Carrier component for a vehicle application, and method for producing a carrier component of this type

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11819944-B2
Application number	US-201816482671-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 20, 2018
Priority date	Mar 21, 2017
Publication date	Nov 21, 2023
Grant date	Nov 21, 2023

Abstract

A carrier component for a vehicle application, formed by two half-shells that are welded to one another at contact sides. When assembling the two half-shells for joining same at the contact sides, in a position in which the two half-shells are arranged above one another, the point of contact of the lower half-shell protrudes in relation to the external closed side of the other half-shell. The point of contact of one of the two half-shells protrudes inward in relation to the internal closed side of the other half-shell. A method for producing a carrier component from two half-shells is also disclosed.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A carrier component for a vehicle application, comprising:
two half-shells, which form the carrier component, that are U-shaped in cross section and externally welded to one another at their end faces facing one another, the end faces each respectively being a front side of a leg of a half-shell in contact with an opposing end face of the other half-shell, wherein each end face is terminated by an internal side face and an external side face of the leg of the half-shell, the external side face being opposite the internal side face, and wherein the internal side faces of each half-shell face toward an interior of the carrier component formed by the two half-shells;
wherein, in a position in which one of the two half-shells is arranged above the other half-shelf with their end faces adjoining one another:
the end faces of the lower half-shell protrude outward in relation to the external side faces of the upper half-shell, with the outward protrusion of each end face of the lower half-shell being >0.0 mm and <0.5 mm in relation to the opposing end face of the upper half-shell, and
the end faces of one of the two half-shells protrude inward in relation to the internal side faces of the other half-shell, with the inward protrusion of each end face of the one half-shell providing weld filler metal for forming a fillet weld;

wherein the end faces of the half-shells are connected over their entire contact width with a weld seam and the inward protrusion of the one half-shell is integrated into the weld seam with formation of the fillet weld with the other half-shell, such that although welding is only carried out externally with respect to the carrier component, the legs of the two half-shells are connected to one another with a full penetration weld.

2. The carrier component of claim 1 , wherein the outward protrusion of each end face of the one half-shell is greater than 0.0 mm and less than or equal to 0.1 mm in relation to the opposing end face of the other half-shell.

3. The carrier component of claim 1 , wherein the overlap of adjacent ends faces of the two half-shells is 90% or more in relation to a width of one of the end faces, and wherein, if the adjacent end faces have two different widths, said overlap relates to a smaller width of the two different widths.

4. The carrier component of claim 1 , wherein wall sections of the adjoining half-shells are in the same spatial position, at least with respect to end sections thereof supporting the end faces.

5. The carrier component of claim 1 , wherein an outer wall spacing between the external side faces of the one half-shell is greater than an outer wall spacing between the external side faces of the other half-shell by double the width of the outward protrusion of each end face of the one half-shell.

6. The carrier component of claim 1 , wherein the carrier component is a rail, a sub-frame, or a component of a sub-frame.

7. The carrier component of claim 1 , wherein each half-shell is a formed steel sheet or aluminum sheet component.

8. A method to produce a carrier component formed by two half-shells for a vehicle application, comprising the following steps:
providing the two half-shells, wherein the two half-shells are U-shaped in cross section with ends faces, the end faces each respectively being a front side of a leg of a half-shell terminated by two side faces of the leg of the half-shell;
arranging and retaining the half-shells in a position in which one of the two half-shells is arranged above the other half-shell with their end faces adjoining one another, with allowance of a capillary gap between adjacent points of contact along the adjoining end faces, such that the end faces of one of the two half-shells protrude outward as relates to the end faces of the other half-shell and said outward protrusion is pointing upward, and the end faces of the other half-shell protrude inward as relates to the end faces of the one half-shell and said inward protrusion is pointing downward; and subsequently
simultaneously welding the adjoining end faces along wall sections of the two half-shells opposite one another externally to form a weld seam extending over the overlap of the adjoining end faces along each wall section;
wherein welding is carried out such that the inward protrusion is used as a weld filler metal and integrated into the weld seam with the formation of a fillet weld, with the half-shells arranged such that the outward protrusion of each end face of the one half-shell is greater than 0.0 mm and less than or equal to 0.5 mm in relation to the opposing end face of the other half-shell, and
wherein, although welding is only carried out externally with respect to the carrier component, the legs of the two half-shells are connected to one another with a full penetration weld.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein welding is carried out as MIG/MAG, 2-wire, double-wire, WIG, plasma, laser, or laser hybrid welding.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein during the welding step, degassing occurs towards an interior of the carrier component formed by the two half-shells due to the allowance of the capillary gap between adjacent points of contact along the adjoining end faces.

Assignees

• Kirchhoff Automotive D Gmbh

Inventors

• Töller Marco
• Bauer Michael
• Dahmen Christian
• Bartzik Josef

Classifications

• B23K26/262 Primary

  of longitudinal seams of tubes · CPC title

• B23K9/0253

  for the longitudinal seam of tubes · CPC title

• B23K33/006 Primary

  for cylindrical workpieces · CPC title

• B23K33/008

  for automotive applications · CPC title

• B23K2101/006

  Vehicles · CPC title