CA1091724A - Automotive ceiling panel and process for manufacturing same - Google Patents
Automotive ceiling panel and process for manufacturing sameInfo
- Publication number
- CA1091724A CA1091724A CA267,953A CA267953A CA1091724A CA 1091724 A CA1091724 A CA 1091724A CA 267953 A CA267953 A CA 267953A CA 1091724 A CA1091724 A CA 1091724A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- polyethylene foam
- crimp
- pattern
- layer
- panel
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
Landscapes
- Vehicle Interior And Exterior Ornaments, Soundproofing, And Insulation (AREA)
- Laminated Bodies (AREA)
Abstract
ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
An automotive ceiling panel and a process for manu-facturing the same and more particularly, to a process which reduces the weight of the panel and the man-hours required for the manufacture thereof and yet results in an improvement in the quality of the panel. The ceiling panel comprises a laminate of a first polyethylene foam layer having an aesthetically de-signed crimp-pattern in its layer surface, a second metal lath laid under the first polyethylene foam layer, and a third layer of polyethylene foam laid under the metal lath. The metal lath is sandwiched between the polyethylene foam layers, with the crimp-pattern appearing on the top surface of the panel. A
process of manufacturing the automotive ceiling panel comprises the steps of forming a crimp-pattern in the surface of a first polyethylene foam layer by a crimp-pattern forming machine, placing a metal lath between the first and a second polyethylene foam layer, with the crimp-pattern carrying surface of the first polyethylene foam layer appearing on the top surface of the first layer, bodning the thus laid layers together using fusion-bonding and rolling techniques, and cold-pressing the laminate thus pre-pared into a desired shape for an automotive ceiling.
An automotive ceiling panel and a process for manu-facturing the same and more particularly, to a process which reduces the weight of the panel and the man-hours required for the manufacture thereof and yet results in an improvement in the quality of the panel. The ceiling panel comprises a laminate of a first polyethylene foam layer having an aesthetically de-signed crimp-pattern in its layer surface, a second metal lath laid under the first polyethylene foam layer, and a third layer of polyethylene foam laid under the metal lath. The metal lath is sandwiched between the polyethylene foam layers, with the crimp-pattern appearing on the top surface of the panel. A
process of manufacturing the automotive ceiling panel comprises the steps of forming a crimp-pattern in the surface of a first polyethylene foam layer by a crimp-pattern forming machine, placing a metal lath between the first and a second polyethylene foam layer, with the crimp-pattern carrying surface of the first polyethylene foam layer appearing on the top surface of the first layer, bodning the thus laid layers together using fusion-bonding and rolling techniques, and cold-pressing the laminate thus pre-pared into a desired shape for an automotive ceiling.
Description
91~Z4 This invention relates to an automotive ceiling panel and a process for manufacturing the same and more particularly, to a process which reduces the weight of the panel and the man-hours required for the manufacture thereof and yet results in an improvement in the quality of the panel.
The automotive ceiling panel of the prior art consists of four layers, i.e., from top to bottom, a vinyl chloride layer, a polyethylene foam layer, a metal lath, and a polyethylene foam ` layer, all of which are bonded together.
, 10 Such automotive ceiling panels suffer from many draw-, .
backs either due to manufacturing cost or complexity of the process for manufacturing the same. Particularly, in the pro-cess, problems with wrinkles forming on the surface of the panel during the press-forming process as well as failure of the metal lath are encountered.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an automotive ceiling panel and a process for manu-facturing the same in which the manufacturing cost and man-hours required for the manufacture of the panel may be significantly reduced.
, It is another object of the present invention to pro-vide an automotive ceiling panel and a process for manufacturing the same wherein wrinkles which may occur during the cold-press -forming process may be avoided and in addition, wherein a crimp-' pattern i~ formed in the high-density layer in the top surface of the panel thus prepared.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an automotive ceiling panel which comprises a lami-nate of a first polyethylene foam layer having an aesthetically designed crimp-pattern in its layer surface, a second metal lath laid under the first polyethylene foam layer, and a third layer of polyethylene foam laid under the metal lath. The metal lath - 1 - ~ ..
7~4 is sandwiched between the polyethylene foam layers, with the crimp-pattern appearing on the top surface of the panel.
:~ :"
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a process for manufacturing an automotive ~ .
ceiling panel which includes the steps of forming a crimp-pattern in the high-density surface of a first polyethylene foam layer by a crimp-pattern forming machine, placing a metal lath between the first polyethylene foam layer and a second . .
polyethylene foam layer with the crimp-pattern carrying surface of the first polyethylene foam layer being placed at the top, bonding the thus laid layers using conventional fusion bonding and rolling techniques, and cold-pressing the laminate thus bonded into the desired shape.
