Vehicle instrument panel structure

Abstract

To provide an instrument panel part structure for a vehicle, which can improve the appearance of an air blow-out port for air-conditioning and suppress a part of the air blow-out port for air-conditioning from becoming a projected part on an outer surface of an instrument panel part with a simple structure.SOLUTION: An instrument panel part structure A for a vehicle comprises: an instrument panel part 2 provided on a front part of a cabin 1; an article insertion part 3 provided in the instrument panel part 2 so that an opening 30 can open facing the cabin 1 side, having a recessed part 31 recessed from a forming place of the opening 30 to the vehicle front side, and provided with an article disposing region 31a in the recessed part 31; and an air blow-out port 4 for air-conditioning provided in the instrument panel part 2. At least a part of the air blow-out port 4 for air-conditioning is positioned in the recessed part 31 of the article insertion part 3.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an instrument panel structure for a vehicle such as an automobile. [Background technology]

[0002] Specific examples of the structure of a vehicle instrument panel include structures described in Patent Documents 1 and 2. In the structures described in these documents, an air outlet for air conditioning and a storage compartment are provided in an instrument panel located at the front of the vehicle interior. When items are placed in the storage compartment, the air blown out from the air outlet for air conditioning can be applied to the items. This makes it possible to cool or warm the items using the air blown out from the air conditioning, which is a rational solution.

[0003] However, the above-mentioned prior art has room for improvement, as will be described below.

[0004] That is, the air conditioning air outlet is almost entirely exposed on the outer surface of the instrument panel. Therefore, burrs on the air conditioning air outlet are clearly visible, resulting in an unattractive appearance. Furthermore, some of the components of the air conditioning air outlet (such as edges) may become protrusions on the outer surface of the instrument panel. The presence of such protrusions is undesirable from the perspective of protecting occupants in the event of a frontal collision. To minimize the occurrence of such protrusions, great care must be taken in the design and manufacture of the air conditioning air outlet, resulting in disadvantages in terms of manufacturing costs and productivity. Furthermore, in Patent Document 1, a predetermined opening and closing door is used as a structure for applying conditioned air to items placed in the storage section, which results in a complex overall structure, poor productivity, and high manufacturing costs. On the other hand, in Patent Document 2, an object is positioned in front of the air outlet for air conditioning, which allows for a simpler overall structure than Patent Document 1. However, in Patent Document 2, the air blown out from the air outlet for air conditioning may hit the object, disrupting the flow of the air, which may make it difficult to efficiently blow the air to the intended location. In addition, the appearance of an object positioned in front of the air outlet for air conditioning is not very attractive. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 07-186779 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2012-153222 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The present invention was devised in light of the above-mentioned circumstances, and its objective is to provide a vehicle instrument panel structure that can improve the appearance of the air conditioning air outlet and appropriately prevent part of the air conditioning air outlet from becoming a protrusion on the outer surface of the instrument panel with a simple configuration. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides the following technical solutions.

[0008] The vehicle instrument panel structure provided by the present invention includes an instrument panel provided at the front of a vehicle interior, a storage compartment provided in the instrument panel so that an opening faces the vehicle interior, the storage compartment having a recessed portion recessed from the opening toward the front of the vehicle, and an item placement area provided within the recessed portion, and a storage compartment provided in the instrument panel. and always open towards the rear of the vehicle. and an air outlet portion for air conditioning, wherein at least a portion of the air outlet portion for air conditioning is located within the recessed portion of the storage portion.

[0009] This configuration provides the following effects. At least a portion of the air outlet for the air conditioner is located within the recessed portion of the storage compartment, so that the entire air outlet for the air conditioner is not exposed on the outer surface of the instrument panel, and for example, burrs on the air outlet for the air conditioner are not noticeable, thereby improving the appearance. Furthermore, the portion of the air outlet for the air conditioner that is located in the recessed portion of the storage compartment is not directly exposed to the outer surface of the instrument panel. This reduces the risk that a part of the air outlet for the air conditioner (such as an edge) will become a protrusion on the outer surface of the instrument panel. As a result, it is possible to improve occupant protection in the event of a frontal collision. As mentioned in the Background Art section, in order to minimize the occurrence of such protrusions, great care must be taken in the design and manufacture of air-conditioning air outlets, but the present invention can reduce this need, which is advantageous in terms of manufacturing costs and productivity. Another important effect of the present invention is that when air is blown into the vehicle interior from the air outlet for air conditioning, a negative suction pressure caused by the air blown out acts on the item placement area in the recessed portion of the storage compartment, which allows the air present in the item placement area in the recessed portion to be exhausted into the vehicle interior, preventing hot air, for example, from building up in the item placement area.

