Flexible Carrier Adhesive Assemblies for Vehicle Cavity Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
The transportation industry faces challenges in customizing and modifying molded parts for sealing, baffling, and reinforcement in vehicles, as changes in shape or size require significant efforts and increased costs due to the need for new molds.
Innovation Solution
A flexible carrier with parallel strips of thermally activatable materials on opposing surfaces, allowing for elastic deformation and expansion to conform to various cavity shapes, reducing the need for new molds and enabling easy customization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If molded parts are used for reinforcing and sealing cavities, then structural integrity is provided, but any modification to shape or size requires significant efforts and added costs for new mold design
Solution Approach 1:
The device divides the sealing/ reinforcement structure into a flexible carrier with multiple parallel strips of activatable material, allowing the strips to be independently positioned and activated to conform to different cavity shapes and sizes without requiring custom molds for each configuration
Solution Approach 2:
The activatable material changes its physical state from a non-expanded to an expanded state upon activation, enabling the same carrier structure to adapt to different cavity dimensions and shapes by controlling the activation parameters rather than changing the mold
2Strength
If molded parts are used for reinforcing and sealing cavities, then structural integrity is provided, but weight is increased
Solution Approach 1:
The device uses a flexible carrier that can be formed into thin-film structures, significantly reducing the weight compared to traditional molded parts while maintaining the ability to provide structural reinforcement and sealing when the activatable material is activated
Solution Approach 2:
The device combines a flexible carrier material with activatable material to create a composite structure that provides both the lightweight flexibility of the carrier and the structural integrity of the activated material, achieving weight reduction without sacrificing strength
3Adaptability or versatility
If the carrier is made flexible to enable easy customization, then adaptability to different cavity shapes is improved, but manufacturing precision may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The parallel strips of activatable material are pre-positioned on the flexible carrier at predetermined intervals before the carrier is deployed, ensuring accurate spacing and positioning when the carrier is activated and conforms to the cavity shape
Solution Approach 2:
The activatable material is applied in discrete parallel strips rather than as a continuous layer, allowing precise control over where expansion occurs and enabling accurate reproduction of cavity features while maintaining overall flexibility
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution provides a lightweight, easily customizable baffling, reinforcement, and sealing system that can be adapted to different vehicle locations without the need for new molds, reducing production costs and weight while maintaining structural integrity.
Implementation Method 1
The volumetric expansion of the activatable material is at least about 100% and less than about 300%
Implementation Method 2
The flexible carrier having the strips therein is capable of elastic deformation about an at least one axis within each of the hinge portions
Data Source
AI summary
A device and method for reinforcing, baffling or sealing a vehicle structure, comprising the steps of providing a flexible carrier and plurality of parallel strips located on opposing surfaces of the carrier.