JP2022152065A - air bag device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an air bag device which can mitigate damage when colliding with an obstacle.SOLUTION: An air bag device comprises: external air bags 30 which are arrayed at a front side of a vehicle 1 in a vehicle width direction; internal air bags 40 which are arrayed in the vehicle and behind the external air bags in the vehicle width direction; a pre-crash determination part 120 which establishes a pre-crash determination according to the possibility of crash against an obstacle; an air bag control part 110 which develops the external air bags according to the establishment of the pre-crash determination; and an external air bag shrinkage control part 110, 112 which separately controls shrinkage of the plurality of external air bags. The external air bag shrinkage control part shrinks an external air bag arranged at one end side among the external air bags crashed against an obstacle, keeps development of the other external air bags, and develops an internal air bag arranged behind the shrunk external air bag.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

The present invention relates to an airbag device having an airbag that deploys from the front portion of a vehicle such as an automobile to the outside of the vehicle.

In a vehicle such as an automobile, as a technology related to an airbag device that deploys to the outside of the vehicle, for example, in Patent Document 1, in a collision between a vehicle and a pedestrian, etc., a pedestrian, etc. who is thrown up falls and falls, and the head, face, etc. In order to prevent injury, it is described that a plurality of airbags deployed in front of the front bumper and arranged in the vehicle width direction are used.
Patent Literature 2 describes deploying a plurality of airbags around the vehicle body to suppress damage to the vehicle body in the event of a collision.
In addition, as a technology related to an airbag device provided in a vehicle, for example, Patent Document 3 discloses that the power unit is moved inward in the vehicle width direction by an airbag provided in a front side member at the time of a collision in order to improve the performance of a small lap collision. It is described to hit hard and displace the power unit so that it slips through the barrier.
Further, as a technique related to connecting a plurality of airbags to each other so that gas can flow, for example, Patent Document 4 discloses a first bag portion provided inside a front bumper and a first bag portion facing the occupant's knee portion. A configuration is described in which the second bag portion is communicated with the provided second bag portion, and the second bag portion expands in response to the compression of the first bag portion upon collision.
Patent Document 5 discloses an airbag device for protecting pedestrians, etc., in which a plurality of airbags are arranged on the bonnet, and gas is supplied from the front side bag body to the rear side and left and right bag bodies through a communication passage. is described.

Japanese Patent Application No. 2006-219119 Japanese Patent Publication No. 2008-526593 JP 2017-124678 A JP 2014-144661 A JP 2019-209923 A

In general, vehicles such as automobiles are designed in consideration of collapsing the front structure of the vehicle body to absorb the impact energy in the event of a frontal collision. As described in Patent Document 2, even if the airbag is deployed outside the vehicle, the load received by the airbag is transmitted to the vehicle body structural members, and the collision energy that cannot be absorbed by the airbag is transferred to the vehicle body. It will be absorbed by the collapse of the structure.
In many cases, such energy absorption is based on the assumption that another vehicle, which is the collision partner, will collide with the vehicle at a vehicle weight equivalent to that of the own vehicle at a relative speed of, for example, several tens of kilometers per hour.
However, in reality, there is a possibility that a collision with a vehicle larger than the own vehicle or a collision with a high-speed vehicle may occur, and it is assumed that sufficient energy absorption cannot be achieved only by crushing the vehicle body structure.
For this reason, it is desired to reduce the damage at the time of collision without excessively depending on the vehicle body structure.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the problems described above, an object of the present invention is to provide an airbag device capable of reducing damage when colliding with an object.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the airbag system of the present invention includes a plurality of external airbags arranged in the vehicle width direction, which are deployed forward from the front portion of the vehicle body of the vehicle, and a plurality of external airbags which are deployed inside the vehicle body. a plurality of in-vehicle airbags arranged in the vehicle width direction on the rear side of the exterior airbag; a pre-crash determination unit that establishes a pre-crash determination when the possibility of collision with an object is greater than or equal to a predetermined value; and an airbag controller that deploys the exterior airbag in response to a pre-crash determination, the airbag device including the exterior airbag deflation controller that individually controls deflation of the plurality of exterior airbags. The external airbag deflation control unit deflates the external airbag disposed on one end side in the vehicle width direction among the external airbags that have collided with the object, and deflates the other external airbag. It is characterized in that, while maintaining deployment of the exterior airbag, end-portion exterior airbag deflation control is performed to deploy the interior airbag arranged behind the deflation of the exterior airbag.
According to this, when an object collides with a part of a plurality of exterior airbags arranged in the front part of the own vehicle due to an offset collision, the vehicle width By deflating the exterior airbag on the end side in the direction and maintaining the deployment of the other exterior airbag, the deflated exterior airbag absorbs the collision energy and maintains the deployment on the side. The reaction force acting on the object from the external airbags and the inclination formed by the difference in front and rear of the front surface of each external airbag encourages the object to deviate outward in the vehicle width direction, and converts the collision energy of the object into kinetic energy. , the amount of collision energy absorbed by the own vehicle can be reduced, and damage can be suppressed.
In addition, by deploying the interior airbag provided behind the deflated exterior airbag, the load input from the exterior airbag to the vehicle body is supported, thereby suppressing damage to the vehicle body structure and preventing damage to the vehicle body. By appropriately generating a reaction force against the object, the effect of converting collision energy into kinetic energy can be further enhanced.

