JP5076751B2 - Automobile center pillar structure - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an automobile center pillar structure, and more particularly to an automobile center pillar structure in which a bulkhead is provided at an intermediate position between the upper and lower sides to receive the rear end of a door reinforcement that moves backward in the event of a vehicle frontal collision.

Conventionally, in the center pillar of an automobile, measures are taken to strengthen the pillar rigidity against an external force acting on the center pillar.
As shown in FIG. 5, as an external force acting on the center pillar 1, a front door 3 that opens and closes the door opening 2 on the side surface of the vehicle body due to a crushing deformation of the front part of the vehicle body at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle, particularly an offset collision with a large impact The rear end of the door reinforcement 4 that is pushed rearward and extends in the front-rear direction along the door belt line 30 of the front door 3 hits the upper and lower intermediate position 10 of the center pillar 1 and an impact load acts (white in the figure). Arrow). In this case, if the center pillar 1 is deformed by an impact load from the front, it is difficult to secure the space of the door opening 2 and the front part of the passenger compartment, so that the center pillar 1 facing the rear end of the door reinforcement 4 is A bulkhead is provided at the intermediate position 10 for reinforcement.

FIGS. 6 (a) and 6 (b) show a reinforcing structure using a conventional typical bulkhead against an impact load from the front. The reinforcing structure of FIG. 6A is provided with a horizontal bulkhead 8 that divides the inside of the pillar in the vertical direction so as to face the rear end of the door reinforcement 4, and the rear end of the door reinforcement 4 is provided at the time of a collision. I try to catch it.
However, although the horizontal bulkhead 8 has a great effect of preventing the pillar from collapsing in the horizontal direction, it has a narrow vertical range that can be reinforced and is insufficient to receive the door reinforcement 4 having a wide vertical width, and is affected by a large impact load. As a result, the center pillar 1 may be broken in the vertical position of the place where the bulkhead 8 is installed, and the pillar 1 may be deformed.

The reinforcing structure shown in FIG. 6B has a substantially U-shaped horizontal cross section that opens to the inside of the vehicle along the inner surface of the outer panel 1a having a substantially hat-shaped horizontal cross section of the center pillar 1, and the vertical dimension is the door reinforcement 4. A combined bulkhead 9 is provided to reinforce the upper and lower wide ranges.
However, in the bulkhead 9 having a U-shaped cross section, the door reinforcement 4 is received by the wall surface portion 91 on the front side. Therefore, when a large impact load is applied, the wall surface portion 91 is easily pushed into the pillar and is easily changed. That's not enough.

  In view of this, it is considered that the bulkhead 8 that is effective in the horizontal direction and the bulkhead 9 that has been reinforced in the vertical direction are combined, and the bulkhead 8 in the horizontal direction is provided in the bulkhead 9 having a U-shaped horizontal section. However, it takes time and labor to join a plurality of members, and the productivity is not good.

Further, as a reinforcing structure effective in both the horizontal direction and the vertical direction, the following Patent Document 1 is provided with a plurality of horizontal bulkheads that vertically divide the cross section inside the pillar at intervals in the center pillar, and the upper and lower bulkheads. A structure is described in which a vertical reinforcing plate is provided between the heads in the vehicle width direction and partitions the closed cross section of the pillar back and forth.
In Patent Document 1, rigidity is strengthened with respect to an impact load acting on the center pillar from the side of the vehicle body mainly at the time of a side collision of the vehicle. Although installation is also conceivable, in this case as well, it takes time and labor to join the upper and lower bulkheads and the reinforcing plate, and productivity is not good.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-20267

  Therefore, the present invention uses a bulkhead that has a simple structure, good productivity, and effectively exhibits a reinforcing effect in a wide range in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction, thereby enhancing the rigidity against the impact load from the front of the center pillar of the automobile. It was made as a subject to realize a center pillar structure of an automobile.

