KR20030096613A - Junction box for automobile - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A junction box is provided to allow the junction box to be used in a wide variety types of motor vehicles by adopting a programmable logic unit to the junction box. CONSTITUTION: A junction box comprises an element unit(46) where a plurality of elements are connected; a connector(42) having a plurality of terminals for an external connection; and a programmable logic unit(44) which allows for an electrical connection between the elements of the element unit and terminals corresponding to the elements in accordance with a pre-stored program. The programmable logic unit is attachable/detachable to/from a logic loader(50) which stores the program. The programmable logic unit receives and stores new or modified programs from the logic loader.

Description

Junction box for automobile}

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automobile junction box, and more particularly, to an automobile junction box improved by adopting a programmable logic unit to have various versatility for various vehicle models.

In general, wiring is provided through a junction box in order to supply electricity to various electric appliances and motor driving devices of an automobile, and a fuse or a relay is installed in the junction box as a protection device against overcurrent and overload.

Conventional junction box processes the wiring connected to the fuse or relay terminal in the harness with a printed circuit board, the wiring of the printed circuit board is electrically connected to the harness through the connector. Such a junction box has the advantage of advantageously providing the reliability of wiring while improving workability, and can cope with an increase in the quantity of fuses or relays, which is acceptable.

An example of a general automotive junction box is disclosed in Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2002-7649.

Referring to FIG. 1, the junction box has a structure in which a printed circuit board 12 is mounted on a main body 10, and a fuse for protection against overcurrent and overload, such as a fuse or a relay, is mounted on the printed circuit board 12. Elements such as 20a are connected. And the fixture 14 may be comprised in order to mount the main body 10 of a junction box to a vehicle body.

In addition, the printed circuit board 12 of FIG. 1 has a circuit configuration as shown in FIG. 2, and in FIG. 2, the printed circuit board is denoted by the reference numeral '5'.

As shown in FIG. 2, the printed circuit board 5 includes a connector 30, and wiring is formed between the connector 30 and the device unit 20, and the plurality of fuses 20a or the relays are connected to the device unit 20. 20b) is inserted into the socket and configured to be connected to the wiring.

However, the above-described conventional junction box for automobiles has a limitation in that wiring of a circuit implemented on a printed circuit board is fixed. That is, the wiring between the connector 30 and the element portion 20 is fixed on the printed circuit board 5. Therefore, the circuit implemented on the printed circuit board 12 cannot be effectively coped with when the addition of the fuse or the change of the wiring occurs. That is, in the case described above, a situation arises inevitably by changing the printed circuit board, or changing the mold of the junction box.

Therefore, in the multi-vehicle small quantity production system, there is a problem in that it is difficult to flexibly apply the junction box for each vehicle type. In particular, considering that the junction box has a higher frequency of circuit change than the general electronic system, there is a problem in that excessive development cost is required due to the change of the printed circuit board or the mold change of the junction box.

An object of the present invention is to employ a programmable logic unit in a junction box for automobiles, so that the junction box has a general purpose for a variety of vehicles.

Another object of the present invention is to implement a junction box that can correspond to a variety of vehicles, so that changes in circuits or frequent circuit changes for each model can be reflected by the reset of the logic setting state of the programmable logic unit.

1 is a plan view of a conventional automobile junction box

FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram of the junction box illustrated in FIG. 1.

Figure 3 is a block diagram showing a first embodiment of the junction box for a vehicle according to the present invention

4 is a detailed block diagram of the programmable logic unit of FIG. 3.

5 is a diagram for explaining a switching state of the first embodiment;

6 is a block diagram showing a second embodiment of the junction box for a vehicle according to the present invention.

The junction box for a vehicle according to the present invention includes a device unit to which a plurality of devices are connected, a connector having a plurality of terminals for external connection, and a terminal between the respective devices configured in the device unit according to a pre-stored program and corresponding terminals. It may be provided with a programmable logic unit making an electrical connection.

The programmable logic unit may be detachable from a logic loader for storing the program, and configured to receive and store a new or changed program from the logic loader.

The junction box for automobiles according to the present invention includes a fixed element unit to which a plurality of elements are connected, a variable element unit to which a plurality of elements are connected, a plurality of terminals for external connection, and a first group of the terminals According to an embodiment of the present invention, a connector may be connected to a fixed element unit and a wire, and a programmable logic unit may be configured to form an electrical connection between each element of the variable element unit and a second group of terminals corresponding thereto according to a pre-stored program.

Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of a junction box for a vehicle according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The junction box 40 according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes a programmable logic unit 44 between the device unit 46 and the connector 42 as shown in FIG. 3.

That is, the connector 42 and the programmable logic unit 44 are each wired to form a plurality of terminals, and the element unit 46 and the programmable logic unit 44 are also wired to form the number of terminals corresponding to the wiring. do. The connector 42 is here electrically connected with the harness.

In addition, the device unit 46 includes sockets (not shown) corresponding to the plurality of fuses 46a and the relays 46b, and various numbers of fuses 46a and the relays 46b for each vehicle type. May be employed. In addition, the device unit 46 preferably includes corresponding sockets in consideration of the number of fuses 46a and relays 46b that can be employed for various vehicle types.

As a result, the device unit 46 is configured to have a versatility for each vehicle type, and a number of sockets corresponding to each vehicle type are used to insert the fuse 46a and the relay 46b, and the remaining sockets may be used as a dummy. The sockets utilized as dummy may correspond to the fuse 46a and the relay 46b to be further configured.

