JP2006182137A - Vehicle body structure - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vehicle body structure capable of considerably enhancing the steering stability and ride quality of a vehicle. <P>SOLUTION: A plurality of expandable urging bars 10, 20 to urge strut towers 1 in the direction separating from each other are provided with both end sides thereof being turnably mounted on the strut towers 1 substantially parallel to each other so that pre-load is applied between the strut towers 1. Each strut tower 1 is slightly moved by the pre-load to reduce "play" between the strut towers 1. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle body structure of a vehicle.

  In a vehicle such as an automobile, a vehicle reinforcing member is used in order to suppress deformation of a vehicle body panel, relative displacement of each part, and the like during vehicle travel. This type of reinforcing member includes a resin sheet-like reinforcing member that improves the rigidity of the vehicle body panel itself, a metal panel-like reinforcing member that is welded to the back side of the vehicle body panel, and two spaced apart parts of the vehicle body. Metal reinforcing members to be connected are known.

Piston that divides the rod-like member installed between the two parts into two parts, provides a cylinder on one of the parts, and slidably contacts the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder on the other part Have been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Two oil chambers filled with oil are formed in the cylinder, and when the piston slides with the cylinder during expansion and contraction, the oil flows through the orifice penetrating the piston ring so that a damping force is obtained. It has become.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-211437

  By the way, there is not a little “play” between the many forming members constituting the vehicle body at the connecting portions. In other words, when the vehicle body is twisted or pushed up by an input from the suspension, each forming member of the vehicle body moves until there is no “play”, and then the input from the suspension is received by the structure of the vehicle body. The movement of each panel due to this “play” is small compared to the displacement of the structure due to the suspension input, but because it cannot instantaneously resist the input, steering stability and ride comfort are impaired. There is a problem of being. Therefore, as long as the “play” between the forming members is not eliminated, even if the vehicle reinforcing member is installed on the vehicle body, there is a limit to improvement in handling stability and ride comfort.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle body structure capable of dramatically improving the handling stability and riding comfort of a vehicle.

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, in the vehicle body structure, both end sides of the vehicle body structure are pivotally attached to the first vehicle body forming member and the second vehicle body forming member that are substantially parallel to each other. A plurality of telescopic urging bars for urging the member and the second vehicle body forming member in directions away from each other are provided.
The “rotation” referred to here may be rotation about a single axis direction, or may be rotation about a biaxial direction or a triaxial direction.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the urging force is applied to the attachment portions of the first vehicle body forming member and the second vehicle body forming member by the urging bar, and the preload is applied between the vehicle body forming members. Then, each vehicle body forming member moves minutely by this preload, and the “play” between the vehicle body forming members is reduced. Thereby, the response of the vehicle body to the input from the road surface when the vehicle is running can be improved, and the steering stability and riding comfort of the vehicle can be dramatically improved.
In addition, since the displacement of the vehicle body due to “play” when the vehicle is running is reduced, it is possible to reduce low-level sounds, squeaking sounds, and the like of the vehicle body, and to reduce the noise level in the vehicle interior.

In addition, since each urging bar is allowed to rotate with respect to each vehicle body forming member, each urging bar can be moved without changing the distance between the portions to which each urging bar is attached. An angle change with respect to each vehicle body forming member can be allowed.
As a result, the first vehicle body forming member and the second vehicle body forming member are not excessively restrained from each other, avoiding stress concentration in the vicinity of each part of each vehicle body forming member, Rigidity can be secured, which is extremely advantageous in practical use.

  Further, since a plurality of urging bars are provided, the first vehicle body forming member and the second vehicle body forming member are connected by the urging bars at a plurality of locations, and the urging force acting on each vehicle body forming member and the displacement between each vehicle body forming member Therefore, the “play” can be efficiently reduced, stress concentration can be avoided, and the like.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the vehicle body structure according to the first aspect, each urging bar has a damping mechanism that dampens the expansion and contraction operation of the urging bar.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the action of the first aspect, when the vehicle travels, the vibration from the road surface to the suspension is transmitted to each vehicle body forming member, and the vibration that expands and contracts to each urging bar acts. Since the expansion / contraction operation of each urging bar is attenuated by the damping mechanism, vibration transmitted from the road surface to each vehicle body forming member can be effectively suppressed. Therefore, the steering stability and riding comfort of the vehicle can be further improved.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the vehicle body structure according to the first or second aspect, each urging bar is disposed substantially orthogonal to and parallel to the first vehicle body forming member and the second vehicle body forming member. It is characterized by.

