Door structure and mounting components

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a door structure that prevents components from flying in the event of a side impact. [Solution] This door structure has an assembled section 31 that is assembled to fit with the edge 41 of a structure 40 of a vehicle when assembled, and a protruding section 33 which is formed to project outward from the assembled section and which can pass through an opening 42 in the structure by being partially inserted, the protruding section having an engaging section 34 that can engage the opening after passing through the opening.

Description

Door structure and mounting members

[0001] The present invention relates to a door structure and a mounting member.

[0002] Conventionally, various parts such as trim bases and ornaments have been used in vehicle doors. Conventional door mounting techniques have disclosed a door trim base having a mating hole and an ornament having a mating claw, in which the door trim base and the ornament are connected by a strap with excess length when the mating claw is mated with the mating hole.

[0003] JP 2019-38313 A

[0004] The strap connecting the door trim base and the ornament in Patent Document 1 may also be called a tether. The present inventor has been studying a door structure that does not use the above-mentioned tether (strap) and that prevents door components such as a switch unit from flying off in the event of a side collision.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to prevent components from flying apart in a side impact.

[0006] One aspect of the present invention is a door structure having an assembly portion and a protrusion. The assembly portion is assembled so as to fit onto an edge of a vehicle door component during assembly. The protrusion is formed to protrude outward from the assembly portion and is configured to be able to pass through an opening in the door component by being partially inserted therethrough. The protrusion has an engaging portion that can engage with the opening after passing through the opening. Another aspect of the present invention is an attachment member that is used in the door structure, has the assembly portion and the protrusion, and the protrusion has the engaging portion.

[0007] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a switch unit has been removed from an assembly location in the door structure according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a plan view of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which an attachment member has been assembled to the armrest portion of the door trim constituting the door structure of FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the assembly of the attachment member to the armrest portion of the door trim of FIG. 3. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the assembly of the attachment member to the armrest portion of the door trim of FIG. 3. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing the assembly of the attachment member to the armrest portion of the door trim of FIG. 3. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing the assembly of the attachment member to the armrest portion of the door trim of FIG. 3. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing the assembly of the attachment member to the armrest portion of the door trim of FIG.

[0008] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, the same components are designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant explanations will be omitted. In the drawings, the size and proportions of each component are exaggerated to facilitate understanding of the embodiments, and may differ from the actual size and proportions.

[0009] In the drawings, arrows represented by X, Y, and Z may be used to indicate the directions of components constituting the door structure. X corresponds to the vehicle width direction and is referred to as the vehicle width direction X. Y corresponds to the vehicle front-rear direction and is referred to as the front-rear direction Y. Z corresponds to the height direction and is referred to as the height direction Z.

[0010] The door structure according to this embodiment can be applied to the side doors of a typical automobile. The door structure according to this embodiment includes a door trim 10, a switch unit 20, and a mounting member 30. Other components that can be included in the door structure, such as door panels, are well known and will not be described in detail below.

[0011] (Door Trim) The door trim 10 constitutes the inner portion of a vehicle side door. A door handle 11 used to open and close the side door, an ornament 12, a switch unit 20, a speaker grill, and the like can be attached to the door trim 10. The door trim 10 can be made of known resin parts, etc.

[0012] The ornament 12 can be installed in a location on the inside of the side door that is most sensitive to scratches. The ornament 12 can be made of a known material such as synthetic leather. An armrest 13 is provided in the approximate center of the door trim 10 in the height direction Z so as to protrude inward in the vehicle width direction X.

[0013] As shown in Fig. 1 and other figures, an opening 14 is provided at the top of the armrest 13 to which a switch unit 20 (described later) is attached and to which a mounting member 30 is attached. As shown in Fig. 3 and other figures, a structure 40 for mounting the mounting member 30 is integrally formed with the door trim 10 inside the opening 14 of the door trim 10 by bolts B. The structure 40 has an edge 41 to which the mounting member 30 is attached by fitting or the like. The edge 41 is configured to form an opening 42 that engages with an engaging portion 34 (corresponding to a first engaging portion) of the mounting member 30 (see Fig. 4).

[0014] (Switch Unit) The switch unit 20 is installed on the armrest 13 of the door trim 10 to operate the opening and closing of power windows, mirrors, etc. The switch unit 20 includes a cover 21, a button 22, a harness 23, and a switch-side assembly portion 24, as shown in Figures 1, 2, 9, etc.

