阅读说明：本技术 用于扁平导体的夹具、线束和组件 (Clamp, wire harness and assembly for flat conductor ) 是由 长西幸成 若林五男 高田和昇 于 2021-04-14 设计创作，主要内容包括：使用用于扁平导体的夹具将扁平导体装接到装接目标。夹具包括：与装接目标接合的夹持部；以及保持扁平导体的主体。夹持部具有第一突起,主体具有第二突起,并且第一突起与第二突起突出以彼此相对。夹持部和主体被构造为允许从解锁状态切换到锁定状态。锁定状态由于第一突起与第二突起之间的接合限制夹部与主体之间的在扁平导体的轴向上的相对运动。解锁状态允许沿轴向的两侧的相对运动。(The flat conductor is attached to an attachment target using a jig for the flat conductor. The clamp includes: a clamping portion engaged with an attachment target; and a body holding the flat conductor. The grip portion has a first protrusion, the body has a second protrusion, and the first protrusion and the second protrusion protrude to be opposite to each other. The grip portion and the body are configured to allow switching from the unlocked state to the locked state. The locked state restricts relative movement between the clip and the main body in the axial direction of the flat conductor due to engagement between the first projection and the second projection. The unlocked state allows relative movement on both sides in the axial direction.)

1. A jig for a flat conductor having a flat plate-like conductor member, the jig being used for attaching the flat conductor to an attaching target, the jig comprising:

a clamping portion that engages with the attachment target; and

a main body that holds the flat conductors,

the grip portion has a first protrusion, the body has a second protrusion, and the first protrusion and the second protrusion protrude opposite to each other,

the clamping portion and the main body are configured to allow switching from an unlocked state to a locked state, the locked state restricting relative movement between the clamping portion and the main body in an axial direction of the flat conductor due to engagement between the first protrusion and the second protrusion, and the unlocked state allowing the relative movement in both sides of the axial direction.

2. The clamp of claim 1,

the clamping portion and the body are configured to restrict switching from the locked state to the unlocked state.

3. The clamp of claim 1,

in the unlocked state, the grip portion is positioned relative to the body due to contact between the tip end portion of the first protrusion and the tip end portion of the second protrusion.

4. A wire harness, comprising:

the clamp of any one of claims 1 to 3;

a flat conductor to which the jig is attached; and

a positioning structure that determines a reference position of the flat conductor with respect to the attachment target when the flat conductor is attached to the attachment target.

5. An assembly, comprising:

the clamp of any one of claims 1 to 3;

a flat conductor to which the jig is attached; and

the attaching target for the flat conductor attached to the attaching target using the clamp.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a jig (for flat conductors) used in attaching flat conductors to a prescribed attachment target (for example, a body of a motor vehicle), a wire harness using the jig, and an assembly using the jig.

Background

In recent years, a jig for fixing a bundle of a plurality of electric wires to, for example, a vehicle body of a motor vehicle has been proposed. One of these clips is a clip equipped with a clip member that is locked in a locking hole formed in a vehicle body or the like and a belt-shaped support belt to which the clip member is attached. The jig is fixed to the electric wire bundle by fixing the support tape to the electric wire bundle with an adhesive tape or the like after laying the support tape along the axial direction of the electric wire bundle.

For details of the above-mentioned clamp, reference is made to patent document JP 2013-085396A.

In general, since the bundle of electric wires to which the above-described clamp is fixed is a bundle of a plurality of electric wires, it has rigidity that is not easily bent. Therefore, in the case of fixing the wire harness to the vehicle body or the like after fixing several clips to the wire harness, the wire harness generally extends almost straight between the clips (i.e., between fixing points at which the wire harness is fixed to the vehicle body or the like), and therefore deformation such as a large bend does not occur in the wire harness.

In contrast, in the case of using a flat plate-like flat conductor covered with an insulating cover in place of the above-described electric wire harness, since the flat conductor is generally lower in rigidity than the above-described electric wire harness, if a jig is used as it is, deformation such as bending may occur in the flat conductor between the jigs after fixing the flat conductor to a vehicle body or the like. When such deformation occurs, the flat conductor may deviate from the designed installation route and interfere with nearby devices, come into contact with, for example, a vehicle body during running of the motor vehicle to generate abnormal sounds, or cause similar problems. It is desirable to suppress such interference with nearby devices and generation of abnormal sounds to as low a level as possible.

