JP7809563B2 - Connector holder and connector holding structure - Google Patents

Description

This invention relates to a connector holder and connector holding structure that holds connectors attached to the ends of electric wires that make up a wire harness at a predetermined location, such as the main wire of the wire harness.

Wire harnesses are routed in various locations in a vehicle to electrically connect various electrical devices and transmit signals.

More specifically, a wire harness has a main line and multiple branch lines branching off from the main line, and power is supplied and signals are transmitted by connecting connectors at the ends of the branch lines to connectors on the device side.

In addition, recently, a wide variety of electrical devices have been installed in vehicles, requiring a large number of circuits, which in turn requires a large number of branch wires and connectors. However, depending on the specifications and destination, there may be cases where only a small number of electrical devices are installed, in which case the number of circuits required will also be reduced, but in order to improve the efficiency of wire harness manufacturing and management, wire harnesses may be standardized.

When wire harnesses are standardized in this way, in specifications or destinations where the number of installed electrical devices is small, necessary connectors from among multiple connectors will be selectively used, resulting in unused connectors, so-called throw-away connectors.
Such unused connectors may be fixed to the trunk line, as shown in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-222999.

Wire harnesses are manufactured by arranging electric wires along a predetermined routing path on a wiring board and attaching connectors, etc. When wiring a wire harness manufactured on a wiring board into a vehicle, if the numerous connectors are not held in place, the wiring work becomes difficult to perform. Therefore, all connectors are aligned along the main wire and secured in place by wrapping tape around them.

When installing the cables in a vehicle, the tape securing the connector is cut and the cable is connected to the connector on the electrical equipment side. This requires pulling on the branch wire to cut the tape, but problems can arise where the tape is difficult to cut, or the tape cannot be cut at all, making the process less efficient.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 11-26059

In consideration of the above-mentioned problems, this invention aims to provide a connector holder and connector holding structure that can hold a connector in a predetermined location and allow the connector to be efficiently removed and used.

This invention is characterized in that the connector holder comprises a tubular retainer body having an accommodation space that accommodates at least a portion of a connector provided at the tip of an electric wire that constitutes a wire harness and an insertion opening that communicates with the accommodation space, the retainer body being made of an elastic member and fixed to a predetermined location by a fixing device to hold the connector at the predetermined location, the retainer body being formed in a quadrangular tubular shape with a rectangular cross section perpendicular to an insertion direction in which the connector is inserted from the insertion opening toward the accommodation space, a plurality of the retainer bodies being provided, the plurality of retainer bodies being arranged in series in the insertion direction, and a connecting portion being provided to connect ends of the retainer bodies adjacent to each other in the insertion direction .

The present invention also provides a connector holding structure for holding a connector provided at the tip of an electric wire constituting a wire harness at a predetermined location, the connector holding structure comprising: a connector holder for holding the connector; and a fixture for fixing the connector holder at the predetermined location; the connector holder is formed in a tubular shape having an accommodation space therein for accommodating at least a portion of the connector and an insertion opening communicating with the accommodation space, and is provided with a holder main body made of an elastic member; the holder main body is formed in a quadrangular tubular shape having a rectangular cross section perpendicular to an insertion direction in which the connector is inserted from the insertion opening toward the accommodation space; a plurality of the holder main bodies are provided, the plurality of holder main bodies are arranged in series in the insertion direction, and a connecting portion is provided for connecting ends of the holder main bodies adjacent to each other in the insertion direction, the connecting portion being integrally formed with the holder main body .

The phrase "at least a part of the connector is housed inside" means that the connector is housed in part or in whole to the extent that the connector can be held by the holder body.
The fixing device may be a tape, a cable tie, a clip, an anchor, or the like.
The cylindrical shape may be a simple cylindrical shape with the storage space passing through it, or may be a cylindrical shape with a bottom that is closed on the side facing the insertion opening, i.e., the side opposite the insertion opening.

This invention allows the connector to be held in place while still allowing the connector to be efficiently removed and used.
In more detail, the retaining device main body is formed in a cylindrical shape having an accommodation space and an insertion opening communicating with the accommodation space, and is fixed to a predetermined location using a fixing device. At least a portion of the connector provided at the tip of the electric wire that constitutes the wire harness is accommodated in the internal accommodation space, thereby holding the connector in the predetermined location.

Furthermore, the connector can be used simply by removing it from the holder body that is fixed in place by the fixture.
Furthermore, since the holder body is made of an elastic material, it can hold connectors of various sizes, and furthermore, the connectors can be easily removed from the holder body.

As described above, the connector holder of the present invention allows the connector to be easily removed from the holder body while it remains fixed in place by the fixture. This eliminates the risk of cut tape remaining in place and peeling off over time, as occurs with conventional holding structures that fix connectors with tape. This not only holds the connector in place, but also allows the connector to be efficiently removed and used.

The holder body is formed in a quadrangular tubular shape with a rectangular cross section perpendicular to the insertion direction in which the connector is inserted from the insertion opening toward the housing space.
This allows the holder body to conform to the cross-sectional shape of the connector, making it easy to insert and remove the connector into and from the holder body, and allowing the connector to be held stably in the held state.

Moreover, a plurality of the holder bodies are provided.
This allows multiple connectors to be held.
Alternatively, the holder body is formed in a square tube shape with a rectangular cross section perpendicular to the insertion direction in which the connector is inserted from the insertion opening toward the accommodating space, and multiple holder bodies are provided.
This allows the holder body to fit the cross-sectional shape of the connectors, making it easy to insert and remove the connectors into and from the holder body, and allowing multiple connectors to be held stably in the held state.