  According to the third aspect of the invention, in addition to the action of the first or second aspect, each urging bar is substantially orthogonal to the first vehicle body forming member and the second vehicle body forming member. It is possible to withstand the load in the extending direction of each urging bar. And by making each urging | biasing bar | burr parallel, about the load of the extending direction of each vehicle body formation member etc. can be permitted comparatively.

  The invention according to claim 4 is characterized in that in the vehicle body structure according to claim 1 or 2, the two urging bars are arranged so as to cross each other.

  According to the invention described in claim 4, in addition to the action of claim 1 or 2, since the two urging bars intersect each other, the extending direction of each urging bar acting on each vehicle body forming member In addition to this load, it is also possible to withstand loads such as the extending direction of each vehicle body forming member.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the vehicle body structure according to the fourth aspect, the urging bars that intersect with each other are connected so as to be rotatable at the intersection.

  According to the fifth aspect of the invention, in addition to the action of the fourth aspect, since the urging bars that intersect each other are connected, the rigidity of the vehicle body forming members is improved. Moreover, since each urging | biasing bar is connected rotatably, each urging | biasing bar is not restrained too much.

  Thus, according to the present invention, the handling stability and riding comfort of the vehicle can be dramatically improved.

  1 to 4 show a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a vehicle body structure, FIG. 2 is a top view of a first urging bar, and FIG. 3 is a first urging bar. FIG. 4 is a top view of the second urging bar.

  This vehicle body structure is a monocoque type, and FIG. 1 shows a wagon type four-wheeled vehicle. As shown in FIG. 1, a strut tower 1 to which a pair of left and right suspensions are attached is formed at the front of the vehicle body. The strut towers 1 as the first vehicle body forming member and the second vehicle body forming member extend substantially vertically and are substantially parallel to each other, and are formed so as to cover the struts of the suspension from the left and right inner sides. A first urging bar 10 is installed on the upper part of each strut tower 1, and a second urging bar 20 is installed on the lower part.

As shown in FIG. 1, both ends of the first urging bar 10 are attached to the strut attachment portion 2 of each strut tower 1. That is, in the present embodiment, the first urging bar 10 is referred to as a strut tower bar.
Further, both ends of the second urging bar 20 are attached to connection portions between the strut towers 1 and the side frames 3. The side frames 3 are provided in a pair on the left and right sides, extend substantially front and rear, and are connected to the radiator lower frame 4 at the front end. Each urging bar 10 and 20 is disposed substantially parallel to each strut tower 1 and parallel to each other.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the first urging bar 10 includes a pair of left and right fixing portions 11 fixed to each strut mounting portion 2, and a bar body 12 that connects the fixing portions 11 and extends substantially horizontally. ing. Each fixed portion 11 is provided with a rotation permission mechanism 13 that allows the rotation of each fixed portion 11 with respect to the vehicle body. In the present embodiment, the rotation allowing mechanism 13 is constituted by a pillow ball 14.

  The strut mounting portion 2 of the vehicle body is formed in a concave plate shape below, the lower surface forms a seating surface for receiving the strut main body, and the strut main body is fixed by a plurality of bolts penetrating the strut mounting portion 2. In the present embodiment, three bolts are arranged equidistant from the axis center for each strut mounting portion 2. Each fixing portion 11 of the first urging bar 10 is fixed to the upper surface of each strut mounting portion 2 using these three bolts.

  As shown in FIG. 2, each fixing portion 11 includes a bracket portion 15 that is fixed to the vehicle body side by each bolt, and a pillow ball 14 that constitutes the rotation allowing mechanism 13. The bracket portion 15 is a ring-shaped plate member, and three bolt holes 15a are formed at equal intervals in the circumferential direction. A pillow ball 14 is disposed at the left and right inner front ends of the bracket portion 15. Specifically, a pair of front and rear flange portions 15b projecting upward from the bracket portion 15 are formed, and a shaft member 14a of the pillow ball 14 is installed on each flange portion 15b. A ball-shaped outer peripheral surface is formed at the front and rear center of the shaft member 14a. An outer shell member 14 b having an inner peripheral surface that is in sliding contact with the outer peripheral surface is fixed to the end of the bar main body 12. Thereby, rotation of the bar main body 12 and the bracket part 15 is permitted for all three axes. That is, both ends of the first urging bar 10 are rotatably attached to the strut towers 1.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the bar body 12 is divided into a right bar 12a and a left bar 12b, and is extendable in the axial direction. As shown in FIG. 3, in this embodiment, a cylinder 16 extending in the axial direction is provided at the left end of the right bar 12a, and a piston 17 provided at the right end of the left bar 12b is in sliding contact with the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder 16. . The cylinder 16 is hermetically sealed, and a free piston 18 that is in sliding contact with the inner peripheral surface and partitions the cylinder 16 in the axial direction is disposed on the right side of the piston 17. The left side of the free piston 18 forms an oil chamber 16a filled with oil, and the right side forms a gas chamber 16b filled with gas.

  When the first urging bar 10 is detached from the vehicle body, the pressure in the oil chamber 16a and the gas chamber 16b is adjusted so that the length of the bar body 12 is longer than the distance between the strut mounting portions 2. The Then, as shown in FIG. 1, with the first urging bar 10 attached to the vehicle body, the bar body 12 is shortened, the gas chamber 16b is compressed from the normal state, and the pressure from the gas chamber 16b to the free piston 18 is increased. As a result, the bar body 12 is urged in the extending direction. That is, the urging mechanism is constituted by the cylinder 16, the free piston 18, and the like.

  Also, the piston 17 is formed with a plurality of holes 17a that communicate the right and left sides of the oil chamber 16a. As a result, when the piston 17 moves in the oil chamber 16a in the axial direction by the expansion / contraction operation of the bar main body 12, a damping action for attenuating the expansion / contraction operation by the resistance when the oil flows through each hole 17a is obtained. Yes. That is, the cylinder 16, the piston 17 and the like constitute a damping mechanism.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the second urging bar 20 includes a pair of left and right fixing portions 21 fixed to the lower portion of each strut tower 1, and a bar body 22 that connects the fixing portions 21 and extends substantially horizontally. I have. Each fixing portion 21 is provided with a rotation permission mechanism 23 that allows the rotation of each fixing portion 21 with respect to the vehicle body. In the present embodiment, the rotation permission mechanism 23 is constituted by a pillow ball 24.

  As shown in FIG. 2, each fixing portion 21 includes a bracket portion 25 that is fixed to the vehicle body side by a bolt, and a pillow ball 24 that constitutes a rotation permission mechanism 23. The bracket portion 25 is a rectangular plate member extending substantially front and rear, and two bolt holes 25a are formed at equal intervals on the front end side and the rear end side. A pillow ball 24 is disposed at the front and rear center of the bracket portion 25. The configuration of the pillow ball 24 is the same as that of the first embodiment. That is, the second urging bar 20 is also rotatably attached to each strut tower 1 at both ends.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the bar body 22 is divided into a right bar 22a and a left bar 22b, and is extendable in the axial direction. As shown in FIG. 4, in the present embodiment, a cylinder 26 extending in the axial direction is provided at the left end of the right bar 22 a, and a piston provided at the right end of the left bar 22 b is in sliding contact with the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder 26. Also in the second urging bar 20, the internal configuration of the cylinder 26 is the same as that of the first urging bar, and the urging mechanism is constituted by the cylinder 26, the free piston, etc., and the damping mechanism is constituted by the cylinder 26, the piston, etc. ing.

In the vehicle body structure configured as described above, the urging force is applied to the mounting portion of each strut tower 1 by the urging bars 10 and 20, and a preload is applied to each strut tower 1. And each strut tower 1 moves minutely by this preload, and the "play" between each strut tower 1 will be in the reduced state. Thereby, the response of the vehicle body to the input from the road surface when the vehicle is running can be improved, and the steering stability and riding comfort of the vehicle can be dramatically improved.
In addition, since the displacement of the vehicle body due to “play” when the vehicle is running is reduced, it is possible to reduce low-level sounds, squeaking sounds, and the like of the vehicle body, and to reduce the noise level in the vehicle interior.

In addition, since the urging bars 10 and 20 are allowed to rotate with respect to the strut towers 1, the distance between the portions of the strut towers 1 to which the urging bars 10 and 20 are attached is not changed. The angle change of each urging bar 10 and 20 with respect to each strut tower 1 can be allowed.
Accordingly, the strut towers 1 are not excessively restrained from each other, and the rigidity of the entire vehicle body can be ensured while avoiding stress concentration in the vicinity of the respective parts of the strut towers 1. This is extremely advantageous in practical use.

