Wheel house structure

Abstract

To increase the freedom in industrial design by narrowing the width of an arch molding.SOLUTION: A wheel house structure 100 includes a wheel house outer panel 10 whose lower end 11 is shaped like an upward convex arc, a side member outer panel 20 that includes an arc-shaped part 21 in a lower part, is superposed on and connected to the outside in the vehicle width direction of the wheel house outer panel 10, and forms a flank of the vehicle 200, and an arch molding 40 that covers an end area 23 of the arc-shaped part 21 from outside in the vehicle width direction. The arch molding 40 is tightened to the end area 23 with a clip, and includes a bonding part 60 that water-tightly bonds the lower end 11 and the arc-shaped part 21 at a position above the clip tightening point, and a seal part 68 coated with a sealer along a borderline, along which the lower end 11 and the arc-shaped part 21 are superposed on each other, between the bonding part 60 and the tightening point of the clip 50.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a wheel house structure to which an arch molding is attached. [Background technology]

[0002] In a wheelhouse structure having a wheelhouse panel that constitutes a wheelhouse and a side member panel that covers the wheelhouse panel from the outside, a configuration is disclosed in which a portion of the side member panel that constitutes the wheel arch and the wheelhouse panel are bonded with an adhesive, and a sealant is applied to the end of the portion of the side member panel that constitutes the wheel arch and the end of the wheelhouse panel (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-193585 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Recently, vehicles have been used that have semicircular arch moldings attached to the outside of the portion of the side member panel that constitutes the wheel arch. The arch moldings are often attached to the side member panel above the adhesive portion between the side member panel and the wheel house panel so as to cover the adhesive portion between the side member panel and the wheel house panel and the sealer-applied portion at the end of the side member panel and the wheel house panel. In this case, the width of the arch molding becomes wider, which may cause design restrictions.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to narrow the width of the arch molding to increase the freedom in design. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The wheel house structure disclosed herein is a wheel house structure comprising: a wheel house outer panel having an upwardly convex arc-shaped lower end and accommodating a wheel inside; a side member outer panel having an arc-shaped portion at its lower part that corresponds to the lower end and that is overlapped and connected to the outer side of the wheel house outer panel in the vehicle width direction to form a side of the vehicle; and an arch molding covering an end region of the arc-shaped portion of the side member outer panel from the outer side in the vehicle width direction, wherein the arch molding is fastened to the end region with a clip and comprises: an adhesive portion that watertightly bonds the lower end and the arc-shaped portion above the fastening point of the clip; and a sealing portion in which a sealer is applied along the overlap boundary line of the lower end and the arc-shaped portion between the adhesive portion and the fastening point of the clip.

[0007] In this way, since the fastening point of the clip for fastening the arch molding to the side member outer is disposed in the end region of the side member outer panel, the length from the fastening point to the arc surface at the lower end of the wheelhouse outer panel and the length from the fastening point to the arc surface at the lower end of the side member outer can be shortened. Therefore, the length from the clip attachment position of the arch molding to the lower flange of the arch molding can be shortened. This allows the width of the arch molding to be reduced. In addition, since a double watertight structure consisting of an adhesive part and a seal part is disposed above the fastening point, it is possible to suppress the intrusion of water into the inside of the wheelhouse structure from around the fastening point, thereby improving the rust prevention performance. This allows the width of the arch molding to be narrowed while maintaining high rust prevention performance. In addition, since the width of the arch molding can be reduced, the degree of freedom in design can be increased.

[0008] In the wheel house structure of the present disclosure, the end region of the side member outer panel is provided with a plurality of clip holes to which the clips are fastened, and a plurality of notches that are open downward are provided in a lower edge region of the lower end of the wheel house outer panel, and the lower edge region of the wheel house outer panel and the end region of the side member outer panel are overlapped so that the notches are positioned on the periphery of the clip holes, and the sealing portion may include an inner application portion along which the sealer is applied from the inside in the vehicle width direction along the boundary line between the notches and the end region.

[0009] This makes it possible to seal the joint between the wheelhouse outer panel and the side member outer panel, even when the arch molding is fastened to the side member outer panel with a clip, thereby improving the rust-proofing performance of the wheelhouse structure.

[0010] In the wheel house structure of the present disclosure, the lower edge region of the wheel house outer panel is provided with a plurality of secondary clip holes to which the clips are fastened, and the end region of the side member outer panel is provided with a plurality of secondary notches that are open downward, each of the secondary clip holes is arranged at a position different from each of the clip holes, and the secondary notches are arranged to be located on the periphery of the secondary clip holes, and the sealing portion may include an outer application portion to which the sealer is applied from the outside in the vehicle width direction along the boundary line between the secondary notches and the lower edge region.

[0011] This allows the joint between the wheelhouse outer panel and the side member outer panel to be sealed from the outside in the vehicle width direction when a part of the arch molding is fastened to the wheelhouse outer panel with a clip, improving the rust prevention performance of the wheelhouse structure by simply applying a sealant.

[0012] In the wheel house structure of the present disclosure, at least a portion of the adhesive portion may be disposed on a back side of a design surface of the side member outer panel.

[0013] This eliminates the need for the arch molding to cover the adhesive joint, allowing the width of the arch molding to be narrower. Effect of the Invention

[0014] The wheel house structure of the present disclosure allows the width of the arch molding to be narrowed, thereby increasing the freedom in design. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a side view of the wheel house structure on the left side of the vehicle according to the embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a side view of the wheel house structure shown in FIG. 1 with an arch molding removed. [Diagram 3] 3 is a cross-sectional view of the wheel house structure of the embodiment, taken along line AA in FIG. 2. [Figure 4] 3 is a cross-sectional view of the wheel house structure according to the embodiment, taken along line BB in FIG. 2. [Diagram 5] 3 is a cross-sectional view of the wheel house structure of the embodiment, taken along line CC shown in FIG. 2. [Figure 6] 3 is a cross-sectional view of the wheel house structure according to the embodiment, taken along line DD in FIG. 2. [Figure 7] 3 is a cross-sectional view of the wheel house structure of the embodiment, taken along line EE of FIG. 2. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0016] Hereinafter, the wheel house structure 100 of the embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. The arrows FR, UP, and LH shown in each drawing indicate the front, upper, and left sides of the vehicle 200 equipped with the wheel house structure 100, respectively. The opposite directions of the arrows FR, UP, and LH indicate the rear, lower, and right sides. Hereinafter, when the directions of front-rear, left-right, and up-down are used in the description, they refer to the front-rear direction of the vehicle 200, the left-right direction of the left-right direction, and the up-down direction of the up-down direction, unless otherwise specified. The front, upper, and left sides of the wheel house structure 100 are the same directions as the front, upper, and left sides of the vehicle 200.

[0017] 1 and 2 show a wheel house structure 100 that houses a rear wheel of a vehicle 200. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the wheel house structure 100 includes a wheel house outer panel 10, a side member outer panel 20, an arch molding 40, a clip 50, an adhesive portion 60, and a seal portion 68.

[0018] 2 to 5, the wheelhouse outer panel 10 is a plate-like member that includes a lower end portion 11 having an upwardly convex arc shape and a lower edge region 13 below the lower end portion 11, and stores a wheel therein. The lower surface of the lower edge region 13 forms an arc surface 14. The side member outer panel 20 is a plate member that includes an arc-shaped portion 21 and an end region 23 below the arc-shaped portion 21, and forms the side surface of the vehicle 200. The arc-shaped portion 21 has an arc shape that corresponds to the lower end portion 11 of the wheelhouse outer panel 10, and the lower surface of the arc-shaped portion 21 forms an arc surface 24.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 3, the arc-shaped portion 21 of the side member outer panel 20 is overlapped on the lower end portion 11 of the wheel house outer panel 10 from the outer side in the vehicle width direction, and is connected by spot welding at the point indicated by X in FIG. 2. In FIGS. 1 and 2, the wheel house outer panel 10 is overlapped on the lower side of the side member outer panel 20. The two-dot chain line 35 in FIGS. 1 to 5 is an imaginary line indicating the upper boundary of the joint area 31 between the arc-shaped portion 21 at the rear of the vehicle and the lower end portion 11 at the rear of the vehicle. Also, the two-dot chain line 37 in FIGS. 1 and 2 and FIGS. 6 and 7 is an imaginary line indicating the upper boundary of the joint area 32 between the arc-shaped portion 21 at the front of the vehicle and the lower end portion 11 at the front of the vehicle. Also, the two-dot chain line 36 in FIGS. 1 and 2 is a joint boundary line connecting the upper boundary of the joint area 31 at the rear of the vehicle and the upper boundary of the joint area 32 at the rear of the vehicle.

