JP3363943B2 - Car front structure - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a front structure of a vehicle in which a shroud for supporting a radiator and a cooling fan disposed behind the radiator is mounted on a front portion of the vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a front structure of a vehicle, a cooling fan is generally installed in front of or behind a radiator in order to forcibly introduce cooling air for the radiator. However, in the case where the cooling fan is installed in front of the radiator, the blades of the cooling fan that is stopped block the ventilation when the forced ventilation by the cooling fan is not required when the vehicle is running at low speed or when the vehicle is stopped, thus improving the cooling efficiency. There was a fear of lowering it. In order to solve this drawback, a cooling fan is provided behind the radiator and a means for sucking the cooling air is often used. Its structure is a cross extending in the body width direction located at the forefront part of the body. A shroud that supports a cooling fan having a fan cowl is fixed to a bracket provided on the member and the wheel apron, and a radiator is attached to the front part of the shroud.

Further, for example, the one disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 4-59581 discloses a front nose unit including a shroud frame, a bumper reinforcement supported by the frame, and a radiator. The front nose unit is formed and fixed to the tip of the front side frame to simplify the mounting work.

[0004]

However, in the conventional vehicle front structure described above, mounting members such as bolts and connecting hoses and pipes are projected on the rear surface of the radiator, and the radiator is assembled from the front surface of the shroud. Since the mounting member and the connecting hose and pipe are projected to the rear side of the shroud and are tightened and fixed with nuts through the hole provided in the shroud, or the rear surface mounting for connecting to the pipe is performed, the shroud Since the mounting portion serves as a wall member for an air seal such as a fan cowl, the rigidity of the mounting portion may be insufficient. In addition, it becomes difficult to secure a space for mounting work such as tightening and fixing the mounting member protruding to the rear of the shroud and the connecting hose or pipe, or connecting to the pipe, etc. It is necessary to project it for a long time, but if this is made longer, the workability of the radiator attachment / detachment work may be reduced. Furthermore, in the work of assembling the radiator from the front of the shroud and tightening and fixing it on the rear surface of the shroud, using two workers would increase the cost, and one worker would work on the front and the rear. There is a problem in that when the work is performed, the moving work becomes large and the workability is significantly deteriorated, and even when the work robot is adopted, two work robots are required in front and rear, so that various expenses are increased.

An object of the present invention is to solve the above problems and to fix the radiator by assembling it from the front, thereby facilitating the attachment and detachment work of the radiator at the time of vehicle assembly work or maintenance and inspection work, and reducing the weight of the shroud. It is to provide a front structure of an automobile capable of achieving

