Vehicle hood structure

Abstract

This vehicle hood structure is constituted of an outer panel and an inner panel which are joined together in the vertical direction, the vehicle hood structure comprising: a hood body that covers a prescribed accommodation area in a vehicle from above; and a hood reinforcement that vertically connects the outer panel and the inner panel. The inner panel has a supported part supported from below by a support member vertically extending in the accommodation area. The hood reinforcement has a lower end piece extending along an upper surface of the inner panel and is fixed to the inner panel by the lower end piece. The lower end piece extends along the upper surface of the inner panel so as to surround the supported part.

Description

Vehicle Hood Structure

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vehicle hood structure.

[0002] Conventionally, a vehicle hood that covers an accommodation area such as an engine room in a vehicle from above is attached to a vehicle body in a positional relationship where the lower surface of the hood is supported by a support member extending vertically in the accommodation area. This vehicle hood is a structure in which an outer panel and an inner panel are connected vertically, and a supported portion on the lower surface of the inner panel is normally supported by a support member on the vehicle side (see Patent Document 1).

[0003] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-167884

[0004] However, due to the structure in which the vehicle hood with the above structure receives the impact accompanying opening and closing at the supported portion of the inner panel, there is a concern that vibration and stress concentration caused by the impact may cause unintended damage such as cracks and breaks in various parts.

[0005] An object of the present disclosure is to suppress unintended damage caused by opening and closing of a vehicle hood.

[0006] The vehicle hood structure of the present disclosure includes: a hood main body which is a structure in which an outer panel and an inner panel are connected vertically, and covers a predetermined accommodation area in a vehicle from above; and a hood reinforcement that vertically connects between the outer panel and the inner panel, wherein the inner panel has a supported portion supported from below by a support member extending vertically in the accommodation area, the hood reinforcement has a lower end piece extending along an upper surface of the inner panel and is fixed to the inner panel by the lower end piece, and the lower end piece extends along the upper surface of the inner panel so as to surround the supported portion.

[0007] In the vehicle hood structure of this configuration, a hood reinforcement that vertically connects the outer panel and the inner panel is fixed to the inner panel by a lower end piece that extends to surround the supported portion in the inner panel.

[0008] As a result, in the above configuration, when the impact caused by opening and closing the vehicle hood is received at the supported portion of the inner panel, this impact is absorbed by the hood reinforcement itself and also dispersed from the area around the supported portion to the outer panel side via the hood reinforcement. In this way, vibrations and stress concentrations caused by impacts are more easily mitigated, and as a result, unintended damage (such as cracks and fractures in various parts) can be effectively suppressed.

[0009] Plan view showing a vehicle hood according to an embodiment of the disclosure Front cross-sectional view of a main part (viewed along the line A-A) showing a vehicle hood according to an embodiment of the disclosure Enlarged plan view of a main part showing the state in which the inner reinforcement and hood reinforcement are joined to the inner panel in a vehicle hood according to an embodiment of the disclosure Side view showing a hood reinforcement according to an embodiment of the disclosure

[0010] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, a vehicle hood structure for covering a housing area in which a drive unit (such as an engine or on-board motor) is housed in a vehicle will be described.

[0011] (1) Overall Configuration The vehicle hood structure of this embodiment is realized by a vehicle hood 1 which comprises a hood body 10 in which an outer panel 11 and an inner panel 13 are connected vertically, and a hood reinforcement 20 interposed between the outer panel 11 and the inner panel 13 and connecting them vertically, as shown in Figures 1 and 2.

[0012] The hood body 10 is a structure in which an outer panel 11 and an inner panel 13 are connected vertically, and is attached to the vehicle body so as to be displaceable between a closed state that closes the storage area from above and an open state that opens the storage area. The hood body 10 is supported from below by a frame that surrounds the storage area, and by a plurality (2 in this embodiment) of damper rubbers 300 (support members) that extend vertically.

[0013] The damper rubber 300 is a roughly cylindrical rubber member (elastic body) that absorbs the impact load when the hood body 10 is closed and maintains the position of the hood body 10 in the closed state. In this embodiment, the damper rubber 300 is fixed at two locations spaced apart in the vehicle width direction.

