JPH07272545A - Flat cable and its manufacture - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To efficiently utilize resources and lower product cost by saving the amount of a core wire to be discharged regarding a flat cable and its manufacture. CONSTITUTION:A flat cable is produced so as to have an element wire removed part 4 which is formed by unitedly coating a plurality of stranded wires 2, which are arranged in the way they are kept one another in a parallel gap, by an outer sheath 3 as an insulating coating and at the same time partly lessening the number of the element wires 5 in at least a portion of the stranded wires 2 along the longitudinal direction. As a result, the amount of the element wires 5 in an unnecessary part to be cut at the time when the cable is made to be a product such as a wire harness, is saved.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a flat cable in which a plurality of core wires are integrated in parallel with a parallel interval and a manufacturing method thereof.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A flat cable in which a rectangular wire conductor is covered with an insulator aims at efficient wiring and space saving in response to the increase in the number of wires accompanying the spread of electronic devices, OA devices and computer devices in recent years. Has been widely used for. However, even in a wire harness used for internal wiring of an automobile, etc., by using this flat cable, it can be expected that the wiring can be configured in a space-saving and low cost, but unlike the electronic device, an increase in load current and It has not been widely adopted because there is a problem of terminal treatment and it is necessary to make the conductor a stranded wire. In such a flat cable, generally, a plurality of core wires are arranged in parallel with a parallel interval, and the core wires are extruded together with a molten insulating coating material such as polyethylene or PVC from a crosshead die to be integrated. It is manufactured by the manufacturing method of

A wire harness using such a flat cable is constructed according to the process shown in FIG. That is, the flat cable 24 cut into a certain length as shown in (a) is divided into a set of core wires 25 branched in a plurality of directions as shown in (b), and the required length is set for each set. As shown in the figure, the unnecessary portion 2 is shown by the diagonal lines.
Cut off 1. Next, as shown in (c), the connector 22 is attached to each end of the flat cable 24 for each set of the core wires 25, bent as shown in (d), and fixed with the branch tape 26. As shown in e), the inspection is performed after mounting the exterior parts such as the grommet 27.
As a result, the wire harness 20 as shown in FIG. 7 is manufactured. 6 and 7, reference numeral 2
Reference numeral 8 is a joint connector for partially connecting the core wires 25, and 29 is a clip for attaching the wire harness 20 to a vehicle body or the like.

[0004]

As described above, the flat cable 24 is generally branched into a plurality of sets for connecting a plurality of devices, and each set of the core wires 25 passes through a desired path. It is cut into a necessary and sufficient length so that it can be wired without bending. In this case,
The flat cable 24 of the part not used as a product,
That is, the flat cable 24 in the shaded portion cut off in FIG. 6B generally has no other use and is discarded as waste. However, there is a problem that a large amount of waste is generated when the length of the core wire 25 required for each set of branches greatly differs. Moreover, since the core wire 25 of such waste is integrated with the outer sheath 30, there is a disadvantage that special reprocessing equipment is required in order to reuse the waste wire, and the cost is increased. It was

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and it is possible to reduce the amount of core wires discarded as scraps, to effectively use resources, and to reduce the product cost. It is an object of the present invention to provide a flat cable and a manufacturing method thereof.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention comprises a plurality of twisted wires arranged in parallel with a parallel interval and integrally insulated by an outer sheath, and at least We have proposed a flat cable in which some strands are provided with strand-removing parts in which the number of strands is partially reduced along the longitudinal direction.

Further, in the above flat cable,
It is effective if the stranded wire is composed of a compressed conductor, and it is further effective if at least the stranded wire arranged at the connection part with the connector is adhered in a covered state with an electrically conductive adhesive. Target.

Further, in the method for manufacturing a flat cable according to the present invention, with respect to a part of a plurality of twisted wires arranged in parallel at a parallel interval, a part of the wires constituting each twisted wire is left and the other wires are The method is characterized by including a cutting step of forming a wire removal portion by partially cutting the wires, and a coating step of integrally covering these twisted wires with an insulating coating.

Further, in the above manufacturing method, it is effective to provide, for each twisted wire, a bonding step of bringing at least the wires of the twisted wires arranged at both ends of the wire removal portion into a bonded state. .

[0010]

According to the flat cable of the present invention, since the core wire is a stranded wire, the wire-stripped portion can be easily formed by partially removing a part of the wire constituting the core wire. It Then, the amount of the strands contained in the unnecessary portion can be reduced by matching the strand removing portion with the unnecessary portion cut out during the manufacturing of the product.

