JP3236802B2 - Electrical junction box - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electric junction box which has an improved degree of freedom in circuit layout and allows easy replacement of a printed circuit board.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An electrical junction box used for branch connection of an automobile wire harness or the like to various electrical components has a branch connection point concentrated in one place, and the wiring is rationally and economically branched. With the increase in the density of wire harnesses, various types have been developed according to vehicle types or applications.

As an electric junction box as described above, FIG.
As shown in (A), upper case 1 and lower case 2
, An internal circuit board 5 formed by laminating the bus bar 3 and the insulating plate 4 is accommodated, and a fuse 6, an electronic unit 7, a relay 8 and the like are inserted from outside the cases 1 and 2 to tab terminals of the bus bar 3. There is one (electronic unit separate type).

[0005] As shown in FIG. 5 (B), an internal circuit board 5 formed by laminating a bus bar 3 and an insulating plate 4 is accommodated in an upper case 1 and a lower case 2. A printed circuit board 9 on which an electronic unit circuit is formed is inserted and connected to the tab terminals of the bus bar 3 by connectors 10 and 10, and the bus bar 3 is connected from outside the cases 1 and 2.
The fuse 6 and the relay 8 are inserted and connected to the tab terminals of the above (the electronic unit integrated type).

In FIGS. 5A and 5B, 11
Is a connector insertion portion for inserting and connecting an external harness side connector to the tab terminal of the bus bar 3.

[0006]

However, the separate type of electronic unit requires a special case for the printed circuit board 9 of the electronic unit 7, so that the cost is high. In addition, in the electronic unit integrated type, since the printed circuit board 9 is accommodated in the two cases 1 and 2, there is a difficulty in maintenance such as replacement of the printed circuit board 9.

On the other hand, both types require a female terminal for inserting and connecting the printed circuit board 9 of the electronic unit to the tab terminal (male terminal) of the bus bar 3, so that the size of the electronic unit is increased. In addition, circuit routing is restricted by the pitch of the bus bar 3, so that multi-pole, narrow-pitch circuit routing cannot be performed. In addition, due to restrictions on circuit wiring and the like, the electric connection box and the electronic unit are set for each vehicle type, and the versatility is low.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an electric junction box which can improve the degree of freedom of circuit arrangement and can easily replace a printed circuit board. It is assumed that.

[0009]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention connects one end of a first flexible printed circuit board to an internal circuit board housed in a case of an electric connection box, The other end of the flexible printed circuit board is connected to a slot-in connector, and the slot-in connector is attached to the first opening of the case so that the printed circuit board can be detachably inserted from the outside of the case and connected. 2 Connect one end of the flexible printed circuit board to the slot-in connector and connect the other end of the second flexible printed circuit board to the connector housing. The connector housing is attached to the second opening of the case. It is characterized in that the harness side connector can be detachably inserted and connected from the outside It is intended to provide a gas connection box.

According to the present invention, the circuit board in the case and the slot-in connector attached to the first opening of the case are connected by the first flexible printed circuit board, and the printed circuit board is attached to and detached from the slot-in connector from outside the case. Plug in freely.

That is, a printed circuit board (for example, a bus bar (or a press-fit terminal for electric wires) of a circuit board in a case) inserted into and connected to a slot-in connector from the outside of the case.
The electronic unit circuit is formed between the printed circuit board and the connector housing at the second opening of the case by connecting the printed circuit board to the slot-in connector and the connector housing at the second opening of the case. Without using the second flexible printed circuit board.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, when the first opening of the case is provided with a hood-shaped board insertion portion protruding outward from the case, the case has a thickness corresponding to the thickness of the printed circuit board. The thickness can be prevented, and the printed circuit board can be detachably inserted and connected to the slot-in connector from above.

[0013]

According to a third aspect of the present invention, if the slot-in connector is formed in a plurality of stages and a printed circuit board can be inserted and connected to each stage, the circuit structure can be changed by changing the type of the printed circuit board. Can be changed.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the slot-in connector is formed in two stages, and an electronic unit circuit is formed on a printed circuit board to be inserted and connected in the first stage.
If a splice circuit is formed on the printed circuit board to be inserted and connected in the second stage, the electronic unit circuit and the splice circuit can be compactly incorporated in the electric connection box, and the small current area on the electric connection box side can be reduced. Processing by the splice circuit reduces the mounting space.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the slot-in connector is formed in two stages, and a printed circuit board to be inserted and connected in the first stage is provided with a functional circuit common to the types of vehicles and is inserted in the second stage. If the printed circuit board to be connected has a configuration in which a functional circuit for each grade is formed, it is possible to support the grade and to share the electric connection box only by replacing the printed circuit board.

[0017]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the same components and operations as those of the prior art are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the electric connection box includes an upper case 1 and a lower case 2, and an insulating plate 4 and a bus bar 3 are laminated inside the two cases 1 and 2. Is accommodated.

On the outer surface of the upper case 1, there is provided a connector insertion portion 11A for inserting and connecting the harness-side connector 12A from the outside of the case, and protrudes outward from the upper case 1 at right angles to the printed circuit board unit from outside the case. 13 (A, B) for inserting and connecting a horizontally long rectangular hood-shaped substrate insertion portion (first opening) 1
4 are provided.

On the outer surface of the lower case 2, there is provided a connector insertion portion 11B for inserting and connecting the harness-side connector 12B from the outside of the case, and an opening for attaching a connector housing 17 for inserting and connecting the harness-side connector 12C from the outside of the case. 2 openings) 11
C and 11D are provided.

A tab terminal 3a on the upper case side of the bus bar 3 of the circuit board 5 faces the connector insertion portion 11A of the upper case 1, and the circuit board 5 is inserted into the connector insertion portion 11B of the lower case 2.
The tab terminals 3b on the lower case side of the bus bar 3 are exposed, and the female terminals of the harness side connectors 12A and 12B are inserted and connected to the tab terminals (male terminals) 3a and 3b, respectively.

The printed circuit board unit 13 includes two horizontally long rectangular printed circuit boards (PCBs) 13A, 13A.
The printed circuit boards 13A and 13B are supported by a substantially U-shaped holder 18 on both sides and a front part thereof.

When the printed circuit boards 13A and 13B are inserted into the board insertion portion 14 of the upper case 1 by gripping the front portion 18a by hand, the entrance 14a of the board insertion portion 14 It also serves as a closing lid, and is detachably locked by the lock portion 14b at the position where the entrance 14a is closed.

Both sides 18b, 18b of the holder 18
Are provided with rail grooves 18c, 18c in the insertion direction.
Are formed, and the rail grooves 18c are fitted into the rail projections 14c, 14c formed on both inner side surfaces of the board insertion portion 14 when the printed boards 13A, 13B are inserted into the board insertion portion 14, respectively. You will be guided smoothly. If the vertical position of the rail groove 18c and the vertical position of the rail protrusion 14c are different on both sides, it is possible to prevent the printed circuit boards 13A and 13B from being inserted by mistake in the vertical position.

A slot-in connector 19 is attached to the inside of the board insertion portion 14 by a lock portion 14b. As shown in FIG. Cavities into which the rear portions of the substrates 13A and 13B are respectively inserted are formed in upper and lower tiers. Each cavity is provided with a spring-like terminal 19a and 19b that comes into contact with each of the terminal terminals 13a and 13b of the printed circuit boards 13A and 13B. ing.

Of the printed boards 13A and 13B, for example, an electronic unit circuit 2 is provided on the upper printed board 13A.
0A is formed, and a splice circuit 20B as shown in FIG. 3B is formed on the lower printed circuit board 13B. Alternatively, for example, a functional circuit (electronic unit circuit) 20C common to all types of vehicles is formed on the upper printed circuit board 13A, and the lower printed circuit board 13B is provided with a functional circuit (FIG. 3).
A functional circuit 20D for each grade as shown in FIG.

