JP2006168405A - Cowl part sound insulating structure of automobile - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cowl part sound insulating structure of an automobile configured so that the cowl body has a front panel and a rear panel and that a flange part to join together the two panels is formed protruding upward in a part under the front of an instrument panel, capable of eliminating the risk of interference at mounting of the instrument panel without worsening the view field ahead of the driver seat and achieving a good sound insulating performance without impairing the fine appearance. <P>SOLUTION: The front panel 31 is furnished at its oversurface with a front insulator 41 whose front is higher than the tops of flange parts 31b, 32b, 33b and rear is lower than the tops of the flange parts. A urethane sealing member 51 to be put in pressure contact with the windshield glass 16 is attached fast to the oversurface of the front extremity of the body 12 of instrument panel. A downward rib 52 to be put in pressure contact with an insulator 41 is formed on the undersurface of the front extremity of the body 12 of instrument panel. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a cowl portion of an automobile and its surrounding structure, and belongs to the field of sound insulation technology for a passenger compartment.

  In an automobile, for example, a front part of an instrument panel is disposed close to the lower side of the windshield, and a cowl body having a closed cross-sectional structure extending in the vehicle width direction is provided below the front part of the instrument panel. In such a structure, there are gaps between the instrument panel front and the lower part of the windshield, and between the instrument panel front and the cowl body. Noise from the engine and outside of the vehicle enters the passenger compartment through the vehicle, and quietness is deteriorated.

  In order to deal with this, for example, in Patent Document 1, as shown in FIG. 8, a sound insulating insulator 102 provided along the dash panel 101 is extended along the cowl body 103 to the lower side of the windshield 104. The upper end portion of the instrument panel 105 is pressed against the lower side portion of the windshield 104 and the upper end portion of the cowl body 103 to thereby close the gaps.

JP 2003-72593 A

  However, according to the sound insulation structure described in Patent Document 1, there is a problem that the upper end portion of the insulator 102 is seen from the outside of the vehicle through the windshield 104 and looks bad.

  The structure shown in FIG. 9 shows an example of dealing with this appearance problem in another automobile, and an insulator 113 provided on the upper surface of the cowl main body 111 so as to face the lower surface of the front portion of the instrument panel 112. Are provided on the upper and lower surfaces of the front end portion of the instrument panel 112, and are cut off halfway without extending to the lower side of the windshield 114, and less likely to impair the appearance. The gap between the windshield 114 and the instrument panel 112 and the gap between the cowl body 111 and the instrument panel 112 are closed.

  However, in the above example, the cowl main body 111 is composed of a plurality of panels 121, 122, 123 in which the flange portions 121a, 122a, 123a extending upward are joined together. Occurs.

  That is, the instrument panel mounting device often used conventionally is configured to move the instrument panel 112 horizontally to the vehicle front side to the mounting position. In the structure shown in FIG. Since 122a and 123a protrude upward, the upper end of the insulator 113 becomes higher than the lower end of the urethane seal member 116 for the cowl part at the portion, and when the instrument panel 112 is moved horizontally during installation, It will interfere. That is, the conventional attachment device cannot cope.

  As a means for solving this problem, it is conceivable to eliminate the flanges 121a, 122a, 123a. However, there are cases where this is not possible due to various reasons. In that case, for example, the instrument panel 112 is transferred to the front of the flange portions 121a, 122a, 123a in a state where the instrument panel 112 is lifted to a high position so that the cowl portion urethane seal member 116 and the insulator 113 do not interfere with each other. Although it is conceivable to develop an attachment device that can be lowered toward the attachment position, there is a problem that this development requires enormous costs.

  On the other hand, when trying to solve the interference problem without developing a new mounting device, for example, the installation height of the instrument panel 112 is set to the urethane seal member 116 for the cowl portion when the panel 112 is moved horizontally. In addition, a fundamental change such as a change to a high position that does not interfere with the insulator 113 is required, and if it is increased in this way, there is a problem in that the forward visibility from the driver's seat deteriorates.

  Therefore, the present invention has a structure in which the cowl body has a front panel and a rear panel, and a flange portion that joins both the panels protrudes upward below the front portion of the instrument panel. It is an object of the present invention to provide a cowl part sound insulation structure that can solve the above-described problems when the instrument panel is mounted without deteriorating the front field of view and that can achieve good sound insulation without impairing the appearance.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention is configured as follows.

  First, the invention according to claim 1 of the present application (hereinafter referred to as the first invention) has a front portion of an instrument panel in close proximity to a lower side portion of a windshield, and the front of the instrument panel. A cowl body having a closed cross-sectional structure extending in the vehicle width direction is provided below the front part, and the cowl body has a front panel and a rear panel, and a flange part that joins both the panels is below the front part of the instrument panel. A sound-insulating structure for an automobile cowl that protrudes upward at the front panel upper surface in front of the flange portion of the cowl main body, facing the lower surface of the front portion of the instrument panel, and the front end is When a front insulator extending in the vehicle width direction is provided so as to be located behind the front end of the instrument panel Further, the front portion of the front insulator is higher than the upper end of the flange portion of the cowl body, the rear portion is lower than the upper end of the flange portion, and the lower end of the front portion of the instrument panel has a lower end. Is higher than the upper end of the flange portion, and a downward projecting portion pressed against the front portion of the front insulator is formed in the vehicle width direction.

  The invention according to claim 2 of the present application (hereinafter referred to as second invention) is characterized in that, in the first invention, the flange portion of the cowl body has a predetermined width and is inclined rearward. .

  In the invention according to claim 3 of the present application (hereinafter referred to as third invention), in the second invention, the upper surface of the cowl body is inclined substantially downward and the flange portion of the cowl body is It extends in a direction substantially orthogonal to the upper surface of the cowl body.

  Furthermore, in the invention according to claim 4 of the present application (hereinafter referred to as the fourth invention), in any one of the first invention to the third invention, a defroster duct is disposed immediately after the flange portion of the cowl body. It is characterized by.

  The invention according to claim 5 of the present application (hereinafter referred to as the fifth invention) is the instrument according to any one of the first to fourth inventions, on the upper surface of the front panel behind the flange portion in the cowl body. A rear insulator extending in the vehicle width direction is provided so as to face the lower surface of the front portion of the ment panel, and the rear insulator is lower than the upper end of the flange portion.

  Next, the effect of the present invention will be described.

  First, according to the first invention, the gap between the cowl body and the instrument panel is blocked by the downward projecting portion formed on the lower surface of the panel and pressed against the front portion of the front insulator. Thus, noise from the engine room and the outside of the vehicle is prevented from entering the vehicle interior, and good sound insulation is achieved.

Further, the front part of the front insulator is made higher than the upper end of the flange part of the cowl body, the rear part is made lower than the upper end of the flange part, and the protruding part is made higher than the upper end of the flange part. When the instrument panel is horizontally moved during installation, the protruding portion does not interfere with the front insulator above the flange portion, and also does not interfere with the flange portion. Therefore, it is possible to use a conventional instrument panel mounting device that moves the instrument panel horizontally, and to arrange the instrument panel below the case where an insulator is present above the flange portion. It becomes possible, and it will not impair the forward view from the driver's seat.
In addition, since the front end of the front insulator is located behind the front end of the instrument panel, the front end of the front insulator is almost invisible through the windshield from the outside of the vehicle, and the appearance does not deteriorate.

  In addition, since it is not necessary to separately provide a sound-insulating seal member on the lower surface of the front end portion of the instrument panel, the above-described plurality of functions and effects can be achieved without increasing the number of components.

  Note that the protrusion provided on the lower surface of the front portion of the instrument panel has a tip that is higher than the upper end of the flange portion, and therefore interferes with the flange portion when the instrument panel is moved horizontally during mounting. However, if the amount of protrusion is reduced, the height of the upper surface of the instrument panel can be further reduced.

  And according to 2nd invention, the width | variety (length from a lower end (base part) to an upper end) can fully be ensured, the height can be suppressed (upper end position is made low), and this result The height of the instrument panel front can be further reduced.

  By the way, when the flange portion is joined by, for example, spot welding, it is necessary to secure a sufficient angle between the upper surface of the cowl body and the flange portion to such an extent that a spot gun can be inserted. For example, the upper surface of the cowl body is inclined substantially downward and the flange portion of the cowl body extends in a direction substantially perpendicular to the upper surface of the cowl body. It becomes easy to insert a spot gun because the included angle is almost right angle, and welding is easy.

  And according to 4th invention, a defroster duct will approach the lower side part of a windshield, and the defrost performance with respect to a windshield will improve.

  Furthermore, according to the fifth aspect, the sound insulation against the passenger compartment can be further improved without causing interference with the protruding portion on the lower surface of the front portion of the instrument panel.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described.

  1 and 2 (FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the front part of an automobile to which a cowl sound insulation structure according to the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a view of FIG. 1 with the hood removed to expose the interior of the engine room. As shown in the perspective view of the main part of the state (the engine 6 is represented by a two-dot chain line for the sake of convenience and the shape is simplified), and FIG. 3 is a main part sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. A front portion of the automobile 1 (the left side in the drawing is the front side of the vehicle) is provided with a cowl portion 3 extending in the vehicle width direction in the vicinity of the rear end portion below the rear end portion of the hood 2. An engine room 5 that is partitioned from the vehicle compartment side (the right side of the dash panel 4) by the cowl portion 3 and a dash panel 4 provided below the cowl portion 3 and that is opened and closed by the hood 2 is provided. An engine 6 is disposed almost in the center of the engine room 5.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 (a perspective view showing the structure of the front part of the passenger compartment, particularly the instrument panel and its surroundings), an air conditioner unit 7 is disposed behind the dash panel 4. An instrument panel unit 8 (hereinafter referred to as an instrument panel unit 8) is disposed from the upper side to the rear side of the air conditioner unit 7. The center console 9 of the instrument panel unit 8 is provided with an audio unit 10 and a control unit 11 for controlling the air conditioner unit 7. A resin instrument panel main body 12 (hereinafter referred to as an instrument panel main body 12) that constitutes the frame of the instrument panel unit is connected to the air conditioner unit 7 via a center duct 13, and is directly above the center console 9. A plurality of center grills 14 for blowing conditioned air into the passenger compartment are provided. Similarly, the front upper surface of the instrument panel body 12 extends in the vehicle width direction and is connected to the air conditioner unit 7 via a defroster duct 15. A defroster grill 17 that blows conditioned air toward the lower portion of the windshield 16 is provided.

  The cowl portion 3 is made of a metal, a cowl body 21 having a hollow closed cross-sectional shape, a bowl-shaped metal cowl member 22 provided in front of the cowl body 21, and provided above the cowl member 22. It has a resin-made cowl top panel 23 that sandwiches the lower side of the glass 16 with a bifurcated portion on the rear end side.

  As shown in FIG. 5 (enlarged view of the vicinity of the cowl portion), the cowl main body 21 is disposed below the instrument panel main body 12 and close to the front portion of the instrument panel main body 12. The cowl body 21 includes a front panel 31 having a hat-shaped cross section having a main body portion 31a and upper and lower flange portions 31b and 31c that swell upward and obliquely upward, and a main body portion 32a and upper and lower flange portions that bulge rearward. The rear panel 32 having a hat-shaped cross section having 32b and 32c and a reinforcement 33 having a main body portion 33a and upper and lower flange portions 33b and 33c, and upper flange portions 31b, 32b and 33b of the panels 31, 32 and 33, respectively. The lower flange portions 31c, 32c, and 33c are joined to each other by spot welding. The rear panel 32 is formed by joining the first panel 34 formed with the upper flange 32b and the second panel 35 formed with the lower flange portion 32c. It is joined to the upper end of the dash panel 4.

  The top portion 31 d of the main body portion 31 a of the front panel 31 of the cowl main body 21 and the inner surface of the lower side portion of the windshield 16 are joined using an adhesive 45.

  The upper surface of the cowl main body 21 (the surface 31e connecting the top 31d of the main body 31a and the upper flange 31b in the front panel 31 and the surface 32e connecting the top 32d of the main body 32a and the upper flange 32b in the rear panel 32) is almost the same. It is inclined downward. The flanges 31b, 32b, and 33b have a predetermined length for achieving a required joint strength in the length from the lower end (base) to the upper end, that is, the width of the flanges 31b, 32b, and 33b. At the same time, it is inclined rearward and extends in a direction substantially orthogonal to the upper surfaces 31e, 32e of the cowl body 21.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6 (a plan view of the main part of the cowl with the instrument panel removed), the front surface 31e of the front panel 31 has a sound insulation front insulator extending in the vehicle width direction. 41 is attached using a plurality of fasteners 42... 42, and a sound insulator rear insulator 43 extending in the vehicle width direction is attached to the upper surface 32 e of the rear panel 32 using a plurality of fasteners 44. . The rear insulator 43 extends along the top 32 d of the rear panel 32, the passenger compartment side surface of the dash panel 4, and the passenger compartment side surface of the front portion of the floor panel 45 joined to the lower end of the dash panel 4. It extends in the vehicle longitudinal direction and the vehicle width direction and covers these surfaces almost entirely.

  The front insulator 41 has a front end located behind the front end of the instrument panel main body 12 so that the front insulator 41 is less visible from outside the vehicle through the windshield 16. The front insulator 41 has a front portion that is higher than the upper ends of the flange portions 31b, 32b, and 33b, and a rear portion that is lower than the upper ends of the flange portions 31b, 32b, and 33b.

  On the other hand, the rear insulator 43 is set lower than the upper ends of the flange portions 31b, 32b, 33b.

  The instrument panel body 12 has a base material layer 12a as a skeleton material, and a skin layer 12b made of a cushioning urethane material and a cosmetic skin, and the front portion is arranged close to the lower side of the windshield 16. It is installed.

  Further, a urethane seal member 51 that seals between the instrument panel body 12 and the windshield 16 is fixed to the upper surface of the front end portion of the instrument panel body 12, that is, the upper surface of the front end portion of the skin layer 12b, and is pressed against the inner surface of the windshield 16. ing.

  Further, a downward rib 52 extending obliquely downward on the front side of the vehicle is formed on the front lower surface of the instrument panel body 12, that is, on the front lower surface of the base material layer 12c, extending from the left end side to the right end side in the vehicle width direction of the front insulator 41. Are integrally formed. In this case, the rib 52 has a tip higher than the upper ends of the flange portions 31b, 32b, and 33b of the cowl body 21 and lower than the front upper end of the front insulator 41, and presses the front portion of the insulator 41 in pressure contact. is doing.

  The defroster duct 15 is disposed in the vicinity of the flange portions 31b, 32b, and 33b immediately after the flange portions 31b, 32b, and 33b of the cowl body 21.

  Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described.

  First, a gap between the windshield 16 and the front portion of the instrument panel body 12 is closed by a urethane seal member 51 fixed to the upper surface of the front end portion of the instrument panel body 12 and pressed against the windshield 16, and the cowl body 21 and the instrument panel body. 12 is formed on the lower surface of the front portion of the instrument panel body 12 and is closed by a downward rib 52 pressed against the front portion of the front insulator 41. Noise is prevented from entering the passenger compartment, and good sound insulation is achieved.

  The front portion of the front insulator 41 is made higher than the upper ends of the flange portions 31b, 32b, 33b, the rear portion is made lower than the upper ends of the flange portions 31b, 32b, 33b, and the rear insulator 43 is made of the flange portion. 31b, 32b, 33b is lower than the upper ends, and as shown in FIG. 7 (illustration for mounting the instrument panel), the rib 52 has a tip higher than the upper ends of the flange portions 31b, 32b, 33b. 7 (height indicated by the one-dot chain line in FIG. 7), when the instrument panel unit 8 is horizontally moved as shown by the arrow A when attached, the ribs 52 of the instrument panel body 12 are formed on the flange portions 31b, 32b, 33b. Not only does not interfere with the insulator above, but also interferes with the flanges 31b, 32b, 33b. No. Accordingly, a conventional instrument panel mounting device that moves the instrument panel unit horizontally can be used, and the instrument panel body 12 can be used more than when the insulator is present above the flange portions 31b, 32b, and 33b. It becomes possible to arrange it below, so that the forward view from the driver's seat is not impaired.

  In addition, when the instrument panel unit 8 (instrument panel body 12) is moved horizontally in this way, the windshield 16 is inclined rearward and the cowl body 21 faces 31e, 32e facing the front portion of the instrument panel body 12. Is inclined downward substantially, so that the urethane seal member 51 always comes into contact with the windshield 16 and the rib 52 comes into contact with the front insulator 41. As a result, the seal is sure and the sound insulation is ensured. Will be.

  In addition, since the front end of the front insulator 41 is located behind the front end of the instrument panel body 12, the front end of the front insulator 41 is almost invisible through the windshield 16 from the outside of the vehicle, and the appearance does not deteriorate.

  Moreover, since it is not necessary to separately provide a sound-insulating urethane seal on the lower surface of the front end portion of the instrument panel main body 12, the above-described plurality of effects can be achieved without increasing the number of components.

  The rib 52 provided on the lower surface of the front portion of the instrument panel main body 12 has a tip that is higher than the upper ends of the flange portions 31b, 32b, 33b. Therefore, when the instrument panel unit 8 (instrument panel main body 12) is mounted, it moves horizontally. However, the height of the upper surface of the instrument panel main body 12 can be further reduced by reducing the amount of protrusion, although it does not interfere with the flange portions 31b, 32b, 33b.

  Further, since the flange portions 31b, 32b, 33b of the cowl body 21 have a predetermined width and are inclined rearward, the width of the flange portions 31b, 32b, 33b (the length from the lower end (base portion) to the upper end). As a result, the height of the front portion of the instrument panel main body 12 can be further reduced.

  Since the upper surface of the cowl body 21 is inclined substantially rearwardly and the flange portions 31b, 32b, 33b extend in a direction substantially orthogonal to the upper surface of the cowl body 21, the upper surface of the cowl body 21 is And the flange portions 31b, 32b, and 33b are substantially at right angles so that the spot gun can be easily inserted and welding is facilitated.

  Further, since the defroster duct 15 is disposed immediately after the flange portions 31b, 32b, and 33b of the cowl body 21, the defroster duct 15 approaches the vicinity of the lower side of the windshield 16, and the defrost with respect to the windshield 16 is performed. Performance is improved.

  Further, by providing the rear insulator 43, it is possible to further improve the sound insulation against the passenger compartment.

  The present invention can be widely applied to an automobile having a structure in which a cowl body has a front panel and a rear panel, and a flange portion that joins both the panels protrudes upward below the front portion of the instrument panel.

It is an external appearance perspective view of the front part of a car concerning an embodiment of the invention. It is a principal part perspective view of the state which removed the bonnet in FIG. 1, and exposed the engine room inside. It is principal part sectional drawing by the AA of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows an instrument panel and the surrounding structure. FIG. 4 is an enlarged view around a cowl portion shown in FIG. 3. It is a principal part top view of the cowl part of the state which removed the instrument panel. It is explanatory drawing of attachment of an instrument panel. It is explanatory drawing of the cowl part sound-insulation structure which concerns on background art. It is explanatory drawing of the problem of the cowl part sound-insulation structure which concerns on improved technology.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Car 3 Cowl part 8 Instrument panel unit 12 Instrument panel main body 15 Defroster duct 16 Windshield 21 Cowl main body 31 Front panel 32 Rear panel 31b, 32b, 33b Flange part 41 Front insulator 43 Rear insulator 51 Urethane seal member 52 Rib Part)

Claims (5)

A front portion of the instrument panel is disposed close to the lower side of the windshield, and a cowl body having a closed cross-sectional structure extending in the vehicle width direction is provided below the front portion of the instrument panel; and The cowl body has a front panel and a rear panel, and a flange part that joins both the panels has a structure projecting upward below the front part of the instrument panel. A front insulator extending in the vehicle width direction is provided on the upper surface of the front panel in front of the flange portion of the main body so as to face the lower surface of the front portion of the instrument panel and to have a front end located behind the front end of the instrument panel. And the front portion of the front insulator is connected to the cowl body. It is higher than the upper end of the lunge part, the rear part is lower than the upper end of the flange part, and the lower end is higher than the upper end of the flange part on the lower surface of the front part of the instrument panel. A cowl part sound insulation structure for an automobile, wherein a downward projecting part pressed against the part is formed in the vehicle width direction. The said cowl part said flange part has the predetermined width, and inclines back, The cowl part sound-insulation structure of the motor vehicle of Claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned. The upper surface of the cowl body is inclined substantially rearwardly downward, and the flange portion of the cowl body extends in a direction substantially orthogonal to the upper surface of the cowl body. The sound insulation structure of the car's cowl. 4. The automobile cowl sound insulation structure according to claim 1, wherein a defroster duct is disposed immediately after the flange portion of the cowl body. 5. A rear insulator extending in the vehicle width direction is provided on the upper surface of the front panel behind the flange portion of the cowl body so as to face the lower surface of the front portion of the instrument panel, and the rear insulator is provided with the flange. 5. The automobile cowl sound insulation structure according to claim 1, wherein the sound insulation structure is lower than an upper end of the part. 6.

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