[0020] Therefore, the area below the two-dot chain line 35 or the two-dot chain line 37 of the wheel house outer panel 10 forms the lower end portion 11. In addition, the area below the two-dot chain line 35 or the two-dot chain line 37 of the side member outer panel 20 forms the arc-shaped portion 21.

[0021] 2, 3, and 7, the end region 23 of the side member outer panel 20 is provided with a plurality of clip holes 25 to which the clip 50 is fastened. The length from the clip holes 25 to the arc surface 24 is L2. The lower edge region 13 of the wheelhouse outer panel 10 is provided with a plurality of U-shaped cutouts 18 (shown by dashed lines in FIG. 2) that are open downward. The lower edge region 13 of the wheelhouse outer panel 10 and the end region 23 of the side member outer panel 20 are overlapped with each other so that the cutouts 18 are located on the periphery of the clip holes 25. Therefore, the lower edge region 13 is not overlapped with the periphery of the clip hole 25, and the clip 50 inserted into the clip hole 25 engages only with the side member outer panel 20.

[0022] 2, 4, and 6, the lower edge region 13 of the wheelhouse outer panel 10 is provided with a plurality of secondary clip holes 15 to which the clips 50 are fastened. The length from the secondary clip holes 15 to the arc surface 14 is L1. The end region 23 of the side member outer panel 20 is provided with a plurality of U-shaped secondary cutouts 28 (shown by solid lines in FIG. 2) that are open downward. Here, each secondary clip hole 15 is disposed at a position different from each clip hole 25, and the secondary cutouts 28 are disposed so as to be located on the periphery of the secondary clip hole 15. Therefore, the end region 23 is not overlapped with the periphery of the secondary clip hole 15, and the clip 50 inserted into the secondary clip hole 15 engages only with the wheelhouse outer panel 10.

[0023] 6 and 7, reference numeral 70 denotes a rear door of the vehicle 200, and reference numeral 72 denotes a rubber seal attached to the body, which is a rubber member that seals the edge of the rear door 70.

[0024] 5, the end region 23 of the side member outer panel 20, which does not have the clip holes 25 and the sub clip holes 15, and the lower edge region 13 of the wheel house outer panel 10 extend downward to substantially the same position. However, the arcuate surface 14 of the lower edge region 13 extends slightly downward beyond the arcuate surface 24 of the end region 23.

[0025] As shown in FIG. 1, the arch molding 40 is an exterior member that has a partially annular shape and is attached to the end region 23 of the side member outer panel 20 and the lower edge region 13 of the wheel house outer panel 10 to cover the end region 23 from the outside in the vehicle width direction. As shown in FIG. 3, the arch molding 40 includes a partially annular main body 41 and a flange 44. The flange 44 is a partially cylindrical plate member that protrudes from the lower surface or the radially inner surface of the main body 41 toward the inside in the vehicle width direction. As shown in FIG. 5, the flange 44 protrudes toward the inside in the vehicle width direction below or radially inner than the arc surface 14 of the lower edge region 13 of the wheel house outer panel 10 and the arc surface 24 of the end region 23 of the side member outer panel 20. As a result, the arch molding 40 covers the end region 23 from the outside in the vehicle width direction and covers the arc surfaces 14 and 24 from the underside of the vehicle.

[0026] As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the vehicle rear part of the arch molding 40 has an arm part 42 to which the head of the clip 50 is attached. The tip of the clip 50 attached to the arm part 42 fits into the clip hole 25 or the sub clip hole 15 to fasten the vehicle rear part of the arch molding 40 to the end region 23 and the lower edge region 13. The length from the attachment position of the clip 50 of the arm part 42 to the lower surface of the flange 44 is L3. Also, as shown in Figs. 6 and 7, the vehicle front part of the arch molding 40 has a bracket 43 to which the head of the clip 50 is attached. The tip of the clip 50 attached to the bracket 43 fits into the clip hole 25 or the sub clip hole 15 to fasten the vehicle front part of the arch molding 40 to the end region 23 and the lower edge region 13. The length from the attachment position of the clip 50 of the bracket 43 to the lower surface of the flange 44 is L3.

