US 8,524,351 B2 · Composite panel

Abstract

A door panel 1 has a peripheral frame 10 of extruded aluminum and a honeycomb core of plastics material tubes 11. An outer skin 2 of fiber-reinforced polyetherimide material is recessed with a pattern 3 formed in a preliminary operation of vacuum/pressure forming at elevated temperature. An inner skin 4 is plane. Edge channel members 5 of similarly formed, but thicker material are arranged around the edges of the door, enclosing the aluminum frame. A non-woven, polyester based scrim 6 extends across either side of the core and over the flanges 7 of the edge channels. For bonding of the core, skin and edge channels together, the assembly is placed in a jig and compressed at elevated temperature in a heated press. The core is crushed at the recessed pattern 3 and the scrim melts and acts as a hot melt adhesive. On cooling of the press platens, the assembled door is removed from the jig.

Claims17

Dependent claims

A composite panel having:

two skin laminae of reinforced polymer material;
a polymer honeycomb core;
at least one local reinforcement;
wherein the local reinforcement is:
i) bonded inside of at least one of the skin laminae to at least one of the skin laminae and the core;
ii) made up of a plurality of stacked pieces of laminar material bonded to each other;
and ii) formed at an elevated temperature vacuum/pressure;
one or more metal anchorage members internal to the panel and at least partially surrounded by, and located in, the panel by said local reinforcement, and in which at least one of the one or more metal anchorage members does not contact either of the two skin laminae.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Composite panel

Life of this patent

Composite panel

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims17