Protection structure of catalyst device

Abstract

To provide a protection structure of a catalyst device which enables grass entering into a periphery of a catalyst device to be removed properly while protecting the catalyst device properly.SOLUTION: A protection structure of a catalyst device 10 is disposed below a floor of a vehicle and includes: a guard member 18 provided below the catalyst device 10 and configured to protect the catalyst device 10; and a plate-like brackets 16 connecting a fixing member 14 located above the guard member 18 with the guard member 18. In the bracket 16, a width of its upper part is smaller than a width of its lower part.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present specification discloses a protective structure for a catalytic converter arranged under a floor of a vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] Typically, an exhaust pipe is provided under the floor of a vehicle equipped with an engine to guide exhaust gas emitted from the engine to the outside of the vehicle. A catalytic converter is provided in the exhaust pipe to purify harmful substances contained in the exhaust gas. A catalytic converter is a device that purifies harmful substances contained in the exhaust gas by oxidation or reduction.

[0003] As described above, such catalytic converters are disposed under the floor of the vehicle. Therefore, there is a risk that the catalytic converter may be damaged if foreign objects on the road collide with the catalytic converter while the vehicle is traveling. To address this issue, it has been proposed to provide a guard member that is disposed under the catalytic converter to protect the catalytic converter.

[0004] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique in which a liquid addition valve that injects a reactive liquid into exhaust gas to purify the exhaust gas is disposed under the floor of a vehicle, and a guard plate is further provided to protect the liquid addition valve. The guard plate has a protective plate that covers the liquid addition valve from below, and a heat shield that extends upward from the edge of the protective plate. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-076103 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, in the case of the guard plate of Patent Document 1, grass that gets into the gap between the protective plate and the liquid addition valve cannot be properly removed.

[0007] Therefore, this specification discloses a protective structure for a catalytic converter that can adequately protect the catalytic converter and also adequately remove grass that has gotten into the area around the catalytic converter. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The protective structure for a catalytic converter disclosed in this specification is a protective structure for a catalytic converter arranged under the floor of a vehicle, and comprises: a guard member provided below the catalytic converter to protect the catalytic converter; a fixing member located above the guard member; and a plate-shaped bracket connecting the guard member, wherein the width of the bracket at its lower part is smaller than the width of its upper part. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the catalytic converter protective structure disclosed in this specification, grass can be cut by the bracket, so that grass that has grown around the catalytic converter can be properly removed. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of the catalytic converter and its surroundings. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the catalytic converter and its periphery viewed from below. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] The protective structure of the catalytic converter 10 will be described below with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a schematic side view of the catalytic converter 10 and its surroundings. Fig. 2 is a bottom view of the catalytic converter 10 and its surroundings viewed from below. In each drawing, Fr, Up, and Rh indicate the front, upper, and right side of the vehicle, respectively.

[0012] An exhaust pipe 12 that guides exhaust gas from the engine to the outside of the vehicle is disposed under the floor of the vehicle. The catalytic converter 10 is provided in the middle of the path of the exhaust pipe 12. The catalytic converter 10 is a purification device that purifies harmful substances contained in the exhaust gas by oxidizing or reducing them. A catalyst that activates the harmful substances is accommodated in the catalytic converter 10. The catalytic converter 10 is, for example, a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) catalyst. The SCR is a catalytic converter that reacts ammonia (NH3) with nitrogen oxides (NOx) to reduce them to nitrogen (N2) and water (H2O). However, the catalytic converter 10 is not limited to the SCR, and may be a catalytic converter of another type. For example, the catalytic converter 10 may be a three-way catalytic converter that oxidizes and reduces hydrocarbons (HC) and carbon monoxide (CO) in addition to nitrogen oxides (NOx).

[0013] In any case, as shown in Fig. 1, the catalytic converter 10 has a larger diameter than the exhaust pipe 12 and protrudes downward. Therefore, as the vehicle travels, obstacles on the road surface may interfere with the catalytic converter 10, which may result in damage to the catalytic converter 10. To prevent such damage to the catalytic converter 10, the vehicle is further provided with a guard member 18 that protects the catalytic converter 10.

[0014] The guard member 18 includes a protective plate 22 (not visible in FIG. 1, see FIG. 2), a connecting metal fitting 24, and a side plate 20. The protective plate 22 is a flat member located directly below the catalytic converter 10 and covers most of the catalytic converter 10 from below. A connecting metal fitting 24 is attached to the end of the protective plate 22 in the vehicle width direction. The protective plate 22 is connected to the side plate 20 via this connecting metal fitting 24.

