Vehicle side structure

Abstract

To achieve both of the shape holding performance of a front fender and impact alleviation on a pedestrian upon pedestrian impact.SOLUTION: A vehicle side part structure includes: a skeleton member 2 of a vehicle extending in a vehicle longitudinal direction; and a fender panel 4 provided on the outside of the skeleton member 2 in the vehicle width direction. Between the skeleton member 2 and the top of the fender panel 4, a fender reinforcement 5 is provided. The fender reinforcement 5 is formed from a plate of a shape running along the face shape of the top of the fender panel 4. In an area nearer to the top than the middle of the fender reinforcement 5, an opening 6 is provided. In an area below the opening 6, a bead 7 is provided to extend in the vehicle longitudinal direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

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

[0002] For example, in Patent Document 1, a reinforcing member is provided on the inside of a front fender to improve the rigidity of the front fender.

[0003] The reinforcing member is formed in a band shape and is bonded with an adhesive in a vertically intermediate position of the front fender so as to be aligned along the vehicle front-rear direction.

[0004] The reinforcing member has an upper edge and a lower edge, each of which has a plurality of enlarged portions spaced apart from one another in the front-to-rear direction, the enlarged portions being slightly enlarged in width from top to bottom.

[0005] In addition, a lamp corresponding portion is provided at the front edge of the front fender, into which a headlamp unit is fitted. The presence of this lamp corresponding portion reduces the strength of the periphery of the lamp corresponding portion, so a reinforcement is welded and joined to the periphery of the lamp corresponding portion to increase its strength.

[0006] The reinforcement has a front end, an upper edge, and a lower edge of the reinforcing member overlapped with each other, and the overlapping portions are spot welded to the reinforcement. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5146039 (JP 2009-227188 A) Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] In the above Patent Document 1, since the front fender is strengthened by the reinforcement and the reinforcing member, it can be said that the structure is not designed to reduce the impact on a pedestrian when the pedestrian collides with the front fender.

[0009] In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle side structure that is capable of achieving both shape retention performance of a front fender and mitigating impact on a pedestrian in the event of a collision with the pedestrian. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] The present invention relates to a vehicle side structure including a vehicle skeleton member extending in a vehicle front-rear direction and a fender panel provided on the outer side of the skeleton member in a vehicle width direction, and a fender reinforcement is provided between the skeleton member and an upper portion of the fender panel, and the fender reinforcement is formed of a plate material having a shape that follows the surface shape of the upper portion of the fender panel, and an opening is provided in an area above the middle of the fender reinforcement, and the opening When viewed from the side, the opening is shaped like an isosceles triangle with the apex angle at the top and the base at the bottom. In the area below, the bead is In a strip Extend At the same time, it bulges outward toward the outside of the vehicle body. The feature of this system is that it is set up as follows.

[0011] According to this configuration, the provision of the bead in the fender reinforcement improves the rigidity of the fender reinforcement, improving the performance of the fender reinforcement in suppressing deformation of the shape of the upper part of the fender panel. In other words, the performance of the fender reinforcement in maintaining the shape of the upper part of the fender panel is improved.

[0012] In the event that a pedestrian's head collides with the upper part of the fender panel, the presence of the fender reinforcement between the upper part of the fender panel and the framework member prevents the pedestrian's head from directly colliding with the framework member. Moreover, the presence of the opening makes the fender reinforcement more likely to crush, making it possible to absorb and reduce the collision energy input to the pedestrian's head.

[0013] For these reasons, it is possible to achieve both the shape retention performance of the fender panel and the mitigation of impact on a pedestrian in the event of a collision with the pedestrian.

[0015] According to this configuration, the bead is disposed below the bottom side of the opening in the fender reinforcement.

[0016] As a result, when an impact is applied to the opening and its periphery in the fender reinforcement, the periphery of the base of the opening in the fender reinforcement is less likely to deform, and the periphery of the isosceles is more likely to deform.

[0017] In other words, according to the above configuration, the fender reinforcement specifies a portion that is likely to deform, which is advantageous in mitigating the impact on a pedestrian in the event of a collision with the pedestrian. Effect of the Invention

[0018] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a vehicle side structure that is capable of achieving both the shape retention performance of a front fender and the mitigation of impact on a pedestrian in the event of a collision with the pedestrian. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0019] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a vehicle side structure according to the present invention; [Diagram 2] 1 is a vertical cross-section of a vehicle side structure taken at a specific position, viewed from the front to the rear of the vehicle. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0020] 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.

