REINFORCED VEHICLE DOOR AND VEHICLE EQUIPPED WITH SUCH A DOOR

Abstract

The invention relates to a vehicle door comprising at least one flattened reinforcing bar (6) arranged along the width of the door and comprising at least one longitudinal protruding portion or rib (7) extending over the entire length of said reinforcing bar (6), at least one additional reinforcing piece (9) being secured to a portion of the reinforcing bar (6). The reinforcing piece (9) comprises at least one longitudinal protruding portion or rib (10) extending over the entire length of said reinforcing piece (9) and being of a configuration complementary to the configuration of at least one longitudinal protruding portion or rib (7) of the reinforcing bar (6) and defining therewith at least one hollow shock-absorbing body. The invention also relates to a vehicle equipped with at least one such door. Figure to be published with the abstract: Fig.5

Description

Title of the invention: REINFORCED VEHICLE DOOR AND VEHICLE EQUIPPED WITH SUCH A DOOR

[0001] The invention relates to a reinforced vehicle door. The invention also relates to a vehicle equipped with such a door.

[0002] Here the term vehicle designates a car, a van, a truck, a public transport vehicle, a public works or agricultural machine, regardless of the type of engine.

[0003] On a vehicle, access to the passenger compartment is via at least one door, generally two or four doors depending on whether the vehicle is a utility vehicle or not. The doors contribute to the safety of the vehicle's occupants in the event of a side impact. In Europe, the ECE R95 standard defines the tests for a side impact represented by a collision on one side of the vehicle with a deformable barrier coming into contact with the vehicle being tested at an angle of 90° and at a speed of 50 km / h. During a side impact, the intrusion of the door into the passenger compartment must be minimal in order to protect the occupants and avoid the breakage and / or ejection of parts constituting the door into the passenger compartment. For this purpose, the doors have internal reinforcements limiting the deformation in the event of an impact and de facto the intrusion of the doors into the passenger compartment. Such reinforcements are generally welded at one end to the door lining and at the opposite end to the door lining and the hinge reinforcement.The constraints of style, mass and production cost limit the sizing and therefore the effectiveness of such door reinforcements. US-A-5,785,376 describes a door reinforcement placed substantially horizontally and provided with a central longitudinal groove in which, in a substantially median position, a rigid tube is placed, thus increasing the rigidity of the reinforcement in this area. Such a solution, in the event of a violent impact, does not make it possible to limit the intrusion of the door into the passenger compartment, the reinforcement deforming in the central part with a significant deflection when the rigidity of the assembly formed by the door reinforcement and the reinforcement tube is insufficient during a particularly violent impact.

[0004] The object of the invention is to propose a solution making it possible to limit the deformation of the door reinforcement and the intrusion of the door into the passenger compartment of the vehicle, whatever the violence of the impact, while respecting the manufacturing constraints and without significantly increasing the mass of the vehicle door.

[0005] To this end, the invention relates to a vehicle door comprising at least one flattened reinforcing bar arranged along the width of the door and comprising at least one projecting part or longitudinal rib extending over the entire length of said reinforcing bar, at least one additional reinforcing piece being secured to a part of the reinforcement bar, characterized in that the additional reinforcement piece comprises at least one longitudinal protruding part or rib extending over the entire length of said additional reinforcement piece and being of a configuration complementary to the configuration of at least one longitudinal protruding part or rib of the reinforcement bar and defining with at least one longitudinal protruding part or rib of the reinforcement bar at least one hollow shock-absorbing body.

[0006] Thanks to the invention, at least one hollow volume is produced on a part of the reinforcement bar which will absorb, at least partially, the kinetic energy of an impact on the door. It is known that a hollow volume absorbs kinetic energy, therefore an impact, greater than a solid part, without deforming. In addition, the simultaneous deformation of the reinforcement bar and the additional reinforcement part will occur first at the ends of the reinforcement part, therefore at the periphery of the hollow volume(s). In this way, two bending points are induced on the reinforcement bar, which limits the intrusion of the reinforcement bar into the passenger compartment, the bending of the bar being less significant.

