JP3145300B2 - Wire harness with clip and method of manufacturing the same - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a wire harness having a structure in which a bundle of electric wires is wrapped by vacuum forming a resin sheet, and more particularly to a wire harness with a clip in which a clip for fixing to a vehicle body or the like is integrated. It relates to the manufacturing method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a wire harness and a method of manufacturing the same have been proposed in which a bundle of wires is integrated with a resin sheet and solidified into a predetermined form to improve the assemblability to a vehicle body or the like.
It is known in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-314833.

FIGS. 7 and 8 are illustrations of a wire harness and a method of manufacturing the wire harness described in the publication. In this method, first, as shown in FIG. 7, a flat resin sheet 2 on which components such as electric wires and connectors are mounted is placed on the upper surface of a flat vacuum pulling table 1. The resin sheet 2 has many vacuum holes 2a.

[0004] Next, a wire bundle 4 is placed on the resin sheet 2, and a cover film (resin sheet) 3 is put on the resin sheet 2 from above. Then, the air between the resin sheet 2 and the cover film 3 is sucked from the vacuum evacuation hole 2a through the suction hole 5 of the vacuum evacuation table 1, so that the resin sheet 2
The wire bundle 4 and the cover film 3 are brought into close contact with each other.
On the lower surface of the cover film 3, a hot melt adhesive 6
The above suction is performed in a state where the cover film 3 is heated and softened by the heater and the hot melt adhesive 6 is melted.

[0005] Thereby, the air between the resin sheet 2 and the cover film 3 is sucked, and the cover film 3 is securely adhered to the resin sheet 2. At this time, the softened cover film 3 deforms and adheres along the wiring configuration of the wire bundle 4, and at the same time, the cover film 3 is joined to the resin sheet 2 by the molten hot melt adhesive 6, as shown in FIG. Wire harness 7 with flat structure
Is completed.

[0006]

When this type of wire harness 7 is mounted on a vehicle body, generally,
It is conceivable that the clip is integrated with the wire harness in advance, and the wire harness is fixed to the vehicle body by fitting the clip into a through hole of a panel on the vehicle body side. In that case, before attaching the clip to the resin sheet, make a through hole in the resin sheet in advance,
It is conceivable that the clip is integrated with the wire harness by inserting the tip engaging portion of the clip from the inside to the outside of the resin sheet through the through hole and vacuum forming the resin sheet in this state.

[0007] However, if the tip engaging portion of the clip projects from the through hole formed in the resin sheet, water may enter the internal electric wire portion through the gap between the through hole and the clip.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a wire harness with a clip that ensures waterproofness of a clip mounting portion and a method of manufacturing the same.

