JP2002274433A - Support structure of steering column - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a support structure of a steering column capable of effectively suppressing the vibration of the steering column. SOLUTION: In this steering column support structure constituted such that a cowl 2 is provided in the front for a dash panel 1 in a front part of a compartment, an upper wall part 11 bending substantially horizontally and overhanging forward is provided at an upper fringe of the dash panel 1 and is connected with a rear end face 23 of the cowl 2, and the cowl 2 and an inner panel reinforcement 3 provided horizontally in the direction of vehicle width at a rear position of the dash panel 1 are mutually connected through a brace 4 in the forward and backward directions to support the steering column 7 in a connection part of the inner panel reinforcement 3 and the brace 4, a pedestal member 5 forming a closed cross section with the upper wall part 11 is fixed to an upper face of the upper wall part 11 of the dash panel 1, its front fringe 54 is connected with the rear end face 23 of the cowl 2, and a rear end of the pedestal member 5 positioned at an upper end of a vertical wall part 10 of the dash panel 1 and the inner panel reinforcement 3 are mutually connected by the brace 4.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a support structure for a steering column of an automobile, and more particularly to a support structure for a steering column of a semi-bonnet type wagon or the like in which a cowl is located forward of a dash panel.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a semi-bonnet type wagon vehicle or the like has a cowl 2 provided at a position forward of a dash panel 1 at a front portion of a cabin, and An upper wall 11 is provided at the upper edge of the upper wall 11 so as to bend forward and project substantially horizontally in a shelf shape, and the front end of the upper wall 11 is connected to the lower end of the rear end of the cowl 2. In the illustrated example, the cowl 2 forms a closed cross section by the cowl upper 21, the cowl lower 22 and the front end erected on the front edge of the upper wall portion 11, and the rear end surface 23 of the cowl 2 is formed by the front end. I have.

[0003] At the rear position of the dash panel 1, an instrument panel reinforcement 3A of a pipe material is provided between left and right front pillars (not shown) in the vehicle width direction. The cowl 1 and the instrument panel reinforcement 3A are connected in the front-rear direction by a brace 4A, and the steering column 7 is supported at a connection portion between the instrument panel reinforcement 3A and the rear end of the brace 4A.

The brace 4A has a hat-shaped cross section, and a vertical flange 45 formed on the front end is overlapped with the rear surface of the bracket 9 welded to the rear end surface 23 of the cowl 2 and fastened with a plurality of bolt members. The rear end of the brace 4A is expanded in the vertical direction downward, and the instrument panel reinforcement 3A is sandwiched and welded between the rear end of the brace 4A and the rear end member 6 closing the rear end. The steering column 7 is supported on the bottom surface of the rear end member 6 via a plurality of stays 61a and 61b. Further, the instrument panel reinforcement 3A is supported by a floor brace 8 whose middle portion stands upright on a vehicle floor (not shown).

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Steering column 7
The vibration of the front wheels and the like is transmitted to the vehicle when the vehicle is running. The steering column 7 is supported by a floor brace 8, an instrument panel reinforcement 3A, and a brace 4A. Among them, the brace 4A of a semi-bonnet type wagon vehicle has a long front-rear length and a tapered shape, so that vibration occurs. Is not sufficiently rigid. In addition, since the front end of the brace 4A is fastened by vertically overlapping the vertical flange 45 on the rear surface of the bracket 9, the left and right vibration of the steering column 7 cannot be sufficiently suppressed.

Therefore, conventionally, the diameter of the pipe of the instrument panel reinforcement 3A is increased, and the vibration of the steering column 7 is suppressed as a thick wall. However,
Increasing the size of the instrument panel reinforcement 3A increases weight and cost, and restricts the layout design of peripheral components attached around the dash panel 1. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to realize a steering column support structure that effectively suppresses the vibration of the steering column without increasing the size of the instrument panel reinforcement.

[0007]

According to the present invention, a cowl is installed in front of a dash panel in the form of a vertical wall at the front of a vehicle cabin. An upper wall that protrudes in the shape of a dash panel is connected to the rear end of the cowl, and an instrument panel reinforcement that extends in the vehicle width direction is located between the left and right front pillars at the rear of the dash panel. A steering column at a connection portion between the instrument panel reinforcement and the brace, and the steering column is supported at a connection portion between the instrument panel reinforcement and the brace. Then, the pedestal member forming the closed section is fixed.
The pedestal member has its front edge connected to the rear end of the cowl, and the rear end of the pedestal member connected to the front end of the brace. Between the cowl and the instrument panel reinforcement, a pedestal member with a closed cross section fixed to the upper wall of the dash panel and connected to the cowl was provided, and the rear end and the instrument panel reinforcement were connected by a brace, so the brace was The front-rear length is short, the rigidity against vibration is high, and vibration of the steering column can be effectively suppressed.

