Forming vehicle body models and other objects
AssigneeToyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.
InventorMatthew James Mahaffy
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A computer-implemented method for rapidly forming a vehicle body model includes identifying a vehicle design using a computer. Sectioning data is determined by sectioning the vehicle design into multiple virtual sections using a design program implemented on the computer. The sectioning data is used by a machine to form multiple modeling sections that correspond to the multiple virtual sections. The multiple modeling sections are nested together to form the vehicle body model. The multiple modeling sections are fixed together once the vehicle body model is formed.
Claims18
A computer-implemented method for rapidly forming a vehicle body model, the method comprising:
- (a) identifying a vehicle design using a computer;
- (b) determining sectioning data by sectioning the vehicle design into multiple virtual sections using a design program implemented on the computer;
- (c) determining glue channel location information using the design program;
- (d) providing a block of modeling material to a machine configured for machining the block;
- (e) the machine using the sectioning data determined in step (b) to machine the block into a modeling section corresponding to at least one of the virtual sections;
- (f) repeating steps (d) and (e) for each of the virtual sections;
- and
- (g) assembling the modeling sections formed in steps (e) and (f) to form the vehicle body model.
A computer-implemented method for rapidly forming a vehicle body model, the method comprising:
- (a) identifying a vehicle design using a computer;
- (b) determining sectioning data by sectioning the vehicle design into multiple virtual sections using a design program implemented on the computer;
- (c) determining dowel hole location information using the design program;
- (d) providing a block of modeling material to a machine configured for machining the block;
- (e) the machine using the sectioning data determined in step (b) to machine the block into a modeling section corresponding to at least one of the virtual sections;
- (f) repeating steps (d) and (e) for each of the virtual sections;
- and
- (g) assembling the modeling sections formed in step (e) to form the vehicle body model.
A computer-implemented method for rapidly forming a vehicle body model, the method comprising:
- identifying a vehicle design using a computer;
- determining sectioning data by sectioning the vehicle design into multiple virtual sections using a design program implemented on the computer and determining glue channel location information using the design program implemented on the computer, the sectioning data and the glue channel location information being used by a machine to form multiple modeling sections that correspond to the multiple virtual sections;
- nesting the multiple modeling sections together to form the vehicle body model;
- and
- fixing the multiple modeling sections together once the vehicle body model is formed.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.