Impact-sensor mounting structure for an automotive vehicle

• US 5,364,158 A
• Filed: 08/12/1993
• Issued: 11/15/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/1990
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Mazda Motor Corporation
• Original Assignee: Mazda Motor Corporation
• Inventors: Nakagami, Shuichi, Watanabe, Yoshie, Watanabe, Shigeaki, Yamatoya, Hidemitsu
• Primary Examiner(s): Pedder, Dennis H.
• Application Number:
  US08/104,939
• Time in Patent Office: 460 Days
• Field of Search: 296/188, 296/189, 296/194, 280/734, 280/735, 180/274, 180/282, 200/61.44, 200/61.45 R, 293/155
• US Class Current: 296/187.09
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0132 responsive to vehicle motion parameters , e.g. to vehicle longitudinal or transversal deceleration or speed value
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0136 responsive to actual contact with an obstacle , e.g. to vehicle deformation, bumper displacement or bumper velocity relative to the vehicle monitoring crash strength in combination with passenger seat detection B60R21/01558

Abstract

The impact sensor is mounted to the front portion of the vehicle body to operate at a high degree of responsiveness. The impact load is entered into the front frame to the bumper in such a manner that the input point of input of the impact load is offset by a given distance upwards above the vertically central line of the front frame. To a lower front end portion of the front frame is joined the cross member so as to make rigidity at the upper portion of the front frame equal to that at the lower portion thereof. The impact sensor is mounted to the front frame in such a forwards inclined state with respect to the horizontal direction of the vehicle body that the direction of the impact sensor in which the impact of the crash is sensed approaches the horizontal direction.

Claims

1. An impact-sensor mounting structure for an automotive vehicle comprising:

a front frame disposed at a front portion of a vehicle body and extending in a longitudinal direction of the vehicle body,

an impact sensor mounted to a front end portion of the front frame,

a bumper mounted to the front end portion of the front frame in a position that is located forward of a position in which said impact sensor is mounted, and

means for causing deformation of the front frame in a vertical direction at an initial stage of a crash with respect to an input point of an impact load which is transferred to the front frame from the bumper,

said means for causing deformation of the front frame in the vertical direction having a cross member connected to the front end portion of the front frame at a location vertically spaced from a portion of the bumper extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body and at a location forward of the position in which said impact sensor is mounted,

said impact sensor being mounted to the front frame in a position vertically spaced from the cross member at the front end portion of the front frame,

said front frame being so arranged as to be distorted and inclined in the vertical direction on a collision, by mounting the cross member in the location vertically spaced from the bumper and by setting the bumper mount to the front end portion, at the center of the vertical dimension of the front frame, and

said impact sensor being mounted to the front frame in an inclined position to a horizontal direction to allow said impact sensor to sense a substantially horizontally directed component of the impact forces of the crash as the front frame is deformed in the vertical direction.

2. An impact-sensor mounting structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the portion of the bumper disposed in the longitudinal direction is located substantially in the center of the vertical dimension of the front frame; and

said cross member extends in a transverse direction of the vehicle body.

3. An impact-sensor mounting structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein said cross member is mounted to a bottom surface of the front frame.

4. An impact-sensor mounting structure as claimed in claim 3, wherein said impact sensor is mounted to the front frame in the center of the vertical dimension of the front frame in such a state that a front portion of the impact sensor is inclined downwardly with respect to a horizontal direction of the vehicle body.