Vehicle body with reinforcement structure

Abstract

Vehicle body with a reinforcement structure, comprising: a side outer panel (400) arranged on an outer side of the vehicle body, a side inner panel (410) arranged on an inner side of the vehicle body at a predetermined distance from the side outer panel (400), a door upper hinge box (102) attached to an upper portion of an inner side of the side inner panel (410), a door lower hinge reinforcement plate (140) attached to a lower portion of the inside of the side inner panel (410) vertically at a predetermined distance from the door upper hinge box (102), a transverse wall (130) attached to an upper end of the door lower hinge reinforcement plate (140), one end being attached to an inner side of the side outer panel (400) and the other end being attached to an outer side of the side inner panel (410), and a reinforcement bracket (120) arranged in an up-down direction to connect the door upper hinge box (102) and the transverse wall (130), wherein a lower end of the reinforcing bracket (120) is attached and fixed to a center of an upper surface of the transverse wall (130).

Description

Background of the inventionField of the invention

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle body (vehicle body) having a reinforcing structure which protects a driver and (other) vehicle occupants and which improves the strength and / or rigidity and durability of the vehicle body by dispersing and / or uniformly distributing impact energy due to (upon) a collision of the vehicle. Description of related technology

[0002] Generally, some or a lot of impact energy is transferred to the side structure of a vehicle body during a vehicle collision. When the impact energy is transferred to a side structure, doors may break and / or passenger compartments may be crushed / broken.

[0003] Accordingly, studies have been conducted to distribute the stability and / or impact energy of a side structure having an A-pillar on a vehicle body to reduce injuries to occupants due to excessive deformation of weak parts in a small overlap vehicle collision.

[0004] The information disclosed in this Background section is provided only to facilitate understanding of the general background of the invention and is not intended as an admission or any form of suggestion that this information constitutes prior art known to those skilled in the art.

[0005] JP 2010-111140 A discloses a vehicle body with a reinforcement structure, comprising: a side outer panel arranged on an outer side of the vehicle body, a side inner panel arranged on an inner side of the vehicle body at a predetermined distance from the side outer panel, a door upper hinge box attached to an upper portion of an inner side of the side inner panel, a door lower hinge reinforcement plate attached to a lower portion of the inner side of the side inner panel vertically at a predetermined distance from the door upper hinge box, a cross wall attached to an upper end of the door lower hinge reinforcement plate, one end of which is attached to an inner side of the side outer panel and the other end of which is attached to an outer side of the side inner panel, and a reinforcement bracket arranged in an up-down direction.to connect the door upper hinge box and the cross wall.

[0006] US 5,586,799 A discloses an upper body structure for a vehicle body, comprising a hollow front pillar having inner and outer front pillar panels shaped to form a pillar cavity in the front pillar. The front pillar is connected to an upper portion of an instrument panel by means of a reinforcement configuration.

[0007] JP 2003-327159 A discloses a vehicle body structure in which an end part of an outer side panel is cut out in a region provided with a reinforcing member for local reinforcement made of a skeleton part mounted on opening edges of door opening parts of a side outer panel and with a lower reinforcing member for main reinforcement in an interior space to prevent flange coupling with the lower reinforcing member for main reinforcement, an end part of the reinforcing member for local reinforcement is instead flange-coupled with a flange coupling part coupling the lower reinforcing member for main reinforcement to an inner panel member, and rigidity and strength are increased by mutual coupling of the reinforcing members to increase rigidity and strength around door opening parts. Explanation of the invention

[0008] The present invention has for its object to provide a vehicle body having a reinforcing structure having the advantages of distributing strength and impact energy of a side structure to reduce injuries to vehicle occupants and deformation of the vehicle body in a small overlap collision of the vehicle body.