  Furthermore, since the first urging bar 10 and the second urging bar 20 are provided, the strut towers 1 are connected by the urging bars 10 and 20 at a plurality of locations, and the urging forces acting on the strut towers 1 The effect of suppressing the displacement between the strut towers 1 is not biased toward a specific part of each strut tower 1, and “play” can be efficiently reduced and stress concentration can be avoided.

  Further, according to the vehicle body structure of the present embodiment, when the vehicle travels, the vibration from the road surface to the suspension is transmitted to each strut tower 1 and the vibration for expanding and contracting each urging bar 10 and 20 acts. Since the expansion / contraction operation of the urging bars 10 and 20 is attenuated, vibration transmitted from the road surface to each strut tower 1 can be effectively suppressed. Therefore, this also improves the handling stability and riding comfort of the vehicle.

  Further, according to the vehicle body structure of the present embodiment, since each urging bar 10, 20 is substantially orthogonal to each strut tower 1, the extending direction of each urging bar 10, 20 acting between each strut tower 1. Can withstand the load of And by making each urging | biasing bar | burr 10 and 20 parallel, about the load of the extension direction of each strut tower 1, etc. can be permitted comparatively.

  In the first embodiment, two urging bars parallel to each other are exemplified, but three or more urging bars may be arranged in parallel to each other.

  5 and 6 show a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view of the vehicle body structure, and FIG. 6 is a top view of the first urging bar. In the second embodiment, the first urging bar 110 and the second urging bar 120 are arranged so as to intersect each other.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the first urging bar 110 is installed on the upper part of one strut tower 1 and the lower part of the other strut tower 1, and the second urging bar 120 is arranged on the upper part of the other strut tower 1 and one of the one strut tower 1. It is installed in the lower part of the strut tower 1.

  As shown in FIG. 5, one end of the first urging bar 110 is attached to the strut attachment portion 2 of one strut tower 1, and the other end is attached to a connection portion between the other strut tower 1 and the side frame 3. One end of the second urging bar 120 is attached to a connection portion between one strut tower 1 and the side frame 3, and the other end is attached to a strut attachment portion 2 of the other strut tower 1.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the first urging bar 110 includes a first fixing portion 111 a fixed to one strut mounting portion 2, a second fixing portion 111 b fixed to the lower portion of the other strut tower 1, And a bar body 112 for connecting the fixing portions 111a and 111b. Each of the fixing portions 111a and 111b is provided with a rotation allowing mechanism 113 that allows the fixing portions 111a and 111b to rotate with respect to the vehicle body. In the present embodiment, the rotation permission mechanism 113 is constituted by a pillow ball 114. As shown in FIG. 6, the first fixing portion 111a is each fixing portion 11 of the first urging bar 10 in the first embodiment, and the second fixing portion 111b is the second urging bar 20 in the first embodiment. Each fixing part 21 has the same configuration.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the bar body 112 is divided into a right bar 112a and a left bar 112b, and is extendable in the axial direction. In the present embodiment, a cylinder 116 extending in the axial direction is provided at the left end of the right bar 112a, and a piston provided at the right end of the left bar 112b is in sliding contact with the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder 116. The internal configuration of the cylinder 116 is the same as that of the first embodiment, and the urging mechanism is configured by the cylinder 116, the free piston, and the like, and the damping mechanism is configured by the cylinder 116, the piston, and the like.

  Here, the second urging bar 120 has the same configuration as the first urging bar 110 except that the fixing portions 111a and 111b are horizontally reversed and the tilt direction is reversed. Then, explanation is omitted.

  Also in the vehicle body structure configured as described above, a biasing force is applied to the mounting portion of each strut tower 1 by each biasing bar 110, 120, and a preload is applied to each strut tower 1, so that the vehicle travels when traveling. The response of the vehicle body to the input from the road surface is improved, and the steering stability and riding comfort of the vehicle can be dramatically improved. In addition, since the displacement of the vehicle body due to “play” when the vehicle is running is reduced, it is possible to reduce low-level sounds, squeaking sounds, and the like of the vehicle body, and to reduce the noise level in the vehicle interior.

  Further, without changing the distance between the portions to which the respective urging bars 110 and 120 are attached in the respective strut towers 1, it is possible to allow the angle changes of the respective urging bars 110 and 120 with respect to the respective strut towers 1, Since the strut towers 1 are not excessively constrained to each other, rigidity of the entire vehicle body can be ensured while avoiding stress concentration in the vicinity of each part of each strut tower 1.

  Further, since the first urging bar 110 and the second urging bar 120 are provided, the strut towers 1 are connected by the urging bars 110 and 120 at a plurality of locations, and the urging forces acting on the strut towers 1 The effect of suppressing the displacement between the strut towers 1 is not biased toward a specific part of each strut tower 1, and “play” can be efficiently reduced and stress concentration can be avoided.

  Further, according to the vehicle body structure of the present embodiment, when the vehicle travels, the vibration from the road surface to the suspension is transmitted to each strut tower 1 and the vibration for expanding and contracting each urging bar 110, 120 acts. Since the expansion / contraction operation of the urging bars 110 and 120 is attenuated, vibration transmitted from the road surface to each strut tower 1 can be effectively suppressed. Therefore, this also improves the handling stability and riding comfort of the vehicle.

  Further, according to the vehicle body structure of the present embodiment, since the two urging bars 110 and 120 intersect each other, the load in the extending direction of each urging bar 110 and 120 acting on each strut tower 1 is affected. In addition, it is possible to withstand loads such as the extending direction of each strut tower 1.

In the first and second embodiments, the present invention is applied to a pair of left and right strut towers 1, but other frame portions of the vehicle body are used as the first vehicle body forming member and the second vehicle body forming member. It is also possible to apply to. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, a pair of left and right front side members 201 may be connected by urging bars 210 and 220, or a pair of left and right rear side members 202 may be connected by an urging bar 230.
In FIG. 7, two urging bars 210 crossing each front side member 201 and two urging bars 220 in parallel are installed, and two urging bars 230 crossing each rear side member 202 are installed. Shows what One urging bar 240 is installed on the pair of left and right side sills 203. The two urging bars 210 that are installed on the front side member 201 and intersect with each other, and the two urging bars 230 that are installed on the rear side member 202 and intersect with each other are connected to each other so as to be rotatable at the intersection.
In this case, since the intersecting urging bars 210 and 230 are connected, the rigidity of the front side members 201 and the rear side members 202 is improved. In addition, since the urging bars 210 and 230 are rotatably connected, the urging bars 210 and 230 are not excessively restrained.

  Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, the rotation permitting mechanisms 13 and 113 are configured by the pillow balls 14, 24, and 114, and the bar main bodies 12, 22, and 112 can rotate about three axes with respect to the vehicle body. However, for example, the bar body may be rotatable about one axis about the front-rear direction, the left-right direction, or the up-down direction. Further, the bar main body may be rotatable in the biaxial direction.

  Moreover, in each said embodiment, although what urge | biased the bar main bodies 12,22,112 using the pressure of the gas with which the gas chamber 16b was filled was shown, an urging | biasing mechanism is a spring, The bar main bodies 12, 22, 112 may be urged using the elastic force of an elastic body such as rubber.

  Moreover, although the thing which attenuates the expansion-contraction operation | movement of the bar main bodies 12,22,112 using the viscous resistance of the oil in the oil chamber 16a was shown, an attenuation mechanism attenuate | damps expansion-contraction operation | movement by the combination of a friction board etc., for example. You may do. Furthermore, it is good also as a structure which abbreviate | omitted the attenuation | damping mechanism, and it can change suitably also about a specific detailed structure.

1 is a schematic explanatory perspective view of a vehicle body structure showing a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a top view of the 1st energizing bar. It is a partial sectional view of the 1st energizing bar. It is a top view of the 2nd energizing bar. It is a schematic explanatory perspective view of the vehicle body structure which shows the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view of the 1st energizing bar. It is a typical bottom view of the vehicle body structure showing a modification.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Strut tower 10 1st urging bar 20 2nd urging bar 110 1st urging bar 120 2nd urging bar 201 Front side member 202 Rear side member 210 Energizing bar 220 Energizing bar 230 Energizing bar

Claims (5)

  Both end sides are pivotally attached to a first vehicle body forming member and a second vehicle body forming member that are substantially parallel to each other, and are extendable and retractable to urge the first vehicle body forming member and the second vehicle body forming member in directions away from each other. A vehicle body structure comprising a plurality of urging bars.   The vehicle body structure according to claim 1, wherein each urging bar has a damping mechanism that dampens the expansion and contraction operation of the urging bar.   3. The vehicle body structure according to claim 1, wherein each urging bar is disposed substantially orthogonal to and parallel to the first vehicle body forming member and the second vehicle body forming member.   The vehicle body structure according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the two urging bars are arranged so as to cross each other.   The vehicle body structure according to claim 4, wherein the urging bars that intersect with each other are connected so as to be rotatable at the intersection.

Images