JP7542304B2 - Composite cables and harnesses - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a composite cable and a composite harness for vehicles.

Conventionally, it is known that vehicles usually use wheel speed sensors. A wheel speed sensor is a sensor that measures the rotational speed of a wheel, and the sensor portion (sensor head) is provided near the wheel. The sensor portion provided near the wheel and a control device (ABS (antilock braking system) electronic control unit) provided on the vehicle body side are connected by a cable for the wheel speed sensor.

In recent years, electric brakes that use electricity instead of hydraulics to control the brakes have gradually become more common. Furthermore, electric parking brakes (EPBs), which are parking brakes that have been electrified, are also widely known. In electric parking brakes, the brake calipers (drive units) installed on the wheels and the control unit installed on the vehicle body are connected using an electric brake cable.

However, conventionally, the cables for the wheel speed sensors and the electric brakes were laid separately even though their connection points were in roughly the same location. Since the wiring space on a vehicle is limited and the wiring work is complicated, improvements are needed.

The object of the present invention is to provide a composite cable and a composite harness that allows easy wiring work.

To this end, according to one aspect of the present application, a composite cable is provided, comprising a first cable, a second cable, an outer sheath, and a lubricating material. The second cable includes an inner sheath, and the outer sheath includes a first outer protective layer, the first outer protective layer covers both the first cable and the second cable, the first outer protective layer is in at least partial contact with the inner sheath, the molding temperature of at least a part of the material of the inner sheath is higher than the molding temperature of the material of the first outer protective layer, and the lubricating material is provided between the first cable and the second cable, and between the first and second cables and the outer sheath.

In one possible embodiment, the first cable is an electric brake cable and includes a first electric wire, the first electric wire including a central conductor and an insulator wrapped around the central conductor, the central conductor including a plurality of bare wires having diameters in the range of 0.12 mm to 0.2 mm twisted together.

In one possible embodiment, the second cable is twisted with the first wires to form an assembly, the second cable includes a second wire, a shielding layer, and an inner sheath, and the second cable includes two twisted second wires.

In one possible embodiment, the second wire includes a central conductor and an insulation wrapped around the central conductor, the central conductor including a plurality of bare wires having a diameter range of 0.05 mm to 0.2 mm twisted together, or the central conductor including a plurality of bare wires having a diameter range of 0.07 mm to 0.09 mm twisted together, and the forming temperature of the material of the first outer protective layer is lower than the forming temperature of the material of the insulation of the first cable.

In one possible embodiment, the shielding layer is a tape-like metal material to reduce interference of external signals with the signal of the second wire, and the thickness range of the shielding layer is 0.005 to 0.05 millimeters.

In one possible embodiment, the inner sheath includes a first inner protective layer and a second inner protective layer, the first inner protective layer being formed by extrusion coating around the outer periphery of the shielding layer, and the second inner protective layer being formed by extrusion coating around the outer periphery of the first inner protective layer, or the first inner protective layer being formed by extrusion coating around the outer periphery of the second electric wire, and the shielding layer being disposed between the first inner protective layer and the second inner protective layer, or the inner sheath is a single layer and is formed directly around the outer periphery of the shielding layer of the second cable by extrusion coating.

In one possible embodiment, the shielding layer is wound around the twisted second electric wires or the first inner protective layer in a longitudinal direction, or the shielding layer is wound around the twisted second electric wires or the first inner protective layer in a helical manner, and the tape-shaped shielding layer is wound around the twisted second electric wires or the first inner protective layer in a helical manner so that the widths of the two wires overlap by 5 to 50 percent.

In one possible embodiment, the molding temperature of the material of the first outer protective layer is lower than that of the second inner protective layer of the inner sheath, or the molding temperature of the material of the first outer protective layer is lower than that of the single layer inner sheath.

In one possible embodiment, the material of the first outer protective layer is selected from ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA), polyethylene (PE), cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE) or thermoplastic elastomer material (TPE), and the material of the inner sheath or second inner protective layer is polyurethane.

In one possible embodiment, the lubricating material is provided around the inner sheath by electrostatic attraction, and the lubricating material is provided around the assembly formed by the first cable and the second cable by electrostatic attraction.

In one possible embodiment, the outer sheath further includes a second outer protective layer wrapped around the first outer protective layer.

According to another aspect of the present application, there is provided a composite harness including the composite cable described above and a connector or sensor portion provided at an end of at least one of the first cable and the second cable of the composite cable.

In one possible embodiment, one end of the first cable is provided with a connector connected to the brake caliper, one end of the second cable is connected to a sensor portion of the wheel speed sensor, and the other ends of the first cable and the second cable are provided with a shared connector, or the other end of at least one of the first cable or the second cable is provided with an individual connector.

Since the first cable and the second cable are integrated, the wiring space of the vehicle can be effectively utilized, and wiring and installation work can be easily performed. Since a lubricating material is provided between the first cable and the second cable and between the first and second cables and the outer sheath, frictional resistance between the first cable and the second cable and between the first and second cables and the outer sheath is reduced. Furthermore, the material of the first outer protective layer has a lower molding temperature than the molding temperature of the material of the inner sheath, preventing the outer sheath and the inner sheath from bonding and welding. This makes it possible to keep the frictional resistance between the first and second cables and the outer sheath small. Therefore, the flexibility of the composite cable is increased, making it easier to install and use.

The above and other features and advantages of the present invention will be better understood from the following description of the embodiments of the present invention with reference to the drawings.

1 shows a schematic cross-sectional view of a composite cable according to one embodiment of the present invention. 1 shows a schematic framework diagram of a composite harness according to one embodiment of the present invention.

The composite harness and composite cable according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

Referring to FIG. 1, a composite cable 5 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a first cable 2, a second cable 3, an inner sheath 32 covering the second cable 3, an outer sheath 4, and a lubricating material (not shown). The outer sheath 4 includes a first outer protective layer 41 covering both the first cable 2 and the second cable 3, and the first outer protective layer 41 is in at least partial contact with the inner sheath 32. The molding temperature of the material of the inner sheath 32 is higher than the molding temperature of the material of the first outer protective layer 41. The lubricating material is provided between the first cable 2 and the second cable 3, and between the first and second cables 2, 3 and the outer sheath 4.

In this embodiment, the first cable 2 is an electric brake cable, and is mainly used as a conductive wire for carrying current to activate a mechanism (electric parking brake (EPB) mechanism) that suppresses wheel rotation by pressing a specific button after the vehicle has stopped. The second cable 3 is a wheel speed sensor cable, and is used to transmit a signal to the vehicle's antilock braking system or vehicle stability control system. In other embodiments, the first cable 2 and the second cable 3 may be any automotive cable.

The first cable 2 includes a first electric wire 20, which includes a central conductor 20a and an insulator 20b that is wrapped around the central conductor 20a. The central conductor 20a includes a plurality of bare wires (not shown) having a diameter range of 0.12 mm to 0.2 mm that are twisted together. The material of the insulator 20b may be any insulator used in electric wires for automobiles, such as cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE), ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA), or thermoplastic elastomer material (TPE). In this embodiment, the first cable 2 includes two first electric wires 20. In other embodiments, the first cable 2 may include a plurality of first electric wires 20, and may optionally further include other cables other than those for electric parking brakes (EPB).

The second cable 3 is twisted with the first electric wire 20 of the first cable 2. The second cable 3 includes a second electric wire 30, and a shielding layer 31 and an inner sheath 32 that cover the second electric wire 30.

The second electric wire 30 includes a central conductor 30a and an insulator 30b coated around the central conductor 30a. The central conductor 30a includes a plurality of bare wires (not shown) having a diameter range of 0.05 mm to 0.2 mm twisted together. Optionally, the central conductor 30a includes a plurality of bare wires having a diameter range of 0.07 mm to 0.09 mm twisted together. The material of the insulator 30b may be any insulator used for automotive electric wires. In this embodiment, the second cable 3 includes two second electric wires 30 twisted together. In other embodiments, the second cable 3 may include a plurality of second electric wires 30 twisted together, and may optionally further include other cables other than the cable for the wheel speed sensor.