In a drawing which illustrates embodiments of the e present invention:
,!'~ Figure 1 is a partial cross-sectional view of an automotive ceiling panel according to the , present invention, Figure 2 is a view illustrative of an embossing step `; 20 of the process according to the invention, Figure 3 is a view illustrative of a fusion-bonding ~- and rolling step of the process according - to the invention, and Figure 4 is a view illustrative of a cold-press --forming step of the process according to the invention.
Referring to Figure 1, there is shown a partial cross-sectional view of an automotive ceiling panel which is laminated according to the process of the invention. Shown at 2 is a first polyethylene foam layer having an embossed crimp-pattern 1 on its high density surface~ The pattern provides the aesthetics of the panel since it ultimately is visible to the user. The first ~:
~.
, . . ~ ' : . :: .
1~)91~24 polyethylene foam layer has a specific gravity ranging from 0.02 : to 0.1.
- Shown at 3 is a metal lath, and at 4, a second poly-ethylene foam layer having a specific gravity ranging from 0.02 ~, to 0.1. The metal lath 3 is thus sandwiched between the first and second polyethylene foam layers.
The three layers thus laminated are then fusion-bonded by a pair of rolls and heaters. The automotive ceiling panel of the aforesaid arrangement provides the desired rigidity, heat insulation and noise shielding effect.
,," .
Figure 2 shows an embossing step of the process accord-D ing to the invention. One surface~of the first polyethylene foam layer 2 is heated by means of heaters 6, and then the first layer 2 is embossed by embossing rolls 5,5, to provide a crimp-pattern 1 thereon.
, Figure 3 shows a bonding and rolling step of the pro-cess according to the invention. The first polyethylene foam ~ .
layer 2 carrying a crimp-pattern 1 thereon and the second poly-ethylene foam layer 4 are heated by heaters 7,7 and introduced between rollers 8,8 with the metal lath 3 being sandwiched there-between. As a result, the three layers are fusion-bonded to give a flat laminate or a panel.
Figure 4 shows a cold-press forming step in accordance with the process of the present invention. There is shown a cold forming press which includes an upper die 9 and a lower die 10.
The upper die 9 is formed with build-up portion or protrusion 11 along its peripheral edge for holding down the panel during the ~-press forming, in cooperation with a peripheral channel 12 formed in the lower die 10. The cooperation of protrusion 11 and channel 12 serves to secure and hold the laminate in place during press forming and thus eliminates the formation of wrinkles in the panel during press forming.
/ 1al91'~2~
.
, In operation, a panel prepared as outlined above is cut to the desired dimensions and placed on top of the lower die 10, with the embossed crimp surface of the panel facing upwards.
-~ The upper die 9 is then lowered to form the panel into a desired shape. In this respect, the edges of the panel are held between the build-up portion 11 and the channel 12 so as to prevent a ....
wrinkle on the surface of the panel.
As is apparent from the foregoing description of the ~' automotive ceiling panel according to the present invention, a crimp-pattern is formed in a high density layer in the top sur-face of a polyethylene foam layer, and the ceiling panel may be , made of three layers, as opposed to the four layers of a prior art ceiling panel, so that the man-hours normally required for :: .
the manufacture of a ceiling panel as well as its weight may be reduced accordingly. In addition, the dynamic frictional co-~', efficient of the polyethylene foam layer is smaller than that of the prior art vinyl chloride skin, resulting in improvements in the drawability of the panel during the cold-press forming step, and in elimination of failure or breaking of the metal lath. Furthermore, since polyethylene provides a solvent-resisting property, stains on the surface of the polyethylene foam layer may be wiped off easily.
; Additionally, the prior art ceiling panel with the vinyl chloride skin suffers from a low bonding force between the vinyl chloride skin and the polyethylene foam layer, so that the skin is liable to be stripped off. The ceiling panel according to the invention is free of such defects.
Furthermore, a ceiling panel according to the inven-tion provides less spring-back force and higher rigidity, as compared with those of the prior art ceiling panels. In addi-tion, ceiling panels in accordance with the present invention include layers made of a polyethylene foam, thus allowing for .
;: ` ``
1(~917~;4 ~ ~
a change in volume with ease, leading to freedom from winkles on the surface of the panel, thus improving the yield of panels in the process.
- At the same time, waste materials from the panels may be separated with ease into constituent materials, because the ceiling panel is made of only two kinds of materials, i.e., a polyethylene foam and a metal lath.
The foregoing description and embodiments are pre-sented herein for illustrative purposes only, and are not ~, 10 intended to unduly limit the scope of the invention.
. .~ ..
~.. -.:
The automotive ceiling panel of the prior art consists of four layers, i.e., from top to bottom, a vinyl chloride layer, a polyethylene foam layer, a metal lath, and a polyethylene foam ` layer, all of which are bonded together.
