JPH0437773Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a folding roof of an automobile.

(Prior art) Conventionally, in order to enhance the sense of openness in the cabin, the area covering the cabin from the roof to the rear window is made up of a hood, and this hood can be opened and closed as needed. Type-open type automobiles are known, but in this case, if the entire compartment closing part is made up of a hood, the opening/closing mechanism and opening/closing operation of the hood become complicated, and the exterior appearance is not as good as that of a conventional panel. As disclosed in British Patent No. 2086316, for example, the roof portion located at the front of the passenger compartment is integrally formed with a hard panel material. This roof panel is removably attached between the upper end of the front window located at the front of the vehicle interior and the upper part of a collapsible pillar that is collapsably attached slightly behind the center of the vehicle interior. A combination type of panel and hood is known in which only the rear portion is the hood.

However, in this known example, the roof panel is completely detachable from the vehicle body, so when opening and closing the roof panel, the roof panel must be attached and detached from the vehicle body one by one, making the operation difficult. This method is complicated and requires the installation of a fixing device to fix the roof panel to the vehicle body when the roof panel is removed, leading to problems such as complicating the structure of the device.

In addition, when the roof panel and the collapsible pillar, which are separate members, are connected so that they can be moved into and out of each other, it is natural that the connecting part (overlapping part) between the two is connected.
It is necessary to provide a seal material such as a seal rubber on the roof panel, but in this case, the structure is such that the seal material and the roof panel interfere with each other and come into sliding contact in the operating direction of the roof panel when the roof panel is opened/closed. If this happens, the sealing performance of the sealing material will decrease in a short period of time, and the sealing performance may be impaired, so this point must be taken into consideration when designing the connection structure between the roof panel and the collapsible pillar. .

(Purpose of the invention) The present invention is an attempt to solve the problems pointed out in the above-mentioned prior art section and to achieve the design requirements. In an automobile in which the lid is arranged so that it can be opened and closed, and a seal member is arranged between the collapsible pillar and the roof panel, the lid can be easily opened and closed, and the lid can be opened and closed easily. The purpose of this is to prevent mutual interference between the collapsible pillar and the seal member and maintain good sealing performance over a long period of time.

(Means for Achieving the Object) As a means for achieving the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a pillar fulcrum pin arranged in the vehicle width direction with respect to the vehicle body and provided at both ends of the vehicle width direction. a collapsible pillar that is rotatably supported in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body and can be selectively positioned between an upright position in which it stands upward from the vehicle body and a collapsed position in which it lies down toward the rear of the vehicle body from the upright position; A roof panel having a size that can be erected across the top of the collapsible pillar and the upper part of the front window when the collapsible pillar is in the upright position, one end of which is pivoted to the collapsible pillar side. and the other end of the roof panel is pivoted at a position closer to the front end by a predetermined distance than the rear end of the roof panel, and extends from the collapsible pillar to the front side thereof using the one end as a rotation fulcrum. It is possible to rotate between the second link position and the second link position that is collapsed along the collapsible pillar, and further rotation in the direction opposite to the second link position is restricted by the stopper in the first link position. The link member has a predetermined stroke in a state where it is always biased in the contraction direction, and is rotatable in the direction of the rotation surface of the collapsible pillar using one end on the collapsible pillar side as a rotation fulcrum. and the other end of the roof panel is connected to a biasing member pivotally mounted at a position closer to the front end than the pivot point of the link member, and the link member is connected to a first
When the roof panel is set at the linked position and the biasing member is extended, the roof panel extends from the top of the collapsible pillar to the front thereof with its rear end superimposed on the outside of the top of the collapsible pillar. so that it is set in a first position in which it can be extended to and placed astride between the upper part of the front window;
When the link member is in the first link position and the biasing member is contracted, the roof panel is set in an intermediate position in which it rotates forward about the pivot point with the link member. In this way, when the link member is set to the second link position while the biasing member is in the contracted state, the roof panel is moved with its rear end positioned on the top side of the collapsible pillar. When the roof panel is set in the first position, the axis of the biasing member is set on the roof panel side of the link member when the roof panel is set in the first position. The axis of the biasing member is positioned closer to the roof panel than the pivot point of the link member, and after the roof panel is rotated by a predetermined amount from the first attitude toward the intermediate attitude, the axis of the biasing member is positioned closer to the roof panel than the pivot point of the link member. between the rear end of the roof panel and the top of the collapsible pillar, which overlap with each other when the roof panel is set in the first position. It is characterized in that a sealing member is disposed between the two to perform a sealing action and is pressed between the two.