Disclosure of Invention

An aspect of non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure is directed to providing a jig capable of attaching a flat conductor to a prescribed attachment target, a wire harness using the jig, and an assembly for fixing the flat conductor to the attachment target using the jig.

Aspects of certain non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure focus on the features discussed above and/or other features not described above. However, aspects of these non-limiting embodiments are not required to focus on the features described above, and aspects of these non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure may not focus on the features described above.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a jig for a flat conductor having a flat plate-like conductor member, the jig being used for attaching the flat conductor to an attaching target, the jig including:

a clamping portion that engages with the attachment target; and

a main body that holds the flat conductors,

the grip portion has a first protrusion, the body has a second protrusion, and the first protrusion and the second protrusion protrude opposite to each other,

the clamping portion and the main body are configured to allow switching from an unlocked state to a locked state, the locked state restricting relative movement between the clamping portion and the main body in an axial direction of the flat conductor due to engagement between the first protrusion and the second protrusion, and the unlocked state allowing the relative movement in both sides in the axial direction.

Drawings

Exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail based on the following drawings, in which:

fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a wire harness using a clip according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention is separated from a vehicle body of a motor vehicle as an attachment target of the wire harness;

fig. 2A is a sectional view of the clip in an unlocked state taken on a plane including a line a-a in fig. 1, fig. 2B is a sectional view of the clip in an unlocked state taken on a plane including a line B-B in fig. 1, and fig. 2C is an enlarged view of a portion C in fig. 2B;

FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view of the clamp in a locked state taken in a plane including line A-A in FIG. 1, FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view of the clamp in a locked state taken in a plane including line B-B in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3C is an enlarged view of portion D in FIG. 3B;

fig. 4A to 4C are sectional views showing a process for attaching the clip itself in time series;

fig. 5A to 5D are schematic sectional views showing in time series a process for attaching the wire harness to one member of the vehicle body of the motor vehicle; and

fig. 6A is a sectional view of a modified clamp corresponding to fig. 2C, and fig. 6B is a sectional view of another modified clamp corresponding to fig. 2C.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, a clip 1 for a flat conductor according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. As shown in fig. 1, a wire harness 3 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention is obtained by attaching a jig 1 to a flat conductor 2. As shown in fig. 5D, the assembly 5 according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention is obtained by attaching the wire harness 3 to the member 4 of the vehicle body of the motor vehicle as an attachment target of the wire harness 3. An example of the component 4 is a door trim of a vehicle body.

In this example, as shown in fig. 1 to 3A to 3C, the flat conductor 2 is composed of a flat plate-like conductor member 41 extending in the axial direction and a resin cover 42 covering the outer periphery of the conductor member 41. In this example, the member 4 of the vehicle body of the motor vehicle is a metal plate, and a plurality of locking holes 4a (see fig. 1 and 5A to 5D) for locking the jig 1 and a single locking hole 4b (see fig. 5A to 5D) for locking a positioning jig 6 (described later) are formed at regular intervals along the designed installation route of the wire harness 3, wherein the positioning jig 6 is attached to the flat conductor 2 (the wire harness 3).

For convenience of description, the axial direction, the width direction, the up-down direction, the upper side, and the lower side are defined as shown in fig. 1. The axial direction, the width direction and the vertical direction are perpendicular to each other. The axial direction coincides with the axial direction of the flat conductors 2 (wire harnesses 3).

Each clip 1 is made of resin, and is equipped with a clip portion 10 and a main body 20 holding a flat conductor 2 as shown in fig. 1, the clip portion 10 being engaged with a locking hole 4a of a component 4 of a body of a motor vehicle. As described later, the clamp portion 10 is to be attached to the main body 20 so as to be movable toward one side and the other side in the axial direction with respect to the main body 20. The grip portion 10 and the body 20 of each clip 1 will be described in turn.