[0027] Here, the clip hole 25 provided in the end region 23 of the side member outer panel 20 is a reference hole for positioning the arch molding 40 at a predetermined position on the side member outer panel 20. The size of the clip hole 25 is set to determine the vertical and front-to-rear positions of the clip 50. On the other hand, the secondary clip hole 15 provided in the lower edge region 13 of the wheelhouse outer panel 10 is a hole for fastening the arch molding 40 in the vehicle width direction, and is set to a size that does not determine the vertical and front-to-rear positions of the clip 50. The clip hole 25 and the secondary clip hole 15 form the fastening point of the clip 50.

[0028] As shown in FIG. 2, an adhesive portion 60 is provided above the clip hole 25 and the secondary clip hole 15 to watertightly bond the lower end portion 11 and the arc-shaped portion 21. The adhesive portion 60 includes a rear adhesive portion 61, a front adhesive portion 63, and a connection portion 62. As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the rear adhesive portion 61 is disposed in a joining region 31 between the lower end portion 11 at the rear of the vehicle and the arc-shaped portion 21 to watertightly bond the lower end portion 11 at the rear of the vehicle and the arc-shaped portion 21. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the front adhesive portion 63 is disposed in a joining region 32 between the lower end portion 11 at the front of the vehicle and the arc-shaped portion 21 to watertightly bond the lower end portion 11 at the front of the vehicle and the arc-shaped portion 21. The connection portion 62 connects the rear adhesive portion 61 and the front adhesive portion 63.

[0029] As shown in Figs. 3 to 5, the rear adhesive portion 61 is disposed on the rear surface of the design surface of the side member outer panel 20 or on the inner surface in the vehicle width direction.

[0030] 2, a seal portion 68 is disposed between the adhesive portion 60 and the clip hole 25 or the secondary clip hole 15. The seal portion 68 includes an inner application portion 64, an outer application portion 65, and an arcuate outer application portion 66.

[0031] 2, 3, and 7, a sealer is applied in a U-shape along the boundary between the end face of the notch 18 provided in the lower edge region 13 of the wheelhouse outer panel 10 and the vehicle width direction inner surface of the end region 23 of the side member outer panel 20 (shown by a thick dashed line in FIG. 2). This sealer is applied from the inside in the vehicle width direction, and the U-shaped portion to which the sealer is applied constitutes the inner application section 64.

[0032] 2, 4, and 6, the sealer is applied in a U-shape along the boundary between the end face of the secondary cutout 28 provided in the end region 23 of the side member outer panel 20 and the vehicle width direction outer surface of the lower edge region 13 of the wheel house outer panel 10 (shown by a thick solid line in FIG. 2). This sealer is applied from the outside in the vehicle width direction, and the U-shaped portion to which the sealer is applied constitutes the outer application section 65.

[0033] 2 and 5, the arcuate surface 14 of the lower edge region 13 of the wheelhouse outer panel 10 in a portion where the clip holes 25 and the sub-clip holes 15 are not provided extends slightly downward from the arcuate surface 24 of the end region 23 of the side member outer panel 20. Then, a sealer is applied along the boundary between the arcuate surface 24 at the lower end of the end region 23 and the vehicle width direction outer surface of the lower edge region 13. This sealer is applied from the outside in the vehicle width direction, and the arcuate portion to which the sealer is applied constitutes the arcuate surface outer application portion 66.

[0034] As described above, in the wheel house structure 100, the clip holes 25 and the sub-clip holes 15, which are fastening points of the clips 50 that fasten the arch molding 40 to the side member outer panel 20, are disposed in the end region 23 of the side member outer panel 20 and the lower edge region 13 of the wheel house outer panel 10, so that the lengths L1, L2 from the clip holes 25 and the sub-clip holes 15 to the arc surfaces 14, 24 can be shortened. This makes it possible to shorten the length L3 from the mounting positions of the arm portion 42 of the arch molding 40 and the clip 50 of the bracket 43 to the flange 44. This allows the width of the arch molding 40 to be reduced, and the freedom of design of the vehicle 200 can be increased.

