reinforcer

Abstract

A reinforcer for reinforcing a vehicle body, in particular a cavity of the vehicle body, the reinforcer comprising a carrier comprising an expandable material, wherein in an expanded state the expandable material reinforces the vehicle body. The carrier further comprises a positioning portion being free of the expandable material, wherein the positioning portion is designed to engage with a robot, in particular a robot arm. The carrier further comprises a pushing portion being free of the expandable material, wherein the pushing portion is designed to be pushed by the robot to release the reinforcer from the robot.

Description

[0001] REINFORCER

[0002] Technical field

[0003] The invention relates to a reinforcer for reinforcing a vehicle body and to a vehicle body comprising the reinforcer. Furthermore, the invention is related to the method for reinforcing a vehicle body.

[0004] Background art

[0005] Construction elements such as, for example, bodies and / or chassis of transportation and conveyance means, in particular of aquatic or terrestrial vehicles or of aircraft, in many instances have structures having cavities in order for lightweight constructions to be enabled. These cavities however cause the most varied of problems. Depending on the type of the cavity, the latter has to be sealed in order to prevent the ingress of moisture and contaminations which can lead to corrosion of the construction elements. It is often also desirable for the cavities and thus the construction element to be substantially reinforced but for the low weight to be maintained. It is often also necessary for the cavities and thus the construction elements to be stabilized in order for noises, which would otherwise be transmitted along the cavity or through the latter, to be reduced.

[0006] Furthermore, placing and fixing sealing or reinforcing elements inside cavities, as this is proposed in US 2013 / 0243980 Al, usually requires a lot of machining to allow sealing or reinforcing elements to be inserted correctly.

[0007] US 2024 / 059364 discloses a stackable baffle assembly.

[0008] Disclosure of the invention

[0009] It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved handling of reinforcing parts for reinforcing vehicle bodies. Surprisingly, it has been found that this object can be achieved by the features of claim 1. Thus, the core of the present invention is related to a reinforcer for reinforcing a vehicle body, in particular a cavity of the vehicle body, the reinforcer comprising: a carrier comprising an expandable material, wherein in an expanded state the expandable material reinforces the vehicle body. The carrier further comprises a positioning portion being free of the expandable material, wherein the positioning portion is designed to engage with a robot, in particular a robot arm. The carrier further comprises a pushing portion being free of the expandable material, wherein the pushing portion is designed to be pushed by the robot to release the reinforcer from the robot.

[0010] This makes it possible to reliably position the reinforcer with a robot in the vehicle body and reliably release reinforcer from the robot without damaging the expandable material. This enables the reduction of the used expandable material which increases sustainability of the overall reinforcer.

[0011] Additional aspects of the invention are subject of further independent claims. Particularly preferred embodiments are outlined throughout the description and the dependent claims. The features of the embodiments can be combined with each other.

[0012] A first aspect of the present invention is directed to a reinforcer for reinforcing a vehicle body in particular a cavity of the vehicle body and / or structural element. The reinforcer comprises a carrier with an expandable material, a positioning portion, and a pushing portion.

[0013] In an embodiment, the vehicle body comprises a structural element with a cavity. The reinforcer can be designed to reinforce the structural element.

[0014] The carrier comprising an expandable material. The expandable material can be rather brittle. Accordingly, the expandable material should not be touched and / or contacted, as this could damage the expandable material and therefore reduce the performance of reinforcer. In an expanded state the expandable material reinforces the vehicle body. The expandable material can be applied to the carrier with a small thickness at the position of reinforcement which increases the sustainability of the reinforcer due to the saving of expandable material.

