U.S. patent application number 11/325866 was filed with the patent office on 2006-07-06 for plastic panel.
Invention is credited to Hyung-Jun Ahn, Hee-Deog Kim, In-Se Yoon.
Application Number | 20060144014 11/325866 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 36638782 |
Filed Date | 2006-07-06 |
United States Patent
Application |
20060144014 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Yoon; In-Se ; et
al. |
July 6, 2006 |
Plastic panel
Abstract
The present invention relates to a plastic panel, and more
particularly, to a plastic panel which comprises inner and outer
panels wherein a bonding groove to be coated with an adhesive is
formed on any one of the inner and outer panels. According to a
preferred embodiment of the present invention, the bonding groove
is formed on any one of the inner and outer panels, while a
protrusion is formed on a bonding surface of the other of the inner
and outer panels. Accordingly, since the bonding groove is bonded
to the bonding surface of the inner or outer panel, the bonding
groove can serve as a guide when the adhesive is applied. Thus, the
adhesive can be applied at a uniform thickness to correct positions
even though it is manually applied, and even an adhesive with
certain fluidity can be prevented from leaking to the outside.
Therefore, there are advantages in that the post-processing work
for enhancing the external appearance is not required, the
manufacturing time and costs can be reduced, and the bonding force
can be increased due to the increased bonding area.
Inventors: |
Yoon; In-Se; (Daegu-si,
KR) ; Ahn; Hyung-Jun; (Daejeon-si, KR) ; Kim;
Hee-Deog; (Seoul, KR) |
Correspondence
Address: |
CANTOR COLBURN, LLP
55 GRIFFIN ROAD SOUTH
BLOOMFIELD
CT
06002
US
|
Family ID: |
36638782 |
Appl. No.: |
11/325866 |
Filed: |
January 5, 2006 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
52/784.1 ;
52/786.12 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B29C 65/7814 20130101;
B29C 66/30321 20130101; B29C 66/128 20130101; B29L 2031/3055
20130101; B62D 27/026 20130101; B29C 66/12821 20130101; B29C 65/48
20130101; B29L 2024/00 20130101; B29C 66/1284 20130101; B29C 66/114
20130101; B29C 66/1122 20130101; E04C 2/20 20130101; B29L 2031/724
20130101; B29C 65/7829 20130101; B29C 66/1286 20130101; B29C 66/112
20130101; B62D 29/04 20130101; B29C 66/322 20130101; B29C 66/54
20130101; B29C 66/71 20130101; B29C 66/12822 20130101; B29C 65/7814
20130101; B29C 65/00 20130101; B29C 66/128 20130101; B29C 65/00
20130101; B29C 66/30321 20130101; B29C 65/00 20130101; B29C 66/71
20130101; B29K 2067/003 20130101; B29C 66/71 20130101; B29K 2069/00
20130101; B29C 66/71 20130101; B29K 2077/00 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
052/784.1 ;
052/786.12 |
International
Class: |
E04C 2/54 20060101
E04C002/54 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Jan 6, 2005 |
KR |
10-2005-0001096 |
Nov 14, 2005 |
KR |
10-2005-0108550 |
Claims
1. A plastic panel, comprising: an inner panel formed with any one
of a bonding groove to be coated with an adhesive and a bonding
surface corresponding to the bonding groove; and an outer panel
formed with the other of the bonding groove and bonding
surface.
2. The plastic panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bonding
groove is formed on the inner panel.
3. The plastic panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein an additional
space extends from the bonding groove.
4. The plastic panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bonding
surface is shaped as a protrusion corresponding to a shape of the
bonding groove.
5. The plastic panel as claimed in claims 1, wherein the bonding
groove or bonding surface is formed with a stopper.
6. The plastic panel as claimed in claim 5, wherein the stopper has
a height (thickness) which is equal to or smaller than a gap
between the bonding surface and a floor surface of the bonding
groove.
7. The plastic panel as claimed in claim 6, wherein the stopper is
formed integrally with the inner or outer panel.
8. The plastic panel as claimed in claim 7, wherein the plastic
panel is used for a vehicle door.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention relates to a plastic panel, and more
particularly, to a plastic panel which comprises inner and outer
panels wherein a bonding groove to be coated with an adhesive is
formed on any one of the inner and outer panels.
BACKGROUND ART
[0002] In general, a panel is made of a single plate. However, in
the case of a vehicle door in which it is necessary to contain some
articles, two panels, i.e. an inner panel and an outer panel, are
bonded to each other in order to contain the necessary articles
between the inner and outer panels. In particular, a bonded panel
composed of inner and outer panels is typically used as a tail gate
of a vehicle. Members for opening/closing and locking a door,
members for operating a wiper and a variety of reinforcing members
for installing the wiper and aforementioned members are provided in
the vehicle tail gate. For example, a hinge used for
opening/closing the door and a hinge reinforcement thereof are
provided at an upper end of the tail gate; a space for installing a
wiper motor of a wiper system and a wiper motor bracket thereof are
provided at the center of a lower portion of the vehicle tail gate;
and a latch bracket used for mounting a latch for opening/closing
the tail gate is also provided at the center of a lower end of the
tail gate. Accordingly, bonding surfaces are generally formed along
an edge of the inner and outer panels between which a space is thus
formed.
[0003] The inner and outer panels of the vehicle tail gate are
generally manufactured from a steel sheet. In such a case, however,
the two steel sheets should be joined and assembled through a spot
welding method, and thus, a thickness of the steel sheet should be
increased up to a certain thickness. Therefore, this leads to the
increase of overall weight and production costs of the tail gate.
Accordingly, the steel sheet for use in the tail gate has been
recently replaced with a plastic sheet.
[0004] In the case of the plastic panel, such as the vehicle tail
gate, manufactured by coupling two inner and outer panels with each
other, the inner and outer panels are bonded and assembled with
each other using the conventional adhesive. Since the bonding
surface of the currently available inner and outer panels is planar
(See FIG. 2), there is a problem in that the used adhesive leaks
out of the bonded panels. In particular, since the adhesive is
applied onto the planar bonding surface, the adhesive, if it has
certain fluidity, inevitably leaks out from the panels after
applied on the bonding surface. This problem can occur when the
adhesive is manually applied and also even when an accurate amount
of adhesive is applied by using adhesive coating equipment.
[0005] Accordingly, the adhesive is excessively spent more than is
necessary and an additional process for removing the adhesive
leaked between the inner and outer panels is required.
Consequently, there are some problems that it takes a long time to
manufacture the panel and a manufacturing cost is increased.
DISCLOSURE
[Technical Problem]
[0006] The present invention is conceived to solve the
aforementioned problems of the conventional plastic panel. An
object of the present invention is to provide a plastic panel in
which a bonding groove to be coated with an adhesive is formed on
an inner or outer panel to prevent the adhesive from leaking to the
outside.
[0007] Another object of the present invention is to provide a
plastic panel in which an adhesive can be applied at a uniform
thickness to correct positions by using a bonding groove formed on
the inner or outer panel serving as a guide even when the adhesive
is manually applied.
[0008] A further object of the present invention is to provide a
plastic panel wherein even when an adhesive with certain fluidity
is used, the adhesive does not leak out between the inner and outer
panels, whereby post-processing work for enhancing the external
appearance is not required, manufacturing time and costs can be
reduced, and a bonding force can be increased due to an increased
bonding area.
[Technical Solution]
[0009] According to an aspect of the present invention for
achieving the above objects, there is provided a plastic panel,
comprising inner and outer panels wherein a bonding groove is
formed on any one of the inner and outer panels.
[0010] Preferably, the bonding groove formed on the inner or outer
panel of the plastic panel is formed on the inner panel to maintain
strength of the outer panel.
[0011] More preferably, a bonding groove is formed on any one of
the inner and outer panels, while a bonding surface is shaped as a
protrusion corresponding to a shape of the bonding groove.
[0012] The bonding groove or bonding surface may be formed with a
stopper.
