JP4168919B2 - Tow truck connector mounting structure - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a structure for mounting a tow vehicle connector.

Conventionally, what was described in the following patent document 1 is known as an example of the connector for tow vehicles used in order to electrically connect a tow vehicle and a towed vehicle. This is fixed to the vehicle body of the tow vehicle, and the mating connector on the towed vehicle side can be fitted and connected from behind. As shown in FIG. 10, this kind of tow vehicle connector 1 is usually provided with a bracket 4 at a position protruding downward from the vehicle body 3 in consideration of workability when the mating connector 2 is fitted or detached. To be fixed.
US Pat. No. 5,800,188

In the mounting structure described above, the tow vehicle connector 1 is arranged in a state in which the towed vehicle is not towed and the mating connector 2 is not fitted, that is, in a state of protruding downward from the vehicle body 3 even in a non-use state. become. Accordingly, there is a possibility that external foreign matter easily interferes with the tow vehicle connector 1 and the tow vehicle connector 1 is damaged. There is also a problem that it is not preferable in appearance.
The present invention has been completed based on the above-described circumstances, and an object thereof is to improve handling of a tow vehicle connector when not in use.

As a means for achieving the above object, the invention of claim 1 is a structure for attaching a tow vehicle connector that can be fitted and connected to a mating connector on a towed vehicle side to a vehicle body of the tow vehicle, The tow vehicle connector is attached to the vehicle body via a movable mechanism, protrudes to the lower side of the vehicle body by the movable mechanism, and is disposed above the use position so that it can be engaged with the mating connector. The movable mechanism includes a vehicle body side fixed portion fixed to the vehicle body, and a connector side fixed portion fixed to the tow vehicle connector, The connector side fixing portion is assembled to be relatively displaceable with respect to the vehicle body side fixing portion, and the connector for the tow vehicle is provided at the end of the electric wire. It has a feature where the connector the connector-side fixing portion and the towing vehicle has a structure that is rotatable along the about the axis of the wire.

The invention of claim 2 is a structure for attaching a tow vehicle connector that can be fitted and connected to a mating connector on the towed vehicle side to a vehicle body of the tow vehicle, and the tow vehicle connector is connected via a movable mechanism. It is attached to the vehicle body, and is movable between a use position that protrudes below the vehicle body and can be fitted with the mating connector, and a non-use position arranged above the use position by the movable mechanism. The movable mechanism includes a vehicle body side fixing portion fixed to the vehicle body and a connector side fixing portion fixed to the tow vehicle connector, and the connector side fixing portion is the vehicle body side fixing portion. The vehicle body side fixing portion is provided with a use position locking portion and a non-use position locking portion, whereas the connector side fixing portion is mounted on the vehicle body side fixing portion. The use position A locking member capable of selectively holding the tow vehicle connector at the use position and the non-use position by being engaged with either the lock part for use or the non-use position lock part. It is characterized by
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect, the connector for the towing vehicle and the connector-side fixing portion for the vehicle body side fixing portion are used. The connector is characterized in that it is rotatable along the axis of the electric wire.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the present invention, the lock member is operated to release the locked state of the locking position for the use position or the locking position for the non-use position. There is an operation part for performing the operation, and this operation part is characterized in that it is arranged at a position retracted to the back side from the outer end of the tow vehicle connector .
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the urging member according to any one of the second to fourth aspects, wherein the urging member capable of urging the lock member in a direction opposite to the locking release direction is provided. It has the characteristics.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the connector according to the fourth or fifth aspect, the connector-side fixing portion can be restricted from being pushed in the unlocking direction with respect to the operation portion by engaging the operation portion. It is characterized by the presence of a restricting part .

