JP3435884B2 - Vehicle instrument panel 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 vehicle instrument panel structure.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 6 shows a conventional instrument panel structure for an automobile. Reference numeral 1 denotes an instrument panel integrally molded by injection molding or the like with an appropriate synthetic resin material. Various instrument panel accessory parts are assembled in the process.

Of the instrument panel accessory parts, the harness 2 and the air duct 3 for air conditioning, which are connected to the electric parts, are mounted on the rear surface of the instrument panel 1 and formed on one side of the instrument panel 1. The meter 5 is inserted and fixed to the meter mounting portion 4 from the front side, and the airbag unit 7 is inserted and fixed from the front side into the airbag mounting hole 6 formed in the other side portion.

This similar structure can be obtained, for example, from Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 54-14.
No. 9041 is disclosed.

[0005]

Since the meter 5 and the air bag unit 7 are mounted from the front side of the instrument panel 1, these parts can be assembled to the instrument panel 1 at either the main line or the sub line of the outfitting process. Yes, but harness 2 and center duct 3
Since the air duct 3 consisting of a and a pair of side ducts 3b, 3b is mounted on the back surface of the instrument panel 1, these harness 2 and air duct 3 cannot be assembled on the main line, and the instrument panel 1 is sub-lined on the sub-line. It is necessary to assemble, and along with this, the assembly of air duct accessories such as the duct grille will also be done in the sub-line.

For this reason, the mounting work order and mounting direction of the instrument panel accessory parts are restricted, and the number of assembling steps and the assembling work time increase, which is disadvantageous in terms of cost.

Further, since the harness 2, the air duct 3 and the accessory parts thereof cannot be assembled on the main line as described above, it is not possible to rearrange the parts assembly on the sub-line and the main line, resulting in a vehicle production takt time. When fluctuates, the working efficiency of the sub-line fluctuates greatly and the work efficiency decreases.

On the other hand, when assembling the various instrument panel accessory components in a sub-line, an automated process as shown in FIG. 8 is incorporated.

Since the harness 2 has a low self-shape retention property and a large number of pull-out branch lines, it is difficult to automate the assembly.
In the first step S ₁ , the worker h manually attaches the harness 2 to the back surface of the instrument panel 1 set on the jig P, and the instrument panel 1 in which the harness 2 is sub-assembled is sent to the automation line AL.

In this automated line AL, the second step S ₂
In sets air duct 3 by the robot Ma on the back of the instrument panel 1, robot M in the third step S ₃
The air duct 3 is fastened and fixed to the instrument panel 1 by b.

In the fourth step S ₄ , the instrument panel 1 is turned upside down together with the jig P by the reversing machine TM, and in the fifth step S ₅ , the meter 5 and the air bag unit 7 are moved by the robot Mc to the meter of the instrument panel 1. Mounting part 4
And the air bag mounting hole 6, and in the sixth step S ₆ , the robot Md operates the meter 5, the air bag unit 7
Is fastened and fixed to the instrument panel 1.

The instrument panel 1 in which the instrument panel auxiliary parts are sub-assembled in the automated process AL is transferred to the main line and assembled to the vehicle body.

However, as described above, in the automated process AL, the meter 5 and the air bag unit 7 are assembled from the front side of the instrument panel 1, so that a dedicated reversing machine TM for reversing the instrument panel 1 to the front side is indispensable. It is undeniable that this will be disadvantageous in terms of man-hours and costs.

When the meter 5 is attached to the meter mounting portion 4, the tightening direction of the upper and lower flanges 5a and 5b of the meter 5 is as shown by arrows a and b depending on the molding of the meter mounting portion 4 as shown in FIG. Since it is different from one direction, a complicated automatic machine is required, which becomes more and more disadvantageous in terms of cost.

Further, since the instrument panel 1 has two basic shapes, that is, a right-hand steering wheel specification and a left-hand steering wheel specification, the assembly line and the automation device need two kinds of right-hand steering wheel specifications and left-hand steering wheel specifications. Equipment costs will rise even higher.

Therefore, according to the present invention, various instrument panel accessory components can be easily assembled from one direction and can be assembled on either the main line or the sub line, thereby simplifying the automation process of the assembly. With 1
The present invention provides a vehicle instrument panel structure capable of assembling a right-hand drive type and a left-hand drive type instrument panel in one assembly line, thereby achieving a significant cost reduction.

