Vehicle Interior Material Structure to Prevent Heat-Molding Wrinkles
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Solution Overview
Problem
Vehicle interior materials face the challenge of generating wrinkles on the design surface when heat-molded into uneven shapes, compromising aesthetics while maintaining high rigidity and low weight.
Innovation Solution
A multilayer structure comprising a core layer with tubular cells arranged in rows, a first film layer with specific strain properties, and a second film layer with controlled tensile-compressive rigidity, ensuring the strain on the design layer side is less than that on the opposite side, thereby reducing surface contraction and preventing wrinkles.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If natural leather or natural fabric is used for vehicle interior materials, then luxurious feel and high-end quality are achieved, but production time increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses polyurethane foam as a base material and applies a leather-grain patterned film or fabric coating on its surface. This composite structure combines the manufacturing efficiency of synthetic foam with the aesthetic and tactile properties of natural leather, achieving high-end quality without the prolonged production time of natural materials.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention applies leather-grain patterns only on the surface layer of the interior material while maintaining a synthetic foam core. This local application of leather-like characteristics provides the luxurious feel where needed (surface contact areas) while the bulk material retains the production advantages of synthetic materials.
2Reliability
If real leather or fabric is used, then luxurious appearance and texture are achieved, but material cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines inexpensive polyurethane foam with a relatively low-cost leather-grain patterned film or fabric. This composite approach achieves the luxurious appearance and texture of real leather at a fraction of the material cost, as the expensive natural material is replaced by cost-effective synthetic alternatives with surface treatments.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses leather-grain patterns (visual copies) and textured coatings (tactile copies) to replicate the appearance and feel of real leather without using actual leather. This copying approach maintains the luxurious aesthetic and sensory properties while dramatically reducing material costs.
3Reliability
If extensive surface treatment is applied to synthetic materials to mimic natural materials, then luxurious feel is achieved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a pre-manufactured leather-grain patterned film or fabric as a surface layer that can be applied to the foam core through relatively simple lamination or bonding processes. This composite structure achieves luxurious surface properties without requiring complex in-situ surface treatment equipment or multi-step manufacturing procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The leather-grain pattern and surface texture are pre-applied to the film or fabric during its manufacturing process before being attached to the foam core. This preliminary action transfers the complex surface treatment to the material production stage rather than the final assembly stage, simplifying the overall manufacturing process for the interior panel.
Data Source
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Figure 5~6B
AI summary
A vehicle interior material is capable of preventing wrinkles from being generated on a design surface even when the material is heat-molded into a predetermined uneven shape while maintaining a low weight and high rigidity. The vehicle interior material of the present invention has a multilayer structure, the material including: a hard core layer having a hollow portion inside; a design layer provided on one surface side of the core layer; a first film layer provided between the core layer and the design layer; and a second film layer provided on a surface of the core layer on a side opposite to the first film layer, wherein a strain εa is smaller than a strain εb, the strain εa being a strain on a surface 31 of a structure 60 on a side of the first film layer, the structure 60 having the first film layer, the core layer, and the second film layer, and the strain εb being a strain on a surface 42 of the structure on a side of the second film layer.