In this case, if the stranded wire is made of a compressed conductor, the strands constituting the stranded wire are kept in close contact with each other to prevent the strands from coming apart, and the cross section of the stranded wire is also prevented. It is possible to maintain the shape in a constant state.

Further, if at least the stranded wire arranged at the connecting portion with the connector is adhered in a covered state with an electrically conductive adhesive material, the strands constituting the stranded wire are separated when the connector is connected. It is possible to prevent disconnection and improve the connection reliability with the connector. In addition, by covering the strands with the conductive adhesive, it is possible to avoid contact failure at the connection portion with the connector.

On the other hand, according to the method of manufacturing a flat cable of the present invention, a plurality of twisted wires arranged in parallel with a parallel interval are partially cut off by a cutting process. Thus, the strand removing portion is formed. Since some strands are left in the strand removal section, the stranded wire is retained without interruption, and the insulation coating is applied in the coating process to form a continuous flat cable in a strip shape. become.

Further, in the above manufacturing method, if a bonding step is provided, at least the strands of the twisted wires arranged at both ends of the strand removal section are brought into a bonded state for each twisted wire. The strands of the stranded wire are held so as not to come apart at both ends of the strand removal portion where the strands have been stripped by the stripping step.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the flat cable and its manufacturing method according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. A front view of the flat cable according to the present embodiment is shown in FIG. This flat cable 1 is common to the conventional flat cable in that a plurality of core wires 2 arranged in parallel at a parallel interval are insulated and covered by an outer sheath 3. However, it is different from the conventional one in that the strand-removing portion 4 is partially provided along the longitudinal direction.

In the flat cable 1 of this embodiment, each core wire 2 is composed of a twisted wire (hereinafter referred to as a twisted wire 2). The twisted wire 2 is made into a compression conductor by inserting a die having a diameter smaller than the outermost diameter thereof, which will be described later. Therefore, each stranded wire 2 is molded so as to have a cross-sectional shape as shown in FIG. It is designed to maintain its cross-sectional shape.

Further, the strand removing section 4 leaves only one strand 5 arranged at the central position of the twisted wire 2 and partially removes the other strands 5 along the longitudinal direction. It is molded by. The strand removing unit 4 is provided in the flat cable 1 in accordance with, for example, an unnecessary portion to be cut off when manufacturing a wire harness.

Further, in the flat cable 1 of this embodiment, each stranded wire 2 is plated with a conductive material such as tin. As a result, the tin coating 6 is formed on the surface of each twisted wire 2, and the strands 5 forming each twisted wire 2 are adhered to each other. Although this plating treatment may be performed over the entire length of the twisted wire 2 used for the flat cable 1,
In particular, it is applied to the position where the end of the twisted wire 2 is formed, such as the end of the flat cable 1 or both ends of the strand removing section 4, that is, the position where a connector described later is to be connected. And is effective.

The flat cable 1 thus constructed
According to this, for example, when the wire harness 20 is manufactured according to the manufacturing process shown in FIG. 6, it is possible to dispose the strand removal part 4 so as to match the unnecessary portion 21 shown by the hatching in FIG. Yes, in this case, the amount of the strand 5 contained in the excised waste is suppressed to the minimum. In addition,
Although it is ideal that there are no wires 5 included in the wire-removing part 4, it is necessary that a minimum number of wires 5 be arranged due to restrictions based on the manufacturing method described later. Therefore, it is preferable that the number of the strands 5 included in the strand removal unit 4 is one, because the resource can be used most effectively and effectively, but the number is limited to one. Instead, for example, when the single strand of wire 5 is extremely thin, a plurality of strands may be used to maintain its strength.

Further, the flat cable 1 of this embodiment is
Since the stranded wire 2 is made of a compressed conductor and is adhered in a covered state by the tin-plated coating film 6, the element wires 5 constituting each are adhered to each other and held so that their cross-sectional shapes do not change. Has been done. Therefore, the flat cable 1 is prevented from being dislocated from the end portion and both end positions of the strand removal portion 4.

By the way, as a connector to be connected to the flat cable 1 as in this embodiment, a pressure contact connector 22 having a connector 8 having a slit-shaped connection port 7 is generally adopted. This press-connecting connector 22 connects the connector 8 to the flat cable 1,
By pressing from the direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction, the connector 8 breaks the outer sheath 3 and the stranded wire 2 inside
Is inserted into the connection port 7 of the connector 8. As a result, the stranded wire 2 is pressed against the connection port 7 to electrically connect the two.