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, the front structure of an automobile of the present invention comprises a shroud attached to the front side of a cross member at the forefront of the body, and a radiator attached to the front side of the shroud. A front structure of a vehicle, which is provided on the front side of a radiator and includes a center stay that connects a shroud upper and a lower part of the shroud.
By the way, the center stay is the center stay upper.
It is composed of the upper and lower split structure of the center stay lower.
The center stay lower includes the center stay upper and the center stay upper.
It is detachably attached to the shroud drawer ,
Makes it easy to attach and remove the radiator during maintenance and inspection. Further, by assembling the radiator from the front with respect to the shroud, the number of man-hours and the number of workers are reduced, and the assembling work is simplified. A shroud that is attached to the front side of the cross member at the frontmost part of the body and is made by resin molding the shroud upper, shroud side, and fan cowl.The shroud is resin-molded and is connected to the body side wheel apron end. and thereby forming a substantially U-shaped cross-section which is open backward, the body side ho
Install the shroud bracket on the ear apron.
Insert into shroud upper end and at least shroud
Fastening to the upper plate of the end portion of the doorper facilitates the connection work and ensures secure fastening. Further, it is possible to secure sufficient strength, easily form a complicated shape, increase the vertical strength of the shroud, and absorb the torque of the motor. In the shroud that is attached to the front of the cross member at the front of the body , open the fan.
A mouth and a pair of left and right fan cowl having a fan motor mounting portion on the center side is provided, fan the fan motor mounting part
In the front structure of a motor vehicle comprising a plurality of fan motor stays Ru is supported on the fan cowl of the emission opening outer side,
At least the outer ends of the fan motor stays connected to the central part of the shroud upper and the shroud drawer are connected to each other, and the inner end connected to the fan motor mounting part of the fan motor stay is connected to the fan motor mounting part .
By making it coincide with the motor fastening position, the strength of the shroud in the vertical direction can be increased and the torque of the motor can be absorbed. Since the shroud upper has a substantially U-shaped cross section that opens rearward and the rear end edge of the shroud upper is formed in a straight line, it is possible to improve the assembly work efficiency. In the shroud attached to the front side of the cross member at the forefront part of the body, the locking claw extending in the same plane as the upper surface of the shroud upper and the locking restraint formed in the crank-shaped cross section at the rear end of the shroud upper. Clips consisting of claws are provided so as to project rearward of the straight line connecting the fastening points to the body side wheel apron at both ends of the shroud upper, so that the strength of the shroud upper is not reduced and various cords can be used. The wire, wire, etc. can be securely held. At least shroud,
A unit is formed with the radiator mounted on the front side of the shroud, and at least the lower part of the unit is the lower part of the body.
The lower part of the radiator in the front structure of the vehicle
Means that it reaches the vicinity of the mounting part at the bottom of the body.
Te, by which tilting the seat surface of the mounting seat of the body lower side after downward, while securing a work space, since it is possible to move the radiator downward, radiator mounting and dismounting during maintenance Will be easier.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In FIG. 2, a vehicle body 1 has a wheel house 4 inside a front fender 3 that forms an engine room 2 in the front part.
And a wheel apron 5 that extends along the upper inner edge of the front fender 3 and has a shroud bracket 6 at the front end.
Front side frames 7 extending in the front-rear direction on both lower sides of the engine compartment 2 and cross members 8 at the front of the body extending in the vehicle width direction with both ends connected to the lower front ends of the front side frames 7, 7 are provided. ing.

A shroud bracket 6 (connecting portion A in FIG. 1) of the wheel apron 5 and a front side frame 7
Side mounting seat 71 formed at the front end of the (connecting portion B in FIG. 1)
The shroud 9 is fixed from the front of the body 1 to both ends of the cross member 8 and the lower mounting seat 81 (the connecting portion C in FIG. 1) provided on the front surface of the central portion with bolts or the like. Shroud 9
The radiator 10 and the cooler condenser 11 are assembled to the front side of the shroud, and the center stays 12 extending in the up-down direction are fixed to the front side of the radiator 10 and the cooler condenser 11 at the upper and lower sides of the shroud 9 at approximately the center.

In FIGS. 3 to 5, the shroud 9 is made of resin and has a shroud upper portion 91 at the upper end extending in the vehicle width direction, a shroud lower portion 92 at the lower end extending in the vehicle width direction, and a shroud lower portion 92. Shroud side part 93 that connects both ends in the width direction and the shroud upper part 91
And a shroud side panel 94 extending outward in the vehicle width direction from the shroud side portion 93, and both shroud side portions.
Two fan cowls 95, which are arranged between 93 and have left and right fan openings 90 of the same diameter, and a fan opening 90.
An annular fan motor support member 97 located inside and four fan motor stays 96 supporting the fan motor support member 97.
A, 96B, 96C and 96D are provided, and the fan motor is assembled to the fan motor support member 97 from the front side.

Fan motor stays 96A, 96B, 96C, 96
D is a fan motor stay 96A whose lower end is connected to the central part of the shroud drawer portion 92, a lower end is a fan motor stay 96B which is connected to the connecting portion of the end portion of the shroud drawer part 92 and the shroud side portion 93, and an upper end. Is composed of a fan motor stay 96C connected to the connecting portion of the shroud upper portion 91 and the shroud side portion 93, and a fan motor stay 96D having an upper end connected to the central portion of the shroud upper portion 91. Fan motor stay 96A, 96
The lower end of A is connected to each other in the central portion of the shroud lower portion 92, and the upper ends of the left and right fan motor stays 96D and 96D are connected to each other in the central portion of the shroud upper portion 91. Further, the fan motor support member 97 has three
The individual motor mounting seats 97A, 97B and 97C are the upper motor mounting seats.
97A and the lower motor mounting seats 97B and 97C form a substantially equilateral triangle, and the upper end of the lower fan motor stay 96A is mounted on the lower motor mounting seat 97B.
The upper end of 96B is connected to the lower motor mounting seat 97C so as to coincide therewith.

