Reinforcing bracket for vehicle access

Abstract

The invention relates to a reinforcing bracket for a vehicle access, said reinforcing bracket being positioned at the position of a front seat cross member (4), characterized in that said bracket (1) comprises at least two reinforcing elements and at least one connecting element, each reinforcing element comprising a main face and at least two sides, said main face comprising a transverse portion and two branches, the at least two side parts protrude from each branch, the at least one connecting element comprises a flat surface and at least two side parts protruding from two sides of the flat surface, and the at least one connecting element is configured to be positioned between the at least two reinforcing elements; the connecting element is capable of maintaining the at least two reinforcing elements substantially facing each other.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention claims the priority of French Patent Application No. 2213900 filed on December 20, 2022, the content (text, drawings and claims) of which is incorporated herein by reference. This invention relates to a reinforcement bracket (étrier) for a vehicle tunnel. Background Art

[0002] After removing the longitudinal beam aluminum profile, problems with the integrity of the base structure were identified between the tunnel and the floor, especially on the side where the front seat crossbeam of the vehicle is located, during a collision with a column at a speed of 32 km / h and an angle of 75°. Larger openings and detachment of the solder joints were detected, which caused imbalance in the base. The interior of the tunnel at the part connected to the front seat crossbeam thus appeared fragile. Summary of the Invention

[0003] This invention thus aims to provide at least one solution capable of overcoming this defect.

[0004] To this end, this invention relates to a reinforcement bracket for a vehicle tunnel. According to the invention, the bracket comprises at least two reinforcement elements and at least one connecting element connecting the at least two reinforcement elements,

[0005] Each reinforcement element comprises a main surface having a substantially U-shaped configuration and at least two side portions, the main surface comprising a transverse portion and two branches, and the at least two side portions projecting from each branch,

[0006] The at least one connecting element comprises a flat surface and at least two side portions projecting from both sides of the flat surface, the at least one connecting element being configured to be positioned between the at least two reinforcement elements, the at least two side portions of the connecting element abutting against the two main surfaces of the at least two reinforcement elements at the position of the transverse portion, and the connecting element being capable of maintaining the at least two reinforcement elements substantially facing each other.

[0007] To optimize the quality, the longitudinal beam aluminum profiles acting on the impact protection according to the US certification for internal combustion engine vehicles (which is the same as the European certification in the case of the present invention) have been removed. The present invention can maintain the structural integrity of the base even without the aluminum profiles, for example, when the vehicle has a lateral collision with a column at a speed of 32 km / h and an angle of 75°. The object of the present invention is therefore to strengthen the channel by adding brackets according to the present invention. The present invention aims to strengthen the interior of the channel at the part connected to the front seat crossbeam and to distribute the acting force among the heel plate, the seat crossbeam, and the A-pillar. To solve this problem, brackets according to the present invention are added to this area while following the 25-mm functional gap between the muffler and the channel. This solution can correct the opening problem between the channel and the floor panel and also solve the problem of solder joint detachment in this area. The present invention provides better structural performance of the base. Due to the removal of the aluminum profiles in the longitudinal beam, the present invention can also provide significant advantages in terms of manufacturing cost and quality. The brackets according to the present invention are positioned between the front seat crossbeams and contribute to resisting deformation in the case of a lateral collision.

[0008] Each strengthening element may have a height of 134 mm.

[0009] Each strengthening element may have a length of 164 mm.

[0010] Each strengthening element may have a thickness of 2 mm.

[0011] Each strengthening element may be made of DP980.

[0012] Each connecting element may be made of DP1180.

[0013] The present invention also relates to a vehicle channel, which includes at least one bracket according to the present invention.

[0014] The present invention also relates to a motor vehicle, which includes at least one channel according to the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] Other features and advantages of the present invention will become clearer by reading the detailed description and the drawings of the present invention, in which:

[0016] Figure 1 An overall view of the bracket according to the present invention, which is positioned in the channel, is shown;

[0017] Figure 2 A front view and a rear view of the strengthening element according to the present invention are shown;

[0018] Figure 3 An overall view of the connecting element according to the present invention is shown;

[0019] Figure 4 show two different views of a bracket according to the present invention;

[0020] Figure 5 show the fixing points of the bracket according to the present invention with the channel. Detailed Description

[0021] These embodiments are in no way restrictive. In particular, variations of the present invention can be considered, which only include the selection of the following described or shown features, which are isolated from other described or shown features (even if the selection is isolated from a statement including these other features), as long as the selection of the features is sufficient to confer a technical advantage or to distinguish the present invention from the prior art. This selection includes at least one preferred functional feature that does not have structural details and / or only has partial structural details (as long as only this partial structural detail is sufficient to confer a technical advantage or to distinguish the present invention from the prior art).

[0022] In the following description, the terms "lower", "upper", "top", "bottom", etc. are used with reference to the drawings for better understanding. These terms should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present invention.

[0023] First, with reference to Figure 1 a general view of a bracket according to the present invention is described, the bracket being positioned in a vehicle channel. Figure 1 show the bracket 1 positioned between two parts of the front seat cross member 4. The bracket 1 includes two parts: a reinforcing element 2 and a connecting element 3. Figure 2 show a front view and a rear view of the reinforcing element 2 according to the present invention. Each reinforcing element 2 includes a substantially flat or slightly curved main face 22 and two side portions 21. The main face 22 is substantially U-shaped and includes a transverse portion and two branches. The transverse portion connects the two branches. The two side portions 21 project from each branch. The face 22 includes a tongue-like elongation at the transverse portion position, which has two openings. The two openings are for stamping or to meet manufacturing constraints. When the bracket is positioned, the flat face 22 (more precisely, the transverse portion of this flat face) has a functional clearance of 25 mm with the channel.

[0024] Figure 3 show a general view of the connecting element according to the present invention. Each connecting element 3 includes a flat face 30 and at least two side portions 31 and 32. The connecting element also includes two additional side portions 33 (one of the additional side portions is in Figure 3Invisible from above). The flat surface 30 has a substantially rectangular shape and includes two openings. The two openings are for stamping or to meet manufacturing constraints. At least two side portions 31 and 32 project from the flat surface 30 in the y-direction (upward) at an angle between 20 degrees and 90 degrees. Preferably, the side portions 31 and 32 are inclined towards the outside of the flat surface 30. The side portion 31 includes two openings and a tongue 311 that is folded relative to the side portion 31 so as to be substantially parallel to the flat surface 30. The tongue 311 is not centered with respect to the center of the flat surface 30. The side portion 32 facing the side portion 31 also includes two openings and a tongue 321 that is folded relative to the side portion 32 so as to be substantially parallel to the flat surface 30. The tongue 321 is centered with respect to the center of the flat surface 30. The length of the tongue 311 is greater than the width, while the width of the tongue 321 is greater than the length. Two additional side portions 33 that are opposite each other and are positioned along the width of the flat surface 30 project from the flat surface 30 in the -y direction (downward) at an angle between 20 degrees and 90 degrees. Preferably, the side portions 33 are inclined towards the outside from the flat surface 30. The side portions 33 correspond to tongues with a length greater than the width.

[0025] Figure 4 Two different views of a bracket according to the present invention are shown. Two reinforcing elements 2 are positioned facing each other. A connecting element 3 is positioned on the two reinforcing elements 2 at their transverse portion positions. The connecting element 3 has a shape complementary to the space formed between the two reinforcing elements 2. Preferably, the spacing between the two reinforcing elements is equal to 73 mm. The two reinforcing elements are positioned back to back. When the connecting element is positioned, the openings of the reinforcing elements 2 overlap with the openings of the connecting element 3. As Figure 1 shown, when the channel is mounted on the bracket, the channel abuts against the side portions 33 and the tongues 311 and 321. Next, the front seat crossmember is fixed to the channel. As Figure 5 shown, the channel is fixed to the bracket via welding points.

[0026] In other embodiments, the bracket according to the present invention may, for example, include three reinforcing elements and two connecting elements. The number of elements of the bracket can be adjusted according to requirements and / or vehicle type. The number of connecting elements is always equal to N - 1, where N is the number of reinforcing elements.

[0027] Of course, the present invention is not limited to the examples just described, and many arrangements can be added to these examples without departing from the scope of the present invention. Of course, the different features, forms, variations, and embodiments of the present invention can be related to each other according to various combinations, as long as they are not incompatible or exclusive with each other. In particular, all the variations and embodiments described above can be combined with each other.

Claims

1. A reinforcing bracket for a vehicle passageway, characterized in that, The bracket (1) includes at least two reinforcing elements (2) and at least one connecting element (3) connecting the at least two reinforcing elements (2), Each reinforcing element (2) includes a main surface (22) having a substantially U-shaped configuration and at least two side portions (21), the main surface (22) includes a transverse portion and two branches, and the at least two side portions (21) project from each branch, The at least one connecting element (3) includes a flat surface (30) and at least two side portions (31, 32) projecting from both sides of the flat surface (30), the at least one connecting element (3) is configured to be positioned between the at least two reinforcing elements (2), and at least two side portions of the connecting element (3) abut against two main surfaces of the at least two reinforcing elements (2) at the transverse portion position, and the connecting element (3) is capable of maintaining the at least two reinforcing elements (2) substantially facing each other.

2. The reinforcing bracket according to claim 1, wherein, Each reinforcing element (2) has a height of 134 mm.

3. The reinforcing bracket according to any one of the above claims, wherein, Each reinforcing element (2) has a length of 164 mm.

4. The reinforcing bracket according to any one of the above claims, wherein, Each reinforcing element (2) has a thickness of 2 mm.

5. The reinforcing bracket according to any one of the above claims, wherein, Each reinforcing element (2) is made of DP980.

6. The reinforcing bracket according to any one of the above claims, wherein, Each connecting element (3) is made of DP1180.

7. A vehicle passageway, the vehicle passageway including at least one bracket according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. A motor vehicle, the motor vehicle including at least one vehicle passageway according to claim 7.

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