[0015] The carrier further comprises a positioning portion being free of the expandable material. The reduce the risk of damaging the expandable material. The expandable material can be a reinforcer material. The positioning portion enables the positioning of the reinforcer in the vehicle body, in particular at the structural element. The positioning portion is designed to engage with a robot, in particular a robot arm. The engaging can be a grabbing by robot. The positioning portion is designed to handle the reinforcer. The handling may include grabbing, safe transfer to the location of installation, precise positioning of the reinforcer at location of installation. The positioning portion enables a mechanical locking of the reinforcer at the robot. This locking of the reinforcer ensures a secure handling which eliminates unwanted movement of the reinforcer and increases precision.

[0016] The reinforcer carrier further comprises a pushing portion being free of the expandable material. This also lowers the risk of damaging the material of the expandable material, which ensures the reinforcing of the vehicle body. In other words: The pushing portion is a safe place for the robot to interact with the reinforcer.

[0017] In an embodiment, the pushing portion is arranged on the carrier of the reinforcer.

[0018] The pushing portion is designed to be pushed by the robot to release the reinforcer from the robot or vice versa that the robot is released from the reinforcer. The pushing portion may also be called clamping portion, as a clamp may push on the pushing portion to release the robot from the reinforcer.

[0019] In an embodiment, the pushing portion is designed to be stable to prevent damage of the reinforcer due to pushing force applied to release the reinforcer from the robot. In this sense stable means to withstand the pushing force exerted to the pushing portion without substantial damage.

[0020] In an embodiment, the reinforcer may be regarded as a baffle and / or damping element. This means, that the application should not be restricted to reinforcer alone, but all the feature of the carrier with positioning portion and pushing portion can be transferred / applied to a baffle and / or damping element in order to improve the automatization of those parts as well. Accordingly, the scope of protection expands to a baffle and / or damping elements.

[0021] In an embodiment, suitable expandable materials include, for example, single-component epoxy resin systems that do not flow at room temperature, which in particular have increased impact strength and contain thixotropic agents such as aerosols or nanoclays. For example, such epoxy resin systems contain 20 to 50 wt.% of an epoxy liquid resin, 0 to 30 wt.% of an epoxy solid resin, 5 to 30 wt.% toughness modifiers, 1 to 5 wt.% physical or chemical blowing agents, 10 to 40 wt.% fillers, 1 to 10 wt.% thixotropic agents and 2 to 10 wt.% heat- activated hardeners. Suitable toughness modifiers are reactive liquid rubbers based on nitrile rubber or derivatives of polyether polyol polyurethanes, core-shell polymers and similar systems known to the skilled person.

[0022] In an embodiment, further suitable expandable materials are one-component polyurethane compositions containing blowing agents, composed of crystalline polyesters containing OH groups in a mixture with other polyols, preferably polyether polyols, and polyisocyanates with blocked isocyanate groups. The melting point of the crystalline polyester should be > 50 °C. The isocyanate groups of the polyisocyanate can, for example, be blocked with nucleophiles such as caprolactam, phenols or benzoxalones. Blocked polysocyanates such as those used in powder coating technology, which are commercially available under the trade names Vestagon® BF 1350 and Vestagon® BF 1540 from Degussa GmbH, Germany, are also suitable. Also suitable as isocyanates are so-called encapsulated or surface-deactivated polyisocyanates, which are known to the skilled person and are described, for example, in EP 0204 970.

[0023] Two-component epoxy / polyurethane compositions containing blowing agents, such as those described in WO 2005 / 080524 Al, are also suitable as expandable materials.

[0024] Furthermore, ethylene vinyl acetate compositions containing blowing agents are suitable as expandable materials.

[0025] In an embodiment, further suitable expandable materials are marketed, for example, under the trade names SikaBaffle® 240, SikaBaffle® 250 or SikaBaffle® 255 by Sika Corp., USA, and are described in patents US 5,266,133 and US 5,373,027. Such expandable materials are particularly preferred for the present invention. Preferred expandable materials with reinforcing properties are, for example, those sold under the trade name SikaReinforcer® 941, SikaReinforcer® 95 / . SikaReinforcer® 944 or SikaReinforcer® 952 by Sika Corp, USA. These are described in US 6,387,470.

