JP2006044325A - Pedestrian protection device to be mounted on vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a pedestrian protecting device to be mounted on a vehicle to protect a pedestrian by deploying an air bag when the vehicle has collided with pedestrian, capable of reducing the shock applied to the pedestrian effectively by precluding the pedestrian from ranging out from upon the deployed air bag. <P>SOLUTION: The air bag 21 is furnished at the top 21b with a folded-back part 21c folded back forward and downward. Side wall parts 21d are provided between the folded-back part 21c and the air bag body 21e so as to generate a sack form. It may be acceptable that the folded-back part 21c is deployed after the air bag body 21e is deployed. Also it may be accepted that a material having a large friction coefficient is installed on the surface of the air bag 21, or an asperity is provided there. Further it may be accepted that the air bag 31 is deployed from a roof header 7 toward the front of the vehicle and the air bag 31 is furnished with a swellout part 31a as a protruding part or a folded-back part 31b. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle pedestrian protection device for protecting a pedestrian when a pedestrian and a vehicle collide, and in particular, a buffer structure technology for effectively mitigating an impact at the time of a collision. Belonging to the field.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when a traveling vehicle collides with a pedestrian, an airbag is deployed at the front of the vehicle in order to reduce the impact on the pedestrian. For example, as disclosed in Patent Literature 1, an airbag device is provided at the front end of a hood of a vehicle, and as disclosed in Patent Literature 2, an airbag device is provided in a front bumper. In any case, the impact of the pedestrian when the vehicle falls down at the time of the collision or when the vehicle falls down can be reduced by deploying the airbag at least upward in the shape of a wall in the event of a collision with the pedestrian. I am doing so.
JP-A-8-91170 JP 2001-322518 A

  However, as described above, in the structure in which the airbag is deployed in a wall shape upward, if the impact at the time of collision is large, when the pedestrian falls to the rear of the vehicle, the pedestrian rises to the rear of the vehicle. There is a possibility of protruding from the airbag. When the pedestrian protrudes from the airbag as described above, the pedestrian's head or the like may directly collide with the bonnet, the front pillar, the roof header, etc., and the impact received by the pedestrian may not be sufficiently reduced.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a point, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle pedestrian protection apparatus for protecting a pedestrian by deploying an airbag at the time of a collision with a vehicle. By devising the configuration of the bag so that the pedestrian does not come off from the deployed airbag, the impact received by the pedestrian is effectively reduced.

  In order to achieve the above object, in the vehicle pedestrian protection device according to the present invention, the airbag deployed to reduce the impact on the pedestrian at the time of collision with the pedestrian falls over the airbag. Means were provided to prevent pedestrians from climbing backwards.

  That is, according to the first aspect of the present invention, in the vehicle pedestrian protection device that deploys the airbag to reduce the impact to the pedestrian at least in the event of a vehicle collision, the airbag collides with the vehicle. It is assumed that the vehicle is provided with a skid prevention means for restricting a person from skiing back on the vehicle.

  With this configuration, when a vehicle collides with a pedestrian, the impact received by the pedestrian at the time of the collision is reduced by the deployed airbag, and the pedestrian is provided to the rear of the pedestrian by the anti-sliding means provided on the airbag. Since the upward movement is restricted, the pedestrian is positioned on the airbag, and the impact when the pedestrian falls to the rear of the vehicle can be reliably absorbed by the airbag.

  In the above-described configuration, the airbag is configured to be deployed from the roof header of the vehicle toward the front of the vehicle, and the airbag prevention unit is configured to prevent the pedestrian from rising to the roof header. It is good also as a protrusion part provided in (Invention of Claim 2). The projecting portion is preferably a folded portion formed so that the vehicle rear end side of the airbag is folded toward the front of the vehicle (invention of claim 3). By so doing, it is possible to prevent the pedestrian from climbing to the rear of the vehicle by the protruding portion, and it is possible to reliably prevent the pedestrian from colliding with the roof header having a relatively high rigidity.

  On the other hand, the airbag surface may have a high coefficient of friction that can restrict the pedestrian from rising as the means for preventing the sliding. Specifically, a high-friction material may be disposed on the airbag surface (invention of claim 4), or a convex recess may be formed on the airbag surface (in claim 5). invention). Thereby, a pedestrian can be prevented from rising with a simple configuration.

