Abstract:
In this cable linking device, when a lock member ( 16 ) is located in a restricting position for restricting the movement of a joint piece ( 13 ), an interposing member ( 17 ) can move to an interposing position between the lock member ( 16 ) and a holding member ( 11 ) and the interposing member ( 17 ) can be shifted between the interposing position and a movement-permitting position, and when the interposing member ( 17 ) has moved to the interposing position, the lock member ( 16 ) is restricted from moving to a restriction release position for releasing the restriction on the movement of the joint piece ( 13 ), therefore preventing a linking member from accidentally moving farther into the holding member.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0001]    The present invention relates to a cable linking device. 
       BACKGROUND ART 
       [0002]    A relay device that relays two inner cables is disclosed in Patent Literature (hereinafter, referred to “PTL”) 1. The relay device disclosed in PTL 1 includes: a joint piece which links two inner cables together; a casing having a space in which the joint piece can move; and a lock member which restricts or allows movement of the joint piece. In this relay device, until the two inner cables are linked to the joint piece, the lock member needs to be kept in a lock state in which movement of the joint piece is restricted. 
         [0003]    The lock member is partially engaged with slits formed in an outer periphery of the casing, and when pulled up from the casing, the lock member is set to the lock state in which the lock member restricts movement of the joint piece, and when pushed down onto the casing, the lock member is set to an unlock state in which the lock member allows movement of the joint piece. 
       CITATION LIST 
     Patent Literature 
     PTL 1 
     Japanese Patent No. 4967142 
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     Technical Problem 
       [0004]    However, when the lock member is unexpectedly pushed down due to some sort of impact during transportation of the relay device, the lock member is set to the unlock state, and a linking member moves deeper inside the casing. For this reason, in order to link the inner cables in this case, it requires extra handling which is to take out the linking member from deeper inside the casing. 
         [0005]    It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a cable linking device which prevents a linking member from accidentally moving deeper inside a holding member. 
       Solution to Problem 
       [0006]    A cable linking device according to an aspect of the present invention includes: an inner cable; a linking member configured to link a link target with the inner cable; an outer casing configured to cover an outer periphery of the inner cable; a holding member connected to an end portion of the outer casing and configured to movably hold the linking member; a restricting member capable of being displaced between a restricting position and an unrestricting position, the restricting member being configured to restrict, when moved to the restricting position, the linking member from moving from a linking position allowing an operation to link the link target with the linking member to be performed to a depth side position closer to the outer casing than the linking position in the holding member, and configured to allow, when moved to the unrestricting position, the linking member to move from the linking position to the depth side position; and an interposing member capable of moving to an interposing position between the restricting member and the holding member and being displaced between the interposing position and a movement allowing position when the restricting member is disposed at the restricting position, the interposing member being configured to restrict, when moved to the interposing position, the restricting member from moving to the unrestricting position, and configured to allow, when moved to the movement allowing position, the restricting member to move to the unrestricting position. 
