below the thin portion so as to gradually protrude outward as it goes down, when the elastic locking arm is fitted into the locking frame, first the elastic locking arm is engaged. The stop arm is inserted along the outer surface of the thin section and then deforms so that it is pushed outward by the inclined surface. Thereby, at the time of assembling the first member and the second member, the elastic locking arm is elastically deformed in a direction in which the elastic locking arm is pushed outward with respect to the insertion direction, and is located outside the elastic locking arm. Since the engagement with the elastic piece is more reliably performed, the holding force can be improved.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, while an elastic locking arm provided with a locking projection extends downward from the first member, the outer peripheral surface of the second member elastically deforms in the thickness direction. A locking frame provided with a possible elastic piece below is provided, and the first member is assembled above the second member by locking the locking protrusion to the elastic piece. In the lock structure, the second member is formed with a thin portion having a reduced thickness of the peripheral wall at a position corresponding to the locking frame, and an outer surface of the thin portion, The outer surface of the thick portion that is located below the thin portion and is thicker is connected to the lower side of the elastic piece by an inclined surface that gradually projects outward as it goes down. The elastic piece is provided to be inclined toward the outer surface of the second member. And it is characterized in Rukoto.
According to the lock structure according to this aspect, since the elastic piece is inclined inward toward the outer surface of the second member, the elastic locking arm is inserted into the locking frame so that the elastic piece is elastically outward. Even when the elastic piece is deformed, the elastic piece is prevented from protruding from the locking frame, or is kept small. This can further reduce the space required when assembling the first member and the second member and after assembling.
Further, since the elastic piece is inclined inward, the locking protrusion located inside the elastic piece is more securely locked to the elastic piece, and the set of the first member and the second member is assembled. The holding force after attachment can be further improved.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the lock structure according to the first or second aspect, in a state where the elastic piece is pressed outward by the elastic locking arm, the locking projection is provided on the elastic piece. The part is locked.

  According to the lock structure according to this aspect, in the assembled state of the first member and the second member, the elastic locking arm is locked while pressing the elastic piece outward, so that the elastic locking arm has Thus, the restoring force of the elastic piece is always exerted. Therefore, since the lower end of the elastic piece is positioned so as to bite into the outer surface of the elastic locking arm, the possibility that the elastic locking arm comes off from the locking frame is reduced, and the elastic locking arm is And the outer surface of the second member.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the lock structure according to any one of the first to third aspects, the thin portion is constituted by a groove bottom wall of a concave groove extending vertically and opening outward. Is what it is.

  According to the lock structure according to this aspect, since the concave portion is provided in the portion corresponding to the locking frame body in the second member, and the thin bottom portion is formed by the groove bottom wall of the concave groove, the thin portion is formed. The formation region is kept small, and the reduction in strength of the second member can be suppressed.

A fifth aspect of the present invention is the lock structure according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, wherein the locking projection extends in a direction perpendicular to an extending direction of the elastic locking arm. has an upper end face, in the assembled state of said second member and said first member, said upper end surface of the locking projections, upwards as it separated from the elastic locking arm the perpendicular direction Ri Contact and headed inclined, but that is the lower end face and the flat line of the elastic piece.

  According to the lock structure according to this aspect, when the first member and the second member are assembled, the upper end surface of the locking projection and the lower end surface of the elastic piece are substantially parallel to each other. The contact area between the upper end surface of the locking projection and the lower end surface of the elastic piece when the stopping projection is locked to the elastic piece can be increased, and the holding force can be improved.

  In the present invention, while adopting the lock structure with a low insertion force, in the lock structure, the locking frame provided on the outer surface of the second member is provided at a portion where the thickness dimension is reduced on the peripheral wall of the second member. Since it is provided, an increase in the size of the second member can be avoided. Further, since the outer surface of the second member is provided with an inclined surface, when the first member and the second member are assembled, the elastic locking arm of the first member is deformed so as to be pushed outward. Thereby, the holding force can be improved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an entire wire harness protector of an automobile having a lock structure as one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a front view showing a lock structure in the wire harness protector shown in FIG. 1. III-III sectional drawing in FIG. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the wire harness protector shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a front view showing an elastic locking arm of a first member constituting the wire harness protector shown in FIG. 1. VI-VI sectional drawing in FIG. FIG. 2 is a front view showing a locking frame of a second member constituting the wire harness protector shown in FIG. 1. VIII-VIII sectional drawing in FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  First, FIGS. 1 to 3 show a wire harness protector 12 for an automobile having a lock structure 10 as one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4, the wire harness protector 12 includes a lid 14 as a first member and a protector body 16 as a second member. Then, the wire harness is inserted into the protector body 16 and the cover 14 is assembled via the lock structure 10, so that the wire harness is protected by the protector 12. In the following description, the vertical direction refers to the vertical direction in FIG. Also, the up-down direction does not need to match the up-down direction when mounted on the vehicle.

  More specifically, as shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the lid 14 has a top plate portion 18 that is formed in a substantially rectangular plate shape as a whole and that spreads in a horizontal direction (left and right directions in FIGS. 5 and 6). Have. On both sides in the longitudinal direction of the top plate 18, elastic locking arms 20, 20, 20, 20 projecting downward with predetermined dimensions are provided from both ends in the width direction.

  Each of the elastic locking arms 20 has the same shape. In the present embodiment, each of the elastic locking arms 20 has a substantially rectangular shape, and the distal end portion (lower end portion) in the protruding direction is narrower than the base end portion (upper end portion). It has been. The elastic locking arm 20 has a substantially constant plate thickness over substantially the entire length, and the thickness of the elastic locking arm 20 is sufficiently reduced so that the elastic locking arm 20 can be easily elasticized in the plate thickness direction. Deformable.

  A locking projection 22 is provided at the lower end of each of the elastic locking arms 20. Each of the locking projections 22 projects outward from the elastic locking arm 20 in the width direction of the lid 14. The lower end surface of the locking projection 22 is an inclined surface 24 whose projection from the elastic locking arm 20 gradually decreases downward. On the other hand, in a single state of the lid body 14 before being assembled to the protector body 16, the upper end surface 26 of the locking projection 22 extends in the horizontal direction.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 4, 7, and 8, the protector body 16 is a member that extends longitudinally with a substantially U-shaped cross-section having an opening 27 above. That is, a pair of side wall portions 30 project upward from both ends in the width direction (the left and right direction in FIG. 8) of the bottom wall portion 28 extending in the left and right direction in FIG. The bottom wall 28 and the pair of side walls 30, 30 form a peripheral wall 32 of the protector body 16.

  Further, on both sides in the length direction of the side wall portions 30, 30, locking frames 34, 34, 34, 34, 34, 34, 34, 34, which protrude outward in the width direction of the protector body 16, are provided on outer surfaces at positions corresponding to the elastic locking arms 20. 34 are formed. Each of these locking frames 34 has an outer wall portion 36 extending in parallel with the side wall portion 30, and the outer wall portion 36 is connected to the connecting wall portions 38, 38 at both ends in the width direction (left-right direction in FIG. 7). To the side wall 30. Thus, a gap 40 penetrating in the vertical direction is formed by the region surrounded by the side wall portion 30, the outer wall portion 36, and the connecting wall portions 38, 38. The width dimension of the gap 40, that is, the distance between the opposing surfaces of the connecting wall portions 38, 38 is substantially the same as or slightly larger than the maximum width dimension of the elastic locking arm 20.

  Here, at the lower end of each outer wall portion 36, an elastic piece 42 protruding downward is provided. The width of the elastic pieces 42 is smaller than that of the outer wall 36, that is, both ends in the width direction of the elastic pieces 42 are not connected to the connecting walls 38, 38. It is elastically deformable in the thickness direction. In the present embodiment, the elastic piece 42 projects so as to be inclined downward toward the outer surface of the side wall 30, that is, toward the inside in the width direction of the protector body 16. Further, in the protector body 16 in a single product state before the lid 14 is assembled, the lower end surface 43 of the elastic piece 42 extends in the horizontal direction.

