Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
~7
Thi.s i~vent.:ion relates to appaxat.us ~or, alld
a metho~ of, manufacturing electrical harness
assemblies.
A known apparatus ~Ol- serially manufacturing
electrical. harness assemblies each comprises first
and second electrical connectors each havi.ng at least
one row of electr.ical terminals therein, each terminal
having a wire-receiving portion, an end of a wixe being
received in the wire-receiving portion of each termi.nal;
the apparatus comprising, a wire insertion zone having
~.irst and se~ond wire insertion stations; first and
SeCond connector locating means for locating a first
and a second connector at the respective stations ~ 31
parallel align~d relationship, with the wire-recf~iving
portion3 of the terminals of the connectors in endwis~
alignment; first and second wire insertion tooling
assemblies each comprising wire inserters which are
r~ormally spaced from the first and second connector
l.ocatin~ means, and which are movable relatively
there towards to move th~ wires towards the connec~or
locating means and into the wire receiving portions
of th~ terminals; and wire severing means ~etween the
fi.rs~ and second insertion tooling asserabl~es for
sever~ng ~he wires at positions between the fir~
and seGona connector locat~ng means. .-
The ~nown apparatu.s, into which the wires andthe connectois are lo~ldef1 manually, produces harness
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~ Sj 937
assemblies each comprising t~o connectors which can
be mated wi.th one another, each connector having a
single xow of termina's and bei.ng terminated to an
individual array of wires.
The use of the known apparatus for produc~ng
harness assemblies each compxising a plurality of
connectors terminated to a con~on array of wires
would involve the performance of further manual
operations. The present invention is di.rected to the
achievement of a reduction in the number of manual
operations required in the manufacture of such harness
assemblies, as well as to the provision of harness
manufacturing apparatus which can readily be adapted
~or use with connectors haviny two superposed rows
of terminals; and to a method of producing most
economically, harness assemblies comprising such
connectors.
According to one aspect of the invention, in
apparatus as defined in the second paragraph of this
specificat.ion, ~or producing harness assemblies in
which one er.d of each wixe i.s received in a wire
receiving portion o~ a term.inal of the irst connector
and the other end of the wiré is received in a wire
~ receiving poxti.on of a termi.nal of the second connector;
; 25 the apparatus comprises wire positioning and
retaining means i.n the insext.ion zone fox locating a
plural.ity of wires substantially in a co~ on plane
9376
with the WiîeS in late7al alignment with the wire
recei.ving portions of the terminals of the first and
second connectors when these are positioned in the
respective first and second connector locating-means,
the wi.re posi.tioning and retaining means being
effective re.le.asably to retain the wixes until they
are moved by th2 wire inserters towards the connector
locating means; means being provided for feeding
the wixes along a wire feed path from wire sources into
the wire insertion zone, with the wires located in
lateral alignment with the wire receiving portions,
by the wire positioning and xetaining means.
Conveniently, for producing electrical harnesses
in which each connector has two parallel, superposed
rows of t.erminals, the wire receiving portions of the
terminals of the rows opening in opposite directions;
the wire positioning and retaining means are arranged
to locate the wires in two substantially parallel
planes, one on either side of the connector locatin~
means, the wire insertion toolirg assem~lies comprising
similar ~ooling positioned on either side of the
connector locating means, for inserting the wires in
the two planes, simultarleously into the wire receiving
portions of all the terminals, and the wire severing
~5 means compxisilly ~ooling for severing the wires in .
each plane~
P~c~ording to another aspec~ th~reof, the
-- 4 --
;
.'
~1~'76Z~ 937~
invelltion provides a me~hod of s~rially manufacturing
electrical harness assemblies ~ach comprising first
and second electrical connectors each having at least
one row o electrical terminals therein, each termi.nai
having a wire receiving portion, an end of a wire being
received in the wire receiving portion of each termi.na3;
in which method, the first and second connectors are
positioned in a wire insertion zone with the wire
receiving portions of the terminals of the connectors
in endwise alignment with one another; the wires are
placed in the insertion zone so that each wire is in
lateral alignment with a wire receiving portion of each
connector; the wires are moved laterally of their
longitudinal axes towards the connectors to insert
each wire into the wixe receiving portions with which
it is in lateral alignment; and the connectors
are subsequently removed from the wire insertion zone;
wherein for producing harness assemblies, in which
each connector has two parallel superposed rows of
terminals, the wire receivi.ng portions of the terminals
of the two rows opening in opposite directions, and in
which one end of each wire is received in a wire receiving
portion of a terminal of the first connector and the
other end of the wire is received in a wire receiving
~5 por~.ion of a terminal of the second connector; the wires
are fed from wire sources along a wire feed path in two
s~bstant.ially paral.lel, spaced planes, the feed path
_ 5 ~
i ~ 76~ 9376
-extending through and beyond the wire in~ertion zone,
and the connectGrs are then posi.tioned in the insertion
zone so as to lie between the planes with each wire
receiving portion opening towards one of the wires and
wi.th the second co2~nector positionea downstream, along
the w.ire feed path, with respeet to the first connector,
the second co~nector bei.ng removed from the insertion
zone, subsec~uently to the `insertion of the wires into the
wire receiving portions and the severing of the wires,
and the first connector being then moved lengthwi.se
of the wire in~ertion path through, and a predetermined
position beyond, the insertion zone, whilst maintaining
the wires in ~heir two planes, whereaft~r a further
i~t and second connector are positioned in the
.5 insertion ~one and th~ wires axe inserted into the
wire receiving poxtions of the terminals of the
connectors in the manner aforesaid.
As described belo~, the apparatus and the
method of the invention can be employed to manufacture
harness assemblies each comprising more than two
connectors.
For a better understandirlg of the invention,
re~er:ence will now be made by way o axample to the
accQmpanying dxawi.ngs in which:-
25Fic~ure 1 is a perspective view showing parts of
a bench press provided with h~rness ma~ing apparatus
mount:ed on a r~ of the pres~, and also showing mean~
- 6 --
~ J6Z~- 9~76
for feediny connectors into an inser~ion zone of the
harness ma]~ing apparatus;
Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective view of
an electrical harness assembly pxoduced by the apparatus;
Figures 3 to 6 are fragmentary, diagrammatic,
perspective views showing the insertion zone of the
appa_atus and some associated parts o the apparatus,
and illustrating successive steps in the production
of harness assemblies;
Figure 7 is a side view, shown partly in section,
and as seen from the right hand side of the apparatus
as shown in Figure l;
Figure 8 is a view taken on the lines VIII -
VIII of Figure 7;
Figure 9 is an enlarged fragmentary view, shown
partly in section, of the insertion zone of the
apparatus with the parts thereof positioned preparatory
to the insertion of wires into electrical connectoxs
o a harness assembly in the course of production;
Figure lO is a view similar to that of Figure 9
but showing the positions of the parts after insertion
`of the wires into the connectors and after a first
connector has been fed through the insertion zone;
Figure ll is a partially exploded, perspect.ive
view, of upper wire insextion tooling of the apparatus,
and a]so showing a tool support ~lock fox the toolin~;
Fi.gure 12 is a fxagmentar~ view taken on the
: - 7 -
~, . ..
ti';'6~>
93`76
lines XII - XII of Figure 9 and sho~ing details o
wire retaining means of the upper and lower wire
insertion tooling of the apparatus;
Figure 13 is a view taken on the lines XIII -
XIII of Figure 12;
Figure 1~ is a plan view ta~en on the linesXIV - XIV of Figure 7 and showing a slide for loading
connectors into the insertion zone, with the slide in
an outer, retracted position;
Figure 15 is a view similar to that of Figure
14 but showing the slide in an inner, advanced.position;
Figure 16 is a view taken on the lines XVI -
XVI of Figure 14; and
Figure 17 is a diagrammatic perspective view
of another electrical harness assembly.
Electrical harness assemblies 2 are produced
in a manner illustrated in Figures 3 to 6 which show
only some parts of harness making apparatus.
A harness assembly 2 (best seen in Figure 2)
comprises first and second identical electrical connectors
:~ 4 and 6 each having an insulating housing 8 with a
forward mating end 10, a rearward end 12, top and
- bottom (as seen in Figure 2)-side walls 14 and 16, and
laterally facing end walls 18. Each housing 8 contains
a plurality o~ electrical terminals 20 each having an
elon-~ate, wire receiving, rearward end portion 21
connected to a wire 22. Th; portion~ 21 are arranged
. '
.
