JP3663334B2 - Lever switch - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a lever switch for switching of lighting or a wiper of an automobile.
[0002]
[Prior art]
The lever switch (combination switch) is a lever-type composite switch in which a plurality of switches having different functions, such as lighting and wiper, are integrated. Usually, as shown in FIG. It is installed. Generally, it consists of a knob holder 102 and an operation knob 101 attached to the distal end side thereof, and switching of one function is performed by swinging the knob holder 102 in the direction a in FIG. The other functions are switched by turning the operation knob 101 in the direction b in FIG.
[0003]
In the above configuration, a fixed terminal fixed in the knob holder 102 and a movable terminal fixed in the operation knob 101 are provided in order to perform switching by turning the operation knob 101, and corresponding to a predetermined function. It is necessary to connect the lead wire connected to the electrical circuit to the fixed terminal.
[0004]
In a conventional lever switch, the lead wire and the fixed terminal are connected by soldering and joining the lead wire and the fixed terminal. Further, as disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-265638, a contact support member formed integrally with a terminal block having a fixed terminal is also used as a crimping terminal, and the lead wire is crimped with the crimping terminal. Lead wire and fixed terminal were connected.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the conventional lever switch has the following problems. That is, when the lead wire and the fixed terminal are connected by soldering, if the temperature control of the soldering iron is inappropriate, the solder build-up varies, and the soldering reliability and the product yield deteriorate. In order to avoid this problem, a large number of highly skilled workers are required, resulting in an increase in assembly cost.
[0006]
Moreover, in order to remove the flux adhering to the surface of the fixed terminal to be soldered, it is necessary to separately perform a cleaning operation of the fixed terminal and a wiping operation of the surface, which increases the assembly process of the lever switch. There was also a problem.
[0007]
Further, in the lever switch in which the lead wire is caulked to the caulking terminal, a caulking process is necessary, and only the desired one of the plural lead wires is applied to the caulking terminal formed to be small to be accommodated in the lever switch. Since it is necessary to caulk with a tool or a jig after craving, there is a problem that fine and complicated work is required and workability is poor.
[0008]
The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a lever switch capable of reducing assembly cost and improving workability when connecting a lead wire to a fixed terminal.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The invention according to claim 1 is inserted into the knob holder shaft portion, a knob holder that is swingably mounted around the base end, a knob holder shaft portion extending in the axial direction of the knob holder in the knob holder, and the knob holder shaft portion. a terminal block fixed terminals are formed, wherein an operation knob mounted on the distal end side of the rotating operably said knob holder shaft portion about the axis of the knob holder is fixed to the operation knob, of the operation knob In a lever switch having a movable terminal that can be brought into contact with or separated from the fixed terminal by rotating in accordance with a rotating operation, and a lead wire disposed through the knob holder is connected to the fixed terminal , Tokoro male terminals from the fixed terminal is extended to the proximal side, it is provided in the lead tip, while being capable pressed into said male terminal And a female terminal holes position is formed, while being extended substantially in parallel with spaced the male terminal and a predetermined dimension from the terminal block, the engageable projection portion into a hole formed in the female terminals formed A lance inserted through the knob holder shaft portion and assembled in contact with or close to the side surface of the knob holder shaft portion, while engaging the convex portion of the lance with the hole of the female terminal. After the female terminal is press-fitted into the male terminal and the lead wire and the fixed terminal are connected, the knob holder shaft portion is inserted through the terminal block, whereby the relationship between the convex portion and the hole of the female terminal is established. The side surface of the knob holder shaft portion restricts the bending of the lance in the direction in which the fit is released .
[0010]
According to such a configuration, after press-fitting the female terminal to the male terminal by inserting the terminal block to the knob holder shaft portion is assembled by attaching the operation knobs to the distal end side of the knob holder shaft portion.
[0011]
According to a second aspect of the invention, extends from the terminal block to the male terminal and the lance substantially the same direction, by side and abutting or closely spaced vertical walls of the female terminal is formed, the male terminal or It is characterized by limiting the inclination of the female terminal in the lateral direction .
