JP7516273B2 - Branch connector, harness with branch connector, harness wiring structure, and harness wiring structure with additional circuit - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a branch connector that branches off a power source from a power line, a harness with a branch connector, a harness wiring structure, and a harness wiring structure with an additional circuit.

In general, wire harnesses installed in vehicles and the like are composed of a power supply line installed as standard and sub-wires connected to optional devices. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a wiring harness arrangement structure in which power supply lines are routed along the width and front-rear directions of the vehicle to connect multiple junction boxes arranged in predetermined positions on the vehicle, and sub-wires connected to optional devices are extended from the junction boxes.

In this way, by routing the power lines along the width and front-to-rear directions of the vehicle to connect to junction boxes placed at designated positions on the vehicle, it is possible to simplify the routing path of the wire harness and shorten the length of the electric wires.

However, in the wire harness arrangement structure disclosed in Patent Document 1,
Because multiple sub-wires are connected via a junction box, each optional device must be connected near the junction box, which limits the locations where the optional devices can be connected.

JP 2019-137394 A

In consideration of the above problems, this invention aims to provide a branch connector, a harness with a branch connector, a harness wiring structure, and a harness wiring structure with an additional circuit that allow for easy addition of optional equipment at a desired position in a power line.

The present invention relates to a branch connector for connecting and branching a sub-conductor to be connected to a power line having a main conductor that conducts power and is covered with an insulating coating, the branch connector comprising a housing, a main-side connecting conductor, and a sub-side connecting conductor, the housing having a receiving portion for receiving a conductor exposed portion in which the insulating coating is partially peeled off in the longitudinal direction of the power line to expose the main conductor, a fuse mounting portion for mounting a fuse having two electrodes, and a sub-conductor mounting portion for mounting and connecting the sub-conductor, the main-side connecting conductor being a main conductor abutting against the main conductor. The main conductor has a connection portion, a first fuse connection portion connected to one electrode of the fuse attached to the fuse attachment portion, the sub-side connecting conductor has a second fuse connection portion connected to the other electrode of the fuse, and a sub-conductor connection portion connected to the sub-conductor, the accommodating portion has a first accommodating body and a second accommodating body configured to sandwich the power line, the main conductor is a flat conductor having a predetermined width and a flat cross-section, and the main conductor abutment portion is configured in a planar shape that is in surface contact with the outer surface of the flat conductor that is the main conductor .

The present invention also provides a harness with a branch connector, which includes a harness that is arranged in a vehicle body and the branch connector described above, in which the power supply line constitutes the harness, and the branch connector is provided at a location where the sub-conductor that constitutes the additional circuit is branched and connected to the main conductor of the harness.

Furthermore, this invention relates to a harness wiring structure that includes a harness wired to a vehicle body and the above-mentioned branch connector, in which the power supply line constitutes the harness, and the branch connector is provided at a location where the sub-conductor that constitutes the additional circuit is branched and connected to the main conductor of the harness.

Furthermore, this invention relates to a harness arrangement structure with an additional circuit, which includes a harness arranged on a vehicle body, an additional line constituting an additional circuit, and the branch connector described above, in which the power supply line constitutes the harness, the sub-conductor constitutes the conductor of the additional line, and the branch connector is provided at a location where the sub-conductor is branched and connected to the main conductor of the harness.

The power supply wire is not limited to a specific type as long as it is an electric wire through which a current that serves as a power source flows, and examples of the power supply wire include a flat electric wire whose main conductor is a flat conductor with a flat cross section, a main conductor consisting of a single conductive wire or a bundle of multiple conductive wires, and a round electric wire which is a twisted conductor consisting of multiple bundled conductive wires twisted together.
The sub-conductor connection portion includes a connection terminal for connecting a connector terminal, a ground terminal, or the like connected to the sub-conductor.

The main side connecting conductor and the sub side connecting conductor may be configured in any manner as long as the power of the power line can be supplied to the sub-conductor connection part via the fuse, and may be configured, for example, of a conductive electric wire or bus bar.

The planar shape refers to a planar shape in which the orthogonal cross section of the main conductor abutting portion is formed in an arc shape when the main conductor is a conductor having a substantially circular cross section perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, or a planar shape in which the orthogonal cross section of the main conductor abutting portion is formed in a linear shape when the main conductor is a flat conductor having a rectangular cross section perpendicular to the longitudinal direction.

According to this invention, the power supply can be branched by the branch connector disposed at a desired position on the power line, so that optional equipment can be easily added at a desired position on the power line.
Specifically, since the main-side connecting conductor and the sub-side connecting conductor that are in contact with the main conductor can be electrically connected via a fuse inside the housing, power can be supplied from the main conductor to the sub-conductor connected to the sub-conductor connection portion of the sub-side connecting conductor. Since the power can be branched from the main conductor to the sub-side connecting conductor with such a simple structure, a position branch connector corresponding to the location of the optional device in the power line can be disposed, and power can be supplied to the optional device connected to the sub-conductor attachment portion.

For example, in a harness wiring structure in which a harness is wired to a vehicle body, the sub-conductor can be connected to any location of the wired main conductor via a branch connector, allowing the sub-conductor to branch off from the main conductor after the fact. Furthermore, if the branch connector is placed in a position where it is easy to connect the sub-conductor from outside, optional equipment can be easily connected to the branch connector from outside.

In this way, the branch connector that can branch power from the power line to the sub-conductor can be placed at a desired position on the power line, making it easy to add optional equipment at a desired position on the main conductor. In addition, because the branch connector can be placed at a desired position, it is possible to improve the freedom of design of the harness to be mounted on the vehicle body, for example.

Furthermore, because the branch connector can be provided at a position according to the optional device, the length of the sub-conductor connecting the optional device and the branch connector can be shortened, and the harness wiring structure with additional circuit, which is the harness wiring structure connected to the sub-conductor, which is the additional circuit, can be made lighter.

