This application is based on and claims priority under 35 USC 119 from Japanese Patent Application No. 2015-177894 filed on Sep. 9, 2015, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.
Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a stabilizer support structure for an automobile.
Related Art
Commonly, at a stabilizer mounting portion of a suspension member that is for mounting of a stabilizer, vertical loads in a vehicle vertical direction from a tire are inputted through the stabilizer in accordance with road surface inputs. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) No. 2015-101236 discloses a technology in which a bracket is fastened to a stabilizer mounting portion at an upper portion of a suspension member (an upper suspension member), a reinforcing member is coupled to the suspension member, and the reinforcing member and the bracket are fastened together. Thus, the stabilizer mounting portion may be reinforced. JP-A No. 2015-30380 discloses another technology relating to a mounting structure for a stabilizer.
However, if side rails and a cross-member of a suspension member are formed integrally, which is referred to as a “seamless structure”, there is no joining portion for coupling the side rail to the cross-member. Consequently, if one of these related art technologies is simply employed as a stabilizer support structure, an upper suspension member is vulnerable to deformation.
In consideration of the circumstances described above, the present disclosure provides a stabilizer support structure for a suspension member with a seamless structure, in which deformation of an upper suspension member by a vertical load inputted to a stabilizer mounting portion may be suppressed.
An aspect of the present disclosure is a stabilizer support structure including: a suspension member in which a side rail portion that is disposed along a vehicle front-rear direction and a cross-member portion that is disposed along a vehicle width direction are formed integrally, the suspension member including; an upper suspension member that configures an upper portion with respect to a vehicle vertical direction of the suspension member, the upper suspension member including a first fastening portion at which a bracket is fastened at an intersection portion between the side rail portion and the cross-member portion, the bracket supporting a rod-shaped stabilizer having a length direction in the vehicle width direction, and a lower suspension member that configures a lower portion with respect to the vehicle vertical direction of the suspension member, the lower suspension member forming a closed cross section portion with the upper suspension member; and a reinforcing member that is joined to both the upper suspension member and the lower suspension member inside the closed cross section portion at the intersection portion, the reinforcing member spanning between the upper suspension member and the lower suspension member in the vehicle vertical direction, and being fastened together with the bracket via the first fastening portion.
In the present aspect, the side rail portion disposed along the vehicle front-rear direction and the cross-member portion disposed along the vehicle width direction are formed integrally in the suspension member. That is, the suspension member has a “seamless structure”. An upper portion in the vehicle vertical direction of the suspension member is structured by the upper suspension member, and a lower portion in the vehicle vertical direction of the suspension member is structured by the lower suspension member.
The first fastening portion is provided at the intersection portion of the upper suspension member between the side rail portion and the cross-member portion. The bracket that supports the rod-shaped stabilizer that is disposed with the length direction thereof in the vehicle width direction is fastened to the first fastening portion. The closed cross section portion is formed by the upper suspension member and the lower suspension member. Inside the closed cross section portion at the intersection portion of the suspension member, the reinforcing member is joined to both the upper suspension member and the lower suspension member, and the reinforcing member spans between the upper suspension member and lower suspension member in the vehicle vertical direction.
Therefore, the intersection portion of the suspension member is reinforced in the vehicle vertical direction by the reinforcing member, and deformation of the upper suspension member in response to a vertical load in the vehicle vertical direction that is inputted through the stabilizer to the upper suspension member may be suppressed. Moreover, because the reinforcing member spans across the suspension member in the vehicle vertical direction, relative displacement of the upper suspension member in the vehicle vertical direction with respect to the lower suspension member may be suppressed. Hence, deformation of the suspension member in the vehicle vertical direction may be suppressed.
The reinforcing member is fastened together with the bracket at the first fastening portion of the upper suspension member. Thus, the first fastening portion of the upper suspension member may be reinforced. Hence, deformation of the first fastening portion itself in response to a vertical load that is inputted to the first fastening portion may be suppressed.
In the present aspect, the upper suspension member may include first fastening holes that are formed in the first fastening portion so as to form a pair in the vehicle front-rear direction, and the reinforcing member may include: a second fastening portion that is fastened together with both the first fastening portion and the bracket; second fastening holes that are formed in the second fastening portion so as to form a pair in the vehicle front-rear direction in correspondence with the first fastening holes; and an upright wall portion that is formed at a vehicle width direction inner side of the suspension member relative to the second fastening portion, the upright wall portion being formed along the vehicle vertical direction and the vehicle front-rear direction inside the closed cross section portion at the intersection portion.