  The sliding prevention means may be a folded portion formed such that the vehicle rear end portion of the airbag is folded toward the front of the vehicle when a pedestrian falls on the airbag. Invention). In this way, the head of the pedestrian who has fallen on the airbag will be positioned in the folded portion of the airbag, and the pedestrian's head can be prevented from being lifted by the folded portion. Can be more reliably protected.

  Here, the airbag main body is configured to be deployed in a wall shape at the front end portion of the vehicle, and the folded portion is preferably formed integrally with the airbag main body (invention of claim 7). . As a result, the impact received by the pedestrian during a collision with the vehicle can be reliably reduced, and the pedestrian is protected by the airbag body even when the pedestrian falls to the rear of the vehicle. The impact received by the person can also be reduced.

  Further, it is preferable that side wall portions are provided at both ends in the vehicle width direction between the folded portion and the airbag body (invention of claim 8). As a result, the head of the pedestrian can be prevented from protruding from the side of the airbag, and the impact received by the pedestrian can be more reliably reduced.

  Furthermore, it is preferable that the folded portion is configured to be deployed after the airbag body is deployed (invention of claim 9). As a result, after the impact received by the pedestrian at the time of collision with the vehicle is reduced by the airbag body, the folded portion is deployed, so the height of the pedestrian is taken into account so that the pedestrian's head can easily enter the folded portion. Thus, it is not necessary to enlarge the entire airbag, and the airbag can be reduced in size.

  According to the pedestrian protection device for a vehicle according to the first aspect of the present invention, in the configuration in which the airbag for protecting the pedestrian is deployed at least in the event of a vehicle collision, the pedestrian is prevented from rising on the airbag. Since the prevention means is provided, the pedestrian can be reliably positioned on the airbag, and the impact received by the pedestrian can be effectively reduced.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the airbag that is deployed from the roof header toward the front of the vehicle is provided with the protruding portion that prevents the pedestrian from sliding up, the pedestrian is prevented from coming into contact with the roof header or the like. It is possible to reduce the impact on the pedestrian more effectively. In particular, in the invention of claim 3, by making the protruding portion a folded portion, it is possible to reliably prevent the pedestrian from sliding up to the roof header side.

  According to the fourth and fifth aspects of the present invention, a member having a large friction coefficient is provided on the airbag surface or a concave / convex portion is provided so that the airbag surface has a high friction coefficient. The sliding can be prevented and the impact received by the pedestrian can be reduced.

  According to the inventions of claims 6 to 9, when the pedestrian falls on the airbag toward the rear of the vehicle, the head of the pedestrian is positioned in the folded portion provided on the rear side of the airbag. Further, it is possible to more reliably prevent the pedestrian from climbing to the rear of the vehicle. In particular, by providing side walls at both ends in the vehicle width direction of the folded portion to form a bag, it is possible to reliably prevent the pedestrian's head from shifting to the side of the airbag, and the pedestrian receives Impact can be reliably reduced. Further, by deploying the folded portion after the airbag is deployed, it is not necessary to consider interference between the folded portion and the pedestrian's head, and the airbag can be downsized.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the following description of the preferred embodiment is merely illustrative in nature and is not intended to limit the present invention, its application, or its use.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 shows a schematic structure of a front portion of a vehicle V provided with a pedestrian protection device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. In the structure of the front portion of the vehicle, a hood hood 1 that extends in front of the windshield G and covers the engine room is provided. Headlamps 2 and 2 are provided on both sides in the vehicle width direction immediately below the front end of the hood 1, a grill 3 is provided between the headlamps 2 and 2 immediately below the front end of the hood 1, and both headlamps 2 , 2 and the grill 3 are provided with front bumpers 4 extending in the vehicle width direction, and fenders 5 and 5 are provided on both sides of the hood 1 in the vehicle width direction. Front tires T and T are respectively mounted in the tire houses covered with the fenders 5 and 5, and front doors D and D are disposed behind the fenders 5 and 5, respectively. .

  On the other hand, a roof 6 is disposed behind the windshield G so as to extend to the rear of the vehicle, and the roof 6 has a relatively rigid structure that constitutes an upper frame of the windshield G on the vehicle front side. A high roof header 7 is formed.

  The front bumper 4 includes a collision detection sensor 11 for detecting a collision with a pedestrian, a collision prediction sensor 12 for predicting a collision with the pedestrian, and a collision with the pedestrian. An airbag device 20 that inflates and deploys the airbag 21 when it is detected or when a collision is predicted is provided.

