Stamped sheet metal for a bay window upright.

Abstract

The invention relates to a stamped sheet metal (1) designed to form a part of a window pillar of a body of a motor vehicle, the sheet metal (1) forming a profile, extending along a longitudinal line (LL) and having an edge (3) extending along the longitudinal line (LL) and intended to form a force path participating in the dissipation of energy released during a lateral impact suffered by the vehicle and transmitted to the window pillar, the edge (3) delimiting the sheet metal (1) into an upper part (5) and a lower part (6), the sheet metal (1) having at least one orifice (7) at least partially interrupting the edge (3), the sheet metal (1) being reinforced around each orifice (7) by at least two stamped portions (8, 9) arranged respectively in the upper part (5) and the lower part (6) and on either side of the orifice (7) along the longitudinal line (LL). (Figure 1)

Description

Title of the invention: Stamped sheet metal for a bay window upright.

[0001] The technical field relates to stamped sheets designed to form at least part of a bay pillar of a motor vehicle body, motor vehicle bodies comprising at least one such stamped sheet, and finally motor vehicles having such a body.

[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] Furthermore, 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. 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 corresponding structure of the thermally powered version.

[0005] In this context, certain parts of the body which constitute stress paths, which participate in the dissipation of energy released during a lateral impact suffered by the vehicle, cannot have drilling. Also, when such drilling proves necessary, it is then appropriate to add an additional reinforcement piece to avoid tears and excessive deformations during a lateral impact. Such drillings may however be essential to allow the passage of electrical cables and / or cataphoresis liquid.

[0006] The structural sheets, in particular those constituting the roof arch and the bay pillar, are particularly sensitive and absolutely require the addition of an additional reinforcement piece for each drilling. However, such a reinforcement piece obviously has several disadvantages, in particular on the overall mass of the vehicle and the production costs.

[0007] Thus, there is a need for a solution that makes it possible to avoid adding an additional reinforcement piece when drilling is carried out in a bay upright.

[0008] The present invention aims to overcome the problems set out above. In this technical context, one aim of the present invention is to provide a stamped sheet metal accepting the presence of an orifice in a part forming a stress path.

[0009] For this purpose, the present invention relates to a stamped sheet metal designed to form at least a portion of a bay pillar of a body of a motor vehicle, the sheet metal forming a profile, extending along a longitudinal line and having at least one edge extending along the longitudinal line and intended to form, when the sheet metal forms at least a portion of the bay pillar, a force path participating in the dissipation of energy released during a lateral impact suffered by the vehicle and transmitted to the bay pillar, the edge delimiting the sheet metal into an upper portion and a lower portion, the sheet metal having at least one orifice interrupting at least part of the edge, the sheet metal being reinforced around each orifice by at least two stamped portions arranged respectively in the upper portion and the lower portion and on either side of the orifice along the longitudinal line.

[0010] The invention also relates to a motor vehicle body comprising at least one bay pillar comprising at least one stamped sheet metal according to the invention.

[0011] The invention finally relates to a motor vehicle having at least one body according to the invention.

[0012] Thus, the stamped sheet metal makes it possible to obtain a bay upright according to the invention having at least one orifice, arranged in a stress path, the presence of which does not degrade the performance of the body according to the invention in the event of a side impact. Indeed, the two stamped parts arranged around each orifice make it possible to preserve the stress path by releasing the stresses around the orifice and allow them to be distributed in a more homogeneous manner. Experience shows in fact that the stresses come into abutment against the stamped parts and that plasticizations appear around the stamped parts in a homogeneous manner, while reducing the stresses on the sheet metal around the orifice. Thus, the stamped sheet metal according to the invention makes it possible to obtain a body according to the invention exhibiting adequate behavior in the event of a side impact without the addition of an additional reinforcing part.

[0013] According to one embodiment of the sheet metal, at least one of the stampings forms at least one rib extending in a direction inclined relative to the longitudinal line.

[0014] Advantageously, the stamping forms at least two parallel ribs.

[0015] According to one possibility, at least one of the stampings forms a step substantially orthogonal to the longitudinal line.

[0016] According to one possibility, the stamped sheet extends between two faces, the two stamped each orifice projecting from a separate face.

[0017] According to one embodiment, the stamped sheet metal comprises a rim designed to extend opposite a roof panel, one of the two stamped portions being formed at least partly on the rim.

[0018] According to one possibility of the stamped sheet, the two stampings of each orifice delimit a reinforced zone extending over a distance, measured along the longitudinal line, on either side of the orifice equal to at least twice the dimension of the orifice measured along the longitudinal dimension.

[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 drawing in which:

[0020] [Fig-1] [Fig.l] represents a stamped sheet according to the invention.

[0021] A stamped sheet 1 according to the invention, illustrated in [Fig.l], is designed to form at least part of a bay pillar of a body structure of a motor vehicle. Obviously, the stamped sheet 1 is obtained by a stamping operation followed or preceded by drilling operations.

[0022] The sheet 1 according to the invention extends between two opposite faces 2 and forms a profile, extending along a longitudinal line LL. The sheet 1 has at least one edge 3 extending along the longitudinal line LL, intended to form a force path participating in the dissipation of energy released during a lateral impact suffered by the vehicle and transmitted to the window pillar, when the sheet forms at least part of the window pillar of the vehicle. The edge 3 is, for example, arranged so as to be arranged on one side of the body of the vehicle to be impacted by a post in a lateral impact procedure against a post. As illustrated in [Fig.l], the sheet 1 also has a rim 4 designed to extend opposite a roof lining, not shown. The rim 4 and the edge 3 extend along two planes inclined relative to each other.

[0023] The edge 3 delimits the sheet 1 into a separate upper part 5 and lower part 6. In this case, the upper part 5 is intended to be arranged above the lower part 6 when the sheet 1 is mounted on the body according to the invention.

[0024] The sheet 1 has at least one orifice 7 passing through and at least partially interrupting the edge 3. The orifice 7 is, for example, intended to allow the passage of cables and / or a cataphoresis liquid.

[0025] In order to provide adequate behavior of the body according to the invention during a side impact, without requiring the addition of a reinforcing insert, the sheet 1 is reinforced around each orifice 7 by at least two stamped parts 8, 9 arranged respectively in the upper part 5 and the lower part 6 and on either side of the orifice 7 along the longitudinal line LL.

[0026] As illustrated in the figure, at least one 8 of the two stamped portions 8, 9 is provided at least in part on the rim 4.

[0027] In the example illustrated in the figure, at least one 8 of the stamped parts 8, 9 forms at least one rib 10 extending in a direction DI, represented by an arrow in [Fig.l], inclined relative to the longitudinal line LL, in this case orthogonal to the longitudinal line LL. In this case, the stamped part 8 forms two parallel ribs 10, a longitudinal section of which is triangular in shape. The ribs 10 are arranged in the upper part 5 of the stamped sheet 1.

[0028] As illustrated in the figure, one 9 of the stampings 8, 9 forms a step 11 substantially orthogonal to the longitudinal line LL.

[0029] Finally, in the stamped sheet 1 described in the figure, the two stamped parts 8, 9 protrude from a separate face 2.

[0030] In the example illustrated, the two stamped portions 8, 9 of each orifice 7 delimit a reinforced zone extending over a distance D, measured along the longitudinal line LL, on either side of the orifice 7 equal to at least twice the dimension d of the orifice 7 measured along the longitudinal dimension LL.

[0031] In this case, the orifice 7 is obtained by a drilling with a diameter of 20 mm. The stamped part 8 arranged on the upper part 5 is 52 mm away from a transverse axis A orthogonal to the longitudinal line LL passing through the drilling center of the orifice 7 and the two ribs 10 have a depth of 2 mm. Their respective crests 12 are 31 mm apart. For example, the stamped part 9 arranged in the lower part 6 is 75 mm away from the transverse axis A and has a height of 2 mm.

[0032] Thus, the stamped sheet 1 makes it possible to obtain a bay upright having at least one orifice 7, arranged in a stress path, the presence of which does not degrade the performance of the body according to the invention in the event of a side impact. Indeed, the two stamped portions 8, 9 arranged around each orifice 7 make it possible to preserve the stress path by releasing the stresses around the orifice 7 and to diffuse them more homogeneously. The stamped sheet 1 makes it possible to obtain a body according to the invention exhibiting adequate behavior in the event of a side impact without the addition of an additional reinforcement piece.

[0033] The invention is not limited to the embodiment of a stamped sheet 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. Stamped sheet metal (1) designed to form at least part of a window upright of a body of a motor vehicle, the sheet metal (1) forming a profile, extending along a longitudinal line (LL) and having at least one edge (3) extending along the longitudinal line (LL) and intended to form, when the sheet metal (1) forms at least part of the window upright, a force path participating in the dissipation of energy released during a lateral impact suffered by the vehicle and transmitted to the window upright, the edge (3) delimiting the sheet metal (1) into an upper part (5) and a lower part (6), the sheet metal (1) having at least one orifice (7) at least partially interrupting the edge (3), the sheet metal (1) being reinforced around each orifice (7) by at least two stamped portions (8, 9) arranged respectively in the upper part (5) and the lower part (6) and on either side of the orifice (7) along the longitudinal line (LL).

2. Stamped sheet metal (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that at least one (8) of the stamped parts (8, 9) forms at least one rib (10) extending in an inclined direction (DI) relative to the longitudinal line (LL).

3. Stamped sheet metal (1) according to claim 2, characterized in that the stamped part (8) forms at least two parallel ribs (10).

4. Stamped sheet metal (1) according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that at least one (9) of the stamped portions (8, 9) forms a step (11) substantially orthogonal to the longitudinal line (LL).

5. Stamped sheet metal (1) according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the sheet metal (1) extends between two faces (2), the two stamped portions (8, 9) of each orifice (7) projecting from a separate face (2).

6. Stamped sheet metal (1) according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the sheet metal (1) comprises a rim (4) designed to extend opposite a roof panel, one (8) of the two stamped portions (8, 9) being formed at least partly on the rim (4).

7. Stamped sheet (1) according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the two stamped portions (8, 9) of each orifice (7) delimit a reinforced zone extending over a distance (D), measured along the longitudinal line (LL), on either side of the orifice (7) equal to at least twice the dimension of the orifice (7) measured along the longitudinal dimension (LL).

8. Motor vehicle body comprising at least one bay pillar comprising at least one sheet (1) stamped according to one of claims 1 to 7.

9. Motor vehicle having at least one body according to claim 8.

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