JP2009073341A - Front fender structure of vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a front fender structure having excellent relaxation of shock against load directed from an upper side to a lower side. <P>SOLUTION: A fender protector 20 is connected and fixed to a front fender 11. The fender protector 20 is provided with an upper plate 21 and a side plate 30 linked with the upper plate 21 at a substantially right angle. The side plate 30 is provided with a main side plate 22 and a sub side plate 301. In first suspension portion 24 and inclination portion 25 constituting the side plate 30, a slit 27 is formed to be extended in the vertical direction. The first suspension portion 24 is divided into a first suspension portion 24A on an apron 15 side and a first suspension portion 24B on a suspension tower 16 side by the slit 27. The inclination portion 25 is divided into an inclination portion 25A on the apron 15 side and an inclination portion 25B on the suspension tower 16 side by the slit 27. The slit 27 divides the side plate 30 into the main side plate 22 and the sub side plate 301. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle front fender structure including an apron and a suspension tower that support a front fender, and a fender protector coupled to the front fender.

2. Description of the Related Art There is known a technique for reducing the impact applied to a collision object by increasing the amount of deformation on the vehicle side when a load from the top to the bottom is applied to the front upper surface of the vehicle by the collision object. For example, in the case of a front fender, a structure that easily deforms when a load is applied to the upper surface of the front fender or the upper surface of the engine hood is provided by providing a gap between the front fender and the apron or the suspension tower. In order to prevent noise and hot air in the engine room from leaking between the front fender and the apron, between the front fender and the suspension tower, or to improve the appearance in the engine room, the apron and the suspension tower A fender protector (styling cover) using a material with relatively low rigidity such as resin is disposed between the front fender and the front fender (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The styling cover disclosed in Patent Document 1 is screwed to a front fender and a hood ridge (apron).
JP 2005-254947 A

  When a load from top to bottom is applied to the upper surface of the front fender or the upper surface of the engine hood, it is desired that the front fender is deformed while the styling cover is deformed, and the impact due to the load is reduced.

  By the way, the cross-sectional shape of the styling cover disclosed in Patent Document 1 is U-shaped or L-shaped. A styling cover having such a cross-sectional shape is likely to be deformed at first glance. However, a load in the vertical direction acts only on a part in the front-rear direction, and the shape rigidity in the case of partial deformation is high, which may have a disadvantageous effect on the relaxation of the impact due to the load.

  An object of this invention is to provide the front fender structure excellent in the relaxation | moderation of the impact with respect to the load which goes down from the top.

  The present invention is directed to a vehicle front fender structure in which an apron and a suspension tower for supporting a front fender are provided, and a fender protector is connected to the front fender. And an upper plate connected to the front fender, and a side plate connected to the upper plate, wherein the side plate has a slit, and the slit reaches a lower end edge of the side plate. And

  When a large load that deforms the fender protector is applied to the fender protector from the top to the bottom, the fender protector is bent and deformed so as to open the slit, and the impact due to the load is reduced.

In a preferred example, the slit reaches the upper edge of the side plate.
The slit from the lower edge of the side plate to the upper edge of the side plate is suitable for bending and deforming the fender protector so as to widen the slit.

  In a preferred example, the side plate is divided into a main side plate and a sub side plate by the slit, the main side plate is above the apron, and the sub side plate is above the suspension tower.

  When a large load that deforms the fender protector is applied to the fender protector from the top to the bottom, the secondary side plate comes into contact with the upper surface of the suspension tower, and the fender protector bends and deforms so as to expand the slit.

  In a preferred example, the side plate is divided into a main side plate and a sub side plate by the slit, the sub side plate is above the suspension tower, and the sub side plate is weaker than the rigidity of the main side plate. An auxiliary side plate having rigidity is provided.

  When a large load that deforms the fender protector is applied to the fender protector from the top to the bottom, the auxiliary side plate contacts the upper surface of the suspension tower and the auxiliary side plate is deformed. Since the rigidity of the auxiliary side plate is weaker than that of the main side plate, the impact relaxation is more effectively performed.

In a preferred example, the upper plate has a groove continuous with the slit.
When a large load that deforms the fender protector is applied to the fender protector from top to bottom, the fender protector bends and deforms starting from the groove.

In a preferred example, the slit is covered with a tape adhered to the side plate.
The tape contributes to suppressing noise and hot air leakage.

  The front fender structure of the present invention has an excellent effect in mitigating the impact on the load from the top to the bottom.

Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1 shows a front portion of an automobile 10 as a vehicle. A front fender 11 is provided around the front wheel 101 of the automobile 10. Reference numeral 12 denotes an engine hood.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a joint plate 13 is coupled and fixed to the front fender 11 made of sheet metal, and the joint plate 13 is connected to a support plate 151 of an apron 15 via a support tool 14. . The apron 15 is connected to the suspension tower 16. The suspension tower 16 accommodates an upper portion of a suspension (not shown).

