CN213471924U

CN213471924U - Mold for manufacturing formed shell of vehicle interior lining

Info

Publication number: CN213471924U
Application number: CN202020466194.5U
Authority: CN
Inventors: 伯恩哈德·鲍曼; 马克西姆·米西; 福尔克尔·多利
Original assignee: Faurecia Innenraum Systeme GmbH
Current assignee: Faurecia Innenraum Systeme GmbH
Priority date: 2019-04-03
Filing date: 2020-04-02
Publication date: 2021-06-18
Anticipated expiration: 2030-04-02
Also published as: DE102019204740A1

Abstract

The utility model relates to a mould for making the shaping shell of interior welt of vehicle. The proposed mould comprises a heatable forming shell (2) with a forming surface (3) and a screen (5) for uniformly applying a plastic material (8) applied to the upper side of the screen (5) onto the forming surface (3). The screen can be already arranged or to be arranged above the forming surface (3). In addition, the mould comprises movement means arranged for moving the screen (5) relative to the forming surface (3).

Description

Mold for manufacturing formed shell of vehicle interior lining

Technical Field

The present application relates to a mold for manufacturing a formed shell of a vehicle interior lining.

Background

Vehicle interior components such as instrument panel components having a shaped outer shell are known from the prior art. For example, a rotary die process or a slush molding process can be used to produce such a molded shell. In a typical slush molding process, powdered thermoplastics, such as PVC (polyvinyl chloride), TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer rubber) or TPE (thermoplastic rubber), are filled into a powder box. The powder box is docked with the heated crust (in the normal case a nickel crust made by the electroforming process) and the powder is distributed on the heated crust by means of rotation about an axis, for example, arranged in the boundary between the crust and the powder box. A portion of the thermoplastic powder is melted by the heat energy of the sheath and excess plastic powder is returned to the powder bin. The molten plastic powder then remains adhered to the forming surface, gels and then constitutes the forming shell. In a further step, the shaped shell may be backed with a foam material and placed on a plastic carrier. The undesirable local thickness differences of the shaped shell produced in the slush molding process are usually compensated for when the foam substrate is applied, so that the requirement for a uniform thickness of the shaped shell is not too high in this case. While another popular method for manufacturing vehicle interior lining parts, in particular door linings, provides for: the plastic film is glued, laminated or draped directly onto the carrier. In order to avoid that in this case the difference in thickness of the plastic film directly marks the visible side of the vehicle interior lining, the plastic film should have a uniform thickness.

For example, in order to maintain color or tactile coordination with surfaces in the car cabin, it is desirable to: the same surface material is used for e.g. foam-backed instrument panels and glued door liners. However, shaped shells produced by means of slush molding methods cannot generally be used easily in gluing processes because of the process-dependent uneven thickness distribution, since in this case undesirable unevennesses would leave marks on the surface.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

Against the background of the above-mentioned points, the object of the present application is: an improved mold for manufacturing a shaped shell of a vehicle interior lining is proposed. In particular, the proposed mold should enable a simpler and more economical production of shaped housings which meet the highest aesthetic requirements in terms of feel and appearance in the case of use at different locations in the car cabin and in different further processing. In addition, the object of the present application is: a correspondingly advantageous method for producing a shaped outer skin of a vehicle interior lining is proposed.

These objects are achieved by a mould for manufacturing a shaped shell for a vehicle interior lining, comprising a heatable shaped shell layer having a shaped surface, characterized in that: the mould has a sieve for uniformly applying the plastic powder material applied to the upper side of the sieve onto the forming surface, which sieve has been arranged or can be arranged above the forming surface, and the mould has movement means arranged for moving the sieve relative to the forming surface.

The proposed mould is suitable for manufacturing shaped shells for vehicle interior components. The mould comprises a heatable forming shell with a forming surface and a sieve for uniformly applying a plastic powder material applied on the upper side of the sieve onto the forming surface. The screen can be already arranged or to be arranged above the forming surface. In addition, the mould comprises movement means arranged to move the screen relative to the forming surface. In particular, the movement device may be arranged to move the screen relative to the forming surface during the application of the plastic powder material onto the forming surface.

The present application also relates to a method for manufacturing a shaped shell for a vehicle interior lining. In this process a mould as described above or below can be prepared. The plastic powder material can then be applied onto the upper side of the sieve. The sieve can also be moved by a movement device, wherein or as a result of which the plastic powder material passes through the sieve and is applied to the forming surface. In a further step, the shaped shell is constructed by melting the plastic material on the shaped surface. In this case, the plastic material or at least a part of the plastic material is usually melted by the thermal energy of the heatable shell. The plastic material thus often remains adhered to the forming surface. Furthermore, the plastic material can gel and thus form the shaped housing.

By means of the proposed mold and by means of the proposed method, a shaped housing can be produced with a very uniform thickness distribution and in particular a very smooth back side. For example, a formed housing having a thickness variation of less than 0.1mm can be manufactured. In particular, a molded case having a grain surface on the surface and having a thickness variation of 0.09mm or less can be produced. The thickness here refers to the distance between the grain apex on the front side of the shaped shell and the opposite rear side of the shaped shell. As a result, during the further processing of the produced shaped shell, undesired unevennesses of the shaped shell on the visible side of the door lining are not left in the gluing process for applying the shaped shell, for example, to a carrier of the door lining. For example, in a method for manufacturing a vehicle interior lining, a shaped shell may first be manufactured as described above or below. The shaped shell can then be glued to a carrier, in particular a vehicle door lining carrier. In this case, provision can be made for: the adhesive material is applied to the back side of the shaped shell and/or to the front side of the carrier. In this case, in some embodiments no foam layer is provided or at least no foam layer is provided between the shaping envelope and the carrier. In this case, the formed shell manufactured using the mold satisfies the highest aesthetic requirements in terms of appearance and touch. Since the produced shaped shell is suitable both for the foam-backed process and for the gluing process, the proposed mold and the proposed method enable the use of the same surface material, that is to say the same shaped shell, in a large number of different cladding panels in the car cabin, whereby an integral and/or coordinated impression of the car cabin in terms of appearance and feel can be achieved. In addition, cost savings can be realized by employing the same process for forming the outer shell of different vehicle interior components. For example, it is possible to use shaped shells that are identical in terms of their color tone and surface properties, in particular their grain surface, for foam-lined instrument panels and for glued door panels, as a result of which an aesthetically unique impression of the car cabin is produced.

In addition, the proposed method achieves a simplification compared to the known rotary sintering process (rotosintering). For example, it can be provided that: the plastic powder material falls onto the forming surface, in particular by the action of gravity. In general, rotation of the forming surface in the manufacture of the forming shell is not necessary. In the proposed method, therefore, provision can be made for: the forming surface is substantially stationary while applying the plastic powder material to the forming surface and/or while the plastic material is melted on the forming surface. Furthermore, provision can be made for: in the proposed method, in particular during the formation of the forming shell, the forming surface is not or only to a small extent rotated or pivoted, for example over an angular range of at most 180 degrees, in particular at most 90 degrees, at most 45 degrees, at most 10 degrees or at most 2 degrees. In addition, it is not necessary in the proposed method to: the forming surface defines a closed cavity when the plastic powder material is applied to the forming surface. Since the shaping surface does not have to be rotated, the powder tank and the sealed connection between the powder tank and the shaping shell, for example, are not necessarily necessary. The space formed between the forming surface and the sieve when applying the plastic material to the forming surface can thus be laterally open, for example. This concept enables economical manufacture of multiple shaped shells in a continuous process, for example in an in-line process. Compared to the known gluing process, a higher yield of material can be achieved by the proposed method, for example, because scrap produced there, for example by using a coil, is avoided.

