Land vehicles: bodies and tops – Bodies – Body shell
Reexamination Certificate
1999-04-26
2001-06-26
Pedder, Dennis H. (Department: 3612)
Land vehicles: bodies and tops
Bodies
Body shell
C296S146600
Reexamination Certificate
active
06250711
ABSTRACT:
INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE
The disclosures of Japanese Patent Application Nos. HEI 10-231804 filed on Aug. 18, 1998, and HEI 10-217387 filed on Jul. 31, 1998, each including the specification, drawings and abstract, are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a securing structure, and method for securing, an energy absorber which is disposed on a compartment side of a structural member of a vehicle body, such as a pillar, a roof side rail, a header and the like, and which is covered with an interior trim material, such as a pillar garnish, a roof lining and the like. The energy absorber absorbs an impact energy transmitted thereto via the interior trim material.
2. Description of Related Art
In motor vehicles, particularly, in passenger cars, an energy absorber is disposed in a space between an interior trim member and a structural member of a vehicle body. Therefore, if an impact load is applied in a direction from the interior trim member to the structural member, the energy absorber deforms to absorb energy of the impact load. Normally employed energy absorbers are, for example, a grid rib member, a urethane pad, a steel member formed by bending a thin steel sheet so as to have a hat-like sectional shape, and the like. Also employed as an energy absorber is a generally-termed hybrid pipe (as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5, 680, 886) that is formed of a metal foil core member and sheets of a material other than metal that are laid on opposite side surfaces of the core member. In the hybrid pipe, the core member and the sheets on the opposite side surfaces of the core member are corrugated so that ridges and grooves alternate in a direction of an axis of the pipe.
A hybrid pipe, after being formed, can easily be changed into a desired sectional shape by correspondingly shaping the pipe. Furthermore, the energy absorption characteristic of a hybrid pipe can be adjusted by changing a dimension of the hybrid pipe measured between an outermost point in the curved outer surface of a ridge or protruded portion and an innermost point in the curved inner surface of a groove or recessed portion, that is, the generally-termed apparent plate thickness of the hybrid pipe, or changing the pitch between adjacent protruded portions (recessed portions), and the like. Thus, a hollow-shaped energy absorber represented by a hybrid pipe or the like has properties desirable for an energy absorber.
Vehicle body structural members to be installed at certain locations in a vehicle body are formed into three-dimensionally bent shapes in order to meet strength requirements and design needs. To conform to the three-dimensionally bent shape of a structural member, a substantially straight-formed energy absorber is subjected to a bending process. Normally, the energy absorber bending process is time-consuming and disadvantageous in cost. Therefore, in some cases, a plurality of energy absorbers of the same sectional shape or dimensions are screwed, at opposite ends of each absorber, to a structural member, so that the energy absorbers function as a single unit.
In some other cases, the interval between a structural member and an interior trim material disposed at a compartment-side of the structural member, which interval is necessary to absorb a predetermined amount of energy, varies in the direction of a length of the structural member. In such a case, a plurality of energy absorbers of different sectional shapes or dimensions are screwed at opposite ends of each absorber to the structural member, so that the energy absorbers function as a single unit.
The aforementioned operation of securing a plurality of energy absorbers individually to a structural member is time and labor-consuming.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a securing structure that makes effective use of the properties of a hollow-shaped energy absorber, such as a hybrid pipe, and facilitates the securing of the energy absorber to a structural member.
According to an aspect of the invention, there is provided a securing structure including a plurality of hollow energy absorbers, and a joint member having fitting end portions which are fittable to end portions of at least two adjacent energy absorbers of the plurality of hollow energy absorbers, the end portions of the at least two adjacent energy absorbers facing each other, and the joint member being mountable to a vehicle body structural member.
In this securing structure, one of two fitting end portions of the joint member is fitted to an end portion of a first energy absorber of the at least two adjacent energy absorbers, the end portion of the first energy absorber facing a second energy absorber. The other one ofthe two fitting end portions of the joint member is fitted to an end portion of the second energy absorber, the end portion of the second energy absorber facing the end portion of the first energy absorber. By subsequently mounting the joint member, the energy absorbers are secured to the structural member so that the energy absorbers are ready for use.
The securing structure makes it possible to couple two adjacent energy absorbers by fitting an end of each energy absorber to a fitting end portion ofthe joint member and to secure the two energy absorbers coupled by the joint member to a structural member by mounting the joint member to the structural member. Therefore, the above-described securing structure eliminates the need to perform a so-called post-process on an energy absorber, for example, forming a securing hole, applying an adhesive, and the like, and enables easy and quick mounting of a plurality of energy absorbers to a structural member, thereby considerably improving the operability of the securing process.
The length of each fitting end portion of the joint member can be arbitrarily selected so as to prevent an energy absorber fitted to the joint member from slipping off from the fitting end portion of the joint member if the energy absorber is deformed by an impact load. Thus, a plurality of energy absorbers can be kept secured to the structural member even at the time of an impact. Therefore, if an energy absorber receives an impact load and another energy absorber subsequently receives an impact load, a sufficiently high energy absorbing function can be performed.
The facing end portions of the at least two adjacent energy absorbers may have cross sections that differ in at least one of size and shape, and each fitting end portion of the joint member may have a sectional shape substantially geometrically similar to a sectional shape of the end portion of an energy absorber to which the fitting end portion is to be fitted.
If the sectional shape of each fitting end portion of the joint member is substantially geometrically similar to the sectional shape of the corresponding energy absorber end portion as described above, the fitting end portions of the joint member can easily be fitted to the corresponding energy absorber end portions. Therefore, if energy absorbers that are to be disposed adjacent to each other and a joint member having fitting end portions each of which has a sectional shape substantially geometrically similar to the sectional shape of the corresponding energy absorber end portion are prepared beforehand, the energy absorbers can easily be coupled with high precision. Consequently, it becomes possible to provide a sequence of a plurality of energy absorbers coupled lengthwise wherein an energy absorber disposed at one site is different in sectional shape or size from an energy absorber disposed at another site.
In the above-described securing structure, the joint member may be formed by a structural body capable of absorbing an impact energy.
If the joint member itself is capable of absorbing impact energy as described above, even an impact load applied to the coupling portion between adjacent energy absorbers can be absorbed by deformation of the energy absorbers and the joint member there
Gutman Hilary
Oliff & Berridg,e PLC
Pedder Dennis H.
Toyota Jidosha & Kabushiki Kaisha
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