Description:TECHNICAL FIELD
[001] The subject matter in general relates to rear portion of an automobile. More particularly, but not exclusively, the subject matter relates to a reinforcement bracket that improves the torsional rigidity at rear portion of a vehicle.
BACKGROUND
[002] Background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present subject matter. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed subject matter, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
[003] The torsional rigidity of a vehicle body (body in white) plays an important role in the vehicle’s handling performance. The design of the rear end area of vehicle is an important parameter that contributes in the overall torsional rigidity of the vehicle.
[004] General countermeasures taken to improve the torsional rigidity performance of the vehicle involve standard practices such as increasing the thickness of panels and brackets, addition of more spot welds, addition of reinforcements, addition of structural adhesives, among others. However, such conventional measures increase the weight, and/or increase the cost, and/or decrease the aesthetic appearance of the vehicle, which are not desirable.
OBJECTS OF THE DISCLOSURE
[005] In view of the foregoing limitations inherent in the state of the art, some of the objects of the present disclosure, which at least one embodiment herein satisfy, are listed herein below.
[006] It is an object of the present disclosure to propose a reinforcement bracket for improving the torsional rigidity at rear portion of a vehicle.
[007] It is an object of the present disclosure to propose a reinforcement bracket that does not add substantially to the overall weight of the rear portion.
[008] It is an object of the present disclosure to propose a reinforcement bracket that maintains the aesthetics of the rear portion of the vehicle.
[009] These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art after a consideration of the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which a preferred form of the present invention is illustrated.
SUMMARY
[0010] This summary is provided to introduce concepts related to a reinforcement bracket for improving torsional rigidity at rear portion of a vehicle. The concepts are further described below in the detailed description. This summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter.
[0011] The present disclosure relates to a reinforcement bracket for improving torsional rigidity at rear portion of a vehicle. The reinforcement bracket comprises a base plate and an extension. The base plate is configured to be attached to a side body outer extension of the rear portion of the vehicle. The extension extends in a transverse direction from an extension side of the base plate. The extension is configured to be attached to a quarter side body inner of the rear portion of the vehicle.
[0012] In an embodiment, the base plate defines a mounting side adjacent to the extension side. A mounting flange extends from the mounting side.
[0013] In an embodiment, the base plate defines a bead structure extending from the mounting sides and converging near the extension.
[0014] In an embodiment, the mounting flange defines at least one mounting hole.
[0015] In an embodiment, the base plate defines a balancer mount.
[0016] In an embodiment, the extension defines a hole.
[0017] Other objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following detailed description. It should be understood, however, that the detailed description and the specific examples, while indicating specific embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0018] While the specification concludes with claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter that is regarded as forming the present subject matter, it is believed that the present disclosure will be better understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, where like reference numerals designate like structural and other elements, in which:
[0019] FIG. 1 discloses a rear portion of a vehicle, in accordance with an embodiment;
[0020] FIG. 2 discloses an isometric view of a reinforcement bracket attached to the rear portion of a vehicle, in accordance with an embodiment;
[0021] FIGs. 3A-3C disclose various isometric views of the reinforcement bracket, in accordance with an embodiment;
[0022] FIG. 4 discloses a localised view of the reinforcement bracket in attachment to the rear portion of a vehicle, in accordance with an embodiment; and
[0023] FIG. 5 discloses a section view A-A of the reinforcement bracket (as show in FIG. 4) in attachment to the rear portion of a vehicle, in accordance with an embodiment.
[0024] The figures depict embodiments of the present subject matter for the purposes of illustration only. A person skilled in the art will easily recognize from the following description that alternative embodiments of the structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles of the disclosure described herein.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0025] The detailed description of various exemplary embodiments of the disclosure is described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the embodiments are described herein in such details as to clearly communicate the disclosure. However, the amount of details provided herein is not intended to limit the anticipated variations of embodiments; on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims.
[0026] It is also to be understood that various arrangements may be devised that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the principles of the present disclosure. Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the present disclosure, as well as specific examples, are intended to encompass equivalents thereof.
[0027] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of example embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an”, and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises”, “comprising”, “includes”, “consisting” and/or “including” when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components and/or groups thereof.
