Land vehicles: bodies and tops – Bodies – Door or window with specified vehicle feature
Reexamination Certificate
2002-04-02
2003-05-27
Patel, Kiran (Department: 3612)
Land vehicles: bodies and tops
Bodies
Door or window with specified vehicle feature
C296S182100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06568742
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a rear door structure of a vehicle, and more particularly, to a rear door structure of a vehicle including a safety beam overlapped with a door-side outer panel that can effectively absorb an impact force and protect the safety of occupants.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In general, doors are hinged onto a vehicle body to be opened or closed for the vehicle occupant to get in or out of the vehicle. The doors are classified into front and rear doors. A structure of the rear door
10
, as shown in
FIGS. 1 and 2
, includes door outer panel
11
and door inner panel
12
with a predetermined gap with the frames; a door side outer panel
13
bent and formed with predetermined gap with the door inner panel
12
; a window glass
15
rising and falling along a door frame
14
by operation of a regulator; and a safety beam
17
installed between the door outer panel
11
and door inner panel
12
along a horizontal axis of the rear door
10
with both ends thereof supported against the door inner panel
12
via a beam mounting bracket
16
. Safety beam
17
is typically formed in a shape of cylindrical pipe having a predetermined thickness to protect passengers by reducing the impact force transferred to the rear door
10
when a vehicle is impacted onto its side.
In other words, when a vehicle is crashed into the lateral side of the rear door
10
, the impact force thereof is transferred to the safety beam through the door outer panel
11
. A part of the safety beam
17
, where the crash impact is applied, reduces the impact force by being transformed and destructed toward the door inner panel
12
. As a result, the impact is reduced by transformation and destruction of the safety beam
17
to prevent any severe injury.
However, one problem in the conventional structure of the rear door thus constructed in that both ends of the safety beam
17
are installed without overlapping a support jaw portion
13
-
1
of the door side outer panel
13
due to limitations in its size and shape. The safety beam is mounted only with a simple connection to the door inner panel
12
via a beam mounting bracket
16
, so that the safety beam
17
can not effectively absorb a side impact force.
On the other hand, the safety beam
27
of the front door
20
, as shown in
FIG. 3
, is installed with both ends thereof longitudinally, extensively overlapping a support jaw portion
23
-
1
of door side outer panel
23
and connected to a door inner panel
22
by a beam mounting bracket
26
. The beam mounting bracket
26
simply connects the safety beam
27
to the door inner panel
22
, not to directly absorb the impact force like the beam mounting bracket
16
of the rear door
10
described above.
However, when a side impact occurs, the safety beam
27
of the front door
20
thus constructed protects occupants by effectively absorbing or scattering most of the crash impact. This is because the safety beam
27
of the front door
20
has a structure with both ends thereof being longitudinally, extensively overlapping with the support jaw portion
23
-
1
of the door side outer panel
23
.
The impact absorbing capability of the safety beam may be determined based not only on thickness or strength, but also the size of overlap with the support jaw portion of the door side outer panel, as shown in FIG.
3
. Both ends of the safety beam
27
of the front door
20
are installed in the structure forming an overlap (C) with the support jaw portion
23
-
1
of the door side outer panel
23
. On the other hand, both ends of the safety beam
17
of the rear door
10
are not overlapped with the support jaw portion
13
-
1
of the door side outer panel
13
adjacent the rear wheel housing (not shown) in the structure as shown in FIG.
2
. Thus, the conventional safety beam
17
of the rear door
10
can not as effectively absorb or scatter the impact force.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a rear door structure of a vehicle that improves the impact absorbing or scattering capability of the safety beam, and protects the safety of vehicle occupants when the vehicle experiences side impact.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a rear door structure of a vehicle comprising a safety beam, an extension beam and an impact transfer beam. The safety beam is longitudinally arranged along a vehicle body at a space between a door outer panel and a door inner panel with both ends thereof being supported against the door inner panel via a beam mounting bracket. The extension beam includes one end inserted into and coupled with the safety beam and the other end overlapped with the door inner panel and surface-coupled with a support jaw portion of the door outer panel at a predetermined length. The impact transfer beam is formed along a curved surface of a rear wheel housing with one side thereof coupled to the extension beam and the other side thereof coupled to the beam mounting bracket.
In an alternative embodiment of the invention, there is provided a rear door structure for a vehicle comprising inner and outer door panels which define a gap therebetween, and the inner panel defines a stepped portion. A safety beam is positioned horizontally within the door, and terminates short of the inner panel stepped portion. An extension beam extends from the safety beam and overlaps the inner panel stepped portion. A mounting bracket is interposed between the extension beam and inner door panel stepped portion, securing together the extension beam, safety beam and inner door panel. An impact transfer beam is mounted substantially vertically between the extension beam and inner door panel stepped portion, and is curved to at least substantially follow a contour of an associated rear wheel housing.
In a further preferred embodiment, the safety beam is a tubular member wherein an extension beam is inserted into an end of the tubular member. The mounting bracket overlaps the end of the tubular member and is angled inward to contact the extension beam adjacent an end of the extension beam opposite the tubular member.
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Hyundai Motor Company
Patel Kiran
LandOfFree
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