A device for improving leg injury of front seat members in a frontal collision of an automobile

Abstract

The present application relates to a device for improving leg injury of front seat occupant in vehicle frontal crash, which comprises a back plate extending upwardly in a rear-to-front direction, the back plate having a foot rest surface on its rear side; a support connected with the back plate to make the acute angle between the foot rest surface and horizontal plane a predetermined first angle; when the foot rest surface is subjected to an impact pressure greater than a predetermined range, the back plate moves to make the acute angle between the foot rest surface and horizontal plane larger, and the support deforms to absorb energy; when a vehicle is subjected to a severe frontal crash, a huge impact force acting on the foot rest surface by the occupant's foot at the moment can make the back plate move relative to the bottom plate to make the acute angle between the foot rest surface and horizontal plane larger, effectively preventing the occupant's foot from moving upward, and the support deforms to absorb energy, effectively absorbing a proportion of leg impact energy, and reducing the injury degree of the foot, lower leg and knee.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of automobile safety protection devices, in particular to a device for improving leg injury of front-row members in automobile frontal collision. BACKGROUND

[0002] In automobile collision accidents, in order to protect passengers from serious injuries such as lower limb ligament rupture and paralysis, national regulations and new car assessment procedures (NCAP) set indicators for evaluating the degree of injury of the legs of the dummy. In the China New Car Assessment Procedure (C-NCAP) and the European New Car Assessment Procedure (Euro-NCAP), the injury indicators of the thigh of the dummy are evaluated by two indicators of thigh compression force and knee sliding displacement, and the injury indicators of the lower leg of the dummy are evaluated by two indicators of lower leg compression force and tibia index TI.

[0003] Taking the most commonly used Hybrid III dummy as an example, the force sensor in the thigh is responsible for collecting data and recording the degree of injury when subjected to frontal impact; under some more serious impact conditions, the knee may be subjected to tearing and dislocation, and the specially designed displacement sensor located therein is responsible for measuring the injury degree of the passenger's knee, and the sensor in the lower leg is responsible for measuring the fracture, bending and compression of the lower leg of the dummy after being subjected to a certain degree of impact.

[0004] Generally, during the whole vehicle frontal collision test, the passenger dummy is subjected to the action of the severe deceleration of the vehicle body, and the first is that the dummy foot collides with the carpet to cause excessive compression of the lower leg, and the second is that the dummy foot moves upward along the footrest carpet slope; the upward movement of the dummy foot will inevitably cause the position of the ankle point of the dummy to move upward, resulting in that the upper part of the lower leg first contacts the instrument panel during the rotation of the lower leg around the ankle point, instead of the knee first contacting the instrument panel; the lower leg is blocked due to the action of the instrument panel, and the thigh continues to move forward under the push of the pelvis, thereby causing the knee sliding displacement to be large.

[0005] Due to the upward movement of the foot, the collision state of the lower leg first contacting the instrument panel should be avoided, because it is easy to cause the knee sliding displacement value to be too large, thereby affecting the C-NCAP score of the thigh.

[0006] In order to limit the upward movement of the dummy foot, three directions are usually considered: 1. Increase the angle of the footrest slope. However, due to the comfort requirement of the passenger, the angle of the footrest slope cannot be too large. 2. Replace the carpet material with a higher friction coefficient. For economy type vehicles, the material cost of this scheme is usually not feasible. 3. Reduce the collision energy of the dummy leg. Involving complex systems such as vehicle body structure and restraint system, it is basically not practical to implement in the improvement stage of the project.

[0007] Therefore, it is necessary to provide a device for effectively improving leg injury of front seat members during a front collision of a vehicle. SUMMARY

[0008] Based on the above description, the present application provides a device for improving leg injury of front seat members during a front collision of a vehicle to solve the technical problem that the knee sliding displacement value of the injury evaluation index is too large when the lower leg first contacts the instrument panel during a front collision of a vehicle in the prior art.

[0009] The technical scheme for solving the above technical problem is as follows:

[0010] A device for improving leg injury of front seat members during a front collision of a vehicle, comprising:

[0011] a back plate extending upwardly in a rear-to-front direction, a foot rest surface being provided on a rear side of the back plate;

[0012] a support member connected to the back plate to make the acute angle between the foot rest surface and a horizontal plane a predetermined first angle;

[0013] When the foot rest surface is subjected to an impact pressure greater than a predetermined range, the back plate moves to make the acute angle between the foot rest surface and the horizontal plane larger, and the support member deforms to absorb energy.

[0014] Compared with the prior art, the technical scheme of the present application has the following beneficial technical effects:

[0015] The device provided by the present application has a small acute angle between the foot rest surface and the horizontal plane when a front collision of a vehicle does not occur (i.e., the ground is relatively flat), and the comfort of the passenger's foot placement is fully considered. When a front collision of a vehicle occurs, the instantaneous great impact force of the passenger's foot acting on the foot rest surface will make the back plate move relative to the bottom plate, so that the acute angle between the foot rest surface and the horizontal plane becomes larger, effectively preventing the upward movement of the passenger's foot, and the support member deforms to absorb energy, which can effectively absorb the proportion of leg impact energy and reduce the degree of injury of the foot and lower leg.

[0016] On the basis of the above technical scheme, the present application can also be improved as follows.

[0017] Further, a bottom plate is further provided, the bottom plate is arranged on the rear side of the back plate and has a load bearing surface at the upper end, and when the foot rest surface and the horizontal plane form the first angle, the lower end of the foot rest surface coincides with the front end of the load bearing surface.

[0018] Further, the sheet metal frame comprises a connecting plate and a fixing plate, the fixing plate is connected to the connecting plate and has a predetermined angle with the connecting plate, the bottom plate is arranged on the connecting plate, the angle between the fixing plate and the horizontal plane is greater than the first angle, the upper end of the back plate is rotationally connected to the sheet metal frame, and the support is arranged between the sheet metal frame and the back plate.

[0019] In one technical solution, the support comprises a plurality of collapse energy absorption structures arranged between the front side of the back plate and the rear side of the fixing plate.

[0020] Further, the collapse energy absorption structure comprises a collapse shell and a collapse rib arranged inside the collapse shell, the bottom of the collapse shell is welded to the front side of the back plate, the collapse ribs are distributed on the inner side wall of the collapse shell in the circumferential direction, the length direction of the collapse rib is consistent with the depth direction of the collapse shell, and the side of the collapse shell away from the back plate is connected to the sheet metal frame.

[0021] In another technical solution, the support comprises a first hinge and an elastic buffer structure, a strip-shaped hole is formed on the fixing plate, the back plate passes through the strip-shaped hole and is hinged to the fixing plate through the first hinge, the elastic buffer structure is connected between the front side of the fixing plate and the back plate to elastically deform when the back plate rotates under impact pressure, and the elastic buffer structure is disconnected when the elastic buffer structure bears pressure greater than a predetermined pressure.

[0022] Further, the support further comprises a one-way damping structure configured to dampen the recovery process of the elastic buffer structure after elastic deformation.

[0023] Further, the support further comprises a first guide rail and a second guide rail, the first guide rail and the second guide rail are arranged at a predetermined obtuse angle, and the two ends of the back plate are respectively slidably arranged in the first guide rail and the second guide rail through corresponding sliding blocks.

[0024] Further, the support further comprises an elastic buffer structure and a one-way damping structure, the elastic buffer structure is arranged in the first guide rail and / or the second guide rail, and the one-way damping structure is arranged in the first guide rail and / or the second guide rail, the elastic buffer structure elastically deforms when the back plate rotates under impact pressure, and the one-way damping structure is configured to dampen the recovery process of the elastic buffer structure after elastic deformation.

[0025] Further, the bottom plate is a foam material structure, and carpets are laid on the load bearing surface and the foot resting surface. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0026] Figure 1 Structure diagram of a first embodiment of the device for improving leg injury of front seat member in automobile frontal collision provided by the present application;

[0027] Figure 2 Structure diagram of a second embodiment of the device for improving leg injury of front seat member in automobile frontal collision provided by the present application; Figure 1 Structure diagram of a normal or slight collision process;

[0028] Figure 3 Structure diagram of a severe collision process; Figure 1 Structure diagram of a third embodiment of the device for improving leg injury of front seat member in automobile frontal collision provided by the present application;

[0029] Figure 4 Structure diagram of a severe collision process; Figure 1 Structure diagram of a severe collision process;

[0030] Figure 5 Structure diagram of a severe collision process; Figure 1 Structure diagram of a severe collision process;

[0031] Figure 6 Structure diagram of a first embodiment of the device for improving leg injury of front seat member in automobile frontal collision provided by the present application;

[0032] Figure 7 Structure diagram of a normal or slight collision process; Figure 6 Structure diagram of a normal or slight collision process;

[0033] Figure 8 Structure diagram of a severe collision process; Figure 6 Structure diagram of a severe collision process;

[0034] Figure 9 Structure diagram of a third embodiment of the device for improving leg injury of front seat member in automobile frontal collision provided by the present application;

[0035] Figure 10 Structure diagram of a third embodiment of the device for improving leg injury of front seat member in automobile frontal collision provided by the present application; Figure 9 Structure diagram of a third embodiment of the device for improving leg injury of front seat member in automobile frontal collision provided by the present application; DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] In order to facilitate the understanding of the present application, the present application will be described more fully below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The embodiments of the present application are shown in the drawings. However, the present application can be implemented in many different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that the disclosure of the present application is more thorough and complete.

[0037] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the present application belongs. The terminology used in the description of the present application herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the present application.

[0038] It will be understood that the spatially relative terms "beneath", "below", "lower", "under", "above", "upper" and the like, can be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as "below" or "beneath" other elements or features would then be oriented "above" the other elements or features. Thus, the exemplary term "below" can encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device can also be oriented in the other direction, and the spatially relative terms used herein are intended to encompass such additional

[0039] It is noted that when an element is referred to as being "connected" to another element, it can be directly connected to the other element or connected to the other element through intervening elements. "Connected" in the following embodiments, if the connected circuit, module, unit, etc. have the transmission of electrical signal or data between each other, should be understood as "electrically connected", "communicatively connected" and the like.

[0040] As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms "comprises", "comprising", "includes" and / or "including", or the like, when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof.

[0041] As Figure 1 The present application provides a device for improving leg injury of front seat occupant in vehicle frontal collision, which comprises a backboard 10 and a support.

[0042] The backboard extends upwardly in a rearward-to-forward direction, and the backboard 10 has a footrest surface 11. It is to be understood that the front and rear described in the present application refer to the front and rear represented with the vehicle as a reference.

[0043] The support is connected to the backboard 10 so that the acute angle between the footrest surface 11 and the horizontal plane is a predetermined first angle a;

[0044] When the footrest surface 11 is subjected to an impact pressure greater than a predetermined range, the backboard 10 moves so that the acute angle between the footrest surface 11 and the horizontal plane becomes larger, and the support deforms to absorb energy.

[0045] The design principle of the device is that when the vehicle is not in frontal collision, the first angle a between the footrest surface 11 and the horizontal plane is relatively small, generally within 45° (i.e. the ground is relatively flat), and the comfort of the passenger's foot placement is fully considered. When the vehicle is in frontal collision, the huge impact force of the passenger's foot acting on the footrest surface 11 at the moment will make the back plate 10 move, so that the acute angle between the footrest surface 11 and the horizontal plane becomes larger, effectively preventing the upward movement of the passenger's foot, and the energy-absorbing deformation of the support member can effectively absorb the proportion of leg impact energy, reducing the degree of injury to the foot and lower leg, as shown in Figure 2 .

[0046] Preferably, the device further comprises a bottom plate 30, which is arranged at the rear side of the back plate 10 and has a bearing surface 31 at the upper end. When the footrest surface 11 forms a first angle with the horizontal plane, the lower end 11 of the footrest surface coincides with the front end of the bearing surface 31.

[0047] The bottom plate 30 is generally used to install the seat of the vehicle, and the passenger generally places the heel part on the bottom plate to form a comfortable driving experience.

[0048] The device further comprises a sheet metal frame 40, which comprises a connecting plate 41 and a fixed plate 42. The fixed plate 42 is connected to the connecting plate 41 and forms a predetermined angle b with the connecting plate 41. The bottom plate 30 is arranged on the connecting plate 41. The angle b between the fixed plate 42 and the horizontal plane is greater than the first angle. The upper end of the back plate 10 is rotationally connected to the sheet metal frame 40. The support member is arranged between the sheet metal frame 40 and the back plate 10.

[0049] Preferably, in order to ensure the comfort of driving, the bottom plate 30 is of a foam material structure, and the bearing surface 31 and the footrest surface 11 are covered with a carpet.

[0050] In the first embodiment of the present application, as shown in Figures 2 to 5 , the support member comprises a plurality of collapse energy-absorbing structures 21 arranged between the front side of the back plate 10 and the rear side of the fixed plate 42.

[0051] When the vehicle is in frontal collision, the huge impact force of the passenger's foot acting on the carpet at the moment will cause the collapse of the collapse energy-absorbing structures 21 under the footrest surface 11, which not only increases the proportion of the material structure under the foot absorbing the leg impact energy, reduces the degree of injury to the dummy foot and lower leg, but also increases the inclination angle of the footrest inclined surface, which effectively prevents the upward movement of the passenger's foot, as shown in Figure 2 .

[0052] Specifically, the collapse energy absorption structure 21 comprises a collapse shell 211 and a collapse rib 212 arranged inside the collapse shell 211, the bottom of the collapse shell 211 is welded to the front side of the backboard 10, the collapse rib 212 is distributed on the inner side wall of the collapse shell 211 in the circumferential direction, the length direction of the collapse rib 212 is consistent with the depth direction of the collapse shell 211, which ensures that the backboard 10 has good support in normal use, and the side of the collapse shell 211 away from the backboard 10 is connected with the metal frame 40.

[0053] Through the design of the collapse shell 211 and the collapse rib 212, the overall effective collapse can occur when the collision occurs, and the backboard 10 can move according to the predetermined movement.

[0054] In the second embodiment of the present application, as shown in Figures 6 to 8 The support piece comprises a first hinge 22 and an elastic buffer structure 23, a strip-shaped hole 42a is formed on the fixed plate 42, the backboard 10 passes through the strip-shaped hole 42a and is hinged with the fixed plate 42 through the first hinge 22, realizing the direct rotatable connection of the backboard 10 and the fixed plate 42, the elastic buffer structure 23 is connected between the front side of the fixed plate 42 and the backboard 10, so as to elastically deform when the backboard 10 rotates under the impact pressure, and the elastic buffer structure 214 breaks when the elastic buffer structure 23 bears a pressure greater than a predetermined pressure.

[0055] The preferred elastic buffer structure of the embodiment is a buffer spring, and the number is preferably two.

[0056] When a low-speed frontal collision or emergency braking occurs, the occupant's feet impact the backboard 10, the backboard 10 rotates downward, the buffer spring elastically deforms, effectively absorbing the impact energy of the feet, thereby reducing the injury to the feet. Since it is a low-speed collision, the impact energy of the feet is small, and the buffer spring can completely absorb the impact energy. When the backboard 10 moves to the lowest position, under the action of the reverse tension of the buffer spring, the backboard 10 begins to return to the initial normal position, as shown in Figure 6 .

[0057] In order to prevent the backboard 10 from rebounding quickly and causing secondary injury to the feet, the support piece 21 further comprises a one-way damping structure 24, which is configured to dampen the recovery process of the elastic buffer structure 23 after the elastic deformation. The preferred one-way damping structure 24 of the embodiment is a one-way resistance push rod, which is arranged on the front side of the backboard 10. When the backboard 10 returns, the one-way damping structure will make the backboard 10 slowly return to the initial position, so as to play a role in protecting the feet and knees again when the next low-speed frontal collision or emergency braking occurs.

[0058] The one-way damping structure 215 in the present application allows the backboard 10 to move freely when it sinks, and provides damping to the backboard 10 when it rebounds. Different ways can be used to achieve the damping effect in the present application, and common ways include friction damping, liquid damping, and gas damping.

[0059] When a high-speed and violent frontal collision occurs, the impact energy of the foot is large due to the high-speed collision, and the buffer spring can only absorb part of the impact energy. In order to prevent the foot from being subjected to excessive reaction force of the backboard 10, a maximum working tension limit value is provided for the buffer spring. When the tension of the buffer spring exceeds the tension limit value, the end of the buffer spring connected with the vehicle body fixing plate 42 will be disconnected. The subsequent foot impact energy absorption is mainly realized by the energy absorption structure below the foot backboard. For example, the collapse energy absorption structure in the previous embodiment, or a plastic energy absorption block, foam, or other buffer structure, etc. These ways can provide a good platform energy absorption reaction force (i.e. the reaction force is controlled within a certain damage limit, and the remaining impact energy can be efficiently absorbed), which prevents knee injury caused by upward movement of the foot, as shown in Figure 7 .

[0060] In the third embodiment of the present application, the support member includes a first guide rail 24 and a second guide rail 25, the first guide rail 24 and the second guide rail 25 are arranged at a predetermined obtuse angle, and the two ends of the backboard 10 are respectively slidably arranged in the first guide rail 24 and the second guide rail 25 through corresponding sliding blocks. The angle change of the backboard 10 is realized through the guided sliding of the first guide rail 24 and the second guide rail 25.