With this configuration, the fan motor stay 96
A, 96A and 96D, 96D respectively form two sides of a triangle to increase the strength, and motor mounting seats 97B, 97
C, that is, the rigidity of the fan motor support member 97 can be increased. As shown in FIG. 6, by connecting the lower end of the central upper fan motor stay 96D so as to match the upper motor mounting seat 97A, the torque of the fan motor can be absorbed.

The shroud upper portion 91 has a substantially U-shaped cross section that opens rearward, and the cross-sectional area of the portion excluding both ends is increased, that is, the rear end of the upper plate 91A is lifted upward and inclined (FIG. 7). See) and the upper plate 91 at both ends.
A is substantially horizontal (see FIG. 8), a rearward edge 910 formed in a straight line is provided with a clip 98 projecting rearward at a proper position, and a plurality of reinforcing ribs 91C extending in the front-rear direction are provided inside. A plurality of bolt holes 911 for fastening to the shroud bracket 6 are provided at least at the end of the upper plate 91A, and the clip 98 is a line connecting the bolt holes 911 at the rearmost positions, that is, the shroud bracket. It projects rearward from the line connecting the fastening points to 6. clip
As shown in FIG. 9, the reference numeral 98 includes a vertical wall that extends upward and a horizontal wall that extends rearward in a substantially horizontal direction, and has a locking claw 981 formed in a crank-shaped cross section and a locking claw 981. A pair of lock receiving pawls 982, which extend rearward from both sides of 981 on the same plane as the upper surface of the shroud upper and have a stopper 983 at the rear end.
It is formed from 982.

With this structure, the cross section of the central portion of the shroud upper portion 91 which generally abuts the lower surface of the tip of the bonnet 13 can be increased, and the bonnet 13 has sufficient strength against the load pressed when the bonnet 13 is closed. In addition, since the cross-sectional area is large, it is possible to take an upper surface shape that conforms to the lower shape of the tip of the bonnet 13. Further, since the clip 98 is provided so as to project rearward from the line connecting the fastening points to the shroud bracket 6, the strength of the shroud upper portion 91 can be ensured, and various cords, wires, etc. can be held securely. Can be done.

A bolt hole 921 is formed on the front side of the central portion of the shroud drawer portion 92, and a bolt hole 922 is formed on the front side of the end portion to form bolt insertion holes for fixing to the cross member 8. In addition, a radiator mounting hole 931 is formed at an appropriate position of the shroud side portion 93, and a reference pin protruding from the side mounting seat 71 at the front end of the front side frame 7 is inserted into the shroud side panel 94. Hole 94
1 and multiple bolt holes 942 are provided to
Bolted to. With this configuration, the shroud 9
Can be assembled easily and surely only from the front.

As shown in FIG. 10, the shroud bracket 6 fixed to the front end of the wheel apron 5 has a substantially C-shaped plan view with one leg portion being a mounting portion 6A and the other leg portion being a connecting portion 6B. A flange 6c extending downward is provided on the entire inner edge formed by the attachment portion 6A and the connecting portion 6B, and a flange 6D extending downward is provided on the outer edge of the connecting portion 6B. , The mounting portion 6A has a substantially inverted cross section L
The connecting portion 6B is formed in a U shape having a downward cross section, and the mounting portion 6A is tightly fixed to the front end of the wheel apron 5 as shown in the drawing. A proper number (two in the figure) of bolt holes 61 having a high peripheral portion 60 are formed in the connecting portion 6B, and as shown in FIG.
The connecting portion 6B is inserted into the end of the shank and fixed with bolts. In FIG.
The upper plate 91A at the end portion of 91 and the upper plate of the connecting portion 6B are fastened with bolts 14 and nuts 15. With this configuration, the end portion of the shroud upper portion 91 can be easily connected to the shroud bracket 6 by a work from above.

