Abstract:
Providing a compact power feeding device having a smooth slide operation, a power feeding device includes a wiring harness being received in a case to be formed into a U-shape, a slider capable of sliding freely in the case, and a slot being provided between one leg and the other leg of the wiring harness. The one leg of the wiring harness is fixed on the case, and the other leg thereof is led out to an outside of the case through the slider. The slider is disposed from a wall of the case, along the other leg of the wiring harness, to the slot. The case has a rail, and the slider has an engaging member corresponding to the rail. The slider has also a swivel member swiveling freely, and the other leg of the wiring harness is led out through the swivel member to the outside.

Description:
[0001]     The priority application Number Japan Patent Application 2004-222937 upon which this patent application is based is hereby incorporated by reference.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0003]     This invention relates to a power feeding device having a wiring harness bent into a U-shape to be received in a case for feeding electric power continuously to a movable structure such as a slide door and a slide seat of a vehicle.  
         [0004]     2Description of the Related Art  
         [0005]      FIG. 4  shows a usual power feeding device (refer Patent Reference 1).  
         [0006]     A power feeding device  41  is installed in a slide door  42  of a vehicle. In the power feeding device  41 , a flat wiring harness  45  bent into a U-shape is received in a long sideways case  44 , and a slider  46  is provided slidably within the case  44 , and one leg of the wiring harness  45  is fixed on the slider  46  and the other leg of the wiring harness  45  is fixed on the case  44 .  
         [0007]     The slider  46  is connected with a vehicle body  43  by a flexible arm  43 . A wiring harness  48  of the vehicle body  43  is wired from one leg of the wiring harness  45  along the arm  47  toward an electric power supply. The other leg of the wiring harness  45  is connected with a wiring harness at the slide door  42  toward an auxiliary device (not shown) such as a motor for a power regulated window, a door lock unit, a switch unit.  
         [0008]     The flat wiring harness  45  is provided with a flexible support plate for preventing slack of the wiring harness  45 . The case  44  has a bottom wall. The wiring harness  45  is formed into the U-shape along a top wall  49  and the bottom wall parallel to the top wall  49  of the case  44 .  
         [0009]     When the slide door  42  in a condition of partly open as shown in  FIG. 4  is moved forward as an arrow A for slot, the slider  46  moves relatively toward a rear of the case  44 , and the wiring harness  45  is curved into the U-shape to have a top part  45   a  and a bottom part  45   b  of almost same lengths. When the slide door  42  in a condition of partly open as shown in  FIG. 4  is moved rearward as an arrow B for closing, the slider  46  moves relatively toward a front of the case  44 , and the wiring harness  45  is curved in the J-shape to have the shorter bottom part  45   b  than the top part  45   a . Thus, the slack of the wiring harness  45  is absorbed so as to provide continuously electric power securely to each auxiliary device in the slide door.  
         [0010]     Reference Patent 1 is Japan Patent Application Laid Open No. H11-342807.  
       SUMMARY OD THE INVENTION  
       [0000]     Objects to be Solved  
         [0011]     In the usual power feeding device  41 , the wiring harness  45  is formed with a flat wire and the flexible support plate is required for preventing the slack of the wiring harness  45  in the case. Therefore, assembling cost and parts cost for the support plate are required.  
         [0012]     An applicant of the present invention invented a power feeding device as shown in  FIG. 5  by using a usual wiring harness with a round cross-section instead of the flat wiring harness.  
         [0013]     A power feeding device  51  includes a case  52  made of synthetic resin and a slider  54  slidable along a bottom wall  53  of the case  52 . A wiring harness  55  is received in the case  52  to be curved in a U-shape or J-shape. One leg of the wiring harness  55  is fixed on the slider  54  and the other leg of the wiring harness  55  is fixed on a top wall  56  of the case  52 .  
         [0014]     The case  52  is formed into a rectangular shape having side walls  56 ,  53  in parallel to each other at a top edge and a bottom edge of the case. The slider  54  is formed with a top half portion  54   a  and a bottom half portion  54   b . The bottom half portion  54   b  projects downward from the bottom wall  53 . The wiring harness  55  is wired by curving into a crankshaft shape from the top portion  54   b  to the bottom portion  54   b , and led out from the bottom portion  54   b  toward a movable structure such as a slide door.  
         [0015]     In case of applying the power feeding device  51  to a slide door of a vehicle, when the slide door is opened, the slider  54  moves relatively toward a front side in the case  52  as shown with a two-dot chain line, and a bottom half portion  55   b  of the wiring harness  55  slides forward along the bottom wall  53  of the case  52 . When the slide door is closed, the slider  54  moves relatively toward a rear side in the case  52  as shown with solid line, and the bottom half portion  55   b  of the wiring harness  55  slides rearward along the bottom wall  53  of the case  52 . The case  52  moves forward and rearward integrally with the slide door. The slider  54  moves relatively short, and is placed in a home position together with a harness part  57  for connecting with a vehicle body.  
