Belt molding

Abstract

To provide a belt molding capable of suppressing generation of a clearance between a molding body and a panel touch lip part.SOLUTION: A belt molding comprises a molding body 10 and a panel seal member 20. The panel seal member 20 includes a vertical wall part 21 fixed to an interior surface of a vehicle exterior sidewall part 11, a bottom wall part 22 facing an apical surface of the vehicle exterior sidewall part 11, a corner part 23, and a panel touch lip part 24 elastically brought into contact with a door panel 5. A shielding projection 25 and a positioning projection 26 are formed on an upper surface of the bottom wall part 22. The panel touch lip part 24 is warped such that the apical surface faces the corner part 23 side. The panel seal member 20, from the vertical wall part 21 to a portion where the positioning projection 26 is formed, is formed of a hard material, and from the panel touch lip part 24 to a portion where the shielding projection 25 is formed, is formed of a soft material.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a belt molding attached along the upper edge of a door panel of a vehicle door, and more particularly to a belt molding formed by fixing a sealing member including a lip portion that elastically contacts the door panel to a molding body.

Background Art

[0002] In vehicle doors such as automobiles, a long belt molding that elastically contacts (presses in an elastically deformed state) a window pane (windshield) and shields and seals a gap with the door panel is attached to the upper edge of the door panel that becomes the door belt line at the lower edge of the window opening.

[0003] A conventional belt molding has a molding body portion in which an outer vehicle-side side wall portion and an inner vehicle-side side wall portion facing each other and a top wall portion connecting the upper edges of both side wall portions are integrally formed, and a lip portion is formed at the leading edge of the outer vehicle-side side wall portion. The belt molding is attached so that the upper edge of the door panel is inserted into the molding body portion. At this time, the lip portion elastically contacts the door panel, thereby shielding and sealing the gap between the molding body portion and the door panel. Therefore, the molding body portion is formed of a hard material having a certain rigidity, while the lip portion is formed of a soft material that can be elastically deformed.

[0004] In a conventional general vehicle door, the door belt line is basically linear. Therefore, a conventional general belt molding is also linear, manufactured by extrusion molding, has a uniform shape over both longitudinal ends, and the molding body portion and the lip portion are often simultaneously molded by co-extrusion.

[0005] Furthermore, the lip portion often protrudes downward from the leading edge of the outer side wall of the vehicle, and is shaped to curve in the middle so that the leading edge faces inward. In this case, when the belt molding is attached to the upper edge of the door panel and the lip portion elastically contacts the door panel, a tensile force acts on the base of the lip portion in a direction that separates it from the outer side wall of the molding body. This could cause cracks to form between the lip portion and the outer side wall, potentially creating a gap between the lip portion and the outer side wall.

[0006] As a technology to solve these problems, Patent Document 1 is disclosed below. In Patent Document 1, the main body of the belt molding is made of a rigid material and the lip portion is made of a soft material and extruded, similar to conventional general belt moldings. Furthermore, the lip portion has a roughly Z-shaped or roughly stepped cross-section, having two bends, a first bend and a second bend, from the base end that connects to the outer side wall of the vehicle. According to this, when the belt molding is attached to the upper edge of the door panel, the lip portion bends so that the second bend is pressed against the outer side wall of the vehicle, and the problems of the conventional belt molding described above do not occur. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2004-322957 [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0008] However, the lip portion in Patent Document 1 has a special and complex shape, which may lead to reduced tolerance for manufacturing errors and a decline in yield.

[0009] Incidentally, some modern vehicle doors have door beltlines that are not straight, meaning that a portion of the door beltline curves upwards, for the purpose of improving aesthetics. In this case, the belt molding also needs to be deformed in part along its longitudinal direction to match the door beltline, so it cannot be extruded as in the past and is sometimes injection molded. In this type of belt molding, the molding body and lip portion, which are made of different materials, are manufactured separately, and the sealing member, which includes the lip portion made of a soft material, is fixed to the molding body made of a hard material to form the belt molding.

[0010] The sealing member has a vertical wall portion fixed to the inner surface of the outer side wall portion of the molding body, a bottom wall portion facing the front end surface of the outer side wall portion, a corner portion connecting the vertical wall portion and the bottom wall portion, and a lip portion that elastically contacts the door panel, and a shielding protrusion is formed on the surface of the bottom wall portion facing the front end surface of the outer side wall portion that abuts against the front end surface of the outer side wall portion.

[0011] In such a sealing member, if the shape of the lip portion is provided downward from the leading edge of the bottom wall portion, as in conventional designs, and the tip portion is curved in the middle so that it faces inward (towards the corner portion), then the following problem arises if the entire sealing member is manufactured from a soft material. Specifically, when the belt molding is attached to the upper edge of the door panel and the lip portion elastically contacts the door panel, a tensile force acts on the bottom wall portion in a direction that causes it to move away from the outer side wall portion, with the corner portion of the sealing member acting as the bending point. Consequently, a force also acts on the shielding protrusion provided on the bottom wall portion in a direction that causes it to move away from the outer side wall portion, and there is a risk that a small gap will be created between the molding body and the lip portion.

[0012] Therefore, the present invention aims to solve the above problems and to provide a belt molding in which a sealing member including a lip portion that elastically contacts a door panel is fixed to the molding body, wherein the lip portion retains a simple shape and prevents a gap from forming between the molding body and the lip portion. [Means for solving the problem]

[0013] To achieve this, the present invention employs the following means. (1) A belt molding that is attached along the upper edge of the door panel of a vehicle door, The molding comprises a molding body and a sealing member that, when attached to the upper edge of the door panel, seals the gap between the door panel and the molding body. The molding body integrally comprises an outer side wall portion and an inner side wall portion facing each other, and a top wall portion connecting the upper edges of the two side wall portions. The sealing member has a vertical wall portion fixed to the inner surface of the outer side wall portion of the vehicle, a bottom wall portion facing the front end surface of the outer side wall portion, a corner portion connecting the vertical wall portion and the bottom wall portion, and a lip portion that elastically contacts the door panel. On the bottom wall portion, a positioning projection and a shielding projection that abuts against the tip surface of the outer side wall portion are formed protruding from the surface facing the tip surface of the outer side wall portion. The shielding projection is provided at the leading edge of the bottom wall, and the positioning projection is provided closer to the corner than the shielding projection. The lip portion is provided extending downward from the leading edge of the bottom wall portion, and is curved in the middle portion so that the leading edge faces the corner portion. The sealing member is a belt molding in which at least the vertical wall portion and the corner portion are formed of a rigid material, and at least the lip portion is formed of a flexible material that is elastically deformable. (2) The belt molding according to (1), wherein the bottom wall portion is formed of the hard material from the corner portion to the portion where the positioning projection is formed. (3) The belt molding according to (2), wherein the bottom wall portion from the lip portion to the portion where the shielding protrusion is formed is made of the soft material. (4) The belt molding according to (3), wherein the boundary line between the portion formed of the hard material and the portion formed of the soft material is inclined toward the corner portion from the upper surface to the lower surface of the bottom wall. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] According to the means of (1), in a sealing member having a lip portion that curves upward so that its tip faces the corner portion, at least the vertical wall portion and the corner portion are made of a hard material, so when the belt molding is attached to the upper edge of the door panel, it is possible to suppress deformation of the bottom wall portion in a direction that separates from the outer side wall portion of the vehicle with the corner portion of the sealing member as the bending point, and consequently, it is possible to suppress the shielding protrusion from separating from the outer side wall portion and creating a gap between the molding body and the lip portion.

[0015] If positioning protrusions are also formed on the bottom wall, when fixing the vertical wall portion to the outer side wall portion of the molding body, the positioning protrusions can be brought into contact with the leading edge of the outer side wall portion, thereby accurately fixing the sealing member to the predetermined position. At this time, since the vertical wall portion and corner portion of the sealing member are formed of a rigid material, the sealing member will not deform unintentionally, and the fixing work can be performed stably.

[0016] According to method (2), the bottom wall portion, from the corner portion to the portion where the positioning protrusion is formed, is made of a hard material, which makes it possible to more reliably avoid gaps between the molding body and the lip portion, and to avoid unintentional deformation during fixing. In addition, if the positioning protrusion is also made of a hard material, the positioning protrusion will not deform even if it comes into contact with the outer side wall portion of the vehicle, so it is possible to avoid variations in the mounting position of the sealing member.

[0017] According to method (3), since the shielding protrusions are also made of a soft material, the shielding protrusions can be elastically brought into contact with the outer side wall of the vehicle. This makes it possible to make the shielding protrusions tightly fitted and improve the shielding and sealing performance.

[0018] According to method (4), the portion formed of the soft material is wider on the lower side of the bottom wall facing the door panel than on the upper side of the bottom wall facing the outer side wall of the vehicle, so the deformability of the lip portion can be improved. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0019] [Figure 1] It is a front view of a vehicle door. [Figure 2] It is an exploded perspective view of a belt mold. [Figure 3] It is a cross-sectional view of a belt mold. [Figure 4] It is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the main part around the lip portion. [Figure 5] It is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the main part around the lip portion of a modification example.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0020] Hereinafter, representative embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described as examples. As shown in FIG. 1, the belt mold 1 is disposed on a door belt line along the lower edge of the window opening 3 of a vehicle door 2 such as an automobile, and is elastically contacted with a window plate 4 that moves up and down in the window opening 3, and is arranged to seal the gap between the door panel 5 and the window plate 4. Specifically, the belt mold 1 is a long member, and is attached along the upper edge of a door panel 5 (door outer panel) that becomes a door belt line on the outer side (outside of the vehicle) of the vehicle door 2, shields and seals the gap between the window plate 4 and the door panel 5, and slidably contacts the window plate 4 when the window plate 4 moves up and down, and scrapes off dust, moisture, etc. attached to the window plate 4 to clean it.

[0021] In the vehicle door 2 of this embodiment, the rear part in the vehicle front-rear direction of the upper edge of the door belt line, that is, the door panel 5, protrudes upward. Along with this, the rear part in the longitudinal direction of the belt mold 1 of this embodiment also protrudes upward along the upper edge of the door panel 5, but the cross-sectional shape of the belt mold 1 is substantially uniform over both longitudinal ends.

[0022] As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the belt molding 1 is assembled from a molding body 10, a panel sealing member 20 which has a panel touch lip portion 24 that elastically contacts the door panel 5 and seals the gap between the door panel 5 and the molding body 10, and a glass sealing member 30 which has a glass touch lip portion 32 that elastically contacts the window plate 4 and seals the gap between the window plate 4 and the molding body 10. The panel sealing member 20 corresponds to the "sealing member" of the present invention, and the panel touch lip portion 24 corresponds to the "lip portion" of the present invention.

[0023] The molding body 10 integrally comprises an outer side wall portion 11 and an inner side wall portion 12 facing each other, and a top wall portion 13 connecting the upper edges of both side wall portions 11 and 12, giving it a roughly inverted U-shape in side view. The top wall portion 13 has a pipe-like structure with a cavity portion 13a inside its back surface to enhance its rigidity. In addition, a projection portion 14 is formed on the inner edge of the top wall portion 13, projecting toward the inside of the vehicle. A locking portion 15 for locking the door panel 5 is formed on the lower inner edge of the inner side wall portion 12, projecting toward the outside of the vehicle. Furthermore, multiple bosses 16 for fixing the glass seal member 30 are arranged in a row at equal intervals in the longitudinal direction on the outer surface of the inner side wall portion 12.

[0024] The molding body 10 is injection molded from a rigid material having a certain degree of rigidity (for example, a thermoplastic resin with a Rockwell hardness of 100 or higher). In this embodiment, it is made of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene copolymer (ABS resin) with a Rockwell hardness of 115.

[0025] The panel sealing member 20 has a vertical wall portion 21, a bottom wall portion 22, a corner portion 23 connecting the vertical wall portion 21 and the bottom wall portion 22, and a panel touch lip portion 24. The vertical wall portion 21 is flat and is the part that is adhered and fixed to the inner surface of the outer side wall portion 11 of the molding body 10 via double-sided tape 40.

