1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to vehicle assembly apparatus and methods, and, more specifically, to vehicle body panel positioning and attachment apparatus and methods.
2. State of the Art
In the automotive industry, the assembly of vehicles involves the attachment of outer body panels to inner body panels or to body structures formed of joined panels The outer body panels are attached to the inner panels or body structure via fasteners, welds, etc.
In order to provide a quality vehicle which meets design tolerances, it is essential that the inner body panels and/or the inner body structure be precisely located with respect to predetermined three-dimensional coordinates. However, design and manufacturing tolerances and tool wear result in inner body panels which are not as precisely located as desired.
It is known in the art to employ additional spacers or shims to bring inner body panels, or at least the points of attachment of the inner body panels to outer body panels, to precise locations along the X, Y and Z coordinate axes. However, such additional members add cost to the vehicle and require time consuming and expensive labor and manufacturing operations.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,760,633 and 4,884,431 disclose a method and apparatus for body panel attachment which reforms a portion of an inner panel member to a precise location. This method and apparatus employs an anvil which is moved into a known position defining the desired precise location of the inner panel attachment surface. Floating support members are then moved toward the inner panel to "find" the inner panel. Upon "finding" or locating the position of the inner panel, the floating support members are locked in a fixed position in engagement with one surface or side of the inner panel.
A ram is then actuated and moves a pad forming member mounted thereon under force into the inner panel to deform a portion of the inner panel between the floating support members into engagement with the anvil. This results in an attachment pad being formed in the inner panel whose surface is located at the precise location desired for attachment to another member, such as an outer body panel. While the pad forming member is still in engagement with the anvil, a punching operation is optionally performed to form an aperture in the pad. A punch is moved by a separate hydraulic cylinder through the pad to form the aperture.
The method and apparatus disclosed in these patents requires separate steps for moving the anvil into a fixed position, advancing the locating support members into contact with the inner panel, locking the locating support members in a fixed position in contact with the inner panel, urging a pad forming member into the inner panel and, then, punching an aperture in the thus formed pad. The ram carrying the pad forming device, the means for locking the anvil and/or the locating support members in a fixed position and the punch are all separately controlled by different actuating devices, such as hydraulic cylinders, a net locating device, etc.
It would be desirable to provide a form and pierce apparatus and method which reforms a portion of a member, such as an inner body panel of a vehicle, to a precise location for subsequent attachment to other panels or members which employs a single actuation device for holding the inner body panel in a fixed position, forming a pad in the inner body panel to a precise, reference location and piercing an aperture in the thus formed pad.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds