JP2010105458A - Connector unit for lighting system mounted on side-view mirror for automobile - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a connector unit for a lighting system mounted on a side-view mirror for an automobile capable of facilitating assembling, keeping watertightness, and reducing material cost. <P>SOLUTION: The connector unit includes a synthetic resinous body 3, and a conductive material 11. The body has a lighting socket portion 3a to which a lighting tool L is mounted on one side of a partitioning wall 10, and a power supply socket portion 3a to which a power supply plug D is mounted on the other side. The opening directions of a lighting tool mounting port 13a and a power supply mounting port 13b are different. The conductive material has an electrode tip portion 4 contacting with the lighting tool, an electrode contacting piece 8 contacting with the power supply plug D, and an electrode supporting portion 6 continuous to the electrode tip portion and the electrode contacting piece. The electrode supporting portion and the electrode contacting piece are integrated. The electrode tip portion has a rod-shaped contacting terminal 4a projecting from a bottom of the lighting socket portion toward the lighting tool mounting port, and an electrode base portion fixed to the electrode supporting portion by cramping. The conductive material is insert-molded in the body except for an exposed portion into both ports. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a connector unit for an illuminating device such as a direction indicator lamp or a footlight attached to a side mirror for an automobile.

  As a side mirror for automobiles, there is one disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-327512, which is provided with a conductive material in contact with a lighting device on a main body obtained by resin molding. It was attached. However, there is a gap due to the need for a separate process for incorporating the conductive material into the main unit, and the connector unit main unit and the conductive material are separate. As a result, there was a problem that the corrosion of the conductive material proceeded in a short period of time and the service life could not be maintained.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5, there has been considered one in which the conductive material 24 composed of the electrode tip portion 21, the electrode support portion 22, the electrode contact piece 23, and the like is bent and integrated from a single plate material, In such a case, since the electrode tip portion 21 is formed by bending, it is folded in a plurality of stages in order to ensure the thickness of the electrode tip portion. For this reason, it is necessary to provide an extra folded portion as compared with a normal electrode tip, which causes a problem of increasing the material cost.
JP 2006-327512 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and is a connector for an illuminating device that is attached to a side mirror for an automatic vehicle that can maintain water tightness inside the main body, is easy to assemble, and can contribute to reduction of material costs. To provide a unit.

  The present invention is a connector unit for an illuminating device that is attached to a side mirror for an automobile. Claim 1 includes a synthetic resin main body and a conductive material that transmits electricity, and the main body illuminates one side of the partition wall. A lighting socket part for attaching a fixture, and a power socket part for attaching a power plug on the other side. The lighting socket part opens a lighting fixture mounting opening, and the power socket part has a different opening direction from the lighting fixture mounting opening. A substantially L-shaped electrode provided with a power supply opening, an electrode tip that transmits electricity to the lighting fixture, an electrode contact piece that receives electricity from the power plug, and an electrode tip and electrode contact piece The electrode support part and the electrode contact piece are integrally formed, and the electrode tip part is a rod-shaped contact terminal that protrudes from the bottom part of the lighting socket part in the opening direction of the lighting fixture mounting part, and the electrode An electrode base fixed by caulking to the support part; Has, conductive material, characterized in that are insert-molded to the body except for the exposed portion of the Ryokuchi portion.

  The connector unit for a lighting device according to claim 2 has a main body made of synthetic resin and a conductive material that conducts electricity, and the main body has a lighting socket portion for attaching a lighting fixture on one side of the partition wall and a power source on the other side. It has a power socket part to which the plug is attached, and the opening direction of the lighting fixture mounting port part of the lighting socket part and the power tool mounting port part of the power socket part is shifted by about 90 degrees, and the conductive material is electrically connected to the lighting tool. An electrode tip portion that transmits electricity, an electrode contact piece that receives electricity from the power plug, and an electrode support portion that is continuous with the electrode tip portion and the electrode contact piece, and the electrode support portion and the electrode tip portion are integrally formed, The electrode tip has a rod-shaped contact terminal that protrudes from the bottom of the lighting socket in the direction of the opening of the lighting fixture mounting portion, and an electrode base that is continuous with the electrode support, and the electrode support is crimped to the electrode contact piece. The conductive material is not exposed to both mouths. Characterized in that are insert-molded to the body.

Since the connector unit for an illuminating device according to the present invention has the above configuration, the following effects are exhibited.
According to the first aspect, the electrode tip portion of the conductive material is formed separately from the electrode support portion and the electrode contact piece, and is attached by crimping the electrode base portion of the electrode tip portion with the electrode support portion. As a result, material costs can be reduced. In addition, by insert molding a part of the conductive material into the main body, the conductive material and the main body are integrally fixed and become tight without gaps, so that water from the gap between the attachment points of the main body and the conductive material can be prevented. It is prevented and the durability of the lighting device is improved.
According to the second aspect of the present invention, the opening direction of the lighting fixture mounting port portion of the lighting socket portion and the power source mounting port portion of the power socket portion is shifted by about 90 degrees, so that two mouth portions are provided. Since the inconvenience of rainwater inundating directly to the power source side is eliminated, further extension of the service life can be expected. Moreover, since the electrode support part is crimped and fixed to the electrode contact piece, integration is facilitated.

