Vehicle body rear structure

Abstract

A vehicle body rear structure includes a lower cross member joined to the lower surface of a rear floor panel, and an upper cross member joined to the upper surface of the rear floor panel along the lower cross member. The lower cross member forms a closed section together with the rear floor panel, and is connected to front mounting portions on both sides. The upper cross member forms a closed section together with the rear floor panel. A rear flange of the lower cross member and a front flange of the upper cross member are joined to be overlaid via the rear floor panel.

Claims

1. A vehicle body rear structure comprising: rear frames extending in a longitudinal direction of a vehicle body on both sides in a vehicle width direction; mounting portions respectively provided in lower portions of the rear frames; a sub-frame mounted on the mounting portions; a rear floor panel arranged between the rear frames above the sub-frame; a vehicle accessory arranged below the rear floor panel; a lower cross member connected to the mounting portions on both sides in the vehicle width direction while being joined to a lower surface of the rear floor panel, and configured to form a closed section together with the rear floor panel; and an upper cross member joined to an upper surface of the rear floor panel along the lower cross member, and configured to form a closed section together with the rear floor panel, wherein the lower cross member and the upper cross member are arranged at different positions in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body, and a rear flange portion of the lower cross member and a front flange portion of the upper cross member are joined to be overlaid via the rear floor panel.

2. The structure according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle accessory is a fuel tank, and a valve is stored in an interior of the fuel tank, an upper portion of the valve is arranged below the upper cross member while projecting upward from an upper surface of the fuel tank, and a clearance is provided between the rear floor panel and the valve.

3. The structure according to claim 2, wherein the upper portion of the valve is supported by a valve support portion on the upper surface of the fuel tank, the valve support portion is arranged above the lower surface of the lower cross member on a rear side of the vehicle body of the lower cross member, and the upper surface of the fuel tank includes an inclined portion extending upward from below the lower cross member to the valve support portion.

4. The structure according to claim 1, further comprising: a rear bulkhead uprising from the rear frames, wherein both legs of the rear bulkhead are joined to the upper cross member to form the rear bulkhead and the upper cross member in an annular shape.

5. The structure according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle accessory is a fuel tank, and a resin member is arranged between the fuel tank and the lower cross member.

6. The structure according to claim 1, further comprising: a seat support anchor mounted on the rear floor panel and configured to support a child safety seat, wherein the seat support anchor includes a U-shaped mounting portion on which the child safety seat is mounted by bending a rod in an almost U shape, a mounting rod having a pair of free ends extending from the U-shaped mounting portion, and a floor fixing portion joined to the free ends of the mounting rod and fixed to the rear floor panel above the lower cross member.

7. The structure according to claim 6, wherein a bulkhead is provided in an interior of the lower cross member below the floor fixing portion.

8. The structure according to claim 7, wherein the floor fixing portion is fastened to the bulkhead by a fastening member.

9. The structure according to claim 1, wherein only the rear flange portion of the lower cross member and the front flange portion of the upper cross member are joined to be overlaid via the rear floor panel.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a vehicle body rear structure according to the present invention;

(2) FIG. 2 is a bottom view showing the vehicle body rear structure shown in FIG. 1;

(3) FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along a line 3-3 in FIG. 1;

(4) FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along a line 4-4 in FIG. 6;

(5) FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along a line 5-5 in FIG. 6;

(6) FIG. 6 is an enlarged view showing a portion 6 in FIG. 1; and

(7) FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along a line 7-7 in FIG. 6.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

(8) The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that front (Fr), rear (Rr), left (L), and right (R) comply with directions viewed from a driver.

(9) A vehicle body rear structure 10 according to an embodiment will be described.

(10) Note that the vehicle body rear structure 10 has an almost bilaterally symmetrical structure. Therefore, left and right members of the vehicle body rear structure 10 are denoted by the same reference numeral, the left member will be described in detail, and a description of the right member will be omitted.