<Invention of Claim 1>
When the tow vehicle connector is used, the tow vehicle connector is disposed at a use position protruding from the lower side of the vehicle body, and the mating connector on the towed vehicle side is fitted and connected. On the other hand, when the tow vehicle connector is not used, it is moved from the use position to the non-use position above it by the movable mechanism. Thus, such an appearance with respect to the connector for the towing vehicle when not in use can be prevented from an external foreign matter from interfering can be kept favorable, improved handling of the connector for the towing vehicle at the time of non-use can do.
As the connector side fixing portion is relatively displaced with respect to the vehicle body side fixing portion, the tow vehicle connector can be moved between the use position and the non-use position.
The tow vehicle connector can be moved between the use position and the non-use position as the connector side fixing portion and the tow vehicle connector rotate around the axis of the electric wire with respect to the vehicle body side fixing portion. Here, for example, when the rotation direction is a direction in which the axis of the electric wire is inclined, the electric wire is bent and the stress acts by the amount of rotation, so that the stress on the electric wire is reduced. Needs to reduce the rotation angle, and the movable mechanism must be enlarged in the front-rear direction. On the other hand, in the present invention, since the structure rotates around the axis of the electric wire, the correlation between the stress on the electric wire acting along with the rotation and the size of the movable mechanism in the front-rear direction is low. The mechanism can be reduced in size.

<Invention of Claim 2>
When the tow vehicle connector is used, the tow vehicle connector is disposed at a use position protruding from the lower side of the vehicle body, and the mating connector on the towed vehicle side is fitted and connected. On the other hand, when the tow vehicle connector is not used, it is moved from the use position to the non-use position above it by the movable mechanism. This improves the handling of the tow vehicle connector when not in use, such as preventing external foreign objects from interfering with the tow vehicle connector when not in use and maintaining a good appearance. be able to.
As the connector side fixing portion is relatively displaced with respect to the vehicle body side fixing portion, the tow vehicle connector can be moved between the use position and the non-use position.
By locking the lock member to either the use position locking portion or the non-use position lock portion, the tow vehicle connector can be selectively held at the use position and the non-use position.
<Invention of Claim 3>
The tow vehicle connector can be moved between the use position and the non-use position as the connector side fixing portion and the tow vehicle connector rotate around the axis of the electric wire with respect to the vehicle body side fixing portion. Here, for example, when the rotation direction is a direction in which the axis of the electric wire is inclined, the electric wire is bent and the stress acts by the amount of rotation, so that the stress on the electric wire is reduced. Needs to reduce the rotation angle, and the movable mechanism must be enlarged in the front-rear direction. On the other hand, in the present invention, since the structure rotates around the axis of the electric wire, the correlation between the stress on the electric wire acting along with the rotation and the size of the movable mechanism in the front-rear direction is low. The mechanism can be reduced in size.

<Invention of Claim 4>
Since the operation unit is arranged at a position retracted from the outer end of the tow vehicle connector, a situation where an external foreign object hits the operation unit and the locking member is erroneously released. Can be made difficult to occur.
<Invention of Claim 5>
By biasing the lock member in the direction opposite to the unlocking direction by the biasing member, it is possible to prevent the locking member from being erroneously released due to the influence of vibration or the like.

<Invention of Claim 6>
For example, it is possible to prevent the operation unit from being excessively pushed and damaged.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, a tow vehicle connector for electrically connecting a passenger vehicle as a tow vehicle and a trailer (not shown) as a towed vehicle disposed behind the passenger vehicle. 10 is illustrated about the structure for attaching to the rear-end lower part of the vehicle body B of a passenger car. This includes a movable mechanism M composed of a vehicle body side bracket 20 fixed to the vehicle body B and a connector side bracket 30 fixed to the tow vehicle connector 10, and a lock for holding the connector side bracket 30 in a predetermined position. The member 40 and the spring member 50 for biasing the lock member 40 are configured. In the following description, the front-rear direction is based on the front and rear of the vehicle body B, and the vertical direction is based on the drawings excluding FIGS. 5 and 9.

  First, the structure of the tow vehicle connector 10 will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the tow vehicle connector 10 is provided on the other end side of the electric wire W whose one end side is electrically connected to a battery (not shown) mounted on the passenger car, and on the trailer side mating connector. By fitting and connecting C, it is possible to supply electric power to trailer-side electrical components (such as tail lamps). A corrugated tube 11 for protecting the electric wire W is disposed around the electric wire W so as to surround it. The tow vehicle connector 10 includes a synthetic resin housing 12 that houses a terminal fitting (not shown) connected to the end of the electric wire W. A cover 13 for fixing the end portion of the corrugated tube 11 to the housing 12 is attached to the front end portion of the housing 12, whereas a mating connector C can be fitted to the rear end portion of the housing 12. A fitting part 14 is provided. The fitting portion 14 has a substantially cylindrical shape that opens to the rear, and the above-described terminal fitting is disposed therein, which can be brought into conductive contact with a mating terminal (not shown) provided on the mating connector C. The A lid 15 that can open or close its opening is pivotally supported at the upper end of the fitting portion 14 so as to be openable and closable. A flange 16 that can be attached to the connector-side bracket 30 is formed so as to protrude from the outer peripheral surface of the fitting portion 14. A pair of screw insertion holes 16a are formed in both ends of the lower end of the flange 16, and a screw 60 for attachment can be inserted therethrough. The axis of the housing 12 is set to be slightly inclined so that the front end side is closer to the upper side (the shaft support portion side of the lid 15) shown in FIG. 1 than the rear end side (FIGS. 3 and 3). 9).