In this embodiment, the inner sheath 32 includes a first inner protective layer 32a, which is formed by extrusion coating on the outer periphery of the shielding layer 31 of the second cable 3. Alternatively, the first inner protective layer 32a is extrusion coated on the second electric wire 30, and the shielding layer 31 is further coated on the outer periphery of the first inner protective layer 32a. The material of the first inner protective layer 32a is preferably a material with excellent flexibility. The inner sheath 32 may further include a second inner protective layer 32b arranged around the first inner protective layer 32a. The material of the second inner protective layer 32b is the same as or different from the first inner protective layer 32a. The second inner protective layer 32b is extrusion coated on the outer periphery of the first inner protective layer 32a. Alternatively, the second inner protective layer 32b is formed by extrusion coating on the outer periphery of the shielding layer 31 of the first inner protective layer 32, so that the shielding layer 31 is disposed between the first inner protective layer 32a and the second inner protective layer 32b. The second inner protective layer 32b makes the outer surface of the inner sheath 32 flatter, and the cross-sectional shape of the second cable 3 becomes closer to a circle. When the inner sheath 32 includes two layers, the shielding layer 31 may be provided between the first inner protective layer 32a and the second inner protective layer 32b, or may be directly wrapped around the second electric wire 30. In another embodiment, the inner sheath 32 is a single layer, and includes only the first inner protective layer 32a formed by extrusion coating on the outer periphery of the shielding layer 31, and the shielding layer 31 is directly wrapped around the second electric wire 30. The material of the single-layer inner sheath 32 or the second inner protective layer 32b of the inner sheath 32 is, for example, polyurethane, such as PUR 1180A, PUR 1185A, or PUR 1195A.

The shield layer 31 is used to reduce the interference of external signals with the wheel speed sensor signal. The shield layer 31 is a tape-shaped metal material, and the thickness range is preferably 0.005 to 0.05 mm. The shield layer 31 is wrapped around the second electric wire 30 or wrapped around the first inner protective layer 32a. Taking the case where the shield layer 31 is directly wrapped around the second electric wire 30 as an example, the shield layer 31 is wrapped around the twisted second electric wire 30 by wrapping it vertically or by spirally winding it. In the vertical winding mode, the longitudinal axis of the tape-shaped shield layer 31 and the longitudinal axis of the twisted second electric wire 30 are approximately aligned, and the longitudinal edge of the shield layer 31 is rolled up and overlapped, and the second electric wire 30 is wound inside it. In the helical winding mode, the longitudinal axis of the tape-shaped shielding layer 31 and the longitudinal axis of the twisted second electric wire 30 cross each other, the shielding layer 31 is helically wound around the outside of the second electric wire 30, and the tape-shaped shielding layer 31 is helically wound so that the widths of the two overlap by 5% to 50%. Compared with the helical winding mode, the advantage of the longitudinal winding mode is that when the longitudinal edges of the shielding layer 31 are rolled up and overlapped, the overlapping area is small, and even if the thickness of the inner sheath 32 of the second cable 3 is thin, the traces of the winding of the shielding layer 31 are substantially or completely invisible from the outer surface of the inner sheath 32, and the flatness of the outer surface of the inner sheath 32 is ensured. When the shielding layer 31 is wound around the first inner protective layer 32a, it can be understood that the winding mode is similar to that described above, and will not be described here.

The lubricating material is, for example, talc powder, which is provided on the outside of the second cable 3 and is provided around the inner sheath 32 by electrostatic adsorption. Since the first cable 2 needs to be twisted together with the second cable 3, the lubricating material provided around the second cable 3 can reduce the frictional resistance between the first cable 2 and the second cable 3, allowing the composite cable 5 to be used flexibly. When the first cable 2 and the second cable 3 are twisted together to form an assembly, a lubricating material is provided around the assembly formed by the first cable 2 and the second cable 3 by electrostatic adsorption, and this lubricating material is placed between the assembly formed by the first cable 2 and the second cable 3 and the outer sheath 4. This reduces the frictional resistance between the first cable 2 and the second cable 3 and the outer sheath 4, allowing the composite cable 5 to be used flexibly. Furthermore, when processing the termination of the composite cable 5, the outer sheath 4 is easily peeled off from the first cable 2 and the second cable 3, making it easy to install and use. The particle size of the aforementioned lubricating material is approximately 4 nanometers.

The twisting direction of the second electric wires 30 of the second cable 3 is the same as the twisting direction between the second cable 3 and the first electric wire 20. Alternatively, the twisting direction of the second electric wires 30 of the second cable 3 is opposite to the twisting direction between the second cable 3 and the first cable 2.