The plurality of holder bodies are arranged in series in the insertion direction, and are provided with connecting portions that connect the ends of the holder bodies adjacent to each other in the insertion direction.
Alternatively, a plurality of the holder bodies are arranged in series in the insertion direction, and a connecting portion is provided to connect the ends of adjacent holder bodies in the insertion direction, and the connecting portion is integrally formed with the holder body.
This allows the two connectors to be held in opposing orientations relative to the connector holder.

In another aspect of this invention, the connecting portion may be a fragile connecting portion that is integral with the retainer body, is bendable and severable, and is weaker than the retainer body.

The frangible connection portion is the portion between the retainer bodies when holding the connector, and this portion can be made thinner than the other portions, or can be formed by a dashed cut.

This invention allows the multiple holder bodies that make up the connector holder to be separated at weak joints so that each holder body can hold a connector, or the weak joints can be bent to stack the holder bodies and hold multiple connectors.

The present invention also provides a connector holding structure for holding a connector at a predetermined location, the connector being attached to the tip of an electric wire constituting a wire harness, the structure comprising: a connector holder for holding the connector; and a fixture for fixing the connector holder to the predetermined location; the connector holder is formed in a tubular shape having an internal storage space for accommodating at least a portion of the connector and an insertion opening communicating with the storage space; and the connector body is provided with a holder body made of an elastic material; the holder body is formed in a quadrangular tubular shape having a rectangular cross section perpendicular to the insertion direction in which the connector is inserted from the insertion opening toward the storage space; a plurality of the holder bodies are provided, and the plurality of holder bodies are arranged in parallel in a transverse direction that intersects with the insertion direction; and connecting portions are provided to connect adjacent ends of the parallel-arranged holder bodies; the connecting portions are integrally formed with the holder body, and are weaker than the holder body, being bent weak connecting portions.

The frangible connection portion is the portion between the retainer bodies when holding the connector, and this portion can be made thinner than the other portions, or can be formed by a dashed cut.

This invention allows the multiple holder bodies that make up the connector holder to be separated at weak joints so that each holder body can hold a connector, or the weak joints can be bent to arrange the holder bodies in parallel to hold multiple connectors.

As another aspect of the present invention, the frangible connection portion may be formed across at least two continuous surfaces at the end portion of the rectangular holder body.
Alternatively, in another aspect of the present invention, the fragile connecting portion formed across at least two consecutive faces at the end of the rectangular retainer body may be bent to separate face portions other than the faces connecting adjacent ends in the parallel direction.

The fragile connection formed across at least two consecutive surfaces may be L-shaped or angular U-shaped. It may also be the entire side of the end of the rectangular retainer body, or just a portion of the side. Furthermore, the L-shaped fragile connection may be provided at each of the opposing corners of the end of the rectangular retainer body.

This invention allows the holder bodies to be used stably in a linear arrangement, and by severing a portion of the weak connection formed across at least two consecutive surfaces, the bending direction of the weak connection can be changed, meaning that multiple holder bodies can be used in a line in the desired direction.

In another aspect of the present invention, the wire harness may include a trunk line and branch lines branching from the trunk line, the connector may be provided at an end of the branch line, and the predetermined location may be the trunk line.
According to the present invention, the connector holder can be fixed to the main wire of the wire harness with the fixture to hold the connector, and the connector can be efficiently removed and used.

In another aspect of the present invention, the fixing device may be a tape material that wraps together the connector holder and the trunk cable along which the connector holder is placed.
According to the present invention, the connector holder can be easily fixed to the main wire of the wire harness.

As mentioned above, the connector holder of the present invention allows the connector to be easily removed while the holder body remains fixed to the main line with tape, meaning the connector can be removed without cutting the tape. This eliminates the need to pull on the branch line to cut the tape, as is the case with conventional holding structures, improving workability. Furthermore, there is no risk of the cut tape remaining in a designated location and peeling off over time, allowing the connector held in the main line to be efficiently removed and used.

This invention provides a connector holder and connector holding structure that can hold a connector in a specified location and allow the connector to be efficiently removed and used.

1A and 1B are explanatory diagrams of a connector holder and a connector holding structure according to a first embodiment. 1 is an explanatory cross-sectional view of a connector holder and a connector holding structure according to a first embodiment. 10A and 10B are explanatory diagrams of a connector holder and a connector holding structure according to a second embodiment. 10A and 10B are explanatory diagrams of a connector holder and a connector holding structure according to a third embodiment. 10A and 10B are explanatory diagrams of a connector holder and a connector holding structure according to a fourth embodiment. 10A and 10B are explanatory diagrams of a connector holder and a connector holding structure according to a fifth embodiment. FIG. 13 is an explanatory cross-sectional view of a connector holder according to a sixth embodiment. 13A and 13B are explanatory diagrams of a connector holder and a connector holding structure according to a seventh embodiment.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
(Embodiment 1)
Figure 1(a) shows an oblique view of the connector holder 20 and connector holding structure 1 of embodiment 1, Figure 1(b) shows an exploded oblique view of the holder main body 21 and the connector 15, Figure 2(a) shows a cross-sectional view along line A-A in Figure 1(a), and Figure 2(b) shows a cross-sectional view of the main parts along line B-B in Figure 2(a).

For convenience, the connector 15 is not shown in Figure 2(a). In Figure 1(a), the direction connecting the upper left and lower right along the longitudinal direction of the main harness 11 is referred to as the longitudinal direction L, the up-down direction is referred to as the up-down direction H, and the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction L and the up-down direction H is referred to as the width direction W. Furthermore, the upper left side of the longitudinal direction L in Figure 1(a) is referred to as the base end side LB, and the lower right side of the longitudinal direction L is referred to as the tip side LF. The upper side in the up-down direction H in Figure 1(a) is referred to as the upper side HU, the lower side is referred to as the lower side HD, the lower left side in the width direction W is referred to as the front side WF, and the upper right side is referred to as the rear side WD.

As shown in Figure 1, the connector holding structure 1 includes a wire harness 10 (Figure 2(a)) and a connector holder 20 that holds a connector 15 provided at the tip of a sub-harness 12 in the wire harness 10, and holds the connector 15 with the connector holder 20 fixed to a predetermined location in the main harness 11 (Figure 2(a)).
In each drawing, for the sake of convenience, a plurality of electric wires of the main harness 11 and the sub-harness 12 are shown together in a simplified manner, and the exterior material 2 and the connector 15 are also shown in a simplified manner.

The wire harness 10 is composed of a bundle of multiple insulated wires (not shown), and has a main harness 11, which is a trunk line, and sub-harnesses 12, which are branch lines branching off from the main harness 11, with a connector 15 connected to the end of the sub-harness 12. Note that multiple sub-harnesses 12 are provided, and the sub-harnesses 12 with the illustrated connectors 15a and 15b at their ends are referred to as sub-harnesses 12a and 12b.

The main harness 11, which extends along the longitudinal direction L, is surrounded by an exterior material 2, and multiple sub-harnesses 12 branch off from the main harness 11, which is led out from the end 3 of the exterior material 2. The exterior material 2 can be made of an appropriate exterior material such as a corrugated tube or a twisted tube. Note that the exterior material 2 may not be provided depending on the environment in which the wire harness 10 is routed.

The connector 15 connected to the tip of the sub-harness 12 is formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and is intended to be connected to a connector provided on another device to form a conductive circuit.
Of the sub-harnesses 12 having the connector 15 configured in this manner at their tip ends, the sub-harness 12a to which the connector 15a held by the connector holder 20 is connected is led out from the end 3 of the outer casing material 2 to the tip side LF, and then bent back toward the base side LB, as shown in Figure 1(a).

Furthermore, the sub-harness 12b, which is connected to the connector 15b held by the connector holder 20, is led from the end 3 of the outer casing 2 to the tip side LF, then bent back toward the base side LB, extended a predetermined length toward the base side LB, and then bent back again toward the tip side LF.

Here, the routing direction of the sub-harnesses 12 is not limited to the routing direction in the illustrated embodiment. Furthermore, the number of sub-harnesses 12, i.e., the number of branches from the main harness 11, is not limited to the number in the illustrated embodiment. Furthermore, after multiple sub-harnesses 12 branch off, the main harness 11 may continue to extend as is.

As described above, the connector holding structure 1 includes, in addition to the wire harness 10, a connector holder 20 that holds the connector 15, and tape material 40 that secures the connector holder 20 to a predetermined location on the wire harness 10.

1 and 2, the connector holder 20 has a holder body 21 made of a rectangular cylindrical elastic member made of rubber. The holder body 21 has an accommodation space 22 therein for accommodating at least a portion of each connector 15, and both ends of the accommodation space 22 are insertion openings 23.
The holder body 21 has an accommodating space 22 extending from the insertion opening 23 at the tip side LF to the insertion opening 23 at the base side LB, and is formed with a square cross-sectional shape that allows the rectangular parallelepiped connector 15 to be inserted from the longitudinal direction L.

More specifically, the holder body 21 is rectangular when viewed in the width direction W and the vertical direction H, and is formed into a square cylindrical shape with all four interior angles being right angles by two pairs of walls that face each other in the width direction W and the vertical direction H.

As shown in Figure 1(a), the tape material 40 is a fastener that wraps together the connector holder 20 and the main harness 11 along which the connector holder 20 is placed, via the outer casing material 2.

The retainer body 21 configured as described above is positioned at a predetermined position on the wire harness 10, in this embodiment at the midpoint of the main harness 11 along the longitudinal direction L, so that the insertion opening 23 opens toward the longitudinal direction L. The outside of the main harness 11 and the retainer body 21 are then wrapped and secured with tape 40, thereby providing a connector retainer 20 at a predetermined position on the wire harness 10.

As described above, by inserting the connector 15a provided at the tip of the sub-harness 12a into the accommodation space 22 through the insertion opening 23 on the tip side LF of the holder main body 21, a portion of the connector 15a can be accommodated in the accommodation space 22.

Furthermore, by inserting the connector 15b provided at the tip of the sub-harness 12b into the accommodation space 22 through the insertion opening 23 on the base end side LB of the holder main body 21, a portion of the connector 15b can be accommodated in the accommodation space 22.

In this way, each connector 15 is inserted through the insertion openings 23 on both sides of the retainer body 21 and partially accommodated in the accommodation space 22, thereby holding the connector 15 in a predetermined position on the main harness 11 of the wire harness 10 and allowing the connector 15 to be efficiently removed and used.

