Structural Reinforcements for Automotive Applications

The use of adhesively bonded localized reinforcements is a relatively new concept in the automotive industry. Although use of this reinforcement method is in its early stages, these reinforcements are now used for a variety of applications in the automotive industry for improvements in crash worthiness, fatigue resistance, and NVH characteristics. This approach can provide relatively fast, easy, non-intrusive, and cost effective solutions for OEM's when compared to traditional reinforcement methods. Also, overall weight can be reduced simultaneously since the reinforcement is placed only where needed instead of filling an entire section with foam or changing the metal thickness along an entire body member. Materials and concepts have been developed that can be used to improve the structural stiffness and the resulting NVH performance of the vehicle. This paper will discuss the use of localized reinforcements including materials, applications, and potential uses and benefits.