[0061] Preferably, the support member further includes an elastic buffer structure and a one-way damping structure, the elastic buffer structure is arranged in the first guide rail 24, and the one-way damping structure is arranged in the second guide rail 25. It can be understood that the elastic buffer structure can also be arranged on both the first guide rail 24 and the second guide rail 25, or the elastic buffer structure can be arranged in the second guide rail 25, and the one-way damping structure can be arranged in the first guide rail 24. The elastic buffer structure elastically deforms when the backboard 10 is subjected to impact pressure and rotates, and the one-way damping structure is configured to dampen the recovery process of the elastically deformed elastic buffer structure.

[0062] After the collision, the backboard 10 is impacted by the foot and moves forward relative to the vehicle body, and the included angle between the backboard 10 and the horizontal plane increases.

[0063] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present application and is not intended to limit the present application. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made within the spirit and principles of the present application shall be included in the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A device for improving leg injuries of front-seat occupants in a frontal collision of an automobile, characterized in that, include: The back plate extends upwards at an angle from back to front, and has a footrest on its rear side; a support member is connected to the back plate so that the acute angle between the footrest and the horizontal plane forms a predetermined first angle; when the footrest is subjected to an impact pressure greater than a predetermined range, the back plate moves, increasing the acute angle between the footrest and the horizontal plane, and the support member absorbs energy and deforms; it also includes a base plate, which is disposed on the rear side of the back plate and has a bearing surface at its upper end; when the footrest forms a first angle with the horizontal plane, the lower end of the footrest coincides with the front end of the bearing surface; it also includes a sheet metal frame, which includes a connecting plate and a fixing plate; the fixing plate is connected to the connecting plate and forms a predetermined angle with the connecting plate; the base plate is disposed on the connecting plate; the angle between the fixing plate and the horizontal plane is greater than the first angle; the upper end of the back plate is connected to the sheet metal frame. The frame is rotatably connected, and the support member is disposed between the sheet metal frame and the back plate; the support member includes multiple collapsible energy-absorbing structures, which are disposed between the front side of the back plate and the rear side of the fixed plate; the support member includes a first hinge and an elastic buffer structure, a strip hole is formed on the fixed plate, the back plate passes through the strip hole and is hinged to the fixed plate by the first hinge, the elastic buffer structure is connected between the front side of the fixed plate and the back plate, so as to undergo elastic deformation when the back plate rotates under impact pressure, and the elastic buffer structure breaks when the pressure on the elastic buffer structure is greater than a predetermined pressure.

2. The device for improving leg injuries of front-seat occupants in a frontal collision of an automobile according to claim 1, characterized in that, The collapsible energy-absorbing structure includes a collapsible shell and collapsible ribs disposed inside the collapsible shell. The bottom of the collapsible shell is welded to the front side of the back plate. The collapsible ribs are distributed circumferentially on the inner sidewall of the collapsible shell. The length direction of the collapsible ribs is consistent with the depth direction of the collapsible shell. The side of the collapsible shell away from the back plate is connected to the sheet metal frame.

3. The device for improving leg injuries of front-seat occupants in a frontal collision of an automobile according to claim 1, characterized in that, The support also includes a unidirectional damping structure, which is configured to dampen the recovery process of the elastic buffer structure after elastic deformation.

4. The device for improving leg injuries of front-seat occupants in a frontal collision of an automobile according to claim 1, characterized in that, The support includes a first guide rail and a second guide rail, which are set at a predetermined obtuse angle. The two ends of the back plate are slidably mounted on the first guide rail and the second guide rail respectively via corresponding sliders.

5. The device for improving leg injuries of front-seat occupants in a frontal collision of an automobile according to claim 4, characterized in that, It also includes an elastic buffer structure and a unidirectional damping structure. The elastic buffer structure is disposed on the first guide rail and / or the second guide rail, and the unidirectional damping structure is disposed on the first guide rail and / or the second guide rail. The elastic buffer structure undergoes elastic deformation when the back plate rotates under impact pressure, and the unidirectional damping structure is configured to dampen the recovery process of the elastic buffer structure after elastic deformation.

6. The apparatus for improving leg injuries of front-seat occupants in a frontal collision of an automobile, as described in claim 5, is characterized in that... The base plate is made of foam, and carpets are laid on the bearing surface and the footrest surface.

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