Abstract:
A laminate door stiffener apparatus includes a first layer having a body panel attachment side and an opposing first laminate connection side, and a second layer having a second laminate connecting side and an opposing perforated side with a perforation formed therein. The apparatus further includes a clip interposed within the perforation. The clip selectively supports an operable device. The first layer is selectively connected to a body panel.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD  
       [0001]     The technical field relates generally to body panel stiffeners, and more specifically to laminate body panel stiffeners with attachments.  
       BACKGROUND  
       [0002]     Consumer demand has driven the production of vehicles that afford lighter components and less expensive assembly methods while maintaining the capabilities of a vehicle. Lighter vehicles typically achieve greater fuel economy. When vehicle weight is reduced by including less material, a cost savings may be realized. In meeting this demand, body panels for vehicles have been made thinner, and thus lighter, to reduce weight and material costs.  
         [0003]     Thinner body panels, such as door panels, may be susceptible to deformation or warping in their central portions due to reduced structural stiffness. Typically, a door stiffener may be attached to the interior surface of a body panel, such as the outer skin of a door, a hood, fender, quarter panel, trunk lid, or tailgate, in order to increase structural stiffness. Laminate panel stiffeners made of layers of fiberglass and a heat curable adhesive can increase the structural stiffness of a body panel to an acceptable level.  
         [0004]     In areas of a vehicle adjacent to the interior surfaces of body panels, attachment clips are typically used to secure wiring harnesses, hoses, cables, and various other operable components of a vehicle. Typically, these clips are constructed of fiberglass, plastic or metal and are secured to the interior portions of body panels with a fastener, such as a screw, a rivet, or a weld bead.  
         [0005]     While these panel stiffeners and hangers perform adequately for their intended purposes, automobile assembly is an area of continual innovation to provide components that are lighter, less expensive, and easier to assemble.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0006]     One embodiment of a laminate door stiffener apparatus includes a first layer having a body panel attachment side and an opposing first laminate connection side, and a second layer having a second laminate connecting side and an opposing perforated side with a perforation formed therein. The apparatus further includes a clip interposed within the perforation. The clip selectively supports an operable device. The first layer is selectively connected to a body panel.  
         [0007]     In a further embodiment, a combination hanger and stiffening apparatus includes a stiffening layer selectively coupled to a vehicle body panel and a hanger coupled directly to the stiffening layer.  
         [0008]     In still another embodiment, a method of stiffening a body panel of a vehicle while providing an attachment hanger includes adhering a first laminate layer to the body panel with a first adhesive, and adhering at least a portion of a second laminate layer to at least a portion of the first laminate layer with a second adhesive. The method further includes interposing a portion of a clip between the body panel and the second laminate layer. The first laminate layer and the second laminate layer form at least a portion of a laminate structure. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0009]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a body panel.  
         [0010]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of an embodiment of a panel stiffener.  
         [0011]      FIG. 3  is an exploded bottom plan view of the stiffener of  FIG. 2 .  
         [0012]      FIG. 4  is a top plan view of the stiffener of  FIG. 2 .  
         [0013]      FIG. 5  is a front elevational view of the stiffener of  FIG. 2 .  
         [0014]      FIG. 6  is a view taken along line  6 - 6  of  FIG. 5 .  
         [0015]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of a further embodiment of a panel stiffener.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0016]      FIG. 1  illustrates a portion of a door panel  20 . The door panel  20  includes a central portion  22 , an inner side  24 , an outer side  26 , and a formed peripheral edge  28 . The door panel  20  generally has a consistent thickness between the inner side  24  and the outer side  26 . The central portion  22  may be curved in portions and generally flat in other portions. For larger panels, the central portion  22  may be desirably stiffened to increase the resistance of the body panel to flexure. In the embodiment illustrated, a stiffener  30  is attached to the central portion  22 .  
         [0017]     Referring to  FIGS. 2-6 , the stiffener  30  includes a first layer  32 , a second layer  34 , and a clip  40 . First layer  32  includes a body panel attachment side  42 , an opposing first laminate connection side  44 , and a first peripheral edge  46 . The second layer  34  includes a second laminate connecting side  52 , an opposing perforated side  54 , a second peripheral edge  56 , and a perforation  60  formed therein.  
         [0018]     The clip  40  includes a first attachment portion  70  and a second attachment portion  72  with an aperture  74  formed therein. The first attachment portion  70  includes a generally planar body  80  having a clip peripheral edge  82 , a first clip attachment side  84 , and a second clip attachment side  86 . In the embodiment illustrated, the aperture  74  of the second attachment portion  72  may be coupled to an operable component of a vehicle (not shown).  
         [0019]     As best seen in  FIG. 3 , an adhesive (not numbered) is preferably layered on the body panel attachment side  42  and the second laminate connecting side  52 . A backing  90  may be removably attached to the adhesive, as discussed in greater detail below. In the embodiment illustrated, the first clip attachment side  84  and the second laminate connection side  52  have an adhesive with an appropriately sized portion of backing  90  covering the adhesive to protect the adhesive prior to use.  
         [0020]     The material choices for the first layer  32  and the second layer  34  are fairly broad. Such choices may include fiberglass or other composite materials that form a rigid structure. The material choices for the clip  40  include plastic, rubber metal, alloys, and fiberglass and other known composites.  
         [0021]     One method of manufacturing the stiffener  30  is as follows. A desired area of a body panel, such as body panel  20 , is prepared. A first layer, such as the first layer  32 , is obtained and the backing  90  is removed from the body panel attachment side  42 . The first layer  32  is then attached to a desired portion of the inner side  24  of body panel  20 . A clip, such as clip  40  is interposed through the aperture  60  of a second layer, such as the second layer  34 . The backing  90  is removed from the second laminate connecting side  52 . The second laminate connecting side  52  of the second layer  34  is then coupled to the first laminate connecting side  44  of the first layer  32  as the first attachment portion  70  is coupled therebetween. When the vehicle body, or at least the body panel  20  is heat cured, and the adhesives used to form the stiffener  30  thereby rigidify, providing a body panel stiffener with an integral hanger, or clip  40 , including fewer parts than those of a conventional stiffener and clip. Typically, a vehicle body is heat cured at temperatures exceeding 300° F. for several hours after a desired stage of assembly.  
         [0022]     As mentioned above, an adhesive may be interposed between the first clip attachment side  84  and the first laminate connection side  44 . Adhesives used in the stiffener  30  are not limited to adhesives calling for a backing  90 , such as peel and stick adhesives, but may include other adhesives. In the embodiments illustrated, adhesives applied to sides  42 ,  52 ,  84  are distributed evenly over the entire surface.  
         [0023]     In another method, the second layer  34  may be attached to the first layer  32  prior to attaching the first layer  32  to the body panel  20 . Additional layers may be built up to form a stiffener, such as the stiffener  30 , prior to, after, or during the step of coupling the first layer  32  to the body panel  20 .  
         [0024]      FIG. 7  illustrates an embodiment of the stiffener  30  as a stiffener  130 . Stiffener  130  includes a first layer  132 , a second layer  134 , and a clip  140 . First layer  132  includes a body panel attachment side  142 , an opposing first laminate connection side  144 , and a first peripheral edge  146 . The second layer  134  includes a second laminate connecting side  152 , an opposing perforated side  154 , a second peripheral edge  156 , and a plurality of perforations  160 ,  260  formed therein.  
         [0025]     The clip  140  includes a first attachment portion  170  and a second attachment portion  172  with an aperture  174  formed therein. The first attachment portion  170  includes a generally planar body  180  having an outer clip peripheral edge  182 , a first clip attachment side  184 , a second clip attachment side  186 , and an inner clip peripheral edge  188  defining an aperture  194 . In the embodiment illustrated, the aperture  174  of the second attachment portion  172  may be coupled to an operable component of a vehicle (not shown).  
         [0026]     The stiffener  130  is assembled in similar fashion to assembly of the stiffener  30 , as described above. During the assembly of stiffener  130 , the second laminate connecting side  152  of the second layer  134  is coupled to the first laminate connecting side  144  of the first layer  132  through the aperture  194 .  
         [0027]     The clip  240  includes a first attachment portion  270  and a second attachment portion  272  with a coupling surface  274  formed thereon. The first attachment portion  270  includes a generally planar body  280  having an outer clip peripheral edge  282 , a first clip attachment side  284 , and a second clip attachment side  286 . In the embodiment illustrated, the coupling surface  274  of the second attachment portion  272  may be coupled to an operable component of a vehicle (not shown).  
         [0028]     The clip  340  includes a first attachment portion  370  and a second attachment portion  372  with a coupling surface  374  formed therein. The first attachment portion  370  includes a generally planar body  380  having an outer clip peripheral edge  382 , a first clip attachment side  384 , a second clip attachment side  386 , and an inner clip peripheral edge  388  defining an aperture  394 .  
         [0029]     In the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 7  the coupling surface  374  of the second attachment portion  372  may be bindingly coupled to an operable component of a vehicle (not shown). As illustrated, the first attachment portion  370  is interposed between the first layer  132  and the body panel  20 .  
         [0030]     In the embodiments illustrated, two laminate layers are shown. However, the stiffeners  30 ,  130  may include any number of laminate layers. Specifically, an exemplary stiffener may have one layer, such as the second layer  34 , without any other layers, and accordingly, be laminate only in respect to the layer and the adhesive, although the layer and the adhesive may have a relatively undefined border due to cross-linking of materials. Moreover, the layers of an exemplary stiffener need not cover the same area, as generally depicted. Specifically, a layer, such as the first layer  32 , may be slightly larger than a portion of a clip, such as the first clip attachment side  84 , in order to provide a stiffener layer, such as the second layer  34 , that operates generally as described herein.  
         [0031]     Additionally, the layers, such as first layer  32  and/or the second layer  34 , may have a surface, such as an uncured resin surface, that will bond to an adjacent surface as a result of heat curing, or any other conventional attachment processes, thereby reducing or eliminating the need for a separate adhesive layer.  
         [0032]      2  While the first clip attachment side  84 ,  184 ,  284 ,  384  is described as having an adhesive and backing attached thereto, the first clip attachment side  84 ,  184 ,  284 ,  384  may not have any adhesive, or may bond during heat curing of the body panel  20 . Additionally, the clip  40 ,  140 ,  240 ,  340  may be constructed of a material that undergoes a physical transformation during heat curing and bonds to adjacent components during cool down.  
         [0033]      3  The preceding description has been presented only to illustrate and describe exemplary embodiments of the methods and systems of the present invention. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to any precise form disclosed. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the essential scope. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying out this invention, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the claims. The invention may be practiced otherwise than is specifically explained and illustrated without departing from its spirit or scope. The scope of the invention is limited solely by the following claims.