(Function) In the present invention, the following effects can be obtained by the above-mentioned means.

(1) The top of a collapsible pillar that is movable between an upright position and a collapsed position and a roof panel are connected so as to be relatively rotatable via a link member and an urging member having a predetermined stroke; The first roof panel can be disposed astride between the collapsible pillar and the upper part of the front window by a linkage between the rotational displacement of the link member and the expansion/contraction displacement and rotational displacement of the biasing member. Since it is movable between the posture and the second posture folded toward the collapsible pillar, the roof panel can be attached and detached from the collapsible pillar when the roof panel is opened/closed, as in the above-mentioned known example. The roof panel can be opened and closed easily with a single touch.

(2) A state in which the collapsible pillar is set to the upright position and the roof panel is set to the first position, that is,
When the roof panel is in use, the link member is set at the first link position, and the stopper restricts rotation toward the side opposite to the second link position, and the biasing member is in an extended state. In addition, since its axis is located closer to the roof panel than the pivot point of the link member on the roof panel side, the biasing force of the biasing member causes the roof panel to move around the pivot point with the link member. The sealing member disposed between the rear end of the roof panel and the top of the collapsible pillar is pressed between them. A predetermined sealing effect is exerted, and the roof panel is biased and held in the first position.

(3) When folding and storing the roof panel from the state described in (2) above, first the collapsible pillar is folded from the upright position to the lodging position, and then it remains set in the first position. A force is applied in the direction of tilting the roof panel toward the intermediate position around the pivot point with the link member set at the first link position. Then, when the roof panel is tilted from the first attitude toward the intermediate attitude by a predetermined amount, the axis of the biasing member moves toward the opposite side of the roof panel from the pivot point of the roof panel with the link member; The biasing force (reduction force) of the biasing member acts in a direction to rotate the roof panel about the pivot point toward the intermediate position. Therefore,
The roof panel rotates around the pivot point with the link member that remains set at the first link position, and the rear end of the roof panel, which is located closer to the top of the collapsible pillar than the pivot point, The seal member moves outward from the top of the pillar and slides into sliding contact with the retractable pillar or roof panel (if the seal member is fixed to the retractable pillar side, the roof panel If the seal member is fixed to the roof panel side, sliding contact with the collapsible pillar) will be avoided.

(4) After the roof panel has rotated from the first position to the intermediate position due to the contraction operation of the biasing member, the biasing member is in the most contracted state and from this point onwards act as a link (length). Therefore, if a rotational force is further applied to the roof panel in this state, the link member will rotate from the first link position to the second link position around the pivot point on the collapsible pillar side, and will also rotate in conjunction with this. Then, the biasing member also rotates around the pivot point on the side of the collapsible pillar, and the roof panel is gradually moved toward the collapsible pillar by the cooperative operation of these link members and the biasing member,
At the time when the link member is set to the second link position, it is set to the second attitude, which is the retracted attitude.

(5) On the other hand, when the roof panel is taken out from the stored state and set to the in-use state, a predetermined operating force is applied to rotate the roof panel from its second position to the first position. Until the roof panel reaches the intermediate position, the biasing member rotates together with the link member while maintaining the contracted state, but when the roof panel reaches the intermediate position, the link member contacts the stopper and is in the first link position. Fixed. Therefore, when a rotational force is further applied to the roof panel, the roof panel rotates about the pivot point with the link member and while extending the biasing member, and the rear end portion gradually wraps around from the outside. and approaches the top of the collapsible pillar, and appropriately compresses the sealing member disposed between them to perform a predetermined sealing action.

(Effects of the invention) Therefore, according to the foldable roof of an automobile of the present invention, (1) the roof panel and the collapsible pillar are connected through the link member and the biasing member so that they can rotate relative to each other; Since the roof panel can be positioned between the in-use state and the retracted state by only the rotational operation of the As a result, the opening/closing operation of the roof panel becomes easy, and the operability is improved.

(2) Due to the expansion/contraction displacement and contraction force of the biasing member disposed between the roof panel and the collapsible pillar, the roof panel is moved to the first link position at the beginning of the opening operation and at the end of the closing operation of the roof panel. Since the rear end of the roof panel is rotated about the pivot point with the fixed link member and wraps around the top of the collapsible pillar from the outside, it can be moved closer to or farther away from the top of the collapsible pillar. The sealing member disposed between the collapsible pillar and the rear end of the roof panel is prevented from coming into sliding contact with each other, and the sealing performance between the collapsible pillar and the roof panel is good over a long period of time. The following effects can be obtained:

(Embodiment) Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.

