JP2007076522A - Curtain airbag device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To securely develop cells between a head part of an occupant and a side door glass for a short time without additionally requiring surplus means. <P>SOLUTION: This curtain airbag device 10 is provided with an inflator 11 and the plurality of cells 12a to 12d to which high pressure gas blown out from the inflator 11 is supplied via gas inflow ports 13a of a duct part 13 and which are developed and expanded between the head part H of the occupant M and an inside face in a cabin, The gas inflow ports 13a are not installed in the upper position corresponding to the head part H, but are installed the upper positions forward and rearward the head part H. All of the plurality of cells 12a to 12d are not directly communicated with the gas inflow ports 13a. The cell 12b positioned in the side direction of the head part H is communicated with a vertically intermediate part of the cell 12a communicated with the gas inflow port 13a in the upper position forward the head part H, and is expanded and developed from this communication position 12e to a space between the head part H and the inside face of the cabin. Therefore, the cell passes through the side direction of the head part H in which the expansion space of the cell becomes narrow, and the head part H can be securely protected. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a curtain airbag device in which a plurality of cells are deployed in a curtain shape to protect an occupant's head, for example, when a heavy load is applied in the direction of the side of a vehicle body, for example, when the vehicle rolls over. is there.

  2. Description of the Related Art A curtain airbag device that inflates a plurality of cells in a curtain shape along a side door glass when a high load is applied in the side direction of the vehicle body has been installed in an automobile. If this curtain airbag device is installed, for example, the head of an occupant seated in the front seat can be effectively protected even when a high load is applied in the side direction of the vehicle body.

  However, when a high load is applied in the direction of the side of the vehicle body, the head moves inertially toward the side of the vehicle body where the high load is applied, so that the expansion space of the cell that is deployed to the side of the head is reduced. . In this case, in the conventional curtain airbag device in which all of the vertically long cells 1a to 1c communicate with the gas inlet 2a of the duct portion 2 as shown in FIG. 5, the head H of the occupant M should be protected. It is difficult to reliably inflate and deploy the cell 1b, and the cell 1b expands above the head H as shown in FIG. In FIG. 6, 3 is an inflator, 4 is a B pillar, and G is a side door glass.

Therefore, when deploying the cell, in order to deploy the cell between the occupant's head and the side door glass first, the curtain air equipped with the airbag deployment guiding means interposed between the inflated and deployed cell and the occupant's head A bag device is proposed in Patent Document 1.
JP 2000-62562 A

  The curtain airbag device proposed in Patent Document 1 has an increased number of parts than a device that reliably deploys a cell between a passenger's head and a side door glass in a short time by installing a pretensioner device. Can be suppressed.

  However, even the curtain airbag device proposed in Patent Document 1 still requires an extra airbag deployment guide means, and further simplification is desired.

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is that, in order to effectively deploy the cell between the occupant's head and the side door glass in a short time, conventionally, it is necessary to separately install a means therefor. Is a point.

  The curtain airbag device of the present invention has been made from such a viewpoint, and it is possible to effectively insert a cell between the occupant's head and the side door glass in a short time without requiring extra means. It can be deployed.

That is, the curtain airbag device of the present invention is
A curtain airbag device comprising an inflator and a plurality of cells that are supplied with high-pressure gas ejected from the inflator via a gas inlet of a duct portion and inflated and deployed between the head of the occupant and the inner surface of the passenger compartment. There,
The gas inlet is not installed at an upper position corresponding to the occupant head, but is installed at an upper position in front of and behind the occupant head,
A cell that is not directly connected to the gas inlet of the duct portion but is positioned on the side of the occupant's head is a cell that is connected to a gas inlet installed at an upper position in front of the occupant's head. The main feature is that the vehicle is communicated with an intermediate portion in the vertical direction of the vehicle and inflated and deployed from the communication position between the passenger's head and the inner side surface of the passenger compartment.

In the curtain airbag device of the present invention,
The cell communicated with the gas inlet installed at the upper position behind the occupant head is located behind the B pillar of the vehicle,
It is desirable that the cell that expands and develops at a position corresponding to the B pillar is configured such that high-pressure gas flows from the lower end portion of the cell located behind the B pillar.

