JPH0235575Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] <Industrial Application Field> This invention relates to a horn switch that is attached to a spoke part or a boss part of a steering wheel of an automobile.

<Prior art> Conventionally, for example, in the structure of a horn switch placed in a spoke part of a steering wheel, the first
There was something like the one shown in Figure 1.

That is, a concave portion 1a is formed near the ring portion 2 of the spoke portion 1 of the steering wheel, and a horn button 7 is disposed in this concave portion 1a.
are provided protrudingly, and these sliding parts 7a, 7a are inserted into the insertion holes 1b, 1 formed in the recessed part 1a of the spoke part.
b was inserted and the horn plate 6 was fixed with screws 8. 5 is the spoke part recess 1a and the horn button 7
It is a coil spring that biases the The horn plate 6 is connected at a terminal 6b to a lead wire 10 connected to a slip ring on the positive side of the back side of the steering wheel, and a contact point 6
A is arranged at a position corresponding to a contact point 4a of a contact plate 4 which is attached to a separate front of a core metal (not shown) in the spoke part 1, and when this contact point 6a comes into contact with the contact point 4a, electricity is supplied and the horn is turned on. It was configured to work. In addition, 3 is the lower cover, and the spoke part 1 has a horn button 7.
It is installed with screws 9 after installing a horn switch such as the above.

To install a conventional horn switch, first set the coil spring 5 on the horn button 7, then insert the horn button sliding part 7a into the insertion hole 1b of the recess 1a in the spoke part 1, and then
A horn plate 6 was attached to the tip of the spoke part 1 by screws 8 from the back side of the spoke part 1.

<Problems to be solved by the invention> However, in the structure of the conventional horn switch, each of the small parts constituting the horn switch, such as the horn button 7, coil spring 5, and horn plate 6, is
The structure is such that each horn switch is attached to the spokes 1 that make up a larger steering wheel, and it takes time and effort to attach the horn switch to the steering wheel. At the same time, there is a risk of losing each part that makes up the horn switch, making it difficult to manage parts. It was necessary to pay attention to this.

This invention solves the above problem by assembling the parts that make up the horn switch in advance and attaching the assembly to a predetermined part of the steering wheel, thereby reducing the work of installing the horn switch. It is an object of the present invention to provide a horn switch for a steering wheel that is simple and further facilitates the management of each component constituting the horn switch.

<Means for solving the problem> The steering wheel horn switch according to this invention includes a contact plate, an insulating sheet,
A horn switch for a steering wheel, wherein a horn switch assembly is formed by integrally assembling a horn spring and a horn button in engagement with each other, and the horn switch assembly is attached to a steering wheel, The contact plate is made of a conductive metal plate and has an electrical contact portion formed on its upper surface, and a contact portion that contacts the core metal of the steering wheel at a predetermined position, and the horn spring includes: The insulating sheet is made of a spring material and has a substantially flat plate shape, and an electrical contact part is formed on the lower center surface, and a lead wire is connected to the side part.The insulating sheet is made of synthetic resin and has a plurality of engagement holes perforated at the peripheral edge position. A plurality of pedestals that abut the lower surface of the circumferential edge of the horn spring and a plurality of locking claws that lock the horn spring on the pedestals are formed at predetermined positions on the upper surface, and the pedestal is provided in the center. An opening is provided to open the lower part of the electrical contact part of the horn spring that is engaged on the upper part, and a communication part that corresponds to the shape of the contact plate and communicates with the opening is provided at a predetermined position on the lower surface. , a fitting hole is formed in which the electrical contact portion of the contact plate is disposed below the opening when the contact plate is fitted, and the contact plate or the insulating sheet is provided with a fitting hole for placing the horn switch assembly in the A mounting hole for mounting on the steering wheel is formed, and the horn button is made of synthetic resin and has a plurality of engagement claws at predetermined positions on the lower surface that slidably engage with the plurality of engagement holes of the insulating sheet. and a convex portion that presses the electrical contact portion of the horn spring, and the contact plate is fitted into the fitting hole of the insulating sheet, and the horn spring is placed on the pedestal of the insulating sheet. The electric contact portions are engaged with each other by the hooking claws, and are opposed to each other across the opening and the communication portion; The horn button is assembled by engaging each engagement claw with each engagement hole of the insulating sheet to form the horn switch assembly, and bringing the contact portion into contact with the core metal of the steering wheel. The horn switch assembly is attached to a predetermined portion of the steering wheel by an attachment means using the attachment hole.