         [0016]     The power feeding device  51  can be applied to a slide seat, a rotary backdoor, a trunk and a slide door of a machine other than the vehicle. The slide door, the slide seat and the like are called as a moving structure and a power feeding side such as the vehicle body is called as a fixed structure.  
         [0017]     According to the above power feeding device  51 , a bottom half portion of the slider projects downward from the case. Therefore, a distance from the top end of the case to a bottom end of the slider increases and height of the power feeding device increases. The bottom half portion of the slider would interfere with an outside object during sliding motion. It will cause not to slide the slider smoothly and a look of the power supply becomes worse.  
         [0018]     To overcome the above problem, object of this invention are to provide a power feeding device, which is compact and has a smooth sliding motion to prevent increase of the power feeding device caused by the projected slider and interference of the slider and the outside objects.  
         [0000]     How to Attain the Object of the Present Invention  
         [0019]     In order to attain the object of the present invention, a power feeding device according to an aspect of the present invention includes a wiring harness being received in a case to be formed into a U-shape, a slider capable of sliding freely in the case, and a slot provided between one leg and the other leg of the wiring harness. The one leg of the wiring harness is fixed on the case, and the other leg thereof is led out to an outside of the case through the slider. The slider is located between a wall of the case along the other leg of the wiring harness and the slot. The other leg of the wiring harness is led out from the slot to the outside.  
         [0020]     According to the above structure, the slider is received completely in the case, and the one end of the slider is positioned along the wall of the case. The other leg of the wiring harness is wired from one end of the slider and to the other end thereof and led out to the outside from the slot between the one leg and the other leg of the wiring harness. The wiring harness is curved into a U-shape and a part of the wiring harness wired to the slider is wired from the one leg to the other leg of the wiring harness. The one leg of the wiring harness is positioned along one wall of the case. The other leg of the wiring harness is positioned along the other wall of the case. The other leg of the wiring harness is curved at the slider toward the one leg of the wiring harness. Thereby, friction drag between the other leg and the wall of the case is reduced and operatability of the slider is improved.  
         [0021]     The power feeding device according to another aspect of the present invention is characterized in the power feeding device mentioned above in that the case is provided with a rail, and the slider is provided with an engaging member corresponding to the rail.  
         [0022]     According to the above structure, the slider can smoothly move forward and rearward along the rail of the case at a home position. The rail is preferably formed integrally with the case made of synthetic resin about costs of a part and assembling.  
         [0023]     The power feeding device according to further aspect of the present invention is characterized in the power feeding device mentioned above in that the rail is placed in the vicinity of the slot.  
         [0024]     According to the above structure, the slot is located at a middle position in height of the case, and the rail is placed in the vicinity of the slot, that is, in a middle position in height of the case. A middle portion in height of the slider engages with the rail. Thereby, the slider can slide freely and stably in the case without sticking motion.  
         [0025]     The power feeding device according to further aspect of the present invention is characterized in the power feeding device mentioned above in that a swivel member is provided to swivel freely at said slider, and the other leg of the wiring harness is led out through the swivel member to the outside.  
         [0026]     According to the above structure, the swivel member swivels corresponding to movement of the slider so as to absorb a bending force and a twisting force at a lead out side of the wiring harness smoothly. When the power feeding device is installed in the moving structure, the wiring harness at the lead out side is wired toward the fixed structure (power supply side). When the moving structure moves, the slider moves relatively and the swivel member swivels in an opposite direction of movement of the moving structure.  
         [0027]     The above and other objects and features of this invention will become more apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0028]      FIG. 1  is a front view of an embodiment of a power feeding device according to the present invention;  
         [0029]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the power feeding device, in which a slider moves to one side;  
         [0030]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the power feeding device, in which the slider moves to the other side;  
         [0031]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of one power feeding device by prior art;  
         [0032]      FIG. 5  is a front view of another power feeding device by prior art. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0033]      FIGS. 1-3  show an embodiment of a power feeding device according to the present invention.  FIG. 1  is an illustration of the power feeding device.  FIGS. 2 and 3  show respective conditions of a moved slider of the power feeding device.  
         [0034]     A power feeding device  1  includes a long sideways case  3  made of synthetic resin for receiving a wiring harness  2  formed into a U-shape or J-shape, and a slider  5  slidable along a rail  4  at a middle position in height of the case  3 . A bottom half portion  5   a  of the slider  5  engages with the rail  4 . A long sideways slot  6  for leading out the wiring harness  2  is located above the rail  4  at the case  3 . A top half portion  5   b  of the slider  5  is positioned in the slot  6 . The wiring harness  2  is wired from the bottom half portion  5   a  to the top half portion  5   a  of the slider  5 . The wiring harness  2  is led out from the top half portion  5   b  through the slot  6  to an outside.  