  Here, a concave groove 44 that opens toward the outer wall portion 36 is formed in a portion of the outer surface of the side wall portion 30 facing the outer wall portion 36. The concave groove 44 has a substantially rectangular cross section and extends in the vertical direction, and an upper end is opened to the outside through an upper end surface of the side wall 30. On the other hand, the lower end is located below the elastic piece 42 of the locking frame 34. As a result, the groove bottom surface 45 of the concave groove 44 and the lower end portion of the elastic piece 42 face each other in the width direction of the protector main body 16, and the distance between them is the maximum in the locking projection 22 of the elastic locking arm 20. It is smaller than the plate thickness. Further, the groove width dimension (the left-right dimension in FIG. 7) of the concave groove 44 is substantially equal to the distance between the opposing surfaces of the connecting wall portions 38, 38, and is substantially the same as the maximum width dimension of the elastic locking arm 20. Or slightly larger.

  Thus, the provision of the concave groove 44 on the outer surface of the side wall portion 30 changes the thickness of the side wall portion 30 in the vertical direction. In short, at the position where the concave groove 44 is formed on the side wall 30, the thickness of the plate is reduced, and the thin wall 46 is formed by the groove bottom wall of the concave groove 44. On the other hand, in the side wall portion 30, the position deviating from the concave groove 44 is a thick portion 48 having a larger plate thickness than the thin portion 46. Therefore, the outer surface 45 of the thin portion 46 (the bottom surface of the groove 44) is located more inward in the width direction of the protector body 16 than the outer surface 50 of the thick portion 48.

  The groove bottom surface 45 of the concave groove 44 extends straight in the vertical direction, while the lower end surface of the concave groove 44 is an inclined surface 52 that gradually projects outward as it goes downward. That is, the outer surface 45 of the thin portion 46 (the groove bottom surface of the concave groove 44) and the outer surface 50 of the thick portion 48 are connected to each other by the inclined surface 52.

  The wire harness is inserted through the upper opening 27 of the protector body 16 having the above-described structure, and then the opening 27 is covered with the cover 14, whereby the cover 14 is assembled to the protector body 16. Thus, the wire harness protector 12 is configured, and the protector 12 protects the wire harness.

  Here, when the lid 14 is assembled to the protector main body 16, the elastic locking arm 20 of the lid 14 is inserted into the gap 40 in the locking frame 34 of the protector main body 16 from above. That is, the elastic locking arm 20 is inserted downward while being guided by the groove bottom surface 45 with its inner surface abutting against the groove bottom surface (outer surface of the thin portion 46) 45 of the concave groove 44. Then, when the locking projection 22 of the elastic locking arm 20 reaches the lower end of the concave groove 44, it is guided to the inclined surface 52 next. By the guiding action of the inclined surface 52, the elastic locking arm 20 is elastically deformed outward in the width direction of the protector body 16, as shown in FIG.

  At this time, the separation distance between the groove bottom surface 45 of the concave groove 44 and the lower end portion of the elastic piece 42 is smaller than the maximum plate thickness dimension of the locking protrusion 22, so that the locking protrusion 22 is When passing through the lower end portion (the portion where the elastic piece 42 is formed), the elastic piece 42 is elastically deformed outward by the locking projection 22. When the elastic piece 42 gets over the locking projection 22, the elastic piece 42 is restored and deformed, and the locking projection 22 is locked by the elastic piece 42.

  When the lid 14 and the protector main body 16 are assembled, the elastic locking arm 20 is locked in a state where the elastic locking arm 20 is inclined outward in the width direction of the protector main body 16 with respect to the vertical direction. The upper end surface 26 of the projection 22 is inclined with respect to the horizontal direction. Specifically, it is inclined upward in the widthwise direction of the protector body 16.

  In this embodiment, when the lid 14 and the protector main body 16 are assembled, the elastic piece 42 is restored to the same position as the single-piece state before the lid 14 and the protector main body 16 are assembled as shown in FIG. The elastic piece 42 is not deformed, and the lower end on the inner side of the elastic piece 42 is brought into contact with the outer surface of the elastic locking arm 20, so that restoring deformation of the elastic piece 42 is limited. That is, in the assembled state of the lid 14 and the protector body 16, the elastic piece 42 is pressed outward by the elastic locking arm 20, and the restoring force of the elastic piece 42 is constantly applied to the outer surface of the elastic locking arm 20. Has been affected.

  Further, in the assembled state of the lid 14 and the protector main body 16, as described above, the elastic piece 42 is pressed outward by the elastic locking arm 20 in the width direction of the protector main body 16 as compared with the single piece state. Therefore, the lower end surface 43 of the elastic piece 42 is inclined upward in the width direction outward with respect to the horizontal direction. In particular, in the present embodiment, when the lid 14 and the protector main body 16 are assembled, the upper end surface 26 of the locking projection 22 and the lower end surface 43 of the elastic piece 42 are substantially parallel to each other. ing.

  In the protector 12 structured as described above, the elastic piece 42 is provided at the lower end of the locking frame 34, and the elastic piece 42 is elastically moved outward with the insertion of the elastic locking arm 20 into the gap 40. Due to the deformation, the required insertion force can be kept small.

  Then, while employing the lock structure 10 having such a low insertion force, the locking frame body 34 constituting the lock structure 10 is provided at a thinned portion (thin portion 46) on the peripheral wall 32 of the protector body 16. Therefore, as compared with the case where the peripheral wall of the protector body has a substantially constant thickness dimension and the locking frame is provided on the outer surface of the peripheral wall, the outer surface of the locking frame 34 (thick portion 48 Of the projection from the outer surface 50) is reduced. Accordingly, the protector body 16 is prevented from being enlarged, and the lid 14 is also prevented from being enlarged.

  An inclined surface 52 is provided at a lower end of the concave groove 44 into which the elastic locking arm 20 is inserted. Is elastically deformed so as to be pushed outward along the inclined surface 52. Thus, in a state where the elastic locking arm 20 is pushed outward, the locking projection 22 of the elastic locking arm 20 is locked by the elastic piece 42 located outside the elastic locking arm 20. Therefore, the locking state between the locking protrusion 22 and the elastic piece 42 is stably maintained.

  At this time, in the present embodiment, the elastic piece 42 is not restored to the initial state, and engages with the locking projection 22 in a state in which it contacts the outer surface of the elastic locking arm 20. As a result, a biasing force is applied to the elastic piece 42 in the initial state, that is, inward in the width direction of the protector body 16, and in the engagement state between the elastic piece 42 and the locking projection 22, the elastic piece 42 Is positioned so as to bite into the outer surface of the elastic locking arm 20. Therefore, the engagement state between the elastic piece 42 and the locking projection 22 can be more stably maintained.

  In particular, since the elastic piece 42 is provided so as to be inclined toward the outer surface of the protector body 16, that is, inward in the width direction of the protector body 16, the elastic locking arm of the elastic piece 42 as described above is provided. As a result, the engagement between the elastic pieces 42 and the locking projections 22 can be maintained more stably. In addition, since the elastic piece 42 is inclined inward, even when the elastic piece 42 elastically deforms outward, the amount of outward protrusion from the locking frame 34 is suppressed to a small value. The size of the protector body 16 can be avoided when the elastic piece 42 is elastically deformed and / or after the elastic piece 42 is elastically deformed.

  In addition, when the elastic piece 42 and the locking projection 22 are engaged with each other, the lower end surface 43 of the elastic piece 42 and the upper end surface 26 of the locking projection 22 are parallel to each other. 26 is sufficiently secured, and the locking projection 22 is locked to the elastic piece 42 with a larger locking force. In particular, since the both surfaces 43 and 26 are inclined upward as they go outward, the engagement between the locking projection 22 and the elastic piece 42 may be unexpectedly released. Reduced.

  In addition, since the upper end surface 26 of the locking projection 22 extends in the horizontal direction in the single-piece state of the lid 14, for example, the upper end surface of the locking projection is inclined upward as the upper end surface becomes more outward. As compared to the case where the locking projection 22 is engaged, the vertical dimension of the locking projection 22 is suppressed to be small, and the insertion amount of the lid 14 necessary when the elastic piece 42 gets over the locking projection 22 is suppressed to be small. Thereby, rattling in the assembled state of the lid 14 and the protector main body 16 is also suppressed.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, since the thin portion 46 is formed by the groove bottom wall of the concave groove 44, the portion of the protector body 16 that is made thin is not too large, and the strength of the protector body 16 is reduced. It can be sufficiently secured.

