Vehicle body front part structure

The vehicle front body structure with a motor support system and impact absorbing sections addresses the challenge of absorbing frontal collision energy, enhancing safety by preventing the motor from entering the passenger compartment.

JP2025127361APending Publication Date: 2025-09-01TOYOTA JIDOSHA KK
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Patent Information

Application Number
JP2024024062
Authority / Receiving Office
JP · JP
Patent Type
Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2024-02-20
Publication Date
2025-09-01

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Existing vehicle designs do not effectively absorb collision energy from a motor mounted on the front side during a frontal collision, posing a risk of the motor entering the passenger compartment.

Method used

A vehicle front body structure with a motor supported by a front and rear mount system, featuring a partition wall with integrated impact absorbing sections that deform to absorb collision energy, and a rear impact absorbing section with reinforcing ribs for enhanced rigidity.

Benefits of technology

Effectively absorbs collision energy from the front-mounted motor, preventing it from entering the passenger compartment and ensuring passenger safety during a frontal collision.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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  • Figure 2025127361000001_ABST
    Figure 2025127361000001_ABST
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Abstract

To obtain a vehicle body front part structure that can absorb collision energy of a motor at the time of a front collision in a vehicle in which the motor is mounted at a vehicle front side.SOLUTION: A vehicle 10 includes: a motor 28 arranged at a vehicle front side; a partition wall section 16 forming a part of a front part 12 that is a metal casting and partitioning a passenger compartment 10A and a power unit room 10B on a vehicle rear side of the motor 28; a front mount section 42 supporting a portion of the vehicle front side of the motor 28 on the front part 12 and capable of releasing a supported state of the motor 28 when a load of a predetermined size or more is input from the vehicle front side; a rear mount section 34 supporting, on vehicle rear and upper sides of the front mount section 42, a portion of the vehicle rear side of the motor 28 on the front part 12; and an impact absorption part 18 provided integrally with the partition wall section 16 on the vehicle front side of the partition wall section 16 and deformable when a collision load is input from the vehicle front side.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1
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Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle front body structure. [Background technology]

[0002] The following Patent Document 1 discloses an invention relating to a rear structure of a vehicle. In this rear structure of a vehicle, the muffler located behind the motor is crushed by the motor in the event of a rear collision, thereby absorbing the collision energy of the motor. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-75159 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the above prior art does not mention absorbing the collision energy of a motor in a frontal collision in a vehicle that has a motor mounted on the front side of the vehicle, and there is room for improvement in this regard.

[0005] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In consideration of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle front body structure that can absorb the collision energy of a motor mounted on the front side of the vehicle in the event of a frontal collision. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The front body structure of the first aspect comprises a motor arranged at the front of the vehicle to apply driving force to the drive wheels, a partition section that forms part of the vehicle body that is a metal casting and separates the passenger compartment from a power unit room on the vehicle rear side of the motor, a front mount section that supports the front part of the motor against the vehicle body and is capable of releasing the supported state of the motor when a load of a predetermined magnitude or more is input from the front side of the vehicle, a rear mount section that is located at the rear and above the front mount section and supports the rear part of the motor against the vehicle body, and an impact absorbing section that is formed integrally with the partition section on the front side of the partition section and deforms when a collision load is input from the front side of the vehicle.

[0007] According to a first aspect of the vehicle front structure, a motor is disposed at the front of the vehicle, and the motor applies driving force to the drive wheels of the vehicle. The vehicle body is a metal casting, and includes a partition wall that forms a part of the vehicle body. The partition wall separates the vehicle interior and the power unit compartment behind the motor.

[0008] However, when a collision load is input to the vehicle from the front, the motor may receive this collision load and enter the interior of the vehicle cabin, so it is preferable to be able to absorb the collision energy of the motor before the motor enters the interior of the vehicle cabin.

[0009] Here, in this embodiment, the front portion of the motor is supported relative to the vehicle body by the front mount portion, and this front mount portion is capable of releasing the support state of the motor when a load of a predetermined magnitude or greater is input from the front of the vehicle.

[0010] On the other hand, the rear portion of the motor is supported on the vehicle body by a rear mount portion, which is supported on the rear side of the front mount portion and above the vehicle.

[0011] Therefore, in this embodiment, when a collision load of a predetermined magnitude or greater is input to the vehicle from the front side of the vehicle, the motor receives this collision load and rotates around the rear mount portion when viewed from the vehicle width direction, moving toward the partition portion of the vehicle body.

[0012] The partition wall has an impact absorbing portion integrally provided on the vehicle front side thereof, and this impact absorbing portion deforms when the motor collision load is input from the front of the vehicle. As a result, in this aspect, the impact absorbing portion can absorb the motor collision energy before the motor enters the vehicle interior.