[0026] In an exemplary embodiment, the expandable material has an expansion rate of from 800% to 5000%, preferably from 1000% to 4000%, particularly preferably from 1500% to 3000%. Expandable materials with such expansion rates offer the advantage that a reliable sealing or insulation of the structural element against liquids and sound can be achieved.

[0027] In an embodiment, the expandable material is designed as a temperature-induced material. This has the advantage that the oven can be used for baking the dip coating liquid in order to expand the expandable material and thereby insulate the cavity. This means that no additional work step is necessary.

[0028] In an embodiment the pushing portion is designed to withstand a pushing force of at least 5 N, in particular at least 7 N, in particular 10N, in particular 15N, in particular 20 N. This enables a reliable release of the reinforcer from the robot. The pushing force might be bigger than for heavier reinforcer compared to lighter reinforcer. This is needed, as the robot needs to grab a heavier reinforcer with a bigger force to ensure safe engagement. Therefore, the pushing force needs to be bigger to release the reinforcer for the robot.

[0029] In an embodiment, the pushing portion is designed to take in the pushing force on a pushing area of at least 0,75 square centimeter, in particular at least 1 square centimeter, in particular at least 2 square centimeters, in particular at least 3 square centimeters. This allows for a safe and reliable release of the reinforcer without damaging the reinforcer.

[0030] In an embodiment at the position on the carrier opposite to the pushing portion (40) the carrier comprises at least on rib. This enables the stabilization of the pushing portion and can distribution and / or absorption of the pushing force.

[0031] In an embodiment, the carrier comprises a first and a second face. The first and the second face are arranged opposite to other. At a perspective view on the first face, the second face is not visible, as it is arranged on the opposite side of the carrier. The pushing portion is arranged on the first face of the carrier and the position opposite the pushing portion arranged on the second face of the carrier.

[0032] In an embodiment, the positioning portion is designed as at least one of: a cylinder, in particular circular cylinder or ellipsoid cylinder, in particular a right cylinder or an oblique cylinder, in particular a hollow cylinder; s prism with a polyhedron base, in particular a right prism or an oblique prism, in particular a truncated prism, in particular a hollow prism; a truncated cone, also called a frustum of a cone; with a slotted cross-section; a flat surface, in particular for suction and / or vacuum engagement with the robot, also called a vacuum gripper.

[0033] The hollow design of the positioning portion makes it possible that the gripper of the robot can grab the positioning portion at the inner surface of the hollow design, so the reinforcer can be hold securely at the inside without damaging the structural surface of the reinforcer. The hollow design can be described as pocket. In an embodiment, the positioning portion is equipped to take up the force applied from the robot to engage with the robot and to be positioned in the vehicle body.

[0034] In an embodiment, the defined positioning portion makes it possible to center the reinforcer in the cavity of the vehicle body. Such a centering enables the precise positioning of reinforcer in the cavity.

[0035] In an embodiment, the positioning portion comprises one closed end face. This means, that the positioning portion comprises at least one closed end face, the other end of the position portion can by open or closed at well. In case one end is open, the robot can reach into the positioning portion from the open side but is not reaching trough the closed end face of the positioning portion. In other words: the positioning portion is not designed as an open hole in the reinforcer.

[0036] In another embodiment, with an open-end face of positioning portion the gripper of the robot is equipped to engage with the reinforcer on the side opposing the robot gripper, for example with an L-shaped gripper. Such an undercut engagement may improve the positioning of the reinforcer. In an embodiment, the gripping the positioning portion, in particular for heavy reinforcer, has to be improved for reliable positioning of the part in the cavity. This can be achieved by a gripper of the robot strongly engaging with the positioning portion for example with the robot engaging at the rare side of the reinforcer, in particular an L-shaped gripper.

[0037] In an embodiment, either the positioning portion comprises an undercut and / or the gripper is able to reach behind the reinforcer. Behind in this context means the side of the reinforcer facing away from the robot. In such an embodiment, a space behind the reinforce and / or the undercut is needed to accommodate the L-shaped gripper. In such an embodiment, the positioning portion may be open and / or at least partially open at the rare end face. The rare end face being arranged at the back side of the reinforcer, meaning behind the reinforcer. The back side of the reinforcer (also called rare side) is arranged at the opposite side of the front side. The front side can comprise the positioning portion. In an embodiment, the rare side is free of a positioning portion.

[0038] In an embodiment, at least one of the following conditions is fulfilled:

[0039] - the surface of the positioning porting comprises a rough surface and / or

[0040] - the position portion comprises a knurling and / or

[0041] - the positioning portion comprises a first engagement element designed to engage with a second engagement element at the robot.

[0042] The rough surface can for example be ribbed and / or corrugated. This enables to increase the contact face between the positioning portion and the robot, in particular the gripper of the robot. In an embodiment, the rough surface can be arranged either on the gripper jaws and / or on the positioning portion. The gripper jaws of the robot can be designed as an opening tool which can engage with positioning portion. The term rough is understood as uneven and not soft.

[0043] The knurling enables a better grip and / or engagement between the positioning portion and the robot by increasing the contact area.

[0044] The first engagement element and the second engagement element can comprise a complementary design to improve an interlocking and therefore the reliable positioning of the reinforcer in the vehicle body. In an embodiment, the carrier comprises a spacer, also called distance holder, designed to space the reinforcer apart from the vehicle body in a positioned state. The term positioned state can be defined as follows: In the positioned state the reinforcer is placed / located in the vehicle body. The distance holder of the reinforcer may contact the vehicle body and ensures that the reinforcer is spaced apart from the vehicle body. The spacer is able to provide a support for the reinforcer once the robot is pushing against the pushing position of the reinforcer to facilitate the release of the robot from the reinforcer. In other words: In the positioned state the reinforcer is positioned in the vehicle part, in particular in the cavity.

[0045] In an embodiment, the pushing portion is arranged in the vicinity of the spacer in order to avoid tilting of the reinforcer while pushing.

[0046] In an embodiment, the reinforcer comprises a fixation portion to fix the reinforcer to the vehicle body, in particular the reinforcer comprises a welding portion to be welded to the vehicle body. In an embodiment, the welding portion is designed as a welding coin and / or the welding portion is an over molded piece of welding material. In an embodiment, the fixation portion is designed as welding portion and / or a fastener, in particular a clip. In an embodiment, during fixation of the reinforcer in the vehicle body a force is to be applied on the reinforcer to fixed onto the vehicle body. In an embodiment, this fixation force can be applied via the positioning portion and / or the pushing portion.

[0047] In an embodiment, a plurality of fixation portions is fixed to the vehicle subsequently and / or simultaneously. The subsequent and / or simultaneous fixation can be enabled by the alignment of the fixation portions in relation to the positioning portion and / or pushing portion.

[0048] In an embodiment, the reinforcer comprises at least two positioning portions, the positioning portions being arranged on the carrier in such a way that the reinforcer can be picked up, in particular by a robot, at the positioning portions in a balanced manner. The term balanced manner in this text corresponds to an equal distribution of the weight of the reinforcer. This means that when picking up the reinforcer the weight is equally distributed. This enables the secure lifting of the reinforcer avoiding a tipping over of the reinforcer while lifting. In an embodiment, the reinforcer comprises a longitudinal axis extending over the length of the reinforcer. The reinforcer comprises two positioning portions, wherein the first positioning portion is arranged in the first third of the reinforcer and the second positioning portion is arranged in the final third (3rdthird) of the reinforcer. The division of the reinforcer in three approximately equal pieces can be managed by length and / or by weight. This can enable a predetermined balancing of the reinforcer to simplify the lifting and / or handling of the reinforcer.