The plastic material is typically a thermoplastic plastic material, in particular PVC, TPU or TPE. The plastic material may be a meltable polymer. It can be provided that: the plastic material is a powder or granular material. Furthermore, provision can be made for: the plastic material is or has been pre-treated. For example, the plastic material may be or have been subjected to a sieving process such that the plastic material has a minimum strength and/or a maximum particle size. The screen according to the proposed mould is not normally used for selecting the desired grain size but in the manner described for applying the plastic material uniformly to the forming surface. When applying the plastic material onto the upper side of the sieve, the plastic material typically has an average particle size of a minimum of 50 μm and/or a maximum of 300 μm.

The movement of the screen may be a translational movement. The movement of the screen may for example have a component parallel to the forming surface. The screen may for example move substantially parallel to the forming surface. It can also be provided that: the screen is moved periodically, in particular repeatedly back and forth. If the movement device is provided for vibrating the screen, it is possible in particular to apply the plastic material uniformly and controllably onto the forming surface. In order to achieve a particularly uniform thickness of the forming shell, the vibration frequency of the screen may be, for example, at least 50Hz and/or at most 500Hz, preferably at least 100Hz and/or 200 Hz. Furthermore, particularly good results can be achieved with a maximum deflection of at least 1mm and/or at most 100mm when vibrated.

It is generally stated that: the mould has retaining means for retaining the screen above the forming surface. The movement means may be arranged to move the screen relative to the holding means. For example, the retaining means may comprise a retaining frame. The screen can be connected to the holding frame, in particular via a component of the movement device. For example, the movement device can be provided for moving the screen relative to the holding device and/or relative to the holding frame. In some examples, the retaining frame may be rigidly connected to the forming shell, either directly or indirectly, during application of the plastic material to the forming surface.

In the method for manufacturing a shaped shell, the screen is usually arranged above the shaping surface and in this case can be held by holding means. The position and orientation of the screen relative to the forming surface can be fixed by the retaining means. The screen and/or the forming surface are generally planar in shape. The holding device is in the exemplary embodiment provided for holding the screen such that it is oriented substantially parallel to the forming surface. In a typical example, the sieve is oriented with its plane extension substantially parallel to the forming surface when applying the plastic material onto the forming surface. In this case, the spacing between the screen and the forming surface is typically a minimum of 1cm and/or a maximum of 10 cm.

The forming shell typically comprises a metal, such as nickel or stainless steel. In particular the forming surface may be partly or completely made of nickel or stainless steel. In some embodiments, the shaped shell layer is an electroformed shell layer. It can be provided that: first a substrate shell layer (grundscale) of the minimum thickness required for structural strength is produced, which is subsequently in-mould decorated by means of metal spraying (hitterprp ü hen). The shell may be plate-shaped. It can be provided that: the forming surface has grain surfaces. The grain surface can be produced, for example, by milling or etching. The marking of the grain on the shaped shell formed on the shaping surface makes it possible to produce a particularly attractive visible side of the shaped shell. In particular, the proposed method thus makes it possible to produce foamed-lined and glued vehicle interior components having the same grain size, thus producing an overall and aesthetic impression. The area of the forming surface is typically at least 50cm²And/or at most 2m²。

The screen usually comprises a large number of equally sized mesh openings, so that the screen is particularly suitable for uniformly applying the plastic material onto the forming surface. For good results, the sieve usually has a mesh size of at least 200 μm and/or at most 1 mm. The screen usually contains polyester, polyamide or steel and can in particular be made of one of these materials. The screen typically has an area greater than or equal to the area of the forming surface. Typically, the entire forming surface may be covered by a screen.

In particular, further improvements of the mold and the method for manufacturing a shaped shell are proposed, since according to the proposed method or mold no rotation is required compared to conventional slush molding processes and the space between the screen and the shaping surface does not have to be closed laterally: a particularly uniform thickness of the shaped shell and, in addition, a particularly smooth rear side of the shaped shell can be produced by this development. For example, the mold in some embodiments has an edge that laterally surrounds the contoured surface. It can be provided that: the edge has a constant height circumferentially or at least on opposite sides of the forming surface. The height of the edge determines the thickness of the shaped shell to be produced. For example, it can be provided that: excess plastic material beyond the edges falls off when plastic material is applied to the forming surface. In this case the edge may constitute the overflow and thus determine the thickness of the plastic material on the forming surface. In this case, the excess plastic material does not usually form part of the shaped shell to be produced, but can then be reused when one or more further shaped shells are produced.

