Claims:We claim:

1. An automobile headlamp bracket arrangement for pedestrian protection in an automobile, wherein the arrangement comprises:

(i) at least one headlamp,

(ii) at least one headlamp mounting bracket assembly for the attachment thereof from under the automobile body-in-white (BIW),

(iii) at least one intermediate fastening arrangement for making the headlamp mounting bracket assembly by positional fixing together of the headlamp mounting bracket and the intermediate fastening arrangement, and

(iv) at least one fastener for mounting the headlamp mounting bracket assembly from under the BIW in a non-moveable manner.

2. Headlamp mounting bracket arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the headlamp bracket comprises an elongated arm at one end for fixing it under the automobile body-in-white and a profiled portion at other end for fixing the headlamp therein.

3. Headlamp mounting bracket arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the intermediate fastening arrangement comprises a J-clip with an upper arm and a lower arm, which are disposed substantially parallel to each other and interconnected via a transition area therebetween.

4. Headlamp mounting bracket arrangement as claimed in claim 3, wherein the J-clip comprises through holes of predefined diameter provided in the upper arm and lower arm thereof, which are mutually aligned in a straight line.

5. Headlamp mounting bracket arrangement as claimed in claim 4, wherein through hole in the upper arm includes a key-slot on its end away from the transition area of the J-clip.

6. Headlamp mounting bracket arrangement as claimed in claim 4, wherein a self-tightening flange with a threaded hole aligned with the through hole in the lower arm is provided on the side of lower arm facing away from the upper arm.

7. Headlamp mounting bracket arrangement as claimed in claims 5 and 6, wherein the through hole in the upper arm and the through hole in the lower arm and the threaded hole of the self-tightening flange provided thereon are all substantially aligned with each other in a straight line for passing a threaded fastener therethrough for bottom mounting of the headlamp mounting bracket assembly from under the BIW in a non-moveable manner.

8. Headlamp mounting bracket arrangement as claimed in claim 2, wherein the terminal end of the elongated arm of the headlamp mounting bracket is provided with two longitudinal projections and a lateral projection forming a three-sided positioning space of predefined size, which is open at the terminal end of the elongated arm for sliding the J-clip for positional locking thereon.

9. Headlamp mounting bracket arrangement as claimed in claim 7, wherein the width of the three-sided space is configured to accommodate width and length of the intermediate fastening arrangement, e.g. a J-clip.

10. Headlamp mounting bracket arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein J-clip comprises:

(a) an upper arm and a lower arm mutually disposed substantially parallel and interconnected via transition area therebetween;

(b) a through hole each provided in the upper arm and lower arm mutually aligned in a straight line;

(c) the through hole in the upper arm includes a key-slot on its end away from the transition area; and

(d) a self-tightening flange with a threaded hole provided on the lower arm on the side of the lower arm facing away from the upper arm;

wherein the through hole in the upper arm and the through hole in the lower arm as well as the threaded hole of the self-tightening flange are substantially mutually aligned in a straight line for passing a threaded fastener therethrough for bottom mounting of the headlamp mounting bracket assembly from under the BIW in a non-moveable manner.

Dated: this 31st day of July, 2015. SANJAY KESHARWANI
APPLICANT’S PATENT AGENT
, Description:FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to the pedestrian protection in automobiles, particularly to the arrangement for mounting headlamp in automobiles and more particularly to the automobile headlamp mounting bracket arrangement.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

According to the article “Pedestrian Head Impact Conditions Depending on the Vehicle Front Shape and Its Construction--Full Model Simulation” (by Yutaka Okamoto, Tomiji Sugimoto, Koji Enomoto and Junichi Kikuchi - Link) published online on 15th September, 2010 discusses that for the evaluation of pedestrian protection, normally the European Enhanced Vehicle-Safety Committee Working Group 17 report is was used considering only the hood area of the vehicle for evaluating head injuries. However, they found that more recent pedestrian accident data has confirmed that the injury source for head injury has changed from earlier considered hood area to the windshield and A-pillar areas. The head contact points are considered to fall on a parallel to the front shape of the vehicle along the lateral direction, but the rigidity of the outer side construction is different from the center area. The purpose of this study was to consider the reason for the change in injury source for recent vehicle models. The head contact points and contact conditions, speed and angle, are thought to be influenced not only by the vehicle's geometry, but also its construction (rigidity).

In this study, vehicle-pedestrian impact simulations were calculated with a finite element model for several hitting positions, including the outer side areas. Full dummy sled tests were conducted to confirm the simulation results. These results show that, for impacts at the outer sides of the vehicle, the head contact points are more rearward than at the vehicle center. In addition, the speed and angle of the head contact were found to be influenced by the pedestrian height. The FEM code PAM-CRASH was used in the study used. Figure 1 shows the passenger vehicle model taking off the bumper face and four hitting positions (pedestrian standing locations).

The present invention is specifically aimed at reducing the pedestrian injuries caused by the headlights of the automobiles, particularly in terms of the HIC. The Head Injury Criterion (HIC) is a measure of the likelihood of head injury arising from an impact. The HIC can be used to assess safety related to vehicles, personal protective gear, and sport equipment. Normally the variable is derived from the acceleration/time history of an accelerometer mounted at the centre of gravity of a dummy’s head, when the dummy is exposed to crash forces. Empirically, it is given by the equation below:

wherein,

t1, t2 are initial and final times (in seconds) of the interval during which HIC attains a maximum value, and
a is the acceleration measured in gs (standard gravity acceleration).

Maximum duration of HIC, t2 – t1, is limited to a specific value between 3 and 36 ms, usually 15 ms. This means that HIC includes the effects of head acceleration and the duration of the acceleration. Large accelerations may be tolerated for very short times. So, at a HIC value of 1000, one in six people will suffer a life-threatening injury to their brain (more accurately, an 18% probability of a severe head injury, a 55% probability of a serious injury and a 90% probability of a moderate head injury to the average adult).
[Courtesy Wikipedia - Link]

DISADVANTAGES WITH THE PRIOR ART

Accordingly, in the conventional automobile configurations, the headlamp is mounted on the body-in-white (BIW) structure by means of a few brackets (known as headlamp mounting bracket). While designing the headlamp brackets, a lot of factors need to be considered, such as stiffness, endurance, vehicle vibrations and dynamic conditions, packaging constraints, ease of manufacture, etc. Apart from all these factors, the brackets design should also meet various regulatory requirements for desired pedestrian protection.

In fact, all the factors mentioned above include interrelated parameters, which may often contradict each other. Thus, there has to be a trade-off while designing the head lamp mounting bracket, in order to meet all these requirements. The conventional headlamp mounting brackets are mounted on the top of the BIW panel as shown in Figure 2.

This results in substantially high HIC values above the acceptance criteria. Typical HIC values obtained for such Top Mounting Brackets are shown in Table 1 below:
Table 1

This table represents a top view projection of vehicle bonnet with its front end at bottom of the table and rear end at top of the table as seen in Figure 1. Points 8 to -8 along table X direction represent bonnet width along vehicle lateral direction and points 0 to 10 along table Y direction represent bonnet length along vehicle longitudinal direction.

The highlighted zone shows the problematic HIC values, where the negative effect of the conventional top mounting bracket is experienced. It is to be noted that these highlighted values (rows 2 to 4, columns 5 to 8) do not meet the acceptance criteria.

Conventionally, the headlamp mounting brackets are mounted from top to the BIW side cross members, which leads to following drawbacks:

- Less deformable space to absorb the impact energy on hitting an obstacle, e.g. a pedestrian

- Top mounted on the BIW panel of the automobile, thus has a quite complicated structure

- Amount of material used is high, thus increasing overall cost

- Due to presence of ribs, it has a stiff structure, thus less flexible

- Brackets are not optimally located on the headlamp

- Less durable, electrical connections and crash and parameters not optimized and not easy to manufacture

- Attaching top mounted bracket to BIW structure increases the manufacturing costs.

Therefore, there is a long felt need for eliminating the disadvantages associated with the conventional top-mounting brackets used in the headlamp mounting arrangement in automobiles.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention is devised to improve the headlamp mounting bracket arrangement for modern automobiles. This is achieved by way of a very simple solution. As the BIW acts as a rigid member obstructing the deformation of the mounting brackets, a lot of development is required to obtain an optimized design meeting all the requirements. So keeping in mind about the safety, strength and cost of our model, the structure is so designed that instead of mounting it from the top to the BIW we mount it from the bottom of the BIW side cross member. By this we simplify the design, optimize the cost and remove the complexity from the system as there is more space for the whole structure to deform and absorb energy. So by this design and proper manufacture able joinery to BIW solves this complex problem. The design has following features:

1. More deformable space to absorb the impact energy on hitting an obstacle, e.g. a pedestrian.

2. Mounted from the bottom of the BIW panel provides a simple structure.

3. Amount of material used is minimal, thus reducing the overall cost.

4. Simple design with a no complicated structures.

5. Bottom mounted brackets are optimally located on the headlamp.

6. Achieves more stringent durability, electrical, crash and manufacturability parameters.

7. J-clip joinery can be easily manufactured and attached the bracket to BIW structure; thereby can be implemented at a reduced overall cost.

8. Simple flat converging bracket configured without any rib making the structure is less stiff/more flexible.

9. J-clip joinery of the bracket is easily done from the bottom of the BIW for easily and quickly attaching the headlamp to the BIW by J-clip.

10. Headlamp position optimized from the front corner of the automobile.

The novel headlamp mounting brackets are mounted from the bottom of the BIW panel as shown in Figure 3. This results in substantially reduced HIC values, which are well within the regulatory acceptance criteria. The reduced HIC values with new bottom mounting brackets are shown in Table 2 below:
Table 1

Above Table 2 also represents a top view projection of vehicle bonnet with its front end at bottom of the table and rear end at top of the table as seen in Figure 1. Points 8 to -8 along table X direction represent bonnet width along vehicle lateral direction and points 0 to 10 along table Y direction represent bonnet length along vehicle longitudinal direction.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

Some of the objects of the present invention - satisfied by at least one embodiment of the present invention - are as follows:

An object of the present invention is to provide a headlamp bracket arrangement offering more deformable space to better absorb the energy of impact with an obstacle, e.g. pedestrian.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a headlamp bracket arrangement which satisfactorily meets the regulatory requirements for achieving the desired pedestrian protection.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a headlamp bracket arrangement, which requires substantially less material and thus costs less.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a headlamp bracket arrangement of a simpler design facilitating manufacture, assembly and repair.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a headlamp bracket arrangement with substantially less stiffness to impart more flexibility on impact.

Still further object of the present invention is to provide a headlamp bracket arrangement for optimally locating the headlamp on BIW.

Yet further object of the present invention is to provide a headlamp bracket arrangement, which meets stringent durability, electrical, crash and manufacturability parameters.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description when read with the accompanying figures of drawing, which are, however, not intended to limit the scope of the present invention in any way.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, there is provided an automobile headlamp bracket arrangement for pedestrian protection in an automobile, wherein the arrangement comprises:

(i) at least one headlamp,

(ii) at least one headlamp mounting bracket assembly for the attachment thereof from under the automobile body-in-white (BIW),

(iii) at least one intermediate fastening arrangement for making the headlamp mounting bracket assembly by positional fixing together of the headlamp mounting bracket and the intermediate fastening arrangement, and

(iv) at least one fastener for mounting the headlamp mounting bracket assembly from under the BIW in a non-moveable manner.

Typically, the headlamp bracket comprises an elongated arm at one end for fixing it under the automobile body-in-white and a profiled portion at other end for fixing the headlamp therein.

Typically, the intermediate fastening arrangement comprises a J-clip with an upper arm and a lower arm, which are disposed substantially parallel to each other and interconnected via a transition area therebetween.

Typically, the J-clip comprises through holes of predefined diameter provided in the upper arm and lower arm thereof, which are mutually aligned in a straight line.

Typically, the through hole in the upper arm includes a key-slot on its end away from the transition area of the J-clip.

Typically, a self-tightening flange with a threaded hole aligned with the through hole in the lower arm is provided on the side of lower arm facing away from the upper arm.

Typically, the through hole in the upper arm and the through hole in the lower arm and the threaded hole of the self-tightening flange provided thereon are all substantially aligned with each other in a straight line for passing a threaded fastener therethrough for bottom mounting of the headlamp mounting bracket assembly from under the BIW in a non-moveable manner.

Typically, the terminal end of the elongated arm of the headlamp mounting bracket is provided with two longitudinal projections and a lateral projection forming a three-sided positioning space of predefined size, which is open at the terminal end of the elongated arm for sliding the J-clip for positional locking thereon.

Typically, the width of the three-sided space is configured to accommodate width and length of the intermediate fastening arrangement, e.g. a J-clip.

Typically, the J-clip comprises:

(a) an upper arm and a lower arm mutually disposed substantially parallel and interconnected via transition area therebetween;

(b) a through hole each provided in the upper arm and lower arm mutually aligned in a straight line;

(c) the through hole in the upper arm includes a key-slot on its end away from the transition area; and

(d) a self-tightening flange with a threaded hole provided on the lower arm on the side of the lower arm facing away from the upper arm;

wherein the through hole in the upper arm and the through hole in the lower arm as well as the threaded hole of the self-tightening flange are substantially mutually aligned in a straight line for passing a threaded fastener therethrough for bottom mounting of the headlamp mounting bracket assembly from under the BIW in a non-moveable manner.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS

The present invention will be briefly described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which include:

Figure 1 shows a schematic representation of the automobile front portion including the bumper face and the pedestrian standing/hitting locations.

Figure 2 shows a partial representation of a conventional headlamp mounting arrangement in an automobile.

Figure 3 shows a perspective view of the automobile headlamp mounting arrangement in in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 4 shows the detailed side view of the J-clip assembly of the headlamp mounting arrangement shown in Figure 3.

Figure 5 shows the top view of the J-clip assembled on the headlamp mounting bracket as shown in Figure 4 slightly shortened along dashed lines.

Figure 6a shows a perspective view of the J-clip in accordance with the present invention as shown in Figures 4 and 5.

Figure 6b shows a top view of the J-clip shown in Figure 6a.

Figure 6c shows a side view of the J-clip of the J-clip shown in Figure 6a.

Figure 7 shows the J-clip assembled on the bracket for fixing the headlamp in the headlamp mounting arrangement in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 8 shows a perspective view of the headlamp with the mounting bracket being fitted with J-clip in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 9 shows a perspective view of the headlamp assembly having J-clip already assembled on the headlamp bracket as shown in Fig.7.

Figure 10 shows a top view of the headlamp mounting bracket end for J-clip assembly in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 11 shows a top view of J-clip in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 12 shows a top view of J-clip assembled on headlamp mounting bracket end shown in Figure 10.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS

In the following, different embodiments of the present invention will be described in more details with reference to the accompanying drawings without limiting the scope and ambit of the present invention in any way.

Figure 1 shows a schematic representation of the front portion of an automobile 100. It shows the engine 10, front bulkhead 20, bumper beam 30 and the headlamp 40. It also shows all four critical pedestrian standing/hitting positions A, B, C and D respectively. The values ab (250 mm), ac (500 mm) and ad (750 mm) are the respective lateral distance between the pelvis centre of gravity and the vehicle centerline. At position A, the shape of front bulkhead 20 is different from the at position C. Furthermore, at the outer side of position D, there is no bumper beam 30. So, the rigidity of the front structure of the vehicle is different along the lateral direction. This difference is thought to influence the head contact points and contact conditions.

Figure 2 shows a partial representation of a conventional headlamp mounting arrangement in an automobile. In this arrangement, headlamp 80 is top mounted on BIW 70 by means of headlamp mounting brackets 60. Here, the BIW 70 acts as a rigid member, which seriously obstructs the deformation of the headlamp mounting bracket 60 in case of a pedestrian hitting the headlamp 80. This configuration thus has a very adverse effect on the pedestrian safety.

Figure 3 shows a perspective view of the automobile headlamp mounting arrangement in in accordance with the present invention. In this arrangement, an optimized configuration is achieved, which meets all the regulatory requirements in terms of pedestrian safety. By keeping in mind the pedestrian safety, strength and cost of the new arrangement, the structure is designed to mount the headlamp mounting bracket 112 from the bottom of BIW 130, particularly from the bottom side cross member of BIW 130. This simplifies the design, optimizes the cost and removes any complexity from the overall headlamp mounting arrangement. Further, it offers more space for the whole structure to deform and absorb energy when a pedestrian hits headlamp 110. In this design, the joinery - to be used for mounting the headlamp mounting bracket 112 under BIW 130 - can be easily manufactured, e.g. in the form of J-clip 120 is used for mounting headlamp mounting bracket 112 under BIW 130.

Figure 4 shows the detailed side view of the assembly of J-clip 120 on the headlamp mounting bracket 112 for fixing the headlamp 110 under the BIW 130 shown in Figure 3.

Figure 5 shows the top view of J-clip 120 assembled on the headlamp mounting bracket 112 shown in Figure 4 slightly shortened along dashed lines.

Figure 6a shows a perspective view of J-clip 120 of Figures 4 and 5. The lower arm 124 of the J-clip is provided with a curved end 136 and a self-threading flange 126 is joined, e.g. by welding on its face 134 away from the upper arm 122. This flange 126 helps in easily attach J-clip 120 to headlamp bracket 112 (not shown here).

Figure 6b shows a top view of J-clip s120 of Figure 6a. It shows an upper arm 122 having an aperture 128 configured with a key-slot 132. This key-slot acts as a transition fit which allows for certain expansion, if necessary, during and after fitting along with the mounting bracket assembly. The transition area 138 between the upper arm 122 and lower arm 124 is configured in U-shape to bring upper arm 122 and lower arm 124 substantially parallel to each other.

