JP7040256B2 - Underfloor protector - Google Patents

Description

In the present specification, in a vehicle provided with a protected device arranged under the floor of the vehicle and a protected supply line drawn from the protected device to the front of the vehicle, the protected device is arranged below the protected supply line. Disclose the protector under the vehicle floor that protects the protected supply line.

Conventionally, a vehicle equipped with a high-voltage battery pack or a fuel tank under the floor of the vehicle has been known. High-voltage battery packs and fuel tanks are protected devices that need to be protected during driving or vehicle collisions. In order to protect such protected equipment, it is partially proposed to provide an undercover under the protected equipment. For example, in Patent Document 1, a battery pack and a fuel tank are mounted under the floor of a vehicle, and an undercover is provided under the battery pack and the fuel tank, whereby the fuel tank and the fuel tank are caused by road surface interference. A technique for protecting from flying stones and the like is disclosed.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2014-151891

However, Patent Document 1 does not fully study the protection of the protected supply line such as the high voltage cable drawn from the battery pack and the fuel pipe drawn from the fuel tank. Further, in Patent Document 1, the protection of the protected device in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle is not sufficiently studied.

Here, in some cases, a protector, which is a panel member, is provided in front of the undercover and below the protected supply line, that is, under the vehicle floor, thereby protecting the protected supply line from road surface interference and stepping stones. Has been proposed. According to such a technique, not only the protected device but also the protected supply line drawn from the protected device can be protected from road surface interference and stepping stones.

It has also been partially proposed that this protector be provided with a bead that extends in the vehicle width direction and is convex downward. With such a configuration, the protector is likely to be bent and deformed in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle. Then, the collision energy of the vehicle is absorbed by this bending deformation, and thereby the collision energy applied to the protected device located behind the protector can be reduced. That is, by providing the protector with a downwardly convex bead, the protected device can be appropriately protected in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle. However, when such a bead is provided, the liquid that has entered the upper space of the protector may collect in the bead and cause rust.

Therefore, in the present specification, a protector under the floor of a vehicle, which can appropriately protect the protected device in the event of a vehicle collision and maintain high rust resistance, is disclosed.

The underfloor protector disclosed in the present specification is the protected supply in a vehicle provided with a protected device arranged under the floor of the vehicle and a protected supply line drawn from the protected device to the front of the vehicle. A protector arranged below the line to protect the protected supply line, which extends in the vehicle width direction and has a convex bead on the lower side, and the bottom of the bead is at least one end in the vehicle width direction of the bead. It is characterized in that it is inclined or curved so as to approach downward as it approaches, and at least one end of the bead in the vehicle width direction reaches the edge of the protector.

The present specification further discloses a vehicle lower structure, which includes a protected device arranged under the floor of the vehicle, a protected supply line drawn from the protected device to the front of the vehicle, and the above-mentioned. An undercover arranged under the protected device to protect the protected device and a protector arranged under the protected supply line to protect the protected supply line, the front end thereof. It comprises a protector connected to a skeleton member and the rear end of which is connected to the undercover, the protector extending in the vehicle width direction and having a downwardly convex bead, and the bottom of the bead is of the bead. The bead is inclined or curved so as to approach downward as it approaches at least one end in the vehicle width direction, and the at least one end in the vehicle width direction of the bead reaches the edge of the protector and communicates with the external space of the vehicle. It is characterized by that.

According to the protector and the vehicle lower structure described above, at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle, bending deformation is induced at the bead portion, and the collision energy is absorbed by this bending deformation. As a result, the collision energy applied to the protected device located behind the protector is reduced, and the protected device is more reliably protected. Further, since the bottom of the bead is inclined or curved so as to approach downward as it approaches at least one end in the vehicle width direction of the bead, the liquid that has entered the bead can be drained more reliably.

In this case, the bottom of the bead has a substantially arcuate or mountainous shape that approaches downward as the bead approaches both ends in the vehicle width direction, and both ends of the bead in the vehicle width direction reach the edge of the protector. You may.

With such a configuration, the liquid can be discharged from both ends in the vehicle width direction of the bead, so that the drainage performance of the protector can be further improved.

Further, the front end side of the protector has a substantially arc shape that is convex forward in a plan view, and the front end side has a notch for passing a fastening flange extending from the skeleton member toward the protector. As described above, at least one end of the bead in the vehicle width direction may reach at least one of the notches.

With such a configuration, by allowing at least one end of the protector in the vehicle width direction to reach the notch, the liquid that has flowed to at least one end is reliably discharged from the notch to the outside of the vehicle.

According to the protector disclosed in the present specification, the protected device can be appropriately protected in the event of a vehicle collision, and the rust preventive property of the protector can be kept high.

It is a bottom view of a vehicle equipped with a protector. It is a top view around the protector. It is a schematic perspective view around the notch on the left side. It is a schematic end view of FIG. 2 taken along the line AA. It is a schematic end view taken along the line AA of FIG. 2 at the time of a frontal collision. FIG. 2 is a schematic end view taken along the line BB of FIG. 2. It is a figure which shows another example of a protector. It is a figure which shows another example of a protector. It is a figure which shows another example of a protector. It is a figure which shows another example of a protector. It is a figure which shows another example of a protector.

Hereinafter, the vehicle lower structure having the protector 16 will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a bottom view of the vehicle 10. In the following drawings, Fr indicates the front of the vehicle, Up indicates the upper part of the vehicle, and L indicates the left direction of the vehicle.

The vehicle 10 is an electric vehicle using a rotary electric machine (not shown) as one of the traveling power sources. A battery pack 12 is mounted under the floor of the vehicle 10. The battery pack 12 contains a high-voltage battery module in one housing. The battery module is a rechargeable and dischargeable secondary battery, and transmits and receives electric power to and from a rotary electric machine mounted on the front portion of the vehicle 10. A connection portion 20 is provided at the front end of the battery pack 12, and a power line 22a through which electric power flows, a signal line 22b for transmitting and receiving various signals, and the like are detachably connected to the connection portion 20. .. In the following, the power line 22a and the signal line 22b are collectively referred to as "power line or the like 22". The power line and the like 22 extend from the battery pack 12 to the front of the vehicle. This battery pack 12 is a high-voltage device and needs to be protected so as not to be damaged not only in normal times but also in a frontal collision (hereinafter abbreviated as "front collision") of the vehicle 10. It is a device. Further, the power line or the like 22 extending from the battery pack 12 is a protected supply line that should be prevented from being damaged not only in normal times but also in the case of a frontal collision.

The underside of the battery pack 12 is covered with an undercover 14. The undercover 14 is a panel member provided for the purpose of protecting the battery pack 12 and improving the aerodynamic characteristics. By covering the battery pack 12 from below with the undercover 14, interference between the battery pack 12 and the road surface during vehicle traveling, damage to the battery pack 12 due to stepping stones, and the like are prevented, and the battery pack 12 is protected. The undercover 14 is fastened to a skeleton member, a body, or the like of the vehicle 10. Although the undercover 14 is shown as a single panel material in FIG. 1, the undercover 14 may be configured by combining a plurality of cover pieces. For example, the undercover 14 may be divided into three parts, a front cover piece, a center cover piece, and a rear cover piece.

A protector 16 is connected to the front end of the undercover 14. From another point of view, the protector 16 is arranged below the connection portion 20 and the power line and the like 22. The protector 16 is provided for the purpose of protecting the connection portion 20 and the power line and the like 22, and is a panel member made of an iron-based material. By covering the connection portion 20 and the power line etc. 22 from below with this protector 16, interference between the connection portion 20 and the power line and the road surface during vehicle running and damage to the connection portion 20 and the power line etc. 22 due to stepping stones are prevented. The connection portion 20 and the power line and the like 22 are protected.

The protector 16 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 6. FIG. 2 is a plan view around the protector 16. However, in FIG. 2, the illustration of the battery pack 12 and the power line and the like 22 is omitted. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the periphery of the left notch portion 26L, which will be described later. 4 and 5 are schematic end-view views taken along the line AA of FIG. 2, and FIG. 6 is a schematic end-view view taken along the line BB of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 2, the protector 16 has a substantially semi-cylindrical shape in which the front end edge bulges forward while the rear end edge extends in the vehicle width direction in a plan view. The rear end of the protector 16 is fastened to the front end of the undercover 14 by means such as screwing. Further, the front end of the protector 16 is fastened to the suspension member 18 by means such as screwing. Both ends of the protector 16 are free ends that are not fastened to other members.

