Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.

Peter C J Piper

Jonathan Richard Young

Kuo Sun

Alex B Taylor

A vehicle includes a rocker support that extends in a vehicle longitudinal direction. A side roof rail structure extends in a vehicle longitudinal direction along a vehicle roof assembly. A front pillar assembly is coupled to and extends upward from the rocker support to the side roof rail structure. The front pillar assembly includes a first panel that extends along a height of the front pillar assembly at a front side of the front pillar assembly. A second panel extends along the height of the front pillar assembly that is connected to the first panel at least partially defining an enclosed cavity that extends along the height of the front pillar assembly. The first panel is formed of a material having a lower minimum tensile strength than a material forming the second panel thereby forming a zone of reduced minimum tensile strength along the front side of the front pillar assembly.

Pillar assemblies for vehicles having sections formed of materials having different material properties

A vehicle may include a pair of roof side rails that extend in a vehicle longitudinal direction, a front header that includes opposite outboard ends that span between the pair of roof side rails, and a front header extension coupled to and extending from one of the outboard ends of the front header. The front header extension may include a center emboss structure that extends outwardly from a base at a pair of center emboss ridgelines and the center emboss structure may be connected to one of the pair of roof side rails.

Growing community of inventors

Saline, MI, United States of America

Peter C J Piper