Rear Door for Vehicle

Abstract

To secure rigidity of a ceiling part of a door main body, while suppressing an appearance at the inside of a vehicle interior of a back door from being impaired.SOLUTION: A vehicular back door comprises a door main body (5) formed of an inner panel (10) made of resin and an outer panel (50) made of resin which are jointed to each other. An upper part of the outer panel forms a ceiling part (7) of the door main body and constitutes a spoiler part (56) protruding rearward. A service hole (26) open toward a front-side position of a lamp unit attachment part (58) provided at a rear end portion of the spoiler part and a plurality of support ribs (28) whose tips are in contact with or are adjacent to an upper portion of the outer panel are arranged at a portion where the ceiling part of the door main body is formed in the inner panel. The support ribs are formed to extend in a longitudinal direction and stride across the service hole. The service hole is blocked with a cover member (84).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a back door for a vehicle.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a resin vehicle back door. In this back door, an outer panel having a flat portion and an inner panel having a shape-changing portion are bonded together. A void portion is formed between the flat portion of the outer panel and the shape-changing portion of the inner panel. A reinforcing plate is attached to the void portion side of the flat portion of the outer panel. On the void portion side of the shape-changing portion of the inner panel, ribs extending toward the reinforcing plate are provided.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the back door of Patent Document 1, when the flat portion of the outer panel deflects toward the void side, it seems that the reinforcing plate is supported by the ribs. However, since the ribs are protrusions extending in the vehicle width direction and protrude obliquely rearward upward, it is not satisfactory as a structure for restricting the flat portion of the outer panel from deflecting downward. Therefore, it is conceivable to strengthen the structure for restricting the deflection of the outer panel with the ribs by providing the ribs to extend in the front-rear direction and secure the rigidity of the ceiling portion of the door body. However, if the ribs are provided to extend in the front-rear direction, sink marks may occur on the surface of the inner panel, and the appearance on the vehicle interior side of the back door may be impaired.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to suppress the impairment of the appearance on the vehicle interior side of the back door while securing the rigidity of the ceiling portion of the door body.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] In order to achieve the above object, in the present invention, ribs for supporting the ceiling portion of the outer panel are provided so as to extend in the front-rear direction, and by using a service hole and a cover member for closing the service hole, the sink marks of the inner panel due to the ribs are reduced, and the ribs themselves are made difficult to be visually recognized.

[0007] Specifically, the first invention is directed to a vehicle rear door including a door body formed by joining a resin inner panel and a resin outer panel. In the vehicle rear door according to the first invention, the upper portion of the outer panel forms the ceiling portion of the door body and constitutes a spoiler portion protruding rearward, and a lamp unit mounting portion for mounting a high mount stop lamp unit is provided at the rear end portion of the spoiler portion. In the portion of the inner panel that forms the ceiling portion of the door body, a service hole opening toward a position in front of the lamp unit mounting portion and a plurality of support ribs whose tips abut or are close to the upper portion of the outer panel are provided. The support ribs are formed so as to extend in the front-rear direction and straddle the service hole. And the service hole is closed by a cover member.

[0008] The second invention is a vehicle rear door, in the vehicle rear door according to the first invention, a missing portion formed in a concave shape in which the tip is recessed from the upper portion of the outer panel is provided in an intermediate portion in the front-rear direction of the support rib.

Effect of the Invention

[0009] In the first invention, a plurality of support ribs are provided so as to extend in the front-rear direction in a portion of the inner panel that forms the ceiling portion of the door body. The tips of these support ribs abut or are close to the upper portion of the outer panel. By doing so, the downward deflection of the upper portion of the outer panel can be restricted by the plurality of support ribs. Further, the support ribs are formed so as to straddle the service hole. Thereby, the portion where sink marks are generated in the inner panel is reduced by providing the support ribs. And the service hole is closed by a cover member. The portion of the support rib straddling the service hole is concealed by the cover member from the vehicle interior side. Therefore, it is possible to ensure the rigidity of the ceiling portion of the door body while suppressing the deterioration of the appearance on the vehicle interior side of the back door.

