IE60489B1

IE60489B1 - Vehicle wing

Info

Publication number: IE60489B1
Application number: IE200687A
Authority: IE
Original assignee: Audi Ag
Priority date: 1986-07-25
Filing date: 1987-07-24
Publication date: 1994-07-27
Also published as: DE3724193A1; IE872006L; DE3724193C2; DK387487D0; DE8620034U1; EP0253989A3; EP0253989A2; DE8710014U1; DK167967B1; EP0253989B1; ES2011281B3; GR3000198T3; DK387487A

Abstract

Kotflügel (10), der mit geringem Montageaufwand zu montieren ist und trotz geringen Gewichtes hohe Eigensteifigkeit besitzt. Durch die genau definierte Anbringung der Befestigungsöffnungen (42-52-60-64-90-9) sowie die Bemaßung der versteifenden Absätze oder Knicke (16-66-74) ist die beabsichtigte Wirkung zu erzielen.

Description

The description concerns a mudguard for a passenger vehicle, with a wheel opening an opening in the forward region for holding part of a 25 headlamp/blinker unit, in which the mudguard has at least one shoulder running in the direction of travel = flanges for attaching further sections and for bolting to the rest of the passenger vehicle body are provided at the edges, the mudguard is extended further down behind the wheel opening, in relation to the direction of travel, than in front of the wheel opening, a first shoulder runs in a horizontal direction in front of the wheel opening and behind the wheel opening at approximately - 3 two-thirds of the height between the lower mudguard edge and the vertex of the wheel opening, the wheel opening is extended slightly outwards above the first shoulder, and in the forward region of the mudguard the sheet metal region lying below the first shoulder is recessed inwards and has an attachment hole.

Mudguards of this type are state of the art (see, for example, DE-A 3 408 091 )t: they are components of the motor vehicle body and serve to screen the vehicle wheels.

Efforts are made to optimize the mudguards with respect to their shapes, in which attention has to be paid to various peripheral criteria. Thus, ease of replacement of a mudguard is desirable, and the assembly costs can be lowered by reducing the attachment points at which the mudguard is bolted to the body. Efforts are made to produce a mudguard which has a low intrinsic weight, it being necessary to ensure that the strength is retained. Furthermore, during assembly and attachment care must be taken that the component is not subject to any natural vibrations which could be caused by resonances in critical frequency ranges.

The object of the invention is to produce a mudguard in this category which has a good intrinsic stiffness without a high weight content and can be attached with an easy assembly system so that it is free from vibration.

According to the invention there is provided a mudguard for a passenger vehicle, with a wheel opening an opening in the forward region for holding part of a headlamp/blinker unit, in which the mudguard has at least one shoulder running in the direction of travel flanges for attaching further sections and for bolting to the rest of the passenger vehicle body are provided at the edges, the mudguard is extended further down behind the wheel opening, in relation to the direction of travel, than in front of the wheel open i ng, a first shoulder runs in a horizontal direction in front of the wheel opening and behind the wheel opening at approximately two-thirds of the height between the lower mudguard edge and the vertex of the wheel opening, the wheel opening is extended slightly outwards above the first shoulder, and in the forward region of the mudguard the sheet metal region lying below the first shoulder is recessed inwards and has an attachment hole, characterized by the following features, 1. the first shoulder runs at a level approximately halfway between the lower edge of the mudguard and the upper vertex of the wheel opening and in the rear region of the mudguard the first shoulder is formed by a projection and a depression lying below it, 2. in the forward region the shoulder is formed by a shallow projection and an inward running step immediately below it, 3. in the forward region of the mudguard below the first shoulder the wheel opening is displaced inwards and forwards relative to the direction of travel, 4. the wheel opening region above the first shoulder lies approximately in the same plane as the projection of the first shoulder, . four holes forming the corners of a rectangle are provided in the lower region of the part lying below the first shoulder in front of the wheel opening in which in the assembled position of the mudguard the distance from hole centre to hole centre in the horizontal direction is approximately 5 cm and the distance from hole centre to hole centre in the vertical direction is approximately 7 cm, . the sheet metal region carrying the holes forming the corners of a rectangle is formed so that it projects slightly outwards in relation to the sheet metal region lying in front of it, 7. the sheet metal region carrying the holes forming the corners of a rectangle is bounded at the rear and lower region by a stiffening formation formed as an outward projection, a flange with attachment hole being provided at the bottom of this region and a flange which runs inwards towards the displaced section of the wheel opening being provided at the rear of this region, 8. in the forward region of the mudguard the sheet metal region lying below the first shoulder is bent inwards towards the front and terminates in a flange pointing in the direction of travel, 9» another flange with attachment opening is provided in the forward end region of the first shoulder, . the upper part of the mudguard is extended inwards along a fold along a line running essentially horizontally approximately 11 cm above the upper vertex of the wheel opening in which the opening for holding part of a headlamp/blinker unit has its upper extremity in the forward region approximately at a level with this fold, 11. above the fold a second shoulder runs at an acute angle to the fold in the direction of travel and is at a distance of approximately 5 cm from the fold in the forward region and approximately Π cm from the fold in the rear region, 12. the second shoulder is formed by an inward step in the sheet metal in the upward direction, 13. above the second shoulder the region of the mudguard is curved inwards and in the rear region projects inwards to reach the front roof column, 14. in front of the inward projecting region to reach the front roof column the upper edge of the mudguard at the extremity of the region extended inwards at an inclination to the vertical by the curvature terminates in a flange which is folded approximately vertically downwards and which after approximately 2.5 to 3 cm merges via a right=angle fold into a horizontal flange, . the upper flange has attachment holes which are between 15 and 20 cm apart.

Thus, in the mudguard in accordance with the invention there is provision for the mudguard in the forward region in front of the wheel opening not to be extended fully down to the underside of the vehicle as this space is in any case screened by a skirt and by bumpers. This corresponding sheet metal section of the mudguard is therefore superfluous and can be omitted to reduce the weight. v A shoulder, which is formed in the forward region as a step and in the rear region as a reinforcing seam, provides stiffening for the mudguard, the geometric configuration of this shoulder coming in a region which would otherwise be subject to relatively slight instability. The strength in this region is further assisted by this first shoulder in that the first shoulder is led. around the wheel opening as a slight projection.

In the forward region below this shoulder the wheel opening is extended forward making a further saving of material possible.

Four holes forming a rectangle are provided for attaching the bumper, and these four holes lie within a region stiffened by appropriate projections, so that a fixing for the mudguard is specified at this point.

A flange for attachment is provided below the first shoulder in front of this forward region; this attachment point ensures a stable mounting with low assembly costs. A further flange with an attachment opening directly in the forward end region of the first shoulder provides an additional stabilizing effect.

Above the first shoulder the mudguard is bent inwards by means of a crease which contributes further strength to the component. This crease terminates approximately in the upper region of the opening for the headlamp/blinker unit, which contributes additional stabilization of the mudguard at the front and in this way the entire mudguard is stabilized by this crease.

In order to achieve significant strength another shoulder, in the form of a small step, is provided above this crease; the whole combination of the first shoulder, the crease and the second shoulder leads to a high self-supporting capability of the sheet metal part.

Iii the upper rear region the mudguard joins to the forward roof column which provides a fixing for the component, in this region; a flange with a series of Fig. attachment holes is also provided along the entire upper edge.

Advantageous embodiments are to be found in the subclaims .

The mudguard in accordance with the invention is described in detail below with the aid of the drawing in which shows a side view of the mudguard in accordance with the invention, shows a view from above, Fig. 3 shows view taken diagonally from below which shows the wheel opening and the inner sheet metal parts, and Fig. 4 shows a perspective view taken diagonally from in front.

A mudguard (10) is shown in the four diagrams in which in each case the direction of travel is represented by the arrow (12).

The mudguard (10) is normally a sheet metal component which is fabricated from one piece and has a wheel opening (14). On both sides of the wheel opening (14) runs a shoulder (16) which in the forward region of the mudguard divides the distance between the upper vertex (20) of the wheel opening (14) and the lower edge (18) of the mudguard approximately in half while in the rear region it divides the distance between the vertex (20) of the wheel opening (14) and the lower edge of the sheet metal (22) approximately into thirds with the shoulder (16) lying closer to the vertex (20) of the wheel opening (14) than to the lower edger (22) of the rear sheet metal section (24).

