| 摘要 |
A pedestrian protection headlamp assembly for a motor vehicle allows the headlamp to yield rearward in a controlled, energy-absorbing manner in order to cushion the impact experienced by a pedestrian struck by the vehicle. The headlamp assembly comprises a headlamp mountable to the vehicle to form a front corner of the vehicle, a pivot mechanism disposed adjacent the outboard end of the headlamp for mounting the headlamp to the vehicle and defining a generally vertical pivot axis about which the headlamp may rotate relative to the vehicle, and a damper disposed inboard of the pivot mechanism. When a pedestrian strikes the headlamp, the damper compresses and allows controlled rearward movement of the inboard end of the headlamp as the headlamp rotates about the pivot mechanism. The damper is located adjacent an inboard end of the headlamp and a trigger prevents rotation of the headlamp about the pivot when the force applied to the headlamp is below a threshold value. When the threshold amount of force is reached, the trigger releases to permit the headlamp to rotate rearward. The upper end of the pivot axis is tilted toward the rear of the vehicle, to provide for optimum absorption of impact energy when the direction of pedestrian impact is inclined downwardly from the horizontal.
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