JP4117547B2 - Duct for vehicle - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a vehicle duct, and more specifically, a first duct outer wall portion and a second duct outer wall portion that are opposed to each other while maintaining a required space, and the second duct outer wall portion to the first duct. The present invention relates to a vehicle duct that includes a support portion that protrudes toward the outer wall portion and supports the first duct outer wall portion from the inside.
[0002]
[Prior art]
For example, as illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10, in a bonnet type automobile (vehicle), an engine 20 is mounted in a front engine room 12 of the vehicle body 10. As is well known, the engine 20 is an internal combustion engine that rotates by burning an air-fuel mixture obtained by mixing clean air introduced through an air cleaner 22 and fuel supplied from a fuel tank.・ Continuously and stably supplying external air at high speeds is always essential. However, since the temperature of the air in the engine room 12 rises due to the heat generated from the engine 20 itself, if this high-temperature air is introduced into the engine 20, the combustion efficiency is lowered and the output is reduced. For this reason, a vehicle duct 30 for introducing outside air connected to the air cleaner 22 is disposed on the front side of the engine room 12, and cool air outside the vehicle is efficiently taken in during traveling so that the air cleaner 22. To guide you.
[0003]
Here, the vehicle duct 30 takes into account (1) efficiently taking in external air, (2) avoiding interference with other devices and parts installed in the engine room 12, and the like. In general, the front of the vehicle body 12 on the front side of the engine room 12, that is, the bonnet 14 that closes the engine room 12 so that the engine room 12 can be opened and closed, and the radiator support for fixing the radiator 18 located below the hood 14 ( It is desirable to install in a gap defined between the vehicle body component 16). However, as is apparent from FIG. 10, it is often difficult to ensure a large space in the vertical direction because of the vehicle body shape. As a result, the external shape of the vehicle duct 30 is inevitably changed. It must be a wide flat shape with the height dimension kept low so as to fit in the gap.
[0004]
Therefore, for example, as shown in FIG. 11, the vehicle duct 30 includes a reverse tray-shaped first duct outer wall portion 34 and a tray-shaped second duct outer wall portion 36 that are opposed to each other while holding a required space. A flat duct body 32 is formed, and an air intake port 38 is opened at a front end portion of the duct body 32, and an air delivery port 40 is opened at a side end portion of the duct body 32. When such a vehicle duct 30 is disposed between the bonnet 14 and the radiator support 16, the first duct outer wall portion 34 is positioned close to the back side of the bonnet 14, and the second duct outer wall The portion 36 comes close to the radiator support 16, the air intake port 38 is directed to the front of the vehicle body, and the air outlet port 40 is connected to the air cleaner 22 (FIGS. 12 and 13).
[0005]
Here, the vehicle duct 30 is made of a synthetic resin made of a resin material such as polyethylene (PE) or polypropylene (PP) in order to reduce the weight, for example, a molding technique such as an injection molding technique or a blow molding technique. It is molded by. However, as described above, each of the first duct outer wall portion 34 and the second duct outer wall portion 36 is formed in a flat shape, and the air intake port 38 is formed in a horizontally long shape. Because of its low rigidity, it is easily elastically deformed. Accordingly, when external air is sucked through the air intake port 38 when the engine 20 is started, if the pressure difference between the inside and outside of the duct (duct internal pressure <atmospheric pressure) increases, the first duct outer wall 34 and the second duct The duct outer wall portion 36 may be deformed in a concave manner in close proximity to each other, and in some cases, the opening area of the air intake port 38 may be reduced to be in a substantially closed state. If the vehicular duct 30 is deformed in this way, necessary external air is not supplied to the engine 20, which causes inconveniences such as a decrease in output or failure of the engine 20. Furthermore, there is a disadvantage that new noise is generated due to resonance of the first duct outer wall portion 34 and the second duct outer wall portion 36 due to noise during driving of the engine 20.
