US Patent 7677617 Efficient joint for vehicle energy-absorbing device

A vehicle having an energy-absorbing device mountable to a bumper of the vehicle is provided. The energy-absorbing device is attached to a vehicle rail having an inner rail surface and an edge surface. The energy-absorbing device defines a first crush surface interfacing with the inner rail surface. In a first embodiment, the energy-absorbing device defines a second crush surface positioned to directly interface with the edge surface of the vehicle rail in the event of an impact. The energy-absorbing device is configured to transmit load received from the impact directly to the edge surface of the vehicle rail through the second crush surface. This results in an efficient joint for the energy-absorbing device.