[0015]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the lever switch according to the present embodiment has an external appearance formed by a knob holder 2 and an operation knob 1. In the knob holder 2, a terminal block 5, a fixed terminal 7, a male terminal are provided. A terminal 7 a, a female terminal 10, and a lance 13 are provided, and a movable terminal 6 is provided in the operation knob 1.
[0016]
The knob holder 2 is formed of a hollow resin molded product, and is swingably attached to a swing shaft (not shown) disposed in a steering column of an automobile, for example, in a mounting hole 2c formed in a base end 2a. In the knob holder 2, a hollow substantially cylindrical knob holder shaft portion 4 extending in the axial direction is provided. In addition, the code | symbol 2b in the same figure has shown the front-end | tip of the knob holder shaft part 4. FIG.
[0017]
As shown in FIG. 2, the knob holder shaft portion 4 has a slit 4a formed in the axial direction thereof, and the key 5b of the insertion hole 5a formed in the approximate center of the terminal block 5 is fitted into the slit 4a. The terminal block 5 is supported through the insertion hole 5a. The terminal block 5 has three fixed terminals 7 arranged on the surface 5d at equal intervals, and leg portions 5c are integrally formed at portions corresponding to the fixed terminals 7, respectively.
[0018]
The fixed terminal 7 is made of an arc-shaped copper plate and has an integral male terminal 7a extending in a direction perpendicular thereto. In other words, as shown in FIG. 2, a single copper plate having a predetermined shape is bent at a substantially right angle so that the arc-shaped portion is a fixed terminal 7 and the rectangular portion is a male terminal 7a.
[0019]
As shown in FIG. 4, the leg portion 5c is formed in a U-shaped cross section surrounding the three side surfaces of the male terminal 7a, and the two side surfaces thereof are vertical walls 5ca and 5cb that are in contact with or close to the side surface of the female terminal 10. It is to be made. The vertical walls 5ca and 5cb can prevent the terminals from tilting even if a load in the lateral direction (left and right in the figure) is applied to the male terminal 7a or the female terminal 10.
[0020]
The female terminal 10 is fixed in advance to a tip end of a lead wire 11 disposed through the knob holder 2 by a crimping portion 10b (see FIG. 3), and is formed on a bottom surface of a lance 13 described later. A hole 10a that can be engaged with the convex portion 13a is formed. The female terminal 10 is press-fitted into a male terminal 7 a formed integrally with the fixed terminal 7, thereby connecting the lead wire 11 to the fixed terminal 7.
[0021]
The lance 13 is integrally formed with the terminal block 5, extends substantially parallel to the male terminal 7 a while being spaced apart from the male terminal 7 a by a predetermined dimension, and is elastically deformable when a pressing force is applied.
[0022]
Further, since the lance 13 is in a state of being close to (or abutting with) the side surface of the knob holder shaft portion 4, elastic deformation to the knob holder shaft portion 4 side (inner side) is restricted, and The female terminal 10 is clamped together with the terminal 7a, and the convex portion 13a formed on the lance 13 is more firmly fitted into the hole 10a, so that the female terminal 10 is difficult to be removed from the male terminal 7a. ing.
[0023]
The movable terminal 6 has three convex contact portions 6a that come into contact with the fixed terminal 7 at equal intervals on the surface thereof, and the contact portion 6a is turned by rotating with the turning operation of the operation knob 1. It is configured to be able to contact or be separated from the fixed terminal 7. The movable terminal 6 is supported by a roller 9 that constantly presses the movable terminal 6.
[0024]
The roller 9 has a spring 12 at its center rod and engages the movable terminal 6 while allowing the movable terminal 6 to move somewhat in the axial direction of the knob holder shaft portion 4. The movable terminal 6 is always pressed toward the fixed terminal 7 by the urging force. The roller 9 is configured to be engaged with a projecting portion 1 c formed to project from the inside of the operation knob 1 and interlock with the rotation of the operation knob 1.
[0025]
The stopper 8 is locked to the tip of the knob holder shaft portion 4 by a claw (not shown) provided, and fits the convex portion 1aa of the tip wall portion 1a integrally formed on the tip side of the operation knob 1. A hole 8a to be formed is formed. In addition, two engagement holes 1ab are formed in the distal end wall portion 1a, the claw portion 3a is locked to the engagement hole 1ab, and the cap 3 is configured to block the distal end concave portion 1b of the operation knob 1. Yes.
[0026]
According to the lever switch having the above configuration, when the knob holder 2 is swung in the direction a in FIG. 1 about the base end 2a, switching of one function (for example, switching of the front wiper) is performed, and the operation knob 1 is moved to the knob holder. When the switch 2 is rotated in the direction b in FIG.
[0027]
Next, a method for assembling the lever switch will be described.
First, the wiring 14 bundled with the lead wires 11 to be connected to each fixed terminal 7 is passed through the wiring hole 2d formed in the vicinity of the base end 2a of the knob holder 2, and the female terminal 10 at the tip thereof is connected to the male terminal 7a. . As shown in FIG. 5, the connection procedure is such that the fixed terminal 7 is positioned at a predetermined location on the surface 5d of the terminal block 5, and the male terminal 7a integral with the fixed terminal 7 is projected toward the leg portion 5c (see FIG. 5). (A) and FIG. 2).
[0028]
Next, the female terminal 10 is press-fitted into the male terminal 7a, and the hole 10a formed in the bottom surface of the female terminal 10 is engaged with the convex portion 13a formed in the lance 13 ((b) in the figure). This connection work is performed for all three fixed terminals 7 attached to the terminal block 5, but explanations other than those shown for convenience are omitted.
[0029]
After that, when the insertion hole 5a of the terminal block 5 is inserted into the knob holder shaft portion 4, the lance 13 is restricted from being bent inward by the diameter of the knob holder shaft portion 4 (FIG. 3C). Thereby, it can prevent that the convex part 13a remove | deviates from the hole 10a, and becomes a connection failure (the figure (c)). Further, when the knob holder shaft portion 4 is inserted into the insertion hole 5a of the terminal block 5, the key 5a is fitted into the slit 4a, so that the terminal block 5 rotates with respect to the knob holder 2 and the position of the fixed terminal 7 is reached. Can be prevented from shifting.
[0030]
Finally, a roller 9 having a movable terminal 6 and a stopper 8 are attached to the tip end side of the knob holder shaft portion 4, and the operation knob 1 is assembled so as to cover the roller 9 and the stopper 8. At this time, the convex portion 1aa of the operation knob 1 is fitted into the hole 8a at the tip of the knob holder shaft portion 4, and the roller 9 and the overhang portion 1c are engaged to interlock with the rotation of the operation knob 1. Thus, the movable terminal 6 is configured to rotate with respect to the fixed terminal 7.
[0031]
According to the lever switch of the present embodiment, the lead wire 11 and the fixed terminal 7 can be connected only by press-fitting the female terminal 10 into the male terminal 7a, so that the assembly work of the lever switch can be facilitated. Can be improved. Moreover, since the bending to the inner side of the lance 13 is restricted when the terminal block 5 is assembled to the knob holder shaft portion 4, the convex portion 13a formed on the lance 13 and the hole 10a formed on the female terminal 10 Engagement can be further strengthened.
[0032]
Although the present embodiment has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, instead of press-fitting and fixing the female terminal 10 to the male terminal 7a, an outsert type integral molding may be used. Further, the fixed terminal 7 and the male terminal 7a may be separate, and in this case, it is not necessary that they are adjacent to each other, and it is sufficient if they are electrically connected.
[0033]
Furthermore, the shape of the male terminal 7a and the female terminal 10, the number of the fixed terminals 7 and the lead wires 11, the appearance of the knob holder 2 and the operation knob 1 can be variously changed without changing the gist of the present invention. .
