JP5609239B2 - Electrical junction box - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an electrical junction box that is mounted on an automobile and supplies power to various in-vehicle electrical components.

  Conventionally, there has been proposed a measure for protecting an electric connection box mounted on an automobile and supplying electric power to various on-vehicle electrical components from an impact at the time of a vehicle collision. For example, in Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-159116), a junction box body is attached to the vehicle body side via a plurality of attachment portions in the vicinity of the rear of a dash panel that partitions an engine room and a vehicle compartment. Electrical connection that allows the connection box body to move from its mounting position on the vehicle body side when the dash panel deformed so that it jumps out into the passenger compartment in the event of a collision collides with the connection box body. The box is described.

  By the way, in the field of automobiles, in recent years, the electrification has progressed, and accordingly, the number of electrical components arranged in the passenger compartment has increased. As a result, the space for disposing the electric junction box in the passenger compartment is becoming narrower, and there may be a case where a vehicle-mounted component such as an EPS (electric power steering) motor is present near the rear of the electric junction box in the front-rear direction of the vehicle. . Therefore, when protecting the electric junction box from the impact at the time of a vehicle collision, it is necessary to consider vehicle-mounted components arranged near the rear of the electric junction box in the front-rear direction of the vehicle.

  However, in the electrical junction box as described in Patent Document 1, since the junction box body is merely movable from the mounting position on the vehicle body side, the dash panel and the vehicle mounting that are deformed so as to jump out to the vehicle compartment side are provided. If the junction box body is sandwiched between parts, the junction box body may be damaged.

JP 2002-159116 A

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an electric junction box having a novel structure capable of avoiding the junction box body from being pinched and damaged in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle due to the impact at the time of collision. There is.

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, in the electrical junction box in which the vehicle longitudinal dimension of the junction box body is larger than the vehicle lateral dimension, the attachment state of the junction box body is caused by an impact at the time of a vehicle collision. A movement restricting portion for restricting movement of the junction box body in the vehicle front-rear direction when the junction box body is released is provided at either the vehicle front end or the vehicle rear end of the junction box body, and the junction box body An impact receiving portion that is provided at one of the vehicle front end and the vehicle rear end and receives an impact at the time of a vehicle collision and the movement restricting portion are located at different positions in the vehicle left-right direction.

  According to the first aspect, since the impact receiving portion and the movement restricting portion are provided at different positions in the left-right direction of the vehicle, the junction box body is moved forward of the vehicle around the movement restricting portion due to an impact at the time of a vehicle collision. Side or vehicle rear side. Thereby, the vehicle front-back direction dimension of a junction box main body can be made smaller than the vehicle left-right direction dimension. As a result, it is possible to prevent the junction box body from being sandwiched and damaged by the other members deformed due to the impact at the time of the collision in the vehicle front-rear direction.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the one described in the first aspect, one upper mounting portion located on the upper side of the junction box body is provided and located on the lower side of the junction box body. At least one lower mounting portion is provided, and the upper mounting portion is set to have a higher strength against the impact at the time of the vehicle collision than the lower mounting portion, and the lower side due to the impact at the time of the vehicle collision. The movement restricting portion is configured by the upper attachment portion that attaches the junction box body to the vehicle body side in a state where all of the attachment portions are damaged.

  According to the second aspect, the connection box body can be rotated toward the vehicle front side or the vehicle rear side without bringing the connection box body into contact with another member mounted on the vehicle. As a result, it is possible to prevent the connection box body and other members from being damaged due to contact with the other members of the connection box body.

  A third aspect of the present invention is the one described in the second aspect, wherein a bolt insertion hole is formed in the upper attachment part and through which an attachment bolt used when attaching the upper attachment part to the vehicle body side is inserted. It is made into the shape of a long hole extended in the vehicle front-back direction.

  According to the third aspect, since the mounting bolt can be relatively displaced in the vehicle front-rear direction with respect to the upper mounting portion, the junction box body can be moved forward or rearward of the vehicle by an impact at the time of a collision. . This makes it difficult for the impact exerted on the junction box body when the lower attachment portion is damaged to be transmitted to the upper attachment portion. As a result, it becomes easy to damage all of the lower mounting portions while leaving only the upper mounting portion.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the movement restricting portion is provided at either the vehicle front end or the vehicle rear end of the junction box body, so that an impact at the time of a vehicle collision is provided. This is a vehicle body side contact portion that contacts the vehicle body side when the attachment state of the junction box body is released due to the above.

  According to the fourth aspect, the junction box main body can be rotated to the vehicle front side or the vehicle rear side around the contact portion of the movement restriction portion (vehicle body side contact portion) to the vehicle body side. As a result, the vehicle longitudinal dimension of the junction box body can be made smaller than the vehicle lateral dimension. As a result, it is possible to prevent the junction box body from being sandwiched in the vehicle longitudinal direction by other members deformed due to the impact at the time of the collision and being damaged.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the fourth aspect, in a state where the connector is fitted to the connector provided on the circuit board housed in the junction box body and is fitted to the connector. The vehicle body side contact portion is configured by a mating connector protruding from the connection box body.

  According to the 5th aspect, a vehicle body side contact part can be easily provided by utilizing an other party connector skillfully.

  According to the present invention, the vehicle longitudinal dimension of the connection box body can be made smaller than the vehicle lateral dimension by rotating the connection box body toward the vehicle front side or the vehicle rear side around the movement restricting portion. . As a result, it is possible to prevent the junction box body from being damaged due to being sandwiched in the vehicle front-rear direction by other members deformed at the time of collision.

The model figure which shows the state by which the electric junction box as 1st embodiment of this invention was attached to the vehicle body side from the side. The model figure which shows the electric junction box shown in FIG. 1 from upper direction. The model figure explaining a motion of the electrical junction box when the impact at the time of a vehicle collision is added with respect to the electrical junction box shown in FIG. The model figure which shows the state from which the electric junction box as 2nd embodiment of this invention was attached to the vehicle body side from the side. The model figure which shows the electric junction box shown in FIG. 4 from upper direction. Explanatory drawing which shows the outline of the circuit board accommodated in the electrical-connection box shown in FIG. Explanatory drawing which shows the outline of the other aspect of the circuit board accommodated in the electrical-connection box shown in FIG. Explanatory drawing which shows the outline of another aspect of the circuit board accommodated in the electrical-connection box shown in FIG. The model figure explaining the motion of the electrical junction box when the impact at the time of a vehicle collision is added with respect to the electrical junction box shown in FIG.

  Hereinafter, in order to clarify the present invention more specifically, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  1 and 2 show a state in which the electrical junction box 10 according to the first embodiment of the present invention is attached to the vehicle body side. The electrical junction box 10 has a structure in which three attachment portions 14, 16, 18 are provided to the junction box body 12. In the following description, the vehicle front-rear direction is the left-right direction in FIGS. 1 and 2, and the vehicle up-down direction is the vertical direction in FIGS.

  More specifically, the junction box body 12 has a structure in which electrical components such as relays and fuses, circuit boards, and the like are accommodated, and has a rectangular block shape as a whole. The longitudinal dimension (dimension in the left-right direction in FIG. 2) of the junction box body 12 is sufficiently larger than the width dimension (dimension in the vertical direction in FIG. 2). Projecting portions 20 and 22 projecting outward in the longitudinal direction are provided on both end surfaces in the longitudinal direction of the junction box body 12.

  Two lower attachment portions 14, 16 for attaching the connection box body 12 to the vehicle body side are provided on one surface in the height direction of the connection box body 12 (upper side in FIG. 1). One lower mounting portion 14 is located on one end side in the longitudinal direction of the junction box body 12, and a bolt insertion hole (not shown) through which a mounting bolt 24 for mounting the lower mounting portion 14 on the vehicle body side is inserted. ) Is formed on the outer side in the longitudinal direction from the junction box body 12. The other lower attachment portion 16 is located on the other end in the longitudinal direction, and a bolt insertion hole (not shown) through which an attachment bolt 26 for attaching the lower attachment portion 16 to the vehicle body side is inserted is a junction box. The main body 12 is formed outward in the longitudinal direction. It should be noted that the strength of the lower mounting portions 14 and 16 with respect to the impact at the time of the vehicle frontal collision is smaller than the strength of the connection box body 12 with respect to the impact at the time of the vehicle frontal collision.

  On the other surface in the height direction of the junction box body 12 (downward in FIG. 1), one upper mounting portion 18 for attaching the junction box body 12 to the vehicle body side is provided at the other longitudinal end of the junction box body 12. ing. The upper mounting portion 18 extends outward in the height direction of the connection box body 12 (upward in FIG. 1) at the extending end of the extension piece 28 extending outward in the width direction (upward in FIG. 2) from the connection box body 12. It has a structure in which a protruding piece 30 that protrudes is provided.

  The strength of the upper mounting portion 18 against the impact at the time of the vehicle frontal collision is set to be greater than the strength of the lower mounting portions 14 and 16 against the impact at the time of the vehicle frontal collision. It is smaller than the strength against impact. In addition, as a method of setting the strength against the impact at the time of the vehicle frontal collision of the lower mounting portions 14, 16 as a method of setting the strength against the impact at the time of the vehicle frontal collision of the lower mounting portions 14, 16 Conventionally known various methods such as a method of forming a breakage-inducing hole for inducing in each of the lower mounting portions 14 and 16 and a method of providing a reinforcing rib on the upper mounting portion 18 can be employed.

  A bolt insertion hole 34 through which a mounting bolt 32 for mounting the upper mounting portion 18 to the vehicle body is inserted is formed in the protruding piece 30 of the upper mounting portion 18 so as to penetrate in the thickness direction of the protruding piece 30. The bolt insertion hole 34 has a substantially constant width dimension and extends straight in the width direction of the protruding piece 30 (longitudinal direction of the connection box body 12).

  In such an electrical junction box 10, the mounting portions 14, 16, and 18 are bolted to the vehicle body side immediately behind the dash panel 40 that partitions the engine room 36 and the vehicle compartment 38 positioned in front of the vehicle. Thereby, the junction box main body 12 is attached to the vehicle body side so that the longitudinal direction thereof coincides with the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. In this state, the bolt insertion hole 34 formed in the protruding piece 30 extends in the front-rear direction of the vehicle, and the mounting bolt 32 is inserted through the vehicle rear end of the bolt insertion hole 34. Further, an EPS motor 42 as a vehicle-mounted component attached to the vehicle body side is disposed immediately behind the junction box body 12. The mounting portions 14, 16, and 18 are bolted to members located near the electrical junction box 10, such as other in-vehicle components, side panels, phosphorus hoses, and mounting brackets provided on them. The

  Next, the movement of the junction box body 12 when the vehicle has a frontal collision will be described with reference to FIG. When the vehicle collides front, the dash panel 40 is pushed toward the compartment 38 by a rigid member 44 such as an engine disposed in the engine room 36 as shown in FIG. Thereby, the dash panel 40 is deformed so that a part of the dash panel 40 protrudes into the passenger compartment 38.

  When the deformed dash panel 40 comes into contact with the protruding portion 20 of the connection box main body 12, an impact at the time of collision is applied to the connection box main body 12. That is, in the present embodiment, the impact receiving portion is configured by the protruding portion 20.

  Since the strength of the upper mounting portion 18 is set to be higher than that of the lower mounting portions 14 and 16 in the case of a vehicle frontal collision, all the lower mounting portions 14 and 16 are ahead of the upper mounting portion 18. fall into disrepair. As a result, the connection box main body 12 is bolted to the vehicle body only by the upper mounting portion 18.

  In particular, in this embodiment, the bolt insertion hole 34 formed in the upper mounting portion 18 extends in the vehicle front-rear direction, so that when all the lower mounting portions 14 and 16 are damaged, the mounting bolt 32 is the bolt insertion hole. The vehicle moves in the front side of the vehicle. Thereby, the junction box main body 12 moves to the vehicle rear side. As a result, when all of the lower mounting portions 14 and 16 are damaged, the impact at the time of collision becomes difficult to be transmitted to the upper mounting portion 18, and the connection box body 12 is bolted to the vehicle body side only by the upper mounting portion 18. Can be easily realized.

  FIG. 3 (b) shows an impact at the time of collision from the state where the connection box body 12 is bolted to the vehicle body side only by the upper mounting portion 18 as described above. As described above, the junction box body 12 rotates in the direction in which the protruding portion 20 moves to the left rear side of the vehicle, with the boundary between the extending piece 28 and the protruding piece 30 as the center. As is clear from this, in the present embodiment, the movement restricting portion is configured by the upper mounting portion 18. When the connection box main body 12 rotates toward the rear side of the vehicle, the extension piece 28 is pulled and extended, and the upper mounting portion 18 may be damaged depending on the magnitude of impact at the time of collision.

  In the electrical junction box 10 having the above-described structure, all of the lower mounting portions 14 and 16 are damaged before the upper mounting portion 18 due to an impact at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle, and are connected only by the upper mounting portion 18. Since the box body 12 is attached to the vehicle body, it is possible to prevent the connection box body 12 from jumping out to the rear of the vehicle due to an impact at the time of collision. As a result, it is possible to avoid the junction box body 12 from colliding with the EPS motor 42 at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle.

  The connection box body 12 rotates in the direction in which the protrusion 20 moves to the left rear of the vehicle around the boundary between the extension piece 28 and the protrusion piece 30. The vehicle longitudinal dimension is smaller than the vehicle lateral dimension. As a result, it is possible to prevent the junction box main body 12 from being sandwiched and damaged between the dash panel 40 and the EPS motor 42 which are deformed so as to jump out toward the passenger compartment 38 due to an impact at the time of collision.

  Since the protruding portion 20 and the upper mounting portion 18 are separated from each other, it is possible to lengthen the moment arm that causes the connection box body 12 to rotate around the boundary portion between the extending piece 28 and the protruding piece 30. As a result, the connection box body 12 can be easily rotated even if the external force acting in the direction of causing the connection box body 12 to rotate is small.

  Next, an electrical connection box 46 as a second embodiment of the present invention will be described based on FIGS. 4 and 5. In the following description, members and parts having the same structure as those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals as those of the first embodiment, and detailed descriptions thereof are omitted. To do.

  The electrical connection box 46 of this embodiment differs in the upper attachment part 48 compared with the electrical connection box (10) of 1st embodiment. In the present embodiment, the strength of the upper mounting portion 48 with respect to the impact at the time of a vehicle frontal collision is set to be substantially the same as that of the lower mounting portions 14 and 16, and bolt insertion holes (not shown) formed in the upper mounting portion 48. ) Penetrates the protruding piece 30 in the thickness direction with a substantially constant circular cross section.

  Further, the connectors 52 and 54 provided on the circuit board 50 (see FIG. 6) accommodated in the connection box main body 12 protrude outward in the longitudinal direction on each of both end faces in the longitudinal direction of the connection box main body 12. Is provided. In particular, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, the circuit board 50 is constituted by a double-sided mounting board, and the connector 52 mounted on the surface side of the circuit board 50 is one in the longitudinal direction of the connection box body 12. While projecting from the end surface, the connector 54 mounted on the back surface side of the circuit board 50 projects from the other end surface in the longitudinal direction of the junction box body 12. As a result, the connectors 52 and 54 protruding from both end faces in the longitudinal direction of the junction box body 12 are present at different positions in the width direction of the junction box body 12 (vertical direction in FIG. 5).

  Thus, in each of the connectors 52 and 54 protruding from the end surface in the longitudinal direction of the junction box body 12, various circuit elements (not shown) mounted on the circuit board 50 and electrical components (not shown) mounted on the vehicle are provided. The mating connectors 56 and 58 provided at one end of a wire harness (not shown) for electrically connecting the two are inserted. These mating connectors 56, 58 protrude from the end surface in the longitudinal direction of the junction box body 12 in a state of being fitted to the connectors 52, 54.