(11) As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the vehicle body rear structure 10 includes rear frames 12 extending in the longitudinal direction of a vehicle body on both sides in the vehicle width direction, front mounting portions (mounting portions) 13 provided on the front sides of lower portions 12a of the respective rear frames 12, rear mounting portions (mounting portions) 14 provided on the rear sides of the lower portions 12a of the respective rear frames 12, a sub-frame 16 mounted on the front mounting portions 13 and the rear mounting portions 14, and a rear floor panel 18 arranged between the rear frames 12 above the sub-frame 16.

(12) The vehicle body rear structure 10 includes a rear bulkhead (bulkhead) 21 uprising from the rear frames 12, an upper cross member 24 arranged in the rear bulkhead 21, a lower cross member 25 arranged below the rear floor panel 18, a plurality of seat support anchors 27 and 28 mounted on the rear floor panel 18, and a fuel tank (vehicle accessory) 31 arranged below the rear floor panel 18.

(13) A rear suspension (not shown) is supported by both side frames 17 of the sub-frame 16. Thus, when the traveling direction of a vehicle Ve is changed or when the vehicle Ve turns, loads in the vehicle width direction are input to the sub-frame 16 via the rear suspension.

(14) Therefore, loads F1 in the vehicle width direction act on the front mounting portions 13 on which the sub-frame 16 is mounted. Similarly, loads F2 in the vehicle width direction act on the rear mounting portions 14 on which the sub-frame 16 is mounted.

(15) The upper cross member 24 extends in the vehicle width direction in the rear bulkhead 21, and is joined to an upper surface 18a of the rear floor panel 18. A left end 24a of the upper cross member 24 is connected to a lower end 33a of a left leg 33 of the rear bulkhead 21. A right end 24b of the upper cross member 24 is connected to a lower end 34a of a right leg 34 of the rear bulkhead 21.

(16) As shown in FIG. 3, the rear floor panel 18 is arranged above the fuel tank 31. The rear floor panel 18 includes an inclined floor portion 36 having an ascent from an upper center 31a of the fuel tank 31 in the longitudinal direction toward a rear upper portion 31b, and a flat floor portion 37 extending almost in the horizontal direction from an upper end 36a of the inclined floor portion 36 to the rear side of the vehicle body.

(17) The upper cross member 24 is arranged above the flat floor portion 37.

(18) As shown in FIG. 4, the upper cross member 24 includes a front wall 41 arranged on the front side of the vehicle body, a rear wall 42 arranged on the rear side of the vehicle body, an upper portion 43 connecting the front wall 41 and the rear wall 42, a front flange (flange portion) 44 projecting from the lower end of the front wall 41, and a rear flange 45 projecting from the lower end of the rear wall 42.

(19) The front wall 41, rear wall 42, and upper portion 43 form the upper cross member 24 to have an almost inverted U-shaped section.

(20) The front flange 44 is joined to the inclined floor portion 36 from above. Furthermore, the rear flange 45 is joined, by the flat floor portion 37, to a floor portion 38 on the rear side of the vehicle body from above. This joins the upper cross member 24 to the rear floor panel 18 from above. In this state, the upper cross member 24 and the rear floor panel 18 (especially, the flat floor portion 37) form a closed section.

(21) The lower cross member 25 is arranged along the upper cross member 24 on the front side of the vehicle body with respect to the upper cross member 24. The lower cross member 25 is joined to the inclined floor portion 36 of the rear floor panel 18 from below.

(22) Referring back to FIG. 2, the lower cross member 25 extends in the vehicle width direction, and is bridged over the left rear frame 12 and the right rear frame 12. A left end 25a of the lower cross member 25 is connected to the front mounting portion 13 of the left rear frame 12. Furthermore, a right end 25b of the lower cross member 25 is connected to the front mounting portion 13 of the right rear frame 12.

(23) Therefore, if the traveling direction of the vehicle Ve is changed or if the vehicle Ve turns, loads in the vehicle width direction which are input to the sub-frame 16 via the suspension are transferred, as loads F3, to the lower cross member 25 via the front mounting portions 13.

(24) As shown in FIG. 4, the lower cross member 25 includes a front wall 51 arranged on the front side of the vehicle body, a rear wall 52 arranged on the rear side of the vehicle body, a lower portion 53 connecting the front wall 51 and the rear wall 52, a front flange 54 projecting from the upper end of the front wall 51, and a rear flange (flange portion) 55 projecting from the upper end of the rear wall 52.

(25) The front wall 51, rear wall 52, and lower portion 53 form the lower cross member 25 to have an almost U-shaped section.

(26) The front flange 54 is joined to the inclined floor portion 36 from below. Furthermore, the rear flange 55 is joined to the inclined floor portion 36 from below. This joins the lower cross member 25 to a lower surface 18b of the rear floor panel 18 from below. In this state, the lower cross member 25 and the rear floor panel 18 (especially, the inclined floor portion 36) form a closed section.

(27) The upper cross member 24 extends along the lower cross member 25. In addition, the rear flange 55 of the lower cross member 25 and the front flange 44 of the upper cross member 24 are overlaid in the vertical direction. In this state, the rear flange 55 of the lower cross member 25 and the front flange 44 of the upper cross member 24 are joined to be overlaid via the inclined floor portion 36.

(28) The upper cross member 24 and the lower cross member 25 are formed to have closed sections, respectively.

(29) Consequently, the loads F3 in the vehicle width direction which are input from the front mounting portions 13 (see FIG. 2) on both sides in the vehicle width direction to the lower cross member 25 can be efficiently transferred to the upper cross member via the rear flange 55 of the lower cross member 25 and the front flange 44 of the upper cross member 24.

(30) The lower cross member 25 and the upper cross member 24 can support the input loads F3 in the vehicle width direction, and the rigidity, that is, the so-called support rigidity of the vehicle body rear structure 10 against the loads F3 can be ensured.

(31) Furthermore, when the lower cross member 25 and the upper cross member 24 support the loads F3 in the vehicle width direction which are input from the front mounting portions 13 (see FIG. 2) on both sides in the vehicle width direction to the lower cross member 25, the sectional area of the lower cross member 25 can be suppressed to be small.

(32) With this arrangement, a space where the vehicle accessory such as the fuel tank 31 is arranged can be ensured without increasing the vehicle height, as in the conventional technique.

(33) Furthermore, the lower cross member 25 is arranged on the front side of the vehicle body with respect to the upper cross member 24. That is, the lower cross member 25 and the upper cross member are arranged at different positions in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body.

(34) Therefore, the lower cross member 25 and the upper cross member 24 support a wide region (that is, the inclined floor portion 36 and the flat floor portion 37) of the rear floor panel 18 in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body. This increases the rigidity of the rear floor panel 18, thereby increasing the ride comfort.

(35) In the rear upper portion 31b of the fuel tank 31, a pressure regulating valve (valve) 58 is stored in an interior 57 of the fuel tank 31. The pressure regulating valve 58 regulates the pressure in the fuel tank 31. An upper portion 59 of the pressure regulating valve 58 projects upward from an upper surface 31c of the rear upper portion 31b. Furthermore, the projecting upper portion 59 is arranged below the upper cross member 24 (more specifically, below the flat floor portion 37).

(36) The lower cross member 25 and the upper cross member 24 are arranged at different positions in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body (that is, staggered). Therefore, the lower cross member 25 is arranged on the front side of the vehicle body with respect to the upper portion 59 of the pressure regulating valve 58.

(37) With this arrangement, a space 62 is ensured between the flat floor portion 37 and the rear upper portion 31b of the fuel tank 31, and the upper portion 59 of the pressure regulating valve 58 is arranged in this space 62.

(38) In this state, a clearance 61 is ensured between the flat floor portion 37 and the upper portion 59 of the pressure regulating valve 58. The space 62 can be effectively used by arranging the upper portion 59 of the pressure regulating valve 58 using the space 62 between the flat floor portion 37 and the rear upper portion 31b of the fuel tank 31.

(39) While the upper portion 59 of the pressure regulating valve 58 projects upward from the upper surface 31c of the rear upper portion 31b, a valve support portion 64 on the upper surface 31c of the rear upper portion 31b supports the upper portion 59. The valve support portion 64 is arranged above the lower portion (lower surface) 53 of the lower cross member 25 on the rear side of the vehicle body of the lower cross member 25.

(40) Furthermore, the upper surface 31c of the rear upper portion 31b includes an inclined portion 65 extending upward from a lower part 31d of the lower cross member 25 to the valve support portion 64.

(41) At the time of a frontal collision, the fuel tank moves to the front side of the vehicle body by an inertial force. Thus, when the fuel tank 31 moves to the front side of the vehicle body by an inertial force, as indicated by an arrow A, the inclined portion 65 can be made to abut against the lower cross member 25.

(42) This can prevent the upper portion 59 of the pressure regulating valve 58 from abutting against the lower cross member 25, thereby preventing fuel leakage caused by damage to or breakage of the upper portion 59 of the pressure regulating valve 58.

(43) Referring back to FIGS. 1 and 2, the left leg 33 and right leg 34 of the rear bulkhead 21 are joined to the upper cross member 24. The rear bulkhead 21 includes the left leg 33 uprising from the left rear frame 12, the right leg 34 uprising from the right rear frame 12, and a connecting cross member 35 which connects an upper end 33b of the left leg 33 and an upper end 34b of the right leg 34.

(44) The left leg 33, the right leg 34, and the connecting cross member 35 form the rear bulkhead 21 in an almost inverted U shape in a front view. Therefore, when the lower end 33a of the left leg 33 and the lower end 34a of the right leg 34 are connected to the upper cross member 24, the rear bulkhead 21 and the upper cross member 24 are formed in an annular shape in a front view.

(45) The upper cross member 24 is connected to the sub-frame 16 via the rear floor panel 18, the lower cross member 25, and the front mounting portions 13.

(46) Consequently, the loads F1 input from the sub-frame 16 to the front mounting portions 13 can be transferred (distributed) to the rear bulkhead 21 via the lower cross member and the upper cross member. Thus, the rear bulkhead 21 can support the loads F1 input from the sub-frame 16 to the front mounting portions 13, thereby further increasing the ride comfort.

(47) By supporting, by the rear bulkhead 21, the loads F1 input from the sub-frame 16 to the front mounting portions 13, the sectional area of the lower cross member 25 can be decreased. This makes it possible to ensure a large storage space 67 (see FIG. 3 as well) below the rear floor panel 18, and store the fuel tank 31 in the storage space 67.

(48) As shown in FIG. 5, a step portion 31e is formed on the upper surface 31c of the rear upper portion 31b of the fuel tank 31. A resin member 71 exists between the step portion 31e and the lower portion 53 of the lower cross member 25 while being elastically deformed (compressed). In other words, the step portion 31e on the upper surface 31c can be made to abut against the lower portion 53 of the lower cross member 25 via the resin member 71.

(49) Thus, the lower cross member 25 appropriately supports the fuel tank 31 to increase the so-called support rigidity of the fuel tank 31. This can suppress shaking of the fuel tank 31 at the time of traveling of the vehicle Ve, thereby suppressing the generation of fuel flow noise (a so-called sloshing sound) in the fuel tank 31.

(50) As shown in FIG. 1, the plurality of seat support anchors 27 and 28 are mounted on the rear floor panel 18. More specifically, the inner seat support anchors (seat support anchors) 27 are mounted to be adjacent to the upper cross member 24. The outer seat support anchors 28 are mounted to be adjacent to the left leg 33 and right leg 34 of the rear bulkhead 21.

(51) While a child safety seat 74 is placed on a rear seat 73, an inner mounting portion 75 of the child safety seat 74 is mounted on the inner seat support anchor 27 on the right side in the vehicle width direction. An outer mounting portion 76 of the child safety seat 74 is mounted on the outer seat support anchor 28 on the right side in the vehicle width direction.

(52) Thus, the inner seat support anchor 27 and the outer seat support anchor 28 on the right side in the vehicle width direction support the child safety seat 74.

(53) Similarly, the inner seat support anchor 27 and the outer seat support anchor 28 on the left side in the vehicle width direction can support the child safety seat 74.

(54) The inner seat support anchor 27 on the right side in the vehicle width direction will be described below with reference to FIGS. 5 to 7.

(55) As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the inner seat support anchor 27 includes a mounting rod 81 formed by bending a rod in an almost U shape, and a floor fixing portion 82 for mounting the mounting rod 81 on the inclined floor portion 36.

(56) The mounting rod 81 includes a U-shaped mounting portion 83 on which the inner mounting portion 75 of the child safety seat 74 is mounted, and a pair of free ends 84 extending from the U-shaped mounting portion 83. The pair of free ends 84 are joined to mounting concave portions 86 (see FIG. 7 as well) of the floor fixing portion 82.

(57) In this state, the floor fixing portion 82 is fixed to the inclined floor portion 36 above the lower cross member 25 by, for example, spot welding. That is, the pair of free ends 84 joined to the floor fixing portion 82 are firmly supported by the lower cross member 25.

(58) Therefore, the mounting strength of the inner seat support anchor 27 can be increased, and thus the U-shaped mounting portion 83 of the inner seat support anchor 27 can largely extend toward the front side of the vehicle body to some extent. That is, a length dimension L1 of the U-shaped mounting portion 83 can be increased to some extent.

(59) This can improve the workability when the inner mounting portion 75 of the child safety seat 74 (see FIG. 1) is mounted on the U-shaped mounting portion 83 of the inner seat support anchor 27.

(60) As shown in FIG. 7, a bulkhead 92 is provided in an interior 91 of the lower cross member 25 below the floor fixing portion 82. That is, the strength of the lower cross member 25 is increased by the bulkhead 92. Therefore, it is possible to firmly mount the floor fixing portion 82 by the lower cross member 25, thereby further increasing the mounting strength of the inner seat support anchor 27.

(61) Furthermore, the floor fixing portion 82 is fastened to a flange 93 of the bulkhead 92 by a bolt (fastening member) 95 and a nut 96. That is, the bulkhead 92 can support the floor fixing portion 82. Therefore, the lower cross member 25 and the bulkhead 92 can firmly support the floor fixing portion 82, thereby further increasing the mounting strength of the inner seat support anchor 27.

(62) This can reliably support the child safety seat 74 (see FIG. 1) by the inner seat support anchor 27 while the length dimension L1 of the U-shaped mounting portion 83 of the inner seat support anchor 27 is increased to some extent.

(63) Note that the vehicle body rear structure according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and changes and improvements can be made appropriately.

(64) For example, the bolt has been exemplified as the fastening member in the above embodiment. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and another fastening member such as a rivet can be used.

(65) The shapes and arrangements of the vehicle body rear structure, the rear frames, the front and rear mounting portions, the sub-frame, the rear floor panel, the rear bulkhead, the upper cross member, the lower cross member, the inner sheet support anchors, the fuel tank, the pressure regulating valve, the valve support portion, the inclined portion, the resin member, the child safety seat, the mounting rod, the floor fixing potion, the U-shaped mounting portion, the free ends, and the bulkhead, all of which have been described in the above embodiment, are not limited to those exemplified above and can be changed appropriately.

(66) The present invention can be suitably applied to an automobile including a vehicle body rear structure in which a vehicle accessory and a sub-frame are arranged below a floor panel and a suspension is supported by the sub-frame.