<Operations and Effects of the Invention> The horn switch for a steering wheel according to this invention has a contact plate fitted into a fitting hole of an insulating sheet, and a horn spring engaged with a retaining claw on a base of an insulating sheet. , the mutual electrical contact parts are faced to each other with the opening and the communication part in between, and the convex part of the horn button is brought into contact with the upper surface of the electrical contact part of the horn spring, and each engaging claw is connected to each engaging part of the insulating sheet. The horn button is assembled by engaging with the mating hole to form a horn switch assembly, and then the contact portion is brought into contact with the core metal of the steering wheel, and the horn switch assembly is assembled by a mounting means using the mounting hole. It can be attached to a predetermined part of the steering wheel, and the horn switch assembly, which is a single part, can be attached to the steering wheel. The horn switch does not need to be attached to a predetermined part that constitutes the wheel 5, which simplifies the installation work of the horn switch, and the parts are assembled by engaging each other in advance at a separate location from the mounting location, and then attached to the predetermined part of the steering wheel. Therefore, there is no risk that each part constituting the horn switch will be lost during installation, and each part can be easily managed.

Furthermore, since the horn switch assembly is attached to the steering wheel as a single component, it can be easily attached to the steering wheel that has already been assembled to the vehicle.

Furthermore, in the steering wheel horn switch according to this invention, when assembling the horn switch assembly itself, the contact plate is fitted into the insulating sheet fitting hole, and the horn spring is attached to the engaging claw on the insulating sheet pedestal. By engaging the engaging claw of the horn button with the insulating sheet engaging hole, the contact plate, horn spring, and horn button can be assembled to the insulating sheet, and screws, rivets, etc. The parts can be assembled by engaging each other without using a fixing means, and the horn switch itself can be assembled easily.

Furthermore, since the contact plate and the horn spring are both assembled on one insulating sheet, the spacing between the mutual contact points is constant, and in this state they are attached to a predetermined part of the steering wheel, so that when the horn switch is activated, This has the effect of stabilizing the stroke of the horn spring until it contacts the contact plate.

<Example> An example of this invention will be described below based on the drawings.

The horn switch assembly M of the embodiment includes the second to fourth horn switch assemblies M.
The contact plate 1 shown in FIG.
4, an insulating sheet 15, a horn spring 16, and a horn button 17.

The contact plate 14 is made of a conductive metal plate having a width W1 and a thickness t1, and has a stepped portion 14A formed at the center in the longitudinal direction to have a height H1, and an electrical contact point at the center of the upper surface of the stepped upper portion 14B. A contact point 14a is formed at the part, and a boss 14b is formed at the lower part 14C of the step, and a screw hole is formed in the boss 14b as a mounting hole for attaching the horn switch assembly M to the core bar 11a of the steering wheel S. 14c is formed.
In the case of the embodiment, the contact plate 14
The peripheral edge of the screw hole 14c on the lower surface becomes a contact portion 14d that contacts the core metal 11a.

The insulating sheet 15 is formed of a synthetic resin material such as ABS into a substantially disc shape, and has a total of four protrusions 50 at predetermined positions on the periphery of the upper surface, two protrusions facing each other with a width W3.
is installed protrudingly. Each of the projections 50 is provided with an engagement hole 51 extending through the upper and lower sides of the insulating sheet 15 on the outside, and engagement claws 52 are formed on the upper surface of the inner edge so as to face each other (fifth
~See Figure 8).

Further, near the periphery of the upper surface of the insulating sheet 15, there are two pedestals 5 that face each other in a direction orthogonal to the relative direction of the protrusion 50 and whose upper surface is lower in height H5 than the lower surface of the engaging claw 52.
3 is provided protrudingly, and a convex portion 54 is formed on the outer edge of the pedestal 53 to prevent it from shifting outward when a horn spring 16 (described later) is disposed on the upper surface of the pedestal 53 and is engaged with the engaging claw 52. has been done. Further, on the upper surface of the insulating sheet 15, a horn spring 16 attached to the pedestal 53 is provided between the pedestals 53 in the center.
An opening 55 is formed to open the lower side of the contact 16a (described later), and a lead wire 19 connected to the horn spring 16 (described later) and its terminal 20 can be inserted between the two protrusions 50 in either direction. Two insertion holes 56 are bored.

Further, the lower surface of the insulating sheet 15 has a width W2 that is approximately the same as the width W1 of the contact plate 14, so that the contact plate 14 can be fitted, and the contact 14a is disposed below the opening 55 when the contact plate 14 is fitted. A fitting hole 57 is bored from the periphery in parallel to the relative direction of the base 53. This fitting hole 57 is
The opening 57a including the stepped portion 70 on the circumferential surface of the insulating sheet 15 has a shape corresponding to the cross section of the contact plate stepped lower portion 14C in the transverse direction, and the depth L2 is approximately the same as the length L1 of the contact plate 14, and A communicating portion 57b communicating with the opening 55 on the upper surface of the insulating sheet 15 is provided in the intermediate portion, and the height H3 of the lower surface of the peripheral edge of the communicating portion 57b from the lower surface of the insulating sheet 15 is approximately the same as the height H1 of the contact plate 14; , the fitting hole 57 below the communicating portion 57b is formed so that the height H4 from the bottom surface of the insulating sheet 15 is approximately the same as the height H2 (H2=H1-t1) of the stepped portion 14A in the contact plate 14. A support portion 58 is formed perpendicular to the drilling direction. Incidentally, the height H6 from the upper surface of the support portion 58 to the lower surface of the peripheral edge of the communication portion 57b is approximately the same dimension as the thickness t1 of the contact plate 14. Note that a recess 58a is formed on the lower surface of the support portion 58, into which a screw 21 is inserted when attaching the lower cover 13 to the spoke portion core metal 11a after a horn switch assembly M, which will be described later, is attached to the spoke portion 11. .

The horn spring 16 has a substantially flat plate shape made of conductive spring steel, and its width W4 is approximately the same as the width W3 between the insulating sheet protrusions 50, and its length L4 is the same as the width W3 between the insulating sheet protrusions 54. The thickness t2 is set to be approximately the same as the height H5 of the insulating sheet 15 from the top surface of the pedestal 53 to the locking claw 52. A contact 16a is provided at the electrical contact portion on the central lower surface, and a lead wire 19 provided with a terminal 20 is connected to the side portion. This lead wire 19 is connected by a terminal 20 to a slip ring on the positive side of the back surface of the steering wheel.

The horn button 17 is formed of a synthetic resin material such as ABS into a substantially disc shape, and has four engaging claws 17a formed at predetermined positions on the periphery of the lower surface to slidably engage with the insulating sheet engaging holes 51. A convex portion 17b is formed at the center of the lower surface, which can press the horn spring contact 16a when assembled to the insulating sheet 15 via the engaging claw 17a.

Next, a manner in which the horn switch assembly M is formed by assembling these parts and is attached to the spoke portion 11 of the steering wheel S will be described.

First, the contact plate 14 and horn spring 16 are assembled to the insulating sheet 15.

To attach the contact plate 14, as shown in FIG.
Then, the lower surface of the stepped upper portion 14B is brought into contact with the upper surface of the support portion 58, and the stepped lower portion 14C is further pushed through the fitting hole opening 57a to be assembled.
At this time, the height H6 from the upper surface of the support portion 58 to the lower surface of the peripheral edge of the communication portion 57b is formed to be approximately the same as the thickness t1 of the contact plate 14, and the fitting hole 57
The width W2 of the contact plate 14 is approximately the same as the width W1 of the contact plate 14.
4 is completely fitted into the fitting hole 57, the contact plate 14 will not easily come off from the insulating sheet 15. In the case of the embodiment, the contact plate 14 is provided with the stepped portion 14A, and the stepped upper portion 14B is connected to the upper surface of the support portion 58 and the communicating portion 5.
The contact plate 14 is regulated by the lower surface of the peripheral edge of the insulating sheet 15, and the lower step 14C is regulated by the stepped portion 70 at the periphery of the fitting hole opening 57a. It's becoming difficult to get rid of it.

