Conventional vehicles include crash mitigation structure to reduce/manage deformation in the event of impact. Frontal impacts are, however, not always completely flush to the front end of the vehicle. At times an object or barrier can collide with the vehicle off-center. For example, one type of an off-centered vehicle impact is the overlap barrier impact defined as an impact spanning (or “overlapping”) approximately less than 25% of the vehicle front end on one side. An overlap barrier impact may occur, e.g., during an oblique vehicle-to-vehicle or head-on tree/post/pole impact.
With respect to the overlap barrier impact, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) is defining a new frontal impact crash mode protocol. It is expected that the protocol will require a vehicle to be impacted at 40 mph against a 25% overlap barrier. In order to meet this standard various structural designs have been considered. For example, one existing reference teaches a retractable strut pivotally connected to the inside of a side rail in the front-end assembly. See U.S. Pat. No. 3,853,344 titled “Impact Absorbing Bumper System.” While this reference teaches a design that translates impact energy from one position on the front end of a vehicle to another, it does not appear to mitigate overlap barrier impact as the retractable strut is mounted inside of the side rail.
Therefore, it is desirable to have a vehicle structural frame with an overlap-barrier-impact deformation scheme that mitigates partial overlap barrier impact. It is further desirable to have a method of manufacturing the same.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds