Land vehicles: bodies and tops – Bodies – Body shell
Reexamination Certificate
2000-09-01
2002-08-06
Pape, Joseph D. (Department: 3612)
Land vehicles: bodies and tops
Bodies
Body shell
C296S204000, C296S209000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06428085
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a body structure in a: floor section of a vehicle.
2. Description of Related Art
A conventional body structure for an automotive floor section is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication (kokai) No. 9-99870. In the body structure, a floor structure essential to the body structure is composed of one floor body and side sills on both sides of the floor body. The floor body is made from an extrusion of light metal, for example, aluminum alloy, manganese alloy, etc. The extrusion is obtained by extruding raw material of the above metal in a fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle.
According to the body structure equipped with the floor structure mentioned above, the number of components can be reduced to facilitate the assembling of the vehicle body and allow the resultant vehicle body to be light-weighted.
However, since the floor structure composed of the above-mentioned extrusion has a substantially uniform section in the vehicle's fore-and-aft direction, the strength (rigidity) distribution of the structure becomes uniform from its front end to the rear end. Therefore, when the floor structure is subjected to a load at the vehicle side collision, one side: sill and the floor body are bent inward in a width direction of the vehicle.
Consequently, the apparent reactive force of the floor structure is so increased at the lower part of the center pillar that a great load may act on the center pillar or the like. Therefore, the center pillar has to be reinforced thoroughly, so that there is the possibility of increasing the weight of the body structure.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Under the above circumstance, it is an object of the present invention to provide a body structure which is capable of idealizing the deformation mode of the vehicle body in the vehicle side collision and which allows the body structure to be light-weighted furthermore.
According to the invention, the above-mentioned object is accomplished by a vehicle body structure for a vehicle, comprising:
a floor structure having a floor body formed with generally-uniform sections in a vehicle's fore-and-aft direction, a dash cross member connected with a front end of the floor body to form a framework member of the floor structure and a rear cross member connected with a rear end of the floor body to form another framework member of the floor structure;
a side sill arranged on one side of the floor structure;
a pillar having its lower end connected to the side sill; and
a strength adjusting part provided with at least either one of the side of the floor body and the side sill;
wherein said strength adjusting part relatively reduces a collision reactive force generated on the side of a lower end of the pillar in a vehicle side collision in comparison with the collision reactive force generated besides the lower end of the pillar.
According to the invention, the above-mentioned object is also accomplished by a vehicle body structure for a vehicle, comprising:
a floor part made from an extruded member, wherein the floor part includes:
a pillar area positioned so as to substantially accord with a center pillar arranged on one side of a vehicle body up and down, in a vehicle's fore-and-aft direction;
an adjacent-pillar area arranged adjacently to the, pillar area on the side of a center of the vehicle body in the vehicle's fore-and-aft direction, the adjacent-pillar area having a strength in a vehicle's width direction larger than the strength of the pillar area in the vehicle's width direction;
a front area arranged in front of the adjacent-pillar area in the vehicle's fore-and-aft direction, the front area having a strength in a vehicle's width direction smaller than the strength of the adjacent-pillar area in the vehicle's width direction; and
a rear area arranged behind the pillar area in the vehicle's fore-and-aft direction, the rear area having a strength in a vehicle's width direction smaller than the strength of the pillar area in the vehicle's width direction.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5370438 (1994-12-01), Mori et al.
patent: 5549349 (1996-08-01), Corporon et al.
patent: 5613727 (1997-03-01), Yamazaki
patent: 5671968 (1997-09-01), Masuda et al.
patent: 5921618 (1999-07-01), Mori et al.
patent: 5984402 (1999-11-01), Taeuchi
patent: 6053564 (2000-04-01), Kamata et al.
patent: 6234568 (2001-05-01), Aoki
patent: 19538457 (1997-04-01), None
patent: 0816520 (1998-01-01), None
patent: 9-99870 (1997-04-01), None
Miyasaka Hiroyuki
Sano Maki
McDermott & Will & Emery
Nissan Motor Co,. Ltd.
Pape Joseph D.
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