~t~
to receive the wires 22 upon movement thereof into the portions
21, laterally of the longitudinal axes of the wires 22, to estab-
lish electrical contact with the electrically conductive cores of
the wires 22. The connectors 4 and 6, which are shown by way of
example, are as described in United States Patent No. 4,243,280
which issued on January 6, 1981, to Lucius et al. The terminals
20 are arranged in two parallel superposed rows 24 and 26 in
stalls 19 opening into the side walls 14 and 16, the wire
receiving portions 21 of the terminals 20 of the two rows open-
ing in opposite directions. Two rows of wires 22 can be connec-
ted to the terminals 20 by locating each wire in alignment with
the portion 21 of a terminal 20 with the housings 8 positioned
between the two rows of wires 22 and moving the wires 22 towards
the portions 21.
The operation of the apparatus, will now be described
in outline in relation to Figures 3 to 6.
At the beginning of an operating cycle of the apparatus,
the wires 22 extend from wire spools (not shown) through a wire
insertion zone generally referenced 222, with the wires 22 arran-
ged in two rows in substantially parallel, spaced planes as shownin Figure 3. A connector 4' (identical with the connectors 4
and 6) was applied to the leading ends of the wires 22 during the
next preceding operating cycle of the apparatus.
At the insertion zone 222 are first and second
.~ .
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~ Z~ 9376
wire inser1:ion stat.ions 224 and 224' disposed between
a ram of a press (described helow) and a lower arm of
the press,
An unwired first connector 4 is now positioned
in the fi.rst station 224, an unwired second connector
6 bei.ng positioned in the second station 224'. The
connectors 4 and 6 are located between the two
substantially parallel planes in which the wires 22
lie, with the wire re.ceiving portions 21 of the termi~-als
20 in the two connectors 4 and 6 in endwise alignment
with each other and in lateral alignment with the wires
22. Insertion tooling, described below, is then
brought into engagement with the wires 22 as shown in
Figure 4, to in~ert each wire into a respective portion
21 of a terminal 20 of each connector 4 and 6 and
each wire 22 is severed at two positions between the
connectors 4 and 6, so as to remove scrap sections
of wire which extend therebetween. The insertion tooling
is then disengaged from the connectors 4 and 6 (Figure
5) and a completed harness assembly 2, comp.rising the
connectors 4' and 6, is removed from the appparatus
(Figure 6). The connector 4 is then advanc~d through
the insertion zone 222 until the desired amount o~ wire
has been drawn from the wire spools. During movement
: 25 of the connector 4 through the insertion zone 222,
the wires 22 are mz.intained in the said two spaced
planes so that c1uring the next cycle of operation o~
-- 10 --
~ 62~ 93-~6
the apparatlls, a further connector 4 and 6 can he
located between these planes. It wi.ll be apparent
from the above description that two operating cycles
of the apparatus are required to manufacture an
individual harness assembly, although one harness
assembly is produced during each cycle.
The apparatus will now be described in detail.
The press mentioned above comprises a C-shaped press
frame 30 having upper and lo~er arms 32 and 34 ~Figures
7 and 8) extending from a neck portion 35 thereof. The
frame 30 is mounted on a base plate 36 supported on a
bench (not shown).
A ram assembly generally referenced 38 (Figures
7 and 8), mounted on the upper arm 32, is movable in
reciprocating mo~ion towards and away from the lower
arm 34. The assembly 38 comprises side plates 40 and
40' which are disposed, as shown in Figure 8, against
the sides of the arm 32, and braces 42 which extend
across the upper surface of the arm 32 and are secured
to the side plates 40 and 40' by means of bolts 43.
A tooling support p].ate 44 is bolted to the lower
edges of the side plates 40 and 40' beneath the arm
32, return springs 48 being interposed between the
upper surface of the arm 32 and the braces 42 to
b.ias the ram assembly 38 towards a raised position.
the assembly 38 3.S depressed through a work1ng stroke
by means of an hydraulic piston-and-cylinder device
~ i'7~ 9376
compris.in~ a piston 50 in a cylinder 52 drilled in
the arm 32 and closed by a cylinder head 54. The
piston 50 is secured to the tooling support plate
44 and is depressed from its position of Fi~uxe 7
when hydraulic fluid is introduced into the cylinder
50 th-ou~h a port 56 at the end of a passageway 58.
The ~assa~eway 58 extends, as shown in Figure 7,
th~ough the press frame 30 to an hydraulic liqllid
reservo7x 60 that extends to the upper surface of
the frame 30. A pneumatic cylinder 62 mounted on
the frame 30 has therein a piston 66 from which extends
a pis~on rod 64 which is dimensioned to enter the
reservoir 60. When compressed air is admitted through
an inlet 68 to the cylinder 62, the piston 66 is
depressed so that the piston rod 64 moves into the
reservoir 60 so that hydraulic liquid is forced into
the cylinder 52 depressing the piston 50 and thus
the tooling support plate 44. The springs ~8 return
the ram assembly 38 to its normal raised pisition when
the pressure in the cylinder 52 is rel.ieved.
Identi.cal upper insertion tooling assemblies 70
and 70' for the first and second ins~rtion stations
-~ 224 and 224', respectively, serve simultaneously
to insert the wires 22 into the portions 21 of the
upper rows 24 of terminals 2Q in each of the connectors
4 and 6 and i.dentical lower tooling assemblies 142
and 142', serve simultaneously to insert the wires
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~ '7~26 . 9376
22 beneath tlle connectoxs 4 and 6 into the portions
21 of the terminals 20 in the lower row 26 of each
connector 4 and 6.
As best seen in Figure 11, the upper tooling
assembly 70 comprises stacked, tooling members comprising
a wire shearing plate 82, a comb~like wire s~parator
plate 84, wire inserter plates 86 and 88, wire xetainer
plat.es 90 and 92 and a comb-like wire positioning
plate 94. The parts of the tooling assembly 70' bear
the same referen~e numerals as those of the tooling
assembly 70 but with the addition of a 'prime' symbol,
and are similarly stacked. These stacks of tooling
members are mounted against respective.side surfaces
80 and 80' of a tooling mounting bloc~ 74 having
lateral flanges 76 and 76' overhanging the stacks of
tooling members, the stacks being secured to the block
74 by fasteners 72 and 72' (best seen in Figure 7) which
extend through ali.gned openings 96 and 96' in some,
but not all, of the tooling members. Since the tooling
assembly 70' is identical with the tooling assembly 70
the tooling assembly 70' will not be further described.
The wire shearing plate 82 has spaGed teeth
98 extending from its lower edge, the right hand
(as seen in Figure 11) edyes 97 of these teeth acting
; 25 as movable shearing edges in co-operation with fixed
shearing edges describ~d below. The wire separator
plate 84 is in the form of narrow bar having notches
~ '7~ ~ 6 9376
extending- up\~aLdly rom its lower edge to define spaced
teeth lOQ ~or locating the wires 22 between them.
The inserter plates 86 and 88 have teeth 102 and 104,
re5pectively, for i.nserting the wires 22 into the
portions 21 of the terminals 20.
The shearing plate 82 is-immovably mounted
against the sur~ace 80, whi].e the separator plate 84
is slidably disposed in a groove 110 extending across
the adjacent face of inserter plate 86. Vertically
extending, lateral recesses 108 in the plate 86
receive vertical guides 106 on the plate 84 which is
urged downwardly to ~he limit of its movement in the
groove 110 by means of helical springs 112 which bear
against the upper edge o the plate 84 and against
the underside of the flange 86 of the block 74. Clearance
for the springs 112 is provided by channels 116 and
114, in the plates 82 and 86, respectively.
The wire retainer plates 90 and 92 co-operate
with one another to provide releasable retaining means
~or the wires 22 prior to the wires being inserted into
the terminals 20. The plates 90 and 92 are position~d
against each other, being held in a recess 11~ in a
; side face 120 of the wire positioning plate 94. The
plates 90 and 92 have notches 122 and 124, respectively,
in their upper edges, receiving a helical spring 126
(as shown in Figure 13), the notches 122 and 124 being
;-~ offsei from one another so that th~ spring 126 biasses
~.a.~ z~ 9376
the plate 92 rightwardly and the plate 90 leftwardly;
as seen in Figure 13. The spring 126 is provided
wiLh c]earance in the face 120 of the plate 94 by
virtue of a recess 128 therein.
As best seen in Figure 12, wire receiving notches
127 and 129 zre formed in the lower edges of the wire
retainer plates 90 and 92, respectively. The plate
90 has wire retaining ears 131 which extend laterally
rightwardly ~as seen in Figure 12) at the entrance
to each notch 127 while the plate 92 has laterally
leftwardly (as seen in Figure 12) extending wire
retaining ears 131' at the entrance to each notch 129.
