Classifications

• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F42—AMMUNITION; BLASTING
  • F42B—EXPLOSIVE CHARGES, e.g. FOR BLASTING, FIREWORKS, AMMUNITION
  • F42B3/00—Blasting cartridges, i.e. case and explosive
  • F42B3/006—Explosive bolts; Explosive actuators
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60R—VEHICLES, VEHICLE FITTINGS, OR VEHICLE PARTS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • B60R21/00—Arrangements or fittings on vehicles for protecting or preventing injuries to occupants or pedestrians in case of accidents or other traffic risks
  • B60R21/01—Electrical circuits for triggering passive safety arrangements, e.g. airbags, safety belt tighteners, in case of vehicle accidents or impending vehicle accidents
  • B60R21/017—Electrical circuits for triggering passive safety arrangements, e.g. airbags, safety belt tighteners, in case of vehicle accidents or impending vehicle accidents including arrangements for providing electric power to safety arrangements or their actuating means, e.g. to pyrotechnic fuses or electro-mechanic valves
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F15—FLUID-PRESSURE ACTUATORS; HYDRAULICS OR PNEUMATICS IN GENERAL
  • F15B—SYSTEMS ACTING BY MEANS OF FLUIDS IN GENERAL; FLUID-PRESSURE ACTUATORS, e.g. SERVOMOTORS; DETAILS OF FLUID-PRESSURE SYSTEMS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • F15B15/00—Fluid-actuated devices for displacing a member from one position to another; Gearing associated therewith
  • F15B15/19—Pyrotechnical actuators
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60R—VEHICLES, VEHICLE FITTINGS, OR VEHICLE PARTS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • B60R21/00—Arrangements or fittings on vehicles for protecting or preventing injuries to occupants or pedestrians in case of accidents or other traffic risks
  • B60R21/02—Occupant safety arrangements or fittings, e.g. crash pads
  • B60R21/16—Inflatable occupant restraints or confinements designed to inflate upon impact or impending impact, e.g. air bags
  • B60R21/26—Inflatable occupant restraints or confinements designed to inflate upon impact or impending impact, e.g. air bags characterised by the inflation fluid source or means to control inflation fluid flow
  • B60R2021/26029—Ignitors

Definitions

• the present invention relates to the field of actuators.
• the object of the present invention is to propose an actuator capable of exhibiting a controlled modular effect.
• each impeller comprises a plate which carries an electrical resistance and a pyrotechnic composition arranged close to the resistance so that the pyrotechnic composition is initiated during the heating of the resistance resulting from the passage of a electric current in the resistor.
• the plate is common to all of the micro-impellers.
• control means is adapted to control one of the parameters chosen from the group comprising: a speed, a pressure, a flow rate, a time, a resistance over time, a temperature, successive pulses possibly offset in time, safety redundancy, repetitive movement ...
• FIG. 1 represents a schematic sectional view of an actuator according to an alternative embodiment of the present invention
• FIGS. 2 and 3 represent two diagrams of electrical supply devices capable of ensuring a safety function
• FIGS. 4 and 5 show sectional views of two variants of impellers for actuators in accordance with the present invention.
• FIGS. 6 and 7 show sectional views of systems respectively forming a cutting member and a cylinder, according to the present invention.
• the actuator according to the present invention comprises a matrix of micro-impellers 100 preferably formed by stacking different plates: for example an intermediate plate 1 10 having a plurality of parallel wells 1 12 capable of containing a pyrotechnic composition 120, a plate closure 1 14 attached to the base of the intermediate plate 1 10 to close the bottom of the wells 1 12 and a cover plate 1 16 disposed on the top of the intermediate plate 1 10 to close the second end of the wells 1 12.
• the wall thickness between the different wells 1 12 must be sufficient to avoid inadvertent propagation of the initiation, by thermal effect, from one well to another.
• one or the other of the two plates 114, 116 can be made in one piece with the so-called intermediate plate 110.
• the cover plate 1 16 carries a series of resistors 130 disposed respectively opposite one of the wells 112.
• the plate 116 must have, opposite the wells 1 12, a sufficiently thin thickness, in the form of a membrane, so that this plate 116 can be broken during the implementation of the associated composition 120.
• the micro-impeller matrix 100 is placed in a housing 150.
• a housing 150 This can be the subject of numerous embodiments.
• the box 150 is formed by assembling a cover 160 and a base 170.
• the actuator according to the present invention further comprises a means for controlling the implementation of these micro-impellers, capable of generating a specific desired effect, by controlling the successive supply of the resistors 130.
• the control means can be placed outside the housing 150 or inside it, for example on one of the plates 110, 114 or 116, preferably on the cover plate 116.
• the control means can be the subject of numerous embodiments, for example in the form of an ASIC circuit. To allow specific implementation of each resistor 130 on demand, of course the resistors 130 do not have to be all connected in parallel. On the contrary the resistors 130 must be connected to the control circuit via a network of connections allowing a specific addressing on each resistor 130, of an initiation signal.
• Plates 110, 114 and 116 can also be the subject of numerous embodiments. They are preferably produced by machining silicon or ceramic plates. Such a technique allows a high mass production rate.
• the pyrotechnic composition 120 can be the subject of numerous variants. According to a preferred embodiment, the composition 120 is formed of propellant. Furthermore, as can be seen in particular in FIG. 4, if necessary each impeller can be equipped with a primary pyrotechnic composition 122 interposed respectively between the resistor 130 and the associated main composition 120.
• This primary composition 122 is preferably placed in a housing formed in the cover plate 116.
• the control means is preferably provided with a safety circuit 200 capable of preventing inadvertent supply of the resistors 130.
• the circuit 200 illustrated in FIG. 2 comprises a voltage regulator 210
• a HF power supply converter 212 interposed between a power source and the resistors 130, a clipper 214 arranged between a power supply line and an ignition line equipped with a trigger system 216 which controls the application of an electrical voltage to the resistors 130.
• the circuit 200 illustrated in FIG. 3 comprises on a supply line, a voltage regulator 210, for example in the form of a zener diode, a narrow band pass filter 219 tuned to the modulation of the arming circuit, a demodulator 220, an energy discharge resistor 222, an energy storage capacity 224 and a network of switches 226.
• the circuit also includes a clipper 214 and a secure ignition circuit 216 which controls the network of switches 226.
• the number of impellers fitted to an actuator in accordance with the present invention is in no way limited and can go up to several hundred.
• control means ensures the desired effect, for example maintaining at a constant value or according to a predetermined evolution law of a parameter such as for example: a speed, pressure, flow, time, resistance over time, temperature.
• the actuator according to the present invention can give rise to numerous applications. It can be used for example to control the inflation of a structure, in particular in the form of progressive inflation, or also to ensure mechanical movement, for example of micro-tools, such as jacks, pistons, disconnectors or organs of cuts, especially of wires or various parts, or even interrupt an electric current, or another fluid, or control a valve.
• micro-tools such as jacks, pistons, disconnectors or organs of cuts, especially of wires or various parts, or even interrupt an electric current, or another fluid, or control a valve.
• FIG. 1 a device comprising a tool holder 300 mounted in translation in a barrel 162 of the cover 160.
• the tool holder 300 is moved during the release of gas under pressure resulting from the implementation of the composition 120, after rupture of the membranes formed in the plate 1 16.
• the element 300 corresponding to the mobile tool holder could be fixed integral with the housing 150, the housing 150 comprising at least one valve or the element 300 being perforated to form a generator for gas.
• electrical supply contacts 10 pass through the base 170 and are connected to the network of connecting tracks or to the control circuit provided on the plate 116, by means of wires 20.
• FIG. 4 represents a gas generator actuator comprising a primary composition 122 placed in a convergent of the cover plate
• a plate 117 of SiO2 carrying the resistor 130 is interposed between the plates 118 and 116.
• FIG. 5 represents an actuator comprising a base plate 140, for example made of ceramic, and a layer of insulating varnish 142 joined against a plate 1 16 carrying the resistors 130 facing diverging points housing a pyrotechnic composition 122.
• FIG. 6 represents a sectioning device comprising a punch 310 guided in translation in a housing and actuated by the matrix of micro-actuators 100.
• FIG. 7 shows a device of the jack type comprising a piston 320 guided in translation in a housing and actuated by the matrix of micro-actuators 100.
• the control circuit can be controlled in counter-reaction by a sensor sensitive to the desired parameter, for example the pressure or the displacement stroke in the case of FIGS. 5 and 6.
• a secure circuit is associated respectively with each resistor 130, close to the latter, on the silicon support substrate 1 14.
• the present invention is not limited to the embodiments particular which have just been described, but extends to all variants in accordance with its spirit.
• the present invention makes it possible in particular to produce devices ensuring a redundancy function therefore a good reliability, not bulky, light and consuming little energy.
• each impeller according to the present invention typically has dimensions less than mm.
• the present invention also applies to pyromechanisms of conventional size or the replacement of the igniter with its reinforcing charge by a micro-impeller plate described above, makes it possible to provide intelligence in operation and micro-redundancy to such a pyromechanism.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Analytical Chemistry (AREA)
• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Fluid Mechanics (AREA)
• Micromachines (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=8851948

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (5)

Families Citing this family (12)

Family Cites Families (8)

• 2000
  • 2000-06-30 FR FR0008501A patent/FR2811036B1/fr not_active Expired - Fee Related
• 2001
  • 2001-06-28 WO PCT/FR2001/002060 patent/WO2002001078A1/fr not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2001-06-28 EP EP01949562A patent/EP1295043A1/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2001-06-28 AU AU2001270692A patent/AU2001270692A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2001-06-28 US US10/312,647 patent/US20040031259A1/en not_active Abandoned

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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