JPH0380650B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a removable roof structure for an automobile.

(Prior Art) Conventionally, it has been known to form an opening in the roof portion of a vehicle body of an automobile, and to attach the roof to the opening in a retractable or detachable manner. Furthermore, it has already been proposed and put into practical use that the retractable or removable roof be made of a transparent material such as glass. For example, Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 57-17813 discloses a structure in which an opening is formed in the front part of the roof of a vehicle body and a transparent plate is attached to the opening.
Furthermore, Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 56-69515 discloses a structure in which rectangular notches are formed on both sides of the front of the vehicle roof, and a glass panel is removably attached to each of the notches. ing. These are considered to represent two typical types of removable glass roof structures known in the art.

(Problem to be Solved by the Invention) However, in the conventionally known removable glass roof structure described above, in the former case, because the roof needs to be supported inside the roof side rails on the sides of the roof, There is a problem in that the opening cannot be extended to the roof side rail and the opening cannot be made large enough, and therefore the transparent plate attached to the opening does not contribute much to improving the appearance of the automobile. I hadn't done it. In the latter case, the glass panel attached to the notch is formed to reach from the side of the roof part to the top of the door glass, giving a distinctive appearance where the glass panel and the door glass are continuous. There was a problem in that a metal panel portion extending back and forth remained in the center of the roof portion, and the opening formed by each cutout could not be made sufficiently large.

The present invention has been made in view of this point, and the side part of the roof made of a translucent material, which is removably attached to the opening of the vehicle roof part as described above, is extended to near the upper end of the door glass, and the extended part is By covering the roof side rails, there is no need for a structure to support the roof inside the roof side rails, and the above opening can be extended to the roof side rails, and the opening can be extended from the door glass on both sides. The objective is to create a capsule-like appearance with a continuous band-like light-transmitting part spanning the entire width of the roof, and to improve the appearance.

(Means for Solving the Problems) In order to achieve the above object, the solution of the present invention provides a removable roof made of a translucent material that covers an opening formed in a roof portion of a vehicle body. installed as possible. The left and right sides of the roof extend to near the upper end of the door glass of the side door, and cover roof side rails disposed on both sides of the roof. A weather strip is fixed to the roof side rail so as to be interposed between the side edge of the roof and the upper edge of the door glass. A roof-side seal portion is formed on the upper surface of the weather strip, and the roof-side seal portion contacts the roof-side end portion to form a seal with the roof.
A door glass side seal portion is formed on the lower surface of the weather strip for abutting against the upper end of the door glass to form a seal with the door glass. A rain rail having a generally concave cross section is formed in the roof-side seal portion to drain rainwater and the like flowing down from the roof to the outside of the vehicle.

(Function) Accordingly, in the present invention, the left and right sides of the roof extend close to the upper end of the door glass of the side door so as to cover the roof side rails, so that the roof and the door glass are continuous with each other on the vehicle body. Glass covers the entire width of the roof from the sides, creating a glass capsule-like appearance.

Further, since the side portions of the roof are provided so as to cover the roof side rails, there is no need to provide a structure for supporting the roof side end portions inside the roof side rails as in the conventional case. the result,
The opening of the vehicle body roof can be expanded to the position of the roof side rail, and a sufficiently large opening can be secured.

Furthermore, a weather strip is provided on the roof side rail and has a seal portion which is interposed between the side end portion of the roof and the upper end portion of the door glass and comes into seal contact with both of them. A rain rail is formed on the roof side seal to drain rainwater, etc. flowing down from the roof to the outside of the vehicle, so rainwater, etc. does not enter the passenger compartment from the roof side edge, ensuring sufficient sealing performance. can be secured.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described in detail based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a coupe type automobile according to an embodiment of the present invention, 1 is a vehicle body, 2 is a door opening formed on the side of the vehicle body 1, and the door opening 2 has a door glass 3 that can be moved up and down. A side door 4 having a front end portion thereof is attached to the side door 4 so as to be openable and closable. Reference numeral 5 denotes a front pillar with a closed cross section that forms the front edge of the door opening 2, and the upper end of the front pillar 5 is connected to a roof front rail with a closed cross section that forms the front part of the roof portion 1a of the vehicle body 1. It is connected to the left and right ends of 6. Reference numeral 7 denotes a rear pillar with a closed cross section that forms the rear edge of the door opening 2, and the upper end of the rear pillar 7 forms the rear edge of the door opening 2.
a It is connected to the left and right ends of the roof rear rail 8, which has a closed cross-sectional shape and forms the rear part.

