JP2006159953A - Structure of airbag placed outside vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To sufficiently absorb shock of an obstacle even when the obstacle having different length abuts on an airbag by solving the point wherein it is impossible to absorb the shock of an upper end part of the obstacle when the obstacle having long length abuts to the airbag. <P>SOLUTION: An airbag module 13 extending to the right and left direction of a vehicle is disposed along a front surface of a cowl top 12. Both of right and left ends of the airbag module 13 are supported on the upper parts of damper housings 30, 30 of the right and left front wheels 44, 44 respectively. When abutting on a pedestrian, the airbag is deployed by gas generated by an inflator 24 along the top surface of the cowl top 12 and the front surface of a front glass 15. A bent hole 53 is provided at a root part 52 of the airbag 14 so as to release the gas generated by the inflator 24 to reduce the rotation speed by the contact with the pedestrian. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle-installed airbag structure that inflates and deploys an airbag along the upper surface of a hood or the front surface of a windshield.

  Various forms of collision of the obstacle with the vehicle are assumed, and it is conceivable that the obstacle hits another part of the vehicle after hitting the front bumper of the vehicle. The first collision where the obstacle hits the front bumper or the like will be referred to as “primary collision”, and the collision that hits another part of the vehicle will be referred to as “secondary collision”.

  As an air bag structure outside the vehicle, immediately after the primary collision, the airbag is inflated and deployed to cover the outside of the vehicle, such as the front pillar and windshield, to reduce the impact when an obstacle collides with the outside of the vehicle. Air bags have been proposed.

As such a vehicle-installed airbag structure, for example, when the airbag internal pressure exceeds a predetermined pressure, gas can be discharged from a discharge port (vent hole) provided in the airbag so that the airbag internal pressure can be adjusted. Is known (for example, see Patent Document 1).
JP 2004-90812 A (page 16, FIG. 3)

  FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining a conventional basic configuration. A vehicle-mounted airbag structure 210 includes an airbag 211 that is inflated and deployed along the upper surface of a hood or the front surface of a windshield, and the airbag 211 is accommodated therein. A storage case (retainer) 212 to be opened, a cover 213 that covers the airbag 211 so as to be inflatable and deployable by being attached to the storage case 212, and an airbag 211 that is inflated and deployed by being built in the airbag 211. And an inflator 214.

  In general, short obstacles (for example, pedestrians with low elongation) hit the airbag from the upper end (for example, the head), and long obstacles (for example, pedestrians with high elongation) are generally centered (for example, It hits from the waist or chest) and exhibits a movement in which the upper end rotates with this substantially central portion as a fulcrum. Therefore, since the upper end portion can be directly received by a short obstacle, the force for rotating the upper end portion by the airbag does not act. However, in the case of a long obstacle, the upper end is set with the substantially central portion as a fulcrum by being stopped by the airbag. Since the force which rotates a part acts, it wants to receive so that rotation of an upper end part may be relieved.

  However, in the case of the vehicle-mounted airbag structure 210, the specification of the airbag is often determined by the case that directly receives the upper end portion, and a long obstacle exerts a force that rotates the upper end portion using the substantially central portion as a fulcrum. Therefore, there is a problem that the effect of absorbing the impact at the upper end portion of the obstacle is reduced.

  That is, there is a demand for a vehicle-installed airbag structure that can sufficiently absorb the impact of an obstacle even when obstacles of different lengths come into contact.

  The present invention solves the problem that the effect of absorbing the impact of the upper end of the obstacle does not drop when an obstacle with a long length comes into contact with the airbag, and also when an obstacle with a different length comes into contact. It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicular air bag structure that can sufficiently absorb the impact of an obstacle.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a front bumper is disposed in front of the vehicle body, a cowl top that covers the interior between the hood and the windshield is disposed, and air that extends in the vehicle width direction along the front surface of the cowl top is disposed. A vehicle outside air bag structure in which a bag module is arranged and both ends of the air bag module are supported on the upper portions of the left and right front wheel damper housings,
The airbag module includes an airbag that reduces the impact of an obstacle, an inflator that inflates and deploys the airbag along the upper surface of the cowl top and the front surface of the windshield when the obstacle comes into contact with the front bumper, And a vent hole provided at the base of the airbag.

  For example, if it is possible to sufficiently absorb the impact of an obstacle even when obstacles of different lengths come into contact with each other, it is preferable because the usefulness of the airbag function can be increased.

  Therefore, an airbag module extending in the vehicle width direction is disposed along the front surface of the cowl top, and both ends of the airbag module are supported on the upper portions of the damper housings of the left and right front wheels, respectively. Can be installed on.

  In addition, by providing a vent hole at the base of the airbag, gas generated by the inflator can be easily released when an obstacle collides with the airbag. Thereby, the rotational speed of the upper end part of an obstruction can be reduced by relieving the contact | win when making the substantially approximate center part of a long obstruction contact an airbag.

  In the invention which concerns on Claim 1, since the vent hole was provided in the root part of the airbag, when the obstacle collides with the airbag secondarily, the gas generated by the inflator can be easily released. As a result, it is possible to reduce the rotation speed of the upper end portion of the obstacle by reducing the hit when the substantially central portion of the long obstacle is brought into contact with the airbag. As a result, there is an advantage that it is possible to absorb the impact applied to the upper end of the short-length obstacle and the long-length obstacle.

The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The drawings are viewed in the direction of the reference numerals.
FIGS. 1 to 7 show a vehicle exterior airbag structure according to the present invention. FIG. 1 is a plan view of a vehicle equipped with the vehicle exterior airbag structure according to the present invention. FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 2-2, FIG. 3 is a view taken in the direction of arrow 3 in FIG. 1, FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of an airbag module having a vehicle exterior airbag structure according to the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 6-6 in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle exterior airbag structure 50 includes an airbag module 13 that extends in the left-right direction of the vehicle body 41 between the rear edge of the hood (bonnet) 11 of the vehicle 10 and the front edge of the cowl top 12. When an obstacle (for example, a pedestrian) collides with the front part of the vehicle body 41, the airbag 14 is deployed from the airbag module 13 to a position indicated by a two-dot chain line, and the upper surface of the cowl top 12, front By covering the lower front surface of the glass 15 and the entire surfaces of the left and right front pillars 16, 16, the device protects the upper end portion (for example, the head of a pedestrian) of an obstacle that is lifted onto the hood 11. Reference numeral 41 denotes a vehicle body, 42 denotes a passenger compartment, 43 denotes an engine room, and 45 denotes a front bumper.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the cowl top 12 includes a cowl top outer 17, a cowl top inner 18, and a cowl top grille 19, and is formed in a duct shape extending in the left-right direction of the vehicle body 41.

Further, the cowl top 12 is coupled with the front end of the dash panel inner 20 at the coupling portion between the cowl top outer 17 and the cowl top inner 18, and at the coupling end between the cowl top inner 18 and the cowl top grille 19. The front end of the windshield 15 is joined.
The dash panel outer 21 indicates that the upper surface is covered with the instrument panel 22.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the airbag module 13 is housed in a folded state inside a container-like retainer 23 having an open upper surface, an inflator 24 disposed at the center bottom of the retainer 23, and the retainer 23. The airbag 14 includes a cover 25 formed of a synthetic resin such as polypropylene that covers the upper surface opening of the retainer 23, and an internal pressure release mechanism 51 formed around the retainer 23 and the airbag 14.

  The cover 25 has an open lower surface attached to the outer periphery of the retainer 23, a metal band 26 is wound around the outer periphery of the retainer 23, and the metal band 26 is attached to the retainer 23 with rivets 27. The same shall apply below).

  The cover 25 includes an upper wall 25a, a front wall 25b, and a rear wall 25c. The upper wall 25a extends along the rear edge of the hood (bonnet) 11 and protrudes substantially in the center in the vehicle width direction toward the front of the vehicle body 41. It was made to curve like an arc. A thin hinge portion 25d is formed in the vehicle width direction at the boundary between the upper wall 25a and the front wall 25b of the cover 25.

In addition, a perforated fragile portion 25e extending in the vehicle width direction (vehicle body left-right direction) is formed by laser processing from the back side of the cover 25 in the vicinity of the upper end of the rear wall 25c, and on the back surface of the upper wall 25a. Formed a plurality of perforated fragile cities 25f... Extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body by laser processing.
The brittle saw portion 25e and the fragile portion 25f ... have a comb-teeth shape, and the upper wall 25a of the cover connects the tip of the fragile portion 25f ... to the hinge portion 25d and a plurality of strip-shaped lids It is divided into 28.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, a damper for accommodating a suspension damper (not shown) at the rear part of a wheel house 29.29 of left and right front wheels 44, 44 (one 44 is not shown) provided in the engine room 43. Housings 30 and 30 were formed.
In the airbag module 13, brackets 31 are welded to the upper side surfaces of the damper housing 30, and a connecting member 33 is fixed to the bracket 31 with bolts 32... And an end portion of the retainer 23 is connected to the upper end of the connecting member 33. The bracket 34 welded in the vicinity is fixed with bolts 35 and 35. Reference numerals 44 and 44 (one not shown) denote front wheels.

  That is, the vehicle-installed airbag structure 50 includes the airbag module 13, the damper housings 30 and 30, the brackets 31 and 31 on the damper housings 30 and 30 side, the bolts 32 that stop the brackets 31, and the connecting members. 33, 33, brackets 31, 31 on the retainer 23 side, and bolts 35 that stop the brackets 31, 31, and an airbag module 13 that extends in the left-right direction of the vehicle body along the front surface of the cowl top 12 is disposed. The left and right ends of the airbag module 13 are supported on the upper portions of the damper housings 30 and 30 of the left and right front wheels 44 and 44, respectively, and the airbag 14 is cowled by the gas generated by the inflation 24 when in contact with a pedestrian. Unfold along the top surface of the top 12 and the front surface of the windshield 15, A vent hole 53 is provided in the root portion 52 of the airbag 14 so that the gas generated by the inflator 24 is released so as to reduce the rotation speed by contact with an obstacle (pedestrian) as will be described later. It is.

  FIG. 7 is a side view of the airbag of the vehicle exterior airbag structure according to the present invention when the airbag is deployed, and the vehicle exterior airbag structure (device) 50 is disposed in front of the vehicle body 41 (see FIG. 3). A cowl top 12 that covers the interior between the hood 11 and the windshield 15 is disposed, and an airbag module 13 that extends in the vehicle width direction is disposed along the front surface of the cowl top 12. The vehicle 13 is an air bag structure outside the vehicle in which both ends of the module 13 are supported on the upper portions of the damper housings 30 and 30 of the left and right front wheels 44 and 44 (see FIG. 3), respectively. The air bag 14 that relaxes and the air bag 14 along the upper surface of the cowl top 12 and the front surface of the windshield 15 when an obstacle comes into contact with the hood 11. In order to reduce the hit when the obstacle is brought into contact with the inflator 24 to be deployed and the airbag 14, the lid (lid) 54 is formed while the bag is deployed, and the rotational speed of the upper end of the obstacle is reduced. It can be said that it is a pedestrian protection airbag structure (apparatus) provided with a vent hole 53 and provided with a vent hole 53 at the root portion 52 of the airbag 14. Reference numeral 59 denotes a front end portion of the airbag 14.

  For example, when an obstacle (pedestrian) collides with the vehicle 10 and an impact is detected by a sensor (not shown) attached to the vehicle, the inflator 24 of the airbag module 13 explodes and is folded by the gas generated by the inflator 24. The airbag 14 is inflated, and pressure is applied to the back surface of the upper wall 25 a of the cover 25 by the airbag 14.

  Since the comb-shaped fragile portions 25e, 25f,... Are formed on the synthetic resin cover 25, the fragile portions 25e, 25f,... Are broken by the pressure of the airbag 14 and divided into strips. The lid 28... Can be opened forward with the hinge portion 25 d at the front end as a fulcrum, and the airbag 14 can be deployed from the opening 23 a of the retainer 23.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 7, the deployed airbag 14 covers the upper surface of the cowl top 12, the front surface of the windshield 15, and the front surfaces of the front pillars 16, 16, and is an obstacle raised on the hood (bonnet) 11. (Pedestrians) can be protected. Further, in the air bag structure 50 placed outside the vehicle, when the airbag 14 is deployed, the lid body (lid) 54 is blown to form the vent hole 53, the internal pressure of the airbag 14 is maintained appropriately, and the impact applied to the pedestrian is prevented. The reduction is intended.

As described above, the air bag module 13 is arranged along the front surface of the cowl top 12 without being housed in the cowl top 12, so that the air intake into the passenger compartment 42 and the wiper arrangement are affected. There is nothing.
In addition, since the left and right ends of the airbag module 13 are supported on the upper portions of the left and right front damper housings 30 and 30, respectively, without specially increasing the rigidity of the cowl top 12, the dash panel inner 20, the dash panel outer 21 and the like, The reaction force when the airbag 14 is deployed can be reliably supported by the highly rigid damper housings 30, 30, and the vehicle body can be reinforced by the airbag module 13 to increase the rigidity.

Further, since the front hinge portion 25d of the cover 25 is curved in an arc shape, the cover 25 cannot be smoothly rotated around the hinge portion 25d if the upper wall 25a remains integral. Therefore, since the upper wall 25a is divided into strip-shaped lids 28 ... by the fragile cities 25e, 25f ..., the lids 28 ... can be smoothly rotated as shown in FIG.
Further, since the fragile portions 25e, 25f... Are formed in a sewing machine shape by laser processing, the fragile portions 25e, 25f.

  FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the internal pressure release mechanism of the vehicle exterior air bag structure according to the present invention. The internal pressure release mechanism 51 closes the vent hole 53 provided in the root portion 52 of the airbag 14 and the vent hole 53. A lid 54, an outer frame 55 that supports the lid 54 on the retainer 23 side, an inner frame 56 that stops the outer frame 55 on the retainer 23 side, an inner frame 56, the airbag 14, the retainer 23, and the outer frame 55 Mounting screws 57... (Only one is shown).

  The vent hole 53 includes a bag-side through hole 61 opened in the root portion 52 of the airbag 14, a retainer-side opening 62 opened in the retainer 23 with substantially the same diameter as the bag-side through-hole 61, and a bag-side through-hole 61. An inner pressure release formed by coaxially matching an inner frame side opening 63 opened in the inner frame 56 with substantially the same diameter, and an outer frame side opening 64 opened with the outer frame 55 in the bag side through hole 61 with substantially the same diameter. It is an opening. That is, the vent hole 53 is a bag-side through hole 61 provided in the root portion 52 of the airbag 14 and also a retainer-side opening 62 provided in the retainer 23.

The lid 54 is a plate-like or film-like member, and is formed of a material that can be elastically deformed such as resin or rubber, so that the lid 54 is deformed and removed when the internal pressure of the airbag 14 reaches a predetermined pressure. It is a member that can be detached from the frame 55.
The inner frame 56 includes the inner frame side opening 63 described above, and screw holes 66... For fastening the outer frame 55 together via the airbag 14 and the retainer 23.
The outer frame includes the outer frame side opening 64 described above, holes 67 through which the mounting screws 57 attached to the inner frame 56 are passed, and a stepped portion 68 that holds the lid 54.

  FIG. 9 is a side cross-sectional view of the internal pressure release mechanism of the vehicle exterior air bag structure according to the present invention. The internal pressure release mechanism 51 is provided by attaching the outer frame 55 to the inner frame 56 via the airbag 14 and the retainer 23. The lid body 54 is sandwiched between the step portion 68 of the outer frame 55 and the retainer 23, and when the internal pressure of the airbag 14 reaches a predetermined pressure, the lid body 54 is indicated by a two-dot chain line. The airbag 14 is opened by deforming and removing the lid 54 from the outer frame 55, and the internal pressure of the airbag 14 is lowered.

  10 (a) to 10 (d) are explanatory diagrams of the mechanism of secondary collision with a long obstacle. T1 indicates a long obstacle (for example, a tall pedestrian).

  (A)-(c) is an illustration in case the long obstruction (tall pedestrian) 204 collides with the vehicle 200. In (a), the long obstruction 204 is a front bumper (front end) of the vehicle 200. When hitting 201, it falls down as shown by arrow a1. In this state, the airbag 203 starts to expand and deploy. In (b), the obstacle 204 slides up the hood (upper surface) 202 of the vehicle 200 as indicated by an arrow a2. On the other hand, when the airbag 203 is inflated and deployed, the substantially central portion (for example, the pedestrian's waist or chest) 206 of the obstacle 204 is stopped at the front end of the airbag 203, and the upper end portion (for example, the head of the obstacle 204). ) 205 is subjected to a rotating force as indicated by an arrow a3 with the substantially central portion 206 of the obstacle 204 as a fulcrum. In (c), the upper end 205 of the obstacle 204 approaches the airbag 203. The distance between the upper end 205 and the airbag 203 at this time is S1.

  (D) is the vehicle outside air bag apparatus 50 of this invention, and is the illustration of the state corresponding to said (b). As shown in FIG. 8, the air bag device 50 placed outside the vehicle has a vent hole 53 (see FIG. 8) formed in the root portion 52, so that an obstacle (a tall pedestrian) is present at the front end 59 of the airbag 14. When the substantially central portion (waist or chest) 73 of 71 is pushed in as indicated by an arrow a4, the substantially central portion 73 is not suddenly stopped. Therefore, rotation of the upper end portion 74 can be suppressed. Further, since the front end portion 59 or the root portion 52 of the airbag is easily deformed, the distance S2 between the upper end portion 72 and the airbag 14 can be made closer (S2 <S1) than the distance S1 shown in (c). It is considered that the impact of the upper end portion 205 can be reduced.

  That is, by providing a vent hole 53 (see FIG. 8) in the root portion 52 of the airbag 14, it is easy to let the gas generated by the inflator 24 escape when a long obstacle 71 collides with the airbag 14. The deformation of the airbag 14 was facilitated (enlarged). As a result, the rotational speed (rotational angular speed) of the upper end portion 72 of the obstacle 71 can be reduced by reducing the hit when the long obstacle 71 makes the substantially central portion 73 contact the airbag 14. As a result, it is possible to absorb the impact applied to the upper end 72 of the long obstacle 71.

  For example, in the case of a short obstacle (a pedestrian with a short height), the upper end (head) directly hits the airbag 14, so that the problem like the long obstacle 71 does not occur. The vehicle-mounted airbag device 50 can absorb the impact on the short obstacle even when the short obstacle directly hits the airbag 14.

  In the vehicle exterior airbag structure according to the present invention, as shown in FIG. 7, the airbag 14 is an airbag that covers the upper surface of the cowl top 12, the front surface of the windshield 15, and the front surfaces of the front pillars 16 and 16. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and it may be used for an airbag that covers a windshield or a front pillar alone.

As shown in FIG. 8, the vent hole 53 is provided in the root portion 52, and the gas generated by the inflator 24 (see FIG. 7) is released to the engine room 43 (see FIG. 1) side, so that the heat of the gas against the obstacle is obtained. Effects can also be avoided. Further, a vent hole 53 is provided in the root portion 52, and the gas generated by the inflator 24 (see FIG. 7) is allowed to escape to the engine room 43 (see FIG. 1) side, so that the airbag 14 is at the substantially central portion of the obstacle. When pushing in, it is possible to easily escape the gas, and it is possible to avoid the possibility of the obstacles rebounding.
Furthermore, by improving the shape of the root portion 52 of the airbag 14, further improvement of the impact absorbing effect can be expected.

  The vehicle exterior air bag structure according to the present invention is suitable for use around a front pillar (A pillar) of a passenger car (vehicle) such as a sedan or a wagon having a relatively short front nose.

1 is a plan view of a vehicle equipped with a vehicle-mounted air bag structure according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. FIG. 3 is a view taken in the direction of arrow 3 in FIG. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of an air bag module having a vehicular air bag structure according to the present invention. FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line 5-5 of FIG. FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along line 6-6 of FIG. FIG. 7 is a side view of the airbag of the vehicle exterior airbag structure according to the present invention when deployed. It is a perspective view of the internal pressure release mechanism of the vehicle-mounted air bag structure according to the present invention. It is side surface sectional drawing of the internal pressure release | release mechanism of the vehicle exterior air bag structure which concerns on this invention. It is explanatory drawing of the mechanism of the secondary collision with a long obstruction. It is a figure explaining the conventional basic composition.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Vehicle, 11 ... Hood, 13 ... Airbag module, 14 ... Airbag, 15 ... Windshield, 24 ... Inflator, 30 ... Damper housing, 41 ... Car body, 44 ... Front wheel, 45 ... Front bumper, 50 ... Outside the vehicle Place air bag structure, 51 ... internal pressure release mechanism, 52 ... root part, 53 ... vent hole.

Claims (1)

A front bumper is placed in front of the vehicle body, a cowl top covering the interior between the hood and the windshield is placed, and an airbag module extending in the vehicle width direction is placed along the front surface of the cowl top. A vehicle exterior airbag structure in which both ends of the bag module are respectively supported on the upper part of the damper housing of the left and right front wheels,
The airbag module includes an airbag that reduces an impact of an obstacle, and the airbag bulges along an upper surface of the cowl top and a front surface of the windshield when the obstacle comes into contact with the front bumper. A vehicle-installed airbag structure comprising: an inflator to be deployed; and a vent hole provided at a base portion of the airbag.

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