[Advantageous Effects]
[0013] The plastic panel of the present invention has the following
advantages:
[0014] Since the bonding groove is bonded to the bonding surface of
the inner or outer panel, it is possible to prevent the applied
adhesive from leaking to the outside. Further, since the bonding
groove formed on the inner or outer panel serves as a guide when
the adhesive is applied, the adhesive can be applied at a uniform
thickness to correct positions even though it is manually applied.
Furthermore, since a stopper and additional space are provided on
the bonding groove or bonding surface, even an adhesive with
certain fluidity cannot leak out between the inner and outer
panels. Therefore, the post-processing work for enhancing the
external appearance is not required, the manufacturing time and
costs can be reduced, and the bonding force can be increased due to
the increased bonding area.
DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0015] FIG. 1 is a partial perspective view showing a state where a
tail gate is mounted to a vehicle.
[0016] FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a related art plastic
panel.
[0017] FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a bonded structure of a
plastic panel according to an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0018] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the plastic panel according
to the embodiment of the present invention in which stoppers are
employed.
[0019] FIGS. 5 to 7 are sectional views illustrating a process of
assembling the plastic panel according to the embodiment of the
present invention.
EXPLANATION OF REFERENCE NUMERALS FOR DESIGNATING MAIN COMPONENTS
IN THE DRAWINGS
[0020] TABLE-US-00001 1: Tail gate 2: Inner panel 3: Outer panel 4:
Adhesive 5: Stopper 6: Additional space 7: Bonding Groove 8:
Protrusion
[Best Mode]
[0021] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in
detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0022] FIG. 1 is a partial perspective view showing a state where a
tail gate is mounted to a vehicle, FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a
related art plastic panel, FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a
bonded structure of a plastic panel according to an embodiment of
the present invention, FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state
where stoppers are of the plastic panel according to the embodiment
of the present invention in which stoppers are employed, and FIGS.
5 to 7 are sectional views illustrating a process of assembling the
plastic panel according to the embodiment of the present
invention.
[0023] Inner and outer panels 2 and 3 constituting the plastic
panel of the present invention can be manufactured from sheet
molding compounds (SMC), glass mat thermoplastics (GMT),
polyethylene terephthalate (PET), PA, PC and the like as a raw
material by means of the general compression molding method or
injection molding method. The inner and outer panels 2 may be the
same as or different from each other in view of thickness.
[0024] In the plastic panel of the present invention, at least one
bonding groove 7 in which an adhesive is applied is formed on any
one of the inner and outer panels 2 and 3.
[0025] The other of the inner and outer panels 2 and 3, in which
the bonding groove is not formed, is formed with a bonding surface
at a position corresponding to the bonding groove 7 such that the
bonding surface can be bonded to the bonding groove using the
adhesive 4 applied to the bonding groove.
[0026] The bonding surface may be formed in the shape of a plane or
protrusion. Preferably, the bonding surface is shaped as a
protrusion. In a case where the bonding surface is shaped as a
protrusion, it is more preferred that the bonding surface be shaped
as a protrusion 8 corresponding to a shape of the bonding groove.
Even in such a case, it is preferred that a space with a certain
interval (gap) be formed between a bottom surface of the protrusion
and a floor surface of the bonding groove such that an adhesive can
be injected (applied) at a proper thickness in the gap of the
space.
[0027] Since the plastic panel obtained by mechanically coupling
the inner and outer panels 2 and 3 with each other using a bolt and
nut cannot be tightly sealed, the inner and outer panels are
generally assembled into the plastic panel by means of a chemical
bonding method using an adhesive. The plastic panel of the present
invention is manufactured in such a manner that the adhesive 4 is
applied to the bonding groove 7 formed along an edge of the inner
or outer panel 2 or 3 and the two panels are then coupled and
bonded to each other.
[0028] The inner and outer panels 2 and 3 of the plastic panel
according to the present invention have one or two or more bonding
grooves having various sectional shapes such that a bonding
strength higher than a certain level can be maintained after the
inner and outer panels have been bonded to each other. Once the
number and sectional shape of the bonding grooves 7 to be formed is
determined, a width and depth of the bonding groove can be
determined and formed such that the adhesive can be applied to the
bonding groove to a suitable bonding area and thickness enough to
keep bonding strength to the certain level or more. The bonding
area and thickness by which the bonding strength can be maintained
after two panels have been bonded may vary according to the kinds
of adhesive. However, once the adhesive is selected, at least one
bonding groove 7 with a width and depth suitable for the selected
adhesive can be formed. For example, if a bonding area and
thickness of the bonding groove suitable for the kind of selected
adhesive is determined, at least one bonding groove 7 and the
corresponding protrusion, if necessary, enough to ensure the
suitable width and thickness are manufactured. Then, a volume of an
adhesive to be applied is calculated and the adhesive as much as
the calculated volume is applied to the bonding groove. Therefore,
the two panels can be coupled and bonded to each other. At this
time, the amount of the adhesive applied is set slightly smaller
than the volume of the bonding groove 7 formed between the inner
and outer panels, and thus, it is possible to prevent the applied
adhesive from leaking out between the bonded panels.
[0029] In the present invention, an additional space or spaces 6
are further formed at one or both sides of the bonding groove by
extending the bonding groove 7 toward the one or both sides.
Therefore, even though the adhesive is injected in the bonding
groove more than the volume of the bonding groove, it is possible
to prevent the applied adhesive from leaking out between the bonded
panels. In a case where the additional spaces are formed at both
sides of the bonding groove, their widths can be different from
each other. Further, the additional space 6 can be formed to have
the same depth (See FIGS. 3 to 7). However, the depth of the
additional space can be gradually decreased away form the bonding
groove such that the bonding area per an amount of adhesive applied
can be increased.
[0030] On the other hand, a stopper can be configured (formed) on
the bonding groove or the bonding surface corresponding to the
bonding groove to prevent an incomplete bonding state from
occurring at the bonded region or prevent the thickness of the
applied adhesive from being decreased when the inner and outer
panels are pressed and then bonded to each other.
[0031] In the present invention, it is most desirable that a
thickness (height) of the stopper be equal to the gap between the
floor surface of the bonding groove and the bonding surface.
However, the height may be slightly less than the gap. Further, a
width enough to withstand a bonding pressure applied when the inner
and outer panels are bonded and coupled to each other is sufficient
for the stopper. Accordingly, it is preferred that the width of the
stopper be formed as narrow as possible.
[0032] The stoppers 5 can be formed on the bonding groove or
bonding surface at regular intervals (See FIG. 4). Alternatively,
the stopper 5 can be formed to continuously extend along the
bonding groove or bonding surface (not shown).
[0033] Further, the stopper 5 can be separately manufactured and
then placed on the bonding surface or bottom surface of the bonding
groove 7. Alternatively, the stopper can be formed integrally with
the panel.
[0034] Since the stopper 5 is formed, the bonding groove and
bonding surface cannot be further pressed. Thus, the two panels can
be bonded to each other with a predetermined pressure. Due to the
aforementioned structure of the present invention, therefore, an
amount of adhesive used more than necessary can be minimized, and
the conventional problem in that the fluid adhesive leaks out
between the inner and outer panels and contaminates the exterior of
the plastic panel can also be solved. Furthermore, a bonding force
can be maximized.
INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY
[0035] The plastic panel of the present invention can be usefully
applied to a vehicle door, in particular, a panel for a tail
gate.
[0036] The present invention has the following advantages. That is,
since the bonding groove is bonded to the bonding surface of the
inner or outer panel, it is possible to prevent the applied
adhesive from leaking to the outside. Further, since the bonding
groove formed on the inner or outer panel serves as a guide when
the adhesive is applied, the adhesive can be applied at a uniform
thickness to correct positions even though it is manually applied.
Furthermore, since a stopper and additional space are provided on
the bonding groove or bonding surface, even an adhesive with
certain fluidity cannot leak out between the inner and outer
panels. Therefore, the post-processing work for enhancing the
external appearance is not required, the manufacturing time and
costs can be reduced, and the bonding force can be increased due to
the increased bonding area.
* * * * *