Patent ID: 8691032

Claim:
A process for forming a martensite microstructure in a region of a steel component and which is different than the microstructure in remaining regions of the component, after stamping in a die and without removal of the component from the die, the process comprising: cold drawing a steel sheet to a steel component; identifying a region of the steel component to exhibit a martensite microstructure, the martensite microstructure being different than a microstructure in remaining regions of the steel component; identifying an area in a die corresponding to the identified region of the steel component; heating the steel component to a temperature of at least 900 ° C.; stamping the heated steel component in the die; cooling the area in the die so that the identified region in the steel component cools at a rate greater than 27 ° C. per second so as to achieve the martensite microstructure in the identified region of the steel component and which is different than the microstructure in the remaining regions of the steel component; and opening a portion of an area in the die corresponding to the remaining regions of the steel component, exposing a portion of the remaining regions of the steel component to air, and cooling the portion by the air at a cooling rate of less than 27 ° C. per second.