The present invention provides a door extending in the front-rear direction installed inside a door that opens and closes the door opening at a middle position of a center pillar with a closed cross-section standing up along the rear edge of the door opening on the side surface of the vehicle body. The vehicle is provided with a bulkhead at a position corresponding to the rear end of the reinforcement, and the rear end of the door reinforcement that moves backward in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle is received by the bulkhead to prevent the center pillar from collapsing in cross section. In the center pillar structure,
The bulkhead extends from the first wall surface along the outer side wall of the outer panel of the center pillar, and extends from the front and rear edges of the first wall surface along the front and rear walls of the outer panel. The second and third wall surfaces are integrally formed in a substantially U-shaped horizontal cross section that opens toward the inside of the vehicle, and the whole is formed in a substantially square shape in the vertical direction so as to incline downward in the vehicle direction in the lower half. Provide an inclined part,
The inclined portion of the first wall surface portion forms an inclined surface that is substantially flat in the front-rear direction and is inclined downward in the in-vehicle direction to form a partition portion that partitions the outer panel up and down,
The front edge of the partition portion bent and connected to the second wall surface portion is opposed to the rear end of the door reinforcement (Claim 1).
The rear end of the door reinforcement that moves rearward at the time of a frontal collision is received by a partition portion that extends in a substantially planar shape in the front-rear direction of the bulkhead and the second and third wall surface portions that are integral with the partition portion. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent the center pillar from being broken in a range including the partition portion and its upper and lower portions. In addition, the bulkhead can be integrally formed by pressing a U-shaped member having a horizontal cross-section in the vertical direction, thereby improving productivity.

The bulkhead has a vertical dimension substantially the same as the vertical width of the door reinforcement, and the front edge of the partitioning portion is opposed to the rear end of the door reinforcement in an intersecting manner.
The bulkhead can most effectively receive the load from the door reinforcement.

A bent portion that extends linearly in the front-rear direction is formed as a bent shape having an L-shaped vertical section that projects the upper portion of the first wall surface portion shallowly toward the vehicle interior .
The bending portion can enhance the rigidity of the bulkhead in the front-rear direction.

An embodiment in which the present invention is applied to the intermediate portion 10 of the center pillar 1 along the rear edge of the vehicle front door opening 2 shown in FIG. 5 will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the center pillar 1 is assembled with an outer panel 1a having a substantially hat-shaped cross section that opens toward the inside of the vehicle and an inner panel 1b having a shallow cross-section that opens toward the outside of the vehicle. It has a closed cross-sectional structure.
The outer panel 1a is bent from the front edge of the side wall 11 on the outer side of the vehicle, and the front wall 12 facing the vehicle inner side faces the front door opening 2, and when the front door 3 that opens and closes the front door opening 2 is closed, It faces the end face 31 in the front-rear direction.

The front door 3 includes a door body and a door frame surrounding the door window opening (see FIG. 5). The door body has a hollow structure including a door outer panel 3a and a door inner panel 3b. A door reinforcement 4 is installed along the line 30.
The door reinforcement 4 has a closed cross-sectional structure composed of an outer plate 41 and an inner plate 42 having a shallow cross-sectional hat shape facing each other, and is formed in a strip shape having a vertical width over almost the entire length in the front-rear direction in the door body. It is.

The door reinforcement 4 is formed by integrally connecting the joint between the upper edge flanges of the outer plate 41 and the inner plate 42 with the upper edge of the door inner panel 3b , and the lower edge of the outer plate 41 and the inner plate 42. The connecting part between the flanges is connected to the upper and lower intermediate part of the door inner panel 3b . The rear end edge 40 of the door reinforcement 4 is closely opposed to the door rear end surface 31.

A bulkhead 5 is installed inside the outer panel 1 a of the center pillar 1 so as to face the rear edge 40 of the door reinforcement 4.
The bulkhead 5 is an integrally molded product obtained by press-molding a metal plate. The bulkhead 5 has a first wall surface 5a facing the vehicle outer side wall 11 of the outer panel 1a of the center pillar 1 and a vehicle inner side from the front edge of the first wall surface portion 5a. The second wall surface portion 5b along the front wall 12 of the outer panel 1a and the third wall surface portion 5c along the rear wall 13 of the outer panel 1a after bending from the rear edge of the first wall surface portion 5a. The horizontal section that opens toward the inside has a substantially U-shape. The vertical dimension of the bulkhead 5 is set to be approximately the same as the vertical width of the rear edge 40 of the door reinforcement 4.

Before assembling the outer panel 1 a and the inner panel 1 b of the center pillar 1, the bulkhead 5 is assembled to the outer panel 1 a, and the vicinity of the upper and lower center of the first wall surface portion 5 a is welded to the inner surface of the side wall 11 of the center pillar 1. In addition, the second wall surface portion 5b and the third wall surface portion 5c are welded to the inner surface of the front wall 12 and the inner surface of the rear wall 13 of the outer panel 1a, respectively.

The bulkhead 5 is bent at an intermediate position in the vertical direction when viewed in the front-rear direction, and the lower half is inclined to the vehicle inner side and the lower side rather than the upper half, and the overall shape is substantially rectangular in the vertical direction .
On the first wall surface portion 5 a of the bulkhead 5, a central portion 51 that protrudes in a trapezoidal shape toward the vehicle outer side in the vehicle width direction is formed at the vertical center position, and from the bent portion 52 at the lower edge of the central portion 51. A lower half of the lower part forms an inclined surface inclined inwardly and obliquely downward to form a partition 53 that partitions the inside of the outer panel 1a in the vertical direction. The partition 53 forms a substantially flat surface that extends linearly in the front-rear direction. The lower end of the partition 53 is bent downward.

The upper portion 54 of the first wall surface portion 5a is bent from the upper edge of the central portion 51, and stands vertically upward at a position projecting inward from the central portion 51 by a shallow step toward the inside of the vehicle. Makes an L-shaped posture.
The first wall surface portion 5a formed in a concavo-convex shape in the vertical direction in this way has a plurality of bends extending linearly in the front-rear direction (width direction) between the respective parts such as the central portion 51, the partition portion 53, and the upper portion 54. Portions 52, 55, 56, and 57 are provided, and the surface rigidity is enhanced in the front-rear direction by these bent portions 52, 55, 56, and 57.

  The second wall surface portion 5b and the third wall surface portion 5c of the bulkhead 5 have substantially the same width dimension over the entire length in the vertical direction, and are bent in an uneven shape in accordance with the bent shape of the first wall surface portion 5a. Make the shape.

The bulkhead 5 formed in this way has a range of about two thirds from the top of the second wall surface portion 5b within the center pillar 1 and about 3 from the rear end edge 40 of the door reinforcement 4. min Yes in opposition to the second range and the front-rear direction, a rear edge 40 inclined straight leading edge of the door reinforcement member 4 of the partition portion 53 of the first wall portion 5a, the center in the vehicle width direction It is arranged so as to cross the line CL and cross the rear edge 40.

When the rear edge 40 of the door reinforcement 4 moved rearward due to the impact of the frontal collision of the vehicle comes into contact with the center pillar 1, a large impact load acts on the bulkhead 5 in the pillar from the door reinforcement 4. To do.
In this case, since the partition portion 53 of the first wall surface portion 5a of the bulkhead 5 is an inclined surface in the vehicle width direction but forms a linear plane in the front-rear direction, the partition reinforcement 53 from the front by the door reinforcement 4. The center pillar 1 is prevented from being deformed due to the collision load. In addition, since the first, second, and third vertical wall surfaces 5a, 5b, and 5c are joined to the periphery of the partition 53, they are not easily deformed by an impact load. Accordingly, the center pillar 1 is effectively prevented from being broken in cross section over the partition portion 53 and its upper and lower ranges.

