JP3334645B2 - Joint structure of bumper and outer plate member - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a structure for joining a bumper of an automobile to a vehicle body and an outer plate member,
The present invention relates to a joint structure between a bumper and an outer plate member configured to mutually attach an outer surface forming member such as a fender and a bumper side end.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Bumpers for protecting a vehicle body are provided at the front and rear ends of a vehicle, and outer surface forming members such as fenders are provided on left and right sides of the bumper so as to face each other. Fixed. Here, the bumper side end and the surface of the fender form the front and rear ends of the outer side surface of the vehicle body, so that a predetermined gap is maintained or there is no gap from the viewpoint of design and prevention of deflection of the front end. There are many things that are connected.

For example, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 3-23887 discloses that an engaging hole formed in an outer surface of a front fender includes:
A hook-shaped engaging portion extending from the inner side wall of the bumper side end is engaged so that the front fender prevents deflection of the bumper side end. In addition,
In Japanese Patent No. 17331, a groove is provided at the upper end edge of the bumper side end, a flange piece is formed at the front end of the fender facing the groove, and the flange is inserted into the groove to thereby reduce the width of the vehicle between the bumper and the fender. Positioning is performed to improve the appearance.

[0004]

As described above, in the bumper supporting device disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 3-23887, the right and left deflection at the position of the engaging hole at the bumper side end is prevented. Although it is possible, the relative positioning of the bumper and the fender in the front-rear direction and the vertical direction cannot be performed. On the other hand, in the vehicle body structure disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 5-17331, when the bumper is assembled to the vehicle body, the relative width direction between the bumper side end and the vehicle body outer side surface member such as a fender is set. Can be positioned in the front-rear direction, but not in the vertical direction.
For this reason, in this vehicle body structure, the gap between the upper wall of the bumper side end and the lower edge of the fender tip facing the bumper cannot be easily kept constant. This is a problem in maintaining good external appearance of the vehicle body outer surface formed continuously with the vehicle body outer surface forming member.

Further, the vehicle body structure disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 5-17331 has a structure in which a flange is extended at a tip of a fender and inserted into a groove provided at an end on a bumper side, which is relatively complicated. Therefore, there is a demand for a joint structure between a bumper and an outer plate member that can be simplified to improve formability and reduce costs.

A first object of the present invention is to reliably position a bumper-side end portion and an outer plate member forming an outer surface of a vehicle body facing the bumper-side end portion, so that the outer surface around the front and rear ends of the vehicle body can be seen. It is an object of the present invention to provide a joint structure between a bumper and an outer plate member which can maintain good performance. Further, the second purpose is
An object of the present invention is to provide a bumper-to-outer-plate member joining structure that can reliably perform relative positioning between a bumper-side end portion and an outer plate member that forms a vehicle body outer surface facing the bumper-side end portion, thereby simplifying the bumper.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a notch is formed in the upper wall of the bumper side end to form a notch in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body, and the outer surface of the vehicle body is formed. The first horizontal piece extends from the edge of the formed outer plate member, and the thickness of the upper wall of the bumper side end is determined from the first horizontal piece .
A vertical piece having a slightly larger vertical width is bent, and a second horizontal piece is bent from the vertical piece. In particular, when the bumper is assembled to the vehicle body, the first horizontal piece is formed. The second horizontal piece contacts the other of the upper and lower surfaces of the upper wall, and the vertical piece is clamped by the notch. take.

Accordingly, when the outer plate member forming the outer surface of the vehicle body and the bumper side end are positioned relative to each other, the notch in the upper wall sandwiches the vertical piece, so that the positioning in the vehicle width direction is improved. Positioning in the front-rear direction is achieved by the notch of the wall abutting on the vertical piece, and one of the upper and lower surfaces of the upper wall is abutted on the first horizontal portion and the other is abutted on the second horizontal portion. Can be easily positioned, and the appearance around the front and rear ends of the vehicle body can be kept good. As the outer plate member having the outer wall surface, a fender, a rear quarter panel, or the like is usually used. In this case, relative positioning between the fender, the rear quarter panel, etc., and the upper wall of the bumper side end in the vehicle width direction, the front-rear direction, and the vertical direction can be easily performed, respectively. Good appearance can be maintained.

