Patent Application
20240326921
The present application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2023-0039948, filed on Mar. 27, 2023, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein for all purposes by this reference.
The present disclosure relates to a vehicle roof module, and more particularly, to a vehicle roof module for implementing a more effective load path by distributing a load from a vehicle collision with an external object through an internal pattern formed in a reinforcing support portion in an upper body structure of a vehicle that implements a load path for a vehicle collision with an external object.
Conventional steel body-in-white (BIW) upper body frames typically have separate cross-sections for the roof, side, windshield, and lead section openings, with partially open cross-sections for the members of the openings. In other words, in the conventional structure, the A-pillar and roof side members are disconnected as when they are cut off at the ends and connected to other members at the disconnected ends.
The openings and open cross-sectional structure of the upper body parts not only pose challenges in securing body rigidity, roof strength, and durability but also pose a problem that forming a closed cross-sectional structure requires an increase in the number of parts, which leads to an assembly problem.
Furthermore, it is common to assemble two upper and lower open cross-sections into a closed cross-section when forming steel open cross-sections or when high ceiling strength is required. However, for electric vehicles without B-pillars, it is essential to distribute the load in the event of a collision, but conventional upper body frames have difficulty in accommodating this.
Accordingly, a solution is needed to implement multiple load paths for a vehicle collision in the upper body structure of a vehicle.
The information included in this Background of the present disclosure is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the present disclosure and may not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.
Various aspects of the present disclosure are directed to providing a vehicle roof module that implements a more effective load path by distributing the load from a vehicle collision through an internal pattern formed in a reinforcing support portion in the upper body structure of the vehicle and increases the overall strength of the roof module by employing a distinctive method of coupling with the upper body.
The present disclosure presents a solution to the technical challenges described above by providing a vehicle roof module that includes a front support portion extending in the width direction of the vehicle and connecting the upper bodies of the vehicle to each other, a rear support portion extending in the width direction of the vehicle and provided at a rear of the front support portion, and a reinforcing support portion connecting the front support portion and the rear support portion in a longitudinal direction of the vehicle and including an internal pattern, in which the front support portion, the rear support portion, the reinforcing support portion, and the upper bodies of the vehicle are connected to each other to form a load path for a vehicle collision along the internal pattern of the reinforcing support portion.
For example, the front support portion and the rear support portion may respectively include an internal space, and a front rail which is inserted into the internal space of the front support portion and extends in the width direction of the vehicle and a rear rail which is inserted into the internal space of the rear support portion and extends in the width direction of the vehicle may be further included.
For example, the front rail and the rear rail may be bolted to the upper body at both end portions in an up and down direction while being inserted into the internal spaces of the front support portion and the rear support portion, respectively.
For example, the front support portion, the rear support portion, and the reinforcing support portion may be made of plastic, and the front rail and the rear rail may be made of steel.
For example, a mounting portion laterally extending may be formed in the reinforcing support portion, and a receiving groove recessed downward may be formed on the upper surface of the upper body so that the mounting portion may be supported in the receiving groove.
For example, the mounting portion may be coupled to the upper body of the vehicle by being bolted in the up and down direction while being supported in the receiving groove.
For example, a plurality of mounting portions may be arranged along the upper body on the sides of the reinforcing support portion at predetermined intervals therebetween.
For example, the mounting portions may be formed so that a width of the mounting portion decreases toward an external side of the vehicle.
For example, the reinforcing support portion may include a plurality of reinforcing ribs, and each reinforcing rib may include a plurality of through holes formed at predetermined intervals to form the internal pattern.
For example, at least one of the plurality of reinforcing ribs may be formed in a curved shape on one side to form a parabolic shape.
For example, the plurality of reinforcing ribs may allow loads to be transferred from the front support portion to the upper body and rear support portion in an event of a frontal collision of the vehicle.
For example, the plurality of reinforcing ribs may allow loads to be transferred from one upper body to another upper body via the front support portion and the rear support portion in the event of a side-impact collision of the vehicle.
For example, a support rib may be formed on the lower surface of the reinforcing support portion, and the support rib may be disposed in a diagonal direction at a point where the front support portion and the upper body are connected.
According to the vehicle roof module of the present disclosure, a more effective load path may be implemented by distributing a load for a vehicle collision through the internal pattern formed on the reinforcing support portion in the structure of the upper body of the vehicle, and the overall strength of the roof module may be increased through a peculiar way of coupling with the upper body.
