The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jan. 17, 2006
Filed:
Jun. 25, 2004
David W. Heatherington, Spring Lake, MI (US);
Scott C. Glasgow, Spring Lake, MI (US);
Bruce W. Lyons, Grand Haven, MI (US);
David W. Heatherington, Spring Lake, MI (US);
Scott C. Glasgow, Spring Lake, MI (US);
Bruce W. Lyons, Grand Haven, MI (US);
Shape Corporation, Grand Haven, MI (US);
Abstract
A bumper beam includes an open front section made from a high-strength material such as ultra-high-strength steel (UHSS) material, and further includes a mating back section made of lower strength material attached to a rear side of the front section along abutting flanges. The front and back sections combine to define different tubular cross sections along their length, thus providing selected stiffness and strength at critical areas of the bumper beam. The front section can be roll-formed, and the back section can be stamped, thus taking advantage of roll-forming processes' ability to form high-strength materials, while allowing the back section to have a more complicated shape and be stamped. For example, the back section can be made from a material selected from a group consisting of HSLA steel, aluminum, and/or polymeric material. The back section is attached to the beam using welding or mechanical attachment.