The housing portion has a first housing and a second housing configured to sandwich the power line therebetween .
With this, the power line is sandwiched between a first housing arranged on one side in the cross-sectional direction of the power line and a second housing arranged on the other side in the cross-sectional direction of the power line, so that the housing portion can be assembled to the power line and the exposed conductor portion can be housed. As a result, for example, after the power line is prepared as a harness to be routed to a vehicle body, the housing portion can be assembled to a desired position on the power line, and the housing portion can be efficiently assembled to the desired position on the power line.

In addition, when connecting optional equipment, the insulation can be removed at the desired position on the power line and the housing can be attached, so even in places where a branch connector has not been installed beforehand, the optional equipment can be added later at the desired position.

Furthermore, the main conductor abutting portion may be formed in a planar shape that is in surface contact with the outer surface of the main conductor.
According to this configuration, the contact area between the main conductor and the main-side connecting conductor can be secured, thereby ensuring electrical continuity between the main conductor and the main-side connecting conductor, thereby enabling a stable supply of power from the main conductor to the sub-conductor via the branch connector.

The main conductor is a flat conductor having a predetermined width and a flat cross section, and the main conductor abutment portion is configured in a planar shape that is in surface contact with the outer surface of the flat conductor.
As a result, the planar main conductor abutment portion comes into surface contact with the flat conductor, so that the main conductor abutment portion can be stably positioned relative to the flat conductor, thereby enabling more stable power supply from the main conductor to the sub-conductor and improving the stability of conduction.

As a further aspect of the present invention, the main-side connecting conductor and the sub-side connecting conductor may be formed of a conductive plate-shaped bus bar.
According to the present invention, the conductivity of the main-side connecting conductor and the sub-side connecting conductor can be improved, so that the power line can be used for a large current. Also, by forming the main-side connecting conductor and the sub-side connecting conductor as a plate-shaped bus bar, the degree of freedom in design can be improved and compactness can be achieved.

In another aspect of the invention, a plurality of the fuse mounting parts may be provided, the main side connecting conductor may have a plurality of the first fuse connection parts for one main conductor abutment part corresponding to the number of the fuse mounting parts, and the sub side connecting conductor may be a plurality of the sub side connecting conductors corresponding to the number of the fuse mounting parts.

This invention allows the current supplied from the power line to be distributed to multiple sub-conductors, making it possible to add multiple optional devices to desired positions on the power line. This allows for greater freedom in the design of harnesses to be mounted on a vehicle body, for example.

As another aspect of the present invention, the sub-conductor mounting portion may have a connector mounting portion to which a connector provided at an end of the sub-conductor composed of a conductor of an electric wire is attached, and the sub-conductor connection portion may be formed in a terminal shape to be connected to a connection terminal provided at the end of the sub-conductor.
The connector mounting portion may be either single or multiple, and may be used in combination with a mounting portion for connection to other connecting bodies including a relay.

According to this invention, by mounting a connector having a connection terminal at the tip of a sub-conductor made of an electric wire to the connector mounting section, electrical continuity between the sub-conductor and the sub-side connecting conductor can be ensured. In addition, when multiple connection terminals are arranged on the connector, the connection terminals provided on the sub-conductor can be mounted collectively to the sub-conductor connecting section. This makes it possible to reliably and easily ensure electrical continuity between the main conductor and the sub-conductor.

As a further aspect of the present invention, the connector mounting portion may be arranged in an orientation such that the connector is connected in a direction along the longitudinal direction.
According to the present invention, it is possible to configure a branch connector that is compact in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction.

In another aspect of the invention, the sub-conductor mounting portion may have a relay mounting portion for mounting a relay, and the sub-side connecting conductor may include a first sub-side connecting conductor having a control side connecting portion connected to the second fuse connecting portion and the control side contact of the relay, and a second sub-side connecting conductor having an operating side connecting portion connected to the operating side contact of the relay and an earth connecting portion connected to an earth circuit.

With this invention, the optional equipment connected to the sub-conductor can be controlled using a relay attached to the relay attachment section. Therefore, various optional equipment according to the purpose can be added to the desired position on the power line, and the degree of freedom in designing the harness to be mounted on the vehicle body can be further improved.

In another aspect of the invention, the fuse mounting portion may be disposed on the inside in the width direction relative to the flat conductor, and may be disposed in such a direction that the fuse is mounted in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and perpendicular to the width direction.

According to this invention, the fuse is attached in a normal direction perpendicular to the surface of the flat conductor, which prevents the fuse attachment portion from expanding in the width direction, and allows for the construction of a branch connector that is compact in the width direction. It also prevents the flat conductor from interfering with the attachment of the fuse. This allows the fuse to be easily attached while keeping the size small.

As a further aspect of the present invention, the fuse mounting portion may be arranged in an orientation such that the fuse is mounted in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and in the width direction.
According to this invention, since the fuse is attached along the width direction of the flat conductor, it is possible to prevent the fuse attachment portion from expanding in the normal direction perpendicular to the surface of the flat conductor, and to configure a branch connector that is compact in the normal direction. It is also possible to prevent the flat conductor from interfering with the attachment of the fuse. Therefore, the fuse can be easily attached while keeping the size small.

This invention provides a branch connector that allows easy addition of optional equipment at a desired position in a power line, a harness with a branch connector, a harness wiring structure, and a harness wiring structure with an additional circuit.

