JP4207222B2 - Door frame - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a door frame made of a light alloy material and having increased rigidity.

As shown in FIG. 1, the door frame 1 supports the center pillar 2 and the lower frame 3 that guide the raising and lowering of the window glass, and supports the center pillar 2 and the lower frame 3 so as to be opposed to each other and to set the top dead center of the wind glass. A main frame 4 to be defined, and a mirror bracket 5 fixed to the main frame 4 and the lower frame 3 are provided.
Since the negative pressure generated by the air flow along the door panel creates a force for sucking the door to the outdoor side when the vehicle is traveling at high speed, the door frame 1 needs to have high rigidity to counter this force.

  In order to ensure the required rigidity, the door frame 1 is manufactured by pressing and rolling a steel material.

JP 2001-341529 A JP-A-6-320955

  The steel door frame increases the weight of the vehicle and hinders improvement in fuel consumption. For this reason, it is attempted to manufacture the door frame with a light alloy such as an aluminum alloy, a magnesium alloy, or a titanium alloy (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-341529).

If the door frame made of light alloy has the same structure as a conventional door frame made of steel, the door frame cannot compete with the suction force of the door during high-speed traveling of the vehicle because of its low rigidity.
In order to ensure the rigidity of the door or the door frame, it is attempted to apply a casting (die casting) technique to these parts for the purpose of improving the shape and thickness of the parts constituting the door frame (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6). -320955).

However, this trial has a large die-cast product for the front and center pillars, and has a shape that incorporates the door panel member, so the parts cannot be reused for other vehicle types, resulting in high costs. Yes. In addition, the current facilities for door frame production cannot be utilized, and a large capital investment is required.
In addition, despite the high cost and new equipment investment, the values expected to reduce the weight and rigidity of the door frame are not shown.

  Therefore, this invention makes it the subject which should be solved to eliminate the malfunction of the prior art mentioned above.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention is configured such that the mirror bracket is a light alloy casting and ribs that stand in the width direction of the vehicle are arranged side by side.
Further, the center pillar made of a light alloy material is composed of two parts, an outer frame and an inner frame, and the inner frame is made into a cast product and integrated with the lock reinforcement.
Preferably, the main frame and the outer frame are made of an extruded product of a light alloy material. For example, the main frame may be made of steel.

  According to the present invention, the center pillar and the lower frame for guiding the raising and lowering of the window glass of the vehicle, the main frame for defining the top dead center of the window glass and coupling the center pillar and the lower frame, and the main frame and the lower frame are fixed. There is provided a door frame characterized in that the mirror bracket is made of a light alloy material and the main body has a plurality of ribs standing in the vehicle width direction.

  Further, according to the present invention, the center pillar and the lower frame for guiding the raising and lowering of the window glass of the vehicle, the main frame for defining the top dead center of the window glass and connecting the center pillar and the lower frame, the main frame and the lower frame In a door frame with a fixed mirror bracket, the center pillar is a combination of an outer frame and an inner frame integrated with a lock reinforcement, the outer frame is made of a light alloy material extrusion, and the inner frame is cast of a light alloy material. There is provided a door frame characterized in that the door frame is made of an article.

  According to the present invention, the center pillar and the lower frame for guiding the raising and lowering of the window glass of the vehicle, the main frame for defining the top dead center of the window glass and coupling the center pillar and the lower frame, and the main frame and the lower frame are fixed. In the door frame having the mirror bracket, the mirror bracket is made of a light alloy material, the body has a plurality of ribs standing in the vehicle width direction, and the center pillar is integrated with the outer frame and the lock reinforcement. There is provided a door frame comprising a combination of inner frames, wherein the outer frame is made of a light alloy material extruded material and the inner frame is made of a light alloy material casting.

The effect by this invention is shown below.
In a door frame using a light alloy, the door frame can be made much lighter than an iron door frame while keeping the rigidity of the door frame comparable to that of an iron (steel) door frame.
It is possible to obtain a door frame that is higher in rigidity and lighter than a conventional light alloy door frame.
Since the size of the die-cast product is relatively small, a low-cost door frame can be obtained as compared with a conventional light alloy door frame.
Parts such as the main frame, glass guide, and center pillar outer can be shared.
The tilt adjustment required at the time of installation can be handled with the minimum necessary parts.
Since the structure follows an iron door frame, production facilities can be shared.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the door frame 1 supports the center pillar 2 and the lower frame 3 that guide the raising and lowering of the window glass, and supports the center pillar 2 and the lower frame 3 so as to be opposed to each other and to set the top dead center of the wind glass. A main frame 4 to be defined, and a mirror bracket 5 fixed to the main frame 4 and the lower frame 3 are provided.