[0010] In the second invention, a concave missing portion with a recessed tip is provided in the middle portion of the support rib in the front-rear direction. There is a possibility that sink marks may be generated in portions other than the service hole of the inner panel by providing the support ribs. In order to conceal this sink mark with the cover member, it is necessary to increase the width of the cover member in the front-rear direction. On the other hand, when a missing portion is provided in the support rib, the height of the support rib becomes lower at the portion where the missing portion of the support rib is provided, and the width of the base portion of the support rib can be narrowed. Thereby, since the generation of sink marks in the inner panel can be suppressed, it is not necessary to increase the width of the cover member in the front-rear direction. Further, the missing portion of the support rib can be used as a space for passing a harness connected to a tail lamp, a rear bumper, etc. in the left-right direction.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiments, for the sake of convenience of explanation, the front side in the vehicle front-rear direction is referred to as "front", the rear side as "rear", the left side in the vehicle width direction facing the vehicle front as "left", the right side as "right", the upper side in the vehicle height direction as "upper", and the lower side as "lower". Further, regarding the back door according to this embodiment, unless otherwise specified regarding the open / closed state, the description will be based on the posture with the back door opening at the rear of the vehicle closed.

[0013] The vehicle back door 1 of this embodiment is an up-and-down opening / closing type back door. This back door 1 opens and closes a back door opening provided at the rear of a hatchback vehicle by a rotational movement in the vertical direction. As shown in FIG. 1, the back door 1 mainly includes a door body 5 and a plurality of lamp units 90.

[0014] As shown in FIG. 2, the door body 5 has a ceiling portion 7. The ceiling portion 7 is a portion that constitutes the ceiling inside the vehicle in the door body 5. The ceiling portion 7 of the door body 5 is relatively long in the front-rear direction. The length Lc of the ceiling portion 7 in the front-rear direction is, for example, 300 mm or more and 450 mm or less (see FIG. 4). The door body 5 is formed by joining an inner panel 10, an outer panel 50, and a window panel 80.

[0015] The plurality of lamp units 90 include a high-mounted stop lamp unit 92 and a rear lamp unit 94. The rear lamp unit 94 includes a tail lamp and a rear bumper. In FIG. 1, for the sake of convenience, only the left rear lamp unit 94 of the rear lamp unit 94 is shown, but the back door 1 is provided with a pair of left and right rear lamp units 94.

[0016] 〈Inner Panel〉 The inner panel 10 is a single-piece resin panel. The inner panel 10 is formed, for example, by injection molding. The inner panel 10 is made of, for example, a thermoplastic resin containing a fiber reinforcing material. As the material of the inner panel 10, polypropylene with glass fiber (PP-GF: Polypropylene Glass Fiber), polypropylene with carbon fiber (PP-GF: Polypropylene Carbon Fiber), polypropylene with cellulose nanofiber (PP-CNF: Polypropylene Cellulose Nanofiber), etc. are used.

[0017] A window opening 12 is formed in the upper half of the inner panel 10. The window opening 12 is a substantially trapezoidal opening extending in the left-right direction. The portion of the inner panel 10 above the window opening 12 (hereinafter simply referred to as the upper portion) forms the ceiling portion 7 of the door body 5. The portions located on both the left and right sides of the window opening 12 of the inner panel 10 constitute concave pillar portions 14 that open rearward. The portion of the inner panel 10 below the window opening 12 (hereinafter simply referred to as the lower portion) constitutes the lower portion of the door body 5.

[0018] An inner standing wall 16 is provided at the peripheral edge portion of the window opening 12 in the inner panel 10. The inner standing wall 16 rises rearward toward the outer panel 50 side. An inner joint piece 18 is provided at the rear end of the inner standing wall 16. The inner joint piece 18 protrudes inward of the window opening 12. Further, an outer standing wall 20 is provided at the outer peripheral edge portion of the inner panel 10. The outer standing wall 20 rises rearward toward the outer panel 50 side. An outer joint piece 22 is provided at the rear end of the outer standing wall 20. The outer joint piece 22 protrudes to the outer peripheral side of the inner panel 10.

[0019] As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, a pair of hinge attachment portions 24 are provided at the rear end portion of the upper part of the inner panel 10. The pair of hinge attachment portions 24 are formed at positions spaced apart from each other on the left and right sides. A hinge component 100 connected to the vehicle body main body is fixed to the hinge attachment portion 24 from the front using a fastener 102 such as a bolt. The back door 1 is attached to the vehicle body main body via the pair of hinge components 100 so as to be openable and closable. A metal insert reinforcement 25 for reinforcing a portion including the hinge attachment portion 24 is provided at the upper part of the inner panel 10.