[0009]

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the end on the bumper side is
A bulge is formed on the upper wall in front of the notch.
And the outer plate member is located forward and rearward of the vehicle body from the end portion.
Has a front-rear positioning flange that projects inward
And, the longitudinal direction positioning flange, the notch outermost
After the deep part contacts the vertical piece, it is pressed against the protrusion
The structure is formed as follows. With this , the body
The relative position between the outer plate member forming the outer wall surface and the bumper side end
When positioning, the deepest part of the notch is in contact with the vertical piece.
After contacting, the longitudinal positioning flange is pressed against the protrusion
The positioning in the front-rear direction is assured and easy
To maintain good appearance around the front and rear ends of the vehicle.
I can have.

[0011]

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the first or second aspect is provided.
In the joint structure between the bumper and the outer plate member, the second water
Mounting piece that is bent from the flat part and attached to the vehicle body
It is good to have a part. This allows the mounting piece to be
By being attached to the body, the notch on the bumper side end
It is supported on the vehicle body through the outer plate member at the formed point
And the deflection of the end of the pump on the body can be reliably prevented.
You. Further, the outer plate member forming the outer wall surface is a fender,
It is desirable to use a rear quarter panel or the like. In this case, relative positioning between the fender, the rear quarter panel, etc., and the upper wall of the bumper side end in the vehicle width direction and the front-back direction can be easily performed, and the appearance of the outer surface around the front-rear end of the vehicle body is good. Can be held.

[0013]

[0014]

1 to 3 show a joint structure of a bumper and an outer plate member to which the present invention is applied. This joint structure between the bumper and the outer plate member is used to attach a front bumper 6 (see FIG. 2) to the front of the automobile 1. As shown in FIG. 1, an automobile 1 includes an engine room R at a front portion thereof, a base frame portion B formed by mutually connecting a plurality of rigid panel members forming a peripheral wall thereof, and a hood portion provided on the base frame portion B. Panel 2, left and right front fenders (only left is shown) 3,
The front bumper face 4, the headlights 10 and the like are attached. In particular, the front bumper face 4 forms an outer wall member at the front end of the vehicle body, and is integrally formed with a front grille 5, a front bumper 6, and a front skirt 7 by resin molding. Here, the front bumper face 4 has a front end panel 8 of which a plurality of portions constitute front members of the base frame portion B.
It is bolted to etc.

An outer wall of the front bumper 6 disposed at the center of the front bumper face 4 is resin-molded by the front bumper face 4, and extends to bend rearward from the left and right sides of the main portion 601 which is long in the vehicle width direction Y. And left and right bumper side ends 602. A beam material for maintaining rigidity is integrally joined to the inner surface of the main portion 601 via a pad material (not shown) for absorbing shock. The beam members are connected to left and right side frames (not shown). The left and right bumper side ends 602 are formed symmetrically to each other.

As shown in FIG. 5, the bumper side end portion 602 has an upper wall a formed as a substantially flat portion, and has a side wall b extending downwardly and curved below the upper wall a. The front lower edge 301 of the fender (FIG. 4A,
(See (b)), an upward bead c capable of eliminating a gap between the upper and lower beads is formed. As shown in FIG. 1, an upper wall a of the bumper-side end 602 has a front portion near the main portion 601 facing the headlight 10 and a rear portion thereof has a front lower end edge 301 of the front fender 3. Opposes. Furthermore,
As shown in FIG. 1, the upper wall a is formed with an upward protruding portion 12 and a notch 9 behind the upper portion at a portion inside the vehicle width direction and opposed to the front lower end edge 301. The upwardly projecting portion 12 is formed to project upwardly from a substantially flat upper wall a, and in particular, the amount of the upwardly projecting portion is set so that a distal end of a later-described vehicle width direction positioning flange 151 or the like can be locked.