[0009] To achieve the object, the present invention provides a vehicle body (a vehicle body) with a reinforcing structure, which (and / or which) comprises: a side outer panel arranged on an outer side of the vehicle body, a side inner panel arranged on an inner side of the vehicle body at a predetermined distance from the side outer panel, a door upper hinge box attached to an upper portion of an inner side of the side inner panel, a door lower hinge reinforcing plate attached to a lower portion of the inner side of the side inner panel vertically at a predetermined distance (or at a predetermined vertical distance) from the door upper hinge box, a transverse wall (e.g.end wall) attached to an upper end of the door lower hinge reinforcement plate, one end of which is attached to an inner side of the side outer panel and the other end of which is attached to an outer side of the side inner panel, and a reinforcement bracket (respectively reinforcement arm) arranged in an up-down direction (extending) to connect (connect to each other) the door upper hinge box and the cross wall, wherein a lower end of the reinforcement bracket is attached and fixed to a center of an upper surface of the cross wall.

[0010] Further embodiments are defined in the subclaims.

[0011] The door upper hinge box may include a door upper hinge bracket attached to the inside of the side outer panel, and a door upper hinge reinforcing plate, one end of which is attached to an upper end of the reinforcing bracket and the other end of which is attached to the door upper hinge bracket.

[0012] The vehicle body may (further) include a door pivotally connected to the door upper hinge box, and a door beam arranged in a front-rearward direction (extending) inside the door and preventing deformation of the door, wherein a front end of the door beam is arranged in a position corresponding to a connection / connection point of the reinforcement bracket with the bulkhead.

[0013] The door lower hinge reinforcement plate may have a shape corresponding to the inside of the side outer panel. A lower end of the reinforcement bracket may be attached and fixed to a center of an upper surface of the transverse wall.

[0014] The vehicle body may further include a side seal disposed in a front-rear direction of a lower part of the vehicle body, wherein a lower end of the door lower hinge reinforcing plate is attached to the side seal.

[0015] According to the vehicle body with a reinforcement structure of the present invention, since impact energy transmitted along the side from the front of a vehicle is dispersed to the door upper hinge bracket, the door upper hinge reinforcement plate, the reinforcement bracket, the bulkhead, the door lower hinge reinforcement plate, and the side seal, vehicle occupants are protected and the partial strength / rigidity of the side is increased, and therefore the rigidity / strength of the vehicle body is also improved.

[0016] Furthermore, it is possible to increase the strength / rigidity of the portion / part that supports / holds the door, and it is possible to (better) disperse the impact energy and reduce deformation of the vehicle body by dispersing the impact energy to the door from the side. Brief description of the drawings Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a part / portion of the inside of an exemplary vehicle body having an exemplary reinforcement structure according to the present invention. Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing a part / portion of the exterior of an exemplary vehicle body having an exemplary reinforcement structure according to the present invention. Fig. 3 is a side view showing a part / portion of the inside of an exemplary vehicle body having an exemplary reinforcement structure according to the present invention. Fig. 4 is a cross section along the Fig. 3 line marked AA. Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. 3 line marked BB. Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. 3 line marked CC. Detailed description

[0017] Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and explained below. Although the invention will be described in connection with exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the present invention is not intended to limit the invention to these exemplary embodiments. On the contrary, the invention is intended to cover not only the exemplary embodiments, but also numerous alternatives, modifications, variations, and other embodiments which are included within the scope of the invention as defined in the dependent claims.

[0018] Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a portion of the inside of a vehicle body with a reinforcing structure, and Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing a portion of the exterior of the vehicle body with a reinforcing structure according to various embodiments of the present invention. With reference to Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, a vehicle body having a reinforcement structure includes a door upper hinge box 102, a reinforcement bracket (or reinforcement arm) 120, a transverse wall (e.g., bulkhead) 130, a door lower hinge reinforcement plate 140, and a side seal 150. The door upper hinge box 102 includes a door upper hinge bracket 110 and a door upper hinge reinforcement plate 100.

[0019] The door upper hinge box 102 is a part / portion connected to an upper hinge to enable a door to pivot, and the door lower hinge reinforcement plate 140 is a part / portion connected to a lower hinge to enable the door to pivot.

[0020] The door upper hinge bracket 110 is attached to the door upper hinge reinforcement plate 100, the upper end of the reinforcement bracket 120 being connected to or attached to the door upper hinge bracket 110 of the door upper hinge box 102, and the lower end of the reinforcement bracket 120 being connected to or attached to a center of the upper surface of the transverse wall 130.

[0021] The upper end of the door lower hinge reinforcement plate 140 is attached to the outer end of the bulkhead 130, and the lower end of the door lower hinge reinforcement plate 140 is attached to the side seal 150. The side seal (e.g., side seal) 150 is arranged on the lower part / portion of a vehicle body (the vehicle body) in the front-rear direction (of the vehicle, e.g., the motor vehicle).

[0022] According to various embodiments of the present invention, in a frontal collision of a vehicle, the impact (impact energy) applied to the front of the vehicle is transmitted / distributed to the door upper hinge box, the reinforcement bracket 120, the bulkhead 130, the door lower hinge reinforcement plate 140, and the side seal 150, so that the performance against an offset collision and a small overlap collision can be improved.

[0023] Fig. 3 is a side view showing a portion of the interior of the vehicle body with a reinforcing structure according to various embodiments of the present invention. Referring to Fig. 3, a door belt line 300 constituting a window portion / window part of the upper portion is formed on a door of a vehicle body 320, and the door upper hinge bracket is formed at a height corresponding to the door belt line 300.

[0024] Accordingly, in a frontal impact / frontal collision of a vehicle, the impact transmitted to the door upper hinge box 102 is transmitted along the line L1 to the door belt line 300 (or to the door reinforcement bar located in the door belt line 300), so that the performance against an offset collision (offset collision) and a small overlap collision can be improved.

[0025] Further, the door beam 310 is disposed inside a door of the vehicle body 320 in the front-rear direction (of the vehicle), the front end of the door beam 310 is disposed at a position corresponding to the connection / joining point of the reinforcement bracket 120 and the cross panel 130, and the impact energy transmitted to the reinforcement bracket 120 and the cross panel 130 is transmitted to the door beam 310 along the line L2, so that the performance against an offset collision and a small overlap collision can be improved.

[0026] Furthermore, the impact energy transmitted to the reinforcement bracket 120, the bulkhead 130, and the door lower hinge reinforcement plate 140 is dispersed along the line L3 to the side seal 150, so that the performance against an offset collision and a small overlap collision can be improved.

[0027] Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view along a line marked AA in Fig. 3, according to various embodiments of the present invention. With reference to Fig. 4, the vehicle body includes a side outer panel 400 disposed on the outer side and a side inner panel 410 disposed on the inner side at a predetermined distance from the side outer panel 400, and the door upper hinge box 102, the reinforcement bracket 120, the bulkhead 130, and the door lower hinge reinforcement plate 140 are disposed between the side outer panel 400 and the side inner panel 410.

[0028] The side seal 150 is arranged at lower portions of the side outer panel 400 and the side inner panel 410. The door upper hinge reinforcement plate 100 of the door upper hinge box is attached to the side outer panel 400, and the door upper hinge retainer 110 is attached to the door upper hinge reinforcement plate 100 and the side outer panel 400.

[0029] The upper end of the reinforcement bracket 120 is attached to the inside of the door upper hinge reinforcement plate 100, and the lower end (of the reinforcement bracket 120) is attached to the center of the upper surface of the cross wall 130. Further, the outer end of the cross wall 130 is attached to the inside of the side outer panel 400, and the inner end of the cross wall 130 is attached to the outside of the side inner panel 410.

[0030] The upper end of the door lower hinge reinforcement plate 140 is attached to the outer end of the bulkhead 130, and the lower end (of the door lower hinge reinforcement plate 140) is attached to the side seal 150. The door lower hinge reinforcement plate 140 may have a shape that matches / corresponds to the inner side of the side outer panel 400.