As described above, the connector holder 20 and connector holding structure 1 of this embodiment include a cylindrical holder body 21 having an accommodation space 22 that accommodates a portion of the connector 15 provided at the tip of the sub-harness 12 that constitutes the wire harness 10, and an insertion opening 23 that communicates with the accommodation space 22. The holder body 21 is made of an elastic material and is fixed to a predetermined location on the main harness 11 with tape material 40. The connector holder 20 and connector holding structure 1 that holds the connector 15 at a predetermined location on the main harness 11 can hold the connector 15 at a predetermined location on the main harness 11, and also allows the connector 15 to be efficiently removed and used.

More specifically, the retainer body 21, which is cylindrical and has an accommodation space 22 and an insertion opening 23 that communicates with the accommodation space 22, is fixed to a predetermined location on the main harness 11 with tape material 40, and a portion of the connector 15 provided at the tip of the sub-harness 12 that constitutes the wire harness 10 is accommodated in the internal accommodation space 22, thereby holding the connector 15 in a predetermined location on the main harness 11.

Furthermore, the connector 15 can be used simply by removing it from the holder body 21 that is fixed to a predetermined location on the main harness 11 by the tape material 40 .
Furthermore, since the holder body 21 is made of an elastic material, it can hold connectors 15 of various sizes, and furthermore, the connectors 15 can be easily removed from the holder body 21.

As described above, the connector holder 20 allows the connector 15 to be easily removed from the holder body 21 while it remains secured with the tape material 40. This eliminates the risk of cut tape remaining in a designated location on the main harness 11 and peeling off over time, as occurs with conventional retaining structures that secure the connector 15 with tape. This allows the connector 15 to be held in a designated location on the main harness 11, and also allows the connector 15 to be efficiently removed and used.

The holder body 21 is formed in a rectangular cylindrical shape with a cross section perpendicular to the longitudinal direction L along which the connector 15 is inserted from the insertion opening 23 toward the storage space 22. Because this conforms to the cross-sectional shape of the connector 15, the connector 15 can be easily inserted and removed from the holder body 21 and can be held stably in the held state.

Furthermore, the wire harness 10 includes a main harness 11 and a sub-harness 12 branching off from the main harness 11. The connector 15 is provided at the tip of the sub-harness 12, and the predetermined location on the main harness 11 is the main harness 11. Therefore, by fixing the connector holder 20 to the main harness 11 of the wire harness 10 with tape material 40, the connector 15 can be held and can be efficiently removed and used.

Furthermore, the connector holder 20 can be easily secured to the main harness 11 of the wire harness 10 by simply wrapping the tape material 40 around the connector holder 20 and the main harness 11 along which the connector holder 20 is aligned.

In the above explanation, an example of a holder body 21 that accommodates two connectors 15 was given. However, a single connector 15 may be held by inserting the connector 15 through either insertion opening 23 in the longitudinal direction L. In this case, the length of the holder body 21 in the longitudinal direction L may be reduced, specifically by approximately half, to make the holder body 21 suitable for a single connector. Furthermore, the connector 15 may be entirely accommodated in the accommodation space 22 of the holder body 21.

(Embodiment 2)
Next, a connector holder 20a and a connector holding structure 1a according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
Figure 3(a) shows an exploded perspective view of the connector holder 20a of embodiment 2, Figure 3(b) shows an oblique view of multiple holder bodies 21 folded via weak connecting portions 24, and Figure 3(c) shows a cross-sectional view of the connector holding structure 1a.

For convenience, the connector 15 is not shown in FIG.
In the following description of the connector holding structure 1a and the connector holder 20a, the same components as those in the connector holding structure 1 and the connector holder 20 described above are given the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 3, the connector holder 20a in the connector holding structure 1a has two holder bodies 21.
In detail, as shown in Figure 3, two retainer bodies 21 are arranged in series in the longitudinal direction L, and parts of the circumferential direction at the ends of adjacent retainer bodies 21 in the longitudinal direction L are connected to each other by a fragile connecting portion 24.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, the frangible connecting portions 24 connect the wall portions of the upper HU at the ends of adjacent holder bodies 21 .
The frangible connecting portion 24 is integrally formed with the holder body 21 , is bendable and severable, and is a thin-walled connecting portion that is weaker than the holder body 21 .

As shown in Figure 3(b), the connector holder 20a configured in this manner can be configured by rotating the holder main body 21 on the distal end side LF toward the holder main body 21 on the proximal end side LB, with the weak link 24 as a fulcrum, as indicated by arrow Xa in Figure 3(a). This allows the connector holder 20a to be configured in a state where two holder main bodies 21 are stacked in the vertical direction H, as shown in Figure 3(b).

Then, as shown in Figure 3(c), the connector holder 20a, with the holder body 21 stacked in the vertical direction H, is aligned with a predetermined location on the main harness 11 of the wire harness 10, and the connector holder 20a and the main harness 11 are wrapped together with tape material 40 to form the connector holding structure 1a.

Of course, the connector holding structure 1a may also be constructed by fixing the connector holder 20a, in which two holder bodies 21 are connected along the longitudinal direction L by the frangible connection portion 24, to a predetermined location 40 on the main harness 11.

In this way, the connector holder 20a and connector holding structure 1a of embodiment 2 not only have the functions and effects of the connector holding structure 1 and connector holder 20 described above, but also have multiple holder bodies 21, making them capable of holding multiple connectors 15.

In addition, multiple holder bodies 21 are arranged in series in the longitudinal direction L, and weak connecting portions 24 are provided to connect the ends of adjacent holder bodies 21 in the longitudinal direction L, allowing the connector holder 20a to hold two connectors 15.

