JP2002037128A - Hood device for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a hood device for vehicle suppressing the cost by reducing the number of components. SOLUTION: This hood device 20 for the vehicle is provided with a hinge means 30 also used as a connecting link mechanism which mounts a second link 60 on a lower bracket 31 at ordinary times, opens/closes the hood 21 with a hinge pin 68 connecting the second link 60 to the hood 21 set to the center of the hinge, raises the hood 21 by an actuator 24 when being collided with an obstacle 18, and determines the raising position of the hood 21 by the extended first and second links 50 and 60. The hinge means 30 is a stopper claw 40, which is detached by the operation of the actuator 24 but holds the connecting state by the ordinary hood opening/closing force and prevents the hood 21 from floating in the ordinary time by connecting the second link 60 to the lower bracket 31.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a hood device for a vehicle which lifts the hood to secure a sufficient amount of deformation of the hood and absorbs an impact.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Some vehicle hood devices lift a hood by a predetermined amount and hold the hood at the raised position when a running vehicle collides with an obstacle. By lifting the hood, the amount of downward deformation can be increased, and the amount of collision energy absorption can be increased. As this type of vehicle hood device, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No.
Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 258774, “Flip-up hood” is known, and this technique will be described with reference to the following figure.

FIG. 9 is a side view of a conventional vehicle hood device, showing a state in which the hood is closed. Vehicle hood device 1
00, a bracket 102 is attached to the vehicle body 101, and a guide hole 102a is formed in the bracket 102;
The lower end of the link 105 is attached to 2a by a lower pin 103, and the upper end of the link 105 is connected to a hood arm 107 by an upper pin 106.

The lock piece 111 is attached to the bracket 102 with a fixing pin 110, a tension spring 114 is hung on the lock piece 111, and the claw 112 of the lock piece 111 is pressed against the upper pin 106 by the spring force of the tension spring 114. Thereby, the upper pin 106 is connected to the U-shaped groove 1 of the bracket 102.
02b, it is possible to prevent the link 105 from rising. By preventing the link 105 from rising, it is possible to prevent the hood 108 from lifting up during normal times, and to prevent rattling of the hood 108.

On the other hand, when a vehicle collides with an obstacle,
By releasing the pawl 112 of the lock piece 111 from the upper pin 106 to make the link 105 free, the hood 108
Can be lifted to a predetermined lifting position. An example in which the hood 108 is lifted will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the conventional vehicle hood device, and shows a state in which the hood is lifted. When the vehicle collides with an obstacle, an actuator (not shown) operates and a lifting force is applied to the hood 108. At the same time, lock piece 1
11 is applied with an unlocking force F as indicated by an arrow to
11 is rotated about the fixing pin 110 as shown by an arrow a. The pawl 112 of the lock piece 111 comes off the upper pin 106, and the link 105 becomes free.

For this reason, the upper pin 106 rises as shown by the arrow b in accordance with the hood 108, and the lower pin 103 moves along the guide hole 102a as shown by the arrow c. As a result, the hood 108 is lifted by a predetermined amount, and the amount of downward deformation of the hood 108 is increased, so that the amount of collision energy absorption can be increased.

[0008]

However, in order to eliminate rattling of the hood 108 during normal operation, the upper pin 106
Must be locked by the claws 112 of the lock pieces 111. For this reason, the lock piece 111 and a tension spring 114 for holding the lock piece 111 at the lock position are required. On the other hand, in order to lift the hood 108 when the vehicle collides, the lock piece 111 at the lock position must be operated to the unlock position. For this reason, an operation mechanism for operating the lock piece 111 in the unlocked state is required. Therefore, the number of parts of the vehicle hood device 100 increases, which causes a cost increase.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a hood device for a vehicle which can reduce the number of parts and suppress an increase in cost.

[0010]

In order to achieve the above object, a first aspect of the present invention is to provide a bracket on a vehicle body side through a first pin.
A link is swingably attached, a second link is swingably attached to the first link via a connecting pin, and a hood at the front of the vehicle is attached to the second link via a hinge pin. The hood is opened and closed with the hinge pin connecting the hood as the hinge center. When an obstacle collides with the vehicle, the hood is lifted by the action of the actuator, and the extended first and second links determine the ascending position of the hood. In a vehicle hood device provided with a hinge that also serves as a link mechanism, the second link is connected to a bracket by a stopper claw having a rigidity that comes off when an actuator is actuated but maintains a coupled state with a normal hood opening / closing force, It is characterized by preventing the hood from floating during normal times.

By connecting the second link to the bracket with the stopper pawl, the hood is prevented from floating in a normal state. By merely providing the stopper claws, it is possible to prevent rattling due to the lifting of the hood. Therefore, the backlash of the hood can be prevented with a simple configuration, so that the number of parts can be reduced.

By the way, according to the prior art, when the connecting link is extended, it is necessary to release the lock by the operating mechanism. For this reason, an operation mechanism is required as a dedicated member for unlocking, and the number of components is increased. In this regard, claim 1
When the actuator operates, the lock is released by removing the stopper claw from the second link by the lifting force, so that a special operation mechanism for releasing the lock is not required. Therefore, the number of parts can be further reduced.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Here, “front” and “rear” follow directions viewed from the driver, and Fr in the figure indicates a front side and Rr indicates a rear side. The drawings should be viewed in the direction of reference numerals.

FIG. 1 is a side view of a vehicle equipped with a vehicle hood device according to the present invention. The vehicle 10 has an engine room 14 formed between left and right front fenders 12 (only the left side is shown), and a vehicle hood device 20 that absorbs an impact is disposed above the engine room 14 and in front of a windshield 16. It is. When the vehicle 10 collides with an obstacle 18, the vehicle hood device 20 lifts the hood 21 at the front of the vehicle to a position indicated by an imaginary line and holds the hood 21 at the raised position. . Hereinafter, the vehicle hood device 20 will be described in detail.

The vehicle hood device 20 includes a front opening hood 21 that closes an upper opening of the engine room 14 and left and right actuators that push up the left and right rear ends of the hood 21 to lift the hood 21 to a position indicated by an imaginary line. 24 (only the left side is shown); a bumper sensor 26 for detecting that the vehicle 10 has collided with the obstacle 18; a control unit 29 for transmitting a drive signal to the actuator 24 based on a detection signal from the sensor 26; Left and right hinges (hinge means) 30 (only the left side is shown) that support the left and right rear ends and hold the hood 21 at a lifting position indicated by imaginary lines.

The actuator 24 is a common component for the left and right, and the hinge means 30 is also a common component for the left and right. Less than,
The left actuator 24 and the left hinge means 30 will be described, and the description of the right actuator 24 and the right hinge means 30 will be omitted.

The hood 21 is, for example, an engine room 14
The front part can be opened using the hinge pin at the rear part as a fulcrum for repair and inspection of the vehicle, and a hood lock 22 for locking to the vehicle body frame 17 is attached to the front part.
The actuator 24 is mounted on the vehicle body frame 17 and ignites a gas generating agent of an inflator to generate gas, and the rod 25 is raised by the gas, so that the hood 21 is moved by the rod 25 to the position indicated by an imaginary line. It lifts up to.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the vehicle hood device according to the present invention. The hinge means 30 is obtained by attaching the lower bracket 31 to the vehicle body frame 17, attaching the upper bracket 41 to the rear end of the hood 21, and bridging the first link 50 and the second link 60 between the upper bracket 41 and the lower bracket 31. It is. Hereinafter, the hinge means 30 will be described in detail.

The hinge means 30 is attached to the lower bracket 31 so that the lower end 50a of the first link 50 can swing via a pin 55, and the lower end 60a of the second link 60 is connected to the upper end 50b of the first link 50 by a connecting pin 66. And the upper end 60b of the second link 60 is attached to the upper bracket 41 via a hinge pin 68.

Normally, the hinge means 30 mounts the mounting portion 64 of the second link 60 on the first stopper 38 of the lower bracket 31 and uses the hinge pin 68 connecting the second link 60 and the hood 21 as a hinge center. When the obstacle 21 collides with the vehicle 10 shown in FIG. 1, the hood 21 is lifted by the action of the actuator 24, and the extended first and second links 50 and 60 determine the ascending position of the hood 21. The hinge is also used as a link mechanism.

In addition, the hinge means 30 is connected to the second link 6
The lower bracket 31 is provided with a stopper claw 40 for connecting 0 to the lower bracket 31. The stopper claw 40 is disengaged from the second link 60 when the actuator 24 is actuated, but has rigidity to maintain the coupled state with a normal hood opening / closing force, and prevents the hood 21 from floating in a normal state.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of hinge means provided in the vehicle hood device according to the present invention. Lower bracket 3
1 includes bolts 32, 3 on the body frame 17 (shown in FIG. 2).
A seat 33 to be attached at 2 (only one is shown);
A first bent portion 34 extending obliquely upward from the first bent portion 34 toward the outside of the vehicle body frame 17, a second bent portion 35 rising vertically from the first bent portion 34, and a vehicle body extending from the second bent portion 35. Frame 1
A third bent portion 36 extending diagonally upward toward the inside of 7,
A substantially trapezoidal fourth bent portion 37 vertically raised from the third bent portion 36, a first stopper 38 extending upward from an upper end of the fourth bent portion 37 and bent toward the inside of the vehicle body, Stopper 38
And a stopper claw 40 extending upward from the upper end of the fourth bent portion 37 and bent inside the vehicle body frame 17. The fourth bent portion 37 has a hole 37a into which the pin 55 is inserted.

The upper bracket 41 is attached to the hood 21 (FIG. 2).
(See FIG. 4), which is formed in a substantially L-shape to be attached to the back surface by bolts 42, 42, and has a hole 43a for inserting a hinge pin 68 at a rear portion of the vertical portion 43;
A stopper 44 made of a bent piece is provided near 3a. The first link 50 is a member formed in a substantially L-shape as shown in FIG. 2. The first link 50 includes a pin 55 inserted into a lower hole of the lower end 50 a and a stopper 53.
6 is inserted.

The second link 60 is substantially L as shown in FIG.
A lower hole 61a for inserting the connecting pin 66 is formed in the lower end 60a, a stopper 62 is provided near the lower hole 61a, and an upper hole 61b for inserting the hinge pin 68 is formed in the upper end 60b. A stopper hole 63 for inserting the stopper claw 40 is opened near the stopper hole 6.
In the vicinity of 3, there is provided a mounting portion 64 that can be mounted on the first stopper 38 of the lower bracket 31. The role of each of the stoppers 38, 39, 44, 53, 62 is shown in FIG.
8 will be described in detail.

Next, an example of a procedure for assembling the hinge means 30 will be described with reference to FIG. First, a pin 55 is inserted into the lower hole of the first link 50, and this pin 55 is inserted into the hole 37a of the lower bracket 31 and swaged. This allows
The first link 50 is swingably attached to the lower bracket 31. Next, the hinge pin 68 is inserted into the hole 43a of the upper bracket 41, and the hinge pin 68 is inserted into the upper hole 61b of the second link 60 and caulked. As a result, the second link 60 is swingably attached to the upper bracket 41.

Next, the stopper pawl 40 is inserted into the stopper hole 63 of the second link, and the first
The link 50 and the second link 60 are connected, and a connecting pin 66 is connected.
Caulking. Thus, the first link 50 and the second link 60 are swingably connected to each other, and the stopper link 40 connects the second link 60 to the lower bracket 31.

As described above, the first and second links 50, 60
Then, with the upper bracket 41 attached to the lower bracket 31, the lower bracket 31 is attached to the vehicle body frame 17 (shown in FIG. 2) with bolts 32,32. Finally, the upper bracket 41 is attached to the hood 21 (shown in FIG. 2) with bolts 42,42. Thus, the hinge means 30 is moved to the position shown in FIG.
, That is, the operation of assembling the first and second links 50 and 60 in a folded state is completed.

The hinge means 30 is provided in the first position shown in FIG.
In the folded state of the second links 50 and 60, the placing portion 64 of the second link 60 can be placed on the first stopper 38 of the lower bracket 31. For this reason,
The downward movement of the second link 60 is regulated by the first stopper 38, so that the hood 21 can be supported in a stable state.

As shown in FIG. 2, the hinge means 30 extends along the inclined portion 31a of the lower link 31 so that the second link 6
By arranging 0, the second link 60 can be inclined downward toward the front of the vehicle. Therefore, the mounting position of the pin 55 of the lower bracket 31 is
From a relatively high position. Accordingly, the shape of the lower bracket 31 can be determined so that the lower bracket 31 is easily crushed when an obstacle hits the hood 21. The shape of the lower bracket 31 will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. The lower bracket 31 is a member formed of, for example, mild steel,
The bent portion 35, the third bent portion 36, and the fourth bent portion 37 were bent in a substantially inverted U-shape so as to be easily crushed. For this reason,
When a load is applied to the lower bracket 31 from above,
The second bent portion 35, the third bent portion 36, and the fourth bent portion 37 can be crushed to absorb an impact.

The fourth bent portion 3 of the lower bracket 31
7 shows a state where the first link 50 is attached to the upper bracket 41 with the pin 55, the stopper claw 40 of the lower bracket 31 is inserted into the stopper hole 63 of the second link 60, and the second link 60 is attached to the upper bracket 41 with the hinge pin 68.

The stopper claw 40 is a member formed of the same mild steel as the lower bracket 31 and can maintain a normal hood opening / closing force or a connected state inserted into the stopper hole 63 during normal vehicle running. It is a member whose rigidity is set so as to be deformed and come off from the stopper hole 63 when activated.

For this reason, the second link 6 is
0 to the lower bracket 31, that is, by inserting the stopper claw 40 into the stopper hole 63,
The extension of the second link 50, 60 can be prevented, so that the hood 21 can be prevented from floating in a normal state. By merely providing the stopper claw 40, it is possible to prevent rattling due to the rising of the hood 21 during traveling of the vehicle, so that the number of parts can be reduced.

On the other hand, when the actuator 24 (shown in FIG. 2) is operated, the stopper claw 40 is deformed by the lifting force of the actuator 24 and comes out of the stopper hole 63 of the second link 60. Operation mechanism can be omitted. Therefore, the number of parts can be further reduced.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are explanatory views of a first operation of the vehicle hood device according to the present invention. An example in which the hood is opened for repair and inspection of the engine room will be described. (A)
In this case, the first and second links 50 and 60 are kept in a folded state by inserting the stopper claw 40 into the stopper hole 63, and in this state, the hood lock mechanism 2 at the front portion of the hood 21 is provided.
2 (shown in FIG. 1) is released, and the hood 21 is opened as indicated by the arrow with the hinge pin 68 on the rear end side as an axis.

In (b), the hood 21 is opened to the fully open position, so that the stopper 4
4 contacts the first stopper 38 of the lower bracket 31 and regulates the further opening of the hood 21. In this case, the second
Although a force acts to rotate the link 60 clockwise about the hinge pin 68, the rotation of the second link 60 can be prevented because the stopper claw 40 is inserted into the stopper hole 63. By opening the hood 21, maintenance and inspection of the equipment in the engine room can be performed from above.

