Front arrangement for a motor vehicle

Abstract

Front arrangement for a motor vehicle with a transversely extending bumper arrangement provided directly or indirectly on vehicle longitudinal members, comprising at least one crash management system (20) with at least one transversely extending first support element (26) with at least one absorption element (22, 24) in which at least one deformable pressure hose element (30) is integrated, and with a front fairing arrangement (6), wherein, viewed in the transverse direction, two radiator arrangements (14) are provided in the region of the two ends of the front fairing arrangement (6), wherein, in the region in front of the respective radiator arrangements (14), the crash management system (20) comprises a load distribution arrangement (36) in each case, which has at least one second support element (28) that interacts with the at least one pressure hose element (30) and is connected to the first support element (26) of the crash management system (20) via a deformation arrangement (31).characterized in that the deformation arrangement (31) has a lower and upper deformation area (32, 34) extending in the upward direction of the motor vehicle, wherein the upper deformation area (32) has a lower impact force F, A is designed as the lower deformation area (34).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a front end arrangement for a motor vehicle with a bumper arrangement which is provided directly or indirectly on vehicle longitudinal members and runs in the transverse direction, said bumper arrangement comprising at least one crash management system with at least one transversely running first support element with at least one absorption element in which at least one deformable pressure hose element is integrated, and with a front panel arrangement, wherein, viewed in the transverse direction, two radiator arrangements are provided in the region of the two ends of the front panel arrangement, wherein, in the region in front of the respective radiator arrangements, the crash management system comprises a load distribution arrangement which has at least one second support element which interacts with the at least one pressure hose element and is connected to the first support element of the crash management system via a deformation arrangement.

[0002] Such front end assemblies are well known in the art. Firstly, they essentially form the "face" of a motor vehicle and thus contribute significantly to its recognition value. A wide variety of vehicle components, such as headlights, radiators, etc., can be accommodated in such a front end assembly. Secondly, the front end assembly is an important component for the crash behavior of the vehicle. Pedestrian protection is playing an increasingly important role in this. In this context, as is known, for example, from DE 10 2014 010 132 A1, a so-called crash management system must be provided on a bumper assembly. This crash management system essentially consists of a support element and an absorption element, with the absorption element serving to absorb the forces acting on the front end assembly and, if necessary, to transmit them.Furthermore, at least one pressure hose element is integrated into the absorption element, which in turn is connected to pressure sensors. These pressure sensors are, in turn, connected to a deployment device for the vehicle's hood. Depending on the force generated during a collision and the resulting sufficient deformation of the absorption element, the pressure hose element is compressed and generates a signal from a pressure sensor, which in turn activates the deployment device for the hood, thus increasing the crumple zone for the pedestrian involved in the accident.

[0003] It should be clear that the crash management system should be located as far forward as possible in the front of the vehicle's nose assembly so that in the event of a pedestrian impact, the distance between the impact surface and the crash management system is as short as possible. In combination with a predetermined height of the crash management system, this can lead to the crash management system being located in front of the radiator assembly in the direction of travel in the case of laterally arranged radiator assemblies. However, such a nose assembly will then pose problems when conducting the RCAR structural test, as parts of the crash management system could damage or destroy the radiator assembly as a result of an impact in the area of ​​a radiator assembly.In this context, a bow arrangement with a second support element in the area of ​​the radiator arrangements is known from the generic JP 2015-227 135 A, whereby the radiator arrangements can nevertheless be damaged in the event of an impact.

[0004] The object of the present invention is therefore to avoid the above-mentioned disadvantage in the simplest and most cost-effective manner possible.

[0005] This object is achieved in that the deformation arrangement has a lower and upper deformation area running in the vertical direction of the vehicle, wherein the upper deformation area is designed for a lower impact force F Ais designed to be more rigid than the lower deformation area. This makes it easy to ensure that sufficient support is provided for the pressure hose in the area of ​​the cooler assembly. At the same time, when a certain load is exceeded, the second support element, designed as a support, bends in a targeted manner, thus preventing the cooler assembly in question from being destroyed. The deformation arrangement can be designed to be both plastically and elastically deformable. Furthermore, a defined bending-rotational movement of the second support element is specified.

[0006] Advantageously, the load distribution arrangement can additionally be supported on the front panel arrangement and / or on the radiator arrangement, whereby a further improvement of a defined travel path of the second support element can be achieved in the event of a crash.

[0007] The invention is explained in more detail with reference to a drawing, which shows: Fig. 1 a front view of a bow arrangement according to the invention, Fig. 2 a schematic plan view of a crash management system of the bow assembly from Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 a front view of the crash management system Fig. 2.

[0008] A front view of a front arrangement 2 according to the invention for a motor vehicle (not shown) is shown in Fig. 1. This front assembly 2 is fastened in a known manner to vehicle longitudinal members (not shown in detail). Furthermore, the front assembly 2 has a bumper assembly, which is here concealed by a structural component 4 of a front trim assembly 6 of the front assembly 2. The reference numerals 8, 10 denote air flow openings, wherein the reference numeral 8 denotes a central air flow opening for a central cooling assembly 12 located behind it, and the reference numeral 10 denotes lateral air flow openings for lateral radiator assemblies 14 located behind it. Furthermore, in the present exemplary embodiment, lights 16 and a license plate holder 18 are integrated into the front trim assembly 6. The lateral radiator assemblies 14 are arranged lower than the central radiator assembly 12, wherein the air supply to the radiator assemblies 14 is via Fig. 1. Because the lateral cooler assemblies 10 are provided at both ends of the front panel assembly 6, the distance to an outer surface 18 is smaller in this area than in the case of the central cooler assembly 12 due to the curvature of the front panel assembly 6.

[0009] As further described in the description of the Fig. 2 and Fig. 3, the front end assembly 2 according to the invention has a crash management system 20, which is intended to protect a pedestrian from serious injuries in the event of an impact on the outer surface 18 of the front fairing assembly 6 by raising a front hood (not shown) and thereby enlarging the crumple zone, combined with a deformable absorption element 22 or 24. Due to the short distance between the side radiator assemblies 14 and the front fairing assembly 6, it is possible that parts of a conventional crash management system 20 could damage or destroy the side radiator assemblies 14. This can then lead to a negative assessment of the RCAR structural test. This RCAR structural test is intended, in particular, to provide information about the crash behavior, geometric compatibility, and repair costs of the vehicle under test.

[0010] Fig. 2 now shows, in a top view, essentially the crash management system 20 of the front end assembly 2 according to the invention. In the present exemplary embodiment, the crash management system 20 has three support elements 26, 28 running in the transverse direction of the motor vehicle. Reference numeral 26 designates the central support element in the region of the central radiator assembly 12, and reference numeral 28 designates two lateral support elements in the region of the lateral radiator assemblies 14. The absorption elements 22, 24, in which a continuous pressure hose element 30 is integrated, are arranged in a known manner on these support elements 26, 28. This pressure hose element 30 can be filled with gas in a known manner and is operatively connected to pressure sensors (not shown in detail), which, in the event of an impact force to be determined and the associated deformation of the absorption element 22 or 24, send a signal to a raising device (not shown in detail) for a front hood.

[0011] According to the invention, a deformation arrangement with deformation regions 32, 34 is provided at the transition from the first support element 26 to the second support elements 28. The deformation regions 32, 34 can, of course, be designed in a variety of ways, for example, as point-like or linear. The lateral support elements 28 together with the deformation regions 32, 34 thus form a load distribution arrangement 36, which, in the event of an impact in the area of ​​the lateral cooler assemblies 14, ensures a defined buckling of the support elements 28 and the absorption elements 24 arranged thereon.

[0012] Fig. 3 now shows a front view of the support elements 26, 28 of the crash management system 20 from Fig.2. Clearly visible here are the upper deformation area 32 and the lower deformation area 34, via which the outer support elements 28 are connected to the middle support element 26. In this case, the upper deformation area 32 has a possible impact force F Ao of > 1 kN. The lower deformation area 34, however, has a potential impact force F Au which is greater than F Ao and which is less than 2 kN. This ensures that, in the event of an impact force of > 2 kN in the area of ​​the outer cooling assemblies 14, a support element 28 yields and buckles in a defined manner without damaging or destroying the respective cooler assembly 14. The load distribution assemblies 36 can additionally be supported on the front panel assembly 4 and / or on the cooler assemblies 14.

Claims

[1] A front end assembly for a motor vehicle comprising a bumper assembly provided directly or indirectly on vehicle longitudinal members and extending in the transverse direction, said bumper assembly comprising at least one crash management system (20) having at least one transversely extending first support element (26) with at least one absorption element (22, 24) in which at least one deformable pressure hose element (30) is integrated, and comprising a front trim assembly (6), wherein, viewed in the transverse direction, two radiator assemblies (14) are provided in the region of the two ends of the front trim assembly (6), wherein, in the region in front of the respective radiator assemblies (14), the crash management system (20) comprises a load distribution assembly (36) having at least one second support element (28) which cooperates with the at least one pressure hose element (30) and is connected to the first support element (26) of the crash management system (20) via a deformation assembly (31), characterized bythat the deformation arrangement (31) has a lower and upper deformation region (32, 34) extending in the vertical direction of the motor vehicle, wherein the upper deformation region (32) has a lower impact force F A is designed as the lower deformation area (34). [2] Bow arrangement according to claim 1, characterized by that the load distribution arrangement (36) is additionally supported on the front panel arrangement (6) and / or on the radiator arrangement (14).

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