The present invention relates to a vehicle rear body structure.

Conventionally, the rear body structure of a vehicle includes a series of structures, located at the rear of the fuel tank, which are intended to absorb impact energy by deforming in response to an impact at the rear of the vehicle, and thus protect the fuel tank in the case of such an impact. These structures include a rear bumper beam and crash boxes, located between the rear ends of the rear rails of the rear body structure and the bumper beam.

The rear rails are located in front of the crash boxes. They conventionally have a resistance that is greater than that of the bumper beam and of the crash boxes and are intended for transferring the impact forces to the structural elements of the vehicle body. A front portion of the rear rails extends alongside the fuel tank of the vehicle, which is usually located at the rear end of the vehicle, in front of the wheel casings.

It appears that, in the case of high speed impacts on the rear of the vehicle, the conventional shock absorbing structures mentioned above may not sufficiently absorb the impact energy and the impact may result in a crushing of the rear rail(s). Such an uncontrolled crushing may result in an intrusion of some elements of the rear body structure into the gas tank, thus causing damage to the fuel tank, which might lead to spilling of the fuel and may ultimately result in an explosion of the vehicle. Therefore, damage to the fuel tank should be avoided, even in the case of high speed impacts.

One purpose of the invention is to provide a vehicle rear body structure which provides for an improved crashworthiness in the case of a rear impact on the vehicle, and in particular which provides for an improved protection of the fuel tank in the event of such an impact.

To that end, the invention relates to vehicle rear body structure according to claim 1 .

Particular embodiments of the vehicle rear vehicle body according to claims 2 to 13. The invention also relates to a vehicle body comprising the vehicle rear body structure as defined above.

The invention also relates to a method for manufacturing a rear body structure of a vehicle according to claims 15 to 17.

Other features and advantages of the invention will be better understood from reading of the following description, given with reference to the appended drawings, in which:

- figure 1 is a perspective bottom view of a portion of a vehicle rear body structure according to a particular embodiment; - figure 2 is a perspective view of a portion of a vehicle rear body structure according to a particular embodiment; and

- figure 3 is a perspective view of a rear rail of figure 2.

In the following description, the terms inner, outer, front, rear, transversal, longitudinal, vertical, horizontal, top and bottom are construed with reference to the usual orientation of the illustrated elements, parts or structures when assembled on a vehicle structure, the vehicle lying on a horizontal plane.

A vehicle rear body structure 2 according to an embodiment is illustrated on Figure 1 . The vehicle front body structure 2 may be a rear body structure of any kind of four wheel vehicle, in particular a front body structure of a unitized body.

The vehicle front body structure 2 comprises a frame assembly 4. The frame assembly 4 comprises two rear rails 10, 12 and a rear bumper beam 21 .

Each rear rail 10, 12 extends substantially along the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. The rear rail 10 extends on one side of the vehicle in a front-rear direction of the vehicle body. It comprises a rear end 10a and a front end 10b. Similarly, the rear rail 12 comprises a rear end 12a and a front end 12b.

The rear bumper beam 21 extends substantially transversely to the longitudinal direction. It extends at the rear of the rear rails 10, 12. The rear end 10a, 12a of each rear rail 10, 12 is connected to the rear bumper beam 21 , in particular through crash boxes 31 , 33. More particularly, the rear bumper beam 21 bears longitudinally on the rear ends 10a, 12a of the rear rails 10, 12, in particular through said crash boxes 31 , 33.

The front end 10b, 12b of each rear rail 10, 12 is connected to a structural element of the vehicle's body.

In the example shown in Figure 1 , the frame assembly 4 further comprises a rear intermediate transversal beam 23, a front intermediate transversal beam 25 and a front transversal beam 27.

The front transversal beam 27 extends between the front ends 10b, 12b of the rear rails 10, 12. It is intended for extending at the front of the wheel casings of the vehicle.

The rear and front intermediate transversal beams 23, 25 extend between the rear transversal beam 21 and the front transversal beam 27. They are connected to the rear rails 10, 12 at their lateral ends. The rear and front intermediate transversal beams 23, 25 are located at the wheel casings of the vehicle and reinforce the vehicle rear body in the area.

The front intermediate transversal beam 25, the front transversal beam 27 and the rear rails 10, 12 delimit among themselves a frame 35 intended for receiving the fuel tank of the vehicle. The fuel tank has not been shown in the drawings in order not to overly complicate the drawings.

