Ford Global Technolgoies, LLC

Ken Garbinski

Dragan B Stojkovic

Christopher John May

GaRam Jun

Chienhom Lee

Neal David Lipman

Paul Lee Luskin

Bret Kirchner

Ken Maltby

A vehicle body includes a rocker panel elongated along an axis. The vehicle body includes a pillar fixed to the rocker panel and elongated in a direction transverse to the axis. The rocker panel includes a first flange and a second flange. The first flange and the second flange are on opposite sides of the pillar and spaced from each other in a direction parallel to the axis. The vehicle body includes a reinforcement fixed to the first and second flanges.

Vehicle body including reinforcement on rocker panel

An automotive body structure member is formed through a hydroforming manufacturing process that incorporates an angularly oriented mounting face for the attachment of a pre-assembled modular component. The mounting face can be formed to recess into the surrounding structure of the structure member or to project outwardly therefrom. The mounting face is oriented obliquely to both the horizontal and vertical faces of the structure member to permit the insertion of fasteners into the mounting face at an angle that facilitates the mounting of the pre-assembled component. The assembly of the component to the structure member can be accomplished by a tool without interference with the component.

Hydroformed attachment face for modular component

Growing community of inventors

Saline, MI, United States of America

Ken Garbinski