Upper arm mounting structure of a double wishbone suspension system

Abstract

To reduce or prevent deformation of a side member during a frontal collision and minimize a height dimension of a cross section of the side member in a vertical direction as much as possible.SOLUTION: A double wishbone shock absorber includes: an upper arm 4 in which an inner end 41 is pivotally supported by a side member 1 having a rectangular cylindrical shape; and a lower arm 5 in which an inner end 51 is pivotally supported by a suspension member 2 and an outer end 52 pivotally supports a lower end of a suspension 3. In a region of the side member 1 that pivotally supports the inner end 41 of the upper arm 4, an opening 18 extending from an outer side hanging wall portion 13 of the side member 1 to a bottom wall portion 14 is provided. A reinforcing member 7 that closes the opening 18 is attached to the opening 18. The reinforcing member 7 is provided with a rigid portion 74 for increasing rigidity.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an upper arm attachment structure of a double wishbone type shock absorber.

Background Art

[0002] For example, in paragraphs 0058 - 0061 of Patent Document 1, it is described that "in a structure for attaching the upper arm 2 of a double wishbone type shock absorber to the front side frame 100, attachment recesses 100b (100bf, 100br) are provided in a part of the side surface of the side frame 100, a U-shaped attachment bracket 111 in plan view is fixed to these attachment recesses 100bf, 100br, and the inner end of the upper arm 2 is attached to this attachment bracket 111".

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the above Patent Document 1, since a part of the side surface of the side frame 100 is not blocked by the attachment recesses 100b (100bf, 100br), there is a concern that the rigidity of the side frame 100 may be reduced, and in the event of a frontal collision, the side frame 100 may be easily deformed in the vehicle front - rear direction.

[0005] Also, in the above Patent Document 1, it is not possible to infer the technical idea of reducing the sectional height dimension in the vertical direction of the side frame 100.

[0006] Therefore, for example, when adopting a design that lowers the bonnet height as much as possible in a vehicle equipped with a double wishbone suspension system, it is necessary to design the upper end of the front suspension to be tilted inward. However, in the case of such a design, there is concern that the suspension will interfere with the outer corner of the top wall portion of the side frame 100, as described in Patent Document 1.

[0007] Furthermore, if the design were to be modified to lower the side frame 100 in order to avoid the aforementioned interference, there is a concern that the vehicle's minimum ground clearance would become too low, and there is also a risk that the drive shaft may interfere with the inner corner of the bottom wall of the side frame 100 when it rises. For these reasons, it is difficult to adopt a design that lowers the height of the vehicle's bonnet.

[0008] In view of these circumstances, the present invention aims to provide an upper arm mounting structure for a double wishbone type shock absorber that can reduce or prevent deformation of the side member during a frontal collision, and can reduce the vertical cross-sectional height dimension of the side member as much as possible. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The present invention relates to a mounting structure for the upper arm of a double wishbone type shock absorber, comprising: an upper arm pivotally supported in a cantilevered manner on rectangular cylindrical side members whose inner ends are arranged on both sides in the left-right direction of the vehicle along the front-rear direction of the vehicle; and a lower arm pivotally supported in a cantilevered manner on a suspension member located below the side members, with the lower end of the suspension pivotally supported. The region of the side member that pivotally supports the inner end of the upper arm has an opening that spans from the outer vertical wall portion to the bottom wall portion of the side member, and a reinforcing member is attached to close the opening. In the vertical wall portion that closes the outer part of the opening, in the vehicle's front-rear direction It is characterized by the inclusion of rigid sections to increase rigidity.

[0010] In this configuration, the rigidity of the region of the side member that pivotally supports the inner end of the upper arm is increased, which makes it possible to reduce or prevent deformation of the side member during a frontal collision. In addition, it is possible to lower the height of the top wall portion of the side member as much as possible, thereby making it possible to reduce the cross-sectional height dimension along the vertical direction of the side member as much as possible, and consequently making it possible to accommodate designs that lower the height of the vehicle's hood as much as possible.

