JP3797062B2 - Vehicle front structure - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to the structure of the front portion of a vehicle.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In a vehicle, an upper part of a front fender is fixed to an upper part of a pair of left and right wheel apron disposed in front of a passenger compartment so as to be at a predetermined height position. By fixing at the predetermined height position, the height of the upper part of the front fender (more specifically, the inner edge part in the vehicle width direction) and the bonnet (side edge part) disposed between the front fenders is increased. Matched.
[0003]
By the way, when it is assumed that an obstacle is dropped across the bonnet and the front fender, the vehicle width of the front fender (the vehicle width of the front fender) It has been proposed that the inner end of the direction is easily displaced downward. In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-180350, the vertical wall portion extending downward from the inner side edge in the vehicle width direction of the front fender is bent and set in a “<” shape so as to receive a downward load exceeding a predetermined value. In such a case, the vertical wall portion is easily crushed and deformed. And it has also been proposed that the front fender is more easily displaced downward in the front part of the vehicle body than in the rear part of the vehicle body by making the degree of bending of the dogleg shape different in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body.
[0004]
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-180350 discloses a vertical wall portion extending downward from the upper portion of the front fender and fixing the vertical wall portion to the wheel apron upper portion. The overhanging shape is such that the inner edge is considerably larger than the vertical wall and extends inward in the vehicle width direction so that the overhanging part can be easily deformed downward when a downward load exceeding a predetermined value is applied. What has been proposed is proposed.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in any of the publications described in the above publications, it is a downward deformation using only the load acting directly on the upper part of the front fender among the downward load received from the obstacle, and the load from the obstacle is reduced. There is room for improvement in terms of effective use.
[0006]
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and its purpose is to reduce downward displacement received by a bonnet located in the immediate vicinity of the front fender when receiving downward load from an obstacle. An object of the present invention is to provide a structure of a front portion of a vehicle that can be effectively used to displace the upper portion of a front fender more reliably.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the following solution is adopted in the present invention. That is, as described in claim 1 in the claims,
In the structure of the front part of the vehicle in which the upper part of the front fender is fixed to the upper part of the wheel apron via a connecting part extending from the boundary edge to the bonnet,
A first vertical wall portion extending downward from the boundary edge portion and a lower end portion of the first vertical wall portion in the vehicle width direction between the boundary edge portion and a fixing portion for the wheel apron upper portion. A lateral wall portion extending toward the side and having a recess opened upward, and a second vertical wall portion extending downward from an inner side end in the vehicle width direction of the lateral wall portion,
The concave portion is formed so as to have at least inner walls facing each other in the vehicle width direction,
On the side edge of the bonnet, a convex pressing portion that faces the concave portion from above is formed,
When the bonnet receives a downward load greater than or equal to a predetermined value, the pressing portion enters the recess and the recess is pressed by the pressing portion, whereby the connecting portion is deformed and the front fender is deformed. The upper part of is displaced downward,
It is like that. A preferred mode based on the above solution is as described in claim 2 and the following claims.
[0008]
【The invention's effect】
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the concave portion is formed in the lateral wall portion constituting the intermediate portion of the connecting portion, so that the deformation of the connecting portion when receiving a large downward load, that is, the upper portion of the front fender. Can be effectively displaced downward. Further, when the obstacle comes into contact with the bonnet located near the upper part of the front fender, the concave part is pressed downward through the pressing part, that is, the downward load acting on the hood lowers the upper part of the front fender. It is effectively used as a load for displacing to the side, and is more preferable in reducing the impact on the obstacle.
According to the second aspect of the present invention, the effect corresponding to the first aspect can be more effectively exhibited by forming the concave portion and the pressing portion over substantially the entire length of the front fender in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body. .
[0009]
According to the third aspect of the present invention, a specific fixing mode for the wheel apron upper portion of the front fender upper portion via the connecting portion is provided.
According to the invention described in claim 4, the pressing portion can be formed by effectively utilizing the side edge portion of the bonnet.
[0010]
According to the invention described in claim 5, the rigidity of the pressing portion can be sufficiently ensured, and the effect corresponding to claim 1 can be effectively exhibited.