[0006]
Therefore, in order to avoid the above-described inconvenience, as shown in FIGS. 11 to 13, a support portion 42 having a required width protruding from the second duct outer wall portion 36 into the duct body 32 is provided as the second duct outer wall portion. A structure in which the first duct outer wall portion 34 is supported by the support portion 42 from the inside is proposed. By providing such a support portion 42, even if a pressure difference between the inside and outside of the duct (duct internal pressure <atmospheric pressure) occurs, the first duct outer wall portion 34 and the second duct outer wall portion 36 are deformed so as to be close to each other. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the inconvenience of the air intake port 38 from being closed, and to prevent resonance between the outer wall portions 34 and 36 of both ducts. In addition, the technique relevant to this is disclosed by patent document 1, for example.
[0007]
[Patent Document 1]
Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 1-174561 [0008]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, the establishment of safety measures related to pedestrian protection has been demanded in recent years, and when a pedestrian collides, the body is appropriately deformed by the impact, so-called `` walking ''"Injury alleviation body" has been developed. That is, when a traveling vehicle accidentally collides with a pedestrian, first, the front bumper of the vehicle collides with the pedestrian's legs as a first step, and the pedestrian's waist as a second step. It has been analyzed that the chest and head of the pedestrian collide with the rear edge of the bonnet 14 or the windshield as a third stage. For this reason, in the bonnet 14, when a pedestrian collides, a structure that deforms in a concave manner by the impact force is taken, and measures are taken to reduce the degree of injury of the pedestrian while absorbing the impact due to the collision. ing.
[0009]
However, as described above, the vehicular duct 30 is disposed on the back side of the front edge of the bonnet 14 so that there is almost no gap, and the hood 14 has a concave deformation. Since the allowable deformation allowable space is hardly defined, when the body of the pedestrian collides with the front edge of the bonnet 14, the bonnet 14 is only slightly deformed and the first duct outer wall of the vehicle duct 30. The part 34 comes into contact. In addition, as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, a part of the support portion 42 provided for improving the rigidity of the vehicle duct 30 is formed as an “impact receiving portion 42 </ b> A” between the bonnet 14 and the radiator support 16. Since it is located between them, the duct body 32 is not easily crushed when the support strength of the impact receiving portion 42A is large. In particular, the tip portion of the impact receiving portion 42A has a curved surface, so that the rigidity is further increased and the support strength is increased. In other words, the conventional vehicle duct 30 restricts the concave deformation of the bonnet 14 due to the collision with the pedestrian and causes a reduction in the shock absorption performance, thereby reducing the injury degree of the pedestrian. There was a problem inherent in the plan.
[0010]
If the formation position and the formation size of the support portion 42 are considered not to be positioned between the bonnet 14 and the radiator support 16, the above-described disadvantages can be avoided. However, when the formation position of the support portion 42 is changed in this way, the first duct outer wall portion 34 and the second duct outer wall portion 36 are between the air intake port 38 and the front end of the support portion 42. This is not supported at all, and partial elastic deformation at the non-supporting portion is allowed, and the previous problem at the time of air introduction is regenerated, and the opening area of the air intake port 38 is reduced, so that an appropriate amount of external air is drawn. There is a possibility that a problem that it cannot be introduced occurs. There is also concern about the occurrence of resonance due to the noise of the engine 20.
[0011]
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been proposed to suitably solve the above-described problems. In a normal operation state, the present invention is designed to prevent deformation caused by a pressure difference between the inside and outside of the duct and to prevent resonance caused by engine noise. To provide a vehicle duct configured to allow a concave deformation of the bonnet by being deformed and crushed when a pressing force with a force is applied through the bonnet. Objective.
