JPH07241017A - Electric junction box - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain an electric junction box which has good heat radiation properties while its size is not increased and its moisture-proofness and dust- proofness are not deteriorated by a method wherein a thermoelectric cooling device is incorporated in a case or cover so as to have the device penetrate through the case or cover with its heat absorbing part inside and its heat radiating part outside. CONSTITUTION:A thermoelectric heat-radiating device 8 is incorporated in an upper cover 5 so as to penetrate the cover 5 with air-tightness and moisture- proofness. Further, the thermoelectric heat-radiating device 8 is incorporated in the cover 5 so as to have its heat absorbing part face the inside of the cover 5 and have its heat radiating part face the outside of the cover 5. If this thermoelectric device 8 is attached to an electric junction box and a current is applied to it, the heat generated in the electric junction box can be forcibly discharged out of the box and the temperature in the electric junction box can be lowered. With this constitution, the small size electric junction box which has good heat radiation properties and whose moisture-proofness and dust-proofness are not deteriorated can be obtained.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electric junction box used for wiring in an automobile.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIG. 4, an electric junction box for an automobile accommodates a fuse 2, a relay 3 and other electric parts in a case 1, and these parts are used to form a predetermined circuit. The output electric wire 4 is connected directly or via a bus bar or a connector. In addition, the upper cover 5 is usually mounted on the component mounting side for waterproof and dustproof,
Further, a lower cover 6 is attached to the pull-out side of the electric wire 4 if necessary. The lower cover 6 is provided with an outlet 7 for the electric wire 4. In the electric junction box configured as described above, the components mounted in the electric junction box are deteriorated by self-heating or heat of the atmosphere, and therefore, measures against heat in the electric junction box are required. Conventionally, a method of soaking a locally high temperature part inside the electrical junction box or a method of replacing the air inside has been used.

[0003]

However, the above-mentioned measures against heat of the electric junction box have the following problems. That is, 1) If the bus bar is enlarged or a dummy wire for heat dissipation is installed in order to uniformly heat the local high temperature part, the electric junction box becomes large. 2) When the air inside is replaced, the waterproofness and dustproofness of the electrical junction box deteriorate.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides an electric junction box that solves the above problems. In an electric junction box in which electric parts are housed in a case and a cover is attached, a thermoelectric cooling element is provided. Is incorporated so that the heat absorbing portion is on the inside and the heat radiating portion is on the outside so as to penetrate into the case or the cover. The thermoelectric cooling element is
It is made based on the Peltier effect that heat is absorbed when an electric current is passed through the junction of two dissimilar metals.
It is an electronic heat pump that transports heat energy from the low temperature side to the high temperature side.

[0005]

As described above, when the thermoelectric cooling element is attached to the electrical junction box, the heat can be forcibly released from the inside of the electrical junction box to the outside by energizing, so that the temperature inside the electrical junction box is lowered. Can be made. Since the thermoelectric cooling element is a small element and can be mounted in a watertight manner in the electrical junction box, the electrical junction box of the present invention does not become large, and the waterproofness and dustproofness may be reduced. Absent.

[0006]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings. 1A and 1B are an exploded perspective view and an AA sectional view of an embodiment of an electrical junction box according to the present invention, respectively. Reference numerals in the figure are the same as those used in FIG. 4, and 8 is a thermoelectric cooling element. As shown in FIG. 1B, the thermoelectric cooling element 8 penetrates the upper cover 5 and is airtightly and watertightly incorporated. In the thermoelectric cooling element 8, the heat absorbing portion faces the inside of the upper cover 5,
The heat sink is installed so that it faces the outside. Figure 1
As can be seen from (a) and (b), the incorporation of the thermoelectric cooling element 8 does not increase the size of the electrical junction box. FIG. 2 is an explanatory view of the principle of the thermoelectric cooling element 8. The thermoelectric cooling element 8 is formed by joining a p-type semiconductor 9 and an n-type semiconductor 10 to metal pieces 11, 12, and 13 as shown in the figure. When a direct current is applied as shown in the figure, the metal piece 11 serves as a heat absorbing portion, and the metal pieces 12 and 13 serve as a heat radiating portion. In the present embodiment, the power supply to the thermoelectric cooling element 8 is performed by the thermoelectric cooling element 8
The lead wire taken out from is connected to the connector mounted in the case 1. Alternatively, the amount of power supplied to the thermoelectric cooling element 8 may be controlled by detecting the temperature inside the electrical junction box.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the thermoelectric cooling element 8 is incorporated so as to penetrate the case 1. In addition, in FIG.
The same parts as those in FIG.

[0008]

As described above, according to the present invention, in an electric junction box in which electric parts are housed in a case and a cover is attached, a thermoelectric cooling element, a heat absorbing portion inside and a heat radiating portion are provided. Since it is installed on the outside so as to penetrate through the case or cover, there is an excellent effect that a small-sized electric junction box with good heat dissipation can be obtained without impairing waterproofness and dustproofness.

[Brief description of drawings]

1 (a) and 1 (b) are respectively an exploded perspective view and an AA cross-sectional view of an embodiment of an electrical junction box according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view of the principle of a thermoelectric cooling element.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional electric junction box.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 case 2 fuse 3 relay 4 electric wire 5 upper cover 6 lower cover 7 outlet 8 thermoelectric cooling element 9 p-type semiconductor 10 n-type semiconductor 11, 12, 13 metal piece

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An electric junction box having an electric part housed in a case and a cover attached, wherein a thermoelectric cooling element is penetrated through the case or the cover with the heat absorbing part inside and the heat radiating part outside. An electrical junction box characterized by being incorporated into.