JP2024048102A - Vehicle front structure - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To prevent damage to a heat exchanger in the event of a frontal collision of a vehicle. [Solution] A heat exchanger 1 having attachments 2 extending in the vertical direction provided at both ends in the vehicle width direction, a support member 3 having a rectangular frame shape that fixes and supports the heat exchanger 1 within the frame by fixing the attachments 2 to an upper support 31 and a lower support 33, a bumper reinforcement 4 disposed in front of the heat exchanger 1 and the attachment 2 and extending in the vehicle width direction, and a bracket 5 disposed between the bumper reinforcement 4 and the attachment 2, in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle, the bumper reinforcement 4 pushes the attachment 2 rearward via the bracket 5, thereby releasing the attachment 2 from the upper support 31 and the lower support 33, and moving the heat exchanger 1 rearward. [Selected Figure] Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a vehicle front structure that supports and fixes a heat exchanger within the frame of a rectangular frame-shaped support member.

Patent Document 1 discloses a heat exchanger in which a condenser of a refrigerant circuit for vehicle air conditioning is arranged in parallel in front of an engine cooling water radiator. It also discloses a vehicle front structure in which the heat exchanger is supported by a rectangular frame at the very front of the front compartment, and in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle, the bumper reinforcement pushes the heat exchanger rearward, releasing the lower insertion boss of the heat exchanger and causing the heat exchanger to fall downward from the frame.

JP 2020-117119 A

In a typical vehicle, the heat exchanger located at the very front of the front compartment is configured so that the condenser of the refrigerant circuit for the vehicle's air conditioning is located in parallel in front of the cooling water radiator. Therefore, in a vehicle equipped with a heat exchanger configured like this, even if the bumper reinforcement comes into contact with and damages the condenser during a frontal collision, the vehicle can still be driven and can drive to a repair shop on its own if the collision is minor enough that the radiator is not damaged.

However, some heat exchangers under consideration for use in electric vehicles do not have a condenser for the refrigerant circuit for the in-vehicle air conditioning in front of the radiator, and are composed only of a radiator for cooling water. In vehicles equipped with a heat exchanger composed only of a radiator for cooling water, there is no condenser for the refrigerant circuit for the in-vehicle air conditioning between the radiator and the bumper reinforcement, so the bumper reinforcement comes into contact with the radiator when the vehicle is hit in a frontal collision. If the bumper reinforcement contact causes the tubes of the radiator to break and leak, the temperature control of the drive control computer and the battery cannot be controlled, and the vehicle cannot be driven. Therefore, in vehicles equipped with a heat exchanger composed only of a radiator for cooling water, even in a minor collision with little external damage, the heat exchanger can be damaged, making it impossible to drive to a repair shop by itself.

The present invention aims to provide a vehicle front structure that can prevent damage to the heat exchanger during a frontal collision of the vehicle.

The vehicle front structure according to the present invention comprises a heat exchanger with attachments extending in the vertical direction provided at both ends in the vehicle width direction, a support member having a rectangular frame shape including a support upper and a support lower extending in the vehicle width direction, and fixing the attachment to the support upper and the support lower, thereby fixing and supporting the heat exchanger within the frame, a bumper reinforcement disposed in front of the heat exchanger and the attachment and extending in the vehicle width direction, and a bracket disposed between the bumper reinforcement and the attachment, and is characterized in that in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle, the bumper reinforcement pushes the attachment rearward via the bracket, thereby releasing the attachment from the support upper and the support lower, and moving the heat exchanger rearward.

The present invention can prevent damage to the heat exchanger in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle.

FIG. 2 is a front view of a vehicle front structure according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a top view of the vehicle front structure of the present embodiment. 1 is a top view showing a vehicle front structure according to an embodiment of the present invention when the vehicle has undergone a frontal collision;

The vehicle front structure 10 of this embodiment will be described below with reference to Figures 1 to 3. The arrows FR, UP, and RH shown in each of the figures described below indicate the forward direction (travel direction), upward, and rightward directions of the vehicle, respectively. The opposite directions of the arrows FR, UP, and RH indicate the rearward direction, downward, and leftward directions of the vehicle, respectively. In the following description, when the directions "front-rear," "left-right," and "up-down" are used, they refer to front-rear in the front-rear direction of the vehicle, left-right in the left-right direction of the vehicle (vehicle width direction), and up-down in the up-down direction of the vehicle, unless otherwise specified.

Figure 1 is a front view of the vehicle front structure 10. Figure 2 is a top view of the vehicle front structure 10 with the support upper 31, which will be described later, removed. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the vehicle front structure 10 only includes a radiator 1 as a heat exchanger. Attachments 2 extending in the vertical direction are provided on both ends of the radiator 1 in the vehicle width direction. The vehicle front structure 10 also includes a radiator support 3 as a support member that fixes and supports the radiator 1. Furthermore, the vehicle front structure 10 includes a bumper reinforcement 4 that extends in the vehicle width direction at the frontmost part of the vehicle, and a bracket 5 that is arranged between the bumper reinforcement 4 and the attachment 2.

