JPH10166969A - Air guide - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To protect a radiator by guiding the air efficiently, so as to increase the heat radiating effect of the radiator, and relaxing a shock applied to the radiator. SOLUTION: An air guide 31 is provided between an opening formed to a bumper at the front part of a car body, and an inter cooler. In the air guide 31, a square tube form main body 32 is formed of a resin integral. To the main body 32, a plate form side wall 37, and a breaking part 38 with the wall thinner than the side wall 37, are formed. An inlet 35 at the front end of the air guide 31 is installed to the opening of the bumper by contacting closely through a seal. An outlet 36 at the rear end of the air guide 31 is directed to an inter cooler core, and a flange 33 is fixed to the inter cooler core by a machine screw. When a shock is applied to the bumper, the air guide 31 is broken along the breaking part 38, and no shock load is applied to the inter cooler core.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air guide for guiding outside air to an intercooler through an opening provided in a bumper of an automobile, for example.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for an automobile engine, for example, a structure is used in which air compressed by a turbocharger or the like is cooled by an intercooler and sent to a combustion chamber of the engine to increase the output. Then, for example, in an air-cooled intercooler, the intercooler takes in outside air from the front of the vehicle, for example, from an opening formed in a bumper, and applies the outside air to a radiator (core) to cool the compressed air. ing. In addition, the intercooler is laid out in consideration of the ventilation resistance of the engine intake duct, etc., and an air guide is provided between the opening formed in the bumper and the core of the intercooler so that outside air can be effectively guided to the core. Has become.

As shown in FIG. 6, for example, the air guide 1 has a main body 2 in the form of a rectangular tube and a flange 3 formed integrally with one another, with one opening 4 facing the opening of the bumper. , With the other opening 5 facing the intercooler,
The flange portion 3 is attached to a core frame of the intercooler by screwing or the like.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional structure, the air guide 1 has a large strength in the axial direction (the direction of arrow A in the figure) of the cylindrical main body 2 and resists the compressive load. In order to maintain the shape, the impact load is directly applied to the intercooler via the air guide 1 even in the case of a so-called light collision in which the resin bumper is recessed by about ten and several millimeters. ing. In this respect, a configuration in which one opening 4 of the air guide 1 is arranged to be separated from the bumper by a predetermined dimension is considered, but it is difficult to efficiently guide the air entering from the opening of the bumper to the intercooler, and the cooling efficiency is reduced. In addition, when the bumper falls into a predetermined size or more, there is a problem that an impact or a load is directly applied to the intercooler via the air guide 1.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides an air guide that can enhance the heat radiation effect of a radiator and can protect the radiator by reducing the impact applied to the radiator. With the goal.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an air guide having a cylindrical shape having a first opening opening toward the outside of a vehicle body and a second opening opening toward a radiator. It has a main body, and a rupturable portion provided on the main body and fragile and rupturable from other portions of the main body.

[0007] In this configuration, the air guide is adapted to transfer the outside air introduced from the first opening with the movement of the vehicle body to the second opening.
The radiator is guided from the opening of the radiator toward the radiator to enhance the heat radiation effect of the radiator. If a shock is applied to the air guide due to a collision of the vehicle body, the tubular main body of the air guide is broken at the break, preventing impact or load from being applied to the radiator through the air guide. You.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the air guide according to the first aspect, a plurality of breaks are formed along the axial direction of the main body.

In this configuration, when an impact is applied along the axial direction of the main body, the air guide breaks along the break portion, separates into a plurality of portions, and expands radially. An impact or a load is prevented from being applied to the radiator through the guide.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the air guide according to the first or second aspect, the main body has a rectangular cylindrical shape having a plurality of substantially flat side walls, and the break portion has
It is provided so as to be located between at least a pair of side wall portions.

In this configuration, when an impact is applied along the axial direction of the main body, the main body is broken along the breaking portion, and the side wall is deformed and expanded so as to avoid the radiator. An impact or load is prevented from being applied to the radiator through the air guide.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the air guide of the third aspect, the broken portion is formed to be thinner than the side wall portion.

