JP2009056874A - Arrangement structure for curtain air bag - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To sufficiently improve the rigidity of a roof side rail above a center pillar by using a structure of a mounting portion of an inflator. <P>SOLUTION: A curtain air bag 30 in a storage state extending to front and rear directions is arranged along the roof side rail 1, and the inflator 40 is arranged in a position immediately above the center pillar 10. In the position of the center pillar 10, a roof reinforcement 3 extended to the vehicle width direction is provided. A corner gusset 20 having one end connected to the roof side rail 1 and the other end connected to the roof reinforcement 3 and bridging a space between both the members 1, 3 is provided. The inflator 40 is mounted to the corner gusset 20. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an arrangement structure for a curtain airbag device.

  Many automobiles are equipped with curtain airbag devices. In the stored state, the curtain airbag is arranged to extend in the front-rear direction on the side of the interior of the roof side rail, receives the gas pressure from the inflator, and is inflated and deployed along the side window glass. . Curtain airbags in the stored state are long in the front-rear direction across the center pillar located between the front seat and the rear seat, and are often shared by the front seat and the rear seat . And as shown to patent document 1, arrange | positioning the inflator in the position right above a center pillar is proposed so that gas vicinity can be supplied from the substantially front-back direction intermediate position of a curtain airbag.

Further, in an automobile, in order to reinforce the roof, a roof reinforcement extending in the vehicle width direction is provided, and this roof reinforcement is often provided corresponding to the position of the center pillar. .
JP 2003-104161 A

  By the way, as part of the improvement of the vehicle body strength, there is a demand for improving the strength of the upper part of the center pillar in the roof side rail. As described above, by providing roof reinforcement corresponding to the position of the center pillar, the roof side rail above the center pillar can be improved in strength. Since the outer end portion in the direction is only connected to the roof side rail, there is a limit to improving the strength.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and the object thereof is to sufficiently improve the strength of the roof side rail portion above the center pillar by utilizing the structure of the inflator mounting portion. An object of the present invention is to provide a curtain airbag arrangement structure.

In order to achieve the above object, the following solution is adopted in the present invention. That is, as described in claim 1 in the claims,
A curtain airbag that is stored in the vehicle interior side surface of the roof side rail is disposed extending in the front-rear direction, and an inflator for supplying gas pressure to the curtain airbag is disposed immediately above the center pillar. In the arrangement structure of the installed curtain airbag device,
In the position of the center pillar, a roof reinforcement extending in the vehicle width direction is provided,
One end is connected to the roof side rail and the other end is connected to the roof reinforcement so as to bridge the roof side rail and the roof reinforcement. A corner gusset is provided,
The inflator is attached to the corner gusset,
It is like that. According to the above solution, the corner gusset that connects the roof side rail and the roof reinforcement has a structure in which the roof reinforcement and the roof rail are bridged, that is, viewed from the front-rear direction. Sometimes a closed cross-sectional structure surrounded by a roof side rail, a roof reinforcement and a corner gusset is constructed, so that the strength of the upper part of the center pillar is greatly improved. It will be. And since the inflator was attached to the corner gusset, the attachment strength of the inflator can be sufficiently secured. The corner gusset also serves as both an inflator mounting member and a vehicle body strength improving member.

A preferred mode based on the above solution is as described in claim 2 and the following claims. That is,
The inflator is arranged on a side surface of the corner gusset in a vehicle interior (corresponding to claim 2). In this case, the inflator can be easily attached to the corner gusset from the vehicle interior side.

  A sunroof unit for opening and closing a roof opening formed in the roof is provided on the inner side in the vehicle width direction than the inflator (corresponding to claim 3). In this case, compared with the case where the inflator is disposed on the outer side surface of the corner gusset, the connecting portion of the corner gusset with respect to the roof reinforcement can be positioned more outward in the vehicle width direction. The length of the minute roof opening in the vehicle width direction can be made longer. By the way, since the inflator has a considerably large cross-sectional area, when the inflator is arranged on the outer side surface of the corner gusset, the connecting portion to the corner reinforcement of the corner gusset should be located at the inner side in the vehicle width direction. Therefore, the length of the roof opening in the width direction of the vehicle must be shortened accordingly.

The corner gusset is formed with an extending portion extending inward in the vehicle width direction from the connection portion of the corner gusset to the roof reinforcement,
In the sunroof unit, the vicinity of the center pillar is fixed with respect to the extending portion.
(Corresponding to claim 4). In this case, when the vicinity of the center pillar of the sunroof unit is fixed to the roof reinforcement, the corner gusset can be effectively used without using a separate mounting bracket.

  A vehicle part having a cross-sectional area smaller than that of the inflator is disposed on the outer side surface of the corner gusset (corresponding to claim 5). In this case, the vehicle parts can be arranged by effectively using the dead space formed on the outer surface of the corner gusset. Further, the corner gusset can prevent interference between the vehicle component and the inflator.

  An impact absorbing member is disposed between the top seal disposed on the lower surface of the roof and the inflator (corresponding to claim 6). In this case, the impact absorbing member can reduce the impact when an object on the vehicle interior side moves toward the inflator.

The curtain airbag in the stowed state is disposed on the side surface of the corner gusset interior,
Of the corner gusset, a guide portion that is inclined toward the inner side in the vehicle width direction toward the lower portion of the curtain airbag in the housed state, and guides the inflation and deployment direction of the curtain airbag. Formed,
The guide portion is directed to a boundary portion between the top sealing and the center pillar trim;
(Corresponding to claim 7). In this case, the curtain airbag can be guided so as to be expanded and deployed toward the extending direction of the guide portion formed in the corner gusset. In particular, since the top sealing is easily deformed, the curtain airbag can be easily inflated and deployed in the vehicle interior. Of course, it is not necessary to provide a separate guide member for guiding the expansion and deployment direction of the curtain airbag, which is preferable in preventing an increase in the number of parts.

  According to the present invention, the strength of the roof side rail portion above the center pillar can be sufficiently improved by effectively utilizing the inflator mounting structure.

  1 to 3, reference numeral 1 denotes a roof side rail extending in the front-rear direction, and a pair of left and right roof side rails 1 are connected by a roof 2. The roof 2 is reinforced by a roof reinforcement 3 disposed below the roof 2.

  The roof side rail 1 is configured as a closed cross-sectional structure by an outer panel 11 and an inner panel 12. The roof side rail 1 is connected to an upper end portion of a center pillar 10 having a closed cross-sectional structure. In the embodiment, the center pillar 10 is configured by partially extending the outer panel 11 and the inner panel 12 in the roof side rail 1 downward. The panel (outer panel and inner panel) constituting the center pillar 10 is formed separately from the outer panel 11 and the inner panel 12 constituting the roof side rail 1, and the outer panel 11 and the inner panel 12 are formed separately. It can also be made to join.

  The center pillar 10 constitutes the rear edge of the front seat side door opening 15 and the front edge of the rear seat side door opening 16. The roof side rail 1 constitutes the upper edge portions of the side door openings 15 and 16.

  A plurality of the roof reinforcements 3 are provided at intervals in the front-rear direction. At the position of the center pillar 10, two roof reinforcements 3 are provided at small intervals in the front-rear direction. In this roof reinforcement 3, the flange portion 3 a formed at the outer end portion in the vehicle width direction includes the flange portion 11 a of the outer panel 11, the flange portion 12 a of the inner panel 12, and the vehicle width direction of the roof 2. The four flanges 2a formed on the outer end portion are joined to each other in an overlapping manner.

  The roof reinforcement 3 and the roof side rail 1 are connected by a corner gusset 20 at a position above the center pillar 10. The corner gusset 20 has its inner end in the vehicle width direction fixed to the roof reinforcement 3 by a fixture 21 and its outer end in the vehicle width direction fixed to the roof side rail 1 (inner It is fixed to the upper part of the panel 12. The corner gusset 20 is inclined so that a portion between the upper and lower fixtures 21 and 22 is gradually located on the inner side in the vehicle width direction from the lower side to the upper side. With such an inclination setting, a substantially triangular shape surrounded by the corner gusset 20, the roof side rail 1 (inner panel 12), and the roof reinforcement 3 is formed on the outer side in the vehicle width direction of the corner gusset 20. A space A having a closed cross-sectional structure is formed. By forming the space A having such a closed cross-sectional structure, the strength of the roof side rail 1 portion above the center pillar 1 is dramatically improved.

  A curtain airbag 30 in a housed state extending in the front-rear direction is disposed on the side surface of the interior of the roof side rail 1. The curtain airbag 30 in the stored state extends long in the front-rear direction across the center pillar 10 and extends over the entire upper edge portion of each side door opening 15, 16. The curtain airbag 30 in the accommodated state is disposed so as to pass through the side of the corner gusset 20 and the lower portion of the corner gusset 20.

  An inflator 40 for supplying a gas pressure for inflation and deployment to the curtain airbag 30 is attached to the side surface of the corner gusset 20 using the bracket 25. That is, the lower end portion of the bracket 25 is fixed by the fixing tool 23 in a state where the bracket 25 is inserted into and engaged with a small engagement opening 20 a formed at the upper portion of the upper end corner gusset 20. By such a bracket 25, the inflator 40 is firmly fixed to the corner gusset 20 while being pressed against the side surface of the corner gusset 20 and being sandwiched between the bracket 25 and the corner gusset 20. In addition, the bracket 25 may be fixed to the corner gusset 20 by a fixing tool at both upper and lower ends thereof.

  The inflator 40 is positioned directly above the curtain airbag 30 in the stored state. The corner gusset 20 is formed with a guide portion 20b so that the curtain airbag 30 in the stored state is inflated and deployed in a predetermined direction. That is, the guide portion 20b extends from the portion immediately below the lower fixture 22 in the corner gusset 20 so as to form an inclined surface toward the vehicle interior side, and the extending direction thereof is the top ceiling. 5 and the center pillar trim 6. That is, the top ceiling 5 is a soft member and covers the roof 2 and the roof reinforcement 3 from the vehicle interior side, and the outer end in the vehicle width direction has the center pillar 10 from the vehicle interior side. It is positioned so as to slightly overlap the upper end portion of the covering center pillar trim 6. The leading end portion of the guide portion 20 b is located at the boundary portion between the top sealing 5 and the center pillar trim 6.

  As a result, when the inflator 40 is detonated and gas pressure is supplied to the curtain airbag 30 in the stowed state, the curtain airbag 30 expands and deploys to the vehicle interior side while deforming the boundary portion of the top sealing 5. Will be. Since the outer end of the top ceiling 5 in the vehicle width direction is particularly easily deformed, the curtain airbag 30 is smoothly inflated and deployed into the vehicle interior without receiving a large resistance. Further, since the guide portion 20b is disposed so as to cover the upper opening of the center pillar trim 6, it is possible to prevent a situation in which the inflated and deployed curtain airbag 30 enters the center pillar trim 6. Will be.

  An attack absorbing member 35 is fixed to the upper surface of the top ceiling 5. The impact absorbing member 35 is formed of a soft member, and is disposed so as to almost entirely cover the surface of the inflator 40 toward the vehicle interior side from the vehicle interior side. As a result, even if an object in the vehicle interior moves toward the inflator 40 at a high speed, the impact is reduced by the impact absorbing member 35.

  A vehicle part 45 is disposed in the space A having the above-described closed cross-sectional structure. The vehicle component 45 has a cross-sectional area smaller than the cross-sectional area of the inflator 40, and is a component that extends long in the front-rear direction, such as an electric wiring, a signal line, or a hose. Such a vehicle component 45 is held at a predetermined position in the space A by a bracket 47 fixed to the inner panel 12 by a fixture 46. The bracket 47 may be attached to the outer side surface of the corner gusset 20.

  4 to 6 show a second embodiment of the present invention, and the same components as those in the above-described embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted. In this embodiment, a sunroof unit 50 is provided, and this unit 50 is shown in its outer end portion in the vehicle width direction in FIG. 6, and in a state in which the sunroof unit 50 is removed in FIGS. ing.

  The sunroof unit 50 includes an upper unit 50A having a lid member (a glass plate in the embodiment) 51 that opens and closes a large sunroof opening 2b formed in the roof 2, and an openable / closable structure disposed below the lid member 51. And a lower unit 50B having a sunshade 52. The upper and lower units 50A and 50B have an annular frame portion 53 or 54 in a plan view (a shape along the peripheral edge of the roof opening 2b), and the vehicle body via the frame portion 54 of the lower unit 50B. (Rule-Freshment 3). The upper unit 50A is held by the lower unit 50B at a position different from the position shown in FIG. Such a sunroof unit 50 is located on the inner side in the vehicle width direction than the inflator 40.

  The rule reinforcement 3 includes a first rule reinforcement 3A and a second rule reinforcement 3B. The first roof reinforcement 3A is formed in an annular shape in a plan view corresponding to the sunroof unit 50 (upper and lower units 50A and 50B) (shape along the peripheral edge of the roof opening 2b). Further, the second ru-reinforcement 3B has the inner end in the vehicle width direction joined to the first ru-reinforcement 3A and the outer end in the vehicle body in order to attach the first ru-reinforcement 3A to the vehicle body. (Mohawk section). Then, the second rule reinforcement 3B is made thicker (thick plate) than the first rule reinforcement 3A.

  The lower unit 50B of the sunroof unit 50 is fixed to the annular first rue reinforcement 3A at a plurality of locations (a plurality of locations extending in the vehicle width direction and a plurality of locations extending in the front-rear direction). Fixed). Among these fixed parts, the fixed part in the vicinity of the center pillar 10 is performed using the corner gusset 20. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, the corner gusset 20 is formed with an extending portion 20 c extending inward in the vehicle width direction with respect to the fixture 21 serving as a connecting portion to the roof reinforcement 3. ing. And the center pillar 10 vicinity is being fixed with the fixing tool 56 among the frame parts 54 in the lower unit 50B with respect to this extension part 20c. The lower unit 50B is fixed to the first rule reinforcement 3A via the mounting bracket 60 at a position shifted in the front-rear direction with respect to the fixture 56. When the extended portion 20c is not provided, a mounting bracket (corresponding to the mounting bracket 60) corresponding to the extended portion 20c is separately provided, and the frame body portion 54 and the roof reinforcement 3 are provided via the mounting bracket. Can be connected.

  The first ru-reinforcement 3A may not have a portion extending long in the front-rear direction, and the second ru-reinforcement 3B is integrally formed with the first le-reinforcement 3A. Alternatively, the first roof reinforcement 3A may be extended further outward in the vehicle width direction and the outer end in the vehicle width direction may be joined to the roof side rail 1).

  Although the embodiments have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments, and appropriate modifications can be made within the scope of the claims. Of course, the object of the present invention is not limited to what is explicitly stated, but also implicitly includes providing what is substantially preferred or expressed as an advantage.

The perspective view which showed the 1st Embodiment of this invention and looked at the coupling | bond part of a roof side rail and a center pillar from the vehicle interior side. The perspective view which shows the state which removed the curtain airbag from the state of FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view corresponding to line X3-X3 in FIG. 1. The perspective view corresponding to FIG. 2 which shows the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The figure which looked at the joint part of a roof side rail and a center pillar from the lower part in a 2nd embodiment. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view corresponding to line X6-X6 in FIG. 4.

Explanation of symbols

1: roof side rail 2: roof 3: roof reinforcement 3A: first roof reinforcement 3B: second roof reinforcement 10: center pillar 11: outer panel 12: inner panel 20: Corner gusset 20b: guide portion 20c: extension portion 21, 22: fixture 23: fixture (for inflator)
25: Bracket (for inflator)
30: Curtain airbag 35: Shock absorbing member 40: Inflator 45: Vehicle parts 50: Sunroof unit 50A: Upper unit 50B: Lower unit 53: Frame (for upper unit)
55: Frame body (for lower unit)
56: Fixing tool

Claims (7)

A curtain airbag, which is stored in the vehicle interior side surface of the roof side rail, is disposed to extend in the front-rear direction, and an inflator for supplying gas pressure to the curtain airbag is disposed immediately above the center pillar. In the arrangement structure of the installed curtain airbag device,
In the position of the center pillar, a roof reinforcement extending in the vehicle width direction is provided,
One end is connected to the roof side rail and the other end is connected to the roof reinforcement so as to bridge the roof side rail and the roof reinforcement. A corner gusset is provided,
The inflator is attached to the corner gusset,
An arrangement structure of a curtain airbag device characterized by that. In claim 1,
An arrangement structure of a curtain airbag device, wherein the inflator is arranged on a side surface of the corner gusset. In claim 2,
An arrangement structure of a curtain airbag device, wherein a sunroof unit for opening and closing a roof opening formed in the roof is provided on the inner side in the vehicle width direction from the inflator. In claim 3,
The corner gusset is formed with an extending portion extending inward in the vehicle width direction from the connection portion of the corner gusset to the roof reinforcement,
In the sunroof unit, the vicinity of the center pillar is fixed with respect to the extending portion.
An arrangement structure of a curtain airbag device characterized by that. In claim 2,
An arrangement structure of a curtain airbag device, characterized in that a vehicle part having a smaller cross-sectional area than the inflator is arranged on the outer side surface of the corner gusset. In claim 2,
An arrangement structure of a curtain airbag device, wherein an impact absorbing member is arranged between a top seal arranged on a lower surface of a roof and the inflator. In claim 1 or claim 2,
The curtain airbag in the stowed state is disposed on the side surface of the corner gusset interior,
Of the corner gusset, a guide portion that is inclined to the lower portion of the curtain airbag in the housed state and toward the inner side in the vehicle width direction as it goes downward, and guides the expansion and deployment direction of the curtain airbag. Formed,
The guide portion is directed to a boundary portion between the top sealing and the center pillar trim;
An arrangement structure of a curtain airbag device characterized by that.

Images