In the present invention, a communication passage for communicating the vehicle interior airbag and the exterior airbag arranged in the longitudinal direction, and a communication control valve opening and closing the communication passage, wherein the exterior airbag contraction control unit is Alternatively, the communication control valve may be opened to deflate the exterior airbag and deploy the interior airbag.
According to this, there is no need to provide a dedicated inflator for the in-vehicle airbag, and the above effects can be obtained while simplifying the device configuration.

In the present invention, the vehicle has a vehicle body structural member arranged to protrude forward from the cabin, and at least a portion of the plurality of vehicle interior airbags are deployed while being in contact with the surface of the vehicle body structural member. configuration.
According to this, when the in-vehicle airbag deploys, the surface of the vehicle body structural member receives a reaction force from the in-vehicle airbag, so that the in-vehicle airbag increases the resistance to suppress the deformation and damage of the vehicle body structure. The reaction force exerted on the object by the front external airbag can be increased, and the above effects can be promoted.

In the present invention, the external airbag contraction control section may be configured to suppress the contraction of the external airbag after the contracted external airbag has contracted over a predetermined stroke.
According to this, the necessary energy is absorbed by deflating the external airbag by a predetermined stroke, and the deflation is suppressed after that, thereby promoting the conversion of the remaining collision energy into kinetic energy. can be properly obtained.
In this case, the pre-crash determination unit has a function of determining the type of collision between the object and the own vehicle and the attribute of the object, and the external airbag deflation control unit determines the type of collision and the attribute of the object. Based on this, the predetermined stroke can be set.
According to this, when it is assumed that the weight of the object or the relative speed of the object is large and the collision energy is expected to be large, the predetermined stroke is set large to promote the energy absorption by the contraction of the external airbag, thereby reducing the vehicle body weight. Excessive energy input to the structure can be prevented, and damage to the vehicle body can be suppressed.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an airbag device capable of reducing damage when colliding with an object.

It is a figure showing typically composition of an embodiment of an air bag device to which the present invention is applied. It is a block diagram showing typically composition of a system which controls an air bag device of an embodiment. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the airbag device of the embodiment at the time of a collision; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a state after the vehicle having the airbag device of the embodiment has collided with another vehicle and the end-portion external airbag deflation control is performed;

An embodiment of an airbag device to which the present invention is applied will be described below.
The airbag device of the embodiment is provided, for example, in the front part of the vehicle body of an automobile such as a passenger car, and aims to reduce damage when the vehicle collides with an object such as another vehicle.
FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of an airbag device according to an embodiment.
FIG. 1 shows a state in which a vehicle having an airbag device according to an embodiment is viewed from above.
The vehicle 1 has, for example, a so-called two-box vehicle shape having an engine compartment 20 projecting forward from a vehicle interior 10 .

The passenger compartment 10 is a portion having a space in which a passenger and the like are accommodated.
The engine compartment 20 is a portion having a space for accommodating power train components P such as an engine, a transmission, and, in the case of an electric vehicle, a motor generator and control devices thereof.
The engine compartment 20 is provided with a front side frame 21, a bumper beam 22, a front bumper 23, and the like.

The front side frame 21 is a vehicle body structural member that protrudes forward of the vehicle from a toeboard (not shown) that is a partition wall provided at the front end of the vehicle compartment 10 .
The front side frame 21 functions as a base to which, for example, a powertrain, a cross member to which a front suspension is attached, a strut housing that accommodates an upper strut of a MacPherson strut type front suspension, and the like are attached.
The front side frame 21 has a rectangular closed cross section when viewed in the vehicle front-rear direction, for example, by assembling and welding members formed by press-molding a steel plate.

The bumper beam 22 is a vehicle body structural member provided in the front portion of the vehicle body and extending in the vehicle width direction.
The bumper beam 22 is formed into a beam shape with a closed cross-section, for example, by assembling and welding members formed by press-molding steel plates, or by using an extruded material of an aluminum-based alloy.
The bumper beam 22 has an intermediate portion connected to the front end portions of the left and right front side frames 21 .
Both ends of the bumper beam 22 in the vehicle width direction protrude outward in the vehicle width direction with respect to the front side frame 21 .
The bumper beam 22 is a load transmission member that transmits the load received from the collision opponent object to the center exterior airbag 30C, the right exterior airbag 30R, and the left exterior airbag 30L, which will be described later, to the rear side of the vehicle body via the front side frame 21. is.

The front bumper 23 is an exterior member provided at the front end of the vehicle body, and is constructed by attaching a bumper face, which is formed of, for example, a PP-based resin and constitutes a skin portion, to the vehicle body with a bracket or the like (not shown).
The front portion of the front bumper 23 is curved so that the front side of the vehicle is convex when the vehicle 1 is viewed from above.
The bumper beam 22 is formed in an arc shape that is convex toward the front of the vehicle along the curve of the front surface of the front bumper 23 when the vehicle 1 is viewed from above.

The airbag device of the embodiment includes a center exterior airbag 30C, a right exterior airbag 30R, a left exterior airbag 30L, a center interior airbag 40C, a right interior airbag 40R, and a left interior airbag 40L.
Each airbag is formed in a bag shape by joining panels made of a base fabric such as nylon 66 fabric, for example, and is blown with deployment gas generated by the inflator 111 in response to the establishment of the pre-crash determination. ,expand.

The center exterior airbag 30C, the right exterior airbag 30R, and the left exterior airbag 30L are deployed forward from the front surface of the front bumper 23 .
The center vehicle exterior airbag 30C is provided at the center of the vehicle body in the vehicle width direction.
The right exterior airbag 30R is provided adjacent to the center exterior airbag 30C on the right side in the vehicle width direction.
The left exterior airbag 30L is provided adjacent to the center exterior airbag 30C on the left side in the vehicle width direction.

The center exterior airbag 30C, the right exterior airbag 30R, and the left exterior airbag 30L are attached to the front portion of the bumper beam 22 in a folded state during normal operation (before the pre-crash determination is established), and are attached to the front bumper 23. housed inside.
At the time of a collision, each external airbag is fed forward with deployment gas from the inflator 111, thereby breaking the fragile portion formed in the front bumper 23 and being extended forward of the vehicle. Deploy to the anterior side.

The central in-vehicle airbag 40C, the right in-vehicle airbag 40R, and the left in-vehicle airbag 40L are provided in a region on the vehicle rear side of the bumper beam 22 and deploy toward the vehicle rear side.
The central in-vehicle airbag 40C is attached to the rear surface portion of the bumper beam 22 at the vehicle body central portion in the vehicle width direction.
The central in-vehicle airbag 40</b>C generates drag while being sandwiched between the rear surface of the bumper beam 22 and the front surface of the power train component P when deployed.