  Further, since the input position of the impact at the front of the vehicle body is lower than that of the door reinforcement 4 at the time of frontal collision of the vehicle, the impact load that acts on the bulkhead 5 from the door reinforcement 4 acts slightly obliquely upward. However, since the partition portion 53 is provided in the lower half portion of the bulkhead 5 so as to receive the rear end edge 40 of the door reinforcement 4, the impact load is more effectively received and higher rigidity against the impact load is obtained. Can demonstrate.

  Since the bulkhead 5 is reinforced by the reinforcing action of the bent portions 52, 55, 56, 57 extending in the front-rear direction at a plurality of positions above and below the first wall surface portion 5a, the front-rear direction of the first wall surface portion 5a. Therefore, the door reinforcement 4 can be reliably received.

  Moreover, since the partition part 53 becomes the inclined surface which follows the square shape of the bulkhead 5, the bulkhead 5 can be easily shape | molded by press work, and its productivity is favorable.

In the bulkhead 5 of the above-described embodiment, the upper portion 54 of the first wall surface portion 5a is bent with respect to the central portion 51. However, the present invention is not limited to this. It is good. However, it is desirable to provide a bent portion between the upper portion and the central portion from the viewpoint of enhancing the surface rigidity of the upper half portion of the first side surface portion 5a.

It is a principal part perspective view which shows the center pillar structure of this invention. It is the front view seen from the front which shows the positional relationship of the door reinforcement of the said center pillar structure, and a bulkhead. It is a horizontal sectional view which follows the III-III line of FIG. It is a horizontal sectional view which follows the IV-IV line of FIG. It is a side view of the motor vehicle which shows the positional relationship of a center pillar and door reinforcement. 6 (a) and 6 (b) show two typical types of conventional pillar structures, and are partially cutaway perspective views.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Center pillar 1a Outer panel 11 Side wall 12 Front wall 13 Rear wall 2 Door opening 3 Door 4 Door reinforcement 40 Rear edge (rear edge)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 5 Bulk head 5a 1st wall surface part 5b 2nd wall surface part 5c 3rd wall surface part 53 Partition part 55,56 Bending part

Claims (3)

In the middle of the center pillar of the closed cross section that stands up along the rear edge of the door opening on the side of the vehicle body, there is a door reinforcement that extends in the front-rear direction installed inside the door that opens and closes the door opening. In the center pillar structure of an automobile in which a bulkhead is provided at a position corresponding to the rear end, and the rear end of the door reinforcement that moves backward in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle is received by the bulkhead to prevent the center pillar from collapsing in cross section. ,
The bulkhead extends from the first wall surface along the outer side wall of the outer panel of the center pillar, and extends from the front and rear edges of the first wall surface along the front and rear walls of the outer panel. The second and third wall surfaces are integrally formed in a substantially U-shaped horizontal cross section that opens toward the inside of the vehicle, and the whole is formed in a substantially square shape in the vertical direction so that the lower half slopes downward in the vehicle interior. Provide an inclined part,
The inclined portion of the first wall surface portion forms an inclined surface that is substantially flat in the front-rear direction and is inclined downward in the in-vehicle direction to form a partition portion that partitions the outer panel up and down,
A center pillar structure for an automobile, wherein the front edge of the partition portion bent and connected to the second wall surface portion is opposed to the rear end of the door reinforcement. The bulkhead has a vertical dimension substantially the same as the vertical width of the door reinforcement,
2. The center pillar structure of an automobile according to claim 1, wherein a front edge of the partition portion is opposed to a rear end of the door reinforcement. The center pillar structure for an automobile according to claim 2, wherein a bent portion extending linearly in the front-rear direction is formed as a bent shape having an L-shaped longitudinal section that projects the upper portion of the first wall surface shallowly toward the inside of the vehicle .