Nissan North America, Inc.

Canon Kabushiki Kaisha

Nissan Motor Company Limited

Takao Tani

Perry McConnell

Hideo Aimoto

Naoki Kamizawa

Kazunori Iimi

Takemi Nishikawa

Patrick Grattan

Michael J McGory

Joseph Buratto

Christopher Hartley

David James Wozniak

Gunnar Mason

Matthew Michael Gapinski

Takuya Tsujimoto

A vehicle structure includes a vehicle frame with a first side member, a front suspension structure and a stop structure. The stop structure is installed to a first side member rearward of the front suspension structure. The stop structure extends outboard from the first side member and includes an upper surface, a lower surface and a main surface. The upper surface and the lower surface are horizontally oriented. The main surface is vertically oriented and includes a first section, a second section and a third section. The first section is attached to the first side member. The second section extends outboard from the first section defining a forward-facing stop surface that extends to a distal outboard end of the stop structure. The third section extends rearward from the second section, with the first section, the second section and the third section defining vertically oriented exterior surfaces.

Vehicle structure

A push arm is coupled to a vehicle frame proximate an intersection of a first side member and a first cross-member. A rear surface of the push arm is located adjacent to a front suspension structure with a gap defined therebetween. The push arm extends forward and laterally outward such that a front surface of the push arm is located outboard of and spaced apart from a front end of the first side member. An energy absorbing structure is positioned within the gap and is attached to the rear surface of the push arm and is spaced apart from the front suspension structure in a non-impacted state. The energy absorbing structure is configured such that in response to an off-center impact event, impact force to the energy absorbing structure pushes the energy absorbing structure into contact with the front suspension structure.

An off-center impact reinforcement structure includes a push arm proximate rearward of a front portion of the vehicle frame. The push arm extends in a forward and laterally outboard direction from a front side member. A rear surface of the push arm is located below the first side member. During an initial stage of an off-center impact event in which a stationary barrier directly impacts a front surface of the push arm, impacting forces from the off-center impact event move the rear surface of the push arm into contact with brackets that extend downward from the front side member and transfer through the push arm to brackets and to the vehicle frame. In a second stage, a rear surface of the push arm contacts the vehicle frame as the push arm pivots with the front surface of the push arm moving in a laterally outboard direction.

A front suspension structure has a front portion on a first side member of a vehicle frame and a rear portion on the first side member rearward of the front portion. A front wheel is supported by a wheel support structure that is pivotally mounted to a front suspension structure of the first side member. A stop structure is installed to the first side member at the rear portion of the front suspension structure. The stop structure extends in an outboard direction of the first side member. The stop structure has a stop surface that defines an angle relative to the vehicle longitudinal direction between 110 and 130 degrees. In response to an impact event to a front area of the front wheel, the front wheel pivots relative to the wheel support structure moving a rear area of the front wheel into contact with the stop surface.

A vehicle structure includes a frame and a push arm. The push arm is coupled to a first side member of the frame proximate an intersection of the first side member and a first cross-member. The push arm has a main body, a rear surface, and a front surface. The rear surface faces and is adjacent to the intersection. The main body extends forward and laterally in an outboard direction from the rear surface such that the front surface of the push arm is located laterally outboard of and spaced apart from a front end of the first side member of the frame. The front surface has a first section and a second section both facing forward relative to the frame. The second section is angularly offset from the first section such that the second section and the first section define an obtuse angle therebetween.

A push arm is coupled to a vehicle frame proximate an intersection of a first side member and a first cross-member. A rear surface of the push arm is located adjacent to a front suspension structure with a gap defined therebetween. The push arm extends forward and laterally outward such that a front surface of the push arm is located outboard of and spaced apart from a front end of the first side member. A energy absorbing structure is positioned within the gap and is attached to the rear surface of the push arm. The energy absorbing structure is spaced apart from the front suspension structure in a non-impacted state. The energy absorbing structure is configured such that in response to an off-center impact event, impact force to the energy absorbing structure pushes the energy absorbing structure into contact with the front suspension structure, such that the energy absorbing structure deforms and absorbs impact energy.

An off-center impact reinforcement structure includes a push arm and a first diagonals structure installed to elements of a frame of a vehicle structure. The push arm is coupled to the frame proximate an intersection of a first side member and a first cross-member and extends in a forward and laterally outboard direction from the intersection. The first diagonal structure extends rearward and laterally inboard from proximate the intersection toward a section of a second side member rearward of the first cross-member. The off-center impact reinforcement structure is configured such that during an off-center impact event in which a stationary barrier impacts against a front surface of the push arm during forward movement of the vehicle frame, impacting forces from the impact event are transferred through the push arm to the vehicle frame at the intersection and from the intersection to the first diagonal structure.

There is provided an image processing apparatus which can prevent the case where it is difficult to perform highly accurate diagnosis using combined boundary regions in a combined image. An image processing apparatus includes image data acquisition means, combined-image data generation means, and combined-boundary-region display data generation means. The image data acquisition means acquires multiple pieces of divided image data obtained by capturing images of multiple regions into which a captured area for an imaging target is divided. The combined-image data generation means generates combined-image data on the basis of the multiple divided image data. The combined-boundary-region display data generation means generates display image data to be used for an observer to recognize combined boundary regions in the combined-image data. The combined-boundary-region display data generation means changes at least one of a color and a brightness for all of the combined boundary regions included in a display area.

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Tokyo, Japan

Takao Tani