Upper body structure

Abstract

The present invention provides a vehicle body upper structure that allows the roof panel to be easily peeled off from surrounding components by a blanking machine. The vehicle body upper structure (100) includes: a roof side beam (2) located at the width end of the upper body (1a); a side outer panel (3) covering the outer side of the roof side beam; and a roof panel (4) formed of a material different from that of the roof side beam and located at the center of the upper body in the width direction. The left and right side outer panels and the roof panel are fixed to each other by hard welding. At the end of the roof panel in the vehicle front-rear direction, there is: a first joint (61) that joins the roof side beam, the roof panel and the side outer panel; a cutout (4a) located inside the first joint in the width direction; and a vulnerable part (4b) extending from the top of the cutout toward the hard weld joint (7) between the side outer panel and the roof panel.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the upper structure of an automobile body. Background Technology

[0002] In recent years, in order to gain greater trust and ensure access to sustainable and advanced energy, research and development on lightweighting that contributes to energy efficiency has been carried out.

[0003] In order to achieve lightweighting of the car body, automobiles use body parts made of light alloys such as aluminum or aluminum alloys (hereinafter referred to as "aluminum") (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0004] The upper body structure described in Patent Document 1 mechanically connects the steel sheet outer and inner components of the side beams, the aluminum outer components of the side beams, and the roof panel using non-penetrating rivets.

[0005] When scrapping a car with such an upper body structure, it is dismantled while being separated into ferrous, non-ferrous, and non-metallic components, and the resulting material is recycled as new material. For example, in order to extract high-purity aluminum from the scrapped car body, the aluminum needs to be removed before it is cut by a shredder. Therefore, in a multi-material car body, as described in Patent Document 1, where aluminum is used for the roof panel and outer panels, high-purity aluminum can be extracted by removing the aluminum components before cutting.

[0006] Existing technical documents

[0007] Patent documents

[0008] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2018-149828 Summary of the Invention

[0009] However, the car body structure described in Patent Document 1 combines the roof panel with surrounding components by mechanical fastening such as rivets, making it difficult to remove the roof panel made of aluminum alone.

[0010] Furthermore, conventional automobiles do not have a gripping area designed for large, heavy equipment such as nibblers to hold the roof panel and other components. Therefore, when a conventional automobile is stripped of its roof panel using heavy equipment such as a nibbler, even if the nibbler can grip the roof panel, it may not be possible to strip only the roof panel; there is a possibility that surrounding components may also be stripped.

[0011] Furthermore, in the separation process based on the shredder, when distinguishing by specific gravity, small and light metal flakes such as copper and stainless steel will be mixed into the aluminum flakes as impurities, so it is impossible to obtain high-purity waste aluminum.

[0012] In addition, aluminum is ideally selected according to the composition of 6000 series, 5000 series, die casting, etc., but in cases of magnetic screening, specific gravity-based screening, etc., there is a problem of various types of aluminum being mixed together.

[0013] Therefore, the present invention was made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and its objective is to provide an upper body structure that allows the roof panel to be easily peeled off from surrounding components by a blanking machine.

[0014] As a solution to the aforementioned problems, the vehicle body upper structure of the present invention includes: a roof side beam located at the vehicle width end of the upper part of the vehicle body; a side outer panel covering the outer side surface of the roof side beam; and a roof panel formed of a material different from that of the roof side beam and located at the center of the upper part of the vehicle width, wherein the left and right side outer panels and the roof panel are fixed to each other by hard welding, and the end of the roof panel in the vehicle front-rear direction has: a first joint portion that joins the roof side beam, the roof panel and the side outer panel; a cutout portion located inside the first joint portion in the vehicle width direction; and a vulnerable portion extending from the top of the cutout portion toward the hard welded joint portion between the side outer panel and the roof panel.

[0015] Invention Effects

[0016] According to the present invention, an upper body structure is provided that allows the roof panel to be easily peeled off from surrounding components by a blanking machine. Attached Figure Description

[0017] Figure 1 This is a schematic perspective view of the main parts of an example of the upper structure of a vehicle body according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0018] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 Enlarged view of part A.