Schematic diagram of a harness routing structure with additional circuits. FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of a harness arrangement structure with an additional circuit. FIG. 4 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a harness arrangement structure with an additional circuit. An explanatory diagram of the sub-wire. Diagram of branch connector An explanatory diagram of a main-side connecting conductor and a sub-side connecting conductor FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a method for assembling the branch connector. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing branching of a power supply in a harness arrangement structure with an additional circuit. FIG. 13 is a schematic perspective view of a harness arrangement structure with an additional circuit according to another embodiment. FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of a harness arrangement structure with an additional circuit according to another embodiment.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings.
Fig. 1 shows a schematic diagram of the harness routing structure 1 with an additional circuit, Fig. 2 shows a schematic perspective view of the harness routing structure 1 with an additional circuit, Fig. 3 shows a schematic exploded perspective view of the harness routing structure 1 with an additional circuit, Fig. 4 shows an explanatory diagram of the sub-electric wire 20, Fig. 5 shows an explanatory diagram of the branch connector 30, and Fig. 6 shows an explanatory diagram of the main side connecting conductor 50 and the sub side connecting conductor 60. Fig. 7 shows an assembly method for assembling the fuse 70 and the sub-electric wire 20 to the harness 2 with the branch connector, and Fig. 8 shows an explanatory diagram showing the branching of the current I in the harness routing structure 1 with an additional circuit.

1 and 4 to 8 will now be described in detail.
Fig. 1(a) shows a schematic diagram of a harness 10 and an additional-circuit-equipped harness routing structure 1 arranged in a vehicle Y, and Fig. 1(b) shows a schematic diagram of the additional-circuit-equipped harness routing structure 1. Fig. 4(a) shows a schematic perspective view of a sub-wire 20, Fig. 4(b) shows a schematic exploded perspective view of the sub-wire 20, and Fig. 4(c) shows a cross-sectional view of a connector housing 23 corresponding to the cross section taken along the arrows A-A in Fig. 4(b).

Figure 5(a) shows a schematic perspective view of the branch connector 30, Figure 5(b) shows a schematic perspective view of the main-side connecting conductor 50 and the sub-side connecting conductor 60 arranged inside the housing 40, Figure 5(c) shows a plan view of the housing 40, and Figure 5(d) shows a cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B in Figure 4(c). Note that in Figure 5(b), in order to clarify the inside of the housing 40, the housing 40 is shown by a dotted line and is made transparent for the sake of convenience.

Figure 6(a) shows a side view of the main side connecting conductor 50 and the sub side connecting conductors 60, 60 arranged in the housing 40, Figures 6(b) and 6(c) show a plan view and a rear view of the main side connecting conductor 50, and Figures 6(d) and 6e show a plan view and a front view of the sub side connecting conductors 60, 60.

Figure 7(a) shows a schematic perspective view of the state in which the sub-wire 20 and fuse 70 are inserted into the harness 2 with a branch connector, showing the inside of the housing 40, and Figure 7(b) shows a side view of the state in which the sub-wire 20 and fuse 70 are inserted into the harness 2 with a branch connector, showing the inside of the housing 40.

Figure 8(a) shows a schematic perspective view of the harness wiring structure 1 with an additional circuit, showing the inside of the housing 40, and Figure 8(b) shows a plan view of the harness wiring structure 1 with an additional circuit, showing the inside of the housing 40. Note that in Figures 7 and 8, as in Figure 5(b), the housing 40 is shown by a dotted line and is transparent for the sake of convenience in order to clarify the inside of the housing 40.

2 is defined as a vertical direction Z, and the direction in which the harness 10 extends is defined as a longitudinal direction L. The width direction of the harness 10 in Fig. 2 is defined as a width direction W. The longitudinal direction L, the width direction W, and the vertical direction Z are all perpendicular to each other.
2 is the distal end side in the longitudinal direction L (simply referred to as the "proximal end side"), and the left front direction in FIG.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the harness wiring structure 1 with additional circuit is a wiring structure that is wired in a vehicle Y, and is composed of a harness 10 that is connected to a battery B and conducts power, two sub-wires 20 to which multiple optional devices X to be connected are connected, and a branch connector 30 that connects the harness 10 and the sub-wires 20.

As shown in FIG. 3, the harness 10 is a flat electric wire composed of a main conductor 11, which is a flat conductor formed by arranging conductive conductors in parallel and having a flat cross section, and an insulating coating 12 that covers the outer periphery of the main conductor 11. The harness 10 is provided with a conductor exposure portion 13 in which the insulating coating 12 is stripped off at a predetermined location to expose the main conductor 11.

As shown in Figures 4(a) and 4(b), the sub-wire 20 is composed of a sub-conductor 21 whose tip is connected to the optional device X, a connector terminal 22 connected to the base end of the sub-conductor 21, and a connector housing 23 that houses the connector terminal 22.

The sub-conductor 21, like the harness 10, is a round electric wire composed of a sub-conductor 211 made of twisted conductive wires and an insulating coating 212 that covers the outer periphery of the sub-conductor 211. At the base end side of the sub-conductor 21, the insulating coating 212 is peeled off to expose the sub-conductor 211, which is electrically connected to the connector terminal 22.

The connector terminal 22 is a so-called female terminal, and as shown in FIG. 4(b), includes an electric wire connection portion 221 for connecting the sub-conductor 21, a terminal insertion portion 222 for inserting a male terminal 62 described later, and an engaged portion 223 for engaging and fixing to the connector housing 23.

The connector housing 23 is a hollow casing capable of accommodating two connector terminals 22 in parallel in the width direction W. The connector housing 23 includes a connector accommodating section 231 into which the connector terminals 22 can be inserted from the tip side to the base side, a terminal opening 232 into which a male terminal 62 is inserted to be inserted into the connector terminal 22 accommodated in the connector accommodating section 231, and a connector retained section 233 that is retained by the branch connector 30 (see FIG. 4(c)). The connector accommodating section 231 also includes a terminal retaining section 234 that retains the terminal insertion section 222 of the connector terminal 22 accommodated therein to fix the connector terminal 22 in a desired position.

Next, the branch connector 30 that connects the harness 10 and the sub-electric wires 20 configured as described above will be described.
As shown in Figure 5 (a), the branch connector 30 includes a housing 40 that accommodates the tip of the harness 10 and the base end side of the connector housing 23, a main side connecting conductor 50 that is electrically connected to the harness 10, and sub-side connecting conductors 60, 60 that are electrically connected to the sub-wire 20.

As shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B , the housing 40 is composed of a flat housing 41 and a housing main body 42 provided above the flat housing 41 .
5(a) and 5(b), the flat housing 41 is a hollow housing having a generally rectangular shape in plan view, in which a first housing section 43 forming a bottom surface and a second housing section 44 forming a top surface are fixed by a locking fixing section 411. The flat housing 41 has flat insertion holes 412 on both end surfaces in the longitudinal direction L, and a housing section 413 is formed inside.

The first housing section 43 is configured as a recessed shape that is open at the top (see FIG. 3), and has a locked portion 431 that constitutes the locking and fixing portion 411 on its side in the width direction W, and has a semi-elliptical downward opening forming portion 432 recessed downward on both ends in the longitudinal direction L (see FIG. 5(a)). In addition, a conductor support portion 433 that stands upright toward the top is provided on the bottom surface of the first housing section 43 (see FIG. 5(d)).

The second housing section 44 is formed in a concave shape that is open downward, and a locking section 441 that constitutes the locking and fixing section 411 is provided on the side surface in the width direction W at a position corresponding to the locked section 431. In addition, the second housing section 44 is provided with semi-elliptical upper opening forming sections 442 that are recessed upward on both ends in the longitudinal direction L (see FIG. 5(a)), and a conductor pressing section 443 that stands upright facing downward is provided on the upper surface (see FIG. 5(d)).

The first housing portion 43 and the second housing portion 44 thus configured are combined in the vertical direction Z and locked and fixed by the locked portion 431 and the locking portion 441 to form the flat housing 41. The flat housing 41 has a housing portion 413 formed therein, and the lower opening forming portion 432 and the upper opening forming portion 442 form an insertion hole 412 having the same shape as the outer peripheral surface of the insulating coating 12 when viewed from the longitudinal direction L. The distance between the conductor support portion 433 and the conductor pressing portion 443 arranged inside the insertion hole 412 is approximately the same length as the plate thickness of the main conductor 11.

The housing body 42 is a housing formed integrally with the second accommodating section 44, and is formed as a substantially rectangular parallelepiped having a length substantially equal to the width direction W and length direction L of the conductor exposed section 13. The housing body 42 has a fuse mounting section 45 at its base end and a connector mounting section 46 at its tip end.

5(a) and 5(d), the fuse mounting portion 45 is provided with two bottomed fuse mounting holes 451 that are open at the top, and each can be fitted with a fuse 70. In addition, a main-side insertion portion 452 and a sub-side insertion portion 453, through which a first tuning fork terminal 53 and a second tuning fork terminal 61, which will be described later, are provided on the bottom surface of the fuse mounting hole 451 at the base end and tip end, respectively.
The fuse 70 is a so-called blade fuse, and has two electrodes, a main electrode 71 and a sub electrode 72, which are formed in a plate shape (see FIG. 3).

The connector mounting section 46 is a hollow housing having a connector insertion opening 461 at the tip side into which the connector housing 23 can be inserted along the longitudinal direction L, and an accommodation space S in which the tip side of the connector housing 23 can be accommodated along the longitudinal direction L. In addition, a busbar arrangement section 462 is provided at the base end side of the connector mounting section 46, in which the male terminal 62 is arranged in a position facing the terminal opening 232 when the second tuning fork terminal 61 is inserted into the sub-side insertion section 453. The lower side of the connector mounting section 46 is open and communicates with the flat housing 41.

The main-side connecting conductor 50 and the sub-side connecting conductor 60 are plate-shaped bus bars made of conductive plates having electrical conductivity, and are arranged to face each other when installed inside the housing 40, as shown in Figs. 5(b) and 6(a).

As shown in Figures 6(a) to 6(c), the main side connecting conductor 50 is integrally formed with a planar main conductor abutment portion 51, two connecting portions 52, 52 extending along the longitudinal direction L from the longitudinal end portions L of the main conductor abutment portion 51, and first tuning fork terminals 53, 53 erected from the tips of the connecting portions 52, 52.

The main conductor abutment portion 51 is a conductive plate that is generally rectangular in plan view and has a length that is approximately the same as the length in the longitudinal direction L and the length in the width direction W of the conductor exposed portion 13. The main conductor abutment portion 51 is disposed in the center of the conductor exposed portion 13 in the longitudinal direction L.

At the end of the longitudinal direction L of this main conductor abutment portion 51, two connecting portions 52, 52 extending along the longitudinal direction L are provided at a predetermined interval along the width direction W. The connecting portions 52 are provided so as to correspond to the number of fuses 70 to be attached to the fuse attachment portion 45.

As shown in Figures 6(a) to 6(c), the connecting portion 52 is integrally formed with a first extending portion 521 extending from the base end of the main conductor abutting portion 51 along the width direction W, a standing portion 522 extending from the base end of the first extending portion 521, and a second extending portion 523 extending from the upper end of the standing portion 522 toward the base end.

When the main conductor abutment portion 51 is disposed in the central portion of the conductor exposed portion 13, the first extension portion 521 extends to the vicinity of the base end of the conductor exposed portion 13. In other words, it extends to the vicinity of the end of the insulating coating 12 disposed on the base end side of the conductor exposed portion 13.

The erected portion 522 extends upward by a length approximately equal to the thickness of the insulating coating 12, and is configured so that when the main conductor abutment portion 51 abuts against the main conductor 11, the second extension portion 523 is positioned above the insulating coating 12 (see Figures 2 and 7 (b)).

The second extending portion 523 extends from the standing portion 522 toward the base end side by a length substantially equal to the length of the first extending portion 521 in the longitudinal direction L.
The connecting portion 52 thus configured is configured in a stepped shape in side view by the first extending portion 521, the erected portion 522, and the second extending portion 523 (see FIG. 6(a)).

