Alps Electric Co., Ltd.

Mitsunori Matsumoto

Hiroyuki Bannai

Takehiko Ito

Hironori Kato

Yuichi Ida

Nobuo Matsuzaki

Yoshihiro Ohashi

A rotatable connector in which a moving body provided with first and second openings are rotatably arranged within a storage section defined between a stationary housing having an outer cylindrical wall and a movable housing having an inner cylindrical wall; and the width W,of the first opening and the width W,of the second opening are set as W,<W,. The first and second flat cables with both ends thereof fixed on the peripheral surfaces of the outer cylindrical wall and the inner cylindrical wall are wound within the storage section. The turned-back portions of the flat cables are routed through the first and second openings, with the inner end of the first flat cable directly wound around the peripheral surface of the inner cylindrical portion and with the inner end of the second flat cable also wound on the inner cylindrical portion through about one turn of the flat cable, thereby changing the winding diameter of the flat cables in relation to the inner cylindrical portion.

Rotatable connector

A rotary connector including a moving member (5) provided with first and second openings (14, 15) which is disposed in a holding space (10) formed between a fixed housing (1) having an upper case (6) and a movable housing (2) having a lower case (7) such that the moving member coaxially rotates with the movable housing (2) relative to the fixed housing (1). A width (W.sub.1) of the first opening (14) is made smaller than a width (W.sub.2) of the second opening (15) (i.e., W.sub.1 &lt;W.sub.2). First and second flat cables (3, 4) are wound in the holding space (10) and have both ends thereof respectively fixed to the peripheral surfaces of the upper case (6) and the lower case (7), and reversal portions (3a, 4a) of the flat cables (3, 4) are passed through the first opening (14) and the second opening (15). The first flat cable (3) is directly wound on the cylindrical section (9) of the first flat cable (3), while the second flat cable (4) is wound on the first flat cable (3) so that the flat cables (3, 4) have different winding diameters relative to the inner cylindrical section (9).

Rotary connector

A rotary connector which prevents separation of a resilient tongue from a flexible cable so as to prevent buckling. The rotary connector includes first and second housings rotatably connected together and forming an annular space therebetween. A flexible cable and a movable member are received in the annular space. The movable member includes a turntable having a stationary cylinder and a reversing roller, the stationary cylinder including a guide projection. The flexible cable is wound in opposite directions on opposite sides of the movable member and includes a U-shaped reverse portion extending through a gap between the stationary cylinder and the reversing roller. A resilient tongue having a free end portion substantially formed in a linear shape in an unloaded condition is affixed to an inner surface of the flexible cable and to an inner cylinder portion of the second housing. An amount of deformation of the free end portion when it is bent between the stationary cylinder and the reversing roller can be reduced, thereby preventing separation of the tip of the resilient tongue from the flexible cable.

In a clock spring connector using cables for electrical connection between a stationary member and a movable member which is rotatably mounted in relation to the stationary member, spiral or concentrical cable stowage grooves on both the stationary and the movable side are provided in a space for cable stowage, the cables being wound along either one of these cable stowage grooves and the remaining portion of the cables being wound reversely along the other cable stowage grooves, thereby decreasing the required length of the cables to half the amount of a rotation of the movable member.

Clock spring connector including cable stowage grooves

A clock spring interconnector connects a fixed member and a movable member using a flexible cable. The clock spring interconnector includes a first direction winding portion, a second direction winding portion and a turned back portion therebetween, the first direction winding portion having an end secured to one side of one of the fixed member and the movable member, the second direction winding portion having an end secured to another side of the other one of the fixed member and the movable member.

Growing community of inventors

Miyagi-ken, Japan

Mitsunori Matsumoto