Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B62—LAND VEHICLES FOR TRAVELLING OTHERWISE THAN ON RAILS
  • B62D—MOTOR VEHICLES; TRAILERS
  • B62D21/00—Understructures, i.e. chassis frame on which a vehicle body may be mounted
  • B62D21/15—Understructures, i.e. chassis frame on which a vehicle body may be mounted having impact absorbing means, e.g. a frame designed to permanently or temporarily change shape or dimension upon impact with another body
  • B62D21/152—Front or rear frames
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B62—LAND VEHICLES FOR TRAVELLING OTHERWISE THAN ON RAILS
  • B62D—MOTOR VEHICLES; TRAILERS
  • B62D25/00—Superstructure or monocoque structure sub-units; Parts or details thereof not otherwise provided for
  • B62D25/04—Door pillars ; windshield pillars
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B62—LAND VEHICLES FOR TRAVELLING OTHERWISE THAN ON RAILS
  • B62D—MOTOR VEHICLES; TRAILERS
  • B62D25/00—Superstructure or monocoque structure sub-units; Parts or details thereof not otherwise provided for
  • B62D25/08—Front or rear portions
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B62—LAND VEHICLES FOR TRAVELLING OTHERWISE THAN ON RAILS
  • B62D—MOTOR VEHICLES; TRAILERS
  • B62D25/00—Superstructure or monocoque structure sub-units; Parts or details thereof not otherwise provided for
  • B62D25/08—Front or rear portions
  • B62D25/082—Engine compartments