In the rear sheet metal region (24) the shoulder (16) consists of a protrusion (26) below which is a depression (28) or reinforcing seam (2Θ), in which the protrusion (26) in its forward development is extended around the edge (20) of the wheel opening (14) as projection (30) and becomes gradually flatter as projection (32) in its further development in front of the wheel opening (14) until it virtually disappears in the region (30) where it at least still- just projects beyond the rest of the surrounding sheet metal. In the forward region in front of the wheel opening (14) a step (34), which is extended inwards, is provided below the projection (32) and the sheet metal region (44 and 56) lying below it is covered by a bumper when installation is completed.

The wheeJL opening (14) has an edge (20) which describes part of a circle, but in the forward section θ below the step (34) this circular wheel opening (20) is displaced forwards, i.e. in the region below the step (34) the edge (36) of the wheel opening has a larger radius than in the remaining region (20) of the wheel opening (14).

Adjacent to the front of the wheel opening (36) is provided a raised sheet metal region (40) which makes a slight step (46) in relation to the sheet metal region (44) lying ahead of it and in which there are four openings (42) which approximately form the corners of a θ rectangle, the distance between the holes being 5 cm in the horizontal direction and 7 cm in the vertical direction. These holes (42) forming a rectangle serve for attaching a mount for a bumper support. In accordance with the invention there is provision for this region to be constructed with a higher intrinsic stiffness and strength which is assisted by a projecting edge (48) which surrounds two sides of this sheet metal region (40) and stiffens, by means of a projection, this sheet metal region (40) where it runs into the wheel opening (36) in precisely the same way as in the region which is provided at the edge below this section of sheet metal (40). It can be advantageous if an attachment flange (50), which has an attachment opening (52), is also provided at this point.

The wheel opening edge (36) which is extended towards the front is bent inwards as a flange (54) and has two holes (92). The attachment holes (92) can be made as slotted holes and serve, for example, for holding a wheel housing casing.

The forward region (56) of the mudguard below the shoulder (16) is bent inwards and then, after another bend, terminates in a flange (58) pointing in the direction of travel. The flange (58) which represents the forward end of the lower region of the mudguard has ' an attachment hole (60) for securing the mudguard. As this flange fulfills relatively high strength requirements a reinforcing seam (94) is provided which extends directly into the flange (58) from the region (56) above its folded part; this reinforcing seam (94) has the effect of a stiffening rib.

Another flange (62), which has an attachment opening (64), is provided directly adjacent to the step (34) of the forward-running shoulder (16). As it is integral with the step this flange (62) is particularly strong.

A fold (66) which is provided above the wheel opening (14) contributes to the self-supporting behavior of the mudguard; it lies approximately 11 cm above the upper vertex (20) of the wheel opening (14) and runs in an approximately horizontal direction. This fold (66) serves to stabilize the entire planar component and at the same time it has a certain stylistic function for the overall lines of the vehicle.

The sheet metal region (68) above the fold (66) is thus no longer approximately vertical but is already extended significantly inwards and leads up to an approximately horizontal engine bonnet.

In the forward region in the headlamp opening a flange (70) is provide below the fold (66) to which the head lamp can be attached and against which it can lean; no large flange has been left in the opposite region (72), at the foremost point of th© sheet metal section (68), and only a supporting edge is provided for the headlamp. V A second shoulder (74) running above the fold (66) is at a distance of approximately 6 cm from the fold (66) in its forward region (76) and at a distance of approximately 11 cm from the fold (66) in its rear region (78); it does not therefore run completely parallel to the fold (66), and in fact the fold (66) and the second shoulder (74) draw slightly apart towards the rear. The second shoulder (74) is formed as a very shallow step in which the sheet metal region (80) above this second shoulder (74) stands back somewhat in A relation to the sheet metal region (68) below it. The upper sheet metal region (80) merges at its rear section into a region (82) which is directly adjacent to the < 10 foremost roof column, the so-called A-column, while the edge (84) lying further in front of it which leads into the engine bonnet has at its edge (86) a supporting flange (88), and this flange (88) has series of attachment holes (90). For preference six attachment holes (90) are provided separated by distances from front to rear of 20 cm, 20 cm, 20 cm, 15 cm and 18.5 cm, reinforcing seams (96) being provided between the attachment holes. The choice of the distances between the individual attachment holes in combination with the reinforcing seams (96) results in a defined crumpling behaviour of the mudguard and thus in an accident makes planned elimination of the energy χοο ss idle by collapsing of the mudguard.

