JP2005313762A - Structure for protecting crew member of vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a structure for protecting a crew member of a vehicle, which structure can securely protect the side head portion of the crew member from the impact of a side collision while reducing the number of components and simplifying the structure for fixing an assist grip. <P>SOLUTION: A cushioning portion 15 for protecting the head portion of the crew member from a rushing roof side portion is mounted to the position corresponding to an area α among the roof side rail 8 of the car body 1 to rush to the side head portion of the crew member sitting on a seat 4 when a car body 1 has collided from the side. Such an integral structure that the assist grip 25 is integrally arranged with the cushioning portion 15 on the front side of the car body is adopted. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an occupant protection structure for a vehicle that protects an occupant's head from an impact applied during a side collision.

  As is well known, the body of an automobile (vehicle) employs a box structure that is supported via a tire and a suspension device. For this reason, the vehicle body is seated on the seat c when a side collision impact force F is applied from the side of the vehicle body a, for example, the door b, as shown in FIG. While the head of the occupant d is not moving, the lower side of the vehicle body a is mainly deformed by an impact as indicated by a two-dot chain line, and the entire vehicle body moves in the direction of the arrow with the center of the vehicle body as a fulcrum by the inertia moment of collision. It tends to be inclined.

  Incidentally, a roof side rail f that forms a skeleton on the roof e side is usually disposed at a point of the vehicle body a that is on the side upper side of the seat c.

  For this reason, when the vehicle body a receives a side collision as described above, the roof side rail f approaches the head of the occupant d seated on the seat c as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. Thus, there is a possibility of interfering with the temporal region g of the occupant d. In particular, in the case of an inexpensive car such as a van, the interior side of the roof side rail f is not covered with a trim or the like (due to cost reduction), so that the exposed roof side rail f is exposed to the side g of the occupant d. There is a risk of interference with the inner panel surface.

  Therefore, in automobiles that place importance on safety, a cushioning member is attached as a cushioning part to almost the entire inner panel surface of the roof side rail to protect the occupant's temporal region.

  By the way, the roof side rail may be provided with an assist grip that is used for assisting passengers to get on and off, helping to change the sitting posture, and supporting the sitting posture.

In the case of a vehicle body having a function of protecting the occupant's temporal region, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, an assist grip is provided for the buffer member as a buffer portion that is attached over almost the entire length of the inner panel surface of the roof side rail. Are arranged so as to overlap each other, and the assist grip is fixed to the inner panel (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP-A-8-113162

  However, the structure for obtaining both occupant protection and use of the assist grip by attaching the assist grip to the buffer portion attached to almost the entire length of the inner panel surface as in Patent Document 1 is a separate part. Since this is a combination, there is a problem that the number of parts is large and a cost burden is imposed. In particular, since the assist grip is placed over the buffer part, fixing the assist grip to the inner panel of the roof side rail requires a device to be fixed to the inner panel without impairing the function of the buffer part. This increases the complexity of the grip fixing structure, and is a factor that imposes a cost burden.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle occupant protection structure that can secure the performance of protecting the occupant's head from the impact of a side collision while reducing the number of parts and simplifying the assist grip fixing structure. Is to provide.

  In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 corresponds to an area of the roof side rail of the vehicle body that approaches the side of the occupant seated on the seat when the vehicle body undergoes a side collision. A buffer part that protects the head of an occupant seated from the approaching roof side part, and is provided with an assist grip integrally with the buffer part located on the vehicle body front side of the buffer part; Adopted a structure in which the assist grip is installed integrally.

  The invention according to claim 2 is a resin cover having a pair of first mounting portions on both end sides and extending along the roof side rail in order to make the buffer portion and the assist grip excellent in appearance. An energy absorbing member is housed between the first mounting portions, and an assist grip is integrally formed on a resin cover.

  In the invention according to claim 3, the assist grip includes a grip portion that continuously extends forward from an end portion of the cover on the front side of the vehicle body, and an extension of the grip portion so that the number of places for fixing the assist grip is reduced. A structure having a second mounting portion for fixing the roof side rail formed at the extended end was used.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the buffer portion can sufficiently exhibit the function of protecting the occupant's temporal region from the impact of the side collision while maintaining the structure integrated with the assist grip. Moreover, since the assist grip is disposed in front of the occupant's head position, appropriate use can be expected.

