JP2008137554A - Front structure of vehicle body - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a front structure of a vehicle body capable of sufficiently mitigating an impact force applied to a front part of the vehicle body or an object based on a collision when some object collides against a hood from its upper side in a head-on collision of an vehicle. <P>SOLUTION: A front cowl 3 has a resin-made cowl front plate 9 constituting its front part and extending backwardly and downwardly. A hood 16 with its rear edge 17 being located above a front edge 18 of the cowl front plate 9 is located on the front side of the cowl front plate 9. A cowl louver 24 is provided which covers the cowl front plate 9 from its upper part. A seal body 38 is provided, which couples the front edges 18, 26 of the cowl front plate 9 and the cowl louver 24 with each other, and seals a space between the front edges 18, 26 and the rear edge 17 of the hood 16. A first brittle part 42 is formed in a part of the cowl front plate 9 in a vicinity of rear parts of the front edges 18, 26. A second brittle part 43 is formed on other part of the cowl front plate 9 in a vicinity of a rear part of the first brittle part 42. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a front body structure of an automobile including a front cowl, a hood positioned in front of the front cowl, and a cowl louver that covers the front cowl from above.

  Conventionally, there are those shown in the following Patent Documents 1 and 2 as the vehicle body front structure. Among these, according to the publication of Patent Document 1, the front cowl includes a resin cowl front plate that constitutes a front portion thereof and extends rearward and downward in a side view of the vehicle body. . A hood located on the front side of the cowl front plate and having a rear edge located above the front edge of the cowl front plate is provided, and a cowl louver is provided to cover the cowl front plate from above. It has been. The front edge portions of the cowl front plate and the cowl louver are connected to each other, and a seal body is provided for sealing between the front edge portions and the rear edge portion of the hood. Moreover, in order to improve the sealing performance by the said sealing body, the said cowl front board is reinforced by the reinforcement part.

On the other hand, according to the thing of the gazette of the said patent document 2, in addition to the structure substantially the same as that of the gazette of the said patent document 1, in order to make the attachment operation | work of the said cowl louver easy, in order to make this cowl louver easy to deform | transform. Is formed in the cowl louver.
JP 2005-125905 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-211439

  By the way, it is assumed that the automobile collides (front collision) with an object in front of the automobile while the automobile is running. In this case, the object bounced up by the front collision may collide with the rear upper surface of the hood described in Patent Document 1 from above.

  Here, as described above, in Patent Document 1, the cowl front plate is reinforced by the reinforcing portion. For this reason, the impact force applied to the hood by the collision tends to be strongly supported by the cowl front plate reinforced as described above via the seal body. Therefore, according to the thing of the said patent document 1, when an object collides with the rear upper surface of a hood, it is not easy to fully relieve the impact force which is going to be given to a vehicle body or an object based on this collision.

  On the other hand, according to the thing of the said patent document 2, when an object collides with the rear upper surface of a hood as mentioned above, a part of impact force based on this collision is supported by the said cowl louver. And it is thought that a part of said impact force is relieved when the said deformation | transformation part of the said cowl louver deform | transforms. However, it is considered that most of the impact force based on the collision is supported by the cowl front plate.

  Here, the cowl front plate in Patent Document 2 is made of sheet metal and has a certain degree of rigidity. For this reason, most of the impact force tends to be strongly supported by the cowl front plate. Therefore, even according to the above-mentioned Patent Document 2, when an object collides with the upper surface of the rear portion of the hood, it is not easy to sufficiently reduce the impact force to be applied to the vehicle body and the object based on the collision.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to the above-described circumstances. The object of the present invention is that when an object collides with the hood from above at the front collision of an automobile, the front of the vehicle body is based on the collision. It is to make the impact force applied to the part and the object more sufficiently relaxed.

