JP4285293B2 - Shock absorption structure at the front of the vehicle - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a shock absorbing structure for a front portion of a vehicle in which a crash box is interposed between a front bumper reinforcement and a front side member.

  Conventionally, various devices have been provided around the front bumper for the purpose of absorbing the collision energy at the time of frontal collision. A typical example is a technology for setting a crash box between the front bumper reinforcement and the left and right front side members.

  9 and 10 schematically show a plan view and a side view of a conventional shock absorbing structure at the front of the vehicle. Hereinafter, the problems of the conventional shock absorbing structure at the front portion of the vehicle will be described with reference to these drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 9 (A), in the conventional shock absorbing structure at the front of the vehicle, both ends in the longitudinal direction and both the left and right sides of the long front bumper reinforcement 100 arranged with the vehicle width direction as the longitudinal direction. A pair of crash boxes 102 that are axially compressed and deformed when a collision load of a predetermined value or more is input are interposed between the front end of a front side member (not shown) arranged in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. ing.

  In this case, the bending strength when the collision load F is input to the longitudinal intermediate portion of the front bumper reinforcement 100 is the portion b (the inner corner of the front end portion of the crash box 102 as shown in FIG. 9B). Part). Therefore, in order to increase the bending strength of the front bumper reinforcement 100, it is necessary to increase the plate thickness from the portion b to the portion c (focusing on the left half of the center line). As a result, there arises a problem that the vehicle weight increases.

On the other hand, in order to increase the bending strength for the above reasons, as shown in FIG. 10 (A), when the front bumper reinforcement 104 having a thick section from the b part to the c part is employed, the cross section of the front bumper reinforcement 104 is obtained. Increases rigidity. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 10B, at the time of a frontal collision, the crash box 102 undergoes axial compression deformation in the vehicle longitudinal direction by a preset stroke, but the front bumper reinforcement 104 remains without being crushed. (Crush remaining allowance δ). Therefore, there arises a problem that the shock absorbing stroke is wasted.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-203403 JP 2000-62551 A

  An object of the present invention is to obtain an impact absorption structure at the front portion of a vehicle that can increase the energy absorption efficiency at the time of a frontal collision without causing an increase in weight in consideration of the above fact.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a shock absorbing structure for a front portion of a vehicle, which is a long front bumper reinforcement arranged at a front end portion of the vehicle with the vehicle width direction as a longitudinal direction, A pair of left and right front side members arranged with the front-rear direction as the longitudinal direction, and a front surface interposed between the front end portion of each front side member and the vicinity of the end portion of the front bumper reinforcement in the longitudinal direction with the vehicle front-rear direction as the longitudinal direction A shock absorbing structure for a front part of a vehicle, comprising a pair of left and right crash boxes that absorbs collision energy by compressing and compressing a shaft when a collision load of a predetermined value or more is input during a collision, The bumper reinforcement includes a first front bumper reinforcement that forms the front of the front bumper reinforcement, and the first front bumper reinforcement. A plurality of flange portions that are coupled to the bumper reinforcement and that constitute the rear part of the front bumper reinforcement and are bent toward the first front bumper reinforcement side at the periphery of the opening or notch formed at the end in the longitudinal direction. A second front bumper reinforcement, and the crash box is spaced inward from the opening or notch of the second front bumper reinforcement by a predetermined distance with respect to the first front bumper reinforcement toward the rear side of the vehicle. And a crush box extension portion which is inserted to the above-mentioned position and is coupled to the plurality of flange portions in that state .

The impact absorbing structure for a vehicle front portion according to the present invention as defined in claim 2 is the invention according to claim 1, wherein the notch is formed at the longitudinal end of the second front bumper reinforcement, The plurality of flange portions are formed at a peripheral portion of the notch, and a pair of upper and lower horizontal flange portions disposed substantially horizontally in the vehicle width direction, and a vertical flange portion disposed substantially vertically in the vehicle vertical direction. It is characterized by comprising.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, the shock absorbing structure for a front portion of the vehicle according to the first or second aspect of the present invention is the second aspect of the present invention, wherein the crash box extension is coupled to the second front bumper reinforcement. The front bumper reinforcement is constructed by connecting the subassembly to the first front bumper reinforcement, and the front bumper reinforcement is constructed.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, at the time of a frontal collision, the collision load at that time is input to the front bumper reinforcement and then input to the pair of left and right crash boxes. If the collision load input to the crash box is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, the crash box is axially deformed. Thereby, the collision energy at the time of frontal collision is absorbed.

