Openwork structure lining.

Abstract

The invention relates to a lining element (1) for a vehicle structure, the element (1) being designed to line a part of the structure to be lined, the element (1) extending between a first (6) and a second (7) face, the first face (6) being designed to extend opposite the part to be lined, the second face (7) being designed to receive a safety device, the first (6) and second (7) faces being joined by a common contour (9), the element (1) having at least one opening (10) designed to delimit an openwork area of ​​the part to be lined without lining by the lining element (1), when the element (1) is fixed on the part to be lined, each opening (10) being sized to promote a fold in the openwork area during deformation of the structure in the event of an impact. (Figure 1)

Description

Title of the invention: Openwork structural lining.

[0001] The technical field relates to lining elements designed to line a part of a vehicle structure, vehicle structures having a lining element and motor vehicles having such structures.

[0002] In order to ensure passenger safety, vehicles are subjected to various standardized procedures for simulating impacts against a rigid obstacle impacting the vehicle. The standardized procedures are, for example, described by the American National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which is responsible for road safety and vehicle regulation, or by the international organization Euro NCAP.

[0003] One of these procedures consists in particular of a simulation of impacts against a rigid post impacting the vehicle on the side, at the level of the passenger doors, called side impact against a post or side impact. In a side impact, the deformations undergone by the vehicle are particularly studied in order to minimize the intrusion of the post into the protected space around the passengers.

[0004] In this context, the recent development of electric vehicles imposes new constraints linked, on the one hand, to the increase in the mass of the vehicles, of the order of 600 kg on average, inherent in the mass of the on-board batteries and, on the other hand, to the need to reinforce the structure in order to protect the batteries against impacts and deformations.

[0005] Thus, it has been found that an electrically powered version of a vehicle is likely to undergo unusual and greater structural deformations, during a side impact, than the same structure of the thermally powered version. For example, during a side impact, the sheets of the structure, in particular those constituting the roof arch and the bay pillar, frequently undergo folds likely to cause the attachments of the side airbags to unclip and therefore hinder their deployment, such that these safety devices are no longer able to ensure an optimal level of protection for the vehicle's occupants.

[0006] Thus, there is a need for a solution making it possible to avoid or minimize the unusual deformations observed on the structure of an electrically powered vehicle which are likely to hinder the deployment of an airbag.

[0007] The object of the present invention is to overcome the problems set out above. In this technical context, one aim of the present invention is to provide a lining element, designed to replace a structural lining, making it possible to control deformations during a lateral impact against a post.

[0008] To this end, the present invention relates to a lining element for a motor vehicle structure, the lining element being designed to line a part to be lined of the vehicle structure, the element extending between a first and a second face, the first face being designed to extend opposite the part to be lined, the second face being designed to receive a safety device, the first and second faces being joined by a common contour, the lining element having at least one opening designed to delimit an openwork area of ​​the part to be lined without lining by the lining element, when the lining element is fixed on the part to be lined, each opening being sized to promote a fold in the openwork area during deformation of the structure in the event of an impact.

[0009] The invention also relates to a motor vehicle structure comprising at least one part to be lined, each lined by a lining element according to the invention, each first face being fixed opposite a part to be lined.

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

[0011] Thus, the lining element according to the invention makes it possible to form a vehicle structure according to the invention whose deformations, in the event of a side impact, make it possible to guarantee correct deployment of the safety devices, such as airbags received on the second face. Indeed, thanks to each opening, the energy transmitted to the structure causes deformations whose locations are controlled by each opening, in particular folds in each openwork area. Thus, the deformations of the structure are essentially located at the level of the openings of the lining element, which are arranged so as to allow correct deployment of the safety device received on the second face.

[0012] According to one embodiment of the lining element, each opening is formed by a part of the common contour.

[0013] According to one possibility, each opening is intended to be arranged in the lower part of the common contour when the lining element is fixed to the structure.

[0014] In one embodiment, the lining element extends between a front end and a rear end, respectively designed to be arranged at the front and rear of the structure when the element is mounted on the structure, each end having an area in which an opening is located, the element further having a central area, at a distance from the ends, comprising an opening.

[0015] According to one possibility, each opening has a generally rectangular shape, in particular with rounded corners.

[0016] According to one embodiment, the second face is designed to support an airbag.

[0017] According to one possibility of the structure, the second face receives a safety device.

[0018] In one embodiment, the lining element forms a lining for a roof arch and / or a bay pillar, the safety element being a side airbag.

[0019] The invention will be better understood on reading the detailed description which follows, given solely by way of non-limiting example and made with reference to the appended drawings in which:

[0020] [Fig-1] [Fig. 1] represents a perspective view of a lining element according to the invention;

[0021] [Fig.2] [Fig.2] represents a partial perspective view of a structure according to the invention showing a pavilion arch and a bay upright doubled by the doubling element of [Fig.l];

[0022] In these figures, the same references are used to designate the same elements.

[0023] A lining element 1 according to the invention, illustrated in [Fig. 1], is designed to equip a motor vehicle structure 2, illustrated in [Fig. 2].

[0024] The lining element 1 is designed to line a part to be lined 3 of the vehicle structure 2. In the example illustrated in [Fig. 2], the part to be lined 3 is formed of a bay upright 4 and a roof arch 5. Thus, the lining element 1 according to the invention replaces a roof arch lining normally used. The lining element 1 is designed to be fixed to the part to be lined 3, for example by a plurality of welding points. The lining element 1 is formed of a sheet of thickness and metal grade comparable to those of a conventional lining. The lining element 1 is, for example, obtained by stamping.

[0025] As illustrated in [Fig.l], the element 1 extends between a first 6 and a second 7 faces. The first face 6 is designed to extend opposite the part to be doubled 3, while the second face 7 is designed to receive a safety device 8, illustrated in [Fig.2]. In the example described, the safety device 8 is a side airbag forming a curtain designed to protect the passengers of the vehicle according to the invention.

[0026] Thus, in the structure 2 according to the invention, the first face 6 is fixed to the structure 2, opposite the part to be doubled 3.

[0027] The first 6 and second 7 faces are joined by a common contour 9.

[0028] The lining element 1 has at least one opening 10 designed to delimit an openwork zone 11 of the part to be lined 3 without lining by the lining element 1, when the lining element 1 is fixed to the part to be lined 3. Each opening 10 is sized to promote a fold, not illustrated, in the openwork zone 11 during deformation of the structure 2, in particular of the part to be lined 3 in the event of a lateral impact against a post.

[0029] As illustrated in [Fig. 2], each opening 10 is advantageously formed by a part of the common contour 9, delimited in the figure between the common contour 9 and the dotted line of [Fig. 1] which represents the common contour 9 in the absence of the corresponding opening 10. Each opening 10 has, for example, a rectangular shape with rounded corners 12. In the structure 2, as illustrated in [Fig. 2], each opening 10 is arranged in the lower part of the common contour 9, when the lining element 1 is fixed to the structure 2. By lower part, it is necessary to understand the part of the common contour 9 arranged opposite the floor of the structure 2, as opposed to the upper part located opposite the roof pavilion of the structure 2.

[0030] In the example illustrated in [Fig.2], the lining element 1 extends between a front end 13 and a rear end 14, respectively designed to be arranged at the front and at the rear of the structure 2, when the element 1 is mounted on the structure 2. Each end 13, 14 has a zone 15 in which an opening 10 is located. In the example illustrated in the figures, the lining element 1 also has a central zone 16, at a distance from the ends 13, 14, comprising an opening 10.

[0031] For example, the openings 10 of the lining element 1 have a width L of the order of 35 mm and a depth H of between 25 and 35 mm. By way of example, the depth H of an opening 10 located near the rear end 14 is of the order of 35 mm while that of an opening 10 located near the front end 13 is of the order of 25 mm. The depth H must be understood as being the dimension of the opening 10 measured in a direction perpendicular to the common contour 9 in the absence of the opening 10.

[0032] Thus, the lining element 1 according to the invention makes it possible to form the vehicle structure 2 whose deformations, in the event of a side impact, make it possible to guarantee correct deployment of the safety device 8. Indeed, thanks to each opening 10, the energy transmitted to the structure 2 causes deformations whose locations are controlled by each opening 10. Thus, the deformations of the structure 2 are essentially located at the level of the openings 10 of the lining element 1, which are arranged in a chosen manner so as to allow correct deployment of the safety device 8 received on the second face 7.

[0033] The invention is not limited to the embodiment of the lining element described above, only by way of example, but other embodiments can be designed by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and scope of the present invention.

Claims

Claims

1. Lining element (1) for a motor vehicle structure (2), the lining element (1) being designed to line a part to be lined (3) of the vehicle structure (2), the element (1) extending between a first (6) and a second (7) face, the first face (6) being designed to extend opposite the part to be lined (3), the second face (7) being designed to receive a safety device (8), the first (6) and second (7) faces being joined by a common contour (9), the lining element (1) having at least one opening (10) designed to delimit an openwork area (11) of the part to be lined (3) without lining by the lining element (1), when the lining element (1) is fixed to the part to be lined (3), each opening (10) being sized to promote a fold in the openwork area (11) during deformation of the structure (2) in the event of an impact.

2. Lining element (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that each opening (10) is formed by a part of the common contour (9).

3. Lining element (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that each opening (10) is intended to be arranged in the lower part of the common contour (9) when the lining element (1) is fixed to the structure (2).

4. Lining element (1) according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it extends between a front end (13) and a rear end (14), respectively designed to be arranged at the front and at the rear of the structure (2) when the element (1) is mounted on the structure (2), each end (13, 14) having a zone (15) in which an opening (10) is located, the element (1) further having a central zone (16), at a distance from the ends (13, 14), comprising an opening (10).

5. Lining element (1) according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that each opening (10) has a generally rectangular shape, in particular with rounded corners (12).

6. Lining element (1) according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the second face (7) is designed to support an inflatable cushion.

7. Motor vehicle structure (2) comprising at least one part to be doubled (3) each doubled by a doubling element (1) according to one of claims 1 to 6, each first face (6) being fixed opposite of a part to be doubled (3).

8. Vehicle structure (2) according to claim 7, characterized in that the second face (7) receives a safety device (8).

9. Vehicle structure (2) according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that the lining element (1) forms a lining for a roof arch (5) and / or a bay pillar (4), the safety element (8) being a side airbag.

10. Motor vehicle having a structure (2) according to one of claims 7 to 9.

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