Figure 6c shows a side view of J-clip 120 shown in Figure 6a. The lower arm 124 of the J-clip is provided with a curved end 136 and a self-threading flange 126 is joined, e.g. by welding, on its face 134 away from the upper arm 122. This flange 126 helps to easily attaching J-clip 120 to headlamp bracket 112. The transition area 138 between the upper 122 and lower arm 124 is clearly seen in its U-shape.

Figure 7 shows the J-clip 120 assembled on a substantially elongated headlamp bracket 112 with a profiled head 100 for fitting the headlamp therein. Normally, headlamp mounting bracket 110, 112 and headlamp (not shown here) are manufactured as a single component, particularly by plastic moulding. Firstly, J-clip 120 is longitudinally slipped from elongated end of the headlamp bracket 112, which gets locked in position from the other three sides (by two longitudinal projections 114 and one lateral projection 115, see Figure 10). This headlamp assembly consists of headlamp bracket 112 and J-clip 120 is mounted from bottom of BIW 170 by passing a fastener 140 (Figure 3) through the 128 in J-clip 120 and tightening it in flange 126 thereof.

Figure 8 shows a perspective view of the headlamp 110 with mounting bracket 112 and while J-clip 120 is being assembled on the headlamp mounting bracket 112 for completing the headlamp assembly before bottom mounting it under BIW (Figure 7).

Figure 9 shows a perspective view of the headlamp assembly already assembled J-clip 120 on the headlamp bracket 112 as shown in Fig.7. This assembly is ready for bottom mounting under the BIW 170 (not shown here).

Figure 10 shows a partial top view of the headlamp mounting bracket 112 having its end configured with a recess 118 with a key-slot 116 for fixing J-clip 120 thereon. Two longitudinal projections 114 and one lateral projection 115 form a three-sided positioning space of predefined size for holding J-clip 120 in place before bottom mounting of the headlamp assembly as shown in Figure 7. These projections also facilitate guiding the J-clip 120 during sliding thereof on the headlamp mounting bracket 112 for positional locking thereof.

Figure 11 shows a top view of J-clip 120 with an upper arm 122 having an through hole 128 configured with a key-slot 132 and the transition area 138 configured in U-shape between the upper arm 122 and lower arm 124.

Figure 12 shows a top view of J-clip 120 already assembled at the end of headlamp mounting bracket 112 as shown in Figures 7 and 10.

Technical advantages and economic significance

1. Simple design with no complicated ribs.
2. Ease of assembly and ease of Service during repairs and maintenance.
3. Provides additional flexural behavior because of the space available below the structure.
4. Pedestrian criteria met.
5. Durability criteria met.
6. Save of material in BIW by providing cut-outs for its mounting.
7. Optimal use of material for headlamp design.
8. Joinery from bottom and is with that of bolts rather than snap fit.
9. A simple flat converging bracket with no ribs (less stiff structure).
10. The joinery of the bracket is done from the bottom.
11. The headlamp attached to the BIW by a J clip.
12. Optimized position of the headlamp from the corner.

Throughout this specification the word “comprise”, or variations such as “comprises” or “comprising”, shall be understood to implies including a described element, integer or method step, or group of elements, integers or method steps, however, does not imply excluding any other element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or method steps.

The use of the expression “a”, “at least” or “at least one” shall imply using one or more elements or ingredients or quantities, as used in the embodiment of the disclosure in order to achieve one or more of the intended objects or results of the present invention.

The exemplary embodiments described in this specification are intended merely to provide an understanding of various manners in which this embodiment may be used and to further enable the skilled person in the relevant art to practice this invention.

Although, only the preferred embodiments have been described herein, the skilled person in the art would readily recognize to apply these embodiments with any modification possible within the spirit and scope of the present invention as described in this specification.

Therefore, innumerable changes, variations, modifications, alterations may be made and/or integrations in terms of materials and method used may be devised to configure, manufacture and assemble various constituents, components, subassemblies and assemblies according to their size, shapes, orientations and interrelationships.

The description provided herein is purely by way of example and illustration. The various features and advantageous details are explained with reference to this non-limiting embodiment in the above description in accordance with the present invention. The descriptions of well-known components and manufacturing and processing techniques are consciously omitted in this specification, so as not to unnecessarily obscure the specification.

While considerable emphasis has been placed on the specific features of the preferred embodiment described here, it will be appreciated that many additional features can be added and that many changes can be made in the preferred embodiments without departing from the principles of the invention.

These and other changes in the preferred embodiment of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the disclosure herein, whereby it is to be distinctly understood that the foregoing descriptive matter is to be interpreted merely as illustrative of the invention and not as a limitation.