JP2002220069A - Body parts - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily and precisely assemble or connect members for forming a car body. SOLUTION: In a tubular front pillar inner 10 of a vehicle, a raw tube is expanded from its inside by a hydroforming method, a bulged part 11 is formed in its intermediate part, the bulged part 11 is fitted into an opening of an upper end part 13 of a hydroforming-molded tubular center pillar inner 12, and the front pillar inner bulged part 11 is connected to the center pillar inner upper end part 13 by arc-welding. The numeral symbol 14 shows a side outer panel common to the front pillar inner 10 and the center pillar inner 12.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a member constituting a skeleton or the like of a vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In order to obtain necessary energy absorption characteristics at the time of a vehicle collision, as shown schematically in FIG. While the sheet metal members of the hose inner and outer hose outer are overlapped and spot-welded, the left and right center pillars 2
Are sequentially welded from the inside of the vehicle interior to the inner, inner, hose, belt line, hose, and seatbelt hoses, and are spot-welded, and are common to the front pillar 1, the center pillar 2, and the like. The front pillar 1 and the center pillar 2 are formed by spot welding the integrated side outer panel (not shown) on the outer surface side, and accordingly, the front pillar 1 and the center pillar 2 Since each member is composed of a plurality of sheet metal members, as the number of parts increases, the cost of forming each sheet metal member and the number of welding and assembling steps increase, which leads to an increase in cost. Since it is relatively difficult to always secure enough, the elasticity of the vehicle Each sheet metal member there is a risk of generating abnormal sound rubbing by such deformation.

The front side members 3 disposed on the left and right sides of the engine room are respectively spot-welded to the front end cross member 4 and the like by overlapping the outer panels and the inner panels, which are sheet metal members, with their phosphorus hoses. , Which constitutes a part of the body, but it is relatively difficult to align with the front end cross member 4 etc.
It has been extremely difficult to ensure the rigidity or strength of each part of the vehicle body at all times.

Further, as shown in FIG. 16, a front deck cross member 5 made of an electric resistance welded steel pipe, which extends substantially in the vehicle width direction and connects the left and right sides of the vehicle body, has an instrument panel and a steering wheel (not shown). In order to fix a column, a heater unit, an airbag unit, a harness and the like to the front deck cross member 5, a plurality of various brackets are attached by arc welding, and an intermediate portion of the front deck cross member 5 which is relatively long in the axial direction. The upper end of each of the pair of centering hose pipes 6 is arc-welded to an intermediate portion of the front deck cross member 5 and the lower end thereof is connected to a lower portion of the vehicle body, respectively. As shown in FIG. 17, the axial end of the member 5 is Bracket 7 in a state of being inserted within
It is necessary to attach many brackets, centering hose pipes 6 and the like to the front deck cross member 5, while the brackets and centering hose pipes 6 are formed on the front deck cross member 5 by arc welding. Since it is necessary to correct the thermal distortion, and in particular, it is necessary to ensure the perpendicularity of the bracket 7 with respect to the vehicle width direction, it is inevitable that the cost is increased from these aspects.

Further, as shown in FIG. 18, the upper end 9 of the centering hose pipe 6 is pressed flat to be curved into a shape along the outer peripheral surface of the front deck cross member 5, and Deck cross member 5
However, since it is relatively difficult to increase the forming accuracy of the upper end portion 9 of the centerline hose pipe 6, the number of steps for improving the welding accuracy has to be increased.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to enable members forming a vehicle body to be assembled or connected accurately and easily.

[0007]

Therefore, in the vehicle body member according to the first aspect of the present invention, the raw tube material is expanded from the inside by the hydroforming method and at least one member is provided at the intermediate portion.
A first tubular member having two bulging portions formed therein, and a second tubular member having the bulging portions fitted into end openings and the end portions and outer surfaces of the bulging portions connected by coupling means. I have it. That is, since the swelling portion can be easily and accurately formed in the middle portion of the first tubular member by the hydroforming method, the end opening of the second tubular member is fitted to the swelling portion, and the swelling portion is formed. The outer surface and the second tubular member can be easily and accurately connected by the coupling means, and the strength of the first tubular member is reliably improved by work hardening accompanying the hydroforming, thereby promoting the strengthening of the vehicle body. Can be done.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vehicle body member comprising: a first tubular member having a base material expanded from the inside by a hydroforming method and having at least one bulging portion formed at an intermediate portion; The portion includes a third tubular member abutting on the flat end surface of the bulging portion and connected to the flat end surface by coupling means. That is, since the swelling portion can be easily and accurately formed in the middle portion of the first tubular member by the hydroforming method, the end of the third tubular member is brought into contact with the flat end surface of the swelling portion. Can be easily and accurately connected by the connecting means, and the rigidity and strength of the first tubular member can be surely improved by work hardening accompanying the hydroforming, and the strengthening of the vehicle body can be promoted.

