JP7738967B2 - Vehicle structure - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a vehicle structure equipped with a stay member and a holder member.

Patent Document 1 discloses a rod holder that holds a support rod for a vehicle's rear shelf. The support rod is a type of stay member that maintains the position of some component, in that it fixes the rear shelf to a predetermined position on the vehicle body. The rod holder has a groove-shaped guide portion that opens upward, and a clip portion formed below the guide portion. The guide portion gradually narrows toward the clip portion. The clip portion is wider than the lower portion of the guide portion. With this configuration, a support rod lowered from above the rod holder can easily be guided to the clip portion via the guide portion.

Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open Publication No. 6-25612

With the configuration described in Patent Document 1, depending on the width of the support rod, it may be difficult to push the support rod into the rod holder.

Some vehicles have rod-shaped stay members that are rotatably attached to the vehicle. Examples of such stay members include hood support rods that support the engine hood. These stay members are normally held in a holder member and are removed from the holder member as needed. Stay members that are used frequently are frequently attached and removed from the holder member, so it is desirable for them to be easily held in the holder member.

One object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle structure that includes a stay member that is rotatably attached to the vehicle body and a holder member that makes it easy to hold the stay member.

A vehicle structure according to one aspect of the present invention includes:
a rod-shaped stay member rotatably attached to the vehicle;
a holder member of an elastic body arranged within a rotation range of the stay member of the vehicle,
The stay member has a distal end portion, a proximal end portion, and an intermediate portion,
the base end portion is attached to the vehicle so that the tip end portion follows an arcuate trajectory,
the holder member includes a groove portion into which the intermediate portion is fitted when the stay member is rotated toward the holder member,
the groove portion includes a first portion on an opening side in a depth direction and a second portion on a bottom side of the first portion,
the width of the first portion increases from the center in the extension direction of the groove toward the base end portion of the stay member,
the minimum width of the first portion is smaller than the width of the intermediate portion;
The width of the second portion is equal to or greater than the width of the intermediate portion.

In the above vehicle structure, the width of the first portion of the groove of the holder member on the opening side increases toward the base end of the stay member. In other words, of both ends of the first portion in the extension direction, the first end located on the base end side of the stay member is wider. The first end is the part that first comes into contact with the middle part of the stay member when the stay member is tilted toward the holder member. The wide first end makes it easier to push the stay member into the groove of the holder member.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a truck bed according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic front view of the stay member and the holder member provided in the vehicle structure 1 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a holder member according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line IV-IV in FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VV in FIG. 2. FIG.

An example of an embodiment of a vehicle structure of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the terms front, back, left, and right correspond to the front, back, left, and right of the vehicle.

<Embodiment 1>
The vehicle 100 illustrated in the first embodiment is a truck. Fig. 1 shows only the side walls of the loading platform 9 when the vehicle 100 is viewed diagonally from the rear. The loading platform 9 in this example includes a left side wall 91, a right side wall 92, and two rear doors 9L and 9R. The left rear door 9L is rotatably attached to the left side wall 91 via a hinge 95. The right rear door 9R is rotatably attached to the right side wall 92 via a hinge 96.

Each of the two rear doors 9L, 9R is equipped with a vehicle structure 1 that includes a stay member 2 and a holder member 3. The two vehicle structures 1 have the same configuration. The following explanation will focus on the vehicle structure 1 equipped on the rear door 9L. The stay member 2 is a member that keeps the rear door 9L open. The detailed function of the stay member 2 will be described later. The holder member 3 is a member that holds the stay member 2 to the rear door 9L when the stay member 2 is not in use. Each component of the vehicle structure 1 will be described in detail below.

<Stay member>
The stay member 2 is a rod-shaped member rotatably attached to the rear door 9L of the vehicle 100. As shown in FIG. 2 , the stay member 2 in this example is a long, thin plate-shaped member. The stay member 2 includes a tip portion 20, a base end portion 29, and an intermediate portion 25. The tip portion 20 constitutes one end of the stay member 2 in the extension direction. The tip portion 20 in this example has a generally T-shape that protrudes in a direction perpendicular to the extension direction of the stay member 2.

The intermediate portion 25 is a straight, plate-like piece. The intermediate portion 25 connects the distal end portion 20 and the proximal end portion 29, and is also the portion that fits into the holder member 3, which will be described later.

The base end 29 constitutes the end of the stay member 2 opposite the tip end 20. In this example, the base end 29 is formed in an annular shape. More specifically, the base end 29 is composed of two branched portions 29L, 29R that branch off from the end of the intermediate portion 25, and a connecting portion 29C that connects the ends of the branched portions 29L, 29R. The connecting portion 29C extends in a direction perpendicular to the extension direction of the intermediate portion 25.

The base end 29 is attached to the rear door 9L so that the tip end 20 describes an arcuate trajectory generally in the thickness direction of the paper in Figure 2. Specifically, the base end 29 is attached to the rear door 9L by a plate-shaped fixing member 5. The fixing member 5 has a curved portion 50 and two flat portions 51 and 52 that sandwich the curved portion 50. The flat portions 51 and 52 are fixed to the rear door 9L by screws 53 and 54. As shown in Figure 4, the curved portion 50 is curved in a semicircular arc when the fixing member 5 is viewed from the side. The connecting portion 29C of the base end 29 is located in the space surrounded by the surface of the rear door 9L and the curved portion 50. Therefore, the tip end 20 can rotate in an arcuate trajectory around the axis of the connecting portion 29C as the rotation axis.

The stay member 2 is made of a highly rigid material. In this example, the stay member 2 is made of a metal such as an aluminum alloy. Unlike this example, at least a portion of the stay member 2 may be coated with resin. For example, a resin coating may be formed on at least one of the tip portion 20 and the middle portion 25.

In this example, the stay member 2 is used to keep the rear door 9L open. The following explains how the stay member 2 is used. When the rear door 9L is opened, the stay member 2 is removed from the holder member 3. The rear door 9L is rotated close to the left side wall 91, and the tip 20 of the stay member 2 is hooked onto the locking portion 99. The locking portion 99 is fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the left side wall 91. Engagement of the tip 20 of the stay member 2 with the locking portion 99 keeps the rear door 9L open.

<Holder parts>
The holder member 3 is fixed on the surface of the rear door 9L within the rotation range of the stay member 2. The holder member 3 is an elastic member that holds the stay member 2 when the stay member 2 is not in use. In this example, the holder member 3 is located lower in the vehicle than the base end portion 29 of the stay member 2, and the stay member 2 is fixed to the holder member 3 by rotating the stay member 2 from above the vehicle toward the holder member 3. Unlike this example, the holder member 3 may be located higher in the vehicle than the stay member 2. In the following description, the rear door 9L side of the holder member 3 is referred to as the bottom side, and the side opposite the rear door 9L is referred to as the opening side.

The overall shape of the holder member 3 is generally cylindrical and has a groove 4. More specifically, it comprises a disk-shaped base 30 and two walls 31, 32. The groove 4 is formed between the two walls 31, 32. Protruding portions 311, 321 are provided on the inner circumferential surfaces of the distal ends of the walls 31, 32. The inner circumferential surface of the wall 31 is the surface facing the wall 32. The inner circumferential surface of the wall 32 is the surface facing the wall 31. When the holder member 3 is viewed from above, the protruding portions 311, 321 have an arc shape that convex toward the center of the holder member 3. In other words, when the holder member 3 is viewed from above, the protruding portions 311 and 321 have arc shapes that are symmetrical across the central axis of the groove 4.

The holder member 3 is made of, for example, natural rubber or synthetic rubber. In this example, the holder member 3 is made of ethylene propylene diene rubber. The holder member 3 in this example further includes a collar 35 that receives pressure from a screw 36 that secures the holder member 3 to the rear door 9L. The collar 35 is a cylindrical member that includes an annular flange at the end of the cylinder. The collar 35 is made of a rigid material such as metal or hard plastic. In this example, the material of the collar 35 is free-cutting steel.

The middle portion 25 of the stay member 2 is fitted into the groove portion 4 formed between the two wall portions 31, 32 when the stay member 2 is rotated toward the holder member 3. In other words, the groove portion 4 is a groove that extends in the direction along which the middle portion 25 of the stay member 2 extends.

As shown in Figure 5, the groove portion 4 is divided into a first portion 41 and a second portion 42. Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view of the holder member 3 taken along a cross section that includes the center of the extension direction of the groove portion 4 and is perpendicular to the extension direction. The first portion 41 is the portion of the groove portion 4 that is sandwiched between the two protruding portions 311, 321. In other words, the first portion 41 is the portion of the groove portion 4 that is closer to the opening in the depth direction. The second portion 42 is the portion of the groove portion 4 that is sandwiched between the inner circumferential surfaces of the wall portions 31 and 32. In other words, the second portion 42 is the portion closer to the bottom than the first portion 41.

As shown in Figures 2 and 5, the first portion 41 is sandwiched between the opposing arc-shaped protrusions 311, 321. Therefore, as shown in Figure 2, the width of the first portion 41 increases from the center of the extension direction of the groove portion 4 toward the first and second ends. The first end is the end toward the base end 29 of the stay member 2, i.e., the end toward the top of the page. The second end is the end toward the tip end 20 of the stay member 2, i.e., the end opposite the first end. The holder member 3 in this example has a shape that is symmetrical above and below the center of the extension direction of the groove portion 4. Therefore, it does not matter whether one end or the other end of the groove portion 4 is attached facing upward toward the vehicle. In other words, the holder member 3 can be attached without regard to the top or bottom of the extension direction of the groove portion 4. Unlike this example, the width of the first portion 41 may be constant from the center to the second end.

As shown in Figure 5, the width of the first portion 41 in this example gradually narrows as it approaches the depth of the groove 4. That is, the width of the first portion 41 is wider on the opening side and narrower on the bottom side. This configuration makes it easier to fit the stay member 2 into the groove 4.

The width of the first portion 41 having the above-described shape is smallest at the center of the groove 4 in the extension direction and at the deepest point in the depth direction. As shown in FIG. 2, the minimum width D1 of the first portion 41 is smaller than the width W of the intermediate portion 25 of the stay member 2. On the other hand, the maximum width D12 of the first portion 41 at the deepest point in the depth direction may be larger, smaller, or the same as the width W of the intermediate portion 25. The maximum width D12 affects the ease of attaching the stay member 2 to the groove 4, so it is preferably equal to or larger than the width W. In this example, the maximum width D12 is larger than the width W.

The width of the second portion 42 increases from the center in the extension direction of the groove portion 4 toward the first and second ends. As shown in Figure 5, the width of the second portion 42 is uniform in the depth direction of the second portion 42. Therefore, the minimum width D2 of the second portion 42 is the width of the second portion 42 at the center in the extension direction of the groove portion 4. This width D2 is equal to or greater than the width W (Figure 2) of the intermediate portion 25. In this example, the width D2 is the same as the width W. Unlike this example, if the width D2 were less than the width W, the intermediate portion 25 would press the two walls 31, 32 away from each other, which could cause the first portion 41 of the groove portion 4 to open.

The dimensions of the groove 4 described above satisfy the following relationship.
The minimum width D1 of the first portion 41<the width W of the intermediate portion 25≦the minimum width D2 of the second portion 42
By having the dimensions of each part satisfy the above inequality relationship, when the stay member 2 is tilted and pushed into the holder member 3, the stay member 2 can be easily pushed into the groove portion 4 of the holder member 3. This is because the side of the groove portion 4 onto which the stay member 2 tilts is wider. Furthermore, once the stay member 2 is pushed into the second portion 42 of the groove portion 4, the stay member 2 will not come off the holder member 3 due to vibrations of the vehicle 100. This is because the minimum width D1 of the first portion 41 is narrower than the width of the intermediate portion 25 of the stay member 2, and therefore the intermediate portion 25 gets caught on the step between the first portion 41 and the second portion 42.