[0017]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a lower panel for fixing an instrument panel to a vehicle body side, and a lower panel having openings such as a meter display window, an air bag mounting hole and an air outlet. It is configured with an upper panel that is externally fitted and mounted on the lower panel, and a component mounting shelf that can mount various instrument panel accessory components from above is formed on the lower panel, and a flange portion is provided at the front end of the component mounting shelf.
It is integrally formed and the front of the base of the flange is formed.
The harness accommodating part that bends and protrudes inward is recessed in the vehicle width direction
However, on the rear side of the flange, an air duct lock is installed.
And fix the air duct to the component mounting shelf.
The feature is that a duct fixing part is provided .

According to a second aspect of the present invention, a component mounting portion for mounting the meter and the airbag unit on the left and right sides of the component mounting shelf portion according to the first aspect is formed. I am trying.

[0019]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, various instrument panel accessory components can be assembled from above on the component mounting shelf of the lower panel, and the upper panel is externally fitted and mounted on the lower panel. Assembling of various instrument panel accessory parts to the lower panel and the upper panel can be done arbitrarily on either the sub-line or the main line, and the sub-line and main line can be assembled in consideration of the work sequence, work time, and work man-hours. It is possible to freely change the knitting of the attachments and significantly improve the work efficiency.

Further, since various instrument panel accessory parts can be assembled in one direction from above on the component mounting shelf of the lower panel, the assembly can be easily automated and the number of working steps can be reduced and the equipment can be installed. It can be simplified.

According to the second aspect, the meter and the air bag unit can be mounted on the component mounting portions on both the left and right sides of the component mounting shelf in the left and right directions. Therefore, one type of lower panel can be used for the right handle and the left handle. Can be shared with
Since it is possible to assemble instrument panels of both specifications on one assembly line, one automation line can be used even when assembling is automated, which can reduce the number of work processes and work time and simplify the equipment. Significant cost reduction can be achieved.

[0022]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

1 to 4, reference numeral 10 denotes an instrument panel including a lower panel 11 fixed to the vehicle body side and an upper panel 12 externally fitted and mounted on the lower panel 11. The lower panel 11 and the upper panel 12 are both made of an appropriate synthetic resin. The material is integrally molded by injection molding or the like.

In the lower panel 11, a component mounting shelf 14 having panel sides 15 fixed to the vehicle body panel at both ends is integrally formed on the upper side of a center lower 13 to which an audio device (not shown) is assembled. .

A flange portion 1 is provided at the front end of the component mounting shelf portion 14.
6 is integrally formed so as to rise, and a harness accommodating portion 17 that is bent forward and protrudes is formed in the molded base portion in the vehicle width direction.

A plurality of hook portions 18 for locking an air duct 24, which will be described later, are formed upward on the rear side of the flange portion 16, and a plurality of harness portions 20 for holding the harness 20 are provided at the upper edge portion of the harness accommodating portion 17. The holder claw pieces 19 are provided so as to project, and the harness 20 is pushed into the harness accommodating portion 17 obliquely from above and is firmly held by these holder claw pieces 19.

A pair of duct fixing portions 21 is provided on both left and right sides of the center of the component mounting shelf 14 in the front-rear direction.

Further, behind the duct fixing portions 21, 21 and 21, 21, a component mounting portion 2 capable of mounting the meter 27 and the airbag unit 28 in a left-right manner.
Steps 2 and 23 are formed into a substantially horizontal rectangular shelf.

These component mounting portions 22 and 23 are formed to have the same standard on the left and right, and screw holes 22a,
23a is formed.

The air duct 24 for air conditioning is integrally formed with a duct center portion 24a and duct side portions 24b, 24b on both sides, and the flange portion 1 is provided on the front upper edge thereof.
A plurality of hook portions 25 for engaging with the hook portions 18 of No. 6 are formed downward, and brackets 26 are provided on the lower rear edge at positions corresponding to the duct fixing portions 21.

The air duct 24 has a hook portion 2 from above.
5 is dropped onto the hook portion 18 to be fixed thereto, and the bracket 26 is mounted on the duct fixing portion 21 by fixing it with screws from above.

