Bracket member of vehicle lamp fitting

Abstract

To provide a bracket member of a vehicle lamp fitting which is light-weight and has sufficient rigidity.SOLUTION: A bracket member of a vehicle lamp fitting is a bracket which houses and fixes at least part of a lamp unit configured to radiate light forward and has a peripheral wall surface which is open in an anteroposterior direction, extends in the anteroposterior direction, and defines a housing space of the lamp unit. At least a part of the peripheral wall surface forms a double wall. The bracket member further has partition walls partitioning the double wall and defining small spaces which are sandwiched by the double wall and extend in the anteroposterior direction. The bracket member does not have a front wall and a back wall and thus enables reduction of the weight. Further, the bracket member can secure rigidity by the double wall and the partition walls located at the inner side of the double wall.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a bracket member for a vehicle lamp that is lightweight and has sufficient rigidity. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, vehicle lighting fixtures are required to be lightweight from the viewpoint of carbon neutrality. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a bracket member in which a locking part that supports a light source and a reflector and a bearing part of an aiming screw are connected by a pier. The pier structure makes the bracket member lightweight. The reflector is lance-fixed to the locking part by inserting a protrusion on its back side into a hole in the locking part. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2014-165130 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, since the engaging portion, the bearing portion and the pier are on the same plane and the bracket member as a whole is constructed to be planar, there is a problem that the rigidity for supporting the lamp unit is low.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of such problems, and has an object to provide a lightweight, highly rigid bracket member for supporting at least a portion of a lamp unit. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, in one aspect of the present invention, a bracket member for a vehicle lamp is configured to accommodate and fix at least a part of a lamp unit that emits light forward, the bracket member opening in the fore-and-aft direction and having a peripheral wall surface extending in the fore-and-aft direction to partition the accommodation space for the lamp unit, at least a part of the peripheral wall surface being a double wall, and having a partition wall that separates the double walls and is sandwiched between the double walls to define a small space extending in the fore-and-aft direction.

[0007] According to this embodiment, since there is no front wall or rear wall, the weight can be reduced accordingly, and the rigidity can be ensured by the double wall and the partition wall on the inside of the double wall.

[0008] In one embodiment, at least one of the small spaces separated by the partition wall is provided with an internal wall that divides the small space in the front-to-rear direction, and in at least one pair of adjacent small spaces, the internal walls are arranged so as to be staggered in the front-to-rear direction.

[0009] According to this aspect, the partition wall and the inner wall provided in the double wall improve the rigidity of the peripheral wall surface.

[0010] In one embodiment, in at least one pair of adjacent small spaces, the internal wall is provided so as to close the front opening or rear opening of the small space, and the cross-sectional shape in the fore-and-aft direction including the partition wall and the internal wall is configured to be S-shaped.

[0011] According to this aspect, the inner walls are provided at different intervals, so that the rigidity of the peripheral wall surface can be further improved.

[0012] In one embodiment, the double walls each have a free-form surface extending in the front-rear direction. Effect of the Invention

[0013] As is clear from the above description, a bracket member that is lightweight and has high rigidity can be provided. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic front view of a vehicle lamp including a bracket member according to a preferred embodiment; [Diagram 2] FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. [Figure 6] 1 is a front view of the bracket member, showing the main double wall portion of the bracket member; [Figure 7] 10 is a front view of the bracket member, showing the cutting lines of the cross-sectional views of FIGS. [Figure 8] 8A is a cross-sectional view of a bracket member taken along line AA in FIG. 7, and mainly shows the AA portion in FIG. 6. FIG. 8B is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 7, and mainly shows the BB portion in FIG. 6. [Figure 9] Fig. 9(A) is a cross-sectional view taken along line CC in Fig. 7, mainly showing the CC portion in Fig. 6. Fig. 9(B) is a cross-sectional view taken along line DD in Fig. 7, mainly showing the DD portion in Fig. 6. [Figure 10] 4 shows a molding process for a bracket member. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The embodiments are illustrative and do not limit the invention, and all the features and combinations thereof described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to the invention.

[0016] (Vehicle lighting fixtures) FIG. 1 is a schematic front view of a vehicle lamp 1 including a bracket member 6 according to a preferred embodiment of the configuration of the present disclosure.

[0017] The vehicle lamp 1 is a headlamp, and is mounted on both the left and right sides of the front of the vehicle. The vehicle lamp 1 includes a lamp body 2 and a front cover 4 as lamp housings. The lamp body 2 is a housing with an opening at the front, and the front cover 4 is attached to the opening to form a lamp chamber S inside. The front cover 4 is a so-called outer cover, and is a substantially transparent lens made of a translucent resin such as polycarbonate. However, the front cover 4 may be formed with an optical step for dispersing and diffusing the light emitted from the light source when each lamp is turned on.

