JP4561717B2 - Instrument panel structure - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an instrument panel structure.

In the airbag mounting structure of an automobile, which can be equipped with a passenger airbag according to the specifications of the instrument panel body, a recess that can be used as a container is integrally formed in the instrument panel body when the specification is without an airbag. A configuration is disclosed (see Patent Document 1).
JP 2000-190800 A

  However, in the above-described conventional example, when the specification without an airbag is provided, the instrument panel is provided with a concave portion that becomes a container, so that the instrument panel can be shared between the specification with and without the airbag. Can not. If the instrument panel is shared regardless of the presence or absence of an airbag, the airbag opening of the instrument panel should be closed and the rigidity of the instrument panel should be secured even when the specification is without an airbag. Was necessary.

  In consideration of the above facts, the present invention reduces the sharing of an instrument panel when there is an airbag setting depending on the specification, and ensuring the rigidity of the instrument panel when the specification is without an airbag. The purpose is to be able to do it at cost.

  The invention of claim 1 includes an instrument panel having an opening for deploying an airbag, a retainer disposed on the instrument panel so as to close the opening, and a specification without an airbag. It is connected to the vehicle body side reinforcement member for supporting an instrument panel, and has a connecting member connected to the edge of the retainer so as to support the instrument panel.

  In the instrument panel structure according to claim 1, since the retainer that covers the opening for deploying the airbag is supported by the connecting member for supporting the instrument panel in the specification without the airbag, the airbag Even if the module is not mounted, it is possible to ensure the rigidity of the instrument panel during normal use. By using a simple configuration in which the retainer is supported by the connecting member, the instrument panel can be shared when there is an airbag setting depending on the specification, and the rigidity of the instrument panel when the specification is without an airbag. Securing can be performed at low cost.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the instrument panel structure according to the first aspect, a positioning means and a connecting means for connecting the connecting member are integrally provided at the edge of the retainer. It is characterized by that.

  In the instrument panel structure according to claim 2, since the positioning means and the connecting means for connecting the connecting members are integrally provided on the edge of the retainer, respectively, the retainer in the specification with the airbag and When the instrument panel is foam-molded so that the retainer can be molded integrally, the same foaming type can be used regardless of the presence or absence of the airbag. It is possible to mold using For this reason, the manufacturing cost of an instrument panel can be reduced significantly.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the instrument panel structure according to the first or second aspect, the connecting member is provided with posture stabilizing means for stabilizing the posture of the connecting member with respect to the retainer. It is characterized by.

  In the instrument panel structure according to claim 3, since the posture stabilizing means for stabilizing the posture of the connecting member with respect to the retainer is provided on the connecting member, the connecting member is connected to the retainer when the connecting member is connected to the retainer. The wobbling of the connecting member can be suppressed. For this reason, it is possible to further improve the assembly workability of the instrument panel.

  As described above, according to the instrument panel structure according to claim 1 of the present invention, it is possible to share the instrument panel when there is an airbag setting depending on the specification, and the specification without the airbag. It is possible to obtain an excellent effect that the rigidity of the instrument panel can be secured at a low cost.

  According to the instrument panel structure of the second aspect, an excellent effect that the manufacturing cost of the instrument panel can be significantly reduced is obtained.

  According to the instrument panel structure of the third aspect, it is possible to obtain an excellent effect that the assembly workability of the instrument panel can be further improved.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[First Embodiment]
In FIG. 1, an instrument panel structure S1 according to the present embodiment relates to an instrument panel structure of a vehicle with or without a passenger seat airbag set depending on the specification. As shown in FIG. The panel 10, the retainer 12, and the connecting member 14 are included.

  The instrument panel 10 is an interior member of a passenger compartment having an opening 20 for deploying an airbag in front of a passenger seat, and is disposed, for example, from the upper edge of the glove box 16 to the lower edge of a front windshield (not shown). The position of the opening 20 is configured not to be visible from the passenger compartment side. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the opening 20 is formed in a panel-like instrument panel lower 18 made of, for example, a hard synthetic resin, which constitutes the skeleton of the instrument panel 10, for example. A retainer 12 corresponding to the opening 20 is fitted into the opening 20 from the passenger compartment side. When the airbag is operated in a specification with an airbag, the retainer 12 is moved from the opening 20 to the vehicle. It is designed to leave the room.

