JP2008062815A - Front structure of vehicle body - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide front structure of a vehicle body capable of sufficiently supplying running air to a heat exchanger even if a front bumper reinforcement is provided with only hole parts. <P>SOLUTION: The front bumper reinforcement 6 is provided to cross the car width direction between a central opening part 8a of a front bumper fascia 8 and a radiator 14 arranged in rear of the central opening part 8a, and opening parts 6b and 6c for passing the running air from a front part to a rear part of the front bumper reinforcement 6 are provided in positions of the front bumper reinforcement 6 facing front, and hole parts 17a of a shock absorbing member 17 are provided to increase the flow speed of the running air passing through the opening parts 6b and 6c. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a structure of a front part of a vehicle body in which a front bumper rain is formed by crossing an air introduction opening of a front bumper fascia in the vehicle width direction, and belongs to the technical field of a vehicle body structure of an automobile.

  In general, an engine room is provided at the front of a vehicle body, and a radiator (heat exchanger) for cooling engine cooling water is disposed in the engine room, and the radiator is disposed at a front end of the vehicle. An air introduction opening for introducing traveling air (cooling air) for cooling is provided. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a device in which such air introduction openings are provided above and below a front bumper.

  By the way, the front bumper fascia constituting the outer surface of the front bumper has a shape that covers the front end of the vehicle body over a wide range in the vehicle width direction and the vertical direction in terms of the vehicle body design. There may be cases where it is desired to form an introduction opening.

  However, in this case, the following problem may occur. That is, the front bumper has a front bumper rain that extends in the vehicle width direction and has a predetermined width in the vertical direction as a member for absorbing the impact at the time of the front collision. In this case, there is a case where the front bumper rain crosses the air introduction opening of the fascia in the vehicle width direction. In this case, the effective opening area of the air introduction opening is substantially reduced, and the cooling air to the radiator is reduced. There is a problem that the supply amount decreases. As a countermeasure for this problem, it is conceivable to increase the opening area of the air introduction opening, but this means that the vehicle design is far from ideal.

  As another configuration for solving this problem, for example, as described in Patent Document 2, the front bumper rain is configured by two square pipe members extending in the vehicle width direction with a predetermined interval in the vertical direction. It is conceivable to allow the cooling air to pass through between them.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 1-107627 JP 2002-067839 A

  By the way, depending on the target vehicle body, in order to ensure the structure of the front portion of the vehicle body and the collision resistance, it is not possible to provide a large opening as in Patent Document 2, and a single front bumper rain has a relatively small hole shape. There may be cases where only vents are provided.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle body front part structure that can sufficiently supply traveling wind to a heat exchanger even when only a hole is provided in a front bumper reinforcement.

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

  In the first aspect of the present invention, the front bumper fascia which forms the outer surface of the front end portion of the vehicle body and has an air introduction opening, and is disposed behind the air introduction opening of the front bumper fascia. Vehicle body front structure provided with a heat exchanger and a front bumper reinforcement that crosses between the heat exchanger and the air introduction opening in the vehicle width direction, the front bumper reinforcement Is provided with a hole through which the traveling wind passes from the front to the rear of the front bumper reinforcement and a flow velocity increasing means for increasing the flow velocity of the traveling wind passing through the hole. It is characterized by being.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, an impact absorbing member that absorbs an impact from the front of the vehicle body is attached to the front side of the front bumper reinforcement. The increasing means is a hole that is provided so as to penetrate front and rear at a position corresponding to the hole of the front bumper reinforcement in the shock absorbing member, and is formed so that the cross-sectional area decreases toward the rear. Features.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the present invention, the front bumper reinforcement has a hollow closed cross-sectional structure, and a hole portion of the front bumper reinforcement is provided. Is characterized by comprising openings provided respectively on the front and rear sides of the front bumper reinforcement, and a tubular member connecting the openings.

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

  First, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the traveling wind from the front of the front bumper reinforcement among the traveling winds taken from the air introduction opening of the front bumper fascia is provided in the front bumper reinforcement. The reinforcement passes through from the front to the rear through the hole. In that case, the flow velocity of the traveling wind passing therethrough is increased by the flow velocity increasing means in the present invention.

  Here, since the heat exchanger such as a radiator is a ventilation resistor for the traveling wind, the traveling wind is difficult to pass through the heat exchanger, and the periphery of the heat exchanger may be surrounded. Air accumulation tends to occur ahead. In that case, since the pressure of the air reservoir is higher than that of the surroundings, it is difficult for the traveling wind to be introduced from the air introduction opening. Therefore, even if the cross-sectional area of the hole of the bumper rain is increased, the range of improvement in the cooling capacity is limited as long as the pressure of the traveling wind acting on the air pool, that is, the ability to push air into the air pool is the same.

  Therefore, in the present invention, the flow velocity of the traveling wind passing through the hole of the bumper rain, that is, the flow velocity of the traveling wind when flowing into the air reservoir is increased, and the traveling wind is pushed into the air reservoir by the dynamic pressure. Thus, even when only a relatively small diameter hole can be provided, an improvement in heat exchange capability is achieved.

  Next, according to the invention described in claim 2, the flow velocity increasing means described in claim 1 is embodied. That is, the flow velocity increasing means is configured by a hole portion that is provided so as to penetrate front and rear at a position corresponding to the hole portion of the front bumper reinforcement in the shock absorbing member, and has a cross-sectional area that decreases toward the rear. Is done. According to this, since the hole portion of the shock absorbing member is formed so that the cross-sectional area becomes smaller toward the rear, the traveling air flow introduced into the hole portion increases the flow velocity when passing through the hole portion. It will be. That is, the flow velocity of the traveling wind passing through the hole portion of the front bumper reinforcement is increased as compared with the case where there is no flow velocity increasing means. Further, according to the description, the flow velocity increasing means can be easily configured using the shock absorbing member of the bumper.

  According to the third aspect of the invention, the hole portion of the front bumper reinforcement is composed of the opening portions provided on the front surface side and the rear surface side and the tubular member that connects the openings. The traveling wind introduced from the opening on the front side is discharged toward the heat exchanger from the opening on the rear side without leaking into the hollow space of the front bumper reinforcement. That is, the traveling wind introduced from the front side can be effectively guided. Further, even if the opening on the rear surface side and the opening on the front surface side cannot be provided on the same axis, the traveling wind can be guided well to the heat exchanger.

  Hereinafter, the vehicle body front part structure according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a front portion of an automobile according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from above. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the interior of a front portion of a vehicle body as viewed from above with the bumper fascia separated in the same state as FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the front portion of the vehicle as viewed from below, FIG. 4 is a front view of the vehicle, FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 4, and FIG. FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a main part of the flow velocity increasing means.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the vehicle body front structure of the automobile 1 includes, as main structures, front side frames 2 and 2 (refer to FIG. 5) that extend forward and rearward on the left and right sides of the vehicle front part, and left and right suspension towers. The apron rains 4 and 4 extending forward from the upper portions of 3 and 3 and the front end portions of the left and right front side frames 2 and 2 are fixed via the crash cans 5 and 5 (see FIG. 5), and the skeleton of the front bumper 30 is As shown in FIG. 1, the upper surface of the front portion of the vehicle body is configured as a member that forms the outer surface of the front portion of the vehicle body. The hood hood 7 to be configured, the front bumper fascia 8 constituting the outer surface of the front end portion of the vehicle body and the outer surface of the front bumper 30, and the outer surfaces of the left and right side portions of the vehicle body are configured. Front fender panels 9 and 9 (only one is shown in FIG. 1), and the space inside the members constituting these outer surfaces serves as an engine room 11 that houses the engine 10 and the like. It is configured (see FIG. 2).