[0034]
【The invention's effect】
According to the first aspect of the invention, it is possible to reduce the assembly cost of the lever switch and to improve the workability when connecting the lead wire to the fixed terminal. In addition, the engagement between the protrusion formed on the lance and the hole formed on the female terminal can prevent the female terminal from coming out of the male terminal, and the connection between the lead wire and the fixed terminal is ensured. Since the side surface of the knob holder shaft portion is assembled with the lance being in contact with or close to the lance, the engagement between the convex portion formed on the lance and the hole formed on the female terminal is released. The bending of the lance in the direction to be removed is limited, and the connection between the lead wire and the fixed terminal can be made more reliable.
[0037]
According to the invention of claim 2 , even if a load in the lateral direction (side direction) is applied to the male terminal or the female terminal, these terminals can be prevented from tilting , and the side surface of the male terminal or the female terminal can be prevented. The inclination to the direction can be limited.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a lever switch according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an assembly of a terminal block, a fixed terminal, and a female terminal in the lever switch according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV in FIG. 1. FIG. 5 shows an assembling procedure of a terminal block, a fixed terminal, and a female terminal in the lever switch according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is sectional drawing, (a) Sectional drawing which shows the state assembled | attached to the terminal block, (b) Sectional drawing which shows the state which press-fitted the female terminal in the male terminal, (c) Knob holder shaft part FIG. 6 is a schematic view showing a general lever switch.
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Operation knob 1a ... Tip wall part 1aa ... Convex part 1ab ... Engagement hole 1b ... Tip recessed part 1c ... Overhang part 2 ... Knob holder 2a ... Base end 2b ... Tip 2c ... Mounting hole 2d ... Wiring hole 3 ... Cap 3a ... Claw 4 ... Knob holder shaft 5 ... Terminal block 5a ... Insertion hole 5b ... Key 5c ... Leg 5d ... Surface 6 ... Movable terminal 6a ... Contact 7 ... Fixed terminal 7a ... Male terminal 8 ... Stopper 8a ... Hole 9 ... roller 10 ... female terminal 10a ... hole 10b ... caulking part 11 ... lead wire 12 ... spring 13 ... lance 13a ... convex part 14 ... wiring

Claims (2)

A knob holder that is swingably mounted around the base end;
A knob holder shaft portion extending in the axial direction of the knob holder in the knob holder;
A terminal block that is inserted through the knob holder shaft portion and has a fixed terminal;
An operation knob attached to the distal end side of the knob holder shaft portion so as to be capable of rotating around the axis of the knob holder ;
A movable terminal fixed to the operation knob and capable of contacting or separating from the fixed terminal by rotating along with the rotation of the operation knob;
In a lever switch in which a lead wire disposed through the knob holder is connected to the fixed terminal,
A male terminal extending from the fixed terminal to the base end side;
A female terminal provided at the tip of the lead wire, capable of being press-fitted into the male terminal, and having a hole formed at a predetermined position ;
A projecting portion is formed extending from the terminal block so as to be substantially parallel to the male terminal while being spaced apart from the male terminal, and is engageable with a hole formed in the female terminal, and is inserted through the knob holder shaft portion. A lance assembled in contact with or close to the side surface of the knob holder shaft portion;
The female terminal is press-fitted into the male terminal while the convex portion of the lance is engaged with the hole of the female terminal to connect the lead wire and the fixed terminal, and then the knob holder shaft is connected to the terminal block. A lever switch characterized by restricting the lance from being bent by a side surface of the knob holder shaft portion in a direction in which the engagement between the convex portion and the hole of the female terminal is released by inserting the portion . The male terminal or the female terminal is inclined in the direction of the side by extending from the terminal block in substantially the same direction as the male terminal and the lance, and forming a vertical wall in contact with or close to the side of the female terminal. lever switch according to claim 1, characterized in that limit.

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