JP2011156885A - Automobile hood - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a lightweight automobile hood excellent in energy absorbing performance upon contact (collision) with a pedestrian. <P>SOLUTION: The automobile hood 20 includes a plate-like hood body 21 structured to open and close an automobile engine compartment and to cover a plurality of automobile component members arranged in the engine compartment in closing. The substantially whole part of the hood body 21 is formed from a synthetic resin honeycomb structure 22. The honeycomb structure 22 includes a honeycomb part 23 composed of a plurality of cylindrical cells 25A, 25B partitioned from each other by a partition wall 24 and a pair of sealing board portions 26, 27 for sealing the cells 25A, 25B by sandwiching the honeycomb part 23 between the nearest and farthest sides to/from the automobile component member. The cells 25A, 25B in the honeycomb structure 22 at a position with the narrow interval between the honeycomb structure 22 and the automobile component member are formed smaller than that at a position with a wide interval. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an automobile hood that opens and closes a storage room such as an engine room of an automobile.

  When a pedestrian contacts the front of the automobile, the pedestrian may come into contact (collision) with a bumper or an automobile hood (bonnet). In this case, in particular, there is a high possibility that the head of the pedestrian contacts (collises) with the hood (bonnet) for the automobile. Therefore, a general metal automobile hood in which a metal inner panel is arranged on the inner side (engine room side) of the metal outer panel absorbs contact (collision) energy when force is applied from the outside. A structure is provided.

  On the other hand, in recent years, from the viewpoint of improving the fuel efficiency of automobiles, the weight of automobile hoods has been demanded in the same way as other parts. Therefore, in an automobile hood including a plate-shaped hood main body that covers a plurality of automobile components disposed in an automobile compartment (for example, an engine room), at least a part of the hood main body is formed of a resin honeycomb structure. It is possible to do. The honeycomb structure includes a honeycomb portion composed of a large number of cells that are partitioned from each other by partition walls, and sandwiches the honeycomb portion from a side closer to the automobile component (lower side) and a far side (upper side) to each cell. A pair of sealing plate portions to be sealed. In this case, the sealing plate portion on the side far from the automobile component corresponds to the above-described outer panel. Further, the sealing plate portion and the honeycomb portion on the side close to the automobile constituent member correspond to the inner panel described above.

  According to this automobile hood, when external force is applied to the central part of the hood main body or the vicinity thereof by contact (collision) with a pedestrian's head, the hood main body may be bent toward the engine room. The energy at the time of contact is absorbed by the cell buckling (crushing deformation). The impact force applied to the pedestrian by contact (collision) is relieved. In addition, since the honeycomb structure is formed of resin, the hood body is lighter than that formed of metal.

  In addition, as a technique relevant to the said hood for motor vehicles, what was described in patent document 1-patent document 3, for example is mentioned. In patent document 1, the cell which comprises several substantially hexagons is formed in the inner panel. That is, in Patent Document 1, although it is made of metal, at least a part of the hood main body is formed of a honeycomb structure. Moreover, in patent document 2, the metal honeycomb part is interposed between the surface material which consists of a nonwoven fabric, and the back material which consists of a nonwoven fabric. Further, in Patent Document 3, resin-made impact absorbing means is disposed between an automobile hood and chassis components arranged in an engine room.

JP 2005-193863 A JP 2006-315443 A JP 2000-203378 A

  However, in the case of an automobile hood in which at least a part of the hood main body described above is formed of a resin honeycomb structure, the following problems are concerned. This is because the distance between the automobile component in the engine room and the honeycomb structure is not uniform. For example, in an automobile hood in which a hood hinge that supports the hood main body on the vehicle body is provided at the rear end of the hood main body, the distance between the hood main body and the automobile component is smaller than the central portion of the hood main body and the vicinity thereof. It is narrow near the hood hinge. Thus, there is little space in which a hood body can bend in a place where a space with an automobile constituent member is narrow. Therefore, if the cells in the honeycomb structure are set to a size (large) suitable for the central part of the hood body, the weight of the automobile hood can be reduced, but contact with the pedestrian (collision) It is difficult to sufficiently absorb the energy during the process. On the contrary, if the cell is set to a size (small) suitable for the vicinity of the hood hinge of the hood body, it can sufficiently absorb the energy in contact (collision) with a pedestrian. Although it can, it increases weight.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle hood that is light in weight and excellent in energy absorption performance upon contact (collision) with a pedestrian. There is.

  In order to achieve the above object, the invention described in claim 1 is a plate-shaped device configured to open and close a vehicle compartment and to cover a plurality of vehicle components disposed in the compartment when closed. An automobile hood including a hood main body, wherein at least a part of the hood main body is formed of a resin honeycomb structure, and the honeycomb structure includes a plurality of cells that are partitioned by partition walls to form a cylindrical shape. A honeycomb part, and a pair of sealing plate parts that sandwich the honeycomb part from a side closer to and far from the automobile component and seal each cell, and the cells in the honeycomb structure have the honeycomb structure. The gist of the invention is that the portion where the distance between the vehicle component and the automobile component is narrow is smaller than the portion where the distance is wide.

In addition, although the cell which comprises a honeycomb structure generally points out what forms a hexagonal cylinder shape, it may form a polygonal cylinder shape other than a hexagon here.
Further, for example, when the distance between a pair of opposing partition walls in each cell is the cell pitch, the size of each cell can be changed by making this pitch variable. For example, the cell can be made smaller by decreasing the pitch, and the cell can be enlarged by increasing the pitch.

  According to said structure, when a pedestrian contacts a motor vehicle, the head etc. of the pedestrian may contact (collision) with the hood for motor vehicles. Due to this contact (collision), a force is applied to the hood body from the outside. The cell to which the force from the outside is applied buckles (collapses and deforms), so that energy at the time of contact is absorbed. The impact force applied to the pedestrian by contact (collision) is relieved.

  Here, if the contact (collision) location of the hood main body with the pedestrian is a location that is far away from the automobile component disposed in the automobile compartment, the cell is applied when force is applied from the outside as described above. In addition to buckling (collapse deformation), the energy at the time of contact is also absorbed by the hood body being bent toward the storage chamber. The amount of energy absorption due to the buckling of the cell can be reduced by the amount of energy absorption due to the bending of the hood body. Therefore, although the cell is formed larger in the portion having a large interval with the automobile component member than in the portion having a small interval, both the flexure of the hood body and the buckling of the cell, The energy at the time of contact is absorbed without causing interference.

  Moreover, if the contact (collision) location with the pedestrian of a hood main body is a location close | similar to a motor vehicle structural member, when force is applied from the outside as mentioned above, the space which a hood main body can bend is narrow. The energy that can be absorbed is reduced when the hood body is bent toward the storage chamber. Accordingly, the energy to be absorbed increases due to the buckling of the cell. In this regard, in the invention according to claim 1, in which the cells are formed smaller in the narrow space between the vehicle component members than in the wide space portion, many small cells are buckled (collapsed). The energy is absorbed without causing interference with the automobile component.

  Furthermore, in the invention according to claim 1, since at least a part of the hood main body is formed of a resin honeycomb structure, the automobile hood is formed of a metal honeycomb structure. Lightweight compared to things.

  In addition, in the invention according to the first aspect, as described above, the size of the cell differs depending on the distance between the automobile component and the honeycomb structure. Therefore, the size of the cells in the honeycomb structure is uniform, and the size (small) necessary to absorb the energy at the time of contact (collision) with a pedestrian only by buckling (collapse deformation). It is lighter than if it is set.

  In the hood for an automobile in which the hood main body is supported on the body of the automobile by a hood hinge provided at an end in the surface direction of the hood main body, the hood main A vicinity part can be made into the said location with a narrow space | interval, and the center part of the hood main body and its vicinity can be made into the said location with a wide space | interval.

  In this case, cells in the honeycomb structure are formed smaller in the vicinity of the hood hinge (where the interval is narrow) than in the central portion of the hood main body and the vicinity thereof (where the interval is wide).

  In the hood for an automobile, the hood hinge is an end portion in the front-rear direction of the hood main body and provided at both end portions in the vehicle width direction. A portion near the hood hinge and a portion sandwiched between both hood hinges can be a portion having a narrow interval from the automobile component.

  Therefore, for example, in many automobiles in which both hood hinges are provided at the rear end of the hood main body, the vicinity of the rear edge portion of the hood main body extends over substantially the entire width in the vehicle width direction and the distance from the automobile constituent member is narrow. It becomes a place.

  In the case of the invention according to claim 3, the cells in the honeycomb structure have a central portion of the hood main body and the vicinity thereof in a portion near each hood hinge (a portion having a small interval) and a portion sandwiched between both hood hinges. It will be formed smaller than the portion (location with a wide interval).

