JP2010132155A - Vehicular knee protector structure - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a fastening member arranged between a knee protector member and a knee protector body from being dropped mainly by a knee input load. <P>SOLUTION: A vehicular knee protector structure is provided with a knee protector 25 capable of supporting and absorbing a knee input load through knees of an occupant in the case of emergency at the lower part of a vehicle body reinforcing member 22. A structure of the knee protector 25 is divided into a knee protector fixing part 26 and a knee protector body 27, the knee protector fixing part 26 is welded and fixed to the vehicle body reinforcing member 22 and the knee protector body 27 is fastened and fixed to the knee protector fixing part 26 by a plurality of fastening members 31, 32. A fastening member anti-dropping structure 41 capable of preventing the fastening members 31, 32 from being dropped through application of a knee input load is also provided. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle knee protector structure.

  A vehicle such as an automobile is provided with a resin instrument panel (a vehicle interior front panel) at the front of the vehicle interior. Inside the instrument panel, a metal body strength member is provided that extends in the vehicle width direction and connects the left and right body panels.

  And there exists what provided the knee protector which can support and absorb the knee input load by the passenger | crew's knee at the time of emergency in the lower part of such a vehicle body strength member (for example, refer patent document 1).

  Such a knee protector is provided for a driver seat side portion, a passenger seat side portion, or the like of the vehicle body strength member. The knee protector is usually directly welded and fixed to the lower portion of the vehicle body strength member so that the knee protector can be securely attached.

  However, because the inside of the instrument panel is mixed with various built-in parts and it is difficult to secure the installation space, it is difficult to secure the installation space. In some cases, it is not possible to directly weld and fix.

  In order to cope with such a case, the applicant of the present application has studied that the knee protector can be fastened and fixed to the vehicle body strength member.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 3, first, the knee protector 1 is structurally divided into a knee protector mounting portion 2 (mounting bracket portion) and a knee protector main body portion 3. Then, the knee protector mounting portion 2 is welded and fixed to the vehicle body strength member 4 (welded portion 2a), and the knee protector main body 3 is fastened and fixed to the knee protector mounting portion 2 by a plurality of fastening members 5 and 6. . In this case, the two fastening members 5 and 6 are attached with a space 7 in the vertical direction. Bolts or the like are used for the fastening members 5 and 6.

  In this case, the knee protector main body 3 supports and absorbs the upper knee protection bracket 9 that can mainly support and absorb the knee input load 8 by the average occupant and the knee input load 11 by mainly the small occupant. A possible lower knee protection bracket 12 is provided as shown.

  According to such a configuration, the knee protector 1 is integrated with the vehicle body strength member 4 in such a manner that only the knee protector mounting portion 2 is welded and fixed to the vehicle body strength member 4 in advance. Then, when assembling the inside of the instrument panel in a subsequent process, the knee protector body 3 is fastened and fixed to the above-described knee protector mounting portion 2 by the plurality of fastening members 5 and 6. In this way, the knee protector 1 is divided into the knee protector mounting portion 2 and the knee protector main body portion 3 so that the knee protector 1 can be attached to the vehicle body strength member 4 in different processes, thereby eliminating layout problems and the like. It becomes possible to do.

The knee protector body 3 can support and absorb the knee input load 8 mainly by the average body occupant by the upper knee protect bracket 9 in an emergency. Further, the knee input load 11 mainly by a small passenger can be supported and absorbed by the lower knee protection bracket 12.
JP-A-7-267028

  However, the above-described vehicle knee protector structure has the following problems.

  That is, when the knee protector 1 is structurally divided into the knee protector mounting portion 2 and the knee protector main body portion 3, the moment M centering on the lower fastening member 5 is caused to be fastened by the knee input loads 8 and 11. There exists a possibility that it may act on the member 6 and the upper fastening member 6 may fall off (resulting in bolt dropout).

  Therefore, in order to reduce the moment M, the knee protector mounting part 2 needs to lengthen the space | interval 7 (moment arm) between the two fastening members 5 and 6, and, thereby, the knee protector mounting part 2 is required. As described above, it was long (in the vertical direction).

  Thus, if the knee protector mounting portion 2 is long, the degree of freedom in layout inside the instrument panel may be lost, which is not preferable.