[0014] The outer panel 11 has a plate-shaped outer reinforcement 111 joined to its underside. The outer panel 11 is bonded to the outer reinforcement 111 at multiple points along its underside at the end.

[0015] Furthermore, the inner panel 13 has a plurality of supported portions 133, each supported from below by the damper rubber 300. In this embodiment, the supported portions 133 are concave grooves formed on the lower surface side of the inner panel 13.

[0016] Furthermore, a plate-shaped inner reinforcement 131 is joined to the inner panel 13 along its upper surface. More specifically, the inner panel 13 is welded and joined to the inner reinforcement 131 at multiple locations along the upper surface on the end side.

[0017] Furthermore, the inner force 131 has a through-region 137 that penetrates vertically through the area that overlaps with the lower end piece 21 in a plan view. In this embodiment, the through-region 137 is a hole that penetrates vertically.

[0018] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 3, the inner reinforcement 131 is joined to the inner panel 13 at multiple locations along the upper surface of the inner panel 13, in the region surrounding the supported portion 133, excluding the joint between the hood reinforcement 20 (lower end piece 21, described later) and the inner panel 13. Specifically, the inner reinforcement 131 is joined to the inner panel 13 by spot welding so that three joint locations 135 are formed in the region surrounding the supported portion 133.

[0019] The hood reinforcement 20 has a lower end piece 21 that extends along the upper surface of the inner panel 13, and this lower end piece 21 reaches the upper surface of the inner panel 13 through the penetrating region 137 of the inner reinforcement 131. The hood reinforcement 20 is then fixed to the inner panel 13 by this lower end piece 21.

[0020] The lower end piece 21 extends along the upper surface of the inner panel 13 to surround the supported portion 133, and is joined to the inner panel 13 at multiple locations along this upper surface that surround the supported portion 133. In this embodiment, the lower end piece 21 is joined to the inner panel 13 by spot welding such that three joining locations 211 are formed in the area surrounding the supported portion 133.

[0021] Furthermore, the hood reinforcement 20 has an upper end piece 23 that extends along the lower surface of the outer panel 11, and is fixed to the outer panel 11 (more specifically, the outer reinforcement 111 described later) by this upper end piece 23. This upper end piece 23 extends along the lower surface of the outer panel 11 in the opposite direction to the lower end piece 21.

[0022] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 4, the hood reinforcement 20 has a weak point 25 formed in the region between the lower end piece 21 and the upper end piece 23, which deforms or breaks when subjected to a load exceeding a certain level. This weak point 25 is designed to withstand the impact associated with opening and closing the vehicle hood 1, while its strength is adjusted to deform or break when subjected to an impact exceeding a certain level. In this embodiment, the weak point 25 is formed as a hole penetrating the region from the lower end piece 21 to the upper end piece 23 in the thickness direction, but it may also be configured as a groove or notch.

[0023] The outer panel 11 has a plate-shaped outer reinforcement 111 joined to it along its lower surface. The hood reinforcement 20 is indirectly fixed to the outer panel 11 via the outer reinforcement 111 at the upper end piece 23. In this embodiment, the upper end piece 23 is joined to the outer reinforcement 111 at multiple points along the upper surface on the end side. Specifically, the upper end piece 23 is joined to the outer reinforcement 111 with rivets so that three joining points 231 are formed.

[0024] In this embodiment, the vehicle hood structure is configured such that a pair of hood reinforcements 20 are spaced apart in the vehicle width direction to match the arrangement of the damper rubbers 300, and are positioned in opposite directions in the vehicle width direction (with the lower end pieces 21 moving closer together and the upper end pieces 23 moving further apart).

[0025] (2) Operation and Effects In the above embodiment of the vehicle hood structure, the hood reinforcement 20 that connects the outer panel 11 and the inner panel 13 vertically is fixed to the inner panel 13 by a lower end piece 21 that expands to surround the supported portion 133 in the inner panel 13.

[0026] As a result, in the above configuration, when the impact caused by opening and closing the vehicle hood 1 is received by the supported portion 133 of the inner panel 13, this impact is absorbed by the hood reinforcement 20 itself and also dispersed from the area around the supported portion 133 to the outer panel 11 side via the hood reinforcement 20. In this way, vibrations and stress concentrations caused by impacts are more easily mitigated, and as a result, unintended damage (such as cracks and fractures in various parts) can be effectively suppressed.