Reference numeral 9 denotes roof side rails with a closed cross section that are provided on both sides of the roof portion 1a of the vehicle body 1 (the upper edge of the door opening 2), and the front end of the roof side rail 9 is connected to the front pillar 5. The upper end portion is connected to the left and right end portions of the roof front rail 6, and the rear end portion is connected to the upper end portion of the rear pillar 7 and the left and right end portions of the roof rear rail 8, respectively. The upper surface of the roof side rail 9 is set to be one step lower than the upper surfaces of the roof front rail 6 and the roof rear rail 8. A rectangular opening 10 surrounded by the roof front rail 6, left and right roof side rails 9, 9, and roof rear rail 8 is formed in the roof portion 1a of the vehicle body 1. A removable roof 11 made of glass is removably attached to cover the. The upper surface of the roof 11 is substantially continuous with the upper surfaces of the roof front rail 6 and the roof rear rail 8.

As shown in detail in FIG. 2, the left and right sides of the roof 11 are provided with the roof side rails 9, respectively.
The roof side rail 9 is extended along the upper surface of the left and right side doors 4 to near the upper end of each door glass 3 of the left and right side doors 4, 4, and the roof side rail 9 is almost covered by the extended portion 11a.

On the other hand, the side end portion (extension portion 11a) of the roof 11
A weather strip 12 is interposed between the top end of the door glass 3 and the top end of the door glass 3, and the weather strip 12 is attached to the outside of the roof side rail 9 via a weather strip retainer 13. It is attached to the opposite end. A roof-side seal portion 12a is formed on the upper surface of the weather strip 12 in correspondence with the inner surface of the side end of the roof 11, and the inner surface of the side end of the roof 11 comes into sealing contact with the roof-side seal portion 12a. ing. Further, a door glass side seal portion 12b is formed on the lower surface of the weather strip 12 in correspondence with the upper end portion of the door glass 3, so that the upper end portion of the door glass 3 comes into sealing contact with the door glass side seal portion 12b. It's summery.

Further, a rain rail 14 is formed in the roof-side sealing portion 12a of the weather strip 12 and has a generally concave cross-section that opens opposite to the roof 11-side end, and extends along the extension portion 11a of the roof 11. The rain rail 14 is configured to catch rainwater and the like flowing down and drain it to the outside of the vehicle. In the rain rail 14, when the upper end of the door glass 3 comes into contact with the door glass side seal part 12b, the opening 14a of the rain rail 14 expands due to elastic deformation of the weather strip 12, as shown in FIG. Roof 11
The extension part 11a is formed to easily receive rainwater, etc. from the extension part 11a. In addition, in the front and rear sides of the door glass 3, for example, in the case of the front side of the door glass 3, as shown in FIG. Weather strip 1 continuous to step 12
5 is attached via a weather strip retainer 16. A rain rail portion 15a is formed on the front side of the weather strip 15 and communicates with the rain rail 14 of the weather strip 12, while a rain rail portion 15a is formed on the rear side corresponding to the front end portion of the door glass 3. A seal portion 15b is formed, and the front end of the door glass 3 comes into seal contact with the seal portion 15b. Also, in Figure 2, 17
is an inner trim panel attached to the inside of the roof side rail 9.

Furthermore, claws 18 projecting forward along the inner surface of the roof 11 are attached to both sides of the front end of the roof 11 via bolts 19, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. It is designed to be inserted into a pawl receiver 20 provided on the inner end surface of the front rail 6.

Furthermore, on both rear sides of the roof 11, as shown in FIGS.
A lock fitting 23 is attached to the roof side rail 9 in correspondence with the striker 21. The lock fitting 23 includes a case 24 coupled to the roof side rail 9, an inner lock lever 26 whose one end (the front end in the figure) is pivotally coupled to the case 24 by a pin 25, and the other end (the front end in the figure) of the inner lock lever 26. (rear end) and an outer lock lever 28 whose one end (rear end in the figure) is pivotally connected by a pin 27, and by swinging the inner lock lever 26 around the pin 25,
The free end (front end in the figure) of the outer lock lever 28 is configured to move significantly in the front and back direction.
A lock pin 29 is attached to the free end of the outer lock lever 28, while a slot 21a is formed at the lower end of the striker 21 to be engageable with the lock pin 29. Then, the lock pin 29 is inserted into the slot 2 of the striker 21.
1a, the inner and outer lock levers 26,
28 upwards, both lock levers 26,2
The roof 11 is configured so that the pin 27 connecting the lock lever 8 is located above the line connecting the lock pin 29 and the pin 25 supporting the inner lock lever 26, as shown in FIG. 7, so that the roof 11 is locked.

Therefore, in the above embodiment, the removable roof 11 is attached using the claw 18 at the front end of the roof 11.
After inserting into the pawl receiver 20 of the roof front rail 6, insert the lock pin 29 of the lock fitting 23 into the slot 21 of the striker 21 at the rear of the roof 11.
a, and tighten the inner and outer lock levers 26, 2.
This is done by pushing 8 upwards to lock.

In this case, the left and right sides of the roof 11 extend close to the upper end of the door glass 3 of the side door 4 so as to cover the roof side rail 9, so that the roof 11 and the door glass 3 are continuously connected to the vehicle body. It is possible to provide a glass capsule-like appearance in which the entire width of the roof portion 1a is covered with glass from the side surface, thereby improving the appearance.

Further, since the side portions of the roof 11 are provided so as to cover the roof side rails 9, the roof 11 is placed inside the roof side rails 9 as in the conventional case.
There is no need to provide a structure to support the side ends. As a result, the roof opening 10 can be expanded to the position of the roof side rail 9, and a sufficiently large opening 10 can be secured.

Furthermore, a weather strip 12 is provided between the side end of the roof 11 and the upper end of the door glass 3, and has seal portions 12a and 12b that are in sealing contact with both of them, respectively.
The roof 11 extension part 11 is fixed to the roof side seal part 12a of the weather strip 12.
Since a rain rail 14 is formed to drain rainwater etc. flowing down along the roof 11 outside the vehicle, rainwater etc. will not enter the vehicle interior from the side edge of the roof 11 and sufficient sealing performance will be ensured. be able to.

On the other hand, to remove the removable roof 11, contrary to the above-mentioned installation, after pulling the lock levers 26 and 28 downward to release the locked state, the roof 11 is removed.
This is done by pulling out the claw 18 at the front end of 1 from the claw receiver 20.

In the above embodiment, the present invention is applied to a coupe type automobile, but it is of course applicable to various other types of automobiles.

Further, in the above embodiment, the removable roof 11 is made of glass, but in the present invention, it may be made of a synthetic resin-based light-transmitting material, and the light-transmitting material may be a transparent material. It is not limited to a transparent material, and may be a translucent material.

Further, in order to improve the sealing performance between the inner surface of the side end portion of the roof 11 and the roof-side seal portion 12a of the weather strip 12, a hollow portion may be formed in the roof-side seal portion 12a, or a hollow portion may be formed in the roof-side seal portion 12a. The weather strip 12a may be made of a material softer than the other parts of the weather strip 12, so that the inner surface of the end of the roof 11 comes into closer contact with the roof seal portion 12a.

(Effects of the Invention) As explained above, according to the present invention, the left and right sides of the removable roof made of a translucent material that is removably attached to the opening of the vehicle roof portion extend to near the top edge of the door glass. The weather strip covers the roof side rails on both sides of the roof part, and is fixed to the roof side rails and interposed between the side edge of the roof and the upper edge of the door glass. A seal portion is provided where the end portion and the upper end of the door glass come into seal contact, and the roof side seal portion of the weather strip is formed with a rain rail having a generally concave cross section for draining rainwater, etc. flowing down from the roof to the outside of the vehicle. As a result, it is possible to obtain a capsule-shaped appearance with a translucent part from the side of the vehicle body to the entire width of the roof while ensuring sufficient sealing performance on the side of the roof, thereby improving the appearance. In addition, the roof opening can be expanded to the position of the roof side rail, and a sufficiently large opening can be secured.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a coupe-type automobile seen from the upper rear, FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line - in FIG. 1, and FIG. 1 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the - line in FIG. 1, FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the - line in FIG. 1, and FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the - line in FIG.
FIG. 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the - line in FIG.
Figure 7 is a sectional view taken along the - line in Figure 6;
The figure is an exploded perspective view of the lock mechanism. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Vehicle body, 1a... Roof part, 3... Door glass, 4... Side door, 9... Roof side rail, 10... Opening, 11... Roof, 12...
Weather strip, 12a... Roof side seal part, 12b... Door glass side seal part, 14...
rain rail.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A removable roof made of a translucent material that covers an opening formed in the roof portion of the vehicle body is removably attached to the roof portion of the vehicle body, and the left and right sides of the roof are connected to the side door. The weather strip extends to near the top edge of the door glass and covers roof side rails arranged on both sides of the roof, and the roof side rail has a weather strip between the side edge of the roof and the top edge of the door glass. A roof-side seal portion is formed on the upper surface of the weather strip to seal with the roof-side end portion by contacting the roof-side end portion. A door glass side seal part is formed on the lower surface of the roof to seal with the upper end of the door glass by contacting with the upper end of the door glass. A removable roof structure for an automobile, characterized in that a rain rail with a substantially concave cross section is formed for draining water.