JP2005335543A - Dashboard of car - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a dashboard of a car which is simple in structure and capable of reducing the number of components thereof, the weight and the volume of the dashboard. <P>SOLUTION: The dashboard 10 of the car has two metal layers 26, 28, an outer sheet 12 of a sandwich structure consisting of a plastic layer 24 held by the metal layers, an inner sheet 14 having a structure similar thereto, and a joining means to join opposing faces of the sheets 12, 14 while demarcating a conduit 42 for reinforcement. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to automobile parts, and more particularly to automobile dashboards.

  The dashboard of the automobile is attached at a position crossing the front of the passenger compartment, and is a collection of a predetermined number of functions necessary for driving the automobile.

  The dashboard is usually supported by a metal beam connected to the body of the automobile and extending in a direction transverse to the vehicle body. This beam may be part of the body or may be associated with the body. In the latter case, the beam is integrated with the dashboard, and this integrated unit is attached to the body of the automobile via the connector of the beam.

  The dashboard is composed of a number of parts including a reinforcing member connected to the beam and parts such as a device panel, a control mechanism, an instrument panel, a glove box, and an ashtray. Further, the dashboard can accommodate at least a part of a predetermined device such as an air-conditioning ventilator or one or a plurality of airbags.

  The present invention proposes a novel dashboard capable of reducing the number of parts, weight and volume, and aims to simplify the structure of a conventional dashboard.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention has a sandwich structure composed of two metal layers and a plastic layer sandwiched between them, an outer sheet having a joining surface, two metal layers, and a plastic sandwiched therebetween. An automobile comprising: an inner sheet having a sandwich structure composed of layers and having a joining surface; and joining means for joining the joining surface of the outer sheet and the joining surface of the inner sheet so as to define a reinforcing conduit. Provide a dashboard.

  The dashboard of the present invention comprises two sheets of sandwich structure in which the respective joining surfaces are joined together to partition the conduit. “Sandwich structure” means a structure designed such that a plastic layer exists between two metal layers.

  The present invention can eliminate the beam conventionally used, and uses a combination of two sheets bonded to each other instead of the beam. Both sheets cooperate to define a conduit that acts as a reinforcement. According to the combination of these two sheets, it is possible to embody a structure constituting the dashboard or the sub-assembly of the dashboard.

  The term “outer seat” may also be referred to as a “support sheet” that is usually rotated from the passenger compartment side. On the other hand, the term “inner seat” is sometimes referred to as “conduit seat” which is usually rotated from the engine room side. Thus, the outer sheet constitutes the dashboard covering, while the inner sheet contributes to defining the conduit.

  The terms “inside” and “outside” are used for convenience to indicate which side is used, and they can be interchanged with each other.

  Two sheets forming a sandwich structure are joined to each other. That is, they are integrated. Moreover, both sheets can take a shape suitable for each automobile.

  In the present invention, it is preferable that the outer sheet and the inner sheet have the same sandwich structure.

  At least one of the metal layer in the sandwich structure of the outer sheet and the metal layer in the sandwich structure of the inner sheet is preferably made of steel or aluminum. For example, steel is more preferable in consideration of the characteristic that it is easily formed into a predetermined shape by punching.

  The thickness of the metal layer is preferably 0.2 to 0.3 mm, particularly preferably 0.25 mm.

  At least one of the plastic layer in the sandwich structure of the outer sheet and the plastic layer in the sandwich structure of the inner sheet is preferably made of a thermoplastic polymer.

  The plastic layer has a thickness of 1 to 3 mm, preferably 1.5 mm.

  It is preferable to use a sandwich sheet comprising a polymer film having a thickness of 1.5 mm between two metal layers formed from a steel material having a thickness of 0.25 mm. In this case, the thickness of the entire sheet is 2 mm.

  When the sheet has a sandwich structure, the polymer film can be prevented from shrinking by being sandwiched between the metal layers.

  Such a sandwich structure can be easily formed into a certain shape, for example, by punching. In addition, the sandwich-structured sheet has rigidity against bending, compression, and modest loads. Furthermore, the sandwich-structured sheet can improve the acoustic characteristics at the time of ventilation by the air-conditioning ventilator as compared with the conventional one.

  In the present invention, the outer sheet and the inner sheet are preferably formed by punching.

  The joining means for both sheets is preferably a joining layer sandwiched between the joining surfaces of the outer sheet and the inner sheet, for example. The joining means can be mechanical.

  The bonding layer is particularly preferable because it can form a waterproof conduit.

  In the present invention, the outer sheet preferably constitutes a dashboard support cover. The outer sheet can also be used as a support plate for the apparatus. In this case, a predetermined number of functions of the dashboard can be combined.