First, the clip portion 10 will be described. As shown in fig. 2A to 2C, the clip portion 10 is constituted by a base portion 11 and a projecting portion 12 in a rectangular flat plate shape in a combined manner, wherein the base portion 11 has a pair of side flanges extending in the axial direction, and the projecting portion 12 extends upward from a central portion in the axial direction of the base portion 11. The dimension in the axial direction of the base 11 is longer than the width dimension.

As shown in fig. 2B, the bottom surface of the base 11 is formed with projections 13 in such a manner that the projections 13 are arranged at a prescribed pitch in the axial direction, the projections 13 projecting downward and extending in the width direction in a central region excluding a pair of side end portions in the axial direction. As shown in fig. 2C, a tip end portion (lower end portion) of each protrusion 13 is tapered to have a pair of tapered surfaces inclined to be closer to a plane perpendicular to the axial direction as the position goes downward. The projection 13 has a function of holding the clip 1 in an unlocked state or a locked state by engaging with a projection 26 (described later) of the main body 20.

As shown in fig. 2B, a distal end portion (upper end portion) of the protruding portion 12 is formed with a pair of lock arms 14, the lock arms 14 extending downward from both respective end portions in the axial direction of the distal end portion. The projection 12 is formed with an edge 15 at a position lower than the distal ends (lower ends) of the pair of lock arms 14, the edge 15 extending outward from the entire circumference of the projection 12 in the radial direction of the projection 12. As shown in fig. 5B, in order to engage the clip portion 10 with the locking hole 4a of the component 4 of the vehicle body of the motor vehicle, the clip portion 10 is locked on the component 4 by inserting the protrusion 12 into the locking hole 4a and clamping the periphery of the locking hole 4a with the tip end portions and the edges 15 of the pair of lock arms 14.

The body 20 will be described next. As shown in fig. 4A to 4C, the main body 20 made of resin is constituted by a lower main body 21, an upper main body 22, and a hinge 23, the hinge 23 connecting end portions at one side in the axial direction of the lower main body 21 and the upper main body 22 so that the lower main body 21 and the upper main body 22 can rotate relative to each other.

As shown in fig. 4A to 4C, the lower body 21 is constituted by a base portion 24 of a rectangular flat plate shape having a pair of side edges extending in the axial direction, and a stopper portion 25 of a rectangular parallelepiped shape, the stopper portion 25 protruding from the top surface of the end portion located on the other side of the base portion 24. The base 24 is a portion held by the flat conductor 2. The stopper 25 has the following functions: which defines an end point at the other side in the axial direction of the region of the grip portion 10 that is movable in the axial direction relative to the main body 20.

As shown in fig. 4A to 4C and 2B, the projections 26 project upward from the upper surface of a central region (between the stopper portion 25 and a stopper portion 27 (described later)) in the axial direction of the base portion 24, and extend in the width direction in the central region of a region excluding a pair of side edges in the width direction, so as to be arranged at the same pitch as the projections 13 in the axial direction. As shown in fig. 2C, the tip end portion (upper end portion) of each protrusion 26 is tapered to have a pair of tapered surfaces inclined to be closer to a plane perpendicular to the axial direction as the position goes upward.

As shown in fig. 4A to 4C, the upper body 22 is constituted by a rectangular parallelepiped stopper portion 27 and a pair of rectangular side plates 28, wherein the stopper portion 27 is located at one end in the axial direction, and the pair of side plates 28 extend from both end portions in the width direction of an end surface in the axial direction of the stopper portion 27 toward the other end in the axial direction. The stopper 27 has the following functions: which delimits an end point on one side of the region of the clamping part 10 that is relatively movable in the axial direction with respect to the body 20.

As shown in fig. 2A and 3A, each side plate 28 is formed with an upper rail 29 and a lower rail 31, wherein the upper rail 29 protrudes from an upper edge of the side plate 28 to the inner side in the width direction and extends along the entire side plate 28 in the axial direction, and the lower rail 31 protrudes from an inner end surface in the width direction of the side plate 28 to the inner side in the width direction at a position of a predetermined distance below the upper rail 29 and extends along the entire side plate 28 in the axial direction.

