Molded automobile headliner

A vehicle headliner adapted to be mounted adjacent a vehicle roof so as to underlie the roof and shield the same from view, and characterized by being of a highly deformable, resilient construction to facilitate installation in the vehicle and by providing excellent sound absorption properties, said headliner comprising a panel formed of a batt of polymeric fibers compressed and molded into a predetermined contoured concave shape of varying thickness, and having an elastic memory of the molded shape, the polymeric fibers of said batt comprising a blend of relatively high melting thermoplastic polymer fibers and relatively low melting potentially adhesive thermoplastic binder fibers forming a multiplicity of fiber-to-fiber bonds at the fiber intersections to impart to the panel self-supporting molded rigidity to allow the headliner to retain its shape in the installed condition in the vehicle yet rendering the panel highly deformable and resilient to allow it to be flexed or bent during installation and to thereafter resiliently recover to its original molded shape.

A vehicle headliner adapted to be mounted adjacent a vehicle roof so as to underlie the roof and shield the said from view, and characterized by being of a highly deformable, resilient construction to facilitate installation in the vehicle and by providing excellent sound absorption properties, said headliner comprising a panel formed of a batt of polymeric fibers compressed and molded into a predetermined contoured concave shape of varying thickness, and having an elastic memory of the molded shape, the polymeric fibers of said batt having a denier per filament of 3 to 20 and comprising about 20 to 100 percent sheath-core composite fibers having a core component formed of a reaatively high melting polymer and a sheath component polymer formed of a relatively low melting thermoplastic binder polymer forming multiplicity of fiber-to-fiber bonds at the fiber intersections to impart to the panel a self-supporting molded rigidity to allow the headliner to retain its shape in the installed condition in the vehicle yet rendering the panel highly deformable and resilient to allow it to be flexed or bent during installation and to thereafter resiliently recover to its original molded shape.

A vehicle headliner adapted to be mounted adjacent a vehicle roof so as to underlie the roof and shield the same from view, and characterized by being of a highly deformable, resilient construction to facilitate installation in the vehicle and by providing excellent sound absorption properties, said headliner comprising a panel formed of a batt of polymeric fibers compressed and molded into a predetermined contoured concave shape of varying thickness, and having an elastic memory of the molded shape, the polymeric fibers of said batt comprising a blend of relatively high melting thermoplastic polymer fibers and relatively low melting potentially adhesive thermoplastic binder fibers forming a multiplicity of fiber-to-fiber bonds at the fiber intersections to impart to the panel a self-supporting molded rigidity to allow the headliner to retain its shape in the installed condition in the vehicle yet rendering the panel highly deformable and resilient to allow it to be flexed or bent during installation and to thereafter resiliently recover to its original molded shape;

• a thin layer of foam overlying the interior surface of said molded batt of fibers;
• and a fabric layer overlying said foam layer and forming the exposed interior surface of the headliner.

A vehicle headliner adapted to be mounted adjacent vehicle roof so as to underlie the roof and shield the same from view, and characterized by being of a highly deformable, resilient construction to facilitate installation in the vehicle and by providing excellent sound absorption properties, said headliner comprising a panel of a generally rectangular configuration and of a contoured, concave shape, said panel having a substantially smooth lower surface and having an upper surface with recesses formed therein for receiving structural members of the vehicle roof, and said panel having opposing generally parallel side edges of tapered thickness adapted to extend along the sides of the vehicle roof and to be engaged by automotive body trim for holding the headliner in its installed position, and wherein said panel is formed of a batt of polymeric fibers compressed and molded into a predetermined contoured concave shape, and having an elastic memory of the molded shape, the fibers of said batt being bonded together at a multiplicity of locations to impart to the panel a self-supporting molded rigidity to allow the headliner to retain its shape in the installed condition in the vehicle yet rendering the panel highly deformable and resilient to allow it to be flexed or bent during installation and to thereafter resiliently recover to its original shape.

A vehicle having a roof, and in combination therewith, a vehicle headliner mounted adjacent said vehicle roof so as to underlie the roof and shield the same from view, and characterized by said headliner being of a highly deformable, resilient construction to facilitate installation in the vehicle and by providing excellent sound absorption properties, said headliner comprising a panel formed of a batt of polymeric fibers compressed and molded into a predetermined contoured concave shape, and having an elastic memory of the molded shape, the fibers of said batt being bonded together at a multiplicity of locations to impart to the panel a self-supporting molded rigidity to allow the headliner to retain its shape in the installed condition in the vehicle yet rendering the panel highly deformable and resilient to allow it to be flexed or bent during installation and to thereafter resiliently recover to its original molded shape.

A method of installing a vehicle headliner in a vehicle which comprises providing a relatively flat deformable and resilient headliner of a configuration adapted to be mounted adjacent the interior of a vehicle roof, flexing the headliner into a more compact configuration and maintaining the headliner in said configuration while inserting the thus flexed headliner through a window opening into the interior of the vehicle, releasing the headliner and allowing it to recover to its original opened and relatively flat configuration;

• and securing the headliner to the vehicle.