  The embodiments of the present invention have been described above in detail, but these are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited in any way by specific descriptions in the embodiments.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the outer surface 45 of the thin portion 46 (the bottom surface of the groove 44) extends straight in the up-down direction. However, the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the outer surface of the thin portion may be constituted by an inclined surface that is inclined in a direction in which the thickness direction of the thin portion becomes larger as it goes downward over substantially the entire length in the vertical direction. Therefore, in the present invention, it is sufficient that an inclined surface that connects the outer surface of the thin portion and the outer surface of the thick portion to each other be provided below the elastic piece, such as the inclination angle and the vertical dimension of the inclined surface. Is not limited at all.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the thin portion 46 is configured by the groove bottom wall of the concave groove 44, but is not limited to such an aspect. That is, in the above-described embodiment, the thin portion 46 is provided only at the position corresponding to the locking frame 34 and the elastic locking arm 20, but for example, the thin portion extends over the entire length of the protector body in the length direction. It may be provided.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the elastic piece 42 is provided to be inclined inward with respect to the locking frame 34, but may extend straight downward from the locking frame, for example. Thus, in the present invention, the shape, size, inclination angle, and the like of the elastic piece are not limited at all.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the respective locking frames 34 are provided at the upper end portions of the side walls 30, 30. However, these locking frames are provided at the outer surface of the side wall, for example, at the middle portion in the vertical direction. Is also good. On the other hand, in the above-described embodiment, each locking protrusion 22 is provided at the lower end portion of the elastic locking arm 20. However, the locking protrusion may also be provided at, for example, a vertical intermediate portion of the elastic locking arm. Good.

  In the above-described embodiment, the lock structure 10 employed in the wire harness protector 12 of an automobile is shown as the lock structure according to the present invention. However, such a lock structure can be applied to other than the wire harness protector.

10: lock structure, 12: wire harness protector, 14: lid (first member), 16: protector body (second member), 20: elastic locking arm, 22: locking projection, 26: upper end surface , 32: peripheral wall, 34: locking frame, 42: elastic piece, 43: lower end surface, 44: concave groove, 45: groove bottom (outer surface of thin portion), 46: thin portion, 48: thick portion, 50 : Outer surface of thick part, 52: inclined surface

Claims (5)

While a elastic locking arm extending out downward from the first member, the outer surface of the peripheral wall of the second member engaging frame is provided with an elastically deformable elastic piece downward in the thickness direction cage, locking the elastic locking arm locking protrusion provided at the lower end portion of the is adapted to the first member above the second member is assembled with locked is that the elastic piece structure At
In the second member, at a position corresponding to the locking frame, a thin portion having a reduced thickness dimension of the peripheral wall is formed, and an outer surface of the thin portion and a lower portion than the thin portion. A lock structure, wherein an outer surface of a thick portion located at a thick position is connected by an inclined surface that is lower than the elastic piece and that gradually protrudes outward as it goes downward. An elastic locking arm provided with a locking projection extends downward from the first member, while an elastic piece elastically deformable in the thickness direction is provided on an outer surface of a peripheral wall of the second member below. In a lock structure in which a stop frame is provided, the first member is assembled above the second member by locking the locking protrusion to the elastic piece.
In the second member, at a position corresponding to the locking frame, a thin portion having a reduced thickness dimension of the peripheral wall is formed, and an outer surface of the thin portion and a lower portion than the thin portion. The outer surface of the thick portion that is located and thicker is connected to the lower side of the elastic piece by an inclined surface that gradually protrudes outward as it goes down,
Locking structure wherein the elastic pieces, characterized in that is provided obliquely toward the outer surface of the second member. The lock structure according to claim 1, wherein the locking projection is locked to the elastic piece while the elastic piece is pressed outward by the elastic locking arm. The lock structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the thin portion is formed by a groove bottom wall of a concave groove extending vertically and opening outward. The locking projection has an upper end surface that extends in a direction orthogonal to the direction in which the elastic locking arm extends, and the locking projection is provided when the first member and the second member are assembled. the upper end surface of the part is the as in the perpendicular direction away from said resilient locking arm Ri Contact inclined upward, any of claims 1 to 4 which is the lower end face and the flat line of the elastic piece 2. The lock structure according to claim 1.

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