WO2025033370A1 - Belt molding and molding member - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is a long belt molding (10) attached to a vehicle door (1). The present invention includes: a body part (15) attached along the lower edge of a window opening of a door panel (2); a lip section (19) that elastically contacts the door panel (2) when attached; and a covering section (11) that covers at least a portion of the outer surface of the body part (15) on the outside of the vehicle. The body part (15) includes a vehicle exterior side wall section (12) and a vehicle interior side wall section (13) facing each other, and a top wall section (14) connecting the upper edges of the side wall sections (12), (13). The lip section (19) protrudes downward from the lower edge of the vehicle exterior side wall section (12). The covering section (11) covers the outer surface of the vehicle exterior side wall section (12) and reaches the outer surface of the lip section (19).

Description

Belt molding and molding components

This disclosure relates to long belt moldings and molding members that are attached to vehicle doors.

The belt molding provides insulation between the door panel and the window plate at the lower edge of the window opening of a vehicle door, and also serves the purpose of improving the appearance of the lower edge of the window opening. Since the belt molding is exposed to ultraviolet rays, wind, rain, etc., some belt moldings have their outer surface covered with a covering part for the purpose of protecting it and further improving its appearance.

As examples of this type of belt molding, for example, Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 are disclosed below. The belt moldings in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 have a main body portion that is attached to the lower edge of the window opening of the door panel, a lip portion that elastically contacts the door panel when attached (such as the "lower tongue portion 18" in Patent Document 1 and the "outside seal lip 26" in Patent Document 2), and a covering portion that covers at least a portion of the outside surface of the main body portion (such as the "design tape 13" in Patent Document 1 and the "decorative member 27" in Patent Document 2). The main body portion has an outside side wall portion and an inside side wall portion that face each other, and a top wall portion that connects the upper edges of both side walls, and the lip portion protrudes downward from the lower edge of the outside side wall portion.

In addition, at least the outer surface of the vehicle exterior side wall is covered with a covering portion, which can be broadly categorized into (A) a pattern in which it covers up to the lower edge of the vehicle exterior side wall but does not reach the lip portion (Figs. 1(a) and 4(a) of Patent Document 1, and Figs. 1 and 2 of Patent Document 2), and (B) a pattern in which a portion of the covering portion is covered by the lip portion (Figs. 2, 3(a), and 5 of Patent Document 1, and Figs. 5 and 6 of Patent Document 2).

JP 2012-224102 A JP 2004-322957 A

However, in the case of (A) where the covering portion covers up to the lower edge of the exterior side wall portion and does not reach the lip portion, if the covering portion is misaligned due to a manufacturing error (error in the installation position) when it is installed, there is a risk that part of the exterior side wall portion will be exposed. This not only fails to protect the exposed portion, but also results in a poor appearance.

On the other hand, in the case of pattern (B) where a part of the covering part is covered by the lip part, the following problem occurs. As shown in FIG. 11, when manufacturing a belt molding 100 having a covering part 110, the covering part 110 is covered with a protective film 200 during the manufacturing process to protect it from external damage, and the protective film 200 is sometimes removed in the final stage of manufacturing. In this case, if a part of the covering part 110 (B) is covered with the lip part 190, as shown in FIG. 12, removing the protective film 200 will result in a gap between the lip part 190 and the covering part 110. This not only results in a poor appearance, but also may lead to rainwater, dust, etc. accumulating in the gap, which may induce early deterioration of the lip part 190.

Modifying members may also be attached to vehicle doors in locations other than the belt molding, also for the purpose of improving the design. One example is a long frame molding that is attached to the upper edge frame of a vehicle door. The frame molding has the same basic structure as the belt molding. Specifically, it has a main body that is attached to the upper edge frame of the door panel, a lip that elastically contacts the door panel when attached, and a covering that covers at least a portion of the exterior surface of the main body. The main body has an exterior side wall and an interior side wall that face each other, and a top wall that connects the upper edges of both side walls, and the lip protrudes downward from the lower edge of the exterior side wall. Such frame moldings also have the same problems as the belt molding.

