Vehicle structure with sliding doors

Abstract

To provide a vehicle structure including a slide door which properly prevents or inhibits a predetermined movable member, such as a belt, from getting wet with water traveling upward from the lower side and being frozen during a cold period.SOLUTION: In a vehicle structure A including a slide door, a driving force application mechanism B for a slide door 11 includes a belt or a wire-like movable member 6 which is connected to the slide door 11 and moves using a motor M as a driving source; and a movable member guide 7. A gap C is formed between a slide rail 2 and a rear side outer panel 15. A bead part 15a protruding to the outer side in a vehicle width direction and extending in a vehicle fore and aft direction is provided at a portion, located below the movable member guide 7 and facing the gap C or located above the gap C, of the rear side outer panel 15.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

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

Background Art

[0002] As a general specific example of a vehicle structure equipped with a sliding door, there are vehicle structures described in Patent Documents 1 and 2. In these vehicle structures, a sliding door for opening and closing an entrance / exit opening provided on the side of the vehicle is provided. This sliding door can perform a so-called automatic opening and closing operation. As means therefor, a driving force applying mechanism portion for the sliding door is provided on a slide rail (center slide rail) for guiding the support of the sliding door. This driving force applying mechanism portion is a mechanism portion for applying a driving force for moving the sliding door in the vehicle longitudinal direction to the sliding door. It is connected to the sliding door via a connecting portion, and is configured by combining a belt (moving member) that moves with a motor as a driving source and a belt guide (guide for the moving member) that guides the movement of this belt. According to such a configuration, by moving the belt using the driving force of the motor, the sliding door is moved in the vehicle longitudinal direction as the belt moves, and the so-called automatic opening and closing operation of the sliding door is possible.

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

[0004] That is, it is desirable to prevent each part of the driving force applying mechanism portion for the sliding door described above and the slide rail located below it from getting wet as much as possible by rainwater, snow, water for car washing, etc., and to protect them. As a countermeasure, attempts have been made to install a body side cover on the outer surface of the rear side outer panel of vehicles equipped with slide rails, which covers almost the entire area of ​​the drive force application mechanism and slide rails. However, while such a body side cover covers the upper and outer sides of the drive force application mechanism and slide rails, the reality is that the lower part of the inner area of ​​this body side cover is open, allowing water to enter. On the other hand, although the slide rails are attached to the outer surface of the rear side outer panel of the vehicle, gaps may form between these slide rails and the rear side outer panel. As a result, water such as splashes of water when the vehicle is in motion or water sprayed from a car wash hose may enter the gap from below and pass upward, wetting the belt of the drive force application mechanism. If this occurs during cold weather, the wet parts of the belt may freeze, making it difficult to open and close the sliding door. To prevent this, one could consider adding a special cover to prevent water from entering from below, such as from the slide rails. However, such measures would increase the number of parts, leading to increased vehicle weight and manufacturing costs. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2019-100081 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2019-108740 [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0006] This invention was conceived under the circumstances described above, and is a drive for sliding doors. The objective is to provide a vehicle structure equipped with a sliding door that can appropriately prevent or suppress, using simple means, the freezing of moving components such as belts constituting the power supply mechanism by water advancing upward from below the slide rail during cold weather. [Means for solving the problem]

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

[0008] The vehicle structure with a sliding door provided by the present invention comprises a slide rail attached to the outer surface of the rear side outer panel of the vehicle and extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and providing a support guide for the sliding door so that the sliding door can move in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and a driving force application mechanism for the sliding door that applies a driving force to the sliding door for moving the sliding door in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, wherein the driving force application mechanism comprises a belt or wire-like moving member connected to the sliding door and moving with a motor as the driving source, and a guide for the moving member that guides the movement of the moving member, and at least a part of each of these moving member and guide for the moving member is located above the slide rail, and a gap is formed between the slide rail and the rear side outer panel, and the vehicle structure with a sliding door further comprises a bead portion provided on the rear side outer panel below the guide for the moving member and facing the gap, or above the gap, and projecting outward in the vehicle width direction and extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle.

