JP2002127812A - Vehicular headlamp mounting device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vehicular headlamp mounting device capable of reducing influence of body vibration on a headlamp and sufficiently securing its mounting height. SOLUTION: This vehicular headlamp mounting device fixes a headlamp 12 by a lamp bracket 26 bolted to a lower-cab-hinge-bracket 26. The lamp bracket 26 laterally extends between a front bumper 10 and a cab 2, and the headlamp 12 is bolted to the lamp bracket 26. The lamp bracket 26 is linked to a front cross member 60 through a connecting rod 62, and a mount rubber 64 is interposed between its flange 66 and the lamp bracket 26.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle headlamp mounting device for mounting a headlamp on a vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a prior art relating to this type of headlamp mounting device, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H11-240376 is known.
The headlamp fixing structure described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. H10-209,086 is cited. A vehicle to which this known fixing structure is applied is equipped with a bumper that embeds and accommodates a headlamp,
An underlamp protector is provided below the bumper. The underlamp protector largely overhangs from the vehicle frame and extends in the vehicle width direction, and an intermediate portion thereof is attached to the frame via a bracket.
The underlamp protector is located forward of the frame, and is disposed close to the bumper along the inner surface of the bumper. In a known headlamp fixing structure, a headlamp is fixed to an underlamp protector via a fixing tool, and an opening for exposing a lens surface of the headlamp is formed on a front surface of the bumper. ing.

[0003]

However, when a vehicle headlamp is of a bumper type as in a known fixing structure, various problems occur in the use, maintenance and inspection of the headlamp. First, the use of brackets, underlamp protectors, fixtures, etc. for mounting the headlamp makes the vibration transmission path from the engine to the headlamp long, and therefore the effect of engine vibration on the headlamp tends to increase. . That is, since the underlamp protector is a long member and is greatly overhanged from the frame, the amplitude is increased at the mounting position of the headlamp. In addition, since the underlamp protector is disposed so as to protrude forward from the frame so as to be close to the bumper, the mounting position of the headlamp is far from the front axle, and the influence of vehicle body vibration due to road surface input is also increased. When the influence of the vibration of the engine or the vehicle body on the headlamp is large, the optical axis of the headlamp tends to shift, and the vehicle user is forced to adjust the optical axis frequently.

Further, since the bumper itself needs to perform its original function as a shock absorber, the impact on the bumper is transmitted to the headlamp at the time of a collision, so that the chance of damaging the headlamp increases. On the other hand, since the underlamp protector covers the headlamp when viewed from below the bumper, it greatly deteriorates the maintainability of the headlamp.

Further, in the bumper embedded type, the mounting position of the headlamp is generally low, and it is not possible to secure a sufficient irradiation angle on the road surface. That is, at an irradiation point at the same distance from the headlamp, the illuminance increases as the irradiation angle increases. For this reason, it is possible to illuminate the front and the road surface more brightly when the mounting position of the headlamp is as high as possible. In this regard, it is conceivable that the headlamp is mounted on the cab body instead of the bumper embedded type, but the cab mounting position is also high in vehicles with relatively high vehicle height, so the cab body is not suitable as the headlamp mounting position There is also.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle headlamp mounting apparatus capable of reducing the influence of vibration of an engine or a vehicle body on a headlamp and securing a suitable mounting height. Things.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a headlamp mounting device for a vehicle, wherein a cab hinge bracket disposed at a front end of a chassis frame is used as a base member.
The headlamp is fixed by a lamp bracket fixedly provided to the cab hinge bracket.

In the case of a vehicle in which a cab is connected to a chassis frame via a hinge, the cab hinge bracket is a structurally highly rigid member. If this is used for mounting a headlamp, a special member is used. There is no need to add it separately. In addition, the cab hinge bracket extends upward from the chassis frame, and is therefore suitable for securing the mounting height of the headlamp.

[0009] Further, since the headlamp is usually arranged left and right as viewed from the front of the vehicle, the lamp bracket only needs to extend from the cab hinge bracket to the side of the vehicle. For this reason, the offset between the base end and the headlamp mounting position of the lamp bracket is small, and the overall size is reduced. Preferably, the above-described lamp bracket and the chassis frame are interconnected via a coupling member, and an elastic body is inserted between the coupling member and the lamp bracket or between the coupling member and the chassis frame. (Claim 2). In this case, the lamp bracket is elastically supported by the chassis frame, and the steadying of the lamp bracket is ensured. Further, since the lamp bracket is connected to the chassis frame via the elastic body, vibration input from the chassis frame is reduced.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention can take a preferred embodiment as a headlamp mounting device for a large vehicle such as a truck or a connected vehicle. FIG. 1 shows a truck as an example of a large-sized vehicle, and a cab 2 of the truck is connected to a side rail 4 (a chassis frame) via a hinge mechanism as is known. When the mounting of the cab 2 is fixed, the hinge mechanism includes a lower cab hinge bracket 6 and an upper cab hinge bracket 8, and these cab hinge brackets 6, 8 are connected via hinge bolts (not shown). The cab 2 is fixed to an upper cab hinge bracket 8, and can be tilted up from the illustrated horizontal posture via a hinge mechanism. In the case of the floating mounting, a suspension device is interposed between the cab 2 and the hinge mechanism, and a suspension link, a suspension bracket, a coil spring, a shock absorber, or the like is used instead of the upper cab hinge bracket 8.

In the case of the truck shown in FIG.
A pair of left and right head lamps 12 is mounted above the head lamp 0, and the cab 2 is disposed further above the head lamp 12. Front corner lamps 14 are arranged at both corners of the cab 2, and these front corner lamps 14 are arranged adjacent to the headlamp 12. The front of the truck between the cab 2 and the front bumper 10 is covered with a radiator upper grill 16,
The radiator upper grill 16 has an opening for lamps. The radiator upper grill 16
Are also formed with slits (not shown).

FIGS. 2 and 3 specifically show a headlamp mounting apparatus according to this embodiment. Although the headlamp mounting device of the present embodiment is applied to both the left and right headlamps 12, only one of them (for example, the left side) will be described. The above-mentioned lower cab hinge bracket 6 is disposed at the front end of the side rail 4, and its base end is fixedly attached to the side rail 4 by bolts and nuts (not shown). The base end of the lower cab hinge bracket 6 has a shape along the outer surface of the side rail 4, and this base end is joined to the upper flange of the side rail 4 and the longitudinal web, respectively. Since the mounting of the lower cab hinge bracket 6 is known, its illustration is omitted. The lower cab hinge bracket 6 extends upward from the side rail 4, and a hinge bearing 18 is formed at the upper end thereof. Hinge bearing 1
8 is covered with a hinge cap from above, between which a hinge shaft (both not shown) is elastically supported via a hinge cushion.

As is apparent from FIG. 3, the lower cab hinge bracket 6 has a main body part having an H-shaped cross section, and this main body part has a pair of flanges 20 on both sides and a thick web 22 connecting these flanges 20. Provides high rigidity. The web 22 extends vertically in the main body portion of the lower cab hinge bracket 6, and a pair of horizontal reinforcing ribs 24 are formed above and below the lower cab hinge bracket 6, respectively. The reinforcing ribs 24 connect the flanges 20 on both sides, and form a recess having the flanges 20 and the reinforcing ribs 24 as peripheral walls.

The lower cab hinge bracket 6 is provided with a lamp bracket 26 in the above-described recess, and the lamp bracket 26 extends from the lower cab hinge bracket 6 toward the side of the vehicle. The lamp bracket 26 has a fixed base 28 at a base end thereof, and the fixed base 28 is bolted to the web 22 of the lower cab hinge bracket 6.

FIG. 4 shows the fixed base 28 in more detail. The fixed base 28 has a base plate 30, and an insertion hole for a bolt 32 is formed in the base plate 30. The fixing base 28 also includes a pair of upper and lower joining flanges 34 and a longitudinal joining flange 36, and these joining flanges 34, 36 bend and extend from the periphery of the base plate 30. On the other hand, the base end of the lamp bracket 26 has a groove shape in cross section, and the joint flanges 34 and 36 are overlap-welded to the inner surface of the lamp bracket 26, respectively. In addition, scallops 38 are formed at upper and lower corners of the base plate 30 on the side in contact with the inner surface of the lamp bracket 26, respectively.

A reinforcing plate 40 is attached near the base end of the lamp bracket 26. The reinforcing plate 40 also has a groove shape in cross section, and the upper and lower flanges 42 are bolted to the outer surface of the lamp bracket 26 in a state where they are addressed. The reinforcing plate 40 partially closes the rear opening of the lamp bracket 26, thereby reinforcing the base end of the lamp bracket 26 to have a closed cross section.

The lamp bracket 26 extends from the lower cab hinge bracket 6 to the corner of the vehicle, and its main body is given a shape suitable for mounting the headlamp 12. As is clear from FIGS. 2 and 3, the body of the lamp bracket 26 is narrowed in the width direction from the reinforcing plate 40, while being expanded in the vertical direction. The front end of the lamp bracket 26 is gradually narrowed in both the width direction and the vertical direction, and a sub bracket 44 is attached to the front end.

FIG. 5 shows the mounting state of the headlamp 12 in detail in addition to FIGS. The headlamp 12 has, for example, a center lug 48 and a side lug 50 in its lamp housing 46, and is bolted to the lamp bracket 26 at the center and side lugs 48, 50. The lamp bracket 26 of this embodiment has a U-shaped lug support 5 on its upper surface.
2 and the lug support 52 is disposed corresponding to the bolting of one (upper side) of the center lug 50 described above. However, if the shape of the lamp bracket 26 is formed in accordance with the position of the bolt hole of the center lug 50, the installation of the lug support 52 is not particularly necessary.

The lamp bracket 26 has two large and small insertion holes 54 and 56 in its main body. The insertion holes 54 and 56 allow the leveling actuator 58 of the headlamp 12 and the like to be inserted toward the rear of the vehicle body. , And partially receives the lamp housing 46 (FIG. 3,
(See FIG. 5). The headlamp mounting device is basically realized by the structure described above. In addition, in the present embodiment, the lamp bracket 26 is connected to the chassis frame. Specifically, the lamp bracket 26
Is connected to a front cross member 60 (a chassis frame) via a connecting rod 62, and a mount rubber 64 is interposed between the connecting rod 62 and the lamp bracket 26.

The connecting rod 62 is made of, for example, a pipe member. Both ends of the connecting rod 62 are flattened and formed as flanges 66. One flange 66
The lug plate 68 is bolted to the upper cross member 60 in a state where it is addressed to the lower surface thereof. The other flange 66 is formed so as to face the front surface of the lamp bracket 26, and is bolted below the large insertion hole 56 described above.

The mount rubber 64 is made of a ring-shaped rubber member, and is made of a material having a vibration-proof property. In addition, the mount rubber 64 is not limited to a solid rubber member, and may be one in which a liquid is sealed inside. As the elastic member, a spring member such as a coil spring or a synthetic resin having elasticity can be used instead of the rubber member.

As shown in FIG. 2, the above-mentioned sub-bracket 44 is formed to be bent in accordance with the corner shape of the vehicle. The sub-bracket 44 has a front flange 70 and a lateral flange 72 on both wings, and the front flange 70 is disposed toward the front of the vehicle, while the lateral flange 72 is disposed toward the side of the vehicle. I have. The front flange 70 is bolted to the rear surface of the lamp bracket 26, and the bolt 74 here also serves to mount the corner lamp 14 described above. The corner lamp 14 is also bolted to the lateral flange 72.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the lamp bracket 26 extends laterally along the back surface of the headlamp 12, and is provided between the base plate 30 forming the base end thereof and the mounting position of the headlamp 12. There is no offset. Therefore, the vibration transmission path from the chassis frame to the headlamp 12 is greatly reduced. Further, since the lamp bracket 26 is fixedly attached to the main body of the lower cab hinge bracket 6, the mounting position of the headlamp 12 is secured between the front bumper 10 and the cab 2. Therefore, the mounting height of the headlamp 12 can be set to a suitable position, and does not hinder the irradiation performance as compared with the case where the headlamp 12 is mounted.