As shown in FIG. 6, the notch 9 is cut vertically from the rear while maintaining the groove width e, and the width in the front-rear direction X is set to a value slightly larger than the width d of the mounting portion 11 described later. ing. Note that the groove width e of the notch 9 is set to a value slightly larger than the thickness of the mounting portion 11. A guide piece 603 for gradually increasing the groove width e is formed on the rear end side (upper side of the paper) of the notch 9, thereby facilitating the fitting operation between the notch 9 and the mounting portion 11. ing. Reference numeral 13 shown in FIG. 1 denotes a fastening bolt mounting hole formed at the rear end of the upper wall a, and is used when the front lower end edge 301 on the front fender 3 side and the upper wall a are connected. .

The front fender 3 as an outer plate member forming the outer wall surface of the vehicle body is formed bilaterally symmetrically, and its front ends are disposed opposite the left and right bumper side ends 602. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the front fender 3 on the left side has a front end 302 of a headlight 10
The front lower end edge 301 faces the bumper side end 602, the rear end faces a front door (not shown), and the upper end faces the hood 2, respectively, so as to continuously form the outer surface of the vehicle body. Further, a curved lower edge 303 (see FIG. 4) facing the front end of a tire house (not shown) is provided below the front fender 3.
(See (a) and (b)), and the above-mentioned front lower edge 301 is continuously formed forward from the tip of the curved lower edge 303.

Both the curved lower edge 303 and the front lower edge 301 are formed with a flange f that is bent inward in the vehicle width direction. Here, a plurality of attachment pieces g are formed to extend from the flange f on the curved lower edge 303 side, and are bolted to the tip of the tire house (not shown). On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6, the flange f of the front lower edge 301 has a mounting piece g1 formed at the rear thereof and a mounting portion 11 formed at the front thereof, and the frontmost portion of the flange f in front of the mounting portion 11. The positioning flanges 151 and 152 and the curved portion 153 in the vehicle width direction Y and the front-back direction X are formed continuously with the flange f. Here, the mounting piece g1 is formed so as to overlap with the mounting hole 13 of the upper wall a, and thereby both are integrally tightened and connected by the tightening bolt.

The mounting portion 11 extends inward in the vehicle width direction while maintaining a width b from the flange f of the front lower edge 301, and is integrally formed with the front fender 3 during press forming. In some cases, the attachment portion 11 may be separately formed, and then another member may be welded to the flange f. The mounting portion 11 here includes a first horizontal portion 111 extending in a substantially horizontal state from the flange f, a vertical portion 112 bent below the first horizontal portion, and a vertical portion 11.
A second horizontal portion 113 extending inward in the vehicle width direction in a substantially horizontal state from a lower end of the second horizontal portion 2, and a mounting piece 114 bent below the second horizontal portion 113. The mounting portion 11 has a mounting piece portion 114 bolted to a side end of the front end panel 8 on the side of the base frame portion B, whereby the mounting portion 11 is connected to the front fender 3 and the bumper side end 60.
The deflection of the second base frame B can be reliably prevented.

Here, the vertical width h (see FIG. 5) of the vertical piece portion 112 of the mounting portion 11 is set to a value slightly larger than the thickness of the upper wall a of the bumper side end 602, and the upper wall a is cut. 9 has a width e (see FIG. 6) slightly larger than the plate thickness of the vertical piece 112. Therefore, the notch 9 cut into the substantially flat upper wall a from the rear and the vertical piece 112 can be easily inserted and fitted, and the deepest part (the lower end in FIG. , The upper surface of the upper wall a can be in contact with the lower surface of the first horizontal portion 111, and the lower surface of the upper wall a can be in contact with the upper surface of the second horizontal portion 113.

At the forefront of the flange f of the front lower end edge 301 of the front fender 3, positioning flanges 151, 152 and a curved portion 153 in the vehicle width direction and the front-rear direction are bent, and the lower surface thereof is a bumper-side end 602. Is formed so as to contact the upper wall a. As shown in FIG. 6, the vehicle width direction positioning flange 151 protrudes inward in the vehicle width direction (left direction in FIG. 6), and the front-rear direction positioning flange 152 protrudes rearward of the vehicle body (upward in FIG. 6). The curved portion 153 connecting the two projecting portions is formed by continuously changing the projecting direction. Each positioning flange 151, 152, 1 on the front fender 3 side
53 is configured to be able to press against the upward protruding portion 12 by receiving the elastic force of the front fender 3. That is, the vicinity of the front lower end edge 301 and the front end 302 of the front fender is elastically once displaced outward in the vehicle direction during assembly, and then each positioning flange is elastically pressed against the upward projection 12. .

Here, the left bumper side end 602 is used.
And the front fender 3 have been described, but the right-hand side also has a symmetrical configuration, so that redundant description is omitted. When the front bumper face 4 is mounted on the base frame B at the front of the vehicle 1 having such a joint structure between the bumper and the outer plate member shown in FIG. 1, the front member of the base frame B is first used. The front bumper face 4 is overlaid on the front end panel 8. At this time, the beam member side (not shown) of the front bumper 6 is connected to the base frame portion B via a bracket (not shown).
Temporarily fix to the side frame (not shown). Next, the upper wall a of each of the left and right bumper side ends 602 faces the front lower end edge 301 of the front fender 3, and the cut 9 of the upper wall a is inserted into the vertical piece 112, and temporarily fitted.

Next, the entire area of the front bumper face 4 is positioned on the front end panel 8, and the parts such as the front grille 5, the front skirt 7 and the like on the front bumper face 4 are sequentially fronted using tightening screws or tightening bolts. Tighten it to the end panel 8 side. Before or after this, the beam material side (not shown) is securely fixed to the base frame portion B side.

Next, the upper wall a is opposed to the front lower edge 301, and the cutout 9 of the upper wall a is temporarily fitted into the vertical piece 112. 1
3 and the mounting piece g1 are overlapped, and both are fastened with a fastening screw. Prior to this tightening operation, the first horizontal portion 11
1 is in contact with the upper surface of the upper wall a, and the second horizontal portion 113
Abuts against the lower surface of the upper wall a, furthermore, the deepest part (the lower end in FIG. 1) of the notch 9 abuts on the end of the vertical piece 112, and furthermore, the front lower end edge 301 of the front fender and the frontward direction. The portion near the end 302 is elastically displaced outward from the vehicle, and then the positioning flanges 151 and 152 and the curved portion 153 are opposed to the upward protruding portion 12 and are elastically pressed against each other. The mounting hole 13a and the mounting piece g1 are tightened by a tightening screw.

With this arrangement, the notch 9 sandwiches the vertical piece 112, whereby the upper wall a of the bumper side end 602 and the front lower end edge 301 of the front fender can be positioned relative to each other in the vehicle width direction Y. In addition, since the deepest portion of the notch 9 abuts on the vertical piece 112, positioning in the front-rear direction X can be performed, and the first horizontal portion 111 and the second horizontal portion
3 can be positioned in the vertical direction Z by contacting the upper and lower surfaces of the outer wall a. For this reason, according to the bumper mounting structure of FIG. 1, when mounting the front bumper 6 on the base frame B side of the vehicle body, the upper wall a of the left and right bumper side ends 602 and the front lower end edge 301 of the front fender are positioned relative to each other. Positioning can be easily performed simply by fitting the cut 9 of the upper wall a to the vertical piece 112. Further, since the mounting piece portion 114 of the mounting portion 11 is fixed to the base frame portion B, the deflection of the bumper side end portion 602 with respect to the base frame portion B supported by the front portion of the front fender and the mounting portion 11 is further ensured. Can be prevented.

In addition, the front lower end edge 3 of the front fender
01 and a portion near the front end 302 is elastically once displaced outward from the vehicle, and then the positioning flange 15 of the same portion is displaced.
Is pressed against the upward protruding portion 12 to easily perform positioning in the vehicle width direction X and the front-rear direction Y with respect to the front lower end edge 301 of the front fender and the upper wall a of the front end 302, and the front fender and the front end portion are The gap between the wall a and the headlight 10 can be easily adjusted to a set value,
Appearance can be improved. In particular, here, the curved portion 153 of the front fender is elastically upwardly projecting from the oblique front.
2, the relative positioning of the front lower end edge 301 of the front fender 3 and the upper wall a of the bumper side end in the vehicle width direction Y and the front-rear direction X can be extremely easily performed by a simple operation.