  In addition to the engine 10, the engine room 11 houses a transmission 12, an engine auxiliary machine 13, and the like, as shown in FIG. 3, and in front of the engine 10, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. In addition, a radiator 14 for cooling the cooling water of the engine 10 is disposed. The radiator 14 includes a condenser 14 a, a radiator main body 14 b, a radiator fan 14 c, a fan cover 14 d, and the like, and is fixed to the shroud 15.

  As shown in FIGS. 2, 5 and 6, the shroud 15 includes left and right vertical side portions 15a and 15a to which the left and right end portions of the radiator 14 are fixed, a lower side portion 15b to which the lower end portion is fixed, and an upper end. And an upper side portion 15c to which the portion is fixed, and has a substantially rectangular frame shape when viewed from the front. The upper side 15c has fixed arm portions 15d and 15d that extend outward from the left and right ends, and the distal ends of the fixed arm portions 15d and 15d are fixed to the front ends of the apron rain 4 and 4, respectively. Yes. Although not shown, the left and right vertical sides 15 a and 15 a are also fixed to the front bumper rain 6.

  The engine 10 is an engine with a turbocharger, and an intercooler 16 for cooling the intake air compressed by the turbocharger and heated to a high temperature is disposed on one end side in the vehicle width direction in the engine room 11 (see FIG. 2, see FIG. The intercooler 16 can be attached in various ways. In the present embodiment, the intercooler 16 is fixed to the front side frames 2 and 2 via attachment members (not shown). The present invention is also applicable to an engine that does not have a turbocharger.

  The bumper 30 includes an impact absorbing member 17 and a bumper rain cover 18 that covers the front side of the front bumper rain 6 in addition to the front bumper facer 8 and the front bumper rain 6 described above.

  The front bumper rain 6 is a closed cross-sectional body extending in the vehicle width direction formed by joining a front-side member 6a having a hat-shaped cross-section and a plate-like rear-side member 6b. It has a predetermined width in the vertical direction so as to achieve a strength that can withstand an impact.

  The shock absorbing member 17 is for reducing an impact applied to a collision object such as a pedestrian during a front collision, and is made of, for example, a foamed resin material, and includes an inner surface of the front bumper fascia 8 and a front side member of the front bumper rain 6. 6a, and is fixed to the front side member 6a of the front bumper rain 6. Further, the shock absorbing member 17 has a substantially rectangular cross section, and the height direction (vertical) width is smaller than the height direction width of the front side member 6 a of the front bumper rain 6.

  The front bumper fascia 8 constitutes a relatively wide range of the outer surface of the front end portion of the vehicle body. A laterally long opening 8a (hereinafter referred to as a central opening 8a) for introducing traveling wind into the engine room 11 is formed at the center of the fascia 8 in the vehicle width direction, and the radiator 14 is connected to the front of the vehicle. As viewed, the central opening 8a is disposed approximately at the center in the vehicle width direction. The central opening 8a corresponds to the air introduction opening in the claims. The front bumper facer 8 also has openings 8b and 8b on the left and right sides of the central opening 8a (hereinafter referred to as side openings 8b and 8b as appropriate). As shown in FIG. 4, the side opening 8 b is provided at a position overlapping the intercooler 16 when viewed from the front of the vehicle, and is provided mainly for supplying traveling air to the intercooler 16. Note that the side openings 8b are also provided at positions symmetrical in the vehicle width direction where the intercooler 16 is not provided.

  Here, in the automobile 1 according to the present embodiment, as clearly shown in FIG. 4, the front bumper rain 6 crosses the central opening 8a of the front bumper fascia 8 in the vehicle width direction, As a result, there is a problem that the effective opening area of the central opening 8a is reduced, and the amount of cooling air supplied to the radiator 14 is reduced. Therefore, in the present embodiment, a wind guide structure is provided for effectively guiding the traveling wind introduced from the central opening 8a of the front bumper fascia 8 to the radiator 14.