[0021] An embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figures 1 and 2. In the figures, Up indicates the upward direction of the vehicle, Rr indicates the rearward direction of the vehicle, and Rh indicates the rightward direction of the vehicle.

[0022] In the drawings, 1 denotes a vehicle body, 2 denotes an apron upper member inner, 3 denotes an apron upper member outer, and 4 denotes a front fender panel. The apron upper member inner 2 and the apron upper member outer 3 correspond to the "framework member" described in the claims.

[0023] A fender reinforcement 5 is provided between the apron upper member inner 2 and the upper part of the fender panel 4.

[0024] The surface shape of the region of the upper part of the fender panel 4 that is connected to an A-pillar (not shown) of the vehicle body 1 is formed into an outwardly protruding curved surface, as shown in FIG.

[0025] As shown in FIG. 2, the fender reinforcement 5 is formed on the upper part of the fender panel 4 from a plate material (such as a metal plate) having a shape that fits along the convex curved surface.

[0026] A flat portion 5a is provided on an upper portion of the fender reinforcement 5. The flat portion 5a is provided for positioning the fender reinforcement 5 with respect to the fender panel 4.

[0027] Specifically, although not shown in detail, the flat portion 5a of the fender reinforcement 5 is attached to the fender panel 4 via an adhesive (not shown, such as mastic) and then fixed using, for example, spot welding and fastening members (such as bolts and nuts).

[0028] Furthermore, although not shown in detail, several other locations 5b, 5c of the flat portion 5a of the fender reinforcement 5 are also fixed to the fender panel 4 using, for example, spot welding or fastening members (bolts, nuts, etc.).

[0029] Furthermore, an opening 6 is provided in the middle region of the fender reinforcement 5. When viewed from the side, this opening 6 has a shape like an isosceles triangle with its apex angle facing up and its base facing down.

[0030] Furthermore, a bead 7 is provided in the fender reinforcement 5 in a region below the bottom side of the opening 6.

[0031] The bead 7 bulges outward from the vehicle body 1 and is formed in a band-like shape extending in the front-rear direction of the vehicle.

[0032] As described above, according to the embodiment to which the present invention is applied, the provision of the bead 7 in the fender reinforcement 5 improves the rigidity of the fender reinforcement 5, thereby improving the performance of the fender reinforcement 5 in suppressing deformation of the shape of the upper part of the fender panel 4. In other words, the performance of maintaining the shape of the upper part of the fender panel 4 is improved.

[0033] And, even if a pedestrian's head were to collide with the upper part of the fender panel 4, the presence of the fender reinforcement 5 between the upper part of the fender panel 4 and the apron upper member inner 2 (framework member) prevents the pedestrian's head from directly colliding with the apron upper member inner 2. Moreover, the presence of the openings 6 makes the fender reinforcement 5 more likely to crush, so that it is possible to absorb and reduce the collision energy input to the pedestrian's head.

[0034] For these reasons, it is possible to achieve both the shape retention performance of the fender panel 4 and the mitigation of the impact on the pedestrian in the event of a collision with the pedestrian.

[0035] Here, if a pedestrian's head collides with the upper part of fender panel 4 in a configuration that does not have fender reinforcement 5, the upper part of fender panel 4 will crush more easily than in a configuration that has fender reinforcement 5 as in the present embodiment described above, and the pedestrian's head will likely collide directly with apron upper member inner panel 2, raising concerns that damage to the pedestrian's head may be sustained.

[0036] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be modified as appropriate within the scope of the claims and a range equivalent to the claims.

[0037] In the above embodiment, the shapes of the opening 6 and the bead 7 are not particularly limited, and although not shown, for example, appropriate modifications can be made. [Industrial Applicability]

[0038] The present invention can be suitably used in a vehicle side structure. [Explanation of symbols]

[0039] 1. Vehicle body 2 Apron upper inner 3 Apron upper member outer 4 Fender Panel 5 Fender reinforcement 5a Flat area 5b,5c Fixing points 6 aperture 7 Bead

Claims

[Claim 1] A vehicle side structure including a vehicle frame member extending in a vehicle front-rear direction and a fender panel provided on an outer side of the frame member in a vehicle width direction, A fender reinforcement is provided between the framework member and an upper portion of the fender panel, This fender reinforcement is formed of a plate material shaped to fit the surface shape of the upper part of the fender panel, An opening is provided in an area above the center of the fender reinforcement, When viewed from the side, the opening is shaped like an isosceles triangle with the apex angle at the top and the base at the bottom, A vehicle side structure, characterized in that a bead is provided in a region below the opening, extending in a band shape in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle and bulging outwardly toward the outside of the vehicle body.

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