JP2008081108A - Automotive roof frame - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a frame for a sliding sunroof or a tilt / slide sunroof.
This comprises a one-piece frame base member (22) formed as an injection-molded plastic piece, the frame base member comprising at least one front frame piece (24) and a longitudinal direction of the vehicle. And two side stringers (26, 28) directed to In order to form a lightweight, rigid frame, the frame base member (22) of the present invention is formed as a composite member and has at least one profile or cup-shaped insert piece (38, 40) acting as a reinforcing member. I have.
[Selection] Figure 2

Description

  The invention relates to a frame for a sliding sunroof or tilt / slide sunroof for vehicles with the features of the premise of claim 1.

  One such frame is known, for example, from DE 203 17 140 U1 (Patent Document 1), which is formed from an injection molded plastic piece. That is, it is formed from a thermoplastic resin, and is composed of one front frame member and two side stringers (side edges), which have a single structure. Guide rails are integrally provided on these side stringers, through which the associated sliding sunroof or tilt / slide sunroof cover member is guided to close the roof opening as appropriate or at least partially open it. It is like that. Due to the operation of the cover member, the drive motor can be arranged in the area of the front frame member. The frame is designed as an injection-molded plastic piece, and the various features associated with it allow multiple functions to be integrated directly into the frame.

  The above-mentioned type of frame can be attached from above, i.e. from the outside of the car, or from the inside, i.e. from the inside of the car. In particular, when the frame is mounted on a car chassis, the frame itself is required to be rigid, which would probably not be possible with a thermoplastic frame. Therefore, this stiffness requirement must be compensated by appropriate design measures in the roof area where the frame is located.

  Further, in actual work, a frame base member formed as a deep drawing sheet is provided from the outside for a sliding sunroof or a tilt / slide sunroof to be mounted on the chassis of the car. In this case, the frame base member Includes a front frame member and a frame side stringer. Such a frame is heavy because of its material, and because of its assembly, the choice of modeling is limited, and usually additional structural sheet members are provided. Furthermore, in the case of such a sheet-like frame, a huge investment is required for the manufacturer. In addition, the choice of functional integration is limited, and if it is made corrosion resistant, it becomes expensive.

Further, for example, DE 198 21 694 A1 (Patent Document 2) discloses a sliding sunroof frame provided with a multi-component frame base member. The frame base member includes a front frame member made of plastic and a side stringer usually made of aluminum for guiding the roof cover member. In the case of such a modular design sliding sunroof frame, an expensive sealing measure is taken for the transition region between the front frame member made of plastic and the frame side stringer formed as an aluminum extruded profile. There is a need.
DE 203 17 140 U1 DE 198 21 694 A1

  The object on which the present invention is based is to produce a frame characterized in that it is lightweight, has a high inherent rigidity and can be produced inexpensively, as mentioned at the outset.

  This problem is solved by a frame having the features of claim 1.

  That is, the gist of the present invention is to provide a frame provided with a support member representing a frame base member. This support member represents on the one hand an injection-molded plastic member and on the other hand has at least one reinforcing member formed by an insert piece. In order to form this composite member, this reinforcing member is integrated directly into the frame base member when forming the injection molded member. Therefore, the frame of the present invention includes a frame base member embodied as a composite member, and there is a composite of injection molded plastic and insert piece material.

  In particular, the insert piece can be made of metal and may be a thin thick sheet. In this case, the insert piece is in particular a drawn piece, so when a particular frame of the invention is manufactured, not only the properties of the materials used, but also two process approaches, metal deep drawing and injection molding, are costly. It will contribute to the effect. The result is therefore that of a member formed by a frame base member that is highly reliable, reproducible and has tight manufacturing tolerances. A specially made, thin, drawn, stamped and still essentially unstable sheet piece or profile is inserted into a suitable injection molding tool and the suitable material, i.e. thermoplastic. Or plastic, such as duroplastic, is sprayed onto this sheet piece by a single injection molding method according to conventional methods, thereby reinforcing the sheet piece and thus the entire structure. By spraying the plastic on the insert piece, the thin sheet structure of the insert piece can be effectively stabilized.

  However, it is also conceivable to make the insert pieces from carbon fiber material, fiber reinforced thermoplastic or fiber reinforced duroplastic. These fiber reinforced plastics are advantageous in terms of the weight of the resulting member. As fiber reinforcement of duroplastics or thermoplastics, for example, carbon, aramid or glass materials can be used in the form of fibers, rovings or mats.

  The frame according to the invention thus represents a structure having a large intrinsic rigidity due to the integration of at least one insert piece and the plastic structure connected thereto. This meets the stringent requirements of the car chassis area, in particular the car roof area.

  The frame according to the invention is a sliding sunroof frame which is arranged in particular from the outside of the vehicle, ie from above the body shell of the vehicle.

  By configuring the frame base member as an injection-molded plastic part, an opportunity to integrate multiple addition functions into the frame base member is provided. These functions are formed by, for example, an attachment member, a support portion, a latch hook, a screw connection, a cable clamp, or the like. Therefore, expensive post-processing and mounting parts can be omitted.