  Therefore, the structure in which the buffer portion and the assist grip are integrated can reduce the number of parts of the occupant protection structure while ensuring the necessary functions. Moreover, since the assist grip is arranged in front of the buffer portion, it can be fixed to the roof side rail as it is, and no special device is required for fixing the assist grip, so that the assist grip fixing structure is simplified. be able to.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the above effects, the outer portions of the buffer portion and the assist grip are unified by an integral resin member, so that the appearance is good. In addition, the energy absorbing member is housed between the two attachment parts in the cover that can be attached to the roof side rail at both ends, so that even if an impact is applied to the cover from any point between the attachment parts, stable shock absorption is possible. Sex can be secured.

  According to the invention described in claim 3, in addition to the above effects, the assist grip is attached to the roof side rail using the mounting portion for fixing the cover to the roof side rail, and the number of parts is reduced. Can be installed.

[One Embodiment]
Hereinafter, the present invention will be described based on an embodiment shown in FIGS.

  FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional view of a vehicle, for example, a van type automobile, in which 1 is a box-shaped vehicle body, 2 is a passenger compartment space formed inside the vehicle body 1, and 3 is the same space 2. 4 is a seat installed on the same floor 3, for example, a front seat (driver's seat, front passenger seat), 5 is a door that opens and closes entrances 6 on both sides in the vehicle width direction of the vehicle body 1, for example, a front door, and 7 is a roof. , 8 is a roof side rail formed in the front-rear direction of the vehicle body along the upper edge of both entrances and exits 6 (only the driver's seat side is shown; for example, the outer panel 8a and the inner panel 8b are combined so as to have a closed cross section. Structures 9 and 9 respectively indicate tires that support the vehicle body 1 from below through a suspension device (not shown). Although not shown in FIG. 1, a headlining 10 (shown only in FIG. 5) is provided on the ceiling of the passenger compartment space 2.

  Since the van type automobile is an inexpensive vehicle type, the roof side rail 8 disposed on the upper side of the front seat 4 has a structure in which the inner panel surface is exposed to the passenger compartment space 2 on both sides in the vehicle width direction. In many cases, a simple makeup structure is used (trimless) in which a simple makeup process such as painting is applied to the inner panel surface and the decorated surface is exposed to the vehicle interior space 2.

  On the panel surface of the inner panel 8b facing the passenger compartment space 2 of the roof side rail 8, a point determined from the seating position, specifically, the head position of the occupant A seated in the driver's seat and the passenger seat (not shown). 2 to 6, a protective structure 12 (corresponding to a protective structure) for protecting the head of the occupant A is provided. Since these protective structures 12 have the same structure on both the driver seat side and the passenger seat side, only the protective structure 12 on one side, for example, the driver seat side will be described here.

  Here, FIG. 2 shows the appearance of the protective structure 12 on the driver's seat side, FIG. 4 shows a front view of the protective structure 12 as viewed from the front, and FIG. 5 shows the protective structure 12. FIG. 6 shows a cross-sectional view of the protective structure 12 taken from the longitudinal direction. Further, FIG. 3 shows a structure in which the protective structure 12 is disassembled.

  In other words, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the protective structure 12 has a structure in which the buffer portion 15 for buffering the impact and the assist grip 25 are integrated.

  Of these, the shock absorber 15 is provided when the vehicle body 1 is subjected to a side collision from a side portion such as the front door 5 and the vehicle body 1 is tilted due to a moment of inertia of the collision as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. A portion corresponding to the area of the roof side rail 8 approaching toward the temporal region B of the occupant A seated on the (front seat 4), for example, near the center pillar 11 as indicated by α in FIG. It is provided in an area approaching various estimated head positions obtained by taking into account, for example, the seating posture of the occupant A and the seat height, such as a part from a point to a predetermined amount in front thereof.