For example, due to the positional relationship between the engine 80 to be mounted on the vehicle and the cab 2, the mounting position of the cab 2 may be forced to be relatively high (see FIG. 1). In this case, it is possible to mount the headlamp 12 on the cab 2, but the position of the cab 2 itself is relatively high, so that the mounting position of the headlamp 12 may not be appropriate. In such a situation, it is particularly effective to mount the headlamp 12 between the front bumper 10 and the cab 2 as in the present embodiment.

Further, only the lamp bracket 26 is used for mounting the headlamp 12, and the headlamp 12 can be mounted on the vehicle using a rigid member such as the lower cab hinge bracket 6 as a base. Particularly, since the upper end of the lower cab hinge bracket 6 supports the cab 2 via the hinge, the rigidity of the lower cab hinge bracket 6 attached to the chassis frame is high. For this reason, the lamp bracket 2 is not attached to members such as the above-described underlamp protector.
6 in this embodiment, rather than fixing the headlamp 12.
It is clear that the effect of vibration on the surface is greatly suppressed.

If the lamp bracket 26 is connected to the front cross member 60 via the connecting rod 62 as in the above-described embodiment, the steadying of the lamp bracket 26 will be more reliable. Also, since the mounting rubber 64 is interposed between the connecting rod 62 and the lamp bracket 26, the front side member 6
From zero, the vibration input to the lamp bracket 26 is effectively reduced.

In addition, in the present embodiment, since the attitude of the headlamp 12 does not change when the cab 2 is tilted up, access from the back side thereof is easy during maintenance and inspection. The present invention can be implemented with various modifications without being limited to only the above-described embodiment. The specific shapes and structures of the lower cab hinge bracket 6, the lamp bracket 26, and the like described in one embodiment are merely examples, and in other embodiments, the shapes and structures may be appropriately modified. Can be.

Further, the number of connecting rods 62 and the position of connection described in the embodiment can be changed, and the specific members used are not limited. Further, the mount rubber 64 (elastic body) may be interposed not only between the lamp bracket 26 and the connecting rod 62 (connecting member) but also between the connecting rod 62 and the front cross member 60 (underframe). However, both may be interposed.

[0029]

The headlamp mounting device for a vehicle according to the present invention (claim 1) is effective for increasing the mounting rigidity of the headlamp and ensuring the height of the mounting position. Further, in a mode in which the lamp bracket and the chassis frame are interconnected and an elastic body is interposed therebetween (claim 2), the influence of vibration on the headlamp can be surely reduced, and at the same time, the chassis frame is formed. The effect of vibration input from the vehicle can also be effectively suppressed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a truck to which a headlamp mounting device according to an embodiment is applied.

FIG. 2 is a front view specifically showing the headlamp mounting device of one embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the headlamp mounting device including a cross section taken along line III-III in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the lamp bracket taken along line IV-IV in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the lamp bracket taken along line VV in FIGS. 2 and 3;

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 Cab 4 Side rail (chassis frame) 6 Lower cab hinge bracket 12 Head lamp 26 Lamp bracket 62 Connecting rod (connecting member) 64 Mount rubber (elastic body)

Claims (2)

[Claims] A cab hinge bracket disposed at a front end of a chassis frame of the vehicle and supporting the cab via a hinge shaft above the chassis frame; and a cab hinge bracket fixed to the cab hinge bracket. A headlamp mounting device for a vehicle, comprising: a lamp bracket for fixing a headlamp. 2. The vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising: a connecting member that connects the lamp bracket and the chassis frame to each other; and an elastic body interposed between the connecting member and at least one of the lamp bracket and the chassis frame. The headlamp mounting device for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein: