Patent Publication Number: US-2005116503-A1

Title: Safety cabin

Description:
The Invention relates to a safety cell, in particular for motor vehicles in the saloon car race sport according to the preamble of the first Patent claim. The safety cell is employed in motor vehicles, preferably in the saloon car race sport, for receiving the driver seat for thereby protecting the driver against injuries caused by an accident.  
      A safety seat is known from the German printed Patent document DE 29924054 U1,which safety seat is employed in the race sport for protecting the passengers. Here a safety seat is involved, wherein the safety seat is constructed according to the monocoque construction method and wherein the safety seat is particularly light weight formed by the employment of fiber reinforced material (CFK). The stiffiess of the safety seat is obtained by the formation of a honeycomb structure made of CFK, whereby the property of the CFK of providing high stiffness at low weight is only ideally used relative to the weight side. The high driver specific formation of the safety increasing element is to be considered a further disadvantage of this concept, since any safety seat has to be individually tuned to the driver, which tuning is associated with substantial costs. The formation of the side walls is dubious as to safety technology, since these side walls do not fully cover the driver on the side. Furthermore, the side walls exhibit a concave bulging directed in the direction toward the seat wall, wherein the bulging further runs in a relatively small transition radius in the direction toward the foot region such that in case of a hard crash a buckling can occur in this weakened side wall region.  
      It is an object of the Invention to furnish a safety cell, which exhibits a small individualising degree specific to the driver, which is flexible and employable in various vehicle types and which meets the highest safety conditions.  
      This object is achieved according to the present Invention with the characterizing features of the first Patent claim. The safety cell (monocoque) is here essentially subdivided into a seat region and a foot region and is produced out of carbon fibers having a long fiber with a laminar structure in combination with aluminum and/or an aluminum honeycomb structure. Here the stiffness of the safety cage can be varied by way of fiber orientation and/or the orientation of individual fibers or fiber layers relative to each other. The binding in of function carriers is performed by the separate bringing in of receiver blocks, wherein the receiver blocks can be bound into the monocoque through aluminum plates integrated into the monocoque structure, whereby also the average stiffness of the total structure can be increased. It is also possible that the function carriers to be bound into the receiver blocks are performed as an attachment for the steering column, the gear shift lever mechanism or the pedal plant. The monocoque can exhibit also openings and/or recesses, wherein the function carriers (receiver blocks) are bound to the monocoque by way of the openings and/or recesses. The safety cage is open in part, or, respectively, completely closed at the end of the foot space, wherein the safety cage exhibits openings and/or bore holes in the back, side, and floor region. The safety cell is fixed in its position at the vehicle frame structure by the openings/bore holes in the floor region and/or in the side region and/or through embedded function carriers, whereby the monocoque maintains its position in the vehicle also under the effect and interaction of large deformation forces. The modulus of shear of the floor group of the vehicle is simultaneously increased by the multipoint fixation. Preferably a total of  8  attachment points is integrated in the floor region of the seat cage, wherein in each case four rows with attachment points in each case two pairwise are disposed at a distance to each other.  
      The first side wall region of the monocoque disposed furthest most in the direction toward the vehicle outer side covers the sideways projected area of the vehicle driver in an upright seated position as well as in an inclined position in the direction of the length of the construction part up to the shoulder of the vehicle driver completely in height and width, in order to increase the safety in case of a side crash impact. The second side wall region of the monocoque covers the sideways projected area of the driver only in an upright seated position, up to the shoulder of the vehicle driver completely in height and width. The head protection region can be separately bound in at the safety cage, whereby a partial overlapping with the head protection region to be bound in results in the seat region. The head protection region can be attached on the inside and/or on the outside at the seat region. Preferably the head protection region is disposed at a seat receiver attachable in the seat region.  
      The steering can be connected to the monocoque depending on the load, wherein also a height level adjustment of the steering wheel is possible based on the dimensioning or, respectively, the positioning of the receiver blocks in or, respectively, on the monocoque.  
      It is furthermore advantageous in case of a fire, if at least the outer contour of the safety cage is furnished with a fire proof or flame resistant coating or foil or heat resistant coating.  
      One or several airbags can be integrated in the region of the side walls and/or the foot region, wherein the binding in of the airbags is performed through functional elements.  
      An increased number of carbon fiber layers and/or layers out of aluminum or aluminum honeycomb structure are furnished to the side wall region disposed furthest most in the direction toward the outside of the vehicle and/or in the foot region as compared to other regions of the seat cage in order to furnish the largest possible protection to the particularly endangered regions. 
    
    
      The Invention is in the following illustrated in more detail by way of embodiment examples and associated drawings.  
      There is shown in:  
       FIG. 1 : safety cell in a three-dimensional view,  
       FIG. 2 : safety cell in a three-dimensional view with openings/recesses for binding in of function carriers,  
       FIG. 3 : safety cell in a side elevational view,  
       FIG. 4  safety cell in a top planar view. 
    
    
       FIG. 1  shows the safety cell with two main components: seating region SA and foot region FB. The seat receiver SA exhibits a back rest region SR and a first side wall region SW 1  as well as a second side wall region SW 2 , wherein the side wall regions SW 1 , SW 2  extend up to the foot region FB.  
       FIG. 2  shows the safety cell with rectangles indicating the corresponding positions and function elements FB embedded in the monocoque structure FB for the receiving of the steering rod, GZ for the receiving of the accelerator assembly, SB for the receiving for the gear shift lever mechanism as well as SG the mounting position for the safety belt.  
      The safety cell is illustrated in a side elevational view in  FIG. 3  width a second side wall SW 2  in the foreground disposed about in the middle of the vehicle. The upper edge of the second side wall SW 2  runs here from the seat region SA to the foot region FB first in a convex curved radius R 3 , wherein a linear vertical in the direction toward the floor indicating region L 2  following to the convex curved radius R 3 , wherein an essentially convex curved region R 4  borders the floor indicating region L 2 . The upper edge of the first side wall SW 1  runs from the seat region SA to the foot region FB first in a concave curved radius R 1 , then in a downwardly inclined region L following to the concave curved radius R 1 , approximately linear at an acute angle alpha in the direction toward the foot region FB and in a then following concave curved radius R 2 . A buckling of the monocoque is excluded based on the in driving direction inclined orientation of the side wall course with the only slightly swiveled transitions.  
       FIG. 4  shows the safety cell in a top planar view with the binding in points A for fixation at the frame structure not illustrated. The simple exchangeability of the safety cell is assured by the fixed attachment points A.  
      The mode of operation of the safety cell is the following:  
      In order to protect the driver of a saloon car against injuries through an accident, the survival space of the driver has to be secured by a particular stiff structure, by a structure standing up to also a hard crash. These high safety conditions are taken care of by the employment of a safety cell made out of carbon fibers having long fibers of defined orientation with an aluminum honeycomb structure embedded and interlaced between the carbon fiber layers. The safety cell here exhibits essentially a seat region SA and a foot region FB ( FIG. 1 ).  
      The stiffness of the safety cell, such as for example in the foot region FB ( FIG. 1 ), can be purposefully increased in particular by the employment of carbon fibers with long fibers in connection with aluminum honey comb in order to prevent therewith a possible deformation of the survival space as for example in the case of a front collision crash. This increase of the stiffness and/or elasticity can be performed by a corresponding adaptable number and/or orientation of the layers of fibers/fiber layers, wherein the zones with increased stiffness or, respectively, zones with desired elasticity can be influenced by the orientation individual fibers and/or fiber layers or, respectively, aluminum honeycomb layers relative to each other. Further function parts such as steering wheel/steering column and gear shift lever mechanism are integrated into the safety cell in order to protect the vehicle driver against injuries by the further function parts such as steering wheel/steering column and gear shift lever mechanism. This integration can be performed through receiver blocks, wherein the receiver blocks themselves exhibit a high stiffness, thereby the parts such as steering block LB, switching block SG, accelerator installation GZ, belt system GZ ( FIG. 2 ) as well as the binding in points A ( FIG. 4 ) of the monocoque at the vehicle frame structure maintain their position also under the influence of large forces. However it is also possible to support the receiver blocks depending on load on aluminum plates previously entered into the structure. The safety cell exhibits a long extended side wall SW ( FIG. 3 ) in the direction toward the middle of the vehicle for the case of a side crash impact in order to thereby prevent a buckling out in the direction of the middle of the vehicle, whereby the risk of injury is also reduced.  
      The safety of the safety seat can be further increased by a coating of the complete safety cell or at least of the outer contour of the safety cell with a fire proof or flame resistant coating or foil or with a heat resistant coating and by the installation of airbags.  
      The reinforcement of particularly endangered regions by an increased number of carbon fiber layers and/or layers out of aluminum or out of an aluminum honeycomb structure is not illustrated in more detail.  
      Overall a safety cell is created for a saloon car race sport, wherein the safety cell withstands even the highest loads and thus offers a maximum of safety for the vehicle driver.