Therefore, a pair of rail grooves 32 that are recessed outward in the width direction and open inward in the width direction are formed between the pair of upper rails 29 and the pair of lower rails 31, respectively. The pair of rail grooves 32 are open at the other end in the axial direction, and a pair of side flanges of the base portion 11 of the clip portion 10 are inserted into the pair of rail grooves 32 from the other end in the axial direction of the pair of rail grooves 32, respectively. That is, the pair of side plates 28 has a function of guiding the clamping portion 10 relative to each other in the axial direction.

The hinge 23 connects the end portions of one side in the axial direction of the lower body 21 and the upper body 22 to enable a "closed state" in which the lower surface of the stopper portion 27 is in contact with the upper surface of the base portion 24 as shown in fig. 4C and the lower surfaces of the pair of side plates 28 are in contact with the pair of side edges of the upper surface of the base portion 24 (see also fig. 2A and 3A) and an "open state" in which the upper body 22 is rotated away from the lower body 21 from the closed state as shown in fig. 4A and 4B. In the closed state, the end portions on the other side in the axial direction of the pair of side plates 28 (i.e., the pair of rail grooves 32) are closed by the stopper portions 25, and are not closed by the stopper portions 25 in the open state. The description of the clamping portion 10 and the main body 20 of the clamp 1 is completed here.

Next, a process for assembling the jig 1 itself will be described with reference to fig. 4A to 4C. First, as shown in fig. 4A, in a state where the main body 20 is held in the open state, the pair of side flanges of the base portion 11 of the clip portion 10 are inserted from the end portions on the other side in the axial direction of the pair of rail grooves 32. Therefore, the clamp portion 10 is supported by the pair of rail grooves 32 so as to be movable in the axial direction toward both the one side and the other side with respect to the pair of rail grooves 32.

Subsequently, as indicated by a white arrow shown in fig. 4B, the upper body 22 is rotated in a direction approaching the lower body 21 to establish a closed state of the body 20, as shown in fig. 4C. In the closed state, it is preferable that the pair of side plates 28 is locked to the stopper portion 25 in an inseparable manner. Thus, the assembly of the clip 1 itself is completed, thereby obtaining the clip 1 shown in fig. 2A to 2C.

Next, the "unlocked state" and the "locked state" of the assembled clip 1 (the clamping portion 10 and the main body 20) will be described. As shown in fig. 2A to 2C, when the clip 1 is in a state where the grip portion 10 is supported to be movable in the axial direction with respect to the pair of rail grooves 32, because the distal end portions of the plurality of projections 13 of the grip portion 10 and the distal end portions of the plurality of projections 26 of the lower body 21 overlap each other by a space L in the up-down direction (see fig. 2C), the distal end portions of the plurality of projections 13 interfere with the distal end portions of the plurality of projections 26. This state (i.e., the state shown in fig. 2A-2C) is referred to as an "unlocked state" of the clip 1.

In the unlocked state, the grip portion 10 is positioned in the axial direction with respect to the main body 20 because the tip end portions of the plurality of projections 13 and the tip end portions of the plurality of projections 26 interfere with each other. On the other hand, in the unlocked state, due to instantaneous elastic deformation of the projection 13 and the projection 26 and up-and-down movement of the base 11 in the rail groove 32 (i.e., up-and-down movement of the entire grip portion 10 within the range allowed by the rail groove 32), the tip end portion of the projection 13 can pass over the tip end portion of the projection 26 by applying an external force greater than a prescribed value to the grip portion 10 in the axial direction in a state where the main body 20 is fixed. Therefore, as indicated by white arrows in fig. 2B, the grip portion 10 is allowed to move to one side and the other side in the axial direction with respect to the main body 20. The grip portion 10 is movable in the axial direction in a range between the stoppers 25 and 27.