[0049] In an embodiment, the reinforcer comprises at least one reference portion to identify at least one of a reinforcer and the position of the reinforcer. This makes it possible to reduce the risk of mismatching a reinforcer. Accordingly, a robot can unambiguously identify the reinforcer before fixing it to the vehicle body. This reduces the risk of damaging the reinforcer and / or the vehicle body.

[0050] In an embodiment, the pushing portion is arranged essentially perpendicular to the pushing force applied to release the reinforcer from the robot.

[0051] The positioning portion is arranged at the front side of the carrier. The front side it the assessable side of the reinforcer. Opposite to the front side the reinforcer comprises a rare side. The positioning portion as well as the pushing portion are arranged at the front side of the carrier of the reinforcer, as the robot is engaging with the portions arranged at the front side. The front side is spanned by the base area of the reinforcer. The base area is surrounded by the edge region. The edge region circumferentially runs around the base area. The edge region is free of a positioning portion. The positioning portion is arranged at the base area of the reinforcer.

[0052] In an embodiment, the front side of the reinforcer is facing away from the vehicle body during installation and the rare side of the reinforcer is facing towards the cavity of the vehicle body. A further aspect of the present invention is direct to a method for reinforcing a vehicle body.

[0053] The method comprises the steps of: providing a reinforcer according as described; providing a robot designed to engage with the reinforcer at the positioning portion of the carrier; engaging of robot with the reinforcer at the positioning portion; positioning the reinforcer in the vehicle body (100), in particular in the cavity of the vehicle body (100), by the robot; fixing the reinforcer in the vehicle body (100), in particular in the cavity of the vehicle body (100); pushing against the pushing position of the reinforcer to release robot from the reinforcer.

[0054] This automated installation of the reinforcer in the vehicle body ensures that the reinforcer can be assembled and / or positioned in the vehicle body with minimal tolerance.

[0055] In an embodiment, the fixation of in the vehicle body before release of the robot can be permanently or temporarily.

[0056] In an embodiment, the fixed reinforcer is arranged in the vehicle body with a small gap in order to ensure e-coat to flow around the reinforcer.

[0057] In an embodiment, the reinforcer is fixed to the vehicle body, in particular in the cavity of the vehicle body, by welding the reinforcer to the vehicle body, in particular in the cavity of the vehicle body. This ensures a secure fixation of the reinforcer in the vehicle body.

[0058] In an embodiment, the reinforcer is fixed, in particularly welded, to the vehicle body before the robot releases the reinforcer. In such an embodiment, it is required that the robot arm positioning the reinforcer is not blocking the excess of the fixation arms, in particular the welding robot. This enables a combination of precise positioning and secure fixation of the reinforcer in the vehicle body. In an embodiment, the robot itself pushes against the pushing portion, to be released from the reinforcer, in particular the robot pushes with a clamp like element.

[0059] A further aspect of the invention is directed to the use of a reinforcer as described above for reinforcing a vehicle body.

[0060] Further advantageous implementations of the invention are evident from the exemplary embodiments.

[0061] Embodiments of the reinforcer and the method and the use can be combined without any limitations. XXX might lead to clarity issues XX

[0062] Brief description of drawings

[0063] The drawings used to explain the exemplary embodiments show:

[0064] Fig. 1 a schematic, exemplary illustration of a reinforcer;

[0065] Fig. 2 a partial view of a reinforcer comprising a positioning portion, pushing portion and fixation portion;

[0066] Fig. 3 a partial view of a reinforcer comprising a positioning portion, pushing portion and welding coin as fixation portion;

[0067] Fig. 4 a close view at the engagement between a gripper of a robot and a positioning portion of the reinforcer.

[0068] Exemplary embodiments

[0069] Fig 1. schematically illustrates a reinforcer 1 with a carrier 10 comprising an expandable material 20 and a positioning portion 30 which is free of expandable material 20. The positioning portion 30 is designed to engage with a robot, in particular an arm of a robot, as e.g. shown in Fig. 4. The carrier 10 further comprises a pushing portion 40 which is also free of the expandable material 20. The pushing portion 40 is designed to be pushed to release the reinforcer 1 from the robot. The reinforcer 1 is designed to reinforce a vehicle body 100, in particular a cavity of the vehicle body 100, in particular of a structural element.

[0070] In an expanded state the expandable material 20 reinforces the vehicle body 100. Suitable expandable materials with reinforcing properties are marketed, for example, under the trade name SikaReinforcer® 941, SikaReinforcer® 95 / , SikaReinforcer® 944 or SikaReinforcer® 952 by Sika Corp, USA. These are described in US 6,387,470. Further suitable expandable materials are sold under the trade names SikaBaffle® 240, SikaBaffle® 250 or SikaBaffle® 255 by Sika Corp., USA, and are described in patents US 5,266,133 and US 5,373,027. Such expandable materials are particularly preferred for the present invention.

[0071] The pushing portion 40 is designed as an essential flat and stable surface onto which a pushing force can be applied without damaging the reinforcer 1. The pushing force can be applied directly by the robot via e.g. a clamp.

[0072] The reinforcer 1 further comprises a fixation portion 50 through which the reinforcer 1 is fastened to the vehicle body 100. The fixation portion 50 shown in Fig. 1 is designed as a welding portion 51 which enables the permanent fixation of the reinforcer 1 to the vehicle body 100.

[0073] Fig- 2 shows a partial view of a reinforcer 1 comprising a positioning portion, pushing portion and fixation portion.

[0074] The positioning portion 30 is arranged at the front side of the carrier 10. The front side it the assessable side of the reinforcer 1. Opposite to the front side the reinforcer 1 comprises a rare side. The positioning portion 30 as well as the pushing portion 40 are arranged at the front side of the carrier 10 of the reinforcer 1, as the robot is engaging with the portions arranged at the front side. The front side is spanned by the base area of the reinforcer. The base area is surrounded by the edge region. The edge region circumferentially runs around the base area. The edge region is free of a positioning portion 30. The positioning portion 30 is arranged at the base area of the reinforcer 1.

[0075] Fig- 3 shows a partial view of a reinforcer 1 comprising a positioning portion 30, pushing portion 40 and welding coin as fixation portion 50. The positioning portion 30 is designed as a substantially flat surface. This essentially flat surface can engage with a vacuum gripper. The positioning portion 30 can be used a reference portion 60. With the help of the reference portion 60 the robot is able to identify the kind of part and / or reinforcer, as well as the position of the reinforcer. This reduced the risk to damage the reinforcer when handled by the robot, as a validated position of the reinforcer enables the robot to securely engage with the reinforcer.

[0076] Fig- 4 illustrates a close view at the engagement between a gripper 31 of a robot and a positioning portion 30 of the reinforcer. The positioning portion 30 has a conical inner surface and comprises a closed end face 33. The closed end face 33 is facing the rare side of the reinforcer 1. The gripper 31 designed with a conical outer structure. The surface of the conical outer structure comprises a knurling to improve the grip. The gripper jaws 32 can be moved way from each other to engage with the positioning portion 30.

[0077] It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the present invention can be implemented in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The presently disclosed implementations and embodiments are therefore considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restricted. XX might lead to clarity issues XX

[0078] Reference signs

[0079] I reinforcer

[0080] 100 vehicle body 10 carrier

[0081] I I spacer / distance holder

[0082] 20 expandable material

[0083] 30 positioning portion

[0084] 31 gripper 32 gripper jaw

[0085] 33 end face

[0086] 40 pushing portion

[0087] 50 fixation portion

[0088] 51 welding portion 60 reference portion

Claims

Claims1. Reinforcer (1) for reinforcing a vehicle body (100), in particular a cavity of the vehicle body (100), the reinforcer comprising: a carrier (10) comprising an expandable material (20); wherein in an expanded state the expandable material (20) reinforces the vehicle body (100); the carrier (10) further comprises a positioning portion (30) being free of the expandable material (20); wherein the positioning portion (30) is designed to engage with a robot, in particular a robot arm; the carrier further comprises a pushing portion (40) being free of the expandable material (20); wherein the pushing portion (40) is designed to be pushed by the robot to release the reinforcer (1) from the robot.

2. Reinforcer (1) according to claim 1, wherein the pushing portion (40) is designed to withstand a pushing force of at least 5 N, in particular at least 7 N, in particular 10N, in particular 15N, in particular 20 N.

3. Reinforcer (1) according to any one of the proceeding claims, wherein the pushing portion (40) is designed to take in the pushing force on a pushing area of at least 0,75 square centimeter, in particular at least 1 square centimeter, in particular at least 2 square centimeters, in particular at least 3 square centimeter.

4. Reinforcer (1) according to any one of the proceeding claims, wherein at the position on the carrier opposite to the pushing portion (40) the carrier comprises at least on rib.

5. Reinforcer (1) according to any one of the proceeding claims, wherein the positioning portion is designed as at least one of:cylinder, in particular circular cylinder or ellipsoid cylinder, in particular a right cylinder or an oblique cylinder, in particular a hollow cylinder; prism with a polyhedron base, in particular a right prism or an oblique prism, in particular a truncated prism, in particular a hollow prism;- truncated cone; with a slotted cross-section; flat surface in particular for suction and / or vacuum engagement with the robot.

6. Reinforcer (1) according to any one of the proceeding claims, wherein the positioning portion comprises one closed end face.

7. Reinforcer (1) according to any one of the proceeding claims, wherein the surface of the positioning porting is a rough and / or wherein the position portion comprises a knurling and / or wherein the positioning portion comprises a first engagement element designed to engage with a second engagement element at the robot.

8. Reinforcer (1) according to any one of the proceeding claims, wherein the carrier (10) comprises a spacer (11) designed to space the reinforcer (1) apart from the vehicle body (100) in a positioned state.

9. Reinforcer (1) according to any one of the proceeding claims, wherein the reinforcer comprises a fixation portion (50) to fix the reinforcer to the vehicle body, in particular the reinforcer comprises a welding portion (51) to be welded to the vehicle body (100), in particular wherein the welding portion is designed as a welding coin and / or in particular wherein the welding portion is an over-molden piece of welding material.

10. Reinforcer (1) according to any one of the proceeding claims, wherein the reinforcer comprises at least two positioning portions, the positioning portions being arranged on the carrier in such a way that the reinforcer can be picked up at the positioning portions in a balanced manner.

11. Reinforcer (1) according to any one of the proceeding claims, wherein the reinforcer comprises two positioning portions, wherein the first positioning portion is arranged in the first third of the reinforcer and the second positioning portion is arranged in the final third of the reinforcer.

12. Reinforcer (1) according to any one of the proceeding claims, wherein the reinforcer comprises at least one reference portion to identify at least one of a reinforcer and the position of the reinforcer.

13. Method for reinforcing a vehicle body (100) the method comprises the steps of: providing a reinforcer according to any one of the previous claims; providing a robot designed to engage with the reinforcer at the positioning portion of the carrier; engaging of robot with the reinforcer at the positioning portion; positioning the reinforcer in the vehicle body, in particular in the cavity of the vehicle body, by the robot; fixing the reinforcer in the vehicle body, in particular in the cavity of the vehicle body; pushing against the pushing position of the reinforcer to release robot from the reinforcer.

14. Method according to claim 13, wherein the reinforcer is fixed in the vehicle body (100) by welding the reinforcer to the vehicle body (100).

15. Method according to one of claims 13-14, wherein the reinforcer is fixed, in particularly welded, to the vehicle body before the robot release the reinforcer.

16. Method according to one of claims 13-15, wherein the robot pushes against the pushing portion, in particular with a clamp, to be released from the reinforcer.

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