JPH0423742Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to improvement of the front pillar portion of an automobile.

(Prior Art) The front pillar of an automobile supports a windshield glass at its upper end, and its lower end is joined to a side sill, and serves as an important strength member of the vehicle body.

For this reason, generally, as shown in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 55-36055, the front pillar is formed into a closed cross-sectional shape by an inner panel and an outer panel, and a rainfork is provided inside the pillar over almost the entire length. It is also being done to place a space.

Such front pillars also support the instrument panel, so a mounting flange is joined to the inner panel of the front pillar, and the instrument panel is connected to the front pillar via this mounting flange. It is also being done.

(Problem that the invention aims to solve) Incidentally, in recent automobiles, there is a tendency for the number of various devices to be attached to the instrument panel to increase, and accordingly, the load that the front pillar receives also tends to increase. It is in.

Thus, in order to support the large load from the instrument panel, it is desirable to increase the strength of the front pillar, especially the strength of the portion where the mounting flange is located.

From this point of view, it is conceivable to add a reinforcing member to further reinforce the front pillar.

However, adding a separate reinforcing member not only increases the cost and complicates the structure, but also increases the weight, which is undesirable.

The present invention was developed in consideration of the above circumstances, and provides an automobile that can further improve the strength of the part where the mounting flange for mounting the instrument panel is joined without adding a separate reinforcing member. The purpose is to provide a vehicle body pillar structure.

(Means and actions for solving the problem) In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention has a closed cross-section formed by an inner panel and an outer panel, and a reinforcement is provided inside. In the front pillar of the automobile, a mounting flange for mounting an instrument panel is joined to the inner surface of the inner panel in the vehicle width direction, and a bead portion that bulges outward in the vehicle width direction is formed in the reinforcement. , The bead portion has both ends thereof in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body,
The pillar structure of an automobile is characterized in that the pillar structure is joined to the inner panel in a manner corresponding to the position of the mounting flange.

With this configuration, the strength of the joint portion of the mounting flange is greatly improved not only by the bead itself but also by the closed cross section formed by the bead and the inner panel.

(Example) The present invention will be described below with reference to the attached drawings.

In Figure 1, A is the front pillar;
In the example, as is commonly done,
It is a vertically split type with front pillar top 1 and hinge pillar 2 as front pillar lower.
They are configured such that they are joined to each other at their divided ends. This front pillar atsupa 1
A front windshield B is supported by the hinge pillar 2, and the lower end of the hinge pillar 2 is joined to the side sill 3.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the front pillar top 1 is formed into a closed cross-sectional shape by an inner panel 4 and an outer panel 5, as in the conventional case, and inside thereof, as shown by the broken line in FIG. , a first reinforcement 6 is provided. This first reinforcement 6 extends upward from near the boundary between the front pillar top 1 and the hinge pillar 2,
It is present at a position slightly lower than the upper end of the front pillar upper 1, that is, over almost the entire length of the front pillar upper 1.

The hinge pillar 2 and the side sill 3 are also formed into a closed cross section by an inner panel and an outer panel, as in the conventional case, and within the closed cross section of the hinge pillar 2,
As shown by the dashed line in FIG. 1, a second reinforcement 7 is provided. The second reinforcement 7 extends upward from the vicinity of the side sill 3, and its upper end reaches a position slightly lower than the first reinforcement 6. In other words, the second reinforcement 7 not only reinforces the hinge pillar 2 but also the front pillar top 1 to ensure sufficient strength as a whole from the side sill 3 to the roof panel (not shown). It is set as.

At the lower end of the front pillar upper 1, a mounting flange 8 is joined to the inner surface of the inner panel 4 in the vehicle width direction, as shown with diagonal lines in FIG. 1 and as shown in FIG. The mounting flange 8 is cup-shaped in the embodiment, and is joined to the inner panel 4 with its open end facing toward the inner panel 4. Although not shown, a side end portion of an instrument panel extending in the vehicle width direction is connected to this mounting flange 8.

The structure of the portion of the front pillar upper 1 where the mounting flange 8 is present is as shown in FIG. That is, the first reinforcement 6 is disposed along at least the surface of the inner panel 4 to which the mounting flange 8 is joined, and the portion corresponding to the mounting flange 8 extends outward in the vehicle width direction. The bead portion 6a bulges out.
This bead portion 6a is formed in a substantially straight line, slightly longer than the mounting flange 8 in the vertical direction (the extending direction and length of the bead portion 6a are indicated by arrows in FIG. 1). The first reinforcement 6 in which the bead portion 6a is formed in this manner has a contact portion 6b that contacts the inner surface of the inner panel 4 on both sides of the bead portion 6a, and the contact portion 6b, the inner panel 4, and the mounting flange Joining flange 8 of section 8
A and are joined by three pieces together (for example, spot welding)
has been done.

In the above configuration, the portion of the front pillar top 1 to which the mounting flange 8 is joined is sufficiently reinforced by the bead portion 6a of the reinforcement 6, and the input from the instrument panel via the mounting flange 8 is sufficiently reinforced by the bead portion 6a of the reinforcement 6. It will be able to sufficiently resist the load. Note that, as in the embodiment, if the first reinforcement 6 is joined to the inner panel 4 around the bead portion 6a, the strength of this portion can be further improved.

Although the embodiments have been described above, the present invention is not limited thereto, and includes, for example, the following cases.

When the second reinforcement 7 is located closer to the inner panel 4 than the first reinforcement 6, this second reinforcement 7
What is necessary is to form a bead portion in the area.

When two reinforcements 6 and 7 are provided, they are not joined by four panels, but for example, the inner panel 4, outer panel 5, and first reinforcement 6 are joined by three panels, while the second reinforcement The four plates 4, 5, 6, 7 may be finally integrated into one whole, such as by joining two pieces of the forcement 7 to the outer panel 5.

It is also possible to have only one of the first and second reinforcements.

Attach the mounting flange 8 to the front pillar top 1.
The mounting flange 8 may be mounted so as to straddle the hinge pillar 2 and the mounting flange 8 .
Of course, depending on the height position of the instrument panel, the mounting flange 8 may be joined to the hinge pillar 2.

The front pillar A may be configured as an integrated unit in the downward direction, instead of having a vertically divided configuration of the front pillar upper 1 and the hinge pillar 2.

(Effects of the invention) As is clear from the above, the invention has the following effects:
By effectively utilizing the conventional reinforcement as it is, the strength of the part where the instrument panel mounting flange is joined can be significantly improved without adding a separate reinforcing member.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the present invention, and is a side view of the main parts seen from the left side of an automobile. FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line -- in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line -- in FIG. 1. A...Front pillar, B...Front windshield, 1...Front pillar top, 2...
Hinge pillar (front pillar lower), 3... Side sill, 4... Inner panel, 5... Outer panel, 6... First reinforcement, 6a...
...Bead portion, 6b... Contact portion, 7... Second reinforcement, 8... Mounting flange.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claim for Utility Model Registration] In a front pillar of an automobile, which is formed into a closed cross-sectional shape by an inner panel and an outer panel, and a reinforcement is disposed inside, an instrument panel is provided on the inner surface side in the vehicle width direction of the inner panel. A mounting flange for panel mounting is joined, and a bead portion that bulges outward in the vehicle width direction is formed on the reinforcement, and both ends of the bead portion in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body are
A vehicle body pillar structure for an automobile, characterized in that the pillar structure is joined to the inner panel in a manner corresponding to the position of the mounting flange.