When an external force stronger than a prescribed value is applied downward (toward the main body 20) to the grip 10 as indicated by white arrows in fig. 3A and 3B in a state where the main body 20 is fixed in the unlocked state shown in fig. 2A-2C, the pair of side flanges of the base 11 cause instantaneous elastic deformation of the pair of lower rails 31 and then pass over the pair of lower rails 31 to establish a state where the pair of side flanges of the base 11 are located below the pair of lower rails 31 (see fig. 3A and 3B). This state (i.e., the state shown in fig. 3A to 3C) is referred to as a "locked state" of the clip 1. The state of the clip 1 can also be switched from the unlocked state to the locked state by applying an external force stronger than a prescribed value to the main body 20 upward (toward the clip portion 10; i.e., in a direction opposite to that in the above case) in a state in which the clip portion 10 is fixed.

In the locked state, as shown in fig. 3C, not only the tip portions but also the base portions of the plurality of projections 13 interfere with the tip portions and the base portions of the plurality of projections 26, whereby the plurality of projections 13 are strongly engaged with the plurality of projections 26. Therefore, the movement of the grip portion 10 in the axial direction with respect to the main body 20 is restricted. More specifically, movement of the clip portion 10 relative to the main body 20 in the axial direction is substantially impossible except for slight relative movement caused by manufacturing tolerances (i.e., unavoidable dimensional variations) of the plurality of projections 13 and the plurality of projections 26 and other factors.

As shown in fig. 3A, the widthwise inner end surfaces of the pair of lower rails 31 are inclined to travel widthwise inward as they are positioned downward. This suppresses a phenomenon in which the clip 1 accidentally returns from the locked state shown in fig. 3A to 3C to the unlocked state shown in fig. 2A to 2C.

The jig 1 having the above-described mechanism is attached (fixed) to the flat conductors 2 in the following manner: as shown in fig. 1, the lower surface of the lower body 21 faces the upper surface of the flat conductor 2 and is in contact with the upper surface of the flat conductor 2. In the example shown in fig. 1, the jig 1 is attached to the flat conductors 2 by winding together, with a pair of tapes 43, portions of the outer peripheries of both end portions (more specifically, the stoppers 25 and 27) in the axial direction of the main body 20 and associated portions of the outer peripheries of the flat conductors 2 in a state where the lower surface of the lower main body 21 faces the upper surfaces of the flat conductors 2 and is in contact with the upper surfaces of the flat conductors 2. The wire harness 3 according to the exemplary embodiment shown in fig. 1 is obtained by attaching the jig 1 to the flat conductors 2 in this manner.

A process for attaching the wire harness 3 to the member 4 of the vehicle body of the motor vehicle will be described below with reference to fig. 5A to 5D. In this example, as shown in fig. 5A, a plurality of jigs 1 each having a ratchet-like mechanism are attached to flat conductors 2 of a wire harness 3 at regular intervals in the axial direction with clamping portions 10 facing upward. At this stage, each clamp 1 is kept in the unlocked state. A plurality of locking holes 4a for locking the clips 1 are formed through the member 4 at regular intervals in the designed installation route of the wire harness 3 in accordance with the arrangement of the plurality of clips 1 in the axial direction in the wire harness 3.

Further, the single positioning jig 6 is attached to the flat conductors 2 of the wire harness 3 at one position in the axial direction with the clamping portion 52 facing upward. The clamp 6 is a clamp constituted by a main body 51 and a clamping portion 52, wherein the main body 51 is attached (fixed) to the wire harness 3 at one position in the axial direction, the clamping portion 52 is provided in the main body 51 so as not to be movable relative to the main body 51, and does not have a so-called ratchet-like mechanism. The jig 6 has a function of determining a reference position of the wire harness 3 with respect to the component 4 in the axial direction (i.e., the direction along the installation route). As shown in fig. 5A, a single locking hole 4b for locking the clip 6 is formed through the member 4 on the designed installation route of the wire harness 3 at a position corresponding to the axial position of the single clip 6 in the wire harness 3.

To attach the wire harness 3 to the component 4 of the vehicle body of the motor vehicle, first, the wire harness 3 is brought close to the component 4 from below as indicated by black arrows in fig. 5A, and as shown in fig. 5B, the clamping portions 10 of the plurality of clamps 1 and the clamping portion 52 of the single clamp 6 are inserted into the locking holes 4a and 4B of the component 4 from below, respectively. As a result, the plurality of clips 1 and the single clip 6 are locked in the locking holes 4a and 4b of the member 4, respectively, and the wire harness 3 (the flat conductors 2) is attached to the member 4.

In this state, since the clamp 6 is locked in the locking hole 4b, the reference position of the wire harness 3 with respect to the member 4 in the axial direction (i.e., the direction along the installation route) is determined. That is, the jig 6 constitutes the term "positioning structure".

The wire harness 3 includes flat conductors 2. Generally, the rigidity of the flat conductor 2 is lower than that of the bundle of the plurality of electric wires. Therefore, in the example shown in fig. 5A and 5B, deformation such as bending occurs in the flat conductors 2 between the adjacent clips 1 and between the clip 6 and each of the adjacent clips 1 not only before the wire harness 3 is attached to the component 4 (see fig. 5A) but also after the attachment (see fig. 5B). When such deformation occurs, the flat conductor 2 may deviate from the designed installation route and interfere with nearby devices, generate vibration during running of the motor vehicle and come into contact with, for example, a vehicle body to generate abnormal sound, or cause similar problems. It is desirable to suppress such interference with nearby devices and generation of abnormal sounds to as low a level as possible.

In view of the above, a ratchet-like mechanism of each clip 1 is utilized. In the example shown in fig. 5B, the main body 20 of each clip 1 in the unlocked state moves relative to the grip portion 10 in the direction indicated by the black arrow. Therefore, as shown in fig. 5C, the bending or the like of the flat conductor 2 (after the wire harness 3 is attached to the member 4) is corrected, and the wire harness 3 can be stretched into an almost linear shape.

Subsequently, as indicated by white arrows in fig. 5C, the main body 20 of each of the jigs 1 in the unlocked state is pressed upward against the corresponding grip portion 10. Therefore, each of the clamps 1 makes a transition from the unlocked state to the locked state, whereby in each of the clamps 1, the clamping portion 10 cannot move in the axial direction relative to the main body 20. Therefore, as shown in fig. 5D, the wire harness 3 is kept in a state where it is stretched almost straight. Thus, attachment of the wire harness 3 to the component 4 of the vehicle body of the motor vehicle is completed, thereby obtaining the assembly 5 according to the exemplary embodiment.

As described above, in the clip 1 according to the exemplary embodiment, the clip portion 10 that engages with the component 4 of the vehicle body of the motor vehicle and the main body 20 that holds the flat conductors 2 are configured to be able to switch from the unlocked state in which relative movement between the clip portion 10 and the main body 20 is possible to the locked state in which such relative movement is restricted. That is, the clip 1 has a structure called a ratchet-like structure. Therefore, even after the main body 20 of the jig 1 is fixed to the flat conductors 2, the position of the clamping portion 10 with respect to the flat conductors 2 can be changed. Conversely, the main body 20 can be moved relative to the clamping portion 10 after the clamping portion 10 is locked on the member 4 (i.e., after the flat conductors 2 are attached to the member 4). Therefore, it is possible to switch the state of the clip 1 to the locked state after attaching the clip 1, which is attached to the flat conductor 2 and in the unlocked state, to the attaching target 4, and then moving the main body 20 so that the bending or the like of the flat conductor 2 is corrected and the flat conductor 2 is stretched into an almost linear shape. Thus, the jig 1 having such a configuration can appropriately attach the flat conductor 2 to the component 4 of the vehicle body of the motor vehicle.

Further, in the clip 1 according to the exemplary embodiment, the clip 1 is prevented from returning to the unlocked state from the locked state. This makes it possible to prevent a phenomenon in which the clip 1 in the locked state is accidentally returned to the unlocked state. Therefore, the jig 1 enables to well maintain the state where the flat conductors 2 are appropriately attached to the member 4.

Further, in the clip 1 according to the exemplary embodiment, the clip portion 10 in the unlocked state can be easily positioned by interference between the distal end portions of the plurality of protrusions 13 of the clip portion 10 and the distal end portions of the protrusions 26 of the main body 20. This makes it possible to improve the efficiency of the operation of locking the clip portion 10 in the locking hole 4a of the component 4 of the vehicle body of the motor vehicle.

As described above, the wire harness 3 according to the exemplary embodiment has a function of being attachable to the component 4 of the vehicle body of the motor vehicle by the operation of the clip 1. Further, by virtue of the working manner of the jig 1, the assembly 5 according to the exemplary embodiment can be used as a vehicle module in which the flat conductors 2 are appropriately arranged. An example of the assembly 5 is a door module, wherein the flat conductor 2 is fixed to a door trim of a vehicle by means of a clamp 1.

The foregoing description of the exemplary embodiments of the present invention has been presented for the purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Obviously, many modifications and variations will readily occur to those skilled in the art. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical applications, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the following claims and their equivalents.

In the above-described embodiment, in the unlocked state, the distal end portions (i.e., the tapered portions each having a pair of tapered surfaces) of the plurality of projections 13 of the grip portion 10 interfere with the distal end portions (i.e., the tapered portions each having a pair of tapered surfaces) of the plurality of projections 26 of the lower body 21 because the former and the latter overlap each other by the interval L in the up-down direction (see fig. 2C).

Alternatively, as shown in fig. 6A, the distal end portion (i.e., the tapered portions each having a pair of tapered surfaces) of each protrusion 13 of the grip portion 10 may be formed with a protruding strip portion 13a that protrudes downward from the distal end portion and extends in the width direction. In this case, in the unlocked state, the protruding strip portions 13a of the plurality of projections 13 of the grip portion 10 overlap the distal end portions (i.e., tapered portions each having a pair of tapered surfaces) of the plurality of projections 26 of the lower body 21 by the interval L in the up-down direction so as to interfere with the distal end portions of the plurality of projections 26.

As another alternative, as shown in fig. 6B, the distal end portion (i.e., the tapered portion having a pair of tapered surfaces) of each protrusion 26 of the lower body 21 may also be formed with a protruding strip portion 26a that protrudes upward from the distal end portion and extends in the width direction. In this case, in the unlocked state, the protruding portions 13a of the plurality of projections 13 of the holding portion 10 overlap the protruding portions 26a of the plurality of projections 26 of the lower body 21 in the vertical direction by the interval L, and interfere with the protruding portions 26 a.

In the above-described embodiment, the wire harness 3 is equipped with the positioning jig 6 in addition to the plurality of jigs 1. Alternatively, the wire harness 3 may be equipped with the clamp 1 that is always kept in the locked state, instead of the positioning clamp 6. As a further alternative, the positioning jig 6 may be omitted. In this case, the locking hole 4b for the positioning jig 6 is omitted in the component 4 of the body of the motor vehicle. In these ways, another member or structure may be employed in place of the positioning jig 6 as long as it can perform the function of determining the reference position of the flat conductors 2.

In the above-described embodiment, each jig 1 in the unlocked state is moved to an appropriate position, and after it is attached to the member 4, the state thereof is switched to the locked state. When it is necessary to return the state of each clip 1 to the unlocked state for the maintenance of, for example, a motor vehicle, the state of each clip 1 can be forcibly returned to the unlocked state by applying a sufficiently strong external force to its grip 10 upward (i.e., in a direction away from the main body 20) to cause the pair of side flanges of the base 11 to be instantaneously elastically deformed upward and then to pass over the pair of lower rails 31.

According to the above exemplary embodiment, the jig (1) for the flat conductor (2) has the flat plate-like conductor member (41), the jig (1) is used for attaching the flat conductor (2) to the attaching target (4), and the jig (1) includes: a clamping portion (10) that engages with the attachment target (4); and a main body (20) that holds the flat conductor (2). The clamping portion (10) has a first protrusion (13), the main body (20) has a second protrusion (26), and the first protrusion (13) and the second protrusion (26) protrude opposite to each other. The clip portion (10) and the main body (20) are configured to allow switching from an unlocked state to a locked state. The locked state restricts relative movement of the clamp portion (10) and the main body (20) in the axial direction of the flat conductor (2) due to engagement between the first projection (13) and the second projection (26). The unlocked state allows relative movement on both sides in the axial direction.

