Alternative E-coat dipping process

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10604860-B2
Application number	US-201715829247-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 1, 2017
Priority date	Dec 1, 2017
Publication date	Mar 31, 2020
Grant date	Mar 31, 2020

Abstract

The present disclosure includes a method for coating a vehicle body-in-white (BIW) in a tank of processing fluid. In one form, the method includes lowering the vehicle BIW in a tank of processing fluid, rotating the vehicle BIW around its lateral axis until the vehicle BIW is completely submerged in the processing fluid, and simultaneously conveying the vehicle BIW along a longitudinal axis of the tank while rotating the vehicle BIW around its longitudinal axis in a “corkscrew” type movement.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of coating a vehicle body-in-white (BIW) in a tank of processing fluid comprising:
lowering the vehicle BIW head-first into the tank of processing fluid;
rotating the vehicle BIW around a lateral axis until the vehicle BIW is completely submerged in the processing fluid; and
simultaneously conveying the vehicle BIW along a longitudinal axis of the tank while rotating the vehicle BIW around a longitudinal axis of the vehicle BIW 360°.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the vehicle BIW is rotated around its longitudinal axis 360° at a constant depth in the processing fluid and is then extracted from the tank of processing fluid.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the processing fluid is an electrophoretic fluid.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein a transfer rate of the vehicle BIW through the tank is constant.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the longitudinal axis of the tank coincides with the longitudinal axis of the vehicle BIW.

6. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the longitudinal axis of the tank is offset from the longitudinal axis of the vehicle BIW.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the tank defines a constant depth along its length.

8. A vehicle having a coating according to the method of claim 1 .

9. A method of coating a vehicle body-in-white (BIW) in a tank of processing fluid comprising:
lowering the vehicle BIW into the tank of processing fluid until the vehicle BIW is completely submerged in the processing fluid; and
simultaneously conveying the vehicle BIW along a longitudinal axis of the tank while rotating the vehicle BIW around a longitudinal axis of the vehicle BIW 360°.

10. The method according to claim 9 , wherein the vehicle BIW is rotated around the longitudinal axis 360° at a constant depth in the processing fluid and is then extracted from the tank of processing fluid.

11. The method according to claim 9 , wherein the processing fluid is an electrophoretic fluid.

12. The method according to claim 9 , wherein a transfer rate of the vehicle BIW through the tank is constant.

13. The method according to claim 9 , wherein the longitudinal axis of the tank coincides with the longitudinal axis of the vehicle BIW.

14. The method according to claim 9 , wherein the longitudinal axis of the tank is offset from the longitudinal axis of the vehicle BIW.

15. The method according to claim 9 , wherein the tank defines a constant depth along its length.

16. A vehicle having a coating according to the method of claim 9 .

17. A method of coating a component in a tank of processing fluid comprising:
lowering the component into the tank of processing fluid until the component is completely submerged in the processing fluid; and
simultaneously conveying the component along a longitudinal axis of the tank while rotating the component around a longitudinal axis of the component 360°.

18. The method according to claim 17 , wherein a transfer rate of the component through the tank is constant.

19. The method according to claim 17 , wherein the tank defines a constant depth along its length.

20. The method according to claim 17 , wherein the component is a vehicle body-in-white (BIW).

Assignees

• Ford Motor Co

Inventors

• Norton Thomas
• Ellwood Kevin

Classifications

• C25D13/12 Primary

  characterised by the article coated · CPC title

• B65G2201/0294

  Vehicle bodies · CPC title

• B65G49/0413

  arrangements for conveyance through the bath · CPC title

• B65G35/06

  comprising a load-carrier moving along a path, e.g. a closed path, and adapted to be engaged by any one of a series of traction elements spaced along the path (effecting drive at two or more points spaced along the length of an endless conveyor B65G23/32) · CPC title

• C25D13/22

  Servicing or operating {apparatus or multistep processes} · CPC title