JPH0725308B2 - Electrical connection between steering wheel and steering column - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention [Industrial applications]

The present invention relates to a device for electrically connecting a steering wheel and a steering column in a vehicle steering system, and more particularly to a neutral position display device for the system.

[Prior art]

Conventionally, in the electrical connection between a steering wheel and a steering column in a vehicle steering system, generally, a spiral coil tape having flexibility and having a plurality of electric conductors is used. For example, Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 53-118243 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 57-66.
This is the case as disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 045. This is because the steering wheel is naturally rotatable with respect to the steering column, and in order to transmit an electric signal from a switch provided on the steering wheel, such as a horn, to the steering column side, which is a fixed portion, This is because it is necessary to devise an electric wiring that absorbs the rotational movement of the. The general structure in the conventional example is that an external electric signal line such as a switch provided on a handle is connected to an electric conductor of the spiral coil tape via a terminal member, and an electric signal line on the steering column side is connected. And the coil tape conductor are electrically connected via a terminal member, and the handle side and the steering column side are electrically connected. The coil tape absorbs the rotational movement of the handle by contracting and expanding the coil tape in the radial direction. The electrical connecting device having such a configuration may have a problem of cutting the spiral coil tape itself. This is because the movement of the handle may not be completely absorbed by the coil tape depending on the mounting state of the spiral coil tape stored in the storage case.
That is, originally, the spiral coil tape is provided so that the coil tape absorbs the rotation on the handle side.
However, the number of spirals of this tape itself is finite, and therefore, when it is installed in a vehicle, the winding diameter difference of the above coil tape is made neutral, and the steering mechanism is also adjusted to the neutral position and electrically connected to a predetermined position. Equipment must be incorporated. However, if the above-mentioned assembling is defective, the difference in the winding diameter of the tape is uneven, and the number of times the handle is rotated in either direction with respect to the maximum rotation of the handle is insufficient. If the handle is rotated, the coil tape may be cut.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

In other words, if the electrical connection device is incorporated with the coil tape in a neutral state, the above-mentioned problems do not occur, but it is quite possible to visually confirm the neutral state of the spiral coil tape with many turns. It's difficult. Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an electrical connection device having a structure in which the spiral state of a spiral coil tape member housed in a storage case can be easily visually confirmed from the outside of the storage case. I am trying.

[Means for solving the problem, and action / effect]

(Structure) In order to achieve the above object, the present invention has the following structure. That is, the electrical connecting device of the present invention is
In order to relay and connect each electric signal of the column side and the handle side, a flexible and spirally formed electric conductor coil tape member, and for accommodating the coil tape member,
The steering case includes a lower case fixed to the steering column side and a storage case formed of an upper case that rotates together with the handle and is rotatable with respect to the lower case.
It is designed to be mounted between the column and the handle. In addition, the moving direction of the protrusion is formed by the protrusion formed on the upper case and protruding to the outside of the upper case, and the guide member that is arranged substantially parallel to the outer peripheral surface of the upper case and is held on the steering column side. A position indicating member which is guided and supported so as to be slidable only in one direction intersecting with, and one end of which is fixed to the guide member and the other end of which is engaged with the position indicating member to elastically move the position indicating member. A spring member for holding the position, and further, a plurality of rows of transverse grooves on which the protrusion slides are provided on the facing surface of the position indicating member facing the outer peripheral surface of the upper case, each of the transverse grooves being The position indicating member is crossed at a predetermined angle with respect to the moving direction of the protrusion, and the protrusions are formed at intervals equal to the amount of inclination with respect to the moving direction of the protrusion. The position indicating member can be arranged at least at two positions depending on the position of the protrusion formed on the upper case. That is, an arrangement orthogonal to the rotation center axis of the upper case and an arrangement parallel to the rotation center axis are possible. (Operation) According to the above configuration, when the handle is rotated, the protrusion of the upper case, which rotates together with the handle, can slide through the transverse groove formed in the position indicating member. Yes, and it will rotate in a circular orbit. On the other hand, since the transverse groove forms a predetermined angle with respect to the moving direction of the protrusion, the position sample member moves by the inclination amount of the transverse groove when the protrusion passes through the groove and crosses the position indicating member. Will be done. Moreover, since the pitch between the adjacent transverse grooves is equal to this movement amount, the entrance of the adjacent transverse groove is positioned on the track of the protrusion as the position indicating member moves, and the protrusion has rotated once. Will then be able to pass through the next transverse groove. As a matter of course, also at this time, if the position indicating member is crossed, the position indicating member moves by the above pitch. That is, the position display member is moved by the predetermined amount by the protrusion each time the handle rotates once. Further, since the position display member is elastically held in position by the spring member, the movement of the position display member during this period is stably performed. (Effect) Therefore, the neutral state of the spiral coil tape member, that is, the state in which the difference in the winding diameters of the spirals is substantially uniform, can be easily visually recognized by the position of the position display member.
It is possible to easily mount the electrical connecting device in a predetermined position in a neutral state. Therefore, problems such as poor rotation of the handle and cutting of the coil tape member can be prevented. By providing the position indicating piece on the position indicating member and providing the scale corresponding thereto, the neutral state of the coil tape member can be quantitatively and more easily visually recognized.