The methods and apparatuses of the present disclosure have other features and advantages which will be apparent from or are set forth in more detail in the accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein, and the following Detailed Description, which together serve to explain certain principles of the present disclosure.
It may be understood that the appended drawings are not necessarily to scale, presenting a somewhat simplified representation of various features illustrative of the basic principles of the present disclosure. The predetermined design features of the present disclosure as included herein, including, for example, specific dimensions, orientations, locations, and shapes will be determined in part by the particularly intended application and use environment.
In the figures, reference numbers refer to the same or equivalent portions of the present disclosure throughout the several figures of the drawing.
Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the present disclosure(s), examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. While the present disclosure(s) will be described in conjunction with exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, it will be understood that the present description is not intended to limit the present disclosure(s) to those exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. On the other hand, the present disclosure(s) is/are intended to cover not only the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, but also various alternatives, modifications, equivalents and other embodiments, which may be included within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims.
The exemplary embodiments included herein will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the same or similar components will be provided the same reference numerals regardless of the drawing numbers, and the repetitive descriptions regarding these components will be omitted. The suffixes “module” and “unit” for the components used in the following description are provided or interchangeably used only to facilitate the writing of the specification, without necessarily indicating a distinct meaning or role of their own. Furthermore, when it is determined that the specific description of the related and already known technology may obscure the essence of the exemplary embodiments included herein, the specific description will be omitted. Furthermore, it is to be understood that the accompanying drawings are only intended to facilitate understanding of the exemplary embodiments included herein and are not intended to limit the technical ideas included herein are not limited to the accompanying drawings and include all the modifications, equivalents, or substitutions within the spirit and technical scope of the present disclosure.
The terms including ordinal numbers such as first, second, and the like may be used to describe various components, but the components are not to be limited by the terms. The terms may only be used for distinguishing one component from another.
It is to be understood that when a component is referred to as being “connected” or “coupled” to another component, the component may be directly connected or coupled to the another component, but other components may be interposed therebetween. In contrast, it is to be understood that when a component is referred to as being “directly connected” or “directly coupled” to another component, no other component is interposed therebetween.
Singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context explicitly indicates otherwise.
In the present specification, terms such as “comprise” or “have” are intended to indicate the presence of implemented features, numbers, steps, manipulations, components, parts, or combinations thereof described in the specification and are not to be understood to preclude the presence or additional possibilities of one or more of other features, numbers, steps, manipulations, components, parts or combinations thereof.
According to various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, it is provided to implement multiple load paths for a vehicle collision in the upper body structure of the vehicle.
First, the front support portion 110 extends in the width direction of the vehicle and may connect upper bodies 10 on both sides. The front support portion 110 is positioned at the top portion of the windshield of the vehicle and may be the first to receive the load in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle. Furthermore, the rear support portion 120 extends in the width direction of the vehicle and may connect the upper bodies 10 of the vehicle on both sides at the rear of the front support portion 110. The front support portion 110 and the rear support portion 120 are bent toward the front and rear of the vehicle, respectively, and are connected to the upper bodies 10 of the vehicle on the sides.
Furthermore, the front support portion 110 and the rear support portion 120 respectively include an internal space, and the front rail 210 and the rear rail 220 extend in the width direction of the vehicle and may be inserted into the respective internal space of the front support portion 110 and the rear support portion 120. At the instant time, the front support portion 110, the rear support portion 120, and the reinforcing support portion 130 are made of plastic while the front rail 210 and the rear rail 220 are made of ultra-high strength steel so that the strength of the vehicle body may be ensured. Such a roof module will be referred to as a hybrid-type roof module.
Glass fiber reinforced plastic (GFRP) material may be used in the front support portion 110, the rear support portion 120, and the reinforcing support portion 130 to increase the strength. The hybrid-type roof module including the front rail 210 and the rear rail 220 may be molded by an insert injection method in the internal space of the front support portion 110 and the rear support portion 120 respectively. The front rail 210 and the rear rail 220 include a thickness of 1 mm and are bent according to the vehicle design by 3D computerized numerical control (CNC) bending. As described above, among the manufacturing methods using the 3D CNC bending, the insert injection molding method may be employed to secure the DIM'S of the vehicle roof module, which may increase the overall strength of the roof module.
On the other hand, two reasons for using the hybrid-type roof module will be described.
The first reason is to respond to changes in the production method of vehicles. As the conventional mass production in small variety changes to low-volume batch production, it becomes necessary to change the conventional monocoque and welding type to an assembly type. For the assembly type, in the case of the roof and upper body 10 of a vehicle, it is essential to be able to assemble various upper bodies 10 on a single underbody while ensuring structural performance such as collision and durability.
The second reason is to provide the internal space generated by the commercialization of electric vehicles. Vehicle buyers demand a relatively large internal space for a sense of openness, and in the case of electric vehicles, the absence of an engine allows for a reduction in the engine compartment space and frees up more internal space. Accordingly, even in a pillarless vehicle structure where B-pillar is absent and the sense of openness is ensured, it becomes necessary to ensure the strength of the vehicle roof module.
The reinforcing support portion 130 will be described below.
Each reinforcing rib 140 includes a plurality of through holes, having the effect of reducing the weight of the roof module. At the instant time, the plurality of reinforcing ribs 140 may be formed in a curved shape on one side to form a parabolic shape. As described above, this is to allow the load to be transferred to the side of the upper body 10 of the vehicle through the reinforcing rib 140 in the event of a vehicle collision.
In an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of reinforcing ribs 140 include first ribs convexly-curved toward a front of the vehicle and second ribs convexly-curved toward a rear of the vehicle.
In an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the front rail 210 and the rear rail 220 may include a plurality of reinforcing ribs 230, and each reinforcing rib includes a plurality of through holes arranged at predetermined intervals, as shown in
Furthermore, a plurality of mounting portions 131 may be formed to extend along the upper body 10 on the sides of the reinforcing support portion 130. The mounting portions 131 may be arranged at predetermined intervals from each other and may be formed so that a width of the mounting portion decreases toward an external side of the vehicle, which may ensure the stability of the mounting portions 131 in the up and down direction thereof. At the instant time, the interval between the mounting portions 131 may be set to approximately 140 to 200 mm, so that the roof module and the upper body 10 may be more securely coupled.
The mounting portion 131 will be described in detail with reference to
How much the load from a vehicle collision is distributed may vary depending on the internal pattern formed in the reinforcing support portion 130. Important considerations regarding vehicle collisions and regulations in the vehicle roof modules may be simplified into three factors: frontal collisions, side-impact collisions, and roof strength. First, the frontal collision of a vehicle will be described.
Second, a side-impact collision of a vehicle will be described.
Third, the roof strength of a vehicle will be described.
As a result, according to the vehicle roof module of the present disclosure, a more effective load path may be implemented by distributing the load from a vehicle collision through the internal pattern formed in the reinforcing support portion in the upper body structure of the vehicle, and the overall strength of the roof module may be increased by a unique method of coupling to the upper body.
For convenience in explanation and accurate definition in the appended claims, the terms “upper”, “lower”, “inner”, “outer”, “up”, “down”, “upwards”, “downwards”, “front”, “rear”, “back”, “inside”, “outside”, “inwardly”, “outwardly”, “interior”, “exterior”, “internal”, “external”, “forwards”, and “backwards” are used to describe features of the exemplary embodiments with reference to the positions of such features as displayed in the figures. It will be further understood that the term “connect” or its derivatives refer both to direct and indirect connection.
The term “and/or” may include a combination of a plurality of related listed items or any of a plurality of related listed items. For example, “A and/or B” includes all three cases such as “A”, “B”, and “A and B”.
In the present specification, unless stated otherwise, a singular expression includes a plural expression unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
In exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, “at least one of A and B” may refer to “at least one of A or B” or “at least one of combinations of one or more of A and B”. In addition, “one or more of A and B” may refer to “one or more of A or B” or “one or more of combinations of one or more of A and B”.
In the exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, it should be understood that a term such as “include” or “have” is directed to designate that the features, numbers, steps, operations, elements, parts, or combinations thereof described in the specification are present, and does not preclude the possibility of addition or presence of one or more other features, numbers, steps, operations, elements, parts, or combinations thereof.
The foregoing descriptions of specific exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present disclosure to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The exemplary embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain certain principles of the invention and their practical application, to enable others skilled in the art to make and utilize various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, as well as various alternatives and modifications thereof. It is intended that the scope of the present disclosure be defined by the Claims appended hereto and their equivalents.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-2023-0039948 | Mar 2023 | KR | national |