The first tuning fork terminal 53 is integrally formed with a main side base 531 that stands upright toward the top and main locking pieces 532, 532 that extend from the upper end of the main side base 531 so as to branch out from the end in the width direction W.

As shown in FIG. 5(b), the main locking pieces 532, 532 are arranged at a predetermined interval in the width direction W. That is, an opening is provided between the main locking pieces 532, 532. The interval between the openings provided between the main locking pieces 532, 532 is configured to have approximately the same length as the plate thickness of the main side electrode 71.

The sub-side connection conductor 60 is a bus bar formed from a conductive plate having electrical conductivity, and is provided in a number corresponding to the number of fuses 70 to be mounted in the fuse mounting portion 45 (i.e., two in this embodiment).

As shown in Figures 6(a), 6(d) and 6(e), the sub-side connecting conductor 60 is composed of a second tuning fork terminal 61, a male terminal 62 that is inserted into the female terminal 32 housed inside the connector mounting portion 46, and a plate-shaped connecting portion 63 that connects the second tuning fork terminal 61 and the male terminal 62.

The second tuning fork terminal 61 is integrally formed with a sub-side base 611 that stands upright and sub-locking pieces 612, 612 that extend from the upper end of the sub-side base 611 so as to branch out from the end in the width direction W.

The second tuning fork terminal 61 has the same configuration as the first tuning fork terminal 53. That is, the sub-locking pieces 612, 612 are arranged at a predetermined interval in the width direction W, and an opening is provided between the sub-locking pieces 612, 612. The interval between the openings provided between the sub-locking pieces 612, 612 is configured to have approximately the same length as the plate thickness of the sub-side electrode 72.

The male terminal 62 is a connection terminal that extends along the longitudinal direction L, and is formed in a terminal shape that can be connected to the terminal insertion portion 222.
The connecting portion 63 is a plate-like body connecting the second fork terminal 61 and the male terminal 62, and is bent so that the male terminal 62 is positioned more inward in the width direction W than the second fork terminal 61 in a plan view, and is bent so that the base end of the second fork terminal 61 is positioned lower than the male terminal 62. In other words, the sub-side connecting conductor 60 is formed in a concave shape recessed downward in a side view.

Next, a method of assembling the branch connector 30 to the harness 10 thus configured will be briefly described with reference to FIG.
First, a predetermined length of the insulating coating 12 of the harness 10 in the vicinity of the location where the optional device X is to be installed, or in the vicinity of a location where the optional device X can be easily installed, is stripped off to expose the main conductor 11 and form an exposed conductor portion 13.

Next, insert the main-side connecting conductor 50 and the sub-side connecting conductor 60 from below the second accommodating section 44 so that the first fork terminal 53 and the second fork terminal 61 pass through the main-side insertion section 452 and the sub-side insertion section 453 of the housing body 42, respectively, and position the main-side connecting conductor 50 and the sub-side connecting conductor 60 at a predetermined position in the housing body 42.

Then, the first housing 43 is assembled to the harness 10 from below so as to cover the exposed conductor portion 13, and the second housing 44 is assembled to the harness 10 from above, and the first housing 43 and the second housing 44 are locked and fixed by the locking and fixing portion 411. This allows the flat housing 41 to sandwich the harness 10 between the first housing 43 and the second housing 44 and to house the exposed conductor portion 13.

In this way, a harness 2 with a branch connector can be provided in which the branch connector 30 is connected to the harness 10 (see FIG. 7(a)). In this harness 2 with a branch connector, the main side connecting conductor 50 is housed inside the housing body 42 so that the main conductor abutment portion 51 is in surface contact with the outer surface of the main conductor 11.

Here, since the main conductor abutment portion 51 is configured to be planar, it is possible to ensure a sufficient contact area between the main conductor abutment portion 51 and the main conductor 11. In addition, since the main conductor abutment portion 51 is pressed downward by the conductor pressing portion 443, it is possible to reliably bring the main conductor abutment portion 51 into contact with the conductor exposed portion 13 (main conductor 11).

The main-side connecting conductor 50 and the sub-side connecting conductor 60, 60 housed inside the housing body 42 are arranged so that the first fork terminals 53, 53 and the second fork terminals 61, 61 face each other in the two fuse mounting holes 451 arranged side by side. As a result, when the fuse 70 is inserted into the fuse mounting hole 451, the main-side electrode 71 and the sub-side electrode 72 are clamped between the first fork terminals 53, 53 and the second fork terminals 61, 61 (see Figures 7 and 8).

The connector housing 23 of the sub-wire 20 is inserted into the harness 2 with branch connector thus configured from the connector insertion port 461 along the longitudinal direction L. This causes the male terminals 62, 62 to be inserted into the terminal insertion portions 222, 222 through the terminal openings 232, and the sub-side connection conductor 60 and the sub-conductor 21 are electrically connected.

In this way, the harness arrangement structure 1 with additional circuit in which the sub-wire 20 is connected to the harness 2 with the branch connector can distribute the current I flowing through the harness 10 (main conductor 11) into two via the main side connecting conductor 50 (main conductor abutment portion 51 and connecting portion 52) as shown in FIG. 8(b).

The currents I1 and I2 thus distributed flow from the main-side connecting conductor 50 to the sub-side connecting conductor 60 via the fuse 70 that connects the first tuning fork terminal 53 and the second tuning fork terminal 61, and are supplied to the sub-wire 20 (optional device X).