The rear rails 10, 12 are provided as pairs in left-right symmetry with respect to the lateral direction. In the following, the description will be made with reference to the right rear rail 10, on the understanding that the same description applies to the left rear rail 12.

As can be seen on Figures 2 and 3, the rear rail 10 is substantially U-shaped. It comprises an outer flank 34, oriented towards the exterior of the vehicle, and an inner flank 35 parallel to the outer flank 34, oriented towards the interior of the vehicle. The rear rail 10 further comprises a bottom 36 oriented towards the bottom of the vehicle, the bottom being substantially orthogonal to the inner and outer flanks 34, 35. The U-shaped rear rail 10 opens upwardly.

The rear rail 10 extends in a substantially longitudinal direction. It comprises, from the front end 10b to the rear end 10a, a front portion 37, an intermediate portion 39 and a rear portion 41 . The intermediate portion 39 extends the front portion 37 rearwards, and is itself extended rearwards by the rear portion 41 . The front portion 37, intermediate portion 39 and rear portion 41 are adjacent to one another along the longitudinal direction.

In this example, the front end of the intermediate portion 39 is connected directly to the rear end of the front portion 37. The rear end of the intermediate portion 39 is connected directly to the front end of the rear portion 41 .

The front portion 37 is intended for extending longitudinally alongside the fuel tank of the vehicle. Its front end forms the front end 10b of the rear rail 10. In the example shown in Figure 1 , the front portion 37 extends between the front transversal beam 27 and the front intermediate transversal beam 25. The front portion 37 is curved in a longitudinal plane extending substantially horizontally.

The intermediate portion 39 is substantially straight. It extends between the front portion 37 and the rear portion 41 along the longitudinal direction. In the example shown in Figure 1 , the intermediate portion 39 extends towards the rear of the vehicle rear body structure from the front intermediate transversal beam 25. In this example, the back intermediate transversal beam 27 extends transversely between the intermediate portions 39 of the rear rails 10, 12.

The rear portion 41 is substantially straight. The rear end of the rear portion 41 forms the rear end 10a of the rear rail 10.

Each of the rear portion 41 , the intermediate portion 39 and the front portion 37 is U- shaped and comprises an inner wall, an outer wall and a bottom, which each form a section of the inner wall 35, the outer wall 34 and the bottom 36 of the rear rail 10. The rear rail 10 is made of steel, for instance dual-phase steel or press hardened boron steel.

According to the invention, the front portion 37, the intermediate portion 39 and the rear portion 41 each have a different resistance to plastic deformation, the resistance to plastic deformation increasing from the rear end 10a of the rear rail 10 to the front end 10b of the rear rail 10.

More particularly, the resistance to plastic deformation of the front portion 37 is greater than the resistance to plastic deformation of the intermediate portion 39, which, in turn is greater than the resistance to plastic deformation of the rear portion 41 .

The resistance to plastic deformation increases with increasing wall thickness t of the considered rear rail portion, as well as with increasing yield strength of the material forming said rear rail portion.

More particularly, the resistance to plastic deformation of each portion of the rear rail 10 may be characterized by the product P of the square of wall thickness t of the considered portion of the rear rail 10 by the yield strength R _e of said portion.

Advantageously, this product P increases from the rear end 10a to the front end 10b of the rear rail 10.

More particularly, the product P for the front portion 37 is greater than the product P of the intermediate portion 39 and the product P is greater than the product P of the rear portion 41 . In other words, for each portion of the rear rail 10, the thickness t and the yield strength R _e are chosen such that the product P increases from one section to the next from the rear to the front of the rear rail 10.

According to one particular embodiment, the yield strength R _ef of the material forming the front portion 37 is greater than the yield strength R _ei of the material forming the intermediate portion 39, which in turn, is greater than the yield strength R _er of the material forming the rear portion 41 . Thus, R _ef > R _e i > R _er -

For example, the yield strength R _er of the steel forming the rear portion 41 may be comprised between 200 and 700 MPa, while the yield strength R _ei of the steel forming the intermediate section 39 is comprised between 300 and 1300 MPa and the yield strength R _ef of the steel forming the front portion 37 is comprised between 400 and 1500 MPa.

In particular, the yield strength R _ef of the material forming the front portion 37 is greater by at least 100 MPa than the yield strength of the material forming the rear portion 41 .

As an alternative, the wall thickness t of the rear rail 10 increases from the rear end 10a to the front end 10b. More particularly, the wall thickness t _f of the front portion 37 is greater than the wall thickness t, of the intermediate portion 39, which is itself greater than the wall thickness t _r of the rear portion 41 . In other words, t _f > t, > t _r .

