Slide door structure of vehicle

Abstract

To enable a lower side slide part of a slide door to be guided at adequate height position while making it as compact as possible.SOLUTION: A slide door structure of a vehicle is configured such that a lower side slide part 23 is disposed in a position of a vehicle upper side higher than a battery unit 5 by being supported by a slide door 20 by receiving a load of the slide door 20 when sliding at a vehicle upper side higher than the lower side slide part 23, a lower side guide rail (lower guide rail 9) which guides a guided part of the lower side slide part 23 is provided so as to extend in a slide direction at a lower side inside of a door opening and the guided part is constituted only of a slide member (lower guide roller 23c) which is pivotally supported by a shaft part (lower longitudinal part 23b) extending to a vehicle upper side so as to slide while being restricted from a vehicle width direction by the lower side guide rail (lower guide rail 9).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a sliding door structure for a vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] A vehicle equipped with this type of sliding door is described in Patent Document 1. In this vehicle, the door opening is configured to be opened and closed by the sliding door. A floor panel is disposed on the inside of the door opening in the vehicle width direction, and a battery unit is mounted on the vehicle underside of the floor panel. The battery unit has an outer end portion on the outside of the vehicle width direction that protrudes from the floor panel. The upper side of the protruding outer end portion of the battery unit is covered by a step-under panel (exterior material). A step plate is provided on the lower side of the door opening so as to protrude outward in the vehicle width direction from the floor panel. This step plate is disposed at a height position higher than the battery unit, and is disposed at an appropriate interval directly above the step-under panel (exterior material).

[0003] Here, a guide rail for guiding the sliding door is provided on the underside of the step plate so as to extend in the sliding direction. A lower hinge is provided on the lower end side of the sliding door so as to extend inward in the vehicle width direction. A guide roller supported on an axis extending in the vehicle vertical direction and a load roller (load roller) supported on an axis extending in the vehicle width direction are provided at the tip of the lower hinge as guided portions. In the above-mentioned configuration, when the sliding door slides, the guide roller slides along the guide rail of the step plate. The load roller is disposed directly below the step plate and is in a state of being grounded on the step under panel. As a result, the load roller slides on the step under panel while receiving the load of the sliding door on the step under panel. In the above-mentioned configuration, by keeping the load roller grounded on the step under panel, the lower hinge provided with the load roller can be disposed on the vehicle upper side of the battery unit. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2019-214314 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In the field of vehicles, there is a demand to make lower hinges (lower sliding parts) as compact as possible. For example, by making the lower hinges compact in the vertical direction of the vehicle, it becomes easier to adjust the height position of the components arranged on the upper side of the lower hinge, such as the step plate. However, in the above-mentioned configuration, it is difficult to make the dimensions of the lower hinges in the vertical direction of the vehicle compact because of the need to slide the load rollers between the step plate and the step under panel. The present invention has been devised in view of the above points, and the problem that the present invention aims to solve is to make the lower sliding part of the sliding door as compact as possible while being guided at an appropriate height position. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] As a means for solving the above problem, the vehicle sliding door structure of the first invention includes a sliding door that slides to open and close the door opening of the vehicle, a lower sliding part provided on the lower end side of the sliding door, and a battery unit arranged on the vehicle lower side of the floor panel of the vehicle. In this type of configuration, it is desirable to guide the lower sliding part of the sliding door at an appropriate height position while making it as compact as possible. Therefore, in the present invention, the load of the sliding door when sliding is received on the vehicle upper side than the lower sliding part, so that the lower sliding part is supported by the sliding door and arranged at a position on the vehicle upper side than the battery unit. And a lower guide rail that guides the guided part of the lower sliding part is provided so as to extend in the sliding direction on the lower side inside the door opening. And the guided part is composed only of a sliding member journaled on a shaft extending on the vehicle upper side so that it slides while being restricted from the vehicle width direction by the lower guide rail. In the present invention, the lower sliding part is supported by the sliding door and can be arranged on the vehicle upper side of the battery unit (at an appropriate height position). The lower sliding portion has only a sliding member journaled on a shaft portion extending toward the upper side of the vehicle as a guided portion guided by the lower guide rail, and is made compact in the vertical direction of the vehicle.

[0007] The vehicle sliding door structure of the second invention is the vehicle sliding door structure of the first invention, in which an upper sliding part provided at the top of the sliding door is provided higher on the vehicle than the lower sliding part. An upper guide rail that slides the guided part of the upper sliding part while the sliding door is under load is provided so as to extend in the sliding direction at the upper side of the door opening. In this invention, the load of the sliding door when it slides can be received by the upper guide rail.

[0008] The vehicle sliding door structure of the third invention is the vehicle sliding door structure of the first invention, in which the lower guide rail and the lower sliding part are disposed on the upper side of the vehicle than the exterior material that covers the vehicle upper side of the battery unit. In the present invention, the lower guide rail and the lower sliding part are disposed at a position higher than the exterior material, i.e., at a more appropriate height position.

[0009] The vehicle sliding door structure of the fourth invention is the vehicle sliding door structure of the third invention, in which the lower guide rail and the lower sliding part are arranged below the tread of the step plate provided on the vehicle upper side of the exterior material. In this invention, the lower guide rail and the lower sliding part can be arranged between the step plate and the exterior material in a comfortable manner. And by making the lower sliding part compact in the vertical direction, it becomes easy to adjust the height position of the step plate, which contributes to ensuring ease of getting on and off.

[0010] The vehicle sliding door structure of the fifth invention is the vehicle sliding door structure of the first to fourth inventions, in which the lower sliding part is provided with a position retention mechanism that restricts the movement of the sliding member toward the lower side of the vehicle. In this invention, the position retention mechanism makes it possible to more appropriately maintain the height position of the sliding member, and when a member (such as a step plate) is disposed above the sliding member on the vehicle, it becomes easy to adjust the height position of this member. Effect of the Invention

[0011] According to the first aspect of the present invention, the lower sliding portion of the sliding door can be guided at an appropriate height while being as compact as possible. According to the second aspect of the present invention, the lower sliding portion can be more reliably positioned at an appropriate height. According to the third aspect of the present invention, the lower sliding portion can be even more reliably positioned at an appropriate height. According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, various components can be more appropriately positioned above the lower sliding portion. And according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, various components can be even more appropriately positioned above the lower sliding portion. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the vehicle from the left side. [Diagram 2] FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. [Diagram 5] 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a lower portion of the vehicle showing a lower sliding portion. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a lower portion of a vehicle, showing a lower sliding portion of a second embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a position retaining mechanism according to a second embodiment; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 1 to Fig. 7. In each figure, arrows indicating the front-rear direction, left-right direction (vehicle width direction), and up-down direction (vehicle height direction) of the vehicle are appropriately illustrated. In addition, each figure mainly illustrates the left side of the vehicle, with the left side of the vehicle corresponding to the outer side in the vehicle width direction, and the right side of the vehicle corresponding to the inner side in the vehicle width direction.

[0014] [Vehicle Overview] Before describing the vehicle sliding door structure, an overview of a vehicle 2 shown in Fig. 1 will be given. A rear door opening 10 corresponding to the rear seats is formed in a vehicle body 3 of this vehicle 2. The rear door opening 10 is configured to be openable and closable by a sliding door 20 that slides in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle. A locker 30, which is a frame with a hollow cross section, is provided at the lower edge of the rear door opening 10 so as to extend in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle. A step plate 40 is provided on the upper side of the locker 30, i.e., on the lower side of the vehicle inside the rear door opening 10 (within the frame of the opening), so as to extend in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle.

[0015] 1 is provided with a plurality of guide rails (7, 8, 9) extending in the sliding direction of the sliding door 20. That is, in the vehicle 2, an upper guide rail 7 is provided on the upper side of the vehicle at a rear door opening 10. Also, a center guide rail 8 is provided at a central position in the height direction behind the rear door opening 10. A lower guide rail 9 is provided on the underside of the step plate 40.

[0016] Next, the sliding door 20 shown in FIG. 1 is provided with sliding parts (21, 22, 23) at its upper position, middle position, and lower end position. The sliding door 20 is configured so that each sliding part moves (slides, etc.) along the corresponding guide rails 7, 8, 9, so that the sliding door 20 can slide while being guided by each of these guide rails. Here, the upper guide rail 7, the center guide rail 8, and the lower guide rail 9 extend linearly in the vehicle longitudinal direction, but the vicinity of their front ends are bent obliquely inward (to the right) in the vehicle width direction. Therefore, the sliding door 20 moves in the vehicle longitudinal direction between the fully open position and the fully closed position, but moves obliquely in the vehicle longitudinal direction and in the vehicle width direction near the fully closed position (for convenience, in FIG. 1, the sliding door that slides in the closing direction is illustrated by a dashed line).