[0019] Figure 3 yes Figure 2 Enlarged sectional view III-III.

[0020] Figure 4 This is a magnified 3D view showing the main part of the roof panel being peeled off by the blanking machine.

[0021] Figure 5 This indicates the state after the roof panel has been peeled off. Figure 1 Enlarged view of part A.

[0022] Figure 6 This is a schematic perspective view of the main part of a modified example of the upper structure of the vehicle body according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0023] Figure 7 This is a schematic perspective view of the main part of a second modified example of the upper structure of the vehicle body according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0024] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures

[0025] 1. Body

[0026] upper part of 1a car body

[0027] 2. Roof side beams

[0028] 3. 3A side outer panel

[0029] 4. Roof Panels

[0030] 4a Cut-off portion

[0031] 4b Vulnerable Part

[0032] 4c width section

[0033] 4D protrusion film

[0034] 4e holding area

[0035] 5. Roof arches

[0036] 6 joints

[0037] 7 Hard welded joint

[0038] 61. First joint (joint)

[0039] 62. Second joint (joint)

[0040] 70 welding materials

[0041] Upper structure of 100 vehicle body

[0042] Vehicle C Detailed Implementation

[0043] Reference Figures 1 to 5 This will illustrate an example of the upper body structure 100 of an embodiment of the present invention.

[0044] Furthermore, the same reference numerals are used to label the same constituent elements, and repeated descriptions are omitted. Additionally, in embodiments of the present invention, such as... Figure 1 As shown, "front" is defined as the forward side of vehicle C, "rear" is defined as the reverse side of vehicle C, "up" is defined as the vertically upward side, and "down" is defined as the vertically downward side.

[0045] "vehicle"

[0046] First, before describing the upper body structure 100 of the embodiment of the present invention, a vehicle C employing the upper body structure 100 of the present invention will be described.

[0047] Vehicle C is an automobile having a roof side beam 2 located at the width-direction end of the upper body 1a, a side outer panel 3 covering the outer side of the roof side beam 2, and a roof panel 4 located at the width-direction center of the upper body 1a. The type and shape of vehicle C are not particularly limited. As long as vehicle C has a side outer panel 3 and a roof panel 4 on the body 1, it can be a passenger car, bus, truck, or work vehicle, etc. Hereinafter, a passenger car will be used as an example of vehicle C.

[0048] Upper Structure of the Vehicle Body

[0049] like Figure 4 As shown, the upper body structure 100 can be gripped by the billet feeder 81 located on the heavy equipment 8 and peeled off from the body 1. The upper body structure 100 is composed of a roof side beam 2, a side outer panel 3 and a roof panel 4.

[0050] Body

[0051] like Figure 1 As shown, the body 1 is a skeletal component used to form the whole vehicle C. The body 1 is composed of, for example, various metal body frames such as the roof side beams 2 (described later) and metal body panels such as the roof panel 4.

[0052] The upper part 1a of the vehicle body is provided with a roof panel 4 that forms the roof panel part, a roof arch 5 that is provided below the roof panel 4 and forms the roof frame, and side outer panels 3 that are provided at both ends of the roof arch 5 in the vehicle width direction.

[0053] Front door openings 1c and rear door openings 1d are formed on the side portions 1b of the vehicle body 1. A front pillar 11 is provided on the front side of the front door opening 1c. A center pillar 12 is provided between the front door opening 1c and the rear door opening 1d. A rear pillar 13 is provided on the rear side of the rear door opening 1d.

[0054] Furthermore, since the vehicle body 1 is roughly symmetrically formed, the description will focus on either the passenger side (left) or the driver side (right), and the description of the other side will be omitted as appropriate.

[0055] Roof Panels

[0056] Figure 1 The roof panel 4 shown is made of a lightweight metal sheet, such as aluminum, which forms a roughly rectangular shape when viewed from above. Figure 2 As shown, a notch 4a, a vulnerable portion 4b, a width portion 4c, and a gripping area 4e are formed at the end of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle's longitudinal direction. Figure 3 As shown, bent portions 4g (hard welded joints 7) are formed at both ends of the roof panel 4.