Furthermore, in order to produce a shaped housing having a particularly uniform thickness and/or having a particularly smooth rear side, provision can be made for: the mould has a scraper for smoothing the upper side of the plastic material applied to the forming surface, which upper side faces away from the forming surface. The scraper may have a smooth and/or non-stepped underside. In some embodiments, the underside of the squeegee is formed by a ledge. The underside of the scraper is usually sufficiently wide, in particular wide, to enable the entire forming surface to be swept by the underside of the scraper without the need for reversing the direction of scraping. It can be provided that: the scraper is placed with its underside on the optionally present frame when scraping off, thereby simplifying the method. Excess plastic material is usually removed from the forming surface, in particular pushed off the edge, by means of a scraper. In some embodiments it may be provided that: the screen is removed after the plastic material is applied to the forming surface. Typically, after the screen is removed, excess plastic material is removed from the forming surface with a scraper. In this way the plastic material can be accessed more easily with the scraper.

In some embodiments it may be provided that: the further plastic material is applied to the upper side of the plastic material facing away from the forming surface in order to smooth the upper side, which upper side is formed by the plastic material and the further plastic material in one piece. In particular, additional plastic material can be applied after the screen has been removed. The additional plastic material is usually applied such that a smooth upper side is produced. In this way, a particularly smooth rear side of the shaped housing can be produced. Typically, the further plastic material has the same properties as the plastic material as described above or below.

The thickness of the manufactured shaped shell is typically a minimum of 0.5mm and/or a maximum of 1.4 mm. Furthermore, shaped shells can be produced by the proposed method, which, as described above, have a smooth and stepless rear side. The thickness variation of the manufactured shaped shell may be less than 0.09 mm. If the shaped shell has a grained front side or a visible side, the thickness is usually measured between the back side and the visible side, in particular between local protrusions on the back side and the visible side.

It can be provided that: the mould has heating means for heating the forming surface. The heating device may be, for example, a furnace in which the forming shell is arranged for heating. It can be provided that: the heating of the forming shell or the forming surface is carried out after the application of the plastic powder material to the forming surface. In this case, the plastic is usually not yet melted when the excess plastic material is removed, in particular by a scraper, or when additional plastic powder material is applied. It is thus possible, for example, to prevent plastic powder material from adhering to the scraper and/or undesired coagulation. However, in other embodiments it can also be provided that: the forming shell or forming surface is heated prior to applying the plastic powder material to the forming surface. In this case, the smoothness of the upper side of the plastic material can be transferred in a reliable manner onto the rear side of the finished shaped housing, since undesired thickness variations due to sintering effects are avoided afterwards.

In some embodiments, the mold may have a control unit. The control unit may be arranged to trigger the movement of the screen, in particular as soon as the screen is arranged above the forming surface and/or as soon as plastic material is applied onto the upper side of the screen.

The features described above or below for the method for manufacturing a shaped shell or vehicle interior lining can be transferred to the mold and vice versa.

Drawings

The embodiments are explained below with the aid of the figures. In the drawings:

FIGS. 1(a) to 1(e) are schematic views during a method for manufacturing a formed shell of a vehicle interior lining;

FIGS. 2(a) to 2(e) are schematic views during another method for manufacturing a shaped shell for a vehicle interior lining;

fig. 3(a) and 3(b) are different vehicle interior components.

Detailed Description

Fig. 1(a) to 1(e) show different views during the manufacture of the shaped housing 1. In this case, first, a formed shell layer 2 as shown in FIG. 1(a) is prepared. The formed shell layer 2 may be, for example, a plate-like nickel electroformed shell layer or a stainless steel electroformed shell layer or a shell layer partially or completely manufactured by a metal spraying method. The forming shell 2 has a forming surface 3 on which the forming shell 1 is to be formed by melting and gelling of the meltable plastic material 8. The shaping surface 3 is grained by etching or milling, wherein the grain in the negative mold is transferred to the visible side 4 of the shaped housing 1 to be formed. The grain surface is shown greatly exaggerated in this and the subsequent figures as a roughness.

In a further step, as shown in fig. 1(b), a screen 5 is arranged above the forming shell 2 at a distance from the forming surface 3. Repeated features are labeled with the same reference number in this and subsequent figures. The screen 5 is in this case kept parallel to the forming surface 3 by a holding frame 6 of the holding device. The screen 5 in the example shown covers the forming surface 3 completely. In this case, the holding frame 6 is suspended in the illustrated example in a stationary manner with respect to the forming shell 2. The plastic powder material 8, which can be presieved beforehand with a further sieve for a narrow particle size distribution, is then applied and, if necessary, distributed uniformly on the upper side of the sieve 5. The plastic powder material 8 is for example PVC, TPU or TPE powder or granulate.

After the plastic powder material 8 has been applied onto the upper side of the sieve 5, the sieve 5 can be vibrated in a horizontal direction by per se known movement means, which may comprise, for example, an electric motor, as schematically indicated by the arrow with reference number 9. The movement of the screen 5 can be triggered, for example, by a control unit connected to the movement means. In this case, the screen 5 can be moved back and forth relative to the holding frame 6 and relative to the forming shell 2. Due to the vibration of the sieve 5 in combination with the action of gravity, the plastic material 8 falls through a large number of equally sized openings of the sieve 5 and rests on the forming surface 3 of the forming shell 2. In this case, a locally very uniform distribution of the plastic material 8 over the forming surface 3 is generally obtained. In a typical embodiment, the screen 5 has now been heated, for example by the screen 5 having been heated in an oven before being arranged above the forming shell 2. However, it is also possible to provide: the screen 5 is heated after the plastic powder material 8 has been applied to the forming surface 3. In some embodiments, the screen 5 is heated both before and after the application of the plastic powder material 8. For example, in order to melt the plastic material 8, the forming shell 2 is heated once, in particular in an oven, before the plastic powder material 8 is applied to the forming surface 3, and then, in order to completely melt the plastic material, the plastic material 8 is heated again, in particular in an oven, after it is applied to the forming surface 3. In some embodiments it is possible that: the screen 5 is removed after the plastic material 8 has been applied to the forming surface 3. It can be provided that: then, additional plastic material is applied to the upper side of the plastic material 8 in order to compensate for the unevenness of the upper side.

Figure 1(c) shows the plastics material 8 on the forming surface 3 of the forming shell 2. As the forming shell 2 is heated, the plastics material 8 melts or melts completely and adheres to the forming surface 3. The forming shell 2 may then be cooled, for example to 40 to 60 ℃, so that the plastics material 8 solidifies and forms the forming shell 1 as shown in figure 1 (d). It can be advantageous if further shaped shells should then be manufactured on the shaped shell 2: the formed shell 2 is not completely cooled to room temperature, so that energy consumption for continuing to heat the formed shell can be reduced. The shaped shell 1 can then be demolded and, if necessary, worked on. Fig. 1(e) shows the shaped shell 1 after removal from the mould with the shaped shell 2, the screen 5 and the holding means. The grain is transferred from the forming surface 3 in the female mould to the visible side 4 of the forming shell 1. The side of the shaped housing 1 facing away from the shaping surface 3 during production forms the rear side 10 of the shaped housing 1.

Fig. 2(a) to 2(e) schematically show a method by which a smoother back side 10 of the shaped shell 1 and a more uniform thickness distribution can be produced. The steps of this method correspond to those described above with respect to fig. 1(a) to (e), wherein the forming shell 2 additionally has an edge 11 as schematically shown in fig. 2 (a). The edge 11 completely surrounds the surface 3 and is everywhere of the same height. After the forming shell 2 is prepared, the screen 5 may be positioned above the forming surface 3 as described above and the plastic powder material 8 is applied to the forming surface 3 by the vibration of the screen 5, as shown in fig. 2 (b).

