Vehicle Impact-Absorbing Structure With Offset Ribs for Stable Crushing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional impact-absorbing structures exhibit large load variations in destructive loads due to sequential crushing of cells, leading to inconsistent deceleration and inefficient energy absorption.
Innovation Solution
An impact-absorbing structure with offset rib positions and staggered cell configurations, including weakened portions, to distribute and manage destructive loads uniformly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If cells are crushed sequentially along the impact load direction, then impact energy can be absorbed in stages, but large load variations occur due to alternating crushing and free running
Solution Approach 1:
The impact-absorbing portion is divided into multiple series portions arranged in the width direction, with each series portion containing multiple cells. This segmentation allows parallel crushing paths to be established, transforming the single sequential crushing path into multiple concurrent paths, thereby reducing load variations while maintaining energy absorption capability
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple series portions are merged into a single integrated impact-absorbing structure that crushes in parallel. The plural series portions with offset rib positions create synchronized crushing actions across different series portions, combining their energy absorption effects to smooth out load variations
2Ease of manufacture
If ribs are aligned between adjacent series portions, then manufacturing is simplified, but destructive loads occur at the same timing causing large load variations
Solution Approach 1:
The rib positions are deliberately made asymmetric between adjacent series portions by offsetting them in the load application direction. This asymmetric arrangement ensures that cells in different series portions crush at different timings, preventing synchronized destructive loads while still allowing for die-casting manufacturing
3Loss of energy
If cell size is increased to enhance energy absorption, then deceleration increases, but free running stroke becomes longer causing delayed load distribution
Solution Approach 1:
The invention transitions from a single-row cell arrangement to a multi-series portion arrangement in the width direction. This dimensional change allows multiple cells to crush simultaneously across different series portions, effectively reducing the free running stroke without requiring smaller individual cell sizes, thus maintaining energy absorption efficiency while shortening the overall crushing distance
Data Source
AI summary
An impact-absorbing structure is provided with an impact-absorbing portion for a vehicle. The impact-absorbing portion is molded by a die and disposed along an application direction of an impact load. The impact-absorbing portion includes plural series portions and plural ribs. The series portions are arranged in a direction intersecting a load application direction, which is the application direction of the impact load. Each series portion is provided with an opening portion that is open in the direction in which the impact-absorbing portion is disposed and a direction intersecting the load application direction. The ribs partition the interior of each opening portion into plural cell portions in the load application direction. Disposition positions in the load application direction of at least some of the ribs are offset between adjacent the series portions.