Vehicle structure

Abstract

To provide a vehicle structure capable of achieving high vehicle body strength and excellent load resistance during a front collision of the vehicle with a simple configuration, even when there is provided a pair of backward divergent inclination parts at a pair of left and right front side members.SOLUTION: A vehicle structure A includes a cross member 6 extending in a vehicle width direction constructed by bridge-connecting front end parts 35a of backward divergent inclination parts 35 of a pair of left and right front side members 3 with each other and by crossing a front tunnel part 12 and a pair of reinforcement main body parts 13a. A front extension part 13b of each tunnel reinforcement 13, a front-side region of the reinforcement main body part 13a, a vehicle width direction outer end-side region 6b of the cross member 6 and a part of each front side member 3 form a frame shape in a vehicle bottom surface view and are constituted as a frame-like structure B where they are connected with each other directly or indirectly.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle structure such as an automobile.

Background Art

[0002] As an example of a vehicle structure, there is one described in Patent Document 1. The vehicle structure described in the same document includes a pair of front side members as skeletal members at the front of the vehicle. These pair of front side members are arranged at intervals in the vehicle width direction at the lower part of the vehicle and extend in the vehicle front-rear direction. On the other hand, a floor tunnel portion is provided at substantially the center in the vehicle width direction of the floor portion of the vehicle. As a means for reinforcing this floor tunnel portion, a tunnel reinforcement (inner torque member) is provided. This tunnel reinforcement is provided with a reinforcement main body portion extending in the vehicle front-rear direction along the base portion of the floor tunnel portion, and a front side extension portion that bends or curves outward in the vehicle width direction from the front portion of this reinforcement main body portion and has one end joined to the front side member. This front side extension portion corresponds to a so-called inner torque box, and the presence of this front side extension portion further enhances the vehicle body strength.

[0003] However, in the above prior art, as described below, there is still room for improvement.

[0004] That is, for example, when the vehicle is a hybrid vehicle or a battery electric vehicle, a means of mounting a relatively large-sized battery on the floor portion (front floor portion) is often adopted. In this case, it is desirable to arrange the pair of front side members on the outer side in the vehicle width direction than the battery. As a means for that, a pair of rearward widening inclined portions inclined in a plan view so as to be located more outward in the vehicle width direction toward the rear side of the vehicle are provided on the pair of front side members, and these pair of rearward widening inclined portions are arranged on the outer side in the vehicle width direction (both left and right sides) of the battery. However, adopting this method makes it impossible to have the front side member and the tunnel reinforcement extend in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle at approximately the same distance, resulting in a large distance between the rearward-flaring inclined section and the tunnel reinforcement in the vehicle width direction. Furthermore, the front end of the rearward-flaring inclined section is bent in plan view and acts as a rigid point of failure. Therefore, when a large load is applied to the front side member from the front of the vehicle, the front side member is prone to bending deformation starting from this front end. As a result, there is a risk of a decrease in vehicle body strength. Furthermore, the floor tunnel and tunnel reinforcement can only be installed on the front side of the vehicle, beyond the battery mounting location, thus reducing their size. As a result, the vehicle's structural strength will decrease even further. This will worsen the vehicle's load-bearing capacity (impact resistance) in the event of a frontal collision. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2021-88270 [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0006] The present invention was conceived under the circumstances described above, and even when a pair of rearward-flaring inclined portions are provided on a pair of left and right front side members, it is possible to increase the strength of the vehicle body with a simple configuration and provide excellent load-bearing capacity in the event of a frontal collision. The challenge is to provide construction services. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] To solve the above problems, the present invention employs the following technical measures.

