Abstract:
A vehicle midgate includes a generally U-shaped reinforcement member that cooperates with an inner panel and an outer panel to define a cavity for containing a selectively retractable window. The U-shaped reinforcement member has a closed cross section so as to form a channel separate from the cavity. The reinforcement member provides increased stiffness and improved water management inside the midgate.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD  
       [0001]     This invention relates to vehicle midgates that include an inner panel, an outer panel, and a tubular, generally U-shaped reinforcement that cooperate to define a cavity.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     Certain vehicles, such as some sport-utility vehicles and pickup trucks, include a cab portion defining a passenger compartment, and a rear cargo area such as a pickup truck cargo box. A midgate panel assembly is movable between a closed position to obstruct a body opening between the passenger compartment and the rear cargo area, and an open position to connect the passenger compartment and the rear cargo area. When the midgate panel assembly is in the open position, cargo may extend from the rear cargo area into the passenger compartment, increasing the cargo-carrying capacity of the vehicle.  
         [0003]     Some midgate panel assemblies include an inner panel and an outer panel that cooperate to form a cavity. A retractable window is selectively movable between a raised position for cooperating with the inner and outer panels to obstruct the body opening, and a retracted position in which the window is substantially entirely within the cavity. An exemplary vehicle with a midgate is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,513,863, issued Feb. 4, 2003 to Renke et al, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004]     A midgate panel assembly includes an inner panel and an outer panel that cooperate to partially define a cavity therebetween. A window is at least partially located within the cavity and is configured to selectively protrude outward from an open end of the cavity. A tubular reinforcement member between the inner and outer panels is generally U-shaped and further defines the cavity.  
         [0005]     The tubular member is characterized by a closed cross section, and has an inner surface that defines a channel separate from the cavity. The closed cross section of the reinforcement member provides increased midgate panel assembly stiffness. Moreover, the reinforcement member may facilitate water management inside the midgate panel assembly. Water may enter the cavity through the open end if the midgate panel assembly is directly exposed to the vehicle exterior. The reinforcement member is preferably shaped to direct water in the cavity toward an aperture through which the water drains into the rear cargo area and not the passenger compartment. The channel, being separate from the cavity, is not exposed to water that may enter the midgate panel assembly through the open end of the cavity, and thus provides a dry environment for certain hardware components. The tubular reinforcement member is preferably one-piece, thus reducing the number of components in the midgate panel assembly compared to the prior art.  
         [0006]     The above features and advantages, and other features and advantages of the present invention are readily apparent from the following detailed description of the best modes for carrying out the invention when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0007]      FIG. 1  is a schematic, sectional, side view of a vehicle including a midgate panel assembly;  
         [0008]      FIG. 2  is a schematic perspective view of a tubular reinforcement member of the midgate panel assembly of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0009]      FIG. 3  is a schematic cross sectional view of the lower portion of the midgate panel assembly of  FIG. 1  taken along a vertical plane; and  
         [0010]      FIG. 4  is a schematic cross sectional view of the lateral portion of the midgate panel assembly of  FIG. 1  taken along a horizontal plane. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0011]     Referring to  FIG. 1 , a vehicle includes a body  10  defining a passenger compartment  14  and a rear cargo compartment  18 , i.e., a pickup truck cargo box. The passenger compartment  14  is partially defined by a roof  19  and a floor  20 . A midgate panel assembly  22  is selectively pivotable between a closed position, as depicted in  FIG. 1 , and an open position (not shown). In the closed position, the midgate panel assembly  22  is generally vertically oriented to obstruct a body opening  26  and thereby separate the passenger compartment  14  and the rear cargo compartment  18 . In the open position, the midgate panel assembly  22  is generally horizontally oriented so as not to obstruct the body opening  26  so that the passenger compartment  14  and the cargo compartment  18  are connected.  
         [0012]     A rear passenger seat  30  in the passenger compartment  14  is removable from the vehicle body  10 , or foldable, to facilitate the movement of the midgate panel assembly  22  to the open position. The midgate panel assembly  22  may, within the scope of the claimed invention, be used in various types of vehicles that have a passenger compartment adjacent to a cargo area, such as pickup trucks, sport-utility vehicles, minivans, etc.  
         [0013]     The midgate panel assembly  22  includes an inner panel  34  and an outer panel  38  that partially define a cavity  42  therebetween. The inner panel  34  is closer than the outer panel  38  to the passenger compartment  14  when the midgate panel assembly  22  is in the closed position. In the embodiment depicted, the inner panel is an interior trim panel and is comprised of a polymeric material. However, those skilled in the art will recognize a variety of inner panel configurations and materials that may be employed within the scope of the claimed invention. For example, the inner panel  34  may be a stamped sheet of metal upon which an aesthetically-pleasing interior trim panel is mounted.  
         [0014]     The midgate panel assembly  22  also includes a glass window  46  that is movable between an extended position and a retracted position. In the extended position, the window  46  protrudes through an open end of the cavity  42 , i.e., at slot  50  between the upper edges of the inner panel  34  and the outer panel  38 , to cooperate with the inner and outer panels in obstructing opening  26 . In the retracted position, the window (shown in phantom at  46 ′) is substantially entirely located within the cavity  42 .  
         [0015]     The midgate panel assembly  22  also includes an inner belt reinforcement member  54  operatively connected to the inner panel  34  near the slot  50 . The midgate panel assembly  22  also includes an outer belt reinforcement member  58  operatively connected to the outer panel  38  near the slot  50 . The inner and outer belt reinforcement members  54 ,  58  are configured to provide structural rigidity to the midgate panel assembly  22 .  
         [0016]     A tubular reinforcement member  62  is situated between the inner panel  34  and the outer panel  38  and further defines the cavity  42 . Referring to  FIG. 2 , wherein like reference numbers refer to like components from  FIG. 1 , the tubular reinforcement member  62  is generally U-shaped. More specifically, the tubular reinforcement member  62  includes a first segment  66  that extends along the lower edges of the inner panel and the outer panel, shown at  70  and  74 , respectively, in  FIG. 3 . Second and third segments  78 ,  82  extend from opposite ends of the first segment  66  and are generally perpendicular to the first segment.  
         [0017]     The tubular reinforcement member  62  is one-piece. In a preferred embodiment, the reinforcement member  62  is a hydroformed tube or bent pipe structure. Tube hydroforming is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,233,854, issued Aug. 10, 1993 to Bowman, et al; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,333,775, issued Aug. 2, 1994 to Bruggemann, et al, both of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.  
         [0018]     Referring to  FIG. 3 , wherein like reference numbers refer to like components from  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the first segment  66  of the reinforcement member  62  extends parallel and adjacent to the lower edges  70 ,  74  of the inner and outer panels  34 ,  38 . The reinforcement member  62  is characterized by an outer surface  86 , a portion  90  of which partially defines the lower extent of part of the cavity  42 . The body  10  includes stamped structural body panels  98 ,  102 . A flange  106  on structural panel  98  supports a primary seal  110 . When the midgate panel assembly  22  is in the open position, the primary seal is in an expanded condition (shown in phantom at  110 ′). When the midgate panel assembly  22  is in the closed position, as shown in  FIG. 3 , the outer panel  38  compresses the primary seal  110  to prevent water, dust, etc., from entering the passenger compartment  14  from the rear cargo area  18 . Hinges (not shown) for enabling the midgate panel assembly to pivot between the open and closed positions may be attached to the lower portion  94  of the outer surface  86 .  
         [0019]     Water (not shown) may enter the cavity  42  through the slot (shown at  50  in  FIG. 1 ). Gravity will cause the water to collect at the lower portion of the cavity. Foam  114  prevents water from flowing between the inner panel  34  and the reinforcement member  62  and into the passenger compartment  14 . Similary, foam  114  prevents water from flowing between the outer panel  38  and the reinforcement member  62  and into the passenger compartment  14 . An aperture  118  in the outer panel  38  at or near the lowest extent of the cavity  42  provides fluid communication between the cavity and the rear cargo compartment  18 . The upper portion  90  of the outer surface  86  is inclined when the midgate panel assembly  22  is in the closed position to direct water at the lower portion of the cavity toward the aperture  118 .  
         [0020]     The aperture  118  is sufficiently located with respect to the primary seal  110  such that the primary seal prevents fluid communication between the aperture  118  and the passenger compartment  14 . The seal  110  is configured to direct water from the aperture  118  to the upper surface of the floor  122  of the cargo compartment  18 . In the embodiment depicted, the vehicle body includes a flipper panel  124  pivotably connected to the outer panel  38  via hinge  126 . The flipper panel  124  creates a false load floor over seal  110  and flange  106  when the midgate panel is in the open position.  
         [0021]     The reinforcement member  62  is characterized by a closed cross section. An inner surface  130  defines a channel  134  that is separate from, and not in fluid communication with, the cavity  42 .  
         [0022]     Referring to  FIG. 4 , wherein like reference numbers refer to like components from  FIGS. 1-3 , the third segment  82  of the tubular reinforcement member  62  extends parallel and adjacent to at least a portion of one of the lateral edges  138  of the inner panel  34  and one of the lateral edges  142  of the outer panel  38 . The second segment (shown at  78  in  FIG. 2 ) is substantially similar to the third segment  82  and extends along opposite lateral edges of the inner and outer panels  34 ,  38 . The reinforcement member  62  is connected to the inner belt reinforcement member  54  and the outer belt reinforcement member  58 . A window run channel  146  guides the window (not shown in  FIG. 4 ). A latch  150  is connected to the third segment of the reinforcement member  62  so as to be at least partially contained within the channel  134  and separated from the cavity  42  by the inner wall  154  of the reinforcement member  62 . A portion  156  of the outer surface  86  forms a lateral edge of the cavity  42 .  
         [0023]     The latch  150  is sufficiently positioned to accept and releasably retain a striker  166  connected to the body structure  158  through a fishmouth aperture  162  formed in the third segment  82 . Outer panel  38  includes a notch  164  at the fishmouth aperture  162  so as not to obstruct the path of the striker  166  into the aperture  162 . Water cannot enter the cavity  42  via the fishmouth aperture  162  because the wall  154  prevents fluid communication between the cavity  42  and the aperture  162 . Referring again to  FIG. 2 , the second segment  78  of the reinforcement member  62  also defines an aperture  162  through which another latch  170  in the channel receives a striker.  
         [0024]     While the best mode for carrying out the invention has been described in detail, those familiar with the art to which this invention relates will recognize various alternative designs and embodiments for practicing the invention within the scope of the appended claims.