[0026] The bottom wall portion 22 extends outward from the lower edge of the vertical wall portion 21 via the corner portion 23, and the panel sealing member 20 has a roughly L-shape when viewed from the side. When the panel sealing member 20 is fixed to the molding body 10, the bottom wall portion 22 is located below the outer side wall portion 11, and the upper surface of the bottom wall portion 22 and the front end surface (bottom surface) of the outer side wall portion 11 face each other. Also, when the panel sealing member 20 is fixed to the molding body 10, the outer surface of the bottom wall portion 21 and the outer surface of the outer side wall portion 11 are almost flush.

[0027] The panel touch lip portion 24 is provided extending downward from the leading edge of the bottom wall portion 22, and is curved in the middle so that its leading edge faces the corner portion 23 side (inside the vehicle). When the belt molding 1 is attached to the upper edge of the door panel 5, the panel touch lip portion 24 elastically contacts the door panel 5 so as to be pressed against it.

[0028] On the upper surface of the bottom wall portion 22, which faces the tip surface of the outer side wall portion 11, a shielding projection 25 and a positioning projection 26 are formed to protrude upward. The shielding projection 25 is provided on the tip edge of the bottom wall portion 22, and when the panel seal member 20 is fixed to the molding body 10, at least the shielding projection 25 comes into contact with the tip surface of the outer side wall portion 11, so that the shielding projection 25 functions as a part that shields and seals the space between the outer side wall portion 11 and the panel touch lip portion 24. The positioning projection 26 is provided at a position closer to the corner portion 23 (on the inside of the vehicle) than the shielding projection 25, and is used to position the height of the panel seal member 20 by coming into contact with the tip surface of the outer side wall portion 11 when fixing the panel seal member 20 to the molding body 10.

[0029] Therefore, the height of the shielding projection 25 (the amount of protrusion from the upper surface of the bottom wall portion 22) is set to be greater than or equal to the height of the positioning projection 26. That is, the height of the shielding projection 25 may be the same as the height of the positioning projection 26, but it is preferable that the shielding projection 25 be slightly higher than the positioning projection 26. This is because if the shielding projection 25 is slightly higher than the positioning projection 26, as described later, the adhesion with the outer side wall portion 11 will increase, improving the shielding and sealing performance. On the other hand, when the panel sealing member 20 is fixed to the molding body 10, the positioning projection 26 does not necessarily have to be in contact with the outer side wall portion 11. In other words, if the positioning projection 26 can be brought into contact with the outer side wall portion 11 when fixing the panel sealing member 20 to the molding body 10, then even if the positioning projection 26 separates from the outer side wall portion 11 due to the elastic force of the shielding projection 25, there is no problem as long as the shielding projection 25 is in contact with the outer side wall portion 11.

[0030] The panel sealing member 20 is formed of a rigid material at least for the vertical wall portion 21 and the corner portion 23, and at least for the panel touch lip portion 24, it is formed of a flexible material that is elastically deformable. In this embodiment, as shown in Figure 4, in addition to the vertical wall portion 21 and the corner portion 23, the bottom wall portion 22, from the corner portion 23 to the portion where the positioning projection 26 is formed, is also formed of a rigid material, including the positioning projection 26.

[0031] As a hard material, any material with a certain degree of rigidity is acceptable, and materials with a durometer hardness (Type D) of HDD50 to 80 according to JIS K 7215 are preferred. Examples include polyvinyl chloride resin (PVC), polypropylene (PP), and ethylene-propylene-diene copolymer (EPDM). In this embodiment, the material is made of polypropylene with a durometer hardness (Type D) of HDD70 according to JIS K 7215.

[0032] On the other hand, in addition to the panel touch lip portion 24, the bottom wall portion 22, from the panel touch lip portion 24 to the portion where the shielding protrusion 25 is formed, is made of a soft material, including the shielding protrusion 25. The soft material can be any material that is elastically deformable, and for example, a material with a durometer hardness (Type A) of HDA 50 to 90 according to JIS K 7215 is preferred. Examples include olefin-based thermoplastic elastomer (TPO) and styrene-based elastomer (TPS). In this embodiment, it is made of an olefin-based thermoplastic elastomer with a durometer hardness (Type A) of HDA 70 according to JIS K 7215.

