MOUNTING A CENTER CONSOLE ON A MOTOR VEHICLE DASHBOARD

Abstract

MOUNTING A CENTER CONSOLE ON A MOTOR VEHICLE DASHBOARD The present invention relates to a front center console for a motor vehicle (2), comprising: an upper control panel, intended to extend forward and upward from the motor vehicle, and to connect to a dashboard (6) of said motor vehicle, notable in that said front center console further comprises: a mounting frame (14) for attaching to the dashboard, comprising a plate (18) with a central portion (18.2) fixed to a front end of the upper control panel and having laterally, on either side of said upper control panel, two tabs (18.1) for attaching to the dashboard. (Figure to be published with the abbreviation: Figure 2)

Description

Title of the invention: FIXING A CENTRAL CONSOLE ON A MOTOR VEHICLE DASHBOARD Technical field

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

[0002] The installation of front center consoles in modern motor vehicles raises several technical constraints. For example, during the assembly of motor vehicles, assembly technicians are often faced with reduced visibility of the fastening areas, and the requirement for rigid fastening in a confined space further complicates the task.

[0003] In order to address this concern, car manufacturers are looking at solutions such as the use of more rigid fasteners, particularly by opting for metallic materials. However, such solutions are expensive and have the disadvantage of making the console heavier.

[0004] Published patent document JP 2013237286 A discloses a front center console of a motor vehicle, extending longitudinally forward and upward to join an upper portion of the dashboard of said motor vehicle, said front center console forming a junction matching a rounded transverse profile of the dashboard.

[0005] Nevertheless, the document suggests a solution that can be further optimized to further improve the ergonomics of front console mounting in motor vehicles, while enhancing the rigidity and strength of the assembly. Statement of the invention

[0006] 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 simple, efficient and economical solution for ensuring ergonomic assembly of a front central console in the passenger compartment of the motor vehicle, while guaranteeing the rigidity of said assembly.

[0007] To this end, the invention relates to a front central console for a motor vehicle, comprising: - an upper control panel, intended to extend towards the front and towards the top of the motor vehicle, and to be connected to a dashboard of said motor vehicle, remarkable in that said front central console further comprises: - a dashboard attachment frame, attached to a front end of the upper control panel and comprising laterally on either side of said upper control panel two dashboard attachment ears.

[0008] According to one embodiment, the fixing frame comprises a plate with a central portion extending transversely to the upper control panel and two lateral portions, each with a stepped profile and forming the two fixing ears located longitudinally at a distance towards the rear relative to the central portion.

[0009] According to one embodiment, the central portion of the plate comprises, preferably on a lower half, at least one cavity in which the front end of the upper control panel is fitted.

[0010] According to one embodiment, the plate has, at a lower edge of said plate, a notch between each of the two fixing ears and the central portion.

[0011] According to one embodiment, the plate has at least one opening allowing the passage of a means for clipping a cover from the frame to the dashboard.

[0012] According to one embodiment, the frame is made of plastic material by injection.

[0013] According to one embodiment, each of the two fixing ears comprises an orifice intended to receive a fixing screw.

[0014] According to one embodiment, each of the two orifices comprises one or more radial protrusions capable of ensuring temporary retention of the fixing screw.

[0015] The invention also relates to a motor vehicle comprising: - a dashboard, and - a front central console; remarkable in that the front center console is according to the invention.

[0016] According to one embodiment, said motor vehicle comprises a fixing screw engaging in each of the two fixing ears and in a corresponding fixing zone on the dashboard, respectively, each of the fixing screws having an axis inclined rearwardly and outwardly relative to a longitudinal axis of the motor vehicle.

[0017] Preferably, each inclined axis has an angle of inclination with the longitudinal axis of between 2° and 8°.

[0018] The measures of the invention are advantageous in that the frame comprising the two ears for attachment to the dashboard makes it possible to guarantee both good mechanical strength and resistance to the various forces caused by daily stresses on the front central console in the passenger compartment of the motor vehicle, as well as increased ease and ergonomics of assembly.

[0019] Indeed, an assembly technician, who conventionally does not have access to the passenger compartment of the motor vehicle for mounting the front central console, is capable, thanks to the present invention, of ensuring precise and rapid assembly, in particular by means of temporarily holding the screws on the plate prior to the approach of the frame towards the dashboard, as well as by means of the stepped profile forming two ears of said plate which allows the fixing screws to be brought longitudinally towards the rear to improve their visibility from outside the passenger compartment, before they are tightened. Brief description of the drawings

[0020] [Fig-1] represents a perspective view of a passenger compartment of a motor vehicle comprising a front central console according to the invention, fixed to a dashboard of said motor vehicle;

[0021] [Fig.2] illustrates a front view of a plate belonging to a fixing frame of an upper control panel of the front central console, said plate comprising two ears for fixing to the dashboard of [Fig.l];

[0022] [Fig.3] represents a sectional view along a cutting axis AA passing transversely through the plate of the fixing frame visible in [Fig.2]. Detailed description

[0023] [Fig.l] represents a perspective view of a passenger compartment 4 of a motor vehicle 2 comprising a front central console 8 according to the invention.

[0024] The motor vehicle 2 comprises a dashboard 6 and a central armrest 12 at a rear portion of the front central console 8. The vehicle 2 also comprises an upper control panel 16 arranged downstream of a hand rest 10, said panel 16 allowing the occupants of the vehicle to control, among other things, an infotainment device (not shown) which may be arranged at the dashboard 6. In this regard, the upper control panel 16 may comprise a touch-sensitive area.

[0025] Preferably, the hand rest 10 is arranged downstream of the central armrest 12 in an intermediate position between the dashboard 6 and said central armrest 12, so as to receive the palm of a hand of an occupant of the motor vehicle 2 when the central armrest 12 receives an elbow of the occupant.

[0026] The upper control panel 16 extends towards the front and towards the top of the motor vehicle up to the connection of the latter to the dashboard 6. In this respect, the front central console 8 comprises a fixing frame (not visible in [Fig.l]) fixed to a front end 16.1 of the upper control panel 16.

[0027] The design of the fixing frame as well as the connection of the latter to the dashboard will be detailed in depth in this description.

[0028] [Fig.2] illustrates a front view of a plate 18 extending transversely to the fixing frame 14 of the upper control panel 16 of the front central console 8.

[0029] The plate 18 extends transversely in a vertical direction of the motor vehicle or inclined at most 45° from said vertical direction, said plate 18 extends over approximately 40 mm from the frame 14. The term “approximately” corresponds here to ±20% of the nominal value.

[0030] Preferably, the frame 14 and its plate 18 are single-piece and made of plastic material by injection, which makes it possible to maintain the lightness of the front central console, for example, compared to a metal plate and / or frame(s). Indeed, a metal plate assembled to a plastic frame would increase the total mass and volume, whereas the console must remain light and as thin as possible.

[0031] Advantageously, the plate 18 comprises two ears 18.1 for attachment to the dashboard 6 in line with a fixing zone 6.1 of the latter, said ears 18.1 extend laterally on either side of the upper control panel 16 of [Fig.l]. Preferably, the plate 18 extends transversely beyond a transverse width of the front central console, and each of the two fixing ears 18.1 comprises an orifice intended to receive a fixing screw 20.

[0032] In this configuration, the ears 18.1 are transversely close to the lateral accesses to the passenger compartment 4. Thus, the assembly of the front central console on the dashboard 6 of the motor vehicle 2 is made easier for the assembly technicians who, in principle, carry out said assembly while being outside the vehicle without accessing it.

[0033] The plate 18 comprises a rear face in direct contact with the dashboard 6 at the level of the fixing zone 6.1, said rear face can benefit from reinforcement by a network of ribs also making it possible to avoid excess plastic thickness locally.

[0034] The plate 18 comprises a central portion 18.2 which preferably comprises, on a lower half, a cavity 18.3 in which the front end of the upper control panel is fitted. The plate 18 may also comprise a plurality of cavities 18.3.

[0035] Preferably, the plate 18 comprises at its lower edge (close to the fixing frame 14), a notch 18.4 between each of the two fixing ears 18.1 and the central portion 18.2. This allows the ears 18.1 to extend laterally beyond a rim 6.2 of the dashboard 6 in line with the fixing zone 6.1, while avoiding the two projecting portions of said rim 6.2 visible in [Fig.2].

[0036] The plate 8 further comprises, at its central portion 18.2, at least one opening 18.5, and more preferably, two openings 18.5 allowing the passage of a clipping means 22 of a cover (not shown) of the plate 18 as well as of the fixing zone 6.1. This cover makes it possible to completely cover the fixing zone 6.1 and allows a flush effect to appear with the dashboard 6.

[0037] The frame 14 also comprises clips 24 which can be partly arranged on two lateral edges 14.1 of the latter, and making it possible to hold the upper control panel by clipping.

[0038] [Fig. 3] represents a sectional view along a cutting axis AA passing transversely through the plate 18 of the fixing frame 14 of [Fig. 2].

[0039] It can be seen that the ears 18.1 are advantageously offset, by an offset D, longitudinally (along the X axis) towards the rear, preferably by at least 10 mm, and more preferably by approximately 20 mm (±5 mm). The plate 18 then has a stepped profile (seen transversely).

[0040] This offset D can be measured between the central portion 18.2 and the ears 18.1, and advantageously makes it possible to move the fixing screws 20 towards the rear to facilitate their visibility when assembling the front central console.

[0041] Advantageously, the frame 14 comprises the fixing screws 20 pre-positioned in their corresponding orifice 19, before manually moving the plate 18 towards the fixing zone 6.1 on the dashboard 6. In this respect, each orifice 19 comprises one or more radial protrusions 19.1, and more preferably three radial protrusions 19.1 distributed angularly uniformly at 120° around the axis 20.1 of the screw 20, said radial protrusions 19.1 are capable of ensuring temporary retention of the screw 20 locally in the orifice 19.

[0042] Preferably, the ears 18.1 are slightly inclined relative to the transverse axis Y, by an angle of inclination a of between 2° and 8°, and more preferably equal to 3°. In this configuration, the axes 20.1 of the screws 20 are inclined by the angle a, towards the rear and towards the outside relative to the longitudinal axis X. This makes it easier to manually tighten the screws 20, in particular by allowing the passage of a corresponding tool without coming into contact with the front central console. The tightening tool may correspond to an electric and servo-controlled tightening means.

[0043] For this purpose, the plate 18 is preferably demolded along the vertical and longitudinal axis X, for example, the ears 18.1 are demolded along the X axis via slides, while the central portion 18.2 is demolded along the vertical direction.

[0044] The screws 20 are inserted into metal nuts 26 fixed in a corresponding support of the dashboard 6.

[0045] The plate 18 preferably comprises a total transverse width E greater than at least 50% of a transverse width F of the frame 14, said total transverse width E being equal to approximately 200 mm (±20%).

[0046] Advantageously, the plate 18 allows, by means of the two ears 18.1, to ensure a rigid mounting of the frame 14 on the dashboard 6 and gives it resistance to stresses which can exceed 40 DaN depending on the direction vertical and 25 DaN along the transverse axis Y, and this despite the presence of the two notches between said ears 18.1 and the central portion 18.2.

Claims

Claims

1. Front central console (8) for a motor vehicle (2), comprising: - an upper control panel (16), intended to extend forward and upward of the motor vehicle (2), and to be connected to a dashboard (6) of said motor vehicle (2), characterized in that said front central console (8) further comprises: - a frame (14) for attachment to the dashboard (6), attached to a front end (16.1) of the upper control panel (16) and comprising laterally on either side of said upper control panel (16) two ears (18.1) for attachment to the dashboard (6).

2. Front central console (8) according to claim 1, in which the fixing frame (14) comprises a plate (18) with a central portion (18.2) extending transversely to the upper control panel (16) and two lateral portions (18.1) each with a stepped profile and forming the two fixing ears (18.1) located longitudinally at a distance towards the rear relative to the central portion (8).

3. Front central console (8) according to claim 2, in which the central portion (18.2) of the plate (18) comprises, preferably on a lower half, at least one cavity (18.3) in which the front end (16.1) of the upper control panel (16) is fitted.

4. Front central console (8) according to one of claims 2 and 3, in which the plate (18) has, at a lower edge of said plate (18), a notch (18.4) between each of the two fixing ears (18.2) and the central portion (18.2).

5. Front central console (8) according to one of claims 2 to 4, in which the plate (18) has at least one opening (18.5) allowing the passage of a clipping means (22) of a cover of the frame (14) to the dashboard (6).

6. Front central console (8) according to one of claims 1 to 5, in which the frame (14) is made of plastic material by injection.

7. Front central console (8) according to one of claims 1 to 6, in which each of the two fixing ears (18.1) comprises an orifice (19) intended to receive a fixing screw (20).

8. Front center console (8) according to claims 6 and 7, wherein each of the two orifices (19) comprises one or more protrusions radials (19.1) capable of providing temporary support for the fixing screw (20).

9. Motor vehicle (2) comprising: - a dashboard (6), and - a front central console (8); characterized in that the front central console (8) is according to one of claims 1 to 8.

10. Motor vehicle (2) according to claim 9, comprising a fixing screw (20) engaging in each of the two fixing ears (18.1) and in a corresponding fixing zone (6.1) on the dashboard (6), respectively, each of the fixing screws (20) having an axis (20.1) inclined rearwardly and outwardly relative to a longitudinal axis (X) of the motor vehicle (2).

Images