Below, based on drawing, the form of the connector unit for illuminating devices attached to the side mirror for motor vehicles by this implementation is demonstrated.
The connector unit for an illuminating device according to the present embodiment has a main body 3 and a conductive material 11 as shown in FIG. 1, and the main body 3 includes a mirror housing 1 and a mirror base 2 as shown in FIG. Mounted on.

  Here, a mounting structure between the vehicle body J and the mirror base 2 constituting the side mirror, a structure in which the mirror housing 1 rotates about the vertical axis by the mirror base 2 by a shaft (not shown), and the shaft and the mirror housing 1 Since the mounting structure is already known, the description thereof will be omitted, and the configuration will be described in detail with a focus on the connector unit that is the main part of the present invention.

Here, the mirror housing 1 and the mirror base 2 constituting the automobile side mirror to which the connector unit according to the present embodiment is attached will be briefly described.
As shown in FIG. 3, the mirror housing 1 is held by a housing base member 1a having a generally triangular or trapezoidal shape in front view that matches the substantially triangular shape of the corner portion on the outer surface of the front door of the vehicle body J, and the housing base member 1a. And a housing cover member 1b.

  The mirror base 2 is integrally provided with a substantially horizontal shaft fixing portion 2a that allows the mirror housing 1 to rotate substantially horizontally. The mirror base 2 is integrally formed with an outer wall portion 2b having a circular arc cross section around the shaft fixing portion 2a.

Next, the configuration of the connector unit according to the present embodiment will be described below in response to the configurations of the mirror housing 1 and the mirror base 2 described above.
As shown in FIGS. 1A to 1C, the connector unit is composed of a main body 3 formed entirely of a synthetic resin and a conductive material 11 partially inserted into the main body 3. A lighting socket portion 3a for attaching the lighting fixture L to one side of the partition wall 10 and a power socket portion 3b for attaching the power plug D to the other side are provided, and the lighting socket portion 3a has a lighting fixture mounting port into which the lighting fixture L is inserted. The power socket portion 3b has a power supply attachment port portion 13b that opens in a direction different from the opening direction of the illumination fixture attachment port portion 13a. Specifically, the power supply socket part 3b which opens the power supply attachment port part 13b downward is provided below the illumination socket part 3a which opens the illumination tool attachment port part 13a rightward. An outer peripheral wall portion 9 is provided around the power socket portion 3b via a space S, and the outer peripheral wall portion 9 has a cylindrical shape formed integrally with the partition wall 10.

2A and 2B, the conductive material 11 includes an electrode tip portion 4 that transmits electricity to the lighting fixture L, an electrode contact piece 8 that receives electricity from the power socket D, and the electrode tip portion 4 and the electrode. The electrode support portion 6 is connected to the contact piece 8, and the electrode tip portion 4 includes a rod-like contact terminal 4 a that protrudes toward the lighting fixture mounting port portion 13 a of the lighting socket portion 3 a, and the length of the contact terminal 4 a. A substantially inverted L-shape is formed from the electrode base 4b bent substantially vertically from one end side in the direction, and the contact terminal 4a contacts the illuminator L to supply electric power.
The electrode tip 4 is a pair of positive and negative poles that are paired in parallel with a left and right spacing. In addition, the electrode tip portion 4 according to the present embodiment specifically includes “0.64 plate thickness square brass wire and 0.3 plate thickness phosphor bronze strip”, “0.64 plate thickness brass wire and 0.3 plate thickness. One of the two-point composite material of “phosphor bronze strip” is used.

The electrode support portion 6 includes a sleeve-like electrode fixing portion 6a having a holding hole inserted in the vertical direction on one side surface in the upper part of a thin metal piece that is thin and long, and the electrode fixing portion 6a includes an electrode. By inserting and crimping the electrode base portion 4b of the tip portion 4, the electrode tip portion 4 can be energized.
The electrode contact piece 8 hangs down from the electrode support portion 6 into the power socket portion 3b. By bending a thin metal piece, the electrode contact piece 8 is bent from either the left or right end of the substantially horizontal upper piece 8a. It is bent vertically downward to form a substantially L shape from the lower piece 8b.
The end portion of the upper piece 8a of the electrode contact piece 8 that is not continuous with the lower piece 8b is continuous with the lower end portion of the electrode support portion 6, and the lower piece 8b protrudes into the power supply port 13b of the main body 3. Thus, the power supply plug D is placed in a state in which the power supply plug D can be brought into contact with the power supply attachment opening 13b.