[0012]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve an intended object, the present invention provides a first duct outer wall portion and a second duct outer wall portion that are opposed to each other while maintaining a required space, and the second duct outer wall. And a support part that supports the first duct outer wall part from the inside by projecting to the side of the first duct outer wall part, and when installed between the hood of the vehicle and the vehicle body component located below it, In the vehicle duct in which the support portion is partially located between the bonnet and the vehicle body component,
Forming a part of the support part, the impact receiving part located between the bonnet and the vehicle body component part is provided with a weak part having a lower support strength than other parts of the support part,
When an impact force due to a collision with a pedestrian is applied to the outer wall portion of the first duct via the bonnet, the impact receiving portion of the support portion is crushed by the fragile portion, and the bonnet is depressed. It is characterized in that it is configured to allow various deformations.
[0013]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Next, a preferred embodiment of the vehicle duct according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the vehicle duct targeted by the present invention can be set to various outer shapes and sizes according to the vehicle body shape of the vehicle, but in this embodiment, the conventional and outer shapes illustrated in FIG. The same vehicle duct is illustrated. Therefore, the same reference numerals are used to indicate the same members and parts as those already described in the section of the prior art described with reference to FIGS.
[0014]
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing a vehicle duct according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention in a partially broken state. The vehicle duct 50 according to the embodiment is similar to the conventional vehicle duct 30 shown in FIG. 11 in that the bonnet 14 of the vehicle body 10 in the vehicle and the radiator support (vehicle body component) 16 positioned below the hood 14. It is presupposed that it is disposed between and provided for implementation, and is formed in an outer shape that does not interfere with the bonnet 14 when assembled on the upper surface of the radiator support 16. Such a vehicular duct 50 includes a first duct outer wall portion 34 and a second duct outer wall portion 36 that are opposed to each other so as to hold a required space and form a flat duct body 32, and the second duct. A support portion 42 that protrudes from the duct outer wall portion 36 toward the first duct outer wall portion 34 and supports the first duct outer wall portion 34 from the inside. An air intake port 38 is opened at the front end portion of the duct main body 32, and an air delivery port 40 is opened at the side end portion of the duct main body 32.
[0015]
The duct body 32 is made of a synthetic resin made of a resin material such as polypropylene (PP) in order to reduce the weight. First, the air intake 38 is based on a blow molding technique using a blow molding die (not shown). And is preformed as a complete hollow body without the air delivery port 40. In the subsequent step, as shown in FIG. 7, the front end portion 32A and the side end portion 32B are cut and removed to open the air intake port 38 at the front end portion of the duct body 32, and The air outlet 40 is opened at the side end of the duct body 32. Since the blow molding technique is a known technique, detailed description of the molding operation and the like is omitted here.
[0016]
The vehicular duct 50 comprising the duct body 32 blow-molded in this way connects the air delivery port 40 to the air cleaner 22, and then appropriately connects the front side portion of the duct body 32 to the upper surface of the radiator support 16. It is fixed to the vehicle body 10 by assembling with the fixing means (screw or the like). When the bonnet 14 is closed to the vehicle body 10, the front portion of the vehicle duct 50 is located between the bonnet 14 and the radiator support 16. Accordingly, when disposed between the bonnet 14 and the radiator support 16, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the first duct outer wall portion 34 is located close to the back side of the bonnet 14, and the The second duct outer wall portion 36 comes close to the radiator support 16, and the air intake port 38 faces the front of the vehicle body. In the installed state, the impact receiving portion 42 </ b> A forming a part of the support portion 42 is positioned between the bonnet 14 and the radiator support 16.
[0017]
The support portion 42 is formed to extend in a curved shape having a required length from a portion facing the air intake port 38, and includes a contact portion 52 that contacts the back surface of the first duct outer wall portion 34, and a corresponding contact portion 52. It comprises an end edge and a support wall portion 54 provided continuously to the second duct outer wall portion 36. Thereby, even if the first duct outer wall part 34 and the second duct outer wall part 36 having a wall thickness t = 2 to 2.5 mm have moderate flexibility and are easily elastically deformed, The support portion 42 functions as a so-called “reinforcing rib”, and the bending deformation of the first duct outer wall portion 34 and the second duct outer wall portion 36 can be restricted. Therefore, in the state of being disposed on the front side of the engine room 12, the first duct has a pressure difference between the inside and outside of the duct that occurs when external air is taken in through the air intake port 38 (duct internal pressure <atmospheric pressure). It is possible to prevent elastic deformation of the outer wall portion 34 and the second duct outer wall portion 36 so as to be close to each other, and it is also possible to suitably prevent the air intake port 38 from being deformed into a closed state. Further, resonance of the first duct outer wall portion 34 and the second duct outer wall portion 36 due to noise during driving of the engine 20 is also prevented, and generation of noise due to this can be avoided.