[0013] The vehicle body front structure according to the second aspect is the vehicle body front structure according to the first aspect, wherein the impact absorbing portion comprises a front impact absorbing portion having a plurality of impact absorbing pieces whose plate thickness direction is the input direction of the collision load, and a rear impact absorbing portion in which a plurality of reinforcing ribs are arranged so as to form a closed cross section when viewed from the vertical direction of the vehicle.

[0014] In the vehicle front body structure according to the second aspect, the impact absorbing section includes a front impact absorbing section and a rear impact absorbing section. The front impact absorbing section has a plurality of impact absorbing pieces whose thickness direction is the input direction of the collision load, and these impact absorbing pieces are deflected and deformed when the motor collision load is input from the front of the vehicle, thereby contributing to absorbing the collision load.

[0015] On the other hand, the rear impact absorbing section has multiple reinforcing ribs arranged to form a closed cross section when viewed from the top and bottom of the vehicle, and the rear impact absorbing section has higher rigidity against collision loads from the front of the vehicle than the front impact absorbing section.

[0016] Therefore, in this embodiment, the front portion of the impact absorbing section is made more susceptible to deformation due to a collision load from the front of the vehicle, and the rear portion of the impact absorbing section is made less susceptible to deformation due to a collision load from the front of the vehicle, thereby making it possible to achieve both absorption of the collision load from the front of the vehicle and prevention of the motor from entering the interior of the vehicle. [Effects of the Invention]

[0017] As described above, the vehicle front body structure according to the present invention has the excellent effect of being able to absorb the collision energy of a motor mounted on the front side of the vehicle in the event of a frontal collision. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0018] [Figure 1] 1 is a cross-sectional view (a cross-sectional view showing a state cut along line 1-1 in FIG. 2) illustrating the configuration of a front portion of a vehicle to which the vehicle body front structure according to the present embodiment is applied. [Figure 2] 1 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a front portion of a vehicle body of a vehicle to which a vehicle body front structure according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. [Figure 3] 1 is a plan view showing the configuration of a front mount portion of a motor mounted on a vehicle to which the vehicle body front structure according to the present embodiment is applied. FIG. [Figure 4] 1 is a plan view (viewed in the direction of arrows 4 in FIG. 1) showing the configuration of an impact absorbing section provided in the body of a vehicle to which the vehicle front body structure according to the present embodiment is applied. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0019] An example of an embodiment of a vehicle body front structure according to the present invention will be described below with reference to Figures 1 to 4. Note that the arrow FR shown in each figure indicates the front side of the vehicle, the arrow UP indicates the upper side of the vehicle, and the arrow RH indicates the right side in the vehicle width direction.

[0020] First, the schematic configuration of a "vehicle 10" to which the vehicle body structure according to this embodiment is applied will be described using Figure 2. In this embodiment, the vehicle 10 is basically configured symmetrically, and therefore, the following description will mainly focus on the configuration of the right side of the vehicle 10 in the vehicle width direction, and will omit the description of the configuration of the left side of the vehicle width direction as appropriate.

[0021] The vehicle 10 comprises a "front part 12" made of die-cast aluminum as the body that constitutes the front part of the vehicle, a center part (not shown) that constitutes the central part of the vehicle in the fore-and-aft direction and is equipped with a battery and a battery frame that holds the battery, and a rear part (not shown) made of die-cast aluminum that constitutes the rear part of the vehicle.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 1, the front part 12 includes a pair of side components 14, a partition wall 16, and an impact absorbing part 18.

[0023] The side structural portion 14 is configured to include a suspension tower portion 14A, a wheel house portion 14B, and a side member portion 14C. The suspension tower portion 14A is box-shaped and is open on the lower side of the vehicle and has a circular through-hole 20 formed on the top surface, and supports a shock absorber (not shown).

[0024] The wheel house portion 14B is provided integrally with the suspension tower portion 14A and has a spherical shape capable of accommodating part of a tire (not shown).

[0025] The side member portion 14C is disposed below the suspension tower portion 14A and is integral with the suspension tower portion 14A and the wheel house portion 14B. The side member portion 14C extends in the front-to-rear direction of the vehicle and has a U-shaped cross section when viewed from the front of the vehicle that is open on the outer side in the vehicle width direction.

[0026] Crash boxes 22 are attached to the vehicle front side of the side member portion 14C, and the tip ends of the crash boxes 22 are connected to each other by a bumper reinforcement 24 that extends in the vehicle width direction.

[0027] On the other hand, the partition wall portion 16 extends in the vehicle vertical direction and width direction with its thickness direction being the vehicle front-rear direction, and is arranged along the front edge of the center part described above, separating the "vehicle interior 10A" from the "power unit room 10B." The partition wall portion 16 also connects the side components 14 together in the vehicle width direction. The partition wall portion 16 is provided with an impact absorbing portion 18.

[0028] As shown in Figure 4, the impact absorbing section 18 includes an upper wall section 18A that forms the upper part of the vehicle and a pair of side wall sections 18B that form the outer parts in the vehicle width direction, and extends from the partition section 16 to the lower front side of the vehicle.

[0029] In detail, the portion of the impact absorbing portion 18 that is in front of the boundary wall portion 18C that connects the side wall portions 18B at the center of the vehicle in the fore-and-aft direction is designated as the "front impact absorbing portion 18D," and the portion that is in the rear of the vehicle from the boundary wall portion 18C is designated as the "rear impact absorbing portion 18E."

[0030] The front impact absorbing portion 18D is a plate-like member that extends in the vehicle width direction, with its thickness aligned in the vehicle longitudinal direction, and is thinner than the boundary wall portion 18C. The front impact absorbing portion 18D includes a plurality of impact absorbing pieces 18D1 arranged at predetermined intervals in the vehicle longitudinal direction. The impact absorbing pieces 18D1 extend downward from the upper wall portion 18A toward the vehicle bottom.

[0031] On the other hand, the rear impact absorbing portion 18E includes, when viewed from the vehicle vertical direction, a plurality of "reinforcement ribs 18E1" extending in the vehicle front-rear direction, a "reinforcement rib 18E2" extending in the vehicle width direction, and a plurality of "reinforcement ribs 18E3" extending in a direction intersecting the reinforcing ribs 18E1 and 18E2. The reinforcing ribs 18E1, 18E2, and 18E3 are arranged to form a triangular closed cross section when viewed from the vehicle vertical direction. The rear impact absorbing portion 18E configured as described above has higher rigidity against a collision load from the front of the vehicle than the front impact absorbing portion 18D.

[0032] Returning to FIG. 1, a suspension member 26 is attached to the lower portion of the vehicle of the front part 12 configured as described above, and this suspension member 26 supports a "motor 28" from the underside of the vehicle.

[0033] More specifically, the motor 28 is capable of applying driving force to drive wheels (not shown) of the vehicle 10, and includes a motor case 30 that forms its outer shell. The motor case 30 includes a main body 30A that forms the main part of the motor case 30, a pair of rear mounting pieces 30B that extend from the main body 30A toward the upper rear of the vehicle, and a front mounting piece 30C that extends from the main body 30A toward the lower front of the vehicle.

[0034] More specifically, a support shaft 30B1 protrudes outward in the vehicle width direction from the tip end portion of the rear mounting piece 30B. This support shaft 30B is supported via a rear mount member 32 on the vehicle upper side of the wheel house portion 14B of the side constituent portion 14 and on the vehicle front side of the partition wall portion 16 so as to be rotatable around the vehicle width direction. Note that hereinafter, the assembly of the support shaft 30B and the rear mount member 32 will be referred to as the "rear mount portion 34."

[0035] 3, a through-hole 35 is formed in the tip end portion of the front mounting piece 30C, and a connecting pin 36 is inserted through this through-hole 35 in the vehicle width direction. Both ends of this connecting pin 36 are attached to a front mount member 38 provided on the vehicle front portion of the suspension member 26 via bolts 40 and nuts (not shown). Note that hereinafter, the assembly of the connecting pin 36 and the front mount member 38 will be referred to as the "front mount portion 42." Furthermore, the above-mentioned rear mount portion 34 is located rearward and above the front mount portion 42 when viewed in the vehicle width direction.

[0036] Specifically, a through-hole 44 is formed in the upper wall 38A constituting the upper portion of the front mount member 38, allowing the shank of the bolt 40 to be inserted in the vehicle up-down direction, and a portion of the periphery of the through-hole 44 on the vehicle rear side is open. A slit 46 is formed on the vehicle rear side of the through-hole 44, extending continuously with the through-hole 44 in the vehicle fore-and-aft direction and open on the vehicle rear side. The length (width) of the slit 46 in the vehicle width direction is set to a length that allows the shank of the bolt 40 to be inserted therethrough.

[0037] Furthermore, a pair of fuse portions 48 are provided adjacent to each other in the vehicle width direction at the boundary between the through portion 44 and the slit portion 46, i.e., on the vehicle rear side of the shank of the bolt 40. When viewed from the vehicle vertical direction, these fuse portions 48 are formed in the shape of a substantially triangular plate whose width decreases toward the center of the through portion 44 and the slit portion 46 in the vehicle width direction.

[0038] The fuse portion 48 is designed to undergo plastic deformation when a load of a predetermined value or greater is input from the bolt 40, and when the fuse portion 48 is plastically deformed, the bolt 40 is allowed to displace relative to the front mount member 38 toward the rear of the vehicle.

[0039] In other words, the front mount portion 42 can release the support state of the motor 28 when a load of a predetermined magnitude or greater is input from the front side of the vehicle.

[0040] (Actions and Effects of This Embodiment) Next, the operation and effects of this embodiment will be described.

[0041] 1, in this embodiment, a motor 28 is disposed at the front of the vehicle, and this motor 28 applies driving force to the drive wheels of the vehicle 10. The front part 12, which is a metal casting, has a partition wall 16 that forms a part of it, and this partition wall 16 separates the passenger compartment 10A from the power unit room 10B on the vehicle rear side of the motor 28.

[0042] However, when a collision load is input to the vehicle 10 from the front side of the vehicle, the motor 28 may receive this collision load and cause the motor 28 to enter the inside of the passenger compartment 10A, so it is preferable to be able to absorb the collision energy of the motor 28 before the motor 28 enters the inside of the passenger compartment 10A.

[0043] In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the front portion of the motor 28 is supported by the front mount 42 relative to the front part 12, and this front mount 42 is capable of releasing the support state of the motor 28 when a load of a predetermined magnitude or greater is input from the front of the vehicle.

[0044] On the other hand, the rear portion of the motor 28 is supported on the front part 12 by a rear mount portion 34, and this rear mount portion 34 is supported on the rear side of the front mount portion 42 and above the vehicle.

[0045] Therefore, in this embodiment, when a collision load of a predetermined magnitude or greater is input to the vehicle 10 from the front side of the vehicle, the motor 28 receives this collision load and rotates around the rear mount portion 34 when viewed from the vehicle width direction, moving toward the partition portion 16 of the front part 12.

[0046] An impact absorbing portion 18 is provided integrally with the partition wall portion 16 on the vehicle front side of the partition wall portion 16, and this impact absorbing portion 18 is deformed when a collision load of the motor 28 is input from the front side of the vehicle. As a result, in this embodiment, the collision energy of the motor 28 can be absorbed before the motor 28 enters the interior of the vehicle compartment 10A.

[0047] 4, the impact absorbing section 18 is configured to include a front impact absorbing section 18D and a rear impact absorbing section 18E. The front impact absorbing section 18D is provided with a plurality of impact absorbing pieces 18D1 whose thickness direction is the input direction of the collision load (anticipated input direction), and these impact absorbing pieces 18D1 are flexed and deformed when the collision load of the motor 28 is input from the front of the vehicle, thereby contributing to absorbing the collision load.

[0048] On the other hand, the rear impact absorbing portion 18E has a plurality of reinforcing ribs 18E1, 18E2, and 18E3 arranged so as to form a closed cross section when viewed from the vertical direction of the vehicle, and the rear impact absorbing portion 18E has higher rigidity against collision loads from the front of the vehicle than the front impact absorbing portion 18D.

[0049] For this reason, in this embodiment, the front portion of the impact absorbing section 18 is made more susceptible to deformation due to a collision load from the front of the vehicle, and the rear portion of the impact absorbing section 18 is made less susceptible to deformation due to a collision load from the front of the vehicle.As a result, it is possible to achieve both absorption of the collision load from the front of the vehicle and prevention of the motor 28 from entering the interior of the vehicle compartment 10A.

[0050] In this manner, in this embodiment, in the vehicle 10 in which the motor 28 is mounted on the front side of the vehicle, the collision energy of the motor 28 in the event of a frontal collision can be absorbed. [Explanation of symbols]

[0051] 10 vehicles 10A cabin 10B Power unit room 12 Front parts (body) 16 Bulkhead 18 Shock absorbing part 18D Front impact absorbing part 18D1 Impact absorbing piece 18E Rear impact absorbing section 18E1 Reinforcement rib 18E2 Reinforcement rib 18E3 Reinforcement rib 28 Motor 34 Rear mount 42 Front mount

Claims

1. a motor disposed at the front of the vehicle to apply driving force to the drive wheels; a partition wall portion that constitutes a part of the vehicle body and is a metal casting, and that separates a vehicle compartment from a power unit room at the vehicle rear side of the motor; a front mount portion that supports a front portion of the motor relative to the vehicle body and is capable of releasing the supported state of the motor when a load of a predetermined magnitude or greater is input from the front of the vehicle; a rear mount portion that supports a vehicle rear portion of the motor relative to the vehicle body on the vehicle rear side and vehicle upper side of the front mount portion; an impact absorbing portion that is provided integrally with the partition wall portion on a vehicle front side of the partition wall and that deforms when a collision load is input from the vehicle front side; Front body structure equipped with

2. The impact absorbing portion includes a front impact absorbing portion having a plurality of impact absorbing pieces whose plate thickness direction is the input direction of the collision load, and a rear impact absorbing portion in which a plurality of reinforcing ribs are arranged so as to form a closed cross section when viewed from the vehicle vertical direction. The vehicle front body structure according to claim 1 .

Citation Information

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