  In the instrument panel 10, the instrument panel lower 18 with the retainer 12 fitted therein is put in a foaming mold (not shown), and a relatively soft instrument panel upper 22 constituting the passenger compartment surface is foamed and molded. The ment panel lower 18 and the retainer 12 are integrally molded. As a result, the retainer 12 and the opening 20 are not visible from the passenger compartment side at normal times (see FIG. 1). Note that when the airbag is operated in the specification with the airbag, the instrument panel upper 22 is cleaved along with the cleavage of the retainer 12 so that the airbag bag body can be inflated to the vehicle compartment side. It has become.

  1 and 2, the retainer 12 is a lid disposed on the instrument panel 10 so as to close the opening 20. For example, a rigid synthetic resin is molded into a substantially square shape to ensure rigidity. It is comprised and is integrally molded by the instrument panel upper 22 in the state inserted in the opening part 20 of the instrument panel lower 18 as mentioned above. As shown in FIG. 2, a mounting seat 18 </ b> A for the retainer 12 is recessed at the peripheral edge of the opening 20 in the instrument panel lower 18 in accordance with the plate thickness of the retainer 12, for example. In a state where the retainer 12 is attached to the panel lower 18, the peripheral edge portion 12B abuts against the attachment seat 18A. Thereby, the vehicle compartment side surfaces of the instrument panel lower 18 and the retainer 12 are substantially flush, and the instrument panel upper 22 is molded on the vehicle compartment side surface.

  In FIG. 2, an edge portion 12 </ b> A having a shape along the end surface of the mounting seat 18 </ b> A in the instrument panel lower 18 is erected on the back surface side of the retainer 12. A claw portion (not shown) that engages with the end surface of the mounting seat 18A when the retainer 12 is fitted into the opening 20 is provided on the side surface of the edge portion 12A. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the first pin 31 and the second pin 32, which are examples of positioning means when connecting the connecting member 14, at the vehicle width direction center position on the edge portion 12 </ b> A, for example, A fastening hole 24 as an example of a connecting means is integrally provided.

  Specifically, both the first pin 31 and the second pin 32 are formed on the end face of the edge portion 12A so as not to exceed the thickness of the edge portion 12A. The first pin 31 is formed, for example, in a columnar shape or a tapered shape, and the second pin 32 is formed, for example, in a column shape having a cross shape in cross section. The first pin 31 and the second pin 32 are arranged in a straight line with the fastening hole 24 in between, and a portion where the fastening hole 24 is formed in the edge portion 12A is partially thick to ensure strength. ing. In addition, you may comprise thicker the formation site | part of the 1st pin 31 and the 2nd pin 32 in the edge part 12A. On the other hand, as for the site where the fastening hole 24 is formed, it is not necessary to provide a partial thick portion as long as the strength is ensured.

  2 and 3, the connecting member 14 is connected to an instrument panel reinforcement 26 which is an example of a vehicle body side reinforcing member for supporting the instrument panel 10 when the specification without an airbag is used. For example, a metal plate, which is connected to the edge portion 12A of the retainer 12 so as to support the metal plate, is press-molded into a substantially U-shaped cross section.

  A mounting seat 14A for the edge 12A of the retainer 12 is formed at the upper end of the connecting member 14 so as to be bent, for example, toward the vehicle rear side. The mounting seat 14A includes a first pin 31 and a second pin 32. And through holes 14B, 14C, and 14D corresponding to the fastening holes 24 are provided. The connecting member 14 allows the first pin 31 to pass through the through hole 14B, the second pin 32 to pass through the through hole 14D, and the screw 40 to pass through the through hole 14C and fasten to the fastening hole 24 of the edge portion 12A. Are connected to the retainer 12. The through hole 14 </ b> D is a long hole that is long in the vehicle width direction, for example, in consideration of processing errors of the first pin 31 and the second pin 32 in the retainer 12.

  A through hole 14E through which a bolt 30 for connection to the instrument panel reinforcement 26 is passed is formed in the lower part of the connection member 14, and a nut 34 into which the bolt 30 is screwed on the side surface of the through hole 14E on the vehicle front side. Are welded. As shown in FIG. 3, a mounting seat 14 </ b> F having a hat-shaped cross section with respect to the instrument panel reinforcement 26 is bent at the lower end of the connecting member 14, for example, on the vehicle front side. For example, three light holes 14 </ b> G are provided in the central portion of the connecting member 14.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a mounting bracket 28 for connecting the lower part of the connecting member 14 is fixed to the instrument panel reinforcement 26. The mounting bracket 28 is, for example, a bent metal plate, a fixing portion 28A welded to the instrument panel reinforcement 26, and an extending portion 28B bent from the fixing portion 28A to the vehicle front side. A mounting portion 28C that is bent downward from the front end of the extended portion 28B and a support portion 28D that is bent forward from the lower end of the mounting portion 28C are integrally provided. The attachment portion 28C is a portion with which the lower rear surface 14H abuts when the connecting member 14 is connected, and is provided with a through hole 28E corresponding to the through hole 14E. The support portion 28D can support the connecting member 14 stably by overlapping with the vehicle seat below the mounting seat 14F when the connecting member 14 is connected.

(Function)
This embodiment is configured as described above, and the operation thereof will be described below. As shown in FIG. 2, in the instrument panel structure S <b> 1, the retainer 12 covering the opening 20 for deploying the airbag is supported by the connecting member 14 for supporting the instrument panel in the specification without the airbag. Therefore, the rigidity of the instrument panel 10 during normal use can be ensured even when the airbag module is not attached. In addition, by using a simple configuration in which the retainer 12 is supported by the connecting member 14, the instrument panel 10 can be shared when there is an airbag setting depending on the specification, and the instrument can be used when there is no airbag specification. It is possible to ensure the rigidity of the panel 10 at a low cost.

  Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, in the present embodiment, the first pin 31 and the second pin 32 are used for positioning, and the screw 40 is tightened with respect to the fastening hole 24, thereby connecting members. 14 is connected to the edge 12 </ b> A of the retainer 12. Here, in the present embodiment, a configuration is adopted in which the first pin 31 and the second pin 32 that are positioning means and the fastening hole 24 that is a connecting means are integrally provided in the edge portion 12A of the retainer 12, respectively. Therefore, the retainer (not shown) with the specification with the airbag and the retainer 12 with the specification without the airbag can be shared. For this reason, when the instrument panel 10 is foam-molded by integrally molding the retainer 12, it is possible to mold using a common foaming mold regardless of the presence or absence of the airbag. As described above, in the present embodiment, the instrument panel 10 can be shared between the specification with the airbag and the specification without the airbag, and the manufacturing cost can be greatly reduced.

  The retainer 12 may not be shared between the specification with the air bag and the specification without the air bag, but the connecting portion of the connecting member 14 is the edge portion 12A of the retainer 12 as in the present embodiment. Thus, the shape of the retainer 12 can be made substantially the same as that of a retainer (not shown) used in the specification with the airbag. For this reason, it is possible to use a common foaming mold at the time of foam molding of the instrument panel 10 as in the case where the retainer 12 is shared.

  Further, since there is only one connecting member 14 connected to the retainer 12, the number of parts can be suppressed, and the cost and weight of the vehicle can be reduced. Further, since the connecting member 14 is formed in a U-shaped cross section for improving the bending rigidity, the rigidity of the instrument panel 10 can be ensured even with a single member, and thus, the commerciality of the vehicle, that is, It is possible to enhance the quality.

[Second Embodiment]
5 and 6, in the instrument panel structure S2 according to the present embodiment, the connection member 14 is provided with a temporary support portion 14J as an example of a posture stabilization means for stabilizing the posture of the connection member 14 with respect to the retainer 12. It has been. The temporary support portion 14J is a portion formed by cutting and raising a part of the connecting member 14 when the connecting member 14 is pressed. For example, the temporary support portion 14J is erected above the vehicle from the vicinity of the mounting seat 14A and has an upper end. It is bent at the front of the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 5, the temporary support portion 14 </ b> J abuts the back surface of the retainer 12 on the front side of the vehicle with respect to the mounting seat 14 </ b> A, thereby stabilizing the posture of the connecting member 14 with respect to the retainer 12.

  Since other parts are the same as those in the first embodiment, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals in the drawings, and the description thereof is omitted.

(Function)
This embodiment is configured as described above, and the operation thereof will be described below. 5, in the instrument panel structure S2, when the instrument panel 10 in which the retainer 12 is integrally molded is assembled to the vehicle, the connecting member 14 is first connected to the edge 12A of the retainer 12. Specifically, for example, in the state where the instrument panel 10 is turned over, first the through holes 14B and 14D of the mounting seat 14A of the connecting member 14 are passed through the first pin 31 and the second pin 32, respectively. Is temporarily placed on the edge portion 12A. At this time, the temporary support portion 14J abuts against the back surface of the retainer 12 in the direction in which the connection member 14 tends to fall, that is, on the vehicle front side with respect to the mounting seat 14A. In contrast, the connecting member 14 does not wobble, and the operation of tightening the screw 40 in the fastening hole 24 can be easily performed. For this reason, the assembly workability | operativity of the instrument panel 10 can be improved further.