【Example】

An embodiment of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to FIGS. First, the electrical connection device according to the embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an essential part of the electrical connection device, FIGS. 2 and 3 are views showing a position display mechanism, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view in the direction of arrow X in FIG. 1, and FIG. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an operation mechanism of position display. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 3 denotes a spiral coil tape member, and the coil tape member 3 is housed in a substantially disk-shaped housing case 10 composed of an upper lid case 1 and a lower case 2. The upper lid case 1 includes a disk-shaped lid member 1f, a cylindrical boss member 1b as a coil tape winding shaft formed in the center thereof, and a connector protruding from the upper surface of the lid member 1f. The surrounding wall 1a and the pin 1e protruding toward the handle are integrally formed. Furthermore, a pin-shaped projection 1g is formed at a predetermined position on the upper surface of the lid member 1f. The steering shaft penetrates the boss member 1b for the winding shaft. A groove 1c and a locking claw 1d following the groove 1c are formed on the outer periphery of the lower end of the boss member 1b. The pin 1e is adapted to be fitted into a pin hole formed in the handle side member, whereby the upper lid case 1 and the handle can be integrally rotated. On the other hand, the lower case 2 has a substantially U-shaped cross section, and is provided with a boss 2b having a hole through which the boss member 1b for the winding shaft passes through in the center thereof, and is integrally formed with the bottom wall 2c. It is provided with the formed enclosure wall 2a for connectors. And lower case 2
Are fixed to the steering column side member with screws 11. The boss member 1b of the upper cover case 1 is inserted into the hole of the boss 2b of the lower case 2, and the boss 2b of the lower case 2 and the upper cover case 1 are inserted.
Engages with the groove 1c formed in the boss member 1b. And
The upper cover case 1 is designed to be prevented from coming off from the lower case 2 by a locking claw 1d following the groove 1c. In this way, the upper lid case 1 and the lower case 2 cooperate to form a storage case 10 for storing the spiral coil tape member 3 having a constant height. On the other hand, the spiral coil tape member 3 housed in the storage case 10 has an inner end portion and an outer end portion.
The electric conductors (not shown) embedded in the coil tape member 3 are electrically connected to the printed wiring boards 4a and 4b, which are fixed to the printed wiring boards 4a and 4b, respectively. It is like this. The wiring boards 4a, 4b are provided at positions corresponding to the connector surrounding walls 1a, 2a, and a part of each of them is provided with an upper cover case 1 as shown in the drawing.
And the lower case 2 penetrates outward. And each protrusion has a corresponding connector enclosure wall.
It is a female terminal of the connector in cooperation with 1a and 2a. By the way, above the upper lid case 1, a position indicating member 6 is disposed substantially parallel to the upper lid case upper surface with a predetermined gap therebetween so as to correspond to the pin-shaped projection 1g. . The position display member 6 is composed of a prismatic body,
It is fixed to the lower case 2 with screws 8 and is held by a guide member 5 which slidably holds the position indicating member 6. The position indicating member 6 is formed with a plurality of rows of transverse grooves 6a at equal intervals so that the pin-shaped projections 1g can pass therethrough. As shown in FIG. 3, the transverse grooves 6a are arranged in the longitudinal direction of the position indicating member 6 and are inclined. Further, the pitch between the grooves is set to be equal to the amount of inclination in the longitudinal direction. That is, when the protrusion 1g passes through the transverse groove 6a and traverses the position indicating member 6, the position indicating member 6 moves along the longitudinal direction by the amount of inclination. Moreover, since the pitch between the grooves is equal to the amount of inclination, the protrusion can pass through the adjacent transverse groove 6a again by making one rotation. Further, on the opposite side of the position indicating member 6 facing the transverse groove 6a, a plurality of recesses 6b are provided so that the position indicating member 6 is elastically held in position by a spring member 7 provided on the guide member. Has been formed. The spring member 7 holds the position indicating member 6 in position when no external force acts. Guide member 5 for slidably holding the position indicating member 6
As shown in FIG. 2, a rectangular tube corresponding to the cross-sectional shape of the position indicating member 6 and a leg for supporting the tube on the lower case 2 are integrally formed. Then, the position display member 6 is inserted in the cylinder. Further, the above-mentioned spring member 7 is a plate-shaped spring whose one end is formed in a U shape,
The other end is held by the guide member 5.
The spring member 7 is fixed by inserting the other end into a fixing portion 5d formed on the guide member 5. Further, a window 5b is formed at a corresponding position of the rectangular tube corresponding to the U-shaped tip so that the U-shaped tip can fit into the recess 6b of the position indicating member 6. Further, the guide member 5 is provided with a notch 5c that is cut out at a position corresponding to the track of the protrusion 1g so that the pin-shaped protrusion 1g can pass through the guide member 5 by rotating the upper lid case 1. Has been. Then, the position display member 6
The horizontally long window 5a is provided along the longitudinal direction of the cylinder so that the position indicating piece 6c indicating the position movement of the cylinder can project outward from the cylinder side wall.
Is provided. Incidentally, a scale 9 is provided on the upper surface of the upper lid member 1f of the upper lid case 1 corresponding to the display piece 6c. According to the above configuration, the handle side electric signal line serves as the female side terminal of the connector on the upper lid case 1 side.
It is connected to 4a by a connector method, and steering
The electric signal line on the column side is also connected by a connector system,
The turning motion of the handle is transmitted to the spiral coil tape 3 member via the pin 1e. On the other hand, the coil tape member 3
Since has flexibility, its shape is changed so as to follow the turning motion of the handle and absorb the motion of the handle. Therefore, even if the steering wheel is rotated, the rotational movement is absorbed by the coil tape member 3, and the electric signal line on the steering wheel side and the electric signal line on the steering column side do not interfere with each other via the coil tape member 3. It will be connected without relay. On the other hand, if the position indicating member 6 is positioned so that the transverse groove 6a and the pin-shaped protrusion 1g can be fitted, when the upper lid case 1 rotates together with the handle, the position indicating member held by the lower case 2 on the fixed side. Pin-shaped protrusion 1g in the transverse groove 6a of 6
Will pass through. Moreover, this transverse groove 6a is a protrusion 1g.
Since the protrusion 1g has completely passed through the transverse groove 6a, the position indicating member 6 is moved by the amount of inclination because the inclination is relative to the track. That is, as shown in FIG. 3, if the protrusion 1g located on the right side of the drawing (drawn by the solid line) moves to the position shown by the broken line as the handle rotates, the position indicating member 6 becomes the spring member. The position display member 6 is pushed up by the amount of inclination along the longitudinal direction against the elastic position holding force of 7. Further, the transverse grooves 6a are formed in a plurality of rows at a pitch equal to the above-mentioned inclination amount. Therefore, the transverse groove 6a
When the projection 1g goes around once, the projection 1g and the projection 1g have the positional relationship shown in the figure again. The same applies when the protrusion 1g moves in the opposite direction. Therefore, if the position indicating member 6c is provided on the position indicating member 6 and the scale 9 corresponding to the position indicating piece 6c is provided on the upper surface of the upper lid case 1, the change in the spiral state of the spiral coil tape member 3 can be quantitatively captured. It becomes easier. That is, once the position indicating member 6 is assembled so that the indicating piece 6c is located at the center of the scale 9 when the coil tape member 3 is in the neutral state, even if the upper lid case 1 is subsequently rotated, The tape member 3 can be easily returned to the neutral position via the scale 9 and the display piece 6c. Thus, the coil tape member 3 in the storage case
Since the spiral state of the coil tape can be visually recognized from the outside of the case, correct setting of the steering mechanism and the electrical connection device can be easily performed, and the coil tape 3 is cut due to the misalignment of the coil tape member and the handle turning. Alternatively, it is possible to effectively prevent the hindrance of the turning motion of the handle. By the way, FIG. 4 shows a modification of the above embodiment in which the position indicating member is arranged on the side of the storage case. Also in this modification, the position indicating member and the guide member for holding the position indicating member in the lower case are the same as those in the above embodiment in the structure of the main part. However, the configuration of the storage case only changes due to the layout. The configuration of this modification will be briefly described. The coil tape member 33 is housed in the storage case 20, and the storage case 20 is composed of an upper case 21 and a lower lid case 22. The disk-shaped lower lid case 22 includes an upper case 21 having a guide member 25 slidably holding a position indicating member 26 and a boss member 21b serving as a winding shaft of a coil tape member 33 in a central portion. A hole for rotatably supporting is provided. The upper case 21 is a disk-shaped case having a square cross section, and is integrally provided with the boss member 21b at the center thereof. The boss 21b is provided with a hole through which the steering shaft passes, and is provided with a protrusion 21e for transmitting the rotation of the steering shaft to the upper case 21. Also, upper case 2
1, the tip portion 21d of the boss member 21b is inserted into the central hole of the lower lid case 22 and rotatably locked to the lower lid case 22 by a known locking structure. Furthermore, the peripheral wall 21 of the upper case 21
The c is provided with a pin-shaped projection 21g protruding outward in the radial direction, and the projection 21g is similar to the above-described embodiment in that the position indicating member 2
The transverse groove 26a of 6 can be slid and passed.
Reference numeral 21a indicates the upper bottom wall of the upper case 21. In the figure, 27 indicates a spring member that elastically holds the position indicating member 26, and 26b indicates a recess into which the tip of the spring member 27 is fitted. Further, 25b is a window provided in the guide member 25 so that the tip portion can be fitted in the recess 26b, and 25c is a cutout opened so that the projection 21g can cross the guide member 25. The lack of each is shown. Incidentally, the connection structure of the coil tape member 33 and the external electric signal line is configured to be connected with a predetermined configuration, although not shown. In the case of this modification, when the upper case 21 rotates, the position display member 26 moves up and down in the figure. Therefore, similarly to the above-described embodiment, the spiral state of the coil tape member 33 can be quantitatively grasped by the display piece provided on the position display member 26 and the corresponding scale (both not shown). become. That is, this modification shows one variation regarding the arrangement of the position display members.

