Installing structure of wire harness

• US 8,201,778 B2
• Filed: 08/14/2007
• Issued: 06/19/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/14/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yazaki Corporation
• Original Assignee: Yazaki Corporation
• Inventors: Yamamoto, Masataka
• Primary Examiner(s): Sterling, Amy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Smith, Erin W
• Application Number:
  US11/838,276
• Publication Number:
  US 20080035800A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,771 Days
• Field of Search: 248/51, 248/70, 248/73, 248/63, 248/65, 248/68.1, 248/74.2, 296/155, 296/146.12, 59/781, 59/791
• US Class Current: 248/51
• CPC Class Codes: F16L 3/015 using articulated- or supple-guiding elements

Abstract

An installing structure of a wire harness on a link includes a link which pivotally connects a movable structural body to a fixed structural body, a wire harness which is installed along the link so as to extend from the fixed structural body to the movable structural body, a singular first flexible protective tube through which the wire harness is slidably passed, and a fixing member which fixes the flexible protective tube to the link.

Claims

1. An installing structure of a wire harness, comprising:

a link which pivotally connects a fixing link at a side of a movable structural body to a link bracket at a side of a fixed structural body;

a singular first flexible protective tube through which the wire harness is slidably disposed;

a first fixing member which fixes the first flexible protective tube to the link;

a second fixing member which fixes the wire harness derived from one end of the first flexible protective tube to the fixing link; and

a third fixing member which fixes the wire harness derived from the other end of the first flexible protective tube to the link bracket,

wherein the wire harness is arranged along the fixing link, the link and the link bracket so as to extend from the movable structural body to the fixed structural body;

wherein a first wire harness portion extending from a position at the one end of the first flexible protective tube to a position at the second fixing member and a second wire harness portion extending from a position at the other end of the first flexible protective tube to a position at the third fixing member are exposed from the first flexible protective tube and are deformable;

wherein when the fixing link and the link pivot to an extension state from a folded state in accordance with a pivotal movement of the link, a surplus length portion of the wire harness moves in the singular first flexible protective tube so that the first wire harness portion becomes shorter and the second wire harness portion becomes longer and when the fixing link and the link pivot to the folded state to the extension state in accordance with the pivotal movement of the link, the surplus length portion of the wire harness moves in the singular first flexible protective tube so that the first wire harness portion becomes longer and the second wire harness portion becomes shorter;

wherein a length of the link is longer than a width of the link; and

wherein the singular first flexible protective tube is fixed to the link so as to extend along the length of the link.

2. The installing structure according to claim 1, further comprising a fourth fixing member which fixes the first flexible protective tube to the link;

and

wherein opposite end portions of the first flexible protective tube project from the first and fourth fixing members.

3. The installing structure according to claim 1, wherein a part of the wire harness which extends from the first flexible protective tube is passed through a second flexible protective tube disposed at the movable structural body.

4. The installing structure according to claim 1, wherein the first flexible protective tube has a first bent portion formed at an intermediate part of the first flexible protective tube in a longitudinal direction thereof;

and

wherein the wire harness is bent along a bending inner-side surface of the bent portion with a bending radius larger than that of the bent portion.

5. The installing structure according to claim 4, wherein the first flexible protective tube further comprises a second bent portion which is formed at the intermediate part of the first flexible protective tube and bent in an opposite direction from a direction that the first bent portion is bent;

and

wherein drain holes are formed respectively in bending outer-side surfaces of the first and second bent portions.

6. The installing structure according to claim 1, wherein the first flexible protective tube is a corrugated tube made of a synthetic resin.

7. The installing structure according to claim 1, wherein one end of the link is pivotally connected to the fixing and the other end of the link is pivotally connected to the link bracket.

8. The installing structure according to claim 1, wherein the singular first flexible protective tube extends over a majority of the length of the link.

9. The installing structure according to claim 1,

wherein the installing structure has a first state in which the link is provided at a specified angle relative to the fixing link,

wherein the installing structure has a second state in which the link is provided at a greater angle than the specified angle relative to the movable structural body,

wherein the link has a pivot that pivotally connects the link to the movable structural body,

wherein the first flexible protective tube has a front open end and a rear open end through which the wire harness enters and exits, and the rear open end is provided closer to the pivot which connects the link to the movable structural body than the front open end, and

wherein the wire harness slides inside the first flexible protective tube in a direction from the rear open end to the front open end when the installing structure changes from the first state to the second state.

10. The installing structure of claim 9, wherein the wire harness slides inside the first flexible protective tube in a direction from the front open end to the rear open end when the installing structure changes from the second state to the first state.

11. The installing structure of claim 2, wherein the opposite end portions of the first flexible protective tube are able to bend in order to smoothly bend the wire harness.

12. The installing structure according to claim 1, wherein the link is pivotable with respect to the fixed structural body about a first axis of rotation, and the link is pivotable with respect to the movable structure about a second axis of rotation which is parallel to the first axis of rotation,

wherein the singular first flexible protective tube is bent at a first bent portion and a second bent portion, and

wherein, if the link is pivotally moved to a predetermined position, the wire harness is bent within the singular first flexible protective tube at the first bent portion and the second bent portion and the wire harness contacts the singular first flexible protective tube at the first bent portion and the second bent portion.

13. The installing structure according to claim 12, wherein drain holes are formed respectively in outer surfaces of the first and second bent portions of the singular first flexible protective tube, and

wherein the drain holes are formed so that if the wire harness contacts the singular first flexible protective tube at the first bent portion and the second bent portion, the drain holes are not blocked.

14. The installing structure according to claim 3, wherein the second flexible protective tube is shorter than the first flexible protective tube.