Patent ID: 8061034

Claim:
A method for forming a bumper beam for a motor vehicle, the bumper beam including two closed sections connected together by a web portion, each of the closed sections including an outer side wall, an inner side wall, a rear wall that connects the outer and inner side walls, and a front wall that connects the outer and inner side walls and includes an end that overlaps and engages the web portion, the method comprising: providing an elongated piece of sheet metal having opposing end portions and an intermediate portion between the end portions; bending the end portions with respect to the intermediate portion until the end portions are substantially perpendicular to the intermediate portion; bending a central section of the intermediate portion to form a protruding bulge in the intermediate portion after the bending the end portions; and bending side sections of the intermediate portion on opposing sides of the protruding bulge to move ends of the opposing end portions adjacent to one another and adjacent to the protruding bulge after the bending the central section to from the bumper beam, wherein the end portions form the front walls of the bumper beam, the protruding bulge forms the inner side wall of each closed section and the web portion of the bumper beam, and the side sections form the outer side wall and rear wall of each closed section of the bumper beam.