The present disclosure aims to solve the above problem by providing a belt molding and molding member that can tolerate errors in the installation position of the covering part.

To achieve this, the present disclosure employs the following means.
(1) A long belt molding to be attached to a vehicle door. The belt molding has a main body portion to be attached along the lower edge of a window opening of a door panel, a lip portion that elastically contacts the door panel when attached, and a covering portion that covers at least a part of the exterior surface of the main body portion. The main body portion has an exterior side wall portion and an interior side wall portion that face each other, and a top wall portion that connects upper edges of both side walls. The lip portion protrudes downward from the lower edge of the exterior side wall portion. The covering portion covers the outer surface of the exterior side wall portion and reaches the outer surface of the lip portion.

(2) A long molding member that is attached to a vehicle door. This molding member has a main body that is attached to a door panel, a lip that elastically contacts the door panel when attached, and a covering that covers at least a portion of the exterior surface of the main body. The main body has an exterior side wall portion and an interior side wall portion that face each other, and a top wall portion that connects the upper edges of both side walls. The lip portion protrudes downward from the lower edge of the exterior side wall portion. The covering portion covers the outer surface of the exterior side wall portion and extends to the outer surface of the lip portion.

In the belt molding and molding member disclosed herein, the covering portion extends from the outer surface of the vehicle-exterior side wall portion to the outer surface of the lip portion. This solves the above-mentioned problem related to pattern (A) in which the covering portion covers up to the lower edge of the vehicle-exterior side wall portion and does not reach the lip portion. In other words, even if there is some misalignment when providing the covering portion, the covering portion is provided so as to reach the outer surface of the lip portion, so that exposure of a portion of the vehicle-exterior side wall portion can be avoided.

Furthermore, the covering portion is not covered by the lip portion. Therefore, the above-mentioned problem related to the pattern (B) in which a part of the covering portion is covered by the lip portion can be solved. In other words, even if a protective film is provided during the manufacturing process, the covering portion (and the protective film) is not covered by the lip portion, so no gap is generated between the lip portion and the covering portion after the protective film is removed.

FIG. FIG. FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main portion around a boundary between a vehicle-exterior side wall portion of the belt molding and a shielding lip. FIG. FIG. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a belt molding having a protective film. FIG. FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main portion around a boundary between a vehicle exterior side wall portion of the frame molding and a shielding lip. FIG. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a frame molding having a protective film. FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main portion of a conventional belt molding having a protective film. FIG. 1 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main portion of a conventional belt molding with a protective film removed.

The molding member of the present disclosure is attached to the vehicle door of an automobile or the like, and is not particularly limited in its specific shape, such as its overall shape and details, so long as it has a main body portion that is attached to any part of the door panel that constitutes the vehicle door, a lip portion that elastically contacts the door panel when attached, and a covering portion that covers at least the outer surface of the main body portion on the vehicle exterior side.

In addition, in the following embodiment, an example is described in which the molding member is attached to the left front door, but the molding member of the present disclosure may also be attached to the right front door, or the right and left rear doors, etc.

(Embodiment 1)
As a first embodiment of a molding member of the present disclosure, a belt molding 10 attached along the lower edge of a window opening 3 of a vehicle door 1 (door panel 2) will be described. The belt molding is also called a belt molding, a weather strip, or a water drain seal.

As shown in FIG. 1, a vehicle door 1 is composed of a metal door panel 2 and the like. A window opening 3 is formed in the door panel 2. A window plate 4 is arranged in the window opening 3 so that it can rise and fall. A long, linear belt molding 10 is attached in the front-to-rear direction of the vehicle along the lower edge of the window opening 3 of the vehicle door 1 (door panel 2). The belt molding 10 elastically contacts the window plate 4 to form a seal. As a result, when the window plate 4 rises and falls, water droplets and foreign matter (sand, dust, dirt, etc.) adhering to the surface of the window plate 4 are wiped off by the belt molding 10. FIG. 1 is a front view seen from the outside of the vehicle, in which the belt molding 10 is an outer belt molding, and the door panel 2 is an outer door panel.

