Nifco Inc.

Koito Manufacturing Company, Ltd.

Tomoaki Aoshima

Takeyuki Tachiiwa

Takaya Ogawa

Nobuhiro Hara

A clamp includes a clamp main body, a flexible member, a pipe holding portion, a pipe insertion path, and a pair of opposite pieces. At least one opposite piece of the pair of opposite pieces, is pressed by an outer circumference of a pipe inserted into the pipe insertion path, and is bendable in a direction in which the pipe insertion path is expandable. One opposite piece extends up to a position adjacent to the pipe holding portion. An extending end portion of one opposite piece protrudes toward an inside of the pipe insertion path from one portion of the flexible member adjacent to the end portion.

Clamp

A universal joint component is used for connecting two members, such as a reflector and a lamp body. The universal joint component includes a shaft, an installation section formed on one end of the shaft, and a spherical head formed on the other end of the shaft. The spherical head includes a joint base, a top end, and at least one gap formed on a side of the spherical head between the top end and the joining base. The gap is formed of a groove or through hole so as to straddle a phantom line substantially passing through a center of the spherical head and perpendicularly intersecting a shaft axis of the shaft. Split head sections are defined by the at least one gap so that the split head sections flexibly deform when the spherical head is inserted into a spherical socket.

Universal joint component and automotive lamp unit

A buckle includes a female member having a main body provided at opposite ends with sockets, a belt retainer adapted for fastening one end of a belt thereto and provided on one side of the main body so as to extend between the sockets, an engaging member having engaging claws facing the sockets and projecting toward the belt retainer and elastic pieces which urge the engaging member toward the belt retainer, and a window for allowing a portion of the engaging member to project downward; and a pair of male members adapted for fastening one end of a pair of belts and insertable into the sockets of the main body to be retained thereby, each male member having an insert formed with an engaging claw which projects toward the inner wall of the main body on the side thereof opposite from the belt retainer and engages with the associated engaging claw of the engaging member when the male member is inserted into the associated socket, the engagement between the engaging claws of the female member and the engaging claws of the male members being releasable by pressing the portion of the engaging member projecting through the window toward the inner wall.

Growing community of inventors

Hamamatsu, Japan

Tomoaki Aoshima