         [0035]     The case  3  is formed into a rectangular-like shape, which has a narrow-width front half portion and a wide-width rear half portion. The front half portion and the rear half portion of the case  3  are-continued through a step  7  at a top side of the case  3 . A bottom wall  8  of the case  3  is formed straight from a front end to a rear end horizontally. A top wall  9  of the case  3  has a low front half portion  9   b  and a high rear half portion  9   b . The front half portion  9   a  is shorter than the rear half portion  9   b.    
         [0036]     A vertical opening  10  is provided at the step  7  of the top side. A top-side portion (one leg)  2   a  of the wiring harness  2  is fixed at the opening  10 . The wiring harness  2  is fixed with an extension plate (not shown) of the top wall  9  by taping or banding.  
         [0037]     The case  3  has a base  11  and a cover  12 . The base  11  includes a vertical base wall  13  ( FIG. 12 ) and walls  9 ,  8 ,  14 ,  15  at a top edge, a bottom edge, a front edge, and a bottom edge around the base wall  13 . The cover  12  is formed with one plate member. The base  11  and the cover  12  are secured to each other by an engaging means (not shown) such as a lock projection and an engaging hole. In  FIG. 1 , the cover  12  is not shown.  
         [0038]     The cover  12  is provided with a long sideways slot  6 . The slot  6  is formed by cutting out the cover  12  in a horizontal direction from a front end toward a vicinity of a rear end of the cover  12 . The slot  6  has top and bottom edges  6   a ,  6   b  in parallel to each other, and an slot edge  6   c  and an end edge  6   d  at a rear-side. The slot  6  is located at a middle position in height of the cover  12 , that is, case  3 . At the narrow-width front half portion of the case  3 , the top edge  6   a  of the slot  6  almost corresponds to an inner surface of the top wall  9   a  of the base  11 .  
         [0039]     A pair of rails  4  is provided oppositely to each other at an inner surface of the cover  12  and at an inner surface of the base  11  in the vicinity of the bottom edge  6   b  of the slot  6 . The rail  4  is formed into a triangle or rectangular in cross-section. The rails  4  are preferably formed integrally with the cover  12  and the base  11  by resin molding.  
         [0040]     The top half portion  5   b  and the bottom half portion  5   a  of the slider  5  are formed integrally with synthetic resin. The top half portion  5   b  is formed into an inverted L-shape in cross-section. The bottom half portion  5   a  is formed into a rectangular block shape. The top half portion  5   b  has a vertical wall extending from the bottom half portion  5   a  and a horizontal wall perpendicular to the vertical wall. Horizontal grooves  16  (engaging members  FIG. 3 ) engaging slidably with the pair of rails  4  are provided at both right-and-left sides of a top side of the bottom half portion  5   a.    
         [0041]     Preferably, the bottom half portion  5   a  of the slider  5  can be divided into top-and-bottom blocks or right-and-left blocks. Each divided block is provided with a groove having a semi-circle cross-section for holding the wiring harness  2 . By combining both grooves, a harness through hole  17  ( FIG. 3 ) with a circle cross-section is formed to extend through a top wall of the bottom half portion  5   a . The groove is preferably formed on an inner surface with a rib engaging with a round groove of a corrugated tube (protecting tube) for protecting an outer surface of the wiring harness  2 . The harness through hole  17  is curved into a circular arc from a rear end of the bottom half portion  5   a  to a top end thereof. Both divided blocks are locked with each other by locking means, such as a lock hook and engaging recess (not shown). One divided block is continued integrally to the converted L-shape top half portion  5   b.    
         [0042]     A rectangular swivel block (swivel member)  18  is connected rotatably about a vertical shaft  19  with the top half portion  5   b  of the slider  5 . The swivel block  18  is preferably divided into an upper and a lower portions, and locked with each other by locking means (not shown) such as a locking hook and engaging recess. Each block is provided with a groove having a semi-circular or an arc cross-section to form the harness through hole  20  ( FIG. 2 ) having a circular cross-section or an elliptical cross-section. The harness through hole  20  is curved from a bottom surface of the swivel block  18  to a top surface thereof, and continued to the harness through hole  17  of the bottom half portion  5   a  of the slider  5 .  
         [0043]     The swivel block  18  in this embodiment is provided on the inner surface of the harness through hole  20  with a rib. The round groove of the corrugated tube having an elliptical cross-section of the wiring harness at a side of the swivel block engages with the rib. The wiring harness  2  is wired curvedly as a plurality of electrical wires without the protecting tube in the swivel block  18  and the slider  5 . Each end of the protecting tubes are fixed at the rear end of the bottom half portion  5   a  of the slider  5  and at the top end of the swivel block  18 . The plurality of electrical wires is led out from an inside of the case  3  through the swivel block  18  to an outside of the case  3 . The swivel block  18  swivels forward and rearward in the long sideways slot  6 .  
         [0044]     In this embodiment, a part of wiring harness  2   d  at the outside of the case  3  can swivel freely by using the swivel block  18 . As the prior art ( FIG. 5 ) by removing the swivel block  18 , the wiring harness  2  can be led out directly from the top half portion.  5   b  of the slider  5  through the slot  6  to the outside.  
         [0045]     As shown with the solid line in  FIG. 1  and shown in  FIG. 2 , when the slider  5  moves to the rear area of the case  3 , the top-side portion  2   a  of the wiring harness  2  becomes longer than a bottom-side portion (the other leg)  2   b  of the wiring harness  2 . The top-side portion  2   a  is placed straightly along the inner surface of the top wall  9  of the case  3 , and a curved portion  2   c  of the wiring harness  2  is placed curvedly in a semi-circular shape at the rear end of the case  3 . The wiring harness  2  is stiffer than the usual flat wiring harness so that the wiring harness  2  does not dangle. The swivel block  18  rotates obliquely rearward. The bottom-side portion  2   b  of the wiring harness  2  continued to the curved portion  2   c  goes from a bottom to a top in the slider  5  and is led out from the top-side of the swivel block  18  through the slot  6  to oblique rearward.  
         [0046]     The slot  6  and the swivel block  18  are placed between the top-side portion  2   a  and the bottom-side portion  2   b  of the wiring harness  2  at the middle position in height of the case  3 . According to this structure, the power feeding device  1  is shortened in height comparing with a usual structure, in which a slider projects under a case. The whole slider is received completely in the case so that there is no chance that the slider  5  interferes with an outside object. A look of the power feeding device is improved.  
         [0047]     The wiring harness  2  between the top-side portion  2   a  and the bottom-side portion  2   b  is led out to outside. Thereby, the wiring harness  2  has no unexpected bending force and no unexpected torsional force comparing with a usual structure that the wiring harness  2  is led out from an area under the bottom-side portion to outside. Therefore, the slider  5  can move smoothly and an operation force for slider  5  can be reduced.  
         [0048]     When the slider  5  moves to the front area of the case  3  as shown in  FIG. 3 , the bottom-side portion  2   b  of the wiring harness becomes longer than the top-side portion  2   a  thereof, and the bottom-side portion  2   b  is supported straightly along the bottom wall  8  of the case  3 . The curved portion  2   c  of the wiring harness  2  is located at a middle position in length of the case  3 . The swivel block  18  rotates obliquely forward.  
         [0049]     In a case that the above power feeding device  1  is installed in a left slide door of a vehicle,  FIG. 2  shows a condition of closing completely the slide door, and  FIG. 3  shows a condition of slot fully the slide door. The top-side portion  2   a  of the wiring harness  2  is connected through a fix point of the case  3  with a connector of a wiring harness for auxiliary devices such as a motor for a power regulated window, a door lock unit, a door mirror unit, a courtesy lamp, a switch unit and the like at the slide door. The part of wiring harness  2   d  led from the swivel block  18  is connected, through a space between the slide door and a vehicle body, with a connector of a wiring harness of the vehicle body (power supply side).  
         [0050]     The above power feeding device  1  can be installed in the vehicle body. In this case, parts of lead-out wiring harnesses  2   e ,  2   d  at top-side and bottom side are connected oppositely. For a slide seat, the above power feeding device  1  can be installed horizontally so as to connect the part of wiring harness  2   d  at the swivel block  18  and auxiliary devices in the slide seat, and connect the part of wiring harness  2   e  at fixed side and a power supply side.  
         [0051]     The power feeding device can be applied to any doors other than the door of the vehicle. For example, for a door moving up-and-down, the above power feeding device  1  can be placed to arrange lengthwise thereof in a direction of up-and-down so as to the part of wiring harness  2   d  at the swivel block and the door, and connect the part of wiring harness  2   e  at the fixed side and the power supply side. Thus, the power feeding device can be arranged for usage.  
         [0052]     In the above embodiment, the groove  16  of the slider engaged with the rail  4  can be replaced by a pulley. The rail  4  can be changed from two rails to one rail. In the case of one rail, by taking the slider  5  in the case  3  without looseness in a direction of thickness of the case  3 , the slider  5  can slide smoothly. As a rail, a projected line and the groove  16  can be replaced by a long slit (not shown) and a shaft engaged with the long slit.  
         [0053]     Having now fully described the invention, it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that many changes and modifications can be made thereto without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth herein