  For example, as shown in FIGS. 3, 5, and 6, the buffer portion 15 has a structure in which an energy absorbing member 17 is housed in a resin cover 16 that extends in the vehicle longitudinal direction along the roof side rail 8. It is used. Specifically, the cover 16 is a synthetic resin member, and is formed in a box shape (made of a resin) surrounded by a thin wall portion and having an opening on one surface and having a size that is similar to the above region. The surface of the cover 16 having the opening 16a is the side closely contacting the inner panel surface. For example, a pair of mounting seats 18 are provided as first mounting portions at both ends of the front wall 16 b facing the vehicle interior space 2 of the cover 16. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the mounting seat 18 has a structure in which a circular recess 20 having a through hole 19 in the bottom wall is formed in the front wall 16b. An energy absorbing member 17 is accommodated so as to occupy almost the entire elongated internal space of the cover 16 surrounded by the pair of mounting seats 18. For this long and narrow energy absorbing member 17, for example, an impact absorbing material 21 formed by winding a thin plate member made of aluminum with corrugated cardboard members on the front and back surfaces and forming a cylindrical shape, here a rectangular tube shape, is used. ing. That is, the shock absorber 21 has a function of deforming and absorbing the shock when an impact force of a predetermined level or more is applied from the outside. As shown in FIGS. 3, 5, and 6, the shock absorber 21 is fixed inside the cover 16 while being positioned by the ribs 22 formed on the inner surface of the cover 16. Here, FIGS. 3 and 6 are used. As shown in FIG. 2, a pair of locking claws 24 protruding from the inner surface of the front wall 16b of the cover 16 are locked in a pair of square locking holes 23 formed on both ends of the peripheral wall of the shock absorber 20. It is fixed with. That is, the shock absorber 20 is incorporated in the cover 16 so that the plane and the front wall 16b overlap.

  On the other hand, the assist grip 25 is formed by integral molding of resin as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 so as to protrude from the end portion 16c of the cover 16 on the vehicle body front side. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 6, the assist grip 25 forms a bar-shaped (solid) grip portion 26 that continuously extends from the end portion 16 c of the cover 16 toward the front of the vehicle body, for example. A structure in which a solid leg 27 extending toward the inner panel surface, for example, is formed as the second mounting portion at the distal end portion (extending end) of the grip portion 26 is used. More specifically, a circular recess 29 having a through hole 28 in the bottom wall as shown in FIG. 6 is formed on the end surface of the leg 27 on the base side (vehicle compartment space 2 side).

  The protective structure 12 is modularized by the combination of the buffer 15 and the assist grip 25, and is integrated into one functional component.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 6, each mounting seat 18 of the buffer portion 15 is fixed by a fixing member, for example, a screw member 31 screwed into a nut portion 30 formed in the inner panel 8 b from the through hole 19. Similarly, the leg portion 27 of the assist grip 25 is fixed by a fixing member, for example, a screw member 31 screwed into a nut portion 32 formed in the inner panel 8b from the through hole 28, and the buffer portion 15 is fixed on the roof side rail 8. In order to protect the head of the occupant A, it is installed at a point in the region α, and the assist grip 25 is installed at a point closer to the front than the occupant head that is easy to operate.

  The protective structure 12 on the passenger seat side has the same structure (not shown), and is installed on the roof side rail 8 on the passenger seat side.

  Such a protective structure 12 helps, for example, change the sitting posture of the occupant A seated on the front seat 4 on the driver's seat side, or protects the head of the occupant A during a side collision.

  That is, for example, when the occupant A who is currently seated on the front seat 4 on the driver's seat side wants to change his posture, his arms are extended to the assist grip 25 disposed on the front side of the head of the occupant A, The grip part 26 of the assist grip 25 may be grasped with fingers, the upper body of the occupant A may be lifted, and the seating position may be changed.

