Front structure of vehicle

Abstract

A front structure of a vehicle comprises a hood for opening and closing a storage space positioned on the front side of a cabin, a pair of side frames set apart from each other in the vehicle width direction, a bumper beam which is fastened to front end parts of the side frames and to which is attached a hood lock for holding the hood in a closed state, a pair of upper frames set apart from each other in the vehicle width direction above the side frames, a sub-frame positioned below the side frames, and a flank stored in the storage space. The bumper beam and the sub-frame are connected by at least two connection members, and the front end of the flank is positioned in front of the front ends of the upper frames.

Description

Vehicle front structure

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of a front structure of a vehicle in which a flank is accommodated in an accommodation space located at the front of the passenger compartment.

[0002] Some vehicles, such as automobiles, have a storage space located at the front of the passenger compartment that houses a drive motor and engine as a drive source, as well as a frunk that can store items (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Generally, when the drive source and frunk are stored in a storage space, the drive source is positioned close to the wheels (front wheels), so the drive motor and the like are stored in the back or lower part of the storage space, and the frunk is stored in the front part of the storage space.

[0003] The storage space located at the front of the passenger compartment as described above is covered from above by a hood. In vehicles having such a storage space, a hood lock is attached to a frame located in front of the frunk (in Patent Document 1, this is a cross member of the bulkhead) to keep the hood closed.

[0004] Patent No. 5992974

[0005] Incidentally, the frunk housed in the storage space may contain large-volume items such as a spare tire, and there is a demand for a larger capacity frunk.

[0006] However, as described above, the drive source is located behind or below the frunk in the storage space, making it difficult to extend the frunk rearward. On the other hand, if the frunk is extended forward, it interferes with the hood lock, making it impossible to increase the frunk capacity.

[0007] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to increase the capacity of the flank.

[0008] The front structure of a vehicle according to the present invention comprises a hood that opens and closes a storage space located at the front of the passenger compartment, a pair of side frames positioned spaced apart in the vehicle width direction, a bumper beam equipped with a hood lock that fastens to the front end of the side frames and holds the hood in a closed state, a pair of upper frames positioned spaced apart in the vehicle width direction above the side frames, a subframe positioned below the side frames, and a flank that is accommodated in the storage space, wherein the bumper beam and the subframe are connected by at least two connecting members, and the front end of the flank is positioned forward of the front end of the upper frame.

[0009] This allows the front end of the flank to be positioned closer to the bumper beam.

[0010] According to the present invention, the front end of the flank can be positioned closer to the bumper beam, thereby increasing the capacity of the flank.

[0011] 2 to 5 show an embodiment of the vehicle front structure of the present invention, and this figure is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a vehicle. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a part of the vehicle front structure. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a part of the vehicle front structure. FIG. 3 is a front view showing a part of the vehicle front structure. FIG. 4 is a front view showing an example in which the first joint portion is positioned more inward in the left-right direction than the second joint portion.

[0012] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an embodiment of a vehicle front structure according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0013] In the following description, the forward direction of the vehicle is defined as the front, and the front, rear, up, down, left and right directions are also referred to as the vehicle width direction.

[0014] <General Configuration of Vehicle> First, the general configuration of the vehicle will be described (see FIG. 1).

[0015] The vehicle 100 is, for example, an electric vehicle that runs solely on electrical power, and includes a drive motor 110 , an accelerator opening sensor 120 , a speed sensor 130 , and a control unit 140 .

[0016] The drive motor 110 is housed in a housing space (described later) located at the front of the vehicle interior, and is used as a power source for the vehicle 100 .

[0017] The accelerator position sensor 120 detects the accelerator position, which corresponds to the driving force required by the driver to drive the vehicle 100, i.e., the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal by the driver. The accelerator position detected by the accelerator position sensor 120 is output to the control unit 140 as a detection signal.

[0018] The speed sensor 130 detects the speed of the vehicle 100. The speed of the vehicle 100 detected by the speed sensor 130 is output to the control unit 140 as a detection signal.

[0019] The control unit 140 has the function of performing overall control of the operations of each unit in the vehicle 100 and performing various arithmetic processing. The control unit 140 has a microprocessor 141 that performs calculations, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 142 that stores programs and the like for causing the microprocessor 141 to execute each process, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 143 that stores various data such as calculation results, an interface for inputting or outputting data, and the like.

[0020] The control unit 140 includes a motor control unit 144 that controls the drive motor 110. The motor control unit 144 has a function of controlling, for example, the drive operation of the drive motor 110 to drive the wheels of the vehicle 100, the regenerative operation of the drive motor 110, and the like.

[0021] In addition, if the vehicle 100 is a hybrid vehicle or a vehicle that runs solely on fuel power, the control unit 140 is provided with an engine control unit that controls the engine, and if the vehicle 100 is a hybrid vehicle, in addition to the engine control unit, it is also provided with a mode switching unit that switches between a driving mode using the drive motor 110 and a driving mode using the engine.