Here, in the present invention, the front bumper reinforcement includes the first front bumper reinforcement that forms the front part thereof and the second front bumper reinforcement that forms the rear part thereof, and further includes the second front bumper reinforcement. The crush box extension is inserted inward from the opening or notch formed at the longitudinal end of the reinforcement to a position separated from the first front bumper reinforcement by a predetermined distance toward the vehicle rear side . And this crush box extension is connected to a plurality of flanges formed by bending at the periphery of the opening or notch of the second front bumper reinforcement. This is received by the whole connecting portion of the box extension portion and the plurality of flange portions of the second front bumper reinforcement. Therefore, if the number, area, arrangement, and the like of the flange portions are appropriately selected, sufficient bending strength can be ensured without increasing the thickness of the second front bumper reinforcement.

In addition, since the crash box extension is inserted into the cross section of the front bumper reinforcement to a position separated from the first front bumper reinforcement by a predetermined distance to the rear side of the vehicle , a collision load is applied to the first front bumper reinforcement. As soon as it is input, a collision load is transmitted to the extension portion of the crash box and axial compression deformation is started. Accordingly, the remaining crush of the front bumper reinforcement (loss of crash stroke) can be eliminated or greatly reduced. Therefore, the energy absorption efficiency at the time of a frontal collision can be improved.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the second front bumper reinforcement has a notch formed at the longitudinal end thereof, and the plurality of flange portions are formed at the peripheral edge of the notch, Since it is configured to include a pair of upper and lower horizontal flange portions arranged substantially horizontally in the vehicle width direction and a vertical flange portion arranged substantially vertically in the vehicle vertical direction, the bending input to the front bumper reinforcement The load can be received in a stable state.

As described above, the shock absorbing structure for the front portion of the vehicle according to the first aspect of the present invention includes the front bumper reinforcement, the first front bumper reinforcement constituting the front portion of the front bumper reinforcement, and the first bumper reinforcement. The front bumper reinforcement is coupled to the front bumper reinforcement and constitutes the rear part of the front bumper reinforcement, and has a plurality of flange portions bent to the first front bumper reinforcement side at the periphery of the opening or notch formed at the longitudinal end. The crash box is separated from the opening or notch of the second front bumper reinforcement toward the inside of the cross section by a predetermined distance with respect to the first front bumper reinforcement toward the rear side of the vehicle. It is inserted to the position, a plurality of flanges in this state Is provided with the crush box extension coupled to, without causing weight gain, it has an excellent effect that it is possible to increase the energy absorption efficiency during a frontal collision.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a shock absorbing structure for a front portion of a vehicle according to the first aspect of the present invention, wherein the second front bumper reinforcement has a notch formed at a longitudinal end thereof, and a plurality of flanges are provided. The portion includes a pair of upper and lower horizontal flange portions that are formed at a peripheral portion of the notch and are substantially horizontally disposed in the vehicle width direction, and a vertical flange portion that is disposed substantially perpendicular to the vehicle vertical direction. Therefore, the bending load input to the front bumper reinforcement can be received in a stable state, and as a result, the reliability with respect to the bending strength can be improved.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of an impact absorbing structure for a vehicle front portion according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In these drawings, an arrow FR appropriately shown indicates the vehicle front side, an arrow UP indicates the vehicle upper side, and an arrow IN indicates the vehicle width direction inner side.

  FIG. 1 shows the main part of the shock absorbing structure at the front of the vehicle according to this embodiment in a disassembled state. 2 and 3 respectively show a cross-sectional structure and a vertical cross-sectional structure in the assembled state of the main part shown in FIG.

  As shown in these drawings, a long front bumper reinforcement 10 is disposed at the front end portion of the vehicle with the vehicle width direction as a longitudinal direction. The front bumper reinforcement 10 is a member constituting a part of the front bumper, and is disposed inside the front bumper cover. Further, a pair of left and right front side members (not shown) each formed in a long shape are disposed on both sides of the front portion of the vehicle with the vehicle front-rear direction as the longitudinal direction. Furthermore, between the front end portion of each front side member and the longitudinal end portion of the front bumper reinforcement 10, when a collision load of a predetermined value or more is input at the time of a frontal collision, the axial compression deformation is performed and the collision energy is absorbed. The crash boxes 12 are interposed with the vehicle longitudinal direction as the longitudinal direction.

  The front bumper reinforcement 10 described above is coupled to the first front bumper reinforcement 14 constituting the front portion of the front bumper reinforcement 10 by spot welding or the like and to the rear portion of the front bumper reinforcement 10. And the second front bumper reinforcement 16 constituting the. The first front bumper reinforcement 14 has a vertical cross-sectional shape formed in a hat shape, and includes an upper flange portion 14A and a lower flange portion 14B on the upper edge portion and the lower edge portion. On the other hand, the second front bumper reinforcement 16 is formed in a flat plate shape, and the upper edge portion 16A and the lower edge portion 16B of the second front bumper reinforcement 16 are the upper flange portion 14A of the first front bumper reinforcement 14 and The front bumper reinforcement 10 having a rectangular closed cross-section structure is configured by being coupled to the lower flange portion 14B by spot welding or the like.

  Here, a rectangular notch 18 is formed at each center of both ends of the second front bumper reinforcement 16 in the longitudinal direction. A horizontal upper flange portion 20, a vertical flange portion 22, and a horizontal lower flange portion 24 are integrally formed by bending at the upper edge portion, the side edge portion, and the lower edge portion of each notch 18. These horizontal upper flange portion 20, vertical flange portion 22, and horizontal lower flange portion 24 are all bent toward the first front bumper reinforcement 14 side.

  On the other hand, the crash box 12 is formed in a box shape as a whole. Specifically, a rectangular flat plate mounting portion 26 fastened with a bolt and a nut to a front end portion of a front side member (not shown), and a rectangular tube-shaped main body portion 28 having a rear end portion welded to the mounting portion 26, , Is composed of. Further, the main body 28 has a U-shaped main body 28A whose outer side is opened when viewed from the front (viewed from the front side of the vehicle), and slightly inward in the vehicle width direction from the open end of the main body 28A. And a main body vertical wall portion 28B which is erected at a position where it is reserved.

  The body portion 28 of the crash box 12 can be inserted into the notch 18, and in this embodiment, a predetermined amount (first front) from the notch 18 to the inside of the cross section (the front side of the first front bumper reinforcement 14). The bumper reinforcement 14 is inserted only a predetermined distance away from the rear side of the vehicle. Hereinafter, the portion of the crash box 12 that is inserted into the front bumper reinforcement 10 is referred to as a “crash box extension 30”.

  In a state where the crash box extension 30 is inserted into the cross section of the front bumper reinforcement 10, the outer peripheral surface of the crash box extension 30 is in contact with the horizontal upper flange 20, vertical flange 22, and horizontal lower flange 24, respectively. ing. And each abutting surface and the horizontal upper flange part 20, the vertical flange part 22, and the horizontal lower flange part 24 are welded by spot welding, so that the crash box extension 30 is in the longitudinal direction of the second front bumper reinforcement 16. Is connected to the end of the.

  In addition, the crash box 12 having the above-described configuration may be configured as an integrally formed product of an aluminum alloy, or may be assembled by pressing a steel plate and welding it appropriately.

  Next, the operation and effect of this embodiment will be described.

  First, the assembly procedure of the shock absorbing structure at the front portion of the vehicle according to the present embodiment will be outlined.

  First, as shown in FIG. 4, a rectangular notch 18 is formed in the center of the longitudinal end of the second front bumper reinforcement 16 by press molding or the like, and a laterally upper flange portion 20 is formed on the peripheral edge thereof. A vertical flange portion 22 and a horizontal lower flange portion 24 are formed.