Next, the operation of the vehicle hood device 20 will be described. First, returning to FIG. 1, when the vehicle 10 collides with the obstacle 18 while traveling, the bumper sensor 26 detects the collision and transmits a detection signal from the sensor 26 to the control unit 29. A drive signal is transmitted from the control unit 29 to the actuator 24, and a gas pressure is applied to the actuator 24 so as to cause the rod 25 to protrude. When the gas pressure acts on the rod 25 of the actuator 24, the rod 25 is instantaneously raised by the gas pressure, and a lifting force of F1 is applied to the hood 21 as indicated by an arrow.

Next, as shown in FIG.
Is applied, a force F2 for lifting the stopper claw 40 upward through the upper bracket 41, the hinge pin 68, and the stopper hole 63 of the second link 60 is applied. Thereby, the stopper claw 40 is deformed so as to extend upward and is removed from the stopper hole 63.

FIGS. 6 (a) and 6 (b) are second operation explanatory views of the vehicle hood device according to the present invention, and FIG. 6 (b) is a sectional view taken along the line bb of FIG. 6 (a). In FIG.
When 0 is removed from the stopper hole 63, the second link 60 swings counterclockwise around the connecting pin 66, and at the same time, the first link 50 swings clockwise around the pin 55. Therefore, the first and second links 5
When 0 and 60 start to extend, the hood 21 is raised about the hood lock mechanism 22 (shown in FIG. 1) as an arrow. (B) shows a state where the stopper claw 40 is deformed by extending upward and comes out of the stopper hole 63.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory view of a third operation of the vehicle hood device according to the present invention. The first and second links 50 and 60 are extended, and the pin 55, the connecting pin 66, and the hinge pin 68 are located on the straight line 70. Thereby, the first and second links 5
At 0 and 60, the rise of the hood 21 is restricted, and the hood 21 is stopped at the upper limit position P1.

After the hood 21 comes to a standstill, the hood attempts to descend by its own weight. Therefore, the weight of the hood 21 is applied to the first and second links 50 and 60, and the first and second links 50 and 60 are to be folded. However, since the pin 55, the connecting pin 66, and the hinge pin 68 are located on the straight line 70, even if the weight of the hood 21 is applied, the first
-The second links 50 and 60 are not folded. For this reason,
The hood 21 can be held by the first and second links 50 and 60.

In this state, when the obstacle 18 falls on the hood 21, an external force F3 is applied as shown by an arrow. This allows
Although a force is exerted on the first link 50 to pivot the pin 55 about the pin 55 toward the rear of the vehicle, the first link 50 is brought into contact with the second stopper 39 of the lower bracket 31 by the stopper 53 of the first link 50. It can be prevented from falling backward.

At the same time, a force is applied to push the second link 50 forward with the connecting pin 66 as an axis. The stopper 62 of the second link 60 is applied to the first link 50 to cause the second link 60 to move. It is possible to prevent the vehicle from falling forward. Therefore, since the first and second links 50 and 60 can be maintained in the extended state, the hinge means 30 can be maintained.
Thus, the hood 21 can be held at the upper limit position P1 raised by a predetermined amount.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory view of a fourth operation of the vehicle hood device according to the present invention. By raising the hood 21 by a predetermined amount from the position shown by the imaginary line to the position shown by the solid line, the distance from the hood 21 to the equipment 19 such as the engine housed in the engine room 14 can be increased. Therefore, the amount of downward deformation of the hood 21 can be sufficiently ensured. For this reason, even if the obstacle 18 falls on the hood 21 and an external force F3 is applied as indicated by an arrow, a large recess 21a of the hood 21 can be secured as indicated by an imaginary line. Therefore, the impact on the obstacle 18 can be reliably absorbed.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, the second bent portion 35, the third bent portion 36, and the fourth bent portion 3 of the lower bracket 31 are provided.
Seven parts were bent into a substantially inverted U-shape to make them easily crushed.
Therefore, when the obstacle 18 falls on the hood 21 and receives an external force F3 as shown by an arrow, the second bent portion 35, the third bent portion 36, and the fourth bent portion 37 are crushed to absorb the impact. be able to. Therefore, the impact applied to the obstacle 18 can be more reliably absorbed.

Further, even if the amount of depression of the concave portion 21a generated in the hood 21 is increased as indicated by the imaginary line, the concave portion 21a
a does not hit the equipment 19 in the engine room,
The device 19 can be protected from the obstacle 18.

In the above embodiment, the example in which the stopper claw 40 is formed on the upper end of the lower bracket 31 has been described. However, the position of the stopper claw 40 may be set arbitrarily. Further, as an example of connecting the second link 60 to the lower bracket 31, the example in which the stopper claw 40 is inserted into the stopper hole 63 of the second link 60 has been described. It is also possible to connect 60 to the lower bracket 31. Further, the stopper pawl 40 is connected to the first link 50 and the second link 50.
Stopper claws may be inserted into both links of the link 60. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the example in which the lower bracket 31 and the stopper claw 40 are formed of mild steel has been described, but the material is not limited to this.

In the above embodiment, the actuator 24
And hinge means 30 on the left and right sides of body frame 17 respectively.
Although the example in which the individual parts are attached has been described, the actuator 24 and the hinge means 30 may be attached to only one side of the body frame 17. As a result, the number of parts can be further reduced, and cost increase can be further suppressed. Further, although the actuator 24 is attached to the vehicle body frame 17, for example, the actuator 24 may be attached to the hood 21 side.

In the above embodiment, the rod 25 of the actuator 24 is moved until the hood 21 reaches the upper limit position P1.
In the example described above, the actuator 24
The hood 21 may be kicked up by the rod 25. Since the stroke of the rod 25 can be reduced, the size of the actuator 24 can be reduced.

[0050]

According to the present invention, the following effects are exhibited by the above configuration. According to the first aspect, the second link is connected to the bracket with the stopper claw to prevent the hood from floating in a normal state. By merely providing the stopper claws, it is possible to prevent rattling due to the lifting of the hood. Therefore, it is possible to prevent rattling due to the lifting of the hood with a simple configuration, so that the number of parts can be reduced.

When the actuator operates,
Since the lock is released by removing the stopper claw from the second link by the lifting force, a special operation mechanism for releasing the lock is not required. Therefore, the configuration can be simplified and the number of parts can be further reduced. Therefore,
An increase in the cost of the vehicle hood device can be suppressed.

In addition, by reducing the number of parts, the device for preventing rattling of the hood can be reduced in size, thereby increasing the degree of freedom in design. Furthermore, assembling work can be simplified by reducing the number of parts.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of a vehicle equipped with a vehicle hood device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the vehicle hood device according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of hinge means provided in the vehicle hood device according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view of a first operation of the vehicle hood device according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view of a second operation of the vehicle hood device according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a third operation of the vehicle hood device according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory view of a fourth operation of the vehicle hood device according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a side view of a conventional vehicle hood device.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the operation of a conventional vehicle hood device.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Vehicle, 17 ... Body (body frame), 18 ... Obstacle, 20 ... Vehicle hood holding device, 21 ... Hood, 24
... actuator, 30 ... hinge (hinge means), 31
... bracket (lower bracket), 40 ... stopper claw,
50: first link, 55: pin, 60: second link, 6
3 ... stopper hole, 66 ... connection pin, 68 ... hinge pin.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A first bracket attached to a bracket on the vehicle body side via a pin.
A link is swingably attached, a second link is swingably attached to the first link via a connecting pin, and a hood at the front of the vehicle is attached to the second link via a hinge pin. The hood is opened and closed with the hinge pin connecting the hood as the hinge center. When an obstacle collides with the vehicle, the hood is lifted by the action of the actuator, and the extended first and second links determine the ascending position of the hood. In a vehicle hood device provided with a hinge also serving as a link mechanism, the second link is connected to a bracket with a stopper claw having a rigidity that is released when an actuator is actuated but maintains a coupled state with a normal hood opening / closing force, A hood device for a vehicle, wherein the hood is prevented from floating in a normal state.