Front underrun protection device for a heavy vehicle
The invention relates to a front underrun protection device for a heavy vehicle comprising a beam configured to extend from side to side of the vehicle at a lower front position thereof and to absorb collision energy. The beam is at least partly made of a plastic or polymeric material. The beam comprises a housing beam member having at least one channel extending along the housing beam member, and at least one reinforcement beam member adapted to fit into the channel of the housing beam member. The reinforcement beam member is arranged in the channel and arranged to extend along the housing beam member. The reinforcement beam member is provided with a plurality of wall elements comprising transversal wall elements distributed along and extending across the reinforcement beam member and longitudinal wall elements extending in a longitudinal direction of the reinforcement beam member between the transversal wall elements.
1. A front underrun protection device for a heavy vehicle, comprising:
a beam configured to extend from side to side of the heavy vehicle at a lower front position thereof and to absorb collision energy, the beam at least partly made of a plastic or polymeric material, the beam comprising:
a housing beam member extending in a longitudinal direction and having a substantially H-shaped cross-section with first and second substantially parallel outer panels connected by an inner panel that extends between the first and second outer panels in a plane substantially perpendicular to that of the outer panels so as to form first and second channels extending between the outer panels along the housing beam member at opposite sides of the inner panel, wherein a portion of the housing beam member further has a cross-section comprising a substantially U-shaped part as part of one of the first channel or the second channel, and
at least one reinforcement beam member arranged in at least one of the first and second channels and extending along the housing beam member, the at least one reinforcement beam member provided with a plurality of wall elements comprising:
transversal wall elements distributed along and extending across the at least one reinforcement beam member, and
longitudinal wall elements extending in a longitudinal direction of the at least one reinforcement beam member between the transversal wall elements, and
wherein the housing beam member is arranged so that the inner panel of the housing beam member extends in a substantially horizontal plane and so that the at least one reinforcement beam member forms an upper or a lower beam member.
2. The front underrun protection device of claim 1 , wherein:
the at least one reinforcement beam member comprises first and second reinforcement beam members, each having an outer shape adapted to fit into the first and second channels, respectively, of the housing beam member,
each of the first and second reinforcement beam members is arranged in its corresponding channel and arranged to extend along the housing beam member, and
each of the first and second reinforcement beam members is provided with the plurality of wall elements.
3. The front underrun protection device of claim 1 , wherein the transversal wall elements comprise at least a first type of transversal wall elements that extend in a plane of the beam that is perpendicular or mainly perpendicular to the inner panel of the housing beam member.
4. The front underrun protection device of claim 1 , wherein the longitudinal wall elements extend in a plane of the beam that is substantially perpendicular to the inner panel of the housing beam member.
5. The front underrun protection device of claim 3 , wherein:
the at least one reinforcement beam member comprises at least a first, a second and a third transversal wall element of the first type,
the first and third transversal wall elements are arranged on opposite sides of the second transversal wall element in the longitudinal direction of the beam,
one or more longitudinal wall elements extend between the first and the second transversal wall elements, wherein one or more further longitudinal wall elements extend between the second and the third transversal wall elements, and wherein the one or more longitudinal wall elements that extend between the first and the second transversal wall elements are arranged transversally offset in relation to the one or more further longitudinal wall elements that extend between the second and the third transversal wall elements.
6. The front underrun protection device of claim 5 , wherein:
the longitudinal distance between the first and the second transversal wall element forms a first type of section,
the longitudinal distance between the second and the third transversal wall element forms a second type of section,
the at least one reinforcement beam member comprises, at least over a portion thereof, a repetitive pattern of sections where a plurality of first and second sections are arranged adjacent each other in alternating order.
7. The front underrun protection device of claim 3 , wherein at least a portion of the transversal wall elements of the first type are inclined in relation to the inner panel of the housing beam member.
8. The front underrun protection device of claim 7 , wherein adjacent inclined transversal wall elements are inclined in different directions so that a certain pair of adjacent wall elements are inclined either towards each other or away from each other.
9. The front underrun protection device of claim 1 , wherein the transversal wall elements comprise a second type of transversal wall elements that extend in a plane of the beam that is substantially parallel with the inner panel of the housing beam member.
