JP4495359B2 - Structure of instrument panel with integrated airbag door - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is a single-layer structure consisting of only a base material or a laminated structure including at least the base material and the skin, and is arranged on the passenger seat side and is separated from each other by a bag inflation pressure acting at the time of collision. The present invention relates to an instrument panel that integrally has an airbag door portion that expands in a double opening.
[0002]
[Prior art]
With the promotion of the standard equipment of the passenger airbag device, development of an instrument panel having an airbag door as a whole has been actively conducted. If this type of instrument panel is classified from the viewpoint of the location of the airbag door, the type in which the airbag door is disposed directly above the glove box and the type in which the airbag door is disposed on the top of the instrument panel It is roughly divided into Furthermore, in the latter type, there is a type in which the airbag door part is opened to the windshield glass side, but a strap for restricting the deployment angle to prevent the deployed airbag door part from contacting the windshield glass. Since measures such as providing the air bag door are required, the type in which the airbag door portion is double-opened is becoming mainstream. As an example of disclosure of this type of instrument panel, there is JP-A-7-164993, and the configuration disclosed in this publication will be described below.
[0003]
As shown in FIG. 13, the instrument panel 150 is filled with a skin 152, a base material 154 disposed at a predetermined interval with respect to the skin 152, and a space between the base material 154 and the skin 152. And the foamed layer 156 formed. A pair of airbag doors 158 and 160 that can be opened at both ends are disposed on the top of the instrument panel 150 having the above-described configuration, and further below that is an inflator for deploying the airbag doors 158 and 160 in the event of a collision. And the apparatus main body 162 which accommodated the bag is arrange | positioned.
[0004]
Here, referring further to the configuration of the airbag door portions 158 and 160 described above, the airbag door portions 158 and 160 are both door side base materials 164 made of the same material as the base material 154 of the instrument panel 150. 166. Hinges 168 and 170 having a circular arc shape are integrally formed on the front end side of the door side base material 164 and the rear end side of the door side base material 166, and the rear end side and door side base of the door side base material 164 are integrally formed. On the front end side of the material 166, raised portions 172 and 174 having a substantially triangular cross section are integrally formed. As a result, the foam layer 156 filled between the raised portions 172 and 174 and the skin 152 is thinned to form an H-shaped cleavage portion 176 in plan view, and the bag expansion pressure is reduced to the door-side base material 164. When it acts on 166, it breaks rapidly along the cleavage part 176.
[0005]
However, in the case of the configuration disclosed in the above publication, since the mutual support force of the airbag door portions 158 and 160 is not ensured, for example, the passenger pushes the vicinity of the cleavage portion 176 of the airbag door portions 158 and 160 by hand. In this case, there is a possibility that the vicinity of the tearing portion 176 of the airbag door portions 158 and 160 will easily drop.
[0006]
Therefore, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-129386, the base material deployment portions 54 and 56 of the airbag door portions 72 and 74 are separated by the lateral separation portion 52 and the like, and the position is located at this portion. The terminal portions 54A and 56A are formed with a first engagement portion 58 and a second engagement portion 60 that are obliquely cut in opposite directions by laser cutting, and thereby the both end portions 54A and 56A are connected to each other. Are engaged. Therefore, even if a pressing load acts near the laterally cleaved portion 60A of the skin 64, the mutual end portions 54A and 56A are engaged with each other. Therefore, even if a pressing load acts on the vicinity of the laterally cleaved portion of the skin 64, the end portions 54A and 56A can support the load. Therefore, the airbag door portions 72 and 74 do not fall.
[0007]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the airbag door disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-129386, there are problems such as an increase in man-hours for cutting in a zigzag shape, a large amount of scattered objects, and a smaller load that can be supported when the airbag door is thin. There was a point.
[0008]
In view of the above problems, the present invention does not cause the airbag door portion to drop even if a slight load is applied from the surface side, and further does not increase the man-hours for manufacturing the airbag door, and at the time of airbag deployment. An object of the present invention is to provide an instrument panel having an airbag door portion that can suppress scattered objects as much as possible.
[0009]
[Means for solving the problems]
That is, the invention according to claim 1 of the present application includes a reinforcing bracket, an airbag bracket, and a core member of an instrument panel, and an air bag door portion and a hinge portion are formed on the core member. A structure of a bag door integrated instrument panel, wherein the core member is provided with a thinned planned opening portion, and the planned opening portion is H-shaped in plan view and is a horizontal groove with a cleavage groove and a vertical line Air that has a tear tier line and has hinges at both ends of the tier line, and that expands in a direction that separates the airbag doors from each other by acting as a rotating shaft by the inflation pressure during airbag operation. In the structure of an instrument panel integrated with a bag door, the airbag bracket is attached to the back side of the instrument panel, There is a reinforcement bracket between the core members of the reinforcement panel, and the airbag bracket is joined to the casing, the opening from which the airbag bulges, the airbag door support provided at the opening, and the reinforcement bracket. The airbag door support portion protrudes closer to the airbag door than the joint portion, and the airbag door support portion is located along the tear line and straddles the tear line or the tear line. And the airbag door support portion can support the pressing force from the front surface side of the airbag door .
[0010]
According to the first aspect of the present invention, when a collision occurs, the bag inflation pressure acts in the order of the reinforcing bracket and the airbag inflation side of the airbag door. For this reason, the base material of an airbag is isolate | separated along a predetermined position, and an airbag door part is developed by double-opening in the direction away from each other. Thereby, the bag is inflated to the passenger seat side.
[0011]
Here, in the present invention, the airbag bracket has an airbag door support portion that protrudes closer to the airbag door than the joint portion, so that the airbag door support portion connects the airbag door to the airbag inflation surface side. Even if a pressing load is applied from the surface side of the airbag door by supporting the airbag, the pressing load is reliably supported by the airbag door support portion.
[0012]
The invention according to claim 2 is the structure of the instrument panel integrated with an airbag door according to claim 1, wherein the airbag door support portion supports the airbag door inside the tear line.
[0013]
According to the invention described in claim 2, the airbag door support part is an instrument panel integrated with an airbag door according to claim 1, wherein the airbag door support part supports the airbag door inside the fractured part at both ends. When the pressing load from the airbag door surface side acts only on the airbag door, the airbag door support portion supports the load, and the airbag door can be prevented from falling.
[0014]
The invention according to claim 3, the air bag door according to claim 1 which supports both the airbag door and instrument panel from the airbag side by straddled the airbag door supporting portion to the breaking portion It is in the structure of an integrated instrument panel .
[0015]
According to the invention described in claim 3, even when a pressing load is applied to the instrument panel on the outer side of the rupture portion by straddling the airbag door support portion over the rupture portions at both ends, the bending is not caused. The resulting fracture does not break.
[0016]
In the invention according to claim 4, the reinforcing bracket is lined on a surface on the airbag side of the airbag door, and the reinforcing bracket is sandwiched between a core material and a backing material forming the airbag door, The airbag door integrated instrument panel structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the core member and the backing member are fixed by vibration welding.
[0017]
According to the invention described in claim 4, the reinforcing bracket is lined on the surface of the airbag door on the airbag side, and the reinforcing bracket is sandwiched between the core material and the backing material that form the airbag door. The airbag bracket integrated instrument panel according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the core member and the backing member are fixed by vibration welding. Are formed separately, and these are joined directly by vibration welding, so that the thickness and resin composition on the instrument panel side can be made uniform. For this reason, it is possible to obtain a molded article having a good appearance without sinks or warpage on the surface of the instrument panel.
[0018]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the structure of an airbag door integrated instrument panel 1 according to the present invention from the back side.
[0019]
The core of the instrument panel 2 is injection molded using a resin such as a polypropylene resin with filler reinforced with talc, mica or glass (hereinafter referred to as PPC resin), modified PPO resin, ABS resin, etc., as a base material. Etc. to form a predetermined shape. An air bag door 5 is formed on the back side of the air bag.
[0020]
This airbag door 5 includes a tear line 7 including a tear groove 7 and a tear opening 6 that is thinned by a notch having an appropriate depth, and the airbag door 5 is deployed on both sides of the tear groove 7 as a boundary. Sometimes it is formed with a hinge portion 8 that serves as a rotating shaft. Moreover, although not shown in figure, the recessed part corresponding to each convex part is formed in the part which contact | connects the convex part of the lining material 18 mentioned later. The reinforcing bracket 3 is fixed to the airbag inflation side of the airbag door 5 so as not to be deformed or damaged by the inflation force of the airbag.
[0021]
The reinforcing bracket 3 can be formed of a metal such as an iron plate or aluminum, or a resin such as polycarbonate. The thickness of the reinforcing bracket is preferably about 0.5 mm. The reinforcement bracket 3 is formed with a plurality of holes 9 through which convex portions of a backing material 18 to be described later pass, and is a hinge serving as a rotating shaft when deployed integrally with the airbag door portion 5 of the instrument panel 2 described above. Part 8 is formed. The hinge portion 8 is preferably bent so as to protrude toward the airbag (not shown). As a result, no interference portion is generated in the hinge portion during deployment, and the deployment is performed smoothly. Moreover, it is preferable to process parts other than this hinge part 8, for example, parts like the reinforcement bracket end part 11, by bead processing etc. in order to provide rigidity.
[0022]
The backing material 18 used for fixing the reinforcing bracket 3 is preferably a resin such as PPC resin, modified PPO resin, or ABS resin, which is the same material as the core material of the instrument panel 2. The use of the same material increases the welding strength. The backing material 18 can also be TPO. By using TPO, impact force and shearing force can be reduced, and since it has excellent low-temperature characteristics, it can be used even in a low-temperature atmosphere.
[0023]
Further, as shown in FIG. 12, the backing material 18 has a convex portion 12 penetrating through the hole 9 formed in the reinforcing bracket 3 on the surface of the instrument panel 2 on the core material side. The convex portion 12 is preferably cylindrical with an outer diameter of 30 mm or less, preferably 20 mm or less, and an inner diameter of 5 mm or more, preferably 10 mm or more. As a result, the stress acting on the welded portion can be evenly dispersed and the burrs after welding can be reduced. Further, in the cylinder of the convex portion 12, the resin plate portion 20 is directed in the direction substantially the same as the direction of the stress acting on the airbag door when the airbag is deployed, that is, radially outward from the center portion. Is formed. Thereby, the inflating force of the airbag can be received evenly.
[0024]
The airbag bracket 17 can be attached to the instrument panel 2 via the reinforcing bracket 3 or directly to the instrument panel 2. The airbag bracket 17 uses an elastomer such as PPC resin, modified PPO resin, ABS resin, or the like, which is the same material as the instrument panel 2, or a thermoplastic olefin (hereinafter referred to as TPO) having excellent low-temperature embrittlement characteristics. However, it is also possible to use a metal such as an iron plate or aluminum. And the thing whose hardness is 50 degrees-100 degrees of Shore A, especially 70 degrees-90 degrees is preferable. Thereby, after welding, it is fixed with high welding strength and can be used without being embrittled at low temperature even in a low temperature atmosphere.
[0025]
The airbag bracket 17 includes a joint portion 23, a housing portion 25, an airbag door support portion 4, and an opening portion 21 through which the airbag bulges. The airbag door support portion 4 is more than the joint portion 23. It protrudes toward the airbag door 5 side. And the said airbag door support part 4 is installed in the both sides | surfaces by the short side 22 of the opening part 21 of the airbag bracket 17, as shown in FIG.2 and FIG.3.
[0026]
As shown in FIG. 9, the airbag door support portion 4 is installed inside the tear line 6. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 10, the airbag door 5 and the instrument panel 2 are both supported from the airbag side (not shown) across the tear line 6.
[0027]
Moreover, as other embodiment of the airbag door support part 4, as shown in FIG.4 and FIG.5, it is good also as the airbag door support part 4 protruded in frame shape. At this time, the position of the airbag door support portion 4 may be installed inside the tear line 6 as shown in FIG. 6 to support the airbag door 5 from the inside of the tear line 6, or as shown in FIG. Only the short side 22 of the airbag door support 4 may be supported inside the tear line 6.
[0028]
When supporting the hinge portion 8, as shown in FIG. 5, the protruding shape of the airbag door support portion 4 is formed so that the opening portion 21 is narrowed on the airbag door 5 side, and an inclination is provided to support from the oblique direction. By doing so, when the airbag door 5 is opened at the hinge portion 8 , interference with the protruding airbag door support portion 4 is avoided, and the airbag door 5 is easily opened.
[0029]
Further, the shape of the protruding airbag door support portion 4 is not limited to a rectangular shape, and may be a columnar shape or a cylindrical shape as long as a load from the surface side of the airbag door 5 can be supported.
[0030]
The airbag door support portion 4 and the airbag door 5 are not fixed, but only the airbag door support portion 4 is installed with the reinforcing bracket 3 interposed therebetween. The bag door support 4 does not hinder.
[0031]
By taking such an embodiment, the airbag bracket 17 for attaching the airbag device is extended to the lower part of the airbag door 5, and the load from the surface of the instrument panel 2 is projected by the protruding airbag door support portion 4. Can be held.
[0032]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, in the first aspect, the airbag includes the reinforcing bracket, the airbag bracket, and the core member of the instrument panel, and the airbag member and the hinge portion are formed on the core member. A door-integrated instrument panel structure, wherein the core member is provided with a thinned planned opening portion, and the planned opening portion is H-shaped in plan view and forms a horizontal line with a cleavage groove and a vertical line. An airbag having a tear line and having hinge portions at both ends of the tear line, and acting as an axis of rotation by the inflation pressure during operation of the airbag to deploy the airbag door portions apart from each other. In the structure of a door-integrated instrument panel, the airbag bracket is attached to the back side of the instrument panel, and the airbag bracket and the There is a reinforcement bracket between the core members of the reinforcement panel, and the airbag bracket is joined to the casing, the opening from which the airbag bulges, the airbag door support provided at the opening, and the reinforcement bracket. The airbag door support portion protrudes closer to the airbag door than the joint portion, and the airbag door support portion is located along the tear line and straddles the tear line or the tear line. And the airbag door support portion can support the pressing force from the front surface side of the airbag door, thereby providing an airbag panel integrated instrument panel structure. Even if a pressing load acts from the surface side of the airbag door by the door support portion supporting the airbag door from the airbag inflation surface side, Pressing pressure load has an effect that is reliably supported by the air bag door supporting portion.
[0033]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, the airbag door support portion supports the airbag door inside the tear line, thereby providing an airbag panel integrated instrument panel structure according to the first aspect. When the pressing load from the door surface side acts only on the airbag door, the airbag door support portion supports the load, and there is an effect that the airbag door can be prevented from falling.
[0034]
In the invention described in claim 3, air according to the airbag door substrate portion to claim 1 in support of both the airbag door and instrument panel from the air bag bulging side by straddled the tear line By adopting the structure of the bag door integrated instrument panel, there is an effect that even if a pressure load is applied to the instrument panel outside the tear line, the bent portion does not break and the fracture portion does not break.
[0035]
In the invention according to claim 4, the reinforcing bracket is lined on the air bag side surface of the airbag door, and the reinforcing bracket is sandwiched between the core material and the backing material forming the airbag door, The airbag bracket and the instrument are formed by the structure of the airbag door integrated instrument panel according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the core member and the backing member are fixed by vibration welding. Since the panels are molded separately and these are joined directly by vibration welding, it is possible to make the wall thickness and resin composition of the instrument panel uniform, and there are no sink marks or warpage on the surface of the instrument panel. There is an effect that a molded product having a good appearance can be obtained.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view from the back side of the structure of an instrument panel integrated with an airbag door according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing an airbag bracket according to the present invention.
3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG.
FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing another airbag bracket according to the present invention.
5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG.
FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a positional relationship between an airbag door and an airbag door support portion.
FIG. 7 is a schematic view showing another positional relationship between the airbag door and the airbag door support portion.
FIG. 8 is a schematic view showing a positional relationship between an instrument panel and an airbag bracket.
9 is a view showing one embodiment of the CC cross-sectional view of FIG. 8. FIG.
10 is a view showing another embodiment of the CC cross-sectional view of FIG. 8. FIG.
11 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line DD of FIG.
FIG. 12 is a view showing a convex shape of a backing material.
FIG. 13 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an instrument panel integrally having an airbag door portion according to a conventional example.
FIG. 14 is a longitudinal sectional view of an instrument panel integrally having an airbag door portion according to another conventional example.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Airbag door integrated instrument panel 2 Instrument panel 3 Reinforcement bracket 4 Airbag door support part 5 Airbag door 6 Tear line 7 Cleavage groove 8 Hinge part 9 Hole 11 Reinforcement bracket end part 12 Convex part 13 Concave part 14 Weld part 15 Burr 16 Gap 17 Airbag bracket 18 Backing material 19 Edge 20 Resin plate part 21 Opening part 22 Short side 23 Joint part 24 Long side 25 Case part

Claims (4)

A structure of an instrument panel integrated with an airbag door having a reinforcing bracket, an airbag bracket, and a core member of an instrument panel, wherein an airbag door portion and a hinge portion are formed on the core member,
The core member is provided with a thinned opening planned portion, and the opening planned portion is H-shaped in plan view, has a tear groove that is a horizontal line and a tear line that is a vertical line, and is provided at both ends of the tear line. In the structure of an instrument panel integrated with an air bag door that has a hinge portion and acts as a rotation shaft by the inflation pressure during the operation of the air bag and deploys the air bag door portion so as to separate from each other.
The airbag bracket is attached to the back side of the instrument panel, and there is a reinforcing bracket between the airbag bracket and the core of the instrument panel.
  The airbag bracket has a housing, an opening through which the airbag bulges, an airbag door support provided at the opening, and a joint joined to the reinforcing bracket.
  The airbag door support portion protrudes closer to the airbag door than the joint portion, and the airbag door support portion is located along the tear line, straddling the tear line or inside the tear line, and the airbag A structure of an instrument panel integrated with an airbag door, wherein the pressing force from the front surface side of the airbag door can be supported by the door support portion. The structure of an instrument panel integrated with an airbag door according to claim 1, wherein the airbag door support portion supports the airbag door inside the tear line . The structure of an instrument panel integrated with an airbag door according to claim 1, wherein both the airbag door and the instrument panel are supported from the airbag inflation side by extending the airbag door support portion over the tear line. . The reinforcing bracket is lined on the airbag door, the reinforcing bracket is sandwiched between the core material and the backing material forming the airbag door, and fixed by vibration welding of the core material and the backing material. The structure of an instrument panel integrated with an airbag door according to any one of claims 1 to 3 .

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