[0018] Three lamp units LU supported by bracket members 6 are housed in the defined lamp chamber S, lined up in the vehicle width direction (left-right direction). The lamp unit LU is an optical unit that irradiates light forward and is configured to form a predetermined light distribution such as high beam distribution / low beam distribution, either alone or with multiple lamp units LU. The light emitted from the lamp unit LU is irradiated toward a front cover 4 disposed in front, passes through the front cover 4, and forms a predetermined light distribution in front of the vehicle. The lamp unit LU is a lighting unit of a conventionally known configuration, such as a reflector type or projector type, and the type is not limited.

[0019] The bracket member 6 is attached to the rear wall of the lamp body 2 by three aiming screws E. The optical axis of the lamp unit LU is adjusted in the horizontal and vertical directions by rotating the aiming screws E.

[0020] The bracket member 6 of the present disclosure can be used not only for headlights but also for vehicle lamps such as rear combination lamps and marker lamps. In the vehicle lamp 1, the direction in which the light of the lamp unit LU is irradiated, where the front cover 4 is arranged, is set as the forward direction, and this is used as a reference. When the vehicle lamp is, for example, a rear lamp and is arranged on the rear surface of the vehicle, the vehicle lamp is rotated 180 degrees and attached to the vehicle, and it goes without saying that the front of the vehicle lamp is the rear of the vehicle. In addition, in the bracket member 6, the extension direction of the bracket member 6 described later is set as the front-rear direction, and will be described as coinciding with the front-rear direction of the vehicle lamp 1.

[0021] (Bracket material) The shape of the bracket member 6 will be described in detail. Fig. 2 is a front view of the bracket member 6. Fig. 3 is a rear view of the bracket member 6. Fig. 4 is a front perspective view of the bracket member 6. Fig. 5 is a rear perspective view of the bracket member 6. In Figs. 2 to 5, the bracket member 6 is colored in light ink.

[0022] The bracket member 6 is formed by injection molding using a hard synthetic resin material. The bracket member 6 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped outer shape, and is mainly composed of an upper wall surface 100, a right side wall surface 200, a lower wall surface 300, and a left side wall surface 400. It does not have a rear wall or a front wall, and is a large cylindrical body that opens forward and backward. Hereinafter, the upper wall surface 100, the right side wall surface 200, the lower wall surface 300, and the left side wall surface 400 that form the outer shape of the bracket member 6 will be collectively referred to as the peripheral wall surface 10.

[0023] As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the wall surfaces of the bracket member 6 are mainly composed of wall surfaces that have a roughly constant thickness and extend in one direction (front-to-back direction). Most of the wall surfaces are curved surfaces or free-form surfaces with a non-constant radius of curvature. The bracket member 6 does not have a front wall or a rear wall, and is lighter than a housing that has a rear wall. In addition, since it does not have a front wall or a rear wall and is mainly composed of wall surfaces that extend in the front-to-back direction, it is suitable for injection molding using a mold with the mold removal direction being the extension direction (front-to-back direction) of the wall surfaces of the bracket member (described in detail later).

[0024] Since the extension direction of each wall surface of the bracket member 6 is the front-rear direction, when each wall surface is viewed from the front, only the end surface of each wall surface is visible (see the front view of FIG. 2 and the rear view of FIG. 3). Although the extension direction of each wall surface of the bracket member 6 is the same direction (front-rear direction), each wall surface is not an extruded shape in which a predetermined cross-sectional shape is extruded by a predetermined length, and the depth length (length in the front-rear direction) is different for each wall surface, and the cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the depth direction is not the same shape at any position. In addition, each wall surface does not extend with a uniform length. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the left side wall surface 400 has a shorter depth length than the right side wall surface 200. Furthermore, the left side wall surface 400 has a very short depth length (length in the front-rear direction) in the upper region, and the depth length in the lower region is longer than the depth length in the upper region.

[0025] An accommodation space SP in which at least a part of the lamp unit LU is accommodated is formed inside the partitioned peripheral wall surface 10. In this embodiment, the bracket member 6 is relatively short in the depth direction (front-rear direction) and is long in the width direction (left-right direction) compared to the height direction (up-down direction), so that the accommodation space SP inside the peripheral wall surface 10 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape that is long in the width direction.

