JP7512778B2 - Buckle device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a buckle device capable of holding a tongue plate of a seat belt.

2. Description of the Related Art Vehicles such as automobiles are provided with a buckle device capable of holding a tongue plate of a seat belt (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
The buckle device described in Patent Document 1 includes a fixing plate that is attached to a vehicle seat, a buckle body that holds a tongue plate, a connecting member that connects the fixing plate and the buckle body, and a cylindrical boot that covers part of the fixing plate, the entire connecting member, and the periphery of part of the buckle body.

This buckle device is attached to the vehicle seat by fastening the fixing plate to the vehicle seat with screws. The buckle body is also provided with a switch for detecting whether the tongue plate is being held and a wire harness for the switch. This wire harness passes through the inside of the boot and is extended in such a way that it is exposed to the outside at the end of the boot on the fixing plate side.

Patent No. 6177823

When the fixing plate is attached to the vehicle seat during installation of the buckle device, the wire harness for the switch passes near the screw-fastened portion of the fixing plate. For this reason, when the buckle device is attached to the vehicle seat, the wire harness is likely to come into contact with the screw-fastened portion of the fixing plate (more specifically, the fastening member such as the bolt used for screw fastening), and this contact may result in a decrease in the durability of the wire harness.

The present invention was made in consideration of these circumstances, and its purpose is to provide a buckle device that can prevent deterioration of the durability of the wire harness.

The buckle device for solving the above problem includes a fixing plate having a fastening portion for screw fastening, a buckle body that holds the tongue plate of a seat belt, a connecting member that connects the fixing plate and the buckle body, a boot that extends to cover the outer surface of the connecting member, a switch that is provided on the buckle body for detecting that the tongue plate is being held, and a wire harness for the switch that passes through a gap between the connecting member and the boot and extends to the outside of the gap, and has a locking portion that is provided between the buckle body and the fastening portion and locks the wire harness in a state where it is bent in a direction away from the fastening portion.

According to the above configuration, the wire harness for the switch can be extended so as to bypass the fastening portion of the fixing plate. This can effectively prevent the wire harness from coming into contact with the fastening member used for screw fastening at the fastening portion, thereby preventing a decrease in the durability of the wire harness due to such contact.

In the above buckle device, the engaging portion is preferably provided on the boot.
According to the above configuration, a locking portion for locking the wire harness is provided on the boot that extends along the wire harness and covers the outer surface of the wire harness, so that the wire harness can be easily locked by the locking portion.

In the above buckle device, it is preferable that the locking portion is a cutout portion formed by cutting out a part of the boot and around which the wire harness is hooked.
According to the above-mentioned configuration, the wire harness can be hooked in the notch of the boot, thereby locking the wire harness in a bent state.

In the above buckle device, it is preferable that the notch is crank-shaped and includes a first portion that opens at the end of the boot facing the fixing plate and extends in the direction in which the buckle body and the fixing plate are aligned, and a second portion that extends from the end of the first portion facing the buckle body in a direction perpendicular to the direction of alignment.

With the above configuration, the notch in the boot can be used to engage the wire harness with the boot while it is bent in a direction perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the buckle body and the fixing plate.

In the above buckle device, it is preferable that the boot has a protrusion in a shape in which an inner surface of the cutout part partially protrudes.
According to the above configuration, by inserting the wire harness into the cutout portion and hooking it over the protrusion on the inner surface of the cutout portion, the protrusion prevents the wire harness from escaping from the cutout portion, so that the wire harness can be properly engaged in the cutout portion of the boot.

In the above buckle device, it is preferable that the boot is tubular and extends in the direction in which the buckle body and the fixing plate are aligned, and the locking portion has a locking member that connects the opposing walls of the boot and protrudes from the end of the boot on the fixing plate side in the direction in which the boot is aligned.

According to the above configuration, the locking member provided at the end of the boot on the side of the fixing plate can support the outer portion of the bent wire harness in the bending direction. This allows the wire harness to be locked in the bent state.

In the above buckle device, it is preferable that one of the opposing walls has an engagement hole that communicates between the inside and outside of the boot, the other opposing wall is integral with one end of the locking member, and the other end of the locking member is hooked onto the engagement hole.

According to the above-mentioned configuration, the locking member shaped to connect between the opposing walls of the boot can be provided on the boot without increasing the number of parts.
In the above buckle device, it is preferable that a connection portion where the wire harness is connected to the buckle body and the locking member are provided at positions sandwiching a center line of the extension direction of the boot therebetween.

The above configuration makes it easier to ensure the amount of bending of the wire harness in the direction away from the fastening part, compared to when both the connection part and the locking member are positioned on one of the two sides of the center line of the boot.

The present invention can prevent deterioration of the durability of the wire harness.

1 is a perspective view showing a vehicle seat to which a buckle device according to an embodiment is attached; FIG. 4 is a side view showing the mounting structure of the buckle device. FIG. 4 is a view of the buckle device as seen from an arrow 4 in FIG. 3 . FIG. 4 is a side view showing the internal structure of the buckle device. 6 is a view of the buckle device as seen from an arrow 6 in FIG. 5 . FIG. 7A is a side view of the boot, FIG. 7B is a view taken along the arrow 7b in FIG. FIG. 4 is an enlarged side view showing a second portion of the cutout portion. FIG. 11 is a side view of a buckle device according to another embodiment. FIG. FIG. FIG. 11 is a side view showing the mounting structure of the buckle device according to the second embodiment. FIG. FIG. FIG. 15A is a side view of the boot, and FIG. 15B is a view taken along the arrow 15B in FIG. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the procedure for assembling the boot. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the procedure for assembling the boot.

First Embodiment
An embodiment of the buckle device will now be described.
As shown in Fig. 1, a buckle device 20 of this embodiment is attached to a vehicle seat 10 on the inner side in the vehicle width direction. A seat belt 11 is provided on the outer side of the vehicle seat 10 in the vehicle cabin in the vehicle width direction. The seat belt 11 includes a webbing 12 made of a strip-shaped woven fabric that is provided so as to be withdrawn, and a metal tongue plate 13 provided on the webbing 12. The buckle device 20 is structured to be able to hold the tongue plate 13 of the seat belt 11.

As shown in Figures 2 to 4, a metal fixing plate 21 used for mounting to the vehicle seat 10 is provided at the bottom of the buckle device 20. A screw insertion hole 22 with a circular cross section is provided at the bottom of the fixing plate 21 as a fastening portion for screw fastening. As shown in Figure 2, the buckle device 20 is attached to the vehicle seat 10 using the screw insertion hole 22 (see Figure 3) of the fixing plate 21 and the fastening bolt 14. More specifically, with the fastening bolt 14 inserted into the screw insertion hole 22 of the fixing plate 21, the fastening bolt 14 is fitted into the female thread of the frame member 15 of the vehicle seat 10. As shown in Figures 5 and 6, a connecting hole 23 with an elongated cross section is provided at the top of the fixing plate 21. A webbing 24 as a connecting member is connected to the fixing plate 21 via this connecting hole 23.

A buckle body 25 that holds the tongue plate 13 is provided on the top of the buckle device 20. As shown in FIG. 1, the buckle body 25 has a case portion 26 that is a substantially bottomed rectangular cylinder, and a release button 27 that is provided inside the case portion 26 so that it can move up and down. By inserting the tongue plate 13 into the gap between the case portion 26 and the release button 27, the tongue plate 13 is held by the buckle body 25. In this state, by pushing the release button 27 into the case portion 26, the hold of the tongue plate 13 by the buckle body 25 is released.

As shown in Figures 5 and 6, the buckle device 20 has a webbing 24 made of a strip of woven fabric. The upper end of this webbing 24 is connected to the bottom wall 28 of the buckle body 25, and the lower end is connected to the upper part of the fixed plate 21. In this way, the webbing 24 extends in the vertical direction in a manner that connects the fixed plate 21 and the buckle body 25.

As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the buckle device 20 has a synthetic rubber boot 30 that is substantially rectangular and tubular. The boot 30 extends from the bottom of the buckle body 25 to the top of the fixing plate 21 in a manner that covers the bottom of the buckle body 25, the entire webbing 24, and the periphery of the top of the fixing plate 21. The boot 30 is sewn and fixed to the webbing 24.

The buckle device 20 has a detection switch 40 for detecting that the tongue plate 13 is being held by the buckle body 25. This detection switch 40 is provided inside the buckle body 25. A wire harness 41 is connected to the detection switch 40. This wire harness 41 passes through the bottom wall 28 of the buckle body 25 and the inside of the boot 30, more specifically, through the gap between the webbing 24 (see FIG. 5) and the boot 30, and extends to the outside of the boot 30.

In the buckle device 20 of this embodiment, the wire harness 41 is engaged in a position between the buckle body 25 and the screw insertion hole 22 of the fixing plate 21 while being bent in a direction away from the screw insertion hole 22.

The locking structure of the wire harness 41 will be described below.
3, 4, and 7, the boot 30 has a cutout portion 31 formed by cutting out a portion of the boot 30. In the buckle device 20 of the present embodiment, the wire harness 41 is hooked onto the cutout portion 31 and thereby engaged.

The cutout portion 31 is crank-shaped and includes a first portion 32 that extends in the direction in which the buckle body 25 and the fixed plate 21 are aligned (hereafter referred to as the up-down direction [up-down direction in FIG. 4]) and a second portion 33 that extends in a direction perpendicular to the direction of alignment (hereafter referred to as the width direction [left-right direction in FIG. 3]).

More specifically, the lower part of the boot 30 extends further downward at the portion (front part 35) farther from the vehicle seat 10 than at the portion (back part 34) closer to the vehicle seat 10. In this embodiment, the portion of the lower part of the boot 30 where the back part 34 is shorter than the front part 35 corresponds to the first part 32 of the cutout part 31. The first part 32 opens at the end of the boot 30 on the fixing plate 21 side, i.e., at the lower end of the boot 30, and extends upward from the opening.

The second part 33 is provided at the lower part of the front part 35. The second part 33 starts from the upper end of the first part 32, more specifically, the part at the lower part of the boot 30 where the front part 35 and the back part 34 form a step, and extends in the width direction along the lower end of the back part 34. The second part 33 is connected to the first part 32 at the width direction end of the front part 35. In addition, the end part (terminal end 36) of the second part 33 on the width direction center side is set at a position where the second part 33 does not overlap the screw insertion hole 22 (more specifically, the fastening bolt 14 [see FIG. 2]) when the buckle device 20 is viewed from below.

As shown in Figs. 7 and 8, the inner surface of the second portion 33 is provided with a partially protruding convex portion 37. The convex portion 37 has a slope shape that protrudes more toward the end 36 of the second portion 33, and the end of the convex portion 37 on the end 36 side has a step shape.

The operation of the buckle device 20 of this embodiment will now be described.
The buckle device 20 has a shape in which a part of the boot 30 is cut out, and has a cutout portion 31 on which the wire harness 41 is hooked. The cutout portion 31 has a crank shape consisting of a first portion 32 that opens at the lower end of the boot 30 and extends in the vertical direction, and a second portion 33 that extends in the width direction from the upper end of the first portion 32.

When assembling the buckle device 20, as shown by arrow A in FIG. 3, the wire harness 41 is bent in a direction away from the screw insertion hole 22, and in that state, the wire harness 41 is inserted into the notch 31. As a result, the wire harness 41 bent in a direction away from the screw insertion hole 22, specifically in a direction perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the buckle body 25 and the fixing plate 21, is hooked and locked into the notch 31 of the boot 30 provided between the buckle body 25 and the fixing plate 21.

As shown in FIG. 2, by attaching the buckle device 20 with the wire harness 41 hooked to the cutout portion 31 of the boot 30 to the vehicle seat 10, the wire harness 41 can be extended so as to bypass the screw insertion hole 22 (more specifically, the fastening bolt 14) of the fixing plate 21. When attaching the buckle device 20 to the vehicle seat 10, the wire harness 41 is fixed to the frame member 15 by the clip 16 so as to maintain the bent state so as to bypass the fastening bolt 14.

This buckle device 20 can prevent the wire harness 41 from coming into contact with the fastening bolt 14, thereby preventing a decrease in the durability of the wire harness 41 due to such contact.

In addition, when attaching the buckle device 20 to the vehicle seat 10, the wire harness 41 can be kept away from the screw insertion hole 22 and the fastening bolt 14 when the fastening bolt 14 is fitted into the frame member 15 through the screw insertion hole 22 of the fixing plate 21. This eliminates the need for cumbersome work such as holding the wire harness 41 by hand so that it does not get in the way of screw fastening, making it easier to attach the buckle device 20.

In the buckle device 20 of this embodiment, the second portion 33 of the notch 31 is connected to the first portion 32 at the widthwise end of the front portion 35 of the boot 30. Therefore, the extension distance in the width direction of the second portion 33 can be made longer compared to when the connecting portion with the first portion 32 is set at a location other than the widthwise end. This makes it possible to lengthen the portion for hooking the wire harness 41, thereby enabling the wire harness 41 to be held securely.

The end 36 of the second portion 33 is positioned so that the second portion 33 does not overlap with the screw insertion hole 22 when the buckle device 20 is viewed from below. Therefore, by engaging the wire harness 41 with the second portion 33 in a state in which the wire harness 41 is bent outward in the width direction, the wire harness 41 is extended away from the fastening bolt 14.

In the buckle device 20 of this embodiment, the boot 30, which extends along the wire harness 41 and covers the outer surface of the wire harness 41, is provided with a notch 31 for engaging the wire harness 41. Therefore, the wire harness 41 can be easily hooked onto and engaged in the notch 31.

The inner surface of the second portion 33 of the cutout 31 is provided with a protrusion 37 that partially protrudes. Therefore, as shown by the arrow in FIG. 8, the wire harness 41 is inserted into the second portion 33 in a manner that the wire harness 41 climbs over the protrusion 37 on the inner surface of the second portion 33 and hooked thereon, so that the protrusion 37 prevents the wire harness 41 from escaping from the second portion 33. Therefore, the wire harness 41 can be properly engaged with the cutout 31 of the boot 30.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) In the buckle device 20 of the present embodiment, the wire harness 41 is engaged in a position between the buckle body 25 and the screw insertion hole 22 of the fixing plate 21 in a state where the wire harness 41 is bent in a direction away from the screw insertion hole 22. This can prevent the wire harness 41 from coming into contact with the fastening bolt 14, thereby preventing a decrease in durability of the wire harness 41 due to the contact.

(2) The boot 30 that covers the outer surface of the wire harness 41 has a notch 31 for engaging the wire harness 41. Therefore, the wire harness 41 can be easily hooked onto the notch 31 and engaged.

(3) The buckle device 20 has a shape in which a part of the boot 30 is cut out and has a cutout portion 31 into which the wire harness 41 is hooked. Therefore, by hooking the wire harness 41 into the cutout portion 31 of the boot 30, the wire harness 41 can be locked in a bent state.

(4) The cutout portion 31 is crank-shaped and includes a first portion 32 that opens at the bottom end of the boot 30 and extends in the vertical direction, and a second portion 33 that extends in the width direction starting from the top end of the first portion 32. Therefore, by utilizing the cutout portion 31 of the boot 30, the wire harness 41 can be engaged with the boot 30 while being bent in a direction perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the buckle body 25 and the fixing plate 21.

(5) The protrusion 37 provided on the inner surface of the second portion 33 of the cutout portion 31 prevents the wire harness 41 from escaping from the second portion 33. This allows the wire harness 41 to be properly engaged with the cutout portion 31 of the boot 30.

Second Embodiment
The second embodiment of the buckle device will be described below, focusing on the differences from the first embodiment. Note that, in the following, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description of the same components will be omitted.

The buckle device of this embodiment and the buckle device of the first embodiment differ in the locking structure for locking the wire harness in a state where the wire harness is bent in a direction away from the screw insertion hole.
The locking structure of the wire harness in the buckle device of this embodiment will be specifically described below.

As shown in Figures 12 to 14, the buckle device 70 of this embodiment has a synthetic rubber boot 71 that is substantially rectangular and tubular. The boot 71 extends from the bottom of the buckle body 25 to the top of the fixing plate 21 in a manner that covers the bottom of the buckle body 25, the entire webbing 24, and the periphery of the top of the fixing plate 21.

