JP2006103565A - Side structure for automobile - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a side structure of an automobile capable of efficiently transmitting the load input from a side of an automobile body to a pillar, and increasing the strength of the automobile body from the initial stage of the input of the load from the side of the automobile body. <P>SOLUTION: The side structure of the automobile comprises a front door (a door) 1 to open/close a front door opening (a door opening) K1 formed in a side of an automobile body S, a center pillar (a pillar) 4 to form a rear edge of the front door opening K1, and a ratchet 6 and a stroke 7 (a door locking means) to lock the front door 1 to the center pillar 4 while forming a space in the vehicle width direction between the front door 1 and the center pillar 4 when the front door 1 is closed. A load transmitting member 10 which is moved interlockingly with the opening/closing operation of the front door 1, capable of permitting the over-stroke when closing the front door 1, and abutted on the front door 1 and the center pillar 4, respectively, in the vehicle width direction after closing the front door 1. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a side part structure of an automobile including a door provided on a side surface of a vehicle body and a pillar in which a door is locked via a door locking means in a state where a gap in the vehicle width direction is formed. .

  Generally, a door opening is provided on the side of a vehicle body of an automobile, and a door that opens and closes the door opening and a pillar that forms a front edge or a rear edge of the door opening are generally provided. The door and the pillar are locked via door locking means (door lock device) in a state where a gap is formed in the peripheral edge of the door.

  In such an automobile, when a load is input from the side of the vehicle body (in the vehicle width direction), the door provided on the side surface of the vehicle body is first deformed toward the inside of the vehicle body by the input load. Then, after the deformed door moves to the pillar side so as to narrow the gap formed between the pillar and the pillar, it comes into contact with the pillar, whereby the load inputted to the door is inputted to the pillar, and the pillar progresses in deformation. It was like that.

  On the other hand, when a load is input from the front of the vehicle body, first, the pillar is deformed by the input load, and the pillar moves backward so as to narrow the gap formed between the door and the door. Door deformation was going to progress.

Therefore, conventionally, there has been considered a side structure of an automobile in which a projection for reducing the gap in the vehicle front-rear direction between the door and the pillar is provided on the door hinge portion, and an input load from the front of the vehicle is efficiently transmitted to the door (for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2003-118370 A

  However, in the side part structure of the automobile described above, the gap in the vehicle width direction between the door and the pillar cannot be reduced, and the load input from the side of the vehicle body cannot be quickly transmitted from the door to the pillar. It was.

  Therefore, when a load is input from the side of the vehicle body, there is a problem that the pillar does not act as a strength member of the vehicle body until the input load is transmitted to the pillar when the deformed door comes into contact with the pillar.

  In addition, for example, when a load is input to the front door from diagonally forward, the load input to the vehicle is not affected even if the gap between the door and the pillar near the door hinge is reduced by the protrusion provided on the door hinge. It was not possible to communicate efficiently from the door to the pillar. That is, in the above-described side structure of the automobile, even when a load is input from an oblique front of the vehicle, the pillar cannot be used as a strength member of the vehicle body almost simultaneously with the load input.

  Therefore, the present invention provides a side part structure of an automobile that can efficiently transmit a load input from the side of the vehicle body to the pillar and increase the strength of the vehicle body from the initial stage of load input from the side of the vehicle body. It is an issue.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a door that opens and closes a door opening provided on a side surface of a vehicle body, a pillar that forms a front edge or a rear edge of the door opening, and a door that is closed when the door is closed. A side structure of an automobile having door locking means for locking the door to the pillar in a state where a gap in the vehicle width direction is formed between the door and the pillar, and interlocked with opening and closing of the door And allowing the overstroke when the door is closed to be closed, and the load transmitting member contacting each of the door and the pillar in the vehicle width direction after the door is closed. It is characterized by being provided in either one of these.

  According to the present invention configured as described above, since the load transmission members that respectively contact the door and the pillar are provided in the gap in the vehicle width direction formed between the door and the pillar, the load transmission member is interposed through the load transmission member. Thus, the load input from the side of the vehicle body can be transmitted efficiently and promptly from the door to the pillar.

  Therefore, before the door is greatly deformed by the input load and moves to the inside of the vehicle body, the pillar can act as a strength member of the vehicle body. When the load is input from the side of the vehicle body, this load input is possible. The strength of the vehicle body can be increased from the initial stage.

  Moreover, since the load transmission member is provided so as to allow an overstroke when closing the door by moving in conjunction with opening and closing of the door, the load transmission member does not get in the way when closing the door, The door can be closed in the same state as before.

  Next, an embodiment of a side structure of an automobile according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  Embodiment 1 of a side part structure of an automobile to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to the drawings.

  A front door opening K1 and a rear door opening K2 that open a vehicle compartment (not shown) are formed side by side in the vehicle front-rear direction on the side surface of the vehicle body S shown in FIGS. Further, on the side surface of the vehicle body S, a front door 1 for opening and closing the front door opening K1 and a rear door 2 for opening and closing the rear door opening K2 are provided.

  The front edge of the front door opening K1 is formed by the front pillar 3, the rear edge of the front door opening K1 and the front edge of the rear door opening K2 are formed by the center pillar 4, and the rear edge of the rear door opening K2 is formed by the rear pillar 5. Has been.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the front door 1 is formed in a hollow shape by welding the outer peripheral portions 1C of the door outer panel 1A and the door inner panel 1B. In addition, a door glass (not shown) is disposed in the interior so as to be movable up and down.

  The rear door 2 has the same structure as that of the front door 1, and includes a door outer panel 2A and a door inner panel 2B.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the center pillar 4 has a hollow columnar shape extending in the vertical direction by welding the front edge portions 4C and the rear edge portions 4D of the pillar outer panel 4A and the pillar inner panel 4B to each other. Is formed.

  The front pillar 3 and the rear pillar 5 have substantially the same structure as that of the center pillar 4, and each has a pillar outer panel and a pillar inner panel (not shown).

  Further, the front door 1 is locked to the center pillar 4 when it is closed with a gap KG (see FIG. 3) in the vehicle width direction formed between the front pillar 3 and the center pillar 4. The rear door 2 is locked to the rear pillar 5 when the rear door 2 is closed in a state where a gap KG in the vehicle width direction is formed between the center pillar 4 and the rear pillar 5.

  The front door 1 and the rear door 2 are engaged when a ratchet 6 (see FIG. 1) provided on the door side which is a door locking means and a striker 7 (see FIG. 2) provided on the pillar side mesh with each other. Stopped. Since the structure of the door locking means is well known, the description thereof is omitted here.

  Further, a gap KG in the vehicle width direction formed between the front door 1 and the rear door 2 and the front pillar 3, the center pillar 4, and the rear pillar 5 is blocked by a weather strip, a welt seal, a parting seal, etc. (not shown). It is like that. Thereby, the wind noise suppression at the time of high-speed driving | running | working when the front door 1 and the rear door 2 are closed, and the improvement of water-tightness are achieved.

  The center pillar 4 is provided with a load transmission member 10 that contacts the front door 1 and the center pillar 4 in the vehicle width direction after the front door 1 is closed.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the load transmission member 10 is disposed between the pillar outer panel 4 </ b> A of the center pillar 4 and the door inner panel 1 </ b> B of the front door 1. Here, the load transmitting member 10 is disposed in a gap KG1 between the vicinity of the front edge portion 4C of the center pillar 4 and the vicinity of the rear edge portion of the front door 1.

  The load transmission member 10 is here formed by a polymer actuator. In the polymer actuator, as shown in FIG. 5A, the insulating film layer 11, the first elastic layer 12, the second elastic layer 13, the insulating film layer 14, and the clutch plate layer 15 are superposed in order from the top, Each layer is formed by bonding and integration. In addition, although each layer is exhibiting the disk shape provided with the opening in the center here, it is not limited to this and is appropriately modified.