[0031] Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. 3, line labeled BB, according to various embodiments of the present invention. With reference to Fig. 5, a door includes an outer door panel 500 and an inner door panel 510, with a door reinforcement plate 520 disposed between the outer door panel 500 and the inner door panel 510, and a portion of the door reinforcement plate 520 attached to the inner door panel 510. The door reinforcement plate 520, a portion of which forms the door beltline 300 (or the door reinforcement strip), absorbs and disperses impact energy from the door upper hinge box 102.

[0032] As shown in the figures, the door upper hinge bracket 110 is attached to the inside of the side outer panel 400, and the door upper hinge reinforcement plate 100 is attached to the door upper hinge bracket 110, with the front end and the rear end (of which) are attached and fixed to the side outer panel 400 and (respectively) the side inner panel 410.

[0033] A first cross-sectional region 530 and a second cross-sectional region 540 are formed by the door upper hinge reinforcement plate 100 between the side outer panel 400 and the side inner panel 410, and a third cross-sectional region 550 is formed between the door upper hinge reinforcement plate 100 and the door upper hinge bracket 110 in the first cross-sectional region 530.

[0034] Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. 3, line designated CC according to various embodiments of the present invention. With reference to Fig.6, the door comprises the door outer panel 500 and the door inner panel 510, wherein the door beam 310 is arranged between the door outer panel 500 and the door inner panel 510, wherein the reinforcement bracket 120 is arranged between the side outer panel 400 and the side inner panel 410, and wherein the front end of the door beam 310 corresponds to the position of the reinforcement bracket 120.

[0035] The reinforcement bracket 120 is attached to the side outer panel 400 so that the cross section formed by the side outer panel 400 and the side inner panel 410 is divided into an outer cross-sectional area 600 and an inner cross-sectional area 610.

[0036] For ease of explanation and accurate definition in the appended claims, terms such as "upper" or "lower," "front" or "rear," "inner" or "outer," etc., are used to describe features of the exemplary embodiments with reference to the positions of such features as shown in the figures.

Claims

[1] Vehicle body with a reinforcement structure, comprising: a side outer panel (400) arranged on an outer side of the vehicle body, a side inner panel (410) arranged on an inner side of the vehicle body at a predetermined distance from the side outer panel (400), a door upper hinge box (102) attached to an upper portion of an inner side of the side inner panel (410), a door lower hinge reinforcement plate (140) attached to a lower portion of the inside of the side inner panel (410) vertically at a predetermined distance from the door upper hinge box (102), a transverse wall (130) attached to an upper end of the door lower hinge reinforcement plate (140), one end being attached to an inner side of the side outer panel (400) and the other end being attached to an outer side of the side inner panel (410), and a reinforcement bracket (120) arranged in an up-down direction to connect the door upper hinge box (102) and the transverse wall (130), wherein a lower end of the reinforcing bracket (120) is attached and fixed to a center of an upper surface of the transverse wall (130). [2] A vehicle body according to claim 1, wherein the door upper hinge box (102) comprises: a door upper hinge holder (110) which is attached to the inside of the side outer panel (400), and a door upper hinge reinforcement plate (100) having one end attached to an upper end of the reinforcement bracket (120) and the other end attached to the door upper hinge bracket (110). [3] A vehicle body according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising: a door hingedly connected to the door upper hinge box (102), and a door support (310) arranged in a forward-backward direction in the door and preventing deformation of the door, wherein a front end of the door carrier (310) is arranged in a position corresponding to a connection point of the reinforcement bracket (120) and the transverse wall (130). [4] The vehicle body according to any one of claims 1-3, wherein the door lower hinge reinforcement plate (140) has a shape corresponding to the inside of the side outer panel (400). [5] Vehicle body according to one of claims 1-4, further comprising: a side seal (150) arranged in a front-to-back direction at a lower portion of the vehicle body, wherein a lower end of the door lower hinge reinforcing plate (140) is attached to the side seal (150).

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