Vehicle body structure
AssigneeFord Global Technologies, LLC
InventorsDragan B. Stojkovic, Colleen Marie Hoffman
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A vehicle includes a frame and a body supported above the frame. The body includes a pair of hinge pillars disposed on opposite sides of the body and a bulkhead extending between the hinge pillars. A pair of one-piece hydroformed front-support tubes is each attached to one of the hinge pillars at a back end of the tube. Each of the tubes includes a forwardly extending portion, and a transversely extending portion attached to the frame and terminating at a front end. The front ends are attached to each other by an overlapping joint located behind a front fascia of the vehicle.
Claims19
A vehicle front end comprising:
- two hinge pillars each disposed on opposite sides of the vehicle;
- and
- a pair of one-piece hydroformed tubes each including a forwardly extending portion attached to one of the pillars, and a transversely extending portion terminating at a distal end, wherein the distal ends are attached to each other by only a single joint located in a central region of the front end.
A front-end structure of a vehicle comprising:
- a pair of structural members each disposed on opposite sides of the vehicle;
- and
- a pair of one-piece hydroformed fender-support tubes each attached to one of the members at a proximal end and extending forward therefrom, each of the tubes having a longitudinally extending portion that includes the proximal end, and a transversely extending portion that curves inwardly toward a longitudinal centerline of the vehicle and terminates at a distal end, wherein the tubes are only attached to each other at the distal ends by a single joint.
A vehicle comprising:
- a frame;
- a body supported above the frame and including a pair of hinge pillars disposed on opposite sides of the body and a bulkhead extending between the hinge pillars;
- a pair of one-piece hydroformed front-support tubes each attached to one of the pillars at a back end of the tube, each of the tubes including a forwardly extending portion, and a transversely extending portion attached to the frame and terminating at a front end, wherein the front ends are attached to each other by an overlapping joint located behind a front fascia of the vehicle;
- and
- a bolster connected to each of the transversely extending portions and defining a portion of the front fascia, wherein the bulkhead, the pair of tubes and the bolster cooperate to define an engine compartment.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.