  Moreover, the 1st elastic layer 12 and the 2nd elastic layer 13 have the same structure, respectively, and as shown in FIG.5 (c), the electrode plate 16, the elastomer 17, the electrode plate 16, the elastomer 17, The electrode plates 16 are overlapped.

  The elastomer 17 is usually a polymer material that exhibits rubber elasticity near normal temperature. A power source (battery) D is connected to each electrode plate 16 and is expanded and contracted by electric power from the power source D. However, the volume does not change.

  The polymer actuator expands and contracts when the first elastic layer 12 and the second elastic layer 13 are energized. That is, as shown in FIG. 5B, when energized (current flows), the first stretchable layer 12 and the second stretchable layer 13 contract, and when not energized (no current flows), the first stretchable layer 12 and The second elastic layer 13 is extended.

  Further, the load transmission member 10 moves in conjunction with the opening and closing of the front door 1 as the first elastic layer 12 and the second elastic layer 13 of the polymer actuator expand and contract. That is, when the front door 1 is closed, the front door 1 and the center pillar 4 are moved (deformed) so as to contact each other (see FIG. 4A), and when the front door 1 is opened, the front door 1 is moved. It moves (deforms) so as to allow an overstroke when closing (see FIG. 4B).

  The “overstroke” is generated when the front door 1 is closed and the vehicle door is instantaneously entered from the position where the front door 1 is locked.

  Next, the operation of the side part structure of the automobile according to the first embodiment will be described.

  In this automobile side part structure, when a load is input from the side of the vehicle body S, this input load (hereinafter referred to as load) is first input to the door outer panel 1A of the front door 1.

  The load input to the door outer panel 1A is transmitted from the outer peripheral portion 1C of the door outer panel 1A to the door inner panel 1B. The load transmitted to the door inner panel 1B is transmitted to the center pillar 4 via the load transmitting member 10. Is transmitted to.

  As described above, the load input from the side of the vehicle body S is efficiently and promptly transmitted from the front door 1 to the center pillar 4 via the load transmitting member 10.

  Therefore, the center pillar 4 can be made to act as a strength member of the vehicle body S before the front door 1 moves to the inside of the vehicle body S in a state where the front door 1 is largely deformed by a load input to the vehicle body S from the side. The strength of the vehicle body S can be increased from the initial stage when a load is input from the side of the vehicle body S.

  Further, when the front door 1 is closed, no power is supplied from the power source D to the load transmission member 10 (no energization), and the load transmission member 10 is connected to the front door 1 as shown in FIG. The center pillar 4 extends so as to abut each other.

  Further, when the front door 1 is open, power is supplied from the power source D to the load transmission member 10 (energized), and the load transmission member 10 is used when the front door 1 is closed as shown in FIG. The overstroke is reduced to be acceptable.

  As a result, when the front door 1 is closed, even if the front door 1 instantaneously moves to the front pillar 4 side from the locking position, the load transmitting member 10 does not get in the way, and the front door 1 is kept in the same state as before. The door 1 can be closed.

  Since the load transmitting member 10 is reduced when the front door 1 is open, the amount of protrusion of the load transmitting member 10 from the center pillar 4 is when the front door 1 is open. Is smaller than

  Therefore, clothes and the like are not easily caught on the load transmission member 10 when the passenger gets on and off, and it is possible to get on and off smoothly as in the past.

  As described above, the side structure of the automobile of the present invention includes the front door 1 that opens and closes the front door opening K1 provided on the side surface of the vehicle body S, and the center pillar 4 that forms the rear edge of the front door opening K1. The ratchet 6 is a door locking means for locking the front door 1 to the center pillar 4 in a state where a gap in the vehicle width direction is formed between the front door 1 and the center pillar 4 when the front door 1 is closed. And a striker 7, which allows the overstroke when the front door 1 is closed by moving in conjunction with the opening and closing of the front door 1. The center pillar 4 is provided with a load transmission member 10 that contacts the front door 1 and the center pillar 4 in the vehicle width direction after being closed.

  Therefore, the load input from the side of the vehicle body S via the load transmitting member 10 can be transmitted efficiently and promptly from the front door 1 to the center pillar 4.

  Thus, before the front door 1 is greatly deformed by the input load and moves to the inside of the vehicle body S, the center pillar 4 can act as a strength member of the vehicle body S. The strength of the vehicle body S can be increased from the initial stage of input.

  Further, when the front door 1 is closed, even if the front door 1 momentarily enters the front pillar 4 side from the locking position, the load transmitting member 10 does not contact the front door 1. Therefore, the load transmission member 10 does not hinder the operation of the front door 1 and does not interfere with the overstroke, and the front door 1 can be closed in the same state as in the prior art.

  Example 2 of the side part structure of an automobile to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to the drawings.

  In addition, about the site | part equivalent to the above-mentioned Example 1, the same code | symbol is used and detailed description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 9, the center pillar 4 is provided with a door switch DS that detects opening and closing of the front door 1. The door switch DS includes a stroke pin 23 and a switch base 24.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, when the door switch DS detects that the front door 1 is closed, the center pillar 4 is connected to the front door 1 and the center pillar 4 in conjunction therewith. The driving means KS is provided so as to contact each of the two.

  The drive means KS includes a power supply D and a drive switch 30 described later, and is connected to the load transmission member 20. Here, the driving means DS is disposed inside the center pillar 4.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the load transmission member 20 includes a mounting plate 21, a telescopic portion 22, a stroke pin 23 of the door switch DS, and a switch base 24 of the door switch DS.

  The mounting plate 21 is fixed to the pillar inner panel 4B of the center pillar 4 with screws or the like (not shown) so that the load transmitted to the center pillar 4 can be sufficiently dispersed throughout the center pillar 4 as will be described later. Yes.

  The expansion / contraction part 22 is formed of a polymer actuator, and is connected to the power source D of the driving means KS as shown in FIGS. The power expands when power is supplied from the power source D (with energization), and contracts when power is not supplied from the power source D (without power supply). The stretchable part 22 is disposed inside the center pillar 4 and supported by the mounting plate 21 (see FIG. 6).

  The stroke pin 23 has a stick shape in which an abutting portion 23A that abuts on the telescopic portion 22 is formed at one end, and a distal end portion 23B that abuts on the front door 1 is formed at the other end. The stroke pin 23 is gradually reduced from the contact portion 23A toward the tip portion 23B, and the outer diameter of the tip portion 23B does not come into contact with a switch 24A of the switch base 24 described later. It is formed in size.

  Further, the stroke pin 23 passes through the pillar outer panel 4 </ b> A, and a front end portion 23 </ b> B projects from the inside of the center pillar 4 toward the front door 1.

  Furthermore, end portions of springs 25 are respectively attached to the contact portion 23A and the pillar outer panel 4A. A stroke pin 23 passes through the center of the spring 25, and the stroke pin 23 is urged so as to protrude from the center pillar 4.

  The switch base 24 is attached to the front door 1 side of the pillar outer panel 4A, and the stroke pin 23 passes therethrough. 7 and 8, a switch 24A that is ON / OFF controlled by the stroke pin 23 is provided.

  The switch 24A is turned off without contact with the stroke pin 23 when the tip 23B of the stroke pin 23 is opposed (see FIG. 7), and when the intermediate portion of the stroke pin 23 is opposed, 23 is turned on upon contact (see FIG. 8).

  The switch 24A is connected to a control circuit 26 for detecting opening and closing of the front door 1 and a solenoid 27 of an operation switch 30 described later.

  A power circuit 28 is connected to the control circuit 26 so that when the switch 24A is turned on, power is supplied from the power circuit 28 and the solenoid 27 is energized.

  The operation switch 30 includes a solenoid 27 and a switch 29 that is ON / OFF controlled by the solenoid 27.

  The switch 29 is connected to the power source D and the expansion / contraction part 22, respectively. When the switch 29 is turned on, the power of the power source D is supplied to the expansion / contraction part 22.

  Next, the operation of the side part structure of the automobile according to the second embodiment will be described.

  In the side structure of the automobile, when the front door 1 is closed, as shown in FIG. 7, the front door 1 contacts the stroke pin 23 protruding from the center pillar 4, and the stroke pin 23 is center pillar. 4 is pushed inside.

  At this time, the tip 24B of the stroke pin 23 faces the switch 24A provided on the switch base 24, and the switch 24A and the stroke pin 23 are not in contact with each other.

  As a result, the switch 24A is turned off and no power is supplied from the power supply circuit 28 to the control circuit 26, and the control circuit 26 detects that the front door 1 is closed.

  Further, the solenoid 27 of the drive switch 30 of the drive means KS is not energized, and the switch 29 of the drive switch 30 is also turned off. Therefore, the expansion / contraction part 22 is not energized, and the expansion / contraction part 22 extends.

  Thereby, as shown in FIG. 7, the contact part 23A of the stroke pin 23 and the expansion-contraction part 22 will contact | abut.

  That is, when the control unit 26 of the door switch DS detects that the front door 1 is closed, the expansion / contraction part 22 of the load transmission member 20 is extended by the driving means KS, and the load transmission member 20 is connected to the front door 1 and the center pillar. 4 are brought into contact with each other.

  Further, when a load is input from the side of the vehicle body S at this time, the input load (hereinafter referred to as a load) is first input to the door outer panel 1A of the front door 1.

  The load input to the door outer panel 1A is transmitted from the outer peripheral portion 1C of the door outer panel 1A to the door inner panel 1B. The information is transmitted to the center pillar 4 through 21 in order.

  Here, since the mounting portion 21 can sufficiently distribute the load transmitted to the center pillar 4 to the entire center pillar 4, the load input from the side of the vehicle body S is applied to the entire center pillar 4. It is transmitted efficiently and promptly.

  Thus, the center pillar 4 can be made to act as a strength member of the vehicle body S before the front door 1 moves to the inside of the vehicle body S in a state where the front door 1 is largely deformed by a load input to the vehicle body S from the side. The strength of the vehicle body S can be increased from the initial stage when a load is input from the side of the vehicle body S.

  On the other hand, when the front door 1 is open, as shown in FIG. 8, the front door 1 moves in the direction indicated by the arrow, and the door inner panel 1B and the stroke pin 23 are separated from each other. Therefore, the stroke pin 23 is pulled toward the front door 1 by the urging force of the spring 25, and the distal end portion 23 </ b> B further protrudes from the center pillar 4.

  At this time, the intermediate portion of the stroke pin 23 is opposed to the switch 24A provided on the switch base 24, and the switch 24A and the stroke pin 23 are in contact with each other.

  As a result, the switch 24A is turned on and power is supplied from the power supply circuit 28 to the control circuit 26, and the control circuit 26 detects that the front door 1 is open.

  Further, the solenoid 27 of the drive switch 30 of the drive means KS is energized, and the switch 29 of the drive switch 30 is also turned on. Therefore, the expansion / contraction part 22 is energized, and the expansion / contraction part 22 shrinks.

  As a result, as shown in FIG. 8, the contact portion 23 </ b> A of the stroke pin 23 and the expansion / contraction portion 22 are separated from each other, and the expansion / contraction portion 22 moves to a position where an overstroke that occurs when the front door 1 is closed is allowed. .

  Therefore, when the front door 1 is closed, even if the front door 1 instantaneously enters the center pillar 4 side of the locking position, and the stroke pin 23 is pushed in for a moment, the contact portion 23A of the stroke pin 23 expands and contracts. There is no contact with the portion 22, and the operation of the front door 1 is not hindered.

  Thereby, the load transmission member 20 does not interfere with the overstroke of the front door 1, and the front door 1 can be closed in the same state as the conventional one.

  In addition, it is necessary to secure a space for newly providing the load transmission member 20 between the front door 1 and the center pillar 4 by connecting the expansion / contraction portion 22 and the driving means KS to the conventionally set door switch DS. It becomes possible to easily apply to various vehicle types.

  And as shown in FIG. 9, when the front door 1 is opened, the expansion-contraction part 22 of the load transmission member 20 is not visible from the outside, and the appearance does not deteriorate.

  Furthermore, since the load transmission member 20 and the door switch DS are used together (integrated) so that an input signal for the drive means KS to drive the load transmission member 20 is input from the door switch DS, the component configuration is simplified. It becomes possible.

  As described above, the side structure of the automobile according to the present invention is provided with the door switch DS for detecting the opening / closing of the front door 1 on the center pillar 4 and detects that the door switch DS has closed the front door 1. Then, driving means KS for bringing the load transmission member 20 into contact with the front door 1 and the center pillar 4 in the vehicle width direction is provided.

  Therefore, it is not necessary to secure a space for newly providing the load transmission member 20 between the front door 1 and the center pillar 4, and it can be easily applied to various vehicle types, and the front door 1 is opened. The appearance at the time does not deteriorate.

  In addition, an input signal for the drive means KS to drive the load transmitting member 20 is input from the door switch DS, and the component configuration can be simplified.

  Although one embodiment according to the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to the above-described embodiment. Design changes and the like within the scope not departing from the gist of the present invention are included in the present invention.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the load transmission members 10 and 20 are provided on the center pillar 4, but may be provided on the front door 1.

  The load transmitting members 10 and 20 may be provided between the rear door 2 and the rear pillar 5, between the front door 1 and the front pillar 3, or between the rear door 2 and the center pillar 4. Further, a plurality of load transmitting members 10 and 20 may be provided or arranged in the vertical direction.

  And in the above-mentioned embodiment, although the load transmission members 10 and 20 are formed by the polymer actuator, not only this but changing the full length between a door and a pillar according to the opening / closing operation | movement of a door. Anything that can do. For example, it may be one that slides to change its overall length.

It is a side view of the vehicle which shows the side part structure rear part of the motor vehicle of Example 1 of this invention. 1 is a perspective view showing a main part of a center pillar of an automobile of Example 1. FIG. It is sectional drawing which showed the AA cross section in FIG. 1 typically. (A) is an enlarged view of the B part in FIG. 3, (b) is explanatory drawing when a front door opens in FIG. 4 (a). (A) is an exploded schematic diagram showing the principle of the polymer actuator, (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of the polymer actuator, and (c) is an explanatory diagram showing the stretchable layer of the polymer actuator. It is sectional drawing which showed typically the principal part of Example 2 of this invention. It is an enlarged view of the C section in FIG. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram when the front door is opened in FIG. 7. It is a perspective view which shows the principal part of the center pillar of the motor vehicle of Example 2. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1 door (front door)
4 pillars (center pillars)
6 Ratchet (door locking means)
7 striker (door locking means)
10 Load transmission member K1 Door opening (front door opening)
S body

Claims (2)

A door that opens and closes a door opening provided on a side surface of the vehicle body; a pillar that forms a front edge or a rear edge of the door opening; and a widthwise direction between the door and the pillar when the door is closed. A side structure of an automobile provided with door locking means for locking the door to the pillar in a state where a gap is formed,
A load transmitting member that allows the overstroke when the door is closed by moving in conjunction with the opening and closing of the door, and that contacts the door and the pillar in the vehicle width direction after the door is closed. The side part structure of the motor vehicle characterized by providing in any one of the said door or the said pillar. The pillar is provided with a door switch that detects opening and closing of the door, and when the door switch detects that the door is closed, the load transmission member is respectively applied to the door and the pillar in the vehicle width direction. 2. The side part structure of an automobile according to claim 1, further comprising driving means for contact.

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