Vehicle Sunroof Panel Support Span and Stiffness
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing sunroof apparatuses face challenges in enlarging the support span for the movable roof panel without sacrificing the open degree of the opening, particularly when the fixed outer roof panel around the front end of the guide rail has a narrow width, limiting the protrusion of the front end portion of the guide rail.
Innovation Solution
The sunroof apparatus incorporates a panel support stay with a forked part that includes an upper part connected to the fixed outer roof panel and a lower part engaged with the drive slider, forming an opening between them that faces rearward, allowing the engagement portions to be located more rearward than the rear edge of the opening, thereby increasing the support span while maintaining a large open degree.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the front end portion of the guide rail is protruded forward to enlarge the support span, then the supporting stiffness for the movable roof panel is enhanced, but the fixed outer roof panel around the front end of the guide rail has a narrow width which limits the protrusion
Solution Approach 1:
The patent relocates the support portions from the front region to the rear region of the movable roof panel. Specifically, part of the engagement portions between the panel support stay and drive slider are positioned at a more rearward location than the rear edge of the opening. This spatial reconfiguration in the rearward direction enables achieving adequate support span and stiffness without requiring forward protrusion of the guide rail beyond the narrow fixed outer roof panel region.
2Force
If the support portions are located more rearward than the rear edge of the opening, then the load on the panel support stay is reduced, but the structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The panel support stay is designed with a forked part that enables dynamic adjustment of engagement portions along the drive slider. This allows the engagement portions to be positioned at optimal rearward locations that reduce the load on the panel support stay, while maintaining structural simplicity through the flexible engagement mechanism rather than requiring complex rigid structures.
Data Source
Figure 1
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Figure 3~4
AI summary
Provided is a sunroof apparatus (1) including a movable roof panel (4) installed in an opening (3) in a fixed outer roof panel (2) of a vehicle, a drive slider (34) to move in a front-rear direction along a fixed guide frame (31), and a panel support stay (38) interposing between the movable roof panel and the drive slider to support the movable roof panel. The movable roof panel is tilted up and moves backward by a backward moving of the panel support stay while the panel support stay is in an inclined position, as the drive slider slides backward. A part (45;37) of a plurality of engagement portions (44, 45; 36, 37) between the panel support stay and the drive slider is located rearward more than a rear edge of the opening when the opening is fully opened.