In the structure described above, the first fastening holes of the first fastening portion are formed so as to be in a pair along the vehicle front-rear direction. Meanwhile, at the reinforcing member, the second fastening holes of the second fastening portion that is fastened together with both the first fastening portion and the bracket are formed so as to be in a pair along the vehicle front-rear direction, in correspondence with the first fastening holes. At the reinforcing member, the upright wall portion is formed along the vehicle vertical direction and the vehicle front-rear direction inside the closed cross section portion at the intersection portion, at the inner side of the suspension member in the vehicle width direction relative to the second fastening portion.
Thus, at the reinforcing member, because the upright wall portion, which is disposed inside the closed cross section portion of the intersection portion of the suspension member, is arranged along the vehicle front-rear direction, the upright wall portion is disposed to be substantially parallel with the first fastening holes and second fastening holes that are provided in pairs along the vehicle front-rear direction. Therefore, in response to a vertical load that is inputted to the suspension member, vertical loads that are substantially equally dispersed to respective front portion sides and rear portion sides in the vehicle front-rear direction are inputted through the upright wall portion to the pairs of first fastening holes and second fastening holes. Hence, deformations of the first fastening portion and the second fastening portion themselves may be suppressed.
In the present aspect, the reinforcing member may further include a protruding portion that protrudes from the second fastening portion toward an outer side in the vehicle width direction of the suspension member, a distal end portion of the protruding portion being joined to one of an outer wall portion that extends down from an outer edge portion of an upper wall portion of the upper suspension member or an outer wall portion that rises up from an outer edge portion of a lower wall portion of the lower suspension member.
In the structure described above, the protruding portion of the reinforcing member protrudes from the second fastening portion to the outer side of the suspension member in the vehicle width direction. The distal end portion of the protruding portion is joined to the outer wall portion that hangs down from the outer edge portion of the upper wall portion of the upper suspension member or the outer wall portion that rises from the outer edge portion of the lower wall portion of the lower suspension member. Thus, because the protruding portion of the reinforcing member is joined from the second fastening portion to the outer wall portion of the upper suspension member or the outer wall portion of the lower suspension member, strength and stiffness of the second fastening portion may be improved compared to a structure in which a protruding portion is formed as a cantilever support structure.
In the present aspect, the upper suspension member may be joined to a body mount that is for mounting of the suspension member to a vehicle framework side, and a joining portion between the upper suspension member and the body mount may include a lateral joining portion that is joined along a horizontal direction and an upright joining portion that is joined along the vehicle vertical direction.
In the structure described above, the body mount is joined to the suspension member at a joining portion. The joining portion is provided with the lateral joining portion and the upright joining portion, joining along the horizontal direction at the lateral joining portion and joining along the vehicle vertical direction at the upright joining portion.
A vertical load that is inputted to the upper suspension member is transmitted from the upper suspension member through the lateral coupling portion and the upright coupling portion to the body mount side thereof. That is, load transmission paths along which a load is transmitted from the upper suspension member to the body mount side may be increased in number. Thus, out-of-plane deformation of the upper suspension member may be effectively suppressed.
As described above, a stabilizer support structure relating to the present disclosure may suppress deformation of a upper suspension member by a vertical load that is inputted to a stabilizer mounting portion of a suspension member with what is known as a seamless structure.
Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail based on the following figures, wherein:
A stabilizer support structure according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is described in accordance with the drawings. The arrow FR, arrow UP and arrow RH marked in the drawings indicate, respectively, a forward direction (a progress direction), an upward direction and a vehicle rightward direction of a vehicle (an automobile) in which the stabilizer support structure is employed.
—Structure of Suspension Member—
Before structures of the stabilizer support structure according to the present exemplary embodiment are described, a front suspension member (herebelow referred to simply as “the suspension member”) at which the stabilizer support structure is employed is described.
