Methods for assembling motor vehicle doors

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for mounting motor vehicle doors (2), each consisting of at least a door base assembly (6) and a door outer element (8), on a motor vehicle body (4), wherein in a first step the motor vehicle body (4), the door base assemblies (6), and the door outer elements (8) are manufactured, wherein in a second step an automated measurement of reference points on the motor vehicle body (4) is carried out, wherein in a third step the door base assemblies (6) are automatically arranged on hinge elements (11) of the motor vehicle body (4) based on the reference points, and wherein in a fourth step the door base assemblies (6) are automatically fine-tuned.that in a fifth step the door outer elements (8) are automatically arranged on the corresponding door base assemblies (6) and in a sixth step an optical gap measurement check is carried out automatically and the door base assemblies (6) and / or the door outer elements (8) are automatically readjusted if necessary.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for mounting motor vehicle doors, each consisting of at least a door base assembly and a door outer element, on a motor vehicle body, wherein in a first step the motor vehicle body, the door base assemblies and the door outer elements are manufactured.

[0002] Such methods are well known in the prior art. For example, to enable simple fine-tuning of the vehicle door during assembly or repair, it is known from DE 600 19 623 T2 to manufacture the vehicle door from a door base assembly and an outer door element. The door base assembly allows simplified access from the outside to the body-side hinge components to achieve an optimal gap. However, this approach still requires manual workstations where fitters perform the fine-tuning. This represents a significant disadvantage in automated mass production. Furthermore, DE 101 06 433 A1 discloses a method for assembling vehicle doors, each consisting of at least a door base assembly and an outer door element, onto a vehicle body.In a first step, the vehicle body, the door base assemblies, and the door outer elements are manufactured, and then the door outer elements are automatically arranged on the corresponding door base assemblies. Furthermore, it is known from DE 197 37 160 A1 to carry out an automated measurement of reference points on the vehicle body and to trim the door base or door outer elements based on the measurement.

[0003] The object of the present invention is to avoid the aforementioned disadvantage in a simple and cost-effective manner.

[0004] This problem is solved according to the invention by, in a second step, performing an automated measurement of reference points on the vehicle body; in a third step, automatically arranging the door base assemblies on the hinge elements of the vehicle body based on the reference points; in a fourth step, automatically fine-tuning the door base assemblies; in a fifth step, automatically arranging the door outer elements on the corresponding door base assemblies; and in a sixth step, automatically performing an optical gap measurement check and, if necessary, automatically readjusting the door base assemblies and / or the door outer elements. This ensures a fully automated assembly process with an optimally adjusted gap measurement for the vehicle doors in a particularly simple manner.

[0005] The automated assembly in steps 2 to 6 is carried out in a particularly advantageous way by assembly robots.

[0006] It is also advantageous if the automated measurement in the second step and / or the automated gap measurement in the sixth step are carried out with AI support. Depending on the vehicle type, the reference points can be selected automatically, and particularly difficult installation situations can be checked comprehensively.

[0007] A particularly simple way to readjust the outer door elements is made possible by attaching the outer door elements to the door base assembly using an adhesive in the fifth step, and carrying out the sixth step while the adhesive still has some flexibility.

[0008] Alternatively, in the fifth step, the door outer elements can be pre-assembled in a detachable manner and then fully assembled in a seventh step. In this case, stop devices can be provided between the door base assemblies and the door outer elements, and the door outer elements can be held in place by assembly robots in the fifth step.

[0009] In a particularly advantageous way, the vehicle body, the basic door assemblies, and the outer door elements are finished in the first step. This means that these parts are already painted and / or already have trim pieces before assembly.

[0010] An embodiment of the present invention is explained in more detail below with reference to a drawing. This drawing shows: Fig. 1. A perspective view of a measurement of a motor vehicle body, Fig. 2 a perspective view of the motor vehicle body made of Fig. 1 with door basic arrangements to be installed, Fig. 3 a perspective view of the motor vehicle body from Fig. 2 with door exterior elements to be installed, and Fig. 4 A perspective view of a motor vehicle after final assembly.