The right interior airbag 40R and the left interior airbag 40L are provided inside the vehicle behind the right exterior airbag 30R and the left exterior airbag 30L.
The right interior airbag 40R and the left interior airbag 40L are provided on the outside of the front side frame 21 in the vehicle width direction and on the rear side of the bumper beam 22, and deploy toward the vehicle rear side and the vehicle width direction outside.
For example, each in-vehicle air bag does not have a dedicated inflator, and can be deployed by introducing gas from an external air bag arranged in front thereof through a communication flow path.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram that schematically shows the configuration of a system that controls the airbag device of the embodiment.
A system for controlling the airbag device includes an airbag control unit 110, an environment recognition unit 120, a behavior control unit 130, and the like.
Each of these units can be configured as a microcomputer having, for example, an information processing section (processor) such as a CPU, a storage section such as a RAM and a ROM, an input/output interface, and a bus connecting them.
Further, each unit can communicate with each other by being connected directly or via an in-vehicle LAN such as a CAN communication system.

The airbag control unit 110 gives commands to the inflator 111 and the communication control valve 112 and controls them, thereby controlling the deployment state of each airbag and the contraction of the external airbag.
The airbag control unit 110 functions as an airbag deployment control section of the present invention.
In addition, the airbag control unit 110 cooperates with the communication control valve 112 to function as an external airbag deflation control section of the present invention.
The inflator 111 is a chemical (explosive) gas generator that generates deployment gas for deploying each external airbag in accordance with a command from the airbag control unit 110 .
The inflators 111 are provided independently for the right exterior airbag 30R, the center exterior airbag 30C, and the left exterior airbag 30L, respectively. , and the timing of starting deployment can be individually controlled.

The communication control valve 112 is a control valve that opens and closes a flow path that communicates each external airbag with each internal airbag according to a command from the airbag control unit 110 .
Between the center exterior airbag 30C and the center interior airbag 40C, between the right exterior airbag 30R and the right interior airbag 40R, and between the left exterior airbag 30L and the left interior airbag 40L are not shown. A communication channel is provided.
The communication control valve 112 has a function of individually opening and closing each of these communication channels.
The communication control valve 112 can be configured with, for example, an electromagnetic valve.

A pressure sensor 113 is provided in the airbag control unit 110 .
The pressure sensor 113 has a function of detecting the internal pressures of the right exterior airbag 30R, the center exterior airbag 30C, and the left exterior airbag 30L.
Based on the output of the pressure sensor 113, the airbag control unit 110 can determine the state of load input from other vehicles to the right exterior airbag 30R, the center exterior airbag 30C, and the left exterior airbag 30L.

The environment recognition unit 120 recognizes the environment around the vehicle based on the outputs of various sensors.
The environment recognition unit 120 has a function of recognizing, for example, various objects such as other vehicles, pedestrians, buildings, trees, and landforms around the vehicle 1 (own vehicle), road shape (lane shape), and the like.
The environment recognition unit 120 functions as a pre-crash determination section that establishes a pre-crash determination when a collision with an object such as another vehicle is unavoidable (when the collision probability is greater than or equal to a predetermined value).

The environment recognition unit 120 is connected with a stereo camera device 121, a millimeter wave radar device 122, a laser scanner device 123, and the like.
The stereo camera device 121 has a pair of cameras spaced apart by a predetermined distance (base line length), and recognizes objects such as other vehicles, pedestrians, and bicycle occupants, and uses known stereo image processing to , has the function of detecting the relative position of an object with respect to the vehicle 1 .
The stereo camera device 121 has a function of recognizing attributes of objects by pattern recognition of captured images. For example, when the object is another vehicle, it has a function of recognizing the size of the other vehicle (whether or not it is a large vehicle such as a truck, a bus, or a large SUV that is significantly heavier than the vehicle 1). .

The millimeter wave radar device 122 is, for example, a radar device using radio waves in a frequency band of 30 to 300 GHz, and has a function of detecting the presence or absence of an object and the relative position of the object with respect to the vehicle 1 .
A laser scanner device (LIDAR) 123 scans the periphery of the vehicle 1 by irradiating, for example, a pulsed near-infrared laser beam, and detects the presence or absence of an object and the vehicle based on the presence or absence of reflected light and the time difference until the reflected light returns. It has a function to detect the relative position of an object with respect to 1, the shape of the object, and so on.
For example, when a collision with an object such as another vehicle is unavoidable (when the pre-crash determination is established), the environment recognition unit 120 determines the collision mode with the object (for example, the velocity vector of the object with respect to the vehicle 1, the collision position, etc.) and the attributes of the object (for example, in the case of a vehicle, the vehicle type, vehicle shape, size, etc.) can be recognized.

The behavior control unit 130 controls the braking force of each wheel in a hydraulic service brake device (not shown) to perform vehicle behavior control for suppressing oversteering behavior or understeering behavior of the vehicle, antilock brake control, and the like. ing.
A vehicle speed sensor 131 , an acceleration sensor 132 , a yaw rate sensor 133 and the like are connected to the behavior control unit 130 .
The vehicle speed sensor 131 is provided adjacent to, for example, a hub bearing portion that rotatably supports a wheel, and outputs a vehicle speed signal having a frequency proportional to the rotational speed of the wheel.
The behavior control unit 130 has a function of calculating the traveling speed (vehicle speed) of the vehicle based on the vehicle speed signal.
The acceleration sensor 132 detects longitudinal acceleration and lateral acceleration acting on the vehicle body.
The yaw rate sensor 133 detects the yaw rate of the vehicle body.

Next, operation of the airbag device of the embodiment will be described.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the airbag device of the embodiment at the time of collision.
Each step will be described in order below.

<Step S01: Judgment of establishment of pre-crash determination>
The environment recognition unit 120 uses known pre-crash determination logic to estimate the possibility of a collision with another vehicle V approaching from the front of the vehicle 1 (an example of the object referred to in the present invention, see FIG. 4). Along with this, it is determined whether or not the estimated possibility is equal to or greater than a preset threshold.
If the possibility of a collision occurring is equal to or greater than the threshold, the pre-crash determination is made assuming that the collision is unavoidable, and the process proceeds to step S02. Otherwise, the series of processing ends (returns).

<Step S02: Deployment of all vehicle exterior airbags>
The airbag control unit 110 gives an operation command to the inflator 111 to deploy the right exterior airbag 30R, the center exterior airbag 30C, and the left exterior airbag 30L.
At this time, the communication control valve 112 is in a state of closing each communication channel.
After that, the process proceeds to step S03.

<Step S03: Collision Mode Recognition>
The airbag control unit 110 recognizes the type of collision of the other vehicle V with the vehicle 1 .
The collision mode can be recognized based on, for example, the internal pressure of each airbag detected by the pressure sensor 113 .
For example, when the internal pressure of some airbags is higher than the internal pressure of other airbags, it can be recognized that the other vehicle V is in contact only with the airbags. In particular, when the increase in internal pressure of one of the right airbag 30R or the left airbag 30L is greater than the increase in internal pressure of the central airbag 30C and there is no significant change in the internal pressure of the other of the right airbag 30R or the left airbag 30L. , another vehicle V, etc. can be recognized as an offset collision in which the vehicle mainly collides with either the right airbag 30R or the left airbag 30L.
In place of or in addition to the collision type recognition using the pressure sensor 113, the airbag control unit 110 performs collision type recognition based on the outputs of the environment recognition unit 120 and the behavior control unit 130. good too.
For example, an offset collision or the like may be determined based on the result of monitoring the relative position of the other vehicle V with respect to the vehicle 1 before and after the collision using the stereo camera device 121 or the like.
Also, based on the vehicle body behavior detected by the acceleration sensor 132 and the yaw rate sensor 133, an offset collision or the like may be determined.
After that, the process proceeds to step S04.

<Step S04: Offset Collision Determination>
The airbag control unit 110 determines whether or not the type of collision recognized in step S03 is a specific offset collision in which collision damage can be reduced by end-vehicle airbag deflation control, which will be described later.
For example, when the other vehicle V has a wrap rate with respect to the vehicle 1 of, for example, a predetermined value or less, and is in contact with the center exterior airbag 30 and either the right exterior airbag 30R or the left exterior airbag 30L, A specific offset collision can be determined if the collision occurs within a predetermined angular range.
Such a determination can be made, for example, based on the output of the pressure sensor 113, the environment recognition unit 120, or the like.
In this specification and the scope of the claims, the offset collision includes an oblique offset collision (so-called oblique collision) in which an object such as another vehicle collides along a direction inclined with respect to the longitudinal direction of the own vehicle. .
If the collision is determined to be a specific offset collision, the process proceeds to step S06. Otherwise (for example, a full-wrap collision or an offset collision in which the wrap rate is out of a predetermined range), the process proceeds to step S05.

<Step S05: Open all vehicle exterior airbag communication control valves>
The airbag control unit 110 gives a command to the communication control valve 112, and controls the communication between the right exterior airbag 30R and the right interior airbag 40R, the center exterior airbag 30C and the center interior airbag 40C, and the left exterior airbag. All the communication passages provided between 30L and the left interior airbag 40L are opened.
As a result, in the case of, for example, a full-wrap collision, the maximum energy absorption that can be achieved by the airbag system can be achieved by exhausting and deflating all of the exterior airbags in response to the collision.
After that, the process proceeds to step S07.

<Step S06: Collision Side Exterior Airbag Communication Control Valve Open>
The airbag control unit 110 gives a command to the communication control valve 112 to open one of the right vehicle exterior airbag 30R and the left vehicle exterior airbag 30L on the side where the collision with the other vehicle V occurs, and End-portion exterior airbag deflation control is performed to move the gas in the exterior airbag to the corresponding interior airbag and deflate the exterior airbag.
At this time, other communication channels are kept closed.
After that, the process proceeds to step S07.

<Step S07: Target Stroke Arrival Determination>
The airbag control unit 110 controls that the external airbag, which has opened the communication passage in step S05 or step S06, deflates while transferring gas to the internal airbag by the input from the other vehicle V, and the longitudinal dimension is set to a predetermined value. is reduced over the target stroke (impact absorption stroke).
For example, the target stroke can be set larger according to the increase in the size of the other vehicle V recognized by the environment recognition unit 120 (increase in the estimated weight of the other vehicle).
Also, the target stroke can be set larger according to, for example, an increase in the relative speed between the vehicle 1 and the other vehicle V recognized by the environment recognition unit 120 .
As a result, it is possible to increase the amount of energy absorbed by each external airbag when the collision energy is large.
If the external airbag that opens the communication passage deflates by the target stroke, the process proceeds to step S08; otherwise, step S07 is repeated.

<Step S08: Close communication control valve>
The airbag control unit 110 gives a command to the communication control valve 112 to close the communication passage opened in step S5 or step S06.
As a result, each airbag maintains its current shape and volume while transmitting the input received from the other vehicle V to the bumper beam 22 .
After that, the series of processing ends.

In the embodiment, as described above, when the pre-crash determination by the environment recognition unit 120 is established, the right exterior airbag 30R, the center exterior airbag 30C, and the left exterior airbag 30L are first installed as shown in FIG. unfold all.
For example, when the other vehicle V is in a front full-wrap collision with the vehicle 1 or an offset collision with a relatively large wrap rate (near a full-wrap collision), the airbag control unit 110 operates the communication control valve 112 to open all communication channels.
As a result, each exterior airbag can be deflated while transferring gas to each interior airbag, and collision energy can be absorbed by the deflation of the exterior airbag.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state after the vehicle having the airbag device of the embodiment collides with another vehicle and the end-portion external airbag deflation control is performed.
In the example shown in FIG. 4, the other vehicle V is in contact with only the left exterior airbag 30L and the center exterior airbag 30 from the front side of the vehicle 1, and is in a specific offset collision ( This is a collision that can reduce damage by controlling the deflation of airbags outside the vehicle at the ends.
In this case, the airbag control unit 110 gives a command to the communication control valve 112 to open the communication passage only between the left airbag 30L and the left interior airbag 40L, The contraction control of the end-exterior airbag is performed to keep the communication passages between the airbag 40C and between the right-side exterior airbag 30R and the right-side interior airbag 40R closed.

By deflating the end-portion exterior airbag, the left-side exterior airbag 30L starts to deflate, while the center-outside airbag 30C is maintained in the expanded state, so that the other vehicle V can be operated by the center-outside airbag 30C and the left-side airbag. Due to the imbalance of the reaction force received from the outside airbag 30L and the front-to-rear difference (inclination with respect to the vehicle width direction) between the center outside airbag 30C and the left outside airbag 30L, the left side in the vehicle width direction as viewed from the vehicle 1 Pushed to and turned.
For example, in the case shown in FIG. 4, the other vehicle V suddenly generates a leftward yaw moment due to the reaction force received from the left exterior airbag 30L, and moves away from the vehicle 1 while entering the spin mode. ing.
At this time, as the left-side vehicle airbag 30L deflates, the left-side vehicle airbag 40L deploys due to the movement of the gas.

The left interior airbag 40L suppresses damage to the vehicle body structural members such as bending of the bumper beam 22, for example, and suppresses displacement of the base of the left exterior airbag 30L. Support it so that it can give a reaction force.
The left in-vehicle airbag 40</b>L deploys in a state where the surface portion on the inner side in the vehicle width direction is in contact with the side surface portion of the front side frame 21 . The reaction force acting between the front side frame 21 and the left interior airbag 40L helps to maintain the shape of the left interior airbag 40L, and reduces the reaction force that the left interior airbag 40L can generate against the rearward movement of the bumper beam 22. Increase. The right in-vehicle airbag 40R also exerts the same function and effect when deployed.
In addition, the center vehicle exterior airbag 30</b>C has a function of preventing another vehicle V from entering the vehicle width direction inside of the vehicle 1 .
As a result, the collision energy when the other vehicle V collides with the vehicle 1 is converted into kinetic energy that causes the vehicles to deviate from each other and turn in opposite directions. Collision damage to the vehicle 1 and the other vehicle V can be reduced.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) When another vehicle V collides with a part of the right exterior airbag 30R, the center exterior airbag 30C, and the left exterior airbag 30L arranged in the front part of the vehicle 1 due to an offset collision, Out of the external airbags in the area where the collision occurs, the external airbags on the end side in the vehicle width direction are deflated and the other external airbags are kept deployed to prevent the collision with the deflated external airbags. The other vehicle V is tilted by the reaction force acting on the other vehicle V from the outside airbags that absorb the energy and are maintained to be deployed on the sides thereof, and the inclination formed by the front-to-rear difference between the front surfaces of the outside airbags. 1 is urged to deviate outward in the vehicle width direction, the collision energy of the other vehicle V is converted into kinetic energy, the collision energy absorption amount of the vehicle 1 is reduced, and damage can be suppressed.
In addition, by deploying the interior airbag provided behind the deflated exterior airbag, the load input from the exterior airbag to the vehicle body is supported, thereby suppressing damage to the vehicle body structure and preventing damage to the vehicle body. It is possible to increase the effect of appropriately generating a reaction force against the other vehicle V and converting collision energy into kinetic energy.
(2) Provided with a communication control valve 112 for opening and closing a communication passage that communicates the interior of the vehicle interior airbag with the exterior airbag arranged in the longitudinal direction, and the exterior airbag is contracted by opening the communication control valve 112. By deploying the vehicle interior airbag at the same time, there is no need to provide a dedicated inflator for the vehicle interior airbag, and the above effects can be obtained while simplifying the device configuration.
(3) By deploying the right interior airbag 40R and the left interior airbag 40L in contact with the side surface of the front side frame 21, which is a structural member of the vehicle body, these interior airbags prevent deformation and damage to the vehicle body structure. In addition to increasing the suppressing drag force, the reaction force applied to the other vehicle V by the front external airbag can be increased, and the above-described effects can be enhanced.
(4) After the deflated exterior airbag is deflated by a predetermined stroke, the deflation of the exterior airbag is suppressed so that the exterior airbag is deflated by a predetermined stroke to absorb the necessary energy, and after that, By suppressing the contraction, the conversion of the remaining collision energy to kinetic energy can be promoted, and the above effects can be properly obtained.
(5) When the target stroke for deflating the external airbag is set based on the type of collision and the size of the other vehicle V, and it is assumed that the weight and relative speed of the other vehicle V will be large and the collision energy will be large. By setting a large target stroke and promoting energy absorption by contraction of the external airbag, it is possible to prevent excessive energy from being input to the vehicle body structure and suppress damage to the vehicle body.

(Modification)
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications and changes are possible, which are also within the technical scope of the present invention.
(1) The configurations of the airbag device and the vehicle are not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be changed as appropriate.
For example, the structure, shape, material, manufacturing method, arrangement, number, and specific contents of various controls of each member and part constituting these are not limited to the embodiment and can be changed as appropriate.
(2) The method of performing pre-crash determination and the method of determining the collision mode are not limited to the method of the embodiment, and can be changed as appropriate.
(3) In the embodiment, for example, three exterior airbags are arranged in the vehicle width direction, but the invention is not limited to this, and for example, four or more exterior airbags may be arranged.
In this case, the number and arrangement of the four or more exterior airbags provided with the interior airbags are not particularly limited.
(4) In the embodiment, the airbag inside the vehicle is deployed by the exhaust air when deflating the airbag outside the vehicle. It is good also as a structure expanded by (gas generator). Further, the airbag outside the vehicle may be deployed together with a dedicated inflator for deployment of the vehicle interior airbag.

1 Vehicle 10 Interior 20 Engine Compartment 21 Front Side Frame 22 Bumper Beam 23 Front Bumper P Power Train Component 30R Right Outside Airbag 30C Center Outside Airbag 30L Left Outside Airbag 40R Right Inside Airbag 40C Center Inside Airbag 40L Left Inside Airbag 110 Airbag control unit 111 Inflator 112 Communication control valve 113 Pressure sensor 120 Environment recognition unit 121 Stereo camera device 122 Millimeter wave radar device 123 Laser scanner device 130 Behavior control unit 131 Vehicle speed sensor 132 Acceleration sensor 133 Yaw rate sensor V Other vehicle

Claims (5)

a plurality of exterior airbags arranged in the vehicle width direction and deployed forward from the front portion of the vehicle body;
a plurality of in-vehicle airbags deployed inside the vehicle body and arranged in the vehicle width direction on the rear side of the exterior airbag;
a pre-crash determination unit that establishes a pre-crash determination when the possibility of collision with an object is greater than or equal to a predetermined value;
an airbag control unit that deploys the vehicle exterior airbag in response to the establishment of the pre-crash determination,
an exterior airbag deflation control unit that individually controls deflation of the plurality of exterior airbags;
The external airbag deflation control unit deflates the external airbag disposed on one end side in the vehicle width direction among the external airbags that have collided with the object, and deflates the other external airbags. An airbag device that maintains deployment of an airbag and performs end-portion exterior airbag contraction control that deploys the interior airbag disposed behind the exterior airbag that is to be deflated. a communication passage for communicating the exterior airbag and the interior airbag arranged in the longitudinal direction;
a communication control valve that opens and closes the communication flow path,
The airbag device according to claim 1, wherein the external airbag deflation control unit deflates the external airbag and deploys the internal airbag by opening the communication control valve. The vehicle has a vehicle body structural member arranged to protrude forward from the cabin,
3. The airbag device according to claim 1, wherein at least some of the plurality of in-vehicle airbags deploy while being in contact with the surface of the vehicle body structural member. The deflation control section of the external airbag suppresses the deflation of the deflated external airbag after the deflated external airbag has deflated for a predetermined stroke. The airbag device according to any one of claims 1 to 3. The pre-crash determination unit has a function of determining a collision mode between the object and the own vehicle and an attribute of the object,
5. The airbag device according to claim 4, wherein the external airbag deflation control unit sets the predetermined stroke based on the collision mode and the attributes of the object.

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