Patent Abstract:
A protective splash shield assembly for electrical wiring has a plurality of fasteners installed in slots. The fastener has an elbow shaped conduit guide connected thereto with a distal end connected to a corrugated tubular conduit that extends along a wall of the splash shield. The fastener has a conduit connected to it that extends transverse from the splash shield.

Full Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     This invention relates generally to protective shielding for automotive electrical wiring that extends out from a splash shield to a flexible plastic axially slit corrugated conduit. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Splash shields are well known to provide a degree of protection to electrical wiring in automotive use. Electrical wiring harness bundles enter and exit the splash shield and run through flexible corrugated plastic conduit. 
     What is desired is an adaptable protective shielding that protects electrical wiring extending from a splash shield to a protective conduit that can run along the splash shield. What is also desired is a protective device that can allow for rotatable adjustment of the conduit along the wall. What is also desired is a protective device that allows differently sized protective conduits to be attached to the splash shield. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In accordance with one aspect of the invention, a wiring protective dress for electrical wiring extends between a splash shield member and a flexible corrugated tubular conduit. The protective dress includes an elbow member having a passage through which the electrical wiring can extend. The elbow has a first open end and second open end transversely angled with respect to each other. The elbow member has at least one circumferentially extending internal flange in proximity to the first end for engagement with the tubular conduit. The elbow member also has an external groove in proximity to the second end. A collar is fastened about the elbow member groove. The collar in turn engages a slot of said splash shield member. Preferably, one of the elbow member and collar has at least one external longitudinally extending rib for selective engagement to at least one longitudinal extending groove in the other of the elbow member and collar to provide for a discrete rotational angular adjustment of the elbow to the splash shield. Preferably the elbow member has a plurality of longitudinal extending external ribs in proximity to the second end for affixation to grooves in the collar at a selective rotated angle. It is desirable that the elbow has two shell sections connected together by a living hinge and closeable by a complementary latching element on each shell section. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the wiring protective dress includes a collar fastenable about the groove in the elbow member. The collar has an axial extending splined fitting for selectively engaging the elbow member in one of a plurality of relative angular positions with the elbow member. The collar has a spaced inner and outer mounting flange, is slideably receivable in a slot of the splash shield, and engages the wall of the splash shield. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the wiring protective dress includes the collar having two half sections connected together with a living hinge and closeable about a conduit and lockable by a complementary latching element on each half section. At least one internal circumferentially spanning rib engages with a groove of the conduit to retain attachment with the conduit. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a wiring protective assembly includes a splash shield having side walls and at least two slots for electrical harness wiring to pass therethrough. A first collar has spaced inner and outer mounting flanges for being installed in one of the slots. The first collar has at least one internal rib engaging a conduit that extends through said first collar and protrudes in a substantially transverse direction from the splash shield side wall. A second collar has spaced inner and outer mounting flanges for installation in another of the slots. The second collar is fastened about an elbow member. The elbow member has a passage with first and second open ends transversely angled with respect to each other and with the second end received through the collar and into the splash shield. The elbow member has at least one circumferentially extending integral flange in proximity to the first end for engagement with another conduit that is received in the second end. Preferably, the second collar and the elbow member has complementary spline connections to selectively mount to the elbow at one of a plurality of rotated angular positions along one of the side walls of the splash shield. 
     In this fashion a protective dress becomes quite adaptive for a variety of electrical wiring arrangements and still provides protection to the electrical wiring passing out of the splash shield and into the flexible conduits. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Reference is now made to the accompanying drawings in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a splash shield assembly including a splash shield connected to corrugated flexible conduit in accordance with one embodiment of the invention; 
     FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the splash shield shown in FIG. 1 with one elbow member and a conduit connector shown ready for attachment to the splash shield; 
     FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 showing the member in an exploded disassembled fashion; 
     FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the conduit guide, and conduit fastener shown in an open position disassembled from a corrugated flexible conduit; 
     FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of another conduit fastener shown in the open position disassembled from a corrugated flexible conduit; 
     FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of the conduit guide positioned to be fastened to an end of a corrugated flexible conduit; 
     FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of a conduit fastener positioned to be fastened about an end of a corrugated flexible conduit; and 
     FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of a conduit guide fastener about to be fastened to the conduit guide. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Reference is now made to FIGS. 1 and 2 that illustrate a splash shield assembly  10  having a splash shield body  12 . The splash shield body  12  mounts a pair of conduit guide fasteners  20  and a conduit fastener  22  in respective slots  14 . Two conduits  24  are attached via a conduit guide  25  to fasteners  20 . Conduit  26  is attached directly via a fastener  22 . Conduit fastener  20 , fastener  22  and conduit guide  25  are all molded from a plastic material. Conduits  24  and  26  are a commercially available plastic, flexible, corrugated tube which is axially slit through its length and is well known in the automotive wiring art for housing and protecting a plurality of electrical leads. Electrical wiring leads (not shown for simplicity of the drawings) extend through the conduits  24  and  26  and into and out of the splash shield body  12  where electrical connections are conventionally made. 
