DESC:FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[001] The present invention relates to a front bumper assembly for a motor vehicle.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[002] A front bumper is mounted on a lower front of the vehicle to shield a front portion of a vehicle during collisions. In case of any low-speed collision, the front bumper along with its attachment or mounting means to the vehicle are configured to absorb the shock to prevent and/or reduce damage to the vehicle. In addition to absorbing the shock during the low-speed collision, the front bumper is required to meet pedestrian safety norms / impact requirements. Also, it is critical that aerodynamic requirements of the vehicle for reducing drag force during vehicle movement are not affected. The front bumper is also designed to improve aesthetics of the vehicle and can be made of materials, including but not limited steel, aluminium, rubber, plastic.
[003] Though it may be seen that many attempts have been made to meet the pedestrian safety norms and aerodynamics requirements in the front bumper in four-wheeled vehicles, the existing front bumper systems still have one or more limitations, including, but not limited to, aerodynamic drag at front wheels of the vehicle and increased weight of overall bumper system, which in turn affecting the fuel efficiency of the vehicle.
[004] Hence, there is a need in the art for a front bumper assembly for a motor vehicle which addresses at least the aforementioned problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[005] In one aspect, the present invention is directed towards a front bumper assembly for a motor vehicle. The front bumper assembly has a bumper fascia disposed on a front end of the motor vehicle. The bumper fascia extends in a vehicle width direction. The front bumper assembly further has a grill member mounted on to the bumper fascia, such that the grill member being interconnected with the bumper fascia provides reinforcement to the bumper fascia, thereby improving stiffness of the front bumper assembly.
[006] In an embodiment of the invention, the grill member is angularly mounted with respect to the bumper fascia, and the angle of the grill member with respect to the bumper fascia is 8 to 10 degrees.
[007] In a further embodiment of the invention, the bumper fascia has a front face and a rear face. The rear face has one or more mounting provisions for mounting the bumper fascia on the motor vehicle.
[008] In a further embodiment of the invention, a bottom edge of the bumper fascia has an approach angle in the range of 21o to 23o.
[009] In a further embodiment of the invention, the bumper fascia has a pair of duct members for allowing air flow path towards front wheels of the motor vehicle.
[010] In a further embodiment of the invention, the bumper fascia has one or more sensor mounting provisions configured for installing one or more front sensors for the motor vehicle.
[011] In a further embodiment of the invention, the grill member has a bottom edge and a pair of side edges. The bottom edge and the pair of side edges are mounted on to the bumper fascia.
[012] In a further embodiment of the invention, the grill member has one or more air inlet openings for allowing air to be directed over a radiator of the motor vehicle.
[013] In a further embodiment of the vehicle, the grill member is fastened on to the bumper fascia.
[014] In a further embodiment of the vehicle, the grill member is snap fit on to the bumper fascia.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[015] Reference will be made to embodiments of the invention, examples of which may be illustrated in accompanying figures. These figures are intended to be illustrative, not limiting. Although the invention is generally described in context of these embodiments, it should be understood that it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to these particular embodiments.
Figure 1 illustrates a front view of a front bumper assembly for a vehicle, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
Figure 2 illustrates an exploded view of the front bumper assembly, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
Figure 3a illustrates a portion of the front bumper assembly with duct members, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
Figure 3b illustrates a representation of airflow path in the front bumper of the vehicle, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 4 illustrates a front view of the front bumper assembly with mounting of a grill member on to a bumper facia, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
Figure 5 illustrates a side view of the front bumper assembly of the vehicle to illustrate approach angle, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[016] The present invention provides a front bumper assembly for a motor vehicle. The front bumper assembly is designed/developed considering pedestrian safety norms, vehicle aerodynamic requirements, vehicle cooling requirements, wiring harness requirements and the sensor mountings.
[017] Figure 1 illustrates a front view of a front bumper assembly 100 for a motor vehicle in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The front bumper assembly 100 may be typically used for a Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV). However, it should be understood that the front bumper assembly 100 as illustrated may find its application on any other four-wheeled vehicles as well.
[018] As illustrated in Figure 1, the front bumper assembly 100 comprises a bumper fascia 120 disposed on a front end of the motor vehicle. the bumper fascia 120 extends in a vehicle width direction. The bumper fascia 120 is thus visible from outside the vehicle.
[019] The front bumper assembly 100 has a grill member 110 that is mounted on to the bumper fascia 120. The grill member 110 is mounted on to the bumper fascia 120 such that the grill member 110 being interconnected with the bumper fascia 120 provides reinforcement to the bumper fascia 120, thereby improving stiffness of the front bumper assembly 100. In an embodiment, the grill member 110 is configured such that internal profile of the grill member 110 provides additional reinforcement to the bumper fascia 120. In this regard, the grill member 110 is angularly mounted with respect to the bumper fascia 120, wherein the angle of the grill member 110 with respect to the bumper fascia 120 is 8 to 10 degrees. In a preferred embodiment, the angle of the grill member 110 with respect to the bumper fascia 120 is 8.9 degrees. The placement of the grill member 110 allows tibia bending movement in compliance with pedestrian test and safety requirements.