[0009] With this configuration, even if water, such as splashes from vehicle movement or water sprayed from a car wash hose, enters the gap between the slide rail and the rear side outer panel from below and upward, this water will hit the bead portion. This prevents or suppresses the water from rising any further. Furthermore, if the water attempts to rise further despite its weakened force, this configuration can also change the direction of the water's movement outward in the vehicle width direction. As a result, it is possible to appropriately prevent or suppress the water from reaching the moving members (e.g., belts) of the driving force application mechanism. Consequently, it is possible to appropriately prevent problems such as difficulty opening and closing the sliding door due to the moving members getting wet and freezing occurring in cold weather. According to the present invention, there is no need to separately provide a dedicated cover to prevent water from entering the gap between the slide rail and the rear side outer panel. On the other hand, the bead portion can be formed integrally and easily with the rear side outer panel when the rear side outer panel is press-formed. Therefore, the increase in the number of parts can be suppressed, and increases in vehicle weight and manufacturing costs can also be appropriately suppressed.

[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 schematic side view of a key part illustrating an example of a vehicle structure equipped with a sliding door according to the present invention. [Figure 2] Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of the main components with the sliding door omitted. [Figure 3] (a) is a cross-sectional view of section IIIa-IIIa in Figure 2, and (b) is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the main part of (a). [Figure 4] This is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV in Figure 2. [Figure 5] Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the VV region. [Figure 6] It is a schematic perspective view of the main part in the state where the body side cover is removed in FIG. 2. [Figure 7] (a) is a cross-sectional view taken along line VIIa-VIIa of FIG. 6, and (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along line VIIb-VIIb of FIG. 6. [Figure 8] It is a schematic exploded perspective view of the main part of FIG. 6. [Figure 9] It is a schematic perspective view of the main part showing the configuration in the state where the slide rail and the driving force applying mechanism part are removed in FIG. 8 (rear side outer panel and reinforcing member). [Figure 10] (a) is a side view of the main part as seen from the vehicle interior side of the vehicle structure provided with the slide door shown in FIG. 2 (corresponding to the view in the direction of arrow X in FIG. 7(a)), (b) is a side view of the main part in the state where the motor unit is omitted in (a), and (c) is an exploded side view of the main part of (a).

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

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

[0013] In a vehicle structure A provided with a slide door shown in FIG. 1 (hereinafter, appropriately abbreviated as "vehicle structure A"), a slide door 11 that can reciprocate in the vehicle longitudinal direction is provided to open and close an entrance / exit opening 10 provided on the side portion of the vehicle 1. Upper rollers 12a, lower rollers 12b, and first and second rollers 51, 52 as center rollers (details will be described later with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5) are attached near the upper end portion and the lower end portion in the front portion of this slide door 11, and at the middle portion in the vertical height direction in the rear portion. These are supported by upper, lower, and center slide rails 14a, 14b, 2 provided on the vehicle body and extending in the vehicle longitudinal direction, and are movable along these. The center slide rail 2 corresponds to a specific example of the slide rail referred to in the present invention (Claim 1), and the other slide rails 14a, 14b do not correspond to it.

[0014] As well represented in FIGS. 2 to 8, the vehicle structure A includes, as means for making the sliding door 11 movable in the vehicle longitudinal direction, in addition to the above-described center slide rail 2, a driving force applying mechanism portion B for the sliding door. Further, as members or portions attached to or corresponding to these, a body side cover 3, a reinforcing member 4, and a bead portion 15a are provided. Details of these will be described below.

[0015] The slide rail 2 is attached to the outer surface portion of the rear side outer panel 15 of the vehicle 1 and extends in the vehicle longitudinal direction. However, as well represented in FIG. 8, the front side region of this slide rail 2 is curved along the curved surface of the rear side edge portion 10a of the boarding / alighting opening 10. As well represented in FIGS. 3 and 4, the slide rail 2 has a bottom wall portion 20, side wall portions 21, and an upper Π-shaped portion 22, and has a cross-sectional shape with an opening on the outer side in the vehicle width direction. On the other hand, first and second rollers 51, 52 fitted into the slide rail 2 are attached to a bent arm 50 attached to the sliding door 11. The first roller 51 can roll on the bottom wall portion 20 (can rotate around the horizontal axis La in FIG. 3(b)), and the weight of the sliding door 11 is received by the slide rail 2 via the first roller 51. The second roller 52 can roll inside the upper Π-shaped portion 22 (can rotate around the vertical axis Lb in FIG. 3(b)), and the presence of this second roller 52 prevents the sliding door 11 from falling over.