When such a press-connecting connector 22 is connected to the flat cable 1, if the twisted wire 2 is a compression conductor as described above, as shown in FIG. Compared with the case of the wire 25, the cross-sectional shape is maintained even when the wire is inserted into the press-connecting connector 22, as shown in FIG. This allows the stranded wire 2
The contact pressure between the connector and the connector 8 is maintained in an appropriate state, and the electrical connection between the two can be ensured.

When the stranded wire 2 is tin-plated, the effect of preventing the loosening can be further improved, and the tin-plated coating 6 is made to come into contact with the connecting portion of the connector 8 so as to conform to it. , Can improve the connection reliability,
Moreover, there is an advantage that the rust prevention effect can be enhanced by holding the contact portion between the stranded wire and the connector so that air does not enter. Further, in this case, a so-called pre-tenned material in which a plated metal plate is cut and formed by pressing can be adopted as the connector 8.
The manufacturing process of can also be simplified.

The above flat cable 1 can be manufactured by the following manufacturing method. That is, in the method for manufacturing the flat cable 1 according to the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, a feeding roller 9 that winds the twisted wire 2 and a winding roller 10 that winds the manufactured flat cable 1 are used. While sending a plurality of core wires made of twisted wires 2 arranged in a stretched state with a parallel interval between them in the longitudinal direction by a capstan (not shown), a plurality of strands 5 constituting the twisted wires 2 are bonded to each other. Adhesion step 11 for forming a state, cutting step 12 for forming the strand removal part 4, coating step 13 for coating the stranded wire 2 with the outer sheath 3, and cooling the manufactured flat cable 1 to cool its shape. And a cooling step 14 for fixing.

In the adhering step 11, for example, each twisted wire 2 is inserted into a die 15 having a diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the twisted wire 2 wound around the feeding roller 9, thereby compressing the twisted wire 2. It is supposed to be. The coating step 1
3, the stranded wire 2 is inserted into the crosshead die 16 and the molten insulating coating 17 is extruded around the stranded wire 16,
The outer sheath 3 is formed so as to integrally cover the stranded wires 2 while insulating them from each other. The cooling step 14 includes
For example, in the water tank 18, the outer sheath 3 coated on the surface of the twisted wire 2 can be cooled and fixed in a fixed form.

In the cutting step 12, the strand removing portion 4 is formed by removing a part of the strand 5 over a predetermined range for each twisted wire 2. Specifically, for example, as shown in FIG. 5, the strands 5 constituting the twisted wire 2 are cut over a predetermined range by a plurality of pairs of cutters 19 that are arranged close to each other so as to sandwich the twisted wire 2. At the same time, the cut wires 5 are broken off by a removing means such as an air brush (not shown). The cutter 19 is a twisted wire 2
Do not cut only the wire 5 arranged at the center position of
Each of them has a notch 19a in the center thereof that avoids the strand 5.

When the length of the wire-removing portion 4 is short, the cutters 19 may be arranged at each end by a pair. However, when the strand removing section 4 is formed to be long, for example, if a plurality of strands are provided at short intervals equal to or less than the twist pitch of the strands 5 forming the strand 2,
It becomes possible to prevent entanglement of the cut wires 5 and to remove them easily and surely. Further, the strands 5 that have been disentangled with an airbrush or the like can be easily reused by being collected.

According to the method of manufacturing the flat cable 1 as described above, a plurality of core wires made of the twisted wires 2 wound around the pay-out roller 9 are sequentially paid out at parallel intervals. Each is a compressed conductor. Then, while the cutting process 12 is inserted, the cutter 19 is inserted.
A part of the wire 5 is cut by and the wire 5 cut by the airbrush is removed. Here, since the strands 5 arranged near the center position of the twisted wire 2 are left without being cut by the cutout portion 19a, the tension is transmitted by the remaining strands 5 and the twisted wire 2 is expanded. Maintained. Also,
Since the strands 2 are made into a compressed conductor and the strands 5 are in close contact with each other, portions other than the strand removal part 4,
In particular, the portions arranged at both ends of the strand-removing part 4 are less likely to come apart, and the outer diameter dimension is prevented from increasing due to the coming apart.

The stranded wire 2 thus formed is inserted into the covering step 13 and the cooling step 14 one after another to cover the outer sheath 3 so that the stranded wire 2 has a flat wire removing portion 4. The cable 1 is formed. In this case, since the stranded wire 2 is formed so as not to come apart during the bonding step, the outer diameter dimension is prevented from increasing and the covering step 1 is performed.
Insertion into the crosshead die 16 at 3 can be prevented.