  Next, the outline of the structure for attaching the tow vehicle connector 10 to the vehicle body B will be described. The movable mechanism M is configured such that a connector side bracket 30 fixed to the tow vehicle connector 10 is pivotally supported with respect to the vehicle body side bracket 20 fixed to the vehicle body B, and of these, the connector side bracket 30 The lock member 40 is pivotally supported in a state where it is urged by the spring member 50, and the lock member 40 is engaged with the connector side bracket 30, so that the connector side bracket 30 and the tow vehicle connector 10 are supported. Can be held at a predetermined position. The rotation axis of the connector side bracket 30 with respect to the vehicle body side bracket 20 is set substantially parallel to the axial direction of the electric wire W, and the rotation axis of the lock member 40 with respect to the connector side bracket 30 is the vertical direction and the rotation of the connector side bracket 30. It is set to be almost orthogonal to the moving axis. Hereinafter, the structure of each component will be described in detail.

  The vehicle body side bracket 20 is formed by press-molding a metal plate, and is provided with a substantially rectangular main body 21 along a substantially horizontal direction. A vehicle body holding portion 22 that protrudes upward is provided from the rear end portion of the main body portion 21 in FIG. A pair of screw insertion holes 22a are formed in the vehicle body holding portion 22. A screw 61 passed therethrough is passed through a screw insertion hole (not shown) provided on the vehicle body B side and a nut (not shown). The vehicle body side bracket 20 can be fixed to the vehicle body B.

  The front end portion of the main body portion 21 partially protrudes toward the front side and the front side, and a support portion 23 protrudes downward from the end edge. The support portion 23 is provided at the rear end of the main body portion 21. It is arranged to face the support part 23 provided to project downward from the part. These support portions 23 are respectively provided with bearing holes 23a on the same axis, and a shaft body 62 for supporting a connector side bracket 30 to be described later can be inserted into the bearing holes 23a. Yes. The both support portions 23 are respectively formed with a use position locking groove 24 and a non-use position locking groove 25 that can lock a lock member 40 described later. The use position locking groove 24 is formed to open downward in the rear support 23 and open upward in the front support 23, and is disposed at a symmetrical position. The non-use position locking groove 25 is formed to open to the near side in the figure at the rear support portion 23 and open to the back side at the front support portion 23, and is arranged at a symmetrical position. That is, the use position locking groove 24 and the non-use position locking groove 25 are in directions in which the opening directions thereof are substantially orthogonal to each other.

  The connector-side bracket 30 is formed by press-molding a metal plate, and is provided with a substantially triangular main body portion 31 substantially in the horizontal direction in the state shown in FIG. A connector holding portion 32 having a substantially portal shape is provided so as to protrude downward from the rear end portion of the main body portion 31. The connector holding portion 32 is formed to open downward, and the housing 12 can be fitted into the open portion from below. A pair of screw insertion holes 32a into which the screws 60 passed through the screw insertion holes 16a of the housing 12 can be inserted are provided at the lower end of the connector holding portion 32, and the screws 60 are tightened to nuts (not shown). Thus, the tow vehicle connector 10 can be fixed to the connector side bracket 30.

  A pair of upright portions 33 are provided at both front and rear end portions of the rear end portion of the main body portion 31 so as to protrude upward, and support portions 34 are respectively provided from the outer side edge portions of the upright portions 33. Projecting toward the front side of the figure, they are provided facing each other. A bearing hole 34a through which the shaft body 62 can be inserted is formed in the support portion 34 so as to be located on the same axis line, and the shaft body 62 passed therethrough is passed through the bearing hole 23a of the vehicle body side bracket 20. Thus, the connector side bracket 30 can be pivotally supported relative to the vehicle body side bracket 20. Since the axis of the shaft body 62 is set substantially parallel to the axial direction of the electric wire W, the rotation direction of the connector side bracket 30 and the tow vehicle connector 10 with respect to the vehicle body side bracket 20 is substantially around the axis of the electric wire W. It is the direction along.