  This wind guide structure has a rear end portion fixed to the left and right vertical side portions 15a, 15a of the shroud 15, and a front end portion located in the vicinity of the front surface of the front bumper rain 6 in the vehicle front-rear direction. 20 and the rear end portion are fixed to the lower side portion 15b of the shroud 15, the front end portion is fixed to the lower end portion of the front bumper fascia 8, and a so-called foot-wiping member (for protecting the leg portion of a pedestrian who collides with the front portion of the vehicle body And a substantially horizontal lower partition plate 21 that also serves as a member. Further, the shroud 15 is provided with a fan-shaped upper partition plate portion 15f that extends forward from the upper side portion 15c at substantially the same height as the upper edge portion of the central opening portion 8a of the front bumper fascia 8, and has a fan shape in plan view. At the same time, the front bumper fascia 8 extends rearward from the upper edge of the central opening 8a, and the rear edge is shaped to correspond to the front edge of the partition plate 15f and abuts against the front edge. The lateral surface portion 8c is provided, and the rear end portion of the lateral surface portion 8c and the front end portion of the upper partition plate portion 15f are abutted against each other. The partition plates 20, 20, 21 and the partition plate portion 15f and the lateral surface portion 8c constitute a duct-like air guide structure that connects the central opening 8a and the radiator 14 back and forth.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the bumper rain cover 18 includes a front surface portion 18a facing generally forward, an upper surface portion 18b extending rearward from the upper end of the front surface portion 18a, and a lower surface extending rearward from the lower end of the front surface portion 18a. 18c and covers the step X generated between the shock absorbing member 17 and the bumper rain 6. In this case, the upper surface portion 18b is higher toward the rear side, while the lateral surface portion 8c of the front bumper fascia 8 and the upper partition plate portion 15f of the shroud 15 are substantially horizontal. The width is narrower toward the rear side. Further, the lower surface portion 18c is lower toward the rear side, while the lower partition plate 21 is substantially horizontal, so that the vertical width of the lower flow path F2 is narrower toward the rear side. That is, the channel cross-sectional areas of the upper channel F1 and the lower channel F2 are smaller toward the rear side.

  As shown in each figure, a license plate L is attached to the center of the front bumper rain 6 in the vehicle width direction. Here, in the present embodiment, a wind guide structure is provided for passing the traveling wind from the front to the rear of the front bumper rain 6.

  That is, the front bumper reinforcement 6 has a rectangular shape in front view that penetrates in the front-rear direction and is elongated in the vehicle width direction on the left and right sides of the license plate L and at a position facing the central opening 8a in front view of the vehicle. A hole 6a is provided. The front bumper reinforcement 6 is a hollow closed section extending in the vehicle width direction as described above, and the hole 6a is an opening formed in the front side member and the rear side member of the reinforcement 6, respectively. 6b, 6c, and a tubular member 22 connecting the openings. The area of the openings 6b and 6c, that is, the cross-sectional area of the hole 6a is set to a size that can be realized in consideration of the strength of the front bumper reinforcement 6. Moreover, the cross-sectional area of the hole 6a is the same in the front-rear direction.

  Further, the shock absorbing member 17 is provided with a hole portion 17a penetrating in the front-rear direction at a position substantially corresponding to the through-hole portion 6a of the front bumper reinforcement 6. The hole 17a has a rectangular cross-sectional shape like the hole 6a of the front bumper reinforcement 6. Further, the cross-sectional area of the rear end 17c is substantially the same as the cross-sectional area of the hole 6a of the front bumper reinforcement 6, and the cross-sectional area of the front end 17b is larger than the cross-sectional area of the rear end 17c. More specifically, the hole 17a is formed in a tapered shape so that the cross-sectional area increases toward the front end 17b. In other words, the rear side is formed so that the cross-sectional area becomes smaller.

  The bumper rain cover 18 has an opening 18d having the same area and shape as the front end 17b of the hole 17a.