In the jig for flat conductors having such a configuration, the grip portion engaged with the attaching target such as the vehicle body and the main body holding the flat conductors are configured to enable switching from an unlocked state in which relative movement between the grip portion and the main body is possible to a locked state in which such relative movement is restricted. That is, the jig has a so-called ratchet-like structure. Therefore, even after the main body of the jig is fixed to the flat conductor, the position of the clamping portion relative to the flat conductor can be changed as long as the jig is in the unlocked state. In contrast, after the clamp portion is locked on the attaching target (i.e., after the flat conductor is attached to the attaching target), the main body can be moved relative to the clamp portion.

Therefore, after, for example, attaching the jig, which is attached to the flat conductor and is in the unlocked state, to the attaching target and then moving the main body of the jig so that the bending or the like of the flat conductor is corrected and the flat conductor is stretched into a straight shape, the state of the jig can be switched to the locked state. Therefore, the jig having such a configuration can appropriately attach the flat conductor to a prescribed attachment target.

The clip portion (10) and the main body (20) may be configured to restrict switching from the locked state to the unlocked state.

In the jig for a flat conductor having this configuration, the jig is prevented from returning to the unlocked state from the locked state. This makes it possible to prevent, for example, the phenomenon that the jig in the locked state is accidentally returned to the unlocked state as the flat conductors extend straight. Therefore, the jig having such a configuration makes it possible to well maintain the state in which the flat conductor is correctly attached to the attaching target.

In the unlocked state, the grip portion (10) is positionable relative to the body (20) due to contact between the distal end portion of the first projection (13) and the distal end portion of the second projection (26).

According to the jig for a flat conductor having such a configuration, the jig portion in the unlocked state can be easily positioned. This makes it possible to increase the efficiency of the operation of locking the clip portion at a prescribed position on the attachment target (for example, in the locking hole of the vehicle body).

According to the above exemplary embodiment, the wire harness (3) includes: a flat conductor (2) having a flat plate-shaped conductor member; a jig (1) attached to the flat conductor (2); and positioning structures (6, 4B) that determine a reference position of the flat conductor (2) with respect to the attachment target (4) when the flat conductor (2) is attached to the attachment target (4).

In the wire harness having such a configuration, each of the clamps attached to the flat conductors is configured to be capable of switching from an unlocked state in which a relative movement between the clamp portion engaged with an attachment target such as a vehicle body and the main body holding the flat conductors is possible to a locked state in which the relative movement is restricted. That is, each clip has a so-called ratchet-like structure. Therefore, even after the main body of each jig is fixed to the flat conductors, the position of the clamping portion with respect to the flat conductors can be changed as long as the jig is in the unlocked state. In contrast, after the clamp portion is locked on the attaching target (i.e., after the flat conductor is attached to the attaching target), the main body can be moved relative to the clamp portion. Therefore, for example, after each of the clamps that are attached to the flat conductors and in the unlocked state is attached to the attachment target, the state of the clamps can be switched to the locked state after the flat conductors are stretched into a straight shape by moving the main body of each of the clamps so that the bending or the like of the flat conductors is corrected. Thus, the wire harness having such a configuration can be appropriately attached to a prescribed attachment target.

According to the above exemplary embodiment, the assembly (5) comprises: a flat conductor (2), the flat conductor (2) having a flat plate-shaped conductor member; a jig (1) attached to the flat conductor (2); and an attachment target (4) for the flat conductor (2). The flat conductor (2) is attached to an attachment target (4) using a jig (1).

According to the assembly having such a configuration, the flat conductors can be arranged along the designed installation route by: for example, the clamps that are attached to the flat conductors and are in the unlocked state are attached to the attachment target, then the main body of each clamp is moved so that the bending or the like of the flat conductors is corrected and the flat conductors are stretched into an almost straight shape, and finally the state of each clamp is switched to the locked state. In this way, the assembly having such a configuration can suppress interference between the flat conductor and a nearby device and generation of abnormal sound by appropriately arranging the flat conductor by the action of the jig.

As described above, the present invention can provide a jig capable of attaching a flat conductor to a prescribed attachment target, a wire harness using such a jig, and an assembly for fixing a flat conductor to an attachment target using such a jig.