As described above, when the connector unit according to the present embodiment is formed, the electrode contact piece 8 of the conductive material 11 is formed in a plate shape, so that the contact area with the power plug D inserted into the power socket portion 3b is reduced. On the other hand, the electrode tip portion 4 of the conductive material 11 is composed of the above-described “0.64 plate thick square brass wire and 0.3 plate thick phosphor bronze strip”, “0.64 plate thick brass wire and 0.3 plate. Because it can be formed with bars made of any material of `` thick bronze strip '', there is no need to bend metal pieces and earn wall thickness as in the past, so when the connector unit according to this implementation was manufactured Material costs can be reduced.
In the above embodiment, the foot illuminating lamp has been described as the illuminator L. However, a direction indicator lamp or the like may be used.

4A and 4B show another embodiment of the connector unit for an illuminating device according to the present invention. The electrode tip 4 has a contact terminal 4a and an electrode base 4b formed by bending a bar material into an L shape. The electrode support 6 is integrally provided on the lower side of the electrode base 4b, is substantially U-shaped, and the electrode fixing parts 6b are provided at two locations on the lower side of the electrode support 6, and the electrode fixing parts 6 b is attached to the upper piece 8 a of the electrode contact piece 8 by caulking to constitute the conductive material 11.
Even if it forms in this way, high water-tightness can be ensured by carrying out the insert molding of the electrically-conductive material 11 to the main body 3 like the said embodiment.

  In the embodiment, the caulking means is used as the attaching means between the electrode base 4b of the electrode tip 4 and the electrode support 6 and the attaching means between the electrode support 6 and the upper piece 8a of the electrode contact piece 8. Substantially the same effect can be obtained even if welding, bonding means or the like other than the fastening means is used.

(A) is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the structure of the connector unit for illuminating devices by this implementation, (b) is the side view, (c) is a front view. (A) is a side view of a conductive material, (b) is a front view of a pair of conductive materials. It is a partially expanded plan view of the automobile body showing the attachment state of the side mirror provided with the connector unit for lighting device according to this embodiment. The other embodiment of an electrically-conductive material is shown, (a) is a front view before and after crimping, (b) is a side view before and after crimping. (A) is an expanded view of the electrically conductive material which comprises the conventional connector unit for illuminating devices, (b) is a side view after a process.

Explanation of symbols

3 Main body 3a Lighting socket part 3b Power socket part 4, 21 Electrode tip part (conductive material)
4a Contact terminal 4b Electrode base 6,22 Electrode support (conductive material)
8,23 Electrode contact piece (conductive material)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Partition wall 11, 24 Conductive material 13a Lighting fixture installation port part 13b Power supply installation port D Power plug L Lighting fixture

Claims (2)

A connector unit for a lighting device to be attached to a side mirror for an automobile,
The connector unit has a synthetic resin main body and a conductive material that conducts electricity,
The main body has a lighting socket part for attaching a lighting fixture on one side of the partition wall, and a power socket part for attaching a power plug on the other side,
The lighting socket portion opens the lighting fixture mounting port portion, and the power socket portion includes a power mounting port portion with a different opening direction from the lighting fixture mounting port portion,
The conductive material has an electrode tip that transmits electricity to the illuminator, an electrode contact piece that receives electricity from the power plug, and a substantially L-shaped electrode support that is continuous with the electrode tip and the electrode contact piece. The electrode support part and the electrode contact piece are integrally formed,
The electrode tip portion has a rod-shaped contact terminal that protrudes from the bottom of the lighting socket portion in the opening direction of the lighting fixture mounting portion, and an electrode base portion that is fixed by crimping to the electrode support portion.
A connector unit for an illuminating device to be attached to a side mirror for an automobile, wherein the conductive material is insert-molded in the main body excluding the exposed portions in both mouth portions. It has a main body made of synthetic resin and a conductive material that conducts electricity,
The main body has a lighting socket part for attaching a lighting fixture on one side of the partition wall, and a power socket part for attaching a power plug on the other side,
The opening direction of the lighting fixture mounting port portion of the lighting socket portion and the power supply mounting port portion of the power socket portion is shifted by about 90 degrees,
The conductive material includes an electrode tip that transmits electricity to the luminaire, an electrode contact piece that receives electricity from the power plug, and an electrode support that is continuous with the electrode tip and the electrode contact piece. The electrode tip is integrally molded,
The electrode tip portion has a rod-shaped contact terminal that protrudes from the bottom of the lighting socket portion in the opening direction of the lighting fixture mounting portion, and an electrode base portion that is continuous with the electrode support portion. The electrode support portion is added to the electrode contact piece. Tightened and fixed,
A conductor connector unit for an illuminating device to be attached to a side mirror for an automobile, wherein the conductive material is insert-molded in the main body excluding the exposed portions in both mouth portions.

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