Further, in the vehicle body member according to the third aspect of the present invention, an axial end portion of the raw tube material is expanded from the inside by a hydroforming method, and a large diameter portion is formed stepwise from an intermediate portion. A tubular cross member arranged in the vehicle width direction, and a bracket that covers the large-diameter portion, abuts on the stepped surface of the large-diameter portion, is connected to the end by coupling means, and is coupled to the vehicle body side portion. Is provided. In other words, the stepped large-diameter portion can be easily and accurately formed at the axial end of the cross member by the hydroforming method, so that the bracket is brought into contact with the stepped surface of the large-diameter portion having high surface accuracy. As a result, the large-diameter portion and the bracket can be easily and accurately assembled by the connecting means, and the rigidity and strength of the end portion of the cross member are reliably improved by work hardening accompanying the hydroforming, thereby strengthening the vehicle body. Can be promoted.

[0010]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention shown in the drawings will be described by assigning the same reference numerals to the same parts. 1 and 2, a front pillar inner 10 of a vehicle has a tubular shape in which a raw material is expanded from the inside by a hydroforming method and one bulging portion 11 is formed at an intermediate portion, that is, a substantially square cross section. In addition, the center pillar inner 12 is a tubular member formed by expanding a raw pipe material from the inside by a hydroforming method, and a bulging portion 11 of the front pillar inner 10 is provided in an opening of an upper end portion 13 thereof. The front pillar inner bulge portion 11 and the center pillar inner upper end portion 13 are connected by arc welding, and the side outer panel 1 is inserted.
The front pillar 15 and the center pillar 16 are formed by applying the spot welding to the outer surfaces of the front pillar inner 10 and the center pillar inner 12.

In other words, the front pillar inner 10 and the center pillar inner 12 are each uniformly pressurized from the inside at the time of hydroforming, and almost no springback occurs, so that the molding accuracy is high. As a result, the bulging portion 11 can be easily and accurately formed in the middle portion of the front pillar inner 10, so that the bulging portion 11 of the front pillar inner 10 is accurately fitted into the opening of the upper end portion 13 of the center pillar inner 12. Therefore, the outer surface of the bulging portion 11 and the upper end portion 13 of the center pillar inner are easily welded by arc welding, and
By joining with high strength, the rigidity of the vehicle body can be increased, and the reinforcement of the vehicle body can be promoted.

Further, since the front pillar inner 10 and the center pillar inner 12 can each be formed by a single tubular member, the number of parts and the number of assembling steps can be significantly reduced as compared with conventional products, and a remarkable cost reduction can be realized. Further, since the front pillar inner 10 and the center pillar inner 12 are each formed of a tubular member and have a closed cross section, the rigidity is more easily increased than a conventional lap welded sheet metal member, and While stabilization of strength can be achieved, by increasing the degree of work hardening by increasing the degree of work hardening by increasing the wall thickness in the axial direction by the hydroforming method, that is, the so-called axial pushing is effective, the expansion ratio of the substantially linear portion is relatively large. The strength of the front pillar inner 10 and the center pillar inner 12 is surely increased from this aspect as well, so that the plate thickness can be reduced and the weight can be reduced. There is a great feature that allows a reduction.

In FIGS. 3 and 4, front side members 20 respectively arranged on the left and right sides of the engine room of the vehicle have a base material expanded from the inside by a hydroforming method, and a downward bulging portion near the front end. 21 is formed into a tubular shape, that is, a substantially rectangular cross section, and the bulging portion 21 is fitted into upward openings 24 formed at both left and right end portions 23 of the tubular front end cross member 22. The side member bulge 21 and the front end cross member end 23 are connected by arc welding to form a part of the vehicle body.

That is, the swelling portion 21 of the front side member 20 can be easily and accurately formed near the front end of the front side member 20 by the hydroforming method. Into the opening 24 of the part 23 precisely,
Outer surface of bulging portion 21 and front end cross member end 2
3 can be easily and highly bonded by arc welding to increase the rigidity of the vehicle body and promote the strengthening of the vehicle body.

Further, since the front side member 20 can be formed by a single tubular member, the number of parts and the number of assembling steps can be reduced as compared with conventional products, so that a remarkable cost reduction can be realized. 2
Since 0 is formed of a tubular member and has a closed cross section, the rigidity can be easily increased and the strength can be stabilized more easily than a conventional lap welded sheet metal member. By increasing the work hardening of the bulging portion 21 and increasing the strength thereof by the construction method, the connection strength with the front end cross member end 23 can be reliably improved, and as a result, the plate of the front side member 20 can be improved. By reducing the thickness, the weight of the vehicle body can be reduced.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the lower bulging portion 21 of the front side member 20 is fitted into the upper opening 24 of the end 23 of the front end cross member. As described above, the inward bulging portion 2 near the front end of the tubular front side member 20 formed by being expanded from the inside of the raw tube material by the hydroforming method.
1 are fitted into the outward openings 24 formed in the left and right end portions 23 of the tubular front end cross member 22, respectively, and the front side member bulging portion 21 and the front end cross member end 23 are arc welded. Even if a part of the vehicle body is configured by being connected by the above, the same operation and effect as the above embodiment can be obtained,
Needless to say, the arc welding in each of the above embodiments can be replaced with a joining means such as spot welding, laser welding, CO2 welding or the like as necessary.

In FIGS. 6 and 7, a tubular front deck cross member 30 extending substantially in the vehicle width direction and connecting the left and right sides of the vehicle body is formed so that a raw tube material can be expanded from the inside by a hydroforming method. Since the mounting surfaces and mounting bosses of the vehicle components and the like can be easily and accurately formed on the intermediate portion 31, the brackets conventionally required for mounting the components can be eliminated. Accordingly, not only can the number of parts related to the front deck cross member 30 be significantly reduced, but also the man-hour for welding the bracket to the front deck cross member 30 can be reduced at the same time, and the front deck cross member 30 can be reduced. The welding distortion generated in the front deck cross member 30 is also reduced, Work is also easily simplified can result, it is possible to easily reduce the cost associated with the front deck cross member 30.

A pair of bulging portions 32 formed in the intermediate portion 31 of the front deck cross member 30 by the hydroforming method are provided with openings 35 at upper end portions 34 of a pair of substantially centering hose pipes 33 extending substantially vertically. , And the outer surface of the front deck cross member intermediate portion 31 and the upper end 34 of each centering hose pipe are connected by connecting means such as arc welding, laser welding, CO2 welding, or the like. The lower end is connected to the lower part of the vehicle body (not shown) to prevent the intermediate portion 31 of the front deck cross member 30 from hanging down. In this case, the front deck cross member bulging portion 32 can be easily and accurately formed by the hydroforming method. The centering hose pipe 33
The upper end 34 of the centerline hose pipe 33 can be easily aligned and connected to the bulging portion 32 of the front deck cross member intermediate portion 31 while being tubular, and the upper end 34 of the centering hose pipe 33 is flattened as in the related art. There is no need to press and bend to a shape that follows the outer peripheral surface of the front deck cross member intermediate portion 31 at all, so that the manufacturing cost of the centering hose pipe 33 and the number of assembling steps can be easily reduced.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the bulging portion 32 of the intermediate portion 31 of the front deck cross member is fitted into the opening 35 of the upper end 34 of the centering hose pipe. As shown, the flat outer end surface 36 of the bulging portion 32 of the front deck cross member intermediate portion 31 is attached to the upper end portion 34 of the centering hose pipe 33.
To the front deck cross member bulge 3
Even if the upper end 34 of the centerline hose pipe and the centerline hose pipe 34 are connected by a joining means such as arc welding, laser welding, or CO2 welding, the same operation and effect as those of the above embodiment can be obtained.

Further, as shown in FIG. 9, after the upper end 34 of the centering hose pipe 33 is pressed flat, the bulging portion 3 of the front deck cross member intermediate portion 31 is pressed.
2, the front deck cross member bulging portion 32 and the centerline hose pipe upper end 34 are connected to each other by means of arc welding, laser welding, CO2 welding, or the like. Since the planar accuracy at the upper end portion 34 can be relatively easily increased as compared with the conventional case, the connection between them can be simplified, and the cost can be reduced as compared with the conventional case.

In FIGS. 10 to 12, a large-diameter portion 37 is formed at the end of the front deck cross member 30 in a stepped manner from the intermediate portion 31 of the front deck cross member 30 by a hydroforming method. The bracket 38 has the front deck cross member intermediate portion 31 inserted into the hole portion 39, and the inner end surface 40 has the stepped surface 4 of the large diameter portion 37.
1, the flange 42 covers the entire large diameter portion 37 and is provided with a flange 42 connected to a vehicle body side (not shown). The end of the front deck cross member 30 and the bracket 38 are arc welded. , Laser welding, CO2
They are connected by connecting means such as welding and spot welding.

That is, the stepped large-diameter portion 37 can be easily and accurately formed at the end of the front deck cross member 30 by the hydroforming method, so that the large-diameter portion stepped surface 41 having high surface accuracy can be formed. By bringing the inner end surface 40 of the bracket 38 into contact, the vertical accuracy of the bracket 38 with respect to the front deck cross member 30 can be easily improved and both can be assembled. The cost can be reduced, and the rigidity and strength at the end of the front deck cross member 30 can be reliably improved by the work hardening accompanying the hydroform molding, and the reinforcement of the vehicle body can be promoted.

In FIGS. 13 and 14, the front deck cross member 30 is formed when the raw pipe material is formed so as to be expanded from the inside by the hydroforming method.
An appropriate number of bulging portions 50 are formed in the intermediate portion 31 at appropriate intervals in the vehicle width direction, and small holes 52 are provided in the flat end surface 51 of the bulging portion 50. By using a resin clip 53 elastically inserted through 52 and attached to the bulging portion 50, an outfitting member such as a harness 54 can be easily arranged along the outer surface of the front deck cross member 30 substantially in the vehicle width direction. In this case, however, in this case, the bulging portion 50 and the small hole 52 of the front deck cross member 30 can be formed simultaneously with the hydroforming of the front deck cross member 30, so that the clip 53 can be attached as in the related art. Since there is no need to fix the bracket to the front deck cross member 30, the cost can be reduced from this aspect as well.

[0024]

In the vehicle body member according to the present invention, each member in the vehicle can be easily and accurately assembled by making full use of the features obtained by the hydroforming method.
Alternatively, there is an advantage that they can be connected, and the rigidity and strength of each member can be easily improved, and the strengthening of the vehicle body can be promoted.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a main part in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view taken along the line II-II of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a perspective exploded view of a main part according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view taken along the line IV-IV of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a perspective exploded view of a main part according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of a main part according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view taken along the line VII-VII of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view of a main part according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view of a main part according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a main part according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a perspective exploded view of a main part in the embodiment of FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is a vertical sectional view taken along the line XII-XII of FIG. 10;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a main part in another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken along the line XIV-XIV of FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 is a schematic perspective view of a conventional body frame.

FIG. 16 is a schematic perspective view of a conventional front deck cross member.

FIG. 17 is a partially enlarged perspective view of the front deck cross member.

FIG. 18 is a partially enlarged perspective view of the front deck cross member.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Front pillar inner 11 Swelling part 12 Center pillar inner 14 Side outer panel 15 Front pillar 16 Center pillar 20 Front side member 21 Swelling part 22 Front end cross member 30 Front deck cross member 32 Swelling part 33 Centering hose pipe 36 End face 37 Large diameter part 38 Bracket 41 Stepped surface 42 Flange 50 Swelling part 52 Small hole 53 Clip 54 Harness

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification FI FI Theme Court ゛ (Reference) B62D 25/20 B62D 25/20 C (72) Inventor Masane Yamane 33-3-8 Shiba 5-chome, Minato-ku, Tokyo Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (72) Inventor Kenichi Sato 5-33-8 Shiba, Minato-ku, Tokyo Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (72) Inventor Takayuki Yatabe 5-33-8 Shiba, Minato-ku, Tokyo Mitsubishi Motors F term in Industrial Co., Ltd. (reference) 3D003 AA01 AA10 AA11 BB01 CA06 CA07 CA09 CA33 CA34 DA09

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A first tubular member having a base tube material expanded from the inside by a hydroforming method and having at least one bulging portion formed in an intermediate portion, and the end portion having the bulging portion fitted into an end opening. A vehicle body member comprising: a second tubular member having a portion and an outer surface of the bulging portion connected by coupling means. 2. A first tubular member having a raw tube material expanded from the inside by a hydroforming method and having at least one bulging portion formed at an intermediate portion, and an end portion abutting on a flat end surface of the bulging portion. A vehicle body member having a third tubular member connected to the flat end surface by a connecting means. 3. A tubular cross member in which an axial end portion of a raw tube material is expanded from the inside by a hydroforming method, a large-diameter portion is formed stepwise from an intermediate portion, and is disposed substantially in a vehicle width direction. A vehicle body member having a bracket that covers the large diameter portion, abuts on the stepped surface of the large diameter portion, is connected to the end by coupling means, and is connected to a vehicle body side portion. 4. The cross member according to claim 3, wherein the cross member is expanded from the inside by a hydroforming method to form at least one bulge at an intermediate portion, and the bulge is formed at an upper end opening of the tubular member. The upper end and the outer surface of the bulging portion are fitted and connected by coupling means, or the upper end of the tubular member is brought into contact with the flat end surface of the bulging portion and connected to the flat end surface by coupling means. A vehicle member in which a lower end of the tubular member is connected to a lower part of the vehicle. 5. The cross member according to claim 3, wherein the cross member is expanded from the inside by a hydroforming method so that at least one second bulge portion is formed in an intermediate portion and the second bulge portion is formed. A vehicle body member in which a small hole for attaching an outfitting member is formed on a flat end surface provided in the vehicle.