  The collision detection sensor 11 includes, for example, a contact sensor that detects whether or not a contact has occurred, a pressure sensor that detects a pressure applied at the time of a collision, and the output signal of the collision detection sensor 11 is a control device (not shown). ) To determine whether or not the control device has collided with a pedestrian based on the signal.

  The collision prediction sensor 12 is constituted by, for example, an infrared sensor that detects a distance from a pedestrian, and the output signal of the collision prediction sensor 12 is also input to the control device, and the control device In consideration of the speed of the vehicle V and the like, it is predicted whether or not the vehicle will collide with a pedestrian.

  In addition, the airbag device 20 is in an inflated and deployed state, is an airbag 21 that is long in the vertical direction and formed in a substantially U-shape when viewed from the vehicle width direction, and the interior of the airbag 21 Gas supply means 22 for supplying and supplying gas to the airbag 21 before being inflated and deployed. The airbag 21 before being inflated and deployed is stored in a folded state in an airbag storage portion 4a provided in the front bumper 4. In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, the gas supply means 22 is provided so as to be located on both sides in the vehicle width direction of the airbag housing portion 4a.

  The airbag 21 is configured to be deployed in a substantially rectangular wall shape that is long in the vertical direction when viewed from the front of the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 21a has a shape that bulges toward the front of the vehicle so that the impact on the legs of the pedestrian can be sufficiently reduced, while the upper end 21b is formed in a bag shape that opens downward, as shown in FIG. As shown in b), when the pedestrian falls to the rear of the vehicle and rides on the airbag 21, a skid prevention means for restricting the movement of the pedestrian to the rear of the vehicle is configured.

  More specifically, the upper end portion 21b of the airbag 21 is formed with a folded portion 21c that is folded back toward the front and the vehicle in a deployed state, and excludes the folded portion 21c and the folded portion 21c. Side wall portions 21d and 21d are provided between the airbag main body portion 21e (airbag main body) so as to connect the two at both ends in the vehicle width direction, and the upper end portion 21b as a whole is a pedestrian's head. It is formed in a bag shape that wraps around. And by making it into a bag shape in this way, while being able to prevent the folding | turning part 21c from turning over and expanding, it can prevent that a pedestrian's head protrudes from the side of the airbag 21. And the head of the pedestrian can be reliably protected.

  That is, the folded portion 21c is formed so that the rear end side of the vehicle of the airbag 21 is folded toward the front of the vehicle in a state where a pedestrian has fallen on the airbag 21 as shown in FIG. Thus, since the pedestrian's head that has fallen backward in the vehicle is located in the folded portion 21c, the pedestrian's head can be prevented from rising backward, and the pedestrian's head can be reliably protected. can do.

  The operation of the airbag device 20 when the vehicle V including the airbag device 20 configured as described above collides with a pedestrian will be described below.

  First, when a collision with a pedestrian is detected based on the output signal of the collision detection sensor 11 or predicted based on the output signal of the collision prediction sensor 12, as shown in FIG. Gas is supplied into the airbag 21 by the gas supply means 22 of the device 20, and the airbag 21 is inflated and deployed in a wall shape in front of the vehicle and in the vertical direction.

  Then, while the airbag 21 deployed in a wall shape reduces the impact received by the pedestrian at the time of the collision, as shown in FIG. 2B, the pedestrian falls to the rear of the vehicle with the momentum at the time of the collision, and the vehicle V The airbag 21 also reduces the impact when it falls down. At this time, since the folded portion 21c is formed at the upper end portion 21b of the airbag 21, the pedestrian's head is positioned in the folded portion 21c, and the folded portion 21c causes the pedestrian's head to be positioned. Is protected, and the pedestrian is prevented from rising backward. In this way, the pedestrian is reliably positioned on the airbag 21 by preventing the pedestrian from rising.

  As described above, in this embodiment, when the pedestrian colliding with the vehicle falls back to the rear of the vehicle by providing the folded portion 21c as an anti-sliding means on the upper end portion 21b of the airbag 21, the pedestrian's Since the head is located in the folded portion 21c and the pedestrian can be prevented from rising backward, the impact of the pedestrian can be reliably reduced, and the pedestrian's The head can also be effectively protected.

