JP7738966B2 - Mounting structure for in-vehicle equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a mounting structure for in-vehicle equipment.

Patent Document 1 discloses a support structure for auxiliary parts in which a case housing the auxiliary parts is attached to an instrument panel. In this support structure, the case housing the auxiliary parts is fixed to the upper surface of the flat portion of the instrument panel via a bracket. More specifically, from top to bottom, the bracket attached to the case, the support plate, the flat portion of the instrument panel, and the retaining plate are arranged so that they overlap. The case housing the auxiliary parts is fixed to the upper surface of the flat portion with screws that pass through these overlapping points.

Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open Publication No. 5-54055

It is desirable to retrofit vehicle equipment such as the above-mentioned auxiliary parts by fitting them into the instrument panel. In the support structure for the above-mentioned auxiliary parts, the auxiliary part case is mounted on a flat portion of the instrument panel. This means that the auxiliary part protrudes significantly from the surface of the instrument panel, and the auxiliary part can only be mounted in limited locations such as flat portions.

To install vehicle equipment in a fitted state in the instrument panel, an opening corresponding to the size and shape of the vehicle equipment must be formed in the instrument panel. Forming this opening is a complicated process.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a mounting structure for vehicle-mounted equipment that allows vehicle-mounted equipment to be easily retrofitted in a state where it is fitted into the instrument panel.

One embodiment of the present invention relates to a mounting structure for vehicle-mounted equipment, which includes an instrument panel located in front of the driver's seat inside the vehicle cabin, a recess provided in the instrument panel, a cover member removably attached to the recess, and vehicle-mounted equipment attached to the cover member.

In the above-mentioned mounting structure for vehicle-mounted equipment, a removable cover member is provided in the recess of the instrument panel, allowing the removed cover member to be easily modified to suit the size and shape of the vehicle-mounted equipment. The vehicle-mounted equipment can be mounted in a fitted state in the recess by attaching the cover member to the instrument panel. This reduces or eliminates the vehicle-mounted equipment from protruding into the vehicle cabin from the instrument panel. Furthermore, the position where the cover member is provided on the instrument panel is not limited to a specific location such as a flat portion. This allows for greater flexibility in the mounting location of vehicle-mounted equipment compared to conventional technology.

FIG. 1 is a front view of an instrument panel used in a mounting structure for vehicle-mounted equipment according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is an enlarged view showing the periphery of the service hole cover in the instrument panel of FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a control panel of a refrigerator used in the mounting structure for vehicle-mounted equipment according to the first embodiment, as viewed from the front side. FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of the control panel of FIG. 3 as seen from the side. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VV in FIG.

The mounting structure for vehicle-mounted equipment according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 5. The same reference numerals in the figures indicate the same objects. In each figure, arrows indicate "FR" (front of the vehicle), "RR" (rear of the vehicle), "LH" (left of the vehicle), "RH" (right of the vehicle), "UP" (upper part of the vehicle), and "LWR" (lower part of the vehicle). This embodiment will be described using an example in which the vehicle is a refrigerated truck and the vehicle-mounted equipment is a control panel for a refrigeration unit mounted on the refrigerated truck. The present invention is not limited to these examples, but is defined by the claims, and all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims are intended to be included.

≪Overall structure≫
As shown in Fig. 1, the mounting structure for in-vehicle equipment according to the embodiment includes an instrument panel 1 provided in front of the driver's seat inside the vehicle cabin, a recess 2 provided in the instrument panel 1, and a cover member 3 detachably attached to the recess 2. One of the features of the mounting structure for in-vehicle equipment is that the in-vehicle equipment 4 shown in Figs. 3 and 4 is attached to the cover member 3. Details of each part of the mounting structure for in-vehicle equipment according to the embodiment will be described below.

Vehicles
Vehicles to which the mounting structure for on-vehicle equipment according to the embodiment can be applied are not particularly limited as long as they are equipped with an instrument panel 1 inside the vehicle cabin. Examples of such vehicles include passenger cars, freight vehicles such as vans and trucks, passenger transport commercial vehicles such as buses and microbuses, and specially equipped vehicles. Specially equipped vehicles include refrigerated trucks, refrigerator trucks, crane trucks, tank trucks, vehicle transporters, and concrete mixer trucks. The vehicle in this example is a cab-over refrigerated truck equipped with a refrigerator unit. Furthermore, the vehicle may be an automobile equipped with an internal combustion engine, or an electric vehicle such as a hybrid vehicle or an electric vehicle.

