GB2508979A - Vehicle side impact beam having foam and sprung elements - Google Patents
Vehicle side impact beam having foam and sprung elements Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- GB2508979A GB2508979A GB201319213A GB201319213A GB2508979A GB 2508979 A GB2508979 A GB 2508979A GB 201319213 A GB201319213 A GB 201319213A GB 201319213 A GB201319213 A GB 201319213A GB 2508979 A GB2508979 A GB 2508979A
- Authority
- GB
- United Kingdom
- Prior art keywords
- side impact
- impact beam
- elements
- foam
- structure elements
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Withdrawn
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60J—WINDOWS, WINDSCREENS, NON-FIXED ROOFS, DOORS, OR SIMILAR DEVICES FOR VEHICLES; REMOVABLE EXTERNAL PROTECTIVE COVERINGS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR VEHICLES
- B60J5/00—Doors
- B60J5/04—Doors arranged at the vehicle sides
- B60J5/042—Reinforcement elements
- B60J5/0422—Elongated type elements, e.g. beams, cables, belts or wires
- B60J5/0423—Elongated type elements, e.g. beams, cables, belts or wires characterised by position in the lower door structure
- B60J5/0425—Elongated type elements, e.g. beams, cables, belts or wires characterised by position in the lower door structure the elements being arranged essentially horizontal in the centre of the lower door structure
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60J—WINDOWS, WINDSCREENS, NON-FIXED ROOFS, DOORS, OR SIMILAR DEVICES FOR VEHICLES; REMOVABLE EXTERNAL PROTECTIVE COVERINGS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR VEHICLES
- B60J5/00—Doors
- B60J5/04—Doors arranged at the vehicle sides
- B60J5/042—Reinforcement elements
- B60J5/0422—Elongated type elements, e.g. beams, cables, belts or wires
- B60J5/0438—Elongated type elements, e.g. beams, cables, belts or wires characterised by the type of elongated elements
- B60J5/0443—Beams
- B60J5/0445—Beams formed of several elements arranged in series
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60J—WINDOWS, WINDSCREENS, NON-FIXED ROOFS, DOORS, OR SIMILAR DEVICES FOR VEHICLES; REMOVABLE EXTERNAL PROTECTIVE COVERINGS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR VEHICLES
- B60J5/00—Doors
- B60J5/04—Doors arranged at the vehicle sides
- B60J5/042—Reinforcement elements
- B60J5/0422—Elongated type elements, e.g. beams, cables, belts or wires
- B60J5/0438—Elongated type elements, e.g. beams, cables, belts or wires characterised by the type of elongated elements
- B60J5/0443—Beams
- B60J5/0447—Beams formed of several elements arranged in parallel
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60J—WINDOWS, WINDSCREENS, NON-FIXED ROOFS, DOORS, OR SIMILAR DEVICES FOR VEHICLES; REMOVABLE EXTERNAL PROTECTIVE COVERINGS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR VEHICLES
- B60J5/00—Doors
- B60J5/04—Doors arranged at the vehicle sides
- B60J5/042—Reinforcement elements
- B60J5/0452—Reinforcement elements including foams or expanded materials
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60J—WINDOWS, WINDSCREENS, NON-FIXED ROOFS, DOORS, OR SIMILAR DEVICES FOR VEHICLES; REMOVABLE EXTERNAL PROTECTIVE COVERINGS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR VEHICLES
- B60J5/00—Doors
- B60J5/04—Doors arranged at the vehicle sides
- B60J5/042—Reinforcement elements
- B60J5/0456—Behaviour during impact
- B60J5/0461—Behaviour during impact characterised by a pre-defined mode of deformation or displacement in order to absorb impact
-
- 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
- B62D21/157—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 for side impacts
Abstract
Side impact beam 20 for a side door (10, Figure 1) of a vehicle. The side impact beam 20 comprising at least one outer structure element 26 and at least one inner structure element 28, at least one receiving space 30 bounded at least partly by the inner structure element 28 and the outer structure element 26. The side impact beam also having at least one foam element 34 via which the structure elements 26, 28 are connected to one another and at least one spring element 38 arranged in the receiving space 30 between the structure elements 26, 28 and supported on the structure elements 26, 28. The spring element 38 and the foam element 34 being capable of being compressed due to a side impact acting upon the side impact beam 20. Preferably the side impact beam 20 has at least one guiding element 40 for guiding the spring element 28 during compression effected by a side impact.
Description
Side Impact Beam for a Vehicle The invention relates to a side impact beam for a side door of a vehicle, in particular, a motor vehicle.
Side impact beams for side doors of vehicles are well-known from the general prior art.