  In addition, the end of the hood body in the front-rear direction, where the cell is formed small even at the part sandwiched by both hood hinges, the rigidity of the end (surface rigidity) compared to when the cell is formed large Increases and becomes stronger against torsion.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the hood for motor vehicles which is lightweight and was excellent in the energy absorption performance in the case of a contact (collision) with a pedestrian can be provided.

The top view of the food | hood for motor vehicles in one Embodiment which actualized this invention. The top view which shows the honeycomb part of the hood for motor vehicles of FIG. Sectional drawing which shows the cross-sectional structure along the AA of FIG. Sectional drawing which shows the cross-sectional structure along the BB line of FIG. Sectional drawing which shows the cross-sectional structure along CC line | wire of FIG. Sectional drawing which shows the cross-sectional structure along the DD line | wire of FIG.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
As shown in at least one of FIGS. 5 and 6, the automobile to which the automobile hood 20 of the present embodiment is applied is a so-called small automobile having an engine 12 with a small displacement as a power source. The engine 12 is disposed in an engine room 11 provided at the front portion of the vehicle body 17. In the present embodiment, the engine room 11 corresponds to a “container” in the claims. The dimension of the engine room 11 in the front-rear direction is set smaller than the dimension in the vehicle width direction.

  As shown in at least one of FIGS. 1 to 3, the automobile hood 20 includes a hood main body 21 and a pair of hood hinges 31. The hood main body 21 has a substantially inclined plate shape that gradually decreases toward the front side, and occupies most of the automobile hood 20. The hood body 21 has a shape that can close the upper opening 11U of the engine room 11, that is, a shape that is shorter in the front-rear direction than in the vehicle width direction.

  The hood body 21 opens and closes the engine room 11 and covers a plurality of automobile components arranged in the engine room 11 when closed. Applicable automobile components include, for example, the engine 12 (FIG. 5), the air cleaner 13 (FIG. 5), the side member 14 (FIG. 3), the sheet metal of the cowl 15 (FIG. 3), and the cowl louver 16 (FIG. 3). ) And the like.

  Here, the side member 14 is a member that constitutes both sides of the vehicle body 17 in the vehicle width direction. The cowl 15 is a vehicle body front panel below the windshield and at the rear end of the engine hood. The cowl louver 16 is a member disposed so as to extend in the vehicle width direction between the automobile hood 20 and the lower portion of the windshield.

  The substantially entire hood main body 21 is formed by a honeycomb structure 22 made of synthetic resin. The honeycomb structure 22 includes a honeycomb portion 23 and a pair of sealing plate portions 26 and 27. The honeycomb portion 23 is composed of a large number of cells having a hexagonal cylindrical shape partitioned by partition walls 24. Each cell extends in the thickness direction of the hood body 21 (substantially up and down here). This direction is a direction connecting the inside of the automobile (inside the engine room 11) and the outside (outside of the engine room 11). The honeycomb portion 23 is formed to have a substantially constant height (for example, 20 millimeters) regardless of the portion. Many cells are joined next to each other in parallel. Due to such a joining mode, the honeycomb portion 23 has a honeycomb shape as a whole.

  The sealing plate portions 26 and 27 seal the cells by sandwiching the honeycomb portion 23 from the far side (upper side) and the near side (lower side) of the automobile component member. The honeycomb portion 23 and the lower sealing plate portion 27 correspond to an inner panel in a conventional automobile hood formed entirely of metal, and use polypropylene (CFPP) mixed with a carbon filler, and are injected. It is integrally formed by forming. The lower sealing plate portion 27 is formed smaller than the upper sealing plate portion 26 when viewed from above or below. The sealing plate portion 27 has a thickness of about 2.5 mm. Further, the partition wall 24 in each cell of the honeycomb portion 23 is formed so as to be gradually thinner as it goes away from the lower sealing plate portion 27, that is, toward the upper side. This is for smoothly releasing the cell from the mold after resin molding. In the present embodiment, the thickness of the partition wall 24 is set to about 1.5 mm in the vicinity of the lower sealing plate portion 27 and is set to about 1.3 mm in the vicinity of the upper sealing plate portion 26.

  The upper sealing plate portion 26 corresponds to an outer panel in a conventional automobile hood formed entirely of metal, and by performing injection molding using polypropylene (PPF) mixed with filler such as talc. The honeycomb portion 23 and the lower sealing plate portion 27 are formed separately. After the resin molding, the upper sealing plate portion 26 is joined to the honeycomb portion 23 by a joining means such as welding or adhesion. The upper sealing plate portion 26 has a thickness of about 1.8 mm. Further, the upper surface 26 </ b> A that is the outer surface of the sealing plate portion 26 constitutes the design surface of the hood body 21.