Here, if the thickness of the stay member 2 is thin, rattle may occur between the second portion 42 of the groove portion 4 and the stay member 2. In this case, due to vibrations of the vehicle 100, etc., the intermediate portion 25 of the stay member 2 and the curved portion 50 of the fixing member 5 (see FIG. 4) may come into intermittent contact, easily generating abnormal noise. To solve this problem, the holder member 3 of this example further includes protrusions 33 and 34 (see FIGS. 3 and 4). The protrusion 33 is provided at a first end of the bottom surface of the groove portion 4. The protrusion 34 is provided at a second end of the bottom surface of the groove portion 4. The protrusions 33 and 34 are plate-shaped members that protrude upward from the base portion 30 of the holder member 3. The protrusions 33 and 34 are integrally formed with the holder member 3 and are made of an elastic material. When the intermediate portion 25 of the stay member 2 is positioned in the second portion 42 of the groove portion 4, the protrusions 33 and 34 elastically deform and press the intermediate portion 25 upward. The intermediate portion 25 is sandwiched between the protrusions 33, 34 and the undersides of the overhanging portions 311, 321. As a result, vibration of the stay member 2 is suppressed, and the generation of the above-mentioned abnormal noise is suppressed. Considering the role of the protrusions 33, 34, it is preferable that the distance between the tips of the protrusions 33, 34 and the undersides of the overhanging portions 311, 321 be equal to or less than the thickness of the intermediate portion 25.

Unlike this example, the holder member 3 may have only one of the protrusions 33 and 34.

<Other Embodiments>
The vehicle 100 equipped with the vehicle structure 1 is not limited to a truck. The vehicle 100 may be a bus or a passenger car.

The stay member 2 that constitutes the vehicle structure 1 is not limited to a configuration that maintains the open state of a door. For example, the stay member 2 may be a hood support rod that maintains the open state of an engine hood.

The tip end 20 of the stay member 2 may be attached to the vehicle 100 so as to trace an orbit along a portion of a spherical surface. In this case, the base end 29 is rotatably attached to the vehicle 100 by a universal joint such as a ball and socket. The cross-sectional shape of the middle portion 25 of the stay member 2 may also be circular. The width of the middle portion 25 with a circular cross-sectional shape is the same as the diameter of the circle.

1 Vehicle structure 2 Stay member 20 Tip portion 25 Middle portion 29 Base end portion 29C Connecting portion 29L, 29R Branch portion W Width 3 Holder member 30 Base portion 31, 32 Wall portion 311, 321 Projecting portion 33, 34 Protruding portion 35 Collar 36 Screw 4 Groove portion 41 First portion D1 Minimum width D12 Maximum width 42 Second portion D2 Minimum width 5 Fixing member 50 Curved portion 51, 52 Flat portion 53, 54 Screw 9 Cargo bed 9L, 9R Rear door 91 Left side wall 92 Right side wall 95, 96 Hinge 99 Locking portion 100 Vehicle

Claims (1)

a rod-shaped stay member rotatably attached to the vehicle;
a holder member of an elastic body arranged within a rotation range of the stay member of the vehicle,
the stay member is a plate-like member having a distal end portion, a proximal end portion, and an intermediate portion,
the base end portion is attached to the vehicle so that the tip end portion follows an arcuate trajectory,
the holder member includes two wall portions and a groove portion formed between the two wall portions and into which the intermediate portion is fitted when the stay member is rotated toward the holder member,
an arc-shaped protrusion that is convex toward the central axis of the groove when the holder member is viewed from the front is provided on an inner peripheral surface of each of the two wall portions at a tip end thereof,
the groove portion includes a first portion on an opening side in a depth direction and a second portion on a bottom side of the first portion,
the first portion is a portion sandwiched between the two arc-shaped protruding portions facing each other,
the width of the first portion increases from the center in the extension direction of the groove toward the base end portion and the tip end portion of the stay member,
the minimum width of the first portion is smaller than the width of the intermediate portion;
The vehicle structure, wherein the width of the second portion is equal to or greater than the width of the intermediate portion.