Decoma International Corporation

Fritz Reichenberger

Lassi Mauno Ojanen

Stefan Lips

The present invention is an article carrier assembly for mounting on an exterior surface of a motor vehicle The article carrier includes a pair of elongated side rails constructed and arranged to be mounted on an exterior surface of the motor vehicle. The side rails extend generally parallel to one another in a spaced apart relation. An elongated cross rail assembly is constructed and arranged to be mounted transversely between and releaseably lockable along the side rails in a range of operating positions. The cross rail assembly has rail locking structures mounted on opposite ends thereof. A rotatable rod gangs the rail locking structures together for cooperative movement thereof between locked positions wherein the rail locking structures engage the side rails to lock the cross rail assembly in one of the operating positions and disengage positions permitting longitudinal travel of the cross rail assembly along the side rails. An actuator is operatively connected to the rotatable rod for effecting the cooperative movement. The cross rail assembly is constructed and arranged such that an operator standing on one side of the vehicle can manipulate the actuator and move the cross rail assembly between the operating positions.

Article carrier assembly having a cross rail assembly with a turnable

Thin walled B-pillar covers for an automotive vehicle comprise a thin sheet of thermoplastic material of generally uniform thickness vacuum molded about a continuous body molding surface of a molding horn to provide a main body portion having a U-shaped marginal edge along one elongated peripheral extent thereof of a shape to snugly receive therein the sheet metal marginal edge of a vehicle part and an inturned flange along an opposed elongated peripheral extent thereof of a shape to be presented to the inturned surface of the vehicle part. By vacuum molding the thin theremoplastic material about a body molding surface of a molding horn, a cover having a substantially dimple-free, smooth class A exterir surface.

B-pillar covers for automotive vehicle

A method of making thin walled covers employing a vacuum mold assembly comprises the steps of effecting a relative movement between a thin sheet of thermoplastic material and the vacuum mold assembly sufficient to form a peripheral seal with a surface area of the sheet and thereafter applying a vacuum to the vacuum mold to draw portions of the sheet about main body forming molding surfaces of molding horns, thin marginal edge molding surfaces of the molding horns, and inturned flange molding surfaces of the molding horns so as to form a plurality of thin walled covers, each with an exterior surface presenting a substantially dimple-free class A surface. The sheet is then separated from the vacuum mold assembly. During separation, the molding horns move so that the surface configuration providing portions of the horns move relatively away from the molded surfaces in an angular direction having a component in a direction to withdraw the thin marginal edge molding surfaces of the molding horns relatively out of the U-shaped marginal edges of the formed thin walled covers. The covers are subsequently cut from the sheet. Each thin wall cover comprises a main body portion having a U-shaped marginal edge along one elongated peripheral extent thereof and an inturned flange along an opposed elongated peripheral extent thereof.

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Aurora, Canada

Fritz Reichenberger