  A pair of projecting portions 62a projecting in the radial direction is formed at both ends of the shaft body 62, and the projecting portions 62a are engaged with the hole edges of the bearing holes 23a and 34a. The stopper is designed. The shaft body 62 can be handled like a rivet. That is, the shaft body 62 is inserted and assembled into the bearing holes 23a and 34a before the formation of one or both of the overhang portions 62a. ing. FIG. 1 shows a state in which both projecting portions 62a are formed, although it is in a state before attachment. Both support portions 34 are formed with locking grooves 35 in which a lock member 40 described later can be locked. The locking grooves 35 are formed so as to open downward in the rear support portion 34, while being opened upward in the front support portion 34, and are disposed at symmetrical positions. A spring support hole 33a capable of supporting a lower end portion 50b of a spring member 50, which will be described later, is formed in the vicinity of the root position of the front standing portion 33.

  A lock support portion 36 that can support the lock member 40 is provided to protrude upward at a substantially central position (a position sandwiched between both standing portions 33) at the rear end portion of the main body portion 31. The lock support portion 36 is formed such that a root portion projects from the upright portion 33 toward the front side in the drawing. A bearing hole 36 a through which the shaft body 63 can be inserted is formed in the lock support portion 36. Further, the oblique side portion (front end portion) of the main body 31 is formed in a substantially arc shape, and a restricting portion 37 is provided there. The restricting portion 37 is formed so as to protrude upward from the peripheral edge of the main body 31, and an operation portion 43 of the lock member 40 described later can be engaged therewith.

  The lock member 40 is formed by press-molding a metal plate, and includes a substantially circular main body 41 facing the lock support portion 36 in the state shown in FIG. A pair of lock pieces 42 that are symmetrical to each other are provided so as to extend forward and backward from positions vertically shifted at the front and rear edges of the periphery of the main body 41. The lock member 40 can be held with respect to the connector-side bracket 30 by the leading end portions of the lock pieces 42 being locked in the locking grooves 35 described above, and the lock groove for use position 24 or the lock for non-use position. The connector side bracket 30 can be selectively held at two positions described later with respect to the vehicle body side bracket 20 by being locked in the stop groove 25. Further, the lock piece 42 is formed so that its base portion becomes thicker as it approaches the main body portion 41.

  A bearing hole 41a through which the shaft body 63 can be inserted is formed at a substantially central position of the main body 41, and the shaft body 63 passed therethrough is inserted into the bearing hole 36a of the connector side bracket 30 to lock the shaft body 63. The member 40 can be pivotally supported with respect to the connector side bracket 30 so as to be rotatable. The axis of the shaft body 63 is set so as to be along the vertical direction and the direction substantially perpendicular to the axial direction of the electric wire W, and is displaced so that both the lock pieces 42 come into contact with and separate from the both support portions 34 with the rotation. It is possible. The hole edge portion of the bearing hole 36a in the main body portion 41 is formed so as to partially protrude toward the back side (the lock support portion 36 side). Note that the structure of the shaft body 63 (the overhang portion 63a) and the mounting method are the same as those of the shaft body 62 that pivotally supports the brackets 20 and 30 described above, and thus detailed description thereof is omitted.

  From the lower edge of the lock piece 42 on the rear side, an operation portion 43 for operating the lock member 40 is provided extending to the front side in FIG. 1 (a direction orthogonal to the extending direction of the lock piece 42). . The operation portion 43 is formed so that the protruding end portion protrudes rearward. By pushing the protruding portion forward, the lock member 40 is moved in the counterclockwise direction of FIGS. 3, and the lock piece 42 is displaced so as to be disengaged from the locking grooves 24, 25, and 35. That is, by pushing the operating portion 43 forward, the locking member 40 can be rotated in the locking release direction to release the locking state. The front lock piece 42 is provided with a spring support hole 42a capable of supporting the upper end portion 50a of the spring member 50.

