Vehicle energy absorbing member

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2020171927-A1
Application number	US-201816206013-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Nov 30, 2018
Priority date	Nov 30, 2018
Publication date	Jun 4, 2020
Grant date	—

Abstract

A vehicle door assembly includes an inner door panel, an outer door panel and an energy absorbing member. The outer door panel being configured such that at least a portion of an outer periphery thereof is fixed to an outer periphery of the inner door panel, the inner door panel and the outer door panel defining a hollow interior therebetween. The hollow interior has an upper end and a lower end. The energy absorbing member is installed within the hollow interior between the inner door panel and the outer door panel. The energy absorbing member has an outboard end surface with a first predetermined surface area and an inboard end surface having a second predetermined surface area greater than the first predetermined surface area. The energy absorbing member is spaced apart from the upper end of the hollow interior and being spaced apart from the lower end of the hollow interior.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A vehicle door assembly, comprising:
an inner door panel; an outer door panel being configured such that at least a portion of an outer periphery thereof is fixed to an outer periphery of the inner door panel, the inner door panel and the outer door panel defining a hollow interior therebetween, the hollow interior having an upper end and a lower end; and an energy absorbing member installed within the hollow interior between the inner door panel and the outer door panel, the energy absorbing member having an outboard end surface with a first predetermined surface area and an inboard end surface having a second predetermined surface area greater than the first predetermined surface area, the energy absorbing member being spaced apart from the upper end of the hollow interior and being spaced apart from the lower end of the hollow interior.

2 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 1 , wherein
the inboard end surface of the energy absorbing member is in contact a portion of an outboard surface of the inner door panel.

3 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 2 , wherein
the inboard end surface of the energy absorbing member is directly attached to the portion of the outboard surface of the inner door panel.

4 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 1 , wherein
the outboard end surface of the energy absorbing member is spaced apart from the outer door panel in an unimpacted state.

5 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 1 , wherein
the hollow interior between the inner door panel and the outer door panel defines a forward end and a rearward end, and the inboard end surface of the energy absorbing member extends from proximate the forward end to proximate the rearward end of the hollow interior.

6 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 5 , further comprising
a reinforcing bar installed within the hollow interior, a forward end of the reinforcing bar being fixed to a surface of at least one of the inner door panel or the outer door panel proximate the forward end of the hollow interior and a rearward end of the reinforcing bar being fixed to a surface of at least one of the inner door panel or the outer door panel proximate the rearward end of the hollow interior.

7 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 6 , wherein
the outboard end surface of the energy absorbing member contacts the reinforcing bar at a location spaced apart from the rearward end and spaced apart from the forward end of the hollow interior.

8 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 1 , wherein
the energy absorbing member has an overall trapezoid shape as viewed from above, with the inboard end surface and the outboard end surface extending approximately parallel to one another.

9 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 8 , wherein
the energy absorbing member has a forward-facing surface and a rearward facing surface, each of the forward-facing surface and the rearward facing surface extending from the inboard end surface to the outboard end surface.

10 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 9 , wherein
the forward-facing surface of the energy absorbing member has a surface area greater than a surface area of the rearward facing surface.

11 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 9 , wherein
the forward-facing surface of the energy absorbing member has a surface area less than a surface area of the rearward facing surface.

12 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 8 , wherein
the energy absorbing member is formed as a single, solid, unitary element.

13 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 8 , wherein
the energy absorbing member is formed with a plurality of layers, each layer extending parallel to the inboard facing surface and the outboard facing surface, each of the plurality of layers of the energy absorbing member has a differing value of compressibility.

14 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 13 , wherein
an inboard layer of the plurality of layers of the energy absorbing member that defines the inboard end surface has a high resistance to compressibility, and an outboard layer of the plurality of layers of the energy absorbing member that defines the outboard end surface, has a low resistance to compressibility, such that inboard layer is stiffer than the outboard layer such that the outboard layer compresses more easily that the inboard layer in response to an impacting force acting thereon.

15 . The vehicle door assembly according to claim 14 , wherein
the plurality of layers of the energy absorbing member each have a greater resistance to compressibility than an adjacent outboard one of the plurality of layers of the energy absorbing member.

16 . A vehicle, comprising
a vehicle body structure that includes a first pillar structure and a second pillar structure with a door opening defined between the first and second pillar structures; a vehicle door according to claim 1 , wherein the energy absorbing member is positioned within the hollow interior between the inner and outer door panels such that in response to impacting forces acting on the outer door panel, the energy absorbing member is configured to absorb at least a portion of the impacting forces and transfer at least another portion of the impacting forces through the vehicle door to the first and second pillar structures.

17 . The vehicle according to claim 16 , wherein
the vehicle door assembly further includes a reinforcing bar installed within the hollow interior, a forward end of the reinforcing bar being fixed to a surface of at least one of the inner door panel or the outer door panel proximate the forward end of the hollow interior and a rearward end of the reinforcing bar being fixed to a surface of at least one of the inner door panel or the outer door panel proximate the rearward end of the hollow interior.

18 . The vehicle according to claim 17 , wherein
the reinforcing bar is spaced apart from the outer door panel with the vehicle door assembly in a non-impacted state.

19 . The vehicle according to claim 18 , wherein
the vehicle door assembly is configured such that the outboard end surface of the energy absorbing member contacts the reinforcing bar at a location spaced apart from the rearward end and spaced apart from the forward end of the hollow interior, and in response to the impacting forces acting on the outer door panel, the outer door panel deforms contacting the reinforcing bar and transmits at least a portion of the impacting forces thereto.

20 . The vehicle according to claim 16 , wherein
the energy absorbing member is formed with a plurality of layers, each layer extending parallel to the inboard facing surface and the outboard facing surface, and the plurality of layers of the energy absorbing member each have a greater resistance to compressibility than an adjacent outboard one of the plurality of layers of the energy absorbing member.

Assignees

• Nissan North America Inc

Inventors

• Akarca Semsettin Subutay
• Grattan Patrick

Classifications

• B60J5/0443

  Beams · CPC title

• B32B2307/56

  Damping, energy absorption · CPC title

• B60J5/0461 Primary

  characterised by a pre-defined mode of deformation or displacement in order to absorb impact · CPC title

• B32B7/022

  Mechanical properties · CPC title

• B32B3/26

  characterised by a particular shape of the outline of the cross-section of a continuous layer; characterised by a layer with cavities or internal voids {(foam layer B32B5/18; layer of synthetic resin characterised by fillers that create voids or cavities B32B27/205); characterised by an apertured layer} · CPC title