[0009]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wire harness with a clip, comprising: a bundle of electric wires; a resin sheet vacuum-formed so as to wrap the bundle of electric wires; a through hole formed in the resin sheet; A clip in which a tip engaging portion is inserted from the inside to the outside of the resin sheet into the through hole, and the substrate portion is located inside the resin sheet on the periphery of the through hole;
A ring-shaped thermoplastic resin material which is arranged between the substrate portion of the clip and the inner surface of the resin sheet at the periphery of the through hole and is heated and melted to join the substrate portion and the resin sheet is provided. It is characterized by the following.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the resin sheet on the periphery of the through hole and the substrate portion of the clip are joined to each other by an annular thermoplastic resin material which is heated and melted therebetween. Therefore, the gap between the through hole and the clip can be reliably sealed.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing a wire harness with a clip, wherein a clip having a substrate portion and a tip engaging portion is provided inside a resin sheet wrapping a bundle of electric wires, and the tip engaging portion is provided outside. Along with being accommodated in a facing position, a ring-shaped thermoplastic resin material is accommodated along the surface of the clip on the front end side of the substrate portion, and in this state, the resin sheet is vacuum-formed so as to wrap the wire bundle. By this, the resin sheet is brought into close contact with the surface of the clip on the front end side of the substrate portion with the ring-shaped thermoplastic resin material interposed therebetween, and then the inner peripheral side of the ring-shaped thermoplastic resin material By cutting the resin sheet into an annular shape while heating the resin sheet, a through hole is formed, the tip engaging portion of the clip projects out of the resin sheet from the through hole, and the thermoplastic resin material is melted. Te, characterized by bonding the substrate portion of the resin sheet and the clip by thermoplastic resin material.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, when performing vacuum forming,
Since the electric wire bundle and the clip are formed in a state of being wrapped together by the resin sheet, there is no hole in the clip attaching portion, and the vacuum evacuation is improved. Also, after molding, the resin sheet is cut into an annular shape while heating the resin sheet on the inner peripheral side of the thermoplastic resin material, thereby forming a through-hole to expose the tip engagement portion of the clip, and at the same time, simultaneously forming the thermoplastic resin material. Is melted, and the resin sheet on the periphery of the through hole is joined to the substrate of the clip by the thermoplastic resin, so that the wire harness with the clip according to claim 1 can be obtained in a simple process.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wire harness with a clip, a wire bundle, a resin sheet vacuum-formed so as to wrap the wire bundle, a through-hole formed in the resin sheet, and a resin sheet in the through-hole. A clip in which the tip engaging portion is inserted from the inside toward the outside and the substrate portion is positioned inside the resin sheet around the through hole, and formed on the periphery of the through hole by vacuum forming of the resin sheet. And the annular bent portion fitted to the outer peripheral edge of the substrate portion of the clip, the resin sheet and the substrate portion by being tightly sandwiched between the annular bent portion and the outer peripheral edge of the substrate portion of the clip And a ring-shaped soft sealing material for sealing the gap.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the annular bent portion formed by vacuum forming is fitted to the outer peripheral edge of the base portion of the clip via the soft sealing material. Sealing can be reliably performed with a sealing material.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the method for manufacturing a wire harness with a clip, a clip having a substrate portion and a tip engaging portion is provided inside a resin sheet wrapping a wire bundle, and the tip engaging portion is placed outside the resin sheet. Along with being accommodated in an oriented posture, a ring-shaped soft sealing material is fitted to the outer peripheral edge of the substrate portion of the clip, and in this state, the resin sheet is vacuum-formed so as to wrap the wire bundle, thereby securing the clip. An annular bend is formed on the outer peripheral edge of the substrate portion by press-fitting via a soft seal material, and then a resin sheet is annularly cut on the inner peripheral side of the annular bend to form a through hole. Then, the tip engaging portion of the clip is projected from the through hole to the outside of the resin sheet.

In the invention of claim 4, when vacuum forming,
Since the electric wire bundle and the clip are formed in a state of being wrapped together by the resin sheet, there is no hole in the clip attaching portion, and the vacuum evacuation is improved. In addition, the resin sheet is vacuum-formed to form the annular bent portion and at the same time fit the annular bent portion to the outer peripheral edge of the base portion of the clip, so that a soft seal sandwiched between the annular bent portion and the outer peripheral edge is formed. The material can be compressed, and the gap between the resin sheet and the substrate portion of the clip can be reliably sealed by the force. Therefore, the wire harness with the clip according to the third aspect can be obtained only by cutting the periphery of the clip into an annular shape after forming the vacuum.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing a wire harness with a clip according to the fourth aspect, wherein the substrate portion of the clip is curved in a concave shape in a tip direction.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the base portion of the clip has a concave shape, the outer peripheral edge has a shape protruding outward, and the protruding outer edge has an annular bend formed by vacuum forming. The parts are fitted so as to wrap around, and a large compressive force acts on the soft sealing material,
Sealability is improved.

[0019]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 and 2 are views for explaining a method of manufacturing a wire harness with a clip (hereinafter simply referred to as a wire harness) according to the first embodiment.

