Applique for vehicle B-pillar
First Claim
1. A vehicle pillar assembly, comprising:
- a vehicle door structure including first and second pieces of sheet metal which are connected to one another at a flange portion of the door structure;
an applique for attachment to the door structure;
wherein said applique includes a formed sheet metal member and a polymer inclusive retainer member, said polymer inclusive retainer member being attached to an interior surface of said sheet metal member; and
wherein said polymer inclusive retainer member includes;
a) at least one fastener which at least partially protrudes through an aperture in said door structure in order to help attach said applique to said door structure, and b) a hook-shaped portion which wraps at least partially around a first end of said sheet metal member in order to cover at least a portion of said first end of said sheet metal member, and wherein said hook-shaped portion is spaced from said fastener.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An applique for a pillar (e.g., B-pillar) of a vehicle is disclosed, wherein the applique is a decorative member which is fastened to a vehicle surface (e.g., to a door frame structure adjacent a pillar) in order to add styling and/or to functionally cover unsightly portions of the vehicle. In certain embodiments of this invention, the applique includes a glass receiving channel defined in a portion thereof, as well as a hook-shaped retainer member extending from one wall of the channel. Moreover, in certain embodiments, the applique includes a polymer based retainer member attached to a metal portion of the applique for the purpose(s) of: 1) insulating the metal portion of the applique from sheet metal of the door frame structure, 2) covering an end/edge of the metal portion of the applique so as to prevent damage to any component which should rub or bump up against it, and/or 3) fastening the applique to the door frame structure or pillar using at least one fastener integrally molded with the polymer based retainer member.
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Citations
22 Claims
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1. A vehicle pillar assembly, comprising:
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a vehicle door structure including first and second pieces of sheet metal which are connected to one another at a flange portion of the door structure;
an applique for attachment to the door structure;
wherein said applique includes a formed sheet metal member and a polymer inclusive retainer member, said polymer inclusive retainer member being attached to an interior surface of said sheet metal member; and
wherein said polymer inclusive retainer member includes;
a) at least one fastener which at least partially protrudes through an aperture in said door structure in order to help attach said applique to said door structure, and b) a hook-shaped portion which wraps at least partially around a first end of said sheet metal member in order to cover at least a portion of said first end of said sheet metal member, and wherein said hook-shaped portion is spaced from said fastener.- View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. An applique for attachment to a door structure of a vehicle, said applique comprising:
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a sheet metal member;
a polymer inclusive retainer member including at least one fastener, said polymer inclusive retainer member attached to an inner surface of said sheet metal member; and
said sheet metal member defining a window receiving channel including at least first and second spaced apart walls, and wherein a hook-shaped retainer member extends from at least one of said walls and is adapted to wrap at least partially around a flange or end of the door structure so that said applique is adapted to be attached to at least one of the door structure via at least said hook-shaped retainer member and said at least one fastener. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. An applique for attachment to a vehicle door structure, the applique comprising:
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a) at least one fastener which is to at least partially protrude through an aperture in the vehicle door structure in order to help attach said applique to the door structure, b) a protective portion which wraps around a first end of a metal member of said applique in order to cover at least a portion of said first end, c) first and second walls at least partially defining a window receiving channel in said applique, and wherein said applique includes a polymer inclusive retainer member that is attached to said metal member, and wherein said fastener and said protective portion are integrally molded with said polymer inclusive retainer member. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19)
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20. An applique for attachment to a door structure of a vehicle, said applique comprising:
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a body shaped so as to define a window receiving channel therein, said window receiving channel being defined by at least first and second approximately parallel walls of said body that are connected to one another via a base wall;
at least one fastener adapted to protrude at least partially through an aperture in the door structure in order to help attach the applique to the door structure;
a retainer portion at an end of said applique for wrapping around at least a portion of a flange of the door structure in order to help attach the applique to the door structure; and
wherein the applique includes a formed sheet metal portion that includes said retainer portion and said first and second approximately parallel walls, and a polymer inclusive retainer portion that includes at least said fastener. - View Dependent Claims (21)
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22. A vehicle applique for attachment to a vehicle and for receiving a door window, the applique comprising:
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a formed sheet metal member and a polymer inclusive retainer member, said polymer inclusive retainer member being attached to an interior surface of said sheet metal member;
wherein the formed sheet metal member includes a channel defined therein for receiving an edge of the door window; and
wherein said polymer inclusive retainer member includes;
a) at least one fastener which at least partially protrudes through an aperture in a vehicle structure in order to help attach said applique to the vehicle, and b) a hook-shaped portion which wraps at least partially around a first end of said sheet metal member in order to cover at least a portion of said first end of said sheet metal member, and wherein said hook-shaped portion is spaced from said fastener.
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Specification