10. The front underrun protection device of claim 8 , wherein the transversal wall elements of the second type are arranged to connect end portions or edges of pairs of adjacent and inclined transversal wall elements of the first type.
11. The front underrun protection device of claim 10 , wherein, for a certain pair of adjacent and inclined transversal wall elements of the first type where the distance between the edges of the two wall elements in the pair is, because of the inclination, less on one side of the at least one reinforcement beam member than on the opposite side, the corresponding transversal wall element of the second type is arranged on that side of the at least one reinforcement beam member where the distance between the edges of the two adjacent and inclined transversal wall elements is less.
12. The front underrun protection device of claim 1 , wherein the at least one reinforcement beam member is fixed to the housing beam member by adhesives.
13. The front underrun protection device of claim 1 , wherein the front underrun protection device comprises first and second longitudinally spaced-apart bracket arrangements for mounting the beam to the vehicle.
14. The front underrun protection device of claim 13 ,
wherein each of the first and second bracket arrangements comprises a front and a rear mounting point for connection to corresponding support points, respectively, arranged on the heavy vehicle,
wherein the rear mounting point is connected to the beam by first and second crash tubes that are inclined in relation to each other and that also are inclined in relation to the inner panel of the housing beam member so that, when the front underrun protection device is mounted to the heavy vehicle, the rear mounting point will be located above the beam.
15. The front underrun protection device of claim 14 , wherein the first crash tube extends, as projected in a horizontal plane, in a direction substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the beam.
16. The front underrun protection device of claim 14 , wherein the second crash tube connects to the beam at a position that is closer to an end of the beam than to a position at the beam where the first crash tube connects.
17. The front underrun protection device of claim 1 , wherein the housing beam member, the at least one reinforcement beam member, and the plurality of wall elements are made of a plastic or polymeric material.
18. A vehicle comprising:
a front underrun protection device, comprising:
a beam configured to extend from side to side of the vehicle at a lower front position thereof and to absorb collision energy, the beam at least partly made of a plastic or polymeric material the beam comprising:
a housing beam member extending in a longitudinal direction and having a substantially H-shaped cross-section with first and second substantially parallel outer panels connected by an inner panel that extends between the first and second outer panels in a plane substantially perpendicular to that of the outer panels so as to form first and second channels extending between the outer panels along the housing beam member at opposite sides of the inner panel, wherein a portion of the housing beam member further has a cross-section comprising a substantially U-shaped part as part of one of the first channel or the second channel, and
at least one reinforcement beam member arranged in at least one of the first and second channels and extending along the housing beam member, the at least one reinforcement beam member is provided with a plurality of wall elements comprising:
transversal wall elements distributed along and extending across the at least one reinforcement beam member, and
longitudinal wall elements extending in a longitudinal direction of the at least one reinforcement beam member between the transversal wall elements, and
wherein the front underrun protection device is arranged so that the inner panel of the housing beam member extends in a substantially horizontal plane and so that the at least one reinforcement beam member forms an upper or a lower beam member.
19. A front underrun protection device for a heavy vehicle, comprising:
a beam configured to extend from side to side of the heavy vehicle at a lower front position thereof and to absorb collision energy, the beam at least partly made of a plastic or polymeric material, the beam comprising:
a housing beam member extending in a longitudinal direction and having a substantially H-shaped cross-section with first and second substantially parallel outer panels connected by an inner panel that extends between the first and second outer panels in a plane substantially perpendicular to that of the outer panels so as to form first and second channels extending between the outer panels along the housing beam member at opposite sides of the inner panel, wherein a portion of the housing beam member further has a cross-section comprising a substantially U-shaped part as part of one of the first channel or the second channel, and
at least one reinforcement beam member arranged in at least one of the first and second channels and extending along the housing beam member, the at least one reinforcement beam member provided with a plurality of wall elements comprising:
transversal wall elements distributed along and extending across the at least one reinforcement beam member, and
longitudinal wall elements extending in a longitudinal direction of the at least one reinforcement beam member between the transversal wall elements, and
wherein the housing beam member, the at least one reinforcement beam member, and the plurality of wall elements are made of a plastic or polymeric material.