Vehicle structure

Abstract

The present invention provides a vehicle structure comprising a suspension member 3 disposed under a pair of left / right side members 1 and supporting a drive device 2. The suspension member 3 has a pair of left / right extension frames 8 extending to the rear of the vehicle from a main body section. The extension frames 8 have a higher rigidity than the rigidity of the main body section in the vehicle length direction, and the extension frames 8 are used to support protected equipment 9 against frontal collision. This vehicle structure reliably protects the protected equipment 9, which is high-power equipment such as a compressor, in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle.

Description

Vehicle structure

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle structure that is mainly applied to an engine compartment of an automobile.

[0002] An example of a conventional vehicle structure is described in Patent Document 1. Patent Document 1 describes an electric vehicle in which a drive unit is housed in a motor room at the front of the vehicle and an air conditioner compressor is attached to the front of the drive unit. This electric vehicle structure is designed to minimize the load transmitted to the passenger compartment in the event of a frontal collision.

[0003] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2012-144142

[0004] However, in the conventional vehicle structure described above, there was a problem in that in the event of a frontal collision, structures such as bumper reinforcement located in front of the compressor could interfere with the compressor and damage it.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned conventional situation, and aims to provide a vehicle structure that can reliably protect protected equipment such as a compressor, which is a high-voltage equipment, in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle.

[0006] The vehicle structure according to the present invention includes a suspension member disposed below a pair of left and right side members and supporting a drive unit, the suspension member having a main frame supporting the drive unit and a pair of left and right extension frames extending rearward from the main frame. The extension frames have rigidity higher than the rigidity of the main frame in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle. The vehicle structure is characterized in that the extension frames support equipment to be protected in a frontal collision.

[0007] By adopting the above-described configuration, the vehicle structure according to the present invention can reliably protect the equipment to be protected, such as the compressor, which is a high-voltage equipment, in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle.

[0008] The present invention relates to a vehicle structure including a vehicle body having a frame, a vehicle door, a vehicle door frame ...

[0009] 1 and 2 is applied to an engine room (or motor room) of an automobile, including an electric vehicle, and the left side in FIGS. 1 and 2 is the front side of the vehicle. The vehicle structure includes a suspension member 3 disposed below a pair of left and right side members 1, 1, and supporting a drive unit 2. The side members 1 are indicated by dotted lines in FIGS. 1 and 2, and a portion of a floor panel P is also shown in FIG.

[0010] The left and right side members 1, 1 are well-known structural members, and an upper bumper reinforcement 5 is connected to the front end of each side member 1, 1 via crash boxes 4, 4. The drive unit 2 is a unit that combines an engine and a transmission, or a motor and a reduction gear, and is fixed to the upper side of a suspension member 3.

[0011] As shown in Figure 1, the suspension member 3 has a main body (3) that has a pair of left and right side frames 3A, 3A extending in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle, and a front frame 3B and a rear frame 3C extending in the left-right direction of the vehicle (the up-and-down direction in Figure 1), and is generally shaped like a parallel cross overall.

[0012] A lower bumper reinforcement 7 is connected to the front frame 3B of the suspension member 3 via a pair of left and right crash boxes 6, 6. Bumper exterior materials (not shown) are attached to the outsides of the upper and lower bumper reinforcements 5, 7. Note that the strut housings that suspend the wheel suspensions are omitted from the suspension member 3 shown in Figures 1 and 2.

[0013] The suspension member 3 has a main body (3) that is generally shaped like a grid, and a pair of left and right extension frames 8, 8 that extend rearward from the left and right sides of the rear frame 3C. The extension frames 8, 8 have rigidity higher than the rigidity of the suspension member (main body) 3 in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and support a device 9 to be protected against a frontal collision. The device 9 to be protected is a high-power device, and in this embodiment, an air conditioner compressor is exemplified.

[0014] Furthermore, the suspension member 3 has weakened portions 3D, 3D with locally reduced cross-sectional areas between the left and right side frames 3A, 3A. The weakened portions 3D shown in Figure 1 are formed by locally reducing the width of the side frames 3A in the left-right direction of the vehicle, but it is also effective to locally reduce the wall thickness.

[0015] As shown by the dotted line in Fig. 1 and the thick line in Fig. 2, the above vehicle structure includes a cross member 10 that connects a pair of left and right side members 1, 1 above the protected equipment 9. The cross member 10 is a well-known structural material, and its front end is located rearward of the drive unit 2 and forward of the front end of the protected equipment 9.

[0016] 2, the vehicle structure described above includes a connecting plate 11 that connects the pair of left and right extension frames 8, 8 together, and the protected component 9 is fixed onto the connecting plate 11 via a bracket 12. In particular, in the vehicle structure of this embodiment, the protected component 9 is a compressor, which is a device that generates vibrations.

[0017] 3, the vehicle structure includes the above-mentioned connecting plate 11 and a mount 13 to which the protected device 9 is fixed, and the mount 13 is fixed onto the connecting plate 11 via a bracket 12. In other words, the protected device 9 is fixed to the upper surface of the connecting plate 11 by the mount 13 and the bracket 12.

[0018] In this embodiment, the extension frame 8 and the connecting plate 11 are separate bodies, but they may be integrated into one structure. Also, the suspension member 3 and the extension frame 8 are separate bodies, but they may be integrated into one structure if it is possible to make the rigidity of the extension frame 8 higher than the rigidity of the suspension member 3 in the vehicle longitudinal direction.

[0019] In a vehicle structure having the above configuration, the protected equipment 9 is supported by the extension frame 8 extending from the suspension member 3 to the rear of the vehicle, so that in the event of a frontal collision, the collision load is absorbed by the suspension member 3, suppressing the input of impact load to the protected equipment 9, thereby ensuring the protection of the protected equipment such as a compressor, which is a high-voltage device.

[0020] Furthermore, in the above vehicle structure, the rigidity of the extension frame 8 is greater than the rigidity of the suspension member 3 in the vehicle longitudinal direction, so in the event of a frontal collision, the suspension member 3 deforms first, thereby reliably protecting the extension frame 8 and the protected equipment 9 supported thereby from the collision load. Moreover, the above vehicle structure has the advantage that the protected equipment 9 is not located on the vehicle front side of the drive unit 2, making it possible to shorten the front overhang of the vehicle.

[0021] Furthermore, in the above vehicle structure, the main body of the suspension member 3 is roughly in the shape of a grid, with side frames 3A, a front frame 3B, and a rear frame 3C, and has a weak portion 3D in the middle of the side frame 3A that has a locally reduced cross-sectional area.Therefore, in the event of a frontal collision, the weak portion 3D can be deformed or broken, thereby actively absorbing impact and further improving the protective function of the protected equipment 9.

[0022] Furthermore, the above vehicle structure includes a cross member 10 above the protected device 9, and the front end of the cross member 10 is positioned rearward of the drive unit 2 and forward of the front end of the protected device 9. As a result, when the drive unit 2 moves rearward due to a frontal collision, the above vehicle structure prevents the drive unit 2 from interfering with the protected device 9 by interfering with the cross member 10, thereby reducing the risk of damage to the protected device 9.

[0023] Furthermore, the above vehicle structure is equipped with connecting plates 11 that connect the extension frames 8, 8 together, and the protected equipment 9 is fixed to the connecting plates 11 via brackets 12, so that the lateral rigidity of the entire extension frames 8, 8 is increased and the protected equipment 9 can be stably supported.

[0024] Furthermore, in the above vehicle structure, the protected component 9 is a device (compressor) that generates vibration, and the mount 13 of the protected device 9 is fixed onto the connecting plate 11 via the bracket 12. As a result, in addition to improving the rigidity of the entire extension frame 8.8 and stably supporting the protected device 9, the vehicle structure improves the support rigidity of the bracket 12 because the bracket 12 is fixed directly to the extension frame 8, which reduces the vibration and sound of the protected device 9 and contributes to improving noise and vibration performance.

[0025] The detailed configuration of the vehicle structure according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be modified as appropriate within the scope of the present invention.

[0026] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Side member 2 Drive unit 3 Suspension member (main body) 3A Side frame 3B Front frame 3C Rear frame 3D Weakened part 8 Extension frame 9 Equipment to be protected (compressor) 10 Cross member 11 Connecting plate 12 Bracket 13 Mount

Claims

1. A vehicle structure comprising a suspension member disposed under a pair of left and right side members and supporting a drive unit, the suspension member having a main body and a pair of left and right extension frames extending from the main body toward the rear of the vehicle, the extension frames having rigidity higher than the rigidity of the main body in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle, and the extension frames supporting equipment to be protected in a frontal collision.

2. The vehicle structure described in claim 1, wherein the main body of the suspension member has a pair of left and right side frames extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and a front frame and a rear frame extending in the left and right direction of the vehicle, forming an overall parallel lattice shape, and the left and right side frames have weak parts in their respective middles where the cross-sectional area is locally reduced.

3. The vehicle structure described in claim 1, further comprising a cross member above the protected equipment that connects the pair of left and right side members, the front end of the cross member being located rearward of the drive unit and forward of the front end of the protected equipment.

4. A vehicle structure as described in claim 1, further comprising a connecting plate that connects the pair of left and right extension frames together, and the protected equipment is fixed onto the connecting plate via a bracket.

5. A vehicle structure as described in claim 1, characterized in that the part to be protected is a device that generates vibration, and the vehicle structure comprises a connecting plate that connects the pair of left and right extension frames together, and a mount to which the device to be protected is fixed, and the mount is fixed onto the connecting plate via a bracket.

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