  The connectors 52 and 54 projecting from both end faces in the longitudinal direction of the junction box body 12 are constituted by connectors mounted on the respective surfaces of the circuit board 50 made of a double-sided mounting board, as shown in FIG. There is no need to be. For example, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, two circuit boards 50a and 50b are accommodated in the junction box body 12 in a state of facing each other in the thickness direction, and mounted on one circuit board 50a. The connected connector 52 may protrude from one end surface in the longitudinal direction of the connection box body 12, and the connector 54 mounted on the other circuit board 50 b may protrude from the other end surface in the longitudinal direction of the connection box body 12. Even in such a case, the connectors 52 and 54 are present at different positions in the width direction of the junction box body 12. The two circuit boards 50a and 50b may be electrically connected by a board connecting connector 56 as shown in FIG. 7, or a flexible flat cable as shown in FIG. (FFC) 58 may be electrically connected.

  In the electrical junction box 46 as described above, the mounting portions 14, 16, and 48 are bolted to the vehicle body side in a state in which the longitudinal direction of the junction box body 12 substantially coincides with the vehicle longitudinal direction immediately behind the dash panel 34. The Thereby, the junction box main body 12 is attached to the vehicle body side. In this state, the connector 52 and the mating connector 56 fitted to the connector 52 are located on the vehicle front side, and the connector 54 and the mating connector 58 fitted to the connector 54 are on the vehicle rear side. Is located. Further, the mating connector 56 located on the front side of the vehicle is located on the left side of the vehicle (the lower side in FIG. 5) relative to the mating connector 58 located on the rear side of the vehicle. Note that an EPS motor 42 is disposed immediately behind the junction box body 12 as in the first embodiment.

  Next, the movement of the junction box body 12 when the vehicle collides front will be described based on FIG. First, the dash panel 40 deformed so as to protrude toward the passenger compartment 38 due to a frontal collision of the vehicle comes into contact with the mating connector 56, so that an impact at the time of the collision is applied to the junction box body 12. That is, in the present embodiment, the impact receiving portion is configured by the mating connector 56. Although not shown, there is a wire harness provided with the mating connector 56 at one end between the dash panel 40 and the mating connector 56, and the dash panel 40 is interposed via the wire harness. And the mating connector 56 come into contact with each other.

  Since the strength against impact at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle is substantially the same in all the mounting portions 14, 16, and 48, all of the mounting portions 14, 16, and 48 are damaged by the impact at the time of collision. When an impact at the time of collision is applied to the junction box body 12 in a state where all the mounting portions 14, 16, 48 are damaged in this manner, the mating connector 58 is moved to the EPS as shown in FIG. Contact the motor 42. Although not shown, there is a wire harness provided with the mating connector 58 at one end between the mating connector 58 and the EPS motor 42, and the dash panel 40 is connected via the wire harness. And the mating connector 58 come into contact with each other.

  Since the mating connector 56 is located on the left side of the vehicle with respect to the mating connector 58, the impact at the time of the collision with the mating connector 58 in contact with the EPS motor 42 is applied to the connection box body 12 via the mating connector 56. As shown in FIG. 9B, the front end (longitudinal direction end) of the junction box body 12 is centered on the contact position between the mating connector 58 and the EPS motor 42, as shown in FIG. 9B. Rotate in the direction of movement. As is clear from this, in the present embodiment, the counterpart connector 58 forms a vehicle body side contact portion as a movement restricting portion.

  In the electrical junction box 46 having the above-described structure, the contact position of the mating connector 56 and the EPS motor 42 in a state where all the mounting portions 14, 16, and 48 are damaged by the impact at the time of a vehicle frontal collision is the mating side. Since the connector 58 is on the left side of the vehicle, the junction box body 12 rotates in the direction in which one end in the longitudinal direction (vehicle front end) moves to the left rear of the vehicle with the contact position between the mating connector 58 and the EPS motor 42 as the center. Thereby, the vehicle front-back direction dimension of the junction box main body 12 in the attachment state to the vehicle body side can be made smaller than the vehicle left-right direction dimension. As a result, it is possible to prevent the junction box body 12 from being pinched and damaged between the dash panel 40 and the EPS motor 42 which are deformed so as to jump out to the vehicle compartment 38 side.

  Since the mating connector 56 that receives an impact at the time of a vehicle collision and the mating connector 58 that contacts the EPS motor 42 are separated from each other, the connection box body 12 is rotated around the contact position of the mating connector 58 and the EPS motor 42. The arm of the moment to be generated can be lengthened. As a result, the connection box body 12 can be easily rotated even if the external force acting in the direction of causing the connection box body 12 to rotate is small.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was explained in full detail, this invention is not limited by the specific description in embodiment. For example, in the first embodiment, instead of the upper attachment portion 18, an upper attachment portion having the same shape as the lower attachment portions 14, 16 is provided on the upper side of the connection box body 12, and the lower attachment portion 14, Instead of 16, a lower mounting portion having the same shape as the upper mounting portion 18 is provided on the lower side of the connection box body 12, and all of the upper mounting portion is damaged by an impact at the time of collision, and only the lower mounting portion is provided. Thus, the junction box body 12 may be attached to the vehicle body side. In such an aspect, since the junction box main body 12 rotates around the lower attachment portion, the same effect as in the first embodiment can be obtained.

  In the second embodiment, the impact receiving portion and the vehicle body side contact portion do not need to be configured by the mating connectors 56 and 58 fitted to the connectors 52 and 54 provided on the circuit board 50. For example, either one or both of the impact receiving portion and the vehicle body side contact portion may be configured by a protrusion protruding from the longitudinal end surface of the junction box body 12. Thus, even if the circuit board accommodated in the junction box body 12 is not a double-sided mounting board or two circuit boards are not accommodated in the junction box body 12, the impact at the time of collision is used. The junction box body 12 can be rotated.

  In the first and second embodiments, the frontal collision of the vehicle refers to a collision in which the junction box body moves toward the rear of the vehicle due to an impact at the time of the collision, and is not limited to a collision from the front of the vehicle. For example, a collision from a direction inclined with respect to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle is also included.

  In the first and second embodiments, the case where the connection box main body is protected from the impact at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle has been described, but in the present invention, the connection box main body is protected from the impact caused by the collision from the vehicle rear side. It also includes the case of protection.

10: Electrical junction box, 12: Junction box body, 14: Lower attachment portion, 16: Lower attachment portion, 18: Upper attachment portion (movement limiting portion), 20: Projection portion (impact receiving portion), 36: Engine Room: 38: Car compartment, 40: Dash panel, 42: EPS motor, 50: Circuit board, 54: Connector, 56: Mating connector (impact receiving part), 58: Mating connector (vehicle body side contact part)

Claims (5)

In the electrical junction box in which the vehicle longitudinal dimension of the junction box body is larger than the vehicle lateral dimension,
When the attachment state of the junction box body is released due to an impact at the time of a vehicle collision, a movement restriction unit that restricts the movement of the junction box body in the vehicle front-rear direction is provided on the vehicle front end of the junction box body and the vehicle. An impact receiving portion that is provided at any one of the rear ends, is provided at either the front end or the rear end of the junction box body, and receives a shock in the event of a vehicle collision, and the movement limiting portion includes the vehicle An electrical junction box characterized by being in different positions in the left-right direction.   One upper mounting portion is provided on the upper side of the junction box body, and at least one lower mounting portion is provided on the lower side of the junction box body, and the lower mounting portion is provided. The upper mounting portion has a higher strength against impact at the time of a vehicle collision, and the connection box body is attached to the vehicle body side in a state where all of the lower mounting portion is damaged by the impact at the time of vehicle collision. The electrical junction box according to claim 1, wherein the movement restricting portion is configured by an upper mounting portion.   The electricity according to claim 2, wherein a bolt insertion hole formed in the upper attachment portion and into which an attachment bolt used when attaching the upper attachment portion to the vehicle body is inserted has a long hole shape extending in the vehicle front-rear direction. Connection box.   The movement restricting portion is provided at either the vehicle front end or the vehicle rear end of the junction box body, and when the attachment state of the junction box body is released due to an impact at the time of a vehicle collision, the vehicle body side The electrical junction box according to claim 1, wherein the electrical junction box is a vehicle body side contact portion that contacts the vehicle.   The vehicle body side contact portion is configured by a mating connector that fits with a connector provided on a circuit board accommodated in the junction box body and projects from the junction box body while being fitted with the connector. The electrical junction box according to claim 4.

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