The ears 131 and 131' thus form constricted entrances
133 ~o the no~-ches 127 and 129, the width of each
entrance 133 being substantially less than the diameter
o~ a w're 22. However, the wires 22 can be pushed
out o the notches 127 and 129 when the entrances
133 to these notches are enlarged by relatively moving
the wire retainer plates 90 and 92 lengthwise and in
opposite directions so that the ears 131 and 131' are
moved away from one another. The plates 90 and 92
are caused to be so moved by cam surfaces on fixed,
plate aligning bloc~s 138 and 1~0 (Figure 1) described
below. ~5 the upper tooling assemblies 70 and 70'
are depressed~ the side edges of the plates 90 and 92
engag~ the c~l surfaces of the blocks 138 and 140,
which surfaces cause the plates gO and 92 to move
- 15 -
~ '7~26 937~
relatively in opposite directions, as mentioned above.
The notches 127 and 129 are opened up to allow the
wires 22 to be moved into the wire receiving portions
21 of the terminals 20. The plates gO' and 92' are
similarly controlled by fixed, plate aligning blocks
138' and 140' (Figure 7) and the corresponding plates
of the lower tooling assemblies are similarly controlled
by fixed, plate aligning blocks 148 and 150, and
148' and 150' (Figures,14 and lS).
The wire locating plate g4 has notches 130
extending upwardly from its lower edge 132 (as best
seen in Figures 11 and 12), for locating the wires 22
on the wire entry side of the tooling assem~ly
70. The plate 94 is spring loaded by means of springs
135 extending into openings in the flange 76 of the
tooling mounting block 74 as shown in Figure 10.
The upper~tooling assemblies 70 and 70l and the
block 74 are retained against the support plate 44 by
virtue of inwardly directed lower ends 78 and 78'
(Figure 9) of the side plates 40 and 40', which ends
extend under the downwardly facing surfaces of the
flanges 76 and 76' OL the block 74. Retaining plates
134 are fastened by scre~s 136 against the front and
rear surfaces of the f].anges 76 and 76' and overlap
the side edges o the side plates 40 and 40' as bestseen in Figure 7.
In c~rder to maint,ain proper a].i~nment of t;he
; - 16 -
~ 6 Z6 9~76
insertion tooling, the aligning bloc~s 138 and 138',
and laO and 140' are fastened to the lateral edges
of the side plates 40 and 40', and also act as guides
for a slide which is described below and which is
arranged to move into the insertion zone 222 beneath
the upper insertion tooling assemblies 70 and 70'.
Since the lower first and second insert.ion
tooling assemblies 142 and 142' are substantially
the same as the tooling assemblies 70 and 70', the
former tool assemblies will not be described in detail.
The tooling assemblies 142 and 142' are mounted on
a lower tooling mounting block 144 (as best seen in
Figure 9) which is similar to the mounting block 74
and which is in turn supported on the lower arm 34
of the press frame 30. As shown in Figure 9, fixed
lower side plates 146 and 146' are provided for the
lower tooling assemblies 142 and 142', respectively,
and serve the same purpose as the side plates 40 and
40'.
The first and second connectors 4 and 6 are
positioned in the wire insertion zone 222 and are
located between the upper and lower tooling assemblies
by means of a connector feed slide (an overall view
of which is shown in Figure 1), generally re~erenced
152, which is movable from a connector loading position
(Figure 1~) to a connector locating position (Figure
15) in which latter position it locates the connectors
- 17 -
~ 25 9376
4 and 6 in the insertion zone 222.
The slide 152 has connector receiving slots
154 and 15~' in its sides, which receive the connectors
4 and 6 (as best seen in E'igures 9 and 16). The mating
ends 10 o~ the connectors 4 and 6 are positioned in
the slots 154 and 154', respectively, so that a portion
of each connector housing 8 adjacent to its mating end
10 is received in the slot, and the rearward portion
of the connector 4 or 6 extends from the slot 15~
or 154' so that wires 22 can be inserted into the
wire recei.ving portions 21 of the terminals 20 in each
of the rows 24 and 26. The connectors 4 and 6 must
be preci.sely located in the slots 154 and 154' that the
wire receiving portions 21 are in alignment with
the wires 22 in the insertion zone 222 when the slide
152 is advanced to its .inner (Figure 15) position.
In the prese..t embodiment, precise location of the
connectors 4 and 6 is achieved by means of stops 155
~Figure 3) secured by fasteners in the slots 154 and
154', respectively. When the slide 152 is moved ~rom
its outer retracted position (Figure 1~) to its
inner, advanced position (Figure 15), the leading end
190 of ~he slide 152 moves beyond the aligning blocks
140 and 140' and the lower ends of these aligning
.5 blocks act as additional stops for the connectors 4
and 6. Thus, the connectors 4 and 6 are located, when
the slide 152 .is in its inner positi.on, between the
. - ~8 -
7~i2~
9376
lower ends of the al1gning bloc]cs 140 and 140' and the
stops ].55 which are secured i.n the slots 154 and 154'.
The slide 152 is slidably supported (as best
seen in Figure 1) in a recess 153 in the upper surface
158 of a slide support 156 which extends laterally
from the insertion zone 222. As shown in Figures 1
and 7, the sl.de support 156 has a depending flange
160 at its inner end adjacent to the insertion zone
222, which flange is contained between ears 162 and
162' (Figures 8 and 10) which extend ~rom the side
p],ates 145 and 146'. The flange 160 is slidably
contained between the ears 162 and 162' by a front
cover plate 164 (Figure 7), springs 16G acting between
the lowex end of the flange 160 and the base pla~e 36.
l'he slide support 156 can thus be resilientiy depressed
while the wires 22 are being inserted into the portions ~'
21 of the terminals 20, the connectors 4 and 6 on the
slide 152 being thereby moved downwardly towards the
lower tooling assemblies 142 and 142'. A guide 168
(hest seen in Figure 1) is mounted on the upper surface
158 of the slide support 156, to guide the .slide 152
into the insertion ~one 222. When the ram assembly
38 is depressed, the guide 168 is engaged by the
tooling support plate 44 thereby depressing the slide
support 156.
The connectors 4 and 6 are lightly held in the
slots 154 by means of retain~ng fingers 170'and 170'
- 19 -
,
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~ 7~Z~ 9376
which are mounted on pivot pins 172 and 182' (as
best seen in Figures 14 and 15) in a cover 178 movable
with the slide 152. The finge.rs 170 and 170' which
extend along each side of the slide 152, terminate
in handles 174 and 174' beyond the outer end of the ~;
slide support 156. The f.ingers 170 and 170' are biased
by means of springs 176, towards the sides of the
slide 152, i.e. towards their position of Figure 14,
so that they bear against the connectors 4 and 6.
For reasons Pxplained below, the connectors 4 and 6should not be so firmly clamp~d by the fingers 170
and 170', that the slide 152 cannot move away from the
insertion zone 222 li.e. from the position of ~'igure
15 to that of Fi.gure 14) after the wires 22 have been
inserted into the portions ~1 of the terminals 20,
without dragging the connectors laterally from the
insertion zone 222.
The springs 176, as well as the pivot pins 172
and 172', are contained in the cover l78, which is
slidably mounted on the slide support 156. The cover
178 has side portions which depend beyond the sides
of the slide support 156 and which have inwardly
turned ears 180 (Figure 1) on kheir ends, to retain
the slide 152 and the cover 178 on the upper surface
o the slide support 156.
A switch 182 (best se~n in Figure 7) mounted
aga~nst the underside of the slide support 156, has
; - 20 -
~ 6Z~ 937G
a switch arm 1~4 on the end OL which is a roller 186
which is engaged by an actuator block 188 in the
slide 1.52 when it is in the position of Figures 7
and 14. As explained below the switch 182 controls
a piston-and-cylinder unit 204 for advancing the
first connector 4 from the insertion zone 222.
The leading end 190 of the slide 152 is of
reduced width as shown in Figure 14, and moves between
the aligning bars 150 and 150', when the slide 152
is in its position of Figure 15. The bars 150 and
150' serve, in co-operation with the leading end 190,
.to align the slide 152 and ~he connectors 4 and 6
therein, with the wires 22 prior to the movement of
the tooling assemblies 70 and`70' towards the
connectors 4 and 6. As will be apparent from Figure
7, during the advance of the slide 52, its leading end
190 moves over a support member 194 and finally engages
a switch button 192 of a switch (not shown) mounted in
: the neck portion 35 of the press frame 30. The member
194 is suppoxted on a spring 195 so as to be depressable
against the action thereof as the slide lS2 mov~s
: downwardly as described below. The switch must be
actuated in order to initiate an operating cycle
~ of the apparatus.