In this configuration, the unbroken side wall portion and the broken portion are easily formed integrally.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the air guide according to the third aspect, the side wall portions are formed of different members, and the break portion is formed as a joining portion for joining these side wall portions. Things.

[0015] In this configuration, since the break portion is formed as a joint portion for joining the side wall portions formed of different members to each other, the load at which the break portion breaks is easily adjusted.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the air guide according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, the second opening is hermetically connected to a radiator.

In this configuration, the outside air introduced into the main body is efficiently blown to the radiator, and the heat radiation effect of the radiator is enhanced.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the air guide according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, the first opening is hermetically connected to an opening provided in the bumper.

In this configuration, the outside air is efficiently introduced into the main body, and the heat radiation effect of the radiator is enhanced.

The air guide according to the present invention has a cylindrical main body having a first opening opening toward the outside of the vehicle body and a second opening opening toward the radiator.
The distance between the first opening and the second opening is provided so as to be reduced by a predetermined compressive load.

[0021] In this configuration, the air guide is configured to transfer the outside air introduced from the first opening with the movement of the vehicle body to the second opening.
The radiator is guided from the opening of the radiator toward the radiator to enhance the heat radiation effect of the radiator. When an impact is applied to the air guide due to a collision of the vehicle body or the like, the distance between the first opening and the second opening is reduced by a predetermined compressive load, and heat is radiated through the air guide. The impact or load applied to the vessel is suppressed.

[0022]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the air guide of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 2 to FIG. 4, reference numeral 11 denotes a vehicle body of an automobile, which is provided with a resin bumper 12 along a front end of the vehicle body 11. On the lower side of the bumper 12, a front air dam 14 is integrally formed, and near both sides of the front air dam 14, a pair of left and right openings 15 opening substantially toward the front side is formed. I have. An intercooler 21 as a radiator is disposed between the opening 15 and the front tire 18 stored in the tire house 17.

The intercooler 21 is a heat radiating portion of an air-type heat exchanger, and is formed of an intercooler core 22 made of an aluminum alloy, a lower tank shell 23 located below the intercooler core 22, and an intercooler core 22. And an upper tank shell 24 located at the upper part of the vehicle, and is screwed to the vehicle body 11 via a bracket (not shown). The vehicle body 11 is provided with a so-called V-type engine (not shown), and a turbocharger is connected to the exhaust pipes of the left and right banks of the engine, respectively, to constitute a supercharged engine. A duct 26 derived from an intake compressor (compressor) of each turbocharger is connected to the lower tank shell 23 and the upper tank shell 24
Are connected via a duct 27 to an intake manifold arranged in the V bank of the engine.

On the other hand, the intercooler 21 and the bumper
Air guides 31 are arranged between the openings 12 and the openings 15, respectively. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the air guide 31 has a substantially polygonal cylindrical main body 32 and a flange 33 extending from the rear end of the main body 32 to the outer peripheral side.
Are integrally formed of a material such as a synthetic resin.
In addition, as this material, a thermoplastic resin such as polypropylene or polyamide, or a resin obtained by modifying these resins with olefin rubber or the like can be used.

The main body 32 has a rectangular inlet 35 as a first opening at the front end, and a rectangular outlet 36 as a second opening at the rear end. Is provided. In addition, these inlets 35
And the outlet 36 are formed in a substantially rectangular cylindrical shape by four flat plate-like upper and lower right and left side walls 37 (37a, 37b, 37c, 37d). , Are integrally connected to each other by a break portion (tear line) 38 formed thinner than the side wall portion 37. The rupture portion 38 is formed over substantially the entire length of the side wall portion 37, but the end portion on the outlet 36 side, that is, the flange portion 33 is formed.
A break portion 38 is not formed in the vicinity, and a connecting portion 39 is formed. In addition, a notch (groove) 41 having a substantially V-shape is formed at an end of the break portion 38 on the inlet 35 side.

The thickness (thickness) and width L of the broken portion 38 are appropriately set according to the conditions of use, resin material, and the like. For example, the thickness of the side wall portion 37 is 2 to 3 mm. In this case, the thickness of the break 38 is 1 mm or less, and the width L is set to about several millimeters.

The outlet 36 has a larger size than the inlet 35, and the air passage inside the main body 32 is formed so as to expand toward the rear side.

Further, an elastically deformable annular seal 42 is fitted to the end of the main body 32 on the inlet 35 side. In the state where the seal 42 is attached, the broken portion 38
The notch 41 is covered with a seal 42 so as not to be exposed to the outside.

On the other hand, circular holes 44 are formed near the four corners of the flange portion 33, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 2 and the like, the air guide 31 has a cylinder formed by making the inlet 35 face the opening 15 of the bumper 12 and extending the peripheral edge of the opening 15 of the bumper 12 rearward. The seal 42 is airtightly fitted on the outer peripheral side of the shape portion 46, the outlet 36 is opposed to the intercooler core 22, and the flange portion 33 located on the outer periphery of the outlet 36 is inserted into each of the circular holes 44. An air guide 31 is fixed at a predetermined position by screwing a screw not to be screwed into a screw hole provided in the intercooler core 22 and tightening it.

That is, in this state, the inlet 35 and the outlet 36 are connected to the bumper 12
The air cooler is substantially airtightly coupled to the opening 15 of the front air dam 14 and the intercooler core 22, and in a state where the vehicle is running, relatively cool outside air (cool air) taken in from the opening 15 that is directed forward is almost completely leaked. It can be guided to the core 22.

In this state, the intercooler 21
The turbine is driven by the pressure of the exhaust gas to drive the intake compressor to compress the intake air. The compressed intake air whose temperature has risen is introduced into the intercooler core 22 through the duct 26 and the lower tank shell 23, and is radiated and cooled by the outside air in the intercooler core 22, then passes through the upper tank shell 24 and the duct 27. Thus, the power is supplied to an intake manifold of the engine to improve the output of the engine.

The outside air whose temperature rises after passing between the fins of the intercooler core 22 is discharged rearward along the inner surface of the tire house 17 of the vehicle body 11.

On the other hand, when the bumper 12 collides with an obstacle,
In particular, for example, when the bumper 12 collapses and deforms rearward due to a so-called light collision that collides while traveling at a speed of about several kilometers per hour, the front air dam 14 integrally formed with the bumper 12 receives the retreat. Then, a predetermined impact load is applied to the front end of the air guide 31 whose rear end is fixed to the intercooler core 22. In this state, each rupture portion 38 formed fragile in the air guide 31 is cleaved from the notch portion 41 at the front end, and subsequently, the connecting portion 39, the flange portion 33 and each side wall portion
By using the joint with the hinge as a hinge, each side wall portion 37 expands in a petal shape etc. in a radial direction avoiding the intercooler core 22, so to say, reducing the overall length of the air guide 31 in the axial direction, the impact load is reduced. It does not add to the intercooler core 22, or at least can reduce (buffer) the impact load.

As described above, the air guide 31 of this embodiment is
According to this, the airtightness of the connection between the air guide 31 and the opening 15 of the front air dam 14 of the bumper 12 and the intercooler core 22 which is an air-cooled heat exchanger is improved, and the external air taken in is efficiently intercooled. Can lead to 22. Therefore, the air volume and the air pressure that hit the entire surface of the intercooler core 22 are increased to make the cool air escape better, and the supercharging temperature is effectively and sufficiently reduced, so that the engine output,
Performance can be improved.

The air guide 31 is in close contact with the respective members in order to connect the opening 15 of the bumper 12 and the intercooler core 22 in a substantially airtight manner. When a collision load is applied to the air guide 31, each of the breaks 38 breaks and the side wall 37 expands, reducing the overall length of the air guide 31 in the axial direction, so that an impact load is applied to the intercooler core 22. Or at least can reduce the impact load. As described above, in the event of a light collision, since no impact load is applied to the components behind the air guide 31, a leak may occur at the junction between the intercooler core 22 and each of the tank shells 23, 24 with respect to the intercooler 21. In addition, it is possible to prevent the intercooler 21 from moving from the mounting position and abut against other connected parts and the like to prevent and protect the intercooler 21. Therefore,
When the collision is repaired, the bumper 12 and the air guide 31 can be repaired only by repairing or replacing the bumper 12, and the cost required for the repair can be reduced.

Further, by breaking the air guide 31 along the breaking portion 38, when an impact load of a collision is applied,
It is also possible to prevent the air guide 31 from separating into small pieces.

Further, since the air guide 31 can be easily formed of a commonly used resin, the manufacturing cost can be reduced as compared with, for example, a structure in which the main body of the air guide is made of an expandable material or structure. it can.

In the above embodiment, the air guide
Although the main body 32 and the flange 33 are integrally formed of a resin, the main body 32 and the flange 33 may be formed by joining separate members. For example, as shown in FIG. For example, it can be formed by combining four side wall constituting members 52 (51a, 52b, 52c, 52d). That is, each side wall component 52 is formed with a side wall portion 54 having a planar shape, and connecting pieces 55, 55 are inclinedly extended from both sides of each side wall portion 54. , And each side wall 54
From the rear end of the flange 57
Are formed.

Therefore, in the second embodiment, the connecting pieces 55 of the side wall constituting members 52 adjacent to each other are connected to each other by ultrasonic welding or the like, and this connected portion is formed as a broken portion 58.
A rectangular tubular air guide 51 is formed.

According to the second embodiment,
In addition to the effects of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 and the like, by adjusting the coupling strength between the coupling pieces 55, the strength of the breakage portion 58 can be easily adjusted. When an impact or the like is applied, a structure capable of protecting the intercooler core 22 and the like by smoothly breaking can be easily realized. Adjustment of the bonding strength between the bonding pieces 55 is, for example, in the case of ultrasonic welding, by changing conditions such as the shape and area of the contact surface of the pressing horn and the welding time,
An appropriate welding strength can be obtained.

The joining of the joining pieces 55 may be performed by ultrasonic welding, heat welding (hot plate welding),
Combination of a boss and a through hole to prevent the upper speed nut from being displaced by press-fit engagement or deformation by heat caulking, a configuration using an adhesive, or a fixing using a staple, etc.
Various methods can be used.

Further, in each of the above embodiments, the air guide is formed in a substantially square cylindrical shape. However, the air guide may be formed in a polygonal cylindrical shape other than a square, or may be formed in a substantially cylindrical shape.

Also, the broken portion may be any structure that is more fragile and easier to break than the side wall portion. For example, a thin portion may be formed intermittently at predetermined intervals.

The air guide is provided with a rupture portion to be ruptured. For example, the air guide may be formed of a deformable material such as an elastic body, or may be formed of an expandable / contractible shape such as a bellows shape. By reducing the distance between the inlet and the outlet, the impact load applied to the intercooler core can be reduced.

Further, the components disposed on the rear side of the air guide can be applied to various radiators in addition to the intercooler core.

[0048]

According to the air guide of the first aspect, the air guide guides the outside air introduced from the first opening to the radiator through the second opening as the vehicle body moves. The heat radiation effect of the radiator can be enhanced. When a shock is applied to the air guide due to a collision of the vehicle body, etc., the impact or load is applied to the radiator through the air guide by breaking the cylindrical main body of the air guide at the break portion. Can prevent and protect the radiator. In addition, the air guide can be easily formed of a commonly used resin, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

According to the air guide of the second aspect, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, since a plurality of broken portions are formed along the axial direction of the main body, when an impact is applied along the axial direction of the main body. The main body part can be broken along the broken part, divided into a plurality of parts and developed radially, and can prevent an impact or a load from being applied to the radiator through the air guide, thereby protecting the radiator. .

According to the air guide of the third aspect, in addition to the effect of the first or second aspect, in addition to the effect of the first or second aspect, the main body is formed in a rectangular cylindrical shape having a plurality of substantially planar side walls, Since it is provided at least between the pair of side wall portions, when an impact is applied along the axial direction of the main body portion, the main body portion is broken along the break portion, and the side wall portion is deformed so as to avoid the radiator. By deploying, it is possible to prevent an impact or a load from being applied to the radiator through the air guide, and to protect the radiator.

According to the air guide of the fourth aspect, in addition to the effect of the third aspect, by forming the break portion to be thinner than the side wall portion, the side wall portion that does not break and the break portion that breaks can be easily formed. It can be formed integrally, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

According to the air guide of the fifth aspect, in addition to the effect of the third aspect, the side wall portions are formed by separate members, and the broken portion is formed as a joining portion for joining the side wall portions. By adjusting the joint strength, the load that breaks the broken part can be easily adjusted arbitrarily, and the air guide that holds the shape under normal use conditions and easily breaks in the event of a collision is easily manufactured. can do.

According to the air guide of the sixth aspect, in addition to the effect of any one of the first to fifth aspects, by connecting the second opening portion to the radiator in an airtight manner, the outside air introduced into the main body portion is provided. Is efficiently blown to the radiator, thereby improving the heat radiation effect of the radiator.

According to the air guide of the seventh aspect, in addition to the effect of any one of the first to sixth aspects, the first opening is air-tightly connected to the opening provided in the bumper, so that the main body is provided. Outside air can be efficiently introduced to the radiator, and the heat radiation effect of the radiator can be enhanced. In addition, by connecting the main body to the bumper, the impact received by the bumper is directly transmitted to the main body, but the radiator can be protected by breaking the main body.

According to the air guide of the eighth aspect, the air guide guides the outside air introduced from the first opening to the radiator through the second opening as the vehicle body moves. Can enhance the heat radiation effect. When an impact is applied to the air guide due to a collision of the vehicle body or the like, the distance between the first opening and the second opening is reduced by a predetermined compressive load, and heat is radiated through the air guide. The radiator can be protected by suppressing the impact or load applied to the radiator.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an embodiment of an air guide of the present invention. (A) is a perspective view (b) is an MM sectional view of (a)

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a part of the vehicle including the air guide.

FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the automobile provided with the air guide.

FIG. 4 is a side view of a part of the automobile provided with the air guide.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing another embodiment of the air guide of the present invention. (A) is a perspective view (b) is an MM sectional view of (a)

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a conventional air guide.

[Explanation of symbols]

 11 Body 12 Bumper 15 Opening 21 Intercooler as radiator 31 Air guide 32 Main body 35 Inlet as first opening 36 Outlet as second opening 37 Side wall 38 Breakage

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Kazuhiro Sakai 218 Aoshima-cho, Fuji City, Shizuoka Prefecture Inside Nippon Plastic Co., Ltd.

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A cylindrical main body provided with a first opening opening toward the outside of the vehicle body and a second opening opening toward the radiator; An air guide, comprising: a rupturable portion provided so as to be fragile and fragile than other portions of the portion. 2. The air guide according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of break portions are formed along an axial direction of the main body. 3. The main body portion has a rectangular cylindrical shape having a plurality of substantially planar side walls, and the break portion is provided at least between the pair of side walls. The air guide according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the air guide is provided. 4. The air guide according to claim 3, wherein the break portion is formed to be thinner than the side wall portion. 5. The side wall portion is formed of separate members,
The air guide according to claim 3, wherein the break portion is formed as a joining portion that joins the side wall portions. 6. The air guide according to claim 1, wherein the second opening is airtightly connected to a radiator. 7. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the first opening is airtightly connected to an opening provided in the bumper.
Air guide as described in any of them. 8. A cylindrical main body having a first opening opening toward the outside of the vehicle body and a second opening opening toward the radiator, wherein the first opening and the first opening are provided. An air guide characterized in that a distance between the opening and the second opening can be reduced by a predetermined compressive load.