Side structure of a vehicle
View Patent ↗A side structure of a vehicle is provided with a side part outer frame. The side part outer frame includes, but is not limited to a front pillar and a center pillar with mounting connections for door hinges. The side part outer frame includes, but is not limited to the outer structure starting from a windshield to including a rear fender region and is a one-piece and stable construction and has a greater material thickness than a side part outer skin of a conventional side structure. One of the two pillars or both pillars comprise a reinforcement structure that is fixed within the side part outer frame.
1. A side structure of a, comprising:
a frame including a front pillar and a center pillar;
a plurality of mounting connections for a plurality of door hinges arranged on the front pillar and the center pillar;
a first reinforcement structure having a contour adapted to be affixed to the inner surface of the front pillar; and
a second reinforcement structure having a contour adapted to be affixed to the inner surface of the center pillar;
wherein the frame extends from a windshield region to a rear fender region and is a single piece having a thickness of approximately 1.3 millimeters;
wherein said first and second reinforcement structures comprise a fiber composite material comprising a plastic compound with a filling degree of approximately 40% by volume to approximately 90% by volume of fiber material; and
wherein the first and second reinforcement structures have a thickness of about 1.3 millimeters.
2. The side structure according to claim 1 , wherein the front pillar and the center pillar and the rear fender region are arranged between a roof frame region and a floor sill of the frame.
3. The side structure according to claim 1 , wherein the frame material is at least one third thicker than a conventional side part outer skin.
4. The side structure according to claim 1 , wherein a first total weight of the frame with said first and second reinforcement structures is less than a second total weight of a conventional side structure with a plurality of locally reinforcing safety structure elements.
5. The side structure according to claim 1 , wherein said first and second reinforcement structures comprise the plastic compound with the filling degree of approximately 70% by volume to approximately 80% by volume of the fiber material as the fiber composite material.
6. The side structure according to claim 1 , wherein the fiber composite material of the first and second reinforcement structures comprise a plurality of glass fibers.
7. The side structure according to claim 1 , wherein the fiber composite material of the first and second reinforcement structures comprise a plurality of carbon fibers.
8. The side structure according to claim 1 , wherein the frame comprises a sheet of an aluminum alloy.
9. The side structure according to claim 7 , wherein the first and second reinforcement structures comprise an aluminum die casting alloy.