In order to obtain the wire harness 10A,
First, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the wire bundle 4 and the clip 15 are accommodated between two resin sheets (made of a thermoplastic resin film) 12 and 13 that sandwich the wire bundle 4. . The clip 15 is provided with two wing-shaped front-end engaging portions 15b fitted to the through holes of the panel at the front end of the support post 15a, and a disk-shaped substrate portion 15c at the base end. The distal end engaging portion 15b is housed below the wire bundle 4 in a posture facing outward. At the same time, the ring-shaped thermoplastic resin material 16 is accommodated along the surface of the clip 15 on the tip side of the substrate portion 15c. The thermoplastic resin material 16 has a lower melting point than the clip 15 and the resin sheet 12.

Then, in this state, the resin sheets 12 and 13 are vacuum formed so as to surround the wire bundle 4. As a result, as shown in FIG. 1A, the resin sheet 12 shrinks so as to wrap around the distal end engaging portion 15b of the clip 15, and the resin sheet 12 closes the distal end side of the substrate 15c of the clip 15. The surface is closely attached with a ring-shaped thermoplastic resin material 16 interposed therebetween. In this case, since the through hole for inserting the distal end engaging portion 15b of the clip 15 is not formed from the beginning, the vacuuming performance at the time of vacuum forming is good, and the adhesion of the resin sheets 12, 13 to the wire bundle 4 is enhanced. In addition,
The two resin sheets 12 and 13 can be joined to each other at the same time as the vacuum suction by applying a hot melt adhesive to the joining surfaces in advance.

After the vacuum forming, as shown in FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b), the resin sheet 12 is cut into an annular shape with a heated blade on the inner peripheral side of the ring-shaped thermoplastic resin material 16. Thereby, the circular through hole 1 is formed around the clip 15.
7 is formed, and the front end engaging portion 15 b of the clip 15 is projected from the through hole 17 to the outside of the resin sheet 12. At the same time, the thermoplastic resin material 16 is melted by the heat of the blade,
The resin sheet 12 and the substrate 15 c of the clip 15 are joined by the thermoplastic resin material 16. Thereby, the illustrated wire harness with clip 10A can be obtained.

In the clip attaching portion of the wire harness 10A, the resin sheet 12 on the periphery of the through hole 17 and the substrate portion 15c of the clip 15 are joined by an annular thermoplastic resin material 16 which is melted by heating. The gap between the through hole 17 and the clip 15 can be reliably sealed, and the intrusion of water from the outside through the clip mounting portion can be reliably prevented.

The wire harness 1 of this embodiment
0A was of a type in which the electric wire bundle 4 was sandwiched between two resin sheets 12 and 13, but as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, one wire harness 10B of the second embodiment was used. The present invention can be similarly applied to a type in which the wire bundle 4 is wrapped by the resin sheet 12 described above.

Next, a description will be given of a wire harness 20A according to a third embodiment of the present invention and a method of manufacturing the same. 4 and 5 are explanatory diagrams of the manufacturing method.

In order to obtain this wire harness 20A,
First, as shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the wire bundle 4 and the clip 25 are accommodated between two resin sheets (made of a thermoplastic resin film) 12 and 13 that sandwich the wire bundle 4. . The clip 25 is provided with a distal end engaging portion 15b fitted to a through hole of a panel at a distal end of a column 15a, and a circular concave substrate portion 25c having a concave distal end surface at a proximal end. . On the outer periphery of the substrate portion 25c, the substrate portion 25c is concavely curved, so that an acute outer peripheral edge 25d is formed.
Are formed so as to protrude outward. The clip 25 is housed below the wire bundle 4 with the tip engaging portion 15b facing outward. At that time, clip 2
For example, an annular soft urethane 26 is fitted as a soft seal material to the outer peripheral edge 25d of the substrate part 25c of No.5.

Then, in this state, the resin sheets 12 and 13 are vacuum-formed so as to surround the wire bundle 4. As a result, as shown in FIG. 4A, the resin sheet 12 shrinks so as to surround the distal end engaging portion 15b of the clip 25, and the outer peripheral edge 25d of the substrate 25c of the clip 25.
The annular bent portion 27 formed from the resin sheet 12
It is press-fitted via the soft urethane 26. Again,
Since a through hole for inserting the distal end engaging portion 15b of the clip 15 is not formed from the beginning, the vacuuming performance during vacuum forming is good, and the adhesion of the resin sheets 12, 13 to the wire bundle 4 is enhanced. In addition, the two resin sheets 12 and 13
By applying a hot-melt adhesive to the joining surfaces in advance, they can be joined to each other simultaneously with vacuum suction.

After the vacuum forming, as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the resin sheet 1 is formed on the inner peripheral side of the annular bent portion 27.
By cutting the ring 2 in an annular shape, a through hole 17 is formed, and the distal end engaging portion 15b of the clip 25 is projected from the through hole 17 to the outside.

In the clip attaching portion of the wire harness 20A, the annular bent portion 27 formed on the resin sheet 12 by vacuum forming is fitted to the outer peripheral edge 25d of the substrate portion 25c of the clip 25 via the soft urethane 26. Therefore, the gap between the through hole 17 and the clip 25 can be reliably sealed, and the intrusion of water from the outside through the clip mounting portion can be reliably prevented.

After the vacuum forming, the resin sheet 12 around the clip 25 only needs to be cut in an annular shape.
Processing is easy. Further, the board portion 25 of the clip 25
Since c is formed in a concave shape, the soft urethane 26 between the annular bent portion 27 and the outer peripheral edge 25d can be largely compressed during the vacuum forming of the resin sheet 12, and the sealing property of the clip attaching portion can be further improved. Can be.

The wire harness 2 of this embodiment
0A was a type in which the electric wire bundle 4 was sandwiched between two resin sheets 12 and 13, but as shown in FIG. 6A and FIG. The present invention can be similarly applied to a type in which the wire bundle 4 is wrapped by the resin sheet 12 described above.

[0033]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the annular thermoplastic resin is formed by sandwiching the peripheral edge of the through hole of the resin sheet and the substrate portion of the clip between them and heating and melting the resin. Since it is joined by the material, the gap between the through hole and the clip can be reliably sealed, and water can be prevented from entering the space containing the wire bundle from the clip attaching portion.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the resin sheet can be vacuum-formed in a state where there is no through-hole in the clip mounting portion, so that the vacuuming performance is improved. After vacuum forming, the wire harness with the clip according to the first aspect can be easily obtained by simply cutting the resin sheet around the clip into an annular shape while heating.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the annular bent portion formed in the resin sheet is fitted to the outer peripheral edge of the substrate portion of the clip via the soft sealing material, the through hole through which the clip is inserted is formed. It is possible to reliably seal with a soft sealing material. Therefore, it is possible to prevent water from entering the space containing the wire bundle from the clip attaching portion.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the resin sheet can be vacuum formed in a state where there is no through hole in the clip mounting portion, so that the performance of vacuuming is improved. Further, the wire harness with the clip according to the third aspect can be easily obtained only by cutting the resin sheet around the clip in an annular shape after the vacuum forming.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the substrate portion of the clip is formed in a concave shape, the soft sealing material between the annular bent portion and the outer peripheral edge can be largely compressed during vacuum forming of the resin sheet. As a result, the sealing performance of the clip mounting portion can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory view of a manufacturing process of a wire harness according to a first embodiment of the present invention, in which (a) is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of a clip mounting portion showing a state in which a resin sheet is vacuum formed;
(B) is a bottom view thereof.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are explanatory views of the next step of FIG. 1 and a finished product obtained by the same step, wherein FIG. 2A is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of a clip attaching portion, and FIG. 2B is a bottom view of FIG.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view of a wire harness according to a second embodiment of the present invention, wherein (a) is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of a clip attaching portion,
(B) is a bottom view thereof.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of a manufacturing process of a wire harness according to a third embodiment of the present invention, in which (a) is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of a clip attaching portion showing a state in which a resin sheet is vacuum formed;
(B) is a bottom view thereof.

5A and 5B are explanatory views of the next step of FIG. 5 and a finished product obtained by the same step, wherein FIG. 5A is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of a clip attaching portion, and FIG.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view of a wire harness according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention, in which (a) is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of a clip attaching portion,
(B) is a bottom view thereof.

FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view used for describing a conventional method of manufacturing this type of wire harness.

FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view of the wire harness obtained by the manufacturing method of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 4 Wire bundle 10A, 10B Wire harness with clip 12, 13 Thermoplastic resin sheet 15 Clip 15b Tip engagement portion 15c Substrate 16 Ring-shaped thermoplastic resin material 17 Through hole 20A, 20B Wire harness with clip 25 Clip 25c Substrate 25d Outer edge 26 Soft urethane (soft sealing material) 27 Annular bend

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H01B 7/00 301 H01B 7/00 307 H01B 13/00 513 H02G 3/30

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] An electric wire bundle, a resin sheet vacuum-formed so as to wrap the electric wire bundle, a through hole formed in the resin sheet, and a front end engaging with the through hole from inside to outside of the resin sheet. Portion, and the substrate portion is positioned between the substrate portion of the clip and the inner surface of the resin sheet at the periphery of the through-hole, and is disposed between the substrate portion of the clip and the inner surface of the resin sheet at the periphery of the through-hole. A wire harness with a clip, comprising: a ring-shaped thermoplastic resin material in which the substrate portion and the resin sheet are joined by being made. 2. Inside the resin sheet wrapping the wire bundle,
A clip having a substrate portion and a distal end engaging portion is accommodated in a posture in which the distal end engaging portion is directed outward, and a ring-shaped thermoplastic resin material is formed along the surface of the clip on the distal end side of the substrate portion. The resin sheet is vacuum-formed so as to wrap the wire bundle in this state, so that the ring-shaped thermoplastic resin material is interposed between the front end surfaces of the base portions of the clips. Then, the resin sheet is closely adhered, and then the resin sheet is cut into an annular shape while being heated on the inner peripheral side of the ring-shaped thermoplastic resin material, thereby forming a through-hole. A wire with a clip, wherein a tip engaging portion is projected outside of a resin sheet, the thermoplastic resin material is melted, and the resin sheet and a substrate portion of the clip are joined by the thermoplastic resin material. Harness manufacturing method. 3. An electric wire bundle, a resin sheet vacuum-formed so as to wrap the electric wire bundle, a through hole formed in the resin sheet, and a front end engaging with the through hole from inside to outside of the resin sheet. And a clip in which the substrate portion is positioned inside the resin sheet at the periphery of the through-hole, and formed on the periphery of the through-hole by vacuum forming of the resin sheet and at the outer periphery of the substrate portion of the clip. A ring-shaped soft seal that seals a gap between the resin sheet and the substrate portion by being tightly sandwiched between the fitted annular bent portion and the outer peripheral edge of the clip substrate portion. A wire harness with a clip, comprising: 4. Inside the resin sheet wrapping the wire bundle,
A clip having a board portion and a tip engaging portion is accommodated in a posture in which the tip engaging portion is directed outward, and a ring-shaped soft sealing material is fitted to an outer peripheral edge of the board portion of the clip, In this state, the resin sheet is vacuum-formed so as to wrap the wire bundle, thereby forming an annular bent portion to be press-fitted to the outer peripheral edge of the base portion of the clip via a soft sealing material. A clip formed by cutting the resin sheet in an annular shape on the inner peripheral side of the annular bent portion to form a through-hole, and projecting the tip engaging portion of the clip from the through-hole to the outside of the resin sheet. Method of manufacturing a wire harness with a cable. 5. The method for manufacturing a wire harness with a clip according to claim 4, wherein the substrate portion of the clip is curved in a concave shape in a tip direction.