  When a load due to an impact or the like is applied to the hood main body 21 having the above configuration from the outside of the vehicle, the sealing plate portions 26 and 27 themselves are not so strong against bending stress, but each cell of the honeycomb portion 23 expands and contracts. Hateful. That is, the honeycomb structure 22 exhibits high strength by changing the force applied to the sealing plate portions 26 and 27 to bend them into the force for expanding and contracting the honeycomb portion 23. As a result, the honeycomb structure 22 has high rigidity (surface rigidity) and is not easily deformed.

  Both hood hinges 31 are for supporting the hood body 21 on the vehicle body 17 so that the hood body 21 can open and close the upper opening 11U of the engine room 11. Here, the front end portions of both hood hinges 31 are fixed to the end portions in the surface direction of the hood main body 21, more specifically, the rear end portions in the front-rear direction and the both end portions in the vehicle width direction. . As shown in at least one of FIGS. 3 and 4, each hood hinge 31 is fixed to the hood main body 21 with a nut 32 such as a clip nut locked at a plurality of locations on the lower sealing plate portion 27, and below. This is performed by a bolt 33 inserted into the nut 32 through the hood hinge 31 and the lower sealing plate 27 from the engine room 11 side. The automobile hood 20 opens and closes the upper opening 11U of the engine room 11 by tilting in the vertical direction with the two hood hinges 31 as fulcrums. This opening / closing operation is performed on the front side of the automobile hood 20.

  As shown in at least one of FIGS. 1, 5, and 6, the hood main body 21, more specifically, the lower surface of the lower sealing plate portion 27, the front end portion, and the vehicle width direction A hood lock striker 34 is fixed to the substantially central portion. The hood lock striker 34 is locked to a hood lock (not shown) provided in the vehicle body 17 to hold (lock) the hood main body 21 in a state where the upper opening 11U of the engine room 11 is closed. belongs to. The hood lock striker 34 is fixed to the hood main body 21 with a nut 35 such as a clip nut locked at a plurality of locations on the lower sealing plate portion 27 and the hood lock striker 34 and the lower side from the lower side (engine room 11 side). The bolt 36 is inserted into the side sealing plate 27 and screwed into the nut 35.

  In a state in which the upper opening 11U of the engine room 11 is closed by the automobile hood 20, the distance between the various automobile constituent members arranged in the engine room 11 and the honeycomb structure 22 is the same as that of the honeycomb structure 22. It depends on the part in the surface direction. The engine 12 and the air cleaner 13 are arranged as automobile constituent members below the central portion of the hood main body 21 and the vicinity thereof (FIGS. 5 and 6). The distance between these automobile constituent members and the hood main body 21 is as follows. Is relatively large (for example, 100 mm or more). On the other hand, in the hood main body 21, the side members 14 constituting both sides in the vehicle width direction of the vehicle body 17 are arranged as automobile components near the hood hinge 31, that is, below the rear end and both ends in the vehicle width direction. However, the distance between the automobile component and the hood main body 21 is narrower than the central portion and the vicinity thereof (for example, 50 mm or less). Further, a sheet metal of the cowl 15 and a cowl louver 16 are arranged as automobile components at a position sandwiched between the hood hinges 31 in the hood body 21, that is, below the vicinity of the rear edge (FIG. 3). The space | interval of a motor vehicle structural member and the food | hood main body 21 is narrower than the said center part and its vicinity part (for example, 50 mm or less).