[0011] Fig. Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a fully automated assembly station for the assembly of vehicle doors. Figure 2 (see below) Fig. 4) on a motor vehicle body 4 with door openings 5. Both the motor vehicle doors 2, each consisting of a door basic arrangement 6 (see, for example, Fig. 2) and an outer door element 8 (see, for example, Fig. 3) are built, and the vehicle body 4 is already finished, that is, painted and fitted with decorative trim.

[0012] In a first step, the vehicle body 4, the door base assembly 6, and the door outer elements 8 are assigned to the assembly station. Fig. Figure 1 shows only the vehicle body 4 with a door opening 5 and four assembly robots 10. In a second step of the inventive method, the assembly robots 10 perform an automated measurement of reference points on the vehicle body 4. The reference points are determined by an AI depending on the vehicle body 4.

[0013] Fig. Figure 2 now shows how, in a third step, the door base assemblies 6 are automatically positioned on schematically depicted hinge elements 11 based on the reference points determined in the second step. In a fourth step, the door base assemblies 6 are automatically fine-tuned by the assembly robots 10. Due to the design of the door base assemblies 6, the hinge elements 12 are freely accessible via openings 13.

[0014] Fig. Figure 3 shows a perspective view illustrating how, in a fifth step, the door outer elements 8 are positioned on the corresponding door base assemblies 6 by the assembly robots 10. In this embodiment, the door outer elements are detachably pre-assembled on the door base assemblies 6 and 14 by means of corresponding stop elements 12. The door outer elements 8 are held in place by the assembly robots 10. In a sixth step, an optical gap measurement check is performed, and after the door outer elements 8 have been removed, the door base assemblies can be readjusted if necessary.Alternatively, it is also possible to attach the door outer elements 8 to the door base assembly 6 in the fifth step using an adhesive and, if the adhesive still has flexibility, to readjust the door outer element 8 by sliding it in order to achieve an optimal gap dimension of the motor vehicle door 2.

[0015] In the present embodiment, the outer door elements 8 are installed in the seventh step, as shown in Fig. As shown in Figure 4, the door base assembly 6 is fixed by means of an adhesive. Furthermore, the vehicle body 4 was completed by attaching the fenders 16, the hood 18, and the front section 20.

Claims

[1] Method for assembling motor vehicle doors (2), each consisting of at least a door base assembly (6) and a door outer element (8), onto a motor vehicle body (4), wherein in a first step the motor vehicle body (4), the door base assemblies (6) and the door outer elements (8) are manufactured, characterized by, that in a second step an automated measurement of reference points on the vehicle body (4) is carried out, that in a third step the door base assemblies (6) are automatically arranged on hinge elements (11) of the vehicle body (4) based on the reference points, that in a fourth step the door base assemblies (6) are automatically fine-tuned, that in a fifth step the door outer elements (8) are automatically arranged on the corresponding door base assemblies (6), and in a sixth step an optical gap measurement check is carried out automatically and the door base assemblies (6) and / or the door outer elements (8) are automatically readjusted if necessary. [2] Method for assembling motor vehicle doors according to claim 1, characterized by , that the automated assembly in steps 2 to 6 is carried out by assembly robots (10). [3] Method for assembling motor vehicle doors according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by that the automated measurement in the second step and / or the automated gap measurement in the sixth step is carried out using AI support. [4] Method for assembling motor vehicle doors according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that in the fifth step the door outer elements (8) are attached to the door base assembly (6) by means of an adhesive and the sixth step is carried out when the adhesive still has flexibility to allow readjustment of the door outer elements (8). [5] Method for assembling motor vehicle doors according to one of claims 1-3, characterized by , that in the fifth step the outer door elements (8) are pre-assembled in a detachable manner and in a seventh step are fully assembled. [6] Method for assembling motor vehicle doors according to claim 5, characterized by, that stop devices (12, 14) are provided between the door base arrangements (6) and the door outer elements (8) and that the door outer elements (8) are held in the fifth step by assembly robots (10). [7] Method for fitting motor vehicle doors according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the vehicle body (4), the door basic arrangements (6) and the door outer elements (8) are finished in the first step.

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