Furthermore, as shown in Figure 3, the fragile connecting portion 24, which is integrally formed with the holder main body 21, can be bent and separated, and is formed to be weaker than the holder main body 21, and the holder main body 21 can be stacked in the vertical direction H by bending it, thereby holding multiple connectors 15.
The plurality of holder bodies 21 constituting the connector holder 20 a may be separated by the weak linking portions 24 so that the individual holder bodies 21 hold the connectors 15 .

By inserting connectors 15 into each holder body 21 stacked in the vertical direction H from both sides in the longitudinal direction L, a maximum of four connectors 15 can be held.
Alternatively, the holder body 21 may be divided at the weak connection portion 24 so that each holder body 21 holds the connector 15 .

(Embodiment 3)
Next, a third embodiment of a connector holder 20b and a connector holding structure 1b will be described with reference to FIG.
Figure 4(a) shows an exploded perspective view of the connector holder 20b of embodiment 3, Figure 4(b) shows an oblique view of the state in which multiple holder bodies 21 are folded via the weak connection portions 24a, and Figure 4(c) shows a cross-sectional view of the connector holding structure 1b.

For convenience, the connector 15 is not shown in FIG.
In the following description of the connector holding structure 1b and the connector holder 20b, the same components as those in the connector holding structures 1, 1a and the connector holders 20, 20a described above are given the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The connector holder 20a of the connector holding structure 1a described above has two holder bodies 21 arranged in series in the longitudinal direction L, with the walls of the upper HU connected to each other by a frangible connection 24. In contrast, the connector holder 20b of the connector holding structure 1b of this embodiment 3 has two holder bodies 21 arranged in series in the longitudinal direction L, similar to the connector holder 20a, with the ends connected to each other by a frangible connection 24a, as shown in Figure 4.

In detail, in contrast to the above-mentioned connector holder 20a in which two holder bodies 21 arranged in series in the longitudinal direction L are connected by a fragile connecting portion 24 at the wall portions of the upper HU, the connector holder 20b is configured in such a way that the wall portions of the front side WF are connected by a fragile connecting portion 24a.
Like the fragile connecting portion 24 , the fragile connecting portion 24 a is integrally formed with the holder body 21 , is bendable and severable, and is a connecting portion formed to be weaker than the holder body 21 .

As shown in Figure 4(a), the connector holder 20b configured in this manner can be configured in a state where two holder bodies 21 are stacked in the width direction W by rotating the holder body 21 on the distal end side LF toward the holder body 21 on the proximal end side LB, using the weak link 24a as a fulcrum, as indicated by arrow Xb in Figure 4(a).

Then, as shown in Figure 4(c), the connector holder 20b, with the holder body 21 stacked in the width direction W, is aligned with a predetermined location on the main harness 11 of the wire harness 10, and the connector holder 20b and the main harness 11 are wrapped together with tape material 40 to form the connector holding structure 1b.

The connector holding structure 1b having the connector holder 20b configured in this manner achieves the same effects as those achieved by the connector holding structures 1, 1a and connector holders 20, 20a described above, and can hold multiple connectors 15 stacked in the width direction W at predetermined locations on the main harness 11.

By inserting connectors 15 into each holder body 21 stacked in the width direction W from both sides in the longitudinal direction L, a maximum of four connectors 15 can be held.
In addition, in the connector holder 20b, the holder body 21 may be divided at the weak linking portion 24a, and the connectors 15 may be held by the individual holder bodies 21.

(Embodiment 4)
Next, a fourth embodiment of a connector holder 20c and a connector holding structure 1c will be described with reference to FIG.
Figure 5(a) shows an exploded perspective view of the connector holder 20c of embodiment 4, Figure 5(b) shows an oblique view of the state in which multiple holder bodies 21 are folded via the weak connection portions 24b, 24c, and Figure 5(c) shows a cross-sectional view of the connector holding structure 1c.

For convenience, the connector 15 is not shown in FIG.
In the following description of the connector holding structure 1c and the connector holder 20c, the same components as those in the above-described connector holding structures 1 to 1b and connector holders 20 to 20b are given the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 5, a connector holder 20c in a connector holding structure 1c has three holder bodies 21 (21a, 21b, 21c).
In detail, as shown in Figure 5, three holder bodies 21a, 21b, and 21c are arranged in series in this order in the longitudinal direction L from the base end side LB to the tip end side LF, and parts of the circumferential direction at the ends of adjacent holder bodies 21 in the longitudinal direction L are connected to each other by weak connecting portions 24b and 24c.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 5(a), the frangible connecting portion 24b connects the wall portions of the front side WF at the ends of the holder main body 21a and the holder main body 21b.
As shown in FIG. 5B, the weak connection portion 24c connects the wall portions of the far side WD at the ends of the holder main body 21b and the holder main body 21c.
The fragile connecting portions 24b and 24c are integrally formed with the holder body 21, are bendable and severable, and are thin-walled connecting portions that are weaker than the holder body 21.

In the connector holder 20c configured in this manner, as shown by arrow Xc in Figure 5(a), the holder main body 21a on the base end side LB can be rotated toward the central holder main body 21b around the weak link 24b, and as shown by arrow Xd in Figure 5(a), the holder main body 21c on the base end side LB can be rotated toward the central holder main body 21b around the weak link 24c, thereby forming a connector holder 20c in which three holder main bodies 21 are stacked in the width direction W, as shown in Figure 5(b).

