HK1054720B - Room lamp fixing structure - Google Patents

Description

Mounting structure for interior lamp of vehicle

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an interior lamp mounting structure of an automobile, and more particularly, to an interior lamp mounting structure in which an interior lamp is fixed to a film, and then the film fixing the interior lamp is mounted to a roof panel of the automobile, so that the interior lamp is mounted to the roof panel together with the film.

Background

Japanese utility model publication No. 6-65093 discloses a conventional such interior lamp fixing structure. In this structure, the interior lamp and the film are mounted to the roof panel by clamping the film between the flange of the interior lamp and a bracket having a leaf spring for forming the bracket, and a spring portion at the tip of the bracket is engaged with an engagement hole formed in the roof panel.

In this prior art, the interior lamp is mounted on the adhesive film by inserting the lamp into the lamp fixing hole of the adhesive film; the support is pressed into the interior lamp clamp, so that the edge of the film is clamped between the support and the lamp body of the interior lamp, and the operation of fixing the interior lamp to the film is troublesome.

Furthermore, since the patch is secured to the top panel at different fixed positions, the bracket is only resiliently engaged in the aperture so that the patch hangs from the top panel; i.e. the foil and the roof are not directly connected to each other, as a result of which this unreliable connection leads to the generation of noise due to the vibrations of the vehicle in travel and the resulting play.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and an object thereof is to provide an interior lamp mounting structure which can reduce the number of assembly man-hours on an assembly line of an automobile and which prevents shaking and noise due to vibration since an interior lamp and a film are mounted on a roof panel.

In order to achieve the object of the present invention, there is provided an interior lamp mounting structure in which an interior lamp is mounted to a roof panel of an automobile, the structure including an interior lamp mounting hole in a sticker film to be mounted to the roof panel; a plurality of protrusions located within the adhesive film; an interior lamp-film attaching device including a plurality of engaging grooves in a housing of the interior lamp for receiving the plurality of protrusions when the housing of the interior lamp is upwardly inserted into the mounting hole of the interior lamp; and the film/interior lamp-roof mounting device is used for mounting the film on the roof.

In the above interior light mounting structure, the film attaching means may include a mounting hole in the ceiling plate, and the plurality of engaging steps are engaged with the lower side of the film when the housing is inserted upward into the mounting hole; a plurality of resilient clamping tabs located within the housing that cooperate with the plurality of engagement steps to clamp the top plate and the film.

In the above interior light mounting structure, the plurality of protrusions have side surfaces which are closer to each other toward the top end thereof, the plurality of protrusions are engaged with the plurality of recesses, and the side surfaces are engaged with the outer edges of the engaging grooves to prevent the interior light from moving forward, backward, leftward, and rightward.

Brief description of the drawings

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of one embodiment of an interior light mounting structure of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the interior light of FIG. 1 from the lower left side;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the interior light of FIG. 1 from the lower right side;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the interior light being secured;

fig. 5 is a schematic view showing a relationship between a ceiling mounting hole, a film-attached interior lamp mounting hole, and an interior lamp.

Detailed description of the embodiments

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of one embodiment of an interior light mounting structure of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a front view of the interior light of FIG. 1 from the lower left side; FIG. 3 is a side view of the interior light of FIG. 1 from the lower right side; FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the interior light being secured; fig. 5 is a schematic view showing the relationship between the roof panel mounting hole, the interior lamp mounting hole of the film and the interior lamp.

Referring to fig. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a roof panel forming a vehicle body portion, the roof panel 1 being mounted to a roof frame, not shown, and being formed with mounting holes 11 for mounting a film 2 and an interior light 3, which will be described later.

Reference numeral 2 denotes a patch which is composed of a urethane foam substrate and a cover member stuck to the lower side of the substrate. The underside of the film 2 is formed with an upwardly extending recess 21 sized to receive the interior light 3. The recess 21 has a top formed with an interior lamp mounting hole 22, and the attachment film 2 is formed with a pair of protrusions 23 protruding outward to protrude into the hole 22. Each protrusion has an inwardly tapering width defined by side edges 23a that converge toward the apex.

Reference numeral 3 denotes an interior lamp composed of a synthetic resin case 31, a light source bulb 32 accommodated in the case 31, a lens 33 with a flange 33a projecting outward outside the case 31, and an operating button 34 fixed to a switch (not shown), an operating portion projecting downward from the lens 33.

Further, the outer side of the housing 31 has integrally formed engaging grooves 31a so as to be respectively registered with the two protrusions 23 of the patch 2 for engagement. Further, the housing 31 is integrally formed with an engagement step 31b to engage with the lower side surface of the film 2 when the housing 31 is inserted into the mounting hole 22. Further, at a position away from the engaging step, a pair of elastic gripping pieces 31c are provided symmetrically with respect to the center.

Note that the pair of elastic gripping pieces 31c are made of a metal sheet and fixed to the housing 31.

The room lamp mounting hole 22, the protrusion 23 and the engaging groove 31a constitute a room lamp mounting means R for mounting on the film 2, and the device fixedly mounts the room lamp to the film. Further, the mounting hole 11, the engaging step 31b and the elastic clamp piece 31c constitute an interior lamp mounting device T which securely mounts the attachment film and the interior lamp to the roof panel.

The following will describe the mounting of the interior lamp 3.

First, the housing 31 is disposed between the film 2 and the lens 33 so that the respective engaging grooves 31a face the protrusions 23. Subsequently, the housing 31 is inserted into the interior lamp mounting hole 22 so that the respective protrusions 23 are bent by the pressing force of the housing 31, the flange 33a abuts against the inside of the recess 21, and the respective protrusions 23 are pushed into the engaging grooves 31a, so that the interior lamp 3 is mounted to the attachment film 2 by the interior lamp mounting device R.

Thus, if the interior lamp 3 is fixedly attached to the film 2 by the interior lamp attaching means R, a portion of the two converging sides 23a (slopes) of each protrusion 23 which become narrower toward the top end thereof comes into contact with the outer edge of the inner periphery of the engaging groove 31a, so that the interior lamp 3 is restricted from moving forward, backward, leftward, and rightward, thereby eliminating the vibration together with the film 2.

Also, the lower side of the film 2 is brought into contact with the respective engaging steps 31b, and the vehicle interior lamp 3 is restricted from moving forward, backward, leftward and rightward with respect to the edge thereof along the edge of the fixing hole 22, thereby eliminating vibration together with the film 2.

After the interior lamp 3 is firmly attached to the attachment film 2 as described above, when the housing 31 is inserted into the mounting hole 11, each elastic clamping piece 31c is bent by the pressure of the edge of the ceiling plate 1, and thereafter, is restored by its own elasticity. Further, the respective engaging steps 31b abut against the roof panel 1 via the attachment film 2, and the respective engaging steps 31b and the respective elastic pinching pieces 31c sandwich the roof panel 1 and the attachment film 2 therebetween, so that the attachment film 2 and the interior light 3 are mounted to the roof panel 1 by means of an interior light/attachment film mounting device T for fixing to the roof panel.

When the attachment film 2 is fixed to the roof panel 1 by the interior light attachment device T for attachment to the attachment film, each elastic grip piece 31c has a tip on the grip side, which projects from the roof panel 1 toward the lens 33.

As described above, the present invention is advantageous in reducing the number of assembly processes in an automobile production assembly line because the interior lamp is mounted to the attachment film as soon as it hits by means of the interior lamp mounting device for mounting to the attachment film.

Subsequently, the opposite converging sides of the side surfaces of each projection are formed to be gradually narrowed toward the tip end thereof to allow the side surfaces to be brought into contact with the inner peripheral outer edge of the engaging groove, thereby allowing the interior lamp to be fixed relative to the film without any movement in front, rear, left, and right.

Further, since the interior light and the film are mounted on the roof at a glance by means of the roof film/interior light mounting device for mounting on the roof panel, a reduction in the number of assembly man-hours in the automobile production assembly line is possible.

Further, since the top panel and the adhesive film are fixed by means of the engaging steps and the elastic clamping pieces respectively formed in the interior lamp, the attachment of the adhesive film to the top panel is very stable, thereby preventing shaking and accompanying noise generated by vibration during the operation of the vehicle.

Claims (3)

1. An interior lamp mounting structure, comprising:

an interior light mounting hole in a film to be mounted on a roof panel;

a plurality of protrusions located within the patch; and

an interior lamp-abutting-film mounting device in an interior lamp housing for mounting to a film, the device including a plurality of engaging grooves with which the plurality of protrusions engage when the housing is inserted into the interior lamp mounting hole to mount the interior lamp to the film;

a sticker/interior light-against-roof mounting device for mounting the sticker to the roof.

2. The interior light mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein the film attaching means comprises:

a mounting hole in the top plate; a plurality of engaging steps in a housing of the interior lamp for engaging a lower side of the adhesive film when the housing is inserted into the mounting hole; and a plurality of elastic clamping pieces positioned in the shell and used for matching with the plurality of engaging steps to clamp the top plate and the film.

3. The interior light mounting structure according to claim 1 or 2, wherein each of the plurality of protrusions has a converging side that gradually narrows toward a tip end thereof, and the plurality of protrusions are adapted to engage with the plurality of engaging grooves such that the converging side abuts against outer edges of the engaging grooves to restrict front-rear, left-right movement of the interior light with respect to the attachment film.