JP2001354164A - Engine hood hinges for vehicle body - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) Abstract: A hinge, which is provided between an engine hood and a cowl that supports a fender, for opening and closing the engine hood, is formed flexibly by an impact force, and reduces the impact force. In addition, the present invention provides an engine hood hinge for a vehicle body that prevents direct collision with an impact object such as a head, has a high efficiency of absorbing collision energy, and can be implemented simply and inexpensively. A hinge (1) is fixed on a cowl (8).
And a flexible second member 2 rotatably supported by the caulking portion 5 and fixed to the engine hood 9.
And an engaging arm 4 connected to the first support 2 so as to be detachably engaged with the second support 3, and the caulking portion 5 is disposed in the fender 10. .

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an engine hood provided to cover an engine room of a vehicle body, and a cowl provided at a rear portion of the engine room through a side edge of the engine hood and an opening. The invention relates to a hinge which is provided between the engine hood and the cowl of a vehicle body including a fender forming an outer curved surface and opens and closes the engine hood, and in particular, secures the safety of the head and the like in the event of an impact of the engine hood or the fender. The present invention relates to an engine hood hinge for a vehicle body.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIG. 5, in many cases, a front structure of a vehicle body has an opening 13 formed on an upper side and an engine hood 9 and a fender 10 'are arranged. Since the engine hood 9 needs to be opened and closed, a high-rigidity cowl 8 (FIG. 6) for supporting the fender 10 'and the engine hood 9 are provided.
In general, a hinge 1 'is installed between the two, and the hinge 1' is generally disposed at a rear position of the engine hood 9 shown in FIG.

FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the relationship between the engine hood 9, the fender 10 ', the cowl 8 and the like in the vehicle body of the type described above, and the general shape thereof. Cowl 8
Is made of a material having high rigidity forming a front skeleton of the vehicle body, and supports the fender 10 '. The fender 10 'has an upper projection 11 on the opening 13 side and has an outer curved surface 18 on the outer surface. As shown, the engine hood 9 has a side edge 12 through an opening 13 of the fender 1.
0 'is arranged near the upper protrusion 11.

The hinge 1 'has the shape shown in FIG. 7, and is arranged on the lower surface side of the engine hood 9 in the prior art as shown in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7,
The hinge 1 'is fixed to the first support 2' on the cowl 8.
A second support 3 'rotatably caulked at its base end to the first support 2' and fixed to the lower surface of the engine hood 9, and a locking portion of the second support 3 ' And a locking arm 4 'supported by the first support 2'. As shown in FIG. 7, the conventional hinge 1 'has a first support 2', a second support 3 'and a locking arm 4'.
And the like are made of a material having a relatively high rigidity, and a distance L 'from the caulking portion 5' to a mounting hole 6 'between the second support 3' and the engine hood 9 is made relatively short. I have.

[0005]

The head 1 is placed on the upper surface of the engine hood 9 or the fender 10 'at the time of an interpersonal collision or the like.
Although there is a risk of collision of 6th grade or the like, an evaluation method for evaluating the safety of these places has been proposed by a draft of European legislation, and an impact test based on this standard is generally well known. Although there are various methods for this impact test, a reference line which contacts the outer curved surface 18 of the fender 10 'at an angle θ = 45 ° according to the law is applied to a vehicle body having a structure around a fender as shown in FIG. 14 contacts 15
Collision position 1 of head 16 colliding with engine hood 9 from above
7 is determined. The impact direction and collision speed of the head 16 are determined, and the obstacle reference value is determined under the conditions.
As the failure reference value, a normal HIC (Head Inju
ry Criterion). This H
The IC is theoretically determined as a function of the value of the average acceleration in the impact test and the operation time thereof, and it is usually a safety standard that the value is 1000 or less.

As shown in FIG. 6, around a fender of a vehicle body of the prior art, for example, a contact 15 between a reference line 14 and an outer curved surface 18 of a fender 10 ′ is connected to a fender 1.
The distance a 'from the upper projection 11 to the upper projection 11 is about 70 [mm], the distance b' from the upper projection 11 to the upper surface of the cowl 8 is about 40 [mm], Is about 80 [mm] (formally 82.5 [mm] along the surface), so that the collision position 17 of the head 16
Comes near the opening 13. 7 and 8
As shown in FIG. 8A, the hinge 1 'of the prior art is relatively high in rigidity and the distance L' is short, so that it is deformed as shown in FIG. In some cases, the engine hood 9 directly hits the hinge 1 'and gives a large impact force to the head 16 in some cases.

As one of known techniques for solving the above problems, there is a technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 4-212677. In this "hood support device", a variable support portion is provided on a support for supporting the hood on the vehicle body side, the variable support portion is displaced in response to a load from the hood side, and the support is lowered to reduce the impact force. It is like that. Although this technique has the effect of reducing the impact force and collision energy, this technique does not devise the safety position such as the head that collides with the engine hood or fender as in the present invention. Also, when the head collides with the engine hood, there is no device to prevent the interference between the hinge and the head, etc. to enhance safety, and it does not consider the distribution of force when the head touches the fender. However, it is not specified whether the HIC value can be maintained at 1000 or less.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has a flexible hinge to reduce the impact force, devise its arrangement, and improve the shape and mounting of the fender. It is an object of the present invention to provide an engine hood hinge for a vehicle body in which the HIC is reduced to 1000 or less by improving the position and the like to improve safety.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above objects, the present invention provides an engine hood for covering an engine room of a vehicle body, and a side of the engine hood supported on a cowl provided at a rear portion of the engine room. A hinge structure for opening and closing the engine hood, which is provided between the engine hood and the cowl of a vehicle body having a fender which is disposed via an edge and an opening and forms a curved surface on an outer surface, wherein the hinge is provided. A first support fixed on the cowl, and a second support rotatably caulked at its base end to the first support and fixed at its open end to the lower surface of the engine hood. A first support member and a second support member, the first support member being provided with a locking arm which is detachably engaged with a locking portion of the second support member and supported by the first support member. The caulking part with the body An engine hood hinge of a vehicle body is disposed in an upper edge of the fender, and the second support and the locking arm are formed in a flexible shape that is bent by an impact force acting on the engine hood. Things.

[0010] Further, the second support and the locking arm form a notch in a bent portion thereof.

By forming the second support of the hinge and the locking arm to be flexible, the impact force at the time of impact can be reduced. In addition, it can be implemented simply and inexpensively without the need for special other members. As described above, the value of HIC can be kept at 1000 or less.

[0012]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an engine hood hinge of a vehicle body according to the present invention; FIG. 1 shows a detailed structure of a hinge 1 according to the present embodiment. The hinge 1 has a first support member 2 and a second support member having a base end side rotatably supported by a caulking portion 5 and forming a mounting hole 6 at an open end side separated by a relatively long distance L. Body 3
And a locking arm 4 or the like that engages with the locking portion 3d of the second support 3 for engaging and disengaging. As shown in FIG. 2, the hinge 1 is fixed on the cowl 8 by the mounting hole 7, and the caulking portion 5 is arranged in the upper edge of the fender 10, and the engine hood is mounted by the mounting hole 6 of the second support 3. 9 is fixedly arranged on the lower surface.

The first support 2 comprises a mounting seat 2a having a mounting hole 7 and a vertical plate 2b rising from one end of the mounting seat 2a. On the other hand, the second support 3 is in contact with the vertical plate 2b and is supported by the caulking portion 5 so as to be rotatable.
And a bent plate portion 3b that is bent at an angle from the lower end.
And an L-shaped plate portion 3c connected thereto and bent in an L-shape along a horizontal plane. In addition, a mounting hole 6 is formed at the tip end side of the L-shaped plate portion 3c. In addition, the locking arm 4
In the present embodiment, is a plate member whose base end side is integrally connected to the mounting seat 2a of the first support body 2 and rises obliquely from the base end side. A locking portion 4a is formed at the tip of the locking arm 4 so as to rise up.
Engages with the engaging portion 3d of the L-shaped plate portion 3c of the support 3 in a detachable manner.

The hinge 1 is more flexible than the hinge 1a of the prior art. As a specific means, the distance from the caulked portion 5 of the first support 2 and the second support 3 to the open ends of the second support 3 and the locking arm 4 is long. Specifically, the distance L from the caulking portion 5 to the mounting hole 6 is longer than L '.
In addition, a bent portion at a connecting portion between the first support 2 and the locking arm 4, a bent portion connecting the bent plate 3 b and the L-shaped plate portion 3 c of the second support 3, and an L-shaped plate Notches 19, 20, 21 and holes 22 are formed through the flat portion of the portion 3c. In addition, elongated holes 23 and 24 are formed through the L-shaped plate portion 3c and the locking arm 4 of the second support 3 along the longitudinal direction thereof. The hinge 1 is formed as a flexible member by the notches 19, 20, 21 and the hole 22 described above.

