JP6698245B2 - Vehicle cowl structure - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a cowl structure for a vehicle that includes a cowl louver and a cowl panel that supports the cowl louver from below.

  Patent Literature 1 describes a technique relating to the vehicle cowl structure described above. In the cowl structure for a vehicle described in Patent Document 1, as shown in FIG. 9, a cowl louver 100 has a front groove portion 100m covered by a rear portion of an engine hood 102 and a rear end edge 100b of a lower end edge of a windshield 104. It is connected to the. As a result, the cowl louver 100 is configured so that the water flowing down from the windshield 104 can be guided to both ends in the vehicle width direction. In the cowl louver 100, a bottom plate portion of the groove portion 100m is supported from below by a louver support portion 105f of a cowl panel 105 that constitutes a ceiling portion of the engine room ER. The bottom plate portion of the cowl louver 100 (groove portion 100m) and the louver support portion 105f of the cowl panel 105 are generally connected by a clip or the like.

JP, 2008-284984, A

  In the vehicle cowl structure described above, when a collision load F is applied to the rear portion of the engine hood 102 from diagonally above and above, the rear portion of the engine hood 102 and the cowl louver 100 are deformed in the direction of the collision load F, and the collision load F is increased. It is absorbed to some extent. At this time, as described above, the cowl louver 100 is supported from below by the louver support portion 105f of the cowl panel 105, and the both 100 and 105f are connected by a clip or the like. As a result, the cowl louver 100 is prevented from being deformed by the cowl panel 105 that has received the collision load F. Therefore, the absorption performance of the collision load F becomes low.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and the problem to be solved by the present invention is to absorb the collision load when a collision load is applied to the rear portion of the engine hood from the front upper side. It is to improve.

The problems described above are solved by the inventions of the claims. The invention of claim 1 constitutes a cowl louver whose front portion is covered by the rear portion of the engine hood and whose rear end edge is connected to the lower end edge of the windshield, and a ceiling portion of the engine room. A cowl structure for a vehicle, comprising: a cowl panel for supporting the vehicle from below; the cowl panel and the cowl louver are an engagement mechanism including a claw portion extending in the vehicle front-rear direction and an opening into which the claw portion is inserted. engaged through said cowl louver is held in displaceable state in the vehicle longitudinal direction with respect to the cowl panel, when said cowl louver is subjected to a collision load over a rear portion of the engine hood, It can be displaced in a direction away from the cowl panel.

According to the present invention, the cowl louver engages with the cowl panel so as to be displaceable in a direction away from the cowl panel when a collision load is applied through the rear portion of the engine hood. Therefore, when a collision load is applied to the rear portion of the engine hood from above and the rear portion of the engine hood and the cowl louver are deformed, the cowl louver can be displaced in a direction in which it is disengaged from the cowl panel. That is, the cowl louver is displaced in the direction away from the cowl panel, so that the cowl panel does not hinder the deformation of the cowl louver, and the deformation stroke of the cowl louver increases. This improves the impact load absorption performance.
Further, since the engaging mechanism is composed of the claw portion and the opening, the engaging mechanism can be easily molded.

According to the invention of claim 2 , the opening of the engagement mechanism is formed in a part of the projecting wall projecting outward from the wall of the cowl louver, and the base end of the projecting wall is provided with a fragile part. Has been. As a result, when the cowl louver is deformed under the impact load and the protruding wall comes into contact with a part of the cowl panel, the protruding wall is easily broken at the position of the fragile portion. As a result, the movement of the cowl louver is not blocked by the cowl panel.

  According to the present invention, the absorbing performance of the collision load when the collision load is applied to the rear portion of the engine hood from the front upper side is improved.

It is the perspective view which looked at the vehicle provided with the cowl structure concerning Embodiment 1 of the present invention from the right front. It is the whole longitudinal cross-sectional view (II-II arrow longitudinal cross-sectional view of FIG. 1) showing the cowl structure of a vehicle. FIG. 3 is a side view (enlarged view of a portion III in FIG. 2) showing an engagement mechanism between a cowl front panel and a cowl louver. It is an enlarged view of the IV section of FIG. It is a perspective view (V-V arrow view of FIG. 4) showing the engagement mechanism of a cowl front panel and a cowl louver. FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a claw portion of the engagement mechanism (a sectional view taken along the line VI-VI in FIG. 4 ). It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing the function of the cowl structure of the vehicle. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing the function of the cowl structure of the vehicle. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing a cowl structure of a conventional vehicle.

[Embodiment 1]
Hereinafter, a cowl structure for a vehicle according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 8. The cowl structure for a vehicle according to the present embodiment relates to an engagement structure between a cowl louver and a cowl front panel that supports the cowl louver from below. Here, the front-rear, left-right and top-bottom shown in the drawing correspond to the front-rear, left-right and top-bottom of the vehicle.

<Outline of front structure of vehicle 10>
Before describing the cowl structure of the vehicle 10, an outline of the front structure of the vehicle 10 will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, front pillars 14 are erected on the front side of the front door 12 on the left and right sides of the body of the vehicle 10, and the front parts of the roof panel (not shown) are supported by the left and right front pillars 14. Has been done. In the front pillar 14, a pillar support portion 14 d below the belt line BR of the front door 12 is covered with a fender panel 15. The design portion 14e of the front pillar 14 located above the fender panel 15 is configured to be continuous with the design surface 15e of the fender panel 15. A windshield 20 is provided at a position surrounded by the design portions 14e and the like of the left and right front pillars 14 and a roof panel (not shown).

  As shown in FIG. 1, an engine hood 17 configured to open and close the engine room ER of the vehicle 10 is provided between the left and right fender panels 15. The engine hood 17 is provided so that the rear portion of the engine hood 17 can cover the front portion of the cowl louver 30. The cowl louver 30 is a vehicle exterior component that guides water flowing down from the windshield 20 to both ends of the vehicle 10 in the vehicle width direction and has an outside air introduction function. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the cowl louver 30 has a rear end edge 30b of the cowl louver 30 connected to a lower end edge 20d of the windshield 20 over the entire vehicle width direction.

  Between the pillar support portions 14d of the left and right front pillars 14, a dash panel 43 (see FIG. 2) that separates the engine room ER from the vehicle interior R is provided in the shape of a vertical wall extending in the vehicle width direction (horizontal direction). There is. As shown in FIG. 2, the upper end portion of the dash panel 43 is bent forward in a substantially horizontal state, and the upper end portion constitutes a rear ceiling portion 43f of the engine room ER. The rear end edge 50b of the cowl panel 50 that supports the windshield 20 is fixed to the front end edge of the ceiling portion 43f of the dash panel 43.

<About cowl panel 50>
The cowl panel 50 is a panel extending in the vehicle width direction, and as shown in FIG. 2, a horizontal portion 50t serving as a ceiling portion of the engine room ER and a vertical wall portion 50w provided at a front end position of the horizontal portion 50t. Is equipped with. Further, by bending the upper end position of the vertical wall portion 50w forward, a shelf portion 50u is provided on the front side of the vertical wall portion 50w. Further, the flange portion 50f is formed by bending the front end position of the shelf portion 50u obliquely downward. The lower portion (lower side) of the windshield 20 is supported from the back side at the position of the flange portion 50f of the cowl panel 50. The cowl panel 50 and the dash panel 43 are covered with an instrument panel 45 and the like from the inside of the vehicle interior R. A cowl front panel 53, which also constitutes the ceiling of the engine room ER, is fixed to the lower front side of the vertical wall portion 50w of the cowl panel 50. The cowl front panel 53 is configured to support the front portion of the cowl louver 30 from below.

<About cowl front panel 53>
The cowl front panel 53 is a panel that extends in the vehicle width direction together with the cowl panel 50, and as shown in FIG. Has been formed. A flange-shaped louver support portion 53f that supports the cowl louver 30 is provided at an upper end position of the front side inclined wall portion 53w of the cowl front panel 53 so as to extend in the vehicle width direction. Further, at the front end position of the louver support portion 53f of the cowl front panel 53, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the claw portions 357 of the engagement mechanism 350 (described later) protruding forward are equally spaced in the vehicle width direction. Is formed by. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the claw portion 357 is formed by bending into a substantially U shape having a shallow cross-sectional shape. As a result, the strength of the claw portion 357 is ensured, and the claw portion 357 is unlikely to break at an intermediate position in the projecting direction.

<About the cowl louver 30>
As shown in FIG. 2 and the like, the cowl louver 30 includes a mountain portion 31 in a central portion in the vehicle front-rear direction, and the mountain portion 31 is formed to extend in the vehicle width direction. A groove portion 33 that also extends in the vehicle width direction is formed on the front side of the mountain portion 31 of the cowl louver 30. A vertical wall portion 32 forming a rear side wall portion of the groove portion 33 is provided between the mountain portion 31 of the cowl louver 30 and the groove portion 33. A bending line 32r extending in the vehicle width direction is formed in the vertical wall portion 32 at a central position in the height direction, and the vertical wall portion 32 has a shallow angle so that the vertical wall portion 32 is convex rearward at the position of the bending line 32r. It is bent at. The rear side of the mountain portion 31 of the cowl louver 30 is gently inclined so that the windshield 20 side becomes lower, and the rear end edge 30b of the cowl louver 30 faces the lower end edge 20d of the windshield 20 as described above. It is connected in one state.

  The front side wall portion 34 forming the groove portion 33 of the cowl louver 30 is formed in an inclined surface shape, and a flange portion 34f extends in the vehicle width direction at the upper end position of the front side wall portion 34, as shown in FIGS. Is formed. A weather strip 37 that seals between the engine hood 17 and the cowl louver 30 is provided on the flange portion 34f of the cowl louver 30. In the cowl louver 30, the bottom plate 33b of the groove portion 33 of the cowl louver 30 is placed on the louver support portion 53f of the cowl front panel 53. Here, the bottom plate 33b of the groove 33 of the cowl louver 30 protrudes rearward by a predetermined dimension L from the louver support portion 53f of the cowl front panel 53, as shown in FIG. The bottom plate 33b of the groove portion 33 of the cowl louver 30 and the louver support portion 53f of the cowl front panel 53 are sealed by a sponge-like sealing material 60 over the entire width in the vehicle width direction.

<About cowl structure>
As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, a projecting wall 351 that projects substantially at a right angle from the front side wall portion 34 is provided on the outer lower portion of the front side wall portion 34 of the cowl louver 30. The protruding wall 351 is a component of the engaging mechanism 350, and as shown in FIG. 5, a protruding wall main body 351m protruding with a constant width, and an eave formed with a protruding amount larger than that of the protruding wall main body 351m. And the wall portion 352. The eave-shaped wall portion 352 of the cowl louver 30 (protruding wall 351) is provided at a position corresponding to the claw portion 357 of the cowl front panel 53. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the eaves-shaped wall portion 352 is arranged so as to cover the claw portion 357 from the upper front side so that a person does not come into contact with the claw portion 357 of the cowl front panel 53. There is. As shown in FIG. 5, a groove portion 352m extending in the left-right direction is provided on the back side of the base end portion of the eaves-shaped wall portion 352, and the groove portion 352m is thin. As a result, the eaves-shaped wall portion 352 is easily broken at the position of the groove portion 352m by receiving the collision load F.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a rectangular wall portion 353 projects downward from the lower surface of the eaves-shaped wall portion 352 of the cowl louver 30, and the claw portion 357 of the cowl front panel 53 is attached to the rectangular wall portion 353. Is formed with an opening 353h. As a result, the cowl louver 30 is engaged with the cowl front panel 53 in a state in which the cowl louver 30 is displaceable in the vehicle front-rear direction but not vertically displaceable by the action of the claw portion 357 of the engagement mechanism 350 and the opening 353h. It

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a plurality of slit-shaped openings 351s are formed at equal intervals in the vehicle width direction between the protruding wall body 351m of the cowl louver 30 and the front side wall 34. As a result, when the cowl louver 30 receives the collision load F and is displaced rearward, and the protruding wall body 351m abuts the louver support portion 53f of the cowl front panel 53, the protruding wall body 351m is positioned at the position of the slit-shaped opening 351s. Will be broken. As a result, the rearward movement of the cowl louver 30 is not hindered by the louver support portion 53f of the cowl front panel 53. That is, the slit-shaped opening 351s of the protruding wall body 351m and the groove 352m of the eaves-shaped wall 352 correspond to the fragile portion of the protruding wall in the present invention.

<About the function of the cowl structure>
In the cowl structure of the vehicle 10 described above, when a collision load F is applied to the rear part of the engine hood 17 obliquely from above and above, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the rear part of the engine hood 17 and the cowl louver 30 collide with each other. Deforms in the F direction. Here, as shown in FIG. 4 and the like, the cowl louver 30 is engaged with the cowl front panel 53 so as to be displaceable in the vehicle front-rear direction by the action of the opening 353h of the engagement mechanism 350 and the claw 357. is doing. In the initial stage of deformation of the cowl louver 30 that receives the collision load F, the eave-shaped wall portion 352 and the square wall portion 353 of the cowl louver 30 are displaced forward as shown by the chain double-dashed line in FIG. 7. This allows the cowl louver 30 to come off the claw portion 357 of the cowl front panel 53 from the opening 353h of the square wall portion 353. Then, by continuing the deformation of the cowl louver 30, the cowl louver 30 is displaced rearward with respect to the louver support portion 53f of the cowl front panel 53, as shown in FIG. This allows the bottom plate 33b of the cowl louver to come off the louver support portion 53f of the cowl front panel 53.