[0011] By the way, in the above upper arm mounting structure, the reinforcing member is a plate with an L-shape in side view that covers the opening from the outside to the bottom, the inner end of the upper arm is pivotally supported on the vertical wall portion of the reinforcing member that covers the outside of the opening, and the rigid portion is provided, the bottom wall portion of the reinforcing member that covers the bottom of the opening is superimposed on the bottom wall portion of the side member in the vehicle vertical direction, and the superimposed portion is fastened.

[0012] With this configuration, even if the height of the top wall portion of the side member is lowered as much as possible, as described above, and the cross-sectional height dimension along the vertical direction of the side member is reduced as much as possible, it becomes unnecessary to lower the height of the bottom wall portion of the side member. This makes it possible to avoid the drive shaft interfering with the bottom wall portion of the side member when the drive shaft rises as it moves up and down during driving.

[0013] Furthermore, in the above-described upper arm mounting structure, the rigid body portion can be configured to have a protruding ridge that extends outward from the lower end side of the vertical wall portion of the reinforcing member and is elongated in the vehicle's longitudinal direction.

[0014] According to this configuration, since the shape of the rigid body is specified, it becomes clear that the presence of the rigid body improves the rigidity of the side member in the vehicle's longitudinal direction.

[0015] Furthermore, in the upper arm mounting structure described above, the vertical wall portion of the reinforcing member can be superimposed on the outer vertical wall portion of the side member in the left-right direction of the vehicle, and the superimposed portion can be fastened together.

[0016] Furthermore, in the above-described upper arm mounting structure, the side member can be formed into a rectangular tubular shape by combining a side member outer and a side member inner, and the opening can be provided in the side member outer. [Effects of the Invention]

[0017] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an upper arm mounting structure for a double wishbone type shock absorber that can reduce or prevent deformation of the side member during a frontal collision, and can reduce the vertical cross-sectional height dimension of the side member as much as possible. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0018] [Figure 1] This is a schematic side view showing one embodiment of the upper arm mounting structure of a double wishbone type shock absorber according to the present invention. [Figure 2] This is a perspective view showing the mounting structure of the upper arm. [Figure 3] Figure 1 is a schematic side view showing the reinforcing member removed from the side member. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0019] The best embodiment for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0020] Figures 1 to 3 show an embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, a double wishbone type shock absorber in the front right side of the vehicle is shown. The double wishbone type shock absorber in the front left side of the vehicle is not shown, but is basically the same as the double wishbone type shock absorber in the front right side of the vehicle.

[0021] The double wishbone type shock absorber shown in the figure is attached to the front side member 1 and the front suspension member 2 of the vehicle, and includes a suspension 3, an upper arm 4, a lower arm 5, and the like.

[0022] The side member 1 is arranged parallel to and spaced apart from the left and right sides of the vehicle along the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and is formed in a square tube shape by combining a side member outer 11 and a side member inner 12.

[0023] The suspension member 2 is arranged parallel to and spaced apart from the left and right sides of the vehicle below the side member 1 along the longitudinal direction of the vehicle.

[0024] The suspension 3 is configured by combining a damper (reference numeral omitted) and a coil spring (reference numeral omitted), and the upper end is attached to a suspension tower not shown by bolts or the like. The lower end of this suspension 3 is pivotally supported in the middle of the lower arm 5 in the left - right direction of the vehicle, although not shown.

[0025] The upper arm 4 is formed in a triangular shape that gradually narrows outward in the left - right direction of the vehicle from the side member 1 side in plan view. The bifurcated inner ends 41 of this upper arm 4 are pivotally supported on the side member 1 in a cantilever - like manner so as to be tiltable, and the upper end portion of a hub knuckle not shown is attached to the outer end 42 of the upper arm 4.

[0026] The lower arm 5 is formed in a triangular shape that gradually narrows outward in the left-right direction of the vehicle from the side member 1 side when viewed from above. The bifurcated inner end 51 of the lower arm 5 is pivotally supported in a cantilevered manner on the vertical wall portion 21 of the suspension member 2, and the lower end portion of a hub knuckle (not shown) is attached to the outer end 52 of the lower arm 5.