  The spring member 50 is a so-called tension spring, and elastically attaches the lock member 40 in the clockwise direction of FIG. 1 with the upper end 50a supported by the lock member 40 and the lower end 50b supported by the connector side bracket 30. It is made possible. That is, the lock member 40 is biased by the spring member 50 in the direction opposite to the locking release direction.

  Here, the mounting position of the tow vehicle connector 10 will be described in detail. The connector side bracket 30 with respect to the vehicle body side bracket 20 is about 90 between the posture (FIG. 2) in which the main body portion 31 is substantially along the horizontal direction and the posture (FIG. 6) in which the main body portion 31 is substantially along the vertical direction. Accordingly, the tow vehicle connector 10 is used in a position that protrudes downward from the vehicle body B (FIG. 2), and a non-use position that is disposed above the use position. (FIG. 6). Specifically, in the use position, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, since the entire tow vehicle connector 10 is arranged to protrude below the vehicle body B, the fitting portion 14 is opened by opening the lid 15. The mating connector C can be fitted therein by exposing the opening of the rear side to the outside. On the other hand, in the non-use position, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the tow vehicle connector 10 is entirely disposed above the lower end position of the vehicle body B, and is completely hidden by the vehicle body B when viewed from the rear. Become.

  In the use position, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the lock member 40 is in a posture substantially along the plate surface direction in the vertical direction, and both lock pieces 42 are the locking grooves 35 of the connector side bracket 30. And the use position locking groove 24 of the vehicle body side bracket 20 and is locked to the groove edge. Thereby, the connector side bracket 30 is made unrotatable and the tow vehicle connector 10 can be held at the use position. On the other hand, in the non-use position, as shown in FIG. 8, the lock member 40 is in a posture substantially along the plate surface direction in the horizontal direction, and both lock pieces 42 are connected to the locking grooves 35 of the connector side bracket 30. The vehicle body side bracket 20 enters the non-use position locking groove 25 and is locked to the groove edge. Thereby, the tow vehicle connector 10 can be held in the non-use position. At both positions, the locking member 40 is biased by the spring member 50 in the direction in which the locking depth of the locking piece 42 with respect to the locking grooves 24, 25, 35 increases, so that the locking state is easily erroneously released. Is prevented. Further, regardless of the position of the tow vehicle connector 10, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 9, the operation portion 43 of the lock member 40 is located from the rear end position (outer end position) of the tow vehicle connector 10. Is also placed at the position retracted to the front side (back side).

  This embodiment has the structure as described above, and the operation thereof will be described subsequently. The tow vehicle connector 10, the lock member 40, and the spring member 50 are assembled to the connector side bracket 30, and after the connector side bracket 30 is assembled to the vehicle body side bracket 20, the vehicle body side bracket 20 is attached to the vehicle body B. Fix it.

  When the tow vehicle connector 10 is used, for example, when the trailer is pulled by a passenger car, an operation of fitting the mating connector C on the trailer side to the tow vehicle connector 10 is performed. In that case, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the tow vehicle connector 10 is disposed at the use position and protrudes downward from the vehicle body B. By fitting the mating connector C from the rear while opening the lid 15 and opening the fitting portion 14 in this state, the terminal fitting can be conductively connected to the mating terminal. Thereby, it becomes possible to supply electric power to the electric parts of the trailer from the battery of the passenger car.

  On the other hand, when the tow vehicle connector 10 is not used, such as when the trailer is not towed, the tow vehicle connector 10 is moved from the use position to the non-use position. Specifically, when the operation unit 43 of the lock member 40 is operated to be pushed forward from the state illustrated in FIGS. 2 to 5, the lock member 40 is rotationally displaced in the direction of the arrow D <b> 1 around the shaft body 62. At this time, the spring member 50 is pulled to increase its urging force, so that an operation force sufficient to resist it is applied. When the lock member 40 is rotated, the lock piece 42 is displaced so as to be disengaged from the locking groove 35 and the use position locking groove 24. When the locking piece 42 is completely removed from the locking groove 35 and the use position locking groove 24 and the locked state is released, the tow vehicle connector 10 and the connector side bracket 30 are moved to the arrow while keeping the locked state. It is rotated in the direction of line D2, and displaced upward from the use position. If the operation unit 43 is to be pushed too much, the front edge of the operation unit 43 is engaged with the rear edge of the regulation unit 37, so that further pushing is regulated. 50 can be prevented from being damaged.