  As shown in FIG. 3A, the front fender 11 is connected to the outer plate 17, the hanging plate 18 hanging from the outer plate 17 on the inner side in the vehicle width direction, that is, the engine room side, and the hanging plate 18 substantially horizontally. And an inner plate 19. As shown in FIG. 2, a cushion 32 for the engine hood 12 is disposed on the upper plate 21 along the hanging plate 18.

  As shown in FIG. 3A, a fender protector 20 is connected and fixed to the inner plate 19. The fender protector 20 is disposed so as to extend in the vehicle front-rear direction at the left and right side edges in the engine room. The fender protector 20 includes a synthetic resin upper plate 21 joined to the inner plate 19 of the front fender 11 and fastened by a caulking pin 33, and a side plate 30 connected to the upper plate 21 at a substantially right angle. The side plate 30 includes a first hanging portion 24 that is integrally formed with the upper plate 21 so as to hang from the inner side edge of the upper plate 21, and an inclined portion 25 that is integrally formed so as to be bent and connected to the first hanging portion 24. And a second hanging part 26 integrally formed with the inclined part 25 so as to hang down from the inclined part 25, and a rubber auxiliary side plate 23 connected to the inclined part 25. The inclined portion 25 has an inclined shape that approaches the front fender 11 as it goes downward.

  The second drooping portion 26 is provided corresponding to the apron 15, and the auxiliary side plate 23 is connected and fixed to the inclined portion 25 as shown in FIGS. 5 (a) and 5 (b). The auxiliary side plate 23 is provided corresponding to the suspension tower 16 in place of the second hanging portion 26. The lower end edge 231 of the auxiliary side plate 23 is directly above the upper surface of the suspension tower 16, and the lower portion of the second hanging portion 26 is suspended along the inner surface of the apron 15.

  As shown in FIG. 4, a slit 27 is formed in the first hanging part 24 and the inclined part 25 so as to extend in the vertical direction. The first drooping portion 24 is divided by a slit 27 into a first drooping portion 24A on the apron 15 side positioned in the front of the vehicle and a first drooping portion 24B on the suspension tower 16 side in the rearward direction of the vehicle. 25 is divided by the slit 27 into an inclined portion 25A on the apron 15 side and an inclined portion 25B on the suspension tower 16 side. The rubber auxiliary side plate 23 is connected to the inclined portion 25B. The slit 27 reaches the upper end edge 241 of the first hanging part 24 and the lower end edge 251 of the inclined part 25B.

  A slit 28 is provided between the side edge of the second hanging part 26 and the side edge of the auxiliary side plate 23 so as to continue to the slit 27. The slits 27 and 28 are perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the fender protector 20. The slits 27 and 28 are covered with a tape 31 adhered to the first hanging portion 24, the inclined portion 25, and the auxiliary side plate 23.

  The first drooping portion 24A, the inclined portion 25A, and the second drooping portion 26 constitute a main side plate 22 connected to the upper plate 21 at a substantially right angle. The first drooping portion 24 </ b> B, the inclined portion 25 </ b> B, and the rubber auxiliary side plate 23 constitute a sub-side plate 301 that is connected to the upper plate 21 at a substantially right angle. The main side plate 22 and the sub side plate 301 constitute a side plate 30 connected to the upper plate 21 at a substantially right angle. An upper end edge 241 of the first hanging part 24 is an upper end edge of the main side plate 22, and a lower end edge 251 of the inclined portion 25 </ b> B is a part of the lower end edge of the main side plate 22. The rigidity of the rubber auxiliary side plate 23 is weaker than that of the synthetic resin main side plate 22, and the auxiliary side plate 23 is more easily bent and deformed than the main side plate 22.

  As shown in FIG. 3A, a groove 29 is formed on the upper surface of the upper plate 21. As shown in FIG. 3B, the groove 29 that is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the fender protector 20 continues to the upper end of the slit 27.

In the first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) As shown in FIG. 5A, when a large load that deforms the fender protector 20 is applied to the engine hood 12 or the front fender 11 from the top to the bottom as indicated by the arrow F, While the front fender 11 is bent and deformed, the fender protector 20 moves downward as indicated by a chain line. When the portion where the load acts is close to the suspension tower 16, when the corresponding portion of the fender protector 20 moves down, the lower end edge 231 of the auxiliary side plate 23 comes into contact with the suspension tower 16 and the fender protector 20 moves down. Accordingly, the rubber auxiliary side plate 23 is elastically deformed. When the fender protector 20 is further moved downward, the downward movement of the inclined portion 25B and the first hanging portion 24B is prevented by the presence of the suspension tower 16. Then, the fender protector 20 is bent and deformed so as to expand the slits 27 and 28 starting from the groove 29. That is, the first hanging part 24B is in a free state with respect to the first hanging part 24A, and only the first hanging part 24B is greatly deformed.