Then, as shown in Figure 5(c), the connector holder 20c, which has three holder bodies 21 stacked in the width direction W, is aligned with a predetermined location on the main harness 11 of the wire harness 10, and the connector holder 20c and the main harness 11 are wrapped together with tape material 40 to form the connector holding structure 1c.

The connector holding structure 1c, which has the connector holder 20c configured in this manner, achieves the same effects as the connector holding structures 1-1b and connector holders 20-20b described above, and can hold the connector 15 in three holder bodies 21 stacked in the width direction W at predetermined locations on the main harness 11.

Furthermore, by inserting connectors 15 into each holder body 21 stacked in the width direction W from both sides in the longitudinal direction L, a maximum of six connectors 15 can be held.
In addition, in the connector holder 20c, the holder body 21 may be divided at the weak connection portions 24b and 24c, and the connectors 15 may be held by the individual holder bodies 21.

In addition, in the above explanation, each of the retainer bodies 21a and 21c is bent back relative to the central retainer body 21b, using the weak connections 24b and 24c as fulcrums. However, it is also possible to bend back one of the retainer bodies 21a and 21c and stack it on the central retainer body 21b, while the other is arranged in series with the retainer body 21b and fixed to a predetermined location on the main harness 11.

(Embodiment 5)
Next, a fifth embodiment of a connector holder 20d and a connector holding structure 1d will be described with reference to FIG.
Figure 6(a) shows an exploded perspective view of the connector holder 20d of embodiment 5, Figure 6(b) shows a perspective view of the state in which multiple holder bodies 21 are folded at the weak connection portions 24b, 24d, Figure 6(c) shows a perspective view of the state in which the holder is further folded from the state shown in Figure 6(b), and Figure 6(d) shows a cross-sectional view of the connector holding structure 1d.

In the following description of the connector holding structure 1d and connector holder 20d, the same components as those in the connector holding structures 1-1c and connector holders 20-20c described above will be assigned the same reference numerals, and detailed descriptions of those components will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 6, a connector holder 20d in a connector holding structure 1d has four holder bodies 21 (21a, 21b, 21c, 21d).
In detail, as shown in Figure 6, four holder bodies 21a, 21b, 21c, and 21d are arranged in series in the longitudinal direction L in this order from the base end side LB to the tip end side LF, and parts of the circumferential direction at the ends of adjacent holder bodies 21 in the longitudinal direction L are connected to each other by weak connecting portions 24b and 24d.

More specifically, as shown in Figure 6(a), the frangible connecting portion 24b connects the walls of the front WF at the ends of the retainer main body 21a and the retainer main body 21b, and at the ends of the retainer main body 21c and the retainer main body 21d.

As shown in FIG. 6B, the weak connection portion 24d connects the wall portions of the lower HD at the end portions of the holder main body 21b and the holder main body 21c.
The fragile connecting portions 24b and 24d are integrally formed with the holder body 21, are bendable and severable, and are thin-walled connecting portions that are weaker than the holder body 21.

As shown by the arrow Xe in Figure 6(a), the connector holder 20d configured in this manner rotates the holder bodies 21a and 21b on the base end side LB toward the holder bodies 21c and 21d on the tip end side LF, with the weak connection portion 24d as a fulcrum.

Then, as shown by arrow Xf in Figure 6(b), by rotating each of the retainer bodies 21a and 21d on the base end side LB toward the retainer bodies 21b and 21c on the tip end side LF, using the weak link 24b as a fulcrum, a connector retainer 20d can be formed in which four retainer bodies 21 are stacked in the vertical direction H and width direction W, as shown in Figure 6(c).

Also, as shown in Figure 6(d), a connector holder 20d, which has four holder bodies 21 stacked together (two in the vertical direction H and two in the width direction W), can be aligned along a predetermined location on the main harness 11 of the wire harness 10, and the connector holder 20d and the main harness 11 can be wrapped together with tape material 40 to form the connector holding structure 1d.

The connector holding structure 1d, which includes the connector holder 20d configured in this manner, achieves the same effects as the connector holding structures 1-1b and connector holders 20-20c described above, and can hold connectors 15 in four holder bodies 21 stacked in the vertical direction H and width direction W at predetermined locations on the main harness 11.

By inserting connectors 15 into each holder body 21 stacked in the width direction W from both sides in the longitudinal direction L, a maximum of eight connectors 15 can be held.
Furthermore, in the above explanation, the retainer bodies 21c, 21d are bent back in the direction of arrow Xe relative to the retainer bodies 21a, 21b, using the weak connection portion 24d as a fulcrum, but instead of this bending, the retainer bodies 21a, 21d may be bent back at the weak connection portion 24c, respectively, and stacked on the retainer bodies 21b, 21c, and the two retainer bodies 21 arranged in series in the longitudinal direction L may be fixed to a predetermined location on the main harness 11 in a stacked state in the width direction W.

Furthermore, multiple holder bodies 21a to 21d are arranged in parallel in the up-down direction H and width direction W that intersect with the longitudinal direction L, and weak connecting portions 24b, 24d are provided that connect adjacent ends of the parallel-arranged holder body 21 in the up-down direction H or width direction W, and weak connecting portions 24b, 24d are formed integrally with holder body 21, are weaker than holder body 21, and are bent. Therefore, by bending weak connecting portions 24b, 24d, holder body 21 can be arranged in parallel in the up-down direction H and width direction W to hold multiple connectors 15.
Furthermore, the plurality of holder bodies 21 constituting the connector holder 20d may be separated at the weak joints 24b, 24d, and the connectors 15 may be held by the individual holder bodies 21.