[0018]
The support portion 42 divides the air intake 38 into two. However, the external air taken in from the air intakes 38 and 38 moves along the support portion 42 to move the air supply. The distribution is smoothly guided to the outlet 40 side. That is, the support part 42 functions as a rectifier for the taken-in air as well as improving the rigidity of the duct body 32.
[0019]
And in the said support part 42, as shown in FIGS. 1-4, the said impact-receiving part 42A which comprises a part of this support part 42 and is located between the said bonnet 14 and the radiator support 16 is concerned. A fragile portion 56 having a lower support strength than other portions of the support portion 42 is provided. The fragile portion 56 is configured such that the support wall portion 54 formed so as to surround the end edge of the abutting portion 52 does not exist over a required length. When the impact force when the pedestrian collides is applied to the impact receiving portion 42A, the impact receiving portion 42A is caused to undergo crushing deformation. Specifically, in the vehicle duct 50 according to the embodiment, the fragile portion 56 is provided so as to face the air intake port 38 opened so as to be positioned between the bonnet 14 and the radiator support 16. The support wall portion 54 does not exist over substantially the same length as the width dimension.
[0020]
Thereby, when the first duct outer wall 34 is pressed from above (outside) with an impact force, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the impact receiving portion 42A in the support portion 42 is Due to the presence of the fragile portion 56, the duct main body 32 is crushed and its height is reduced. In other words, in the vehicle duct 50 of the embodiment, for example, a traffic accident occurs in which the vehicle collides with a pedestrian and the pedestrian collides with the bonnet 14, and the impact force due to the collision with the pedestrian is affected by the bonnet 14. The impact receiving portion 42A of the support portion 42 is crushed and deformed by the fragile portion 56, and the bonnet 14 is allowed to be deformed concavely. It has a structure that does not hinder its shock absorption performance.
[0021]
As shown in FIG. 7, the fragile portion 56 has the preformed support portion 42 when the air inlet 38 is opened by cutting the front end portion 32A of the duct body 32 after blow molding. It is easily formed by cutting at the same time. That is, when the duct body 32 is preformed, the support portion 42 is formed so as to extend beyond the planned cutting line to reach the front end portion 32A, thereby forming the cutting planned line. When the second duct outer wall portion 36 is cut along, the abutment portion 52 and the support wall portion 54 of the support portion 42 are also cut at the same time, whereby the fragile portion 56 is provided in the impact receiving portion 42A of the support portion 42. Accordingly, the fragile portion 56 can be provided in the impact receiving portion 42A of the support portion 42 without increasing the number of molding work steps, and the manufacturing cost does not increase when the fragile portion 56 is provided, and it is technically particularly difficult. Does not occur.
[0022]
[Effect of the embodiment]
As described above, in the vehicle duct 50 according to the embodiment, after the air outlet 40 is connected to the air cleaner 22, the front portion of the duct body 32 is assembled to the upper surface of the radiator support 16 to the vehicle body 10. Fixed. When the bonnet 14 is closed to the vehicle body 10, the bonnet 14 is positioned between the bonnet 14 and the radiator support 16, and the first duct outer wall 34 is located close to the back side of the bonnet 14, and the first The two-duct outer wall portion 36 comes close to the radiator support 16, and the air intake port 38 faces the front of the vehicle body (FIGS. 3 and 4). Further, the impact receiving portion 42 </ b> A provided with the fragile portion 56 is located between the bonnet 14 and the radiator support 16.