  Therefore, in the fender protector 20 including the side plate 30 connected to the upper plate 21 at a substantially right angle, the deformation of the front fender 11 is not hindered by the rigidity of the entire fender protector 20, and the impact on the load F is reduced. The effect is also high.

  (2) Since the slit 27 extends from the lower end edge 251 of the main side plate 22 to the upper end edge of the main side plate 22, the fender protector 20 is easily bent and deformed so as to expand the slits 27 and 28 starting from the groove 29. The slit 27 extending from the lower end edge 251 of the main side plate 22 to the upper end edge 241 of the main side plate 22 is suitable for bending and deforming the fender protector 20 so as to expand the slit 27 formed in the main side plate 22.

  (3) The tape 31 adhered to the main side plate 22 and the sub side plate 301 so as to cover the slits 27 and 28 contributes to suppressing noise in the engine room under the engine hood 12 and leakage of hot air.

(4) The groove 29 connected to the slit 27 is suitable for bending the fender protector 20 at a predetermined location.
(5) When the fender protector 20 is deformed at a position close to the suspension tower 16 and starts to move downward, the rubber auxiliary side plate 23 comes into contact with the upper surface of the suspension tower 16 and elastically deforms. Therefore, compared with the case where the second drooping portion 26 made of synthetic resin is in contact with the upper surface of the suspension tower 16, the deformation is not hindered at the initial stage of the downward movement of the fender protector 20, and the impact mitigation is more effective. Done.

  (6) On the front fender 11, when the portion where the load acts is located above the apron 15, the fender protector 20 is bent and deformed so as to expand the slits 27 and 28 starting from the groove 29. The rigidity of the first hanging part 24B does not matter, and only the first hanging part 24A side moves or deforms. Therefore, the impact can be reduced similarly.

In the present invention, the following embodiments are also possible.
As in the second embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the auxiliary side plate 23 </ b> A may be integrally formed with the main side plate 22.

  As in the third embodiment shown in FIG. 7, the groove 29 in the first embodiment may be eliminated, or the lower edge 231 of the auxiliary side plate 23 may be brought into contact with the upper surface of the suspension tower 16 in advance.

As in the fourth embodiment shown in FIG. 8, a groove 29A connected to the slit 27 may be provided on the lower surface of the upper plate 21.
As in the fifth embodiment shown in FIG. 9, the present invention may be applied to a fender protector 20A having an L-shaped cross section. That is, the main side plate 22A is formed in a flat plate shape.

The slit 27 may be inclined with respect to the vertical direction when viewed in the vehicle width direction of the automobile 10.
A plurality of grooves may be arranged on the same straight line instead of the single groove 29.
A large number of through holes may be arranged on the same straight line instead of the grooves 29.

The auxiliary side plate 23 may overlap the main side plate 22 when viewed in the vehicle width direction of the automobile 10.
○ The entire auxiliary side plate may be made of rubber.

The perspective view which shows the front part of a motor vehicle. Sectional drawing of a front fender and a fender protector. (A), (b) is a perspective view of a front fender, a fender protector, an apron, and a suspension tower. The AA line expanded sectional view of FIG. (A), (b) is sectional drawing of a front fender and a fender protector. Sectional drawing which shows 2nd Embodiment. Sectional drawing which shows 3rd Embodiment. Sectional drawing which shows 4th Embodiment. Sectional drawing which shows 5th Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

  10: A car as a vehicle. 11 ... Front fender. 15 ... Apron. 20, 20A ... Fender protector. 21 ... Upper plate. 22 ... Main side plate constituting the side plate. 23: Auxiliary side plate. 301 ... Sub-side plate constituting the side plate. 241 ... Upper edge. 251 ... Bottom edge. 29, 29A ... groove. 30 ... side plate. 31 ... Tape.

Claims (6)

In the front fender structure of a vehicle that includes an apron and a suspension tower that support the front fender, and a fender protector is connected to the front fender,
The fender protector includes an upper plate connected to the front fender and a side plate connected to the upper plate, the side plate has a slit, and the slit reaches a lower edge of the side plate. The front fender structure of the vehicle.   The vehicle front fender structure according to claim 1, wherein the slit reaches an upper end edge of the side plate.   The side plate is divided into a main side plate and a sub side plate by the slit, the main side plate is above the apron, and the sub side plate is above the suspension tower. 2. A front fender structure for a vehicle according to claim 1.   The side plate is divided into a main side plate and a sub-side plate by the slit, the sub-side plate is above the suspension tower, and the sub-side plate has a weaker rigidity than the main side plate. The vehicle front fender structure according to claim 3 provided with.   The vehicle front fender structure according to claim 4, wherein the upper plate has a groove continuous with the slit.   The vehicle front fender structure according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the slit is covered with a tape bonded to the side plate.

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