, 10 Such automotive ceiling panels suffer from many draw-, .
backs either due to manufacturing cost or complexity of the process for manufacturing the same. Particularly, in the pro-cess, problems with wrinkles forming on the surface of the panel during the press-forming process as well as failure of the metal lath are encountered.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an automotive ceiling panel and a process for manu-facturing the same in which the manufacturing cost and man-hours required for the manufacture of the panel may be significantly reduced.
, It is another object of the present invention to pro-vide an automotive ceiling panel and a process for manufacturing the same wherein wrinkles which may occur during the cold-press -forming process may be avoided and in addition, wherein a crimp-' pattern i~ formed in the high-density layer in the top surface of the panel thus prepared.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an automotive ceiling panel which comprises a lami-nate of a first polyethylene foam layer having an aesthetically designed crimp-pattern in its layer surface, a second metal lath laid under the first polyethylene foam layer, and a third layer of polyethylene foam laid under the metal lath. The metal lath - 1 - ~ ..
7~4 is sandwiched between the polyethylene foam layers, with the crimp-pattern appearing on the top surface of the panel.
:~ :"
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a process for manufacturing an automotive ~ .
ceiling panel which includes the steps of forming a crimp-pattern in the high-density surface of a first polyethylene foam layer by a crimp-pattern forming machine, placing a metal lath between the first polyethylene foam layer and a second . .
polyethylene foam layer with the crimp-pattern carrying surface of the first polyethylene foam layer being placed at the top, bonding the thus laid layers using conventional fusion bonding and rolling techniques, and cold-pressing the laminate thus bonded into the desired shape.
In a drawing which illustrates embodiments of the e present invention:
,!'~ Figure 1 is a partial cross-sectional view of an automotive ceiling panel according to the , present invention, Figure 2 is a view illustrative of an embossing step `; 20 of the process according to the invention, Figure 3 is a view illustrative of a fusion-bonding ~- and rolling step of the process according - to the invention, and Figure 4 is a view illustrative of a cold-press --forming step of the process according to the invention.
Referring to Figure 1, there is shown a partial cross-sectional view of an automotive ceiling panel which is laminated according to the process of the invention. Shown at 2 is a first polyethylene foam layer having an embossed crimp-pattern 1 on its high density surface~ The pattern provides the aesthetics of the panel since it ultimately is visible to the user. The first ~:
~.
, . . ~ ' : . :: .
1~)91~24 polyethylene foam layer has a specific gravity ranging from 0.02 : to 0.1.
- Shown at 3 is a metal lath, and at 4, a second poly-ethylene foam layer having a specific gravity ranging from 0.02 ~, to 0.1. The metal lath 3 is thus sandwiched between the first and second polyethylene foam layers.
The three layers thus laminated are then fusion-bonded by a pair of rolls and heaters. The automotive ceiling panel of the aforesaid arrangement provides the desired rigidity, heat insulation and noise shielding effect.
,," .
Figure 2 shows an embossing step of the process accord-D ing to the invention. One surface~of the first polyethylene foam layer 2 is heated by means of heaters 6, and then the first layer 2 is embossed by embossing rolls 5,5, to provide a crimp-pattern 1 thereon.
, Figure 3 shows a bonding and rolling step of the pro-cess according to the invention. The first polyethylene foam ~ .
layer 2 carrying a crimp-pattern 1 thereon and the second poly-ethylene foam layer 4 are heated by heaters 7,7 and introduced between rollers 8,8 with the metal lath 3 being sandwiched there-between. As a result, the three layers are fusion-bonded to give a flat laminate or a panel.
Figure 4 shows a cold-press forming step in accordance with the process of the present invention. There is shown a cold forming press which includes an upper die 9 and a lower die 10.
The upper die 9 is formed with build-up portion or protrusion 11 along its peripheral edge for holding down the panel during the ~-press forming, in cooperation with a peripheral channel 12 formed in the lower die 10. The cooperation of protrusion 11 and channel 12 serves to secure and hold the laminate in place during press forming and thus eliminates the formation of wrinkles in the panel during press forming.
/ 1al91'~2~
.
, In operation, a panel prepared as outlined above is cut to the desired dimensions and placed on top of the lower die 10, with the embossed crimp surface of the panel facing upwards.
-~ The upper die 9 is then lowered to form the panel into a desired shape. In this respect, the edges of the panel are held between the build-up portion 11 and the channel 12 so as to prevent a ....
wrinkle on the surface of the panel.
As is apparent from the foregoing description of the ~' automotive ceiling panel according to the present invention, a crimp-pattern is formed in a high density layer in the top sur-face of a polyethylene foam layer, and the ceiling panel may be , made of three layers, as opposed to the four layers of a prior art ceiling panel, so that the man-hours normally required for :: .
the manufacture of a ceiling panel as well as its weight may be reduced accordingly. In addition, the dynamic frictional co-~', efficient of the polyethylene foam layer is smaller than that of the prior art vinyl chloride skin, resulting in improvements in the drawability of the panel during the cold-press forming step, and in elimination of failure or breaking of the metal lath. Furthermore, since polyethylene provides a solvent-resisting property, stains on the surface of the polyethylene foam layer may be wiped off easily.
