Wire connector and piston assembly for damper including the same

A piston assembly for a damper includes: a piston head; a piston rod having one end connected to the piston head, forming an inner space therein, and having another end at which an opening communicating with the inner space is formed; a wire having one end connected to an electric device mounted on the piston head and extending through the inner space of the piston rod; and a connector disposed at the other end of the piston rod and connected to another end of the wire. The connector includes a socket part rotatably disposed in the opening at the other end of the piston rod, and a plug part inserted into the socket through the opening of the other end of the piston rod. A self-alignment structure is provided in the socket part and the plug part and is configured to rotate the socket part such that the socket part is aligned at a predetermined orientation with respect to the plug part when the plug part is inserted into the socket part.

CROSS-REFERENCE(S) TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2016-0169882, filed on Dec. 13, 2016, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a wire connector for connecting an electric device inside a damper to an electric device outside the damper through a piston rod of a damper, and more particularly, to a wire connector for a damper, which can be easily connected to an end of a piston rod and can be positioned at a extension direction determined by an operator, and a piston assembly for a damper including the same.

Description of the Related Art

In general, a damper is a device attached to a suspension system of a vehicle to attenuate or reduce vibration or shock generated during traveling of the vehicle, and is widely used to improve ride comfort and increase driving stability.

In particular, the use of a variable damper which can further improve ride comfort and driving stability of the vehicle by appropriately adjusting a damping force of the damper according to the driving condition of the vehicle has become common.

In the case of the damping force variable damper, an electric wire for supplying electric current is connected to an electric device inside the damper, for example, a solenoid of a valve constituting a piston assembly, and extends outward through an inner space of a piston rod.

FIG. 1illustrates a configuration of a conventional damping force variable damper in which a current supply line for supplying electric current to a coil for forming a magnetic field around a passage of a piston assembly extends outward through an inner space of a piston rod.

That is, the conventional damping force variable damper100includes a wire130that extends outward from a damper100through a piston rod120extending outward from one end of a cylinder and delivers electric current from a controller (ECU) (not shown) outside the damper100to an electric device (e.g., a coil) of a piston head (not shown) inside the damper100.

A connector150is provided at one end of the wire130so as to connect to the controller provided outside the damper100.

However, the wire and the connector for the supply of the current, which are used in the conventional damping force variable damper, extend over a long distance from the piston rod120, which may cause interference with a damper mounting operation.

In addition, when defects such as disconnection or the like due to external shock occur in an exposed portion of the wire extending outward from the piston rod120, it is troublesome to remove a defective wire from the piston assembly and connect a normal wire again to the piston assembly. That is, while a portion of the wire inside the piston rod is hardly damaged by external influence, there is a risk that another portion of the wire extending outward from the piston rod may be damaged by external influence. Thus, the portion of the wire extending outward from the piston rod must be able to be easily connected to the portion of the wire extending through the piston rod and must be able to be easily disconnected therefrom.

Meanwhile, when the wire portion extending outward from the piston rod and another wire portion extending through the piston rod are connected to or disconnected from each other, the connection and disconnection operations must be able to be performed quickly and easily in consideration of a narrow space in which the damper is mounted. In addition, an extending orientation of the wire extending outward from the end of the piston rod must be able to be freely selected.

PRIOR ART DOCUMENTS

Patent Document

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been made in an effort to solve the problems described above, and provides a wire connector, which can be easily connected to an end of a piston rod and can be positioned at a position determined at the end of the piston rod by an operator, and a piston assembly for a damper including the same.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a piston assembly for a damper includes: a piston head; a piston rod having one end connected to the piston head, forming an inner space therein, and having another end at which an opening communicating with the inner space is formed; a wire having one end connected to an electric device mounted on the piston head and extending through the inner space of the piston rod; and a connector disposed at the other end of the piston rod and connected to another end of the wire, wherein the connector includes a socket part rotatably disposed in the opening at the other end of the piston rod, and a plug part inserted into the socket through the opening of the other end of the piston rod, the socket part includes an accommodation part having a cylindrical shape, a guide protrusion is formed on an outer surface of a sidewall of the accommodation part, and the guide protrusion is slidably connected to a rotation guide groove formed on an inner surface of the socket accommodation part.

A portion of the guide protrusion corresponding to one end side of the piston rod may be rounded.

An elongated hole may be formed on the sidewall of the accommodation part.

An insertion prevention protrusion engaged with a lower side of the socket part may be formed inside the piston rod.

The plug part may include a head for closing the opening of the piston rod, and a locking claw engaged with a rim protruding in a radial direction around the opening, and the locking claw may be provided along a lower edge of the head.

The plug part may further include a body extending from a lower side of the head, and a rotation prevention protrusion provided on an outer surface of the body, and the rotation prevention protrusion may be fitted into a groove formed on an inner surface of the socket accommodation part of the piston rod and prevents the rotation of the plug part.

The plug part may further include an insertion plug extending downward from the body, and an insertion part provided in a lower side of the insertion plug. A socket rotation alignment cam surface is formed at a lower end of the insertion part. A orientation alignment inclined surface is formed inside the accommodation part of the socket part. When the insertion part is inserted into the accommodation part, the socket rotation alignment cam surface and the orientation alignment inclined surface may cooperate with each other to rotate the socket part.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The advantages and features of the present invention and methods for achieving them will become more apparent from the following embodiments that are described in detail in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

In addition, some embodiments of the present invention will be described below, and however, it should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments and can be embodied in different ways without departing from the scope of the present invention, and that the following embodiments are provided only for complete disclosure and thorough understanding of the invention by those skilled in the art. The scope of the present invention will be determined by the appended claims.

In the following description, well-known structural elements, well-known operations and technologies will not be specifically described for simplicity and so as to avoid the obscure interpretation of the subject matters of the present invention.

Throughout the disclosure, like reference characters refer to like elements. The terminology used herein is intended to only describe particular embodiments and is not intended to limit the present invention.

In this specification, the singular forms “a”, “an”, and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be understood that terms such as “comprise”, “include”, and “have”, when used herein, specify the presence of stated elements and operations, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other elements and operations.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms used herein, including technical and scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs.

FIG. 2is a partial sectional view of a piston assembly for a damper according to an embodiment of the present invention,FIG. 3is a perspective view and a cross-sectional view respectively illustrating a socket part of a connector for a damper and a piston rod on which the socket part is mounted, according to an embodiment of the present invention, andFIG. 4is a perspective view of a plug part of the connector for the damper, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As illustrated inFIG. 2, the piston assembly10according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a piston head5, a piston rod20having one end connected to the piston head5, a wire30connected to an electric device (not shown), for example, a solenoid, provided in the piston head5, a socket part40connected to the other end of the wire30and disposed inside the piston rod20, and a plug part (50, seeFIG. 4) which can be detachably connected to the socket part40.

The piston assembly10according to the embodiment of the present invention may be mounted on, for example, a damping force variable damper or a regeneration damper. For example, in a case where the damper is the damping force variable damper, a passage is formed in the piston head5, and a valve operated by a solenoid is provided so as to change or block a route of the passage. So, a flow rate of a working fluid flowing through the passage formed in the piston head5can be adjusted, and thus a generated damping force may be adjusted.

In addition, for example, in a case where the damper is the regeneration damper, a power generating device capable of generating an electromotive force by a fluid flowing through the passage provided in the piston head5may be mounted as an electric device.

The piston rod20is hollow with a inner space21therein, and the wire30having one end connected to the electric device of the piston head5extends through the inner space21. The piston rod20has an upper end exposed to the outside of a cylinder constituting the damper. An opening29communicating with the inner space21is formed at the upper end of the piston rod20in which a wire connector including a socket part40and a plug part50is mounted. In addition, the upper end of the piston rod20may be connected to, for example, a body of a vehicle.

The wire30has one end connected to, for example, a solenoid or the like mounted on the piston head5, and extends to the upper end of the piston rod20through the inner space21of the piston rod20. The other end of the wire30is connected to the socket part40of the connector. A portion having a pigtail shape is provided at a portion of the wire30extending in the inner space21, so as to reduce a tension applied to both ends of the wire30. The wire30may be connected to the controller (ECU) of the vehicle through the connector connected to the other end thereof and may be supplied with a current therefrom.

The connector includes the socket part40and the plug part50. The socket part40is connected with the other end of the wire30and is disposed in the upper side of the piston rod20. The socket part40includes an accommodation part41into which an insertion plug55of the plug part50is inserted, and a wire end connection part42connected to a lower side of the accommodation part41to hold the other end of the wire30. The wire end connection part42may be formed by molding a resin.

The accommodation part41has a cylindrical shape as a whole and provides an inner space into which the insertion plug55can be accommodated. The wire end connection part42is fixedly connected to the bottom of the accommodation part41. A plurality of guide protrusions43may be provided on an outer surface of a sidewall of the accommodation part41. The guide protrusion43may have a rounded lower surface so as to enable the accommodation part41to be inserted into a socket accommodation space25through the upper opening29of the piston rod20. That is, the guide protrusions43may be slidably connected to a rotation guide groove24concavely formed on the inner surface of the upper portion of the piston rod20.

In addition, in order to enable the guide protrusion43to be smoothly fitted into the rotation guide groove24, an elongated hole46extending in an axial direction of the accommodation part41may be formed on the sidewall of the accommodation part41That is, when the socket part40is inserted into the socket accommodation space25of the socket accommodation part23through the upper opening29of the piston rod20, the guide protrusion43is pressed against the inner surface of the socket accommodation part23, and the sidewall of the accommodation part41is resistant to the pressing, but the elongated hole46is provided so that the resistance of the sidewall is reduced and the elastic deformation of the sidewall can be made even with a smaller force.

The rotation guide groove24, into which the guide protrusion43is inserted, is concavely formed in the inner wall of the socket accommodation part23corresponding to the upper end of the piston rod20. The rotation guide groove24may be formed in a circular shape on a plane perpendicular to the axis of the piston rod20. The guide protrusion43is movable while sliding in the rotation guide groove24, and thus the accommodation part41is rotatable.

A orientation alignment inclined surface44is formed on the inner surface of the sidewall of the accommodation part41. The orientation alignment inclined surface44corresponds to a socket rotation alignment cam surface57formed at a lower end of the insertion plug55. That is, when the insertion plug55is inserted into the accommodation part41through the upper opening29of the piston rod20, the socket rotation alignment cam surface57comes into contact with the orientation alignment inclined surface44and presses the orientation alignment inclined surface44so that the accommodation part41is rotated by a predetermined angle.

Due to such a rotation, a terminal insertion port58, which is opened in a downward direction of the insertion part56and into which a terminal (not shown) protruding from the bottom surface of the accommodation part41of the socket part40is inserted, is aligned with the terminal so that the terminal is smoothly inserted into the terminal insertion port58.

As illustrated inFIG. 3, the orientation alignment inclined surface44may be formed to be inclined with respect to a longitudinal axis of the accommodation part41, and may be a side surface of a protrusion protruding from the inner surface of the sidewall of the accommodation part41.

The plug part50includes a head61for closing the opening29when inserted into the opening29of the upper end of the piston rod20, and a body51extending downward from the head61and inserted into the opening29.

The head61may be formed by molding a resin, and a plurality of locking claws53extending downward may be formed in a lower peripheral portion. When the head61is inserted into the opening29, the locking claw53is engaged with a rim28extending outward from the upper end of the piston rod20in a radial direction, and fixes the head61to the end of the piston rod20.

In addition, a sealing protrusion54coming into contact with an inner surface of the rim28when the head61is inserted into the opening29may be provided on an inner side in a radial direction from the locking claw53.

Therefore, the head61may be airtightly or watertightly connected to the opening29by the locking claws53and the sealing protrusion54.