(Embodiment 6)
Next, the structure of the weak links 24e to 24g will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 7 shows a cross-sectional view of connector retainers 20e-20g having frangible connections 24e-24g formed across at least two consecutive walls.

In the following description of connector holders 20e-20g, the same components as those in the connector holding structures 1-1d and connector holders 20-20d described above will be assigned the same reference numerals, and detailed descriptions of these components will be omitted.

The weakly connected portions 24e to 24g are formed at adjacent ends of the holder body 21, spanning at least two continuous wall portions.
Specifically, the weak connection portion 24e of the connector holder 20e shown in Figure 7(a) is formed in an L-shape across two consecutive wall portions: one of the wall portions facing the width direction W of the holder main body 21e with a rectangular cross section, and one of the wall portions facing the up-down direction H.

The frangible link portion 24f of the connector holder 20f shown in Figure 7(b) is formed in a rectangular U-shape, spanning three consecutive walls: one of the walls facing in the width direction W of the holder body 21e with a rectangular cross section, and both of the walls facing in the vertical direction H. The lengths formed on both of the walls facing in the vertical direction H may be equal, or, as shown in Figure 7(b), they may be formed to different lengths.

The frangible connection portions 24g of the connector holder 20g shown in Figure 7(c) are formed in an L-shape spanning two consecutive walls, one of which faces in the width direction W of the holder main body 21e with a rectangular cross section, and the other of which faces in the up-down direction H, and are positioned at each of the opposing corners of the holder main body 21e with a rectangular cross section.

When bending back one of the adjacent holder bodies 21, these weak link portions 24e-24g remain connected at the fulcrum side while the remaining portion is severed, allowing the holder body 21 to be bent back as described above in the connector holding structures 1a-1d. In other words, connector holders 20e-20g, which have the weak link portions 24e-24g described above, can be partially severed to form the weak link portions 24a-24d described above, and the bending direction can be changed; that is, multiple holder bodies 21 can be arranged side by side in a desired direction for use.

At the ends of the rectangular retainer body 21, the weak connecting portions 24e-24g, which are formed across at least two consecutive wall portions, are bent, and the wall portions other than the wall portions connecting adjacent ends in at least one of the parallel directions of the vertical direction H and the width direction W, are separated. This allows the retainer body 21 to be used stably in a linear state, and by separating a portion of the weak connecting portion 24 formed across two consecutive wall portions, the bending direction of the weak connecting portion 24 can be changed, i.e., multiple retainer bodies 21 can be used in a line in a desired direction.

(Embodiment 7)
Next, a seventh embodiment of a connector holder 20h and a connector holding structure 1h will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 8 shows a perspective view of a connector holder 20h and a connector holding structure 1h according to a seventh embodiment.

In the following description of the connector holding structure 1h and connector holder 20h, the same components as those in the connector holding structure 1 and connector holders 20-20g described above will be assigned the same reference numerals, and detailed descriptions of those components will be omitted.

In the connector holding structure 1 described above, the holder body 21 constituting the connector holder 20 is aligned with a predetermined location on the main harness 11, and the holder body 21 and main harness 11 are secured together by wrapping tape 40 around them. In contrast, the connector holder 20h in the connector holding structure 1h of embodiment 7 shown in Figure 8 has a square tubular shape with a rectangular cross section perpendicular to the longitudinal direction L. The holder body 21 has a tongue-like shape extending from the side wall on the side aligned with the main harness 11 to the tip side LF, and is integrally formed with a fixing piece 25 that functions as a so-called tape fixing allowance.

The connector holding structure 1h of this embodiment 7 is configured as a connector holder 20h with a holder main body 21 having a fixing piece 25. Therefore, instead of directly wrapping the holder main body 21 and main harness 11 together with tape material 40 as in the connector holding structure 1 of embodiment 1, the fixing piece 25 can be aligned with the main harness 11 and the fixing piece 25 and main harness 11 can be wrapped around and fixed together with tape material 40.

With this configuration, when the fixing piece 25 and main harness 11 are wrapped together with the tape material 40, even if a strong wrapping force is applied, the wrapping force does not affect the retainer body 21, and the retainer body 21 does not deform. This ensures good insertion and removal performance when inserting and removing the connector 15b into and from the accommodation space 22 through the insertion opening 23 on the base end side LB.

In other words, the connector holding structure 1h of embodiment 7 shown in Figure 8 achieves the same effects as the connector holding structure 1 and connector holder 20 described above, and by fixing the fixing piece 25, which extends from the wall portion of the holder main body 21 in the longitudinal direction L and extends integrally with the wall portion, to a predetermined location on the main harness 11 with the tape material 40, the connector 15b can be held in a predetermined location on the main harness 11.

In the above description of the connector holding structure 1 and connector holder 20h, the connector holder 20h is composed of a single holder body 21, and the fixing piece 25 is provided on the holder body 21. However, the fixing piece 25 may also be provided on the connector holders 20a to 20i in each of the above-mentioned embodiments 2 to 7.

