Method for producing a drive cable holder for a vehicle roof and component for a vehicle roof

Abstract

A method for producing a drive cable holder for a vehicle roof, which may have the steps of providing a component for the vehicle roof; positioning the component in a moulding tool; providing a guide tube for a drive cable; positioning the guide tube in the moulding tool; introducing a plastic into the moulding tool such that the plastic completely radially surrounds the drive cable at least in sections and such that the plastic comes into contact with a surface of the component; and thereby forming the drive cable holder which is secured to the component.

Claims

1. A method for producing a drive cable holder for a vehicle roof, comprising: providing a component for the vehicle roof, positioning the component in a mold, providing a guide tube for a drive cable, positioning the guide tube in the mold, introducing a plastic into the mold such that the plastic completely radially surrounds the drive cable at least in some section or sections and such that the plastic comes into contact with a surface of the component, and thereby forming the drive cable holder, which is secured on the component.

2. The method according to claim 1, comprising: providing a holding element for holding the guide tube in the mold, removing the holding element after the introduction of the plastic, and thereby forming a free access to the guide tube at a position of the drive cable holder corresponding to the holding element.

3. The method according to claim 1, comprising: providing a mounting for a drive, positioning the mounting in the mold before the introduction of the plastic, introducing the plastic into the mold, with the result that the plastic holds the mounting when the drive cable holder is formed.

4. The method according to claim 1, comprising: forming a materially bonded connection between the plastic and the component for securing the drive cable holder on the component.

5. The method according to claim 1, comprising: providing a plurality of respective guide tubes for each drive cable, positioning the plurality of guide tubes in the mold at least partially in different planes, which are each spaced apart parallel to a main direction of extent of the guide tubes.

6. The method according to claim 5, comprising: positioning the plurality of guide tubes at least partially in overlap in the mold.

7. The method according to claim 1, comprising: providing the drive cable, inserting the drive cable into the guide tube after the formation of the drive cable holder.

8. The method according to claim 1, in which the formation of the drive cable holder comprises a foaming method.

9. A component for a vehicle roof, having a drive cable holder which has: a holding body composed of a plastic, a guide tube, wherein the guide tube is completely surrounded radially by the holding body, at least in some section or sections, and the holding body is formed integrally and is connected in a materially bonded manner to the component.

10. The component according to claim 9, having a mounting for a drive, which is held by the holding body.

11. The component according to claim 9, in which the holding body is of such flexible design that the drive cable holder has a head injury factor of less than 1500.

12. The component according to claim 9, having a plurality of guide tubes, wherein the guide tubes are arranged in the drive cable holder at least partially in different planes, which are each spaced apart parallel to a main direction of extent of the guide tubes.

13. The component according to claim 12, in which the guide tubes are arranged at least partially in overlap in the drive cable holder.

14. The component according to claim 9, which is a frame element for a roof opening of the vehicle roof.

Description

[0020] Further advantages, features and developments will become apparent from the following illustrative embodiments explained in conjunction with the figures. Elements that are identical, are of the same type or act in the same way may be provided with the same reference signs throughout the figures. In the drawings:

[0021] FIG. 1 shows a schematic illustration of a motor vehicle according to one illustrative embodiment,

[0022] FIG. 2 shows a schematic illustration of a component according to one illustrative embodiment,

[0023] FIG. 3 shows a schematic illustration of a drive cable holder according to one illustrative embodiment,

[0024] FIG. 4 shows a schematic illustration of a drive cable holder according to one illustrative embodiment,

[0025] FIG. 5 shows a schematic illustration of a cross section through a drive cable holder according to one illustrative embodiment, and

[0026] FIG. 6 shows a schematic illustration of production according to one illustrative embodiment.

[0027] FIG. 1 shows a motor vehicle having a vehicle roof 200. The vehicle roof has a roof opening 201, which can be closed by means of a cover 202. According to the illustrative embodiment, the cover 202 can be moved relative to the remainder of the vehicle roof 200, e.g. in the manner of a sliding roof. According to other embodiments, the cover 202 is what is referred to as a fixed roof element, which is coupled to the motor vehicle in such a way as to be immovable relative to the remainder of the vehicle roof 200.

[0028] Arranged on the roof opening 201 is a component 101, which, in particular, is a frame element. The frame with the component 110 is used to guide and hold the cover 202, for example. Alternatively or in addition, the frame with the component 110 is used to guide and hold a roller blind (not shown explicitly).

[0029] FIG. 2 shows the component 110 according to one illustrative embodiment. The component 110 has a drive cable holder 100. The drive cable holder 100 is foamed directly onto a surface 111 of the component 110. The drive cable holder 100 has a holding body 116 composed of plastic. The holding body 116 is formed from polyurethane, for example. The holding body 116 is connected in a materially bonded manner to the component 110.

[0030] The drive cable holder 100 has guide tubes 101, 102, 103. The guide tubes 101, 102, 103 are each designed to guide a drive cable 104 (FIG. 5). According to further illustrative embodiments, a larger or smaller number of guide tubes is provided.

[0031] The guide tubes 101, 102, 103 are each plastic tubes, for example. The guide tubes 101, 102, 103 are connected in a materially bonded manner to the holding body 116. The holding body 116 surrounds the guide tubes 101, 102, 103 completely in some section or sections in order to hold the guide tubes 101, 102, 103. Particularly transversely to a main direction of extent 115, the guide tubes 101, 102, 103 are each completely surrounded radially in some section or sections by the holding body 116.

[0032] In particular, the holding body 116 is formed from a foamed plastic 106 (FIG. 5). It is thus possible to dispense with plastic parts produced by injection molding. Owing to the fact that the guide tubes 101, 102, 103 are secured directly in the foamed plastic 106 of the holding body 116, the guide tubes 101, 102, 103 are held without having to be inserted into the holding body 116 subsequently. It is thus possible to dispense with construction aids for the subsequent insertion of the guide tubes. Thus, it is possible to achieve a smaller installation space requirement, and production and assembly involve less effort overall and are therefore more efficient.

[0033] The installation space required for the component 110 and the drive cable holder 100 is reduced. Thus, visibility in the case of a transparent cover 202 is increased. The area occupied by the component 110 within the roof opening 201 is reduced.

[0034] The guide tubes 101, 102, 103 can be arranged offset transversely to the main direction of extent 115 (FIG. 5). Moreover, it is possible to arrange the guide tubes 101, 102, 103 at a short distance from one another, in overlap and/or crossing over one another. It is thus possible to arrange a multiplicity of guide tubes 101, 102, 103 close together and one above the other and, at the same time, to achieve flexible scope for design. Here, the holding body 116 provides adequate support to the guide tubes 101, 102, 103 after the curing of the plastic 106, and therefore reliable guidance of the drive cables 104 is possible in operation. Tensile and/or compressive forces are reliably supported.

[0035] In particular, the holding body 116 is not produced by means of an injection molding method, in which relatively high internal pressures prevail in the mold. The relatively high internal pressures would lead to the relatively thin-walled guide tubes 101, 102, 103 yielding and being deformed. The holding body 116 is produced by means of a foaming method, in which relatively low pressures of up to no more than 6 bar prevail in a mold 105 (FIG. 6). During the foaming of the components in the mold 105, the plastic 106 spreads out in such a way that it surrounds the guide tubes 101, 102, 103 to a sufficient extent to hold said tubes. In this case, it is also possible to arrange three, four or more tubes one above the other with a small spacing since the plastic can also surround such geometries by means of the foaming. All that is required is for the guide tubes 101, 102, 103 to be held at a small number of points in the mold 105 during the foaming process. In the remaining regions, the plastic 106 completely surrounds the guide tubes 101, 102, 103 radially after curing.

[0036] It is thus possible, with a relatively low processing pressure, to enclose thin-walled guide tubes 101, 102, 103 lying one above the other over the entire surface and to connect them to one another. By virtue of the fact that they are surrounded by the plastic 106 over almost the entire surface, the guide tubes 101, 102, 103 are prevented from buckling under load. It is possible to achieve a relatively very small installation space requirement for a plurality of guide tubes 101, 102, 103 lying close together and/or one above the other.

[0037] FIG. 3 shows the drive cable holder 100 as an independent component element. In FIG. 3, the drive cable holder 100 is illustrated without the component 110. By way of example, the drive cable holder 100 is produced as a separate component in the mold 105 and only subsequently secured on the component 110. For this purpose, corresponding fastening tabs are provided on the drive cable holder 100 and, in particular, on the holding body 116.