The pedestal member is provided over substantially the entire length of the upper wall of the dash panel in the front-rear direction, and a lower edge of a rear end wall closing a rear end of the pedestal member is connected to a bent portion of an upper edge of a vertical wall of the dash panel. Then, the front end of the brace is vertically overlapped and connected to the rear end of the upper surface of the base member (claim 2). The connection between the pedestal member and the brace is near the upper end of the vertical wall of the dash panel, and the top end of the brace is connected to the upper surface of the pedestal member by overlapping the front end of the brace vertically. Is high.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a steering column support structure of a semi-bonnet type wagon vehicle will be described. As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, a dash panel 1 at a front portion of a vehicle compartment that partitions an engine room and a vehicle compartment.
Is formed with an upper wall portion 11 which bends from an upper edge of a substantially vertical vertical wall portion 10 and projects substantially horizontally forward. A plurality of reinforcing beads 13 extending in the vertical direction are formed on the plate surface of the dash panel 1. Further, an insertion hole 14 and the like through which shafts such as pipes and steering columns are inserted are formed, and an arch-shaped front wheel house portion 15 bulging into the vehicle is formed on both left and right sides of a lower end of the panel.

The upper wall portion 11 of the dash panel 1 has a vertical wall-like front end formed at the front edge thereof, and is connected to the cowl 2 provided horizontally at the front position. The cowl 2 has a substantially U-shaped cross section that opens rearward between the cowl upper 21 and the cowl lower 22, and has a rear opening closed by the front end of the upper wall portion 11 of the dash panel 1. 22 and the front end constitute a closed section, and the front end constitutes a cowl rear end face 23.

On the driver's seat side of the dash panel 1 (on the right side in FIG. 1), a pedestal member 5 is fixed at the widthwise middle portion of the upper surface of the upper wall portion 11. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the pedestal member 5 includes a hat-shaped cross section having horizontal side edges 52 on the left and right sides of a trapezoidal projection 51 at the center in the width direction;
It comprises side surfaces 53 which are bent substantially perpendicularly downward from the edges of the left and right side edges 52 and extend substantially parallel to each other. It is overlapped and welded to form a closed section with the upper wall portion 11. The pedestal member 5 is provided over substantially the entire length of the upper wall portion 11 in the front-rear direction, and the front end 54 of the pedestal member 5 is welded by overlapping a coupling flange formed on the outer peripheral edge thereof with the rear end surface 23 of the cowl 2. The rear end of the pedestal member 5 is closed by a rear end wall 55, and a joining flange at a lower edge of the rear end wall 55 is overlapped with a bent portion 12 at an upper edge of the vertical wall portion 10 of the dash panel 1 and welded. The end wall 55 connects the vertical wall portion 10 so as to extend upward. At the rear end of the upper surface portion of the pedestal member 5, the top surface of the protrusion 51 and the left and right side edges 52 thereof
Screw holes 50 with weld nuts fixed to the inner surface
Is provided.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, at the rear position of the dash panel 1, at a position slightly lower than the upper wall portion 11, an instrument panel reinforcement 3 extending in the vehicle width direction.
Is installed between the left and right front pillars (not shown). The instrument panel reinforcement 3 has a structure in which two types of pipes 31 and 32 having different diameters are linearly connected at these ends. A large-diameter pipe 31 is used on the driver's seat side, and the inner end of the vehicle is tapered. A small diameter pipe 32 on the passenger seat side is connected to the terminal as a small diameter. In the instrument panel reinforcement 3, brackets 33a and 33b fixed to both ends are respectively fastened to the inner surface of the front pillar with a plurality of bolts.

A brace 4 is fixed to an intermediate position on the driver's seat side of the instrument panel reinforcement 3. The brace 4 is fixed to the front of the brace 4.
Connected to. The brace 4 has a hat-shaped cross section, and has a shape in which the vertical width increases downward from the front end to the rear end. The rear edge of the brace 4 is inclined rearward and obliquely upward, and the upper half of the outer periphery of the instrument panel reinforcement 3 is fitted into an arc-shaped notch 43 formed in the middle portion, and the connecting flange at the periphery of the notch 43 is connected to the instrument panel. It is welded to the large diameter pipe 31 of the reinforcement 3.

The rear end of the brace 4 is closed by a rear end member 6. The rear end member 6 is a shallow container body. The lower half of the outer periphery of the instrument panel reinforcement 3 is fitted into an arc-shaped notch 60 formed at the upper edge, and the connecting flange of the notch 60 peripheral edge is enlarged to the size of the instrument panel reinforcement 3. In addition to welding to the diameter pipe 31, the connecting flange at the upper edge of the rear end member 6 is overlapped and welded to the connecting flange at the rear edge of the brace 4.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, the front end of the brace 4 has a hat-shaped cross section which matches the rear end of the upper surface of the pedestal member 5, and has a trapezoidal projection 41 and horizontal side edges 4 on both left and right sides thereof.
The width of the front end of the left and right side edge portions 42 is widened in accordance with the left and right side edge portions 52 of the upper surface portion of the base member 5. The brace 4 has a wider front end width than the rear end. Bolt through holes 40 are formed at the front end of the brace 4 at the top surface of the protruding portion 41 and at the left and right side edges 42, respectively, corresponding to the screw holes 50 at the rear end of the upper surface portion of the pedestal member 5.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the front end of the brace 4 overlaps the rear end of the upper surface of the pedestal member 5 from above, and the top surface of the protrusion 41 and the right and left side edges 42
The bolt member B is fastened to the top surface of the protrusion 51 of the pedestal member 5 and to the screw holes 50 of the left and right side edges 52 through the respective bolt through holes 40.