In correspondence between the configuration of this invention and the above-mentioned embodiment,
The connector of the present invention corresponds to the wire harness 10 of the embodiment,
Similarly,
The electric wire corresponds to the sub-harness 12,
The connector corresponds to connector 15,
The accommodation space corresponds to the accommodation space 22;
The insertion opening corresponds to the insertion opening 23,
The holder body corresponds to the holder body 21,
The fixture corresponds to the tape material 40,
The predetermined location corresponds to a predetermined location on the main harness 11.
The connector holders correspond to connector holders 20, 20a to 20h,
The insertion direction corresponds to the longitudinal direction L,
The connection portion and the weak connection portion correspond to the weak connection portion 24;
The connector holding structure corresponds to the connector holding structures 1, 1a to 1h,
The main line corresponds to main harness 11,
The branch wire corresponds to the sub-harness 12,
The tape material corresponds to the tape material 40, but the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above-described embodiment, and many other embodiments can be obtained.
For example, in each of the above-described embodiments, the holder body 21, 21a to 21e is cylindrical and has the accommodation space 22 passing through it in the longitudinal direction L. However, the holder body 21 may be formed in a cylindrical shape with a bottom.

In addition, in the above-described embodiments, the length in the longitudinal direction L of the holder bodies 21, 21a to 21e is the same, and the connectors 15 are inserted through the insertion openings 23 on both sides. However, the length in the longitudinal direction L of at least one holder body may be approximately half the length of the holder bodies 21, 21a to 21e shown in the figures, and a single connector may be inserted into the shorter holder body.

Furthermore, instead of the tape material 40 disclosed in the embodiment, other fasteners such as cable ties, clips, or anchors may be used as the fastener.
The frangible connection portion 24 is formed thinly from other portions of the connector 15 and is configured to be bendable or severable, but it may also be formed by cutting in a broken line.

In addition, in the above-described connector holding structures 1, 1a to 1h, the connector holder 20 is fixed to a predetermined location on the main harness 11 that constitutes the wire harness 10. However, the connector holder 20 may also be fixed to a sub-harness 12 other than the sub-harnesses 12a and 12b to hold the connector 15, or the connector holder 20 may be fixed to a location other than the wire harness 10 to hold the connector 15.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 1a to 1h... Connector holding structure 10... Wire harness 11... Main harness 12... Sub-harness 15... Connector 20, 20a to 20h... Connector holder 21... Holder body 22... Storage space 23... Insertion opening 24... Weak connection portion 40... Tape material L... Longitudinal direction

Claims (8)

The wire harness is provided with a cylindrical holder body having an accommodation space for accommodating at least a part of a connector provided at the tip of the electric wire constituting the wire harness and an insertion opening communicating with the accommodation space,
The holder body is made of an elastic material and is fixed to a predetermined location by a fixing device to hold the connector at the predetermined location .
The holder body is
The connector is formed in a rectangular tubular shape with a cross section perpendicular to the insertion direction in which the connector is inserted from the insertion opening toward the accommodating space,
A plurality of the holder bodies are provided,
A plurality of the holder bodies are arranged in series in the insertion direction,
A connecting portion is provided to connect the ends of the holder main bodies adjacent to each other in the insertion direction.
Connector holder. The connecting portion is
The holder body is integrally formed with the holder body.
The fragile connecting portion is bendable and severable and is weaker than the holder body.
The connector retainer according to claim 1 . The frangible connection portion is
At the end of the rectangular holder body, a wall portion is formed across at least two continuous wall portions.
3. The connector holder according to claim 2 . A connector holding structure that holds a connector provided at the tip of an electric wire that constitutes a wire harness in a predetermined position,
a connector holder for holding the connector;
a fixture for fixing the connector holder to the predetermined location,
The connector holder is formed in a cylindrical shape having an accommodation space therein for accommodating at least a part of the connector and an insertion opening communicating with the accommodation space, and is provided with a holder body made of an elastic member ,
The holder body is
The connector is formed in a rectangular tubular shape with a cross section perpendicular to the insertion direction in which the connector is inserted from the insertion opening toward the accommodating space.
A plurality of the holder bodies are provided,
A plurality of the holder bodies are arranged in series in the insertion direction,
a connecting portion is provided to connect the ends of the holder main bodies adjacent to each other in the insertion direction,
The connecting portion is
The holder body is integrally formed
Connector retention structure. A connector holding structure that holds a connector provided at the tip of an electric wire that constitutes a wire harness in a predetermined position,
a connector holder for holding the connector;
a fixture for fixing the connector holder to the predetermined location,
The connector holder is formed in a cylindrical shape having an accommodation space therein for accommodating at least a part of the connector and an insertion opening communicating with the accommodation space, and is provided with a holder body made of an elastic member ,
The holder body is
The connector is formed in a rectangular tubular shape with a cross section perpendicular to the insertion direction in which the connector is inserted from the insertion opening toward the accommodating space.
A plurality of the holder bodies are provided,
The plurality of holder bodies are arranged in parallel in a direction intersecting the insertion direction,
A connecting portion is provided to connect adjacent ends of the holder body arranged in parallel in the parallel direction,
The connecting portion is
The holder body is integrally formed with the holder body.
The bent weak connection portion is weaker than the holder body.
Connector retention structure. The frangible connection portion formed across at least two continuous wall portions at the end portion of the rectangular retainer body is
The surface portions other than the surface connecting the adjacent ends in the parallel direction are separated by bending.
The connector holding structure according to claim 5 . The wire harness includes a trunk line and branch lines branching from the trunk line,
the connector is provided at a tip of the branch line,
The predetermined location is the trunk line.
7. The connector holding structure according to claim 4, wherein the connector holding structure is a connector holding structure. The fixing tool is a tape material that wraps the connector holder and the trunk line along which the connector holder is placed.
The connector holding structure according to claim 7 .