  Subsequently, as shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the crash box extension 30 of the crash box 12 assembled in advance is inserted into the notch 18 of the second front bumper reinforcement 16. 6 and 7, the upper surface of the main body main portion 28A of the crash box 12 and the horizontal upper flange portion 20, the side surface of the main body main portion 28A and the vertical flange portion 22, and the lower surface and the horizontal surface of the main body main portion 28A. The lower flange portion 24 is coupled to each other by spot welding. Thus, the subassembly 32 of the second front bumper reinforcement 16 is configured.

  Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 8, the subassembly 32 is fitted on the first front bumper reinforcement 14, and the upper flange portion 14 </ b> A and the lower flange portion 14 </ b> B of the first front bumper reinforcement 14 are connected to the second front bumper reinforcement 14. The upper edge portion 16A and the lower edge portion 16B of the front bumper reinforcement 16 are joined by spot welding or the like. Thereby, the front bumper reinforcement 10 is configured. Thereafter, the mounting portion 26 of the crash box 12 and the front end portion of the front side member are fastened with bolts and nuts.

When a vehicle with the front bumper reinforcement 10 and the crash box 12 configured as described above collided in front, the collision load at that time is input to the front bumper reinforcement 10 through the front bumper cover, Input to the pair of crash boxes 12. If the collision load input to the crash box is greater than or equal to a predetermined value , the crash box 12 is subjected to axial compression deformation. Thereby, the collision energy at the time of frontal collision is absorbed.

  Here, in the present embodiment, the front bumper reinforcement 10 is constituted by the first front bumper reinforcement 14 constituting the front part thereof and the second front bumper reinforcement 16 constituting the rear part thereof. A crush box extension 30 is inserted inward from a cutout 18 formed at the longitudinal end of the front bumper reinforcement 16. The crush box extension 30 is coupled to three surfaces of a horizontal upper flange portion 20, a vertical flange portion 22, and a horizontal lower flange portion 24 formed by bending at the periphery of the notch 18 of the second front bumper reinforcement 16. Therefore, with respect to the bending load at the time of a frontal collision, the joint portion (spot) of the crash box extension 30 and the horizontal upper flange portion 20, the vertical flange portion 22, and the horizontal lower flange portion 24 of the second front bumper reinforcement 16 is used. Receive this in the whole (RBI). Therefore, sufficient bending strength can be ensured without increasing the thickness of the second front bumper reinforcement 16.

  In addition, since the crash box extension 30 is inserted into the cross section of the front bumper reinforcement 10, when a collision load is input to the first front bumper reinforcement 14, the collision load is immediately transmitted to the crash box extension 30. Thus, axial compression deformation is started. Therefore, the remaining crush of the front bumper reinforcement 10 (loss of crash stroke) can be eliminated or greatly reduced. Therefore, the energy absorption efficiency at the time of a frontal collision can be improved.

  Furthermore, since the shock absorbing structure at the front of the vehicle according to the present embodiment includes the three vertical and horizontal flange portions 20, 22, and 24, the bending load input to the front bumper reinforcement 10 can be received in a stable state. Can do. As a result, the reliability with respect to the bending strength of the front bumper reinforcement 10 can be improved.

  Further, in the shock absorbing structure for the front portion of the vehicle according to the present embodiment, the second front bumper reinforcement 16 is formed with a notch 18 at the end in the longitudinal direction, and the crash box extension 30 is inserted and coupled thereto. Therefore, there is an advantage that the amount of overhang of the front bumper reinforcement 10 can be significantly reduced when the vehicle longitudinal direction line including the crash box 12 and the front side member is used as a reference.

  In the impact absorbing structure for the front portion of the vehicle according to the present embodiment described above, the notch 18 is formed at the end of the second front bumper reinforcement 16 in the longitudinal direction, and the three sides of the peripheral edge of the notch 18 are bent. Although the structure which forms the flange part 20,22,24 of a sheet | seat and couple | bonds with the crush box extension part 30 was taken, it is not restricted to this, A rectangular opening is formed in the edge part of a longitudinal direction, and the peripheral part of opening Alternatively, a configuration may be adopted in which flange portions are formed by bending on all four sides, and the four flange portions and the crush box extension portion 30 are coupled.

  Further, in the shock absorbing structure for the front part of the vehicle according to the present embodiment described above, the main body portion 28 of the crash box 12 is formed in a substantially rectangular tube shape, but this is not restrictive, and a rectangular tube shape such as a regular octagon is also used. Good.

It is a disassembled perspective view of the principal part of the shock absorption structure of the vehicle front part which concerns on this embodiment. FIG. 2 is a transverse cross-sectional view (a cross-sectional view taken along line 2-2 in FIG. 1) of an essential state of the shock absorbing structure at the front portion of the vehicle shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view (a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 in FIG. 1) of the main part of the shock absorbing structure at the front portion of the vehicle shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the assembly | attachment procedure of the shock absorption structure of the vehicle front part which concerns on this embodiment, and is a perspective view which shows the 2nd front bumper reinforcement. It is explanatory drawing which shows the assembly | attachment procedure of the shock absorption structure of the vehicle front part which concerns on this embodiment, and is a perspective view which shows the state by which the crush box was couple | bonded with the 2nd front bumper reinforcement. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state cut along line 6-6 in FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the state cut | disconnected along the 7-7 line | wire of FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the assembly | attachment procedure of the shock absorption structure of the vehicle front part which concerns on this embodiment, and is a perspective view which shows the state with which the subassembly of the 2nd front bumper reinforcement was couple | bonded with the 1st front bumper reinforcement. . It is a top view before and behind the collision which shows schematic structure of the conventional impact absorption structure of the vehicle front part. It is a side view before and after the collision showing a schematic configuration of a conventional shock absorbing structure at the front of the vehicle.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Front bumper reinforcement 12 Crash box 14 1st front bumper reinforcement 16 2nd front bumper reinforcement 18 Notch 20 Horizontal upper flange part 22 Vertical flange part 24 Horizontal lower flange part 30 Crash box extension part

Claims (3)

A long front bumper reinforcement arranged at the front end of the vehicle with the vehicle width direction as the longitudinal direction, a pair of left and right front side members arranged at the both sides of the front of the vehicle with the vehicle longitudinal direction as the longitudinal direction, Between the front end of the front side member and the vicinity of the end in the longitudinal direction of the front bumper reinforcement, the longitudinal direction of the vehicle is interposed, and a compressive load greater than a predetermined value is input at the time of a frontal collision. A shock absorbing structure at the front of the vehicle configured to include a pair of left and right crash boxes that absorb collision energy,
The front bumper reinforcement includes a first front bumper reinforcement that forms a front portion of the front bumper reinforcement, and a rear portion of the front bumper reinforcement that is coupled to the first front bumper reinforcement and is disposed at a longitudinal end portion. A second front bumper reinforcement having a plurality of flange portions bent toward the first front bumper reinforcement side at the periphery of the formed opening or notch, and
The crush box is inserted from the opening or notch of the second front bumper reinforcement to a position spaced in the vehicle rear by a predetermined distance with respect to the first front-bumper reinforcement to cross inside the plurality of in this state Has a crash box extension joined to the flange,
A shock absorbing structure for the front portion of the vehicle. The notch is formed at the longitudinal end of the second front bumper reinforcement,
The plurality of flange portions are formed at the peripheral portion of the notch, and are a pair of upper and lower horizontal flange portions disposed substantially horizontally in the vehicle width direction, and a vertical flange portion disposed substantially vertically in the vehicle vertical direction. And comprising,
The shock absorbing structure for a vehicle front portion according to claim 1. A sub-assembly of the second front bumper reinforcement is configured by coupling the crash box extension to the second front bumper reinforcement,
A front bumper reinforcement is configured by coupling the subassembly to the first front bumper reinforcement.
The shock absorbing structure for the front part of the vehicle according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein

Images