Here, the positioning flange 15 is joined to the upper wall a and abuts on the upward protruding portion 12 while being mounted on the upper wall a, so that the front lower end edge 301 of the front fender and the bumper side. Positioning in the vertical direction Z with respect to the upper wall a of the end portion 602 can also be performed.
2 and the upper wall a and the positioning flange 15 cooperate,
Positioning in six directions, left and right and up and down, can be performed. The mounting portion 11 used in the joint structure between the bumper and the outer plate member shown in FIG. 1 includes a first horizontal portion 111 extending from the flange f, and a vertical piece portion 11.
2, the second horizontal portion 113, and the mounting piece portion 114, but instead of this, FIGS.
You may use the attachment parts 11a, 11b, 11c as shown in (c).

Here, the mounting portion 11a shown in FIG.
The front fender 3 is formed to extend relatively to the front lower end edge 301 at the end of the flange fa bent and formed inward in the vehicle width direction (left side in the drawing). This mounting portion 11a
A first horizontal portion 111 that extends from the front end of the flange fa, is folded outward in the vehicle width direction (right side on the paper surface), and then extends in a horizontal state, and is formed to be bent below the first horizontal portion 111. A vertical portion 112, and a second horizontal portion 113 extending horizontally from the lower end of the vertical portion 112 to the outside of the vehicle.
And a mounting piece 114 bent downward from the tip of the second horizontal portion 113 and fixed to the base frame B side.

The mounting portion 11b shown in FIG. 7B has the same flange fb as the mounting portion 11a, and is formed so as to extend from the tip thereof. The mounting portion 11b includes a first horizontal portion 111 bent outward (rightward on the paper) in the vehicle width direction from a front end of the flange fb, a vertical portion 112 bent downward from the first horizontal portion 111, and a vertical portion 112 thereof. Horizontal portion 113 ′ extending inward in the vehicle width direction (left side in the drawing) from the lower end of the second horizontal portion 113 ′
And a mounting piece 114 bent downward from the tip of the second horizontal portion 113 'and fixed to the base frame B side.

The attachment portion 11c shown in FIG. 7C is formed to be relatively larger than the front lower end edge 301 of the front fender 3 and to be bent inward in the vehicle width direction (left side in the drawing) and to have a portion bent downward. It is formed to extend from the edge of the flange fc. The mounting portion 11b includes a first horizontal portion 111 "which is bent outward (rightward on the paper) in the vehicle width direction from an edge of the lower end of the bent flange fb, and a vertical piece portion 112" which is bent upward. , The second horizontal portion 1 extending outward from the upper end of the vertical piece 112 ″ in the vehicle width direction (right side in the drawing).
13 ". In this case, the notch 9 of the upper wall a can sandwich the vertical piece 112, the deepest portion (not shown) of the notch 9 can abut on one end of the vertical piece 112, and the first horizontal portion is formed. 111 "and the second horizontal portion 113" can regulate the vertical movement of the upper wall a.

Each of these mounting portions 11a, 11b, 11c
1, the notch 9 in the upper wall a can sandwich the vertical pieces 112, 112 ", similarly to the joint structure between the bumper and the outer plate member shown in FIG. The deepest portion (not shown) can contact one end of each of the vertical piece portions 112, 112 ", and the first horizontal portions 111, 111" and the second horizontal portions 113, 1
13 ′, 113 ″ can regulate the vertical movement of the upper wall a, whereby the positioning in the left-right direction Y, the front-rear direction X, and the vertical direction Z can be easily performed.

In the above description, the joint structure between each bumper and the outer plate member has been applied to the relative positioning of the front bumper 6 and the front fender 3.
The present invention may be applied to the relative positioning of the rear bumper and the rear fender (not shown). In this case, the same operation and effect as those of the joint structure of the bumper and the outer plate member shown in FIG. 1 can be obtained. Further, the fender has been described as the outer plate member forming the outer wall surface of the vehicle body. However, the present invention can be applied to various other types, such as a rear quarter panel at a vehicle body corner, and in this case also, the joining of the bumper and the fender in FIG. The same operation and effect as those of the structure can be obtained.