For reasons of corrosion protection the mudguard is made in galvanized sheet metal.

I

Claims

1. Mudguard for a passenger vehicle, with - a wheel opening 5 - an opening in the forward region for holding part of a headlamp/blinkec unit, in which - the mudguard has at least one shoulder running in the direction of travel, = flanges for attaching further sections and for bolting 10 to the rest of the passenger vehicle body are provided at the edges, - the mudguard is extended further down behind the wheel opening , in relation to the direction of travels, than in front of the wheel opening, 15 - a first shoulder runs in a horizontal direction in front of the wheel opening and behind the wheel opening at approximately two-thirds of the height between the lower mudguard edge and the vertex of the wheel opening> 20 - the wheel opening is extended slightly outwards above the first shoulder ,» and - in the forward region of the mudguard the sheet metal region lying below the first shoulder is recessed inwards and has an attachment hole» 25 comprising the following features, li the first shoulder runs at a level approximately halfway between the lower edge of the mudguard and the upper vertex of the wheel opening and in the rear region of the mudguard the first shoulder is formed by a projection and a depression lying below it,

2. in the forward region the shoulder is formed by a shallow projection . and an inward, running step immediately below it,

3. in the forward region of the mudguard below the first shoulder th® wheel opening is 4. ' 5 5. 6. Θ. 9. displaced inwards and forwards relative to the direction of travel, the wheel opening region above the first shoulder lies approximately in the same plane as the projection of the first shoulder four holes forming the corners of a rectangle are provided in the lower region of the part lying below the first shoulder in front of the wheel opening in which in the assembled position of the mudguard the distance from hole centre to hole centre in the horizontal direction is approximately 5 cm and the distance from hole centre to hole centre in the vertical direction is approximately 7 cm, the sheet metal region carrying the holes forming the corners of a rectangle is formed so that projects slightly outwards in relation to the sheet metal region lying in front of it, the sheet metal region carrying the holes forming the corners of a rectangle is bounded at the rear and lower region by a stiffening formation formed as an outward projection» a flange with attachment hole being provided at the bottom of this region and a flange which runs inwards towards the displaced section of the wheel opening being provided at the rear of this region, in the forward region of the mudguard the sheet metal region lying below the first shoulder is bent inwards towards the front and terminates in a flange pointing in the direction of travel, another flange with attachment opening is provided in the forward end region of the first shoulder 9 the upper part of the mudguard is extended inwards along a fold along a line running essentially horizontally approximately 11 cm above the upper vertex of the wheel opening in which the opening for holding part of a headlamp/blinker unit has its upper extremity in the forward region approximately at a level with this fold„

11. above the fold a second shoulder runs at an acute angle to the fold in the direction of travel and is at a distance of approximately 6 cm from the fold in the forward region and approximately 11 cm from the fold in the rear region ,

12. the second shoulder is formed by an inward step in the sheet metal in the upward direction,

13. above the second shoulder the region of the mudguard is curved inwards and in the rear region projects inwards to reach the front roof column,

14. in front of the inward projecting region to reach the front roof column the upper edge of the mudguard at the extremity of the region extended inwards at an inclination to the vertical by the curvature terminates in a flange which is folded approximately vertically downwards and which after approximately 2.5 to 3 cm merges via a right-angle fold into a horizontal flange

15. the upper flange has attachment holes , which are between 15 and 20 cm apart.

2. Mudguard according to Claim 1, wherein the inward running flange of the displaced section of the wheel opening has two slotted attachment holes which are 12.5 cm apart.

3. Mudguard according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the flange which is extended forward in the forward region of the mudguard has a reinforcing seam leading back into the sheet metal region „

4. Mudguard according to one of Claims 1 to 3, wherein six holes separated by distances from front to rear of approximately 20 era, 20 cm, 20 cm, 15 cm and 18.5 cm are provided in the £lange mudguard 5. :ha four bordering the upper edge . of the • Mudguard according to one of Claims 1 to 4, .wherein each of the holes forming corners of a rectangle are square and have edge lengths of approximately· 1 cm. o.

Mudguard according to one of Claims 1 to 3, wherein . the sheet metal of the mudguard is galvanized.

7. Mudguard for a passenger vehicle» according to any of claims 1 to β and substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and/or aS shown in the accompanying drawings. 15 Dated this the 24th day of July, 1987 BY: