Bumper assembly for a vehicle and corresponding vehicle comprising said bumper assembly
AssigneeADLEV S.r.l.
InventorsJean Louis Toneatti, Mario Vismara
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A bumper assembly for a vehicle and the corresponding vehicle comprising said bumper assembly are described. The assembly comprises: at least two crash boxes; a cross member made of a first plastic material which, during use, extends over a distance at least corresponding to that between the crash boxes; and at least two substantially indeformable connecting devices connected to said cross member for rigidly fixing said cross member to said chassis of the vehicle, wherein said at least two substantially indeformable connecting devices are connected to the cross member at positions corresponding to the crash boxes. In a preferred embodiment, the crash boxes and the connecting devices are made of plastic material.
Claims18
A bumper assembly for a vehicle, the vehicle comprising a chassis, the bumper assembly comprising:
- a first crash box and a second crash box;
- a cross member comprised of a first thermoplastic material which, during use, extends over a distance at least corresponding to that between the crash boxes;
- and
- a first and second substantially indeformable connecting devices contacting said cross member for rigidly fixing said cross member to said chassis of the vehicle;
- wherein said first and second substantially indeformable connecting devices do not result in a visible deformation when they are subject to pressures of the order of at least 20 N/mm2;
- wherein said first and second substantially indeformable connecting devices are connected to the cross member at positions corresponding to said first and second crash boxes;
- wherein said first substantially indeformable connecting device is in contact with said first crash box;
- and
- wherein said second substantially indeformable connecting device is in contact with said second crash box.
A method for protecting a vehicle from damage caused by impacts, said vehicle comprising a chassis, the method comprising:
- providing a first crash box and a second crash box;
- providing a cross member comprised of a first thermoplastic material which extends over a distance at least corresponding to that between the crash boxes;
- and
- connecting to said cross member a first and second substantially indeformable connecting devices for rigidly fixing said cross member to said chassis of the vehicle;
- wherein said first and second substantially indeformable connecting devices do not result in a visible deformation when they are subject to pressures of the order of at least 20 N/mm2;
- wherein said first and second substantially indeformable connecting devices contact the cross member at positions corresponding to said crash boxes;
- wherein said first substantially indeformable connecting device is in contact with said first crash box;
- and
- wherein said second substantially indeformable connecting device is in contact with said second crash box.
A vehicle comprising a bumper assembly, the bumper assembly comprising:
- a first crash box and a second crash box;
- a cross member comprised of a first thermoplastic material which, during use, extends over a distance at least corresponding to that between said first and second crash boxes;
- and
- a first and a second substantially indeformable connecting devices connected to said cross member rigidly connecting said cross member to said chassis of the vehicle;
- wherein said first and second substantially indeformable connecting devices do not result in a visible deformation when they are subject to pressures of the order of at least 20 N/mm2;
- wherein said first and second substantially indeformable connecting devices contact said cross member at positions corresponding to said first and second crash boxes;
- wherein said first substantially indeformable connecting device is in contact with said first crash box;
- and
- wherein said second substantially indeformable connecting device is in contact with said second crash box.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.