Instrument panel support structure

Abstract

To enhance practical utility of an instrument panel support structure for supporting an instrument panel which is provided in a cabin to a vehicle body.SOLUTION: An instrument panel support structure supports an instrument panel 10 (12) to a vehicle body via support members 22, 24 and at the same time is equipped with a panel displacement allowable mechanism which permits displacement x of the instrument panel with deformation (B, M) of the support members for impact applied to the instrument panel. Impact energy is absorbed by the instrument panel displacing while the deformation of the support members cause resistance F and are subject to the resistance.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an instrument panel support structure for supporting an instrument panel provided in a vehicle interior on a vehicle body.

Background Art

[0002] If a vehicle collides with an object existing in front, it is called "front collision" of the vehicle. In such a front collision, an occupant in the vehicle interior may collide with an instrument panel (hereinafter, may be abbreviated as "IP") provided in the vehicle interior for the second time. Due to this secondary collision, the surface material of the IP may be damaged. In order to prevent such damage to the surface material, for example, in the following patent document, a member surrounding the surface material is formed to protrude from the surface material, and at the time of a secondary collision, before the occupant collides with the surface material, the occupant collides with the member surrounding the surface material. A technique is disclosed.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] The technique described in the above patent document relates to a support structure of an IP provided with means for preventing damage to the surface material of the IP. However, there is still much room for improvement or new development in those means, and a more practical IP support structure can be realized by such improvements and new developments. The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a highly practical IP support structure.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] To address the above issues, the instrument panel support structure of the present invention is: Located inside the vehicle The system includes a car navigation device having a main unit and a display. An instrument panel support structure for supporting the instrument panel on the vehicle body, The main body is supported by the instrument panel reinforcement, which is part of the vehicle body, via a bracket as a support member, and the display is supported by the vehicle body via the dashboard, which is another support member. In order to gain support, The invention is characterized by having a panel displacement tolerance mechanism that allows for the displacement of the instrument panel accompanied by deformation of the support member in response to an impact applied to the instrument panel. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] The "panel displacement tolerance mechanism" in the present invention can also be considered an "impact absorption mechanism" for absorbing impacts applied to the instrument panel. More specifically, the deformation of the support member generates resistance, and the instrument panel is displaced while receiving this resistance, thereby absorbing the impact energy. In the prior art documents described above, the impact is absorbed by deforming the member surrounding the surface material without displacing the instrument panel itself. The instrument panel support structure of the present invention differs significantly from the support structure in the prior art documents in that it displaces the instrument panel itself. According to the instrument panel support structure of the present invention, the above-mentioned panel displacement tolerance mechanism effectively prevents damage to the surface material of the instrument panel in secondary collisions. Embodiments of the Invention

[0007] In this invention, the term "instrument panel" should be interpreted in a narrow sense, meaning the part of the components located below the windshield in the vehicle interior that faces the occupants and contains instruments, displays, etc. Correspondingly, in this specification, "dashboard" refers to the portion of the component that generally extends in the front, back, left, and right directions above the instrument panel. If the material forming the surface of the instrument panel is called the "surface material," then this surface material is generally made of a material that is relatively easily damaged when subjected to impact, such as glass or transparent hard resin.

[0008] On the other hand, generally, instrument panel reinforcement is positioned on the front side of the instrument panel, below the dashboard, extending to the left and right sides of the vehicle. This instrument panel reinforcement is a reinforcing member that becomes part of the vehicle body, and is, for example, pipe-shaped.

[0009] In this invention, the "support member" is what supports the instrument panel to the vehicle body; in other words, it connects the instrument panel to the vehicle body. Therefore, the dashboard also functions as a support member. Alternatively, a bracket may be provided on the instrument panel reinforcement so that the bracket supports the instrument panel, in which case the bracket functions as a support member. Incidentally, the dashboard may also be supported by the instrument panel reinforcement.

[0010] The support member is designed to deform in response to the above-mentioned impact, and this deformation may be elastic or plastic. If the deformation is plastic, the resilient force generated in the support member will be suppressed, enabling effective shock absorption. Furthermore, when the above-mentioned impact is applied, the plastic deformation of the support member may progress to the point of fracture.