[0026] Furthermore, the storage space SP is divided into three roughly equal parts in the left-right direction by a right inner wall surface 600 and a left inner wall surface 500 that are substantially vertical surfaces provided within the storage space SP. The right inner wall surface 600 and the left inner wall surface 500 extend in the same direction (front-rear direction) as the peripheral wall surface 10, similar to the peripheral wall surface 10. One lamp unit LU is disposed in each of the three storage spaces SP1 to SP3 that are aligned in the left-right direction and are partitioned by the peripheral wall surface 10, the right inner wall surface 600, and the left inner wall surface 500.

[0027] Bosses 7 and plate-shaped mounting portions 8 that protrude toward the three accommodation spaces SP1 to SP3 are provided on the left side wall surface 400, the right side wall surface 200, and the right inner wall surface 600 and the left inner wall surface 500, i.e., the vertical wall surfaces that constitute the bracket member 6. Mounting holes in the bosses 7 and the mounting portions 8 are provided penetrating in the front-rear direction, which is the extension direction of the bracket member 6. The lamp unit LU is attached to and supported by the bosses 7 and the mounting portions 8 on the bracket member 6 by fixing members (not shown).

[0028] In this embodiment, the storage space SP is divided into three in order to support three lamp units LU, but there is no limit to the number or arrangement of the lamp units LU to be supported, and it may be configured to support one lamp unit without providing an inner wall surface, or to fix four lamp units using a cross-shaped inner wall surface in which vertical planes are approximately perpendicular to each other. The boss 7 and the mounting portion 8 may be provided on the upper wall surface 100 or the lower wall surface 300.

[0029] Aiming support parts 9 are formed at three corners of the bracket member 6, namely, the upper left corner, the upper right corner, and the lower right corner. The aiming support part 9 is configured in a flat plate shape, and is provided so that each plate surface is parallel to each other. A mount (not shown) is attached to a rectangular through hole 9c provided on the inside of the aiming support part 9, and the bracket member 6 is supported on the rear wall of the lamp body 2 by an aiming screw E screwed into this mount so that the optical axis of the lamp unit LU can be adjusted.

[0030] The aiming support 9 is in the shape of a rectangular flat plate. The aiming support 9 is provided at the corner of the bracket member 6, and the corners of the upper wall surface 100, the right side wall surface 200, the lower wall surface 300, and the left side wall surface 400 are formed in a concave shape so as to avoid the aiming support 9. The aiming support 9 is provided on the outer surface of the concave corner of the peripheral wall surface 10.

[0031] The bracket member 6, which is a cylindrical body with an external shape of a roughly rectangular parallelepiped, has corners of the peripheral wall surface 10 formed so as to be recessed into a rectangle, with a horizontal surface 9a and a vertical surface 9b formed at each corner. The rectangular aiming support 9 is formed such that the horizontal and vertical sides of the rectangular external shape are integrated with the horizontal surface 9a and vertical surface 9b of the recess provided at the corner. Therefore, the aiming support 9 functions as a rib that supports the horizontal surface 9a and vertical surface 9b of the recess provided at the corner.

[0032] (Double wall: right side wall) The bracket member 6 is configured so that the upper wall surface 100, the right side wall surface 200, the lower wall surface 300, and the left side wall surface 400, i.e., at least a part of the peripheral wall surface 10, is a double wall. In this embodiment, since the right inner wall surface 600 and the left inner wall surface 500 are also provided, at least a part of the wall surfaces of the bracket member 6 including the right inner wall surface 600 and the left inner wall surface 500 are configured as a double wall.

[0033] FIG. 6 is a front view of the bracket member 6, with the main double-walled portion of the bracket member 6 shown in light grey.

[0034] First, the double-wall structure will be described using the right side wall surface 200 (part AA in FIG. 6) as an example.

[0035] As shown in FIG. 2, the right side wall 200 forms the right side surface of the bracket member 6 and extends in a substantially vertical direction from the aiming support 9 provided at the upper right corner to the aiming support 9 provided at the lower right corner.

[0036] The right side wall 200 is configured as a double wall overall, and includes a right side wall main body 201, which is an outer wall surface that forms the outer shape of the bracket member 6, and a right side auxiliary wall surface 202 that is disposed inside (to the left) thereof. The right side wall main body 201 and the right side auxiliary wall surface 202 are disposed side by side in the left-right direction, both of which are substantially vertical surfaces, have substantially the same and uniform plate thickness, and extend in the front-rear direction. For this reason, when viewed from the front, only the end faces of the right side wall main body 201 and the right side auxiliary wall surface 202 are visible. The right side wall surface 200 of the bracket member 6 is configured as a double wall by the right side wall main body 201 and the right side auxiliary wall surface 202.