  Therefore, the amount that the hood main body 21 can be bent without contacting the automobile constituent member below the hood main body 21 is the central portion or the vicinity thereof in the vicinity of the hood hinge 31 or the portion sandwiched between the hood hinges 31. Less than part. The energy of contact (impact) when a pedestrian contacts (collises) the automobile hood 20 is absorbed by the cells of the honeycomb structure 22 being buckled (collapsed) and the hood body 21 being bent. However, in the vicinity of the hood hinge 31 and the portion sandwiched between the hood hinges 31, energy absorption due to the deflection of the hood main body 21 cannot be expected so much. If the honeycomb portion 23 is composed of many small cells 25A, the amount of energy absorption due to buckling (collapse deformation) increases, but the honeycomb structure 22 (hood main body 21) increases in weight.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the cells in the honeycomb structure 22 are formed in a size corresponding to the distance between the honeycomb structure 22 and the automobile component member below the honeycomb structure 22. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the honeycomb portion 23 is formed with a partition wall 28 that partitions the honeycomb portion 23 into two regions Z1 and Z2. One region Z <b> 1 includes a vicinity of both hood hinges 31 and a portion sandwiched between both hood hinges 31. In this region Z1, the distance between the honeycomb structure 22 and the automobile component members (the side member 14, the cowl 15, the cowl louver 16, etc.) below the honeycomb structure 22 is narrow. On the other hand, the other region Z2 is a region excluding the region Z1 in the honeycomb portion 23, and the region Z2 includes the central portion of the honeycomb portion 23 and its peripheral (near) portion. In this region Z2, the distance between the honeycomb structure 22 and the automobile component members (engine 12, air cleaner 13, etc.) below the honeycomb structure 22 is wide.

  In the region Z1, the cells in the honeycomb structure 22 are formed smaller than the cells in the honeycomb structure 22 in the region Z2. In order to distinguish cells having different sizes, a small cell in the region Z1 is referred to as “cell 25A”, and a large cell in the region Z2 is referred to as “cell 25B”.

  Here, as an index indicating the size of each cell 25A, there is a distance between the partition walls 24 facing each other in the cell 25A. This distance is referred to as the pitch P1 of the cells 25A. Further, as an index indicating the size of each cell 25B, there is a distance between the partition walls 24 facing each other in the cell 25B. This distance is referred to as the pitch P2 of the cells 25B. As both pitches P1, P2 increase, the volume of each cell 25A, 25B increases, and the number of cells 25A, 25B in the honeycomb structure 22 decreases. The pitch P1 of the cells 25A in the region Z1 is set smaller than the pitch P2 of the cells 25B in the region Z2 (P1 <P2). Incidentally, in the present embodiment, the pitch P1 is set to about 25 mm, while the pitch P2 is set to about 110 mm.

  As described above, the automobile hood 20 of the present embodiment is configured. In a car equipped with this automobile hood 20, when a pedestrian comes into contact, the pedestrian's head or the like may contact (collision) the automobile hood 20. Due to this contact (collision), a force is applied to the hood main body 21 from the outside. The cells 25A and 25B of the hood main body 21 to which an external force is applied buckle (collapse deformation), so that energy at the time of contact (collision) is absorbed. The impact force applied to the pedestrian by contact (collision) is relieved.

  Here, if the contact (collision) portion of the hood main body 21 with the pedestrian is the region Z2, when the force is applied from the outside as described above, the cell 25A is buckled (collapsed) and the hood main body. The energy at the time of contact (collision) is also absorbed by the deflection of 21 toward the engine room 11. The amount of energy absorbed by the buckling of the cell 25A can be reduced by the amount of energy absorbed by the bending of the hood body 21. Accordingly, the cell 25B is formed larger than the cell 25A in the vicinity of the hood hinge 31 and in the vicinity of the rear edge of the hood main body 21 in the central portion where the gap between the hood body 21 and the automobile component is wide or in the vicinity thereof. ing. However, the energy at the time of contact (collision) is absorbed without incurring interference with the automobile component member by both the bending of the hood body 21 and the buckling (collapse deformation) of the cell 25B.

  Moreover, when the contact (collision) location with the pedestrian of the hood main body 21 is the area | region Z1, when force is applied from the outside as mentioned above, the space which the hood main body 21 can bend is small. This is because the distance between the honeycomb structure 22 and the automobile constituent member is narrow. The energy that can be absorbed by the hood body 21 being bent is reduced. Accordingly, the energy to be absorbed increases as the cell 25A buckles (collapses). In this regard, in the present embodiment, the cell 25A is formed smaller in the vicinity of the hood hinge 31 and the vicinity of the rear edge, which are narrowly spaced from the vehicle component, than in the central part and the vicinity thereof where the distance is wide. Therefore, when many small cells 25A are buckled (collapsed), energy at the time of contact (collision) is absorbed without causing interference with the automobile component.

  Here, from the viewpoint of pedestrian protection during contact (collision), it is effective to reduce the injury value for pedestrians. As an index of the injury value, there is a head injury criterion HIC (Head Impact Criteria). This head injury standard HIC is one item of the crash safety evaluation standard. Based on data obtained from animal experiments, etc., the impact at the time of collision on the head of the occupant is a numerical value based on deceleration and duration. It has become. If the head injury criteria HIC does not exceed 1000, head impact injury is not considered life-threatening.

  When the buckled cells 25A and 25B come into contact (with a bottom) with a highly rigid automobile component, the head injury reference HIC increases. However, as described above, in the vicinity of the hood hinge 31 and the vicinity of the rear edge, the cell 25A absorbs energy without interfering with the automobile components, so that the head injury reference HIC is lowered. Incidentally, the head injury standard HIC is originally low in the central portion of the hood main body 21 and in the vicinity thereof. This is because the distance between the hood body 21 and the automobile component is relatively large, and the hood body 21 can absorb contact (collision) energy without interfering with the automobile component, that is, without bottoming out. .

Furthermore, the automobile hood 20 of the present embodiment is lightweight for the following reasons.
(I) The substantially entire hood body 21 is formed of the honeycomb structure 22.
(Ii) The honeycomb structure 22 includes a honeycomb portion 23 composed of a large number of cells 25A and 25B having a hexagonal cylindrical shape, and a pair of sealing the cells 25A and 25B by sandwiching the honeycomb portion 23 from above and below. And the sealing plate portions 26 and 27.

  By making each cell 25A, 25B into a hexagonal cylinder shape, the volume of the internal space becomes the maximum volume that can be taken, and the material of the partition wall 24 can be reduced. This leads to the honeycomb structure 22 becoming lighter.

(Iii) The upper sealing plate portion 26, the honeycomb portion 23, and the lower sealing plate portion 27, which are constituent members of the honeycomb structure 22, are all formed of a synthetic resin.
(Iv) The size of the cells 25 </ b> A and 25 </ b> B in the honeycomb structure 22 is different depending on the distance between the automobile component and the honeycomb structure 22.

  Therefore, the automobile hood 20 has a uniform cell size in the honeycomb structure 22 and absorbs energy in contact (collision) with a pedestrian only by buckling (collapse deformation). It is lighter than when it is set to the required size (small).

  From the above, the automobile hood 20 of the present embodiment is lighter than a general metal automobile hood in which a metal inner panel is arranged on the vehicle inner side (engine room side) of the metal outer panel. The former (this embodiment) automobile hood 20 is expected to be 35 to 40% lighter than the latter metal automobile hood. In addition, the automobile hood 20 of the present embodiment is lighter in weight than the case where the substantially entire hood main body 21 is formed of a metal honeycomb structure.

According to the embodiment described in detail above, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) The engine room 11 of the automobile is opened and closed, and at the time of closing, the substantially entire plate-shaped hood main body 21 covering a plurality of automobile constituent members arranged in the engine room 11 is made of a synthetic resin honeycomb structure. 22 is formed. And the cell 25A in the location where the space | interval of the honeycomb structure 22 and a vehicle structural member is narrow is formed smaller than the cell 25B in the location where the space | interval is wide.

  Therefore, it is possible to improve the energy absorption performance at the time of contact (collision) with a pedestrian while reducing the weight of the automobile hood 20. Moreover, the head injury reference | standard HIC of the location (area | region Z1) where the space | interval with a motor vehicle structural member in the hood main body 21 is narrow can be reduced.

  (2) The central portion of the hood main body 21 and the vicinity thereof are places where the distance from the automobile constituent members (engine 12, air cleaner 13, etc.) is wide, and the cell 25B of this portion is formed large. Therefore, even if a pedestrian's head etc. contact (collision) the center part of the hood main body 21, or its vicinity part (collision), both the hood main body 21 bends and the cell 25B buckles, and the said vehicle structure. The energy at the time of contact (collision) can be absorbed sufficiently without causing interference (bottoming) with the member.

  (3) The vicinity of the hood hinge 31 in the hood main body 21 is a portion having a narrow distance from the automobile component (side member 14), and the cell 25A in this portion is formed small. Therefore, even if a pedestrian's head or the like comes into contact (collision) with the hood body 21 in the vicinity of the hood hinge 31, the small cell 25 </ b> A buckles and causes interference with the above-described automobile component (bottomed). The energy at the time of contact (collision) can be absorbed sufficiently.

  (4) The end of the hood main body 21 in the front-rear direction and a portion sandwiched between both hood hinges 31 (a portion near the rear edge) is narrowly spaced from the vehicle constituent members (the cowl 15 and the cowl louver 16). The cell 25A in this portion is formed small. Therefore, even if a pedestrian's head or the like comes into contact (collision) with a portion of the hood main body 21 sandwiched between the hood hinges 31, it causes interference with the above-described automobile component due to the buckling of many small cells 25 </ b> A ( The energy at the time of contact (collision) can be sufficiently absorbed without bottoming.