On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, one end 21a of the first flexible printed circuit board (FPC) 21 housed in the two cases 1 and 2 is connected to the busbar 3 on the upper case side of the circuit board 5 as shown in FIG. And the other end 2
1b is the upper spring-like terminal 1 of the slot-in connector 19.
9a.

The second flexible printed circuit board 22
Of the connector housing 17 is connected to the other end 22b of the connector housing 17, and the connector housing 17 is connected to the opening 11D of the lower case 1.
And the female terminal of the harness side connector 12C is inserted and connected to the male terminal 17a of the connector housing 17.

Similarly, the third flexible printed circuit board 2
3 is connected to the bus bar 3 on the lower case side of the circuit board 5, and the other end 23b is connected to the male terminal 16a of the connector housing 16, and the connector housing 16 is attached to the opening 11C of the lower case 1. The female terminal of the harness-side connector (not shown) is inserted and connected to the male terminal 16a of the connector 16.

The operation of the electric junction box configured as described above will now be described.

The circuit board 5 in the cases 1 and 2 and the slot-in connector 19 of the board insertion portion 14 of the upper case 1 are connected by a first flexible printed circuit board 21 and printed on the slot-in connector 19 from outside the case. Since the boards 13A and 13B can be detachably inserted and connected, the first flexible printed circuit board 21 (the same applies to the third flexible printed circuit board 23) is used for the bus bar 3A.
Can be routed freely from any position and layer.

The first flexible printed circuit board 21
(The same applies to the second and third flexible printed circuit boards 22 and 23), the pitch conversion can be easily performed, and a multi-pole, narrow-pitch circuit can be arranged.

Further, since the printed boards 13A and 13B can be inserted and connected to the slot-in connector 19, the conventional female terminals and the like are not required, and the printed boards (electronic units and the like) 13A and 13B can be downsized.

Further, the printed circuit boards 13A and 13B
Can be removably inserted into the slot-in connector 19 of the board insertion portion 14 of the upper case 1 from the outside of the case and connected to the printed circuit board (such as an electronic unit) 13.
A and 13B can be easily exchanged, and the maintenance property is good.

On the other hand, the slot-in connector 19 and the connector housing 17 are connected to the second flexible printed circuit board 2.
2, the printed circuit board 13B and the connector housing 17 can be connected to each other without passing through the bus bar 3 of the circuit board 5 in the cases 1 and 2, so that input / output is directly performed from the harness side connector 12C to the printed circuit board 13B. I can do it.

Thus, only one of the input and output from the bus bar 3 side of the circuit board 5 to the printed board 13B is required, and the circuit of the bus bar 3 can be effectively utilized. Further, by directly inputting / outputting a small current region from the harness side connector 12C to the printed circuit board 13B, the second flexible printed circuit board 22 can be routed at a narrow pitch.

Further, if the slot-in connector 19 is formed in two stages, the printed circuit board 13A on which the electronic unit circuit 20A is formed is connected to the upper stage, and the printed circuit board 13B on which the splice circuit 20B is formed is connected to the lower stage,
The electronic unit circuit 20A and the splice circuit 20B can be compactly incorporated in the cases 1 and 2, respectively.

The upper functional circuit 20C common to the vehicle types
Is connected, and the printed circuit board 13B on which the functional circuit 20D for each grade is formed is connected to the lower stage, the grade correspondence and the common use of the electric connection box can be achieved only by replacing the printed circuit boards 13A and 13B.

[0039]

As is apparent from the above description, the electrical junction box of the present invention provides a first flexible printed circuit between a bus bar or the like of a circuit board in a case and a printed board inserted and connected to a slot-in connector. Since the connection is made with the board, the first flexible printed circuit board can be routed from any bus bar position and bus bar layer, and the flexible printed circuit board can easily perform pitch conversion, so that multi-pole, narrow pitch circuit routing can be performed. Will be possible. Further, since the printed circuit board can be inserted and connected to the slot-in connector, a female terminal or the like is not required, and the printed circuit board (such as an electronic unit) can be reduced in size. Furthermore, since the second flexible printed circuit board is connected to the slot-in connector and the connector housing, and the harness-side connector can be detachably inserted into the connector housing from the outside of the case and connected, the printed circuit board and the connector housing are connected to the case. It is possible to connect to the printed circuit board directly from the harness side connector without going through the bus bar etc. of the circuit board inside, so either input or output from the bus bar side of the circuit board to the printed circuit board By using only one of them, the circuit of the bus bar can be used effectively, and the small current area can be directly input to and output from the harness side connector to the printed circuit board, so that
Flexible printed circuit boards can be routed at a narrow pitch.

