JP2000233768A - Body structure of automobile - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a body structure of automobile which can increase the rigidity in the car body width direction. SOLUTION: This body structure of an automobile has a cowl 30, a cowl reinforcing panel 32, a front pillar 34, and a gusset 38 connected to the cowl reinforcing panel 32 and the front pillar 34. A pillar outer panel and a pillar inner panel have flanges 51 and 53 at the front side extending to the inner side in the car body width direction. A cowl inner panel 40 extends straightly in the car body width direction, and connected to the pillar outer panel 50 except the flange at the front side at its end part, and connected to the flange at the front side, by the part to be the inner side in the car body width direction from this connecting part. In the gusset 38, the cross section cut in an imaginary vertical surface extending in the longitudinary direction of the car body is formed to present a closed structure together with the cowl inner panel.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automobile, and more particularly to a vehicle body structure of a passenger car.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIG. 3, a cowl outer panel 10 and a cowl inner panel 11 located behind the cowl outer panel 10 extend in the width direction of the vehicle body, a pillar outer panel 13 and a pillar outer panel 13. A front pillar 15 extending upward from each end of the cowl 12 in the vehicle width direction, and extending forward from each end of the cowl 12 in the vehicle width direction. A body structure of an automobile including a cowl side panel 16 and brackets 17 and 18 disposed over the cowl inner panel 11 and the front pillar has been proposed (Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-open No. HEI 4-104).
No. 114884).

In this vehicle body structure, the cowl side panel 1
6 and flanges 19, 20, and 21 protruding outward at the front ends of the pillar outer panel 13 and the pillar inner panel 14, respectively, and the end of the cowl inner panel 11 in the vehicle width direction. Flange 1
An extension 22 extending in the same direction as 9, 20, 21 is provided.
The extension is sandwiched between the flange 19 and the flange 21,
Spot welding.

[0004]

In the above-mentioned vehicle body structure, improvements have been made on the premise that working holes for connecting the cowl and the front pillar by spot welding are omitted.
However, the extension 22 of the cowl inner panel 11 is bent, and the brackets 17 and 18 extending between the cowl inner panel 11 and the front pillar 15 are not formed so as to exhibit a closed structure in combination with the cowl inner panel. Therefore, the rigidity in the vehicle width direction A at the joint between the cowl and the front pillar is low.

[0005] The present invention provides a vehicle body structure in which a working hole can be omitted and rigidity in the vehicle body width direction can be increased.

[0006]

A vehicle body structure according to the present invention comprises a cowl outer panel and a cowl inner panel located behind the cowl outer panel. The cowl extends in the vehicle body width direction and is connected to the cowl. A cowl reinforcing panel located behind the cowl inner panel, a pillar outer panel and a pillar inner panel located inside the pillar outer panel in the vehicle width direction, and extend upward from each end of the cowl in the vehicle width direction. The vehicle includes a front pillar, a cowl side panel extending forward from each end of the cowl in the vehicle width direction, and a gusset disposed over the cowl reinforcing panel and the front pillar. The pillar outer panel and the pillar inner panel each have a front flange that extends inward in the vehicle width direction and is overlapped and connected to each other. The cowl inner panel extends substantially straight in the vehicle body width direction, and is connected at each end thereof to a portion excluding a front flange of the pillar outer panel, and is further inward in the vehicle body width direction than the connection part. A portion is connected to a front flange of the front pillar. The cowl side panel is coupled to the cowl inner panel at a rear end thereof. And the gusset is
The cowl reinforcing panel and the pillar inner panel are coupled to each other, and a cross section cut along a virtual vertical plane extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction is formed so as to exhibit a closed structure in combination with the cowl inner panel.

[0007]

[Operation and Effect] The cowl inner panel extends substantially straight in the vehicle body width direction, and the cross section of the gusset cut by the virtual vertical plane extending in the vehicle front-rear direction is combined with the cowl inner panel to exhibit a closed structure. Therefore, the rigidity in the width direction of the vehicle body at the joint between the cowl and the front pillar can be significantly improved.

The pillar outer panel and the pillar inner panel of the front pillar each extend inward in the vehicle body width direction and have front flanges which are overlapped and connected to each other, and the cowl inner panel has pillars at each end thereof. Since it is connected to the front panel of the outer panel except for the front flange, and is connected to the front flange of the front pillar at a part that is inward in the vehicle width direction from this connection part, the cowl can be provided without providing a working hole. The inner panel, the pillar outer panel, and the pillar inner panel can be combined. Also, since the cowl side panel is connected to the cowl inner panel at the rear end, it is possible to connect the cowl side panel to the cowl inner panel before connecting the cowl inner panel to the front pillar. There is no need to provide holes.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to FIG. 1 in a sectional view and FIG.
, A cowl reinforcing panel 32, a front pillar 34,
A cowl side panel 36 and a gusset 38 are provided.

The cowl 30 includes a cowl outer panel 40 and a cowl inner panel 42 located behind the cowl outer panel 40, and extends in the vehicle width direction A. The cowl outer panel 40 is bent so that a cross section cut along a virtual vertical plane extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction B has a substantially U-shape, and the cowl inner panel 42 is bent so that the cross section has a substantially crank shape. The cowl outer panel 40 and the cowl inner panel 42 are arranged such that the opening side of the cowl outer panel 40 faces the cowl inner panel 42 and the flanges 41 and 43 projecting upward, respectively.
And the cowl inner panel 42
The lower flange 44 protruding forward and the end portion 45 of the cowl outer panel 40 are overlapped and joined, and a cross section cut along a virtual vertical plane extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction B has a closed structure. A dash panel (not shown) is disposed below the cowl 30 and, together with the cowl 30, separates the vehicle compartment from the front engine compartment.

The cowl reinforcing panel 32 is connected to the cowl 30 and is located behind the cowl inner panel 42. In the illustrated embodiment, the cowl reinforcing panel 32 is bent such that its cross section cut along a virtual vertical plane extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction B has a substantially U-shape. Cowl reinforcement panel 3
2 has an opening side facing the cowl inner panel 42, the upper flange 33 is overlapped with the flange 43 of the cowl inner panel 42, the three flanges 33, 43, 41 are spot-welded, and the lower part protrudes forward. End 46 of
Is overlapped with the flange 44 of the cowl inner panel 42, and the ends and the flanges 46, 44, 45 are spot-welded to be connected to the cowl 30. Cowl reinforcement panel 32
The end portion 47 in the vehicle width direction A is located at an interval from the front pillar 34 as shown in FIG.

The front pillar 34 includes a pillar outer panel 50 and a pillar inner panel 52 located inside the pillar outer panel 50 in the vehicle width direction A, and extends upward from each end of the cowl 30 in the vehicle width direction A. . The pillar outer panel 50 is formed such that a cross section cut along a virtual horizontal plane has a substantially U-shape, and the pillar inner panel 52 is bent substantially in a crank shape. The pillar outer panel 50 and the pillar inner panel 52 have front flanges 51 and 53 which extend inward in the vehicle body width direction and are connected to each other by being overlapped with each other. It has rear flanges 54, 55 that are joined together.

The cowl side panel 36 extends forward from each end of the cowl 30 in the vehicle width direction A. And
The gusset 38 is disposed over the cowl reinforcing panel 32 and the front pillar 34. The cowl side panel 36, the gusset 38, and the cowl inner panel 42 are further formed and connected as follows.

As shown in FIG. 1, the cowl inner panel 42 extends substantially straight in the vehicle body width direction A, and at its end 60, a front flange 53 of the pillar outer panel 50.
Are connected to the flanges 51 and 53 in front of the front pillar 34 at a portion that is inward in the vehicle width direction A from the connected portion. It is preferable that the end portion 60 of the cowl inner panel 42 bend rearward as shown, and be connected to a portion of the pillar outer panel 50 farthest from the flange 51. Further, it is preferable that the rear end 63 of the fender panel 62 that is located outside the cowl side panel 36 in the vehicle width direction and extends in the front-rear direction B is overlapped with and connected to the end 63 of the cowl inner panel 42. With this configuration, the pillar outer panel 50, the cowl inner panel 42, and the cowl top side panel 62 can be joined by spot welding.

The cowl side panel 36 is joined to the cowl inner panel 42 at the rear end 37 thereof. As in the illustrated embodiment, the end 37 is bent inward in the vehicle width direction A, and the flanges 51 and 53 of the front pillar 34 are bent.
If it is located corresponding to the two flanges 5
1, 53, the cowl inner panel 42 and the end 37 can be joined by spot welding. Further, the cowl side panel 3 is substantially extended on the pillar inner panel 52.
6, and the rigidity in the front-rear direction can be increased.

The gusset 38 is connected to the cowl reinforcing panel 32 and the pillar inner panel 52 and is formed so that a cross section cut along a virtual vertical plane extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction B exhibits a closed structure in combination with the cowl inner panel 42. Is done.