[0007] According to advantageous, but not mandatory, aspects of the invention, such a vehicle door may comprise one or more of the following features:

[0008] The length of the additional reinforcement piece is between 30% and 50% of the length of the reinforcement bar.

[0009] The distance between the median plane of the door lining and the median plane of the reinforcement bar is at most equal to 25% of the length of the additional reinforcement piece.

[0010] The reinforcement bar comprises several parallel and non-identical longitudinal protruding parts or ribs.

[0011] The additional reinforcing piece comprises several parallel and non-identical longitudinal protruding parts or ribs and of shapes complementary to those of the longitudinal protruding parts or ribs of the reinforcing bar.

[0012] The depth of the longitudinal protruding portions or ribs of the additional reinforcing piece is less than the maximum half-depth of the longitudinal protruding portions or ribs of the reinforcing bar.

[0013] A reinforcement bar equipped with an additional reinforcement piece has two flexion points in the event of an impact located at the ends of the additional reinforcement piece fixed to the reinforcement bar.

[0014] A reinforcement bar equipped with the additional reinforcement piece is fixed on at least one of the sides of the vehicle door lining.

[0015] A reinforcement bar equipped with the additional reinforcement piece is fixed on the outer side of the vehicle door lining.

[0016] The invention also relates to a vehicle equipped with at least one door of vehicle conforming to any of the preceding characteristics.

[0017] The invention will be better understood and other advantages thereof will appear more clearly on reading the description which follows, given solely by way of non-limiting example and with reference to the appended drawings in which:

[0018] [Fig-1] is a simplified front view, from the outside, of the inside of a state-of-the-art vehicle door equipped with a reinforcement bar and devoid of the additional reinforcement part which is the subject of the invention, in place in a vehicle,

[0019] [Fig.2] is a cross-sectional view along line II-II and at another scale of the door of [Fig.l],

[0020] [Fig.3] is a view similar to [Fig.2] and on the same scale after a side impact on the door,

[0021] [Fig.4] is a front view, on a larger scale, of a single reinforcement bar and equipped with an additional reinforcement piece in accordance with an embodiment of the invention,

[0022] [Fig.5] is a cross-section, on a larger scale, along the section line VV of the bar of [Fig.4] and

[0023] [Fig.6] is a simplified diagram on a different scale, illustrating the behaviors different during an impact between a state-of-the-art reinforcement bar and a reinforcement bar according to the invention.

[0024] [Fig.l] illustrates a door 1 of a vehicle. Here it is the front left door, therefore that of the driver of the vehicle. It is easily understood that, as a variant, it is another door. Preferably, all the doors of the vehicle are equipped with at least one reinforcement bar as described below and in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

[0025] The door 1 is shown from the outside of the vehicle. It comprises a box accommodating the various elements present in the door, for example, the door opening and closing mechanism, the window operating mechanism, the electric controls for adjusting the rearview mirrors. To facilitate reading, only the elements relating to the invention are illustrated, as well as the lining 2 of the door 1. The lining 2 is the rigid metal part of the door 1. The door 1 is pivotally mounted on a hinge 3 fixed to a part of the bodywork designated by the term front pillar 4 when the door opens according to the most common vehicle door configuration. The door 1, in the closed position as shown, also rests on another part of the bodywork called the central pillar 5.Here a reinforcement bar 6, metallic or made of composite material, is placed diagonally in the box and fixed on the lining 2, substantially in the lower part of the door 1, therefore at the height of the door undergoing a lateral impact caused by another vehicle. In a variant not illustrated, the bar 6 is mounted horizontally in the door 1. The bar 6 is . of a length such that it extends between the hinge 3 and the central leg 5. The bar 6 is welded by one end to the lining 2 of the door 1 and by the opposite end to the reinforcement of the hinge 3. The bar 6 is fixed on the outside of the lining 2, therefore as close as possible to the external face of the door so as to be as close as possible to the impact zone. The major part of the bar 6 is not in contact with the lining 2 of the door 1, its average plane is parallel to that of the lining 2. Only one of the ends of the bar 6 is in contact with the lining 2 due to the welding of the lower end of the bar 6 looking at [Fig.l] on the lining 2, at the level of the central leg 5.

[0026] The bar 6 is flattened and comprises at least one projecting portion. Here, advantageously, the bar 6 comprises two parallel projecting portions or ribs 7 which extend longitudinally over the entire length L6 of the bar 6, in the vicinity of the lateral edges of the bar 6. Hereinafter, the terms rib or projecting portion will be used interchangeably. The ribs 7 are parallel and, here, similar, but not identical. In a variant not illustrated, they are identical. Likewise, their numbers and / or their arrangements on the bar 6 are different.

[0027] [Fig. 2] is a sectional view, from above, along line II-II. In addition to the front pillar 4 and the central pillar 5, the body side member 8 is also shown in [Fig. 2]. It is shown in hatched lines to facilitate reading. It should be noted that, in the absence of an impact, the reinforcement bar 6 is straight and does not affect the nominal configuration or thickness of the door 1 when the latter is closed, as illustrated in [Fig. 2].

[0028] [Fig. 3] is a view similar to [Fig. 2] after a side impact in the door according to arrow F. There is significant deformation of the lining 2 and the bar 6. Maximum bending of the reinforcement bar 6 occurs in a zone referenced P. In the zone P located substantially in the central zone of the door 1, both the lining 2 and the bar 6 undergo significant bending, which causes intrusion of the lining 2 and the reinforcement bar 6 into the passenger compartment beyond the side member 8, thus endangering the occupants of the vehicle.

[0029] In order to remedy this, the invention consists of fixing to the reinforcement bar 6, advantageously permanently by welding or by another technique known per se, an additional reinforcement part referenced 9. The part 9 is illustrated in bold lines in [Fig.4] to facilitate its identification, due to its placement on the bar 6 seen from the front. This reinforcing piece 9 has a length L9 such that it covers at least the central third of the bar 6. Alternatively, it may have a different length L9, knowing that it must never cover the entire length L6 of the bar 6. Advantageously, the length L9 of the piece 9 is between 30% and 50% of the length L6 of the bar 6. The mechanical properties of the additional reinforcing piece 9 are at least equal to, and preferably greater than, those of the reinforcing bar 6. As indicated previously, the bar 6 is in contact with the lining 2 of the door only by one end welded to the lining 2. Advantageously the distance D between the median plane of the lining 2 and the median plane of the bar 6 is at most equal to 25% of the length L9 of the additional reinforcement piece 9.

[0030] As is apparent from [Fig. 5], the part 9 comprises parallel longitudinal protruding parts or ribs 10 extending over the entire length L9 of the part 9. The ribs 10 are not identical and are advantageously of complementary shapes to those of the ribs 7 of the bar 6. As noted in [Fig. 5], the ribs 7 and 10 of the bar 6 and the additional reinforcing part 9 respectively, are opposite each other when the additional reinforcing part 9 is fixed to the bar 6. In this configuration, their respective concavities face each other, the ribs 7 and 10 then defining between them an empty volume. The ribs 7 and 10 thus define a hollow shock-absorbing body. H6 denotes the height or width of the bar 6 and H9 the height or width of the part 9.

[0031] According to the invention, the heights of the bar 6 and of the part 9 are similar, namely that the height H9 is equal to plus or minus 10% of the height H6. We note e7 the maximum depth encountered for the ribs 7 and e10 the minimum depth of a rib 10 and E10 the maximum depth of a rib 10. According to the invention, the minimum depth el0 and maximum depth E10 of the ribs 10 must be less than the maximum half-depth e7 of a rib 7.

[0032] These relationships have been defined to have optimal efficiency of the part 9 and the bar 6. Thus, in the event of an impact, it is the assembly formed by the reinforcement bar 6, the lining 2 and the additional reinforcement part 9 which is put into flexion and no longer only the reinforcement bar 6 and the lining 2. The length L9 of the part 9 in relation to the length L6 of the bar 6 as defined and the presence of the ribs 7 and 10 defining hollow shock-absorbing bodies, according to the geometric characteristics mentioned previously, make it possible to have a flexion of the various constituent elements of the door no longer at a single point P as in the state of the art illustrated in [Fig.3] and in the left part of [Fig.6], but distributed in two points PI, P2 as appears on the right part of [Fig.6]. The flexion points PI, P2 are located at the ends of the additional reinforcement part 9.This double bending at two points PI, P2 associated with the absorption of shocks by the hollow bodies defined by the ribs 7 and 10 and with the mechanical properties of the part 9 allows a lesser intrusion Al into the passenger compartment than the intrusion A with the sole reinforcement bar 6, the bending during the impact presenting a lesser bending deflection than with a reinforcement bar 6 alone, this due to the flattened dome configuration of the reinforcement bar 6 equipped with the additional reinforcement part 9 after an impact.

[0033] The invention makes it possible to improve the safety of the occupants with a minimum of modi- fication, while limiting weight and production costs.

Claims

Claims

1. Vehicle door (1) comprising at least one flattened reinforcing bar (6) arranged along the width of the door (1) and comprising at least one longitudinal protruding portion or rib (7) extending over the entire length (L6) of said reinforcing bar (6), at least one additional reinforcing piece (9) being secured to a portion of the reinforcing bar (6), characterized in that the additional reinforcing piece (9) comprises at least one longitudinal protruding portion or rib (10) extending over the entire length (L9) of said additional reinforcing piece (9) and being of a configuration complementary to the configuration of at least one longitudinal protruding portion or rib (7) of the reinforcing bar (6) and defining with at least one longitudinal protruding portion or rib (7) of the reinforcing bar (6) at least one hollow shock-absorbing body.

2. Door according to claim 1, characterized in that the length (L9) of the additional reinforcing piece (9) is between 30% and 50% of the length (L6) of the reinforcing bar (6).

3. Door according to claim 1, characterized in that the distance (D) between the median plane of the lining (2) of the door (1) of the vehicle and the median plane of the bar (6) is at most equal to 25% of the length (L9) of the additional reinforcement piece (9).

4. Door according to claim 1, characterized in that the reinforcing bar (6) comprises several parallel and non-identical longitudinal protruding parts or ribs (7).

5. Door according to claim 4, characterized in that the additional reinforcing piece (9) comprises several parallel and non-identical projecting parts or longitudinal ribs (10) and of shapes complementary to those of the projecting parts or longitudinal ribs (7) of the reinforcing bar (6).

6. Door according to claim 5, characterized in that the depth (elO, E10) of the longitudinal protruding parts or ribs (10) of the additional reinforcing piece (9) is less than the maximum half-depth (e7) of the longitudinal protruding parts or ribs (7) of the reinforcing bar (6).

7. Door according to claim 1, characterized in that a reinforcing bar (6) equipped with an additional reinforcing piece (9) has two bending points (PI, P2) in the event of an impact located at the ends of the additional reinforcement piece (9) fixed on the reinforcement bar (6).

8. Door according to claim 3, characterized in that a reinforcing bar (6) equipped with the additional reinforcing piece (9) is fixed on at least one of the sides of the lining (2) of the door (1) of the vehicle.

9. Door according to claim 8, characterized in that a reinforcing bar (6) equipped with the additional reinforcing piece (9) is fixed on the outer side of the lining (2) of the door (1) of the vehicle.

10. Vehicle equipped with at least one door according to any one of the preceding claims.

Images