  In addition to the above, new problems and other problems may occur in the process leading to the present invention. Such problems will be described in the embodiments of the present invention. The description in this column can be substituted. However, this column can be used if necessary.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention described in claim 1 is for a vehicle provided with a knee protector capable of supporting and absorbing a knee input load by an occupant's knee in an emergency in a lower part of a vehicle body strength member. In the knee protector structure, the knee protector is structurally divided into a knee protector mounting portion and a knee protector main body portion, and the knee protector mounting portion is welded and fixed to the vehicle body strength member, and the knee protector mounting portion is fixed to the knee protector mounting portion. The main body portion is configured to be fastened and fixed by a plurality of fastening members, and a fastening member drop-off preventing structure portion capable of preventing the fastening member from falling off due to the knee input load is provided.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the above, the plurality of fastening members are attached with an interval in the vertical direction, and the fastening member drop-off preventing structure portion is provided on the lower fastening member by the knee input load. It is a rotation-shaped part which can prevent the upper fastening member from falling off due to a moment acting on the upper fastening member.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the above, the detent shape portion is formed below the fastening member on the lower side of the knee protector main body portion and can be locked to the knee protector mounting portion. It is a locking part for use.

  Each of the above is the minimum necessary configuration for exhibiting the required operational effects. Of course, details of the above configuration and configurations not described above have a degree of freedom. is there. Of course, matters that can be read from the description of the above configuration are included in the scope even if they are not specifically described. In addition, when a configuration other than the above is added, it is needless to say that the operational effects of the added configuration are added.

  According to invention of Claim 1, the following effects can be acquired by the said structure. That is, even if the knee protector main body is fastened and fixed to the knee protector mounting portion by a plurality of fastening members by providing the fastening member drop-off preventing structure portion, the fastening member is caused by the knee input load. Can be prevented from falling off.

  According to invention of Claim 2, the following effects can be acquired by the said structure. That is, by making the fastening member drop-off prevention structure portion a non-rotating shape portion, the upper fastening member is prevented from falling off due to a moment acting on the upper fastening member around the lower fastening member due to a knee input load. be able to.

  According to invention of Claim 3, the following effects can be acquired by the said structure. That is, the locking portion for locking as the locking shape portion is locked to the knee protector mounting portion at a position lower than the fastening member on the lower side of the knee protector main body portion, so that the knee input load is applied. Since the moment (at least a part) of the lower fastening member generated in the protector main body can be received by the locking part for rotation, the moment acting on the upper fastening member is increased accordingly. Thus, it is possible to reliably prevent the upper fastening member from falling off due to the moment.

  An object of the present invention is to be able to prevent a fastening member provided between a knee protector mounting portion and a knee protector main body portion from dropping off due to a knee input load.

  Hereinafter, embodiments embodying the present invention will be described together with illustrated examples.

  The following examples have a close relationship with the above-described background art and problems to be solved by the invention. Therefore, when necessary, the descriptions are diverted to each other or necessary corrections are made. And can be diverted.

  1 and 2 show an embodiment of the present invention.

  <Configuration> First, the configuration will be described.

  A vehicle such as an automobile is provided with a resin instrument panel (a vehicle interior front panel) at the front of the vehicle interior. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a metal vehicle body strength member 22 that extends in the vehicle width direction 21 and connects between left and right vehicle body panels (not shown) is provided inside the instrument panel.

  Then, a knee protector 25 capable of supporting and absorbing a knee input load (see FIG. 3; the same applies hereinafter) by an occupant's knee in an emergency is provided at the lower portion of the vehicle body strength member 22.

  The knee protector 25 is provided on a driver seat side portion, a passenger seat side portion, and the like of the vehicle body strength member 22.

The knee protector 25 can be fastened and fixed to the vehicle body strength member 22.
That is, first, the knee protector 25 is divided (up and down) into a knee protector mounting portion 26 (mounting bracket portion) and a knee protector main body portion 27. Then, the knee protector mounting portion 26 (the upper end portion thereof) that is the upper portion is welded and fixed to the vehicle body strength member 22 (welded portion 28), and the knee protector that is the lower portion of the knee protector mounting portion 26 is fixed. The protector main body 27 (the upper end thereof) is fastened and fixed by a plurality of fastening members 31 and 32. In this case, the two fastening members 31 and 32 are attached with an interval 33 in the vertical direction. Bolts or the like are used for the fastening members 31 and 32.

