Method of manufacturing a trim panel having a styling line

• US 5,401,449 A
• Filed: 07/12/1993
• Issued: 03/28/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 07/12/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: General Motors Corporation (General Motors Company)
• Original Assignee: General Motors Corporation (General Motors Company)
• Inventors: Keller, Gerald J., Hill, Timothy W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kuhns, Allan R.
• Application Number:
  US08/089,542
• Time in Patent Office: 624 Days
• Field of Search: 156/245, 264/46.4, 264/46.6, 264/46.8, 264/259, 264/266, 264/46.5, 264/261, 264/263, 264/267, 264/273
• US Class Current: 264/46.4
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 2043/186 hot-melt or heat activated adhesives
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 44/569 Shaping and joining components with different densities or hardness
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 67/246 Moulding high reactive monomers or prepolymers, e.g. by reaction injection moulding [RIM], liquid injection moulding [LIM] casting monomers B29C39/006, mixing construction B29B7/74
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 70/086 and with one or more layers of pure plastics material, e.g. foam layers applying a non-preformed coating, e.g. a gel-coat, B29C37/0025; with foam blocks B29C70/86
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 70/78 Moulding material on one side only of the preformed part
• CPC Class Codes: B29L 2031/3014 Door linings
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 13/0243 Doors
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2013/0281 made of a plurality of visible parts
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2013/0293 Connection or positioning of adjacent panels

Abstract

An automotive door panel that has styling lines is made by laying a facing layer of soft trim material on a support surface of a mold part. The facing layer has a backing layer of open cell flexible foam that has gaps that expose strips on the back surface of the facing layer. A heat-sensitive adhesive barrier film is behind the flexible foam backing layer. The mold is closed by a mating mold part and a urethane precursor mixture is injected into the closed mold which is heated to generate a structural substrate. The generating substrate crushes the backing layer and activates the adhesive film to bond the structural substrate to the exposed back surface strips of the facing layer to provide the styling lines. These styling lines are enhanced when the foam backing layer recovers upon removal from the mold.

Claims

1. A method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion comprising the steps of:

providing a facing layer of soft trim material adjacent a backing layer of open cell flexible foam that has a gap,

providing a heat sensitive adhesive barrier film adjacent the backing layer so that the gap exposes a back surface of the facing layer to the heat sensitive adhesive barrier film,

laying the facing layer, the backing layer and the heat sensitive adhesive barrier film on a support surface in a mold, and

injecting a urethane precursor mixture into the mold to generate a structural substrate for the trim panel, the generation of the structural substrate creating sufficient pressure to crush the backing layer so that the substrate is in intimate contact with the heat sensitive adhesive barrier film and the facing layer, and the generation of the structural substrate creating sufficient heat to activate the heat sensitive adhesive barrier film to bond the structural substrate to the back surface of the facing layer that is exposed by the gap of the backing layer to create a styling line in the facing layer.

2. The method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion as defined in claim 1 wherein the open cell flexible foam of the backing layer has unilateral stretch and good resiliency so that the backing layer recovers to enhance the styling line when the trim panel is removed from the mold.

3. The method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion as defined in claim 1 wherein the open cell flexible foam of the backing layer has unilateral stretch and good resiliency so that the backing layer recovers to a minimum of about 80% of its original height to enhance the styling line when the trim panel is removed from the mold.

4. The method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion as defined in claim 1 wherein the structural substrate generated by the urethane precursor materials is a semirigid foam.

5. The method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion as defined in claim 2 wherein the structural substrate generated by the urethane precursor materials is a semirigid foam.

6. The method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion as defined in claim 1 wherein the structural substrate generated by the urethane precursor materials is a low density semirigid foam having a molded density in the range of about 28 to 35 pounds per cubic foot.

7. The method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion as defined in claim 1 wherein the mold that supports the facing layer, the backing layer and the heat-sensitive adhesive barrier film is heated to a temperature above 130°

F. to increase the strength of the adhesive bond between the structural substrate and the facing layer.

8. A method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion comprising the steps of:

providing a facing layer of soft trim material adjacent a backing layer of flexible foam that has a gap,

providing a heat sensitive adhesive barrier film adjacent the backing layer so that the gap exposes a back surface of the facing layer to the heat sensitive adhesive barrier film,

laying the facing layer, the backing layer and the heat sensitive adhesive barrier film on a support surface in a mold, and

injecting a foam precursor mixture into the mold to generate a structural substrate for the trim panel, the generation of the structural substrate creating sufficient pressure to crush the backing layer so that the substrate is in intimate contact with the heat sensitive adhesive barrier film and the facing layer, and

creating sufficient heat to activate the heat sensitive adhesive barrier film to bond the structural substrate to the back surface of the facing layer that is exposed by the gap of the backing layer to create a styling line in the facing layer.

9. The method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion as defined in claim 8 wherein the flexible foam of the backing layer recovers to enhance the styling line when the trim panel is removed from the mold.

10. The method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion as defined in claim 8 wherein the structural substrate generated by the foam precursor materials is a low density semirigid foam.

11. The method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion as defined in claim 9 wherein the structural substrate generated by the foam precursor materials is a low density semirigid foam having a molded density in the range of about 28 to 35 pounds per cubic foot.

12. The method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion as defined in claim 8 wherein the mold that supports the facing layer, the backing layer and the heat-sensitive adhesive barrier film is heated to increase the strength of the adhesive bond between the structural substram and the facing layer.

13. A method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion comprising the steps of:

providing a facing layer of soft trim material adjacent a backing layer of flexible foam that has a gap,

providing a heat sensitive adhesive barrier film adjacent the backing layer so that the gap exposes a back surface of the facing layer to the heat sensitive adhesive barrier film,

laying the facing layer, the backing layer and the heat sensitive adhesive barrier film on a support surface in a mold, and

injecting a structural plastic into the mold to generate a structural substrate for the trim panel and crush the backing layer so that the substrate is in intimate contact with the heat sensitive adhesive barrier film and the facing layer, and

creating sufficient heat to activate the heat sensitive adhesive barrier film to bond the structural substrate to the back surface of the facing layer that is exposed by the gap of the backing layer to create a styling line in the facing layer.

14. The method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion as defined in claim 13 wherein the flexible foam of the backing layer recovers to enhance the styling line when the trim panel is removed from the mold.

15. The method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion as defined in claim 13 wherein the structural substrate generated is a low density plastic.

16. A method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion comprising the steps of:

providing a facing layer of soft trim material,

providing a backing layer of flexible foam adjacent only a portion of the facing layer, the backing layer having a gap,

providing a heat-sensitive adhesive barrier film adjacent the backing layer so that the gap exposes a back surface of the facing layer to the heat-sensitive adhesive barrier film,

laying the facing layer, the backing layer and the heat-sensitive adhesive barrier film on a support surface in a mold,

injecting a structural plastic into the mold to generate a structural substrate for the trim panel and crush the backing layer so that the substrate is in intimate contact with the heat-sensitive adhesive barrier film and the facing layer, and

creating sufficient heat to activate the heat-sensitive adhesive barrier film to bond the structural substrate to the back surface of the facing layer that is exposed by the gap of the backing layer to create a styling line in the facing layer.

17. A method of manufacturing a trim panel having a soft cushion and a styling line combined with the soft cushion as defined in claim 16 wherein the facing layer comprises a first panel of soft trim material that has the styling line and a second panel of soft trim material that is attached to the first panel and the backing layer is adjacent the first panel.