The branch connector 30, which branches off by connecting the sub-conductor 21 to the harness 10 in which the main conductor 11 that conducts power from the battery B is covered with an insulating coating 12, includes a housing 40, a main-side connecting conductor 50, and a sub-side connecting conductor 60. The housing 40 includes a flat housing 41 that houses the conductor exposed portion 13 in which the insulating coating 12 in the longitudinal direction L of the harness 10 is peeled off to expose the main conductor 11, a fuse mounting portion 45 (fuse mounting hole 451) in which a fuse 70 having two electrodes is mounted, and a connector mounting portion 46 in which the sub-conductor 21 is mounted and connected. The main-side connecting conductor 50 includes a main conductor abutment portion 51 that abuts against the main conductor 11, and a first tuning fork terminal 53 that is connected to one electrode of the fuse 70 mounted in the fuse mounting portion 45 (fuse mounting hole 451). The sub-side connecting conductor 60 has a second tuning fork terminal 61 that is connected to the other electrode of the fuse 70, and a male terminal 62 that is connected to the sub-conductor 21.

The harness 2 with branch connector includes a harness 10 that is routed to the vehicle body and a branch connector 30, and the branch connector 30 is provided at a location where a sub-conductor 21 that constitutes an additional circuit is branched and connected to the main conductor 11 of the harness 10.

Furthermore, the harness arrangement structure 1 with additional circuit in which the harness 2 with the branch connector is arranged on the vehicle body includes the harness 10 arranged on the vehicle body, the sub-conductor 21 constituting the additional circuit, and the branch connector 30, and the branch connector 30 is provided at a location where the sub-conductor 21 is branch-connected to the main conductor 11 of the harness 10.

By placing the branch connector 30 at a desired position on the harness 10, the power supplied from the battery B can be branched, so that the optional device X can be easily added at a desired position on the harness 10.

Specifically, in the housing 40, the main side connecting conductor 50, which is in contact with the main conductor 11, and the sub side connecting conductor 60 can be electrically connected via the fuse 70. Therefore, battery B can be supplied from the main conductor 11 to the sub conductor 21 connected to the male terminal 62 of the sub side connecting conductor 60. Since the power supply from battery B can be branched from the main conductor 11 to the sub side connecting conductor 60 with such a simple structure, the branch connector 30 can be placed at a position corresponding to the location of the optional device X in the harness 10, and power can be supplied to the optional device X connected to the connector mounting portion 46.

For example, in a harness 2 with a branch connector in which the harness 10 is routed to a vehicle body, the sub-conductor 21 can be connected to any location of the routed main conductor 11 via the branch connector 30, allowing the sub-conductor 21 to branch off from the main conductor 11 after the fact. Furthermore, if the branch connector 30 is placed in a position where the sub-conductor 21 can be easily connected from outside, the optional device X can be easily connected to the branch connector 30 from outside.

In this way, the branch connector 30 that can branch power from the harness 10 to the sub-conductor 21 can be placed at a desired position on the harness 10, so that the optional device X can be easily added at a desired position on the main conductor 11. In addition, because the branch connector 30 can be placed at a desired position, the degree of freedom in designing the harness 10 to be mounted on the vehicle body, for example, can be improved.

Furthermore, because the branch connector 30 can be provided at a position corresponding to the optional device X, the length of the sub-conductor 21 connecting the optional device X and the branch connector 30 can be shortened, and the weight of the harness arrangement structure 1 with additional circuits can be reduced.

The flat housing 41 also has a first housing section 43 and a second housing section 44 that are configured to sandwich the harness 10. This allows the flat housing 41 to be assembled so that the harness 10 is sandwiched between the first housing section 43 arranged below the harness 10 and the second housing section 44 arranged above the harness 10, and the exposed conductor section 13 of the harness 10 can be stored.

Therefore, for example, after the harness 10 is prepared as the harness 10 to be arranged on a vehicle body, the flat housing 41 can be assembled at a desired position on the harness 10, and the flat housing 41 can be efficiently assembled at the desired position on the harness 10.
In this embodiment, the harness 10 is sandwiched between the first accommodating portion 43 and the second accommodating portion 44 in the vertical direction Z. However, the harness 10 may be sandwiched in the width direction W.

In addition, when connecting the optional device X, the insulating coating 12 can be removed at the desired position on the harness 10 and the flat housing 41 can be attached, so that the optional device X can be added later at the desired position even in a location where the branch connector 30 has not been installed beforehand.

Furthermore, the main side connecting conductor 50 and the sub side connecting conductor 60 are composed of conductive plate-shaped bus bars. This improves the conductivity of the main side connecting conductor 50 and the sub side connecting conductor 60, making it possible to accommodate a high current harness 10. Furthermore, by making the main side connecting conductor 50 and the sub side connecting conductor 60 into plate-shaped bus bars, the degree of freedom in design is improved and compactness can be achieved.

The fuse mounting portion 45 has two fuse mounting holes 451, the main side connecting conductor 50 has two first tuning fork terminals 53 for each main conductor abutment portion 51, corresponding to the number of fuse mounting holes 451, and two sub-side connecting conductors 60 are provided, corresponding to the number of fuse mounting holes 451.

This allows the current I supplied from the harness 10 to be distributed to the two sub-conductors 21, and allows two optional devices X to be added to the harness 10 at desired positions. This allows for greater freedom in designing the harness 10 to be mounted on a vehicle body, for example.

The connector mounting portion 46 has a connector housing 23 attached to the tip of the sub-conductor 21, which is the conductor of the sub-wire 20, and the male terminal 62 is formed in a terminal shape that connects to the connector terminal 22 provided at the tip of the sub-conductor 21.

As a result, by mounting the connector housing 23, in which the connector terminal 22 is arranged at the tip of the sub-conductor 21, to the connector mounting portion 46, electrical continuity between the sub-conductor 21 and the sub-side connection conductor 60 can be reliably established. In addition, because two connector terminals 22 are arranged in the connector housing 23, the connection terminals provided on the sub-conductor 21 can be collectively mounted to the male terminal 62. This makes it possible to reliably and easily ensure electrical continuity between the main conductor 11 and the sub-conductor 21.

Furthermore, the connector mounting portion 46 is oriented so that the connector housing 23 is connected in a direction along the longitudinal direction L, thereby forming a branch connection body 30 that is compact in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction L.