  When the tow vehicle connector 10 is pivotally displaced about 90 degrees together with the lock member 40 and the connector side bracket 30 with respect to the vehicle body side bracket 20, as shown in FIGS. The lock piece 42 automatically enters the locking groove 35 and the locking groove 25 for the non-use position and is locked by the biasing force of the spring member 50 while aligning with the locking groove 25 for use. Thereby, the tow vehicle connector 10 can be held at the non-use position. In this non-use position, the tow vehicle connector 10 is arranged so as to be hidden above the lower end position of the vehicle body B. Therefore, even when the passenger vehicle is traveling, external foreign matter or the like interferes with the tow vehicle connector 10. It is difficult and the appearance is clean and good. When re-connecting the trailer to the passenger car, the connector side bracket 30 and the tow vehicle connector 10 are moved to the arrow direction while pushing the operating portion 43 forward in the reverse procedure to release the locking state of the locking piece 42. Rotate in the direction of line D3. When the locking groove 35 is rotated about 90 degrees, the locking groove 35 is aligned with the locking groove 24 for use position, and the lock piece 42 urged by the spring member 50 is locked to both the locking grooves 24 and 35. Thus, since the tow vehicle connector 10 is held at the use position, the fitting operation is subsequently performed.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the tow vehicle connector 10 is attached to the vehicle body B via the movable mechanism M including the vehicle body side bracket 20 and the connector side bracket 30 that can be displaced relative to each other. The movable mechanism M allows the tow vehicle connector 10 to be moved between a use position protruding below the vehicle body B and a non-use position above the use position. On the other hand, it is possible to improve the handling of the tow vehicle connector 10 when not in use, such as preventing external foreign matters from interfering with each other and maintaining a good appearance.

  In addition, in the present embodiment, the connector side bracket 30 and the tow vehicle connector 10 are rotatable with respect to the vehicle body side bracket 20 substantially along the axis of the electric wire W. When the direction of the wire is inclined, the wire is bent and the stress is applied by the amount of rotation, so the rotation angle is reduced to reduce the stress on the wire. Compared with the necessity to increase the size of the movable mechanism in the front-rear direction, the correlation between the stress on the electric wire W acting with the rotation and the size of the movable mechanism M in the front-rear direction is low. Thus, the movable mechanism M can be reduced in size.

  In addition, since the lock member 40 is locked in either the use position locking groove 24 or the non-use position locking groove 25 of the vehicle body side bracket 20, the tow vehicle connector 10 is used in the non-use position. Can be selectively held in position. In addition, since the operation unit 43 is disposed at a position retracted from the outer end of the tow vehicle connector 10, an external foreign object or the like hits the operation unit 43 and the locking state of the lock member 40 is erroneously released. It can be made difficult to happen.

  Further, since the lock member 40 is urged by the spring member 50 in the direction opposite to the lock release direction, it is possible to prevent the lock member 40 from being erroneously released due to the influence of vibration or the like. Further, since the restricting portion 37 restricts the operation portion 43 from being excessively pushed in the unlocking direction, it is possible to prevent the operation portion 43 from being excessively pushed and damaged.

<Other embodiments>
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described with reference to the above description and drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention, and further, within the scope not departing from the gist of the invention other than the following. Various modifications can be made.
(1) In the above-described embodiment, the tow vehicle connector is completely hidden in the vehicle body in the non-use position, but the point is that the tow vehicle connector may be arranged above the use position. Alternatively, a position protruding downward from the vehicle body may be set as a non-use position. Similarly, a configuration in which the tow vehicle connector is partially hidden in the vehicle body at the use position is also included in the present invention.

(2) In the above-described embodiment, the housing side bracket is shown separately from the tow vehicle connector, but the housing side bracket is integrally formed with the tow vehicle connector housing. Similarly, a structure in which the vehicle body side bracket is integrally formed with the vehicle body is also included in the present invention.
(3) In the above-described embodiment, the connector side bracket is shown to be rotationally displaced along the axis of the electric wire with respect to the vehicle body side bracket. However, for example, the connector side bracket is rotationally displaced along the direction in which the axis of the electric wire is inclined. What was done is also included in the present invention. Further, the present invention includes a configuration in which the connector side bracket is displaced relative to the vehicle body side bracket by a method other than rotational displacement, such as linear displacement.

