HEMLESS A-CLASS PANEL JOINING FOR VEHICLE BODY CONSTRUCTION

Methods and systems are disclosed for joining A-class panels with a body of a vehicle without the use of hemming. Vehicle outer panels are bonded to the vehicle structure (whether body structure or door/liftgate/hood structure) via an inductively cured adhesive joint. The process enables the body in white to be painted one color thereby minimizing painting costs and reducing any process risks. It also enables the outer panels to be painted separately and efficiently which increases throughput. The present disclosure does not require hemming at all. The present disclosure does not require spot-welds. A specialized structural epoxy adhesive filled with glass beads is laid onto the inner panel. The outer panel is then mounted onto the inner panel whereby the glass beads control the gap. The fixture used for this process incorporates an automated arm which swings the induction curing equipment over the outer panel to a precise gap.