A rotation prevention protrusion52is provided on an outer surface of the body51extending from the lower side of the head61. The rotation prevention protrusion52is engaged with a groove26formed in an upper portion of the inner surface of the socket accommodation part23corresponding to the upper end of the piston rod20, such that the head61is movable in a longitudinal direction of the piston rod20, but the rotation of the head61is prevented. The rotation prevention protrusion52may be formed on the outer surface of the body51in parallel to the longitudinal direction of the piston rod20. When the head61is inserted into the opening29, the rotation prevention protrusion52is moved along the groove26provided in the upper portion of the socket accommodation part23in a length direction of the piston rod20, but the rotation thereof is prevented.

Since the head61is connected to the upper end of the piston rod20such that the rotation thereof is prevented, the rotation of the head61may be prevented even if an external wire63connected to the head61through a wire end connection part62is shaken. In addition, when the head61is inserted into the socket accommodation part23, the insertion plug55is not rotated, and only the accommodation part41can be rotated within the socket accommodation part23by the socket rotation alignment cam surface57and the orientation alignment inclined surface44of the socket part40.

The insertion plug55may extend from the lower side of the body51in parallel to the longitudinal direction of the piston rod20. An electric wire or the like may extend from the external wire63in the insertion plug55, and a conductive electrode electrically connectable to a terminal (not shown) of the socket part40may be provided.

An insertion part56may be provided in a lower portion of the insertion plug55. The insertion part56is inserted into the accommodation part41of the socket part40. The socket rotation alignment cam surface57interacting with the orientation alignment inclined surface44can be formed in the insertion part56. In addition, the terminal insertion port58for accommodating and guiding the terminal of the socket part40to the electrode is formed in a lower portion of the insertion part56.

The opening29connected to the inner space21is provided at the upper end of the piston rod20on which the connector including the socket part40and the plug part50is mounted. The rim28protruding outward in a radial direction is provided around the opening29. As described above, the locking claw53of the head61may be engaged with the rim28. In addition, a thin wall part27is formed below the rim28so that the locking claws53are smoothly engaged with the rim28.

A longitudinal groove26may be formed on the inner surface of the socket accommodation part23disposed just below the opening29in parallel to the longitudinal direction of the piston rod20, so that the rotation prevention protrusion52formed on the outer surface of the body51of the plug part50is fitted therein. Therefore, the rotation of the plug part50can be prevented when the plug part50is inserted through the opening29and after it has been inserted thereinto.

The accommodation part41of the socket part40may be disposed below the longitudinal groove26, and the rotation guide groove24into which the rotation guide protrusion43is inserted may be formed, thereby allowing the rotation of the accommodation part41around the longitudinal axis of the piston rod20.

An insertion prevention protrusion22for preventing the socket part40from being inserted into the inner space21of the piston rod20may be provided at a lower end of the socket accommodation space25which is the inner space of the socket accommodation part23.

In the connector and the piston rod of the piston assembly including the same according to the embodiments of the present invention, the plug part50may be easily connected to the upper end of the piston rod20, and the rotation of the plug part50is prevented, thereby further improving the airtightness between the plug part50and the opening29of the upper end of the piston rod. In addition, the operator may determine and fix the orientation of the external wire63and the wire end connection part62extending outward from the head61of the plug part50.

In the embodiments described above, the socket part40is rotatably disposed in the socket accommodation space25by the guide protrusion43inserted into the rotation guide groove24, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The present invention may include another structure, for example, a structure such as a bearing disposed between the accommodation part41and the socket accommodation part23.

In addition, in the embodiments described above, a self-alignment structure provided in the socket part40and the plug part50, that is, a structure that rotates the socket part40such that the socket part40is aligned at a predetermined rotation position with respect to the plug part50when the plug part50is inserted into the socket part40, is configured by the socket rotation alignment cam surface57and the orientation alignment inclined surface44, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the socket rotation alignment cam surface may be formed on not the end of the insertion part56but the outer side of the insertion part56, and the orientation alignment inclined surface44may be formed at the upper end of the socket part40so as to cooperate with the socket rotation alignment cam surface formed at the outer side of the insertion part56.

It should be understood that these embodiments are provided for illustration only and are not to be construed in any way as limiting the present invention, and that the scope of the present invention is defined only by the accompanying claims. All modifications, changes, and alterations deduced from the claims and their equivalents fall within the scope of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE NUMERALS