DESC:FIELD OF INVENTION
The present invention relates to handle bar switch module for two-wheeler motor-cycles. Particularly, the present invention relates to switch module without wire harness/wiring harness, more particularly, the present invention relates to a handle bar switch module without wire harness for motorcycle.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Two wheeled or three wheeled vehicles include various electrical/electronic components that perform a variety of functions for smooth operation, safe driving and for providing indication to other riders while driving. Some of these functions include, Head lamp ON-OFF-Parking ON, Engine Start, Engine kill, Dipper or High-Low, Turn Indicator with push cancel, Horn Pass etc.
These functions are achieved by implementing control buttons mounted over control switches via battery in series. Conventionally, a module housing at least one control switch is mounted on handle bar of the two wheeled or three wheeled vehicles. More particularly, the control switches for frequently used functions such as horn, dipper, blinker, turn indicator, etc. are grouped together in the form of a first switching module (or alternatively referred to as left hand side switching module), which is mounted over left-hand side of the handle bar. Similarly, control switches for less frequently used functions such as engine kill, engine start, head lamp ON-OFF, etc. are grouped together in the form of second switching module (or alternatively referred to as right hand side switching module) mounted over right-hand side of the handle bar.
Each of the control switch can accommodate one or more switch modules. The control switches can be contacting type switches or contact-less type switches. In other words, the control switches can be electrical or electronic switches. Conventionally, a switching module requires high voltage from main control unit of vehicle.
Conventionally, in contacting type switches with wiring harness Electrolytic Tough Pitch (ETP) Copper rivets are used for making electrical contact in switch. In this specification, the terms “wire harness” and “wiring harness” are used interchangeably with same meaning. The basic mechanism consists of basically the moving-contact plate and the fixed contact plate and the circuit closes whenever the moving contact plate slides over the fixed contact plate during mechanical movement by the switch module knob. The moving contact plate is basically a 3-dimple or 2-dimple contact plate which is spring loaded while the fixed contacts are the rivets which are riveted/ flared with the respective base plate. The wire harness is then soldered with each rivet.
Major drawbacks of these conventional contact type switches with wiring harness are as follows: Major issues relate to dry soldering due to which switch module stops functioning. Dry soldering is a major cause for reducing switch life and switch having intermittent operation and consequent user dissatisfaction. Issues related to wire cuts are also a major concern. Also, wire routing of the harness inside the switch area while mounting the switch on the handlebar is very difficult process for the operators/workers, sometimes leading to hand pinching of the operator. Another major issue is of wire harness short-circuiting due to improper soldering or improper positioning/ mismatch of rivets in the base plate. Apart from these, one of the major issues is switch module flickering or intermittent operation – uncontrolled make and break - of the desired module. This again is due the rivet height mismatch or due to improper riveting/ soldering processes. This is due to misalignment of rivets. Riveting tolerance cannot be maintained accurately.
At open circuit condition, there is no resistance, hence no current flows and no power is dissipated. Also at zero resistance there is no voltage drop across the switch. When the switch changes state from OFF to ON position there is a permanent contact between the copper rivets and the resistance is zero hence full high current flows through switch to electric load. When the contact resistance is neither zero nor infinite (Intermittent contact between rivets during the course of driving) the power is dissipated as arc within the switch; during such transition heat is generated on the contacts. Conventionally, a switching module requires high voltage (direct battery supply) from body control unit of the vehicle.
Conventionally contact type handle bar switches without wiring harness have soldering process. Soldering process is “leaded” type which is hazardous in environment and also dangerous for operators.
The main drawback of the conventional contact type switches is that when contact switch is made ON, the copper rivets remain continuously in contact until the switch is kept ON. This results in a continuous flow of high current which leads to damage of contacts rivets and lowering the life of particular part. This results in burning of wires which carry the current. This burning also results in make and break contacts while vehicle is running leading to lowering of road safety and safety of the driver. Such types of handlebar switches are open to vagaries of and corroding effect of harsh environmental conditions which further increase risk factor relating to the life of the vehicle.

Conventional electrical switches require protection against water and dust to perform long life without any problem; which is difficult to provide in the conventional design.

Therefore, there is a need to develop a Handle bar switch module without wiring harness which overcomes the above-mentioned problems of conventional mechanical switches.

SUMMARY
This invention discloses an automotive handlebar control switch module without wiring harness.
In one embodiment the automotive handlebar control switch of this invention comprises a common base plate which is insert molded with copper strips that provide electrical connectivity between connector area (5g) and switch modules. The automotive handlebar control switch comprising the common base plate insert molded with copper strips is snap fitted with the switch module/s to provide a sub-assembly; that is further mounted on casing. The copper strips insert molded in common base plate are protected against water, dust and other contamination. The protection comes automatically from the plastic of the base plate in which the copper strips are insert molded.
The material from which the common base plate is made is of material that has heat resistance, tensile strength, arc resistance, abrasive resistance required for long lasting operation of the handlebar switch, the copper terminals are tin-plated/ silver plated, the common base plate is provided with holes for its proper holding in the tool / mould and for ensuring correct positioning of the contact area of copper strip terminals after molding, The common base plate has an in-built coupler mating with the wiring harness coming from the vehicle battery. The common base plate is made from material that has heat resistance, tensile strength, arc resistance, abrasive resistance required for long lasting operation of the handlebar, The material is selected from Polybutylene Terephthalate or Polyphenylene sulfide or any other thermoplastic plastics.
The automotive handlebar control switch module according to claim 3 wherein the sub-assembly is further mounted on the casing. Locking pin insert molded with rear case which is used for mounting, which is press fitted.
A method for making an automotive handlebar control switch module without wiring harness is also disclosed. To achieve this result, copper strips are provided with links by cross connections near their terminals to obtain a single piece of a mesh of copper strips with copper terminals, the mesh is insert molded in a common base plate, and after the step of insertion of the copper strip mesh in the base plate is complete, by piercing through the holes provided in the base plate, the links are delinked by piercing and breaking the links. This step results in elimination of the need of wiring harness.
Detailed description of the invention
This invention relates to an improved handlebar switch module for an automotive without wiring harness. More particularly, the present invention relates to handlebar control switch without wire harness which overcomes the drawbacks of conventional contact type handlebar modules with wiring harness. The automotive is one which has a handlebar; and includes two-wheeler motorcycles, or three-wheeler or five-wheeler automotive.
This invention is also related to two-wheeler handlebar switch to control the two-wheeled vehicle electrical loads such as head lamps, parking lamp, turn indicators, horn, etc.
Above described problems of conventional handlebar switches of automotive have been overcome in this invention using features that are described in the following:
In an aspect of this invention, a common base plate with insert molded copper terminals (strips) common for all the modules is used for the intended operation instead of separate base plates for each module which are in use in all prior art handle bar switches.
Further in this present invention, copper (Cu) terminal mesh is designed and insert molded in the single base plate, and this insert molded single base plate is then snap fitted to the case of the handlebar switch to establish electrical contacts with all the switch modules and mounted inside the switch casing. It is this step of snap fitting the single base plate having copper strips insert molded in it establishing contact of the terminals with all the switch modules has eliminated need of all wires required for electrical connections for all the switches and hence eliminating the requirement of a wiring harness. This step has also eliminated several base plates which are replaced by the single base plate.
In one more embodiment of this invention, because of elimination of wire harness in the handlebar switch modules of this invention, the switches used are the ones which operate on High current but lead to low voltage drop when measured at coupler end, when compared to voltage drop in switches used in conventional switch without wire harness.
The thermo set material used for base plates in conventional switches with wiring harness used to be very brittle and had intricate shapes/features that cannot be insert molded. The insert molded base plate material used in the instant invention comprises thermoplastic plastics. The thermoplastic plastics have heat resistance, tensile strength, arc resistance, and abrasion resistance required for long lasting operation of the handlebar switch. The single base plate made from thermoplastic plastics not only helps for heat dissipation but also protects the switch during high current operation when supply is provided from vehicle battery to switch. This protection ensures reliable operation of switches. Polybutylene Terephthalate (PBT)/Polyphenylene Sulfide (PPS) is one such material used in the illustration. Any other thermoplastic plastic may be used that has properties similar to Polybutylene Terephthalate (PBT)/Polyphenylene Sulfide (PPS).
Usage of such insert molded single base plate prevents the flickering issues observed in conventional type switches using rivets. Insert molding of terminals with thermoplastic base completely eliminates problem of rivet height mismatch. Hence issues of flickering are eliminated and contact overlap can be maintained accurately.
Further, this insert molded base plate also has an in-built coupler for mating with the wire harness coming from vehicle battery. This makes assembly even simpler with no issues of wire routing inside the switch packing area. This also eliminates the requirement of a separate female coupler.
According to further embodiment of this invention, since there is no wire harness inside switch packaging no issue related to wire shorting takes place. Since rivet usage is eliminated there is no soldering process needed eliminating further the conventional issue related to dry soldering.
Further, in this present invention, due to the elimination of wire harness inside the switch there is ease of assembly to the operator for mounting switch on handlebar without hand / wire pinching, hence increasing operator safety and efficiency.
Further the overall reduction in length of wire harness from vehicle battery to handlebar switch without wiring harness and also subsequent reduction in number of parts reduces the cost of wire harness and also the cost of switch module packaging. As the number of parts are less, the chances of failure are also less.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES AND LEGENDS
Legends and their description:
(1) - Dipper Module. (2) - Blinker Module. (3) -Horn Module. (5) - a single base plate insert molded with Cu terminals. (5a) -Horn module terminals. (5b) - Blinker module terminals. (5c)– Dipper-Pass module terminals. (5d) - Integrated connector. (5e) - snap locking area. (5f) - Holes for ensuring the positioning of the copper strips. (5g)connector area. (5h) inbuilt coupler area. (5i)Cu terminals, (5j)shows the contact area during switching operation, (5k) Pass/Dipper module base area, (5l) Blinker module base area, (5m) Horn module base area,(6)the case front,(7)the case rear. (8) Locating pin for mounting the switch with the handlebar,
FIG. 1(a) and 1(b) illustrates an exemplary view of handle bar switch module without wiring harness according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 illustrates an exploded assembly view of the handle bar switch module without wiring harness according to an embodiment of the present invention. .
FIGURES 3(a), 3(b) and 3(c) illustrate the single base plate insert molded with Copper strips in the handle bar switch module without wiring harness in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 illustrates exploded view of the insert molded base plate.
FIG. 5 illustrates isometric view of the base plate of the handle bar switch module without wiring harness in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
Putting together all the above described/illustrated embodiments of this invention, this invention provides a handlebar control switch module without wiring harness. The handle bar control switch without wire harness, comprising of an insert molded common base plate with copper strips is snap fitted to make contact with the switch module/s without requiring a wire connection, and mounted inside the switch casing. The copper strips insert molded in common base plate with copper strips has automatically got protection against water, dust and other contamination because entire copper strips are embedded in the plastic. As against these, in the prior art handle bar switches, the copper rivets were unprotected from water, dust and other contaminants.
The Copper terminals are Tin Plated / silver plated to ensure enhanced switch life.
The Copper terminals are provided with links to form a complete mesh. It is then insert molded with a thermoplastic base material to form a common base plate. To facilitate insert molding of copper strips inside the plastic matrix of the base plate, they are prepared as a single piece of cross connected copper strips since a single piece can be easily handles and insert molded. However, while actual functioning, these cross connections need to be disconnected by trimming. To make this trimming possible after insert molding, holes are provided in the base plate at locations where these cross connections would get located after insert molding, so that by piercing through the holes, the cross connections can be easily cut off/trimmed and the copper strips are ready for functioning once they are in no contact with each other. This operation of trimming is called as the delinking operation. Also, holes are provided in the base plate for its proper holding in the tool / mould and ensuring correct positioning of the contact area of Copper mesh terminals after molding. Continuity checking is done after trimming operation to ensure all links are trimmed.