For example, the thickness t _f of the wall of the front portion 37 may be comprised between 1 ,4 and 3 mm, while the thickness t _r of the wall of the intermediate portion 39 is comprised between 1 ,4 and 3 mm and the thickness t, of the wall of the rear portion 41 is comprised between 1 and 2 mm.

In particular, the wall thickness t _f of the front portion 37 is greater by at least 0,4 mm than the wall thickness t _r of the rear portion 41 .

Advantageously, both the yield strength R _e and the wall thickness t of the rear rail 10 increase from the rear end 10a to the front end 10b of the rear rail 10. More particularly, the following relationships apply: t _f > t, > t _r and R _ef > R _e i > R _er -

This gradual increase in the resistance to plastic deformation along the length of the rear rail 10 from the rear portion 41 to the front portion 37 results in an improved crashworthiness of the vehicle in the event of an impact at the rear of the vehicle.

Indeed, in the case of such an impact of sufficient strength, the rear portion 41 of the rear rail 10 will deform and absorb a considerable portion of the impact energy. Since the resistance to plastic deformation of the front portion 37 is greater than that of the rear portion 41 , it will stay substantially intact as a result of the impact, thus preventing an intrusion of other components of the rear body structure into the fuel tank, alongside which the front portion 37 extends. This feature is important in order to avoid damage to the fuel tank due to an impact and fuel spillage possibly resulting therefrom, as well as to reduce the risk of explosion resulting from an impact at the rear of the vehicle. The intermediate portion 39, which has a resistance to plastic deformation that is intermediate between those of the front portion 37 and of the rear portion 41 , deforms only once the rear portion 41 has been deformed, and, by deforming, absorbs impact energy and protects the front portion 37. It helps manage the plastic hinge between the rear portion 41 and the front portion 37 by keeping the front and intermediate portions 37, 39 of the rear rail 10 intact while the end section is absorbing most of the crash energy by deforming at the earliest crash phase and avoiding unwanted material failure risk when the local plastic hinge occurs in a later phase of crash.

According to one embodiment, each of the front, rear and intermediate portions 37, 41 , 39 has the same yield strength along its entire length.

For example, the rear portion 41 is a press-hardened steel part having, after press- hardening, a yield strength R _e comprised between 360 and 400 MPa. It is more particularly made of a press-hardenable steel having a carbon content comprised between 0,04 wt.% and 0,1 wt.% and a manganese content comprised between 0,3 wt.% and 2,0 wt.%. Even more particularly, the steel composition of the front section 60 comprises in % weight: 0,04 %≤ C≤ 0,1 %, 0,3%≤ Mn≤ 2,0%, Si < 0,3%, Ti≤ 0,08%, 0,015≤ Nb≤ 0,10%, Cu, Ni, Cr, Mo ≤ 0,1 %, the remainder being iron and unavoidable impurities resulting from the elaboration. This rear portion 41 advantageously has a wall thickness of about 1 ,6 mm.

The rear portion 41 may also have a wall thickness of about 1 ,4 mm and be a press- hardened steel part having, after press hardening, a yield strength R _e comprised between 700 and 950 MPa. More particularly, the rear portion 41 is made of a press-hardenable steel having a carbon content comprised between 0,06 wt.% and 0,1 wt.% and a manganese content comprised between 1 ,4 wt.% and 1 ,9 wt.%. Even more particularly, the steel composition of the rear portion 41 may further comprise Nb, Ti, B as alloying elements.

The front portion 37 has a wall thickness of about 1 ,7 mm. It is a press-hardened steel part having, after press hardening, a yield strength R _e comprised between 950 and 1200 MPa. More particularly, it is made of a press-hardenable steel having a carbon content comprised between 0,20 wt.% and 0,25 wt.% and a manganese content comprised between 1 ,1 wt.% and 1 ,4 wt.%. Even more particularly, the steel composition of the front portion 37 comprises in % weight: 0.20%≤ C≤ 0.25%, 1 .1 %≤ Mn≤ 1 .4%, 0.15%≤ Si≤ 0.35%,≤ Cr≤ 0.30%, 0.020%≤ Ti≤ 0.060%, 0.020%≤ Al≤ 0.060%, S≤ 0.005%, P≤ 0.025%, 0.002%≤ B≤ 0.004%, the remainder being iron and unavoidable impurities resulting from the elaboration.

