JP7707218B2 - holding structure - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a holding structure that is suitable for holding an object, such as an on-board radar, in an engaged state by sliding relative to a holding member.

When an article such as an on-vehicle radar or a protector is positioned and engaged by a relative sliding movement with respect to the holding member, it is biased by a biasing portion for absorbing rattle provided on the holding member so as not to rattle. Fig. 14 shows a holding structure disclosed in Patent Document 1 as an example. In this holding structure, the holding member 1 has an attachment portion 2 for the vehicle body side and a holding portion 3 for an on-vehicle device such as a radar. That is, the holding portion 3 has a window hole 6 for exposing a main portion of the on-vehicle device R, a receiving portion 7 for receiving a part of the on-vehicle device R by the sliding movement of the on-vehicle device, and a guide portion 8 for guiding a protrusion Rd protruding from the upper and lower side surfaces of the on-vehicle device R along the sliding movement direction. The receiving portion 7 has a positioning wall 7b for the side of the on-vehicle device R, and a pressing piece 7c as a biasing portion that extends from a part of the receiving portion in a direction away from the receiving portion and presses against the front of the on-vehicle device. The guide portion 8 is provided with an elastic piece 8a which is elastically deformed by contacting the protrusion Rd during the sliding movement and which elastically returns to its original position at the end of the sliding movement and engages with the protrusion Rd to prevent the vehicle-mounted equipment from moving back.

In particular, with this holding structure, the protrusion Rd of the on-board device slides along the guide portion 8 to receive the front side (leading end) of the on-board device into the receiving portion 7, so that a portion of the on-board device can be securely and stably held, and the on-board device can be held in a sandwiched state by the pressing piece 7c and the guide portion 8, and at the end position of the sliding movement, the elastic piece 8a engages with the protrusion Rd to prevent the on-board device from moving back.

JP 2021-169283 A

However, in the above-mentioned holding structure, the pressing piece extends away from the receiving part, and the curled part formed at the tip of the pressing piece presses against the on-board device, so space is required to install the pressing piece so that it does not get in the way. Increasing the pressure of the curled part makes it difficult to slide the on-board device into engagement, and in the process of sliding the on-board device, stress is applied evenly across the entire width of the connection between the pressing piece and the receiving part, which may damage the connection.

The object of the present invention is to solve the above problems and to provide a holding structure that allows the pressing force of the flexible piece to be set to a large value, is not easily restricted by the location where the biasing part is installed, and is not easily damaged even if the pressing force is made large. Other objects will become clear in the following description.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention of claim 1, when specified with reference to a first embodiment (FIGS. 1 to 7), is a holding structure in which a retaining member 2 (6) attached to a vehicle positions and engages an article 1 (5) as an attachment object by relative sliding movement, and a biasing portion provided between the article and the retaining member absorbs rattle, the biasing portion having a flexible piece 3 (8) provided on one of the retaining member 2 and the article 1 and abutting against the other, and at a connection portion 32 (80) between the retaining member or one of the article and the flexible piece, one end in the plate width direction is a first connecting end 32a (80a) and the other end is a second connecting end 32b (80b), and the first connecting end is formed to be located upstream of the second connecting end in the sliding movement direction of the article , and The flexible piece 3 (8) is characterized by having a protrusion 31 or an engaging protrusion (8b) provided to be pressed against the article, and a curved or inclined surface 31a (8d) formed on the end side of the protrusion or engaging protrusion that first comes into contact with the article during the relative sliding movement . Note that the symbols in parentheses correspond to those in the second embodiment (Figures 8 to 13).

In the present invention, the "state in which the positioning and engagement are achieved by relative sliding movement" refers to, in the example of Fig. 3, a state in which the article 1 is slid relative to the holding member 2, or conversely, the holding member 2 is slid relative to the article 1, and further, the holding member 2 and the article 1 are slid in a direction in which they approach each other, so that the elastic engagement piece 27 engages with the protrusion 12 of the article as shown in Fig. 4. In the example of Fig. 11, a state in which the article 5 is slid downward relative to the holding member 6, or conversely, the holding member 2 is slid upward relative to the article 5, and further, the holding member 6 and the article 5 are slid in a direction in which they approach each other, so that the engagement protrusion 8b, which is a protrusion of the flexible piece 8, engages with the engagement protrusion 56 of the article as shown in Fig. 10.

The present invention described above is preferably embodied as in claims 2 to 6 .
(1) In claim 1 , the holding member is a bracket 2, the object to be attached is a radar 1, and the flexible piece is provided on the bracket and presses against the radar to urge the radar in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle (claim 2 ). This radar, for example, emits radio waves from a transmitting/receiving surface (the surface on the near side of FIG. 1(a) i.e. the front) and receives radio waves reflected from obstacles, etc., to enable detection of the distance between the automobile and other objects. This radar is also called a sensor.
(2) In claim 2 , the radar has a protrusion 12 provided on the upper end surface and/or lower end surface, and a pressing piece 4 provided on the bracket so as to be elastically swingable in correspondence with the protrusion, and the protrusion is pressed against a slope 41 formed on the pressing piece when the radar is held on the bracket (Claim 3) .

(3) In claim 1, the article has a window hole ( 53) exposing the main part of the holding member or a radar attached to the main part, an engagement protrusion (56) protruding from the inner surface of the window hole , and a curved or inclined surface (56a) formed on the end side of the engagement protrusion that first comes into contact with the engagement protrusion of the flexible piece, and the relative sliding movement causes the engagement protrusion to engage with the engagement protrusion in a pressure-contact state (claim 4) .
(4) In claim 4 , the retaining member is a bracket (6) for mounting the radar (7), the object is a protector (5), and the flexible piece is provided on the bracket and abuts against an engaging protrusion of the protector to bias it in a direction intersecting the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle (Claim 5) .
(5) The bracket has an insertion portion (64) that is inserted into a receiving portion (57) provided on the protector, and a pressing piece (9) that is provided corresponding to the insertion portion and protrudes in a direction intersecting the direction of the relative sliding movement, and the pressing piece is configured to press against the rear side of the receiving portion to urge the protector in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle (Claim 6) .

In the invention of claim 1, as a force-absorbing part for absorbing rattle provided between the article and the holding member, a flexible piece is provided on one of the holding member and the article and abuts against the other, and at the connection part between the holding member and one of the articles, one end of the flexible piece in the plate width direction is a first connection end and the other end is a second connection end, and the first connection end is formed to be located upstream of the second connection end in the sliding movement direction of the article. Therefore, in this holding structure, since the flexible piece does not extend in the sliding direction of the article as in the conventional case, even if the article is a radar that transmits radio waves forward and receives them from the front, it is less likely to be restricted by space. In addition, since the connection part, which is the base end of the flexible piece, is shifted in the sliding direction of the article, it is possible to eliminate the risk that the impact load during the sliding operation will concentrate on the first connection end on the upstream side and cause damage to the connection part over the entire width.

In addition, in this invention, if the flexible piece has a protrusion or engaging protrusion that presses against the article, the pressing force against the article can be easily adjusted by setting the protruding dimension of the protrusion or engaging protrusion. Also, if the protrusion or engaging protrusion has a curved or inclined surface formed on the end side that first comes into contact with the article, the article can be slid without being subjected to a large load due to the guiding action of the curved or inclined surface.

In the invention of claim 2 , the flexible piece is attached to the bracket, which is a holding member, and is pressed against the radar, which is an object, to bias the radar in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle, thereby making it possible to reliably prevent rattling of the radar caused by loads that are likely to be applied, particularly when driving or suddenly stopping.

In the invention of claim 3 , when the radar is held on the bracket, the radar side protrusion is pressed against the inclined surface formed on the bracket side pressing piece, so that rattle in the up-down and left-right directions that intersect with the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle can be absorbed without providing pressing pieces in multiple directions to prevent rattle as in the first form.

In the invention of claim 4 , the flexible piece of the holding member has an engaging protrusion provided on the inner surface of the window portion of the article and a curved or inclined surface formed on the end side of the engaging protrusion that first comes into contact with the engaging convex portion of the flexible piece, so that the article can be slid without being subjected to large loads due to the guiding action of the curved or inclined surface.

In the invention of claim 5 , the flexible piece is attached to the bracket, which is the holding member, and abuts and engages with an engaging protrusion provided on the inner side of the window portion of the protector, which is the item, to bias it in a direction intersecting the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle, thereby making it possible to prevent rattling of the holding member or radar caused by vibrations, particularly from the top and bottom of the vehicle.

In the invention of claim 6 , when the protector is held on the bracket, the pressing piece on the bracket presses against the rear side of the receiving portion to urge the protector in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle, making it possible to absorb rattle particularly in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle, as in the second form.

1A is a perspective view showing a state in which an article (radar) is held by a holding member according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1B is an exploded perspective view showing a state in which the article has been removed from the holding member. 1A is a rear view showing the holding member alone, FIG. 1B is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line AA, and FIG. 1C is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line BB. 1A is a rear view of the holding member holding an article, FIG. 1B is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line A1-A1, and FIG. 1C is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line B1-B1. 2, and FIG. 3B is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line DD in FIG. 3A is an enlarged schematic view of a portion E in FIG. 2, FIG. 3B is a schematic view showing a first modified example of the flexible piece corresponding to the portion E, and FIG. 3C is a cross-sectional view taken along line F--F of FIG. 2. 1B is a schematic diagram showing a modified example 2 of the flexible plate corresponding to the portion E, FIG. 1C is a schematic diagram showing a cross section taken along line F1-F1 of the modified example 2 of the flexible plate corresponding to the portion E. FIG. 1A is a schematic diagram showing a fourth modified example of the flexible plate, FIG. 1B is a schematic diagram showing a fifth modified example of the flexible plate, and FIG. 1C is a schematic diagram showing a sixth modified example of the flexible plate. 13A and 13B are a top view and a front view showing a state in which an article (protector) is held by a holding member according to a second embodiment of the present invention. 1A is an exploded perspective view showing the holding member with the article removed, and FIG. 1B is an enlarged view of a portion L and FIG. 1C is an enlarged view of a portion M in FIG. 8A is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line GG in FIG. 8, (b) is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line HH in FIG. 8, and (c) is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line II in FIG. 8A is a schematic diagram showing the state before the relative sliding movement between the holding member and the article, (b) is a schematic diagram showing an enlarged view of part K in FIG. 8, and (c) is a schematic diagram showing the state before the relative sliding movement corresponding to (b). 1A shows the holding member alone, with (a) being a front view, (b) being a cross-sectional view taken along line N-N in (a), (c) being a cross-sectional view taken along line P-P in (a), and (d) being a rear view. FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram showing a modified example of the pressing piece corresponding to the portion Q in FIG. 11, and FIG. 12(b) is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line R--R in FIG. 2 of Patent Document 1, (a) shows FIG. 2 of Document 1, (b) shows FIG. 4 of Document 1, and (c) shows FIG. 6 of Document 1.

The present invention will be explained below using two examples of application. Specifically, the first embodiment and its modified form shown in Figs. 1 to 7 will be explained, followed by the second embodiment and its modified form shown in Figs. 8 to 13. In the explanation, the main configuration of each embodiment will be explained, along with its effects.

(First embodiment) In this holding structure, the bracket 2, which is the holding member, is positioned so as to face the inner surface of the bumper of the automobile, and is attached integrally with the object to be mounted, such as the radar 1, by relative sliding movement, in the same manner as in Patent Document 1, and is attached to the bumper by double-sided tape, welding, or the like. In addition, the brackets 2 that engage and hold the radar 1 are attached to the left and right in the longitudinal direction. Of these, the bracket 2 shown in the figure is positioned on the left side of the bumper. The bracket 2 positioned on the right side of the bumper is not shown in the figure, but is formed symmetrically to the bracket 2 positioned on the left side.

The bracket 2 is generally a resin injection molded product, but may be made of other materials. In FIG. 1(a), x indicates the up-down direction, y indicates the front-rear direction, and z indicates the left-right direction.

Here, the radar 1 is composed of a rectangular plate-shaped main part 10 and a connector part 11 provided on the right side of the main part 10. The front of the main part 10 in FIG. 1 is set as the transmitting/receiving surface, and has a pair of protrusions 12 protruding from the upper and lower side surfaces at a predetermined distance. The radar 1 is electrically connected to the outside via the connector part 11, and can, for example, detect obstacles, etc. by emitting radio waves from the transmitting/receiving surface of the main part 10 and receiving radio waves reflected from the obstacles, etc., or detect the distance to the obstacles, etc. Note that one end of a harness (not shown) is connected to the connector part 11.

Details of the bracket 2 are as follows. The bracket 2 is in the shape of a roughly rectangular frame, and is slightly curved left and right to correspond to the bumper. As shown in Figs. 1 to 4, the bracket 2 includes upper and lower edging parts 21a, 22a erected on the upper and lower wall parts 21, 22, edging parts 23, 23 on both sides connecting the left and right sides of the upper and lower wall parts 21, 22, upper and lower guide parts 21b, 22b extending left and right along the upper and lower edges of the rear side of the upper and lower edging parts 21a, 22a to guide the radar protrusion 12, and a receiving part 26 provided to connect the right ends of the guide parts 21b, 22b. The window hole 25 in the frame is partitioned by the upper and lower guide parts 21b, 22b, the receiving part 26, and the left edging part 23 facing the receiving part 26. In addition, symbols 21c and 22c are reinforcing ribs that protrude and are joined to the upper and lower edging portions 21a and 22a corresponding to the upper and lower wall portions 21 and 22.

The upper and lower trim parts 21a, 22a have a total of four substantially rectangular mounting parts 24 protruding from the left and right sides, respectively. The bracket 2 is attached to the inner surface of the bumper (not shown) in a bonded state with double-sided tape or the like while holding the radar 1 by a sliding movement operation as described below.

The guide parts 21b and the guide parts 22b are provided with a distance between them. Between the guide parts 21b and between the guide parts 22b, there are protruding parts 21d, 22d that protrude from the guide parts in a direction away from the rear or back surface. In this holding structure, as shown in FIG. 4(b), the protruding part 12 of the radar that is closer to the connector part 11 is slidably sandwiched between the receiving surface 21e of the protruding part 21d and the corresponding guide part 21b. In addition, between the upper and lower ends of the receiving part 26 and the upper and lower wall parts 21, 22, there is a receiving surface 21f that is on the same plane as the receiving surface 21e. This receiving surface 12f also slidably sandwiches the protruding part 12 of the radar that is farther from the connector part 11 between the corresponding guide part 21b.

The upper and lower guide sections 21b and 22b are provided with elastic engagement pieces 27 that can swing back and forth via L-shaped slits 28. Each engagement piece 27 has a stepped engagement portion 27a formed at the tip end as shown in FIG. 4. In this holding structure, as shown in FIG. 4(b), the engagement piece 27 is elastically displaced by the stress it receives from the protrusion 12 on the connector side during the process of sliding the radar 1 relative to the bracket 2, and returns to its original state when it has slid all the way to the end, where the end of the protrusion 12 and the engagement portion 27a engage and are held in an unslidable state.

In addition, the guide parts 21b and 22b are provided with overhangs 21d and 22d that protrude rearward from a part of them. As shown in the enlarged view of FIG. 2, two pressing pieces 4 are provided between the overhang 21d on the guide part 21b side and the upper wall part 21, and can be pressed against the protrusion 12 on the upper side of the radar main body 10. Each pressing piece 4 can be oscillated and displaced through slits 40 and 40 provided on both sides. Each pressing piece 4 also has an inclined surface 41 formed on the inside, and the protrusion 12 is made to abut against the inclined surface 41 as shown in FIG. 3(c). In this structure, when the radar 1 is held on the bracket 2, the radar-side protrusion 12 is pressed against the inclined surface 41 formed on the pressing piece 4, so that even if the pressing pieces 4 for preventing rattling are not provided in multiple directions, rattling in two directions, for example, the vertical direction and the horizontal direction that intersect with the vehicle's front-rear direction, can be absorbed as in this form.

Furthermore, the receiving portion 16 rises in an inverted L shape from the back surface of the corresponding side wall 23 as shown in Figures 2 and 3, and receives the rear portion of the main body 10 inside while the radar 1 is held immovably against the bracket 2 as described above. A pair of flexible pieces 3 are provided at a predetermined distance from each other on this receiving portion 16.

Each flexible piece 3 is partitioned by slits 30 on both sides, allowing it to oscillate elastically. Each flexible piece 3 has a protrusion 31 provided at approximately the middle of the longitudinal direction, and is pressed against the back surface of the radar 1 via the protrusion 31. That is, in this structure, the flexible piece 3 is pressed against the radar main body 10 via the protrusion 31 to absorb rattle, so that the pressing force or pressure force against the radar 1 can be easily adjusted to the desired magnitude by devising and setting the protruding dimension of the protrusion 31. In addition, one side of this protrusion 31 is formed into a curved surface or inclined surface 31a. This inclined surface 31a is provided on the end side that is first hit when the radar 1 slides relatively, and the radar 1 can be smoothly and satisfactorily slid to the end without being subjected to large loads due to the guiding action of the curved surface or inclined surface 31a of the protrusion 31. In addition, the above-mentioned flexible piece 3 is attached to the bracket 2 and presses against the radar 1, biasing it from the rear side of the radar to the front side, and in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, so that it is possible to reliably prevent rattling of the radar caused by loads that are easily applied, especially when driving or stopping suddenly.

In addition, in this structure, as shown in FIG. 5(a), in the connection 32 between the flexible piece 3 and the receiving portion 26, i.e., the upper and lower connection portions 32, if one end of the flexible piece 3 in the plate width direction is the first connection end 32a and the other end in the plate width direction is the second connection end 32b, the first connection end 32a is formed to be located upstream of the second connection end 32b in the sliding movement direction of the radar 1, i.e., the side that the radar 1 hits first. Therefore, in this holding structure, the flexible piece 3 does not extend in the sliding direction of the object as in the conventional case, so there is an advantage that there are fewer space constraints even with a radar 1 where the object to be attached transmits radio waves forward and receives them from the front.

In addition, in the above-mentioned connecting portion 32, the first connecting end 32a and the second connecting end 32b are offset in the sliding direction of the radar 1, so that the impact load during the sliding operation is concentrated on the first connecting end 32a on the upstream side, and the impact force on the second connecting end 32b is mitigated, eliminating the risk of the connecting portion 32 being damaged over its entire width. In other words, in the above-mentioned holding structure, if the first connecting end and the second connecting end are in the same position in the sliding direction as the pressing piece 7c in document 1, which extends in the sliding direction of the article, the problem that the connecting portion is easily damaged over its entire width can be eliminated by offsetting the first connecting end 32a and the second connecting end 32b in the sliding movement direction of the radar 1.

(Modifications) The following modifications 1 to 6 are examples of other configurations related to the flexible piece 3. In this explanation, only the configurations that have been modified based on the above embodiment will be described in detail.

As shown in Figs. 5(b) and (c), the flexible piece 3A of the first modification is provided with an inverted L-shaped slit 34 that continues from the side end surface of the receiving part 26, allowing it to swing, and the connecting part 32 to the receiving part 26 extends in the sliding direction. Therefore, even with the flexible piece 3A of the first modification, the impact load during the sliding operation is concentrated on the first connecting end 32a on the upstream side, and as a result, the impact force on the second connecting end 32b is mitigated, eliminating the risk of the connecting part 32 being damaged or cut off over its entire width. The protrusion 31 and the slope 31a have the same shape.

Figures 6(a) and (b) show modified example 2 of the flexible piece. This flexible piece 3B is formed to be swingable via a groove 35 having a concave cross section instead of a slit, unlike the flexible piece 3 of the embodiment and the flexible piece 3A of modified example 1. The depth of the groove 35 is designed according to the required amount of displacement of the flexible piece 3B. In the flexible piece 3B, the protrusion 31 and the slope 31a are the same as in the above embodiment, and the connecting portion 32, the first connecting end 32a, and the second connecting end 32b are also the same as in the above embodiment and modified example 1.

Figure 6(c) shows the third modified example of the flexible piece. This flexible piece 3C is provided at an angle to the receiving section 26, partitioned by a substantially inverted U-shaped slit 37. In this case, the connection section 32 of the flexible piece 3C to the receiving section 26 is also at an angle, so that the impact load during the sliding operation is concentrated on the first connecting end 32a on the upstream side, and the effect on the second connecting end 32b on the downstream side is mitigated, and as a result, the risk of the connecting section 32 being damaged or cut off over its entire width is eliminated. Although not shown in this figure, the protrusion 31 and the slope 31a are the same as those in the above embodiment and modified examples 1 and 2.

7(a) to (c) show three examples in which the flexible piece is provided at a position other than the receiving portion 26. Of these, the flexible piece 3D of the fourth modification is erected while being connected to the target position of the lower side of the window hole 25 as shown in (a). The flexible piece 3D of the fifth modification is the same shape as the flexible piece 3D of (a) as shown in (b), but has a receiving portion 26a provided at a predetermined height at the lower side of the window hole 25 and is partitioned by two slits provided in the receiving portion 26a. The flexible piece 3F of the sixth modification is semicircular and erected at the target position of the lower side of the window hole 25. In other words, the flexible pieces 3D and 3F are provided at a position of the window hole 25 that does not impair the transmission and reception of the radar 7, and the protrusion 31 and the slope 31a are formed in the same manner as the above embodiment and the first and second modifications.

(Second form) In this holding structure, the protector 5, which is the mounting object or item, is fixed to, for example, the back panel that constitutes the body of an automobile, with the radar mounting bracket 6 as a holding member being positioned and engaged by relative sliding movement. In this fixed state, for example, a bumper is placed in front of the protector 55, and the radar 7 mounted on the front side of the bracket 6 is protected by the protector 5. The radar 7 is electrically connected to the outside via the lower connector part 71, and can detect obstacles, etc. by emitting radio waves from the transmitting/receiving surface of the main part 70 and receiving radio waves reflected from obstacles, etc., and can detect the distance to the obstacles, etc.

Here, the radar 7 is attached to the bracket 6. In this case, the radar 7 may be bonded to the bracket 6 with an adhesive or the like, or a mounting portion may be provided on the radar 7 and fixed to the bracket 6 with a bolt or the like. The protector 5 is generally an injection molded resin product, but may be made of a material other than resin as long as it can shield electromagnetic waves. In FIG. 8, x indicates the up-down direction, y indicates the front-rear direction, and z indicates the left-right direction. Note that the arrangement of the bracket 6 and the protector 5 on the automobile side will not be described here, but please refer to JP 2019-64417 A if necessary.

The protector 5 described above protects the radar 7 disposed at the rear by preventing small stones and snow that are kicked up during driving from entering the inside as much as possible. The shape of the protector 5 is such that the upper cover part 50 and the lower cover part 51 form a surrounding wall inside, the front side is opened widely, and the rear side is formed with a rectangular window hole 53 so that the main part 70 of the radar 7 can be exposed. A lower opening 54 is provided below the window hole 53, allowing the lower side of the radar main body 70 and the connector part 71 to be inserted downward. Engagement protrusions 56 are provided on both inner sides of the window hole 53 in opposing relation. As shown in Figures 11 (b) and (c), the upper side of each engagement protrusion 56 is formed as a flat surface 56b, and the lower side is formed as an inclined surface 56a that protrudes from the bottom to the top.

Vertical plate sections 55 are provided on both sides of the window hole 53. Each vertical plate section 55 has receiving sections 57 at two locations, one above the other, with the middle section lowered. Each receiving section 57 has an opening 58 on the lower side, as shown in FIG. 9(b). An insertion section 64 provided on the bracket 6 is inserted into the receiving section 57 through the opening 58.

In other words, as shown in FIG. 12, the bracket 6 has approximately L-shaped insertion parts 64 on both sides of the front, one above the other, a hollow part 66 with the part facing each of the insertion parts 64 cut out, a pressure piece 9 attached downward from the upper edge of the front of the hollow part 66, and flexible pieces 8 protruding from the inside of the left and right insertion parts 64.

Of these, the pressing piece 9 is partitioned by slits 65 on both sides, and is inclined so as to approach the insertion part 64 as it goes downward. Reference symbol 60a denotes a vertical rib provided along the outside of the slit 65. In contrast, the flexible pieces 8 on both sides have base ends 8a connected to the inside surfaces of holes 63 penetrating the bracket 6, as shown in Fig. 12(c), and their tips protrude outward from the holes 63. An engaging protrusion 8b protruding outward is provided at the tip of each flexible piece 8. As shown in Fig. 9(c), the upper and lower ends of the engaging protrusion 8b are formed into gently inclined surfaces 8d , and the outer surface is also formed into an inclined surface 8c .

The connecting portion 80 on the base end 8a side, which is connected to the inner wall of the hole 63, extends vertically as shown in FIG. 11(b). If one end in the plate width direction is the first connecting end 80a and the other end is the second connecting end 80b, the first connecting end 80a is positioned upstream of the second connecting end 80b in the sliding movement direction of the protector 5.

In the above connecting portion 80, the first connecting end 80a and the second connecting end 80b are offset in the sliding direction of the bracket 6, so that during a sliding operation, the impact load that hits the engaging protrusion 56 is concentrated on the first connecting end 80a on the upstream side, and the load on the second connecting end 80b side is alleviated, thereby eliminating the risk of damage to the connecting portion 80 over its entire width.

In more detail, the bracket 6 is engaged and held by sliding movement on the protector 5 with the radar 7 attached to the front. In this operation, first, each insertion portion 64 is inserted into the receiving portion 57 through the lower opening 58. This insertion causes the bracket's pressing piece 9 to be pressed against the back surface of the protector's receiving portion 57 as shown in FIG. 10(c), thereby absorbing any rattle between the bracket 6 and the protector 6. In this structure, a total of four pressing pieces 9 are provided on the left, right, top, and bottom, and the four receiving portions 57 are sandwiched between the corresponding insertion portions 64 and pressing pieces 9, ensuring that any rattle can be absorbed.

At the same time, during the process of inserting each insertion portion 64, the engaging protrusion 8b of the flexible piece 8 comes into contact with the inclined surface 56a of the engaging protrusion 56, and then the flexible piece 8 passes through the engaging protrusion 56 while elastically displacing in a direction away from the engaging protrusion 56 due to the stress it receives from the inclined surface 56a, and at the same time as it passes through, the engaging protrusion 8b engages with the flat surface 56b opposite the inclined surface 56a of the engaging protrusion 56 .

In the above-described holding structure, the pressure of the left and right flexible pieces 8 that engage with the left and right engagement protrusions 56 of the bracket 6 relative to the protector 5 holds the protector 5 in an engaged state with any left-right rattle absorbed. In addition, if the flexible pieces 8 are configured such that the first connecting end 80a and the second connecting end 80b are in the same position in the sliding direction, the problem of the connecting portion being easily damaged over its entire width can be solved by shifting the first connecting end 80a and the second connecting end 80b in the sliding direction of the bracket 6.

(Modification) The modification in FIG. 13 is another example of a configuration related to the pressing piece 9. In this explanation, only the configuration modified from the above embodiment will be described in detail. That is, the pressing piece 9 has a pressure-contact protruding portion 9a protruding from the tip. The protruding portion 9a is provided with a guide inclined portion 9b that becomes lower the higher it goes. In this structure, the pressing force of the pressing piece 9 can be easily changed by the protruding dimension of the protruding portion 9a. In addition, the inclined portion 9b acts to ensure that the receiving portion 57 is pressed in smoothly without receiving an excessive load when it is pressed in between the insertion portion 64 and the pressing piece 9.

The above embodiments and modifications do not restrict the present invention in any way. The present invention only needs to include the technical elements specified in the claims, and the details can be modified as necessary. For example, the flexible piece is provided on the holding member, but it may be provided on the article side. In addition, since the flexible piece and the pressing piece in the first embodiment and the flexible piece and the pressing piece in the second embodiment are both elastically deformable, it is acceptable to call the pressing piece the second flexible piece, or conversely, to call the flexible piece the pressing piece and the other pressing piece the second pressing piece. In addition, although the basic shapes of each bracket and protector are shown, they can be modified in various ways depending on the placement on the vehicle side, and are not restricted to those shown in the drawings.

1 .... Radar (corresponding to the object, 10 is the main body, 12 is the protrusion)
2. Bracket (corresponding to a holding member, 24 is an attachment portion, 25 is a window hole)
3... Flexible piece (30 is a slit, 31 is a protrusion, 31a is a slope)
3A: Flexible piece (32 is a connecting portion, 34 is a groove portion)
3B: Flexible piece (32 is a connecting portion, 35 is a recess)
3C: Flexible piece (32 is a connecting portion, 37 is a groove portion)
3D: Flexible piece (32 is a connecting part)
3F: Flexible piece (32 is a connecting part)
4....Pressing piece (41 is a slope)
5. Protector (corresponding to the article, 56 is an engagement protrusion)
6: Bracket (corresponding to a holding member, 64 is an insertion portion)
7. Radar (the second item, 70 is the main body)
8: Flexible piece (8a is a base end, 8b is an engaging protrusion , 8d is a slope )
9....Pressing piece (41 is a slope)
26: Receiving portion 26a: Receiving portion 27: Elastic engagement piece (27a is an engagement portion)
32: Connection portion (32a is a first connection end portion, 32b is a second connection end portion)
34: Groove portion 35: Concave portion 37: Groove portion 53: Window hole (54 is a bottom opening)
57: Receiving portion 64: Insertion portion 80: Connection portion ( 80a is a first connection end portion, 80b is a second connection end portion)
x・・・Vertical direction
y...Left and right direction
z・・・Fore/aft direction

Claims (6)

A holding structure in which a holding member attached to a vehicle positions and engages an article as an attachment object by a relative sliding movement, and a biasing portion provided between the article and the holding member absorbs rattle,
the biasing portion has a flexible piece provided on one of the holding member and the article and abutting against the other, and at a connection portion between the one of the holding member and the article and the flexible piece, one end in a plate width direction is a first connecting end and the other end is a second connecting end, and the first connecting end is formed to be located upstream of the second connecting end in a sliding movement direction of the article ,
The holding structure is also characterized in that the flexible piece has a protrusion or engaging convex portion arranged to be pressed against the object, and a curved or inclined surface formed on the end side of the protrusion or engaging convex portion that first comes into contact with the object when the object is slid relative to another . The retaining structure according to claim 1, characterized in that the retaining member is a bracket, the object to be attached is a radar, and the flexible piece is attached to the bracket and presses against the radar to bias the radar in the fore-and- aft direction of the vehicle. The holding structure according to claim 2, further comprising a protrusion provided on an upper end surface and/or a lower end surface of the radar, and a pressure piece provided on the bracket so as to be elastically swingable in correspondence with the protrusion, wherein the protrusion is pressed against a slope formed on the pressure piece when the radar is held on the bracket. The holding structure described in claim 1, characterized in that the article has a window hole for exposing the main part of the holding member or a radar attached to the main part, an engagement protrusion protruding from the inner surface of the window hole , and a curved or inclined surface formed on the end side of the engagement protrusion that first comes into contact with the engagement protrusion of the flexible piece, and the relative sliding movement causes the engagement protrusion to engage with the engagement protrusion in a pressure-contact state. The retaining structure according to claim 4, characterized in that the retaining member is a bracket for mounting the radar, the object is a protector, and the flexible piece is provided on the bracket and abuts against the protector to bias it in a direction intersecting the fore-and- aft direction of the vehicle. The retaining structure described in claim 5, characterized in that the bracket has an insertion portion that is inserted into a receiving portion provided on the protector, and a pressing piece that is provided corresponding to the insertion portion and protrudes in a direction intersecting the relative sliding movement direction, and the pressing piece presses against a rear side of the receiving portion to urge the protector in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle.

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