The boot 71 is provided with a band portion 72 as a locking member for locking the wire harness 41. The band portion 72 is shaped to connect between the opposing walls of the boot 71, more specifically, to connect a pair of wall portions 73, 74 opposing each other in the vehicle width direction, and protrudes downward from the end of the boot 71 on the side of the fixing plate 21. One end of the band portion 72 is integral with one of the opposing walls of the boot 71, more specifically, the first wall portion 73 on the side closer to the vehicle seat 10. The other end of the band portion 72 is locked to the other opposing wall of the boot 71, more specifically, the second wall portion 74 on the side farther from the vehicle seat 10. The band portion 72 is folded back in the middle of the extension direction. As a result, the band portion 72 extends between the pair of wall portions 73, 74 with a U-shaped cross section. In the buckle device 70 of this embodiment, the side of the band portion 72 and the side of the fixing plate 21 are in contact with each other. This allows the band portion 72 to be supported by the fixed plate 21, preventing unnecessary deformation of the band portion 72.

As shown in FIG. 13, in the buckle device 70 of this embodiment, the band portion 72 is provided on one side (the right side in FIG. 13) of the center line L of the boot 71 when the boot 71 is viewed from the inside in the vehicle width direction. Also, the connection portion 75, which is the portion where the wire harness 41 is connected to the buckle body 25, is provided on the other side (the left side in FIG. 13) of the center line L of the boot 71. Thus, in the buckle device 70 of this embodiment, the connection portion 75 and the band portion 72 are provided in positions sandwiching the center line L of the boot 71 therebetween.

As shown in FIGS. 12 to 14, in the buckle device 70 of this embodiment, the wire harness 41 is extended inside the boot 71 as follows.
The wire harness 41 extends downward from the connection portion 75 (FIG. 13). The wire harness 41 extends in a curved manner toward the band portion 72 so that the wire harness 41 approaches the band portion 72 (the right side in FIG. 13) as it extends downward. The wire harness 41 extends in a manner intersecting the center line L of the boot 71. The wire harness 41 extends to the outside of the boot 71 while passing through the inside of the band portion 72.

In the buckle device 70 of this embodiment, the inner surface of the band portion 72, which has a U-shaped cross section, supports the outer side of the bent wire harness 41 in the bending direction. In this way, the wire harness 41 is engaged with the band portion 72 while bent in a direction away from the screw insertion hole 22.

The band portion 72 and its surrounding structure will be described in detail below.
As shown in Fig. 15(a) and Fig. 15(b), a band portion 72 is integrally formed with the boot 71. The band portion 72 is provided on a first wall portion 73 that constitutes one of the opposing walls of the boot 71. The band portion 72 is in the form of a strip that protrudes downward from the end (lower end in Fig. 15) of the first wall portion 73 on the side of the fixing plate 21. The tip portion of the band portion 72 is in the form of a T-shape with a wider tip side. The rest of the band portion 72 has the same width. A groove 76 extending in the width direction is formed in the middle portion in the vertical direction on the surface of the band portion 72 on the second wall portion 74 side (left side in Fig. 15(b)). This groove 76 makes the band portion 72 easy to bend.

The boot 71 has a through hole (engagement hole 77) that communicates between the inside and outside of the boot 71. The engagement hole 77 is provided in the second wall portion 74 that constitutes the other of the opposing walls of the boot 71. The engagement hole 77 has a T-shaped cross section with a wide upper portion and a narrow lower portion. The engagement hole 77 has approximately the same shape as the tip portion (tip engagement portion 78) of the band portion 72.

16, when assembling the buckle device 70, the band portion 72 is bent toward the second wall portion 74 in such a manner that the tip engagement portion 78 of the band portion 72 is lifted. Then, the engagement hole 77 of the second wall portion 74 of the boot 71 and the tip engagement portion 78 of the band portion 72 are aligned, and the tip engagement portion 78 is inserted into the engagement hole 77. Then, as shown in FIG. 17, the band portion 72 is pulled down while the tip engagement portion 78 of the band portion 72 is inserted into the engagement hole 77 of the second wall portion 74. As a result, the wide portion of the tip engagement portion 78 of the band portion 72 is hooked on the inner edge of the narrow portion of the engagement hole 77 of the boot 71. In this way, in the buckle device 70 of this embodiment, the tip engagement portion 78 of the band portion 72, which is integral with the first wall portion 73 of the boot 71, is hooked into the engagement hole 77 of the second wall portion 74 of the boot 71. As a result, the band portion 72 extends between the pair of walls 73, 74 of the boot 71 with a U-shaped cross section.