In addition, the programmable logic unit 44 may correspond to the terminals of the connector 42 and the device unit 46 corresponding to the position of the fuse 46a or the relay 46b of the device unit 46, which may be variously determined for each vehicle type. The fuse 46a or the relay 46b serves to switch so as to be electrically connected.

The program for determining the switching state between the connector 42 and the element portion 46 may be loaded into the programmable logic portion 44 using the electrically removable logic loader 50.

The logic loader 50 is an apparatus for loading a memorized program into the programmable logic unit 44. The logic loader 50 includes a memory capable of reading / writing program data, and writes program data to be newly applied or changed to the memory. It is preferable to have a means for making it possible, and a means for reading the program data stored in the memory to be transmitted to the programmable logic unit 44.

As an example of the logic loader 50 having the above configuration, a computer that can be installed in a junction box manufacturing line or a setting line can be presented. In the case of a computer, an input / output port and a connection of the programmable logic unit 44 are connected by cables. In this state, program data to be newly applied or changed may be transmitted to the programmable logic unit 44 and stored.

Meanwhile, the programmable logic unit 44 may be configured as shown in FIG. 4, and the programmable logic unit 44 is connected to the interface unit 44a and the element unit 46 connected by wiring to the connector 42. A memory 44d having an interface portion 44b and configured with a microprocess unit 44c for determining a wiring state between the interface portions 44a and 44b, and storing program data for the operation of the microprocess unit 44c. ) Is configured.

The microprocessor unit 44c is connected to the logic loader 50 that is externally connected to receive program data which is logic data, and the transferred program data is stored in the memory 44c under the control of the microprocessor unit 44. Stored. Here, the memory 44c is preferably configured such that the read / write of data can be repeated like the flash memory.

As described above, when the first embodiment is configured, when there is a need to change the connection state between the device unit 46 and the connector 42, the controller 110 is programmed to store the corresponding connection and stored in the logic loader 50. The program stored in 50 is transferred to the programmable logic unit 44 and stored in the memory 44d. Then, the microprocessor unit 44 determines the connection state between the element portion 46 and the connector 42 with reference to the program stored in the memory 44d.

In addition, in the device unit 46, the setting positions of devices such as the fuse 46a and the relay 46b are determined according to the connection state described above.

As a specific example, referring to FIG. 5, in the case of the vehicle type 'A', the programmable logic unit 40 corresponds to the wirings b1 and b2 connected to the element unit 46 corresponding to the wirings a1 and a2 connected to the connector 42. (Path n1), and in the case of the vehicle type 'B', the wires b11 and b12 are connected in correspondence with the wires a1 and a2 (path n2). This connection state is determined with reference to the program stored in the memory 44d as described above.

Therefore, when the device unit is configured to have an accommodating limit of a device that can be generalized in response to various vehicle types, an embodiment according to the present invention may be applied to a junction box corresponding to various vehicle types, and when a wiring is newly applied or changed. Even without changing the printed circuit board or the mold, it is possible to change various wiring states at a desired level by simply changing a simple program of the programmable logic unit.

On the other hand, according to the second embodiment of the present invention, the fixed element unit 66 which is commonly applied to all types of vehicles and the variable element unit 68 which can vary in configuration of a fuse or a relay arbitrarily, The fixed element unit 66 may be wired to the connector 62 through the printed circuit board 60, and the variable element unit 68 may be wired to the connector 62 through the programmable logic unit 64.

In this case, the configuration and operation of the programmable logic unit 64 and the logic loader 50 are the same as in the first embodiment, and duplicate description thereof will be omitted.

The second embodiment can also correspond to various vehicle types as in the first embodiment, and the program can be simplified as compared with the first embodiment.

Junction boxes for automobiles according to the present invention can be applied to a variety of vehicles and systems in general, has the advantage of excellent expandability.

In addition, since the wiring change between the element portion and the connector is made simply by changing the program, the process of manufacturing the junction box can be simplified and the cost can be reduced.

Claims (6)

An element unit to which a plurality of elements are connected; A connector having a plurality of terminals for external connection; And And a programmable logic unit configured to make an electrical connection between each element included in the element unit and a terminal corresponding thereto according to a pre-stored program. The method of claim 1, The programmable logic unit may be detachable from a logic loader for storing the program, and the junction box for a vehicle may be configured to receive and store a new or changed program from the logic loader. The method of claim 1, wherein the programmable logic unit, A first interface unit wired to the connector; A second interface unit wired to the device unit; A memory capable of reading / writing a program for determining wiring; And a micro process unit configured to determine wirings between the first interface unit and the second interface unit with reference to the program stored in the memory. A fixed element unit to which a plurality of elements are connected; A variable element unit to which a plurality of elements are connected; A connector having a plurality of terminals for external connection, the first group of terminals being wired to the fixed element portion; And And a programmable logic unit configured to make an electrical connection between each element of the variable element unit and a second group of terminals corresponding thereto according to a pre-stored program. The method of claim 4, wherein The programmable logic unit may be detachable from a logic loader for storing the program, and the junction box for a vehicle may be configured to receive and store a new or changed program from the logic loader. The method of claim 4, wherein the programmable logic unit, A first interface unit wired with a second group of the connector; A second interface unit wired to the variable element unit; A memory capable of reading / writing a program for determining wiring; And a micro process unit for determining a wiring between the first interface unit and the second interface unit with reference to a program stored in the memory.