[0016] As shown in FIG. 4, the attachment of the slide rail 2 to the rear side outer panel 15 uses bolts and nuts 9a, 9b. However, on the rear side outer panel 15, a bulging portion 15b that partially bulges the fastening locations of the bolts and nuts 9a, 9b toward the slide rail 2 side is formed. A gap C is formed between the rear side outer panel 15 and the slide rail 2. This gap C is closed at the locations where the bulging portion 15b is formed and the bolts and nuts 9a, 9b are fastened among the portions between the rear side outer panel 15 and the slide rail 2, but is not closed at other portions (FIGS. 3, (See also Figures 5 and 7). As indicated by arrow N1 in Figures 3 and 5, water may enter this gap C from below, for example, splashes of water from a moving vehicle or water sprayed from a car wash hose.

[0017] Furthermore, metal plate reinforcing members 4 are superimposed and joined to the inner surface (inside the passenger compartment) of the rear side outer panel 15. This joining is done by welding, such as spot welding. The reinforcing members 4 are superimposed at the fastening points of the bolts and nuts 9a and 9b on the slide rail 2, thereby increasing the strength of the mounting points of the slide rail 2. As clearly shown in Figure 9, the reinforcing member 4 has an opening 40 that corresponds to the opening 16 described later, which is provided in the rear side outer panel 15. It has a main region 41 that is positioned opposite to the opening 16 and an extended region 42 that is connected to the rear side of the main region 41 and extends in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. Of these, the extended region 42 is positioned opposite to the slide rail 2 and has bolt insertion holes 43 that correspond to the bolts and nuts 9a and 9b described above.

[0018] The body side cover 3 covers almost the entire area of ​​the slide rail 2 and the drive force application mechanism B for the sliding door located above it, serving to protect them and improve the appearance of the vehicle 1. The body side cover 3 has bracket legs 31 (see Figures 3 and 5) on its inner side, each having a plurality of locking projections 30 at its tip. The body side cover 3 is attached to the rear side outer panel 15 by inserting and locking the locking projections 30 into a plurality of holes 15e provided in the rear side outer panel 15.

[0019] In Figures 2 to 8, the driving force application mechanism B for the sliding door is a mechanism that applies driving force to the sliding door 11 to move the sliding door 11 along the sliding rail 2 in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. This driving force application mechanism B includes a belt 6, a belt guide 7, a belt cover 68, and a motor unit 8 including the motor M shown in Figure 10. Of these, the belt 6 and the belt guide 7 correspond to specific examples of the "movable member" and the "guide for the movable member" in the present invention (claim 1), respectively.

[0020] Belt 6 is, for example, an endless timing belt. The belt guide 7 is for guiding the belt 6 to move along a fixed trajectory. As is clearly shown in Figure 7, the belt guide body 70 extends in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and its upper surface is provided with front and rear pulleys 71a and 71b, as well as a plurality of intermediate pulleys 71c. The belt 6 is wrapped between the front and rear pulleys 71a and 71b and can circulate between them in both forward and reverse directions.

[0021] The belt guide 7 is positioned and fixed on the outer surface of the rear side outer panel 15 and above the slide rail 2. As a means of fixing it, for example, bracket portions 76a and 76b provided at both the front and rear ends of the belt guide 7 are bolted to other bracket portions 26a and 26b provided at both the front and rear ends of the slide rail 2. In addition, an upward-facing upright bracket portion 76c is provided at a point midway along the front-to-rear direction of the belt guide 7, and this bracket portion 76c is attached to the rear side outer panel 15 and the reinforcing member 4 using bolts 9c and screw holes 9d.

[0022] The belt guide 7 is basically attached to the outer surface of the rear side outer panel 15 as previously described, but this belt guide 7 is provided with an auxiliary area 72 located inward in the vehicle width direction (inward towards the passenger compartment) from the rear side outer panel 15 (see Figure 7). This auxiliary area 72 is an area that partially protrudes inward in the vehicle width direction from the other parts of the belt guide 7 and passes through the opening 16 of the rear side outer panel 15 towards the passenger compartment. A portion of the belt 6 enters the interior of 2, and a pulley 71d for belt drive is also attached. This pulley 71d is driven and rotated using the motor unit 8 shown in Figure 10, causing the belt 6 to circulate along a predetermined path.