A suspension member 12 which is shown in
The front cross-member 14 is formed substantially in an inverted “U” shape in plan view that opens toward the side thereof at which the rear cross-member 16 is disposed. The front cross-member 14 includes a cross-member portion 14A that is arranged along the vehicle width direction and a pair of left and right side rail portions 14B that are arranged along the vehicle front-rear direction. The side rail portions 14B inflect from the two vehicle width direction end portions of the cross-member portion 14A towards the side at which the rear cross-member 16 is disposed. The rear cross-member 16 is formed substantially in a “U” shape in plan view that opens toward the side thereof at which the front cross-member 14 is disposed. The rear cross-member 16 includes a cross-member portion 16A that is arranged along the vehicle width direction and a pair of left and right side rail portions 16B that are arranged along the vehicle front-rear direction. The side rail portions 16B curve from the two vehicle width direction end portions of the cross-member portion 16A towards the outer sides in the vehicle width direction and towards the side at which the front cross-member 14 is disposed. The side rail portions 14B of the front cross-member 14 and the side rail portions 16B of the rear cross-member 16 are coupled to one another and made integral (a “seamless structure”).
For example, although not shown in the drawings, in an ordinary suspension member, respective vehicle width direction end portions of a front cross-member and a rear cross-member that are arranged along the vehicle width direction are coupled to one another by a pair of side rails that are arranged along the vehicle front-rear direction. In this case, the suspension member is structured by four framework portions (this is referred to as a related art structure). In contrast, in a case of a suspension member with the seamless structure described above, the suspension member is structured by two framework portions. Therefore, when a suspension member with a seamless structure is employed, a number of components and a number of work steps may be reduced compared to a suspension member with the related art structure. In addition, a reduction in weight of the suspension member may be achieved.
As shown in
As shown in
—Structure of Stabilizer Support Member—
Below, the rear cross-member 16, at which a stabilizer support structure 10 according to the present exemplary embodiment is employed, is described.
As shown in
A cross-sectional shape of the lower rear cross 36 that structures the lower portion of the rear cross-member 16, if cut along a width direction substantially orthogonal to a length direction thereof, is formed substantially in a “U” shape of which the upper side is open. The lower rear cross 36 includes a lower wall portion 36A, which structures a main body of the lower rear cross 36, and outer wall portions 36B, which rise up from outer edge portions of the lower wall portion 36A.
The upper rear cross 34 and lower rear cross 36 are superposed from above and below and, as shown in
In the present exemplary embodiment, the meaning of the term “join” encompasses welding by spot welding, arc welding, laser screw welding (LSW) and so forth, and the meaning of the term “fasten” encompasses, beside bolt fastening, rivet fastening, crimp fastening and so forth. The meaning of the term “couple” encompasses the meanings of the terms “join” and “fasten”.
As shown in
A pair of fastening holes (first fastening holes) 48 are formed along the vehicle front-rear direction in the stabilizer mounting portion 46. Bolts 50 are insertable into the fastening holes 48. In a side view (seen from a vehicle sideward side), the stabilizer bracket 44 is formed substantially in an inverted “U” shape of which the lower side is open. A support portion 52 that supports the stabilizer 42 is provided at a central portion of the stabilizer bracket 44. A bush 54 is fitted round each of two end portion sides of a length direction of the stabilizer 42. The stabilizer 42 is supported by the support portion 52 via the bush 54.
Fixing pieces 56 are provided protruding to outer sides from two end portions of the support portion 52, in directions away from one another. A fastening hole 56A is formed in each fixing piece 56. The bolts 50 are insertable into the fastening holes 56A. The bolts 50 are inserted through the fastening holes 56A and the fastening holes 48. Thus, the stabilizer bracket 44 is fixed to the upper wall portion 34A (the stabilizer mounting portion 46) of the upper rear cross 34 via the bolts 50.
As shown in
A pair of fastening holes (second fastening holes) 57A are formed in the fastening portion 57. The fastening holes 57A are arranged substantially in parallel with the upright wall portion 58. The fastening holes 57A are formed so as to correspond with the fastening holes 48 formed in the upper wall portion 34A of the upper rear cross 34, and the bolts 50 are insertable into the fastening holes 57A.
The upright wall portion 58 is formed to be connected with the fastening portion 57, at the vehicle width direction inner side of the rear cross-member 16 with respect to the fastening portion 57. The upright wall portion 58 is formed so as to be substantially orthogonal to the fastening portion 57, being formed so as to be arranged along the vertical direction of the rear cross-member 16.
The upright wall portion 58 is formed so as to be arranged along the vehicle front-rear direction in the state in which the stabilizer reinforcement 40 is fixed to the upper wall portion 34A of the upper rear cross 34 (see arrow A in
The joining piece 64 protrudes from a lower end portion 58A of the upright wall portion 58. The joining piece 64 is inflected toward the vehicle width direction inner side of the rear cross-member 16. The joining piece 64 is joined to the lower wall portion 36A of the lower rear cross 36 (at a joining portion 35).
Specifically, as shown in
As shown in
In a state in which the bolts 50 are inserted into the fastening holes 48 of the upper rear cross 34, the bolts 50 are inserted into the fastening holes 57A of the stabilizer reinforcement 40. Then, in the present exemplary embodiment, the bolts 50 are inserted through the collars 70 and the pair of fastening holes 68 formed in the lower wall portion 36A of the lower rear cross 36, and are screwed into nuts, which are not shown in the drawings.
Thus, the stabilizer bracket 44, the upper rear cross 34, the stabilizer reinforcement 40 and the lower rear cross 36 are fastened to one another. In other words, the stabilizer reinforcement 40 is fastened together with both the stabilizer bracket 44 and the upper wall portion 34A of the upper rear cross 34. In this state, the stabilizer reinforcement 40 spans across the suspension member 12 in the vehicle vertical direction (see
In the present exemplary embodiment, as shown in
A joining piece 62 is provided at a distal end portion of the protruding portion 60. The joining piece 62 is inflected toward the lower side. As shown in
In the present exemplary embodiment, as shown in
—Operation and Effects of Stabilizer Support Member—
Now, operation and effects of the stabilizer support member according to the present exemplary embodiment are described.
In a suspension member with the related art structure, as described above, the suspension member is structured by a front cross-member, a rear cross-member and a pair of side rails. Therefore, coupling portions are provided at both vehicle width direction end portions of the front cross-member and the rear cross-member. The two vehicle width direction end portions of each of the front cross-member and the rear cross-member are connected to the side rails via these coupling portions.
Specifically, as shown in
However, in a suspension member that employs the “seamless structure”, for example, as shown in
In contrast, in the present exemplary embodiment, as shown in
Thus, the rear cross-member 16 is reinforced with respect to a load input direction that is in the vehicle vertical direction. Hence, deformation (out-of plane deformation) of the upper rear cross 34 in response to a vertical load F inputted through the stabilizer 42 (see
In the present exemplary embodiment, because the stabilizer reinforcement 40 is joined to the upper rear cross 34 and the lower rear cross 36 and spans therebetween in the vehicle vertical direction, relative displacement in the vehicle vertical direction of the upper rear cross 34 with respect to the lower rear cross 36 may be suppressed. As a result, deformation of the rear cross-member 16 in the vehicle vertical direction may be suppressed.
In the present exemplary embodiment, the fastening portion 57 of the stabilizer reinforcement 40 is fastened to (fastened together with) both the stabilizer bracket 44 (see
According to the structure described above, as shown in
In the present exemplary embodiment, the upright wall portion 58 of the stabilizer reinforcement 40 is provided at the vehicle width direction inner side of the suspension member 12 relative to the fastening portion 57. As described above, in the suspension member 200 with the seamless structure shown in
Therefore, in the present exemplary embodiment, the upright wall portion 58 is provided at the vehicle width direction inner side of the suspension member 12 relative to the fastening portion 57 disposed at the stabilizer mounting portion 46, as shown in
In addition, the upright wall portion 58 of the stabilizer reinforcement 40 is disposed along the vehicle vertical direction inside the closed cross section portion 38 of the rear cross-member 16, being joined to the upper rear cross 34 and the lower rear cross 36, and is disposed along the vehicle front-rear direction (see
As shown in
The protruding portion 60 is disposed such that the angle θ thereof with respect to the fastening surface 57B of the fastening portion 57 is approximately 10°. Thus, because the protruding portion 60 is at an angle (intersectingly formed) relative to the fastening surface 57B of the fastening portion 57, in the state in which the protruding portion 60 is joined to the outer wall portion 34B of the upper rear cross 34, the protruding portion 60 plays a similar role to a “brace”. Therefore, stiffness of the fastening portion 57 may be further improved and out-of-plane deformation of the upper rear cross 34 in response to a vertical load F inputted to the upper rear cross 34 may be suppressed further. In-plane deformation of the upper rear cross 34 in response to a load in the vehicle width direction may also be suppressed.