  Next, the effect of the vehicle body front part structure according to the present embodiment will be described.

  Since the hole 6a is provided in a portion of the front bumper rain 6 that can be viewed from the front, among the traveling winds taken from the air introduction opening 8a of the front bumper fascia 8, the traveling wind from the front of the front bumper rain 6 is The front bumper rain 6 passes from the front to the rear through the hole 6a. In that case, the flow velocity of the traveling wind passing therethrough is increased by the hole portion 17a formed in a tapered shape.

  Here, since the radiator 14 is a ventilation resistor for the traveling wind, the traveling wind is unlikely to pass through the radiator 14, and the periphery of the radiator 14 may be surrounded, and an air pool is likely to occur in front of the radiator 14. In that case, since the pressure of the air reservoir is higher than that of the surroundings, it is difficult for the traveling wind to be introduced from the air introduction opening 8a. Therefore, even if the cross-sectional area of the hole 6a of the front bumper rain 6 is increased, as long as the pressure of the traveling wind acting on the air pool, that is, the ability to push air into the air pool is the same, the improvement range of the cooling capacity is Limited.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the flow velocity of the traveling wind passing through the hole 6a of the front bumper rain 6, that is, the flow velocity of the traveling wind when flowing into the air reservoir is increased, and the vehicle travels to the air reservoir by its dynamic pressure. The wind is pushed in, so that even when only a relatively small diameter hole can be provided, an improvement in heat exchange capability is achieved.

  In the above embodiment, the sectional area of the hole 6a of the front bumper train 6 is the same in the front-rear direction. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the hole 6a is not limited to the embodiment shown in FIGS. And the tubular member 22 'is formed so that the cross-sectional area becomes smaller toward the rear of the vehicle in accordance with the cross-sectional areas of these introduction openings 6b' and 6c '. Also good.

  At this time, it is preferable that the tapered surface formed in the hole 17a ′ of the shock absorbing member 17 ′ and the tapered surface formed in the hole 6a ′ of the front bumper rain 6 ′ are formed to be continuous.

  In the present embodiment, the cross-sectional area of the introduction opening 6c ′ at the rear of the vehicle is formed to be smaller than the cross-sectional area of the opening 6b ′ on the shock absorbing member 17 ′ side, and the tubular member 22 is also opened. Since the cross-sectional area is formed so as to decrease toward the rear of the vehicle in accordance with the cross-sectional areas of the portions 6b 'and 6c', the traveling wind whose flow velocity is increased by the holes 17a 'and 17a' is further applied to the bumper rain 6 ′ Is introduced into the openings 6b ′ and 6b ′, the air flow is gradually narrowed in the tubular member 22 ′, the flow velocity is further increased, and the air flow is further exhausted rearward from the openings 6c ′ and 6c ′. The radiator 14 is cooled. That is, the cooling capacity of the radiator 14 can be further improved by forming the flow velocity increasing means in both the shock absorbing member 17 'and the front bumper rain 6'.

  In the present embodiment, the hole 17a 'of the shock absorbing member 17' and the hole 6a 'of the front bumper rain 6' are formed so that the cross-sectional area in the vehicle width direction becomes smaller toward the rear of the vehicle. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the cross-sectional area in the vehicle vertical direction may be formed so as to become smaller as the vehicle rearward, and the cross-sectional areas in both the vehicle width direction and the vehicle vertical direction become smaller as the vehicle rearward. It may be formed.

  In the vehicle body front part structure according to the present embodiment, the following operational effects are also obtained.

  First, as described above, the lateral surface portion 8c of the front bumper fascia 8 and the upper partition plate portion 15f, the lower partition plate 21 of the shroud 15, and the upper surface portion 18b and the lower surface portion 18c of the bumper rain cover 18 are connected to the upper flow path F1 and the lower portion. Since the vertical width of the flow path F2 is formed to be narrower toward the rear side, that is, the flow path cross-sectional area is formed to be smaller toward the rear side, the flow velocity of the traveling wind flowing from the central opening 8a is Ascending by passing through the upper flow path F1 and the lower flow path F2 (this effect is exhibited mainly in a portion where the license plate L does not exist in front view). Therefore, an effect similar to the effect of increasing the flow velocity by the hole is obtained.