Further, compared to the case where the cell 25A is formed larger, the rigidity (surface rigidity) of the end portion can be increased, and the cell 25A can be strengthened against torsion (to be difficult to be deformed even if twisted).
(5) Since the honeycomb structure 22 is formed by resin molding, the degree of freedom in designing the honeycomb structure 22 is high. Therefore, the cells 25A and 25B can be set in various parts. Further, it is possible to easily cope with the formation of the honeycomb portion 23 including the two types of cells 25A and 25B having different sizes (pitch).

Note that the present invention can be embodied in another embodiment described below.
<Matters related to the entire hood 21>
The hood main body 21 only needs to be formed at least partly by the honeycomb structure 22. Therefore, unlike the embodiment in which the hood main body 21 is substantially entirely formed by the honeycomb structure 22, only a part of the hood main body 21 may be formed by the honeycomb structure 22. For example, only the central portion of the hood main body 21 and the vicinity thereof, the vicinity of the hood hinge 31, and the vicinity of the rear edge between the hood hinges 31 may be formed by the honeycomb structure 22.

  The present invention can also be applied to the automobile hood 20 in which the hood body 21 is longer in the front-rear direction than in the embodiment. In this case, the both sides of the hood main body 21 in the vehicle width direction may also be formed with small cells, with the space between the hood main body 21 and the automobile constituent member below the hood main body 21 being narrow.

The plate-shaped hood main body 21 may extend in a direction different from the substantially horizontal direction, for example, in a substantially vertical direction. In this case, the hood body 21 opens and closes in a substantially horizontal direction.
<About the material of the honeycomb structure 22>
-The material of the honeycomb structure 22 is easy to set the impact energy absorption characteristics by the buckling (collapse deformation) of the cells 25A and 25B from the heat-resistant resin material that can withstand the temperature in the engine room 11. It is desirable to select and use as appropriate in consideration of handling properties and cost.

  From such a viewpoint, the honeycomb structure 22 may be formed of, for example, a fiber reinforced resin. As the fiber reinforced resin, for example, a composite material containing a synthetic resin such as PP, PA, or PET as a base material, and a fiber such as carbon fiber or glass fiber having a relatively short fiber length as a reinforcing material may be used. Good.

<About the structure of the honeycomb structure 22>
Instead of the sealing plate portion 27 on the vehicle inner side, the sealing plate portion 26 on the vehicle outer side may be formed integrally with the honeycomb portion 23. Alternatively, the sealing plate portions 26 and 27 may be formed separately from the honeycomb portion 23, and the sealing plate portions 26 and 27 may be joined to the honeycomb portion 23 after the formation.

  A sound absorbing material for reducing sound generated by the engine 12 may be laminated on the sealing plate portion 27 on the engine room 11 side of the honeycomb structure 22. As the sound absorbing material, for example, a fiber material such as glass wool, a foamed resin such as urethane foam, or the like can be used.

<Matters related to cells 25A and 25B>
As an index indicating the size of the cells 25A and 25B, the length of one side of the partition wall 24 at the open ends of the cells 25A and 25B may be used instead of the pitch described above. As this length increases, the cells 25A and 25B increase.

-You may change each shape of cell 25A, 25B into polygonal cylinder shape other than a hexagonal cylinder shape.
-Each cell 25A, 25B may have a non-uniform side at each open end. For example, this is a flat hexagonal cylinder (when only one set of opposite sides is longer than the other set of opposite sides).

  -Honeycomb part 23 in honeycomb structure 22 may be constituted by three or more kinds of cells having different sizes. In this case, the cells are formed smaller at the locations where the distance between the honeycomb structure 22 and the automobile component is narrower than at the locations where the distance is wide. In this way, it is possible to achieve lighter weight and improved energy absorption performance at a higher level.

<Matters related to the hood hinge 31>
The hood hinge 31 may be fixed to the hood main body 21 by means different from the bolt 33 and the nut 32 described above.

The food lock striker 34 can be modified in the same manner as described above.
The hood hinge 31 may be a member on the vehicle body 17 side instead of a member on the vehicle hood 20 side, and the vehicle hood 20 may be configured only by the hood main body 21.

