JP3362608B2 - Airbag sensor mounting structure - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an automobile,
An airbag sensor that detects the impact force of a side collision to the vehicle body and operates the airbag for side collision is attached to the vehicle body.
The present invention relates to a mounting structure for an airbag sensor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, with increasing demands for safety measures in automobiles, an airbag device (also simply referred to as an airbag) has been developed and put into practical use. Such an airbag device is used when a vehicle collides with an occupant and a cabin structure (a steering wheel, a dash pad, a pillar, etc.).
It swells between the vehicle and the vehicle to prevent the occupant from directly hitting the vehicle interior structure to absorb the shock.

Such an airbag apparatus includes a side airbag apparatus (side airbag apparatus) in addition to a front-back airbag apparatus (simply referred to as an airbag apparatus). The airbag body is installed in front of the occupant such as the steering wheel in front of the driver's seat or the dashboard in front of the passenger seat so as to cope with a collision from the front-rear direction of the vehicle (generally the front). The airbag main body is installed on the side of the seat, the side portion in the seat, or the like so as to cope with a collision from the side.

In any of the airbag devices, the airbag body is always stored, and when the airbag sensor detects a front-back impact or a side impact, the inflator is actuated based on the detection signal to store the airbag. The airbag body is inflated to the required position.At this time, if the process from impact detection to inflation of the airbag body to the required position is not performed in an extremely short time, the cushioning of the occupant's vehicle interior structure is performed. Can not be done reliably.

In order to shorten the time from the impact detection to the inflation of the airbag body, it is of course important to improve the inflation response of the airbag body, but the impact on the vehicle is detected. The airbag sensor must also respond promptly to the impact. Of course, this airbag sensor must be one that responds only when the vehicle actually collides and does not have a false detection.

By the way, in the case of a front-rear airbag, a so-called crushable zone is provided in front of the vehicle body of the automobile, and a trunk room or the like is provided in the rear thereof, so that there is a space for absorbing the collision at the time of collision, and the passenger and Since the distance to the vehicle interior structure in front of it (steering handle, dashboard, etc.) is also relatively large, there is plenty of time for the airbag body to inflate after this collision.

However, in the case of a side airbag, there is no so-called crushable zone or the like on the side of the vehicle body of the automobile, and the distance between the occupant and the vehicle interior structure (pillar, etc.) on the side is extremely short. Therefore, there is very little time margin until the airbag body bulges after the collision. Therefore, in the lateral airbag device, it is further desired to improve the inflation response of the airbag body and the detection response of the airbag sensor.

In particular, the airbag sensor is not only required to have responsiveness, but is also required to have detection accuracy such that it reliably reacts at the time of a side collision affecting an occupant but does not unnecessarily cause an erroneous reaction. Of course, of course. Further, no matter how good the performance of the airbag sensor is, if the sensor is not properly installed, it is not possible to detect the collision (impact force) with good responsiveness as described above. Therefore, how to install the airbag sensor becomes more important as well as improving the performance of the airbag sensor itself.

Further, when detecting a side collision, it is necessary to provide an air bag sensor in the vicinity of a portion of the vehicle body where a side collision is predicted. Whether to install it in a place is also an issue in this respect. Therefore, for example, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-1035, a transmission member is fixed to an impact bar in a side door so that the impact force at the time of a side collision can be transmitted from the impact bar in the side door to the transmission member. A technique is disclosed in which the G sensor (airbag sensor) is transmitted via the above.

That is, as shown in FIG. 8, the side door 1
01, the upper end (base end) of the transmission member 133 formed by bending a metal rod is firmly fixed to the impact bar 104, and the lower end (tip) of the transmission member 133 is attached to the side sill 120 below the side door 101. The G-sensor (airbag sensor) 131 installed inside the vehicle is extended to the pressure receiving element 132, and the impact force is generated when the side collision occurs.
It is configured to transmit from the impact bar 104 in 01 to the pressure receiving element 132 of the G sensor 131 via the transmission member 133.

In FIG. 8, reference numerals 102 and 103 denote an inner panel and an outer panel of the side door 101, respectively.
Is a trim, 106 is an armrest, 109 is a door glass, and the airbag unit 110 is an armrest 10
Installed in 6. In addition, the airbag unit 110
Accommodates an inflator 112 and a folded side airbag body 113 in a casing 111.

In addition to this, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-18807
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-75, there is also proposed a technique of attaching an airbag sensor to a floor pan near a cross member of a vehicle body.

[0013]

However, in the above-mentioned first prior art (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-1035), the transmission member for inputting the displacement of the impact bar to the airbag sensor is properly loaded especially at the initial stage of the collision. It is considered difficult to put into practical use because transmission is difficult and the mounting structure is complicated.

Further, since the tip end side of the transmission member easily swings during the normal door opening / closing operation, it is difficult to perform relative positioning between the pressure receiver of the airbag sensor and the tip end portion of the transmission member.
Further, since the tip end side of the transmission member is likely to swing, there is a risk that the tip end portion of the transmission member may collide with the pressure receiver of the airbag sensor and cause the airbag sensor to malfunction even before the collision.

Further, the above-mentioned second prior art (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-1
No. 88077) has a structure for detecting a collision through a floor pan, the sensitivity for detecting the collision is low, it is difficult to detect the collision efficiently and with good response, and it is also necessary to secure the rigidity of the cross member. There is also a problem that the cost and cost increase. The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and enables a simple structure to be easily installed by effectively utilizing the space in the vehicle body without causing an increase in weight and cost, and a response of impact detection. It is an object of the present invention to provide a mounting structure for an airbag sensor, which can improve the practicability and accuracy of the side airbag device and improve the practicality of the side airbag device.

[0016]

Therefore, the mounting structure of the airbag sensor of the present invention according to claim 1 operates the airbag for side collision by detecting the impact force of the side collision to the vehicle body of the automobile. airbag sensor to the mounting of the air bag sensor which is fixed to the inside of the mounting portion of the door hinge of the vehicle body
In the structure, the hinge ring is installed inside the door hinge mounting portion.
Equipped with a force, the airbag sensor
A mounting means different from the mounting means for mounting the engine to the vehicle body.
The sensor board attached to the hinge reinforcement
It is characterized by being fixed to the racket .

The mounting structure of the air bag sensor of the present invention 請 Motomeko 2 wherein, in the structure according to claim 1, wherein said door hinge is equipped with a center pillar, the sensor bracket, respectively the hinge the upper and lower end portions Characterized by being bound to the reinforcement.

It is preferable that one of the upper and lower ends of the sensor bracket is connected to the hinge reinforcement and the other end is connected to a constituent member of the center pillar. According to a third aspect of the present invention, the airbag sensor mounting structure according to the second aspect is the structure according to the second aspect, wherein the sensor bracket has at least three support points at both upper and lower ends thereof, the hinge reinforcement and the center pillar. It is characterized in that it is connected to the constituent members of.

[0019]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 5 shows a mounting structure of an airbag sensor as an embodiment, and FIGS. 5 to 7 show a mounting structure of an airbag sensor as a second embodiment of the present invention.

First, the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In this mounting structure, as shown in FIG. 4, the airbag sensor 1 for the side collision airbag is mounted inside the mounting portions of the door hinges 4 and 5 mounted to the center pillar 3 of the vehicle body 2 of the automobile. It should be noted that the door hinges are usually arranged in upper and lower portions as indicated by reference numerals 4 and 5, and the airbag sensor 1 is provided with one of the door hinges 4 and 5.
It is attached inside the mounting part.

Although the door hinges 4 and 5 attached to the center pillar 3 are for the rear door, the front pillar 6 is also provided with two upper and lower door hinges for the front door (not shown). In either case, since the door hinge supports the door which is a heavy object, the mounting portion of the door hinge is generally provided with a hinge reinforcement to be described later on the inside to increase rigidity, and in this mounting structure, The airbag sensor 1 is attached to such a highly rigid door hinge attachment portion.

The door hinge mounting portion is installed in such a high rigidity portion as the door hinge mounting portion has high mechanical transmission efficiency for input of impact force, and the airbag sensor 1 should be installed in this portion. Then, the airbag sensor 1
This is because the detection sensitivity of can be sufficiently exerted. In the present embodiment, the airbag sensor 2 is attached to the lower door hinge 4, but it is considered that the lower door hinge 4 is more likely to be directly impacted when a side collision occurs. If the upper door hinge 5 is more likely to be directly impacted during a side collision, the airbag sensor 2 may be attached to the upper door hinge 5.

Further, in this embodiment, the front pillar 6 is
Instead, the airbag sensor 1 is attached to the door hinge mounting portion of the center pillar 3, but this is because the center pillar 3 at the center in the front-rear direction of the vehicle body 2 substantially corresponds to the seat back position of the driver's seat or the passenger seat. It is considered that a large impact is applied to the center pillar 3 at the time of a side collision that affects passengers such as the driver's seat and the passenger seat.
This is because by attaching the airbag sensor 1 to the vehicle, it is possible to quickly detect a side collision that affects an occupant.

This mounting structure will be described in detail. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the center pillar 3 is the outer panel 3A.
And the inner panel 3B, and the door hinge 4 is fixed to the outer surface of the outer panel 3A. 4A is a weld nut for fastening a door hinge fixing bolt (not shown). A hinge reinforcement 7 is welded to the inside of the mounting portion of the door hinge 4, that is, the inner surface of the outer panel 3A of the center pillar 3, in order to increase the rigidity of the door hinge mounting portion. Then, the sensor bracket 8 is coupled to the hinge reinforcement 7, and the airbag sensor 1
Are fixed to the sensor bracket 8.