The front portion 37 may also have a wall thickness of about 1 ,6 mm and be made of a press-hardened steel part having, after press hardening, a yield strength R _e greater than 1260 MPa. More particularly, the steel composition comprises for example, in % weight: 0.24%≤ C≤ 0.38%, 0.40%≤ Mn≤ 3%, 0.10%≤ Si≤ 0.70%, 0.015%≤ Al≤ 0.070%, Cr≤ 2%, 0.25%≤ Ni≤ 2%, 0.015% ≤ Ti≤ 0.10%, Nb≤ 0.060%, 0.0005% ≤ B≤ 0.0040%, 0.003% ≤ N ≤ 0.010%, S ≤ 0,005%, P ≤ 0,025%, %, the remainder being iron and unavoidable impurities resulting from the elaboration.

The intermediate portion 39 has a wall thickness of about 1 ,7 mm and be a press- hardened steel part having, after press hardening, a yield strength R _e comprised between 700 and 950 MPa. More particularly, the intermediate portion 39 is made of a press- hardenable steel having a carbon content comprised between 0,06 wt.% and 0,1 wt.% and a manganese content comprised between 1 ,4 wt.% and 1 ,9 wt.%. Even more particularly, the steel composition of the intermediate portion 39 may further comprise Nb, Ti, B as alloying elements. According to a second example of the rear rail 10, at least two portions among the portions 37, 39, 41 of the rear rail 10 may have the same thickness and the same composition, but different yield strengths, the difference in yield strength being obtained by subjecting the different portions to a different heat treatment.

For example, the front portion 37 and the intermediate portion 39 have a same thickness of 1 ,7 mm and the same composition. More particularly, the steel composition of the front portion 37 and the intermediate portion 39 comprises in % weight: 0.20%≤ C ≤ 0.25%, 1 .1 %≤ Mn≤ 1 .4%, 0.15%≤ Si≤ 0.35%,≤ Cr≤ 0.30%, 0.020%≤ Ti≤ 0.060%, 0.020%≤ Al≤ 0.060%, S≤ 0.005%, P≤ 0.025%, 0.002%≤ B≤ 0.004%, the remainder being iron and unavoidable impurities resulting from the elaboration. However, the front portion 37 has a yield strength R _e comprised between 950 and 1200 MPa, while the intermediate part 39 has a yield strength between 700 and 950 MPa.

As shown in Figure 3, the rear rail 10 may comprise, in its rear portion 41 , crumple zones 47 to allow the rear rail 10 to controllably deform during an impact. In this embodiment, the crumple zones 47 are formed only in a rear area of the rear portion 41 , and particularly in the rear half of the rear portion 41 .

The crumple zones may include, for example, apertures or cavities or ribs formed on the walls of the rear portion 41 . In the embodiment shown in Figure 3, the crumples zones 47 are formed by ribs formed in a bottom of the rear portion 41 . The ribs extend transversely to the longitudinal direction, i.e. substantially vertically. They are substantially parallel to one another. In this example they are spaced regularly along the longitudinal direction and present a uniform width along the longitudinal direction. Each rib extends from the one lateral side to the other of the rear portion 41 of the rear rail 10.

In this example, the intermediate portion 39 and the front portion 37 do not comprise any crumple zones.

In the example shown in figure 2, the cross-sectional areas of the rear portion 41 and of the intermediate portion 39 are substantially constant. The cross-sectional area of the front portion 37 increases from its rear end to its front end. The cross-sectional area is taken in a transverse plane normal to the longitudinal direction. This feature also contributes to increasing the resistance to deformation of the front portion 37.

As can be seen on Figure 2, the vehicle rear body structure 2 further comprises, for each of the rear rails 10, 12, a guide structure 51 configured for guiding the deformation of the corresponding rear rail 10, 12 during an impact at the rear of the vehicle. In particular, this guide structure 51 is configured for preventing a deformation of the rear rail 10, 12 along a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, and more particularly along the vertical direction. The guide structure 51 is in particular configured for preventing part of the rear rail 10, 12 from moving upwards when subjected to impact forces along the longitudinal direction. The guide structure 51 is therefore configured for retaining the rear rail 10, 12 against an upwards deformation when subjected to impact forces along the longitudinal direction which would result in lower energy absorption by the rear portion 41 and more deformation of the front section 37 causing higher unwanted intrusion in the fuel tank area. The guide rail 10, 12 therefore deforms mainly along the longitudinal direction as a result of such impact forces.