(4) In the above-described embodiment, the passenger car is exemplified as the towing vehicle. However, for example, a truck as the towing vehicle is also included in the present invention. Similarly, the towed vehicle can be arbitrarily changed.
(5) In the above-described embodiment, the spring member that is a tension spring is exemplified as the biasing member. However, the present invention includes a spring member that is a compression spring. Further, the lock member may be elastically biased by something other than the spring member. It is also possible to omit the urging member.

1 is an exploded perspective view of a tow vehicle connector and an attachment structure thereof according to an embodiment of the present invention. The perspective view which shows the state which has arranged the connector for tow vehicles in the use position Side view showing a state where the tow vehicle connector is attached to the vehicle body at the use position Rear view showing the state where the tow vehicle connector is attached to the vehicle body at the use position Plan view of tow truck connector and mounting structure in use position The perspective view which shows the state which has arranged the tow vehicle connector in the non-use position Side view showing the state where the tow vehicle connector is attached to the vehicle body at the non-use position Rear view showing the state where the tow vehicle connector is attached to the vehicle body at the non-use position Plan view of tow truck connector and its mounting structure in a non-use position Illustration of conventional example

Explanation of symbols

10 ... Traction vehicle connector 20 ... Car body side bracket (car body side fixing part)
24 ... Locking groove for use position (locking part for use position)
25 ... Lock groove for non-use position (lock part for non-use position)
30 ... Connector side bracket (Connector side fixing part)
37 ... Restriction part 40 ... Lock member 43 ... Operation part 50 ... Spring member (biasing member)
B ... Car body C ... Mating connector M ... Movable mechanism W ... Electric wire

Claims (6)

A structure for attaching a tow vehicle connector that can be fitted and connected to a mating connector on a towed vehicle side to the body of the tow vehicle,
The tow vehicle connector is attached to the vehicle body via a movable mechanism, protrudes below the vehicle body by the movable mechanism, and can be fitted to the mating connector, and above the use position. It is possible to move between non-use positions arranged ,
The movable mechanism includes a vehicle body side fixing portion fixed to the vehicle body and a connector side fixing portion fixed to the tow vehicle connector, and the connector side fixing portion is relatively displaced with respect to the vehicle body side fixing portion. It is configured to be possible,
In the tow vehicle connector provided at the end of the electric wire,
A structure for mounting a tow vehicle connector, wherein the connector side fixing portion and the tow vehicle connector are rotatable along the axis of the electric wire with respect to the vehicle body side fixing portion . A structure for attaching a tow vehicle connector that can be fitted and connected to a mating connector on a towed vehicle side to the body of the tow vehicle,
The tow vehicle connector is attached to the vehicle body via a movable mechanism, protrudes below the vehicle body by the movable mechanism, and can be fitted to the mating connector, and above the use position. It is possible to move between non-use positions arranged,
The movable mechanism includes a vehicle body side fixing portion fixed to the vehicle body and a connector side fixing portion fixed to the tow vehicle connector, and the connector side fixing portion is relatively displaced with respect to the vehicle body side fixing portion. It is configured to be possible,
The vehicle body side fixing portion is provided with a use position locking portion and a non-use position locking portion, whereas the connector side fixing portion has the use position locking portion and the non-use position. by engaging in any of the use locking part, you characterized in that is provided with a selectively holdable locking member connector for the towing vehicle to said non-use position and the use position mounting structure of 牽引車connector. In the tow vehicle connector provided at the end of the electric wire,
The tow vehicle connector according to claim 2, wherein the connector side fixing portion and the tow vehicle connector are rotatable along the axis of the electric wire with respect to the vehicle body side fixing portion. Mounting structure. The lock member is provided with an operation portion for releasing the engagement state with the use position engagement portion or the non-use position engagement portion. 4. The tow vehicle connector mounting structure according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the structure is disposed at a position retracted from the outer end of the connector to the back side . The attachment of the tow truck connector according to any one of claims 2 to 4, further comprising an urging member capable of urging the lock member in a direction opposite to the locking release direction. Construction. 6. The connector-side fixing portion is provided with a restricting portion capable of restricting pushing of the operation portion in the unlocking direction by engaging with the operation portion. The structure for mounting the described connector for a tow vehicle.

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