The radiator 1 is mounted at the very front inside the front compartment and is arranged so that it is parallel to the vehicle width direction. The radiator 1 has a structure in which multiple tubes extending in the vehicle width direction are stacked vertically, and air flowing in from the vehicle's grill openings, etc., passes through the gaps between the tubes, thereby dissipating heat from the cooling water flowing through the tubes in the vehicle width direction. Cooling water for cooling the drive control computer and the battery flows through the tubes of the radiator 1.

The radiator support 3 is configured in a rectangular frame shape with an upper support 31 extending in the vehicle width direction, two vertical support columns 32 extending downward from both ends of the upper support 31 in the vehicle width direction, and a lower support 33 extending in the vehicle width direction and connecting to the lower ends of the left and right vertical support columns 32. The radiator support 3 is fixed to the vehicle body by upper support sides (not shown) that extend diagonally from both ends of the upper support 31 in the vehicle width direction toward the outside and rear in the vehicle width direction.

The upper surface of the attachment 2 provided at both ends of the radiator 1 in the vehicle width direction has a pin 21 extending upward. The lower surface of the attachment 2 has a pin 22 extending downward. The lower surface of the upper support 31 has a recess into which the pin 21 of the attachment 2 is inserted, and the lower surface of the lower support 33 has a recess into which the pin 22 of the attachment 2 is inserted. The pin 21 of the attachment 2 attached to both ends of the radiator 1 in the vehicle width direction is inserted into the recess of the upper support 31, and the pin 22 is inserted into the recess of the lower support 33, whereby the radiator 1 is fixed within the frame of the radiator support 3.

The bumper reinforcement 4 is the core material of the front bumper that receives the collision load when the vehicle crashes frontally, and is disposed in front of the radiator 1, attachment 2, and radiator support 3. The bumper reinforcement 4 is connected to the front ends of crash boxes (not shown) on both sides in the vehicle width direction, and is fixed to the vehicle body via the crash boxes.

The bracket 5 is attached to the attachment 2 so as to cover the front surface of the attachment 2. The bracket 5 is provided between the bumper reinforcement 4 and the attachment 2, but is not in contact with the bumper reinforcement 4, and a gap is maintained between the front end of the bracket 5 and the bumper reinforcement 4. The front end of the bracket 5 protrudes forward from the front end of the radiator support 3.

Figure 3 is a top view showing the vehicle front structure 10 when the vehicle has a frontal collision. Figure 3 shows the state in which the support upper 31 has been removed, as in Figure 2. As shown in Figure 3, when the vehicle has a frontal collision and an obstacle 6 enters, the crash box is crushed by the collision load, and the bumper reinforcement 4 retreats and contacts the bracket 5 before contacting the radiator support 3. Then, when the bumper reinforcement 4 is in contact with the bracket 5 in this way, the attachment 2 is pushed backward through the bracket 5, so that the pins 21 and 22 are removed or broken, and the attachment 2 is released from the support upper 31 and the support lower 33, and the radiator 1 is detached from the radiator support 3. Then, when the radiator 1 is detached from the radiator support 3 in this way, the bumper reinforcement 4 further pushes the attachment 2 backward through the bracket 5, so that the bumper reinforcement 4 can move the radiator 1 backward while avoiding contact with the radiator 1. In this way, when the vehicle crashes head-on, the vehicle front structure 10 can release the radiator 1 and move it rearward while avoiding contact between the bumper reinforcement 4 and the radiator 1, thereby preventing the radiator 1 from coming into contact with the bumper reinforcement 4 and being damaged.

1 Radiator, 2 Attachment, 3 Radiator support, 4 Bumper reinforcement, 5 Bracket, 6 Obstacle, 10 Vehicle front structure, 21, 22 Pin, 31 Upper support, 32 Vertical support pillar, 33 Lower support.

Claims (1)

A heat exchanger having attachments extending in the vertical direction provided at both ends in the vehicle width direction;
a support member having a rectangular frame shape including an upper support and a lower support extending in a vehicle width direction, the support member fixing the attachment to the upper support and the lower support, thereby fixing and supporting the heat exchanger within the frame;
A bumper reinforcement is disposed in front of the heat exchanger and the attachment and extends in a vehicle width direction;
A bracket is disposed between the bumper reinforcement and the attachment,
A vehicle front structure characterized in that, in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle, the bumper reinforcement pushes the attachment rearward via the bracket, thereby releasing the attachment from the upper support and the lower support, and moving the heat exchanger rearward.

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