Further, in FIG. 8B, a bolt hole is formed in the lower plate 91B at the end of the shroud upper part 91, so that the lower surface of the upper plate of the connecting part 6B of the shroud bracket 6 and the lower end of the shroud upper part 91 end. Spacer between the upper surface of plate 91B
16 is provided, the bolt 14A is entirely penetrated, and the nut 15 on the lower surface side of the lower plate 91B is fastened. With this configuration, the rigidity of the connecting portion between the end portion of the shroud upper portion 91 and the shroud bracket 6 can be increased.

In FIG. 11, motor mounting seats 97A, 97B,
The embedded bolt 18 is projected forward to 97C, and the fan motor
Insert the nut into the bolt hole of the mounting flange 171
Fasten with 1 and assemble the fan motor 17 from the front side of the shroud 9 (see FIG. 12). In FIG. 12, the radiator 10
Is the three mounting brackets 10 protruding from the header.
Equipped with A, 10B, 10C, 10D, each bracket 10A, 10
A radiator fixing bolt hole 101 and a cooler condenser fixing bolt hole 102 are formed in B, 10C and 10D, respectively.
The cooler condenser 11 includes four support brackets 11A, 11B, 11C and 11D having bolt holes. After mounting the fan motor 17 as described above by the assembling work from the front side of the shroud 9, the mounting bracket for the radiator 10
10A, 10B, 10C, 10D radiator fixing bolt holes 10
1 is aligned with the bolt hole 931 formed in the shroud side portion 93 of the shroud 9 and fixed with the bolt 19, and then the support brackets 11A, 11B, 11C, 11 of the cooler condenser 11 are fixed.
The bolt hole of D, the mounting bracket 10A of the radiator 10,
10B, 10C, 10D cooler condenser fixing bolt hole 10
Match with 2 and fix with bolts 20. With this configuration,
Radiator 10, cooler condenser 11 and fan motor
The assembly of 17 can be done by the work from the front side of the shroud 9 and the radiator is attached to the shroud 9 in advance.
The 10, the cooler condenser 11 and the fan motor 17 can be assembled into a unit. .

Further, as shown in FIG. 13, a main body 210 having a bolt hole 211 matching the bolt hole 931 of the shroud side portion 93 and matching the shroud side portion 93,
A radiator support bracket 212, which is provided on the upper and lower ends of the main body 210 and has bolt holes, and a cooler condenser support bracket 213, which is provided between the radiator support bracket 212 and has bolt holes, are provided. The radiator 10 and the cooler condenser 11 may be fastened to the shroud 9 via the integrated bracket 21 provided. With this configuration, the shroud side portion 93 of the shroud 9 made of resin can be reinforced, the rubber mount of the main body 210 can be integrated, and the work robot can collectively hold the work, thus improving the workability of assembly.

14 to 17, a center stay for connecting the shroud upper portion 91 and the shroud lower portion 92 is located at the front side of the radiator 10 and the cooler condenser 11 arranged on the front side of the shroud 9 and at a substantially central position. 12 is made of steel and is divided into a center stay upper 121 and a center stay lower 122, and the upper end 120 of the center stay upper 121 is a shroud upper portion 91.
The bolts are fastened to the bolt holes 912 at the center of the bolt, the lower end is fastened to the center stay lower 122 with the bolt 23, and the lock mechanism 22 is installed to the upper end 120. The center stay lower 122 is formed by gently bending, and the upper end of the center stay lower 122 is fixed by a bolt 23 inserted into a bolt hole 122A.
A bolt hole 122B is connected to the lower end of 121 and is fastened with a bolt 23 so that a bolt hole 122B is aligned with a bolt hole 921 in the central portion of the shroud drawer portion 92, and a space for installing the radiator 10 and the coura condenser 11 is secured.