According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, a vertical gap can be ensured between the concave portion and the pressing portion to ensure a reliable closing function of the bonnet. Further, when an obstacle comes into contact with the bonnet, the setting of the gap can be compensated, and the pressing action of the bonnet below the upper portion of the front fender can be reliably obtained at an early timing.
[0011]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 shows a front portion of a vehicle to which the present invention is applied. In FIG. 1, 1 is a bonnet (lid member at the front of a vehicle body) that is opened and closed in the vertical direction, and 2 is a pair of left and right front fenders. It is. Details of the mounting portion of the front fender 2 are shown in FIG. In FIG. 2, 3 is a wheel apron. As is well known, the wheel apron 3 constitutes the left and right side walls of an engine room (which may be a trunk room when the engine is arranged at the rear of the vehicle compartment) that is configured in front of the vehicle compartment. The upper part 3a of the wheel apron 3 has a closed cross-sectional structure extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body in the embodiment.
[0012]
The upper part of the front fender 2 is fixed to the upper part 3a of the wheel apron 3 through a connecting part 10 formed integrally with the front fender 2. The connecting portion 10 will be described. First, a boundary edge (side edge) that is a parting line on the appearance of the bonnet 1 in the upper portion of the front fender 2 is indicated by reference numeral 2a. The connecting portion 10 includes a first vertical wall portion 11 extending downward from the boundary edge portion 2a, a horizontal wall portion 12 extending inward in the vehicle width direction from the lower end portion of the first vertical wall portion 11, and a vehicle of the horizontal wall portion 12. It has the 2nd vertical wall part 13 extended in the downward direction from the width direction inner side, and the attaching part 14 extended from the lower end part of the 2nd vertical wall part 13 to the vehicle width direction inward side.
[0013]
Both vertical wall portions 11 and 13 extend substantially straight downward. The lateral wall portion 12 forms a concave portion 12a that is concave upward. In the embodiment, the lateral wall portion 12 is formed so as to be substantially semicircular as a whole. The recess 12a, that is, each end in the vehicle width direction of the horizontal wall portion 12 is smoothly connected to both the vertical wall portions 11 and 12 in an arc shape. The attachment portion 14 is fixed to the upper portion 3a of the wheel apron 3 (in the embodiment, fixed by welding).
[0014]
The connection part 10 (each part 11-14 which comprises) is extended over the full length of the front fender 1 in the front-back direction. And the attachment part 14 also comprises a rain rail. In addition, the vehicle width direction outer end portions of the first vertical wall portion 11 and the horizontal wall portion 12 (particularly, substantially the center position in the vehicle width direction of the recess 12a) are positioned outward in the vehicle width direction from the wheel apron upper portion 3a, and will be described later. Thus, it is set so that interference with the wheel apron upper part 3a is reliably avoided during the downward deformation.
[0015]
The bonnet 1 is mainly composed of a bonnet body 21 that constitutes the external appearance of the bonnet 1, and a reinforcement 22 disposed on the inner surface side of the bonnet 21. At least the side edges of the bonnet body 21 and the reinforcement 22 are joined to each other (welded in the embodiment). A side edge portion of the bonnet 1, that is, a joint portion between the bonnet main body 21 and the reinforcement 22 is formed as a flange portion 23, and is bent so as to extend almost straight downward. It faces 12a. That is, the flange portion 23 constitutes a pressing portion, and the flange portion 23 (the lower end thereof) is set to have a predetermined gap L with respect to the recess 12a when the bonnet 1 is closed. ing.
[0016]
Of the bonnet body 1, the height in the vicinity of the side edge portion near the boundary edge portion 2a of the front fender 2 is set to be higher by a predetermined amount than the height of the boundary edge portion 2a of the front fender 2, The predetermined height is substantially coincident with the size of the gap L. More specifically, in the bonnet 1 (particularly, the bonnet body 21 constituting the appearance), the height position of the upper end 23a of the flange portion 23 is substantially coincident with the height position of the boundary edge portion 2a. A short inclined portion 24 is formed so as to gradually increase from the upper end 23a toward the inner side in the vehicle width direction. From the upper end 24a of the inclined portion 24, it is substantially horizontal toward the inner side in the vehicle width direction. It is growing. As a matter of course, the same structure as that of the right side portion of the vehicle body shown in FIG.
[0017]
Now, consider the case where the obstacle S abuts over the bonnet 1 and the upper part of the front fender 2. When a predetermined downward load or more is applied from this obstacle, the bonnet 1 is pressed and displaced downward (unlike the front fender 2, the bonnet 1 is easily displaced downward). Due to the downward displacement of the bonnet 1, the flange portion 23 presses the concave portion 12 a downward, whereby the connecting portion 10 is deformed as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 2, and the upper portion of the front fender 2 is lowered downward. Displaced. Thereby, the impact to the obstacle S is relieved. In particular, since the upper end 24a of the inclined portion 24 of the bonnet 1 is at a position higher than the boundary edge 2a that is the corner of the front fender 2, before the obstacle S strongly contacts the boundary edge 2a of the front fender 2. Then, the downward displacement of the bonnet 1 is started, and the obstacle S is prevented from coming into strong contact with the boundary edge 2a.
[0018]
Although the embodiment has been described above, the front fender 2 is not limited to a metal plate but can be formed of a synthetic resin. Similarly, the bonnet 1 (bonnet body, reinforcement 22) is not limited to a metal plate, and can be formed of a synthetic resin.
The object of the present invention is not limited to what is explicitly stated, but also implicitly includes providing what is substantially preferred or expressed as an advantage.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a front portion of a vehicle to which the present invention is applied.
2 is a cross-sectional view corresponding to line X2-X2 in FIG. 1;
[Explanation of symbols]
1: Bonnet 2: Front fender 2a: Inner edge (boundary edge) in the vehicle width direction
3: Wheel apron 3a: Upper part of wheel apron 10: Connecting part 11: First vertical wall part 12: Horizontal wall part 12a: Recessed part 13: Second vertical wall part 14: Mounting part 21: Bonnet body 22: Reinforcement 23: Flange part (pressing part)
23a: Upper end of the flange portion 24: Inclined portion 24a: Upper end of the inclined portion S: Obstacle L: Gap

Claims (6)

In the structure of the front part of the vehicle in which the upper part of the front fender is fixed to the upper part of the wheel apron via a connecting part extending from the boundary edge to the bonnet,
A first vertical wall portion extending downward from the boundary edge portion and a lower end portion of the first vertical wall portion in the vehicle width direction between the boundary edge portion and a fixing portion for the wheel apron upper portion. A lateral wall portion that extends toward the side and is formed with a recess that opens upward, and a second vertical wall portion that extends downward from an inner side end portion in the vehicle width direction of the lateral wall portion,
The concave portion is formed so as to have at least inner walls facing each other in the vehicle width direction,
On the side edge of the bonnet, a convex pressing portion that faces the concave portion from above is formed,
When the bonnet receives a predetermined downward load, the pressing portion enters the concave portion and the concave portion is pressed by the pressing portion, whereby the connecting portion is deformed and the front fender is deformed. The upper part of is displaced downward,
The structure of the vehicle front part characterized by this. In claim 1,
Each of the concave portion and the pressing portion is formed long over substantially the entire length of the front fender in the vehicle longitudinal direction.
The structure of the vehicle front part characterized by this. In claim 1,
The connecting portion has an attachment portion extending inward in the vehicle width direction from the lower end portion of the second vertical wall portion,
The mounting portion is fixed to the upper wall portion of the upper part of the wheel apron,
The structure of the vehicle front part characterized by this. In claim 1,
The pressing portion is formed by a flange portion extending downward from the side edge portion of the bonnet.
The structure of the vehicle front part characterized by this. In claim 4,
The bonnet has a bonnet body and a bonnet reinforcement,
The bonnet body and the reinforcement are joined at least at the side edge,
The flange portion constituting the pressing portion is constituted by a joint portion between the bonnet body and a bonnet reinforcement,
The structure of the vehicle front part characterized by this. In claim 1,
In a state where the bonnet is closed, the lower end of the pressing portion is set at a position that is higher than the concave portion by a predetermined gap,
The vicinity of the boundary edge of the front fender among the side edges of the bonnet is set to be higher than the height position of the boundary edge of the front fender, corresponding to the gap.
The structure of the vehicle front part characterized by this.

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