In some embodiments it may be provided that: the amount of plastic powder material 8 passing through the screen 5 is so great that the excess portion of plastic powder material 8 exceeds the edge 11 of the forming shell 2 so that the height of the plastic powder material 8 applied to the forming surface 3 is determined by the height of the edge 11 as illustrated in fig. 2 (d). The rear side 10 of the shaped housing 1 is thereby particularly flat.

In addition or as an alternative, a scraper 12 can be used for producing the smooth rear side 10 of the shaped shell 1. The scraper 12 has a smooth edge on its underside 13. Excess plastic powder material can be removed from the forming surface 3 by linear movement of the scraper 12. If an edge 11 is provided, scraper 12 can also rest on or be pulled over edge 11 when removing excess plastic powder material, that is to say when scraping off. A particularly smooth upper side of the plastic material 8 can therefore likewise be produced by using the scraper 12, so that the situation shown in fig. 2(d) results after the use of the scraper 12. In the case of the use of the scraper 12, it is advantageous: the plastic material 8 is melted only after the scraping off by warming of the forming shell 2, since undesired adhesion of the plastic material 8 to the scraper 12 is thereby avoided.

In the manner described, the use of the edge 11 and/or the scraper produces a shaped shell 1 with a particularly smooth back side 10 after the melting of the plastic material 8, which can be demoulded after cooling, as shown in fig. 2 (e).

The shaped shell 1 manufactured as described above can be used for manufacturing different types of vehicle interior lining. For example, fig. 3(a) shows a schematic cross-sectional view of a portion of the instrument panel 18. For producing the instrument panel 18, the plastic carrier 14 is prepared and the foam layer 15 is arranged between the plastic carrier 14 and the rear side 10 of the shaped shell 1, for example, by applying a foam substrate to the shaped shell 1. The visible side 4 of the shaped shell constitutes the front side of the dashboard visible from the car cabin.

Since the shaped housing 1 produced with the proposed method or with the proposed mold has a particularly smooth back side 10 and a uniform thickness, it is also suitable for gluing. For example, fig. 3(b) shows a schematic cross-sectional view of a portion of the door lining 16. To produce the door lining 16, the molded housing 1 is glued to the carrier 17, for example, by an adhesive material being arranged between the carrier 17 and the rear side 10 of the molded housing 1. By shaping the uniform thickness distribution and the smooth rear side 10 of the housing 1, in this case (apart from the desired grain surface) no undesired raised marks are left at all on the viewing side 4.

Features of different embodiments disclosed only in the examples can be combined with one another and claimed individually.

Claims

1. Mould for manufacturing a shaped shell (1) for a vehicle interior lining, comprising a heatable shaped shell (2) with a shaped surface (3), characterized in that: the mould has a sieve (5), which sieve (5) is used to uniformly apply the plastic powder material (8) applied to the upper side of the sieve (5) onto the forming surface (3), which sieve (5) is already arranged or can be arranged above the forming surface (3), and the mould has a movement device, which is arranged to move the sieve (5) relative to the forming surface (3).

2. The mold of claim 1, wherein: the movement device is arranged to move the sieve (5) relative to the forming surface (3) during the application of the plastic powder material (8) onto the forming surface (3).

3. The mold according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: the movement of the screen (5) has a component parallel to the forming surface (3) and/or the screen (5) is movable parallel to the forming surface (3).

4. The mold according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: the movement device is provided for vibrating the screen (5).

5. The mold according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: the mould has a holding device for holding the screen (5) above the forming surface (3), wherein the movement device is provided for moving the screen (5) relative to the holding device.

6. The mold of claim 5, wherein: the holding device is arranged for holding the screen (5) such that the screen (5) is oriented parallel to the forming surface (3).

7. The mold according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: the sieve (5) has a sieve size of at least 0.2mm and/or at most 1 mm.

8. The mold according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: the forming surface (3) has grain surfaces.

9. The mold according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: the mould has an edge (11) laterally surrounding the forming surface (3).

10. The mold according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: the mould has a scraper (12), which scraper (12) is used to smooth the upper side of the plastic powder material (8) applied to the forming surface (3), which upper side faces away from the forming surface (3).