-Modification 1 of Embodiment 1-
In the above-described embodiment, the folded portion 21c provided on the upper end portion 21b of the airbag 21 is deployed when the airbag 21 is deployed. However, as shown in FIG. 4, the folded portion 21c of the airbag 21 is provided. The folded portion 21c may be deployed after the body portion 21e (airbag body), which is a portion other than the above, is deployed. Specifically, the folded portion 21c and the airbag main body portion 21e are partitioned by a tether 21f so that a gas passage is narrowed, and as shown in FIG. After the gas is supplied to the airbag main body 21e, as shown in FIG. 4 (b), a predetermined time (a time during which the pedestrian can prevent the pedestrian from moving up to the rear of the vehicle) is delayed, and the inside of the folded portion 21c is delayed. Gas is supplied and the folded portion 21c is configured to expand.

  Thereby, when the folding | returning part 21c expand | deploys simultaneously with the airbag main-body part 21e like the said Embodiment 1, a tall pedestrian is assumed and the pedestrian's head is positioned in the folding | returning part 21c. As described above, the airbag main body 21e has to be made relatively large so that the folded-back portion 21c does not interfere with the pedestrian's head at the time of the collision. By deploying the airbag after the airbag body 21e is deployed, it is not necessary to enlarge the airbag in consideration of the height of the pedestrian, and the airbag can be downsized.

-Modification 2 of Embodiment 1
Further, as shown in FIG. 5, a region 21g having a high coefficient of friction may be provided on the surface of the airbag 21 as a means for preventing the pedestrian from climbing backward from the vehicle. Specifically, a material having a large coefficient of friction such as rubber may be disposed on the surface of the airbag 21, or the surface of the airbag 21 may be uneven. By doing so, the frictional resistance between the pedestrian and the pedestrian can be increased with a simple configuration, and it is possible to reliably prevent the pedestrian from moving up to the rear of the vehicle and protruding from the airbag 21.

  In FIG. 5, only a part of the surface of the airbag 21 (region 21g) has a high friction coefficient. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the entire surface of the airbag 21 may have a high friction coefficient. . Further, not only the surface of the airbag 21 has a high friction coefficient, but also a folded portion 21c as in the first embodiment and the first modification thereof may be provided. If used together with the folded portion 21c, the pedestrian can be more reliably prevented from rising.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 6 shows a schematic configuration of a vehicle front portion according to the second embodiment of the present invention. Since only the deployment position and shape of the airbag are different from the first embodiment, hereinafter, the same parts are not included. Only the different parts are described with the same reference numerals. That is, in the second embodiment, the airbag 31 is configured to deploy from the roof header 7 toward the front of the vehicle so that a pedestrian does not collide with the roof header 7.

  Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the roof header 7 is provided with an airbag device (not shown), and the airbag 31 is deployed on the vehicle front side, that is, on the upper end of the windshield G. It is configured as follows. The airbag 31 is a substantially rectangular member as viewed from above, which is long in the vehicle width direction, and protrudes upward as an anti-sliding means at its upper end and is long in the vehicle width direction and is substantially semi-elliptical in cross section. A bulged portion 31a (protruding portion) is formed, and the bulged portion 31a catches the head of the pedestrian and prevents the vehicle from rising backward.

  Therefore, when a pedestrian who collides with the vehicle V falls backward and moves relative to the rear of the vehicle, the bulging portion 31a provided on the airbag 31 deployed from the roof header 7 toward the front of the vehicle, The pedestrian can be prevented from rising backward (to the roof header side) with certainty, and the pedestrian can be prevented from touching the roof header 7 or the like having relatively high rigidity. Thereby, the impact which a pedestrian receives can be reduced reliably.

  The bulging portion 31a is not limited to a substantially semi-elliptical shape in a cross-sectional view, and may be any shape as long as it can prevent the pedestrian from moving up to the rear of the vehicle, such as a substantially rectangular shape or a triangular shape. It may be a shape.

  Although not particularly shown in FIG. 6, when the airbag 31 as described above is deployed, another airbag is also deployed on the hood 1 or the windshield G to protect the pedestrian. Alternatively, it may be developed into a substantially U shape or a substantially B shape in front view so as to cover at least the roof header 7 and the front pillars 8 and 8 disposed in the vehicle width direction of the windshield G. You may make it provide the said bulging part 31a in the vehicle rear side of an airbag.

-Modification 1 of Embodiment 2
In the second embodiment described above, the bulging portion 31a that protrudes upward is provided at the upper end portion of the airbag 31, but this is not a limitation. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, the upper end portion of the airbag 31 is provided. In addition, a folded portion 31b (projecting portion) folded back to the front side of the vehicle so as to protrude upward may be provided. By providing the folded portion 31b, the head of the pedestrian can be reliably protected and the pedestrian can be reliably prevented from sliding up to the rear of the vehicle.

  As described above, when the folded portion 31b is provided in the airbag 31, side walls (not shown) are preferably provided at both ends in the vehicle width direction as in the first embodiment. By providing the side wall portion, it is possible to prevent a pedestrian from protruding to the side of the airbag 31, and when the airbag 31 is deployed, the folded portion 31b can be deployed in a state of being turned over to the rear of the vehicle. Can be prevented.

(Other embodiments)
The configuration of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but includes various other configurations. That is, in the first embodiment, the airbag device 20 is provided on the front bumper 4, but is not limited thereto, and may be provided on the front end portion of the hood hood 1 or the like.

  As described above, the pedestrian protection device for a vehicle according to the present invention can prevent a pedestrian that collides with the vehicle from sliding up to the rear of the vehicle, and is thus deployed when the vehicle collides with a pedestrian, for example. It is particularly useful for airbags for protecting pedestrians.

It is a perspective view which shows schematic structure of the vehicle front part which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. (A) It is a figure which shows the case where the airbag for a pedestrian protection expand | deploys, (b) The case where a pedestrian gets on an airbag. FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line III-III in FIG. In the structure in which the folded portion is deployed after the airbag is deployed, (a) the state before deployment of the folded portion (the left figure is a front view, the right figure is a side view), and (b) the folded section after deployment (the left figure is The front view and the right view are side views), respectively. It is a front view which shows an example at the time of making the airbag surface into a high friction coefficient. It is a perspective view which shows schematic structure of the vehicle front part which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VII-VII in FIG. 6 showing a state in which the airbag formed with the protrusion is deployed. FIG. 8 is a view corresponding to FIG. 7 showing a state where the airbag formed with the folded portion is deployed.

Explanation of symbols

V Vehicle 4 Front bumper 5 Fender 6 Roof 7 Roof header 11 Collision detection sensor 12 Collision prediction sensor 20 Airbag device 21 Airbag 21a Lower end portion 21b Upper end portion 21c Folding portion 21d Side wall portion 21e Main body portion (airbag main body)
21g High friction coefficient region 22 Gas supply means 31 Air bag 31a Swelling part (protruding part)
31b Folding part (protruding part)

Claims (9)

A vehicle pedestrian protection device that deploys an air bag in order to reduce an impact on a pedestrian at least in the event of a vehicle collision,
The pedestrian protection device for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the airbag includes a sliding prevention means for restricting a pedestrian that has collided with the vehicle from sliding backward on the vehicle. In claim 1,
The airbag is configured to be deployed from the roof header of the vehicle toward the front of the vehicle,
The vehicle pedestrian protection device according to claim 1, wherein the sliding prevention means is a protrusion provided on the airbag so as to restrict a pedestrian from climbing to the roof header. In claim 2,
The protruding portion is a folded portion formed so that the vehicle rear end side of the airbag is folded toward the front of the vehicle. In claim 1,
The pedestrian protection device for vehicles, wherein the air bag surface is made of a material having a large friction coefficient. In claim 1,
A vehicular pedestrian protection device, wherein a convex concave portion is formed on an air bag surface. In claim 1,
The sliding prevention means is a pedestrian for a vehicle characterized in that the pedestrian falls on the airbag and is a folded portion formed so that the vehicle rear end side of the airbag body is folded toward the front of the vehicle. Protective device. In claim 6,
The airbag body is configured to be deployed in a wall shape at the front end of the vehicle,
The vehicle pedestrian protection device, wherein the folded portion is formed integrally with the airbag body. In any one of Claim 6 or 7,
A pedestrian protection device for vehicles, wherein side walls are provided at both ends in the vehicle width direction between the folded portion and the airbag body. In any one of Claims 6-8,
The vehicle pedestrian protection device, wherein the folded portion is configured to be deployed after the airbag body is deployed.

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