[0034]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, when the outer plate member forming the outer wall surface of the vehicle body and the bumper side end are positioned relative to each other, the notch in the upper wall is vertical. And the notch in the upper wall abuts against the vertical piece, thereby positioning in the front-rear direction. One of the upper and lower surfaces of the upper wall is connected to the first horizontal portion. By abutting the second horizontal portion, positioning in the vertical direction can be easily performed, and the appearance around the front and rear ends of the vehicle body can be maintained well. According to the invention of claim 2, according to claim 1,
In addition to the effect, the outer panel member and the bumper side that formed the outer wall of the vehicle body
When positioning relative to the end, the deepest part of the notch
After contacting the vertical piece, the positioning flange
Is pressed into contact with the protrusions, thereby
Can be performed reliably and easily.
Good appearance can be maintained. Moreover, the configuration is simple and low.
Cost can be reduced. According to the invention of claim 3, claim 1
Or, in addition to the effect of claim 2, the mounting piece is mounted on the vehicle body.
The notch was formed on the bumper side end by
Since it is supported by the vehicle body through the outer plate member at
Deflection of the side end portion with respect to the vehicle body can be reliably prevented.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway plan view of a front bumper and a front fender of an automobile to which a joint structure of a bumper and an outer plate member according to the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a main part on the front side of an automobile to which the joint structure between the bumper and the outer plate member of FIG. 1 is applied.

3 is a schematic partially cutaway perspective view of a front bumper and a front fender of an automobile to which the joint structure between the bumper and the outer plate member of FIG. 1 is applied.

4A and 4B are front fenders of an automobile to which the joint structure between a bumper and an outer plate member shown in FIG. 1 is applied, wherein FIG. 4A is a side view and FIG.
Shows a plan view.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 1;

6 is a partially cutaway enlarged sectional view of a front bumper and a front fender of an automobile to which the joint structure between the bumper and the outer plate member of FIG. 1 is applied.

7A and 7B show a modified example of a mounting bracket used in a joint structure of a bumper and an outer plate member as another embodiment of the present invention, wherein FIG. 7A is a first modified example, FIG. 7B is a second modified example, (C)
Is a third modified example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 3 front fender 301 front lower end edge 6 front bumper 602 bumper side end 9 notch 11 mounting bracket 111 first horizontal portion 112 vertical piece 113 second horizontal portion 12 upward protrusion 151 vehicle width direction positioning flange 152 front and rear direction Positioning flange 153 Bending part a Upper wall X Body longitudinal direction Y Vehicle width direction Z Vertical direction

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B60R 19/24 B62D 25/16

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A notch cut into an upper wall of an end portion on a bumper side and formed in a longitudinal direction of a vehicle body, and extends from an edge of an outer plate member facing the end portion on the bumper side and forming an outer surface of the vehicle body. a first horizontal plate portion abutting on one of the upper and lower surfaces of the upper wall, than the thickness of the first formed by bending from the horizontal plate portion is pinched-out the cut-out on the walls of the bumper-side end Slightly larger vertical
A bumper and an outer plate member, comprising: a vertical piece having a width; and a second horizontal piece which is bent from the vertical piece and is in contact with the other of the upper surface and the lower surface of the upper wall. Joint structure. 2. The bumper-side end is located forward of the notch.
In the above, the upper wall has a protruding portion formed on the upper wall, and the outer plate member is directed inward in the vehicle longitudinal direction from the end portion.
It has a front-rear positioning flange that projects, and the front- rear positioning flange is the deepest part of the notch.
After contacting the vertical piece, it is pressed against the protrusion
2. The bumper according to claim 1, wherein the bumper is formed.
And outer plate member joining structure. 3. A vehicle formed by bending the second horizontal piece.
Characterized by having an attachment piece that can be attached to the body
The bumper according to claim 1 or claim 2 and the outer plate member
Joint structure.