The operation of the buckle device 70 of this embodiment will now be described.
13 and 14, in the buckle device 70 of this embodiment, the wire harness 41 is engaged with the band portion 72 of the boot 71 in a state in which the wire harness 41 is bent in a direction away from the screw insertion hole 22. Therefore, as shown in Fig. 12, by attaching the buckle device 70 to the vehicle seat 10, the wire harness 41 can be extended so as to bypass the screw insertion hole 22 (more specifically, the fastening bolt 14) of the fixing plate 21. Furthermore, when attaching the buckle device 70 to the vehicle seat 10, the wire harness 41 is fixed to the frame member 15 by the clip 16 so as to maintain the bent state in which the wire harness 41 bypasses the fastening bolt 14.

This buckle device 70 can prevent the wire harness 41 from coming into contact with the fastening bolt 14, thereby preventing a decrease in the durability of the wire harness 41 due to such contact.

In addition, when attaching the buckle device 70 to the vehicle seat 10, the wire harness 41 can be kept away from the screw insertion hole 22 and the fastening bolt 14 when the fastening bolt 14 is fitted into the frame member 15 through the screw insertion hole 22 of the fixing plate 21. This makes it possible to easily attach the buckle device 70, since it is not necessary to perform the troublesome task of holding the wire harness 41 by hand so that it does not get in the way of the screw fastening.

According to this embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(6) In the buckle device 70 of the present embodiment, the wire harness 41 is engaged in a state in which it is bent in a direction away from the screw insertion hole 22 at a position between the buckle body 25 and the screw insertion hole 22 of the fixing plate 21. This can prevent the wire harness 41 from coming into contact with the fastening bolt 14, thereby preventing a decrease in durability of the wire harness 41 due to the contact.

(7) A band portion 72 for engaging the wire harness 41 is provided on the boot 71 that covers the outer surface of the wire harness 41. Therefore, the wire harness 41 can be easily engaged with the band portion 72.

(8) A band portion 72 that connects the opposing walls of the boot 71 protrudes from the lower end of the boot 71. According to this embodiment, the inner surface of the band portion 72 can support the outer side of the bending direction of the wire harness 41 in the bent state. This allows the wire harness 41 to be engaged with the band portion 72 in a state where it is bent in a direction away from the screw insertion hole 22.

(9) An engagement hole 77 is formed in the second wall portion 74 of the boot 71, and one end of the band portion 72 is integrally formed with the first wall portion 73 of the boot 71. The tip engagement portion 78, which is the tip portion of the band portion 72, is hooked into the engagement hole 77. This allows the band portion 72, which is shaped to connect between the first wall portion 73 and the second wall portion 74 of the boot 71, to be provided on the boot 71 without increasing the number of parts.

(10) In the buckle device 70 of this embodiment, the connection portion 75, which is the portion where the wire harness 41 is connected to the buckle body 25, and the band portion 72 are located at positions sandwiching the center line L of the boot 71. This makes it easier to ensure the amount of bending of the wire harness 41 in the direction away from the screw insertion hole 22 compared to a case where both the connection portion 75 and the band portion 72 are located on one of both sides of the center line L of the boot 71.

Other Embodiments
The above-described embodiments may be modified as follows: The above-described embodiments and the following modifications may be combined with each other to the extent that no technical contradiction occurs.

(Modification of the first embodiment)
The shape of the cutout portion 31 in the boot 30 is not limited to a crank shape, and may be any shape such as a T-shape or an inverted U-shape. In short, the shape of the cutout portion 31 in the boot 30 may be any shape that can hook and lock the wire harness 41 in a state where the wire harness 41 is bent in a direction away from the screw insertion hole 22.

- A hook-shaped locking hook may be provided protruding from the inner surface of the boot 30. In this configuration, the wire harness 41 can be locked in a bent state by hanging the wire harness 41 on the locking hook. Alternatively, a pair of locking protrusions may be provided protruding from the inner surface of the boot 30. In this configuration, the wire harness 41 can be locked in a bent state by passing it between the locking protrusions. In the above configuration, the locking hook and the locking protrusions correspond to the locking parts.