  The outer sheet preferably includes a covering material attached to at least a part of the support cover. Various coating materials can be used. Preference is given to plastic foams with a jacket.

  In the present invention, the conduit is primarily responsible for reinforcing the dashboard.

  However, the conduit can also perform other functions. In particular, the conduit preferably defines at least one circulation passage for fluid, in particular air.

  The conduit preferably defines a cold air passage and a warm air passage communicating with at least one air outlet provided in the opening of the outer sheet. For this reason, it is necessary for the conduit to include a partition wall that partitions the cold air passage and the warm air passage.

  The conduit preferably includes at least one flap that can mix the cold and warm air streams passing through the air outlet in any proportion and that can open and close the air outlet.

  According to the present invention, there is provided an automobile dashboard that has a simple structure and can reduce the number of parts, weight, and volume.

  The present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings by way of example only.

  FIG. 1 shows a dashboard 10 with an outer sheet 12 and an inner sheet 14. The dashboard 10 is provided across the front part of the vehicle compartment H and the rear part of the engine room C. In this figure, the outer seat 12 has a substantially inverted C shape in a side view, and the open side faces the direction of the engine room. The outer sheet 12 has an upper surface 16 and a lower surface 18 joined to the upper surface 16 via a surface 20 having a circular cross section.

  The outer sheet 12 forms a sandwich structure that is cut out in a region 22 surrounded by a circle in the drawing. That is, a core 24 made of a plastic layer is sandwiched between the two metal layers 26 and 28. Next, the features of this sandwich structure will be described.

  The inner sheet 14 has the same structure as the sandwich structure of the outer sheet. As shown in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 1, the inner sheet 14 has a curved surface with two ends 32 and 34 that are substantially parallel to each other. This surface is a bonding surface facing the inner surface 36 of the outer sheet 12. The ends 32 and 34 at the joining surface of the inner sheet 14 cooperate with opposing ends 38 and 40 of the outer sheet 12 to define a reinforcing conduit 42.

  Since the above-described joining surfaces are joined so as to define the reinforcing conduit 42, a rigid structure can be formed, and it is not necessary to use a conventional metal beam. In the illustrated embodiment, the outer sheet 12 is provided with a covering material 44 from the outside. The covering material 44 is preferably formed of a foam material 46 having a jacket 48. For example, a foam material made of a known plastic material capable of forming a jacket can be used. Of course, other types of dressings can be used.

  As can be seen from FIG. 1, a part of the automobile air-conditioning ventilator 50 is accommodated in the opening portion having a C-shaped outer shape in the reverse direction in the cross-sectional view of the outer sheet 12.

In the variant shown in FIG. 2, the conduit 42 has a septum 52 that separates the conduit into two passages 54 and 56 for circulating a fluid, for example an air stream.
1 and 2, the conduit 42 is located below the site forming the top surface 16 of the dashboard.

  In the embodiment of FIG. 3, the conduit 42 is in a different position than in the above embodiment, but the inner sheet 14 is also facing the circular surface 42 as well.

  FIG. 4 schematically shows a cross section of a sandwich structure according to the present invention. In FIG. 4, the outer sheet 12 has two metal layers 26 and 28 and a plastic layer 24 sandwiched between them as already described. The metal layers 26 and 28 are preferably made of steel or aluminum, and steel is more preferred in view of the property that it can be easily formed into a desired shape.

  The thickness e1 of the two layers is 0.2 to 0.3 mm, respectively. The plastic layer 24 is preferably formed from a thermoplastic polymer. The e2 of the plastic layer 24 is 1 to 3 mm, preferably 1.5 mm. Accordingly, the thickness of the entire outer sheet 12 is preferably on the order of 2 mm.

  FIG. 5 schematically shows the joining pattern of the outer sheet 12 and the inner sheet 14. These two sheets have the same sandwich structure. These two sheets are bonded via the bonding surfaces 32 and 38 of the common bonding layer 58 located between them. The bonding layer 58 is adapted to the characteristics of the two metal layers to be bonded. The bonding layer is preferably used because it can ensure waterproofness between the bonding surfaces of the outer sheet 12 and the inner sheet 14.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the outer sheet 12 and the inner sheet 14 are mechanically joined using a rivet 60 as an example. Of course, soldering and other mechanical connection methods are also possible.

  FIG. 7 shows a dashboard according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In this figure, only the outer sheet 12 is shown, and the inner sheet 14 is omitted for the sake of simplicity. The outer sheet 12 has a more complicated shape than that shown in FIGS. In this embodiment, the outer sheet 12 also has a reverse C-shape, but its upper surface 16 has a more complicated shape. The outer sheet 12 is provided with a predetermined number of openings serving as attachment portions for various devices and control mechanisms in addition to the air outlet. The curved surface 20 is provided with three openings 62, and the upper surface 16 is provided with other openings 64, 66 and 68.

  In this embodiment, the outer sheet 12 can support the devices. The outer sheet 12 is attached with a reinforcing member composed of three parts from the outside. The three parts of the reinforcing material are an upper part 70, an intermediate part 72, and a lower part 74. These three parts of the reinforcement can be formed directly on the outer sheet 12 using, for example, a plastic foam. Moreover, it can also attach to this foaming material by a well-known method.

  FIG. 8 shows a dashboard according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, which includes an outer sheet 12 and an inner sheet 14 as in the previous embodiments. In this embodiment, the inner sheet 14 includes a horizontal plane 76 and a vertical plane 78, and has a substantially L-shaped outer shape in a side view.

  The outer sheet 12 is positioned on the right side and the left side, respectively, and has a shape capable of forming two casings 80d and 80g that are separated from each other by edges extending in the axial direction of the vehicle body. The outer sheet 12 and the inner sheet 14 are joined at their peripheral edges so as to partition the conduits 42d and 42g on the right and left sides, respectively.

  These two conduits 42d and 42g are fed with a temperature-controlled air flow. This air flow is sent out in a pulse form from the air conditioning ventilator 84 under the control of the ventilation unit 86 in the two casings 80d and 80g. The dashboard 10, which is an element of the dashboard unit, can support the air-conditioning ventilator 84 and the ventilation unit 86 at least partially, as in the previous embodiments.

  The two casings 80d and 80g each have a plurality of openings through which temperature-controlled air can be sent out to various regions of the passenger compartment. These two casings 80d and 80g are respectively provided with three openings 88d and 88g on the front surface and one opening 90d and 90g on the top surface. The three openings 88d and 88g on the front face serve as the blower opening of the dashboard, while the openings 90d and 90g on the top face send out an air flow toward the lower part (not shown) of the windshield. ing.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the outer sheet 12 and the inner sheet 14 constitute a dashboard subassembly that houses various known components of the dashboard.

  FIG. 9 shows a dashboard according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. The outer sheet 12 has a very complicated shape that can partition a predetermined number of openings 92, 94 and the like and a predetermined number of protrusions 96, 98 and the like. The outer sheet 12 can exhibit a normal function as a dashboard, and can also accommodate an apparatus panel and a control mechanism (not shown).

  In this embodiment, the inner sheet 14 includes a vertical surface 100 and a horizontal surface 102, and has a substantially L-shaped outer shape in a side view. The horizontal plane 102 extends to the bottom of the windshield, and an opening 104 serving as a nozzle for sending an air flow toward the lower portion of the windshield is formed in the horizontal plane.

  FIG. 10 schematically shows a partial cross section of a dashboard according to the present invention. The interior of the conduit is separated by a septum 106, with a cool air passage 108 at the bottom and a warm air passage 110 at the top.

  The conduit is formed by the two seats 12 and 14 according to the present invention, and is opened toward the passenger compartment through an opening 112 having an air blowing port 114. Located inside the conduit is a flap 116 that is pivotably mounted about an axis 118 and can be adjusted in position.

  The flap 116 creates a temperature-controlled air flow (indicated by arrow F3) and a warm air flow (indicated by arrow F1) and a warm air flow (indicated by arrow F2) toward the passenger compartment via the air vent 114. Can be distributed in any proportion.

  The dashboard shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 is similar to the dashboard shown in FIG. 9 except that it incorporates cold and warm air passages according to the general principle shown in FIG. That is.

  As in the embodiment of FIG. 9, the outer sheet 12 has a predetermined number of openings and protrusions so that it can perform the normal function of the dashboard. The same applies to the inner sheet 14.

  A partition member 120 having a complicated shape is disposed between the two sheets. The partition member includes three flaps 122 located on the left side, a flap 124 located approximately in the center of the top surface, and a flap 126 located on the right side. Three flaps 122 can control the mixing of air through the three openings 128 in the outer sheet 12. On the other hand, the flap 124 can control the air flow through the opening 130 of the outer sheet 12. Further, the flap 126 can control the air flow through the opening 132 of the outer sheet 12.

  The outer sheet 12 has a top opening 134 for attaching a warm air radiator 136. FIG. 12 shows the assembled state of the dashboard of FIG.

  It will be appreciated that many variations on the present invention are possible. According to the present invention, a new dashboard or a dashboard sub-assembly that incorporates more or less the normal functions of a dashboard can be constructed. A feature of the present invention is that the conduit acts not only as a reinforcement but also as a circulation path for air.