Definitions

• the invention relates to the field of motor vehicles, more particularly to the reinforcement of vehicles to counter a frontal impact.
• the bumper plays an important role in protecting the driver and front passenger.
• New low coverage frontal impact protocols are currently in place and involve 25% collisions of the front and side of the vehicle.
• This type of shock does not allow efficient operation of the entire bumper. In fact, these shocks cause a rotation of the front wheel and its pivot towards the cockpit, causing damage to the front apron and, by incidence, to the person positioned at this level in the vehicle. This is why the implementation of complementary structures, to avoid or limit the rotation of the front wheel, is useful for improving passenger safety.
• the published patent document FR 3,002,200 A1 discloses a sliding surface positioned prior to the front foot and consolidated at the rear by a filling element.
• This filling element makes it possible to improve the sliding of the wheel towards the outside in the event of a frontal impact. But the integration of these structures to the vehicle requires a modification of it, making more complex its manufacture. In addition, it does not allow damping of the impact of the wheel against the wheel arch.
• the invention aims to overcome at least one of the disadvantages of the state of the art mentioned above. More particularly, the invention aims to avoid the wheel before breaking the integrity of the passenger compartment in the event of impact with low recovery.
• the invention relates to a motor vehicle comprising, at least one side laterally to a longitudinal axis of said vehicle: a front wheel; a generally vertical profile, said front foot, located at the rear of the front wheel; a transverse wall, said wheel well, adjacent to the front foot and defining the passenger compartment of the vehicle; a reinforcement fixed to the front foot and to the wheel well, and configured to interfere with the front wheel and limit an intrusion of said wheel into the passenger compartment in the event of a frontal collision on the part of the vehicle located at the front wheel; remarkable in that the or each of the reinforcements comprises a generally flat central portion extending transversely along the front foot and the wheel well.
• the central portion of the or each of the reinforcements comprises an inner lateral end with a flange intended to engage with the front wheel during the frontal collision.
• the flange forms a generally vertical edge.
• This edge extends towards the front of the reinforcement.
• the central portion of the or reinforcements comprises a generally flat outer face and away from the front foot and the wheel well.
• the or each of the reinforcements comprises ribs extending generally longitudinally between, on the one hand, the outer face and, on the other hand, the front foot and the wheel arch, said ribs bearing on said front foot and said wheel well.
• the central portion may then have a thickness of between 1 and 3 mm, and in a preferred embodiment, a thickness of 2 mm.
• the network of ribs may have a rhombic structure. Fixing this reinforcement on the front passage of the wheel and the front foot can be achieved by several known techniques, including gluing.
• the ribs form a notch matching a vertical rabbet joining sheet metal to the front of the corresponding front foot.
• the reinforcement may be constructed of different materials, in particular composite plastic material, for example material BMC (acronym for "Bulk Molding Compound”) or material SMC (acronym for "Sheet Molding Compound”); but also in fiberglass.
• This type of reinforcement has a damping function that is done through the compression of the composite box.
• the or each of the reinforcements comprises two lateral portions, on either side of the central portion, said lateral portions extending predominantly longitudinally and bearing on the front foot and wheel passage, respectively.
• the two lateral portions of the or each of the reinforcements are fixed to the front foot and to the wheel passage, respectively.
• This attachment can be made by welding. It may possibly be done by gluing the reinforcement to the front foot and to the front wheel well of the vehicle.
• the or each of the reinforcements comprises a sheet metal element, preferably in one piece.
• the or each of the reinforcements comprises a pin protruding from the central portion towards the rear of the vehicle, said pin engaging in a corresponding orifice of a metal sheet element fixed to the front foot and at the wheel arch.
• the sheet metal element is advantageously fixed to the structure by known fastening methods, for example by welding.
• the reinforcement can be made of plastic. This configuration allows to have a damping function that is done through the compression of the plastic material.
• the measures of the invention are interesting in that they allow a reinforcement of the front structure of a motor vehicle, thanks to an added piece both lightweight and easy to manufacture. This reinforcement can be easily integrated with vehicles intended for certain markets, such as the USA and China, which have particular requirements for low overlap frontal shocks, without modifying the design of the vehicle. This reinforcement allows a better protection of the passengers of the vehicle, because it helps to dampen the impact of the wheel on the front wheel arch, and to avoid its rotation towards the passenger compartment.
• FIG. 1 is a partial view of the underside of the front of a motor vehicle showing the reinforcement according to the invention
• FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a reinforcement between the wheel well and the front foot of a motor vehicle according to a first embodiment of the invention
• FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the reinforcement of FIG. 2;
• - Figure 4 is a perspective view of a reinforcement between the wheel well and the front foot of a motor vehicle according to a second embodiment of the invention
• - Figure 5 is a perspective view of a sheet metal element between the wheel well and the front foot of a motor vehicle according to the second embodiment of the invention
• FIG. 6 is a magnification of the perspective view of the reinforcement of FIG. 4;
• FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the reinforcement of FIG. 6,
• FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a reinforcement between the wheel well and the front stand of a motor vehicle according to a third embodiment of the invention
• FIG. 9 is a magnification of the perspective view of the reinforcement of FIG. 8,
• FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the reinforcement of FIGS. 8 and 9.
• Figure 1 is a view from below of a motor vehicle 1.
• a front wheel 3 at the rear of which is placed a profile structure corresponding to the lower portion of a front foot 5.
• a reinforcement 9 according to the invention is located at the rear of the wheel and at the before the foot.
• Figures 2 and 3 show the reinforcement 9 according to a first embodiment of the invention.
• This reinforcement comprises several portions: a lateral portion 9B fixed to the wheel arch 7, a central portion 9A extending transversely between the foot 5 and the front wheel arch 7, and a lateral portion 9C fixed on the front leg 5.
• the central portion 9A is generally flat.
• the central portion of the reinforcement 9A has, in its inner lateral end positioned towards the wheel passage 7 of the vehicle, a flange 9D.
• This rim 9D has the particularity of having a ridge-shaped structure, which is directed towards the rear of the vehicle.
• the central portion 9A may have a longitudinal stiffening 1 1, preferably positioned in the middle and along the entire length of the outer face 9E.
• this reinforcement 9 may have fallen edges 9F, which are positioned at the ends of the side portions 9B and 9C of said reinforcement. These fallen edges 9F form lugs which will allow the attachment of the reinforcement 9 to both the foot 5 and the front wheel well 7 of the vehicle 1. Fixing this reinforcement can be done by known methods, such as welding.
• the reinforcement is, in this embodiment, preferably made of stamped sheet metal and more particularly DP450 steel.
• FIGS. 4 to 7 show a reinforcement 109 according to a second embodiment of the invention. These figures show the numbering of the preceding figures for identical or similar elements, however, the numbering is incremented by 100. Reference is also made to the description of these elements in relation to the first embodiment. Specific numbers between 100 and 200 are used for the specific elements of this embodiment.
• This reinforcement 109 has a central portion 109A, two side portions 109B and C, and a flange 109D and the fallen edges 109F as described above.
• This reinforcement also has the particularity of having a pin 1 13, which will be more fully described in relation with FIGS. 6 and 7, and which points towards the rear of the reinforcement 9 to fit into a sheet metal element 1 15 .
• FIG. 5 shows more precisely this sheet metal element 1 15. It has a structure similar to the reinforcement 9 of FIGS. 2 and 3, with a central portion 1 15A, and two lateral portions 1 15B and C, respectively for fixing the 1 to the wheel well 107 and to the front leg 105 of the vehicle 101.
• This metal element also has an orifice January 17, which will accommodate the pin 1 13 of the reinforcement 109.
• This orifice is preferably ovoid, but must correspond to the shape of the pin 1 13 to allow a good arrangement between these two elements.
• the reinforcement 109 is positioned at the front of the structure. It is advantageously made of plastic (BMC: "Bulk Molding Compound”), or dense polypropylene foam. It has a wall thickness preferably between 2 and 3mm, and, according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, its wall has a thickness of 2.5mm.
• BMC plastic
• the pin 1 13 On the inner face of the central portion of the reinforcement 109 is the pin 1 13, preferably of ovoid shape and corresponding to the shape of the orifice 1 17 of the sheet metal member 1 15 described in Figure 6. This reinforcement 109 and the pin 1 13 are preferably made in one piece.
• FIGS. 8 to 10 show a reinforcement 209 according to a third embodiment of the invention. These figures show the numbering of FIGS. 2 and 3 for identical or similar elements, however, the numbering is incremented by 200. Reference is also made to the description of these elements in relation to the first embodiment. Specific numbers between 200 and 300 are used for the specific elements of this embodiment.
• This reinforcement 209 has all the characteristics of the reinforcement 9 described in the first embodiment.
• the reinforcement 209 has ribs 221 positioned on the inner face of the central portion of the reinforcement 209A. These ribs 221 are also attached to the two lateral portions of the reinforcement 209 B and C, and form a lattice network. This network will allow a solidification of the reinforcement 209.
• This reinforcement 209 has also a notch 219, visible more particularly in Figure 9, which integrates the reinforcement on a vertical rabbet 205A of the front foot 205 of the vehicle.
• the reinforcement 209 is fixed on the front foot 205 and the wheel well 207, for example by gluing. It can be made of composite, BMC ("Bulk Molding Compound") or SMC ("Sheet Molding Compound”) material, or fiberglass. Its wall preferably has a thickness of between 1.5 and 2 mm, and in a preferred embodiment of the invention, a thickness of 2 mm.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
• Transportation (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Body Structure For Vehicles (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=57750226

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (6)

Families Citing this family (7)

Family Cites Families (14)

• 2016
  • 2016-10-27 FR FR1660433A patent/FR3058110B1/fr active Active
• 2017
  • 2017-09-22 WO PCT/FR2017/052556 patent/WO2018078226A1/fr unknown
  • 2017-09-22 CN CN201780066943.6A patent/CN109963774B/zh active Active
  • 2017-09-22 MA MA046603A patent/MA46603A/fr unknown
  • 2017-09-22 US US16/342,500 patent/US10933915B2/en active Active
  • 2017-09-22 EP EP17780834.2A patent/EP3532363A1/de not_active Withdrawn

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