With this construction, after the radiator 10 is moved forward by removing the bolts 23 and removing only the center stay lower 122 (dotted line position 10A in FIG. 16),
The radiator 10 can be detached downward, and the radiator 10 can be easily attached and detached, and the maintenance and inspection work can be simplified. Further, since the center stay 12 is made of steel, the resin shroud 9 can be sufficiently reinforced. Further, the lower mounting seat 81 provided on the cross member 8, particularly the seating surface of the lower mounting seat 81 in the center, is inclined forward and downward, that is, the upper end is located in front of the lower end (see FIG. 16). A work space for attaching and detaching the bolt 23 at the lower end of the center stay lower 122 can be easily secured.

When integrally molding the shroud 9 with resin,
Glass fibers are mixed in to increase the strength of the resin, but there are parts where long fibers of 50 mm or more are mixed,
By appropriately determining the portion into which the short fibers of less than mm are mixed, it is possible to increase the rigidity of the long fibers and to make the short fibers spread over the entire short fibers and to make the overall rigidity uniform. For example, by mixing long fibers only in the shroud upper part 91 and mixing short fibers in the other parts, the strength and rigidity of the shroud upper part 91 are increased,
The durability against the breaking force applied to the shroud upper portion 91 from the bonnet lock or the like is improved. When the cross member 8 is made of resin, or when the bumper reinforcement also serves as the cross member, long fibers are mixed in the shroud upper portion 91 and the shroud drawer portion 92, and short fibers are mixed in the other portions. Mix. Furthermore, the input from the front side frame 7 and the cross member 8
When the durability against the input from is required, the long fibers are mixed in the shroud side portion 93 and the shride panel 94.

[0022]

Since the present invention is constructed as described above, it has the following effects. A shroud attached to the front side of the cross member at the front of the body,
A front of a vehicle including a radiator attached to the front side of the shroud and a center stay located on the front side of the radiator and connecting the shroud upper and the lower part of the shroud.
In the partial structure, the center stay is the center stay.
Consists of upper and lower split structure of upper and center stay lower
The center stay lower is the center stay
Removably attached to the lid and shroud drawer
This makes it easy to attach and remove the radiator during maintenance and inspection. Further, by assembling the radiator from the front with respect to the shroud, the number of man-hours and the number of workers are reduced, and the assembling work is simplified. A shroud that is attached to the front side of the cross member at the frontmost part of the body and is made by resin molding the shroud upper, shroud side, and fan cowl.The shroud is resin-molded and is connected to the body side wheel apron end. To
And forming a substantially U-shaped cross-section which is open backward, Bo
Shroud bra arranged on the wheel apron on the day side
Insert the ket into the shroud upper end and at least
Fastening to the upper plate of the shroud upper end facilitates connection work and ensures secure fastening. Further, it is possible to secure sufficient strength, easily form a complicated shape, increase the vertical strength of the shroud, and absorb the torque of the motor. In the shroud attached to the front side of the cross member at the front of the body,
A pair of left and right fan cowl having a fan motor mounting part into the opening and the center-side fan provided, a plurality of fans <br/> Ru is supported the fan motor mounting portion to the fan cowl of the fan opening outer side Front structure of motor vehicle with motor stay
At least, the outer ends of the fan motor stays connected to at least the central part of the shroud upper and the shroud drawer are connected to each other, and the inner end connected to the fan motor mounting part of the fan motor stay is connected to the fan motor mounting part . By making it coincide with the motor fastening position, the vertical strength of the shroud can be increased and the motor torque can be absorbed. Since the shroud upper has a substantially U-shaped cross section that opens rearward and the rear end edge of the shroud upper is formed in a straight line, it is possible to improve the assembly work efficiency. In the shroud attached to the front side of the cross member at the forefront part of the body, the locking claw extending in the same plane as the upper surface of the shroud upper and the locking restraint formed in the crank-shaped cross section at the rear end of the shroud upper. By providing a clip consisting of a claw and protruding rearward from a straight line connecting the fastening points to the body side wheel apron at both ends of the shroud upper,
Various types of cords, wires, etc. can be securely held without reducing the strength of the shroud upper. A unit is formed by at least the shroud and a radiator assembled on the front side of the shroud, and at least the lower part of the unit is formed.
Is attached to the lower part of the body.
Lower part of the generator reaches near the mounting part of the lower part of the body.
Since the seating surface of the mounting seat on the lower side of the body is inclined rearward downward, a working space can be secured and the radiator can be moved downward. It is easy to attach and detach.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a front structure of an automobile according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an assembly view of a front structure of an automobile according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a shroud according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a front view of a shroud according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a shroud according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a front view of a shroud according to a different embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the shroud upper portion of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view of a fastening portion between the shroud and the shroud bracket of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the clip of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a shroud bracket according to the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a fan motor attached state according to the present invention.