The invention according to claim 1 includes a front cowl 3 including a resin cowl front plate 9 that extends from the front cowl 3 so as to form a front portion thereof and extend rearward and downward in a side view of the vehicle body. A hood 16 is provided that is positioned further forward than the rear edge 17 of the cowl front plate 9 and is located above the front edge 18 of the cowl front plate 9 and a cowl louver 24 that covers the cowl front plate 9 from above. The front edge portions 18 and 26 of the cowl front plate 9 and the cowl louver 24 are coupled to each other, and a seal body 38 that seals between the front edge portions 18 and 26 and the rear edge portion 17 of the hood 16. In the car body front structure with
A first fragile portion 42 is formed in the portion of the cowl front plate 9 in the vicinity of the rear edges of the front edge portions 18 and 26 connected to each other, and the cowl front plate in the vicinity of the rear of the first fragile portion 42. A second fragile portion 43 is formed in the other portion of 9.

  In this section, the reference numerals appended to the above terms are not to be construed as limiting the technical scope of the present invention to the section “Example” described later or the contents of the drawings.

  The effects of the present invention are as follows.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the front cowl includes a resin-made cowl front plate that extends from the front cowl to the rear lower side as viewed from the side of the vehicle body. A hood whose rear edge is located above the front edge of the cowl front plate and a cowl louver that covers the cowl front plate from above is provided, the cowl front plate and the cowl louver, In the front body structure of an automobile provided with a seal body that connects the front edge portions of each other and seals between the front edge portions and the rear edge portion of the hood,
A first fragile portion is formed in a portion of the cowl front plate in the vicinity of the rear of the front edge portions coupled to each other, and a first fragile portion is formed in the other portion of the cowl front plate in the vicinity of the rear of the first fragile portion. 2 The fragile part is formed, and the following effects are produced.

  That is, when an object collides with the hood from above during a frontal collision of an automobile, an impact force based on the collision is applied to both front edge portions of the cowl front plate and the cowl louver via the seal body. . The impact force imparts a bending moment (couple) to the cowl front plate by pushing both the front edge portions downward, and then lowers the cowl front plate. A compressive force is given toward the longitudinal direction which is the extending direction to the surface.

  Here, as described above, since the two front edge portions coupled to each other reinforce each other, when the impact force is applied to the two front edge portions, the second front edge portions in the vicinity of the rear of the two front edge portions. The stress easily concentrates on the first fragile portion and the second fragile portion, and the cowl front plate is easily bent starting from the first fragile portion and the second fragile portion.

  Further, as described above, since the cowl front plate has at least two first and second weakened portions formed slightly apart from each other, the cowl front plate is compressed in the longitudinal direction as described above. When force is applied, the cowl front plate is easily bent into, for example, a Z shape.

  Therefore, the impact force to be applied to the vehicle body or the object due to the collision is more sufficiently mitigated by the respective bends.

  With respect to the vehicle body front structure of the present invention, when an object collides with the hood from above during a vehicle front collision, the impact force applied to the vehicle front part and the object is more sufficiently based on the collision. In order to realize the purpose of relaxing, the best mode for carrying out the present invention is as follows.

  That is, as seen from the side of the vehicle body, the front cowl includes a resin-made cowl front plate that forms a front portion thereof and extends rearward and downward. A hood is provided that is positioned in front of the cowl front plate and whose rear edge is located above the front edge of the cowl front plate. A cowl louver is provided to cover the cowl front plate from above. The front edge portions of the cowl front plate and the cowl louver are connected to each other, and a seal body is provided for sealing between the front edge portions and the rear edge portion of the hood. A first fragile portion is formed in a portion of the cowl front plate in the vicinity of the rear of both the front edge portions connected to each other, and in the other portion of the cowl front plate in the vicinity of the rear of the first fragile portion. A second fragile portion is formed.

  In order to explain the present invention in more detail, an embodiment thereof will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes an automobile, and an arrow Fr indicates the front in the traveling direction of the automobile 1.

