Patents by Inventor Todd Tjoelker

Todd Tjoelker has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Side panel for a motor vehicle, and method of making such a side panel
    Patent number: 7396072
    Abstract: A side panel for a motor vehicle includes a bottom sill member, a roof panel portion, and a plurality of pillars extending between the sill member and the roof panel portion. The sill member forms with the pillars and the roof panel portion a single-piece structure from a sheet metal blank made of high-strength steel and has at least one region which is partly hardened and subject to increased load in the event of a crash of the motor vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2008
    Assignee: Benteler Automobiltechnik GmbH
    Inventors: Jochem Fischer, Sven Druhmann, Todd Tjoelker, Werner Böhmer
  • Side panel for a motor vehicle, and method of making such a side panel
    Publication number: 20060097549
    Abstract: A side panel for a motor vehicle includes a bottom sill member, a roof panel portion, and a plurality of pillars extending between the sill member and the roof panel portion. The sill member forms with the pillars and the roof panel portion a single-piece structure from a sheet metal blank made of high-strength steel and has at least one region which is partly hardened and subject to increased load in the event of a crash of the motor vehicle.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 25, 2005
    Publication date: May 11, 2006
    Applicant: Benteler Automobiltechnik GmbH
    Inventors: Jochem Fischer, Sven Druhmann, Todd Tjoelker, Werner Bohmer
  • Heat treatment strategically strengthened door beam
    Publication number: 20050081479
    Abstract: A method of forming a vehicle component, particularly an elongated impact beam, having an open section structure, in a manner to provide predetermined strategically strengthened portions, comprising the steps of cold forming unhardened steel into a workpiece having mounting surfaces, selectively fixturing the mounting surfaces, static induction heating the workpiece with lengthwise surface eddy currents on selected portions, followed by quenching of the fixtured heated workpiece to form strengthened portions, and unfixturing the resulting component. Also disclosed is apparatus to accomplish this, and the resulting novel vehicle component.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 14, 2004
    Publication date: April 21, 2005
    Inventors: Todd Tjoelker, John Bowman, Alessandro Libriani, Joseph Kollaritsch