Stud arrangement

Abstract

A stud arrangement 100 for coupling a vehicle trim panel (14, figure 3) to a vehicle body structure 12, the vehicle body having a first side 12a, a second side 12b opposite the first side and an aperture 12c extending therebetween, wherein the stud arrangement comprises: a stud member 110 alignable with the vehicle body aperture, the stud member comprising a mounting portion 112 which, in use, abuts the first side of the vehicle body, and an engagement portion 114 for engaging the vehicle trim panel; and a fastener 120 that is removably couplable to the mounting portion through the aperture from the second side of the vehicle body and, in use, abuts the second side of the vehicle body to retain the stud member in association with the vehicle body. The engagement portion may comprise a partially spherical head which may engage with an elastically deformable insert (16) in the trim panel. The mounting portion of the stud may comprise a bore and the fastener may comprise a self-tapping fastener receivable therein. The stud arrangement may be used to couple a trim panel in a vehicle trunk.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates to a stud arrangement. Aspects of the invention relate to a stud arrangement, a trunk assembly and a vehicle. BACKGROUND It is known to provide vehicles comprising trim panels to protect internal components and improve the aesthetics of the vehicle. There is often a need for these panels to be removed, for example to access components beneath the panel or to replace the trim panel. During this removal and subsequent re-assembly of the trim panel to the vehicle there is a risk that the trim panel, the coupling system or the component to which the trim panel is coupled may become damaged, for example due to misalignment of components. There is therefore a need for a robust trim panel coupling system, which reduces the likelihood of damage and provides ease of access for replacing any damaged components. It is an aim of the present invention to address one or more of the disadvantages associated with the prior art. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Aspects and embodiments of the invention provide a stud arrangement, a trunk assembly and a vehicle as claimed in the appended claims. An aspect of the invention provides a stud arrangement for coupling a vehicle trim panel to a vehicle body structure, the vehicle body structure having a first side, a second side opposite the first side and an aperture extending therebetween, wherein the stud arrangement comprises: a stud member alignable with the vehicle body structure aperture, the stud member comprising a mounting portion which, in use, abuts the first side of the vehicle body structure, and an engagement portion for engaging the vehicle trim panel; and a fastener that is removably couplable to the mounting portion through the aperture from the second side of the vehicle body structure and, in use, abuts the second side of the vehicle body structure to retain the stud member in association with the vehicle body structure. Providing a separate stud and fastener may allow the stud arrangement to be more easily maintained or replaced, for example should the stud become damaged when connecting the vehicle trim panel to the vehicle body structure. The separate fastener may allow the vehicle trim panel to be disconnected from the body structure without requiring access to the first side of the vehicle body structure. The engagement portion may comprise a partially spherical head. A stud comprising a substantially spherical head may provide a convenient engagement portion for connecting the vehicle trim panel to the vehicle body structure. The mounting portion may have a first section with a first cross-sectional dimension, and a second section with a second, different cross-sectional dimension. The second cross-sectional dimension may be smaller than the first cross-sectional dimension. The differing cross-sectional dimensions of the mounting portion assist with alignment of the stud member relative to the aperture of the vehicle body structure. The mounting portion may include a bore. The fastener may comprise a threaded fastener receivable in the bore. A threaded fastener may provide a convenient method of removably coupling the stud to the vehicle body structure. The threaded fastener may comprise a self-tapping fastener. Using a self-tapping fastener may allow the design of the stud to be simplified since the fastener does not require the stud to have a pre-defined threaded engagement surface. The mounting portion bore may include an internal thread. The fastener may be configured to engage with the internal thread. Providing both the mounting portion and the fastener with corresponding threads may increase the strength of the connection between the stud and the fastener. A further aspect of the invention provides a vehicle trunk assembly comprising: a vehicle body structure comprising the stud arrangement of the first aspect of the invention; and a vehicle trim panel removably coupleable to the vehicle body structure via the stud arrangement. The stud arrangement may be used (for example) to removably couple a boot / trunk floor to a vehicle body structure. The vehicle body structure aperture may be provided in a recess in the first side of the vehicle body structure. Providing the aperture in a recess in the first side of the vehicle body structure 12 may allow the stud member, optionally the mounting portion of the stud member, to be received in the recess. This may for example assist in aligning the stud member with the aperture and therefore the fastener, and may increase the strength of the connection. The vehicle trim panel may include an elastically deformable insert having a recess for selectively receiving and engaging the engagement portion. An insert such as a rubber grommet may provide a convenient method of removably coupling the vehicle trim panel to the stud arrangement. The recess may comprise an elongate mouth, optionally wherein the elongate mouth is an oval in shape. Providing an elongate socket may allow increased tolerance in assembling the trunk assembly compared to (for example) a circular socket. This may reduce the likelihood of the stud and / or the vehicle trim panel being misaligned and becoming damaged during assembly. The socket may be oval or stadium in shape. The vehicle body structure may further comprise a second stud arrangement according to the first aspect of the invention. The vehicle trim panel may comprise a second insert having a recess and formed from elastically deformable material for selectively engaging with the engagement portion of the second stud. Providing a plurality of stud arrangements for coupling the vehicle trim panel to the vehicle body structure may increase the strength of the joint between the vehicle trim panel and the vehicle body structure. The first and second stud arrangements may be positioned at distal ends of the vehicle trim panel and / or the vehicle body structure. Providing each stud arrangement at distal ends of the vehicle trim panel and / or the vehicle body structure may improve the strength and / or stability of the assembly. Another aspect of the invention provides a vehicle including the trunk assembly of the further aspect of the invention. Within the scope of this application it is expressly intended that the various aspects, embodiments, examples and alternatives set out in the preceding paragraphs, in the claims and / or in the following description and drawings, and in particular the individual features thereof, may be taken independently or in any combination. That is, all embodiments and / or features of any embodiment can be combined in anyway and / or combination, unless such features are incompatible. The applicant reserves the right to change any originally filed claim or file any new claim accordingly, including the right to amend any originally filed claim to depend from and / or incorporate any feature of any other claim although not originally claimed in that manner. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS One or more embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows a vehicle to provide context for the invention; Figure 2 shows a cross sectional view of a stud arrangement in use; Figure 3 shows a cross sectional view of a portion of a trunk assembly; Figure 4 shows a portion of a vehicle trim panel; Figure 5a shows a portion of a partially assembled trunk assembly; and Figure 5b shows an example of a vehicle trim panel. DETAILED DESCRIPTION Figure 1 shows a vehicle 1 to provide context for this invention. The vehicle 1 comprises a trunk assembly 10 (which may be referred to as a trunk 10) which defines an internal storage space within the vehicle 1. The trunk 10 may be defined at least partially by the vehicle chassis or more generally a vehicle body structure 12, and further comprises a vehicle trim panel 14 (hereinafter referred to as a trim panel 14) shown most clearly in Figure 3. Examples of trim panels include a floor lining panel or a wall lining panel. It will be appreciated that the vehicle trim panel 14 may take any shape, form or size, however generally may have a length and / or width dimension substantially greater than it’s thickness. There exists a need to releasably couple the trim panel 14 to the vehicle body structure 12 such that the trim panel 14 may be removed, for example for maintenance, replacement or modification. It will be appreciated that the following description of an arrangement for coupling a trim panel 14 to a vehicle body structure 12 within a trunk assembly 10 may be applied to any other area of the vehicle 1, for example to passenger compartments and interior trim components. Figure 2 shows a cross-sectional view of a stud arrangement 100 for releasably coupling the trim panel 14 to the vehicle body structure 12. The stud arrangement 100 is shown in use coupled to the vehicle body structure 12, which has a first side 12a and a second side 12b arranged on opposite sides of the vehicle body structure 12. An aperture 12c extends between the first side 12a and the second side 12b. The stud arrangement 100 comprises a stud member 110 and a fastener 120. The stud member 110 comprises a mounting portion 112 for mounting the stud arrangement 100 to the vehicle body structure 12 and an engagement portion 114. The engagement portion 114 is configured to releasably couple to the trim panel 14, and as such the stud arrangement 100 provides a convenient apparatus for releasably coupling the vehicle body structure 12 and trim panel 14. Byway of non-limiting example, the engagement portion 14 may comprise a partially spherical head as shown in Figure 2, similar to that of a ball stud. The fastener 120 is removably couplable to the stud member 110, in particular to the mounting portion 112. In this way, the stud arrangement 100 (and hence any vehicle trim panel 14 connected thereto) may be readily removed from the vehicle body structure 12 by simply removing the fastener 120. In use as shown in Figure 2, the stud member 110 is aligned with the aperture 12c and the mounting portion 112 abuts the first side 12a of the vehicle body structure 12. The fastener 120 is inserted through the aperture 12c from the second side 12b of the vehicle body structure 12. A head 122 of the fastener 120 abuts the 4 second side 12b to clamp the mounting portion 112 against the first side 12a of the vehicle body structure 12. The fastener 120 may be a threaded fastener arranged to be received in and to engage with a bore 113 within the mounting portion 112. The fastener 120 may for example may be a self-tapping fastener, arranged to at least partially deform the bore 113 to retain the fastener 120 relative to the stud member 110. The bore 113 may comprise an internal orfemale thread arranged to engage the threaded fastener 120. To improve the ease of aligning the stud member 110 relative to the vehicle body structure, the aperture 12c may comprise a counter bore or more generally a shoulder or recess against which the mounting portion 112 abuts or in which the mounting portion 112 is received. As shown in Figure 2, the mounting portion 112 may have a first section 112a with a first cross-sectional dimension, and a second section 112b with a second cross-sectional dimension. Where the stud member 112 is substantially cylindrical, the first and second dimension may be a diameter. It will however be appreciated that the stud member 100 may take any shape, for example substantially cuboidal in which case the first and second dimension may be a width. The second cross-sectional dimension is smaller than the first cross-sectional dimension. Figure 3 shows a cross-sectional view of the trunk assembly 10, taken through the stud arrangement 100. The trim panel 14 is coupled to the vehicle body structure 12 via the stud arrangement 100, with the engagement portion 114 of the stud member 110 releasably coupled to the trim panel 14. In particular, the trim panel 14 comprises an insert 16. The insert 16 comprises a recess 16a configured to selectively receive the engagement portion 114 of the stud member 110. A mouth 16b provides access to the recess 16a. The mouth 16b may have a diameter that is less than a maximum diameter of the engagement portion, so as to selectively engage and retain the engagement portion 14. In this case, the insert 16 is elastically deformable such that the engagement portion 114 may be inserted through the mouth 16b of the recess 16a. The insert 16 may be manufactured from rubber. The hardness of the rubber and the relative size of the mouth 16b and engagement portion 114 may be selected such that the trim panel 14 is substantially coupled to the vehicle body structure 12. Substantially coupled may here be defined as the connection between the vehicle body structure 12 and the trim panel 14 resisting a force of at least 20 Newtons, preferably at least 25 Newtons, further preferably at least 30 Newtons applied to the trim panel 14 relative to the vehicle body structure 12 in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis of the stud arrangement 100. The hardness of the rubber and the relative size of the mouth 16b and engagement portion 114 may be selected such that the trim panel 14 is removable from the vehicle body structure 12 once a predetermined threshold force exceeded. The predetermined threshold force may be 70 Newtons or less, preferably 60 Newtons or less, further preferably 50 Newtons or less applied in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis of the stud arrangement 100. The insert 16 may be provided integral to the trim panel 14 or may be provided as a separate component that is fitted to the trim panel 14 prior to assembly of the trunk assembly 10. The insert 16 may be retained within the trim panel 14 using an interference fit, adhesive, mechanical connectors or any combination thereof. In the example shown in Figure 3, the insert 16 comprises two opposed catches 16c, 16d respectively. Each catch 16c, 16d contacts a respective shoulder of the trim panel 14 to retain the insert 16. It will be appreciated that each catch 16c, 16d extends at least partially around the insert 16, and that one or both of the catches 16c, 16d are configured to elastically deform to allow the insert to be assembled into the trim panel 14. In an alternative example (not shown), the trim panel may be provided with catches and the insert may comprise recesses to receive and engage the trim panel catches. Figure 4 shows a perspective view of a portion of the trim panel 14 comprising an insert 16, showing the mouth 16b of the insert. The mouth 16b of the insert 16 may be elongated as shown to improve the ease of assembly of the trunk assembly 100 by allowing for increased tolerances in aligning the stud arrangement 100 with the insert 16. This may reduce the likelihood of misalignment when a user is coupling the trim panel 14 to the vehicle body structure 12, which may in turn reduce the likelihood of the vehicle body structure 12 and / or the trim panel 14 and / or the stud arrangement 100 becoming damaged, particularly during assembly of the trunk assembly 10. In particular, the mouth 16b may be oval in shape. In this case, the major axis of the oval provides a length along which the engagement portion 114 of the stud member 110 may be received. To increase the likelihood of the stud member 110 being able to be received along the entire length of the major axis, it may be beneficial to provide a mouth 16b having a stadium shaped profile. A stadium shape is here defined as an oval comprising two substantially parallel sides joined by a curve at each end as shown in Figure 4. It may be preferable to provide the trunk assembly 10 with multiple stud arrangements 100 to couple the trim panel 14 to the vehicle body structure 12 to increase the strength of the connection. Figure 5a shows an example of a vehicle body structure 12 comprising a first and a second stud arrangement 100, whilst Figure 5b shows an example of a corresponding trim panel 14 comprising first and second inserts 16 arranged to engage with the first and second stud arrangements 100 respectively. Each of the first and second stud arrangements 100 may be identical to the stud arrangement described previously with respect to Figure 2. Each of the first and second inserts 16 may be identical to the insert described previously with respect to Figures 3 and 4. Where the first and second inserts 16 both comprise an elongate mouth, it may be preferable to align the major axis of each of the first and second elongated mouths to increase the allowable assembly tolerance. It may be preferable to position each of the first and second stud arrangements 100 (and therefore the corresponding first and second inserts 16) at distal ends of the vehicle body structure 12 and / or the trim panel 14 and / or the trunk assembly 10. Figures 5a and 5b show such an arrangement, with the stud arrangements 100 and inserts 16 arranged at opposite ends of the vehicle body structure 12 and trim panel 14 respectively. Arranging the trunk assembly 10 as such may increase the stability of the connection between the vehicle body structure 12 and the trim panel 14, for example by reducing the likelihood of the trim panel 14 rocking relative to the vehicle body structure 12 about a stud arrangement 100. It will be appreciated that various changes and modifications can be made to the present invention without departing from the scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A stud arrangement for coupling a vehicle trim panel to a vehicle body structure, the vehicle body structure having a first side, a second side opposite the first side and an aperture extending therebetween, wherein the stud arrangement comprises:A stud member alignable with the vehicle body structure aperture, the stud member comprising a mounting portion which, in use, abuts the first side of the vehicle body structure, and an engagement portion for engaging the vehicle trim panel; anda fastener that is removably couplable to the mounting portion through the aperture from the second side of the vehicle body structure and, in use, abuts the second side of the vehicle body structure to retain the stud member in association with the vehicle body structure.

