Carpet and method of attachment

Abstract

An improved carpet, an improved method of making a carpet, and an improved method of attaching a carpet to a motor vehicle door trim panel. The improved carpet comprises an outer woven polypropylene pile layer, an inner nonwoven polypropylene layer, and a central intermediate recycled rubber layer. The carpet is formed by extruding a melted mixture of rubber and polypropylene particles to form a hot central sheet and thereafter adhering a woven polypropylene layer to the upper face of the hot sheet and a nonwoven polypropylene layer to the lower face of the hot sheet. Carpet is attached to the lower portion of a door trim panel of a motor vehicle by heating the lower portion of the door trim panel with hot air until the panel is tacky and thereafter pressing the invention carpet downwardly against the tacky surface of the door trim panel to form a firm welded marriage as between the carpet and the panel. Alternatively, the marriage of the carpet and panel may be achieved by ultrasonic energy applied through the door trim panel to the interface between the door trim panel and the carpet.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.