[0037] The right auxiliary wall surface 202 extends downward from the lower end of the vertical surface 9b at the upper right corner so as to extend the vertical surface 9b and is connected to the lower wall surface 300. In other words, the vertical surface 9b at the upper right corner constitutes a part of the right auxiliary wall surface 202.

[0038] The right side wall main body 201 and the right side auxiliary wall surface 202 are both free-form, approximately vertical surfaces extending in the same direction (front-to-back direction) and are arranged side by side in the left-right direction, but the center of the right side wall main body 201 curves toward the left, and the center of the right side auxiliary wall surface 202 curves slightly toward the right. Therefore, the right side wall surface 200 has a narrowed shape in the center, and the distance between the right side wall main body 201 and the right side auxiliary wall surface 202 is shortest at the center and slightly longer at the top and bottom.

[0039] Between the right side wall main body 201 and right side auxiliary wall 202 which are substantially vertical surfaces, three right side partition walls 241 to 243 which are substantially horizontal surfaces are provided so as to vertically divide the space between the two walls.

[0040] The right partition walls 241-243, like the other wall surfaces, are free-form surfaces of a constant thickness and extend in the same direction (front-rear direction). For this reason, when viewed from the front, only the front end faces of the right partition walls 241-243 are visible.

[0041] The right side small spaces AR201-AR204 are defined as four small spaces arranged in the vertical direction inside the right side wall surface 200 by the three right side partition walls 241-243. The four small spaces defined by the substantially horizontal and vertical planes are open in the front-rear direction and extend in the front-rear direction.

[0042] By providing right partition walls 241-243, which are substantially horizontal planes substantially perpendicular to the double wall and which divide the space further inside the double wall (the space sandwiched between the right side wall main body 201 and the right side auxiliary wall 202) consisting of two substantially vertical planes, the load-bearing performance of the right side wall 200 in multiple directions is improved. By having the right side wall 200 have a wall surface with the above configuration, the amount of deformation of the right side wall 200 due to a load can be reduced, and the rigidity of the bracket member 6, which does not have a front wall and a rear wall, is improved.

[0043] In this embodiment, furthermore, right inner walls 251-254 are provided in the right small spaces AR201-AR204 extending in the front-rear direction, respectively, so as to divide the right small spaces AR201-AR204 into front and rear. In the right small spaces AR201-AR204 arranged vertically, the right inner walls 251-254 of adjacent small spaces are arranged shifted in the front-rear direction so as to be alternately arranged in the front-rear direction. In detail, the right inner walls 251-254 are provided so as to close either the front opening or the rear opening of the right small spaces AR201-AR204, and each of the right inner walls 251-254 is formed so as to close either the front opening or the rear opening of the small space, the openings in different directions between adjacent small spaces.

[0044] Specifically, among the four right small spaces AR201 to AR204 arranged vertically, the first right small space AR201, which is the first from the top, and the third right small space AR203, which is the third from the top, are formed with a first right inner wall 251 and a third right inner wall 253, respectively, so as to close the rear opening. Also, the second right small space AR202, which is the second from the top, and the fourth right small space AR204, which is the fourth from the top, are formed with a second right inner wall 252 and a fourth right inner wall 254, respectively, so as to close the front opening.

[0045] The function and effect of the bracket member 6 thus configured will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 7 is a front view of the bracket member 6, and shows the cutting lines of the cross-sectional views of FIG. 8 and FIG. 9. In FIG. 7, the bracket member 6 is colored in light ink. FIG. 8 and FIG. 9 are cross-sectional views of the bracket member 6. FIG. 8(A) is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 7. It mainly shows the double wall portion (AA portion in FIG. 6) of the right side wall surface 200. FIG. 8(B) is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 7. It mainly shows the double wall portion (BB portion in FIG. 6) of the lower wall surface 300. FIG. 9(A) is a cross-sectional view taken along line CC in FIG. 7. It mainly shows the double wall portion (CC portion in FIG. 6) of the left inner wall surface 500. FIG. 9(B) is a cross-sectional view taken along line DD in FIG. 7. It mainly shows the double wall portion (DD portion in FIG. 6) of the upper wall surface 100.

[0046] 8(A), the right inner walls 251-254 are formed so as to alternately close the openings of the four right small spaces AR201-AR204 partitioned by the right partition walls 241-243. For this reason, the cross-sectional shape of the right wall surface 200 is formed in order from the top, with the horizontal surface 9a, which is a substantially horizontal surface, the right partition walls 241-243, and the bottom wall surface 300, and the right inner walls 251-254, which are substantially vertical surfaces, being connected to the front end surface or the rear end surface of the wall surface, forming a zigzag shape such that a rectangular S-shape is continuously formed.

[0047] In addition, since both left and right end surfaces of the right partition walls 241-243 and the right inner walls 251-254 are all connected and integrated with the right wall main body 201 and the right auxiliary wall 202, the right wall 200 has an extremely strong shape.

[0048] The right side wall 200 is composed of a right side wall main body 201 and a right side auxiliary wall 202 which constitute a double wall having a substantially vertical surface, right side partition walls 241-243 which are substantially horizontal surfaces substantially perpendicular to the double wall, and right side inner walls 251-254 which are disposed substantially perpendicular to both the double wall and the right side partition walls 241-243. The right side wall 200 is formed by connecting and integrating surfaces extending in three substantially perpendicular directions, and therefore has high load-bearing and strain-resistant performance in multiple directions. The improved load-bearing capacity of the right side wall 200 also improves the rigidity of the bracket member 6.

[0049] (Double wall: bottom wall) Next, a detailed description will be given of the double wall portion (BB portion in FIG. 6) of the lower wall surface 300. As shown in FIG. 2, the lower wall surface 300 is configured to include a substantially horizontal lower wall surface main body 301 which is an outer wall surface forming the outer shape of the bracket member 6, and a substantially horizontal lower auxiliary wall surface 302 which is disposed inside (above) the lower wall surface main body 301.

[0050] The lower auxiliary wall surface 302 is bent at the right end portion toward the lower wall surface main body 301 and connected to the lower wall surface main body 301, and only a part of the lower wall surface 300 is configured as a double wall, not the entire area of ​​the lower wall surface 300. The lower wall surface 300 is configured as a double wall surface from roughly the left storage space SP1 to the central storage space SP2.

[0051] The lower wall main body 301 and the lower auxiliary wall surface 302 are formed to extend in the front-rear direction. Therefore, when viewed from the front, only the front end faces of the lower wall main body 301 and the lower auxiliary wall surface 302 are visible.

[0052] The space inside the double wall of lower wall 300, i.e., the space sandwiched between lower wall main body 301 and lower auxiliary wall 302, is a flat, approximately rectangular parallelepiped that is long in the left-right direction, and lower partition walls 341-343 are provided to partition this elongated space in the left-right direction. Lower partition walls 341-343 are formed to extend in the vertical direction between lower wall main body 301 and lower auxiliary wall 302, which are approximately horizontal planes juxtaposed in the vertical direction to form a double wall surface, and are connected to lower wall main body 301 and lower auxiliary wall 302.

[0053] In this embodiment, the lower partition walls 341 to 343 are provided so as to be inclined from the vertical direction, and the ends of adjacent partition walls are provided so as to contact each other. That is, among the three lower partition walls 341, 342, and 343 arranged in order from the left, the first lower partition wall 341 arranged at the leftmost position is provided so as to be inclined from the vertical direction to the right. The second lower partition wall 342 is provided so as to be inclined from the vertical direction to the left, with its upper end connected to the upper end of the first lower partition wall 341. The third lower partition wall 343 is provided so as to be inclined from the vertical direction to the right, with its lower end connected to the lower end of the second lower partition wall 342. The three lower partition walls 341 to 343 are arranged so as to be inclined alternately, so that the end faces are configured in an N-shape when viewed from the front. That is, the three lower partition walls 341 to 343 are arranged in a truss shape.

[0054] In this way, the partition walls do not need to be substantially perpendicular to the double wall surfaces or substantially parallel to each other, but only need to be connected to both component surfaces of the double wall surfaces between the double wall surfaces. It is preferable to arrange the partition walls in a truss shape, as in the three lower partition walls 341 to 343, because this improves the load-bearing capacity.

[0055] 2, the lower wall main body 301 and the lower auxiliary wall 302 are substantially horizontal, but are not horizontal, and are free-form surfaces made up of a plurality of curved surfaces that are bent at the points where they connect to the partition walls and are slightly curved, as shown in FIG. 2. All of the partition walls 341-343 and the lower wall 300 have substantially the same plate thickness and are provided extending in the front-rear direction.

[0056] Here, at least a part of the left inner wall surface 500 is also configured as a double wall, and the left inner wall surface main body 501 and the left inner auxiliary wall surface 502, which are substantially vertical surfaces and configure the left inner wall surface 500 as a double wall, are provided so as to be substantially perpendicular to the lower auxiliary wall surface 302 and further extend to the inside of the double wall of the lower wall surface 300 and are connected to the lower wall surface main body 301. For this reason, the lower end portion of the left inner wall surface 500, more specifically, the part of the left inner wall surface main body 501 and the left inner auxiliary wall surface 502 inside the double wall of the lower wall surface 300, is also configured as a part of the partition wall of the lower wall surface 300.

[0057] In this way, two double walls may intersect, with the auxiliary wall surface of one forming part of the partition wall or the peripheral wall surface of the other, or conversely, one partition wall forming part of the auxiliary wall surface of the other. A double wall is more rigid than a single wall, and by intersecting with each other and forming an integral structure, the double walls reinforce each other, further increasing the rigidity of the bracket member 6.

[0058] In the internal space of the double wall surface of the lower wall surface 300, five small spaces, lower small spaces AR301-AR305, are defined in the left-right direction by lower partition walls 341, 342, 343 and a left inner wall surface 500 extending further into the inside of the lower wall surface 300. In these lower small spaces AR301-AR305 on the inside of the lower wall surface 300, lower inner walls 351-355 that close openings alternately in the front-rear direction are provided, similar to the right wall surface 200.

[0059] Specifically, among the five lower small spaces AR301 to AR305 arranged in the left-right direction, the first lower small space AR301, the third lower small space AR303, and the fifth lower small space AR305 are formed with a first lower inner wall 351, a third lower inner wall 353, and a fifth lower inner wall 355, respectively, so as to close the rear opening. Also, the second lower small space AR302, the second lower small space AR302, and the fourth lower small space AR304, the fourth lower small space AR304, are formed with a second lower inner wall 352 and a fourth lower inner wall 354 so as to close the front opening. As shown in Figure 8 (B), the cross-sectional shape of lower wall 300 is composed of, from left to right, left side wall 400, lower partition walls 341, 342, 343, and left inner wall main body 501 and left inner auxiliary wall 502 of left inner wall 500, which are connected in the vertical direction, and lower inner walls 351, 352, 353, 354, 355, which are connected in the horizontal direction, and are continuously connected to their ends, forming a zigzag shape with a series of angular S-shapes.

[0060] In addition, the upper and lower end faces of the lower partition walls 341-343 and the lower inner walls 351-355 are all connected to and integrated with the lower wall main body 301 and the lower auxiliary wall 302, so that the lower wall 300 has a very strong structure. This improves the load-bearing capacity of the lower wall 300 and also improves the rigidity of the bracket member 6.

[0061] As described above, the partition wall needs only to extend in the same direction as the double wall (front-to-back direction) and to be provided so as to separate the space inside the double wall, with both end faces connected to both constituent faces of the double wall, and it does not need to be substantially perpendicular to the double wall, nor does it need to be provided parallel to each other, and there are no restrictions on the form, number, or shape of the partition wall. The internal wall does not need to completely close the small space, as long as it is provided within the small space and both end faces are connected to the partition walls that form the small space. The internal wall may also be a curved surface, a bent surface, or a free-form surface, like other wall surfaces.

[0062] (Double wall: left inner wall) Next, the left inner wall surface 500 (part CC in FIG. 6) will be described in detail. Like the right side wall surface 200, the left inner wall surface 500 is also configured as a double wall. As described above, the left inner wall surface 500 is configured as a double wall, and has a left inner wall surface main body 501 and a left inner auxiliary wall surface 502 aligned in the left-right direction in a substantially vertical plane. The left inner wall surface 500 is configured as a double wall by the left inner wall surface main body 501 and the left inner auxiliary wall surface.

[0063] The inside of the double wall of the left inner wall surface 500, i.e., the space sandwiched between the left inner wall surface main body 501 and the left inner auxiliary wall surface 502, is a flat, generally rectangular parallelepiped that is long in the vertical direction, and left inner partition walls 541, 542 are provided to vertically divide this vertically elongated space. Divided by the left inner partition walls 541, 542, three small spaces, left inner small spaces AR501, AR502, AR503, are formed side by side in the vertical direction inside the double wall.

[0064] Of the three left internal small spaces AR501, AR502, and AR503 arranged vertically, the first left internal small space AR501 arranged at the top does not have an internal wall surface. The second left internal small space AR502 arranged in the center is provided with a first left internal wall 551 that closes the front opening. The third left internal small space AR503 arranged at the bottom is formed with a second left internal wall 552 that closes the rear opening.

[0065] The left inner wall main body 501, the left inner auxiliary wall 502, and the left inner partition walls 541, 542 are provided extending in the front-rear direction, and when viewed from the front, only the front end faces of the walls can be seen. These front end faces have a uniform thickness, but are free-form, being curved or bent in multiple places.