The instrument panel reinforcement 3 has a floor brace 8 erected between the vicinity of a terminal inside the large-diameter pipe 31 on the driver's seat side and a vehicle cabin floor (not shown). It supports the middle part. The connecting portion between the instrument panel reinforcement 3 and the rear end of the brace 4 has a plurality of stays 61a, 6 projecting downward at front and rear positions on the bottom surface of the rear end member 6 of the brace 4.
1b, the dash panel 1 from the engine room side
, The steering column 7 projecting obliquely into the vehicle. A steering S is connected to a tip of the steering column 7, and a cover member C is mounted on the steering column 7.

When the vehicle is running, vibrations from the front wheels and the like are transmitted to the steering column 7. In this case, a strong pedestal member 5 is provided on the upper wall portion 11 of the dash panel 1 and its front end is connected to the cowl 2, and the rear end of the pedestal member 5 located at the upper end of the vertical wall portion 10 of the dash panel and the instrument panel reinforcement. Since the brace 4 is provided between the brace 4 and the
The front and rear length is shorter than the conventional structure, strengthening rigidity,
Therefore, brace 4, instrument panel reinforcement 3
Since the rigidity of the steering column support structure including the floor brace 8 against vibration is enhanced, the vibration of the steering column 7 is suppressed.

The horizontal vibration, which has been a problem in the prior art, is combined with the shortening of the brace 4, and the front end of the brace 4 is vertically overlapped with the rear end of the pedestal member 5 and fixed. , Can be effectively suppressed.

As a result, the instrument panel reinforcement 3 does not need to be made unnecessarily large, and the conventional instrument panel reinforcement 3A shown in FIG. 4 has a pipe material having a diameter of about 70 mm and a wall thickness of about 2.6 mm over the entire width in the vehicle width direction. On the other hand, the instrument panel reinforcement 3 of this embodiment has a large-diameter pipe 31 having a diameter of about 70 mm on the driver's seat side and a thickness of about 2.0 mm, and a diameter 3 on the passenger seat side.
A small-sized pipe with a diameter of about 8 mm and a small-diameter pipe 32 of about 1.0 mm connected to suppress the vertical vibration of the steering column 7 to the same level as that of the conventional structure and further suppress the horizontal vibration of the steering column 7 as compared with the conventional structure. be able to. In addition, the weight and cost can be reduced, and the restriction on the layout design of other peripheral members installed around the dash panel 1 can be eased.

[0021]

According to the steering column support structure of the present invention, it is possible to effectively suppress the vibration of the steering column, particularly, the left-right vibration without increasing the size of the instrument panel reinforcement supporting the steering column.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a steering column support structure of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a steering column support structure of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along a line II-II of FIG.

FIG. 3 shows a steering column support structure of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along a line III-III of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a conventional steering column support structure.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the conventional steering column support structure taken along line VV in FIG. 4;

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 dash panel 10 vertical wall portion 11 upper wall portion 12 bent portion 2 cowl 23 rear end (rear end surface) 3 instrument panel reinforcement 4 brace 41 front end (projection portion) 42 front end (side edge portion) 5 pedestal member 51 upper surface (projection portion) 52) Top surface (side edge) 54 Front edge 55 Rear end wall

Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Jun Kamiya 100 Kanayama, Ichiriyama-cho, Kariya-shi, Aichi Prefecture Inside Toyota Auto Body Co., Ltd. F term (reference) 3D003 AA04 AA06 BB01 CA06 CA09 DA09 3D030 DC02 DC14

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A cowl is installed in front of a vertical wall-shaped dash panel at the front of a passenger compartment, and an upper wall portion which is bent substantially horizontally and projects forward in a shelf shape is provided on an upper edge of the dash panel. It is connected to the rear end of the cowl, and an instrument panel reinforcement extending in the vehicle width direction is placed between the left and right front pillars at the rear position of the dash panel, and the cowl and the instrument panel reinforcement are braced in the front-rear direction. In a steering column support structure in which the steering column is supported by a connection portion between the instrument panel reinforcement and the brace, the closed section is formed on the upper surface of the upper wall of the dash panel with the upper wall. The base member is fixed, the front edge of the base member is connected to the rear end of the cowl, and the front end of the brace is connected to the rear end of the base member. Support structure of the steering column, characterized. 2. The pedestal member is provided substantially over the entire length of the upper wall portion of the dash panel in the front-rear direction, and a lower edge of a rear end wall closing a rear end of the pedestal member is bent at an upper edge of a vertical wall portion of the dash panel. The steering column support structure according to claim 1, wherein the front end of the brace is vertically overlapped and connected to a rear end of an upper surface of the base member.