[0015] The side plate 20 is a plate-like member disposed on the side and below the catalytic converter 10. The side plate 20 is disposed in such a position that the plate thickness direction is substantially perpendicular to the up-down direction. The other end of the connecting fitting 24 is attached to the side plate 20.

[0016] Such guard member 18 is suspended from a fixed member 14 by a bracket 16. The fixed member 14 is a member that is fixed to the vehicle body. The fixed member 14 may be, for example, the frame of the vehicle (e.g., a side member or a cross member), or may be an additional member fastened to the frame of the vehicle to fix the guard member 18. In this example, the fixed member 14 is a rod-shaped member that extends in the front-rear direction of the vehicle at a position adjacent to the catalytic converter 10 in the vehicle width direction. Both ends of the fixed member 14 are directly or indirectly fastened to the frame of the vehicle.

[0017] The bracket 16 connects the fixing member 14 and the guard member 18. In this example, the bracket 16 is disposed in a position such that the plate thickness direction is approximately perpendicular to the up-down direction. As shown in Fig. 1, a plurality of brackets 16 (three in the illustrated example) are disposed at intervals in the front-rear direction.

[0018] As shown in Fig. 1, each bracket 16 has a shape similar to an inverted triangle, with the width narrowing from the top to the bottom. In other words, the width of the bracket 16 is smaller at the bottom than at the top. From another perspective, the front edge of the bracket 16 is inclined backward as it extends downward. With this configuration, grass that has become caught between the guard member 18 and the catalytic converter 10 can be effectively removed.

[0019] That is, as shown in Fig. 1, a small gap is formed between the guard member 18 and the catalytic converter 10. As the vehicle travels, long grass 100 growing from the ground may get into this gap. Then, this long grass 100 may get entangled in the guard member 18 or the catalytic converter 10 and become stuck there.

[0020] In this example, as described above, the bracket 16 supporting the guard member 18 is shaped like an inverted triangle. Such a bracket 16 functions as a blade that cuts the long grass 100. That is, as the vehicle travels, the front edge of the bracket 16 is inclined as described above, so that the grass 100 that comes into contact with the front edge slides downward along the front edge as the vehicle travels. In the process of sliding down, stress is applied to the grass 100, and the grass 100 is cut.

[0021] As a result, the long and thin grass 100 that tries to get in between the guard member 18 and the catalytic converter 10 is cut short by the bracket 16. By cutting the grass 100 short, the grass 100 does not become entangled in the guard member 18 or the catalytic converter 10. As a result, the grass 100 that gets in between the guard member 18 and the catalytic converter 10 can be effectively removed.

[0022] As is clear from the above description, in this example, the bracket 16 supporting the catalytic converter 10 is shaped so that the width of its lower part is smaller than the width of its upper part, so that the bracket 16 can also function as a plate for cutting the grass 100. In other words, there is no need to provide a separate dedicated member for cutting the grass 100. As a result, the grass 100 can be effectively removed while avoiding an increase in cost. Also, as described above, in this example, multiple brackets 16 are provided at intervals in the front-rear direction. In this case, there is a high possibility that the grass 100 that could not be cut by the leading bracket 16 can be cut by the following bracket 16. As a result, the grass 100 can be removed more effectively.

[0023] The configuration described above is merely an example, and may be modified as appropriate as long as the configuration described in claim 1 is included. For example, the configuration of the guard member 18 may be modified as appropriate. Also, the bracket 16 may have another shape as long as the width of its lower part is smaller than the width of its upper part. Also, the number of brackets 16 may be one, or four or more. [Explanation of symbols]

[0024] 10 catalytic converter, 12 exhaust pipe, 14 fixing member, 16 bracket, 18 guard member, 20 side plate, 22 protection plate, 24 connecting metal fitting.

Claims

[Claim 1] A protective structure for a catalytic converter disposed under a floor of a vehicle, comprising: a guard member provided below the catalytic converter to protect the catalytic converter; a plate-shaped bracket that connects the guard member to a fixing member located above the guard member; wherein the bracket has a width at its lower portion that is smaller than a width at its upper portion; A protective structure for a catalytic converter.

Images