       Advantageous Effects of Invention 
       [0007]    According to the present invention, an interposing member is capable of moving to an interposing position between a restricting member and a holding member and also being displaced between the interposing position and a movement allowing position when the restricting member is disposed at a restricting position, and when moved to the interposing position, the interposing member restricts the restricting member from moving to an unrestricting position. Thus, a linking member can be prevented from accidentally moving deeper inside the holding member. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         [0008]      FIG. 1  is an exploded perspective view of a cable linking device according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0009]      FIG. 2  is a side view of the cable linking device; 
           [0010]      FIG. 3  is a side view of the cable linking device, including a partially cutaway portion of the cable linking device; and 
           [0011]      FIG. 4A  is a top view of a lid piece,  FIG. 4B  is a side view of the lid piece,  FIG. 4C  is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of  FIG. 4A , and  FIG. 4D  is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B of  FIG. 4A ; 
           [0012]      FIG. 5A  is a front view of a lock member,  FIG. 5B  is a side view of the lock member, and  FIG. 5C  is a top view of the lock member; 
           [0013]      FIG. 6A  is a cross-sectional view taken along line I-I of  FIG. 3 ,  FIG. 6B  is a diagram illustrating a state where the lock member is disposed at a restricting position, and  FIG. 6C  is a diagram illustrating a state where the lock member is disposed at an unrestricting position; and 
           [0014]      FIGS. 7A to 7C  are diagrams for describing an operation of the locking member and an interposing member. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
       [0015]    Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
         [0016]      FIG. 1  is an exploded perspective view of a cable linking device according to an embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 2  is a side view of the cable linking device.  FIG. 3  is a side view of the cable linking device, including a partially cutaway portion of the cable linking device.  FIG. 4A  is a top view of a lid piece,  FIG. 4B  is a side view of the lid piece,  FIG. 4C  is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of  FIG. 4A , and  FIG. 4D  is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B of  FIG. 4A . In the following description, the directions illustrated in  FIG. 1  are defined as forward, rearward, upward and downward directions for the sake of convenience. 
         [0017]    The cable linking device according to this embodiment includes holding member  11 , cap member  12   a , first inner cable  14 , first outer casing D 1 , lock member  16 , and interposing member  17 , and/or the like. Holding member  11 , lid piece  11   a , and cap member  12   a  may be integrated into a single body. Furthermore, the cable linking device includes second inner cable  15 , second outer casing D 2 , cap member  12   b , and second cable end  15   a  as a link destination configuration. 
         [0018]    Holding member  11  is a member configured to movably hold joint piece  13  which is a linking member. In holding member  11 , an engagement portion which engages with lid piece  11   a  is formed on a peripheral wall of half-cylinder portion  11   d  which is formed forward of main body portion  11   c . Meanwhile, an engagement portion is formed on both lateral sides of a peripheral wall in the forward direction in lid piece  11   a  so as to engage with the engagement portion of holding member  11 . When holding member  11  and lid piece  11   a  are engaged with each other, a cylindrical body communicating with a cylindrical portion in the rearward of half-cylinder portion  11   d  is formed and movably holds therein joint piece  13 . A forward end of holding member  11  is opened, so that join piece  13  can move with protrusion of one end of joint piece  13  from the opening. As illustrated in  FIGS. 4A through 4D , guide member  11   b  is formed in a part of an outer peripheral surface of lid piece  11   a , and interposing member  17  to be described hereinafter slides along guide member  11   b.    
         [0019]    Cap member  12   a  is freely detachable from holding member  11  and is engaged with holding member  11  so as to cap the opening of the cylindrical body formed by half-cylinder portion  11   d  and lid piece  11   a  of holding member  11  from a forward direction of holding member  11  where lid piece  11   a  is engaged. Cap member  12   a  has a bottomed cylindrical shape and is capable of temporarily holding therein one end side of joint piece  13  which is the linking member. For this reason, when cap member  12   a  is engaged with holding member  11 , joint piece  13  which is the linking member is inserted into an inner space of holding member  11  and held therein. In addition, lid piece  11   a  is structured not to easily fall off from holding member  11 , and when lid piece  11   a  is removed from holding member  11 , a forward portion of holding member  11  opens upward, so that it is made possible to adjust a position of joint piece  13 . 
         [0020]    An outer casing extending forward is first outer casing D 1  of first control cable P 1  and an outer casing extending rearward is second outer casing D 2  of second control cable P 2 . 
         [0021]    As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , joint piece  13  (which corresponds to the linking member) is movably disposed inside holding member  11  in a forward-rearward direction. First inner cable  14  slidably housed in first outer casing D 1  is locked to a forward portion of joint piece  13 . Meanwhile, second inner cable  15  slidably housed in second outer casing D 2  is locked to a rearward portion of joint piece  13 . 
         [0022]    Joint piece  13  is fixed to a leading end of first inner cable  14  by swaging first cable end  14   a  which is a member having a larger thickness than first inner cable  14 . Moreover, second cable end  15   a  having a larger thickness than second inner cable  15  is fixed to a leading end of second inner cable  15 . Although second cable end  15   a  is not limited to a particular configuration, end body  15   b  having a cylindrical shape axially continuous from second inner cable  15  and spring plates  15   c  expanding outwardly rearward from a forward end and covering an outer periphery of end body  15   b  are formed in second cable end  15   a . Note that, second cable end  15   a  is fixed to the leading end of second inner cable  15  by casting, but can be fixed by swaging as well. 
         [0023]    Joint piece  13  is composed of: first lock portion  13   a  in which a hole for locking first cable end  14   a  of first inner cable  14  disposed in a forward portion is formed; second lock portion  13   b  having an opening provided for locking second cable end  15   a  of second inner cable  15  in a rearward portion disposed so as to face first lock portion  13   a ; and two side surface portions  13   c  which connect both sides of first and second lock portions  13   a  and  13   b . Joint piece  13  as a whole exhibits an outer shape so as to conform to holding member  11 , and side surface portions  13   c  are disposed at both sides, and through-hole  13   d  through which second cable end  15   a  can be inserted in an upward-downward direction is formed. 
         [0024]    In addition, slit  13   e  communicating with through-hole  13   d  is formed in second lock portion  13   b , and second inner cable  15  can be inserted through slit  13   e . Moreover, when inserted from the rearward of first lock portion  13   a  of joint piece  13 , spring plates  15   c  of second cable end  15   a  of second inner cable  15  can be inserted through from the rearward while being elastically deformed inward, and after being inserted through, spring plates  15   c  that have returned to the original shape expand outward, thus being locked. 
         [0025]    As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , slits  11   e  are each formed near a middle portion of an outer periphery of holding member  11 . Slit engagement portion  11   f  is formed at a lower end of each of slits  11   e . Both leg portions of lock member  16  having a bifurcated shape (which corresponds to the restricting member) are inserted into slits  11   e  without being limited in particular. 
         [0026]    As illustrated in  FIGS. 5A through 6C , two-step inward protrusions are formed on both leg portions of lock member  16 . More specifically, first protrusion  16   a  which is an upper protrusion protrudes from near a middle of each of the leg portions of lock member  16 , and second protrusion  16   b  protrudes from a leading end portion of each of the leg portions below first protrusion  16   a.    
         [0027]    Lock member  16  is displaced between the following two positions in accordance with the amount of lock member  16  pushed into slits  11   e  of holding member  11 . More specifically, the two positions include a restricting position where second protrusions  16   b  of lock member  16  are each engaged with slit engagement portion  11   f  of holding member  11  by pushing down lock member  16  into slits  11   e  by only a small amount (see  FIG. 6B ), and an unrestricting position where second protrusions  16   b  are each engaged with slit engagement portion  11   f  of holding member  11  by further pushing down lock member  16  into slits  11   e  (see  FIG. 6C ). Lock member  16 , as illustrated in  FIGS. 5A to 5C , includes pushed portion  16   c  which receives a pushing force for moving from the restricting position to the unrestricting position, and pushed portion  16   c  has a pushed surface spreading in a direction intersecting with a moving direction of lock member  16 . 
         [0028]    As illustrated in  FIG. 6B , first protrusions  16   a  of lock member  16  protrude from an inner surface of holding member  11  at the restricting position, so that lock member  16  restricts movement of joint piece  13 . More specifically, in order to allow joint piece  13  to be engaged with second cable end  15   a  when holding member  11  is engaged with cap member  12   b , joint piece  13  is restricted from moving to the forward portion (depth side or the side of first outer casing D 1 ) of holding member  11  by causing lock member  16  to engage with holding member  11  at the restricting position in a state where joint piece  13  is held on a rearward side of holding member  11 . Meanwhile, as illustrated in  FIG. 6C , since first protrusions  16   a  of lock member  16  are engaged with slit engagement portions  11   f  of holding member  11  at the unrestricting position, lock member  16  does not prevent joint piece  13  from sliding. 