Three notches 26L, 26C, and 26R (hereinafter, when the three are not distinguished, simply referred to as "notch 26") are formed on the front end edge of the protector 16. Of the three notches, the right notch 26R and the left notch 26L are arranged symmetrically with respect to the center line in the vehicle width direction of the protector 16. As shown in FIG. 3, such a notch 26 is for passing a fastening flange 24 extending from the suspension member 18 toward the protector 16. As is clear from FIG. 3, a fastening portion 28 for screwing and fastening with the flange 24 is provided in the vicinity of the edge of the notch portion 26. The fastening portion 28 is raised above the periphery, and the flange 24 is screwed and fastened to the upper end surface thereof.

Further, the protector 16 is also formed with a bead 30 extending in the vehicle width direction. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the bead 30 is convex downward. As is clear from FIG. 2, the bead 30 extends from one end to the other end of the protector 16 in the vehicle width direction. More specifically, in this example, the bead 30 extends from the right notch 26R to the left notch 26L. Further, as is clear from FIGS. 3 and 4, the bead 30 is convex downward. The width in the front-rear direction of the bead 30 is larger than the width in the front-rear direction of the fastening portion 28, and the bottoms of both ends of the bead 30 in the vehicle width direction reach the edge of the notch 26 (that is, the edge of the protector 16). ing.

In this way, by providing the protector 16 with a bead 30 that extends in the vehicle width direction and is convex downward, the battery pack 12 can be appropriately protected in the event of a front collision. That is, at the time of a front collision, a collision load is applied to the vehicle 10 from the front to the rear of the vehicle. In the process of the suspension member 18, which is a hard skeleton member, moving rearward under this collision load, the connection between the protector 16 and the suspension member 18, or the protector 16 and the undercover 14 may be broken. In this case, the suspension member 18 may move backward and collide with the battery pack 12. On the other hand, when the bead 30 is provided on the protector 16 as in this example, as shown in FIG. 5, when a collision load is applied, the protector 16 and the suspension member 18 are fastened or the protector 16 and the undercover 14 are attached to each other. The protector 16 is likely to bend and deform at the bead 30 position before the fastening is broken. Then, the collision energy is consumed by this bending deformation, and the rearward movement of the suspension member 18 and the damage of the battery pack 12 are effectively suppressed.

By the way, the liquid spilled or the liquid condensed in the passenger compartment of the vehicle may enter the upper space of the protector 16. Such a liquid tends to collect in the bead 30 which is a concave portion. If the liquid stays in the bead 30 for a long period of time, rust on the protector 16 is likely to occur. That is, when the protector 16 is provided with the bead 30 extending in the vehicle width direction, the protection performance of the battery pack 12 is improved, but the rust prevention performance of the protector 16 is lowered, which causes another problem. In order to avoid such a problem, it is conceivable to provide a plurality of drain holes in the middle of the bead 30. However, if such a drain hole is provided, stepping stones may invade the vehicle 10 side from the drain hole, and the power line or the like 22 cannot be properly protected.

Therefore, in this example, as described above, both ends of the bead 30 are extended to the edge of the notch 26 (the edge of the protector 16). Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the bottom of the bead 30 is inclined so as to approach downward as it approaches both ends of the bead 30 in the vehicle width direction. From another point of view, in this example, the bottom of the bead 30 has a mountain shape in which the center in the vehicle width direction is the highest.

With this configuration, the liquid that has entered the bead 30 can easily flow to the end of the bead 30 and eventually to the edge of the protector 16 due to gravity. As a result, the liquid that has entered the bead 30 is easily discharged from the edge of the protector 16 to the outside, and the rust preventive performance of the protector 16 can be kept high.

The two-dot chain line in FIG. 6 indicates a surface connecting the front end and the rear end of the bead 30 (hereinafter referred to as “reference surface Sd”). The distance from the reference surface Sd to the bottom of the bead 30 is the depth of the bead 30. As is clear from FIG. 6, in this example, the depth of the bead 30 increases as it approaches both ends in the vehicle width direction of the bead 30. However, if the bottom of the bead 30 moves downward as it approaches both ends in the vehicle width direction, the protector 16 as a whole may be inclined or curved while keeping the depth of the bead 30 constant. That is, the reference plane Sd may be inclined or curved while keeping the depth of the bead 30 constant.