Prior to a detailed explanation of the folding roof according to the embodiment of the present invention, the overall structure of the folding roof and its basic operating procedure will be explained with reference to FIG. 3 and FIGS. 4A to 4D.

FIG. 3 shows a car equipped with a folding roof Z according to an embodiment of the invention. This foldable roof Z is integrally formed in a substantially torii-like shape, and the lower ends of legs 12, 12 located on both sides thereof are tiltable in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body 41 with respect to both sides of the vehicle body 41 via pillar fulcrum pins 7. A collapsible pillar 1 (see Fig. 1) connected to The above-mentioned collapsible pillar 1 includes a roof panel 4 (see FIG. 1) which is arranged between the upper frame 3 so as to be openable and closable, and a rear window glass 5 inside the roof panel 4 (see FIG. 1).
The hood 2 is disposed between the beam portion 11 of the vehicle body 41 and the rear portion 41a of the vehicle body 41.

A front end 4a of the roof panel 4 is detachably connected to the upper frame 3 of the front windshield 6 by a connecting device (not shown), while a rear end 4b is connected to a link bar 21 and a damper 31, which will be described later. Beam portion 11 of collapsible pillar 1 through
It is connected so that it can rotate freely. Also,
The hood 2 is fixedly connected to both the collapsible pillar 1 and the vehicle body 41, respectively.

The operating procedure for this folding roof Z is shown in Figure 4A.
This will be explained with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 4A shows the folding roof Z in the closed state. In this state, the collapsible pillar 1
stands upward from the vehicle body 41, and a roof panel 4 is installed between the upright collapsible pillar 1 and an upper frame 3 of a front windshield 6 located at the front of the vehicle body 41. Further, the hood 2 is stretched between the collapsible pillar 1 and the rear part of the vehicle body 41. The rotating position of the collapsible pillar 1 in this state corresponds to the upright position within the scope of the utility model registration claim, and the attitude of the roof panel 4 with respect to the collapsible pillar 1 at this time is within the scope of the utility model registration claim. This corresponds to the first posture.

When opening the folding roof Z from the closed state shown in FIG. 4A,
As shown in FIG.
Tilt the vehicle body toward the rear around the center. Furthermore, the fourth
As shown in Figure C, a state in which the collapsible pillar 1 is tilted rearward to a position where it is substantially parallel to the upper surface 41b of the vehicle body 41 corresponds to the inverted position within the scope of the utility model registration claim. Further, in this state, the roof panel 4 is maintained in the first position.

Furthermore, from this state, only the roof panel 4 is rotated relative to the front side of the vehicle body with respect to the collapsible pillar 1, and the roof panel 4 is folded toward the collapsible pillar 1 side as shown in FIG. (roof Z open). In addition, the roof panel 4 in this state
The posture with respect to the collapsible pillar 1 corresponds to the second posture in the scope of the utility model registration claim.

In this way, the roof panel 4 is connected to the collapsible pillar 1 so as to be relatively rotatable, and the lid of the roof panel 4 is opened and closed by tilting the collapsible pillar 1 and rotating the roof panel 4. In this case, the opening/closing operation of the lid is easier than in the case where the roof panel is attached to and detached from the collapsible pillar as in the above-mentioned known example, and there is an advantage that the operability is improved accordingly.

Further, between the beam part 11 of the collapsible pillar 1 and the rear end part 4b of the roof panel 4 (in this embodiment, on the collapsible pillar 1 side), there is a seal rubber 16 (utility model registration claims) for sealing the space between the two. (corresponding to the inner seal member (see Fig. 2)), but as mentioned above, if this seal rubber 16 comes into sliding contact with the roof panel 4 when opening/closing the lid of the roof panel 4, the seal rubber 16 will be damaged early. The sealing performance will be impaired. Therefore, it is necessary to provide a means for preventing mutual interference between the seal rubber 16 and the roof panel 4 at this connecting portion. This is achieved by connecting the link bar 21 and the damper 31 with the damper 31.

Hereinafter, referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the gist of the present invention will be described with reference to the collapsible pillar 1 and roof panel 4.
The structure of the connection mechanism and its function will be explained.

The beam portion 11 of the collapsible pillar 1 and the rear end portion 4b of the roof panel 4 are connected to a pair of left and right link bars 21, 21 arranged on both sides in the vehicle width direction, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, respectively. (corresponding to the link member within the scope of the utility model registration claim) and a damper 31 (corresponding to the biasing member within the scope of the utility model registration claim) arranged at the center in the vehicle width direction. .

The link bar 21 has its tip 21a connected to the roof side link bracket 22 provided on the roof panel 4 side via the roof side fulcrum pin 25 (corresponding to the pivot point on the roof panel side in the claims for utility model registration). , and the base end 21b is the pillar side fulcrum pin 2.
6 to a pillar-side link bracket 23 provided on the collapsible pillar 1 side. Therefore, the roof panel 4 is attached to the roof side fulcrum pin 25.
In addition to being able to rotate on the distal end side of the link bar 21 about the center, the base end side of the link bar 21 can also rotate integrally with the link bar 21 about the pillar side fulcrum pin 26.

When the link bar 21 rotates in the direction of arrow C about the pillar-side fulcrum pin 26, the link bar 21 comes into contact with a stopper 17 provided on the collapsible pillar 1 side, as shown in FIG. It is becoming more and more regulated. The rotational position of the link bar 21 in this state is referred to as a first link position. Further, the link bar 21 is connected to the pillar side fulcrum pin 2 as shown by the chain line (reference numeral 21') in FIG.
The rotational position of the link bar 21 in a state in which it rotates in the direction of arrow D about 6 and becomes substantially parallel to the collapsible pillar 1 is referred to as a second link position.

The damper 31 is composed of a cylinder body that is always biased in the contraction direction, and its rod end 31a is connected to a roof side damper bracket 32 provided on the roof panel 4 side via a roof panel side fulcrum pin 34. , and their base ends 31b are respectively connected to a pillar-side damper bracket 33 provided on the collapsible pillar 1 side via a pillar-side fulcrum pin 35. This roof side damper bracket 32
The mounting position on the roof panel 4 is closer to the tip end 4a than the roof-side link bracket 22 to which the link bar 21 is connected.

Further, as shown by the solid line in FIG. 2, this damper 31 is arranged so that it is in an extended state (a state in which a predetermined reduction force is applied) when the roof panel 4 is set in the first attitude. The total length and stroke are set. In this state, the damper 31 is moved from the roof-side fulcrum pin 25 of the link bar 21 set at the first link position with its axis l being restricted from rotating in the direction of arrow C by the stopper 17. Its mounting position is set relative to the link bar 21 so that it is located slightly toward the rear of the vehicle body (closer to the roof panel 4 side).

By doing this, for example, in the first posture of the roof panel 4 shown by the solid line in FIG. Seal rubber 16 provided on the collapsible pillar 1 side
The position is held in contact with the Further, the roof panel 4 rotates from this position by a predetermined amount in the direction of arrow B about the roof-side fulcrum pin 25, and the axis l crosses the position of the roof-side fulcrum pin 25 to the front side of the vehicle body (away from the roof panel). 4), the roof panel 4 is forcibly urged to rotate in the direction of arrow B about the roof-side fulcrum pin 25 due to the reduction force of the damper 31.

The roof panel 4 is attached to the collapsible pillar 1 via the link bar 21 and damper 31 configured in this way.
In the foldable roof Z of this embodiment connected to When rotating the roof panel 4 to the second position, first push the front end 4a side of the roof panel 4 in the first position toward the front of the vehicle body. The damper 31 rotates in the direction of arrow B against the reduction force of the damper 31.The axis l of the damper 31 is aligned with the roof side fulcrum pin 2.
5, the damper 31 is forcibly rotated in the direction of arrow B around the roof-side fulcrum pin 25 due to the contraction force of the damper 31, and at the point when the damper 31 is fully compressed. In the figure, it is positioned in an intermediate position indicated by reference numeral 4'.

Further, when the roof panel 4 is pushed toward the front of the vehicle body from this intermediate position, the link bar 21 with the pillar-side fulcrum pin 26 as a rotational fulcrum and the damper 31 in the fully contracted state mutually link. It is gradually rotated in the direction of arrow D while changing its inclination angle, and is finally positioned in the second attitude indicated by reference numeral 4'' in the figure (storage state).

In this case, in the rotation range of the roof panel 4 from the first position to the intermediate position, the roof panel 4 rotates in a small radius around the roof side fulcrum pin 25 instead of the pillar side fulcrum pin 26, so the roof The rear end 4b of the panel 4 has a trajectory in FIG.
As shown by lo, it moves from the first attitude toward the rear of the vehicle while expanding. Therefore, the rear end portion 4b of the roof panel 4 is reliably prevented from coming into sliding contact with the seal rubber 16 at the beginning of rotation of the roof panel 4, its durability is improved, and the sealing performance is maintained for a long period of time. It will be well maintained.

Meanwhile, the roof panel 4 is moved from its second position to its first position.
When rotating toward the posture side, the rotation operation is performed in the opposite procedure to the above case. That is, the roof panel 4 together with the link bar 21 and the damper 31
is pulled up in the direction of arrow C, but in this case, the damper 31 remains in the contracted state until the link bar 21 reaches the first link position and further rotation is restricted by the stopper 17. be done. After the link bar 21 reaches the first link position and the roof panel 4 is set to the intermediate position, when an operating force is applied in a direction to further pull up the roof panel 4, the link bar 21
Since the rotation of the roof panel 4 is restricted, the roof panel 4 further rotates in the direction of arrow A around the roof-side fulcrum pin 25 and while extending the damper 31, and is finally shown in solid line in FIG. The first attitude is set. In this case as well, the rear end portion 4b of the roof panel 4 moves in an outwardly swollen locus lo and comes into contact with the seal rubber 16 from above. Therefore, the sliding phenomenon between the seal rubber 16 and the rear end portion 4b of the roof panel 4 does not occur, and the durability of the seal rubber 16 is improved.

In the above embodiment, the damper 31 is used as the biasing member, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the damper 31 may be configured with a spring or the like, for example.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of essential parts of a folding roof according to an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line - - of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a car equipped with the folding roof shown in Fig. 1. Exterior perspective view, Figures 4A to 4
Figure D is a side view showing the operating state of the folding roof of the automobile shown in Figure 3. 1...Folding pillar, 2...Top, 3...Upper frame, 4...Roof panel, 5...Rear window glass, 6...Front window glass, 7...
Pillar fulcrum pin, 11... Beam portion (top) of the collapsible pillar, 12... Leg portion of the collapsible pillar, 16... Seal rubber (sealing member), 21... Link bar (link member), 31... Damper (biasing member).

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claim for Utility Model Registration] A pillar that is disposed in the vehicle width direction with respect to the vehicle body and is rotatably supported in the vehicle body longitudinal direction via pillar fulcrum pins provided at both ends of the vehicle width direction, and is provided upwardly from the vehicle body. a collapsible pillar that can be selectively positioned in an upright position and a collapsed position in which the collapsible pillar is tilted toward the rear of the vehicle body relative to the vertical position; a roof panel having a size that can be erected across the top and the upper part of the front window, one end of which is pivotally attached to the collapsible pillar side, and the other end of which is positioned at a predetermined distance from the rear end of the roof panel; A first link position that is pivoted at a position near the front end by the same amount as the front end, and extends from the collapsible pillar toward the front side using the above-mentioned one end as a rotation fulcrum, and a second link position that is tilted down along the collapsible pillar. A link member configured to be able to rotate between the two link members and to be further restricted from rotating in the direction opposite to the second link position by a stopper in the first link position; The link member has a predetermined stroke in the tilted state, and is rotatable in the direction of the rotation surface of the collapsible pillar with one end on the side of the collapsible pillar as a pivot point, and the other end is a pivot point of the link member of the roof panel. are connected to each other via a biasing member pivotally mounted at the offset position, and when the link member is set at the first link position and the biasing member is extended, the A first position in which the roof panel extends forward from the top of the collapsible pillar with its rear end superimposed on the outside of the top of the collapsible pillar and can be placed astride between the top of the front window. When the link member is in the first link position and the biasing member is contracted, the roof panel rotates forward about the pivot point with the link member. When the link member is set at the second link position with the biasing member in the contracted state, the roof panel has its rear end facing toward the top of the collapsible pillar. The second part is folded by being laid down on the collapsible pillar in the positioned state.
Further, when the roof panel is set in the first position, the axis of the biasing member is positioned closer to the roof panel than the pivot point of the link member on the roof panel side. , after the roof panel has been rotated by a predetermined amount from the first position to the intermediate position, the axis of the biasing member is positioned further away from the roof panel than the pivot point of the link member on the roof panel side. On the other hand, when the roof panel is set in the first position, a seal is exerted between the rear end of the roof panel and the top of the collapsible pillar, which overlap each other, by being compressed between the two. A folding roof for an automobile, characterized in that a sealing member forming a shape is arranged.