That is, the flange-shaped portions 7A and 7B are formed at the upper and lower ends of the hinge reinforcement 7, and the upper flange-shaped portion 7A has two bolt holes 12 and 12 and the lower flange-shaped portion 7B. Each has one bolt hole 12. On the other hand, the sensor bracket 8 is formed with two legs 8A, 8B, 8C on the upper side and one leg on the lower side, and one bolt hole 12 is formed in each leg 8A, 8B, 8C. Has been done.

Then, the sensor bracket 8 has the leg portions 8
Bolts and nuts 9 are attached to the corresponding flange-shaped portions 7A and 7B above and below the hinge reinforce 7, respectively.
Are joined by fastening. Further, the airbag sensor 1 is connected so as to send a detection signal to an inflator (not shown) of a side airbag for the front seat (driver's seat or passenger seat), for example, a G sensor (acceleration sensor). When the configured airbag sensor 1 responds to a side impact impact force and issues an impact force detection signal (that is, when an acceleration of a predetermined acceleration or more is detected and a signal to that effect is issued), the inflator operates and responds. The side airbag is inflated.

In FIG. 3, 10 is a front door, 10A is its outer panel, 10B is its inner panel, 11 is a rear door, 11A is its outer panel, and 11B is its inner panel. The mounting structure of the airbag sensor according to the first embodiment of the present invention is
With the above-described configuration, when there is a collision from the side of the vehicle body of the vehicle, this impact force is applied to the mounting portion of the door hinge 4, as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 3, for example.

That is, the colliding object from the side collides with the outer panels 10A and 11A of the front door 10 and the rear door 11 from the outside of the vehicle body side and deforms them, and enters the vehicle compartment side to be deformed. Outer panel 10A, 11A
When the colliding object reaches the door hinge 4, the impact force is applied to the mounting portion of the door hinge 4. Door hinge 4
The impact force applied to is transmitted to the sensor bracket 8 from the hinge reinforcement 7 installed on the back surface through the flange-shaped portions 7A and 7B, reaches the airbag sensor 1, and causes the airbag sensor 1 to react.

When the airbag sensor 1 receives an acceleration of, for example, a predetermined acceleration or more due to this impact force,
In response to this, a detection signal is sent to the inflator of the side airbag, so that the inflator operates and the corresponding side airbag inflates. When the airbag sensor 1 reacts, the input of impact force to the airbag sensor 1 is transmitted from the extremely high rigidity door hinge mounting portion in which the door hinge 4 and the hinge reinforcement 7 are superposed, so that mechanical transmission efficiency is improved. The airbag sensor 1 can be made to react in an extremely short time after the impact force is input. It was but <br/>, sufficiently to exhibit the detection sensitivity of the airbag sensor 1, it is possible to realize a rapid swelling of the side airbag.

By attaching the airbag sensor 1 to such a high-rigidity portion, an impact force of a predetermined level,
That is, while the airbag sensor 1 is made to react reliably to the side impact force of a level that affects the occupant such as the driver's seat or the passenger's seat, other force to the vehicle, that is, the driver's seat or the passenger's seat, etc. It is also extremely advantageous in properly reacting the airbag sensor 1 by preventing the airbag sensor 1 from reacting to an external force that does not affect the occupant.

Further, since the sensor bracket 8 is supported at three points, will be the sensor bracket 8 is firmly supported by the hinge reinforcement 7, in this regard, the airbag sensor 1 is unnecessary disturbance effects It is hard to receive and contributes to the proper reaction of the airbag sensor 1.
Furthermore, since there is usually some installation space inside the door hinge 4, that is, inside the hinge reinforcement 7,
It is also convenient to install the airbag sensor 1, and there is also an advantage that the workability of installing the airbag sensor 1 is improved.

As described above, in the present mounting structure, it is possible to easily utilize the space in the vehicle body without increasing the weight and the cost due to the simple structure, and moreover, it is possible to provide the shock detection response and the responsiveness. The accuracy can be improved and the practicality of the side airbag device can be improved. Next, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

In the mounting structure of the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the installation position and installation structure of the sensor bracket 8 are different from those of the first embodiment. Therefore, this part will be described and the first embodiment will be described. The description of the same parts as those in the embodiment (the reference numerals are the same as those in the first embodiment) will be omitted. That is, in the present embodiment, the sensor bracket 18 is coupled to the inside of the mounting portion of the door hinge 4, that is, the hinge reinforcement 7 welded to the inner surface of the outer panel 3A of the center pillar 3 and the inner panel 3B of the center pillar 3. ing.

That is, a flange-shaped portion 7A is formed at the upper end portion of the hinge reinforcement 7, and the flange-shaped portion 7A is formed.
Two bolt holes 12, 12 are formed in A. Further, one bolt hole 12 is formed in the inner panel 3B. On the other hand, the sensor bracket 18 has 1
Two leg portions 18A, 18B, 18C are formed on the lower side of the book, and one bolt hole 12 is formed on each leg portion 18A, 18B, 18C.

The sensor bracket 8 has a leg portion 8A.
To the inner panel 3B, and the leg portions 8B and 8C to the flange-shaped portion 7A of the hinge reinforcement 7, respectively, through corresponding bolt holes 12 by fastening bolts and nuts 9. Since the air bag sensor mounting structure according to the second embodiment of the present invention is configured as described above, as with the first embodiment, the simple structure does not cause an increase in weight or cost and is not required in the vehicle body. Therefore, the space can be effectively utilized for easy installation, and the responsiveness and accuracy of impact detection can be improved to improve the practicality of the side airbag device.

In each embodiment, the sensor bracket 8 is supported at three points, but it is necessary to support the sensor bracket 8 at at least three points that are not on the same line in order to make the airbag sensor 1 react properly. It is effective and is not limited to the three-point support as in each embodiment. It is more effective to install the sensor bracket 8 on the door hinge mounting portion of the center pillar as in each embodiment, but it may be mounted on the door hinge mounting portion of another pillar.

[0037]

As described in detail above, according to the mounting structure of the airbag sensor of the present invention as defined in claims 1 to 3 , the responsiveness and accuracy of impact detection are improved while the structure is simple. It is possible to improve the practicability of the side airbag device, suppress the increase in weight and cost required for mounting, and since the space inside the vehicle body can be effectively used for installation, the installation workability is also good. become.

When the center hinge is equipped with the door hinge as described in claim 2, a side air bag device for protecting an occupant of a seat (driver's seat, passenger seat, etc.) near the center pillar is provided. Contributes to improved performance. Further, as described in claims 2 and 3 , the upper and lower end portions of the sensor bracket are respectively connected to the hinge reinforcement, which greatly contributes to the improvement of the response and accuracy of impact detection.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a center pillar portion showing a mounting structure of an airbag sensor according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view (a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 1) of the center pillar portion showing the attachment structure of the airbag sensor according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view (a view corresponding to a cross section taken along the line BB of FIG. 1) of the center pillar portion showing the attachment structure of the airbag sensor according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of an essential part of the vehicle body showing the position of the attachment structure of the airbag sensor according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view of a center pillar portion showing an air bag sensor mounting structure according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view (cross-sectional view taken along the line C-C of FIG. 5) of the center pillar portion showing the attachment structure of the airbag sensor according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view (a view corresponding to a cross section taken along the line D-D of FIG. 5) of the center pillar portion showing the attachment structure of the airbag sensor according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a schematic view showing a conventional air bag sensor mounting structure.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Airbag Sensor 2 Body 3 Center Pillar 3A Center Pillar 3 Outer Panel 3B Center Pillar 3 Inner Panel 4,5 Door Hinge 4A Weld Nut 6 Front Pillar 7 Hinge Reinforce 7A, 7B Hinge Reinforce 7 Flange 8 and 18 Sensor bracket 8A, 8B, 8C, 18A, 18B, 18C Sensor bracket leg 9 Bolt & nut 10 Front door 10A Front door 10 outer panel 10B Front door 10 inner panel 11 Rear door 11A Rear door 11 outer panel 11B Rear door 11 inner Panel 12 bolt holes

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Masatsune Yamane 5-3-8 Shiba, Minato-ku, Tokyo Within Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (72) Inventor Susumu Nishimoto 5-33-8 Shiba, Minato-ku, Tokyo Within Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (56) Reference JP-A-9-118193 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B60R 21/16-21/32

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A airbag sensor airbag sensor operating the side airbag by detecting the impact force of the side impact to the vehicle body is fixed to the inside of the mounting portion of the door hinge of the vehicle body In the mounting structure of, the hinge reinforcement is equipped inside the door hinge mounting part.
The airbag sensor attaches the door hinge to the vehicle body.
By means of attachment means other than the attachment means
Fixed to the sensor bracket attached to the
The air bag sensor mounting structure is characterized in that 2. The center hinge is equipped with the door hinge.
In addition, the sensor bracket is
Has one end connected to the hinge reinforcement and the other end connected to the hinge reinforcement.
The attachment structure for an airbag sensor according to claim 1, wherein the attachment structure is connected to a component of a tapilla . 3. The sensor bracket has the hinge reinforcement at at least three or more supporting points at both upper and lower ends thereof.
And characterized in that it is coupled to a component of the center pillar, the mounting structure of the air bag sensor of claim 2 wherein.