The outer sheath 4 is formed by extrusion coating on the outer circumference of the assembly formed by the first cable 2 and the second cable 3, and the first outer protective layer 41 of the outer sheath 4 is in contact with the inner sheath 32. When the inner sheath 32 has two layers, the second inner protective layer 32b is in contact with the first outer protective layer 41. Therefore, it is preferable that the material of the first outer protective layer 41 has a molding temperature lower than the molding temperature of the material of the second inner protective layer 32b of the inner sheath 32. When the inner sheath 32 has only one layer, it is preferable that the material of the first outer protective layer 41 has a molding temperature lower than the molding temperature of the material of the single layer inner sheath 32. Therefore, it is preferable that the material of the first outer protective layer 41 has a molding temperature lower than the molding temperature of at least a part of the material of the inner sheath 32. In this way, when molding the first outer protective layer 41, the inner sheath 32 will not melt, preventing the inner sheath 32 of the second cable 3 from bonding with the first outer protective layer 41 to form a weld, thereby keeping the frictional resistance between the first cable 2 and the second cable 3 and the outer sheath 4 small. Similarly, optionally according to actual needs, the material of the first outer protective layer 41 is preferably one whose molding temperature is lower than that of the material of the insulation 20b of the first cable 2, and further reduces the frictional resistance between the first cable 2 and the second cable 3 and the outer sheath 4. The material of the first outer protective layer 41 is, for example, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA), polyethylene (PE), cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE), or thermoplastic elastomer material (TPE). The outer sheath 4 further includes a second outer protective layer 42 extrusion coated around the first outer protective layer 41, so that the outer surface of the composite cable 5 becomes flatter and the cross-sectional shape of the composite cable 5 becomes closer to a circle. The material of the second outer protective layer 42 may be the same or different from the first outer protective layer 41, and may be the same or different from the material of the inner sheath 32.

Although not mentioned in the above embodiment, it goes without saying that it is possible to integrate other electric wires in addition to the first cable 2 and the second cable 3.

Therefore, since the first cable 2 and the second cable 3 are integrated, the wiring space of the vehicle can be effectively utilized, and wiring and installation work can be easily performed. Since the lubricating material is provided between the first cable 2 and the second cable 3, and between the first and second cables 2, 3 and the outer sheath 4, the frictional resistance between the first cable 2 and the second cable 3, and between the first cable 2 and the second cable 3 and the outer sheath 4 is reduced. Furthermore, the material of the first outer protective layer 41 has a molding temperature lower than the molding temperature of the material of the inner sheath 32, and prevents the outer sheath and the inner sheath from bonding and welding. This makes it possible to keep the frictional resistance between the first cable 2, the second cable 3 and the outer sheath 4 small. Therefore, the flexibility of the composite cable 5 is increased, making it easier to install and use.

Referring to FIG. 2, a composite harness 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a composite cable 5 and a connector or sensor portion provided at at least one end of a first cable 2 and a second cable 3 of the composite cable 5. Specifically, a connector 20c connected to a brake caliper (not shown) is provided at one end of the first cable 2, one end of the second cable 3 is connected to a sensor portion (sensor head) 30c of a wheel speed sensor, and a shared connector 6 is provided at the other end of the two cables 2 and 3. One end of the connector 6 is connected to the first cable 2 and the second cable 3, and the other end is connected to an interface (not shown) of a vehicle control device. The vehicle control device includes an electric parking brake (EPB) and a control device of an antilock brake system or a vehicle stability control system, and transmits a signal of the composite cable 5 to the control device. In another embodiment, the connector at the other end of the two cables 2 and 3 is not shared, and an individual connector is provided at the other end of at least one of the two cables 2 and 3.

Although specific embodiments of the present invention have been described, these are presented by way of example only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Rather, the structures described herein may be embodied in a variety of other forms. Additionally, various substitutions and modifications may be made to the structural forms described herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Composite harness 2 First cable 3 Second cable 4 Outer sheath 5 Composite cable 6 Shared connector 20 First electric wire 20a Central conductor 20b Insulator 20c Connector 30 Second electric wire 30a Central conductor 30b Insulator 30c Sensor portion 31 Shield layer 32 Inner sheath 32a First inner protective layer 32b Second inner protective layer 41 First outer protective layer 42 Second outer protective layer

Claims (10)

