The present inventions relate generally to the field of components such as visors for use in vehicles (e.g., automobiles such as cars, trucks, and the like; airplanes, boats, etc.). More specifically, the present inventions relate to visors formed using a blow molding process. Further, the present inventions relate to visors having a structural layer and a cover layer formed simultaneously by coextrusion in a blow molding process.
Visors for use in vehicles to shield an occupant from sunlight are generally known. Such visors typically have a “butterfly” or “clamshell” type core portion at least partially covered by a cover material such as a fabric. The cover material often “overlaps” or is wrapped over the perimeter edges of the core, portion so that when the core portion is “folded” about a midpoint, the perimeter edges of each half of the core portion meet and the cover material is tucked therebetween to create a “tucked edge” intended to have a “neat” aesthetically attractive appearance.
However, such visors and methods for making the visors have certain disadvantages. For example, when cover materials such as cloth and fabrics are used, the material and labor or equipment costs to tuck the fabric tend to be expensive. By further way of example, when the cover material is a synthetic material such as vinyl or plastic, wrapping the material over the core portion and then folding the core portion tends to create a poor quality appearance having defects such as “wrinkles” around curves or radii of the visor core or other undesirable effects that tend to require additional operations or effort to resolve which may reduce the cost-effectiveness of such cover materials and methods for visor applications.
Other visors may be formed with a structural core portion formed in a blow molding operation. However, such blow molded cores typically do not provide certain desired surface characteristics (e.g. soft-touch, upholstered-feel, aesthetically appealing surface texture and appearance, etc.). Certain blow molded cores may be covered with an over-molded material to provide the desired surface characteristics to the visor. However, adhesives and other fasteners for attaching the cover to the core are subject to eventual separation, and most visors tend to be relatively low cost production items and such additional manufacturing processes tend to add cost and delay to production of the visors.
Accordingly, there is a need to provide a method for producing components such as visors for use in vehicles that includes an inner “structural” core material (e.g. polypropylene, polyurethane, etc.) and an outer “cover” material (e.g. vinyl, santoprene, etc.). There is also a need to provide a method for forming the visor core and visor cover material simultaneously in a single manufacturing operation such as blow molding with co-extruded materials. There is also a need to provide a method of forming a visor with a cover material having multiple colors or surface textures. There is also a need to provide visors and a method for making visors that may be manufactured in a relatively simple and efficient manner with reduced manufacturing and material costs. There is also a need to provide a manufacturing method for producing visors having a rigid core and soft cover that permits accessories (e.g. vanities, lamps, clips, pivot rods, brackets, slide mechanisms, etc.) to be integrally formed with the visor core during the blow molding operation.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a component such as a visor having any one or more of these or other advantageous features.
A visor for a vehicle includes a visor body formed from at least two layers of co-extruded materials in a blow molding operation, where a first layer is a substantially resilient material that forms a cover layer for the visor and the second material is a generally rigid material that forms a core portion of the visor. Internal components such as mounting brackets, torque or detent springs/clips may be integrally formed within the co-extruded layers of material during the molding operation.
A method of making a visor for a vehicle includes providing a mold having a three dimensional cavity, introducing at least one hardware component into the cavity, simultaneously co-extruding a cover layer of material and a core layer of material into the cavity and around the hardware component, inflating the cover and core layers of material within the cavity, and removing the visor from the mold. The method also includes installing accessories on the visor. The method also includes removably attaching a hardware element to a blow pin for positioning the hardware element within the cover layer and core layer.
A visor for a vehicle also includes a first panel and a second panel joined together substantially along a common perimeter and having an open cavity therebetween. The first panel and second panel are integrally formed from an inner layer of a structural material and an outer layer of an upholstery material. At least one of the first panel and the second panel may be formed with a suitable recess for receiving a visor accessory (e.g. vanity pack, ticket clip, remote control device). A hardware element may be integrally formed within the cavity and secured to the inner layer. The inner layer and the outer layer are co-extruded and integrally formed in a blow-molding operation.
Referring to
Referring to
When mold 50 is “open” (see
Openings 56 and 57 may be located along a parting line of blow mold 50, or at any other suitable location to provide the desired performance of the blow mold operation. After parison 72 is extruded into cavity 52, the mold halves provide a closed edge (e.g. parting line, etc.) around the perimeter of the visor, with opening 56 for retracting blow pin 58 and for inserting other visor components (e.g. pivot rods for pivotally mounting the visor to a vehicle, etc.), and opening 57 for retracting stretch pin 59. According to an alternative embodiment, the blow mold may be formed in any suitable number of segments for molding the desired three dimensional features of the visor. Also, additional openings may be provided in the mold. For example, the mold may be closed and then the co-extruded materials may be injected through a separate opening in the mold.
The blow pin 58 is formed with a hollow passage for inflating the co-extruded materials and is formed with a receiving structure for holding internal components of the visor during the molding operation. According to the illustrated embodiment, the blow pin 58 is configured to releasably receive and hold visor hardware shown as a pivot rod carrier bracket and torque spring or clip assembly 26 for rotatably and/or slidably engaging a pivot rod 18 for a mounting bracket 12 (see
Referring further to
According to the illustrated embodiment, the internal component or assembly 26 is shown to include a flow director (shown as a flow nozzle 27) that is configured to direct the flow of air from the blow pin, through the component and toward the center of the cavity of the mold. The flow director 27 is intended to enhance the performance of the blow molding operation when the final position of the blow pin is located non-centrally with respect to the mold (e.g. along a top edge so that the hole formed by the blow pin corresponds with the opening for the visor pivot rod). After the dual layers of material 74, 76 have sufficiently cooled, the blow mold 50 opens and the visor 10 is removed and trimmed, with components or assembly 26 integrally formed within the visor body. Additional components (e.g. bezels, pivot rods, mounting brackets, clips, etc.) or accessories (e.g. a vanity mirror 28 as shown in
The co-extrusion of the core portion material with the cover layer material in a single parison (e.g. concentrically, etc.) and blow molding the two materials simultaneously in a single or “one-shot” operation is intended to provide a single-piece visor having complex shapes and features, with both rigid and flexible characteristics. According to a preferred embodiment, the core portion 20 is a generally rigid and hard component that provides an underlying frame or structure and the cover layer 40 is a soft and resilient material (e.g. “soft-touch”) that provides an overlying upholstery layer that has the desired appearance, texture and cushioning characteristics.
According to any exemplary embodiment, the core portion may be molded in any suitable shape and size to suit an intended application and to receive certain desired components or hardware, etc. after completion of the molding process (e.g. by snap-fit connection, adhesive, heat-stake, etc. The core portion may also be configured for integral formation with certain components or hardware during the molding process by placing the components or hardware within the mold and forming the core and cover of the visor around the components or hardware. According to any exemplary embodiment, the components may include any one or more of accessories such as remote control devices (e.g. Homelink®, etc.), vanity packs (e.g. mirrors, illumination devices, sliding or hinged covers, storage compartments, etc.), Euroclips, ticket clips, electronics, audio components, etc. The hardware may also include pivot rods (with or without a slide mechanism), torque clips, mounting brackets, etc.
The cover layer 40 is configured to cover an outer surface of the core portion 20 to provide a finished appearance that may be custom-suited to a decorative trim or finish scheme for the interior of the vehicle. According to a preferred embodiment, the material of the cover layer of the dual layer parison 72 is made of a relatively soft and pliable material such as vinyl, Santoprene®, a thermoplastic olefin (TPO), a plastisol, etc. The cover layer may be formed in the mold so that certain contours, cutouts, etc. are provided to permit installation of the accessories on the visor after the visor is removed from the mold to create a neat “finished” appearance. The mold may also have various surface treatments to impart desired features on the surface of the cover material (such as textures, the appearance of a “tucked edge” along a perimeter, etc. The textures may be generally uniform on the cover material, or variations in texture may be provided (e.g. a first texture on a first side of the visor and a second texture on a second side of the visor, etc.).
According to an exemplary embodiment in which the cover layer is made of a polymeric material, the cover layer has a thickness sufficient to provide a durable surface for the visor such as between approximately 0.2 and 5.0 millimeters, and most preferably between approximately 0.5 and 3.0 millimeters.
According to any embodiment, the core portion and cover material may have a size, shape, and configuration that is adapted or configured to suit any particular visor application for an intended vehicle. Any number of components may be included in the mold for integration with the visor during the molding process, and the visor may be formed with any suitable recesses or other structure for receiving a desired set of accessories, and the surfaces of the cover material may be provided with any suitable texture or combination of textures to create a desired appearance and feel. The size, shape, and configuration of the core and cover layer may have any number of forms, and relatively complex geometries may be formed. One of skill in the art will appreciate that various possibilities exist in this regard.
According to an alternative embodiment, an additional layer of material, such as a “cushioning” material may be extruded between the outer surface of the core portion material and the inside of the cover material layer to provide a more enhanced “padded” or “cushioned” appearance and/or feel, the cushioning may also serve to improve the performance of the visor in the event of impact by the head of an occupant. The particular design chosen may depend on any of a variety of factors, including the desired look and feel of the outer surface of the visor, materials costs, ease of manufacturing, etc.
According to any preferred embodiment, a visor and method of making a visor are provided by co-extruding a first structural material and a second cover layer material into a mold cavity having the desired three dimensional shape and surface texture characteristics, positioning the desired hardware and/or accessories within the mold cavity (such as by removable attachment to the blow pin) and pressurizing or inflating the layers of co-extruded materials against a mold cavity in a blow molding process.
The construction and arrangement of the elements of the visor for a vehicle as shown in the preferred and other exemplary embodiments is illustrative only. Although only a few embodiments of the present inventions have been described in detail in this disclosure, those skilled in the art who review this disclosure will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible (e.g., variations in sizes, dimensions, structures, shapes and proportions of the various elements, values of parameters, mounting arrangements of hardware and accessories, use of materials, colors, orientations, etc.) without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of the subject matter recited herein. For example, elements shown as integrally formed may be constructed of multiple parts or elements, the position of elements may be reversed or otherwise varied, and the nature or number of discrete elements or positions may be altered or varied. It should be noted that the elements and/or assemblies of the visor may be constructed from any of a wide variety of materials that provide sufficient strength or durability, including any of a wide variety of moldable plastic materials (such as high-impact plastic for the core and pliable materials for the cover) in any of a wide variety of colors, textures and combinations. Other substitutions, modifications, changes and omissions may be made in the design, operating conditions and arrangement of the preferred and other exemplary embodiments without departing from the scope of the present inventions.
The order or sequence of any process or method steps may be varied or re-sequenced according to alternative embodiments. In the claims, any means-plus-function clause is intended to cover the structures described herein as performing the recited function and not only structural equivalents but also equivalent structures. Other substitutions, modifications, changes and omissions may be made in the design, operating configuration and arrangement of the preferred and other exemplary embodiments without departing from the spirit of the present inventions as expressed in the appended claims.
The present Application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/667,530, titled Visor and Method for Making a Visor, filed on Apr. 1, 2005, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60667530 | Apr 2005 | US |