JP2001260796A - Automobile occupant head crash protection device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide such a head protection device that a bag for protecting the head of an automobile occupant is inflated downwards along a side door without leaving the side door. SOLUTION: The bag 1 is disposed along the upper side of an automobile door from an A-pillar 20 to a C-pillar 22 and can be inflated by an inflator 2. A guide rail 30 is vertically extended along a B-pillar 21 and the flap 10 of the bag 1 is connected to the slider 31 of the guide rail 30. Upon inflation of the bag 1, the flap 10 widens downwards as it is guided along the guide rail 30.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a protection device for a vehicle occupant's head, and more particularly to a protection device having a bag which expands along a side door or the like in the event of a side collision or rollover of a vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A vehicle occupant head protection device of this type is described in WO 96/26087 and is shown in particular in its FIG. 1 and FIG. In this known bag, the vacant space includes a duct portion extending from the front end (front end) of the bag to the rear end (rear end) of the vehicle along the upper edge of the bag. , A plurality of cell parts connected to the duct part and extending downward. Gas from the inflator is introduced into the cell portion through the duct portion, whereby the bag expands downward along the side door or the like.

[0003]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a protection device for a vehicle occupant head in which a bag inflates downward immediately in the vicinity thereof without leaving a side door or the like.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A protection device for a vehicle occupant head according to the present invention is disposed near an intersection between a ceiling portion and a side portion of a vehicle interior, and is provided along the side portion by gas introduced. In a vehicle occupant head protection device having a bag that inflates downward and an inflator that supplies gas into the bag, a guide member is provided on a pillar of the vehicle, and the guide member is attached to the guide member when the bag is inflated. It is characterized by being guided. Preferably, the guide member is a guide rail, and a slider slidable along the guide rail is provided, and the bag is connected to the slider. Preferably, the lower end of the bag is connected to the slider.

According to the protection device for the head of an automobile occupant, the bag is guided by the guide member and inflates downward along the immediate vicinity without leaving the side door or the like.

In the present invention, it is preferable that a guide rail is provided obliquely on a lower edge of the inflated bag so as to generate tension in a direction along the lower edge.

In the present invention, a guide member may be provided on only one pillar, or a guide member may be provided on two or more pillars.

[0008]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view showing the interior of an automobile equipped with a protection device for a vehicle occupant head according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a side view showing a bag and an inflator of the protection device, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line III-III of FIG. 4, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the guide rail.

This protection device for a vehicle occupant's head is provided with a bag 1 disposed near a crossing corner between a ceiling portion and a side portion of a vehicle interior, and an inflator 2 for inflating the bag 1. I have. In this embodiment, the bag 1 extends from near the middle of the A pillar 20 in the vertical direction to the upper part of the front door, the upper part of the B pillar 21 and the upper part of the rear door to the middle part of the C pillar 22 in the vertical direction. Extending. The inflator 2 is connected to the rear end of the bag 1 and is disposed in the C pillar 22.

The bag 1 is configured so that gas from the inflator 2 is introduced into the vacant chamber 3 through the gas introducing section 4 and inflates. A hole 5 for attaching the bag 1 to the vehicle body is provided at an upper portion of the bag 1, and a bolt 7 is passed through the hole 5 and screwed into the vehicle body 8, as shown in FIG. The upper side of the bag 1 is fixed. Except for the front end of the bag 1, a flap 6 projects upward from the upper side of the bag 1, and the flap 6 is provided with a hole 5.

In this embodiment, a flap 10 projects downward from a portion of the lower side of the bag 1 that overlaps the B pillar 21, and a hole 11 is formed in the flap 10.
Is provided. A guide rail 30 is provided on the B pillar 21 in a vertical direction, and a slider 31 slidable along the guide rail 30 is provided. The flap 10 is fixed to the slider 31 with bolts, rivets 9, and the like. As shown in FIG. 4 (a), a slit 32 extending in the vertical direction is provided on the front side of the guide rail 30.

The guide rail 30 has a rectangular cross section in FIG. 4 (a), but may have a circular or elliptical cross section as in the case of the guide rail 30 'in FIG. 4 (b). . The guide rails 30, 30 'are fixed to the vehicle body 8 by welding or the like. Further, the guide rail can be formed in the above-described square and elliptical cross-sectional shapes by using the vehicle side.

