Reinforced composite inner roof panel of the cellular core sandwich-type and method of making same

#1. Field of the Invention

#The present invention relates generally to an inner roof panel for a removable hardtop for a vehicle that is made with a sandwich-type composite structure having a cellular core and, in particular, to such an inner roof panel that is formed with varied thicknesses being provided in selected areas for special purposes.

#2. Background Art

#FIG. 1 is a fragmentary side elevation view of a vehicle having a removable hardtop;

#FIG. 2 is a simplified exploded view of a removable roof having an outer roof panel, an inner roof panel and a headliner;

#FIG. 3 is a side schematic view of a stack of layers of an inner roof panel of the present invention wherein the top layer is partially removed;

#Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, a removable roof assembly 10 is shown that includes an outer roof panel 12 and a molded inner roof panel 14 that are secured together. A headliner 16 is preferably clipped, fastened, or bonded to the inner roof panel 14 on the opposite side from the outer roof panel 12. The roof assembly 10 is adapted to be secured to a convertible vehicle 20. Vehicle 20 includes a door 22 that provides ingress and egress to the front seat (not shown) of the vehicle 20. It should be understood that the present invention may be used with either two-door or four-door vehicles.

#The following description and the drawings illustrate the component parts for the left side but does not in every instance describe or illustrate the corresponding right side parts for clarity and brevity. It should be understood that the right side includes mirror image parts corresponding to the left side parts described. When reference is made to a side part it should be understood that both right and left sides are generally provided in the completed assembly.

#Referring to FIG. 1, vehicle 20 including the roof assembly 10 is shown to illustrate the environment of the roof assembly of the present invention. The door 22 of the vehicle 20 is connected by a hinge to the A pillar 24 of the vehicle 20 rearward of the windshield 26. The windshield 26 includes a header 28 to which the roof assembly 10 is joined as will be more particularly described below. The vehicle also includes a B pillar 30 that terminates at the belt line 32 of the vehicle.