JP2014037165A - Curtain airbag - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a curtain airbag which quickly and sufficiently inflates and expands, in particular, a rear end with a simple structure.SOLUTION: An airbag 100 comprises: an inflator 106 attached to a rear end upper part; a gas guide part 118 which has a duct shape and extends from an attachment position of the inflator 106 to the vehicle front side; a rear chamber 128 provided at an area which is located at the vehicle rear side and below the gas guide part 118 and communicating with the gas guide part 118 at its upper part; an inner tube 122 which is disposed in the gas guide part 118 and protects the inner side of the gas guide part 118; a tube shaped chamber 130 which extends from an area in the gus guide part 118, which is located at the vehicle front side relative to the inner tube 122, to the vehicle rear side and the obliquely lower side toward the rear chamber 128 so that its diameter widens, the tube shaped chamber 130 which guides a gas to the rear chamber 128; and a non expansion part 132 enclosed by the gas guide part 118, the tube shaped chamber 130, and the rear chamber 128.

Description

  The present invention relates to a curtain airbag that inflates and deploys along a side surface of a vehicle interior for the purpose of protecting an occupant during a side collision or rollover (rollover) of a vehicle.

  In recent vehicles, an airbag is almost standard equipment as a safety device. A general airbag has a configuration in which an impact is detected by a sensor, gas is generated from an inflator (gas generating device) along with this, and the gas is inflated and deployed with the gas pressure. A curtain airbag, which is a kind of airbag, is mainly installed on a wall near the upper side of a side door, and inflates and deploys along a side window. Equipped with a curtain airbag to protect the occupant's head and suppress the occupant's release to the outside of the vehicle (improvement of out-of-vehicle release prevention performance) even when the vehicle transitions from a side collision to a rollover. It becomes possible.

  In order for the curtain airbag to exert its function suitably, it is necessary to inflate and deploy along the side window quickly and accurately. For example, in the curtain airbag described in Patent Document 1, in order to stabilize the position of the inflated and deployed curtain airbag, the front end of the curtain airbag is connected to the pillar with a strap.

JP 2009-202829 A

  As with other vehicle members, the curtain airbag is also required to have improved performance and compactness. In order to make the curtain airbag more compact while improving its performance, it is necessary to have a configuration that allows the curtain airbag to be inflated and deployed without waste to the target position (mainly the side window). In particular, it is necessary to supply the gas for inflating and expanding quickly and smoothly to the whole, and to sufficiently inflate and develop fine portions such as corners of the end portions.

  In view of such problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a curtain airbag capable of inflating and deploying a rear end quickly and sufficiently with a simple configuration.

  In order to solve the above problems, a typical configuration of a curtain airbag according to the present invention includes a plurality of chambers that are accommodated above a side surface in a vehicle compartment and inflated and deployed along the side surface by receiving gas. A curtain airbag that is long before and after the vehicle, and is attached to an upper part of the rear end of the curtain airbag to supply gas, and the gas from the attachment position of the inflator along the upper edge of the curtain airbag. A gas guide portion that guides the vehicle, a rear chamber that is located at the rearmost position of the vehicle among the plurality of chambers, a rear chamber that is provided below the gas guide portion and that communicates with the gas guide portion, and a gas guide A cylindrical inner tube disposed inside the gas guide portion so as to protect the portion from gas, and the rear channel from the mounting position of the inflator An inner tube that extends to the front of the vehicle from the rear chamber through the upper part of the vehicle, and branches obliquely downward at the rear of the vehicle from the position in front of the vehicle to the rear chamber from the inner tube of the gas guide portion, and gradually toward the rear of the vehicle. A tube-shaped chamber that extends so as to expand in diameter and guides gas to the rear chamber, and a gas guide portion, a tube-shaped chamber, and a non-expandable portion surrounded by the rear chamber are characterized in that it is provided.

  In the curtain airbag, first, an inflator is arranged at the upper rear end. With the arrangement at this position, the inflator can be attached to a place where an installation space such as an upper part of the rear pillar is easily secured. With this configuration, gas is normally supplied from the rear of the vehicle to the front of the vehicle. However, in the above-described configuration, a tubular chamber is provided, whereby gas is supplied to the rear chamber from the front of the vehicle. In particular, the diameter of the tubular chamber gradually increases toward the rear chamber. With this configuration, the rear chamber can be filled with gas quickly and smoothly to the corner portion at the rear end, and the rear chamber can be sufficiently expanded and deployed.

  Moreover, in the said structure, the gas capacity | capacitance is reduced by providing a non-expanding part in a gas guide part, a tubular chamber, and a rear chamber. As a result, the tubular chamber, the rear chamber, and the like are quickly filled with gas, and the inflation and deployment can be completed more quickly.

  Here, the upper portion of the rear chamber communicates with the gas guide portion. However, since the inner tube is provided inside the gas guide portion at this position, the gas is not supplied directly from the gas guide portion to the rear chamber, but is supplied from the tubular chamber as described above. . The reason why the upper portion of the rear chamber communicates with the gas guide portion is that no constriction or crease occurs here. With this configuration, the rear chamber after inflating and deploying is connected to the gas guide part and becomes thicker overall, so it is possible to reduce the amount of movement in the outward direction of the vehicle by contacting the occupant at an early stage and in addition to high impact. It is also possible to exert absorption capacity.

  The curtain airbag is stretched between a front chamber provided in front of the vehicle with respect to the tubular chamber and a region below the tubular chamber and surrounded by the tubular chamber, the front chamber, and the rear chamber. And a non-inflatable region. This non-inflatable region is given tension by the surrounding chambers expanding and developing. By having this non-inflatable region, the curtain airbag can protect a passenger in a wide range in the vehicle front-rear direction while suppressing the gas capacity.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, it becomes possible to provide the curtain airbag which can inflate-deploy especially a rear end quickly and fully with a simple structure.

It is the figure which illustrated the curtain airbag concerning embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which illustrated the deployment state at the time of the non-inflation of the curtain airbag of Drawing 1 (a). FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the rear chamber of FIG. 2 after being expanded and deployed. It is AA sectional drawing of Fig.3 (a), and a corresponding comparison figure.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The dimensions, materials, and other specific numerical values shown in the embodiments are merely examples for facilitating understanding of the invention, and do not limit the present invention unless otherwise specified. In the present specification and drawings, elements having substantially the same function and configuration are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted, and elements not directly related to the present invention are not illustrated. To do.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a curtain airbag according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1A illustrates the curtain airbag (hereinafter referred to as “airbag 100”) when not deployed, and FIG. 1B illustrates the airbag 100 deployed. Hereinafter, all the embodiments will be described as a curtain airbag for the right side surface of the vehicle 102 as shown in FIG. 1A and the like, but the curtain airbag for the left side surface has a similar symmetrical structure.

  As illustrated in FIG. 1A, the airbag 100 has a long shape in the front and rear direction of the vehicle, and is in a wound state or a folded state (not shown) in a side surface portion of the vehicle interior. It is attached to and stored in the upper roof side rail 104 (illustrated by an imaginary line in the figure). Usually, since the roof trim (not shown) covers the roof side rail 104, the stored airbag 100 is invisible from the vehicle interior.

  The airbag 100 includes an inflator 106 that is a gas generator. The airbag 100 is inflated by the pressure of gas supplied from the inflator 106 to restrain the occupant. An inflator 106 illustrated in FIG. 1B is a cylindrical so-called cylinder type, and is attached to the upper rear end of the airbag 100. This position is a position overlapping the upper part of the rear pillar 108. The rear pillar 108 can easily secure a mounting space for the inflator 106, and work efficiency at the time of mounting can be improved.

  In the state shown in FIG. 1A, when a side collision or rollover (rollover) occurs in the vehicle 102, a sensor (not shown) provided in the vehicle 102 first detects an impact, which causes the inflator. A signal is sent to 106. Then, the gas generating agent in the inflator 106 burns and the gas generated therefrom, or the compressed gas, or both gases are supplied to the airbag 100. When the airbag 100 receives the gas from the inflator 106, as illustrated in FIG. 1B, the airbag 100 is inflated and deployed downward along the side surface (side window 110, etc.) of the passenger compartment. Provide protection.

  FIG. 2 is a view illustrating the deployed state of the curtain airbag of FIG. 1A when not inflated. The airbag 100 illustrated in FIG. 2 is formed by spinning using OPW (One-Piece Woven) in this embodiment. As another example, the airbag 100 can be formed by stacking and sewing two base fabrics constituting the surface, or by bonding the two base fabrics. By these methods, the expansion region that expands due to the inflow of gas is formed in a bag shape.

  A plurality of tabs 112 are provided on the upper portion of the airbag 100 as a portion for attachment to the vehicle 102 (see FIG. 1A, etc.). The tab 112 is formed in a band shape, and the airbag 100 is attached to the roof side rail 104 by passing a bolt through the tab 112. A strap 114 is provided on the vehicle front side of the airbag 100. The strap 114 is a member that connects the airbag 100 and the front pillar 116, suppresses the swinging of the airbag 100 during inflation and deployment, stabilizes the deployment behavior, and applies tension to the airbag 100 in the vehicle longitudinal direction. Has the function of giving.

  Each part of the airbag 100 will be further described along the flow of gas inflow. First, a gas guide portion 118 is provided from the attachment position of the inflator 106 toward the front of the vehicle. The gas guide portion 118 has a duct shape and is provided along the upper edge 120 of the airbag 100. The gas supplied from the inflator 106 is first sent through the gas guide portion 118 to various places in the expansion region.

  In the present embodiment, an inner tube 122 is provided in the vicinity of the mounting position of the inflator 106 inside the gas guide portion 118. The inner tube 122 is provided in order to distribute the gas from the inflator 106 to the front chamber 126, the rear chamber 128, and the like in a well-balanced manner when deployed. If the inner tube 122 is not provided, the rear chamber 128 may be first filled with gas during deployment, and the deployment of the front chamber 126 may be delayed. The inner tube 122 is installed by forming a cloth into a cylindrical shape and sewing it. The inner tube 122 directly receives the gas supplied from the inflator 106 and guides the gas along the gas guide portion 118 to the front of the vehicle. . A predetermined protective agent may be applied to the inner tube 122 in order to improve durability.

  The expansion region, which is the destination of the gas from the gas guide unit 118, is partitioned into a plurality of chambers (small rooms). For example, in the present embodiment, a front chamber 126 is provided at a position next to the front seat 124a (see FIG. 1B). In addition, a rear chamber 128 is disposed at the position behind the rear seat 124b, which is the rearmost of the chambers. Each of these chambers restrains the occupant of each seat in an emergency and protects it from being released outside the vehicle.

  In the present embodiment, the configuration is devised so that the rear chamber 128 can sufficiently expand and deploy. In the airbag 100, a tubular chamber 130 is branched from the gas guide portion 118, and gas is supplied to the rear chamber 128 from the front of the vehicle by the tubular chamber 130. The tubular chamber 130 diverges from a position in front of the vehicle of the inner tube 122 in the gas guide portion 118 further ahead of the vehicle (branch point E1), and from there toward the rear chamber 128, the vehicle rearward and obliquely. It extends downward. And it leads to the vehicle front side of the rear chamber 128. The tubular chamber 130 gradually increases in diameter from the front side of the vehicle toward the rear side of the vehicle, that is, toward the rear chamber 128.

  A non-expandable portion 132 is provided above the tubular chamber 130. The non-inflatable portion 132 is a non-bag-like portion that does not swell and is formed by OPW (One-Piece Woven) or by sewing the front and back base fabrics. The non-expanding part 132 is an area surrounded by the gas guide part 118, the tubular chamber 130 and the rear chamber 128. By providing the non-expanding portion 132, the gas capacity is reduced and waste is eliminated, and the gas is quickly filled in necessary portions such as the tubular chamber 130 and the rear chamber 128. Therefore, the rear chamber 128 and the like can be inflated and deployed more quickly.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the rear chamber 128 of FIG. 2 after being expanded and deployed. FIG. 3A is a diagram illustrating the vicinity of the rear chamber 128 of the airbag 100 of the present embodiment, and FIG. 3B is a diagram illustrating the vicinity of the rear chamber 20 of the airbag 10 as a comparative example. The airbag 10 in FIG. 3B is different from the airbag 100 in FIG. 3A in that the tubular chamber 130 and the non-inflatable portion 132 are not provided.

  As described above, gas is supplied from the front of the vehicle to the rear chamber 128 of the airbag 100 in FIG. As a result, the rear corners 134 of the rear chamber 128 are filled with gas smoothly and sufficiently, and the rear chamber 128 can sufficiently expand and deploy. On the other hand, since the rear chamber 12 of the airbag 10 in FIG. 3B does not have the tubular chamber 130 and does not have the non-inflatable portion 132, the rear chamber 12 contracts toward the center of the airbag 10 in the front and rear direction of the vehicle. The vicinity of the corner 14 is degenerated. In addition, since the airbag 10 has no non-inflatable portion 132 and has a large gas capacity compared to the airbag 100, the completion of inflation and deployment is delayed compared to the airbag 100 even with the same gas supply amount (liter / hour). . Due to these differences, the rear end L1 of the rear chamber 128 of the present invention in FIG. 3 (a) is inflated and deployed further toward the vehicle rear side than the rear end L2 of the rear chamber 12 in FIG. 3 (b). It is possible to protect the occupant of the rear seat 124b (see FIG. 1) more appropriately.

  Reference is again made to FIG. The upper part of the rear chamber 128 communicates with the gas guide part 118. However, since the inner tube 122 is provided inside the gas guide portion 118 at this position, the gas is not supplied directly from the gas guide portion 118 to the rear chamber 128, and as described above, the tubular chamber 130. The reason why the upper portion of the rear chamber 128 communicates with the gas guide portion 118 is that a constriction or a crease does not occur here.

  FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. Fig.4 (a) is AA sectional drawing of Fig.3 (a). And in FIG.4 (b), the airbag 20 as a comparative example with respect to the airbag 100 of Fig.4 (a) is illustrated. The airbag 20 is different from the airbag 100 of FIG. 4A in that the gas guide portion 22 and the rear chamber 24 are separated by sewing (boundary 26). Compared with FIG. 4B, the rear chamber 128 of the present embodiment of FIG. Therefore, the rear chamber 128 is closer to the occupant than the rear chamber 24 of FIG. 4B, and can contact the occupant at an early stage to reduce the amount of movement in the vehicle outward direction. In addition, since the thickness is large, it is possible to exhibit a high impact absorbing power. Furthermore, since there is no constriction as in the vicinity of the boundary 26 in FIG. 4B, the shape is not easily broken when the occupant is received, and the occupant can be efficiently restrained.

  Still referring to FIG. In the present embodiment, a non-expanding region 136 is provided in a region below the tubular chamber 130 and surrounded by the tubular chamber 130, the front chamber 126, and the rear chamber 128. The non-inflatable region 136 is a non-inflatable portion formed by OPW (One-Piece Woven) or sewing a base fabric.

  Each chamber surrounding the non-expanded region 136 increases in thickness due to the inflow of gas. At this time, the shape expands in the vehicle width direction, and the shape contracts in the vehicle up-down direction and the vehicle front-rear direction. By this contraction and the strap 114 provided in front of the airbag 100, the non-inflatable region 136 is pulled and tensioned. By having such a non-inflatable region 136, the airbag 100 can appropriately protect the occupant in a wider range in the vehicle front-rear direction while suppressing the gas capacity.

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the embodiments described above are preferred examples of the present invention, and other embodiments can be implemented or performed in various ways. Can be carried out. The invention is not limited to the detailed shape, size, configuration, and the like of the components shown in the accompanying drawings unless otherwise specified in the present specification. In addition, expressions and terms used in the present specification are for the purpose of explanation, and are not limited thereto unless otherwise specified.

  Therefore, it is obvious for those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be conceived within the scope of the claims, and these naturally belong to the technical scope of the present invention. It is understood.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the example which applied the curtain airbag concerning this invention to the motor vehicle was demonstrated, it is also possible to apply to an aircraft, a ship, etc. besides a motor vehicle, and can obtain the same effect. it can.

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be used for a curtain airbag that inflates and deploys along a side surface of a vehicle interior for the purpose of protecting an occupant during a vehicle side collision or rollover (rollover).

E1 ... branch point, L1 and L2 ... rear end of rear chamber, 10 · 20 ... airbag of comparative example, 12 · 24 ... rear chamber of comparative example, 14 ... corner of rear chamber of comparative example, 22 ... of comparative example Gas guide part, 26 ... boundary between gas guide part and rear chamber, 100 ... airbag, 102 ... vehicle, 104 ... roof side rail, 106 ... inflator, 108 ... rear pillar, 110 ... side window, 112 ... tab, 114 ... Strap 116 116 Front pillar 118 Gas guide section 120 Upper edge 122 Inner tube 124a Front seat 124b Rear seat 126 Front chamber 128 Rear chamber 130 Tubular chamber 132 ... non-expandable part, 134 ... angle of rear chamber, 1 6 ... non-expansion area

Claims (2)

A curtain airbag that is housed above a side surface in a vehicle compartment and inflates and deploys along the side surface by receiving gas, and is long in the vehicle front and rear with a plurality of chambers,
An inflator attached to the upper rear end of the curtain airbag to supply the gas;
A gas guide portion for guiding the gas along the upper edge of the curtain airbag from the mounting position of the inflator;
A rear chamber located most rearward of the plurality of chambers, the rear chamber being provided below the gas guide portion, and an upper portion thereof communicating with the gas guide portion;
A cylindrical inner tube disposed inside the gas guide portion so as to protect the gas guide portion from the gas, and passes through the upper part of the rear chamber from the mounting position of the inflator and is more vehicle than the rear chamber. An inner tube extending forward;
The gas guide portion branches from the position in front of the vehicle to the rear chamber from the position in front of the inner tube toward the rear chamber, and extends so that the diameter gradually increases toward the rear of the vehicle to guide the gas to the rear chamber. A tubular chamber;
A curtain airbag, comprising: the gas guide portion, a tubular chamber, and a non-inflatable portion surrounded by the rear chamber. A front chamber provided in front of the tube-shaped chamber among the plurality of chambers;
2. The curtain air according to claim 1, further comprising a non-inflatable region under the tubular chamber and stretched in a region surrounded by the tubular chamber, the front chamber, and the rear chamber. bag.

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