Reinforcement plate for a front structural apron.

Abstract

The invention relates to a reinforcement plate (1) designed to be fixed to the front structure of a motor vehicle, the front structure being of the type comprising a bulkhead and a bulkhead belt, the fixing of the plate (1) to the front structure allowing the reinforcement of at least a first area of ​​the bulkhead, the reinforcement plate (1) comprising at least a first portion (10) designed to extend over one face of the bulkhead and to cover at least part of the first area, the reinforcement plate (1) comprising a fixing portion (13), extending from the first portion (10), designed to allow the plate (1) to be fixed to the front structure by being positioned between the bulkhead and the bulkhead belt. (Figure 1)

Description

Title of the invention: Reinforcement plate for a front structure apron.

[0001] The technical field relates to reinforcement plates for front structure aprons of vehicles, front structures of vehicles comprising such a plate and vehicles comprising such a front structure.

[0002] In the area of ​​road safety, car manufacturers must consider numerous concerns and regulations when developing new vehicles. In particular, car manufacturers must ensure the safety of vehicle occupants in the event of a collision. The behavior of motor vehicles in various collision situations is regulated and tested using standardized test procedures. The requirements for the results of these tests are constantly increasing and becoming more difficult to meet, forcing car manufacturers to continually innovate.

[0003] When a motor vehicle is involved in a frontal impact, its body structure deforms in order to dissipate some of the energy released by the impact. This dissipation occurs through three distinct load paths: a first path, called the upper path, involves the body frame; a second path, called the lower path, involves a subframe extension; and finally, a third path, simply called the third load path, passes through the front legs of the body. During a high-speed frontal impact against a deformable barrier, the released energy causes a load to be placed on the bulkhead, a wall that separates the engine compartment from the passenger compartment of the vehicle. The bulkhead is therefore directly or indirectly connected to the three load paths and thus undergoes deformation. The deformation of the bulkhead is greater the greater the mass of the vehicle.However, any deformation of the firewall risks causing an intrusion into the passenger compartment, potentially resulting in injuries to the occupants. Therefore, in order to distribute the forces applied to the firewall, it is generally reinforced by a firewall belt designed to absorb some of the forces and distribute them laterally towards the front pillars and the vehicle's side members.

[0004] However, due to the increasing mass of modern vehicles, the apron belt sometimes proves insufficient to contain intrusions into the passenger compartment.

[0005] Furthermore, it is always desirable to improve the resistance to deformation of the apron in order to create a safe passenger compartment for its occupants.

[0006] Thus, there is a need for a solution to reinforce the deck to limit deformations in the event of a frontal impact likely to cause intrusions.

[0007] The present invention aims to overcome the problems described above. In this technical context, one objective of the present invention is to provide a reinforcing plate capable of reducing intrusions through the deck during a frontal impact.

[0008] To this end, the present invention relates to a reinforcement plate designed to be fixed to a front structure of a motor vehicle, the front structure being of the type comprising a bulkhead and a bulkhead belt, the fixing of the plate on the front structure allowing to reinforce at least a first area of ​​the bulkhead, the reinforcement plate comprising at least a first part designed to extend over one face of the bulkhead and to cover at least part of the first area, the reinforcement plate comprising a fixing part, extending the first part, designed to allow the fixing of the plate on the front structure by being disposed between the bulkhead and the bulkhead belt.

[0009] The invention also relates to a front structure of a motor vehicle, comprising an apron and an apron belt, the front structure further comprising a reinforcement plate according to the invention, the plate being fixed to the front structure so that the fixing part is disposed between the apron and the apron belt.

[0010] The invention finally relates to a motor vehicle comprising a front structure according to the invention.

[0011] Thus, the reinforcement plate according to the invention makes it possible to diffuse a portion of the energy from a frontal impact towards an upper part of the bulkhead to complement the transverse diffusion achieved by the bulkhead belt. Thanks to its fastening element, the plate is directly connected to the bulkhead belt and allows the transfer of a portion of the forces to the first part. The first part, extending from the fastening element, allows for diffusion of the released energy in an orthogonal direction. Thus, by extending over at least a portion of the first zone, the first part reinforces the bulkhead and prevents intrusions into the first zone. The reinforcement plate according to the invention therefore makes it possible to reduce intrusions into the passenger compartment.

[0012] According to one embodiment of the invention, the plate includes a second part designed to extend over the face of the deck and to cover at least in part a second area of ​​the deck, distinct from the first area, the fixing of the plate on the front structure allowing the second area to be reinforced.

[0013] Advantageously, the first and second parts extend from the fixing part, on either side of it.

[0014] According to one possibility, the plate is formed from a stamped steel sheet, in particular a rigid high yield strength steel.

[0015] According to one embodiment, the first and / or second parts have at least one first opening sized to allow the passage of a steering column.

[0016] According to one possibility of the front structure, the reinforcement plate is arranged on the face of the apron facing an engine compartment.

[0017] According to one possibility of the front structure, the reinforcement plate is fixed to the deck by at least one weld point and / or at least one weld bead.

[0018] The invention will be better understood upon reading the following detailed description, given solely by way of non-limiting example and made with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

[0019] [Fig-1] [Fig. 1] represents a perspective view of a reinforcement plate according to the invention;

[0020] [Fig.2] [Fig.2] represents a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a front structure according to the invention, showing the fixing of the reinforcement plate of the [Fig.1].

[0021] In these figures, the same references are used to designate the same elements.

[0022] A reinforcing plate 1 according to the invention, illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, is designed to be fixed to a vehicle body to form a front structure 2 of a motor vehicle, illustrated in [Fig. 2]. The front structure 2 is of the type comprising a bulkhead 3 and a bulkhead belt 4, illustrated in [Fig. 2]. The bulkhead 3 forms a partition separating a passenger compartment 5 of the vehicle, partially shown in [Fig. 2], from an engine compartment 6, also shown in [Fig. 2]. The bulkhead belt 4, extending across the width of the bulkhead 3, stiffens the bulkhead 3 and limits the intrusion of objects located in the engine compartment 6 into the passenger compartment 5 by containing the deformations of the bulkhead 3 under the effect of the forces experienced by the front structure 2 during an impact. The bulkhead belt 4 absorbs part of the forces coming from a strut 7 of the front structure 2.The deck belt 4, for example, is composed of two lateral deck cross members and a central deck cross member. As illustrated in [Fig. 2], the deck cross member 4 has a cross section 8 with a U-shaped profile.

[0023] Attaching the plate 1 to the front structure 2 allows for the reinforcement of at least a first zone 9 of the apron 3. For this purpose, the reinforcing plate 1 comprises at least a first portion 10 designed to extend over a face 11 of the apron 3 and to cover at least part of the first zone 9. In the example illustrated in [Fig. 2], the face 11 is located in the engine compartment 6. Advantageously, the reinforcing plate 1 is formed from a stamped steel sheet 12, in particular rigid steel. high yield strength. As is known, a high yield strength steel, also called high-performance steel or HLE steel, is a steel that has a yield strength in compression and / or tension greater than or equal to 400 MPa.

[0024] To allow the plate 1 to be attached to the front structure 2, the reinforcing plate 1 includes a fastening portion 13, extending from the first portion 10 and designed to allow the plate 1 to be attached to the front structure 2 by being positioned between the apron 3 and the apron belt 4. The fastening portion 13 forms, for example, a profiled area 14 with a shape complementary to the cross-section 8 of the apron cross member 4. In all cases, the fastening portion 13 allows the apron belt 4 to be positioned against the fastening portion 13. The first portion 10 extends from the fastening portion 13 in a direction substantially orthogonal to the latter.

