VEHICLE BODY COMPONENTS COMPRISING RETROREFLECTORS AND THEIR METHODS OF MANUFACTURE
A body component of a vehicle can comprise a first substrate formed of at least one non-conductive material and defining a back surface that defines a retroreflector geometry and a front surface that defines a different geometry than the retroreflector geometry, wherein the front surface of the first substrate is an exposed A-surface of the body component. The body component can further comprise a conductive layer formed of a conductive material and arranged adjacent to the back surface of the first layer, the conductive layer (i) also defining the retroreflector geometry and (ii) reflecting radar waves transmitted from a radar device of another vehicle.
1 . A body component of a vehicle, the body component comprising:
a first substrate formed of at least one non-conductive material and defining a back surface that defines a retroreflector geometry and a front surface that defines a different geometry than the retroreflector geometry, wherein the front surface of the first substrate is an exposed A-surface of the body component; and
a conductive layer formed of a conductive material and arranged adjacent to the back surface of the first layer, the conductive layer (i) also defining the retroreflector geometry and (ii) reflecting radar waves transmitted from a radar device of another vehicle.
2 . The body component of claim 1 , wherein an exposed surface of the conductive layer is an exposed B-surface of the body component.
3 . The body component of claim 2 , wherein the first substrate and the conductive layer collectively form a solid body.
4 . The body component of claim 3 , wherein the first substrate comprises both a substrate layer and a top coat layer each formed of one of the at least one non-conductive material.
5 . The body component of claim 4 , wherein at least one of the substrate layer and the top coat layer are opaque.
6 . The body component of claim 1 , further comprising a second substrate arranged adjacent to the conductive layer and defining an exposed back surface that is an exposed B-surface of the body component.
7 . The body component of claim 6 , wherein the first and second substrates and the conductive layer collectively form a solid body.
8 . The body component of claim 7 , wherein the first substrate comprises both a substrate layer and a top coat layer each formed of one of the at least one non-conductive material.
9 . The body component of claim 8 , wherein at least one of the substrate layer and the top coat layer are opaque.
10 . The body component of claim 1 , wherein the retroreflector geometry comprises a plurality of retroreflector units.
11 . The body component of claim 10 , wherein each retroreflector unit is a corner retroreflector defining a corner angle of approximately ninety degrees.
12 . The body component of claim 10 , wherein edges of the each retroreflector unit are rounded to at least one of (i) prevent radar signal scattering and (ii) prevent strong peaks in signal interference.
13 . The body component of claim 1 , wherein the conductive layer defines a curvature corresponding to a curvature of the body component.
14 . A body component for a vehicle, the body component comprising:
a first substrate formed of a first non-conductive material;
a conductive layer comprising a plurality of retroreflector units each formed of a conductive material, the plurality of retroreflector units collectively forming a retroreflector array configured to reflect radar waves transmitted from a radar device of another vehicle; and
at least one cover layer formed of at least a second non-conductive material and disposed on a front surface of the conductive layer.
15 . The body component of claim 14 , wherein each retroreflector unit is attached to a front surface of the first substrate or embedded therein.
16 . The body component of claim 14 , wherein the retroreflector array comprises at least two rows and at least two columns of retroreflector units.
17 . The body component of claim 14 , further comprising conductive traces connecting each retroreflector unit to another retroreflector unit.
18 . The body component of claim 17 , wherein the retroreflector array further comprises one or more modulation devices disposed along one or more of the conductive traces and configured to modulate the reflected radar waves.
19 . The body component of claim 18 , wherein the retroreflector array and the one or more modulation devices are configured to modulate the reflected radar waves to create a unique identifier that is recognizable to the other vehicle.
20 . The body component of claim 14 , wherein the conductive material is (i) a metal deposited by a metallic wet chemistry including one of chrome plating, metallic paint, and metallic spray, (ii) a metallic foil, or (iii) a metal applied through physical vapor deposition (PVD).
21 . The body component of claim 14 , wherein the conductive layer defines a curvature corresponding to a curvature of the body component.
22 . The body component of claim 14 , wherein the retroreflector array is configured as a Van Atta array.