[0015] The cover 21 is formed on the upper part of the armrest 13 of the door trim 10 so as to cover the periphery of the button 22. The cover 21 can be made of a known resin part or the like.

[0016] The buttons 22 are provided so that the user can use their fingers to operate the opening and closing of power windows, the rotation of mirrors, etc. The number of buttons 22 can be adjusted as appropriate depending on the number of windows and mirrors to be operated.

[0017] The harness 23 is provided to electrically connect the button 22 to the power window, mirror, or other device to be operated. The harness 23 is configured to have a certain length (excess length) so that it can be easily assembled with other components. In the event of a side collision of the vehicle, the switch unit 20 including the harness 23 and cover 21 may fly out of the armrest 13 in the vehicle width direction X and be thrown toward the occupant. The mounting member 30 is provided to prevent this from happening, as will be described later.

[0018] As shown in Fig. 9, the switch-side assembly portion 24 is configured as a portion to be connected to the assembly portion 31 of the mounting member 30. In this embodiment, the switch-side assembly portion 24 is configured to have a hole in the middle (approximately the center) of a flat, plate-like member so that it can be attached to and detached from the mounting member 30. However, the specific shape of the switch-side assembly portion 24 is not limited to that shown in Fig. 9 as long as it allows the switch unit 20 to be attached to and detached from the mounting member 30. Furthermore, the switch unit 20 can be attached to the armrest 13 using a known clip (not shown) separately from the switch-side assembly portion 24.

[0019] 3 and other figures, the mounting member 30 includes an assembly portion 31, a slim portion 32, a protruding portion 33, an engaging portion 34, and an engaging portion 35 (corresponding to a second engaging portion). The mounting member 30 is installed inside the armrest 13 of the door trim 10 through the opening 14 of the armrest 13.

[0020] As described above, the structure 40 is installed inside the armrest 13, and the mounting portion 31 is mounted so as to fit onto the edge 41 of the structure 40, which is a door component, during assembly.

[0021] The assembly part 31 fits into the edge part 41, and is provided with an engagement part 35 into which the tip of a tool TL such as a screwdriver can be inserted when attaching or detaching, as shown in Fig. 9. The engagement part 35 has a slit formed therein to provide a clamping portion, as shown in Fig. 9, and the interval between the clamping portions can be changed to allow the switch-side assembly part 24 of the switch unit 20 (corresponding to the mating part) and the like to be attached or detached.

[0022] As will be described later, the assembly portion 31 can be made of a flexible material that is biased to maintain the slit spacing at a constant size (dimension). This allows the switch unit 20 and the mounting member 30 to be integrated by temporarily widening the slit spacing of the engagement portion 35, and then narrowing the spacing after the switch unit 20 and the mounting member 30 are assembled. Furthermore, when removing the switch unit 20, the mounting member 30 and the switch unit 20 can be easily detached (removed) by inserting the tip of a tool TL, such as a screwdriver, into the engagement portion 35 to widen it.

[0023] The thin portion 32 is provided closer to the tip end in the assembly direction than the assembly portion 31 when attached, and is formed to have a smaller cross-sectional shape intersecting the assembly direction than the assembly portion 31. In this embodiment, the cross-sectional shape of the thin portion 32 intersecting the assembly direction can be configured to be rectangular or the like, but the specific shape may be a polygon other than a rectangle or a circle, etc., as long as it can prevent components from flying off in a side collision or the like.

[0024] The protruding portion 33 is formed to protrude outward from the assembly portion 31 through the thin portion 32. The protruding portion 33 is configured to be able to pass through an opening 42 of a structure 40, which is a door component, by being partially inserted as shown in Figures 4 to 6 .

[0025] The protruding portion 33 is formed in an anchor-like shape protruding from the assembly portion 31 (thin portion 32) in two directions that intersect with the assembly direction, for example, in opposite directions. However, the specific shape of the protruding portion is not limited to the above, as long as it can partially pass through the opening 42 and can be made larger in size than the opening 42 as a whole.

[0026] The protrusion 33 is configured so that it can pass through the opening 42 if only one of the shapes protruding in two directions is in place. On the other hand, the dimension of the protrusion 33 that intersects with the assembly direction is larger than that of the opening 42. This prevents the protrusion 33 from easily passing through the opening 42 if the shapes in both directions are in place at the same time after passing through the opening 42 (see FIG. 7). In this specification, the portion of the protrusion 33 that engages with the opening 42 (edge ​​41) of the structure 40 after passing through the opening 42 is referred to as the engagement portion 34 (see FIG. 7).

[0027] In this way, the mounting member 30 is assembled integrally with the switch unit 20 during assembly, and the protrusion 33 is formed larger than the opening 42. This configuration can prevent components such as the switch unit 20 integrated with the mounting member 30 from flying toward the occupant in the event of a side collision, for example.

[0028] Furthermore, the engaging portion 34 of the protrusion 33 is formed so as to be inclined relative to the assembly direction during assembly. Conversely, if the engaging portion 34 were not inclined during assembly, the worker assembling the protrusion would need to correct the posture of the protrusion 33 in order to pass the protrusion 33 through the opening. However, by forming the engaging portion 34 of the protrusion 33 so as to be inclined relative to the assembly direction as described above, it becomes easier to partially insert the protrusion 33 into the opening 42. This makes it easier to pass the protrusion 33 through the opening 42, making it easier to assemble the mounting member 30 to the door trim 10, etc.

[0029] Furthermore, the mounting member 30 including the engaging portion 34 is configured to include an elastically deformable material such as PA (polyamide) 6 or POM (polyoxymethylene). With this configuration, the engaging portion 34 of the protruding portion 33 can be bent during assembly, allowing it to be easily inserted into the opening 42. Furthermore, in the event of a side collision, the engaging portion 34 elastically deforms to bend, thereby providing an anchor effect that makes it difficult for the mounting member 30 to be removed from the opening 42.

[0030] Furthermore, the assembly portion 31, the thin portion 32, and the engaging portion 34 of the protruding portion 33 of the mounting member 30 are configured to be integrated. If a member such as a strap (tether) is used instead of the mounting member 30, the member such as the strap must be fastened to a specific location on the door component, and in this case, space is required for the worker to perform the fastening work using their fingers.

[0031] In contrast, the mounting member 30 is configured such that the assembly portion 31, the slim portion 32, and the engaging portion 34 of the protruding portion 33 are integrally formed as described above. This configuration allows the protruding portion 33 to pass through the opening 42 of the structure 40 and the assembly portion 31 to fit into the edge portion 41, eliminating the need for the space required for fastening a strap. This improves the ease of assembly.

[0032] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. In the above, the mounting member 30 is described as having the assembly portion 31, the thin portion 32, the protrusion 33, and the engagement portions 34, 35, but the mounting member does not have to have the thin portion 32.

[0033] The following embodiments are also within the scope of the present invention: the door structure according to claim 1 having the features of claim 2; the door structure according to claim 1 or 2 having the features of claim 3; the door structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3 having the features of claim 4; the door structure according to any one of claims 1 to 4 having the features of claim 5; the mounting member according to any one of claims 1 to 5 having the features of claim 6.

[0034] 20 Switch unit (mating part), 30 Mounting member, 31 Assembly portion, 33 Protrusion, 34 Engagement portion (first engagement portion), 35 Engagement portion (second engagement portion), 40 Structure (door component), 41 Edge portion, 42 Opening.

Claims

1. An assembly part that is fitted to the edge of the vehicle door component during assembly, A protruding portion formed to protrude outward from the assembly portion and capable of passing through the opening of a door component by being partially inserted, the protruding portion having a first engaging portion that is elastically deformable and can engage with the opening after passing through the opening, A door structure in which the first engaging portion has a short direction and a long direction, and when viewed from the short direction of the first engaging portion, the assembly portion is smaller in dimensions than the first engaging portion.

2. The door structure according to claim 1, wherein the first engaging portion is formed to be inclined with respect to the assembly direction during assembly.

3. The assembly portion includes a second engaging portion that allows the mating part to be attached and detached by changing the spacing of the clamping parts. The door structure according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the second engaging portion is biased to maintain the distance between the portions to be clamped.

4. (delete)

5. The door structure according to claim 1, wherein the first engaging portion and the assembly portion are integrally formed.

6. An attachment member used in the door structure described in claim 1, having the assembly portion and the protruding portion, wherein the protruding portion has a first engaging portion.