CONTROLLED FRONT IMPACT KINEMATIC HEADLIGHT FOR MOTOR VEHICLES

Abstract

MOTOR VEHICLE HEADLIGHT WITH CONTROLLED FRONT IMPACT KINEMATICS The present invention relates to a left or right front headlight (4) for a motor vehicle, comprising a rear face (8) inclined with respect to a transverse direction when said headlight is in the mounting position on said motor vehicle, said rear face comprising an outer and upper lateral portion (8.1) intended to be opposite a front fender support (6), left or right, respectively; notable in that the outer and upper lateral portion of the rear face forms a surface inclined (8.2) rearward and upward with respect to a vertical direction (Z), so as to allow the headlight to slide upward along the fender support in the event of a frontal impact (1). (Figure to be published with the abbreviation: Figure 2)

Description

Title of the invention: MOTOR VEHICLE FRONT HEADLAMP WITH CONTROLLED FRONT IMPACT KINEMATICS Technical field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of motor vehicles, more particularly the field of front headlights of motor vehicles. Prior art

[0002] During a front impact of a motor vehicle, occurring following a collision on the front of the vehicle, several parts are then damaged and must be changed in order to restore the damaged motor vehicle.

[0003] In an economic approach aimed at minimizing the repair costs of damaged vehicles, automobile manufacturers are subject to frontal impact protocols, commonly referred to as "impact repairability", among these protocols we find the protocol with the English name: "RCAR Low-speed structural crash test", this protocol makes it possible to evaluate the damage capacity and the repairability of a vehicle. The evaluation includes an estimate of the vehicle's damage (physical damage and repair cost) during a frontal impact at 15 km / h against a rigid barrier. Following the impact, a list of all damaged parts is established and includes an economic estimate of the cost of repairing the vehicle. To this end, the fewer parts are damaged, the lower the estimate will be, and the better the vehicle's score will be during the impact repairability.

[0004] The front headlight is one of the parts that needs to be changed, but this can cause a pile-up that results in additional parts to be changed, including the door (high repair cost). In fact, the front headlight often exerts a pressure on the vehicle's wing that can go as far as damaging the door and requiring its replacement or repair.

[0005] There are technical solutions that car manufacturers have adopted to limit the stacking created by the front headlight, among these solutions, the arrangement of a metallic intermediate facade connecting a cooling facade of the motor vehicle with the wing, this intermediate facade will avoid transmitting the entire force of the movement of the front headlight towards the wing. Another solution consists of reinforcing the wing by integrating a reinforcement piece making it possible to limit the recoil of the wing towards the door.

[0006] However, the known technical solutions have several drawbacks, e.g. addition of additional mass, additional cost and constraints linked to production, space problem, etc.

[0007] Published patent document JP 2008-80929 A discloses a front headlight comprising a stop at a rear portion capable of coming into contact with an interference piece arranged on a lateral portion of a radiator support, this making it possible to limit the relative rotation of the front headlight with respect to a body of the vehicle in order to preserve a sensor arranged next to the interference piece.

[0008] However, the solution proposed by the document does not make it possible to overcome the aforementioned problem. Indeed, the document proposes a solution making it possible to limit the rotation of the front headlight, but the force generated during the repairable impact is such that the intermediate part will not make it possible to limit the transmission of said force to the wing of the vehicle, thus causing damage to the door. Statement of the invention

[0009] The present invention aims to overcome at least one of the drawbacks of the aforementioned state of the art. More particularly, the invention aims to propose a motor vehicle front headlight making it possible to improve the repairability impact score at least by avoiding damage to the door, and to do so in a simple and economical manner.

[0010] To this end, the invention relates to a front headlight, left or right, for a motor vehicle, comprising a rear face inclined relative to a transverse direction when said front headlight is in the mounting position on said motor vehicle, said rear face comprising an outer and upper lateral portion intended to be opposite a front wing support, left or right, respectively; remarkable in that the outer and upper lateral portion of the rear face forms a surface inclined rearwardly and upwardly relative to a vertical direction, so as to allow the front headlight to slide upwards along the wing support in the event of a frontal impact.

[0011] According to one embodiment, the inclination of the outer and upper lateral portion of the rear face is between 14° and 30°, preferably between 20° and 24°.

[0012] According to one embodiment, the outer and upper lateral portion of the rear face has a height of at least 50 mm.

[0013] According to one embodiment, the outer and upper lateral portion of the rear face is formed by a housing wall of the front headlight, provided on a front face and inside said housing with a reinforcing embossing.

[0014] According to one embodiment, the housing wall on the outer and upper lateral portion of the rear face has a thickness including the reinforcing embossing which is greater than or equal to 15 mm.

[0015] According to one embodiment, the reinforcing embossment comprises at least one hollow cylindrical protuberance and ribs extending circumferentially from said protuberance.

[0016] According to one embodiment, the rear face comprises at an upper part of said rear face, a fixing lug extending in a longitudinal direction of the front headlight, said fixing lug comprising a notch corresponding to at least 5% of a total surface area of ​​said fixing lug, so as to form a programmed rupture of the fixing lug in the event of a front impact.

[0017] According to one embodiment, one half of the notch opens laterally towards the outside of the front headlight, and has with the transverse direction an angle of inclination of between 10° and 50°.

[0018] The invention also relates to a motor vehicle comprising a left front headlight, a left front wing, a right front headlight and a right front wing, remarkable in that each of said front headlights is according to the invention, the outer and upper lateral portion of the rear face of each of said front headlights being opposite a support of the corresponding left or right front wing.

[0019] According to one embodiment, the rear face comprises at an upper part of said rear face, a fixing lug extending in a longitudinal direction of the front headlight, said fixing lug is fixed by screwing onto an upper surface of the front wing support, and the notch is at the front of one end of said wing support.

[0020] Advantageously, the headlight of the invention is capable of improving the score of the motor vehicle in terms of impact repairability by avoiding the repair of the door or even the replacement of the latter. In addition, the front headlight is adaptable to several types of motor vehicles and does not require modification of the front wing support, making the solution simple and effective. Brief description of the drawings

[0021] [Fig-1] is a representation of a left front part of a motor vehicle comprising a front headlight according to the invention;

[0022] [Fig.2] represents a side view of the projector of [Fig.l] and a wing support front left, before and after a repairable shock;

[0023] [Fig.3] is an enlarged view of an outer and upper side portion of a face rear of the projector of [Fig.2];

[0024] [Fig.4] illustrates a reinforcing embossment provided at the right of a front face and interior of a housing wall forming the outer and upper lateral portion of [Fig.3];

[0025] [Fig.5] shows a top view of the headlight and wing support of [Fig.2], before and after the repairable impact. Detailed description

[0026] [Fig. 1] shows in perspective a front portion of a motor vehicle 2, provided with a lighting device corresponding to a front headlight 4 according to the invention.

[0027] The X axis corresponds to a longitudinal direction of the vehicle, the Y axis to a transverse direction, in this case horizontal and perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, and the Z axis to a vertical direction.

[0028] As can be seen, the front headlight 4 is arranged at the front of the vehicle 2, on the left side (in the direction of forward travel of the vehicle), it being understood that a symmetrical front headlight is arranged on the right side of the vehicle. For this purpose, the characteristics of the left front headlight are identical to those of the right front headlight.

[0029] [Fig.2] shows a side view of the headlight 4 of [Fig.l] and a left front wing support, before and after a repairable impact. It should be noted that the left front headlight 4 illustrated is symmetrical to the right front headlight (not shown) of the motor vehicle.

[0030] With reference to the left part of [Fig.2], the projector 4 is in a mounting position in the motor vehicle 2.

[0031] The projector 4 is provided with a rear face 8 comprising an outer and upper lateral portion 8.1 formed by a housing wall 4.1. Indeed, the projector 4 comprises a diffusion wall 4.2 and the housing wall 4.1 thus delimiting an internal compartment for a light source. Preferably, the housing wall 4.1 is a molded plastic part.

[0032] In the mounting position, the outer and upper lateral portion 8.1 is opposite the left front wing support 6, and the rear face 8 comprises at its upper part, a fixing lug extending towards the rear along the longitudinal axis X to be fixed preferentially by screwing onto an upper surface 6.1 of the wing support 6.

[0033] The lateral portion 8.1 forms an inclined surface 8.2 towards the rear and towards the top relative to the vertical axis Z, this inclination is presented by an angle of inclination a which is between 14° and 30°, preferably between 20° and 24°. More preferably, the angle of inclination a of the inclined surface 8.2 is 22°.

[0034] With reference to the right part of [Fig.2], the projector 4 undergoes a repairable impact illustrated by a frontal impact force 1, this will cause the projector 4 to move backwards so as to come into contact with the wing support 6.

[0035] Advantageously, the inclination of the inclined surface 8.2 with the angle a allows the projector 4 to slide upwards along the wing support 6. This makes it possible to avoid the transmission of the entire intensity of the force 1 towards the wing support 6, thus avoiding deformation of the wing support 6 and the door of the motor vehicle.

[0036] In this configuration, the rear face 8 further comprises a programmed break in the fixing lug 8.3 which will be detailed in detail later in this description.

[0037] [Fig.3] is an enlarged view of the lateral portion 8.1 of the rear face 8. It can be seen that the inclined surface 8.2 is of a substantially rectangular shape with a height h and a width w.

[0038] Preferably, the height h is between 20 mm and 120 mm, and more preferably, the height h is at least 50 mm and at most 100 mm, and even more preferably, the height h is equal to 60 mm.

[0039] The width w of the inclined surface 8.2 is preferably between 5 mm and 50 mm, and more preferably equal to 16 mm.

[0040] In this configuration, the lateral portion 8.1 has a surface area of ​​between 100 mm2 and 6000 mm2, and preferably between 500 mm2 and 1000 mm2.

[0041] Alternatively, the inclined surface 8.2 may be circular or oval in shape.

[0042] Preferably, the inclined surface 8.2 is generally smooth and free of any boss, so as to easily allow it to slide along the wing support 6.

[0043] [Fig.4] is a view of a front and interior face 4.3 of the housing wall 4.1, said face 4.3 being presented directly in front of the inclined surface 8.2 of [Fig.3].

[0044] The front and inner face 4.3 is provided with a reinforcing embossment 10 comprising at least one hollow cylindrical protuberance 10.1 and ribs 10.2 extending circumferentially from said protuberance 10.1.

[0045] Advantageously, the reinforcing embossing 10 makes it possible to further reinforce the lateral portion 8.1 in order to avoid breakage of the housing wall locally at the level of the inclined surface 8.2 during contact with the wing support following the repairable impact.

[0046] Preferably, the housing wall has a thickness including the reinforcing embossing 10 which is between 5 mm and 25 mm, and being more preferably greater than or equal to 15 mm.

[0047] [Fig.5] shows a view from above of the projector 4 and the wing support 6 of [Fig.2], before and after the repairable impact.

[0048] With reference to the left part of [Fig.5], we see that the rear face 8 is inclined relative to the transverse direction Y.

[0049] The programmed rupture of the fixing lug 8.3 is formed by a notch 12 arranged to the right of said fixing lug 8.3 and opens laterally towards the inside of the projector 4. Indeed, the notch 12 is arranged before one end of the wing support 6 so as to weaken the fixing lug 8.3.

[0050] Preferably, one half of the notch 12 has with the transverse direction Y an angle of inclination [3 of between 10° and 50°, and being more preferably equal to 45°. Another laterally internal half of the notch 12 is substantially parallel to the axis Y. Such a geometry of the notch 12 makes it possible to obtain a better distribution of forces and controlled frontal impact kinematics by increasing the fragility of the fixing lug 8.3.

[0051] The notch 12 comprises a surface corresponding to at least 5% of a total surface of the fixing lug 8.3, and preferably to approximately 15% of said total surface (the term “approximately” here means ±10% of the nominal value).

[0052] Advantageously, and with reference to the right-hand part of [Fig. 5], the geometry of the notch 12 allows the fixing lug 8.3 to break following the force 1, thus causing a rupture R allowing the headlight 4 to be mechanically separated from the wing support 6 in order to avoid deformation of the wing and the door of the motor vehicle.

[0053] Advantageously, the headlight of the present invention makes it possible to minimize the recoil of the wing following a frontal impact, thus allowing the motor vehicle to obtain an improved score in the repairability impact protocol.

Claims

Claims

1. Front headlight (4), left or right, for motor vehicle (2), comprising a rear face (8) inclined relative to a transverse direction (Y) when said front headlight (4) is in the mounting position on said motor vehicle (2), said rear face (8) comprising an outer and upper lateral portion (8.1) intended to be opposite a front wing support (6), left or right, respectively; the outer and upper lateral portion (8.1) of the rear face (8) forming an inclined surface (8.2) towards the rear and upwards relative to a vertical direction (Z), so as to allow the front headlight (4) to slide upwards along the wing support (6) in the event of a frontal impact (1), characterized in that one half of the notch (12) opens laterally towards the inside of the front headlight (4), and has with the transverse direction (Y) an angle of inclination (|3) of between 10° and 50°.

2. Front projector (4) according to claim 1, characterized in that the inclination (a) of the outer and upper lateral portion (8.1) of the rear face (8) is between 14° and 30°, preferably between 20° and 24°.

3. Front projector (4) according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the outer and upper lateral portion (8.1) of the rear face (8) has a height (h) of at least 50 mm.

4. Front headlight (4) according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the outer and upper lateral portion (8.1) of the rear face (8) is formed by a housing wall (4.1) of the front headlight (4), provided on a front face (8) and inside said housing with a reinforcing embossing (10).

5. Front projector (4) according to claim 4, characterized in that the housing wall (4.1) on the outer and upper lateral portion (8.1) of the rear face (8) has a thickness including the reinforcing embossing (10) which is greater than or equal to 15 mm.

6. Front headlight (4) according to one of claims 4 and 5, characterized in that the reinforcing embossing (10) comprises at least one hollow cylindrical protuberance (10.1) and ribs (10.2) extending circumferentially from said protuberance (10.1).

7. Front headlight (4) according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the rear face (8) comprises at an upper part of said rear face (8), a fixing lug (8.3) extending in a longitudinal direction (X) of the front headlight (4), said fixing lug (8.3) comprising a notch (12) corresponding to at least 5% of a total surface area of ​​said fixing lug (8.3), so as to form a programmed rupture of the fixing lug (8.3) in the event of a front impact (1).

8. Motor vehicle (2) comprising a left front headlight (4), a left front wing (6), a right front headlight and a right front wing, characterized in that each of said front headlights (4) is according to one of claims 1 to 7, the outer and upper lateral portion (8.1) of the rear face (8) of each of said front headlights (4) being opposite a support of the corresponding left or right front wing.

9. Motor vehicle (2) according to claim 8, characterized in that the rear face (8) comprises at an upper part of said rear face (8), a fixing lug (8.3) extending in a longitudinal direction (X) of the front headlight (4), said fixing lug (8.3) is fixed by screwing on an upper surface (6.1) of the front wing support, and the notch (12) is at the front of one end of said wing support (6).

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