Die-Cast Wheel House Structure for Collision Load Dispersion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle structures face challenges in achieving weight reduction while maintaining or enhancing strength against collision loads, particularly in configurations where load transmission paths are similar to conventional designs.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle structure is designed with integrally formed wheel houses and a floor panel connected by die casting, featuring concave and convex spherical surfaces and horizontal ribs that disperse collision loads over a wide area, reducing the need for additional reinforcing members.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If wheel houses and floor panel are integrally formed by die casting with conventional load transmission path, then manufacturing complexity is reduced, but weight reduction is limited due to insufficient collision load dispersion
Solution Approach 1:
The wheel house is designed with a spherical surface shape that disperses collision loads applied from the rear side across a wide area. The spherical curvature naturally distributes stress patterns, preventing concentration at specific points and enabling effective load dispersion without additional reinforcing members, thereby achieving weight reduction while maintaining structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The floor panel incorporates a horizontally extending rib at its lower end to locally enhance stiffness and load-bearing capacity. This localized reinforcement strategy strengthens the load transmission path without requiring comprehensive structural reinforcement, optimizing the balance between weight reduction and collision resistance.
2Strength
If additional reinforcing members are added to enhance collision load strength, then strength against collision is improved, but vehicle weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The spherical surface configuration of the wheel house inherently provides superior load dispersion characteristics compared to conventional flat or angular designs. This geometric feature enables the structure to withstand collision loads effectively without requiring additional reinforcing members, achieving high collision strength while maintaining low weight.
Solution Approach 2:
The wheel house and floor panel are integrally formed as a single die-cast component, creating a unified load transmission path. This integration eliminates weak points at joint interfaces and ensures efficient load transfer from the wheel house through the floor panel to the vehicle frame, achieving high collision strength without the need for separate reinforcing members that would increase weight.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle structure includes a structural body, in which a pair of wheel houses and a floor panel are integrally formed by die casting. The floor panel includes a frame connection portion, to which an inboard end portion of the frame is connected. Each wheel house includes: a concave surface portion that faces outward in a vehicle width direction; and a convex surface portion that is formed on a back side of the concave surface portion. The concave surface portion is disposed so as to face outward in the vehicle width direction, and a part of a wheel is housed in the concave surface portion. The concave surface portion has a horizontal rib that extends along a horizontal plane and rises toward an outer side in the vehicle width direction.