Automobile knee bolster structure

Details Automobile knee bolster structure Automobile knee bolster structure

1998-12-22

2001-04-10

Swann, J. J. (Department: 3611)

Land vehicles

Wheeled

Attachment

C280S752000, C296S070000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06213504

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an automobile knee bolster that during a collision absorbs the energy of impact between the knees of an occupant and the dashboard, and in particular to a knee bolster that can be used on the driver side or on the passenger side of the dashboard.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventionally, knee bolsters are provided in the lower portion of a vehicle dashboard, facing the legs of passengers sitting in the front seats of an automobile.
In some designs, the lid that covers the glove compartment located in front of the passenger seat is used as part of the knee bolster assembly on the passenger side of the dashboard, as described in Japanese Laid Open Patent Application Hei 4[1992]-63745; and in Japanese Laid Open Patent Application Hei 5[1993]-50889.
FIG. 12
shows one example of a knee bolster structure for the passenger side of a dashboard, wherein the glove compartment lid is used as the knee bolster.
A steering support member (
101
) is located facing the front seats, and extends along the car width. Member (
101
) supports the dashboard (
102
). The glove compartment (
103
) is located on the passenger side of the dashboard (
102
), and has a lid (
104
) containing a reinforcement (
105
). Knee bolster (
106
) is supported by the can impact the dashboard approximately at the location of the glove compartment lid (
104
).
When a conventional knee bolster structure is used, lid (
104
) deforms to absorb the impact energy from the passenger knees. The impact energy is further carried to the knee bolster (
106
) located behind lid (
104
). Thus when the impact has sufficient energy, not only does the lid (
104
) deform, but the knee bolster (
106
) also deforms to absorb the load.
With the conventional knee bolster structures, however, the lateral dimension of the lid along the width of the car must correspond to the lateral dimension of the knee bolster (
106
). Therefore, the length of the reinforcement (
105
) along the car width becomes large, and the reinforcement's weight increases. One problem of the conventional design is thus excessive weight of the glove compartment assembly (
103
).
Another problem of the conventional knee bolster is that the top and bottom portions of the knee bolster have the same stiffness, and cannot accommodate different impact forces.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The advantages and purpose of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The advantages and purpose of the invention will be realized and attained by means of the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.
The present invention resolves the aforementioned problems. One objective of the invention is thus to provide an automobile knee bolster structure that is light and is capable of absorbing varied loads resulting from a collision with the passenger knees. These loads can be applied to the structure from different directions, and can have different magnitudes depending on whether they are applied to the upper or lower portion of the knee bolster by impacts with the knees of large or small passengers, respectively. According to the present invention, the knee bolster structure is located in the lower portion of an instrument panel, and portions of the knee bolster main body are formed with a closed cross section structure designed for strength and for absorbing the impact from passenger knees.
The knee bolster structure according to the present invention includes a main body that comprises a knee bolster upper panel and a reinforcement member joined to the top portion of the knee bolster upper panel, oriented along the car width. The knee bolster upper panel and the reinforcement member form a closed cross section structure of greater stiffness than the rest of the knee bolster, which is formed from a plate-like structure. The knee bolster main body is located in a position corresponding to the glove compartment, and thus comprises knee bolster side panels located on both sides of the glove compartment, the aforementioned upper panel, and a reinforcement member joined to the top side of the knee bolster upper panel to form the closed cross section structure. A reinforcement arranged as a continuation of the aforementioned knee bolster panels within the lid of the aforementioned glove compartment is also provided.
In a collision, the knees of a larger passenger tend to impact the dashboard with a large force due to the weight of the passenger, and the impact takes place near the upper portion of the dashboard, due to the size of the passenger's legs. Conversely, a smaller, lighter passenger's knees will tend to impact with the lower portion of the dashboard, and with less force.
The present invention compensates for the different impact forces that the upper and lower portions of the bolster have to withstand by using a knee bolster main body that has a reinforced upper portion, including a reinforcement member that together with the upper portion of the knee bolster panel forms a closed cross section structure, also known as a box structure. Consequently, large loads can be absorbed by deformation of the upper portion of the knee bolster main body, to address the situation when a large passenger is involved in a collision.
When a smaller passenger is involved in a collision, a smaller load is applied to the lower part of the knee bolster main body. The lower portion of the knee bolster main body is reinforced by the knee bolster panels and by the reinforcement panel in the glove compartment lid, so that the knee bolster panels and the reinforcement panel deform to absorb the load. These panels are made from a plate-like structure that is less rigid than the closed cross section structure.
The knee bolster main body according to the present invention has an upper portion with a closed cross section structure that provides increased rigidity, and has a lower portion reinforced by the extensive use of reinforcement material such as sheet metal. Thus, the knee bolster main body can dissipate by deformation loads having a wide range of magnitudes, larger on the upper portion, and smaller on the lower portion of the knee bolster.


REFERENCES:
patent: 4400011 (1983-08-01), Matsuno
patent: 4709943 (1987-12-01), Yoshimura et al.
patent: 4893834 (1990-01-01), Honda et al.
patent: 4946192 (1990-08-01), Kuwahara
patent: 4978136 (1990-12-01), Tomita et al.
patent: 5413379 (1995-05-01), Koma
patent: 5518270 (1996-05-01), Hanada et al.
patent: 5676216 (1997-10-01), Palma et al.
patent: 5718453 (1998-02-01), Kassel et al.
patent: 5931520 (1999-08-01), Seksaria et al.
patent: 5934733 (1999-08-01), Manwaring
patent: 5951045 (1999-09-01), Almefelt et al.
patent: 4-63745 (1992-02-01), None
patent: 5-50889 (1993-02-01), None
patent: 08164811 (1996-06-01), None

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