Metal working – Method of mechanical manufacture – Assembling or joining
Reexamination Certificate
2002-05-16
2004-03-30
Vidovich, Gregory (Department: 3726)
Metal working
Method of mechanical manufacture
Assembling or joining
C029S464000, C029S468000, C029S03300H, C029S281500, C033S600000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06711800
ABSTRACT:
FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
Not applicable.
REFERENCE TO A MICROFICHE APPENDIX
Not applicable.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a method and apparatus for attaching a vehicle door to a vehicle frame or body-in-white. More specifically, this invention teaches a method and apparatus for attaching an automotive vehicle door whereby the door is attached at a net or best fit position such that the door is correctly centered and aligned with respect to the door opening in the vehicle frame, and associated feature lines align with adjacent panels upon attachment thereto without the need for a slip plane adjustment of the door on the vehicle frame.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, assembly of motor vehicle doors to a door opening has involved implementation of slip planes to facilitate assembly of the door to the vehicle. The door typically includes an outer panel joined to an inner panel by hem flanging the edge of the outer panel over the edge of the inner panel. The inner panel includes a front hinge mounting surface with upper and lower hinges mounted thereto and a rear latch mounting surface with a latch mounted thereto. The door opening is defined by a front hinge pillar, a rear latch pillar, a top roof rail and a bottom sill.
It is well known in the art to include slip planes in the door hinges or the hinge pillar. The slip planes permit fore/aft and up/down adjustment of the hinge as necessary to permit the door to be fitted within the body opening. The slip planes are typically slotted holes that are elongated in the direction of adjustment. For example, hinge pillar attachment holes in the hinge that are size specific up/down and elongated fore/aft locate the door in a fixed up/down position and permit adjustment of the door fore/aft relative to the fender and rear quarter panel.
Attachment bolts loosely attach the hinge to the hinge pillar such that the door is adjustable within the limits of the slotted attachment holes. While the door is loosely attached, an operator adjusts the hem edge of the door panel to a predetermined feature (typically the fender) using setting fixtures, a gap tool, and/or subjective trial and error inspection. After establishing a subjective proper position of the door, the operator tightens the attachment bolts thereby attaching the door hinges to the hinge pillar in the adjusted position.
The conventional method for adjusting the door within the door opening described above is both inefficient and subjective. The adjustment of the door typically requires an additional operator dedicated solely to aligning the door to the door opening, and the process of adjusting the door delays the assembly line. Additionally, conventional door alignment is subjective in that the process relies in part on the operator's judgment and inspection. Finally, the process of tightening the bolts attaching the door hinges to the hinge pillar applies torque to the hinges that can cause movement of the hinges and thereby create an improperly adjusted door.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,317,925 to Pietryga, et al. teaches an alternative to conventional elongated slot slip planes described above. More specifically, Pietryga, et al. teach a hinge trim system used to cover a hinge whereby portions of the hinge trim system form slip planes. The slip planes permit fore/aft and up/down adjustment of the hinge as necessary to permit the door to be fitted within the body opening. Cross-car adjustments can be accomplished by pivoting the hinge to the desired orientation.
The invention disclosed by Pietryga, et al. teaches a method for covering a non-styled exposed hinge, and further teaches a method for adjusting a door within a body opening based on an improved slip plane configuration. However, Pietryga, et al. still suffers from all of the problems associated with slip plane adjustment based on elongated slots discussed above.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,375,716 to Armstrong, et al. teaches a method by which a vehicle door may be precisely hinged to the vehicle body with the adjacent appearance features of the closure and the body precisely aligned and spaced relative to one another.
Armstrong, et al. provides a fixture that establishes positioning of hinge attachment holes in a body side panel relative to the door openings. The fixture includes locating pads that engage predetermined locations on the door openings to position the body side panel in up/down and fore/aft directions. Locating pins in the fixture represent optimal up/down and fore/aft position for the hinge attachment holes relative to the locating pads. Anchor plates having hinge attachment holes therein are loaded onto locating pins in the fixture and welded to the body side panel. In the manner described, Armstrong et al. position the hinge attachment holes in the anchor plates up/down and fore/aft relative to the door openings. After the location of the hinge attachment holes are set, the body side panel is toy tabbed and welded to the other components forming the frame in a framing fixture.
The cross-car position of the hinges are set in an offline door fixture relative to appearance features of the door. The up/down and fore/aft position of a frame attachment hole in the hinge is established in an offline piercing fixture. A door with hinges attached thereto is placed into the piercing fixture. Locating blocks in the piercing fixture engage a surface of the door outer panel and the leading edge of the door to establish fore/aft position. An additional locating block sets the door up/down position relative to top and bottom edges of the door. Clamping and locating fixtures hold the door hinge at a position simulating the closed position of the door. A piercing tool punches a size specific hole in the door hinge in a position relative to the door surfaces located by the fixture locating blocks.
The door is simultaneously attached and adjusted to the door opening by inserting a bolt through the size specific hole in the door hinge and the size specific hole in the anchor plate. As the position of the size specific hole in the anchor plate is adjusted up/down and fore/aft relative to the door opening, a door attached to the adjusted size specific hole in the anchor plate is automatically located up/down and fore/aft with respect to the door opening. Additionally, because the position of the size specific hole in the door hinge is adjusted up/down and fore/aft relative to the edges of the door, the door is automatically adjusted relative to adjacent body panels. Armstrong et al. teaches a method for attaching and adjusting a door within a door opening that does not rely on a slip plane or subjective operator inspection.
While Armstrong, et al. provides significant advantages over conventional slip plane based methods of attachment, it failed to account for the variation introduced when the frame is welded in the framing fixture and the variation introduced when the bolt attaching the door hinge to the anchor plate is tightened. Although the anchor plate is initially located relative to the door openings, the heat generated by the numerous welding operations (as many as 3,000) in the framing fixture deforms the body side panel in an unpredictable manner such that the hinge attachment holes in the anchor plate do not necessarily remain in the same relative position. Additionally, the process of tightening the bolts attaching the door hinges to the hinge pillar applies torque to the fastening bolts. As the fastening bolts frictionally engage the hinge plates, the torque applied to the fastening bolts can cause rotation of the hinge plates and thereby take a properly adjusted door out of alignment. Also, the specific door as built by Armstrong et al. must be installed in a specific body side opening. The coordination of the doors with corresponding vehicle bodies is an absolute necessity and an improperly coordinated door that will not align properly with the body side opening leads to excessive offline repair costs after the body is complet
Omgba Essama
Utica Enterprises Inc.
VanOphem & VanOphem P.C.
Vidovich Gregory
LandOfFree
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