  In the curtain airbag device of the present invention, at the initial stage of deployment, only the cells located in front of and behind the occupant's head are inflated and deployed, and the occupant's head communicates with the middle or lower end of these cells. The cells located on the side and the B-pillar part are incompletely expanded and have a small thickness.

  Therefore, in the curtain airbag device of the present invention, even if the head is inertially moved to the side of the vehicle body due to the high load acting on the side of the vehicle, and the expansion space of the cell is narrowed, the thickness is small due to incomplete expansion. A cell in a state can pass through the side of the head.

  After that, the high-pressure gas flows into the cell that has passed through the side of the head through the cell located in front of the head of the occupant, and necessary expansion and deployment are performed to protect the occupant's head. In addition, the cell located in the B-pillar portion is inflated and deployed substantially in synchronism with the expansion of the cell located on the side of the occupant's head, thereby supporting the protection of the head.

  In the present invention, the cell located on the side of the head is configured so that the high-pressure gas flows through the cell located on the front of the head. It is completely expanded and has a small thickness. Therefore, even if the expansion space of the cell becomes narrow due to the inertial movement of the head toward the vehicle body side, it can pass through the side of the head. Moreover, after passing, necessary expansion | deployment deployment is performed and a passenger | crew's head can be protected.

  In other words, in the present invention, since the gas does not sufficiently flow into the cells on the side of the head and the thickness is relatively thin at the initial stage of deployment of the airbag, the airbag is surely from the roof to the vicinity of the window bottom frame. Come down to. After that, necessary expansion and deployment are performed, so that the head can be surely protected. In particular, sufficient head protection is possible during rollover. At this time, if the cells on the side of the head are formed such that the thickness at the time of expansion and deployment is larger than that of the other cells, the head protection can be performed more reliably.

  In addition, if the cell that expands and deploys at a position corresponding to the B pillar is configured so that high-pressure gas flows from the lower end of the cell positioned behind the B pillar, the cell positioned behind the B pillar It expands and develops in the same manner as the cell on the side of the head. That is, since the gas does not sufficiently flow in at the initial stage of deployment of the airbag and the thickness is relatively thin, the airbag surely descends from the roof to the vicinity of the window lower frame without being caught by the B pillar. Then, necessary expansion and expansion are performed.

Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 1, the curtain airbag device 10 of the present invention includes an inflator 11, a plurality of cells 12 a to 12 d that are inflated and deployed by high-pressure gas ejected from the inflator 11, and the high-pressure gas to a plurality of cells 12 a to 12 d. It is the structure provided with the duct 13 which leads to.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 2A, the inflator 11 is installed on the roof side rail 5 portion of the passenger compartment. When a sensor (not shown) installed in the vicinity of the lower end of the B pillar 4 detects a high load exceeding a predetermined value acting on the side of the vehicle body such as a side collision, a high pressure is received in response to a signal from the sensor. Spout gas.

  In addition, the cells 12a to 12d are folded in a substantially vertical direction and are elongated, and are stored along the roof side rail portion 5 of the passenger compartment, for example, as shown in FIG. . Then, the high-pressure gas ejected from the inflator 11 is supplied via the gas inlet 13 a of the duct portion 13.

  By the way, in the curtain airbag device 10 of the present invention, the gas inflow port 13a provided in the duct portion 13 is located above the head H of the occupant M as shown in FIGS. It is not installed at the position, but is installed at the front and rear upper positions of the head H of the occupant M.

  In the curtain airbag device 10 of the present invention as described above, the cells 12a to 12d are not directly communicated with the gas inlet 13a as in the prior art, but the cells at the position where the gas inlet 13a is provided. Only 12a and 12d communicate with the gas inlet 13a.

  The cell 12b positioned on the side of the head H of the occupant M is in communication with, for example, an intermediate portion in the vertical direction of the cell 12a inflated and deployed in front of the head M, which is in communication with the gas inlet 13a. .

  Thus, if the cell 12b positioned on the side of the head H is communicated with, for example, the middle portion in the vertical direction of the cell 12a in front of the head M, sufficient expansion in the thickness direction during expansion and deployment is ensured. it can. On the other hand, if the communication position is shifted in any of the vertical direction from the middle portion, the seam dividing the cells inhibits the expansion of the cells, so that it becomes difficult to obtain the necessary spread in the thickness direction.

  With such a configuration, the cell 12b positioned on the side of the head H of the occupant M is delayed from the expansion and deployment of the cell 12a, from the communication position 12e of the cell 12a, between the head H and the inner side surface of the passenger compartment. Will expand and expand.

  Therefore, even if the head H is inertially moved to the side of the vehicle body due to a high load at the time of rollover, and the expansion space of the cell 12b is narrowed, the cell 12b on the side of the head H is incomplete in the initial deployment stage. Since it is in a state where the thickness is small due to proper expansion, the side of the head H can be passed.

  After that, the high-pressure gas flows into the cell 12b that has passed through the side of the head H through the cell 12a, and necessary expansion and deployment are performed to effectively protect the head H of the occupant M.

  In this example, the cell 12d communicated with the gas inlet 13a installed at the upper position behind the head H is inflated and deployed along the B pillar 4 behind the B pillar 4 of the vehicle. Yes. The cell 12c that expands and expands at a position corresponding to the B pillar 4 is configured such that high pressure gas flows from the lower end of the cell 12d that expands and expands behind the B pillar 4.

  With such a configuration, the high-pressure gas flows into the cell 12c positioned in the B pillar 4 portion via the communication position 12e of the cell 12d. Therefore, since the cell 12c is inflated and deployed later than the cell 12d due to a time lag at the time of inflation and deployment, the cell 12c can be quickly lowered without being caught by the B pillar 4. In the latter stage of deployment, the necessary expansion and deployment in the thickness direction can be performed, and the performance of the entire airbag can be improved.

  The present invention is not limited to the above example, and it goes without saying that the embodiment may be appropriately changed within the scope of the technical idea described in each claim.

  For example, in the above example, a description is given of what protects the head of an occupant seated on a front seat, but the same configuration may be employed when protecting the head of an occupant seated on a rear seat.

  In addition, the configuration of the cells 12c and 12d that support the protection of the head H of the occupant M is not necessarily the same as the above example.

  Although the curtain airbag device of the present invention is used by being installed in an automobile, it can also be installed on a vehicle such as an aircraft or a ship other than a vehicle, and the same effect is exhibited.

It is a figure which shows an example of the arrangement configuration of the cell which comprises the curtain airbag apparatus of this invention. It is a figure which shows the state before the expansion | deployment of the curtain airbag apparatus of this invention, (a) is the figure seen from the side surface, (b) is the figure seen from the upper surface. It is a figure which shows the state of the deployment initial stage of the curtain airbag apparatus of this invention, (a) is the figure seen from the side surface, (b) is the figure seen from the upper surface. It is a figure which shows the state after completion | finish of deployment of the curtain airbag apparatus of this invention, (a) is the figure seen from the side surface, (b) is the figure seen from the upper surface. It is a figure which shows an example of the arrangement configuration of the cell which comprises the conventional curtain airbag apparatus. It is a figure which shows the state before the expansion | deployment of the conventional curtain airbag apparatus, (a) is the figure seen from the side surface, (b) is the figure seen from the upper surface.

Explanation of symbols

4 B pillar 10 Curtain airbag device 11 Inflator 12a-12d Cell 12e Communication position 13 Duct portion 13a Gas inlet M Crew H Head

Claims (2)

A curtain airbag device comprising an inflator and a plurality of cells that are supplied with high-pressure gas ejected from the inflator via a gas inlet of a duct portion and inflated and deployed between the head of the occupant and the inner surface of the passenger compartment. There,
The gas inlet is not installed at an upper position corresponding to the occupant head, but is installed at an upper position in front of and behind the occupant head,
A cell that is not directly connected to the gas inlet of the duct portion but is located on the side of the occupant's head is a cell that is connected to a gas inlet installed at an upper position in front of the occupant's head. The curtain airbag device is configured to communicate with an intermediate portion in the vertical direction of the vehicle and to be inflated and deployed between the communication head position and the inner side surface of the passenger compartment. The cell communicated with the gas inlet installed at the upper position behind the occupant head is located behind the B pillar of the vehicle,
2. The curtain airbag according to claim 1, wherein high-pressure gas flows into a cell inflated and deployed at a position corresponding to the B pillar from a lower end portion of the cell located behind the B pillar. apparatus.

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