  The present invention can also be applied to an automobile hood 20 that is supported by the vehicle body 17 so that the hood main body 21 can be opened and closed at a position different from the rear end portion and both end portions in the vehicle width direction.

  For example, both hood hinges 31 may be provided at the front end of the hood main body 21 and at both ends in the vehicle width direction. In this case, the automobile hood 20 opens and closes the opening of the engine room 11 by tilting in the vertical direction with the two hood hinges 31 as fulcrums. The hood lock striker 34 is provided at the rear end of the hood main body 21. The hood lock striker 34 is engaged with and released from the hood lock on the vehicle body 17 side on the rear side of the engine room 11.

  The present invention is also applicable to an automobile hood 20 that is supported by the vehicle body 17 so that the hood body 21 can be opened and closed at one end in the vehicle width direction, that is, the left end or the right end.

The hood main body 21 may be supported by the vehicle body 17 so as to be openable and closable by one or three or more hood hinges 31.
<Matters related to containment room>
-The engine room 11 demonstrated in the said embodiment is typical as a storage chamber opened and closed by the hood 20 for motor vehicles of this invention. Examples of other accommodation chambers include the following.

In an automobile in which a luggage compartment (trunk room) is provided at the rear part of the vehicle body 17, this cargo compartment can be a target of a storage compartment.
In addition, in the case of an automobile in which the engine is mounted on the rear portion of the vehicle body 17 and the rear wheels are driven (RR method), a cargo room (trunk room) is provided at the front part of the vehicle body 17. It can be a room.

The same applies to the electric vehicle in which a luggage compartment is provided at the front portion of the vehicle body 17. In this case, the cargo room can be a storage room.
In addition, the technical ideas that can be grasped from the respective embodiments will be described together with their effects.

  (A) In the automobile hood according to any one of claims 1 to 3, the interval between the opposing partition walls in the same cell is a pitch, and the interval between the honeycomb structure and the automobile component member is narrow. In the places, the pitch is set to be smaller than the places having the same interval.

  The size of the cell can be defined by the interval (pitch) between the partition walls facing each other as in the invention described in (A) above. In this case, the cell can be formed smaller by making the pitch smaller in the portion where the distance between the honeycomb structure and the automobile constituent member is narrower than in the wide portion.

(B) The food hood according to claim 1, wherein the hood hinge is provided at an end of the hood main body in the surface direction, and supports the hood main body in the vicinity of the opening of the storage chamber so as to be opened and closed. Further comprising
The narrow space is the vicinity of the hood hinge in the hood body,
The wide space is the central portion of the hood main body and the vicinity thereof.

  When the hood for an automobile is provided with a hood hinge in addition to the hood main body, it is possible to reduce the weight and to absorb the energy by specifying the narrow space and the wide space as in the invention described in (B) above. It is possible to achieve both improvement of performance.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Engine room (containment chamber), 12 ... Engine (automobile component), 13 ... Air cleaner (automotive component), 14 ... Side member (automotive component), 15 ... Cowl (automobile component), 16 ... Cowl louver ( Automotive component, 17 ... car body, 20 ... automobile hood, 21 ... hood body, 22 ... honeycomb structure, 23 ... honeycomb portion, 24 ... partition wall, 25A, 25B ... cell, 26,27 ... sealing plate portion, 31 ... Hood hinge.

Claims (3)

A vehicle hood comprising a plate-shaped hood main body configured to open and close a vehicle storage chamber and, when closed, covers a plurality of vehicle components disposed in the storage chamber,
At least a part of the hood body is formed of a resin honeycomb structure,
The honeycomb structure includes a honeycomb part composed of a large number of cells that are partitioned from each other by partition walls, and a pair of the honeycomb part sandwiched from the side closer to and far from the automobile component member to seal each cell. And a sealing plate portion of
The automobile hood characterized in that the cells in the honeycomb structure are formed smaller at a location where the distance between the honeycomb structure and the automobile constituent member is narrower than at a location where the spacing is wide. The hood body is supported on the body of the automobile by a hood hinge provided at an end of the hood body with respect to the surface direction.
The narrow space is the vicinity of the hood hinge in the hood body,
The automobile hood according to claim 1, wherein the wide space is a central portion of the hood main body and a vicinity thereof. The hood hinge is an end portion in the front-rear direction of the hood main body, and is provided at both end portions in the vehicle width direction,
3. The automobile hood according to claim 2, wherein the narrow space is a portion in the vicinity of each hood hinge and a portion sandwiched between both hood hinges in the honeycomb structure.

Images