; Additionally, the prior art ceiling panel with the vinyl chloride skin suffers from a low bonding force between the vinyl chloride skin and the polyethylene foam layer, so that the skin is liable to be stripped off. The ceiling panel according to the invention is free of such defects.
Furthermore, a ceiling panel according to the inven-tion provides less spring-back force and higher rigidity, as compared with those of the prior art ceiling panels. In addi-tion, ceiling panels in accordance with the present invention include layers made of a polyethylene foam, thus allowing for .
;: ` ``
1(~917~;4 ~ ~
a change in volume with ease, leading to freedom from winkles on the surface of the panel, thus improving the yield of panels in the process.
- At the same time, waste materials from the panels may be separated with ease into constituent materials, because the ceiling panel is made of only two kinds of materials, i.e., a polyethylene foam and a metal lath.
The foregoing description and embodiments are pre-sented herein for illustrative purposes only, and are not ~, 10 intended to unduly limit the scope of the invention.
. .~ ..
~.. -.:
Claims (3)
1. An automotive ceiling panel comprising a laminate of:
a first polyethylene foam layer having an aesthetically designed crimp-pattern in its layer surface, a second metal lath laid under said first polyethylene foam layer, and a third layer of polyethylene foam laid under said metal lath;
said metal lath being sandwiched between said polyethylene foam layers, with said crimp pattern appearing on the top surface of the panel.
a first polyethylene foam layer having an aesthetically designed crimp-pattern in its layer surface, a second metal lath laid under said first polyethylene foam layer, and a third layer of polyethylene foam laid under said metal lath;
said metal lath being sandwiched between said polyethylene foam layers, with said crimp pattern appearing on the top surface of the panel.
2. A process for manufacturing the automotive ceiling panel, comprising the steps of:
forming a crimp-pattern in the surface of a first polyethylene foam layer by a crimp-pattern forming machine;
placing a metal lath between said first and a second polyethylene foam layer, with the crimp-pattern carrying surface of said first poly-ethylene foam layer appearing on the top surface of said first layer;
bonding the thus laid layers together using fusion-bonding and rolling techniques; and cold-pressing the laminate thus prepared into a desired shape for an automotive ceiling.
forming a crimp-pattern in the surface of a first polyethylene foam layer by a crimp-pattern forming machine;
placing a metal lath between said first and a second polyethylene foam layer, with the crimp-pattern carrying surface of said first poly-ethylene foam layer appearing on the top surface of said first layer;
bonding the thus laid layers together using fusion-bonding and rolling techniques; and cold-pressing the laminate thus prepared into a desired shape for an automotive ceiling.
3. A process for manufacturing an automotive ceiling panel as set forth in claim 2, wherein said cold-pressing is carried out by using upper and lower pressing dies, said upper die being formed with a protrusion along its peripheral edge and said lower pressing die being formed with a channel along its peripheral edge in registration with said protrusion, said channel being cooperative with said protrusion to secure the laminate and thus avoid the formation of wrinkles on the sur-face of said panel during the press-forming step.
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| JP151840/1975 | 1975-12-22 | ||
| JP15184075A JPS5277320A (en) | 1975-12-22 | 1975-12-22 | Ceiling panel for automobiles and manufacturing method thereof |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1091724A true CA1091724A (en) | 1980-12-16 |
Family
ID=15527433
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA267,953A Expired CA1091724A (en) | 1975-12-22 | 1976-12-15 | Automotive ceiling panel and process for manufacturing same |
Country Status (2)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| JP (1) | JPS5277320A (en) |
| CA (1) | CA1091724A (en) |
Families Citing this family (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JPS5796032U (en) * | 1980-12-03 | 1982-06-12 |
Family Cites Families (3)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US3346686A (en) * | 1964-05-27 | 1967-10-10 | Grace W R & Co | Method of uniting foamed plastic sheets and thermoforming the same |
| JPS559110B2 (en) * | 1972-05-08 | 1980-03-07 | ||
| JPS50152318U (en) * | 1974-06-03 | 1975-12-18 |
-
1975
- 1975-12-22 JP JP15184075A patent/JPS5277320A/en active Granted
-
1976
- 1976-12-15 CA CA267,953A patent/CA1091724A/en not_active Expired
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| JPS5277320A (en) | 1977-06-29 |
| AU2037876A (en) | 1978-02-02 |
| JPS5426045B2 (en) | 1979-09-01 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| MKEX | Expiry |