<Instrument panel>
The instrument panel 1 is an instrument panel located in front of the driver's seat inside the vehicle. The instrument panel 1 includes various meters necessary for driving, an air conditioning system, an audio system, a glove compartment, and the like. The instrument panel 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes mounting holes 10 for the meters, a through-hole 11 for the steering column, a navigation system display 13, mounting holes 14 for audio and air conditioning system control panels, and a glove compartment 15. The glove compartment 15 is located in front of the passenger seat. The glove compartment 15 includes a rotatable lid 151. The lid 151 opens and closes the glove compartment 15 by rotating around a shaft located at the lower edge of the glove compartment 15. This shaft extends in the vehicle width direction.

<Concave>
Furthermore, the instrument panel 1 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 has a recess 2. In this example, the recess 2 is a storage compartment provided above the glove compartment 15. This storage compartment is a recessed area toward the front of the vehicle when viewed from the passenger seat. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 2 , the recess 2 has an upper surface 21, a lower surface 22, a back surface 23, and left and right side surfaces 24, 24. The upper surface 21 and the lower surface 22 are configured as surfaces that slope downward from the rear to the front of the vehicle. The back surface 23 connects the edges of the upper surface 21 and the lower surface 22 toward the front of the vehicle. The left and right side surfaces 24, 24 have a smaller depth than the upper surface 21 and the lower surface 22. The front of the storage compartment in this example is open and has no lid. The storage compartment may be located not only above the glove compartment 15 but also in other locations on the instrument panel 1, such as in front of the driver's seat. Another example of the recess 2 is a storage compartment with a lid on the front surface that opens and closes the opening. Such storage compartments with lids are generally called passenger seat upper boxes or instrument upper boxes.

<Cover material>
As shown in FIG. 2 , the recess 2 is provided with a removable cover member 3. In this example, the cover member 3 is located at the rear of the storage compartment. More specifically, the cover member 3 is formed by a portion of the upper surface 21 and a portion of the rear surface 23 of the recess 2. That is, when viewed from the side of the vehicle, the cross section of the cover member 3 is approximately L-shaped. When viewed from the front of the vehicle from the passenger seat, the outline of the cover member 3 is rectangular. In this example, the cover member 3 is a service hole cover 31 that is removed when connecting a wire harness, etc. When installing the on-board device 4 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 , the cover member 3 is removed from the instrument panel 1 and processed to accommodate the on-board device 4. One example of this processing is to provide an opening in the cover member 3 to fit the on-board device 4.

≪In-vehicle equipment≫
The on-board equipment 4 includes various devices that are mounted on the vehicle by being attached to the instrument panel 1. Specific examples of the on-board equipment 4 include a navigation system, a display, an audio system, and a radio. In the case of a specially equipped vehicle, an example of the on-board equipment 4 is a control panel for a part or device that is suited to a specific use or purpose. In this example, the on-board equipment 4 is a control panel 41 for a refrigerator.

An example of a refrigerator control panel 41 is shown in Figures 3 and 4. This control panel 41 is a generally block-shaped component. As shown in Figure 3, the front of the control panel 41 has operation buttons 42 for adjusting the refrigerator temperature and a display screen 43 for displaying the set temperature, etc. As shown in Figure 4, the back of the control panel 41 has a mounting portion 44 for cantilevering the control panel 41 on the instrument panel 1, and a connector for connecting the control panel 41's electrical wires. The connector is not shown. Cushioning material 45 is provided on the top and bottom surfaces of the control panel 41. When the on-board equipment 4 is attached to the cover member 3, the cushioning material 45 prevents the cover member 3 and the on-board equipment 4 from coming into contact with each other due to vehicle vibrations, causing abnormal noise. The cushioning material 45 used in this example is felt.

This control panel 41 is attached to the cover member 3, which has been processed as described above. Furthermore, the cover member 3 with the control panel 41 attached is attached to the recess 2. Figure 5 shows the cover member 3 with the control panel 41 attached attached to the recess 2. As shown in Figure 5, most of the control panel 41 is attached to the instrument panel 1 while housed inside the recess 2. Also, although not shown in Figure 5, a portion of the rear side of the control panel 41 is attached while fitting into the back side of the instrument panel 1. By attaching the control panel 41 in this manner, the cushioning material 45 provided on the top and bottom surfaces of the control panel 41 is compressed between the cover member 3 or the recess 2 and the opening edge.

<In-vehicle device ejection prevention structure>
Additionally, it is preferable to provide a structure that prevents the on-board device 4 from projecting into the vehicle interior during a frontal collision. In the mounting structure for the on-board device 4 of this embodiment, the lid 151 of the glove box 15 described above is used to prevent the on-board device 4 from projecting out. For example, when viewed from the side of the vehicle, the upper edge of the lid 151 in the closed state may be positioned rearward and above the lower edge of the on-board device 4. Figure 5 shows the vertical overlap L between the lower edge of the on-board device 4 and the lid 151 of the glove box 15. The overlap L must be long enough to prevent the on-board device 4 from projecting out while not interfering with the operation of the on-board device 4. An example of the overlap L is 5 mm to 10 mm. The lid 151 of the glove box 15 is opened and closed by rotating its upper edge in an arc. However, when the lid 151 is closed, a locking mechanism (not shown) prevents the lid 151 from opening easily. Therefore, even if the on-board device 4 attempts to move rearward due to a load from the front of the vehicle during a frontal collision, the on-board device 4 can be prevented from jumping out to a certain extent. The structure for preventing the on-board device 4 from jumping out may be a member other than the lid 151 of the glove box 15. For example, a protrusion located rearward and above the lower edge of the on-board device 4 may be provided on part of the instrument panel 1.

<<Installation procedure for in-vehicle devices>>
The procedure for installing the vehicle equipment is as follows:
(a) The cover member 3 provided in the recess 2 is removed.
(b) The removed cover member 3 is processed according to the in-vehicle device 4. For example, an opening according to the size and shape of the in-vehicle device 4 is formed in the cover member 3.
(c) The wire harness (not shown) is pulled out from the opening of the instrument panel 1 with the cover member 3 removed.
(d) Pass the wire harness through the opening of the removed cover member 3.
(e) The cover member 3 with the wire harness passed through it is attached to the opening of the instrument panel 1.
(f) Connect the in-vehicle device 4 to the wire harness.
(g) The in-vehicle device 4 connected to the wire harness is installed in the opening of the cover member 3.

Effect
The mounting structure for vehicle-mounted equipment according to the above embodiment can achieve the following effects.
(1) Excellent workability in installing the on-board device 4. By providing the detachable cover member 3 in the recess 2 of the instrument panel 1, the removed cover member 3 can be easily processed according to the size and shape of the on-board device 4. In other words, there is no need to directly process the instrument panel 1 itself. As a result, by attaching the cover member 3 with the on-board device 4 mounted thereon to the instrument panel 1, the on-board device 4 can be easily installed on the instrument panel 1.

(2) The on-board device 4 is less likely to protrude into the vehicle cabin. By attaching the cover member 3 with the on-board device 4 mounted to the instrument panel 1, the on-board device 4 can be installed in a fitted state in the recess 2. Therefore, the on-board device 4 is less likely to protrude into the vehicle cabin from the instrument panel 1. In particular, by using the recess 2 as a storage compartment, the on-board device 4 is less likely to protrude into the vehicle cabin even if it is installed in part of the recess 2.

(3) The degree of freedom in the mounting location of the on-vehicle device 4 is greater than with conventional technology. The position at which the cover member 3 is mounted can be selected from various positions on the instrument panel 1. Therefore, the position at which the cover member 3 is mounted is not limited to a specific location such as a flat portion of the instrument panel 1. In particular, when retrofitting a control panel 41 for a specially equipped vehicle such as a refrigerated truck to a standard vehicle, by using a storage compartment as the mounting location for the control panel 41, the control panel 41 can be mounted even if there is insufficient other mounting space.

(4) If the cover member 3 is a service hole cover 31, it can be easily attached and detached to the instrument panel 1. This is because the service hole cover 31 is designed to be detachable in advance. In particular, if the cover member 3 is a service hole cover 31, it is easy to route the wire harness connecting the in-vehicle device 4 to the connection target, and to connect the in-vehicle device 4 or the connection target to the wire harness.

(5) By providing a structure to prevent the on-board equipment 4 from flying out, it is possible to prevent the on-board equipment 4 from flying out into the passenger compartment during a frontal collision. In particular, by using the lid 151 of the glove compartment 15 as this structure to prevent the on-board equipment 4 from flying out, it is possible to easily prevent the on-board equipment 4 from flying out without significantly modifying the structure of the instrument panel 1.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Instrument panel 10 Mounting holes for meters 11 Through-hole for steering column 13 Display 14 Mounting holes for audio and air conditioning control panels 15 Glove box 151 Lid 2 Recess 21 Top surface 22 Bottom surface 23 Back surface 24 Side surface 3 Cover member 31 Service hole cover 4 On-board equipment 41 Refrigerator control panel 42 Operation buttons 43 Display screen 44 Mounting portion 45 Cushioning material L Overlap space

Claims (1)

an instrument panel provided in front of a driver's seat in a vehicle interior;
a recess provided in the instrument panel;
a cover member detachably attached to the recess;
an in-vehicle device attached to the cover member ,
The cover member is a service hole cover .