FIG. 2 shows an example of the mirror bracket 5 manufactured by die casting using an aluminum alloy. The mirror bracket 5 is a cast product in which the lower frame 3 is integrated, and its upper edge portion has a shape suitable for being coupled to the main frame 4.
The main body portion 6 of the mirror bracket 5 is made flat, and the rib 7 that integrally forms the rib 7 standing in the vehicle width direction with the main body 6 extends in the vertical direction.

As shown in FIG. 2, the main body 6 of the mirror bracket 5 is elongated in the longitudinal direction of the door and extends downward beyond the belt line. As apparent from FIGS. 3 and 4, the plate thickness of the main body 6 that does not contribute to the rigidity is made smaller than the thickness of the rib, thereby making the mirror bracket 5 lighter and more rigid.
The number, height, or thickness of the ribs 7 is determined in consideration of the required rigidity.
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the main body 6 has a step 8 at the center thereof, but as shown in FIG. 2, the step 8 joins the lower bracket 3 and the main body 6, and combines them. The strength is increased, and the rigidity of the lower bracket 3 at the front and rear of the vehicle is increased. A part of the step portion 8 extends to the upper edge of the mirror bracket 5 and improves the coupling strength with the main bracket 4.

The center pillar 2 made of a light alloy material includes an outer frame 9 and an inner frame 10, and the outer frame 9 is preferably made of an extruded material of an aluminum alloy, and the inner frame 10 is preferably a die of an aluminum alloy material. Produced by casting. The inner frame 10 is formed integrally with the lock reinforcement 11.
As shown in FIG. 1, the width of the center pillar 2 is increased from the upper edge toward the belt line, and this wide width of the outer frame 9 can be formed by trimming by a press.

The inner frame 10 manufactured by die casting has ribs 12 and 13 as shown in FIGS. The rib 12 is integrally coupled to the opposite side wall and the bottom wall of the hollow portion 14 having a U-shaped cross section of the inner frame 10, and as shown in FIG. 6, the hollow portion 14 is continuously connected in a zigzag shape. Arranged.
The ribs 13 extend toward the outer frame 9 and are arranged in parallel in the vertical direction. The number and position of the ribs 13 are appropriately determined in consideration of the rigidity required for the center pillar 2. In the example shown in FIG. 6, the ribs 12 and 13 are concentrated in the vicinity of the belt line, but a short rib can also be provided on the upper portion of the inner frame 10.
The ribs 12 and 13 preferably have a shape in which the base is thick and narrows toward the tip.

The inner frame 10 and the lock reinforcement 11 are integrally formed and the vehicle width direction dimension near the belt line is expanded to the indoor side, the rigidity of the center pillar 2 is increased, the weight is reduced, and the high rigidity door frame 1 is provided. It becomes possible. That is, the cross-sectional area of the center pillar 2 near the belt line is maximized.
The lock reinforcement 11 can also be provided with ribs as necessary.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the outer frame 9 of the center pillar 2 defines a groove 16 for guiding the window glass 15 together with the garnish 17. The garnish 17 is sandwiched between the side edge of the outer frame 9 and the step portion 18.

It is a front view which shows the structure of a door frame. It is a front view of a mirror bracket. It is sectional drawing seen from the arrow III-III of FIG. It is sectional drawing seen from the arrow IV-IV of FIG. It is sectional drawing seen from the arrow VV of FIG. It is a front view which shows the inner frame of another example of a center pillar. It is sectional drawing seen from the arrow VII-VII of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Door frame 2 Center pillar 3 Lower frame 4 Main frame 5 Mirror bracket 6 Body part 7 Rib 8 Step part 9 Outer frame 10 Inner frame 11 Lock reinforcement 12, 13 Rib 14 Hollow part 16 Groove 17 Garnish

Claims (7)

  A door having a center pillar and a lower frame for guiding the raising and lowering of the window glass of the vehicle, a main frame for defining the top dead center of the window glass and connecting the center pillar and the lower frame, and a mirror bracket fixed to the main frame and the lower frame In the frame, the mirror bracket is made of a light alloy casting, the body has a plurality of ribs standing in the vehicle width direction, and the center pillar is a combination of an outer frame and a lock reinforcement combined with an inner frame. The door frame is made of a light alloy material extruded material, and the inner frame is made of a light alloy material casting. Inner frame has a hollow portion and a flat portion of substantially U-shaped cross section, a door frame according to claim 1, further comprising opposing side walls and a bottom wall integral with the rib of the hollow portion, the rib further erected from the flat portion. The door frame according to claim 2 , wherein the outer frame has a step portion, and the garnish and the step portion locked to the outer frame define a groove for raising and lowering the window glass. Door frame according to claim 1, wherein the cross-sectional area of the beltline vicinity of the center pillar is the largest cross-sectional area. The door frame according to claim 1, wherein the main frame is made of an extruded material of a light alloy material. The door frame according to claim 1, wherein the lower frame is made of an extruded material of a light alloy material. The door frame according to claim 1, wherein a lower frame for raising and lowering the window glass is formed integrally with the mirror bracket.

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