In addition, the main conductor abutment portion 51 is configured to have a planar shape that makes surface contact with the outer surface of the main conductor 11, thereby ensuring the contact area between the main conductor 11 and the main side connecting conductor 50 and ensuring electrical continuity between the main conductor 11 and the main side connecting conductor 50. As a result, power can be stably supplied from the main conductor 11 to the sub-conductor 21 via the branch connector 30.

The main conductor 11 is a flat wire having a predetermined width and a flat cross section, and the main conductor abutting portion 51 is configured in a planar shape that is in surface contact with the outer surface of the main conductor 11 .
As a result, the planar main conductor abutment portion 51 comes into surface contact with the main conductor 11, so that the main conductor abutment portion 51 can be stably disposed with respect to the main conductor 11. Therefore, the battery B can be supplied from the main conductor 11 to the sub-conductor 21 more stably, and the stability of conduction can be improved.

The fuse mounting portion 45 (fuse mounting hole 451) is disposed on the inside of the main conductor 11 in the width direction W, and is oriented so that the fuse 70 is mounted in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction L and perpendicular to the width direction W.

As a result, the fuse 70 is attached in the vertical direction Z perpendicular to the surface of the main conductor 11, preventing the fuse attachment portion 45 from expanding in the width direction W, and making it possible to configure a branch connector 30 that is compact in the width direction W. It is also possible to prevent the main conductor 11 from interfering with the attachment of the fuse 70. This allows the fuse 70 to be easily attached while keeping the size small.

In the correspondence between the configuration of this invention and the above-mentioned embodiment, the main conductor of this invention corresponds to the main conductor 11, and so on.
The insulating coating corresponds to the insulating coating 12.
The power line corresponds to the harness 10.
The sub-conductor corresponds to the sub-conductor 21,
The branch connector corresponds to the branch connector 30,
The housing corresponds to the housing 40;
The main-side connecting conductor corresponds to the main-side connecting conductor 50,
The sub-side connecting conductor corresponds to the sub-side connecting conductor 60,
The longitudinal direction corresponds to the longitudinal direction L,
The exposed conductor portion corresponds to the exposed conductor portion 13,
The housing corresponds to the flat housing 41,
The fuse mounting portion corresponds to the fuse mounting portion 45 (fuse mounting hole 451),
The sub-conductor mounting portion corresponds to the connector mounting portion 46,
The main conductor abutting portion corresponds to the main conductor abutting portion 51,
The first fuse connection portion corresponds to the first tuning fork terminal 53,
The second fuse connection portion corresponds to the second tuning fork terminal 61,
The sub-conductor connection portion corresponds to a male terminal 62,
The first container corresponds to the first container portion 43.
The second container corresponds to the second container portion 44.
The connector corresponds to a connector housing 23,
The connector mounting portion corresponds to the connector mounting portion 46,
The harness corresponds to the harness 10,
The harness wiring structure corresponds to a harness 2 with a branch connector,
The additional wire corresponds to the sub-wire 20,
The harness routing structure with additional circuits corresponds to the harness routing structure with additional circuits 1, but the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment.

For example, in this embodiment, the harness 10 is a flat electric wire in which a main conductor 11 having a flat cross section is covered with an insulating coating 12, but the type of electric wire is not limited. For example, the main conductor 11 may be a round electric wire in which a single conductive wire or multiple conductive wires are bundled together, or the main conductor 11 may be a twisted conductor in which multiple conductive wires are bundled and twisted together.

In addition, in this embodiment, the main conductor abutment portion 51 is configured to have a planar shape that is in surface contact with the outer surface of the main conductor 11, but the shape of this main conductor abutment portion 51 may be changed to match the shape of the main conductor 11. Specifically, when the harness 10 is a round electric wire, the main conductor abutment portion 51 may be made to have an arc-shaped cross section to match the shape of the main conductor 11 of the harness 10.

The male terminal 62 may be a connector terminal 22 connected to the sub-conductor 21, or a connection terminal for connecting an earth terminal, etc.

In addition, in this embodiment, the main side connecting conductor 50 and the sub side connecting conductor 60 are plate-shaped bus bars. However, as long as the current I of the harness 10 can be distributed to the male terminal 62 via the fuse 70, the configuration is not limited, and the conductor may be a conductive electric wire, etc.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the housing 40 has a single connector mounting portion 46, but multiple connector mounting portions may be provided. Also, the connector housing 23 has two connector terminals 22, but the number may be one, or three or more. Furthermore, a mounting portion for connecting to other connecting bodies including the relay R may be used in conjunction with the connector mounting portion 46.

In addition, in this embodiment, the fuse mounting portion 45 (fuse mounting hole 451) is arranged so that the fuse 70 is mounted from the vertical direction Z, but this configuration is not limited to this. For example, as in the harness arrangement structure with additional circuit 1x shown in FIG. 9(a), the fuse 70 may be arranged so that it is mounted from the width direction W perpendicular to the longitudinal direction L.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 9(b), the branch connector 30x in the harness 2x with branch connector has a main side connecting conductor 50x instead of the main side connecting conductor 50, and a first sub-side connecting conductor 60x instead of the sub-side connecting conductor 60.

The main-side connecting conductor 50x is configured so that the first tuning fork terminal 53 protrudes from one end face in the width direction W of the main conductor abutment portion 51. The first sub-side connecting conductor 60x also has a connecting portion 63x that is approximately L-shaped in plan view and connects the male terminal 62 along the longitudinal direction L and the second tuning fork terminal 61 along the width direction W.

The housing 40x corresponding to the housing 40 has a connector mounting portion 46 aligned along the longitudinal direction L and a fuse mounting portion 45x protruding to one side in the width direction W, forming a generally L-shaped configuration in plan view. The fuse mounting portion 45x has two fuse mounting holes 451x arranged along the longitudinal direction L, into which the fuse 70 is inserted along the width direction W.

As a result, the fuse 70 is attached along the width direction W of the main conductor 11, which prevents the fuse attachment portion 45x from expanding in the direction perpendicular to the surface of the main conductor 11, and makes it possible to configure a branch connector 30 that is compact in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction L and the width direction W. It also prevents the main conductor 11 from interfering with the attachment of the fuse 70. This allows the fuse 70 to be easily attached while keeping the size small.

In addition, in this embodiment, the connector mounting portion 46 is configured to mount the connector housing 23, but this configuration is not necessarily required. For example, as shown in the schematic diagram of the harness arrangement structure 1y with additional circuit shown in FIG. 10, the housing 40y (substituting for the housing 40) constituting the branch connector 30y may have a relay mounting portion 46y for mounting a relay R instead of the connector mounting portion 46, and may be provided with a first sub-side connecting conductor 60y having a control side connecting portion 62y connected to the second tuning fork terminal 61 and the control side contact of the relay R, and a second sub-side connecting conductor 60z having an operating side connecting portion 61z connected to the operating side contact of the relay R and an earth connecting portion 62z connected to the earth circuit G instead of the sub-side connecting conductor 60.

This allows the optional device X connected to the sub-conductor 21 to be controlled using the relay R mounted on the relay mounting portion 46y . This allows various optional devices X according to purposes to be added to desired positions in the harness 10, and further improves the degree of freedom in designing the harness 10 to be mounted on the vehicle body.

Reference Signs List 1, 1x, 1y Harness arrangement structure with additional circuit 2, 2x Harness with branch connector 10 Harness 11 Main conductor 12 Insulating coating 13 Exposed conductor portion 20 Sub-wire 21 Sub-conductor 23 Connector housing 30 Branch connector 40, 40x, 40y Housing 41 Flat housing 43 First accommodating portion 44 Second accommodating portion 45 Fuse mounting portion 46 Connector mounting portion
46y Relay mounting portion 50, 50x Main side connecting conductor 51 Main conductor abutment portion 53 First tuning fork terminal 60 Sub side connecting conductor 61 Second tuning fork terminal 60y First sub side connecting conductor 60z Sub side connecting conductor 61z Operating side connecting portion 62 Male terminal 62y Control side connecting portion 62z Earth connecting portion B Battery G Earth circuit R Relay L Longitudinal direction

Claims (11)

A branch connector that connects and branches a sub-conductor to be connected to a power line having a main conductor that conducts power and is covered with an insulating coating,
The housing includes a main-side connecting conductor and a sub-side connecting conductor.
The housing includes:
the power line has a housing portion for housing a conductor exposed portion in which a portion of the insulating coating in a longitudinal direction of the power line is stripped to expose the main conductor, a fuse mounting portion for mounting a fuse having two electrodes, and a sub-conductor mounting portion for mounting and connecting the sub-conductor,
The main side connecting conductor is
a main conductor abutting portion that abuts against the main conductor, and a first fuse connecting portion that is connected to one electrode of the fuse that is attached to the fuse attachment portion,
The sub-side connecting conductor is
a second fuse connection portion connected to the other electrode of the fuse and a sub-conductor connection portion connected to the sub-conductor ;
the housing portion includes a first housing and a second housing configured to sandwich the power line,
The main conductor is a flat conductor having a predetermined width and a flat cross section,
The main conductor abutment portion is configured to have a planar shape that is in surface contact with the outer surface of the flat conductor that is the main conductor.
Branch connector. The fuse mounting portion is
The flat conductor is disposed on the inner side in the width direction,
The fuse is arranged in such a manner that it is attached in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and perpendicular to the width direction.
The branch connector according to claim 1 . The fuse mounting portion is
The fuses are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and in a direction perpendicular to the width direction.
The branch connector according to claim 1 . The main-side connecting conductor and the sub-side connecting conductor are
Consisting of a conductive plate-shaped bus bar
The branch connector according to any one of claims 1 to 3 . A plurality of the fuse mounting portions are provided,
the main-side connecting conductor has a plurality of the first fuse connecting portions for one main conductor abutting portion, the number of which corresponds to the number of the fuse mounting portions;
The sub-side connecting conductor is provided in a number corresponding to the number of the fuse mounting parts.
The branch connector according to any one of claims 1 to 4 . The sub-conductor mounting portion is
a connector mounting portion to which a connector is attached, the connector being provided at a tip of the sub-conductor made of a conductor of an electric wire;
The sub-conductor connection portion is formed in a terminal shape to be connected to a connection terminal provided at the tip of the sub-conductor.
The branch connector according to any one of claims 1 to 5 . The connector mounting portion is arranged in such a manner that the connector is connected in a direction along the longitudinal direction.
The branch connector according to claim 6 . The sub-conductor mounting portion has a relay mounting portion for mounting a relay,
The sub-side connecting conductor is
a first sub-side connecting conductor having a control-side connecting portion connected to the second fuse connecting portion and a control-side contact of the relay;
a second sub-side connecting conductor having an operating side connecting portion connected to the operating side contact of the relay and an earth connecting portion connected to an earth circuit;
The branch connector according to any one of claims 1 to 5 . A harness arranged on the vehicle body;
and a branch connector according to any one of claims 1 to 8 ,
The power supply line constitutes the harness,
The branch connector is provided at a location where the sub-conductor constituting an additional circuit is branched and connected to the main conductor of the harness. A harness arranged on the vehicle body,
and a branch connector according to any one of claims 1 to 8 ,
The power supply line constitutes the harness,
A harness wiring structure, in which the branch connector is provided at a location where the sub-conductor constituting the additional circuit is branched and connected to the main conductor of the harness. A harness arranged on the vehicle body,
an additional line constituting an additional circuit;
and a branch connector according to any one of claims 1 to 8 ,
the power supply line constitutes the harness, and the sub-conductor constitutes the conductor of the additional line;
The branch connector is provided at a location where the sub-conductor is branched and connected to the main conductor of the harness.

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