Vehicle front structure

Abstract

To guide travel wind when a vehicle normally travels from a duct to a radiator stably, and on the other hand, to make it possible to drain high pressure water quickly when the high pressure water flows into the duct.SOLUTION: A vehicle front structure is provided with a duct 5 which guides travel wind introduced from a grille opening 11 to first and second radiators 3 and 4, and is provided with a drain port 8 on a lateral wall of the duct 5 and an opening / closing member 9 for opening / closing the drain port 8. The opening / closing member 9 is urged in a closing direction by a spring 10 and is opened when the pressure of fluid flowing into the duct 5 is prescribed pressure or more.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

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

[0002] For example, Patent Document 1 describes a duct that is "located in front of the radiator and behind the front bumper cover, has a vertical wall facing the front side of the radiator, and forms a path behind the vertical wall that guides the running wind introduced through the grill opening to the radiator." [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-81237 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the above Patent Document 1, if there is only one grill opening connected to the duct and the front of the radiator is covered, water cannot escape from inside the duct when the vehicle is driving through a flooded road, which increases resistance at the front of the vehicle, raising concerns about reduced driving performance and increased load on parts located at the front of the vehicle.

[0005] In view of these circumstances, the present invention aims to provide a vehicle front structure that stably guides wind from a duct to a radiator during normal vehicle driving, while quickly draining high-pressure water when it flows into the duct. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The present invention is a vehicle front structure having a duct that guides the wind introduced from a grill opening to a radiator, wherein a drain outlet is provided in the side wall of the duct, and an opening / closing member is provided in the drain outlet for opening and closing the drain outlet, and the opening / closing member is biased in a closing direction by a spring and opens when the pressure of the fluid flowing into the duct is above a predetermined level.

[0007] The fluid may be air or water. With this configuration, when wind generated during normal vehicle driving flows into the duct, the open / close member keeps the drain outlet closed, so that the wind can be stably guided to the radiator.

[0008] On the other hand, when water with a higher pressure than the wind pressure during normal driving flows into the duct, such as when the vehicle is driving on a flooded road, the opening / closing member opens the drain outlet against the biasing force of the spring, so that the water is quickly discharged from the drain outlet to the outside of the duct. This reduces resistance at the front of the vehicle, making it possible to prevent a decrease in the driving performance of the vehicle and reduce the load on parts located at the front of the vehicle.

[0009] The drain outlet may be provided on the side wall of the duct near the inlet for the airflow generated by the vehicle running. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a vehicle front structure that stably guides the wind from the duct to the radiator during normal vehicle driving, while quickly draining high-pressure water when it flows into the duct. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of a vehicle front structure according to the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0013] An embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figure 1. In the figure, arrow F indicates the front direction of the vehicle, and arrow U indicates the upward direction of the vehicle.

[0014] The vehicle front structure in the illustration includes a bumper cover 1, a bumper reinforcement 2, a first radiator 3, a second radiator 4, a duct 5, a cooling fan 6, and the like.

[0015] Although not shown, the bumper cover 1 is attached to vehicle body structural members such as a radiator support and a fender panel, and a bumper reinforcement 2 is inserted inside the bumper cover 1 along the vehicle width direction. Although not shown, the bumper reinforcement 2 is fixed to the front ends of two side frames that extend in the front-rear direction on both the left and right sides of the vehicle.

[0016] A substantially cylindrical front grill opening 11 is formed on the lower side of the bumper cover 1. The lower end of the grill opening 11 is located below the lower end of the first radiator 3.

[0017] The grill opening 11 has a horizontally elongated, generally rectangular shape when viewed from the front, and has a plurality of fins 12 arranged inside the grill opening 11, each fin 12 extending in the width direction of the vehicle, arranged parallel to one another in the vertical direction of the vehicle.

[0018] The first radiator 3 cools at least one of the engine and the driving motor (not shown), and is fixed so that it is placed on a body structural member such as a cross member 7 behind the bumper cover 1.

[0019] A cooling fan 6 is provided behind the first radiator 3. The cooling fan 6 is driven by, for example, a motor or an engine (not shown), to direct airflow from in front of the first and second radiators 3, 4 to the rear of the first and second radiators 3, 4.

[0020] The second radiator 4 cools electrical components (such as an inverter) mounted on the vehicle (not shown), and is attached to the front side of the first radiator 3 via a bracket (not shown) or the like so that it is spaced apart and parallel to the first radiator 3.

[0021] The second radiator 4 is formed to have a size smaller than the first radiator 3 in height in the vertical direction, and its lower end is disposed slightly above the lower end of the first radiator 3.

[0022] Duct 5 guides the airflow flowing into grill opening 11 to first and second radiators 3 and 4 as indicated by the thick arrows.

[0023] The duct 5 is attached in front of the first radiator 3 between the bumper cover 1 and the first and second radiators 3, 4, and guides the wind flowing into the grill opening 11 of the bumper cover 1 to the first and second radiators 3, 4.

[0024] The duct 5 is made of, for example, resin and has a front opening 51 that is generally box-shaped and long in the vertical direction, and a rear opening 52 that is generally rectangular and tubular and long in the horizontal direction when viewed from the front. The grill opening 11 is connected to the front opening 51.

[0025] A vertical wall 53 of this duct 5 extending along the vehicle vertical direction is disposed in front of and spaced apart from the first and second radiators 3, 4. An upper portion 54 of the vertical wall 53 is an inclined surface that slopes linearly upward from the front to the rear of the vehicle. A lower portion 55 of the vertical wall 53 is an inclined surface that slopes curvedly upward from the front to the rear of the vehicle.

[0026] A drain outlet 8, an opening / closing member 9, a spring 10, etc. are provided on the side wall of the duct 5. The drain outlet 8 is provided near the inlet for the running wind on the side wall of the duct 5. The drain outlet 8 is formed in, for example, a rectangular shape.

[0027] The opening and closing member 9 opens and closes the drain outlet 8, and is set to a size that covers the drain outlet 8.

[0028] The spring 10 is, for example, a torsion spring, and normally biases the opening / closing member 9 in the closing direction.

[0029] The biasing force of spring 10 is set to be greater than the pressure of wind generated when the vehicle is normally running. Therefore, when wind flows into duct 5 from grill opening 11 as shown by the thick arrow during normal vehicle running, the wind heads toward first and second radiators 3 and 4 and collides with opening / closing member 9, but the pressure of the wind keeps opening / closing member 9 closed due to the biasing force of spring 10 in the closing direction.

[0030] This makes it possible to prevent a decrease in the effectiveness of the first and second radiators 3, 4 in cooling the objects to be cooled (the engine, the drive motor, and various electric components mounted on the vehicle).

[0031] However, when water flows into duct 5 from grill opening 11 as shown by the white arrow, such as when a vehicle is traveling through a flooded road, and the pressure of the wind generated during normal driving and the force of spring 10 in the closing direction are greater than that, the water collides with opening / closing member 9 on the upstream side of duct 5, pushing open opening / closing member 9 and opening drain outlet 8, causing the water to be discharged from drain outlet 8 to the outside of duct 5 as shown by the white arrow.

[0032] This reduces the resistance at the front of the vehicle, making it possible to prevent a decrease in the vehicle's driving performance and reduce the load on parts arranged at the front of the vehicle.

[0033] As described above, according to the embodiment to which the present invention is applied, when wind generated by running a vehicle during normal running flows into duct 5, the wind is stably guided to first and second radiators 3 and 4, thereby ensuring stable cooling performance by first and second radiators 3 and 4. On the other hand, when water with a higher pressure than the wind generated during normal running flows into duct 5, such as when the vehicle is running on a flooded road, the water is quickly discharged from drain outlet 8 to the outside of duct 5, thereby preventing a decrease in running performance of the vehicle and protecting parts arranged at the front of the vehicle.

[0034] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but can be modified as appropriate within the scope of the claims and the equivalents thereof.

[0035] (1) In the above embodiment, it is possible to configure the system without the second radiator 4.

[0036] (2) In the above embodiment, the shapes and installation locations of the drain outlet 8 and the opening / closing member 9 are not particularly limited. [Industrial Applicability]

[0037] The present invention can be suitably used in a vehicle front structure. [Explanation of symbols]

[0038] 1 bumper cover 11 Grill opening 12 Finn 2 Bumper reinforcement 3. First radiator 4 Second radiator 5 Duct 51 Front opening 52 Rear opening 53 Standing Wall 54 Top of the standing wall 55 Lower part of standing wall 6 Cooling Fan 7 Cross member 8 Drain 9 Opening and closing members 10 Spring

Claims

[Claim 1] A vehicle front structure having a duct that guides traveling wind introduced from a grill opening to a radiator, A vehicle front structure characterized in that a drain outlet is provided in a side wall of the duct, and the drain outlet is provided with an opening / closing member for opening and closing the drain outlet, the opening / closing member being biased in a closing direction by a spring and opening when the pressure of the fluid flowing into the duct is above a predetermined value.

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