  In the case of a special specific shape of the frame according to the invention, the at least partial profile-like structure of the reinforcing member is stabilized and reinforced by the rib structure of the injection-molded frame base piece or by a member engaging its profile. Will be.

  In a preferred embodiment of the frame of the present invention, each of the side stringers of the frame base member is provided with at least one insert piece having a profiling in which the ribbed structure of the injection molded frame base member is engaged. It is supposed to be. In particular, this insert piece extends into the area between the “A” pillar and the “B” pillar of the vehicle in which the frame is located. In particular, in this roof region, strict demands are made for the impact resistance of automobiles. Furthermore, this insert piece can be extended over the entire length of the side stringer.

  The ribbed structure that engages the profile of a particular insert piece is in particular a cruciform or zigzag ribbed structure. Such a structure is particularly effective in suppressing the tendency of the insert piece to break. However, basically any ribbed pattern is possible.

  In order to fix the insert piece to the plastic of the frame base member in the region of at least one side edge of the insert piece (or a plurality of insert pieces), the insert piece is embodied as a pipe, and the edge portion of the insert piece is plastic. You may make it overlap with material. Alternatively, or in addition, the frame base member in the edge region of the insert piece (s) may have at least one integral plastic clamp that overlaps the associated edge. Therefore, the fixing member can be formed in one traveling process together with the frame base member when the frame base member is injection molded.

  Furthermore, it is preferable that the at least one insert piece has a plurality of holes in its base portion. Each of these holes acts as a fastening point for the plastic of the frame base member. Next, in the injection molding process, the material placed in the associated injection molding device will penetrate through the holes of the insert piece in this case, fixing the insert piece to the plastic.

  The insert piece can be partially exposed or completely covered by the plastic of the frame base member. In the first example, the insert piece can be particularly useful as a base for the attachment of further structural members of the frame. For example, the insert pieces of the two side stringers of the frame base member can be connected to each other via at least one metal transverse truss. The metal transverse truss extends, for example, in the transverse direction with respect to the vehicle body. If the vehicle body roof has a first roof view area in the front seat area and a second roof view area in the rear seat area, such a transverse truss (" B "pillar height) will probably be needed. This rear roof view area can be darkened by, for example, a roll-up screen, so that a guide path for the side edge of the tensioned bow can be provided in the side stringer. These guide paths can be formed directly in the plastic of the frame base member.

  Furthermore, the security console can be attached to an insert piece located in the side stringer region of the frame base member. This console is attached to the area of the “B” pillar with the car chassis. This security console can increase the rigidity and stability of the body shell in the region of the “B” pillar.

  Further, since the roof cover member is guided by the side stringers of the frame base member, the guide rail formed as an aluminum extruded profile can be integrated. These guide rails are preferably supported in the region of the frame base member with the insert piece and can be fixed in the region of the insert piece and / or the plastic region of the frame base member.

  In order to increase the sealing integrity of the frame and improve the adhesion of the plastic used to manufacture the frame base member to the insert piece, the insert piece may have a plastic coating. . This plastic coating also forms an anticorrosion layer for the insert piece made of metal, in particular its edge region.

  Advantageously, in a frame constructed according to the invention, the front and / or rear cowl of the car chassis can be integrated into the frame base member. In this case, the cowl is reinforced with a suitable insert piece with a profiling that allows the injection molded ribbed structure of the frame base member to engage.

  The cowl can thus be formed directly during the process of manufacturing a frame for sliding sunroofs or tilt-slide sunroofs in one progressive step. During the mounting of the frame, both ends of the cowl need only be attached to a specific pillar, ie, the “A”, “C” or “D” pillar of the body shell.

  Further advantages and preferred embodiments of the inventive subject matter will be understood from the detailed description of the invention, the drawings and the claims.

  Hereinafter, one specific example of the frame of the present invention is schematically shown in the drawings and will be described in detail in the following description.

  FIG. 1 shows an automobile 10 with a vehicle roof embodied as a panoramic roof. In this case, the vehicle roof has a roof frame 12, which is embodied as a frame provided from above the chassis frame 14. That is, it is embodied as a so-called top load frame and represents a sliding sunroof of the automobile 10.

  In order to form a panoramic roof extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle over the entire passenger area of the automobile 10, the roof frame 12 has a front roof opening 16 and a rear roof opening 18. The front roof opening 16 and the rear roof opening 18 are separated from each other by a transverse truss 20. If desired, the front roof opening 16 can be closed by a cover member (not shown), or at least partially open. The rear roof opening 18 is covered by a rigidly mounted transparent glass or polycarbonate window member. These two loaf openings 16, 18 can also be darkened by a winding screen (not shown).

  The frame 12 shown alone in FIG. 2 includes a single component frame base member 22, that is, a carrier member and a front frame portion 24, two side stringers 26 and 28 extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and a rear frame portion 30. And a central truss 20. The front frame 24 is located in the area of the “A” pillar 32 of the car chassis, the central truss 20 is located in the area of the “B” pillar 34 of the car chassis, and the rear frame 30 is the “C” of the car chassis. "Located in the area of the pillar 36.

