Vehicle underbody structure and vehicle body

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10167023-B2
Application number	US-201415512510-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 22, 2014
Priority date	Sep 22, 2014
Publication date	Jan 1, 2019
Grant date	Jan 1, 2019

Abstract

The vehicle underbody structure ( 20 ) includes a floor panel ( 24 ) and an underbody reinforcement element ( 26 ), the underbody reinforcement element ( 26 ) including at least a front transversal beam ( 112 a, 112 b ) and a rear transversal beam ( 114 ), the transversal beams ( 112 a, 112 b, 114 ) extending parallel to each other and being attached to the floor panel ( 24 ). The front transversal beam ( 112 a, 112 b ) and the rear transversal beam ( 114 ) are made of a press hardening steel having a tensile strength higher than or equal to 1300 MPa.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A vehicle underbody structure, comprising:
a floor panel; and
an underbody reinforcement element, said underbody reinforcement element comprising at least a front transversal beam and a rear transversal beam, said front and rear transversal beams extending parallel to each other and being attached to the floor panel, wherein
the front transversal beam and the rear transversal beam are made of a press hardening steel having a tensile strength higher than or equal to 1300 Mpa,
the floor panel comprises a longitudinal floor tunnel forming a recess in the floor panel,
the underbody reinforcement element comprises
two intermediate transversal beams each extending between and parallel to the front transversal beam and the rear transversal beam on either side of the longitudinal floor tunnel
a tunnel transversal beam extending across the floor tunnel, the tunnel transversal beam being transversally unaligned with the intermediate transversal beams, so that a longitudinal offset exists between the tunnel transversal beam and the intermediate transversal beams such that a transversal cross-section of the vehicle underbody structure crossing the intermediate beams does not cross the tunnel transversal beam.

2. The vehicle underbody structure as recited in claim 1 , wherein the two intermediate transversal beams are made of a press hardening steel having a tensile strength higher than or equal to 1300 MPa.

3. The vehicle underbody structure as recited in claim 1 , wherein the underbody reinforcement element comprises at least one longitudinal beam extending from the front transversal beam to the rear transversal beam, said longitudinal beam being made of a press hardening steel having a tensile strength higher than or equal to 1300 MPa.

4. The vehicle underbody structure as recited in claim 1 , wherein the underbody reinforcement element comprises a further front transversal beam, the front transversal beam and the further front transversal beam extending transversally on either side of the floor tunnel.

5. The vehicle underbody structure as recited in claim 4 , wherein the underbody reinforcement element comprises two longitudinal beams, extending on either side of the longitudinal floor tunnel, a first of said two longitudinal beams extending from the front transversal beam to the rear transversal beam, and a second of said two longitudinal beams extending from the further front transversal beam to the rear transversal beam, said longitudinal beams being made of a press hardening steel having a tensile strength higher than or equal to 1300 MPa.

6. The vehicle underbody structure as recited in claim 5 , wherein the tunnel transversal beam extends from the first of said two longitudinal beams to the second of said two longitudinal beams and across the floor tunnel, said tunnel transversal beam being made of a press hardening steel having a tensile strength higher than or equal to 1300 MPa.

7. The vehicle underbody structure as recited in claim 4 , wherein the underbody reinforcement element comprises a single rear transversal beam extending transversally from a transversal end of the floor panel to the other transversal end of said floor panel at a longitudinal end of the floor tunnel.

8. The vehicle underbody structure as recited in claim 1 , wherein the press hardening steel is Usibor®.

9. The vehicle underbody structure as recited in claim 1 , wherein the front transversal beam and the rear transversal beam each have an open cross section, such that the underbody reinforcement element forms an opened profile, said opened profile being closed by the floor panel.

10. The vehicle underbody structure as recited in claim 1 , wherein the floor panel is made of a material different than a material of the underbody reinforcement element.

11. The vehicle underbody structure as recited in claim 1 , further comprising at least one connection element of the vehicle underbody structure to a pick-up chassis, said connection element being attached to one of the front or rear transversal beam of the underbody reinforcement element.

12. A vehicle body comprising:
at least a vehicle door frame; and
a vehicle underbody structure according to claim 1 , wherein the vehicle door frame comprises at least a front pillar, a center pillar and a side rail joining the front pillar and the center pillar, the front pillar being attached to the front transversal beam of the underbody reinforcement element and the center pillar being attached to the rear transversal beam of the underbody reinforcement element.

13. The vehicle body as recited in claim 12 , wherein the door frame further comprises a lowerside sill joining the front pillar to the center pillar, the front and rear transversal beams of the underbody reinforcement element being welded to said lowerside sill.

14. The vehicle body as recited in claim 13 , wherein the intermediate transversal beams are made of a press hardening steel having a tensile strength higher than or equal to 1300 MPa, the intermediate transversal beams being attached to the lowerside sill of the door frame.

15. The vehicle body as recited in claim 13 , wherein the lowerside sill comprises an outer lowerside sill part and an inner lowerside sill part, said front and rear transversal beams of the underbody reinforcement element being welded to said inner lowerside sill part.

16. The vehicle body as recited in claim 15 , wherein said inner lowerside sill part is made of a steel having a fully martensitic microstructure, said steel having a tensile strength higher than or equal to 1700 MPa.

17. The vehicle underbody structure as recited in claim 1 , wherein
the underbody reinforcement element comprises a further front transversal beam, the front transversal beam and the further front transversal beam extending transversally on either side of the floor tunnel,
the underbody reinforcement element comprises two longitudinal beams, extending on either side of the longitudinal floor tunnel, a first of said two longitudinal beams extending from the front transversal beam to the rear transversal beam, and a second of said two longitudinal beams extending from the further front transversal beam to the rear transversal beam,
the tunnel transversal beam extending from the first longitudinal beam to the second longitudinal beam.

18. The vehicle underbody structure as recited in claim 5 , wherein the first of said two longitudinal beams extends from a front end assembled to the first of said two front transversal beams, to a rear end assembled to the rear transversal beam, and the second of said two longitudinal beams extends from a front end assembled to the second of said two front transversal beams, to a rear end assembled to the rear transversal beam.

19. The vehicle underbody structure as recited in claim 5 , wherein the two intermediate transversal beams are made of a press hardening steel having a tensile strength higher than or equal to 1300 MPa,
a first of said two intermediate transversal beams, extending from an inner end assembled to a first of said two longitudinal beams to an outer end assembled to a first side of the floor panel, a second of said two intermediate transversal beams, extending from an inner end assembled to a second of said two longitudinal beams to an outer end assembled to a second side of the floor panel, opposite the first side.

20. A vehicle underbody structure, comprising:
a floor panel; and
an underbody reinforcement element, said underbody reinforcement element comprising a

Assignees

• Arcelormittal

Inventors

• Schneider Nicolas
• Drouadaine Yves

Classifications

• B62D29/007

  predominantly of special steel or specially treated steel, e.g. stainless steel or locally surface hardened steel · CPC title

• B62D25/2036 Primary

  the subunits being side panels, sills or pillars (B62D21/157 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B62D25/20 Primary

  Floors or bottom sub-units {(sub-frames for mounting engine or suspensions B62D21/11; drip trays F16N31/006)} · CPC title

• B62D21/02

  comprising longitudinally or transversely arranged frame members · CPC title

• B62D25/025

  Side sills thereof · CPC title