As shown in FIG. 3, the fender 10 in the present embodiment has the following structure in terms of shape and arrangement as compared with the fender 10 'shown in FIG. Fender 10
The distance a from the contact 15 of the reference line 14 to the upper protrusion 11 of the fender 10 is about 35 [m].
m]. Also, the engine hood 9
Through the opening 13, the edge 12 of the upper protrusion 11
Is arranged in close proximity. Further, the distance c between the collision position 17 of the head 16 colliding with the engine hood 9 and the contact point 15 is legally constant, and is approximately 80 [mm]. 17 is the upper protrusion 1
The position is about 45 [mm] away from 1 and the collision position 17 of the head 16 is far away from the position of the opening 13 as compared with the related art. Further, the fender 10 in the present embodiment is arranged so that the distance b from the upper protrusion 11 to the upper surface of the cowl 8 is about 70 [mm], and as shown in FIGS. The caulking portion 5 and the first support 2 are arranged in a state housed inside the fender 10.

Next, the operation of the vehicle body using the engine hood hinge of the present embodiment during an impact test on the vehicle body will be described. As shown in FIG. 3, in the vicinity of the fender in the present embodiment, as described above, the collision position 17 of the head 16 in the impact test comes to a position about 45 [mm] away from the opening 13 and the opening 13 Since there is no caulking portion 5 of the hinge 1 below, even if the head 16 collides with the engine hood 9, the impact force applied to the head 16 is reduced. The hinge 1 is formed of a flexible member as a whole, and the notches 19 and 2 are formed as described above.
Since the head 16 hits the engine hood 9, the second support 3 and the locking arm 4 are largely bent downward as shown in FIG. . Further, the distance b is longer than that of the related art, and the efficiency of absorbing collision energy is improved. From the above, it was proved that the value of HIC in the impact test can be made 1000 or less.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the head 16 collides with the upper projection on the fender 10 side, the distance a from the outer curved surface 18 of the fender 3 to the upper projection 11 is smaller than that of the prior art. Since the distance is shorter than the distance a ′, the head 16 moves smoothly along the outer curved surface (inclined surface) 18 of the fender 10. Therefore, the impact force on the head 16 is dispersed and reduced.

In the above description, the hinge 1 has the shape shown in FIG. 1, but the structure is not limited to this. The distance a and the distance b are also 35 [m
m] or 70 [mm]. Further, the notch 19 and the like and the elongated hole 23 and the like are not limited to those shown in the drawings. Also, the width and thickness of the hinge 1 are not particularly limited, and it is desirable to make the hinge 1 as thin as possible within a range that can withstand normal external force.

[0019]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, the shape of the fender and the arrangement position of the engine hood hinge are devised, and the hinge is made flexible, so that the impact at the time of external force is exerted. In addition to reducing the force, the collision energy absorption efficiency is improved, and the safety at the time of collision can be improved by simple means without using special members.
The value of HIC in the impact test can be 1000 or less.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a detailed structure of an embodiment of an engine hood hinge for a vehicle body of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view showing a state in which the engine hood hinge of the vehicle body of the present invention is mounted around a fender of the vehicle body.

FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view showing an engagement state of a head, an arrangement of hinges, and the like in an impact test around a fender according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view for explaining the operation of the engine hood hinge of the vehicle body at the time of collision according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a partial perspective view showing an outline of an arrangement location of a hinge for supporting an engine hood.

FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a structure around a fender and an engagement state of a hinge in a conventional technique.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a hinge according to the related art.

FIG. 8 is a schematic view showing an outline of a displacement state of the hinge when an external force is applied in the prior art (FIG. 8A shows a state before the external force is applied, and FIG.
(B) shows the state when an external force is applied).

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 hinge 2 first support 2a mounting seat 2b vertical plate 3 second support 3a rising plate 3b bent plate 3c L-shaped plate 3d locking portion 4 locking arm 5 caulking portion 6 mounting hole 7 mounting Hole 8 cowl 9 engine hood 10 fender 11 upper projection 12 side edge 13 opening 14 reference line 15 contact 16 head 17 collision position 18 outer curved surface 19 notch 20 notch 21 notch 22 hole

Claims (2)

[Claims] An engine hood that covers an engine room of a vehicle body, and a fender that is supported on a cowl provided at a rear portion of the engine room, is disposed via a side edge of the engine hood and an opening, and forms a curved surface on an outer surface. A hinge structure for opening and closing the engine hood is provided between the engine hood and the cowl of the vehicle body, the hinge being a first fixed on the cowl.
A second support, a base end of which is rotatably caulked to the first support, and an open end of which is fixed to a lower surface of the engine hood; and a second support. And a locking arm detachably engaged with the locking portion of the fender and supported by the first support. The caulked portion between the first support and the second support is located above the fender. Located within the edge,
An engine hood hinge for a vehicle body, wherein the second support and the locking arm are formed in a flexible shape that is bent by an impact force acting on the engine hood. 2. The notch according to claim 1, wherein the second support and the locking arm form a notch in a bent portion thereof.
An engine hood hinge for a vehicle body according to claim 1.