[020] In an embodiment, the front bumper assembly 100 comprises the grill member 110 being interconnected with the bumper fascia 120. In an embodiment, the grill member 110 has a bottom edge 114 and a pair of side edges 116A, 116B. The bottom edge 114 and the pair of side edges 116A, 116B of the grill member 110 are mounted on to the bumper fascia 120 of the front bumper assembly 100. As shown in figure 4, the grill member 110 is mounted on the bumper fascia 120 via snap fit or fasteners. In an embodiment, the grill member 110 is fastened or snap fit on to the bumper fascia 120 at a plurality of mounting points 118. The plurality of mounting points 118 are located on the bottom edge 114 and a portion of the side edges 116A, 116B. The plurality of mounting points 118 providing further reinforcement to the bumper fascia 120. The grill member 110 can be integrally manufactured by molding or by any other process.
[021] Further, as shown, in an embodiment the grill member 110 has one or more air inlet openings 112. The air inlet openings 112 allows air to be directed over a radiator (not shown) of the vehicle during vehicle movement. Further, the front bumper assembly 100 comprises plurality of openings 140 to improve cooling. In this regard, the openings 140 are provided such that stiffness of the front bumper assembly 100 is not affected.
[022] The bumper fascia 120 as illustrated in Figure 1 has a front face 122 and a rear face 124 disposed behind the front face 122. The rear face 124 is provided with one or more mounting portions (not shown) in the vehicle, thereby enabling mounting of the bumper fascia 120 on to the vehicle. Further, in an embodiment, an energy absorber member 102 (shown in Figure 2) is disposed at the rear face 124 of the bumper fascia 120.
[023] A conventional front bumper system includes one or more components disposed at rear face of a bumper fascia. The conventional front bumper system includes an upper stiffener member adjacent to an upper area of the bumper fascia. The upper stiffener member during a collision with a pedestrian supports the upper area of the bumper fascia avoid bending inwards, which reduces bending moment of a femur of the pedestrian’s leg to reduce injury to pedestrian’s leg. In the present invention, additional upper stiffener member as present in the conventional bumper system is eliminated by increasing the stiffness of the grill member 110 by finetuning internal profile of the grill member 110 which is acting as additional reinforcement to improve the stiffness and optimised energy absorber hardness allowing uniform compression which helps femur and tibia movement simultaneously. This means that on front on impact with a pedestrian, the bumper assembly 100 does not significantly deform, which ensures better pedestrian safety characteristics as the bending angle of the of the pedestrian leg on impact is kept at an optimum level, preventing fatal damage.
[024] Further in the conventional front bumper system, a lower stiffener member is provided adjacent to a lower area of the bumper fascia. The lower stiffener member during a collision with a pedestrian supports the lower area of the bumper fascia bending inwards, which reduces the movement of tibia of the pedestrian’s leg to reduce the injury to the pedestrian’s leg.
[025] In the present invention additional lower stiffener member as present in the conventional vehicles is eliminated by increasing the stiffness of lower profile of bumper assembly 110 by finetuning internal profile of the grill member 110, which acts as additional reinforcement to improve the stiffness and optimised energy absorber hardness allows uniform compression which helps femur and tibia movement simultaneously.
[026] In an embodiment (as shown in Figure 1), a bottom portion of the bumper fascia 120 includes one or more provisions including, but not limited to duct members 130A, 130B for allowing air flow path. The pair of duct members 130A, 130B are disposed such that they extend from the front face 122 to the rear face 124 of the front bumper system 100. In one embodiment, the duct members 130A (also shown in Figure 3b), 130B are integrated to the bumper fascia 120. The duct members 130A, 130B (shown in Figures 1 and 2) are adapted to allow airflow and thus act as air curtain in a front wheel arch area “A” (shown in Figure 3b) which has given significant drag improvement. Further, a bottom edge 126 of the bumper fascia 120 has a high approach angle (as shown in Figure 5). Higher approach angle is preferred in cases of SUVs to ride the vehicle in multi terrain condition. In an embodiment, the bottom edge 126 of the bumper fascia 120 has an approach angle in the range of 21o to 23o, preferably 22o. The front bumper assembly 100 of present invention thus achieves a high approach angle, that ensures vehicle operation during a variety of terrain, while also ensuring better pedestrian safety characteristics due to increased stiffness of the front bumper assembly 100, as the bending angle of the of the pedestrian leg on impact is kept at an optimum level, preventing fatal damage.
[027] Furthermore, the bumper fascia 120 of the front bumper assembly 100 comprises one or more sensor mountings 128A, 128B, 128C, 128D for installing front sensors (not shown) and a wiring harness mounting (not shown) for holding wiring or cables in the front bumper system. The front sensors may include proximity sensors.
[028] Advantageously, the front bumper system is aesthetic appealing, improves pedestrian safety during impact, and involves aerodynamic improvement. Further, the front bumper system improves cooling without affecting the stiffness of the front bumper system.
[029] While the present invention has been described with respect to certain embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modification may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.

,CLAIMS:WE CLAIM:
1. A front bumper assembly (100) for a motor vehicle, comprising:
a bumper fascia (120) disposed on a front end of the motor vehicle, the bumper fascia (120) extending in a vehicle width direction; and
a grill member (110) mounted on to the bumper fascia (120), the grill member (110) interconnected with the bumper fascia (120) provides reinforcement to the bumper fascia (120), thereby improving stiffness of the front bumper assembly (100).

2. The front bumper assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the grill member (110) is angularly mounted with respect to the bumper fascia (120), and the angle of the grill member (110) with respect to the bumper fascia (120) is 8 to 10 degrees.

3. The front bumper assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bumper fascia (120) comprises a front face (122) and a rear face (124), the rear face (124) having one or more mounting provisions for mounting the bumper fascia (120) on the motor vehicle.

4. The front bumper assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein a bottom edge (126) of the bumper fascia (120) has an approach angle in the range of 21 o to 23o.

5. The front bumper assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bumper fascia (120) comprises a pair of duct members (130A, 130B) for allowing air flow path towards front wheels of the motor vehicle.

6. The front bumper assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bumper fascia (120) comprises one or more sensor mounting provisions (128A, 128B, 128C, 128D) configured for installing one or more front sensors for the motor vehicle.

7. The front bumper assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the grill member (110) comprises a bottom edge (114) and a pair of side edges (116A, 116B), the bottom edge (114) and the pair of side edges (116A, 116B) being mounted on to the bumper fascia (120).

8. The front bumper assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the grill member (110) comprises one or more air inlet openings (112) for allowing air to be directed over a radiator of the motor vehicle.

9. The front bumper assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the grill member (110) is fastened or snap fit on to the bumper fascia (120).

10. The front bumper assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the grill member (110) is fastened or snap fit on to the bumper fascia (120) at a plurality of mounting points (118), the plurality of mounting points (118) providing further reinforcement to the bumper fascia (120).