     As shown more clearly in FIGS. 2 and 3, guide conduit fastener  20  has an interior mounting flange  28  and an exterior combination mounting flange and splash plate  30 . The flange  28  and plate  30  are spaced apart to form a groove  32  therebetween which is received into a selected slot  14  of the splash shield  12 . At the exterior side wall  69  of splash shield assembly  10 , a pair of lock apertures  48  which engage respective lock ramps  46  near the bottom of slot  14  to lock the fastener  20  in slot  14 . The splash shield  12  has a air of interior ribs  34  which abut the interior mounting flange  28  to prevent the fastener  20  from rotating in slot  14 . An exterior rib  36  abutting splash plate  30  also prevents rotation of the fastener  20  in slot  14 . 
     The conduit guide fastener  20 , when in the closed position, as shown in FIG. 3, forms an aperture  38  therethrough. A groove  40  in proximity to end  41  of the conduit guide  25  seats in aperture  38  of fastener  20 . A series of longitudinal grooves  42  extend from a lower section of fastener  20  and engage exterior extending splines  44  on end  41  of conduit guide  25  to prevent the conduit guide  25  from rotating within aperture  38  of fastener  20 . 
     As shown more clearly in FIGS. 4 and 8, the conduit guide fastener  20  has a living hinge  50  that allows the fastener  20  to move between a closed and open position. An opposite end has complementary latching elements such as a rectangular receptacle  52  and resilient latching arms  54  that locks the fastener  20  in the closed position shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. 
     The conduit guide  25  has two shell sections  56  and  58  connected together by a living hinge  60  in proximity to end  61  as shown in FIGS. 4 and 6. Circumferentially opposite from the hinge  60  on respective shell sections  56  and  58  are complementary flexible latching arms  62  and latching arm slots  64 . The shell sections  56  and  58  of the conduit guide  25  move from an open position about an end  66  of conduit  24  to a closed position where the latching arms  62  snap fit into slots  64  and lock the sections  56  and  58  together. Two circumferentially extending internal ribs  67  and  68  engage grooves  70  in the conduit to retain engagement of the conduit  24  to the conduit guide  25 . As shown in FIG. 8, after the conduit guide  25  is secured to conduit  24 , the fastener  20  can then be fastened over groove  40  to help retain the end  41  in the closed position and to couple the conduit guide  25  to the splash shield  12 . The splined connection using grooves  42  and ribs  44  lock the conduit guide  25  in an adjustably selected rotated position relative to the fastener  20  and in turn to the splash shield  12 . 
     The conduit guide  25  is elbow shaped with end  41  bent traversely with respect to end  61  to allow wire to bend about 90° therein. In this fashion, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the conduit  24  runs along the side wall  69  of splash shield. The angle at which conduit  24  is positioned can be widely adjusted as indicated by arrows  71  in FIG.  1  through the use of the splined connection of grooves  42  and ribs  44 . 
     The conduit guide  25  can be easily modified to accommodate differently sized conduits. Ribs  67  and  68  are molded to the desired internal diameter during the molding process. In this manner conduits  24  of a different diameter may be used with the same splash shield without modifying the size of the slots  14 . 
     The splash shield may also easily accommodate differently sized conduits  26  that extend outward from a wall of the splash shield in a traverse direction. The conduit  26  is engaged via a pair of circumferentially extending internal ribs  77  and  78  that surround opening  80  in fastener  22  as shown in FIG.  3 . The ribs engage grooves  70  in the conduit  26 . The fastener  22  does not have splined groove  42 , but the rest of the fastener  22  is constructed similarly to fastener  20  with the live hinge  50  and latching elements  52  and  54 , interior mounting flange  28  and exterior splash plate  30  spaced apart to form a groove  32 , and lock aperture  48 . The fastener  22  is shown in the open position in FIG.  5 . The fastener is positioned in proximity to an end  76  of conduit  26  as shown in FIG.  7 . The fastener  22  is then closed about conduit  26  in proximity to end  76  and the latching elements  52  and  54  retain the fastener in the closed position. The fastener  22  then is slid in place to have groove  32  engage slot  14  in splash shield  12 . The fastener  22  is prevented from rotation by internal and external ribs  34  and  36  on shield  12 . Lock apertures  48  engage locking ramps  46  in the shield  12  to lock the fastener in slot  14 . The internal diameter of the ribs  77  and  78  are molded to correspond to the outer diameter of the groove  70 . In this fashion, different fasteners  22  with differently sized ribs  77  and  78  may be made to accommodate different diameter sized conduits  26 . 
     In this fashion, a splash shield that can be attached to conduits  24  and  26  that can extend traverse or along a wall of the splash shield. Furthermore, the direction of the conduit  24  that extends along the wall of the shield may be adjusted by selective rotation of a conduit guide  25  within the conduit guide fastener  20 . Furthermore, the mold for either the conduit guide  25  or fastener  22  may have an interchangeable core for the internal circumferentially extending internal ribs  67 ,  68 ,  77 , and  78  to accommodate different diameter conduits  24  and  26 . The change of conduit diameter and directions are now possible without any change to the splash shield  12  or to its slots  14 . The conduits  24  extending along shield allows placement of an electrical harness bundle very close to the splash shield which is desirable in a limited space. 
     The use of the conduit guide  25  allows for protection of the electrical harness bundles from the splash shield  12  to the protective conduits  24 . The fasteners  20  and  22  cover the splash shield slots  14  completely and also make a cleaner looking protective assembly. The fasteners  20  and  22  and conduit guide  25  provide for a great amount of adjustability but after installation provides for a stable assembly that offers a great amount of protection for the electrical wiring extending from the splash shield to the conduits  24  and  26 . 
     Other variations and modifications are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Technology Classification (CPC): 8