[0033] The boundary line between the hard material portion and the soft material portion slopes linearly toward the corner portion 23 from the upper surface to the lower surface of the bottom wall portion 22. This effectively prevents deformation of the bottom wall portion 22 and the formation of a gap between the panel touch lip portion 24 and the outer side wall portion 11 of the vehicle, by making the hard material portion as wide as possible while maintaining good sealing performance with the panel touch lip portion 24 and the shielding protrusion portion 25. In addition, because the boundary line is linear, the hard material portion and the soft material portion can be easily molded simultaneously by co-extrusion, resulting in good productivity of the panel sealing member 20.

[0034] As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the glass sealing member 30 has a base portion 31, a glass touch lip portion 32, and a shielding lip portion 33. The base portion 31 is flat and is the part that is fixed to the outer surface of the inner side wall portion 12. A boss hole 34 is drilled in the base portion 31 in the part facing the boss 16 of the inner side wall portion 12. The glass sealing member 30 is fixed to the molding body 10 by inserting the boss 16 through the boss hole 34 and then heat-crimping the boss 16.

[0035] The glass touch lip portion 32 protrudes from the outer surface of the base portion 31 toward the interior of the vehicle and elastically contacts the window plate 4 when the belt molding 1 is attached to the upper edge of the door panel 5. There may be only one glass touch lip portion 32, but it is preferable to provide multiple portions vertically. This is because providing multiple portions improves the sealing performance and cleanability provided by the glass touch lip portion 32. In this embodiment, two glass touch lip portions 32 are formed vertically. The shielding lip 33 protrudes upward from the upper surface of the base portion 31 and elastically contacts the lower surface of the protruding portion 14 of the molding body 10 when the glass sealing member 30 is fixed to the molding body 10.

[0036] In the glass seal member 30, the base portion 31 is formed of a rigid material, and the glass touch lip portion 32 and the shielding lip portion 33 are formed of an elastically deformable soft material, and are simultaneously molded by co-extrusion. As the rigid material, any material with a certain degree of rigidity is acceptable, and a durometer hardness (Type D) of HDD50 to 80 according to JIS K 7215 is preferred. Examples include polyvinyl chloride resin (PVC), polypropylene (PP), and ethylene-propylene-diene copolymer (EPDM). In this embodiment, it is made of polypropylene with a durometer hardness (Type D) of HDD70 according to JIS K 7215. As the soft material, any material that is elastically deformable is acceptable, and a durometer hardness (Type A) of HDA50 to 90 according to JIS K 7215 is preferred. Examples include olefin-based thermoplastic elastomer (TPO) and styrene-based elastomer (TPS). In this embodiment, the material consists of an olefin-based thermoplastic elastomer with a durometer hardness (Type A) of HDA70 according to JIS K 7215.

[0037] As shown by the dashed line in Figure 3, the upper edge of the door panel 5 is a flange portion 5a that is folded with the reinforcing panel 6 in between, and the molding body 10, to which the panel sealing member 20 and the glass sealing member 30 are fixed, is attached to this flange portion 5a by covering it from above. Specifically, the flange portion 5a is inserted between the outer side wall portion 11 and the inner side wall portion 12, and the leading edge of the door panel 5 is locked to the locking portion 15 of the inner side wall portion 12. As a result, the belt molding 1 is positioned along the upper edge of the door panel 5.

[0038] When the belt molding 1 is attached to the upper edge of the door panel 5, the glass touch lip portion 32 elastically contacts the window plate 4, and the panel touch lip portion 24 elastically contacts the door panel 5, as shown in Figure 4. At this time, the panel touch lip portion 24 is pressed, pulling the tip of the bottom wall portion 22 downwards. However, most of the area from the corner portion 23 of the panel seal member 20 to the part of the bottom wall portion 22 where the positioning protrusion 26 is formed is made of a hard material, and this hard material portion does not deform. On the other hand, the parts made of a soft material are the shielding protrusion 25 and the panel touch lip portion 24, and are limited to the minimum necessary area, so this soft material portion hardly deforms downwards. As a result, the formation of a gap between the panel touch lip portion 24 and the outer side wall portion 11 is suppressed.