Further, since the printed circuit board can be detachably inserted from the outside of the case and connected to the slot-in connector in the case, the printed circuit board can be easily replaced, and the maintainability is improved.

If the first opening of the case is provided with a hood-shaped board insertion portion protruding outward from the case (claim 2), it is possible to prevent the case from being thickened by the thickness of the printed circuit board, and Therefore, since the printed circuit board can be detachably inserted into and connected to the slot-in connector, operations such as replacement of the printed circuit board are facilitated.

[0042]

If a plurality of printed circuit boards can be inserted and connected to the slot-in connector (claim 3),
By changing the circuit configuration by changing the type of the printed circuit board, the versatility of the electric junction box is improved.

If the printed circuit board on which the electronic unit circuit is formed and the printed circuit board on which the splice circuit is formed are inserted and connected (claim 4), the electronic unit circuit and the splice circuit can be compactly incorporated into the electric connection box, respectively. By processing the small current region on the junction box side by a splice circuit, the mounting space is reduced.

If the printed circuit board on which the functional circuit common to the vehicle types is formed and the printed circuit board on which the functional circuit for each grade is formed are inserted and connected (claim 5), the grade correspondence and electric connection box can be formed only by replacing the printed circuit board. It can be shared, and the versatility of the electric junction box is further improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an electric junction box of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a main part of the electric junction box.

FIG. 3A is a perspective view of a printed circuit board according to a first example,
(B) is a perspective view of the printed circuit board of the second example.

FIG. 4A is a perspective view of a slot-in connector and a printed circuit board, and FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view of the slot-in connector.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are exploded perspective views of a conventional electric junction box, respectively.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Upper case 2 Lower case 3 Bus bar 5 Circuit board 11A, 11B Connector insertion part 11C Opening (2nd opening) 12A-12C Harness side connector 13 Printed circuit board unit 13A, 13B Printed circuit board 14 Board insertion part (First opening) 16, 17 Connector housing 19 Slot-in connector 20A-20D Circuit 21-23 Flexible printed circuit board

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-5-36452 (JP, A) JP-A-9-182252 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H02G 3/16 H01R 12/16

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. An end of a first flexible printed circuit board is connected to an internal circuit board accommodated in a case of an electric junction box, and the other end of the first flexible printed circuit board is connected to a slot-in connector. The slot-in connector is attached to the first opening of the case so that the printed circuit board can be removably inserted and connected from outside the case, while the second flexible printed circuit board is connected to the case .
Connect one end to the slot-in connector and
Connect the other end of the second flexible printed circuit board to the connector
Connected to the housing, this connector housing
Attached to the second opening of the harness from outside the case
An electric connection box characterized in that a side connector can be detachably inserted and connected . 2. The electrical junction box according to claim 1, wherein a hood-shaped board insertion portion projecting outward from the case is provided in the first opening of the case. 3. The slot-in connector is formed in a plurality of stages.
And printed circuit boards are inserted and connected to each stage
The electrical junction box according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the electrical junction box is made available. 4. The slot-in connector is formed in two stages.
The printed circuit board to be plugged in and connected to the first stage
A child unit circuit is formed and inserted into the second stage
A splice circuit is formed on the printed circuit board to be connected.
The electrical junction box according to claim 3 . 5. The slot-in connector is formed in two stages.
The first printed circuit board to be plugged in and connected
A functional circuit common to all types is formed, and
The printed circuit board connected to the
The electrical junction box according to claim 3, wherein the electrical junction box is formed .