[0010] In the present invention, preferably, the entire air outlet for air conditioning is located within the recessed portion of the storage portion.

[0011] This configuration thoroughly prevents the edges of the air conditioning outlet from being exposed on the outer surface of the instrument panel, which is advantageous in terms of improving the appearance and reducing the manufacturing costs of the instrument panel and the air conditioning outlet.

[0012] In the present invention, preferably, the air conditioning duct section for supplying conditioned air to the air conditioning air outlet section is arranged so that at least a portion of the duct section is close to the wall section that forms the item placement area, and a ventilation hole section is provided in the wall section that faces and is close to the air conditioning duct section, allowing the air surrounding the air conditioning duct section to flow into the item placement area within the recessed section.

[0013] This configuration provides the following effects. First, when air is blown out of the air conditioning air outlet into the vehicle interior, the air around the air conditioning duct flows into the item placement area in the recessed portion of the storage compartment through the ventilation holes, thereby promoting the replacement of air in the item placement area. Second, the air around the air conditioning duct is cooled (or Therefore, by allowing ambient air to flow into the area in the recess where the item is placed, the item can be cooled (or heated) using this ambient air.

[0014] Other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments of the invention, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic perspective view of a main portion showing an example of an instrument panel structure for a vehicle according to the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II of FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an item storage box used in the structure shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0016] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0017] The vehicle instrument panel structure A shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 includes an instrument panel 2 provided at the front of a vehicle interior 1, a storage compartment 3, and an air outlet 4 for air conditioning.

[0018] The instrument panel section 2 is configured using an instrument panel 20 made of resin or the like, but also includes other panels attached to the instrument panel 20. The instrument panel section 2 has a center cluster section C. The center cluster section C is located approximately in the center of the vehicle width direction and has a panel 21 (a part of the instrument panel 20 or a panel replacing the instrument panel 20) that is inclined or not and stands upright in the vertical direction.

[0019] The storage compartment 3 is a portion for storing desired items 9 such as a smartphone, and is provided in the center cluster portion C. This storage compartment 3 has an opening 30 facing the vehicle interior 1, and has a recessed portion 31 recessed toward the front of the vehicle from the formation of the opening 30. In other words, the recessed portion 31 is a portion recessed toward the front of the vehicle further than the panel 21 of the center cluster portion C.

[0020] The storage section 3 is configured using an item storage box B shown in Fig. 3. The item storage box B is configured by combining a box main body member 50, an upper cover member 51 (lightly shaded portion), and an attachment frame 52 (halftone dot pattern portion). The item storage box B has an upper wall 55a, left and right side walls 55b, a bottom wall 55c, and a rear wall 55d located at the rear of the front side of the vehicle, and these walls define an item placement area 31a as a recessed space surrounded by these. This item placement area 31a is a part of the recessed portion 31 of the storage section 3. An opening 53 communicating with the item placement area 31a is formed between an upper edge 52a and a lower edge 50a of the front portion (on the passenger compartment 1 side) of the item placement area 31a.

[0021] As shown in Fig. 2, a cordless smartphone charger 6 is installed on the bottom wall 55c. When a smartphone is inserted as an item 9 into the storage section 3 (in the recessed section 31), the smartphone is placed on the charger 6 and can be charged. An opening 56 for wiring the charger 6 is provided in the bottom wall 55c.

[0022] The item storage box B is positioned so that its opening 53 coincides with the opening 30 of the center cluster section C, and is attached to the rear side of the panel 21 of the center cluster section C (the front of the vehicle). The mounting frame 52 is attached to the left and right sides of the lower edge 50a of the box body member 50. This mounting is achieved by fastening and connecting the upper part of the mounting frame 52 and both left and right sides of the lower edge 50a of the box body member 50 to the mounting portions 70, 71 of the panel 21. Although a screw body 79 is used as this fastening and connecting means in the drawing, it is not limited to this and other fastening means such as an engaging clip may also be used.

[0023] As shown in Fig. 1, the air outlet 4 for air conditioning is arranged in two parts, for example, left and right, and is provided with vertical louvers 41 and horizontal louvers 42 as shown in Fig. 2. The air outlet 4 for air conditioning is configured using, for example, a short cylindrical housing member 40 that is inserted into and connected to the air conditioning duct 8. The terminal opening of the housing member 40 and its vicinity constitute the air outlet 4 for air conditioning. The air outlet 4 for air conditioning is attached so that its entirety is positioned within the recess 31 of the storage section 3. This attachment is achieved, for example, by fixedly connecting the upper part to the attachment portion 72 on the back side of the panel 21 and the lower part to the upper edge 52a of the item storage box B.

[0024] The air conditioning duct 8 is a duct for supplying conditioned air to the air conditioning air outlet 4, and at least a portion of it is disposed close to the upper wall 55a of the storage section 3 (item storage box B). At least one ventilation hole 57 is provided in the upper wall 55a at a location facing and close to the air conditioning duct 8, which allows the air around the air conditioning duct 8 to flow into the item placement area 31a in the recess 31. This ventilation hole 57 is preferably provided at the connection point between the top cover member 51 and the mounting frame 52 of the item storage box B in Fig. 3. More specifically, the portions forming the top wall portion 55a of the top cover member 51 and the mounting frame 52 are connected with one end thereof butted against each other, and a notched recess is formed in one or both of the one end portions. This notched recess serves as the ventilation hole 57. However, instead of this, a general through hole may be provided in an appropriate location on the top wall portion 55a, and this may serve as the ventilation hole 57.

[0025] Next, the operation of the above-described vehicle instrument panel structure A will be described.

[0026] The entire air outlet 4 for air conditioning is located within the recessed portion 31 of the storage portion 3. This prevents the air outlet 4 for air conditioning from being conspicuously exposed on the outer surface of the instrument panel portion 2, thereby improving the appearance. It is also possible to eliminate the risk that a part (such as an edge) of the air conditioning air outlet 4 will become a protrusion on the outer surface of the instrument panel 2. Although such a protrusion is not a particularly desirable part in terms of improving occupant protection performance in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle, this embodiment makes it possible to prevent such a protrusion from occurring. For this reason, there is less need to take care to minimize burrs when designing and manufacturing air outlets for air conditioning, which in turn increases productivity and reduces manufacturing costs.

[0027] When air is blown out from the air outlet 4 for air conditioning into the vehicle interior 1, a negative suction pressure caused by the air blowing acts on the item placement area 31a in the recessed portion 31 of the storage section 3. As a result, the air in the item placement area 31a flows through the opening 30 into the vehicle interior 1, eliminating stagnant air in the item placement area 31a. In particular, in this embodiment, since the ventilation holes 57 are provided, when air is being blown out from the air-conditioning air outlet 4, the air around the air-conditioning duct 8 flows into the item placement area 31a in the recessed portion 31 through the ventilation holes 57. This further promotes the replacement of air present in the item placement area 31a. In addition, the air around the air-conditioning duct 8 is in a cooled (or heated) state by the air-conditioning duct 8. For this reason, Therefore, by guiding the ambient air to the item placement area 31a, it becomes possible to use this ambient air to cool (or heat) the items 9.

[0028] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the specific configuration of each part of the vehicle instrument panel structure according to the present invention can be freely modified in various ways within the intended scope of the present invention.

[0029] In the above-described embodiment, the entire air outlet for the air conditioning is disposed within the recessed portion of the storage compartment, but the present invention is not limited to this. It is also possible to configure the air outlet for the air conditioning to be at least partially disposed within the recessed portion of the storage compartment. Furthermore, instead of being disposed at the top of the recessed portion of the storage compartment, the air outlet for air conditioning may be disposed, for example, at the side or bottom of the recessed portion of the storage compartment.

[0030] The storage section may be provided at a location different from the center cluster section. In the above-described embodiment, a wireless charger is attached, but instead, for example, a configuration is possible in which a smartphone being charged using a USB provided separately in the instrument panel can be placed in the recessed portion of the storage compartment. There is no limitation on the type of items that can be stored in the storage compartment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0031] A. Vehicle instrument panel structure 1 Cabin 2. Instrument panel 3 Storage area 30 Opening 31 Concave part 31a Article placement area 4 Air outlet for air conditioning 57 Ventilation hole 8 Air conditioning duct 9 Goods

Claims

1. an instrument panel provided at the front of the vehicle interior; a storage compartment provided in the instrument panel with an opening facing the passenger compartment, the storage compartment having a recessed portion recessed forward from the opening, the recessed portion having an item placement area; an air outlet for air conditioning that is provided in the instrument panel and always opens toward the rear of the vehicle; An instrument panel structure for a vehicle, comprising:

10. A vehicle instrument panel structure, comprising: an air conditioning air outlet portion disposed within the recessed portion of the storage portion;

2. 2. The vehicle instrument panel structure according to claim 1, An instrument panel structure for a vehicle, wherein the air conditioning air outlet is entirely located within the recessed portion of the storage compartment.

3. 3. The vehicle instrument panel structure according to claim 1, an air conditioning duct portion for supplying conditioned air to the air conditioning air outlet portion is provided so that at least a portion of the duct portion is located close to a wall portion that forms the item placement area, A structure of a vehicle instrument panel portion, wherein a ventilation hole portion is provided in a portion of the wall portion facing and approaching the air conditioning duct portion, allowing ambient air around the air conditioning duct portion to flow into the item placement area within the recessed portion.

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