[0038] FIG. 4 shows the drive cable holder 100 according to another illustrative embodiment. The drive cable holder 100 has mountings 109. The mountings 109 are used, in particular, for securing a drive or a plurality of drives on the drive cable holder 100. The mountings 109 are connected, in particular in a materially bonded manner, to the holding body 116. It is thus possible, for example, to mold the drive cable holder 100, with the mounting 109 and the guide tubes 101, 102, 103, directly to the component 110.

[0039] In particular, the drive is an electric drive and, for example, has an electric motor. In the state ready for operation, the electric motor is in engagement with the drive cable 104, thus enabling the drive to move the drive cables 104 relative to the corresponding guide tube 101, 102, 103 along the main direction of extent 115.

[0040] FIG. 5 shows a cross section transversely to the main direction of extent 115 of the drive cable holder 100 according to one illustrative embodiment. The guide tubes 101, 102, 103 are arranged offset relative to one another along a Z direction. By way of example, the Z direction is arranged transversely to the main direction of extent 115 and, in the normal operating position, corresponds to the vertical. By way of example, some section or sections of the guide tube 102 in the illustrative embodiment is/are arranged in a plane 112 in the normal operating position closest to the bottom. At least some section or sections of guide tube 101 is/are arranged in a plane 113 which is at a distance from plane 112 along the Z direction. At least some section or sections of guide tube 103 is/are arranged in a plane 114 which is at a distance from plane 113 and from plane 112 along the Z direction.

[0041] In the mold 105, the guide tubes 101, 102, 103 are each held at certain points by holding elements 107 (FIG. 6). In the finished holding body 116, free accesses 108 to the guide tubes 101, 102, 103 are formed at the points which correspond to the positions of the holding elements 107. However, these are formed in only a small proportion of the guide tubes 101, 102, 103, and therefore sufficient support of the guide tubes 101, 102, 103 is provided by the holding body 116.

[0042] According to illustrative embodiments, inserts composed, for example, of metal or other rigid materials can be foamed into the holding body 116 at the same time. Thus, for example, stabilization of the holding body 116 is possible. Moreover, it is possible, by means of the inserts, to achieve a necessary pressure resistance and creep resistance at predetermined points.

[0043] The holding body 116, especially when composed of the plastic foam, is of such flexible and energy-absorbing design that the foam body of the holding body 116 is effective as an absorber for the achievement of predetermined head impact values (HIC) in the region of the vehicle roof 200 and especially in the region of the component 201. Thus, the otherwise necessary additional absorber components can be omitted, thereby making it possible to avoid additional component costs and assembly costs.

[0044] FIG. 6 shows a schematic illustration of the mold 105 according to one illustrative embodiment. The component 110 is inserted into the mold 105 together with the guide tube 102 and optionally further guide tubes. The guide tube 102 is held in a predetermined position relative to the component 110 by the holding elements 107. The inner walls of the mold 105 have the shape which the holding body 116 is subsequently supposed to have. According to further embodiments, further elements, such as inserts and/or the mounting 109 or a plurality of mountings 109, are inserted into the mold 105. The plastic to be foamed, which is composed of a plurality of components for example, is then introduced into the mold 105. In particular, the plastic 106 is introduced into the mold 105 at a slight pressure of less than 10 bar, in particular less at a pressure of between 1 bar and 6 bar. There, the components react and foam to form polyurethane. During this process, the plastic 106 expands in such a way that it surrounds the guide tube 102 and forms the materially bonded connection with the component 110, in particular at the surface 111.

[0045] It is thus possible, with a relatively low processing pressure, to enclose thin-walled guide tubes 101, 102, 103 lying one above the other over the entire surface and to connect them to one another. By means of the direct foaming of the drive cable holder 100 on the component 110, low cost production and a high degree of integration are made possible.

REFERENCE SIGNS

[0046] 100 drive cable holder [0047] 101, 102, 103 guide tube [0048] 104 drive cable [0049] 105 mold [0050] 106 plastic [0051] 107 holding element [0052] 108 access [0053] 109 mounting [0054] 110 component [0055] 111 surface [0056] 112, 113, 114 plane [0057] 115 main direction of extent [0058] 116 holding body [0059] 200 vehicle roof [0060] 201 roof opening [0061] 202 cover