Patent Application
20110285179
This invention relates generally to a vehicle headliner. Specifically, this invention relates to a vehicle headliner having a compression stiffener indentation to increase rigidity and decrease brittleness.
It is desirable to produce a vehicle headliner formed of a one-piece construction to permit more efficient production. Automotive vehicle headliners line the interior roof of a vehicle to produce a soft-to-touch panel and to improve aesthetics. Vehicle headliners are typically comprised of a substrate such as fiberglass. However, vehicle headliners often lack the rigidity required by design standards. The lack of strength and rigidity can prevent successfully installing modular components in the vehicle headliner. To combat said lack of rigidity, additional layers of material are added to the vehicle headliner in areas of low rigidity. Adding additional material increases weight and increases cost of the vehicle. Accordingly, it is desirable to produce a low cost and low weight alternative for increasing rigidity and decreasing brittleness of a vehicle headliner.
The present invention provides for a vehicle headliner having localized compressed stiffeners to increase rigidity and decrease brittleness. The headliner compression stiffener adds rigidity to the headliner substrate without adding additional cost or additional weight. At least one compression stiffener is added to a vehicle headliner to an area of the vehicle headliner requiring increased rigidity qualities. The stiffener is an elongated indentation formed by firmly compressing an object into the substrate of a headliner. The substrate of the vehicle headliner includes a first predetermined density in areas where the stiffener indentation is not located. A second density is localized in the headliner substrate in the area directly below the indentation of the stiffener. The predetermined first density is lower in measurement than the second density of the substrate directly below the indentation of the stiffener. By increasing density in the area directly below the stiffener indentations, the headliner as a whole is stronger in areas near the stiffener indentations without increasing weight or substantially increasing cost.
The above and other features and objects of the invention will be better understood from the following detailed description of the typical embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:
A headliner is provided having a plurality of stiffener indentations to improve rigidity qualities and to decrease brittleness of a vehicle headliner. The stiffener indentations are elongated and positioned at various locations on a vehicle headliner requiring improved rigidity in that location on the vehicle headliner. The stiffener indentations increase rigidity by providing for areas having a higher density.
Now referring to
The headliner 12 further includes a plurality of stiffener indentations 50, 52, 54, 56, 58 and 60. Stiffener indentation 50 on the headliner 12 is provided adjacent to the modular component 28 to increase rigidity of the headliner 12 and the surrounding area of the modular component 28. Furthermore, stiffener indentation 52 is provided on the front end of the headliner 12 to increase rigidity of the headliner 12 in the area surrounding the visors (not pictured). Magnification cutout section 14 better shows the positioning of stiffener indentations 50, 52, 54, 56, 58 and 60.
Stiffener indentation 64 is provided on the headliner 12 to increase rigidity in the area around the sunroof 26. The stiffener indentation 64 provides for a curved section 65 to increase rigidity around the corners of the installed sunroof 26 on the vehicle headliner 12.
The vehicle headliner 12 is comprised of fiberglass, plastic, or other composite substrate. In this embodiment, the headliner 12 substrate is comprised of two layers. A first layer 120 is made of fiberglass and a second layer 122 is a cloth, or cloth-like, material, as shown in
As shown by
As shown by
Stiffener indentation 100 acquires increased rigidity by means of varying densities on the headliner 12. The first layer 120 includes a first predetermined density 104 in the area of the first layer 120 directly adjacent to the stiffener indentation 100. Stiffener indentation 100 further includes a second density 106 provided directly below the stiffener indentation 100. The second density 106 is significantly higher than the first predetermined density 104 positioned directly adjacent to the stiffener indentation 100. The second density 106 disposed directly under stiffener indentation 100 sufficiently increases the overall rigidity of the headliner 12.
Stiffener indentation 110 acquires increased rigidity by means of varying densities on the headliner 12. The first layer 120 includes a first predetermined density 114 in the area of the first layer 120 directly adjacent to the stiffener indentation 110. Stiffener indentation 110 further includes a second density 116 provided directly below the stiffener indentation 110. The second density 116 is significantly higher than the first predetermined density 114 positioned directly adjacent to the stiffener indentation 110. The second density 116 disposed directly under stiffener indentation 110 sufficiently increases the overall rigidity of the headliner 12.
It is also to be understood that, although the foregoing description and drawings describe and illustrate in detail working embodiments of the present invention, to those skilled in the art to which the present invention relates, the present disclosure will suggest many modifications and embodiments. The present invention, therefore, is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims and the applicable prior art.