  That is, the flow velocity of the traveling wind when flowing into the air reservoir passes through the upper flow path F1 and the lower flow path F2, and becomes faster than the flow velocity of the traveling wind in front of the bumper fascia 8, and the dynamic pressure causes the air to flow. Running wind is pushed into the pool. Thereby, the heat exchange capability is improved without increasing the opening area of the opening 8a of the bumper fascia 8. In addition, the degree of freedom in design is ensured, and an ideal design can be realized.

  In addition, such an effect can be achieved by using the bumper rain cover 18 for preventing the front bumper rain 6 from being seen from the front through the central opening 8a of the front bumper fascia 8.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, a step X is generated between the shock absorbing member 17 and the front bumper rain 6. In the present embodiment, the step X is formed on the upper surface portion 18 b of the bumper rain cover 18 and the bumper rain cover 18. Since it is covered by the lower surface portion 18c, the flow of the traveling wind is not disturbed by the step X. That is, it becomes difficult for the traveling wind to stagnate and the flow velocity to decrease.

  The present invention can be widely applied to a vehicle body front structure in which a front bumper rain is configured to cross an air introduction opening of a front bumper fascia in the vehicle width direction.

It is the perspective view which looked at the front part of the car concerning an embodiment of the invention from the upper part. It is the perspective view which looked at the inside of a vehicle body front part from the upper part in the state which isolate | separated the bumper fascia in the same state as FIG. It is the perspective view which looked at the front part of the motor vehicle from the lower part. It is a front view of the same car. It is AA sectional drawing of FIG. FIG. 6 is a BB end view of FIG. 5. It is a principal part perspective view of a flow velocity increase means. It is sectional drawing which shows the other aspect corresponding to FIG. It is a principal part perspective view of the other aspect of a flow velocity increase means.

Explanation of symbols

1 Car 6 Front bumper rain (front bumper reinforcement)
6a Hole (hole of front bumper reinforcement)
6b Opening (Opening on the front side of the front bumper reinforcement)
6c Opening (Opening on the rear side of the front bumper reinforcement)
8 Front bumper facer 8a Center opening (air introduction opening)
14 Radiator (Heat exchanger)
17 Shock absorbing member 17a hole (hole of shock absorbing member, flow rate increasing means)
18 Front bumper cover 22 Tubular member

Claims (3)

A front bumper fascia that forms an outer surface of the front end of the vehicle body and has an air introduction opening, a heat exchanger disposed behind the air introduction opening of the front bumper fascia, the heat exchanger, A vehicle body front structure provided with a front bumper reinforcement that crosses the air introduction opening in the vehicle width direction,
The front bumper reinforcement is provided with a hole that allows the traveling wind to pass from the front to the rear of the front bumper reinforcement at a portion facing from the front.
A vehicle body front structure characterized in that a flow velocity increasing means for increasing the flow velocity of traveling wind passing through the hole is provided. In the vehicle body front part structure according to claim 1,
An impact absorbing member that absorbs an impact from the front of the vehicle body is attached to the front side of the front bumper reinforcement,
The flow velocity increasing means is a hole portion that is provided so as to penetrate back and forth at a position corresponding to the hole portion of the front bumper reinforcement in the shock absorbing member, and is formed so that the cross-sectional area decreases toward the rear. A vehicle body front structure characterized by that. In the vehicle body front part structure according to claim 1 or 2,
The front bumper reinforcement has a hollow closed cross-sectional structure,
The hole portion of the front bumper reinforcement is composed of openings provided respectively on the front side and the rear side of the front bumper reinforcement, and a tubular member connecting the openings. Car body front structure.

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