[0039] While representative embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, as shown in the modified example in Figure 5, the boundary line between the part formed of a hard material and the part formed of a soft material may be made stepped, and the positioning protrusion 26 may also be formed of a soft material. This effectively suppresses deformation of the bottom wall 22, and the positioning protrusion 26 can also elastically contact the outer side wall 11, thereby improving sealing performance. Furthermore, as long as at least the vertical wall 21 and the corner 23 are formed of a hard material, and at least the panel touch lip 24 is formed of a soft material, the shielding protrusion 25 can also be formed of a hard material. The boundary line between the hard material part and the soft material part can be curved, or it can be vertical or inclined outwards.

[0040] The present invention is primarily applicable to belt moldings where the door beltline (upper edge of the door panel) is not straight but has a deformed longitudinal section. However, it can also be applied to belt moldings where the door beltline is straight and the entire longitudinal section is straight, as long as the panel seal member, which is fixed to the molding body, is provided extending downward from the leading edge of the bottom wall and has a panel touch lip portion that curves in the middle so that the leading edge faces the corner.

[0041] As shown in Figure 2, the bosses 16 formed on the outer surface of the inner side wall portion 12 of the vehicle are arranged in a row at equal intervals in the longitudinal direction. However, as long as the glass seal member 30 can be fixed to the inner side wall portion 12 of the vehicle, the spacing between the bosses 16, and the number and shape of the bosses 16 can be changed as appropriate.

[0042] Figure 1 shows a front door as an example of a vehicle door, but rear doors can also be used as vehicle doors to which belt moldings are attached. Patterns where the beltline is not straight (patterns where a part of the belt molding in the longitudinal direction is deformed) include those where the rear part in the front-rear direction of the vehicle is deformed downwards, and those where the middle or front part is deformed upwards or downwards. Furthermore, it is also applicable to belt moldings that have a continuous vertical section extending from the beltline at the lower edge of the window opening to the rear edge of the window opening, and are generally L-shaped. [Explanation of symbols]

[0043] 1 Belt Molding 2 Vehicle doors 3 Window openings 4 window board 5 Door Panel 10 Mall Body 11. Exterior side wall section of the vehicle 12. Inner side wall of the vehicle 13 Top wall 16 Bosses 20 Panel sealing member 21 Vertical wall section 22 Bottom wall section 23 Corner section 24 Panel touch lip section 25 Shielding protrusion 26 Positioning protrusion 30 Glass sealing member 31 Base 32 Glass touch lip section 33 Shielding lip section 40 Double-sided tape

Claims

1. A belt molding that is installed along the upper edge of the door panel of a vehicle door, The molding comprises a molding body and a sealing member that, when attached to the upper edge of the door panel, seals the gap between the door panel and the molding body. The molding body integrally comprises an outer side wall portion and an inner side wall portion facing each other, and a top wall portion connecting the upper edges of the two side wall portions. The sealing member has a vertical wall portion fixed to the inner surface of the outer side wall portion of the vehicle, a bottom wall portion facing the front end surface of the outer side wall portion, a corner portion connecting the vertical wall portion and the bottom wall portion, and a lip portion that elastically contacts the door panel. On the bottom wall portion, a positioning projection and a shielding projection that abuts against the tip surface of the outer side wall portion are formed protruding from the surface facing the tip surface of the outer side wall portion. The shielding projection is provided at the leading edge of the bottom wall, and the positioning projection is provided closer to the corner than the shielding projection. The lip portion is provided extending downward from the leading edge of the bottom wall portion, and is curved in the middle portion so that the leading edge faces the corner portion. The sealing member is a belt molding in which at least the vertical wall portion and the corner portion are formed of a rigid material, and at least the lip portion is formed of a flexible material that is elastically deformable.

2. The belt molding according to claim 1, wherein the portion of the bottom wall from the corner portion to the portion where the positioning projection is formed is made of the hard material.

3. The belt molding according to claim 2, wherein the portion of the bottom wall from the lip portion to the portion where the shielding protrusion is formed is made of the soft material.

4. The belt molding according to claim 3, wherein the boundary line between the portion formed of the hard material and the portion formed of the soft material is inclined toward the corner portion from the upper surface to the lower surface of the bottom wall.

Images