The horn spring 16 is assembled by inserting the terminal 20 and the lead wire 19 into the insertion hole 56 of the insulating sheet 15 from above, and
As shown in the figure, the horn spring 16 is attached to the pedestal 5.
3 and insert the side end below the locking claw 52 while bending it in the lateral direction, and then returning the deflection, the side end of the horn spring 16 will be locked to the locking claw 52, The horn spring 16 can be easily attached and assembled onto the pedestal 53. In the case of the embodiment, since the height H5 from the upper surface of the pedestal 53 to the lower surface of the locking claw 52 is approximately the same as the thickness t2 of the horn spring 16, the horn spring 16 can be assembled without bending. Moreover, since the convex portion 54 is formed, the horn spring 16 will not be displaced more than a predetermined length in its longitudinal direction. By the way, retaining claw 5
2 is installed slightly below, the horn spring 16
Since the fixing force of the horn spring 16 becomes stronger, the horn spring 16 can be assembled without being displaced even without the protrusion 54.

Then, as mentioned above, the contact plate 14
When the horn spring 16 and the horn spring 16 are assembled to the insulating sheet 15, the mutual contacts 14a and 16a will face each other with the opening 55 and the communication portion 57b in the insulating sheet 15 in between, and then the horn spring 16 will have a protrusion on the upper surface. By engaging the engaging claw 17a of the horn button 17 with the insulating sheet engaging hole 51 while bringing the portion 17b into contact with the contact plate 14,
The horn switch assembly M consisting of the insulating sheet 15, the horn spring 16, and the horn button 17 can be easily assembled without using twisting or rivets (see FIGS. 9 and 10).

Then, this horn switch assembly M is attached to the spoke portion 11 of the steering wheel S. In the case of the embodiment, the spoke part 11 is attached to a hole 11d provided in the covering layer 11b. First, the lead wire 19 and the terminal 20 are inserted through the hole (not shown) in the core metal 11a, and the terminal 20 is connected to the positive electrode. Connect the wire to the slip ring (not shown) on the side, and insert the horn switch assembly M into the hole 11.
d, and the contact portion 14d on the lower surface of the step lower portion 14C of the contact plate 14 is connected to the core metal 11a.
the core metal insertion hole 11 from the bottom surface of the core metal 11a.
Boss 1 on contact plate 14 via e
Screw 18 as a mounting means to screw hole 14c of 4b
The horn switch assembly M is attached by screwing on the horn switch assembly M. Then, the lower cover 13 may be fixed to the core metal 11a with the screws 21.

By the way, the operation of this horn switch is as follows.
When the horn button 17 is pressed, as shown in FIG.
7a bends the horn spring 16 downward, bringing its contact point 16a into contact with the contact point 14a of the contact plate 14, so that the horn spring 16 becomes the positive electrode side and the contact plate 14 becomes the negative electrode side. Since they are connected to each other by contacting the metal 11a, the switch is turned on and the horn is activated.

Therefore, in the horn switch of the embodiment, the small parts constituting the horn switch are assembled in advance to form the horn switch assembly M, and the spoke portions 11 constituting the steering wheel S are assembled in advance.
The screw hole 1 in the contact plate 14
It can be installed by fixing screws 18 through 4c, and the small parts that make up the horn switch are not attached one by one to the predetermined parts that make up the large steering wheel, as is the case in the past.
The installation work of the horn switch is simplified, and there is no risk that each part constituting the horn switch will be lost during installation, and each part can be easily managed.

Further, the assembly of the horn switch assembly M itself is facilitated because each component can be assembled by engaging each other without using fixing means such as screws or rivets as described above.

Furthermore, since the contact plate 14 and the horn spring 16 are both assembled to one insulating sheet 15, the distance between the mutual contacts 14a and 16a is constant, and in this state, the contact plate 14 and the horn spring 16 are attached to the spoke part 11 of the steering wheel S. Therefore, the stroke of the horn spring 16 until it contacts the contact plate 14 when the horn switch is activated becomes stable.

In addition, in the embodiment, the contact plate 14 has the step portion 14A formed therein, but of course,
The contact plate has a flat plate shape without providing a stepped portion 14A, and a boss having a screw hole 4c as a mounting hole is formed to extend from the lower surface, and the end face of the boss is formed so as to abut against the core metal 11a. It's okay.