[0020] Furthermore, a service hole 26 and a plurality of support ribs 28 are provided at the upper part of the inner panel 10. The service hole 26 is an opening for work used for operations such as attaching and detaching the high mount stop lamp unit 92, connecting a harness to the high mount stop lamp unit 92, and maintenance work. The service hole 26 is closed from below by a cover member 84. Each of the plurality of support ribs 28 is a protrusion for supporting an upper panel 52 that constitutes the upper part of the outer panel 50.

[0021] A component attachment portion 30 to which a lamp for license plate illumination, a knob mechanism, etc. are attached is provided at a portion near the center above the lower part of the inner panel 10. A latch (not shown) is attached to an outer standing wall 20 that constitutes the lower edge portion of the lower part of the inner panel 10. This latch cooperates with a striker provided at the lower edge portion of the back door opening of the vehicle body main body to constitute a locking mechanism for locking the back door 1 in a closed state.

[0022] A reinforcement structure portion 32 for reinforcing the rigidity of the inner panel 10 is provided below the component attachment portion 30 at the lower part of the inner panel 10. A plurality of reinforcing ribs 34 protruding rearward are provided in the reinforcement structure portion 32. The reinforcement structure portion 32 has a portion formed in a convex shape that is recessed on the vehicle interior side (front side) and protrudes toward the outer panel 50 side (rear side). A recess or the like formed on the front side of the reinforcement structure portion 32 in the inner panel 10 is closed from the front by a cover member 86.

[0023] <Outer panel> The outer panel 50 is divided into two parts vertically. The outer panel 50 is composed of an upper panel 52 and a lower panel 54. These upper panel 52 and lower panel 54 are each a resin panel. The upper panel 52 and the lower panel 54 are formed by, for example, injection molding. As the material of the upper panel 52 and the lower panel 54, polypropylene with talc (PP-T: Polypropylene Talc), or a synthetic resin mixed with ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM: Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer) is used.

[0024] As shown in FIG. 4, the upper panel 52 faces the upper part of the inner panel 10. The upper panel 52 corresponds to the upper part of the outer panel 50. The upper panel 52 forms the ceiling part 7 of the door body 5 and constitutes a spoiler part 56 protruding rearward. A lamp unit mounting part 58 is provided at the rear end part of the spoiler part 56. A high mount stop lamp unit 92 is mounted on the lamp unit mounting part 58. The upper panel 52 includes an upper panel part 60, a pair of side panel parts 62, and a lower panel part 64.

[0025] The upper panel part 60 extends in the front-rear, left-right directions and constitutes the outer wall of the ceiling part 7. The rear side part of the upper panel part 60 forms the upper side part of the spoiler part 56. The pair of side panel parts 62 constitute parts that extend downward at both ends in the left-right direction of the upper panel 52. The side panel part 62 is formed in a substantially triangular shape in side view. The side panel parts 62 are located on both the left and right sides of the space existing below the spoiler part 56. The lower panel part 64 extends in the front-rear, left-right directions and forms the lower side part of the spoiler part 56. The front part of the lower panel part 64 is folded back obliquely rearward downward to constitute an upper joining piece 66.

[0026] As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the outer edge portion of the upper panel 52 is joined to the inner panel 10 using an adhesive 75. Specifically, the front edge portion of the upper panel portion 60 and the front edge portions of the respective side panel portions 62 are adhered to the outer joining piece 22 of the inner panel 10. The upper joining piece 66 that constitutes the lower edge portion of the upper panel 52 is adhered to the inner joining piece 18 of the inner panel 10. An internal space S is formed between the upper panel 52 and the inner panel 10 joined in this way.

[0027] The lower panel 54 faces the portion below the window opening 12 of the inner panel 10. Lamp unit mounting portions 68 are provided on both the left and right sides of the lower panel 54. A rear lamp unit 94 is attached to the lamp unit mounting portion 68. For example, the rear lamp unit 94 is fastened together at a plurality of locations from the front using fasteners 96 such as nuts with respect to the outer joining piece 22 of the inner panel 10 and the lower panel 54.

[0028] A plate mounting portion 70 is provided at the central portion of the lower panel 54. A license plate (number plate) (not shown) is attached to the plate mounting portion 70. A lower joining piece 72 is provided at the upper edge portion of the lower panel 54. The lower joining piece 72 is positioned forward via a stepped portion extending in the front-rear direction. This lower joining piece 72 extends over the entire width in the left-right direction of the upper edge portion of the lower panel 54.