The webbing 24 of the buckle device 20 may be formed with a protrusion or a recess for engaging the wire harness 41 in a bent state.
The buckle device 20 according to the above embodiment can also be applied to a buckle device in which the connecting member connecting the buckle body 25 and the fixing plate 21 is formed of a metal plate. An example of such a buckle device will be described with reference to Figures 9 to 11. In the following, the same or corresponding reference numerals will be used to designate the same components as those in the above embodiment, and detailed description of the same components will be omitted.

As shown in Figures 9 and 10, the buckle device 50 has a support plate 51 made of a single metal plate. One end of this support plate 51 is fixed to the bottom wall 28 of the buckle body 25. In this buckle device 50, the part of the support plate 51 farther from the buckle body 25 corresponds to the fixing plate 21 having the screw insertion hole 22, and the part of the support plate 51 closer to the buckle body 25 corresponds to the connecting member that connects the buckle body 25 and the fixing plate 21.

9 to 11, the boot 60 of the buckle device 50 has a C-shaped cross section and extends in the vertical direction. The boot 60 has a cutout 61 at the bottom, which opens at one end in the width direction and extends in the width direction. The boot 60 is made of a hard synthetic resin material having elasticity. When attaching the boot 60, the boot 60 is pressed against the support plate 51 from the front side (the right side in FIG. 10) as shown by the arrow B in FIG. 10. As a result, the boot 60 is fitted into the support plate 51 in such a manner that both ends in the width direction of the boot 60 are engaged with the back sides of both ends in the width direction of the support plate 51. In the buckle device 50, the work of fitting the boot 60 into the support plate 51 is performed with the wire harness 41 hooked on the cutout 61 of the boot 60. As a result, the wire harness 41 is arranged in such a manner that it extends in the gap between the boot 60 and the support plate 51 and passes through the cutout portion 61 of the boot 60 to the outside of the boot 60. In this way, in the buckle device 50, the wire harness 41 is bent in a direction away from the screw insertion hole 22 and is engaged with the cutout portion 61 of the boot 60.

(Modification of the second embodiment)
The groove 76 of the band portion 72 may be omitted.
Instead of forming the tip portion of the band portion 72 into a T-shape, it may be formed into an arrow shape or an umbrella shape with a curved tip.

The shape of the band portion 72 other than the tip portion can be changed as desired. For example, the direction in which the tip portion of the band portion 72, which has a U-shaped cross section, extends can be set to a direction perpendicular to the center line L, or can be set to a direction inclined relative to the perpendicular direction. Additionally, the width of each portion of the band portion 72 can be made to increase toward the tip. With this configuration, the contact state between the band portion 72 and the wire harness 41 can be changed, so that the amount of bending and the extension position of the wire harness 41 can be set with a high degree of freedom.

The shape of the engagement hole 77 can be changed as desired, such as to have a triangular or rectangular cross section, as long as the shape allows the tip portion of the band portion 72 to be engaged therewith.
The engagement hole 77 may be formed in the first wall portion 73 of the boot 71 , and one end of the band portion 72 may be integrally formed with the second wall portion 74 of the boot 71 .

- The locking member for locking the wire harness 41 may be configured as follows. A first band portion protrudes from the lower end of the first wall portion 73 of the boot 71. A second band portion protrudes from the lower end of the second wall portion 74 of the boot 71. The tips of the first band portion and the second band portion are then hooked together and connected. In this configuration, the first band portion and the second band portion correspond to the locking member.

The connection portion 75 and the band portion 72 may be arranged so as to be aligned on the center line L of the boot 71. Also, both the connection portion 75 and the band portion 72 may be arranged on one of the two sides of the center line L of the boot 71. In the above configuration, in order to ensure the amount of bending of the wire harness 41, it is preferable to arrange the connection portion 75 and the band portion 72 so that they overlap in the direction perpendicular to the center line L, or to arrange the band portion 72 so that it is forward of the connection portion 75 in the bending direction of the wire harness 41.