Furthermore, in the embodiment, the contact portion 14d of the contact plate 14 is formed around the screw hole 14c on the lower surface of the contact plate 14, but a spring-like protrusion that contacts the core metal 11a and connects to the negative electrode side during installation is shown. If the piece is provided on the contact plate 14,
The protrusion may be used as a contact part, in which case,
The mounting hole 14c of the horn switch assembly M may be formed in the insulating sheet 15.

Further, in the embodiment, the horn switch assembly M
Spoke part 1 in steering wheel S
1 is shown, but of course, if you consider connecting the contact plate separately to the negative electrode side, the boss part 31 on the steering wheel S
It may be installed on the

In the embodiment, the contact portions between the contact plate 14 and the horn spring 16 include a contact 14a made of copper, for example, and a contact 16a made of copper with a silver-plated tip, for example.
Of course, the horn button 1 is
If the contact plate 14 and the horn spring 16 are arranged so that when the button 7 is pressed, the contact parts of the contact plate 14 and the horn spring 16 come into contact and conduct electricity, in particular, the contact 14 described separately
There is no need to provide a and 16a.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a horn switch assembly showing one embodiment of this invention, Fig. 2 is a plan view of a steering wheel to which the horn switch assembly of the same embodiment is attached, and Fig. 3 is the same as Fig. 2. - end view;
4 is an end view of FIG. 2, FIGS. 5 and 6 are a plan view and a bottom view of the insulating sheet in the same example, FIG. 7 is a sectional view of FIG. 5, and FIG. Figure 9 is a sectional view of Figure 5.
FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the horn switch assembly at the - portion of FIG. 5, and FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing the conventional horn switch in its installed state. 11... Spoke part, 11a... Core metal, 14...
...Contact plate, 14a...Contact, 14c
...(Mounting hole) Screw hole, 14d...Contact part, 15
...Insulation sheet, 16 ...Horn spring, 1
6a... Contact, 17... Horn button, 17a...
...Engagement claw, 17b...Protrusion, 19...Lead wire,
21...(attachment means) screw, 51...engaging hole, 5
2... Attaching claw, 53... Pedestal, 55... Opening,
57... Fitting hole, 57b... Communication portion, 58... Support portion, S... Steering wheel, M... Horn switch assembly.

Claims (1)

[Claims for Utility Model Registration] A horn switch assembly is formed by integrally assembling a contact plate, an insulating sheet, a horn spring, and a horn button, and the horn switch assembly is attached to a steering wheel. The contact plate is a conductive metal plate having an electrical contact portion formed on its upper surface, and a core metal of the steering wheel at a predetermined position. The horn spring is made of a spring material and has a substantially flat plate shape, and has an electrical contact part formed on the lower center surface and a lead wire connected to the side part, and the insulating sheet is made of a synthetic material. Made of resin, a plurality of engagement holes are bored at the peripheral edge positions, and at predetermined positions on the upper surface, there are a plurality of pedestals that come into contact with the lower surface of the periphery of the horn spring, and a plurality of pedestals that engage the horn spring on the pedestals. At the same time, an opening is provided at the center to open the lower part of the electrical contact part of the horn spring that is attached to the base, and at a predetermined position on the lower surface, an opening is formed in the shape of the contact plate. Correspondingly, a fitting hole is formed that includes a communication portion that communicates with the opening and that allows the electrical contact portion of the contact plate to be located below the opening when the contact plate is fitted, and the contact plate Alternatively, the insulating sheet is formed with a mounting hole for attaching the horn switch assembly to the steering wheel, and the horn button is made of synthetic resin, and a plurality of engagement holes of the insulating sheet are formed at predetermined positions on the lower surface of the horn button. A plurality of engaging pawls that slidably engage with the holes and a convex portion that presses the electrical contact portion of the horn spring are formed, and the contact plate is fitted into the fitting hole of the insulating sheet. At the same time, the horn spring is engaged on the pedestal of the insulating sheet by the engagement claw, and the electrical contact portions are opposed to each other across the opening and the communication portion, and the convex portion is connected to the horn. The horn button is assembled by bringing the horn button into contact with the upper surface of the electrical contact portion of the spring and by engaging the respective engaging claws with the respective engaging holes of the insulating sheet, thereby forming the horn switch assembly; A steering wheel characterized in that the horn switch assembly is attached to a predetermined portion constituting the steering wheel by an attachment means that makes the contact portion contact the core metal of the steering wheel and uses the attachment hole. horn switch.