  Further, when the protruding wall 351 (projecting wall main body 351m) of the cowl louver 30 comes into contact with the louver support portion 53f of the cowl front panel 53 as the cowl louver 30 moves rearward, the protruding wall main body 351m is slit-shaped opening 351s. You will be able to fold at the position. Further, the eaves-shaped wall portion 352 of the cowl louver 30 comes to be bent at the position of the groove portion 352m. As a result, the deformation of the cowl louver 30 is not hindered by the cowl front panel 53, and the deformation stroke of the cowl louver 30 is increased. This improves the impact load absorption performance.

<Advantages of the cowl structure of the vehicle 10 according to the present embodiment>
According to the cowl structure of the vehicle 10 according to the present embodiment, when the cowl louver 30 receives the collision load F, the cowl louver 30 is engaged with the cowl front panel 53 so that the cowl louver 30 can be displaced in a direction away from the cowl front panel 53 (cowl panel). It fits. Therefore, when a collision load F is applied to the rear portion of the engine hood 17 from the front upper side, and the rear portion of the engine hood 17 and the cowl louver 30 are deformed, the cowl louver 30 is displaced in a direction away from the cowl front panel 53. As a result, the cowl front panel 53 does not interfere with the deformation of the cowl louver 30, and the deformation stroke of the cowl louver 30 increases. As a result, the impact load absorption performance is improved. In addition, since the engaging mechanism includes the claw portion 357 and the opening 353h, the engaging mechanism can be easily molded.

<Example of change>
It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, in the present embodiment, an example of the engaging mechanism 350 including the claw portion 357 and the opening portion 353h, in which the claw portion 357 is provided in the louver support portion 53f of the cowl front panel 53 and the opening portion 353h is provided in the cowl louver 30. showed that. However, it is also possible to provide the claw portion 357 on the cowl louver 30 and provide the opening 353h on the louver support portion 53f of the cowl front panel 53. Further, in the present embodiment, the engagement mechanism 350 including the claw portion 357 and the opening portion 353h is illustrated, but for example, the engagement mechanism including the hook and the engaged portion with which the hook engages, The hook or the engaged portion may be broken when the collision load F is received. Further, instead of the groove portion 352m (weakened portion) of the eaves-shaped wall portion 352 of the cowl louver 30, it is possible to provide a slit-shaped opening and change the material. Furthermore, instead of providing the slit-shaped opening 351s (weakened portion) in the protruding wall body 351m, the material can be changed.

10... Vehicle 17... Engine hood 20... Windshield 20d... Bottom edge 30... Cowl louver 33b... Bottom plate 50... Cowl panel 53... Cowl Front panel (cowl panel)
53f... Louver support portion 357... Claw portion (engagement mechanism)
350... Engaging mechanism 351... Projecting wall 351m... Projecting wall main body 351s... Slit-like opening (fragile part)
352... Eave-shaped wall portion 352m... Groove portion (fragile portion)
353h...Opening (engagement mechanism)
353... Square wall 60... Seal material F... Collision load

Claims (2)

A cowl louver whose front part is covered by the rear part of the engine hood and whose rear edge is connected to the lower edge of the windshield, and a cowl panel which constitutes the ceiling part of the engine room and supports the cowl louver from below. A cowl structure of a vehicle including:
The cowl panel and the cowl louver are engaged with each other via an engagement mechanism including a claw portion extending in the vehicle front-rear direction and an opening into which the claw portion is inserted,
The cowl louver is held in a state of being displaceable in the vehicle front-rear direction with respect to the cowl panel,
A cowl structure for a vehicle, wherein the cowl louver is displaceable in a direction away from the cowl panel when a collision load is applied through a rear portion of the engine hood. A cowl structure for a vehicle according to claim 1,
The opening of the engagement mechanism is formed in a part of a protruding wall that protrudes outward from the wall of the cowl louver,
A vehicle cowl structure in which a fragile portion is provided at a base end portion of the protruding wall .

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