[0027] The hub knuckle, although not shown in the figure, rotatably supports the front disc brake and the front wheel, and is pivotally supported by the outer end 52 of the lower arm 5 and the outer end 42 of the upper arm 4.

[0028] Although not shown in the diagram, the power steering system is attached to the hub knuckle via a tie rod, and one end of the stabilizer 6 (the right end in the diagram) is also attached to it.

[0029] In this embodiment, as shown in Figures 2 and 3, openings 18 are provided in two locations on the side member outer 11 in the vehicle's longitudinal direction, and reinforcing members 7 are attached to these openings 18 to close them, with rigid body portions 74 provided on these reinforcing members 7.

[0030] Specifically, the side member 1 is formed into a rectangular tubular shape by combining the side member outer 11 and the side member inner 12.

[0031] The side member outer 11 is formed in an inverted U-shape, and is provided with an upper flange portion 16 extending upward from the edge of the top wall portion 15, and a lower flange portion 17 extending downward from the edge of the bottom wall portion 14.

[0032] The side member inner 12 is a flat plate that follows the vertical direction of the vehicle, and is connected to the upper flange portion 16 and the lower flange portion 17 of the side member outer 11.

[0033] The opening 18 is provided in the region of the side member outer 11 described above where the inner end 41 of the upper arm 4 is pivotally supported, and extends from the outer vertical wall portion 13 to the bottom wall portion 14 of the side member outer 11.

[0034] The inner end 41 of the bifurcated upper arm 4 is pivotally supported on the reinforcing member 7 so as to be tiltable. Although not shown in detail in the illustration, both ends of the support shaft, which is inserted through the central hole of the inner end 41 of the upper arm 4, are attached to the vertical wall portion 71 of the reinforcing member 7 by a retaining plate 9 and a bolt 10.

[0035] The reinforcing member 7 is a plate with an L-shape in side view that covers the opening 18 from the outer part to the bottom part, and a thickened portion 73 is provided between the vertical wall portion 71 and the bottom wall portion 72. In this reinforcing member 7, the inner end 41 of the upper arm 4 is pivotally supported on the vertical wall portion 71 that covers the outer part of the opening 18 so as to be tiltable.

[0036] The rigid body portion 74 is intended to increase the rigidity of the reinforcing member 7, and is a protruding portion that sharply projects outward from the thickened portion 73 of the reinforcing member 7 and is elongated in the vehicle's longitudinal direction. It is clear that providing a rigid body portion 74 of this shape improves the rigidity of the side member 1 in the vehicle's longitudinal direction.

[0037] The vertical wall portion 71 of the reinforcing member 7 is superimposed on the outer vertical wall portion 13 of the side member outer 11 in the left-right direction of the vehicle, and the superimposed portion (see the upper × mark in Figure 1) is fastened.

[0038] Furthermore, the bottom wall portion 72 of the reinforcing member 7 that closes the bottom of the opening 18 is superimposed on the bottom wall portion 14 of the side member outer 11 in the vehicle's vertical direction, and the superimposed portion (see the black circle at the bottom of Figure 1) is fastened.

[0039] The aforementioned fastenings are performed, for example, by welding or by fastening members such as rivets.

[0040] As described above, according to embodiments to which the present invention is applied, the rigidity of the region in the side member 1 that supports the inner end of the upper arm 4 can be increased. This makes it possible to reduce or prevent deformation of the side member 1 in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle when a load is applied to the side member 1 in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle during a frontal collision, and also makes it possible to reduce the cross-sectional height dimension of the side member 1 along the vertical direction as much as possible.

[0041] Furthermore, in this embodiment, in order to reduce the cross-sectional height dimension of the side member 1 along the vertical direction as much as possible, the vertical wall portion 71 of the reinforcing member 7 is superimposed on the outer vertical wall portion 13 of the side member outer 11 in the left-right direction of the vehicle and fastened, thereby lowering the height position of the top wall portion 15 of the side member outer 11 as much as possible without lowering the height position of the bottom wall portion 14 of the side member outer 11.

[0042] In this way, by minimizing the cross-sectional height dimension of the side member outer 11 along the vertical direction, it becomes possible to accommodate designs such as lowering the height of the hood of a vehicle (not shown) as much as possible. Furthermore, it becomes possible to avoid the drive shaft 8 interfering with the bottom wall portion 14 or lower flange portion 17 of the side member outer 11 when the drive shaft 8 moves up and down as shown by the dashed line in Figure 2 during driving.

[0043] It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and can be modified as appropriate within the scope of the claims and equivalents thereof.

[0044] (1) For example, although not shown in the figures, it is possible to overlap the vertical wall portion 71 of the reinforcing member 7 with the top wall portion 15 of the side member outer 11 in the vehicle's vertical direction and fasten the overlapping portion. Such a case is also included as an embodiment of the present invention.

[0045] (2) For example, although not shown in the figures, the side member 1 can be configured such that the side member outer 11 and the side member inner 12 are formed integrally. Such a case is also included as an embodiment of the present invention. [Industrial applicability]

[0046] The present invention can be suitably used in the upper arm mounting structure of a double wishbone type shock absorber. [Explanation of symbols]

[0047] 1 Side Member 11 Side Member Outer 12 Side Member Inner 13 Outside hanging wall part 14 Bottom wall section 15 Top wall section 18 Aperture 2 Suspension Members 21 Hanging wall section 3 Suspension 4 Upper Arm 41 Inner end 42 Outer edge 5. Lower Arm 51 Inner end 52 Outer edge 7 Reinforcement members 71 Hanging wall section 72 Bottom wall section 73 Thick wall part 74 Rigid body

Claims

1. A mounting structure for the upper arm of a double wishbone type shock absorber, comprising: an upper arm whose inner end is pivotally supported in a cantilevered manner on a rectangular cylindrical side member whose side end is positioned on both sides in the left-right direction of the vehicle along the front-rear direction of the vehicle; and a lower arm whose inner end is pivotally supported in a cantilevered manner on a suspension member positioned below the side member, and to which the lower end of the suspension is pivotally supported, In the region of the side member that pivotally supports the inner end of the upper arm, an opening is provided that spans from the outer vertical wall portion to the bottom wall portion of the side member. A reinforcing member is attached to the aforementioned opening to close the opening. An upper arm mounting structure for a double wishbone type shock absorber, characterized in that a rigid body portion is provided in the vertical wall portion that closes the outer portion of the opening in the reinforcing member, for increasing rigidity in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle.

2. In the upper arm mounting structure of the double wishbone type shock absorber according to claim 1, The reinforcing member is a plate with an L-shape in side view that covers the opening from the outside to the bottom. In this reinforcing member, the inner end of the upper arm is pivotally supported on the vertical wall portion that closes the outer part of the opening, and the rigid body portion is provided. The upper arm mounting structure for a double wishbone type shock absorber is characterized in that the bottom wall portion of the reinforcing member that closes the bottom of the opening is superimposed on the bottom wall portion of the side member in the vertical direction of the vehicle, and the superimposed portion is fastened.

3. In the upper arm mounting structure of the double wishbone type shock absorber according to claim 2, The upper arm mounting structure for a double wishbone type shock absorber is characterized in that the rigid body portion is a protruding ridge that extends outward from the lower end side of the vertical wall portion of the reinforcing member and has an elongated shape in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle.

4. In the upper arm mounting structure of the double wishbone type shock absorber according to claim 2, The upper arm mounting structure for a double wishbone type shock absorber is characterized in that the vertical wall portion of the reinforcing member is superimposed on the outer vertical wall portion of the side member in the left-right direction of the vehicle, and the superimposed portion is fastened.

5. In the upper arm mounting structure of a double wishbone type shock absorber according to any one of claims 1 to 4, The aforementioned side member is formed into a rectangular tubular shape by combining a side member outer and a side member inner. An upper arm mounting structure for a double wishbone type shock absorber, characterized in that the opening is provided in the outer side member.

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