: 25 The wires 22 extend rom the spools, mentioned
above, to a wire guide assembly 196 (Figure 1) which
serves to l.ocate the wires 22 in the spaced substantially
- 21 -
7t~ 2~; 9376
parallel planes mentioned above. The wires 22 are
precisely located in thei.r spaced planes by the comb-
like wire positioni.ng plates 94 and 94' and by the
wire retainer plates 90 and 92, and 90 and 90', in
the insertion zone 222.
As shown in Figure 1, the wire guide assembly
196 comprises a rectangular frarn2 198 having vertical
side members which are slidably supported in spaced
supports 200 on the base plate 36. The frarne 198
is biased upwardly by springs 208 and is attached
to the slide support 156 by a connecting arm 206 so
that the frame 198 is moved downward7y from the position
shown in Figure 1 when the slide support 156 moves
downwardly.
The frame 198 has a central plate 202 extending
thereacross, and upon which is mounted a pneumatic
piston-and-cylinder unit 204. The piston rod (not
shown) of the unit 204 is connected to a horizontal
wire guide plate 212 (as shown in Fig~lre 9), which
is moved towards the insertion zone 222 when the piston
of the unit 204 is advanced. The wires 22 are
guided between vertically extending rods 2].0 (Figure
1) in the frarne 198, a light pressure being imposed on
the wires 22 by pressure bars 211 loaded by springs
~; 25 on the rods 210.
Th~ wires 22 extend across the upper and lower
surfaces, (as seen in Figure 9) of the gu.ide plate 212
- 22 -
~ t,~j~7~ Z ~ 9376
and into spaced grooves (~igure 1) in the sur~ace of
upper and lower wire locating plates 214 and 216.
The plates 214 and 216 extend beyond the outer end
of the guide plate 212 so that a pocket 220 is provided
which is dimensioned to receive the rearward end 12
of a conne~tor 4 and carxy that connector through the
nsertion zone 222 rightwardly (as seen in Figure 10).
The operation of the apparatus in carrying out
the harness making method described abo~e with reference
to Figures 3 to 6, will now be descxibed.
At the beginning of an operating cycle of the
apparatus, the wires 22 extend, as shown in Figures 1
and 9, across the upper and lower surfaces of the
guide plate 212 through the grooves in the upper and
lS lower wire locating plates 214 and 216 and through the
insertion zone 222 of the apparatus. The wires ~2 in
the upper plane of wires are precisely located in the
insertion zone 222 by means of the wire positioning
plates 94 and 94', by the wire retainer plates 90 and
92 and 90' and 92' and by ~he wire separator plates
84 and 84'. The wires 22 in the lower plane of wires
are similarly located by the corresponding plates of
the lower tooling assemblies 142 and 142'. Also, at
the beginn:ing of the operating cycle, the slide 152 is
in its innel, advanced, position, connectors 4 and 6
being releasably held in the recesses 154 and 154'
in the s].ide 152. T~e wires 22 extend beyond the
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i.nsertior. zor.e 222, their en~s being connected to a
connector 4' which was applied thereto during the
prevj.ous operating cycle of the apparatus.
When com~ressed air is supplied to the cylinder
of the unit 62 by engaging a pedal switch (not shown),
hydraulic li~uid is supplied to the cylinder 52
so that the ram assembly 38 is driven through a wor~iny
stroke towards the lower tooling assemblies 142 and
142'. As the upper tooling assemblies 70 and 70'
engage the connectors 4 and 6, the wires 22 are cut by
edges 153' (Figures 1 and 5) of the slide 152,
in co-operat.ion with the cutting edges 97 of the
wire shearing plates 82 and 82'. Also, ~he upper
tooling assemblies 70 and 70' depress the sllde 152 to
bring the lo~?er sides of the connectors 4 and 6 into
engagement with the lower tooling assemblies 142 and
142' of the first and second stations 224 and 224'.
The wires 22 extending ~eneath the connectors 4 ar.d 6
are similarly severed and the wires 22 are then inserted
~0 into the wire receiviny portions 21 of the termil-als 20
when the ram assembly 38 rea~hes the end of its working
stroke.
The ram assembly 38 is then moved ~hrough a
return stroke to its raised posi.tion, by relieving
the hydraulic liquid pressure in the cylinder of the
unit 52, and the slide 152 is manually withdrawn from
- the insertion zone 222; i.e. the slide 152 is returned
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from the position of Figure 15 to tha~ of Figure 1~.