[Brief description of drawings]

1 to 4 show an electric connection device between a steering wheel and a steering column according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIGS. 1 to 3 show an embodiment, and FIG. 4 shows a modification thereof, respectively. 2 is a sectional view of an essential part of the electrical connection device, FIG. 2 is a perspective view in the direction of arrow X in FIG. 1, FIG. It is a principal part sectional drawing of the said electrical connection apparatus. 1 …… Top cover case, 1a, 2a …… Enclosure wall for connector, 1b,
21b …… Boss member, 1c …… Groove, 1d …… Locking claw, 1e ……
Pin, 1f ... Lid member, 1g, 21g ... Pin-shaped protrusion, 2 ... Lower case, 2b ... Boss, 3 ... Coil tape member, 4a, 4b
...... Printed wiring board, 5,25 …… Guide member, 5a, 5b, 25b
...... Window, 5c, 25c ...... Notch, 5d ...... Fixed part, 6, 26 ...... Position display member, 6a, 26a ...... Cross groove, 6b, 26b ...... Recess, 6c ...... Position display piece, 7,27 …… Spring member, 8,11 …… Screw, 9 …… Scale, 10,20 …… Storage case, 21 …… Upper case, 22 …… Lower lid case.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Yutaka Harada Oda-cho, Niwa-gun, Aichi Prefecture No. 1 Noda, Toyota Tokai Rika Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Sukeyoshi Nakajima 5-33 Shiba, Minato-ku, Tokyo No. 8 Mitsubishi Motors Industry Co., Ltd. (56) Bibliography Micro film (JP, JP, JP-A-61-157329) U)

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A flexible conductive coil tape member (3; 33) formed in a spiral shape and fixed to a steering column side for housing the coil tape member (3; 33). A lower case (2; 22) and a storage case (10; 20) formed of an upper case (1; 21) that rotates together with the handle and is rotatable with respect to the lower case (2; 22). An electrical connection device mounted between the steering column and the steering wheel for relay-connecting each electric signal on the steering column side and the steering wheel side, which is formed in the upper case (1; 21). The protrusion (1g; 21g) protruding outward of the upper case (1; 21) and the outer peripheral surface of the upper case (1; 21) are arranged substantially parallel to each other.
Further, the position indicating member (6; 26) guided and supported by the guide member (5,25) held on the steering column side so as to be slidable only in one direction intersecting with the moving direction of the protrusion (1g; 21g). ) And one end is fixed to the guide member (5, 25) and the other end is engaged with the position indicating member (6; 26) to elastically hold the position indicating member (6; 26). A spring member (7; 27) for controlling the position of the position indicating member (6; 26) facing the outer peripheral surface of the upper case (1; 21) (6d; 26d), the protrusion (1g; twenty one
g) is provided with a plurality of rows of transverse grooves (6a; 26a) that slide, each of the transverse grooves (6; 26) forming a predetermined angle with respect to the moving direction of the protrusion (1g; 21g). Position display member (6; 2
An electrical connecting device between the steering wheel and the steering column, which is formed so as to traverse 6) and at an interval equal to the amount of inclination of the protrusion (1g; 21g) with respect to the moving direction.