The bag 1 is folded along the ceiling of the vehicle as shown in FIG.
Covered by This garnish 33 is the third
As shown by the two-dot line in the figure, when the bag 1 expands, it opens forward and the bag 1 expands downward. The guide rail 30 is covered with a cover 34. The cover 34 is provided with a tear line or the like so that the cover 1 is split vertically when the bag 1 is inflated.

In the protection device configured as described above, when the vehicle collides or rolls over, the inflator 2 generates gas, and the bag 1 inflates downward. At this time, since the flap 10 at the lower end of the bag 1 moves along the guide rail 30, the bag 1 spreads downward without leaving the side door and the B pillar 21 of the vehicle.

In the above embodiment, the B pillar 21
Although the guide rails 30 are provided only on the C-pillars, the guide rails 40 may be provided on the C pillar 22 as shown in FIGS. The bag 1A shown in FIGS.
In this case, a flap 12 extends rearward from a lower rear end, and a bolt or a rivet 13 is inserted through a hole provided in the flap 12 and attached to a slider of a guide rail 40. The protective bag 1A is guided by two guide rails 30 and 40 when the bag 1A inflates downward.

In the present invention, as shown in FIG. 7, the guide rail 30 is formed so that the distance between the guide rail 30 and the front end hole 5 of the bag 1A becomes wider as it goes downward. The bag 1A may be arranged diagonally so that the distance from the bag 30 increases as it goes downward, so that when the bag 1A expands downward, tension is generated along the lower edge of the bag 1A. . In FIG. 7, the hole 5 at the front end of the bag 1A and the guide rail 30,
Strong tension develops in the area between each of the 40.

Although not shown, similar guide rails may be provided on all of the A pillar, the B pillar, and the C pillar in the present invention.

According to the present invention, when only two pillars of the A pillar 20 and the B pillar 21 are provided as in a truck or the like shown in FIG. 9, the distance between the A pillar 20 and the B pillar 21 is changed. Place the bag only in the area. FIG. 9 is a side view of the bag 1B. As shown in FIG. 9, the lower portion of the rear end of the bag 1B is connected to the slider of the guide rail 30 by bolts or rivets.

In FIGS. 8 and 9, the inflator 2 is disposed on the A pillar 20. However, as shown in the bag 1C in FIG. 10, the inflator 2 may be connected to the upper rear end of the bag 1C. In this case, a guide rail 50 may be provided along the A pillar 20, and the bag 1C may be guided by two guide rails, the guide rail 30 of the B pillar and the guide rail 50 of the A pillar. In this case, the guide rails 30 and 50 may be provided diagonally so that their lower ends are separated from each other. At the lower rear end of the bag 1C, a flap 15 extends rearward, and the flap 15 is connected to the slider of the guide rail 30 by bolts or rivets 16. A flap 17 protrudes from the lower front end of the bag 1C, and the flap 17 is connected to the slider of the guide rail 50 by bolts or rivets 18.

[0020]

As described above, according to the present invention, there is provided a vehicle occupant head protection device in which a bag inflates downward along a side door or the like of a vehicle without separating from them. In the present invention, it is also possible to configure the lower end of the bag to generate tension along the lower edge.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of the inside of an automobile provided with a head protection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing the bag of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line III-III in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a guide rail.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the inside of an automobile provided with a bag 1A according to another embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a side view of the bag of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a side view showing a configuration of a protection device in which guide rails are installed diagonally.

FIG. 8 is a side view of the inside of an automobile showing an embodiment applied to a truck or the like.

FIG. 9 is a side view showing the bag of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a side view of a protection device including a bag 1C and guide rails 30 and 50.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1, 1A, 1B, 1C Bag 2 Inflator 20 A pillar 21 B pillar 22 C pillar 30, 40, 50 Guide rail 31 Slider

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A bag which is arranged near a crossing corner between a ceiling portion and a side surface portion of a vehicle interior and inflates downward along the side surface portion by an introduced gas, and supplies gas into the bag. A protection device for a vehicle occupant head having an inflator, wherein a guide member is provided on a pillar of the vehicle, and the bag is guided by the guide member when the bag is inflated. Protective equipment. 2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the guide member is a guide rail, a slider slidable along the guide rail is provided, and the bag is connected to the slider. A protection device for the head of a car occupant. 3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a lower end of the bag is connected to the slider. 4. The protection of an automobile occupant head according to claim 3, wherein a guide rail is provided obliquely on a lower edge of the inflated bag so as to generate tension in a direction along the lower edge. apparatus. 5. The vehicle occupant according to claim 1, wherein the guide member is provided on at least two pillars, and the bag is guided by the guide members when inflated. Head protection device.