[0017] Here, the configuration of the lower part of the vehicle 2 will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. 2. First, the step plate 40 is provided with a scuff plate 43 on the upper side of the vehicle, which serves as a stepping surface. The end of this scuff plate 43 on the inside (right side) in the vehicle width direction is continuous with the carpet 4c on the floor panel 4. A side member 4s is provided on the lower surface of the floor panel 4 so as to extend in the vehicle front-rear direction. A battery unit 5 is mounted at a position lower than the side member 4s. The outer end 5E of this battery unit 5 on the outside (left side) in the vehicle width direction protrudes outward in the vehicle width direction from the floor panel 4. An impact absorbing member 6 is provided at the end of the outer end 5E of the battery unit 5, and a rocker 30 is disposed on the left side of the lower part of the impact absorbing member 6. The outer end 5E of the battery unit 5 is covered with a step under panel 50 (exterior material) to be described later.

[0018] The step-under panel 50 shown in FIG. 2 is joined to the floor panel 4 and the locker 30 by being bent in a stepped shape. That is, the step-under panel 50 is formed with an inner vertical wall portion 51 extending in the vehicle up-down direction, an upper wall portion 52 bent from the inner vertical wall portion 51 to the outside (left side) in the vehicle width direction, and an outer vertical wall portion 53 bent from the upper wall portion 52 to the vehicle lower side. The inner vertical wall portion 51 is provided with an upper flange portion 510 by bending its upper end in the vehicle width direction, and the upper flange portion 510 is overlapped and joined to the lower surface of the floor panel 4. The outer vertical wall portion 53 extends obliquely at its upper portion and then extends to the vehicle lower side. The lower end of the outer vertical wall portion 53 is provided by bending outward in the vehicle width direction, and the lower flange portion 530 is overlapped and joined to the upper surface of the locker 30. The flange-shaped portion of the locker 30 on the outer side in the vehicle width direction protrudes toward the upper side of the vehicle beyond the lower flange portion 530. A weather strip WS that fills the gap between the sliding door 20 and the upper end position of the flange-shaped portion is attached.

[0019] The upper wall portion 52 of the step-under panel 50 shown in FIG. 2 is arranged so as to cover the upper surface of the outer end portion 5E of the battery unit 5. The outer vertical wall portion 53 of the step-under panel 50 is arranged so as to cover the upper side surface of the outer end portion 5E of the battery unit 5. The upper wall portion 52 of the step-under panel 50 is fastened to the end portion of the step plate 40 on the inner side in the vehicle width direction (right side). That is, the step plate 40 is formed to have a substantially L-shaped cross section, and is composed of a main body portion 41 extending in the vehicle width direction and a support portion 42 extending in the vehicle up-down direction on the inner side in the vehicle width direction of the main body portion 41. The lower end portion of the support portion 42 is formed with a flange portion 420 bent inward in the vehicle width direction, and the flange portion 420 is overlapped and fastened to the upper wall portion 52 of the step-under panel 50. In this manner, the step plate 40 is supported by the step under panel 50 via the support portion 42, so that the main body portion 41 of the step plate 40 is positioned at an appropriate distance above the vehicle upper side of the upper wall portion 52 of the step under panel 50.

[0020] [Vehicle sliding door structure of the first embodiment] The vehicle sliding door structure shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 is a structure for guiding the lower sliding portion 23 at the lower end position of the above-mentioned sliding door 20 by the lower guide rail 9 provided on the step plate 40. In the above-mentioned structure, it is desirable that the lower sliding portion 23 of the sliding door 20 is guided at an appropriate height position, i.e., above the vehicle battery unit 5, while being made as compact as possible. Therefore, in this embodiment, the lower sliding portion 23 of the sliding door 20 is guided at an appropriate height position by a compact structure described later. Hereinafter, the vehicle sliding door structure will be described in detail in the order of the structure on the sliding door 20 side and the structure on the rear door opening 10 side.