In the flat cable 1 and the manufacturing method thereof according to the present invention, the following techniques can be adopted. To arbitrarily set the number of the strands 5 left in the strand removing unit 4. To set the length of the strand removing unit 4 arbitrarily. Select any set of twisted wires 2 that branch in the same direction. The material of the outer sheath 3 should be set arbitrarily. Instead of using the outer sheath 3 formed by extrusion molding, bond the stranded wire with two shield tapes. Instead of the bonding step 11 in which the wires 5 are brought into close contact with each other by using a compressed conductor, or together with the bonding step 11, the wires 5 are bonded to each other by a conductive adhesive such as tin plating. The bonding of the wires 5 with the adhesive is locally carried out at both ends of the wire removing part 4 and a connecting part with a connector. Although the compression conductor is configured in the bonding step 11, instead of this, the compression conductor manufactured in advance in another step may be wound around the feeding roller.

[0031]

As described above in detail, in the flat cable according to the present invention, a plurality of twisted wires arranged in parallel with a parallel interval are integrally insulated and coated by an outer sheath, and at least a part thereof is provided. Since the strand removal part is provided on the stranded wire, the amount of discarded strands can be reduced by matching unnecessary parts that are cut off when it is made into a product such as a wire harness with the strand removal part. It is possible to effectively use the resources, eliminate waste, and reduce the product cost.

Further, in the above flat cable, if the twisted wire is made of a compressed conductor, in addition to the above effect, it is possible to prevent the twisted wire from coming apart, and to maintain the cross-sectional shape unchanged. As a result, there is an effect that the connection reliability with the connector can be improved.

Further, if at least the stranded wire arranged at the connecting portion with the connector is adhered in a covered state with an electrically conductive adhesive, in addition to the above effect, it is arranged at the connecting portion with the connector. With the adhesive, contact failure can be prevented, and the connection reliability can be further improved.

Further, the flat cable manufacturing method according to the present invention includes a cutting step of partially cutting other strands of the stranded wire while leaving a part of the strands of the stranded wire to form a strand removal part, A coating step of integrally coating the wire with an insulating coating, so that the twisted wire can be maintained in a stretched state by the remaining wire, and a flat cable having a wire removal part can be continuously manufactured. There is an effect that can be.

In this manufacturing method, for each twisted wire,
In addition to the above effects, in addition to the above-mentioned effect, if a bonding step is provided in which the strands of the twisted wires disposed at both ends of the strand removal part are bonded, It is possible to prevent the enlargement of the outer diameter due to the loosening and improve the quality.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing an embodiment of a flat cable according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross-sectional shape of a twisted wire of the flat cable of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a connection state of a twisted wire in the flat cable of FIG. 1 with a connector compared with a connection state of a normal twisted wire.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining a method for manufacturing the flat cable of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a cutting step in the manufacturing method of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram for explaining a manufacturing process of a wire harness using a flat cable.

7 is a diagram showing an example of a wire harness manufactured by the manufacturing process of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Flat cable, 2 ... Stranded wire, 3 ... External sheath, 4 ... Stripping part, 5 ... Strand, 6 ... Coating (adhesion) Material), 12 ... Cutting process, 13 ... Covering process, 11 ...
Adhesion process

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of twisted wires (2) arranged in parallel at parallel intervals are integrally insulated and coated by an outer sheath (3), and at least a part of the twisted wires are longitudinally arranged. A flat cable, characterized in that it is provided with a wire stripping portion (4) in which the number of wire strands (5) is partially reduced. 2. The flat cable according to claim 1, wherein the stranded wire is made of a compressed conductor. 3. The stranded wire arranged at least at the connection portion with the connector (22) is adhered in a covered state by an adhesive material (6) having conductivity. The flat cable described in 2. 4. A part of a plurality of twisted wires arranged in parallel at a parallel interval is left by leaving a part of the wires forming each twisted wire and partially cutting the other wires. A method of manufacturing a flat cable (1), comprising: a cutting step (12) for forming a wire removal portion; and a coating step (13) for integrally coating these twisted wires with an insulating coating. 5. A bonding step (11) is provided for each twisted wire so that at least strands of the twisted wires arranged at both ends of the wire removal portion are brought into a bonded state. 4. The method for manufacturing the flat cable according to 4.