The belt molding 10 is an extrusion molded product, and has a substantially uniform shape over the entire length. However, as shown in FIG. 2, both ends of the belt molding 10 in the longitudinal direction are partially cut away due to the structure of the mounting portion. As shown in FIG. 3, the belt molding 10 has a main body 15 having a substantially inverted U-shaped cross section. The main body 15 has an exterior side wall 12 and an interior side wall 13 that are provided facing each other at a predetermined distance, and a top wall 14 that connects the upper edges of the exterior side wall 12 and the interior side wall 13. As shown by the imaginary line in FIG. 3, the leading edge (upper edge) of the door panel 2 is hemmed in a folded state. The belt molding 10 is attached to the door panel 2 by inserting the upper edge of the door panel 2 into the main body 15. A core material made of metal or hard resin may be embedded in the main body 15 to improve the holding force when attached to the door panel 2.

The lower edge of the interior side wall portion 13 is bent toward the exterior of the vehicle, and engages with the folded tip edge (lower edge) of the door panel 2 when the belt molding 10 is attached to the door panel 2. A seal lip 16 is formed on the outer surface of the interior side wall portion 13. The seal lip 16 protrudes toward the window plate 4 (interior side of the vehicle). Multiple seal lips 16 (two in this embodiment 1) are formed in the vertical direction. When the belt molding 10 is attached to the door panel 2, the seal lip 16 elastically contacts the window plate 4.

A decorative lip 17 is formed on the upper outer surface of the interior side wall portion 13 (above the top seal lip 16). The decorative lip 17 protrudes toward the window plate 4 (toward the interior of the vehicle). The decorative lip 17 is formed to improve the appearance of the gap between the belt molding 10 and the window plate 4. The decorative lip 17 (protruding amount) is smaller than the seal lip 16, and does not elastically contact the window plate 4.

A retaining lip 18 is formed on the inner surface of the vehicle exterior side wall portion 12. The retaining lip 18 is formed to protrude toward the vehicle interior side wall portion 13 (inside of the vehicle). When the belt molding 10 is attached to the door panel 2, the retaining lip 18 elastically contacts the upper edge of the door panel 2 and retains the door panel 2. The number of retaining lips 18 in the vertical direction may be one or more.

A shielding lip 19 is formed on the lower edge of the exterior side wall portion 12 so as to protrude downward. When the belt molding 10 is attached to the door panel 2, the shielding lip 19 elastically contacts the door panel 2 and closes the gap between the belt molding 10 and the door panel 2. This shielding lip 19 corresponds to the "lip portion" in this disclosure.

The covering portion 11 covers the area from the outer surface of the corner between the interior side wall portion 13 and the top wall portion 14 to the outer surface of the shielding lip 19, including the entire outer surfaces of the top wall portion 14 and the exterior side wall portion 12. The covering portion 11 needs to cover at least the portion of the main body portion 15 that is visible from the outside when the belt molding 10 is attached to the door panel 2. For example, if a portion of the portion that is visible from the outside is covered with another design component, then only the portion that is not covered by the design component may be covered with the covering portion 11.

The covering portion 11 covers only the upper edge of the outer surface of the shielding lip 19. This prevents the covering portion 11 from hindering the deformability of the entire shielding lip 19. Even if the covering portion 11 is misaligned slightly when it is provided (the manufacturing method will be described later), it prevents a part of the vehicle exterior side wall 12 from being exposed. As shown in FIG. 4, the range T over which the covering portion 11 covers the outer surface of the shielding lip 19 is preferably about 0.3 to 0.6 mm from the lower edge of the vehicle exterior side wall 12. In other words, the range T is preferably about 0.3 to 0.6 mm from the boundary between the vehicle exterior side wall 12 and the shielding lip 19. If the covering portion 11 covers too much of the range, the deformability of the shielding lip 19 is hindered. Conversely, if the covering portion 11 is too small, there is a high possibility that a part of the vehicle exterior side wall 12 will be exposed due to misalignment.

The covering portion 11 is provided to protect the belt molding 10 and improve its appearance. The covering portion 11 is a strip-shaped covering tape having at least one layer selected from, for example, a polypropylene layer, a polyethylene terephthalate layer, and a coating layer. The coating layer can be a layer such as an acrylic resin. The covering portion 11 may be a single-layer tape consisting of only one of the above layers, or a laminated tape in which multiple layers are laminated. When multiple layers are laminated, an adhesive layer is also provided between them as necessary. For example, the covering portion 11 may be laminated in the order of polypropylene layer + adhesive layer + polyethylene terephthalate layer + coating layer, and the polypropylene layer may be disposed on the vehicle exterior side wall portion 12 side.

The main body 15 of the belt molding 10 is made of a material that can be extruded. For example, thermoplastic elastomers, thermoplastic resins, rubber, etc. can be used. Specific examples include olefin-based thermoplastic elastomers (TPO), styrene-based elastomers (TPS), polyvinyl chloride resins (PVC), polypropylene resins (PP), and ethylene-propylene-diene copolymers (EPDM). The material that is preferably used for the main body 15 has a durometer hardness (type D) of HD50 to 80 according to JIS K 7215.

The sealing lip 16, decorative lip 17, retaining lip 18, and shielding lip 19 are also made of materials that can be extruded, but are softer and more elastically deformable than the main body 15. For example, thermoplastic elastomers, thermoplastic resins, rubber, etc. can be used. Specific examples include olefin-based thermoplastic elastomers (TPO), styrene-based elastomers (TPS), polyvinyl chloride resin (PVC), polypropylene resin (PP), and ethylene-propylene-diene copolymers (EPDM), and those with a durometer hardness (Type A) according to JIS K 7215 of HDA 50 to 90 are preferably used.

A schematic diagram of the process for manufacturing the belt molding 10 is shown in Figure 5. While the belt molding 10 is extruded by the extruder 27, the covering tape 22 sent out from the uncoiler 21 is fixed to a predetermined location on the belt molding 10. At this time, the covering tape 22 sent out from the uncoiler 21 has a protective film 20 (see Figure 6) adsorbed and laminated on the outer surface side of the covering portion 11. For example, a polyethylene terephthalate film can be used as the protective film 20.

More specifically, the material for the main body 15 and the materials for the lips 16, 17, 18, and 19 are co-extruded to integrally form the main body 15 and the lips 16, 17, 18, and 19. A tape guide passage is formed inside the nozzle 23 to guide the covering tape 22 to a predetermined location. Inside the nozzle 23, the covering tape 22 is welded by the heat of the extruded belt molding 10. As a result, the outer surface of the vehicle exterior side wall 12 and part of the outer surface of the shielding lip 19 are covered by the covering tape 22, as shown in FIG. 6.

Then, the belt molding 10 extruded from the extrusion molding machine 27 is taken up by a take-up machine 25 and supplied to a cooler 24 such as a cooling water tank to cool the belt molding 10. The belt molding 10 is then supplied to a cutting machine 26, which cuts the belt molding 10, including the covering tape 22, to a specified length. After that, parts of both longitudinal ends of the belt molding 10 are cut off as necessary, and the protective film 20 of the covering tape 22 is peeled off from the covering portion 11. Then, through a finishing process such as attaching mounting fixtures (clips, end caps, etc.), the manufacture of the belt molding 10 is completed.

(Embodiment 2)
A frame molding 30 will be described as a second embodiment of a molding member of the present disclosure. As shown in Fig. 1, the upper edge of the window opening 3 is surrounded by an upper edge frame 2a of a door panel 2. The frame molding 30 is attached along the upper edge of the upper edge frame 2a. As shown in Figs. 1 and 7, the frame molding 30 is an elongated member whose longitudinal center portion is curved to conform to the shape of the upper edge frame 2a. The frame molding 30 is an extrusion molded product having a substantially uniform cross-sectional shape over the entire longitudinal direction.

As shown in FIG. 8, the frame molding 30 has a main body 35 that has a generally inverted U-shaped cross section. The main body 35 has an exterior side wall 32 and an interior side wall 33 that are disposed opposite each other at a specified distance, and a top wall 34 that connects the upper edges of the exterior and interior side walls 32, 33. As shown by the phantom lines in FIG. 8, the corners of the upper edge frame 2a are hemmed in a folded-over state. The frame molding 30 is attached to the upper edge frame 2a by inserting the corners of the upper edge frame 2a into the main body 35.

The lower edge of the interior side wall portion 33 is bent toward the exterior side of the vehicle. When the frame molding 30 is attached to the upper edge frame 2a, it engages with the folded tip edge (lower edge) of the upper edge frame 2a. A protrusion 36 is integrally formed with the main body portion 35 on the inner surface of the interior side wall portion 33. The protrusion 36 is formed to protrude toward the exterior side of the vehicle. Multiple protrusions 36 (two in this embodiment 2) are formed in the vertical direction. When the frame molding 30 is attached to the upper edge frame 2a, the protrusion 36 abuts against the upper edge frame 2a.

A seal lip 37 is formed on the outer surface of the corner of the top wall portion 34 near the vehicle interior side wall portion 33. The seal lip 37 is formed to protrude upward. When the vehicle door 1 is closed, the seal lip 37 elastically contacts the vehicle body panel 5 to seal between the vehicle door 1 and the vehicle body (not shown).

A retaining lip 38 is formed on the inner surface of the vehicle exterior side wall portion 32. The retaining lip 38 is formed to protrude toward the vehicle interior side wall portion 33 (inside of the vehicle). When the frame molding 30 is attached to the upper edge frame 2a, the retaining lip 38 elastically contacts the upper edge frame 2a and retains the upper edge frame 2a. The number of retaining lips 38 may be one or more in the vertical direction.

A shielding lip 39 is formed on the lower edge of the vehicle exterior side wall portion 32 so as to protrude downward. When the frame molding 30 is attached to the upper edge frame 2a, the shielding lip 39 elastically contacts the upper edge frame 2a of the door panel 2, closing the gap between the frame molding 30 and the upper edge frame 2a. This shielding lip 39 corresponds to the "lip portion" in this disclosure.

The area from the upper surface of the top wall portion 34 to the outer surface of the shielding lip 39, including the entire outer surface of the vehicle-exterior side wall portion 32, is covered by the covering portion 31. When the frame molding 30 is attached to the upper edge frame 2a, the covering portion 31 needs to cover at least the portion of the main body portion 35 that is visible from the outside.

The covering portion 31 covers only the upper edge of the outer surface of the shielding lip 39. This prevents the covering portion 31 from hindering the deformability of the entire shielding lip 39. Even if the covering portion 31 is slightly misaligned when it is provided (the manufacturing method will be described later), it prevents a part of the vehicle exterior side wall 32 from being exposed. As shown in FIG. 9, the range T over which the covering portion 31 covers the outer surface of the shielding lip 39 is preferably about 0.3 to 0.6 mm from the lower edge of the vehicle exterior side wall 32. In other words, the range T is preferably about 0.3 to 0.6 mm from the boundary between the vehicle exterior side wall 32 and the shielding lip 39. If the covering portion 31 covers too much of the range, the deformability of the shielding lip 39 is hindered. Conversely, if the covering portion 31 is too small, there is a high possibility that a part of the vehicle exterior side wall 32 will be exposed due to misalignment.

The covering portion 31 is provided to protect the frame molding 30 and improve its appearance. The covering portion 31 in the second embodiment may be made of the same material and have the same layer structure as the covering portion 11 in the first embodiment.

The main body 35 and the protrusion 36 of the frame molding 30 are made of an extrusion moldable material. The specific materials are the same as those of the belt molding 10 of embodiment 1. The sealing lip 37, the retaining lip 38, and the shielding lip 39 are also made of an extrusion moldable material. The specific materials are the same as those of the belt molding 10 of embodiment 1. The manufacturing method of the frame molding 30 is also the same as that of the belt molding 10 of embodiment 1 shown in Figure 5. In particular, during the manufacturing process of the frame molding 30, as shown in Figure 10, predetermined locations of the frame molding 30 are covered with a covering tape 42 having a protective film 40 laminated on the outer surface of the covering portion 31. The protective film 40 is the same as the protective film 20 of embodiment 1.

In the manufacturing process of the belt molding 10 of embodiment 1 and the frame molding 30 of embodiment 2, the covering tape 22, 42 is not covered by the shielding lip 19, 39, so even if the protective film 20, 40 is peeled off, no gap is generated between the shielding lip 19, 39 and the covering portion 11, 31. By covering the covering portion 11, 31 with the protective film 20, 40, it is possible to prevent the covering portion 11, 31 from being damaged during the manufacturing of the belt molding 10 or the frame molding 30. This protective film 20, 40 may be peeled off when the belt molding 10 or the frame molding 30 is attached to the door panel 2 or the upper edge frame 2a, or after attachment. The protective film 20 can be laminated on the covering portion 11 in advance to form the covering tape 22, or an uncoiler for the protective film 20 can be prepared separately from the uncoiler 21 for the covering portion 11, and the protective film 20 can be laminated at the same time as the covering portion 11 is fixed. In addition, a portion of the longitudinal terminal portion of the belt molding 10 in embodiment 1 and the frame molding 30 in embodiment 2 may be injection molded.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 vehicle door, 2 door panel, 3 window opening, 4 window plate, 5 vehicle body panel, 10 belt molding, 11/31 covering portion, 12/32 vehicle exterior side wall portion, 13/33 vehicle interior side wall portion, 14/34 top wall portion, 15/35 main body portion, 16 seal lip, 17 decorative lip, 18/38 retaining lip, 19/39 shielding lip, 20/40 protective film, 21 uncoiler, 22/42 covering tape, 23 mouthpiece, 24 cooling machine, 25 take-off machine, 26 cutting machine, 27 extrusion molding machine, 30 frame molding, 36 protrusion, 37 seal lip

Claims (2)

A long belt molding to be attached to a vehicle door,
The door panel has a body portion that is attached along a lower edge of a window opening of the door panel, a lip portion that elastically contacts the door panel when attached, and a covering portion that covers at least a part of an outer surface of the body portion on the vehicle exterior side,
the main body portion has an exterior side wall portion and an interior side wall portion opposed to each other, and a top wall portion connecting upper edges of the both side wall portions,
The lip portion protrudes downward from a lower edge of the vehicle exterior side wall portion,
The covering portion covers an outer surface of the vehicle exterior side wall portion and extends to an outer surface of the lip portion. A long molding member to be attached to a vehicle door,
The door cover includes a body portion that is attached to a door panel, a lip portion that elastically contacts the door panel when attached, and a covering portion that covers at least a portion of an outer surface of the body portion on an outer side of the vehicle,
the main body portion has an exterior side wall portion and an interior side wall portion opposed to each other, and a top wall portion connecting upper edges of the both side wall portions,
The lip portion protrudes downward from a lower edge of the vehicle exterior side wall portion,
The covering portion covers an outer surface of the vehicle exterior side wall portion and extends to an outer surface of the lip portion.

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