(Modifications of each embodiment)
In a buckle device in which the connecting member connecting the buckle body 25 and the fixing plate 21 is made of a metal plate, the connecting member may be formed with a convex portion or a concave portion for engaging the wire harness 41 in a bent state.

The buckle device according to the above embodiment can be applied not only to a buckle device attached to a vehicle seat, but also to a buckle device attached to a vehicle body.

10...vehicle seat 11...seat belt 13...tongue plate 14...fastening bolt 20, 50, 70...buckle device 21...fixing plate 22...screw insertion hole 24...webbing 25...buckle body 30, 60, 71...boot 31, 61...cutout portion 32...first portion 33...second portion 37...projection portion 40...detection switch 41...wire harness 51...support plate 72...band portion 73...first wall portion 74...second wall portion 75...connection portion 77...engagement hole 78...tip engagement portion

Claims (6)

A buckle device comprising: a fixing plate having a fastening portion for screw fastening; a buckle body that holds a tongue plate of a seat belt; a connecting member that connects the fixing plate and the buckle body; a boot that covers an outer surface of the connecting member; a switch that is provided on the buckle body and detects that the tongue plate is being held; and a wire harness for the switch that passes through a gap between the connecting member and the boot and extends to the outside of the gap,
a locking portion provided between the buckle body and the fastening portion and configured to lock the wire harness in a state in which the wire harness is bent in a direction away from the fastening portion,
the locking portion is a notch portion provided in the boot, the notch portion being formed by cutting out a part of the boot, and into which the wire harness is hooked,
The boot is cylindrical and includes a back portion that is a portion close to the vehicle seat to which the fixing plate is attached, and a front portion that is a portion farther from the vehicle seat,
The cutout portion is
a first portion formed by cutting out a portion of the boot on the rear side of the end of the boot on the fixing plate side;
a second portion provided on the front portion and extending in the width direction of the boot from a portion where the rear portion and the front portion form a step;
A length of the second portion in the width direction is longer than a length of the wire harness located in the second portion in the width direction.
A buckle device characterized by: The buckle device according to claim 1 , wherein the boot has a protrusion in a shape that partially protrudes from an inner surface of the second portion . A buckle device comprising: a fixing plate having a fastening portion for screw fastening; a buckle body that holds a tongue plate of a seat belt; a connecting member that connects the fixing plate and the buckle body; a boot that covers an outer surface of the connecting member; a switch that is provided on the buckle body and detects that the tongue plate is being held; and a wire harness for the switch that passes through a gap between the connecting member and the boot and extends to the outside of the gap,
a locking portion provided between the buckle body and the fastening portion and configured to lock the wire harness in a state in which the wire harness is bent in a direction away from the fastening portion,
the locking portion is a notch portion provided in the boot, the notch portion being formed by cutting out a part of the boot, and into which the wire harness is hooked,
The boot has a protrusion that partially protrudes from an inner surface of the cutout portion. A buckle device comprising: a fixing plate having a fastening portion for screw fastening; a buckle body that holds a tongue plate of a seat belt; a connecting member that connects the fixing plate and the buckle body; a boot that covers an outer surface of the connecting member; a switch that is provided on the buckle body and detects that the tongue plate is being held; and a wire harness for the switch that passes through a gap between the connecting member and the boot and extends to the outside of the gap,
a locking portion provided between the buckle body and the fastening portion and configured to lock the wire harness in a state in which the wire harness is bent in a direction away from the fastening portion,
the boot has a tubular shape extending from a portion of the fixing plate closer to the buckle body than the fastening portion in an arrangement direction of the buckle body and the fixing plate toward the buckle body,
a buckle device, wherein the locking portion has a locking member that is shaped to connect between opposing walls of the boot and that protrudes in the arrangement direction from an end of the boot on the fixing plate side. One of the opposing walls has an engagement hole that communicates between the inside and the outside of the boot,
The other of the opposing walls is integral with one end of the locking member,
5. The buckle device according to claim 4, wherein the other end of said locking member is hooked into said engagement hole. 6. The buckle device according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the connection portion, which is the portion where the wire harness is connected to the buckle body, and the locking member are provided at positions sandwiching a center line that passes through the center of the boot and extends in the alignment direction.