[0066] For example, the upper part of the left inner auxiliary wall surface 502 is connected to the upper wall surface 100 at a considerable incline to the right. Therefore, the left inner auxiliary wall surface 502 cooperates with the left inner partition wall 541 to function as a rib between the left inner wall surface main body 501 and the upper wall surface 100. In addition, since the boss 7 is disposed on the left inner wall surface 500 so as to extend inward, the left inner auxiliary wall surface 502 at the location where the boss 7 is provided is curved in an arc shape to match the outer periphery of the boss 7 and is integrated with the boss 7. In addition, the second left inner partition wall 542 is formed so as to connect the curved portion of the left inner auxiliary wall surface 502 and the lower auxiliary wall surface 302.

[0067] 9(A), the vertical cross-sectional shape of the left inner wall surface 500 is a shape in which the boss 7 is inserted and integrated, but is basically a shape of a series of rectangular S-shapes. As described above, the left inner wall surface 500 having such a shape has high load-bearing capacity in multiple directions and high rigidity.

[0068] It is not necessary to provide an inner wall surface in all of the small spaces formed inside the double wall surfaces, such as the left inner wall surface 500. Also, as shown in Fig. 9(A), a boss 7 or a through hole may be provided in the wall surface.

[0069] In this embodiment, the lower part of the left inner wall surface 500 is integrated with the lower wall surface 300. In addition, the upper part of the left inner auxiliary wall surface 502 is provided at an incline, so that it also functions as a double wall surface with the upper wall surface 100. In this way, by forming the wall surface into a free-form surface, it is possible to form a wall surface that fulfills two or more roles.

[0070] (Double wall: upper wall) Next, the right region of the upper wall surface 100, more specifically, the shape of the upper wall surface 100 of the right storage space SP3 formed on the right side will be described.

[0071] The upper wall surface 100 has a very complex structure, and includes an upper wall surface main body 101 which forms part of the outer shape of the bracket member 6, a first upper auxiliary wall surface 102 and a second upper auxiliary wall surface 103 which are formed with an inclination downward and to the right from the horizontal so as to connect the upper wall surface main body 101 and the right side wall surface 200, and a third upper auxiliary wall surface 104, a fourth upper auxiliary wall surface 105 and a fifth upper auxiliary wall surface 106 which are formed with an inclination downward and to the left from the horizontal so as to connect the upper wall surface main body 101 and the right inner wall surface 600.

[0072] In the upper wall surface 100, a plurality of auxiliary wall surfaces are provided at different angles, intersect with each other and are integrated, and the auxiliary wall surfaces are also configured as partition walls. By providing a plurality of auxiliary wall surfaces, at least a portion of the upper wall surface 100 is configured as a double wall, and further a portion of that is configured as a triple wall. In this way, a plurality of auxiliary wall surfaces may be provided in the peripheral wall surface 10, and at least a portion may be configured as not only a double wall, but also a triple wall or a quadruple wall.

[0073] The inside of the upper wall surface 100 is partitioned by upper auxiliary wall surfaces 102 to 106 to form eight small spaces, namely upper small spaces AR101 to AR108.

[0074] Some of the eight upper small spaces AR101 to AR108 are formed with inner walls that close the front opening or rear opening. In this embodiment, a second upper inner wall 152 is formed so as to close the front opening of the central fourth upper small space AR104 defined by the first upper auxiliary wall surface 102, the second upper auxiliary wall surface 103, the third upper auxiliary wall surface 104, and the fourth upper auxiliary wall surface 105. The first upper small space AR101 and the eighth upper small space AR108 formed adjacent to the top and bottom of the fourth upper small space AR104 are formed with a first upper inner wall 151 and a third upper inner wall 153, respectively, so as to close the rear opening.

[0075] The upper wall surface 100 is provided with a plurality of intersecting auxiliary wall surfaces, each of which also acts as a partition wall, so that at least a portion of the upper wall surface 100 is configured as a double wall.

[0076] 9(B), the cross-sectional shape of the portion where the inner wall of the left inner wall surface 500 is provided is a continuous rectangular S-shape. As described above, the upper wall surface 100 configured in this manner has high load-bearing performance in multiple directions and high rigidity.

[0077] In small spaces formed within a double wall, such as upper wall surface 100, there is no particular specification as to where an inner wall surface is provided / not provided; an inner wall surface may be provided in any of the small spaces, or no inner wall surface may be provided at all.

[0078] It is not specified which part of the peripheral wall surface 10 of the bracket member 6 is configured as a double wall, but it is preferable if it is provided to reinforce parts that are subjected to load, such as support parts, as this greatly improves the rigidity of the bracket member 6.