As shown in
In particular, in the present exemplary embodiment, as shown in
Thus, in this structure, a vertical load F that is inputted to the upper rear cross 34 is transmitted from the upper wall portion 34A of the upper rear cross 34 to the fastening portion 57 of the stabilizer reinforcement 40 and, separately from the upper rear cross 34, a load is transmitted from the fastening portion 57 through the protruding portion 60, the joining piece 62 and the joining portion 37 and through the outer wall portion 34B of the upper rear cross 34 to the side of the body mount 20 (arrow C).
Thus, in the present exemplary embodiment, load transmission paths along which the load is transmitted from the suspension member 12 to the side of the body mount 20 may be increased in number (arrows B and C), and out-of-plane deformation of the upper rear cross 34 may be suppressed effectively. Further, because the vertical load F that is inputted to the upper rear cross 34 is experienced by the upright joining portion 72 as a load in a shear direction, the upright joining portion 72 is unlikely to separate.
As described above, in the present exemplary embodiment, as shown in
In the present exemplary embodiment, the angled portion 59 that is angled to the lower side toward the vehicle width direction outer side of the rear cross-member 16 is provided between the fastening portion 57 and protruding portion 60 of the stabilizer reinforcement 40. Because this angled portion 59 is provided, even if dimensional inconsistency between the joining piece 62 of the protruding portion 60 and the outer wall portion 34B of the upper rear cross 34 is caused by inconsistencies in dimensional precision of the stabilizer reinforcement 40, this inconsistency may be absorbed. Consequently, inconsistency in a coupling strength of the stabilizer reinforcement 40 to the upper rear cross 34 may be reduced. As a result, inconsistency in deformation of the upper rear cross 34 may be reduced.
—Variant Examples of the Present Exemplary Embodiment—
In the present exemplary embodiment, as shown in
In the present exemplary embodiment, as shown in
In the present exemplary embodiment, the stabilizer bracket 44, the upper rear cross 34, the stabilizer reinforcement 40 and the lower rear cross 36 are fastened to one another. However, it is sufficient for the stabilizer reinforcement 40 to be fastened together with the stabilizer bracket 44 and the upper rear cross 34; fastening to the lower rear cross 36 is not necessarily required.
In the present exemplary embodiment, the protruding portion 60 is specified such that the angle θ with respect to the fastening portion 57 is approximately 10°. However, it is sufficient for this angle to be at least 0° and at most 90°; there is no impediment to the angle θ being 0° or 90°. If the angle θ is 0°, no ridge line is formed between the fastening portion 57 and the protruding portion 60. Therefore, in consideration of strength and stiffness of the stabilizer reinforcement 40, it is preferable that the angle is larger than 0°.
If the angle θ is 90°, the joining piece 62 provided at the distal end portion of the protruding portion 60 is joined at the side at which the lower rear cross 36 is disposed. That is, the joining piece 62 provided at the distal end portion of the protruding portion 60 is joined to the outer wall portion 34B of the upper rear cross 34 (at the joining portion 37) in the present exemplary embodiment, but the joining piece 62 may be joined at the side at which the outer wall portion 36B or lower wall portion 36A of the lower rear cross 36 is disposed. Thus, if the angle θ is 90°, a further upright wall portion that is substantially parallel to the upright wall portion 58 is formed, and stiffness of the fastening portion 57 is further improved.
In the present exemplary embodiment, the upper rear cross 34 is joined to the periphery wall portion 20A of the body mount 20 along the peripheral direction (the lateral joining portion 74) and the axial direction (the upright joining portion 72). However, joining portions are not necessarily required to be along the peripheral direction or the axial direction of the periphery wall portion 20A of the body mount 20.
In the present exemplary embodiment, an example is described in which the stabilizer support structure 10 is employed at the suspension member 12 side. However, it will be obvious that the stabilizer support structure 10 may be employed at a rear suspension member side (not shown in the drawings).
Hereabove, an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure has been described, but the present disclosure is not limited by this exemplary embodiment. The exemplary embodiment and various variant examples may be used in suitable combinations, and it will be obvious that numerous modes may be embodied within a technical scope not departing from the concept of the present disclosure.
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