US-20260128575-A1 - Substrate Coupling System and Method

Abstract

A wiring harness installation assembly includes a first member and a second member. The first member includes a locking tab. The second member includes an upper surface and a side surface. The side surface extends from the upper surface. The upper surface and the side surface define an aperture. The aperture includes a first portion and a second portion. The first portion is formed in the side surface. The second portion is formed in the upper surface. The first portion is configured to receive the locking tab. The second portion is configured to receive a tool operable to engage the locking tab.

Inventors

• Ryan Lewis
• Jared Bilas
• Joseph Sudik, Jr.
• David R. Peterson
• Jeffrey Michael
• Robert Dean

Assignees

• Aptiv Technologies AG

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20241101

Claims (20)

1. 1 . A wiring harness installation assembly comprising: a first member including a locking tab; and a second member including an upper surface and a side surface extending from the upper surface, the upper surface and the side surface defining an aperture including a first portion formed in the side surface and a second portion formed in the upper surface, the first portion configured to receive the locking tab, the second portion configured to receive a tool operable to engage the locking tab.
2. 2 . The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the first member includes an upper surface and a side surface extending from the upper surface, the upper surface and the side surface defining a slot including a first portion formed in the side surface of the first member and a second portion formed in the upper surface of the first member, the first portion and the second portion of the slot extending along the locking tab.
3. 3 . The assembly of claim 2 , wherein the locking tab is disposed within the slot.
4. 4 . The assembly of claim 1 , wherein: the locking tab includes a first surface extending in a first direction, the first direction is transverse to the side surface, and the aperture is configured to receive the first surface.
5. 5 . The assembly of claim 4 , wherein: the first portion of the aperture defines a first surface, and the first surface of the first portion is configured to receive the first surface of the locking tab.
6. 6 . The assembly of claim 4 , wherein the locking tab includes a second surface extending from the first surface in a second direction transverse to the first direction and the second surface is configured to engage the tool.
7. 7 . The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the second member includes a first hook and the first member includes a first window configured to receive the first hook.
8. 8 . The assembly of claim 7 , wherein the first hook includes a first arm extending from the side surface of the second member and a second arm extending from the first arm.
9. 9 . The assembly of claim 8 , wherein the first hook defines an “L” shape.
10. 10 . The assembly of claim 8 , wherein the second arm and the side surface of the second member define a void.
11. 11 . The assembly of claim 10 , wherein, in an assembled configuration, the first member is at least partially disposed within the void.
12. 12 . The assembly of claim 7 , wherein the first member includes an upper surface, a bottom surface opposite the upper surface, and a side surface extending from the upper surface to the bottom surface, and the first window is defined at least partially by the side surface and the bottom surface.
13. 13 . The assembly of claim 7 , wherein the second member includes a second hook and the first member includes a second window configured to receive the second hook.
14. 14 . The assembly of claim 13 , wherein the second hook defines an “L” shape.
15. 15 . The assembly of claim 13 , wherein the aperture is disposed between the first hook and the second hook.
16. 16 . The assembly of claim 13 , wherein the locking tab is disposed between the first window and the second window.
17. 17 . The assembly of claim 1 , wherein, in an assembled configuration, the locking tab is at least partially disposed within the aperture.
18. 18 . The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the first member includes a protrusion extending from the upper surface and configured to engage the tool.
19. 19 . The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the first member forms a first conduit and the second member forms a second conduit.
20. 20 . The assembly of claim 19 , wherein at least one of the first conduit or the second conduit is configured to receive a wiring harness.

Description

FIELD The present disclosure relates to substrate coupling systems and more particularly to a system for coupling substrates for robotic installation. BACKGROUND Modern vehicles (e.g., automobiles) rely on electrical wiring and electrical connections to facilitate the transmission of electricity within, and between various components of, the vehicle. Wiring harnesses (e.g., connectors and bundles of wires) play an important role in ensuring the integrity of these electrical connections and the reliability and performance of the vehicle. Wiring harnesses often lack the structural integrity (e.g., rigidity) to ensure the accurate and repeatable handling, positioning, and securement of the wiring harnesses and/or other components during an assembly process. Often, these wiring harnesses require manual installation or complex tooling to install, which can increase the cost and complexity of the wiring harnesses. For example, the wiring harnesses may be placed inside another component (e.g., a substrate) to provide the rigidity necessary to install the wiring harness robotically. These substrates are often costly and complex. In view of the foregoing, while known substrate coupling systems for vehicle wiring systems have proven acceptable for their intended purpose, a continuous need for improvement remains in the pertinent art to address the challenges associated with accurate and efficient assembly of the wiring harnesses. The background description provided here is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure. SUMMARY This section provides a general summary of the disclosure, and is not a comprehensive disclosure of its full scope or all of its features. One aspect of the disclosure provides a wiring harness installation assembly. The wiring harness installation assembly includes a first member and a second member. The first member includes a locking tab. The second member includes an upper surface and a side surface. The side surface extends from the upper surface. The upper surface and the side surface define an aperture. The aperture includes a first portion and a second portion. The first portion is formed in the side surface. The second portion is formed in the upper surface. The first portion is configured to receive the locking tab. The second portion is configured to receive a tool operable to engage the locking tab. The details of one or more implementations of the disclosure are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other aspects, features, and advantages will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The present disclosure will become more fully understood from the detailed description and the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a wiring harness installation assembly in a first orientation in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 1B is a perspective view of the wiring harness installation assembly of FIG. 1A in a second orientation in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a portion of a first member of a wiring harness installation subassembly in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a portion of a second member of a wiring harness installation subassembly in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure. In the drawings, reference numbers may be reused to identify similar and/or identical elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION Example configurations will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Example configurations are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to those of ordinary skill in the art. Specific details are set forth such as examples of specific components, devices, and methods, to provide a thorough understanding of configurations of the present disclosure. It will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that specific details need not be employed, that example configurations may be embodied in many different forms, and that the specific details and the example configurations should not be construed to limit the scope of the disclosure. With reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B, a wiring harness installation assembly 10 is illustrated. As will be explained in more detail below, the wiring harness installation assembly 10 is used during installation of a wiring harness 12 For example, the wiring harness installation assembly 10 may be used during installation of the wiring harness 12 in a vehicle (not shown) such as an automobile. The wiring harne