[0023]
In the vehicle duct 50 in such an implementation state, the pedestrian collides with the bonnet 14 due to a collision with a pedestrian, and an impact force at this time is applied to the first duct outer wall portion 34 via the bonnet 14. When applied, the pressing force is transmitted to the impact receiving portion 42A of the support portion 42 that supports the first duct outer wall portion 34 from the back side. Then, in the impact receiving portion 42A pressed with an impact force, as illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6, there are two end edge portions of the support wall portion 54 facing the fragile portion 56 and the vicinity thereof. As a result, the protrusion height is reduced, and the first duct outer wall portion 34 is allowed to sink. As a result, at least the front portion of the duct body 32 is crushed and the height dimension is reduced, so that the concave deformation of the bonnet 14 is not hindered.
[0024]
That is, in the vehicle duct 50 of the embodiment, the pedestrian who collided with the vehicle is in the hood 14 while preventing the deformation of the duct body 32 due to the pressure difference generated at the time of air intake and the resonance due to the engine noise by the support portion 42. When a traffic accident that crashes into the vehicle occurs, the duct body 32 is crushed between the bonnet 14 and the radiator support 16, so that the bonnet 14 can be deformed in a concave manner. . Therefore, the impact absorbing performance exhibited when the bonnet 14 deforms in a concave manner is not hindered, and this can contribute favorably to reducing the degree of injury of the pedestrian.
[0025]
5 and FIG. 6, the deformation mode of the impact receiving portion 42A (the support wall portion 54 is bent in two) is such that the front portion of the duct body 32 (the opening portion of the air intake 38) is widened in the left-right direction. It is assumed that the duct main body 32 is assembled on the upper surface of the radiator support 16 in a state in which the deformation is restricted. For this reason, the support wall portion 54 of the support portion 42 is bent in two in the impact receiving portion 42A without being expanded and deformed in a C shape. On the other hand, when the front side portion of the duct body 32 assembled on the upper surface of the radiator support 16 is allowed to deform in the left-right direction in a widening manner, as shown in FIG. When the impact receiving portion 42A is pressed with an impact force, the support wall portion 54 expands and deforms into a C shape without being bent in two. Even if the impact receiving portion 42A is deformed in this way, the duct body 32 is suitably crushed to reduce the height dimension, and the bonnet 14 can be allowed to be deformed.
[0026]
On the other hand, when the bonnet 14 is opened, the vehicle duct 50 is exposed to the front side of the engine room 12, so that fingers or a body may come into contact with the engine 20 during maintenance work. . However, in the vehicle duct 50 according to the embodiment, when the first duct outer wall portion 34 is pressed without an impact force from above, such as when the upper surface of the first duct outer wall portion 34 is lightly touched, the support Even if the portion 42 is slightly deformed, when the pressing force is released, the portion 42 is elastically restored to its original shape, and the impact receiving portion 42A is crushed and the duct body 32 is not crushed.
[0027]
In the above embodiment, the vehicle duct provided for taking in the external air supplied to the engine 20 is exemplified, but the vehicle duct targeted by the present application is not limited to this. Provided for introducing external air into the engine room 12, provided for introducing external air into an air conditioner unit (not shown), and further provided for introducing external air into the passenger compartment. Any thing, such as a thing, disposed between the bonnet 14 and the radiator support 16 (vehicle body constituent part) is targeted.
[0028]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the vehicle duct according to the present invention, a pedestrian who collides with the vehicle can prevent a deformation caused by a pressure difference generated during air intake and resonance due to engine noise from being prevented by the support portion. When a traffic accident hitting the vehicle occurs, the duct body is crushed between the bonnet and the radiator support, so that there is an advantage that the bonnet can be allowed to be deformed. Therefore, the impact absorbing performance exhibited when the bonnet is deformed in a concave manner is not hindered, and thereby a beneficial effect such as being able to suitably contribute to the reduction of the pedestrian's injury degree is achieved. .