  For example, a drive motor for the cover member is disposed in the area of the front frame portion 24, and the front roof opening 16 is opened and closed while being laterally guided in the areas of both side stringers 26 and 28. I have to. The drive motors for the two winding screens can be located in the region of the transverse truss 20 connecting the two side stringers 26,28.

  The frame base member 22 is made of an injection molded plastic piece. In order to improve the rigidity of the injection molded plastic piece, an insert piece 38 or 40 made of a metal sheet is provided in the region of the side stringers 26 and 28. These insert pieces extend between the front frame portion 24 and the transverse truss 20 and serve as reinforcing members. Each of these insert pieces 38 or 40 is embodied as a deep drawn piece and has a profile with a U-shaped cross section, as can be seen in particular in FIGS. Accordingly, each insert piece 38 or 40 has a cup-like profile. In addition, it is also conceivable to provide an insert piece over the entire length of the side stringer.

  Each of the insert pieces 38 or 40 is fixed to the plastic of the frame base member 22, and the edge portions 42 and 44 are covered with the plastic of the frame base member 22 in the form of a pipe.

  Further, the plastic of the frame base member 22 has a cruciform ribbed structure 46 which is injected into the respective profile of the insert pieces 38 and 40, as is apparent from FIG. The structure of the piece 38 or 40 is stabilized.

  In addition, the ribbed structure 46 has a plurality of legs 48 that fit into the respective holes 50 of the insert pieces 38 and 40, and the insert pieces 38 and 40 against the plastic of the frame base member 22. Is further fixed.

  For further stabilization and reinforcement of the roof structure, in the region of the transverse truss 20, the insert pieces 38 and 40 are connected to each other by means of a metal transverse support member 52, so that this provides central reinforcement for the roof structure. It is meant to represent.

  The frame of the present invention, as a composite component, combines the positive quality of plastic with the strength and stability benefits of the steel from which the insert pieces 38 and 40 are constructed. The insert piece is used only in a portion where the impact resistance of the automobile is specifically required. In this embodiment, the region between the so-called “A” pillar 32 and the “B” pillar 34 is used. It is. Furthermore, since the insert piece is embedded in the plastic, so-called KTL surface coating for improving the corrosion resistance behavior of the sheet piece can be omitted if desired.

The figure which shows the roof area | region of the motor vehicle provided with the roof frame designed by this invention. The bottom view which shows a roof frame independently. Sectional drawing of the side stringer of the roof frame which follows the III-III line of FIG. The figure which shows the insert piece of the roof frame which engaged the structure with a plastic cross-shaped rib.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Car 12 Frame 14 Chassis frame 16 Front roof opening 18 Rear roof opening 20 Cross direction truss 22 Frame base member 24 Front frame piece 26 Side stringer 30 Rear frame piece 32 "A" pillar 34 "B" pillar 36 "C" Pillar 38 Insert piece 40 Insert piece 42 Edge 44 Edge 46 Ribbed structure 48 Leg 50 Hole 52 Lateral carrier 54 Guide rail

Claims (13)

  A frame for a sliding sunroof or a tilt / slide sunroof, comprising a one-piece frame base member (22) formed as an injection molded plastic piece, the frame base member comprising at least one front frame piece (24) and two side stringers (26, 28) oriented in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, the frame base member (22) being formed as a composite member and at least one acting as a reinforcing member A frame characterized in that it comprises two profiles or cup-shaped insert pieces (38, 40).   2. Frame according to claim 1, characterized in that the injection-molded ribbed structure (46) of the injection-molded frame base member (22) engages the profile of the insert piece (38, 40).   The side stringers (26, 28) are provided with at least one profile or shell-shaped insert piece (38, 40) on which the plastic (46) of the injection-molded frame base member (22) is sprayed. The frame according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the frame is characterized.   4. Frame according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that at least one insert piece (38, 40) is made of metal.   5. The frame according to claim 1, wherein the plastic of the frame base member (22) is reinforced with glass fibers.   The frame according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the ribbed structure (46) is of a cross or zigzag ribbed structure.   The plastic of the frame base member (22) in the region of at least one lateral edge (42, 44) of the insert piece (38, 40) is formed in a pipe shape and covers the edge. The frame according to any one of 1 to 6.   8. The plastic of the frame base member (22) in the region of at least one edge of the insert piece has at least one plastic clamp covering the edge. The described frame.   The insert piece (38, 40) has a hole (48) and acts as an anchoring site for the plastic of the frame base member (22). Frame described in.   The insert pieces (38, 40) of the two side stringers (26, 28) are connected to each other by at least one metal transverse carrier (52) extending in the transverse direction of the vehicle. Item 3. The frame according to item 2.   A security console is attached to the insert piece (38, 40) located in the region of the side stringer (26, 28) of the frame base member (22) and is attached to the car chassis in the region of the "B" pillar. The frame according to claim 3, wherein the frame is connected.   The frame according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the insert piece has a plastic coating.   The frame according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein a front cowl and / or a rear cowl of a vehicle chassis is integrally formed with the frame base member.

Images