  Further, it is assumed that an automobile receives a side collision and an impact force F is applied from a side portion of the vehicle body 1, for example, the front door 5 on the driver's seat side as shown in FIG. Then, the head of the occupant A seated on the front seat 4 does not move, and as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. Tilts in the direction of the arrow with the center of the vehicle as a fulcrum due to the moment of inertia of the collision. Due to the inclination of the vehicle body 1, the roof side rail 8 above the front seat 4 on the driver's seat side moves toward the side head B of the occupant A seated on the front seat 4 on the driver's seat side. At this time, since the buffer part 15 is installed in the area of the inner panel portion of the roof side rail 8 approaching the side head B, in the unlikely event that it strikes the side head B, the cover 16 is deformed, and the energy absorbing member 17 inside the cover 16 is deformed. And the impact added to the side head B of the passenger | crew A is reduced by the impact absorption performance of the energy absorption member 17 at this time.

  Therefore, the buffer portion 15 can sufficiently exhibit the function of protecting the occupant A's temporal region B while having a structure in which the number of parts integrated with the assist grip 25 is reduced. Moreover, the assist grip 25 can be used appropriately. Moreover, the assist grip 25 can be fixed to the roof side rail 8 with a simple structure that does not require any special device by being arranged in front of the buffer portion 15. As a result, the cost can be significantly reduced.

  In particular, the buffer portion 15 uses a structure in which the energy absorbing member 17 is housed in a resin cover 16 integral with the assist grip 25, so that the outer portion from the buffer portion 15 to the assist grip 25 is unified with a resin member. Therefore, it looks good. In addition, since the energy absorbing member 17 is housed so that both ends occupy the center of the cover 16 that can be fixed by the mounting seats 18, a stable impact can be obtained from any point between the mounting seats 18. Absorption performance can be demonstrated.

  In addition, the assist grip 25 is fixed to the roof side rail 8 by sharing the mounting seat 18 for fixing the cover 16, so that the number of parts to which the assist grip 25 is attached can be reduced and the cost can be reduced. It is advantageous for reduction.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, in one embodiment, a structure in which an occupant protection structure is provided on a roof side rail in which the inner panel surface is exposed in the passenger compartment space is described as an example, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and the inner panel surface of the roof side rail is trimmed. An occupant protection structure may be installed on the roof side rail covered by the vehicle. In one embodiment, a structure using a cylindrical energy absorbing member is taken as an example. However, other structures such as a honeycomb energy absorbing member may be used.

Sectional drawing which shows the passenger | crew protection structure which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention with the vehicle which installed the structure. The perspective view which shows the external appearance of the passenger protection structure. The perspective view which decomposed | disassembled the passenger protection structure. The figure which looked at the passenger protection structure from the vehicle interior. The sectional side view of the passenger protection structure. The longitudinal cross-sectional view of the passenger protection structure. The figure for demonstrating a behavior when receiving the side collision of a vehicle body.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Vehicle body, 4 ... Front seat (seat), 8 ... Roof side rail, 12 ... Protection structure, 15 ... Buffering part, 16 ... Cover, 17 ... Energy absorption member, 18 ... Mounting seat (1st mounting part), 25 ... Assist grip, 26 ... Grip part, 27 ... Leg part (second attachment part).

Claims (3)

A vehicle body having a seat on which an occupant is seated and a roof side rail disposed on an upper side of the seat;
Among the roof side rails, when the vehicle body receives a side collision, the roof side rail is attached to a portion corresponding to an area approaching the temporal region of the occupant seated on the seat, and the occupant seated from the approaching roof side portion. A buffer part for protecting the head of the
An occupant protection structure for a vehicle, comprising: an assist grip provided integrally with the buffer portion and positioned on the vehicle body front side of the buffer portion. The buffer portion extends in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body along the roof side rail and has a pair of first covers for fixing to the roof side rail at both ends, and the first cover in the cover. An energy absorbing member housed between one mounting portion,
The vehicle occupant protection structure according to claim 1, wherein the assist grip is formed integrally with the cover.   The assist grip includes a grip portion that extends continuously forward from an end portion of the cover on the vehicle body front side, and a second attachment portion that is formed at an extended end of the grip portion and is fixed to the roof side rail. The vehicle occupant protection structure according to claim 2, wherein the vehicle occupant protection structure is formed.

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