[0011] To further explain the deformation of the support member, a weak point, or vulnerable section, may be provided in the support member, for example, by reducing its thickness or forming a notch, so that when the above-mentioned impact is applied to the instrument panel, the support member deforms at that vulnerable point. Specifically, the vulnerable point may break, bend, or curve. In other words, the vulnerable point may constitute a panel displacement tolerance mechanism.

[0012] The instrument panel often houses a car navigation system, and this system (hereinafter sometimes abbreviated as "car navigation") generally consists of a main unit located inside the instrument panel and a display integrated with the main unit. In such car navigation systems, the surface material of the display functions as the surface material of the instrument panel.

[0013] Furthermore, if the instrument panel includes the above-mentioned car navigation system, the instrument panel support structure of the present invention may be configured such that the main body is supported by the instrument panel reinforcement via a bracket as a support member, and the display is supported by the vehicle body via a dashboard as another support member. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0014] [Figure 1] This figure shows the instrument panel support structure of an embodiment. [Figure 2] This figure shows the moment an object collides with the instrument panel in the instrument panel support structure of the embodiment. [Figure 3] This figure illustrates the deformation of the bracket and dashboard, which are support members in the instrument panel support structure of the embodiment. [Figure 4] This figure illustrates the impact absorption in the instrument panel support structure of the embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0015] Hereinafter, an instrument panel support structure, which is an embodiment of the present invention (hereinafter sometimes abbreviated as "instrument panel support structure of the embodiment"), will be described in detail with reference to the figures. In addition to the embodiments described below, the present invention can be implemented in various forms by making various changes and improvements based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art, starting with the forms described in the section [Embodiments of the Invention] above. [Examples]

[0016] FIG. 1 is a view of cutting a part of a vehicle by a plane extending vertically and horizontally. The instrument panel support structure of the embodiment is a structure for supporting an instrument panel 10 (hereinafter sometimes abbreviated as "instrument panel 10") on a vehicle body whose illustration is omitted. In the figure, as a part of the instrument panel 10, a car navigation device 12 (hereinafter sometimes abbreviated as "car navigation 12") is shown. This car navigation 12 is composed of a main body part 14 and a display 16 provided integrally with the main body part 14. A part 18 constituting the surface of the display 16 functions as a surface material of the instrument panel 10. Incidentally, hereinafter, the part 18 will be referred to as the surface material 18, and the surface material 18 is made of transparent glass.

[0017] In the vehicle, as a part of the vehicle body, an instrument panel reinforcement 20 (hereinafter sometimes simply abbreviated as "reinforcement 20") is provided. This reinforcement 20 has a pipe shape with a circular cross-section and is arranged across the left and right of the vehicle.

[0018] The car navigation 12, which is a part of the instrument panel 10, is supported on the vehicle body by two types of support members. Specifically, the main body part 14 is supported on a reinforcement 20, which is a part of the vehicle body, via a pair of left and right brackets 22, each of which is a type of support member. The display 16 is supported on the vehicle body via a dashboard 24 that functions as another type of support member at the upper part. Incidentally, although not shown in the figure, the dashboard 24 itself is also supported on the reinforcement 20.

[0019] When the vehicle equipped with the instrument panel 10 collides with an obstacle in front of the vehicle, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, an object O such as an occupant may collide with the instrument panel 10 a second time. FIG. 2 shows a state where the object O collides with the instrument panel 10 at the portion where the car navigation 12 is arranged. At this time, if the bracket 22 and the dashboard 24, which are support members, are strong and the car navigation 12 is firmly supported by the vehicle body, it is predicted that the impact caused by the second collision will act violently on the display 16 and the surface material 18 will be damaged. To put it simply, the glass, which is the surface material 18, may be cracked.

[0020] Therefore, in the instrument panel support structure of the present embodiment, a panel displacement allowance mechanism is provided that allows displacement of the instrument panel 10 accompanied by deformation of the bracket 22 and the dashboard 24, which are support members respectively, with respect to the impact applied to the instrument panel 10. Specifically, displacement of the car navigation 12 is allowed. This panel displacement allowance mechanism will be described in detail below.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 3(a), each of the pair of brackets 22 generally has a channel shape. Each bracket 22 is joined to the reinforcement 20 by welding at the base end portion B. Specifically, at the base end portion B, there is no web 26 in the channel shape, and it is only a portion of a pair of flanges 28 facing each other in parallel. And each flange 28 has a relatively thin thickness.

[0022] Therefore, when a certain amount of force is applied to the tip of the bracket 22 generally in the direction toward the front side of the vehicle, as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 3(b), the flanges 28 are bent in the thickness direction. In other words, each bracket 22 plastically deforms so as to buckle at the base end portion B. That is, the base end portion B functions as a weak portion in the support member.

[0023] On the other hand, as shown in Figure 1, the dashboard 24 has a somewhat bent shape in the middle section M in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. When a certain force is applied to the rear part of the vehicle, generally in a direction toward the front of the vehicle, the dashboard 24 undergoes plastic deformation in the middle section M, as shown by the dashed line in Figure 3(c), causing the bend to increase. Simply put, the middle section M is shaped to bend easily when a certain amount of force is applied, and this middle section M also functions as a weak point in the support member.

[0024] When an impact is applied to the instrument panel 10, which is supported by the vehicle body via a support member having the aforementioned weak points, the instrument panel 10 is displaced towards the front of the vehicle, as shown in Figure 4. More specifically, the bracket 22 for supporting the main body 14 of the car navigation system 12 and the dashboard 24 for supporting the display 16 undergo plastic deformation as described above, causing the car navigation system 12 itself, which constitutes the instrument panel 10, to be displaced towards the front of the vehicle. To further explain, the dashed line in the figure shows the position of the instrument panel 10 at the moment of impact with object O, and thereafter, accompanied by the deformation of the bracket 22 and dashboard 24, the instrument panel 10 is displaced in the direction indicated by the white arrow.

[0025] In other words, this instrument panel support structure is a mechanism composed of the base end B of the bracket 22, which acts as a weak point of the support member, and the intermediate part M of the dashboard 24. That is, it is equipped with a panel displacement tolerance mechanism that allows for the displacement of the instrument panel 10 accompanied by deformation of the support member in response to an impact applied to the instrument panel 10.

[0026] Furthermore, the plastic deformation of the bracket 22 and dashboard 24 generates deformation resistance. This deformation resistance acts on the instrument panel 10 in the opposite direction to the direction of displacement, that is, in the direction of the shaded arrow shown in the figure. In other words, the instrument panel 10 is allowed to be displaced against the deformation resistance. If this deformation resistance is F and the amount of displacement of the instrument panel 10 is x, then the shock absorption energy E, which is the shock energy absorbed along with the displacement, can be expressed approximately by the following formula. E = F·x This shock-absorbing effect effectively prevents damage to the surface material 18 of the instrument panel 10 in this instrument panel support structure. In light of this, the panel displacement tolerance mechanism described above can also be called a shock absorption mechanism. [Explanation of symbols]

[0027] 10: Instrument panel (dashboard) 12: Car navigation system (car navigation) 14: Main unit 16: Display 18: Surface material 20: Instrument panel reinforcement (reinforcement) 22: Bracket 24: Dashboard 26: Web 28: Flange O: Object B: Base end of bracket M: Middle part of dashboard F: Deformation resistance x: Displacement E: Impact absorption energy

Claims

1. An instrument panel support structure for supporting an instrument panel, which is installed inside the vehicle and includes a car navigation system comprising a main unit and a display, on the vehicle body, The main body is supported by the instrument panel reinforcement, which is part of the vehicle body, via a bracket, which is a support member, and the display is supported by the vehicle body via a dashboard, which is another support member. An instrument panel support structure characterized by comprising a panel displacement tolerance mechanism that allows for the displacement of the instrument panel accompanied by deformation of the support member in response to an impact applied to the instrument panel.

2. The instrument panel support structure according to claim 1, wherein the deformation of the support member in the panel displacement tolerance mechanism is plastic deformation.

3. The instrument panel support structure according to claim 1, wherein the support member is provided with a weakened portion, and the support member deforms at the weakened portion when the impact is applied.

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