2. A stud arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the engagement portion comprises a partially spherical head.

3. A stud arrangement according to any preceding claim, wherein the mounting portion has a first section with a first cross-sectional dimension, and a second section with a second, different cross-sectional dimension, the second cross-sectional dimension being smaller than the first cross-sectional dimension.

4. A stud arrangement according to any preceding claim, wherein the mounting portion includes a bore, and wherein the fastener comprises a threaded fastener receivable in the bore.

5. A stud arrangement according to claim 4, wherein the threaded fastener comprises a self-tapping fastener.

6. A stud arrangement according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the mounting portion bore includes an internalthread and the fastener is configured to engage with the internal thread.

7. A vehicle trunk, assembly comprising:a vehicle body structure comprising the stud arrangement of any preceding claim; and a vehicle trim panel removably coupleable to the vehicle body structure via the stud arrangement.

8. A vehicle trunk assembly according to claim 7, wherein the vehicle body structure aperture is provided in a recess in the first side of the vehicle body structure.

9. A vehicle trunk assembly according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the vehicle trim panel includes an elastically deformable insert having a recess for selectively receiving and engaging the engagement portion.

10. A vehicle trunk assembly according to claim 9, wherein the insert comprises an elongate mouth, optionally wherein the elongate mouth is an oval in shape.

11. A vehicle trunk assembly according to any of claims 7 to 10, wherein the vehicle body structure further comprises a second stud arrangement according to any of claims 1 to 6, and the vehicle trim panel comprises a second insert having a recess and formed from elastically deformable material for selectively engaging with the engagement portion of the second stud member.

12. A vehicle trunk assembly according to claim 11, wherein the first and second stud arrangements are positioned at distal ends of the vehicle trim panel and / or the vehicle body structure.

13. A vehicle including the trunk assembly of any of claims 7 to 12.

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