[Third Embodiment]
7 and 8, in the instrument panel structure S3 according to the present embodiment, the connection member 14 is provided with a temporary support portion 36 as an example of a posture stabilization means for stabilizing the posture of the connection member 14 with respect to the retainer 12. It has been. The temporary support portion 36 is configured by, for example, fixing a U-shaped cross-section member bent in a substantially L shape to the upper front surface 14 </ b> L of the connecting member 14. As shown in FIG. 7, the temporary support portion 36 abuts more widely on the back surface of the retainer 12 on the vehicle front side than the mounting seat 14 </ b> A, thereby stabilizing the posture of the connecting member 14 with respect to the retainer 12. Yes.

  Since other parts are the same as those in the first embodiment, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals in the drawings, and the description thereof is omitted.

(Function)
This embodiment is configured as described above, and the operation thereof will be described below. In FIG. 7, in the instrument panel structure S <b> 3, when the instrument panel 10 is assembled to the vehicle, the connecting member 14 is first connected to the edge 12 </ b> A of the retainer 12, for example, with the instrument panel 10 turned upside down. Specifically, first, the connecting member 14 is temporarily placed on the edge portion 12A by passing the through holes 14B and 14D of the mounting seat 14A of the connecting member 14 through the first pin 31 and the second pin 32, respectively. In some cases, the temporary support portion 36 comes into contact with the back surface of the retainer 12 in the direction in which the connection member 14 easily falls due to its own weight, that is, on the vehicle front side with respect to the mounting seat 14A. The operation of tightening the screw 40 in the fastening hole 24 can be easily performed.

  In the temporarily placed state of the connecting member 14, the temporary support portion 36 contacts the back surface of the retainer 12 in a wider area on the front side of the vehicle than the temporary support portion 14 </ b> J (FIGS. 5 and 6) in the second embodiment. Since they are in contact with each other, the posture of the connecting member 14 can be further stabilized. Thereby, the assembly | attachment operation | work of the instrument panel 10 can be performed more easily. Further, the temporary support portion 36 abuts against the back surface of the retainer 12, whereby the rigidity of the instrument panel 10 during normal use can be further increased.

  In each of the above embodiments, the first pin 31 and the second pin 32 are used as the positioning means, but the positioning means is not limited to these. Moreover, although the fastening hole 24 was mentioned as an example of a connection means, a connection means is not restricted to this. Further, as an example of the vehicle body side reinforcing member to which the connecting member 14 is connected, the instrument panel reinforcement 26 has been described. However, the connection target of the connecting member 14 is not limited to the instrument panel reinforcement 26, and the configuration of the mounting bracket 28 is also illustrated. It is not limited to.

  As the posture stabilization means, the temporary support portion 14J (FIGS. 5 and 6) and the temporary support portion 36 (FIGS. 7 and 8) are mentioned, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the connecting member is connected to the edge portion 12A of the retainer 12. Any means may be used as long as the posture of the connecting member 14 can be stabilized when 14 is temporarily placed.

It is a perspective view which shows the instrument panel structure which concerns on each embodiment. 2 to 4 are sectional views taken along the arrow 2-2 in FIG. 1 showing the instrument panel structure according to the first embodiment. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows an instrument panel structure. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows the edge part of a retainer and the attachment seat of a connection member. 5 and 6 relate to the second embodiment, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along arrow 5-5 in FIG. 1 showing the instrument panel. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows an instrument panel structure. 7 and 8 relate to the third embodiment, and FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along arrow 7-7 in FIG. 1 showing the instrument panel structure. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows an instrument panel structure.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Instrument panel 12 Retainer 12A Edge part 14 Connection member 14J Temporary support part (Attitude stabilization means)
20 Opening 24 Fastening hole (connecting means)
26 Instrument panel reinforcement (reinforcement member on the vehicle body)
31 1st pin (positioning means)
32 Second pin (positioning means)
36 Temporary support (posture stabilization means)
S1 Instrument panel structure S2 Instrument panel structure S3 Instrument panel structure

Claims (3)

An instrument panel having an opening for airbag deployment;
A retainer disposed on the instrument panel so as to close the opening;
In the specification without an airbag, the connecting member is connected to a vehicle body side reinforcing member for supporting the instrument panel, and connected to an edge of the retainer so as to support the instrument panel;
An instrument panel structure characterized by comprising:   2. The instrument panel structure according to claim 1, wherein a positioning means and a connecting means for connecting the connecting member are integrally provided on the edge of the retainer.   The instrument panel structure according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the connecting member is provided with posture stabilizing means for stabilizing the posture of the connecting member with respect to the retainer.

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