Such side impact beams are used as side impact protection elements to protect passengers of the vehicles from intrusions effected by a side impact acting upon a side door. In such a side impact an object such as but not limited to a pole or a ball hits the side door in the transverse direction of the vehicle. The side impact beam serves for absorbing crash energy by deforming. This means that the side impact beam is deformed due to the side impact in order to absorb crash energy and keep intrusions to a minimum.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a side impact beam for a side door of a vehicle, the side impact beam being capable of absorbing a particularly high amount of crash energy in case of a side impact.
This object is solved by a side impact beam having the features of patent claim 1.
Advantageous embodiments with expedient and non-trivial developments of the invention are indicated in the other patent claims.
In order to provide a side impact beam for a side door of a vehicle which is capable of absorbing a particularly high amount of crash energy in case of a side impact, according to the present invention the side impact beam comprises at least one outer structure element, at least one inner structure element and at least one receiving space. The receiving space is bounded at least partly by the inner structure element and the outer structure element respectively.
The side impact beam also comprises at least one foam element via which the structure elements are connected to one another. Furthermore, the side impact beam comprises at least one spring element. The spring element is arranged in the receiving space between the structure elements. Moreover, the spring element is supported on the structure elements respectively. This means that the spring element is supported on the outer structure element on the one side and on the inner structure element on the other side.
The spring element and the foam element are capable of being compressed due to a side impact acting upon the side impact beani. In other words, if an object such as but not limited to a pole or a ball hits the side door having the side impact beam according to the present invention in the transverse direction of the vehicle, the spring element and the foam element are compressed, thereby absorbing energy.
After the spring element and the foam element had been compressed due to the side impact, the structure elements form a box section of the side impact beam. Said box section is capable of absorbing a further amount of energy by deforming, for example, by bending. Thus, the side impact beam according to the present invention can absorb crash energy by transforming crash energy into deformation energy in two stages. In the first one of said stages, crash energy is absorbed by the spring element and the foam element which are deformed. In the second stage, crash energy can be absorbed very effectively by the structure elements forming the box section. Hence, a particularly high amount of crash energy can be absoibed by the side impact beam so that passengers of the vehicle can be protected very effectively from intrusions effected by the side impact.
Further advantages, features and details of the invention derive from the following description of a preferred embodiment as well as from the drawings, the feature and feature combinations previously mentioned in the description as well as the features and feature combinations mentioned in the following description of the figures and/or shown in the figures alone can be employed not only in the respective indicated combination but also in any other combination or taken alone without leaving the scope of the invention.
The drawing shows in: Fig. 1 a schematic side view of a side door for a passenger vehicle, the side door comprising a side impact beam having an outer structure element, an inner structure element, a receiving space bounded by the structure elements, at least one foam element via which the structure elements are connected to one another, and at least one spring element arranged in the receiving space between the structure elements and supported on the structure elements respectively; Fig. 2 a schematic sectional view of the side impact beam in an undeformed state; and Fig. 3 a schematic sectional view of the side impact beam being deformed due to a side impact.
In the figures the same elements or elements having the same function are equipped with the same reference sign.
Fig. 1 shows a side door 10 for a vehicle in the form of a passenger vehicle. Figs. 2 and 3 show a sectional view of the side door 10 along a cut line A-A shown in Fig. 1. As can be seen from Figs. 2 and 3, the side door 10 comprises an outer panel 12 and an inner panel 14, which are connected to one another via respective flanges 16. The outer panel 12 and the inner panel 14 bound a receiving space 18 of the side door 10.
The side door 10 also comprises a side impact beam 20 arranged in the receiving space 18. The side impact beam serves for absorbing crash energy in case of a side impact in which an object such as a pole or a ball hits the side door 10 in the transverse direction of the vehicle. Fig. 2 shows the side door 10 and the side impact beam 20 in an undeformed state. Fig. 3 shows the side door 10 and the side impact beam 20 in a deformed state, wherein the side door 10 and the side impact beam 20 are deformed due to a side impact in which an object in the form of a pole 22 collides with the side door 10 in the transverse direction of the vehicle. A directional arrow 24 illustrates the movement of the pole 22 during the side impact.
The side impact beam 20 acts as a side impact protection element which serves for keeping intrusions into the interior of the passenger vehicle to a minimum so that passengers of the passenger vehicle can be protected. The side impact beam 20 comprises an outer structure element 26 and an inner structure element 28. At least respective portions of the structure elements 26, 28 are arranged at a distance from each other in the transverse direction of the vehicle so that the structure elements 26, 28 bound a receiving space 30 of the side impact beam 20. In other words, the receiving space 30 is bounded at least partly by the inner structure element 28 and the outer structure element 26 respectively.
The structure elements 26, 28 are connected to one another via respective side portions 32. As can be seen from Fig. 2, the side impact beam 20 comprises at least one foam element 34 which is arranged at least partly between the structure elements 26, 28. The structure elements 26, 28 are connected to one another via the foam element 33 which is, for example, made of microcellular foam. The foam element 34 is a semi-solid member used to connect or bond the outer structure element 26 to the inner structure element 28.
For example, the structure elements 26, 28 are glued to one another by means of the foam element 34 which, for example, is glued to the outer structure element 26 on the one side and the inner structure element 28 on the other side.
The outer structure element 26 is connected to the outer panel 12. For example, the outer structure element 26 is bonded or glued to the outer panel 12. Adhesives 36 are used to glue the outer structure element 26 to the outer panel 12. The inner structure element 28 is bonded or connected to the inner panel 14. For example, the inner structure element 28 is glued to the inner panel 14 using an adhesive, too.
The structure elements 26, 28 can be made of a metallic material. Advantageously, the structure elements 26, 28 are designed as composite structures respectively. This means that the structure elements 26, 28 are made of, for example, a fibre-reinforced plastic material. This allows for realizing a very high stiffness and a very low weight of the structure elements 26, 28.
The side impact beam 20 further comprises four spring elements in the form of helical springs 38. The helical springs 38 are arranged in the receiving space 30 and supported on the outer structure element 26 and the inner structure element 28 respectively. The helical springs 38 are compression springs which are compressed if the structure elements 26, 28 move towards each other. Furthermore, the side impact beam 20 comprises guiding elements 40 for guiding the helical springs 38 during the compression of the helical springs 38.
As can be seen from Fig. 2, the guiding elements 40 are connected to the outer structure element 26 on the one side and the inner structure element 28 on the other side.
Moreover, the guiding elements 40 are arranged within the helical springs 38 respectively.
The side impact beam 20 is capable of absorbing energy at very high speed in two stages. Furthermore, the weight of the side impact beam 20 can be kept to a minimum.
During the side impact, the pole 22 pushes the outer panel 12 and the outer structure element 26 towards the inner structure element 28 and the passenger compartments as shown in Fig. 3. During this collision a very high amount of energy can be absorbed by the side impact beam 20. In the first stage, the helical springs 38 and the foam element 34 are compressed due to the side impact. Thereby, a very high amount of energy is absorbed by the helical springs 38 being compressed and the foam element 34 collapsing. In the first stage, the helical springs 38 are compressed to the maximum.
After the first stage, a box section 42 shown in Fig. 3 is formed by the structure elements 26, 28. This box section 42 serves for absorbing remaining energy in the second stage by deforming. In other words, in the second stage the box section 42 can be deformed thereby absorbing a further amount of crash energy. Thus, a very high amount of energy can be absorbed in the two stages together before the side door 10 deforms or collapses completely. Hence, the passengers of the passenger vehicle can be protected from intrusions very effectively.
The side impact beam 20 can absorb energy through elastic deformation of the helical springs 38 and plastic deformation of the box section 42 or the structure elements 26, 28 respectively. By absorbing energy through elastic deformation of the helical springs 38, the magnitude of impact energy acting upon the side impact beam 20 can be reduced.
After initial compression of the helical springs 38, the side impact beam 20, in particular, the structure elements 26, 28 forms or form a closed section (box section 42), increasing the section modulus contributing to increase stiffness of the side impact beam 20. This increased stiffness effectively aids in reduced beam deformation without negatively effecting the energy absorbing characteristics required for the side impact beam 20. The usage of heterogeneous materials such as carbon-epoxy composite, in particular, for the structure elements 26, 28 possessing high specific modulus and strength results in a significant weight reduction of the side impact beam 20 in comparison with conventional side impact beams.
List of reference signs side door 12 outer panel 14 inner panel 16 flanges 18 receiving space side impact beam 22 pole 24 direcitonal arrow 26 outer structure element 28 inner structure element receiving space 32 side portions 34 foam element 36 adhesive 38 helical spring guiding element 42 box seciton
Claims (6)
- Claims A side impact beam (20) for a side door (10) of a vehicle, the side impact beam (20) comprising: -at least one outer structure element (26), -at least one inner structure element (28), -at least one receiving space (30) bounded at least partly by the inner structure element (28) and the outer structure element (26) respectively, -at least one foam element (34) via which the structure elements (26, 28) are connected to one another, and -at least one spring element (38) arranged in the receiving space (30) between the structure elements (24, 28) and supported on the structure elements (26, 28) respectively, the spring element (38) and the loam element (34) being capable of being compressed due to a side impact acting upon the side impact beam (20).
- 2. The side impact beam (20) according to claim 1, characterized in that the side impact beam (20) comprises at least one guiding element (40) for guiding the spring element (28) during its compression effected by the side impact.
- 3. The side impact beam (20) according to any one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the spring element (38) is designed as a helical spring (38).
- 4. The side impact beam (20) according to claims 2 and 3, characterized in that the guiding element (40) is arranged at least partly inside the helical spring (38).
- 5. The side impact beam (20) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one of the structure elements (26, 28) is designed as a composite structure.
- 6. A side door (10) for a vehicle, the side door (10) comprising at least one side impact (20) beam according to any one of the preceding claims.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB201319213A GB2508979A (en) | 2013-10-31 | 2013-10-31 | Vehicle side impact beam having foam and sprung elements |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB201319213A GB2508979A (en) | 2013-10-31 | 2013-10-31 | Vehicle side impact beam having foam and sprung elements |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| GB201319213D0 GB201319213D0 (en) | 2013-12-18 |
| GB2508979A true GB2508979A (en) | 2014-06-18 |
Family
ID=49767441
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB201319213A Withdrawn GB2508979A (en) | 2013-10-31 | 2013-10-31 | Vehicle side impact beam having foam and sprung elements |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| GB (1) | GB2508979A (en) |
Cited By (5)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN106314095A (en) * | 2016-08-23 | 2017-01-11 | 苏州万隆汽车零部件股份有限公司 | Automobile door panel with buffering apparatus |
| CN107139700A (en) * | 2017-05-27 | 2017-09-08 | 成都创科升电子科技有限责任公司 | One kind automatically controls protecting against shock car door |
| CN108583240A (en) * | 2018-04-03 | 2018-09-28 | 芜湖华佳新能源技术有限公司 | A kind of new-energy automobile car door with shock-absorbing function |
| CN111301123A (en) * | 2020-04-29 | 2020-06-19 | 宁波科镭汽车零部件有限公司 | Automobile door plate assembly |
| WO2022171467A1 (en) * | 2021-02-09 | 2022-08-18 | Mercedes-Benz Group AG | Side door for a motor vehicle |
Citations (3)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US4978562A (en) * | 1990-02-05 | 1990-12-18 | Mpa Diversified Products, Inc. | Composite tubular door beam reinforced with a syntactic foam core localized at the mid-span of the tube |
| DE4327393A1 (en) * | 1993-08-14 | 1995-02-16 | Linde & Wiemann Gmbh Kg | Side impact protection in the form of a profiled element which can be fastened on the door of a motor vehicle and method for the production of the profiled element |
| DE19653434A1 (en) * | 1995-12-22 | 1997-07-03 | Hyundai Motor Co Ltd | Side impact absorber for rear region of passenger car |
-
2013
- 2013-10-31 GB GB201319213A patent/GB2508979A/en not_active Withdrawn
Patent Citations (3)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US4978562A (en) * | 1990-02-05 | 1990-12-18 | Mpa Diversified Products, Inc. | Composite tubular door beam reinforced with a syntactic foam core localized at the mid-span of the tube |
| DE4327393A1 (en) * | 1993-08-14 | 1995-02-16 | Linde & Wiemann Gmbh Kg | Side impact protection in the form of a profiled element which can be fastened on the door of a motor vehicle and method for the production of the profiled element |
| DE19653434A1 (en) * | 1995-12-22 | 1997-07-03 | Hyundai Motor Co Ltd | Side impact absorber for rear region of passenger car |
Cited By (5)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN106314095A (en) * | 2016-08-23 | 2017-01-11 | 苏州万隆汽车零部件股份有限公司 | Automobile door panel with buffering apparatus |
| CN107139700A (en) * | 2017-05-27 | 2017-09-08 | 成都创科升电子科技有限责任公司 | One kind automatically controls protecting against shock car door |
| CN108583240A (en) * | 2018-04-03 | 2018-09-28 | 芜湖华佳新能源技术有限公司 | A kind of new-energy automobile car door with shock-absorbing function |
| CN111301123A (en) * | 2020-04-29 | 2020-06-19 | 宁波科镭汽车零部件有限公司 | Automobile door plate assembly |
| WO2022171467A1 (en) * | 2021-02-09 | 2022-08-18 | Mercedes-Benz Group AG | Side door for a motor vehicle |
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| GB201319213D0 (en) | 2013-12-18 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| WAP | Application withdrawn, taken to be withdrawn or refused ** after publication under section 16(1) |