  In this case, the knee protector main body 27 can support and absorb the upper knee protection bracket 35 that can mainly support and absorb the knee input load of the average occupant and the knee input load of the small occupant. The lower knee protection bracket 37 is provided as shown in the figure.

  A pair of such knee protectors 25 are provided on the left and right sides, and a knee receiving member 39 for receiving the occupant's knee is provided between the pair of knee protectors 25. The knee support member 39 is fastened and fixed to the knee protector 25 using bolts. The knee support member 39 is built inside the instrument panel in a state where the knee support member 39 is not attached to the instrument panel.

  Further, this embodiment has the following configuration.

  (A) A fastening member drop prevention structure 41 that can prevent the fastening members 31 and 32 from falling off due to a knee input load is provided.

  (B) In the above, it is possible to prevent the upper fastening member 32 from falling off due to the moment acting on the upper fastening member 32 around the lower fastening member 31 due to the knee input load. The detent shape portion 42 is used.

  (C) In the above, the locking shape portion 42 is formed below the fastening member 31 on the lower side of the knee protector main body 27 and can be locked to the knee protector mounting portion 26. 43.

  (D) The detailed configuration described above is as follows.

  The knee protector mounting portion 26 is a metal bracket that has a U-shape that opens rearward in the vehicle front-rear direction 44 and extends in the vertical direction 45.

  On the other hand, the knee protector body 27 has an attachment margin 46 for the knee protector attachment 26 at the upper end of the lower knee protect bracket 37. The mounting allowance 46 has a U-shape that is slightly smaller than the knee protector mounting portion 26 and is open toward the rear, extends in the vertical direction 45, and fits into the knee protector mounting portion 26 from the rear. (Three-sided contact arrangement) Possible.

  The two fastening members 31 and 32 are screwed between the U-shaped web portions of the knee protector attachment portion 26 and the attachment margin portion 46.

  The lower end portion of the knee protector mounting portion 26 is configured to extend substantially the same as or slightly lower than the position of the lower fastening member 31.

  The locking shape part 42 (the locking part 43 for locking) of the fastening member drop-off prevention structure part 41 is located at least one of the U-shaped flange portions of the mounting margin 46 from the position of the lower fastening member 31. Is also integrally formed on the lower side. In this case, the locking portion 43 for rotation is extended from the flange portion and is an outward folded piece or the like folded back toward the outside of the flange portion.

  On the other hand, a receiving extension portion 47 that receives the locking portion 43 for rotation can be provided on the lower end portion (corresponding flange portion) of the knee protector mounting portion 26 as necessary.

  And the space | interval 33 between the upper and lower fastening members 31 and 32 is made to become as short as possible (shortening space | interval part).

  Moreover, the locking part 48 for rotation similar to the locking part 43 for rotation can be provided also in parts other than the above. In this case, it is provided at a position between the upper and lower fastening members 31 and 32. The locking portion 48 for rotation is provided in the same manner for the flange portion opposite to the locking portion 43 for rotation.

  <Operation> Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

  A knee protector 25 is attached to the vehicle body strength member 22. In this case, only the knee protector mounting portion 26 is welded and fixed in advance so as to be integrated with the vehicle body strength member 22. Then, when assembling the inside of the instrument panel in a subsequent process, the knee protector main body 27 is fastened and fixed to the above-described knee protector mounting portion 26 by the plurality of fastening members 31 and 32. As described above, the knee protector 25 is structurally divided into the knee protector mounting portion 26 and the knee protector main body portion 27 (up and down) so that the knee protector 25 can be attached to the vehicle body strength member 22 in different processes. Problems can be solved.

  The knee protector main body 27 can support and absorb the knee input load mainly by the average body occupant by the upper knee protection bracket 35 in an emergency. Further, the lower knee protect bracket 37 can support and absorb a knee input load mainly by a small passenger.

  Here, when the knee protector 25 is structurally divided into the knee protector mounting portion 26 and the knee protector main body portion 27, a moment acts on the upper fastening member 32 around the lower fastening member 31 due to the knee input load. In addition, the upper fastening member 32 may fall off (resulting in a bolt dropout).

  Therefore, according to this embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.

  (A) In the knee protector structure for a vehicle provided with a knee protector 25 capable of supporting and absorbing a knee input load by an occupant's knee in an emergency, the knee protector 25 is attached to the lower portion of the vehicle body strength member 22. The knee protector main body 27 is divided into a part 26 and a knee protector main body 27, and the knee protector mounting part 26 is welded and fixed to the vehicle body strength member 22. By providing the fastening member drop-off prevention structure portion 41 that can be fastened and fixed at 31 and 32 and that can prevent the fastening members 31 and 32 from falling off due to the knee input load, the following operation is provided. An effect can be obtained.

  That is, even when the knee protector main body 27 is fastened and fixed to the knee protector mounting portion 26 by the plurality of fastening members 31 and 32 by providing the fastening member drop-off preventing structure portion 41, The fastening members 31 and 32 can be prevented from falling off due to the input load.

  As a result, the distance 33 (moment arm) between the two fastening members 31 and 32 can be shortened. Therefore, since the knee protector mounting portion 26 can be shortened, the knee protector mounting portion 26 can prevent the flexibility in layout inside the instrument panel from being lost.

  (B) In the above, the plurality of fastening members 31 and 32 are attached with an interval 33 in the vertical direction, and the fastening member drop-off prevention structure portion 41 is located on the upper side around the lower fastening member 31 due to the knee input load. Due to the rotation stop portion 42 that can prevent the upper fastening member 32 from falling off due to the moment acting on the fastening member 32, the following operational effects can be obtained.

  That is, by making the fastening member drop-off prevention structure portion 41 into the rotation-stop shape portion 42, the upper fastening member 32 due to the moment acting on the upper fastening member 32 around the lower fastening member 31 due to the knee input load. Can be prevented from falling off.

  (C) In the above, the locking shape portion 42 is formed below the fastening member 31 on the lower side of the knee protector main body 27, and can be locked to the knee protector mounting portion 26. By being 43, the following effects can be obtained.

  That is, by locking the locking portion 43 for locking as the locking shape portion 42 to the knee protector mounting portion 26 at a position below the fastening member 31 on the lower side of the knee protector main body portion 27, The moment (at least a part thereof) centered on the lower fastening member 31 generated in the knee protector main body 27 by the knee input load can be received by the locking portion 43 for rotation, and accordingly, the upper portion Thus, the moment acting on the fastening member 32 can be reduced, so that it is possible to reliably prevent the upper fastening member 32 from dropping off due to the moment.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the drawings, the embodiments are only examples of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the configurations of the embodiments. Needless to say, design changes and the like within a range not departing from the gist of the invention are included in the present invention. Further, for example, when each embodiment includes a plurality of configurations, it is a matter of course that possible combinations of these configurations are included even if not specifically described. Further, when a plurality of embodiments and modifications are shown, it is needless to say that possible combinations of configurations extending over these are included even if not specifically described. Further, the configuration depicted in the drawings is of course included even if not particularly described. Further, when there is a term of “etc.”, it is used in the sense that the equivalent is included. In addition, when there are terms such as “almost”, “about”, “degree”, etc., they are used in the sense that they include those in the range and accuracy recognized by common sense.

It is a perspective view of the knee protector structure for vehicles concerning the example of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of FIG. 1. It is a side view of the knee protector structure for vehicles concerning a prior art example.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 22 Vehicle body strength member 25 Knee protector 26 Knee protector attaching part 27 Knee protector main-body part 31 Fastening member 32 Fastening member 33 Space | interval 41 Fastening member drop-off prevention structure part 42 Stop shape part 43 Locking part for rotation prevention

Claims (3)

In the knee protector structure for a vehicle provided with a knee protector capable of supporting and absorbing a knee input load by an occupant's knee in an emergency, on the lower part of the vehicle body strength member,
The knee protector is structurally divided into a knee protector mounting portion and a knee protector body portion,
The knee protector mounting portion is fixed by welding to the vehicle body strength member, and the knee protector main body is fastened and fixed to the knee protector mounting portion by a plurality of fastening members.
A knee protector structure for a vehicle, comprising a fastening member drop-off preventing structure portion capable of preventing the fastening member from falling off due to the knee input load. The plurality of fastening members are attached with an interval in the vertical direction,
The fastening member drop-off preventing structure is a rotation-shaped portion capable of preventing the upper fastening member from falling off due to a moment acting on the upper fastening member around the lower fastening member due to the knee input load. The vehicle knee protector structure according to claim 1.   The rotation stop portion is formed below the fastening member on the lower side of the knee protector main body portion, and is a locking portion that can be locked to the knee protector mounting portion. The knee protector structure for vehicles according to 2.

Images