Patent Application Trends of CFRP Used in Automobiles
Patent applications related to resin materials and forming technology: Toray, Teijin, and others
2022/03/10
- Summary
- Patent application trends of CFRP for automobiles
- Example of press forming of thermosetting resin (Toray Industries, Inc., Laid-open Japanese Patent No. 2021-155513)
- Example of RTM for thermosetting resin (Toray Industries, Inc., Laid-open Japanese Patent No. 2021-74954)
- Example of injection molding of thermosetting resin (Gazette of Suzhou Hongyi Weilan New Material Tech (China), CN112873714A)
- Examples of thermoplastic resin press forming (Maruhachi Holdings Co., Ltd., Laid-open Japanese Patent No. 2021-178882)
- Example of thermoplastic resin RTM (Teijin Limited, Laid-open Japanese Patent No. 2020-164672)
- Example of CFRTP (thermoplastic resin) injection molding (Toray Industries, Inc., Laid-open Japanese Patent No. 2020-164785)
Summary
This report created by MarkLines focuses on a number of recent technical topics surrounding the automotive industry and is based on patent information from the “Technology Information Distribution Service - swimy” obtained by the Toyota Technical Development Corporation (TTDC). The two business areas of TTDC are in the fields of intellectual property and measurement control solutions. The intellectual property (IP) side of TTDC is involved in the collection and analysis of information on automotive technology developments globally, and provides services such as consulting for research planning, applying for patents in foreign languages, and technical translation.
CFRP (Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic) is a strong, light, and corrosion-resistant material that is often used in automotive parts to reduce weight.
In recent years, in the midst of all the attention paid to SDGs (sustainable development goals), manufacturers have been working to improve the fuel efficiency and power consumption of automobiles (power consumption rate in vehicles such as electric vehicles and electric motorcycles), and this material is attracting attention as a lightweight solution.
CFRPs can be broadly divided into two categories: those in which thermosetting resin is used and those in which thermoplastic resin is used. Those in which thermoplastic resins are used are called CFRTP (Carbon Fiber Reinforced Thermoplastics), and compared to CFRP have the characteristics of being easier to mold and to perform secondary processing.
Regarding CFRP molding methods, this report will focus on press forming, injection molding, and *Resin Transfer Molding (RTM).
| Press forming | : | A forming method in which an intermediate base material such as prepreg is placed in a mold and cured while pressure is applied by a press machine. |
| Injection molding | : | Pellets mixed with thermoplastic resin and carbon fiber cut into short pieces are heated and melted, injected into a mold, and then cooled and cured. |
| RTM | : | A molding method in which a carbon fiber base material (an intermediate base material such as a fabric) is placed in a mold and then resin is injected and cured. |
This report will explore the trends of patent applications related to CFRP used in automobiles, focusing on materials and forming methods, as well as the major applicants for each technology.
Source: Technical information distribution service - swimy URL: https://ip.toyota-td.jp/en/service6/
This source (TTDC) has extensive content related to automobiles. Graphs can be created for contents of interest with a single click. The database also supports the detailed display and download of intellectual property related information.
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