In the embodiment shown in FIG.
The upper piece 66, the lower piece 67, the front piece 68, and the rear piece 6
9 and an intermediate piece 70, and the front piece 68, the rear piece 69 and the intermediate piece 70 connect the upper piece 66 and the lower piece 67.
The front piece 68 is brought into contact with the cowl reinforcing panel 32, and a bolt 72 penetrating the front piece 68 is screwed into a nut (not shown) welded to the cowl reinforcing panel 32 to form the reinforcing panel 32.
Is joined to. The rear piece 69 is substantially parallel to the front piece 68. A flange 71 protrudes upward from the upper piece 66, downward from the lower piece 67, and further rearward from the rear piece 69.
The flange 43 and the pillar inner panel 52 are in contact with each other. A bolt 74 penetrates through a portion of the flange 71 projecting rearward from the rear piece 69, and the bolt 74 is screwed into a nut (not shown) welded to the pillar inner panel 52 so that the rear piece 69 is connected to the pillar inner panel 52. ing. The upper piece 66 and the lower piece 67 have the flange 71 projecting up and down joined to the flange 43 of the cowl inner panel 42 and the pillar inner panel 52 by fillet welding. The gusset 38 preferably has a length in the front-rear direction so as to cover substantially the entire width of the pillar inner panel 52 in the vehicle front-rear direction.

As in this embodiment, if the gussets 38 are connected by bolts 72 and 74 and are connected by fillet welding, the entire gusset 38 is first positioned by bolt connection, and then fillet welded. Therefore, fillet welding is easily performed. Since the gusset 38 and the cowl inner panel 42 and the gusset 38 and the pillar inner panel 52 are firmly connected by fillet welding, rattling is eliminated, and sufficient rigidity can be secured. Instead of the above-described embodiment, the gusset 38 may be welded to the cowl inner panel 42 and the pillar inner panel 52 by fillet welding without bolt connection.

As shown in the embodiment shown in FIG.
When the rear piece 69 of 8 has a length extending over the entire width of the pillar inner panel 52 in the vehicle longitudinal direction, it extends in the vehicle width direction,
An instrument panel reinforcement 80 supporting a steering column or the like (not shown) can be attached to the rear piece 69 of the gusset 38. That is, two nuts 82 are welded to the rear piece 69, while a bracket 84 is attached to the end of the instrument panel reinforcement 80, a bolt 86 is inserted through a hole 88 provided in the bracket 84, and screwed into the nut 82. Then, the instrument panel reinforcement 80 is attached to the gusset 38. In this way, the connecting portion between the cowl 30 and the front pillar 34 can be reinforced by the gusset 38, and the instrument panel reinforcement 80 can be connected to the vehicle body.

As shown, the front piece 68 of the gusset 38
, The rear piece 69 and the intermediate piece 70 are provided with a recess 90 at the center in the vertical direction, so that the rigidity of the gusset 38 can be increased.
The rigidity of the cowl reinforcing panel 32 can be increased by providing the concave portion 92 at a position corresponding to 0. In order to increase the rigidity, a convex portion may be used instead of the concave portions 90 and 92.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a horizontal sectional view showing an embodiment of a vehicle body structure of an automobile according to the present invention, and shows only one side portion in a vehicle body width direction.

FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view showing an embodiment of the vehicle body structure of the automobile according to the present invention, and shows only one side in the vehicle body width direction.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 1, showing a preceding vehicle body structure;

[Explanation of symbols]

 30 cowl 32 cowl reinforcing panel 34 front pillar 36 cowl side panel 38 gusset 40 cowl outer panel 42 cowl inner panel 50 pillar outer panel 52 pillar inner panel 51, 53 flange

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A cowl outer panel and a cowl inner panel located behind the cowl outer panel, the cowl extending in the vehicle width direction, and a cowl reinforcing panel coupled to the cowl and located behind the cowl inner panel. It consists of a pillar outer panel and a pillar inner panel located inward of the pillar outer panel in the vehicle width direction,
A front pillar extending upward from each end of the cowl in the vehicle width direction; a cowl side panel extending forward from each end of the cowl in the vehicle width direction; and a cowl reinforcing panel and the front pillar. A body structure of an automobile including a gusset, wherein the pillar outer panel and the pillar inner panel each have a front flange that extends inward in the vehicle body width direction and are overlapped and connected to each other; The panel extends substantially straight in the vehicle body width direction, and is connected at each end thereof to a portion other than a front flange of the pillar outer panel, and at a portion that is more inward in the vehicle body width direction than the connection portion. The cowl side panel is connected to a front flange of a front pillar, and the cowl inner panel is provided at a rear end thereof. The gusset is coupled to the cowl reinforcing panel and the pillar inner panel, and a cross section cut along a virtual vertical plane extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction has a closed structure combined with the cowl inner panel. The car body structure formed.