Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.

Vikram Chopra

Chae An

Benjamin Warren Penner

An apparatus for sealing a panel opening includes a plug body including an interior portion and an exterior portion. The exterior portion of the plug body includes a pair of opposed sealing surfaces forming an annular ring. The apparatus also includes a locking blade extending from the interior portion of the plug body across the exterior portion of the plug body. The locking blade is configured to rest in a first position disposed within the annular ring and a second position extending beyond the annular ring.

Locking plug for panel opening

An instrument panel assembly for a motor vehicle includes a panel member, a first conduit, a second conduit and a gasket disposed between the first and second conduit. The panel member has a vent for directing air toward a window in the vehicle. The first conduit has a first end that provides air to the vent and a second end with a peripheral wall forming an inlet. The second conduit has an outlet that provides air to the inlet and a flange that extends outwardly from the outlet and includes a support surface that supports a gasket for sealing an interface between the outlet and the inlet. The second conduit has a lip that extends outwardly from the support surface of the flange and supports the gasket to prevent deformation of the gasket during assembly of the first conduit and second conduit.

Motor vehicle instrument panel assembly having a conduit with a gasket support lip

An instrument panel assembly for a motor vehicle includes a first component, a second component and a frame. The first component has a first aperture. The second component has a second aperture. The frame has a main wall. The frame includes a generally cylindrical boss extending outwardly from the main wall. The boss has an outer surface. The boss has a bore aligned with the first aperture of the first component to receive a fastener therethrough to secure the first component to the frame. The boss extends through the second aperture of the second component such that the outer surface locates the second component relative to the frame along a plane generally orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the boss. The second component is disposed between the first component and the frame so as to be constrained along the longitudinal axis of the boss.

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Canton, MI, United States of America

Vikram Chopra