A composite cable (5) comprising a first cable (2), a second cable (3), an outer sheath (4), and a lubricating material, the second cable (3) including an inner sheath (32), the outer sheath (4) including a first outer protective layer (41), the first outer protective layer (41) covering both the first cable (2) and the second cable (3), the first outer protective layer (41) at least partially contacting the inner sheath (32), the inner sheath (32) at least partially using a material having a molding temperature higher than the molding temperature of the first outer protective layer (41), the lubricating material being provided between the first cable (2) and the second cable (3) and between the first and second cables (2, 3) and the outer sheath (4),
The first cable (2) is a cable for an electric brake and includes a first electric wire (20), the first electric wire (20) includes a central conductor (20a) and an insulator (20b) coated around the central conductor, the central conductor (20a) includes a plurality of bare wires having a diameter in the range of 0.12 mm to 0.2 mm twisted together,
The second cable (3) is twisted with the first electric wire (20) to form an assembly, and the second cable (3) includes a second electric wire (30), a shielding layer (31), and an inner sheath (32), and the second cable (3) includes two second electric wires (30) twisted with each other,
The second electric wire (30) includes a central conductor (30a) and an insulation (30b) coated around the central conductor (30a), the central conductor (30a) including a plurality of bare wires having a diameter range of 0.05 mm to 0.2 mm twisted together, or the central conductor (30a) including a plurality of bare wires having a diameter range of 0.07 mm to 0.09 mm twisted together, and a molding temperature of the material of the first outer protective layer (41) is lower than a molding temperature of the material of the insulation (20b) of the first cable (2). 2. The composite cable of claim 1, wherein the shielding layer (31) is a tape-shaped metal material for reducing interference of external signals with the signal of the second electric wire (30), and the thickness range of the shielding layer (31) is 0.005 to 0.05 millimeters. 3. The composite cable according to claim 2, wherein the inner sheath (32) includes a first inner protective layer (32a) and a second inner protective layer (32b), the first inner protective layer (32a) being formed on the outer periphery of the shielding layer (31) by extrusion coating, and the second inner protective layer (32b) being formed on the outer periphery of the first inner protective layer (32a) by extrusion coating, or the first inner protective layer (32a) being formed on the outer periphery of the second electric wire (30) by extrusion coating, and the shielding layer (31) being disposed between the first inner protective layer (32a) and the second inner protective layer (32b), or the inner sheath (32) is a single layer and is directly formed on the outer periphery of the shielding layer (31) of the second cable ( 3 ) by extrusion coating. 4. The composite cable according to claim 3, wherein the shielding layer (31) is wound around the twisted second electric wires (30) or the first inner protective layer (32a) in a longitudinal direction, or the shielding layer (31) is wound around the twisted second electric wires (30) or the first inner protective layer (32a) in a helical winding, and the tape-like shielding layer (31) is helically wound around the twisted second electric wires (30) or the first inner protective layer (32a) such that the widths of the two wires overlap by 5 to 50 percent. 4. The composite cable of claim 3, wherein the molding temperature of the material of the first outer protective layer (41) is lower than that of the second inner protective layer (32b) of the inner sheath (32), or the molding temperature of the material of the first outer protective layer (41) is lower than that of the single -layer inner sheath (32). 4. The composite cable of claim 3, wherein the material of the first outer protective layer (41) is selected from ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA), polyethylene (PE), cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE) or thermoplastic elastomer material (TPE), and the material of the inner sheath (32) or the second inner protective layer ( 32b ) is polyurethane. 2. The composite cable of claim 1, wherein the lubricating material is provided around the inner sheath (32) by electrostatic attraction, and the lubricating material is provided around an assembly formed by the first cable (2) and the second cable (3) by electrostatic attraction. The composite cable of claim 1, wherein the outer sheath (4) further includes a second outer protective layer (42) wrapped around the first outer protective layer (41). A composite harness (1) comprising a composite cable (5) according to any one of claims 1 to 8 and a connector or sensor portion provided at at least one end of a first cable (2) and a second cable (3) of the composite cable (5). 10. The composite harness according to claim 9, wherein one end of the first cable (2) is provided with a connector (20c) connected to a brake caliper, one end of the second cable (3) is connected to a sensor portion (30c) of a wheel speed sensor, and the other ends of the first cable (2) and the second cable (3) are provided with a shared connector (6), or the other end of at least one of the first cable (2) or the second cable ( 3 ) is provided with an individual connector.