Ultrasonic additive manufacturing of box-like parts

Abstract

Ultrasonic additive manufacturing (UAM) of surface members for a box-like part such as a crash structure or load-bearing structure in a vehicle is disclosed. In one aspect of the disclosure, a method for building a box-like part includes 3-D printing separately, using UAM, the one or more flat surface members in a horizontal plane relative to a print substrate. The method further includes assembling together the surface members at or proximate respective edges thereof to form the box-like part. In some embodiments, protrusions and other features are added to the surface members. In embodiments involving crash structures, trenches are machined into the inner surfaces to enable tailored deformation of the crash structure during an impact event.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.