[0029] The outer edge portion of the lower panel 54 is joined to the inner panel 10 using an adhesive 75. Specifically, the lower joining piece 72 that constitutes the upper edge portion of the lower panel 54 is adhered to the inner joining piece 18 of the inner panel 10. The left and right edge portions and the lower edge portion of the lower panel 54 are adhered to the outer joining piece 22 of the inner panel 10. An internal space S is formed between the lower panel 54 and the inner panel 10 joined in this way.

[0030] The window panel 80 is a horizontally long panel that extends across both left and right ends of the back door 1. The window panel 80 is disposed between the upper panel 52 and the lower panel 54 to close the window opening 12 of the inner panel 10 and cover the opening of the pillar portion 14 of the inner panel 10. The window panel 80 is made of a transparent resin such as polycarbonate (PC) or glass. Although not shown, a concealment layer made of black ceramics or the like is provided on the outer peripheral portion of the window panel 80 to conceal the joint portion with the outer panel 50.

[0031] The outer edge portion of the window panel 80 is joined to the outer panel 50 and the inner panel 10 using an adhesive 76. Specifically, the upper edge portion of the window panel 80 is adhered to the upper joint piece 66 of the upper panel 52. The lower edge portion of the window panel 80 is adhered to the lower joint piece 72 of the lower panel 54. The left and right edge portions of the window panel 80 are adhered to the outer joint piece 22 between the upper panel 52 and the lower panel 54 in the inner panel 10. An internal space S is formed between the window panel 80 joined in this way and the pillar portion 14 of the inner panel 10.

[0032] <Upper part of the inner panel> As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the inner standing wall 16 provided at the upper part of the inner panel 10 extends in the front, rear, left, and right directions and is formed with the thickness direction corresponding to the up and down. The service hole 26 is formed in the central portion in the left - right direction of the inner standing wall 16. The service hole 26 opens toward the front position of the lamp unit mounting portion 58. The peripheral portion of the service hole 26 in the inner panel 10 is recessed upward. The cover member 84 is fitted into the recess 36 of the peripheral portion of the service hole 26 to close the service hole 26.

[0033] The plurality of support ribs 28 each linearly extend in the front-rear direction and are provided at intervals from each other in the left-right direction. The tips of these support ribs 28 are in contact with or close to the upper panel 52 as shown in FIG. 6. When the upper panel 52 deflects downward, it is supported by contacting the support ribs 28. By this, the downward deflection of the upper panel 52 is restricted. Some (three in this example) of the plurality of support ribs 28 located in the middle in the left-right direction are formed so as to straddle the service hole 26. The service hole 26 is partitioned by the support ribs 28.

[0034] The support ribs 28 are also formed on the edges on both the left and right sides of the service hole 26. Each support rib 28 formed on the edges on both the left and right sides of the service hole 26 corresponds to the recess 74 in the peripheral portion of the service hole 26 and is in a positional relationship of overlapping with the cover member 84. A missing portion 38 is provided in the middle portion in the front-rear direction of each support rib 28 located at the location corresponding to the service hole 26 and at the edge of the service hole 26. The missing portion 38 is formed in a concave shape that is recessed so that the tip is separated downward from the upper panel 52.

[0035] The front portion of the service hole 26 in the inner panel 10 corresponds to the missing portion 38 in the die-cutting direction Dm (in this example, an oblique direction from the front lower side to the rear upper side) when the inner panel 10 is molded. Reinforcing ribs 40 are provided on both sides of the missing portion 38 of each support rib 28. The reinforcing ribs 40 project to both the left and right sides of the support rib 28 and extend in the die-cutting direction Dm when the inner panel 10 is molded over the entire height direction of the support rib 28. The lower end portion of the front reinforcing rib 40 is connected to the bent portion of the inner panel 10. The lower end portion of the rear reinforcing rib 40 corresponds to the service hole 26 or the edge of the service hole 26.

[0036] In the internal space S between the above-described outer panel 50 and window panel 80 and the inner panel 10, a harness 98 for supplying power to a lamp unit 90 such as a high-mount stop lamp unit 92 and a rear lamp unit 94 is laid. The harness 98 is drawn into the internal space S through a grommet 44 from an opening 42 formed in the outer vertical wall 20 at the upper part of the inner panel 10. The harness 98 is extended in the left-right direction through the missing portion 38 of the support rib 28 at the upper part of the inner panel 10.

[0037] -Features of the Embodiment- In the back door 1 of this embodiment, a plurality of support ribs 28 are provided so as to extend in the front-rear direction in a portion forming the ceiling portion 7 of the door body 5 in the inner panel 10. The tips of these respective support ribs 28 are in contact with or close to the upper panel 52. By this, it is possible to restrict the upper panel 52 from deflecting downward by the plurality of support ribs 28. Further, the support rib 28 is formed so as to straddle the service hole 26. Thereby, by providing the support rib 28, the portion where sink marks are generated in the inner panel 10 is reduced. And the service hole 26 is closed by a cover member 84. The portion of the support rib 28 straddling the service hole 26 is concealed by the cover member 84 from the vehicle interior side. Therefore, it is possible to ensure the rigidity of the ceiling portion 7 of the door body 5 while suppressing the appearance on the vehicle interior side of the back door 1 from being impaired.

[0038] In the back door 1 of this embodiment, a concave missing portion 38 with a recessed tip is provided at an intermediate portion in the front-rear direction of the support rib 28. There is a possibility of sink marks occurring in portions of the inner panel 10 other than the service hole 26 by providing the support rib 28. In order to conceal these sink marks with the cover member 84, it is necessary to increase the width of the cover member 84 in the front-rear direction. On the other hand, when the missing portion 38 is provided in the support rib 28, the height of the support rib 28 becomes lower at the portion where the missing portion 38 of the support rib 28 is provided, and the width of the base portion of the support rib 28 can be narrowed. As a result, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of sink marks in the inner panel 10, so that it is not necessary to increase the width of the cover member 84 in the front-rear direction. Further, the missing portion 38 of the support rib 28 can be used as a space for passing a harness 98 connected to a tail lamp, a rear bumper, or the like in the left-right direction.

[0039] In the back door 1 of this embodiment, the lower end portion of the front reinforcing rib 40 is connected to the bent portion of the inner panel 10. According to this, even if sink marks occur in the inner panel 10 by providing the front reinforcing rib 40, it can be made less conspicuous. Further, the lower end portion of the rear reinforcing rib 40 corresponds to the service hole 26 or the edge portion of the service hole 26. According to this, it is possible to prevent sink marks from occurring by providing the rear reinforcing rib 40.

[0040] As described above, as an example of the present invention, preferred embodiments have been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and is also applicable to embodiments in which changes, replacements, additions, omissions, etc. are appropriately made. It is understood by those skilled in the art that the above-described embodiments are examples, and that various further modifications are possible for each of their constituent elements, and that such modifications also belong to the scope of the present invention.

[0041] For example, the above embodiment may have the following configuration.

[0042] In the above embodiment, the mode in which the support rib 28 is provided on the front side of the spoiler portion 56 has been described with reference to FIG. 4, but it is not limited to this. The support rib 28 may be provided so as to enter inside the spoiler portion 56.

[0043] In the above embodiment, it is assumed that the missing portion 38 is formed in the support rib 28, but it is not limited thereto. The missing portion 38 may not be formed in the support rib 28, and the upper edge of the support rib 28 may be in contact with or close to the lower surface of the upper panel 52 over the entire front-rear direction.

[0044] In the above embodiment, it is assumed that the outer panel 50 is composed of two divided bodies, the upper panel 52 and the lower panel 54, but it is not limited thereto. The outer panel 50 may be composed of a single panel.

Industrial Applicability

[0045] As described above, the present invention is useful for vehicle back doors.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0046] 1 Back door 5 Door body 7 Ceiling part 10 Inner panel 26 Service hole 28 Support rib 38 Missing portion 50 Outer panel 56 Spoiler part 58 Lamp unit mounting part 84 Cover member 92 High mount stop lamp unit

Claims

1. A vehicle back door comprising a door body (5) formed by joining a resin inner panel (10) and a resin outer panel (50), wherein the upper part of the outer panel (50) forms a ceiling part (7) of the door body (5) and constitutes a spoiler part (56) protruding rearward, and a lamp unit mounting part (58) for mounting a high mount stop lamp unit (92) is provided at the rear end part of the spoiler part (56), wherein a service hole (26) opening toward a position in front of the lamp unit mounting part (58) and a plurality of support ribs (28) whose tips are in contact with or close to the upper part of the outer panel (50) are provided in a part of the inner panel (10) that forms the ceiling part (7) of the door body (5), wherein the support ribs (28) are formed to extend in the front-rear direction and straddle the service hole (26), wherein the service hole (26) is closed by a cover member (84) characterizing the vehicle back door.

2. In the vehicle back door according to Claim 1, a missing part (38) formed in a concave shape recessed so that the tip is separated from the upper part of the outer panel (50) is provided in an intermediate part of the support rib (28) in the front-rear direction characterizing the vehicle back door.

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