Meter 27 and airbag unit 28
At the same position on each lower edge of
Brackets 27a and 28a are provided so as to correspond to the screw holes 22a and / or 23a of 2, 23.

The meter 27 and the air bag unit 28 are placed on the component mounting portion 22 or 23,
The brackets 27a, 28a are fitted with their screw holes 27b, 2
8b is fitted in the screw hole 22a or 23a and fixed by screws from above.

The upper panel 12 has a meter display window 30,
Openings such as an air bag mounting hole 31 and a plurality of air outlets 32 are formed. The upper panel 12 has a meter display window 30 on the right side and an air bag mounting hole 31.
Is provided on the left side, the meter display window 30 is provided on the left side, and the airbag mounting hole 31 is provided on the right side with the left handle specification 12L. The airbag mounting holes 31 are provided at positions corresponding to the component mounting portions 22 and 23 on both sides of the lower panel 11.

The air outlet 32 has a right-hand drive specification 1
Both the 2R and the left-hand drive specification 12L are provided at the same position.

In the example shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the air bag grid 33 is mounted in the air bag mounting hole 32.
The air bag grid 33 can be mounted on either a sub line or a main line described later.

The upper panel 12 is externally fitted to the lower panel 11 and fixed to the front and rear edges of the lower panel 11 with screws from above and from the front side.

According to the structure of the above embodiment, the harness 2
0, the air duct 24, the meter 27, the airbag unit 28, and other instrument panel accessory parts can be mounted on the component mounting shelf 14 of the lower panel 11 from above, and the upper panel 12 can be attached to the lower panel 11. Since they are fitted on the outside, the instrument panel accessory parts and the upper panel 12 can be assembled to the lower panel 11 at any of the sub line and the main line.

Therefore, it is possible to freely change the assembly of the instrument panel accessory parts and the upper panel 12 to the sub-line and the main line in consideration of the work order, work time, work man-hour, and the like. Even in the case of this assembly change, the working efficiency can be remarkably improved because the operation efficiency of the sub line can be arbitrarily changed so that the production tact time of the vehicle changes.

Further, in the present embodiment, the lower panel 11
Since the component mounting portions 22 and 23 for mounting the meter 27 and the airbag unit 28 on the right and left sides are formed on both left and right sides of the component mounting shelf portion 14 of the vehicle, the vehicle can be installed in the right steering wheel specification and the left steering wheel specification. 1 even if specifications differ
Since the lower panels 11 of various types can be shared, the left and right instrument panels 10 can be assembled on one assembly line.

Therefore, even in the case of automating the assembling, it is possible to assemble the instrument panel 10 with both left and right handle specifications with one automation line and one type of automation device specifications, and it is possible to reduce the number of working steps and working time. Not only can it be shortened, but the equipment can also be simplified, resulting in a significant cost reduction.

FIG. 5 shows an example in which an automation process is adopted when the instrument panel accessory parts and the upper panel 12 are assembled in a sub line.

Since the harness 20 has a low self-shape retaining property and a large number of pull-out branches, it is difficult to automate the assembling. Therefore, in the first step S ₁ , the worker h manually assembles the harness 20 as in the conventional case. However, in the first step S ₁ , the lower panel 11 is set in the jig P in a state in which the lower panel 11 is directed to the front side, and the harness 20 is obliquely pushed into the harness accommodating portion 17 of the component mounting shelf portion 14 from above to hold the holder claw piece. It is held by 19 and mounted.

Then, the lower panel 11 in which the harness 20 is sub-assembled is sent to the automation line AL, and in the second step S ₂ , the air duct 24 is fed by the robot Ma.
Is set on the component mounting shelf 14 and fastened and fixed with screws from above.

In the third step S ₃ , the robot Mb sets the meter 27 and the air bag unit 28 on the component mounting portions 22 and 23 on both the left and right sides of the component mounting shelf 14, and in the fourth step S ₄ , the robot Mc causes the robot Mc to move. The meter 27 and the airbag unit 28 are fastened and fixed with screws from above.

When the assembly of the meter 27 and the air bag unit 28 is completed in the automation line AL, the fifth step S
_{At 5} , the upper panel 12 is externally fitted onto the lower panel 11 from above by the manual work of the operator h and is fastened and fixed.

The instrument panel 10 sub-assembled in the sub line in this manner is transferred to the main line and assembled to the vehicle body.

Here, the assembling of the upper panel 12 in the fifth step S ₅ is carried out manually by the operator h in this example, but this can of course be automated by a robot.

The instrument panel accessory components such as the harness 20, the air duct 24, the meter 27, and the airbag unit 28 are mounted on the component mounting shelf portion 14 of the lower panel 11 from above and are mounted in the mounting direction. Since it is in one direction, the air duct 24, the meter 27,
Even when the assembling of the air bag unit 28 is automated as described above, it is possible to simplify the equipment including the robots Ma to Mc because a dedicated reversing machine as in the prior art is not required and the operation is simple in the vertical direction. it can.

Further, by selectively mounting the meter 27 and the airbag unit 28 in the third step S ₃ in a left-right-handed manner, it is possible to meet the right-hand steering wheel specification and the left-hand steering wheel specification, and at the same time, the fifth step S ₅ By selecting the upper panel 12 from the right handle specification 12R and the left handle specification 12L and fitting the upper panel 12 onto the lower panel 11, the same right sub-line and left-hand drive instrument can be installed on the same sub-line and with one type of automation device. Mention panel 10
Can be assembled.

[0051]

As described above, according to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

According to the first aspect, various instrument panel accessory components such as a harness, an air duct, a meter, and an air bag unit can be assembled on the component mounting shelf of the lower panel from above, and the upper panel is Since it is designed to be externally fitted to the lower panel, assembly of these various instrument panel accessory parts and upper panel to the lower panel can be done arbitrarily on either the sub-line or the main line. In consideration of this, it is possible to freely change the composition of the sub-line and the main line, and also to prevent the operational efficiency of the sub-line from decreasing when the production tact time of the vehicle fluctuates. Since it can be changed arbitrarily, work efficiency can be remarkably improved and it greatly contributes to cost reduction. It is possible.

Further, since the various instrument panel accessory components can be assembled on the component mounting shelf of the lower panel in one direction from above, the assembly can be easily automated and the automation equipment can be simplified. The number of working steps and the equipment cost can be reduced, and the cost can be further reduced.

According to the second aspect, the meter and the air bag unit can be mounted on the component mounting portions on both the left and right sides of the component mounting shelf in a left-right-handed manner, so that one type of lower panel can be used for the right-hand steering wheel specification and the left-hand steering wheel specification. Can be shared with
Since it is possible to assemble the left and right handlebar instrument panels on one assembly line, even when automating the assembly, it is possible to assemble the left and right handlebar instrument panels with one automation line and one type of automation device specifications. Therefore, the number of working steps and working time can be shortened, and the equipment can be simplified to further reduce the cost.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a relationship between a lower panel and various instrument panel accessory parts according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a right-hand drive upper panel used in the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an upper panel with a left-hand drive specification used in the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a process drawing showing an example of a subline of the assembly line of the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing a conventional structure.

7 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line BB of FIG.

FIG. 8 is a process chart showing an example of a subline of an assembly line having a conventional structure.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 Instrument panel 11 Lower panel 12 Upper panel 14 Parts mounting shelf 20 harness 22, 23 Parts mounting part 24 air ducts 27 meters 28 Airbag unit 30 meter display window 31 Airbag mounting hole 32 Air outlet

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B60K 37/00-37/06

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A lower panel for fixing an instrument panel to a vehicle body side, a meter display window, an air bag mounting hole,
It is composed of an upper panel that has an opening such as an air outlet and is externally fitted and mounted on the lower panel, and a component mounting shelf for mounting various instrument panel accessory components from above is formed on the lower panel and component mounting. On the front edge of the shelf
Has a flange portion integrally formed, and the flange portion
A harness accommodating part that curves forward and protrudes from the forming base
It is recessed in the width direction, and the air duct is on the rear side of the flange.
A locking part is provided and the air duct is attached to the component mounting shelf.
An instrument panel structure for an automobile, characterized in that a duct fixing portion for fixing the vehicle is provided . 2. An instrument panel structure for an automobile according to claim 1, wherein a component mounting portion for mounting the meter and the airbag unit on the left and right sides of the component mounting shelf portion is mountable on the left and right. .