[0027] Furthermore, in the above embodiment of the vehicle hood structure, the upper end piece 23 of the hood reinforcement 20 is indirectly fixed to the outer panel 11 via the outer reinforcement 111. This allows the impact transmitted to the outer panel 11 side via the hood reinforcement 20 when the vehicle hood 1 is opened and closed to be reduced by the outer reinforcement 111 before it reaches the outer panel 11.

[0028] Furthermore, in the above embodiment of the vehicle hood structure, the lower end piece 21 of the hood reinforcement 20 is joined to the inner panel 13 at multiple locations surrounding the supported portion 133. As a result, in the above configuration, the impact associated with opening and closing the vehicle hood 1 can be distributed and received by the hood reinforcement 20 at each of the joining locations 211 with the inner panel 13.

[0029] Furthermore, in the above embodiment of the vehicle hood structure, an inner reinforcement 131 is joined to the upper surface of the inner panel 13. As a result, the impact transmitted to the hood reinforcement 20 when the vehicle hood 1 is opened and closed is dispersed and received by the inner reinforcement 131, thereby reducing this impact before it reaches the outer panel 11.

[0030] Furthermore, in the above embodiment of the vehicle hood structure, the lower end piece 21 of the hood reinforcement 20 and the inner reinforcement 131 are joined to the inner panel 13 at multiple locations surrounding the supported portion 133. As a result, in the above configuration, the impact associated with opening and closing the vehicle hood 1 can be distributed and received by the hood reinforcement 20 and the inner reinforcement 131 at each of the joining locations 135 with the inner panel 13.

[0031] (3) Modifications Although embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, the present disclosure is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention. In particular, the modifications described herein can be combined as needed.

[0032] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, a through-region 137 is formed in the inner reinforcement 131, and the lower end piece 21 of the hood reinforcement 20 that reaches the inner panel 13 by passing through this region is fixed to the inner panel 13. However, the through-region 137 may not be formed in the inner reinforcement 131, and the lower end piece 21 of the hood reinforcement 20 may be fixed to the upper surface of the inner reinforcement 131.

[0033] 1...Vehicle hood, 10...Hood body, 11...Outer panel, 13...Inner panel, 20...Hood reinforcement, 21...Lower end piece, 23...Upper end piece, 25...Weak point, 111...Outer reinforcement, 130...Supported part, 131...Inner reinforcement, 133...Supported part, 135...Joint point, 137...Penetration area, 211...Joint point, 231...Joint point, 300...Damper rubber.

Claims

1. A vehicle hood structure comprising: an outer panel and an inner panel connected vertically, comprising: a hood body that covers a predetermined storage area in a vehicle from above; and a hood reinforcement that connects the outer panel and the inner panel vertically, wherein the inner panel has a supported portion that is supported from below by a support member that extends vertically within the storage area; and the hood reinforcement has a lower end piece that extends along the upper surface of the inner panel and is fixed to the inner panel by the lower end piece, and the lower end piece extends along the upper surface of the inner panel so as to surround the supported portion.

2. The vehicle hood structure according to claim 1, wherein the outer panel has a plate-shaped outer reinforcement joined to its lower surface, and the hood reinforcement has an upper end piece that extends along the lower surface of the outer panel and is fixed to the outer reinforcement by the upper end piece.

3. The vehicle hood structure according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the lower end piece is joined to the inner panel at multiple locations along the upper surface of the inner panel, surrounding the supported portion.

4. The vehicle hood structure according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a plate-shaped inner reinforcement is joined to the upper surface of the inner panel, and the inner reinforcement has a through-region that penetrates vertically through at least the area that overlaps with the lower end piece in a plan view, and the lower end piece reaches the upper surface of the inner panel through the through-region.

5. The vehicle hood structure according to claim 4, wherein the lower end piece is joined to the inner panel at multiple locations along the upper surface of the inner panel that surround the supported portion, and the inner reinforcement is joined to the inner panel at multiple locations in the region along the upper surface of the inner panel that surrounds the supported portion, excluding the locations where the lower end piece is joined to the inner panel.

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