Self-guiding cutting device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10549442-B2
Application number	US-201515115034-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 29, 2015
Priority date	Feb 3, 2014
Publication date	Feb 4, 2020
Grant date	Feb 4, 2020

Abstract

Self-guiding cutting tool (100) for cutting an adhesive film (20) applied to the roof panel (30) of a car, wherein the roof panel is connected to a side panel (31) of the car by a joint area (32) containing a welding ditch channel, said cutting tool (100) comprising a cutting device (6), at least one guiding means (2) guiding the cutting device (6) over the welding ditch channel of the joint area (32), and at least one transporting means (3) allowing the cutting device (6) to be moved over the welding ditch channel of the joint area (32). Also provided is a method of applying adhesive films to the roof panels of a car using the cutting tool.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. Method of applying an adhesive film to a roof panel of a car wherein the roof panel is connected to a side panel of the car by a joint area containing a welding ditch channel, comprising the steps of
attaching the adhesive film to the roof panel of the car without adhering sections of the adhesive film extending from the roof panel over the welding ditch channel towards the side panel;
cutting off the non-adhered sections of the adhesive film by moving a self-guided cutting tool over the welding ditch channel, said self-guided cutting tool comprising a cutting device, at least one guiding structure guiding the cutting device along the side panel and over the welding ditch channel of the joint area, and at least one transportation structure disposed over the roof panel and allowing the cutting device to be moved over the welding ditch channel of the joint area, wherein the at least one guiding structure is mechanical.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one transportation structure is a wheel.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the at least one guiding structure is a wheel configured to engage with a portion of the side panel and allow movement of the cutting tool along the side panel in a direction from a front part to a rear part of the car or in a direction from the rear part to the front part of the car.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the at least one transportation structure is a wheel that is spaced and configured such that it engages with a raised area of the welding ditch channel.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising a protective housing surrounding a bottom part of the cutting device to prevent the cutting device from contacting the roof panel when being moved over the welding ditch channel.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein the cutting device is positioned between the at least one guiding structure and the at least one transportation structure.

7. The method of claim 4 wherein the at least one transportation structure is positioned between cutting device and the at least one guiding structure.

8. The method of claim 1 , the self-guiding cutting tool comprising at least two transportation structures.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the guiding structure is a wheel configured to engage with a portion of the side panel and allow movement of the cutting tool along the side panel in a direction from a front part to a rear part of the car or in a direction from the rear part to the front part of the car.

10. The method of claim 1 , the self-guiding cutting tool comprising at least two guiding structures.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the cutting device is positioned between the guiding structure and the at least one transportation structure.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one transportation structure is positioned between the cutting device and the guiding structure.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the cutting device contains a cutting blade selected from the group consisting of a fixed blade and a rotating blade.

14. The method of claim 1 , the self-guiding cutting tool further comprising a protective housing surrounding a bottom part of the cutting device to prevent the cutting device from contacting the roof panel when being moved over the welding ditch channel.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one guiding structure is a wheel and wherein the wheel contains an angular portion such that a side facing the cutting tool has a smaller diameter than a side opposite thereto.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one transportation structure is a wheel that is spaced and configured such that it engages with a raised area of the welding ditch channel.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one guiding structure and the at least one transportation structure are wheels that are configured and positioned such that the guiding structure engages with a portion of the side panel and the transportation structure engages with a raised area of the welding ditch channel.

18. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one transportation structure is a wheel containing an angular portion such that a side of the wheel facing the cutting tool has a different diameter than a side opposite thereto.

19. An assembly line comprising an assembled car containing a roof panel and a side panel joined to each other to form a joint area containing a welding ditch channel, an adhesive film applied to the roof panel and a self-guided cutting tool, said self-guided cutting tool comprising a cutting device, at least one guiding structure guiding the cutting device along the side panel and over the welding ditch channel of the joint area, and at least one transportation structure disposed over the roof panel and allowing the cutting device to be moved over the welding ditch channel of the joint area, wherein the at least one guiding structure is mechanical.

Assignees

• 3M Innovative Properties Co

Inventors

• Sekanina Martin
• Marsoun Lukas
• Melezinek Rudolf
• Ludvik Petr

Classifications

• Y10T156/1788

  Work traversing type and/or means applying work to wall or static structure · CPC title

• B26B29/06

  Arrangements for guiding hand cutting tools (guiding equipment or arrangements for specific cutting tools, see the particular places, e.g. for hair trimming devices A45D24/36, for saw blades B27B11/02, B26B13/10) · CPC title

• Y10T156/18

  Surface bonding means and/or assembly means with handle or handgrip · CPC title

• Y10T156/1365

  Fixed cutter · CPC title

• B26B25/007

  Operable only in combination with guiding means, e.g. paper cutters · CPC title