For this purpose, each guide structure 51 comprises at least two legs 53 bearing upon the rear rail 10, 12 in bearing areas which are spaced apart along the longitudinal direction. The legs 53 extend along a direction substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, and more particularly vertically. They extend above the rear rail 10, 12.

In the example shown in Figure 2, the legs 53 have a bottom end and a top end. The bottom end of each leg 53 bears on the bottom 36 of the U-shaped rear rail 10. The legs 53 extend upwards from the rear rail 10 towards an upper structure of the vehicle body

(not shown in the drawings), and in particular towards a floor element, extending transversely substantially between the wheel casings.

The top ends of the legs 53 are, in the example shown in Figure 2, connected to each other through a connection element 55.

At its top end, the guide structure 51 is attached to said upper structure of the vehicle body, and in particular to the rear wheel casings and the rear floor of the vehicle body.

The bottom ends of the legs 53 are inserted into the U-shaped rear rail 10 so as to bear on the bottom 36 thereof and be located between the outer and inner flanges 34, 35. The legs 53 are further fixed to the rear rail 10 by any adapted fixing means.

In the example shown in Figure 2, the guide structure 51 extends across the junction between the intermediate portion 39 and the front portion 37 so as to avoid any upwards deformation of the rear rail 10 in this area. More particularly, a front leg 53 of the guide structure 51 bears on the front portion 37 of the rear rail 10, while a back leg 53 of the guide structure 51 bears on the front portion 37 of the rear rail 10.

The positions of those legs 53 are highly limited to maximize the luggage compartment area.

From a crash management and car body torsional stiffness point of view, a connection of the legs 53 in the intermediate portion 39 of the rear rails 10, 12 ensures the highest possible energy absorption in high speed rear crash test and highest possible torsional stiffness. At least two adjacent portions 37, 39, 41 of the rear rail 10 are connected to each other through a weld. According to one embodiment, all three portions 37, 39, 41 of the rear rail 10 are connected to each other through a weld.

Advantageously, the rear rail 10 is manufactured from a corresponding tailor welded blank, the tailor welded blank being obtained by welding, and in particular laser welding, of at least as many different blanks as there are portions having different compositions or thicknesses in the rear rail 10, 12, each of these blanks having a thickness and/or a composition depending on the desired properties of the corresponding rear rail portion.

For example, the tailor welded blank is obtained by welding together at least three blanks, each of these blanks corresponding to a portion 37, 39, 41 of the rear rail 10 and having a thickness and/or a composition depending on the desired properties of the corresponding portion 37, 39, 41 of the rear rail 10, 12.

More particularly, a method for manufacturing a rear rail 10 comprises the following successive steps:

- welding together, in particular through laser welding, at least as many different blanks as there are portions having different compositions or thicknesses in the rear rail 10, 12, each of these blanks having a composition and/or thickness depending on the desired properties of the corresponding rear rail portion;

- forming this tailor welded blank into the desired shape, in particular through drawing.

The step of forming the tailor welded blank is, in particular, a step of hot forming. The hot forming step is followed by a step of cooling of the part, i.e. of the hot formed tailor welded blank, at a controlled cooling rate.

In particular, depending on the desired final properties of each portion of the rear rail 10, these portions may be subjected to a different cooling treatment after forming of the blank. For example, the front portion 37 may be cooled at a higher cooling rate than the rear portion 41 . In particular, the front portion 37 may be quenched, while the rear portion 41 is cooled more slowly so as to obtain the desired yield strength.

The skilled person, based on his general knowledge, is able to determine the cooling rate to be used depending on the desired yield strength of each portion of the rear rail 10.

Depending on the desired final properties of each section of the rear rail 10, these sections may be subjected to a different heat treatment during or after forming the blank into the half-shell 52, 54.

For example, if two adjacent portions have the same composition, but are intended to have different yield strengths in the final part, these different yield strengths may be obtained by one or a combination of the following methods: - during hot forming, the portion intended to have a lower yield strength is heated to a lower temperature than the portion intended to have a higher yield strength;

-after hot forming, the portion intended to have a lower yield strength is cooled at a slower rate than the section intended to have a higher yield strength; and/or

- the portions are subjected to an identical hot forming and cooling after hot forming treatment, but the portion intended to have a lower yield strength is subsequently subjected to an additional heat treatment in order to decrease yield strength.

While the invention has been described in detail in connection with only a limited number of embodiments, it should be readily understood that the invention is not limited to such disclosed embodiments.