[0057] <Cut-out section>

[0058] like Figure 2 As shown, the notched portion 4a is formed when the blanking machine 81 (refer to) Figure 4 When the roof panel 4 is pulled by grasping the gripping area 4e, it is formed in a stable manner by breaking it off from the width-direction end of the roof panel 4. In other words, the cut-out portion 4a is formed when the blanking machine 81 (refer to...) Figure 4 The notch 4a is a slit that becomes a trigger for tearing when the roof panel 4 is gripped and pulled. The notch 4a is, for example, a triangular groove formed between the gripping area 4e at the end of the roof panel 4 in the front-rear direction and the first joint 61. The notch 4a is provided inside the width direction of the joint 6 (first joint 61) that joins the roof side beam 2, the roof panel 4 and the outer side panel 3.

[0059] <Vulnerable part>

[0060] The vulnerable part 4b is when the billet feeder 81 (refer to) Figure 4 The vulnerable part 4b is the part that is easily broken when the roof panel 4 is pulled by the gripping area 4e. The vulnerable part 4b is formed, for example, by a V-groove or wavy cut on the back of the roof panel 4. The vulnerable part 4b extends from the top of the cut-out part 4a toward the front end of the hard weld joint 7 between the side outer panel 3 and the roof panel 4. Therefore, when the blanking machine 81 (see reference) Figure 4 When the gripping area 4e of the roof panel 4 is pulled, the weak part 4b can break from the notched part 4a through the weak part 4b toward the hard welded joint 7.

[0061] In addition, the vulnerable part 4b can also be made weaker than other parts of the roof panel 4 by locally thinning the thickness of the roof panel 4.

[0062] <Width section>

[0063] The width portion 4c is a section that is wide in the front-to-back direction, extending outwards from the shape of the roof panel 4. Compared to the cut-out portion 4a, the width portion 4c is located on the inside in the vehicle width direction. The width portion 4c is formed between the cut-out portion 4a and the second joint portion 62, which connects the roof arch 5, which is provided on the lower surface of the roof panel 4 and extends in the vehicle width direction, to the roof panel 4.

[0064] More specifically, a roof arch 5 is disposed on the lower side of the roof panel 4, extending along the front edge of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle width direction. A first joint 61 and a second joint 62, described later, are provided at the front edge of the roof panel 4. Additionally, a width portion 4c is provided at the front edge of the roof panel 4, whose width increases in the vehicle longitudinal direction as it moves from the second joint 62 toward the first joint 61. A notch 4a is located on this width portion 4c and is disposed between the second joint 62 and the first joint 61.

[0065] <Grab Area>

[0066] The gripping area 4e is a portion shaped to be gripped by the blanking machine 81 when the roof panel 4 is removed from the body 1. When the blanking machine 81 grips the roof panel 4 and peels it from the body 1, the roof panel 4 can be peeled off from the body 1 by gripping the gripping area 4e and pulling. The gripping area 4e is provided near the width portion 4c of the roof panel 4 and the second joint portion 62 in the vehicle width direction. A through hole 4f is formed in the gripping area 4e, which facilitates the blanking machine 81 to grip and pull the roof panel 4 when it grips it. The through hole 4f is, for example, an elongated hole that extends along the vehicle width direction. The gripping area 4e protrudes forward compared to the front edge of the roof arch 5, which will be described later. In addition, the gripping area 4e and the through hole 4f can also be used for positioning the windshield.

[0067] <Folding Section>

[0068] The bent portion 4g is used to form the hard-welded joint 7, which is hard-welded and fixed to the upper end of the side outer panel 3 by welding material 70. The bent portion 4g is formed by bending the width-direction end of the roof panel 4 vertically downwards. The outer end of the bent portion 4g in the width-direction is hard-welded in contact with the side outer upper wing 3a. The lower end of the bent portion 4g is disposed away from the upper surface of the beam outer member upper wing 22a of the beam outer member 22.

[0069] Hard welded joint

[0070] like Figure 3 As shown, the hard-welded joint 7 is the part joined by hard welding (also called "hard welding"). The hard-welded joint 7 is composed of a first hard-welded joint 71 and a second hard-welded joint 72. The welding material 70 used for the hard-welded joint 7 is an aluminum alloy.

[0071] The first hard weld joint 71 joins the bent portion 4g of the roof panel 4 and the outer side upper wing portion 3a of the outer side panel 3. The first hard weld joint 71 is provided from the front end of the outer end of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle width direction to the rear end.

[0072] The second hard-welded joint 72 joins the lower wing 22b of the outer beam member of the roof side beam 2 and the lower outer wing 3b of the side outer panel 3. The second hard-welded joint 72 is provided from the front end of the lower outer end of the side outer panel 3 in the vehicle width direction to the rear end.

[0073] The junction

[0074] like Figure 2 As shown, the aforementioned joint 6 is the part that joins the roof panel 4 to the body 1. The joint 6 is mainly composed of a first joint 61 and a second joint 62.

[0075] The first joint 61 is a joint point formed by laser welding and spot welding when the roof side beam 2, roof panel 4, and outer side panel 3 are arranged in an overlapping configuration. The first joint 61 is provided at two locations on the outer front end of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle width direction.

[0076] The second joint 62 is a joint point formed by laser welding or other means when the roof arch 5 and the roof panel 4 are arranged in an overlapping configuration. The second joint 62 is located on the base end side (rear side) of the gripping area 4e in the roof panel 4, and is positioned inside the vehicle width direction compared to the first joint 61 and the vulnerable part 4b. In this embodiment, the second joint 62 has a lower bonding strength compared to the two-point joint 61. Therefore, when the roof panel 4 is peeled off, the second joint 62 is easier to peel off than the first joint 61.

[0077] Car roof arch

[0078] like Figure 1 As shown, the roof arch 5 supports the roof panel 4 from the lower side (see reference). Figure 2 The roof arch 5 is composed of multiple components mounted between the left and right roof side beams 2. The roof arch 5 is arranged at appropriate intervals from the front end to the rear end of the upper body 1a.

[0079] like Figure 5 or Figure 2 As shown, the roof arch 5, which is located on the front side of the vehicle, has an arch width 5a at a position that overlaps with the width 4c of the roof panel 4, and a notch 5b is formed at a position that overlaps with the gripping area 4e and the through hole 4f.

[0080] In the camber width portion 5a, the first connecting portion 61 described above is provided on the outer side in the vehicle width direction, and the second connecting portion 62 described above is provided on the inner side in the vehicle width direction. Therefore, the camber width portion 5a can be firmly connected to the roof panel 4 and the side outer panel 3 through the first connecting portion 61. In addition, the camber width portion 5a can be firmly connected to the roof panel 4 through the second connecting portion 62.

[0081] The notch 5b, positioned overlapping the gripping area 4e and the through hole 4f, can be cut by the blank feeder 81 (see reference). Figure 4 When peeling off the roof panel 4 by grasping the gripping area 4e, it is easy to only grasp the gripping area 4e.

[0082] Roof Side Beam

[0083] like Figure 1 As shown, the roof side beam 2 is a pair of cylindrical frame components extending in the front-rear direction above the side portion 1b of the vehicle body. The roof side beam 2 extends from the left and right front ends to the rear ends of the upper part 1a of the vehicle body, forming the upper edges of the door openings 1c and 1d. A front pillar 11 is joined to the front end of the roof side beam 2. A center pillar 12 is joined to the center of the roof side beam 2. A rear pillar 13 is joined to the rear end of the roof side beam 2.

[0084] like Figure 3 As shown, the roof side beam 2 forms a closed section 2a when viewed in longitudinal section by joining the inner beam member 21 located inside the vehicle and the outer beam member 22 located outside the inner beam member 21. The inner beam member 21 and the outer beam member 22 are different from the aluminum roof panel 4 and the outer side panel 3, and are made of steel (e.g., high-tensile steel plate).

[0085] <Internal Components of Beams>

[0086] like Figure 3 As shown, the internal beam member 21 holds the roof panel 4 and the roof arch 5 (see reference). Figure 4 The inner beam member 21 is a half-section forming the inner part of the roof side beam 2, which is formed into a cylindrical shape by the inner beam member 21 and the outer beam member 22. The inner beam member 21 has an upper wing 21a that bends its upper edge approximately horizontally toward the inside of the vehicle body, and a lower wing 21b that bends its lower end obliquely downward toward the inside of the vehicle body.

[0087] <External Beam Components>

[0088] The outer beam member 22 is a half-section forming the outer side portion of the roof side beam 2. The outer beam member 22 and the inner beam member 21 are arranged opposite each other with a closed section 2a between them, and extend in the front-rear direction. The outer beam member 22 has an upper wing 22a extending in the front-rear direction at its upper edge, and a lower wing 22b extending in the front-rear direction at its lower edge.

[0089] The upper wing 22a of the outer beam member is joined by overlapping the upper wing 21a of the inner beam member and spot welding the joint 23. The lower wing 22b of the outer beam member is joined by overlapping the lower wing 21b of the inner beam member and spot welding the joint 24. Furthermore, the lower wing 22b of the outer beam member is joined to the outer side panel 3 by overlapping with the lower wing 3b of the outer side member and hard welding the second hard weld joint 72 with welding material 70.

[0090] Side Outer Panel

[0091] like Figure 3 As shown, the side outer panel 3 is a panel component arranged to cover the roof side beam 2 from the outside of the vehicle. The side outer panel 3 is composed of a pair of left and right components extending in the front-rear direction. The side outer panel 3 has a side outer upper wing 3a formed at the upper edge and extending in the front-rear direction, and a side outer lower wing 3b formed at the lower edge and extending in the front-rear direction. The side outer panel 3 and the roof panel 4 are fixed to each other by hard welding, thereby fixing the side outer upper wing 3a and the bent portion 4g together.

[0092] The outer upper wing 3a is formed by bending vertically downward from the upper end of the outer side panel 3. The lower end of the outer upper wing 3a is positioned away from the upper part of the outer beam member 22.

[0093] The lower outer wing 3b is formed by bending the lower end of the outer side panel 3 along the lower wing 22b of the outer beam member in a diagonally downward direction in the vehicle width direction.

[0094] Billet feeding machine

[0095] like Figure 4 As shown, the blanking machine 81 is a device for gripping sheet metal or cutting sheet metal by punching. The blanking machine 81 is installed in heavy equipment 8 used when dismantling vehicles C, etc.

[0096] The function of the upper structure of the vehicle body

[0097] Next, while referring to Figures 1-5 The function of the upper body structure 100 in the embodiment of the present invention will be explained.

[0098] like Figure 1 As shown, the roof panel 4 is constructed from a roughly rectangular aluminum sheet. Figure 2As shown, the aforementioned notch 4a, vulnerable portion 4b, width portion 4c, gripping area 4e, and through hole 4f are formed on the outer end of the vehicle front section in the vehicle width direction of the roof panel 4. The outer end of the vehicle front section of the roof panel 4 is joined to the roof arch 5, roof side beam 2, and outer side panel 3 by laser welding or the like via a first joining portion 61. Furthermore, the outer end of the vehicle front section of the roof panel 4 is joined to the roof arch 5 by laser welding or the like via a second joining portion 62.

[0099] like Figure 3 As shown, a bent portion 4g is formed at the outer end of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle width direction. The first hard-welded joint 71 at the outer end of the aluminum roof panel 4 in the vehicle width direction causes the bent portion 4g to abut against the outer upper wing 3a of the aluminum side panel 3, and they are joined by hard welding through aluminum welding material 70.

[0100] In this way, the aluminum roof panel 4 is joined to the aluminum side outer panel 3 by aluminum welding material 70, and is not joined to the steel roof side beam 2. Therefore, the roof panel 4 has fewer joints compared to the roof side beam 2, thus reducing the number of workers required during installation, and can be separated without containing iron components such as the roof side beam 2 during reprocessing.

[0101] The second hard-welded joint 72 of the outer side panel 3 overlaps the lower outer wing 3b with the joint 24 between the lower wing 21b of the inner beam member and the lower wing 22b of the outer beam member, and is hard-welded together by aluminum welding material 70.

[0102] In this way, the outer side panel 3 is joined to the roof side beam 2 at the joint 24 between the lower wing 21b of the inner beam member and the lower wing 22b of the outer beam member, with only the lower wing 3b of the outer side panel 3 being joined. Therefore, the outer side panel 3 has fewer joints with the roof side beam 2, which reduces the number of work required during installation and minimizes the number of separation work required during reprocessing.

[0103] like Figure 4 As shown, the roof panel 4 of the scrapped vehicle C is grasped by the blanking machine 81 at the outer side of the front end of the vehicle in the width direction and peeled off from the body 1. The roof panel 4 has a gripping area 4e protruding from the outer side of the front end of the vehicle in the width direction, so the blanking machine 81 can easily grasp the gripping area 4e, thereby facilitating the body separation operation performed by the blanking machine 81.

[0104] When the billet feeder 81 grabs and pulls the material in the gripping area 4e, as... Figure 2As shown, the roof panel 4 has a notch 4a formed at the base of the gripping area 4e, and a vulnerable part 4b is formed continuously with the notch 4a, so that the notch 4a and the vulnerable part 4b can be split. Moreover, on the extension line of the rear side of the vulnerable part 4b, a hard welded joint 7 is provided extending in the rearward direction of the vehicle, which is joined by aluminum welding material 70.

[0105] Therefore, if the blanking machine 81 grabs and pulls the gripping area 4e, only the aluminum roof panel 4 can be peeled off from the body 1. The peeled roof panel 4 does not have any steel parts attached to it, such as the roof arch 5, outer beam component 22, and inner beam component 21 that were previously joined, so it can be peeled off from the body 1 with only high-purity aluminum parts.

[0106] Therefore, the roof panel 4 detached from the vehicle body 1 can be high-purity scrap aluminum that does not contain impurities such as iron other than aluminum, and thus can be easily recycled.

[0107] As described above, such as Figure 2 As shown, the upper body structure 100 of the present invention includes: a roof side beam 2 provided at the vehicle width end of the upper body 1a; a side outer panel 3 covering the outer side of the roof side beam 2; and a roof panel 4 formed of a material different from that of the roof side beam 2 and provided at the center of the upper body 1a in the vehicle width direction. The left and right side outer panels 3 and the roof panel 4 are fixed to each other by hard welding. At the end of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle front-rear direction, there is a first joint portion 61 that joins the roof side beam 2, the roof panel 4 and the side outer panel 3; a cut-out portion 4a provided on the inner side of the first joint portion 61 in the vehicle width direction; and a vulnerable portion 4b extending from the top of the cut-out portion 4a toward the hard welded joint portion 7 (first hard welded joint portion 71) between the side outer panel 3 and the roof panel 4.

[0108] According to this configuration, the upper body structure 100 has a first joint 61 and a cutout 4a located inside the first joint 61 in the vehicle width direction at the end of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle front-rear direction. Therefore, the roof panel 4 can be firmly fixed to the body 1 by the first joint 61, and thus, by being grasped and pulled by the blanking machine 81, it can be easily peeled off from the surrounding parts by the cutout 4a located inside the vehicle width direction compared to the first joint 61.

[0109] Furthermore, the roof panel 4 has a vulnerable portion 4b extending from the top of the notch 4a toward the hard weld joint 7 (first hard weld joint 71) between the side outer panel 3 and the roof panel 4. Therefore, the roof panel 4 can be easily peeled off from the body 1 by being gripped and pulled by the blanking machine 81, continuously splitting from the notch 4a to the vulnerable portion 4b and the hard weld joint 7. The peeled roof panel 4 does not contain impurities such as iron other than aluminum, thus obtaining high-purity scrap aluminum.

[0110] In addition, such as Figure 2 As shown, the upper body structure 100 of the present invention also has a roof arch 5, which is provided on the lower side of the roof panel 4 and extends along the front edge of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle width direction. The roof panel 4 has: a second joint 62 that joins the roof panel 4 and the roof arch 5 in the vehicle width direction inward compared with the first joint 61; and a width portion 4c in the front edge 2 of the roof panel 4 whose width increases in the vehicle longitudinal direction as it moves from the second joint 62 toward the first joint 61. A cutout portion 4a is located on the width portion 4c and is provided between the second joint 62 and the first joint 61.

[0111] According to this configuration, the roof panel 4 has: a width portion 4c whose width increases in the vehicle longitudinal direction as it moves from the second joint portion 62 toward the first joint portion 61 at its leading edge; and a cutout portion 4a located on the width portion 4c and disposed between the second joint portion 62 and the first joint portion 61. Therefore, in the roof panel 4, the inner and outer sides of the cutout portion 4a in the vehicle width direction are reinforced by the width portion 4c, so that it can be reliably separated from the second joint portion 62 of the roof arch 5 by being grasped and pulled by the blanking machine 81.

[0112] In addition, such as Figure 3 As shown, the side outer panel 3 and the roof panel 4 are made of aluminum, the roof side beam 2 is made of steel, and the welding material 70 for the hard welding is made of aluminum alloy.

[0113] According to this configuration, the side outer panel 3 and the roof panel 4 are joined to the roof side beam 2 by hard welding using an aluminum alloy welding material 70. Therefore, even though the aluminum side outer panel 3 and the roof panel 4 and the steel roof side beam 2 are dissimilar materials, they can be firmly joined by the aluminum alloy welding material 70.

[0114] Furthermore, when the aluminum side outer panel 3 and roof panel 4 are separated from the steel roof side beam 2 by the blanking machine 81, since the side outer panel 3 and roof panel 4 are joined by aluminum welding material 70, no steel is mixed in. Therefore, before cutting the side outer panel 3 and roof panel 4, only the aluminum parts are removed, thereby allowing the removal of high-purity aluminum that does not contain iron or other components.

[0115] In addition, the side outer panel 3 and the roof panel 4 are joined by aluminum welding material 70. Therefore, the joint strength is weaker than that of the steel parts, and thus it is easy to separate from the part joined by aluminum welding material 70.

[0116] In addition, such as Figure 2 As shown, a gripping area 4e is formed at the end of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle's front-rear direction.

[0117] According to this configuration, the roof panel 4, by having a gripping area 4e, can be easily handled by the blank feeder 81 (see reference) when the vehicle C is disassembled. Figure 4 Grasp and hold area 4e and peel it off.

[0118] [First Variation]

[0119] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and alterations can be made within the scope of its technical concept. The present invention naturally also includes inventions resulting from these modifications and alterations.

[0120] Figure 6 This is a schematic perspective view of the main part of a first modified example of the upper body structure 100 of an embodiment of the present invention.

[0121] like Figure 6 As shown, it is also possible that a protruding piece 4d is formed at the end of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle's longitudinal direction, and this protruding piece 4d is formed by the blank feeder 81 (refer to...). Figure 4 When the roof panel 4 is grasped and detached from the body 1, it is easily removed by the blank feeder 81 (refer to...). Figure 4 Grab and pull.

[0122] The protruding piece 4d only needs to be shaped so that it can be gripped by the blank feeder 81, for example, it can be composed of a protruding piece that is trapezoidal in shape when viewed from above. The protruding piece 4d is formed between the notch portion 4a and the gripping area 4e. The protruding piece 4d is formed on the front side of the second joint portion 62.

[0123] According to this configuration, the roof panel 4 has a protruding piece 4d formed at its end in the vehicle's longitudinal direction, which is then passed through the blanking machine 81 (see reference). Figure 4 When the roof panel 4 is grasped and detached from the body 1, it can be easily removed by the blank feeder 81 (see reference). Figure 4 )catch.

[0124] Furthermore, by forming the protruding piece 4d at a position adjacent to the notch 4a, the width of the roof panel 4 in the front-rear direction on the side of the notch 4a in the vehicle width direction can be increased, thereby improving strength. Therefore, by forming the protruding piece 4d, the roof panel 4, when fed by the blanking machine 81 (see reference...), can increase its strength. Figure 4When grasped and pulled, it can reliably crack from the cut portion 4a.

[0125] [Second Variation]

[0126] Figure 7 This is a schematic perspective view of the main part of a second modified example of the upper body structure 100 of an embodiment of the present invention.

[0127] Additionally, the side outer panel 3 described in the above embodiment (refer to...) Figure 3 It can also be, for example Figure 7 As shown in the side outer panel 3A, a mounting portion 3Ac is formed on the top side of the side outer upper wing 3Aa that is joined to the roof panel 4, and is bonded to the beam outer member upper wing 22a of the beam outer member 22.

[0128] In this case, the outer side upper wing 3Aa is formed from the upper end of the outer side panel 3A toward the upper wing 22a of the outer beam member in a diagonally downward direction in the vehicle width direction. The upper end of the outer side upper wing 3Aa is not connected to the roof panel 4. A hard-welded joint 7 is formed in the middle of the outer side upper wing 3Aa, which is hard-welded to the roof panel 4. A mounting part 3Ac is continuously formed at the lower end of the outer side upper wing 3Aa.

[0129] The mounting portion 3Ac is formed by bending approximately horizontally from the top of the upper wing 22a of the outer beam member toward the inward side in the vehicle width direction, so as to be installed on the upper wing 22a of the outer beam member in a stable state. The mounting portion 3Ac is bonded to the upper wing 22a of the outer beam member by adhesive g.

[0130] The adhesive g is composed of thermosetting resin or the like. Therefore, the mounting portion 3Ac of the outer side panel 3A and the upper wing portion 22a of the outer beam member 22 are not joined by direct joining methods such as spot welding or mechanical joining methods such as rivets and bolts.

[0131] According to this configuration, in a second variation of the upper body structure 100 of the present invention, a mounting portion 3Ac is formed on the side outer panel 3A. When the side outer panel 3A, which is to be joined with the roof panel 4, is joined to the outer beam member 22 by adhesive g, the mounting portion 3Ac can be stably mounted on the upper wing 22a of the outer beam member and joined. Therefore, the mounting portion 3Ac can be correctly bonded to a predetermined position on the upper wing 22a of the outer beam member 22.

[0132] [Other variations]

[0133] As an example of the present invention, the above embodiment describes a case where the gripping area 4e is formed only at the left end of the front end of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle direction, but it is not limited thereto. For example, the gripping area 4e may also be formed at the right end of the front end of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle direction, or at either the left or right end of the rear end in the vehicle direction. Furthermore, the gripping area 4e may also be formed at multiple locations at the left and right ends of the front and rear ends of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle direction.

[0134] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, as an example of the notch 4a, a triangular notch is provided on the outer side of the gripping area 4e at the front-rear end of the roof panel 4 in the vehicle width direction. This notch 4a only needs to be easy to break when the roof panel 4 is gripped and pulled by the blanking machine 81 or the like; the shape of the notch 4a can be appropriately modified. The notch 4a can be a groove-shaped (slit-shaped) cut or a linear crack formed by simple splitting.

Claims

1. An upper structure for a vehicle body, characterized in that, have: A roof side beam located at the width end of the upper part of the vehicle body; The side panel covering the exterior side of the roof side beam; and A roof panel, formed of a material different from that of the roof side beams, and located at the center of the upper part of the vehicle body in the width direction. The left and right side outer panels and the roof panel are fixed to each other by rigid welding. The roof panel has the following features at its ends in the vehicle's longitudinal direction: The first joint that connects the roof side beam, the roof panel, and the outer side panel; A notch is provided on the inner side of the first joint in the vehicle width direction; and A vulnerable portion extending from the top of the cut-out portion toward the hard weld joint between the side outer panel and the roof panel.

2. The upper body structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, It also features a roof arch, which extends along the leading edge of the roof panel in the vehicle width direction from the underside of the roof panel. The roof panel has: A second joint that joins the roof panel to the roof arch on the inner side in the vehicle width direction compared to the first joint; and The width of the roof panel, which increases in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle as it moves from the second joint to the first joint, is described. The notched portion is located on the width portion and is situated between the second joint portion and the first joint portion.

3. The upper body structure according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The side outer panels and the roof panel are made of aluminum. The roof side beams are made of steel. The welding material for the hard weld is made of aluminum alloy.

4. The upper body structure according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, A gripping area is formed at the end of the roof panel in the vehicle's front-rear direction.

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