[0023] A connecting member 67 is attached to the belt 6, which is movable in the front-rear direction of the vehicle as the belt 6 moves. This connecting member 67 is connected to the arm 50 of the sliding door 11 via bolt fastening means or the like. Therefore, when the belt 6 is moved using the motor unit 8, the sliding door 11 moves in the front-rear direction of the vehicle.

[0024] The motor unit 8 comprises a motor M, a rotary drive shaft 80 rotated at an appropriate speed by the motor M, and a unit case 81 that holds the motor M and its accessories together. As clearly shown in Figure 10(c), the unit case 81 is attached to both the reinforcing member 4 and the belt guide 7 by screwing it onto the weld nut 9f of the reinforcing member 4 using, for example, a bolt 9e, and screwing it onto the threaded portion 9h of the auxiliary area 72 of the belt guide 7 using another bolt 9g. The rotary drive shaft 80 of the motor unit 8 is driven and connected to a pulley 71d for belt drive.

[0025] As clearly shown in Figures 3 and 4, the belt guide body 70 comprises an upper wall portion 70a, an upright wall portion 70b, an auxiliary wall portion 70c, and a lower wall portion 70d. The upper wall portion 70a is a substantially horizontal strip extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. The upright wall portion 70b is a wall portion that stands upright in the vertical direction, located between two parallel portions of the belt 6, and is provided continuously or intermittently below the upper wall portion 70a. The auxiliary wall portion 70c serves to prevent the belt 6 from rising. The lower wall portion 70d is a portion that bends inward in the vehicle width direction from the lower end of the upright wall portion 70b, and is provided in a continuous manner extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. As will be described later, this lower wall portion 70d serves to suppress water wetting of the belt 6. This lower wall portion 70d is provided continuously over approximately the entire length of the belt guide 7, for example, but instead, it can be provided only in the area corresponding to the bead portion 15a described later, that is, in the area on the rear side of the vehicle beyond the opening 16.

[0026] The belt cover 68 (cover for movable member) is a member that covers the upper side of the belt guide 7 and belt 6 of the driving force application mechanism B, and is made of resin, for example. This belt cover 68 is fixedly attached to the belt guide 7. As a means to achieve this, as is clearly shown in Figure 5, a plurality of additional upper wall portions 70a', for example, with a transverse L-shape or U-shape cross-section, are provided on the upper wall portion 70a of the belt guide 7 at appropriate intervals in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. The belt cover 68 has an upward-facing convex portion 68a that rests on such a plurality of additional upper wall portions 70a', and this upward-facing convex portion 68a is fixed to the additional upper wall portions 70a' using a pin-shaped locking clip 90.

[0027] The bead portion 15a is a part formed by press working on the rear side outer panel 15, and it partially protrudes outward in the vehicle width direction compared to other parts of the rear side outer panel 15, and extends in the vehicle's longitudinal direction (see also Figures 8 and 9). Furthermore, this bead portion 15a is located on the rearward side of the vehicle from the opening 16, and is not located in the vicinity of the opening 16 or on the front side of the vehicle from there. The significance of this will be explained later.

[0028] As clearly shown in Figures 3 to 5, the bead portion 15a is located below the belt guide 7 and faces the gap C between the slide rail 2 and the rear side outer panel 15 (at the same height as the gap C), or above the gap C (at the same height as the gap between the belt guide 7 and the slide rail 2). Preferably, the bead portion 15a is sized to protrude outward in the vehicle width direction beyond the minimum width s1 of the gap C. This, as will be described later, creates an effect that more effectively blocks water when it flows upward from below the bead portion 15a.

[0029] Next, the operation of the vehicle structure A described above will be explained.

[0030] First, the slide rail 2 and the drive force application mechanism B are covered by the body side cover 3, so rainwater and other elements are prevented from directly hitting them, and they are protected. However, a small gap may occur between the upper part of the body side cover 3 and the rear side outer panel 15, so there is a risk that rainwater and other elements may enter from this part, as shown by arrow N2 in Figure 3(a). In contrast, the upper part of the belt 6 and belt guide 7 of the drive force application mechanism B is covered by the belt cover 68, so these parts will not get wet with rainwater or other elements.

[0031] On the other hand, the arm 50 of the sliding door 11 needs to pass under the body side cover 3, so the inner area below the body side cover 3 is left open. As a result, as shown by arrow N1 in Figures 3 and 5, there is a risk that water, such as splashes of water when the vehicle is in motion or water sprayed from a car wash hose, may enter the gap C upward from the aforementioned open area. However, this water will hit the bead portion 15a. Therefore, the water is prevented or suppressed from rising to a higher height, and even though the force of the water is weakened, any water that still tries to move upward will have its direction of travel changed to the outward side in the vehicle width direction. As a result, the water is effectively prevented from hitting the belt 6. In addition, the lower wall portion 70d of the belt cover 68 covers the area below the belt 6, more effectively preventing water that has passed upward through the gap C from hitting the belt 6. As a result, the problem of difficulty opening and closing the sliding door 11 due to the belt 6 getting wet and freezing in that area during cold weather is properly prevented.

[0032] As previously described with reference to Figures 8 and 9, the bead portion 15a is provided only on the vehicle rear side of the opening 16. This is preferable because it avoids unnecessarily increasing the length of the bead portion 15a, facilitating its formation, and effectively preventing the belt 6 from getting wet. In this embodiment, the bead portion 15a is not provided near the opening 16 or on the vehicle front side of it, but this does not pose any particular problem. This is because, near the opening 16, the belt 6 is housed within the auxiliary area 72 of the belt guide 7 and is not exposed to the outside, so the possibility of the belt 6 getting wet in this area is low. Furthermore, when the vehicle is in motion or being washed, the sliding door 11 is closed and positioned on the vehicle front side of the opening 16, so the front part of the belt 6 is hidden by the sliding door 11 and is less likely to get wet.

[0033] According to the present invention, a bead portion 15a is provided as one means of preventing water from getting into the belt 6, and its formation is easy. Furthermore, there is no need to provide a dedicated cover to prevent water from rising from below the gap C, and it is possible to suppress an increase in the number of parts. Therefore, increases in vehicle weight and manufacturing costs can also be appropriately suppressed.

[0034] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the mounting points of the slide rail 2, belt guide 7, and motor unit 8 are efficiently reinforced using the reinforcing member 4, making it difficult for distortion of each part and resulting misalignment of the relative positions between each part to occur. As a result, it is possible to improve the smoothness, stability, and reliability of the opening and closing operation of the slide door 11.

[0035] The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above. The specific configuration of each part of the vehicle structure equipped with a sliding door according to the present invention can be modified in various ways within the scope intended by the present invention.

[0036] In the embodiments described above, the moving member and the guide for the moving member in the present invention (claim 1) are a belt and a belt guide, but are not limited to these. The belt is not limited to a timing belt, but may be other types of belts, such as a chain belt. The moving member may be a wire-like object (the wire itself, or something similar to a wire) instead of a belt. The configuration of the guide for the moving member can be appropriately changed depending on the type of moving member.

[0037] In the drawings of the above-described embodiment, the bead portion is shown as a convex shape with a semicircular cross-section, but its specific shape is not limited. Furthermore, the specific protruding dimensions are not limited, nor is the specific length in the vehicle's longitudinal direction. In the above-described embodiment, the bead portion is provided at a position rearward of the vehicle from a predetermined opening (opening 16), but it can also be provided on the vehicle's front side of the opening. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0038] A. Vehicle structure with sliding doors B. Driving force application mechanism for sliding doors C Gap M Motor 11 Sliding Doors 15 Rear side outer panel 15a Bead section 2 slide rails 6. Belt (moving component) 7. Belt guide (guide for moving parts)

Claims

[Claim 1] A slide rail is attached to the outer surface of the rear side outer panel of the vehicle, extends in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and provides a support guide for the sliding door so that the sliding door can move in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. A driving force application mechanism for a sliding door that applies driving force to the sliding door to move the sliding door in the front-rear direction of the vehicle, It is equipped with, The driving force application mechanism comprises a belt or wire-like moving member connected to the sliding door and driven by a motor, and a guide for the moving member that guides the movement of the moving member, and at least a portion of each of these moving member and guide for the moving member is located above the sliding rail. In a vehicle structure equipped with a sliding door, a gap is formed between the sliding rail and the rear side outer panel, with a lower opening and an upper opening, and these lower and upper openings are in communication with each other. A vehicle structure equipped with a sliding door, characterized in that the rear side outer panel is provided with a bead portion located below the guide for the moving member and facing the gap or above the gap, and which protrudes outward in the vehicle width direction and extends in the vehicle longitudinal direction, and which is capable of blocking water that enters the gap upward from the lower opening.

Images