[0025] As illustrated in the figures, the plate 1 has a second part 15 designed to extend over the face 11 of the deck 3 and to cover at least part of a second zone 16 of the deck 3, distinct from the first zone 9. Thus, the fixing of the reinforcing plate 1 in the front structure 2 makes it possible to reinforce the second zone 16. As with the first part 10, the second part 15 extends from the fixing part 13 in a direction substantially orthogonal to the latter. As illustrated in [Fig.2], the first 10 and second 15 parts extend from the fixing part 13, on either side of the fixing part 13. In the example illustrated in the figures, the first 10 and second 15 parts have shapes complementary respectively to the first 9 and second 16 zones of the deck 3 in order to extend in contact with the deck 3 to form a second thickness on at least part of the first 9 and second 16 zones.The first part 10 has, for example, an L-shape in order to extend partly onto a floor of the passenger compartment 5. The first part 10 advantageously has a first opening 17 for the passage of a vehicle component.

[0026] As illustrated in [Fig.1], the first 10 and second 15 parts have concave and / or convex stamped shapes 18 designed to stiffen the first 10 and second 15 parts.

[0027] Advantageously, the first 10 or the second 15 parts, in this case the second part 15, have at least one second opening 19 sized to allow the passage of a steering column. Advantageously, mounting holes 20 are arranged around the periphery of the second opening 19 for the purpose of attaching an element intended to pass through the second opening 19, such as, for example, a steering column support element, not shown.

[0028] Advantageously, the reinforcement plate 1 is fixed to the deck 3 by a plurality of weld points and / or by at least one weld bead, not illustrated.

[0029] Thus, the first 10 and second 15 parts reinforce the first 9 and second 16 zones of the apron 3, thereby limiting deformations that could cause intrusion during a frontal impact. Furthermore, the fastening part 13 connects the reinforcement plate 1 to the apron belt 4 to improve the diffusion of some of the energy transmitted to the apron belt 4 and the plate 1.

[0030] The invention is not limited to the embodiment of the reinforcement plate described above, only by way of example, but other embodiments can be designed by a person skilled in the art without departing from the scope and extent of the present invention.

Claims

Demands

1. Front structure (2) of a motor vehicle, comprising an apron (3) and an apron belt (4), the front structure (2) further comprising a reinforcement plate (1) characterized in that the attachment of the plate (1) to said front structure (2) allows for the reinforcement of at least a first zone (9) of the apron (3), the reinforcement plate (1) comprising at least a first part (10) designed to extend over a face (11) of the apron (3) and to cover at least part of the first zone (9), the reinforcement plate (1) comprising a fastening part (13), extending the first part (10), designed to allow the attachment of the plate (1) to the front structure (2) by being disposed between the apron (3) and the apron belt (4).

2. Front structure (2) of motor vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that the plate (1) has a second part (15) designed to extend over the face (11) of the apron (3) and to cover at least in part a second area (16) of the apron (3), distinct from the first area (9), the attachment of the plate (1) to the front structure (2) allowing the second area (16) to be reinforced.

3. Front structure (2) of motor vehicle according to claim 2, characterized in that the first (10) and second (15) parts of the reinforcing plate (1) extend from the fixing part (13), on either side thereof.

4. Front structure (2) of a motor vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the reinforcing plate (1) is formed of a stamped steel sheet (12), in particular a rigid high-yield-strength steel.

5. Front structure (2) of a motor vehicle according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that the first (10) and / or the second (15) parts of the reinforcing plate (1) have at least one first opening (19) dimensioned to allow the passage of a steering column.

6. Front structure (2) of a motor vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the reinforcement plate (1) is fixed to the front structure (2) so that the fixing part (13) is disposed between the apron (3) and the apron belt (4).

7. Front structure (2) of motor vehicle according to claim 6, characterized in that the reinforcement plate (1) is disposed on the face (11) of the apron (3) facing an engine compartment (6).

8. Front structure (2) of a motor vehicle according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the reinforcing plate (1) is fixed to the apron (3) by at least one weld point and / or at least one weld bead.

9. Motor vehicle comprising a front structure (2) according to any one of the preceding claims.