[0008] The vehicle structure provided by the present invention comprises, at the front of the vehicle, a pair of left and right front side members extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle at a distance from each other in the vehicle width direction, a floor portion disposed above the pair of front side members and forming a floor tunnel, a pair of reinforcement body portions extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle along the floor tunnel portion at a distance from each other in the vehicle width direction, and a pair of left and right tunnel reinforcements having a pair of front extension portions that are bent or curved outward in the vehicle width direction from the front of the pair of reinforcement body portions and joined to the pair of front side members, wherein, at a position on the vehicle rearward side of the pair of front side members from the joint with the pair of front extension portions, a pair of rearward-flaring inclined portions are provided, the rearward-flaring portions being located further outward in the vehicle width direction towards the rear of the vehicle, and the front ends of the pair of rearward-flaring inclined portions are bridged and connected, and the floor tunnel portion Lower opening region and the pair of reinforcement body parts In both the view from below and the view from the front and rear of the vehicle, it should cross in a straight line. In the width direction of the vehicle straight extension The floor section is joined in the above configuration. The vehicle is further equipped with cross members, and the front extension portion of each tunnel reinforcement, the front region of the reinforcement body, the region of the cross member near the outer end in the vehicle width direction, and a part of each front side member are characterized in that they form a frame shape when viewed from the bottom of the vehicle and are configured as frame-shaped structural parts that are directly or indirectly joined to each other.

[0009] This configuration yields the following effects: A frame-like structure is provided adjacent to the rearward-spreading inclined portion of a pair of front side members on the vehicle's front side. This frame-like structure is a highly rigid part constructed using the front extension of each tunnel reinforcement, the front region of the reinforcement body, the region of a predetermined cross member near the outer end in the vehicle width direction, and a portion of each front side member. Therefore, in the event of a vehicle collision and a collision load being applied from the front of the vehicle, this collision load can be accurately received at the location of the frame-like structure, and the load application to the rearward-spreading inclined portion of the vehicle (such as the rearward-spreading inclined portion of the front side members) can be suppressed. Furthermore, since the front ends of the pair of rearward-spreading inclined portions are connected by a cross member, the front side members are also appropriately prevented from easily and significantly bending from the front ends. As a result, it is possible to improve the load-bearing capacity (impact resistance) in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle, and to prevent large deformations from occurring in the area where the rearward-spreading inclined portion of the front side member is provided and in the surrounding area. The present invention is ideal for situations where a power storage device, such as a battery, is mounted on the floor, and it is necessary to prevent collision load input to this power storage device and protect the power storage device. Furthermore, in this invention, a cross member is used as a means of reinforcing the front side member. Since this cross member extends in the vehicle width direction so as to cross the floor tunnel section and the reinforcement body section of the tunnel reinforcement, the floor tunnel section is also effectively reinforced. Therefore, the load-bearing capacity of the vehicle can be improved.

[0010] Other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the description of embodiments of the invention given below with reference to the accompanying drawings. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] [Figure 1] This is a side cross-sectional view of a main part showing an example of a vehicle structure according to the present invention. [Figure 2] Figure 1 is a schematic plan view of the main parts. [Figure 3] It is a schematic bottom view of the main part of FIG. 1. [Figure 4] It is a schematic bottom view of the main part in a state where the suspension member is removed from the vehicle structure shown in FIG. 3. [Figure 5] It is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line V-V of FIG. 2. [Figure 6] It is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line VI-VI of FIG. 2. [Figure 7] It is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line VII-VII of FIG. 2. [Figure 8] It is a schematic cross-sectional view showing another example of the vehicle structure.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.

[0013] The vehicle structure A shown in FIGS. 1 to 7 includes a pair of left and right front side members 3 (in FIGS. 3 and 4, the portion with a dot pattern) as skeletal members at the front of the vehicle 1, a suspension member 4 as a component of the front suspension that suspends the front wheels 19, a floor portion 11 in which a floor tunnel portion 12 is formed, a pair of left and right tunnel reinforcements 13 (in FIG. 4, the lightly shaded portion), a cross member 6, additional cross members 7A, 7B, and a battery 8. Further, a pair of left and right frame-like structures B are also provided. Note that the additional cross members 7A, 7B do not correspond to the cross member in claim 1 of the present application.

[0014] A pair of front side members 3 extend in the vehicle front-rear direction at intervals from each other in the vehicle width direction at the lower part of the front portion of the vehicle 1. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, each front side member 3 is configured by using, for example, a member having a hat-shaped cross section, and is welded to the lower surface portion of the floor portion 11 at the location where the floor portion 11 of the vehicle 1 is provided. An upper member 90 may be provided on the upper surface side of the floor portion 11 as shown by phantom lines in FIGS. 5 and 6 to reinforce the location where the front side member 3 is provided. This upper member 90 overlaps on the front side member 3 with the floor portion 11 interposed therebetween and is welded. In addition, in the present embodiment, similar to the front side member 3 described above, the upper member 90, the cross member 6, and the additional cross members 7A and 7B are all configured by using members having a hat-shaped cross section. However, the present invention is not limited to this.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 1, each front side member 3 has a front rising slope portion 30 that extends from the front portion of the floor portion 11 toward the vehicle front side, and the regions on the vehicle front side and the vehicle rear side of this front rising slope portion 30 are substantially horizontal regions. The suspension member 4 is a member that rotatably supports the base end portion of the lower arm 40 that supports the front wheel 19, is disposed below the front rising slope portion 30 of the front side member 3, and is attached to the front side member 3 by using the front side and rear side attachment portions 9A and 9B.

[0016] As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, in a plan view of the vehicle (including a bottom view of the vehicle, the same applies hereinafter), the pair of front side members 3 have a configuration in which a pair of front portions 32, inward slope portions 33, narrow portions 34, rearward widening slope portions 35, and rear side extending portions 36 are connected in series in this order. The pair of front sections 32 are located on both sides of the engine compartment 10 where the power plant 2, including the engine, is located, and extend in a substantially straight line in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. The pair of inwardly inclined sections 33 are located around the mounting points of the suspension members 4 and are inclined in a plan view of the vehicle such that the distance between them in the vehicle width direction becomes narrower towards the rear of the vehicle. The pair of narrow sections 34 have the narrowest distance between them in the vehicle width direction compared to the other parts of the pair of front side members 3. It is a part.

[0017] The pair of rearward-flaring inclined sections 35 are inclined in a vehicle plan view such that the distance between them in the vehicle width direction increases towards the rear of the vehicle. Because of the provision of these pair of rearward-flaring inclined sections 35, the rear extension 36 connected to their rear ends is positioned further outward in the vehicle width direction than the battery 8, ensuring that neither the rear extension 36 nor the battery 8 interferes with each other.

[0018] The floor section 11 is constructed by joining the rear end of the dash panel 11a and the front end of the front floor panel 11b via a joint 17. This joining is achieved, for example, by spot welding. Both ends of the floor section 11 in the vehicle width direction are joined (welded) to a pair of left and right rockers 15.

[0019] The battery 8 is mounted on the floor portion 11 in an area corresponding to, for example, the space below a vehicle seat (not shown). As is clearly shown in Figure 7, the floor portion 11 is provided with a recess 18 that is recessed downward to an appropriate size, and the battery 8 is mounted on this recess 18. A protective cover member 5 (floor reinforcement) is attached to the lower surface of the bottom wall portion 18a of the recess 18 to cover the bottom wall portion 18a and protect the battery 8. The additional cross members 7A and 7B are components that enhance the strength of the battery mounting area and help protect the battery 8. As clearly shown in Figure 2, they are positioned to sandwich the battery 8 in the front-rear direction of the vehicle, extend in the width direction of the vehicle, and are connected as a bridge between the left and right pair of rockers 15.

[0020] The floor tunnel section 12 is located in the center of the front area of ​​the floor section 11 in the vehicle width direction, protruding upward from the periphery of the floor section 11, and is tunnel-shaped with a lower opening and a front opening extending from the dash panel 11a toward the rear of the vehicle. This floor tunnel section 12 is located in the area in front of the battery 8.

[0021] As clearly shown in Figures 3 and 4, the pair of tunnel reinforcements 13 are located inward in the vehicle width direction from the pair of front side members 3 and are members for reinforcing the floor tunnel section 12 and its surrounding area, and include a reinforcement body section 13a and a front extension section 13b. The reinforcement body 13a is welded to the lower base side of the floor tunnel 12 (see also Figure 5) and extends substantially in a straight line in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. Preferably, the rear end 13a' of the reinforcement body 13a is joined to an additional cross member 7A via the floor 11. The front extension portion 13b is a part that bends or curves outward in the vehicle width direction from the front of the reinforcement body portion 13a, and the tip of this front extension portion 13b is joined to the narrow portion 34 of the front side member 3.

[0022] The cross member 6 extends in the vehicle width direction and bridges and connects the pair of front side members 3. To explain this in more detail, the front end 35a of the rearward-expanding inclined portion 35 of each front side member 3 is a bent portion in a vehicle plan view relative to the area further forward. In contrast, the cross member 6 bridges and connects the pair of front end 35a and extends in the vehicle width direction so as to cross the floor tunnel portion 12 and the pair of reinforcement body portions 13a, and is joined to the lower surface side of the floor portion 11 (see also Figure 6).

[0023] Each of the pair of frame-shaped structural parts B is a structure in which a total of four parts—the front extension portion 13b of each tunnel reinforcement 13, the front region of the reinforcement main body 13a, the region 6b of the cross member 6 near the outer end in the vehicle width direction, and the narrow portion 34 of each front side member 3—form a substantially rectangular frame shape in a plan view of the vehicle (view from the bottom of the vehicle) and are joined together. Furthermore, the joining of the four aforementioned parts may be either a direct joining method in which welding or the like is performed while these parts are in direct contact, or an indirect joining method in which they are arranged to overlap each other via, for example, another member, and then welded or the like is performed on them. stomach. The frame-shaped structure B is located on the rear side of the suspension member 4. An outer torque member 91 is provided on the outer side in the vehicle width direction of the frame-shaped structure B, bridging and connecting the front side member 3 and the rocker 15.

[0024] In this embodiment, as clearly shown in Figure 4, a pair of first rear frame-shaped structures C1 and a second rear frame-shaped structure C2 are further provided on the rear side of the frame-shaped structure B. Each first rear frame-shaped structural part C1 is a structure in which the region 6b of the cross member 6 near the outer end in the vehicle width direction, the rearward region of the reinforcement body 13a, the rearward flaring inclined portion 35 of the front side member 3, and a part of the additional cross member 7A form a frame shape in a plan view of the vehicle (view from the bottom of the vehicle) and are directly or indirectly joined to each other. The rear end portion 35b of the rearward flaring inclined portion 35 and the rear end portion 13a' of the reinforcement body 13a are indirectly joined to the additional cross member 7A via the floor portion 11. The second rear frame-shaped structural part C2 is a structure in which the area 6a of the cross member 6 closer to the center in the vehicle width direction, the rearward area of ​​the pair of reinforcement body parts 13a, and a part of the additional cross member 7A closer to the center in the vehicle width direction form a frame shape in a plan view of the vehicle (vehicle bottom view) and are directly or indirectly joined to each other.

[0025] Next, the operation of the aforementioned vehicle structure A will be explained.

[0026] First, since the front side member 3 is provided with a rearward-flaring inclined portion 35, when a frontal collision occurs with the vehicle 1 and the collision load acts on the front side member 3 from the front of the vehicle, a rotational force M is generated that attempts to bend the rearward-flaring inclined portion 35, for example, outward in the vehicle width direction, starting from the front end portion 35a, as shown in Figure 4. In response to this, a cross member 6 is connected to the front end portion 35a, and this cross member 6 generates a force F that counteracts the rotational force M. Therefore, the rearward-flaring inclined portion 35 is effectively prevented from easily and significantly bending due to the rotational force M.

[0027] Furthermore, in the event of a frontal collision of vehicle 1, for example, the suspension member 4 may retract due to the impact load and protrude into the front of the floor section 11. In contrast, the pair of frame-shaped structural parts B provided at the front of the floor section 11 are highly rigid parts, and can appropriately receive load inputs such as the protrusion of the suspension member 4, preventing the floor section 11 from deforming or being damaged significantly. In the frame-shaped structural parts B, the presence of the cross member 6 increases the connection strength between the tunnel reinforcement 13 and the front side member 3, so that, for example, the tunnel reinforcement 13 alone is not pushed significantly towards the rear of the vehicle by the load input. This also improves the load transmission performance of the front side member 3.

[0028] In this embodiment, in addition to the frame-shaped structure B, the pair of first rear frame-shaped structures C1 and second rear frame-shaped structures C2 described above are further provided. These are also highly rigid parts, similar to the frame-shaped structure B, and play a role in effectively receiving collision loads from the front of the vehicle. Therefore, the load-bearing capacity of the front of the vehicle can be made good. The impact load on the battery 8 is appropriately suppressed, and the battery 8 is properly protected. .

[0029] In this embodiment, a cross member 6 is used as a means to reinforce the front part of the floor section 11. This cross member 6 can be relatively small in size, capable of bridging and connecting the front ends 35a of a pair of rearward-flaring inclined sections 35. Furthermore, in this embodiment, it is not necessary to form each part of the front of the floor section 11 with considerable thickness. Therefore, it is possible to suppress an increase in the weight of the vehicle 1 and an increase in manufacturing costs.

[0030] Figure 8 shows Vehicle structure Other embodiments are shown. In the figures, elements identical or similar to those in the previous embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant explanations are omitted.

[0031] In the embodiment shown in Figure 8, the cross member 6 is formed in a bent shape corresponding to the cross-sectional shape of the floor tunnel section 12 and is joined to the inner surface of the floor tunnel section 12. With this configuration, the cross member 6 can also reinforce the floor tunnel section 12 itself. ru.

[0032] The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above. The specific configuration of each part of the vehicle structure according to the present invention can be modified in various ways within the scope intended by the present invention.

[0033] In the above-described embodiment, the case in which a battery is mounted on the floor was explained as an example. However, the present invention can of course be applied even when a power storage device other than a battery (such as a capacitor) is mounted on the floor, and can be applied regardless of whether or not a power storage device is mounted on the floor 11. In the embodiments described above, many of the components are made using components with a hat-shaped cross-section, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and various other forms of components can be used. The vehicle structure of the present invention can, of course, be applied not only to gasoline-powered vehicles but also to hybrid vehicles and electric vehicles. [Explanation of symbols]

[0034] A. Vehicle structure B Frame structure 1 vehicle 11th Floor 12 Floor Tunnel Section 13 Tunnel Reinforcement 13a Reinforcement main body 13b Front extension 3 Front side member 35 Rearward flaring inclined section 35a Front end (of the flared, inclined section) 6 Cross Member

Claims

[Claim 1] At the front of the vehicle, a pair of left and right front side members are positioned spaced apart from each other in the vehicle width direction and extend in the vehicle's longitudinal direction, The floor portion, which is positioned above these pair of front side members and forms a floor tunnel, A pair of left and right tunnel reinforcements, each having a pair of reinforcement body portions extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction along the floor tunnel portion, spaced apart from each other in the vehicle width direction, on the inward side in the vehicle width direction from the pair of front side members, and a pair of front extension portions that are bent or curved outward in the vehicle width direction from the front of the pair of reinforcement body portions and joined to the pair of front side members, It is equipped with, In the vehicle structure, of the pair of front side members, a pair of rearward-flaring inclined portions are provided at a position further rearward from the joint with the pair of front extensions, and the rearward-flaring portion is located further outward in the vehicle width direction. The vehicle further includes a cross member that bridges and connects the front ends of the pair of rearward-flaring inclined sections, and is joined to the floor section in a configuration that extends straight in the vehicle width direction so as to linearly cross the lower opening region of the floor tunnel section and the pair of reinforcement body sections in both a bottom view and a vehicle front-rear view. A vehicle structure characterized in that the front extension portion of each tunnel reinforcement, the front region of the reinforcement body, the region of the cross member near the outer end in the vehicle width direction, and a part of each front side member are configured as frame-shaped structural parts that form a frame shape when viewed from the bottom of the vehicle and are directly or indirectly joined to each other.

Images