Tubular structural joint for automotive front end

摘要

A structural joint 30 is formed between an upper frame rail 12 which bends downwardly to define a generally vertically extending portion 15 and a generally fore-and-aft extending lower frame rail 22. The upper frame rail 12 may be formed as a conventional four-sided tube but is reformed at the intersection with the lower frame rail 22 into a multiple-sided configuration that defines a mating surface having a fore-and-aft width dimension of between 20 and 40 millimetres for connection to the lower frame rail 22. The welded connection between the upper and lower frame rails 12, 22 forming this structural joint 30 provide adequate stiffness and rigidity for the function of an automotive frame and provides a reduced shear strength in the fore-and-aft direction that can be tuned to manage the flow of crash energy during an impact situation.