Further, since the weakened portion provided in the impact receiving portion of the support portion is formed at the same time when the air intake port is opened in the duct body, the manufacturing cost is not increased because the weakened portion is provided. There is no particular difficulty.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view of a vehicle duct according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway plan view showing a state in which the vehicle duct of FIG.
FIG. 3 is a front view as seen from the direction of arrow A in FIG. 2;
4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV in FIG.
FIG. 5 is an explanatory view of the state where an impact force due to a collision with a pedestrian is applied to the outer wall portion of the first duct through the bonnet, as viewed from the direction A of FIG. 2, and the impact receiving portion in the support portion is fragile. It is shown that the duct body is crushed by the presence of the portion and the duct body is crushed, thereby allowing the concave deformation of the bonnet.
6 is an explanatory cross-sectional view of a state where an impact force due to a collision with a pedestrian is applied to the outer wall portion of the first duct via a bonnet, broken along line IV-IV in FIG. It shows that the impact receiving portion is crushed and deformed due to the presence of the fragile portion, and the duct body is crushed, thereby allowing the concave deformation of the bonnet.
FIG. 7 is a partially broken perspective view showing a state in which an air inlet and an air outlet are opened in the duct body by cutting and removing the front end portion and the side end portion of the blow molded duct body. It is shown that the weak part is formed in the impact receiving part of the support part by simultaneously cutting the support part at the time of excision of the front end part.
FIG. 8 is an explanatory view showing another modified embodiment of the impact receiving portion in the support portion.
FIG. 9 is a perspective view schematically showing the inside of an engine room in a vehicle, and shows a state in which a vehicle duct is disposed between a bonnet and a radiator support.
10 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX of FIG.
11 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the conventional vehicle duct shown in FIG. 9. FIG.
12 is a partially broken plan view showing the state in which the conventional vehicle duct shown in FIG. 11 is assembled in the front of the vehicle, with the bonnet omitted, and is an impact receiving portion forming a part of a support portion; Is located between the bonnet and the radiator support.
13 is a sectional view taken along line YY of FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
14 Bonnet 16 Radiator support (body components)
34 first duct outer wall portion 36 second duct outer wall portion 38 air intake 42 support portion 42A impact receiving portion 52 abutting portion 54 support wall portion 56 fragile portion

Claims (3)

A first duct outer wall portion (34) and a second duct outer wall portion (36) that are opposed to each other while maintaining a required space, and the first duct outer wall portion (34) from the second duct outer wall portion (36). And a support part (42) for supporting the first duct outer wall part (34) from the inside, and between the vehicle bonnet (14) and the vehicle body component part (16) located therebelow. In the vehicle duct in which the support portion (42) is partially located between the bonnet (14) and the vehicle body component (16) when installed,
The impact receiving portion (42A) that forms a part of the support portion (42) and is positioned between the bonnet (14) and the vehicle body component (16), than other portions of the support portion (42). Provide a fragile part (56) with reduced support strength,
When an impact force due to a collision with a pedestrian is applied to the outer wall portion (34) of the first duct via the bonnet (14), the impact receiving portion (42A) of the support portion (42) becomes the fragile portion ( 56) A vehicular duct characterized by being deformed in a crushing manner according to 56) and allowing the concave deformation of the bonnet (14). The support portion (42) includes a contact portion (52) that contacts the back surface of the first duct outer wall portion (34), an end edge of the corresponding contact portion (52), and the second duct outer wall portion (36). It consists of a support wall part (54) that is connected to each other,
The vehicular duct according to claim 1, wherein the weakened portion (56) provided in the impact receiving portion (42A) is a portion where the support wall portion (54) does not exist over a required length. 3. The vehicle duct according to claim 1, wherein the fragile portion (56) faces an air intake (38) opened so as to be positioned between the bonnet (14) and the vehicle body component (16).

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