[0035] In addition, in the wheel house structure 100, the adhesive portion 60 is disposed above the clip hole 25 and the sub-clip hole 15, and an inner application portion 64 and an outer application portion 65 are disposed between the adhesive portion 60 and the clip hole 25 or the sub-clip hole 15. The adhesive portion 60, the inner application portion 64, and the outer application portion 65 form a double watertight structure around the notch 18 and the sub-notch 28. The adhesive portion 60 and the arc surface outer application portion 66 form a double watertight structure around the arc surfaces 14 and 24. This makes it possible to suppress water from entering the inside of the wheel house structure 100 from the overlapping portion 30 between the lower end portion 11 of the wheel house outer panel 10 and the arc-shaped portion 21 of the side member outer panel 20, thereby improving the rust prevention performance.

[0036] Furthermore, since the outer application portion 65 and the arcuate outer application portion 66 can apply the sealant from the outside in the vehicle width direction, the rust prevention performance can be improved by simply applying the sealant.

[0037] Furthermore, since the rear adhesive portion 61 is positioned on the reverse side of the design surface of the side member outer panel 20 or on the inner side in the vehicle width direction, there is no need for the arch molding 40 to cover the rear adhesive portion 61, and the width of the arch molding 40 can be reduced.

[0038] In the above explanation, the adhesive portion 60 has been described as joining the lower end portion 11 and the arc-shaped portion 21 with an adhesive, but if the lower end portion 11 and the arc-shaped portion 21 can be adhered watertightly, they may be adhered with a sealant instead of adhesive. [Explanation of symbols]

[0039] 10 wheelhouse outer panel, 11 lower end, 13 lower edge region, 14, 24 arc surface, 15 secondary clip hole, 18 cutout, 20 side member outer panel, 21 arc-shaped portion, 23 end region, 25 clip hole, 28 secondary cutout, 31, 32 joining region, 40 arch molding, 41 main body portion, 42 arm portion, 43 bracket, 44 flange, 50 clip, 60 adhesive portion, 61 rear adhesive portion, 62 connection portion, 63 front adhesive portion, 64 inner application portion, 65 outer application portion, 66 arc surface outer application portion, 68 seal portion, 70 rear door, 72 rubber seal, 100 wheelhouse structure, 200 vehicle.

Claims

1. a wheelhouse outer panel having a lower end portion in an upwardly convex arc shape and accommodating a wheel therein; a side member outer panel that includes an arc-shaped portion at a lower portion thereof corresponding to the lower end portion, the side member outer panel being overlapped and connected to an outer side of the wheel house outer panel in the vehicle width direction to form a side surface of the vehicle; An arch molding covering an end region of the arc-shaped portion of the side member outer panel from an outer side in a vehicle width direction, The arch molding is fastened to the end region by a clip, an adhesive portion that adhesively connects the lower end portion and the arc-shaped portion in a watertight manner above a fastening point of the clip; a seal portion formed by applying a sealant along a boundary line between the adhesive portion and the fastening point of the clip and the lower end portion and the arc-shaped portion; The wheelhouse structure is characterized by:

2. The wheel house structure according to claim 1, A plurality of clip holes to which the clips are fastened are provided in the end region of the side member outer panel, A plurality of notches that are open downward are provided in a lower edge region of the lower end portion of the wheel house outer panel, the lower edge region of the wheel house outer panel and the end region of the side member outer panel are overlapped with each other such that the notch is positioned on the periphery of the clip hole, The sealing portion includes an inner application portion to which the sealer is applied from the inner side in the vehicle width direction along a boundary line between the cutout and the end region; The wheelhouse structure is characterized by:

3. The wheel house structure according to claim 2, A plurality of auxiliary clip holes to which the clips are fastened are provided in the lower edge region of the wheelhouse outer panel, A plurality of secondary cutouts that are open downward are provided in the end region of the side member outer panel, Each of the minor clip holes is disposed at a different position from each of the clip holes, and the minor notches are disposed so as to be located on the periphery of the minor clip holes, The sealing portion includes an outer application portion to which the sealer is applied from the outer side in the vehicle width direction along a boundary line between the secondary cutout and the lower edge region; The wheelhouse structure is characterized by:

4. The wheel house structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3, At least a part of the adhesive portion is disposed on a back surface of the design surface of the side member outer panel; The wheelhouse structure is characterized by:

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