[0021] [Sliding door side configuration] First, the sliding door 20 shown in FIG. 1 has sliding parts (21, 22, 23) at its upper position, central position, and lower end position. Here, the upper sliding part 21 at the upper position and the central sliding part 22 at the intermediate position have substantially the same basic configuration, so the upper sliding part 21 will be taken as an example to explain the details. In the upper sliding part 21, as shown in FIG. 3, an upper door arm part 21a fixed to the sliding door 20 is provided so as to extend inward (right side) in the vehicle width direction. Then, with reference to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, a pair of front and rear upper guide rollers 21c and a load roller 21d are provided at the tip of the upper door arm part 21a via a bracket 21b (in FIG. 4, for convenience, a reference symbol corresponding to one upper guide roller is attached, and a reference symbol corresponding to the other upper guide roller is attached in parentheses). Here, the bracket 21b is provided with front and rear vertical shafts A1 extending in the vehicle up-down direction, and the upper guide roller 21c is rotatably supported by these front and rear vertical shafts A1. A horizontal shaft A2 extending in the vehicle width direction is provided in the center of the bracket 21b in the front-rear direction. The load roller 21d is rotatably supported by the horizontal shaft A2 in a state where it protrudes further toward the vehicle lower side than the front and rear upper guide rollers 21c. Thus, the upper sliding part 21 is provided with the front and rear upper guide rollers 21c and the load roller 21d as its guided parts, that is, two types of sliding members. The central sliding part 22 shown in FIG. 1 also has a pair of front and rear upper guide rollers and a load roller (reference numerals omitted).

[0022] [Lower sliding part] 1 and 2, the lower sliding portion 23 is provided on the lower end side of the sliding door 20, and is therefore located lower than the upper sliding portion 21 and the central sliding portion 22. The lower sliding portion 23 has a lower door arm portion 23a formed to have a substantially L-shaped cross section, and is provided with a vertical arm portion 231 fixed to the sliding door 20 and a horizontal arm portion 232 extending from the vertical arm portion 231 to the inside (right side) in the vehicle width direction. Here, the vertical arm portion 231 has a lower end portion 233 bent to the inside in the vehicle width direction, and the horizontal arm portion 232 is fastened to the bent lower end portion 233. The lower guide roller 23c alone, i.e., only one type of sliding member as a guided portion, is rotatably supported at the tip of the horizontal arm portion 232 via a lower vertical shaft portion 23b extending to the upper side of the vehicle.

[0023] [Rear door opening configuration] Next, the upper guide rail 7 and the center guide rail 8 shown in FIG. 1 will be described. Here, since the guide rails 7, 8 have the same basic configuration, the upper guide rail 7 will be taken as an example to describe the details. The upper guide rail 7 corresponds to the upper guide rail of the present invention, and is formed as a hollow column with the outer side (left side) in the vehicle width direction open as shown in FIG. 3, and is provided so as to extend in the sliding direction of the slide door 20. The upper guide rail 7 has an opening communicating with the outside on the outer side in the vehicle width direction, which is formed at the same height as the above-mentioned upper sliding part 21. The upper guide rail 7 is configured so that the movement of the upper guide roller 21c in the front and rear of the upper sliding part 21 can be restricted from the vehicle width direction by forming an upper part 70 into a substantially inverted U-shape. In addition, in the upper guide rail 7, a vertical plate part 71 on the inner side (right side) in the vehicle width direction is provided so as to extend downward of the vehicle, and further, a lower plate part 72 that protrudes outward in the vehicle width direction is formed by bending the lower end of the vertical plate part 71 at a substantially right angle. The load roller 21d of the upper sliding portion 21 slides in contact with a support plate portion 73 having a generally L-shaped cross section provided on the lower plate portion 72 of the upper guide rail 7.

[0024] The upper guide rail 7 shown in Fig. 3 can be fixed so as to run along a roof side rail 100 that forms the upper portion of the rear door opening 10. A side outer panel 101 is fixed to the roof side rail 100 on its outer side in the vehicle width direction (left side) so as to extend in the vehicle front-rear direction. The upper guide rail 7 can be fastened and fixed to the side outer panel 101 at an appropriate position with a fastener BM. At this time, the upper guide rail 7 can be fastened to the side outer panel 101 and a reinforcement 102 superimposed on the back side thereof. The reinforcement 102 is formed into a plate shape with its upper portion extending inward (right side) in the vehicle width direction and is fixed to the roof side rail 100 side.

[0025] [Lower guide rail] Next, the lower guide rail 9 shown in FIG. 2 corresponds to the lower guide rail of the present invention, and is provided integrally with the lower surface of the step plate 40 as described above. As a result, the lower guide rail 9 is disposed on the vehicle lower side inside the rear door opening 10 (within the frame of the opening). As shown in FIG. 5, the lower guide rail 9 is formed with a left wall portion 9a, a right wall portion 9b, and an upper wall portion 9c in a substantially U-shaped cross section, and the upper wall portion 9c is integrated with the lower surface of the step plate 40. When the vehicle lower side of the lower guide rail 9 is released, the lower guide roller 23c of the lower sliding portion 23 described above is fitted into the lower guide rail 9 from the vehicle up-down direction. As a result, the movement of the lower guide roller 23c in the vehicle width direction during sliding is restricted by the left wall portion 9a and the right wall portion 9b.

[0026] [Structure and function of vehicle sliding door structure] In the vehicle 2 shown in FIG. 2, it is desired that the lower sliding part 23 of the sliding door 20 be guided at an appropriate height while being as compact as possible. In the vehicle sliding door structure, the load of the sliding door 20 during sliding is received at a position above the lower sliding part 23, so that the lower sliding part 23 is supported by the sliding door 20 and disposed at a position H1 above the battery unit 5. A lower guide rail 9 for guiding the guided part of the lower sliding part 23 is provided so as to extend in the sliding direction below the inside of the rear door opening 10. The guided part of the lower sliding part 23 is composed only of a lower guide roller 23c (sliding member) journaled on a lower vertical shaft part 23b extending upward of the vehicle so that the guided part of the lower sliding part 23 slides while being restricted in the vehicle width direction by the lower guide rail 9.

[0027] That is, in the above-mentioned vehicle sliding door structure, the upper guide rail 7 shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 3 receives the load roller 21d, thereby receiving the load of the sliding door 20 provided with the load roller 21d. The center guide rail 8 shown in Fig. 1 has substantially the same structure as the upper guide rail 7. Therefore, the center guide rail 8 is also configured to receive the load of the sliding door 20, and the front and rear guide rollers of the center sliding part 22 and the load roller (not shown) slide against each other. As a result, the lower sliding part 23 shown in Fig. 2 is supported by the sliding door 20 and is disposed at an appropriate height position, that is, at a height position H1 higher than the position H0 of the battery unit 5.

[0028] The lower sliding part 23 shown in FIG. 5 has only the lower guide roller 23c (one type of sliding member) journaled on the lower vertical shaft 23b as its guided portion, so that its dimension S2 in the vehicle vertical direction is made compact. By thus omitting the load roller and making the lower sliding part 23 vertically compact, the vertical distance D1 between the main body 41 of the step plate 40 and the step-under panel 50 can be shortened. This allows the height position H2 of the step plate 40 to be lowered as much as possible, which contributes to ensuring excellent ease of getting on and off for passengers. In particular, according to the above-mentioned configuration, even if the distance D1 between the main body 41 and the step-under panel 50 is shortened, the lower sliding part 23 can be arranged between them in a comfortable manner. And since the lower sliding part 23 is configured so that the lower guide roller 23c can slide while being restricted from the vehicle width direction when sliding, the lower guide roller 23c can be appropriately guided by the action of the lower guide rail 9.

[0029] Furthermore, the lower sliding portion 23 shown in Fig. 5 is configured so as not to receive the load of the sliding door 20. Therefore, referring to Figs. 3 and 5, the thickness dimension S1 of the lower door arm portion 23a (horizontal arm portion 232) can be made smaller than the thickness dimension S0 of the other door arm portions (upper door arm portion 21a, etc.), which contributes to suppressing an increase in the weight of the vehicle. The length dimension L1 of the upper door arm portion 21a in the vehicle width direction is made smaller than the length dimension L2 of the horizontal arm portion 232. Therefore, even if the thickness of the relatively short upper door arm portion 21a increases, the increase in the weight of the vehicle 2 due to this can be suppressed as much as possible.

[0030] As described above, in the vehicle sliding door structure, the lower sliding portion 23 is supported by the sliding door 20 and can be disposed on the vehicle upper side of the battery unit 5 (appropriate height position H1). The lower sliding portion 23 has only the lower guide roller 23c (sliding member) journaled on a shaft portion extending to the vehicle upper side as a guided portion guided by the lower guide rail 9, and is compact in the vehicle up-down direction. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the lower sliding portion 23 of the sliding door 20 can be guided at an appropriate height position while being made as compact as possible.

[0031] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the load of the sliding door 20 when sliding is received by the upper guide rail 7 (upper guide rail). In this embodiment, the lower guide rail 9 and the lower sliding portion 23 are disposed at a height position higher than the step under panel 50 (exterior material), that is, at a more appropriate height position H0. In this embodiment, the lower guide rail 9 and the lower sliding portion 23 are disposed between the step plate 40 and the step under panel 50 in a well-fitting manner. By making the lower sliding portion 23 compact vertically, it becomes easy to adjust the height position H2 of the step plate 40, which contributes to ensuring ease of getting on and off.

[0032] [Vehicle sliding door structure according to the second embodiment] Next, a vehicle sliding door structure according to a second embodiment will be described. Here, in the vehicle sliding door structure according to this embodiment, the same components as those in the first embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals as those in the first embodiment, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. The vehicle sliding door structure according to the second embodiment shown in FIG. 6 has a basic configuration substantially identical to that of the first embodiment, but differs from the first embodiment in that a position holding mechanism 60, which will be described later, is provided in the lower sliding portion 23X.

[0033] Here, the position holding mechanism 60 is a mechanism that restricts the movement of the lower guide roller 23c (sliding member) toward the lower side of the vehicle, and can be constituted by the door arm portion 25. That is, referring to Figs. 6 and 7, the door arm portion 25 as the position holding mechanism 60 has a fixed side plate portion 25x, a movable side plate portion 25y, and a hinge portion 25z. The fixed side plate portion 25x is formed in a vertically long strip shape, and is fixed to the lower end side of the sliding door 20. The movable side plate portion 25y is connected to the lower edge of the fixed side plate portion 25x via the hinge portion 25z. This hinge portion 25z is a hinge-shaped portion that connects the lower edge of the fixed side plate portion 25x and the left edge of the movable side plate portion 25y, and has an axis pin AB that extends in the front-rear direction. The movable side plate 25y is formed in a strip shape extending from the hinge portion 25z toward the inside (right side) in the vehicle width direction, and the lower guide roller 23c is journaled to the tip of the movable side plate 25y via the lower vertical shaft portion 23b. The tip of the movable side plate 25y is vertically rotatable relative to the fixed side plate 25x with the shaft pin AB of the hinge portion 25z as the base point, and is biased toward the upper side of the vehicle by the biasing force of the biasing member TM attached to the shaft pin AB.

[0034] In this embodiment, the step plate 40 is inclined gradually toward the lower side of the vehicle as it moves toward the outer side (left side) in the vehicle width direction, as shown in FIG. 6. The door arm portion 25 as the position holding mechanism 60 has its movable side plate portion 25y extending obliquely along the step plate 40. The lower guide roller 23c of the lower sliding portion 23 is fitted into the lower guide rail 9 provided on the lower surface of the step plate 40. According to the above-mentioned configuration, the position holding mechanism 60 can more appropriately maintain the height position H1 of the lower sliding portion 23X (tip portion), improving space efficiency and more appropriately lowering the height position H2 of the step plate 40. Furthermore, by suppressing unintended movement of the lower guide roller 23c toward the lower side of the vehicle, various members can be arranged with good positional accuracy above the lower guide roller 23c. 6, for example, when installing the step plate 40, the lower guide rail 9 of the step plate 40 is fitted into the lower guide roller 23c whose height position is maintained, so that the height position of the step plate 40 can be easily adjusted. Thus, according to this embodiment, the height position of the lower guide roller 23c can be more appropriately maintained by the position maintaining mechanism 60. Therefore, when installing the step plate 40 above the lower guide roller 23c on the vehicle, the height position of the step plate 40 can be adjusted even more easily.

[0035] The vehicle sliding door structure of this embodiment is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and may take various other embodiments. For example, in the vehicle sliding door structure of this embodiment, the lower sliding part and the lower guide rail are provided between the step plate and the step under panel, but the arrangement positions of the lower sliding part and the lower guide rail are not limited. For example, various upper members can be arranged on the upper side of the vehicle, such as the lower guide rail, in addition to the step plate, and in this case, the height position of the upper member can be easily adjusted. In addition, various lower members can be arranged on the lower side of the vehicle of the lower sliding part, and the lower member can be omitted as necessary. The step plate and the lower guide rail may be configured separately. In addition, the configuration of the position holding mechanism can be appropriately set, and the hinge portion can be provided at an appropriate position in the vehicle width direction of the door arm part.

[0036] In this embodiment, the configuration of the lower part of the vehicle, for example, the configuration of the step under panel, the battery unit, and the locker, is exemplified, but the configuration is not limited to these. The configuration of the step plate can also be changed as appropriate. The configuration and the movement trajectory of the sliding door can also be changed as appropriate. The configurations of the first embodiment and the second embodiment described above can be combined as appropriate. [Explanation of symbols]

[0037] 2 Vehicles 3 Vehicle body 4 Floor Panel 4c Carpet 4s Side member 5 Battery Unit 5E Outer end (of battery unit) 6. Shock absorbing materials 7 Upper guide rail (upper guide rail of the present invention) 70 (Upper guide rail) Top 71 (Upper guide rail) vertical plate 72 (Upper guide rail) lower plate 73 (Upper guide rail) support plate 8 Center guide rail 9 Lower guide rail (lower guide rail of the present invention) 9a (Lower guide rail) left wall 9b Right wall (of lower guide rail) 9c (Lower guide rail) upper wall 10 Rear door opening 20 Sliding Door 21 Upper sliding part 21a Upper door arm 21b Bracket 21c Upper guide roller 21d Load roller A1 Vertical shaft A2 Horizontal shaft section 22 Central sliding part 23 Lower sliding part 23a Lower door arm 23b Lower vertical shaft part 23c Lower guide roller 231 Vertical arm section 232 Side arm section 233 Lower end of (vertical arm) 30 Locker 40 Step Board 41 Main body 42 Support part 420 Flange part 43 Scuff plate 50 Step Under Panel 51 (Step under panel) inner vertical wall 52 (Step under panel) upper wall 53 (Step under panel) outer vertical wall 510 Upper flange 530 Lower flange 100 Roof side rail 101 Side outer panel 102 Reinforce 23X Lower sliding part of the second embodiment 25 Door arm section 25x fixed side plate 25y Movable side plate 25z hinge part AB Axis Pin TM biasing material 60 Position holding mechanism BM fasteners WS Weather Strip

Claims

1. A vehicle sliding door structure including a sliding door that slides to open and close a door opening of a vehicle, a lower sliding part provided on a lower end side of the sliding door, and a battery unit disposed on a vehicle underside of a floor panel of the vehicle, a load of the sliding door when the sliding door is slidably supported on a vehicle upper side than the lower sliding portion, so that the lower sliding portion is supported by the sliding door and disposed at a position on the vehicle upper side than the battery unit; A lower guide rail that guides a guided portion of the lower sliding portion is provided on the lower side of the inner side of the door opening so as to extend in a sliding direction, A vehicle sliding door structure in which the guided portion is constituted only by a sliding member journaled on a shaft portion extending upwardly of the vehicle so as to be slidable while being restricted in the vehicle width direction by the lower guide rail.

2. An upper sliding portion provided at an upper portion of the sliding door is provided on an upper side of the vehicle than the lower sliding portion, 2. A vehicle sliding door structure as described in claim 1, wherein an upper guide rail, which slides the guided portion of the upper sliding portion when the sliding door is loaded, is provided to extend in the sliding direction at the upper side of the door opening.

3. The vehicle sliding door structure according to claim 1 , wherein the lower guide rail and the lower sliding portion are disposed on the vehicle upper side relative to an exterior material that covers an upper side of the battery unit.

4. 4. The vehicle sliding door structure according to claim 3, wherein the lower guide rail and the lower sliding portion are disposed below a tread surface of a step plate provided on an upper side of the exterior material.

5. 5. The vehicle sliding door structure according to claim 1, wherein the lower sliding portion is provided with a position retaining mechanism that restricts movement of the sliding member toward the lower side of the vehicle.

Images