[0022] The vehicle 100 is provided with a battery 150 in the trunk, under the floor, or elsewhere. The battery 150 has a battery module that stores power used in the vehicle 100, such as power used by the drive motor 110, as well as power used by the control unit 140, various parts of the vehicle 100 that operate on power, and various lights provided in the vehicle 100. The battery module uses, for example, secondary batteries such as nickel-metal hydride batteries or lithium-ion batteries. The battery 150 stores, in addition to power obtained by charging from an external source of the vehicle 100 (charging power), regenerated power supplied from the drive motor 110, for example.

[0023] <Front Structure of Vehicle, etc.> Next, the front structure of the vehicle, etc. will be described (see FIGS. 2 to 5).

[0024] The front structure 1 of the vehicle includes side frames 2, a bumper beam 3, an upper frame 4, a subframe 5, and a flank 6 (see FIGS. 2 to 4).

[0025] A pair of side frames 2 are provided, spaced apart on the left and right, and are formed to extend front to back. A strut tower 7 is fastened to the rear end of the side frame 2. The strut tower 7 is formed to protrude upward from the side frame 2. A support member 8 is connected to the lower part of the front end of the side frame 2. A subframe 5 is connected to the lower end of the support member 8.

[0026] The bumper beam 3 is fastened to the front end of the side frame 2 and is formed in a shape that extends left and right. A hood lock 9 is attached to the upper end of the bumper beam 3 in the center in the vehicle width direction. The hood lock 9 has the function of locking the hood, which will be described later, in a closed position. The hood lock 9 is connected to a release lever (not shown) provided in the passenger compartment via a locking wire (not shown).

[0027] A pair of upper frames 4 are provided, spaced apart on the left and right, and are positioned above the side frames 2. The upper frames 4 have a connecting frame 4a formed in a shape that extends in the front-to-rear direction and upper sides 4b that are continuous with the front end of the connecting frame 4a. The upper ends of the strut towers 7 are connected to the rear ends of the connecting frames 4a. The upper sides 4b are inclined so that they are displaced inward in the left-to-right direction as they extend forward, and the front ends of the upper sides 4b are positioned rearward of the bumper beam 3.

[0028] A vertically extending side stay 10 is connected to the front end of the upper side 4b. The lower end of the side stay 10 is positioned below the side frame 2, and the vertical middle portion is connected to the inner side portion of the side frame 2. The pair of side stays 10 are connected at their lower ends by a lower beam 11.

[0029] The subframe 5 has a beam portion 12 formed to extend laterally and a frame portion 13 formed to extend longitudinally (see FIGS. 2 and 3). The beam portion 12 is located below the bumper beam 3, for example, rearward of the bumper beam 3. A pair of frame portions 13 are provided spaced apart on the left and right, and their front ends are respectively connected to both left and right ends of the beam portion 12. A support member 8 is connected to the front end of the frame portions 13, and the subframe 5 is supported by the side frame 2 via the support member 8.

[0030] The beam portion 12 is connected to the bumper beam 3 by two connecting members 14 provided spaced apart on the left and right (see FIGS. 2 to 4).

[0031] The connecting member 14 is formed, for example, in a shape that extends vertically, with its upper end formed as a first connecting portion 15 that is connected to the bumper beam 3 and its lower end formed as a second connecting portion 16 that is connected to the beam portion 12 of the subframe 5. The connecting member 14 is disposed so that at least a portion thereof overlaps with the support member 8 in the front-to-rear direction, and the first connecting portion 15 and the second connecting portion 16 are located, for example, directly in front of the support member 8 (see FIG. 4 ). Therefore, the first connecting portion 15 and the second connecting portion 16 are positioned approximately in the left-to-right direction as the front ends of the side frames 2.

[0032] The vehicle front structure 1 defines a storage space 17 surrounded by the above-described side frames 2 and other components (see FIGS. 2 and 3). The storage space 17 is located in the front of the vehicle interior and is separated from the vehicle interior by a toe board 18. A drive motor 110 is housed in the storage space 17 at a position toward the rear (see FIG. 3).

[0033] The flank 6 is accommodated in front of the drive motor 110 in the accommodation space 17. The flank 6 is, for example, configured as a storage case that is open upward, and is attached to the side frame 2 via, for example, an attachment member (not shown). The flank 6 may also be configured to have a lid that opens and closes the opening of the storage case in addition to the storage case. The front end of the flank 6 is positioned between the pair of upper sides 4b, and the front end is positioned forward of the upper sides 4b.

[0034] The accommodation space 17 is covered from above by a hood 19. The hood 19 has, for example, a shape in which the front portion is bent downward relative to the other portions.

[0035] The hood 19 is rotatable about a rotation axis (not shown) as a fulcrum between an open state in which the storage space 17 is opened and a closed state in which the storage space 17 is closed, and the storage space 17 is opened and closed by rotating the hood 19. The hood 19 is provided with a locking engagement portion (not shown), and the locking engagement portion is engaged with the hood lock 9 to hold the hood 19 in the closed state.

[0036] On the other hand, to open the storage space 17, the hood 19 can be opened by lifting the hood 19 while the hood lock 9 is unlocked by operating a release lever in the vehicle interior. The hood lock 9 may be configured with a double locking mechanism. In this case, the first lock state of the hood lock 9 is released by operating the release lever, and with the first lock state released, the second lock state is released by inserting a finger into a gap below the hood 19 and operating the hood lock 9. With the second lock state released, the hood 19 can be lifted to open the storage space 17.

[0037] As described above, in the vehicle front structure 1, the hood lock 9 is attached to the bumper beam 3, the bumper beam 3 and the subframe 5 are connected by two connecting members 14, and the front end of the flank 6 is positioned forward of the upper side 4b.

[0038] This allows the front end of the flank 6 to be positioned closer to the bumper beam 3, making it possible to increase (expand) the volume of the flank and thereby increasing the capacity of the flank. In addition, because the flank 6 is positioned closer to the bumper beam 3, it becomes easier to put items in and take them out of the flank 6, improving convenience.

[0039] However, since the hood lock 9 is attached to the bumper beam 3, there is a risk that a load will be applied from above to the bumper beam 3 when the hood 19 is closed.However, in the vehicle front structure 1, the load applied to the bumper beam 3 is distributed to the subframe 5 via the connecting member 14, so the load from above on the bumper beam 3 can be reduced.

[0040] Furthermore, since the bumper beam 3 and the subframe 5 are connected by the connecting member 14, the impact applied to the bumper beam 3 during a frontal collision is transmitted to the subframe 5 via the connecting member 14, making it possible to disperse the energy of the impact and improving safety.

[0041] In addition, since there are no components such as upper supports connecting the front ends of the upper sides 4b or center stays connected to the center of the lower beam 11 in the left-right direction, it is possible to reduce the weight of the structure.

[0042] Furthermore, in the vehicle front structure 1, the position of the second joint portion 16 is the same as that of the side frame 2 in the left-right direction.

[0043] A portion of the load applied from above to the bumper beam 3 is transmitted from the side frame 2 to the subframe 5 via the support member 8. As described above, by making the position of the second connecting portion 16 the same as that of the side frame 2 (support member 8) in the left-right direction, the distance between the second connecting portion 16 and the support member 8 is shortened, and when a load is applied, the moment generated in the subframe 5 with the connecting portion with the support member 8 as a fulcrum can be reduced.

[0044] Furthermore, the position of the first connecting portion 15 in the left-right direction is the same as that of the second connecting portion 16. As a result, the first connecting portion 15 and the second connecting portion 16 are positioned along the direction (up-down direction) in which a load is applied to the bumper beam 3 when the hood 19 is closed, so that the load applied to the bumper beam 3 can be efficiently distributed.

[0045] In addition, in the vehicle front structure 1, the first connecting portion 15 may be positioned further inward in the left-right direction than the second connecting portion 16, i.e., the two connecting members 14 may be configured to form a V-shape when viewed from the front of the vehicle (see Figure 5).

[0046] Since the first connecting portion 15 is positioned further inward in the left-right direction than the second connecting portion 16, a trapezoidal (triangular) structure is formed by the bumper beam 3, the beam portion 12, and the connecting member 14. This suppresses the so-called matchbox deformation, in which the bumper beam 3, the beam portion 12, and the connecting member 14 deform into a parallelogram shape when an impact is applied, thereby improving safety.

[0047] Furthermore, the first connecting portion 15 may be configured to be located directly below the hood lock. This allows the connecting member 14 to also function as a structure for receiving a load applied to the bumper beam 3 from above, thereby further reducing the load applied to the bumper beam 3.

[0048] Furthermore, the number of connecting members connecting the bumper beam 3 and the subframe 5 is not limited to two, and the bumper beam 3 and the subframe 5 may be connected by three or more connecting members. For example, in the case of a large vehicle, a configuration in which four connecting members are arranged in a W shape when viewed from the front of the vehicle is also possible.

[0049] 100 Vehicle 1 Front structure of vehicle 2 Side frame 3 Bumper beam 4 Upper frame 5 Subframe 6 Flank 9 Hood lock 14 Connecting member 15 First connecting portion 16 Second connecting portion 17 Storage space 19 Hood

Claims

1. A front structure of a vehicle comprising: a hood that opens and closes a storage space located at the front of the passenger compartment; a pair of side frames positioned spaced apart in the vehicle width direction; a bumper beam equipped with a hood lock that fastens to the front ends of the side frames and holds the hood in a closed position; a pair of upper frames positioned spaced apart in the vehicle width direction above the side frames; a subframe positioned below the side frames; and a flank that is stored in the storage space, wherein the bumper beam and the subframe are connected by at least two connecting members, and the front end of the flank is located forward of the front end of the upper frame.

2. The front structure of a vehicle as set forth in claim 1, wherein the portion of the connecting member that is connected to the bumper beam is formed as a first connecting portion, and the portion that is connected to the subframe is formed as a second connecting portion, and the position of the second connecting portion in the vehicle width direction is the same as that of the side frame.

3. The front structure of a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the first joint portion is positioned at the same position as the second joint portion in the vehicle width direction.

4. A front structure for a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the first joint portion is positioned more inward than the second joint portion in the vehicle width direction.

5. The front structure of a vehicle according to claim 4, wherein the first connecting portion is located directly below the hood lock.

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