Ford Global Technolgoies, LLC

Gururaj Aralikatti

Marwan Ahmad Elbkaily

Tushar Kamble

Greg Gombert

George David Aucott

Robert A Chanko

Juyoung Lee

Benjamin Mansfield

Shane Scherbarth

An instrument panel assembly for a vehicle includes an instrument panel body including a driver-side portion, a center stack portion, and a passenger-side portion. A cross-car beam assembly is configured to at least partially support the instrument panel body and includes a horizontal member extending across at least the passenger-side portion of the instrument panel body. A first lower reinforcement bracket is spaced apart from the horizontal member and extends across the passenger-side portion of the instrument panel body. A second lower reinforcement bracket is coupled with the first lower reinforcement bracket. A vertical reinforcement bracket extends between the horizontal member and the first and second lower reinforcement brackets. The vertical reinforcement bracket includes a curved portion proximate a first end and coupled with the horizontal member. A second end of the vertical reinforcement bracket is coupled with at least one of the first and second lower reinforcement brackets.

Vehicle instrument panel assembly

A vehicle trim panel assembly includes a pillar trim panel, a grab handle extending from the pillar trim panel defining a corner between the pillar trim panel and the grab handle, and a ramp at the corner. The ramp is fixed relative to the pillar trim panel and the grab handle at the corner. The ramp is deformable relative to the grab handle.

Vehicle trim panel assembly

A vehicle frame includes two frame rails fixed relative to each other and each having a tubular shape defining an exterior surface and an interior surface, a crush-initiating notch on each exterior surface, and a reinforcement extending along each interior surface and positioned in a vehicle-rearward direction from the notches.

Vehicle frame

Growing community of inventors

Farmington, MI, United States of America

Gururaj Aralikatti