FIG. 12 is an assembly diagram of a unit according to the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a radiator support bracket according to the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of a shroud and a center stay according to the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a center stay lower according to the present invention.

16 is a sectional view taken along line XX in FIG.

FIG. 17 is a front view of a shroud and a center stay according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 body, 2 engine room, 3 front fender 4 wheel house, 5 wheel apron, 6 shroud bracket 7 front side frame, 8 front body cross member 9 shroud, 91 shroud upper part, 92 shroud lower part 93 shroud side part, 94 Shroud side panel 10 Radiator, 11 Cooler condenser, 12 Center stay

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-3-284481 (JP, A) JP-A-4-63774 (JP, A) JP-A-3-213474 (JP, A) Actual Kaihei 3- 121986 (JP, U) Actual development 4-59581 (JP, U) Actual development 2-107574 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B62D 25/08

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. A shroud mounted on the front side of a frontmost cross member of a body, a radiator mounted on the front side of the shroud, and a center located on the front side of the radiator for connecting the shroud upper and the lower part of the shroud.
In the front structure of an automobile including a stay,
Tarstay is center stay upper and center stay
A center split structure
A on the center stay upper and shroud drawer
The front structure of an automobile, which is detachably attached to the front structure. 2. A shroud which is mounted on the front side of a cross member at the frontmost part of the body, and which is formed by resin-molding a shroud upper, a shroud side, and a fan cowl. The shroud is resin-molded and connected to a body-side wheel apron part. that the shroud upper end, so as to form a substantially U-shaped cross-section which is open backward, the body side ho
Install the shroud bracket on the ear apron.
Insert into shroud upper end and at least shroud
A front structure of an automobile characterized by being fastened to an upper plate of an end portion of a door upper . 3. A shroud attached to a front side of a frontmost cross member of a body, wherein a fan opening and
A pair of left and right fan cowls with a fan motor mounting part are provided on the center side, and the fan motor mounting part is opened for the fan.
In the front structure of a motor vehicle comprising a plurality of fan motor stays Ru is supported on the fan cowl of the outer side, thereby connecting together the outer ends of the fan motor stays connected to the central portion of at least the shroud upper and shroud lower A front structure of an automobile, wherein an inner end portion of the fan motor stay connected to the fan motor mounting portion is matched with a motor fastening position with respect to the fan motor mounting portion. 4. The front structure for an automobile according to claim 2 , wherein the shroud upper has a substantially U-shaped cross section that is opened rearward, and the rear edge of the shroud upper is formed in a straight line. 5. A shroud attached to the front side of a frontmost cross member of a body, wherein a rear end of the shroud upper is formed with a lock receiving pawl extending in the same plane as the upper surface of the shroud upper and a crank-shaped cross section. a clip consisting of been locking suppressed nails, claims to protrude rearward from the line connecting the engagement point of the body-side wheel apron at both ends of the shroud upper, characterized in that provided in
The front structure of the automobile according to item 2 or 4 . 6. A unit is formed by at least a shroud and a radiator assembled on the front side of the shroud, and at least the lower part of the unit is attached to the lower part of the body.
In the front structure of an automobile, the lower part of the radiator is
A front structure of a vehicle , which reaches a vicinity of a lower mounting portion, and in which a seat surface of a mounting seat on the lower side of the body is inclined rearward downward.