It is the partial perspective view which notched some dashboards concerning a 1st embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view similar to FIG. 1 which concerns on the modification of embodiment shown in FIG. It is the fragmentary perspective view which notched some dashboards concerning the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a typical sectional view of one layer which constitutes a sandwich structure. It is typical sectional drawing which shows the pattern of joining of the outer sheet | seat and inner sheet | seat in embodiment of FIG. It is typical sectional drawing which shows the pattern of joining of the outer sheet | seat and inner sheet | seat in embodiment of FIG. It is a perspective view of the dashboard concerning the 3rd embodiment of the present invention which shows only the outside sheet which attached the jacket. It is a perspective view of the dashboard which concerns on the 4th Embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view of the dashboard which concerns on the 5th Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the path | route of two air in a conduit | pipe. It is a disassembled perspective view of the dashboard which concerns on the 6th Embodiment of this invention (it includes the partition of a conduit | pipe). It is a perspective view of the dashboard which concerns on the 7th Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

10 Dashboard
12 Outer sheet
14 Inner sheet
24 plastic layers
26,28 metal layer
42 conduit
44 Coating material
46 Foam
48 Jacket
50 Air conditioning ventilator
52 Bulkhead
54,56 passage
58 Bonding layer
60 rivets
80d, 80g casing
84 Air-conditioning ventilation equipment
86 Ventilation unit
106 Bulkhead
108 cold air passage
110 Warm air passage
114 Blower
116 flaps

Claims (18)

An outer sheet (12) having a sandwich structure composed of two metal layers (26) and (28) and a plastic layer (24) sandwiched between the metal layers (26) and (28);
An inner sheet (14) having a sandwich structure composed of two metal layers (26) (28) and a plastic layer (24) sandwiched therebetween, and having joint surfaces (38) and (40);
Joining means for joining the joining surfaces (32), (34) of the outer sheet (12) and the joining surfaces (38), (40) of the inner sheet (14) so as to partition the reinforcing conduit (42). 58) (60). A vehicle dashboard characterized by comprising:   The dashboard according to claim 1, wherein the sandwich structure of the outer sheet (12) is the same as the sandwich structure of the inner sheet (14).   At least one of the metal layers (26) and (28) in the sandwich structure of the outer sheet (12) and the metal layers (26) and (28) in the sandwich structure of the inner sheet (14) is made of steel or aluminum. The dashboard according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that   The thickness (e1) of at least one of the metal layers (26) (28) in the sandwich structure of the outer sheet (12) and the metal layers (26) (28) in the sandwich structure of the inner sheet (14) is 0.2. The dashboard according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it is -0.3 mm, preferably 0.25 mm.   At least one of the plastic layer (24) in the sandwich structure of the outer sheet (12) and the plastic layer (24) in the sandwich structure of the inner sheet (14) is made of a thermoplastic polymer. The dashboard according to any one of 4 above.   The thickness (e2) of at least one of the plastic layer (24) in the sandwich structure of the outer sheet (12) and the plastic layer (24) in the sandwich structure of the inner sheet (14) is 1 to 3 mm, preferably 1 The dashboard according to claim 1, wherein the dashboard is 5 mm.   The dashboard according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the outer sheet (12) and the inner sheet (14) are formed by punching.   The said joining means is a joining layer (58) arrange | positioned between each joining surface of an outer sheet | seat (12) and an inner sheet | seat (14), The Claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned. Dashboard.   The dashboard according to claim 1, wherein the joining means is a mechanical connecting material.   The dashboard according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the outer sheet (12) constitutes a support cover for the dashboard.   The dashboard according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the outer sheet (12) constitutes a support board of the apparatus.   The dash according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the outer sheet (12) includes a covering material (44) (70) (72) (74) attached to at least a part of the cover. board.   The dashboard according to claim 12, characterized in that the covering (44) comprises a foam (46) with a jacket (48).   14. A dashboard according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the conduit (42) defines at least one circulation passage (54) (56) (108) (110) for fluid.   15. A dashboard according to claim 14, characterized in that the conduit (42) defines at least one air flow circulation passage (54) (56) (108) (110).   The conduit (42) defines a cold air passage (108) communicating with at least one air outlet (112) provided in the opening of the outer sheet (12) and a warm air passage (110). The dashboard according to claim 15, wherein:   17. The dashboard according to claim 16, wherein the conduit (42) comprises a partition wall (106) (120) defining a cold air passage (108) and a warm air passage (110).   The conduit (42) is capable of mixing a cold air flow and a warm air flow passing through the air outlet in any proportion, and at least one flap (116) (122) capable of opening and closing the air outlet. The dashboard according to claim 16 or 17, further comprising (124) (126).

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