JP2007099010A - Airbag device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an airbag device free to easily manufacture with no trouble. <P>SOLUTION: This air bag device 20 supplies high pressure gas to an airbag 26 from an inflator 24 and develops the airbag 26 to the side of an occupant 30 by the supplied high pressure gas. The airbag 26 is furnished with a projecting part 34 for a head part to project to the side of the head part 31 on a part facing the head part 31 of this occupant 30 out of an occupant constraining surface 32 to constrain the occupant 30. This projecting part 34 for the head part is formed by stereoscopic weaving on central ground fabric 38 of the airbag 26 as an example. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an airbag device that deploys an airbag to the occupant side with high-pressure gas supplied from an inflator.

Some airbag devices are formed so that a portion of an occupant restraint surface that restrains the occupant protrudes toward the occupant when the airbag is deployed by supplying high-pressure gas from the inflator into the airbag ( For example, see Patent Document 1.)
JP 2000-118341 A

The airbag device of Patent Document 1 includes an airbag in which the lower and upper portions of the occupant restraint surface that restrains the occupant protrude toward the occupant so that the remaining central portion is recessed, and the occupant restraint surface is formed in a waveform. .
The airbag is sewn in a bag shape with a central base fabric cut into a substantially band shape and side base fabrics sewn on both sides of the central base fabric.

However, the shape of the airbag of Patent Document 1 is complicated because the occupant restraint surface is formed in a corrugated shape. In order to form the occupant restraint surface in a corrugated shape, it is necessary to cut the side base fabric on both sides of the central base fabric into a corrugated shape and sew the cut portions into the corrugated shape to the central base fabric.
Since the side base fabric is formed into a corrugated shape, the shape of the side base fabric is complicated. For this reason, it takes time and labor to sew the side base fabric cut into the corrugated shape to the central base fabric, which has hindered the ease of manufacturing the airbag.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an airbag device that can be easily manufactured without taking time and effort.

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an airbag device that supplies high pressure gas from an inflator to an airbag and deploys the airbag to the occupant side with the supplied high pressure gas. The airbag includes an occupant restraint surface that restrains the occupant. Of these, a head-facing protruding portion that protrudes toward the head side is provided at a portion facing the head of the occupant.

In the invention which concerns on Claim 1, only the part which opposes a passenger | crew's head was made to protrude as a protrusion part for heads. Therefore, an airbag can be made into a simple shape.
Thereby, an airbag can be manufactured easily without taking time and productivity can be improved.

Further, by projecting the head projection, the radius of the head projection can be made smaller than the radius of the passenger restraint surface.
Here, the restraining force of the head protrusion and the passenger restraint surface is proportional to the radius of the head protrusion and the radius of the passenger restraint surface.
Therefore, when the airbag is deployed with high-pressure gas, the restraining force that acts on the end surface of the head projection (the restraining force on the end surface) is the restraining force that acts on the entire occupant restraining surface (the restraint on the entire occupant restraining surface). Force).
Thereby, when restraining a passenger | crew with an airbag, a passenger | crew's head can be restrained softly.

Furthermore, the protrusion part for heads can be brought close to the head part by protruding the protrusion part for heads. Thus, the head can be quickly protected by the head protrusion by bringing the head protrusion closer to the head.
In addition, by projecting the head projection, from the position where the head hits the head projection and starts pushing (restraint), to the position where the pushing of the head projection by the head is completed A large restraint stroke (movement distance) can be secured.

Here, the position where the pushing of the head protrusion by the head is completed means a position where the impact energy is absorbed and the head is restrained by the head protrusion.
Thus, while protecting a head rapidly and ensuring a large restraint stroke of a head, a head can be protected still more suitably.

The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. “Front”, “back”, “left”, and “right” indicate Fr as the front side, Rr as the rear side, L as the left side, and R as the right side according to the direction viewed from the operator.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which the airbag device (first embodiment) according to the present invention is deployed, and FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a state in which the airbag device according to the first embodiment is deployed.
The vehicle 10 includes an instrument panel 14 behind the front window glass 12, and an airbag device 20 is built in a portion 18 of the instrument panel 14 that faces the passenger seat 16.

  In the airbag device 20, a bag storage case 22 is built in a part 18 of the instrument panel 14, and an inflator 24 and an airbag 26 (shown in a deployed state) are stored in the bag storage case 22. A lid 28 is provided in the opening 22a.

According to the airbag device 20, the impact at the time of collision is detected by an acceleration sensor (not shown), and high-pressure gas is generated by the inflator 24 based on the detection signal.
The generated high-pressure gas is supplied from the inflator 24 to the airbag 26, and the airbag 26 starts to be deployed with the supplied high-pressure gas.
The lid 28 is opened by the internal pressure of the airbag 26 that has started to be deployed, and the airbag 26 is deployed from the opening 22 a of the bag storage case 22 toward the passenger 30 of the passenger seat 16.
And it protects by restraining the passenger | crew 30 with the airbag 26 which expand | deployed.

The protection of the occupant 30 by the airbag 26 is performed by the restraining force of the airbag 26. This restraining force increases as the pushing amount of the airbag 26 by the occupant 30 increases.
For this reason, the airbag apparatus 20 is provided with an exhaust mechanism (not shown), and the high pressure gas is released from the exhaust mechanism to adjust the restraint force.

The airbag 26 includes an occupant restraint surface 32 that restrains the occupant 30 at a portion facing the occupant 30, and protrudes toward the head 31 side in a portion of the occupant restraint surface 32 that faces the head 31 of the occupant 30. The head projection 34 is provided.
Specifically, the occupant restraint surface 32 includes a curve restraint surface 36 that is formed in a gentle convex curve, and a head projection 34 that projects from the curve restraint surface 36.

The protrusion 34 for the head has a circular wall 34a formed in a circular cross section, and a circular end surface 34b is formed on the top of the peripheral wall 34a.
The head protruding portion 34 protrudes from the bending restraint surface 36 toward the head 31 such that the height from the bending restraint surface 36 to the end surface 34b is H.

By causing only the portion facing the head 31 of the occupant 30 to protrude as the head protruding portion 34, the airbag 26 is simplified.
The airbag 26 is sewn in a bag shape with a center base cloth 38 cut into a substantially band shape and left and right side base cloths 42 and 44 stitched to the left and right sides of the center base cloth 38.

Further, the airbag 26 can make the radius R1 of the head protrusion 34 smaller than the radius R2 of the occupant restraint surface 32 by causing the head protrusion 34 to protrude.
Further, the restraining force of the head protrusion 34 and the occupant restraint surface 32 is proportional to the radii R1 and R2.
Therefore, when the airbag 26 is deployed with high-pressure gas, the restraining force of the head protrusion 34 (end surface 34b) can be suppressed to be smaller than the restraining force of the entire occupant restraint surface 32.
Hereinafter, the restraining force of the end face 34b is referred to as “end face restraining force”.
Further, the restraining force of the entire occupant restraining surface 32 is referred to as “entire restraining force”.

Here, the end surface restraining force is governed by the membrane tension (the tensile force generated in the base fabric by the internal pressure) acting on the end surface 34b when the airbag 26 is deployed with high-pressure gas.
Specifically, when the end face restraining force is P1, the radius of the head protrusion 34 is R1, and the gas pressure is p, the end face restraining force P1 is
P1∝ = p × R1 (1)
It is.

On the other hand, the overall restraint force is governed by the membrane tension acting on the occupant restraint surface 32 when the airbag 26 is deployed with high-pressure gas.
Specifically, if the overall restraint force is P2, the radius of the occupant restraint surface 32 is R2, and the gas pressure is p, the overall restraint force P2 is
P2∝ = p × R2 (2)
It is.

The relationship between the radius of the protrusion 34 for the head and the radius of the occupant restraint surface 32 is R1.
R1 <R2
It is.
Therefore, from the equations (1) and (2), the relationship between the end surface restraining force P1 and the entire surface restraining force P2 is
P1 <P2
It becomes.

  Thus, by restraining the end surface restraining force P1 to be smaller than the entire surface restraining force P2, when restraining the occupant 30 with the airbag 26, the head 31 of the occupant 30 can be restrained softly with the head protrusion 34. it can.

FIG. 3 is a development view showing the central base fabric and the side base fabric of the airbag according to the first embodiment.
The central base fabric 38 is cut into a substantially strip shape with a constant width, and both end portions 38a and 38b are formed so as to gradually become narrower toward the tip. The center base fabric 38 has a head projection 34 formed in a three-dimensional weave at the center.
Here, the three-dimensional weaving means that when the central base fabric 38 is woven, the head protruding portion 34 is woven in a state where the central base fabric 38 is protruded.

The left side base fabric 42 is cut into a substantially triangular shape. Of the peripheral edge 42a of the left side base fabric 42, a portion 42b corresponding to the occupant restraint surface 32 (see FIG. 1) is cut into a gently curved shape.
Therefore, the left side base fabric 42 can be made into a simple shape.

Further, the right side base cloth 44 is cut into a substantially triangular shape in the same manner as the left side base cloth 42. Of the peripheral edge 44a of the right side base fabric 44, a portion 44b corresponding to the occupant restraint surface 32 (see FIG. 1) is cut into a gently curved shape.
Therefore, the right side base cloth 44 can be formed in a simple shape as with the left side base cloth 42.

The peripheral edge 42a of the left side base cloth 42 is sewn to the left edge 38c of the central base cloth 38. Similarly, the peripheral edge 44a of the right side base cloth 44 is sewn to the right edge 38d of the central base cloth 38.
Thus, the airbag 26 (see FIGS. 1 and 2) is sewn with the center base cloth 38, the left side base cloth 42, and the right side base cloth 44.

Here, in the left and right side base fabrics 42 and 44, portions 42b and 44b corresponding to the occupant restraint surface 32 are respectively cut into gentle curves.
Therefore, the peripheral edge 42a of the left side base cloth 42 can be easily sewn to the left edge 38c of the central base cloth 38. Furthermore, the peripheral edge 44a of the right side base fabric 44 can be easily sewn to the right edge 38d of the central base fabric 38.
Thereby, the airbag 26 can be easily manufactured without taking time and effort.

Next, the operation of the airbag device 20 will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating an example in which the head of the occupant is restrained by the head protrusion of the airbag device according to the first embodiment.
In (a), high-pressure gas is supplied from the inflator 24 to the airbag 26 due to an impact at the time of collision, and the airbag 26 is deployed with the supplied high-pressure gas.
In this state, the head protrusion 34 protrudes from the curved restraint surface 36 by a height H, and the end surface 34b of the head protrusion 34 is positioned at P1.
An inertial force acts on the occupant 30 and the occupant 30 moves as indicated by an arrow A toward the front of the vehicle 10.

In (b), the head 31 of the occupant 30 hits the end face 34 b of the head projection 34.
Here, the end surface restraining force acting on the end portion 34 a of the head protrusion 34 is smaller than the entire surface restraining force acting on the entire occupant restraining surface 32.
Therefore, the head portion 31 that hits the end face 34 b can be softly restrained by the head protrusion 34.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 4A, the head protrusion 34 can be brought close to the head 31 by protruding the head protrusion 34 from the curved restraint surface 36 by the height H.
In this way, the head 31 can be quickly protected by the head protrusion 34 by bringing the head protrusion 34 closer to the head 31.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are views for explaining an example in which the head of the occupant is restrained by the head protrusion of the airbag device according to the first embodiment.
In (a), by pressing the end surface 34 b with the head 31, the head protrusion 34 is pushed into the inside of the curved restraint surface 36.
The head protrusion 34 is pushed to the inside of the bending restraint surface 36, and the upper body 46 of the occupant 30 hits the bending restraint surface 36.

In (b), the occupant 30 is restrained by the head protrusion 34 and the curved restraint surface 36. In this state, the end surface 34b of the head projection 34 is located at P2.
Here, as shown in FIG. 4A, when the airbag 26 is deployed, the head projection 34 protrudes from the curved restraint surface 36 by a height H, and the end surface 34b of the head projection 34 is Located at P1.

Therefore, from the position P1 at which head restraint is started by the head projection (position where the head hits the head projection) P1, the position where the head is restrained by the head projection (absorbs impact energy). It is possible to secure a large restraint stroke L up to P2.
Thus, by ensuring a large restraint stroke L, the head 31 can be more suitably protected.

Next, an airbag device according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In addition, in 2nd Embodiment, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected about the same similar member as the airbag apparatus 20 of 1st Embodiment, and description is abbreviate | omitted.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a state in which the airbag apparatus (second embodiment) according to the present invention is deployed.
The airbag device 50 of the second embodiment includes an airbag 52 in place of the airbag 26 of the first embodiment, and the other configurations are the same as those of the airbag device 20 of the first embodiment. is there.

The airbag 52 includes an occupant restraint surface 54 that restrains the occupant 30 at a portion that faces the occupant 30 (see FIG. 1), and a portion of the occupant restraint surface 54 that faces the head 31 of the occupant 30 A head projection 56 projecting toward the portion 31 is provided.
Specifically, the occupant restraint surface 54 includes a curve restraint surface 58 formed in a gentle convex curve and a head projection 56 projecting from the curve restraint surface 58.

The protrusion 56 for the head has a peripheral wall 56a having an elliptical cross section, and an elliptical end surface 56b is formed on the top of the peripheral wall 56a.
The head protrusion 56 protrudes from the bending restraint surface 58 toward the head 31 (see FIG. 1) so that the height from the bending restraint surface 58 to the end surface 56b is H.

FIG. 7A is a development view showing the central base fabric and the side base fabric of the airbag according to the second embodiment, and FIG. 7B shows an example in which the central portion of the central base fabric is folded into a pleat. It is a perspective view.
The central base fabric 62 is cut into a substantially strip shape with a constant width, and both end portions 62a and 62b are formed so as to gradually narrow toward the tip. The center base fabric 62 has a center portion 62c bent in a fold shape.
The peripheral edge 42a of the left side base cloth 42 is sewn to the left edge 62d of the central base cloth 62, and the left edge 62e of the central part 62c bent into a pleat is sewn (see FIG. 6).

Similarly, the peripheral edge 44a of the right side base cloth 44 is sewn to the right edge 62f of the central base cloth 62, and the right edge 62g of the central part 62c folded into a pleat is sewn.
Thereby, the airbag 52 is sewn by the center base fabric 62 and the left and right side base fabrics 42 and 44.
In the airbag 52, the center edge 62c of the center base cloth 62 is formed in a bag shape by sewing together the left edge 62e of the center portion 62c folded in a pleat shape and sewing the right edge 62g of the center portion 62c.

Therefore, the left and right side base fabrics 42 and 44 can cut the portions 42b and 44b corresponding to the occupant restraint surface 32 into gentle curved shapes, respectively, as in the first embodiment.
Thereby, the peripheral edge 42a of the left side base cloth 42 can be easily sewn to the left edge 62d of the central base cloth 62. Further, the peripheral edge 44a of the right side base cloth 44 can be easily sewn to the right edge 62f of the central base cloth 62.
In addition, the left and right edges 62e and 62g of the center portion 62c bent in a pleat shape can be easily sewn together.
Thereby, the airbag 52 can be easily manufactured without taking time and effort.

By supplying a high pressure gas to the airbag 52 and deploying the airbag 52, the bag-like central portion 62c is filled with the high pressure gas.
As a result, the bag-like central portion 62c is inflated and deployed to form the head projection 56 shown in FIG.

According to the airbag apparatus 50 of 2nd Embodiment, the effect similar to the airbag apparatus 20 of 1st Embodiment can be acquired.
In addition, according to the airbag apparatus 50 of 2nd Embodiment, it is not necessary to form the protrusion part 56 for heads by a solid weave. Thereby, the center base fabric 62 of the airbag 52 can be further woven.

  In the first and second embodiments, the example in which the airbag device 20 is applied to the passenger seat side has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this example. The same effect can be obtained even when applied to a part.

  In the first embodiment, the example in which the head protrusion 34 is formed in a cylindrical shape has been described. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and may be formed in another shape such as a rectangular tube. It is.

  The present invention is suitable for application to a vehicle including an airbag device that restrains (protects) an occupant with a deployed airbag.

It is a perspective view which shows the state which expand | deployed the airbag apparatus (1st Embodiment) which concerns on this invention. It is a top view which shows the state which expand | deployed the airbag apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is an expanded view which shows the center base fabric and side part base fabric of the airbag which concern on 1st Embodiment. It is a figure explaining the example which restrains a crew member's head with the projection part for heads of the air bag device concerning a 1st embodiment. It is a figure explaining the example which restrains a crew member's head with the projection part for heads of the air bag device concerning a 1st embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows the state which expand | deployed the airbag apparatus (2nd Embodiment) which concerns on this invention. (A) is a development view showing a central base fabric and a side base fabric of an airbag according to a second embodiment, and (b) is a perspective view showing an example in which the central portion of the central base fabric is folded into a pleat shape. .

Explanation of symbols

  20, 50 ... Airbag device, 24 ... Inflator, 26, 52 ... Airbag, 30 ... Passenger, 31 ... Head, 32, 54 ... Passenger restraint surface, 34, 56 ... Protrusion for head, 38, 62 ... Central base fabric.

Claims (1)

In an airbag device that supplies high pressure gas from an inflator to an airbag and deploys the airbag to the occupant side with the supplied high pressure gas,
The airbag device includes a head protrusion that protrudes toward the head on a portion of the passenger restraint surface that restrains the passenger, facing the head of the passenger.

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