         [0029]    Interposing member  17  is displaceable between an interposing position where interposing member  17  is interposed between lock member  16  and holding member  11  (see  FIG. 7A ), and a movement allowing position where interposing member  17  allows movement of lock member  16  (see  FIG. 7B ). Note that, interposing member  17  can move to the interposing position when lock member  16  is disposed at the restricting position. When moved to the interposing position, interposing member  17  restricts lock member  16  from moving to the unrestricting position, and when moved to the movement allowing position, interposing member  17  allows lock member  16  to move to the unrestricting position. Note that, interposing member  17  slides in an axial direction of the inner cable with respect to holding member  11  and moves between the interposing position and the movement allowing position. As described herein, restricting lock member  16  by interposing member  17  from moving to the unrestricting position from the restricting position prevents a situation from occurring where the engagement of second cable end  15   a  and joint piece  13  to be completed by a simple linking operation in which cap member  12   b  and holding member  11  are engaged with each other becomes difficult due to movement of joint piece  13  to the forward side of holding member  11 . 
         [0030]    Furthermore, interposing member  17  includes operation portion  17   a  for performing a moving operation from the interposing position to the movement allowing position, and operation portion  17   a  is positioned near pushed portion  16   c  of lock member  16  when interposing member  17  is in the interposing position. Moreover, operation portion  17   a  has a protrusion which protrudes in a direction intersecting with a moving direction of interposing member  17 . The term “near” used herein means a distance short enough to allow holding member  11  to be held with one hand and to allow operation portion  17   a  and pushed portion  16   c  to be touched with the same hand; particularly, with the same finger, without a change in the way to hold holding member  11  to touch these portions. Thus, an operation to be performed during a linking operation is made easy, in which holding member  11  is held with one hand while cap member  12   a  attached to holding member  11  is held with the other hand. This provides an excellent mass productivity. 
         [0031]    Next, an operation of lock member  16  and interposing member  17  will be described with reference to  FIGS. 7A to 7C .  FIG. 7A  illustrates a state where lock member  16  is positioned at the restricting position while interposing member  17  is positioned in the interposing position. At this time, since interposing member  17  is interposed between holding member  11  and lock member  16 , lock member  16  is prevented from being pushed into slits  11   e  of holding member  11 . In other words, interposing member  17  restricts lock member  16  at the restricting position from moving to the unrestricting position. Thus, even when a force in a direction in which lock member  16  can move to the unrestricting position acts due to some sort of impact during transportation of lock member  16 , lock member  16  does not move to the unrestricting position. Accordingly, it is made possible to prevent accidental forward (toward depth side or the side of first outer casing D 1 ) movement of joint piece  13 . 
         [0032]      FIG. 7B  illustrates a state where lock member  16  is positioned at the restriction position while interposing member  17  is positioned at the movement allowing position. Interposing member  17  in  FIG. 7B  is in a state where interposing member  17  in  FIG. 7A  has been moved in the direction indicated by the arrow by operating operation portion  17   a.    
         [0033]    In the state of  FIG. 7B , interposing member  17  has been moved to the movement allowing position from the interposing position and lock member  16  can move from the restriction position to the unrestricting position. 
         [0034]      FIG. 7C  illustrates a state where lock member  16  is positioned at the unrestricting position while interposing member  17  is positioned at the movement allowing position. Lock member  16  in  FIG. 7C  is in a state where pushed portion  16   c  of lock member  16  protruding from holding member  11  at the restricting position in  FIG. 0.7B  has been pushed by an external force and lock member  16  has moved in the direction indicating by the arrow. Moreover, since lock member  16  is positioned at the unrestricting position near holding member  11 , joint piece  13  is movable within holding member  11  in the state of  FIG. 7C . 
