Movable vehicle bumper

Vehicles with relatively high bumpers, such as light trucks, sport utility vehicles, etc., tend to cause more and more serious injuries to pedestrians than other vehicles that have lower bumpers, e.g., sedans. Such injuries, and their frequency and severity, are often result primarily from a greater height of a vehicle bumper. For example, a pedestrian struck by a vehicle with a high bumper may be more likely to stiffer a broken leg, to be dragged under a vehicle on impact, etc.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a movable bumper system.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a portion of an exemplary bumper assembly.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a vehicle bumper bracket and a vehicle frame horn bracket according to the exemplary bumper assembly of FIG. 2 .

FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of a vehicle bumper bracket and a vehicle frame horn bracket according to the exemplary bumper assembly of FIG. 2 .

FIG. 5 is a rear perspective view of a vehicle bumper bracket and a vehicle frame horn bracket according to the exemplary bumper assembly of FIG. 2 .

FIG. 6 is a rear view of a portion of the exemplary bumper assembly of FIG. 2 where a bumper is in an initial position.

FIG. 7 is a rear view of a portion of the exemplary bumper assembly of FIG. 2 where a bumper is in a final position.

FIG. 8 is a side view of a portion of the exemplary vehicle bumper bracket and a vehicle frame horn positioned with respect to one another for a bumper initial position.

FIG. 9 is a side view of a portion of the exemplary vehicle bumper bracket and a vehicle frame horn positioned with respect to one another for a bumper final position.

FIG. 10 is a side perspective view of a vehicle including the exemplary bumper assembly of FIG. 2 , showing a bumper in an initial and in a final position.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a movable bumper system 10 . Sensors 12 , e.g., one or more cameras and/or radar sensors, provide input to a controller 14 , e.g., an electronic control unit (ECU) as is known for use in a vehicle, to indicate a likely or imminent pedestrian collision. Upon determining that a pedestrian collision is likely and/or imminent, the controller 14 may provide an instruction to an actuator mechanism 16 that is arranged to, upon actuation, caused some or all of a bumper assembly 18 to drop in height. The controller 14 generally includes a processor and a memory, the memory storing instructions executable by the processor for carrying out actions including as described herein. Further, the controller 14 , sensors 12 , actuator mechanism 16 , and/or other components and devices in a vehicle may communicate via known mechanisms, e.g., a controller area network (CAN) or other communications bus in a vehicle such as is known. Accordingly, the controller 14 may determine a likely or imminent pedestrian collision, and may, via the actuator mechanism 16 , cause some or all of the bumper assembly 18 to drop in height, thereby reducing the likelihood and/or severity of injuries to a pedestrian upon a pedestrian collision with a vehicle.

Turning now to FIGS. 2-9 , a bumper assembly 18 includes a bumper 20 having a bumper bracket 22 fixedly mounted thereon, i.e., mechanically attached thereto in a manner substantially to prevent movement of the bumper 20 and bracket 22 with respect to one another, e.g., welded and/or bolted, etc. A vehicle frame horn 24 , e.g., such as may be included in a vehicle frame, is fixedly mounted, i.e., mechanically attached, e.g., welded and/or bolted, etc., to a horn bracket 26 . Although not shown in the figures, it is to be understood that the bumper assembly 18 could include two sets of brackets 22 , 26 , i.e., one each attached to each of a pair of frame horns 24 that may be provided at a front of a vehicle.

The bracket 22 is attached or mounted to the bumper 20 in a manner that the bumper 20 and bracket 22 do not move vertically with respect to one another. Likewise, the bracket 26 is attached or mounted to the frame horn 24 in a manner such that the bracket 26 and frame horn 24 do not move vertically with respect to one another. The brackets 22 , 26 are mated together and, in an initial position described further below, securely held in place so as to prevent vertical movement of the brackets 22 , 26 with respect to one another, by bolts 28 secured by nuts 30 , the bolts 28 being inserted through holes or other openings in the bracket 22 (not visible in the figures) and respective slots 32 in the horn bracket 26 . The bumper 20 , frame horn 24 , and brackets 22 , 26 , are generally formed of metal in a known manner. Likewise, the bolts 28 and nuts 30 are generally metal, e.g., parts such as are known.

In operation of the movable bumper system 10 , upon detecting a likely or imminent pedestrian collision, the controller 14 sends a signal to the actuator mechanism 16 to actuate movement of the bumper assembly 18 , i.e., to cause the bumper 20 to drop with respect to the bracket 26 and frame horn 24 . That is, the actuator mechanism 16 prevents the bolts 28 and nuts 30 , e.g., in a manner described further below, from continuing to secure the brackets 22 , 26 , such that the bracket 22 and bumper 20 are held in the initial position against the frame horn bracket 26 . When the secure hold of the brackets 22 , 26 is broken, the bumper 20 and bracket 22 drop from an initial position to a final position, the drop of the bumper 20 and bracket 22 being guided by the slots 32 , i.e., movement of the bumper 20 and bracket 22 are restrained by the bolts 28 which remain inserted through the slots 32 .

FIGS. 6 and 8 provide views of the bracket 22 in the initial position. Further, FIGS. 7 and 9 provide views of the bracket 22 in the deployed or final position. In general, the initial position includes the bumper 20 at a height, i.e., distance from the ground, a roadway, etc., that is greater than a height of the bumper 20 in the final position. That is, the initial position is provided for normal travel and operation of a vehicle, and the final position is provided for use in the event of a pedestrian collision. Examples of the initial and final position may be seen in FIG. 10 . With reference to FIG. 10 , the bumper assembly may be mounted on a vehicle 36 . To illustrate the initial and final position, a bumper 20 a is shown in the initial position at a first height D 1 , and a bumper 20 b is shown at a second height D 2 , the second height being less than the first height.

As is perhaps best seen in FIG. 3 , but also illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 8 , respective spacers 34 are interposed between the bracket 26 and the nut 30 . For example, a spacer 34 may comprise two semi-circular, octagonal, hexagonal, etc., pieces, e.g., washer halves or the like, that surround a stem of the bolt 28 , the spacer 34 pieces being held in place by friction when the nut 30 is tightened on a threaded stem of the bolt 28 . The spacer 34 may be made of metal, plastic, etc. Accordingly, the actuator mechanism 16 is arranged to cause the spacers 34 to be displaced from a location between respective nuts 30 and a side of the bracket 26 . Once such displacement occurs, a frictional force by which the brackets 22 , 26 are held in place with respect to one another is dissipated, and the bracket 22 drops from the initial position to the final position, carrying the bumper 20 with it. For example, the actuator mechanism 16 can be connected to the spacer 34 via a wire or the like which can be used to displace the spacer 34 outwards, causing the bumper 20 to drop.

As used herein, the adverb “substantially” means that a shape, structure, measurement, quantity, time, etc. may deviate from an exact described geometry, distance, measurement, quantity, time, etc., because of imperfections in materials, machining, manufacturing, etc.

In the drawings, the same reference numbers indicate the same elements. Further, some or all of these elements could be changed. With regard to the components, processes, systems, methods, etc. described herein, it should be understood that these are provided for the purpose of illustrating certain embodiments, and should in no way be construed so as to limit the claimed invention.

Accordingly, it is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative and not restrictive. Many embodiments and applications other than the examples provided would be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reading the above description. The scope of the invention should be determined, not with reference to the above description, but should instead be determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. It is anticipated and intended that future developments will occur in the arts discussed herein, and that the disclosed systems and methods will be incorporated into such future embodiments. In sum, it should be understood that the invention is capable of modification and variation and is limited only by the following claims.

All terms used in the claims are intended to be given their plain and ordinary meanings as understood by those skilled in the art unless an explicit indication to the contrary in made herein. In particular, use of the singular articles such as “a,” “the,” “said,” etc. should be read to recite one or more of the indicated elements unless a claim recites an explicit limitation to the contrary.