[0079] For example, in the bracket member 6 of this embodiment, the right side wall surface 200 and the lower wall surface 300 connecting the three aiming support parts 9 are configured as double walls. In addition, the double-walled portion of the upper wall surface 100, particularly the portion where the inner wall surface is provided, is a small space extending toward the lower left aiming support part 9. This is because the bracket member 6 is supported at three points where the aiming support parts 9 are provided, and the upper right, lower right, and lower left corners are particularly parts where a load is applied, and the parts connected to these are mainly configured as double walls. By providing double walls at the parts where a load is applied, it is possible to suppress an increase in mass due to the provision of double walls, and appropriately improve the rigidity of the bracket member 6.

[0080] A simulation was performed on the bracket member 6 configured in this way and a conventional bracket member for comparison, i.e., a conventional bracket member that has a back wall but does not have a double wall surface, and it was found that the mass of the bracket member 6 was 24% lower and the maximum displacement was 62% lower than the conventional bracket member. By applying the above configuration, the bracket member 6 was lighter than the conventional bracket member and its rigidity was greatly improved.

[0081] (Molding method) The molding process and molding die for the bracket member 6 configured as above will be described. Fig. 10 is a schematic diagram of the molding die for the bracket member, and is an explanatory diagram for explaining the molding process. The cross-sectional line of the die shown in Fig. 10 corresponds to line AA in Fig. 7.

[0082] As shown in Fig. 10(A), first, the fixed mold 30 and the movable mold 40 are arranged facing each other and then clamped. The direction in which the mold is clamped / opened is designated as direction DR. In the clamped state, a molding space (cavity) CAV corresponding to the shape of the bracket member 6 is defined inside the mold. The molding space CAV is provided so that the extension direction (front-rear direction) of the corresponding peripheral wall surface 10 of the bracket member 6 coincides with the clamping direction DR.

[0083] 10(B), a resin member heated to a predetermined melting temperature is injected into the molding space CAV to fill the molding space CAV. The resin member filled in the molding space CAV is cooled and solidified, and the bracket member 6 is formed.

[0084] Next, as shown in FIG. 10(C), the mold is opened, and first the movable mold 40 is moved away in the direction DR, and the bracket member 6 attached to the fixed mold 30 is pushed out and removed by an ejection pin (not shown).

[0085] Since the bracket member 6 is configured to extend along the mold opening direction DR, the movable mold 40 can be moved away from the movable mold 40 along the direction DR without any problems. The bracket member 6 is also pushed out from the fixed mold 30 along the direction DR, and is removed without any problems.

[0086] The bracket member 6 is provided extending in the front-to-rear direction, and the extension direction of the bracket member 6 can be aligned with the mold opening direction DR of the mold, and the bracket member 6 can be molded by injection molding using the mold.

[0087] Although the bracket member 6 has a complex shape, it can be mass-produced by injection molding using a mold, resulting in high productivity.

[0088] The above describes preferred embodiments of the present invention. However, the above embodiments are merely examples of the present invention, and these can be combined based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art, and such forms are also included in the scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0089] 1: Vehicle lighting fixtures 2: Lamp body 4: Front cover 6: Bracket material 10: Surrounding wall surface 100: Upper wall 151~153: Upper internal wall (internal wall) 200: Right side wall 241~243: Right Shiqiebi (Shiqiebi) 251~254: Right inner wall (inner wall) 300: Lower wall 341~343: Shiqiebi (Shiqiebi) 351~355: Lower inner wall (inner wall) 400: Left wall 500: Left inner wall 541~342: Left inner Shiqiebi (Shiqiebi) 551~552: Left inner wall (inner wall) 600: Right inner wall AR101~AR108: Upper small space (small space) AR201~204: Small space on the right (small space) AR301~AR305: Small space below (small space) AR501~AR503: Small space on the left (small space) DR : Direction SP: Containment space

Claims

1. A bracket member that accommodates and fixes at least a portion of a lamp unit that irradiates light forward, a peripheral wall surface that is open in the front-rear direction and extends in the front-rear direction to define an accommodation space for the lamp unit; At least a part of the peripheral wall surface is a double wall, and has a partition wall that divides the double wall and is sandwiched between the double walls to define a small space extending in the front-rear direction. A bracket member for a vehicle lamp.

2. At least one of the small spaces separated by the partition wall is provided with an internal wall that divides the small space in the front-rear direction, In at least one pair of adjacent small spaces, the internal walls are provided alternately in the front-rear direction.

2. The bracket member for a vehicle lamp according to claim 1.

3. In at least one pair of adjacent small spaces, the inner wall is provided so as to close a front opening or a rear opening of the small space, and a cross-sectional shape in the front-rear direction including the partition wall and the inner wall is S-shaped.

3. The bracket member for a vehicle lamp according to claim 2.

4. The double walls are free-form surfaces extending in the front-rear direction, 4. The bracket member for a vehicle lamp according to claim 1.

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