The common base plate also has an in-built coupler mating with the wire harness coming from the vehicle battery. It is a standard coupler design.
The common base plate is snap fitted to establish wireless contact with all switch modules to provide a sub-assembly of the common base plate and switch modules. This sub-assembly is further mounted on the casing. The switch is then mounted on the handlebar by locking pin insert molded with rear case which is press fitted conventionally. This ensures no loosening of locking pin, no switch rotation on handlebar due to locking pin coming out of case after extended usage on vehicle.

,CLAIMS:
1. An automotive handlebar control switch module without wiring harness.
2. The automotive handlebar control switch according to claim 1, comprising of a common base plate insert molded with copper strips that provide electrical connectivity between connector area (5g) and switch modules.
3. The automotive handle bar control switch according to claim 2 wherein the common base plate insert molded with copper strips is snap fitted with the switch module/s to provide a sub-assembly; which is mounted on a casing.
4. The automotive handle bar control switch according to claim 4 wherein the copper strips insert molded in common base plate are protected against water, dust and other contamination.
5. The automotive handlebar control switch according to claim 4 wherein the protection against water, dust and other contamination is provided by the plastic material of the base plate in which the copper strips are embedded by insert molding.
6. The automotive handlebar control switch according to claim 2, wherein:
a. the common base plate is made of material that has heat resistance, tensile strength, arc resistance, abrasive resistance required for long lasting operation of the handlebar switch,
b. the copper terminals are tin-plated/ silver plated,
c. the common base plate is provided with holes for its proper holding in the tool/mould and for ensuring correct positioning of the contact area of copper strip terminals after molding,
d. the common base plate has an in-built coupler mating with the wiring harness coming from the vehicle battery.
7. The automotive handlebar control switch according to claim 6, wherein the material that has heat resistance, tensile strength, arc resistance, abrasive resistance required for long lasting operation of the handlebar switch is selected from Polybutylene Terephthalate or Polyphenylene sulfide or any other thermoplastic plastics.
8. The automotive handlebar control switch module according to claim 3 wherein the sub-assembly is further mounted on the casing.
9. The handlebar control switch module according to claim 8 wherein the switch is mounted on the handlebar by locking pin insert molded with rear case which is press fitted.
10. A method for making an automotive handlebar control switch module without wiring harness.
11. The method for making the automotive handlebar control switch module of claim 10 for an automotive without wiring harness, wherein:
a. copper strips are provided with links by providing cross connections near their terminals to obtain a single piece of a mesh of copper strips with copper terminals ,
b. the mesh is insert molded in a common base plate made from Polybutylene Terephthalate or Polyphenylene sulfide or any other thermoplastic material that has heat resistance, heat dissipation capability when current is supplied from vehicle battery to switch, tensile strength, arc resistance and abrasive resistance required for the conditions of operation of the switch,
c. the copper terminals are tin plated / silver plated to ensure enhanced switch life,
d. after the step of insertion of the copper strip mesh in the base plate is complete, by piercing through the holes provided in the base plate, the links are delinked by piercing and breaking the links,
e. holes are provided in the base plate for its proper holding in the tool / mould and ensuring correct positioning of the contact area of copper terminals after molding,
f. the common base plate is snap fitted with all switch modules and mounted inside the switch casing,
g. when compared to conventional switch with wiring harness, the switches operate on a high current but with low voltage drop, as measured at coupler end, due to elimination of wiring harness,
h. the insert molded base plate has an in-built coupler for mating the wiring harness coming from vehicle battery,
i. the common base plate is snap fitted with all switch modules is further mounted on the casing,
j. the switch is then mounted on the handlebar by locking pin insert molded with rear case which is press fitted, which ensures that locking pin does not loosen up, switch does not rotate on handlebar due to locking pin coming out of case after extended usage on vehicle.