[0028] It should also be noted that in some alternative implementations, the functions/acts noted may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, two figures shown in succession may, in fact, be executed concurrently or may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality/acts involved.
[0029] In addition, the descriptions of "first", "second", “third”, and the like in the present invention are used for the purpose of description only, and are not to be construed as indicating or implying their relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Thus, features defining "first" and "second" may include at least one of the features, either explicitly or implicitly.
[0030] Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which example embodiments belong. It will be further understood that terms, e.g., those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.
[0031] Referring to FIG. 1, disclosed is a rear portion 102 of a vehicle 100, in accordance with an embodiment. The rear portion 102 of the vehicle 100 plays a prominent role in defining the torsional rigidity of the vehicle body and is therefore an object of the present invention to improve the torsional rigidity of the rear portion 102 using a reinforcement bracket 200 (shown in FIG. 2).
[0032] Referring to FIG. 2, disclosed is an isometric view of the view A as shown in FIG. 1. The view A discloses the reinforcement bracket 200 attached to the rear portion 102 of a vehicle 100, in accordance with an embodiment. In an embodiment, the rear portion 102 of the vehicle 100 may be the rear pillar (C-pillar or D-pillar among others) and the vehicle 100 may be with a backdoor, wherein the backdoor is hinged to the rooftop of the vehicle 100.
[0033] Referring to FIGs. 3A-3C, disclosed are the various isometric views of the reinforcement bracket 200, in accordance with an embodiment. The reinforcement bracket 200 comprises a base plate 202 and an extension 208.
[0034] The base plate 202 is configured to be attached to a side body outer extension 302 (shown in FIGs. 4 and 5) of the rear portion 102 of the vehicle 100. The extension 208 extends in a transverse direction from an extension side 206 of the base plate 202. The extension 208 is configured to be attached to a quarter side body inner 304 (shown in FIGs. 4 and 5) of the rear portion 102 of the vehicle 100.
[0035] In an embodiment, the base plate 202 defines a mounting side 218 that is adjacent to the extension side 206. A mounting flange 204 extends from the mounting side 218.
[0036] In an embodiment, the base plate 202 defines a bead structure 212 extending from the mounting sides 218 and converging near the extension 208.
[0037] In an embodiment, there may be a plurality of extensions 208 extending in the transverse direction from the extension side 206 of the base plate 202. Additionally, there may be a separate bead structure 212 extending towards each of the plurality of extensions 208. This bead structure 212 may be one continuous bead structure extending from one mounting side 218 to the other mounting side 218. In an embodiment, the bead structure 212 may be in the form of waves with the peaks located near the extensions 208.
[0038] In an embodiment, the mounting flange 204 defines at least one mounting hole 214. The mounting hole 214 may be used to attach a baffle (not shown) to the reinforcement bracket 200. The baffle is configured to contain the NVH (noise, vibration, and harshness) levels within the vehicle 100.
[0039] In an embodiment, the mounting flange 204 may extend from each of the mounting sides 218 of the base plate 202.
[0040] In an embodiment, the base plate 202 defines a balancer mount 210. The balancer mount 210 is configured to mount the balancer (not shown) of the rear door (not shown) of the vehicle 100.
[0041] In an embodiment, the extension 208 defines a hole 209, wherein the hole 209 is configured to receive a bolt 402 (shown in FIG. 5).
[0042] FIG. 4 discloses a localised view of the reinforcement bracket 200 in attachment to the rear portion 102 of the vehicle 100, in accordance with an embodiment. The base plate 202 is attached to the side body outer extension 302 of the rear portion 102 of the vehicle 100 and the extension 208 is attached to the quarter side body inner 304 of the rear portion 102 of the vehicle 100.
[0043] FIG. 5 discloses a section view of the reinforcement bracket 200 along the section line A-A (as shown in FIG. 4). In an embodiment, the rear pillar of the vehicle may comprise the side body outer extension 302, quarter side body inner 304 and side body outer panel 404. As seen in the FIG. 5, the extension 208 of the reinforcement bracket 200 connects the side body outer extension 302 to the quarter side body inner 304, thereby increasing the torsional rigidity of the rear portion 102 of the vehicle 100. The extension 208 of the reinforcement bracket 200 may be connected to the quarter side body inner 304 using a weld-nut 216 (shown in FIG. 3C) and the bolt 402. This attachment of the reinforcement bracket 200 to the quarter side body inner 304 eliminates the use of an additional part to connect the side body outer extension 302 to the quarter side body inner 304, or to connect the quarter side body inner 304 to the side body outer panel 404. Additionally, the use of the additional part to connect the quarter side body inner 304 to the side body outer panel 404 can be done only using spot welds which decreases the aesthetics of the vehicle. Additional part also increases the cost and weight of the rear portion 102 of the vehicle 100.
[0044] The extension 208 of the reinforcement bracket 200 eliminates the use of the additional part, thereby improving the aesthetics of the vehicle and reducing both, cost and overall weight of the rear portion 102 of the vehicle 100.
[0045] In an embodiment, the reinforcement bracket 200 can be used in both of the rear pillars of the vehicle 100.
TECHNICAL ADVANTAGE
[0046] The present disclosure proposes a reinforcement bracket for improving the torsional rigidity at rear portion of a vehicle.
[0047] The present disclosure proposes a reinforcement bracket that does not add to the overall weight of the rear portion.
[0048] The present disclosure proposes a reinforcement bracket that maintains the aesthetics of the rear portion of the vehicle.
[0049] Furthermore, each of the appended claims defines a separate invention, which for infringement purposes is recognized as including equivalents to the various elements or limitations specified in the claims. Depending on the context, all references below to the “invention” may in some cases refer to certain specific embodiments only. In other cases, it will be recognized that references to the “invention” will refer to subject matter recited in one or more, but not necessarily all, of the claims.
[0050] Groupings of alternative elements or embodiments of the invention disclosed herein are not to be construed as limitations. Each group member can be referred to and claimed individually or in any combination with other members of the group or other elements found herein. One or more members of a group can be included in, or deleted from, a group for reasons of convenience and/or patentability. When any such inclusion or deletion occurs, the specification is herein deemed to contain the group as modified thus fulfilling the written description of all groups used in the appended claims.
[0051] Furthermore, those skilled in the art can appreciate that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the present disclosure. It will be appreciated that several of the above-disclosed and other features and functions, or alternatives thereof, may be combined into other systems or applications. Various presently unforeseen or unanticipated alternatives, modifications, variations, or improvements therein may subsequently be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present disclosure as encompassed by the following claims.
[0052] The claims, as originally presented and as they may be amended, encompass variations, alternatives, modifications, improvements, equivalents, and substantial equivalents of the embodiments and teachings disclosed herein, including those that are presently unforeseen or unappreciated, and that, for example, may arise from applicants/patentees and others.
[0053] While the foregoing describes various embodiments of the present disclosure, other and further embodiments of the present disclosure may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof. The scope of the present disclosure is determined by the claims that follow. The present disclosure is not limited to the described embodiments, versions or examples, which are included to enable a person having ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention when combined with information and knowledge available to the person having ordinary skill in the art.

Claims:

We claim:
1. A reinforcement bracket (200) for improving torsional rigidity at rear portion (102) of a vehicle (100), the reinforcement bracket (200) comprising:
a base plate (202) configured to be attached to a side body outer extension (302) of the rear portion (102) of the vehicle (100); and
an extension (208) extending in a transverse direction from an extension side (206) of the base plate (202), wherein the extension (208) is configured to be attached to a quarter side body inner (304) of the rear portion (102) of the vehicle (100).
2. The reinforcement bracket (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the extension (208) defines a hole (209).
3. The reinforcement bracket (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the base plate (202) defines a mounting side (218) adjacent to the extension side (206), wherein a mounting flange (204) extends from the mounting side (218).
4. The reinforcement bracket (200) as claimed in claim 3, wherein the base plate (202) defines a bead structure (212) extending from the mounting sides and converging near the extension (208).
5. The reinforcement bracket (200) as claimed in claim 3, wherein the mounting flange (204) defines at least one mounting hole (214).
6. The reinforcement bracket (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the base plate (202) defines a balancer mount (210).