         [0035]    As described above, operating lock member  16  and interposing member  17  in order of  FIGS. 7A, 7B, and 7C  makes it possible to move lock member  16  from the restricting position to the unrestricting position. At this time, since operation portion  17   a  of interposing member  17  and pushed portion  16   c  of lock member  16  are positioned near to each other, an operator can operate these portions with the thumb of one hand and can easily work in a narrow space. 
         [0036]    Next, a procedure to replace first inner cable  14  and second inner cable  15  will be described. Cap member  12   a  is removed, and lid piece  11   a  is removed from holding member  11 . Next, an attempt to pull out second inner cable  15  through slit  13   e  formed in second lock portion  13   b  of joint piece  13 , so as to turn joint piece  13  makes it possible to pull out second cable end  15   a  of second inner cable  15  upward through through-hole  13   d  of joint piece  13 . 
         [0037]    Removal of cap member  12   a  and lid piece  11   a  from holding member  11  in the manner described above makes it possible to easily unlink first and second inner cables  14  and  15  and to take out joint piece  13  from inside holding member  11 . Thus, a troublesome work such as completely disassembling holding member  11  or removal from a vehicle body is not required. Note that, after removal of lid piece  11   a , first inner cable  14  or second inner cable  15  can be pulled out from holding member  11  without cutting of an inner cable positioned before first cable end  14   a  of first inner cable  14  or second cable end  15   a  of second inner cable  15 . 
         [0038]    Moreover, when first inner cable  14  is newly attached, first inner cable  14  provided with cap member  12   a  and joint piece  13  is prepared. Next, joint piece  13  is inserted through the opening in the forward portion of holding member  11 . Second inner cable  15  locked to cap member  12   b  and second cable end  15   a  is prepared. Second inner cable  15  is attached by inserting second cable end  15   a  through opening  13   e  of joint piece  13  locked to first inner cable  14 . Lastly, lid piece  11   a  is attached to holding member  11 , and cap member  12   a  is fitted to an end portion of holding member  11  together with lid piece  11   a.    
         [0039]    As described above, according to this embodiment, interposing member  17  is provided, which is configured to be displaced between the interposing position between lock member  16  at the restricting position where movement of joint piece  13  is restricted and holding member  11 , and the movement allowing position where movement of lock member  16  is allowed, and by moving interposing member  17  to the interposing position, joint piece  13  can be prevented from accidentally moving deeper inside holding member  11 . 
         [0040]    An embodiment has been described thus far. 
         [0041]    Note that, in the embodiment described above, the case where joint piece  13  is configured to link two inner cables has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration as long as joint piece  13  is configured to link a single inner cable with a link target. 
         [0042]    Moreover, in the embodiment described above, interposing member  17  has been described as being configured to slide in the axial direction of the inner cable and move. However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration. For example, interposing member  17  may be configured to move in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the inner cable or to move in a direction to turn along a periphery of holding member  11  or to move in a direction obliquely intersecting with the axial direction of the inner cable. 
       INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY 
       [0043]    The present invention is applicable to a cable linking device for linking an inner cable with a link target. 
       REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 
       [0000]    
       
           11  Holding member 
           11   a  Lid piece 
           11   b  Guide member 
           11   c  Body portion 
           11   d  Half-cylinder portion 
           11   e  Slit 
           11   f  Slit engagement portion 
           12   a ,  12   b  Cap member 
           13  Joint piece 
           13   a  First engagement portion 
           13   b  Second engagement portion 
           13   c  Side surface portion 
           13   d  Through-hole 
           13   e  Slit 
           14  First inner cable 
           14   a  First cable end 
           15  Second inner cable 
           15   a  Second cable end 
           15   b  End body 
           15   c  Spring plate 
           16  Lock member 
           16   a  First protrusion 
           16   b  Second protrusion 
           16   c  Pushed portion 
           17  Interposing member 
           17   a  Operation portion 
         P 1  First control cable 
         P 2  Second control cable 
         D 1  First outer casing 
         D 2  Second outer casing