Abstract:
A vehicle headlight arrangement includes a headlight housing adapted to enclose a light source, a vehicle body-connecting device connecting the headlight housing to a vehicle body part, and a vehicle-frame connecting device connect which connects the headlight housing to a vehicle frame. The vehicle frame connecting device includes a side-connecting component that allow a movement of the headlight housing relative to the vehicle frame along a single defined direction.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]     This application claims the priority of German Patent Application No. 103 60 182.1, filed on Dec. 20, 2003, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The invention relates to a vehicle headlight assembly which permits the headlight to move along a single path relative to the vehicle frame.  
         [0003]     The invention furthermore relates to a vehicle and an integrated unit which comprises vehicle headlight assembly, above.  
         [0004]     A vehicle headlight of this type is known from reference DE 197 27 005 C2. For compensating the differences in the thermal expansion between headlight and adjacent body parts, this reference proposes connecting the headlight form-locking with the vehicle body parts while attaching the headlight with the aid of tongue and groove elements to other vehicle components, so as to permit a movement of the headlight relative to these vehicle components. This results in a thermal compensation, but reduces the directional aiming stability of the beam direction and results in an undesirable increase in the vibration tendency of the headlight.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0005]     It is therefore an object of the present invention to further develop a vehicle headlight of the aforementioned type so as to compensate for the different thermal expansions of the headlight and the surrounding body parts, wherein the stability of the headlight is maintained with respect to beam direction and vibration tendency.  
         [0006]     The above and other objects are accomplished by the provision of a vehicle headlight arrangement, comprising: a headlight housing adapted to enclose a light source; a vehicle body-connecting device connecting the headlight housing to a vehicle body part; and a vehicle-frame connecting device connecting the headlight housing to a vehicle frame, wherein the vehicle frame connecting device includes at least one side-connecting component that allows a movement of the vehicle housing relative to the vehicle frame along a single defined direction.  
         [0007]     In the course of the invention, it was discovered that given the thermal conditions in the area surrounding a vehicle headlight, it is sufficient if relative movement is realized exclusively in one defined direction.  
         [0008]     For the required compensation of the different thermal expansions of the headlight as well as the surrounding body parts, this relative movement is sufficient. By presetting exclusively one degree of freedom of the relative movement, the stability of the vehicle-frame connecting device is increased, so that a vibration tendency of the vehicle headlight is suppressed. Since the headlight housing can be connected by means of the connecting device to the body part, clearances predetermined for the headlight opening in the vehicle body can be maintained, even considering the thermal expansion behavior. The relative movement direction predetermined by the inventive design in particular can extend exclusively in beam direction or at a small angle to the beam direction, e.g. &lt;10°. The presetting of the relative movement in beam direction, or essentially in beam direction, prevents an undesirable change in the beam direction of the headlight during the thermal compensation. The body-connecting device can be a component that is separate from the vehicle body part and/or the headlight housing. Alternatively, the body-connecting device can also be configured with components that are integrally linked to the vehicle body part and/or the headlight housing.  
         [0009]     An oblong-hole guide of the invention represents a secure vehicle-frame connecting device which simultaneously has a simple structural design.  
         [0010]     The same is also true for a groove-and-tongue guide of the invention.  
         [0011]     It is furthermore an object of the present invention to modify a vehicle to include a headlight of this type, so as to ensure that a specific clearance is maintained between the headlight housing and the vehicle body in the area where an opening is provided in the body for the headlight, wherein the stability of the headlight in particular must be maintained with respect to beam direction and tendency to vibrate.  
         [0012]     This object is solved according to the invention by having the headlight housing connected to the vehicle body by means of the body connecting device in the region of an opening in the body for a vehicle headlight. The headlight housing is connected to the vehicle frame by means of the vehicle-frame connecting device.  
         [0013]     The connection according to the invention between the headlight housing and the vehicle body causes the headlight housing to be moved along automatically, for example during a thermally caused relative movement between vehicle body and vehicle frame, such that the installation clearances are maintained. By presetting the relative movement via the vehicle-frame connecting device, the stability of the headlight is simultaneously maintained with respect to beam direction and vibration tendency.  
         [0014]     A groove-and-tongue guide embodiment where a component of the tongue-and-tongue guide is an integral part of the vehicle frame has the advantage of a low number of structural components.  
         [0015]     Vehicle body-connecting devices including screw-type, groove-type, or latch-type have proven to be particularly suitable for mass production. With latch-type connections, the associated latching elements can furthermore be formed integrally onto the components to be connected.  
         [0016]     It is also an object of the present invention to further develop a vehicle headlight as defined for the invention in such a way that the production expenditure for the final assembly of a motor vehicle provided with this headlight is reduced.  
         [0017]     This object is solved according to the invention with an integrated unit having the vehicle headlight of the invention and at least one additional component from the following list: a vehicle-frame connecting device, a body connecting device, a body part in particular a fender, an energy absorbing component for cushioning the impact between a vehicle, equipped with this component, and another object, a headlight cleaning unit, and a parking aid.  
         [0018]     An integrated unit such as that described above permits a faster final assembly of the motor vehicle. The above and other objects are accomplished by the invention by provision of a vehicle headlight arrangement which includes a headlight housing adapted to enclose a light source, a vehicle body-connecting device connecting the headlight housing to a vehicle body part, and a vehicle-frame connecting device connecting the headlight housing to a vehicle frame. The vehicle frame connecting device includes side-connecting components that allow a movement to the vehicle frame along a single defined direction.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0019]     Exemplary embodiments of the invention are explained in further detail in the following with the aid of the accompanying drawings.  
         [0020]      FIG. 1  is a schematic representation of a vehicle detail, showing a vehicle headlight connected to the vehicle.  
         [0021]      FIG. 2  is a representation similar to the one shown in  FIG. 1  of a vehicle headlight connected to a vehicle.  
         [0022]      FIG. 3  is a sectional view along the line III-III, shown in  FIG. 2 .  
         [0023]      FIG. 4  is a representation similar to the one shown in  FIG. 1  of a vehicle with an additional vehicle headlight.  
         [0024]      FIG. 5  is a sectional view along the line V-V shown in  FIG. 4 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0025]     The detail  2  of a motor vehicle shown in  FIG. 1  schematically depicts a first embodiment of a vehicle headlight  1 . A headlight housing  3  is provided with a light source, of which only one reflector  4  is shown schematically herein. The headlight housing  3  is connected by means of a rigid vehicle-body connecting device  5  to a vehicle body part  6 . This connection allows a gap  7  with constant gap width to be maintained between the headlight housing  3  and the surrounding section of the body part  6 .  
         [0026]     The headlight housing  3  is connected to a frame component  8  of an otherwise not shown vehicle frame by means of a vehicle-frame connecting device  9 , embodied as oblong-hole guide. For this, the frame component  8  is provided with two internal threads, positioned one above the other in  FIG. 1 , into which screws  10  are screwed. The screws extend through two oblong holes  11  of a connecting member  12 , also positioned one above the other in  FIG. 1 , wherein the connecting member is connected rigidly to the headlight housing  3  via an intermediate piece  13 . The internal threads in the frame component  8 , the screws  10 , the oblong holes  11 , the connecting member  12 , as well as the intermediate piece  13  jointly form the vehicle-frame connecting device  9 . The orientation of the oblong holes  11  and the screw  10  tightening moment are selected such that a movement of the vehicle headlight  1  relative to the frame component  8  is possible along the beam direction of the vehicle headlight  1 , wherein this mobility is indicated in  FIG. 1  with a double arrow  14 .  
         [0027]      FIGS. 2 and 3  show a different variant of the embodiment of the movable vehicle headlight. Components corresponding to those described in the above for  FIG. 1  are given the same reference numbers and will not be explained again.  
         [0028]     With the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , a vehicle-frame connecting device  15 , embodied as tongue and groove guide, is disposed between the frame component  8  and the headlight housing  3 . A tongue component  16  of the vehicle-frame connecting device  15  is integrally formed onto the headlight housing  3 , as shown in  FIG. 3 . The tongue component  16  is provided with two spaced-apart ridges  17  which extend in relative movement direction  14 . Complementing these ridges are two grooves  18  in a groove component  19  for the vehicle-frame connecting device  15 . The groove component  19  is connected rigidly with the separate frame component  8 , in a manner not shown herein. The vehicle-frame connecting device  15  is embodied in such a way that a movement of the vehicle headlight  1  relative to the frame component  8  is possible only in the direction of double arrow  14 . For the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , this is realized in that the headlight housing  3  is held in place on the groove component  19  of the vehicle-frame connecting device  15  by the force of the weight of the tongue component  16 , thus preventing a different type of relative movement. Alternatively, a tongue and groove guide of the type used for the vehicle-frame connecting device  15  can also be embodied with a dovetail guide, so that the weight force is not important.  
         [0029]      FIGS. 4 and 5  show a different variant of the embodiment of a movable vehicle headlight. Components described in the above in connection with  FIGS. 1 and 3  are given the same reference numbers and will not be explained again in further detail. In place of a separate groove component, which is attached to the frame component, the groove component  20  for the embodiment according to  FIGS. 4 and 5  is formed integrally onto the frame component  8 . The vehicle-frame connecting device  21 , realized in this way, corresponds in all other aspects to the vehicle-frame connecting device  15 .  
         [0030]     The body-connecting device  5  can be a screw-type, groove-type, or latch-type connection, wherein the use of a layer of adhesive for the connection is also conceivable.  
         [0031]     The vehicle headlights described in connection with FIGS.  1  to  5  can form a part of an integrated unit that also comprises the following additional components: the vehicle-frame connecting devices  9 ,  15 ,  21 ; the body connecting element  5 ; the body part  6  which may be a fender; an energy absorbing element for cushioning an impact between a vehicle provided with this element and a different object; a headlight cleaning unit; and a parking aid.  
         [0032]     The invention has been described in detail with respect to referred embodiments, and it will now be apparent from the foregoing to those skilled in the art, that changes and modifications may be made without departing from the invention in its broader aspects, and the invention, therefore, as defined in the appended claims, is intended to cover all such changes and modifications that fall within the true spirit of the invention.