In any case, by providing the protector 16 with a bead 30 extending in the vehicle width direction and protruding downward, the battery pack 12 can be appropriately protected in the event of a front collision. Further, the bottom of the bead 30 is inclined or curved so as to approach downward as it approaches at least one end in the vehicle width direction, and at least one end in the vehicle width direction of the bead 30 reaches the edge of the protector 16. The rust preventive performance of 16 can be kept high. The configuration described so far is an example, and (1) the bead 30 extends in the vehicle width direction to the protector 16 and is convex downward, and (2) the bottom of the bead 30 is the vehicle of the bead 30. It satisfies the three conditions of being inclined or curved so as to advance downward as it approaches at least one end in the width direction, and (3) at least one end in the vehicle width direction of the bead 30 reaches the edge of the protector 16. For example, other configurations may be changed as appropriate.

For example, in the above description, the bottom of the bead 30 is always located below the reference plane Sd, but the bottom of a part of the bead 30 may be located at the same height as the reference plane Sd. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the bottom of the bead 30 at the center in the vehicle width direction may be at the same height as the reference surface Sd. It can be said that the bead 30 is temporarily interrupted at the center in the vehicle width direction.

Further, in the examples so far, the bottom of the bead 30 has a mountain shape in which the center in the vehicle width direction becomes higher, but if the bottom of the bead 30 advances downward as it approaches at least one end in the vehicle width direction, other The shape of is also good. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, the bottom of the bead 30 may be shaped so that only the vicinity of both ends in the vehicle width direction is inclined. Further, the bottom of the bead 30 may be curved in an upwardly convex arc shape as shown in FIG. 9 as long as it advances downward as it approaches at least one end in the vehicle width direction.

Further, in the description so far, the bottom of the bead 30 is shaped so as to approach downward as it approaches both ends in the vehicle width direction, but the bottom of the bead 30 is inclined so as to approach downward as it approaches one end in the vehicle width direction. Alternatively, it may be curved. That is, as shown in FIG. 10, the bottom of the bead 30 may be inclined or curved so as to advance downward from the other end (left end in the illustrated example) to one end (right end in the illustrated example) in the vehicle width direction. .. In this case, the liquid that has entered the bead 30 collects at one end of the bead 30 due to gravity and is discharged from this end to the outside of the vehicle.

Further, in the description so far, the bead 30 is provided between the left notch portion 26L and the right notch portion 26R, but the bead 30 may be placed in another place if it is in front of the battery pack 12. It may be provided. For example, the bead 30 may be provided at a position behind the notch 26 as shown in FIG.

Further, up to now, an example has been given in which the battery pack 12 and the power line and the like 22 function as a protected device and a protected supply line, but the protected device and the protected supply line are mounted under the floor of the vehicle and are under. Other members may be used as long as they are protected by a cover and a protector. For example, when a fuel tank or a fuel cell is mounted under the floor of a vehicle, these are protected devices. Further, in this case, the fuel pipe drawn from the fuel tank, the power line drawn from the fuel cell, and the like are the protected supply lines.

10 vehicles, 12 battery packs, 14 undercovers, 16 protectors, 18 suspension members, 20 connections, 22a power lines, 22b signal lines, 24 flanges, 26 notches, 28 fasteners, 30 beads.

Claims (2)

In a vehicle provided with a protected device arranged under the floor of the vehicle and a protected supply line drawn from the protected device to the front of the vehicle, the protected device is arranged below the protected supply line and the protected supply is provided. A protector that protects the line
It extends in the width direction of the vehicle and has a convex bead on the lower side.
The bottom of the bead is inclined or curved so as to approach downward as it approaches at least one end in the vehicle width direction of the bead.
At least one end of the bead in the vehicle width direction reaches the edge of the protector.
A protector characterized by that. The protector according to claim 1.
The front end side of the protector has a substantially arc shape that is convex forward in a plan view.
At the front end side, one or more notches for passing a fastening flange extending from the skeleton member of the vehicle toward the protector are formed.
At least one end of the bead in the vehicle width direction reaches at least one of the notches.
A protector characterized by that.

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