However, since the wires 22 are now connected to the
terminals 20 in the connectors 4 and 6, the connectors
~ and 6 do not travel with the slide 152, and the
fingers 170 and 170' slide over the ~earward ends 12
of the connectors ~ and 6. A finished harness sub-
assemb].y comprising a connector 6 applied to the
wires 22 during the operating cycle under discussion,
and a connector 4' applied to the wires 22 during the
next previous operating cycle is removed from the
apparatus, leav.ing the connector 4 in the insertion
zone 222. The unit 204 is now enexgised to advance
the wire guide plate 212 from the position of Figure
9 to that of Figure 10. During such advance movement,
the connector 4 is received into the pocket 220 and
is carried rightwardly to the position of Figure 10,
thereby withdrawing further supplies of the wires 22
from their spools. The operator then grasps the
connector 4 and pulls it further xightwardly, until,
as shown in broken lines in Figure 10, the desired
supply of wir~ has been withdrawn from the spools.
The wires 22 are meanwhile guided by the guide assembly
196 and by the inserting tooling assemblies 170 and
170', the wires 22 being maintained in the notches
127 and 129 by virtue of the restricted entrances 133
of these notches in the wire reta:iner plates 90 and
92. The operator next loads the slide 152 ~ith a
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fu.rther cor.nector 4 and 6 ~y positionin~ them in the
recesses 154 and iS4' of the slide 152, after pressing
the handles 174 and 174 ' towards one another. The
slide 152 is then moved to the position of Figure 15
5 and the entire cycle of operation is repeated.
As mentioned above, a pedal switch is provided,
in the present embodiment, to actuate the control
circuit of the apparatus to initiate an operating
cycle thereof. The control circuit should be such
that the switch button 192 is held in a depressed
condition by the leading end 190 of the slide 152
before the unit 62 is placed under pressure. The switch
provided with th~ swi,tch button 192 t,hus serves to
ensure that the ram assembly 38 is not moved through
its working stroke until the slide 152 has moved fully
to its inner pvsition (Figurf~ 15) and the connectors
4 and 6 carried by the slide 152 are properly positioned
relative to the wires 22. The switch button 192
thus ensures that the tooling of the insertion toolin~
assenblies is nGt damaged as a result of its being
lower~d when the slide 152 has nGt been fully advanced
into the insertivn zone 222. Also, the switch arm
184 must be depressed be~ore the -mit 20~ is placed
under pressui^e, and the switch arm 184 is depressed
by the actuator block ~88 when the slide 152 has
been moved to its fu~]y retracted, outer, posi'cion.
The switch 182 thus serves to cnsure t,hat the ~pparatus
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is not jam~led or damaged by premature movement of
the wire retainer plates 90, 92 and 90' and 92' into
the insertion zone 222.
As described above, by way of example, the
harness assembly shown in Figura 2 consists ~f two
eight-way connectors, one at each end of the wires
222. It will be under~tood, however, that many types
of harnesses or harness assemblies can be produced
by the practice of the invention. A plurality of
connectors can be positioned in each of the insertion
stations during each operating cycle of the apparatus
to produce a wide variety of harness assemblies. For
exarnple, ~ig~re 17 shows a harness assembly 250
comprising a longer conn~ctor 228 to which is connected
a plurality of shorter connectors 230 by means of wires
22. The connector 228 rnay, for example, comprise
forty terminals arranged in two row.s of twenty terminals
each, each of the connectors 230 having eight terminals
therein.
As shown in Figure 17 the wires extending between
the connectors 2~0 and the connectors 228 are of
` varying lengths. A harness of this type is frequently
used, when for example, it is desired to provide
; connections between a junction box and a plurality of
components or other devices which are a~ varying
distances rom the ~unction box. The harness shown
in Figure 17 can be produced in the following manner.
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`'6Z~ 9376
A plurality of the eight-way connectors 230
are positioned in the first insertion station 224
and a single connector 228 is positioned in a second
insertion station 224', at the beginning of the
operating cycle. The individual connectors 230 are
advanced after wiring, by different distances from the
first insertion station, through the apparatus and
beyond the insertion zone. The cycle of operation
is then repeated by placing a single connector 228 in
the first insertion station and a plurality of connectors
230 in the second insertion station.
The apparatus may, however, be adapted for use
with connectors (not shown) comprising only one row of
terminals in which case the lower tooling desc~ibed
lS above is not required.
,
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