  The front portion of the vehicle body 2 of the automobile 1 constitutes each side portion of the vehicle body 2 and extends in the width direction of the vehicle body 2 as a pair of left and right front pillars (not shown) as frame members of the vehicle body 2. Each end in the longitudinal direction is supported by the front pillar, and serves as a skeleton member of the vehicle body 2, and extends in the width direction and the vertical direction of the vehicle body 2, and an upper edge portion of the front cowl 3 extends to the front cowl 3. And a dash panel 4 made of a sheet metal having a lower edge portion coupled to a front edge portion of a floor panel (not shown). The front side of the front cowl 3 and the dash panel 4 is an engine room 5, and the rear side is a vehicle compartment 6.

  The front cowl 3 is U-shaped in a side sectional view. The front cowl 3 includes a resin cowl front plate 9 that forms a front portion thereof and extends rearward and downward, and extends from the rear edge portion of the cowl front plate 9 to the rear lower portion. A cowl body plate 10 extending upward, an extension plate 11 extending forward and upward from an extended end edge of the cowl body plate 10, and an end on the base side of the cowl body plate 10 A reinforcing plate 12 is provided to join the edge (front edge) and the extended edge of the extended plate 11 together.

  The cowl body plate 10, the extension plate 11, and the reinforcing plate 12 are made of sheet metal, and are joined to each other by spot welding to form an integrated combination 10-12. This combination 10-12 has a closed cross-sectional structure with high strength and rigidity in a side cross-sectional view. The rear edge portion of the cowl front plate 9 is firmly coupled to the front edge portion of the cowl body plate 10 via a sealing material 13. Further, a pair of left and right brackets 14 project integrally from the middle part of the cowl front plate 9 in the front-rear direction toward the rear. The upper edge of the dash panel 4 is coupled to the cowl body plate 10.

  A sheet metal hood 16 is provided that is positioned in front of the front cowl plate 9 of the front cowl 3 and that closes the engine room 5 so as to be openable and closable from above. The rear edge 17 of the hood 16 is located in the vicinity of the upper portion of the front edge 18 of the cowl front plate 9.

  A front window 21 forming the upper front surface of the passenger compartment 6 is provided. The front window 21 includes a window glass 22 that closes a window opening formed in the vehicle body 2. The window glass 22 is supported by the vehicle body 2 so as to be inclined rearward and upward. The front lower portion of the window glass 22 is positioned in the vicinity of the front upper portion of the front cowl 3 in front of the combination 10-12.

  Extending in the width direction of the vehicle body 2, the cowl front plate 9 of the front cowl 3 is entirely covered from above, and a resin cowl louver 24 supported by the cowl front plate 9 is provided. Yes. The cowl louver 24 forms a midway part in the front-rear direction in a side sectional view of the cowl louver 24 (FIGS. 1, 3, and 4), and a bulging part 25 that bulges upward, and the bulging part 25 A front edge portion 26 that integrally extends forward from the front lower edge portion and a rear edge portion 27 that integrally extends rearward from the rear lower edge portion of the bulging portion 25 are provided. Yes.

  The front edge portion 26 of the cowl louver 24 is overlapped with the front edge portion 18 of the cowl front plate 9 from the upper surface side. The front edge portions 18 and 26 are coupled to each other by a plurality of (seven) clips 29 in the width direction of the vehicle body 2. Further, a pair of left and right brackets 31 project integrally downward from a midway portion in the longitudinal direction of the bulging portion 25 of the cowl louver 24. These brackets 31 are formed by bulging the left and right portions of the midway portion in the longitudinal direction of the bulging portion 25 downwardly into a bottomed cylindrical shape. The front edge portion of the extension plate 11 of the front cowl 3, the bracket 14 of the front cowl 3, and the protruding end portions of the bracket 31 of the cowl louver 24 are overlapped with each other and coupled to each other by a pair of left and right clips 32. (Figs. 2 and 4).

  In other words, the cowl louver 24 is supported by the cowl front plate 9 of the front cowl 3 as described above by the coupling of the clips 29 and 32.

  The front plate 34 of the bulging portion 25 of the cowl louver 24 is formed with a louver portion 36 having a large number of ventilation holes for communicating the inside and outside of the bulging portion 25. The louver portion 36 is formed in substantially half (left half) of the cowl louver 24, being biased to one side of the center line 35 of the vehicle body 2 in the width direction of the vehicle body 2. Air outside the vehicle body 2 can be introduced into the vehicle compartment 6 through the louver portion 36, the internal space of the front cowl 3, and an air conditioner (not shown).

  A rubber sealing body 38 is provided for sealing between the front edge 18 of the cowl front plate 9 and the front edge 26 of the cowl louver 24 and the rear edge 17 of the hood 16. The seal body 38 extends in the width direction of the vehicle body 2, and includes a base plate 39 that is sandwiched and attached between the front edge portion 18 of the cowl front plate 9 and the front edge portion 26 of the cowl louver 24. A seal body 40 having a closed cross-sectional shape is formed integrally with the front edge of the plate 39 and presses the lower surface of the rear edge 17 of the hood 16. On the other hand, another seal body 41 is interposed between the front edge portion of the window glass 22 and the rear edge portion 27 of the cowl louver 24.

  The front of the cowl front plate 9, the front edge 26 of the cowl louver 24, and the base plate 39 of the seal body 38, the cowl front plate 9 in the vicinity of the rear of the coupling portion, A first fragile portion 42 for locally reducing the strength and rigidity of the part plate 9 is formed. In addition, a second fragile portion 43 for locally reducing the strength and synthesis of the cowl front plate 9 is formed in another portion of the cowl front plate 9 in the vicinity of the rear of the first fragile portion 42. Yes.

  The first and second fragile portions 42 and 43 are grooves having a V-shaped cross section, and are formed continuously over substantially the entire length in the longitudinal direction of the front cowl 3 at each portion of the cowl front plate 9. ing. The first fragile portion 42 is formed on the upper surface of the cowl front plate 9, and the second fragile portion 43 is formed on the lower surface of the cowl front plate 9.

  As described above, the louver portion 36 having a large number of ventilation holes is formed in the left half of the cowl louver 24. For this reason, the louver portion 36 becomes a weak portion, and the strength and rigidity of the left half of the cowl louver 24 are prevented from becoming excessive.

  On the other hand, a third fragile portion 44 is formed on the right half of the cowl louver 24 over almost the entire length in the longitudinal direction. The third fragile portion 44 is formed in a portion of the cowl louver 24 in the vicinity of the rear edge of the front edge portion 26 of the cowl louver 24 so as to face the first fragile portion 42. The third weakened portion 44 locally reduces the strength and rigidity of the portion of the cowl louver 24. This prevents the strength and rigidity of the right half of the cowl louver 24 from becoming excessive.

  In addition, 47 is a wiper and 48 is a washer nozzle.

  According to the above configuration, the first weakened portion 42 is formed in the cowl front plate 9 in the vicinity of the rear of both the front edge portions 18 and 26 coupled to each other, and the vicinity of the rear of the first weakened portion 42 is formed. The second weakened portion 43 is formed in the other portion of the cowl front plate 9 in the above, and the following effects are produced.

  That is, when an object 50 collides with the hood 16 from above during the frontal collision of the automobile 1, the impact force based on this collision is applied to both the cowl front plate 9 and the cowl louver 24 via the seal body 38. Provided at the leading edge 18,26. The impact force imparts a bending moment (couple) to the cowl front plate 9 by pushing both the front edge portions 18 and 26 downward, and the cowl front plate 9 On the other hand, a compressive force is given toward the longitudinal direction which is the downward extending direction thereafter.

  Here, as described above, the front edge portions 18 and 26 connected to each other reinforce each other, and therefore, when the impact force is applied to the front edge portions 18 and 26, both the front edges. The stress easily concentrates on the first fragile portion 42 and the second fragile portion 43 in the vicinity of the rear of the portions 18 and 26, and the cowl front plate 9 starts from the first fragile portion 42 and the second fragile portion 43. Can be bent easily.

  Further, as described above, the cowl front plate 9 is formed with at least two first and second weakened portions 42 and 43 slightly apart from each other. When a compressive force is applied in the direction, the cowl front plate 9 is easily bent into a Z shape, for example, as shown by a one-dot chain line in FIGS.

  Therefore, the impact force to be applied to the vehicle body 2 and the object 50 due to the collision is more sufficiently mitigated by the respective bends.

  Further, in the above case, the front edge portions 18 and 26 of the cowl front plate 9 and the cowl louver 24 are coupled to each other, but this coupling is due to the clip 29 having a lower coupling strength than a thermal welding coupling or the like. It is said that. For this reason, when the impact force is applied to the front edge portions 18 and 26 and greatly deforms and the internal stress increases, the coupling of the front edge portions 18 and 26 by the clip 29 can be immediately released. It is said.

  Therefore, the cowl louver 24 is prevented from excessively reinforcing the cowl front plate 9 of the front cowl 3. As a result, the impact force to be applied to the vehicle body 2 and the object 50 due to the collision is more sufficiently mitigated without being obstructed by the cowl louver 24.

  The cowl louver 24 is coupled to the cowl front plate 9 of the front cowl 3. The cowl louver 24 is formed with a louver portion 36 and a third weakened portion 44. As a result, the cowl louver 24 is prevented from having excessive strength and rigidity as a whole. This prevents the cowl louver 24 from excessively reinforcing the cowl front plate 9 of the front cowl 3. Therefore, the impact force to be applied to the vehicle body 2 and the object 50 due to the collision is more sufficiently mitigated without being obstructed by the cowl louver 24.

  Further, when any object 50 directly collides with the cowl louver 24 from above, the cowl louver 24 is easily deformed by the louver part 36 and the third weak part 44 formed on the cowl louver 24, The impact force is sufficiently relieved. In this case, the operation and effect when the impact force is applied to the cowl front plate 9 are the same as those described above.

  The base plate 39 of the seal body 38 is formed thin. For this reason, when the object 50 collides with the upper surface of the hood 16 and the hood 16 is deformed downward, the deformation stroke can be further increased. Also by this, the said impact force can be relieved more fully.

  In addition, although the above is based on the example of illustration, the coupling | bonding of both the said front edge parts 18 and 26 may be based on thermal welding or fastening. Further, the base plate 39 of the seal body 38 may have a U-shape when viewed from the side, which is externally fitted and fixed to the front edge portions 18 and 26.

  Each of the fragile portions 42-44 may be formed by intermittently forming a groove having a U-shaped cross section, or may be formed by arranging fine pores, or may be a slit. In addition, the first fragile portion 42 and the second fragile portion 43 may be reversed in the vertical relationship with respect to the cowl front plate 9 and may be formed on the upper surface or both on the lower surface. Good.

It is the II sectional view taken on the line of FIG. It is a partial plane fragmentary view of the vehicle body of a motor vehicle. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III in FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV in FIG. 2. FIG. 3 is an enlarged partial cutaway view of a front portion of what is shown in FIG. 2.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Car 2 Car body 3 Front cowl 4 Dash panel 5 Engine room 6 Cabin 9 Cowl front plate 16 Hood 17 Rear edge 18 Front edge 21 Front window 22 Wind glass 24 Cowl louver 25 Swelling part 26 Front edge 27 Rear edge Part 29 Clip 34 Front plate 35 Center line 36 Louver part 38 Seal body 42 First fragile part 43 Second fragile part 44 Third fragile part 50 Object

Claims (1)

The front cowl includes a resin cowl front plate that extends from the front cowl to the rear lower side as viewed from the side of the vehicle body. And a cowl louver that covers the cowl front plate from above, and a front edge portion of the cowl front plate and the cowl louver is connected to each other. In the vehicle body front structure of the automobile provided with a seal body that combines and seals between these front edge portions and the rear edge portion of the hood,
A first fragile portion is formed in a portion of the cowl front plate in the vicinity of the rear of the front edge portions coupled to each other, and a first fragile portion is formed in the other portion of the cowl front plate in the vicinity of the rear of the first fragile portion. 2. A front body structure of an automobile characterized by forming a fragile portion.

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