[001] The present subject matter described herein, relates to structure of vehicle front body and, in particularly, to a bracket structure which joins hood lock member, radiator support member, and vertical support member at vehicle front body upper region to provide strength to withstand the vertical and braking load of radiator assembly, and impact and rebound loads of engine hood at the time of closing. More particularly, the present subject matter relates to three point mount radiator assembly at vehicle front body end.
BACKGROUND AND PRIOR ART:
[002] In existing structure of vehicle body front end, radiator, front bumper, headlamp, etc., are mounted. The vehicle body front structure is defined by a plurality of support members which forms a rectangular structure to support various components at the front end. As shown in the figure 1, the vehicle body front structure 100 comprises a pair of lateral support members 101, radiator upper mounting member 102, a pair of vertical support members 103, radiator lower mounting member 105. The radiator upper mounting member 102 and the radiator lower mounting member 105 extend along vehicle width direction. The radiator upper mounting member 102 and the radiator lower mounting member 105 are supported by the vertical support member 103 at width end to define a rectangular structure. Further, a vertical support member 104 is provided in between the radiator upper mounting member 102 and the radiator lower mounting member 105 to support the radiator upper mounting member 102.
[003] Referring to figure 2 illustrating another vehicle body front structure to mount radiator assembly at front end. The vehicle body front structure 200 includes hood support member 201, radiator upper mounting support member 202, a pair vertical support members 204, and bumper support member 205. The hood support member 201 is disposed at upper portion along vehicle width to receive vehicle hood. The hood support member 201 has a hood lock member to

lock the vehicle hood. The radiator upper mounting support member 202 is disposed below the hood support member 201 to mount the radiator assembly at two locations 203a, 203b along width direction 'W. At both width corners of the vehicle, the vertical support member 204 is provided which couples with the radiator upper mounting support member 202 and the hood support member 201 at upper corner. In the middle of the vertical support member 204, a horizontal middle member 205 is provided along vehicle width direction. The radiator upper mounting support member 202 has two radiator mounting locations 203a, 203b and the radiator lower mounting support member 206 has two radiator mounting locations 203c, 203d to mount the radiator assembly at four locations.
[004] In the existing vehicle front body structure, joinery part of the upper width corner does not withstand the vertical and braking load of radiator assembly, and impact and rebound loads of engine hood at the time of closing.
[005] In existing design of the vehicle, high level of stress values are observed in hood lock member, radiator member support and connecting bracket at corner joints, when evaluated under radiator and hood slam loading conditions, and stress levels are higher than evaluation criteria. Due to weak sectional stiffness of corner joints, high level of twisting is observed, causing high levels of stress at corner joints.
[006] If the existing structure is used for 3 point mounting of the radiator assembly, the present existing structure does not bear the load of the radiator assembly. In the three point mounting structure, whole load of the radiator assembly is applied only at a single point at upper end causing high deformations and high stress levels in the front end region.
[007] For three point mounting of the radiator assembly, the radiator assembly is shifted in vehicle forward direction due to lay-outing constraints as shown in the figure 7. This causes an offset 'd' between radiator member centerline and radiator mounting point. Hence, on application of load, high levels of twisting behavior is observed because of this offset created due to radiator lay outing, causing high stresses at corner joints.

[008] In order to cater the twisting behaviour and high stress at corner joints, a heavy connecting bracket can be provided. Addition of the heavy connecting bracket at corner joints increases cost and weight of the vehicle.
[009] In another approach, to mount radiator assembly at three mounting points at least two support members are required to provide necessary strength at upper region which adds extra cost and weight of the vehicle.
[0010] In view of the above, it is beneficial to have a vehicle front body structure which satisfies cost and lay-outing constraints to cater load of radiator assembly, and impact and rebound loads of engine hood at the time of closing. Therefore, there is a need in the art to provide a bracket at corner joints to connect the hood support member, radiator upper mounting support member, and the vertical support member which is simple, inexpensive and light in weight to eliminate the existing above mentioned problems.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION:
[0011] The principal object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle front body structure.
[0012] Another object of the present subject matter is to provide a bracket at corner joints to cater vertical and braking load of radiator assembly.
[0013] Another object of the present subject matter is to provide a vehicle front body structure to mount radiator assembly at three points.
[0014] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a bracket at corner joints to withstand impact and rebound loads of the engine hood at the time of closing.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION:
[0015] The subject matter disclosed herein relates to a vehicle body front end structure to mount radiator assembly at three mounting points. The vehicle body front end structure includes hood support member, radiator upper mounting support member, a pair of vertical support members, an open box type bracket at

upper corner joints and a radiator lower mount support member. The hood support member, the radiator upper mounting support member, the pair of vertical support members, and the radiator lower mounting support member couple with each other to define a front rectangular structure. The bracket is provided at the corner joint to join the upper ends of the hood support member, the radiator upper mounting support member, and the pair of vertical support members. The bracket comprises a lower portion with hat shaped cross-section to couple with upper portion of the vertical support member and middle portion to couple with side end portion of the radiator upper mounting support member. At the top, the upper portion couples with side end portion of the hood support member. The bracket is open box type bracket which receives the support members from the open side and attach with the support members with three sides, such as inner side wall, outer side wall, and middle upper wall. The upper portion of the bracket comprises three flanges bent in inward direction to define a close structure at top portion. The lower portion of the bracket has hat shaped cross-section which attaches with side flanges of the vertical support member. The coupling section of the bracket extend along vehicle height 'H' direction to cater all vertical loads of the radiator assembly and the vehicle hood during closing operation.
[0016] In another embodiment of the present subject matter, an L shaped bracket is provided in between the hood support member and the radiator upper mounting support member. The L shaped bracket is provided near single mounting location of the radiator assembly on the radiator upper mounting support member. The L shaped bracket caters the twisting load of the radiator upper mounting support member due to the radiator assembly.
[0017] In yet another embodiment of the present subject matter, the coupling section of the bracket is provided in the corner portion where stress component of all the members are high. The bracket couples with the members at larger coupling portions to increase rigidity of the joint.
[0018] In order to further understand the characteristics and technical contents of the present subject matter, a description relating thereto will be made with

reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the drawings are illustrative only but not used to limit scope of the present subject matter.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0019] It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of the present subject matter and are therefore not to be considered for limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to other equally effective embodiments. The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures. In the figures, the left-most digit(s) of a reference number identifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. The same numbers are used throughout the figures to reference like features and components. Some embodiments of system or methods in accordance with embodiments of the present subject matter are now described, by way of example, and with reference to the accompanying figures, in which:
[0020] Fig. 1 and 2 illustrate vehicle front body structure with four point mounting of radiator assembly as known in the art;
[0021] Fig. 3 illustrates vehicle body front structure with three point mounting of radiator assembly, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter;
[0022] Fig. 4a and 4b illustrate corner joints having bracket to join radiator upper mounting support member, hood support member, and vertical support member, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter;
[0023] Fig. 5a, 5b, and 5c illustrate structure of the bracket, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter;
[0024] Fig. 6 illustrates an L shaped bracket connecting the radiator upper mounting support member and the hood support member to cater twisting load of the radiator upper mounting support member, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter; and

[0025] Fig. 7 illustrates radiator upper mounting support member with one radiator mounting location, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter.
[0026] 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.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS:
[0027] The subject matter disclosed herein relates to a vehicle body front end structure to mount radiator assembly at three mounting points. The vehicle body front end structure includes hood support member, radiator upper mounting support member, a pair of vertical support members, an open box type bracket at upper corner joints and a radiator lower mount support member. The hood support member, the radiator upper mounting support member, the pair of vertical support members, and the radiator lower mounting support member couple with each other to define a front rectangular structure. The bracket is provided at the corner joint to join the upper ends of the hood support member, the radiator upper mounting support member, and the pair of vertical support members. The bracket comprises a lower portion with hat shaped cross-section to couple with upper portion of the vertical support member and middle portion to couple with side end portion of the radiator upper mounting support member. At the top, the upper portion couples with side end portion of the hood support member. The bracket is open box type bracket which receives the support members from the open side and attach with the support members with three sides, such as inner side wall, outer side wall, and middle upper wall. The upper portion of the bracket comprises three flanges bent in inward direction to define a close structure at top portion. The lower portion of the bracket has hat shaped cross-section which attaches with side flanges of the vertical support member. The coupling section of

the bracket extend along vehicle height 'H' direction to cater all vertical loads of the radiator assembly and the vehicle hood during closing operation.
[0028] In another embodiment of the present subject matter, an L shaped bracket is provided in between the hood support member and the radiator upper mounting support member. The L shaped bracket is provided near single mounting location of the radiator assembly on the radiator upper mounting support member. The L shaped bracket caters the twisting load of the radiator upper mounting support member due to the radiator assembly.
[0029] In yet another embodiment of the present subject matter, the coupling section of the bracket is provided in the corner portion where stress component of all the members are high. The bracket couples with the members at larger coupling portions to increase rigidity of the joint.
[0030] It should be noted that the description and figures merely illustrate the principles of the present subject matter. It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that conception and specific embodiment disclosed may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present subject matter. It should also be appreciated by those skilled in the art that by devising various arrangements that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the principles of the present subject matter and are included within its spirit and scope. Furthermore, all examples recited herein are principally intended expressly to be for pedagogical purposes to aid the reader in understanding the principles of the present subject matter and the concepts contributed by the inventor(s) to furthering the art, and are to be construed as being without limitation to such specifically recited examples and conditions. The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the present subject matter, both as to its organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying figures.

[0031] These and other advantages of the present subject matter would be described in greater detail with reference to the following figures. It should be noted that the description merely illustrates the principles of the present subject matter. It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to devise various arrangements that, although not explicitly described herein, embody the principles of the present subject matter and are included within its scope.
[0032] Referring to figure 7, in order to accommodate new radiator layout with single point mount on a radiator upper mounting support member 302, the radiator upper mounting support member 302 is modified to have a curved profile which causes twisting loads. In the three points mounting of the radiator assembly, the radiator assembly is shifted in vehicle forward direction due to lay-outing constraints. This causes an offset 'd' between radiator member centerline and radiator mounting point. Hence, on application of load, high levels of twisting behavior is observed about radiator upper support member causing high stresses at corner joints. The present structure eliminates this twisting behavior by providing an L shaped bracket proximal to the mounting location of the radiator assembly which is described in detail in following figures.
[0033] Referring to figure 3, the vehicle body front structure 300 comprises a hood support member 301, radiator upper mounting support member 302, a pair of vertical support members 303 and radiator lower mounting support member 305. The hood support member 301, the radiator upper mounting support member 302, the pair of vertical support members 303 and the radiator lower mounting support member 305 couple with each other to define a rectangular front end structure to support various components, such as radiator assembly, front bumper, fender, headlamp assembly, etc. The present vehicle body front structure 300 is designed to accommodate radiator assembly at three mounting points, such as one mounting location 308a at radiator upper mounting support member 302 and two mounting points 308b, 308c at the radiator lower mounting support member 305. At the corner X, an open box type bracket 304 (interchangeably can be referred as bracket 304) is provided which couples with the hood support member 301, the

radiator upper mounting support member 302, and the vertical support member 303 at upper end. Here arrows W and H indicate vehicle width direction and vehicle height direction respectively.
[0034] Referring to figure 4a and 4b, the upper corner X has the bracket 304 which joins members of the vehicle body front structure 300. The bracket 304 is an open box type bracket (detailed explain in figure 5). The bracket 304 can be classified into three portions, such as lower portion 'L', middle portion 'M', and upper portion 'U' for better explanation and understanding of coupling of the bracket with different members of the vehicle body front structure 300. Referring to figure 4b, the lower portion 'L' couples with upper end portion 303a of the vertical support member 303. The lower portion 'L' has hat shaped cross-section profile. In the hat shaped cross-section profile of the lower portion 'L', flange 505 (as shown in figure 5) extends from outer side wall and inner side wall of the bracket. The flanges 505 are coupled with flange of the upper end portion 303a of the vertical support member 303. The lower portion 'L' is coupled with the vertical support member 303 at three faces , such as flange portion at both sides and middle upper wall at plurality of locations.
[0035] Referring to middle portion 'M' of the bracket 304, the middle portion 'M' is coupled with side end portion 302a of the radiator upper mounting support member 302 at three sides; inner wall, outer wall, and middle upper wall at plurality of locations 304a, 304b, 304c(304c is on the inner side which is not visible in the figure). Reference numeral 304a indicates outer wall coupling locations with the radiator upper mounting support member 302 and hood support member 301. Reference numeral 304b indicates the middle upper wall coupling locations with the radiator upper mounting support member 302, hood support member 301, and the vertical support member 303. Similarly, the reference numeral 304c indicates the inner wall coupling locations with the radiator upper mounting support member 302 and hood support member 301.
[0036] Referring to upper portion 'U', the upper portion 'U' has three flanges (explained in figure 5) which is coupled with upper end portion of the hood

support member 301 at three sides; inner wall, outer wall and three flanges on middle upper wall.
[0037] Referring to figures 5a, 5b, and 5c, the bracket 500 is explained. The bracket 500 is an open box type structure which is open from two ends, i.e., lower end to receive vertical support member 303 and side end to receive the radiator upper mounting support member 302 and the hood support member 301. The bracket 500 has outer side wall 501, middle upper wall 502, and inner side wall 503. The middle upper wall 502 connects the inner side wall 503 and the outer side wall 501 to define a U shape channel. The upper portion 'U' has three flanges 504a, 504b, and 504c. The flange 504a perpendicularly extends from the outer side wall 501. The flange 504b perpendicularly extends from the inner side wall 503. The flange 504c perpendicularly extends from the middle upper wall 502. The inner and the outer side wall of the lower portion 'L' of the bracket 500 have perpendicularly extended flanges 505 to form a hat shape cross section. The middle upper wall 502 has a vertical dumbbell shaped bead 506 which extend from lower portion 'L' to bent portion of the flange 504c of the upper portion 'U'. The vertical dumbbell shaped bead 506 increases stiffness of the bracket in vehicle height direction 'FT. As shown in the figure 5b, width 'fd' of the side walls 501, 503 gradually increases from the lower portion 'L' to the upper portion 'U' of the bracket 500 upto width 'FD'. The gradually increase of width from 'fd' to 'FD' distributes the vertical loads of the radiator assembly and vehicle hood in vehicle height direction 'FT.
[0038] Referring to figure 3 and 6, an L shaped bracket 307 is provided in between the radiator upper mounting support member 302 and the hood support member 301 to avoid twisting loads on the radiator upper mounting support member 302 due to single point radiator assembly. The L shaped bracket 307 is a triangular bracket which has wider portion connected with the hood support member 301 and the narrow portion connected with the radiator upper mounting support member 302. The L shaped bracket 307 is provided proximal to radiator mounting location 308a to avoid twisting load and behavior of the radiator upper

mounting support member 302 under hood closing operation and radiator loading conditions.
[0039] The mounting means in the present disclosure can be selected from welding, bolting, riveting, swaging, and spot welding. The bracket 500 is made from sheet metal material. The bracket 500 is spot welded with the radiator upper mounting support member 302, the hood support member 301, and the vertical support member 303. The bracket 500 is spot welded at plurality of mounting locations and at three sides to increase rigidity of the bracket to bear all vertical loads in vehicle height direction 'H'.
[0040] The advantages of the present vehicle front body structure 100 are:
[0041] Use of 3-point radiator mount configuration without using lateral support members.
[0042] Providing durable and rigid structure with light weight support members.
[0043] Eliminating high deformation at radiator upper mounting location.
[0044] Eliminating high stress values at corner joints in hood support member.
[0045] Eliminating high relative displacement between upper and lower radiator mounts.
[0046] Eliminating the permanent damage to the radiator upper support member and hood support member.
[0047] The term "vehicle" or "automobile" as used throughout this detailed description and in the claims refers to any moving vehicle that is capable of carrying one or more human occupants or goods and is powered by any form of energy. The term "vehicle" is a motor vehicle which includes, but is not limited to: cars, trucks, vans, minivans, hatchback, sedan, MUVs, and SUVs.
[0048] It will be understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims (e.g., bodies of the appended claims) are generally intended as "open" terms (e.g., the term "including" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to," the term "having" should be

interpreted as "having at least," the term "includes" should be interpreted as "includes but is not limited to," etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases "at least one" and "one or more" to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles "a" or "an" limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to inventions containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases "one or more" or "at least one" and indefinite articles such as "a" or "an" (e.g., "a" and/or "an" should typically be interpreted to mean "at least one" or "one or more"); the same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should typically be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of "two recitations," without other modifiers, typically means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations). Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to "at least one of A, B, and C, etc." is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, and C" would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). In those instances where a convention analogous to "at least one of A, B, or C, etc." is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, or C" would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that virtually any disjunctive word and/or phrase presenting two or more alternative

terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both terms. For example, the phrase "A or B" will be understood to include the possibilities of "A" or "B" or "A and B."
[0049] It will be further appreciated that functions or structures of a plurality of components or steps may be combined into a single component or step, or the functions or structures of one-step or component may be split among plural steps or components. The present invention contemplates all of these combinations. Unless stated otherwise, dimensions and geometries of the various structures depicted herein are not intended to be restrictive of the invention, and other dimensions or geometries are possible. In addition, while a feature of the present invention may have been described in the context of only one of the illustrated embodiments, such feature may be combined with one or more other features of other embodiments, for any given application. It will also be appreciated from the above that the fabrication of the unique structures herein and the operation thereof also constitute methods in accordance with the present invention. The present invention also encompasses intermediate and end products resulting from the practice of the methods herein. The use of "comprising" or "including" also contemplates embodiments that "consist essentially of or "consist of the recited feature.
[0050] Although embodiments for the present subject matter have been described in language specific to structural features, it is to be understood that the present subject matter is not necessarily limited to the specific features described. Rather, the specific features and methods are disclosed as embodiments for the present subject matter. Numerous modifications and adaptations of the system/component of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and thus it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such modifications and adaptations which fall within the scope of the present subject matter.

WE CLAIM

1.A vehicle body front structure (300) comprising:
a radiator upper mounting support member (302) disposed in a front side of a vehicle body along width direction (W);
a hood support member (301) disposed in front side of the vehicle body above the radiator upper mounting support member (302) along width direction (W);
a vertical support member (303) disposed at width end along vehicle body height direction (H);
a bracket (304) coupled with the radiator upper mounting support member (302), the hood support member (301), and the vertical support member (303) in vehicle body height direction (H), wherein the bracket (304) comprising:
a lower section (L) coupled with upper portion
(303a) of the vertical support member (303);
a middle section (M) coupled with side end portion
(302a) of the radiator upper mounting support member (302); a upper portion (U) coupled with side end portion
(301a) and upper end portion (301b) of the hood support
member (301).
2.The vehicle body front structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the upper portion (U) comprises two flanges (504a, 504b) in vehicle width direction (W) and one flange (504c) in vehicle longitudinal direction (L), wherein the two flanges (504a, 504b) and the one flange (504c) bent vertically inward and welded with the hood support member (301) at plurality of locations.
3.The vehicle body front structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bracket (304) comprises inner side wall (503), outer side wall (501) and middle upper wall (502) connects the inner side wall (503) and the outer side wall (501) to define an open box type structure.

4.The vehicle body front structure (300) as claimed in claim 3, wherein width (fd) of the inner and outer side walls (503, 501) gradually increases from the vertical support member (303) towards the hood support member (301) to distribute loads of radiator and hood slam.
5. The vehicle body front structure (300) as claimed in claim 3, wherein the middle upper wall (502) is provided with a vertical bead (506) from the lower portion (L) to the upper portion (U) to increase bending stiffness in the vehicle body height direction (H).
6.The vehicle body front structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the coupling means is selected from welding, bolting, riveting, and swaging.
7.The vehicle body front structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein an L shaped triangular bracket (307) is provided proximal to radiator mounting location (308a) to connect the radiator upper mounting support member (302) with the hood support member (301) to avoid twisting behavior of the radiator upper mounting support member (302) under hood slam and radiator loading conditions.
8.The vehicle body front structure (300) as claimed in claim 7, wherein wider portion of the L shaped triangular bracket (307) faces the hood support member (301).
9.The vehicle body front structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the radiator upper mounting support member (302) has one radiator mounting location (308a) to mount a radiator assembly.
10.The vehicle body front structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
bracket (304) is spot welded with the radiator upper mounting support member
(302), the hood support member (301), and the vertical support member (303) at

plurality of locations on inner side wall (503), outer side wall (501), and middle upper wall (502).